MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR SERIES

AVA ROSS

For my mom, who told me to write the damn book.

For my family, who are endlessly supportive.

And for my critique partners who made this book awesome.

Contents

Vork

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Bonus Epilogue

BRYK

BRYK

1.  SADIE

2.  BRYK

3.  SADIE

4.  BRYK

5.  SADIE

6.  BRYK

7.  SADIE

8.  BRYK

9.  SADIE

10.  BRYK

11.  SADIE

12.  SADIE

13.  BRYK

14.  SADIE

15.  BRYK

16.  SADIE

17.  BRYK

18.  SADIE

19.  BRYK

20.  SADIE

21.  BRYK

22.  SADIE

23.  BRYK

24.  SADIE

25.  SADIE

Bonus Epilogue

JORG

JORG

1.  JORG

2.  LILY

3.  JORG

4.  LILY

5.  JORG

6.  LILY

7.  JORG

8.  LILY

9.  JORG

10.  LILY

11.  JORG

12.  LILY

13.  JORG

14.  LILY

15.  JORG

16.  LILY

17.  One Week Later – LILY

Bonus Epilogue

KRAL

KRAL

1.  Mila

2.  Kral

3.  Mila

4.  Kral

5.  Mila

6.  Kral

7.  Mila

8.  Kral

9.  Mila

10.  Kral

11.  Mila

12.  Kral

13.  Mila

14.  Kral

15.  Mila

16.  Kral

17.  Mila

18.  Kral

19.  Mila

20.  Kral

21.  Mila

22.  Kral

23.  Mila

24.  Kral

25.  Mila

26.  Kral

27.  Mila

28.  Kral

29.  Ten Days Later - MILA

Bonus Epilogue

WULF

WULF

1.  Taylor

2.  Wulf

3.  Taylor

4.  Wulf

5.  Taylor

6.  Wulf

7.  Taylor

8.  Wulf

9.  Taylor

10.  Wulf

11.  Taylor

12.  Wulf

13.  Taylor

14.  Wulf

15.  Taylor

16.  Wulf

17.  Taylor

18.  Wulf

19.  Taylor

20.  Wulf

21.  Taylor

Bonus Epilogue

LYEL

LYEL

1.  Lyel

2.  Isi

3.  Lyel

4.  Isi

5.  Lyel

6.  Isi

7.  Lyel

8.  Isi

9.  Lyel

10.  Isi

11.  Lyel

12.  Isi

13.  Lyel

14.  Isi

15.  Lyel

16.  Isi

17.  Lyel

18.  Isi

19.  Lyel

20.  Isi

21.  Lyel

22.  Isi

23.  Lyel

24.  Isi

25.  Lyel

26.  Isi

27.  Lyel

28.  Isi

29.  Lyel

30.  Isi

Bonus Epilogue

AXIL

AXIL

1.  Julia

2.  Axil

3.  Julia

4.  Axil

5.  Julia

6.  Axil

7.  Julia

8.  Axil

9.  Julia

10.  Julia

11.  Axil

12.  Julia

13.  Axil

14.  Julia

15.  Axil

16.  Julia

GAJE

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

About the Author

Books by Ava

Afterword

Vork

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR, BOOK 1

VORK

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, book 1

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

ASIN: B08B6DQTJ5

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Ireland

Created with Vellum

VORK

He’s cocky, seven-feet-tall, scaly, & green.

She has been burned in the past.

Can an alien and human woman

find true love together?

Burned by an ex, the last thing Evie wants is a husband, especially a seven foot tall, scaled, green-skinned alien. But when she applies to the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service on a dare, she’s paired with Vork. He’s big and dangerous, and he hits all her buttons. Passion sparks between them, but does she dare trust this sexy alien with her heart?

As a career spacefleet commander, the last thing Vork has time for is a mate. But after a mix-up, he’s matched with a human female. He decides he’ll produce a child with her, and then get back to his life in the stars. Until he touches Evie and a matebond flares on his palm.

When a rival warlord challenges Vork and Evie is the prize, Vork will have to decide: Give Evie up or battle to the death to claim her as his bride.

Vork is book one in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone, full-length romance has plenty of on-the-page heat, hot aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. You can find the rest of the series here.

Chapter 1

EVIE

Evie scrolled through the alien faces on her computer screen, but it did no good to salivate over the guys on display. With only a measly ten eligible matches in this round at the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service, her odds of being selected from the millions of eager Earth women were less than zero.

Which wasn’t a bad thing. She wasn’t sure she wanted to become a mail-order bride to an unknown Crakairian male.

Being accepted into the program would mean leaving Earth and traveling to Crakair, where she’d live for the rest of her life unless she used the ten-day, no-questions-asked, back out clause in the contract. Sure, she’d be courted by the chosen male, which might be fun, but after that came marriage and the usual two-point-five kids. Her ex had taught her that guys lost interest once they’d “caught” you. After they split, Evie was determined to enjoy her single life, including her job, her condo, and most of all, her cat.

“Who are we fixing up this week?” her best friend and co-worker at the Matchmaking Service, Sadie asked. She placed her hand on the top of Evie’s office chair and leaned forward, squinting at the computer screen.

“The usual group.”

Sadie rolled her eyes. “Let me guess. They’re all unbelievably gorgeous. They’ve got muscles on top of their muscles. And their abs are hard enough to crack a diamond.”

“Is that even possible? Diamonds are, like, unbreakable, right?” Evie tilted her head back to look up at Sadie. Her friend wore her straight blonde hair down today, and it swirled around her shoulders and highlighted her pretty face. The deep blue dress hugging her curvy body contrasted nicely with her medium-tan skin.

Sometimes, Evie resented how beautiful her friend was. Not that Evie didn’t clean up decently herself. Her thick, chestnut hair looked great no matter how she wore it. And everyone said her teal eyes rivaled a Caribbean sea. But she’d always considered herself average. Five-seven and B cups topping off the usual need-to-lose-ten-pounds body.

Okay, make that twenty. But without sex, what else was a girl to do but eat chocolate?

It was foolish for Evie to worry about attracting a guy’s attention. Since a mysterious disease had swept across Earth a year ago, a woman no longer needed to dress up, wear make-up, or lose those twenty pounds to attract a man, assuming she swung in that direction.

There were almost no men left on the planet.

Scooting around Evie, Sadie took over the computer mouse, clicking through the selection, gushing about one gorgeous alien Adonis after another. “I loved how they dressed for their glamour shots.”

Evie’s lips thinned. “Undressed, you mean.”

“Do you see this guy’s chest?” Sadie’s fingertip stroked the Crakairian’s deep green pecs and trailed down his abs to his lower body clad in snug, black leather pants that did nothing to hide his over-sized package. Her shoulders deflated with her sigh. “Can you imagine…that climbing into bed with you?”

Sometimes yes. But only late at night and when she was desperate.

Evie tilted her head, frowning. “What about those…things dangling off their heads?” To her, the appendages looked like thick brown dreadlocks. They hung to most of the Crakairian males’ shoulders, though a few wore them longer.

“I’ve heard they’re called naanans and they function like extra limbs.” A smile teasing across her lips, she wiggled her eyebrows.

“Really? Like, what could they do?”

“Just about anything,” Sadie sighed. “They move independently.”

Evie squinted at the screen. “They’re a bit weird, don’t you think?”

Sadie scrunched her shoulders. “Everyone’s hair is different. Maybe they use theirs to touch things.” Her grin grew.

“I guess there’s nothing wrong with moveable dreadlocks,” Evie said. “Maybe. But what about their fangs?” They poked out from the aliens’ slightly plump lips.

“I can deal with a little biting.”

Evie still wasn’t convinced. She tapped her chin and pinched her lower lip between her teeth. “Do you think their entire bodies are green?”

Sadie’s delicate brows drew together. “I’m not sure if I’m intrigued by the idea of a green dick or not, but I’m willing to test samples.” Straightening, she lifted her hand in tribute. “I hereby volunteer to take one for the team.”

While her friend came off like she welcomed one hook-up after another, Sadie had remained as chaste as a nun since her husband died from the disease. They’d loved each other since high school and sadly, he’d passed away within months of their marriage.

“There’s more to these guys than just the…you know what.” Evie wasn’t sure why her face overheated. At twenty-seven, she wasn’t a virgin either; she’d had her share of sex in the past. Yeah, sometimes it was hard to remember exactly what sex felt like, and most of the time, it hadn’t been worth remembering, anyway. But it wasn’t as if she currently had options. “Besides, we don’t need that. There are other ways of finding satisfaction.”

“That device in your bedside table might be well-charged, but it’s no substitute for cuddling up with a guy after a wild bout of sex.” Sadie’s face pinched, and Evie knew she was remembering her husband.

“What if these men don’t like to cuddle? They might only be interested in a quick tumble on the bed. Wiggle it around inside you, grunt, and then get out of bed and go watch TV.” Like Evie’s ex.

“You know me,” Sadie said softly. “The only thing I’d be interested in right now is the nice, long tussle.” Her finger traced the male’s bulge before she flipped to the next screen. “Whoa.” Reeling backward, the word groaned out of her. “Who is that?” She scooted around Evie’s chair to read the bio. “Military commander of the fifth spacefleet. He owns a large, top-floor dwelling in the city. Career-focused but eager to meet his new bride. And he has a doting mother, which,” her face scrunched, “might be an issue, but we’ll assume it’s a good thing since he mentioned it. His name is Vork Liithiarian Mabir Javaar. Sounds hot.”

All their names sounded hot. Evie had to face it. Two plus years without “real” sex burned the pickiness out of a girl.

The women on Earth had laughed when the match-up contract with the Crakairian government was announced six months ago. Travel to a distant planet to marry an alien? No way! But then the first pictures arrived, as well as the guys’ brief, intimate messages for their potential mates. The lottery was volunteer-only, but the data banks had crashed within the first ten minutes of sign-up.

“When are you going to run this week’s matches?” Sadie asked, striding over to her desk. She returned with her coffee and took a sip.

“The system’s sorting through them right now.”

“Lucky girls.” Juggling her cup, Sadie scrolled through the rest of the men, gushing about each of their bodies, until a computer ping sounded. “Oh!” Setting down her cup, Sadie clapped her hands. “Can we peek at the women chosen?”

Evie sighed. “You know we’re not supposed to look. We’ll have to wait to see the names announced tonight on TV like everyone else.”

Sadie’s gaze darted around before fixing on Evie. But with their boss out sick today, they were alone in the office. “Who’s going to know but us?”

“I guess there’s no real harm in it. It’s not as if we’ll know any of the women selected.”

“We might.”

“Ugh, don’t remind me.” Evie and Sadie had signed up for the lottery after too much tequila resulted in a dare.

“Do it!”

Evie nudged Sadie’s hand away from the mouse and clicked her password into the spot, giving her access as a manager.

Sadie read over her shoulder, but she stalled at a name halfway down the list. Leaping around, she fluttered her hands in the air and squealed. “Whoa, Evie. Hell fuckin’ yeah! Would you look at that?”

How could Evie see anything else? Her eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open.

Vork Liithiarian Mabir Javaar has been matched to Evelyn Haines Bradeen

“Honey,” Sadie drawled. “You’re guppy breathing. It’s gonna be okay.” She smacked Evie on her back to jumpstart her heart. “More than okay. Soon, you’ll travel to Crakair to begin your new life, leaving Earth behind. No more jerky ex lurking around, hoping for a nostalgic quickie.” Which had happened one time too many. “You’ve been matched with an alien man who’s eager to drag you off to bed for hot alien sex then pamper you for the rest of your life.”

“I don’t need pampering.” Evie just wanted someone who would think of her needs in addition to his own. Which … she supposed might also involve the bedroom. “But really, I can’t do it!”

“No choice now.”

“That’s not true. I can back out.”

“When you signed on the dotted line, you agreed to give the match ten days. Them’s the rules. And as for pampering, from what we’ve heard the reports sent back from those already matched, these guys know how to adore women.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “In more ways than one.”

It might be nice to be with someone interested in pleasing every bit of her, including her body. But how could she marry an alien she’d never met?

To say she was stunned about this was an understatement, but this was what happened when you accepted a dare.

Although signing up had been a tequila-inspired whim, deep down, she was a little excited by the idea. Grabbing the mouse, she flipped back through the photos and stalled at Vork’s.

Hell fuckin’ yeah was right. Damn, Vork was huge. Like at least seven feet tall. And while all the alien guys were built, this one resembled a brick wall.

If she didn’t bail and return to Earth after the ten-day trial period, she might find out how far beneath the leather pants his green skin flowed. Her heart floundered behind her ribs at the thought of what her future might hold with somebody new.

“Remember,” Sadie said, her voice luring Evie right in. “They’re required to court you. Vork is required to court you. It’s a chance for you to have the life you deserve.” Her voice came out wistful, stealing Evie’s emotions. “I’ve had my true love, but you never got to meet yours. Your ex didn’t count.”

Lord knows she’d tried to make it work with Derek. She had loved him, but it hadn’t been enough.

“And if the sex thing is scaring you, there’s no hanky panky allowed until you say yes. That’ll give you time to…assess the situation.”

The no sex rule had been put into the contract to ensure Earth women would be given full opportunity to consent.

Evie’s gaze flowed across the man’s chiseled jawline, his strong lips with his two-inch fangs stabbing downward, and the scales flowing across his broad shoulders.

“If you stay here, you’ll just spend the rest of your life fighting off Derek.” Sadie added, as if Evie needed more incentive.

She didn’t. She was … intrigued.

“Okay. I’m in.” Evie rose from her chair and stared mournfully at Sadie. “Going means leaving you behind. However, if you’re selected in a future round, we’ll meet up on Crakair.”

“I doubt that’ll happen.”

“Life might surprise you.”

“It won’t, but that’s okay. I’m happy that you’re getting the chance to live the dream.” Sadie’s smile didn’t reach her blue eyes.

“I’m gonna miss you.” The Crakairian ruling council was quite strict and did not yet allow communication between Earth and Crakair outside the matchmaking service. “I’ll send you letters though.”

“I’ll miss you, too!” Sadie gave Evie a big hug, and they rocked until they both giggled. Because … really.

An arranged match between Evie and a hot alien dude? How could anyone be upset when that was on the table?

“Go read his private message and fill me in on everything he says.” Sadie stepped back and dropped down into her chair. After taking a moment to gather herself, she pressed on a bright smile when she tipped back her head. Evie could tell her friend was doing all she could to make the best of it. Damn, leaving Sadie was going to kill her. “Once you’ve filled out the final paperwork, we need to go out and celebrate. You free Saturday?”

Evie groaned. “As long as going out doesn’t involve tequila.” Her belly still burned from those shots.

Sadie’s smile turned mischievous. “The tequila already worked its charm, so we no longer need it.”

“Probably not.” Evie’s gaze fell on Vork’s face again, and she couldn’t hold back her heartfelt sigh. “I hope this… Well, let’s not jinx things.” Maybe the guy would be like Derek, a jerk who’d only wanted quick sex before he got back to whatever he’d been doing. “I guess I’ll have to pack soon.”

“Your departure is in five days, according to the paperwork we send out to the other women in the program. These guys don’t waste time.”

How could Evie say goodbye to her mom and younger sister? It wasn’t as if they could come to visit. The Crakairian government reluctantly allowed entry to mail-order brides, and that was only because they were determined to continue their species.

“Five days isn’t long enough to say goodbye.” Tears stung in Evie’s eyes.

Sadie got up and this time her smile came true. “I’ll miss you forever, but we’ll see each other again. Someday. I just know it.”

“I hope so,” Evie said softly. She rubbed Sadie’s shoulders. “If you end up matched with a Crakairian, too, we’ll find a way to meet up.”

“We’re best friends no matter what, but I have no interest in replacing Kyle.” She shook herself. “No more sadness. We need to party! And tomorrow, we’re going shopping.”

“For what?” Evie couldn’t imagine what she’d need to bring with her. “We’re only allowed one bag.”

“That’s the point.” Sadie winked, her excitement restored. “Sexy undies take up almost no space at all.”

Chapter 2

VORK

“Y our mate has arrived at the spaceport,” Vork’s first lieutenant said from the door to his office.

Vork’s low growl rumbled through the room. “You know I did not request a mate.”

“Yes, Sir. Of course, Sir.” First Lieutenant Dorn’s light orange eyes widened. “What should I do, Sir?”

“Once she arrives, you may send her in.” Vork clenched his teeth, his fangs hanging down over his bottom lip.

“Very well, Sir.” Dorn’s naanan head appendages flared as he backed through the opening and shut the door behind him.

Vork shoved back his chair and stood. At over seven feet tall and with broad shoulders and a body honed to brute strength after years of training, he was an impressive, if not intimidating specimen. A Crakairian male in his prime.

And now he had been matched with a puny Earthling.

Grumbling, he tapped the com on his wrist. “Mother,” he instructed the computer.

Her cheery voice came through the com within seconds. “Favored son. So delightful to hear from you.”

“I am your only son.”

“Still my most favored.” Vork could picture her sitting on her balcony, savoring a steaming cup of sweet divir tea while enjoying the view of the Ikeline Mountains in the distance. After his promotion to spacefleet commander, he’d bought her the best apartment in the city—an entire top floor of a high-rise close, but not too close, to his residence. “What can I do for my favored son on this lovely morning?”

“She is here.”

“Oh!” The fact that she was excited she’d someday be a grandmother warmed him … somewhat. Despite her submitting him to the Selection without speaking to him about it first, he loved his mother. He wanted to please her, especially when she’d been ill for so long. She’d almost died of the disease that swept through the galaxy which would have broken him. But in this situation? She’d gone too far. “I’ll be over to meet her as soon as I can activate a hover tram,” she gushed.

“Yes.” Vork ended the com call and stalked to the bank of windows taking up one wall of his office. Since his promotion, he’d become so accustomed to the view, he barely noted the three moons cresting the horizon—all pale blue, though in varying sizes, the broad expanse of gleaming city surrounding the building, and the hover vehicles chugging along the airstream lines a few kleks below.

How could his mother do this to him? She’d tricked him. Okay, it hadn’t exactly been a trick. He had agreed, when she’d pressed him, that he’d be open to considering an Earth mate. Someday. That was the word she’d ignored in the equation.

Because she never brought it up again, he’d assumed she’d forgotten all about the conversation. Instead, she’d entered him into the Selection. She’d then created a hologram vid that would be sent to his potential mate, which was not how it should be done. Who knew what the replication of Vork had said? Then his mother had arranged for what he’d thought was a routine military physical evaluation but was instead part of the qualifying exam. Naturally, he’d passed. At twenty-nine-yaros, he was in perfect health and of marriageable age. The testing had revealed Vork could not only fight off three males his size, he was capable of producing children.

The notification of his match had arrived five daelas ago.

He’d need to mate eventually because he did long to give his mother grandchildren, but now? At the height of his career, the last thing he wanted was to be forced to waste precious minars courting a human female then begging her consent to marriage.

He wouldn’t mind making the children, however. He’d have to be dead not to look forward to that.

But now she’d arrived. True, he had not kept up on gossip, though a few rumors had reached his ears. The Earth female, Julia, the Crown Prince’s mate, and Thea, Gaje’s mate had been pleased with their matches. Unfortunately, other human females had either simpered or cried and asked to return home. What had seemed like a worthy venture on the Crakairian government’s part was close to falling to ruin. If the human females wouldn’t remain on the planet long enough to mate, how could the Crakairians continue their species?

The door opened, and he turned, expecting his mother to sweep through the opening, dressed in her long robes, with a light cloud of rosair-scented air drifting around her. Instead, a short, rather slender human female strode into the room, accompanied by a protocol drone. This must be the one. His intended mate.

He couldn’t remember her name.

They’d groomed her, at least, and dressed her in a silk teal gown that matched her unusual eyes and enhanced her hair that resembled the rarest tricar wood. It had been swept up on her head, allowing a few strands to dangle around her face. So unusual compared to the naanan head appendages all Crakairians were born with. He’d never seen hair outside of vids. Was it stiff or silky? He grumbled, wondering why he cared. It wasn’t as if he was eager to touch it.

She wasn’t bad to look at, however, which would make this easier.

She was stunning, in fact, something he hated to admit. He hadn’t expected to be attracted to a human female. He stared at the odd projections on her chest, which he’d read were for nursing young. Crakairian females nursed their younglings from fleshy tubes that projected from their abdomen after birth.

“Evelyn Haines Bradeen,” the protocol droid said in a mechanical voice, interrupting Vork’s study of the lumps on her chest. He couldn’t help speculating how they’d feel beneath his fingers. A stupid thing to think about. They were a part of her body, like her hands and arms, and intended for his young to suckle, not for him to play with.

“Evie,” the small human female said. “Call me Evie.”

Vork dipped his head to acknowledge her words.

The droid had been programmed to ensure the human female’s trip from Earth had been comfortable and pleasant, plus teach her basic skills needed to function appropriately on this planet, including the Crakairian mating protocols. The Crakairian Council was strict about human behavior and had only reluctantly agreed to accept suitable childbearing mates from this otherwise primitive planet. It was vital they fit into Crakairian society.

The droid’s job would end after the introductions, when Vork’s role as a courting male was supposed to begin.

His shoulder scales lifted slightly in response to his agitation, catching on the material of his shirt. Irritated, he ripped the tunic up and over his head, then tossed it onto a chair. The vids the government sent displayed only bare-chested Crakairian males. This human female wouldn’t expect anything else from her intended mate.

One of the droid’s four limbs jutted Vork’s way. “Vork Liithiarian Mabir Javaar. Miseille Javaar? You may begin.”

Vork’s body tensed, eager to start the process, though his mind still resisted.

Evie’s tentative smile lifted her lips. Was this nervousness? Most likely.

His heart softened, but only for one minar. Yet it took more effort than he liked to remind himself he was being forced into this arrangement.

“Hi,” she said, giving him a shaky nod.

The chip embedded behind his ear translated her word. A greeting, then, and not the challenge he’d initially presumed from the sound. His sekairs—the guard flaps that had spiked on his shoulders returned to their original position.

Vork tapped his forehead, gave a short bow, and grunted out the formal greeting one would give a Crakairian mate. “Dreafillar.”

She frowned until her translator chip kicked in. “Oh. Yes. Nice to meet you, too.”

No simpering or tears. Something to be grateful for, he supposed. If she’d whined or fussed, it would take additional time to see this to its fruition.

“Pleasure will be granted,” he said, continuing the mate-greeting ritual.

“What? I thought…” Her pretty cheeks flushed red, something he’d never seen in a Crakairian female, whose lightly scaled skin never showed color. He ached to stroke the pinkness then trail his fingertips down to her slender shoulders. Cup her lower back and tug her close—

“Aren’t we supposed to get to know each other first?” she squeaked out.

“These phrase part of the courtship process to say such as this,” he said, feeling as if the words came out incorrectly, but unsure how else to patch his thoughts together in a way she’d understand. Once he’d spoken with her at length and his chip picked up the nuances of her language, his speech would come out smoother and they’d be able to more seamlessly communicate.

She blinked a moment. “Oh, right.” She gnawed on a fingernail. “As long as…” Her chin lifted. “That is, as long as we go through the process I heard about, things should be fine.”

“We will this do, expected as.” He bowed again, continuing with the protocol. “Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.”

From her frown, he could tell his translator still wasn’t correctly functioning. Was she confused about the courtship, the marriage, or—

“Yes, err, about that fucking.” Her eyes brightened, as if she’d decided to put on a brave front against insurmountable odds. “If things work out, we’ll get to that, eventually. But not now, okay?” Her gaze fell on his desk, though he wasn’t sure why. Her color rose again, crossing the pale skin exposed at the top of her gown and rising up her neck to settle in her face. He found the movement of her plump appendages enchanting. “Because…” Her attention drifted to his pants where he prayed his body’s reaction wasn’t too obvious.

It wasn’t his fault he hadn’t been with a female for over a year.

Though he hated to admit it, he was already warming to the idea of courting this Earthling. Which wouldn’t do. His career was mapped for at least the next ten yaros and there would be no pause in the plan for a female.

If he could hasten the courtship and marriage along, he could take pleasure from her body then get back to his career while she raised the children. There would be more than one child. Crakairian matches routinely produced five or six offspring in a short space of time. Eight if the male was hearty.

Vork was one of the heartiest of them all.

Its duty finished, the protocol droid backed from the room and shut the door.

“Okay. We’re alone. Oh, hell.” She cupped her face with her trembling hands. “As for all that other stuff, let’s back up and stick with the courtship for now, if that’s okay. I’m…” She trailed off. Her gaze traveled down his chest to his pants again, and more color flooded her face.

Was she ill?

Unsure what else he should do, he bowed again, then let his curiosity rule and inspected her body as she did his. Did her gown hide other enticing, plump parts?

She tightened her spine and looked up at him.

Crakairian women were—had been, when there were more than a few hundred left on his planet—universally tall, almost equal to any male’s height. The top of this Earth woman’s head did not even rise to Vork’s shoulders. And she was thin, almost rail-appearing.

Unexpected worry rose inside him. How in all that was heille would she survive the mating each couple went through for a full likar after marriage? He’d break her with his weight and rip her apart with his fucking.

He reminded himself none of the human females who had agreed to stay with Crakairians males had died thus far. Julia appeared more than content with Crown Prince Axil. Perhaps Vork could reach out to Julia. If Evie could make a friend with another Earthling, she might feel more settled.

She might want to stay.

However, they would not have sent Evie to him if she was a defective specimen. Earth itself had been selected not only because the females of the species could successfully be impregnated with Crakairian seed, but because the Earth women could live through the mating and birthing processes.

This new mate of his—Evie—would be sturdy enough for whatever he delivered.

She swallowed. “What do we do now?”

“Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.” Why did he keep repeating this phrase from the mating protocol? He was stuttering like a youngling meeting up with his first Crakairian female.

“There you go with the fucking again,” she said dryly.

Was his translator using the incorrect word? That must be the problem. He’d explain and she would understand. “Fornication.”

“Really. I’ve got it.” She held up her hand, the universal gesture Crakairian females used when they wished to be kissed. “Fucking, fucking, fucking,” she mumbled under her breath. “What else is new? This is going to be…interesting.”

The courtship rules were strict, and he would not break them. There would be no fucking—fornication—whatever—until she’d consented to marriage, but the contract did not forbid touching. Or, as she’d requested, kissing.

He stalked toward her.

She released a delightful eek that only made him more eager to taste her.

When she’d backed into the door, he lightly pressed her against it. He cupped her face with both hands while his naanans flared around his head, eager to feel her hair, her body. Heille, what soft skin she had. Did it cover other parts of her as well? Soon, he would find out.

As she stared up at him, her lips parting in anticipation, he captured her lips with his own.

Chapter 3

EVIE

Despite the fangs pressing against her lower lip, Vork was an incredible kisser. He essentially devoured her mouth.

Evie had no idea why he’d decided now was the time to kiss, but once she’d run into the door and he’d stroked her face, she couldn’t resist. Perhaps this was part of the courtship protocol she’d been expected to study on the ship. She’d intended to do her part and read it but always found herself too distracted by the stars outside her window or the odd little droids scooting around on the ship. When she had sat down and told herself she would memorize everything, she’d fallen asleep while picturing fleshy tubes and appendages. She’d been bored.

Vork was anything but boring.

With a growl, he pressed her against the door with his full, hard body. Talk about making a girl swoon. Even though her knees trembled from his touch, she stood on tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and sunk into his kiss.

His tongue parted her lips and tested her mouth. When she tentatively stroked her tongue across his fangs, he groaned. His big, calloused hands trailed down her arms, raising delicious tingles. At this point, she was so lost in this moment—in Vork—she didn’t care if his body parts were green or pink or purple. As long as he kept on kissing her.

His thick, dreadlock-appearing appendages—naanan—cupped the back of her head. They stroked her neck and traveled along her upper back. One teased the side of her breast, and she moaned.

The door bumped into her and when she was nudged forward, Vork jerked his head up. When his feral eyes met hers, his pupils dilated, and the deep blue circles outlining the brown centers were eclipsed in black.

While the scales on his chest and upper arms rippled as if alive, he backed away. No, he pivoted sharply and strode over to the windows.

She ran her tongue across her lips, savoring his taste.

The droid entered the room, carrying her bag and the plastic crate she’d brought with her from Earth.

The droid left and closed the door again.

Silas, her fluffy black and white kitty, meowed plaintively inside his crate.

Vork stiffened. Turning, he strode back across the room and halted in front of her.

“What sound you make is?” he asked. “Eeee-owww,” he mimicked, stretching the word out.

“Um…” Her face cleared as understanding dawned. His speech pattern was going to take some getting used to. “Silas made that sound, not me.”

“What a See-lass is?”

“My cat.”

Did she dare let her kitty out? He’d sadly had to remain in his crate for most of the journey. The crew had unilaterally been afraid he’d claw them, which he’d done the first time they came near. Who could blame Silas? He wasn’t any more used to droids than she was. And while they had simulated skin, these guys looked like something straight out of a sci-fi movie.

“Cat?” For whatever reason, Vork kept jerking his body forward. She assumed it was the formal bow she’d vaguely read about, but on a giant alien dude with fangs, mossy-green skin, and lush black appendages spilling around his shoulders—plus his bare chest and shifting scales, the gesture made her jittery.

“I brought Silas with me from Earth.” Her voice tightened in fear. She was sad she’d had to leave everything she’d treasured behind, especially her mom, sister, and best friend, but she couldn’t leave the cat she’d loved for the past five years. “I hope that’s okay. The emissaries said it was.” What if Vork banished her cat to … wherever they banished creatures here on Crakair?

“Show cat me.”

“All right.” Bending down, she released the latch on the front and opened the door. “No quick movements, or you’ll scare him.”

Vork stiffened, and the odd flaps she’d noticed earlier on his shoulders lifted. She didn’t remember reading about those in the “get-to-know-your-alien” manual. With spikes on the tips of each “scale,” they appeared deadly. Were they some sort of weapon?

Silas poked his head out of the crate and cautiously sniffed the air.

Vork inhaled sharply and took a step backward.

While many would suggest a gasp was not manly, on Vork, it was cute. It showed a vulnerable side he must be eager to keep hidden.

Silas stepped from the crate and traveled around the room, sniffing the carpet, the furniture, the windows, and her foot. His whiskers fluttered, and he lifted his head, his gaze honing in on Vork, whose arms twitched.

“If you stoop down, hold out your hand, and let him smell you, he might come closer,” she said, holding back her smile. Was Vork afraid of Silas?

“One wishes to allow this…thing closer to come?” A pained expression crossed his face.

“Silas is a sweet baby. Aren’t ‘cha?” Dropping to the floor, she stretched out her legs and patted her lap, coaxing her kitty boy near. “Come on, sweetie. It’s okay. Let me give you some snuggles to help you adjust to your new home.”

“This office, residence not,” Vork said. He pointed toward the windows, and his naanans lifted up off his neck before gliding back down. That was going to take some getting used to. However, the appendages had been … appealing? No, erotic, when they’d cupped her head, stroked her neck and traveled down her back. It made her wonder what else he could do with them. “Office. Residence…elsewhere?” He seemed to taste the word, making her believe there wasn’t an easy equivalent in his language.

The desk gave away the fact this wasn’t his home. Why had she pictured herself lying back on the surface and tugging Vork down on top of her? They’d barely met. Yeah, they’d kissed—a Crakair-shattering kiss—but they’d back things down and proceed with a hands-off courtship. She frowned, trying to recall the finer details about intimacy she’d skimmed in the mating protocol document. No matter. The rules were clear. No sex until she’d consented to marriage. And while she could ask to return to Earth anytime during the first ten days, there were no guidelines on how quickly they had to get married. She would rather have a nice, slow courtship. Despite the kiss, she wasn’t ready to climb into bed with this alien stranger.

Silas gave into her urgings and got up onto her lap. He circled and settled beneath her touch, and his purr echoed around her.

“There’s a kitty boy. Aren’t you the bestest baby?” Leaning forward, she kissed his fuzzy neck. She’d missed him. Relegated to the closet after snagging one of the crewmen with his claws, Silas hadn’t been able to sleep with her on her small spaceship bunk. She’d worried about him. No pet should remain locked up for more than a short time.

Hopefully, here on Crakair, he’d be able to remain free.

She peered up at Vork. He’d come nearer, though his shoulder sekair flaps remained out-splayed and his chiseled facial features gave nothing away.

“Do you want to touch him?” she asked.

“What?” His head reeled back, his sekair flaps spiking upright on his shoulders. His gaze locked on her breasts, and his tongue dipped out to trace across one of his fangs.

Okay, that was hot.

“I’m talking about Silas,” she said, fanning her face. She pointed to the cat, to guide Vork’s attention in that direction. What was it with guys universally staring at a woman’s chest? Yes, this was a different galaxy, but if she didn’t know better, she’d think the alien dude hadn’t seen boobs before. When he hesitated, she decided to try being firm. “Sit down and pat my kitty.”

He grumbled but dropped onto his knees and then parked his tight ass on the carpet. Even sitting, with his long torso, he towered over her. If all of him was as big as what she’d seen so far … Well, she didn’t want to think about that right now.

“This is way?” he said, tentatively stretching out his hand.

“Yes. That’s it,” she said in a soothing tone, unsure which beast she hoped to tame, Silas or Vork.

Silas delicately sniffed Vork’s hand, then rubbed his face on it.

A smile flitted across Evie’s lips.

Vork darted a look of amazement at her. “This thing…”

“Cat.”

“Chaaat.”

Close enough.

“Chaaat.” He garbled the word. “Chaaat speaks?”

“Not in a way we can understand.”

Silas left her lap and stretched, knitting his claws on the carpet.

Vork’s scales flicked upward again before settling back on his shoulders, and his nostrils flared. “What…”

“It’s okay. He’s just sharpening his claws.”

“What use these weapons?”

“He won’t use them on us.” Not too much anyway. “But he hunts.”

Vork made a fist and drummed his chest. “I also hunt.”

She didn’t want to know what he hunted. Not until she’d gotten a bit more settled.

“You two have something in common, then,” she said reasonably.

Silas sauntered over to Vork and hopped up onto his lap.

Vork’s entire body shuddered. His eyes darted from Silas to her, as if he was desperate to see what the cat would do next but equally interested in her response to his reactions.

Jumping up, Silas braced his front paws on Vork’s chest and rubbed his face across Vork’s chin.

Vork’s hands splayed wide and his shoulder flaps fluttered. Panic filled his eyes, though she was sure he’d never admit to the feeling. “It… What does it?”

“Silas. Remember? His name is Silas.”’

“See-lass.”

Her smile went into full bloom to see this giant of an alien man seemingly helpless when presented with a tame kitty cat.

“He likes you,” she said. “Pat him.”

His hand lifted but hovered over Silas. “Stroke…this?”

“Yes.” She took his hand and dragged it to Silas’s head. “Run your fingers down his back.”

“It like?”

“Everyone loves to be touched, don’t they?”

“Some.” From the slow way he said it, it sounded like an admission. Did he mean himself? The thought intrigued her. Big and burly, Vork presented a stiff front, but she suspected he might be squishy beneath his hardened military-dude exterior.

Vork ran his hand quickly down Silas’s back.

Silas winked up at him and started to purr.

Vork’s arm reeled back. “This defense?”

“No, silly. The sound is pleasure.”

“What called, this def—pleasure?”

“A purr. He’s purring to show you he likes your touch.”

Vork’s gaze met hers, his unfathomable yet sharing a hint of vulnerability. There it was again, the look that socked her in the chest and stole her wind. She liked the sensation but also didn’t like it, because she wasn’t sure what the feeling meant.

“Human females purr?” Vork asked, his voice gravelly.

Heat sparked deep inside her. This alien, this completely male being, could be dangerous.

Within the next ten days, she could choose to remain here or return to her life on Earth.

The big question was: if she left, would she leave part of herself here on Crakair?

Chapter 4

VORK

While he patted the small beast—the See-lass—Vork watched her. Evie. The name felt strange on his tongue yet sweeter than the nectar of the rare petria flower.

She watched him with what he took as wonder, yet he was well aware that he could be misunderstanding her expressions and body language.

He had enjoyed the flavor of her mouth, however, and the way she’d felt against his body. His government was right. Crakairians and Earthlings would be compatible. His earlier concern about her being able to accommodate him during mating, let alone birth his children, must be unfounded.

He’d have to be careful, however, because he could feel himself softening to her and that would not do. He had duties to oversee on his ship soon, and he would not permit emotions to interfere with his career. Which meant he needed to get the courtship over with and convince her to marry him. Then she could await his return from space, perhaps with his seed growing inside her already. He would return to her welcoming arms as his schedule permitted.

“This See-lass,” he said. “It—”

The door opened and his mother rushed inside, her arms and naanan outstretched to either embrace him or Evie. He sensed by the way her gaze flicked to the human female, it might be the latter. But she caught sight of the See-lass, and her indigo eyes slitted. She bared her teeth and with her naanan thrusting forward in attack mode, she leaped toward him.

“Eek,” Evie cried, flinging herself to the side, away from Mother. “Vork! Watch out.” A quick roll and she sprang to her feet in a crouch.

As his mother crashed down on top of Vork, the See-lass hissed. The creature leaped off Vork’s lap and whirled. His body armor rose. Fluffy yet intimidating, the beastie skittered across the floor, his claws raking the air. Heat hissed from his mouth.

Mother flung herself backward, away from the See-lass. She hit the wall hard and her head snapped back.

The See-lass strutted across the floor to Evie. She scooped him up in her arms and held him tight, glaring at Vork’s mother.

“Call the cops,” Evie said. “She was trying to kill you.”

Vork rose and quickly approached his mother. He knelt down and smoothed his fingers across her forehead.

She moaned, and her eyelids fluttered. “Vork. Beware of the beast.”

“It is the See-lass, Mother,” he said softly. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her to the small divan placed near the windows, where he carefully lowered her onto the cushions. He grabbed a blanket someone had draped artfully along the back, unfurled it, and covered her while she moaned. Her naanans slapped around in agitation.

“Mother?” Evie said, cautiously approaching. “Oh, shit. Your mother attacked you?”

“Attack the See-lass,” he said.

“Why?” Evie squished her chaaat up against her neck.

He couldn’t explain now, not while his mother remained partly unconscious. Tapping his com, he hailed Lieutenant Dorn and asked him to call for a healer.

The beast watched Vork. Watched Mother, with its tail flicking back and forth in a fever. The thing had gone from purring to trying to rip Vork’s mother to shreds. Could it be disciplined? Heille, he would soon find out.

His mother stirred, and her eyes opened. The fine scales on her face gleamed in the light. “Vork,” she said, her hand reaching up to flutter along his face. “I had the strangest dream. You sat on the floor and a small spirfiirre was poised to slice open your throat.” She started to rise, her naanan flailing wildly, dripping with poison. He, as her child, was naturally immune. But the See-lass and Evie were not. And while he’d happily scold the See-lass, he suspected his future mate would not take kindly to any forceful action.

Evie crept forward, the vicious beast snug in her arms. “Hi, um… I’m Evie.” Juggling the creature up onto one shoulder, she extended her hand to Vork’s mother. “I’m happy to meet you?”

Why the question when it should be a statement?

“Vork,” his mother said, her gaze falling on him. “This is your new mate?”

He wasn’t sure if she meant the chaaat or the human, but he would assume Evie. “Yes. As I said in my call, she is newly arrived.”

“The See-lass needs apologize,” he said to Evie. Like with any mate, he must be firm. Crakairian women welcomed a strong male who told them what to do. He would use this well-proven tactic with his human female.

“That’s not possible,” she said simply, completely ignoring the resolve in his voice. “He’s a cat. Cats aren’t like dogs. Silas won’t do what you want him to do, and he’ll balk if you try to make him. You can’t punish him when he was just defending himself. Defending you, too.”

Vork had no idea what a dog was. But this chaaat needed to learn. He rose and held out his hands. “Give beast me.”

Evie whirled away, placing her body between his and the See-lass. “No way. Back off, buddy. The cat stays with me.”

“Evie.” He strove to keep patience in his voice. While a male ruled his domain, he must use care with those who were weaker.

“What?”

“The See-lass needs—”

The beast leaped from Evie’s arms. It wound around her legs with its tail spiking high, then sauntered over the divan. While his mother sputtered and her naanans flicked in the air, the beast peered up at her.

The See-lass’s chest rumbled and his mother released a tiny gasp. But she remained still, and the See-lass jumped up and settled down beside her. Its eyes winked at Vork as if to say you think you’re in control here, do you? Just watch me.

Evie gave him a smug look as she sauntered past him, mimicking the swaying motion of the chaaat. As she passed, she flicked her fingertip along his jawline, making him realize his mouth was ajar. She stooped down beside the divan. “As I said, I’m Evie. And this is Silas.” Evie stroked the chaaat, and the animal purred louder.

“Please,” Vork’s mother said. “Please to call Sleveka me.”

Evie nodded. “Sleveka’s a lovely name.”

Why did Vork feel as if he’d completely lost control of the situation? He was a military commander, well used to taking charge and giving orders to underlings. He’d never paused to see if he was obeyed. But this slip of a human female who should be cowering from his mighty presence had stepped seamlessly into his life and tugged away the reins of his control.

He should be fuming. Why was he letting her get away with this?

His mother dipped her head. “Welcome, soon-to-be-daughter.” Her naanan retreated, gliding down to nestle against her shoulders, and the poison dissipated into the air. Leaning around Evie, his mother pursed her lips at him. “Why didn’t you tell me this creature was her pet?”

“Silas loves to be touched,” Evie said. She nuzzled the beastie’s neck. “Don’t you love that, my sweet baby?”

Was it possible to feel jealousy toward a chaaat? He wasn’t even sure what a chaaat was, except it was disrupting his life. So was Evie. But she was different. As his mate, he’d need to grant her some accommodation.

His mother stroked the animal, and the beast shared its purr. “This See-lass is…charming, is it not?”

All he could do was shrug. Any other Crakairian male would be making demands but, for the life of him, Vork couldn’t think of a demand to make. Rather than stand in place, hovering over them while they conversed, he strode to his desk and dropped down into the viikar leather chair, which creaked as it accommodated his large frame. He leaned back and tapped his com.

“Yes?” his First Lieutenant said. “What can I do for you, Sir?”

Vork turned away from the women and lowered his voice so they wouldn’t hear his words. “I’d like…” Why had he called his assistant? The reason had flown his mind. “Get me some petria flowers.”

“Sir?” the lieutenant sputtered. “Me? Purchase flowers? This is highly unusual.”

Vork growled.

“Of course, Sir. Yes. I’ll do that right away. Where would you like them delivered, Sir?”

“I’d like a bouquet placed in the mate’s bedroom in my apartment.”

“No one is staying in the mate’s bedroom.”

“Someone will soon be staying there.”

Evie.

“Ah, yes, Sir. Your mate.”

“She has not yet agreed to a marriage.”

The First Lieutenant chuckled. “I’ll see to the flowers immediately. A large bouquet, I assume?”

“Yes,” Vork grunted. If only he felt as confident about Evie as did his lieutenant.

He ended the call and picked up his scribe, intending to finish the report he’d been working on when Evie arrived. The numbers and lines blurred. His gaze flicked upward.

The females chattered and cooed over the See-lass while Vork pretended to work. But his vision kept going hazy. While he should be tallying armament orders and commissioning battleships, he listened and secretly watched them instead.

The healer arrived and pronounced Vork’s mother fit and healthy, then left. She remained on the divan, though she’d sat up and invited Evie to join her on the cushions. The See-lass lay stretched between them, purring. And Evie’s tinkling laughter kept ringing out.

Would she someday laugh like that for him?

He grumbled and clutched his scribe tighter. And tried to focus on his work. But all he could think about were the mounds on her chest, her soft skin, and the taste of her mouth. He ached to sample all three.

“Son,” his mother called, scattering the notion from his mind.

He lowered his scribe and leaned back in his chair, giving up any pretense of working. “Yes?”

“You must send a message to Earth.”

His heart stalled. Was she rejecting his mate already? The flash of fear he felt surprised him. He barely knew the human female. She meant nothing. He intended to mate with her once she consented and then put her from his mind.

His gaze darted to Evie. He’d asked her, but she hadn’t answered. Did human females purr? He was beyond tempted to stroke her to find out, though not while his mother lingered.

“Vork,” his mother said. Her naanans fluttered in the air. “You’re not paying attention.”

“Yes, I am.”

One corner of her mouth quirked up, revealing her right fang. She patted Evie’s side. “Evie, my soon-to-be daughter most favored, has told me there are more of these chaaats on Earth. They are free to whoever would choose to claim them.”

“It’s true,” Evie said. “Anyone can go to a shelter and adopt an adult cat or even pick from a litter of kittens.”

“Litter?” The word burst from Vork. He wasn’t sure he liked where this discussion was headed. “As in you would request more than one?”

“I would like to have a few such as this,” his mother said, stroking the See-lass.

“I see.” He didn’t though.

“Make it happen,” she said pertly. Leaning close to Evie, she whispered something too low for Vork to hear but he was convinced involved him.

Evie laughed, the tinkling, intriguing, compelling sound that drew him in like a treenser to a flower swirling around the room.

“Are you sure?” she said to his mother.

“What is my parent unit saying?” he asked.

“Parent unit?” Evie fought not to smile. “Haven’t heard that one before. But your parent unit is telling me stories about you when you were a child. You sound so cute!”

Cute? From the translation, the word did not come across as manly.

“I’m only telling her good stories,” his mother said, though mischief ruled in her eyes.

He grumbled and pretended to work. But when he looked up again, his mother was watching Evie. Her lips peeled back, revealing her fangs in the sweet smile he hadn’t seen since before she’d gotten sick.

He’d do just about anything to keep that look on his mother’s face every day for the rest of her life.

Chapter 5

EVIE

Evie nudged Silas back into his crate. He snarled and hissed and tried to snag her hands with his claws, but she couldn’t leave him in the office since they weren’t returning here after dinner. As she had no idea what dinner entailed in an alien world, she couldn’t take Silas with her. Look at how Vork had reacted when he saw the cat, let alone his mother. The waiter might hail Silas as a god or suggest they cook him for dinner.

“Can you also arrange for a litter box for him?” Evie asked. Vork had said he’d have his assistant take the kitty crate to his apartment and let Silas out.

Vork winced when she explained what was needed, but he pressed a button on what she’d originally thought was a watch or a Fitbit—yup, she’d truly thought he was tracking his steps. He’d explained it was a communication device and that he’d arranged for her to have one, too.

Just beam her up …

He hailed Lieutenant Dorn.

“Please have box with…” Vork’s face scrunched, and he looked up at her for guidance. “Evie. Bits of shavings do will?”

She hoped her translator wasn’t going to deliver everything he said in broken English for the rest of her life.

Evie shrugged. Shavings might be okay. She doubted she’d find regular kitty litter here.

“Crushed wood placed house in. And food suitable chaaat for,” Vork said after she explained.

Garbled words came through the device.

“I know do not,” He said, his gaze lifting to Evie again. “What eats See-lass?”

Hopefully nothing. It was supposed to be the other way around.

“Do you have any kind of canned wet food?” she asked.

“Wet …?”

“Meat. He likes meat.”

“Ah.” Vork’s head bobbed, though his thick brows drew together. He spoke into his wrist. “Hunt chaaat meat.”

Life here was going to be very entertaining.

Vork finished his com call and came around his desk, stopping when he reached Evie and his mother. “Eat us now. Evie savor wet …?”

She shuddered. Please don’t serve cat food! “I don’t eat the same food as Silas.”

Horrors.

What did Crakairians eat? Would they find a grassy plain where she’d wait while Vork ran down something large, furry, and multi-legged? He certainly looked capable of tackling and ripping apart anything, even a dragon. Perhaps that was why he had fangs. For hunting.

Back on Earth, she’d told herself she’d withhold judgment until she’d seen how things went. She’d have to do this with Crakairian food as well.

As for tonight, she had no idea where she and Silas would sleep. Perhaps she’d find herself bunking in a residence set up for newly arrived Earthlings. She pictured her evenings spent being “courted” by Vork and her days spent in classes teaching her basic Crakairian skills like … cooking. Or cleaning. Ugh. Could she hire a droid to do things like that, because vacuuming was her least favorite task? Once she reached the group residence, she could lounge on her top bunk and gossip with women from all parts of Earth. They’d discuss burly, brooding aliens, their cute way of talking and, possibly, green dicks.

Of course, this assumed … “Do you sleep?” she asked spontaneously.

Vork’s mother’s lips peeled back, revealing her fangs. Evie found it a mix of creepy and sweet. “Do. Sleep with all.”

She hoped her translator caught up soon.

More delicately built overall—including in the fang-department—Sleveka had been nothing but welcoming since she’d woken up after almost killing Silas. Evie had a feeling they were going to get along great. As far as potential mothers-in-law went, Sleveka ruled. Evie liked how she kept her son in line, a skill Evie planned to emulate until it set like concrete.

Vork swept his arm toward the door. “Go.”

“Got it,” Evie said with a smile.

He opened the door and gestured for them to exit ahead of him. They passed at a desk in the hall, where the lieutenant sat. The alien man stood and saluted.

“Where will we eat?” she asked them as they continued down the hall.

“Meerkat’s think me,” Sleveka, Vork’s mother said.

As long as they didn’t serve real meerkat.

“Vork?” Sleveka asked. She tapped his arm. “Where shirt?”

“Don’t you guys run around without a shirt on all the time?” Evie asked. That’s what she’d assumed from the pictures and vids sent to Earth.

Vork’s face went ruddy.

“Ah, my Vorkie,” Sleveka cooed, snagging her son’s arm and turning him to face her. “You wish attract Evie!”

Ah, now that was sweet. He’d gone shirtless for her? But wait … “Vorkie?”

“Name to nick,” Sleveka said with a wink.

Evie blinked for a moment before her face cleared. “Nickname.”

Sleveka’s head bobbed, so Evie bobbed her head, too. Meanwhile, Vork turned and strode back to his office. He returned wearing a deep blue, snug pullover shirt that matched his pupil rings.

Meanwhile, she and Sleveka continued to bob their heads together until Vork placed his hand between them and grunted.

“Go,” he said again.

“Yes, Sir.” Evie saluted him with a grin. She started passing him in the hall but stopped to tease her fingertip across his chest. “Nice shirt.” Plus what was underneath it. But his mother was here with them, watching with her fangs on display.

His sharp intake of breath sent her pulse soaring. She was having fun with this alien. And she was definitely looking forward to their next kiss.

Sleveka tipped her head back and shrieked at the ceiling.

Evie cringed and peered around, unsure if something was attacking, but Vork grinned, fangs fully on display. Sleveka did the same.

Evie felt a little left out of the fun since she didn’t possess fangs. Where was a good cosmetic dentist when she needed one?

“I’m missing the joke,” she said.

Sleveka slid her arm around Evie’s waist and urged her down the hall. Vork stomped behind them. Sleveka leaned in close. “Think Vork eager for fucking.”

Did everyone on Crakair discuss sex with anyone they came across? “Fucking?”

“Fornication? That word?”

“Fucking will do.”

Sleveka showed her fangs and yipped.

It was finally sinking in. The shrieking and the fang-baring were part of their way of showing humor, at least on Sleveka’s part. Evie was going to have to get up to speed fast.

Just to fit in, she tipped her head back and shrieked.

With a tap on her arm, Sleveka said, “Good. Do more happy. Lure Vork.”

Assuming Vork wanted to be lured. Silly thought on her part. He’d volunteered for the Selection. He’d be eager to seal the deal.

“I’ll try my very best,” Evie said.

They reached the end of the hall and approached a door. There was nothing beyond it Evie could see, but perhaps the restaurant—Meerkat’s—was outside somewhere?

While they’d been inside, night had fallen. Would they eat under the stars? That would be romantic, even if her courting alien’s mother was present. But she liked Sleveka. It would be easy to love her.

Though cautious, Evie was looking forward to going out with Sleveka and Vork, to experiencing a new culture. She’d need to absorb all she could to fit in here. The Crakairian governing council had been quite strict about this. Acclimate to the Crakairian culture, or else. She’d hate to offend them and be sent home. Because … despite her early reservations, she couldn’t stop thinking about Vork. That kiss! How could she talk him into doing it again?

Marrying an alien was holding more appeal by the minute.

Vork held the plate-glass door open, and she stepped outside, partway turned back to speak with Sleveka. “What sort of foods do you enjoy most?”

She hoped to get an idea of what to expect. While she was starving, she was also a tad worried about what might be served. Nothing in the literature they’d sent had indicated dining habits and favorite foods, and on the ship traveling here, she’d eaten the equivalent of protein bars, though none were—sadly—chocolate.

“Kleenk turn stomach,” Sleveka said, her fangs prominent.

This didn’t sound good.

“So, um, what else is there to eat besides kleenk?”

“All kleenk?”

Did they eat only one item? Was that like those people who were into green smoothies? She told herself she’d try kleenk before making up her mind. Her mom always said hunger made everything taste better.

Walking backward, she continued out onto a platform, completely confident until Vork snagged the front of her dress. Touchy-feely much?

He yanked her close. Okay, so this was weird, but maybe it was part of the courtship ritual she was beginning to look forward to.

Then she looked around and shrieked.

A clear platform extended out from the building about ten feet. The edge sucked her closer. Evie whirled her arms in the air to maintain balance. A Grand Canyon of a city stretched out around and beneath her. Vehicles buzzed by above and below, each maintaining their individual level.

Fangs revealed, Sleveka extended her head back and shrieked, too.

Vork did not.

He tugged her close, and his arms wrapped loosely around her waist. “Care.”

He cared?

She tilted her head back to read his expression, but the guy was made of steel, including his face. “I, um. It’s a bit early for me, but I care, too.” There. She’d said it. Declared herself and her eagerness for his courtship to commence, even if she’d done it in front of his mother.

At least she hadn’t—yet—announced she was interested in fucking.

Though she was. A little? After her ex, she’d decided she wasn’t interested in doing much of anything with a guy unless he was willing to fully commit to making sure they both enjoyed it. But kissing Vork had opened up a whole new window. Would he be willing to do more than Derek? She wasn’t sure she was completely ready to find out. She’d just met the guy! But the heat in his eyes warmed her. It made her eager to lie down on any available surface and tug him down on top of her.

Latching onto Vork’s arm, though he still fisted the front of her gown, she gulped at the one-hundred feet or so drop beneath her. “No railing!” This would never fly back on Earth. One lawsuit and they’d be encasing the thing in a steel cage.

“Mean what?” Vork asked, blinking down at her fingers clutching his arm as if he wasn’t sure if he liked it or was desperate to shrug her off. It had to be the former. He’d kissed her. He was still hanging on to the front of her dress. That meant something. Maybe.

“Care,” Vork said again, sweeping his arm out.

Oh, right. Take care. Bummer. Here she’d been thinking things were progressing nicely while he was just trying to keep her from falling to her death.

“Is kissing a pleasurable thing for you guys here?” The words burst out of her.

Sleveka giggled. “Kissing two you?” Her naanans flared up, making her vaguely resemble a beautifully made-up medusa. Evie had read Crakairian women’s naanans had tips that could shoot poison as a protective mechanism if their young was attacked. Attacked by what the document had not said. Cats, perhaps? That had been her initial reaction to Silas. Since Evie was intrigued by Vork’s naanans, she was grateful male Crakairian naanans didn’t shoot poison. She wouldn’t risk death to touch them or let them touch her …

“We…” Vork’s gaze slanted to her lips, and his pupils widened.

Evie stared up at him, drawn to his eyes. The deep brown centers snagged her attention and made her forget all about the bajillion foot drop beneath her. But the ring of blue encircling the black and brown made it impossible to pull her gaze from his. Did he possess magic that could compel her to like him, because there was no denying his overwhelming sexual appeal. Who would have thought she could be turned on by a seven foot tall guy with moving appendages on his head and fangs winking in the moonlight?

Moonlight …

While Sleveka shrieked, Evie turned and stared wide-eyed at the three moons high above the city. Though the lights beamed above the area like a smoky-white dome, the dark sky still dominated, peppered with constellations Evie had never seen before. It made it clear how far from home she was, and the tug on her heart reminded her of everything she’d left behind to come here to be a bride to an alien man she’d never met before. It was strangely exciting and scary, all at the same time. Maybe Sadie was right. This could be her chance to finally find happiness and true love—well, and decent sex. “Your moons are blue.” And so completely different from anything she’d ever seen before. “They’re pretty.”

“Yes,” he said softly. “Large Mara is. Mia below one. Smallest Tress called.”

“Not another M.”

He shook his head.

“Did you bring me out here to show them to me?”

He and his mother shared a glance. “Hover.”

Hover, hover … Ah, ha. “Transportation is going to come here to pick us up?”

Sleveka nodded. Unlike Vork’s ridged scaled skin, plus the flaps that lifted on his shoulders when he got excited, tiny, smaller scales covered Sleveka’s equally green skin, at least the parts exposed by the short sleeves of her dress. The scales shimmered in the moonlight like tiny jewels. It was pretty but Evie didn’t know if it would be polite to point it out. And she sure wasn’t touching. Who knew the protocol surrounding complimenting a potential mother-in-law? When Evie was lounging in the Earthling residence tonight, she’d pull out that thick tomb and make an effort to read it. Because she wanted to know everything.

“Kiss good is.” Coming over to wait with Vork and Evie, Sleveka bent down and tapped Evie’s knee.

If this was a sign of affection, should Evie do the same? She decided to resort to Vork’s usual gesture and bowed.

Sleveka bowed back, leading Evie to believe it was the correct move for the situation. Just to be safe, she added another dip at the waist which Sleveka returned.

They kept bobbing at each other until a vehicle pulled up to the platform.

“Mother. Evie?” Vork asked, complete confusion coming through in his voice. “If finished you are?”

“Are we?” Evie asked.

“Are we.” Sleveka bowed one last time and showed her fangs. “Eat us!”

“Sure,” Evie said with equal enthusiasm. “Eat us.”

They climbed into the back of a big, flattened, silver egg, with Evie taking the middle of the squishy bench seat. There appeared to be no front seat, just an empty space between them and the windscreen, which … Was Vork going to man the craft from beside her? Talk about a backseat driver.

The hatch sealed closed like plastic wrap on the edge of a mixing bowl. Vork tapped something into his com and the vehicle tipped forward, spiraling down toward the ground.

Evie’s stomach dove along with it. Her arms splayed out, smacking Vork in the belly, making him woof, as well as Sleveka in her non-chest. For some reason, his mother didn’t appear to have breasts. While Sleveka might not be indicative of all Crakairian women, Evie’s B-cups might not be considered small after all. She’d have to ask Vork.

She looked up to see a vehicle rushing straight at them, a single headlight blinding her eyes.

They were gonna crash! Her wail rang out.

Chapter 6

VORK

“Eek!” Evie climbed into his lap and pressed her face against his chest.

His arms wrapped around her as if they belonged there, which wouldn’t do. He needed to keep his distance from this human female. Focus on his career in the military. If he let himself get distracted, he’d delay or even lose his chance for another promotion. He needed to make Galaxy Starfleet Commander like his father had before he … died. Evie’s job was to remain at home raising his children and let him live the life he’d planned. If she was bored, she could prepare a meal now and then, though he had staff that could see to all of their needs.

Her only other role would be in the bedroom.

The last thing he needed was to let her into his heart. But …

“The car!” she stuttered out, turning and pointing forward. “It’s going to cream us!”

Cream? What did thick milk have to do with hover trams?

The tram they approached veered to the side and passed them, as was expected with computer-controlled vehicles.

Evie sagged in his arms.

His mother watched with a speculative gleam in her eyes. When their gazes met, she bared her fangs in a half-smile and nodded.

“She is wise, this Evie,” she said. “She knows where she belongs.”

Did she know? This woman had just met him; she knew nothing about him.

How could she sense he was already eager to protect her with his life?

The notion stunned him. She wasn’t his bondmate. She never would be. She was a willing substitute from another race who would accept fucking to produce children.

“Do not take too much time with your courtship,” his mother said wisely. “Someone else will see her value and steal her from you.”

He saw red. A growl rumbled through his chest, and Evie sat up and peered at him.

“You okay?” she said, her voice still shaky. “This … hover thing—”

“Tram.”

“This hover tram is unlike anything I’ve ridden in before. I mean, I’ve flown in a plane, but they travel up into the clouds. And other planes don’t dive at them. Not usually, anyway.”

“You’ve flown in a spacecraft before your journey here?” he asked, astonished. What could she mean? Earth was a primitive planet. They were younglings as far as space travel was concerned.

Her lips pursed. “A plane is something in between a spacecraft and this tram. It flies higher than this, though.”

“If you have ridden in one, then why are you concerned?”

She frowned, and he knew his words weren’t coming out as they were supposed to. Frustration churned through him, and he wondered, again, when his translation device would finally catch up with her language. While it was working all the time, storing nuance and speech patterns, and whatever new word she emitted, it wasn’t doing the job fast enough for Vork.

“You are impatient,” Mother said, reading him too well.

“I have every reason to be.”

“Please remember to take time to savor what you have rather than what you do not.”

He sighed. “What is that supposed to mean?”

She stared forward. “Your father…”

Who’d died when Vork was a youngling of barely thirteen yaros. Vork had looked up to the burly, stern man who’d always sweep in after his latest mission with kisses for Vork’s mother and unusual, alien items he’d picked up during his military travels for Vork. He’d rustle Vork’s naanans and tell him he couldn’t wait for his son to grow to manhood and enlist in the spacefleet, that he planned for his son to follow in his father’s star tracks.

When his father was supposedly killed during a mission, Vork had promised himself he’d see his father’s dream come true. One more promotion and he would equal his father’s rank. Then he could consider settling down and spending time with his family.

His arms tightened around Evie.

“He was a good man,” Vork said.

“The best.” Her eyes misted, and her naanan drooped. “I still miss him. You know he planned to retire within three lunairs?”

He had not known that. “His world was the military. Why would he do that?”

“Because he loved me. You.” She lifted one shoulder. “Maybe more than he loved his career.” Leaning over, she patted his arm. “You love your career as well, but do not forget what matters most.” Her gaze fell on Evie.

This delicate human female who cuddled in his lap was worming her way into places she should not venture. He must remain strong. He was not prepared to leave his commission within three lunairs.

Why then did he not push Evie from his embrace and insist she remain on the seat beside him?

He liked her warmth on his legs, her hand around the back of his neck, cupping his shoulder. Her breath, sweeter than petria flowers.

And this was the scariest thing of all.

“She belongs with you,” his mother stated firmly. “And you belong with her. Not chasing dreams that need not come true.”

Where did he belong? He’d always thought it was in the military …

Recently, he’d been offered a new position, one that would mean remaining planetside most of the time. He’d scoffed but told his commanding officer he would think about it before making a final decision.

He wouldn’t consider changing his career goals, would he?

He growled. His brain was jumbled, trying to figure this out. Before Evie had arrived, he’d been confident about the path he wished to take in his life. He’d come to accept the idea of completing the courtship with whoever the Earth government sent, while holding back the bond. No one would know but him because it wasn’t yet known if Crakairian bonds could exhibit with a human. In a Crakairian marriage, the female would see right through any attempt on his part to hold that part of himself back, but Evie was not Crakairian. She wouldn’t know the difference.

His blood rose inside him, like the boiling eruptions of Mount Lavirre. It demanded he seal the bond, but he would fight it.

“Look at how she trusts you already,” his mother said, her words slicing through his resolve as easily as Evie was wiggling her way into his mind. He couldn’t let it happen.

Evie watched and listened, but did not comment.

Mother’s fangs gleamed in the moonlight. “I know you’ll do the right thing.”

Whatever that was. He’d thought he knew.

Now, he wasn’t so sure.

Chapter 7

EVIE

“T  ell Earth about,” Vork’s mother said to Evie.

“What would you like to know?” Talking might be a fantastic distraction. Because, shit, she was still sitting on Vork’s lap, and his fingertips were teasing along her waist. He kept staring at her mouth. Which, she supposed, beat staring at her boobs.

“Have career?”

“I did. I worked at the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service.”

“Mate-maker,” Sleveka said like it confirmed something, though Evie couldn’t imagine what.

“Yes, I was a programmer. I ran the numbers.”

“Boobies?” Sleveka asked.

Evie gulped. “Excuse me?”

“Boobies.” Sleveka frowned and tapped on the translator implanted behind her ear. “Boobies enjoy fun.”

Sometimes they did. But Evie had a feeling Sleveka wasn’t referring to sex. Although, Crakairians were big on talking about fucking here.

“No, bobbies,” Sleveka said.

Still not getting it.

While Sleveka fiddled with her translator and mumbled boobies, boobies, boobies, they whizzed past multiple lit up buildings. A few platforms jutted out, like the one they’d stood until their hover tram arrived, with aliens awaiting their rides.

When she’d heard about her match, Evie had researched the city of Tri’Arteele. With about two-hundred-thousand residents, the city sat in the valley between three broad mountain ranges. Like in northern places back on Earth, it snowed in the winter, though only in the mountains. The city remained a steady temperature of about seventy-five during the day and the fifties at night. At the time, she’d thought it sounded perfect.

“Bobbies, boobies,” Sleveka muttered.

“Think not correct,” Vork said. “Loobies?”

The only thing Evie hadn’t been sure of was what she’d do here to keep busy. Assuming things worked out and she and Vork married, she didn’t plan to lounge around his apartment all day long eating chocolates. Or watching TV, though she wasn’t sure TVs or chocolate existed here. The latter would be a tragedy.

But she liked to keep busy.

“Do people go running here?” Not that Evie ran much, but it might be time to take up the hobby. Oh, wait. “Did you mean hobbies?”

“Hobbies! Yes,” Sleveka breathed out in relief. “You has hobbies?”

“I do yoga.”

“What is this yoga?”

“It’s a type of athletic activity. Kind of like running.”

“Run from…”

Oh, gosh, did she have to worry about predators here? She didn’t recall reading about any in the information packet, but maybe because they hadn’t thought to mention it.

“It’s more like, run somewhere. For exercise.” She patted her hip. “To stay fit.” Well, some people did it to stay fit. “Yoga is about breathing and relaxation. It’s a form of meditation that helps develop harmony in the body and tunes you in to your inner mind and the environment.”

“Intriguing. Will try. Tomorrow. Teach you. Vork?” Sleveka tilted her head to look at her son.

He grunted and stared out the window. Was he tired? He’d probably worked all day and now he was going out on the town. That would explain his sudden distance. Maybe she should climb off his lap. She could be making his legs fall asleep.

Although, his hand rested on her thigh, and his thumb stroked slowly back and forth. Was he aware he was doing it? She sure was. The gown they’d asked her to put on back on the ship was made up of thin, silky material. His touch sunk through as if she wore nothing. Utterly distracting.

Think, Evie.

“What do you like to do for fun, Vork?” she asked.

“Work.”

“Work isn’t fun. I mean, I loved my job on Earth, but I wouldn’t want to do it all the time.”

They continued to zip through the city, chugging around tall buildings and lifting up then back down either due to wind currents or to avoid hitting other hover trams carrying their passengers.

“You don’t work every day, do you?” she asked.

He dipped his head forward.

“That means yes? Don’t you have any free time to, I don’t know, take a walk?”

“Walk where?”

“Around town?”

“Why that do?”

“For exercise. Like running and yoga. You could look in the storefront windows as you stroll past. Or sit on a park bench and people—Crakairian—watch. Maybe … get an ice cream?”

She wasn’t sure what confused him most about what she’d listed off. Probably her entire statement.

How was she going to get to know him if he worked all the time?

“Cream?” he repeated.

Please, let there be ice cream here.

“It’s frozen cream and sugar. You serve it in a cone or a dish, with chocolate sauce and sprinkles on top. And a cherry.”

“Ice cream want,” Sleveka said. “Call Earth. Send ice cream.”

Sounded like a good plan to Evie.

Maybe after she’d helped write the “get to know your Earthling” manual, she could open an ice cream parlor. She’d worked at one when she was in high school to earn money. And she did have a degree in business administration. How hard could it be?

“I could send a message through the regular, low-priority channels,” Vork said. “If we had recipes and the ingredients could be located, we could consider creating some of the treats you used to enjoy on Earth.”

“I think that would be a delightful idea, Vork.” Sleveka clapped her hands. “Do it first thing tomorrow.”

He dipped his head.

“Wait,” Evie said. “You two are speaking normally.”

His thick brows drew together.

“Tell me something in a full sentence,” she said eagerly.

“See-lass has soft hair and yours…” his fingers teased the strands of hair curling around her face. “Yours is even softer.”

Maybe he did care, even if only a little?

“It would seem our translators have finally finished upgrading,” Sleveka said. “That’s a relief.” Tipping her head back, she shrieked. “I cannot believe I asked you about your boobies.”

“So the translator understands slang, too?”

“Somewhat.” Her grin slipped between them.

“Cool.” While Evie had no fangs to display, she could … She tipped her head back and shrieked.

Sleveka joined in and then the two women dissolved into giggles while Vork looked on, his fangs half-revealed.

Before Evie could try to draw him out a bit more, the vehicle zipped up toward a huge, tall, shiny silver building. The hover tram stopped at the edge of another platform and the seamed door on Sleveka’s side peeled backward.

She climbed out, and Evie and Vork followed. They crossed the platform to a door that Vork held open for them.

Inside, Evie found herself standing in a vast cave-like cavern that plunged down for what looked like miles. The open expanse was peppered with floating islands with vines, dirt, and grass dangling off their bottoms. As far as Evie could see, no ropes or cords held the islands suspended. On each of the spaces sat a table and a few chairs. She could understand using small islands like this for some sort of theme meal, but how could anyone eat while worrying that one misstep could send them on a one-way trip to the bowels of the planet?

Evie tiptoed forward. A glance over the side of the platform confirmed the ground was too far below to be seen. Vertigo snatched her up and tried to haul her over the edge. Arms outstretched, she backed up until she nudged against Vork.

His hands encircled her waist and held her steady.

“No host to seat us,” Evie said, looking around for what she’d expect back home, someone holding laminated menus and ready to escort them to their table. Somehow. Would a bridge extend from somewhere for them to cross? Evie stared toward the islands. About half were filled with people sitting at the tables, eating.

“No need for a host,” Vork said. He picked her up and flung her over his shoulder, caveman style.

While she gasped and slapped her hands onto his back, she gaped down at his nicely sculpted ass.

He bound forward, then leaped.

She screamed.

Sleveka, still waiting on the platform, shrieked as well. Others in the room, sitting at tables, joined in on the screaming until a cacophony of wails erupted around the room.

With a solid thud, Vork landed on one of the islands about thirty feet from the platform where Sleveka still waited.

“What, what…” Evie sputtered as Vork lowered her carefully onto her feet. She stumbled and fell against him.

He braced her arms. “I must go for my mother. But first…” His head dipped, and he gave her a kiss that was much too hot and much too brief.

She stared in bemusement while he jumped back to the platform and then brought his mother to the island with him.

They all took seats. Frankly, it gave her the chills to think of the world dropping away about three inches behind her. What if the edge crumbled?

No menus. No silverware. No pretty candle in the center of the table.

“How will we know what we want to eat?” she asked carefully, not wanting to sound picky. Sleveka had requested this restaurant, which meant she loved it.

“We are at Meerkat,” Sleveka said, her arm sweeping out. “Of course, we are all eating kleenk.”

The stuff that turned her stomach? Something must have been lost in the earlier translation. Evie wasn’t sure she wanted to ask.

“I’m a vegetarian,” Evie said spontaneously. A total lie. She enjoyed a rare steak as much as any cowboy in Texas.

Sleveka frowned. “What does this vegetarian mean?”

“I don’t eat meat,” Evie said, patting her belly. “Sorry. Are there any vegetable options on the menu?”

“Ah.” Sleveka leaned back in her chair and it tipped toward the edge.

Bolting forward, Evie grabbed Sleveka’s arm. Sleveka jumped. Evie jumped. Vork sighed.

Evie was convinced she was going to hurl. Should she hold on to Sleveka to keep her from falling? Vork didn’t seem concerned. He just watched Evie with a speculative gleam in his eyes.

And why did this guy look even better fully dressed than he had with his chest hanging out? It was not fair. It was almost more than her little heart could handle.

“No worries,” Sleveka said, tipping forward again and placing her arms on the table. “Meerkat is a vegetable-only restaurant.”

“Great!” Evie said. She leaned near the older woman. “Could you scoot your chair closer to the table, please?” She tipped her head toward the gaping emptiness directly behind Sleveka. “I’m worried you’ll fall.”

“Impossible.” She flicked her hand Evie’s way. “But I thank you for your concern. I’m surprised Vork didn’t tell you.”

Evie raised her eyebrows Vork’s way, but he just smiled, his fangs winking in the muted beams filtering down from recessed lights in the stone cavern roof overhead.

“Tell me—”

A man carrying a large black bowl with gold etching on the side jumped onto the only available inch of ground not covered with the table and three occupied chairs. He lowered the bowl into the center of the table. “A generous servicing go kleenk,” he said. He winked at Sleveka. “I understand this tonight special celebration.”

“My son will soon be marrying.”

The server’s gaze drifted Evie’s way, and he tipped his face up to look down his nose at her. “You Earthling.”

Highly observant of him. What gave her away? Perhaps the lack of naanan floating around on her head. Too bad she couldn’t shoot a little poison his way.

Vork snarled, and the server twitched.

“Oof, yes.” He braced back his lips, but it came out more a sneer than a smile. “Congratulations?” Hands clasped at his waist, he bowed. “Drinks?”

“What would you like?” Vork asked her.

As if she would know what to order? “How about water?”

“Yes, water.” Vork frowned. “But should we order something traditional from my country of Crakair as well.”

Sleveka bared her fangs but, fortunately, didn’t shriek.

Low-level smile right there.

“A bottle of vintip, please,” Vork decided.

After bowing again, the server leaped from their table and onto a platform along the side of the cavern, with an archway that must lead to the kitchen.

“Vintip is a rare, Crakairian drink,” Vork said.

“Does it contain alcohol?” Evie asked.

He frowned.

Sleveka patted Evie’s arm. “It’s quite mild. You shall enjoy it.” She dipped her head toward Vork. “I cannot wait to get started. You should show Evie our meal.” Leaning forward, her fangs gleamed with anticipation.

Vork lifted the lid off the bowl with a flourish, revealing what must be one of those family-style dinners since there was just one serving for all of them. Almost overflowing the sides, a mound of multi-colored strands wiggled inside, like a mound of demented gummy worms.

“These aren’t vegetables,” Evie gulped, reeling back in her chair. It inched backward, but the ground held beneath her. It might be more pleasant to fall over the side than dig her hand into a mound of creepy-crawly creatures.

“Of course they are,” Sleveka said. She carefully lifted one out and dangled it over her head. Mouth open, she dropped it in. A quick chew and she swallowed it. “They are a delicacy found only in the pits below us. They are quite difficult to catch and are only served here at Meerkat.”

“But vegetables are green. They grow in the soil. They don’t squirm around in a bowl.”

“On Crakair they do,” Sleveka said. Reaching into the bowl again, she pulled out a smaller pink one and held it toward Evie. “Try it. I know you shall enjoy it.” It coiled around the end of her finger.

Evie glanced at Vork to gauge his reaction, but he just watched her. His attention flicked to her breasts.

What to do? She was hungry, but they were talking worms, here.

People ate worms on Earth.

Ugh.

Carefully taking it from Sleveka, Evie lifted a weak smile. She moved it toward her mouth. No tossing-popcorn-and-catching-it-in-her mouth gesture for her, not unless she could fling it over her shoulder. It could rejoin its buddies in the deep, dark pit below them.

Oh, wait. Saved by the bell.

The server hopped back to the island clutching a bottle and three glasses. He set everything down then uncorked the bottle and poured some pale pink liquid in each glass.

“Try your kleenk,” Sleveka urged. “Please. For me?”

Grumbling, Evie dragged the beastie up from where she’d tucked it onto her lap, planning to imply she’d eaten and enjoyed it but, damn, was she full and couldn’t eat another. Imagine, from one kleenk!

She dangled the worm overhead. Closing her eyes, she opened her lips wide and inserted the wiggly bugger into her mouth.

Tasted like strawberries covered with chocolate. With hints of mango.

It melted on her tongue like confectionary sugar. She wiggled in her seat, savoring the flavors bursting in her mouth.

“Whoa,” she exclaimed. “That’s awesome!”

“Awesome?” Vork said, tasting the word.

Sleveka nodded. “They are awesome. You are right. Hence this being a popular restaurant.”

“Do they all taste like that?” Evie asked, fishing in the bowl for another. Sure, they wiggled, but they were vegetables. A new world meant new experiences, and all that.

“Each is different. Try another.”

The next reminded her of chicken with gravy. This was followed by one tasting like banana bread and another like black licorice. The color seemed to indicate flavors, in that the pastels were fruitier and sweet, the earthy tones were reminiscent of meats and even potatoes, and the cooler colors like blue and green tasted like bread, muffins, and cake.

Reaching across the table, Sleveka nudged Vork’s shoulder. “You are not eating.”

He stared at Evie.

Uncomfortable with the intensity of his gaze, probably because she had no clue what it meant, she lifted her drink and held it up in the light. “Pretty color.”

“You shall love it.” Sleveka clapped.

As Evie took a sip, an older alien with grayed naanan dangling down his back in a loose ponytail leaped onto their island. His gaze fell on her and he bobbed his head. She returned the bob. “Allow me to introduce myself. I am Piersag, one of the ten Crakairian governing council members.”

Council alert. Be on your best behavior.

“I was just explaining to Evie about vintip,” Sleveka said. She leaned close to Evie as she took another gulp. “Vintip is made from digerias blood.”

Despite the horror of drinking distilled blood, Evie would have swallowed the sip if someone hadn’t leaped onto their island and bumped into her back.

She spit the vintip out, and it splattered all over Piersag.

Turning, she tried to see who had helped cause the accident, but whoever it was had fled. No one around appeared to be looking their way.

She pivoted when Piersag bellowed in rage. He glared down at his speckled shirt, then directed a lethal stare her way.

Rising, she scooted around the table and tried to blot at the stains with the hem of her dress.

His arms cartwheeled, and he tumbled backward.

Chapter 8

VORK

V ork latched onto Piersag’s shirt, barely keeping him from falling over the edge.

His face florid, Piersag regained his footing. He snarled at Evie. “I have been assaulted,” he shouted. “This Earthling has tried to kill me. Arrest her and throw her into the pit!”

The stark fear on Evie’s face made stone-cold fury explode inside Vork. Piersag would not touch her. He would never allow anyone to hurt her. It had been an accident.

His human female was not going to be thrown into the prison pit.

Like he’d been bludgeoned during a battle, a feral snarl ripped from his throat. His fists lifted, and he stomped close to Piersag.

“She’s mine,” Vork growled.

Considering he’d been unsure he wanted to mate with Evie before he met her, even he was surprised by his vehemence.

It wasn’t affection. Or caring, as she’d called it earlier. He was just defending someone under his protection.

“I’m terribly sorry,” Evie said, stumbling backward. Her foot caught on her chair and it dove over the side of the island to sink into the oblivion below.

Piersag gnashed his teeth and pointed at Evie. “Kill her!”

Vork fisted the front of Piersag’s tunic, lifted him off the ground. “Touch her and you’ll spend the rest of your days kleenk hunting below.” He thrust the male over the gap, and Piersag’s feet flailed. His face went ruddy. “I said it was an accident.”

This male had once been close to Vork’s family. Vork and Piersag’s son, Lyel, had been best friends until Piersag and Vork’s father had argued. Vork had not seen Lyel since. The loss of their friendship had haunted him well into his adult life.

While Piersag sputtered, Vork lifted him higher, fueled by blind rage.

“You…” Piersag hit ineffectively at Vork’s hands.

Sleveka rounded the table and tugged on Vork’s arm. Her naanans flared, with poison dripping. He had a feeling the poison wasn’t there solely to protect him but also in defense of Evie. “Put him down,” she hissed. “He’ll have you hauled up by your feet as bait for the quittesk if you don’t.”

The lizard-like creatures had notorious appetites for flesh. They’d stomp in and rip a body to shreds before the heart had stopped beating. Quittesk-baiting hadn’t been seen on Crakair for thousands of years, not since the tribes were disbanded and the central government was formed.

Blood rage still fueling him, he shook Piersag again, hoarsely crying a challenge the older man would be unwise to accept.

Evie dropped the edge of her gown and inched closer to Vork, like a delicate trittee dove approaching a beast on spindly legs. “Vork,” she said softly. “It’s okay. Put him down.” Her attention shifted to Piersag and her spine went tight. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do this. Please.”

Vork’s gaze locked on hers and the urge to rip Piersag’s head off faded. He tossed the man toward another occupied island, and Piersag crashed into the table. Righting himself, he yanked on his tunic while the other men jumped up to ensure he was unharmed.

In a fever, he hauled Evie against his body, and his mouth descended. Plundered.

Instead of beating him with her fists or struggling, she pressed closer. And she moaned.

A groan rushed up from his chest and he moaned it into her mouth while his tongue dipped inside, tasting. He smoothed his tongue across the inside of her lips while his naanans slid down her back and around to the tempting mounds on her chest.

“Vork,” someone said, then louder. “Vork!”

He lifted his head, and his ragged breathing echoed around him. Evie lay passively in his arms, staring up at him with pure desire in her eyes. He scooped her up in his arms and crouched, prepared to hurl himself across the opening to the platform. He’d take her to his bedroom and ravage her for the entire night.

“Vork.” The soothing tones of his mother cut through the lingering blood rage. “You can’t. You must follow the courtship rituals then seek her consent in marriage. If you break the bond with her planet, you won’t be allowed to keep her.”

Tipping his head back, he roared out his frustration. He gnashed his teeth, but shoved the irritation away and made his insatiable lust back down.

The air rushed from his lungs, and he dropped his head, pressing his forehead against Evie’s. “I am sorry,” he said. “I pushed for something that is not—yet—mine.”

And that’s when he realized how desperately he wanted her. For always.

“Yet?” she asked, and he wondered if she’d slap him or worse, shun him. Tell him she wanted to return to her planet this instant.

Instead, her hand, that soft, delicate slip of blood and flesh, more fragile than an udane bird’s wing, rose and stroked his face. “It’s okay.” A soft laugh shifted between them, low and intimate. “Kinda hot and heavy, but I’ll take it.” Her eyes met his. “Hold that thought, though, would you?”

“It is too soon. Too rushed.” He stepped back but lifted her hands and kissed each one. “It won’t happen again.”

The light faded from her eyes, making him worried he’d said or done the wrong thing. He’d wrangled with her like a youngling during his first courtship. He wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

Sleveka tugged on his arm. “We need to leave before—”

The thunder of Piersag’s bellow echoed around them.

“Damn,” Evie said with a laugh that didn’t reach her eyes. “I kinda hoped he’d leaped to another island.”

Piersag stood on a nearby island. To Vork’s shock, Lyel, Piersag’s son and Vork’s former best friend, stared their way. In Lyel’s gaze, Vork read the lingering sadness inside him. He’d missed his friend for a very long time.

Piersag shook his fist at Vork. “I seek…vengeance.”

Lyel’s snarl ripped through the air. Was he in support of this or angry, like Piersag?

The flurry of conversation that had risen since the confrontation stilled, followed by heated whispers.

“A vengeance,” his mother said in a hoarse cry. “No. Please, no.” She stormed to the edge of the island and shook her fists at Piersag. Her naanan spiked all over her head, dripping poison.

Evie backed away before she got splattered.

“You cannot do this,” Sleveka cried. “He is my family, the last of the Javaars. My only son!”

Chapter 9

EVIE

Without another word, Piersag jumped from one island to another and then stormed through the exit. A younger Crakairian stared at Vork for a long moment before following Piersag.

They hadn’t seen the last of the older man. Evie had a feeling when Piersag cried for vengeance, he’d issued Vork some sort of challenge. Much like a duel, if they’d lived in the wild, wild west.

While Sleveka shook with fury and Vork glared around the room, Evie tiptoed back against the table.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“We go.” Vork lifted his arm toward the server who huddled with others on the platform outside the kitchen. The man hopped their way, but he must have caught a solid glance at Vork’s face because he stopped on the closest island occupied by two gaping men. Eyes wide, he tapped on his com and Vork’s pinged.

Vork spoke briefly to him via the com then tapped the screen to pay for their unfinished meal.

The bowl of wiggling vegetable worms no longer held appeal. Who’d want to eat at a time like this? And forget the vintip. Evie had no interest in touching digerias blood ever again.

Actually, Evie wanted to throw up. She was responsible for this situation. If only she could go back and do it over. Instead, she’d have to deal with the consequences of what happened. Her shoulders curled forward until her gaze met Sleveka’s. The older woman tipped her chin up, and the look in her eyes encouraged Evie to also put on a solid front. Women stuck together, no matter the species or planet. And there was no reason to give the gossips additional fodder.

Vork scooped Evie up in his arms and tossed her over his shoulder. A quick lunge and they landed near the entrance, where he lowered her to the floor. When he would have jumped back to assist his mother, he lingered. His hand rose and his knuckles stroked her face. But his expression projected pure steel. Anger still charged through him, with no way out.

Once Sleveka joined them, they hailed a hover tram and climbed inside. Vork requested their destination via his com. An aura of doom filled the vehicle, thick enough Evie could part it with a blade.

“We will drop you off at your home first, Mother,” he said.

Sleveka lifted her clenched fists and the bands around her fingers that wove up to her wrists flashed in the lights emitted by the buildings they passed. “That Piersag. I would like to show him vengeance. Could he not see our Evie did not mean what happened? No. He has been after our family since your father was alive. Looking for a way to…” Her shoulders deflated. “You know he applied for the promotion your father was granted before his…death.”

“What can we expect from a vengeance?” Evie asked softly, unsure what it could be but suspecting the outcome wouldn’t be good. Horror filled her at the thought that Vork would need to defend her against a Council member. Her heart had become a heavy mass in her chest, and it hurt to breathe.

Sleveka’s gaze met Vork’s, and she nodded. “As your intended mate, she has a right to know.”

“We have not gone beyond the initial courtship.”

Sleveka flicked her hand out, dismissing his statement. “Get through the next part immediately. Then proceed quickly to solidify the bond.”

What bond? Evie opened her mouth to ask, but they continued.

“It is not that simple,” he growled. “You know no one knows for sure if Earth females can—”

“You must assume it will work. Do what must be done or—”

“In a vengeance, we must battle,” Vork told Evie, rubbing his forehead with his palm. When Sleveka started to speak again, Vork interrupted. “That is all I wish to say.”

And what did that mean?

“That’s not fair,” Evie said. “I caused this. I need to know what it is.”

“Vengeance is a tradition that has been a part of our culture for thousands of years,” Sleveka said, her lips thinning. “Piersag never should have escalated things over something so silly. He should have let it go. If he was wise, he would have.”

“I spit my wine at him,” Evie said, slumping in her seat between them. “Not on purpose. I…was shocked.” Who made wine out of blood? “Someone jumped onto our island and hit the back of my chair.”

“I did not see this,” Vork said, but his words contained no accusation. “Did you see their face? Could you identify them?”

She shrugged. “I only caught a glance. When I looked again, they were gone. He was older, though, about Piersag’s age.”

“Hmm,” Vork grunted, his brow grooving deeply. “I will notify the restaurant and demand they look into it.”

“After, I was only trying to blot the vintip off his clothing. I didn’t mean to almost…” She cupped her face before lifting it. “He almost fell, and it’s my fault.” Her chin stiffened. “If anyone should be battling with him, it should be me.”

Vork cocked an eyebrow her way. “How skilled are you with a titar sword?”

“I’ve never trained with swords, but I took a couple of self-defense classes at the Y.”

His lips thinned. “A titar sword is heavy,” his hands spread inside the vehicle, nearly touching both sides, “and long. You’re much too petite to handle such a weapon as this. Self-defense classes at a… Y… will not be enough to survive a battle with Piersag, even if females were permitted to answer the vengeance call. This is for the male to handle. Leave this to me.”

Leave this to me came out a bit smug, like when guys back on Earth would talk about doing things for the “little woman,” but Evie had to be misreading Vork. She didn’t see him as patronizing.

“You know he will not fight the vengeance himself,” Sleveka spat out. “Schiezwick. I know him. He shall enlist a surrogate.”

“It is not uncommon to do so,” Vork acknowledged.

“For him? A certainty. For you? Never.”

Vork’s spine stiffened. “I will do what I must.”

She puffed out a gust of air. “As would your father. You two are too much alike.”

Evie wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing.

Vork nodded. “If I was his age, I would use a surrogate, as well.”

“Would you?” A touch of humor came through in Sleveka’s voice.

He grumbled.

“As I thought,” she said with satisfaction. “Very well, then. I worry…”

“What?” Vork asked.

Her naanans lifted, then dropped back onto her shoulders. “Nothing. He would not do something like this.” She tapped Vork’s arm. “Who will you ask to stand with you?”

“You mean like a second?” Evie asked.

“Bryk,” Vork grunted.

Sleveka nodded. “A wise choice, son. He will not permit Piersag to…” Her voice cut off, and she hung her head. Her naanans drooped around her face, hiding her features from the light. “Please. Find a way out of it if you can.”

“I will let not him hurt or imprison Evie.”

“It was an accident,” Evie said. “All of it.” Tears smarted behind her eyes. She loved that Vork was eager to protect her, but it made her chest ache that he could be harmed in her defense.

“A public insult must be answered,” Vork said. “This, I do understand, but the satisfaction he insisted upon was too severe.”

Her gut sunk to the middle of the planet. Gone was any of the humor she’d felt while riding to the restaurant. Now only dismay and a hefty dose of guilt filled her. Was there any way she could find a way out of this for all of them?

“It is not the wine,” Sleveka said dryly. “It would never be about the wine, let alone the near fall. He purposefully came to the table looking for a reason to issue the challenge and he used you, Evie. He has hated our family since…”

Evie waited, her lips parted.

“Since I was a youngling,” Vork said.

“Yes. Your father and he argued about who should have gotten the promotion, as you remember, then became mortal enemies.”

“Is that is why Piersag…”

Sleveka snarled. “Murdered him.” Her hand slapped over her mouth. “I should not have spoken.”

“Murder?” Vork said. “It was never proven, was it?”

“Deep in here,” she reached across Evie and drummed Vork in the chest with her finger, “you know it is the truth.”

He huffed out his agreement. “I will not back out of the vengeance.” Anger charged through his voice. “You are right. While unproven he had motive. I too shall have my chance to seek my own revenge. For what happened years ago and for what we suspect he did to my father. When I was a youngling, you asked me not to pursue this. Now, I am an adult. Nothing will hold me back.”

“Please, no,” Sleveka cried. “Let it go.”

“I cannot. You know this. You should not have made me promise.”

“I did it to protect you.”

“That, I know, but—”

Tears shimmered in Sleveka’s eyes. “Let Bryk fight in your stead. Do not do this yourself.”

“Mother.” Vork’s voice grated in the dark cabin. “This is mine. Piersag will be mine.”

Her naanans whirled wildly around her head. “Nothing good will come of this.”

“And so it shall be.” The finality in his voice did not invite further conversation.

When she’d come here, to this city, Evie had hoped she’d find a similar civilization to what she’d experienced back home. But these people—the Crakairians—might appear modern and cultured on the surface, but underneath their scaled skin, they were as unsophisticated as their ancestors.

It reminded her all over again that this was a foreign culture. She welcomed learning about the people who would someday call her own, but she had to admit she felt intimidated. Vulnerable. And in many ways, completely alone.

The vehicle slowed and leveled off at the top of a building, on the edge of a platform.

“We are here,” Vork said. “I will walk you inside.”

The outer vehicle membrane peeled back, and they got out. Evie remained in the tram, ripping herself to shreds, because she knew she was to blame for this. Yes, Piersag had come to their table looking for a reason to make trouble, but she’d handed it to him.

She’d find a way to make this right.

Vork returned in a few minutes and climbed in beside her. After he settled in the seat, he cupped his face and his chest rose and fell. “We will begin the courtship tomorrow morning.”

“You still want to court me after what I’ve done?” The words burst through her pain.

“Yes,” he said, sounding as if he surprised even himself with the word. “I do.”

Biting her lips together, she nodded. “Okay. Tomorrow morning.” Tonight, she’d pull out the protocol book and make sure she understood what to expect. Maybe, if she’d read it faithfully earlier, she could have prevented Piersag’s challenge. “When will you fight in the vengeance?”

In other words, how much time did they have?

“Three days. At dawn.”

They zipped around buildings and arrived at another, again docking at a platform on the top floor.

“This is my home,” he said. “Your home should you choose to marry me.”

“Are we picking up Silas?” Maybe that was it. They’d collect his carrier and the litter and food, and then Vork would take her to wherever she would sleep tonight. Vork would come around for her in the morning to begin his courtship.

“You will stay here with me.”

“Oh,” she sighed. “I thought…”

His face remained hidden in the shadows.

She stared down at her hands clasped tightly on her lap. “I guess I thought I’d stay at some sort of home for Earth women.”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because…then I’d be with others like myself. We’d talk, commensurate, and discuss…” Not bringing in the green dicks.

“Do you wish you were with others of your kind?” Why did he sound sad?

“I’m happy to be here with you.”

“Truly?”

“I wouldn’t lie.”

He said nothing, just stared at her. Reaching up, he stroked her hair from her face then fingered the strands. “It is silky. We do not have…this kind of softness on our bodies.”

A cavern of differentness stretched between them, without a bridge she could cross to meet in the middle.

She held out her hand, and he took it within his large, calloused one. “I think we should go inside our home, don’t you?”

Blinking, he stared down at their clasped hands. “This…it was not supposed to be this way.”

“How was it supposed to be?” He didn’t meet her eyes and in the dim light, she couldn’t read him.

He shrugged, then lifted his head. “You were supposed to be happy without me.”

She hadn’t come here expecting a love match. What her friend Sadie had with her dead husband had been a once in a lifetime thing. Evie had already learned from her ex that true love was rarer than finding a complete sand dollar on a beach. She’d only hoped to find someone she could be comfortable with.

She hadn’t expected her world to flip upside down. She hadn’t expected to find someone special. But while happiness should come from inside a person, independent of another, a shared life could be sweeter.

Wanting something like this with Vork could bring her great pain.

“Can we…go inside?” she asked softly. She felt raw, open, and exposed, and she didn’t like it. It reminded her too much of always trying to be everything her ex needed but falling short every single time.

“Of course.”

They got out, and she waited in the chilly air while Vork unlocked the door. Behind them, the vehicle zipped away, off to find another assignment.

Vork waved for her to enter ahead of him.

She stepped inside the dark interior, then waited for him to turn on a light. No need to stumble in the dark. A click and golden beams lit up the room.

Silas meowed.

Despite Evie’s unsettled mood, laughter burst out of her.

Silas perched on an enormous bone that looked like it had been wrenched from the hip socket of a wooly mammoth. Encrusted with meat, it glistened. Silas licked a piece of the meat then gnawed on it. A snap and a gulp, and he’d swallowed a big chunk.

“Beats canned wet food, right, buddy?” she said as she walked across the plush, carpeted living room. Thankfully, the lieutenant had put a cloth underneath the bone he’d suspended between two walls with ropes.

“Is this enough for the See-lass, do you think?” Vork asked, joining her by the bone. For whatever reason, he sounded concerned he wouldn’t please her cat. Or maybe he hoped to please her. But that was a silly thought. He’d just said he hoped she’d be happy without him.

“This’ll keep him happy for months,” she said, stiffening her lips that trembled.

“I do not know that term. Months.”

She explained a twenty-four-hour day and thirty of them, give or take a one or two.

He, in turn, explained that Crakair had a twenty-hour day and each month—called a lunair here—was made up of twenty-eight days. There were fourteen lunairs in a calendar year, called a yaro.

“Silas will never eat this much meat,” she said with a worn-out sigh. Maybe the best thing to do would be to crash on her bed. Assuming she had one somewhere here.

“The See-lass is growing,” Vork said with certainty. “He will soon need more meat than this.”

“He’s a mature cat, not a baby saber-toothed tiger. He won’t get any bigger.” She dropped down onto the sofa and curled her legs underneath her. Her arms snaked around her waist. Silas jumped off the bone and onto the sofa beside her. With a burp, he started to lick his paws.

“Here, he will grow bigger,” Vork said firmly. “I know this.” He remained near the door, watching her.

Silas growing to the size of a bobcat was not possible, but it was hardly worth arguing about.

“It’s going to rot,” she said, waving to the bone. “And stink.”

“I sense your displeasure.” His posture stiffened. “I will have Lieutenant Dorn slice smaller amounts from the remaining digerias carcass in future. Perhaps he can put chunks in a bowl for See-lass?”

“Sure. That’ll work out best. But you didn’t kill a digerias…” Ugh, she’d drank wine made from the creature’s blood at dinner. “You didn’t kill one just for Silas, did you?” And hell, how big was it? Enormous if this bone was anything to go by.

“My lieutenant went hunting for See-lass.”

In some ways, curiosity was eating her alive. In every other way, she felt better off not knowing. Did herds of digerias wander around the city?

“Nice of him to do that for Silas, but I don’t know,” she said. “Do you have a big freezer? While I don’t like the idea of killing large animals, he does need to eat.”

“The digerias will keep in the icebox. Leave it to my lieutenant. The See-lass will never want for anything here.”

Lucky Silas. Would Vork offer her the same? She was too tired to figure it out tonight. Tomorrow would be soon enough for questions.

“Where will I sleep tonight?” Someone was scratching the back of her eyeballs, making them sting.

“You will sleep where all Crakairian mates sleep.”

In his bed? But no. The … fucking would not happen until she’d consented to marriage.

Silly to think that, back on Earth, she and Sadie had essentially made a joke about this. Green dicks had nothing to do with honorable alien men who were willing to fight for an Earthling. Vork wasn’t a picture or an image telling her he was eager to meet her, to start a new life with her.

He’d pretty much wooed her with his sweet, quaint message crafted just for her. Well, for whomever he’d be matched with, but the computers had chosen her. Would Vork have picked her if he’d been given a selection? Best not to think about that when she was just getting to know him.

Being courted by him, that is. Tomorrow, anyway.

Back home, she’d assumed that’s what this would be. The start of something new that could turn into a real relationship.

Despite his hesitancy in the car, she was looking forward to talking with him, getting to know him better.

“I will treasure you always,” he’d said in the clip his delegation sent. His deep brown eyes encircled with blue and black had sought out hers through the computer screen, though that was physically impossible. “I shall worship your mind and your body forever.”

Hot guys telling Evie things like that hadn’t been a regular occurrence in her life, especially with her ex. No, a guy acting like that might only exist in books, but there was no harm in dreaming.

Perhaps she’d dreamed too much before coming to Crakair.

In the holographic video, Vork had finished the presentation with a string of Crakairian phrases she hadn’t understood but had sounded like beautiful, sexy poetry. While she could have used a computer translator to understand every word, she’d decided to wait. Once—if—things progressed beyond courtship, she’d ask him to speak them aloud to her in person.

Then beg him to teach her the meaning.

Chapter 10

VORK

“I  will take you to your room.” Vork led her down a wing of his apartment, with muted lights humming to a soft glow at his passage.

“Are we…um, sharing a bed?”

What was this she spoke of? “Crakairian mates never share a bed.”

“Yet, here you are, existing.”

Pausing in the hall, he turned to her, frowning. There was a hidden meaning in her comment. He knew this. He only needed to figure it out.

She propped her hand on her hip. “You must hook up every now and then or your species would have died out years ago.”

Hooking up …? “Ah, the fucking, you mean.”

Her snort of laughter burst out, and she slapped his shoulder.

He blinked a moment, startled by her attack, but that only made her laugh harder.

“Good one,” she said.

“Good what?”

“You’re joking, right?” Her laughter faded. Well, he assumed this was her way of showing joy. No fangs gleaming in the low lights, but her smile warmed him just the same. So unique and special, yet completely different from the way his people showed happiness.

“Why no more…smile?” He ached to stroke her cheeks and bring that bright look back to her face again, but he wasn’t sure if he’d offend her by touching. Despite him stretching things at the restaurant with his kisses, she hadn’t given him the signal.

“I’m probably just tired,” she said. “It was a long trip here.”

“Now you are in your new home. Rest and you will feel better, yes?”

“Sure.” Her voice faded. “That’s all it is. I’m tired.”

At the end of the hall, he opened the door on the left. The one on the right led to his bedroom. “This shall be yours.” He swept his hand out, encouraging her to step inside.

When he’d heard the news he’d been matched, he’d asked his lieutenant to arrange for the usual furnishings. He’s assured himself everything was as it should be, but he hadn’t ensured it was perfect. Then it hadn’t mattered.

Now it did.

When had his heart started softening to this slip of a human female?

He looked around to ensure things were as they should be. Yes, the new mattress had been placed on the wooden frame that matched the other furnishings. The blankets had been laundered, and the bed was made up fresh. He could not see anything of concern. He’d commend his lieutenant in the morning.

“This is the traditional Crakairian mate’s room,” he said gruffly from inside the doorway.

She strolled around the room, touching the rare black petria flowers he’d asked the lieutenant to send. Bending down, she sniffed, and her smile returned to her face.

He had pleased her. His chest puffed even though he hadn’t been the one to bring the flowers to this room himself.

Next time, he would.

Continuing around the room, she opened one of the two closet doors.

“I ordered a few items of clothing for you,” he said. “Varying sizes, as I did not know yours. I am sorry, however.”

She turned, curiosity alive on her face. “Why?”

“The dresses… They are all too long. Crakairian females are of equal height to males. The clothing will not fit.”

“I’ll figure it out. Belt the fabric in and tuck it up or… Too bad I didn’t think to bring a sewing kit.”

He wasn’t sure what that was, but perhaps the translator couldn’t find a word to equal its meaning. “I will get your bag and bring it to you.”

Stepping out into the hall, he’d only gone a few steps before she yelped. He rushed to his room and retrieved his titar sword, then stormed back into her room, brandishing the weapon.

Evie had climbed onto the bed. When he slashed his sword in the air, she gaped up at him. “Where’s the threat?” Her gaze spanned the room as she leaped off the sleeping surface.

“You cried out.” And he’d assumed she needed defending without thinking things through first. Did he believe anything would attack his mate, here in his home?

“It was the bed,” she squeaked out. Was there something wrong with her throat? This was not the first time she’d made this unusual sound. Eek the other times. Worry filled him again, making him want to slam his finger on his com and call the healer to come immediately to give Evie a full physical. But she’d had one on the ship. They would have healed any issues they’d discovered. She hadn’t been on Crakair long enough to get sick.

“This bed is…” She glared at it.

“What is wrong with your sleeping surface?” It looked completely normal to him. He was pleased his lieutenant had chosen the best model available. This is what Evie deserved.

He strode forward and placed his hand on it, ensuring the acklor entity had not died between the time the bed had been constructed and this moment.

“It moved!” She turned and stared at the bed as if she believed it would attack.

He lowered his sword, finally understanding the situation. Or he believed he understood what had caused her distress.

“You have not seen a sleeping surface such as this.” Did Earthlings sleep as his ancestors used to, in caves and on the hard stone floor? If so, she should be welcoming the chance to rest on something softer, not crying out in pain.

“It’s alive.” She slapped her hands on her cheeks. “God, I sound like I’m in a sci-fi movie.” Turning to him, pleading filled her voice. “I shouldn’t even be pushing this. You’ve gone out of your way—both you and your mom—to make me feel welcome, and now you’re being roped into fighting because I stupidly spat wine at some dude in a restaurant and—”

“It is all right,” he said, patting the mounds on her chest. This was the comfort spot of Crakairian females and should soothe her.

She froze and stared down at his hands.

The mounds felt … He sucked his fingers away and slapped them down at his sides.

“Well,” she said, pacing in front of him. “I’m sorry I made you worry. It’s going to be okay. I can sleep on the floor. No need to go to any more effort on my behalf.”

“I will…bring your bag, then?”

“Yes, please.”

He could swear her words came out forced, but what did he know? “Is there anything else I can get you?” he asked with what he hoped she’d take as a patient, reasonable tone.

Her jump suggested it wasn’t. “I’m okay. Thanks.”

Backing to the doorway, he gave her the beginning of his courtship bows. When in doubt, revert to what is familiar. “Tomorrow, to begin our courtship, I shall prepare our first meal together.”

“We ate tonight already. Together, that is. So it wouldn’t be our first meal together. Sort of. I mean, until I spit wine on Piersag and almost shoved him into a pit.”

“We have not dined alone in my warren.”

She gnawed on her lower lip. “Sounds nice, then.” Her lips stretched wide, but the usual gleam did not appear in her eyes. “I look forward to it.”

It seemed patting her mounds might not have been the correct gesture on his part. The last thing he wanted to do was offend her further. Then she wouldn’t want to become his mate, and he was starting to believe he wanted a binding more than anything, even his lofty spacefleet career.

No, he did not want just any binding.

He wanted to mate with her.

Chapter 11

EVIE

When he returned with Evie’s bag, Silas entered the room behind him.

He wound around Vork’s legs while she stood beside the demon-bed. When she’d sank on the edge, feeling bad for herself when she shouldn’t, the surface had shifted and moved, and not like those waterbeds she’d heard people back on Earth used to enjoy.

Vork picked up the cat. “How is the See-lass?” he cooed.

Actually cooed. This giant of an alien man who stood at least a foot and a half taller than her had a gentle side. Who would have thought?

But he also could present a formidable sight, as he had back at the restaurant and when he’d burst into her room, waving his sword.

Kinda cute that he was so eager to defend her from a bed. Sleeping surface, that is. How the hell did anyone fall asleep on this thing when it moved and shifted beneath them?

Vork held Silas draped across one arm while he rubbed the cat’s ears. Silas ate it up, purring.

Frankly, if he touched her in a similar way, she’d be tempted to purr, too.

When his hand had reached for her breasts, she’d frozen. Not in shock, but because desire had flashed through her like liquid fire. He’d patted them, and she wondered if he somehow thought this would calm her down.

Sometimes they felt completely in sync, but other times, it seemed the cavern between them stretched for miles.

She’d promised herself she’d try to fit in. Might as well start with the bed. Vork wouldn’t have put it in her room if he thought it would kill her. One of the first things she’d do once she was settled here on Crakair was talk to someone about making a manual for Crakairians, explaining how things worked on Earth. Maybe then, their first interactions would go smoother.

Climbing up on it, she ignored the squishy molding as it changed to accommodate her weight and the shape of her knees.

Tell yourself it’s memory foam, Evie.

If only it was that easy.

“Is it one being or many?” she asked, trying to make conversation.

He kept patting Silas. “One being. And acklor.”

Lovely. Whatever an acklor was. It didn’t matter how many Benadryl she took tonight—though she hadn’t brought any—she’d never close her eyes if she had to lie on a living being.

“Is it sentient?” she asked.

“Not at all. It is much like a plant.” He nuzzled his head against Silas’s and the cat winked his eyes at Evie as if to say, how come you never give me this much devotion?

“A plant.” She had a feeling there might be a huge difference between plants on Earth and those on Crakair.

All in or nothing, right?

Grimacing, she turned and lay back on the “mattress”. The surface—acklor—gurgled like big bubbles underwater, and molded to her body, half cocooning it.

“What if I want to move?” she asked, shivering.

“Do so. The acklor lives completely separate from whoever sleeps on its surface.” A tic drummed in Vork’s temple as his gaze swept down her body.

So, okay, that was almost as hot as when he’d licked his fang.

Heat swirled in her belly, then dove downward.

His nostrils flared. Please, don’t let him be able to smell her arousal. She’d never live it down, especially if this wasn’t a welcome thing on Crakair. After all, he’d said mated pairs never shared the same bed. God, did they even enjoy sex?

She had a feeling if she was married to Vork, things could be different.

When she shifted a bit, the mattress oozed along with her. If he’d said the bed was some sort of creature, she would have leaped up and insisted on sleeping on the sofa. But knowing it was a mindless plant made things a touch better. She might be able to sleep here after all.

“Do I need to feed the…acklor?”

“It is self-sustaining.”

Well, that was good. Maybe. She couldn’t imagine watering her bed like she had with the few plants she’d kept in her apartment on Earth.

He’d stopped patting Silas. While the cat squirmed to be put down, Vork’s eyes met hers, and the deep blue encircling his pupils disappeared in the black.

Quite the tell he had there.

His gaze flicked to her chest.

Heaven help her, but she tightened her spine and thrust her breasts upward.

“The suckling mounds,” he said. “What do they feel like?”

Suckling mounds?

“Crakairian females do not have them. They feed our young through fleshy tubes that project from their abdomen.”

So the no-boob thing was not unique to his mother.

“I see the hairs above your eyes draw together,” he said. “This is a…frown, correct?”

“Eyebrows. They’re called eyebrows. And…yeah. I guess them drawing together is a frown.”

“I see.” His gaze didn’t leave her boobs. “Is discussing the mounds a forbidden subject among your race?”

“No, it’s okay.” She cupped the bottom of her breasts and pushed them up. “These are for nursing children. We call them breasts. Boobs, if you prefer.”

“Do they move independently like my naanans?” The limbs on his head fluttered up before settling back on his shoulders.

“No. They just hang there.” Some dangled lower than others, but she’d be betraying womankind by sharing this fact. “They’re…soft.”

“Soft to entice the youngling?”

“I guess so.” She hadn’t truly thought about using them for kids. Sure, someday, but …

Actually, if she ended up agreeing to their marriage, she’d heard birth control wasn’t an option here. After all, they’d made a contract with Earth with the ultimate goal of women producing children.

Note to self when writing that manual for Crakairians: discuss setting limits on the number of children required before birth control became an option.

Evie should be turned off by the idea of being a baby-maker for an alien, but for some reason, the idea of making those babies made her spine tingle. Other parts of her were tingling, too.

His nostrils flared again.

“If you want, you could see how they feel.” God, when did she get this bold? She never would have invited Derek to do anything like this. Why bother? Sex with him had never been any fun. Which made her wonder why she’d married him. Oh, yeah. He’d said it would get better later. Liar. “Would you like to touch them?” None of that quick tease he’d used before.

His hands twitched at his sides. “You would permit this?”

Here she was, lying on a bed in front of a hot guy she was half falling for already and he wanted to touch her breasts? “Please. Feel welcome. Um, women find the touch pleasurable.”

Holy shit.

“I see.” He advanced toward the bed until his legs hit the side. His hand stretched forward but froze before making contact. “How do I…”

“Touch them?”

“How do Earth males do this?”

Any way the women would let them. “Some cup the bottoms.” She showed him. “While others stroke the nipples.”

His thick brows drew together. “Nipples?”

“They’re for the…sucking.” Fire burned up into her face. “Um, yeah, suckling, that is. For the babies. Young.” Whatever. Speech, something that usually came easy for her, had suddenly become a challenge.

“I do not see nipples.”

Oh, fuck, here goes nothing.

“Let me show you.” Since the gown had a snug top but a flaring skirt, it seemed easier to pull it up rather than try to yank it down.

Sure, keep telling yourself that.

Evie wore one of the items Sadie had insisted she purchase. Nothing beat sexy undies.

Lifting her hips, she slid the silky dress up to her waist. Then she rose enough to tug it over her head. If she’d left it around her neck, she wouldn’t have been able to see his face.

His breath caught. “They are interesting, these mounds. You wear a covering on the fleshy parts and …?” His hand flicked to her lower body.

“They’re called panties and a bra.” The bra possessed another of Sadie’s recommendations, a front clasp. Evie unclipped it and let it part just enough to hint at the skin beneath. “If you’re going to touch them, you’re going to have to come closer.”

“Should I? I am not a youngling.”

Hell, no. He was a manling, assuming this was a word.

“Believe me, human men…enjoy touching them as much as women enjoy having them touched,” she said.

“Why?”

“Because it feels good.”

“For the males?”

“As much as for the females.”

“Ah.” He nodded sagely. “As you said. Erogenous.”

She blanked for a moment, not because she hadn’t heard the word before, but because of how sexually stilted the translation was. Although, the Crakairian language was quite clear when it came to fucking.

Squirming on the bed, she ignored the rapid accommodation of the plant mattress beneath her. If Vork didn’t slide his fingers across her breasts soon, she was going to explode.

“Climb onto the bed and touch me.” There, she’d said it. One of the most daring things she’d offered to a guy in her life. “It’s okay. I won’t bite.” Not too hard.

One of his knees hit the mattress, and he leaned forward, bracing himself over her with his hands planted beside her shoulders.

Hell. If she could, she’d fan her face. What would it be like to lie on this surface with Vork completely naked above her?

“May I?” He asked, the thick fingers of his right hand barely touching the edge of her bra.

“Push it aside. You’ll be able to see my nipples.”

He carefully folded the material back and stared down at her breasts. “These are the nipples?” His finger stroked across the tip.

A soft moan slipped from her lips, and she lifted her hips.

Oh-oh, now she’d done it. She’d given away how he was making her feel.

His nostrils flared again, and his tongue darted out to touch his lips. “It responds, this nipple.”

Hell yeah, it did respond. So did everything between her legs.

“Take the entire breast in your hand and touch it. Feel welcome to…fondle it as much as you’d like.”

Fully moving over her, he nestled his bent legs beside her hips and loosely sat on her thighs. “Is this position acceptable?”

“Yes,” she breathed. This was complete torture. One stroke of his finger on her breast and her underwear was wet.

His hands lifted together and carefully cupped her breasts. His thumbs rubbed across the nipples before he took both between his fingers and thumbs and pinched.

Her upper body jerked, and everything inside her shook.

“I should not be touching your mounds. I am hurting you.” He started to rise, but she latched onto his arms.

“It doesn’t hurt. Remember?”

The blue in his eyes had been completely taken over by black. “Erogenous.”

“It feels good.”

“I do wish to please you.” His voice came out husky.

She wasn’t the only one who was feeling whatever was growing between them. There was no hiding his thick, jutting cock straining against the front of his pants.

“Touch my breasts again, if you want.” Touch all of her, actually.

“Is it possible to be too rough?” he asked.

“In what way?” Was he asking for her general sexual preferences? It was hard to say, as she hadn’t done much experimenting with Derek or other guys. She’d never seen herself as more than a missionary kind of girl but with Vork, the possibilities seemed endless.

“With the breasts,” he said. “Is roughness permitted?”

“Do whatever you want with them.”

“What if…” He shook his head, and his naanans lifted and fell. “It is too bold. We have not yet progressed in our courtship.”

“What’s too bold? Tell me.”

“Do human males touch breasts with their mouths? Because I would like to do so.”

Consent had never felt this sweet or exciting.

“I think you should try putting your mouth on them,” she said. “See what you think.”

Leaning down, his mouth hovered over her nipple, and his breathing fanned the nub to a peak. “They change.”

“They’re responding to you.”

“Yet they do not have independent movement, like my naanan.”

One of these days, they needed to talk about his naanans, because she was dreaming up all kinds of uses for them.

He sucked her nipple into his mouth and rolled it, his tongue stroking across the tip.

Fuck. Eyes closing, she tipped her head back and savored the wonderful feeling.

While he laved her breast with his mouth and tongue, his other hand rubbed across her other breast.

She bucked beneath him, and he jerked his head back.

“I have been too presumptuous,” he said.

“Do. Not. Stop!”

He blinked before he revealed his fangs. “You like this.” Why did he sound both surprised and cocky?

“Hell yeah. Do it again.”

“I like these mounds—breasts. I would like to touch them often.”

Before she could do more than sputter, he’d taken her nipple back into his mouth.

She shrieked.

This time, he didn’t lift his head, though his body shook with what she took as a satisfied chuckle.

Men, they were the same no matter what planet they came from.

Chapter 12

VORK

T  he rich scent of Evie’s arousal sunk into Vork’s senses. It lit something inside of him on fire.

He wanted her. More than he’d ached for anyone before.

Earthling matchmaking systems had been wise to send Evie to him. He was going to enjoy courting her then making her his mate.

Perhaps he wouldn’t rush off to his spaceship immediately after the marriage. He’d take time to savor her body. For lunairs or yaros, if need be.

When she bucked beneath him and released soft cries, he realized this must be her version of a purr.

He was also purring.

The idea made him pause, and a flash of concern shot through him. This had never happened before. It wouldn’t do. He needed to keep his distance and pursue his career, or the dreams he’d had for his entire life would be lost.

But when Evie looked up at him, panting, with her body completely aflame, he knew a few fuckings with this human female would never be enough. Somehow, she’d reached inside his chest and wrapped herself around his heart.

He’d never be able to leave her.

He’d fallen far and fast, but he couldn’t fault anyone for it happening. Evie was everything he could have ever asked for in a mate.

As he sucked on her nipple, he ached to bury himself inside her, but it was forbidden.

Courtship, marriage, then fucking. That was the only allowable order.

But he could still bring her pleasure and show her, in his own way, what she meant to him.

His hand traced down her breast to her belly. After swirling around the small divot in her abdomen, his hand swept lower, between her legs.

Wet.

Fuck.

Her thighs parted, and she released mewling cries that told him she welcomed his touch. She pumped her hips up toward his hand.

“Vork,” she breathed. “Touch me.”

He tugged the silky material she wore down over her thighs and tossed it aside.

Then he feasted on her naked form. Never had he seen such beauty. He wanted to capture it—capture her—and hold her close forever.

When his fingers encountered hair, he paused. Shocked, his gaze bolted to hers. Crakairian females were completely hairless, yet his human female had fur in an intimate area, one she had kept covered with special material. Did this make this part of her body sacred?

He must show her how honored he was that she’d shown it to him, but how?

She bucked up toward his hand, suggesting touching her might be the right way to worship her body properly. This, he knew how to do. She was female and, other than the hair, built like a Crakairian woman. Was the rest of her interior anatomy unique to humans or similar to what he’d found when he’d had sex before?

He was eager to find out. As he glided his finger over her soft folds, ripples of pleasure blasted through him and centered in his groin. His cock rose, desperate to plunge into her welcoming heat.

“I must see all of you,” he said. Moving down lower in the bed, he parted her legs further, spreading her wide to his view.

She puffed out a soft laugh. “You’re going to look at me?”

“And touch. Here.” He traced the top of her folds and discovered a bud that, when he pressed on it, made her purr louder. Her head thrashed and her hands fisted the blanket beneath her.

“Yes?” he asked.

“Hell, don’t stop.” Her words came out in a half-shriek.

Scooting lower, he stroked his finger down the tissue that was split in the middle that was much like a Crakairian women’s anatomy.

While she moaned and wreathed on the bed, he parted the lips and started at the top again, rubbing and stroking. The scent of her rising heat hit him square in the cock, and his body strained forward, begging him to drive himself inside. But not yet.

Soon, the blood in his veins sang.

She jerked, and her sighs told him this part of her was as erogenous as her breasts.

He rubbed the tiny nub at the top and was reminded of her nipple.

She squealed. “Yes. Don’t stop.”

His finger dipped into the slit, and she shuddered.

“Do human males touch this place with their mouths, as well?” he asked, curious. Crakairian females responded to their male cocks, they had full pleasure in the sexual act, but he’d never seen one come apart like this little human female. And as far as he knew, Crakairian women did not want males tasting them in this area.

Yet Evie had encouraged him to take her nipple into his mouth. Surely this bud was no different?

This must be what the fine, silky hairs down here hid.

Because she’d shown it to him, he wanted to beat his chest and roar. She was his future mate, and he’d never let her go.

His little human female.

“I… You can do that,” she said, all breathy. Since she sounded cautious, he would take this oral exploration slowly.

As she had responded favorably to his touch on the hidden bud, he placed his mouth there. Her musky scent sunk into him. His cock strained forward, desperate to find its place inside her.

While he sucked on her tiny nipple, he reached up with his naanans and stroked the nipples on her breasts. Gently pinched them.

She wreathed beneath him, one continuous moan. Telling him without words, she enjoyed his touch. He laved the nub with his tongue and took it between his teeth and gently bit down. He was rewarded with more cries of bliss.

Were there other erogenous areas on her body? Perhaps inside. As he nipped the bud at the top, he slid a finger in deeply.

She bucked. “Yes. Oh, yes, please.”

Her body milked his finger. Pulling it out, he licked it, savoring the sweet yet salty flavor uniquely her own.

Leaning down, he probed her with his tongue, eager to drink all of her. He returned to the bud he couldn’t resist sucking, while he sought deep inside her with two fingers.

What was this thing partway up inside her? It was like nothing he’d found inside a Crakairian female. He probed the bump, and Evie shrieked and gyrated her hips.

Panting, she pushed up against his fingers, her soft insides giving beneath his touch. “Faster,” she shouted. “Oh!”

From the moment he’d met her, he had mentioned pleasure. It was satisfying to show her the gift he would give her frequently once they were wed.

This human female was unraveling him from the inside out.

As he pushed his fingers even deeper and scraped across her bud with his fangs, she screamed and quivered around him. Her body shook and hoarse cries erupted from her throat.

He grated his fangs across the firm nipple between her legs again and was rewarded when she trembled all over and sagged against the bed.

While his naanans soothed her body, stroking her breasts, her shoulders, and then her belly, her breathing slowed.

“Vork,” she said, her voice husky. “That was…” She shook her head. “Awesome.”

He leaned back on his heels, his body eager to sink deep inside her. It would have to wait, but not for long. The courtship could be done quickly.

She propped her upper body onto her elbows and shoved her hair out of her face. The sappy smile she gave him made his chest burst with pride.

When he reached out to stroke her face, something caught his eye. He stared down in shock.

The outline of a bonding symbol gleamed on his right palm.

Chapter 13

EVIE

A fter he left Evie’s room, dimming the lights to a bare nothing on his way, she lay in the oddly comfy, though still somewhat creepy, bed, completely sated.

This man was going to have her wrapped around him within twenty-four hours, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to do a damn thing about it.

He had never gone down on a woman before. What was up with Crakairian females? And his fingers …

She’d wanted to rip off his clothing and beg him to give her everything, but he’d remained sweetly courtly, almost formal, with his seduction. When he showed this softer side, it only made her fall for him faster.

Shit. She was half in love with him already, and it wasn’t because he had a magical tongue and fingers. She was falling for the whole package, from the naanans on his head to the scales on his shoulders that rippled when he felt threatened, then down to his toes. Assuming he had toes.

She couldn’t wait to see where this upcoming courtship led them next.

Rolling onto her side, she curled around Silas, who’d joined her. While he purred and licked her hand, she drifted to sleep.

She woke the next morning to someone humming a strange, monotone tune. Silas had left, probably seeking the source of the humming. Or he’d decided to gnaw on the mammoth bone suspended in the living room.

After locating the bathroom off the bedroom and doing her much-needed teeth cleaning and a quick bath, she dressed in one of the gowns she tugged out of the closet. Vork was right about the length. Hitching it up, she rolled it over a few times at the waist, then used a belt from a different outfit to hold the folds in place.

She needed to go shopping for appropriate clothing, assuming she could find anything on the rack that fit.

Leaving the bedroom, she trooped down the hall and into the kitchen.

Holy shit. She collapsed against the wall and licked her lips.

Vork stood at the stove, cooking something that smelled unusual, yet yummy, but that wasn’t the reason her jaw had dropped.

Man, he had a cute, tight ass. Only a scrap of leather, like a thong, covered his butt-cheeks. What was covering or not covering the front?

“There you are.” Partly turning, he bared his fangs then returned to whatever he was cooking at the stove. “If you will seat yourself at the island, I will have your meal ready to serve within moments.”

“What are you wearing?” And could he please turn around to face her? Her curiosity needed to be satisfied.

“In this part of courtship, the male must prepare a meal for his intended in traditional Crakairian clothing. Our ancestors wore this garlong thousands of years ago.”

She liked this tradition. Now, turn around!

His low chuckle tickled between him. Ass. He knew what he was doing to her.

As if eager to continue the tease, he started humming again, a monotone chant that sunk down through her skin and sought out her bones. Knees loosening and her body trembling, she pulled out a chair at the island behind him and sat.

He poured a mug of a steaming brew from a tall pot on the stove and added a dollop of something white. Cream? For all she knew it was distilled from a creature like the wine last night.

“I must go into the office today,” he said, still working at the stove.

“Dressed like that?”

“This,” he flicked his hand toward his body, “is solely for you. I will, of course, need to change before leaving.” He leaned back and extended the mug out in his hand, lowering it onto the counter in front of her. “Werlick?”

“Is that what it’s called?” She cautiously sniffed it, and it smelled vaguely like tea, sort of like coffee, but with a hint of coconut.

“Try it,” he said without turning.

She grunted, leery about Crakairian food in general, but took a small sip. Eyes closing, she wiggled on the stool. “This is awesome!”

“I do like that word. It reminds me of…”

Oh, yeah, she’d told him what he’d done to her last night was awesome. Should they talk about what happened? Somehow, it felt weird to bring it out into the light of day. She’d welcomed what he’d done. If he tugged her up from the stool and took her down the hall, she’d lie back on the creepy bed and let him do it all over again.

Frankly, she’d lie back on the counter and spread her legs this second if he offered.

“You would?” he said, spinning around to face her.

Double shit. She’d spoken aloud, not in her mind. But wait …

A flap of leather like something she’d seen in a Tarzan movie covered—barely—his front. As she stared, the material twitched and there was no mistaking the big bulge growing beneath the leather.

“You, um…” Gulp. She couldn’t take her eyes off him. Tall and incredibly muscular and with skin glowing in a dark green hew, he looked completely alien.

Yet not.

Yes, he had appendages on his head and his eyes were unlike anything she’d seen before, but underneath his scaled skin, he was a man like any other.

“Are you…” His prominent cheekbones grew ruddy.

Was he worried about what she thought of his body?

“You’re gorgeous,” she said.

“This gorgeous… It is a good thing?” He spoke with hesitancy, but one side of his lips quirked up and revealed a fang, like he was teasing.

Heat flashed through her body in response to that simple gesture. After last night, there was no denying they’d find a way to be compatible in bed. “It’s a very good thing.”

“Much like awesome?”

“Better than awesome.”

Cockiness restored, he strode around the counter, stopping in front of her. “My goal is to please you,” he said in a low, husky voice.

“In what way?” she squeaked out. Because he was big and brawny and overwhelming. Had she mentioned big? He towered over her, a jacked alien god. Did she dare touch?

“In any way you desire.” His fingertips trailed down her cheek to her neck, where they slid around to the back. While he stroked her hair, he tugged her up off the stool and into his arms.

“What if I want you to kiss me?” Was that her voice coming out sensuous and hoarse?

“Give me the sign.”

“Like… You mean…kiss me, please?”

He lifted her hand and tucked her fingers together, forming a hold on gesture. “This. This is the sign.”

“Wait.” A smile flitted across her mouth. “There’s a sign I’m supposed to use when I want a kiss?”

“Show me the sign, and I am yours.”

Hell, what was the sign for do-what-you-did-to-me-last-night? Because she was ready for round two.

“Your hand is still making the gesture.” His voice went gravelly and his gaze focused on her mouth. “I take what is offered.”

Tugging her near, his mouth descended, claiming hers. His arms slid around her waist and pulled her fully against him. There was no mistaking his arousal. It nudged against her like a steel rod.

She couldn’t get enough of him. Pressing herself closer, she sank into his kiss, moaning. Her mind kept returning to last night, to his fingers and mouth claiming her as his own. She wanted it again.

He lifted his head and stared down at her. Damn, his pupils had gone completely black again. She liked that they did that only for her.

“You are slowing our courtship,” he growled.

“And we can’t take things further until this part is over.”

“Courtship, marriage, fucking.” He’d returned to the primitive-sounding beast she’d been hot for right from the start.

Her hand flicked out toward the stove where smoke curled above the pan. “Perhaps we should focus on the courtship for now?”

Arms lifting, he stomped to the stove and slid the pan off the heat. “This is not how it is supposed to be.”

She tiptoed up behind him and stroked her fingertip down his spine. He tipped his head back and shuddered. His naanans sought her out, lightly touching her hair, her neck, and her shoulders. “Maybe this is how it’s supposed to be. For us.” Because they were two people from vastly different worlds, colliding.

“According to tradition, I am to serve you your first meal as my ancestors did before me, and now I have burned it.”

She peeked around him at the smoldering dish. Charred was an understatement, but she hated to see him disappointed.

“I think it looks…yummy,” she said. “Do you want me seated when you present it to me?” She didn’t understand how this courtship thing worked, but she didn’t want to mess things up like she had last night.

“Yes. Sit,” he said stiffly. “This must be done in the correct manner or we cannot proceed further.”

Far be it from her to interfere with that. “I’m excited to taste your meal. What is it called?”

“Tetria.”

Which said nothing. “It smells good.” Not really, but her mind was wide open. After strawberry-flavored worms, how bad could it be? Everyone said it was good to broaden yourself, to try new things.

“It smells charred.” He gnashed his teeth and his fangs gleamed in the low light.

It was all she could do to keep her lips in a straight line. She adored that she meant enough that he wanted things to come out just right.

“I’m sure it’s going to be very tasty. What, exactly, is tetria?”

“A popular breakfast food on Crakair in ancient times,” he grumbled. “You will like it.”

It was all she could do to laugh because his suggestion came out like a command.

Life with this alien was going to be a lot of fun.

“What else is involved in this part of the courtship?” she asked.

“I will emulse your feet while you eat.”

That didn’t sound any more intriguing than a burned meal. She pressed for a weak smile.

“It will be awesome,” he said. After serving her a heaping plate of tetria—she hoped she wasn’t expected to eat it all—he brought it over to her then stood beside her while she stared down at it.

Small circles of a plant or concocted substance had been mounded carefully on the plate. All were in varying shades of blue.

“Do I salt it?” she asked.

“What is this salt?”

Please, please tell her they had salt here, that his misunderstanding was a language barrier thing. Because she hadn’t given up on the idea of somehow making nachos.

“Try. Like. Awesome,” he said, reverting to malfunctioning translator mode. Was he nervous?

“Do I eat with my fingers?”

“I feed you.”

Oh. Now that would be awesome.

She fiddled with the edge of her plate. He flexed his hands at his sides. Something in the apartment released a subtle click.

A glance showed he’d lost his hard-on, sadly. But no matter. With all his brawn hanging out, he still made her heart go pitter-patter.

“Are you going to serve me all my meals dressed like this?” she asked.

“That is part of the courtship process.”

Could it continue after marriage? Because … whoa.

“Eat,” he said. “Enjoy.”

“You’re supposed to feed me, right?” she said.

“Ah. Yes.” His hand fumbled toward the plate, then he grumbled and rounded the counter. He yanked open a drawer and withdrew an implement before returning to her side.

“I’m looking forward to this,” she said brightly.

He studiously gouged a piece of the tetria and lifted it toward her mouth.

She bit the tetria and slid if off the “fork,” which was an eating utensil with two tines.

Tasted like fish. “Um, yum,” she said, chewing. Maybe she could talk him into serving pancakes tomorrow.

“You do not believe it is awesome.” His shoulders shifted, and the scaled flaps rustled before settling back down. “It is burned and now you will not be happy.”

“Look,” she said, laying her hand on his arm. “It’s fantastic.”

His head tilted, and he studied her face. “How does fantastic compare to gorgeous and awesome?”

“They’re all equally exciting.”

He huffed. “You said gorgeous was better than awesome.”

“And so it is when it’s applied to you.” She was sinking her own ship, here. “But in general terms, fantastic and awesome are about the same.”

The frown didn’t leave his face, but he waved to the plate. “Eat more.”

“Boy, I’d love to, but I’m full. I don’t believe I could fit in another bite.” Lies were going to get her into trouble, but she couldn’t tell him tetria tasted like dead fish. He’d prepared it for her. It was part of the courtship process. “Besides, didn’t you say foot emulsion would be offered during the meal?”

He groaned and ran his fingers across his naanans. “You are right. Allow me to proceed.” Stomping down the hall, he returned with a deep brown round thing that squirmed in his hands.

She reeled back in the chair. “That’s…alive.”

“Naturally. One would not emulse feet in it if it were dead.”

Ugh. “Tell me something.”

He paused in front of her, waiting.

The brown, fuzzy thing twitched and emitted tiny wails. As far as she could see it had no head or legs, just lots of fur.

“What do you wish to know?” he asked.

“This courtship has been exciting—awesome, that is, for me—”

“Not gorgeous? You said gorgeous is better than awesome.”

“Gorgeous applies to a person.”

“Yet you purred last night and said it was awesome. You are a person.”

Her brain was completely scrambled. How was she going to talk herself out of this one? “Let me back up. I was just saying that I’m enjoying the courtship. The tetria, the… upcoming emulsion—”

“Which I still have yet to do. You will enjoy it. It is awesome.”

She’d created a monster. “My point is, what else is entailed in courtship before we get to the next part of the process?”

“Normally courtship proceeds for a year.”

“You’re kidding me, right?” After her ex—who’d been anything but awesome in bed—you’d think she wouldn’t be excited for “the fucking,” but here she was, eager to drag Vork down the hall already.

“There is no small groat to be had, which might make the process go more quickly. I am sorry. I could offer a langling instead if you would like.”

She waved her hand. “Forget the groat.” Whatever that was. “And the langling. Back to courtship. A year?”

“In the case of Earthling females, some of the rules have been bent. Our males…” There went that delicious color, rising into his face. Why was he blushing?

“Crakairian males,” she prompted.

His gaze swept down her body and his pupils flashed black. “The males have been eager for the fucking.”

Just swoon already. If the rest of the Crakairian men were like Vork, she had no idea why any woman had chosen to return to Earth.

“So they hastened the courtship along,” she said. “How many days are we talking about here?”

“One or two.”

She fanned her face. “Are we proceeding in the same manner?”

“Yes.”

“Then I’ll expect your proposal no later than late tomorrow?”

“Yes.” He shifted the emulsification creature onto one hip. It squirmed and made yipping sounds that drew Silas into the room before he pivoted and took off.

“How soon after your proposal will the marriage take place?” she asked.

“Immediately.”

“Hmm.” She flicked her hair off her shoulder. “You guys work fast.”

“We—I—are eager for the—”

“Fucking. Yeah, I get it.” How could she complain about how quickly this was proceeding? “Has it been like this with all the matches?”

“Some of the human females have wailed and fussed and returned to Earth, but yes, many have been eager for the fucking.” He dipped his head. “Now I will proceed with the emulsion.” Without waiting for her reply and she had no idea how she’d reply, he dropped down in front of her on his knees and lowered the fluff ball onto the floor.

“What can I expect from this?”

“A pleasurable experience. It will be gorgeous.”

Do. Not. Laugh. But really, the quirky way he twisted her language was going to keep her entertained for a long time.

He removed her sandals, setting them aside, then slid the fuzzy brown thing between her feet. Taking one foot, he glided his palms down her calves, a calloused massage.

“What does the…emulsifier do exactly?”

“It tackles.” His thick brows drew together. “Is that the right word?”

“Tackle refers to…” She smirked. “I guess you could tackle me in bed.”

He blinked slowly before the ah-ha moment sunk in. Then his eyes smoldered. “The emulsing does not involve tackle. Trickle?”

“That’s what water does if you don’t fully turn on the faucet.”

“What is this, then?” He lightly traced his fingernail along the bottom of her foot.

Her spine jolted, and she squirmed, straining to yank her foot out of his hand. Her giggles echoed around them.

“What is that sound you make?” he asked.

“Laughter.”

“In some ways, but more…gorgeous.”

“A giggle, and what you’re doing to my foot is called tickling.”

“Will tickling bring on purring?” he asked in a husky voice. He remained stooped between her legs. So many interesting possibilities in this position.

“Would you like to make me purr?” she asked, her heart thundering in her throat.

“All the time.”

Chapter 14

VORK

A fter completing the emulsion and savoring her giggles, Vork had to leave his intended mate. Sadly, it was too busy at work to take time off. As it was, he would need at least a week for the wedding and subsequent mating process, which meant he’d need to work overtime to get everything done to free up the time.

First thing, he’d speak with his supervisor. For the mating, he wanted to take Evie somewhere special.

He also wanted to talk about that desk job …

But final decisions would need to wait until he’d answered Piersag’s vengeance. With only two days left until they met up to battle, there wasn’t time to finish his courtship, marry, and mate long enough to solidify their bond. The last would take at least a week.

For the first time in his life, he gave into his worry. Not about Piersag but about whomever the older man would enlist to fight in his place. Vork trained daily. Few were as expert as he with the sword, but until he knew who he would fight, it would nag at him.

He’d never had anyone to live for before now.

Although, he hadn’t been completely honest with her.

Grumbling, he took a hover tram to his office.

As directed, Evie would wait in his home with the See-lass until he returned in time to dress in his traditional clothing and prepare her evening meal. He’d offered to return at mid-day, but she’d said she would “scrounge around in the fridge,” whatever that meant. At his protest, she’d told him she’d be A-o-kaaay and tapped her finger on his chest, a gesture that normally would have meant she wanted him to leave the room. He’d nudged her finger aside and kissed her. A tap of a finger was similar enough to her palm lifted, correct?

He tried to ignore the fact that he wanted to be with her now. He ached to touch her and learn more about what made her happy. And teach her more gestures that begged intimacy, even if he had to make them up.

Once he arrived in his office, he tapped his com, placing a call to Meerkat. The manager revealed that the server had purposefully hit Evie’s chair, causing her to spit out her vintip. The manager assured Vork the server had been disciplined and that an apology would be forthcoming.

With that settled, Vork called his mother.

“Vork,” she said. “So nice to hear from you, son.”

“Yes. I was wondering if you could do something for me.” While he had initially resisted a match, his whole heart was involved now. He would spend the rest of his life showing her how much he wanted her.

“Do you need me to speak with Evie? Have you done anything to offend her?”

“Why would I offend my mate?”

“Ah,” she sighed. “I do like hearing you call her your mate. Things have changed.”

“My mark has lit.”

“Vork! That is wonderful.”

“Awesome.” He grinned when he used the word.

“Yes, err, awe-some. I am so happy for you, my darling Vorkie.”

He grumbled, but she had called him this since he was young. There was no changing that now. He would be best to embrace it.

“What do you need?” she asked.

He explained and told her he would send the necessary program for her to deliver along with his order.

“I am delighted to be a part of this. And even more delighted that you are grateful to your mother for her subtle intervention.”

He rolled his eyes. Subtle, huh? “I thank you.”

“As you should.” The smugness in her voice made his ears burn, but how could he complain? Her intervention had given him Evie.

They hung up and Lieutenant Dorn knocked on the door and, at Vork’s command, opened it and ducked his head in through the opening. “Commander Bryk is here, Sir.”

“Thank you.”

As Dorn eased backward, the door swung wide and his friend Bryk strode into the room. Vork rose, and the two burly men braced forearms, then broke apart.

“Great to see you,” Vork said. “It has been too long.”

“Yes. At least three lunairs.”

“How is Weld?” Vork asked, slapping his friend on the shoulder.

“Growing faster than a slipser weed.”

After Bryk’s wife died of the disease, leaving behind their young son, Bryk had resigned his military commission and moved to a farm in the country. He’d said his son deserved fresh air and sunshine, not a life growing up in the bustling city.

“What is he into now?” Vork asked.

“Everything.” Leaning toward Vork, Bryk generated a holographic image of Weld with his com. The beaming eight-yaro-old youngling bared his short fangs, then went back to the hover tram he was working on.

“Smart youngling,” Vork said with approval. He’d given the boy a pouch of tools for his fifth manling ceremony, then made regular visits to the farm to teach the child how to use them. Weld loved taking things apart. He wasn’t as good at putting them back together, but that took time and patience. Vork would be with him throughout the process. When the boy was born, Bryk had asked Vork to be the child’s lerd father. If something should happen to Bryk, Vork had committed his life to raise the boy himself.

He’d ask Bryk to do the same if he ever had a child …

Ah, if Vork and Evie ever had a child … Heat roared through his body at the thought. If no child came from their union, it wouldn’t be for lack of trying.

“I’d love to come out and see him soon,” Vork said. Too many times, his career responsibilities took precedent over the fun things he’d like to do with Weld, Bryk, and even his mother.

While he still ached to achieve the goals he’d set when he joined the military, his mother was right. He wanted to be there for his mate and any young they would produce.

Would he be able to make time in his life for Evie as well as achieving his goals?

“Come out any time. Bring your … I take it she is not your mate yet, unless you move faster than the prince.” Bryk bared his fangs and his naanan—made up of rare, long, deep blue bands instead of Vork’s light brown—shifted around to fall down his back. He often wore them braided. “How is Prince Axil? Have you seen him lately?”

