Marooned — Sharon Maria Bidwell

The sexual evolution of the marooned spaceman.

When he's marooned on a strange planet, cosmonaut Vernon Attwater thinks his only problem is one of possibly ending up as reptile poo -- especially when the reptile chasing him looks like something out of an old science fiction movie. Little does he know that the alien who saves his life is about to complicate matters in ways he never imagined… ways that make him sigh, pant, groan and gasp with pleasure. Even so, surely he can control his own yearnings, especially when he's never previously felt such desires, being that the alien may look androgynous but is decidedly male in every way that matters.

Cresszna seems to have other ideas and is rather persistent. It doesn't help that Vern knows he's sending out mixed messages. He keeps saying no even as his body is saying yes, and feels rather shocked by the overwhelming sense of loss when it seems Cresszna is prepared to accept his rejection.

There's no way home, and Cresszna is the only intelligent humanoid life-form he's run into. Would life -- and sex -- with the alien truly be so bad, especially when Vern's experiencing sensations he didn't know he was capable of feeling? Trouble is, there appears to be a price to pay if he wants to be Cresszna's mate -- one that's even more amazing than the strange things he's so far encountered on the planet.