Free Heroic Abduction by Eve Langlais

think they were cute.
    “Where are we going?” he asked.
    “The tavern.”
    “I have alcohol on my ship,” he pointed out.
    “I’m not going there to drink.”
    “Then why are we going there?”
    The real reason: to listen for rumors. Betty wasn’t the first orphan to leave the nest with a Zonian sister. Thing was, they’d lost communication with the first pair. But she didn’t tell Dyre that. She messed with him instead. “I am going to see if there’s any hot hunks that I can club over the head and drag back to the ship for some no-strings, hot and sweaty sex.”
    She expected a reaction. What she didn’t expect was growling. She spun around looking for an enemy, but only Dyre stood stock still at her back. He must have heard the sound, too, because his eyes practically glowed.
    “What the heck was that?” she hissed, peering around him, looking for the source.
    “You will not find anyone suitable here,” he stated instead of answering her question.
    “How would you know? It’s not like you’ve had time to visit the place.”
    “I have already told you I am willing to accommodate your needs.”
    “Yeah, but what if you’re not my type?” Why did she deliberately challenge him? Who cared, the result was worth it.
    “I believe we have already ascertained our compatibility. But I am more than willing to prove it again.” He grabbed her by the waist and hoisted her until she was eye level, and their lips aligned. And meshed. And clung.
    Oh my.
    She’d had time to wonder since their last embrace if she’d imagined the fiery passion of it. Time to convince herself that it was just her dry spell that made her think the kiss was out-of-this-world awesome. Dry spell or not, it was just as wonderful as she recalled. Just as all-consuming, riveting and … so inappropriate given their location.
    She drew back, her breath short, her blood coursing like molten fire through her veins. “Okay, so you’re possibly my type.”
    “Definitely your type,” he asserted.
    “I still need to go to this tavern.” Before he could object, she threw him a reason, one his honorable self could handle. “I’m looking for a friend who’s gone missing. Two of them actually.”
    To her surprise, he didn’t pepper her with questions. “Another damsel in need?”
    “Yes. My best friend as a matter of fact.”
    “What are we waiting for, then?” Dyre practically dragged her the rest of the way, his eagerness irritating her.
    He could have shown a little less enthusiasm. Maybe argued a little more, you know with his mouth on hers. But she’d given Dyre a quest, and he seemed determined to help her, in the most obtuse way possible.
    They entered the tavern without any subtlety what so ever. Dyre strode in, head high, shoulders back, and furry Darth Vader cloak swirling around him. Truthfully, he was kind of hot. Problem was, he drew way too much attention, especially when he jumped on a table, scattering glasses, some still filled with drinks.
    He pushed his hood back before bellowing, “We seek information on my lady’s missing friends. A—” he peeked down at her and in a not-so-quiet whisper said, “What are they?”
    “Human and Zonian,” she muttered, resisting the urge to close her eyes and smack her head off something.
    “A human and a Zonian. Anyone with information, please come forth.”
    Not surprising, no one moved.
    Atop his tabletop perch, Dyre pivoted, scanning the large room. “No one has seen such a pair?”
    Dead silence.
    “I thank you, dear patrons, for your time. Should you think of something, though, my lady and I will be at the table over there.” He pointed to the empty one without a wall to support a back, the one that everyone avoided.
    Betty dragged her feet as she followed her purple dumbass to it. Plopping into the seat across from him, she grumbled, “Could you have been any less obvious?”
    “You think I was not clear enough? Did my query not carry? I could ask again, louder