“He is doing…awesome.” Vork grinned at his use of the term. His little human female was teaching him many new words he could incorporate into Crakairian language. “He cannot wait until his youngling is born.”

“Younglings, perhaps.”

It was common for Crakairian females to birth more than one offspring at a time. Perhaps it was the same with Earth women. Evie had two breasts, not one, which must mean her body could suckle multiple younglings at one time. He’d have to ask her later.

“Joining the Selection was the best thing Prince Axil ever did,” Vork said.

Since he hadn’t found his true match among the surviving Crakairian females after disease swept across their galaxy, Crown Prince Axil had joined the first Selection. He’d been matched immediately with an Earth female, Julia, and they were expecting their first youngling within lunairs.

As he and Prince Axil had been friends since Axil served with him in the spacefleet, Vork had sent Axil a message last evening, suggesting he ask Julia to stop by and visit with Evie today. If she found a friend among the other Earth females, Evie would feel more comfortable on Crakair.

“Why were you all fired up for me to come to the city this morning?” Bryk asked. “Not that I do not love an excuse to get back to town. Farm life is…”

“Dull?” That’s how Vork would see it.

“Not that so much as…” He winced. “Lonely, I guess. I almost hate to admit it but you named it when I announced my plans, saying I might miss the city.”

“Have a seat and tell me more about it.” Vork waved to the chair opposite his own.

Settling in his seat, Vork leaned back and let his usually quiet friend compose his thoughts.

“See, here is the thing,” Bryk said. “It is not the farm. I enjoy working the land, raising the animals. And Weld could not be happier. But I miss having a mate. Crueja was a good woman.”

“She was.”

He shook his head, and one of his naanans slid forward, across his shoulder. He wore a simple tunic in pale gray over his black leather pants. “Crueja will always be my first mate, but I would like to…”

“Find someone to warm your bed.”

He huffed. “It is not all about sex. I want…companionship. Someone to come home to at night. What I had with Crueja.”

“Yet…”

Bryk sighed. “It is true we were mated, but we never formed the symbolic matebond.” His body stiffened. “I cared for her, regardless.”

“You are right.” Vork was beginning to understand the pain his friend had gone through over a year ago, despite Bryk and Crueja not being a love match. If Vork lost Evie … A deep growl rumbled in his chest. It didn’t take a likar, a lunair, or even a yaro to know someone. No, to realize how vital they were in your life.

Bryk stiffened his spine. “I realize your mother chose for you, but this is why I put in for the Selection.”

“Wise decision. I am happy for you. I hope you are chosen.”

His friend’s expression loosened. “I thought you would rip through my bones for even mentioning the Selection after your mother…”

Vork said nothing.

“Ah.” Bryk’s fangs gleamed. “Mothers are always right, especially yours.” He laughed. “You must know this.”

“I will admit that this one time, my mother made the correct decision.”

“Well.” Bryk rose and, leaning forward, socked Vork’s shoulder. “You like your new mate.”

More than like and more than he should. Was he wrong to start seeing her as more important than his career? He raked his fingers across his naanans, and they flared up before resettling. But while he could tell himself the promises he’d worked to achieve for most of his adult life could not be broken, he also couldn’t lie to his friend. “You are right. She is…”

“Human.” Bryk’s face twisted. “Is it true they have no scales?”

That was right. Bryk had left the military over a year ago, and he hadn’t met any of the human females. “Instead of scales, they have soft…skin.”

Bryk’s mouth formed a circle. “Oh. I see. You have touched it, then.”

Vork’s mind flashed back to the feel of Evie’s body. This, he would not share with his friend. “You will not be disappointed.”

A frown filled Bryk’s face. “Not sure how I feel about that, friend. I mean, scales are damn sexy.”

“You might feel the same about skin.”

“Perhaps. But is it also true they have no naanans?”

“No naanans.”

His muscular arms splayed wide. If anything, Bryk was built more solidly than Vork, despite his daily workouts, because it took an enormous amount of physical labor to maintain a farm.

“Then how do they protect their young?” Bryk asked, truly puzzled.

“They have other defense mechanisms.” If the way Evie had curled around the See-lass was any indication, Vork was not concerned. “My own Evie…” He savored branding her his. “Evie is a true spirfiirre. If other Earth females are like mine, I believe this will not be an issue with any mate you may bond with.”

Curiosity filled Bryk’s voice. “I doubt I will fully bond with her, since it did not happen with Crueja, but I will welcome her into my and Weld’s life. I will be kind. She will not want for anything.”

Except, perhaps, for love. A strange thought for Vork, a male who had been determined to keep his mate outside of his heart. Despite his intentions, she had found her way in. No, he had let her in. How could he resist her?

“If they do not have naanans, are we talking about blank heads, then?” Bryk’s lips thinned and he winced in horror.

“Not at all. They have hair coating their skulls, which is silky. It slides through your fingers like fleeter down. And even more interesting, they have…”

“What?”

Vork coughed. “Nothing.”

Bryk formed another mouth circle, but his gaze grew sly. “What are you not telling me?”

“Trust me. You will not be disappointed.”

“I may not be selected. Few are.”

“You have much to offer. A solid home. A son. And your strength as a warrior.”

“We shall see.” He bared his fangs. “But tell me more about your bondmate. I did not miss your claiming her.”

Vork twisted his hand on his lap and studied the symbol. If the bond completely solidified, Evie would have one too, yet she didn’t. Did this mean that Earth women could mate with a Crakairian but never complete the bond? “My Evie… She is gorgeous.”

Bryk repeated the word, wrangling it around in his mouth. “Where did you hear that… Your human female is teaching you, is she not? My friend, she has caught you already. I thought you were determined to resist her.”

So had he. Until he’d met her and discovered she was irresistible. Vork’s gaze was drawn to his palm again. The true test was yet to come. Would her palm blaze once they’d had sex?

“It would be nice to give my son another mother. He misses Crueja as well.”

“And to have someone warming your mate bed.” Vork chuckled. “You might be surprised by these humans. There is something special about each one of them.” An idea he’d mocked when Axil stated it to him. His friend had laughed at Vork’s perplexed expression and told him to wait, he’d see once he met his match.

Vork owed Axil a bottle of vintip. He’d lost their bet.

“I’ll hear later this likar if I’ve been accepted,” Bryk said.

“You will be. Have you mentioned it to Weld?”

“I do not want to ignite his excitement. It has been eighteen lunairs since Crueja was taken from us. While he may be ready to welcome a new mother, I am still torn. It feels disloyal.” He straightened his shoulders as if preparing to take on a heavy burden. “Yet I will persevere. She cannot be too ugly, correct?” He sighed. “Appearance does not matter, even without scales and naanans. My goal is to find someone who will help Weld with his schoolwork, keep a tidy house, and prepare a decent meal every now and then.”

“Do think of…”

Bryk tilted his head. “What?”

“It is nothing.” Vork lifted his scribe and fiddled with it. What he’d wanted to say to his friend was, please keep your heart open. “Let me know how it goes.”

“I will.” Bryk’s fangs bared. “As long as they send me someone who is kind to my youngling and she keeps to herself, I will be satisfied with the arrangement.”

It hadn’t been that long since Vork had felt the same. Would Bryk also have his life upended by an Earthling?

“About why I asked you to come here today,” Vork said, then explained what had happened the night before at the restaurant.

“Sounds like you are in deep dung,” Bryk said, frowning. “What do you think Piersag is up to now?”

“What else but to make my life hell?”

“He could do that through his brother if that is all this was.”

Piersag’s older brother was Vork’s immediate commanding officer, though the man had only treated Vork honestly thus far. It did complicate things, however. “It would not be easy when there is military supervision.”

Bryk nodded, acknowledging the point. “I assume you would like me to stand with you during the vengeance.”

“It is a ceremonial position. You would not be endangered.” Vork would never chance leaving Weld without his father.

“You know that does not matter. I would give my life for you, friend.”

“Same. But I do want someone with me who will keep attention on Piersag.”

“Who will not fight himself,” Bryk grumbled. “Any idea who he intends to hand his sword over to in his place?”

“No, though my First Lieutenant is looking into it.”

“Piersag will be determined to win.”

“And that is my other concern. He…will try to punish Evie if I am wounded or no longer here to protect her. I plan to finish this.” And do what he should have done when he was a youngling and it was suspected Piersag had secretly murdered his father.

Despite his promise to his mother—one she never would have asked of an adult male—Vork would seek his own form of vengeance in two days.

Bryk slammed his fist in the center of his broad chest. “You have my word. I will not let Piersag near your intended mate.” The two men had served together for years, and there wasn’t anyone Vork would rather have covering his back.

“I appreciate it, though I am not ready to pass onto the great beyond yet.”

“Who is?” Bryk said softly. He straightened and wiggled his thick eyebrows. “You may have almost enough time to form a full mating with the vengeance two days from now.”

He wanted so much more time than that with Evie. Once they began the mating ritual, he would not allow interruption until they were both fully sated. “I intend to at least conclude the marriage.”

Bryk whistled through his teeth. “Working fast, as you should, feeling as you do.” He bared his fangs but didn’t shriek, a habit more common in Crakairian females than males.

“I am fortunate.” Lucky. He had never planned to develop strong feelings for an Earth mate. Yes, he would have cared for her and welcomed their children no matter what, but he had only seen his future containing a long military career. Any human female would remain at home while he traveled the stars.

No longer. The big question was: how was he going to maneuver his military career and find time to be with Evie?

A commotion outside his office drove him to his feet. His heart thudded once. Twice.

When shouts rang out, he growled.

Bryk rose and turned, his arms splaying wide, hefting a small version of the titar, an ancestral sword used during the vengeance. Leave it to Vork’s friend to carry a weapon at all times. You could take the male out of the spacefleet but you could not take the spacefleet out of the male.

Vork stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his friend, his serafinn blades in hand. The length of his forearms, the blades had edges sharper than a trinar, a razor-like stone found only in the Ikeline Mountain range. Ambidextrous, Vork was lethal with either hand and always preferred to take on a frontal assault using both.

The door banged open and Lieutenant Dorn entered, his uniform roughed-up and his naanans flailing. “I tried to stop them, Sir, but they—”

Piersag pushed past the lieutenant, whose naanans flared.

Vork growled. “Do not touch my man again.”

While Piersag grumbled, he did nod to Dorn. Vork’s intent gaze did not relent.

Two burly men dressed in khatalm uniforms—an elite martial arts group—entered the room behind Piersag. Their gazes scanned the room and focused on the threats: Vork and Bryk. While they didn’t draw their weapons, their fingertips played with the hilts of their blades. One move toward Piersag, and their weapons would sing through the air.

Vork growled and stalked toward Piersag with Bryk by his side.

Piersag took in the two men standing unflinchingly in front of him and sneered at their weapons. “Surely you will not use those on me. I have come to peacefully discuss our vengeance.”

“Define peaceful when your visit includes two khatalm warriors,” Vork spat out. His weapons, he did not lower.

“You want me to call the guard, Sir?” Dorn chimed in from the doorway. “They will be glad to throw them out.”

“What do you think, Piersag?” Vork taunted. “My guard loves to take care of the refuse.”

Color infused Piersag’s face. “I told you I came here to talk. If you would rather I left—”

“Then speak and stop fluttering around. I do not have time to play with your dung today.”

“Yes…” Piersag’s nose curled. “You are busy courting your Earthling female. She is the reason I have stopped by.”

“She is not involved in this,” Bryk said.

“Oh, but she is. Did Vork not share?” Piersag said. “See, the Earthling insulted me last night and I will not stand for it.”

“Someone bumped her chair, and she was startled,” Vork said, his voice grating with anger. He’d been in touch with Meerkat already, and they were looking into who might be responsible. Perhaps the waiter …

“She tried to kill me.”

“Your nearly falling was an accident.”

“It was not!” Piersag’s nostrils flared. “The female Earth scum shoved me.”

“That is not true.”

“But that is not why I am here. This…Earthling applied for a match.”

Vork jabbed his chest with his thumb. “And she got one.”

“But that is where you are mistaken. I also applied for the Selection and I was chosen.”

Vork didn’t like where this was going. Leave it to Piersag to do something underhanded to get even.

“I have been told there was an error. The Earth creature is my intended, not yours.”

Vork leaped toward Piersag and drove him to the ground with both blades nicked to his throat. He didn’t draw blood, but he would if the man so much as twitched.

Bryk dragged Vork off the older man.

“Do not do it,” he murmured by Vork’s ear. “This is what he wants. Eliminate this threat to your mating during the vengeance.”

Vork pulled free of Bryk and stormed up to Piersag again, who had risen to his feet and straightened his long, gray tunic. His hand over his throat, he stepped back, sheltering between his khatalm fighter entourage.

“Evie is mine,” Vork spat out. His matebond mark flared, reinforcing his claim. If Evie had been Crakairian, showing the symbol would have been enough to make Piersag back down. But as an Earthling, an unmarked Evie would be seen as available to Vork’s peers. His mother was right again. The sooner he claimed her, the better.

“It seems we have more than one reason to fight the vengeance, then.” Piersag tossed a square of cloth at Vork’s feet. “I will claim my mate.”

“A binding cloth,” Bryk hissed. His gaze shot to Vork.

“As you will see when you examine it, the markings show the council made a mistake on Crakair’s part of the match,” Piersag snarled. “The Earthling female was intended to be given to me.”

The cloth must be forged. Piersag would claim Evie, then seek his revenge on both her and Vork. He still pursued his anger with Vork’s father.

“She does not belong to anyone but herself,” Vork spat out. “I will not allow this.”

“It does not matter what you or she allows. The cloth states she is mine. You have stolen her from me.”

“She has accepted my courtship.” And his protection.

“A human female has no rights on Crakair, not to who may court her or anything else.”

Unlike Crakairian women, who could accept or deny any courtship agreement and even seek an unbinding if the relationship didn’t work out.

When Axil and Julia arrived, Axil had made some headway in establishing rights for Earthling females, but they’d met resistance from the council. The only ruling they’d been able to push through was that related to the matebond symbol. Earthling women would be allowed to remain with their Crakairian mates even if the symbol did not appear on their hand, which had happened already with some.

Vork would have to speak with Axil about additional rights related to courtship. If he knew his friend, he would push this again, now that the council was becoming accustomed to Earthling females in general. Surely the public would support more rights being granted to Earth women.

All should have the same rights on Crakair, despite which planet they originated from.

“I will collect her after the vengeance,” Piersag said.

Vork stiffened. “No.” He would not give her over to Piersag. The male might have a vengeance with Vork, but it was plain last night he would seek his own brand of revenge on Evie. Vork would never allow that to happen. He’d take her into the mountains and hide her. Flee his military commission and join the band of outlaws rumored to live in the caves peppering the cliffs of Ikeline. Better to live on the run than let her be harmed—and wed—to Piersag.

“The contract between Earth allows the woman some say in this matter,” Vork said. “She will refuse you and leave within ten days.”

“Who will she tell she wishes to leave? Once she has been taken to my estate, I will ensure she is quite satisfied with the arrangement.” He smirked. “At least for the first ten days.”

Piersag would hold her hostage. Hurt her, especially if she did not comply. Blood rage swam across Vork’s vision, and his hands tightened on his blades, but Bryk continued to hold him back.

Piersag’s hands clenched to fists. “She is mine to do with as I wish, and I will take her.”

“You will have to walk across my bones,” Vork said with equal vehemence.

“They will be crushed beneath my boots.”

“Evie has made her choice, and it is not you.”

“Prepare her for my attention.” Before Vork could leap on Piersag again and finish this, Piersag retreated to the open doorway with his khatalm fighters providing cover. He paused and sneered over his shoulder. “I look forward to sampling all the charms this female has to offer.”

Vork followed them into the hall and slammed into one of the khatalm fighters The male tumbled against the wall. Grunting, Vork punched toward the other warrior who deflected the blow.

When a wet slick sounded by his ear, and the khatalm’s blade pinched the skin at his neck, Vork growled. He grabbed and twisted the warrior’s hand until he yelped and released the knife.

“Forget him,” Bryk said. He grabbed Vork’s shoulder. “You do not have a vengeance with him.”

“No, it is with Piersag.” Vork vaulted off the other male and allowed him to rise. His gaze cut to Piersag, who stood behind the second fighter. “I am no longer a youngling who cannot seek revenge for his family.”

Piersag paled but stiffened. “I do not know what you speak about.”

“My father’s murder.”

Bryk’s sharp inhalation echoed in the hall outside Vork’s office, but his posture loosened. “My father had wondered what happened to his commander. He spoke of your father’s unusual death many times…” His attention fell on Piersag, whose face revealed nothing. Only the slight tremble of his hands gave him away. “I look forward to standing at Vork’s side in two days to answer the vengeance.”

Piersag’s chest puffed. “This vengeance is solely to seek retribution for the actions of the human female, nothing else.”

“My father’s death will be answered as well,” Vork sneered. He stalked over to the older man. “You did not believe I would call you on this. That has been your second mistake.”

“Second?” Piersag’s voice quivered. Coward. It was rare that a warrior would issue a vengeance then ask another to fight in his place.

“Your first mistake was creating the vengeance at all,” Vork spat. Pivoting, he stalked past Bryk and into his office with his friend following, but he stopped in the doorway and turned.

Piersag watched, fear tracing down his face.

“The last mistake you will have made will be trying to steal my mate.” Vork stormed into his office with Bryk right behind.

The lieutenant nodded to Vork, thanking him for the defense when Piersag shoved him, then shut the door.

Bryk lifted the binding cloth from the floor and unfolded it. “Allow me to take care of this for you.”

“He has no right to her.”

His friend held out the cloth. In Crakair tradition, when a female and a male were matched, they’d go to the Elders for permission to court and marry. Assuming the elders agreed to the union, the Elders would create a binding cloth during a highly secretive ceremony. His parents had obtained one, but with so many of the Crakairian females dead, the tradition had fallen aside. Piersag’s cloth had to be a forgery.

Vork had been chosen by the Selection to be Evie’s mate. He would not believe otherwise.

“There is no way an Elder approved of this match,” Vork said. “She is mine. In two daelas time, at the vengeance, I will show him.”

“If you will not let me kill him for you, I can go to the Elders and speak on your behalf. I cannot imagine the Elders would hold this up as proof she is his when the Selection stated otherwise.”

“Not just the Selection.”

Bryk’s brows drew together. “You have any other evidence that could prove she is your intended mate?”

“Not quite, but…” Vork held out his hand, palm up, and the binding symbol gleamed.

Chapter 15

EVIE

When someone knocked on the front door, Evie jumped. Silas leaped off her lap and scooted down the hall to the bedroom.

Should she answer it? Other than Vork’s mother, no one knew she was here, so whoever it was had to be looking for Vork.

Vork had his own coded access, so it couldn’t be him.

She rose and cautiously approached the panel.

Another knock, and she scooted backward, unsure why she was feeling spooked. It could be a neighbor stopping by with a welcome casserole. Or someone hoping to borrow a cup of sugar.

Did Crakair even have sugar? If not, how could she create some?

“You’re not in Kansas anymore, Dorothy,” she whispered. “Even Toto would agree.”

Silas meowed in agreement from down the hall but remained hidden.

“Hello?” someone called out from the other side of the door. “Evie?”

She didn’t recognize the voice, but they knew her name. Vork hadn’t warned her against answering the door. Who would bother her while she was under his protection?

That didn’t mean she’d swing it wide and allow whoever it was to stroll inside. She peeked through the tiny hole in the door, marveling that two completely different cultures could share something so similar.

An Earth woman who looked familiar to Evie stood on the other side of the door, smiling!

Who cared if she was an ax murderer hiding her weapon behind her back? It was someone who might commensurate about Crakair’s lack of pizza and cold beer. She’d raided the fridge for lunch and while she’d found plenty to eat, nothing tasted the same as on Earth.

Evie unlocked and swung the door wide. “I don’t know who you are but you are so freakin’ welcome.” She jutted out her hand. “Hi, I’m Evie, though you already know that because you called out my name.” Her head tilted. “How do you know my name?”

The woman laughed. No fang-baring, no shrieking. Just a good old Earthling laugh.

Evie burst into tears.

“Oh, wow, I’m sorry,” the woman said, bustling inside the apartment and shutting the door. “My husband said Vork told you I was coming to visit?”

“If he did, I didn’t hear him,” Evie wailed.

The woman patted her arm. “It’s okay, honey. I completely understand. Been there, done it already. Probably will again by tomorrow. This place… Well, I’m thrilled to be here but sometimes, it would be nice to chat with someone who understands. My friend Thea’s awesome, but it’s just us. No, now we have you!”

“I’m really sorry,” Evie said through her sobs. “I’m not usually emotional like this but it was a long trip with a lot of really odd things to learn and then there’s shrieking, which you didn’t do, plus me spitting bloody wine because someone smacked into me, and now Vork has to fight in a vengeance and I don’t really know what that is!”

“Tell you what,” the woman said. “How about we sit down and have a long talk. I want to hear all about it.”

“You do?” Evie wiped her eyes and sniffed.

“Sure. I bet I’ve been through all of it myself. Well, other than the vengeance. But I know what it’s like to leave Earth and come to a strange new world. It’s scary.”

“Totally.”

“And then there are the ups and downs of an alien courtship. I bet I can give you a few pointers to hasten things along. Well, assuming you’re eager to get it over with and enjoy the fun stuff that follows.” She wiggled her eyebrows.

“Courtship, marriage, fucking,” Evie repeated in a monotone as she followed the woman to the living room.

The woman snorted. “He didn’t say it like that, did he?”

“He did. Isn’t that the norm?”

“For some of these guys, maybe. It must be the translator. The language barrier either makes you laugh hysterically or cry.”

“For sure.”

The woman halted at the entrance to the living room. “Leave it to a Crakairian male to come up with a decoration like that.” She pointed to the huge bone suspended for Silas. “I bet there’s a story behind that.”

“It’s for Silas.”

“Who is not your intended, since that’s Vork.” She smiled.

“Silas is my cat.”

“You brought your cat?” She gaped around. “Where is he? Kitty? Here, kitty, kitty. Come on out and say hi.” Her hand thrust toward Evie. “I’m Julia, by the way. I was one of the first matches made between Earth women and Crakairian men.”

“You’re the Julia Brighton?”

“I guess? I’m just your average Earth woman.”

“No way! You were matched with Crown Prince Axil. Your story was all over the news.” Evie frowned. “You look even cuter in person.”

“Thanks. I think.” Julia dropped down onto the sofa and settled her loose shirt around her hips. “Settle in and let’s chat. Vork thought you might welcome the chance to visit with a fellow Earthling, and he mentioned it to Axil, who suggested I stop by.”

“That’s so sweet of him,” Evie said as she sat in the chair opposite the sofa. She studied the other woman. Petite and with long red hair, she must stand out among the tall, brawny Crakairian males. But then, Evie probably did, too.

“He’s a nice guy, but you already know that. You’ve been here, what, a few days now?”

“Since yesterday.”

Julia’s head bobbed. “Not long yet, though long enough to realize this place is unlike anything else. I imagine the bed you slept in last night was quite the surprise.”

“Are all the beds alive?”

“Basically. And they’re not the only living things that are part of everyday life. My friend, Thea, who is matched with Gaje, Axil’s vizier, and I laugh about it all the time. The next time I come by, I’ll bring her with me.” She frowned. “Thea was nauseous this morning, but she’ll feel better soon.”

“Thea?” Oh, that was right. “She was one of the original matches, too.”

“Yeah. She’s my best friend.”

Hearing about Thea reminded her of Sadie, her best friend still living on Earth. Would she ever see her friend again?

The match program had begun six months ago with five Earth women. Though there had been other matches since, only three of the original group had remained on Crakair. The other two had asked to return home.

Julia sighed. “This life takes getting used to, but if you give it—and your Crakairian male—a chance, you’ll get settled in and feel as if you’ve been here your entire life.”

“Everything is so new and strange and…”

“Wonderful?”

Evie laughed. “A little.”

Julia pouted.

“Okay. A lot.”

As Julia tugged on her shirt, it stretched across her abdomen. Evie’s jaw dropped. “You’re pregnant.” She took in Julia’s rounded belly, then slapped her hand over her mouth. “Oh. I shouldn’t say that, because…”

“I could be fat instead,” Julia said with a laugh.

Evie blushed. “Sorry.”

“But yeah, I’m preggers. Thea is too. These dudes work fast, don’t they?” She said this with infinite satisfaction, softly stroking the mound. “I’m hoping mine is only one this time around, however. I’m not sure I’m up for a multiple births. Not for my first.”

Happiness for her new friend filled Evie. “Do twins run in your family?” That would be cool.

“Not mine, but Crakairian males are…let’s just say they’re virile.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “Potent. And highly persuasive.”

They sure were. “Vork, Axil, and Gaje must be triplets then, because…”

“Who can resist a Crakairian male?” Julia tapped her chest. “Not me. Not Thea. Sounds like you already feel the same.”

Evie fanned her face, knowing her growing feelings for Vork could not be hidden or denied. “You’re tellin’ me. I’d barely met the guy, and I wanted to rip off his clothing.”

“I don’t know what it is about them.” Tapping her chin, her brows drew together. “Could be their pheromones or their chemical make-up.”

Probably a mix of both. Did it matter? “Whatever it is, I’m enjoying the process.”

“Where are you in the courtship?”

“Breakfast and an emulsion so far.” Which had been fun, because Vork had knelt by her feet and taken such care to ensure she wasn’t afraid of the weird creature who’d massaged her heels and toes.

Nor could she forget the steamy episode on her bed last night.

“He wore a hot outfit while he cooked and served you, amirite?” Julia grinned.

Her face flamed at the memory. If only he’d wear it all the time. “Can I hope the next part of the courtship involves even less clothing?”

“That’ll come soon enough, but you’ll love every step you go through along the way.”

She already was. “So, you and the Prince, huh?”

“He’s…” Dreaminess filled Julia’s voice. “I can’t describe it but the attraction was almost immediate between us. Well, once I’d apologized for stabbing him.”

“You didn’t!”

“I…mistook him for someone else. And my brother…” Sadness creased her face, making Evie wonder… “Before he died of the disease, my brother taught me to defend myself with a knife. But Axil had been working on his ship’s engine, and he was covered in grime. I wasn’t familiar with how they normally dress, in black leather pants, and with his naanans that I thought were hair like that pirate guy wore in that Caribbean movie, it was natural for me to be confused. When he grabbed me, I didn’t think.” Her lips curved up. “But that’s a story for another day.”

“I’m sorry about your brother.”

“Thanks.”

“And I can’t even imagine how hot Axil must have been.”

“He was cute, in a grungy, alien way. After that, it was essentially instalove, which has never been my thing, but I was unable to resist his numerous charms.” She chuckled. “I think he and I still hold the record for the quickest Crakairian courtship.”

“How long did he court you? I heard the usual Crakairian courtship takes up to a year.” She couldn’t fathom how any woman could resist that long.

“For us, it took less than twenty-four hours.” Her shrug lifted the cute pink top she wore. “After that, there was no holding back. Within no time, I’d proposed to my alien mate. Thankfully, he said yes.”

Would Evie dare to do the same thing herself? She kind of wanted to see how this courtship played out first. So far, Vork had been fun and sexy, and she was eager to see what came next.

“Just wait for the rest of courtship. If you were on the fence about whether you wanted to be with him, you’ll be falling down the other side after things start heating up.”

Evie leaned forward. “Give me a hint about what to expect?”

Julia looked around to make sure they were alone before leaning forward and lowering her voice. “It involves water but that’s all I’m saying.”

Oh. Intriguing. “How much water?” Did Julia mean swimming or a waterfall or… The possibilities were endless.

Her finger wavered in the air, but the movement was softened by her smile. “Not saying.”

Evie frowned. “Hmm. I imagine I’ll find out tonight.” What would it entail? Perhaps she could tease a few details out of Vork later.

“Did you know Crakairian males can see as well in the dark as during daylight?”

“I did not.” That would be a cool ability to have.

“And they’re ticklish in the most unusual places.”

That perked Evie up. “Like where?”

“Why don’t you test with your fingertips and find out?”

Definitely an awesome idea. Evie’s back tightened as resolve filled her. “I will. Once Vork gets home, I’ll…” Home. When had she started to feel like she would be happy staying here for the rest of her life?

Maybe when she’d started to fall for Vork. That tightness in her chest filled her all over again, as if he was here with her this moment. A soft, longing sigh slipped past her lips.

“You’re in love with him already, aren’t you?” Only understanding came through in Julia’s tone. “Don’t bother denying it. I can see it written all over you.”

“Is it too obvious?” It was scary trusting someone again after she’d been burned by her ex. What if she completely fell for Vork and he hurt her, too? It would hurt ten thousand times worse than with Derek.

“Love is nothing to hide. Vork’s a great guy. He must care for you or he wouldn’t have asked me to come here in the hopes I’d help you feel more welcome.”

Evie sniffed again, and her eyes stung, but for a completely different reason.

She was in love with Vork. How could it have happened so fast? There was no use denying it; no use fighting it. The heart goes where it wants and the mind is just along for the ride.

“We have to get through the courtship before I can propose, right?” Evie asked.

“There’s my girl.” Julia leaned forward for a high-five. “But not really. You could propose whenever you like. But don’t let on that I told you. These Crakairian men have no idea how to handle a bold, kick-ass Earth woman, and I think we should keep it that way.”

“We can mold them one male at a time.”

“That’s the spirit.” She clapped her hands. “I’m so glad I met you. It’s nice to chat with another person who completely understands. Like about chocolate.” She shrugged. “Can you imagine living without it? Well, you will, because they don’t have it here.”

“No chocolate?” Evie whined. How in the world could she survive without it?

“And then there’s the music.”

“Please tell me there’s music here.”

“They do sing and dance, but the stuff I used to listen to sounds like cats screaming to them.” She peered around. “Speaking of cats, where’s Silas? Show me your kitty. Even the pets here are completely different.”

Evie stood. “Silas is probably hiding in my bedroom.”

“And that’s another thing,” Julia said as she headed down the hall. “This separate bedroom thing threw me at first. If they weren’t all so hot, I’d wonder how they could have so many children. I’m sure you’ll do away with that archaic notion as fast as I did. Once you return from your mating.”

Evie frowned as she pushed open her door. “Back up a sec. You mentioned hoping you were only carrying one child. Are multiple births common on Crakair?”

She paused in the doorway but didn’t turn. “Ah-ha.”

“You also mentioned how virile the Crakairian men are.” What wasn’t Julia telling her?

“Double ah-ha.” Turning, Julia grinned.

Evie’s breath caught. Oh, my god, no. It couldn’t be. “How many children are we talking about here?”

“Crakairian families are notoriously huge.”

“There’s no birth control, from what I heard.” Which could be a problem. Definitely needed to get to work on that manual soon, and talk to Vork about adding a clause to the agreement between Earth and Crakair that would limit the number of children “required” to, say, three. Couples could decide if they wanted more after that.

“Sadly, no birth control, though I imagine we could eventually advocate for it, once they’re confident we’ll help keep their species from dying out.”

“That’s a great idea.” Evie explained her idea.

“I’ll talk to Axil about it. He’s been able to work with the Council already to bring about some concessions regarding Earth women. But we’re not baby-makers, and stealing brides for breeding hasn’t happened around here for hundreds of Crakairian yaros.”

“They truly did that in the past?”

“Yup. I think there are still a few villages, deep inside the continent where things are slower to evolve. I’ve heard they may still steal brides. Same with Mara, one of Crakair’s moons.”

“From where?”

“The Marans are the real space pirates. And they’ll take women from wherever they can find them. Earth or any other planet with genetically compatible women.”

“I prefer our arrangement. At least we get the final say in what happens.” She couldn’t imagine being captured and forced into a relationship. Gratitude toward the Earth government filled her all over again. What if they hadn’t insisted on the ten-day back out clause?

“I’m so glad the governments came to this agreement,” Julia said, echoing Evie’s thoughts. “Consent is important to me.”

“Me, too, which is why we’ll need to push for some control over this. I mean, who the hell wants to give birth to, let alone nurse, fifteen kids?”

“A Crakairian woman?”

“I’m not a broodmare.” Never would be, either, though she wouldn’t mind having a few children someday. If she and Vork took things that far, would their children have naanans or hair? Maybe someday, Evie would find out.

Julia rubbed her belly, and her smile softened. “You won’t feel that way when you’re carrying your mate’s baby.”

The courtship had just started. Evie wasn’t quite ready to ask Vork how many children he might want.

Sex. She could deal with that, however.

Julia bent down and held out her arm, rubbing her fingers together. “Here kitty, kitty. Come out for Julia. I want to pat your fuzzy kitty body. Si-las!” She grinned over her shoulder at Evie. “I’ve adopted a brindle.”

“What’s a brindle?” And could she get one for herself?

“A mix of a dog and a crab.”

Maybe not. “Sounds…deadly.” Did it have claws? “Where did you find something like that?”

“My prince sort of stole it for me at a market on Mara when we were stranded there for a short time.”

Evie hadn’t heard they’d been stranded. “Wait. He stole it?”

“The guy selling her took off for some reason. But the poor baby was going to be used at a breeding farm and I couldn’t have that.”

“Of course not.” Frankly, Evie was intrigued about the pet comment. She’d always loved animals and would share her life with more than just one if she could. “I so want to hear this story someday.”

Julia stood and spontaneously hugged Evie. Evie’s heart sung, and she was grateful she’d found a friend. “We have got to get together again, and I’ll share the fun parts. I also want to talk about TV shows and books we might’ve both read and…pizza.”

“Please don’t tell me they don’t have bread and cheese here.” Life without cheese was almost life without … okay, chocolate. Pretty much torture.

Head tilted, Julia tapped her lips. “You might be on to something there.” Her face cleared. “Once you and Vork are wed and you’re back from your mating, you can come to the palace and we’ll invite Thea over to make pizza together.”

“Palace,” Evie gulped.

“It’s wild and it blew my mind the first time I saw it but, yeah, I’m not Cinderella but I do live at a palace.”

“This is incredible.” Evie couldn’t imagine. Vork’s apartment felt like enough for her.

Julia’s face beamed. “It is, but I’d trade it all away if it didn’t include Axil.”

Imagine being that confident in love. Evie rubbed her chest where it stung.

Sensing movement, Evie nudged her head toward where Silas was peering out from beneath the bed.

Julia whirled around and stooped down again. “There he is. Hiding, aren’t you, little guy? I get it. It can be a scary place, but you’re going to love it here as much as Evie.”

Silas took one step out from underneath the bed and paused.

“Aw. He’s gorgeous,” she cooed. “Aren’t you a beautiful baby? Come to Julia for lots of pats.”

Silas sauntered over and wound around her legs, then flopped on the carpet in front of her, offering his belly for rubs.

“He’s beautiful. I miss kitties so much.” Tears trickled down Julia’s cheeks. “Now I’m the one sobbing. Sorry. Hormones. They’re raging through me all the freakin’ time.”

“It’s okay,” Evie said, squeezing Julia’s shoulder. “I’m glad you stopped by. Vork will probably work most days, and I don’t begrudge him his job, but I’m not sure what I’m going to do while he’s away all day.”

“Well, children?” Julia said. When Evie pursed her lips, Julia laughed and tapped Evie’s arm. “Just kidding. Women work here. There are all kinds of jobs we could do. Between us, we’ll figure it out.”

A knock drew Evie’s attention to the front of the apartment. She lifted her eyebrows toward Julia, who straightened.

“I imagine that’s Axil.” She scooted around Evie and out into the hall, calling over her shoulder. “I can’t wait to introduce you to my husband.”

Evie gulped. She was going to meet the Crown Prince of Crakair?

Chapter 16

VORK

V ork arrived at his apartment just as Axil was knocking.

Calling out to his friend, he joined him and then unlocked and opened his front door.

“Mateling,” Axil said the moment he saw Julia.

Like every other time Vork had seen them meet up after being apart, Julia ran to Axil and leaped into his arms.

Axil spun her around while raining kisses on her lips and growling into her neck.

She giggled. That was the word. Giggle.

He wanted Evie to giggle for him.

His gaze met hers, and the pretty color he savored rose into her cheeks. Pure envy shone in her beautiful eyes. Crossing the room, he took her hands and kissed the back of each. “How was your day?” The words came out formal, like they were an old married couple meeting up for the ten-thousandth time at the end of a workday. But his newly awakened emotions humbled him. He was bursting, eager to tell her his thoughts and hear hers.

More than eager to take her to his bedroom.

Evie lifted up onto her toes and traced her fingers along the back of his neck and beneath his naanan. She tugged his head down for a kiss that seared through him like recklar fire. It ended too fast.

Would she nudge him away if he nuzzled her neck? No harm in trying.

With a soft growl, he pulled her close and put everything he was feeling into his kiss. Knowing he might lose her, that Piersag could force the remaining Elders to accept the binding cloth and take her away, made each minar precious. Then he trailed his lips along her jawline to her neck.

A cough made him lift his head, and he caught Axil and Julia grinning at them.

“How far along are you in your courtship?” Axil asked, his eyebrows lifting.

“Far enough along,” Vork grunted.

“I would say so.” He and Julia parted, and Julia tugged Evie back to the living room. The two males followed.

Axil sunk down on a chair and tugged his petite mate down on his lap. “What is this?” Axil waved to the bone.

“Lieutenant Dorn has not stopped in to remove it?” Vork asked Evie. “He was supposed to bring the See-lass chopped meat.”

“Not so far,” Evie said. “Though he did replace the bone just before Julia arrived.”

Vork would have to speak to his lieutenant about the best way to feed the See-lass. Like Evie, he was also not eager to keep meat-encrusted bones suspended in his living room, despite how much he enjoyed pampering the See-lass.

When he looked up at Evie, the flash of longing in her eyes when she watched Axil and Julia was Vork’s undoing.

Sweeping her off her feet, which made her eek in a surprisingly pleasant manner, he settled down in his chair and settled her on his lap. She looped her arms around his neck and leaned into his chest as if she belonged there.

Something had changed. For him, it was an awareness of how important his human female was in his life, but what about her? He ached to ask her to share her thoughts, but she would be pushing things. She had barely arrived. While in many ways it felt as if he had known her forever, they had only met yesterday.

“You said on your com there was something you needed to discuss,” Axil said to Vork.

Evie peered up at him in curiosity but said nothing.

“Piersag is making trouble.”

Axil was aware of the promise Vork’s mother had demanded when he was young, that he not pursue any investigation into his father’s death.

“What now?” Axil said dryly. “Would you like me to kill him for you? I would be happy to do so.”

Vork growled. Yes, he would like Piersag to pay for the probable murder of his father, but he wanted to seek his own revenge. “He took an imagined slight and has turned it into a vengeance.”

“A fight to the death, then. When—”

Evie gasped. “To the death? I thought…” Her eyes closed briefly and when she opened them again, they shimmered. Heille, he had made her cry. He had intended to tell her about the outcome of a vengeance but wasn’t sure how. His breath woofed out like he had been punched in the chest. She reeled away from Vork with betrayal in her eyes. “You didn’t tell me you could die.”

“I will emerge the victor,” he said with pride. But inside, he was truly worried. Not because he feared death, but because he feared what might happen to Evie if he wasn’t here to protect her.

“And what if you don’t?”

He wanted to brush aside the question, but that would not be fair to the woman he loved. “I have made arrangements for your care.”

“My care.” Her chin lifted, making him proud of his little warrior. “If something happens to you…” This time, the tears drizzled down her pale cheeks. “I will return to Earth.”

“Piersag threw a binding cloth.”

Axil’s gaze dropped to Evie. “I see.”

“What’s a binding cloth?” Evie asked, her voice tight with concern.

“He states the Elders have spoken. That the match arranged between us by the Selection is not valid. That instead he and…” Vork’s gaze dropped. He couldn’t state the words. “The cloth must be forged.”

“Are you saying I’m supposed to mate with that creepy old dude?” Evie shouted.

“No way,” Julia chimed in. “Axil.” She tapped his arm. “Do something about this.”

“The Elders do not enjoy being questioned,” Axil said.

The crown was mostly symbolic, as the royal family had ceded power to the council government many yaros ago. Though the Elders did listen to the royal family. Better than the council who often acted as they chose.

“Who the heille—hell—cares what the Elders want?” Julia said. “Evie’s in love with Vork—“

She was? Vork couldn’t look away from his mate.

“Sorry,” Julia said softly. “But Axil, you can’t let them be split apart. Her heart will break and Vork will…” Her sly gaze fell on him. “Vork will do anything to keep Evie with him.”

Vork drummed his chest with his fist. “I will.”

“I will see what I can do,” Axil said. “As when Julia arrived, I will need to work with the Council to continue to ensure Earthly female rights. Those who hold the majority on the Council are resistant to change. But I do believe it is time for the crown to exert its authority in this matter.”

“Thank you,” Vork said, though he couldn’t take his gaze off Evie. Color had flared in her face and her eyes reflected hurt.

“When were you going to tell me about the vengeance?” Evie asked, her voice shaking.

“I—”

“Did you think I didn’t need to know?”

“I had planned to—”

“Did you think I wouldn’t care? Because I do.” She clambered off his lap and stood in front of him, facing him with her hands on her hips.

Behind her, Julia and Axil rose. Julia tipped her head to the door. “We’ll see you two soon,” she whispered.

“I will let you know how this goes,” Axil said.

Vork nodded absently, watching Evie.

“We’re matched,” Evie said, seemingly unaware the other two slipped out the front door. “Which means we should make decisions together. I can’t be a part of these decisions if I don’t know all the facts.”

“You are right.”

“Furthermore…” She frowned. “What did you say?”

“You are right. I should have told you immediately, but I wanted to protect you.”

“I want to protect you.”

“You are frail, a human female with soft skin and smooth hair and no naanans and—”

Her hands clenched to fists. “I’m stronger than you think. Strong enough to handle whatever you send my way.”

But was she? Would he do something stupid and break her? He was not sure he could stand to see it happen. Perhaps he should send her home before the ten days were through. Then she would be safe. He would miss her forever, but knowing Piersag could not get to her would make the pain worthwhile.

“Don’t even go there,” she said.

“Go …?”

“You know what I mean.”

He did not, but he would listen.

“You’re about to suggest I go back to Earth, but guess what, buddy?” She poked his chest, a usual gesture for her that must mean she was agitated, not asking him to leave the room. “I’m not going. You can’t make me.”

“I have not finished our courtship.”

“Then finish it.”

“I have not proposed.”

“Just heard you don’t have to. I can ask you, which I’m seriously considering.”

“We are not mated.”

She climbed onto his lap and spread her legs around his waist. Her hands landed on his shoulders and she stroked her fingertips down his naanan.

For a Crakairian male, naanan were erogenous. He groaned.

In the middle of her tirade, she stilled. She leaned in close, staring into his eyes. “You’ve got a tell.”

“What is this tell?” Should he be concerned?

“Whenever you’re turned on, the black in your eyes eclipses the other colors.” She smiled. “It’s hot.”

“Hot? I can change the temperature set on the room air system.”

“I mean it’s sexy.”

“Hot is awesome?”

“Yes.” She leaned in close. “About that courtship.”

“I must prepare for the second phase.”

“Which involves water.” She grinned. “I almost want to wait to see what that might involve, but I have other plans for you, my hot and sexy alien.”

“What might those plans be?” Could she feel his cock digging into her sweet little ass?

“I want you to marry me.”

“The proposal for marriage is most often the male’s role in the courtship.”

“Not according to Julia, who said women can ask, too.”

Perhaps arranging for her to interact with another Earthling was not a good idea.

And perhaps it was.

“You are saying you wish to marry me?” he asked.

“Yeah.” She traced her thumb across his lips and his cock surged upward further, eager. His shoulder flaps flared and his naanan wove into her hair, determined to never let her go.

“Tell you what,” she said. “How about we skip over a few of the rituals and get right to the mating?”

Chapter 17

EVIE

“But the water,” he said.

Evie was curious about what that might entail, but there was no reason they couldn’t jump around a bit among the more formally laid-out mating steps.

Hearing he could die had shredded her. If they could only have a few days together, she would make the most of them. And that included following her heart.

“Courtship.” She ticked the items off on her fingers. “Marriage… Well, I did propose. Just say yes.”

“Yes.”

“Aw, baby.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed. “You had me worried for a minute there.”

“Never fear, Evie. I will always want you. Even if you persist in calling me baby.”

“Babe?”

His thick brows drew together.

“Bae?” She spit them out one after another, enjoying the heat smoldering in his eyes. Fire lit just for her. “Sweetheart?’

He scowled.

“Honey? Pet?”

His scowl deepened.

“Love?”

His hands tightened on her waist. “Do you feel love for me, Evie?”

While it was easy to admit to herself that the initial feelings she’d had for him had grown stronger, a girl felt vulnerable when she bared her soul to a man for the first time. “I…”

He tapped her lips with a fingertip. “I should not push. Except…”

“What?” she croaked. She really, really wanted to know.

“I have developed feelings for you.”

Tears stung in her eyes. “Vork.”

“Evie.”

“I have also developed feelings for you, too,” she said with a sniff.

He roared to his feet with her still in his arms and spun her around as Axil had with Julia. Was this a Crakairian thing?

Since kisses were involved, call that a solid yes.

“Everyone talks about this days-long mating ritual, which sounds to me like a honeymoon,” she said as he carried her down the hall. Her belly twitched with excitement, and heat pooled inside her already. To think, not long ago, she hadn’t known feelings like this existed. And now she could have it all.

“Moon of honey?” he asked.

“Long ago, on Earth,” she said as he skipped her door and nudged his open with his hip. While she’d peeked into his bedroom earlier, she hadn’t stepped inside his man cave. “Long ago, people made a liquor called mead from honey. When a couple got married, they’d go away together for a month, the cycle of the moon, and drink mead while they…”

“Commenced with the fucking.”

Her snort of laughter rang out because the gleam in his eyes told her he was teasing.

“Yeah, all the fucking,” she sighed, looking forward to whatever that would entail with Vork. She didn’t even want to think of the disaster of a honeymoon she’d had with her ex. “So the couple would drink honeyed mead for a month, hence honeymoon.” It was also supposed to ensure fertility, but she wouldn’t go there. It sounded as if virility was not a problem on Crakair.

“Here on Crakair, we mate for a full likar,” he said.

“You mean we’re cheated of the month and only get a week?”

“Would you like to mate for a month? It is an arduous process.”

Her lips twisted. “Arduous? Sounds…fun.” Actually, it sounded hot.

“We will not have a full mating until after the vengeance. Once we start, I will not be able to stop.”

“Now that sounds truly fun.”

He lowered her onto the bed and then climbed on top of her. His mouth hovered over hers while his naanans cupped her head. “It will be more than fun. It will be awesome. But for tonight and tomorrow, we will celebrate our upcoming marriage.”

“We’ll have a ceremony?”

“Yes, in accordance with our ancient traditions.”

“Will you wear the loincloth thing?”

His thick brows furrowed. “There are specific clothing we must wear.”

It might not be a white gown, flowers, and multiple bridesmaids, but being married to Vork was the goal.

He lifted his hand, revealing his palm. A symbol gleamed there. She wasn’t sure she remembered seeing it after she arrived in his office, but she must have missed it.

“Though our ceremony will have to wait until…” His chin lifted. “This is the true evidence of our mating. A bondmark.”

She lifted her hands and examined her palms. “I don’t have one. Will it appear all on its own?”

“Once we find satisfaction together, it may appear.”

“I don’t remember if Julia had one or not.”

“She does.”

“Cool. Then let’s do it. I want a bondmark, too, something that will shout out to the world that we’re together.” Her eyes stung, but they weren’t tears of sadness. Her emotions overwhelmed her, humbled her. And she had no problem admitting if only to herself that she was afraid of what might come from the vengeance. From Piersag.

Vork must have read her mind. “He will never have you,” he growled into her throat. His fangs grazed her skin, and electricity shot through her.

“Do that again,” she whispered hoarsely.

“I will do that and so much more.” His fingers tugged at her clothing. “I would see your mounds again and touch them. Taste them.”

A girl didn’t need a bigger invitation to strip than that.

She bumped up to indicate she wanted to rise, and he eased off her and onto his back on the bed.

Scooching over to the side, she’d started to lift her dress but then realized she could also make this entertaining for both of them.

She’d never performed a striptease before.

Humming a tune that sounded vaguely vampy, she slid off the bed and danced slowly in front of him, putting most of her energy into shifting her hips. All while tugging on the belt holding the folds of her gown in place.

He watched her like a raptor eager to eat prey. Shifting around on the bed, he lay back on the pillows and, like a guy back on Earth, placed his palms behind his neck. A gleam of anticipation filled his eyes that had eclipsed completely black.

She continued her tune and sashayed in a circle as she tossed the belt to the floor and tugged up her dress, slowly revealing her hips, her belly, and her breasts.

Once she’d slid the gown over her head, she threw that toward the belt.

Continuing to undulate and hum, she reached for her front-clasp bra. She’d gone with red today, a recommendation from Sadie. That girl knew how to buy underwear.

“Shall I take it all off?” she said in a low, husky voice. “Do you want to see everything?”

“I will taste everything. I promise I will not stop until you have screamed my name.”

Quivers passed through her at the thought of what was to come.

The substantial bulge in the front of his pants shifted. She loved that he was as turned on as her by her tease. But it was time to even the playing field.

“You need to remove your clothing, too.”

“Shall I dance for you?”

On any other day, hell, yes! Now, she needed skin on skin, and the sooner the better.

“Take them off fast,” she said as she shimmied out of her panties and tossed them and the bra aside.

His breathing hissed as he climbed off the bed to stand in front of her. While she drooled, he reached for the fastener at the top of his pants. It popped free, and the leather parted.

No undies. Did all Crakairians go commando?

And damn, he was huge.

It was big. Straining toward her. Scaled—ribbed?

The rumors were right.

It was also green.

Chapter 18

EVIE

Evie wanted to be with him.

Reaching out, she tugged at his pants, shifting them down over his hips. He stepped out of the leather and yanked his shirt over his head, revealing his acres of muscles.

She’d have to find a way to send Sadie a message and satisfy her curiosity because … Vork was a beautiful dark mossy green all over.

But whoa…massive cock. How was that supposed to fit inside her body? Damn, but she wanted to try. She wanted to taste.

Dropping to her knees, she took his rigid, ribbed dick in her hand, then leaned forward and licked the tip.

It vibrated.

She had to be mistaken. Taking the bulb on the end into her mouth, she sucked.

Groaning, he fisted her hair. “Evie. What are you…”

Had no one ever loved him in this way before?

More vibrations.

His cock popped from her mouth and bobbed upward, subtly humming.

“Whoa,” she said. She peered up at him. “Does it always do that?”

He bared his fangs. “Do you like that it does this?”

Hell yeah.

An impishly devious smile appeared on her face. “Let me taste a little more before I say, okay?” She stretched her mouth around the end again and took him as deeply as she could, pulling and sucking.

Hard. Ribbed. Vibrating. This was going to be fuckin’ awesome.

Head thrust back and naanans lifting, Vork moaned while slowly thrusting. “I don’t…Fuck.”

She released him, then ran her tongue down his length while he bucked his hips. With both hands, she milked him, squeezing, while he plunged and strained, the cords in his neck standing out in sharp definition.

“You have got to…” He grunted and tugged her up. He pulled her against him, his skin rubbing against hers.

Tilting her head back with both hands, he plundered her lips, his tongue seeking hers. His naanans cupped the back of her head while others stroked down her back. He traced his fingertips down her neck, then lifted her breasts.

“I love these mounds—breasts. I must taste them again. Lick them.”

“They’re yours.” She was his to do with whatever he pleased.

He bent forward and sucked one of her nipples into his mouth. Heat pooled in her belly and moved downward. While his fangs grazed her nipple, his naanans stroked and pinched the other. Some sort of inner flutter mechanism on his naanan activated on her nipple and she moaned. Damn, that felt good.

His fingers traced down her belly and when she spread her thighs, he dipped his hand between them. One finger traced along her slit while his thumb rubbed at the top.

She tipped her head back and moaned. “Vork.”

“Evie.”

“You’ve gotta…” Leaning back, she thrust herself against his hand while fire shot through her, centering between her legs.

“I am gotta,” he assured her, totally twisting the sentence but sounding cute and hot, all at the same time.

“Now, Vork.” She was going to explode if he kept at it. His tongue on her breast, his naanans stroking the other, while his hand continued to rub.

When he slid two fingers inside her, they both swore.

He pulled his fingers out then sucked on them. “Sweet. I will taste more.” Standing, he swept her off her feet and lowered her onto the bed. He climbed over her and thrust her legs apart, kneeling between them.

She was ready for whatever he wanted to do. Hell, she wasn’t even afraid of how big he was any longer. She just wanted him driving inside her.

Those ridges. The vibration …

Reaching up, she grabbed his shoulders and tried to pull him down, but he resisted with a soft huff.

“I will lick you first, Evie,” he said.

“Fuck,” she moaned. “I don’t think I can handle much more. I want you.”

“What do you want, love?”

“All of you. Please.”

“You want the fucking.” He chuckled and moved down her body, kissing every square inch along the way, until he reached her core. He nudged her thighs wide, exposing her to his view.

“These parts…” His naanan flared before dropping down to her breasts, where they rubbed and teased her nipples. Another tickled along her inner thighs.

He licked up her slit, and his tongue plunged inside.

While she mewed and lifted her hips up to meet each thrust, he rubbed at the top. Flames licked through her, building to an inferno.

“Vork. Now!”

Rising over her, he centered his cock at her opening. “You are small,” he said. “I do not wish to hurt you.”

The tip of his cock vibrated, and the hum sank into her bones.

She writhed on the bed, desperate to feel him deep inside. The surface accommodated her movements, but she ignored it. It wasn’t alive, but she was. All she could do was feel. “It’s gonna hurt a hell of a lot more if you don’t do it.”

“I…” His face tightened with resolve. “We are told this is possible.”

She huffed out a laugh. “I sure hope so. Want to prove it?”

“I will prove this.” He lifted her legs and placed her heels on his shoulders.

With a short thrust, the tip of his cock penetrated her. Big, she was stretched in a subtle, arousing burn. The inner vibration sent liquid heat pouring through her.

He inched forward as if afraid he’d cause harm, but she wasn’t having any of that. She needed it all. When he slowly moved deeper, her insides stretched further to accommodate his massive width. His entire cock vibrated, from the tip buried deep inside to the end of his length. Shit, vibrator advertisers lied. This was how they were supposed to feel.

She couldn’t take much more. It felt so good, so right, but he wasn’t fully inside and she needed it.

Whimpering, she gripped her thighs around his sides, and when he subtly moved forward, she thrust her hips up.

He impaled her with his length.

Yes!

She shrieked. He groaned and pulled out.

“I cannot do this to you,” he said hoarsely. “I am hurting you.”

“No! Don’t stop,” she yelled. “More. I want it all.” Cupping his face, she made him look her in the eyes. “It’s fantastic.”

One corner of his mouth lifted, revealing more of his fang. “Awesome?”

She smiled. “I’m not sure. Perhaps you need to do it again. No, do it a lot, before I can fully assess how it feels.”

Growling, he shifted his hips forward, shoving himself deeply inside again. Yeah, it still burned, but the stinging sensation was overwhelmed with exquisite pleasure, unlike anything she’d ever felt before.

“Fast,” she barked. “I need it fast.”

He pulled out and plunged back inside. Again. Then his body shifted, and his hips almost blurred as he pumped into her over and over.

The vibrations shot through her core and out to her clit.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” she moaned. She met each thrust, and the fire built inside her, sucking her toward the peak. “I need…” Her head thrashed on the bed.

“I know what you need.” When he pulled out, she whimpered and clung, but he unlinked her arms from around his neck and rolled her onto her belly.

“Oh, wait, um,” she said.

His naanans stroked down her spine to her butt, then nudged her thighs further apart. One probed, the tip fluttering, and she shrieked and bucked on the bed.

“Yes,” he said. “Purr for me, my mate.”

Lifting her hips, he leaned over her back. “This.” He teased her opening with the head of his dick until she was shoving back against him and begging for more. “This is yours.” With one thrust, he buried himself inside her.

Emitting sharp moans that echoed around them, she rocked backward, meeting each plunge of his vibrating cock. Her body quivered, overcome.

His naanans glided along her back while his fangs nipped at her neck. When his naanans stroked around her front and pinched her nipples, she screamed out her pleasure.

“Yes…” he said hoarsely. “Scream for me again.”

Though it was incredible to imagine, he moved faster, his hands holding her hips—yanking them toward him, while he drove himself deeper and deeper. Her body milked his, soaking in each vibration, and the power built to a fever pitch deep within her.

When his fangs bit down on her neck, she shattered into a billion pieces, screaming and sobbing her bliss.

He moved faster, thrusting in a blur, until he shuddered and shoved himself as far and hard into her as he could.

He fell apart above her, inside her, his body consumed with heat, his cock even more rigid as it spasmed and vibrated even faster.

When he’d stopped moving and half lay on top of her, panting, she flopped down on her belly, taking him down along with her.

His cock twitched and vibrated some more, the hum sending more shock waves through her.

She moaned, unable to take more yet unable to resist. Damn.

He licked the place he’d bitten. “I am sorry.”

“Why?” she mumbled.

“I have never…”

“Bitten anyone?”

“I will not do it again.”

“What if I beg you to do it again?”

“You… You would like this?” He sounded incredulous.

“Did you drink blood, because I’m not sure I’m into vamps?” Although, after that incredible sex, maybe she was.

“I did not. It was…”

“A nip?” She grinned when he snorted. “I liked it. It was hot.”

“It burned?”

Her grin grew wider. “No, Vork, it was awesome.”

Chapter 19

VORK

When Vork woke the next morning, she still lay with him. According to Crakairian tradition, he should have carried her from his bed and placed her gently in her own. Not stayed wrapped around her throughout the night.

She had given him more pleasure in one mating than any other before.

A fierce protectiveness filled him. He would not lose her. He would cherish and protect her forever.

But first, he would continue the courtship ritual.

He rolled her over in his arms, and she mumbled something that sounded like release the krakens, though he could be mistaken.

Moving toward the edge of his bed, he continued to hold her while he stood and strode from the room. He turned right and typed in the code on the panel at the end of the hall. The door swept inward, and he was greeted by subtle chirps.

Awesome. They were awake.

He walked into the room, and the door closed on its own behind him. As he was able to see at night nearly as well as he did during the day when the sun shone, he didn’t need to turn on a light. He rounded the large container of zinters and carried Evie up the stairs. She still had not awoken, and he looked forward to arousing her with his hands and naanans while they lounged with the zinters.

As he sat on the side and dropped his legs down among them, he carefully lowered Evie onto his lap.

She nuzzled his neck, and even gently bit him, which made his cock rise to attention.

“Vork,” she mumbled. “Where are we?”

“In the zinter pool.”

“Swimming pool?” she said, waking slowly. “I love to swim. This must be the water,” she yawned, “Julia mentioned.” She traced kisses along his jawline while he slid down among the zinters with her securely in his arms.

The zinters surrounded them, peppering every available inch of their skin.

She writhed in his embrace. “So, that’s kinda hot. Not sure how you’re doing it, but I like it,” she whispered. “Are we gonna have sex in the pool?”

“We will allow the zinters to feast and then I will lay you on the edge and yes, we will have more fucking.”

“I like the laying on the edge part.” Leaning back, her eyes opened, and she squinted at him. “Plus more fucking.”

While zinters were lightly luminescent, they shed only a subtle glow.

“What are zinters, by the way?” she asked, peering around. “Something’s… Oh, my freakin’ shit! There are bugs all over me.”

“They are not bugs but a form of fish-plant hybrid.”

“I don’t care.” She pushed past him, aiming for the short stairs. “We’ve got to get out of here before they climb all over us.”

“But, Evie, the zinters—”

“Babe, they’re gonna eat us!” she wailed, snatching at his arm and trying to drag him from the pool. She clambered up onto the edge and dragged up her legs. With her arms wrapped around them, she shivered. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

“That is my idea,” he said, completely bemused. Why was she acting this way? “Let the zinters consume, and we will commence with more fucking.”

“Why are you standing there?” she asked, her voice quaking. “And where the hell is the swimming pool?”

“We are not swimming. We are allowing the zinters to feed.”

“On freakin’ what?”

He approached her, holding out his hands. “Please join me in this phase of the courtship.”

“What’s romantic about,” her arm swept out, “these things wiggling all over us?”

“The zinters must feed and we are their main food source.”

“Not doing it, buddy. I like you a lot. You’re incredible in the bed. And I adore how sweet you are with Silas, but if you think I’m going to let some kind of alien bugs eat me, you’re out of your mind.”

Ah. Now he understood. “You fear the zinters when you should not.”

“Easy for you to say. How can you stand there and let them…” Squinting, she leaned closer to the water. “What exactly are they doing?”

“A zinter is a luminescent plant-fish hybrid that exists solely to consume sweat, dead skin, and the dirt they remove from our bodies.”

“Whatever happened to a plain old shower? Which I noticed you do not have in your bathroom. No tub, either. I’m mourning here.”

“I immerse myself daily in the zinters.”

“I’m totally creeped out right now. This is how you stay so clean? Shit, are those…zinters chowing on your ass?”

He chuckled. Truly, his Evie would be an endless source of joy and entertainment. He couldn’t wait until they could complete the full mating process. “Yes, they…chomp on my ass.” Chomp did not feel like the correct word. What had she used? Oh, yes. Chow. Basically, the same thing.

Since she seemed so fearful, her laughter surprised him. “How does all that chomping on your ass feel?”

“It feels awesome.”

“I’ve created a monster.”

“What this means does?” Again, the word order did not feel completely correct. He would need to have his translator examined in the morning. Evie could come with him and he could show her around his city. She would feel more settled after that.

“It…it means you’re cute. Adorable. Sweeter than pie.” She laughed again. “Tell me more about these zinters.”

“We discovered them thousands of yaros ago and have cultivated them since. They have tremendous healing properties. Come.” He held out his hand. “Allow them to chomp on you.”

She cupped her face and stared down into the pool, where fifty billion zinters swished through the opaque water. “This is the water Julia mentioned? How in all the hell did she think this was sexy?”

“Perhaps, try you should see to.”

“Something’s messed up there, Vork.”

“Issues translator.”

“Well, good thing we have more than one way to communicate.” Gulping, she pressed her eyelids tightly closed before opening them. “All or nothing, right? It’s like jumping into the lake for the first swim of the summer. And I do want to… Shit, I can’t believe I’m contemplating this but…” Her head tilted. “Are you sure there’s no water I can bathe in instead?”

“Part of the courtship ritual includes immersing ourselves together in the zinters. They excrete a substance that smooths the skin.”

She tapped her fingertip on her lip. “Could I call it a spa treatment? Maybe. On one, two, and…” Pushing off from the side, she plunged down into the zinter pool.

He caught her, naturally. He would always catch her before she could fall.

“Oh, jeez, oh, jeez!” She quivered in his arms. “I’m not sure I like these… Fuck, they’re slithering all over me. I don’t know if I can stand it. My goosebumps are giving birth to baby goosebumps and even they’re scared shitless.”

He dropped down, immersing them both in the zinter pool over their shoulders.

“Do you…wash your hair this way, too?” Her lips thinned. “Oh, wait. No hair. Naanans. I suppose these fishy things take care of your naanans, too.”

“Naturally.” He stroked along the back of her neck with a strand of his naanans, and she tipped her head back, as he’d hoped. Her eyes closed as he massaged her neck and shoulders. Meanwhile, the zinters oozed all over her hair, teasing up each strand to reach the top of her head. “You will become used to it.”

“I’m not so sure about that.”

The zinters finished consuming, and they drifted down to the bottom of the pool and released the skin emollient.

Vork carried his mate up out of the water and settled her on the soft compressa stone surrounding the large tub, with her feet dangling into the emulsion substance.

“What’s on the agenda today?” she asked in a lazy voice.

He stepped out of the pool and did not miss her gaze, focused on the liquid flowing down his body. His cock twitched, and he teased his naanans along her breasts.

She arched her back. “That feels so freakin’ awesome. Do they…oh!”

He coaxed her thighs apart and massaged her bud with his naanans.

She bucked. “You’re gonna wear me out.”

“You like it.”

“Yes, yes!” Her head thrashed, and her legs rose onto his shoulders as he centered his cock at her slit. “Do it, Vork.”

He plunged into her and their slippery skin pressing together brought them both to the peak within minars.

“Damn,” she panted out, thrusting up to meet him. “You’re even good with a quickie.”

Leaning over, he nipped at her breasts. When he bit down gently on a nipple with his fangs, she shrieked and shuddered beneath him. His body plunged into her, over and over, until he found his release.

Completely sated, he collapsed on the smooth compressa stone and dragged her up on top of him.

She rested her head on his chest and sighed. “Maybe these zinters aren’t so horrible after all.”

Fangs bared, he huffed out his satisfaction.

While he wished to lie on the compressa stone all day, he had plans for them. He nudged her onto the smooth surface and stood, then tugged her up to stand with him. Unable to resist, he tapped her ass.

“Hey!” she scrunched her face at him.

“It is time to get going, kitty.”

Her lips twisted, but her eyes smiled. “Kitty, huh?”

He tugged her close and kissed her, long and deep, and full of the passion that flowed inside him like the molten rock deep within his planet. “I did make you purr, now did I not?”

She stroked his face. “I think I’m going to spend the rest of my life purring.”

“Then my world will be complete.” He tugged her out of the room.

“Where are we going? Do you have to get ready to go to work?”

“Not today, which I will spend with you.” He would not remind her of the vengeance waiting early tomorrow morning. She worried enough already, and he would not see her stressed. “I would like to spend the day with you?”

“I like that.” She gave him an easy smile. Her gaze drifted to his bedroom door, and he groaned. Yes, he would be most happy spending every minar in bed with her, but he also wished to give her a memory to hold on to …

He hated to contemplate the idea he might not emerge the victor. A warrior, he had trained all his life for a moment such as this. He would not fail himself, his father, or Evie tomorrow, but outcomes could not always be predicted.

They parted, and each went to their rooms to dress. After, they met up in the living room.

By then, Vork was patting the See-lass, making his second favorite housemate purr.

“We need to get rid of the bone,” she said, waving her hand to where it hung from ropes.

“Lieutenant Dorn will come today to replace the chips of wood and bring more sizeable meat for the See-lass. Though I intend to arrange for someone to come to our apartment every few daelas to maintain the wood and for regular deliveries of meat for our pet.”

“Our pet, huh?” She bared her teeth, something he’d at first found unsettling but now savored. Nuzzling into his side, she rubbed the See-lass’s head before the beastie struggled, wishing to be put down. The See-lass strolled down the hallway and entered Evie’s room.

“What’s on the agenda for today?” she asked, anticipation shining in her voice.

“I would like to show you your new home. Some of it, that is.”

Her eyes brightened. “We’re going sightseeing?”

Blinking, he tried to interpret what the word might mean but came up blank.

“Traveling around the area and visiting popular locations,” she said. “Sight-seeing. Seeing sites.”

He bobbed his head. “Ah, yes. Sights to see.” He waved to the door. “Let us go.”

They took a hover tram to a favorite restaurant for a meal to break their fast. A few Crakairians stared, but most focused on their own meals.

“This omelet is incredible,” Evie said as she consumed the last bite of her cornling eggs. He’d suggested them, knowing they would hold appeal.

“You would like more of these eggs for an om—ee—let?” he asked.

She nodded and looked as if she wanted to lick the plate.

“I will arrange for a large supply to be delivered to our apartment,” he said.

She was welcome to eat as many of the ground lizard eggs as she wished.

“Thank you!” She tapped her eating implement on the bowl that had held her fruit. “How about some of this, too?

“Jinjin? Or…as you called it, water of the mee—lon.”

“It tastes a lot like home,” she said wistfully.

He liked that he could give her pleasure in every aspect of her life. If stocking cornling eggs and jinjin made her happy, he would order them every week.

They paid and left but instead of walking out onto the hover tram platform, they took a lift to the ground floor.

“Where to next?” she asked as he held the door for her to go outside.

“Here we have the main thoroughfare,” he said. “For sights to see.”

“Oh, window shopping? Cool.” She hurried out the door and turned to walk to the right.

It baffled him that anyone would choose to use their feet when a hover tram could transport them from one location to the next, but he enjoyed pleasing her. When she looped her arm through his and smiled up at him with the sun kissing her pretty cheeks, he decided he’d walk around the entire planet with her if she asked.

She stopped here and there as shopping for windows, though he had no idea why she might wish to purchase windows. His apartment did not need any more.

They moved on, passing only a few other Crakairians waiting for trams who stared at Evie. She ignored them and stopped at a clothing store and gazed longingly through the glass.

“This place of commerce does not sell windows,” he said, trying to be helpful.

“Hmm?” Her eyes remained trained on the items for sale. “I wouldn’t think so.”

Then why did she pause to look?

Grumbling softly, she hiked up her dress that dragged on the ground, and tightened the belt holding it in place. He wanted to smack himself for not fully seeing. As soon as possible, he would transfer dinairs into an account in her name. Then she could shop as she pleased, even if it was only for windows. But for today …

“Let us go inside,” he said.

“Oh, well. I’m not sure I should.” Color filled her cheeks.

“I would like to purchase a few items for you. Whatever you please.”

“I don’t …

Turning her toward him, he kissed her, long and deeply.

“I would give you the world if I could,” he said.

Her face scrunched, which he now knew foretold teasing. “How about a moon instead?”

He gathered her close. “I will give you all three.”

“You’re too good to me,” she said into his chest.

After tomorrow, he would show her how much she meant to him when they went away for a week of mating. As soon as he had defeated Piersag’s second, they would leave. They could return and plan their marriage ceremony. He was greedy, wanting the mating first, but others had done so before him, including Axil.

They went inside and were greeted by a droid. “Welcome. What do you wish?” The mechanical being made up of slender boxes with wheels bowed.

“Evie?” Vork said.

“Oh, um.” She peered around. “I’m not sure.” Moving forward, she approached a rack and fingered a dress. She pulled the hanging device off the coil and draped the garment in front of herself. It half laid on the floor. With a soft huff, she returned it to the rack.

An alien male stood along one side, watching as if he’d never seen an Earthling before. Maybe he hadn’t but he soon would. More women were arriving from Earth each month.

“We would like a full wardrobe,” Vork told the droid. “I would say ten dresses in varying lengths and colors, correct, Evie? They must fit her petite form.”

“Of course.” The droid bowed. “We have such as this.”

“And night clothes,” Vork added.

Evie stared at him with her lips parted and her eyes gleaming. Her hands fluttered. “Are you sure you want me dressed at night?”

“We will not need night clothes,” Vork said firmly.

“We have many items for the discerning Earthling to choose from,” the droid said. “If you would follow.” Pivoting on its axis, the being floated toward the back of the store that hosted a sizeable display of different clothing.

While Evie flitted among the racks, grinning and touching everything, he spoke quietly to the droid. “Spare no expense. She is to have whatever she even hints at wanting.”

“Of course.” The droid’s motors squealed as it hurried to Evie’s side.

After picking out a few items, the droid pointed out others, including leglets. Vork believed that was what she had called them. No, leglings. He growled and his shoulder scales lifted the fabric of his shirt.

“These will be perfect to lounge in,” Evie said as she showed him the dark leglings. “And I can use them to do yoga.”

If her yoga was anything like the dance she’d shown him last night, he was eager to become her first student.

Leaving the shop with the droid’s promise the items would be delivered to their apartment, Vork hailed a hover tram.

“From here, we cannot walk,” he said.

“Okay.” She hugged his arm. “Thank you. I’m excited to have clothing that fits. I brought a few things, but they weren’t going to last long. Mostly, I just want to feel as if I belong here.” Turning, she rose onto her toes and gave him a steamy kiss while fondling his naanans. She grinned. He liked her even teeth that at first had appeared unnerving but now shouted sexy.

He would notify the shop to send twice the order.

Chapter 20

EVIE

T  he tram arrived and whisked Evie and Vork up into the sky.

Evie’s belly rolled. Damn, she’d never get used to these things! Gulping, she closed her eyes and clung to Vork’s arm.

He tugged her up onto his lap and wrapped himself around her. Okay, now that helped. It was hard to focus on anything but him when he snuggled her like that.

The craft leveled off and zipped through the city. Her nervousness eased, and she turned to look out the window. “What’s that building?” She pointed to a silvery structure. “It’s so shiny.”

“Our capital.”

Interesting. “And that one?”

He leaned around her to see. “A municipal building.”

“And that?”

“Law enforcement.”

“The cops,” she said, her lips thinning.

“Copse of what?”

“Just a slang word for law enforcement.”

“I see.”

They left the busy city, and dropping elevation, coasted over smaller buildings.

“Residential dwellings,” he said before she could ask.

“So many,” she said, her face pressed against the window. “They spread out for miles.”

“Despite so many deaths over a year ago, many Crakairians remain. Mostly males.”

“Too much loss,” Evie said sadly. She leaned back against him and stared down at her hands clasped tightly on her lap. “I lost my dad and a lot of friends.” Her voice cracked and her eyes smarted.

“Now I have made you sad when my sole intent was to make you happy.”

She sniffed. “It’s okay. It’s part of our past, and it’s part of what is shaping our future. I like to believe we would have met no matter what, but who could say? Would the Crakairians have sent a delegation otherwise?”

“I do not know.” His arms tightened around her, and he kissed the top of her head.

The craft rose up and up, climbing the wind channels, sweeping up and over a series of mountain ranges.

“It’s so beautiful here,” she said, staring out the window. “I’ve never seen blue trees. Ours are shades of green except when they flower or in the fall, when the leaves change orange, red, and yellow.”

“They do this here as well, though they bloom in pink and violet.”

She couldn’t imagine how beautiful that would be. “Can we come to see them then?”

He placed his fist over his heart. “I will show you.”

The hover tram leveled and then landed on a stone pad that must have been built for this purpose. While Vork arranged for a vehicle to come to get them later, she pushed the button that activated the door seal and stepped outside.

Sultry air greeted her, and she wished she’d brought a hair elastic. Vork seemed to like it when she wore it down, but most of the time, she found the strands flying in her face a pain in the butt. It was much easier to yank it up on her head and keep it out of the way.

Vork climbed out of the vehicle, carrying the pack he’d put together back at the apartment. He hefted it up onto his back and secured the ties around his waist.

Evie stood near the edge of the stone platform. “It’s almost overwhelming here.” The city nestled below them, at a distance so far away, she could almost pretend it didn’t exist.

This could be their paradise. For today, anyway.

The tram lifted, and pivoting, shot up into the sky.

“Here we are,” she said, peering at the dense woods encroaching on the opposite side of the platform. A few trees creaked in the wind, and something cracked deep within the darkness, where the sun didn’t reach. Despite the heat of the day, her skin peppered with goosebumps. She hugged her waist. “Any predators I need to know about lurking around?”

“Only me.” He bared his fangs.

She grinned and socked his arm. “Really.” She stood on tiptoe for a kiss. “You can hunt me any old time you like, sweetheart.”

“What is this sweet heart? I should storm and tell you not to give me a name of nick like my mother has with the dreaded Vorkie, but…”

She stroked his naanans. When he closed his eyes and leaned into her touch, she would have sworn on her life he purred.

“We will walk,” he said, gruffly, leaning away. “There is much to do before more fucking.” Turning, he stomped toward the woods, staring over his shoulder. “And you may call me sweet of the heart.”

She snickered, enjoying the odd ways his translator twisted her language. Sweet of the heart? “Something’s up with your translator.”

He tapped it, frowning. “I will have someone test it soon.”

Until then, she could enjoy the fun way the malfunctioning translator played with English.

“Are we going hiking?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, leaving the open area and starting up a trail. His pack shifted on his back with the movement, and his leg muscles churned.

How did he get such an awesome butt?

Twenty or thirty or five thousand minutes later, Evie wished they’d stumble across a tub full of zinters. She’d welcome the chomping fishies as long as she could float in the coolness along with them. Sweat trickled down her spine and her freakin’ too big, giantess Crakairian dress kept slipping out from underneath the belt and snagging on the ground. She was about ready to call it quits when the path widened and Vork’s too-freakin’ long strides tugged her behind him, into a clearing.

On the opposite side of the big open area, a cliff face rose all the way to the sky. Bushes and short, scruffy blue trees grew on the surface, and water cascaded down, plunging through an opening in the vegetation. The fall hit a broad pool at the base and flowed off to their right. The roar of the water echoed around them, and mist floated across the huge pool, cooling her face.

“Holy shit,” she said. “This is…” She shook her head. “I’ve never seen anything like this before.”

“You do not have gushing water like this on Earth?” He dropped his pack on the ground.

“We do but I haven’t seen falls like this in real life. It’s beautiful. The color of the water reminds me of the Caribbean sea.”

“Your eyes.” He cupped her face and kissed her. “The minar I met you, I thought of this place and knew I had to bring you here someday.”

“And now it’s someday.”

“It is our day.”

“Pretty please tell me we’re gonna skinny-dip.”

He blinked slowly. “How does one dip a skinny?”

“By ripping off your clothes and jumping into the water.”

His brows lifted, and his mouth formed a small O.

“Is there anyone around?” she asked, glancing about the area. “I didn’t see anyone while we ran through the woods.”

“We walked.” He winced. “You said you enjoy walking.”

“Yeah, but your legs are longer than mine.”

“You should have spoken to me, told me to go slowly.”

“It’s okay. I needed the workout. But man…” She pinched the front of her dress and fluffed it. “I’m a stinky, sweaty mess.” Her head tilted to his pack. “Did you happen to bring a few swimsuits?”

“Why would one need swim—suits?”

“Swimming?” Horrors, did their only bathing involve fishies? She tiptoed over to the edge of the pool. “Water isn’t only for drinking, you know.”

“I do not drink water.”

She frowned. “What do you drink, then? Please, not only vintip.” God, was she kissing a guy who lived on blood wine? This was a tad too close to the vampire she’d teased him about being last night when they’d …

“Vintip is a rare, traditional drink. I generally consume quarklet.”

“Sounds…quaint. What is it?”

“It is made from a fruit like your mee-lon of water.”

That must be the gook in the fridge. “Is quarklet anything like jinjin? Because I’d be okay with that, despite the color.” She smacked the heel of her hand on her forehead. “It’s the yellowish stuff was in the fridge, right? Phew. For a minute I worried…”

“What?”

Yellow snow. Yellow gook. It had been a natural assumption. “Nothing. Back to skinny-dipping. Can we go into the water?”

“If you wish to touch your foot in, you would be welcome.”

“Welcome by whom? Sounds like the pool is an entity all on its own.” Please, let this not be true. She wanted to wash off the sweat. She didn’t have to strip down to nothing—though that might be fun if Vork joined her. “I can go in in my undies if that perks up your sensibilities.”

He scowled. If she hadn’t experienced his wildness in bed last night, she would doubt this cool alien was the same dude.

“Are you opposed to me removing my clothing and jumping into the water?” she asked. There. That should be plain enough for him.

“No, but I still do not understand why you would do this.”

“You’ve never been swimming.”

“I cannot say that I have.”

“Is there anything I need to worry about in the water, like snakes or crocs or other creepy crawlies?”

“The water would be safe to enter, I believe.”

That wasn’t exactly reassuring, but she could stay near the edge.

Inching closer, she peered across the pool, finding it clearer than glass. Large rocks coated the bottom and a few fish flickered near the shadows. Looked perfect to her.

She undid the belt and tossed it aside, then yanked the dress over her head. Only because she’d have to put it back on after, she draped it over a bush to let it dry in the sun.

“This is dipping the skinny?” he said, coming up behind her.

“Usually,” she said coyly over her shoulder. “One dips the skinny with no clothing on at all.”

“You are not wearing much at the minar.” His heated gaze glided down her body.

“I’ll keep these on to make you feel more comfortable.” Although, he was looking a bit uncomfortable if the tic in his temple and the growing bulge in his pants was any indication. This might be fun after all.

She carefully stepped down into the water, which was refreshingly chilly when contrasted with the hot air. “Oh, shit.”

“What?” He stomped closer. “You should not be doing this. Water is for plants, not beings.”

“That’s silly.” She waded in up to her thighs. Oh, my freakin’ God, this was fantastic. “You sure you’re not coming in? You might like it.”

Leaning forward, she intentionally presented him with her butt while she scooped up water and splashed it on her face and chest. No harm in wiggling a bit while her ass was hanging out in the air.

Vork groaned.

Straightening, she turned partly toward him. “This feels wonderful.” She splashed in farther until she found herself over her head. Dipping down, she immersed herself and, kicking out, swam underneath the water, aiming for the falls. She wouldn’t get too close, as she didn’t want to be pummeled.

Her head bobbed above the water, and she bared her not-fangs, tipped her head back, and squealed out her joy.

Naked, Vork crashed into the water and floundered toward her. When he got in over his head, he sunk.

“Um, hmm. Vork?” she called, spinning around.

Still not coming up.

“You’re scaring me,” she half-shrieked.

She swam back toward where she’d last seen him and peered down through the water. No Vork. Where was he? Was he hurt? How was she going to find him? He had to—

Something touched her toes, and she screamed.

She was yanked under the water. Flailing, she struck out and encountered warm, scaled skin.

Ass. He’d pulled a fast one on her.

Together, they bobbed to the surface.

“You… you…” she sputtered, shoving her wet hair off her face.

“Me… Me…” he said with a smirk. “You like when I do things like this, do you not?”

Hell, she liked everything about him but his ego… Although, that could be cute most of the time, too. She did like a man with self-confidence. But if she kept gushing about him in his presence, his cockiness was going to grow bigger than …

Something intriguing pressed against her belly, subtly vibrating. He pressed forward, and the head impacted her clit, but her damn underwear was in the way.

“Maybe I should take everything off,” she said hoarsely, her skin overheating and her heart going thump-thump-thump in her chest.

“Perhaps you should.” He cupped her breasts then with a quick twist, undid the front of her bra.

“How did you know how to do that?”

“I learn quickly.” His mouth descended and plundered hers while his naanans glided down her shoulders to her breasts.

“I thought you couldn’t swim,” she whined when they came up for air. But she clung to his shoulders and floated closer, pressing herself against him.

“You are not the only one who enjoys a tease.” His fingertips trailed down her spine to cup her butt. A yank and he’d removed her panties. He spread her legs and tugged her against his hard cock.

“Vork,” she said, her voice deep and languid. Her face dropped onto his shoulder and she nibbled his wet skin.

Groaning, he tilted his head to give her easier access.

Tomorrow this man would fight to the death to protect her. While she couldn’t go in his place and she couldn’t make the situation go away, she could be here for him every single second until the vengeance started.

“Love me, Vork,” she whispered.

“Here?” But he didn’t sound shocked. Only need filled his voice. It sunk into her and swirled below her belly.

He waded through the water, taking her to a rocky outcrop near the blast of the falls.

While spray drifted around them, he laid her back on a flat, rocky surface with a smaller series of falls cascading down beside them.

Stepping between her legs, he braced himself over her with his palms on the stone. He captured her mouth with his.

She lifted her legs and wrapped them around him. All he had to do was touch her and she burst into flames. A sense of urgency filled her. She wanted today to be special, the most wonderful day of her life because …

Don’t think about it. Tomorrow is soon enough.

His naanans glided down her neck to her breasts.

“I cannot stop touching your mounds,” he growled at her throat. “They entice me no matter what you are doing.” While his fangs grazed across her skin, his naanans stroked and teased her nipples, bringing them to hard buds.

She arched her back up, welcoming his touch.

He shifted on to one hand and the other trailed down her side, across her belly, then between her legs. His palm cupped her, then rubbed while his fingers teased between the lips.

She bucked and tried to drive his fingers deeper, but he just chuckled and soothed her body with his naanans gliding across her breasts.

“Impatient human female, you rush this,” he said hoarsely.

He wasn’t immune to the pleasure rising inside her. His cock strained toward her, a bead of moisture on the tip.

She encircled him with her hand and pumped, slowly gliding up to the top, where she slid her thumb across the peak.

He thrust forward, the tendons in his neck standing out in stark definition.

“You undo me,” he said. “I want to take this slowly, to love you so completely, you will never forget.”

“Oh, Vork.” Despite the overwhelming bliss, tears filled her eyes. “I need you. Want you.” And shit, she didn’t want to lose him. But she could only cling to him so long before he’d need to pull free.

No. She’d make every bit of today last forever. The sun’s warmth on her skin. The firm rocky ledge beneath her. And the man she loved arching over her, doing all he could to give her pleasure.

He dropped down to his knees and spread her legs wide.

“This,” he said, pinching the nub between his finger and thumb. “It is beautiful.”

She blushed, overcome with both a rising need to feel him filling her to the hilt and a twinge of embarrassment because he’d exposed her in the full light.

He rubbed in quick circles and she strained forward, spreading her legs wider. Her head thrashed on the rock, a moan escaping her lips and soaring up to the clouds.

His mouth joined in, sucking and lathing her clit while his naanans stroked inside her folds and dove deep.

Bucking, she spread herself even wider, giving him full access, drinking in every speck of this moment.

The joy filling her heart couldn’t be contained.

“Please,” she cried out, lifting to meet the thrust of his naanan.

“Tell me what you need,” he said in a guttural voice that hinted at the wild beast inside him. This alien warrior had claimed her. The mark on his hand proved he was hers. Now she would claim him as her own, as if she’d been given a choice of a thousand male Crakairians and chosen him from among them.

“Vork. I need you. All of you.”

“I will give you everything.” Tugging her up from the rocky surface, he lifted her and turned. He strode over to a low area with a small waterfall where he gently placed her on her feet. Then he lifted her and backed her against the smooth wall behind the falls.

Water cascaded down over them, cooling their heated bodies. But fire still burned through her, and it needed to be unleashed.

Her legs wrapped around him and greedy, she pulled him close.

His cock centered at her core and with his eyes locked on hers, he pushed himself inside her.

The vibrating hum jolted through her, and she gasped. “Fuck.”

“Yes,” he breathed, pulling out and taking her again.

“Don’t stop. Ever.”

“I will deliver the fucking as long as I can, be it now, tonight, and every daela after that.” Easing his hips back, he drove inside her again and again, while his naanans teased her breasts, and his back arched so his mouth could reach her neck.

The water massaged her while he pummeled her. Her body tightened around him, drinking in each vibration and pull, and he went faster, pounding into her while she held onto his arms and cried out with each thrust.

They shattered together, but she wasn’t through. When he slowed and would have pulled out, she clung to him. “More, Vork. Please.”

“I…”

He slid out while her feet dropped to the ground.

“I will give you all you need,” he said hoarsely. He swept her up in his arms and spun her around while kissing her. He returned to the rocky shelf and laid her down on her tummy.

Stooping down between her legs, he spread her wide.

His fingers sunk into her tender flesh and while she twitched around him, that burning, aching need magnified inside her all over again.

His naanans …

While he sucked on her clit, his fingers moved slowly at first, then faster, taking her so high she could touch the sky.

When she whimpered and strained backward, he stood and drove himself inside her again.

Then he drove into her until she screamed out his name.

They floated in the water until the sun slanted through the trees.

Her belly rumbled.

“I need to feed you,” he said.

She floated on top of him with her back against his chest, and his arms wrapped around her. “I am hungry, but I want this moment to last forever.”

He kissed her neck. “This daela has been…”

“The start of a honeymoon.” She turned and faced him. Kissed him while lying across his body. “We’re going to grow old together,” she said in desperation. “I won’t stand for anything else. Do you hear me?” Her eyes smarted, and she sniffed.

He pulled her closer, wrapping her up snug in his arms.

Her head dropped onto his shoulder, and she linked her legs around him. Today would never be enough, but she was grateful she had this slice of life to hold on to.

Leaving the water, he carried her up to his pack, where he pulled out a cloth and carefully dried her. She did the same, and they shared soft, slightly sad laughter as fire rose inside them all over again.

Fuck it.

She tugged him down onto the grass …

Later and dressed, they settled on the small blanket Vork spread out on the grass. He produced a late picnic lunch made up of a variety of vegetables, and square, creamy yellow protein cubes that vaguely tasted like tofu only better. This plant-protein dish had a subtle spiciness reminiscent of Thai food. They ended the meal with jinjin, washing it all down with quarklet.

Stuffed, they lay on their backs and stared at the sky, holding hands.

She pointed to a cloud. “That one looks like a kangaroo.”

“Which I have never heard of before.”

“You’d like them. They hop and carry their young in a pouch on their bellies.”

“Perhaps one day, I will see them.”

Would they ever visit Earth? Only the initial Crakairian delegation, including Crown Prince Axil and his entourage, had so far. Once Earth woman left, only a few returned, those who decided the relationship wouldn’t work out. The matchmaking part of the truce was new. Who knew where the relationship between the two worlds would go next?

“When you were a kid—”

“Youngling.”

“Youngling, then. When you were a youngling, what did you want to be when you grew up?”

He cleared his throat. “I have always wished to be like my father.”

“A military commander.”

“Yes.”

“Then you should pat yourself on the back. You achieved your goal.”

She sat up, and he did as well.

Staring down, he ran his fingers across the tops of the short grass. “Sometimes…”

Her head tilted. “What?”

His gaze lifted to meet hers. “I wish I had never made the promise to myself that I would assume the same role as my father, Supreme Commander.”

“Every goal doesn’t need to be achieved. Sometimes the goal needs to change.”

“You are right.” He studied the ground before lifting his eyes once more. “I have so much more to live for than solely a military career. You. You, Evie. You are what matters.”

“Does every vengeance end in death?” she asked, not truly wanting to know but determined to ask the question regardless.

“Only a rare vengeance ends in a draw, and only if neither can defeat the other.”

“An even match.”

“I have to fight.”

“I understand that.” She gulped back the sob that kept rising up to clog her throat. “But that doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“What would you have me do? I am convinced he murdered my father. Now he has insulted you and threatened to claim you as his own.”

“I insulted him. If only I could go back and do it over.” Then she’d run the moment she saw him.

“He came to our table determined to find a reason to issue his challenge. I am convinced of this. Nothing you did differently would have changed that.”

She crawled into his lap and cuddled against his chest. “Protect yourself tomorrow. For both of us.”

“I shall,” he vowed, his arms snug around her.

“But don’t do anything you’ll regret. You deserve your revenge. I know I’d want the same. But revenge is a bitter mistress, and she won’t relent once you’ve let her inside. She’ll haunt you for the rest of your days.”

Chapter 21

VORK

T  hey hiked back and, this time, Vork kept his pace slower.

Once reaching the launch platform, they found the hover tram waiting. After they climbed inside, it took off.

Evie crawled up into his lap and leaned into his chest. “I want to touch you.”

He bared his fangs in a full grin. “We have been touching all day.”

She leaned out, away from him, and her grin rose to match his own. “Are you complaining?”

“Not for even a minar.” His arms tightened around her, and he placed his chin on the top of her head. “We will be home soon.”

“Home,” she sighed with pleasure. “And we still have tonight.”

“We do.” Could he make it last forever? He hated feeling sad when they still had now, but he couldn’t help it. He didn’t fear death. It had waited for him every time he went on a mission.

But he did fear leaving Evie behind.

“How far up can this thing fly?” she asked. A tease came through in her voice. It sparked flames inside him all over again.

“Many kleks.”

She peered over her shoulder, toward the front of the craft. “Is there a person driving the hover tram?”

“No …,” he said slowly, unsure where she was taking this.

“Then I can assume it’s programmed with a command from your com.”

“Yes.”

She shifted around on his lap and spread her legs on either side of his thighs. “How long do we have before we’re home?” Her sparkling eyes made something deep inside him roar. Primeval blood lust charged through his veins, settling in his cock.

How could he want her all over again, so soon after they’d been together?

“What do you have in mind?” His fingers trailed along her bare thighs, pulling her dress up with them.

“I didn’t bother to put on my undies,” she said.

While he admired the scraps of cloth—undies—she wore, especially the variety of fabric and colors, he had to admit he preferred her wearing nothing at all.

His fingers slipped between her legs while she undid the buttons on his pants and reached inside.

Eyes closing, he tilted back his head. His naanans flared and sought out her body.

“How many kleks in a mile?” she asked as she stroked him.

“A mile?” he stuttered out, unable to focus while she touched him. His body contained a thirst for her that would never be quenched. “I know not this term, a mile.”

“Let’s just say a hundred kleks, then.” Leaning forward, she nipped at his ear. She tugged him from his pants and centered herself over him.

As she dropped down, taking his full length inside, she whispered. “Let’s join the klek high club, shall we?”

They went to bed early and cuddled the night through.

He did not ask her to go to her own bed. Why had Crakairians begun that less-than-awesome tradition?

Come dawn, he awoke before her, his internal clock telling him it was nearly time.

Should he wake her to say goodbye? She wouldn’t be allowed inside the ceremonial building where the vengeance would take place.

When he kissed her softly, she stirred and mumbled his name. He held his breath until she’d turned onto her side and snuggled deeper beneath the blankets.

Then he left, closing the door gently behind him. He placed his palm on the wooden surface and vowed he’d be home to her soon.

After dressing quickly in the clothing he’d carried from the bedroom, he patted the See-lass, savoring the little beastie’s purr.

“You have grown, friend,” he said softly, and the See-lass butted his head against Vork’s chin. He reluctantly lowered the chaaat to the floor.

Hailing a hover tram, he rode to the ceremonial arena, landing on the platform extending out from the very top of the tall, golden building. The hall where the vengeance would be fought took up the entire upper floor.

Bryk met him on the platform. They clasped forearms but then Bryk pulled Vork in for the full hug usually only given to a brother. “As your second, I have prepared everything inside.”

Vork dipped his head. “So it shall be.” He sunk into the ceremonial vengeance lines as if they’d been tattooed upon his flesh.

Vengeance protocols had been followed since their formation thousands of years before. Bryk would have arrived one denjar prior and arranged both the armor Vork would wear but also prepared cleaned and sharpened his weapons.

“Is Piersag here, yet?” Vork asked, peering around his friend toward the entrance. The tall spire on the roof gleamed in the sunlight and the banner, showing an ancient symbol much like matebonds, flickered in the light breeze.

“So I have heard. I have not yet seen him. Most of the Elders have arrived. The rest will be here soon, I imagine.”

The elders would officiate and declare the victor, though that did not necessarily need an announcement once one of them had fallen.

With a shared nod that said more than either would care to voice, they went inside together.

Elder Eerok waited in the high-ceilinged entry, beside the ornate door leading into the ceremonial hall. He bowed deeply when Vork stopped in front of him, and Vork did the same.

“Peace to you and wishes for your everlasting reign,” Vork said, using the traditional greeting.

“Peace to you, my son,” Elder Eerok said, bowing again. His robes swished around his lean ankles. “You wish to prepare yourself.”

Vork pressed his fist to his chest. “I do.”

“Your second has made the arrangements. The lorgess room is yours.”

Lorgess was one of two rooms located off the main fighting circle.

Elder Eerok backed to the side, away from the double doors hand-crafted of rare, tricar wood. As Vork moved forward, the Elder lowered his head. His naanans, long and grayed, had been secured at his nape with a band of leather. The ends fluttered but did not lift. The Elder would not look Vork in the eye again until they were inside and prepared for the final vengeance.

As a combatant, Vork preceded Bryk through the doors and into the vaulted round room. Gleaming wood covered the floor, and the walls had been padded. Rectangular windows had been inset above the tall pads. Muted light filtered in through the one-way glass. The vengeance would be fought with only the Elders and each combatant’s second present. No audience. Once the battle came to its inevitable conclusion, the Elders would pronounce the outcome to the world.

Vork was determined he wouldn’t be the one carried from the room.

He and Bryk crossed to the right, the pads of their footsteps nearly silent. Bryk held open the door to the lorgess room, and they went inside.

A low bench made of ancient kerrick wood spanned one wall and on it, Bryk had arranged the clothing Vork would wear and the weapons he was allowed to arm himself with.

After warming up his muscles in preparation for the fight, Vork stripped down and Bryk helped him dress, as some of the armor must be fastened on the sides and lower back.

They strapped on his weapons, including his favored serafinn blades. He’d fight with a titar sword, as per tradition, this one longer than his arm and delicately weighted. It, like his serafinn blades, had been crafted of trinar, a razor-like stone found only in the Ikeline Mountain range.

Outfitted, Vork spun about the room, slicing the air with the sword, conditioning his arm and his gait to working with the weapon. He had practiced with such a sword since he was a youngling, to the point it embraced his palm like an old friend. The blade whistled and sang its deadly tune in Vork’s grip.

Once he had finished completely preparing himself, Vork approached the altar recessed in the wall where he lit a solitary candle to symbolize his life. He bowed and prayed to the gods to have mercy.

His thoughts strayed to Evie, and he allowed himself one minar to dream about the future they could have, not the one that may very well be snatched from them.

After, he nudged all thought of her aside. In order to win, his entire focus must remain on the battle, or he could lose this for them both.

“I do not expect anything but victory, friend,” Bryk said from his side. “But I am prepared…” His low growl echoed in the room. “My personal hover tram awaits. If need be…” He dropped his hand onto Vork’s shoulder. “I will protect her. Hide her until she can be sent back to Earth. I vow to you this minar, I will not let him take her.”

Vork turned, and they clasped forearms. “Thank you, friend.”

Bryk gave him a sharp nod.

A knock on the door sunk into the room like a heavy weight.

“It is time,” Bryk said.

“I am ready.” Vork turned toward the door and strode across the room with his blades clasped to his sides, his armor securely in place, and his titar sword clasped in his hand. When he walked out into the central room, Piersag waited on the opposite side, dressed in his council robes.

“Coward,” Bryk huffed from behind Vork. “He challenges easily when he knows he will not pay the price.”

“But who will?” Vork said in a low voice. He studied the other males near Piersag. The two khatalm warriors flanked him, as Vork had expected.

And someone else… A male dressed in fighting gear identical to Vork’s hid in the shadows behind Piersag.

Once Piersag and Vork took their places on the edge of the floor, two of the Elders walked around the room, purifying it with pottery bowls containing smoldering fresme grass held at chest level in both hands. Their chants added weight to the ceremony. When they’d each completed a circle, they walked into the center, halted, and bowed. Smoke from the two grasses—one found on the great plains of Dunare and the other on the highest peaks of the Ikeline Mountains—combined to symbolize the two opponents. Pivoting, they walked to the sides of the circular room and placed the pots on identical stone pedestals.

Vork’s opponent turned, and Vork couldn’t hold back his hiss of dismay.

Lyel, Piersag’s son. His old friend.

As if he’d taken a spear in the chest, Vork groaned, though he muffled it as much as possible.

Lyel’s umber gaze met his, Lyel’s filled with sorrow.

Before Piersag and Vork’s father, Virek, had argued, they had been friends. Vork and Lyel had grown up together, played together. They had considered themselves brothers.

Then Virek received the promotion Piersag had declared should be his. The adult males argued, and when Piersag stormed from Vork’s home, he swore the two younglings would never see each other again. That vow had carried until this day.

How in all the heille was Vork going to fight his old friend to the death? Damn Piersag for doing this to Vork. No, for doing this to his own son.

Lyel’s chin lifted, and his gaze traveled from Vork to Bryk. His fingertips ran along the hilts of the blades strapped to his sides.

Piersag stepped from the floor. He leaned close to his son and spoke in a low voice while the two Elders who’d purified the course walked slowly to the center of the room again.

“How can you…” Bryk’s naanans skated across his back when he shook his head. “We can lodge a protest. This is wrong.”

“No,” Vork grated out. “If I relent, Piersag will declare victory and take Evie. I have no choice but to fight his second.” He and Lyel had played at battle for the majority of their young lives. After their fathers argued, Vork had lost touch with Lyel’s movements. Had he also entered the spaceforce or had he opted to manage his father’s vast estates? Even from this distance, Vork could see his old friend’s shoulders had broadened, and he’d grown taller, to nearly Vork’s height.

“I understand,” Bryk said.

“I do not wish to do this,” Vork growled, the taint of this bitter on his tongue. “That, I am sure you also understand.”

Bryk dipped his head.

The Elders placed their backs to each other, facing the two vengeance teams. Their low chanting rang out and, after a pat on the back from Bryk, Vork hefted his sword and stepped forward.

He stopped in front of one Elder, who bowed. The same happened with Lyel and the Elder he faced. The two elderly males pivoted and strode toward the sides of the room. They turned and bowed again, indicating they were prepared to officiate the fight to the death.

“Vork,” Lyel said, pleasantly enough. The edge of steel did not leave his gaze.

“Lyel.” Vork’s voice did not waver, though his spirit battled inside him. He dug for resolve. He would not kill his former friend; Lyel’s father would. Why would he use his only son as his surrogate?

“A vengeance has been called,” the Elder to Vork’s right said in a monotone.

“And so a vengeance shall be served,” the other Elder answered.

They took one step backward and spoke in unison. “Begin.”

Lyel’s blade spun through the air, aiming for Vork’s neck, but Vork ducked. He twisted and swept his blade toward Lyel’s belly. The man hissed and arched his spine backward. He spun and then drove himself forward, his sword hissing.

Their weapons collided, and a squeal rang out as the metal ground together. Vork thrust Lyel back and advanced on him, his blade gliding in a sequence of movements designed to confuse his opponent.

Not Lyel. Vork’s friend knew him well. His blade came up, and they met with another crash. While they grunted, their bodies shoving each other to gain the upper ground, Lyel lost his balance, and he stumbled backward.

Vork moved in, his sword raised to deliver the final blow.

Lyel kicked out, tripping Vork, who tumbled to his right and rolled. He lost his grip on his sword but flipped to a crouch while drawing his serafinn blades. Rushing Lyel, Vork’s blades caressed the air.

One sunk into Lyel’s shoulder, and he grunted. But he ripped his sword upward and brought it down toward Vork’s head.

Vork dove to the side but swung his blade around. It bit deeply into Lyel’s shin. Hobbling forward with blood drizzling to the floor from both his leg and shoulder, Lyel found his footing and spun. His fingers blanching on his sword, he hefted it with both hands and rushed Vork, his battle cry ringing in the air.

Vork deflected the deadly edge, shoving it up with a quick thrust of his serafinn blades. Dislodged, the sword sailed through the air.

A commotion at the door called to Vork, but he kept his mind and his gaze focused on Lyel.

The other man drew his short blades, though he’d never been as good with them as Vork.

Their blades clanged together, and they fought with both arms at once, Lyel at first using his heavier weight to drive Vork backward, then Vork gaining ground, pushing Lyel back until his feet nearly left the regiment battlefield.

Lyel dove forward and rolled, coming up to face Vork with a snarl.

Vork flung himself through the air. He landed on Lyel, driving him to the ground in a cluster of limbs and sweat.

Growling, Vork pressed his blades against Lyel’s throat.

A gasp drew Vork’s attention. Evie stood inside the double doors, her mouth ajar and her gaze filled with horror. Horror for his actions or the battle itself? Most considered humans a weak species. They fought but with metal sticks that blew other bits of metal from a distance, rarely in close combat with their blades or their hands.

Vork pushed the blades tighter against Lyel’s throat, nicking the flesh and drawing blood.

“Do it,” Lyel said, with no taunt in his voice. “You have won and now you will finish the vengeance you should have begun years ago.”

“You knew about my father.”

Lyel nodded. “I should have come to you. Told you myself. In this, I was wrong, but I love my own father.”

“I promised my mother I would not follow through with revenge.”

“Yet here you are.” Lyel’s rough laugh spun between them, taking Vork back to their youngling days when their only care was who could climb the highest tree in the back pasture of Lyel’s father’s estate. “End it.”

Evie’s words yesterday about revenge being a bitter mistress crashed into Vork’s mind. He wanted a wide-open future with Evie. If the past shadowed him, how could they move into the light together?

With a grunt, he thrust himself up and off his old friend. He turned and strode to Piersag, scooping up Lyel’s sword from the floor as he passed. As he neared the older man, his pace picked up to a run. He lunged and drove his blade through the air, stopping only when it had sliced the loose skin at Piersag’s throat.

Chapter 22

EVIE

Earlier, when Evie had awoken and found Vork gone, she was pissed.

Then she cried because she knew why he’d left without waking her. She would have done the same.

They’d both do anything they could to protect the other.

Ranting and raving would get her nowhere. She got up, braved the zinter pool, dressed, then had a quick bite of food.

When Lieutenant Dorn arrived with meat for Silas, she was ready.

She leaped over to him, brandishing one of Vork’s blades longer than her thigh.

Dorn gulped and backed against the wall, hands lifted, while she played barbarian invader and swung the blade in his face. She knew how this was done. She’d watched a ton of movies.

“What have you would?” he asked.

Her eyes teared up again when his broken English reminded of her of when she’d met Vork. Was Vork’s translator functioning now? She may never know.

“Take me to Vork,” she barked, biting back her distress. She needed to focus on getting there as soon as possible, not sobbing.

His naanans flung up in the air and his orange eyes grew bigger than dinner plates. “I cannot! Please. It is forbidden for females to enter the vengeance arena.”

“Has Vork told you yet what happens when I don’t get my way?” She slashed the wicked blade around again, though she’d be no more willing to slice him than Silas. She hated threatening him, but she needed to be there for Vork. How could she casually sit here knowing he could be dying or wounded, and she wasn’t beside him? “Take me. Please. I promise I’ll stay out of the way.”

When his naanans slumped on his shoulders, she knew she’d won. A hollow victory, since she’d had to scare him to get what she needed.

“Remain near the door is must you do. Approach him as fighting do not,” Dorn said, his gaze intent on her face. “No promise, no take.”

She started to hold up her hand to say scout’s honor, but the last thing she wanted from Dorn was a kiss. “I promise.” She added a bow for good measure.

He bowed back, telling her she’d made the right choice.

He hailed a hover tram and took her to a tall, golden building but didn’t get out when they arrived.

“You here wait,” he said, his orange gaze shooting toward the door. “Vork soon over.”

She sure hoped not. Her hand flicked out, implying she was relenting, that she’d be a good girl and wait on the platform until they’d finished inside. But the second Dorn’s hover tram left her view, she trotted over to the door.

Unlocked, yay. She slipped inside a small foyer with a set of double wooden doors on the opposite side.

Grunts and the crash of metal rang out behind the frame, confirming Dorn hadn’t pulled a sneaky and dropped her off at the wrong place.

An older alien dude dressed in a long, tan robe grunted and jabbered something she didn’t understand. No translator implant, then. He grabbed her arm and seemed intent on dragging her back outside, but she shrugged him off. An Earth woman on a mission to stand beside the alien she loved, she wouldn’t be stopped by any old Crakairian. But just to make sure she didn’t offend him, she bowed. “Greetings. I’m here for Vork.”

The guy’s gaze darted to the double doors, and she bolted in that direction.

Damn, the door was heavy. With a huge struggle, she pulled it open, despite the alien in the robe plastering his back to the frame to keep it closed.

She stepped inside while the alien guard groaned but remained in the entry.

Her eyes widened, and she cupped her cheeks. A burly alien about Vork’s height and dressed in full battle gear dove across the wooden floor. He rolled and came up in a crouch, facing Vork, with long, deadly blades in both hands.

While Vork leaped through the air, landing on the other man and driving him backward, the alien from the entryway crept up behind Evie and grabbed her arm. She whirled and pushed him away, but his eyes blazed and he growled.

Pretty fierce for an old guy.

She spun around in time to see Vork shoving himself up and off the guy he fought. He stormed over to Piersag and shoved his blade up against Piersag’s throat.

Two guys dressed in matching, skin-tight black uniforms that made them look like ninjas dove toward Vork but stopped short when the Elders called out. Under the guys slunk back to the wall, duly chastened.

“The human female has broken the sacred ground by coming here,” Piersag said. “For that, you must forfeit the vengeance. The Elders would agree. You lose, and I win.”

No. She wouldn’t allow this! A robed alien—Elder?—grabbed her arm again and tried to tug her from the room. He mumbled something in Crakairian, but not loudly enough for her translator to pick it up.

“As you stated, Evie is an Earthling, not subject to the same guidelines as Crakairian females,” Vork said as she wrenched away from the Elder.

Yes! Great comeback.

“This is true,” an Elder intoned. The others echoed the sentiment.

“She is my mate, and she belongs with me always,” Vork said. Evie’s heart sang.

“I do belong here,” she said, stepping forward. She lifted her arm and flipped it over, showing off the mark proving she and Vork were meant to be together. She’d discovered it on her flesh this morning.

A match to Vork’s.

“Evie…” Vork said. When his gaze met hers, she read how much he cared.

“The true matebond has spoken,” one of the Elders said. “Let no one pull them asunder.”

“I will not permit this,” Piersag yelled, pushing Vork’s blade away from his throat.

“You have no choice, old male,” Vork said, shoving his face up into Piersag’s. “She is mine.”

“The binding cloth!”

“Is no matter. Not when compared to a matebond.” Vork growled. “You are not able to fight your battles, and I have defeated your surrogate. Concede!”

“Death was not the outcome of the match,” Piersag said with a sneer, his gaze flicking to where the man Vork had battled sat on the floor in defeat.

“He is your son,” Vork said. “What kind of father have you become? No, I understand. You are a male who would kill a friend solely due to jealousy of the other man’s position and power.”

Piersag snarled but did not deny the accusation.

“You disgust me.” Face twisting with disgust, Vork returned his blades to their side scabbards. He took her hand—her bond-branded hand—and kissed her knuckles. He turned, and they started crossing the room.

Another alien bared his fangs at them. Vork’s friend?

Pausing, Vork tugged Evie into his arms. He kissed her, and she sunk into his embrace. It was over. Vork had won and they could move on with their lives together.

Behind her, someone shouted. “Watch out!”

Vork spun Evie around, away from Piersag. She leaned around Vork in time to see a sword sail across the room and hit Vork in the back.

With a heft of his arm, Vork threw his blade at Piersag, and it drove into his chest hard enough he was pinned to the wall behind him.

Evie screamed as Vork slumped onto the floor beside her. Vork’s friend rushed over to them and stooped down, his face a mask of grief and concern. His gaze met hers, and he pressed his fist to his chest before tapping her forehead.

She brushed his hand aside and clutched Vork’s arms. “Please, please, no,” she moaned.

Blood. There was so much blood! How could she stand it? Her heart burst in her chest and her limbs shook

“Vork! No!” she cried, frantically looking around the room. Everyone else stood motionless in shock. “We need a healer!”

Evie paced outside the room where they’d taken Vork. This must be a hospital or clinic, because the moment they arrived via hover tram, they’d been swarmed with aliens dressed in white tunics and pants.

She’d tried to go with them, but they shook their heads and looked to Bryk, Vork’s friend and the man who’d stood as his second. He’d led her over to a bank of chairs and they’d sat together. Waiting. Too much waiting.

She couldn’t stop crying, and she could tell by the way Bryk’s hands clenched and opened, over and over, that he was just as worried as she.

Piersag had also been brought here and taken into a different room. Not long after the healers converged in his room, one had come out and spoken quietly with the man Vork had defeated in battle. The man slumped against the wall and raked his palms down his face.

“Is son to Piersag,” Bryk said quietly.

Wow. Piersag had asked his son to fight Vork, knowing Vork might kill the other man? Who could do that to their child?

“Son to Vork friend.” While Bryk admitted he’d recently had a translator implanted, he’d apologized for any misunderstandings, explaining it would take time for his translator to fully acclimate to her language.

“Wait.” She sniffed and wiped her eyes. Again. “Vork and this man are friends?”

“When younglings. Now, friends not.”

“What happened?”

Bryk shrugged, and his gaze shot to the door that had opened.

Axil strode in. Everyone scrambled to their feet and bowed.

Bryk did the same, keeping his head lowered in his bow. “Prince Axil.”

“Please,” Axil said. “No formality. We are here for our friend.” He approached Evie and nodded. “How is Vork?”

She shook her head and tears trickled down her face again. “They won’t let me in to see him. I don’t know what’s happening.”

“Would you permit me to find out?”

“Of course. That would be wonderful.” She sunk back on to the chair, as did Bryk, as Axil stalked to the room where they’d taken Vork and stepped inside without knocking. He closed the door and wasn’t booted out. Evie had a feeling if she tried that, she wouldn’t see the same results. Although …

“Oh. Wait,” she said, jolting forward. “We need to reach Vork’s mother. Sleveka needs to be here, too.”

“I Elder ask,” Bryk said. His thick brows furrowed as if he was trying to figure out how to phrase something to ensure she’d understand. “I… ask… Elder to do.”

“Okay. Good.” She peered toward the door. “I wonder where she is?” It shouldn’t have taken her long to get here.

The door to Vork’s room opened, and a solemn-faced healer stepped out, shutting the door behind him.

His unreadable gaze dropped on Evie.

Chapter 23

VORK

V ork woke, his mind blurry with pain. His back…

Evie!

He tried to sit, but agony shot through him. A healer standing beside the pad kindly nudged him back down onto the surface. The plant oozed around him, accommodating his body while easing away from where he’d been hit with the sword.

The door opened, and the healers rushed over to the person entering with their hands raised to hold them back. But they bowed and backed away, revealing Vork’s friend, Axil. Before approaching the bed, Axil spoke quietly with the healers. His shoulders loosened, and his face relaxed. He moved around the healers and came over to Vork.

“You live,” Axil said.

“So far,” Vork grunted. Heille, but it hurt. “Evie?”

“She is with Bryk, outside this room. She is anxious for you.”

Vork’s body sunk further into the sleeping surface. “Piersag?”

“The Elders notified me of his death. There will be no charges against you as it was done in defense. His shame will follow him to the grave.”

“Lyel?”

“I saw him outside. He appears devastated. Perhaps once he is assured you will live, he will return home to the family estate. I imagine he needs to make arrangements for his father, the estate.”

Would Vork ever see his old friend again? If so, how could he face him? He had killed Piersag in self-defense, but he had still killed Lyel’s father.

“Your mate worries, as would my Julia,” Axil said. “I will bring her in.” His heavy glance took in the healers, who bowed and backed away before he faced Vork again. “You must feel eternally grateful to your mother.”

“How so?” Vork asked.

Something shifted behind Axil, but Vork couldn’t see around him. It must be a healer, leaving the room.

“A match with a human was the last thing you wanted,” Axil continued. “I believe you contemplated rejecting her before she arrived?”

Vork winced. Yes, he had felt this way, but not after he had met Evie. He had been hers from that moment forward.

“There is only one thing that puzzles me,” Axil said, tapping a naanan on his chin. “How did your mother arrange for a vid to be sent to your prospective mate?”

“She used a hologram. It wasn’t me.”

A gasp rang out, and Axil shifted to the side, turning.

Evie stood in the doorway with complete devastation consuming her face. “Wait. That wasn’t you? You’re not the one who sent away for a bride?”

Vork reluctantly shook his head. He could not lie. “No.”

“So, if your mother hadn’t interfered, I wouldn’t be here?”

“That is right.”

“My god, you’re just like Derek.” Her voice cracked. “You didn’t want me. Has all of this been faked?” She blinked fast, then pivoted and fled the room.

“Evie. Wait.” Vork shoved back the light covering and rose to sit on the side of the bed. He stood and though his legs wobbled, he staggered toward the door, his arm outstretched.

His body gave out, and he crashed into a table full of healing implements, toppling the table and sending the implements crashing onto the floor.

Before Vork fell on top of them, Axil grabbed his arms and hauled him back onto his feet.

“Heille, friend,” Axil said shortly. “Let us return you to the sleeping surface. I will go after your woman and bring her back.”

Chapter 24

EVIE

He had never wanted Evie. How could she have been so blind? Just like her ex, it had all been pretending.

She felt cheapened. Used. And incredibly stupid for trusting yet another guy.

And that vid that she’d held close to her heart, the one she had treasured? Silly her. She’d hoped to ask him to speak the words to her again, in his language. She’d dreamed of them turning his recital into a tradition, first him stating the words to her, then her echoing them back, each yaro on their anniversary.

Pain exploded in her chest as she spun and ran from the room. She kept going, even when Bryk stood and lifted his arms to stop her. She pushed past him and smacked into the door. Bursting outside, she was thanked the Crakairians for placing the clinic on a ground floor, since she had no way to call for a hover tram. Turning right, she bolted.

She smacked into Sleveka hurrying toward the clinic.

“Evie,” Sleveka said, hugging her. Tears trickled down her face. “My son. Please tell me my son will live. Bryk said—”

“He’s okay.” She gulped and smoothed her face. Sleveka had enough to worry about without adding Evie’s pain to her shoulders. “He was talking when I last saw him.”

Sleveka sagged with relief, then spontaneously hugged Evie. “Thank you. Thank you. I am so relieved. I could not bear it if something happened to my son.”

“I understand.” Truly, Evie did. Because, despite her heart breaking, she still loved him. She always would.

Even after she returned to Earth, she’d still love him.

She’d miss Sleveka, the woman who’d welcomed her to Crakair and into her heart, almost as much as she’d miss Vork.

“Go see him,” Evie urged, faking a smile. Let Sleveka savor this moment with her son, knowing he’d had his vengeance against the man who’d killed his father, her husband. “I’m sure he’ll be glad you’re here.”

Sleveka bared her fangs and tipping back her head, shrieked. Aliens passing by on the street showed their fangs, too, in solidarity. A few frowned at Evie, reminding her that Earthlings were not completely welcome here, but the rest shared their smiles with her.

Earth women might be new to Crakair, but they would slowly be accepted, especially after many started having children. This would give Crakair a new future.

Evie just wouldn’t be among them.

“I will go see him,” Sleveka said, holding out her hand. “Come in with me?”

“Um, not right now. You two have your moment together. I’m…going to take a short walk.”

And a long time to think.

“You will run, like your yoga?” Baring her fangs to show this was a joke, Sleveka rubbed Evie’s arms. “Which you must teach me still. I have even bought leglings, as suggested by my Vorkie.”

“We can talk about it later, okay?” It was a vague reply, but Evie couldn’t get past the pain clogging her throat. Speaking of it would only pass it on to Sleveka. Not yet. Evie lifted a smile that made her cheeks sting. She guessed she was pretty good with faking it, too, because Sleveka nodded. “Go ahead in. I’ll…be back later.”

“Yes, yes.” Sleveka walked toward the door but turned. “Oh. One thing.” She trotted back to Evie’s side. “My son asked me to pick this up for you. I was retrieving it when the message from Bryk arrived at my home.” Hand outstretched, Sleveka offered Evie a small cloth bag. “My Vorkie had this made for you. Perhaps you should put it on and see if there are messages.” Her gaze held a hint of the sadness mirrored in Evie’s heart, but the older woman couldn’t know how much Evie ached to curl into a ball and cry, could she?

Evie took the bag. “Thank you.” Her smile came easier because, despite how devastated she felt about Vork, she cared for Sleveka. She nudged the woman toward the door. “Go. Sit with Vork. I know he’ll be glad to see you.”

“Do not stay out too long.” Sleveka tipped her head, studying Evie’s face. “My son will miss you if you are not at his side.”

Would he? Evie wasn’t sure any longer, and that was what hurt the most.

Actually, she wasn’t sure about anything at the moment.

“I’ll see you in a bit,” was all Evie could promise.

While Sleveka went inside, Evie walked down the street, passing more locals than she’d expected. When she and Vork walked, she’d only seen a few. Perhaps it was the approach of the dinner hour and everyone was going out to eat with family or friends.

Evie walked until her legs ached, and she came to a small park. Ducking underneath a broad blue tree and into the shade, she dropped down onto a wooden park bench.

In the grass a short distance away, a little girl played under the watchful gaze of a male Crakairian who must have been her dad. She giggled and squealed and bared her fangs, while her short, bright red naanan flopped around her shoulders. Rushing over to him, she hugged her dad.

Evie’s soul twisted. She’d slept with Vork. Could she be carrying his child? If so, would she have a boy or a girl? Or three or four of them, if Julia was to be believed.

She wanted to cry, but the tears wouldn’t come. They’d dried up and blown away on the light breeze skipping through the park.

More than anything, she needed to feel hope, to believe that while he might not have wanted this match, that he’d met her and his heart had changed. After all, she had come here unsure if she was ready for a relationship, as well.

It wasn’t hard to remember the fun they’d had at the waterfall in the mountains, or the way he adored his See-lass. The moment the memory surfaced, her tears started trickling down her face all over again.

The bag Sleveka had given her lay on her lap. After sniffing and wiping her face, she unraveled the tie and pulled apart the top. Inside, she found a box, and when she opened it, a com.

He’d wanted her to be able to reach him whenever they were apart.

That had to mean something, right?

She was a fool for letting hope rekindle.

She slid the device onto her wrist, then held up her hand to admire the silvery gleam in the fading sunlight. She’d have to ask Vork how to use—

Pain crashed through her all over again, and she hunched forward, bracing her forearms on her thighs.

“You are Earthling?” The little girl stood in front of Evie, her face ducked as if she didn’t dare meet Evie’s eyes. Her red naanans drifted around her face, and she had clasped her hands behind her back.

“I am an Earthling,” Evie said. “And you,” Evie did her best impression of fang-baring, “You have a translator.”

The little girl gave a quick bow. “My da the Selection hopes.”

Evie blinked before understanding dawned. “I hope your da is selected, then.”

The child’s lower lip quivered. “Dead is my ma.”

“I’m sorry, honey.” Evie wanted to hug the girl, but would that be allowed or accepted? The last thing she wanted to do was offend someone.

While the father sat on his bench and watched, Evie stroked the little girl’s back. The child leaned against Evie’s leg, darting looks up at Evie that at first contained only sadness but slowly changed as her inner happiness shone through.

“Earthlings not stinky,” the girl finally said.

“Thanks.” Evie’s laughter rang out. “Crakairians aren’t stinky either.”

“Com.” The child touched Evie’s new jewelry.

Evie held out her hand, and the girl touched one button after another. On the third, a hologram image of Vork appeared in front of them.

The little girl’s eyes widened, and she jumped and clapped her hands. “Who is?”

“Vork,” Evie whispered. “This is Vork.”

Vork smiled. Not only baring his fangs but giving her a true imitation of an Earth smile.

“Sweet Evie,” he said. “I must be honest with you.” He paused, staring down as if collecting his thoughts, before he looked up again, his face completely earnest. “I did not sign up for the Selection.” As if he expected her to protest, he held up a finger. “It is true. My mother put my name in for a bride. And I’m eternally grateful she did because it brought me you.”

“Who Vork?” the child asked, her face scrunched.

Evie smiled through her tears. “Vork is my…”

The girl’s head tilted back, and she peered up at Evie. “Vork your da?”

Another laugh erupted from Evie. “Nope. He’s, um, not my da.” Imagine! “He’s my mate.” Pride lifted her voice.

“As I did not send you a heartfelt vid as I should have, I do so now,” Vork continued. “I love you, Evie. I cannot wait to begin the rest of our lives together.”

“Love? Ick.” Just like a kid born on Earth, the little girl cringed. But she peered up at Evie. “You love mate?”

“You know what, sweetheart? I do. I love Vork.” The words came out easy. “I’ve got to go tell him.” Standing, she gave the girl a quick hug. “I hope you get a ma from Earth very soon.”

“Too me.” After baring her fangs at Evie, she skipped over to her da. He stood and bowed, a gesture Evie returned.

Spinning on her heel, Evie raced from the park, darting around Crakairians who startled and stepped out of her way, shouting “Sorry!” as she bolted past them. She rushed all the way back to the clinic and hit the door at a dead run. It slammed open, smacking into Bryk, who’d been standing on the other side.

“Was coming about to look for you,” he said. “Everything A-oh-kaaay, Evie?”

She smiled and, what the hell, why not?—she tipped back her head and shrieked. “I need to see Vork.”

“Vork very much see you needs,” Bryk said firmly. He tipped his head toward the open door to Vork’s room.

The seven foot tall, scaled, green guy she’d fallen for from almost the first moment—no, minar—she’d met him hobbled into the opening. When he saw her, he leaned against the doorframe, studying her face.

“Evie,” he said softly.

“Vork.” There was no denying the emotion in her voice.

When he held out his hand, she ran to him. She wanted to leap in his arms and squeal at the top of her lungs, but she sure didn’t want to hurt him.

Hurt was for the past, for her old life on Earth.

Only joy waited for her in the future.

Chapter 25

TWO WEEKS LATER - EVIE

Evie lounged in Vork’s lap on their apartment sofa while his mother sat on the floor, playing with her kittens.

“So, my Vorkie,” Sleveka said, not looking up. “You will leave tomorrow for your mating.”

Evie wasn’t sure she’d ever get used to how casually her mother-in-law discussed her son’s sex life.

“I have a few suggestions, son,” she continued. Lifting a piece of string into the air, she trailed it across the fluffy kitten’s body. The beastie leaped up to grab it, and Sleveka bared her fangs.

“Mother,” Vork grumbled. “I do not need suggestions for how to go about my mating.”

His arms tightened around Evie’s waist. She tipped her head back, and they kissed. His translator had been repaired and while she was grateful they could communicate so well, she kinda missed the funny way he used to talk.

Silas sat beside them on the sofa, watching the three kittens. His paws twitched, but so far, he hadn’t joined in the play. But he had been willing to share the occasional bone brought over by Lieutenant Dorn, who insisted the See-lass preferred a fresh kill over slices of meat from the fridge. As long as Dorn was willing to daily rotate whatever he hung in the living room, she’d leave that part to him. At least she knew Silas would eat well while they were away.

Sleveka huffed. “Younglings. They grow older and believe they no longer need their mother’s advice.” Her fangs gleamed in the light. “Yet here you are, happy with your mother’s choice for a mate.”

Vork lifted Evie’s hand and kissed her knuckles. “You are right, mother. I am grateful for all you have done. I will say it one thousand times.”

“Thank you.” Sleveka’s com buzzed, and she stared down at it. “Oh, it is time for the announcement of the next matches.”

Bryk, Vork’s friend, had been chosen in the latest Selection and would learn who he’d been paired with today.

“Project the list, Mother,” Vork said. His arm around Evie’s waist tightened. “Will you know any of the human females, do you think?”

“With millions of women applying?” She nestled back against his chest. “I doubt it.”

Later today, they’d take a hover tram to a secret destination where they’d begin their likar long “honeymoon”. Vork had promised mead—his version, anyway, and not vintip—and Evie had promised to bring some of the underwear Sadie, her best friend back on Earth, had helped her pick out. Ah, she missed Sadie. If only she could be selected by the Matchmaking Service and join Evie on Crakair.

But back to the moment. She couldn’t wait to relax, eat new and interesting food, and spend a ton of time in bed with Vork. He’d made some hints about what she could expect, but she was most curious to see what other roles his naanans would play. She got delicious shivers whenever she thought of them gliding down her body …

And when they returned home—damn, she loved thinking of this place, this life with Vork as home—Vork would start a new job, one that would keep him from traveling through the stars but one he’d said he was looking forward to starting. Something about supervising exploration on one of Crakair’s moons. Sounded fun to her.

The list was projected from Sleveka’s com, and she read aloud as the names were announced, garbling the Earth names in a way that made all of them laugh.

Evie leaned forward, eager to hear who her new hunky friend, Bryk, had been matched with. She’d met his cute son and hung out with the lonely father enough to know she wanted to see him happy with an Earthling, too.

“Bryk is next,” Vork said. He propped his chin on her shoulder and stared at the hologram image.

When Bryk’s name came up, Evie gasped.

She bared her teeth and tipping her head back, shrieked at the top of her lungs.

Because…

Bryk Aitus Dravius Kastaf has been matched with …

… Sadie Annalise Johnson

Bonus Epilogue

EVIE

“Wake, love,” Vork said by her ear.

His breath tickled.

He climbed onto the bed and snuggled against her back. With Silas lying at her belly, she’d become an Evie sandwich.

Pure heaven.

“Ummph,” she muttered, tugging the blankets up over her head. “Let me sleep ten more minars.”

Under the covers, his hand trailed down her side to stroke her butt. “But I have plans for today. You must rise.”

“Don’t wanna. You wore me out last night. Let me rest.” Really, it was the Crakairian equivalent of Saturday which meant sleeping in, lounging around in PJs while drinking werlick—which had the same kick-in-the ass effect as coffee, and reading a good book. Sadie had brought some romances with her Evie hadn’t read yet.

His chuckle shouted mischief. “Perhaps I should prepare an emulsion for you to wake you fully?”

No way. She sat bolt upright and, shoving her hair off her face, scooted around to face him. “I’m awake. No emulsion. Please.” Her toes had tingled and the bottoms of her feet had itched for days after her sole emulsion experience. How these Crakairians emulsed on a regular basis was beyond her. Zithers were enough adventure for Evie. Come at her feet with furry creatures, and watch her run.

Silas blinked up at her, and she gave him strokes before crawling to the foot of the bed and sliding off. Staring down at Vork lying completely naked on top of the blankets, she was tempted to climb on top of him and show him what a true tease was.

But he’d said something about plans.

She sashayed into the bathing room and bypassed the zinter pool. When she’d mentioned how much she missed Earth bathroom fixtures, Vork had shifted the zinter pool to the side and installed a claw foot tub—who knew where he’d found it—and a large shower. He’d thought she’d use the shower solely for bathing until he’d joined her beneath the spray…

After dressing, they left, taking a hover tram across the city.

“Where are we going?” she asked, peering out the window. The sun had risen and the day promised to be hot.

“It is a surprise.”

“I love surprises.” But what could it be? She snuggled into his side, and he put his arm around her to draw her closer and kissed the top of her head.

Did they have time for a quickie?

Nope.

The tram drew up to a platform where Sleveka waited, and she hopped into the craft on Vork’s other side.

“Awake we go!” she chirped. “I cannot wait.”

“Oh, yes,” Evie said, struggling to keep from laughing. “Away we go!”

Sleveka winked and, tipping her head back, shrieked out her joy.

Evie, unable to resist, did the same. Some people might find the shrieking thing irritating, but Evie loved it. There was something refreshing about making your feelings known to the world.

The craft zipped through the city and approached a huge field on the outskirts of town. Evie pressed her face against the window but leaned back when she caught a glimpse.

“We’re going to a fair?” she asked, half-excited, half-concerned. Because…this was Crakair, where the locals thought dining inside the belly of an enormous beast was fun.

“Yes.” Sleveka clapped. “We will ride the kiskar and eat all the delicious foods.”

If you asked Evie, “delicious” remained to be seen. However, she was doing her best to adjust to Crakairian life, which meant new experiences.

The craft landed on the stone pad and they got out.

Like back on Earth, yummy scents and carnival music tinkled through the air. Crakairian music was an acquired taste. At first, Evie had found the uneven, jerky tunes unsettling but, like with everything here, she’d gotten used to it. Dancing with Vork had helped. Nothing beat being held by the guy you loved while shifting back and forth in a Crakairian version of a slow dance.

Crakairians strolled around them and even a few Earth women, though they were still rare to see. Children raced around, squealing with excitement. Hundreds of people had turned out for the fair.

“What shall we do first?” Vork asked after paying their admission at the gate. “Eat or go for a ride?”

Ahead, what looked like a giant octopus wove its tentacle arms in the air with Crakairians seated in baskets dangling from the suction cups.

Some might call Evie timid and she wouldn’t deny the charge, but when it came to amusement park rides, nothing would hold her back. She’d completed her full coaster count before she’d turned twenty-five. This girl hadn’t met a ride she hadn’t loved. There was something exhilarating about climbing to the peak of a wooden structure then soaring down the other side.

As for octopus rides, they were tame in comparison.

“I want to ride that,” she said, pointing. No coaster in sight, sadly.

“Sure are you?” Sleveka asked, her fangs poking at her bottom lip. “The baskets…”

What about them? “It looks like a lot of fun.”

“They live,” Sleveka said with a shudder.

So, maybe Evie wasn’t as intrigued by the octopus ride. Alive? She grimaced.

“I will ride with you, Evie,” Vork said as if fortifying himself for something dreadful.

She looked up at him, but his facial expression remained neutral. “That’s nice of you but maybe we’ll wait a bit before getting in line.” Like, until next year. She was all for excitement, but not if it involved being ingested. “Maybe we can look for something that would appeal to Sleveka.” Something mechanical, not living.

Sleveka beamed at Evie. “Aw, you are so sweaty.”

Sweet. Should Evie correct Sleveka? Nah. “Thanks.”

“Food then?” Sleveka strolled over to a colorful stand, and they followed. “Would you like a speclair, Evie?” she asked over her shoulder.

Evie watched while a Crakairian with gray naanans worked behind the counter. He gouged a shish kabab stick into a barrel and lifted out what looked like a tarantula. The speared creature squirmed and tried to bite the skewer while he dipped it into a vat of gooey brown liquid then plunged it into a bubbling pot of oil.

Freshly cooked speclairs awaited sale on their skewers, no longer squirming.

“Sure,” Evie said. She was a Crakairian now, and if Sleveka enjoyed speclairs, Evie would, too. She’d call them deep fried crabs in her mind. They didn’t look much different.

With speclairs-on-a-stick and cups of runny red dip in hand, they moved through the crowd to the eating area and located an empty table. The moment they’d settled on stools, Vork tapped a button in the center of the table, and the small platform beneath them shot up into the sky. Who needed an amusement park ride when you could find your thrills while dining?

Sleveka dipped a speclair leg into the red liquid and nibbled on it. Her eyes widened, her naanans flared out around her head, and she shimmied in her seat. “So good!”

With less enthusiasm, though she masked it with a cheery smile, Evie did the same, nibbling on her speclair.

Vork dug in with gusto, munching his speclair down within minars.

Crunch. The vaguely earthy flavor of the speclair was enhanced by the spiciness of the sauce. Evie washed it down with big gulps of fruity water.

She ate all the limbs, though she was less excited about the body, and then handed it over to Sleveka, who’d been eyeing it like a crow soaring over a shiny object.

Once they’d finished, Vork returned their table to the ground, and they left the food court and strolled around the fair. She and Vork held hands, and he kept tickling her inner forearm, making her laugh.

Funny how, no matter the culture, fairs looked pretty much the same.

“Win for Evie,” Sleveka said, pointing toward a huge pool of water with small scattered islands holding stuffed animals resembling dragons and giant pigs.

“Would you like me to win you one?” Vork asked. He leaned down and kissed her cheek, whispering in her ear. “Did I tell you that you look gorgeous today? I cannot wait to drag you to my bed.”

Like whenever he came near, heat shot through her. She’d never get enough of this Crakairian male, and it seemed he felt the same.

“Why are we here, then?” she asked pleasantly, nodding at Sleveka, who watched with indulgence.

“Reasons,” he said with a twinkle in his eyes. “But later…”

“Always,” Evie said. “Hold that thought.”

“As for the prize?” He nudged his head to the pool. “I will brave the munjars to obtain one for you if you wish.”

“Will it cost you any limbs?” No fooling her. If this game involved creatures, there was danger.

“That is unlikely.”

“Okay,” she said with some reservation.

He hauled off his shirt and then shucked his pants, leaving him dressed in only a skimpy fabric version of the garlong.

Swoon. Yes, his mom was here, but Evie would never get used to how gorgeous her mate was. Whenever he undressed, she salivated.

“All the luck is good,” Sleveka cried. She tipped her head back and shrieked as Vork gave Evie a quick kiss then strode to the platform surrounding the pool. He leaped forward and dove cleanly into the water, barely making a splash. Partway between the platform and one of the islands, his head rose, but he sunk back down.

The water churned around him, a cauldron boiling over.

Clenching her teeth, Evie inched forward, and Sleveka followed.

“What are munjars?” Evie asked, her voice rising to screech. Vork had not come back up. What was going on?

“They are enormous, feral zinters,” Sleveka said calmly. She clapped her hands. “Go, my Vorkie! You will escape their clutches!”

“Enormous, feral zinters?” Evie shouted. “What are you talking about? Zinters will eat his dead scales and stuff like that, right?”

“Yes.” She frowned. “Maybe.”

“He said they wouldn’t chew off his limbs.”

“Feral zinters enjoy blood, but no fear. Vorkie is strong. He will win you a prize.”

At what cost?

Vork’s head popped up and he wrangled with a pale yellow creature that reminded Evie of a shark only it was bigger, it had longer teeth, and its spiked tail kept slapping the water.

“How do we keep our personal zinters from going feral?” Evie asked. She was never stepping into a zinter tub again.

Vork thrust the zinter away and swam quickly to an island, where he shot up out of the water and landed on his feet.

How in the world was he going to get back?

Lifting two of the stuffed animals, he held them up one at a time, giving Evie a choice. Like she cared about stuffed animals right now? She was more worried about him surviving. Shrugging, she held up a finger, letting him decide what that meant.

He bared his fangs her way then dropped one of the stuffies back onto the grass. With a big leap, he soared over the pool and landed beside her on the platform.

“For you,” he said, holding out a blue dragon with a bow.

“But…but…” Evie shook her head. “Why did you swim to the island if you could reach it in one leap?”

“Because true prizes are worth fighting for.” He kissed her cheek. “Like you.”

Talk about melting her heart. And her knees. She clutched the stuffy to her chest and sniffed. “Thank you. Do not do that again.”

He chuckled. “You are very welcome.” After dressing, he took her hand. “Would you like to see more of the fair?”

“Sure.” Once her knees would cooperate again. This alien male sure kept her hopping, though she loved it. Loved him.

They reached a garden area in the center of the park, and Vork stopped and turned toward Evie.

He took both her hands and squeezed them. “There is something I would like to do before we select our amusement ride.”

The crowd parted around them, some of the Crakairians baring their fangs, others shrieking, as if they knew something Evie didn’t.

Her heart skipped a beat. Another. What was going on?

A flock of reegars with bright pink feathers and vivid blue beaks flew in close and landed. They started to sing in a riotous cacophony that Crakairians found beautiful. Evie was not so sure.

“I have studied Earth traditions,” Vork said, his voice lifting over the discordant song.

“Which one?” she asked.

“This one.” He dropped onto one knee and someone in the watching crowd shrieked. “Mate of mine?” he said in a deep voice. “I know you have bonded with me in the Crakairian tradition.” He kissed her palm where her matebond symbol gleamed. “But I would like to form a union with you in the Earth way.” He held out a small box. “Would you marry me?”

“Yes!” Evie jumped into his arms and covered his face with kisses. Her heart soared all the way to the sky. This alien… He rocked her to her core.

“Please remove your shoe,” he said after they came up for air.

Her hands cupping his shoulders, she frowned down at him. “My shoe?”

“Your left shoe. Per Earth tradition, I will give you a ring.” He carefully lowered her to the ground and held out his hand. “Your left foot, please.”

Left foot? When in Rome…

Kicking off her sandal, she placed her foot in his hand. He slipped a ring onto her left third toe, the one that would match a ring finger.

Deep purple, the ring caught the sunlight and sparkled. Tiny rainbows arched off the surface.

“It’s beautiful, Vork,” she said with a sigh.

She was never taking it off. She would walk barefoot for the rest of her life.

Vork stood and kissed her. “I love you, Evie.”

“I love you, too,” she said through her tears, snuggling close.

Then smiling, she leaped into his arms.

BRYK

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR, BOOK 2

BRYK

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, Book 2

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

ASIN: B08B6GPGZX

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Ireland

Created with Vellum

BRYK

Will a hot-blooded, seven-foot-tall, scaly green alien meet his match in a feisty woman from Earth?

After losing her husband, Sadie is afraid of getting her heart broken again. On a dare, she signs up for the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service, and she's paired with Bryk, a seven-foot-tall, scaled alien from a distant world. At their first touch, a gleaming symbol appears on her palm. Bryk tells her it's a matebond, and she's his destined mate. He makes her pulse sing, but does she dare take a chance with someone new?

When Bryk applies for the Selection, he's matched with Sadie. At their first meet up, his matebond ignites and now he'll do anything he can to show her they’re meant to be together. But Sadie has been hurt in the past and is afraid to trust. Refusing to admit defeat, Bryk talks her into giving him seven days to convince her she wants to stay. Bryk will need to pull out every Crakairian trick he can think of to win her heart.

Can two very different souls find love with each other on a planet far from Earth?

Bryk is book 2 in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone, full-length romance has plenty of on-the-page heat, hot aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. Look for the complete series on Amazon.

1

SADIE

I n an hour, Sadie would take a one-way trip to Crakair, a planet far across the galaxy.

She stood in the parking lot, staring mournfully toward the entrance leading to the interstellar space station. Why did she bother looking? Did she really expect anything to change? “I don’t think she’s coming.”

“Her loss if she doesn’t,” Lily, Sadie’s younger sister, said with a huff. She tipped her head toward the terminal and a thick band of her blonde hair, a mirror of Sadie’s, flipped onto her chest. “We should go inside and get you checked in.”

“You’re right.” Her heart heavy, Sadie turned with a sigh. “You know she can’t help it if she—”

“It’s not your fault Kyle got sick and died. Your mother-in-law is wrong to blame you.”

Sadie stilled and closed her eyes while grief swept through her. Over a year ago, a mysterious ailment had swept through the galaxy, killing most of the women on the distant planet, Crakair, and the men on Earth. Among the dead had been Sadie’s husband, Kyle. She wanted to gnash her teeth. If only Sadie hadn’t asked her mother-in-law to get them both coffee while Sadie remained at his bedside. He’d passed away the moment his mother stepped from the room, and the woman had never forgiven Sadie. Her mother-in-law’s rejection on top of Kyle’s death had stiffened Sadie’s resolve to guard her heart in the future.

But Lily was right. It wasn’t Sadie’s fault. Then why did she still feel guilty?

Growling out her frustration, she followed Lily across the road to the main space terminal and inside, her small suitcase click-click-clicking across the pavement behind her. Each of the mail-order brides had been told they could bring one bag. Sadie had stuffed hers with an assortment of odds and ends, some practical, and some silly. Clothing. Floss and three toothbrushes. A solar-powered digital reader loaded with books. A yo-yo. And some framed family photos.

Inside, she and Lily were directed to Sadie’s gate, ten stories above.

“I’m kinda glad it’s just me wishing you bon voyage,” Lily said as they got into the elevator. Her voice cracked, and tears shimmered in her eyes. “It’s been us for so long, it makes sense we spend your last minutes on the planet with each other.”

They’d lost their parents in an accident when Sadie was eighteen to Lily’s sixteen and Sadie had been granted custody of her younger sister. Even ten years later, they still lived close to each other and got together most weekends, especially after Lily and her boyfriend broke up.

Sadie dumped her bag and grabbed her sister, giving her a big hug. They rocked and half-giggled, half-sobbed before easing away from each other. Their smiles lifted but didn’t reach their matching brown eyes.

“I’m going to miss you. So much,” Lily said, smoothing Sadie’s hair. “Remember me now and then while you’re off having fun with your big green alien dude. Bryk, right?” Her grin became true. “With a name like that, how can you lose? He’s your rock-hard computer match. Although, I’ve heard these guys prefer to be called mate.”

“We might not get along,” Sadie said. “I might be back on the next return flight after the ten-day trial period is over.”

“You’ll fall for him.” Lily tapped her chest. “I know it here. It’s time for you to put what happened with your husband to rest and consider someone new.”

“I don’t know if I’m ready,” Sadie said, gnawing on her bottom lip. “I loved Kyle.”

Why had she signed up? Oh yeah, that bet with Evie, who’d convinced Sadie—at the time—that it was worth taking risks in life to find true happiness. It had worked for Evie but remained to be seen how things would go for Sadie.

“Kyle would want you to love again, amirite?” Lily said.

“Maybe.” Probably. Her shoulders fell. Yes, he would. She’d feel the same. But still… What if she was hurt again? She couldn’t bear it.

“Give Bryk a chance, okay?”

Sadie stiffened her spine, like she was about to step through a ring of fire. “I promise.”

Lily laughed. “I hope it’s not as agonizing as you’re making it seem.”

Sadie’s laughter joined with her sister’s. “If nothing else, this is going to be an adventure.”

“That’s the spirit.” Lily flicked her hand toward the opening elevator doors. “We better hustle. Wouldn’t want you to miss your flight.”

Sadie strode out of the elevator after her sister. “I doubt they’ll leave me behind.”

“Probably not.” The skin around Lily’s eyes crinkled when she smiled. “But they’ll be some pissed off if you hold up the spaceship’s departure.”

“I suppose.” Sadie paused and peered around the open waiting area. Twenty women would leave Earth today. In two weeks they’d arrive on Crakair, joining the growing number of Earth women who’d been matched with Crakairian grooms.

After establishing a treaty to exchange technology, the Crakairian government had proposed something wild. Crakairians and humans were genetically compatible; why not arrange a few marriages? That was when the Earth-to-Crakair Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service had been born. At first, the women on Earth had said no way. Who’d want to travel to a distant planet to marry a big green alien?

Six months ago, five brave women had volunteered. While two of those original matches hadn’t worked out, the rest had. One of the original five had even married the Crown Prince of Crakair. The initial success had led to other matches, including one for Sadie’s best friend, Evie, who was now living happily with her match, Vork. Evie had sent a message saying she couldn’t wait to tell Sadie all about it when they met up at the terminal on Crakair.

They found chairs and sat together to wait until Sadie’s flight was called. Around them, other families almost exclusively made up of women clustered together, chatting. Someday, regular travel between the planets would be allowed, but for now, the Crakairian Council only granted entrance to Earth mail-order brides. Once travel was more widely accepted, Lily would visit, assuming Sadie decided to stay on Crakair.

Sadie took her sister’s hand. It hurt to think that soon, they wouldn’t be able to watch TV, play games, or sit around and talk together whenever they pleased. “I’m gonna miss you, pookie.”

“Same, except for being called pookie.”

“Sure you will.”

Lily took a deep breath and pushed the words out with her sigh. “I will.”

Sadie’s eyes stung with tears she refused to let fall. It was hard enough to go through this without falling apart. If they both sat here sobbing, she’d never be able to leave.

“Which is why…?” Lily turned in her seat to face Sadie.

Sadie tilted her head, waiting for Lily to speak.

“I signed up yesterday.”

Bolting upright, Sadie’s hand tightened on Lily’s. “You didn’t.”

“Did.” Lily grinned. “If I’m picked, I’ll be matched with my own big green Crakairian alien dude.”

To say Sadie was shocked was an understatement. “How did you decide to do this? I didn’t think you were open to anything like this.”

“I…” Lily glanced around as if she worried someone would overhear. Her voice lowered. “After what happened with…you know.” Her lips twisted.

Lily had dated a jerky guy for a few months. He’d been nice initially, and then turned mean.

Sadie had run him off the last time he’d hurt Lily. Stood in her apartment doorway with a shotgun aimed at his crotch. Told him if he came around again, she’d blow his dick off. He’d paled and run, and while she’d seen him in town a few times over the past few months, he hadn’t come near Lily.

“Anyway,” Lily said. She took in a deep breath and released it. “You’d think I’d be stupid to trust another guy, but you know me. I believe in true love.” Her voice rose. “Every guy isn’t like Wade. This is a chance for romance, love, and a family. If I have to travel to the stars to meet the right guy, I’m okay with that. Besides…” She glanced around as if she worried someone would overhear. Her voice lowered. “We only had sex once, which means I’ve practically been reset to virgin status. I don’t want to die before experiencing it again.” Her lips twisted. “I’m really hoping it’s better the second time around.”

Sadie fumed. If Wade was here at this moment, Sadie would strangle him for not being everything her sister needed. For being a horrible person. But it was too late now. “I hope you find love with someone on Crakair. You deserve it, Lil.”

“Me, too.” Lily’s lower lip trembled.

They leaped off their chairs and hugged again, rocking and giving into their tears, until the overhead speakers announced it was time for boarding. Leaning back in each other’s embrace, the women forced smiles.

“If our family luck holds,” Lily said. “You’ll see me soon on Crakair in about six weeks.”

“That would be wonderful.”

“Sadie Annalise Johnson,” a shiny silver droid said from beside them. “Please finish your goodbyes.” One of the droid’s arms waved toward the corridor that would lead Sadie to the ship. “It is time for departure.”

Lily nudged Sadie’s butt. “Go. Have fun. Kiss him and…you know. Do it lots for me!”

Sadie rolled her eyes, unsure she was eager to kiss a “big green alien,” let alone do anything else with him. But she’d promised herself as well as her sister that she would give this a chance.

As the droid led Sadie away, Lily called out. “Watch the match announcements and look for my name.”

“I will!”

Sadie paused at the entrance to the corridor and turned to wave one final time to Lily. Damn, she was going to miss her sister. Who would play cribbage with her now?

Her gaze was pulled toward the elevators where her mother-in-law stood near the wall, scowling in Sadie’s direction. But when their gazes met, the older woman’s stern expression fell away, replaced with sorrow.

Sadie was being given a second chance at love while her mother-in-law had lost her only child. Sadie couldn’t blame the other woman if she felt bitter.

Her mother-in-law nodded and gave Sadie a brief wave which Sadie returned.

That sad smile rose on her mother-in-law’s face again before she turned and stepped inside the elevator.

She did not look back.

Sadie entered the corridor behind the droid, her heart a little bit lighter as she strode toward her new future.

2

BRYK

“I  have news, Weld,” Bryk said to his eight-yaro-old son.

It was early evening, and Bryk sat in the courtyard adjacent to the farmhouse he’d built a year ago after he left his command in the spacefleet. He’d moved away from Tri’Arteele, the capital city of Crakair. Weld crouched on the stone patio in front of Bryk, working on an engine the youngling had pulled from their hover tractor after it broke down. Bryk had full confidence his clever son would have the vehicle running within a daela.

“What is the news, Da?” Weld asked, turning his grease-stained face Bryk’s way. Leaning sideways, he grabbed a wrench off the ground and returned his attention to the engine.

“I’ve been chosen for the Selection.” Lifting his glass of breshe, Bryk took a long sip, savoring the fruity hints in the homebrew.

Weld left the engine and perched on the chair beside Bryk’s, worrying his hands on his lap.

Bryk would do anything within his power to protect his son, but he couldn’t do anything if Weld wouldn’t tell Bryk what was bothering him.

“I hope she likes us,” Weld finally said softly.

“Of course she will.”

“What if she does not? What if she leaves us like Ma?”

Who’d died from the disease.

“I will do my best to convince her she will be happy here,” Bryk said. Why was the boy so concerned about this? He was the one who’d convinced Bryk to enter the Selection when Bryk had been uncertain. “Most of the matches have worked well, and the couples are happy. Look at Evie and Vork, and Prince Axil and Julia.”

“Right. Prince Axil and Julia kiss all the time.” Weld winced, but his tight shoulders loosened and his hand stopped twisting. “And Gaje and Thea are glad they met.”

“See? No worries.” Bryk sipped more of his breshe before lowering his glass onto the side table. “Things will work out. Oh, look.” Interesting. He pointed toward a flicker of lights on the moon, Mia, near one of the larger craters. If Bryk had blinked, he might have missed it. But his youngling only glanced in that direction before hopping off his chair and returning to his engine.

Bryk was not so easily distracted. Rumors of a possible new settlement had reached Crakair, but Bryk had his doubts. Why would anyone choose to live on a planet made up mostly of a wasteland? Better to settle on the nearby paradise moon, Tress, or even Mara, Crakair’s third moon inhabited by the Al’kieer, a species of cutthroat rogues and space pirates.

He would have to mention the lights to Vork the next time he saw him, to ensure the spacefleet looked into this.

“Why would my match not like me?” Bryk asked, returning to the topic.

“I have been researching Earth,” Weld pronounced. Staring down at the engine, he growled.

Bryk’s thick eyebrow ridges lifted. “What have you discovered?”

“Earth females are pretty.”

He held back his snort. Why would appearance matter?

“You think so?” Bryk was reserving judgment. Though he enjoyed Evie’s company, he wasn’t sure how he’d feel about a female without naanans. Head appendages were arousing. How did humans attain full intimacy without them?

It hardly mattered. He was looking for someone to share his life, not a matebond match. If the arrangement worked out, he’d find a way to… Well, he didn’t want to think about having sex with a human female he’d never met. Would she be insulted if he closed his eyes?

As for no naanans, he’d decided to wait and give hair—the strands draped off a human woman’s head—a chance, though he’d likely avoid looking at or touching the fluff.

And the mounds on their chests? He sighed; concerned they’d get in the way of the female’s ability to function. From what he’d seen so far, they bobbed and wiggled when the female moved. Would they obstruct arm usage? Useless appearing things, he’d read their purpose was for suckling a youngling. For now, he’d avoid touching them, although he might ask his intended mate to reveal them to him so he could examine them further before making a final decision.

“It is not only the fact that the females are pretty. The human males…” Weld said with his voice lifting.

“What about them?”

“You are big, Da.” Weld’s hand flipped toward Bryk in agitation. “Much bigger and broader than Earthling males. She may be expecting a mate who is…smaller. I am afraid you will…”

“What?” Bryk asked, bemused. His son truly appeared worried about this. Bryk was not. His human female match would either accommodate his size or she wouldn’t. He was what he was. There wasn’t much he could do about it. And he wasn’t doing this to win her heart. Companionship. That was all he was seeking. Although, a little fucking now and then might also be welcome.

“I am afraid your size will scare her away,” Weld sighed out.

Evie did not seem concerned about Vork’s size, and neither did Julia when she was with Axil. But Weld was stressed about this, and Bryk was eager to reassure his youngling.

“We will take it slowly,” Bryk suggested. “I will give her the chance to know me. And as for other…components, I will wait before…” His face overheated. He would not discuss possible sexual encounters with his son. That wasn’t what Wade was thinking of.

“Yes. We should give her plenty of time to get to know you. Do not frighten her, please.”

“I will be careful.” Frankly, he was bewildered by this conversation. They were male and female. Soon to be mates. She would not come to Crakair expecting to mate with an Earth male. She will have seen the vids. Speaking of which…

“The best way to help her feel comfortable might be through the vid I must make to send to my chosen match,” Bryk said. A big secret, no one knew how the computers paired couples, but the matches had worked out eerily well. Since the program’s initiation, ninety percent of the pairings had resulted in a full mating, and almost half had achieved a complete symbol matebond, something Bryk had not believed possible with a different species.

Weld’s head tilted and his gaze narrowed on the ground as if he was deep in thought. “Do you speak of the vid that will introduce the Earthling female to you?”

“That is the one.” Bryk finished his drink and stood. “Would you like to help me make it?”

“Yes, yes! Please, Da.” Weld leaped off the ground, and they walked toward the house. Perhaps the study would be the best place to make the vid. Weld could control the com taking the holographic image while Bryk sat at his desk projecting a calm, assertive air he was not certain he felt.

Perhaps Bryk was concerned about this match himself, though he would not let on to his youngling, who was worried enough already.

What if she chose to leave at the ten-day mark? Then he’d have to enter the Selection again and start over.

“Will you do something for me, Da?” Weld asked as Bryk held the door open for his son to enter.

“Yes, yes.” Bryk held in his smile.

Weld frowned up at Bryk. “While I record the vid, would you please hunch over and pretend you are smaller?”

Bryk bared his fangs in a big grin. “If it makes you happy, Weld, I will.”

3

SADIE

TWO WEEKS LATER

Sadie had been stood up at the altar.

Or in her case, she’d been stood up at the Crakairian space terminal, which was almost the same thing. A mail-order bride arriving on a distant planet without an eagerly-waiting alien groom was a major embarrassment. Even if she wasn’t sure she was ready to walk down the aisle.

She stood fidgeting beside her friend, Evie, while other women met their prospective grooms, went through the formal protocol droid introductions, and were whisked away with their aliens, all with big grins on their faces. The rest of the mail-order brides were taken by shuttle to other parts of Crakair, where they’d meet their matches later.

Meanwhile, Sadie waited.

“Bryk should be here any second,” Evie said, chewing on her thumbnail. “He sent a message to my com.” She tapped the device secured around her wrist. “Said he was delayed. He’s sorry.”

Evie had been selected weeks ago in the alien matchmaking lottery and now lived here in Tri’Arteele, the biggest Crakairian city, with her soon-to-be husband…err, “mate,” Vork.

“He’s super excited to meet you,” Evie added, scanning the crowd. If anyone could make Bryk—Sadie’s intended—magically appear, it would be Evie.

“Okay,” Sadie said with raised eyebrows. She’d believe it when she saw it. She scanned the area along with Evie but if Bryk was hanging around, checking her out before introducing himself, he wasn’t being obvious about it.

Unless he had disguised himself as the four-armed and winged, blue-skinned alien who watched her from the opposite side of the big room. The blue guy’s gaze met hers, and he flashed his fangs. Alien airport pick-up tactic? No thanks. Shivering, she turned away.

A three-story, metal-beamed ceiling arched above her, containing huge skylights that revealed the three moons of Crakair far in the distance. Around her, tall green aliens bustled by, rushing from one terminal to the next or exiting through the wide, glass front doors and out onto a platform where egg-shaped vehicles waited to take them to their next destination. Lots of tall green people. Really tall, green people. She’d expected it, but still.

In Sadie’s experience, one airport was pretty much the same as any other—except this one was filled with aliens. Or…locals. Here, she and Evie were the aliens.

“Bryk said he was getting everything ready,” Evie said. “Vork spoke to Bryk last night, and he was looking forward to this. He can’t wait to court you.”

And that might be a problem. Sure, Sadie had promised Lily she’d give this a shot, but she’d only signed up for the lottery because she and Evie had dared each other to do it and because… Maybe a tiny part of her still held hope for romance. Stupid heart.

To play it safe, Sadie had told herself the arrangement wouldn’t work out. Then she wouldn’t be hurt if he suggested she go home at the ten-day mark. Sure, she’d give Bryk time to convince her to stay, but assuming things went south, which they likely would, she’d head back to Earth. If Lily was chosen for the program, Sadie would deal with that then.

“You’re going to love it here,” Evie continued to gush. Easy for her to say. She’d fallen for her hulking alien military commander almost from the moment she’d met him, and she was building a new, exciting life on Crakair. In Evie’s mind, all the alien matches made by the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service would result in true love. And, Sadie supposed, most of the chosen Earth women probably felt the same. Sadie doubted she’d be among them.

“I’m sure it’ll be interesting,” Sadie said, going with neutral. But the fast drum of her heartbeat told her she was excited. How would she feel when she met Bryk? With Kyle, she’d known right away he was the one for her.

Then she’d lost him.

She blinked fast while Evie continued to speak.

“I know you only watched a vid of Bryk, which makes it hard to get to know a guy, but he’s awesome.” Her smile came out sly. “He’s sweet and funny and…,” she coughed, “gorgeous.” She lowered her voice. “Do not tell Vork I said that.”

“Gorgeous. Really?” That wasn’t the impression Sadie had gotten from the introduction vid Bryk had sent. Whoever had taken the video needed to consider a new career. She’d sworn the short film had been made by a ten-year-old. But Bryk was a farmer; this might have been the best he could do.

All Sadie had picked up from the crackly audio was his mumbled words about them having a decent life together, that he’d be kind, that she’d want for nothing, and that he hoped they’d get along. Oh, and that he’d keep the zinters well-stocked, whatever a zinter was.

As far as messages went, Bryk’s had been rather…bland, which could reflect Bryk’s personality, she supposed. The grainy video had shown a short, too-lean, dusky green-skinned alien with head appendages—called naanans—dangling only to his jawline as if someone put a bowl on his head and snipped off the ends.

She’d thought these Crakairians were universally jacked, god-like beings, not green-skinned versions of someone who’d fit right in with Earth’s former male geekdom. But everything wasn’t about appearance. Sadie was fully prepared to look beyond the exterior to find out if she liked what was inside.

“I don’t suppose there’s a bathroom here?” Her urgent need gave her shivers and made her dance back and forth on her kitten heels, causing her pale yellow dress to shift across her knees.

“Just, um, be careful in there?” Evie’s nose scrunched, but her eyes twinkled. “Bathrooms on Crakair might not fit in with what you’d expect back on Earth, but the sinks are pretty much the same.” She pointed to the far wall where two rooms were marked with silhouettes of the universal male and female, both with naanans flaring out from the tops of their heads. “Oh and don’t touch anything that doesn’t look familiar.”

“Why?” Sadie asked as she inched in that direction. “It’s not like the water is alive, right?”

Evie’s lips curled up as if a fond memory had slipped through her mind. “You’d be surprised.”

Sadie shrugged off her confusion. Sure, she’d have to adjust to a few cultural differences to fit in on Crakair, but how different could anything be? “When—if—Bryk shows up, let him know I’ll be back in a sec,” she called over her shoulder.

She hurried across the big open room, her heels tap-tap-tapping on the tile floor, only pausing when the skin between her shoulder blades itched. Turning, she scanned the room, and her gaze met the blue-skinned alien’s. He bared his fangs again and pumped his hips. Ugh. Leave it to her to attract the attention of the only sleazy guy in the room. When people said blondes had more fun, they hadn’t considered blue-skinned alien creeps. Being propositioned was no fun, no matter what planet you found yourself on.

She wove around a bunch of people, some ignoring her, others reeling back like she was an alien invading their planet.

Oh, yeah. She was.

The protocol droid who’d become her sidekick since she’d left Earth glided behind her and inside the bathroom, only stopping when she groaned and held up both hands.

“I pee alone,” Sadie said firmly.

“There are rules surrounding toileting,” the droid said in its mechanical voice, in perfect English. The droid would be speaking in Crakairian, now that Sadie’s translator had been programmed and implanted behind her ear. “I will take this minar to educate you further.”

“Been there, done that on the trip from Earth.” The droid had stood outside various hall bathrooms at least twenty-five times during the past two weeks. He’d felt the need to outline Crakairian rituals surrounding nakedness, cleaning her teeth, and even some sort of weird, living foot massager she might encounter during courtship. She’d find a way to pass on the latter.

“Go.” She pointed at the door. “Wait with Evie.”

The droid inched closer. “But—”

“Out!”

Zipping backward, the droid’s stubby arms flailed out at its sides, and Sadie cringed because she sounded harsh. Even though they’d assured her back on Earth that the droids were not programmed to experience emotions and were essentially computers on wheels, she hated being mean. But that was Sadie, a person who mourned if she stepped on an ant.

Truly, though. Did the droid think there was anything else it could teach her? Under its relentless tutelage, she’d memorized the manual the Crakairian government had sent to all the mail-order brides that was supposed to contain all the knowledge she’d need to fit into society.

“I will wait with the other Earth female,” the droid said reluctantly as it glided out of the bathroom. Its voice floated back to her. “Do not take long or I shall return to assist your defecation.”

Ugh. Not in Sadie’s lifetime.

After the other…interesting gadgets she’d encountered on the ship, Sadie wasn’t sure what to expect in a spaceport terminal bathroom. Turning, she braced herself for whatever might come next.

The ship must have made adjustments to the bathrooms to accommodate Earthlings because they’d appeared like what she’d expect back home.

No accommodations on Crakair. One thousand shudders later, Sadie emerged from one of the stalls after doing her thing. If she could help it, she’d never use a bathroom on Crakair again. The “toilet,” which was essentially a rather tall tube with odd attachments on the sides, had snapped bands around her thighs, pinning her in place the moment she’d sat. She’d sworn it would have given her an enema if she hadn’t pried the mechanical limbs off her legs and leaped off the pedestal.

Her fault, perhaps. Evie had warned her. But Sadie had only pressed one of the pretty buttons on the wall.

The get-to-know Crakair manual should have focused on dangers like this, not odd details like the fact that some Crakairians only ate while hanging upside down or that their revered religious Elders often walked around wearing garments that exposed their penises—propped upright to make them appear erect even when they weren’t. No, no, no.

Fortunately, the row of bowls outside the stalls appeared similar to sinks she might find on Earth. Each had mini waterfalls cascading into the center and, thankfully, no pretty buttons. She ran her hands through the spray, scrubbing hard when she couldn’t find soap. No paper towels, either, and not a blow dryer in sight.

She danced, flinging her hands around, refusing to slap them dry on her dress, and left the restroom in a hurry. Wouldn’t want to keep her intended waiting, assuming he’d shown up. What would happen if he hadn’t? Not looking where she was going, she smacked into someone in the open room outside.

“Whoa,” burst out of her as she gaped up at the alien. Now, this was what she’d expected to find when she’d watched Bryk’s vid, not the bowl-cut-haired, green dude.

At least seven-feet tall, this guy’s brawn competed with his brawn. Even her widow’s heart couldn’t resist fluttering. He’d dressed simply in black leather pants and a t-shirt with, strangely enough, a swoosh and just do it on the front.

With him? She might be tempted to do it.

His big hands clutched her forearms, and tingles shot down her right arm and landed in her palm.

They both hissed and blinked at each other.

Sadie tugged away and flipped her hand over while he did the same. A symbol gleamed on her hand.

She looked up to find a bewildered expression on his lightly scaled face. His coal-black eyes ringed with blue bands sought hers. A few of his glorious, deep blue, waist-length naanans stretched out to stroke her face. They coasted around to the nape of her neck, and delicious shivers shot through her as they tugged her closer.

Her mouth fell open.

His naanans stilled, and his low growl rumbled around them, like a predator on the hunt. He directed his gaze down at his hand again, where the symbol still glowed.

It matched hers.

“No way,” she said, reeling backward while pushing away his naanans. “What is that thing and how did you make it appear on my hand?” He’d done something when he touched her. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have a new flashlight, and her skin wouldn’t feel as if it had been lit on fire.

“It is…” He stiffened. Tapping his forehead, he gave her a short bow and grunted. “Dreafillar.”

Okay, so the formal greeting coming from this big green guy was both sexy and appealing. But despite the mutual attraction and the weird mark on her palm, she was already matched with someone else. Short, lean Bryk. Who must be here by now. She needed to go find him…

Before she could process what all this could mean, the alien snatched her up and flung her over his shoulder.

While she struggled to suck air into her stunned lungs, he bolted for the front door of the terminal.

4

BRYK

“A h, Bryk, there you are.” Evie, Vork’s mate, stepped between Bryk and his rush to escape through the front door.

His mind had fled the scene, and his body—with matebond blood charging through his veins—had taken over. The moment he’d seen her, he’d known who she was. They’d touched, and he’d gone primeval, focusing solely on the courtship. The proposal. The subsequent marriage. And the fucking.

Lots of fucking.

Evie snickered, and her gaze drifted across the legs dangling down Bryk’s chest from his shoulder and his hand pressed firmly into Sadie’s thigh. “I see you’ve met Sadie.”

She kicked and smacked her fists on his back. “Let me go!”

Shame wracked his frame. How could he do this to his future mate? Crakairians were raised to protect those smaller than themselves. Yet here he was, hauling her around as if she were a bale of fresme grass he planned to feed to his draquiers.

Some of the stiffness left his cock, though it still thrust upward, seeking this woman who had done what he and his deceased mate, Crueja, had been unable to achieve in their nine years matched: form a full matebond between them.

The moment Crueja’s name came to his mind, fear washed through him, as bitter as divver weed on the tongue. He’d planned to find a way to get along with Sadie, not let her into his heart. What if she relied on him and he let her down like he had Crueja?

He lowered Sadie to the floor, but heille, he couldn’t make his hand release her arm. Two sides waged a war inside him. One wanted him to take her to his bedroom immediately. The other suggested caution.

Sadie pulled free but advanced toward him on her toes. Even with the pointy heeled things she wore on her tiny feet, the top of her head barely reached his shoulders.

In true spirfiirre fashion, she gouged her finger into his chest. “Do not do anything like that again. Got it?” This was not good. He’d offended her when his sole intent should be to make her feel comfortable. What would Weld say if he could see his father now?

Each gouge of her finger wedged deeper, though the pokes hurt no more than a treenser, whose sting could be brushed away with the baring of his fangs. And each stab made the mounds on her chest jiggle. They didn’t appear to hinder her movement.

They intrigued him. Weird that he found them vaguely arousing. He had not been aroused by Crueja’s fleshy abdomen projections after Weld was born.

At his nod, which he accompanied with a bow, Sadie backed away to stand beside Evie, who stared at them both with the thin lines of hair above her eyes raised. Eyebrows. Yes, that was what they were called. Crakairian women were completely hairless.

It would take time for Bryk to acclimate himself to fur lines on a female’s face, let alone long strands of it jutting off her head.

Focus on the situation, Bryk. He needed to do what he could to make amends before Sadie insisted on ending this before the courtship began.

The protocol droid glided forward and bowed. “Sadie Annalise Johnson.” Two of its four arms swept toward the woman scowling at Bryk as the other two arms lifted in Bryk’s direction. “Allow me to introduce Bryk Aitus Dravius Kastaf. Match made. Match secured. Courtship may now commence.”

The droid had traveled from Earth in the spacecraft with Sadie to ensure her transport was comfortable and teach her the basic information she’d need to fit into Crakairian society. The droid’s job would end, and Bryk must step forward and begin convincing Sadie she wished to remain on Crakair. Would Sadie shout her rejection before he’d had a chance to offer her a meal he’d serve dressed in a traditional garlong?

When the Selection had been announced, he’d been prepared to meet his Earthling match, even if he wasn’t confident he’d be able to look at her without his dismay blazing on his face. Despite an Earth woman’s lack of appeal, he’d assumed they’d get along. He could close his eyes during the fucking. Think about all the work needed on his farm.

This was not expected to be a love match. They’d never form a matebond.

Heille, had he been wrong about everything?

Now, here he was, bonded to a highly appealing woman who seemed eager to poke his chest.

His mind suggested he must go slowly, or he would displease her again. His body demanded he complete the courtship and get to the fucking as soon as was physically possible.

His body needed to back off and listen to his mind. From what he’d seen during his interactions with Evie, Earth females did not enjoy being coerced into doing things they had not chosen for themselves. He would have to suppress his matebond blood tendencies.

Sadie tugged on the glowing, golden strands dangling from her head, so different from Evie’s dark. Despite his earlier concerns about hair, Sadie’s fluff reminded him of the finest fleeter down. When Vork had suggested Bryk wouldn’t miss a female’s naanans, Bryk hadn’t believed his friend. Naanans could be stimulated to sexual arousal. They delivered pleasure to a partner and were an integral part of lovemaking. Crakairian females used them to protect their young since the tips could shoot poison at an enemy.

But hair…? Talk about one person changing Bryk’s opinion. When he’d first touched Sadie’s hair, his naanans had committed the silky texture to memory. He hungered to feel it again. Actually, he wanted her completely naked, dressed only in her golden tresses, lying beneath him. No, he wanted to kiss his way across her shoulder while burying his face in the strands.

“Bryk, you’re standing there, saying nothing,” Evie said with amusement in her voice.

“Oh. Sorry, I am,” he said. He could tell by the tunneling of Sadie’s eyebrows that her translator implant was not fully functioning. Once the devices had learned each other’s speech patterns, the translation would be seamless. “Yes, Sadie. I…get it. Take care I will in future with my touches.”

“Good,” she said.

His matebond blood throbbed inside him, a pulse thundering in his ears. It insisted he start the courtship immediately.

He bowed. “Dreafillar.”

“You said that already.” Though Sadie’s lips twitched, suggesting humor, her gaze remained steely.

He would have to make amends and convince her she wished to remain here on Crakair with him. Now that he had met her, he was determined to keep her.

Slender yet curvy, he couldn’t take his eyes off her body. Who would have thought a matebond would spark so easily? They’d barely touched. He could only imagine how it would be if they pressed their naked bodies together.

The two mounds on her chest shifted as she breathed. Repugnant to him earlier, they now intrigued Bryk, because they were so different from the fleshy tubes that projected from a Crakairian female’s abdomen after childbirth. Sadie’s mounds rose and fell as she finished binding her hair high on the top of her head. The arrangement only heightened the delicate bone structure of her face. He couldn’t stop thinking about licking her skin from her chin to her ears then moving down to her chest appendages that Vork had hinted might be as arousing as naanans.

At the thought, his cock twitched, and her gaze centered below his waist. A reddish hue rose into her face. Intriguing. The scaled skin of Crakairian women did not change color. Would her skin feel different from its new enhancement?

And her scent… He tasted irritation, likely from him flinging her over his shoulder. Also, distress, though he could not determine the cause of that emotion.

And arousal.

This. He could work with arousal.

Evie glanced back and forth between them, her lips curling up in a gesture he’d learned meant happiness. Crakairians bared their fangs when they felt the same.

Sadie tucked her arms together across her chest mounds, sadly hiding them from view.

“So, um, okay,” Evie said brightly while he and Sadie stood motionless, staring at each other.

Bryk had been struck numb. He wasn’t sure how Sadie was taking the matebond surge, but he could barely control himself. He could not wait to proceed with the courtship.

If he worked hard, he would convince her to stay before the ten-day trial period ended.

“Now that you two have met, I guess I should go home to Vork and leave you to it,” Evie said with a laugh. Her voice lowered. “From the way you can’t look away from each other, I get the idea you’re both eager to begin whatever comes next.” Her grin slid Sadie’s way. “I’m so happy for you.”

“I…” Sadie frowned. “It’s not supposed to be like this.”

“Maybe it is,” Evie said softly. “It was for me.”

“But…”

“I know what you’re thinking. What you’re feeling. But it’s not disloyal.”

Panic burned in Sadie’s eye. “It’s not that. I…”

Evie leaned close to Sadie, speaking for her friend’s ears alone. But Bryk, with his heightened awareness due to the bond, heard everything. “I know you loved Kyle, but he would have wanted this for you. He would have understood. There’s room in your heart for someone new.”

“Maybe. Jeez, I don’t know,” Sadie whispered in a shaky voice. Her gaze flicked to Bryk before shooting away, and her cheeks reddened again.

Though his brain still scrambled to understand their rapid conversation, it was clear Sadie still mourned her lost love. Bryk understood. While he and Crueja had not been a love match, he had cared deeply for her. He still missed her. He’d promised himself he would take a chance with an Earthling mail-order bride.

“You trust me?” Evie asked, hugging Sadie.

Biting her lower lip, Sadie nodded.

“Then trust me in this.” When they parted, Evie smiled, though her lips trembled. “Sorry we haven’t had much chance to catch up. But Bryk will hook you up with a com and we can talk whenever we want after that. I imagine you’d like to hear all the fun things I’ve learned about Crakair, because the information will help you settle in more easily. And believe me, you won’t find what I can tell you in that stupid manual. I’ll also fill you in on what this means.” She tapped Sadie’s palm. “I’m so glad you’re here! Over the next few days, we’ll get together a lot. In fact, I’ll take a hover tram out to see you or vice versa tomorrow, and we can—”

“I will take Sadie away for ten days,” Bryk said.

Sadie blinked a moment before her face cleared. What looked like hurt flared in her deep brown eyes. “Why?”

“You mean you don’t want us seeing each other at all during the ten-day trial period?” Evie frowned. “I guess… Well, I see what you mean. That’s how Vork felt. Me, too, now that I think of it. You’ll be courting, and you’ve already formed the early part of the matebond. I imagine you want—”

“A matebond?” Sadie asked. “Us?” If he wasn’t mistaken, panic bloomed in her voice.

He and Evie’s gazes fell to Sadie’s hand.

“This thing?” she held it up in the universal gesture indicating she wanted kisses. But he’d heard Earth women did not use this signal.

No kisses for him and Sadie. Yet.

“That mark means you and Bryk are connected already,” Evie said.

“No way,” Sadie said, rubbing it with her fingers. “It’ll disappear, right?”

Evie held up her hand, showing her own mark. “Nope.”

“But…” Sadie blinked fast and water pooled in her eyes.

Tears. Bryk had heard of those, plus seen them when Evie was distressed Vork might die after he’d fought in the vengeance.

Weld was right to worry. Bryk had made a horrible mistake. He had frightened his match by grabbing her, carrying her, pushing her. Giving in to his needs had made him forget she had her own, that she would need time to adjust to Crakair. To him.

She also mourned her lost mate, and that needed to be respected.

If he took cues from her behavior and mood, he could save this bond, because he did not wish to lose her.

“It’s okay,” Sadie said, wiping her eyes. “I can deal.”

“You sure?” Evie asked, rubbing her friend’s arm.

While her gaze remained haunted, Sadie nodded.

“Intend I do to give you a full courtship,” Bryk said. He drove his fist against his chest, reinforcing his vow. “No more throwing over shoulder. Give you I will the time you need to adjust. Courtship for a full yaro, as is directed.”

“Good luck with that one,” Evie whispered, but he must have misheard. “I give you a week, two tops.”

“I appreciate this,” Sadie said, and the soft glance she sent him renewed his hope.

“I’m glad you’re going to give Bryk…no, the matebond, a chance,” Evie said. She held Sadie’s shoulders and stared into her eyes. “Ten days will go by quickly and we’ll see each other after that. Promise.”

Sadie nodded fast, pinching her lips between her teeth. The pain on her face made Bryk’s chest ache.

“If you…” He was going to hate himself later for suggesting this, but… “Courtship will now be seven days. A likar.”

“Aw, Bryk, that’s so sweet of you,” Evie said. “You’ll shorten it so we can be together?”

It was not sweet of him. It would be torture because now he would have to work even harder to win her in a shorter time period. How would he convince Sadie to remain on Crakair and allow him to pursue his courtship with only one likar’s effort?

A teary smile rose on Sadie’s face, telling him this was the correct offer. He did wish to please her.

The subtle hint of her arousal drifted through the air between them again. If she wished, this human female could wrap him around her wrist and lead him like a tame jiera.

“I appreciate this, Bryk,” Evie said. She started inching toward the front door. “I’ve got to run to the bathroom, but then I’ll walk out with you two?”

“Yes. We will wait for you,” Bryk said, lifting Sadie’s bag and hefting it up onto his shoulder.

With a nod, Evie darted toward the side of the room.

Bryk watched Sadie. He couldn’t seem to stop watching her. She fascinated him. The speculative gleam in her eyes sparked a fire anew inside him, but he suppressed it. He would follow the rules. He would not push her for more than she was willing to give. So much more was at stake than a simple relationship.

“Seven daelas,” Bryk mumbled when she turned to watch three younglings race toward the door, their father walking sedately behind them. “She has granted me this. I will use every minar to show her the power of our matebond.”

“I think…” Sadie frowned, making him wonder if she had heard him. “Just so you know, I’m looking forward to this. A bit.”

His blood roared. Mine.

“After a few things we gather, we will depart for the Ikeline Mountains,” he said. “Court you, I will, among nature.”

“Oh.” Her eyes widened and her mouth formed a small circle. “We’re going camping?”

“Savor wild environment during courtship.”

“I’m not sure I’ll be able to savor…” Shaking her head, she released a low chuckle. “Tell you what. You’re in charge of the courtship, so I’m gonna leave it completely in your hands. Camping it is. But be aware, I’ve been a city girl my entire life. I don’t do creepy crawlies.”

He blinked. “Creepy…?”

“Bugs.”

“Ah.” He bowed. “For insects, this is slang.”

She ticked her finger his way. “Got it. If you can promise to keep them away from me, I’m all for an outdoor courtship excursion.”

He didn’t understand everything she said, but her willingness to go with him, to give this a chance, was enough. His pulse surged—

“However…” Sadie added, and his heart rate backed down to a lower level, where it needed to remain. “I think we need to get a few things straight before you take me anywhere.”

“I see.” Actually, he didn’t.

She stepped closer to get out of the way of three spacefleet captains dressed in full uniform marching past in sharp precision.

They paused and saluted Bryk.

“Commander,” the Senior Captain said.

Bryk nodded. He’d resigned his spacefleet commission after Crueja died, which meant the salute was no longer necessary, but he appreciated the thought and the recognition. He’d enjoyed his command. He missed it. Yet he was also grateful for the life he now lived, one where he could spend more time with his youngling, Weld.

The captains continued toward the entrance, and Bryk’s gaze was caught by a blue-skinned Al’kieern leaning against the far wall, his four arms locked on his lean chest. The Al’kieern watched Sadie with an intensity that made Bryk’s blood boil. Al’kieerns were not forbidden from visiting Crakair, though they were expected to arrange admittance through spacefleet command and depart as soon as their business was concluded. This male must have been granted a pass.

But that didn’t explain why he stared at Sadie.

Bryk shifted Sadie aside and started in that direction, determined to confront the other male, but the Al’kieern bumped off the wall and scurried across the big room and through the front door. While Bryk fumed, the Al’kieern jumped off the platform. His wings unfurled, and he soared toward the city.

“Bryk?” Sadie asked from behind him.

Perhaps it had been nothing, but Bryk couldn’t shift aside his unease. Rumors had circulated that the Al’kieerns were eager to find Earthling mates as well, though they refused to visit the planet and arrange a contract with Earth as the Crakairians had done.

So far, there had been no outright battles with the neighboring people living on the moon, Mara, but with the tension surrounding Earthlings in general, Bryk would mention this to Crown Prince Axil. Al’kieerns weren’t above stealing rather than buying or making arrangements for whatever they wanted.

Shrugging off the interaction, Bryk returned to Sadie, and her light, flowery scent hit him like he’d chugged an entire bottle of vintip. His head swam and while he remained vigilant to his surroundings, his body insisted he focus solely on her.

“As I was saying,” she said, seemingly oblivious to the Al’kieern who’d been watching. “While we might have been matched by a computer back on Earth, you need to know right now that I’m my own woman.”

“I have promised I will not throw you over into air.” He frowned. “Over shoulder mine, that is.”

“Yeah… Okay. Over the shoulder works better than into the air, I suppose. I appreciate you saying that. As for the over the shoulder thing, it… wasn’t all that bad.” Her cheeks flushed pink, and she rushed to speak again as if she’d revealed too much. “Back to the subject at hand.”

Wait. He wanted to go back to her believing him lifting and carrying her wasn’t “all that bad”. Did this mean she’d found the action appealing? He’d have to think about what this might—

“If we ended up together,” she said, redirecting his mind to this minar, where it should be. “I need you to promise we’ll consult each other about things.”

“As such?”

“Like…I don’t know. What we’ll eat for dinner or whether we’ll buy a new car or use the money instead to—”

“What is a car?” he asked, his thick brows drawing together.

“Like those things waiting outside, only it remains on the ground.”

“Why would a hover tram wish to do this?”

“Forget the car,” she said, flicking her hand into the air. “I’m trying to make a point. If we’re going to make this work, we need to compromise when we have a differing opinion. Okay?”

“Understand, I do.” He took her hand in his own.

Her breath shuddered to a halt, telling him he was not the only one affected by the matebond. She may insist there would be a compromise between them, and on that, he agreed. But he was going to enjoy courting his new mate, showing her a side of their relationship that wasn’t about trams or dinair or what they would eat for their next meal. This side would be solely about them.

“Other issues to discuss?” he asked.

Her gaze cut to Evie, who had returned from the bathroom and watched them from nearby, her lips quirking upward. “Why don’t we continue this conversation in the car—hover tram, that is. We’re traveling today, right?”

He nodded. Adjusting her bag on his shoulder, he nudged his head toward the entrance. “We go?”

“You mentioned the…Ikeline Mountains?” Sadie asked as they walked. “Is that where your farm is?”

“Yes. Courtship and fucking in the ancient Vikir ways we will do. In the Ikeline Mountains.”

She swallowed deeply, and her gaze shot to his groin. His cock responded, naturally. “What’s a Vikir?”

“My mother’s people.”

“Ah. There are different cultures on Crakair?”

“Yes.” He bobbed his head, relieved she understood.

“And they fuck in a different way?” she mumbled, but he heard her.

“Fuck many ways,” he said, hoping to reassure her. If she wished, he would follow whatever fucking protocols they used on Earth. He would need to ask her about them soon.

“Hmm. Okay, sure. We can talk about that, I suppose. Have to admit, I’m a bit curious about all that. Maybe.” While she might be hesitant, she was giving him a chance to show her they could find a middle ground between them in every aspect of their lives.

Seven daelas was not long to light a fire in Sadie. Her arousal was there. Affection would follow.

Bryk did not give up easily.

5

SADIE

“Everything okay?” Evie whispered as they strode side by side toward the front door with Bryk pacing behind them. “I really needed to go. But things seem tense between you two now.”

Sadie put her arm around Evie’s waist and hugged her as they walked. “These guys… Did Vork keep talking about fucking? Like, I should be grossed out by it, but for some reason, it’s a bit of a turn on.”

“God, is he reciting the courtship, marriage, fucking thing, too? That’s all Vork could say when we first met.” She snickered. “Stating it seems to be a big part of the mating protocol. I guess you’ll…get used to it. Eventually.” She laughed again, and Sadie joined it because it was funny.

But she soon sobered. “Bryk and I…” Sadie sighed. “As strange as this sounds, I’m…eager to get started with the courtship, which I know is an about-face for me.” Her skin kept tingling whenever Bryk looked her way. Hell, even when he wasn’t looking her way. He only had to be near her.

Evie leaned away, surprised, but she grinned. “Eager? Interesting word choice right there. But I get it. Vork and I were the same. You know I had reservations when I left Earth, but once I’d met Vork, they faded away to nothing. Crakairians are very sensual, from the tips of their naanans to…well, you know, and they’re more than happy to woo you with their minds as well as their bodies.” She leaned in close. “By the way, it is green, and it is big. Something else that seems to be universal here.”

Sadie wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but her heart skipped a few beats.

“You fell for Vork fast,” Sadie said.

“I did. And it’s wonderful.” Her face beamed. “He’s wonderful. Coming here was the right decision.” Her arm tightened on Sadie’s waist. “I hope you’ll find something similar with Bryk.”

“Weren’t you afraid you’d be hurt?”

“Sure.” She stared forward a moment. “But we worked through it, and our relationship has been stronger since.”

“While Bryk is hot and I’m…well, you know, I’m also torn.”

They paused to let a large group of alien males—with one slender and very tall woman—pass.

“How so?” Evie asked. Her gaze flashed to Bryk, who appeared to be watching the military guys getting into a tram out front and not listening in on their conversation.

Sadie rubbed her chest that still hurt for a variety of reasons. “I’m worried. I lost my mom and dad and then Kyle. Loving people is scary.”

“It sure is.” Evie tilted her head, studying Sadie’s face. “What does the rest of you say?”

“It’s shouting hot guy alert.”

“Maybe that’s what you should focus on.” Evie leaned her head on Sadie’s shoulder and whispered. “You only live once. Trust your instincts. They won’t steer you wrong.”

“Maybe.” He wouldn’t betray her, too, would he?

Despite her concern, Sadie couldn’t stop staring at Bryk. Her fascination had to be due to the matebond thing on her hand. But what if it wasn’t? Maybe she wanted him all on her own.

The path cleared, and Bryk opened the door. He nudged his head in that direction, encouraging them to go outside ahead of him.

As Sadie passed him, her gaze met his. He nodded, and the understanding in his eyes gave her pause. In the vid he’d sent, he’d mentioned he’d lost his wife, as she’d lost Kyle. Only someone who’d cared for another then lost them would understand how hard it was to give your heart again.

She and this big alien had something in common, a base to work from. The fact that she was truly contemplating giving Bryk a chance to “win” her affection was both frightening and exciting. What would it be like if they fell for each other?

Bryk followed her and Evie out onto a large, broad platform. Others hustled past them and hopped into the back of vehicles shaped like clear eggs lying on their sides. Hover trams.

But whoa, what a sight from the platform.

Sadie stared wide-eyed at the city spread out ahead of her but said nothing about the hundreds of feet drop beneath the clear structure. Heights had never bothered her, though even she had to admit this was daunting.

“I’m never getting used to this,” Evie said with her arms outstretched as if she feared the ground would reach up and haul her over the side.

“No rails,” Sadie said, striding right up to the edge and looking down. “The liability of this kind of blows my mind.” She guessed it made sense to build a spaceport high off the ground, but the lack of barriers on the tram platform gave her pause. “Anyone ever repel off one of these things before?”

“Why would anyone want to?” Evie asked, her voice quivering.

“’Cause it would be fun?” Sadie shrugged. “I was curious.” Her head lifted, and she peered around.

Bryk came up behind her. He smelled good, a slightly spicy, woodsy scent that made her pulse flutter in her throat.

“Okay, then. I guess it’s time for me to say goodbye.” Evie’s eyes filled, but she swiped away her tears. She tugged Sadie away from the edge and into her arms. “We barely got to say hi and now we’re getting yanked apart again. But the next week is going to pass quickly. The second you’re back, I’ll take you to the palace and introduce you to Julia and Thea.”

The palace?

“You’re right. A week is nothing. I’ll see you soon.” Sadie’s words came out giddy. Once Evie left, she and Bryk would be alone. In addition to being attracted to him, she was also nervous about what might come next. Sure, she’d read about the courtship rituals in the manual, but he’d mentioned taking her into the mountains and using Vikir traditions instead. Vikir fucking… What would that entail?

A week alone with Bryk. Hmm… Sparks shouldn’t be flying through her body at the thought. She’d just met him. She needed time to get to know him better before she’d consider kissing him, let alone doing anything else.

His brooding gaze followed her every movement, but while the attention should feel heavy or oppressive, instead it felt wonderful. As if her blood had come back to life, it zipped through her as if she’d downed three energy drinks.

Evie’s gaze sought Bryk’s. “Will you get Sadie a com and send me the number?”

He nodded. “When return to farm we do and signal we can find, number I will send.”

“You’re taking her into the mountains.” Her attention shot toward a distant blue-tipped range. “Be careful out there. There are some beautiful places to spend a few daylight hours, but I’ve heard it’s a wild and dangerous place at night.”

Sadie glanced back and forth between them. Should she be concerned about where they were going?

“Lived mountains I did until grown fully I was,” Bryk said. “No fear.”

Evie nodded, and her posture loosened. “That’s good, then.” She rubbed Bryk’s arm and lifted a smile. “I know you’ll be watching out for my friend.”

He dipped his head in acknowledgment.

“Bye,” Sadie said, grabbing Evie and rocking-hugged her. “I miss you already.”

“Yup.” Evie’s eyes shimmered. She leaned in close to Sadie and spoke softly. “He’s a good guy. I’m glad you’re going for it.”

“I’m…” Sadie didn’t say anything more. It was too soon. Too sudden. She couldn’t figure out what she was feeling. Except…she liked him. That was a start. “He’s…”

Evie laughed, and her tears faded. “I get it. These guys…” She glanced at Bryk again but kept her voice at a whisper. “I told you he was gorgeous. They all are.”

“It’s weird,” Sadie said. “He looks nothing like the video the Crakairian government sent.”

“Huh. Can’t imagine why not, but no problem. You’re here and you’ve met him. The rest, as they say, is history.”

“Not so fast. We barely know more than each other’s names.” But Sadie laughed along with Evie because, okay, this might be fun.

As they approached a tram, the upper part of the vehicle oozed back, like peeling a banana. No driver inside, only one bench seat in the back. Evie climbed in and waved as the “peel” locked back down, sealing around her. The tram hummed and floated away from the platform. It dove down and joined a stream of vehicles chugging toward the city.

Another tram moved up, taking the place of the first. The top slid back, and Bryk nodded for Sadie to enter ahead of him.

“Are we leaving straight from here for the mountains?” Sadie asked once they were both inside and the hover tram left the platform and floated down to the others, channeling away from the spaceport.

“Stop by my farm we will do to pack. Harness a draquier, I will,” he said with pride. “Finest of my kit it is. Into mountains ride him we will.”

She had no idea what a draquier was and wasn’t sure she wanted to know. From the word harness, she assumed it was some sort of alien horse. Perhaps the hover trams didn’t travel into the mountains.

“How long will it take to get to your farm?” she asked.

“Reach it by morning we will.”

“That long. Wow. And we’ll sleep…”

“Hover tram in.” He tipped back, and the seat went with him, creating something similar to a recliner. It would do.

The late-day sun poured in through his side window and hit his scales, making them glisten like jewels. She should be put off by this evidence of how foreign—no, alien—he was, right? Then why did she want to run her fingertips across his scales? Her heart skipped a beat or two or three.

Do not be turned on by scales, she chided herself. Tapping her lip, she stared forward, through the windscreen, as the craft skirted around the outer sections of the city.

“Food you would like?” he asked.

When was the last time she’d eaten? Since her belly was gnawing on her backbone, too long ago. “Sure. Dinner sounds like a great idea.”

“Restaurant on way there is. Is good.” He tapped his com to direct the tram.

Sadie had read about coms. They might look like a watch, but they served as a phone and minicomputer. Crakair was a bizarre mix of high tech—coms, trams, and space travel—but this world must also offer rural life like at Bryk’s farm. She was looking forward to seeing it, even if they wouldn’t stay long before traveling to the mountains.

The tram dove down and Sadie’s belly dove along with it. But she loved rollercoasters, the steeper and loopier the better. Staring out the front window, she savored the flip of her innards and the surge of her pulse in her throat as the craft rushed toward the ground. The nose jutted up, and they leveled off, coasting above the buildings until they came to an open paved area with a large white dome in the center.

Dropping down onto a square pad out front, the tram came to a stop, and she and Bryk got out.

“Restaurant this one unusual is,” Bryk said. “Like it, you will.”

On Crakair, unusual could mean almost anything. Evie had filled Sadie in on kleenks, a multi-colored, wormlike vegetable she’d eaten on her first night here. Evie had also mentioned the unusual dining location, a big pit with tables and chairs placed on tiny islands scattered throughout the big cavern. Hopefully, this restaurant would be more like what Sadie might find back on Earth. While she was looking forward to tasting new cuisine, she’d like to warm up first. Maybe with something like…a burger and fries.

No smell of hot oil filled the air, but maybe they had excellent ventilation inside.

They strode up to the big white dome, stepping around six odd, long, leggy black projections jutting out from one side. She assumed there was a matching set on the other end of the three-story dome. Perhaps they helped stabilize the oval structure.

There was no door that she could see, but maybe it was around the back?

With the legs, the structure kinda looked like a round centipede, but she chose not to mention the fact to Bryk. He liked this place. They’d gotten off to a rough start already but things were smoothing out. No need to mess that up on her first day on Crakair.

As they approached the creamy, gleaming front of the structure, the wall oozed apart and an arched opening appeared. White, spiky projections hung down from the top of the opening, a bit too reminiscent of teeth, but this was a door, not a mouth.

“Please,” Bryk said, urging her to enter before him.

They stepped inside an entry too dimly lit to see much other than a podium where a tall green alien male waited with his fangs bared in welcome.

“Nice here to have you,” he said, dipping his head first to her and then Bryk. “Rare, medium, or well done?” His steely gaze met hers. “Greetings, Earthling.”

She was tempted to pull a Spock and tell him to live long and prosper, but again, she held back the words.

As if he thought she’d know how she preferred to have her meal cooked, Bryk looked to Sadie, his thick eyebrow ridges lifted. He had no hair for true eyebrows, but at least he didn’t have to worry about a unibrow or waxing.

“You choose,” she said. While she preferred her steak rare, well done might be the best option on a distant planet. For all she knew, they’d be served a slab of a wild beast. Cook it until it’s dead, her dad always said. Seemed like a good motto on Crakair.

“Medium,” Bryk said to the host who bowed.

The host led them down a dark tunnel with drippy, segmented walls, kind of like a wet, velvet-lined slinky. The ground sloped gradually downward, and Sadie clutched Bryk’s arm to keep for sliding on the damp, segmented floor.

As far as ambiance went, this restaurant would blow every other place out of the water on that cooking show that featured drive-ins and dives. “Interesting place,” she said, leaning close to Bryk.

“Enjoy it, you will.”

Sounded like a command, but he’d said it pleasantly. A hint of anticipation rang in his deep in his voice, and it thrilled through her.

The quirky way his translator twisted sentences was hot. Actually, everything about Bryk was hot. She had no problem admitting that to herself.

The tunnel ended at an intersection and their host went left, leading them through a series of channels that she believed wound around the outer part of the building. Slime coated the walls she avoided touching. But she gave Bryk a smile when he glanced her way.

“This is…cool,” she said.

He put his arm around her and hugged her close. “Warm you I will.”

Since she liked his arm draped across her lower back, she didn’t fill him on the translation of cool.

Stopping partway down a narrow hall, their host stopped. He tapped on the outer wall with a stick he pulled from a sleeve strapped to his thigh. On the wall, a round opening appeared.

Their host bowed. “Medium. Enjoy.”

“Sadie?” Bryk said, waving for her to enter first. “Wait, oh. Shoes you must remove.”

After the slimy floor, she had to wonder why. But she wanted to fit in here, and if there was a no-shoes rule, she was happy to obey. She slipped out of her heels and stepped inside the small room with Bryk. The opening merged closed behind them.

Bryk’s naanans brushed against the glossy white ceiling of the circular room. Only the floor was level. Muted lights glowed behind the walls like light was desperately trying to pierce through a film of cloudy plastic.

No table or chairs. No squishy pillows to sit on, either.

By the outer wall, someone had left a pile of tools that looked like ones she’d used to chip at rocks when her parents took her to a mine. She had a bad feeling about those tools that had nothing to do with the fond memory.

“Serve you, you like?” Bryk said.

“Serve what?” Another glance around revealed nothing but the squishy, marshmallow-appearing walls that almost appeared to pulsate. But they couldn’t be moving. That would be impossible.

“Gref we eat,” he said.

He could have made up a word and it would have the same meaning to Sadie as gref.

“Chunks large I enjoy to start,” he said, lifting a foot-long, serrated edged blade that resembled a short sword, plus a big three-pronged fork. He left the chisel and pick on the pile. “Small nuggets after I savor.”

She forced her lips to curl up, but it was getting hard to come up with even a fake smile. A worm of unease slithered down her spine, telling her something creepy was going on here. “Sounds good to me.” Not really, but she’d told herself she was all in. Bryk had a son, Weld, which meant he was probably a responsible guy. He wouldn’t do anything to harm her.

Her fingers trembled, and she plastered them against her thighs to hold them steady.

“Good, good.” Bryk approached the outer wall and stabbed the blade into the surface. While Sadie’s jaw dropped, a moist, sucking sound erupted through the room. Bryk’s arm muscles bulged as he sawed down through the wall, bracing the slab he was cutting with a poke of the big fork. Hefting the separated blob of…who knows what with the fork and the blade, he presented it to her, urging her to hold out her hands.

Grimacing, she did, and he lowered the loaf of bread-sized wedge into her palms.

While he attacked the wall again, she stared down at the slimy, dripping blob. It glistened and oozed liquid that plopped onto the floor. Ripples sped across the surface like a still pond suddenly coming to life. “Oh,” she said.

His hands stilling, he turned. “Too rare?” he asked with complete concern. “Ask for well-done I could.”

“This, um, stuff is gref?”

“Yes. Delicious it is.”

“We’re eating the wall.”

“Yes. Have you not gref on Earth?”

“Can’t say that we do.” Gulping, she looked up at him. “Is the…building alive?”

He cocked his head, studying her face.

She projected neutral. New life. New experiences. New foods to try, right?

“Mostly,” he said. “Renews it does.”

“That’s a relief.” She’d hate to think she’d scarred the source of her meal.

Bryk finished sawing off another chunk while she focused on the glob of milky goo in her hands. How the hell was she going to eat this?

“Fucking protocols of Earth, you explain?” Bryk said.

She blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“Fucking.”

“Got that part of your question loud and clear.” Jeez. These guys had one-track minds. But then, so did she lately whenever Bryk was around.

“Protocols for Earth fucking,” he said, tossing a glance over his shoulder while he attacked the wall with a machete. He severed a hunk of the slimy white stuff and jostled it in his hands. “Explain?”

“You want to know how we fuck on Earth?” She stared at the blob, unable to look away.

“Here, fuck often.”

She shouldn’t be turned on by this conversation. He'd just hacked off and handed her a gooey white mass of who knows what, and he surely expected her to eat it and tell him she loved it. But one mention of fuck, and her body boiled. “We do fuck sometimes on Earth.” That seemed like a neutral enough answer.

“Sometimes only?” He sounded disappointed.

“We, um.” She shook her head and a few strands of hair came out of the high knot she’d created on the top of her head. “Why do you want to know about this?”

He turned to face her, and she couldn’t miss the thick rod pressing against the front of his pants. “Courting seduction is.” His gaze drifted down her front like a caress, and her skin overheated. “Seduce you soon, I will.”

Lordy. If she wasn’t clutching a glob of white gook, she’d fan her face.

He bared his fangs and from the gleam in his eyes she had a feeling he knew very well what he did to her. His nostrils flared as if he savored her arousal.

He lifted his hunk of gref and sniffed it, but his gaze remained locked on her breasts. “Delicious.” Did he mean her? “Try it you do.”

Pushing off her arousal wasn’t as easy as she’d hoped, but jeez, they were here for dinner, not wild sex.

She wanted wild sex.

Grr. Focus, Sadie. Eat your gref.

She closed her eyes and took a bite, trying to get over the gooey, slimy texture. It slithered down her throat. No need to chew.

It wasn’t bad. Gref had a vaguely nutty flavor reminiscent of almonds, followed by a hint of cayenne that gave it a subtle kick. She doubted she’d be picking up chunks at the supermarket, hacking it to pieces, and sautéing it with onions and garlic, but she wouldn’t starve tonight.

After she swallowed, she ate more, watching as Bryk ate his hunk of gref, groaning and fussing about the flavor. He licked his fingers and she couldn’t stop herself from wondering what he’d do if she offered to do it for him.

Bad, Sadie.

“More?” he asked.

“Nope. All set.” Her appetite for gref had fled, replaced with an eagerness for something more.

Seemingly unaware of her racy thoughts, he turned and hacked off a strip from the ceiling.

“So, twelve legs,” she said.

“Gref some only eight legs have. Twelve more tender is.”

“Awesome.”

He dipped his head. “Evie’s word, awesome is.”

Sadie bit off another bite, telling herself it was tofu. “Do you eat here often?”

“Rare treat this is.”

So maybe this was a birthday thing. She could deal with that. “Do you eat gref at your farm?”

“At farm, often we eat grass, quittesk.”

Grass?

He smacked his chest with the leather-wrapped hilt of his sword. “Fierce quittesk are. Fiercer Bryk is.”

“That’s good. I’d hate to think you could be hurt hunting…quittesk.” Whatever quittesk were. Fierce, she got that. Not much else.

“Assure you, humanely I kill.”

Another comfort.

“But you don’t kill gref,” she said.

He hefted his hunk of…wall. She wasn’t sure what else to call it. “Gref this. Gref host…” His thick brows plunged together. “Gref host too wild for hunt.”

Wilder than a quittesk? “Yet here we are, inside the gref host.”

“No fear. At night rouses. During daela sedate.”

Oh-oh. “When does it get dark here?” She couldn’t tell from inside, but the sun had slanted across the sky when they’d landed.

“Soon.”

Lovely. She hefted her slab of gref like she was making a toast. “Guess we better hurry up and finish our meals, then.”

“Come. Eat more you.” He bared his fangs and carved off another piece of gref, piling it on top of the first.

6

BRYK

Bryk assisted Sadie into the hover tram.

As she settled on the seat, she stared toward the restaurant with what he believed was concern in her eyes. “I have to say, I’m grateful we made it out of the creature’s mouth before sunset.”

“No one has been consumed for yaros,” he said to reassure her.

“Not for yaros, huh?”

“Years, you call it.”

The vehicle took off, and she leaned to look out the side window. “It’s moving. Shit, the restaurants legs are moving!”

“The centrisha sink into the soil and rejuvenate overnight.” Why was this disturbing to her? Did they not have restaurants such as this on Earth?

“What if someone is stuck inside?” Her voice had risen to a screech.

“Worries not,” he said, patting her arm with his naanans.

She turned and slumped in the seat, shoving loose hairs off her face.

“Are you satisfied?” he asked.

Tipping her head his way, she frowned. “In what way?”

“Did you eat enough?” What other way could she mean by satisfied?

Oh.

Matebond blood surged through his veins and centered in his cock. He could not control it.

Distraction. He needed a distraction.

As the tram zipped along, taking them toward his farm, she turned to fully face him, hitching her bent leg up onto the seat. “Since we’re traveling all night, I guess we have plenty of time to discuss the rest of my ground rules for any possible relationship between us.”

Possible? They had a matebond. That could not easily be broken. He half growled, half huffed, and his thick brows drew together.

“What are these rules for the ground?” he asked. “You mean rules for courtship and fucking?”

“Funny how, no matter what, fucking always comes through perfectly in translation.”

“Why would it not?”

She shook her head. “Let’s start with the courtship. That should be simple enough.”

“My courtship will not be simple.” Did she think him a youngling, untried?

She rolled her eyes. “First, like you already know, I prefer to walk on my own. No flinging me around.”

“Established this, you have. Apologized, I have.” He grunted. “My matebond blood rose and—”

“Along with a few other things.” Her gaze drifted to his pants but fled. Did she not appreciate his arousal, his size, and girth? Perhaps if he showed her, she would be suitably impressed. In ancient Crakair tradition, males often strode about with their cocks on display to attract the attention of a mate.

He was willing to do whatever might be needed to draw her interest.

Reaching for his pants, he undid the fastenings.

“Wait. Whoa?” Her eyes widened. “What are you doing?”

“Showing you what I can offer. My cock is—”

“Please!” She stilled his hands before he could undo his pants fully, and her voice lowered. “No show and tell yet, okay?”

“I wish to appeal to you.”

“Dangling your weenie around might not be the best way to do it.” Color had risen into her cheeks, and he found it entrancing. She appeared to be able to add skin enhancement at will. Could all human females do this? He followed the pinkness to where her dress covered her mounds.

“What is a weenie?” he asked in a throaty tone. Despite his initial abhorrence for chest mounds, he could not stop staring at them. Perhaps he did not find them completely repulsive.

“A weenie is a tiny dick, okay?”

“Tiny I am not.” He undid the rest of his pants and reached to pull himself out for display.

“Hold on! While I might kiss on a first date, I don’t do anything with cocks.”

“This about is seeing what I can offer, Sadie, nothing else.”

“Just keep your gun out of sight, okay? Phew.” She huffed out a breath, and it sent the hairs on her face up into the air. “Redo your pants before I…” Her voice lowered to a bare whisper. “Do not even think about this offer.”

“I do not mind displaying,” he insisted. He growled, wishing to better understand. Crakairian females would welcome seeing the size of his cock, yet Sadie appeared…uncomfortable.

Understanding human females was a challenge.

“Rules for the ground, say said.” He refastened his pants. “No…flinging you. Flipping you. Dragging you…” He frowned. “No, dragging is not the word.”

“You’re doing fine.” She chuckled. “No dragging is good, too. Keep going.”

“I will fling you when you ask me to do so.”

Leaning away from him, she puckered her lips. Plump and as pink as the color she could host in her face, they called to him. He would like to taste them, but like allowing her to examine his cock, humans could find offense in kisses.

“When do you think I’ll ask you to fling me around?” she asked, sounding intrigued, but he must be hearing her incorrectly. As far as he could tell, she was not attracted to him and this was a problem. He would have to increase his seduction techniques.

“I have secrets.” A tease played across his lips, and he showed his fangs. That did not appear to offend her. “Secrets I do not give away easily. Know I will make you eager.”

She snorted. “Cocky, you are.” From the way she said it, he could tell his translator still was not correctly reworking his sentence structure.

“Like this in me, you do.” He had no other choice but to push on, despite the translator mishaps.

Her laughter burst out. “You want the truth? I kind of do like it.”

They shared a smile.

“As is right,” he said. “One daela, you shall beg,” he added, his gaze falling to her mouth.

“Beg, huh?” Her attention returned to his pants. Should he offer to allow her to view his cock again? It still remained erect. She fanned her face. “Who turned up the heat in here?”

Because his interest needed to be satisfied, he nudged his chin toward her chest. “These…mounds. Youngling suckers. You find them arousing?” He was truly perplexed by the notion.

“Sometimes. Where are you going with this?”

“I do not wish to touch them.” Although… The more he viewed them, their jiggle, the more he wondered if he should.

“As far as guys go, you not wanting to touch would be a first.”

His naanans drifted toward her, but he snapped them back as if she’d zapped them with laser beams from her eyes.

Fortunately, she did not seem to notice his near-transgression.

“Guys…males of Earth, that is, wish to touch your mounds? How is this possible?”

“Hey,” she said in a light voice. “Our translators have finally caught up.”

“Yes, yes.” His hand flicked out, and his gaze remained focused on her chest. “Tell me more about these sucking…things.”

“Let’s back up here because I can tell you’re curious. What have you heard about…female mounds? I’m not calling them youngling suckers, though the term has a ring to it. Like lollypops or popsicles. We call them breasts.”

“Yes, yes. These…breasts project from your body, but from what I have read, they do not have a purpose outside of sucking.”

Her laugh spurted out. “Where have you read that?”

“A manual about Earth women. Weld, my youngling, found it for me.” He’d been insistent Bryk study Earth female behavior and anatomy, but Bryk was not sure the guide Weld had found was correct. Men were not from Mars, were they? And he had not heard Earth women came from Venus.

“Weld is eight, right?”

“Yes.” He knew his pride in his son shone in his voice, but he did not care. He loved Weld more than anything in the world.

“And he’s, what, surfing the Crakairian web looking for information about Earth women?”

“He hopes you will be happy with us.” As did Bryk.

“That’s sweet. I can’t wait to meet him. I hope I’ll be happy here, too.”

“Breasts.” Heille, he had a single focus. “I would like to see them if you would share. Much like me showing you my cock.”

“Talk about adult show and tell.” Her glance dropped to her front. “I’m wearing a dress. I’d have to hike it up over my head.”

“You oppose this display.” He fingered the hem of her gown, and when his hand brushed her thigh, her breath caught. “I see this is a dilemma.”

“If you’re not interested in touching breasts, why do you want to check them out? And by the way, this is the weirdest conversation I’ve ever had on a first date.”

“It is scientific.”

“You mean like playing doctor?” More red rose into her face. Fascinating.

“What is this doctor playing?” How could a healer be part of touching breasts?

“It’s just… Okay. Phew. Back to my breasts.” She nudged her chin to his naanans drifting across her shoulders. One teased the side of her breast and he found himself mildly aroused by the smooth yet firm feeling. “If you’re not interested in touching, what are your naanans doing?”

He gulped and dragged his naanan back to join the others. “I apologize. It was forward of me.”

“Tell you what,” she said. “I can’t even believe I’m offering this, but I’ll show you my breasts and you can make up your own mind. Maybe avoid the online resources and go to the real source?”

He nodded, his attention focused on her chest. “This is wise.”

She tugged up her dress and pulled it over her head and then laid it on her lap.

With her bent leg hitched on the seat, she revealed the space between her thighs. The essence of her arousal hit him between the eyes, making his breath jerk to a halt.

It was clear she found his attention appealing. To think, he’d been able to attract her without displaying his cock. Imagine how she would feel once she’d seen it.

He frowned as he studied the garment she wore that matched the slip of material covering her slit. “You wear a harness.”

“It’s called a bra.”

“What purpose does a bra serve?”

“I guess…” She laughed. “It does kind of work like a harness. These things…” She cupped and lifted her breasts and the tissue squished together, suggesting it was soft and pliable. “They tend to bounce around if I don’t wear a bra.”

“They interfere with your ability to function.”

A grin bloomed on her face. “You’re funny, but no. I can fully function even with my breasts free.”

“Yet they are not free.”

She gulped. “Hell, you want to see more.”

“Continue discussing your rules for ground. I will examine your breasts while you speak.”

“You expect me to speak?” Her voice came out with a squeak he couldn’t define.

“I sense your arousal. But I do not understand. I have not touched your breasts. How are you able to feel stimulated without the touch?”

“You’re sitting there with a zucchini in your pants. You’re hot. I’m half-naked, and, hell, what else do you expect?” She swallowed as if forcing down a large slice of meat. “Okay, um, yeah. Rules of ground.” She shook her head. “I’ve got space lag. That’s the only issue here. Not you. Not how nice you smelled. And definitely not how appealing I find you.”

“I welcome your admission.”

“I’m sure you do,” she said dryly. “So, rules. There will be no groping, no—”

He leaned forward until his nose nearly touched her breast. “They smell intriguing.” Looking up, he caught her tongue touching her upper lip. His cock, still a rod in his pants—no, a zucchini, she had called it—grew stiffer. “I assume breasts taste the same as other human skin? Or is there a scent or lure released to call the youngling?”

She snickered. “No scent. Just these things dangling around.”

Huh. He returned to sit upright. “You may cover them.”

“Okay.” She tugged on her dress and it pooled around her thighs. “One more rule, no kissing—”

“Unless you give me the signal.”

She tilted her head and stared at him. “There’s a signal for kissing?”

He flicked his hand as if dismissing her surprise. “You will beg for my kisses.”

Her laughter burst out again, but he was not sure why she found this serious topic humorous.

“This.” He held up her hand, flashing her palm. “Means kiss me, please.”

“Oh.” She snatched her hand from his and rubbed it.

“More rules for the ground?” he asked.

“There must be more. Why can’t I think of them?” She worried her lower lip with her tiny white teeth that did not appear strong enough to rip anything apart. Odd how humans had survived this long without fangs. “I don’t think I have any more rules. Not so far.”

He gave her a quick nod. “No flinging, groping, or kissing unless you beg.”

“That isn’t exactly how I phrased it.”

“You will beg.”

“Don’t hold your breath on that one.”

His head tipped, and he studied her face but couldn’t read if she was serious or applying humor. “You mock me with words of holding breath.”

“No shit.”

“You raise walls with words,” he said. “You are afraid.”

“You’re not reading my mind. Please tell me that isn’t possible.”

His low chuckle rang between them. “No, I…” He tapped the translator planted behind his ear. “I cannot read minds. Sometimes, I…wish I could.”

“That’s a relief.” She poked his arm with her finger. “And I’m not afraid.”

“You…fight my sexual appeal.”

“I am not fighting your sexual appeal!”

“Why else are you frightened to see my zucchini?”

She blinked slowly. “Zucchini?”

His nostrils flared. “I smell your arousal.” His tongue dipped out, revealing the forked end.

“Shit. I’ve never seen a tongue like that before. It’s thick, long, and…fuck, I don’t even want to imagine what the forked tip can do.”

“Soon, I will taste your arousal.”

“You know what?” she said with a lift of her chin. “We should have sex and get it over with.”

7

SADIE

He blinked once before his eyes smoldered. “I must complete the courtship. After that, we will discuss marriage. Then fucking. It is vital we follow the correct order, though I welcome your wish to fuck me.”

She had named him arrogant if only in her mind. This guy dripped sexual allure. “Of course you do.”

“To think I have not shown you my zucchini and you are wet for me already. I appreciate this. It means matebond blood rises within you, too.”

“It’s not a zucchini.”

“Yet that is your…” He frowned. “Pet term for my cock? Is that the slang? A name of nick?”

“Nickname, and that would be honey or sweet chops or love lips.”

“Those are…nickname for cock?”

She snorted. “Nope. If you’re looking for nicknames for that, I guess we could consider tan banana, though in your case, I guess green banana would work better.” She tapped her lip. “How about womb raider? Excalibur.”

“What is an Excalibur?”

“It’s the name of a famous sword.”

“I like this. My cock is a famous sword.”

Don’t even get her started. “How famous?”

“You need not worry.” He patted her arm. “My Excalibur is for you only.”

That was reassuring.

“As for fucking, we must hold off,” he said.

She squirmed in her seat. He’d gotten her all fired up and now he was blocking his own cock with rules.

“Not if I say we can twist the courtship, correct? As you can see, I’m all about doing things correctly. But if I want…fucking first, it’s an option, right?” What was she saying? She didn’t want to have sex with him, did she? Sure, they’d gone out to dinner, but they hadn’t even kissed.

Hell, yes, she wanted to have sex with him. She had almost from the moment she met him. Some girls did like being swept off their feet.

“My role in courtship is to please you.” His voice came out tight as if he was a coiled spring, ready to burst free.

“You win. I guess you could say I’m begging for it.” She couldn’t believe she was trying to talk him into screwing her, but she couldn’t seem to control herself. Her attention fell on his mouth. “Let’s do it.” A quickie would get him out of her system.

After her dare, most guys would have pinned her to the seat. Dragged her underneath them and shoved themselves inside.

“Why would you suggest this?” he asked, studying her face. “You have not seen what I can offer yet you wish to jump display to the fucking?”

“If we do it now, I won’t need it anymore.”

“In that, you are wrong.” He sounded so confident, it tangled her emotions in knots. One touch and she’d unravel. “But you have presented an intriguing option.”

That’s all it was, intriguing?

He nodded. “We will have sex before concluding courtship.” Staring forward, his pulse ticked in his temple.

Perhaps he wasn’t as calm and collected as he’d like her to believe.

She held up her hand. “Wait.”

His gaze fell on that damn mate thing flaring from her palm like a nightlight. “Are you giving me the signal for kisses?”

“What?” Some wild thing inside her rose to the surface. “Maybe I am. We are talking about a one-night stand, correct?” Her gaze was drawn to his cock pressing against the dark leather of his pants. Excuse me, Excalibur.

Her tongue dipped out to touch her top lip, and he groaned.

“This doesn’t need to be complicated.” Her hand flicked to her body. “Take me.”

“You tease,” he said with a hint of disgust.

“It’s not a tease.” She pressed up close to his mouth. Damn, he smelled yummy. It wasn’t fair.

His naanans stroked across her shoulders as he leaned near and cupped her face with his hands.

As if he couldn’t resist, his mouth crashed down on top of hers.

He plundered. No, she plundered.

Heat seared through her like a volcano coming to life after a thousand years. She climbed up onto his lap and straddled his waist, wrapping herself around him. She moaned as she cupped his shoulders. Clung to him. She opened her mouth to admit his tongue, and she rubbed herself against his groin.

Something vibrated down there.

She reeled back, panting. “What’s that?”

“Me.” He bared his fangs—a Crakairian male’s version of what humans called a grin. When his thick, forked tongue dipped from his mouth, sparks ignited inside her. She wanted that part of him licking her. Tasting her. Pushing inside her. “If you had allowed me to show you, you could have seen the variations my cock can deliver.”

Fuck, these sounded so bizarre yet hot. Did guys here actually pull it out and discuss the merits of their cock’s width, length, and vibration? It sure beats a dick pic.

“The vibration is hot.” No harm in admitting it. After all, she was kinda, sort of begging for him to fuck her.

“Take what you need, Sadie. I am yours.”

Why were they still wearing clothing?

It shouldn’t be like this, an all-encompassing need she couldn’t deny. She should be pushing him away. Telling him she didn’t want him. But she did. For the first time in over a year, she needed to feel something.

Give into it. One and done.

She kissed him again, inviting his tongue into her mouth. Stroking and teasing and gasping for more.

His naanans glided around to her breasts and when they reached her nipples, something inside his naanans fluttered. The exquisite sensation sent an inferno blazing through her, centering between her legs.

He kissed along her jawline and bit down on her earlobe. Her neck. Her shoulder. Not breaking the skin, but using enough pressure that she could feel it. Behind her eyeballs, stars shot through the air.

She moaned and arched her back. Bucked against him. Rode him, grinding herself against him as she begged for release.

While his naanans stroked her back and her breasts, and she pressed against his cock, shock waves blasted up from her core.

She came in a mind-blowing, mewling shudder. Quakes took over her body as she gave into the endless bliss.

Wrung out, she collapsed against his chest.

His naanans remained tangled in her hair. They soothed her shoulders and the nape of her neck.

8

BRYK

Bryk’s cock was on fire. His matebond blood roared through him, demanding he take all she offered. But he did not want her as a stand for one night. He wanted all her stands. He would be patient. Two could play at this not-tease.

For now, he held her and told his body to back off. To wait. But heille, this was torture. Her sweet musk hung in the air, making him eager to strip her, lift her, and drive her down onto his cock. And heille, yes, touch her breasts.

He’d completely changed his mind about them.

She jerked upright and when her eyes met his, he couldn’t dismiss the new shadows lurking there.

“I’m sorry,” she said.

“I am not.”

“But you’re still…” Her body shifted against his.

He lifted her up off him and placed her gently on the seat. “There is time yet to claim what you offer and I will soon do so. I promise.”

“Okay.” She said nothing further, just stared out the window as the city was swept out from beneath them. The stone and steel buildings gave way to broad fields and dense forests. Ahead, the Ikeline Mountains waited. His courtship waited. Could he bring this to the right conclusion within seven days?

She’d issued him a challenge, and he would come out the victor.

The hover tram flew into the night, and blackness eclipsed the world. A few stars peppered the sky, but the moons had set.

Sadie fell asleep against his side. After ensuring she was comfortable, he reclined and lifted his feet to rest them on a cushion made for this purpose, and drifted to sleep.

He woke early morning with Sadie splayed out on top of him, nuzzling his chest. As the sun rose, the three moons chased the golden ball up into the sky.

She woke all at once, going from completely defenseless to ready to take on a quittesk with one hand. Shoving her silky hair off her face, she looked around and flopped back down on his chest. “Oh. We’re still flying?”

“We will reach my farm soon.”

She stretched and snuggled into his arms. He liked having her there. “I need a toothbrush, coffee, and to pee, not necessarily in that order.”

“All your needs will be met at my home.”

“Perfect.” Turning, she lay with her back against his chest and as he brought the seat upright, she watched the open farmlands spilling out around them.

He handed her a bar made up of berries, grains, and a high-protein vegetable, and they both ate.

At mid-day, the hover tram dropped down onto the landing pad he and his friend, Jorg, had built near their two homes.

“Is that your house?” she asked, staring toward the large cottage nestled on a distant hill with a broad front porch and flowers growing in perfusion in the yard. His barns splayed out to the left, with pastures surrounding them. “It’s pretty.”

“Do you like it?”

She turned gleaming eyes his way, and the warm brown color, much like the earth he worked with his hands that sustained his farm, socked him in the gut. He liked this human female more than he should. What if he couldn’t protect her?

Yaros ago, he hadn’t been there for his mother, who’d died because of his lack of action.

He also hadn’t been there when Crueja passed away from the disease…

His naanans flared briefly before settling on his back again. He refused to consider this with Sadie. He would guard her like a wildarn with young, and she would remain safe.

“Who maintains your beautiful flowers?” she asked.

“That is my friend, Jorg’s work.”

“Is your friend a gardener?”

The outer exoskeleton of the tram peeled back to release them, and he urged her to dismount, joining her on the smooth stone outside the craft.

“Jorg is…” How did one tell a prospective mate that while his friend was Crakairian, he’d been abandoned by his mother and grew up among the Al’kieern, on the moon, Mara? Many feared those from the planet, with good reason. Law and rights did not matter on Mara. “Jorg is…a mercenary.” Mostly. The relatively respectable job title would do for now. Once Sadie had accepted Bryk and settled into his home with him and Weld, and he had received permission from Jorg, he would share more about his friend.

“He’s a mercenary?” She turned to face him, her mouth forming a soft oh. “He kills people?”

Perhaps that was not the right title to choose in this situation. Was his translator malfunctioning? “He hunts. Finds missing objects and people. Rescues them.”

“And he’s your neighbor. A mercenary neighbor who likes to work with flowers.”

“Yes, yes. He will stay with my youngling, Weld, while we are away in the mountains.”

“You trust your son with a mercenary,” she whispered as he lifted her bag out from inside the tram.

When they stepped backward, the seal closed, and the vehicle took off.

Bryk nudged his chin toward his cottage, encouraging her to walk beside him. “I trust Jorg with my life.”

“Okay, then I’ll trust him, too,” she said.

He appreciated that she took his word on this.

As they approached his cottage, they were hit with a gust of fresh air scented with jarling blossoms. The low groundcover grew everywhere in Bryk’s gardens this time of year.

“You mentioned Weld in the video you sent.” She studied the cottage, but he couldn’t read her thoughts from her voice. Was she excited or dismayed to be meeting his youngling?

Before he could ask, the front door opened, and Weld ran out. “Da!” He raced down the crushed stone walkway and leaped into Bryk’s arms.

Bryk growled and spun his youngling around while the child laughed and bared his small fangs. He dropped his child to his feet and ruffled his naanans as blue as Bryk’s own. His deep black eyes with no blue ring came from Crueja.

Jorg joined them at a more leisurely pace, moving with the stealth of a javeess, a great cat that lived in the mountains, as well as in the wastelands of Mia. Jorg stopped at the end of the walk, and his face remained in shadow.

“Sadie,” Bryk said. “This is my youngling, Weld.” The boy hugged Bryk’s side but peeked around at Sadie, who gave him a soft smile. Bryk’s hand lifted toward his friend. “And this is Jorg.”

“Nice to meet you,” Sadie said to Jorg.

Jorg stepped forward, revealing the scar that ran from below his right eye to his chin. His gaze perused Sadie before landing on Bryk, though his intensity didn’t fade when facing his friend. “Her lack of naanans is…unusual, but I do like the way she is put together,” he drawled. Leave it to Jorg to speak frankly, even in front of Bryk’s intended mate. “What are those things?”

Sadie’s eyebrows flew up and she shifted her attention from Jorg to Bryk.

Jorg’s gaze fell to Sadie’s breasts and Bryk was tempted to place his arm over them to block them from his friend’s view. But why should he feel anger about Jorg viewing his Earth female’s body parts? It was no different than Jorg studying her hands or arms. “How far along are you with the courtship?” Jorg added with a chuckle.

Had he noted Bryk’s possessive mood already? It was likely. His friend knew him too well. He made a living by understanding emotions and motives.

Weld leaned into his side while Bryk cupped his shoulder.

Sadie lifted her eyebrows. “We—”

“Not far enough,” Bryk said abruptly. Although… His mind fell back to her grinding against him in the hover tram. The bliss on her face when she found her release.

And his promise to fuck her.

His cock twitched, and he gritted his teeth to suppress the urge to bellow. The matebond blood spoke again. It demanded. Thus was the way of the Vikir, legendary warriors of old. Since forming relationships with Earth women, Crakairians had discovered that matebonds could be formed quickly. Couples were giving in to their longing to be together. So unlike Vikir tradition where courtship could take a yaro or longer.

She wasn’t wrong to suggest they could twist the rules.

“We will pack and soon leave,” Bryk said. He rubbed Weld’s shoulder. “Greet Sadie, youngling, as we will be on our way within the denjar.”

Weld still held back, something he hadn’t done since he was small and was feeling shy.

“What is it, Weld?” Jorg asked, studying the child’s face. “Brindle got your tongue?”

“Is she angry, Da?” Weld asked softly, his gaze completely focused on Sadie. “Is she…disappointed?”

His son, fascinated by Earthlings, had poured over any video they could obtain from Earth, hence finding the manual Bryk had read. Weld’s translator had acclimated and his speech was near perfect.

Sadie came over to stand in front of them. “Why would I be disappointed or angry?”

“I am sorry,” Weld said, a mournful whimper coming through in his voice. “I…”

“What have you done, youngling?” Bryk asked, more concerned about his son’s feelings than whatever small slight might have occurred while he was in the city.

“I…” Weld gulped. “The vid…”

“What about the vid?” Sadie bent forward, and only kindness came through in her tone. “Whoever made it did a great job.”

What did she see that Bryk didn’t?

“They did?” Weld’s lower lip trembled.

“I bet someone was trying to make me feel at home with Bryk before I met him,” Sadie said. “Right?”

Weld nodded vigorously.

Sadie reached out, but her hand hesitated before touching. When Weld didn’t flinch, her fingertips dipped down his cheek, stroking the boy who had held Bryk’s heart from the moment he’d first squawked out his displeasure at the world around him. If Bryk wasn’t already starting to fall for Sadie, this…this kindness to his youngling would put him over the edge.

“The vid…” Sadie’s smile encompassed both Bryk and Weld. “It made me excited to come to Crakair. To meet Bryk.”

Weld bared his fangs, and his slender body relaxed. “You will stay?”

The boy’s words echoed those in Bryk’s heart.

“I just got here yesterday, but so far?” Her gaze met Bryk’s. “Let’s just say that I’m satisfied with all that has happened. As for the future, someone will need to put in a little more effort to keep me happy, but that will only make things better.”

She referred to the fucking. He knew it, despite her youngling-appropriate language. She did enjoy teasing.

“Want to see the motor I am working on?” Weld asked as if whatever he’d done was solidly in the past. His attention turned toward the side courtyard, and he started running in that direction.

“Do we have time?” Sadie asked Bryk, already following Weld. As she looked back at him, a smile bloomed on her face, prettier than any of the flowers in his gardens.

“A bit,” Bryk said. “Weld? I will collect Sadie soon. But first, she will need…” He nudged his head toward the house and the bathroom. “There are facilities inside.”

“Thanks.” She ducked inside and returned quickly, waving her hands in the air.

“Come on!” Weld said. His legs churned as he raced up the path. He whirled around and rushed back to Sadie. His hand stretched out before he yanked it back and pressed it against his side.

She held hers out to Weld. “What kind of motor are we talking about? I happen to love motors.”

“A hover tram engine!” When Weld latched onto her hand and dragged her toward the courtyard, Bryk’s heart split down the middle. Weld shyly bared his fangs at her as she went with him up the path.

“Weld is clever,” Jorg said, flashing his fangs as he watched the two round the side of the cottage. “I would not have thought to alter the vid.”

Ah, so that is what Sadie referred to. “Please do not encourage him while I am gone,” he said with a heavy sigh. He’d have to speak to Weld when he returned. This misstep had not caused problems, but the next might.

“How can I not encourage him?” Jorg asked. He nodded to Bryk. “The indulgence will not spoil him. He is true Vikir. The blood has bred through. Your mother would be proud.”

Jorg had never met Bryk’s mother. How could he know how special she had been or how responsible Bryk felt for her death?

“Sadie and I will be gone for six daelas,” Bryk said. “Are you sure you can keep Weld that long? No job in the works?”

“Already said I would. I love having him around. He keeps me young.”

Bryk snorted. “You are no older than me.”

“Some days, I feel twice your age, my friend.”

“What have you heard?”

“Nothing but rumors.” Jorg’s gaze drifted to the moons overhead. Any of them in particular? “I will fill you in when you return. For now…” He tilted his head toward the courtyard where Weld’s laughter rang out. “I believe you have a courtship to focus on, not rumors. Sadie is pretty, like one of my flowers.” Jorg reached out and snipped off a particularly lovely bud and sniffed it.

“You mean my flowers,” Bryk growled, knowing his friend joked but unable to halt the blood rising inside him that ached for confrontation. It was not uncommon for fights to break out among Vikir males when matebond blood ran strong.

Jorg chuckled. “Yes, she is yours. I see that already.”

“I will harness Disty.” Bryk had already packed bags and would only need to add Sadie’s. Disty would take them high into the mountains, and Bryk could leave his undesired jealousy behind.

“I have been thinking.” Jorg paused as they started toward the house. “Perhaps I should put in for the Selection.”

Ah, so it was like that, was it? “There is something very appealing about Earth females.”

“I noticed.”

“Friend…” Laughing, Bryk’s hand descended on Jorg’s shoulder. “Even a male who could not see would notice.”

9

SADIE

Bryk tracked down Sadie as she was helping Weld reassemble the motor. Before her Mom and Dad died in the accident, she and her mom had rebuilt a dirt bike. Sadie had ridden it until she’d totaled it and almost herself while taking it down a cliff.

It was bittersweet to work with Weld on an engine because she was reminded of what she’d lost. If Kyle had lived, they would have had children together. His death had stolen that from her, too.

Did she dare trust her heart to someone new?

“I think you need to put this…here.” She tightened a bolt and handed the tool over to Weld, who bared his fangs. He’d hung on her every word since she’d sunk to the ground beside the engine.

When he smiled, he looked so much like Bryk, it made her chest ache. How had this small boy wormed his way into her heart so fast?

“Do you mind if I take Sadie now, Weld?” Bryk asked from behind her.

Bent over to loosen a bolt, she didn’t turn. From his voice, she couldn’t read his mood. Was he upset or happy she was spending time with his son?

If she chose to stay, Weld could become her son. Not in blood, but in every way that counted. The idea settled over her shoulders like a soft, comfy blanket, something to be savored. She and Kyle had talked about having kids but had decided to wait. If they had, she could have clung to that child after he died.

But when Weld bared his tiny fangs again while handing her a rag to wipe off her hands, her heart lightened.

It was going to be okay. This was going to be okay.

“Sadie? Weld?” Bryk asked.

She pivoted on her heel and sank onto her butt before her legs gave way.

Whoa. Hot guy alert.

Her gaze swept down Bryk and lingered. “What are you wearing?” Or, in his case, not wearing.

“Da wears the garlong,” Weld said, scooting around the motor to sit beside her. His head tilted, and he watched her face as if seeing her reaction was vital. “Do you believe my da is too big?”

Sadie gaped at Bryk’s cock, barely covered by the tiny scraps of buff leather he’d strapped around his waist. “Excuse me?”

“His size,” Weld said. His naanans, as blue as Bryk’s, though shorter and narrower, fluttered around his face. “You are pretty.”

“Thank you.” Maybe. She wasn’t sure what his feelings about her appearance had to do with Bryk’s cock size or why they were discussing it like they might talk about his feet.

It was big. But then, everything about Bryk was larger than life. She’d felt it—felt him—when she rode him earlier in the tram. Heat flushed her face.

“I see what you are thinking, Sadie.” Bryk’s eyes gleamed with humor. “And you could have addressed your concerns at any time while we traveled. However, I believe my youngling wonders if my physical appearance is too different from that of a puny Earthling male. He worries you will not find me attractive in comparison.”

Thus the photoshopped skinny green guy in the vid.

“You will not be scared and ask to leave, will you?” Weld asked her. He hung his head and wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“You wouldn’t happen to know an amateur video maker who likes to tweak vids as much as motors, would you?” she asked, struggling to keep the laughter from her voice.

Weld jumped up. He pivoted to bolt, but Bryk snagged the back of his tunic before he’d taken two steps and tugged him back. “Perhaps remain long enough to answer Sadie’s question, youngling.”

Weld heaved a sigh but still wouldn’t look at her. “Yes.”

“Yes, what, Weld?” Bryk asked.

The child still stared at Sadie’s feet. “It was me. I made Da’s vid.”

She’d thought so. “And I assume you made a few…alterations?” she asked.

Weld’s shoulders curled forward. “I wanted you to like him, to feel welcome.”

She stooped down and gently tipped up his chin. “You did a great job because, when I watched the vid, I wasn’t scared to come here.” Not as much as she had been; it wasn’t a complete lie.

“And you will stay?” he asked softly.

“We have not yet begun the courtship,” Bryk said, watching them both. She still couldn’t read him from his expressions, but he looked…content. Maybe even happy.

“You wear the garlong,” Weld said, flicking his hand toward his father. “Where is the meal? You must quickly present to her the best meal ever to make her eager.”

“A meal is yet to come,” Bryk said in a neutral voice. “Per Vikir tradition, I will wear the garlong the entire courtship period.”

He was going to walk around nearly naked for the next six days?

Heaven help her.

Weld sniffed. “Are you convinced yet, Sadie?” From the sly look he fed her, she had a feeling the doctored video might not be Weld’s only attempt at manipulation, but she was willing to play along. However, she would not make a promise she was not—yet—ready to keep.

She rose to her feet and her gaze was caught by Bryk’s, who seemed as eager to hear what she had to say as his son.

“I like your father’s size,” she said. Do not let your gaze fall below his waist. “I find it—him, that is—quite appealing.”

Weld frowned. “Is that good, Da? Appeal-ing?”

Did the word not translate correctly?

“He’s hot,” she said, as if that would clarify things.

Weld touched his father’s arm. “You may need to dress, Da. The sun makes your skin too warm, and you do not wish to offend.”

“I’m not offended. I… I enjoy looking at him,” she said. “His muscles are big. In a good way,” she hastily added when Weld frowned. “I can easily picture him picking me up, flinging me over his shoulder, and running around with me.”

She loved how Bryk’s face scrunched up.

“Why would he run?” Weld asked. It was funny how the boy only focused on that part of the sentence.

“Because…” She was stumped.

“Because I find Sadie equally appealing,” Bryk said, stroking a band of hair off her face. He fingered it as if testing the texture. “Appealing is a good thing, Weld.”

“Do you find him sexy?” Weld asked.

Her face flushed, and she stepped backward, her hair tugging free from Bryk’s grip and falling onto her chest.

“I learned that word while studying Earth vids,” Weld said. “Sexy is a good thing, like appeal-ing, correct?”

“A very good thing,” she said. “And yes, I find Bryk incredibly sexy.”

“We need to leave,” Bryk said, taking her hand and squeezing it. Was he sending a message? If so, it hit her straight in the heart.

His eyes. The blue had flowed inward, taking over the black. Now that was sexy.

“We will travel all night again, and reach my camp mid-morning, where I will begin the courtship,” he said.

“That long?” Weld’s eyes widened as he barreled into Bryk for a quick hug. His head tipped back. “You must go!”

“Yes, yes.” Bryk bared his fangs, and his gaze met hers. “Are you ready to be courted?”

She squeezed his fingers, sending her own message, I am.

“I said go, go!” Weld said. “Do not remain here any longer.”

“I have packed our things on Disty,” Bryk said.

Was that his horse? Although, she wasn’t sure there were horses on Crakair.

“Lead away,” she said. She was kinda excited to see where this courtship would take them. And she was happy to follow Bryk down the path, as long as he wore this…garlong. It swished back and forth on his butt, hinting at the bottom of his muscular cheeks. Could she talk him into wearing a garlong forever?

With Weld dancing along beside them, they rounded the back of the cottage and took a path through the woods behind.

“Where’s Disty?” she asked, looking around for the horse. She tried not to peer too closely into the woods, because something crashed through the brush to their right, its feet creating thuds that shook the ground. And to the left, something—hopefully, a bird—shrieked. A high-pitched cackle followed, and she paused, waiting to hear, I’ll get you, my pretty!

Wrong fairytale. She was dating the sexy green giant, not going to Oz.

“Disty would never fit on the path,” Weld said. If he was an Earth kid, he would have added, duh.

“How much farther?” Sadie asked.

“There.” Weld pointed forward, to where the path ended.

Bryk squeezed her fingers he hadn’t released. “You will like Disty. He is my prize steed.”

“He’s sexy,” Weld added over his shoulder as he strode forward.

Bryk chuckled but said nothing.

Sadie couldn’t keep the grin off her face. “You think I’ll find Disty sexy?” she whispered. Who—what—was Disty?

“I intend to be the only one you find sexy,” Bryk said.

“So far, you’re in first place.”

“Then I will run fast to maintain my lead.”

“Come on,” Weld huffed from ahead. Turning, he crossed his arms on his chest and scowled. “Talk, talk, talk. That’s all adults ever do. They never have fun. Never do anything except talk about boring stuff.”

“I believe you have had fun already,” Bryk said to her. “Have you not?”

She fanned her face. This innuendo inside a simple conversation was making sparks shoot through her belly. Soon, she’d explode.

“Hold that thought,” Bryk said close to her ear. “I will keep my promise.”

With that thought lingering between them, he led her along the path and out into a large field.

Her knees quivered, and a scream rose up in her throat.

In the middle of the field, a giant blue creature the size of a pickup truck crouched. It turned, its big, thick scales winking in the moonlight. It stretched out its front legs and dug its long, sharp claws into the ground, ripping at the grass. While she gulped and sputtered, it tipped its head back and blasted the air overhead with fire.

“Run,” she cried, trying to snag Weld’s shirt to drag him back to the path. “It’s a freakin’ dragon!”

10

BRYK

Bryk grabbed Sadie’s arms before she bolted.

“No fear,” he said softly, nudging his head toward the draquier. He’d do whatever he could to reassure her. “See? Disty is quite tame.”

Weld skipped over to Disty and tapped his foot on the ground. As trained, the male draquier huddled down on the grass. Weld scrambled up onto one of the creature’s legs, then hopped from there onto Disty’s back, where he braced his feet between two of the larger back spikes. The youngling lifted his arms and whooped. The sound echoed around them, followed by his son’s laughter.

Disty continued to placidly chomp bugs he’d dug from the grass.

“Disty, huh?” Sadie said, leaning back against him, safe within the shelter of his arms. “I pictured, I don’t know, a horse?”

“You speak of the animal of burden?” he asked. As he ran a farm, he’d been curious and read about Earth’s agriculture. They bred and raised a variety of animals, though none as large or formidable as a draquier.

“Horses are for riding, racing. I guess some people still use them to work fields.” She gulped. “Disty won’t hurt Weld, will he? Because if that… dragon—”

“Draquier.”

“Okay, draquier. If it even wrinkles a naanan on Weld’s head, I’ll stomp that beast into the ground.”

Bryk savored the fierce protectiveness in her voice. While his role was to court her, to convince her she wished to spend her life by his side, she also would be tested in how she behaved with Weld. He would not mate with a woman who could not love his youngling.

In this, Sadie had already proven an Earth female did not need naanans to protect a child.

“Come,” he said, keeping hold of her hand while stepping forward. “I will introduce you to Disty.”

“You didn’t name him, did you?” she asked as she followed, rising onto her tiptoes as if adding to her height would make her appear intimidating.

“Weld named him, as you guessed. We have raised Disty since he was a pup.”

“Weld’s eight, right? But you both raised the draquier?”

“Disty is two-yaros-old.”

“Whoa.” She stalled and stared at the creature. “I hope he’s fully grown.”

“He will get bigger, though not much.”

“Of course he will,” she said. “He lives on Crakair. Everything and everyone around here is larger than life.”

Bryk wasn’t completely sure what she meant or why she sounded as if she was in distress, but he was eager to help her feel comfortable.

“Disty is as sweet as a brindle,” he said.

“Which I hope is a normal-sized creature,” she whispered.

“Disty will take us to my camp in the hills, where I will court you as is proper.”

“We can’t walk there?” Panic came through in her voice. Her steps had slowed again.

“Why would we wish to do this?” he asked.

“Some people walk for exercise.”

He had heard of exercise, an activity Earthlings did frequently. Much of the literature he’d seen contained complaints about the process. Why would they do something that caused them distress?

“I take it you don’t lift weights or spend hours at the gym,” she said, her gaze gliding down his body.

His cock twitched. Only knowing his son was present kept him from tugging her near and sampling her mouth. He couldn’t stop thinking of their kisses in the hover tram. “If I lifted weights, I would not have time to tend my animals or work my fields.”

Moving in close, she traced her fingertip down his arm. “These muscles come naturally, then.” Again, she confused him with her words, but her intent with her touch and the heated look in her eyes, one she’d had when she called him sexy, lit his veins on fire.

There was no denying he wanted her, but he liked her, too.

Loving her would be even easier.

This should frighten him, but the disease that decimated his planet taught him the only minar he had a semblance of control over was the one he lived in. What one seemed to possess could be taken from a male in the blink of an eye.

He was determined not to lose Sadie as he had his mother and Crueja.

“Time to get off Disty, Weld,” he called out, eager to reach their destination. Each minar could make a difference.

His youngling’s face fell, but he quickly brightened when his gaze traveled to Sadie. Longing filled his sweet face. He hopped down Disty’s shoulder to the front thigh and then onto the ground. Not stopping, he rushed toward them.

Bryk expected the boy to jump into his arms as he always did, but he barreled into Sadie instead. With his arms wrapped around her waist, he looked up, his youngling heart in his eyes.

Sadie stroked his naanans. “We won’t be gone long, right, Bryk? We’ll be back before you have time to miss us.”

Another hug and Weld released her.

Bryk stooped down and opened his arms.

As Weld wrapped his naanans around Bryk’s head, he leaned close and whispered. “Keep showing her you are sexy.”

Bryk’s laughter rose in his throat, but he suppressed it and nodded solemnly. “I will do my best.”

Jorg strode into the clearing and joined them. “When I didn’t find Weld working on his motor, I guessed he might be here with you.” His gaze traveled to Disty. “All harnessed, packed, and ready to go. Reminds me of when I…” His gaze cut to Sadie, and his voice stilled. “When…you know.”

When he’d borrowed Disty and tracked down three younglings who had been stolen from the Vikir. He’d brought them back unharmed, but his face had been scarred and something had changed inside him while he was gone. A sharper slant now filled his eyes, and he remained constantly on alert, as if something might attack any minar.

Jorg held his hand toward Weld. “You and I should make dinner. We must let Bryk and Sadie leave.”

“Okay,” Weld said. “Goodbye,” he called over his shoulder.

The two walked down the path side by side, one small child who held Bryk’s heart in his hands, and the friend who would protect the youngling with his life.

Bryk watched until they’d disappeared into the trees.

Weld’s higher-pitched voice lifting into the air, his excitement swirling around until their voiced faded.

“You’re right. Jorg is a good guy,” she said.

Bryk nodded and extended his hand to Sadie. His heart warmed when she took it without hesitation. “You are ready?”

“I assume you mean it’s time to climb onto Disty,” she said with a break in her voice. “Let’s do it.” A shiver ripped through her body, but she started toward the draquier. “Everyone loves dragons,” she mumbled. “Do not freak out. Do not freak out.”

When the draquier tipped its head back and blasted fire into the air, Sadie shuddered.

“He’s gonna fry us to a crisp,” she said. “Just call me shish kabab Sadie.”

“No, no,” Bryk said. “He is… What is the word? He is not making threats. He is…stretching his throat.”

“The better to swallow us, I presume.”

“He is sleepy.”

“Oh, yeah. Jeez.” She palmed her face. “You mean he’s yawning.”

“Yes, yawn.”

“Great.” Her gaze swept across Disty. “There’s a nice fella.” She patted the draquier’s chest. “What a cute baby you are. My freakin’ god, he’s got leathery skin. And…lovely long claws. Nice fangs there, too, buddy.”

She’d gone from fearful to almost confident.

Sometimes, Earthlings, no, Sadie amazed him.

“Bryk?” she asked.

“Yes?” His feelings were new and fragile. He’d hold them close and share his heart once he was confident she felt the same.

She backed into his arms and shivered. “We’re truly going to ride him?”

“Yes. He will carry us to our camp. See?” He pointed to the animal’s back. “Our things are already secured. Would you like me to help you mount?”

“Oh, would you?” Pure relief came through in her tone. “I’d appreciate it.” She gaped up at Disty. “Do we climb like Weld did, stepping first on the…draquier’s leg?”

“I climb like this.” One leap and he stood on Disty’s back, staring down at the amazement forming on her face.

“How did you do that? Are you Superman?”

“I am super, and I am a male, so yes, I am Superman. Supermale.”

She laughed, and some of the fear faded from her eyes.

Stooping down onto his knee, he extended his hand toward her. “Grab on and I’ll haul you up with me.”

“Haul?” She rolled her eyes, a new gesture for him that he believed implied sarcasm. “You do know that women are a force all on our own.”

“Yet you agreed to let me assist you.”

“True.” When she huffed and some golden strands of hair that had evaded the clump on the top of her head flew up into the air. “Okay. I am Superwoman, because it’s sexist to call me Supergirl when you get to be a super male.”

“I am super.”

“Funny.” She compressed her lips into a stiff line and tightened her spine. Eyes closing, she placed her hand in his.

One quick tug and she stood with him, his arms securely wrapped around her.

“I can’t believe I’m standing on a freakin’ dragon,” she said, peering down.

“Draquier.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “You do realize that sounds almost the same as dragon?”

“Perhaps draquiers have traveled throughout the galaxy and visited Earth, leaving only their name behind.”

“Now that would be cool. Imagine if the Earth legends of dragons were based on fact and not fiction.”

“One day, we may know.” He dropped down onto Disty’s back, between two of the largest spines, and tugged Sadie onto his lap. As her legs sprawled on either side of the draquier’s chest, he clicked to Disty, who gave up nibbling bugs and stomped his feet. Bryk lifted the strap secured below them that encircled Disty’s body. “You may hold this if you choose.”

With one hand, she gripped the smooth leather. The other fingers tightened on Bryk’s forearm, denting his scaled skin. “I’m not sure about…”

Disty leaped up into the air and his wings snapped out at his sides, extending to full length. They flapped, lifting his body higher.

“Oh, my God!” Sadie wailed. “Now I know why Mom almost killed me when I totaled my dirt bike.”

He hugged her with an arm around her waist, urging her back until she sat fully on his thighs.

Did she notice her effect on his body? He couldn’t help responding whenever she was near.

He leaned close and nudged his nose into her hair, parting the strands that smelled sweeter than new grass in the spring. “I believe I shall soon accept your offer for a stand for one night. Except…”

Her body stilled and her fingers loosened on his arm. The tips stroked along one of his scales, and he shivered.

“Except…?” she whispered.

“I believe I will need this stand to continue for many nights, not only one.”

11

SADIE

Stand for many nights?

Sadie found the way his translator twisted her language a complete turn on.

Every emotion imaginable filled her.

Complete terror. She was riding on a freakin’ dragon! Draquier… Whatever.

Amazement. While Disty’s wings flapped on either side of them, they soared up and over the forest.

Happiness because, for the first time in forever, she had something to look forward to. Bryk was promising a lifetime. Did she dare trust this to last? She wanted it. So much.

Fear. That she’d be hurt again. But life was for the living. Losing Kyle had proven that to her. If you spent your lifetime mourning what you didn’t have, you wasted the chance to savor the things you did have.

Peace. Because she was beginning to accept that she wanted Bryk. She didn’t know where this was going, but she intended to give him this time to show her what a life with him could be.

Desire. She’d become a shivering, quivering mass of need. She wanted this courtship. She wanted him.

He held her securely in his arms and while she should be terrified, she was fascinated.

Disty flew at a leisurely pace, faster than someone could run but not like the dirt bikes she’d enjoyed when she was a kid.

And the view was awesome. A forest of trees with deep blue leaves sprinkled with bits of yellow and pink spread below her. No houses or life for as far as she could see. The enormous mountain range loomed ahead, some tops buried in puffy white clouds. This was an adventure of a lifetime.

Bryk looked back over his shoulder for a second time.

“What are you looking at?”

He frowned. “I do not believe it is anything.” But he looked again.

Curious, she glanced in that direction, but she didn’t see anything to be concerned about.

“Tell me about Disty,” she asked as a distraction. “Is he the only draquier you’ve raised?” She snuggled deeper in his arms. It wasn’t cold out. In fact, the air was the perfect temperature. Warm enough to wear only short sleeves, but not hot enough to make her sweat. The sun warmed her skin, but the heat radiating off Bryk relaxed her like she was sinking into a hot tub.

“I work with four other draquiers,” he said.

Worked with. Interesting way to put it.

“My people, the Vikir, have raised and trained draquiers forever,” he said.

“Trained? How do you train a giant creature like this? It could stomp you flat if it wanted to.”

“With infinite care and a gentle touch.” His fingertips glided across her thigh, making her tingle. “Like I will be with you.”

“Training?” she laughed.

“If you wish.”

What could he teach her? She almost wanted to ask, but even if he was open to the idea, she wasn’t playing sexy times on the back of a draquier.

“How do you steer Disty?” she asked.

“I…steer with the pressure of my legs. For example, if I wish Disty to turn in this direction, I tap my foot on his side.”

He demonstrated and Disty drifted to the right before another tap on the left sent him back in the direction they’d been traveling.

“Disty is so tame.” She couldn’t get over how gentle the creature behaved.

“A draquier is much like your beasts on Earth.”

No way. “Maybe if we had fire-breathing killer whales.”

“They behave as your deer and cows do. Creatures who rarely attack, who graze on vegetation, and who are usually docile.”

“You’ve read about Earth.”

“I wanted to learn about the home world of my future mate.”

Yet she’d only been given the protocol manual to learn about Crakair. Someone needed to write an extensive book about this planet and these people. Then more Earthlings could learn about the wonders of this world.

“You said we’d arrive in the morning. How many hours is that?” Her curiosity about the Vikir courtship rituals was eating her alive.

“Eight denjars.” He handed her another bar like the one she’d eaten earlier that reminded her of the granola bars she used to enjoy on Earth, only better. “Tomorrow, I will prepare our first meal after we arrive.”

“Sounds great.”

As they ate, Disty swooped up hills and down other sides, traveling slowly up near the first of a series of peaks. Looking at this paradise—no, sharing it with Bryk—made her chest ache.

She was beginning to think she’d truly fit into Bryk’s magical world when the birds attacked. She’d heard their shrieks but when Bryk wasn’t concerned, she’d shoved off her unease.

A flock of six or eight pearly white birds, each the size of a mini-fridge, dove straight at them. Their four clawed limbs were extended, and their wings were tucked close to their sides.

If Bryk hadn’t lifted his arm as the group approached, they would have smacked into her face.

She screamed and wiggled around, trying to climb his chest.

He tugged a short sword from the sheath on his waist and brandished it, the silver blade gleaming in the sunset.

When the birds attacked again, he slashed at them, sending a few of them scattering. Feathers chuffed through the air, and their squawks rang out around them.

Her heart thundered. What could she do? She had no weapon. She had no defense other than Bryk. This was a nightmare she couldn’t escape from. If she was on the ground, she could run and hide. Suspended mid-air, there was no way to escape.

Disty twisted to the right as the demon flock spiraled toward them again. Bryk must have hit one because only six continued to attack.

While she ducked with her hands over her head and tried to present as small a target as possible, Bryk hit one bird then another. A few tumbled away, falling toward the ground. Her heart roared up into her throat like a freight train.

Four left. Undaunted by their dwindling numbers, they kept coming. They’d never stop! They’d attack and peck until she was nothing but a rack of bones.

One raked her shoulder as it passed over them, and she cried out. Shit, shit. Hide! Twisting, she tried to hunch forward, but the two remaining birds had scented her blood and wanted their own taste. While one snagged her hair and wrenched her upward, Bryk grunted and hissed, his sword stabbing one bird then another.

Two left.

Her scalp on fire and sweat pouring down her back, Sadie cringed and waved her arms when the last birds flew toward her, aiming for her face.

“Make them stop,” she whimpered. “No. Get away, beasts!” She struck out and her hand impacted with a bird. Its long white beak latched onto her hand and pulled.

She was yanked off Disty.

Her scream echoed around her, and her belly lurched.

Bryk bellowed and grabbed her leg, but the bird flew faster, and she slipped from his grip.

Suspended in the air, she flailed, trying to beat the bird. The creature’s grip tightened. She shrieked and smacked its legs, but couldn’t get free. She was going to die in this wild and crazy world and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Her poor sister. Why had she left her sister?

Tears stung in her eyes, and her breathing grew ragged.

This was it. She was going to—

Something silver shot through the sky. It hit the bird in the chest, and Sadie was suddenly free. Falling, falling. She scrambled through the air, trying to find something to grab onto. She pictured the impact and the pain she’d feel before she died.

The ground rushed up toward her too fast. She closed her eyes and braced herself for the agony that would rip through her.

“I’m sorry, Lily,” she sobbed. “So sorry.”

Bryk, roaring on Disty’s back, snatched her from the sky. He tucked her in close and she wrapped herself around him.

While her pulse bolted in her throat, she clung and whimpered.

He stroked her back and whispered silly words about a munsire desert and endless jinjin fruit. Maybe a story he’d told Weld. Whatever it was, it soothed her and made her heart rate settle back to normal.

But she couldn’t stop shaking.

“I am sorry,” he murmured against her hair.

“Will they come back?” she croaked.

“I killed them. All of them.” He kissed her forehead. “I will make sure nothing harms you again. Promise.”

But how could he make that vow? This world was wildly beautiful, but this proved it was also scary. For the first time since she’d arrived, she felt vulnerable.

She’d been strong for Lily after their parents died and then strong for her mother-in-law after Kyle passed. But if Bryk died, could she find a way to survive here on her own?

Night fell, and she snuggled in his arms, seeking his warmth. She’d slept the entire night before with him and could do so again if she dared close her eyes.

“Rest,” he said. “I will watch. Nothing will touch you again.”

There was something strangely intimate about sleeping with someone without having sex. As if she bared a part of her soul to him and he cupped it close before giving it back to her freely.

“Thank you,” she finally said.

His arms tightened around her waist. “For what?”

“For rescuing me from the bird.”

“I nearly lost you.” Guttural pain filled his voice.

“You saved me.”

“This time.” He said is so softly, she wondered if he intended for her to hear.

“Why did they attack?”

“They do this. I…I should have watched for them.”

Despite the birds, she did give thanks. He wanted her when no one other than Lily had. A silly thing. Her parents hadn’t rejected her; they’d died. But Kyle had died, too. Her mother-in-law had never cared.

Everyone left her.

She couldn’t speak the words filling her heart. If she did, she’d sound needy. Clingy. Sadie took care of herself. She’d had to since Mom and Dad died. Someone had to be strong for Lily, if not for them both, and that had always been her.

She cleared her throat. “I just…” Her voice choked off. “Thanks.”

He kissed her neck and his naanans glided across her shoulders to her front. Not in a sexual way, though she might welcome that soon, but like a friend when they draped an arm across your shoulders. Sharing warmth. Strength. The moment.

They flew through the night, and the wind made her eyes tear. That was all it was. Not emotions.

Passing more dark hills, Disty soared up and over taller peaks, taking them deeper into the craggy mountain range.

She fell asleep, securely in Bryk’s arms.

She’d expected nightmares to haunt her, but she woke when the sun was cresting the never-ending mountain range. The bright light pierced her eyes and warmed her skin. She stretched and nuzzled into Bryk’s chest. He’d held her all night, keeping her safe.

“You awaken,” he said.

“Yes.” Her voice came out small, though she was determined to put the bird episode behind her and move forward with Bryk. “Did you sleep at all?”

“I watched.”

“Hmm.”

“I will sleep later.”

And she’d watch over him.

He handed her another bar, and they ate, washing down the bites with water from a flask.

Late morning, they came to a small valley between three jagged cliffs and Disty coasted lower, guided by the pressure of Bryk’s legs.

With his feet outstretched, claws unfurled, Dusty tipped his body back and flapped his wings faster. The ground rushed toward them, and they landed with a soft thud on the pink grass.

Not grass, flowers. A full carpet of them stretched from one end of the long valley to the other.

“The flowers are called contrea,” Bryk said. “They are rare, only growing in the valleys within the Ikeline Mountain range. Their scent—”

“Is heavenly. A mix of honeysuckle and rose.” If she could bottle it, she could sell it and make a billion dollars. But maybe it was best enjoyed here, where it grew wild.

Along one end of the valley, a small lake gleamed in the rays slanting across the mountains. It would be dark before they knew it. Would it get cold here in the mountains?

Near the lake, someone had erected a small pavilion, a tiny version of those tents out of Arabian Nights, in bright splashes of color. A tiny flag rippled in the breeze, mounted on the center peak.

“I will help you down?” Bryk asked.

“Yes.”

His arms tightened around her waist as he hitched one leg over Disty’s spikes. One leap and they had landed on the ground.

“I still can’t believe your strength,” she said. “Your agility.”

He puffed his chest, and color rose into his face, though she didn’t think Crakairians blushed. Whistling through his teeth, he got to work unharnessing Disty and placing their belongings on the ground. Then he slapped Disty’s flank.

The draquier lifted and, with a few flaps of its wings, soared into the sky. He turned to the right and headed deeper into the mountains.

“He’ll come back?” she asked. Otherwise, it was going to be a long walk home.

“When it is time, he will hear my call.” Lifting a bag, Bryk secured it on his back.

“What will Disty do in between now and then?”

“He flies free.”

“I think he’s more a friend than a horse or a cow,” she pointed out as she tried to take her bag from him.

With a soft chuckle, he tugged it from her hand and hefted it onto his shoulder. “Disty and I share this world as equals.”

She liked this. Liked Bryk. A lot.

“What’s next?” she asked. Forget attack birds. It was time to focus on their courtship.

“Are you ready to swim with the zinters?”

“Sure. I didn’t bring a swimsuit, though.”

He nudged one of the bags with his chin. “I did.”

They walked across the field to the small tent and he dropped the bags near the flap door. “You may change in here. I have brought you something to wear while in the water, and it is inside my pack. I purchased clothing for you after I spoke with Evie.”

“That’s sweet of you.” No one had ever consulted anyone else before buying her anything, not even when she was little. A stab twisted in her heart, and she swallowed deeply to hold the pinch down.

She ducked inside the small tent that was not much bigger than a porta-potty, with pretty much the same amenities. She used the sort of normal-appearing toilet, and was grateful it didn’t try to pin her down to give her an enema. Then she lifted the soft leather-like garment Bryk had left on his pack that looked like a longish tank top.

After ditching her dress that needed a good washing, she tugged the mini dress over her head and pushed her arms through the openings. Should she take off her undies? Opting to remove her bra, she left on her panties then emerged from the tent.

“This is cute,” she said, spinning on her heel. She still wore the kitten heels she’d brought with her. Fingering the hem of her dress, she frowned. “Is it leather?”

“It is made from plant fiber.” He flipped the edge of his garlong. “This as well.”

“We match.”

He bared his fangs and swept his arm toward the lake. “There are zinters in the water.”

“What’s a zinter and do I need to be worried?” she said as she walked with him toward the water. After the mini-fridge-sized birds, anything could prove a danger.

“A zinter is a luminescent plant-fish hybrid that exists to consume sweat, dead skin, and the dirt they remove from our bodies.”

“Sounds like a shower without the plant-fish hybrid.”

His grin grew wider. “But this is more fun. The emollient the zinters release also has healing properties.”

Confident he wouldn’t lead her into danger, she followed him until he stopped on the muddy shore. Squinting, she tried to see into the teal-colored liquid that looked benign to her. “Do zinters ever do anything bad to those swimming with them?”

“Nothing like that has happened in many yaros.”

“And before that?”

“We have reached an agreement with them.”

“Other than attack birds and an unexpected draquier ride, I’m all about being bold,” she said, ditching her sandals. She paused before advancing into the water. “Does it bother you that I’m ready to jump into things? Because it bothered someone else.”

Kyle. Over the past year, she’d focused more on the nice things he’d done, until the good memories eclipsed the bad. She’d loved him. He’d been good to her. But sometimes… Well, it was water under the bridge, as they said. He was gone. Best not to focus on the things she’d wished she could change and move forward. With Bryk? Time would tell.

“I too am bold,” Bryk said. “I believe grabbing onto life is the best way to get the most out of it.”

“Yup. Latch onto it and make it yours.” She pushed for a smile that became true the longer she held it in place. “Like these zinters.”

Bryk took her hand, and they splashed into the shallow end, the water slowly creeping up their thighs to their waist and then shoulders. When she was treading water, they floated.

The zinters found them.

Sadie jumped, but then laughed. Damn. The tiny fish surrounded her body, and their little mouths—she assumed they were mouths—tickled as they traveled across her skin. While some women might have cringed, she wanted to drink in every moment of this new experience. She stretched out her arms, closed her eyes, and let the zinters do their thing.

“Should we be doing anything while they…feed?” she whispered. She wasn’t sure why she kept her voice low. Maybe she was afraid she’d scare the zinters away?

“We allow them to feed and coat our skin with their emollient. As I said, their essence has great healing properties for Crakairians.”

Please let that not be their poop. She chuckled because, really, what else could she do? The experience was a bit creepy, but it sparked the love of adventure inside her. When in Rome…

“How do they help you heal?”

“They are miraculous. They can return the tissue to its original form and even aid in the regrowth of scales and sekairs.”

Sounded lovely if she was scaled or had sekairs. But everything about Crakair fascinated her. “It’s cool.”

The fish drifted away, leaving them alone in the water.

Dropping her legs down, she kicked to maintain position and faced Bryk.

Floating on his back, he’d closed his eyes. His arms swept out slowly, sweeping through the water. The sunlight sought his scales, and light arced off them like she’d flashed a beam across a field full of diamonds. Across the tops of his shoulders, he had larger scales.

“Will you tell me about these?” She traced her fingertip across one.

“They’re called sekairs, and they’re primarily for defense.” His feet dropped down and he kept his arms moving to hold himself in front of her.

“How do they defend you?”

They flipped up in unison, oval ridges that came to lethal points at the top.

“You can control them?” she asked, amazed. She kept thinking of how the sekair had felt when she’d run her fingers across it, smooth and solid, like armor plating. “And how do you use them for defense?”

“If I choose, I can shoot poison from the tips.”

Whoa. “Have you?”

He nodded. “But let us not discuss that here. Now is for courtship.”

“Can I touch them?”

“Of course.” He drifted so close their breath mingled. The flaps dropped down, blending in and leaving faint seams across his shoulders and upper back.

She glided her fingers across the slight grooves. About five inches long and three wide, they quivered at her touch.

“The emollient keeps them supple.” His voice came out deep and husky. It pulled her closer until their legs tangled together beneath the water.

“You wouldn’t want them failing to rise in the middle of a fight,” she said.

“Not at all.”

“They’re fearsome and softer than I thought they’d be. Flexible like silicone, yet you can make them stand at attention. Are they sensual?”

“Yes, as are my naanans.”

Everything about him fascinated her. So different on the outside, yet so much like her on the inside. Two worlds colliding, yet somehow finding a path they could take together to move forward. “Can I touch your naanans, too?”

“Yes,” he said in a low growl. “You may touch any part of me you wish.”

12

SADIE

Sadie knew they’d been working toward this from the moment they met outside the spaceport bathroom.

Her hunger for him couldn’t be denied.

“I can touch anything I want?” she asked.

He nodded, and his intent gaze remained on hers. As before, in the hover tram, his blue outer pupil had eclipsed the black. His gaze blazed in a white-hot fire that could burn her alive.

One of his longer naanans drifted up over his shoulder and dropped down on his chest.

She stroked it, winding her finger down to the tip.

Tipping his head back, he groaned.

“I’m not hurting you, am I?” she asked.

His cock thrust upward, between them. “Not at all. It feels good. You feel good.”

Her fingers teased down to the tip of the naanan and something inside the end quivered.

“It’s…” She flipped it up and examined the end while his hands tightened along her spine, tugging her closer. “Can I…?” She carefully tucked her fingertip inside the shallow opening and found the source of the vibration. “This is amazing.”

The tendons in his neck stood out sharply, and he groaned again. “You… It’s…”

“Just sayin’, this is highly arousing.” Her voice came out husky, but she was completely turned on from the simple touch.

“They have many uses,” he said as if speaking about the more…technical aspects of his naanans would help him maintain control, but his cock nudged upward, seeking… “Defense.” One whipped outward as if striking something, while the one she held tugged free and glided across her shoulder. It dipped into the water and traced across her chest. The tiny vibration hummed through her, sending sparks through her belly.

“Can I touch you as well?” he asked.

“Anywhere.”

His low chuckle rang out. “You awaken me, Sadie.”

“I hope that’s a good thing.” What exactly was she awakening?

Two of his naanans teased across the fabric covering her breasts. “These…breasts fascinate me. They’re soft yet firm and…” He frowned as the naanans met her hardened nipples. “This…these nubs are…”

“Guys seem to enjoy them. It feels good when you touch them. Touch me.” She swallowed. “Why don’t I take off my dress, and I can show you?”

His eyes met hers. “If you remove your dress, I will not be able to resist you.”

“I don’t want you to.”

A hungry growl ripped up his throat.

He helped her tug the dress up and off her body, and it floated along the surface.

“Fair is fair,” she said, snagging the edge of his garlong and tugging it.

The segments of material soon joined her dress, locking together as Sadie soon hoped to be locked together with Bryk.

His cock twitched between them, and its stronger vibration radiated through her bones.

She wanted to spread her legs and press herself against him. Seek her pleasure all over again. But this time, she wanted him with her. Inside her.

Pushing this would not make it better, not when the best things in life should be savored.

“Your scales are gorgeous.” They gleamed like mica in the sun. His eyes locked on hers as she traced her fingers across his jawline and down his neck, feeling the subtle ripple of each scale lying in uniform precision. His scales continued down his chest, almost to his abs. When she slid her hands across his pecs and around to his back, she discovered the subtle ridges extended down to his butt. “These must provide some sort of defense, too.”

“They can deflect a weapon, though our enemies have learned to craft a blade that will find its way through.”

“Enemies?” She frowned. Her heart pounding, she glanced around as if she expected to find someone rushing toward them, a sword lifted in their hand. “Some of the time, Crakair feels like a paradise, yet I’ve seen its dark side with the birds.”

“Few Crakairians would hurt another outside of a vengeance, but we are not alone in this part of the galaxy.” His gaze drifted upward, toward the sky. “The Al’kieern government rules the moon, Mara, and they make little effort to restrict intergalactic passage. Many species are not as peaceful as the Crakairians.”

She shivered at the confirmation she wasn’t locked in her safe world back on Earth.

“I’m glad you’re here with me,” she said.

“I believe you would host a formidable defense on your own.”

“I’m no ninja, but I have a mean right hook.” Her mood lightening, she made a pretend stab with her fist toward her jaw.

His hand snapped up out of the water, a lightning bolt across the sky, and he grabbed her fist. Then kissed it.

“You’re fast,” she said in awe.

“I have had plenty of training.”

“You were in the military with Vork, right?”

His hands drifted around her waist, helping hold her above water. She cupped his shoulders and clung.

“I was a spacefleet commander, like Vork, but I resigned my commission after my mate died.”

“You miss her.”

He nodded slowly. “I do.”

“Did you love her a lot?” she asked, kicking herself the second the words left her mouth. She didn’t want to hear about how much he’d loved someone else, not when she was starting to believe she was falling for Bryk.

“Crueja was a good woman,” he said.

That told her nothing, but she wouldn’t press.

“I cared for her,” he added.

“You don’t need to share. I shouldn’t have asked.”

“I want to tell you. We…” His attention drifted forward, away from her, as if he was locked in memories. “She and I were good friends in the spacefleet. Everyone assumed we would mate, so we did. I cared for her as she did me, but we never…”

Her head tilted. “What?”

He lifted his hand, revealing the symbol on his palm. “We never formed a full matebond, not like you and I have.”

She shook her head. “I don’t know what the symbol means and I’ll be honest, it scares me.”

“Why?”

“Because it fuses me to you in a way no one else ever has.”

“You had no matebond with your prior mate?”

“Humans don’t have anything like this.”

“You do now.”

“Only with you.” Lately, she felt as if they connected in ways she couldn’t define. Not just through a matching symbol on their palms, but inside, where her squishy part cowered. That part of her was afraid to take a chance, afraid of being hurt again. Was it too late already? This big male could crush her, and not only physically.

Loving someone could result in terrible pain. Did she dare trust him to keep her heart safe?

If she didn’t try, she’d never know what they could be, and she wanted—no, needed—to know. Or regret would haunt her for the rest of her days.

Lifting her hand above the water, she matched their symbols, palm to palm. Heat flashed through her, and her breath caught. “Will it always do that?”

“Fate has decided for us, but we do not need to heed its call.”

“What if I want to?”

His fingers linked with hers, keeping their palms connected. “I feel things for you, Sadie, things that I have never felt before. As I hold your hand, you hold my heart.”

Her chest ached. Kyle had meant everything to her, but with time, the memories they’d made together were fading. Smoothing on the edges. He’d always have a place in her heart, but was there room for another?

“It’s the same for me,” she said. She gulped down her fear, not wanting to push it into this moment. “I want…something. And I think you’re the only one who can give it to me.”

The emotions pouring through were frightening, but how could she deny this?

She held up her other hand. “Is this the right way to do it?”

“You wish a kiss.”

“Honestly, I want a lot more than a kiss.”

“Whatever you ask for is yours.”

“You’re like the perfect guy. Do you have any flaws?”

“Weld could list them for you.”

She grinned. “Maybe I’ll just hang around long enough to learn them all by myself.”

His arms tightened around her waist. “What are you saying?”

“That I’m not here because you pushed me to give this a chance. Not any longer.” Her fingers traced across his sekairs. “I’m here because this is where I need to be. I’m beginning to think it’s where I belong.”

His naanans cupped her face, and his mouth met hers, softly at first but then pushing harder, his tongue parting her lips and meeting hers.

Their hands unlocked. He stroked the side of her breast, and then pinched a nipple between his thumb and finger. “Does this please you?”

“Don’t stop.” She arched her back and locked her legs around his waist. His glorious cock, big and firm and erect, vibrated. The sensation tumbled into her and drove her out of her mind.

Her breathing grew ragged. She pulled him closer, eager to feel all of him, everywhere.

He lifted his head.

“Damn good second kiss,” she rasped out, her voice shaky with emotion. “I want you. All of you.”

“Then you will have me.”

His fingers traced down her side and across her belly. She spread her legs and arched her spine to give him full access.

Sinking low in the water, he glided his fingers across her slit. Silky smooth, as if his fingers were coated with something slippery. But his fingers stalled at the top.

“What is this?” he asked, frowning. “Are you injured?”

As he rubbed, heat rushed through her.

“It’s a clitoris,” she said. “Clit in slang. It feels wonderful when you touch it.”

“Clit.” He probed it with his thumb while two of his fingers teased her opening. “Does one taste it?”

“Whenever you want.” Closing her eyes, she moaned and pressed her forehead against his.

“I like this clit.”

Her chuckle came out throaty. “So do I.”

“I will touch it often. And this…” His fingers glided inside her as if they’d been lubed before penetration.

“Don’t stop,” she gasped out, pushing herself against his hand.

While he supported her with one arm, his hand continued to bring her pleasure. This thumb stroked her clit while his fingers pumped in and out, pushing her closer and closer to the peak.

Usually, water washed away her natural lubrication, but this water… The emollient must…

His fingers pumped faster while his thumb rubbed her clit harder. She bucked against him, rocking her hips forward to meet each thrust.

“I’m gonna come,” burst out of her.

“Do it. I will watch.”

“You can… Oh!” So close. She flailed against his hand while his fingers dove deeper.

She crashed, falling apart in his arms.

“I want…” he said against her hair.

“Take it. Take me,” she gasped, still spiraling. “I want more.” She needed to feel his big, thick cock slamming into her.

She unlinked her legs and released his shoulders, but he remained where they’d kissed, treading water.

“Can you hold your breath for ten seclar?” he asked.

13

BRYK

A fter his question, Bryk watched her face. To think she wanted to be with him. He couldn’t wait to taste every bit of her body, to watch as she came undone.

“Ten seconds? Yes.”

“There is a part of this valley few know exists. I found a place here yaros ago, when I was a youngling and enjoyed exploring. I would like to show it to you. And I would like to be with you there.”

She locked their palms together, and his matebond blood surged. “Show me.”

His arms went around her, holding her close. “Close your eyes and on three…two…one…”

He tugged her down into the water that engulfed them. Taking her with him, he dove toward the bottom, and then swam along the rocky surface, seeking… There.

She held onto him but didn’t cling. Her full trust stunned him. He’d never do anything to make her believe she’d been mistaken in putting her faith in him.

He swam into the hole he’d located at the base of the cliffs. The channel curved upward, and he swept her along with him, his legs kicking hard, propelling them forward.

They emerged from the tunnel and into the small pool. Their heads broke the surface, and they both sucked in air saturated with the tangy-floral essence of blooming acklor that grew in perfusion here in this small cave.

“This place is unbelievable,” she said. “And you found it yourself?”

“I do not believe anyone else knows it exists.” Not even with Crueja. Turning, he faced her, stroking her face with his knuckles. “The valley holds a special meaning to the Vikir. Many use it for courtship and after they marry.”

She clung to his shoulders. “Like for what we call a honeymoon. It means time away from the rest of the world, to spend it with each other.”

He nodded. “When I arranged things here in the valley, I did not know you and had no intention of bringing you to this cave. I have not shared it with anyone else, but I wish to share it with you.”

“I want to see it all.”

They swam to the small pool’s shore and walked out of the water, their feet padding on the lush, cushioned surface.

“What is this stuff?” she asked, stooping down to run her hand across the surface. “It’s pretty. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a plant in this orange-red color before. It’s a living fire.”

“Acklor grows in many caves on Crakair. It is harvested and used to make sleeping surfaces.”

“We call it a mattress where I come from but we make ours from metal coils and various synthetic fibers. Or cotton, I suppose. Many mattresses are made from something called memory foam, which is what acklor feels like. It’s squishy but maintains its shape.”

“Much the same, then.” He scanned the small cave, finding it unchanged from the last time he’d been here, about fifteen yaros ago. The ceiling arched high above, and a small hole in one side allowed in light.

“Except this mattress is alive. Does it remain alive after you pick it?”

“Yes. It is self-sustaining even after it is placed in the bedframe.”

Her cute nose crinkled. “That’s both creepy and cool.” She stood and tipped her head back. “It flows all the way up to the roof.”

“It can be molded and will hold its shape for some time. Let me show you.” He bent down and scooped up clusters of the plant and then carefully constructed a raised surface.

“Lookin’ good there, Bryk,” she said, and he turned to catch her staring at his cock, which was still semi erect. While his mind might have been distracted, his body was not. “If you were going to show your cock off to a Crakairian female, how would you do it?”

“We often wear a specific garment that supports the…” He cupped beneath his cock.

“Balls.”

“Yes, they are balls. The garment lies flush to the male’s skin and often glows or sparkles, to attract attention.”

She shook her head. “I can’t even imagine guys walking around wearing something like that, but you’re going to have to model a few of these garments for me once we return to your farm.”

“I will gladly do so.” His gaze swept down her wet frame. “You are also lookin’ good.”

“Since you’ve humped up the acklor, I’d say you’re making a bed,” she said with humor shining through her husky voice. “Are we camping here tonight?”

If he’d realized how deeply he would have fallen for his chosen mate by this time, he would have stocked provisions in the cave. Sadly, he had not. “We can remain here for a while, but we will have to leave if we hope to eat.”

“Acklor isn’t edible, I take it.”

“Unfortunately not.” He smoothed the broad surface he’d constructed. Within a short time, the mass would ooze back down to one level, but for now, it would hold this position.

“If you hope to seduce me,” she said, coming up behind him and pressing herself against his back. Her arms wrapped around his waist, and she kissed his spine. “Just so you know, I’m ready for that seduction.”

He loved how bold she was, how willing to try anything with him. Her love of adventure matched his own.

Turning in her embrace, he cupped her face and kissed her, long and deep. His tongue traced her lips and she gasped, welcoming him inside.

Heat rose inside him all over again, to the point he thought he’d burst. His cock rose to attention, a rod made of steel.

They parted, both panting.

He lifted her up off her feet. “Is this acceptable?”

Her arms looped around his neck. “I’m beginning to think I need to start asking you to carry me around.”

Nuzzling her neck, he grazed his teeth across her soft skin.

She moaned and tipped her head back. “Don’t stop.”

“I do not intend to.” He lowered her onto the surface and climbed up and over her, spreading his thighs to settle them on either side of hers.

His erection jutted forward, and she glided a fingertip down its length.

“I want this inside me, driving hard and fast,” she said.

“I promise to fulfill your wish, but first…”

She sat up and took the end of his cock into her mouth and sucked.

Groaning, he closed his eyes and gave into the minar. He couldn’t focus on anything but the feel of her tongue and the wet sides of her mouth as she took as much of him inside as she could. He pumped, unable to stop seeking her warmth. He shouted his pleasure, and his voice echoed in the cave.

But she needed to feel ecstasy, and he knew how to give it to her.

Pulling out of her mouth, he laid her on her back and kissed along her neck and down to her breasts. Those glorious mounds he’d been watching, studying for days. How could such things exist? Even more, how could they give her pleasure? He needed to explore them.

He traced the side of her breasts with his hands and she sighed and lifted herself up to his touch. With a naanan, he stroked across her nipple, and it hardened. When the fluttering tip encompassed the rosy bud, she gasped and arched up to meet him.

Leaning forward, he took the other into his mouth and grazed it with his fangs. She bucked, and strained, sighing his name. He sucked on the bud and was rewarded with her plea for more.

These breasts… He liked them. He would touch them often.

Leaving his naanans on her breasts, he kissed his way down her abdomen. He parted her thighs and traced her slit with his finger.

“Yes.” Her head thrashed on the improvised bed.

He licked up her slit and nipped at the small nub at the top. The end of his tongue was forked, and he wrapped it around the bud and tugged.

She bucked and her hands thrashed. “Bryk. Please.”

He wanted so much more.

Slipping a finger inside her, he dove deep. She lifted her hips and met the thrust.

While she moaned and rocked against his mouth, he laved the bud and thrust two fingers inside her.

Her insides tightened, and she thrashed on the improvised bed.

Rising above her, he kissed both of her nipples and her neck, nipping with his fangs.

Then he climbed off the bed.

She lay splayed out for him, and he ached to drive himself deep inside her, but he would did not wish to rush.

“Please,” she said.

He tugged her over to the edge of the bed.

She smiled up at him, and then rolled onto her tummy. She spread her legs wide and looked at him over her shoulder. “I think it’s time you fulfilled that promise.”

14

SADIE

He placed the tip of his huge cock at her entrance and leaned over her.

While his naanans tucked underneath her and stroked her nipples, another wove down between her legs and latched onto her clit.

Oh, fuck. Her eyeballs rolled back in her head.

He dragged his fangs across the nape of her neck, and her skin tingled.

Hell. She was going to come before they got started. And while she ached for release, she wanted him with her when it happened.

“Bryk.”

“Yes, love,” he murmured in her ear.

“Stop foolin’ around and get this party started.”

He snort-laughed. “You mean you want this?” Pushing forward, he advanced what felt like an inch inside her, stretching her with his girth.

“Not enough,” she groaned. Damn, it felt good. Big and wide and almost too much to take. They’d find a way.

“You are a needy female,” he said.

“Don’t tease.” She mewed. Purring, she tried to push back against him, to take all of him at once, but he maintained his position barely inside her.

All the while, his naanans flickered on her nipples and another sucked on her clit. She was going to come undone. She’d spiral up to the cave roof and shoot through the top.

He nudged her thighs further apart and teased her with his fingers. His cock pressed inside deeper, but she wanted it all.

It vibrated, making her pelvic bones hum. She couldn’t take it. With a naanan sucking her clit and his cock trembling inside her, she was going to explode.

“You promised me hard and fast,” she grated out, her voice on the edge. She was on the edge. Only he could take her to the other side.

He braced her hips with his palms and held her steady, then shoved all of himself inside.

Damn, he was big and wide, but that vibration… It sunk through her bones and made her spine tingle.

While she clung to the squishy surface, he held her steady and pumped in and out of her, setting a decent pace at first but then driving faster and faster, until she couldn’t keep up, couldn’t push back quickly enough to meet him.

Holding herself steady, she spread her legs as wide as possible and gasped and moaned while he drove her toward a spine-ripping climax.

She shrieked and shuddered beneath him while he pushed harder, tighter, his cock seeming to grow even bigger.

He clenched inside her and groaned hoarsely. While he twitched, vibrated, and spasmed against her inner walls, he dropped down onto her, bracing much of his weight on his arms.

He kissed the top of her head and growled out his pleasure.

They stayed in the cave a few hours, utilizing the acklor surface until it started to compress and ooze back down to the cave floor. Eventually, it merged with the rest, recreating the thick flaming carpet.

Leaving the cave, Sadie swam beside Bryk, teasing his side with her fingertips. The tiny nub of a tail sticking out at the top of his ass. She hadn’t known about that!

His sekairs lifted, and his fangs gleamed in the light streaming down through the body of water ahead. He swirled around her like a merman, stroking her skin until flames licked through her all over again.

They broke the surface and clung to each other, kissing and stroking, until she pulled away and shook her finger at him. “I’m starved. This courtship deal is supposed to come with a master chef.”

He captured her finger and sucked it into his mouth, his tongue swirling across the tip.

“And that’s distracting,” she said in a dreamy voice. “Why are you so irresistible?”

“If it helps any, I cannot resist you either.” He tugged her close. “I have a special surprise for you.”

She pressed herself against him. “This, right?”

He groaned. “I would cook for you.”

“You still can. I’m up for a quickie, and I think you are, too.” Her fingers closed around him and she guided him to her.

He pushed inside, and she wrapped her legs around his waist. As he moved, she moaned and bit down on his shoulder.

They spiraled into another climax together, shuddering in each other’s arms.

Limp, she clung to his shoulders. Good thing he was holding her up. If he let go, she’d slink down to the bottom of the lake.

“You are eager for my other surprise, are you not?” he said in a husky voice by her ear.

Spent, it was all she could do to tip her head back. “I’m not moving unless it’s takeout pizza.”

He frowned. “I will cook you a traditional meal in the way of the Vikir. That is better than this take-in pizza.”

Nothing beat pizza, but she was here to try new experiences. “Does the meal involve chopping hunks off the innards of a giant creature?”

“You enjoyed the gref.”

“I did, but still.” The thought of it still creeped her out. “Does it involve us hunting and skinning anything?”

“The food has already been hunted and skinned.”

“That’s reassuring.”

They retrieved their floating clothing and walked through the shallow water, heading for shore.

She held up her dress. “You didn’t happen to bring a clothes dryer on Disty, did you?”

“I do not have a dryer, whatever that is, but I have a better idea than drying.”

“We’re gonna run around naked? Only if it warms up.” Her arms snaked around her waist, but she couldn’t contain her shivers. The sun had set while they hung out in the cave, and the temp had dropped. Not to freezing but into the fifties, if she had her guess. “How are you going to keep me warm tonight?”

“I will wrap myself around you.” He took her hand and tugged her toward the tiny tent.

“Sounds good but where are we sleeping? If there was a bed, I missed it inside the bathroom.” After the birds attacking, she wasn’t excited about sleeping outside.

When they reached the little tent, he tapped her butt. “Change into something comfortable while I dress in a new garlong, and we shall see what I, your master chef, can produce.” He smacked his fist on his chest. “As for tonight’s rest, I have prepared something special for us.”

She could live with that.

She ducked inside and rummaged around inside her bag, dragging out leggings and a tee, plus a zippered sweatshirt emblazoned with her favorite sports team.

When she emerged from the tent, she found the area empty.

15

BRYK

“Bryk? Where are you?” Sadie’s voice shot out, full of so much panic, it made his heart surge up into his throat.

He bolted forward, rounding to the front of the tent where he wrapped his arms around her. “I’m here. I was changing as well.”

“Oh, jeez. I’m sorry I freaked out a bit there.” She swallowed, and her blazing eyes met his. “I thought…”

He cupped her face and kissed her cute nose. “You know I will never leave you.”

“It’s just that… Well, you know. After the birds, I’m trying to hold it together. Crakair is wonderful, but everything is new and different and…”

“Strange for you.”

The laugh she pushed out sounded shaky, but she nodded. “Strange. Yes, that’s a good way to put it. But I’m doing my best to adjust.”

She was, and he appreciated that. He’d do all he could to help her feel comfortable here, because he desperately wanted her to stay.

“You’re no longer naked, which is a sad thing.” Her gaze warmed as it traveled down his front. “I do love this garlong thing, however.”

“Then I shall wear it for you whenever you ask.”

She nuzzled his chest, and they kissed, slowly and with growing heat. It took all his willpower to ease back away from her. If they kept kissing, he’d never begin the official courtship rituals.

“What does that mean?” he asked, pointing at the writing on her thick, hooded shirt.

“This?” She tugged the dark material away from her body and stared down. “Boston Bruins. I’m—I was, that is—a Bruins fan. Ice hockey. It’s a sport that’s played in a large arena full of smooth ice, with six guys on each team. They skate, which involves gliding on blades mounted on their shoes, across the ice, while pushing a small disc around with sticks. The winner is the team who gets the most points by shooting the disc into a net.”

He could not imagine how such a sport could be played, but would love to one day watch if he could do so with Sadie.

“I don’t imagine I’ll see a game again,” she said sadly. “But that’s okay.”

“Someday, Earth and Crakair will be so interwoven, we will be able to take a shuttle to watch your Bruins of Boston.”

The soft smile she gave him lightened the mood. “That would be cool.” She glanced around, and her arms snaked around her waist. “So, what about that meal?” Her glance took in the area. “Are you cooking it here? I love barbeque, by the way, but maybe we should get the fire going?”

“We will climb up into the trees, and I will prepare your meal there,” he said. “Then we can…watch the wildarns root below.” A kind way of suggesting they needed to get off the ground. As soon as the sun set, the wildarns would forage. They couldn’t remain on the ground or the beasts would pick up their scent and attack.

“Wildarns, huh? Almost sounds like some sort of wild pig.”

“Perhaps?” he said.

“After those birds, I’m ready to either kick some creature’s ass or hide. Both, if need be.”

“Large creatures that run in herds, wildarns stomp everything in their path.”

“Sounds…less intriguing.” She laughed ruefully. “When you say large, how big are we talking?”

“Larger than me.”

“And they root in packs?”

“Eight or ten or so.”

“Since Crakair is full of all sorts of… wild creatures, I assume wildarns have horns and tusks and sharp hooves.”

“Yes.”

“And we’re gonna…hide in the trees while they stomp through?”

“We are going to relax in luxury among the treetops and watch them stomp through.”

“Almost like watching the Bruins, I suppose.” She chuckled, the rest of her tension leaving. “I told you I wasn’t much of an outdoor girl, but I’m intrigued about what you have in store for me next, especially when you referred to it as a luxury. The two don’t seem to fit.”

He took her hand. “Come. I will show you.”

He led her into the forest and through the dense growth, weaving around bushes and trees, and taking a path he had not used before. After the Selection was announced, he’d come here and began construction. While others had stayed in this valley for courtship in the past, they’d brought guards to keep the wildarns at bay, and erected large tents to hide inside at night. Bryk had wanted to do something different. And now that he’d met Sadie, he was grateful he’d made the effort.

They reached the base of the tree he’d worked with, a tricar hundreds of yaros old and many arms’ span wide.

He pointed toward the top. “We shall watch them comfortably from up there.”

She tipped her head back, but he’d disguised their lair with brush and leaves. None would find it. Not a wildarn or a Vikir or anything else that might hunt this area on the ground or in flight.

“Can I fling you over my shoulder now?” he said, lifting his arms toward her.

“Is this one of those times where I’m going to beg?” she said as she tumbled close.

“Climbing would provide a challenge for you, but I can carry you up there easily instead.” His arms went around her, holding her close. Lately, that was the only time he felt confident she was safe. “You can close your eyes if you wish.”

“I think I want to see everything.”

“Then hold on.”

She linked her arms around his neck and wrapped her legs around his waist. His cock responded as if it hadn’t already been with her multiple times today. But he was getting behind on his courtship, which meant he needed to pamper her as much as possible.

He crouched and leaped up, landing solidly on the lowest platform he’d constructed for this purpose. Not pausing, he jumped again, rising higher and higher with each bound until the upper branches and leaves surrounded them. His final leap took them through a dense nest of brush he’d hauled up to this area, and into the base of his courtship lair.

The Vikirs of old used to capture women and hold them high in the trees, to keep the females from escaping. Then they’d lure them with funjure wine and play an intricate game of seduction until the women were so enthralled, they’d consent to the marriage.

Bryk planned to seduce Sadie, though he did not need the wine. And if she asked for release, he would grant it. But he did like the idea of a Vikir lair in the trees for his courtship.

He lowered Sadie onto her feet, and she looked around.

“Whoa. This…” She blinked fast as if to clear her vision. “This is incredible. Awesome.” Clutching his arm, she grinned. “And you made all this?”

“Yes.”

He took in the work he’d completed over the past few likars and pride filled him.

“Let me show you?” Taking her hand, he led her along the plank walkway that stretched from the base he’d created at the top of this tree, to another a quarter klek away. To add stability, he’d used long vines for handrails and wove them into a fence connecting to the base. The boards creaked and shifted beneath his feet, but he’d proven they were secure already.

“This is…incredible,” she said with awe in her voice as she huddled close to his back. “I can’t believe you made this.”

He turned to face her. “I did it for you. Or for the person I hoped you would be. If I had not felt a rapport with you, we would have remained at my farm and proceeded with the usual courtship. But you, my lovely contrea flower, knocked me to the ground from the moment I met you.”

She held up her hand. “Does this symbol have anything to do with it?”

He kissed her palm, and the bond, as always, sent heat surging through him, centering in his cock. He couldn’t imagine ever tiring of her, of never wishing to be with her.

After kissing her thoroughly and to the point he was eager to tug all her clothes off with his fangs, he took her hand and led her the rest of the way across the bridge. They reached another platform he’d suspended out from the side of the tree, supporting it with braces beneath.

“Oh, a bedroom?” she asked as she walked past him and to the sleeping surface. She pushed down on it with her hands and then, turning, dropped onto her back. Sighing, she wiggled and moaned. “Damn, this feels heavenly. It must have taken you a long time to collect and haul all this acklor here.”

“Only a short time.” He approached the bed and stared down at her. He wanted her again. Now. Plus tonight, tomorrow, and for the rest of their lives, but he had to complete at least one part of the courtship before lying with her on the bed. “I also attached netting to keep out the crawling creepsters.” He bared his fangs.

She frowned, and then laughed. “Oh. Creepy crawlies. I’m glad I’m not the only one who doesn’t want them around. I so appreciate that.” Curling her finger toward him, she smiled. “Care to join me in bed, big green guy?”

Forget food. He dropped down over her and devoured her mouth. Their breathing grew ragged as they ripped at each other’s clothing, tossing things aside until skin could meet skin. Their groans echoed around them as they gave into the moment.

“Phew. That was out of this world,” Sadie said as she collapsed on his chest after. “And there’s no pun there. You’re out of this world, too.”

He rolled her onto her back and braced himself over her again, trailing kisses along her collarbone to her breast. Sucking the nipple into his mouth, he swirled the end of his forked tongue over the tip. He glanced up in time to see her eyes close.

She arched her hips up toward his, but then tapped his shoulder. “Hey. No more distractions. You promised me a meal, and it’s time to deliver.”

With a growl, he lifted himself up and off her.

She sat up on the bed and traced his cock, making it twitch. “You’re going to wear me out, but I’ll die a happy lady.”

He tugged her up off the sleeping surface and into his arms. “No talk of death. Only of life.”

She tipped her head back and fed him a smile that warmed him all the way through.

After they threw on their clothing, he led her from the small bedroom and started across another bridge.

“There’s more to the treehouse than one room?” She stared around in amazement. “How long did you say this took to build?”

“I did not say, but likars.”

“Only weeks? I can’t believe it. You’re a fabulous carpenter.” She nuzzled his chest. “You smell good, too.” Her tongue peeked out and traced across his pec. “Taste good, too, and I’m hungry.” She bit down then ran her tongue across the scales, nibbling while her fingertips dipped beneath his garlong.

He shivered and his cock grew harder. No worry about her; she was going to wear him out.

“Feed me, big alien dude, and then we can get back to the fun stuff.” Leaving him with his cock aching and his heart on fire, she sashayed past him, heading toward the next tree. “We can’t live on sex alone.”

“I am willing to try,” he mumbled. Unable to take his eyes off her cute little ass in her tight black leg coatings—leglings?—he followed.

“Feed me quick,” she said over her shoulder as she reached the next platform, “and I’m yours for the rest of the night.”

With a growl, he charged after her, catching up and tapping her ass. “I am eager for more fucking.”

She turned in his arms, but her belly rumbled. “See? Take care of that, and I’ll have the energy for some sexy aerobics tonight.”

“What is this aerobics?”

“Feed me and I’ll show you.”

That was enough incentive to get their meal ready fast. “Come and see the rest of our house—made from trees.”

She joined him in the next room. “This is very cool, by the way.”

“The words hot and cool confuse me. They mean the same thing?”

“Cool is awesome.”

“An Evie word.”

Sadie smiled. “I can’t wait to visit with her. But you’re right; it’s her go-to word. Everything is awesome for Evie.” Her fingertip trailed down his chest. “Hot means sexy. They both mean you like something but in different ways.” After bumping up onto her toes to give him a kiss, she turned to survey the other room he’d constructed. “A living room. Cool.”

Cool was beginning to make sense. “You like it.”

She dropped down into the lounge he’d built. “More acklor. I love it. We’ll be comfy no matter where we decide to hang out.”

“I will prepare our meal. This will be the first part of our courtship.” He approached the tree trunk and tugged down the vine he’d used to bind the kangeer. The round, flexible creature bobbed in front of him, turning slowly to face Sadie. It bared its teeth and snarled.

Sadie shrieked but slapped her hand over her mouth, cutting off the sound. Her wide eyes met his. “What…what…?”

After quickly returning the kangeer to where it had waited, he tugged Sadie up off the lounger and held her close.

“I’m okay,” she mumbled against his chest. “I was startled.”

Would she be able to adjust all the new things here on Crakair? He didn’t live in the city like Vork. Life on his farm would be much rougher. He loved her. He’d do anything to help her feel comfortable in his world, but what if she never was?

He hated she was scared when he was the cause.

“What is it?” she asked, peering toward the vine dangling from above. “It looked like a cross between a pufferfish and a possum. Only a hell of a lot bigger.” Her voice dropped off to almost nothing. “Like everything on Crakair.”

“A kangeer. And despite how it behaved, it is harmless.”

“Tell that to the thing that snarled. Why is it here?”

“I will use it to prepare our meal in a pouch as Vikirs did many yaros ago.”

“It’s sort of like a microwave oven?” Her laughter snorted out, but an edge of unease threaded through it.

“I will prepare your meal inside its pouch.”

“This, I gotta see.” She dropped back down onto the lounge again and waved her hand toward the vine. “Yank on that baby. I promise not to jump this time.”

He tugged down the kangeer but kept it facing the tree so it wouldn’t threaten her again. “They are simple creatures. Once you know how to work with them, you will see this as well. This is how they normally live, hanging in the trees. I looked for one before building my courtship lair.”

“I’m all for a guy who enjoys cooking,” she said, tucking her legs beneath her. “But how is that thing going to cook anything?”

“Watch.” He left the kangeer dangling and retrieved his pack from where he’d left it in the bedroom. Bryk had prepared food for others before, but this time, a meal held more meaning. Each step in the courtship could be judged. He would be judged. Would she find him worthy? From inside his pack, he removed the ingredients needed for their meal. “Would you like a drink?” he asked. “I have many varieties of beverages.”

“Like what?”

He pulled out the jugs, one by one. “Water, of course, plus quarklet, which is a watery juice. I also brought a few bottles of a drink made from funjure berries that is similar to what Earthlings call wine. Plus a bottle of aged vintip.”

“What’s vintip?”

“Fermented digerias blood.”

Her face crinkled. “Sounds too close to draquier blood for my taste.”

“They are very different. The digerias blood is freely given. They are a small rodent that—”

“I’ll pass on the vintip, thanks.” Her swallow went on a long time. “How about some quarklet? While the funjure berry drink sounds interesting, I’ll skip it tonight. I don’t want to get drunk.”

“What is drunk?” he asked as he poured her a glass of quarklet from the corked jug and brought it to her. He waited until she had sipped and smiled up at him. Quarklet was good. Many Crakairians drank it. It was made from a different sort of blood, though the blood was tapped from a type of plant-creature hybrid.

She drank deeply, and then lowered the glass onto the flat, rough floor he’d constructed of bound branches. “Drunk is what happens when someone consumes too much alcohol. Your brain spins, and when you wake up in the morning, your stomach hurts and your head is pounding.”

“Ah, yes, we call that being marley. One acts silly most of the time when one is marley. And yes, the pounding of the head follows.”

“I want a clear head tonight.” Her gaze cut to the bedroom, and her laugh came out low and deep. “So hurry up with that dinner.”

Not trying to hide his grin, he opened the containers of herbs and tossed pinches into the two pouches he’d brought. The scent of fresme and divver swirled up into the air, combining with the heady fragrance of the contrea buds carpeting the valley below. They’d close at night but would reopen come sunrise and share their perfume again.

Sadie shifted her legs on the lounge, moving onto her side.

To the pouches, he added chunks of cornling eggs and slices of tetria, a vegetable he grew on his farm and sold to food suppliers. It came in varying shades of blue, and he’d brought the teal variety for their meal. His belly rumbled as he anticipated eating the dish.

“Is it okay to talk while you prepare the meal?” she asked.

“As long as you do not distract me.” A nearly impossible request. He could barely focus on the task while she sat so near. “I would not wish to make a mistake with my first courtship meal.”

“Maybe you’re distracting me.” Her hand flicked toward him. “I love the garlong. It leaves almost nothing to the imagination.” Her eyes gleamed like rich kerrick wood as they watched him, and her hair rivaled spun wexer thread in the low lights he’d lit and set around the edges of the room. “Is it wrong for me to make it plain that I want you? I don’t know the norms surrounding something like this. I hope I’m not giving offense by offering myself to you.”

Leaving the meal, he strode over and stopped in front of her, stooping down so he could cup her face with his hands. His naanans, almost with a mind of their own, sought her, stroking her shoulders and teasing the nape of her neck. They hungered. He hungered. “I am not offended.”

“Good. Because I’m forward.” She snickered. “You might have caught on to that already.”

He loved that she went after what she wanted, especially if it was him. Did he dare tell her of his feelings? They’d met such a short time ago, but their relationship had developed as fast as fiery laveer bursting up from the top of an active volcano.

Shadows flickered across her body, and she wrapped her arms around her waist.

“Are you cold?” he asked.

“Maybe? A little.”

He tugged a sheetling from his pack and draped it around her shoulders.

She tucked the ends in close to her chin. “Thanks.”

It was what he’d always do for his mate. Pleasing her pleased him.

Returning to their meal, he closed the pouches of food. He pivoted the kangeer around, and while it hissed and snarled, he tucked the pouches into the opening in its belly.

“If you’re cooking our meal with body heat, we’re going to be old before it’s ready to eat,” she said. She drank more of her quarklet.

“Watch.” He tapped the kangeer’s nose, and it snorted but stopped trying to bite his fingers. “This one has no young. Normally, they generate energy to feed their pups.” Stroking the creature’s head, he moved his fingers to its back.

The kangeer cooed and sighed as he ran his fingertips up and down its spine.

“Jeez, Bryk,” Sadie said with laughter in her voice. “I’m getting jealous.”

“It likes to be touched,” he said, baring his fangs, delighted she was enjoying his “cooking show,” as she had called it.

“Don’t we all,” she sighed.

As he continued to stroke and pat the kangeer, it arched its spine.

He stepped backward. “Do not be startled,” he said in a low voice, hoping this time, Sadie would not fear what happened.

Her body tightened, but she didn’t take her eyes off the kangeer.

It shuddered, and its skin rippled.

“What’s happening to the poor thing?” she asked, leaning forward.

He held up his finger. “Watch.”

Another shudder and lightning arced across its entire body. Sparks flew off as the electric current built to a blazing inferno.

“It’s burning up!” Sadie cried, rising to her feet.

He tugged her close and wrapped his arms around her. “Almost finished.”

Blue-white fire blasted across the kangeer’s body, then died down to a dull hiss.

“Whoa,” she said. “Did we crisp the poor thing for dinner because…while it needs to learn better social skills, it doesn’t need to die.”

“It lives.” Releasing Sadie, he pivoted the kangeer around until its belly faced them. He tugged the pouches out and handed one to her.

She tossed it from one hand to the other. “Hot. Hot.”

“Place it on the stump.”

“You mean our coffee table?” She slanted a look in that direction. “Good idea.” After dropping the pouch onto the flat, wooden surface, she sat on the lounger and stared at their meal. “You are so freakin’ clever. How did you learn about this?” Her hand flicked toward the kangeer that was cooing and purring again. “It’s incredible. You’re incredible.”

“Incredible is another word like cool?”

“Even better.” She patted the lounger beside her. “Sit. We can eat together.”

“I must feed you.”

“Tell you what,” she said. “Join me. I’ll feed you and you can feed me. It’s more efficient that way.”

“But that is not how it is done.”

“The idea of this courtship is to convince me to like you, correct?”

He nodded as he dropped down beside her on the smooth surface.

“Consider me happy, then.” Her lips formed a perfect pout. “Well, depending on how this tastes. But it smells fabulous.” She eased the side of the pouch apart and steam wafted from inside. “I can’t wait to try it. Are we eating with our fingers?”

“I have an implement.” He retrieved it from his pack and dipped it into her pouch before presenting her with a steaming bite of cornling egg coated with juice and spices.

She tugged it off with her even teeth, and closing her eyes, shimmied as she chewed and swallowed. “Well, that’s a success. This is almost like Chopped. You worked with mystery ingredients, and I get to taste test.”

They fed each other, even scraping out the bottom of the pouch and then tipping them up to drink the juice left inside.

“How have I done with my first venture into courtship?” Bryk asked after they set the pouches on the stump.

Turning toward him, she cupped his shoulders. “Keep this up, and I might just marry you.”

16

SADIE

Suggesting marriage was bold of Sadie, but Evie had told her she and Julia, the Earth woman who’d wound up with the Crown Prince of Crakair, had proposed to their mates.

Since it seemed to be a tradition, Sadie had decided three times would be a charm.

How long did it take for a woman to know she’d met a man she wanted to spend the rest of her life with?

For Sadie, only a few days.

He rose. “The proposal is my role.”

“The proposal is your role?” she repeated softly. “Who says?”

“Culture. Tradition.”

“Hi,” she said, holding out her hand. “I’m an Earth woman and we not only know our own minds, we often propose to a guy we love if we so choose.”

He stilled. “You love me.”

Crap. Maybe she should have kept that part secret? But love was made to be given, not trapped inside. If she’d learned nothing from the loss of her husband and parents, it was that life could be cut off abruptly. “If you don’t latch onto the moment, it’ll pass and you’ll miss out. If telling you I love you is wrong on Crakair, I’m not going to apologize.” Her hand pressed against her chest. “What I feel needs to be spoken, not hidden away because I’m worried I’ll be hurt. I’ve been there. Done that. So there. If you don’t want me. If you would rather I not tell you how I feel, well, then you can say so. But I’m not taking back my words.” Her damn eyes wouldn’t stop tearing. She sniffed.

“Sadie,” he said. Was he about to let her down gently? How the hell would she get back to the spaceport? She doubted Disty would come to her call.

He dropped down on one knee.

“What are you doing?”

“This is a male Earth thing, is it not? Weld told me it was.”

“You’re…”

He took her hand. “My courtship is not finished. My fucking is not finished.”

She snorted. “Lord, I sure hope not.”

He lifted his heavy brows to encourage her to stop chatting, and she used her fingers to show she was zipping her lips.

“But my heart has chosen you,” he said. “Will you be open to remaining here on Crakair as my mate?”

“Yes.”

“Yes?” Joy shot through his voice. He jumped to his feet and picked her up. “See? No flinging you into the sky.”

“Save that for Disty.”

He spun in a circle until she was dizzy and giggling. Then he kissed her. He kept on kissing her even as her feet dropped back down to the floor.

They parted, and while he bared his fangs, she smiled.

She wrapped her arms around him, and her pulse soared. “Bryk.”

“Sadie.”

“About that fucking you’ve promised from the moment we met… Maybe it would be okay, just this once, for you to toss me over your shoulder. As long as you take me to bed.”

Grunts rising from below woke Sadie. She sat up, and the light blanket Bryk had tossed over them earlier pooled at her waist. Peering around, she couldn’t see what might be producing the sounds, but she couldn’t see much beyond the small bedroom. Outside the netting, full night hovered over the world, lit only by a peppering of stars overhead and a greenish tint from Crakair’s three moons.

Bryk traced a fingertip down her spine, and delicious shivers traveled through her. She swore they’d had sex at least fifty times and in fifty different ways with him already, but if he nudged her back down onto the bed, she’d do it with him again.

Would it always be like this between them?

It hadn’t been this way in the past, but she must have forgotten. She and her husband had been married for over a year. Maybe things cooling down between them was the norm. Funny, but she had a feeling she would want Bryk this much even after ten years.

More grunts drifted up from the ground, and her skin rippled with goosebumps. What was that sound?

Bryk shifted on the bed beside her. “Do you hear the wildarns?” he asked, low and quiet. He sat up and put his arms around her, tugging her up onto his lap. His lips trailed from her jaw to her ear, and he grazed his fangs across her neck.

It was all she could do to focus on the conversation.

“Can we see them from up here?” she asked, equally softly. Maybe if they leaned over the edge—

“No, but if you would like, I can take you lower, and we can watch them. They are unusual creatures to observe.”

She nodded.

They rose, and with only the moon, Mia, overhead for light, she tugged on her leggings and a t-shirt while Bryk tied his garlong around his waist.

Holding her close, Bryk leaped down a few levels to a platform about fifteen feet above the ground. From the shelter of his arms, she leaned over, spying on the wildarns through the leaves.

“Whoa,” she huffed out. “These things are—”

With an abrupt snort, the head of the biggest wildarn lifted, and its gaze scanned the area. It stomped a clawed foot and slashed its mammoth-length horns.

The other wildarns with him continued rooting in the soil, shoving aside leaves and sticks as if they sought things to eat; she wasn’t sure what. Plants, insects, or small rodents.

Still sheltering her in his arms, Bryk laid a finger on her lips and shook his head. She nodded to show she understood they should keep their voices quiet.

Inching closer to the edge, she watched as the creatures moved slowly beneath them, the jagged blue spikes on their hunched backs so close she could touch if she dropped her arm over the edge and stretched out her hand. The herd of ten wildarns snorted and shuffled along, behaving much like the wild pigs she’d seen on TV a few times back on Earth. Except, these beasts had yellowed fangs projecting down beyond their long, hairy snouts, and eight legs. Their long tails with spikes switched back and forth and even flipped up onto their spines, driving away bugs.

Bryk leaned close and whispered by her ear. “The largest is the bull.”

“And the others?”

“Dams.” He paused. “Females. He is the only male and these are his females.”

“A harem, huh?”

“I know not what a harem is but this bull fucks whichever of them he pleases. The females let him.”

“A harem isn’t common on Earth any longer, but powerful men used to keep multiple women. I guess he’d marry some of them, or all of them for all I knew. But he could then have sex with whichever woman he wanted at that moment.”

Bryk released a surprised and perhaps pleased snort. Figured. Men were men, no matter what planet they grew up on.

“Don’t get any ideas,” she said. “My eyes may be brown, but they can go green in a flash if given a reason.”

“This green eyes mean…?”

“Jealousy. Just so you know; I don’t share.”

“This is good because I do not either. I am only yours.”

“Ditto.”

A shriek to their left pierced the night, and Sadie jumped. Bryk’s arm tightened around her, and he kissed her cheek. “Interesting. Another male arrives.”

“Is this good or bad news for the females?” she asked with a snicker.

“You shall see.”

“A rather ominous statement, Bryk.” This place may look like paradise on the surface, but it as wild and untamed as Bryk.

He bared his fangs.

Clouds parted, and Mia’s beams lit up a small clearing to the left.

Crashes in the trees grew louder and a big, scarred wildarn burst into the open area. He shook his head, gnashing his fangs. His horns whistled through the air. Spit flew around him, glistening on the grass where it landed.

The bull below them tipped his head back and bellowed out a challenge. He stomped forward, into the moonlight, and the newcomer snorted and dragged his claws across the ground, leaving deep grooves in the soil.

“They will fight,” Bryk said. “Will the first male maintain control of his harem or will he relinquish it to the older bull?”

“The new guy on the scene is old?”

“By a few years, though, wildarns live to almost thirty yaros.”

“He’s a silver fox.” She grinned, but her smile faded. “Are we safe where we’re hiding?”

“Yes.”

That was a relief. The creatures didn’t have wings, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t ram the tree and send her and Bryk tumbling down to land among the females milling about, snorting with unease.

The two males galloped toward each other, and the ground thundered. When their heads hit, the crashing crack echoed across the area in sharp shockwaves.

Their feet churned the ground and their muscles strained as they battled, each trying to shove the other backward or gouge with horns.

The newcomer drew first blood, grazing the bull’s side with a fang. He followed it up by charging forward and stabbing a horn deeply into the first bull’s flank.

Whirling around, the younger bull struck the scarred male with his tail, slicing its thick, leathery hide. Blood dripped from each of the beasts, speckling the ground.

“See how they battle,” Bryk said. “When I was a child about Weld’s age, I followed the hunters.”

She watched as the bulls continued to battle, each eager to win the prize. “You grew up out here, with the Vikir.”

“Although they do have some technology, they choose to live simply. They prefer to continue the old ways as much as possible, and that includes hunting and gathering food.”

“Sounds nice.”

“I followed the hunters, and they killed a female wildarn.”

“That’s sad, but I get it. You needed the meat.”

Below, the females mingled, watching the bulls fight it out. The bulls locked horns, and the newcomer shoved the herd’s male backward until his claws sunk into the ground. Roaring, he slashed his horns, slicking a cut in the older bull’s side.

“The female wildarn the hunters killed had a youngling, though they did not know or they would have sought other prey. As the hunters carried the cut carcass back to our village, the youngling followed its mother’s scent, bleating.”

“Poor thing.”

“My thought as well. The hunters pulled weapons, prepared to kill the youngling, but I jumped in between them and made them stop.”

“What happened next?” she said as the bulls continued to battle.

“The hunters showed fangs and said if I would spare the youngling’s life, I must become its mother.”

“What did you do?” His story was almost more fascinating as the fight going on down below.

“I raised the youngling, feeding it, playing with it, and then riding it.”

“On those spikes?” She studied the thick spine ridges on the females milling underneath them.

“Of course.” Pure arrogance came through in his voice. “I can ride anything.”

“What happened to him? Did he die?”

“Chugge, as I called him, was big and strong.” Bryk puffed his chest. “Like me. With a huge cock. Also, like me.”

“Arrogant much?” She tried to scowl, but her smile came through.

“This is the truth, is it not?”

She couldn’t deny it.

With a flash of his fangs, he sat up and leaned against the tree, stretching his legs out. He patted his lap. She joined him and snuggled into his chest. Turning, she faced the clearing to watch the ongoing battle while Bryk continued his story. “Time passed, and Chugge grew older. He wished to find a mate, like me.”

“Or, eight or ten mates, unlike you.”

Bryk’s chest shifted with his soft chuckle.

In the meadow, the bull that’d proudly guarded his harem stumbled but caught himself before falling.

“Chugge did as this older bull does. He found a herd, and he challenged.”

“What happened?”

“He won.”

“Good for Chugge. Then he had lots of wildarn quickies.”

Bryk’s naanans settled on her chest, and his arms tightened around her waist. “Watch. It is nearly over.”

In the meadow, the older bull charged toward the younger. Their horns hit with a huge crack, but the younger bull staggered again. The wound on his flank continued to bleed heavily, and blood loss must be wearing him out. When the challenger rushed toward him again, he turned and fled into the woods.

“It’s over and there’s a new winner,” she said.

The older bull stood in the center of the meadow, his sides heaving as blood trickled down his chest from a wound on his shoulder.

Curious, the females moved toward him, surrounding him.

“What’ll happen to the one who lost?” she asked.

“He will heal and challenge another. It is the way.”

The females huffed and stomped but moved around until they presented the male with their rear ends.

“Whoever wins will take all the females one by one,” Bryk said.

“He’ll screw nine females in one night?” she whispered, amazed. Talk about wearing themselves out.

“In one hour.”

“Quickies, huh?” She snickered. “I feel bad for the females. Not much fun in that most of the time.”

“Would you like to watch?” he asked in a deep voice that made her skin tingle. His hand slid to her butt and stroked, while his naanans glided along her nape and shoulders. It was a normal movement. Like Bryk comforted her, but each touch left behind flames.

“Wildarn voyeurism?”

“If you wish.”

“Let the fucking commence,” Sadie said, strangely intrigued. She should drag Bryk back to bed—or let him carry her there—but she couldn’t look away. “When Chugge won, you got quite an eye-opener for an eight-yaro-old boy.”

“I did not understand then, but I did later.” His fingers tickled along her thigh, and she spread her legs wider.

“How old were you when you first had sex?” Was that her voice coming out breathy? She’d barely been moving.

“Fifteen yaros.”

“Young.”

“She was older and much like these females, waving her ass in my face and asking the bull in me to take her.”

Sadie shouldn’t be fascinated by this; she’d seen animals do stuff like this on TV plenty of times, even the wild boars she’d likened to the wildarns. But she couldn’t look away.

“Would you like to leave?” he asked by her ear, his exhale sending heat through her body.

“No.”

“Who is the voyeur now?”

Both of them. “What happened to Chugge?” she asked.

If someone told Sadie she’d one day be turned on while watching wild animal sex, she would have laughed her head off.

She wasn’t laughing now.

“What happened to Chugge after the fucking?” he asked.

She snorted and rolled her eyes. “Yes.”

“Herds move on. I never saw him again, though I looked each year when groups migrated through the valleys near my village.”

Bryk’s cock nudged her spine.

“I can’t believe you’re aroused by this,” she said so tightly, even she heard the need in her voice.

Bryk’s fingers slipped into her pants and teased her slick folds. She tipped her head back against his shoulder and moaned.

“The female below is not the only one who is aroused by this.”

“Bryk.”

“Do you wish to remain here and watch?” He said it sweetly, but his voice in her ear made her insides tangle in a knot. His finger dipped inside her while his thumb rubbed her clit.

“I…,” she moaned.

He tugged down her pants and tossed his garlong aside.

Bryk eased Sadie onto her hands and knees and braced himself over her. He took her, hard and fast, pressing into her until she shuddered around him.

17

BRYK

T  he next day passed, and they settled into a routine of swimming in the pool each morning after eating the breakfast Bryk cooked in the kangeer, followed by his Vikir forms of courtship.

Although Bryk admitted to himself he wasn’t doing his best in the courtship area. The boodlers he’d caught and penned for Sadie’s foot emulsion had escaped and were nowhere to be found, and when he’d eagerly presented the groat to Sadie, she’d whirled around with wide eyes, and run to the pool. While she’d bobbed in the deep water, he’d tried to assure her that the large, amoeba-like mass would only ooze across her back and ass for a short time. Afterward, her skin would sparkle and feel very smooth. But she wouldn’t come out of the water. He’d had to return the groat to the muddy pit where he’d found it.

On their fifth day in the valley, after they’d finished a lunch of cornling eggs and sautéed fresme grasses, Bryk carried Sadie down to the ground as usual. They walked together through the forest, heading to the open part of the valley.

“Why do we always take a different route to the same location?” she asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Since we arrived here, we’ve never followed the same path to the treehouse, and we’ve never walked the same way from the treehouse to the lake. Why?”

Clever of her to see this. He’d tried to make it less obvious as he didn’t want her to worry.

“I do not wish to establish a routine,” he said casually.

The way she gnawed on her lower lip told him he hadn’t been as successful in hiding his concern as he had hoped. “Which means?”

“If someone is watching, and they saw we always walked the same path at about the same time of day, they could wait for us. Harm us.” Or worse, but he refused to mention that fact.

She shuddered and looked around, but he’d already assessed the area. There was nothing here but the usual bushes, trees, and, ahead in the valley, the carpet of flowers. “You’re worried about someone attacking.”

“I believe we are safe here, or I would not use this location for courtship. But remember. This is good practice for any part of your life. Always take different routes. Never establish a pattern someone else could learn.”

She wrapped her arms around her waist and shivered. “Do you think someone is watching us now?” Peering around again, she continued to quake. “I don’t see anything I should worry about, but how can I tell? This is an alien planet, not my city’s downtown.”

“I have not seen evidence of anyone’s presence except ours.” And he had looked. Often. He wasn’t complacent. He’d protect her always.

“Who are we talking about here? People from your village?”

“No.” His gaze drifted to the moons, but they were too far away to present danger. He had not seen the lights again. “It is nothing. You need not concern yourself with this. I will keep you safe.”

“I’ve felt secure here, but the birds attacking, the wildarn rooting through the forest each night, plus the bugs bigger than my hand…” She swallowed deeply. “Sure, they seemed more afraid of me than I was of them. But could someone be watching us?”

He stopped and cupped her face, wishing he could say the right thing to reassure her. “There is no need to worry. I am here with you always.”

Stupid of him to plant the seed. Now it flourished. When she asked about their route, he should have said he liked to look at different foliage.

“What’s on the agenda today?” she asked, and he could tell she was trying to push aside the niggling feeling she needed to watch her back. He’d do the same.

That was how life went for many. He’d long ago learned tomorrow would never come. It would always be tomorrow.

“I thought we would swim with the zinters,” he said. “More courtship. Fucking if you are so inclined.” Perhaps he could tease her away from her fear.

She grinned, but her expression sobered quickly. “I’m ready for the zinters and fucking, but allow me to remain skeptical about the courtship until you present your next…offering.” As in, the groats, he assumed. He still couldn’t understand why she’d run. “After that, can you do something for me?” Her gaze fled his. Was something else the matter?

“Of course,” he said slowly, his hand tightening around hers.

Her shoulders curled forward. “I feel useless—no, helpless—here.”

She wasn’t truly helpless. She was able to—

“If something happened to you,” she said with a wince. “I’d not only be devastated, but I also wouldn’t be able to survive long enough to get back to your farm, assuming I could figure out how to get there from here. I don’t like feeling this vulnerable.”

He dropped his arm around her back as they emerged from the forest and out into the sunshine. “You know I will protect you.” Fiercely, with his life. But she was correct. Anything could happen to him. Look at his parents, his former mate. It would be wrong of him to leave her alone with no means to protect herself.

“I trust you to keep me safe.” Stopping, she dragged her foot through the grass before looking up at him. Her gaze, full of sadness, sought his. “But will you still show me how to live safely in the woods?”

He held his hand out to her. “I will.”

After they’d bathed with the zinters and splashed around, they dressed and he gathered a bag and a few tools and met her near the small tent at the end of the valley.

“This afternoon,” he said. “I will show you edible things you can find on your own in the wild. Tomorrow, you will learn how to call Disty. Once we are back at the farm, I will continue to teach you. You will be a ranger before you know it, one who knows the land like the patterns on a juliert.”

“What’s a juliert?”

“A large, cone-shaped creature that lives in caves below the ground. Its skin is creased with deep lines that some suggest trace every path available on the planet.”

“Cool.” She squeezed his hand. “And thanks for teaching me all this. I feel more relaxed already. I wasn’t sure how you’d take my suggestion. You’re always treating me special, and I love being pampered. It’s funny because, back on Earth, when I lived in the city, I could take care of myself. I had a switchblade I carried whenever I walked, and I took a bunch of self-defense classes. No one messed with me. But a city is a familiar environment for me.” Her gaze spanned the woods surrounding them. “Here, I’m completely out of my element, and I don’t like it.” Her head tilted, and she looked up at him. “Do you understand?”

“I do. I would be happy to help you feel more comfortable.” She’d already committed to being with him and under his care. He would do everything in his power to keep her trust. But she was right. The more she knew about both the joys and dangers of Crakair, the more confident she would be.

“Great,” she said, releasing a whoosh of air with the word. “Where do we start first?”

“The water.”

“Been with the zinters. Let the zinters do their thing already.” She winked. “You, too.”

The satisfaction on her face made him want to puff out his chest and bellow to the sky. He kissed her instead. “Have you ever dug for roots?”

“You mean like potatoes? I’ve heard they dig those in the fall and bag them. But my experience with them doesn’t go further than hefting the bag off the rack at the supermarket and putting it into my cart.”

“The world around us offers many wonderful foods. You merely need to know how to find them. For example, look here.” He pointed to a bluish-pink tuft sticking out from the muddy soil along one edge of the pool. Feathering his finger across the top of the plant, he explained. “To many, this appears to be grass growing near the water. But to one who knows how to look…” Taking his short sword—not the intended use for a serafinn blade made from the finest trinar—he dug down into the earth while grasping the strands of vegetation. Once he’d loosened the soil around the plant, he gave it a quick tug and lifted it. “See?”

“Looks like a blue carrot.”

“I do not know what a carrot is but if you mean a root vegetable then, yes, this is a Crakair carrot.”

She chuckled. “What’s it called here?”

“Jubar.”

After tracing her fingertip down the mud-coated jubar root, she held out her hand. “Do we eat it raw?”

“Or cooked. Either tastes good. A few would satisfy even the pickiest hunter.”

“I think you mean a gatherer, but I get your point.” Taking it from him, she stooped down and rinsed off the dirt in the water and then held it out to him. “Want a bite?”

He nipped off the tip, and the sweet yet spicy flavor burst on his tongue. A few chews and he’d swallowed the bite.

She did the same, her eyes widening above the root. “Tastes great! Almost like pineapple with a chili pepper kick.”

When she handed it to him, he tucked the rest of the jubar into the pouch he’d slung from his waist. The vegetable could be added to their next meal.

Her gaze scanned the area. “What else can we find to eat out here?”

“See this tree?” Pointing, he advanced on the veern tree laden with dusky green clusters of spear-like fruit. “This is also edible. This tree also only grows near water.”

“They look like thick green fingers.” She tapped one of the dangling bunches. “So we have jubar and veern. Both would be perfect as long as I can find water.”

“See those birds with red stripes on their wings?” He nudged his chin to a flock circling overhead, perhaps too timid to come near because of their presence.

“Please don’t mention birds.” Sadie squeezed her eyes shut before opening them and glaring at the sky. She waved her arm. “Stay up there, you beasts.” With a twist of her lips, her gaze fell on him. “They’re not killer birds like the others, are they?”

“These birds will not attack. They are your friend.”

The sunlight gleamed on her hair. He could stare at her hair, stare at her, all the daela long. But he wanted to teach her, and she was eager to learn.

Her head tilted. “How are they my friend?”

“These birds enjoy eating zinter.”

“Oh. So if I follow them, they’ll lead me to water.”

“Yes. They nest among boulders, in the tight cracks, but venture to the water to feed. Are you ready to learn more?” He added a few clusters of veern to his pouch. They could eat them for dessert after dinner.

“More water plants?”

“Let us go into the forest. You may not always be able to locate water, but there is much to find in wooded areas, too.”

He took her hand, and they strolled in among the trees, him steering her to avoid bushes that might scratch her bare skin exposed by the short, sleeveless dress she wore. It had bright red, round balls on it and the balls each had green strands sticking out of the top. When he’d mentioned the pattern earlier, she’d said the red balls were called cherries.

“Are you willing to take a short walk to what I would show you next?” he asked.

“Sure.”

When she waved to send pesky treensers away, he broke off a leafy branch and handed it to her. “Try this.”

She waved it around as they walked, and the treensers gave up the chase.

“Why did you leave the mountains and the Vikirs?” she asked. “It’s beautiful here. Your farm is pretty and I understand wanting to live closer to the city, but there’s something awe-inspiring about this mountainous region.”

“This is a long story.”

“We have time.” Turning on the scant trail, she stroked his face. “I want to know more about you. We’re close. Hell, I’ve had the best sex of my life with you—”

He bared his fangs in a cocky grin.

Huffing, she shook her head at him. “But I want to know everything, not just the fact that you love it when I—”

“You wish to hear everything about me?”

“Whatever you’re willing to share.” A hint of vulnerability came through in her voice. “I’ll tell you anything about me you want to know.”

“I would love to hear tales from your growing years.”

“Tonight, I’ll share my secrets.”

He didn’t want to hold himself back from her. She would share his life, his soul. There should be nothing he couldn’t tell her. But this…

They started walking again, heading into the darker, denser forest. He’d noted a stand of crotin earlier, and since it grew in abundance, he’d show her how to harvest the lush plant that could be eaten raw.

Taking a big breath and releasing it, he began his story. There was no choice. He needed to tell her. He needed to confess. What would she think of him once she knew? “My father fell down a cliff within a few months of when I was born. My mother raised me, and I was eighteen when she was killed.” His guilt for his role in her death would haunt him forever. He should have been there to protect her…

Sadie squeezed his hand. “I’m sorry.” Gulping, her eyes watered. “I lost both my parents, too. In an accident ten years ago.”

He gathered her into his arms and rested his chin on the top of her head. “We are orphans. It is something else we share.”

She sniffed. “But you were telling me about why you left the Vikir. We can talk about my parents tonight.”

He nodded and continued. “It was the day of my birth and since I was now eighteen-yaros-old, my village planned a malehood ceremony to celebrate. Mother wanted to prepare my favorite dish, a delicacy made from aeroye eggs. The ground-nesting lizards hide their cache, but my mother knew where to find them. She asked me to go with her to collect them, but I was cocky about the ceremony and my new status. I told her I was a man now, and that I wanted to go hunting with my cousins instead.”

“She went alone?”

“Mother could take on a herd of wildarns and come out the victor.” Whenever he’d thought of her in the past, only sadness had filled him. Now, he could smile a little. His mother had been formidable. Everyone had respected her for her herb lore, her quick wit, and her skills in battle.

“She sounds like an awesome woman.”

“Awesome,” he breathed, tasting the word. Yes, he could see why Evie enjoyed it. “She was.”

“What happened?”

“When she didn’t return, I became worried. I looked for her.” He stared toward the meadow they approached, the one with the stand of crotin. But his thoughts were lost in the past. In what came next. His pulse sped up like it had then, and his palms grew sweaty. After all this time, so many yaros, it still hurt to think of that day. “I found her at the base of the cliffs where my father had fallen. Perhaps she’d stopped there on her way back from collecting the eggs as her basket was full, to speak to my father’s spirit. If I knew her, she would have told him about me finally growing into full malehood. They were matebonded, and she’d missed him greatly.”

He hadn’t realized he’d stopped walking and was lost in the past until Sadie stroked his face and tilted it toward her. The sorrow in her eyes mirrored the feeling in his heart. Closing his eyes, he gathered his thoughts. “I saw the tracks. She had been hunted.”

“By what?” she whispered.

“Javeess. A great cat.”

“They live in this forest?”

“Not many. They are rare.”

“Oh, Bryk.” Her voice cracked, and he wanted to comfort her, but he couldn’t drag himself out of the memory to comfort even himself.

“She had killed the javeess, an achievement for even a pack of hunters. It lay dead beside her. But she was mortally wounded.”

Sadie’s arms went around him, keeping him connected to the present, but his mind kept flashing back to that minar. The enormous, dead cat. Her lying crumpled on the path. The blood. Too much blood…

“She told me she loved me. That she was proud of me. She took her last breath as I held her. Then she…” Just like back then, he couldn’t stop shaking. Would he ever be able to think of that time without breaking?

Sadie stroked his back. “I’m sorry.”

“I left the Vikirs after that and went to the city. I joined the spacefleet and over ten yaros, rose to the rank of commander. When Crueja died, I resigned and bought the farm.”

“You didn’t take Weld to live with the Vikirs?”

“How could I? I was not there to protect my mother. I was away when Crueja died. I did not trust myself to keep Weld safe. Living at the farm, there are others around. Jorg lives within a shout. And Vork is Weld’s lerd father. He will care for my youngling if something should happen to me.”

She stood on her toes and gave him a soft kiss. He felt her warmth, her caring in the gesture, and it cracked the ice forming around his heart. “I love you.”

He wiped his eyes and was surprised to find them wet. “I have never cried. Crakairians do not cry.”

“Well, you do. It shows you have a heart.”

“I love you, too.” He wrapped his arms around her, so grateful she was here. That he’d found her.

She took his hands and squeezed them. “I’m sorry about your mom. I wish I’d been able to meet her.”

“Me, too.” He hugged her and a bit of his pain eased. “But know one thing.” He pressed his fist to his chest—his heart. “I will protect you. I will not allow anything bad to happen to you.”

“You already protect me in all the ways that count. You’re showing me your world. No, our world. And you’re teaching me what I can eat if I need to watch out for myself. There’s a saying that if you give someone a fish, you feed them for a day; teach them to fish and you feed them for a lifetime. That’s what you’re doing for me here. You’re showing me how to take care of myself if ever you’re not around.”

“That is a good saying. But you will not survive on roots and fruit.”

“Then teach me more.”

“Ahead,” he pointed to the clearing, “there is a stand of crotin shrubs. They are a high-protein vegetable.”

“Like beans where I come from. Not a complete protein like meat or eggs, but close.”

“Sustainable.” Taking her hand, he led her to the groups of dense, blue stalks with burgundy leaves. “One eats the stem. Trim off the leaves and remove the outer bark and the insides can be eaten raw or cooked. They are tasty and satisfying.”

“What about those berries?” She pointed to the low shrubs with deep purple clusters. “Can we eat them?” Stooping down, her fingers brushed against the spheres that resembled tiny bells, though they made no sound when touched. “They look like big grapes.”

“You want to remain away from them.”

Her hand snapped, back and she clutched it to her chest. “Are they poisonous?”

“No, but they are used to make sleeping draughts. The fleirce berries make you feel marley—drunk. Dizzy, giddy, and sleepy.”

“I don’t need that.” She straightened and wiped her fingers on the underside of her dress.

“Even something you would not eat to sustain life may have another use, such as the fleirce berry.”

“If I ever develop insomnia, I’ll keep it in mind.”

“Let us walk in this direction,” he pointed, “and we will loop back around to our valley.”

“Great. We can take a swim. I’m hot and sweaty.”

Taking her hand, they walked across the small meadow and started into the woods. There was no true trail here, just a faint weave around trees and bushes. He noted a few blades of grass bent and compressed as if a small group had passed this way during the night or this morning. Had a herd of jiera, the dainty, four-legged creatures with great racks of horns, roamed this area? He would watch for them. Their meat was tasty when roasted in the kangeer with fresme grasses and jinjin.

The tracks veered to the right, perhaps because the herd had heard or seen him and Sadie in the meadow. He’d seen evidence of their presence in the deep grass along the edges, but if they ventured to the water, they would do so only at night, when he and Sadie weren’t around.

They’d only taken a few more steps when something unusual on the forest floor drew his eye. His heart stuttered, and he halted so fast, Sadie nearly bumped into him.

Broken raspeeir suckers… Nothing unusual about them being broken except… He stooped down and fingered the severed sections. Fresh. Jiera would not roam during the day when the javeess hunted. These breaks were not natural to any forest creature he’d tracked while living with the Vikir.

He and Sadie had not walked in this area. The last time he’d passed through this section of the forest, he’d been building his lair in the trees. These breaks were fresh. One denjar. Two, at the most.

His veins beat a visible pulse beneath his skin, and he flashed cold then hot as the realization sank in.

Someone like himself or Sadie had been here.

As he looked further, he noted more tracks. Eight, maybe ten beings had crossed this location within the past denjar. So recently, the blades of grass had not had time to relax and straighten, and the height of the breaks in the raspeeir suckers indicated they walked upright on two legs. Tall, too, perhaps almost as tall as Bryk.

Had other Vikir come here?

They wouldn’t travel in such a large group, not even to hunt. A smaller group was easier to hide and defend in dense woods.

His breathing picked up. He wanted to grab Sadie and run, but bolting through the woods would only draw attention.

Before he could hunt, he had to get Sadie to safety.

18

SADIE

“Sadie. Love.” Bryk cupped her face but the urgency in his eyes sank into her like poison, liquefying her limbs. “I need to carry you to run fast, and I need you to remain very quiet.”

“You’re not joking,” she stuttered. Her breathing burst in and out of her as she looked around. Nothing. No one rushed toward them. Bryk’s urgency made her heart flip, then surge up into her throat.

He shook his head and his naanans stroked her neck and her arms as if he ached to memorize the feel of her skin.

“You’re scaring me.”

“That, I do not wish to do but…”

His use of “but” here was the most frightening part of the situation.

“Can you do this for me?” he asked. Cords stood out on his neck, and a pulse beat furiously in his temple.

“Okay.” Hating that she felt so useless, she bit her lower lip until it stung. City girls didn’t survive long in the woods.

He lifted her and laid her on his shoulder, and then raced through the forest, leaping over bushes and logs, and darting around trees. He kept stopping to listen before grunting softly and running again.

She said nothing, afraid if she spoke, she’d draw whatever had scared him. Were they dealing with a javeess or a herd of wildarns? For all she knew it was some creature she hadn’t run into yet. Crakair might be the most wonderful place in the galaxy but this part of the planet came with wild and dangerous challenges.

Stopping, Bryk stood still for so long she thought he’d lower her to the forest floor and tell her it was nothing. He’d been mistaken. Or whatever he’d feared had left the area.

Instead, he crept up to their tree, coming in from the backside. With one leap, he landed on the first platform where they’d watched the wildarns a few nights ago. More jumps brought them to the bedroom where he lowered her to her feet but held her tight.

The sheen of sweat coated his face. His breathing came normally, proving he could run for hours, but not if he was burdened with her on his shoulder.

“I saw fresh tracks,” he said in a bare whisper, his intent gaze scanning the area. But what could find them up here? This was why he’d built this treehouse, to hide them away.

“Is it an animal?” What could it be?

“Beings like you or me, walking upright. Many. Eight or ten. It is difficult to say with the tracks bunched together.” Turning from her, he lifted and dropped his pack on the bed. He dug inside and pulled out a leather belt with sheaths. After strapping it on, he slid the two short swords he’d used while they’d been here into the holders. The second sword had leaned against the tree trunk, untouched. More bindings were removed from the bag and belted on, turning him into a one-male, alien SWAT team. He fastened blades to his thighs, calves, and even one to his upper arm.

“Let’s go to your cave in the lake,” she said, struggling not to give in to the panic rising inside her. “They won’t find us there.”

Grunting, he added another short sword sheathed in a leather harness-like apparatus that allowed it to hang down his back. Bending and twisted, he tested the fit of his weapons, and then nodded. “We cannot chance being out in the open to reach the water.”

“Maybe they’re friendly? They could be your cousins. Fellow Vikirs.”

His grim expression sent dread bolting through her. “My cousins would not cluster together like that. This has the mark of…I apologize, but beings from a city. Or…” His gaze drifted upward, toward the moons.

In the manual Crakair sent to the mail-order brides, they’d mentioned a colony on Mara, the largest moon. Mara was run by an independent government. Crakairians rarely traveled to Mara and vice versa. The manual had alluded to less-than-friendly relations between the two countries.

Bryk’s gaze traveled down Sadie with a clinical eye, and he lifted a knife out of his pack and secured it to her calf with a band of leather. “Are you comfortable using this?” he asked, looking up at her with a world of concern in his eyes.

“Yes.” She pulled the knife and tested the balance, finding it much like the blade she’d left behind on Earth. If only she’d brought it with her. But the craftsmanship of this blade was far superior to the inexpensive switchblade she’d bought online. The heft felt light in her hand, easy to use in a lunge or even to throw if she dared. “Are you worried whoever,” her hand flicked toward where he’d seen the tracks, “this is might have come from Mara?”

Straightening, he cupped her shoulders. “If so, I do not know why they would venture this deep into the mountains. But it is safest to assume we need to be concerned, rather than trust and learn our mistake when something happens.”

Something bad, he meant. She nodded, but fright kept climbing up her spine like an opened sack of spiders. She wanted to curl in a ball and hide.

“Will they find us here?” she whispered as she returned her blade to its sheath.

“When I leave, I will disguise this location, and then I will hunt. I cannot fight them all off here and I will not attempt to do so with you nearby.”

“I can help.” In some way, even if it was only smacking someone over the head with a stick. She hated the idea of him leaving. Not because she didn’t want to be alone but because she couldn’t watch out for him if he left.

“I need to discover who they are and determine if they are a threat.”

“What about calling Disty?”

“I do not dare risk drawing attention until I know what we face.”

“And if they’re a threat?”

“In this…” He kissed her quickly. “Stealth will win.” Despite mentioning win, the expression on his face made it clear this wasn’t a game. If he discovered they were here to cause harm, he’d find them and eliminate them. This wasn’t like Earth where you could call the cops or a neighbor with a shotgun to give back-up. “I will protect you.”

“Come back to me, Bryk.”

He pressed his fist to his chest. “I promise.”

While she gnawed on a fingernail and maintained a smooth face to imply she wasn’t scared, he slipped away. The moment he’d melted away into the upper canopy, her facade fell and trembling took over.

The sun slipped below the tree line, and shadows darted through the leaves, making her flinch at each movement.

Dropping down onto the sofa, she fretted. At this rate, she’d have no fingernails left by the time Bryk returned.

If he returned.

Jeez, don’t do that to yourself. She needed to stay strong and confident. Of course, he’d return.

He was invincible.

But damn, when she left Earth for Crakair, she’d never considered the dangers that might await her in a new world.

Fear kept bubbling up in her throat, threatening to burst free, but she swallowed it back down. She’d remain quiet. Bryk couldn’t protect her if he had to worry about her drawing someone near.

All the inner boosting couldn’t keep her from worrying.

The silence stretched on for what felt like forever, but she remained motionless, only shifting slightly when she had to. The less noise she made, the better.

She looked down at her dress, so cute when she’d put it on this morning. White printed with red cherries and a flared skirt. Flirty and fun, with a touch of sexy. She’d savored the gleam in Bryk’s eyes when she posed in front of him. Now she stood out like a bowl full of cherries with whipped cream on top.

Come get me.

Standing, she tugged it off and stuffed it into her bag. After dressing quickly in dark blue leggings and a black tee, she gathered up their things and packed them, in case they had to run. Returning to the sofa, she put on her sneakers and then tucked her feet up beneath her.

It wasn’t cold, yet her teeth chattered.

The air hung like a funeral pall, dark and silent. She’d read once that when a predator moved through the forest, everything stilled. Waited. On Earth, coyotes used this to their advantage. Mangy wild dogs, they hunted at night in packs. They’d trot along a trail, making little noise. And when they were ready, they’d suddenly howl. Their yips would pierce the stillness surrounding them. Rabbits and other prey would startle and run. Then the coyotes would give chase.

Sadie’s heart thump, thump, thumped in her ear, the only sound she could hear.

Where was Bryk? Was he okay? If only she could see him one more time.

A creak on the bridge drew her attention and her head shot in that direction. Had it been the wind or…

The air was still. And quiet.

She wanted to call out for Bryk but didn’t dare. What if it wasn’t him?

She clamped her hands together on her lap, tight enough her skin blanched.

Feeling too out in the open, she got up and tiptoed around behind the couch and scrunched down, facing the bridge where nothing moved that she could see so far. But damn, she was scared. Sweat beaded on her upper lip and she jumped whenever anything creaked or snapped. Even telling herself these were the normal sounds of the forest didn’t help.

A shifting sound behind her like a moth fluttering around a light made her turn.

The winged blue alien with four arms who’d stared at her at the airport floated just beyond the bug netting like a vampire poised to leap through a bedroom window.

Wings flapping, the alien grinned, baring his jagged teeth.

A sharp gouge of his knife and he’d sliced through the net.

Jerking upright, she stumbled backward, hitting the couch. Her knife! As she scrambled to yank up her pants leg, the blue alien latched onto her arm. She shoved her hand out sharply in a heel palm strike, aiming for his nose, but he deflected his head to the side and tightened his grip on her arm to the point she winced.

His snarl ripped through the room.

Her grunts rang out as she kicked, hoping to break his knee cap. A scream rushed up her throat, but she bit it back, unwilling to draw others. Bryk thought eight or ten. She might stand a chance against one but not a big group of attackers.

As she yelped and punched his neck, something swung through the air. It smacked into her head and everything went black.

19

BRYK

Bryk hovered low in the forest, watching as nine scaled Al’kieerns , some winged, some without, stood near the water’s edge, arguing.

While fury built inside him to a fevered rage, he listened. His matebond blood surged through his veins, eager to fight. Eager to protect his mate.

“He is there,” the tallest said, pointing one of his four, dusky blue arms toward the woods to the right of where Bryk had left Sadie. “Find him. Kill him.”

Not tonight.

“Find her. Not kill her,” a round Al’kieern giggled, his body jiggling with the movement.

“Take her. Mate her,” another said, cupping his groin. “Is wants her.”

“No mate. Sell. Breeder.”

“But is does,” the other one whined. “Is really wants her.”

“Breeder pay for untouched.”

“What if hide in cave?” a short one asked, tipping his head toward the water.

“Go. Look. Find,” the tall one who must be the leader said. His arms lifted. “You. You. Go.”

Two splashed into the water, moaning, and hissing when the zinters moved in.

“No like clean,” one huffed, waving his arms in the air. “Go. Fish, go!” The water bubbled around him.

“Hear ‘ya,” the other said. “No like clean me.”

They dove down into the water and did not reappear. It was good Bryk and Sadie had decided not to hide in the cave.

Bryk surveyed the remaining six Al’kieern, an easier number to eliminate. There had been rumors of other nations coming to this part of the galaxy and finding welcome ports on Mara. They’d heard about Earth women and wanted in on the matches. But rather than try to negotiate a treaty with Earth, Bryk heard they planned to steal women for their own. Or buy them from breeders.

If anything happened to Bryk, Sadie would be taken. Sold. Raped. Forced to produce children for whoever stole her.

They would have to walk across Bryk’s bones first.

As opponents went, these guys didn’t appear savvy. Walking on one trail through the woods had been stupid enough. But clustering together by the water? If Bryk had brought firepower, he could have eliminated the threat with one sweep of his guns. They must hail from the Maran city, Qe’ket, where the weapons they hefted gave them power.

This natural setting could give Bryk the advantage.

Could he…

Hunkering down in some dense brush opposite of where Sadie remained hidden, he cupped his mouth and released a muted, whimpering cry like he imagined a human female might make.

Their attention snapped in his direction. At the direction of the leader, three of them approached, moving slowly with their weapons lifted.

Bryk left his hiding spot and moved off to his left where he dropped to the ground and waited. A treenser landed on his face but he did not flinch or attempt to swat it away.

The three Al’kieerns strode into the woods and stopped, jumbling together. They huddled and spoke too low for Bryk to hear.

He whimpered again, projecting a female human in distress. Because he knew. They wanted her.

They crept forward, pointing to where they thought they’d heard the sound come from.

Bryk had already moved to flank them. With his serafinn blades gripped tightly in his hands, he remained low, watching and waiting. Once they’d moved deeper into the woods, his opportunity would come and he would seize it.

In addition to their firepower, they held decent knives and from the way they clutched them, they knew how to use them. He would take care.

Single file, they moved toward the large section of brush where Bryk had made the cry, passing Bryk. He rose as the third stepped cautiously by and, with his short blade, sliced across the male’s throat.

Hefting the Al’kieern over his shoulder, Bryk melted back into the woods. Once hidden again, he laid the male on the ground. The guy stared upward, his spirit already flown.

Bryk watched as the remaining two continued forward, seemingly unaware the third was no longer with them. They split to round the dense mass of bushes. Perfect, just as he’d hoped would happen.

Slinking toward them, Bryk snagged the closest one, driving him to the ground and ending his life. He crouched over the body and watched.

The third called out. “Find her?”

Bryk grunted.

“Find anything?” the guy snarled.

Another grunt, but Bryk knew the sound wouldn’t hold the guy back for long.

Creeping around the cluster of bushes, the Al’kieern spied Bryk. He pivoted and bolted for the clearing.

Bryk’s shoulder sekairs flicked forward, shooting poison. The tiny darts hit the alien in the back and he collapsed, dead before he hit the ground.

Sounds reached Bryk from the open area, and he rushed forward, only pausing to scan the meadow before he burst out. The remaining six Al’kieern took flight, some being carried by the others.

Bryk shot darts from his sekairs, but they’d risen too high to reach.

They ignored Bryk and swept up and over the trees, passing where Bryk had left Sadie. A sixth joined them as they flew deeper into the mountains. An ominous silence followed. From here, Bryk couldn’t tell if the sixth carried anyone, but he already knew.

His stomach a solid mass, Bryk raced for the treehouse, fearing what he’d find. He leaped from one platform to the next, hoping. Praying.

Bursting through the bedroom, he clattered across the bridge to the second room, stumbling as he passed the threshold.

His guttural cry of pain echoed around him.

They’d taken her.

20

SADIE

Sadie woke with her ankles and wrists bound, clutched to the chest of a four-armed, scaled blue alien.

She was mid-flight with the ground hundreds of feet below her.

Gulping, she stared down, not wanting to remain with the alien but not eager to fall.

Like one of the creepy monkeys from the Wizard of Oz—only this one was on steroids—she was being carried away. Somewhere. Did an evil witch wait for her to arrive at the end of their journey?

She shuddered.

One of the alien dude’s clawed hands cupped her breast. Shrieking, she jerked her head forward and bit him, her teeth sinking through his flesh. Hot blood spurted, filling her mouth, and she reeled back, slamming her head into his chin as he bellowed.

Her gut rolled as she spit, trying to rid herself of the taint. God, had she swallowed any? Vomit shot up from her belly, and she let it come. As they flew forward, it splattered back on them, hitting both her and the alien. It would serve him right if it had coated him.

“Spirfiirre,” he said in a gravelly voice. “Like it. Maybe me keep instead sell.”

They must have translators implanted, and they were not yet up to speed.

Something firm prodded her butt and one of his hands wandered to the waist of her pants and tugged.

“No!” Flailing, she smacked and kicked, no longer caring if she fell. She wouldn’t let him rape her mid-flight.

A tall skinny alien flew in close and plucked her from the first, groping alien’s hands. He flung her over his shoulder and smacked one of his hands on her thighs to hold her in place. Her head pounded from the face-down position, and she worried she’d hurl again.

“No touch. Save for breeders,” Skinny said to the one she’d named Gropey.

Fuck. Breeders?

This was the Earth governments’ first concern when they realized aliens were more than Area 51 rumors. It was part of the reason they’d been eager to form the initial contract with Crakair. The agreement wasn’t all about brides. It also included Crakairian defensive technology. They’d armed Earth to protect it from invaders and in exchange, found brides. Sure, they’d had a solid motive with future mates, but they’d offered weapons and advanced satellite tracking systems before the mail-order bride contract had been finalized.

If one species was looking for women, the Earth governments assumed there would be more.

“Let me go,” Sadie pleaded. “I won’t tell anyone you kidnapped me.” Sure. No one but Bryk, that is.

“Value too much,” the skinny alien said in a tone as reasonable as if he discussed the price of lemons. “Breeding fun. Dinairs better.”

She had one thing to be grateful for. This guy wasn’t interested in rape. Not yet, anyway.

They flew for hours, until dawn crept over the horizon, stabbing fiery colors across the sky that reminded her of blood. The alien took her over valleys and around tall peaks covered with spindly, short blue trees, climbing higher into the mountains as they traveled.

She remained on alert, waiting for any opportunity to escape. Sleep could come once she’d made her way back to Bryk.

Was he still alive? Six aliens flew with this group. If Bryk lived, he would come after her, but they left no trail for him to follow in the sky.

“You flew in close and then walked,” she said. Hence the tracks Bryk had found in the forest.

“We watched at Spaceport,” he said. “Waited. You mate gives you to us.” Disgust came through in his voice.

No. Bryk had done nothing like that.

“Dinairs,” he added.

“Bryk doesn’t want money—dinairs. He loves me. And he’s going to kill you,” she growled.

Skinny’s snicker shook his lean body, making his ribs poke into her back hard enough she winced. “Try already. Fail already.”

“Don’t get cocky.” He’d call Disty and come after her, but she wasn’t going to tell the alien that.

Bryk would find her before these guys sold her to the breeders.

“You think us weak,” Skinny said in a mocking tone. “We learn. We grow. We become deadly.”

“Who are you?”

“Al’kieern, from moon, Mara.”

From the scant details she’d read about three Crakairian moons, Sadie remembered Mia was a wasteland and no one lived there. Tress was the same as a Caribbean paradise and was colonized by Crakair. And Mara was an independent nation governed, loosely, by the Al’kieern. A Pirates of the Caribbean planet without the cute guy wearing dreadlocks.

“Breeders want human female. Al’kieer build fort, protection. Then one day take we will human female as own.”

She’d have to get away, not just to save herself but to warn Crakair and Earth. They needed to stop this from happening.

The group landed in a clearing. A small fire crackled and emitted sparks, built in the center of the open area, and four blue-skinned aliens sat around it, poking it with sticks. Al’kieerns if she guessed correctly. Ten. Dread coiled inside her like a spring ready to explode.

They leaped to their feet as Skinny dropped down onto the ground with Sadie clutched tightly in his arms. He tossed her aside, and she tumbled onto the ground, banging her right side and shoulder when she couldn’t break her fall. Horror shot through her. How was she going to get out of this situation?

While she lay on the grass, trying to suck air into her stunned lungs, the new guys paced around her. Their fingers darted in to pinch her arms and butt while she swatted them as best she could with her hands tied in front and kicked with her bound feet. When one tried to grab her breast, she snarled and snapped, nearly severing a finger.

Gropey—the guy who’d tried to rape her mid-flight—showed off the arm she’d bitten like a war wound, and the new guys backed away with their arms raised.

Scooching up onto her butt and then her feet, she straightened. Whoever had tied her ankles had left them loose. Could she find a way to pick at the knots until they fell free? These guys wouldn’t watch her every second. One lapse and she’d run. Who knew where, but any place was better than here.

“Tasty female,” one of the new aliens said with a leer. He watched but remained beyond her arm’s reach.

“I taste,” said the other, boldly reaching toward her.

“For breeder,” Skinny snarled, and the two dudes halted. Their hands dropped to their sides, and they grumbled. Skinny fed her a look that said, you can’t find good help nowadays.

“Hungry,” one of the aliens who’d flown with them said. He scratched his bald head and his bright green eyes flashed around as if seeking food.

“Cook,” Skinny said, shoving Sadie in the lower back.

“What am I supposed to cook?” Other than a decent-sized pot tipped onto its side and lying near the fire, there didn’t appear to be anything she could use to prepare a meal. Even the Iron Chef had been given one mystery ingredient.

Skinny kicked the pan.

“You guys eat air?” she asked, wondering where her sarcasm came from. But really, she was fuming about their plans for Earth women. Their plans for her.

“Forage,” Skinny said. He nudged his head to Gropey. “Go with.” Slashing out, his foot hit the leg of one of the guys who’d flown with them. “You, also.”

Sadie shuffled toward Skinny, her bound hands lifted. “How do you expect me to collect anything trussed up like this?”

Skinny waved to one of the guys who thought she’d be tasty. Let them try. She’d show them a taste of her knee.

“Loosen,” Skinny barked. “Some. Not enough run.”

The alien stooped down in front of her and oh, she was so tempted to introduce his mouth to her sneaker, but she also wanted the ability to run. If they removed her ankle binding, her odds of escaping would increase.

No such luck. He only gave her more freedom to walk. Grunting, he stepped back and watched as she tested the length of her stride. She purposefully kept them shorter than the rope allowed.

Skinny nodded. “Good.” Striding forward, he snapped what looked like a thick silver bracelet around her wrist tight enough it bit into her skin and drew blood. While she bit back a whimper, he clipped another rope to the wrist manacle. On the other end, he attached a ring he handed to Gropey.

Her odds had just gotten slimmer.

Snickering, Gropey wrapped the rope around his wrist over and over, slowly hauling her near. When she was a few feet away, he yanked on the rope and she stumbled toward him. As she impacted with his chest, his lips descended and he slobbered on her neck. She bucked and shrieked while he licked down to her collarbone.

The other aliens cheered him on.

With a grunt, she lifted her knee, hoping to hit his groin, but the bindings around her ankle were too short and she only impacted with his thigh.

Skinny advanced and shoved a long black stick into Gropey’s back that made Gropey jolt as if lightning passed through him. An alien taser?

Scrambling to release the rope, Gropey stumbled back, his eyes bugging from his head. His skin rippled as electricity traveled across every exposed surface.

“Leave alone or higher charge,” Skinny said.

With a shudder, Gropey’s eyeballs popped back into their sockets and he scurried away from her and Skinny, putting the campfire between them.

After casually picking up the rope and handing it to one of the other alien dudes, Skinny turned to her. “Forage.” He waved two arms toward the surrounding woods. “Cook. No run.” His gaze slid from her to Gropey and his message was clear: behave or he’d give Gropey another chance. Only this time, Skinny wouldn’t beat the other guy off.

She shuddered and nodded.

The alien led her into the woods with Gropey following, staying a few paces behind. After walking along the narrow path about ten minutes, they arrived at a murky pond. They must have picked the current location for the water source. It didn’t compare to the clear, spring-fed lake back where she and Bryk had… A sob caught in her throat. Would she ever see him or touch him again?

Stay strong. You’ll find your way free.

With renewed resolve, she foraged as directed. Like Bryk had shown her, she found the carrot roots—jubar—and even a few withered veern that had dropped from the tree. She placed the dusky purple spears in the bag Gropey held open. Spying some fresme, the sweet, tangy grass Bryk had cooked over the past few days, she added fistfuls to the bag.

She also added some berries growing on a low bush nearby, fleirce berries that would make a person dizzy, giddy, and sleepy. She hoped they worked as well with Al’kieern as they did with Crakairians. While she picked, one alien used a butcher knife to clean underneath his four-inch claws while Gropey scratched himself and peered around.

Sadie took the opportunity to loosen the ropes at her ankles. Yes. She left them tied but re-did them with an easy-to-release slip knot.

Gropey barely watched, leading her to believe her movements were not suspect. He studiously avoided meeting her eyes, though his gaze did drag down her front, lingering on her breasts.

“Time to go back and sauté some not-so-nice dreams,” she muttered, hoping to storm past him, a challenge when she didn’t dare do more than shuffle her feet.

They returned to the camp with her only suffering a furtive fondle of her butt courtesy of the butcher knife dude.

“How about stir fry, guys?” she asked as she hobbled closer to the fire.

Skinny strode over to where a lizard-looking thing the size of a large dog dangled from the tree by one leg. Pulling a blade longer than her arm from a sheath strapped to his hip, he sliced a chunk off the dead creature. He turned and tossed it her way.

She caught it by reflex and the fear that if she hadn’t, it would have smacked her in the face. Gagging, she stared down at it.

Skinny leaped forward, wings flapping as they carried him above the fire. He landed in front of her like her worst nightmare and followed the bad dream up by poking the tip of his blade into the crease where her chin met her throat.

“No trick or you next.” He flicked his arm toward the dead lizard.

She gulped. “Got it.”

One of the other aliens handed her a device that vaguely resembled a pizza cutter, plus a flat piece of wood. He made slicing motions and kicked the pot to make her task clear.

Nodding, she settled down beside the fire and started food prep. It wasn’t easy chopping things with her hands tied, but she found a way. She threw everything into the pan and added water from the jug. Soup might better mask the berries. She eased the pan over the coals and soon it was bubbling. The savory smell made her belly rumble, but she wouldn’t touch it.

Eventually, she deemed it done. “Dinner’s served, guys.”

They each scooped some out with mugs and settled down on logs and around the fire to eat.

“That’s right, jerks,” she said with a smile, hoping their translators didn’t know the meaning of jerk. “Eat it up. There’s more where that came from.”

Skinny took a sip from his mug, watching her intently. She could barely hold back her squirm. Turning to the side with a growl, he spit out the mouthful. “Fleirce berries,” he shouted. He tossed the mug aside and pulled his knife while taking flight, soaring in her direction.

Shit. This was it.

Diving to the side, she pulled the loop binding her ankles together. Skinny’s whistling blade sliced across her shirt but didn’t hit skin. A yank and she’d hauled the wrist tie from another alien’s hands—the guy distracted by either his soup or the commotion.

While the others leaped to their feet and took flight, flying toward her, she bolted into the woods.

Run rabbit, run. The coyotes are after you.

They yipped and shrieked as they gave chase.

21

BRYK

A s he flew with Disty, Bryk knew his odds of rescuing Sadie alive were even with him finding a dusty tan ularn in a sand pile. But he had to try.

He hadn’t protected her. That fact pounded through his bones like a rudgar hammer.

She’d trusted him to keep her safe, and he’d failed her.

Nightmares of his mother’s death kept flitting across his vision. The blood. So much blood… He couldn’t dismiss them. They flashed through his mind until he ached to vomit them out.

Were they hurting her?

The tall one had held the other aliens back, indicating Sadie was to be sold to a breeder. But how long could he maintain control? The Al’kieern race was known for a frequent change of leaders. Many died “untimely” deaths, only to be quickly replaced by another who was equally cut-throat and eager to accumulate wealth.

Bryk had to decide what to do if—no, once—he’d found her.

If he couldn’t keep her safe, should she remain with him?

Flying low and slower than he’d like, he studied the ground below, hoping to find some sign they’d passed this way. It was just a hunch on his part to assume they’d take her to an isolated area before transporting her off-planet. For all he knew, they had left a shuttle nearby and were halfway toward a distant colony already.

If he didn’t rescue her before she was transported from Crakair, it would be nearly impossible to track her down.

The light scent of wood smoke filtered through the air, so faint most would miss it. Not Bryk. He’d found something. Only one question remained: was this the right fire?

His Vikir village was located on the opposite side of this mountain range and they rarely ventured into this area, but Bryk had been gone eleven yaros. People moved, traveled, and hunted farther afield.

He’d have to check this out.

After circling Disty, he located an open area and landed some distance from where he’d smelled the smoke. He’d hunt the rest of the way on foot.

His serafinn blades ready, he crept forward, avoiding trails and anything that might give away his approach. A snap of a stick underfoot could result in his death, and this group would be foolish not to post guards. If he was caught, he’d never rescue Sadie.

Because they’d left an obvious trail back near his house in a tree, he’d trusted these Al’kieern were not woods-smart. His assumption was proven true when he moved closer. They’d built their fire in the middle of a clearing, without even a slender tree overhead. Savvy people placed their fire underneath a broad tree to dissipate the smoke and make it more difficult for others to pinpoint their location. And they’d keep the fire small. The fact that he could see the blaze through the woods even from half a klek away was a hopeful sign. Few Crakairians would venture this far into the mountains, and no Vikir would give away their location this easily.

And, as he crept closer, he noted no guards. While they’d made camp in an isolated area, did they truly have this little concern they’d draw attention?

He stopped and hunkered down behind a bush a short distance from the clearing to assess the situation. Four Al’kieern, two fliers and two wingless, sat near the fire, poking the smoldering coals with sticks. About one-quarter of the Al’kieern race was born with wings, which conferred status and prestige. The group he’d fought back in the valley had been a mix of winged and wingless as well.

No Sadie, but this must be the correct camp unless there were others around.

The four males stared into the flames, a mistake on their part. If someone rushed into the clearing, they’d be momentarily blinded from the light, which would give an attacker the advantage. Bryk.

But four Al’kieern males sitting at a fire was not a reason to rush in with swords blazing. He’d seen no evidence Sadie had been here, and no reason for Bryk to kill.

Where was Sadie? The odds of there being two Al’kieern groups but one not involved with her capture were slim.

Shrieks to the left announced her arrival.

Dread spread through him, shoving a growl up his throat as five Al’kieern entered the clearing with Sadie among them, screaming and thrashing. She appeared unharmed, but he couldn’t know the extent of her internal or psychological damage from this distance. That could only be determined once he’d freed her and could hold her in her arms and hear what happened.

It took all five Al’kieern to keep her from breaking free.

A sixth Al’kieern—the tall, skinny one who’d captured her in Bryk’s valley—strolled behind them, watching Sadie with the attention of a faljioner, a bird of prey that could swoop in and snatch up a newborn wildarn if the dam wasn’t closely watching her young.

That’s what Sadie was to these males: prey, a possession to be sold for cash.

Bryk wanted to charge into the clearing, his blades slicing off heads, but the tall male held a shocker—a weapon that could drop Bryk with one jolt. If Bryk wasn’t careful, he’d find himself a captive alongside Sadie.

A distraction would be necessary.

It killed him to watch them haul her to a tree and string her up by her wrists beside the cornling lizard carcass. The whimper she released, her only sign of breaking, hit him in the gut hard enough to force out his breath.

They’d pay for causing her harm.

He backed from the camp and when he’d crept far enough away he didn’t have to worry about drawing attention, he broke into a jog, intent on circling behind Sadie before moving in close again. He’d watch and wait then find a way to free her. While he’d prefer to leap into the clearing and end their lives, ten against one were lethal odds.

Dull thuds from his left drew his eye, and he frowned, though he didn’t see anything of concern. Grunts and snorts followed the thuds, and unease razored up Bryk’s spine. He frantically looked around for a tree to climb, because he knew those sounds…

He reeled around and lifted his weapons as a herd of wildarns burst through the trees and thundered his way.

22

SADIE

Sadie’s hair hung in straggly strands around her face, and her hands had gone numb. The Al’kieern had bound her wrists and strung her up with her arms overhead, next to the lizard they’d sliced into earlier when they’d made her prepare a meal. She took some comfort in the fact that they hadn’t—yet—bound her ankles. They’d either forgotten she’d found her way free or decided she wasn’t enough threat any longer. The latter was probably true.

They’d caught her before she’d made it one hundred yards. With her hands tied and her body stiff and sore, it had been hard to make much progress. But she’d tried screaming and head-butting the first who’d caught up and tried to grab her.

They’d made a game of it, circling her. Taunting her with threats of what they’d do once they’d gotten her alone. They’d poked her with sticks and encouraged her to run before flying up and over her to land in her path.

After sweat coated her body and her muscles ached from sprinting, they’d prodded her back to the camp.

Tears streamed down her face. She hated to give in to fear, but she’d had one chance to escape and she’d failed.

Four of the aliens had gathered near the edge of the clearing and whispered. The others had hacked off chunks of the lizard dangling beside her and, after stabbing them with sticks, were roasting them over the fire. The sickly sweet smell of tainted meat coated her sinuses. She wanted to hurl. She wanted to run.

She wanted to cry.

What would they do with her now? She’d seen no space shuttle, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have one parked nearby, ready to take her into the stars. Bryk would never find her if they took her off the planet.

The ground shook, and she lifted her head. Great. That’s what she needed next: thunder, lightning, and rain. She’d get soaked, in addition to being strung up as the next meal.

She shuddered. The Al’kieern didn’t eat humans, did they?

More thunder sent the four Al’kieern spinning to face the opposite side of the clearing from Sadie.

Skinny frowned. His gaze darted her way as if gauging the distance between them.

A wildarn burst into the clearing and galloped across the fire, scattering burning pieces of wood and sending two of the Al’kieern flying backward like bowling pins after a solid strike. Someone rode the beast.

“Bryk?” she whispered in shock.

As the wildarn raced around the clearing, thrashing its horns at the Al’kieern, Bryk leaped off the creature’s back and skidded to a halt. His swords slashed in a blue blur as he took on the Al’kieern.

The two guys the wildarn had trampled remained motionless on the ground and while she should feel bad for them, how could she? They’d been determined to rape her or sell her to the highest bidder. Eat or be eaten.

Bryk’s blades flashed, slicing into the neck of an Al’kieern. The guy’s head went in one direction while the body slumped on the ground. Three down and seven left to go. The odds seemed insurmountable. Yet here Bryk was, coming to her rescue.

Her heartbeat thundering in her ears, she yanked on her hands, but other than making the rope bite deeper, she couldn’t get free. Blood trickled down her arms and her wrists stung like they’d been encased in tight barbed wire.

If she could get free, she could—

Gropey stumbled backward, avoiding the sweep of Bryk’s sword. When he tripped and fell against her, making her sway back then forward again, she wrapped her legs around his neck. He struggled and thrashed, but she refused to let him go. One less to attack Bryk.

While Gropey smacked her thighs and scrambled his booted feet on the ground, three other Al’kieern attacked Bryk from the air with sticks like the one she’d seen Skinny use on Gropey. One touch and they’d disarm Bryk.

“No,” she moaned, almost unable to watch. Would she see him fall before her eyes?

With an impossible leap, Bryk sprung up and over the three. He dove forward and when he hit, rolled across the ground. He jumped to his feet and sprang up again, his blades slashing out a decapitating two of the Al’kieern.

Four left. Or three, since she still held Gropey pinned between her knees.

No, make that two. Where had Skinny gone?

Tiny darts flew from Bryk’s sekairs. They hit the remaining two Al’kieerns as they rushed Bryk. Shuddering, their eyes bulging, they dropped dead before they hit the ground.

Bryk spun and stalked toward where Sadie held Gropey, the sole surviving Al’kieern in the clearing.

Gropey broke free and leaped forward, his wings flapping to add to his momentum. He hit Bryk in the legs, and the two flew backward. Gropey swung a blade overhead, aiming it for Bryk’s neck, but Bryk’s two blades thrust up and through the alien. Gropey slumped to the side and flopped over onto his back. He stared toward the sky, dead.

Bryk rose to his feet and stalked toward Sadie, where he sliced through the binding suspending her from the tree. With infinite care, he held her while unwinding the rope from around her wrists. When her knees gave out, he lifted her and carried her over to the wildarn who, strangely enough, grazed on the grass as if roaring across a campfire and carrying a Crakairian on his back was an everyday occurrence.

“Chugge?” she croaked.

“Yes. I thought…” Bryk’s naanans flared up before settling along his back and shoulders. “I’d thought my friend dead but here he is. His herd waits in the woods. Fifteen females.”

“Quite the harem,” she said, unable to host more than a whisper.

“He has honored the male species.”

She couldn’t hold back her snort. But damn, her wrists hurt. Her thighs spasmed from holding Gropey. And she couldn’t stop trembling. What if Bryk hadn’t arrived in time?

He sat on the ground with his back to Chugge, unconcerned that the elephant-sized creature would trample them. But they’d been friends since Chugge was a pup. Or whatever baby wildarns were called.

“Tell me where they hurt you,” he said softly. He lifted her hand and kissed her palm with the matching matebond symbol.

“I’m okay.” She couldn’t control her shaky breathing. “I was… I’m okay.” Her words wouldn’t come out right. Fear and anxiety had stolen her voice.

He stroked her hair. “Did they…?”

“No. They were saving me for breeders.” Her grip on his arm tightened as urgency shot through her. “Bryk. They mentioned they’d captured other women. And they plan to steal Earth women coming to Crakair.”

“When we return to the city, I will notify Crown Prince Axil and Vork. They will ensure nothing like this happens.”

But how could they stop it? They couldn’t patrol the galaxy.

“Take me home, Bryk, will you?” she said, her voice one giant tremor. “I’m…I need to go home.” Tears stung in her eyes and dripped down her face.

“I will.” His words came out like a vow as he stood and helped her rise. “Can you stand?” When she nodded, he left her and approached Chugge. Whispering something low, he rested his head on Chugge’s forehead, communing with the frightening beast.

Bryk patted Chugge and rubbed his shoulders for a long time while the creature stood patiently, doing nothing more than nudging Bryk as if in play. The beast huffed out a long puff of air.

With a heavy sigh, Bryk left Chugge and walked back to Sadie.

Chugge watched Bryk for a moment before lumbering from the clearing to return to his herd.

“We’ll come back here someday so you can see him again,” she said, her heart aflame. For some reason, this had felt like a final goodbye.

“I am grateful I was gifted with this chance to see him once more, but I will not return. I need to remember my friend as he is now, in his prime and king of his domain.”

Sadie stroked his face, and he leaned into her touch, his eyes closing. “I understand.”

Swallowing thickly, he nodded. His eyes opened. “I will carry you,” he said softly.

“I can walk.” Turning, she stumbled toward the woods. “How far do we have to travel?”

“Too far. Please. Just this final…?”

She turned. “Final what?”

“Nothing.” His naanans drooped. “Disty waits a few kleks from here. If you would allow it, I would like to hold you, to know you are safe in my arms once more.”

“Okay.” She lifted a smile that became true without effort. “I love it when you hold me.”

His lips flattened into a grim line as he carefully lifted her and tucked her gently against his chest.

His steps plodded through the forest until they reached Disty.

He said nothing further.

23

BRYK

Disty landed in the valley, and after Bryk jumped off with Sadie in his arms, he asked the draquier to wait.

They wouldn’t be here for long. He didn’t dare remain with one Al’kieern loose.

“I will get our things,” he said.

“I’m coming with you.” She took his hand and squeezed it. “I’m not letting you out of my sight.”

If the remaining Al’kieern was wise, he had flown from the area and would keep going. Bryk would notify Vork and Crown Prince Axil once they returned, and the Council would get involved with this. They’d hunt down the Al’kieern and charge him, and they’d ensure none of the future mail-order brides were captured. A rescue party would be sent to look for the others Sadie had mentioned. Where were they? Who were they? For all Bryk knew, the Al’kieern had located another planet other than Earth with women and were kidnapping them to sell to breeders.

The government also needed to look into the suspicious activity he’d seen on Mia, the smallest moon orbiting Crakair. Were the two connected? The assumption was a stretch, but not impossible.

As they walked toward his lair in the trees, Bryk warred within himself. If he was wise, he’d put Sadie on the next ship traveling to Earth. Once she returned, she would be safe there.

But Bryk was weak. He loved her. He didn’t want to lose her.

Wouldn’t sending her back be the same thing?

He growled as frustration ripped through him.

He didn’t know what to do. And by the concerned looks Sadie sent him as they wove around trees toward their nest, she knew something was wrong.

Finally, she jumped in front of him and made him halt with her hands clutching his forearms. “What is it?”

“I was worried about you. I thought…” No need to share the horror he’d lived through while seeking her.

Her shoulders slumped. “I worried you’d try to rescue me and would be hurt.” Her voice came out pinched. “It was horrible. I got away once, but they caught me. I was determined to do it again, to keep running until I found you.”

“Your chance of escaping ten Al’kieern, with more than half of them winged, was slim, but I know you tried. How did you hope to escape them a second time?” Not a hint of mocking in his tone. He was curious. This human female had more fire in her than three draquier.

Her chin trembled, but she lifted it and her steely gaze met his. “You fought them off. I’d planned to do the same thing myself. I’m clever. Resourceful. And I was mad.”

“I am a Vikir warrior.” He moved around her and continued stomping toward his lair.

She trotted beside him. “I’m a kickass Earth woman and no one messes with us.” She pointed to her leg. “I still have my knife. I was saving it.” Her voice cracked. “I didn’t want to use it until I needed it most. They were stupid to assume I was defenseless.”

“You were defenseless. A tiny knife is nothing.”

“Just because I’m not a Vikir warrior doesn’t mean I can’t slam around a few aliens.”

So fiery. If only her slamming of aliens was possible. “If you return to Earth…”

“Ah,” sighed out of her and she came to a stop.

He only continued a few steps before turning to face her.

“So that’s it,” she said, blinking fast. “You want to send me back.” Her eyes swam and her lips trembled, but she fisted her hands at her sides.

His naanans flared, some reaching toward her. Traitorous things. Or not, because he ached to touch her, too. “How can I protect you if you remain on Crakair?”

“You already did. You came for me like I knew you would.”

“I barely rescued you. Without Chugge…”

“I’m staying.” Color rose in her face as she fumed, but her chest rose and fell. “Unless this is your way of telling me you’ve changed your mind and you don’t want me.”

“I do want you,” he shouted, then lowered his voice when a trittle dove burst from the bush nearby and spiraled up into the sky. His voice lowered, though it was filled with desperation. “I do.”

Her face had gone splotchy. Was she sick? When she sniffed, he read the coloring for what it was: a heartbreaking sadness.

“Then why are you sending me away?” she asked.

“To keep you safe.” He crossed his arms on his chest and couldn’t meet her eyes. Would she read the overwhelming fear he still felt inside?

“Physically,” she said, pushing past him to trudge toward their lair. “But if the Al’kieern raid Earth, I won’t be safe, now will I?” She whirled around and the splotches had fled her face, replaced with solid scarlet. “How about we talk about keeping me safe emotionally? Do you know how hard it was for me to trust someone again?” Her arms flew up in the air, a gesture that to Crakairians meant she was hungry. Bryk did not believe Sadie was hungry. “I’ve buried people I love. Losing my parents almost wrecked me. Then Kyle died, and I had to bury him, too. Now you’re saying I need to lose you, as well. Only I’m not losing you to death like my husband and family. I’m losing you because you don’t have the guts to keep me.”

His sekair flaps rose, though no poison filled the tips. “That is not true.”

“Sure it is. I won’t lose you because you die or are somehow taken from me, but because you shove me away.”

“It is not that.”

“Yup, that’s what they all say.” Whirling, she stormed toward the base of the tree with the first platform.

“Who says what?”

“Men. Males. Whatever.” Her arms flew up again. “No matter how far you travel in the galaxy, a girl still runs into the same old shit. It’s not you, it’s me. You’re misunderstanding, honey. I thought you’d be different.”

He did not know what she meant, but her tone was clear. He had angered her when all he wanted to do was protect her. He would help her understand. Because then she would go, as she should. But before he could speak his heart, she jumped in with her own words.

“You lost people you loved, too, so you understand where I’m coming from. It’s hard to care again knowing you may lose them. But if you hold yourself back, you’re only half alive. Is that what you want, Bryk, to only be half alive?”

Again, she did not let him speak, holding her hand up as if she wished to be kissed. Drawing her into his embrace at the minar would be like trying to kiss a xarton. The snake-like creature found only in Mara’s desert would sooner eat Bryk as offer him a taste of its lips.

“I don’t know about you,” she said in a tight voice. “But if you send me back, it’ll break me all over again, and I don’t think there’s a cure for this broken heart.”

Grumbling, he assisted her up the platforms to the bedroom. He shouldn’t listen to her words. His resolve should remain strong. Yet each stroke hit his heart like a saber. He was being flayed alive.

She gathered up the rest of her things, stuffing them into her already bulging bag. And she handed him his own bag that she must have packed before she was taken.

He spent the silence digesting her words.

“I won’t force this,” she said, her voice cracking. She didn’t look his way. “If you can’t fight for me, no, for us, there’s nothing I can say except I love you.” She gulped and swallowed deeply. Staring up at the ceiling, she blinked fast. “And I wish you well.”

The sorrow on her face hit him like a wildarn horn in the chest. He couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think.

“Can you take me back now?” she said, stumbling toward the entrance with her pack’s wheels clicking behind. “I can stay with Evie and Vork until I board the next flight back to Earth.”

“I…” He closed his eyes and tried to make his mind work. But emotions ruled, diving around inside him like a drist bug, a creature that many said hopped high into the air, intent on reaching one of Crakair’s moons. “You must know I…do not wish to send you back.”

“Until you can say that without hesitation… Until you truly mean it in your heart, I don’t want to hear it.” She waited with her back toward him.

He took her to the ground, and they walked to the open valley where Disty waited. Silence ruled between them, but he couldn’t find a way to bridge the gap that grew with each minar.

As they reached Disty, he opened his mouth to explain. Surely, he could make her understand if he found the right words.

She lifted her hands, and the cuts on her wrists reminded him all over again that he was a failure.

This was for the best. How could he trust that the first time he went to the fields or worked with a newborn kit of draquier that she would be safe? The minar he was gone, someone could harm her.

She was kind and loving. Beautiful, too, but she couldn’t protect herself. That was proven when the Al’kieern took her.

Her lungs heaving, she looked around the valley as if memorizing it. Perhaps she was. They’d never come here again.

He’d never be able to come back here again. Her spirit would haunt him.

“I’d thought someday we’d…” Her distant, empty stare passed over him. “I guess it no longer matters what I thought, now does it?”

“I will help you mount Disty,” he was all he could think to say.

“If nothing else, I can do that for myself.” With a stiff spine, she strode over to the draquier. A stomp of her foot and Disty dropped down onto his knees. She climbed up to the creature’s ridge spines all by herself. Bryk felt as if he watched the future unfurling in front of him.

She was moving forward while he remained locked in the past.

She’d no longer need—or want—his help.

Once she returned to Earth, would she put in for another mate? Jealousy, the green-eyed monster she’d named, roared through him, but he bit back the protest before it crested his lips. What right did he have to deny her love?

To deny himself love?

His hand lifted toward her, and he focused on her face as she stared forward.

She’d already left. His love was halfway toward Earth already.

As he stepped toward Disty, something shifted behind him.

Before he could turn, a bolt hit his spine, and heat arced up through his head. He tumbled forward onto the ground, unable to do a damn thing to break his fall.

His fingers flexed in the grass.

Sadie…

24

SADIE

Sadie glared as Skinny flew in close, hitting Bryk in the back with the alien taser. Bryk toppled forward and lay unmoving on the ground.

As the skin on Bryk’s back cracked and bled, Skinny flew up toward Sadie. She gulped in horror and dismay. Bryk!

Her pulse thudding in her throat, she scrambled backward on Disty but couldn’t go far without falling.

Skinny latched onto her arm and, with a jerk, started to lift her.

Anger roared through her like a wildfire. Her hand swung up, and she impaled him in the throat with her blade. For good measure, she twisted it.

While her snarl of rage ripped through the valley, Skinny’s eyes rolled up in his head. With a hoarse cry, he tumbled backward. He impacted the ground with a solid thud and lay unmoving, staring upward. As she slid down Disty’s side, Skinny stopped breathing.

Electricity rippled across Bryk’s skin, scorching his scales. His gorgeous sekairs lifted and flopped back, unable to host even a meager defense.

She shook him, but he wouldn’t wake up. What could she do? He’d die right in front of her. In desperation, she looked around, but nothing stood out as a way to save him.

Wait.

Grabbing his wrist, she dragged him toward the lake, grateful Disty had moved in that direction for water while they packed and the distance wasn’t far.

She hauled Bryk down into the lake, remaining in the shallow end because she wasn’t confident she could hold his head above the water to keep him from drowning.

Dropping to her knees, she cupped liquid and poured it over his chest, his face, and his limp naanans.

His skin hissed and sizzled while electricity rippled beneath the surface.

Zinters swam in close, and she worried they’d eat him. But he’d said this water could heal, and if there was ever a time he needed healing, it was now.

The electrical currents traveling beneath his skin winked out and color slowly returned to his pale face.

She splashed more water on him and shouted for the zinters to do their thing. They boiled through the water around him, some shooting up and onto his chest, where they slithered across the wounded areas.

There might be something to this zinter thing…

When she leaned in for a closer study of the creature’s activity, Bryk latched onto her arms and tumbled her to the side. She landed on her back with a splash, and he loomed up over her. While his breathing raged, and his wide-eyed eyes met hers, she couldn’t hold back the hope rising inside her.

“Welcome back,” she said. She should be ranting at him for wanting to send her back to Earth, but instead, all she could feel was gratitude he was still alive.

Sitting back on his heels, he pawed his hands down at his body. His fingers traced across the mostly smooth skin, revealing his scales were on their way to full repair.

These zinters were a miracle. She’d have to recommend them to Earth.

“You…saved me,” he said in shock.

She rose onto her elbows. “Who’s the big protector now?” Her finger poked his chest. “Me, the puny Earth woman who told you she could kick butt, though I doubt you believed.”

“The Al’kieer?”

“Dead,” she said smugly. “I killed him with my blade.”

His face creasing, Bryk cupped her cheeks. “I have made a mistake.”

“Say it,” she said, holding back her grin. He had to earn it first.

“I want you to stay.” His voice broke. “I need you as my forever mate. I want you to love me and stand by my side for the rest of our lives.”

As far as speeches go, this one was amazing. It made her want to cry. Then cover him with kisses.

She chose the latter, sitting fully upright and grabbing onto his shoulders. “Yes.”

He frowned.

“That was your official Vikir proposal, wasn’t it?” she asked.

He bared his fangs, and his mouth descended to hover above hers. “You are right. It is.”

They kissed and rolled around in the shallow water for a while before they’d each determined the other was safe. And satisfied.

After, he stood and offered her his hand.

When she took it, he lifted her up out of the water.

Then he bent forward and flipped her over his shoulder and raced for their treehouse.

25

SADIE

ONE MONTH LATER

“Do I look okay in this dress?” Sadie said as she stared into the gleaming surface Bryk had mounted on the wall. It wasn’t a mirror, but it worked. Frowning, she sucked in her gut and smoothed the pale blue fabric across her hips.

Bryk came up behind her and wrapped her up in his arms. “You are gorgeous. You look wonderful in everything you wear.” His hands tugged hers away from her belly, and then cupped it himself. “And you are pregnant.” A growl of satisfaction came through in his voice. His mouth descended to kiss her nape, and his naanans glided across her shoulders to her front.

“I’m not even showing yet.”

His hands continued to stroke her belly. “My little warrior is strong. He will be born a full Vikir within no time.”

From her calculations, she’d gotten pregnant the first time they were together. Talk about Crakairian male virility…

At least Earth women were now allowed to say enough was enough after three children. While they understood the need to create new life for Crakair, Earth women were not broodmares. Evie, Julia, and Thea had been advocating form women’s rights with the Council.

“All that warrior stuff is nice, but it doesn’t answer my question,” she said. “Does this dress make me look okay?”

“You are precious to me no matter what you wear.”

Diplomatic, just like any guy she’d met on Earth. But they were going to the palace for a party. She had to look good!

He nibbled on her earlobe and her eyes closed.

Yeah, that sent tingles straight through her. If they didn’t have to leave soon, she’d drag him back to bed for another round. Or a third. Insatiable, she couldn’t keep her hands off him.

“Are you ready to leave?” he said. “The hover tram has arrived.”

“I guess so,” she grumbled. The blue dress would have to do. There wasn’t time to try on anything else.

Bryk grabbed their overnight bag from the bed and they walked outside to the courtyard where Weld worked on another engine under Jorg’s watchful gaze.

They had a mercenary babysitter. Who would have thought? But Jorg was much more than a random mercenary. He was a friend to Bryk and now her, too. Weld viewed him as a beloved uncle.

When he saw them arrive, Weld leaped up and raced toward them, bypassing Bryk’s outstretched arms and barreling into Sadie. He looked up with his little fangs bared wide. “You will be back soon, correct?”

“You know it, buddy,” she said, rustling his naanans that snaked around her fingers, holding on and making her laugh. Damn, they tickled. “Daela after tomorrow, and don’t forget. I’m going to bring you a surprise from the city.”

“My very own hover tram to rip apart?” he said, rising up and down on his toes. He was growing fast and would need new clothing soon. She’d made plans for a trip to the city. They’d stay with Evie and Vork and go shopping.

“It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you, now would it?” she said, barely able to hold back her smile.

Jorg watched with what she read as envy in his deep gray eyes. Did he long for a child?

For Weld’s surprise, she’d commissioned someone to make him a dirt bike. She couldn’t wait to show him how to use it.

Bryk put his arm around Sadie’s waist and held his son’s shoulder, only pride and love shining in his eyes. “We need to leave, youngling, but we will return.”

Weld’s shoulders curled forward, and his lips tightened. But then he grinned again. “I should be sad but also happy because Sadie is here.” He hugged her again.

She laughed and wasn’t afraid to shed a few tears. This boy held her heart and would for the rest of their daelas.

Weld and Jorg walked out to the tram platform with them, and the two males spoke briefly before Bryk turned to her with a strained smile. The minar they returned to the farm, they’d notified the government about the Al’kieern and they were conducting a full investigation. Jorg had hinted he was involved.

She and Bryk got inside the vehicle and waved as the lid sealed shut. Sadie blew kisses, which Weld caught with glee. How long before he got old enough to call girl kisses yucky? Assuming youngling males did that on Crakair.

As she waved and Weld and Jorg grew smaller, the craft zipped toward the city. They’d reach the palace by late afternoon.

The palace. Like, that sounded so casual. I’m just going to the palace, my dear. For dinner. Shall we meet up later for tea?

With the stiff British accent ringing in her mind, she snickered.

Bryk watched her, baring his fangs. “What are your thoughts?”

“This.” She leaned into his side and glided her hand down his thigh. “I miss your garlong. If I ask nicely, will you wear it for me soon?”

He laughed and tugged her up onto his lap.

Her legs wrapping around his waist.

“You tease,” he said.

“And you love it.”

“I do.”

Yum. He was vibrating for her already, the sensation rumbling through her bones and heating her up fast. “It’s only a tease if I don’t follow through.” Leaning back, she undid the fastenings on his black leather pants while his naanans glided along her breasts.

After kissing her neck, he grazed his fangs along her collarbone, making her shiver with desire.

The garlong was hot, but so were these pants. Best to get him out of them. When his cock sprang free, she grinned. “Honey, you were holding out on me.”

His hands glided up her thighs, pushing back her dress along with them. “I am rigid whenever you are around.”

“Must be painful.” She tried to keep a serious face, but how could she complain about that? She felt the same when he was around and even when he wasn’t. She loved how virile he was because it matched her own sexual appetite. “We have all day, correct? Or do you plan to stop at your local diner and drive-in for more gref?” Please, no. She wasn’t sure her belly could stand it today. While she hadn’t experienced much nausea with her pregnancy, she wasn’t eager to risk it.

“I brought snacks,” he said. “You said you wanted to save your appetite for dinner.”

“That I did.” Rising over him, she guided him to her opening. Going without undies had become her norm. Things worked…quicker that way. “We have plenty of time.” Gripping his shoulders, she sank down onto him and wiggled. Pure satisfaction shot through her. “That feels so good.”

“Always,” he groaned against her neck.

Later in the day, Sadie and her friend, plus their mates, bustled around inside the palace kitchen.

Axil and Julia stretched the dough Julia had made this morning with ingredients Axil had shipped from Earth. He kept stopping to kiss Julia’s big belly and at this rate, it would be midnight before they had dinner.

But Sadie didn’t care. She was with Bryk and her best friends, and nothing could beat that.

Gaje and Thea danced around the huge room, Gaje dipping Thea to the music produced by a trio of reegar birds perched on a rod near a window. Thea was Julia’s best friend, and she’d been matched in the original group. Gaje worked with Crown Prince Axil.

The birds chirped some more. Julia had been taming them over the past few months, and they came whenever she called. Music was a loose term, however. Discordant cacophony might be a better description. The birds swayed as they sang, their bright pink feathers fluttering and their vivid blue beaks snapping. Sadie had decided she’d bribe Julia into taming a trio for her. She’d take them to the farm and point them in Jorg’s direction. The solemn guy needed cheering up.

Since Julia wanted her very own draquier kit, she and Sadie had decided on a trade. Axil had balked at first, saying draquiers had no place at a palace, but Julia had told Sadie not to worry, she’d talk him into it.

On the opposite side of the big stone counter, Evie and Vork chopped herbs, and the pungent aroma of basil and oregano swirled through the air. This was Sadie’s contribution to the meal; she’d grown the herbs herself at the farm from seeds she’d brought with her from Earth. Like everything on Crakair, they grew fast. One of the first things she’d done when they returned after the courtship was plant a big garden. Her zucchinis were doing awesome, and she kept teasing Bryk, stating the plants were going to be bigger than him.

A win-win situation for her because without fail, Bryk kept trying to prove her wrong by hauling her off to bed and showing her.

Vork sneezed, and Evie giggled, because the sneeze had come out like the roar of a draquier.

Sadie and Bryk sliced pepperoni, a true challenge because Bryk kept kissing the nape of her neck and his naanans wanted to get in on the action.

A gasp rang out in the room, and everyone stilled. Julia’s head jerked up, and her eyes widened. The reegar birds, startled, choked off, their song halting mid-tune. They fluffed their wings and fled the kitchen, gliding out through the open back door.

Staring down at the floor, Julia groaned. “No. This is not fair. I want pizza!” She stomped her foot. “Axil! Pregnant ladies are supposed to have their every culinary whim fulfilled and mine is pizza!”

“What is this?” Axil roared. He tugged her close and lifted her off her feet.

“I think…” Julia’s eyes widened, and she clutched her belly. “The baby’s coming.”

“It’s too soon,” Evie yelled. Her knife dropped from her hand and clattered on the counter. She rushed around the island and gaped at the floor. “Oh, shit. Your water broke.”

“Yup,” Julia said with a groan as she rubbed her big belly. “Damn. That hurts. Axil! Make it stop.”

“But you’re only seven months along,” Evie said with a full-blown concern in her voice. “It hasn’t been long enough.”

“You can’t have the baby yet,” Thea said, joining Evie. “Holy fuck, Evie.” She winced. “Can you make it stop?”

Julia groaned again through her laugh. “Like I can do anything about it now? Remember, I’m a nurse. I’ve got this covered. Crakairian women gestate for five months compared to Earth women with nine. We don’t know how long this will take, but I’m guessing seven months. I’m not going to worry about this unless I have to.”

“I am worried,” Axil yelled. He kept spinning around as if he didn’t know where to take Julia.

She cupped his face, and he came to a shuddering stop. “It’s okay, sweetie. It’s just a baby.”

“It is our baby,” he said in complete awe. His fangs bared as he looked around at them all. “My baby wishes to be born.”

Bryk’s arms went around Sadie, and his hand glided across her belly. Vork joined Evie, and she snuggled into his side.

“I’m a nurse,” Julia said. “Remember? I’m telling you right now we don’t need to worry.”

“A healer,” Axil said, completely ignoring her. “We need a healer!”

Vork, ever practical, tapped his com and spoke into it. In seconds, the palace staff rushed into the kitchen.

Julia rubbed her belly as another contraction hit. “Oh, that hurts. Ugh. This is not going to be fun, is it?”

“No,” Axil said as if this was something he could command away. “It does not hurt. I do not wish it to hurt.”

“Chill,” Julia said through her pants. When the contraction eased, her gaze fell on Gaje. “Take Axil. No, take all the guys to the library. You guys can wait there.”

“I will be with you throughout this,” Axil said firmly. “You will not dissuade me.”

“And I want you there with me,” she said softly. “You and my girlfriends.” Her smile drew Sadie, Evie, and Thea close. “Come with us?” When the women nodded, Julia tapped Axil’s arm. “Take me to our bedroom.”

Three hours later, after a surprisingly easy labor, Alicia Merri Xigead Brancik Dhan’eth was born and man, was she pissed at being pushed from her warm snuggly spot inside Julia.

As Julia put her daughter to her breast and Axil watched in amazement, Thea, Evie, and Sadie crept from the room.

They stood in the hall grinning at each other, each hoping their own upcoming births would be just as wonderful.

Because…all of them were expecting.

Tiptoeing down the stairs and taking three hallways to reach the library, they joined their mates.

Sadie curled up on Bryk’s lap, where he sat on one of the many sofas. The other women did the same while Thea made the announcement.

Cheers greeted her words, and the males shared long looks of relief.

Sadie gushed about how beautiful the little girl was with her wisps of auburn hair and tiny pearly scales. No naanans yet but it was still early.

As she snuggled against Bryk’s chest, Sadie’s com chimed.

One of Vork’s friends worked in tech, and he’d been playing with their devices. They could now send voicemail back and forth with Earth, though it took about ten days for messages to arrive.

While conversations might take forever, this had given Sadie a chance to chat with her sister, Lily, who had signed up for the matchmaking program.

Bryk kissed her and nudged his head to the com. “Are you going to listen to the message?”

She opened it and let her sister’s welcome voice burst into the room.

“You will never believe it,” Lily cried through the com. “I’ve been matched!” Her voice deepened. “Hell, I’ve been matched. Fuck. He’s freakin’ gorgeous. Big and green and he appears super-strong. Oh, and he’s a mercenary, which sounds sexy as shit.”

Bryk frowned. “Shit is not sexy. I should know. I—”

“Shhh,” Sadie said with a big smile. “I’m listening. Lily! I’m so happy for her.”

Thea grinned. “Let’s hear the rest. Please?”

Sadie nodded and pressed the com again, leaning forward as her sister’s voice came through.

“Can’t wait to see you in a few weeks and meet my match. Oh, before I sign off, I’ve been told I can share his name. It’s… Well, let me see if I can pronounce it right. It’s quite a mouthful.”

The air ticked as they all waited in anticipation.

“Jorg Tredvax Zorel Qua’zad,” Lily said with a dreamy sigh. “Sadie, do you know anyone named Jorg?”

Bonus Epilogue

SADIE

“Wiffles. Wiffles,” Weld hollered as he barreled into the kitchen. “We are having wiffles!”

Sadie turned away from the counter where she’d poured a scoop of batter into the waffle iron Bryk had ordered from Earth. It had been a challenge finding the ingredients to make waffles, but as more Earth mail-order brides arrived and formed matebonds with Crakairian males, the more the two cultures blended. Specialty stores were opening, offering flour and even Doritos. Atrocious prices, but the shipping costs had to be a killer. She’d heard someone was going to open a bakery in the city and had decided to talk Bryk into taking her once it opened, because she missed cupcakes more than just about anything.

“Have a seat, kiddo,” she said with a grin. Striding around the table, she stroked his back as he settled on the wooden chair. “Your wiffle-waffles will be ready soon.”

“Ha. I said wiffles, didn’t I?” Hopping around in his seat, his small naanans floated up into the air before drifting back down. He leaned forward eagerly. “I can’t wait!”

“Me either.” They smelled freakin’ awesome. Waffles were a rare treat, but this was a special day.

In a few hours, Weld would be competing in his first Crakairian hover-dirt bike race. Bryk had built a course on their property and a bunch of other younglings would compete with Weld for the championship. She’d picked up something that vaguely looked like a trophy cup for each child and had their names and the date and event engraved on the front. While one youngling would cross the finish line first, all of them would receive awards for their efforts.

Bryk strode into the kitchen, seeming to bring with him the sun and the moons and the stars, all at the same time.

Her face colored for no apparent reason. Maybe because she was happy to see him.

He stopped beside Weld and placed his hand on the boy’s shoulder. “Good morning, favored youngling.”

Weld bared his tiny fangs up at his father, and his naanans wrapped around Bryk’s wrist. “We are having wiffle-waffles!” He wiggled in his seat. “I cannot wait. Sadie, hurry. Please?”

She laughed and peeked at the waffle iron. Steam chugged from the sides, but the device hadn’t beeped yet. It had been a challenge figuring out how to create power for Earth appliances, but the Crakairians were a savvy bunch. They’d done it within daelas, to the joy of every Earthling woman who enjoyed cooking. “They’re almost ready.”

Bryk kissed Weld’s cheek while the boy danced the syrup bottle around his plate. Bryk then strode around the table and right up to Sadie. Like every other time he came near, her knees went weak, and her heart picked up its pace to double time.

He dropped to his knees and with his hands on her hips, tugged her close. “And how is my other favorite youngling today?” He kissed her growing baby bump and then bared his fangs at Sadie. “And you…” His voice dropped a couple of octaves. “How are you this morning?”

She was instantly transported to the heat that had risen inside them not long ago in their bedroom. Her skin tingled, and if Weld hadn’t been here, she’d drag Bryk to the bedroom for a repeat performance. She loved that they never got enough of each other. Their love grew stronger with every minar.

“I’m fine,” she said, her cheeks growing hot. Really, they could disappear for a few seclars, couldn’t they? The waffles wouldn’t burn too much. “You?”

Rising, he cupped her cheeks and gave her a long, lingering kiss, as steamy as he dared with his son in the same room. His naanans stroked her neck and traced along her shoulders.

Really. Burned waffles were tasty.

A ping behind her, followed by Weld’s hoot of excitement, sent her spinning. She fanned her face as she lifted the top of the waffle iron. Golden brown goodness waited inside. Using the tongs, she lifted the thick waffle out and carefully carried it over to the kitchen table to deposit it on Weld’s plate.

Bryk’s hand stroked down her back and lingered on her butt for a caress while she did it, keeping her heat set to high.

Weld jumped around in his seat, then doused the waffle with syrup—another import from Earth. Jorg had brought a few small maple trees over on the last star cruiser. He’d tap them for their sap once they’d grown, but he was also wary of introducing new plants and possible disease to Crakair, so he was growing them in a secure area. That was the method used for new living organisms shared between Earth and Crakair.

She cooked more waffles, and they sat and ate. After, Bryk did the dishes while Sadie and Weld made sure his hoverbike was ready for the race.

She stepped back after checking it over one last time. The glitchy thing kept stalling out the last time he’d used it, but it seemed to be running smoothly now.

While she wiped her greasy hands off on a cloth, the other youngling racers arrived with their families in hover trams. They unloaded their stuff and mingled around the starting line, some coaching their child, others gossiping together.

“You have your elbow and knee pads with you, right, Weld?” Sadie said, picking at her lower lip. She’d drilled her stepson in bike safety at least one hundred times over the past month, but he was only eight. A little kid. And she loved him. Naturally, she was worried he’d be hurt.

“Yup. I have them.” He tugged the bag where he’d stored them off the ground and, sitting, strapped them onto his knees and elbows.

“Helmet?” she asked.

His lips twisted as he got to his feet, and he gave her a wan smile. “You know it is here.” He tapped where it dangled from the other side of his handlebars. “I will be fine. This is going to be fun.”

She hung her head but smiled to show him she was teasing. “Sorry.”

Weld’s fang-baring smile became true, and he leaped forward to hug her. “I love you, Sadie.”

Her heart expanded against her ribs, and she wasn’t sure she could be much happier than this moment. Bryk had recently told Sadie that Weld had asked if Bryk minded if Weld called her Mom.

She’d cried. While she’d never asked, she’d secretly hoped he’d call her the Earth name for mother.

Weld’s mom had loved him. Sadie would never try to take her place in Weld’s life. But there was room in a boy’s heart for two moms.

Bryk told Weld he loved the idea, but had left it up to Weld to decide when he’d use Mom. Sadie had been waiting, knowing she was going to cry her eyes out when he did it.

“I love you, too, Weld,” she said, smoothing his naanans.

With a soft smile, he backed away and strode to his bike, where he donned his helmet. She followed and made sure the strap was secure beneath his chin. Stepping back, she wrung her hands and held in her mother’s natural fear. No wonder her parents had cringed whenever she told them she’d entered another race.

Weld started his bike and putt-putted it over to join the other younglings.

Breena, a cute little nine-yaro-old, stuck her tongue out at Weld, who returned the favor.

Sadie snickered and shook her head.

Bryk joined Sadie and put his arm around her shoulders. He nuzzled her neck, grazing his fangs across her sensitive skin, and kissed her below her ear. “I think my youngling needs to learn how to treat a female.”

“She stuck her tongue out at him first,” Sadie said. Those two were at each other whenever they got together.

The race was going to be interesting.

Weld pointed to Breena’s bike—bright yellow with a matching helmet. “You think you will win with that? You will blind the path with the color.”

The tips of Breena’s naanans flipped up in agitation. She snarled and turned away from Weld to make sure her bike was ready before the race.

“I will speak with him,” Bryk said with a sigh. “He must treat her with respect at all times.” He strode over to his son, and the boy was soon drooping.

“I am sorry,” Weld told Breena.

She dipped her head and batted her eyelids, the Crakairian woman’s version of batting eyelashes, since they had no hair.

Oh, yes, this race was going to be very interesting.

“Read younglings?” Bryk asked, striding over to the starting line.

“Yes,” they chimed. Their bike’s rumbling, they lined up beside Bryk, facing the course.

It would take them about twenty minutes to complete the race. Their families would speed ahead in their hover trams and wait at the finish line. Bryk and Sadie were providing the equivalent of news coverage.

“Good luck,” Sadie called out to Weld.

He waved and bared his fangs her way before tightening his grip on the handlebars and leaning forward, his gaze trained toward his father who would start the race.

Great form. She’d taught him well.

Bryk lifted his arm while families cheered and called out encouragement. “Ready…Set…and…Go!” His arm dropped, and the kids took off.

Bryk strode over to Sadie. “It is time for us to be in the air, love.”

They hurried to Disty waiting nearby and climbed aboard. As the draquier took flight, Sadie turned on the camera. As the wind whipped her hair around her head, tangling with Bryk’s naanans, they flew over the course, live streaming the action to a screen mounted at the finish line.

“Weld is in the lead,” she cried, pointing to where he flew along the ground.

“That is my youngling,” Bryk said with pride.

The bikes zipped up a hill and launched into the air before coasting down to hover close to the ground. They’d need to remain along the course or risk elimination.

An S curve followed, then a series of narrow, covered bridges and curves.

Weld maintained his lead with Breena not far behind, her bright yellow helmet shining like a tiny sun.

Bryk kissed Sadie’s neck. “Thank you for sharing this with Weld.” Emotion made his voice creaky. “It means a lot to my youngling and to me.”

She leaned back in his embrace. “Love you, Bryk.” Her fingers squeezed his where they rested on her thigh.

He kissed her cheek while his naanans stroked her arms and back, delivering pure affection.

“Oh,” she cried, leaning forward. She pointed to the ground.

Breena had wiped out.

While the other younglings kept going, Weld slowed.

Bryk turned Disty to circle the area, and they watched. Worry shot through Sadie, making her heart gallop.

Weld watched as the other racers flew passed him, but though he stared after them with longing, his shoulders tightened. Turning, he rode back while Breena rose to her feet and brushed off her clothing. He stopped his hoverbike and got off.

She must have snarled something at him, because he stalled and flinched. But stiffened and strode past her to right her bike, holding it upright until she could take it from him.

Her shoulders sagged. She said something, and it must have been kinder, because he shyly flashed his fangs her way.

They mounted their bikes, and Weld nudged his head to indicate Breena should go first, but she shook her head and waved for him to go ahead of her. Weld also shook his head.

“What are they going to do?” Sadie whispered.

“Watch,” Bryk said. “This is my boy.” Again, his pride shone in his voice.

In a moment of friendship—probably temporarily if Sadie knew Weld and Breena—they took off along the course side-by-side, crossing the finish line at the same time.

Bryk landed Disty nearby, and they slid off the draquier.

Removing and tossing aside his helmet, Weld joined the other younglings, and they jostled each other, baring their fangs.

Jorg called out. “I have prizes for you all. Come gather round.” He presented one to each racer, along with a pat on the back.

As the other younglings joined their families, Weld whirled around and raced toward Sadie, his gleaming cup lifted high in the air.

“Mom. Mom! Look what I won!” he cried.

While tears sprang up in Sadie’s eyes, Weld came to an abrupt stop. He bit his lower lip, and she wondered if he wanted to take the name back. Damn, she hoped not. She wanted to hear it for the rest of her days.

Bryk’s arm tightened around Sadie’s waist, and she took in a deep breath before pushing it out fast. Sometimes, if you took a risk, the most wonderful things could happen.

She held out her arms. “Come get a hug, son. I’m so freakin’ proud of you!”

Weld blinked fast and his arms holding his golden cup lowered. He rushed forward, straight into her embrace. “Mom,” he said, then even softer. “Mom.”

Bryk’s arms went around them both, and his eyes glistened. They stayed locked together while the others around them continued to celebrate the race.

Pulling apart, they laughed through their tears.

“You did well, son,” Bryk said.

“I did, did I not?” Weld said with a grin.

“You were fantastic.” Sadie tipped back her head and shrieked like all Crakairian women did when they were blissfully happy.

Life.

It couldn’t get much better than this.

JORG

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR, BOOK 3

JORG

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, book 3

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

ASIN: B08B6FTNMY

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Ireland

Created with Vellum

JORG

Can a scarred alien warrior &

a human woman find love together

on a planet far from Earth?

When animal shelter assistant Lily is selected as a mail-order bride in the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Program, she dreams of starting a new life with her computer-matched alien groom. But on the way to Crakair, she’s kidnapped and caged on one of the planet’s moons. Her future appears hopeless.

A mercenary, Jorg’s a seven-foot-tall, scaled green alien with scars on his face that make others flinch. Abandoned as a youngling and forced to raise himself, he’s learned not to expect much from others. He finds satisfaction in rescuing kids who have been stolen and returning them to their homes. But when he watches Lily’s introduction video, his matebond ignites. Maybe fate will give him a chance at love after all.

Then Lily is stolen by other aliens. With his blood rage igniting, Jorg’s determined to rescue her. But once he does, will she choose to stay with a wounded alien warrior or return to her safe life on Earth?

Jorg is book 3 in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone, full-length romance has on-the-page heat, aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. You can find the complete series on Amazon.

1

JORG

A fter nudging aside the spensier before one of its five claws pinched his finger, Jorg tugged a weed from the soft, reddish-brown soil beneath the broad leaf of a jinjin plant. He shook off the dirt and tossed it into his cart.

“There you are,” Sadie called out, coming up behind him.

He’d heard her approach from the moment her feet hit the path between her and Bryk’s house and his, but he’d kept working. He knew she’d see him in the side vegetable garden before she reached his home.

“You’ll never believe what I’ve got,” she said gaily, skipping along the crushed stones leading around the building. From the clickety-crunch sound, he could tell she wore her shoes with tiny heels. Kiteen heels? No, kitten heels, she’d called them. A good way to fall, he’d said to himself when he saw them.

“Jorg?” Sadie said with a laugh as she got closer. When she stopped beside him, her gaze spanned his vibrant garden. “Damn, dude. When Bryk said you love to work with plants, he was right. Your gardens could be featured in a magazine. Would you care to come by our place and spiffy things up when you’re done here? Because I have a purple thumb.”

He was not sure why the color of her thumb influenced her gardening abilities, but he adored Sadie. She was kind to him and Weld. She loved her mate, Bryk. If she needed help, he would give it.

Standing, he turned and brushed the dirt off his clothing.

He’d been practicing for his upcoming introduction to Sadie’s sister, Lily—his Selection match. But when he smiled, the stretching of his lips still felt…odd. Crakairians bared their fangs to show happiness, and their females were known to shriek out their joy. But if humans preferred smiles, Jorg would do so until his cheeks ached.

He very much wished to please Lily. Otherwise, she would leave before his ten days of courtship were finished, and his chance to find a mate would be gone forever.

The world Crakairians knew fell apart a year ago when a mysterious disease swept through the galaxy, killing most of the females on Crakair and the surrounding planets, plus the men on a distant planet called Earth. The Crakairian ruling family, without the governing Council’s permission, sent a message into the universe, seeking contact, and Earth responded. Though the Council had grumbled, many of the Crakairian citizens welcomed the chance to establish relations with another world.

After forming a treaty to exchange technology, which the less-advanced Earthlings desperately needed, the ruling family had made a proposal. Crakairians and humans were genetically compatible. It made sense to arrange marriages. The Earth governments agreed, and the matchmaking program the Crakairians called the Selection was formed.

Over one hundred matches had been made so far and the majority of the couples had formed a full matchbond, including Sadie, who had been paired with Jorg’s neighbor, Bryk.

Jorg had been recently matched with Sadie’s sister, Lily, and he had mixed feelings about their upcoming introduction. What if she was repulsed by his appearance?

“I’ve got it!” Sadie waved her hand in the air in front of his face, returning him to the present with a jolt.

“You have what?” he asked patiently as it appeared she carried nothing.

“So, you know that video you guys send to your future Earth mates to show us you’re nice and cute and sweet?”

He’d sent a video. Had he come across nice and sweet? There was no way he could be seen as cute. Not with his scar.

“Well, you’re never going to guess what happened,” she said.

He held himself still, waiting. Because deep inside, he knew what she would tell him. He’d sent his vid weeks ago. Lily would have watched it by now.

She would have cringed in horror.

He braced himself, knowing Sadie would say Lily wasn’t coming. She couldn’t do it. She’d been nauseated by his appearance. She had not enjoyed the video he’d sent, because he hadn’t been friendly enough, eager enough, nice and sweet enough. She’d welcome any match but one with Jorg. She—

“She’s so excited about this, she made a video for you and sent it to me.” Sadie frowned. “Didn’t you give her your com number? She would have sent it directly to you if she’d had it.” Sadie’s face smoothed. “Anyway. I’ve got a vid for you. Can I bribe you a few veggies for dinner in exchange for it?” Her laughter rang out.

Jorg pressed a smile on his face. Sadie was sweet, and Bryk was incredibly lucky to have been matched with her.

“You may have anything in my garden,” he hurried to say, turning to collect a basket.

She grabbed his arm and held him back. He allowed her to bring him to a halt, that is. Frail and tiny, as were all the human females he’d met, Sadie would not be able to hold him back even if she truly tried.

“No, no, I was joking.” Her chuckle reminded him he would never understand human females. Did she want vegetables or did she not? “I’ll send you the video. I just wanted to let you know before I did it, but you didn’t reply to my ping to your com.”

He was not wearing his com. When he worked in the garden, he preferred no distractions. The calm he felt while touching the earth… The peace it brought him… Nothing could compare.

He hungered to watch the video from Lily. Was that bad of him? No matter how many times he told himself not to place a speck of hope in this match, his heart did it anyway.

Sadie lifted her long blonde hair up off her neck and dropped it back down onto her shoulders. “Phew. It’s hot today, isn’t it? I need to get a hair elastic and put this stuff up.”

“Does Lily have your coloring?” he asked. While he did not covet Bryk’s mate, he would be blind not to appreciate her beauty. Her hair resembled spun wexar thread, and she had eyes the color of rare kerrick wood. The top of her head barely reached Bryk’s shoulders; so unusual on Crakair where both males and females were of equal height and had scaled green skin. Crakairians also had no hair, only naanans on their heads that functioned like limbs. They did not hang about one’s face as hair did. One did not arrange their naanans. Naanans did not gleam.

“She has blue eyes, and she’s blonde like me, but her hair’s a bit longer than mine,” Sadie said, holding her finger along her lower back. “It comes to about here. She’s an inch shorter than me, too.” She held up her finger and thumb about a cemar apart. “You’ll be able to tell on the video, I imagine. I didn’t watch it, though I wanted to. I miss my sister so much. But she’ll be here soon, and we’ll be neighbors. We’ll be able to visit whenever we want. I can’t wait!”

“The vid?”

“Oh, yes. Of course. Your impatience speaks well of you.” With a grin, she tapped her com. “There. All sent.”

“Thank you.” Despite his urge to resist thinking about Lily, he was…curious. More than curious, and not only to see her face or study her human body. He ached to see who she was inside.

He’d admit this to no one but himself, but he was also scared. When he’d recorded his vid, he’d done nothing to hide his scars.

But Lily had left Earth after seeing his vid. If she’d been repulsed by him, she would have applied for a waiver already. Only one other Earth woman had said no to a match, and she’d set a precedent. If others chose to back out, they did so before departing Earth. Despite how desperate they were to carry on their species, neither Earth nor Crakair would force a relationship. Matches should bring happiness to the couple, not dismay.

What if Lily arrived and decided his scars were unbearable in person? He’d watch her closely when they were introduced, and then he would know. If she hinted at a cringe, he would send her back or suggest she request an alternative match. Then he would give up wishing he could find a female of his own who could keep her face neutral when she looked at him.

“I can tell you’re eager to go inside,” Sadie said.

How? He’d purposefully given nothing away.

“I’ll leave so you can watch it,” Sadie added. “But just one more thing.” Her gaze met his, and he wondered: Did she see more than he hoped to reveal?

“What?” He kept his voice pleasant, but inside he girded himself for the worst.

“I imagine you’re nervous about all this. Bryk told me he was, and Evie said Vork was a wreck before she arrived, but I know you’re the right mate for Lily.”

“Why?”

“You’re gentle.”

Most considered him half-feral, and there was no such thing as a gentle, rabid creature.

“And you’re thoughtful,” she added softly. “I see how you are with Weld. You indulge him. You…” Color rose into her cheeks, a phenomenon rarely seen on Crakair. Color variations did not show easily on scaled green skin. “You make sure Bryk and I have moments alone, and I appreciate it. I love Weld. He’s the best kid in the world. But…”

“You and Bryk are newly mated.”

“Yes.” More redness filled her cheeks. Would Lily’s skin do this, too? Jorg found the notion intriguing. “There’s one more reason why I know you’re right for Lily.”

He waited.

“You won’t hurt her.”

“Never.” He reached into his pocket and clasped the circular piece of trinar a Vi’slivir witch had given him when he was fifteen-yaros-old. After hunting in the desert, he’d returned with xarton blood, a substance difficult to obtain as the xarton were considered some of the most deadly creatures in the galaxy. Their blood was highly coveted in Qe’ket. He’d traded it for a meal he’d shared with the witch.

The stone had been sharp when the witch gave it to him, but through the years and from rubbing his thumb across it, it had been worn smooth. Unlike Jorg.

Wait. What had Sadie said?

“Who hurt Lily?” he growled, showing possession he should not be feeling. He hadn’t met her. For all he knew, she would not appeal to him. Yet here he was, ready to fight to the death to protect her. It shouldn’t be this way. Giving in to his dreams could be dangerous.

“What happened is in her past, and it’s best if she shares it with you, not me,” Sadie said. “Give her time, and she’ll tell you. I only wanted you to know I’m happy you were matched with my sister.”

“Thank you.” It humbled him that she felt this way.

“You two are the right fit. You’ll…” She stared past his shoulder, seeing what he couldn’t, much like the Vi’slivir witch had done the day she gave him the stone.

She comes, the witch had said. Trust her. After that, she’d scurried away with the food clutched to her chest, the shreds of her long, dingy robe dragging on the ground behind her. He’d thought she meant his mother, that she was returning as she’d said she would. But that never happened.

“You’re just what Lily needs,” Sadie said.

That remained to be seen.

“I’ll see you later?” As if Sadie could read the confusion tumbling through his mind, she gave him a soft smile. “Hang in there.” She tapped his arm. “It’ll all work out.”

He nodded, but she could not truly know this.

Turning, she left, skipping back down the walk, returning to her mate.

Jorg went inside his house. Flustered for no reason he could discern, he headed to the bathroom where he stripped off his clothing, tossing the items into a basket in the corner. He climbed the short stairs to his zinter pool and stepped inside, sinking down among the organisms that replenished his body and soul. They swarmed around him, cleaning him while he leaned back against the side of the tub and closed his eyes.

Lily. Ironic that the human female he’d been matched with had the name of a flower.

He soaked a bit then climbed out. Dried and dressed, he went to the kitchen where he poured himself a short draught of vintip. Not normally a drinker, especially during daylight hours, he felt the need for it today.

What if Lily had decided it was best to tell him via vid that was not interested in the match? Maybe she hadn’t boarded the ship after all.

After dropping down onto his sofa and lifting his feet onto the table in front, he leaned back in the cushions and held up his com. If he didn’t make himself watch it this minar, he might never find the will to do so.

A few clicks and Lily’s holoimage was projected in front of him.

She was lovely. Too beautiful for a damaged male such as Jorg.

“Hi,” she said, lifting her hand. When her face colored, his heart surged against his ribcage. He savored the idea that the pinkness was for him alone. His feet dropped to the floor, and he leaned forward as if that would bring her closer. “I guess I shouldn’t use that gesture, though, right? I heard from Sadie it means I want you to kiss me.” More redness flooded her creamy cheeks. She’d put her hair up in a…What did Sadie call it? Oh, yes, a punytail. That was it. She tugged on the garment she wore—a shirt of T?—and smoothed it over her generous hips. “As for kisses, let’s hold off until we’ve met and had a chance to talk, okay?”

Of course. He would not press this. He watched, mesmerized.

“I know women haven’t sent videos to potential mates, but I wanted to send something to you after seeing yours.” Her plump lips lifted briefly, and he studied them. How would they taste? How would they feel beneath his own? His naanans flared forward, seeking to touch her, but she was a holographic image, not real. Not standing in front of him. Maybe she’d never be standing in front of him. “I’m not sure that it’s fair for you guys to send us videos when you get nothing in return. Shouldn’t you also have the chance to meet your possible mate in advance? If nothing else, at least you’ll recognize her when you see her at the spaceport. Me, that is. Anyway. I wanted to…well, I wanted to tell you a little about me. I’m Lily, as you know. We were matched, which I guess means a computer somewhere thinks we might fit well together.”

They would.

He paused. How did he know this?

“I hope you’ll give me a chance, just as I intend to do the same with you. When I watched your video… I’ll be honest; I’ve watched it a billion times.”

She had? To seek a way to end this before it started?

But he did understand being drawn to someone promised to you alone. He had a feeling he’d watch her vid many times over the next few daelas while he waited for her to arrive.

Because she was coming.

“Dreafillar.” Dipping his upper body forward, he whispered the formal courtship greeting. “Welcome, mate of mine. Lily.”

“What can I tell you about me?” she said, tapping her chin.

The fine lines of blonde hair above her eyes dove toward the center of her forehead. Oh, yes, they were called eyebrows. Would they feel coarse or smooth beneath his fingers? He wanted to touch them. Stroke her hair that was so different from his naanans. And then he’d cup her shoulders and tug her near.

If she’d let him.

“You need to know I’m usually shy and reserved because…” Her chest rose and fell with a heavy sigh. “I have a reason I guess I really don’t want to get into here. No need to drag this down.” What he read as a forced smile appeared on her face. “I can tell you’re a nice guy, and I bet you only want to hear about the fun things I like to do, not hash out the issues from my past.”

He wanted to hear whatever she was willing to tell him.

One thing was clear. He was not the only one bearing scars.

Longing. That was what he felt for her. A need to feel a connection between them that couldn’t be denied. He wanted to hear her secrets and share his own.

Thoughts like this were risky.

“I love animals, so you might want to get used to the idea of pets.”

Did she mean she hoped they’d raise draquiers? He would buy one from Bryk if it made Lily happy, though they would have to keep it penned or it would eat Jorg’s flowers.

“I’ve worked at an animal shelter for years. Some of my coworkers call me a dog whisperer, which means I can tame just about any beast.”

Like Jorg?

“I also help place strays in forever homes.”

That was what he wished for, a forever home. Would she realize he was also a stray? His mother had abandoned him when he was ten-yaros-old, and he had raised himself after that, running at first with a pack of wildlings through the streets of Qe’ket, and later wandering through the galaxy helping those who were lost find their own way home.

“I drink a little,” she said. “Not much, but I enjoy a good wine.”

Lifting his vintip, he toasted her image, then sipped from the glass.

“And I like to color.”

What was this color, and how did one do it? He would ask Sadie.

“As for this match, there’s not much I’m looking for in a guy, but I do have a few criteria I’d like to name.” Lifting her hand, she ticked items off with her fingers, much like he’d seen Sadie do when she intended to keep Bryk in line. “I ask that you treat me fairly.”

He would.

“I need you to be honest with me at all times.”

That would depend on her questions, but he would try.

“I ask that you control your temper.”

Anger had a way of controlling a person, and Jorg was someone who had always coveted full control, because chaos brought pain. He could keep this promise to Lily.

“And that’s it,” she said. “I’m sure I’ll think of other things I should have said the second I end this video. If I do, I’ll ask you in person.” Her lips curled up and in that instant, he finally understood.

A smile shared a person’s soul with others.

His own lips curled.

“I’ll see you soon?” she said, and he nodded.

“Dreafillar,” he murmured again.

He could not wait to meet her in person.

Hope, a fragile blossom he had no right nurturing, poked up through the warm soil in his mind. It reached for the sun.

It reached for Lily.

She held up her outstretched hand as if she could reach through the vid and touch him.

He did the same, knowing they couldn’t connect. Not yet, anyway. But it was there, that tiny spark inside him that said maybe they could.

When their hands “touched” he was jolted backward as if he’d been shoved by a feral wildarn. His palm burned as if he’d laid it on a nest of stinging treensers.

Lily’s image winked out.

Jorg turned over his hand, and his breath caught. A matebond symbol had appeared on his palm.

Lily.

Rising, he paced the room, his bare feet silent on the tricarwood floor. How could he be matedbonded with someone he had not met? It was unheard of, unexpected. Unsettling.

And it gave him more hope than he should ever feel.

Yet he couldn’t stop baring his fangs. No, he smiled, and his heart lightened. Perhaps, just perhaps, this could work out.

But…

His mate wouldn’t arrive on Crakair for another likar, yet his matebond blood roared inside him, demanding now! Could he wait seven more daelas before meeting her in person? Never mind the courtship. He would be prepared to win her heart in any way he could, be it traditional rituals or whatever he could make up as he went along.

But seven daelas.

Heille, he couldn’t go that long without seeing her. Touching her. Meeting her in person.

An idea bloomed inside him, and he came to a halt.

His small, personal ship was much faster than the star cruiser Lily traveled in. If he left now, he could meet up with her before she reached Crakair.

It was forbidden. Crakairians were asked to wait for a formal introduction at the welcome ceremony. He’d be denied boarding access if he approached the star cruiser.

Unless he cloaked his ship.

He raced to his room to find his boots.

This wouldn’t be the first time he’d snuck onboard a spacecraft without permission.

2

LILY

L ily’s first alien kiss was wet and slobbery, and she loved it.

While out for a walk on the starship after lunch, she’d come across a purse-sized creature sniffing along the edge of the floor in the maintenance hallway. The little animal was so cute. With its fluffy tan and orange fur sticking up in all directions and its six clawed feet tap-tap-tapping on the tiles, it was clear she’d found a Crakairian version of a small dog.

When the alien pup saw her, it gave a high-pitched squeak. Its ears perked up, and it wiggled its snout as if picking up her scent. Strangely enough, it didn’t run. It continued down the hall, waddling slowly along, stopping to peer back at her as if to say, hey, you coming? Let’s play!

Ten days in space was too long to go without seeing her doggy friends at the animal shelter where she’d worked. Unable to resist the creature’s lure, she gave chase. As she got close enough to touch, it turned shy, scampering through a doorway and slipping into a narrow crevice between stacks of crates.

Undeterred, she dropped down onto her knees and buried her arm between the boxes with her fingers outstretched. “Come on out, little one.”

You could make a pack of feral coyotes beg for your touch, her boss always said.

Time to prove it with this creature.

Its nose wrinkled, and it whimpered before darting forward. Jumping up, it licked her face then scurried backward again. She hoped it had intended to lick her face. The little beastie had a vicious set of fangs, so maybe it had wanted to bite off her nose but missed. No matter. In her old job, she’d been bitten, peed on, and scratched more than a billion times during her eight years working at the animal shelter. What was one more nibble from a potential friend?

“One must not touch the creelet, Earthling female Lillian,” Bane, her assigned protocol droid said from behind her.

She jumped and smacked her head on a crate. Rubbing the sore spot, she grumbled. “How did you find me?”

“When you went for a stroll, I took the opportunity to follow,” Bane said. “There are always opportunities for instruction, no matter what the circumstances.”

The robot had become her mechanical shadow, constantly drilling her with obscure Crakairian details, then holding pop quizzes that she inevitably failed. She wanted to learn all she could about Crakair, but this stuff was complicated.

“Maybe I just want to be alone,” she said. Damn, she’d thought she’d lost Bane as she raced through the garden floor where droids grew fresh produce. The droid might be small, the top of his head only coming to her mid-thigh, but he could move fast. Persistence was his middle name.

“Why would you wish to be by yourself?” he asked, sounding truly puzzled.

She rolled her eyes. Far be it for the droid to leave her alone. Nope, he was right beside her every second of the day, from when she was eating, to going to the toilet, or even while she was taking a shower. More often than she’d care to admit, she’d awoken in the middle of the night to find him standing beside her, his beady blue eyes wide and staring. When she’d asked him what the h-e-double hockey sticks he was doing, he’d said he needed to remain near her in case she had need of its services. For what, a back rub?

Bane cracked an imaginary whip 24/7 in a futile attempt to keep Lily in line. He was determined to teach her everything the Crakairian Council felt Earth mail-order brides needed to learn before the spaceship landed on Crakair four days from now.

Leaning forward, she tucked her hand between the crates again. “Hey baby, come closer,” she crooned to the alien doggy. “I won’t hurt you.”

Bane nudged her side with one of his mechanical arms. “A creelet is a menace, a scourge, a pest from the bowels of the—”

“Okay,” Lily said, sitting back on her heels. She huffed. “I’ve got it. Jeez, it’s just a little animal. It’s not a plague.”

“You will leave it alone and come with me this instant. This afternoon, we must review the positions you will deploy during the courting caper.”

The Caper was an event the Elders planned to host ten days after Lily’s arrival. They wanted to celebrate the matches transitioning from the back-out period to the ongoing courtship and eventual marriage.

She couldn’t picture Jorg, her seven-foot-tall, scaled matched mate capering with her during the upcoming event, but what did she know? Maybe he was a capering kind of guy. Other than the short vid he’d sent, she hadn’t met him yet, so who was she to say? “I promise I’ll learn the steps tomorrow, Bane.”

When she’d met the droid, he’d said she could call him TX75, but who’d do something like that? Since he had become the bane of her existence, the name had stuck.

“I just want to cuddle the creelet,” she said, scooting forward and stretching her arm into the hole again. “Come on out, little chickie.”

“It is a male creelet,” Bane said. “Not a female as one assumes you refer to with chick-eee. Slang for woman or newborn chicken, gallus domesticus in Latin. I do not believe you intend newborn chicken in this instance, however.”

“Nope, and thanks for sexing the creelet for me.” She wiggled her fingers. “Please? I just want to pet you.” When her fingertips traced across the tufts of fur sticking up on the creature’s head, Lily was rewarded with licks. Yay.

Lily backed up, almost hitting Bane, who zipped to the side to give her room. The creelet whimpered as it followed her hand until he could peek from the narrow opening.

Keeping her voice low and soothing, Lily sat on her butt and stretched out her legs. She patted her lap. “Hop up, little guy. I’m going to call you Thor, because you’re a mighty fighter.”

“Thor,” the droid said in the mechanical voice Lily found comical most of the time. Despite his snooty demeanor, he made a decent robot sidekick.

Lily swore she could hear the droid’s metal brain cells clanging around inside his steel head.

“Thor. Old Norse mythology,” Bane said. “A hammer-wielding god associated with strength, thunder, and lightning. Protector of mankind and fertility.”

“Not sure about the fertility part of the equation, but sure.” She cooed as Thor inched closer. “Aren’t you a cute little creelet?”

Thor stomped his tiny front feet, and a growl rumbled in his chest. But when she stroked his back, she was rewarded with what sounded like a whimpering purr. Huffing, Thor waddled closer and hopped up onto her lap. He grunted as he scooted around with his butt in the air and dropped down with a sigh as if ready to take a long nap. “There’s a sweet fella.” She scratched his furry head while his corkscrew tail spiraled in circles.

“No more dallying with the creelet,” Bane said. “We must review the caper protocols, then prepare for your upcoming formal event scheduled for this evening. You must learn the proper way to dress for an elite Crakairian function and how to behave at said function.”

“Elite Crakairian function, huh?” Her lips twisted. “It’s a bridal shower for me and a few of the other mail-order brides, not a flouncy royal introduction.”

“Nevertheless, you must groom and dress in a juglier. Release the creelet—“

“Thor.”

“Release Thor and come with me.”

“I can’t. I’ve got to give Thor all the love.” She gave the creelet a bunch more pats and snuggles while he wiggled and leaped up, eager to lick her chin. Her ex had never been this thrilled to see her, and that should have told her something right from the start. “Aren’t you the best doggo in the entire galaxy?”

“The creelet—Thor—is a parasite, not a canis lupus familiaris, otherwise known as a dog.”

“Parasite? Bite your tongue.” She shook her finger at Bane but knew it would do no good. The droid took his role as her teacher and guardian seriously.

She was looking forward to the bridal shower she and two other friends had planned for tonight. The ship’s tech crew had allowed each of them access to the Crakairian equivalent of a 3D printer, and Lily had laughed her head off while making her gifts. But if Bane thought this was going to be a high-class social occasion, the droid was in for a big surprise.

Taylor had told Lily she’d stolen some wine…

“Tell you what, Bane,” she said. “You go ahead and get everything ready in my room, and I’ll be there in ten seconds.” Or a billion.

“Ten seconds—seclars—is not physically possible.”

“It’s a saying. But I promise I’ll be there in…ten minutes—minars, that is. Will that be okay?”

She swore the droid’s mechanical face formed a scowl, but that was impossible. Bane had no emotions, and his face was not capable of twisting into expressions.

“Do I have your word on it?” he said.

“You do.”

Bane studied her face for a long minar before pivoting and whirring toward the doorway. “Do not be late, Earthling female Lillian.”

“Lily.” Why, oh why wouldn’t he remember to call her by the name she’d used all her life, not the one she was born with?

“Lily. For your event this evening, we will outfit you in the Crakairian juglier.”

“Which is?” she asked.

“A gown fit for a princess.”

Thankfully, she wasn’t a princess. The last thing Lily wanted to do was stand out in a crowd. Life was always better if you could hide, especially from jerky ex-boyfriends.

“It takes time to properly attire oneself in the juglier,” he added.

Lovely. She couldn’t wait.

Bane left, and Lily gave Thor more rubs. He purred and snuggled, but then hopped down and batted at a dust bunny. She needed to find him a ball. Could he be taught to play fetch?

After huffing and racing around, he climbed into her lap again and started to fall asleep. But she couldn’t stay because her ten minutes had ticked down twenty minutes ago.

“I’ve got to go, little guy.” Sighing, she nudged Thor off her lap and got to her feet. While he scampered around her sneakers, yanking on the laces with his fangs, she brushed off her pants and hauled the hem of her tee down over her hips.

“Are you going to be okay here by yourself?” she asked. What a silly question. He’d survived on his own already. But she hated leaving him now that she’d met him. Was there any way she could adopt him and bring him with her to Crakair?

As tempting as it was to just do it and deal with the consequences later, she needed to handle this correctly. Too many of the mail-order brides had screwed with the conventions already. The Council had gotten pissed and demanded this crop of women behave.

But she could ask Bane about adopting Thor.

She paused in the doorway and waved at the creelet, who let out a mournful whistle and stomped his little front feet again before backing between the crates.

“I’ll come visit you again, buddy,” she said with a sigh. If she could sneak away from Bane. Tomorrow, for sure.

Entering the hall, she strode toward the elevator that would take her to the floor with her room. Bane would be waiting, his mechanical wheels spinning and his limbs fluttering as he paced the small area.

How long would it take to dress in a juglier?

Distant shouts made her pause, and stomps sent her spinning to face the direction she’d come from.

A Crakairian male raced toward her, peering around as if looking for exits. Dressed in black jeans and a faded black tee, he didn’t fit in with the ship’s android crew, let alone the sole Crakairian male on board, the captain who dressed in a gray spacefleet uniform even if he was off duty.

She moved to the side to let him pass, but he stalled when he reached her. Grasping her forearms, he held tight, though she got the idea if she pulled away, he’d release her.

He shook his head, and his naanans flared before settling around his shoulders. Totally cool. She’d tried to imagine what they’d look like in real life, but her dreams fell short of the real thing.

His breathing ragged, he dropped his face down close enough to hers she could count the fine scales on his face. As he studied her with a look heavy enough that she could feel it, she wondered who he was, because he looked vaguely familiar.

“Do I know you?” she asked.

He grunted.

He smelled good, a ridiculous thing to be thinking of at a time like this. Who was he? And why was he running through—

Mechanical shouts rang out farther down the hall, and the alien’s fingers tightened on her arms.

He scowled in that direction. “I must—”

“Halt!” a droid yelled. “Do not proceed farther!”

The Crakairian snarled. “They are too close. I had thought...”

“Hold on. Are you…” Her eyes widened, and she reeled away from him, banging into the wall. “Did you board the ship illegally?”

He nodded and fed her a devilish flash of his fangs. From what she’d read, when a Crakairian male bared his fangs, it meant he was smiling. And damn, it sunk into her, loosening her bones like a shot of whiskey on a chilly winter’s day.

“You’re a…you’re some sort of space pirate, aren’t you?” Her voice came out eager, which didn’t make sense. Why wasn’t she screaming and struggling to get away? What if he’d boarded the ship to kidnap women? Or seduce them.

Seduce her.

Her pulse leaped in her throat. For a girl who’d recently ended an abusive relationship, she was awfully willing to jump off the cliff and into this Crakairian male’s arms.

Hold on. While she hadn’t met Jorg yet, she was practically engaged. Some people would consider this cheating. But a thrill ran through her at the adventure playing out in front of her. For too long, her life had been filled with fear.

It had also been boring.

But rules were rules, and she always—mostly—obeyed them. She stiffened her spine. Despite the excitement, this wasn’t a movie. Even with his too-cute smile and his thick tan dreadlocks—naanans—stroking her shoulders, he wasn’t a sexy hero who’d flirt his way into her bed. For all she knew, this seven-foot-tall, scaly green dude planned to steal the ship and kill everyone on board.

Why weren’t chills zipping down her spine?

As a small platoon of androids rounded the corner down the hall, their mechanical arms waving in the air, the alien snatched up her hand and ran, dragging her along with him.

She should be putting on the brakes or yanking away from him, but instead, she kept pace with him, a big grin on her face.

“Where are we going?” she asked, then chided herself. She should be resisting.

Why wasn’t she?

“We must hide,” he said.

“Good idea.” At the intersection, she went left when he turned right. When his grip didn’t loosen, their arms snapped out straight. He frowned at her, but she nudged her head to the left. “This way.”

He studied her for a long minar before heading in that direction.

Leading him, she ran down the hall, turned right, and then stopped at a door. A turn of the knob, and she rushed inside with him right behind.

“In here,” she said with adrenaline charging through her like lightning bolts. She took him past the rows of panels and big bundles of coiled wires, all the way to the back of the room. Her daily walks had paid off, because she knew this ship better than her old neighborhood on Earth. “There’s a closet in the back. We can hide there.”

Tugging open the door, she tumbled inside, tripping over a bucket of cleaning implements and almost impaling herself on a hook hanging on the far wall.

He caught her, his arms going around her waist. Nice. Warm and comforting.

But…alien space pirate. Would he make her walk the plank, and why did she hope he would?

Releasing her, he shut the door and wedged the knob in place with the handle of something that vaguely resembled a broom except it had orange, knobby balls buried among the bristles.

She slumped against the wall and shoved her hair off her face. “Well.”

“Well,” he echoed. His fangs flashed again, and the heat that fang-flash sent pouring through her limbs made her realize how tiny the room was. How close he stood to her. And how yummy he smelled.

He grunted. “This is not how I had—”

“Do you plan to ravish me?” she blurted out, interrupting him. Her face flamed, and she slapped her hand over her mouth. Heat rushed through her. Maybe she could talk him into ravishing her. A wild idea on her part, but this alien excited her like her ex never had. “I shouldn’t have said that.”

“Would you like me to ravish you?” His voice had dropped three octaves. One step toward her made their bodies brush together. He planted his hands on the wall on either side of her head and leaned down as if to sniff her hair.

Damn, he was tall. The top of her head barely came to his shoulders. Normally, big guys scared her. Her ex had been six feet and a bodybuilder, and he’d used his bigger mass to hurt her. But while she should be shrieking and trying to escape this alien pirate, she longed to melt into him.

“Maybe,” she said softly. Yes! her mind screamed. Her skin tingled, and she wanted to beg him to touch her, but that would be too bold.

His naanans stroked the nape of her neck, and he nuzzled her ear with his lips, making sparks fly through her body. “Whatever you command shall be yours.” The warmth of his breath tickled down her spine. “Anything.”

Fuck.

What would it be like to let go of the rules restraining her, to live for this moment alone? Tomorrow was soon enough to worry about what might come next.

While she sighed and pressed herself against him, she cupped his shoulders and dragged him near.

His mouth descended but paused before touching. “Do you wish me to kiss you?”

It felt crazy to flash her hand at him, but she gave him the Crakairian signal.

His low chuckle teased down her spine. His fingers entwined with hers, and he cupped her hands as if holding something precious and fragile.

“Heille, I cannot resist.” His mouth captured hers, and he plundered her lips just like she’d always dreamed a pirate would do.

He tasted even better than he smelled. When his forked tongue traced the seam of her lips, she opened her mouth to let him inside.

She moaned and pressed herself against him. How had she gone this long in life without experiencing this exquisite feeling? She needed more.

His tongue stroked hers, and his knee nudged her thighs apart. He pressed her against the wall with his full frame. Something big and vibrating in his pants connected with her belly. She’d heard about Crakairian vibrating cocks.

She was wet for him, and she didn’t care if he knew it. How was that possible? After her sorta reset virgin status, you’d think she’d be leery of jumping all over a guy she’d just met. But there had been a connection between them right from the start.

He pushed his cock against her, and her pulse soared as she realized how illicit this was. How forbidden. It thrilled through her like three shots of espresso.

Someone banged on the door.

As his naanans teased along the sides of her breasts, his mouth pressed harder against hers. She stroked his naanans, hoping they’d glide under her shirt and touch her breasts. Her nipples beaded in anticipation.

Why were they wearing clothes? Her fingers traced along the top of his jeans to the fastenings. The top one came undone. Yes.

The doorknob rattled.

He jerked his head up and stared down at her with pupils that had eclipsed the brown rings surrounding the black.

“To avoid capture, I must run,” he said, stepping away from her.

So soon?

Get control of yourself. She smoothed her hair and yanked down her tee that had been tugged up over her breasts. Had his naanans done that? Too bad they’d been interrupted.

“I can talk our way out of this,” she said in a voice husky with desire. “Follow my lead.”

“Lily, I always lead,” he said with a flash of his fangs. Cocky, which was a switch from his almost courtly manner when they first met.

Hell, she could get used to this fang-flashing thing, especially with him. The sad thing was, she’d probably never see him again after today.

“You won’t always lead,” she said, tapping his chest. “One of these days, you’ll need to let a woman take charge of the situation.”

“This, I would love to see.” He grabbed her hand and grazed his fangs across the back.

So simple. So sensual. The gesture lit her on fire all over again.

“You,” she said.

“No, you.” After a fast kiss that was hot enough to shoot her into the stars, he yanked open the door and burst through the group of droid crewmen waiting outside.

As he rushed through the outer room and out into the hall with the security force stomping behind him, Lily realized he’d used her name. How had he known who she was?

“Hey,” she called out, her hands on her hips. This girl wanted answers, and she wanted them now.

He spun on his heels and grinned. “Yes?”

“Who are you?”

“Jorg.” His fangs flashed again. “Your Jorg.”

3

JORG

T  hey caught Jorg as he was depressurizing in the airlock, minars before he would have escaped. Fortunately, they didn’t throw him in the brig.

Instead, they bound his hands behind his back and hauled him to the top of the ship where they shoved him inside the Commander He’stirren’s private quarters.

As luck would have it, the two males knew each other well.

Jorg explained why he’d boarded the ship, though he was distracted by what had happened.

She had not flinched. She had not cringed away from his face. She’d acted as if it truly did not matter.

The words sang through his veins like three cups of werlick.

Commander He’stirren sat in a large chair in his quarters’ sitting area, studying Jorg, who stood in front of the other male with tie-wires biting into his wrists.

The Commander’s hand flicked out. “Release him.”

“As commanded,” one of the droids said, severing the bands.

Jorg flexed his hands and rubbed away the ache. “Thanks.”

“You are fortunate it is me commanding this star cruiser and not some of my fellow captains, such as Commander Bryleirren.”

“Who hates me.”

“He does.”

“It is not my fault Commander Bryleirren hoped to win prestige with the government by rescuing that youngling.” Jorg had swooped into the Trikire compound and snatched the boy out from under the Trikirians before they could blink their four eyes. Commander Bryleirren had arrived as Jorg was helping the injured youngling into Jorg’s smaller shuttle. The Commander had taken the boy from Jorg, insisting he’d return the child to his father. As long as the boy was safe, it hadn’t mattered to Jorg how the youngling got home. But when Commander Bryleirren tried to take credit for the rescue, the boy had spoken up and told everyone Jorg was the true hero.

Jorg a hero? He wasn’t sure about that. He’d done what anyone else would do.

But he’d also made an enemy in the Commander who’d hoped to gain prestige with the Council.

Commander He’stirren shook his head, and his fangs bared briefly. “Nonetheless, since you decided to drop by for a…visit, I am pleased I am commanding this ship at this time.”

Jorg dipped his head. “It is good to see you again.”

The Commander’s eyes gleamed with humor. “I do enjoy your ballsy attitude, youngling.”

Jorg grunted at the “youngling” comment but let it go.

The Commander rose and paced slowly across the spacious room. “I understand why you would choose to do something like this, however.” He bared his fangs again, and a rueful chuckle rumbled in his chest. “Ah, romance.” His grayed naanans lifted and settled around his shoulders, lying smoothly across his tailored gray space command uniform. “I was a youngling once as well.”

One of Jorg’s eyebrows lifted. “You do know I am almost thirty-yaros-old.”

The Commander’s gaze pinned Jorg in place, and he barely resisted squirming. “As I was saying. I was a youngling once.”

Jorg bit back a groan.

“There is nothing quite like the lure of a lovely young female.” He stopped in front of Jorg, and his grin grew wider. “This is why I will stand in for the Elders in this instance and grant you a formal introduction to your intended mate.”

“We were introduced,” Jorg said. Not officially, but was that truly necessary?

“From what I have heard, you tugged her down the maintenance hallway and then hid with her in a closet.” His bushy eyebrows dueled, and his forehead ridges compressed together. “I do hope you did not compromise your potential mate and that you are following the prescribed courtship rules.”

Now Jorg wanted to squirm. They hadn’t done anything too compromising, but he had forgotten to use the traditional courtship greeting. He had not bowed. He had not suggested he dress in a garlong and emulse her feet. Had she noticed his lack of protocol and found fault in his actions?

Her kiss suggested she hadn’t been upset, but what did he know about Earth women? He’d interacted with Sadie, but Lily was her own woman.

Worse, he was not following the courtship rulebook he had made when he learned he was matched. Whenever he had the chance, he had asked Sadie to share Lily’s favorite activities, her hopes, and her dreams. Then he’d lined them up with traditional Crakairian courtship rituals and laid them out in his small book. He truly had intended to follow the rules, but then had been inspired by the chance to meet her in this unconventional way.

The kiss? That had just happened, though he had no regrets.

Spontaneity was fun, but it could mess this up for him.

“While I believe you have not adhered to the rules as carefully as you should, I am sure your actions were motivated by your eagerness to meet your mate.” The Commander huffed. “But remember, females are delicate beings, especially Earthling females. From what I have seen so far, they need pampering. Protection. One must not recklessly blunder into courtship with them.”

Jorg tightened his lips but took the chastisement to heart.

The Commander wiggled his thick forehead ridges. “But no worries. We can rectify the situation immediately.” He strode to the main console and made a request through the command center, then turned back to Jorg. “Her protocol droid will bring her here shortly, and we will set this courtship back on the right path, am I correct?”

There was no denying the warning in the Commander’s tone. Jorg would need to take care, or he might find himself no longer matched with Lily.

His growl rumbled in his throat. After meeting her and kissing her, he would court Lily and pursue marriage. There was no other alternative. The matebond symbol on his hand proved they were matched, and his heart… He shook his head, and his naanans fluttered. He’d dwell on his heart later.

“Since you have taken an unusual route in your courtship thus far,” Commander He’stirren said. “I will help guide you back to the one you should follow from now on.”

“What do you mean?” Even Jorg heard the reservation in his voice.

“After the formal introduction, I will give you until the end of the day to visit with your intended mate.”

“Really?” Amazement came through in Jorg’s voice.

Commander He’stirren chuffed, and his hand dropped down on Jorg’s shoulder. “Really, youngling.”

“Thanks.”

“I will even allow you to use my holochamber for the entire day.”

“For…?”

“Your first appropriate courtship ventures, of course.”

This did not make sense. “I will use the holochamber to prepare her a meal? I did not bring a garlong,” Jorg said. How was he going to cook tetria in pants and a shirt? It would be an insult to his ancestors.

The Commander grunted. “We can create the traditional garlong for you, though I will not have it ready before you must depart. Perhaps you can ease the rituals this time and prepare a meal on a different daela, after she arrives on Earth?”

“Yes, that would work.” Maybe. There were too many rules to keep track of, which was why Jorg had created his courtship book. Would he have time to refer to his notes? The book was on his ship. Foolish of him not to bring it with him.

“Do you have suggestions for what I might do in the holochamber?” Jorg asked. Frankly, he was grateful for this opportunity to court Lily, even if he wasn’t sure yet what he would do during their time together.

“We have no zinters, so bathing is not an option.”

This was unfortunate, as Jorg would have enjoyed sinking into the pool beside his intended mate. “Do you have a boodler on board for a foot emulsion?” That might work.

“Sadly, no. My feet would have appreciated it, but you know how it is while traveling. Boodlers are fragile. I wouldn’t risk harming one by taking it from Crakair and putting it in this environment.”

“The holochamber can be programmed to do whatever I wish, correct?” Jorg asked with a few ideas coming to mind.

“Of course.”

“Perhaps…” He nodded slowly. Yes, that might work. “I could program it to recreate Earth activities Lily enjoys.”

“Excellent idea.” Commander He’stirren crossed to a sideboard and poured himself a drink. “Would you like one?” He held a glass toward Jorg.

“No, thank you.” While vintip might calm his nerves, he wanted to be fully aware of Lily when they were together.

The Commander returned to his chair and sat. He sipped his vintip and set the drink down on a low table beside him. “I like seeing you use this opportunity to please your future mate with an Earth custom. It is creative. Use your time wisely between now and late-day. Shall we say you will depart before the evening meal hour?”

Jorg nodded. He was tempted to push for more time, but was grateful for the chance he was being given.

“After you finish, you will leave the star cruiser in the correct manner. That is, with your coordinates logged and following Crakairian regulations. No cloaked vessel. As you know, the Elders have recently become strict about males following the courtship rules. I am already pushing this by giving you access to your chosen mate before her arrival. Yet while I am granting you this opportunity to visit with her, you must proceed after this point like everyone else matched with an Earthling bride. Await her arrival, then continue your courtship.”

“I will. This…means a lot to me.” Today would pass too quickly, but then he would only need to wait four days before he’d be with her again.

The Commander’s gaze dropped down Jorg’s front. “Unfortunately, we cannot do much with your attire. Will your current clothing be appropriate for the Earth activity?”

“It will. And…thank you again. I appreciate what you are doing for me.” Few others would do the same.

“I have not forgotten what you did for my Drina.”

“It was nothing.”

“Climbing down into the cave where she had fallen and helping her return to the surface uninjured is priceless to me. She…” The Commander’s voice choked. “While she did not survive the disease, I was granted a year with her I would not otherwise have had if you had not rescued her.”

When the search team stopped at Jorg’s home on the way to look for Drina, who had left the daela before to hike in the mountains but had not returned, Jorg had joined them. He had been the one to find her trapped in a cave where she’d fallen, but the others would have if Jorg hadn’t.

“There is one other reason I do this,” the Commander said. “You remind me very much of my son, who has applied for the Selection himself but has not yet heard.” A ping rang out at the entrance. “Ah, there is the protocol droid with your mate now.” He turned toward the door, lifting his voice. “You may enter.”

The panel swept open, and Lily walked in dressed in the same Earth clothing she had been wearing before. The blue pants hugged her lush figure, and her bright pink top did nothing to hide her high-appealing breasts. He’d been fascinated by Sadie’s—in a purely objective way to keep Bryk from smashing Jorg’s head in. Honestly, he’d dreamed of touching Lily’s since the moment he’d seen them in her vid. He realized this could be seen as objectifying her, but he was interested in all of Lily, not just the mounds on her chest.

Her golden hair hung down her back, and her eyes sparkled when they met his.

Petite yet curvy, the top of his mate’s head only came to his shoulders. He’d always appreciated the equal height of Crakairian women, but Lily’s small form made him feel protective, as well as eager to sweep her off her feet and take her to his bed.

Yet he’d already witnessed her spunk—Sadie’s word, not his. She may not wish him to cherish her by carrying her around.

“What is the meaning of this?” the droid asked, his mechanical glare falling on Jorg.

“Consider this a formal Crakairian mate introduction,” Commander He’stirren said shortly, no doubt irritated that he was being asked to explain himself to a protocol droid. “After the introduction, the Earth female will spend time with…” He tipped his head toward Jorg.

Lily’s eyes widened, and a smile teased across her lips.

“But…But…This is highly unusual,” the droid said. “We have procedures to review this afternoon. The caper! Also, we must prepare Lillian for a formal event.”

“It’s Lily,” she said.

The droid’s wheels spun, though it remained in place. “Lillian—Lily—needs time to dress in the juglier and everyone knows this takes three denjars.”

The Commander’s gaze met Jorg’s, and Jorg knew they were thinking the same thing. Who would wish to wear something that took three denjars to dress in?

“I am afraid this is not possible,” the droid said. “Her schedule is booked for the rest of the day.”

“Introduce them,” the Commander said.

“She is not wearing the traditional gown for this and…” the droid’s gaze fell on Jorg, and he huffed. “He is not properly attired either. I take my position seriously. How do you expect me to—“

“Droid,” Commander He’stirren growled.

“I call him Bane,” Lily said pleasantly.

Jorg frowned. “Why Bane?” Why name a droid at all?

Her eyes gleamed. “It was better than any other option, and it fits.”

Bane… Jorg’s translator churned, finding meanings for the word. Torment, scourge, ruin, death, plague. A cause of great distress or annoyance. Jorg blinked a minar before his gaze met Lily’s. He bared his fangs, and her smile twitched up, but she smoothed her lips and patted the droid’s shoulder.

“Bane has been a faithful, loyal protocol droid,” she said. “I don’t know where I’d be without him.”

The TX75—Bane—huffed again, but his arms fell to his sides, and he glided forward. “Thank you, Lillian. I do appreciate recognition for the wealth of knowledge I have imparted during the brief time I have had to properly prepare you for your eminent courtship. Despite the challenges one must endure with females of a different—”

“You’re pushing it, Bane.” Lily’s eyes spun around. Ah, yes. When Sadie did this eye roll, she intended to show exasperation or disbelief.

Jorg tried rolling his own eyes and realized it felt right for the situation.

Commander He’stirren watched Jorg with complete puzzlement on his face before turning to the protocol droid. “Introduce them, and then you may leave. I do not care one way or the other about the juglier dress.”

“Very well,” the droid grumbled. Taking both Jorg and Lily’s hands, he bowed between them. “Lillian Brianna Johnson.” Bane bowed a second time. “Allow me to introduce Jorg Tredvax Zorel Qua’zad. Match made. Match secured. Your courtship may now commence.” After releasing their hands, the droid zipped backward quickly, nearly bumping into the door.

“Dreafillar,” Jorg said, giving her a half-bow.

“Dreafillar to you,” she said.

The Commander chuckled, but Jorg kept his lips smooth, not wishing her to believe he was mocking her. But Crakairian females never used the courtship greeting, only males.

“Do we seal this with a kiss?” Lily asked with laughter in her voice. From the sparkle in her eyes, he got the feeling she might actually be aware of the custom but had decided to twist it.

He was willing to twist things. His courtship had been unconventional from the start. Why start being formal now?

But a kiss? Did she want him to kiss her again? Heat burst inside him. He would be happy to accommodate any of her needs.

“That is an Earth tradition, is it not?” Commander He’stirren said, baring his fangs at them like a doting father. “This kissing to seal vows?”

“Yes, though it’s usually done at the conclusion of the marriage ceremony,” Lily said.

Jorg stepped closer to her. She drew him in like a treenser to a contrea bud. He could drown in her lightly floral scent and the heat shimmering in her pretty eyes. Lashes, that was what the tiny hairs haloing her eyes were called. Eyelashes. Would she think him strange if he asked to touch them?

“As I was saying to Jorg, Lillian,” the Commander said. “I will permit you two to use my holochamber for the first phase of your courtship.”

“That’s very nice of you,” Lily said, her gaze never leaving Jorg’s. “What’s a holochamber?” she whispered.

He took her hands and squeezed. His heart thumped louder than a stampeding herd of wildarns. How was it possible to feel this vast array of emotions for a slip of an Earthling woman so quickly? He couldn’t wait to get to know her better and to show her the parts of himself he’d shared with no one else.

“What is the first activity you plan, Jorg?” Commander He’stirren asked. He crossed the room to his wall communicator. “I shall instruct the controls to search our databanks for the game and set up the platform. You can handle whatever you need after that.”

Lily watched him with what he hoped was anticipation on her face.

She hadn’t let go of his hands, and he liked touching her. Maybe this courtship business would not be as terrifying as he’d assumed. He may only need to consult his courtship booklet in the evenings.

Jorg had never seen or even heard of the activity he planned, but if Lily enjoyed it, Jorg wanted to do it with her.

His heart surging up into his throat, he squeezed her hands and watched her face. “We are going ice skating.”

“I wish you all the best,” the Commander said with a twinkle in his eyes.

Jorg and Lily left the room. The droid remained behind.

“Have you ever ice skated before?” Lily asked him as they walked down the hall, heading for the holochamber.

He took her hand and kissed it.

When she trembled, and her gaze darted to his, he nudged her against the wall. Unable to resist, he fingered her hair. So soft.

“Jorg,” she said in a throaty voice.

“Yes, Lily?”

Her hand rose along with her smile. “I missed you since the last time I saw you.”

He fell apart, his heart splintering into a billion fragments. They reformed in her hands.

There was no way he could drag his gaze from her lifted palm.

“This is how I should do it, right?” Her voice shook. “I don’t want to mess this up.”

Leaning in close, he nuzzled her ear. “I will kiss you all day long if you ask.”

She sagged as if her knees couldn’t support her body, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her upright with him. He softly bit her ear with his fangs, and the moan she released shot through him like a live shocker.

Kissing along her jawline, he paused above her lips, breathing as fast as if he’d outrun a xarton. He ached to taste all of her.

Her lips parted, and he traced his finger along the plump lower lip while she moaned again. “Jorg.”

“I love how you say my name, mate of mine.”

“I should be telling you I’m no one’s mate. I’m my own person, a complete individual who needs no one to make them complete.”

“Is that what you wish?”

Her gaze met his. “Sometimes fear drives me. But with you, I don’t think I have anything to fear.”

“I will not hold you back from anything you wish to do.”

“I’m going to trust you in that.”

It sounded like a big admission on her part, and he remembered Sadie hinting that someone had done horrible things to Lily. He’d kill whoever it was with his bare hands.

“Kiss me, Jorg.”

He needed no further invitation. His mouth plundered hers, his need driven by something primeval inside him. When her tongue danced with his, he groaned and pressed against her. His only goal was to treasure her, to show her what they could be together.

This was new and wild, and he was as scared of letting himself go, of trusting, as she was. But he had a feeling if he held back, he’d miss out on the most wonderful thing in his life.

He lifted his head and watched the expressions flit across her face. A languid heat. Satisfaction. And a touch of surprise. Did she feel as amazed about all this as him?

“Will everything be like this?” she asked. “Because…”

“What?”

“Is it wrong to say I’ve never felt like this before?”

“No, because I feel the same.”

The smile she gave him—hesitant yet fully of wonder. It crushed him and built him up all over again. He wanted to see that expression on her face for a lifetime.

His longing for this woman… He was afraid he’s scare her away. Would she be willing to let a scarred warrior into her life if she knew his mom had rejected him and deemed him not worthy?

His growl ripped through him, but he didn’t release it. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten her.

Instead, he pushed a human-like smile onto his face. Hers joined with his, and his heart shattered all over again.

“This ice skating,” he said, teasing. “It is simple, is it not?”

He watched as her brows narrowed.

She might be scowling, but laughter spilled into her voice. “You’re kidding me, right?”

4

LILY

“Why would I goat you?” Jorg asked, truly appearing puzzled.

Goat…

“Oh.” She held back her grin. Tried to, that is. No use, it shone through. “Kid. Kidding. Not a small goat. Kidding means fooling with someone. Teasing.”

He dipped his head low and whispered by her ear. “I like teasing.”

This guy… He spun her in circles, making her dizzy. But she liked it. Liked him. Okay, more than liked him.

How in the world was this possible? She didn’t believe in instalove. She’d always believed a true relationship took time to develop. Yet here she was, half-falling for this alien male she’d been matched with.

What was it with those computers? When she could contact Earth again, she’d ask her friend Tanya, who ran the Interstellar Matchmaking Service, how the computers knew which woman fit best with which alien. Because there had to be major magic going on here.

“Skating?” he said with a grin that told her he knew what he did to her, but he liked it.

She could live with that.

“That’s right, you were acting cocky about skating,” she said as they started walking again. “As for your earlier question, no one puts on skates and glides across the ice without practice first.” Her words came out smug, but she knew a lot about skating. It was clear he didn’t.

“Maybe I will?” he said impishly.

Oh, game on, dude. “Ha.”

“What is this ha?” he asked, quirking a broad eyebrow upward. He had ridges there, thick and scaled. On anyone else, it might appear intimidating, like he was a Hun riding a beast across the open plains, determined to scoop her up onto his horse with him. He’d take her to his tent and ravish her.

Maybe she should ditch the fantasy for now. They could talk about it once they were mated.

Oh. Funny how quickly she was warming up to the idea of mating with Jorg. This should scare the crap out of her. She’d been burned badly. But as she gazed up at Jorg, she had a feeling he’d never harm her. Maybe it was silly on her part to trust so easily. She barely knew him.

He’d jumped into her life, full force, and wrapped her up in the game. Everything about him was sexy, from his broad shoulders, tight abs she’d only felt when he pressed himself against her, to his muscular arms. Did he know how appealing he was?

Vulnerability made her steps slow in the hall. How could she hope to capture the attention of a guy like him?

“I trust my body’s athletic abilities and coordination,” he said.

Self-confident, but she’d seen that already. She took the distraction he offered and ran with it. “Put a thin metal blade on the bottom of your boot, try to glide across the ice, and then get back to me about your athletic abilities and coordination, okay?”

His lips twitched, and his sparkling dark eyes told her he was enjoying their word-play. “Are you mocking me?”

“Me?” She lifted one eyebrow, and her lips twitched. Damn, it was as fun teasing him as it was being teased by him. “Would I do something like that?”

He squeezed her hand. “I do not know, but I would like to.”

She’d like that too. As terrifying as it was to trust someone after her ex, she felt secure with Jorg. She’d watch him, though, because she’d be a fool not to. It was nice being able to believe in someone even a bit. “I can teach you to skate, if you’d like.”

“Perhaps I am the one who will be teaching.”

“You are incredibly cocky.”

He paused in the hall and peered down at her. Did she see hints of the same vulnerability she felt, shining on his face? If so, why?

“Do you find my confidence unappealing?” He watched her face as if unsure of her response.

“I can deal with a little cockiness. Just don’t go too alphahole, okay?”

“I cannot imagine having a hole in my…alpha. Hmm. Alpha is the first letter of the Greek alphabet.”

“Not that alpha. There’s another meaning.”

He continued to frown. “Ah. You mean a socially dominant person. Alpha. Hole.” He blinked slowly before his face cleared. “No worries. I will not alpha any of your holes.”

It was all she could do to keep a straight face. “What if I want you to alpha at least one of my holes?” With that parting shot, she continued walking down the hall.

Damn, after months of cowering and worrying, it felt good to flirt.

After ending things with Wade, she’d gotten counseling because she didn’t want to make that mistake again. She’d learned a lot about herself while talking with the therapist, including the fact that she was worthy of love.

Jorg was her potential mate. They were working toward…something. It might flop or maybe, just maybe, they’d build something powerful between them.

This is why her faith in men had not been fully lost. She knew she just had to find the right one. Was that person Jorg?

He caught up. “These holes…?”

She turned to face him. “Yes?”

“I think… hmm.” His face scrunched before clearing. “Oh, yes. Holes.”

Her snicker slipped out. “Is it wrong for me to see us…getting together?”

“Together?” His voice squeaked, which was completely adorable in a seven-foot-tall alien dude who looked like he could take on Godzilla and win. She liked that he felt as uncertain about this as she did. If he’d been arrogant and demanding or even pushy, she would have run in the opposite direction. Because she wanted an equal give and take, not an alpha dude breathing down her neck. Alphahole, that is. She didn’t mind a little alpha every now and then.

His naanans reached toward her, stroking her cheeks and teasing along her neck. Others glided across her shoulders.

She nudged her head toward one drifting across the top of her breast. “Do these things act on their own or are you directing them?”

His naanans reeled away from her and settled on his back. “I apologize. I…” His face stiffened. “I control them, but sometimes they…”

“What?”

“They act on my impulses.”

Quite the admission right there.

“I like that you want to touch me,” she said as they continued down the hall. If he wanted an out, he could pretend it hadn’t happened or that he hadn’t let that little detail slip. Silly of her to hope he was as intrigued by how this was going between them as her. She seemed to be falling for him too fast, but he’d spun into her life like a tornado, sending her reservations scattering in all directions.

“I do want to touch you,” he said. “All of you.”

That was hot. Nothing beat a guy who was happy to speak plainly.

“It’s…early in the relationship.” Was that a bad thing?

Pausing, he did not turn toward her but stared forward. Maybe he wasn’t comfortable meeting her eye. “I will not push you for anything you do not wish to give.”

Would he get mad if she balked? She shook her head, hating that she projected her ex’s behavior onto Jorg. It wasn’t fair but knowing that didn’t make it any easier to dismiss the idea.

“Thank you,” she said.

He dipped his head.

Boarding an elevator, they rode to another level and got out.

“Since we’re going skating, did you bring hats and mittens?” she asked as she followed him down another corridor.

“What are mitt-ons?”

“For our fingers. To keep us warm.” She faked a shiver. “Ice skating rinks can be cold. Although, it’s anyone’s guess what we’ll find in a holochamber rink. I don’t believe I’ve ever skated on a projected surface before. Is it even possible?”

“It will feel real.” He pointed. “I will show you.”

“We’re not exactly dressed for skating.” She grinned. “We’re going to freeze our asses off.”

His gaze darted to her lower body. “That does not sound pleasant. But you enjoy this activity, so I will persevere.”

“That’s the spirit.” Her grin faded. “How did you know I like to skate?”

“I asked Sadie, and she told me.”

“You asked her about me?”

“I wished to please you.”

He said it simply, but she could tell he truly felt that way.

It humbled her. What was she doing to please him? She’d have to watch and discover what interested him, because this courtship would go both ways.

“Sadie is excited to see you,” he said.

Lily bit her lower lip. “I miss her and can’t wait to see her.”

“She’s happy,” he said. “She told me her life is complete with Bryk, but when you arrive, it will be three times better.”

This sounded very much like something her sister would say.

“If…” Hell, might as well use when here, because her heart was already warming to Jorg. “If we end up together, we’ll live next door to my sister and Bryk, right?”

“Yes. And Bryk’s son, Weld.”

“Sadie sent me a picture of him. He’s a cute kid.”

“Why call him a goat? Oh, yes. Kid. Child.” The scales on his forehead bound together in the middle. “Like kidding.”

“English is a weird language, isn’t it?” She laughed.

“It is but I will acclimate.” He nodded slowly, as if absorbing the word. “Weld is a cute…kid.”

They stopped at a door, and after he’d keyed the number into the pad, the panel opened.

Cool air dumped out, and he shot her a look that said he was gauging her reaction. What did he expect to see? “I grew up on the moon, Mara, and I lived near the desert. It was hot every day of the year.” He waved to the room. “Not cold like this. I do not know how to adapt to a cold climate.”

“There’s no snow on Crakair?”

“Some, high in the mountains, but few go there during that time of the year. The temperature is moderate all year round in Tri’Arteele.”

The capital of Crakair.

“There’s something exciting about cold air freezing your sinuses.”

“That sounds unpleasant.”

“It’s really not.” Turning to him, she grinned. “Try it and you’ll see.”

He blinked. “All right. I will.”

She stepped inside the room ahead of Jorg. “I recommend you skate fast to stay warm.” Pausing, she looked around in awe. “This is cool! I haven’t skated for a long time.” Just like with any rink she’d used in the past, it was big and oval. A bench to her right held two pairs of figure skates. She went over and sat, lifting the smaller pair and hugging them as Jorg joined her on the bench.

“I have pleased you,” he said as he took his skates from her.

“The way to this girl’s heart is through skating,” she said through tears she refused to deny. Some people thought showing emotions revealed vulnerability and made a person look weak, but to Lily, crying showed strength. She wasn’t afraid to let the world know how she was feeling. “I used to skate competitively,” she said in a wistful tone. “But after my parents died, Sadie and I couldn’t afford it.”

“I am sorry you lost your parents.”

Her hands stilled on the skates, and she stared forward. “I was sixteen. They died in a car accident. But I’m luckier than a lot of kids because my sister was an awesome parent.” She turned toward Jorg. “Actually, we raised each other.”

“Sadie is a good person. I can already see how kind she is for Weld. Bryk is the best father a youngling could have, but sometimes…”

“What?”

“I was going to say sometimes a youngling also needs a mother.”

Her heart ached for her own mom. “You’re right. Kids do need their moms.”

“Mine left me.”

Turning toward him, she studied his face. The scar stood out prominently. Her fingers reached toward it before she realized what she was doing.

“You can touch if you like. It will not hurt.”

“It must have hurt when it happened. It…” She traced her finger down the thin line on his face that cut through the scales. They’d fused together again, though not perfectly. “This shows you’re a survivor.”

“How do you mean?”

“You know I’m not talking solely about what’s on the surface. I can tell you’ve been to hell and back. Like me.” They were two scarred souls seeking peace. Would they find it together?

“Your scars are inside,” he said. “From the loss of your parents.”

“And from life and the experiences I’ve had since. Things that knock you down don’t have to crush you; they can make me stronger.” Her head tilted. “Such as your scars. They show the world that something couldn’t beat you.”

“Something almost did.”

“From what I’ve read about it so far, Crakair is a wild and untamed place. It’s not surprising a creature almost got you.”

“This scar…” His finger slid down the seam. “Was caused by a male determined to kill me.”

“Did you scar him worse?”

“I killed him. He…he had hurt a youngling.” His growl slipped between them. “I could not let that stand.”

Her breath caught. But not because he’d killed someone. The youngling… Jorg had defended himself—and a child!—and survived.

“Your scar is a medal of honor.”

“Oh, no, no. Nothing like that.”

Her gaze held his. “Very much that.”

His naanans fluttered in agitation, and he stared toward the ice with a vein pulsing in his temple. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For not…”

“Flinching? Why would I?”

His shoulders relaxed. “Yes,” he said, his voice lifting. “Why would you?”

She finished putting on her skates, and he busied himself with his own. Was he processing what she’d said? She hoped so. His scar seemed to bother him; she’d gotten the idea he thought she’d reject him because of it. But how could she? His true character showed on his face, and she found that sexy.

“You said you have not skated in years because it costs dinairs to do so on Earth?” he asked.

“Not to skate in general because you can buy a pass for public ice time for only a few dollars. But to succeed as a figure skater, you need private time to practice, coaches, trainers, physical therapists, ointments, wraps, and costumes, among other things. It’s costly to attend events. It’s a rat race, but I miss it.”

“I do not understand how rodents are involved with skating.” His hand went to the knife he wore at his waist, and he partly lifted it from the sheath. “Should I be prepared to defend you against their attack on the ice?”

“What?” She paused while tying her skates, then laughed. “Our implanted translators work well, but they stall on occasion, don’t they?”

His lips twitched. “You are not worried about rats.”

“I don’t believe there are such a thing as space rats, are there?” She hadn’t seen any so far, and she’d been everywhere on the ship.

“Only creelets.”

“Who are not rats.”

His thick eyebrows drew together. “Are they not one and the same?”

“Creelets are alien puppy dogs.”

“I do not understand.”

“Creelets are cute and fluffy and cuddly.” She was half in love with Thor already.

“How do you know this about them?”

“Because I found one, and I’m going to bring it to Crakair with me if I can talk the Commander into it.”

He frowned. “You will bring it to our home?”

She loved that he referred to his home as theirs, but if he wasn’t keen on pets, this was going to be a problem. She lifted one eyebrow. “You have an issue with that?”

“I enjoy creatures. I am good friends with all of Bryk’s draquiers. But one does not adopt a creelet as a pet, like one does a puppy dog.”

“Just watch me,” she said under her breath. After she’d tucked her jeans down over the top of her skates, she stood and waited for Jorg to finish getting ready.

He stood, and his arms stretched out at his sides. “These skates make me tall.”

She gaped up at him. “You’re hella tall already.”

“I am of average size for a Crakairian male.”

“I can’t imagine anyone taller than you.” As it was, she had to crick her head back to look up at him. Talk about making a big girl feel petite.

“You will see how it is when you meet other Crakairians. I am average.”

This Crakairian was anything but average.

“Are you ready, then?” She held out her hand. “Let’s go skating!”

They clunk-clunked to the gate, opened it, and Lily stepped out onto the ice. He joined her, his legs slipping in every direction until he latched onto the wall to keep from falling.

“This is skating?” he asked, trepidation alive in his voice.

“What you’re doing is called wall hugging. I am skating.” She couldn’t hold back her snicker.

“You mock me again.” He growled, but the gleam in his eyes revealed he was teasing as well.

She tapped his chin. “And you love it.”

His face smoothed. “I do, actually.”

This mate of hers tipped her on her axis.

“You skate,” he said, clinging to the wall. “I will watch and find my skate legs. That is the term, correct?”

“It is. Skate legs. You’re sure?”

He waved her off and carefully turned until his backside was braced against the wall.

“Just so you know. I haven’t skated in years. Don’t expect much.”

A huge expanse of clean ice waited to be explored!

Lily skated forward, leisurely at first, then picking up speed when she reached the other end. She couldn’t believe this was a holographic image. It felt too real under her blades.

After looping around a few times, she did some hip flexors and glute stretches, then some quad stretches and squats. Warming up was vital.

Then, hell, she let loose, running through the last routine she’d learned and practiced a billion times. Yeah, her triple axel turned into a double, but her Salchow was flawless. Three tens. The melody she’d heard over and over played in her mind as she danced across the ice. It felt wonderful. Exhilarating.

Freeing.

Why hadn’t she made more time for free skating? Actually, she knew. Work and life had gotten in the way. Even when she’d found a job and could have afforded decent skates and ice time, her ex hadn’t enjoyed skating and before they’d ended things, he’d asked her not to do it, saying if she loved him, she’d choose to be with him instead. Why had she agreed?

When she finished her routine, she skated over to Jorg who stood by the wall, his jaw unhinged.

“You…that was beautiful,” he said. “I am not able to let go of the wall, yet you…”

“I’ve been skating since I was three years—yaros—old. Everything I just did took yaros to learn. It doesn’t happen overnight.” She held out her hand. “Want to learn some simple moves?”

He took her hand and kissed it. Then tugged her close and wrapped his arms around her. “I would love to learn anything you would teach me.”

What a loaded statement right there. It seared through her like liquid fire.

It would be too easy to fall for Jorg. Did she dare?

As they skated out onto the ice, she showed him how to move his legs to propel himself forward.

“This is…sublime,” he said.

She smiled up at him. “It is, isn’t it?”

He bared his fangs. “I believe I will install a holochamber at my home so we can skate every day.”

Damn. This guy was going to have her proposing to him within days.

5

JORG

A t this rate, Jorg was going to propose to Lily before they finished skating. The joy on her face as she moved across the ice lit him aflame. He wanted to see that expression in her eyes for the rest of his days.

Was it wrong for him to be falling for her so fast? He couldn’t know. Maybe he would be hurt. But if he did not give this everything, he could lose her for not trying.

He couldn’t bear that.

By the time they were ready to stop, Jorg was able to glide forward on two legs and even propel himself with strokes, as Lily called them. He couldn’t remember when he’d had this much fun other than gardening. But working with his flowers was a solitary thing he did to find peace. Skating was something he could do with Lily.

They left the ice rink and stepped out into the hallway where they leaned against the wall.

“I will reprogram the holochamber for the second part of our courtship,” he said, gnawing on his lower lip. What if she didn’t enjoy the next activity? She’d shown she liked his kisses, his company, and heille, she’d touched his scar without flinching. But could that be translated into a relationship?

Rubbing her arms, she grinned. “What next? Bowling?”

He tugged her close to share his heat. “What activity does one do with a bowl?” If Lily enjoyed a game made up of bowls, he would too.

“It’s…” She snickered, her chest shifting against his.

Her breasts… They were soft. For some reason, he’d thought they’d be firmer. Like solid masses on her chest.

Now he couldn’t stop thinking about them when he really should be focusing on the next part of his courtship. He hadn’t proposed, and neither had she. Their future was still uncertain.

What would her breasts feel like beneath his hand or tongue? His matebond blood surged inside him, sensing how close she was.

While it might be easy to blame his body’s response on the matebond blood, he knew better. He liked Lily. He wanted to do everything with her, not just have sex.

“Bowling doesn’t involve bowls,” she said. “Instead, you use a heavy ball and carefully roll it down a wooden lane toward pre-set pins, and—”

“Why then is it not called balling?” He really didn’t understand her Earthling language.

“Because everyone would laugh hysterically if we call it that.” Her gaze darted lower, toward his groin, which responded.

While skating, he’d done his best to contain his body’s eagerness to join with her, but he couldn’t resist her now. His naanans drifted toward her as if compelled all on their own. They thirsted to feel her.

He fingered her silky soft hair while his naanans traced the nape of her neck and glided across her shoulders.

“I cannot resist touching you,” he said. “Is this wrong?”

“I don’t mind.”

“Do you find it arousing when I touch your human hair?”

She shook her head. “There’s no feeling in my hair other than when someone pulls on it. Then it hurts at the roots. “

“Interesting. My naanans enjoy being touched. During mating, they stroke the woman, and the tips flutter.”

“That’s really cool.” Her gaze drifted along his naanans, and she frowned. “You said the tips flutter?”

“I have heard some women find the vibration arousing.” His voice had dropped off the deep end of a lake.

“You have heard?”

“I have not been with a woman for yaros,” he said softly.

“Oh, so you’re a virgin reset like me?”

“What does this mean? Virgin reset?”

“You should know right now, I have no filter.”

“I do not know what having no filter means.” He growled, wanting to understand her, but each new word sent his brain spiraling in too many directions. He couldn’t keep track.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m using a lot of slang, but I’ll try to be more…articulate. Is that the right word? And, ah, virgin reset…” Her gaze fled his. “When we do it… I guess I should say if we do it, it’ll be like the first time. Like it’s new because it’s been so long since we did it.”

It would be new because it would be the first time he’d be with Lily. His body—his mind—ached to connect fully with her.

Someday…

“As for having no filter, that means I tend to say whatever is on my mind without thinking first. Like, for example, I might tell you I’m dying to go to bed with you.”

He frowned. “You wish to sleep in a bed with me?”

She leaned in close and grinned. “Sleep? Sure. But that’s not the first thing I think of when we talk about you and me in a bed.”

“Oh.” Now he understood. His body responded, of course. It hadn’t stopped responding, not one minar while Lily was near.

“Oh, huh?” She slapped his arm, and he blinked. Was this some sort of odd mating custom on Earth he hadn’t yet learned? He hadn’t seen Sadie doing this to Bryk’s arm, but perhaps it was an intimacy thing they reserved for when they were alone.

To test it out, he tapped her arm with his palm.

She stilled, and every speck of humor fell from her face, telling him this was not an intimacy thing.

You won’t hurt her—Sadie had said this to him.

“Who made you afraid of a gesture such as this?” he asked.

“The slap on my arm?” she asked in a stilted tone.

“Yes.”

“I’m sorry. I did it first, right? I’m sure you thought…” She grimaced. “I’m actually not sure what you thought.”

“When you touched me in that manner.” He smoothed his hand on her arm as if he could rub away what he’d done and take them back to when they’d been laughing. “I thought it was a gesture of affection.”

Her head tilted, and she seemed to taste his statement. “In many ways it was. It’s interesting, because I did it without thinking, for fun, but when you returned it, everything that happened in my past came crashing back like it happened yesterday. The thing is, I want to be comfortable with playful gestures like that. I just don’t know how to go from feeling fear all the time to trusting someone.

He threaded his hands down to link with her fingers. “Then we will take it slowly.”

She squeezed his hands. “Thanks.”

“Back to you wishing to sleep in my bed.”

She laughed, and he was grateful he could make her happy again. “That was more of my lack of filter, but I’ll be honest. I find a lot of our conversation arousing.”

He was not supposed to deviate from the traditional courtship process, but resisting her was killing him. “I wish to arouse you.”

“I…I never thought I’d be in a situation where I wanted someone to touch me.”

“I am sorry.”

The sadness in her eyes stabbed through him. “It’s not your fault.”

“I would take this burden from you if I could.”

“Jorg.” She said his name with such emotion, his heart ached. “I’m sorry. Again.”

“For what?”

“You’re courting me, which should be a fun time, while I’m bringing gloom and doom into the conversation. I don’t want to live like that any longer, though. I want to be free of my past.”

“Your past is a part of you. It lives in your future.”

She said nothing for so long, he worried he’d offended her. “If I could forget, I could move on and put it behind me.” Her voice cracked as he imagined she must be cracking inside.

He hated that he was pushing this, hurting her. “Until it is unveiled in the present, there is no putting it behind.”

“Unburden myself. Talk about it. Is that what you mean?”

“If it will help you feel better.”

“He hit me. Hurt me,” she barked out, but pain cut through her words like a blade. “Is that what you wanted to hear?”

He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on the top of her head. “I would kill him for you if I could.”

She snorted through tears he hated to be the cause of. “I’d let you do it. In fact, I’d push the knife in along with you.” She pressed her face against his chest and chuffed out a breath. “Damn you.”

“Yes. Damn me.” His chest shook with his laugh. “Care to tell me why I am damned?”

“Because you’re right.” Tipping her head back, she smiled up at him. “Talking about this with you does help.”

“If you feel lighter, my task is finished.”

“No it’s not. We’re still going not-bowling.”

“Ah, yes. Not playing with bowls or balls.”

She rolled her eyes. Her head tipped, and she rested her cheek on his naanans that had sought her out like she would provide their sole salvation.

“Can I touch them?” she asked softly.

One floated forward and dropped onto his chest in front of her.

Her fingertips traced down the thick band. “It’s soft. Almost fuzzy.” When her finger reached the end, the valve inside engaged. “Oh.” She darted a glance up at him, and color suffused her face. A smile flirted on her lips. “That’s, umm… I like it. I can almost imagine… Guess I shouldn’t be mentioning that, though.”

“You can tell me anything.”

“You said you use them during sex? Where specifically?”

“Not me. I have never done so. I said some have said the tips could be used during sex. Where would you like me to use them?”

“That’s hot.”

“Yes, you use the temperature statement that means you are aroused.” Sadie called Bryk hot all the time.

Jorg liked that Lily found him hot.

“Talk about a statement cooling off the moment,” she said with a laugh.

“I would rather have you hot than cool.”

How had things come to this? He’d snuck on board the ship solely to meet her. Now he’d kissed her, shared secrets with her, and he was trying to figure out how he could “sleep” with her before he had to depart the ship.

“I can be hot for you, Lily,” he said.

The soft moan she released shot heat to his groin. His cock rose, pressing between them.

“You’re…” Eyes widening, she looked down. “I guess it’s good that you’re turned on because I am, too. Both of us being into this is fantastic.”

It was all he could do not to turn and press her against the wall. Then devour her with his mouth and his body. But that would be taking this further than he should at this point in their courtship. The Commander’s warning rang out in his mind, making him growl in frustration.

“Here’s the thing.” Her voice had grown softer, hesitant. “I’ve only been with one guy and it was only one time. I wasn’t good. It hurt. And when I wasn’t interested in a repeat performance, he got pissed off.”

“Pissed…”

“He got angry, and that was when he hurt me.”

Rage flared hotly inside him, an inferno that would not extinguish until he had dealt this male pain. “Tell me who he is,” he said through gritted teeth.

“He’s back on Earth and out of my life.” She tipped her head back and looked up at him. “Sadie chased him off with a gun.” She blinked slowly. “I should have done it myself, but I was scared.”

She trembled in his arms, and he gnashed his teeth all over again. He ached to avenge her, to make this person sorry for what he had done.

“I don’t need you to protect me,” she said stiffly. “I’m getting better at protecting myself all the time.”

His arms tightened around her. “I want to help you.”

“And I’m grateful you feel that way. But I’ve grown up recently.” Her spine stiffened, though she didn’t pull away. “My sister fought my battles, but I do for myself now.”

“There is no need to fight them alone.”

She sighed. “You’re offering to stand beside me while I fight, not in front of me?”

As much as it pained him to agree, yes. He could support her and be with her while she took on the world. He could boost her without taking control. He could keep himself from stomping out in front of her to take on the world in her honor.

Because he understood what it was like to need control.

He was rewarded by her sweet smile. “Thanks. I like that you see me as an equal. A partner. I needed to tell you what happened, but that doesn’t mean I need you to fix it. It’s been taken care of already. But I wanted you to know that…I don’t know how sex will be between us, assuming we take things that far.”

Things would go that far, but he would take care and ensure she was with him every step of the way.

“You said you did not enjoy it.” How could this male she had been with not take the time to bring Lily to full sexual pleasure? His blood roared, eager for him to show her how wonderful it could be between them.

Damn courtship rules.

“It was okay, I guess.” Her lips twisted.

“It will be better than okay between us.”

“For some reason, I have a feeling you’re right. With you it would be different.”

Take her, his body shouted. Show her endless bliss.

“I understand what you have been through,” he said.

Her finger traced down his scar again, and he tipped his head back, putting his face in the light shining down from overhead. Let her see. Let her know. “I would give my own life to keep you safe, but I understand not wanting to lean on others, to be able to seize control of your own destiny. I did that myself after my mother left.”

“Tell me. I want to know everything about you. Not just the funny stuff or what gives you happiness, but what makes you sad.”

“At first, I looked for my mother. And when I did not find her, I mourned her loss. After that, anger took over and drove me to survive. Finally, acceptance and sadness closed off the cracks in my heart.”

“Oh, Jorg. I’m sorry. How old were you?”

“Ten when she left.”

“Maybe she was hurt?”

He shrugged, wishing in some ways he hadn’t brought it up. Today was for fun, to further his courtship. Yet he could not withhold his past any more than she had. Only by being honest with each other could they move forward side by side.

“Thank you for telling me.”

“Wounds heal better when they are shared with another.” Easier said than done.

She hugged him, much like a child would a parent. Or as a lover would. Tipping her head back, she smiled and, for the first time, shadows did not lurk in her eyes.

“This may sound silly, but I feel free,” she said.

“Me, as well.” He bared his fangs, hoping to lighten the mood. “I say we should have more fun before I have to leave. How about you?”

“Yes.” She grinned. “What are we going to do next?”

“I had another activity planned, but I believe instead…” He tapped different instructions into the holochamber panel. “You will enjoy this more.” A soft whirring behind the wall told him the device was preparing the room for them again.

“Sadie shared a lot about me, didn’t she?”

Unable to look at Lily because he worried he might read disappointment on her face, he paused with his fingers on the holochamber panel. “Do you mind that I asked her to tell me about you so many times?”

“Not at all.” Light and humor filled her voice. “If I’d been able to discover more about you outside of messages from my sister that took a week to arrive, I would have been all over it. I still… Well, I couldn’t wait for her replies to arrive after I’d asked questions about you.”

“You asked about me?” Struck by the wonder of this, he could barely function. She’d seen his vid and had wanted to know more?

He… His chest hurt, but in a good way. And he was eternally grateful he’d decided to apply for the matchmaking Selection.

How Sadie must have laughed. He’d kept quizzing her about Lily while Lily had done the same.

Turning, he leaned against the wall and held out his hand.

She took it and stepped closer. No hesitation. Only a look of anticipation on her face, as if she couldn’t wait to see where life led them next.

He wrapped his arms around her. “Do you mind that I touch you?”

“It’s awesome.” She tipped back her head. “I feel as if I’m standing on the edge of a big cavern. If I step backward, I’ll fall back down to where I was before, but I now believe won’t be happy there. If I step forward…” Her sigh pressed her chest against his. “Forward is covered in clouds. I can’t see what lies there, but I know it could be something fantastic.”

“What do you want to do? Because remaining on the edge is also an option. It gives you time to wait for the clouds to clear, to see if things are better below.”

“I want to jump into the clouds.”

“Lily.” She could twist his insides into a knot with only a few simple words. “Know one thing.”

“What?”

The vulnerability in her gaze made him ache to keep her from all harm. But she was right, she deserved to stand beside him while they took on foes together. “When you are ready, I will take your hand and jump with you.”

“Jorg.” Her eyes shimmered. “You’re going to make me cry.”

“And that is not encouraged in the courtship handbook.”

She laughed through her tears, but her lips curled up. “There’s a handbook?”

Oops. “Not actually.”

Her head tilted, and her gaze narrowed in on his face. “But you’ve got a handbook.”

His chest rose and fell with a heavy sigh. “I have taken notes.”

“I have so got to see this.” She pawed at his chest, making him laugh. “Where is it?”

“I do not have it with me.” His face grew hot. Did he have to tell her? “It is only a few ideas I wrote down.”

Her arms stilled before her hands slid around his waist. “You were thinking of ways to please me.”

“From the moment we were matched.”

“You’re gonna kill me with all this kindness.”

“You deserve it.” That and so much more.

She pulled out of his embrace and grinned at him. “No more sadness. We’ve talked, shared, and begun to make our peace with our past. You could even say we’ve jumped off the edge and we’re stomping around among the clouds. We still have more time before we have to check out what’s below.”

“Again, we will leave the clouds together.”

Her fingers linked with his, and she stood on tiptoe and kissed his nose.

No one had kissed his nose before. He liked it.

“Yes. We’ll jump off the clouds together,” she said. “So, about the next holochamber courtship event…” she said with the same excitement Bryk’s son, Weld, showed when Jorg brought him a new engine to take apart. He expected her to clap her hands, but she just turned gleaming eyes his way. “Tell me what it is!”

He bared his fangs, barely able to resist her pleading. “When I open the door, you will see.”

A click and the panel swept wide.

Lily stepped into the room but turned and gaped at him. “Jorg. You did it again.” Covering her face, she burst into tears.

6

LILY

“L ily,” Jorg said with infinite sorrow in his voice. “I have disappointed you, and I apologize.”

“No, no. That’s not it at all.” After wiping her face, her hands dropped to her sides. “You made me happy. To think you brought me here for our courtship, rather than a place that means more to you, is precious.”

He stepped inside the room with her, and the door closed. “Then I do not understand why you appear upset.”

“I’m sorry.” She could tell she was confusing him. How could she explain how tangled her emotions had become? “We’re very different, aren’t we?” Her chin lifted. “But we’re not so different we can’t meet in the middle.”

“Please explain.”

Did she read desperation in his voice? She must have. It was how she would feel if their positions were reversed, because she wanted so desperately to please him.

Back when Mom was alive, she’d told Lily that she would know when she met the right one. Mom had made the prediction while she gazed at Lily’s father. He’d looked back at her with the same endless adoration in his eyes. They’d been a love match, and Lily was grateful for the time she’d had them in her life.

Looking at Jorg, Lily realized her mom was right. Yeah, this was happening fast. She barely knew him. But she trusted him. In her core, she knew he wouldn’t hurt her. She would bet anything that one day he’d look at her the same way Dad had looked at Mom, and Lily would do the same with Jorg.

“Are you upset with me?” Jorg asked. “I can program the holochamber to do something else.”

“Not at all.” Her gaze swept across the doggie yard where he’d brought her. Yes, it was fake. The dogs were holographic images. But she could throw a ball, and one would retrieve it. She could sit on the ground and the puppies tumbling toward her would climb all over her and drown her in doggy kisses. “This makes me very happy.”

His spine loosened, and the creases on his forehead smoothed. “Then I am glad.”

Dropping to her knees, she stretched out her arms. The puppies clambered all over her, trying to lick her chin and face. She laughed, her voice echoing in the room and reminding her that this was fake. But she didn’t care. It felt real.

“Are you saying you do not need a boodler emulsion to show how I care?” he said, stooping down beside her. The pups bowled him over, tumbling him onto his back. He grunted, and she wasn’t completely sure he enjoyed it, but he let them climb and slobber all over him.

She laughed louder than she had in a very long time. “No boodler necessary. No emulsion, either.”

“But how else will we make your feet feel silky soft?”

“Cream?” She wasn’t sure she wanted to know what a boodler was, but if there was anything she’d learned while working at the shelter, it was that every creature deserved love. “Okay, someday you can introduce me to a boodler. And then you can…” Gulp. “Emulse my feet.”

“I will be honored to do so.”

He really was cute. That twinkle in his dark eyes said he knew she was half-joking about the boodler, but he was happy to join in and laugh along with her.

It was scary jumping off the imaginary edge. What if she shot through the clouds and slammed onto the ground?

“Would you like to play further with the…dogs? That is what these beasties are called, are they not?” He stood and held his hands up as if he worried the bigger dogs would lick them. Real dogs probably would.

A golden retriever spotted them and rushed over, his tail sweeping back and forth. He scrambled across the ground to find something to hold in his mouth. With the small stick he’d located clamped between his teeth, he groaned and rubbed against them.

“You can touch him,” she said. “He won’t bite.”

Jorg carefully lowered his arms, though he kept them out of reach of the golden.

“His fur is silky.” She grinned. “Boodler-soft. And I know how much you enjoy touching hair.”

He chuckled. “I would almost kill to touch your golden hair.” His gaze slanted at the dog. “This creature’s? I am less sure.”

“Just do it. Jump off the edge.”

“Ah. You are right. Many parts of our lives are filled with choices that offer either growth or the risk we will fall.” He dropped to his knees and put his arms around the dog.

The golden, as a golden will do, wagged his tail and slobbered kisses all over Jorg.

Jorg bared his fangs and then buried his face in the dog’s fur. His naanans stroked the dog’s ears and patted his sides. When Jorg lifted his head, he smiled just for her. “I like this dog. We must bring one from Earth. Or two or three, if that would please you.”

“I’d love to have a dog.” She’d thought she’d said goodbye to them forever.

“Then we will send for a fleet of them when we are settled in our home.”

She was falling so hard and fast for this guy. “How about we start with one and then we can talk about more? Pets are a lot of fun but they’re also a lot of work.” Dropping down beside Jorg, she rubbed the golden’s ears while the animal’s tail swished back and forth. “I imagine we’d have to get approval from your government to bring a dog from Earth.”

“Yes, I am sure you are right.”

Three small dogs rushed over, barking as little dogs do. Ready to tell her what for, plus demand their share of the affection.

As they bound toward her, Jorg stood and placed himself between her and them. “Run. I will keep them from hurting you.”

“You’re going to tackle three Chihuahuas for me?” She slapped a hand over her chest. “Be still my heart. Any guy who’ll take on vicious foes like these deserves my respect.”

“You are not frightened.”

“Nope.” She strode around Jorg and stooped down. “Come on, little ones. Let’s give and get some kisses.”

The little dogs whimpered and leaped all over her while the golden stood with his tail wagging and his jaws grinning widely.

Dogs. Lily loved them. She’d missed them. She’d thought she’d never see another one again.

She appreciated that Jorg had done this for her. He’d taken precious courtship time to give her something that would please her more than anything else.

How could she not fall in love with him?

Before they left the doggie park, they washed their hands, a totally bizarre activity in a holochamber. Were they using real water or a mirage of water? Her hands felt clean afterward, and they smelled like the soap she’d used, so they had to be washed, right?

Good enough for her.

“We have a denjar left,” Jorg said, glancing at his com when they stood in the corridor outside the holochamber. “Then I must leave.”

Only one hour. They’d stolen time from the surrounding galaxy, and it would soon want it back.

“Let me do something to court you,” she said. Was that a thing on Crakair? Hopefully, he wouldn’t be insulted that she wanted to take the lead. She held out her hand.

He took her fingers and squeezed. “You lead. I am right with you.”

Yeah, she could definitely fall for this guy.

She took him to the elevator, where they rode to the top floor and walked down the hall, seeing no one. The droids must be busy keeping the ship running smoothly. They were so efficient, she rarely saw them, even when she was out for a walk. Well, other than Bane.

At the end of the hall, she bumped through the door.

“Are we allowed to be here?” he asked, peering around the stairwell.

“I come here all the time so I’d say yes.” No one had booted her out yet. Only one floor up. “I imagine the Commander knows. There isn’t much that gets past him.”

“Then keep going,” he said.

They strode up the short flight, and she walked first through the door at the top.

“I’m not sure what the purpose of this room is, but I love it here,” she said. “Whenever I can escape from Bane, I hide here.”

He looked around. “This is the control room of the escape shuttle.”

“It detaches from the ship?” Good thing she hadn’t pressed any buttons. She’d just sat in the big, comfy chair and stared at the stars.

“If the craft is engaged, then yes, you would find yourself adrift.”

“They wouldn’t let me come here if it wasn’t safe.”

“I am sure they have bypassed the programming from the bridge. One would need to add a sequence of codes to use the shuttle.”

She grinned. “Cool, then. I can keep coming here.” She strode to the flat counter and leaned against it, staring out the big arched window in front of her. “Back on Earth, we can see the stars on a clear night, but I’ll never get used to how gorgeous they are from up here. The world is made up of an indigo carpet scattered with diamonds.”

He came up behind her, so close the heat of his body encompassed hers. He smelled good, a mix of grass and evergreen, with a dash of cinnamon thrown in. Was he wearing cologne?

His arms wrapped loosely around her waist, sweet and sexy at the same time.

They stared at the stars together before he eased backward and waved to the solitary chair. “Sit if you wish.”

“Why don’t we sit together?” A bold suggestion on her part, but she enjoyed being close to him.

Coming near, he paused before stroking her hair. “Are you sure?”

“About sitting in the same chair as you? Yes.” What else could he mean?

He backed until his legs hit the edge, then dropped down, pulling her onto his lap.

She nestled close to his chest, her arms around his shoulders. Damn, she could get used to this.

“You make a pretty squishy chair,” she said with a laugh.

He faked a growl that was followed by a flash of his fangs. “I am not squishy.”

“You are rather firm.” Especially beneath her butt, where something was moving.

“I am sorry,” he said.

“For what? Wanting me? It’s flattering when the feeling’s returned.”

His hand stilled on her back. “You speak of feelings.”

Damn, was she blowing it already? “Is it too soon?”

“I swear I have dreamed of you, Lily. Dreamed of minars like this where we were together.”

Heat swirled through her. Was she crazy to want him? That one time with her ex had been awful. A flash of pain followed by him groaning then falling off her. She knew there was pleasure in the act. She wasn’t that naïve. And she’d known right then Wade wasn’t going to make sure she felt it, too. Would it be different with Jorg?

“This has come at me fast.” She wasn’t sure what her feelings were, except they were right.

“For me, as well.”

“It’s scary.”

“And the best feeling in the world. We always gain when we give that which we most hope to receive.”

Who would have thought she’d be matched with a Crakairian poet? He didn’t recite verses or speak in rhyme, but he spoke from the heart. His words contained the honesty she’d unknowingly sought all her life.

“What will happen when I arrive on Crakair?” she asked.

“Courtship. Marriage. And…”

Turning, she was able to gaze up at him, but she couldn’t read his face. “And what?”

“Per tradition, fucking.”

“In that order?”

“If you wish.”

Hmm. “What if I don’t wish?”

He gazed down at her, studying her face. “What order would you suggest?”

“I’m honest enough to admit I’m curious about the fucking part of all this.”

‘You would request fucking before courtship and marriage?”

The steel rod prodding her butt through her clothing should make her want to run. After all, it was huge. What Jorg would deliver could be more painful that her prior experience.

“As crazy as this sounds, I would like to request the fucking before the courtship.” There, she’d said it.

“While I would never refuse your wishes, why?” His voice had gone low and husky.

“Because, if we do it and get it over with, you’ll see I’m crappy at sex. Then we can decide what we’ll do from there.”

“I am supposed to see you are…crappy with sex. And what will you see?”

“That it’s the same no matter who does it.” Her voice came out hollow.

“I would happily fuck you, but I am not sure this is the correct time.”

Her shoulders slumped. “You don’t even want to do it once?” Talk about a failure at life in general. She’d disappointed her ex because she hadn’t given him sex all the time, and now she was disappointing Jorg before they’d even tried.

“I want to do it with you many times.”

“I don’t understand.” Her voice cracked, and she buried her face against his chest to muffle the sound. Hell, she’d sounded needy, and he’d rejected her. Emotions were too damn messy. Her head jerked up. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I understand.”

“You do?”

Her face aflame, she wanted to hide. Could she sneak out of the room and run back to the holochamber?

“If you wish, I will fuck you, Lily. Slowly at first and then faster, pounding into you until you scream my name.”

“Shit.” That took the wind out of her sails. “This makes no sense. You said you don’t want to do it. Then you said you do. You’re talk, but no action.”

He growled, and the sound rumbled through his chest and into hers. “What does this talk without action mean?”

“It means you say things are going to be fantastic—if me screaming is anything to go by—but when it gets down to the nitty-gritty, you’re refusing my offer. Or maybe you’ll do it, be done, and take off.” Leaving her uncomfortable, vaguely aroused, and unsure what to do with the feeling. And frustrated. Lots of frustration. Her ex had… “Shit. Shit, shit, shit.”

“This is a lot of shit.”

Her laugh burst out of her. This alien guy yanked her emotions in every direction. “I just realized what I was doing.”

“Talking about shit?”

“Projecting my past experience onto you.”

“It is natural to assume one bad experience will lead to another.”

“Have you done this to yourself?”

“Too many times.” His fingers trailed down her back, and she shivered. “I would like to show you how it will be.”

“So you do plan to fuck me?”

Leaning close, he breathed near her ear. “Many times. What I mean is our first time needs to be special.”

Who was this alien male and where had he come from? He wasn’t necessarily refusing. He was saying he wanted more time with her; more time to satisfy her.

She could get into this.

Tingles sped through her, centering between her legs.

His nostrils flared, and his lips twitched. “Lily.”

“Is it a bad thing for me to want you?” And she did. Too much. She’d been determined to rely solely on herself but now she ached to establish this connection with Jorg.

“It is good that you want me.” His naanans stroked her neck.

She leaned into him to hide her face, even though he’d said it in a thoughtful tone and not with arrogance.

Heat swirled through her, and she shifted on his lap. When she stroked the naanan draped around her shoulder, he groaned.

“Perhaps we do have time,” he said.

Her fingertip reached the end of the naanan, and a subtle vibration made the tip quiver. There were so many uses she could think of for the end of this naanan.

It was clear he wanted her. He had an erection hard enough, it could be considered a lethal weapon.

After sliding off his lap, she turned and smiled. “I have an idea.”

His brows drew together. “A game you would like to play? If you wish, we could return to the holo—“

She undid the top button of his pants.

His hands captured hers. “Lily. What are you—“

“Would you let me do something for you?”

He released her hands, and she undid the second button. She stroked her finger up his length to the tip through the fabric. It was enormous. It pulsed. And damn. Maybe with Jorg, it would be good. Wouldn’t that be a nice switch?

“Is this okay?” she asked.

“It is…awesome. An Earth word that carries many meanings.”

With a grin, she undid the third button, and his cock sprang free.

Fuck. It was dark green. And long and thick. It twitched while she watched it. The round bulb on the end seeped pre-cum.

She fully intended to satisfy him, but she also wanted to feel him inside her.

Dropping onto her knees, she wrapped her hands around the base. She leaned in close and licked up to the top.

His head dropped back, and he shuddered, thrusting his hips up toward her. His hands tangled in her hair, and he held her close.

She took the head into her mouth and sucked while he pumped and groaned.

While she would never be able to take all of him, she sucked as much as she could, shifting her head up and down while he bucked and growled.

She’d never wanted to do this for her ex. It felt awesome to do it for Jorg.

Moving faster, she swirled her tongue across the tip each time she reached the peak. Salty precum flooded her mouth, and she hoped he’d let himself go.

With a bellow, he lifted her up and away from him. She licked her lips, and he groaned.

“I smell your arousal,” he snarled, but he didn’t sound angry. Nope. He wanted her as much as she did him. She’d unleashed the beast. The big question was: would he devour her? She sure hoped so.

His fingers made quick work of her jeans, and he tugged them down over her hips.

Curious about where he’d take this, she ditched her undies and tugged off her tee and bra.

Nudging her backward against the counter, he lifted her up and set her on the edge. He spread her legs and stepped between them.

Then his mouth found hers, he plundered, taking all she had to give and more.

His naanans stroked her back and glided across her chest. His hands joined his naanans at her breasts. “These feel lovely,” he murmured with his face buried in her hair. “You are lovely.”

Lifting his head, he stared down at her breasts. Self-conscious, she started to cover them, but he nudged her hands aside. “Can I see? Crakairian women do not have mounds on their chests with…” His fingertip tweaked across her nipple. It pearled, and she moaned.

“Interesting,” he said, doing it again. “They…” His gaze darted up to hers before focusing again on her breasts. A smile flitted across his lips. “They respond as do my naanans. They can be aroused.”

Her throaty chuckle rang out. “It seems like a lot of me can be aroused.” Who would have thought?

He dropped down to his knees and spread her legs. “As part of my unconventional courtship, I would like to give you a sample of what I can offer.”

Swoon. Double swoon.

“You should relax and allow me to tease,” he added, his gaze centered between her legs. Meanwhile, his naanans played with her breasts, the fluttering tips stroking her nipples and dragging harsh gasps from her throat.

“Jorg,” she cried.

His finger glided down her slit. “Would you like me to stop?”

“No!”

His fangs flashed in the low light. “Good, because I very much do not wish to stop.” He leaned closer, and his hot breath surged across her groin.

Oh, shit. Leaning back against the window, she spread her legs wider. She wanted to know what it felt like. She’d dreamed of it. Read enough romances where the heroes did it. It had to be a hell of a lot of fun. In fact—

His tongue stroked across her clit.

“Fuck,” she shouted.

“Soon.” His forked tongue glided up her slit and then twirled around her clit, tugging and pulling and swirling.

While she bucked and moaned, he slipped a finger inside her. Pulling it out, he licked it.

“I must have more,” he growled. His tongue dove inside her and the forked end stroked deeply, tickling the passage. One of his naanans glided across her thigh and latched onto her clit.

Vibrations left her panting. Wanting. She tipped her head back and growled out his name.

While his thick tongue probed inside her, and his naanan pulsed on her clit, his other naanans stroked her breasts and teased her nipples.

“Fuck, fuck,” she said, her head banging on the window and her eyes rolling back in her head. She drank in the bliss, wanting it all. Wanting him. “Jorg.”

He lifted his head. “Yes, mate of mine?”

She loved how he called her that. “Fuck me. Now!”

He chuckled, low and deep. “You like this. Like me.”

“Jorg!”

His fingers teased her opening. “I wish to tease some more.”

“Please.” Shit. Should she beg? “I’m going to… Jorg, I want you with me.”

“Come to me, my mate. Do it with my mouth on you. I want to taste it.” His tongue traced across her clit while his fingers delved deeply.

“Jump with me, Jorg.”

His fingers slowed, and he looked up at her. “You are right. I want to be with you when we drop through the clouds.” Standing, he shucked his pants. His cock stood at attention, thick and ridged. The bulb on the end was a bit bigger than a golf ball, and she’d never seen anything like it. How in hell would he fit that inside her?

“Bring your feet down to the floor, mate of mine,” he said, easing her off the counter. As she landed, he pivoted her around so her ass faced him. “Is this position okay with you?”

“I don’t know much about positions,” she growled. “But I do know that I need you.”

“You are so lovely.” He stroked her butt and thighs, his fingers massaging closer to her core with every circle. Stooping down, he parted her thighs and licked her. “You are so wet. I cannot get enough of your taste.”

She bucked and whimpered as he drove her closer to the edge.

Then he stood and placed the tip of his cock at her opening.

Pressing herself backward, she ached for his touch. Who cared if he had a bowling ball at the end of his cock? She wanted it inside her. Now. “Jorg. Please.”

“Like this?” He pressed the round tip inside her folds, spreading them wide. “Fuck, mate of mine. You are wet for me.” Shoving forward, he tried to drive the bulbous end of his cock past her opening, but her body resisted. Leaning around her, he stroked her clit with his fingers, making her even wetter. She dripped for him. His naanans, long and fluttering on the tips, joined in, sucking and tweaking her nipples until she was about to explode.

She had to have it. Had to have him driving deeply inside her.

He spread her even wider and pushed hard with his cock. The end plunged inside, and she gasped.

“Damn,” she said, drinking in the sensation. The end of his cock stretched her fully. And shit, it vibrated along with his shaft.

“Stop?” he asked in a guttural voice. “I do not want to hurt you or give you crappy.”

Crappy? Oh, yes, she’d said she was crappy at this. Maybe it hadn’t been her after all…

“Do not think of stopping,” she shouted.

His chuckle rang out. “No worries. I have no intention of ending this now. Not yet. Remember? Not until you scream with pleasure.” Leaning over her, he scraped his fangs across her upper back and then bit down gently on her nape. His cock pressed inside her, sliding deeper, stretching and expanding her to accommodate his substantial girth.

She wasn’t sure she could take all of him, but she had to find out.

His hips flexed backward then forward again, teasing but never fully burying him inside her.

“More, Jorg. Now!”

“Yes?”

“Yes.” She’d never be more ready.

He pulled back and as his fangs bit down again, he pushed himself in to the hilt.

Yessss.

“Fuck,” she moaned. “Damn, that feels so good.”

“What happened to shit?” he asked. He nibbled along her shoulder, his teeth grazing her skin.

She couldn’t laugh. Her body was too into the moment. It felt wonderful. Hot. And it wasn’t enough.

“Faster,” she commanded.

“Needy, are you not, mate of mine?”

“Jorg.” Even she could hear the warning in her voice.

“You want it like this?” he asked. He pulled out and plunged back inside her, driving himself until he could go no further.

“Shit. Yes. More.”

“Tell me.”

“Do it, Jorg. I want it all.”

“I will give you whatever you need.”

He pumped faster, bracing her hips to keep her body from being shoved forward.

She spread herself and took all he had to give. Her body tightened as satisfaction roared through her.

How in the hell had she ever thought this wasn’t fun? That it wasn’t the most awesome experience in the world?

Fuck her V-Card. It was gone for good. She’d crest this wave with Jorg for the rest of her days.

His naanans sucked on her clit and her nipples, while he rode her faster and faster, pushing himself inside her then yanking out while she whimpered and begged him for release.

She rose onto her toes and gasped. “Jorg.”

His tongue glided along her shoulder before he nibbled on her spine. “Do it. Jump off the edge for me, Lily.”

“You said you’d jump with me, Jorg.”

“I will, mate of mine. Always.”

“Always.”

“Shit.” She jerked her hips up to meet him driving inside her.

He went faster, his hips a blur. His body muscles tightened where they pressed against her, and sinew bulged in his arms braced beside her shoulders. He put everything he had into giving her pleasure.

His naanans were lethal weapons. Jorg was a lethal weapon.

“Scream for me, Lily. You want to. Tonight, when I lay in my bed, I want to hear your cries echoing in my mind.”

His body pumped inside her, driving her to the brink.

She rode his cock, his fingers, and his naanans.

They cried out and held onto each other as they jumped over the edge.

7

JORG

“T  hat was…” She sighed and snuggled into his chest. They’d dressed and sat in the chair, her straddling his lap. “It was fantastic.” Looking up at him, she fed him a lazy smile. “I still feel all tingly. You’ve got a magic touch.”

Could his heart grow bigger? It felt twice the size it had been before he’d met her.

He shouldn’t have fucked her. Heille, he’d been unable to resist her.

But from now on, he’d follow the courtship rules as he should.

“No more fucking,” he whispered.

She pouted. “Now that you’ve given me a taste of what I’ve been missing, you’re going to hold out on me?”

He wasn’t completely sure what she meant. “A hold out?”

“I was with one guy once. It hurt. It wasn’t any fun. This…” She poked his chest with her fingertip. “You were wonderful. I enjoyed it.”

“I believe you did.”

She quirked up one eyebrow, and he gave in to his urge to glide his finger across it.

“These are also soft. I will touch them often.”

Blinking fast, she snickered. “You have an eyebrow fetish?”

“I have a Lily fetish.”

“Good, because I have a Jorg fetish, and I’m going to starve if I don’t get a regular fix.”

“You wish me to fuck you again.”

“I know your time is limited tonight, but there’s no reason we have to hold back once we meet up on Crakair, am I right?”

His heart could expand further. It pressed against his ribs. The feeling should be painful, but it wasn’t. It felt awesome—an Evie word, but it completely fit. “You are right.”

He’d be foolish to fight this.

“So, um…” She grinned and held up her hand. “I think you might want to check this out.”

A matebond symbol gleamed on her palm.

“Lily,” he groaned. Leaning forward, he kissed her hand and the symbol that meant they would be linked together for a lifetime and beyond.

He’d done nothing to deserve something this beautiful. A simple male, he kept his gardens and tracked down lost friends whenever he was called. How had fate decided he deserved this enormous gift?

When they linked their hands, heat flashed between them.

“This is cool,” she said. “Thank you, Bane, for teaching me all about matebond symbols.” Her grin encompassed Jorg. “I paid attention to my lessons. That’s what this is, a matebond, right?”

“Yes.”

“It means…” She frowned. “Tell me what you think it means. I want a Crakairian male’s explanation.”

“It means fate brought us together and will never tear us apart.”

She kissed him, her lips lingering on his. “I…” Tears wet her eyes and trickled down her cheeks. “I don’t know what to say except I’m really happy. You gave me a special gift.”

“No, Lily,” he said, his voice deep and gravelly. “You are the one who has gifted me.”

“Tell me about this event you will attend tonight,” he asked. They hadn’t much time. Soon, he’d have to leave. But he’d wait for her on Crakair, and when she walked into his arms, she’d stay there forever.

His cock strained, eager to reach her all over again, but satisfaction filled him. He hated that he would need to leave soon, and he was eager to learn everything about her he could in the short time they’d have together.

“Me and my friends, Mila and Taylor—two of the other alien brides—are having a bridal shower tonight.”

“What is this bridal shower? Sadie told me about the shower Vork had installed at his apartment for Evie to bathe in, but how does that involve bridal activities?”

“Hmm. I’m not sure of where the name came from, but it’s a chance for the bride to get together with friends and celebrate the upcoming marriage—mating, whatever. We’re going to eat cake, drink wine, laugh, and exchange gifts. Funny gifts. The Commander gave us access to the ship’s 3D printer. And let me tell you…” She chuckled. “It was a lot of fun creating the things I’m giving Mila and Taylor.”

“I am glad you have friends here on the ship. A party sounds like a good way to spend the evening.”

“Taylor and Mila are awesome. And the best thing is that their Crakairian matches live near Tri’Arteele. The males are…Vikirs? I think that’s the term. We’ll be able to get together in the future.”

Ah, Vikirs. Bryk’s cousins, perhaps? “The Vikir live in the mountains, but yes, we will visit with your friends.”

“Awesome.”

“They can also come to our home.” Damn, he loved using our. “If you would like. Anytime. We could…barbecute.” Was that the right word? He wasn’t sure. Too bad he didn’t have his courtship notebook to refer to. Sadie had said Lily enjoyed the barbecute, so Jorg was determined to host one soon. He could arrange a hunt with Bryk, Vork, and the Vikir mates, and they could roast the beast for their party. Perhaps a wildarn or a digerias. They would provide plenty of meat.

“Did you say a barbecute?” Laughter bubbled up in her voice, and he joined in, knowing he’d fumbled with the word but not caring. After being so close to Lily, how could he ever feel upset?

“That is not the correct word.” While embarrassment should be staining his scales pink, he did not care. He’d showed his mate a taste of the pleasure he would give her for the rest of her days. She was sitting in his lap, snuggling close to him. Life could not get any better than this.

“I think you mean barbeque, but I like your version better.” Inching closer, her hands cupped his shoulders. “I wish we had more time.”

His naanans stroked her shoulders and ran down her back. “Someday.”

“Yes, someday.”

When her eyes closed and she leaned into the touch, his heart burst in his chest. How had he been so lucky to have this woman in his life?

“How much longer do we have?” she asked.

“Ten minars.”

“Ugh. I want a thousand minutes, not ten.” Her eyes opened, and the dreamy-sated expression she gave him made his matebond blood surge all over again. Three days waiting for her to arrive on Crakair was going to be torture. Her chest rose and fell. She pressed her nose against his chest, and her voice came out muffled. “I wish you didn’t have to go.”

“Me, too.” But there was no talking the Commander into letting him remain onboard.

“We’ll meet up again soon.” Her cheeks flushed. “The best thing of all? You and me.” She held up her hand and grinned at her symbol. “It’s going to be okay.”

“It will be better than okay. I promise,” he said in a vow. How had they gone from skating to this? He couldn’t deny how much he’d enjoyed giving her satisfaction. Finding it himself was insignificant to what he’d given her. Her sighs and her taste would haunt him during his entire trip home.

They left the small control room and stopped at the entrance to the decompression chamber outside the boarding dock where he’d left his cloaked ship.

“This is as far as you can go with me,” he said. If only he could take her with him now. They could talk, laugh, and be together again. He could show her she had nothing to fear from sex. Nothing to fear from him.

“Thank you for a wonderful first few dates,” she said. “We compacted a couple of weeks of getting to know each other into one long afternoon. I wish it could last longer.”

He gathered her into his arms. He didn’t want to leave. Could he pretend to leave, then sneak back on board?

The Commander would not be as lenient a second time.

“First, second, and third courtship,” he said.

“And the fucking,” she added with a soft laugh. “I never thought…” Her cheeks pinkened, and he stroked the bright skin on her face. “I didn’t believe it could be that good.”

“It will get better.”

“Is that even possible?”

“Oh yes, Lily,” he said in a husky tone. “It is very possible.”

He’d consult his courtship book and dream up new ways to bring a smile to her face.

“Yes.” Her half-smile made his chest heat up. “From the manual the Crakairian government gave us, I’d thought you’d cook me a meal while wearing a…” She frowned. “A garlong?”

“Yes, the traditional clothing we wear when we cook and serve tetria.”

“We can do that once I arrive on Crakair.”

“I look forward to it.”

She wrapped her arms around him, pressing her cheek against his chest. “I miss you already.”

This tiny, fragile female, a fierce woman whose head barely reached his shoulders, could break him.

He’d had no choice but to let her in. He’d be lost without her.

“Your naanans,” she said softly. Her hand twitched at her side. “I’m looking forward to seeing what else they can do.” Her voice had dropped, and the low, husky tone ignited his senses. A platoon of Crakairian warriors could storm down the hall, and he wouldn’t see them.

“You can touch them. Touch me. Whenever you want. My naanans transmit sensations to my mind just like my fingertips.” He could not hold them back. They stroked her face and traced her jawline. “Your skin is soft.” Not scaled like his. He’d always appreciated the protection his scales gave him, but Lily’s delicate, creamy surface begged to be explored and tasted.

“I love your scales.” She traced her finger along his neck to his face, outlining his surface armor. “They’re almost rubbery, but I bet they provide protection.”

“Against the elements and in battle.”

Leaning back, she frowned. “Who would you battle?”

“For most of my life, the Al’kieern, those who rule the moon, Mara. But they do not wage full-on war, as they prefer to keep their activities quiet. Crakairians do, on occasion, engage in combat with them.” If Lily did not know about the Al’kieern’s kidnapping attempt of Sadie, he would not tell her. Once she reached Crakair, the Earth women would be filled in on what had happened. After the decisive way Sadie and Bryk had handled the attempt, the Council did not expect the Al’kieern to do more than turn and run. But they’d increased the Crakairian spaceforce patrol and notified the citizens to be wary, especially couples with Earthling mates. “Other than that, we have not battled for yaros, not since we formed a treaty with Ferlaern, a planet three daela’s travel from Crakair.”

“I think I heard something about the Ferlaern people in one of my lessons with Bane.”

“They are fierce.” He puffed his chest. “No more than the Crakairians and Vikirs, however. After the disease swept through the galaxy, both governments decided it was past time to form a truce with the Ferlaern, a people with tails, horns, and segmented golden skin. We have waged war with them for many generations. During our recently formed trading alliance, they indicated they wanted to discuss contracting for mates with Earth.”

“Tails, huh?” she asked, though she didn’t sound upset. “And horns. That might be intriguing.”

Why did jealousy flash through him? He had no tail, but nothing could compare to his naanans.

“I guess I’ll meet a few of the Ferlaern if they’re forming trade agreements with Crakair.”

“Perhaps.” Or not. “It is doubtful the Crakairian Council will allow the Ferlaern free access to the planet, let alone allow them to meet our precious Earthling females. The fierce warrior Ferlaerns manage vast stretches of grassy plains, riding enormous trundier they raised from pups. They live as their ancestors did, cherishing the old ways, something greatly admired in our galaxy. They hunt and live life simply, yet they maintained a full space fleet.”

“Do they have scales, too?” She traced the network on his arm.

“Their outer membranes are rough, leathery, from the weather and intense sunlight.”

She flashed him a smile. “I guess I prefer scales. I kind of wish I had some, too. My skin is fragile, so easily injured when compared to yours.”

“Why would you wish for them? Skin is lovely. Smoother than a newborn wildarn’s fur. And your hair…” He stroked it with his naanans. “It may not move independently like my naanans, but it feels wonderful to touch.” He could picture her lying on his bed, completely naked with her hair spread around her, her curves waiting for him to explore. He ached to feel her. Taste her again.

“Your eyes,” she said in awe. Reaching up, she tugged his head down closer to hers. “The brown ring around the black pupil has disappeared.”

“Because I am aroused.” He had a raging hard-on, actually. Again.

Her gaze flicked to his pants, and when she licked her lips, his cock throbbed. “I couldn’t help noticing. You’re big.”

“I told you. I am average.”

She chuckled again. “That is average?”

“I am no bigger than other Crakairians. When you arrive on Crakair, I will greet you on full display.”

“I’m intrigued.” She lifted one eyebrow. “What does being on full display entail?”

“I will wear a garment that allows my cock to jut out so you may see it as I stride toward you.”

“You mean in public, where everyone else can see?”

“Yes, but I would do this solely for your satisfaction.” It was common in ancient Crakairian traditions to dress this way to attract a mate. Then she might see what he could offer.

“Funny, but while I’m eager to see you modeling that garment, I’m not as excited about you wearing it for the world. I guess it twists something inside me in an unpleasant way.”

“Then I will wait to wear the garment solely for you, at our home.”

“And I will wait impatiently to see it.” She smiled and her gaze drifted to his cock again.

The scent of her arousal was driving him out of his mind. Did he have time to take her to a paradise-like location in the holochamber and bring her to satisfaction again?

A ping on the pad mounted on the wall beside the door said no. He growled.

“Jorg?” Commander He’stirren said through the speaker. “It is time. I expect to see your flight plan logged within five minars.”

“I must go,” he said, sorrow alive in his voice.

“Not without a kiss.” With an impish smile, she held up her hand.

He backed her against the wall and captured her lips. While his naanans stroked her body wherever they could reach, and she moaned and pressed against him, he took all she had to give.

When he lifted his head, she stared up at him. Her swollen lips begged for his attention again, and the languid expression in her eyes told him that while she might have feared she had nothing to offer a male sexually, they had proven that wrong. With patience and kindness, and full-on seduction on his part, he would worship her for the rest of her daelas.

“You feel good,” she said ruefully. “Almost too good.”

“This scares you.”

“Because of my ex.”

“This e-x. I will kill him.”

Her rough laugh fell between them. “He’s an ass, but I don’t think he needs to die for what he did.”

The pain in her voice undid him. “I do.”

“Jorg?” Commander He’stirren said firmly. “You will see her again in three daelas.”

Jorg groaned.

“Hurry.” Her hand lifted again. “This kissing gesture. In some ways, I like that I can make my wishes known, but it does feel one-sided. Is there a kissing gesture for males?”

He held up his hand, and she smiled.

“Good,” she said. “I want to kiss you more than I want to breathe.”

“I am happy to fulfill all your needs.” His lips crashed down on hers again. He wanted this minar to last forever, but the clock kept ticking. Backing her against the wall, he tasted her mouth with his tongue and savored the feel of her in his arms. Her hands cupped his arms, and she moaned in satisfaction. He stroked her arms and neck with his naanans. A groan worked its way up from deep inside him.

They burst apart when the Commander shouted Jorg’s name.

She traced her fingertips across her lips. “Whoa. Some kiss.”

He bared his fangs, his lips spreading wide. He couldn’t help it. He felt like strutting around while sticking out his chest. “When you arrive on Crakair, I will court you properly, propose, and we will wed.”

“You better work more sex in there, too.” She flashed a shy smile. “I never expected I’d say anything like that to a guy, but you’ve teased me, giving me a taste of how it should be between a couple. I want more.”

“I do, too.” His lips quirked up again. How had he gotten so lucky? Lily had been picked for him by a computer, but she was everything he would have chosen for himself.

“Well, all right, then.” She released his hands and stroked his cheek. “Wait for me on Crakair.”

He placed his fist against his chest. “I will.”

She nodded and, turning, started to walk down the hall, but she stopped and looked back his way. “You promise this is real? You won’t change into…I don’t know, someone else?”

The flash of sadness on her face made his heart ache. He wanted to fly to Earth and wreck a human male for causing Lily pain. “You worry this is for show, that I will become someone mean.”

Her gaze fell. “Not really.” Her spine stiffened. “I know you won’t. But sometimes, I guess I can’t stop doubts from creeping in to take over.”

It would take time to build her trust, but he was patient. He had the rest of their lives to prove to her he could be kind and loving all the time.

“I am who you see,” he said. “This I promise. I will show you.”

She studied his face for a long while, and he wondered who she saw. Hopefully, a male ready to give her the life she deserved.

She waved, and her matebond symbol gleamed again. “Bye.”

He bowed. “Goodbye, mate of mine.”

Her lips curled up, and she slowly nodded. “Mate of mine. I like that.”

He watched as she walked to the elevator and got inside.

With a heavy sigh, he turned and entered the mid-chamber airlock. Once it had sealed shut behind him, he was able to proceed to his small spacecraft.

After filing his flight plan, he disengaged from the star cruiser and programmed the course for Crakair.

As the stars blurred outside the windows, his brain sunk back to what had just happened.

Lily.

Their kisses… The pure abandon she’d shown him when he spread her legs and licked her… Her cries of joy when he moved inside her…

He’d never forget what they’d shared today, from skating to the dogs to being together.

The symbol on her hand proved she was his matebond mate, his to love and cherish for a lifetime.

He hadn’t intended to do more than steal onboard and introduce himself, then watch her expression when she took in his scar. At best, if he was well-received, he’d hoped to flirt. Never in his wildest dreams had he expected to touch her. To spend time with her.

To fall in love with her.

He wanted it all.

He grinned as he engaged the light speed module. A jolt of the ship’s frame, and he’d left this quadrant and the lumbering star cruiser behind. He’d arrive on Crakair tomorrow and would have two daelas before the star cruiser caught up. There were more things he could do to prepare for Lily’s arrival.

First, he would fill his house with flowers. The mineire closely resembled an Earth lily, and he had many in bloom.

After engaging the autopilot, he leaned back in his captain’s chair, lifted his boots up onto the dash, and linked his hands behind his neck. His matebond blood sang in his veins.

Heille.

She’d taught him to skate—sort of. He’d never be able to work the wonder she had on the ice. Watching her had been like watching a blossom slowly opening to the sun, revealing its inner beauty.

It had humbled him.

Not bad for a rejected youngling who’d scrambled his way to the top of a refuse pile on Mara, then launched himself into the stars to find a better life.

He would give her the world and taste everything she had to offer.

For the first time since he’d turned ten and his mother took off, a solid feeling settled into Jorg’s bones. His future was bright. He could build a life with Lily. He could be happy.

Rising, he strode through the narrow hall to the back of the ship housing his personal quarters. Eager to meet her, he’d remained awake while traveling from Crakair. It was time to catch up on some sleep.

He shucked his boots and clothing and tumbled down onto his bed. Yanking a blanket up over himself, he dropped off within seclars.

Lily featured a prominent role in his dreams.

8

LILY

P rimped, coiffed, and dressed in a juglier, a gown that was snug from the waist down to her calves but had a loose, floaty top, Lily banged her hip on Taylor’s door.

“Come in!” Tay called out.

Yeah, sure. Overloaded with gifts for her friends, she didn’t have a free hand available to type the code on the pad beside the panel. “Hey, Bane. Could you help me?”

With a heavy sigh, Bane whirred forward. “There are proper ways to handle situations like this. First and foremost, one does not carry gifts loosely in one’s arms. As I instructed in your room, a suggestion you chose to ignore, one places gifts in a brisker that will pace beside you to your destination.”

She wasn’t going to ask what a brisker was. Acclimating to the unusual foods enjoyed by Crakairians was enough for Lily at the moment.

Bane glided up beside her, unlocked the door, and it swept open.

“Lily, yay,” Tay shouted from inside. She was putting the final touches on a decorated table she must have “borrowed” from the cafeteria on the third level. It took up most of the tiny room. She’d covered the surface with a cloth printed with fused gold rings and flowers. Lily had no idea where she’d found the cloth.

“Whoa, awesome cake,” Lily said as she scooted around the table and dropped her gifts on the bed. She stepped back to admire the creation. The small confection was topped with a tiny bride dressed in white and a much-taller, green-skinned alien groom. Someone had even attached tiny naanans to the top of his head. “How did you talk the cafeteria into making it?”

“The world works in mysterious ways,” Mila said. Dressed in a mint green juglier that looked great with her chestnut hair, she teetered on the bed’s headboard while taping a big banner with Here Come the Brides! on the wall. Silver balloons dangled from the ceiling.

Tay, Mila, and Lily had met on their first day onboard the star cruiser and had hung out with each other since. She couldn’t wait to spend more time together with them in the future.

Assuming Tay and Mila chose to stay. They’d have ten days after their arrival to decide if they wanted to back out of the match and return to Earth. So far, only a few women had changed their minds. Most had fallen for their matches and lived happily with their new mates on Crakair.

As for Jorg… Lily was one-hundred percent in. Nothing would keep her from being with him now. He was hot, cute, and flirtatious. An awesome kisser. And his tongue… She couldn’t wait to tumble into bed with him and spend a week there before coming up for air.

“Everything looks great,” Lily said. “Sorry I wasn’t here to help set up. I got…waylaid.” Her grin couldn’t be denied.

“No problem,” Tay said, not looking up. “We assumed dressing in your juglier took forever.” Her lips twisted as she took in her pale pink gown. “Can’t wait to get out of this thing and put on a pair of comfy pants.”

“Lord, me, too,” Lily said. Her gaze honed in on a three-foot-tall inflatable green…thing perched in the corner. “Um, what is that?”

“An inflatable alien dick.” Mila snickered and hopped off the bed. “We’re going to use it for ring toss. We’ll need some exercise after we eat a bunch of cake.”

Lily snorted. “Ring toss with a cock?”

Taylor shrugged. “What else?”

Bane followed Lily to the big green cock, zipping in so close, he bumped into her butt. She turned. “Hey, dude, would you mind waiting in the hall while we party?”

“As you very well know, I am not a dude. You must call me TX75. And I cannot leave; I must remain here to coach you in the protocols of this formal event.”

Not while she was drinking wine.

“Perhaps we could catch up on protocols tomorrow?” Tonight, she wanted to relax, chat with her friends about Jorg, and laugh.

“TX86 and TX57 are in the break room,” Taylor said slyly, teasing the ends of her black hair before nudging the long strands onto her back. “They’re making plans for a Crakairian game we brides are going to compete in tomorrow. Lugairn?” She frowned at Mila. “Is that what they said it was called?”

Mila shrugged, and her lips twitched. Her blue eyes gleamed in her heart-shaped face.

“Lugairn?” Bane nearly shouted, fleeing for the door. “I am the ship’s expert in lugairn. There will not be a game arranged without my approval and input.” The door zipped open and Bane soared through. “I will return for you in two denjars, Lily. Please be ready to depart at that time.”

“I can’t wait,” she said with a roll of her eyes.

Once the door shut, the women snickered.

“Can we lock them out?” Mila said. “TX57 has been up my ass all day long. Something about zinter oil and the benefits of ground toeclaws.” Her arms wrapped around her waist and she shuddered. “I’m not sure I’m looking forward to the zinter bath.”

Bathing with zinters was part of the formal Crakairian courtship process. Lily wasn’t sure how she felt about it, either, but if Jorg wanted to try, she was game.

Mila giggled as she clipped a lacy veil onto Lily’s fine blonde hair and did the same for Taylor and herself before dropping onto the bed. “Have a seat, soon-to-be Mrs. Qua’zad. Speaking of which, are you two going to take your alien mate’s last name?” Her head tilted, and her hair brushed across her back.

Lily shrugged. “I have no idea. Do we know if that’s a tradition on Crakair?”

“No clue, but I’ll ask TX86,” Taylor said as she dragged a stool over to sit opposite Lily and Mila. She dropped her veil over her face and grinned through the lace. “Here comes the bride! Here comes the bride,” she sang.

Lily and Mila joined in until the song fell apart into laughter.

“Cake!” Mila cried. “Let’s have cake. I’m famished. TX57 put me on a diet and all I’ve had today is twigs and berries.”

“Fuck that,” Taylor said. “If our mates don’t like us the way we are, they can deal.” She held up her hand. “But wait, wait.” She reached underneath the table and brandished a bottle of wine. “Before we dig into the cake, we need to have a toast.” A frown filled her pretty face, but her brown eyes sparkled. “I didn’t dare steal any glasses. I was pushing it just sneaking this stuff past TX86 to my room. We can take turns drinking from the bottle, amirite?”

“What’s a little spit among friends,” Lily said, holding her hand out. “Open that baby up, and we’ll get this party started.”

“You never told me where you got the wine,” Mila said with a pout that quickly smoothed. “Not that I’m complaining because I’m happy to drink my share, but still.”

Taylor winked. “I never give away my secrets.” She unscrewed the top and tipped the bottle up, taking a long swig. Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, she grinned. “Ah. It’s fantastic. I’m gonna miss wine on Crakair.”

“Maybe someone will open a winery,” Mila said.

“We can hope.”

“Pass it over, sweetheart,” Lily said, holding out her hand. She drank some warm but still tasty white wine and held up the bottle. “I say, my dear, this vintage is a true delight.” She squinted at the bottle. “Last year is practically wine cellar-worthy.” Leaning into Mila, she handed over the bottle. “Let’s eat cake while we’re drinking so it doesn’t go straight to our heads.”

“Great idea, though I almost hate to slice into it,” Taylor said. She tugged the cake closer, along with the plates, and lifted off the cake topper. After licking the tiny characters’ feet clean of frosting, she set it in the middle of the table. “There. We’ve got a centerpiece.” After cutting, she passed thick slices of cake and forks.

“I had something really exciting happen this afternoon,” Lily said while Taylor sliced. She’d been dying to tell her friends about Jorg. Lily leaned forward as if sharing top-secret information. “I met Jorg today and hung out with him, kinda like a first second and maybe even a third date.” Okay, fourth, but she wouldn’t share everything.

“Wait. What?” Taylor shouted. “Third date?” She wiggled her eyebrows. “What do you do on third dates?”

Lily grinned. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

“No way.” Taylor fanned her face. “How is this even possible?”

“We’re not supposed to meet our alien grooms until the introduction ceremony on Crakair,” Mila whined. “Why did you get to meet yours early?”

“It was the weirdest thing. I was walking around the ship and—”

“Keeping your pedometer happy,” Taylor said with a smile. “You know, you could do yoga with me and Mila instead if you’re that desperate for exercise.”

“I like to walk. It entertains my brain,” Lily said. “The thing is, I found the cutest little puppy down in the maintenance corridor.”

“What does that have to do with Jorg?” Mila asked.

“I’m getting there,” Lily said.

Taylor cupped her cheeks. “You have all the luck. You met your future mate, and you found a real puppy? Where? And why didn’t you bring it with you here tonight?”

“It’s sort of a puppy.” Lily’s lips curled up at the memory. “He’s a creelet, according to Bane. He’s fluffy and snuggly, and he has six legs. He’s about the size of a Yorkie. I named him Thor.”

“Awesome,” Mila said. “I want a creelet puppy. Was there more than one?”

“No idea, but we can look around.” Lily took a bite of cake and wiggled as the sugar rushed through her veins. She chased the bite down with wine. “I left the creelet in the basement and went out into the hall. Someone shouted, and I turned to find a big green alien dude running toward me.”

“Oh,” Taylor sighed.

“How did you know he was Jorg?” Mila asked.

“I’m getting to that part,” Lily said. “He has gorgeous scales, and those naanans…” She sighed. “They move independently and they have these little flutter valves on the tips.”

“What good is that?” Mila said. Her face cleared. “Ohhhh.”

“Double that,” Lily said. “Since the crew was chasing him, I thought he was a pirate, but he was cute, so when he grabbed my hand and swept me along with him, I went.”

“Oh, shit,” Mila said. “What happened next?”

“I helped him hide.”

“You did all this when you didn’t know he was Jorg?”

“Not then. He told me his name after we kissed.”

“Kissed!” Mila squealed. “Tell us all about that.”

“We hid in a broom closet and…” Lily snickered.

“Not just kisses? You go, girl!” Mila smacked Lily’s arm, her face alight with a smile. “You didn’t do that. Did you?”

“You said cute, huh?” Taylor asked. “And those naanans. I mean, the Commander has them, but they’re gray, and he ties them back. I’m all for silver foxes, but he’s a mourning widower.”

“I guess you could call hiding in the closet and kissing our first date,” Lily said. “But then he was caught.”

“Oh!” Taylor ate her bite of cake and dropped her fork on the plate. “What happened next?”

“He was hauled to the Commander’s quarters and then Bane took me there, too. We were formally introduced and the Commander let us use his holochamber for our next dates.”

“What’s a holochamber?” Mila asked.

“A room you program to recreate a scene. It feels completely real.”

Taylor chuffed. “Please tell me you recreated a scene from Arabian Nights with a big tent and silk pillows and him riding across the desert because…alien sheik!”

“Oh, I love that idea,” Mila said. “I want a puppy and an alien sheik.”

“Don’t we all?” Tay said.

“Actually.” Lily leaned forward. “We went ice skating.”

“Was it fun?” Mila asked, her linked hands tucked against her chin. “Crakairians are tall, so I’m trying to picture you two pair dancing.”

“Jorg needs a few more lessons before he’ll be able to do anything like that,” Lily said. “But he said he’s going to install a holochamber in his house so we can go skating again.”

“That sounds super romantic,” Taylor said. “Get to the kisses, though.”

“They were also fantastic,” Lily said.

“Do their fangs get in the way?” Mila asked, her head tilted. “I’m trying to picture it. I don’t see any puncture marks on your chin so…” She snickered and smacked Lily’s arm. “Just kidding. I guess it wouldn’t be any different than razor burn.”

“No burn because they don’t have facial hair as far as I could tell,” Lily said. “And the fangs are sexy. As for Jorg’s kisses, they were super-hot. And his tongue…” She looked around as if to make sure they were alone, then giggled because who the hell cared? “The tip is forked.”

“No!” Mila fanned her face. “Why isn’t stuff like that mentioned in the stupid protocol manual? I’d rather learn about that than about toeclaw care and maintenance.” She shuddered. “What do they think we are, podiatrists? I’m all for getting to know my alien mate and depending on how things go between us, hopping into bed with him, but I draw the line at taking care of his toeclaws.”

Lily would have to ask Bane about that. Jorg didn’t seem like the kind of guy who’d expect her to give him regular pedicures.

“What happened next?” Taylor asked. She held out her hand for the wine bottle and frowned when she found it empty. She pulled a second bottle out from underneath the table, opened it, and took a drink.

“He kissed you and took you skating. That’s swoon-worthy first date material right there,” Taylor said. “Do you think he snuck onto the ship just to meet you?”

“He said he did.”

“That’s sweet,” Mila said. She flopped back onto the pillows and sighed. “I hope my guy is as creative and adventurous as that.”

“You’ll find out soon,” Lily said, handing Mila the bottle. Lily’s head spun nicely, and her sugar rush had plateaued. It suggested she get up and dance, despite there being no music.

“You said dates,” Tay said. “No holding out on us.”

“For our next date, he took me back into the holochamber, to a dog park.”

“Ah,” Mila said. “You have all the luck. You found an alien puppy onboard, and you went to a holo dog park.”

“He asked my sister what I like to do for fun.” She still couldn’t believe how thoughtful he was. Her ex would never have…

Ugh. Why was she thinking about him? Jerk. Even worse, why was she holding him up like some kind of gold standard? That guy was tin foil, not gold. Jorg? Jorg was solid, 24 karats.

“I’m crazy about him already,” Lily said with her clasped hands held to her heart. “I won’t need ten days to decide.”

“Propose,” Mila cried. “You can do it. You don’t need to wait for him to pop the question first. A lot of the girls are doing that.”

“Where is Jorg now?” Taylor asked.

“The Commander made him leave.” Lily pouted. “I won’t get to see him again until we land at the spaceport.”

“You’re really lucky,” Taylor said with a sigh.

Mila hugged Lily. “I’m happy for you, sweetie. You deserve it after that asshole you dated back on Earth.”

Lily had shared some of what happened with Wade.

“I wish my guy would steal on board the ship and kiss me,” Taylor said.

Mila bobbed her head. “Me, too.”

Lily could only imagine what they’d think if she told them about the sex. But it felt too special—intimate—to share, even with friends.

“Why don’t we open presents?” Lily said.

“Great idea.” Leaning sideways, Mila grabbed a brown paper bag off the floor and plunked it down in front of Lily. She dropped another in front of Taylor. “This ship is sorely lacking the most important things in life, like gift wrap.”

“No problem,” Lily said. She handed Mila and Taylor what she’d made for them, wrapped in toilet paper. “I’m gonna win the award for best wrapping, aren’t I?”

“It is delightful, my dear,” Taylor said with a snicker.

“Open mine,” Lily said, bumping Mila.

“A toast.” Taylor held the bottle above the table. “To our mates on Crakair. May they be as sexy as Jorg.”

“I hope my guy has a forked tongue, too,” Mila said, fanning her face. “I can only imagine how he could use something like that.”

Color rose in Lily’s face, but she said nothing.

Tay never missed a thing. “What are you holding back from us?”

“Nothing,” Lily chirped.

“You didn’t,” Taylor said in shock.

Lily grinned. “His naanans? His forked tongue? A few other small—nope, actually big—things? Let’s just say Jorg is a creative guy.”

“Damn,” Mila said. “Now I can’t wait to get to Crakair.”

Taylor smirked. “Three days, plus however long it takes to decide if he’s the one.”

“With a forked tongue and vibrating naanans, he’s already halfway there.”

“That’s not the only thing that vibrates,” Lily said.

“No!”

“I feel cheated,” Tay said. “I know it’s not all about sex. I’m not doing the horizontal tango with any guy no matter how big or vibrating it is unless I’m into him and planning to stay on Crakair. But damn.”

“Same, girl,” Mila said, taking the bottle. She guzzled a good amount, then coughed. “I can buy something big and vibrating online, and it comes without baggage. For me and men, it’s about the complete package. What’s inside really matters most.”

“So true,” Lily said, taking a smaller sip this time. Tipsy was one thing, but Bane would verbally beat her up if she got drunk. She passed the bottle to Taylor. One more round, and it was empty.

“Should we hold off on the last or crack it open?” Taylor asked.

“My head’s spinning,” Mila said, rolling her eyeballs dramatically. “Let’s open our gifts and eat more cake. Then we can move the table, lounge on the bed, and talk about the Crakairian hot guys we’re going to marry while we polish the third bottle off.”

“Don’t forget about the ring toss,” Taylor said, nudging her head toward the corner of the room.

How could they forget? Lily laughed, feeling relaxed and squishy for the first time since Sadie had left to join her Crakairian mate, Bryk, on Crakair. She couldn’t wait to see her sister again. They’d never been apart this long.

The three women grinned and dug into their gifts.

After undoing the string bow at the top of Lily’s present, Mila pushed aside the toilet paper and peeked around the wrapping. “What is it?”

Lily watched her, her body rolling with her laughter. “This is so much fun.”

Mila lifted a lacy garment out of the bag and held the skimpy nighty up for Taylor to admire. “Oh-la-la. How in the world did you make something like this, Lil? You got a sewing machine in your room?”

“I have my ways,” Lily said, wiggling her eyebrows. “Check it out.” She snickered and nudged the nighty toward Mila.

“Eeek…” Taylor sighed, reaching out to finger the material. “So pretty. I love the blue. It brings out the color of your eyes.”

“It’s, um…” Mila leaned close to Lily. “Crotchless.”

“Only the best for my friends.” Snickering, Lily held it up to show off the easy access.

She’d had a blast making the teddies with the 3D printer, though the droid’s mechanical eyeballs had almost popped from its head when she gave it her specifications. But she hadn’t broken the machine. Smoke hadn’t poured out along with the nighties.

“Assuming things work out, your mate is going to love it, Mila,” Taylor said.

Lily had made one for herself, too. She couldn’t wait to model it for Jorg.

Should she be worried about how quickly she’d jumped into Jorg’s arms? Yes, she’d watched his video a billion times, to the point she could whisper what he said along with him, but she’d only officially met him today. Inside, while it felt right, she was still scared. Falling in love meant heartache. She’d thought she’d loved Wade, and he’d hurt her. The emotional wounds he’d left were worse than the physical ones she’d dealt with during their time together.

But that was the past. Three months in the past, that is. Her future was with Jorg and so far, everything looked promising. She’d enter this with her eyes wide open. As for her heart? It might already be his.

Taylor tugged a pink nighty out of her bag and squealed. “Lil, honey! This is gorgeous.” Standing, she held it against her body and shimmied it back and forth. “Think it’ll make my boobs look big?” She scowled at her chest.

“These guys have never seen boobs,” Mila said. “Any breast size is going to be welcome.”

“You’re right.” Taylor flushed. “Only on Earth did I have to worry about the competition.” She laid the gown on the table and stroked the silky material. “It’s beautiful, Lil. Thanks.”

“Open mine, you guys,” Mila said. She rubbed her hands together and tried to keep her face from giving anything away. “They’re…quite entertaining.”

“Just entertaining, huh? I know you, my pretty.” With a cackle, Taylor pulled something out of the paper bag, and real laughter burst out of her. “Oh, hell. Wow.” She held up the enormous dildo, complete with balls. “It’s green.” Holding it tightly to her chest, she sighed. “How did you know this was what I’ve always wanted?”

Lily tugged out her purple alien penis. “Whoa. What the…” Her fingertip traced across the second mini-penis near the base. “This looks like it would…” Her cheeks flushed pink. “I like it though. I’m gonna show it to Jorg.” She snickered. “Get his opinion.”

“You won’t!” Mila said, holding out her hand. “Give it back.”

“No way.” Lily turned away from Mila, snickering. “This baby is mine.”

“Think the mini peen will hit the right spot?” Mila asked with a chuckle.

“Hey,” Taylor said, staring down. She poked at the balls. “Mine’s defective. No second penis.”

“But yours has ribs,” Lily said, leaning close to Mila. “I’ve heard some Crakairians males have ribs, too.”

“What about Jorg?” Taylor asked while wiggling her eyebrows.

“I never kiss and tell.”

“Well, you do kiss and tell.” Mila elbowed Lily. “You don’t fuck and tell you mean.”

“That, too.”

“So, about alien peens,” Tay said. She dropped her nightie into her lap and rubbed her hands together. “You’ve had a sample. Fill us in on all the gritty details.”

“No can do, but I teased some information out of Bane.” The droid had been quite comfortable discussing Crakairian male anatomy, perhaps thinking she was asking for scientific reasons. Ha-ha.

Mila clapped her hands. “Tell us!”

“Many are ribbed, big, green, and they vibrate when they’re aroused. And some have…” She leaned in close and lowered her voice. “Bulbous tips.” Having personal experience, she could speak for the latter. It had felt awesome driving inside.

If nothing else, she was confident—now—that her sex life would be good. What a nice feeling. No more worrying that she was defective.

Asshole ex.

Taylor leaped up and grabbed the inflatable penis and started dancing around the room. “Vibrate for me, you hottie!”

“Is the real thing is as big as Tay’s new boyfriend?” Mila said out of the corner of her mouth.

“Thankfully not,” Lily said with a laugh. “It’s big enough already. No need to be that huge.”

“I’m opening your gift, Tay,” Mila said, dancing the tissue-wrapped package overhead.

Taylor flung the inflated penis at Lily, who batted it away like a volleyball before turning back to her final gift. “Together, Mila. Opening in three, two, and…”

She and Mila pulled the items out of the tissues at the same time. Matching frowns appeared on their faces.

Rubbery panties?

“Edible undies,” Taylor hooted.

“Oh, my god,” Lily said. She opened the top of the sealed bag and took a sniff. “Grape?”

“Eh, cherry is boring,” Taylor said. “Just so you know, the undies are made of highly nutritious material. You really can eat them.”

“Why would we need nutrition from undies?” Lily asked with a laugh.

“Because I thought it would be fun to make them cute, sexy, plus good for you.”

“I’ll keep that in mind if I get hungry,” Lily said. “How many carbs are we talking about and is one pair a serving?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“Yay, mine are orange,” Mila said, holding up the panties and making them gyrate. “My favorite flavor.”

“I’m sure our guys will appreciate the thought,” Lily said. She couldn’t imagine wearing them, but who the hell knew? When she pictured herself dressed only in the purple undies with Jorg nibbling across the waistband, she got all tingly. It wasn’t hard to remember him moving between her legs. His tongue and fingers…

Her friends would think her flushed face came from the wine, right?

“Damn, this has been so fun,” Mila said, wiping tears from her eyes.

Lily looked around at her friends. “You guys! Once we get settled on Crakair, I want to get together a lot.” She’d introduce her friends to Sadie, and they’d be one big, happy family.

“Definitely,” Mila said, tucking her gifts into a cloth bag.

Lily snagged the pillowcase she’d brought for this purpose. Bane might think she had come unprepared, but he’d learn he’d been mistaken when he came back to retrieve her.

She’d started to drop the bag on the floor by her feet when a thud shuddered through the room. They gaped at each other as a grinding sound ripped through the ship.

“What’s going on?” Mila cried.

Someone banged on the door, and the three women stared in that direction.

“What the…?” Taylor whispered. “I don’t think that’s TX86.”

Lily clutched her pillowcase containing her gifts to her chest. “We should—“

The panel zipped to the side and a bunch of blue-skinned, four-armed aliens stormed into the tiny room holding what looked like laser guns in their hands. They pointed the weapons at the women.

“Come,” a short, round one said, flicking a black stick toward Tay, who squealed and scrambled away, banging into the table. The cake topper fell over and clattered on the floor.

Another alien stomped over to the bed. He grabbed Mila’s hair and yanked her to her feet. While she screamed and bit his hand, other aliens grabbed her wrists and pulled them around to her back where they were bound. She went limp, probably to throw him off balance, but he latched onto her upper arm and dragged her toward the door.

Lily swung her loaded pillowcase at the alien reaching for her hair. The dildo hit him in the cheek, and he roared. Leaping forward, he fisted the front of her dress and yanked her up against him.

“You pay for that,” he snarled.

She kneed him in the groin, and he stumbled back, clutching his wounded balls. While he moaned, she raced around him and leaped onto the back of the alien tying Taylor’s hands. If they could get out of the room, they could rescue Mila.

The alien nudged Lily off like she was a blanket draped loosely across his shoulders. Renewing his grip on Taylor’s arm, he hauled her to her feet and hustled her out the door.

“Run, Lily,” Taylor yelled. “Hide!”

If only she could.

There were too many of them. The two who’d taken Mila and Taylor had been replaced with three others. They dove toward Lily, but she scrambled to the side and fled toward the door. Bolting out into the hall, she turned right.

Farther down the corridor, a pack of blue-skinned aliens dragged her screaming friends.

When the aliens from the room barreled out into the hall, blocking her path to Mila and Taylor, she had no choice to run in the opposite direction. She needed to find a weapon, then rescue Tay and Mila.

The aliens gave chase. Lily’s pulse thundered in her ears. Her lungs heaved even though she’d only gone a few feet.

With panic clawing up her spine, she hit the end of the hall and jabbed the elevator button. Come on! The doors opened, and Thor raced out, his orange fur swishing and his little toenails clicking on the tile. He yipped when he saw her.

How in the world had he gotten inside the elevator? She stooped down, and he leaped into her arms. He squirmed and licked her face, but she didn’t have time to play. Standing, she jumped inside the elevator. As she feverishly pressed the buttons, she whimpered. “Hurry up! Hurry. Hurry.”

The ship shuddered again, and Lily was thrown against the wall, jarring her shoulder. A bang vibrated across the floor and blasted through the ship, digging into her bones. She cuddled Thor close to protect him.

Lights flashed overhead, and a mechanical voice called out. Commander to the bridge. Commander to the bridge. All unnecessary personnel, please return to your quarters. The message repeated. Like it would make a difference now? It was too late. The ship had been boarded, and the blue aliens were taking captives.

Mila! Taylor! She had to help them, but how?

As the elevator door closed, a blue-skinned alien plunged his arm into the gap. The door opened again, and three of them leaped inside.

She tucked Thor inside the loose top of her dress to free her hands to fight, and the little alien dog nestled above her belt, trembling.

Her fist shot out and connected with one of the alien’s jaws. He reeled back but hopped toward her again, his cloven feet clicking on the floor tiles. His wings unfurled, spreading from one side of the elevator to the other, blocking her exit. She swung the pillowcase, hitting one of the aliens in the belly. His breath woofed out, but he and his friends each had four arms. She didn’t stand a chance.

One wrenched the pillowcase from her and after peering inside, handed it to a second. The others grabbed her arms and hauled them around behind her back.

“Run, Lily,” she heard Bane yell from the corridor. “Run!”

Lily’s heart pounded against her ribcage. She bucked and kicked, and the aliens swore. Breaking free, she burst from the elevator, her shoes clicking on the floor, and her lungs on fire.

As she rushed down the hall, something slammed into her lower back. Her legs gave out, and she tumbled forward, twisting to take the fall on her side and protect Thor.

Her legs twitched and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t make them move, as if she’d been hit in the spine by a bolt of lightning.

As the blue aliens scurried closer, she patted Thor, who whimpered and nestled close to her belly.

Bane whizzed up beside her and latched one of his mechanical hands around her ankle. “Never fear, Lillian. I will protect you.”

A protocol droid had no weapons.

A winged blue alien snickered as he sauntered down the hall. He kicked Bane, but the droid held on, his grip secure on her ankle.

The alien stepped around her and stooped down beside her head. His gaze slithered down her body. “Nicey Earthling female,” he said. “Good for sell to breeder.”

“I am terribly sorry,” Bane said. “I wanted to warn you, Lillian, but I did not arrive here in time.”

“Let us go,” Lily growled. “You are so going to regret this.” She slammed her palm up into the alien’s face.

His head snapped back, and he grunted.

Snarling, he tapped her temple with a black stick, and the world disappeared.

9

JORG

Waking suddenly, Jorg stared at the speckled ceiling. He stretched and shoved back the covers. How long had he been asleep?

Something had awoken him. There. That sound. An incoming communication.

Rising from the bed, Jorg strode to the bridge and engaged the onboard com with a smack of his palm.

“Yeah?” he said.

As he slunk down into his commander’s chair, Bryk’s holovid face appeared above the communicator.

“You on a mission?” Bryk grunted out. He glanced over his shoulder before his eyes trained in Jorg’s direction again.

“No.”

Bryk’s shoulder sekair flaps stood at full attention, and Jorg had a feeling they were primed with poison. What was going on?

“All right, then,” Bryk said. He paced inside his small office. “Are you in the third quadrant or…somewhere else?”

Jorg never shared his location with anyone. He trusted Bryk, but communication could be hacked. If he was on a covert mission, the last thing he needed was to draw the attention of any other vessel in his area.

“What is going on, Bryk?” Jorg barked, unease ratcheting up his spine. “Tell me.”

“There is something you need to know,” Bryk said, his voice grim. Lines creased his face, twisting his forehead scales into knots, and he glanced over his shoulder again. Was he worried someone in the house would overhear? He leaned forward, and his voice lowered. “It is about Lily.”

Any lingering sleepiness was blasted from Jorg. He gripped the leather armrests to the point of pain. “What about her?”

“She’s been taken.”

Jorg slammed his fists on the chair arms. “What do you mean?”

“She was at a party with friends, in one of their rooms. The ship was stormed and…Heille. The Commander was knocked unconscious. Many of the droid crew were destroyed or are malfunctioning. The Council sent a crew to take over the ship, plus a contingent of star cruisers to provide protection for those still remaining on board. It is a mess.”

“Who took her? What happened?” Jorg shouted, his heart thundering behind his ribcage.

“Three of the Earth mates were stolen from the ship, including Lily. The other women must have heard the screams, because they barricaded themselves in their rooms. Others hid in secure locations onboard. They are safe.”

A relief, but Lily…

“When did this happen?” Jorg asked hoarsely. His sekairs flared on his shoulders, the tips of the scaled flaps laced with poison he ached to deploy. Where was she? Heille, was she still alive?

“It happened eight denjars ago. The distress transmission was delayed by a meteor storm.”

Fuck. Eight denjars was eight too many. A glance at the dash clock showed he’d been asleep that amount of time. How had his stealth equipment missed a ship approaching the cruiser before he hit light speed and left the area?

He gnashed his teeth. He’d been daydreaming about kissing Lily when he departed. Gloating about his “cocky” actions. Savoring what they would do together when she arrived on Crakair.

He’d been complacent.

“Who is responsible?” he snarled. “What does the droid security detail report?”

“It was a group of Al’kieern, like with Sadie. Cloaked, they docked with the cruiser, stormed the ship and took Lily and two other women, then escaped before the security forces could capture them. Their ship was tracked until they hit the outer atmosphere of—”

“Mara?” The largest moon orbiting Crakair and the planet where Jorg had grown up. The Al’kieern ruled there.

“We do not think so.”

“Then where?”

“You might remember the unusual activity I noted on Mia recently.”

Crakair had three moons. Mara and Tress were inhabited. No one had chosen to settle on Mia, because it was a wasteland filled with sandstorms and deadly creatures.

“I do remember,” Jorg snarled, his fingers hovering over the controls. The second he was given the exact location, he’d be all over it. But he already suspected… It was hard not to see where this was headed. Heille. This was taking too long. Lily could be dead before he found her. And if it was a transfer station, and they took her from there to another galaxy, he’d never track her down. He needed intel, and while Bryk might not have it, others would.

“No one is saying anything, and believe me, I have asked,” Bryk said. “But…”

Jorg leaned forward. “Ask Vork. Tell him I need anything he can give me.”

“You are going after her and the others.”

“Yeah.”

“I will com Vork and explain. Normally—“

“They will not give out information to civilians. But you and I both know that rules like that do not apply to me.”

If he reached out to his underground contacts, they could offer information, but Jorg didn’t have time. He had to act now.

Lily. He’d just met her. He was falling in love with her.

She’d be scared, terrified about what might happen next. Thinking no one would ever find her.

He had to rescue her and the other women.

“I will ask around and get back to you as soon as I can,” Bryk said.

“Thanks.”

Bryk vanished, ending the holovid.

Standing, Jorg paced the small control cabin, stomping back and forth on his bare feet until another hail came through the ship’s com.

He dashed to his tiny kitchen and ate something quickly, worried he’d miss the call.

When the ping rang out, he bolted to the front room. Leaping over his chair, he smacked his palm on the holovid.

“Bryk,” he yelled.

“I have it,” Bryk said with a growl of satisfaction. “Vork bypassed the Council and went to Crown Prince Axil. He was able to obtain the information.”

Only a foolish Crakairian refused the prince.

Bryk fed Jorg the coordinates where the Crakairian intel team had last tracked the craft carrying Lily and the other women.

Jorg plugged them into his control panel and engaged the ship’s power surge capacitator. It would burn through fuel like a newborn faljioner being fed bits of a small wildarn, but he did not care. He’d ensure he had enough left to escape after he’d tracked the women down, but the rest would be used to reach them as quickly as possible.

“I will meet you there,” Bryk said, tugging on a shirt.

“I work better alone.” Jorg had to force himself to meet Bryk’s eyes. “Though I do appreciate the offer.”

Bryk scowled.

“You have a new mate. A youngling with another on the way.” Jorg would never endanger his friend.

“I wish to help,” Bryk said. “You know the Al’kieern tried to steal my Sadie.”

“I am grateful they did not succeed.”

“But now they are succeeding. As we speak, the Council is holding an emergency meeting. Despite their initial reluctance to arrange a mate contract with Earth, they see the value in their actions now.”

The newly born second in line to the throne, Crown Princess Alicia might have something to do with that. Her mother was the Prince’s Earthling mate, Julia, one of the first matches made after the initial contract.

The fact that many of the other women were pregnant surely helped, too, but it was not only that. The Crakairian people had come to love the Earth women who had moved to Crakair. They were family now, and Crakairians protected their own.

“Future matches traveling from Earth will be heavily guarded,” Bryk said. “And the Council is already making arrangements to deploy space cruisers to Earth to provide an ongoing defense of the planet. If they will risk boarding a star cruiser to obtain women, nothing will stop them from going directly to Earth.”

The Council should have thought of this after what happened with Sadie, but Bryk’s concerns had been dismissed as an isolated incident. The perpetrators had been killed, leading the Council to assume it would not happen again.

“Tell me more about the lights you saw on Mia,” Jorg said. Even a tiny detail could prove priceless. “Any details you remember about the location?”

“I saw the lights near the minor crater.”

The planet was peppered with craters, the result of meteor showers ages ago, but there were two large craters, simply called minor and major.

“Were the lights moving?” Jorg asked.

“Stationary. But honestly, it was just a glance. The flashes caught my eye. I pointed them out to Weld, but you know my youngling. He was absorbed in whatever he was working on.”

Jorg’s hands clenched to fists. “Many lights?”

“Just flickers, but I think the irregular pattern was caused by shifting cloud cover, not anything moving on the surface.”

Fuck. This wasn’t much to work with.

Mia was small, about one-fourth the size of Crakair. But without a solid location, it might take Jorg daelas to scan the planet with his small stealth shuttle before coming across anything. And this might not be related to the women being taken.

But in his gut, Jorg knew. There was a connection to the crater.

He’d start there, then work outward. He couldn’t risk roaring in with his larger craft. It could be picked up on scanners, and if this group was as devious as he assumed, his craft could be shot down before he could land and storm a potential compound. His best bet was to come in at an angle, flying low to avoid detection, then ditch his ship and walk the rest of the distance on foot. He’d assess the situation once he arrived and decide what to do from there.

“You didn’t see more than lights,” Jorg said. Was there something Bryk had seen but forgotten? “No ships traveling in that direction or… anything?” Tiny details could prove vital.

“I did not see anything else, unfortunately. I reported the lights to Vork, but I do not know if the spacefleet looked into it after he passed on my message. I will ask.”

“Yes. See what you can discover. In two denjars, I will lock down my communication system to avoid detection.” Jorg gnashed his teeth, wishing he was orbiting Mia this minar. “I need to go.” To get in, rescue the women, and get them out, he not only needed to act fast, but he also needed to pack strategically. That would take time.

“I will get back to you soon. And Jorg?”

“Yeah?” Jorg’s naanans wouldn’t stop flaring and his sekairs refused to lie down. His body was priming itself for battle. His mateblood bond demanded satisfaction. He would rescue his mate and make those who had stolen her and the other women pay.

“Be careful,” Bryk said.

“Always.”

“We will be waiting to hear from you.”

“Hopefully, soon.”

“Sometimes… I know you, Jorg. If it was me, I would blast my way through them. Find my Sadie, make sure she was safe, and then kill them all.”

“I will do the same. Lily is my mate.” Jorg lifted his hand, revealing the symbol on his palm. “I will do what I must.”

To think the Council resisted Earthling mates, yet here many of us were, not only mated with our women but forming full matebonds. Fate had a way of intervening.

“Travel with safety and stealth, my friend,” Bryk said. “Bring your mate and the other women home.”

Jorg growled. “I will.”

After ending the communication, Jorg keyed the coordinates into his ship and left it to autopilot to get him to his destination.

He ran down the hall and fingered the pad on the closet he’d added within daelas of buying the ship. It felt good to have a plan, to know how he would handle this. In many ways, this was like every other mission he’d taken on. In all other ways, it was completely different.

His heart—Lily—was at stake.

He hauled things out, chucking what he needed into his small bedroom. Then he dressed in the gear he’d had made for special ops projects in sandy climates. While it would take a few denjars to reach Mia, he couldn’t resist wanting to be ready this instant.

He strapped on his weapons, turning himself into a single-male militia.

After packing the bag he’d carry on his back, he strode to his captain’s chair and dropped down onto the leather seat.

“I am coming, Lily,” he said, his words hissing in the small room. “I will not give up until I have found you.”

10

LILY

A  bang of metal woke Lily. She blinked and stared at the stone ceiling hovering only a few feet above her head.

Where was she?

Shifting, she tried to get comfortable, but what felt like a concrete slab bit into her spine.

She rose onto her elbows and groaned. Damn, her head hurt. What kind of juice had that alien’s stick shot through her brain? Hopefully, it hadn’t scrambled anything while it blasted through to reach the other side.

Movement inside her dress made her jump.

“Thor,” she gulped out, her shoulders sagging.

The creelet poked his head out of the top of her juglier gown and started to purr.

“At least you’re okay, little guy,” she said.

A glance around showed she lay on the floor of a small room, maybe eight by eight. The ceiling was low; she’d have to bend over if she wanted to stand up. Four walls surrounded her, one with bars. Some sort of cell.

Another bang was followed by a subtle whirring sound. It came from nearby, but with no natural light, she could barely see a thing. For all she knew, something inside this tiny space was getting ready to attack her. Would she be able to defend herself?

Hold on.

“Bane?” she croaked, her throat as scratchy as a nail file.

“Lillian,” Bane groaned from near her feet.

“It’s Lily,” she corrected him absently.

“Lillian?” he asked softly.

Fear wormed through her. He didn’t sound right. “Yes, I’m here. Are you okay?”

“I am malfunctioning.”

She rose onto her knees and crawled across the floor. She found what was left of Bane near the wall opposite the door to her cell. He struggled to rise but slumped back down again, a robotic pancake.

“Where are you hurt?” she asked.

“I cannot feel pain.”

“You know what I mean.”

His head lifted, and he looked her way. “I need repairs. My hover propulsion system keeps short-circuiting. My rear-mounted eyes no longer function. And I need to recharge before my battery back-up fails.”

She lifted him up so he was sort of sitting. Dents covered his frame.

A snarl ripped from her. “Did they kick you?”

“I believe so.”

Her hand dropped onto his shoulder. “I’m sorry, Bane.” She rubbed her chest where it pinched.

“Thank you for your assistance. Sitting upright improves my visual spectrum.”

“Anytime.” Flopping onto her butt on the floor beside him, she tipped her head back to rest it against the stone wall.

“I apologize,” Bane said.

“Why?”

“I am defective. Useless.” His metal shoulders slumped. “My storage capacity has depleted to the point I cannot defend you.”

She put her arm around his skinny neck. “It’s okay. You’re a protocol droid. You don’t have a defense system. But I appreciate that you’re willing to try.”

“That is kind of you to say.”

“I mean it.” She squinted at the ceiling, hoping the bugs crawling across the surface didn’t fall on her face. “Do you know where we are?”

“My assumption, although this is solely based on distance traveled and trajectory, plus the brief glimpse of our surroundings when we arrived and they carried us through what appeared to be a sandstorm, and brought down into the ground and inside a small building where they—”

“Bane.”

“Yes, Lillian?”

“Where are we? Tell me simply.”

“In the wasteland of Mia,” he said.

“The uninhabited moon orbiting Crakair.”

He shifted himself on the floor. “Yes.”

“Why Mia?”

“Again, this is merely an assumption on my part, but…”

“Tell me.” She rubbed her head where the alien had hit it and gasped at the sting. It felt as if the skin had been burned.

“You were brought here for an auction.”

Breeder. That’s what the blue alien had said before he’d knocked her out.

“Call this a big assumption on my part,” she said. “But they’re not expecting me to sit in the audience and hold up a number when I want to make a bid. I’m the item being auctioned off.”

“Unfortunately, yes.”

“Someone will buy me to be a breeder.”

“Yes,” he said even more quietly.

Panic surged inside her, threatening to explode from her throat in a scream, but she bit her lips together to hold it back.

Think, Lily. How could she get out of this?

“How did you end up here with me?” she asked, trying to shove aside the horror of what lay in store for her. If she focused too hard on it, she’d start wailing and never stop.

“I locked myself onto you with a hand around your ankle. Short of removing your foot, there was no way they could break us apart. I did release you once I’d ascertained they planned to leave you here in this room for some time with me.”

“Why did you do it?” She wiped her hair off her face.

“I wanted to protect you.”

Her heart twinged. “Bane.”

“Yes?”

“Thanks.” She gulped and blinked fast, worried she’d start crying. “This situation is scary.”

“You have reason to feel fear.”

If nothing else, Bane could be trusted to always be honest.

“I’m grateful I won’t face this alone,” she said in a tight voice. She tugged Thor out of her dress and dropped him onto her lap. He tip-toed around in a circle before settling down. Staring up at her, he sighed. She patted him while she looked around, hoping to find a way out. Sadly, there were no holes in the wall or floor that could be used for escape. “We need to get out of here before that auction.”

“Indeed,” Bane said.

“You don’t happen to have a hacksaw on you, do you?”

“I am a protocol droid. What use would I have for a device like that?”

She tugged softly on Thor’s tiny ears. “Any ideas for how we can escape, then?”

“I do not have a plan.”

“Then we need to come up with one, because I’m not going to be sold as a breeder.” She’d be marched out of this tiny hellhole and thrust up onto a stage where aliens would bid on the chance to screw her until she got pregnant. Bile roared up from her belly. She gagged it down, unwilling to part with anything she’d eaten or drank today. She needed every single calorie for energy if she was going to escape.

“I will not fare any better than you,” Bane said.

She chuffed. “I doubt you’ll be sold as a breeder.”

“They have no use for me. They will not ask for protocol instruction.”

“You’re worried about being thrown into the scrap pile?”

His metal frame shuddered.

“Where are Mila and Taylor?” she asked. “We can plan an escape with them.”

“Once they had taken you onboard their vessel, they split you away from the others. I believe they were taking each of you to a different destination.”

“They captured just the three of us?” Dismay rushed through her. “Mila, me, and Taylor. We were at the party together.” She had to help them. Tears swam in her eyes, and she let them fall. Her poor friends.

“The combat droids drove the Al’kieern off the ship before they could capture others.”

“This sucks. Breeder? No thanks. I’m not doing it.”

“Crakairians are not the only race in the galaxy seeking mates. Earthling women are highly prized.”

Crawling to the door, she peered out. “Mila? Tay? You guys out there?”

Nothing greeted her but silence.

Returning to sit beside Bane, she sniffed and wiped her face. “Do you think there’s any chance they brought my friends to Mia, too? Like, in a different ship?” There might be more than one block of cells. They could be locked up in another part of the compound.

“That is not clear,” he said. “My sensors picked up a transfer beam while we were in orbit.”

“Which means?”

“They may have been taken anywhere.”

No. She wouldn’t believe she’d never see them again.

“I need to get out of this cell and find them,” she said. “Maybe they’re here, or maybe they’re not. But I’ll track them down, and we’ll blow this place to hell and back.”

“I do not sense their lifeforms near us, just that of the Al’kieern,” he said in the silence that followed.

Scooting around to face Bane, she dragged up her leg and tucked her heel underneath her. “You said the blue-skinned guys are Al’kieern. They’re from Mara, right?” That’s what she’d read in the Crakairian manual.

“Rogues, scoundrels, pirates, scalawags, reprobates, and—”

She held up her hand. “Got it.”

“I thought you would.”

Was he joking? She couldn’t tell. It wasn’t as if his face changed expressions. And who’d joke at a time like this?

She shifted her legs again. Her left ankle hurt, perhaps from where Bane had latched onto it. It might be silly to be grateful the droid was with her. He couldn’t do anything to help her. But somehow, having him here made her feel less alone.

“What are their weaknesses?” she asked.

He tipped his head back to look up at her. “Excuse me?”

“How can I defeat the Al’kieern? They must have weaknesses I can exploit.”

“You lack the physical capacity to cause them harm.”

“Thanks. I’m not that pitiful.”

“They will not let you near them, and you have no weapons.”

She held up her fists. “What about these babies?”

“Your application for the matchmaking program did not specify training in martial arts.”

“I’ve taken self-defense classes.” With Sadie. Would she ever see her sister again? “I’m smart. I’ll figure this out. I won’t give up.”

He nodded. “Then I will do all I can to help.”

“We need to fix you and get you charged. Do you just plug yourself in?”

“On the ship, we were charged at the end of each day in an electrical immersion pool.”

“I have a feeling there are no immersion pools on Mia.”

“My back-up solar panels will work if we can locate sunlight.”

She cricked her head back and looked around. “No window.”

“If we could get outside, I could charge myself. While I do not possess a hacksaw, I do have simple tools you could use to repair my broken parts.”

“Me? I’m no mechanic.”

“I will instruct you. But…You will wait for me to charge, will you not?” If she didn’t know better, she’d think he sounded afraid. But he had no feelings. He wouldn’t experience fear.

“I won’t leave you,” she said, in case he truly did need reassurance.

“I am a machine. Replaceable.”

She grimaced. “Not to me. You’re a friend.”

“An interesting concept.” His gaze—round white orbs with tiny black specks in the center—held hers. “I do not know what it is like to have a friend.”

“Then it’s time for you to find out.”

After nudging Thor onto the floor again, she crawled over to the door and peered out. A narrow corridor stretched in either direction with barred doors on either side, reminding her of the dog room at the shelter. Except, she was now the pup.

“Hey,” she yelled. “Anyone here?”

Sounds echoing from down the hall told her someone must have heard, though no one came into view.

“I’m thirsty! I’ll be useless to you as a breeder if I die of thirst. And while you’re at it, I need to go to the bathroom.”

She didn’t, but they didn’t need to know that. If she could get out of this cell, she could make a break for it.

“Bane,” she whispered. “Do they know you’re no longer attached to my ankle?”

“No. I detached and slumped here once they’d placed us inside this cell.”

“Then hook up with me again before they decide to toss you into the dumpster.”

“Valid point, Lillian. You are wise.”

She tapped her forehead. “Brains. Not just beauty. I’m the complete package.”

“I do believe that is a joke, but I am not sure I understand.” He paused and tiny chirps inside him suggested he was processing her comment. “Ha. Ha.”

Talk about a tough room.

“And it’s Lily,” she said.

“Yes, Lily. Sorry. I do apologize.” He dragged himself over to her with his arms and wrapped his mechanical fingers around her ankle.

“You’re lookin’ pretty pitiful, Bane. Let’s see if we can get you outside where we can perk you up.” Her, too.

Fear and panic competed inside her, both eager to win. How was she going to get out of this?

A stout, four-armed, blue-skinned alien stomped down the hall and stopped outside her cell. “What scream you about?” he asked.

“I’m thirsty. I have to pee.”

He waved. “Pee in room.”

“No, thanks. You must have an outhouse or something here. Let me use it.”

With a growl, he pivoted and trooped back down the hall.

“That was a wash,” she said.

“That makes no sense. We are no cleaner now than we were before.”

“I meant—”

The alien reappeared with a taller guy striding behind him. With hall lights overhead, she couldn’t make out his features.

They stopped beneath a strip of glowing material a bit down the hall from her cell, and she could finally see.

Her gaze fell down his front, taking in the black outfit that made him look vaguely like a scaly, green-skinned ninja. His weapons had given birth to other weapons, and they’d bred like rabbits.

He studied her just as intently as she did him, his gaze making her skin tingle.

Jorg.

11

JORG

“T  he female wants to urinate. That can be done in the room like any other prisoner. Then she wants to drink,” the Al’kieern snarled. “Next she probably wants to eat. No.” He spat on the floor between Lily and Jorg. “Females are too needy. Sell them, I always say. Then they won’t make more demands.”

“I don’t understand most of what he said,” Lily said softly. “But I get the idea I’m not going to the outhouse.” She tapped behind her ear where her translator had been implanted, but that wouldn’t help. He doubted her translator would process more than rudimentary Al’kieern. Her gaze met Jorg’s. “He understands me but…”

Jorg gave her a subtle nod, indicating it would take time for her translator to learn the dialect and nuances of the Al’kieern language. Hopefully, they’d be out of here long before it was a concern.

Jorg studied her face and what he could see of her body. She appeared unharmed, but he wouldn’t know until he’d gotten her out. He ached to touch her, to reassure her, but he had to be careful not to give himself away.

He’d entered the moon’s outer atmosphere cloaked and landed many kleks from here. Moving in on foot, it had taken the entire night to reach the crater. Then he’d taken precious denjars finding the entrance to the Al’kieern underground hideaway. He was dealing with a sophisticated organization and not the street-savvy yet naïve Al’kieerns he’d grown up with. Who was in charge, and how had they pulled this off within visual site of the Crakairian Council?

The lights Bryk had seen must have come from droids working to construct the underground facility. They’d been wise not to build on the surface, which would have given them away and subjected the compound to the onslaught of sandstorms that ripped across the moon’s surface.

“We need to get the female something to drink,” Jorg said.

“No drink.” The Al’kieern fingered the wide leather belt cinching in his brown tunic. “Drinks cost too many dinairs. Besides, we are selling her today.”

Absolutely not.

Jorg had barely reached the compound in time. When he’d seen the Al’kieern guarding the entrance, he’d boldly strode up to the door and blustered his way inside. Jorg spoke the Al’kieern language like a native, and he’d used a simple ruse: He’d been sent here as an emissary for one of the very wealthy buyers and was to oversee the care of the kidnapped Earthling females. Money always talked, and no one wished to offend a buyer. Yes, he agreed he should have landed his craft closer. And no, he did not wish to sample the merchandise before the auction.

Fuck.

From his brief questioning of this Al’kieern, Zur, he’d learned multiple buyers were flying in from various parts of the galaxy for the event that would be held on a stage somewhere deep within the bowels of the compound.

In three denjars.

Jorg needed to locate the other women, break them out of their cells without drawing attention, and get them to his shuttle. Now.

“I know there is water here,” Jorg barked. “Go get some. We will deal with everything else when you get back.”

The Al’kieern snarled but lumbered back toward the hall that led deeper into the main compound. A warren of corridors, Jorg would find himself lost if he wasn’t careful.

“Jorg.” Lily sagged, pressing her cheek against the metal slats.

He stooped down in front of her and traced her fingers gripping the bars. “We do not have much time.”

“How did you find me?”

“Connections.”

“I guess it doesn’t matter.” Her arm stretched out between the rails, her fingers seeking him. Her voice choked. “I’m so glad you’re here.”

He took her hand and kissed it. “Dreafillar.”

Her snort of laughter burst through her tears. “Here we are again, at the introduction.”

“I would welcome you into my heart for the rest of my life.”

“Jorg,” she sighed. “You’re going to make me cry, and that will create a mess.”

He stroked her face. “That was never my intention.”

“How are you going to get us out?”

“Us?”

Her gaze dipped back into the cell. “Bane’s with me, as well as Thor.”

Bane he already knew, though it was still unclear why she had bothered to name the droid, let alone why she’d wish to bring the droid with her when they escaped. “Thor?”

“The creelet I adopted on the ship.”

“One does not adopt a creelet.”

“Well, I did. And he adopted me. Me, Thor, and Bane are a package deal.”

He wasn’t completely sure what a package deal was, but his translator gave him enough information to know that his shuttle was going to be cramped when they took off.

Stomps coming from the hallway told him Zur was returning. Hopefully, he wasn’t bringing anyone else with him.

“Be ready,” he whispered to Lily. He stood and turned to watch Zur approach. The Al’kieern carried a plugged bottle. Not water, then. Cheap vintip?

Zur handed it to Jorg. “Here is drink for her, but she can urinate in the room.”

“I’m not peeing in the room, so get that through your pea-brained mind,” Lily said.

While he admired her spunk, she needed to be wary. If she irritated Zur, he might call the others. So far, Jorg had only had to deal with one Al’kieern. He wasn’t interested in taking on the full contingent.

Jorg scowled at Zur. “Open the door.”

“You said no to the fucking, so I am not opening it,” Zur said with a brittle smile that showed his rot-riddled, long, black fangs. “She can drink. Urinate in the room. Then she will need to dress for sale.”

“Dress?” Lily said. “Fuck that. And fuck peeing in the room. And fuck you.” Tears shimmered in her eyes, telling him she was close to breaking.

His stress level lifted multiple notches.

“She cannot drink through the bars,” Jorg said.

“She can.”

With one eyebrow lifted and a growl rumbling through his chest, Jorg held out his hand. “Give me the key.”

“Maybe I should call the big brog about this,” Zur said with a smirk. “She is to be sold soon. You could have fucked her earlier but not now.”

“I do not want to fuck her.” A complete lie, but never under these circumstances.

But the big brog? Shit. The last Jorg needed was the head of the operation coming down here. His plan would be blown away.

Jorg snarled and stooped down in front of Lily again. He uncorked the bottle and slipped the end through the bars, carefully tipping it toward her open mouth.

“Be ready,” he mouthed.

She drank deeply before nudging it away. Her grim nod told him she’d heard, and she’d jump the minar her cell door opened.

How in the heille was Jorg going to make it happen?

Standing, he recorked the bottle.

“We should give drinks to the other Earthling females,” he said. “The merchandise must not be harmed.” A cold shudder traveled through him when he thought about what the other women might be enduring. If Lily had been offered to Jorg, what were the Al’kieern doing with the others?

“They’re not here,” Zur said.

“What do you mean they are not here?”

Zur’s forehead clips drew inward. “They were split up on the ship. They’re all going to different locations.” He tossed the bottle onto a pile of rags lying near the opposite wall, and his narrowed gaze fell on Jorg’s face. “Who sent you? You did not actually say.”

“I told you, I have come from Qe’ket. I was sent to supervise this mission.”

Zur stomped closer to Jorg. “Who sent you?” he snarled.

“You know what?” Jorg shoved him off. “You are pissing me off.” Damn, he loved that phrase he’d picked up from Sadie. “You are right. We should go speak to the brog about this. Then you can explain why you are offering valuable merchandise to whoever walks through the door, but also why you are starving her and making her rest in inhumane surroundings.”

He hated that Lily was stuck in a cage where she couldn’t stand. And he hated that he couldn’t touch or comfort her. He had to get her out of here.

Zur’s gaze fell, and he scuffed his cloven hoof across the floor. “No need to do that. I will get a bucket for the female. Food, too.”

“Do it.” Jorg shot his chin toward the hall. “You know what? I will go with you. Earthlings are fragile and must be treated with the best care. I do not trust you to bring the correct food for the breeder.” Using the term breeder was a guess on his part, but why else would they be stealing Earth females? Crakair wasn’t the only planet to lose women from the disease. The entire galaxy was eager to track down and mate with genetically compatible women. Earth seemed to be the only place where the males had died out rather than the females.

Zur stomped ahead of Jorg, moving out into the main hall. He took a right at an intersection, while Jorg surreptitiously looked around, hiding his amazement from his face. The stone walls had been made from vulnar mined on Mara and hauled here. The flooring was manufactured. Nothing he could see was constructed from materials found on Mia. How had they been able to build this without detection?

He needed to get Lily out of here and then track down the other women. But after that, he would come back and destroy everything. That would send a message to whoever had organized this. Stealing women and then selling them for auction wouldn’t be tolerated.

The sad thing was, the Al’kieern would find another way. This took Jorg back to his original thought. They needed to protect Earth. He’d talk with Bryk and get the Vikir involved, as well. As Vikir males were also entering the Selection and hoped to find mates, the battle-bragier race would be eager to lend muscle in any way they could. As would the Ferlaern. This would be a good time to test their truce. With everyone’s help, they could form an impenetrable barrier around Earth.

He reached into his pocket and glided his thumb across the circular piece of trinar the Vi’slivir witch had given him for luck. May it grant his wish today.

She comes, the witch had said. Trust her.

The witch must have meant Lily.

They rounded another corner and entered an open area with tables, a break room, perhaps.

Jorg started across the room behind Zur but the other male suddenly spun around. Before Jorg could react, Zur launched himself at Jorg.

The two males tumbled backward, crashing into a table.

Jorg flung himself off the flat surface and crouched, pulling his serafinn blade from the sheath on his side. He straightened, holding the weapon ready.

Zur rolled to his feet and glared. While Jorg bellowed and gave chase, Zur scurried to a counter along the wall. He grabbed a bottle by the neck and broke it on the edge of the counter. Whirling, he leaped toward Jorg, swiping the jagged glass toward Jorg’s neck.

Jorg ducked and spun, his blade singing through the air.

With a woof, Zur sucked in his gut to keep from being gutted. He jabbed out with the bottle, and the glass sliced through Jorg’s leather armor on his upper arm and gouged the skin.

No more play.

Jorg’s sekairs lifted, pushing aside the custom-fit material. Poison licked up to the tips, and Jorg sent darts flinging toward Zur.

Zur ducked, and the darts impaled the wall behind him. He flung the broken bottle at Jorg and fled toward the hall they’d come from.

He was going for Lily. Jorg knew it.

With a guttural cry, Jorg shot more poisonous darts at Zur, and while some went wild, two hit the Al’kieern in the back.

Zur dropped to the ground like a stunned xarton.

Breathing heavily, Jorg strode over to Zur. He pawed around in the male’s pockets and located a set of keys. One must work on Lily’s cage, but what did the others open?

He jogged across the room and entered another hall with a series of doors. They all contained touchpads, which the keys wouldn’t open, but listening didn’t indicate anyone behind the panels. Offices?

This operation was too well-established. It had been here longer than any of the Crakairians had assumed.

The hall dead-ended at a door. Leaning close, Jorg listened. Stomps and mutters indicated many beings moving behind the panel. While he was eager to end this now, he’d be foolish to endanger himself by tackling what sounded like a small army. He couldn’t endanger Lily.

He returned to the room where Zur still lay unmoving. A quick look around revealed a closet on one end, and he dragged Zur inside and shut the door. If his luck held, no one would find the body until after he and Lily had left the building.

Rushing from the room, he ran down the halls until he reached the cell block. A look inside each of the ten cages revealed no other prisoners. Heille. He’d hoped to find the other women here, to rescue them all at the same time.

“Jorg,” Lily cried, her hand stretching out through the bars.

He stooped down, unlocked the door, and yanked it open.

Lily tumbled out and into his arms.

“Are you okay?” She ran her fingers over his shoulders and arms, discovering his wound on his upper arm when he flinched. “You’re not. Jorg!” Peeling back the leather, she peered into the opening. “We’ve got to wash this. Get antibiotic ointment on it. Bandage it. Right away.”

Her concern warmed him and made the roar of his blood rage back off to a simmer.

“No time for that.” He stood, bringing her up with him. “My arm will be okay. We have got to get out of here before they find Zur.”

“I take it Zur is out of commission?”

Commission. Commission. He shrugged off the unknown word. “Zur has paid the price for his alliance with this organization.” Cupping her face, he gave her a kiss that was nowhere near long enough but satisfied him for the moment. He took her hand and tugged her toward the hall. “Can you run?”

She dug her heels in and brought them both to a halt. “I can. However, Bane cannot.” She peered back toward the cell. “He’s hurt.”

“Bane is a droid. Droids do not feel pain.”

“He’s been injured,” she said solemnly. “He can’t run or glide or take care of himself right now.” Her spine stiffened. “I’m not leaving him.”

“All right.” Jorg held back his sigh. He nudged her into the corner behind the main entrance door and handed her his serafinn blade. She hefted it and resolution burned in her eyes. She’d gut anyone who tried to get past.

Returning to the cell, he stooped down and crawled inside. As he approached the droid, it shifted on the floor.

“Leave me,” the protocol droid said.

“Lily says you are coming with us so leaving you is not an option.”

“If you could repair my hover unit, I will be able to move on my own once I am fully charged.”

There was no way to give the droid a charge here.

Did Jorg have time to fix it? No. But carrying the unit would prove a challenge. While small, barely coming to Jorg’s knees in height, droids were heavy, weighing as much as a small wildarn. Jorg would do whatever Lily asked of him, but it would tire him to carry the droid, and his arm would bleed. Already the fabric stuck sickly to his skin.

He flipped the droid over and was grateful for all the times he’d helped Weld repair one piece of farm equipment or another. Thankfully, the droid wasn’t completely destroyed. He must have been hit, because a dent forced the metal inward, pressing the panel against the hover unit controlling motion inside. With a knife, Jorg was able to pry the metal back away from the hovergliders. While otherwise dinged up and damaged, the droid should function once he’d bathed in a charging solution.

“Done,” Jorg said, flipping the droid back upright.

“I am grateful.”

That was doubtful. Again, droids did not have feelings. But this was a protocol droid. He would always behave in a polite manner.

“You are welcome,” Jorg was unable to resist saying. Perhaps he had a bit of protocol within himself, as well.

“Where is the creelet?” the droid asked, his gleaming eyes peering around Jorg.

“I am not—“

Lily poked her head into the tiny room and held out her arms. “Thor! Come on, baby. We’re outta here.” Her gaze fell on Jorg and the droid. “Everything okay?”

“I believe I will soon function as I should, Lillian,” Bane said. “Many thanks to your Crakairian mate for his repair.”

Her lips twitched upward, and some tension left her face. “He’s a good guy, isn’t he? And yeah, Jorg is my mate.”

Heated blood surged inside Jorg. He wanted to sweep Lily up and carry her to his bed. Show her over and over she was as much his as he was hers, but now was not the time.

Soon. They needed to escape first.

The creelet scrambled across the room, its tiny claws clicking on the stone floor, and jumped into Lily’s arms.

Jorg did not understand. Crakairians did not befriend droids. They did not adopt creelets.

But Lily was his mate. Her friends were his.

He lifted the droid and tucked it underneath his arm.

“You cannot protect her while carrying me,” the droid—okay, for now, Bane—said. “While you have affected a repair, it would still be in your best interest to leave me behind as I have no notion of when I will be able to re-charge to restore full function.”

“I have an idea,” Jorg said. “So no worries.”

“I do apologize but please remember, I am not capable of worrying,” Bane said with what sounded like humor in his voice. But that was impossible. Droids did not experience feelings. And while they might say something that came out funny, they were not capable of understanding a joke.

After crawling out through the tiny door, inadvertently banging Bane along the way, Jorg stood. “I have a pack I need to retrieve near the entrance. We will put you in there, protocol droid.”

“I am Bane, if you do not mind,” the droid said in a snooty voice. “I was named by Lily and she protects me, thus I am a sentient being, and I will give my life for her in exchange someday.”

“You do not have a life,” Jorg said, his arms splaying wide. “You are a droid.” Despite the name and the protective way Lily treated him—it.

“I was a protocol droid,” Bane said, his mechanical nose lifting. “But I have found a new calling. Now, I am a sidekick.”

“Why would one wish to kick a side?” Jorg asked Lily.

“He means he’s my companion, along for this journey. Like Thor.” She dropped her chin onto the creelet and cooed.

“Why did the Al’kieern not take…Bane and…Thor away from you?”

“I refused to allow them to remove me from the room,” Bane said. “I clung to her ankle.”

Jorg’s gaze slid in that direction. He still did not understand.

Lily lowered her voice. “They thought he’d been permanently disabled,” she whispered. “They left him in my room.”

“I heard that,” Bane said. “And I am nowhere near disabled.”

“They didn’t bother to check, just left him sitting against the wall where he’d fallen I guess. As for Thor, they didn’t know he was with me. Bonus move on his part to stay inside my dress.”

Jorg stared at her, unable to drum up even one word.

“Don’t you understand?” she said. “This isn’t my first rodeo. I’ve seen the complete Star Wars series at least five times. I know how to kick ass.”

Jorg’s naanans flared out, expressing the bewilderment he chose not to name. It would be best to focus on the tenuous situation instead. “We need to leave. Now.”

“Wait,” Lily said. She dropped down and crept back into the room, returning with a pillowwrap clutched in her hand. Before he could ask why she needed something like this, she held the top open. “Drop Bane in here. Then I can carry him over my shoulder like Santa.”

“Who is…?” He shook his head. No time for explanations. But she had a wise idea. He lowered the droid into the wrap but took it from Lily, flipping it up and over his shoulder. Perhaps Jorg would be this Santa she spoke of.

The droid grunted and clanged inside the bag.

“Lillian,” the droid said in an affronted voice that rose to a screech.

Lily’s wide-eyed gaze met Jorg’s, and her hands twitched. “Oh.”

“What are these items inside here with me?” Bane called as Jorg hustled her out into the hall and down the length to the other end. Bane clanged around inside the bag. “Now this is very interesting. Something tells me—“

“Bane,” Lily ground out. Why was her face flushing scarlet?

“Yes, Lillian?”

“It’s Lily.” She rolled her eyes. “And hold that thought about the—”

“Why would one hold a thought? How is this physically possible?”

She ran around to Jorg’s back and tapped the droid. “Bane. I’m warning you.”

“Ah, yes. I understand. I must be quiet.”

Silence reigned after that. This was why Jorg did not befriend droids. They were much too chatty.

When Lily took his hand and gazed up at him, Jorg frowned. “Remind me why we are taking the droid and the…Where is the creelet now?” It was not in her hands or on the floor around her. Had it run away?

She patted a bulge sticking out of the waistline of her dress. “Thor is hiding.”

Another odd thing, naming a befriended rodent. “Why?”

“Because he’s scared?” She peered into the next hall. “Shouldn’t we be running?”

Jorg growled and hurried beside her into the next corridor. A series of halls followed, sloping upward, bringing them closer to the surface.

His skin crawled with unease. Why hadn’t they run into the Al’kieern? He’d heard them. They were here. Surely they did not trust Zur to maintain control of the compound?

But there was only one woman onsite.

Regardless, they should be patrolling at all times. Unless they believed no one had figured out their scheme. Or they had some other reason to believe the compound would not be breached. Not a stupid assumption on their part. No one ever came to Mia.

They reached the ladder leading to the top, and he urged Lily to start up ahead of him.

Shouts echoed from the corridors behind them. So much for wondering why no one was aware of Lily’s escape.

He tapped her back. “Go. I am right behind you.”

She gripped the rail and started clambering up the metal rungs, her shoes subtly clicking on the steps.

He retrieved his pack from where he’d tucked it behind a door and after clipping the pillowwrap with Bane inside to his bag, he flung the bag up onto his back and secured it in place. Bane swung around, knocking into his shoulder, but he didn’t have time to stuff the droid inside the main compartment.

Gripping the ladder, he climbed and soon caught up to Lily.

“How tall is this thing?” she gasped out, tipping her head back to peer upward. “I feel like I’ve been climbing forever.” Sweat trickled down her temples, and her breathing raged hoarsely around them.

But she was safe. He was getting her out of this trap. They might just pull this off.

“You are doing great,” he said. “Not much farther. “

Bangs below told him they’d be on his tail in seclars. They needed to go faster, or they’d never make it out of here alive.

His heart slammed against his ribcage, telling him to sweep her up onto his back and carry her if he had to, but he didn’t dare risk her falling.

“I can see light ahead,” she said, hope hitching through her voice.

“Yes. We are almost to the top. You can do it.”

The ladder shuddered and clangs rang out below. Fuck. Would they destroy the ladder just to keep him and Lily from escaping?

They’d fall to their death.

The top loomed ahead of them, and some tension left Jorg’s shoulders.

“A hatch.” Lily groaned. She reached out and shifted the handle. “Shit. I can’t open it.”

“Let me.” He climbed up until he was directly behind her and clipped the front of his uniform to a metal bar to free his hands.

A fluttering sound below told him winged Al’kieerns were flying up to intercept them.

“What’s that sound?” Lily half-shrieked. “It’s coming closer.”

He shoved on the door but it barely budged, as if something or someone pressed against the other side, pinning them in this bottomless hole in the ground.

Putting all his weight into it, he pushed harder.

It shifted forward, slowly revealing the world outside.

Sand blasted in through the opening, stabbing his eyes and making it a challenge to breathe.

“Jorg,” Lily cried, her voice alight with panic. She glanced down. “Fuck. We’ve got to get out of here now. They’re coming!”

He slammed his fist against the door, and it wedged open. “Go. Quickly.”

She scrambled up and knelt on the small platform before crawling out the opening with him right behind her.

“This…” Lily moaned, covering her face with her arm. She leaned back into the shelter of his embrace. But he couldn’t protect her from what Mia delivered.

Sand and wind threatened to knock them over, and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her steady.

“It’s…gonna blow us off…the damn moon!” she said.

“Sandstorm,” he yelled, snaking his hand down her arm to link their fingers. “I have you!”

A gust of wind knocked them off their feet, sending them tumbling.

12

LILY

J org helped her stand. He turned and sheltered her from the wind with his body. Returning inside wasn’t an option, but they couldn’t remain out here. They’d be blown away.

“Where do we go now?” she asked, trying to look around through her fingers pressed over her eyes. Damn. The wind kept trying to scoop her up and carry her off the planet. Sand swirled around Jorg, hitting her like a tornado filled with wasps. How could he withstand the brunt of it?

Jorg wrapped a piece of cloth around her face that blocked some of the bite, and secured goggles over her eyes.

That made the situation bearable. At least she could breathe without sucking in grit. And her eyes would recover from the onslaught.

He took her hand and tugged her to the right. They half-ran, half-stumbled through the growing drifts, keeping the low dome-like structure to their right. With most of the building underground, only a small rounded mound poked up from the surface. Its tan color blended in with the desert wasteland and made it nearly impossible to see unless you stumbled into it.

Yells from up ahead brought them to a standstill. How had the Al’kieern flanked them? There must be a second exit. She should have known. Like rats creating a hidey-hole in the ground, they wouldn’t leave themselves with only one escape route.

“Jorg, what are we going to do?” she shouted. The wind grabbed her words and flung them away like a tantrum-filled child tossing a toy against the wall. She whimpered, the sound suppressed by the roar of the storm.

Thor huddled beneath her dress, trembling. Poor thing. He would have been safer back on the star cruiser. At least Bane was hidden inside the bag.

“This way,” Jorg said near to her ear, so low, she barely heard him above the snarling wind. He held something in his hand that blinked yellow and pointed it into the storm. Tugging her forward, they left the dubious shelter of the dome.

They stumbled through the sand, and she swore they had to be going nowhere. They’d keep plowing forward or in circles until they ran out of steam and collapsed. Sand would drift over them, and no one would ever find them.

She clenched her jaw so tight, it ached. It felt like she kept slamming into a wall of sand. The storm was determined to drive the mass of grit across the planet, and Lily was in the way.

“Fuck,” Jorg said, coming to a halt so fast, she nudged against his back. He banged the device on his thigh, and the light flickered before winking out.

“What’s wrong?” she yelled, her voice unable to compete with the wind.

“My tracker is dead.”

Shouts echoed behind them, making her jump. Sweat trickled down her spine, and her palms grew damp. The Al’kieern would be on them in seconds, assuming they could find her and Jorg. Maybe they’d get as lost as she and Jorg seemed to be.

“Almost there,” he said, but worry threaded through his voice.

At least he felt they were going somewhere. “Where are we going? Do you have a ship around here?”

“My ship is too far away. I was locating a place to hide.”

“There’s shelter here somewhere?” A shack or maybe an outcrop of rocks. A cave would come in handy about now, too.

Moving forward, he pulled her behind him. “Yes. It is—“

His hand was wrenched from hers. Jerked forward with him, she barely caught herself before falling.

Jorg dropped, disappearing in front of her, and Lily’s arms cartwheeled as she tried not to follow him into a hole.

“Jorg,” she hissed, wanting to scream but knowing that would be suicide. She dropped to her hands and knees and pawed the ground, discovering she knelt on the edge of a cliff. One step forward, and she would have been sucked away like Jorg.

Determination shoved aside her fear. She was going after him; she’d find him, no matter where he was. It wasn’t over between them yet. Sitting, she swung her legs into the drop-off. She inched forward and turned to lower herself slowly. But a gust of wind hit her, and she lost her grip on the edge. Her body was sucked downward. She pivoted and landed on her butt, still sliding. Momentum hauled her into an endless abyss, and her yelp burst from her throat. Picking up speed, she jarred her spine on rocks and smacked into bushes as she tumbled down a hill.

She landed with a flop on her belly, and the wind was knocked from her lungs. Unable to drag in air, she stared at her hands flexing in front of her. Thor, thankfully, had moved around to the side. How he hadn’t been crushed during the fall was beyond her. He whimpered and licked her ribs as if to remind her they were both still alive.

When she could pull in air, she rolled onto her back, holding Thor close. He wiggled up out of her dress and gave her alien-doggie kisses. She wished she had time to savor the comfort he offered.

“Jorg?” she whispered. Her voice was snatched up and carried away on the wind.

“Lillian,” Bane said softly. “We are over here. Follow my voice.”

The soothing, calm tones of her protocol droid brought her back to life and clamped down on the fear bolting through her.

She rose onto her hands and knees. “Where?” she croaked.

“Here,” he said from ahead. “You are not far. Come this way.”

With him coaching her, feeding her floundering confidence encouragement, she crawled slowly toward him.

She found him sitting on the ground, the pillowcase pooling around his base. The clip securing the bag to Jorg’s pack had broken. Good for Bane. Otherwise, he might have been crushed.

Bane’s gaze left hers and fell on Jorg lying beside him, unmoving.

“Shit, shit,” she said, shifting closer. “Is he dead? Please, don’t let him be dead.” Her heart was yanked sideways, smacking against her ribs. Pain stabbed through her like she’d taken a direct hit.

No. Please, no.

After wrenching her googles up and propping them on her forehead, she leaned near Jorg and felt for a pulse, unsure if Crakairians had the same vascular anatomy as humans. She sagged against his chest and tears sprang up in her eyes when the steady thump in his neck connected with her fingertips. He was okay. He was going to live. She’d follow him wherever Crakairians went if they died and haul him back with her if that was what it took. She’d found him. Fallen for him. She couldn’t lose him.

“Bane,” she said with desperation spiking her voice. “Tell me what to do.”

“A scan shows he hit his head, but he has no brain injury. It is merely a superficial hematoma.”

That was not reassuring. “Hematoma?” she shrieked.

“Humans call it a bruise. It is nothing more. I repeat. He has no internal damage.”

“Then why isn’t he awake?”

“I do not know.”

That took the wind out of her sails. “Does he have any other injuries?”

“He has a laceration on his left arm that bleeds. I sense it is not new, that he sustained the injury within the past denjar. It had clotted but reopened when he fell. It may need a coat of derm to keep it from oozing.”

“What the hell is derm?”

“A skin sealant. You will find it in his right breast pocket. But now is not the time to practice field medicine.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

“I am called TX75, if you will. Or as you have so kindly named me, Bane. Please be consistent. To return to my assessment, no muscles have been severed in his arm, and his surface laceration will not continue to bleed long enough to elicit cardiac arrhythmias. You can deploy the derm once we are in a secure location.”

A secure location was going to be as easy to find on Mia as a leprechaun. “Got it.”

“I appreciate how quick you are, Lillian. It will stand you in good stead for what could be coming next.”

Dread curled down her spine, and her pulse skipped a few beats. “What could be coming next?”

“The Al’kieern forces are approaching the crater. They will soon discover us lying at the base, even with their primitive sensors. If my assumptions are correct, they will take you back to the compound. There is still time to host the auction as the buyers had newly arrived and cannot depart until the sandstorm ends. As for Jorg, they will kill him. Me? I do not believe they will bother with me. Perhaps I should latch onto your ankle again and be transported with you to the surface?”

“Bane.”

“Yes?”

“Enough. We’re not letting any of that happen.”

“There may not be anything you can do to avoid it.”

She would. Hell, yeah, she would. She wasn’t going out without a fight. Jorg was a walking armaments store. He must carry something she could use to defend them, because she’d fight to the death if need be.

She started pawing at his clothing, trying to locate a knife she felt comfortable using. Everything he carried was like him—big. Intimidating. Totally hot. Not the blades, but him. He was hot.

Maybe this one. No, too long. But there was… As she pawed across his waist, his eyelids snapped open. He latched onto her arms and flipped her around and onto her back. Rising above her, he snapped at her throat with his fangs.

Stilling, he lifted his head. His nostrils flared as if he took in her scent. Confusion flitting through his eyes, and his hands slackened on her arms.

“Lily. Heille. Lily.” His mouth dropped and captured hers in a kiss that seared through her bones.

Despite the danger they were in, she couldn’t resist him. She would never be able to resist him.

As his tongue traced across hers and he groaned, she wrapped her arms around him and pressed up, eager to sink into his skin.

It was the wrong time and the wrong place, but definitely the right guy.

A moan worked its way through her as his kiss deepened. His naanans traced her face, her neck, and stroked across her shoulders. She needed to feel all of him, be with him again.

But if they kept kissing, they’d be caught.

It just might be worth it.

“They approach the crater,” Bane hissed softly from beside them. “Halt the mating rituals and seek sanctuary.”

Jorg’s head jerked up.

“Hold that thought?” she said with a smile. “And welcome back. I missed you.”

Standing, he held a hand to help her off the ground, but his body wavered until she leaped up and steadied him.

“Bane,” she said. “Where can we hide?”

“My scanner shows a shelter nearby,” he said. “That must be where Jorg was guiding us.”

“Where is it?” She looked around but even after blocking out the driving sand with her goggles, she couldn’t see more than a few feet in front of her.

“Not far,” he said. “We must hurry. I believe their simple devices have locked onto your heat signals. They hunt you. They will find you unless we put stone or ground between you and them.”

Fear crept up her spine on the legs of a thousand spiders.

“Where is the shelter?” she asked through gritted teeth.

Bane’s arm lifted, pointing to the right. “That way.”

She grabbed Jorg’s arm. “Can you walk?” Stupid question when he’d just kissed her silly, but his eyes kept crossing and his other hand clutched his head. Only knowing Bane had scanned him and found no serious injuries kept her grounded.

“Of course.” He lumbered forward, his gait reminiscent of a guy well into his second bottle of tequila. Dropping to his knees, he stared around. “My legs are not working as I would like them to.”

She helped him stand, tugging his arm over her shoulders to support his weight. “Lean on me.”

“I cannot. I will crush you.”

“It beats waiting here for those goons coming for us.”

“What is a goon?”

“A silly, foolish, or eccentric person,” Bane said from behind them. “Or in this case, a being hired to eliminate opposition.”

“That sounds like me,” Jorg said. He nuzzled her neck. “I am a goon. I am coming for you, Lily.”

“Love the thought, but it’s so not the right time, sweetheart.”

“I am sweet, and my heart…?”

She waited, holding her breath.

“Do not forget me,” Bane said. “While the minimal light is charging my batteries, I do not have enough energy to propel myself yet. If I am not attached to your ankle, Lillian, I believe they will leave me here to be buried in sand. This is not the way a protocol droid should be decommissioned.”

“Can you stand?” she asked Jorg, and he nodded.

Frowning, she eased away from him, keeping her hand stretched out in his direction in case he started to fall, but he appeared stable for now.

Thor huddled inside the pillowcase. She scooped him up, tucked him inside her dress again, and then tugged the sides of the case up around Bane. She looped the top around her wrist and started back to Jorg, dragging Bane across the sand.

“Really need to lay off the swiss rolls, dude,” she said through gritted teeth.

“I am not Swiss and I do not roll,” Bane said pertly. “I hover.”

“Not doing much hovering at the moment, either.”

“I told you. I need to finish charging. Surely you cannot hold that against me at this—“

Whoops from above told her the Al’kieern would be on them within seconds. The only reason they might not have captured them already was due to the high winds generated by the storm. Those who could fly would be grounded or blown away like bats in a Category 3.

“How far, Bane?” she asked, dragging him while urging Jorg farther along the sandy ground. At this rate, she’d be worn out before she covered a hundred feet.

“Not much more,” he said. “Hurry.”

“I’m trying,” she ground out. Tripping over something, she fell onto her knees.

“Lily,” Jorg said, helping her stand. She clutched his arm and gaped up at him, happy to see his eyes clearer and sharper.

“Can you walk alone?” she asked, urging him forward.

“I should carry you.”

“Love the sentiment, but save it for later.”

“I will care for you, mate of mine,” he said.

She squeezed his hand. “Let’s get to safety first, mate.”

Her mate.

That’s what he was. She didn’t need a symbol on her palm or a gold band on her left hand to prove they were meant to be together.

He’d fight for her—he already had. And she’d fight for him.

With renewed resolve, she urged him across the sand, her feet bogging down, and her muscles trembling. Knowing he was okay gave her the strength to keep going.

“We are there,” Bane said, his voice muffled inside the pillowcase. “Do you see the hole?”

No, but when she dropped down to her knees and pawed the ground, she found it. A few feet wide, the opening dropped away to nothing.

“How is this a shelter?” she asked.

Cries from above made her belly cramp. How close were they, and how would climbing into a hole in the ground keep them safe? The Al’kieern would just follow.

“Quickly,” Bane said. “Get inside.”

“How is this possible? Sand should be filling in the hole.” Her body was coated in it. Her lungs were chugging furiously to breathe through it. It clogged her throat, her sinuses, and every speck of her exposed skin.

“It is a glorm hole,” Bane said. “The Al’kieern will not follow us there.”

She wasn’t sure she wanted to know what a glorm was or how Bane was convinced the Al’kieern wouldn’t enter the hole. Cold fear sunk into her belly, freezing her solid. Her jaw quivered.

“The glorm will not allow the hole to close off,” Bane said. “And once you are inside, you will be relatively safe from harm.”

“Relatively?” She didn’t like the sound of this, but did they have much choice? The aliens had trackers. Unless she could put a solid mass of ground between them and the Al’kieern, there was a good chance they’d be captured.

Jorg would die. Bane and Thor would find themselves marooned on Mia. And Lily’s fate would be locked in stone. They’d sell her at auction. Who knew where she’d be taken after that?

Sadie would never find her.

Ahhh. She missed her sister so much. Soon…

“How far down does the glorm hole go?” she asked.

“Far enough,” Bane said. “The Al’kieern approach. We need to enter the hole now.”

Tension coiled inside her, a bomb about to explode.

“Go,” she said, nudging Jorg toward the opening.

He sat, dropped his feet inside, and scooted forward until he was sucked into the dark.

She did the same, dropping in after him, dragging the pillowcase with Bane behind her.

Her body melted into the blackness, sliding and dropping. Like she rode a waterslide at a park, she spiraled downward with the sand greasing her momentum.

She smacked onto something solid that grunted.

“Jorg?” she asked, unable to see in the dark.

“Lily?” His hands reached out and caught her.

Overhead, tiny lights winked on, a blue display.

She studied the lights, and they shifted…

Okay, that was creepy.

Small bodies hung from the ceiling too close overhead, and their eyes glowed iridescent greenish-blue. They generated enough light for her to note they’d found themselves in a small cavern with multiple tunnels exciting in all directions.

“Alien bats,” she said with a tremble in her voice. “Bats are cute under normal circumstances and by that, I mean when they’re featured in an animal show on TV. Here? As much as I appreciate their offer of lighting, I’d like them to leave now.”

“It is okay. They will not harm you.” Jorg patted her shoulder and then tugged her onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around her. “I will keep you safe. However—“

“You need not fear the baylings,” Bane said. “Like other flying mammals, baylings do sometimes attack, but this variety is docile.”

“Thanks for the comforting words,” she said dryly.

“I was just explaining that—“

“Bane?”

“Yes?”

“Shut up.”

Bane huffed but did as she asked.

She smiled up at Jorg. Tried to smile, that is. It was tough when a bajillion bats—baylings—clung to the rocky surface about ten feet overhead. “We probably need to get out of this cavern. The Al’kieern could attack at any minar.”

“I assure you, the Al’kieern fear the glorm more than death by dismemberment,” Bane said.

Jorg stroked her hair and stared into her eyes. “We do not know if we will make it out of here alive, though I will do my best to ensure it happens.”

She nodded. The realization had sunk through her skin and burned her bones already.

“Your statistical odds of escaping the moon are fifty-fifty,” Bane offered.

Lily stroked Jorg’s naanans, her fingers gliding down to the tips. She brought one to her mouth and kissed it. When her tongue peeked out and licked the flutter mechanism on the end, a shiver wracked Jorg’s frame. His eyes closed, and he groaned.

Hot. So unbelievably hot. Lava boiled through her veins, centering between her legs.

Why was it never the right time for them to be together?

“You are much too distracting,” Jorg said.

“And you had something you wanted to say to me.”

“I do.”

She sucked the tip of his naanan into her mouth, and his cock rose beneath her, a thick, vibrating rod.

When he opened his eyes, the black pupils had buried the brown circles. “Lily,” he growled.

She couldn’t keep the smile off her face. She loved that she could turn him on because he did the same to her with one glance. “Yes, Jorg?”

“This may be a strange time to ask such a thing…”

“You may wish to wait before proceeding,” Bane said, bumping around inside the bag.

“Say it, Jorg,” she breathed. Tingles flew through her body, created by the moment.

She’d been afraid of sex after her old boyfriend, but now she couldn’t wait to sink beneath Jorg and let him do whatever he pleased with her body. She ached for it. For him. She knew it would be even better this time.

He cupped her face and his naanans floated around her like a soft curtain. “Will you be my mate for all time?”

13

JORG

“What a time for a proposal,” Lily gasped out.

“Is that a no or a yes?” he asked, holding his breath. He wouldn’t release the air until he’d heard her answer. His head might be pounding, and his thoughts were more scrambled than he’d like, but one thing was clear. He wanted to make sure Lily knew what she meant to him. At any minar, the Al’kieern could storm the glorm channel and steal Lily from him all over again. He would do all he could to protect her, but he could not fight off an army.

Snuggling into his chest, Lily wrapped her legs around him and cupped his shoulders. “Is this your head injury talking or you?”

“It is me. I—“

“Again, he does not have a head injury,” Bane said. “Surely you have not forgotten already. He has a surface hematoma. And falling into the glorm hole has reopened his arm wound. You will need to apply the derm and—“

“Bane,” Lily said.

Jorg bared his fangs, loving how in control of the situation she was. If his head truly had been injured, she would have cared for him until he could do so for himself.

She leaned in close, and her words tickled his ear. “And the answer is yes, Jorg. To everything.”

His eyes widened. Had he heard her right? “Truly?” He squeaked like an untried youngling, but he hadn’t dared trust his heart to someone after his mom left. But with Lily, he couldn’t help himself. He had to give of himself freely.

“Lillian?” Bane asked, and even Jorg heard the reservation in his tone.

“Can we turn you off for a moment, Bane?” Her fingertips stroked Jorg’s naanans, and he shivered. He had to get her alone. His matebond blood demanded it.

“I am currently running on auxiliary power,” Band said. “If I power down, I do not know if enough energy remains for me to power back up.”

Lily leaned down close to Jorg and whispered. “Is that a bad thing?”

His grin grew wider. “Not in my opinion.”

“We do think alike, don’t we?”

He wrapped her up in his arms. “We do.”

“If you would be so kind as to tug the pillowwrap off my head panel, I will be able to finish charging with the bayling light.”

“Then he can propel himself,” she said. “This is a good thing.”

Jorg leaned sideways and revealed the droid who tilted his panel to capture the light.

“I will charge as quickly as possible,” Bane said. “Soon, the glorm will approach. Before that time, you will need to move beyond its lair or it will capture you and feed you to its young.”

Lily groaned. “You didn’t think to tell us this before suggesting we jump down into the hole?”

Bane huffed. “It is the perfect sanctuary. The Al’kieern will not follow.”

“Because they’re not any more eager than we are to be fed to the glorm’s babies,” Lily said. “What is a glorm?”

“A bit like an Earth spider combined with a large worm,” Jorg said. He knew all about glorms. Their cousins, the xartons, were greatly feared on Mara. Enormous creatures, they lived in tunnels like this one, deep beneath the sand on the desert bordering the city of Qe’ket. “Glorms nest near the surface so they can emerge to hunt. They kept their entrances clear of sand and debris to ensure easy access.”

“This explains the hole staying open during a storm.”

“Once while evading a gang of Al’kieern, I fled into the desert,” he said. “I’d nearly been eaten by a xarton before I learned its simple language, tapped its blood, and then rode it back to the city.”

Her jaw dropped. “Tapped blood. Learned a creature’s language. Then rode it into the city. What kind of kid were you?”

“The resilient kind.”

The Al’kieern had run when he appeared, standing on top of the xarton’s head. The xarton had roared, its acidic saliva melting the sand underneath them.

“Unfortunately,” he said. “Glorms are a nastier variety of desert creature. A wulp spider hybrid.”

“Wulp spider. Sounds like someone I’d love to meet. Not. I mean, I like spiders,” she said. “I’m less excited about worms.”

“It is larger than you, Lillian,” Bane said, tipping his head back to bathe in the bayling light. “A true menace.”

“That settles it,” Lily said. She scowled at Jorg. “You said something about running. Which exit out of here do we choose?”

“The glorm comes,” Bane said. “In a seclar, it will enter this chamber and it will be too late.”

Jorg got up and tugged Lily up to stand with him. He gave her a quick kiss. “This is a promise.”

“Of what?”

“The future now that you have chosen the same path as me.”

“Oh, Jorg, that’s so romantic.”

“Lillian.” An edge of concern roughened Bane’s voice. “The glorm?”

The ground rumbled below them.

Jorg swung the pillowwrap containing Bane over his shoulder.

She glanced around and pointed, her jaw gaping, but he’d already seen. Four oval nests rested along one wall with an egg centered in each. One of the eggs rattled, telling him the glorm babies would hatch soon.

The female was hunting, but she wouldn’t stray far when nestlings were about to emerge.

He took her hand and pulled her toward one of the passages. “We will travel through the warren, away from the nest chamber, and then wait out the storm.”

His pulse spiked as he sensed danger lurking near. He must protect Lily.

“What will we do when the storm is over?” she whispered. Her wide eyes told him she’d picked up on his unease.

“My ship is a daela’s walk away.”

“Good. We’ll be out of here soon.”

Not if the glorm had anything to say about it, but he wouldn’t mention that to Lily.

“We will be on Crakair by tomorrow,” he said, remaining neutral.

“I do not think I need to be carried,” Bane said, his voice murmuring from the bag. “While I am not yet fully charged, I believe I have enough energy to propel myself.”

Lowering the pillowwrap to the ground, Jorg bent down to release the droid.

It hummed up off the cloth and darted into one of the exit passages. “This way. Hurry.”

Lily nuzzled Thor against her chin, and her wavering smile fell on Jorg. She’d been strong for such a long time, but it was no surprise reaction was setting in.

His hand tightened on hers, and she clung to him like a fleirce berry vine. He hated that she was scared, that even on Crakair, she could be in danger.

They ducked into the tunnel, leaving the nest chamber behind. There was no sign of the glorm yet, but he would keep watch. His free hand stroked the hilt of his serafinn blade. He’d be ready if the creature attacked.

“Don’t go there,” Lily whispered as they sped behind Bane, who zipped down the tunnel, taking them deeper into the glorm’s warren.

“Go where?” he asked softly.

“Into the I can’t keep her safe realm. It’s lonely there. You’ll miss me.”

“I cannot keep you safe.”

Stalling in the passage, her free hand propped on her hip. “Then why the hell did you just propose?”

“I… It is too soon to speak of emotions.”

“Is it? What would be a better time?” She stomped up close to him, and her eyes shot fire. “I know what I think. I know my heart. Don’t dismiss us.”

“I could never do that.” It shocked him that she’d believe it. He was trying to help her, to make her life better.

“But you are if you push me away due to some mistaken belief that sending me back to Earth will make everything all right.” Pain leaked into her voice. “We know there’s no safety anywhere. I’d rather have only a month or a year with you than nothing.”

“Lily.”

Moving past him, she stomped after Bane, who had stopped farther down the tunnel to wait. Turning back, his heart wrenched sideways when he took in the sorrow on her face. “Take a look inside your heart. Why are you really pushing me away?”

Because… He continued after them at a slower pace.

While he kept his guard up, and his weapons were ready to be deployed, he also dwelled on her words. She was right. This wasn’t about placing her in a location where no one could ever harm her.

It was about protecting himself.

Lily wasn’t his mother. She wouldn’t leave him and never return. Despite him trying to nudge her away, Lily was insisting she stay.

He caught up and took her hand, pulling her to a stop. Tugging her close, he cupped her beautiful face. She stared up at him with tears shimmering in her eyes.

Despite his promise not to, he’d hurt her.

“I am sorry,” he said.

His mouth captured hers. He wanted to kiss her senseless, himself senseless, and show what she meant to him, but he couldn’t relax his guard. Her life was too precious.

He wanted to reveal the youngling inside who ached for someone to love him.

It would be wrong to transfer that boy’s need onto Lily. He had the right idea when he’d said they should hold hands and jump off the cloud together. He needed to remember she was an equal, his partner, and not a person who needed to be protected or someone he needed to survive—though in his heart, he did need her.

This was different. Love was giving and taking and standing together against all foes.

It was pushing aside his own lack of self-worth.

“What are you thinking?” she asked as she stroked his face.

“That I…I love you. I want you. And while I will do my best to keep you safe, I will step back and let you make your own decisions about your future and fate.”

“Jorg.”

“Lillian?” Bane said.

“Not now, Bane,” she said. “This is a big moment.”

“The glorm comes,” Bane said.

Jorg could feel the rumble of the creature’s approach beneath his feet. He stared solemnly down at Lily. “Can you run?”

14

LILY

T  hey raced through the circular tunnels.

Jorg hit an intersection and stopped. He studied the scrape marks on the sides surrounding them, tracing some of the deeper ones with a finger.

“I assume the glorm made these,” she panted, waving at the walls. As they’d traveled, they’d had to duck down to make their way through some sections, while other arched high enough overhead a semi could drive through them. Beneath her shoes, the ground crunched. She didn’t want to know what she was stepping on.

Bane had zipped along ahead of them, but he stopped and turned. “The glorm is a vigorous, efficient digger,” he told her.

Jorg nodded, and taking her hand, continued down the hall, toward Bane.

A roar echoed from behind them, making her jump. Jorg growled and ran so fast, even Bane could barely keep up. Thor scampered beside her, remaining eerily silent.

They continued until they came to a fork. Jorg stopped again to study the walls and floors.

“Which way should we go?” she said. Both tunnels looked the same to her.

“This.” He pointed to the channel on the right. “There is nothing fresh, but that does not always mean something has not passed. If its arm bristles have retracted, it will not leave evidence of its movement.”

She so didn’t want to meet this thing.

They jogged into the opening on the right and kept going. Her lungs heaved and her heart beat so furiously, it wanted to erupt from her chest.

“Up ahead, I detect a suttill den,” Bane said.

“What’s suttill?” she asked. “Another six-legged thing?”

Thuds and cries from a distance behind her made her scurry forward.

“No fear,” Bane said as if something enormous wasn’t hunting them. “The suttill has not used the den for approximately one hundred daelas.” He slowed and dipped down to the right, disappearing from view.

She and Jorg followed, stopping at the opening low to the floor.

“Thoughts?” she asked, peering around Jorg while hoping the glorm didn’t loom up behind him. It could still be coming their way using stealth mode. Her skin crawled, and she looked behind her, worried it might creep up from a different direction.

“If Bane says the suttill is gone, this is the perfect hideout.” Jorg tipped his head toward the wall and bared his fangs. “I suggest you listen to your kick in the side.”

She blinked then her low chuckle rang out. “Oh, yeah. My sidekick. He is a kick in my side sometimes, though, isn’t he?”

His grin widened to join with hers. “Sometimes.”

A shriek farther down the hall was followed by a wrenching scraping sound. The tunnel around them shook.

Oh, shit. It had caught their scent.

“I’m in,” she said. “It beats hanging out in the hall.” Dropping to her knees, she crawled forward, through the small opening.

Jorg followed, his hand on her butt. It felt nice there, especially when it slid down to her thigh.

She bit back her groan. How could she be heating up for him in a situation like this? She had to be out of her mind. This was a near-death experience. They were not out of trouble yet. But here she was, eager to dive into bed with him all over again.

Inside, Bane turned on a low light, projecting it across the surprisingly clean floor.

“Are you sure this was an animal den?” she asked, expecting to find nesting material, tiny bones, or even clumps of fur scattered around.

“Suttill are not animals,” Bane said. “They are a hybrid amphibian species who live…” He directed his light to the ceiling about five feet above them. Scratches and gouges across the walls ended at the hammock-like mesh hanging across the stone. “See? No suttills have been here for one hundred and three daelas.”

“An empty vine hammock doesn’t tell me that,” she said.

“It does not?” Bane’s head tilted. “How strange that you cannot see this.”

“How can you tell it’s not coming back?”

“As with anything, I could be mistaken,” Bane said. “But I believe the suttill is dead.”

“Okay, so we have a hideout for as long as we need it. How long is that?”

“Long enough to rest and let the glorm return to her nests.” Jorg settled on the floor with his legs outstretched and patted his lap.

Some of her tension leaving her, Lily dropped down and snuggled into his arms. His naanans glided across her back, adding to his hug, though one teased along her jaw and then traced her clavicle exposed by the sideways shift of her dress. The tip vibrated subtly.

Thor waddled across the floor and leaped up, landing on Bane’s shoulder.

Bane grunted. His head spun completely around before he faced Thor, and he released a tiny shriek.

“He likes you, Bane,” Lily said with a soft laugh.

“I do not wish to be liked by a rodent.”

“Pupper,” she said firmly.

Bane blinked at Thor, who’d decided Bane’s shoulder was a great place to groom himself and was washing his front paws. “Excuse me?”

“Stop calling him a rodent,” she said. “He’s a cute doggy. One of our team, just like you. You’re both part of our family.”

“I do not… Family.” Bane’s arms dropped to his sides, and his voice almost coming out breathless. “I have never been part of a family.”

“Now you are.”

“That is…I do not know how to process this.”

She grinned at Jorg, who winked. “I think you have time to adjust.”

“I see,” Bane said. “If I am to remain with you in future… Lillian, are you saying you wish further protocol instruction and have need of my services beyond those received on the ship?”

“I’m saying you’re welcome to stay with us on Crakair.” She lifted her eyebrows Jorg’s way, and he nodded. Perfect. She wasn’t sure how he’d feel about her expanding menagerie, but Bane and Thor were part of her life now. If she was going to spend her future with Jorg, so would they.

“That is… I could put in for a transfer. I have never seen myself as a house droid, but I could consider such a role in the Qua’zad household.”

“Perfect.” She kept her face neutral because, strangely enough, Bane watched her intently, as if to see if she was joking. “We can discuss your duties once we have settled in.”

His arm rose as if to salute, but he dropped it back to his side. “Thank you, umm… Lily.”

“You’re welcome.”

“I would like to assess the glorm situation and finish charging,” Bane said. His gaze took in the ceiling. “There are not enough baylings in the suttill den.”

“It is kind of like mood lighting in here,” she said, squinting up at the few baylings clinging overhead. She was never going to get used to them but, fortunately, she wouldn’t have to. They’d be out of here soon. Her gaze met Jorg’s and she leaned close to whisper. “Some guys use dim lighting for seduction.”

“Are you saying you wish for seduction?” he asked in a low, gravelly voice.

A thrill shot through her and centered in her belly. Since he’d arrived to rescue her, they’d barely had a second to regroup. And while the situation was tenuous, she was eager to reunite with him. Their time in the tiny cockpit felt like a lifetime ago.

Jorg’s nostrils flared, and he nuzzled her neck. He ran his fangs across her skin and then bit down on her earlobe.

What a time to want sex.

Thor scampered off Bane and zipped through the opening.

Lily gasped and leaned that way, her arm outstretched. “Wait…” Her shoulders fell. “He left.”

“He hunts,” Bane said. “No need to fear for his safety. The glorm will not bother with one as small as a creelet.”

“I hope he comes back.” She’d miss him if he didn’t.

“He has bonded to you, Lillian, so rest assured, he will return,” Bane said, pivoting toward the opening. “Please do not be concerned while I am gone.”

“I’ll do my best,” she said. Her gaze met Jorg’s, and he bared his fangs to share her humor.

“The glorm will not see me as a threat,” Bane said.

“Lucky you.”

“My scent will not be appealing,” he added as he ducked down. “You will remain here where it is safe?”

“Happy to,” she said.

“I shall return.” Bane left.

Maybe it was from the adrenaline coursing through her veins or the scary situation, but she wanted to be with Jorg. From the heat blazing from his eyes, he felt the same.

“Alone at last,” she said. “What were you saying about seduction?”

“Lily,” he growled, his arms tightening around her. His naanans stroked her back.

“How long do you think Bane will be gone?” Was that her voice sounding husky?

“Long enough.”

“I don’t believe there will ever be long enough.”

“Then I must satisfy you quickly.”

“Is that possible?” she asked against his neck. Shit, his cock was a lengthy rock, vibrating beneath her. The sensation traveled up through her bones.

He flashed his fangs. “Lily, do you doubt me?”

Leaning back in his embrace, she sighed as his naanans stroked her breasts. “I think you’re going to have to prove it.”

When his gaze darted from hers, he reached inside his shirt and pulled a small book out. Holding it to the side, he flipped through the pages.

“What’s that?” she asked, curiosity alight in her voice. “You decide to read a good book instead of…” Her hips shifted against him, and his cock surged upward, straining toward her.

“It is nothing.” He held the book higher than she could reach, flicking quickly through the pages. “Would you like to…What is this…doggie style?”

Where had he heard that term? “I’m happy to do it missionary, doggie, or any other way you might suggest as long as it happens this instant.”

With his gaze meeting hers, he blinked slowly. “Missionary. That means a person sent on a religious mission, correct? I do not understand why a religious mission has meaning this minar.”

“I’ll be happy to show you missionary whenever you’d like.” She chuckled. “What is that book, anyway, and why look at it now?”

“It is nothing.”

“You said that already.” Her fingers strained to reach but only skimmed along his forearm. “Show me.”

“It is merely a guide for courtship.”

Oh, boy. Really? “And it includes notes on missionary sex?”

“Sex…” His thick brows drew together before his face cleared. His smoldering eyes met hers. “We will do it missionary. Soon. And doggie, if that is sex. And whatever other position you would wish for. Much fucking.”

“I love how you think.”

Before she could snatch it from his grip, he tucked the book away.

“Someday, you’re going to show that to me, right?” she said with an impish grin.

His sigh came out heavy, but his eyes gleamed. “Perhaps.” His hands inched along her thighs, pushing her dress up with them. When the dress had settled around her waist, he moved between her legs and stroked her clit. “What is this, mate of mine? You are teasing me with your scent. Your lure. I feel your wetness soaking through your clothing.”

With a sharp tug, he tore her panties.

She gasped as his fingers… Bracing her forehead on his chest, she moaned as he rubbed her clit. His finger dipped inside her, stroking across her G-spot. He really didn’t need a courtship book. He only needed to let his fingers, naanans, and glorious tongue wander all over her body.

He tugged his shirt off and spread it out on the ground behind her, then nudged her down onto her back. Following, he pushed her thighs wide and buried his face between her legs.

While her head thrashed on the ground, he sucked her clit, the forked tip wrapping around to tug on it. His fingers…His thick, long fingers pushed inside her, driving her out of her mind.

She bucked up to meet his finger’s thrust. “Jorg. You said fast. I want it—want you—now!”

He stood and shucked his pants then sat on the ground again, pulling her up onto his lap. “You control your satisfaction, love.”

She’d never done it on top. Being with Jorg before had taken her to heaven. How could this time be any different?

“Jorg.” She buried her face in his neck and licked. His scales were scratchy under her tongue, but when he groaned and tipped his head back, she realized he was as undone by her as she was with him. That thought was freeing.

Rising, she took the tip of his cock in her hand. She centered herself over him, and as he thrust up, she plunged down, taking all of him inside her.

Shit. The stretch! It burned slightly but the bit of sting was followed by a wave of intense pleasure unlike anything she’d ever felt before.

She lifted and dropped back down, her inner wetness coating his shaft.

He groaned, and his naanans nudged inside her dress. The ends latched onto her nipples, tugging and quivering. Shockwaves shot from her breasts to her clit, and she grunted.

She rode him, lifting and driving herself back down. He pushed up hard, seating himself deep within her each time.

His fingers stroked her clit while his naanans tugged her nipples. His tongue glided along her jaw to her neck, and he bit down, moaning out his pleasure as he took her. No, as she took him.

They took each other.

Fire spiraled inside her, a roaring blaze only Jorg could extinguish.

A shriek built inside her, but she pressed her mouth against Jorg’s neck to keep it contained. No use. As she came, he drove into her faster, riding the peak along with her.

They crashed together in each other’s arms.

15

JORG

“T  hat book,” she said in a slow, languid voice.

He should not have pulled it from his pocket. But he’d wanted to continue his courtship even in this tenuous situation. “It is nothing.”

She snickered and tugged down her dress while he fastened his pants.

Dropping into his lap, she snuggled close. “I’m going to get a peek at it someday.”

“Perhaps.” Should he hide it? At this point, they were so meshed together, it hardly mattered if he hadn’t followed his personal courtship guidelines as he’d planned. The end result was even better.

Bane burst into the room. “The storm has ended!”

“Perfect,” Lily said. Her gaze fell on Jorg. “We can get out of here. I can’t wait until we land on Crakair.”

“I regret to also inform you that the glorm is restless. She watches over her hatching young.”

Jorg jumped to his feet, glad they’d already dressed. He would have killed to remain undressed on the floor with Lily’s legs locked around him, her hands braced on his shoulders, and her face nuzzling his chest, but he had to get her to safety. “The young will be hungry.”

Bane tipped his head as if listening. “They already are. She left a fresh kill in the main nesting chamber, but the two who emerged first consumed it, leaving nothing for the others. They will need to hunt.”

Lily took Jorg’s hand and leaned into his side. “Give me a knife.”

He pulled a long blade from a sheath on his thigh and held it out to her, hilt-first. “Will this do?”

She stared down at it. “I haven’t used anything like this before, but it has to be better than nothing, right?”

He hated that her lips trembled, that her voice held a hint of fear.

“I will protect you,” he said. The determination roaring through him would see them through this. He’d get her to his ship and off this planet.

Her spine tightened, and she gripped the knife. Resolve filled her eyes. “And I will protect you.” Backing, she lifted the knife with two hands and slashed it through the air. Grim satisfaction filled her face. “I’m ready.”

No warrior had shown more strength than this woman. He was proud to be her mate and eager to stand beside her for the rest of their daelas.

“Oh,” Bane cried out, whizzing close to Lily. “What is that smell?”

Thor’s rear end appeared in the opening, and he backed inside, dragging something that reeked worse than a trundier that had been lying in the sun for ten daelas.

“Thor,” Lily said, pinching her nose. She moved until she met the wall. “Wow. Where did you find that?”

Thor dropped the carcass on the floor by her feet and sat, his spiral tail spinning.

“He has made a kill for you,” Bane said.

Lily grimaced. “I think someone else made the kill and Thor dragged it home.”

“The glorm is distracted by her young?” Jorg asked Bane.

“For now. The last one hatches.”

“Once it has emerged from the shell, they will hunt together,” Jorg said. He took Lily’s hand. “We need to hurry.”

“Will we go out the same hole we came in? And will the Al’kieern be waiting?”

“After I had finished charging,” Bane said. “I located a second entrance on the opposite side of the warren.”

“Can you take us there?” Jorg asked. “And yes, Lily, there is a good chance they will track us as we cross the desert. We will have to be fast.”

Bane dipped his head. “Of course.” His glowing gaze fell to Thor. “We will leave your prize here, creelet.”

Releasing Jorg’s hand, Lily scooped up Thor in her arms. “What a brave hunter you are. I’m going to cook this up for our dinner.”

“You are?” Jorg asked, unable to keep the amazement from his voice.

The grin she shot Jorg told him she was putting on a show for the creelet. “Thor’s the best little hunter in the world. He brought home a kill to share with us all, even Bane.”

“I am fully charged, thanks to the baylings, but I do thank you for the offer of the…roasted beastie, Thor,” Bane said. His gaze met Jorg’s. “Shall I lead the way?”

His serafinn blade ready, Jorg nodded.

Bane zipped out through the hole.

Lily grimaced but pinched the tail of Thor’s kill. “I’ll drag this out and leave it in the hall. Maybe it’ll distract the glorm babies?”

Jorg took Thor’s kill and tossed it through the opening. “Excellent idea.”

Lily lifted her pillowcase and swung it over her shoulder, the insides clunking together. As she climbed out of the suttill den and stood beside Jorg, scrapes rang out farther down the tunnel. She turned a frightened gaze that way.

“They come,” Bane said softly.

Jorg’s heart thumped and energy shot through his body, giving him the added strength he would need to get them out of the warren.

Lily tucked Thor inside the top of her dress and brandished her knife. She swung her pillowwrap in a circle and her face reflected grim satisfaction. “I’m ready.”

They ran down the corridor behind Bane with the roar of the mother glorm echoed by the high-pitched shrieks of the babies.

Sweat trickled down Jorg’s spine, and his heart thundered in his ears. Escaping the warren was just the first challenge. Then they’d have to run the desert gauntlet to get past the Al’kieern and reach his cloaked ship.

A rolling rumble shook the floor, and Lily’s panic-widened gaze met his.

“They’re coming faster than we can run, aren’t they?” she hissed out.

He nodded. His feet thundered on the floor as he swept her along with him.

They reached an intersection and Bane led them right. “The entrance is ahead here. We will reach it in minars.”

They rushed up a steep slope, their harsh breathing echoing around them, but they came to a stop at the top.

Walls surrounded them.

“Bane,” Lily said shrilly. “It’s a dead end!” She slunk close to the wall and pressed herself against it as if she wished to melt through the surface.

“Never fear,” Bane said, pointing upward. “There is a way out.”

The hole was too far above them for him to reach. A glorm could ooze up the wall to the top, but even if Jorg could somehow use the escape, Lily could not.

Jorg groaned. He stretched out and grabbed Lily’s hand. “We will find another way.”

They started down the slope but came to a shuddering halt.

Ahead, the mother glorm and her babies clawed and scrambled up the incline. Acidic saliva dripped from their mouths, and hunger gleamed in their eyes.

16

LILY

L ily rushed past Jorg with her arms held high. She gripped the blade Jorg had given her in one hand and the pillowcase in the other. “Back off,” she ground out.

Tears of frustration streamed from her eyes, and her hair, a rat’s nest that felt like she hadn’t brushed it in weeks, hung in her face. And this damn juglier dress. When—if—she ever reached Crakair, she was never wearing anything like this again. Stretchy pants and loose tees would be her go-to clothing from now on. Who cared if they made her hips look big?

“Lily,” Jorg cried from behind her. Swords in hand, he rushed down the slope, but he didn’t catch up. “I will challenge the dam,” he shouted over the shrieks of the glorms. “Run!”

“No way. This is nothing more than a pissed off mama dog.” Sort of. Fuck. Even though they hovered behind their mama, the newborn glorms were the size of ponies and reminded her of giant slugs with eight clawed legs. But an animal was an animal, right? And she was tired. She wanted to go home—to Jorg’s home. Their home.

She’d just found him. Fallen for him. She refused to lose him when they were so close to being together forever.

But she had to deal with the glorms first.

“Don’t you want to go back to your nests?” she said to the babies in a quiet voice.

She swore one of them paused and frowned. Success or a fluke?

Mama glorm tipped back her head and roared her anger at the ceiling. Maybe she didn’t like the idea of her babies going home.

Jorg jumped in front of her and held his blades ready. From the tight look on his face and the death gleaming in his eyes, she had a feeling he’d be happy to send the glorm to an early grave.

“Hide, love,” he said, desperation coming through in his voice.

Love. That’s what this was. The feeling soared through her and lent her strength. They’d find a way through this together.

“Let me see what I can do,” Lily said in a calm tone that took all of her effort. Screaming and running felt like the best plan, but the glorms would be on them in seconds if they did anything like that. She strode around Jorg and move closer to the mother glorm.

“Excuse me?” Bane called. “If you have a moment, Lily, I wish to explain. I do see that you two are busy engaging the glorm, but I believe I have found a way out.”

“In a minute, Bane,” Lily said with a wave of her knife his way. After dropping her pillowcase and knife on the ground, she moved closer to the glorm. Everything she’d learned about approaching aggressive animals ran through her mind. No quick movements. Don’t run. No eye contact and don’t bare your teeth.

The beast screamed but took a few steps backward.

“There’s a sweet glorm,” she said in a low, soothing voice. This was another trick she’d learned while working at the shelter. Speaking in a calm, non-threatening tone could make all the difference. She didn’t want the animal to feel challenged, but at the same time, she didn’t want it eating her when she turned her back. She had to make the animal back down and see who was boss, but in a gentle manner. Smacking her with a stick or stabbing her would only make her attack.

They hadn’t called Lily the dog whisperer at the shelter for nothing.

“Aren’t you a pretty glorm,” she cooed. The babies shifted behind their mom, looking eager to leap forward and gobble Lily up with one bite. Was she crazy? She should be cowering in the corner somewhere hoping the glorms decided to become vegetarians. Not trying to approach the enormous mother creature.

“Lily…” Jorg said, barely above a whisper. “Let me handle this.”

“This is my field. I can do it. Please.”

He pulled something from his pocket—a smooth stone? His fingers stroked across the surface, over and over.

“Easy there, mama,” she said, her gaze back on the glorm. “I know you’re just protecting your babies.” Looking to feed her babies, actually, but there was no need to remind the glorm of the fact. As Lily approached the glorm, the elephant-sized spider-slug released a whimper. Her babies echoed the sound, and their smaller, outstretched legs dropped to the ground.

“It will attack,” Jorg said. “Beware of its saliva—the acid will burn you.”

No slobbery kisses, then.

“Do you happen to have a rope?” Lily asked.

“Why?”

“Do you?”

He eased his pack off his back and lowered it slowly to the ground in front of him. Unfastening, the top, he tugged out a coiled bundle and held it out to her.

She took it and slowly undid the knot. Freed, she made a big noose like the kind a rodeo fanatic friend once taught her. They’d made a game one weekend out of lassoing a fence post while taking shots of beer.

If she could get close enough…

“Be ready,” she said.

“For what?” Jorg asked. “Lily…”

“Jorg? Lily?” Bane called out behind her. “As I said before you decided to engage the glorm, I have found an easy way to the opening.”

“How?” Lily asked, keeping her voice calm and soothing.

“We will need a ladder, but other than that, escape will be simple.”

“We have no ladder,” Jorg said.

Bane huffed. “I was afraid you would say that.”

Lily crept closer to the mother glorm. It had a bulbous head, kind of like a soccer ball only bigger, and no neck. The segments on its oozy-goopy body narrowed to a long pointed tail that swept back and forth slowly. Did that mean it was warming up to her? At least it wasn’t beating the appendage in agitation. The babies copied the mother, sweeping their tails around and holding back. Though, from the gleam in their eyes, they must hope their mom would be chopping Lily up soon for a snack.

Lasso hefted, she swung it loosely, warming up her arm. She approached the glorm, cooing, soothing the beast within herself while hoping to convince the one in front of her she posed no threat.

Her heart rose up in her throat. Sweat trickled down her face, and her body wouldn’t stop shaking. She was going to throw up.

When she was within ten feet of the glorm, she stopped.

The creature snarled. Tipping its head back, it roared.

Lily kept speaking to it in a low tone, muttering silly-stupid things that meant nothing and everything.

The glorm lowered its head, and the babies did the same.

Yes.

“What…?” Jorg said behind her. “I do not understand.”

“She just needs a little affection. All creatures need to be loved.”

Did she want to pet it? No.

Would she? Probably.

Lily stepped closer, her teeth clenched. Fear rode her spine like a beast on a rampage.

It was now or never.

She reached her hand out, palm up—the hand with her matebond symbol that linked her to Jorg.

Jorg hissed.

The glorm extended her body forward, and her face came down close to Lily’s hand as if to sniff.

“There’s a good girl. You just want some love.” She cautiously patted the glorm between the eyes. Three eyeballs. This really was an alien creature, but a beauty, just like any other.

Some would have stormed toward the glorm and killed it, but sometimes you could calm a beast with kindness.

Lily patted its stubby neck and cooed.

The babies shuffled forward, eager for their own share of affection, and soon Lily was huffing out laughs as the babies nuzzled her sides as if looking for treats.

Who would have thought she’d discover so many wonderful creatures when she left Earth?

Stepping toward the mother, she slipped the lasso over the beast’s head.

Mama jerked her head up, but Lily held on tight, giving her enough rope to feel free, but not enough to escape.

“It’s okay,” she said in a cooing tone. “Hold on there, love. It’s gonna be okay.”

The beast dropped her head and nudged Lily’s hip.

Jorg sighed behind her. “Lily.” The awe in his voice made her heart expand to the point it threatened to explode.

She loved him. Silly to have fallen so fast and hard, but what could she do? He was everything she could ever hope for in a partner.

“I think we might have found our ladder,” she said with a smile. “Want to grab my pillowcase and knife and join me?” Stepping closer, she stroked the glorm’s sides while she purred…

After climbing up onto the back of the glorm, Lily extended her hand down to Jorg and he passed her the pillowcase and knife.

“You want a ride to the outside with me?” she said with a satisfied smirk. “I think it’s time for us to go home.”

“It is, love.” He bared his fangs and leaped up behind her. He grazed her nape with his fangs and bit down gently, sending delicious shivers down her spine.

“Do not forget me,” Bane said, whizzing over to stand in front of the glorm. “Are you sure this creature will not eat me?”

“You said you held no appeal,” she said, her mind spinning from Jorg’s touch. She’d never get enough.

“I was lying.”

“You’re able to tell a lie, Bane?”

He tilted his head. “I never thought I could. But lately, when I try, it comes out all on its own.”

“Don’t lie to me, or I might call you on it,” Lily said with a laugh, patting the glorm’s side. She urged the glorm forward and Jorg reached down and tugged Bane up to ride with them. The babies clambered behind their mother, leaping up to tap Lily’s legs. Begging for affection, the sweet little things.

Okay, perhaps sweet—let alone little—was a stretch, but they were creatures like any other. Not much different from animals she’d loved back on Earth.

In moments—minars—she, Jorg, and Bane stood on the surface. The wind had died down, and calm had descended.

They slid off the mother glorm while the babies hopped around like baby goats. Big, slimy baby goats, but cuties, nonetheless.

Lily stood in front of the mother glorm, cupping her face and showering her with kisses. “There’s a sweet girl. I’m going to miss you!”

Jorg’s hand dropped onto her shoulder. “We need to leave.”

“I know, but I hate saying goodbye.” Who would have thought she’d find a friend in the wasteland on a forbidden planet?

“The Al’kieern will have picked up our heat signals,” Bane said. “They will hunt us.”

“Say goodbye,” Jorg said.

Lily’s shoulders dropped. “I’m going to miss you, sweetheart.” She gave the glorm a lingering pat. “You take care of those babies. Raise them to be big and strong and kind to humans.”

Jorg coughed.

“Okay, Crakairians, too.”

A whirring sound behind her made her grin. “And a droid or two, if you feel open to the idea. Plus creelets.”

The mother glorm purred and nudged Lily’s belly with its head, shooting her backward about five feet.

“You big baby,” Lily said. “Goodbye.”

As if it understood, the glorm keened. Then she turned and lumbered toward her hole with her children crowding around her.

Lily watched with sadness in her heart. So many friends lost on this journey already.

“You were amazing,” Jorg said, his hand stroking her back.

“I am in awe,” Bane said with a bow. “My queen.”

“Please,” Lily said with a soft sigh. “I’m just an animal shelter assistant who misses her beastie friends. I was glad to find a few here.”

A beam of light hit the ground beside her, making the sand sizzle. She frowned.

“Watch out!” Jorg dove at Lily and carried her to the ground.

She lay beneath him, panting. “What’s going on?”

“The Al’kieern,” Bane said, hovering beside Jorg. He stared past them. “Time to run again.”

They clambered to their feet and bolted into the desert.

“How far did you say your ship was?” Lily asked, tired already. Stress and the lack of food was catching up on her. If she didn’t get a break soon, she was going to collapse.

Laser beams hit the ground around them, making them dance.

“My projections, when I include the variables such as wind speed, Al’kieern error, and your mercenary abilities, Jorg, suggest you have a two percent chance of evading capture,” Bane said.

No capture. They’d kill Jorg and haul her back for the auction.

She couldn’t let it happen.

Whirling around, she glared as if that would make a difference. Shook her knife in the air and swung her pillowcase in circles.

Ten Al’kieern rushed toward them, some flying, others scrambling across the ground with laser guns in their hands.

While they might evade those on feet, they’d never get away from the fliers. But damn, Lily wouldn’t be captured without a fight. She stood tall, facing them.

Jorg joined her at her side, giving her a nod of approval. “Time to jump off those clouds?”

Her heart ached for what had been so close she could touch it. Now it had been snatched from her hands. “I love you, Jorg.”

“Lily,” he breathed. “I love you, as well.”

She fought for a smile but it came out weak and watery. “Thank you for showing me how it could be.”

“How it will be.”

Tears smarted in her eyes. Nice of him to put on a good front, to make her believe if only for a second that there was hope for their future.

The Al’kieerns approached, cackling. Savoring this moment when they knew she and Jorg didn’t stand a chance.

Rage and fury burned through her, and her pulse thickened. Damn blue jerks. She’d kill at least one of them if she could. They needed to learn who was boss.

The fliers landed on the ground and the group strutted on cloven hooves toward her and Jorg.

“Breeder come with us,” one barked, maybe the leader. He waved a hand toward Jorg. “Kill him.” He half-ran, half-flew toward her, while the others rushed Jorg.

Lily swung her pillowcase out, and it smacked the Al’kieern in the head. His eyes rolled upward and he groaned as he dropped to the ground like he’d been hit with a boulder.

Yes. That would teach him to mess with an alien dildo.

The others aimed their weapons at her and Jorg.

Lily lifted her chin. She’d die before she was taken. “On three,” she said, sensing something that gave her a spark of hope.

Jorg shot her a confused look.

“One…Two…And…”

The ground erupted around the Al’kieern, and five glorms shot up through the sand. While the Al’kieern screamed and shot off the ground, their wings extending, the glorms squealed and pounced.

Damn, those babies could jump.

Within seconds, not one Al’kieern remained.

The mother glorm dipped her head toward Lily before she and her babies dove back in the sand.

Her body was suddenly weak but still pulsed with spent adrenaline. Lily turned toward Jorg and held out her hands. When their fingers touched, their matebond symbols flared, lighting up the surrounding sand.

She grinned up at him, and an answering gleam filled his eyes.

“I think you need to take me home,” she said.

“Home,” he echoed. “Our home.”

“Our forever home.”

He kissed her, lightly at first, then deepening it as passion rose inside them.

Life and all it could offer awaited them.

They just had to jump off the clouds.

17

One Week Later – LILY

I t had been a whirlwind week since they’d escaped Mia. Their uneventful walk through the desert and flight to Crakair had been followed by a debriefing by the Crakairian Council, with Crown Prince Axil in attendance. The government was finally taking the Al’kieern threat seriously. They’d dispatched star cruisers to Earth carrying the latest defensive technology and had increased the protection of future mail-order brides.

Most surprising of all had been the Ferlaern government, who had offered tactical support, funding, and a fleet of their own star cruisers. Their first mail-order brides would arrive within months, and they also wanted to ensure no further kidnappings happened.

Sadie and Bryk had met Lily outside the Council chambers, and the two women dissolved into tears of happiness then started planning a party to celebrate Lily’s arrival. While it was sad to celebrate when friends were still missing, the joys in life were too few already. These moments needed to be savored.

Today was the day. Lily and Jorg were hosting a barbeque—or barbecute, as Lily called it, thanks to Jorg. A bunch of the Earthling mail-order brides and their mates had arrived, and Lily couldn’t wait to visit with them.

But first—

“Do I have to?” Bane whined.

Really. He whined. Who would have thought a droid could pick up emotions and display them so fast? She had a feeling she’d one day find him crying. He’d come close while reading the romance novels on Sadie’s digital device, novels he’d denied reading. Lily had caught him sitting up late in the living room, the device’s glow the only light in the room. He’s been sniffing and sighing.

Yeah, romance novels were the best.

“Come on,” Lily said. “Please watch her? You love Alicia.” He’d been fascinated by Axil and Julia’s tiny daughter from the moment she arrived earlier this morning.

“I do, but I had planned to inventory your pantry.”

“That can wait, right?” Lily leaned over the crib and cooed at Alicia. They’d had the bed installed in a spare room because Crown Prince Axil and his bondmate, Julia, visited so often. It might see other use soon, too… “Aren’t you a little cutie!”

Thor, lying with the baby, purred and licked the little girl’s hand. A smile rose on Alicia’s face, revealing her tiny fangs. Her tiny, deep auburn naanans fluttered across her head and one tapped Thor, who Lily could swear grinned up at her. He adored the baby and hadn’t left her side since Julia placed her in the crib.

Alicia was a mix of both worlds. Her creamy skin showed freckles like her mom’s, but she had Axil’s dark eyes. She was a step forward into the two planet’s combined future. Everyone on Earth and Crakair adored her, and her pictures appeared on the news on a regular basis.

“Is she asleep yet?” Julia said, tiptoeing into Lily and Jorg’s bedroom where they’d placed the crib. She looked awesome. You could tell she’d had a baby, because she glowed. But then, her mate might have something to do with that.

Axil poked his head around the door and flashed his fangs. “Does my little girl wish to get out of bed?”

Alicia, hearing her father’s voice, kicked her feet. The thin acklor mattress beneath her kept shifting, trying to accommodate her change in position.

“Axil,” Julia said, coming across stern. But her lips twitched. “She needs to nap.”

“Can I be blamed for being eager to hold my child?” He joined her beside the crib, and beamed down at Alicia, his fangs bared. “She is perfect.” His gaze turned to Lily briefly. “Isn’t she?”

Julia leaned back in his arms, and his naanans traced across her shoulders.

“She’s the sweetest,” Lily said. They glowed with love, and it made her ache to be with Jorg. “Bane was just saying he’s eager to stay with her and make sure she’s safe while she sleeps, right Bane?”

“Yes, of course,” Bane said.

“If you sing to her, she’ll take a nap,” Lily said. She could barely keep the smile off her face. Poor Bane. He actually loved children, a good thing considering Lily suspected she might be expecting already. In no time, Lily and Sadie’s homes would be filled with baby giggles. She couldn’t wait.

Bane sighed and whizzed over to hover near the crib. His mechanical voice rose in a lullaby that would be creepy if it wasn’t so cute. He projected a holoimage of Crakairian creatures dancing through the air above the crib.

Alicia’s eyes widened at the display—who knew what she thought of the tune—but her mouth opened in a yawn. Lily had a feeling she’d be asleep in seconds.

Lily left the room and strolled through the living room and out into the backyard, where everyone else was getting ready for the party.

Pausing in the doorway, her gaze fell on Gaje and Thea, who were teasing each other as they set up the cornhole game. Lily couldn’t wait to team up with Jorg for the first match.

“Where would you like this?” Evie said, appearing behind Lily. She held a covered container in her hands. “I made brownies.”

“Oh, wow. You didn’t.” Lily hadn’t had chocolate in what felt like forever. “Where did you get the ingredients?”

“I arranged for a few shipments,” Vork said, coming up behind Evie. He kissed her neck, and she closed her eyes and sighed.

Lily rescued the brownies before they tumbled from Evie’s hands. Lily knew the power of a Crakairian kiss. If it was her and Jorg, she’d be dragging him off to the bedroom again—where they’d spent a lot of time over the past few weeks.

“I’ll just put these in the kitchen,” she said to Evie, who nodded, though her eyes remained closed.

After dropping the plate on the counter, Lily made herself back away before pinching off a piece. Good thing Evie had made what looked like a double batch, because they would be fantastic.

“A couple of guys are here to see Jorg,” Sadie said from the kitchen doorway. “They’re…dressed strangely.”

“And what else is new for Crakair?” Lily smiled as she remembered Jorg outfitted in his garlong. Despite her agreement to marriage, he’d insisted on completing each portion of the courtship rituals. His breakfast of tetria had been delayed for at least an hour once she saw how he was dressed. She’d enjoyed untying the fastening and letting the fabric slip to the floor…

“I mean they’re dressed really strangely,” Sadie said, worrying her bottom lip. “Bryk is talking to them right now.”

This, Lily had to see. She reluctantly left the brownies and followed Sadie outside.

Two guys dressed in furs stood on the lawn talking to Bryk. That is, they were sort of dressed in fur that had been cut into vests to cover their chests. Their muscles had given birth to muscles, and they bulged from their shoulders and arms. Broadswords hanging down their backs glinted in the sunlight. If she was wearing them, she’d worry about poking her butt.

They wore knee-high, fur-topped boots and black leather pants that molded their asses.

Yes, she noticed their asses. They stood with their backs to her, and there was no missing the display.

She was crazy about Jorg. They were going to get married. She’d be happy to drag him off to bed this minar if he quirked one eyebrow her way. But she wasn’t blind. And these guys were hot.

Sadie fanned her face. “Ditto.”

The two sisters shared grins.

“Who are they?” Lily whispered.

“Vikir. Bryk’s cousins.”

“They must be Mila and Taylor’s matches.” She studied them closer, wondering which was Kral and which was Wulf.

“They stopped by to make sure Jorg hadn’t heard anything new before they head out.”

Lily’s fists clenched. “They’re going after Mila and Tay, right?”

Unfortunately, there had been no news about her friends, and Lily wanted to weep when she thought about what they might be going through. The Vikirs had sent trackers to look for the women, and Jorg had joined them twice, but so far, they’d found no clue to their whereabouts.

“That’s what they told Bryk. The Council may have asked the Vikir to let them handle this, but they’re done being patient. They’re determined to rescue your friends and either bring them here or take them back to Earth if that’s what they want.”

Good. Lily hoped they found her friends soon and brought them home. She hadn’t forgotten the brief time she’d been in the cage on Mia or her escape with Jorg. The threats Zur had made. If Jorg hadn’t arrived… Well, she didn’t want to think about where she might be right now.

Nightmares haunted her enough already.

Bryk slapped the two Vikir on the shoulders and nudged his head toward the barn where Jorg had disappeared to a while ago, saying he had something to take care of before the party. He’d tapped his personal courtship notebook and grinned.

This couldn’t be about the digerias, because Bryk and Jorg had sliced the quarter animal they’d purchased and popped the chunks into the fridge with marinade yesterday.

Or the cornling eggs because Lily had deviled them this morning.

Or the fresh greens Jorg had collected from his garden and turned into a gorgeous salad.

Each of the other guests had brought a dish to complete the meal. It was going to be an awesome feast even if the gathering was tinged with worry for Mila and Taylor.

The two males glanced toward the deck where Sadie and Lily stood in the shade. One dipped his head in a short bow, and the other gave a rough salute with two fingers tapping his forehead before he kissed the tips.

Lily’s heart ached for Mila and Taylor. They should be here now, savoring this glorious day with new friends and getting to know the Vikir males they’d been matched with.

Hopefully, they’d be found safe soon.

“Bring them back,” Lily called out to the Vikir as they strode toward the barn.

They both turned and grunted. From the steely expressions in their dark eyes, she knew they wouldn’t stop until they found her friends. That gave her a smidge of hope.

After they left, Lily collapsed on one of the deck chairs and dropped her face in her hands. “Find them. Please,” she whispered.

Sadie rubbed her back but didn’t say anything. It was clear from her shimmering eyes that she felt the same aching sadness.

A short time later, the Vikir left.

Jorg left the barn and crossed the open back lawn. He strode up the stairs to the deck. Crouching down in front of her, he tugged her hands from her face and held out his arms.

She tumbled into his embrace, crying. She couldn’t bear it. Her friends…

As the others gathered around, their faces solemn, her tears slowed.

“Kral and Wulf will find them,” Jorg said with steel in his voice. “They will not stop until they have rescued them and brought them here.”

Lily sniffed and nodded. “Soon.”

“Soon,” Jorg said.

Lily looked around, taking in her friends’ shared sadness. Her chest rose and fell with her sigh. “I’m sorry. I know you all came here to celebrate what we have, not what we’ve lost.”

“Lost but will be found soon,” Jorg said, tugging her to her feet. “I have a small surprise for you. Something I…” His lips lifted in a soft smile. “I know you are sad, but perhaps this tiny thing can bring joy to your heart?”

She snuggled into his arms, pressing her nose against his chest. “You bring joy to my heart all the time.”

“As you do me,” he said by her ear.

“Show me your surprise, then,” she said, pushing a smile onto her face.

He took her hand and led her to a tent he’d set up on the lawn earlier. A box had been placed in the center, under the shade, and something moved inside, pushing against the top.

“What is it?” she asked, her curiosity providing a much-needed distraction.

Jorg’s eyes twinkled. “Why do you not open it and find out?”

She stooped down and lifted the lid.

A golden retriever puppy tumbled out and leaped into her arms.

“Oh! Jorg,” she sighed with laughter spilling into her voice. She buried her face in its soft golden fur. “How did you do this?” she asked.

He dropped to his knees beside her and the pup leaped up on him, eager to lick his face. “I brought him from Earth for you. He is much like the one in the holochamber, is he not, only younger?”

“He is gorgeous.” She stroked his silky golden fur while his tail beat fast. “Thor is going to be so excited.”

“They met this morning when Vork brought your new friend from the spaceport.” Jorg’s chest puffed, and he tucked his slender notebook into his back pocket. “I have done well with my courtship, have I not?”

“I love you, Jorg.” She leaned into his side, and his arm went around her shoulders. While his naanans teased across her collarbones and stroked her face, she snuggled the eager puppy.

She couldn’t wait for the future they would share together.

Bonus Epilogue

LILY - ONE WEEK LATER

L ily tiptoed into the bedroom and stood beside the bed, watching Jorg sleep. He lay on his back in the middle of the bed with his legs stretched out—her love was a total bed hog. She didn’t mind, not too much, because she could lie on top of him!

He’d tossed back the blankets, exposing his gorgeous chest and twelve-pack abs. His right arm snuggled Thor, and his left was wrapped around their golden retriever puppy, Loki. What other name could she pick?

Talk about puppy love.

Jorg looked sweet and innocent at rest. And infinitely kissable.

She wanted to climb into the bed beside him, nestle against their little family and him, and fall back asleep, but they had plans.

That didn’t mean she couldn’t climb on top of him and kiss him.

When she straddled Jorg, the puppies woke and turned into wiggling, whimpering piles of fur, and each got a bit of love before she leaned over Jorg to wake him. A deep sleeper, he was still lost in dreamland despite the ruckus going on around him.

She started with his delicious chest, kissing her way up. While she was tempted to work her way down, she wanted him awake when she did that. By the time she reached his neck, his arms had wrapped around her. Taking care with the pups, he tumbled her onto her back and braced himself over her with his arms on either side of her shoulders.

“Who is this lovely Earth woman in my bed? I believe I must show her the trouble she is in for waking me from my slumber.”

“Oh, yes, please. Show me the error of my ways.” She giggled as he kissed along her jawline to her ear.

“Mmm, yum,” he murmured. “I’m going to eat you for breakfast.”

She grinned, and her eyes rolled back in her head as his mouth moved lower. “Oh, hell, yeah.”

The door eased open, and Bane zipped inside the room. “None of that. I still do not understand why you need to copulate when you are already pregnant, Lillian. Sexual activity is no longer necessary.”

“Oh, Bane,” Lily said, her brain a blur from Jorg’s touch. “If only you could understand.”

“I do not believe I wish to understand.” Bane stopped beside the bed and hovered there, staring at them. “How is that position comfortable for you, Jorg? Her legs are crushing your naanans lying on your shoulders.”

“Go,” Jorg growled. “Come back in…a denjar.”

“I am afraid that is not possible. You will have to stop this activity immediately. Your ride will be here in thirty minars and fifteen seclars.”

“Fourteen,” Lily said, just to be ornery.

“Excuse me?” Bane asked.

It was all she could do to think with Jorg between her legs.

Jorg didn’t care if Bane was here, but she did. Sort of. That thinking thing made it harder to care.

“I do not know what you mean, Lillian,” Bane said, watching her face.

“Our ride will be here in thirty minars and fourteen seclars,” she said, and Jorg’s huff of laughter sent tingles shooting up her spine because his breath hit a very sensitive area. “By the time you spoke, we’d lost a seclar.”

“Twenty-eight minars and forty-eight seclars,” Bane said. “Time is fluid. You know this.”

“Come back in five minars,” Jorg said. His fingers teased up her thigh, coming close to where she wanted him to be, but not close enough.

“But you must eat the breakfast I prepared,” Bane said with a slight whine in his voice. Somehow, he’d found a way to enhance his program to add emotions to his voice. He told her he wanted to sound like a biped being and not a mechanical device.

Jorg sighed and squinted up at her. “Can I whine, too?”

Her laughter snorted out as she lifted her legs off his shoulders and scooted to the side of the bed, wiggling her way around the sleepy puppies. “Soon, we’ll be all alone and then you can whine all you want.”

“Are you sure I should not come with you?” Bane asked, his metal arms flailing in stress. “Who will ensure your clothing is washed properly and your meals are served at exactly the right temperature?”

“I assume the resort knows how to handle things like that,” she said.

In twenty-five minars, more or less, she and Jorg would leave for their a vacation on Tress, Crakair’s paradise moon. They were staying in a fancy hotel and while they’d spend a lot of time in bed, they’d also lounge by the almost water, eat tasty food, and spend all their time together. Alone.

No interruptions. No puppies. No Bane.

“If you came with us, who would make sure Thor and Loki are well cared for?” She tapped her chin and held in her smile. “I suppose I could ask Weld to look after them.”

“Weld is a child. That will never do!” Bane grumbled. “I suppose I must stay here.…Unless we all go with you. I could be persuaded to—“

“Absolutely not,” Jorg said. He rarely insisted on anything. Her future hubby-mate was the most placid guy she knew. But when he settled on an idea, he was as stuck as a pipe in well-cured cement. “Lily and I will go on our honeyweek alone.”

She snickered, and when his gaze met hers, he bared his fangs. He’d twisted the word, because they couldn’t get away for a month. A week was better than nothing.

“I shall bring your bags out to the entry while you…dress,” Bane said, and Lily swore he shot them both a look of disapproval.

Really. Sometimes, she felt like she was living with a prudish great aunt.

“Thanks, Bane,” she said as she passed him. “Wait out here.”

“But—”

“Nope!” The last thing she wanted was for him to supervise her dressing. Opening the closet door, she selected a sundress perfect for the hot weather they’d find on Tress. Thankfully, it would only take a few hours to get there.

She darted into the bathroom while Bane spoke to the pups.

“And I believe I will need to groom you both on a daily basis,” Bane said. “Once a week, your normal schedule, will not do.”

As there wasn’t a lot of time left, she shut the door and washed up quickly, tossing her dress on and pulling her hair up in a ponytail. Punytail, per Jorg. She zipped out into the room, leaving the bathroom to Jorg.

Within twenty minars, Lily had eaten, kissed the puppies a billions times, tried to kiss Bane once, and was sitting beside Jorg in the back seat of the outer-planet shuttle, heading for Tress.

She leaned into his shoulder and squeezed his thigh. “Finally. I love our little family, but it’s going to be wonderful being with just you.”

“I hope…” He swallowed, but when she frowned up at him, he smoothed his face. “I hope you enjoy our honeyweek.” He kissed her temple. “What would you like to do first?”

“I want to relax, sleep, and…you know.”

“Then that is what we will do, because I feel the same.”

“Jorg.” His name came out like a sigh. Her heart wasn’t just full, it was exploding with happiness. Who would have thought signing up to be mail-order bride of Crakair could have worked out so well? If she’d stayed on Earth, she wouldn’t have met him, and that would be a tragedy.

The craft entered Tress’s atmosphere seamlessly and then coasted a hundred feet or so above the surface, heading for the resort.

Lily pressed her face against the window like a fascinated child. “Wow. The sand is pink.”

Jorg moved across the seat to snuggle behind her and placed his chin on her shoulder. “It is beautiful, like you.”

He got a kiss for that.

“You said you haven’t been to Tress before,” she said. “So this is new for you, too.”

“It is not a place for a mercenary.”

“You’re a good guy, Jorg. On Earth, people are afraid of mercenaries. Some will do anything for the right price, even commit murder. But you’re nothing like that. You give others an incredible gift. You bring people home.”

“You are my home,” he said, kissing her neck.

Her skin tingled. Hell, all of her tingled. She couldn’t wait for their vacation to begin.

They coasted in low, and Lily gasped in awe. “We’re staying there?” Turning, she grinned at Jorg. “You surprised me.”

“Is it my fault you believed we were staying in a beach shack, as you called it? For this, I would not…” He frowned again.

“Okay, what’s up?” she asked.

“Nothing.” But he wouldn’t meet her eye.

“It’s something. Tell me.”

“I… I will. Later?”

“All right.” His concern was transmitting itself to her. What was the problem? But he’d said he’d tell her later. The fact that she could completely trust him made her heart ease. Scooting up onto his lap, she leaned back in his arms. “You do know I’d be happy anywhere with you, even a humble beach shack.” He hadn’t needed to book something fancy.

“Instead, you will be treated as a princess, as you deserve.” His arms tightened around her as the vehicle landed on the pale blue “water” and, slowing, coasted toward the pearly-pink beach. They came to a stop and, with a hiss, the side door lifted up.

Warmth and the scent of flowers drifted in through the opening.

“Are you ready for your honeyweek?” Jorg asked.

It wasn’t a true honey “week,” as they weren’t married yet, but she was going to enjoy every second—seclar. “Yes!”

“We…”

“What?” she asked, looking back at him.”

“Oh, nothing.”

She wanted to growl, but how could she when she was in paradise with the male she loved? But he better spit it out soon or she’d tickle it out of him. Or…kiss it out of him.

He jumped out and turned to offer her a hand. “The ground is soft but take care.”

She joined him on the sand and looked around. The pale blue leaves on the trees contrasted nicely with the rich brown bark. Deep grass grew along the edges of the tropical jungle bordering the big resort.

Some things were the same, no matter what galaxy you found yourself in, but others parts of Tress were…different. The colors, for one thing. The aliens lounging on the beach, another.

It was beautiful. Jaw-dropping. Behind her, blue liquid lapped at the shore. There was no wave action, but she wasn’t a surfer. She’d be happy lounging in the water with Jorg. “It’s not really water, right?”

“The seas on Tress are made up of an emollient similar to what is found in zinter pools.”

She could handle that, even it came with nibbling fishies. Her skin had never been smoother, and her hair loved whatever was in the water. If she could bottle the stuff and ship it to Earth, she’d make a fortune.

While she looked toward the tree and flower-lined path leading up from the sandy beach to the resort, Jorg took their bags from the vehicle. After they’d stepped back to make room, the door closed, and the craft took flight. Off to pick up the next transfer.

She turned and waved to a few Crakairians staring in their direction. The naanans of one flared up, but the others awkwardly lifted their hands. Oh, yeah. She’d used the hand, kiss-me gesture. Her laughter spurted out, and Jorg gave her a kiss.

As they strolled toward the resort, they passed multiple Crakairians lounging in chairs on the beach. Some held tropical drinks, while others studied their coms. She shook her head. Even Crakairians didn’t leave work when they were on vacation.

When they reached the stone path, they were greeted by a Crakairian wearing a formal, leather outfit a bit like what Kral, Jorg’s Vikir friend wore when he’d visited before leaving to rescue Mila and Taylor. Black pants and a leather shirt, without the fur.

The male held aloft a tray with drinks. “Welcome.” He bared his fangs. “Are you checking in?”

“Yes,” Jorg said.

“Lovely. Please take a complimentary drink.” He lowered the tray in front of them. “Up the path, someone will help you inside the main entrance.”

“Thank you,” Lily said studying the pink liquid. “Does the drink contain alcohol?”

“No,” the server said.

“Perfect.” She took a sip, and flavors burst on her tongue. Fruit, a hint of cinnamon, and a touch of tang. Limey, but not quite.

Jorg nudged his head toward the building, and his naanans flicked upward, something he did whenever he was nervous.

“That’s your tell, Jorg,” she said pleasantly as they walked. She finished her drink and placed her glass on a tray resting on a tall post beside the path.

“I will say nothing until the time is right,” he said.

“Spill it and get it over with,” she teased. “You’ll feel better.” It must be a surprise. Flowers covering the bed? Chocolates from Earth—something she missed desperately? Or would a Crakairian musical group serenade them tonight at dinner?

All would be welcome.

They went inside and walked across the gleaming, stone floor and up to a male Crakairian with bright pink naanans. Had he dyed them or were they natural? She wouldn’t ask.

He bared his fangs. “Yes?”

“We are here to…sign in. My name is Jorg Qua’zad.”

Lily smiled. “Lillian Johnson.”

“Yes,” the male said, tapping on his com. “I have your reservation here.” When he looked up, his eyes gleamed. “Ah! So thrilling. May I say that—”

“No, please do not say,” Jorg said, holding up his hand.

The male looked from Jorg’s hand to his mouth and back again. Lily knew this hand thing was going to get someone in trouble one day. She’d thought it would be her.

“Do not say?” the male asked, bewildered, glancing back and forth between Jorg and Lily. His gaze landed on her and stayed there. “Ah.”

“Yes, ah,” Jorg said. “Room?”

“Yes, yes, allow me,” the male said. A few more taps on his com, and Jorg’s pinged. “There you are. Everything you asked for was arranged earlier, of course. Will there be anything else?”

“No, thank you,” Jorg said.

“Then I wish you well.” He bowed to Jorg and then Lily. “You as well, Earthling.”

She’d been a novelty since she’d arrived on Crakair.

They walked down a long, covered walkway that was open on each side and overlooked broad expanses filled with plantings and fountains. Birds trilled, and insects made a rump-rump-rump sound. She thought they were insects. If they were creatures, she was eager to make friends. With bugs? Not so much.

They hit an intersection and turned right, walking along another open-air hallway until reaching the end at an adjoining building made up of pale green blocks of stone. Jorg held the door open for her, and they entered.

“All the way to the end,” he said, waving in that direction.

“You’ve studied a map,” she said with a laugh. “I’d be lost already.”

“I arranged for us to have the best room.”

“Awww.” Clasping his hand, she leaned against his arm as they strolled down a hall, took a right, then wove through a series of buildings with open courtyards in between. “Are we hiking all the way to the beach again?”

“You will see.” His fingers tightened around hers as if he worried she’d turn and run.

“What aren’t you telling me? Share.”

He stopped in the hall and dropped their bags on the floor. A Crakairian dressed in shorts and a shirt with flowers, like something Lily would see in Hawaii, walked past, his head turning back to gawk. Yup, Earthling alert.

“Here is the thing,” Jorg said, low and hesitant.

Her mouth went dry. “What’s wrong?” Her mind flashed through the things she feared most. “You’re sick. You hate living with a menagerie and a protocol droid. You don’t want to be with me, after all.”

“No, no!” He took both her hands and squeezed. “I have made some arrangements here, and I worry you will be pissed up with me.”

“Off.”

“Off what?”

“The phrase is pissed off.” Tears sprang up in her eyes, but she couldn’t help it. She felt like he was about to drop an emotional bomb on her.

“We are getting married.” He cupped her face and gave her a lingering kiss that made sparks fly through her. “I love our menagerie.” He punctuated each statement with another kiss. “I am not sick. And I love you.” After the last, he kissed her nose. “No concerns.”

“When will you tell me, then?”

“Soon.” After slinging their bags over his shoulder, he took her hand again. “Come. I minars, you will know.”

At the end of a long hall with windows along one wall looking out at statues and gardens, they came to a halt at a door. A few taps on his com, and the panel clicked open.

“Before you go inside, there is something I must tell you,” Jorg said solemnly. “I love you. I hope this is what you want. But no pressure. If you wish to say no, I understand.” He took a few steps backward to lean against the wall. “Go inside.”

“Aren’t you coming with me?” She didn’t understand, and fear kept bolting through her. What was this all about?

“I will wait here.”

“Okay.” Get this over with, right? She took a deep breath and pushed open the door.

Sadie stood inside with Evie, Thea, and Julia. All wore matching grins.

Her sister rushed forward and grabbed Lily’s arm. “Just in time!”

“For what?”

“Remember how I kept asking you about wedding dresses?” Evie said.

“Yes,” Lily said slowly.

“And I was a pain in the butt, quizzing you about rings?” Thea said. She couldn’t stop grinning. Her hand rested on her big belly, and she looked ready to pop.

“Yes, you did,” Lily said, having a suspicion where this might be going.

“And remember I asked you what type of honeymoon you wished you could have?” Julia asked. “Silly girl to suggest going skiing.”

Lily smacked her hands on her hips. “Okay, tell me what’s going on.”

“Jorg asked us to help set this up.” Sadie held up her hand then looked at it and grinned. “Don’t get pissed.”

“Why would I?”

“He wants to marry you,” Evie said, coming forward to give Lily a hug.

“And I want to marry him,” Lily said. She wasn’t dumb, but she needed this spelled out for her before she went back out into the hall.

“If you say yes,” Thea said, dropping down to sit on the edge of the bed. She lifted a foot and rubbed her ankle. “You’re getting married now.”

A garment bag lay on the surface, and bouquets of flowers lay on the top of a high bureau.

“Now,” Lily said, gulping. “As in now, now?”

“If you’re not ready, if you want to back out, if you…I don’t know, if you just can’t do it this second, we’ll walk out the other door,” Sadie’s hand swept to the big glass doors, “and you two will go on with your vacation and talk about a wedding when you get back home.”

“What would you guys do?” Lily asked.

“Go home?” Evie said. “Although, Vork is here, as are the other guys, so maybe we’d lounge around a bit before we head out. This place is awesome.” She winked.

Her eyes stinging some more, Lily rushed out into the hall. She came to a stop in front of Jorg.

He waited with so much fear on his face… It reminded her of when they’d first met and she could tell he thought she’d reject him. Later, he’d confessed he worried his scar would repel her.

Didn’t he know? When she looked at her mate, all she saw was his heart.

“Jorg,” she choked out.

He bumped off the wall. “I know. You are angry I did this without your knowledge.”

“No,” she whispered.

“You are upset you did not have months to prepare for this possible event.”

“Also, no,” she said a little louder.

“You wish you could have…” His eyebrow ridges scrunched together. “You are saying no?”

“No, I’m not upset. You…” Pushing forward, she wrapped her arms around him and pressed her cheek against his chest where his heart beat for her. “You make me so happy.”

“I am grateful you are not angry. I wanted to surprise you with an archway on the beach. Beautiful flowers. Your friends and mine here with us for our union. Wedding wings and—”

Tipping her head back, she looked up at him. “Wings?”

He blinked. “Wings that you put on a finger of your left hand. Sadie said you preferred a silver metal.”

“Oh, yes. I’d be happy to wear your wedding…wing.”

When she snickered, he joined in. “I said it wrong.”

“You said it right. You do everything right.”

“Then…yes? Will you say you do?”

“I do what?”

“You do. As in I do. Earthling vows we will combine with Crakairian traditions.”

“Yes.” A thousand times yes. She rose onto her toes, and they shared a kiss. “Did you bring the equivalent of a suit?”

“I did.”

Her fingers dropped down to link with his, and when their matebond symbols touched, fire flashed between them. “Then let’s get dressed and get married.”

KRAL

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR, BOOK 4

KRAL

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, book 4

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

ASIN: B08HD31MRK

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Ireland

Created with Vellum

KRAL

A stoic Vikir warrior meets his match

in a spunky Earth woman determined

to show him

what he’s been missing.

After she’s kidnapped on her way to Crakair, Mila’s not sure she’ll ever meet her arranged mail-order alien match. Until Kral falls—literally—on top of her during his heroic rescue mission. Who wouldn’t be attracted to a gruff, scaly green alien doing all he can to save her from the bad guys? But with space stations and ships exploding around them, it soon becomes clear someone is determined to make sure she and Kral never reach Crakair.

Kral has settled into his role as Kral the enforcer and Kral the loner, the person he had to become after his father was killed and he was forced to assume leadership of his clan. He signs up for the Selection, never expecting to develop feelings for his Earthling female match. Despite the danger they’re in, she makes him laugh and shows him that life doesn’t always have to be serious. But with an enemy chasing them across the galaxy, Kral will have to tap his Vikir warrior skills to protect his Earthling bride.

Kral is Book 4 in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone, full-length romance has on-the-page heat, aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. You can find the rest of the series here.

1

Mila

M ila woke up lying on a hard surface, blinded by the light generated by a flat, rectangular, glowing creature pinned to the ceiling above her. She blinked as the blue-green, hairless being writhed, struggling to break free.

Like Mila. When she tried to lift her arms, they remained pinned in place. Her ankles were also tied. Her moan slipped out.

“Hey,” she said in a croaky voice. “Hey.”

No answer.

The creature on the ceiling flinched, but then went back to tugging at the metal pins holding each corner of its rectangular body in place. Its beady black eyes focused on her for a long time, and she swore she read desperation and sorrow there. A feeling they shared. There was nothing worse than having no control over the bad things that happened in life.

Where was she? The white walls around her gave nothing away and, when she cricked her neck, the tiles on the floor looked like something found in any random building on Earth. The smooth walls were windowless, with only a small, opaque window at eye level in the single door. She guessed it was locked.

From the low hum rumbling around her, she assumed she was on a spaceship. The slight vibration reminded her of the star cruiser she’d been traveling in from Earth to reach Crakair. She didn’t sense enough rocking for a smaller vehicle; the vibration was smooth, almost seamless. Back on the small ship they’d taken to reach the larger star cruiser, she’d been thrown off balance and fell on her big ass, her feet going out from underneath her when the craft pitched sideways.

“Don’t worry,” her new friend, Taylor, said with a sympathetic laugh. “In no time, you’ll find your sea legs. Until then, keep ‘em wide and let your body shift with the subtle movement.”

“Sure,” Mila had said, rubbing her sore butt.

She’d met Taylor and Lily moments before. They were two of the twenty women who’d signed on as mail-order brides matched to alien males from a distant planet. During the days traveling to Crakair, she, Taylor, and Lily had grown close, sharing their hopes and dreams for their new lives with their matches. They’d even held a bridal shower for the three of them. That was when they’d been…

Taylor. Lily.

Halfway to their destination, they’d been kidnapped and taken who knows where. Four-armed, blue-skinned aliens had attacked and kidnapped her. The last thing she remembered was one of them tapping her temple with a black stick, and then lights out.

So much for meeting her alien match and getting married.

The creature on the ceiling struggled. Her heart pinching to see the poor thing in pain, she wished there was a way she could help it.

“I’ll free you somehow,” she whispered, “I promise.” Once she figured out how to free herself. “Taylor?” she called out. Her voice rose as panic took hold. “Lily!”

No reply.

Mila choked back a sob, but it did no good. Tears trickled down her temples and landed in her hair. Were her friends okay? They could be tied to a table like she was, only in a different room. She’d break free, find and release them, and they’d escape this trap together.

Resolve shot through her, giving her the strength to strain against her ties. She refused to play the victim, waiting for someone to rescue her. Mila was going to rescue herself.

Plus the greenish creature pinned to the ceiling.

The door opened, and a four-armed, blue-skinned alien strode inside. She’d heard of this species, the Al’kieern. They called Mara, one of Crakair’s three moons, home. They’d attacked the star cruiser and taken Mila and her friends. Her gut clenched and her hands went sweaty. What were they going to do to her?

He shut the door and crossed the small room to stand at her side. His beady eyes drifted down her body in a clinical way, and she was grateful nothing sexual shone in his dark gaze. Though she wasn’t sure she could do much about it if he decided to take things in that direction.

“Who are you?” she barked, sniffing back her betraying tears. Shit, she hoped he didn’t see them.

“I am a noble Al’kieern. A scientist.” He laid a palm on his chest and bowed. “Pleased I am to meet you. Sad I am that I must do this.”

Sure. She could tell from his almost-gleeful tone.

“There’s nothing noble about kidnapping women,” she said. “Let me go, and I won’t whip your ass. I also won’t tell the Crakairian government what you’ve done.” Brave statements for her to make but, before her dad died, he taught her to bull her way through dangerous situations. Don’t ever let anyone sense your fear, he’d always said. She missed him; he’d died a year ago from the mysterious disease that swept through the galaxy, killing most of the men on Earth and nearly all the women on a variety of alien planets throughout the galaxy.

Hence the mail-order bride proposal and contract with Crakair. How far Mila had come since signing up for a match.

“Why am I tied to a table?” she snapped, barely keeping her lower lip from trembling.

“You cannot be free. Not until auction.”

“Auction?” She couldn’t hold back her whimper. “What are you talking about?”

He smirked.

Great, great. She had to lie here until…whenever the auction took place? Her body trembled, but she found the will to glare at him. “I’m not being auctioned off like a flock of chickens.”

He growled and fumbled with the shiny implements lying on a silver table near the head of her stretcher. “Silence, breeder.”

“Mila.” She matched his growl. “My name is Mila. I’ll never be silenced, and I for damn sure will never be a breeder.”

The alien’s sneer revealed long, rot-riddled fangs. She’d read fang-baring was a Crakairian way of smiling. When she’d watched the video sent by Kral, the Crakairian male she’d been matched with, he’d bared his fangs. On her mate/husband-to-be, it was cute. No, he was hot when he bared his fangs. On this guy? Nasty.

In the video, Kral had said sweet, thoughtful things to her, and he’d made promises he could no longer deliver. That he’d be kind. He’d treat her well. He’d keep her safe. Her chest ached at the loss of what could have been, but she stiffened on the hard mattress. It wasn’t supposed to be this way, but she’d get through this and find Kral.

“What are you going to do to me?” she asked as the blue guy lifted a long, thin metal tube into the air.

“I think word is…testing?”

Past jokes about alien abductions and probes shot into Mila’s mind, and she struggled against her bindings. It was all fun and games when she and her friends were teasing each other about their matches and probing. When faced with the reality of a creepy alien guy holding a long, silver implement, the notion sent terror bolting through her.

“Testing for what?” she said.

“Fertility.”

“Let me go!” she shrieked, bucking as fear took control of her limbs.

The creature pinned to the ceiling above her groaned. One of the metal pins holding it in place released and fell on the table by Mila’s hand. The Al’kieern appeared too focused on the silver probe to notice.

“Sad I am, but I will not release you,” the Al’kieern said, his sneer suggesting he was anything but upset about this.

“No tests,” she said, wrapping her fingers around the tiny wooden stake. When it pricked her palm, she nearly shouted with satisfaction. It wasn’t much, but it was sharp and now a weapon. She shifted her fingers, twisting the jagged end around to face her bindings.

The Al’kieern lowered the long silver tube onto the table and lifted a big syringe into the air. He squirted deep blue liquid up in an arc. The point descended toward her arm as she writhed, trying to escape. “This over quickly. Rest now.”

Blubbering and no longer able to hide her tears, she tried to yank free, but the ties bit into her skin. Hot wetness trickled down her wrist, telling her she was bleeding. She sawed with the metal pin, feeling part of the strand holding her wrist give way.

The needle descended.

“No!” Flailing, she yanked herself to the side, but there was no avoiding the needle.

A prick on her upper arm, and the world went black…

Mila woke on what she believed was her fourth day in this room, tied to the table.

Twice each day, the blue aliens had released her, let her use the stinky bucket in the corner of the room, fed her, paced her around for a few minutes, then tied her back on the table.

Each time she was free, she’d kept the pin clutched in her hand, hoping she’d find a use for it.

And each night, she’d spoken to the flat, luminescent light creature still pinned to the ceiling. A few times, she could swear he’d replied—in her mind. But that couldn’t be true. The drugs they’d been giving her were making her imagine things.

For the first time in days, no four-armed blue alien stood at her side. But she had the metal pin, and she was determined to get out of this hellhole. No more drugs. No more being tied to the table. She would break out of the room, find her friends, and burn this fucking place down.

After sawing the bindings for what felt like hours with the metal pin, her left hand snapped free. Yes. It was quick work after that to release her other hand and ankles.

Overhead, the poor creature continued to struggle.

“Hang in there, Firefly,” she whispered as she rose to her feet on the table. “Sorry for the nickname, especially if you don’t like it, but you remind me of a firefly. But don’t worry. Help is on the way.”

Thank you.

She had to be imagining things.

When the door opened again, she—they—were ready.

The surprise reflected on the blue jerk’s face as she brought a trash bucket down on his head. Mila grinned. She laughed out loud when Firefly sprung from the ceiling and plastered himself across the blue guy’s face.

Adrenaline lent her the strength of a thousand suppressed women.

While the alien gulped and gasped and whirled around, trying to pry Firefly off his face, she kneed him in the groin. It worked with men; would it work with aliens?

His four hands left Firefly and cradled his crotch. Yesss.

She rushed around him and opened the door, turning back. “You leaving this shithole with me, Firefly? Or do you want to stay here and chow on the blue guy some more?” Freedom was so close, Mila could taste it.

Go.

The blue alien danced around the room, alternately clutching his groin and smacking at Firefly, who still clung to the alien’s face.

Wait. Firefly had no mouth. How had he spoken to her?

“Did you talk to me in my mind?” she asked, her jaw dropping.

Yesss. Yousss gooo.

Ohhhh-kay. It didn’t seem possible yet here she was, talking to an alien creature in her mind.

She cupped her head. Damn, telepathy made her brain pound. “Are you sure?”

Gooo.

With a twinge of sadness, she nodded. She got it. He was free, and he’d want to track down any friends or family he had here, not hang out with Mila.

She’d lost her mom, her dad, and her new friends, Lily and Taylor. She could deal with losing her new friend, too.

Shoving aside the pinch in her heart, she pushed for a smile. “Okay, Firefly. You, um, look me up if you need anything, okay?” She darted through the door and out into a long hall, calling over her shoulder. “I’ll be around for a little while.” Hopefully only a little while. It shouldn’t be too hard to escape this place, right?

Thank you, Firefly said in her mind.

Mila paused a moment in the hall, unsure where to go. Left or right? Each continued a long distance with doors interspersed at regular intervals. Each seemed to end at a junction with another hall.

While she gnawed on her lip, shouts from her left were followed by four Al’kieern stomping around a corner in her direction. Two ran on cloven feet, but the others skip-hopped, their webbed wings unfurled.

“Breeder!” one shouted.

Not in this lifetime.

With her heart rushing up into her throat, she took off, racing in the other direction. She passed a series of big windows. The stars outside had cloned themselves, filling the sky with a billion sparkling lights. No time to take in the view. As she ran past the openings, she saw long metal posts extending from the craft and smaller, round, satellite-like pods that could be ships or space houses or creatures, for all she knew. The structure reminded her of the pictures she’d seen of Earth’s space station.

The big planet in the distance did not resemble Earth, however. Even without the huge expanses of blue peppered with small landmasses, the four moons of varying sizes would’ve given it away. She was very far from home.

“Halt,” one of the aliens shouted.

Yeah, sure. She would, because he’d asked so nicely. Sucking in a deep breath, she ran faster.

One of the flying guys caught up and latched onto her hair, wrenching her backward.

Grunting, she whirled and kicked his leg. She bit down on the arm wrapping around her hair deep enough to draw blood. The guy bellowed and wrenched back, releasing her.

With her pulse galloping a thousand miles an hour, she pivoted and shot down the hall again. She hadn’t run since quitting track in high school—damn Janie and her “fat girl” sneers. But Mila had been good. Record sprinter good. While she’d gained some weight since then, her legs had not forgotten how to take her where she wanted to go.

Luck was on her side, because she hit a stairwell at a run and bumped through the door and onto the landing. Not stopping, she went down, taking the steps two at a time. A few floors below, while the aliens clambered above her shouting for her to come back (really?!), she exited the stairwell into another long hall. Partway down the corridor, she found an unlocked door and darted inside, finding an office. Rounding the desk, she dropped to her knees and scooted beneath.

She waited there for what felt like forever before leaving the room, listening until she heard the aliens entering the stairwell and the door banging shut behind them. Using a different stairwell, she crept down multiple flights until reaching a door marked maintenance.

There were lots of nice hidey-holes in maintenance areas. Boiler and electrical rooms felt like home.

Dad had been a high school janitor and, as a kid, Mila had hung out on Saturdays with him after Mom left when Mila was eight. She’d driven away and never looked—or called—back. It wrecked Mila, but her dad stepped up and did everything he could to help get her through it. Some could say it was the best thing that could’ve happened as Mom hadn’t been happy raising a kid. Dad loved her more than all the planets combined. He’d died, and Mila missed him more than a severed limb.

She slunk inside the room and was relieved to find no four-armed, blue-skinned guys waiting for her.

Creeping across the big open surface piled with boxes and weird-looking mechanical devices, she poked through the rubble, trying to find some place safe.

Here, Firefly said from farther inside the room, surprising her. How had he made it here?

You okay, buddy? she said in her mind. I was worried about you.

No fear. Free.

Sort of, if living inside a big tin can could be called freedom. But at least she wasn’t tied, and he wasn’t pinned to the ceiling. Where are you?

A glow ahead pulled her in that direction, toward the back of the room, where she found a pile of wood stacked to the ceiling. She scooted around the side and found a small passage behind.

Here, Firefly said from ahead. Yousss safe.

Safe was a relative term on an alien space station.

Scooting sideways, Mila shimmied through the narrow strip of area between the woodpile and a metal wall. At the end, she found a beat-up door.

Safe.

Firefly’s light faded. He was leaving.

Her eyes stung, but she swiped the wetness from her face. She had no reason to feel sad.

She could handle whatever came next alone.

She opened the door and crept inside a tiny, hidden room.

2

Kral

When word of an upcoming breeder auction came through the Crakairian Council intel, Kral and Wulf knew the odds of this leading them to Mila and Taylor were slim, but they had to look into it.

After Commander Vork gave them a fully crewed ship, Kral and Wulf followed the lead that took them to the Al’kieern Space Station in the outer Dricad Galaxy.

As they approached in the fully cloaked ship, Kral grunted in satisfaction.

Mila was here. He knew it.

First, his gut never lied. He would stake the leadership of his clan—even his life—on it. But the symbol that had appeared on his palm as they’d arrived in this quadrant confirmed it for him.

Wulf had the same certainty about Taylor, though no symbol had appeared on his palm in confirmation.

“Engage cruise speed,” Kral said in a voice that betrayed nothing, but the fingers of his right hand tapped rhythmically on the command chair’s arm.

An RT34 droid working at the console to his right dipped its head. “Yes, Sir.” The droid spun and its four limbs flew over the dials, tweaking and turning.

While he could do this himself—Kral had asked the lead droid to show him how to operate the ship within minars of stepping onboard—he held himself back. He didn’t have to control everything.

The engines whined, and his belly lurched as he stared through the expansive viewscreen taking up most of the front of the small bridge. Despite traveling five daelas in this vessel, the thought of being trapped within a giant hunk of metal hurtling through the stars wreaked havoc with his mind. A Vikir needed to feel the wind in his naanans, the warm earth beneath his feet. Kral would only be happy when he was roaming free, be it deep within the cave system where he’d played as a youngling or in the treetops where the Vikir had made their homes for thousands of years.

With no discernable movement of the ship, it transitioned out of the high speed they’d traveled at for three daelas and slowed to a bare crawl. Stars that had blurred past for what felt like a lifetime became fixed. They winked, playing tricks with his mind.

“Heille,” Wulf hissed.

Kral’s breath caught and, as he released the air, the orbiting Al’kieern space station crept out from behind Yarris, a C-grade planet that provided resources for the station. The Al’kieern had set up orbit here to develop and settle the planet below.

The size of a mountain, the station appeared impenetrable, indestructible. How the heille was he going to force the Al’kieern commander to do what he asked?

The intel the Crakairian Council had received suggested the kidnapped women were being held on the station and would be auctioned off soon. After that, it was anyone’s guess where they’d be taken.

“Should we remain cloaked, Sir?” the RT34 droid asked in a mechanical voice, not turning away from the console where it worked.

“Yes. I would like to maintain the element of surprise,” Kral said.

“Very good, Sir.”

Unable to sit still, Kral left the chair. His right leg spasmed, and he rubbed the area that had never correctly healed. Ten yaros old, his home had caught fire, and his father had urged him through an open window, saving Kral’s life. The fall had fractured his leg in three places, but he’d lived. Unlike his parents.

Thankfully, Kral’s beloved Aunt Riella had nursed him back to health. He was eternally grateful she’d survived the illness.

Within months of his father’s death, he’d taken over the role as leader of their clan.

Pain slashed through him as the memory resurfaced. While his aunt had been kind, doing what she could to replace his lost family, he missed his parents. He’d die rather than lose someone he cared for again.

Suppressing his groan of discomfort, he walked back and forth across the front of the small bridge, his boots creating uneven thuds on the floor tiles. He refused to broadcast the agony tightening around his leg like a steel band, even to his fellow Vikir and friend, Wulf.

“Scan the station,” Kral bit out, hating that his voice came out harsh. But pain shot through the top of his leg like a bolt of lightning. Thankfully, the droids wouldn’t care that he snapped. But Kral prided himself on being kind to others at all times, so he softened his voice. “See if you can isolate a woman from the others on the station.”

“I will, Sir,” the droid said.

Wulf, standing beside Kral, gnashed his teeth. “They are here.”

If Kral’s gut was wrong, if Mila and Taylor were not on board the station, Kral was confident he’d find others equally in need of rescue inside. Trafficking might be forbidden per an interstellar treaty, but that didn’t stop some species from transporting kidnapped beings to locations like this station in the outer reaches of the galaxy. Some races ignored the rules when a profit could be made.

“A ship.” Wulf pointed to a speck easing away from the left of the space station. “It is small.” His gaze met Kral’s. “A shuttle, do you think?”

“Two lifeforms on board,” a droid said. Its mechanical digits flew across the dual screens in front of it. When it glanced at Kral and Wulf, the weight of its attention made Kral’s heart stall before slamming double time. “One human female and one…I cannot discern who or what the other being is, other than it is not human.”

“Have humans made it this far into the quadrant?” Wulf asked. “Could it be someone else?”

“They have not,” the droid said. “All mates other than subjects Mila Theresa Dunkirk and Taylor Nina Willis are accounted for. A simple species, Earth does not possess ships capable of reaching this deep within the galaxy.”

“Engage the windlerdrive force field and pull the craft into our bay,” Wulf said. He leaned forward, and tendons stood out starkly on his neck. “It must be one of our mates leaving the station, Kral. There is a chance whoever is onboard is helping her, but we must assume the being is stealing her. We must do something.”

At Kral’s nod, the droid worked on the console a minar before turning to Wulf and Kral. “Our windlerdrive engagement has been blocked.”

Kral and Wulf’s eyes met. There would be no pulling the other craft into their boarding bay. Unless they could somehow intercept it, the human woman onboard could be in grave danger.

Lines stood out sharply on Wulf’s face. “I will go after her.” His back tightened. “If it is Mila, I will protect her with my life until she can be brought home to Crakair and formally introduced to you. I…I will not fail you.”

Orphaned as a youngling, no family had offered Wulf a permanent home. From the age of ten yaros, he’d been fed and housed by whoever needed him for one task or another, handed around until he’d fully grown. After that, he’d joined their clan’s guard, rising to the highest level of the ranks before he hit twenty-five yaros. He was Kral’s best friend and one of the few males he trusted.

Kral braced his palms on Wulf’s shoulders. “I will pursue our original plan with the station and if I locate Taylor there, I will keep her safe.”

Wulf’s steely gaze met Kral’s, and he dipped his chin forward. “We will be victorious.”

“We will.” Certainty rang out in Kral’s voice, because he knew… He wasn’t sure how, but he was convinced Mila was still onboard the station and the human in the shuttle was Taylor. As Wulf pivoted and strode to the back of the bridge, Kral called out. “Travel with safety and stealth, my friend.”

Wulf grunted. “Until our paths cross again.”

3

Mila

O n what she believed was her seventh day on the space station, Mila scooted down the hall in the lower passages of the glued-together hunk of scrap metal she now called home.

A creak and a shudder made her pause and press her body back against the wall. A quick peek back showed she was alone, but the blue guys had to be getting desperate. After all, they had an auction to run, and she was a big-ticket item.

Tonight, she was searching the highest level of the space station, determined to find Taylor and Lily. She’d started at the bottom and worked her way up, canvassing a few floors each time she ventured out of her hidey-hole in the back of the maintenance room. Shaped like two funnels with the big ends connected in the middle, she’d found the middle floor of the space station the longest and the others gradually shorter. She was living in something that vaguely resembled a globe. Or a death star.

Bad analogy right there.

As fear hitched up her spine like the odd centipede-like creatures she’d tiptoed around while investigating the basement levels, she poked her head into every nook and cranny she found. So far, she’d found no evidence of her friends, but that didn’t mean they weren’t locked away somewhere on the station.

She’d seen a hell of a lot of aliens. Their noose was getting tighter, and she worried they’d find her hidey-hole in the basement.

Mila had somehow remained free so far, but she might as well be stuck in a cell. She’d found no way off the station other than small spaceships parked on a docking level she had no clue how to drive.

She’d lost all hope of ever reaching Crakair or meeting Kral, which made her sad when she thought too hard about it. Would he look for her or write her off and move on to a new match? The idea shouldn’t bother her; they hadn’t even met. Yet she wanted to rip out the Earth girl’s hair at the thought. Stupid to be jealous about a guy she might have hated on sight.

You didn’t hate him in the vid…

He’d been kind, smart, and hot. Extra hot with his upper body dressed in furs that revealed mountains of muscles all over his arms and shoulders. He’d also worn snug, black leather pants that hugged the important parts. Yum.

But no more mooning about Kral. She needed to find her friends. Despite needing to search the final level of the space station, Mila knew in her heart Lily and Tay weren’t on this rumbling hunk of scrap metal with her. This was confirmed when she reached the end of the hall.

A bang behind her sent her skittering around a corner. She ducked into a room and waited behind a pile of wooden boxes while what sounded like a pack of blue aliens stomped by. Had they seen her? If so, would they find her? She trembled, scared out of her mind. How had she evaded them for three days?

Once the sounds of their footsteps died down and she’d waited to the count of one thousand, she carefully opened the door and listened. When she heard nothing, she left the room.

She hurried to the stairwell on light feet and scurried down to the kitchen level, pausing partway down the hall by a window to peer out.

The sun had passed beyond the biggest planet, and darkness had exploded in the sky left behind. The planet didn’t resemble anything she’d ever seen before, with deep blue land masses and a lot of water. Would she ever know what the surface was like or would she grow old and die on the space station, hiding from the Al’kieern for the rest of her life?

Her heavy sigh bled out, leaving a white sheen of fog on the window. Turning, she slunk down the hall and into the kitchen. As usual, the cooking droids continued to work without glancing her way. She couldn’t tell if they didn’t see her or they didn’t care. As long as she didn’t pop their soufflés—or whatever they were cooking—they left her alone.

She snatched a hunk of what she’d decided to call bread off the counter and sank her teeth into it, chewing and swallowing fast. It didn’t taste the same. Nothing here tasted the same, but it was food. No matter how much she stuffed into her mouth during her nightly trips to the kitchen, she could never satisfy her howling belly.

The chef droids baked their version of bread daily, and the warm, chalky-doughy goodness dropped onto her stomach with the same comforting feeling of her weighted blanket back on Earth.

Opening the ice cooler, she pawed around and snagged two small blocks of what looked like a sweet potato but tasted enough like cheese she could pretend. She stuffed them into her loose top, loose because it would fit a bigger alien who had left it behind in a corner of the maintenance room.

She missed food that tasted familiar. She missed her friends. Most of all, she missed her home on Earth. Dad might be gone, but she’d still had a job. Friends. A purpose other than survival.

After closing the fridge, she stood on her tiptoes, looking around for fruit. There! Over by the far wall, they’d set out a bowl filled with more of the red globes she’d stolen and eaten yesterday. She had no idea what they were, but they tasted like a combination of pears and watermelon. Easing around the droids bustling through the kitchen, she worked her way to the fruit where she stuffed her pockets with as many pieces as she could hold.

She’d added a loaf of bread to her shirt when a whimper made her come to a shuddering halt. Her gaze was drawn to a cage she hadn’t seen before, tucked in the corner of the room.

Oh, no. Absolutely no fuckin’ way.

She scurried in that direction as a droid turned toward the cage holding a butcher knife. A four-armed, lavender-furred monkey-like creature cowered in the corner of the cage, wrenching on the bars, trying to get free.

Its panicked gaze met hers, and it scrambled backward, dragging its right hind leg. Snapping at the droid, it plastered itself against the back of the cage.

Mila stormed forward and snatched the knife from the droid’s grip, then chucked it toward the far wall. It impaled itself in the surface and quivered, remaining in place. If she ever escaped the space station, she could consider a job as a magician. They were good at throwing knives, right?

She shoved the droid to the side and stooped down in front of the cage door. Fiddling with the latch, she unlocked it and swung it open.

“Come on, sweetie,” she said, holding out her arms to the purple monkey. “We’re outta here.”

The alien creature leaped forward and wrapped all four arms around her neck. “Chee-chee-chee!” it said.

“Sure thing. Chee to you, too.” Mila gurgled and hoped her airway would remain open. But the creature—who she might as well call Chee-chee—was frightened; it made sense it would cling to the only lifeline in town. Besides, it could barely walk on what she suspected was a broken back leg. As a physical therapist, she’d worked with her share of patients with fractured limbs.

The monkey’s arms loosened, but it still hung on while she straightened. As she pivoted to escape the kitchen, one of the cooking droids struggled to pull the knife from the wall. Another peered into the cage as if it expected the monkey to hop back in and say kill me, please.

Mila snatched a big knife from the rack near the bread. She’d add it to her collection in her hidey-hole. She raced to the door to the hall and poked her head out to make sure no Al’kieern lurked in the hallway. Finding it empty, she raced down to the end of the long corridor.

The monkey leaped from her arms and hobbled back down the hall. It scurried around a corner and disappeared from view.

“Chee-chee, come back.” Mila’s body sagged. So much for helping her new friend. For one second, she’d started to believe she’d have someone to talk to while she splinted his leg. He would have been someone she could fight for, someone who’d help her feel less alone—a feeling that had haunted her since her dad died.

Other than the rare telepathic conversation with Firefly, she hadn’t seen him for days, not since he’d shown her the tiny room. Although, she’d noticed the lighting in some halls had dimmed as Firefly freed his friends. Did the station have a back-up lighting source? She’d only found a few wall-mounted lights in her travels.

Fighting off her sadness about Chee-chee, she bumped through the door to the stairwell and paused to make sure silence ruled. Good. Tiptoeing downward, she made her way to the loading dock floor where small shuttles pulled in to unload supplies or take the blue Al’kieern aliens to the planet’s surface.

As she passed the windows looking out toward the planet, she stalled again, and her jaw dropped.

“What’s that?” she whispered, staring at a silver ship that had appeared from the darkness, materializing like in a sci-fi movie. Was this a friend or a foe?

If only there was a way to send them a distress call.

“Earthling,” someone shouted from farther down the hall, making her jolt forward. “Halt!”

Her hand tightening on the knife, Mila bolted.

Three Al’kieern shrieked behind her, hot on her tail.

4

Kral

A fter Wulf left the bridge, Kral stared out the viewscreen, unblinking. Within a short time, a shuttle left this star cruiser, following the small shuttle to the planet.

“This action will reveal our location to those on the space station,” the droid said. “Shall I remove the cloaking?”

“Are you able to scan the station first?” Kral asked.

“I have, and I pick up the signals of sixty-three lifeforms, Sir,” the RT34 droid said. “They have engaged their blocking mode, and I am now unable to identify specific species. What would you have me do next?”

Kral’s thick brows drew together. “Bring us to a halt and hold our position.” His fingers traced the hilt of the sword strapped to his back. He itched to pull it, to slash out with it.

To protect his mate.

The droid to his left zipped back and forth in front of the second console.

Kral did not like allowing others to handle things for him when they had a direct impact on his life and that of the Earth woman he’d been matched with. The knowledge that he was helpless, that he couldn’t control what might happen next burned through him like a chisser beetle, a creature that could randomly secrete acid.

After he’d taken over leadership of his clan ten yaros ago, he’d strived to present a firm, ruthless front to the villages he was responsible for. At seventeen, he’d had to appear able to lead. Any hint of weakness on Kral’s part could be manipulated by those who sought power. Command belonged to the person who took it, and after the fire killed his parents, Kral was determined to be in control of every situation if possible.

Sitting back in the Commander’s chair, he gave in to the overwhelming need to rub his leg. The spasm eased, but the lingering ache continued. He knew it would do so until the day he died.

He watched the station, unable to suppress the fear he felt for Mila, who must be as terrified as a wildarn infant separated from the herd. If the Al’kieern hurt her…

A growl burst from him, and the RX74 droid turned his way.

“Sir?” it asked.

“Nothing,” Kral said. He pressed his lips together, and his sekairs, large defensive scales that could shoot darts, spiked on his shoulders, lifting the sections of his hide shirt that had been cut specifically to allow this action. If he felt threatened, poison would lick up the tips, and when his body threw the segmented darts, they would take down an enemy with a single blow.

As the star cruiser crept closer to the space station, Kral’s jaw tightened.

“Remove the cloaking,” he said. He fidgeted with the handle of his broadsword again, the tip of it nestling low on his spine.

Some would assume the weapon was ceremonial, due to the polished golden handle and highly hewn blade. In many ways, it was, but Kral had honed his skill with the weapon after many yaros of practice. His ability with his blade had saved his life on more than one occasion.

“Excuse me, Sir,” the RX74 droid said. “If I may?”

“What is it?” Kral asked.

“I have circumvented their blocking and completed a broader scan. The scan is imperfect, but the controls sense one unusual lifeform on board the station. This one being is not like the others.”

“Explain.”

“It is a human female.”

Mila.

“I assume the rest are Al’kieern?” Kral asked.

“Yes,” the droid said. “It would appear so. Our sensors also pick up the signal of thirty-eight ST droid units. Older models, but they bear mentioning.”

“Any security droids?” They would present a deadlier threat than any other ST model.

“Two, Sir. The rest are ancillary staff.”

Not much of a security detail, but they wouldn’t expect a star cruiser to enter their airspace and challenge them.

On this ship, Kral utilized a staff of ten droids. Three on the bridge, two in the kitchen, and the rest in maintenance and housekeeping. A ship ran smoothly with a good crew, and Vork had made sure Kral was well-outfitted before Kral departed Crakair.

Kral leaned forward, keeping his voice low. “Please be safe.” The worry he’d suppressed during the journey from Crakair came through. He’d lost his parents…

He couldn’t lose his future mate, too.

He only knew her name, but he felt a connection to her. If only things had gone as they should have. Then he would be bowing to her, taking her hand, and showing her the world he could offer. For a brief time, he’d allowed himself to dream he could be with someone who might grow to care for him. Someone he could protect and keep safe.

More than anything, he wanted to let down his guard and be Kral the male, not Kral the enforcer, Kral the leader, or Kral the untouchable. He wanted to show Mila the youngling person he’d been before his parents were wrenched from him and he was forced to take command of his clan.

Soon, Mila.

“Detecting power-up in their defense systems,” the droid to Kral’s left said, returning his attention to where it needed to be: on what was happening around him.

“Shields up,” he barked.

“It is done,” the droid said.

Kral leaned forward and activated the com on the small commander’s dash with a tap of his finger. “This is Kral Lilgat Adhoh Shiel’qoin of the Star Cruiser Adire 3, hailing the Al’kieern Space Station.”

Tension licked through the air like a bolt of lightning, and his sekairs flipped up, the tips primed with poison.

Silence ticked on so long, he worried his naanans would gray while he waited. Would the Al’kieern answer?

When a crackle came through the speaker, Kral’s only response was the twitch of his finger on the armrest.

“You are outside your territory, Star Cruiser Adire 3.” The grating inflection of the voice indicated an Al’kieern, not a droid, was giving the reply.

“I have come for the Earthling woman you hold aboard your vessel,” Kral stated in a voice edged with steel. “You will transfer her to my star cruiser immediately.”

“You have no jurisdiction here, Adire 3.”

They did not deny having her onboard.

The Al’kieern’s use of jurisdiction was a stall tactic. Kral’s fingers flew across the small screen in front of him, running scans that would show any transfer activity outside the main station. A 3D holoimage of the station appeared above the screen, but no ships approached or left the multi-level space station other than a distant cruiser that was passing through the outer quadrant and likely unrelated to the space station.

Kral’s lips twisted, and he bared his fangs. “The Crakairian Earth contracts say we have jurisdiction,” he said dryly. “Hand over the woman.”

“There is no woman here,” the voice sneered. “Look elsewhere if you are desperate for a breeder.”

Kral’s growl echoed in the small room. He rose and limped back and forth. “I will have to board the station.” But how? They’d see him transfer on board and capture him before he could search even one level of the enormous vessel. And the action would be seen as aggression, something he wished to avoid.

“Sir, if I may?” the RX74 droid said. “I am not able to detect an inflection in the Al’kieern’s voice that indicates he is lying. Are we confident this human female is the one you seek?”

Kral held up his palm, displaying the mark that had burned across the surface when as he’d approached the station.

“A matebond symbol, Sir,” the droid said, leaving the console and approaching Kral. It peered up at him.

“This tells me Mila is on the space station,” Kral said. “Even more, I know this in my bones.”

“If I may offer a suggestion, then?” the droid said. At Kral’s nod, the droid continued. “There could be a way, one that has a twenty-eight percent chance of success, but there are inherent risks.”

“Tell me,” Kral said, rubbing his thigh.

“We are testing a new cloaking system,” RX74 said.

Kral’s breath whooshed out. “We already cloak ships. This is not new. And they know we are here already.”

“Yes, we cloak ships,” the droid said. “Normal cloaking technology has a ninety-eight percent success rate.” Its mechanical arms splayed out. “Our latest venture includes cloaking individuals and transferring them from one location to another. The system still produces more error than accuracy, which is why the Crakairian High Council has asked us to continue our studies before trialing with larger subjects than hand-sized creelets. The small creatures appear better able to withstand the transfer.”

“I will do it,” Kral said. His hand went to the hilt of his broadsword as it always did when agitation coursed through him. His gaze met the droid’s. “Now.”

Kral checked to ensure he had strapped on his other weapons, but it was a gesture for reassurance, not because he had doubts. A Vikir never left the clan unless he was fully armed.

“I should add that your odds of successfully assaulting the station and surviving an attack are less than twenty-two percent,” RX74 said. “The odds of rescuing the Earth female, assuming we are correct in our assumption that she is on board the station, are less than twelve percent, depending on where she is being held.”

A leader should let others take on situations like this, not do them himself, but Kral had no choice. He could not send droids and risk harming Mila.

“Why have the tests failed?” Kral asked.

“We experience a technical error,” the droid said. “Our transfers are smooth. The test subjects arrive safely, but the cloaking mechanism does not withstand the transfer for more than a few seclars. That is the true flaw we have been unable to isolate and fix.”

“Then it is not a true cloaking,” Kral said, his frustration bleeding through his voice. Each seclar he waited was one less he had to locate Mila. If the station raised full shields, he’d have no choice but to attack.

“But it is a true cloaking,” the droid said, unperturbed by Kral’s irritation. But it wouldn’t be upset. Droids felt nothing. Their ability to complete tasks without letting emotions cloud their judgment was why they were used extensively by the spacefleet. Most star cruisers were staffed with only a few Crakairians and the rest droids. “In our trials, the creelet is transferred from one vessel to the other without detection.”

Kral stepped toward the droid. “You are saying you can cloak me and transfer me into the station, and they will not see me arrive, however—“

“Within seclars, the subject is no longer cloaked,” the droid said. “We would, of course, if you chose to take this option, transfer you to the safest location possible.”

“A stairwell. Or somewhere in maintenance.” He stiffened his spine. “I am ready.”

The matebond symbol on his right palm pulsed. He was losing his ability to think rationally when his mate’s life was in danger. Yet this wasn’t about possession or promises made between distant planets. Or even about making an heir, though after meeting the Earthling females at one of the other matched Crakairian male’s home, the idea of fucking with an Earth woman intrigued him. This was about ensuring a vulnerable person under his care was safe. Protecting her to show he would not fail another.

“I will also mention, Sir, that there are other options,” RX74 said.

“Name them.”

“You could send a droid in your place.”

Kral never trusted others to do something he needed to do himself. A lost droid could be replaced, but if the Al’kieern caught and eliminated the droid, they would be wary. The element of surprise would be lost. “Not an option.”

With a surprising huff, the droid continued. “There are three other star cruisers within seven daela’s travel. With a full force, the Al’kieerns will have no choice but to back down and hand over the woman.”

“Even one daela could be too late,” Kral said. “How long until you can complete the transfer?”

“It will take ten minars to cloak you, but only seclars for the transfer.”

A blink of the eye, then.

Kral bowed. “I am ready.”

“I should mention the other minor issue we have seen with transferred creelets.”

“What?”

“Two percent lose consciousness within seclars of arrival.”

Two percent was nothing. “I will take that chance.”

5

Mila

A fter almost getting caught—again—in the hall, Mila evaded the Al’kieern by racing along the obstacle course she’d mapped out within hours of breaking free. The course included climbing through ceiling ductwork and shimmying on her belly beneath rows of supply cabinets. After she was confident she’d lost them, she scurried to her hiding spot in the back of the maintenance room.

Hours later, she crept back out, because…

Mila was determined to take her first bath since she’d been kidnapped, and nothing was going to stop her from sinking into the water and soaking for at least an hour. She’d wash her hair! Shave her pits with one of the knives she’d stolen from the kitchen. And then she’d soak some more.

Lugging the final bucket of water, she scooted sideways and shimmied between the pile of wood and the wall, snarling when she caught her shirt on the edge of one of the boards. With a huff, she broke off the sliver of wood and scowled at the new hole in her shirt. She’d stolen two complete outfits over the past few days, but they were wearing out fast. At this rate, she’d be naked in no time.

The clothing hung off her body because it wasn’t made for humans. She’d discovered if she knotted the extra sleeves around her middle and ignored the holes in the back that were made for wings, she could move okay. As for the pants—with a hole for a tail she did not possess—she rolled them up to her knees.

Alien capris, right?

She snapped off the splinter and pocketed it in case she needed it later. Her heavy sigh rang out. While the woodpile made a great cover for her hidey-hole, who needed wood in space? Outside of building material—which made no sense as everything on the station was made of plastic, or burning wood in a fire pit, what use was all this stuff?

After Firefly showed her the tiny compartment in the back of the room, she’d cleaned it out, distributing the items here and there so it appeared casual, and then slowly collected possessions over the past three days. Her two outfits. A hunk of foam that served as a bed. Oddly enough, two towels—which made decent blankets. And knives from the kitchen. If only she could steal one of the zapper sticks they’d used on her and Lily. Then she could knock out the Al’kieern when they got too close.

In the back of her compartment, she’d found a flat half-barrel that vaguely resembled a horse drinking trough. She’d evicted the spiders. It figured even spiders existed in space. Couldn’t avoid those babies by leaving Earth, now could she?

Yesterday, during her exploration of the ship, she’d located a bucket. Huge score right there.

She opened the door to the small room and scooted inside, where she poured her tenth bucket of water into the tub, making it full enough water would slosh around Mila’s waist while she sat. The water was relatively warm, a bonus. The last time she’d done a quick wash—two days ago at the janitor’s sink—only cold would come out of the faucet. This time, she’d lucked out with tepid.

After stripping, she climbed into the tub and sank back against the side with a groan.

“Oh, shit, this feels wonderful,” she said. Using her fingers, she washed from top to bottom. Then she rinsed her hair a second time until it squeaked.

Closing her eyes, she tipped her head back and relaxed. “Damn, this is awesome. No bath bomb, but I’m not complaining. Who would have thought a simple bath could feel so wonderful?”

A soft sound made her pause, and her eyes slit open.

Gulp.

A tall, green alien male dressed in furs that barely covered his chest and tight black leather pants had appeared at the foot of her tub like he’d been beamed into the room. His dark gaze traveled down her body, taking in her boobs peeking above the waterline.

She slunk lower, but that only lifted her crotch higher.

Shit.

Like she’d pressed it against a hot stove, her right palm burned.

“Ouch!” She flipped her hand over, and her mouth dropped when she saw a gleaming gold symbol appearing on her palm.

She’d read about these before.

A matebond brand.

“What…?” How had it appeared on her palm? She’d assumed women were marked in some way once they’d agreed to stay and marry their Crakairian mate, because magically appearing symbols only existed in fantasy books. They didn’t appear just because she’d met some random, green alien guy.

“Dreafillar,” the dude said gruffly. His lips curled back, revealing sizeable fangs, and he gave her a short, courtly bow that was oddly appealing despite his caveman outfit.

“I, um…” Damn, she was stuttering, but she couldn’t seem to force words out of her mouth. She should be screaming, though that would be stupid when she was in hiding. Or she should be jumping from the tub and grabbing one of her knives. In fact, she…

Wait.

Dreafillar—the Crakairian greeting from one mate to another.

“Since there is no protocol droid near to make the introductions,” he said, staggering to the side before righting himself. “I must do so…myself.” He bowed again. “I am Kral Leglette…” He frowned. “No. I am Kral Lilgat Adhoh…Shiel’qoin. I have come to rescue you, Mila Theresa Dunkirk.”

Her jaw remained ajar. “This is…“ Highly unusual. Wild and exciting.

Weirdly erotic.

Realizing he was still studying her naked body, she slapped her hands over her crotch then moved them up to her boobs. If only she had three hands to cover all the bases.

“How did you get here?” she asked, her voice coming out wispy.

“I have…” Blinking, he frowned, and his thick eyebrows wedged together. Large scales on his shoulders lifted and fell, fluttering in agitation. His deep black pupils encircled with Caribbean blue widened. “I have…”

What was happening?

“Are you okay?” she asked. Maybe he needed rescuing more than her.

“I am sorry, but…” His eyes rolled back in his head, and his arms collapsed at his sides. With a soft hiss, he keeled forward.

He landed on top of her, and water sloshed over the sides of the tub.

6

Kral

K  ral woke with his nose pressed between the mounds on Mila’s chest and his right hand buried between her thighs.

For a minar, he couldn’t remember what had happened or how he had ended up on top of her. Oh. The transfer. Losing consciousness. Falling forward. Of course he would be among the two percent.

Matebond blood surged through his veins, and his body heated in response to her sweet scent and soft flesh beneath him.

Heille.

Embarrassment clogged his veins for the first time in yaros.

“I am sorry,” he mumbled gruffly, his fangs grazing her skin. She smelled like jinjin fruit on a warm summer’s day. “I… I am not in full control of my actions.”

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

“I…the transfer.”

After meeting Earth women and seeing their differences when compared to Crakairian females, he’d looked forward to discovering if hair felt like naanans. And if Earthlings were all as petite as Lily, Sadie, and Evie. He’d also teased himself with the possibility of viewing his future mate’s chest mounds.

He stared at her chest, and he discovered the cloaked transfer may have messed with his tongue in addition to his mind. “Crakairian females do not possess such unusual appendages. I have heard of the fleshy lumps. They are called…beasts? Yes, that is it. Beasts.” He was not sure why they would be called that, but what did he know? They could be beastly.

She snorted. “You’re kidding me, right?”

“Anyway,” he said. “I have heard they are for suckling an infant. So odd. Crakairian females feed their young through fleshy tubes that emerge from their abdomen after birth.”

“I see,” she said. She flicked her hand toward him. “You um…”

He’d also looked forward to touching her unscaled skin, but never like this.

“Hey, you’re not moving. Are you okay?” she asked. Her hands fluttered beside his head, but she didn’t touch. “You fell. You were unconscious there for a minute. I, um, couldn’t move.”

He grunted and, as he shifted on top of her, his fangs grazed the soft tissue on the top of her right beast. A small, pink nub pebbled in the center. Had he caused this possibly unwelcome action?

“Kral?” She squirmed beneath him.

He grunted again and shook his head, hoping to clear it. His naanans appeared to have a will of their own. They glided along her arms and neck, and one teased across her left beast, aiming for the pebble.

She moaned softly, and when he looked up, her pupils had widened.

“What…what…?” she said. “You… This can’t be happening.”

“Me?” He studied her flustered face, unsure why she appeared upset. Well, other than the fact he was lying on top of her.

“Yes, you.” Her hands dropped onto his shoulders and stroked. Perhaps realizing what she was doing, she lifted them quickly again, holding them aloft. “Is swan diving on top of a potential mate part of the courtship rituals?” Humor danced in her voice.

“No. I am terribly sorry.” Hands braced on the sides of the tub, he lifted himself, but he couldn’t stop staring down at her. “I introduced myself, did I not? I cannot remember.”

A smile twitched across her lips. “Yes, you did introduce yourself.”

“Good.” While the setting was unusual, he dipped his head forward to continue the first stage of courtship. “Dreafillar.”

Since Mila was lifting her head at the same time, their foreheads banged together.

“Ow,” she groaned, rubbing the circle of redness blooming on her pale skin.

“Again, I am terribly sorry.” Embarrassment crashed through him, and he broke out in a sweat.

He’d come here to rescue his mate, and now she would tell him she was not interested in being courted by a bumbling Vikir warrior. Heille, he could not unscramble his brain enough to get off her. The star cruiser droid had been right. “I am among the two percent who lose consciousness after a cloaked transfer and apparently, one who also loses his inhibitions.”

She blinked slowly. “Two percent, you say?”

He dipped his head, being careful to avoid impacting it with hers. “I am sure my inhibitions will return to full force soon.”

“I’ll…look forward to that.”

Did he hear laughter in her voice? He couldn’t tell, and it was best not to assume.

“Maybe you should…uh…” Her hand flicked between them. “Get off me?”

“Oh, yes.” He tried to shift sideways to climb out of the tub, but their feet tangled together. His wounded leg spasmed, sending his foot shooting along the bottom of the metal surface. His hands slid off the sides of the tub, and he flopped back down on top of her again.

The air whooshed out of her lungs.

“I do apologize,” he groaned. He pulled his fingers out from between her legs. As he lifted his hand to reach for the side of the tub again, it brushed the pebble on her beast. “I mean…” He frowned, trying to make his mind work.

“Kral,” she moaned. “This…This…”

While mortification had become his best friend, his cock had decided finding her lying beneath him meant he could bypass the courtship and marriage and get right to the fucking. He had a steel bar in his pants.

“Oh, shit.” Her cornling blue eyes widened. “Fuck. You’re turned on by this?”

“You are not?” No. He had not said that. Please.

“Um, probably not.” Her cheeks grew as red as the mark on her forehead.

A bloosh. That was what it was called. “You are blooshing. Human skin colors when the person is…embarrassed.”

“Okay, shit, maybe I’m a little turned on by all this? But it’s just…the moment. Me. You. All this wetness. Let alone that pipe in your pants.” Her eyes half-closed. “I’m dreaming, right? That’s what this is. I fell asleep in the tub and I’m having the most amazing dream about an alien dude who says he’s Kral. This isn’t real. You’re not real. It’s not real.”

“I am real. As is…it.” He slid his tongue along his lower lip, eager to taste her. He needed to stop this train of thought immediately.

“Your tongue,” she said. “Damn. It’s forked on the end. And long.”

“There are many uses for my tongue.”

“I bet there are.”

He swore he heard sarcasm in her voice, but he must be mistaken. He needed to get off her, rescue her, take her to his ship, and lie down until his brain cleared.

She squirmed beneath him. “Okay, dream alien. Time to get out of the tub.”

“You are right.” His black naanans were long, a few reaching nearly to his waist. While he reached for the sides of the tub again, two naanans drifted to her beasts. The pebbles, they intrigued him.

“Perhaps your beasts are for more than a youngling’s sucking,” he said before he could shut off his tongue.

“Honey, don’t you know it.” She rolled her eyes. “Talk about an introduction, dude.”

“I am Kral. Your mate. Not dude, though if you wish to use dude as a pet name for me, I will allow it.”

“You will, huh?” He did not miss the irony in her voice. “Dude isn’t a pet name.”

“You may call me whatever you wish. Even this…honey? That means sweet bee juices.”

She frowned before her face cleared, and she laughed. “That’s you for sure. Sweet bee juices.”

“I am happy to have given you a reason to smile,” he said. “Even if it means I am called bee juices.”

Her snort of laughter made her body shake. “I can’t say that I’ve ever had a first date like this before.”

“First date.” It came out as a statement, not a question. He liked that they were already proceeding with the courtship. He had greeted her correctly. Once they were back on his ship, he could proceed with the rest of the rituals.

Although… While there were no zinters in the water, this was very close to a zinter bath.

“Soon, I must emulse your feet with the boodler,” he said, thinking of the next step in his courtship.

“I’ll…look forward to it.” She grinned, and he found the fang-less gesture enthralling.

He had made her smile, no one else.

Taking care, he climbed out of the tub, trying not to put too much pressure on his leg that throbbed dully. As he stood, water beaded on his furs and drizzled down his pants, pooling on the floor. Not the way he had intended to look when meeting his mate for the first time, but she had been kidnapped. They were on an enemy space station and needed to escape.

At least his head was clearing.

He bowed and swept out his arm. “As I said, I have come to rescue you, Mila Theresa Dunkirk.”

She held up a finger. “Hold that thought. I need to get dressed before we go any further.” Her gaze fell to his pants. “Jeez, I guess I wasn’t far off with the 3D printed dildos.” When her eyes met his, she smiled. “Is it purple?”

He did not know what a dildo was or what she was asking, but he was eager to please her, especially after messing things up by falling on top of her. “Yes, purple.”

“All the time or just when it’s…” Her gaze drilled his groin. “Enlarged.”

Oh… “Not purple.” He rubbed his arm. “I am a rich green all over my body.” He reached for the fastener of his pants. “Would you like to see?”

“Slow down,” she said with widened eyes. She fanned her face. He did not understand how she could be overheated when the room was cold. Especially for someone wet like him. “Hold the cock show for later, okay? If you’ll turn around, I’ll get out of the tub.”

“I have already seen—”

“Kral.” Warning rang out in her voice.

He spun to face the wall. Earthling females. Were all of them as complex as his mate?

Splashes were followed by rustling.

“Give me a sec to dry off and dress, and then we can move forward with your rescue,” she said.

Did he hear teasing in her voice? He gnashed his fangs, wishing he could interpret her current tone. In the ten yaros since his parents had died, he’d struggled to feel confident, respected, and in control.

Now one slip of an Earthling woman sent him spiraling in every direction. He’d enjoyed touching her, and he had enjoyed their playful conversation in the tub. But he didn’t like feeling this unsettled. His belly fluttered worse than an aspila tree in a stiff wind.

He heard more shifting of material. “I appreciate you showing up, by the way,” she said.

“You are my mate.” What else would he do?

“What if you’d popped into the room and found Taylor or Lily here instead of me?”

“Lily is with her mate, Jorg.”

“Really?” Mila shouted, and he read relief and happiness in her voice. “She is?”

“Yes. Really.”

“I am so glad. What about Tay?”

He assumed she meant Taylor, the third of the group kidnapped. “Wulf is seeking her at this minar.”

“Her Crakairian match. Cool. Things are suddenly looking up.”

“Wulf is my friend. He is very dedicated.” There was no one else Kral would ask to cover his back. “As we approached this station, a ship with a human female and one other life form flew toward Yarris, the planet beneath us. Wulf took a shuttle and followed. Assuming this is Taylor, he will locate her and bring her to Crakair.”

“Do you think it was her?”

“I do.”

“You don’t know how good hearing this makes me feel.” Her voice choked off. “I’ve been worried about them. I looked everywhere on the station but couldn’t find them.”

“Taylor will soon be safe.” He had to trust in this. Had Wulf located his mate already?

When Kral returned to his ship, he assumed there would be a message from Wulf waiting.

Her gasp rang out. “Whoa. That’s quite a sword you have there. I just noticed it.”

He tapped the handle sticking out from the sheath lying along his spine. “This is a titar sword, made of trinar steel.” Not many Vikir carried a weapon made for fighting a vengeance, but Kral had sworn to keep it with him after his parent’s death. It was one of the few things he’d found among the smoldering ruins of their home and had been his father’s.

Mila stepped closer and traced her finger along the sheath, making it shift subtly on his back. “And you wear this thing wherever you go?”

“It is a weapon, made to be worn. It is made to be used in battle.”

“Let’s hope things don’t come to that.” She paused. “You know how to use it, I assume.”

Did she think he would carry it with him at all times if he did not know how to use it? “Yes.”

“If we run into any Al’kieern, will you impale them for me?”

He sighed, still unsure about her tone. “Trust I will defend you to the death.”

“Good.”

“Are you finished dressing?”

“Almost.” She tapped the sheath again. “How do you sit with this thing riding on your back? You’re pretty much a scaly green Conan the Barbarian, from your leather pants to your fur shirt, to this sword.”

Conan? “I am Kral.”

She snorted. “Yup. One-hundred percent Kral.”

“You like this.” His voice deepened, and he held his breath while he waited for her answer. Would she share?

“Yes. I do.” The words came out raspy.

His cock twitched, and he was eager to feel her beneath him again. But she was right. Now was not the correct time. “The sheath accommodates movement, even when sitting.”

“That’s good.” She snickered. “I’d hate to think of you stabbing your ass.”

Truly? She had to be joking. “Are you finished?” he growled, biting back his impatience. He wanted to see her. He needed to read her face, assuming that was even possible.

“Almost. Hold your horses.”

“I do not have horses, whatever they are.”

“Nope, just a giant sword hanging down your back.”

He said nothing, though his hands flexed at his sides. How long did it take one slight woman to don clothing?

“Hold your horses means the same as don’t get your panties in a wad, though that’s a bit more derogatory than the horse comment.”

“Panties…” To what did she refer? “What are panties?”

“I guess you could say they’re a bit like a garlong. Isn’t that what Crakairian men wear?”

“We wear them during courtship.” Sadly, he had not brought one with him. Could he improvise?

“I’ve read about garlongs,” she said.

Did she speak with anticipation or did the prospect now fill her with fear? She didn’t sound frightened, but he’d quickly come to believe that Earth women were complex. Highly appealing.

Fascinating.

“If you wish, I will wear the panties for you,” he vowed. “Soon.”

She sputtered.

“Are you ill?” he asked.

“Why would you ask a question like that?” she asked through her laughter.

“You keep making a snorting sound.”

“Oh. Nope. I’m not ill. I’m just…enjoying myself. Never thought I’d say that while I’m trapped on a space station, but I am. Meeting you has been a lot of fun for me.”

After his parents died, he’d spent months wracked with pain, slowly healing. His Aunt Riella had done all she could to comfort him. She’d given him a place in her home, done what she could to help him heal, and even gone so far as to call him her substitute son. But the moment he’d recovered enough to get around—somewhat—he’d been asked to assume leadership of the clan, a role he’d inherited from his father. Although, his cousin would have inherited the role if he had perished with his father.

Kral’s parents had died while he’d lived, and he’d decided at that minar to take life seriously. There’d be no more running with the other younglings—he couldn’t run any longer, anyway—and no having fun.

But he liked that he could bring his mate joy.

“You can wear anything you want other than panties.” More laughter spilled into her voice. “Girls wear panties. Guys wear…boxers. Most of them that is.”

How did a box equate with panties or garlongs?

English was a confusing language.

“Okay,” she said brightly. “I’m dressed. You can turn around. Then we can get the hell out of here.”

He spun and took all of her in.

His mate was petite and curvy. Lush and inviting. Her hair, the color of rich tricar wood, was still damp, but it gleamed. Her blue eyes sparkled. Tiny spikes outlined her eyes, and she fluttered them. Eyebashes. Yes, that was what they were called. And she had thin bushy lines above her eyes that begged his touch.

So much hair. Someday soon, when he had finished courting her, they would be full mates, and he could touch her hair. Touch her.

He’d never dreamed a human could be this appealing.

The smile she gave him made his chest ache. “So, let’s get this rescue started. I’ve been looking forward to something like this but was afraid I’d be hiding out here for the next ten years before it happened.”

He winced. “I arrived as soon as possible.”

“Oh, you don’t hear me complaining.” She snickered. “Interesting arrival, but we’ll work with it.”

What did that mean?

Kral had never been a person who believed in instant attraction for another. Yet here he was, eager to do whatever it took to please Mila.

His mate.

“I will need to hold you while we transfer back to my ship,” he said gruffly.

“Cool.”

He blinked. “I promise my arms are warm.”

“It’s another phrase.”

“Oh, yes. I understand. Cool means delightful—“

She laughed. “Yup, sure.”

“The opposite would be warm?”

“Hot.” Her word came out breathy yet she had not been exerting herself. “That’s the opposite of cool.” Her gaze skimmed down his front, and she fanned herself.

“If hot is the opposite of cool, it means…”

“You.” The word came out of her like she was admitting something she preferred to hold back.

He tilted his head, trying to scent her meaning in the air. He caught a hint of lust, but that was to be expected with the matebond blood.

“You are attracted to me as you should be,” he said with a nod.

“Arrogant much?”

“It is true, is it not, my mate?” He advanced toward her.

She backed up a step. “Maybe.”

“You are.” He knew it.

With redness staining her cheeks, she huffed. “Now hold on a—”

“I am grateful you feel this way because I feel the same.”

Her shoulders deflated. “You do? I mean…” Her hand fluttered at her sides. “This is all so sudden, and we sure got off to a weird start, but I guess we are matched. It’s expected we’ll get along. That’s what the computers say.” Her face got redder.

This…bloosh. He liked that his human female gave him signals, because he was beyond perplexed by much of what she said.

“Just, um…” She flicked her hand through the air. “Hot is good.”

“I am good?” He strode closer to her, and his voice deepened. “I would like to be better than good. I would like to be cool.”

“Then get me out of this rust bucket and proceed with the courtship. We can talk about how hot and cool you are after that.”

He would never understand his mate.

She advanced until they almost touched. Her scent, sweet yet with hints of cinter, teased his sense. Heat poured through him, fed by the matebond blood. He would need to be patient until he had completed the courtship and proposed.

Fuck that, his body growled.

“Fucking. Yes,” he whispered.

She winked. “So soon? You just got here.” Her laughter pealed, but she sobered when he didn’t join in. He wanted to, but he didn’t know how. His stoic side competed with a spark deep within him that shouted he should laugh along with her. “Are you okay?” she asked. Her fingertip rose to tease one of his naanans, and he froze. His eyes closed against his will, and he groaned. “I’m sorry. Did that hurt? I shouldn’t touch you without asking first.”

He captured her hand in his and held it in place. “It feels…good.”

“You like it,” she said with awe.

“Naanans are highly sensual.”

“Ah.” She winced. “So I just groped you.”

“Groped…?”

“I guess it means I touched you in an inappropriate manner. Kind of like when your hand slid between my legs and your naanans…touched my nipples.” Her breath caught. “For what it’s worth, I’m looking forward to your courtship.”

His gaze caught hers. “Truly?”

“Truly,” she whispered.

“Then let us get to my ship.” He held out his arms, and she stepped into his embrace. It felt good. Right.

No, it felt hot. Cool. Whatever.

“Kral,” she said, her voice slightly muffled against his chest.

“Yes?” He closed his eyes, savoring the feel of her in his arms. Could he hold her forever?

“Kral.” Her voice came out more insistent.

His eyes opened. “Yes?”

“Should my arms be around you, too? Is that why we’re still in my hidey-hole and not on your ship?”

“If you wish,” he breathed.

“You’re the one in charge of the situation.”

Was he? Or was she?

Her arms went around his waist, and she snuggled closer. “You’re damp, but you still smell good.”

Heille. He was coming undone by a tiny wisp of an Earthly woman. He liked it. But he needed to get her to safety, and could not be found here in her hole of hidey.

With a tap, he engaged his com, initiating the transfer sequence.

Nothing happened.

Mila shifted in his arms. “Is this a time-delayed thing?”

He tapped his com harder, but they remained inside the metal box.

7

Mila

“We will need to leave your hole of hidey and venture into the main part of the ship,” Kral said with complete seriousness.

Hole of hidey. The way he twisted English was cute and sexy, all at the same time. Should she correct him? She’d never enjoyed it when someone pointed out her mistakes. It made her face heat up; as if she should be well-versed in something she had no knowledge of. The last thing she wanted to do was make him feel silly when he was trying to be a hero and rescue her. Sometimes, guys were as fragile as newborn deer. Was Kral one of those guys?

He came across beyond arrogant, but she sensed a softer side that was highly appealing.

When his hand had slid between her legs. And his naanans had landed on her breasts…

She growled. It was best not to think about him stroking her body.

While an Earth guy might have taken advantage of the moment—they’d been wet and she was naked!—she’d found it oddly appealing that he’d mostly behaved.

She needed to forget the feel of his fingers between her legs and think up a plan to get them out of here. This was the weirdest rescue she’d ever seen—on TV, that is. Who started a rescue by passing out on the girl they were trying to save?

He squinted at the silvery steel walls and ceiling that made up her tiny home. “The material must be blocking the signal to my ship.”

“Were you trying to hail the ship I saw out a window earlier?” she asked.

“This is possible.” His thick brows drew together, the scales seamlessly shifting with the movement. He had no hair there, just prominent ridges. Plus his naanans, thick, dreadlock-like appendages encircling her shoulders like his arms still did her waist. One of the naanans teased along her nape, and she swore she felt a subtle vibration. She must be mistaken. They were thick strands of moveable…sort of hair; nothing else. She couldn’t forget he’d said they were sensual. Jeez. Could she get her brain off the idea of steamy stuff for even one second?

“When you looked out the window, did you see an Adire Class Star Cruiser?” he asked.

“I’m no better at identifying star cruisers than airplanes. It was a ship. Silver. Shiny. It appeared, like in a sci-fi movie. It was invisible, and then it wasn’t.”

“We de-cloaked.”

Oh, cool. “Like Star Trek.”

“Yes, we will trek across the stars, my mate,” he said, all burly and gruff. By the way he spoke, he almost sounded shy. Did he worry she might not like him? If she’d been in his position and had passed out on top of someone she hoped to impress and then groped the person, she’d be hiding her head in a corner. Her face would be so hot, she would be able to fry an egg on it.

Aw. She liked seeing this inside peek into Kral. It made him even more appealing than he already was. Yeah, he was as sexy as an alien god, but inside, he appeared to be a regular guy meeting a woman he’d been matched with and maybe—like her—hoping something wonderful could come from it.

“Take me to where you saw the ship,” he said. “With an unfettered view, we might be able to transfer on board.”

“Beam us up, right? That’s the Star Trek way.”

“Yes, beam us up.” His dark eyes sparkled, and he bared his fangs. Some girls might find the two-inch fangs scary, but Mila found them an incredible turn-on, like she was dating a vampire who’d be careful not to drain all her blood. She did hope he liked to bite, because that would be hot. When they’d grazed across her breasts earlier…

Do not think about this now!

“I’ll take you there,” she said as seriously as she could. When his arms tightened around her, she peered up at him. Man, he was tall. The top of her head came to where he’d have nipples, if Crakairians had them. “Do we need to be hugging until we get to the window?”

His arms loosened, but he didn’t release her. “No.”

He sounded reluctant to let her go, which was flattering for a short, slightly overweight—okay, plump—woman. Back on Earth, she’d yet to meet a guy who wanted to hold her all the time. Or any of the time, for that matter.

“Stay close,” he said, taking her hand.

Their symbols touched, and sparks flew through her, centering between her legs.

She gaped at him. “What did you do? Do you have magical pheromones you dispense when our hands touch?”

The flash of his fangs suggested he was devilishly satisfied. His chest puffed. “This is our matebond blood speaking to us. We will need to proceed with the courtship, marriage, and fucking soon, or it will overwhelm us.”

Heaven help her, but she liked the idea of being overwhelmed.

“Hold the latter part of that statement, Kral, and back up a second. I don’t think human women have matebond blood. It’s regular old O positive on my end.” Courtship, marriage, fucking. Talk about speaking plainly.

Lifting her hand, he kissed her knuckles. “We are mated. This is how it will be between us always. Soon, you will not be able to resist me.”

She could barely resist him now. But she hadn’t read about this endless craving she’d have for him. She’d been told this bond thing might happen and if it did, it meant they were fated mates or something like that, but she hadn’t heard about feeling an overwhelming urge to fuck him.

Which she did.

He dipped his head, almost colliding with hers again. “This is how it will be. I am Vikir, a very old race. The blood surges strongly in my race. It has been transmitted to you.”

“Urge for what?” She shook her head before he could answer. “Never mind all that.” She knew. Jeez, she couldn’t stop thinking about it. His fingers, the uninhibited feelings that had poured through her. “We can talk about this when we’re not facing a great escape.”

“We will leave now.” His gaze scanned her small room as if seeking threats before he tugged her toward the door. “Tell me what is outside the entrance of your hidey.”

“A big pile of wood. We’ll have to turn sideways and shimmy along to get out from behind it. This compartment is in the back of a long maintenance supply room. That means you’ll find tools, construction equipment, and barrels filled with miscellaneous building supplies. No clue what they’re doing with it.”

“They are building a colony on Yarris.”

Okay. “That’s the planet I’ve seen out the windows?”

“Yes.”

“So it’s habitable. Does anyone live there already?”

“No biped species anyone is aware of.”

“You mean beings that walk on two legs.”

He frowned. “From what I have heard, there are plenty of other…creatures roaming the planet, but no bipeds.”

“Yet they’re settling on the surface.”

He shrugged. “The planet has many natural resources.”

“It’s always about money, isn’t it?” Just like on Earth.

“Many times.”

She reached for the door. “If we’re in luck, everyone has left the station and is working at the construction site on Yarris.”

“We know that is not true, but I will protect you.” He placed his clenched fist against his heart. “You will be safe soon.”

A smile curled her lips. “Thanks. How long will it take to get to Crakair once we’re on your ship?”

“The equivalent of five daelas.”

“Five days isn’t long.”

“My ship has hyper drive.”

“Do you travel a lot? I ask since you have a ship.” Would he be gone a lot, leaving her with people she didn’t know? That might be unsettling.

“I borrowed the ship from Commander Vork.”

“I don’t know him.” She frowned.

“He is a Crakairian mated to an Earth female. Evelyn. Evie. I met her before I left Crakair, as well as other Earth women.”

She worried her lower lip. “Are they happy together?”

“They seem to be. When we arrive on Crakair, I will arrange for you to meet them and you may ask them yourself.”

That eased her concern somewhat. Sure, it was intimidating to travel to a distant planet to marry a man she’d never met, especially an alien dude she hadn’t met, but she wasn’t scared or she wouldn’t have volunteered for the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service. This was an adventure, a chance to start a new life. She was like the women who had traveled out west in the 1800s, not knowing what might await her around the next bend in the trail but boldly striding forward to meet it.

As she pulled the board away and grabbed the latch, his free hand rose to his sword, and he pulled it from the sheath.

Definitely Conan.

“They have black sticks that work like Tasers,” she said with a shudder. “One touch and you’re out like a light.”

“I have seen them.” He hefted his sword, and an edge of steel gleamed in his eyes. “They will not touch us.”

“Easier said than done.” She gave him a curt nod. “Stick with me, and I’ll get us where we need to be. After that, it’ll be up to you to get us off the station.”

“You will remain safely at my back.”

He was cute, if a bit arrogant. Stern and stoic, yet bumbling. Such a strange combination. It was endearing. If such a thing was possible in a seven-foot-tall scaly green guy sporting muscles on his muscles. She liked the mix. Given time, and she could maybe love it. Love him, which was a weird notion considering she’d just met him.

On Earth, she never would’ve dared approach a guy like him. He was hot, unbelievably sexy, and he made her heart flutter. When he’d held her, butterflies flung themselves around in her belly like bumper cars. She wanted to stroke her fingertips across his skin to see if the scales were flexible or rigid. His naanan had been lightly furry yet solid, a segmented, flexible band. But she wanted to touch them again, too.

“Maybe I should lead,” she said. “Since I know where we’re going.”

He bowed slightly. “For now, I will follow.”

“And cover my back, right?”

His gaze darted to her ass. “I will watch your back at all times.”

Her face heated. He wasn’t looking at her big butt.

Was he?

Oh, God. Did he think it was too large? She wouldn’t ask. She’d never be able to ask. But still.

Please don’t let him look at her thighs.

“We’ll have to be very quiet once we’re out of the room,” she said. “I haven’t seen anyone in the storage section during the daylight hours, but I’ve heard them moving around at night, packing things up, and bringing new things in.” The hall was even busier, with traffic flowing almost 24/7. She’d almost been caught multiple times.

Too many nights, she’d lain on her pitiful bed shivering, hoping they wouldn’t discover that the steel cabinet in the back had become her Hilton hotel suite. If they’d investigated, they would’ve caught her. Poked her again with needles. Then sold her to the highest bidder.

“I’ve lived here in my little hidey-hole for three days, and I’m desperate to keep them from discovering it.” Her gaze met his, and the understanding there made her knees weaken. When he squeezed her hand, she knew. He recognized how she was feeling. Best of all, he didn’t mock her for her fear of revealing her location.

“I will not speak when we cross the outer room,” he said softly.

She nodded, biting her lower lip. Damn, her eyes were watering.

“Mila.” He said her name in a sigh.

“What?” She couldn’t look at him, because she knew where this was going.

“I am sorry I did not arrive sooner.”

“Better late than never, right?” Jeez, she’d been strong for a week and, once she’d escaped, she’d survived on her own. Why was she falling apart now?

“We have one moment before we must leave, do we not?”

They did. As long as they stayed here, they were safe. Mostly. This had become her sanctuary, the only place she could retreat to where she could let down her guard for one second. When she was foraging or out on the floors looking for her friends, she had to remain on high alert.

“Sure.” She glanced up at him, biting back tears. Why did she feel like she needed a good cry? Her chest ached, and her throat had choked off. She hated that she was giving in to her feelings.

He gathered her into his arms. “Mila.”

“Don’t say it,” she said.

“You are safe now.”

There it was. The thing is, she might never be safe again except here at this moment and in Kral’s arms. It humbled her. It gave her hope. And it terrified her. Since her mom left, she’d relied on herself with Dad as her only backup. And then he’d died. No fault on his part. He’d succumbed to the disease like ninety-nine percent of the men on Earth. He’d fought it, told her he’d make it through, but it had sucked him away like life had her mom.

Mila was afraid to love someone that much again.

Or was she? Could she give her heart to Kral, trusting he wouldn’t hurt her like everyone else had in the past?

All she could do was try. She hadn’t signed onto this to give up before she got started. She’d see this through, no matter where it took her.

Easing out of his embrace, she didn’t look up. She couldn’t look up. “Let’s get this show on the road, okay?”

He stroked her hair, his fingertips stilling on the strands. “It is soft. Luscious. I…”

“My hair?” It was hair like any other. A bit curly—okay, frizzy—when it rained. Mostly she bound it up to keep it from interfering in her life.

“I have never felt anything like it,” he said. “It is beautiful. You are beautiful.”

“Thanks.” Her face was hot. Again! She’d blushed more in the past twenty minutes than all of her life combined.

“We will go, but know this,” he said fiercely. “You are no longer alone.”

“Don’t.”

“What?”

“You’re going to make me cry again.” She’d just met him and all she kept doing was fall apart.

If she trusted him, and he failed, it could rip her heart to pieces.

Would he hurt her?

“No,” he said.

“You can’t read my mind.”

“I can guess from your face. I see hope. Fear. Vulnerability. Emotions I know very well. But know this, my mate. I will not betray you or give you cause to fear anything again.”

“Kral.”

He bared his fangs. “This is too much and too soon, am I correct?” He pressed his fist to his chest again. “I do not wish to frighten you, but I feel…” His gaze darted from hers. “Is it too soon to say that I feel for you, Mila?”

“What, pity?”

“Never.” He said it like a vow. “I am pleased you are my mate.”

“You’re going to choke me up, and that won’t do us any good. I have to remain alert and on my toes, if we’re going to get through this.”

“Lead on, Mila. I will be with you. For guidance, if you wish, but mostly, to be your sword.” He tapped the handle of the weapon. “With this.” He smacked his upper arm. “With this.” Another fist to his chest. “And with this.”

“Your heart.”

“I believe it could be yours, should you choose to take it.”

“Kral.” She kept breathing his name. His scent. Everything about him overwhelmed her. “I…”

He placed his fingertip over her lips. “No rush. No pressure. Let us get out of this, my mate, and then we will talk.”

She gave him a watery smile. “Thanks. It’s not too soon. Probably. Maybe. Shit, I don’t know.”

He bared his fangs. “It is…shit, but it is also…okay. That is an Earth word. I like it. This—we—will be okay.”

Nodding, she blinked fast to clear her eyes. Time to get this over with. After taking in a deep breath and letting it ease out of her, she stepped into the doorway and paused to listen. When she didn’t hear anything but the usual tick-tick of machinery, she slipped out, moving carefully behind the woodpile.

Kral remained with her, hunkering forward as if he worried he was so tall he’d loom over the woodpile.

When she reached the end of the stack, she dropped to her hands and knees and peeked out from behind the wood, listening.

Everything felt as it should, but she waited to the count of one hundred to make sure all was clear.

Standing, she waved for him to follow as she darted out into the room, heading to the opposite side. She wove around piles of supplies and huge crates filled with who knows what. When she reached the door leading to the hall, she turned to Kral.

“To reach the floor with the windows—and a loading dock, come to think of it—we’ll be out in the open. I try to stay away from that area whenever possible, because it sees more traffic, but there’s no avoiding it altogether if we need to stand in front of the big expanse of windows.”

“You are amazing, surviving on your own for so long.”

Her eyes smarted. She didn’t want to be amazing. She just wanted to feel safe and secure if only for a few hours. Yeah, she’d been able to sleep in her hidden room, but it had been broken sleep with her waking any time she heard a bang or sound that could be someone sneaking up on her.

“You ready?” she said, wiping her eyes.

His hand dropped onto her shoulder, and he squeezed. “I am ready.”

“Stick close, then, okay?”

He nodded.

She eased the door open and carefully peered into the hall.

Shit. A big group of Al’kieern guys mingled out there, along with two tall aliens she hadn’t seen before. They had green skin like a Crakairian, though she couldn’t be sure as the lighting was poor. During the past few days, she’d freed more fireflies, and the Al’kieern had replaced the creatures with cheap lights that barely lit up a two-foot circle around them.

Ducking back into the room, she carefully shut the door and leaned against it, breathing like she’d just run a 100m.

“They’re in the hall.” Panic lifted her voice. “We’ve got to hide.”

“No hiding.” He hefted his sword and snarled. “I will kill them.”

“There are eight or ten of them out there.”

He huffed. “That is nothing. I could kill them all with one eye closed.”

Jeez. Talk about wanting to end his life before it began. She’d just met him. Was starting to like him. Could he hold off on the suicide mission for ten minutes?

“There are also two green guys out there,” she said.

He frowned. “I must see.” Moving around her, he opened the door and poked his head partway out. He backed up and shut the door. “No green guys.”

“They were there.”

“I believe you. Describe them.”

“I only saw their backs. They were tall. Green. And wearing pants and regular shirts.”

“Naanans?”

“I think so, but I can’t remember.”

“Heille.” He paced back and forth, slashing his sword around. It whistled, and she woofed and backed up, though she was confident he wouldn’t hit her. “Who is involved with this? I will kill them, too.”

She shrugged and placed her hand on his arm, bringing him to a halt. “No need for killing, though I appreciate the sentiment. Let’s go back to my room and try later.”

He huffed. “I wish to do this. I will show you my prowess in battle.”

“How about we say you already did, okay?” It was all she could do not to laugh. He came across fierce and protective. The ultimate alien caveman. Either that, or she was giddy from lack of food and sleep. But really, why endanger their lives if they didn’t have to? “I’ll let you loose on them soon enough, I promise.” She doubted they’d get out of here without a fight.

He gave her a curt bow. “If you wish.”

“I do wish.”

He waved for her to go ahead of him, and they trooped back to her hole of hidey. The name was catchy and growing on her. Once inside, she wedged the door shut with a board she’d located for this very purpose.

“If I killed them, we could reach the window and be on our way to Crakair within minars,” he offered again, his sword still in his hand.

“Hold that thought, Cujo, although I love how eager you are to jump in and kill.” What were they going to do? From past experience, she knew the Al’kieern could hang out in the hall for hours. Or they might decide to come inside the storage room and poke through the supplies.

She worried her lower lip with her teeth.

“What is this Cujo?” he asked.

“It’s the name of a rabid dog in a scary book created by a well-known horror author.”

“I like this. Cujo.” He bared his fangs. “You may call me Rabid Kral.”

Her laughter snorted out of her. “Sure thing.” Moving around him, she sat on her bed. “We can wait ten minutes or so and try again.” Maybe in between then they could play…cards.

Because they weren’t playing anything else.

He followed her. Sheathing his sword on his back, he sat too close for her comfort.

Damn, he smelled too good.

The warmth emitted from his body snuggled her like the warmest blanket. For the first time in a long time, she could relax. She wasn’t facing this alone.

Mila tipped her head back and closed her eyes. Her brain hurt, and her body was limp and trembling. Freedom had been so close, and it had been snatched away. But it was closer than it had been since she’d been kidnapped and brought to the space station.

Kral stroked her hair and, when she leaned forward, he rubbed her back, making slow circles with just enough pressure to loosen her stiff muscles.

She couldn’t hold back her moan.

“While we wait,” he said in a gravelly voice near her ear. His breath tickled, but she liked it. “We will talk.”

“About what?”

“Your beasts?”

Beasts…Beasts… She snickered. “Actually, they’re called breasts.”

“Ah. I see. Breasts. Beasts did sound like an odd term for suckling mounds.”

Shit, this guy made her laugh. Her eyes watered, and thankfully, she wasn’t crying due to sorrow.

She leaned against his shoulder. “You want to talk about my breasts.” Not that unusual for a guy. Although, none had called them beastly outside of Kral.

“They are soft,” he said.

“They’re…” Shit. She couldn’t say fat, because they weren’t made up solely of fat. “They’re made up of fibrous…” Fatty… “And glandular tissue.”

“One day, we will grow close, and you will allow me to touch them?”

What an odd conversation. “Sure. Tell me about where you live.” She spoke low, barely above a whisper in case someone passed near the woodpile. “Where we’ll live.”

Shit. She was seriously considering going through with this.

But he excited her, unlike any guy had done for a very long time.

He put his arm around her shoulders, and his naanans joined in, teasing her jawline and neck. They were deep ebony. And long, reaching almost halfway down his back.

“My village is deep within the Ikeline Mountains, though not high in elevation.”

“And you’re their leader, correct?”

“I lead my clan, just as my father did before me.”

Did. “So, your dad is…dead?”

“Yes. My parents were killed in a fire when I was seventeen yaros. My aunt raised me after that.”

“I’m sorry.” It must have been horrible. She couldn’t imagine losing someone she loved in a fire.

But she did understand loss. She gulped as memories crashed through her. “My mom left my dad—and me—when I was ten. My dad died from the disease. I… I miss him a lot.”

After that, there had been nothing keeping her on Earth. She’d cut any other ties when she boarded the spaceship.

When she closed her eyes, all she could see was herself sitting at her father’s bedside while he choked out his last breath. His eyes opening and meeting hers. His whispered words of encouragement. “Even when he was dying, he only thought of me. He told me he loved me, that he hoped I’d be happy. That he was sorry he wouldn’t be around to spoil his grandchildren.” She wiped her eyes. “Shit, I’m sorry I keep crying.”

“You are feeling. It is natural to express this emotion. Crakairians do not weep but when I see how it releases sorrow, much like rain filling the world with darkness before the light. I wish Crakairians could cry.”

“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” She sniffed. “You get all stuffy, and your face is splotchy.” She released a rueful snort. “Well, I get stuffy and splotchy. Your skin doesn’t seem to reflect colors with emotions.”

“Like your bloosh.”

Bloosh? “Oh, yes, like my blush.”

“I am garbling all your pretty words. Blush is a much better way to express the pinkness rising in your face. It begins on your chest and blooms upward.”

“You’re kinda poetic there, Kral.” She peeked up at him and gave him a watery smile.

He held himself stiffly. “Do Earth women find a poetic male hot or cool or instead…I do not know the word for finding a male distasteful.”

“A jerk or…I don’t believe there’s a temperature word for jerk.”

“Jerk will do. Do Earth women find poetic males jerk?”

“Not most of us.” Afraid of what he’d see in her eyes—what she might reveal—she pulled her gaze from his. “I like it. I think it’s hot.”

His body loosened. “Then I will aim to be poetic.”

“Cool.”

8

Kral

M ila’s mumbled something and tucked herself closer to Kral.

After she’d wept, she’d drifted to sleep. He knew he should wake her, tell her they had to leave, but she’d been on guard for so long.

He wanted to give her this moment of peace. A time where she didn’t need to be afraid.

He stroked her side and murmured little stories his mother used to tell him. She wouldn’t hear, but speaking them aloud gave him comfort. Physically, he couldn’t cry, but perhaps this was his form of release.

His human female mate stirred so many emotions inside him, emotions he wasn’t sure he enjoyed feeling. What if he couldn’t keep her any safer than his parents? If only he’d woken up before the fire reached his room. If only he’d been able to reach his mother. Then they would’ve escaped together.

Instead, he was left with a hollow cavern inside his heart that would never be filled.

His Aunt Riella had tried. She had even made him his favorite foods, hoping to stir his appetite and make him feel welcome. He loved her. Appreciated her efforts. But no one could replace his parents.

Unless Mila…

He shook his head, and his naanans flared up before dropping back on his shoulders. On her shoulders. He held her gently with his arm and his naanans, sheltering her while she dreamed.

He couldn’t wait to bury himself inside her.

Soon, he promised his body. After he had finished the courtship, he would propose in Vikir tradition. She would say yes—heille, he prayed she would say yes—and then he would be able to touch her. Kiss her. Fuck her.

She stirred and turned to snuggle into his chest. “Kral,” she murmured, her voice a reegar bird feather stroking his scales. It tickled and aroused him all at the same time.

Did this tiny female Earthling know the power she had over him already?

“Yes, my mate?” He kissed her soft cheek. Her skin was both intriguing and mystifying to him as it seemed to provide too little protection. How could it withstand the elements? His scales protected him when he moved through the forest. If a predator came near, he could easily blend in with the vegetation. If a stick scraped him or an insect tried to bite, neither could penetrate the surface.

Mila’s soft skin would be too easily ripped apart. One more thing he would willingly protect her from.

“When we are on my ship,” he said. “I will proceed with my courtship.”

“Foot emulsion is up next, right?” she said, her fingers teasing across his chest.

Capturing her fingers, he kissed them. Kissed the matebond glowing on her palm. This marked her as his as much as his symbol marked him as hers.

Soon they would be together fully. Soon they could start their lives together.

“What comes after foot emulsion?” she asked.

“Orgasms.”

She coughed and gaped up at him. “Are orgasms part of the courtship process?”

He couldn’t completely tell, but she did not sound horrified by the notion. His naanans stilled on her shoulder. One had been creeping toward her beast—breast. “Would you like orgasms to be part of the courtship process?”

“Orgasms were not mentioned in the manual I studied with my protocol droid while I was on the ship.”

“Perhaps you did not reach that section before the Al’kieern attacked. Giving a mate an orgasm used to be a common courtship ritual among the Vikir. It was often completed minars after the couple met.”

She tipped her head and slit her eyes at him before blinking her eyebashes. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

“I am not…kidding. Do you not do this as well on Earth? Males do not bring women to orgasm during courtship?” He was half-teasing, but also curious.

“Nope, especially not on a first date. Hell, on Earth, women are lucky to get an orgasm on their tenth date. Sure, it’s common to sleep with a guy after a few dates if you’re serious about him, but most men are only into banging until they get off, then flopping off and snoring beside you.”

“Earth males are foolish.”

She shot her finger at him. “You got it.” Her lips twisted. “You know I’m not a Vikir.”

“No matter.”

“Yes, it does matter.”

“You bear my mark, which means you are mine. This shows we have a true matebond.” He stood and offered her his hand. “Come. It is time to escape the station together. Then we can get to the courtship, proposal, and…orgasms.”

She snorted, and when she took his hand, he tugged her to her feet. “You Vikirians don’t waste any time. Just don’t rush the good stuff and bypass the foreplay.”

“Fore…play.” He tasted the word but did not understand its meaning. “Play…fore?”

“You know. A way of warming a girl up for bigger things.”

Her gaze fell on his pants, and his cock twitched.

“I will play with your fore as much and often as you wish,” he said, sure that was the right thing to say.

“I appreciate it.” Her lips flicked upward, giving him the feeling he’d—again—said something humorous, not sexy.

This courtship stuff presented a challenge for a serious Vikir warrior like Kral. He’d forgotten how to laugh. He no longer knew what having fun felt like.

But he ached to have fun and laugh again, with Mila. He wanted to share everything with her.

He couldn’t forget the beauty of her lying in the water. Her creamy skin. Her lush hair spilling over her shoulders. And the dark patch of curls between her legs.

“Does the hair between your legs feel like the hair on the top of your head?” he asked.

She sputtered. “Excuse me?”

“Why would you need to be excused?”

“Slow down! You’re lobbing one steam bomb after another at me. Pretty soon, I’m going to explode.”

“I do apologize.” While his face could not show flames like Mila’s did, his embarrassment scorched his bones. “I am curious, and I…”

She lifted the ridges above her eyes. “Have no filter?”

He puzzled out her words. “Yes. That is right. I have no filter.”

“Welcome to the club.”

“It is not appropriate to ask an Earthling female about the hair between her legs.”

“Well, it’s not the usual thing to talk about on a date. Although, this isn’t exactly a date.”

“This date. It is like steps in a courtship?”

“Exactly.”

“If I was following ancient Vikir tradition, I would know how the hair between your legs felt as I would have already touched it.”

She fanned her face. “There you go again.”

“Where am I going again?”

“Into steamy territory.”

“And you do not like this?” He watched her face, wishing he could read her expression. Perhaps one day he would understand every crease and movement as if it was the landscape of his face.

“Um… Let’s escape the station, and we can add this to the list of things to talk about.” She started for the door.

“This is a wise idea.”

Turning, she grinned and tapped her temple. “That’s me. Wise.”

“Know one thing, my mate.”

She quirked up her brow ridge, something he found highly appealing.

“Know that I will court you. Propose and win you. And then make you explode with many orgasms. You will scream my name.” Arrogant of him, but Vikir males were known for their abilities beneath the furs.

She stomped over to him so fast, he took a step backward. “Know one thing.” Her voice deepened. “I will let you court me. Propose and maybe win me. And then you will explode with many orgasms. You will scream my name.”

“Males do not scream.”

“Moan. Groan. Whatever sounds more masculine, if that makes you feel better.” She poked his chest. “All I can say is game on.”

“This will not be a game. It will be serious.” He bared his fangs. “I look forward to shared orgasms and screaming.”

“I’m sure you do.”

He liked that she looked forward to claiming him as her own. This was how it should be between a matebonded pair.

She lifted her hand. “I’ll say one thing. You’re making my brain spin.”

“Good, because mine spins as well.”

Her hand dropped onto his arm. “So far, this courtship has been wild. When I traveled from Earth, I never imagined anything like this.” Sadness filled her gaze. “I also didn’t imagine getting kidnapped. I thought I’d land on Crakair, meet you, we’d court and then marry.” Her hand flicked out. “Nothing like this.”

“We have shared a rough start.”

“Seems like you’ve been able to turn it partway around.”

“I will turn it around.”

“Shit. I’m sure you will.”

“Shit?” His brow ridges drew together. His human female mate discussed defecation more than anyone he had met before.

She pouted. “You know what I mean.”

He did not, but he also believed it would be best to pretend he did, so he nodded.

“Anyway.” She heaved out a sigh. “I want you to wait here while I go look in the hall.”

Puffing his chest, he drew himself up. “I will not cower in your hole of hidey while you survey the battlefield.”

“That’s just it. It’s not a battlefield, and you’re in my territory now. I rule.”

He huffed, wanting to insist he should be in command. He was a leader, the one used to battle.

She was the one who’d survived here for daelas.

His chest deflated. “I will wait, but only for one minar.”

“Give me two.”

She left the room and returned before he could storm across the maintenance room. “They’re still there.”

“Good. I will kill them, we will transfer to my ship, and we will be on Crakair before you have time to blink your eyebashes.”

“Eyebashes…” Confusion filled her features before her face cleared. “Before you go out there and kill a bunch of blue-skinned aliens, can we talk about it? I mean, I think they deserve what they get. They kidnapped me and my friends and brought me here to auction me off to the highest bidder. But slicing and dicing them with your sword feels drastic.”

He leaned against the wall, frowning. “What would you have me do then?”

“How about we sneak through the halls until we reach the loading dock floor with the windows where we can see your ship. No slicing. No dicing.”

“No killing?” He’d looked forward to an honorable battle.

“You can kill in self-defense, but we should avoid putting ourselves in that kind of situation.”

“If you wish,” he said with a heavy groan. Truly, he did not understand Earthling females. Did she not wish to witness his prowess in battle? “Perhaps, while we wait, I could complete another courtship ritual.”

“Emulsion?”

“There are no boodlers in your hidey.”

“I’m not even sure what a boodler is.” She held up her hand. “Hold that thought. I’m also not sure I want to know.” Her head tilted. “What other courtship rituals can you do here in my little hidey-hole before you go Cujo in the hall? At this point, I’m not sure anything could surprise me.”

“I will perform an ancient courtship dance.” The Vikir used traditional Crakairian courtship rituals like the winter bath, but most still clung to the traditions used in his clan for generations, even courtship orgasms.

“A dance?” she said, her lips twitching. “This is gonna be good.”

“You will enjoy it,” he grated out, more nervous than he should be.

“That sounds like a command,” she said dryly.

“Am I not right?”

“Do it and I’ll let you know.”

He nodded.

He’d practiced this dance with his Aunt Riella cheering each time the moves became seamless, knowing that someday, he would perform it for his intended mate. Now the time had come. Would he miss some of the steps and make a complete fool of himself or do it as seamlessly as he had for yaros and impress her?

Like a trapped bird, his heart fluttered. What if she watched him dance and said it was not good enough? That he was not good enough? He could not let himself think this. He would do it. Then hope she smiled.

With renewed vigor, he pulled his sword, the blade hissing as it left the scabbard.

Her eyes widened, and she stepped backward. “Does your dance involve stabbing anything?”

“You are correct in this assumption.” He held the blade upright with both hands on the hilt and bowed toward his mate. “Long ago, two males would engage in the dance together. It was quite common for one of them to be impaled on the blade.”

She sat on her bed and scooted into the back corner, tucking her knees up to wrap her arms around them. “Just…uh, maybe watch out where you thrust that thing.”

“I would never cause you harm, Mila. You are my mate.”

“How long have you practiced with a sword?” she asked, staring at the blade.

“I started with a wooden sword when I was two yaros old, then graduated to steel at eight. This blade was my father’s.”

“It’s pretty.” She loosened her death grip on her legs and stretched them out on the mattress.

Pretty? His naanans flared in defense of his mighty weapon, but then he caught the twinkle in her beautiful eyes. She was teasing him.

He liked that he was starting to figure her out.

Baring his fangs, he felt laughter rise inside him, but he tamped it down. The dance must be serious.

“I just have to say, today has been much more entertaining than the past week.” She flicked her hand toward him. “Dance time. Show me what you’ve got.”

He held himself still, waiting for her to finish.

“I’m chattering, aren’t I?” she said. Sitting upright, she clasped her hands together and laid them on her lap. “You’re welcome to begin whenever you’re ready.”

“Thank you.” He gave her a bow.

He closed his eyes and composed himself. His hands should not be shaking. She would enjoy his dance or she wouldn’t. There wasn’t anything he could do about it now but put his heart into his every movement. Assuming the starting position, he held his sword in two hands again.

Mila sat forward, watching his every move.

He began slowly, his movements careful and precise, gliding his sword sideways across an invisible plain at eye level. He wove it through the air, creating the movements of the delicate jiera, a creature who bound through the woods on spindly legs, its mighty antlers thrusting up toward the sky.

A slash to the left was followed by one to the right. His muscles warmed up as he moved faster, spinning in place while the sword created seamless waves in the air.

Under normal circumstances, someone would beat a drum and a pipe would play, creating a melody that would weave through his dance.

Without a drummer or piper, Kral would have to improvise.

His low hum rang out in the room, a decent imitation of the song. He tossed the blade into the air and caught it behind his back. Flicking it to the front, he kept humming, carefully matching the song to his movements. The mournful cry of the piper universally made Crakairian females sigh. He stomped his feet, mimicking the beat of the drum.

Mila maintained a smile on her face, but when he imitated the piercing shriek of the flute, she winced.

This…wasn’t working out as he’d expected. Did the problem lie in the size of the room? He’d had to modify his dance to fit the tiny space.

The lack of piper had to be harming his case.

Why did his voice sound like metal dragging across stone? Perhaps volume was the answer.

When he hummed louder, Mila jumped.

Kral lost his rhythm while directing his blade in a mid-air, kliera curve. His injured leg spasmed, and he stumbled forward, driving his sword into the floor to stop him from falling.

“That was…”

Did he hear awe in her voice? He’d fumbled at the end of the dance. If he’d done this at home for a female, his friends would have teased him.

“It was unbelievable,” she said. “I’m not sure how to describe how it made me feel.” She tapped her temple. “I felt it here.” She pressed her fingers against her chest. “But mostly here.”

Stalking forward, he gave her a quick kiss.

As he straightened, she stared at him in wonder. Her fingers rose to trace along her lips. “That was our first.”

“Was I too bold?”

“You were too quick.”

Oh.

Before he could tug her off her mattress and give her a better kiss, she spoke.

“Do all the Crakairian men perform this dance during courtship?” she asked, blinking up at him.

“They do.” Holding his sword parallel to the floor, he bowed.

“Thank you. I don’t believe anyone has ever done something like this for me before.” Emotion clogged her voice.

He studied her face, trying to read the intent behind her words, but she gave nothing away. “You are suitably impressed?”

“Oh, I’m more than impressed. I’m completely bowled over. It was amazing.”

He re-sheathed his sword on his back and bowed again.

She smiled up at him. “What comes next in the courtship?”

“I will need to make a sacrifice.”

9

Mila

“P lease tell me you don’t plan to…I don’t know, chop up a living pig or hunt down an endangered species to impress me.” She couldn’t get the idea of a sacrificial animal out of her mind. Except… Her fingers pressed against her lips. “You mean you’re going to sacrifice yourself. Well, guess what? No. You’re not doing it, dude.”

His eyes twinkled. “See? Dude is a pet name.”

She smirked. “That would be honey or sweetie or love chops.”

“I prefer dude.” The scowl he sent her shouted tease.

“Tell me what you mean about a sacrifice.” If she kept gnawing on her nails, she’d have none left.

He gave her a short bow. “I will do something heroic in your honor.”

“Look, you don’t have to do anything like that.” Talk about embarrassing. “You’ve already impressed me.” She flicked her hand in his direction. “That was an incredible dance.”

Truly, his sword dance had blown her away. The seamless way he’d swung the blade. The intensity on his face while he moved. And even the off-key humming had been sweet and cute.

It wasn’t every day a guy performed a dance solely for a girl.

He held out his hand to tug her off the floor. “It is time to see if the Al’kieern have left the hallway.”

“You’re right. Hold off on the sacrifice until we’re…on your ship.”

He scowled. “There will not be opportunities for sacrifice on the ship.”

“We’ll find one.” She scanned the room quickly, wondering if there was anything she wanted or needed to bring with her.

“You’ll have clothing for me on your ship?” she asked. “Otherwise, I…stole a few outfits from here and there, and I can bring them with me.” She lifted her cleaner shirts. A relative term. It hadn’t been easy finding places to wash her clothing.

“There is a 3D printer on board my ship,” he said. “We will be able to create clothing for you.”

She tapped her chin. No need to bring the mattress. And there would be food on board, so she didn’t need to bring what she’d recently raided from the kitchen. Funny how she wanted to stuff everything into the big cloth flour bag she’d dug out of the bin in the kitchen and load up her stuff. Each item represented a frightening trip to the kitchen, a nerve-wracking climb up or down the stairwell, and the bruises she’d earned escaping the Al’kieern.

Her eyes shouldn’t be stinging. She should be excited about saying goodbye to this tiny room forever.

“Are you ready?” he said softly, and his hand dropped on her shoulder as if he understood. But he couldn’t, could he?

With a sniff, she turned and pulled the board out from beneath the doorknob. “The same rules apply,” she said with a croak in her voice. “If you can, try to be quiet. If we’re separated…” How could she drag him through an obstacle course when he had an injury? She’d noticed his uneven gait, though he was good at pretending nothing was wrong. “We need to do whatever we can to keep from being separated.”

He tugged her into his arms and kissed the top of her head, which was sweet.

She could see herself falling for Kral.

Once they got off the space station, and she didn’t have to watch her back all the time, she could relax and get to know him better.

They could have a real Crakairian date, whatever that entailed. Odd foot rituals or unusual foods. Whatever he wanted to offer. And then they could proceed from there.

“Ready?” she asked him. Silly to ask, because she was the one with the shaky hands and uneven steps. At his soft grunt, she opened the door and made sure there was no one in the storage room. Leaving her hidey-hole, they made their way to the door leading to the hall.

This time, there was no one there.

Just to be sure, Mila counted to one hundred before she eased out into the corridor and turned right. She pointed and leaned close to Kral, keeping her voice low. “We’ll take the stairwell at that end since it’s rarely used by the Al’kieern.” They often used the elevator which Mila avoided whenever possible.

Flaps on his shoulders lifted, but there was no time to ask him what they could be used for.

They crept down the hall, sticking close to the wall, and she jumped at every click or creak made by the metal structure surrounding her. It creeped her out to think about how fast things might be moving around her. The station held its position with thrusters, and the first time she’d heard them at night, she’d been afraid they were launching the vessel further into space. For some reason, as long as she could see the planet, she felt safe. It was only recently that she realized the sound was the weight of the galaxy pressing down on the outer surface of the structure, eager to crush the space station like a tin can when someone stomped on it with their foot.

It creeped her out.

Her heart galloped in her throat, and her breathing was ragged. At every corner, she expected to hear blue guys shrieking and feel the hiss of laser beams blasting past, close enough to graze her skin. Or the impact of a beam hitting her back.

Kral peered around feverishly, his grip tight on the hilt of his sword. While she’d been blown away by his dance that reminded her of Viking TV shows she used to watch back on Earth, she wondered if they’d be better off locating a more sophisticated weapon. Like a laser gun. A Taser. A cannon.

Yet look at her, planning to defend herself with the kitchen knife she held tight in her grip.

Reaching the stairwell, she bumped her hip against it, pushing it open an inch. Another moment listening told her no one else was using the stairs—so far. She tiptoed out onto the landing and pointed up to show where they need to go next. Five flights. Could they do it without being discovered?

More important, would Kral be able to do it with his wounded leg?

A bang below was followed by muffled voices.

Shit. Predators were in the stairwell.

Her pulse slammed up into her throat, and her palms went sweaty. Her panicked gaze met Kral’s, and he urged her on with a nudge of his head upward. The flaps on his shoulders—sekairs, if she remembered correctly from the manual—stood at attention, ready to shoot poison darts at anyone who came near. She imagined he could take on quite a few enemies at one time, but there must be a point where numbers would overwhelm him and he’d be taken down. She didn’t want to know what that number might be.

She darted up the next flight of stairs. Two flights left. Did they dare keep going to the floor they needed or should they bail on the next available level and wait for the Al’kieern to exit the stairwell?

The bang of a door above, followed by footsteps and voices, shot that idea out of the water. They’d have no choice but to leave the stairwell and take their chances.

They were so close. Kral seemed to think if he could see his ship, he could initiate their transport to the other vessel, and she hoped he was right. She was eager to be out of here and on their way to Crakair.

Racing as fast as she could, she took the stairs two at a time, a big feat with her short legs. Talk about a workout. She’d gotten more exercise in the past few days than during her last year on Earth. This would teach her to give up running.

Kral’s limp became more pronounced.

She wished there was time to stop and evaluate his condition. She’d add the task to her to-do list and the moment they were safe, she’d ask him about it. Perhaps she could help him with exercise and massage.

They reached the floor, and not a second too soon. Stomps from below and the growing volume of their voices overhead told her the Al’kieern would discover them within seconds.

She eased open the door and froze.

Shit.

Five Al’kieern, two with wings and three wingless, stood halfway down the hall, in front of the windows she needed to reach with Kral.

10

Kral

He peered past Mila and assessed the situation. They couldn’t go back down the stairs. The Al’kieern were not far behind and, from the multiple voices, there were at least ten individuals in the group. The number above was harder to discern, but the numerous stomps told him waiting here was not an option.

Better to take on the five in the hall.

He leaned close to Mila and whispered. “Are there other windows where we might see my ship?”

“Not that I’m aware of.”

Pressing his fist to his chest, he made a solemn vow to protect Mila no matter the cost.

She worried her lower lip. “You’re seeing this as your sacrificial opportunity.”

He was seeing this as a chance to escape.

“I’ve got an idea,” she said, shooting a look of fear over her shoulder, but they had not reached the level below us yet. “You see the intersection?”

About five paces down the hall. He nodded.

“If I take a left there, the connecting corridor loops around and comes out beyond where they’re standing.”

“Ah. Smart.” He grinned, proud of his mate’s clever thinking. “You will call to them and draw their attention away from me.” His gaze narrowed on the Al’kieern. “Then I will kill them all.”

She released a soft growl. “It’s time. Unleash your rabid Cujo for me, dude.”

He huffed out a stifled laugh. “I am not sure now if I prefer Cujo or dude for a pet name.”

Despite the danger, she grinned. “Both.” She tugged on his sleeve and nudged her chin upward. “Unless you prefer to run to the next landing. If we can make our way to the opposite side, there’s another set of stairs that will exit on this floor. If we’re not caught, we can work our way back down from there.”

“What is above this level?”

“Offices, a lower control bridge.”

“Occupied?”

“Sometimes. I was nearly caught on that floor two days ago, while looking for my friends.”

“Then your first plan is the best.” Tipping her chin up, he gave her a kiss that seared through his veins. After, she stared at him with her mouth ajar while he nudged her side. “Be careful, my mate. Distract them, but do not endanger yourself. At all. Do you understand?”

She nodded, her mouth still open as if he’d stunned her with his kiss.

Good, because he was equally stunned.

“When they start toward you,” he said, his hand on the knob. “You must run and hide. I will come at them from behind and…”

She gulped. “Kill them. I should feel bad for them, right? But I don’t.”

“What would they do to us?” he asked grimly.

“Me? Capture me, tie me up, and send out the notices for a breeder auction. You…?” Her eyes watered, something he’d caused too often already. He wanted to tug her near and give her some of his strength. But she was tough. He hadn’t been lying when he told her how much he admired her fortitude. She’d survived here—thrived here—in an enemy camp and under dire circumstances. “As for you,” she said. “I don’t think you’ll fare well.”

“I will do my best to survive.” Baring his fangs, he nudged her spine. “Go. I will be right behind. Together, we will do this.”

“Make it fast because…”

He lifted one brow ridge.

“We need to continue our courtship.” She rose onto her toes and tugged him down for another quick kiss. “You owe me those Vikir courtship orgasms, and I want to give you a few, too.”

A fire roared through him. He needed her. But first, he would destroy all who had threatened her.

She gave him a watery smile and hefted her knife. From what he could tell, it belonged in a kitchen, but it was a weapon. His brave warrior mate. He was proud to stand by her side. And eager to get them free from the station so they could be together.

Silent as a new dawn, she eased down the hall, heading for the Al’kieern who had not yet noticed her. Her hand clenched her knife, and she kept her steps light. At the intersection, she turned left and slipped from view.

Sounds above and below told Kral he’d be seen by the others soon. He hated waiting, not because of the others but because Mila was exposed and in danger, while he stood seemingly doing nothing.

She appeared on the other side and waved to him.

His hand rose, and he bared his fangs. Heille, he was proud of her.

“Hey, blue jerks,” she called out. Propping one hand on her hip, she kept her knife down and behind her thigh. “What are a bunch of creepy aliens like you doing in a place like this?”

Kral wasn’t sure what she meant, but it worked. Bellowing, the Al’kieern took off after her without a glance in Kral’s direction.

He eased out into the hall and chased after them, his blood on fire and his sword eager to taste Al’kieern blood.

Before they reached Mila, she spun. With a snarl, she ran toward them.

They underestimated his mate. As they snickered and lifted their arms to capture her, she leaped up. Her knife slashed out, gliding across one of the winged Al’kieern’s throats. Blue blood squirted, peppering the tile floor, and the Al’kieern collapsed, his hands clutching the lethal wound.

The others stopped and pulled their shocker sticks. While the winged ones soared toward her, the others rushed her way, determined to stun her.

Heille, no.

They didn’t hear Kral coming. His steps light, he raced up behind them. Blade whirling, he severed the head of the biggest threat, a winged Al’kieern with a laser stunner. Landing solidly on his feet with only a twinge in his thigh, Kral stabbed out, taking down another Al’kieern.

One snarled and spun, his shocker rushing toward Kral.

Kral leaped up and flipped over backward, landing in a crouch. He whipped his blade out and gouged up and through the belly of the Al’kieern coming for him.

Another grabbed Mila and shoved her against the wall. He scrambled for her knife, but she snapped her teeth and struck out with her knife, slicing deeply into one of the Al’kieern’s four arms. With a grunt, the Al’kieern kneed Mila as Kral’s sword took out the other Al’kieern with a quick swipe.

Mila shrieked and tried to stab the Al’kieern again as he grabbed her arm, grappling for the knife. Her knee rose and hit the Al’kieern, but the blue-skinned alien was not deterred. He pressed himself against Mila and hit her in the neck with a shocker.

Her eyes widened, and she gurgled. The knife fell from her hand as she went limp in the Al’kieern’s arms.

“No!” Kral snarled. He darted toward them, his sword dripping blue, his blood raging through him. A flick and Kral’s sekairs shot darts into the Al’kieern’s back. The male shuddered and tumbled to the ground, releasing Mila.

She slumped sideways and glided down the wall. As he reached for her, her head lolled, and her eyes lost focus.

He caught her and gathered her close. His blade fell from his hand, landing on the floor with a clatter, and he stroked her hair off her face.

“Wake, love.” His voice croaked. “Wake. Please.”

She stirred, twitching in his arms. Her head lifted, and she gave him a wobbly smile. “Kral. You’re so pretty.” Her fingers traced along his naanans, and he shuddered.

Now was not the time to feel desire or to laugh about her calling him pretty. He was a Vikir warrior. Vikir warriors were never pretty.

“You are infinitely sweet,” he said with a shaky laugh. He sunk his face into her neck, wishing he could take her to a safer location. When the Al’kieern had stunned her, he’d feared the male had used a voltage too high to be safe for a tiny human female like his mate.

“I will show you the world, my mate,” he promised. “Soon. But first, we need to get out of here.”

She shifted her legs, and he eased her onto the floor. He wanted to carry her everywhere, but he’d need his sekairs and sword arm free to defend them.

Clutching his arm, she took on more of her weight. “I’m okay. Gonna be okay. Soon.” Stumbling backward, she nearly impacted with the wall, but he caught her again and gathered her close.

“Hold on, my mate,” he said, stooping down to grab his sword. A quick wipe on one of the Al’kieern’s shirts to clean the blade, and he’d sheathed it along his spine.

Mila’s gaze honed in on her knife, and she shuddered. Her gaze traveled from the Al’kieerns lying dead around them before it met Kral’s. Her eyes swam with tears. “Shit, shit, shit. I…killed someone. I killed someone.” Her knees gave way, but he caught her.

He’d always catch her.

Scooping her up, he held her close. He backed around the corner, out of view, and settled against the wall. While they should flee, he couldn’t resist taking one minar to comfort her.

“Kral,” she said, sounding so lost and alone. “I killed someone. I hated them, but I avoided them. I didn’t want to kill them.”

Kral’s first kill had come when he was twelve. When his grandfather had been the leader of their people, they’d often warred with other Vikir clans. One had attacked. Kral’s tribe had fought them off, but Kral had wet his blade on the blood of another. He’d never forget the gut-wrenching pain of knowing he’d ended someone’s life.

Reminding Mila that the Al’kieern would’ve harmed her and killed Kral would do no good. She would be lost in the minar, reliving the instant when her blade had hit true. When the skin had parted. And when life had left the male’s body because of her actions.

All he could do was hold her and offer her the comfort of his arms.

He kissed her forehead, marveling at how soft skin was compared to his scales. The silky strands of her hair drifted around them.

“It will be okay,” he said.

“How can it be?” She peered up at him with tears in her eyes. “I get it. It was us versus them, but still. I can’t imagine how anyone does this on a regular basis. It slices into your soul. Bruises it. I can’t imagine that feeling will ever go away.”

He nodded. “I think one who can dismiss death no longer lives themselves.”

She leaned her head against his chest, and a long sigh eased out of her. “Thank you.”

“I will always be here for you, Mila.”

“I’m beginning to see that now.” She tipped her head back to look up at him. “We just met, right?”

He nodded, wondering where she was taking this.

“Then why do I feel like I’ve known you forever?”

“Our souls know each other.” He held up his palm, displaying the symbol, and she linked their hands together.

She kissed his knuckles. “I wish I could stay here, because you holding me feels wonderful but…”

“Once we get to my ship, we will be safe.” He’d hold her, soothe her any way he could. Courtship could wait. They could wait. He wanted to be here for her as she worked her way through what had happened, like his father had comforted him after his first kill.

The male’s face would haunt Kral for the rest of his days.

She slid out of his arms and stroked his face. “Let’s do it. Take me to Crakair, Kral. Take me to your home. Our home.”

Home.

To think she still wanted to see this match through despite all that had happened. A kidnapping, survival on an enemy space station, and now killing in self-defense. He wouldn’t blame her if, when she asked to be taken home, she meant Earth.

“Yes, home,” he said gruffly. This human female… She could shred him. If he was wise, he’d guard his heart, but how could he? It wasn’t about the matebond symbol or the contract made with Earth.

It was about them. About being together, no matter where life led.

He couldn’t wait to see what happened next. She’d…bring back his laughter. Taking her hand, he squeezed it.

They walked to the windows. In a minar, they’d be free. They could put this behind them and move forward together. They stopped at the glass and he nodded as he took in his ship, waiting for them outside. The droids would be wary of tricks. The moment he and Mila arrived, the droids would leave the quadrant and take them to Crakair.

“Hold on,” he said, tugging Mila into his arms. “Soon, we will arrive on Crakair. I will take you to my clan, and my Aunt Riella will welcome you.

“Soon,” she echoed.

As he lifted his arm to engage the com, his ship exploded.

11

Mila

“Shit. There were…” Horror poured through her, and she stumbled out of Kral’s arms and away from the window, her hands slapping against her cheeks. “My god! That was your ship, right? Your crew!” So many people dead. She couldn’t stand it. She wanted to yank on her hair. Run.

No, she wanted to curl into a ball on her bed in her hidden room and cry.

“Yes, it was my ship.” He followed her and held out his arms.

She darted into them and shivered while he tucked her against his chest.

“I do not understand,” he said. “Are the Al’kieern trying to start an intergalactic war?”

“Stealing me and my friends might have done that already.”

“This was not the first time…” He growled. “We’ve assumed the kidnapping attempts were part of rogue operations, but now…” His naanans flared out. “The droids… The ship was completely automated, but the droid crew was loyal.”

Her protocol droid on the star cruiser, TX57, had been a pain in the butt most of the time, but he’d had a bit of a personality, a mix of quirky and insistent. She would’ve felt sad if he’d been killed.

Some people might feel relief that “only” droids had been killed, but they were beings; entities like any other, even if they didn’t have feelings or a soul like people did.

“The ship is part of the Crakairian spacefleet,” he said, incredulous. “This will be seen as active aggression against my government’s military.”

“If anyone finds out.”

“What do you mean?” His naanans flared around his head. “Ah. I know what you mean. If they eliminate all evidence—us—no one will know what happened.”

“This isn’t good,” she said. She looked up, taking in Kral’s grim expression. “We’ve got to find a way off this station and get to Crakair. Then we can tell them what happened. What are we going to do now?”

He took her hand. “The Al’kieern are building on Yarris, so they must have shuttles. Do you know where they dock them and can you get me there?”

“We’re going to steal a ship, right?” She shouldn’t be feeling excited about this. The situation was scary and tenuous. This wasn’t Star Wars. “I can take you—”

The door to the stairwell banged open and a bunch of Al’kieern on foot rushed out, followed by winged guys. Their shrieks echoed in the hall, and if the Tasers in their hands didn’t scare her to death, the laser guns they held would.

A shot hit the glass behind them and pinged off, blasting toward the opposite wall.

“Come with me,” she said, tugging him around the dead aliens crumpled on the floor. “About that limp.” This wasn’t the time to look, but she needed to know what she was dealing with.

He grunted.

“New injury or old?”

“Old.”

“Sword wound or…”

“Fracture.” His feet hit the floor beside hers, and while he didn’t hold her back, he wasn’t racing ahead, either. “Three places. A fall. It didn’t heal right.”

“Can you run? We’re going to have to run.”

“I will keep pace.” His hand on her low back swept her up, and they flew faster than she’d run back in high school, and that had been record-breaking speed.

“We’ve got to go up three floors,” she said as they plunged down another hall and headed up the next with the Al’kieern in hot pursuit. “You up for that?”

“Keep going.”

A laser blast hit the wall beside her head, and hunks of material flew around them, some hitting her cheek hard enough it stung. A hot trickle along her chin told her she was bleeding.

Passing the hall she’d used to sneak up on the other aliens, she rushed Kral around a corner, and they raced down the next passage, aiming for the stairwell at the end. The lighting in this part of the station sucked, but it would work in their favor. They’d be harder targets to hit.

More laser blasts smacked the floor and walls around them, sending tile and concrete flying. They were crazy! They’d destroy the station and everyone on board if they weren’t careful.

Her lungs on fire, she slammed through the door to the stairwell as more firepower slammed into the wall to her right. Good thing they had crappy aim.

Fliers roared toward them with Taser sticks in their hands.

“Watch out for those babies,” she panted out. “They’re lethal.” The memory of being hit and slumping down the wall, unable to move her limbs or even think, would haunt her dreams for the next few weeks.

Kral spun and engaged two Al’kieern with his sword, severing a head from one guy’s shoulders.

Mila darted around Kral and slashed out with her knife, slicing deeply into the other Al’kieern’s arm. While the blue guy spun away from her, shrieking, Mila grabbed Kral’s arm and tugged him toward the stairs.

Kral snarled, probably wanting to stay behind and take on the ten or twelve aliens racing down the hall toward them, but he’d be dead in seconds.

Running could be their only chance.

She flew up the stairs with Kral behind, urging her on. His limp had become more pronounced, and she hated that he might be in pain, but there wasn’t anything she could do about it. Soon.

Unless they were captured first. No. She had to believe they’d get away.

Anxiety raked down her spine, and she tightened, expecting a laser beam to slam into her back.

They raced around a landing and flew up the next flight of stairs.

One more flight. Bangs and grunts below told her the Al’kieern were not far behind.

“This plan better work,” she huffed out.

“It will.”

She loved how confident he was. But shit had hit the fan, and it was spraying all over them.

They reached the next landing and barreled out into the hall, not bothering to look first. The goose was caught, and the wolves were snapping at their heels. It hardly mattered if they ran into more aliens on this floor.

“The airlock is halfway down, on the right,” she said. Her leg muscles screamed, and her lungs were on fire. She promised herself she’d start running on a regular basis, assuming she got out of this alive.

He tapped her back. “Keep going. I…will remain here.” He gave her a curt nod. “Once you get inside the airlock, you can hold them off.”

And what did he plan to do while she hid inside the airlock? Remain behind and hold off the Al’kieern fliers shooting laser guns? Even with his sekairs shooting poisonous darts, he’d be killed in seconds.

She grabbed his hand and tugged. “Come on.”

“Mila.” His voice held a warning she chose to ignore. No way. They were doing this together.

“You’re not sacrificing yourself for me. I won’t let you.” Her steely gaze met his.

“I will do what I must to protect you.” He shook out his shoulders, and his naanans flared. His sekairs stood at attention, glistening on the tips.

“You can hold them off at the airlock,” she said. She gnawed on her lower lip and tried to make her legs pump faster.

“And then what?”

“While you’re doing that, I’ll find a way around the lock.”

His lips twisted, and she knew he might not be mocking her, but he was coming close. “Will you do this with your knife?”

“With this.” She held up the laser pistol she’d taken off one of the Al’kieern lying dead on the other floor.

His arm went around her waist, and he gave her a quick hug. “Clever.”

Her low chuckle rang out as they ran down the hall. “I’m resilient.”

“You did not need me to rescue you. If I had not arrived, you would have done this yourself.”

Maybe. She couldn’t fly a shuttle. Short of stowing onboard a craft that put in to deliver supplies, her options were limited. She’d seriously considered finding a way onto a foreign ship, but the only one to arrive had been heavily guarded. And she worried doing something like that would flip her from the frying pan into the fire. At least on the station, she has some semblance of safety. Onboard a foreign vessel, she’d be at the mercy of the crew and captain if she was caught.

They ducked into the recessed area outside the airlock, and she peered through the small window in the door. A short corridor waited if they could find a way inside, followed by another door with a larger window. Beyond that, she spied the loading platform with shuttles parked like taxis waiting for passengers at the airport.

If they could reach a craft, they’d still need to find a way to open the hanger doors to fly outside. Then they’d have to deal with the station shooting missiles at them.

They were toast. There was no way out of this.

Turning, she gave Kral a weak smile, and the answering grim look he shot her didn’t boost her confidence.

She nudged her head toward the keypad on the wall. “I’ll work on the lock while you…”

How the hell was he going to hold off a bunch of aliens with only a sword and his sekairs?

She pressed a bunch of numbers, but the glass above kept flashing red. Figures even in space red meant no. More numbers resulted in the same result. It was hopeless. She’d tried in the past and gotten nowhere. Why had she thought now would be any different?

Stepping back, she leveled the laser gun and blasted the lock. Sparks and smoke erupted from where the keypad used to be, but the door remained ominously closed.

And the damn panel flashed more red symbols.

Shit.

Yells erupted as the Al’kieern stormed down the hall. By the number of cries, a full battalion had joined the chase. If they had enlisted the military droids, she’d only encountered once—and barely escaped—their battleship was sunk. They’d never get away.

Her chest ached as if squeezed in a vise. She should have led Kral through her obstacle course. Once they’d lost the Al’kieern, she could have brought him up here and they would’ve had time to work on the lock.

There should have been some other option. She’d done this to them. She was to blame.

But after seeing him limping, she hadn’t been confident he could run the course with his bum leg. She hadn’t wanted to hurt him further by making him crawl under cabinets and shimmy through the ceiling.

Stupid. He’d proven he could keep up. No, he’d proven he was as good at this as she was.

Her shoulders collapsed, and it was all she could do to remain on her feet. Tears stung her eyes, and she girded herself for the final battle. She wouldn’t let them take her. She wanted to be with Kral; being sold as a breeder wasn’t an option.

A blast took out a chunk of the ceiling above them. Hunks of tile rained down, stinging where they hit.

“I am sorry, Mila,” Kral said, his sekairs shooting darts. Cries from the Al’kieern told her they’d been hit, but more rushed forward to take the place of the fallen. “I wish I could kiss you one more time. Touch you. Have time to court you properly and propose. I wish we’d had a lifetime together.”

“It’s not over yet.” Though their odds were not good. “But I wish for the same things, too. Samesies.”

“Samesies?”

“When we get out of this, I’m kissing you. Touching you. I don’t know how I’ll court you, but I’m going to try. And if you don’t propose, I will.”

He watched her face as if he worried she was teasing, but she meant it. She’d only recently met him, but it felt like they’d lived three lifetimes together already.

Too bad they were about to lose everything.

“Lay down your sword, Vikir warrior,” the lead Al’kieern said, floating forward under wing-power. His heavy gaze fell on Mila. “We will take the breeder now. Customers are eagerly waiting to bid on the holodeck.”

Kral shot darts at the Al’kieern, but the blue guy lifted a shield, and the poisonous missiles deflected in other directions. Losing their momentum, they fell to the ground, spent.

Mila snarled, wishing she could sink her knife into the leader’s throat. Tears smarted in her eyes. It wasn’t fair. After days of hiding then meeting Kral, and after getting a glimpse of the future they might have together, it hurt to think it could be stolen.

The other Al’kieern jeered—at least twenty of them—and poked their Taser sticks toward Kral, who snapped his fangs and slashed out with his sword. The Al’kieern only laughed and darted away.

She leaped forward and threw her knife at one of them, impaling him in the chest. A perfect strike, but now she had only the laser gun to fight with. Lifting it, she focused it on the leader’s head. “Back off. You’re not selling me, and you’re not killing Kral.”

The leader hissed and ducked behind one of his companions. Coward. “As for the Crakairian male, we have use for him on Yarris.”

For what, labor? They’d work him hard until he dropped. They wouldn’t care that his leg was injured, that he needed therapy for it to get better.

It shouldn’t be like this, but there it was.

She refused to go down without a fight. Better to die here than be sold to the highest bidder who’d rape her to produce children.

“I don’t have any more tricks,” she said to Kral out of the corner of her mouth. Her laser pistol was ready, though, and she’d take at least one of them down before they dragged her to the floor and tied her up. Would they stun her first with their Tasers?

Tears streamed down her face, but she sniffed them back. Be strong. Fight. Show them what you’re made of. Words her father had said to her more than once when she was young. She missed him so much. If he was standing beside her, he would have charged forward with a bellow and head-butted at least three of the Al’kieern, sending them all the way to Yarris.

But she stood with another man instead. One she admired and cared for. Kral had shown her his strength, his honor, and his kindness.

Her chest ached for all the other parts of him she’d never have a chance to discover.

Kral.

Overhead, the lights started flashing. She frowned.

The Al’kieern peered at each other, as puzzled as she was about what was going on.

Al’kieern Space Station Destruction Sequence has been engaged. Repeat, Destruction Sequence has been engaged.

Shit. Who had done something like that?

The tall green guys she’d seen earlier. Were they somehow involved? Silly to think they were, but… She’d been confident they’d been Crakairian.

Kral’s ship had exploded.

Now the station?

Almost universally, the Al’kieern’s eyes widened. A few backed up, looking around as if they worried the place would explode around them. They might not be far off from that thought.

Fear wicked up her spine like a flame chasing a line of gunpowder, heading for the bundle of dynamite at the end. Tension built in the air.

“We have to get off the station,” Kral shouted as he engaged an Al’kieern in battle. His sekairs continued to shoot. How long until his body was depleted of whatever made up the poison? His supply couldn’t be endless.

“What does Destruction Sequence mean?” she shouted, though she already had a sickening idea.

Station implosion in nine hundred seclars, the voice announced overhead.

The mechanical voice started counting down from nine hundred.

Mila didn’t stop to add this up. Nine hundred was too few seclars.

With his sword lifting, Kral bellowed and rushed forward. Mila followed with her laser gun blasting. She hit a flying Al’kieern in the thigh. Like a plane with a blown engine, he veered to the right and crashed into a wall. Blue blood coursed from the wound and onto the floor.

More laser shots took out two more Al’kieern, but then she was out of charges. In frustration, she tossed the gun at an Al’kieern flying toward her with his four arms extended.

Prepare to abandon the station, the voice said overhead. Eight hundred and fifty seclars. Repeat. Abandon the station.

The light flickered again.

Would they be plunged into darkness?

As the Al’kieern gathered to charge at Kral and Mila, odd shapes fell from the ceiling onto the Al’kieern’s heads.

Mila’s mouth dropped open.

The Al’kieern started spinning around and screaming.

12

Kral

K  ral’s sword arm dropped, and he stood motionless as numerous lizzers dropped from the ceiling and plastered themselves on the Al’kieern’s faces.

“Get back,” he shouted to Mila over the Al’kieern gurgled shrieks. “Stay away from the lizzers.”

Heille. How was he going to save her from this new threat? The creatures would be on them in seclars, and it would be over.

At least thirty lizzers slunk across the ceiling, but the rest had latched onto the Al’kieern, who reeled and spun, smacking into the walls. While the lizzers dug in, the Al’kieern tried to pry the light creatures off their faces, but even four arms would not make a difference. Once attached to a being’s face, a lizzer could not be detached. An inner limb would extend toward their prey, and the appendage would work its way inside, drilling through bone, seeking brain matter to consume.

It was a gruesome way to die.

As if the lizzers weren’t a big enough threat, the door to the stairwell smacked open, and a sizeable pack of meerdregs scampered out, rushing toward where he tried to protect Mila in the small chamber outside the airlock. One of the meerdregs limped, but the others flashed eyes full of fire. When the meerdregs reached the Al’kieern, they leaped into the air and overran the blue-skinned aliens, dragging them to the tiles. Their claws dug in while the Al’kieern writhed and struggled. The lizzers were bad enough, but meerdregs, too?

What a nightmare.

The injured meerdreg broke off from the pack and hobbled toward Mara.

Kral would die before he let the beast touch her. As long as he stood on his feet and held his sword in his hand, he would defend her to the death. He tightened his grip on his weapon, prepared to take on the threat. A meerdreg’s claws could inject a toxin that immobilized their prey within minars, as was evidenced by the Al’kieern lying motionless on the floor while the lizzers feasted.

“Chee-chee,” Mila cried, stooping down and holding out her arms. “I’ve been worried about you.”

Kral gulped as the meerdreg flung itself upward and wrapped its arms around Mila’s neck.

“Hold still,” he said softly, turning. He reached for his knife, preferring a smaller blade in close combat. “Do not move and whatever you do, avoid its claws.”

Mila nuzzled her face against the meerdreg’s, ignoring Kral. “Where have you been, little guy? I was hoping you were okay, that you’d stayed free. How’s that leg? If you give me a chance, I think I can fix it for you.”

Kral’s jaw dropped further as the meerdreg rubbed its face against Mila’s and purred. He’d never seen anything like it. Meerdregs attacked. They did not cuddle.

Yet this one did.

“Looks like my friends came through for us,” Mila said, smiling up at Kral.

A glance at the lizzers showed Kral they’d left the Al’kieern and were oozing across the floor toward him and Mila. Would a direct assault on his part make any difference? How could his mate control creatures that had never cooperated with anyone outside their species? If he wasn’t seeing this with his own vision, he would not believe it had happened.

“I freed Firefly the first day I arrived,” Mila said, smiling at the single lizzer that had left the swarm and oozed along the floor, close to her feet. Shifting the meerdreg around to hold it on her hip like a harmless youngling, she held out her hand to the lizzer.

Kral hissed. He ached to pull her backward, to put himself between her and the numerous threats, but from the minar he’d met her, he knew he should trust the woman he ached to claim as his forever mate. “There you are, Firefly. Thank you so much for your help. Kral and I are eternally grateful.” As she stroked the lizzer’s back, she looked up at Kral and winked. “Right?”

“Most definitely,” he said quickly, giving the pack of meerdregs and the swarm of lizzers a deep bow. “I am very grateful to the lizzers and meerdregs for their help.” Could he be any more shocked?

She rubbed the lizzer on the underside of its belly, where its appendages projected after it had latched onto someone. He’d never seen a lizzer quiver from someone’s touch. He’d never seen anyone give a lizzer affection. How would anyone believe a lizzer would welcome it from a person?

The creature appeared to adore Mila.

He could understand that. He was well on his way to adoring her himself.

Six hundred seclars. The call coming from overhead jolted through Kral like lightning. Abandon the station. Abandon the station. Destruction Sequence is in progress. Repeat, Destruction Sequence is in progress.

“We need to leave the station,” he said.

“I messed up the keypad,” she said. After giving the lizzer—Firefly—one last pat, she stood. The meerdreg continued to cling to her. Would it wish to come with them?

The other meerdregs gathered behind the lizzers, and more poured from the door at the end of the hall, joining the ones crowding behind him and Mila. The lizzers clicked and snapped, and the meerdregs cheeped, as if the two species communicated and came to some sort of agreement.

Shrugging the creatures off, as there was no way he could defeat them if they attacked, Kral took in the smoldering ruin that used to be the keypad. Mila had made the right decision trying to shoot her way through, even if it hadn’t worked.

“Can you get it open?” she asked, moving up beside him. She shifted the meerdreg on her hip. Its fingers clung to her shirt. He wanted to remind her to beware of the claws, but it appeared the creature was being extra careful. “I think our time is—”

Five hundred seclars. Five hundred seclars.

“Running out,” she finished.

Could he somehow pry the door open? Sheathing his sword on his back, he stepped forward. He wedged his fingers into the slender gap and strained, his muscles bulging and the cords in his neck standing out sharply.

Turning, Mila hugged the meerdreg closer, fretting. “Can you do it? Please,” she whispered. “We need to find a way through there and get to a ship.”

“I…do not…know.” He pulled harder, but it would not give.

The meerdreg called Chee-chee hopped from Mila’s arms, yelping when it landed on its injured leg. It limped over to a small panel below the keypad, and with its claws, pried off the cover. It climbed inside and scrambled through the wires.

The door to the airlock slid open.

“Whoa,” Mila said. She stooped down and tucked her hand into the opening in the wall to stroke the meerdreg. “Chee-chee, thanks! You’re the best monkey in the world.”

The meerdreg chirped as it hopped out of the hole and back into her arms.

She stood and took Kral’s hand. “Lead the way? We need to get out of here.”

Four hundred seclars. Four hundred seclars. Abandon the station immediately.

“Doing it,” she said as he tugged her forward.

The lizzers and meerdregs followed en masse. They glided around the couple, pouring toward one of the shuttles.

“Let’s take that one,” Mila said, pointing to a sleek model. “It’s sporty. Always wanted to ride in a Maserati, and this is as close as I’m going to get.”

The meerdregs and lizzers rushed toward two of the shuttles.

“Where are they going?” she asked. “They need to come with us.”

The last thing he wanted was to ride in a small spaceship with two large groups of deadly creatures.

He’d be prosecuted if he brought them to Crakair.

“They are indigenous to Yarris,” he said. “Perhaps that is where they should go?”

“They can’t fly a ship themselves.”

“I will…” He ran to a control panel on their left, and his hands flew across the dials. The hatch to the shuttles closest to them slid open as did the hatch to the small star cruiser Mila had selected. “I will program the ships to take them to Yarris.”

Three hundred seclars. Three hundred seclars. Abandon the space station. Abandon the space station.

Behind them, a cluster of Al’kieern banged on the outer airlock door Kral had closed.

“Should we help them?” Mila asked, worrying her lower lip with her small, white teeth.

“Not until we have secured our escape.”

Two hundred and seventy-five seclars. Two hundred and seventy-five seclars.

“We need to leave,” she said with panic in her voice. “Can we get off the station before it blows?”

“All we can do is try.” He snatched up her hand as he rushed toward the star cruiser. “I added a delayed opening to the airlock door. This…should work.”

The meerdregs cheeped and jumped into a shuttle.

“What about you, Chee?” she asked the meerdreg she held. “You with us or your friends?”

He clung tighter to her neck.

“Okay, then. Hold on!”

Behind them, the Al’kieern continued to bang, and their cries grew desperate.

Why did Kral care if they died? They’d been a part of the kidnapping, even if they hadn’t orchestrated it themselves. They wouldn’t show him sympathy if their positions were reversed. And they’d happily kill him and auction Mila off, given another chance. For all Kral knew, they had plans to kidnap other Earthling matches, and freeing them would facilitate that action.

But the approval in Mila’s eyes meant the world to him. That was why he’d made the effort.

He and Mila rushed up the ramp and into the cruiser, and the hatch closed behind them. The meerdreg leaped from Mila’s arms. It hobbled ahead of them and turning a corner, it continued out of view.

“Chee-chee?” Mila called, and the meerdreg chirped but didn’t join them. “Hmm. While I’m happy he’s coming with us to Crakair, I’m surprised. I’d think he’d want to return to his home planet.”

Kral shrugged. The animal had helped them. If it wanted a home on Crakair with them, he would welcome the creature into their dwelling. He doubted the Crakairian Council would care about one meerdreg.

“Where should we go?” Mila asked as they moved through the small airlock and into the main part of the ship.

“Bridge,” he bit out, pulling her to the right when they hit the hall. They tumbled into the small cabin in the front of the ship as the station continued to chant out the countdown.

Two hundred seclars. Two hundred seclars. Safety can only be achieved by putting a klek’s distance between your shuttle and the station and beyond fifty seclars. Repeat. Safety will only be achieved with one klek distance beyond fifty seclars.

Fifty? Heille.

He dropped down into the commander’s chair while Mila strapped into the one beside. A few taps and Kral had accessed the controls.

The door to the station’s main airlock opened, and the shuttles carrying the meerdregs and lizzers flew past. Through the front windows, he spied meerdregs perched in the chairs and on the control panels. He hoped they didn’t mess up the autopilot he’d programmed into their craft.

Chee-chee joined him and Mila, hopping up on the dash to wave.

Everyone assumed the creatures were simple primates, but Kral had to wonder. Chee-chee had shown considerable thought process.

Kral was grateful they’d been here to help him and Mila get away. They must have been captured on the surface of Yarris since they and the lizzers were rarely found outside this part of the galaxy.

As he eased the ship away from the boarding dock, he caught the Al’kieern rushing toward a shuttle, telling him the delayed airlock opening sequence he’d arranged had worked. They’d either make it out of the station or not. He couldn’t concern himself with them any longer.

He carefully guided the star cruiser into line behind the meerdreg shuttle, and the inner door closed behind them. Once the pressure had stabilized, the outer door opened, and both ships shot out, heading toward the stars.

“Go,” he ground out, leaning forward. His naanans flared around him as he pushed the ship to its fastest cruising speed. Hyper drive would be useless until he had time to map out a route that would keep them from hitting anything the moment they shot through the galaxy.

Chee-chee hopped off the dash and, with a parting screech, limped down the hall, leaving the bridge.

Kral’s inner countdown told him they had ten seclars to reach the minimum one klek’s distance needed for safety.

It wasn’t going to be enough time.

13

Mila

“A re we going to make it?” Mila asked Kral. From the way he strained forward, as if he would push the ship from behind if he could, she had a feeling it was going to be close.

“We will try,” he bit out.

Not the most assuring statement, but she’d take it.

To their right, the other two shuttles dove toward Yarris.

“Bye, Firefly,” she whispered, her hand lifted in a wave. Frowning, she placed her palms against her head as his message came through.

May starsss alwaysss be there to guide, friend, Firefly said in her mind. Always welcome in lizzer tribe. When you meet, tell them I, Treessse, say you receive clear passssage.

Thank you, she replied in her mind, then aloud. “May the stars always be there to guide you, too.” Her throat choked off, and she blinked fast to keep her damn tears from forming. With a sniff, she turned to Kral. “He said goodbye. He’s a sweet little guy.”

Kral’s jaw unhinged. “How do you know he said goodbye?”

“We communicate telepathically.”

“How is this possible?”

“It just is.” She watched the shuttles taking Treese, his friends, and the other monkeys to Yarris. “I would’ve liked to get to know him better. He was interesting. But I haven’t lost everyone.” Damn, she shouldn’t be dwelling on loss—again. “Chee-chee decided to come with us.”

“You have not lost me,” Kral said gruffly, bringing a shaky smile to her face.

“For that,” she said. “I am extra grateful.”

“You amaze me,” he said.

“By making friends?”

“By finding friendship with creatures others fear with good reason.”

“Why?” But she knew. Her smile slipped as she remembered them killing the Al’kieern. “They’re lethal little buggers, aren’t they? Treese, who I call Firefly, was pinned to the ceiling above me when I first woke on the space station. I helped him get free.”

“The Al’kieern often use other creatures to fulfill a need.”

“They had lights they could use instead. Why hurt someone when you don’t have to?”

He shrugged. “Some do not think of others when they should.”

“They were going to eat Chee-chee. I rescued him from a cage in the kitchen. I still need to splint his leg. I believe he has a hairline fracture, but I can help it heal so he won’t always have a limp.”

“As I said, you are amazing.”

“I only do what anyone else would.”

“Do you?”

Sure, she did. Right?

Facing forward, she watched as a third ship jettisoned to Yarris. “You gave the Al’kieern an equal chance to live.” What they chose to do with it from here on, she couldn’t know, but she hoped they’d reconsider their actions and how they impacted others. They should stick with developing Yarris and leave Earth women and other creatures alone.

Kral lifted his hands off the controls and leaned back in his chair, telling her he’d done all he could to get them out of this tenuous situation. Fate would be the one to decide what came next.

While panic should be setting in, urging her to run, she only felt sorrow.

She held out her hand, and Kral took it, bridging the small gap between their chairs, between them. He lifted her hand and kissed her fingers, his fangs grazing across her sensitive skin.

Her breath caught. One simple touch and he lit her on fire.

They hadn’t had enough time. Sure, they’d been able to talk. He’d courted her and made her laugh.

He’d helped her escape the ship.

Now there was nothing they could do but wait to be blown to bits. It was wrong, but at this moment, there was no chance for right.

They hadn’t even shared a real kiss, one full of emotion.

She wanted it. Wanted him, even though she’d only recently met him. They’d connected from the first moment, and she knew the more time they spent together, the more their souls would weave into one.

Love? She still wasn’t sure about that yet, but she knew deep in her heart she could care a lot for Kral, given the chance.

Would she have that opportunity?

“What do we do now?” she asked, the pain of potential loss splintering her voice. The words jerked out of her.

“We have forty seclars before the station explodes.”

“Are we one klek away?”

“I do not know.” Anxiety came through in his voice, and his sekairs lifted in defensive mode. Shit, he was afraid they wouldn’t make it. He was trying to protect her like he had from the moment he met her.

She didn’t want her last forty—no, make that thirty—seclars alive to be spent sitting in a chair wondering what she was missing. Unbuckling, she got up and strode to his chair. She climbed up onto his lap, straddling his waist.

“I want to kiss you for real,” she said softly. “There isn’t time for anything else, but we can have this.”

His hands went around her waist, and he tugged her closer. “Mila.”

“Twenty seclars,” she said.

“My mate…”

His naanans glided along the nape of her neck and tugged her closer still.

She cupped his shoulders as his mouth met hers, tentatively at first as she’d expect from the stoic Crakairian male who’d tumbled on top of her when she lay in her bath.

His lips were firm yet tender, but she wanted more. She needed to feel…for one last time.

Desperation fed their fire, turning it into a roaring blaze.

His tongue met hers, and she moaned. Groaning, he deepened their kiss, giving her a taste of what might have been. They’d come so close.

Why did life have to be unfair?

His naanans stroked her shoulders and teased along the sides of her breasts.

When the world exploded outside the ship, he grunted and wrapped his arms securely around her. If it was physically possible, he’d protect her from all harm. Would the world rip them apart?

The ship shook, and they continued to kiss. In her touch, Mila shared all her hopes and uncertainty, plus the dreams she’d started to build around a future together.

Tears stung in her eyes, and her breathing grew ragged as the ship was tossed into space. The craft tumbled like a toy thrown by an angry child, and she was nearly wrenched from Kral’s arms, but he held true, keeping her safe even as the vessel shuddered and creaked around them.

The lights dimmed, then resurged. Dimmed again.

She kept kissing him, determined that if they died this moment, it would be like this, linked as one.

The lights brightened, and in the echoing silence, only a subtle tick from the dash reached her.

They broke apart, though they remained locked in each other’s arms.

“Did we make it?” she asked, her soft words breaking the hush. “Or are we dreaming?”

“We have made it.” He bared his fangs, and his eyes gleamed with happiness he’d only hinted at so far, as if, while kissing, he’d also seen the future they could share. “No dream, my mate.”

Her smile was so big, it made her cheeks ache. “Your mate, huh? You’ve called me that before.”

He cocked one eyebrow, and his naanans continued to stroke her nape. One teased along the side of her breast, making heat burst inside her. “Are you not my mate?”

“I think I am.” Her face overheating, she leaned in close. “Do I get to call you mate, too, or is there another term Crakairian women use instead?”

His eyes gleamed. “Mate will do nicely.”

“We’re free, right? Safe for the first time since I was kidnapped from the ship.” She couldn’t believe it was over, that all she had to think about now was her new life on Crakair with Kral.

“We are free.”

“What happens next?”

“We need to ensure we’re safe here on the ship, and I need to program the controls to take us to Crakair.”

“How much time will it take to get there?”

“At hyper drive? Approximately five daelas.”

“Gee. What will we do to pass the time?” She hadn’t intended the words to come out enticingly, but her face grew hot all over again. She wasn’t practiced with this seduction stuff.

He pressed his fist against his chest. “I will take this time to finish courting you.”

Her spine tingled at the thought of her lying spread out in front of him, his hands—no, his mouth—between her legs. Why was she going in that direction now? She should be thinking about the regular courtship stuff, like foot emulsion—whatever that was. And him cooking for her in a garlong.

He had mentioned the ancient Vikir tradition of courtship orgasms…

Was a woman supposed to ask a Crakairian—Vikir—male to break with modern ways and take her back in time for the good stuff? She sighed, unsure how she could bring it up. Then she side-eyed him. “About these courtship rituals. How are you going to pull them off on a foreign spaceship?”

He leaned around her and pressed some buttons on the control panel before sitting back in the chair and grinning. “You may have noticed that I, your Vikir warrior mate, am very good at improvising.”

Damn, he was hot when he smiled. She hadn’t had time to notice, but now it seemed there would be plenty of time for her to see things like that. She wanted to get to know him better, to find out what made Kral tick.

Okay, she wanted to give him a courtship orgasm. She squirmed on his lap as heat shot through her. Did she dare act boldly? She never had with a guy before.

She’d heard some of the other Earth women hurried their courtship because they couldn’t keep their hands off their Crakairian male, and she understood the drive. Kissing him had been enough to make her eager to drag him off to bed, assuming there was a bed on this ship.

“The ship is now on course,” he said, pulling his hands back. He dropped them onto her hips and tugged her close. “Would you like to begin your courtship now?”

This was it. All her fear and worry that they wouldn’t survive long enough to fall for each other burst through her. She could hold on to the bravery her father had taught her, or she could slink away and hide.

Mila hated to hide.

“What would you say about using a few of the old Vikir courtship traditions?”

His eyes lit on fire. “You…” When he shook his head, his naanans flared out before settling on her shoulders. “I would very much love to explore my ancient traditions.”

Her lips quirked up on one side. “It seems to me we’re missing out on the first, biggest tradition.”

He leaned in close and grazed his fangs along her neck. “Mila. I would kill to give you an orgasm.”

How could a girl turn down an offer like that? Rising, she scooted to the back of the bridge and shut the door. No need to have Chee-chee announce himself at an important moment.

She returned and stood in front of Kral.

Keep being bold.

A few tugs and she’d pulled her shirt over her head. She wore nothing underneath but her skin.

He gulped, and his hand lifted but didn’t touch.

She stepped forward until his fingers could trace her breast.

“This mound. Beast—breast,” he corrected quickly. He flashed her a look of wonder before focusing on her breasts. “This fibrous, glandular tissue. It feels…It arouses me.”

When he looked up again, she saw vulnerability mixed in with the lust on his face. The feeling was echoed in her. His tongue glided along his lower lip, and she moaned. What would that forked tip feel like on her breasts, let alone other, intimate places?

“Touch me more, if you want,” she said in a husky voice. Heat swirled through her, centering between her legs.

“Does touch on your breasts feel good?” he asked.

“It’s incredibly arousing.”

He flashed his fangs. “I wish to arouse you. All the time.” Leaning forward, he flicked his tongue across her nipple. When she gasped, he glanced up. Gone was the vulnerability, replaced by fire and a touch of the cockiness she’d seen hints of and loved.

She couldn’t hold herself back and thrust her chest forward, fully into his hand.

He teased the nipple between his thumb and finger and watched while she squirmed. She closed her eyes and gave in to the moment. For too long, she’d been on the run. Afraid. Now, she only wanted to savor the heady emotions growing for Kral.

While his fingers continued to stroke one nipple, he sucked the other into his mouth. His tongue glided across it, each of the forked sides wrapping around the base and tugging.

She was going to explode, and the impact would be bigger than that of the space station.

One of his naanans took over from his hand, locking onto her nipple, and something in the tip fluttered.

Her eyes popped open, and she jerked toward him. “What…?”

“Do you like it?” he asked, his voice deeper than the center of the galaxy. Other naanans teased along the top of her pants, undoing the knotted rope she’d used to keep the overly large garment from falling around her ankles. The knot released, and the pants fell.

No undies—panties—either. She’d been going au natural under her stolen clothing since she was captured. As for the dress she’d been wearing when she was kidnapped, it had been torn and stained, and she’d tossed it into the trash.

“You are…the most beautiful person I have ever seen,” he said in awe.

The self-conscious woman inside her wanted her to squirm and deny his words. But the new Mila, the one who’d escaped alien captors and survived alone on an alien space station for days, stepped forward.

“I want you,” she said.

“I will give you everything I have,” he said reverently. “All of me.” He urged her backward to lie across the front dash, in a smooth section without dials. Then he dropped to his knees in front of her and lifted her legs to place them on his shoulders. “This…” He waved to her body lying in front of him. “Is beautiful. But this…” He pressed a fist against his chest before pressing it against hers, in the same place, above her heart. “This is timeless and possesses a beauty beyond compare.”

“Kral.” He was going to make her heart fracture into a thousand pieces, but she had a feeling he’d find a way to gather them up and seal them back together.

“I wish to taste all of you,” he said, leaning forward. “I will give you an orgasm with my mouth.”

Holy shit. She was going to let him do it, too. She’d wanted this since his fingers accidentally slid between her legs, since his fangs and naanans grazed her nipple. From the moment he’d fallen on top of her in the tub.

“It is my wish to pleasure you always,” he said as his fingers stroked down her folds. A naanan teased across her thigh and settled on her clit.

It vibrated.

She bucked, nearly sliding off the dash. But he chuckled and braced her in place. “Are you falling for me, my mate?”

“Funny,” she groaned out. Shit, she could barely think with his fingers tracing along her slit and the naanan latched on and humming.

“I wish to see you come,” he said.

It felt so good, it made her eyes roll back in her head. “Far be it for me to deny you your wishes.”

“Yes, you are right.” He laughed again. “Always give in to my wishes.”

“Don’t get too cocky.”

“Do you not wish to give in?”

She did. A billion times, but especially now.

“Kral,” she said, the power building inside her. Her body tightened as tiny spasms swept through her, dragging her closer and closer to complete satisfaction.

“Yes, my mate?” He stroked her slit, the tip of his finger barely dipping inside her.

She wanted him to stand in front of her and drive himself inside. She’d seen hints of his cock pressing against his pants, and it looked thick. Big.

And she’d heard they vibrated.

Damn, she needed to find out.

Other naanans stroked her breasts and vibrated against her nipples.

This was pure bliss. She’d died, and he’d taken her there.

Her nipples tightened, and she was so wet, she had to be dripping.

She shivered, and it wasn’t solely due to the cool temperature. She ached to feel him moving inside her. Taking her to heights she’d never experienced before.

He stroked her legs, his tongue gliding up her thigh, moving close but never touching where she ached for him most.

“Kral,” she sighed, fisting his naanans. She glided her fingers down to the tips and stroked them.

He shuddered, and his mouth paused over her clit. “That…Mila.” Her name croaked out of him. “You…”

“Fair play, my mate,” she said. “I don’t intend to only receive an orgasm today.”

“It is for the female. Never the male.”

“Why not?”

“Because…” His tongue flicked out and traced along her slit.

She moaned and lifted her hips upward, her heels braced on his shoulders. “You need to experience this, too, and I’m gonna make it happen.”

“You. This is about you.”

Her fingers stilled on his naanans. “Nope, dude. It’s about both of us.”

“Us, but this one minar, you.” His eyes darkened. “For me, there will be later.”

She would hold that statement as a promise.

“Kral.” His name came out in a plea.

When his finger glided down her slit, she jerked up toward him, gasping. He dipped inside her then pulled his finger out and licked it.

“Sweeter than jinjin fruit.” He growled, his breath hot on her skin. “I need to taste more.”

She was going to come before he did more than stroke her.

He dipped his finger into her engorged folds, pushing and gliding, but he stopped partway inside. “And what is this?”

“Shit, shit,” she sighed, her body on fire. A few more pumps, and she was going to blast across the galaxy. “Don’t touch that.”

“What is it?” He stroked his finger across a small round mound inside her.

“My G-spot. Don’t touch it!”

“Why ever not?”

“Because…Because…”

“Do you not like it?”

“Shit, yes.”

“Then I wish to touch it. Often.”

Fuck.

“I sense you are about to orgasm, Mila. Do it. Let it go. I want to feel it on my fingers and taste it on my tongue.” He glided his finger across her G-spot again, and she bucked and moaned. “This intrigues me. Do you have other pleasure spots you will share?”

She was so close. “Kral.”

“Yes?” His naanans continued to stroke her breasts, her tender inner thighs. Shit. How could a guy have hair that sucked and teased? It wasn’t fair.

She wiggled and somehow found enough wits to speak. “Stop fooling around.”

“You are right. Why waste time when I need to do this?” He stroked up her to her clit, where the tip of his tongue coiled around her and tugged.

Her body rocketed to the stars.

While she shuddered and shook, his fingers teased inside her, stroking her folds before dipping in to tweak her G-spot. Over and over. Pumping. Pushing.

For an improviser, he sure learned fast.

Moving down lower, he drove his tongue inside her. It was long and thick, and the forked end flicked deeply.

“Kral!”

He lifted his head. “Yes, my mate?”

His naanans. Shit, his naanans. Two worked her breasts while others stroked her everywhere else. It was like having sex with three guys at the same time, each making sure no part of her body went wanting.

His mouth. And his incredible tongue.

She moaned and whimpered and begged him to do this forever.

Until the world crashed over her, and she fell back on her bed, a spent wreck.

“Are you ready for the grand tour of the ship?” he asked.

After she’d gushed all over the place and he’d licked it up, he’d sat back and tugged her onto his lap. His naanans had stroked her back and shoulders, while his arms wrapped her up, keeping her safe and warm.

They’d stared through the windows, marveling at the stars.

“A tour?” she said. “Sure.” Rising, she stood on her limp legs, her insides still shimmering from her “courtship orgasm” and dressed. After, she stood on tiptoes to give him a kiss. Hot, but fast.

Damn, she needed to stop thinking in those terms.

She got the idea he’d enjoyed the kiss—let alone everything else they’d done—if the bulge in his pants was anything to go by. It was big. She’d heard Crakairian males were large all over, and the rumors appeared to be true with Kral. A longing to feel his skin pressed against hers rose inside her again, nearly overwhelming her.

“None of that,” she whispered to herself.

He quirked one brow ridge upward. She couldn’t call it an eyebrow without hair, but it had essentially the same effect. And the gesture was cute. “None of what?”

“You know what I mean.” She waved her hand to his body. “Stop being so sexy.”

He advanced on her.

She backed up. For self-preservation. Certainly not because she was afraid of him. Her heart raced and delicious fire blazed through her body. Maybe her fellow Earthlings were onto something there with their old “skip the courtship” thing.

“Stop it,” she said with a laugh.

He kept coming.

She kept backing until her butt hit the wall.

He braced his hands on either side of her head and leaned in close. As he nibbled along her jawline, he spoke in a low, gruff voice. “You find me sexy?”

“Don’t you know it already?”

“How could I?”

He seemed to have a fascination with her ear, because he bit down on it as if tasting, then lathed it with his tongue.

Her legs shook. No, her whole body shook.

She was definitely thinking about ditching the courtship.

Wait.

“Hold on there,” she said, pressing a finger up between them. “Courtship. Marriage. Then comes the fucking. Not that I’m opposed to moving the game pieces around.”

“There will be fucking,” he said with humor in his voice. “Lots of fucking.”

Oh, fuck.

Her laughter snorted out. Fuck was right. Damn, her body had a one-track mind.

He backed away from her. “I must resist you at least until I have ensured we are safe on this craft.” He tugged her close and wrapped his arms around her. “We will take things as they come.” Stepping back, he bowed. “Prepare to be fully courted, my mate.”

14

Kral

K  ral’s cock throbbed with need.

He wanted her beneath him. On top of him. And against the wall with her legs wrapped around his waist while he drove inside her.

Completely naked.

Solely at his mercy.

Today, tonight, tomorrow, and for the rest of their days.

But he was determined to follow the rules and do this right, and that meant courtship. Marriage. Then the fucking.

Fuck. It was all he could do not to snarl. There was nothing he could do about his damn cock that felt like a steel rod in his pants. Yes, she had offered to give him satisfaction, but he could not relax his guard until he was sure they were safe.

As they headed to the exit, he couldn’t help noticing the pulse beating feverishly in her throat, the way her breathing had gone ragged, or the way she clung to his hand.

He loved that she yearned for more, that she was as unsettled about him as he was about her. Was he foolish to have already half-fallen for the Earth female he’d been matched with? What if she decided partway through his courtship that she wanted to return to Earth? It would be impossible to let her go.

He wouldn’t force a relationship, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t do all he could to persuade her to stay.

They entered a hall behind the bridge.

Chee-chee started to scoot past them, but she grabbed one of his arms. “Not so fast, little guy. We need to fix you up and then you can scurry around the ship.”

The meerdreg gave Kral a long-suffering look, but remained calm while she placed him in the Commander’s chair.

“I need something about this long.” She held up her fingers. “And stiff. Like a thin piece of wood. And tape if we have it.”

Kral dug through the cabinets in the back of the bridge and located what she needed. He watched as she carefully splinted the meerdreg’s leg.

The creature hopped off the chair and moved forward as if testing the fit.

“Chee. Chee-chee!” he said before leaping back into the Commander’s chair. He sat and stared out the front windscreen as if he planned to take charge of the ship. Perhaps he did. Kral had never thought much about meerdregs, but it was clear they were intelligent and savvy.

“Is that okay, little guy?” Mila asked, stooped down beside the chair.

“Chee.”

As long as the beastie kept his claws to himself, he had a home with Kral forever.

“Don’t get into trouble,” she said, shaking her finger at the creature. She fed Kral a look reminiscent of an indulgent parent.

The meerdreg sighed and ran his claws along the arm of the chair.

“Do you think he’ll mess things up?” Mila asked, gnawing on her lower lip. “Maybe we should get him down from there.”

“And do what with him?”

“No clue. He should rest. Let that leg heal.”

“The ship is on autopilot, now. He cannot change that.” Kral hoped not, anyway.

“Maybe he’s thinking about his friends.”

“If he is not happy on Crakair, we will bring him to Yarris once he has healed.”

Her shoulders loosened. “Okay. That’s a good plan.”

He shut the door, and they faced the hall.

The ship was built like all other smaller star cruisers he’d traveled on, containing a bridge spanning the front of the craft, a main hallway behind with small rooms on either side and, if he guessed correctly, crew quarters at the end. Beneath the floor, Kral suspected he’d find electrical and engine compartments.

He opened doors to find two closets located on either side of the hall.

“What are these for?” Mila asked, fingering one of the silver garments hanging inside.

“For space missions on the outer portion of the ship mid-flight or when stopped, when they’re unable to pull into a repair dock.”

He tugged one of the suits out and scowled at it.

“It might fit me rather than you,” she said with a smirk.

About the right size of Mila, it was made for a much slighter body than Kral’s, and for a person with four arms.

“Let’s hope we don’t need to do any repairs,” she said in all seriousness, seeing the gravity of the situation. “Because I can’t picture myself putting this on and going outside.”

Kral held in his shudder at the reminder if something like that happened, they’d be helpless.

After tossing the suit back into the closet with the rest of the equipment, he shut the door and continued down the hall.

They located a small galley kitchen on the right. Assuming there was food on board, they could eat it in the break room he spied on the left.

“The ship looks about like what I’d expect to find,” Mila said, walking into the dining room. “Reminds me of sci-fi movies I used to watch when I was a kid.” She opened one of the cabinets mounted along one wall but found it empty. The rest contained dishes and eating implements, cups, but no food.

They left the dining area continued down the hall, finding compartments containing tools and supplies on either side of the passage.

Near the end of the hall and on the left, they found a droid crew regeneration room with a charging pool, useless to a human and Crakairian. And on the right, a small bathroom.

He did not see the tub to feature in one of his courtship rituals. Modern Crakairians took zinter baths, but Vikirs preferred a more traditional soaking. While Kral lacked the necessary components for a Vikir courtship bath, he would improvise. His aching body told him he’d need a long soak to make up for the lack once he reached his home.

“Can I, uh…” Mila pointed to the toileting unit mounted on the left wall.

“Of course.”

He stepped out into the hall and shut the door.

Mila emerged not long after, her body quivering.

“What is wrong?” he asked, poking his head back into the room, his hand reaching for his sword. He didn’t see anything amiss. Had she encountered a threat?

“The toilet essentially attacked me.” She put her hand on his arm, stilling it before he pulled his weapon. “While I appreciate you going caveman protector on my behalf, we might need it before we reach Crakair.”

“How do you mean, attacked?”

Her face flushed. “The toilet grabbed my legs while I was, uh, sitting. Something from underneath tried to…” She shuddered, and her eyes widened. “Talk about alien probes.”

“The Al’kieern require a specific type of cleaning after they—”

She held up her hand. “I don’t need to hear the details. Nearly lived it already. If I was a timid person, I’d be traumatized for life.” Shaking her head, a smile teased across her lips. “Fortunately, I’m a bold kind of woman.”

“You are.” He admired her greatly. She’d been through so much over the past likar, events that could break a person. Yet here she was, smiling about Al’kieern toileting units.

His gaze drilled her hand still held high, and her gaze followed his. She curled her fingers inward, and her arm dropped. “Oh. Yeah.” More pinkness flooded her cheeks. He found the coloring gesture highly appealing. Could she do it at will? It appeared unlikely. “The hand thing. It means…”

“You would like a kiss?”

Her gaze went to his mouth, and she slid her tongue along her bottom lip.

His cock shot to attention.

“Now that you mention it…” she said.

Advancing on her, he cupped her face, his thumbs stroking the fine skin along her jawline. Her silky hair teased his fingers, and he ached to bury his face in it while burying himself inside her. But that would go against the “no fucking until after marriage” rule. How could he bear to wait that long?

She tipped her head back, and her lips parted. He gave her a kiss that hinted at the fire raging inside him. She gasped and opened her mouth, inviting his tongue to stroke hers. Pressing herself against him, she cupped his shoulders and deepened their kiss.

He trailed kisses to where her neck met her shoulder and bit down gently on the tender flesh. Unable to resist, he stroked her breasts with his naanans, focusing on the hardened pebbles in the center. He wished he could pull off her clothing and touch them again.

Taste them.

When he focused the fluttering tip of one naanan on her breast pebble, she moaned and pushed her hips against his. Her head tipped back, and his name burst from her lips.

Fuck. This courtship was going to be pure torture.

They pulled apart.

She traced her fingers across her lips, and he wanted to push them aside and replace them with his mouth again.

The courtship. He must focus on the courtship, not on his overwhelming urge to spin her around, rip through her clothing, and drive himself inside her.

Patience.

With a growl of frustration, he shut the door to the bathroom and opened the final door centered at the end of the hall. He expected to see Al’kieern crew quarters that would consist of hammock-like bunks suspended from the ceiling and pits along the sides of the room where the winged Al’kieern could slither down into sandy soil carried from Mara. The Al’kieern considered the activity restorative.

Instead, he found what appeared to be the standard Commander’s quarters made up of a bed, a few tables, and a desk. The ship must be crewed by droids, like the one Vork had loaned him to come after Mila, the one the Al’kieern had destroyed.

Mila strolled into the room ahead of him. “Huh.” She ran her hand along the wooden headboard. “If I didn’t know better, I’d believe I’d been dropped into a romance cliché.” Turning, she smiled and leaned her shoulder against the wall by the big bed.

“In what way?” He was intrigued by the notion of romance but could not see how this could be a cliché.

“There’s only one bed. That’s a common set-up in romance novels.”

“Novels of romance?” He felt a fool for repeating her words, but he still did not understand.

“I love them. Read them all the time back on Earth.” She sighed. “Do you think the Crakairians threw out my things on the star cruiser? I brought a digital reader loaded with enough books to last a lifetime.”

“I assume your possessions will be waiting for you on Crakair when we arrive.”

“Oh, good.”

“Tell me more of this romance cliché.”

“It’s a common trope. The story starts simple then gets steamy.”

“Steam?”

“Yeah, hot. Since we’re living the cliché, you and I will need to lie on the bed together, because there isn’t anywhere else onboard for us to sleep.”

“I could sleep in the—”

She strode to the closet doors and flung them open. “Bingo.”

“Bingo?” Who was Bingo?

“Just like I thought.” Though her movements were purposeful, she didn’t sound angry. If he didn’t know better, he’d think she was amused. “Empty closets. There’s nothing for us to wear. But in our romance cliché, you will valiantly agree to sleep on top of the covers and wear your boxers.”

“What are boxers?”

“Panties for guys.”

His naanans flared. He did not have boxers with him. Was this a problem? Perhaps she meant she wanted to box-er. A box-er was someone who battled in a ring. That could not be right. Panties, she had said… Ah. Yes. Small garments Earthling females wear beneath their clothing. She had mentioned them earlier.

Like most Crakairians, he wore nothing underneath his pants and furs. He had not anticipated courting Mila and had not thought to bring a garlong—a loincloth-like garment Crakairian males wore when they courted their future mates. He could improvise, however. “Never fear. I will be quite willing to—”

“So, we’ll lie in bed for a long time, each of us unable to sleep. We’ll listen to the other breathing. I’ll try not to touch you. You’ll do the same.”

He stepped toward her, frowning. “Are you sure about that? Because I am happy to touch you. Lick you.”

She fanned her face. “Eventually, we’ll fall into a restless sleep.”

Actually, this did not sound like fun. Boxing, lying while listening to breathing, followed by a night of restless sleep. Earthlings sought out stories like this for pleasure?

“Somehow, during the night,” she said. “I’ll seek out your mostly naked body, because—”

“You will?” Perhaps this romance cliché could be a good thing, after all.

She shook her finger at him as if chastising a child. “I’ll seek you out because I’m cold.”

“I see.” He waved his hand to the circular half globe mounted on the ceiling. “We can adjust the climate controls, and you will not be cold.”

“That’s not the point, and it doesn’t fit the cliché.”

“I see.” He did not. He did wonder how he could facilitate the she is cold so she seeks out his nearly naked body component of this cliché, however.

“We’ll wake up with me snuggling on top of you. You’ll have a hard-on, and it’ll be pressing against my thigh.”

“Would you like me to press my hardness against your thigh?” Earthling females were more complex than he had assumed. Romance clichés and pressing hard cocks against thighs must be part of Earth courtship rituals. He would do this if she wished.

“Pressing it against my thigh isn’t the point.”

He frowned. Then what was the point? He felt as if he floundered in a pool of shartins, lulled by the warm waters and unaware one was about to glide over and bite off his leg.

While the idea of pressing hardness against her thigh had merit, the hint of a tease in her voice told him he was missing something in the conversation. But he rushed to reassure her. “I must mention this one thing. If we are together in a bed and you lie naked on top of me, I cannot promise I will not have hardness…on my body. I also cannot promise not to press it against you.” Frankly, he’d have rip-roaring steel between his legs if he woke up and she lay sprawled on top of him. What else could be expected of a matebonded male? “And you already know I will be spreading your thighs and giving you the pleasure you deserve.”

“Perfect. That’s in the romance cliché, too.”

“Then we shall continue this romance cliché.” One day, he would read one of her novels of romance. They sounded intriguing.

“Guys and morning hard-ons seems to be a thing,” she said.

“If you would like, I can sleep in the Commander’s chair,” he said. “Then you will avoid me pressing my hardness against your thigh until you tell me you are ready.” He took comfort in the fact that he had learned something about cock hardness and Earth courtship rituals.

“You don’t have to sleep anywhere else. We can share the bed.” Her eyes sparkled. “I promise I’ll behave myself.”

What if he was not capable of behaving? His matebond blood surged through his veins, eager to drive his every action. Add to that the blood of his raider Vikir ancestors. This talk about cock hardness and pressing it against her only made him more eager to tumble her onto the bed and strip off her clothing.

“I will not fuck you until after our courtship is completed,” he said.

She strode close to him, and the scent of her arousal hit him in the forehead like the kick of a wildarn’s hoof. “Tell me the steps of the courtship and let’s see how close we are to the good stuff.”

They were very close. The warmth of her body made him eager to get there this seclar. “A zinter bath.”

“You joined me in my bath when we met.”

“There were no zinters.”

“How vital are the zinters?” she asked, her head tilting. Her tongue dipped out to touch her lower lip, and he stifled his groan.

“We can dispense with the zinters. Many times, there are none available and the Crakairian male must make do with other…species.”

Her fingertip traced down his throat to the top of his furs. “Then let’s call your zinter bath a success.”

“Perhaps.”

“What comes next?”

“I must emulse your feet but we have no boodler.”

“How about a foot massage instead? Fingers work for me.”

Mesmerized by her every movement, he found himself nodding. “I will do this. Massage your feet.”

“After the emulsion comes…”

“You.” It was all he could do to hold on to his mind. Mila had swept into his life and sent him spinning.

“Oh, orgasms.”

He gulped, confused. But he soon realized she was teasing. She had fallen apart in his arms. He knew she had found pleasure. “You were fully satisfied,” he growled.

“I’m not sure I’ll ever be fully satisfied, but you’re right, we can tick off that part of the Vikir part of your courtship.” She frowned. “What else?”

“I must make a sacrifice in your honor.”

“Done. Back on the space station, you were prepared to die to keep me safe.”

He tugged her into his arms. “I would do it all over again.”

“Kral,” she whispered against his chest. “We were so close to losing each other. I don’t want anything like that to happen again.”

There may be no way of preventing it, but he would try.

“Is there anything else you need to do to complete the courtship?” she asked.

“I must prepare you a traditional meal while wearing a garlong. Which I do not have with me.”

“But you said you love to improvise.”

“I will dream up something.”

“If it involves skimpy clothing, I can’t wait.” She winked.

“And I will sleep in the bed with you tonight, to fulfill that part of the Earth romance cliché courtship.”

She blinked a minar before her face cleared. “Sure. I’m not complaining. We can skip the bundling board.”

He frowned.

“It’s an Earth courtship tradition from hundreds of years ago. A dating couple would get into bed together, but since they weren’t supposed to have sex, they put a rolled blanket or even a board between them to keep them from touching.”

“But then the woman cannot have an orgasm.”

She smiled. “Exactly. Some people still use the practice today, like the Amish.”

“What is the purpose of this board of bundling other than keeping the couple apart?”

“I think it was common because it was so cold when they were dating. This way, they could stay warm underneath the covers without touching. They’d talk and get to know each other.”

“We will not bundle,” he said firmly.

“Because we’re in a romance cliché!” She wiggled her eyebrows, and he wished he could interpret what that meant. “Are you planning anything other than sleep tonight?”

He couldn’t. Not until the courtship was finished. But he liked the idea of incorporating Earth courtship traditions into Vikirian.

He strode to the small room’s sole closet and peered inside. Empty as she had said. Turning to Mila, he watched her face. “You accept that we will not wear clothing in the bed?”

She nodded with a smile. “Yup. Sure. After all, no fucking, right?”

“I am to lie on top of the blanket while you lie beneath.”

“That’s the romance cliché plan but we can…” She smirked. “Improvise.”

He advanced on her, and she stood her ground. “Then prepare yourself for the final phase of the courtship. Soon, I will prepare your meal while wearing a substitution for the garlong.”

“And I’ll happily eat the meal.” She rubbed her hands together. “Then comes the best part.”

“The proposal. You will say yes.” His words were only half-teasing.

“Cocky, but I’m going to roll with it, because I’m sure I will.”

“You do not sound completely confident.”

“Maybe I’ll need more examples of what you can deliver.”

He nudged her against the wall and trailed kisses along her jawline. She shivered in his arms and released a moan. “I am happy to show you.” He bit down on her shoulder.

“Kral,” she said, gripping his arms tightly. She pulled him closer, flush against her. “Don’t keep me waiting long.”

“I will not. Because soon, we will begin the fucking.”

15

Mila

He backed away from her and started for the door.

“That’s it?” she said, deepening her voice to make it sound like his. “I will propose, my mate, and you will say yes. I will wear the garlong and prepare the meal and you will eat and enjoy it. And then we will fuck.”

“That is correct.” He bared his fangs.

Jeez. She fanned her face. Panty-melting smile right there.

Her knees shook, and it wasn’t solely because she’d spent days running on the ship or even that they’d had to do the Stairmaster on the way out.

“So where do we go from here?” she said.

He stroked her hair. “You are tired.”

She yawned. “You’re right. I could probably crash right now, but for all I know, it’s mid-afternoon. I could barely keep track of time while outrunning the Al’kieern.” The days had blurred and only the sun rising over the planet below the station gave her a sense of morning versus night.

“It is nearly time for the evening meal, and I will prepare it for you in the traditional Vikir courtship way.”

“Really looking forward to the improvised garlong.” He’d be nearly naked. Could she keep her hands off him long enough for him to cook, serve her, then get down on one knee to propose?

Assuming Crakairians got down on one knee. Well, Kral had come close earlier, when he’d gone down between her knees. Her head spun as she remembered. She wanted that again, and there was one way to make sure it happened. She had to behave herself long enough to let him finish his courtship.

“If you would like to lie down,” he said. “I will let you know when the meal is ready.”

“Perfect.” A little nap would perk her up. Her synapses weren’t firing as they should.

He left the room, and she took off her pants and flopped on top of the bed. Curling on her side, she stared blindly at the wall. The picture hanging there blurred, and she drifted away…

She woke when the mattress shifted and flowed underneath her, oozing up around her arms and legs. Pinning her in place.

Shit. An attack bed!

Shrieking, she scrambled off the surface and backed as far away from the beastly bed as she could get. She watched with wide eyes as it smoothed out again.

Kral leaped through the doorway, his sword in his hand, poised to slice and dice. He crouched inside the room and peered around, his gaze feral. “Where is the threat?”

Her jaw dropped. Holy hell, what was he wearing?

“What are you…” She shook her head. At this point, it didn’t matter what he was wearing. The bed had attacked her. She pointed. “Stab the bed. Stab it hard.”

He straightened, and his sword arm dropped to his side. “You would have me wound the bed.”

“Do it fast before it leaps on me again!”

“The bed will not leap on you.”

“It’s alive. It’s some kind of creature and it tried to smother me.”

He sheathed the sword along his spine—his naked spine—and strode over to the bed. She tried not to be distracted by his prime butt cheeks sashaying in front of her, but damn… Would he notice if she touched them?

He was green all over, and completely hairless. And scaled, each segment about the size of her thumbnail, though his shoulder sekairs were larger. She already knew his scales were softer than they appeared.

Where had Kral found the strip of leather, and why was he wearing it? Not that she would complain, because he looked incredibly lickable wearing only a scrap of leather.

Leaning forward, he pressed his hands on the bed.

Fuck. Now she could see hints of his cock. The way he was standing created a shadow that made it seem like it was the size of her forearm, but that couldn’t be true.

He turned to face her, and the front of his skimpy garment twitched.

Double fuck. It hadn’t been an illusion. No shadow cock. She’d caught a glimpse of the real thing.

It was the size of her forearm.

His lips quirked up on one side. “Mila.”

How was he going to fit that inside her? And why was she wet at the thought of the effort it would take to get it in there?

“Mila.” He strode across the room, his thigh muscles flexing, and stopped in front of her. With a soft chuckle, he lifted her chin with one finger. “Mila.”

“Yeah?” His muscles went on forever. He didn’t have a six-pack. He had a full case of ridges across his abdomen. What would they feel like beneath her fingertips?

“Mila.”

“Where did you get that outfit?” No one could call it an outfit. It looked more like a scrap of light brown cloth he’d tucked between his legs. The material wasn’t wide. It must’ve taken some creative effort on his part to stuff his cock inside the suggestion of a pouch. A strip of material encircled his waist like a belt, holding the other scraps low on his hips.

“I did not bring a garlong,” he said patiently.

“You’re cooking me a meal in that?” Could she watch?

“I was, but you cried out.” His gaze fell on the bed.

Oh, yeah, the beast-bed. “It tried to eat me.”

“The bed is made up of acklor, a plant that molds to the shape of whoever lies on the surface.”

“A plant?” Curious, she moved around him and approached it slowly, ready to spring backward if it pounced. “Why?”

“Because it is comfortable?”

He sounded perplexed, but so was she.

“I’m overtired,” she said. “That must be the issue here.”

“It is to be expected after all you have been through.” He came up behind her and hovered so close, she could feel the warmth radiating off his skin. “Know I will keep you safe while you sleep.”

“You sure it wouldn’t make sense to stab the bed? To, um, keep it in line?” Did she dare climb back onto it and let it mold itself around her again?

“Lie down,” he said in a soothing tone that made her want to curl up in his arms and pass out for a while. “Allow the plant fibers to cushion your frame. While you sleep, they will gently massage you. You will wake after your nap refreshed and ready for whatever might come next.”

“Which is…?” She crawled up onto the bed, trying not to cringe as the mattress literally flowed around her hands and knees, accommodating her weight like a living memory foam.

“I will prepare your meal. You will eat it and enjoy it, as you wisely said earlier.” Humor came through in his voice. “We will then proceed to the next part of the Vikir courtship.”

She flopped down onto her side. As long as she kept reminding herself the mattress was a plant and not the Loch Ness monster rising from the deep to gulp her down in one bite, she could appreciate how comfortable it was. Easing onto her back, she closed her eyes. The beast-bed oozed underneath her, adding support to her lower back and slightly lifting her feet. Yeah, this was gonna be okay.

“What’s the next phase of the Vikir courtship, after the meal?” She liked the idea that he’d serve it in his skimpy thong. She wanted to check out his scales, plus a few other parts of his body.

“The courtship will be concluded.”

Her eyes popped open. “What?” She had to have heard him incorrectly. Hadn’t he mentioned more courtship rituals?

He removed his sword from its sheath and rested it near the bed. Then he climbed onto the surface and over her, bracing his palms on either side of her shoulders. His naanans teased her neck and the sides of her breasts. The tips… Fuck the tips with their flutter mechanism. Those babies would come in handy later. Two had played with her nipples. She’d liked it. She wanted him to do it again.

Hold on. “Could you repeat all that?” she asked. “I was distracted.”

Leaning forward, he kissed her jawline and down her neck to where the tops of her breasts were revealed by her poorly fitted Al’kieern shirt. “After I have served the formal meal in a garlong, the courtship is concluded.”

“Then we don’t need to make this go on for a year?” That’s what she’d read.

“Do you wish me to court you for a year?”

“I don’t think I’ll need that long to decide if I want to be with you or not.” Grinning, she put her hands on his shoulders.

“After the formal meal, I plan to lick you until you orgasm.”

Her heart slammed up into her throat, choking off her words. All she could do was sputter.

“If you agree, of course,” he added with a twinkle in his eye.

“Are you joking?” How could she not agree with that? It was all she’d been able to think of outside of escaping the station.

“Would I joke with you?”

“Maybe?” How did she know? Sometimes, it felt as if she’d known him forever, but in reality, it had only been a day. Sure, she’d killed aliens with him. Escaped an exploding space station with him. And he’d given her the best orgasm in her life. But still…

He nuzzled the dip between her breasts. “You smell delicious.”

Her skin tingled wherever he touched. Wherever he didn’t touch, too.

His tongue dipped out and traced her skin, raising goosebumps. He nudged the loose shirt down until only her nipples held the material in place. Tracing his tongue across the material, he teased near her nipple. “Yes or no?” Biting the top of her shirt with his fangs, he eased it down to expose her breast.

“Wait. What are you asking?”

“To call the courtship completed after the meal and the emulsion.”

“What if I don’t enjoy what you serve?” She was joking. She’d be happy eating crackers if he served them in this outfit. As for the emulsion, it would be fun, right?

“If you do not enjoy the meal, then I will make you something else.”

Actually, the bar of steel between them might do nicely for a feast.

His breath caught as he stared at her breasts. “You are the loveliest being I have ever seen.”

She had no urge to cover herself or to drag up her shirt. From the moment she’d seen this man standing at the foot of her tub, she’d wanted him.

“Yes,” she whispered.

His gaze met hers, his black pupils, gobbling up the dark blue ring encircling it. “Yes?”

“Yes. Let’s end this after the meal.”

“I should get the meal started soon, then.”

“First things first,” she said, tugging him near for a searing kiss. “I have something I need to do to you.”

16

Kral

He growled and nipped at the sweet flesh on the top of her exposed breast.

She shivered and arched up to meet him.

But then her eyes opened, and she gave him a smile that curled his toes. “There’s something I’d like to do to you.” She urged him off her and onto his back on the bed, then she climbed over him. “Why do you get to have all the fun?”

He bared his fangs, enjoying this teasing side of her. “Do you not have fun, too?”

“Everything has been awesome,” she said with a sigh. “Well, I could’ve missed out on a few things, but earlier, you were left with a hard-on. I think it’s still waiting for more.”

“It is the way of my life lately,” he admitted.

“Not any longer.” She kissed him then moved down his jawline to his neck, trailing her mouth along the veins that pulsed in his throat.

He closed his eyes and drank in the sensation of her lips kissing his chest and abs. Her long hair tickled, and he began to see the benefit of tresses like this in place of naanans.

When her fingers teased along the ties of his improvised garlong, his eyes opened. “I must wear this when I cook your meal and feed you.”

“Call this an appetizer.”

Appetizer… He wasn’t sure what she meant but—

Fuck.

She’d undone the ties of his improvised garlong and tucked it out of the way. His cock—something he’d been vaguely embarrassed about most of his life due to its larger size—sprang free.

“Wow,” she said.

He barely held in his flinch.

“Okay,” she added.

He waited for her to tell him it was too big. Too much. Something she didn’t want to touch, let alone invite into her body.

Her gaze met his. “You’re gorgeous.”

His jaw dropped, and a snort of laughter popped out of him. “Males are not gorgeous.”

“Well, you are.”

“Mila…” His heart felt like it was going to explode. This woman… His mate. He couldn’t wait to claim her.

When her fingers teased along his length, he couldn’t stop his hips from jerking upward.

“I think I need a garlong,” she said.

He couldn’t speak. All he could focus on was her fingers stroking him, her thumb gliding across the precum beading on the tip. “Why…” He struggled to clear his head. “Why do you need a garlong?”

She grinned up at him. “Because I’m about to make myself a feast.”

Scooting down further on the bed, she crouched between his legs. When she lowered her face and took the head of his cock into her mouth, he nearly exploded.

“Heille,” he hissed.

She looked up at him. “This okay? I…honestly, I’ve only tried it a few times, and I’m not sure I’m any good at it.”

“Don’t stop,” he said.

A sly smile curved her lips. “I don’t plan to.”

She stroked both her hands up his cock and exhaled on the tip before encasing at least half his dick inside the warm wetness of her mouth. He had to be halfway down her throat but fuck, he wanted more.

“That feels amazing.” His fingers wove into her hair and at first, he thought of pulling her away. The sensation of her sucking…Her tongue laving across the bulb… Her fingers teasing his balls… He couldn’t stand it. He was going to blow. He’d embarrass himself by shooting everything he had into her mouth.

But the moment he touched her silky hair, he couldn’t resist stroking her head and tugging her closer.

She took more, dipping and moving. Sucking. Fuck. His brain spiraled into the stars.

She released him with a pop and smiled. “Dude, you taste awesome. Like cinnamon. My favorite spice.”

He did not know what cinnamon was but if she loved it, he would contact Earth and buy as much of it as possible.

Leaning forward, she took more of him inside her mouth. He didn’t expect her to take him all, not without choking.

Her tongue swirled across the top and sides of his cock as she milked him. The walls of her mouth pulled in, stroking his length.

He pumped up as she pushed down. He couldn’t help it. He’d kill to be buried inside her warmth.

She increased her pace, as if she wanted him to come.

Heille. He’d never expected anything like this; never dreamed of anything like this. No one had… Her mouth…

His brain tumbled away as he sunk inside himself and savored each stroke of her tongue, each time she glided her lips along his shaft. His balls tightened, and his pulse thundered in his ears. If she didn’t stop, he was going to…

She licked the bulb on the end and gently bit down.

He erupted, his guttural groans echoing around the room.

She continued to suck and pull him deep inside, the vibration of her moans driving him out of his mind.

He shuddered and continued to shoot inside her as she drove him over the edge again. It wasn’t possible. He’d never…

Only his mate would do this for him.

Sitting back on her heels, Mila grinned. Her pink cheeks and swollen lips attested to what she’d been doing. “Did I do it right?”

With a growl, he rose and flipped her over, onto her back. He tugged off her clothing, nudged her thighs apart, and buried his mouth between her legs.

She fisted his naanans and tipped her head back as he drove her as wild as she had done him.

Her cries soon followed his, absorbed by the atmosphere around them.

17

Mila

“T  ime for your meal, my mate,” Kral said. He smacked her butt. Not hard, just enough to jolt her back into this time zone. Maybe. Her brain was mush, and her body was limper than an overcooked noodle.

Her alien monkey friend hobbled up onto the bed near her head.

Shit.

“Chee-chee, cover your eyes, buddy!” she said, yanking a sheet over herself. “I’m stark naked.”

“And glad I am that you are,” Kral said. He’d donned his sword again, though nothing else from the waist up. “I doubt your meerdreg friend cares as he is also naked.”

During the time she’d lolled around in intense satisfaction-land, Kral had wound the scrap of leather around himself again, hiding all the good stuff.

“Dress, my mate,” he said. “Or not. Then join me in the dining area.”

“What are we cooking?”

“I am cooking, and you will enjoy it.”

“Is that a command or a request?”

“Both,” he said, his muscular arms crossed on his equally muscular chest.

“I want pancakes. Can you make pancakes? With lots of butter and covered in syrup.”

“Cakes of the pan will have to wait until we are on Crakair and I can obtain the necessary ingredients.”

“No maple trees on Crakair, I presume.”

“What is maple?”

“We drain the sap from the trees in the spring then boil it down to make a thicker syrup. Boiling intensifies the flavor.”

“We have something similar called seereng. I will make you seereng when we are in my Vikir village.”

“Is it sweet?” She cracked an eye his way, enjoying his buff shape lounging against the doorframe. Damn, he had a creative mouth and tongue. She would never get enough.

“It is.”

Chee-chee climbed over her head and settled down beside her. He started licking his paws, and his gaze kept darting from her to Kral and back again as if he was following their conversation.

“Do you think he knows what we’ve been up to in the bed?” Talk about cringe.

“Perhaps.” Kral chuckled. “He would scent it in the air.”

Double cringe. Could her face get any hotter?

“Ugh. Don’t,” she said, rolling onto her back but making sure the blanket covered her boobs.

“You think he does not do this, too?”

“Eat a woman out?” She snorted. “I doubt that.”

“I imagine he has a mate or wants one.” Kral nudged his head to the animal. “Do you wish to mate, Chee?”

“Cheep!” the animal said.

She didn’t know how much Chee-chee understood. Although, the others had figured out how to save her and Kral from the Al’kieern and then jumped into a shuttle as if they knew the ship would take them home.

Chee-chee and his friends were probably smarter than she was.

Kral bowed, somehow making the gesture look hot. Maybe because he was nearly naked. Anything he did would look hot if he had almost no clothing on. “I will prepare something similar to tetria.”

“What’s tetria?”

“It is a blue vegetable that tastes somewhat like fish.”

“Darn.” Not. “Too bad you don’t have the right ingredients on board to make tetria.”

“Never fear,” he said, and from the twinkle in his eyes, he knew exactly what she was thinking. “I have found a reasonable substitute.”

Before she could ask what that might be, he’d left the room.

She stretched and then patted Chee-chee, who leaned into her hand and made a rumbling noise in his chest that sounded a bit like a snake rattle combined with a cat’s purr. What an odd combination.

“I guess I ought to get up and see if Kral needs help in the kitchen,” she said to Chee-chee. Or ogle him while he cooks in the kitchen. She could sit back, put her feet up, and watch him move—err, work.

She scooted to the edge of the bed and snatched her shirt off the floor. Her pants lay beside it where they’d been tossed during her and Kral’s recent bout in bed. At least he’d had his share of the orgasms this evening.

She stuffed her feet into her shoes. Hard to believe the fancy footwear her protocol droid had insisted she wear had held up. Although, she’d broken off the heels. No way could she run an obstacle course in those babies.

Finding Kral in the small kitchen, she stood in the doorway and watched. He didn’t seem to realize she was there, which gave her the chance to ogle him in his skimpy leather outfit. Man, he had a butt of steel.

Well, and a few other steely parts, though the one she’d most recently had a close encounter with was not erect. At the moment.

Humming the same tune he’d performed his sword dance to, he shimmied back and forth in front of a tall, spindly surface with an odd-looking pan placed on the wide top. Chunks of something greener than Kral’s skin—though thankfully not scaly from what she could tell—sizzled in the pan.

“That’s a stove, huh?” she asked. She’d intended to hide out in the doorway and stare but couldn’t help speaking up. Striding over to him, she grinned. “It’s the weirdest thing I’ve ever seen.”

“It is not a stove.”

“Yet it’s cooking your meal.” She couldn’t quite place the smell. Fishy…maybe. And something sweet, like pineapple or citrus.

“The Al’kieern seem to have removed the stove from this ship.” He pointed to an empty spot between two counters.

“Figures we’d steal the only ship without a stove.” She leaned into his side. “Yet you’ve found a way to cook.”

“I had to.” While a few of his naanans teased her spine, he flicked his hand toward the meal. “These are poisonous unless they’re completely cooked.”

“Huh. And we’re going to eat them?”

“You will love them.” He bared his fangs, and he appeared so boyishly excited, she couldn’t do anything but return his smile. If it made him happy, she’d eat a full plateful. He wouldn’t serve her anything that would hurt her.

“My mother used to serve something like this as a special treat for my birthday.”

“When is your birthday?”

“In two weeks.”

“How old will you be?” She hadn’t thought about his age, but now she was curious.

“I will be twenty-nine yaros.”

“For the first time.”

He tipped his head, frowning. “Why the first time?”

“It’s a joke. You can say you’re twenty-nine for the first, second, fifth time, if you want, to avoid saying you’re thirty.”

“Why would I not wish to be thirty? With age comes wisdom and an acceptance of self. This I would welcome in my life.”

“What don’t you accept about yourself?” she asked. “You seem perfect to me.”

He snorted. “I am nowhere near perfect.”

“You don’t need to be. I…I like you. A lot, just the way you are.”

“Mila,” he groaned. Leaving his improvised stove, he crossed the tiny room and kissed her, cupping her face with his palms. “You undo me and then put me back together again.”

“I think that’s how it should be, because you do the same for me.”

“Good.”

Damn, he sounded cocky. But she liked it. It was pure Kral.

“We’ll need to celebrate your birthday,” she said. “Hold a big party. What else did your mother do for you to make your day special?” She hoped talking about this made him happy. That was how she’d processed her father’s death: by focusing on the good things and trying not to dwell on the bad.

“She would sing a song she’d made up for me, to wake me in the morning.”

Mila laughed. “I imagine that was fun when you were three but less so as you got older.”

His lips curved upward briefly, and she could tell he was lost in the past. “Yes. I would groan and complain, leading her to believe I was much too mature for something so silly.” His gaze met hers. “I wish…”

She wrapped her arms around his waist. “I get it. I wish, too. More than I should.”

“We’ve both been broken by what happened in our past but perhaps…” He gave her a sweet kiss. “Perhaps now we will be whole together.”

This guy made her come undone, but she loved it.

Hell, she was half in love with him already. Maybe more than half.

He eased away and returned to stir his meal.

“Do you have ketchup?” she asked.

He shot her a frown then, using a knife, poked cautiously at the chunks as if he worried they’d bite back. “What will we catch…?”

“Each other.” She gave him a soft smile, her emotions still hot and tumbling around inside her. “Ketchup is a condiment. It’s made from a vegetable, tomatoes, though I guess they’re not a vegetable. They’re a fruit.”

“And you enjoy this fruit-vegetable with your meals?”

“I dip everything in ketchup.” Her words came out mournful until she remembered she’d stuffed a few bottles into her bag. When they reached Crakair, she’d find it waiting, right?

She kept thinking of how fun it would be to try those edible undies from the bridal shower she and her friends were having when the Al’kieern boarded the ship and kidnapped her, Lily, and Taylor. The dildo would not be needed.

Kral pulled the pan off the heat with his bare hands. “There are no dishes to serve this, but we can eat it together off the pan.”

“Sounds fun.”

“Why don’t you go ahead of me to the dining area?” He nudged his head toward the hall. “I will bring the dish.”

“Cool.” She rubbed her aching belly, not quite sure when she’d last eaten.

“Please sit,” he said, waving to the area he’d cleared in the center of the room. He’d arranged pillows on the floor, and she dropped down onto one.

“A picnic?” she asked. “This looks nice.”

“Pick the nick?” he asked.

She held in her chuckle. “Hopefully not. A picnic is when people take a meal outside to the park or on a hillside. You set things up, sit on the ground, and enjoy the food.”

“Then, yes, this is a pic-nic.” He bared his fangs. “I was joking. I knew.”

She grinned. “I’d wondered. Your English has impressed me from the moment I met you. I know our translators do much of the work, but you hadn’t had much interaction with Earthlings, had you?”

“I had not.” He lowered the pan onto the floor in front of her, then sat on the cushion beside her. Lifting a jug, he waved it her way. “Drink?”

“What is it?”

“It is supposed to be quarklet, a watery fruit drink most Crakairians enjoy.”

“Supposed to be?”

His fangs flashed again. “I had to improvise.”

“I enjoy a male who can think fast.”

He leaned in close, and when he whispered near her ear, she shivered in a good way. “I think very fast.”

“Sometimes, being fast isn’t the best,” she said, not making any effort to hide she meant sexually.

His eyes sparkled. “In that, I take things slow. You will feel everything.”

Whoa. She fanned her face. She wasn’t sure how long she could hold back with only foreplay. She wanted the main course.

Focus on the meal. Once it is finished, a substitution emulsion was the only thing left.

“Fork?” she said brightly. The implement might make it easier to eat the green chunks.

“I will feed you.”

Okay, that could be fun. That’s what they did in rom-com movies, right? She loved the ones set in foreign locations, and there wasn’t anything more foreign than an alien ship and a hot alien guy sitting beside her.

“Aw, this is our first official date,” she said.

“If you were dating on Earth, what would you do with the male?”

“Go out to eat, so pretty much the same thing.”

He puffed his chest, and his eyes flashed. “But he would not emulse your feet afterward.”

“You’ve got that right.” What, exactly, went on during an emulsion? The manual she’d studied on the ship hadn’t outlined the process, and she hadn’t thought to ask her protocol droid. She’d figured she’d find out when it happened. It wasn’t as if she could avoid it. “I thought you said you don’t have a booger.”

“Boodler.”

“Oh, yeah. A boodler. Don’t you need one to emulse my…feet?” A part of her looked forward to it. This was one big adventure. If she cringed away from things, she’d miss out on the good parts.

Chee-chee bounded into the room and climbed up onto her lap. He turned and sat like she was a chair. Reaching out, he snatched up a piece of the meal.

“I hope you cooked enough for three,” she said with a laugh while Chee-chee gnawed on the food.

“There is plenty.” Kral lifted a chunk. “Would you like to try?”

“I would. What is it exactly?”

“Since there was no food on the ship, I had to improvise.”

“You cooked something. We’re calling it food. How is this possible if there was no food on the ship?”

“I went…” He frowned. “What are the words for the activity? I went floundering.”

She blanked. Floundering… “Maybe explain what you did, and I can give you the right word?”

“I stuffed myself into one of the puny Al’kieern suits and went outside the ship.”

She recoiled. “We’re traveling at warp speed, aren’t we?”

“I slowed the ship briefly.”

“Okay.” She blinked, unable to imagine him leaving the safety inside. In all the sci-fi movies she’d seen, horrible things happened to the person who went outside the ship. They were the expendable ones, the guys set up to sacrifice themselves for the rest of the crew. Or, they went out to battle the alien monster, and the two were sucked away into space. Again, the expendable person. This wasn’t Kral. “So you wore an Al’kieern spacesuit—not even asking what you did with the extra arm holes—and you went outside and…floundered?”

“Yes. I floundered for wae-lyns.”

“What’s a wae-lyn?” She watched Chee-chee finish off the hunk and take another.

“A creature that lives in space.”

Her gaze was drawn to the circular porthole high on the outer wall. “How does it survive?”

“They live among meteor clusters, hiding from view, eating dust filtered from the air, and foraged along the surface of the meteor.”

“So sort of a space lobster?” She could get into that. No butter or mayo, but a girl couldn’t be picky in outer space.

“I do not know what a lobster is, but wae-lyns are blue and have thick coats of fur.”

“They sound cute.”

He rose and strode over to a cabinet mounted on one wall and opened the door. Reaching in, he pulled out a slug-like thing the size of a small pony and held it up. “Cute?” It dangled from his hand, its multiple-centipede-like legs flickering.

She reeled backward but curiosity and hunger overcame her squeamishness. “It looks like something you’d squish if you found it in your garden. Well, if it was smaller.” Ugh, not a good thought. She shoved it aside before she dwelled too long on it.

“You will not find wae-lyns on Crakair.”

“I’ll sleep better at night.” She flicked her hand to the creature, trying not to look at it too hard. A fish and she liked eating fish. Yes, she’d think of it as a fish. “Is that breakfast?”

“With the one I cooked and this one, we should have enough food until we reach Crakair, even with your little friend stuffing himself with my garlong-prepared meal.”

She glanced down. “Jeez, Chee, where did you put it?” He’d eaten almost half of the dish. Lounging on her lap, he burped. She couldn’t help it; she laughed and snuggled the top of his head. “Are you going to sleep now, baby?” Glancing up at Kral, who had returned the wae-lyn to the cabinet and was crossing the room to join her again, she grinned. “He’s heavy.”

He held out his arms. “Would you like me to take him? I can put him in the Commander’s chair. We can leave him in charge.”

“Sure, why not? We’re eating a space lobster. Why not let the space monkey drive the ship?”

He took Chee-chee from her and carried the drowsy monkey from the room, returning a few seconds later. “He appears content playing Commander.”

“Probably not play.” She tapped her temple. “He’s smart.”

Kral dropped down onto the cushion beside her. He lifted a piece of the meat toward her mouth.

She leaned back and eyed it. “Are they…I know I shouldn’t be squeamish. We need to eat. The space lobsters are out there, able to be floundered.” Her mouth formed a circle. “Oh! I know what you mean. You went fishing.”

“Yes, fishing. That is it. I did not flounder.”

“Hopefully not too much,” she said with a snicker, but her mood sobered. “I guess I’d prefer this was a bug and not a mom or a dad with little baby wae-lyns waiting on a meteor for Mama to bring home the bacon. Or dust, in the wae-lyn’s case.”

“They are simple organisms, much like plants.”

“Do they have feelings? I mean, I’m not a vegetarian. I love steak too much. But for some reason, I’m squeamish about this.”

“The wae-lyn is a moving plant. That is the best description. Many Crakairians are eaters of only vegetables.”

Her shoulders relaxed. “Then I’m in.” She opened her mouth, and he popped a piece inside, watching intently as she chewed.

It was gummy, almost like bread dough, and the texture was vaguely like a marshmallow with fibrous strands running through it. It had smelled fishy, and it tasted as it had smelled, though barely a hint of seafood. The sweeter taste burst on her tongue and made her belly rumble in anticipation.

“It’s good,” she said after swallowing.

Kral’s shoulders relaxed. “Yes. I am pleased.” He fed her another bite and ate some himself. They finished the plate, and he got up and returned it to the kitchen, coming back into the room with something the size of his chest that resembled a sponge.

“Dessert?” she asked, more hopeful than she should be. Was it wrong of her to miss ice cream?

He stared down the object. “This is my improvised boodler.”

“Ah, the emulsion. I’m…looking forward to it. What do I have to do?”

“You will lie on your back and let me handle everything.”

Sounded sexy, but she had a feeling it wasn’t.

Taking his pillow, she tossed it behind her and lay down, putting her head on the fluffy surface.

He crouched down by her feet.

“What’s the purpose of an emulsion?” she asked.

“I will tell you in a story. Long ago a queen of the Vikir promised to wed whoever could make her aching feet happy.”

“I can understand that,” Mila said with a slight smile on her face. “Without happy feet, you’re not going anywhere.”

Mila could swear Kral released a soft snort, but she couldn’t be certain as she’d closed her eyes.

“What did she do to make her feet unhappy?” Mila asked. “If I had my guess, she was on them all day, performing queenly duties.”

“This is true.”

“I assume someone used a boodler to make her feet happy.” There was a movie about feet being happy, but she couldn’t remember the name.

“You are ahead of me. If I may finish.” He said it in all seriousness, but humor lightened his voice.

“Oh, sorry.” She waved her hand grandly. No, queenly. “Please continue.”

“Males came from all over, eager to win the heart of the Vikir queen.”

“The way to a woman’s heart is through her feet.”

He chuckled. “It is so.” He removed her shoes. “The first to arrive had no imagination.”

“He wasn’t inventive like you.”

Kral placed a fist against his chest. “Unlike me.”

“If she’d seen you, her feet would’ve been singing.”

“I will make your feet sing.”

“Do it.” She closed her eyes again so she could fully sink into the story.

“This first male to arrive was also a Crakairian prince. More males arrived, and it was announced that each would be given one chance to please the Vikir queen. If they failed, they would be banished.”

“Seems drastic over unhappy feet.”

“It was the way of the Vikir.”

“What happened?”

Kral’s fingers teased the bottom of Mila’s foot, and her laughter burst out.

“The Crakairian prince chose to massage her feet with wildarn fat,” he said.

“Sounds…pleasant.” And stinky. She didn’t know what a wildarn was, but the idea of a creature’s fat being rubbed into her feet made her cringe.

Kral lifted Mila’s left foot and started rubbing. He was using some sort of cream, or…

“Is that wildarn fat?” The words burst out of her.

“I have had to improvise.”

Maybe not wildarn. “What kind of fat are you using?”

“An oil I found in the kitchen.”

So, that was okay. He was using vegetable oil, or so she told herself.

“That feels nice,” she said, wiggling her butt on the floor as he rubbed and stroked from her heel to her toes. He repeated the massage on her other foot. By then, all of her skin was tingling, and she was ready to drag him down the hall to the bed for another round.

“Unfortunately, the Crakairian prince’s massage did not make the queen’s feet happy, and he was banished. Each male who had presented himself at the castle did something similar, using tickling devices…” Kral glided something silky along the bottom of Mila’s right foot, and she jolted and squirmed.

“Stop!” she said, her voice full of laughter.

“See? You understand. It takes a special technique to make feet happy.”

“In comes the boodler,” she said with a smile. “Another prince?”

“This time, it was a simple Vikir warrior such as me.”

“You’re anything but simple, sweetheart.”

He bared his fangs. “You are also not simple, my heart’s sweetness.”

“You’re saying the Vikir warrior brought along a boodler. How did he know it would work?”

“He didn’t. The boodler came with him by accident. Boodlers are peculiar creatures. When they bond with a mate, it is for life.”

“I think I see where this is going.” She adjusted the pillow under her head and peeked at Kral through half-closed eyes. Kral had dragged the sponge closer to her feet, but it wasn’t a boodler as there were none to be had. How was he going to make this odd thing work?

“The boodler had locked onto the warrior,” Kral said. “It was in love, and it wished to remain with the male always.”

“I feel bad for the boodler.”

“Never fear, the story has a happy ending.”

“That is the point. Happy feet. But what about the boodler?”

He grunted. “As I said, do not worry about the boodler.”

“This sounds like reverse harem.”

“What is this reverse harem?” Kral growled.

“One woman with multiple men.”

“There will be no reverse harems for us.”

Did he sound jealous? “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Good.”

“How did all of them find their happy ending?” she asked.

“The warrior came prepared to use a special emollient he’d tapped from the rare cineberr tree found deep within the forest. But the boodler ate the emollient before our warrior could apply it to the queen’s feet.”

“And…?”

“Its belly full, the boodler fell asleep. Unsure what he could do, as it was his turn to be presented to the queen and he worried the boodler would wake and interrupt, the Vikir warrior carried the boodler into the queen’s parlor and over to where she reclined on a lounger.

Kral told a fascinating story, but Mila was worried about what the sponge was going to do to her feet.

As he spoke, Kral lifted one of her feet and then the other, and tucked them inside the sponge. At first, nothing happened.

“The warrior laid the boodler on the bed near the queen’s feet and, before he could scrape out the remains of his cineberr emollient from the jar, the boodler had shifted, tucking its elongating body around her feet.”

Mila hummed and sighed and…

Something was gliding across her feet like she’d placed them into a pool of very soft sand covered with water. The sand gave and swirled around her skin, a sensation that was vaguely sensual. Mila’s moan slipped out.

“That is exactly what the queen said.” Kral moved around beside her and braced himself over her while the sponge did its gliding-massaging thing with her feet.

Kral kissed her, slow and with plenty of heat. The feeling sunk through to her bones, and she moaned again.

He sat back on his heels. “And there you have it. My story—and my courtship—is finished. Now you must tell me, my mate, because I need to know. Are your feet happy?”

“All of me is happy.”

“Then there is only one thing left to do.”

“Can we get to the fucking?” she said, only half-joking.

He lifted her hand and kissed it. “Will you be my forever mate?”

She nodded, a huge grin on her face. “Yes. I’m yours, happy feet and all.”

Standing, he lifted her off the floor. “Yes. Now it is time for the fucking.”

Yay. She couldn’t wait to feel him rising over her… Her rising over him… From behind. Against the wall. And any other way he wanted to do it. She intended for both of them to be completely sated before they reached Crakair.

Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she grinned. “Have your way with me, dude, because I plan to do the same.”

He’d turned toward the hall when alarms flashed overhead.

Oh, shit.

The ship shuddered.

Shouts rang out in the hall.

Kral’s gaze met hers. “Our ship has been boarded by raiders.”

18

Kral

With the raiders attacking, his sole interest was in protecting Mila.

Chee-chee shrieked and raced past them. When he reached the hall, he rushed toward the bridge.

Shouts erupted, telling Kral the meerdreg was taking on the force alone.

“Chee!” Mila whimpered.

Soon, the raiders would find him and Mila. Kral had no doubt that was who they were. They often traveled in this sector, which was why Kral had engaged the full shields before he’d started their meal.

How had they gotten around the barrier?

He opened the cabinet where he’d stuffed the wae-lyn and yanked it out.

“Hide here,” he said to Mila.

Her panicked gaze met his. “I want to stand at your back.” She rushed around him and pawed through the drawers, pulling a device used to bury a screw in a metal frame. Brandishing it, she returned to his side. “Hiding won’t do me any good. They’ll search the ship. They’ll find me. If I’m stuffed in a cabinet, I won’t be able to defend myself. They’ll stun me before I can stab them.”

He hated that her reasoning was sound. He wanted her safe, but it seemed there was no safety to be found anywhere. Her life would be forfeit until they reached his Vikir village.

“I will fight them.” He strode toward the door. “Remain here with your driver of the screws.”

She scowled but stayed beside the cabinets. As he peered into the hall, seeing no one but hearing whoever it was rifling around on the bridge, she scooted over to hover at his back.

“You did not stay where I suggested,” he said softly. How could he have assumed anything else?

“You can command all you want, but I’m my own person. If I want to fight, I will.” Her chin lifted, and her steely gaze met his.

“I only want to protect you,” he said with a sigh.

“I understand. But you won’t be safe out there alone, fighting who knows how many raiders.” Tears pooled in her eyes, but she feverishly wiped them away. “I’m worried about you.”

That crushed him. Other than his aunt and a good friend, no one had worried about him since his parents were alive. His village…they cared, but he was their leader, not a friend. Not someone to laugh with.

Unlike Mila. Despite all the hardships, she had made his life fun.

“I need to be able to move freely,” he said softly in as reasonable a tone as possible when he could hear the footsteps of raiders moving down the hall. Fortunately, they would not be able to bring many on board. They’d have to move in single file. Others could be on the bridge, or they could have latched a small craft onto this one and attacked. Kral’s guess was they were looking for goods. Maybe dinars.

Hostages.

Hostage, that is. They’d eliminate him.

Mila was the true prize.

“I’ll stay out of your way,” she said, her body sagging. She stuffed her feet into her shoes. “I know I should hide here, but I want to be with you, facing them together.”

“All right. But remain behind me and give me free movement.”

She nodded sharply and tightened her hand on her weapon. “Any advice?”

“Be careful. Don’t put yourself at risk.”

She snorted. “How much riskier could this get?”

He growled, wishing he could see them through this. But he would defend her to the death.

His mate. They had not had enough time.

After staring into her eyes and committing her face to memory, he opened the door to the hall fully and moved outside. Tricarns engaged him immediately. Odd to find them in this quadrant. The one-eyed, tall, spotted-furred aliens lived on a small planet in the Vendant sector. They weren’t known to travel far.

The Tricarn in the lead swung his jazer Kral’s way, and he deflected it with his sword. His sekairs shot darts, and one scored a hit on the lead’s neck. The Tricarnian dropped to the ground, writhing as the poison reached his veins. He’d be dead within seclars.

Kral stepped over the leader and engaged the second while a third tried to get past him to Mila.

A grunt behind made him shoot a glance over his shoulder. Mila grappled with a Tricarn who held a strand of rope. He spun her around, trying to tie her wrists. But she kneed him in the groin, and he dropped to his knees with a wail.

Pride in how she yet again handled herself burst through Kral. She would make an awesome Vikir, and he was honored to stand by her side.

A jazer blade skimmed down Kral’s arm, and he hissed. Spinning back to the Tricarns who kept coming, pouring from the airlock as if in never-ending supply, he darted his sword forward, taking down the next in line.

Three and then four Tricarns lost their lives to Kral’s blade, and five behind them to his sekairs.

Meanwhile, Mila hit the Tricarn over the head with her weapon, and the male dropped to her feet, his eye glazing.

She spun and, with a grim smile sent Kral’s way, leaped onto a Tricarn coming down the hall from the bedroom.

While keeping an eye on Mila, Kral kept fighting Tricarns until no more appeared from the airlock to challenge him.

His sword arm lowered, and he huffed, his breathing ragged. His muscles ached. His leg…Heille, his leg was killing him.

“Are you okay?” Mila asked, coming up behind him. “You’re…limping. I want to look at your leg in a professional manner. I know I was just an assistant, but I learned a lot from the therapists.”

“I will let you do whatever you will with me.”

She gave him a watery smile. “That was scary. What happens next?”

Turning, he found the Tricarns she’d disarmed tied with the rope they had planned to use on her.

Another swore and glared at Mila. The third lay on his back with his mouth slack and his eyes closed. Unconscious or dead, and he didn’t care which.

Kral stepped over and around Tricarns to reach the awake male’s side, and stooped down.

“Why?” he asked, his gaze meeting the male’s single deep green eye.

“We are starving,” the male said bitterly. “Plague and war have killed many, but those living have nothing to eat.”

“Why not approach the Crakairian government for help?”

The male puffed his chest. “We are a proud people.”

“Not too proud to become raiders.”

The Tricarn’s gaze flicked to Mila. “When the payment is high enough, a male will do almost anything to keep his people from starving.”

“Someone paid you to take Mila.” Kral’s words came out as a statement. There was no question.

The pieces of this were starting to fall together, and he didn’t like the image they were creating.

Was there a connection? His naanans flared out in agitation. He didn’t have time to think about this.

“Do you have droids on board your ship?” he asked the Tricarn.

The male nodded.

“Then I will not kill you.” If Mila was not here, Kral wasn’t sure he would be this kind, but she was already staring in horror at the carnage Kral had left in the hall. Her lower lip trembled, but she shored herself up, stiffening as she leaned against the wall.

Her gaze met his. “They were here for me.”

The Tricarn laughed. “Seems that way, doesn’t it, but…”

What wasn’t he saying?

Kral leaned close. “Tell me everything or…” He let the thought hang in the air between them. He wasn’t opposed to ending this male’s life, and the Tricarn knew it. It was written in the fear-filled slant of his solitary eye.

The male grappled with something in his mouth.

Kral frowned.

When the Tricarn bit down hard, Kral knew. He wrangled with the male’s jaw, trying to dislodge the poison pill the male had just bitten.

“Too late,” the male said, slurring his words already. “You lose.” His green gaze settled on Mila. “Would have enjoyed mating with one such as her but…” He coughed, a raspy sound that brought up green blood that dribbled from the Tricarn’s mouth. “The gods will reward me…” More coughing. “In the next life.” He flicked his wrist, and a dart flew to the unconscious male, hitting him in the throat. The Tricarn sucked in a hitching breath.

More poison.

Kral snarled in frustration. “Tell me who sent you.”

“You think we only wanted her.” The Tricarn’s eye started to glaze over. “Our true mission was to kill you.”

“Why?” Kral snarled. “And who sent you?”

The Tricarn bared his fangs but stopped breathing.

19

Mila

She rushed down the hall to the bathroom while Kral took care of the bodies.

The bodies.

She’d added to her kill list, and she wasn’t sure what she thought about that. At the time, while adrenaline surged through her, she hadn’t cared. It was kill or be captured. Kill or watch Kral fall in front of her. No question about what she’d had to do.

But that didn’t mean she wasn’t scarred by her actions. Reflection was a bitch.

The toilet stood in the corner, a pedestal with mechanical arms that groped the person peeing. Would it latch onto her head if she hung over it to throw up?

No time to find out but the present.

But while she dry heaved, nothing rose to grab onto her. She sat back on her butt and couldn’t stop trembling. After killing a few guys herself and sort of watching while Kral took care of the others, she should be used to death by now.

She’d never forget the image of them wheeling Dad out with a sheet over his face.

Opening her eyes, she stared at the blood on her hands. Green. Where had that come from?

The bodies.

“Get cleaned up,” she said to herself. “Wash it off. Make it go away.”

But where could she bathe? She rose and stared around. Surely the Al’kieern cleaned up every now and then. They hadn’t been stinky.

Tears trickled down her face. How much longer could she take this? She wasn’t a warrior or someone trained to go into battle.

She wanted peace. She needed to find some semblance of normal.

If she wasn’t half in love with Kral, she’d ask to go home. But where was her home now, when everything revolved around Kral?

Her future was with him, which meant she’d have to adjust.

She’d known things would change when she signed on for the matchmaking program. A woman would be stupid to assume she wouldn’t have to make major adjustments in her life to live with an alien man. Mila had been willing to do that. She still was, but that didn’t mean it was easy.

A tall cabinet stood in the corner and it had a big opaque door on the front, reminiscent of shower stalls back on Earth. Approaching it, she opened the door, finding a seemingly normal showerhead and dials that she assumed would adjust the temperature. Water? Who the hell knew?

She twisted one of the dials and something vaguely water-looking came out of the head. When she dipped her hand beneath the spray, it felt silky.

It was clear. There was no smell.

Good enough for her.

She stripped and flung the clothing onto the floor, then stepped beneath the spray.

Her tears mixed with the liquid pulsing from overhead, and she sniffed, trying to stop herself from crying.

“You’re fine. Safe. Alive. So is Kral.” Her eyes stung, and she knew it wasn’t from the hot liquid pouring over her body.

She sagged into the wall and pressed her fist against her mouth.

Damn. Do. Not. Cry!

Shivers rushed through her even though the liquid was hot enough to fill the tiny space with steam.

How had she thought she could deal with this?

It’s only been days.

She’d been kidnapped, drugged, tied down onto a table while a blue-skinned guy experimented on her. While she’d escaped, she hadn’t truly been free. She’d had to eke out an existence by stealing food and moments in a janitor’s closet to get clean. She’d lived in stolen clothing, tucking extra sleeves around herself like belts.

Was it any wonder she was close to cracking?

She was strong. She’d see herself through this.

She just…couldn’t do it this moment.

Though she tried to stop them, she couldn’t keep her tears from falling. Her head pounded, and her pulse raged in her throat.

Her body ached. Her soul ached. Would she ever feel normal or safe again?

An alien world had won, if only for now. She’d been beaten. Splintered into fragments all over again.

“My mate,” Kral said softly from the other side of the clear door, and god it hurt to hear the kindness in his voice. “I…” He growled. “I am worried about you. It has been many minars, and you have not emerged. Are you…okay?”

Sometimes, it seemed that she’d never be okay. But with Kral holding out his hand, she just might.

The door cracked open.

“Mila. My mate.” His voice broke. “I…” Still wearing only his improvised garlong, he stepped underneath the spray with her. “This is not…”

“I know.”

He wasn’t pushing for sex. Hell, if he had wanted that, she already would have said yes. This was about comfort. Caring. Sharing a moment where both of them felt…shattered.

And maybe it was time to pick up the pieces and glue them back together again.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close. She sighed. Sinking against him, she let the tears flow. He rubbed her back and murmured silly things that meant nothing and everything. “It is okay. Truly. I am with you. We are safe.”

“What did you do with them?”

The bodies.

“They have been returned to their ship. The entire crew attacked and…”

They were dead.

He cleared his throat. “After removing some necessary supplies, I have programmed the droids to take the craft to Crakair.”

She didn’t need to know anything more, just that the one-eyed guys wouldn’t be trying to capture her or kill Kral again.

“Will more come?” she asked.

“I do not believe they will, but we will be on guard.”

So maybe they weren’t fully safe, but close.

“When we reach my clan, my people will protect you, surround you, and hold you in the shelter of their arms.”

“All I need is yours.” She looked up at him and pushed for a smile. It wasn’t easy, but it became truer the harder she tried.

He washed her hair, his fingers gliding through the strands until they squeaked. When his hands clinically cleaned the rest of her body, heat sparked deep inside her. Perhaps the fire between them had not been fully extinguished.

“We’re mates,” she said.

“We are, my mate.” His voice came out gravelly, enriched with emotion.

“From what I remember, you’d just proposed to me.”

“I had.” His arms tightened around her.

“I said yes.”

“You did.”

“I think it’s time to consummate our relationship, don’t you?”

Life. She needed to feel something. Anything. She wanted to fill the gaping maw inside her.

With the love building between them, she could build a bridge they could walk across to find a future.

Together.

20

Kral

He hadn’t intended to make this sexual between them.

He’d only wanted to comfort her. In the hallway, when he and Mila stood surrounded by dead bodies, he’d seen the lines of horror on her face and knew she was close to cracking. She’d been incredibly brave. She’d fought at his side as well as any of his clansmen. But she wasn’t used to this life. Not like he was. It had nothing to do with someone being male or female or human or Crakairian, but about the life she’d come from and the world she’d stepped into.

From almost the minar she’d been matched with Kral, she’d been in danger.

After taking the bodies to the raider craft, he programmed the droids to guide the ship to Crakair.

Returning to the bridge, he found the meerdreg cowering in a cupboard on the bridge. He coaxed it out and sat in the Commander’s chair with the creature on his lap. While stroking its silky fur, Kral sent a message to Vork, telling him to expect the craft on Crakair within daelas. Then he’d left the sleeping meerdreg in the chair and walked down the hall on deadened feet. He’d stood outside the bathroom door, not knowing what to expect or how she’d behave. He pressed his forehead against the metal panel.

Mila’s sob reached his ears, and the soft, gutted sound ripped through him like laser fire.

Leaving her alone when she was upset was not an option.

He stepped inside the room prepared to offer his heart and the comfort of his arms. If she told him to leave, he would. All he wanted was to help her heal.

When nothing remained but her shudders, he took her hand and helped her step out of the washing chamber and onto a scrap of fabric lying on the floor outside.

“Let me,” he said when she reached for a drying cloth hung on a hook nearby.

While she stood passively, he wicked away the sheehera droplets from her body.

“You are brave,” he said. “Incredible. Amazing.”

“It was awful.” The words came out of her in a rush.

“It is,” he said softly, rubbing the cloth down her legs. She had gorgeous legs. He couldn’t help noticing.

“I was scared.”

“I was, too.” Lifting each of her feet, he dried them, gliding the material between her toes to absorb all the moisture. The emollient residue would soak into her skin and protect it. Well, that’s what the sluice spray did for scaled beings like Crakairians and the Al’kieern. He assumed it would do the same for humans.

“I didn’t know what I’d do if something happened to you,” she said through chattering teeth.

“I felt the same.”

“You did?” she said softly. She’d been staring downward but now she looked up, her beautiful eyes with their long eyebashes shimmering with tears. Crakairians did not cry. He found the stars in her eyes both beautiful and heart-wrenching. He’d do everything to keep her from crying ever again.

She stepped toward him, and that was when it hit him she was completely naked. Something changed between them, taking them from comfort and sharing to need.

It was common after a battle to feel lust. Sex validated life and reminded the person they’d lived to fight another day.

“I want you,” she said. Her hand lifted. “We have a matebond, and I want to share everything with you. The good and the bad. I want to stand by your side whether it’s in sickness or with a sword in your hand.” A soft smile lifted on her face. “I want to have your babies.”

“Mila.” He didn’t think his heart could hurt any more than it did right now. She emptied him out and filled him back up with just a few words.

“Can we start that together, this moment?” she asked.

“Love.”

“Yes, love. It seems fast, and it’s fresh and new.” She took his hand and placed it in the center of her chest. “But it’s real, and it’s lasting. I’m not backing down. I won’t ask to return to Earth. All I want is to remain by your side for the time we have left, be it ten minutes or a full lifetime.”

He gathered her into his arms and held her. Held the two of them together. Nothing would ever tear them apart.

He swept her off her feet and carried her out of the bathing chamber and down the hall to the bedroom.

“I can walk,” she said with a laugh.

“Why should you?”

She linked her arms around his neck. “You know what? You’re right. Why should I walk when I have you to hold me and protect me?”

They were greeted by Chee-chee, who must have left the bridge and hobbled to the bedroom. The small meerdreg peeked above the covers.

When Kral lowered Mila onto the bed, the creature hopped over to her and pressed his furry face against her arm.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Chee,” Mila said, stroking his head and rubbing his back.

The meerdreg purred before hopping down and scooting down the hall.

“Poor guy,” Mila said. “There’s an Earth saying about going from the frying pan into the fire, and it seems Chee-chee did exactly that.”

Kral shut the bedroom door. He sat on the edge of the bed and stroked Mila’s hair. Damp from the sluice spray, it felt silky, and it gleamed from the emollient. He ached to bury his face in the soft strands.

When she held out her arms, and the sweetest smile bloomed on her face, he stepped toward his future.

Toward her.

21

Mila

I n a short time, she and Kral had laughed, cried—on her part, that is—and defended each other.

Was it too soon to be feeling love for this alien who sought to claim her as his own?

If it was, she didn’t care. Life was about living, and she wanted to know what it was like to be with someone she…

Okay, she loved him. Her friends would tell her it was too soon. That there was no way she could be certain of her feelings this fast. But deep in her heart, Mila knew.

This was more than a matebond. More than a match made back on Earth.

Kral was the one she’d waited all her life for. She refused to fight this feeling any longer.

“Love me,” she whispered as he braced himself over her.

“I will.” He groaned and kissed her, a touch that started sweet and tender but heated up fast, turning into liquid fire. It ignited her veins.

She moaned and arched herself up to touch him. Skin to scales… There was something deliciously sensual about rubbing herself against his slightly coarse skin.

His naanans stroked her shoulders and moved to her breasts.

“Your body is beautiful,” he murmured as he kissed along her jawline. His fangs grazed the skin on her neck as he moved lower, kissing along her collarbone. “I want to touch—taste—all of you.”

“I’m yours.”

His growl ripped between them as his mouth moved to her breasts.

While a few of his naanans trailed lower and teased her clit, he took her nipple into his mouth and sucked. With his fangs, he bit down gently, raising the heat inside her.

Heat swirled through her belly, and her mind took flight.

His tongue lathed her breast while his naanans teased the other. His fingers… Shit, his fingers delved between her legs. She was wet, and she felt no shame about it. She loved that she could be this turned on for her mate so quickly.

He spread her thighs and moved between them. “You smell like lust. Now I will make you smell like satisfaction.”

Smell? Momentary embarrassment shot through her, and she thought about closing her thighs. But hell, she wanted him. He wanted her. What could be wrong with that?

“Let me see you spread out for me as a feast,” he said.

“If you’re hungry, I think that slug thing is still lying on the dining room floor.”

“I want this. You.” His fingers glided along her slit then dipped inside. He pulled them out and licked them off. “Mmm.” His rumble of pleasure tickled her thighs.

His naanans, glided up her belly and stroked her breasts, and another latched onto her clit. The low hum sunk into her bones and spread through her, making her body ignite. He was touching her everywhere, all at the same time.

While his fingers sunk inside her, pumping, he licked her clit.

She bucked beneath him, eager for what he could do with his mouth but even more eager for what he could do with his cock.

“Kral,” she said.

He lifted his head, but while his tongue might have stopped stroking her clit, his fingers kept pushing inside her, and his naanans sucked her nipples. He was driving her closer to the edge, but she didn’t want to tumble over the side alone.

“Do you like this?” he said. “Too much or do you want more?”

“Always more, “she breathed.

He rose over her and centered his cock at her entrance. Big and thick, it stretched her wide.

She spread her legs, but he took her ankles and looped them up above his shoulders as he inched inside. The stretch was exquisite, a subtle sting because she’d never been with anyone so big before, yet a burn so blissful, she worried she’d come before he’d seated himself deep inside.

And she wanted that. She needed to be with him when he pounded into her.

Pulling out, he rolled her over onto her belly and lowered himself down her body. He lifted her hips and spread her legs wide. His tongue stroked from her clit to her opening, where he paused and delved deep, the slit on the end of his tongue gliding across her G-spot.

She jerked and then pressed backward, her head buried in the bedding. A moan erupted from deep inside her.

“Fuck,” she gasped. “Kral!”

His tongue slipped out, and he rose over her, holding her hips steady. His cock pressed against her entrance, probing. Vibrating. The humming sensation sunk through her. Her clit was on fire.

He pushed inside farther, and the vibrations quaked against her inner walls. Backing out, he pressed himself forward fast, burying his full length deep within her.

She gasped and jerked her head up. “Kral. Fuck, that feels awesome.”

“Do you like this?” he asked, pulling out and driving himself deep inside again.

“Yes. Yes!”

“Do you want me to go slowly…” He demonstrated, gliding in and out of her with his cock vibrating against the soft tissue inside her. “Or fast?” He jerked out and plunged deep inside, burying himself to the hilt. Then again, over and over while she gasped and shrieked and called his name.

His pace backed off again, and he leaned over her. While his fingers played with her clit, pinching and rubbing, his naanans glided around to her front. Two latched onto her nipples and tugged. Lightning shot from her breasts to her groin, and she released a high-pitched moan.

“Yes,” he growled in her ear. “More. I want to hear you scream.” His fangs bit down on her neck, almost breaking the delicate skin.

She rocked against him while he pumped. The slight pinch at her neck was echoed by the intense stretch as her body accommodated his length and girth.

They moved together, and the heat built between them.

“Tell me what you want, my mate,” he whispered in her ear. “Tell me.”

“Faster, Kral. I want it faster.”

“Then you shall have it.” His fingers tightened on her hips, and he held her steady as he plunged into her, his pace so fast, she couldn’t keep up. All she could do was fist the covers, bury her face in the pillow, and hold on.

Fire rose inside her and as his naanans rolled her nipples, she crashed, her gasp of bliss rocking through her.

He went faster while her body shuddered around his. Muscles tightening, he buried his face in her neck. “Mila. Fuck. You’re…” His hips shot forward, and he slammed against her, his solid rod growing thicker and harder. “Fuck.…”

With a groan, he came, his cock jerking inside her. His body shook and trembled, spending himself inside her.

Huffing, he lowered himself gently on top of her, a solid mass of alien male.

His weight felt wonderful. His cock, still somewhat solid, twitched and subtly vibrated.

With a heady groan, he eased himself over and onto his side, taking her along with him, keeping them connected while tucking her snug against the front of his body. His arms encircled her, and his face was buried in her hair.

“You are perfect,” he said, kissing her neck.

“That was…” Her voice came out breathy, because his cock was growing inside her all over again.

She should be sore. Worn out after the pounding he’d just delivered, but she could feel the answering heat building within her all over again.

He shifted forward, burying himself fully as his fingers stroked one of her breasts.

His naanans took over, tweaking her nipples, while he lifted her leg to give himself deeper access.

“Kral,” she whispered.

“Mila,” he said. Pulling out of her, he turned her onto her back. He climbed between her thighs and went down on her, sucking her clit. He must be tasting himself mixed in with her wetness, but he just groaned out his pleasure.

As her body tightened, poised to splinter into a thousand fragments, he rose over her. He lifted her legs and placed them on his shoulders, then eased inside her.

He rocked against her, slow and deep. A pace that drove her into a frenzy.

They came together, gasping each other’s names, then fell onto the sheets together, sated.

22

Kral

M ila slept, but Kral couldn’t find rest.

Sexually, he was the most satisfied he’d been in his life. Mila was everything he could hope for in a mate.

Emotionally, he was filled to the top. For the first time since his parents died, he had someone who loved him solely for himself and not for what he could offer them as a leader or the enforcer of his clan. His aunt had done what she could to make him feel welcome, but she’d had other children. They needed her the most.

He also couldn’t sleep because he was worried. He couldn’t stop thinking about the Tricarn raider’s words before he killed himself.

Rising, Kral crossed the room, not bothering to dress. He eased out into the hall and left the door cracked so he would hear if Mila wakened.

Then he strode to the bridge and sank down into the Commander’s chair. After he’d assured himself the ship was still on track to reach Crakair in four daelas and that the cloaking and full alert systems were engaged, he kicked up his feet and watched the stars blur past the windows.

If only he could make some sense out of what felt like a series of random incidents.

The Tricarn had said he was paid to kill Kral. That was the bottom line. Knowing that made Kral look back at what had happened since he’d started tracking Mila.

After he’d transferred over from his spacecraft to where Mila was bathing, they’d left to escape. Mila had seen two males standing in the hall with the Al’kieern. She’d been convinced they were Crakairians, and he believed her.

Who were they and were they somehow involved?

Before he and Mila could transfer to his ship, it had exploded. He’d thought the Al’kieerns had shot it out of the sky with a missile, that they’d traced his transfer and were eager to destroy all evidence he’d been there and prevent Mila from escaping. But then the space station had been programmed to detonate itself. It made no sense for the Al’kieern to do this; space stations were exceedingly expensive, and the one in orbit over Yarris had a mission that was not completed.

Had the two Crakairians played a role in the station’s destruction?

When Kral tied the explosions and the recent Tricarn attack on this ship with the intent not just to capture Mila but to kill Kral, it seemed all three events must be connected.

Who wanted to kill Kral?

As far as he knew, he had no enemies.

He growled. None of this made sense.

Once they reached Crakair, he could discuss this with Vork. No need to call him on the ship’s com now. His friend could enlist the government to start an investigation that might dig up some clues. Until then, Kral would remain vigilant.

Footsteps padded down the hall, and Mila appeared at the doorway. She wore only her shirt, and the hem skimmed the top of her thighs. Chee-chee clung to her neck, and the creature chittered a greeting when it saw Kral.

If someone had told Kral he would someday be friends with a meerdreg, he would have laughed. Yet here he was, grateful the little beastie had decided to be a part of their lives.

Mila climbed onto Kral’s lap and lay back, facing the windows. The meerdreg scooted off her lap and rushed from the room. It returned with chunks of wae-lyn—Kral had cooked extra and left it in the kitchen—and jumped up into the other seat. After curling around in a circle, it settled onto the cushion with a sigh. It stared out the window while eating the meat.

“Tell me about our home,” Mila said. “You mentioned a few things in the video you sent, and we talked somewhat on the space station, but it’s hard to imagine it. Can you paint me a picture?”

He loved that she already considered his home hers. “The Vikir live high in the Ikeline Mountains and build our houses among the trees.”

“Have the Vikir always done this?”

“Ages ago, it is said our people lived deep below the ground, in caverns. Some say there are still Vikir living far beneath my village, practicing the old ways.”

“That’s cool. Have you explored and found any of the other Vikir?”

“When I was a youngling, I spent many daelas wandering through the caves near our home, but while I found traces of people other than those I’d grown up with, I did not find their home.”

“I can’t imagine living in a place where there’s no sunshine.”

“The old ones tell tales of creatures that generate luminescent lights, that the original Vikir used these lights to grow plants and brighten their homes.”

“It sounds cool. Maybe we can look for them sometime.”

“I would be happy to take you on a tour of the caves, and we can see what we find.”

Chee-chee hopped off the chair and hobbled down the hall.

“Imagine running into someone who lives the same way your ancestors used to,” Mila said. She pointed to a comet blazing across the heavens.

Kral couldn’t imagine. He enjoyed his modern life in his village and couldn’t picture living in the traditional ways he’d heard about while growing up.

“You said you’re the leader of your clan,” she said.

“My parents died in the fire ten lunairs ago, and I assumed leadership of the clan as soon as I’d healed from my fall.”

She eased off his lap. “Here I am, lounging around on you all the time when you’re still sore from your injury. Tell me about it if you can.”

He stared forward, past her shoulder, unable to meet her eyes. “There was a fire in our home.”

“How did it start?”

His growl ripped through the room. “They said it was an accident. That my mother had left something cooking in the kitchen, but I cannot believe that was true. She was always careful. We live among the trees and would be stupid to be careless with fire.”

“Do you think someone set the fire?”

“No, but…” A frown took over his face. He’d never considered it might not have been an accident. But who would benefit from their death? “I cannot imagine anything like that happened.” It would be foolish to think someone had murdered his parents. What would they gain?

“You weren’t burned,” Mila said, dragging his mind away from the heat, the smoke, and the cries of pain.

“My father lifted me and threw me out a window.”

“You were injured in the fall.” Her fingers carefully traced along his thigh that had fractured. “Here.” She stopped at the spot that pained him the most. “Here. And here.”

How did she know?

“Massage can help rebuild muscle,” she said. “Was the fracture pinned?”

He shook his head. “My aunt said they were clean breaks that would heal well on their own.”

“She’s a doctor?”

“Her healing skills are known far and wide.”

“Then she must be right.” Mila smiled. “With work, we can strengthen your leg. There are some exercises I can show you, and I’ll massage your leg to decrease the inflammation.”

“I am grateful for anything that will help me regain the full function of my leg.”

“That’s the goal.”

He tugged her close and up onto his lap again, wrapping his arms around her. “I want you close. You are not hurting me.”

“Let me know. Please.”

“I will.”

“So after your parents died, you became the leader at seventeen. Wow.”

“It is a hereditary role.”

“What if you were a girl?”

“I would not have fucked you.” His chuckle slipped out. He loved that he could feel joy in this minar. “But if I had been a girl, I would still be leader.”

“And…if we have a child, that boy or girl will lead after you.” She didn’t look frightened by this idea, just reserved, as if she would wait to see what this meant before judging the impact on their children.

“Yes.”

“I bet you’re a good leader.”

“I like to think so.”

“What sort of role does a leader play in your clan?”

“A large variety of things. For example, I am asked to make decisions when there is conflict, and I manage our clan’s wealth derived from jewels we mine from the mountains. The most common corlire is deep blue, like the sea, and very rarely, we find corlire in pink with green swirls.” He held up her right hand. “When we marry, I will present you with the finest cut corlire ring and crown, jewelry worn only by the leader’s family.”

“I’m not a fancy person, but I’d be honored to wear your clan’s jewels.”

“We hold festivals with each season, and that is when you will wear the crown. I have one that matches. But the ring is the mark of royalty, and you may wear it all the time.”

“Wow. Is the ring made of blue or pink stones?”

“The ring is set with a blue stone in the center and the pink in a circle around it. My mother wore the ring for years.” It had been locked up in a cabinet at his aunt’s home, and she told Kral she would keep it safe until Kral was ready to gift it to a mate. He was grateful his aunt had survived the sickness.

After so many of his clan had died, he had not thought he’d find a mate. Now she sat in his lap, snuggling close. When he closed his eyes, he could see the bliss on her face as they came together. He wanted her all over again.

“We’ll marry, you said.” Excitement rang in her voice. “What’s the ceremony like?”

“There are still a few of the female elders alive in my clan, and they will help prepare you for the ceremony. It will take place soon after we arrive.”

She released a low laugh. “I like how you think. No long engagement.”

“My clan will rejoice in claiming you.”

“I never thought I’d be borrowed royalty.”

He lifted her hand and kissed it. “Never borrowed. You are my mate. What I have is yours.”

Rising, she shut the door to the bridge. She returned and climbed onto his lap, spreading her legs around his waist. Her shirt rode up and his cock surged when he noted she wore nothing underneath.

“Mila,” he groaned. Leaning forward, he traced her jawline with kisses. He nibbled on her earlobe, and she moaned.

His naanans stroked her arms. He tugged her shirt up and over her head and tossed it on the floor, giving his naanans access to her breasts.

“Love what you’re wearing,” she said in a silky voice that thrummed through his veins like molten lava. Her fingers trailed down his chest and when they teased across his abs, his laughter snorted out. “Ticklish? Yay!”

“Why…yay?” He wasn’t exactly sure what yay meant.

“Yay because I like knowing something about you few others do. Like you being ticklish.” She glided a fingertip along each groove in his abdomen, and he couldn’t hold back. His body shook with laughter, nearly knocking her off his lap. Only his arm going around her waist held her in place.

“I’m fallin’ for you,” she said with a smirk. She wiggled in his lap, rubbing herself against him.

“Are you ticklish?” he asked.

“Nope. Not at all. Not even a little.”

Huh. He trailed his fingers down her spine, and she jolted forward.

“You’re cheating,” she said in a mock-serious tone.

“Like this?” He inched along her waist.

She snorted and squirmed on his lap. “Stop it!”

He laughed, and hers joined in until they were both smiling. At each other and with their situation.

This petite Earthling female had brought joy back into his life. She made every minar they were together fun. Perhaps he didn’t have to be Kral the leader, Kral the enforcer, and Kral the stoic any longer.

“I’m so happy I applied to be a mail-order bride of Crakair,” she said with a big grin. Her fingers stroked his cock, which felt like a steel bar pressing against his abs. “Otherwise, I would have missed out on you.”

He bucked his hips up toward her, savoring her touch. Her fingers drove him out of his mind. “You would have missed out on this, too.” He teased between her legs, finding her clit and rubbing. Pinching it, he made her squirm.

Pleasure shone on her face, and she tipped her head back and moaned. “That feels incredible.”

His mouth sought her nipple, and he stroked his tongue along the rigid surface.

“Yes.” She rocked forward, seeking his hand and his mouth. “Don’t stop.”

“I will never stop.”

Her lips flirted upward. “Never?”

“Well, I may need to pause in between bouts.”

“Kral,” she sighed as his fingers slid inside her. Heille, she was wet. He wanted—needed to drown in this wetness.

He lifted her up and centered himself at her core.

While she held onto his shoulders, she shifted, driving herself down on top of him.

They both moaned.

She lifted herself and sank back down. “This is incredible. Don’t let it stop. Please.”

He would do everything within his power to hold on tight and ride her until she shrieked his name.

While she rose up and dropped back down, rocking against him, he pumped into her. His naanans savored her breasts, tweaking and pinching.

He played with her clit, because he knew it drove her wild.

And heille, he loved his wild Earthling bride.

Their breathing grew ragged as they moved together, cresting the peak of each wave.

Until they crashed together on the shore.

23

Mila

T  hey arrived at the spaceport.

After landing the stolen spacecraft and disembarking the ship, they were surrounded by the Crakairian military. Talk about intimidating. Each guy was universally over seven-feet-tall and had green, scaled skin. Naanans flared out from some of their heads, while others had secured them in either a braid or with a band of leather at the back of their necks. They all shouted at once, some in broken English, showing that while they had translators, the devices hadn’t gotten fully up to speed yet. Others spoke as smoothly as Earthlings.

Chee-chee clung to Mila’s neck and released one shriek.

Stunned, the Crakairians stared. A few pointed. One backed up.

Right. Kral had explained to Mila why he’d been so cautious about Chee. A meerdreg’s claws could inject a toxin to put their prey asleep within minars.

Mila’s dad hadn’t raised a woman who cowered behind a male.

Snuggling Chee-chee and taking care of his splinted leg, she proudly strode beside Kral, ignoring the whispers. When a Crakairian male stepped forward, bowed, and introduced himself as Commander Vork, she shook his hand, plus that of the other high-up military dudes clustered around him. It was all she could do not to grin as she took in their frowns and mumbles about the unexpected gesture. Surely they’d shaken hands with other Earthlings before.

Maybe not. She doubted many of these guys had ever met an Earth woman. The Crakairian government’s initial Earth delegation had been made up of Prince Axil and his entourage, plus a few Elders and Council members. Prince Axil had married Julia Chandler. As one of the first matches, and marrying a famous Crakairian, her face had been on all the TV news programs. They had a baby, now, named Alicia.

“You are well?” Commander Vork asked, studying her face.

“I am, thanks.” She leaned against Kral. “I’ve got a great guy here, and he has kept me healthy.”

Kral flashed his teeth.

“The Council and I would like to ask you both a few questions,” the Commander said. “This is merely a formality. Kral gave us the vital information daelas ago. After that, you will be welcome to leave.” He nodded to Kral. “The other ship arrived as expected, and we have discovered some interesting information in the computer banks.”

“Fill me in later?” Kral said. His hand tightened on Mila’s. “My mate and I still have many denjars to travel before we reach our home.”

“Of course,” Vork said. “I will be in touch.”

They followed the delegation to a room with a long table and numerous chairs and sat.

After explaining everything that had happened and answering any questions, the Commander stood. “You are free to go. Do you have transportation arranged yet, Kral?”

“I do not.”

“Allow me?” At Kral’s nod, Vork lifted his hand and his assistant scurried from the room. He turned to Mila. “On behalf of the Crakairian government, I apologize for what you have been through.”

“Thanks. But it’s not your fault.”

“After recent events, we should have taken more care.” His spine stiffened, and a few of his naanans floated upward. “We have made arrangements to escort all future brides from Earth and we, in cooperation with the Earth governments, are providing heightened security in that part of the galaxy to ensure that no one is kidnapped directly from your home world.”

“I appreciate it.” At least no one else would have to worry about being taken captive or sold as a breeder.

Commander Vork gave her a formal bow, but then his lips curved in a fang-gleaming smile. He was not only a nice guy, he was hot. Almost as hot as Kral.

The Councilmen and Elders shuffled from the room and she and the two Crakairian males followed.

Lily was waiting with a male who must be her new mate, Jorg, near the main entrance and after handing Chee-chee to Kral, the two women rushed together and squealed. They hugged and cried, and then leaned back in each other’s arms while their Crakairian males wrung their hands, unable to provide comfort but obviously eager to do so.

“I’m so glad you’re safe,” Lily exclaimed. “I’ve been a wreck since I woke up on one of Crakair’s moons, trapped in a cage.” She introduced Jorg, who bowed, and then explained how Jorg had rescued her and brought her home, and that Kral and Wulf had stopped by on their way to the spaceport. “We haven’t heard from Wulf yet, but Jorg is sure Wulf will find Taylor.”

Her eyes met Jorg’s, and if Mila didn’t have Kral, her heart would ache with envy.

“Will Vork send someone to Yarris?” Mila asked Kral.

He nodded. “He already has. I imagine we will hear something soon.”

Mila gnawed on her lower lip, but she and Lily hugged again.

She took Chee-chee from Kral and introduced him to Lily, who cooed at the little monkey and checked out its splinted leg.

Back on Earth, Lily had worked at an animal shelter. “Looks great, Mila. I couldn’t have done better. Two to three weeks with the splint should do it.”

“Thanks.”

They walked out onto the platform to wait for the transport Vork had arranged. Even though Lily whispered an explanation, Mila wasn’t sure she’d ever get over the height of the platform or the fact that there was no rail to keep anyone from tumbling off.

“Once you get settled, and Tay’s…” Lily’s eyes filled. “She’s got to be okay. Wulf will find her and bring her home, right?”

Mila linked arms with Lily. “She will. We’ve got to trust that.”

Pulling back, Lily nodded through her tears.

“When she’s safe, we’ll plan a bunch of weddings,” Lily said. Her hands twisted together. “It’s going to be one big party after another.”

“I can’t wait.” Mila grinned, though her smile was a mix of happy and sad. She was excited to make her and Kral’s relationship permanent, but until Taylor was safe on Crakair, how could she? A piece of her heart was still missing.

“He will find her. Soon,” Kral said, wrapping his arms around her from behind. “I have full confidence in him.”

A vehicle with military insignia pulled up to the platform.

“This is our ride,” Kral said. “Normally, it would take a full daela to reach my village, but Commander Vork has arranged for a special aircraft to take us. Now we will arrive within the denjar.”

“Less than an hour?” Lily said with envy, though she smiled. “Jorg and I are taking the slow route. We’ve…” Her laugh came out a bit high-pitched. “You won’t believe it, but we rode to the spaceport on a dragon.”

Mila’s eyes widened. “Not a real dragon?” She looked to Kral for confirmation, and he nodded.

“A draquier,” Kral said. “Jorg’s neighbor, Bryk, raises them. They are a more traditional form of transport.”

“It must be cool to ride on a dragon,” Mila said with a touch of envy. “And scary.”

“It’s something else,” Lily said. “We’ll come out for your wedding on a draquier, and you’ll be able to see for yourself.”

Mila couldn’t imagine. “I can’t wait.”

After more hugs, she and Kral got into the craft, and the vehicle took off.

Chee-chee settled on the seat beside her and soon fell asleep.

As they flew over the city, Mila couldn’t stop gawking. “It’s gorgeous.” Each building had been meticulously crafted. The glass gleamed, and the stone had been polished until it winked sunshine. Small parks were dotted throughout the city, and trees lined the streets below.

Other aircraft zipped underneath them, traveling along invisible air roads. Mila hoped they’d return this way again someday so she could explore the city.

Kral’s chest puffed. “We are very proud of our capital, Tri’Arteele.”

“What’s the population?”

“Of Crakair, millions, but for Tri’Arteele, a few hundred thousand.”

“And your village?”

“The Vikir have many villages within the mountains, but my clan is made up of a few thousand males and too few females.”

There was no holding back her sadness. “The disease took so many people. The loss of life will haunt all of us for generations.”

They left the city behind and traveled over the countryside. Fields with rows of produce were interspersed with clusters of blue-leaved trees and fenced-in pastures where big pale green, six-legged creatures grazed.

In the distance, the mountain range loomed, the peaks dusted with what looked like snow. “I can’t get over it. Light green, cow-like creatures, and the tree leaves are blue.” She grinned at Kral, who watched her with a slight smile on his face. “Are the pink and purple colors I see flowers?” She assumed so.

“The tree leaves change color as it gets colder, to pink and purple, though I imagine you also see flowers. Crakairians pride themselves on their gardens. One daela soon, I will take you to Jorg’s home. He is a gardener as well as a tracker.”

“What’s a tracker?”

“He finds lost things. Crakairians, most of the time.”

“Yet you came after me.”

He bared his fangs. “I insisted. I wanted to locate and rescue my mate, though I welcomed Jorg’s suggestions.” Lifting her hand, he linked their fingers and kissed her knuckles.

“I’m glad you came for me.” She winked. “And I’m glad you fell into my bath.”

He kissed her, slow and deep, and fire licked through her veins. One hour wasn’t much time for some fun stuff. Did she dare?

When she opened her eyes, she caught another vehicle zipping past them, coming from the other direction.

Nope. No sexy times in the shuttlecraft.

Grumbling, she turned to stare out the window again. “Back on Earth, in the colder climates, our leaves turn orange, red, and yellow before they fall off. New growth, in the spring, is green.”

He shook his head. “I cannot imagine how beautiful that must be.”

“Maybe someday, we’ll visit Earth, and you can see for yourself.”

“Someday.”

A day that may or may not come. For now, bride exchanges were encouraged, but regular visas were not granted for tourist visits to either planet.

By the time they reached the Ikeline Mountains, it was mid-afternoon, and the sun’s orange beams sliced across the sky.

Kral leaned forward, and excitement lit up his face. “Soon, I will show you our home.”

She leaned into his shoulder as the vehicle flew over a lush forest. Ahead, she spied an open field with a circular stone platform.

The aircraft landed like a helicopter, and the door lifted with a whoosh. They climbed out, Kral hefting her bag from Earth onto his back. She hadn’t brought much, just comfy clothing, a bunch of pictures of her and her dad, her digital reader, her favorite coffee mug, and a few journals and decent pens, because she loved to write down her thoughts before bed each night. Well, and ketchup, the most important item. She couldn’t wait for Kral to try it.

Holding Chee-chee on her hip, she looked around, expecting to find houses, but not seeing anything yet. A dense mesh of forest surrounded them, thick and a bit gloomy. She wasn’t nervous. She trusted Kral. But…

“This way,” he said, baring his fangs. She could tell by the concern on his face he’d read her confusion. “You will be happy.”

She winked at him. “What about my feet?”

“I am going to make sure all of you is happy. Soon.”

Yes. Her body hummed already. After all, it had been hours since they’d had sex. She was almost going through Kral withdrawal. “You’ve got a bed, right?”

“You will see.”

“As long as there’s some sort of flat surface—even one with moveable memory foam—and you promise to massage my feet with a real boodler soon, I’m in.”

He dropped the bag and, taking care of Chee-chee, swept her off her feet, spinning her around until she was dizzy and giggling like a teenager.

“Kral!” She socked his arm. “Put me down. You’re going to hurt your leg.”

“My leg is feeling much better already, thanks to your care.” His steps slowed, and his mouth dropped to meet hers.

Sparks flew between them and as he lowered her feet to the ground, but he kept kissing her, showing her how much she meant to him with his mouth and his arms, plus his naanans teasing along her back.

“Here are you,” a creaky voice said from behind Mila. “I have been waiting since word came from Tri’Arteele.”

Mila and Kral broke apart, and the smile they gave each other contained a promise.

The second they were alone…

Mila turned, but her smile wavered when she found a full contingent of Crakairians—dressed in furs and leather outfits—staring at them.

An older woman scowled at Mila.

24

Kral

K  ral stepped forward with an easy grin on his face. “Aunt.” He held her frail shoulders and kissed her weathered cheek. “You look well.”

“You also, nephew.” The smile she gave him warmed his heart. This woman had nursed him back to health after the fire and then given him a home even after he had reached maturity. She’d guided him since he assumed leadership of the clan, and he’d often sought out her opinion when he had to make a big decision. “How your leg is?”

Her translator was not fully functioning yet. It would need time to acclimate before the English translation would be seamless.

“Better every day,” he said. “My mate is a therapist of the physical, and she is helping me.” His leg still ached but less, and even Mila had commented on his smoother gait.

His Aunt Riella’s gaze fell on Mila, and her face softened. “Ah, mate to be is her? Find her, you did! So lovely.”

He held up his hand, showing her the symbol on his palm, and her breath caught.

“Happened it did?” She tipped her head back and shrieked, the way many females expressed happiness on Crakair. “Praise be. A matebond. And a female of alien race is. Nephew…” The skin around her eyes crinkled. “Pleased for you, I am.” She edged him aside. “See her, I must.”

Mila shot him a concerned glance, but a hesitant smile rose on her face as Riella strode toward his mate.

“Welcome,” Riella said. She blinked quickly at the meerdreg and took a step backward. “What that is?”

“This is Chee-chee,” Mila said calmly. “He’s my friend.”

“Crakairians not friends with meerdregs are.” Riella’s gaze spun to Kral. “Claws…”

“Chee’s sweet,” Mila said carefully. “I can’t imagine he’d hurt anyone.”

Kral could tell she was nervous about insulting his aunt, but Riella loved everyone. She’d never take offense.

“See we shall.” With a pert nod, Riella glanced over her shoulder at Kral’s two male cousins lingering by the woods. “Sons. For the Selection you must enter! Imagine. Matebonds! Then someday, grandmother, I will be.” She rubbed Mila’s arm. “Welcome. Welcome.”

Mila’s smile rose fully, and her posture loosened. “Thank you.”

His cousins bared their fangs, and Hantir’s predatory gaze dropped down Mila’s body.

Kral’s cousins strode forward, and Josik braced Kral’s shoulders and bared his fangs in welcome. Hantir did the same.

“Too long has it been since seeing you I have,” Josik said. He dipped his head at Mila. “Welcome.”

“Nice to meet you.” Mila beamed, jostling Chee-chee to her other hip. She held out her hand, and Josik took it, his surprised gaze darting to Kral.

They would get used to Mila’s charming ways.

Kral studied Hantir as he stepped forward and shook Mila’s hand. Hantir’s attention lingered on Mila more than Kral liked.

While Kral and Josik had always been friends, he had never gotten along well with Hantir, though Kral had consistently tried. His sekairs bristled at Hantir’s greedy gaze, but he made himself back down. This was family. His cousin was without a mate. It was only natural Hantir would be attracted to the first eligible female to arrive at their clan.

But Mila was Kral’s, and he would fight to the death to keep her.

Riella swept her hand toward her sons. “My sons, Josik and Hantir. Good younglings they are.”

Hantir grumbled about the youngling comment, but kissed his mother’s cheek. Turning, he sniffed the air and bared his fangs. “No bond with Earthling? Still free for take.” He moved closer to Mila, who stepped backward.

Kral took her hand and tugged her into his side, partly to show her he was here for her but also because her hand had slid to the kitchen knife she wore in a sheath on her belt. If Hantir was not careful, she’d poke him.

Josik frowned at his brother, and there was no missing the warning in his eyes.

Mila lifted her free hand, showing off the symbol. “While it’s nice to meet you, Hantir, I’m afraid you’ll have to apply for the Selection like everyone else.” It was likely only Kral noticed her shudder. “Perhaps the computer will match you with an Earth mate.” She leaned into Kral’s side, whispering. “Perhaps not.” She smiled brightly up at him and lifted her voice. “Where’s your house? I’d love to get settled in. Wash my hands. Unwind.”

“Show you, I will,” Riella said, revealing her fangs. “Almost daughter to me, now mated to my nephew you are.” She held out her hand. “Come. Come. Go to village together we will.”

Mila looked Kral’s way, and he wanted to insist he would show her everything, but as an Elder, Riella’s word held sway. Besides, Kral was often busy with his leadership duties, and he hated the idea of Mila staying in their home alone. She would need friends, and who better than his beloved aunt? She was family, and family watched out for each other.

He spied someone waiting just inside the woods and beckoned her forward.

His childhood friend, Sereel, stepped their way, a hesitant smile on her face. Her gaze darted to Riella, and she stilled before moving closer, her long, dark teal naanans swaying across her back.

“Ah Sereel. A new friend you must meet,” Riella said. “Linger in the woods, one must not do. A Vikir proud you must be.”

Sereel came closer, but her gaze fell. “Pleased I am to meet you,” she said to Mila in a hesitant voice. She flashed her fangs at Kral, and he dipped his head her way. He’d loved Sereel from the moment she was born to his parents’ good friends. Five years younger than him, he’d treated her like an adored younger sister as he’d had no siblings himself. Their parents had hoped they would matebond, but he had never seen her as more than a friend, and she felt the same.

“It’s nice to meet you, too.” Mila held out her hand, and Sereel carefully took it. Her gaze shot to Kral’s, and it was clear she didn’t know what to do with the gesture. “Maybe you could walk with me to the village?”

Riella frowned. “Me. Go with you, I—“

“That is a good idea,” Kral said, dipping his head toward Sereel. Closer to Mila’s age, perhaps Sereel would make a better close friend than his aunt.

Sereel’s attention darted to Josik before falling on Mila. “Yes, I would like that.”

Kral didn’t miss the way Josik watched Sereel. Finally. Sereel had adored Josik for years. Had he finally seen the kind person who had been in front of him all this time?

While Sereel exclaimed about the meerdreg and Mila showed the creature off, the two women walked slowly forward, entering the forest on the well-worn trail. They chattered as they walked, and Sereel’s laughter rang out.

“You have done well,” Riella said softly to Kral in Crakairian. Her arm went around his waist for a brief hug. “I am grateful the match has resulted in a matebond. Perhaps now my sons will consider the Selection for themselves.”

“Perhaps.” Kral had his doubts whether Hantir would qualify. Josik, yes, but if he was wise, he’d ask Sereel about courtship. Hantir would need references—and a job—and he had never seemed eager to work for anything in life, including a mate.

“No matter.” Riella hugged Kral’s arm. “You are home safe and you have brought our village a lovely mate. I hope she is soon with child, your heir.”

Kral hadn’t thought that far ahead, though he wasn’t sure why. Maybe because they had spent so much time running from the Al’kieern and then getting to know each other. Was he greedy to want time with his mate before they had children?

Although…He could picture a strong youngling son with Mila’s blue eyes and chestnut-colored naanans. Or a daughter with Mila’s silky hair and Kral’s dark eyes. Either or both would be welcome.

One thing was clear.

Mila had brought his clan hope.

25

Mila

Sereel led Mila along a wide trail through the woods.

“A meerdreg,” Sereel said in awe. “Thought who would have?”

“He’s very friendly.” Mila leaned closer to Sereel, who froze when Chee-chee chirped. “He won’t claw you, I promise. You can pat him if you’d like.”

Sereel carefully stroked Chee-chee’s back, and the meerdreg purred. He leaned forward, holding his four arms toward Sereel. Her eyes widened, and she gulped, but she took the creature from Mila, only releasing a cheep herself when Chee-chee wrapped his arms around Sereel’s neck.

“Claws no harm?” Sereel said with a wince. Her hand rose, and she hesitated before stroking Chee’s head. The meerdreg’s chest rumbled with happiness, and he nuzzled closer, which made Sereel laugh. “Like this meerdreg I do.”

Mila grinned. “Me, too. When I found him, he had a sore leg. I splinted it, and it’s healing. Soon, he’ll be running around everywhere.”

Sereel’s eyes widened even further, as if she wasn’t sure if she was terrified or thrilled by the prospect.

“Kral good male is,” Sereel said softly as they moved through the woods. In the forest around them, birds called and insects buzzed. Flowers bloomed in every color of the rainbow, contrasting nicely with the blue leaves on the huge trees they passed. “Honest, Kral is. Fair, as well. See, you will.”

“I believe you,” Mila said, not hiding her grin. “He’s the best. I’m so happy I was matched with him.”

Mila had seen the affection between Kral and Sereel, and while she hadn’t felt jealous, she wasn’t sure what their relationship might be.

“Best you than…” She cut herself off and stared at the ground for a moment before looking up again to bare her fangs. “Already, care for Kral you do. I see. Good, this is. Like a brother to me, he is.”

“You and he…” Damn, now Mila had said it.

“Oh! No.” Sereel darted a look back at the others walking behind them. “Josik,” she sighed with longing. “Someday see me, I hope.”

So that’s how it was. Maybe Mila could play matchmaker…

“You and Kral, younglings many you will make, and auntie I will be,” Sereel said with another baring of her fangs.

Heat rose into Mila’s face. She and Kral hadn’t talked about children, though the matchmaking agreement with Earth stated the woman must be willing to give birth to up to three children. After that, it was up to the couple if they wanted to have more. She could easily picture a tall son with naanans. How much of her genetics would show in their children? Or would they be pure Crakair? She’d be happy with any children and hoped they’d be healthy.

“Too kind, he is,” Sereel added with another glance over her shoulder. Her fingers tightened on the belt of the supple leather dress she wore.

“Is it possible for someone to be too kind?”

“Times, yes.” Sereel voice lowered, and she leaned close to Mila. “Care, you must take. Some—”

“Sereel,” Riella said pleasantly, coming up behind them. “Help me you must with feast we will hold. Celebrate Kral’s safe return and his mate we must. Tonight, I will host. Many will come.”

“Yes,” Sereel said, dipping her head toward the older woman who seemed to be the clan matriarch.

Riella’s twinkling gaze fell on Mila. “Hope I do that eat you like. Food much.”

“I love food.” Mila sincerely hoped their translators got up to speed soon. She could understand what they said as long as they spoke slowly, but if they started talking fast, she’d be lost. She felt like she was conversing with a pack of Yodas. “What sort of dishes can I expect at the feast?” She turned slightly to include Riella and Josik in the conversation. Hantir, she ignored. “Thank you so much for doing this. It’s an honor to be here, and I’m looking forward to the feast.”

“Sweet, she is,” Riella said, beaming up at Kral who walked beside her.

Kral’s cousins paced behind them. Josik watched Sereel. Hantir dragged his gaze down Mila’s body, and goosebumps lifted on her skin.

Jerk alert. No matter where a woman went, she always ran into a sneering, gaping dude.

As if he thought she was looking at him, Hantir flashed his fangs.

When Kral smiled, Mila’s knees went weak. With Hantir? Not so much. Creepy, he was. Avoid him, she would do.

Shit, now she was thinking in broken English. She tapped her translator implanted behind her ear, hoping that would urge it along, because the problem was either on their end or hers. She’d been told to expect something like this, but it was a bit disconcerting. She hadn’t noticed this when she met Kral.

As for Hantir, she could only hope Kral’s slimy cousin didn’t visit often, though the odds were poor from what she’d seen so far. Kral had mentioned there were only a few thousand people in his clan. They’d probably bump into each other all the time.

So far, Riella and Sereel seemed nice. After growing up without a mom around, it would be awesome to have other women in her life. She could tell Riella adored Kral, and she was hosting a big welcome for Mila.

They stopped at the base of a tree with a diameter that had to be at least twenty-five feet. The only trees she’d seen this big were during a hiking trip among the California redwoods. Around the tree, the ground had been well tamped down, almost as if someone cleared the area with an industrial weed whacker.

“See you later, I will?” Josik said with a bow to Mila. His longing gaze flicked to Sereel.

Mila definitely needed to play matchmaker. They were a matebond match waiting to happen.

Josik and Kral braced shoulders again, then Josik loped away into the forest.

“We’re…here?” Mila asked. She looked around and saw no houses, but maybe they were camouflaged to blend in with the forest around them?

“Up, go we,” Sereel said, her lips curling into a teasing smile. She clapped her hands. “Kral secret has kept! Surprised you shall be.”

Mila was surprised already. Up?

“How do we get…up?” she asked. And please, let there be handrails wherever they went. She didn’t mind heights, but did they truly live in the treetops?

She took in a deep breath and released it, determined to withhold judgment until she’d seen her new home. Kral loved it. So would she.

“Ages past, climb we did,” Sereel said.

“How?” Mila walked around the tree but didn’t see any handholds or way up unless she clung to the bark.

“Clever,” Sereel said. “Gone, old ways are.”

Riella smiled and chatted with Kral.

Hantir lurked and leered. Really, didn’t he have a job to get to?

“Why not live on the ground?” Mila asked.

“Dangerous, it is,” Sereel said, her smile faltering. Her gaze spanned the surrounding forest, but if something watched them, Mila didn’t sense anything. But this was a new world, with new creatures. If the Vikirs lived in the trees, they had a valid reason.

“You have no cuts?” Riella asked, her concerned gaze skimming Mila.

Oh, yeah. She was a healer.

Mila blinked and spoke slowly. “No. I don’t.” Why ask about cuts?

“Good. Safe you will be,” Riella said with a reassuring nod.

Okay…

Everyone crowded closer to the base of the tree, and Riella held up one arm.

Tipping her head back, Mila tried to see what awaited her above, but leaves obscured the treetop. No ropes hung for her to grab onto and, sadly, she didn’t spy a stairway dropping down to meet her.

Sereel handed Chee-chee to Mila before pulling a tiny metal tube from her pocket and bringing one end to her lips. With a puff and a wiggle of her fingers over three holes, she created a short melody.

Kral moved up and wrapped his arms around Mila as if he sensed how unsettled she felt. She wasn’t truly afraid of what might happen next, but everything was new and different. It was normal to feel a little uneasy about all this.

Chee-chee stared up, drawing her attention in that direction again.

Long vines descended.

“Someone sent them?” she asked Kral.

“The tree.”

“The tree sent the vines?” She must be mistaken.

“We have a relationship with the home trees. You will see. Every evening, we play the music they need to grow strong and they, in exchange, give us limbs for homes.” One of his arms lifted while the other turned her to face him and tightened around her waist. He leaned close to her ear. “Hold on.” A vine encircled his wrist, and with a tug, they were lifted off the ground.

Mila gulped and fisted the front of his shirt.

Chee-chee chirped.

Kral chuckled as she clung to him while around them, his family also rose into the air, lifted by the vines.

They were deposited on a broad, smooth branch extending far into the upper branches of the tree.

Kral’s arm loosened as Mila looked around.

“Wow. This is gorgeous,” she said softly.

Kral kissed her. “Welcome home, my love.”

26

Kral

When Hantir moved to follow him and Mila home, Kral lifted one ridged eyebrow.

Hantir’s gaze dropped to his feet, and he backed away. He bowed and slunk in the other direction, toward his residence, without another word.

“Feast I will prepare for,” Riella said, seemingly unaware of Hantir’s actions. She grabbed Mila’s shoulders and gave her a kiss on each cheek. “Again welcome, new niece. See you at feast, I shall.”

Mila smiled, bemused, and when Sereel stepped forward to kiss her cheeks as well, Mila returned the favor.

As his aunt and friend took the vine bridge connecting this platform to another tree, Mila watched. “This place is amazing. And you live here, in the trees?” She snorted. “I thought we’d arrive and find regular homes like I remember from Earth. That’s what I saw in the city and in the countryside as we traveled here.”

“Are you disappointed?” What if she was? Could he live in another way? He would try, because he wanted her to be happy.

“Not at all.” Her easy smile made him see he had nothing to worry about.

“You will enjoy living in the sky,” he said, putting an arm around her waist. “I will show you our home, and you will be happy.” He bared his fangs in a teasing smile. He wasn’t as “cocky” as he behaved. Sometimes, he acted that way to bring on Mila’s smile. “Your feet, too.”

“Show me,” she said eagerly. Her eyes sparkled. “I want to see it all.”

He led her in the other direction, across a rope bridge, this one spanning a long stretch.

She gulped. “How far up are we?”

“One-quarter klek.”

“Which means nothing to me.” Gripping the rail with one hand, the other keeping Chee-chee tucked close to her side, she looked down. “I’d say we’re at least forty, fifty feet up. Why so high off the ground and not, say, twenty feet? Is it tradition or…?”

“Long ago, the Vikir built homes in the trees to find safety from creatures who hunt on the ground but cannot climb trees.”

She shivered. “What kind of creatures are we talking about?”

“The dangerous one live deeper in the mountains. They rarely come to this area, and only then when they are drawn by the scent of blood.”

“Is that what your aunt meant when she asked if I had cuts?”

He nodded. “Any injury is bound quickly. The scent of blood stirs their hunger.”

Wasn’t that lovely? Mila shuddered but shoved aside her unease. Kral wouldn’t bring her here if it wasn’t safe. “I’ll avoid getting cut, then.” As she stared around, she sighed with happiness. “Despite the blood-scenting creatures and the awe-inspiring plunge to the ground, this place is incredible. I love it already.”

His shoulders loosened. He wasn’t sure why, but he’d feared she’d find this way of life too different after what she was used to on Earth. That was partly why he hadn’t shared exactly where his people lived. He’d heard humans lived much like Vork did in the city, and that wasn’t the life for Kral. He’d hoped Mila would see his home and love it as much as he did.

“Let me show you our home,” he said, taking her hand. He led her along the bridge to a platform connecting ten bridges spanning out like spokes on a wheel.

“I’m going to get lost,” she said with a laugh as she followed him across another bridge to another platform. “How many bridges are there here?”

“Too many to count. Remember, there are over two thousand Vikir in my clan. Each family has a private dwelling, and each family has built their home in their individual tree.”

“It’s amazing.” She gawked around. “The flowers are gorgeous. The leaves are stunning. And you…” She jumped up and gave him a quick kiss, making the bridge sway when she landed. “You’re the best of all.”

He wasn’t sure his chest could contain all the feelings inside.

“What’s that flower called?” she asked, pointing.

“Creeping chloey vine.” His voice came out husky with emotion. This woman…his woman. He couldn’t imagine being without her. “It…blooms at dusk.”

“Does it get cold here?”

“In winter, we need to wear thicker furs, and we do get snow, but it melts once the sun rises.” He pointed to the distant mountain range peeking through the trees. “At the higher elevations, once it starts snowing late fall, the snow sticks until spring.”

“Like on Earth in the northern parts of my country.”

When they approached his residence, he watched her face.

After the fire, he’d lived with his aunt until he’d built himself a house in this tree. Scars from the fire still remained a few levels below Kral’s home, where his father had built the home for Kral’s mother.

When Kral’s father pushed him out the window to save him from the fire, Kral had fallen to the platform below, breaking his leg in three places.

He’d never forgive himself for not waking in time to get his parents out. They said his mother died of smoke inhalation, that she wasn’t aware of a thing, but his father had known. After saving Kral, he’d burned to death trying to get to Kral’s mother.

Kral had found living in the same tree he’d grown up in…bittersweet. He swore he heard his mother calling his name, and more often than not, he’d hear a sound and turn to ask his father something, only to find he was alone in the room. But he took comfort in feeling them near.

Silly, but sometimes he spoke to them, and he swore they listened.

He stopped halfway across the bridge and tugged Mila against his chest and wrapped his arms around her. “I built this home with my own hands,” he whispered in her ear. “I dreamed of someday sharing it with a mate.” Emotion clogged his voice. “With you.”

“Kral.” She turned in his arms and rose onto her toes to kiss him. “I can’t wait to see it. Show me?”

He led her the rest of the way and stopped at the door. “There is an Earth tradition Lily shared with me.”

“Which one?” she said with a laugh. “We have a lot of traditions.”

“I want to bring in a tree and decorate it during the winter, for your Chrestmiss.”

“Kral. That would be wonderful! We can sing carols and string popcorn, and I’ll stuff a stocking for you.”

“Why would you stuff my stocking?”

“You’ll see.” She winked at him. “Christmas is my favorite holiday.”

He smacked his forehead with his palm. “Of course. Chrissmass.”

“Sort of.” She smiled and looked around. “Which Earth tradition do you plan to honor right now?”

He swept her off her feet and into his arms. After nudging open the front door with his foot, he stepped inside. “I am carrying you over the holdthresh.”

27

Mila

M ila wiped the tears from her eyes and smiled as big as she could. After Kral whispered about this being the same tree where he’d grown up, she’d felt his pain like a knife through her heart.

His voice had broken. Kral, the guy she’d fallen head over heels for, was hurting, and there wasn’t much she could do about it except hug him and show him she cared.

She understood loss, having nursed her dad when he was sick, only to watch him die while she sat at his bedside, holding his hand. At least she’d been able to say goodbye. That comfort had been taken from Kral.

But this moment was for living, not mourning.

And her big, hot, alien fiancé was carrying her over the holdthresh. She’d fill him in on the right word later. Or not. It didn’t matter. How often would they discuss thresholds?

“Am I supposed to put you down?” He asked as he stood inside the small entryway.

A quick look around showed three doors off the short hall. The one to the left led to a living room area with hand-hewn chairs covered with squishy-looking, colorful cushions. Bright and cheery. A thick fur rug lay in front of a fireplace along one wall and, okay, yeah, she was eager to lounge on the fur, in front of a crackling fire. With Kral, of course.

The ceilings were high and made up of beams covered with a tan material she didn’t recognize.

“I think you’re supposed to carry me off to your bedroom and ravish me,” she said, wiggling her eyebrows. “Would you? Please?” She was overdue for ravishment.

“Is that part of the Earth tradition?”

She tightened her arms around his shoulders. “No idea, but it sounds like we should make it our tradition, right?”

“Right.” He strode forward and swept her through the door ahead. A short, curved hall beyond led to a bright room with cabinets, indicating a kitchen.

“How did you build all this in a treetop?” she asked, her jaw dropping further whenever she looked around.

“Some of our home is built within the tree itself.”

“And that doesn’t kill the tree?” They were huge, but how could they live if their insides were…scooped out?

“The insides have a wide, natural channel. We Vikir have a relationship with our trees. They allow us to build on their shoulders and within them, and in exchange…”

“What do you give them in exchange?”

“Music. You will see tonight.”

“That’s vague. Will you give me a better hint?” She teased his naanans, and he released a muffled groan.

“No more hints.” He nudged his head to the right. “There is a small bathing chamber behind that door. Most of us use the larger zinter pools nearby, and I will show you tomorrow.”

Bathing with the fishies? She couldn’t wait. Maybe. But if Crakairian women enjoyed the experience, so would Mila. She was determined to become a Vikir as soon as possible, boodlers included.

“The next door on the left wall leads to a small study or…” He ducked his face and fumbled with the knob.

“Or…?”

“It could also be a room for a youngling.”

“Ah. Let’s start that ravishment and see what we can do about creating a youngling.”

“Mila,” he breathed.

“I want your children.”

“Same-sies.”

She laughed. He was picking up English slang quickly.

After opening the door, he took her into a big bedroom built within the center of the tree.

She tipped her head back and her mouth dropped open. “Wow. And you built all this yourself?”

“With Josik’s help.”

There was no true ceiling, just a dome of glass—or what she believed was glass—at the top, where the tree opened up to the sky. Late-day sunlight slanted through the windows, chasing away the shadows.

“It’s gorgeous.” She stared up at him, and seeing the lines of grief on his face wrenched her insides sideways. “If you want, we can go to the living room and talk. All that ravishment talk is a tease. You’re in pain, and I want to help you feel better.”

His face lightened, and he seemed to shrug off his sadness. “Are you suggesting I lose my chance at ravishment? Never.” He bared his fangs, and his eyes sparkled with happiness. “So many nights I dreamed of sharing this room with my mate, and now I will.”

He kicked the door shut and crossed the room to lower her carefully onto the bed.

As she ditched her clothing fast, he stripped, tossing aside his shoes and the pants and shirt he’d been given by Vork at the spaceport.

He tumbled down onto the bed beside her and, growling, nuzzled her neck and wrapped his arms around her. “At last, I have you where I want you. In my bed and in my arms.” He lifted his head and bared his fangs, looking boyish and cocky, all at the same time. “And in my heart.”

“Kral. I love you.”

His smile fell, replaced by a look of pure satisfaction. The black in his eyes eclipsed the surrounding blue band, and he pressed his face into her neck. “Mila.” His heavy, gruff tone made her chest ache.

“I hope it’s okay to tell you that. We’ve had what some people call a whirlwind relationship. It’s been fast and hot, but to me, it feels real.”

“You…” He shook his head. “I…You—we—mean so much to me.”

“This is the beginning of our lives together, here in your—our—home.”

“I want to kiss you and love you forever.”

She smirked. “Then let’s start that now.”

He growled again and kissed her, his mouth heavy on hers. His body rose over hers, but he braced himself on his strong forearms so as not to crush her.

She loved the heat that exploded inside her whenever they touched. She was wet for him already, and when he lifted his head, she could tell he knew, because he gave her another cocky grin.

His lips smoothed as he lowered himself down her body. “Let me give you your first orgasm in our home.” When he looked up, his eyes smoldered. “I want to taste it on my tongue, feel it beneath my fingers, and hear it when you scream my name.”

If he kept up the steamy conversation, she was going to come from his words alone. But she didn’t want that. She wanted to fall apart with him pumping into her. Although, she’d be happy with a welcome home orgasm since he’d offered.

Parting her legs, he closed his eyes and inhaled. “You smell fantastic. Like spice and musk and desire for me. There is no headier scent.”

Some girls would’ve pinched their legs together as embarrassment flooded their faces. Not Mila. She bent her knees to give him easier access. There was no place in their bed for embarrassment. She wanted to savor every moment, each sigh and groan they created together.

He licked her, and she bucked beneath him, wanting more.

With a chuckle, he kept licking, laving her opening and clit with his forked, slightly scratchy tongue.

She thrashed her head and fisted the blankets. Shit, she was gonna come right away.

No, no. Hold back. She wanted to feel it forever, not spend it fast. Her body jerked, refusing her mind’s command, and she shuddered.

“Yes, love,” he said, his fingers stroking her and a naanan vibrating on her clit. “Like that. Give it to me.”

She rode the wave to the shore as he rose over her.

Lifting her legs, he pushed himself inside her, the exquisite stretch he delivered as exciting as if this was their first time together.

He lowered himself down onto his forearms and kissed her while moving. His thrusts, slow and deep, sparked a fire inside her all over again.

They moved with their gazes locked, heat growing until their cries echoed in the room.

As she built to another orgasm, he rose and lifted her legs over his shoulders, then slammed into her until they crested the peak and crashed down the other side together.

While he rained kisses on her face and neck, she laughed, because it tickled.

She must have dozed, because a scratching sound on the front door woke her.

“Kral?” Hantir called. “Kral?”

“We will ignore him,” Kral said softly.

Could they do it for the rest of their lives?

“He knows we’re here,” Mila said with a sigh. “Shit, he probably knows what we’re doing.”

“What else would a newly mated couple do but fuck?”

“Good point, but—”

Hantir scratched on the door again. “Kral? Sorry I am to bother you, but…”

“Maybe he just wants to tell you something quick.” Mila tapped his side. “Go listen and then come back to bed.” She wiggled her eyebrows and pretended to leer.

He frowned as if he was worried she’d gotten something in her eye.

So much for her suggestive technique; it needed work.

“I am sure it is nothing,” he said softly.

“Kral?” Hantir said. “Message I have my mother from.”

“I love my aunt,” Kral said. “But sometimes…” Grumbling, he levered himself off the bed. He wrapped a wide strip of leather around his legs and waist and suddenly wore a decent loincloth. Leaving the bedroom, he stalked into the hall. Their low voices reached Mila as she rolled onto her side and snuggled the covers. If Kral took too long, she’d fall asleep again. But then he could wake her up…

He returned to the room moments later. “I have to leave. I am sorry.”

Frowning, she turned to face him. “Is everything okay?”

“Two males have come to blows about a felled wildarn. As leader of my clan, it is my role to intervene.” He tugged on his pants and pulled a shirt from the closet. “I do not believe this can wait until tomorrow.”

She sat up. “Will you be gone long? Maybe I could go with you.” While she didn’t mind waiting here alone, there was no time like the present to meet those living in the village. She had no idea what a wildarn was, but she would learn.

He leaned over her and gave her a lingering kiss. “Stay here. Maybe take a nap? We have been running and fighting for what feels like forever. I will settle this and return quickly.” When he wiggled his thick eyebrows, she smiled. He had known what she’d meant when she tried a suggestive leer.

After he left, locking the door behind him, she dozed. He was right; she was tired. For the first time, she could fully relax and let sleep drag her away. Even while traveling here, she’d only half-slept, afraid other pirates would attack. Too many bad things had happened for her to fully relax her guard.

She dreamed someone was calling her name…

…And woke to a scratch at the door.

“Mila?” Riella called. “There are you?”

Here was she.

Feeling a twinge of shame for mocking Kral’s kind aunt, even if it was only in her mind, she rose from the bed and dressed quickly before striding out into the hall.

“Mila?” Riella scratched on the panel again.

“Coming.” She unlocked the door and swung it open.

Chee-chee scampered up behind her and peered through the opening. He cheeped when he saw Riella.

“Ah, you are there,” she said, her fangs flashing.

“Yup. I am.” Mila pressed for a smile. A few minutes of sleep was not enough. She wanted to climb back under the covers with Chee-chee.

“Feast it is time for,” Riella said.

“Already?” Mila peered past the other woman. “I thought Kral would come back for me, and we’d go together.”

“Meet there, he say.” Riella’s lips thinned. “Wildarn argument hot. Males.” She shook her head and bared her fangs at Mila again. “Understand, you do.”

“I do.” Leave it to guys to fight about…whatever a wildarn was. Maybe something like a goat. Or a car, though there didn’t seem to be anything car-like in the Vikir village. Unless they parked them…in the bushes. “Let me put something else on before we leave.”

“Yes,” Riella said, nudging her way inside. “Help, I do.” She lifted a cloth bag she’d slung over her arm. “Dress I bring. Dress I make.”

“You brought me a dress you made yourself? That’s sweet of you.”

“New niece!”

In no time, Mila wore a soft leather dress similar to the one Sereel had worn earlier. As light and comfortable as cotton, the skirt flared a bit when Mila twirled around for Chee-chee, who sat on the bed chirping.

“Beautiful,” Riella said. “Now, ready you are.”

In the hall, Riella turned to Mila before she could lift Chee-chee to bring him along with her.

“Meerdreg here stay?” She patted Chee’s head. “Others frighten.”

“Maybe I should introduce him to everyone slowly?” She stroked the monkey who clung to her neck. “But it might be best to do it all at once. He won’t attack, and they’ll see he’s friendly.”

Riella shook her head, and her dull gray naanans drifted forward across her shoulders. “Introduce Vikir slow.”

“Oh, you mean bring him around to little groups so they can get used to him a few at a time.”

As she dipped her head, Riella smiled. “Yes.”

After nudging Chee-chee inside and shutting the door, Mila followed Riella across the bridge to the spoked platform where Riella lifted the tiny flute she wore on a chain around her neck. Mila would have to ask Kral for one and get him to teach her the tune.

Vines took them to the ground, and boy, traveling like this was going to take some getting used to. Sheltered in Kral’s arms, the ride up had been an adventure. Descending with only a band of the plant around her wrist—and no knowledge yet of why the vines were willing to perform the task—had almost freaked her out. She was never happier than when her feet were planted solidly on the forest floor.

“Way this,” Riella said with a smile, waving for Mila to follow. The older woman stepped onto a narrow path that meandered in the general direction of the mountains.

“Where is the feast going to be held?” Mila asked, admiring the huge purple flowers blooming on bushes to her right. She’d ask Sereel to teach her about the local flora and fauna before she touched anything, but she was eager to learn what was edible and what might make a nice arrangement for the kitchen table. Assuming she had a kitchen table.

“Feast in clearing.” Riella gestured upward. “Moons. Light. Wonder. Food good.”

“Sounds like my idea of a fun evening. Will there be music?”

“Vikir music. Sweet your ears for.”

Mila hoped the translators caught up soon because these conversations were wonky.

They meandered along the path for about ten minutes. Sweat trickled down Mila’s brow, and the cool, comfy leather dress started to rub in all the wrong places. So much for wanting to fit in. She’d be a gleaming mess by the time they reached the meadow.

“How much farther?” she asked Riella.

“Long far,” Riella called out, cheery. She held a branch back for Mila to pass and waved her arm toward a hill ahead of them. “There up.”

Mila trudged ahead, grateful they were almost at the party.

Weird how she didn’t hear any other Vikir. She should be hearing voices and music by now.

When she reached the top of the hill, she found nothing but a grassy knoll and an endless expanse of forest stretching for as far as she could see. Beyond the woods, craggy mountains reached for the sky.

“Are you sure we came the right way?” Mila asked, turning to Riella.

Riella held a big knife.

She lunged toward Mila.

28

Kral

By the time he’d finished settling the argument between the two clansmales, at least a denjar had passed.

He hurried toward his home, eager to see his mate. Wake her and kiss her. Climb into bed with her before they had to get ready for the feast in her honor.

But when he opened his front door and called out her name, only silence greeted him. That, and Chee-chee’s frantic cries.

Do not panic.

He had no reason to be frightened for Mila. This was his village, his clan, and his home. She was safe here.

Or was she?

When he found the bedroom empty, and the clothing she’d worn earlier lying on the floor, his worry turned into a blazing fire. He slammed through the house, seeking her, but finding nothing but a silence that ate at his bones.

“Mila?” he shouted.

Chee-chee shrieked in the hall, and he rushed out to find the meerdreg trying to pry the front door open.

“Where is she?” he said, yanking the panel wide.

The meerdreg hobbled through the opening and started across the bridge, only to stop and turn to Kral. “Cheep!”

“Take me to Mila?” Kral shouted.

“Cheep.”

Grabbing the sword he’d left by the door, he slid it into the sheath. He assured himself he still had his knives, and then he took off after the meerdreg.

He ran into Josik as he was crossing the bridge.

Josik bared his fangs in welcome. “I was—”

“Come with me?” Kral said, his eyes stinging and his lungs raging. Nearly frantic with fear, he would welcome a clear mind. “Mila…”

With a frown, Josik’s gaze darted to Kral’s front door. “She—“

“Is not there. She is gone.”

“Gone? Where?”

“I do not know, but Chee-chee does.” He nudged his chin toward the meerdreg pacing on the opposite platform.

“We will find her,” Josik vowed. He spun and rushed toward the meerdreg.

Josik called vines, and they were transported to the ground in two seclars.

Kral and Josik followed the meerdreg into the forest. He ached to yell Mila’s name, but her disappearance sent chills up his spine. If someone had taken her, he didn’t want to alert them to his presence. His heart beat like the drums of Krikiere his people used for death marches, a heavy thud that made it difficult to breathe.

Let her be alive. Please.

His eyes stung again, and he swiped at them. Crakairians did not cry. Yet he couldn’t stop the wetness from trickling down his face.

Had he found her only to lose her? Letting her go was not an option. He would not let fate steal his family all over again.

The meerdreg tired, and Kral scooped it up. The creature wrapped his arms around Kral’s neck, and pointed a claw forward.

Josik nodded grimly and tightened his grip on the short sword he’d pulled from the sheath on his back.

The rage of Kral’s Vikir ancestors filled his soul, eager to whet his blade on whoever thought to harm his mate.

Two sets of tracks trod on the path. One he recognized as the heel print of Mila’s Earthling shoe.

The other? The subtle step of a fellow Vikir’s footwear. Someone from his clan had taken her into the woods, and as much as he’d like to think this was harmless, he knew in his gut whoever was with her did this with foul intent.

It was a stretch for him to think it, but was this person also involved in everything that had happened since the moment Mila had been taken?

The connection he’d sought may lie in his hands soon. The explosion of his ship. The space station. The pirates sent to kill him and Mila.

And now this. If it was connected, how and why?

When he approached a hill, he heard grunts and a cry of pain.

Josik lifted his free hand and tipped his head, listening. A look of pure puzzlement filled his face, followed by an expression of horror.

What did he see?

Kral lowered Chee-chee to the ground and, with his sword in his hand, stormed up the hill with Josik right behind.

“No,” Josik cried.

Riella swiped a blade across Mila’s uplifted forearm while Mila slashed out with her knife.

With a suck in of her belly, Riella danced to the side and darted her blade out again.

“Mother, no!” Josik yelled, but Riella kept rushing toward Mila, her blade slicing through the air.

“Yes,” Hantir yelled from opposite Josik and Kral. “Hurry.” He ran toward Josik with his sword raised. Would the older brother kill Josik?

The two males came together with a crash of swords.

Chee-chee leaped around Kral and scurried across the clearing. Before Kral could pull a knife and throw it at his aunt’s back, the meerdreg flung himself onto Riella.

His claws sunk in deeply.

Riella reared back, shrieking. The blade dropped from her hand as she spun, trying to dislodge the meerdreg.

The creature held on, its toxin pouring from its claws into Riella.

She stumbled and her legs gave out. With a shudder, she toppled to the ground.

As Kral reached Mila and gathered her into his arms, the meerdreg scampered over and stopped in front of them, barely hindered by the splint on its leg. “Cheep!”

Kral ripped a piece of cloth from his shirt and bound Mila’s wound while the two males continued to fight.

Josik had mock-battled with Kral many times, and it was clear he was the better swordfighter. In minars, he’d disarmed his brother and had him on his knees, begging for forgiveness.

“It was not me,” Hantir said, shooting a dark look Riella’s way. “Mother’s idea was this.”

“Why?” Kral asked. “I don’t understand.”

“You have a mate,” Hantir said bitterly.

“What does that have to do with anything?” Kral yelled.

Riella lay motionless, staring toward the sky, the meerdreg toxin keeping her from moving. In the wild, the meerdregs would then eat their prey without fear of the being fighting back.

“A mate will bear young,” Hantir said. His gaze fell on Mila. “And I would no longer be your heir.”

“Why should that matter?” Kral asked, his heart burning from the pain of his aunt’s betrayal. “I could live for many yaros. You might never inherit leadership of the clan.”

“I was supposed to inherit yaros ago. Mother was waiting for another chance.”

The fire.

“She killed them,” Josik burst out. “Your parents, my beloved aunt and uncle! Murdered!” He flung out the hilt of his sword, hitting Hantir in the head and knocking him unconscious. Then he tightened his grip on the weapon and stomped toward his mother.

“Don’t,” Kral said.

“It is my right as her blood.”

“I don’t think she intended to kill me, Josik,” Mila said, surprisingly calm. Kral was a wreck. His stupid eyes kept seeping. “For some reason, she seemed more interested in wounding me.” Her mouth formed a circle. “Oh. If I was wounded, I’d bleed and draw…” She stared toward the forest. “The creatures…”

If she’d drawn them to her, Mila would have been ripped apart alive.

“I wish to deal with this,” Josik said. He stopped in front of Kral and dropped to one knee, bowing his head. “Please, leader. Let me give justice.”

“I will,” Kral said, placing his hand on Josik’s shoulder. As a blood relative, it was Josik’s right to handle this. “Let us…”

“Take Mila home,” Josik said, pain leaching into his voice. “I will…” He blinked fast. “I will…” A shudder rippled through his chest. “Thank you.”

Mila laid her head on Kral’s shoulder, and he tipped his to connect them. He needed her comfort now more than ever.

“Why did she wait so long to try to kill you?” Mila asked. “You said it has been ten years since the fire.”

Josik stood. “I…” He sighed. “When you were fourteen yaros, and the wildarn stampeded, nearly trampling you, I suspected something was amiss, but I told myself I must be mistaken.”

No. Kral could not believe this. “Krikitts chased them.”

“So Hantir said.” Josik’s angry gaze fell on his brother. “But did they? And then…”

Kral held up his hand. “I cannot bear to hear more.” He’d had more than his share of near misses during the past ten yaros but had attributed them to a busy, active life. What if some or all the “accidents” and unusual happenings had been caused by his aunt and cousin?

“Hantir was on the space station,” Kral bit out. Mila must have seen his cousin from the back. Too bad Kral had not been the one to look out into the hall.

“He left here shortly after you did,” Josik said. “He told me he was meeting with a friend, but I assume now he went after you.”

“Do you think he programmed the space station to self-destruct?” Mila said.

Kral shrugged, but inside, he knew. “Someone blew up my ship. And then the space station. Pirates attacked…”

Josik’s lips thinned, and he sent a look of pure hatred Hantir’s way. “I deeply apologize.” He placed his fist against his chest. “But I will give you justice. Please. Leave me with them. I will…”

Kral nodded and stood. He sheathed his sword and offered his hand to Mila to help her stand.

“Come on, Chee,” Mila said, scooping up the meerdreg. She glanced at Riella. “I’m not sure I’ll ever get used to the power this little guy possesses in his claws.”

“I am grateful he is our friend,” Kral said.

“Can we go home, now?” Mila said. “I…I think I’d like to lie down. Or lounge around in a hammock, if you have one.”

He put his arm around her shoulders and led her off the hill and into the forest, leaving Riella and Hantir to whatever fate Josik chose to deliver.

It was the way of the Vikir. Be true to those around you or face the consequences of your bad judgment. He did not envy Josik, and his chest ached at what his cousin must do.

The betrayal would haunt both Kral and Josik for the rest of their lives.

But with each step, Kral’s mood lightened.

It was over.

One day soon, he’d have to process all that had happened, because locking the feelings up inside would do him no good.

For the first time since before his parents died, he felt as if he had a solid future, one with his mate, Mila.

“You said a…hamrock? I do not have a hamrock, my mate,” he said, wondering what a hamrock was. The “rock” part made it sound hard, but if Mila was interested, he would look into them. Could he order one from Earth?

She glanced up at him and while shadows lurked in her eyes, the smile she gave him warmed his bones. They loosened, making walking easier.

“Hammock. No rock. And I think we can make one,” she said. “We seem to have a lot of vines dangling around.”

“I will help.”

“Tell you what,” she said. Taking his hand, she squeezed his fingers as they started walking down the path again. “I’ll figure it out and, one day, we’ll lounge on a hammock together.”

Stopping on the path, he cupped her beautiful face and gave her a kiss that promised a full future.

His voice echoed hers. “Together.”

29

Ten Days Later - MILA

Sereel rushed in through the front door of Mila and Kral’s home. “He is coming!” Giggling, she carefully shut the panel and leap-frogged toward where Mila waited in the doorway of the living room. “Hide!”

Mila grinned and gave the other woman a quick hug and a whispered thank you as she passed and entered the living room. Sereel had volunteered to be their guard, watching for Kral, who had been waylaid by Josik and led on a wild goose chase to keep him out of the house while Mila got everything ready.

Smoothing her dress—a supple, pale blue leather and made with Sereel’s help—Mila plastered a casual expression on her face. Behind her, she caught the muffled sounds of her friends hiding. She’d invited her friend, Lily, plus Lily’s sister, Sadie. Sadie had also invited a few of the other Earth women she’d met since arriving on Crakair.

A baby cooed, the Crown Prince and an Earth woman’s daughter. Sadly, there were no babies in the Vikir village, though Mila suspected… Well, she didn’t know for sure yet. It wasn’t like she could pick up a test somewhere local and pee on the strip.

But she suspected. She hadn’t told Kral yet, but planned to tonight. He’d be thrilled. She was thrilled. She couldn’t stop dreaming about what their baby would look like. The best of them both. His cocky manner and her spunk, or her excitement for life and his stoic demeanor. It didn’t matter.

Footsteps approached beyond the door, and she backed inside the living room. She jumped onto the sofa and sprawled, kicking her feet up and placing her digital reader on her lap. Yup, that was her, reading a good alien romance, her favorite.

The door opened and closed.

“Are you sure this type of harvest will benefit the village?” Josik asked, overly loud. He was trying to cue her in, but he knew Sereel was watching. Nice of him to give her warning, however.

The light pad of the two males’ footsteps approached the doorway.

In keeping with an ancient Vikir custom, Josik had taken his brother and mother to the desert beyond the plains of Dunare and left them with enough provisions to survive one week. Banished, they were told their lives would be forfeit if they showed up in any Vikir village. Kral said they’d travel into the desert, looking for a rumored oasis. As long as Mila never saw them again, she didn’t want to know what became of them.

Kral smiled as he entered the living room. “My mate.” No matter how many times he said it, a thrill still shot through her. She had a feeling she’d always feel this way. Pausing, his brow furrowed as he stared at the Happy Birthday banner she’d hung. “What is—”

“Surprise!” Everyone leaped up from behind their hiding spots.

While their friends cheered and clapped, Mila stood and cleared her throat. Damn, her hands were trembling. Sweat had broken out on her spine as the voices died down and everyone turned to her. What if she messed this up?

“Kral?” she said hoarsely.

He tilted his head and narrowed his gaze on her face as if he hoped to figure out what was going on. “Yes?”

Before her nerves failed her, she launched into the song his mother had sung on his birthday. Sereel had taught her, and she’d practiced over the past week.

She sang it in Crakairian.

Pretty bird, silly bird.

Chirping in the morning.

Chee-chee chirped, and a few of the others chuckled.

Mila picked the monkey up as she sang, and the creature wrapped his arms around her neck.

Pretty bird, beautiful bird.

Wakes the youngling without warning.

She knew she’d fumbled the pronunciation of a few of the words, but when Kral turned and rushed from the room, her heart fell. What had she done wrong?

Around her, the cheers died down to dead silence.

Tears stung in Mila’s eyes, and her gaze met Sereel’s, who shrugged.

Mila took off after Kral, rushing from the living room and finding him leaning against the wall in the kitchen.

His hands covered his face.

She stood beside him, trying not to bawl. “I screwed it up, didn’t I?” Her voice came out croaky. Could she go back in time and not sing the song? She’d hurt him. Reminded him of the parents he’d lost. She’d—

“You did everything right,” he said with the weight of the world coming through in his words.

She wiped her eyes, not ashamed to show her feelings. “Then why…”

His hands dropped, and her breath caught to find his eyes glistening.

“You’re crying,” she said.

“Crakairians do not cry.”

“Okay. Then…your eyes are…seeping…something.” Tears. Come on, they were tears.

“Mila.” He gathered her in his arms and held her close. “You…I do not know what to say.”

“I didn’t mean to upset you.” Her heart ached, and her body felt numb. But this wasn’t about her. If he was sad, she wanted to help him. “I can ask everyone to leave. We can—”

“That is not it at all,” he said. Cupping her face, he gave her a lingering kiss. “You have made me very happy.”

Her mood lightened. “Then these are good tears.”

He nodded.

“I’m glad you’re happy.” Her smile grew, and she couldn’t help it. Their ongoing joke came out. “How about your feet?”

Nuzzling her neck, he growled. “Since this is my birthday, I will expect you to emulse my feet tonight.”

“That’s not how it goes. I’m the queen, and you’re my mighty Vikir warrior, eager to kiss my feet and make them happy.”

He bared his fangs, enjoying her teasing.

“I’d like to emulse your entire body,” she said in all seriousness. “But I’ll skip the boodler and use…you know.”

He kissed her again. “About your song…”

“Your mother’s song. I’ve been practicing. I wanted it to be perfect.”

“And it was. You could not have done anything that would make me happier than I was at that moment.” His gaze turned toward the living room. “This party. I didn’t expect anything like it. You said we were having dinner alone tonight.”

“Instead, I invited the entire crew.” She held out her hand. “They wanted to be with you on your special day. Want to join them?”

“Yes, let us go celebrate.”

He put his arm around her shoulders as they walked down the hall and into the living room.

“Surprise,” everyone cheered again, then their laughter filled the room.

All the Earth women, plus the baby in the Crown Prince’s wife, Julia’s arms, formed a line in front of Kral and sang the birthday song.

He bared his fangs all through it and kept wiping his eyes.

Seeping. Sure.

After they’d finished, Kral went around greeting everyone with Mila at his side.

Crown Prince Axil had his arm around Julia. When the baby saw Mila holding Chee-chee, the little girl bared her tiny fangs and kicked her feet. She cooed as her deep auburn naanans fluttered around her head.

Chee-chee leaped from Mila’s arms and into Axil’s. The Crown Prince’s eyebrows lifted and his hands hesitated, but he was soon stroking the monkey’s back. “This…meerdreg. I never believed they could be tamed.”

Mila shrugged. “I believe he tamed me, not the other way around.”

“I cannot believe you are here,” Kral said. “How did you hide your arrival?”

“You can thank Vork for bringing us all here,” Axil said, smiling at the tall Crakairian Commander standing to their side with his mate, Evie.

Evie grinned, and her hand lightly touched her baby bump. “Vork borrowed,” she made air quotes, “a shuttle and picked everyone up for the party. He parked beyond the village, and we all tiptoed here while Josik kept you busy.”

Kral shook his head at Josik, who flashed his fangs. His gaze met Sereel’s, and her blonde naanans flipped up before settling around her shoulders. Mila was convinced they’d be matebonded soon.

“I did a good job of convincing you we had a jinjin crop issue,” Josik said, adding to Mila. “I led him around the fields, telling him it was this one…no, the next…and then another, never quite remembering where the problem might lie.”

“Awesome,” Evie said. “That must have been a lot of fun.”

Sereel joined them and reached out to hold the baby. “Can I hold her?”

“You’re sure?” Julia asked, carefully placing the infant in Sereel’s arms. Julia pushed stray hairs off her face. “If she’s too heavy, you just—”

“Not at all,” Sereel said, kissing the baby’s cheek. “You are the sweetest little girl, you little contrea bud.”

The baby squealed, a mix of Crakairian happiness mixed with good old Earth laughter.

Sereel took the child to the sofa, and Josik followed. He sat beside her and had the baby giggling within seclars. The couple bared their fangs at each other, and Sereel’s squeal rang out.

Crown Prince Axil and Vork each took turns exchanging the Crakairian version of bro hugs with Kral.

But when he and Mila moved to speak with a few others, Lily clapped her hands.

“Hey, everyone,” she said with a big grin. Her arm swept toward the table nearby that Mila had set up after Josik stole Kral away, and it contained a mix of Earth and Crakairian foods. Pot luck and Lily had organized it. “If you’ll all grab a plate, it’s time for—”

“Excuse me, Lillian,” Lily’s former protocol droid said. The machine lived with them, which Mila found strange, but they acted as if the droid was family. “I believe it is my place to speak up?”

“You think so, huh?” Lily said with raised eyebrows, but a smile teased across her lips. “You didn’t do it all. I helped.”

“You did,” the droid said somewhat graciously. Its gaze fell on the table. “You made…the vegetation with…drip.”

“Dip.”

The droid tipped its head. “Dip?”

“It’s called veggies and dip. Not drip.”

“I see. I cannot imagine why.” A look of pure puzzlement filled its mechanical face.

Mila’s lips twitched, and she smiled at Thea, another Earth woman and Julia’s best friend, who came over to stand beside her.

“That droid is something else,” Mila said. “Quirky and formal, but a hell of a lot of fun.”

“I’m going to ask my mate, Gaje, to give me a droid for Christmas,” Thea said. “If that’s even possible.”

Gaje came up behind Thea and put his arms around her waist, his fingers stroking across her big belly. Their baby was due any daela. “What do you hope is possible, my love?”

“The droid.”

“What about the TX75 droid?”

“Can I have one?” Thea asked. She turned in Gaje’s arms and rose onto her toes to kiss him. “We can buy one, can’t we?”

“There are many palace droids,” Gaje said, bemused. “Why would we need to buy a protocol droid?”

“This one is a lot of fun.” Thea pouted. “But it was just a thought.”

“Why don’t we ask the palace staff if they have an older TX model they’re decommissioning. We can utilize its services if you would like.”

“Great idea,” Lily said. “Think of it as giving a nice droid a forever home.”

“We’ve got a few youngling draquiers we’ll be seeking homes for soon,” Lily’s sister, Sadie, said, joining them. “If you’re looking to give out some happily ever afters.”

Weld, Sadie’s stepson, came over to her and hopped back and forth on his toes. He might only be eight yaros old, but he was nearly Sadie’s height. “Mom. Mom.”

Sadie tweaked one of the boy’s naanans. “What’s up?”

“The trees. They are up as are we.” He smirked and glanced toward the ceiling. “But I was wondering if I could run across the bridges. If I had my dirt bike…”

She winced. “No way are we bringing a dirt bike here to race across the bridges.” Pausing, she blinked. “Although…”

“No,” Bryk, Sadie’s mate said. He placed his hand on his son’s shoulder. “You are welcome to walk, and I stress walk, among the treetops, but you may not run.”

“Awwww,” Weld said. “Please?”

Mila smiled. “I’m sure the other Vikir won’t—”

“Don’t give him any ideas,” Sadie whispered near Mila’s ear. “Or next thing you know, he’ll find a small wildarn and gallop that along the bridges.” She nudged her head toward the door and nodded to Weld. “Go play if you want, but don’t go too far.”

“Ok-ay,” Weld said, dragging his feet toward the door. “Woulda been more fun with a bike.” He left, the front door banging closed behind him.

Mila had worried about feeling alone on Crakair but instead, she had more friends than she’d had back on Earth. Her days were spent running, fulfilling the duties of the clan’s mate, and she knew life would keep getting better.

“Would you like to get something to eat?” she asked Kral. At his nod, she led him to the table overseen by the droid who stirred dishes and tweaked the arrangement of finger sandwiches, making sure they lined up to form a perfect star.

When they reached the end of the table, she moved around him and lifted the cover off the last dish. “Voila!”

Their friends crowded around them with grins on their faces, watching Kral’s reaction.

“You made my favorite dish,” he said. Turning slightly away, he wiped his eyes again.

“I…” Damn, she hoped it tasted okay. She’d gotten the recipe from one of the Elders, who’d made it many times with Kral’s mom. But what if Mila hadn’t gotten the spices right?

Kral dished up a big serving. Noticing everyone staring, he bared his fangs. “I cannot thank you all enough for coming here today to celebrate my day.”

“I hope it’s a special day,” Mila said, leaning against his arm.

“It cannot get better.”

“Sure it will,” Lily said. “We’ve got a wildarn-shaped piñata to crack open!”

Kral leaned close to Mila. “What is a piñata?”

“A paper mache creature stuffed with candy. Weld is going to love it.”

“Why would one wish to stuff a creature with candy?”

She grinned. “So you can whack it with a stick and break it.”

“And this is a joyful birthday tradition on Earth?” He sounded pained, and she wondered if he pictured them whacking a real wildarn. Nope. No way. Only a fake one.

“You get first hit,” she teased.

“I…look forward to it.”

She watched while he popped a bite of the special dish into his mouth. When he closed his eyes and didn’t open them back up, she worried he hated it. Grinding up various kinds of bark and combining them into the perfect combination hadn’t been easy. She’d made the dish seven times before the snooty Elder pronounced it acceptable.

“Mila,” he said. He lowered his plate onto a table and took both her hands, turning her to face him. “You, my mate, are the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“Awww,” Lily said. She snuggled into her mate, Jorg. “They’re so cute together.” They kissed, and Mila was glad all over again that her friend was safe.

“The dish is okay?” she asked.

“It is as good as my mother used to make.”

Her heart stung. Hell, her eyes stung. She was going to bawl in front of their friends, and that wouldn’t do.

“I want to show you your birthday present,” she said, tugging him to the door. She called out over her shoulder. “Everyone? We’ll be back in a few. Feel welcome to enjoy the food and drink and…wait for us for the piñata!”

Out in the hall, she pulled a strip of supple leather from her pocket. “You’re going to have to bend down while I put this on.”

He studied the leather. “What will you do with that?”

“Blindfold you.” She winked.

“What will you do to me while I am blindfolded?” His eyes sparkled.

Her voice deepened. “What would you like me to do to you while you’re blindfolded?”

He growled near her ear. “Many things.”

“Later,” she said in a husky voice. “Definitely later.” She had so many lovely ideas, and she’d try them all out with Kral.

He bent down, and she tied the band over his eyes. She led him down the hall and through the kitchen. He’d built a small deck off the room, and Mila had spent every second she had to make Kral his gift.

Her dad always said good things come in threes, and she was determined to prove it today.

The song.

The favorite dish.

And…

Tugging him close, she turned him around to stand beside her. “You trust me?”

“Always.” He said it without hesitation, and her damn eyes filled with tears all over again.

“Then take a leap of faith.”

He chuckled. “Off the edge of our deck?”

“No, dude. Take a leap with me.”

“Lead, my mate, and I will follow.”

She tugged him backward and into the hammock.

As he wrapped his arms around her and nuzzled her neck, she grinned.

One kick off the post mounted on the deck, and they swayed, secure in their future together.

Bonus Epilogue

MILA

K  ral had decided he enjoyed blindfolds.

And Mila had decided she enjoyed blindfolding Kral.

“This way,” she said, leading him from their home and across the bridge.

“A surprise, you said.” Excitement came through in his voice, and he bared his fangs. He wore a scrap of material across his eyes, and his fingers held tightly to hers. “Will you take me to a meadow, remove your clothing, and then let me play hide and I want to seek you again?”

Something she’d done for him a likar ago.

“Not this time, but maybe later?” she said, grinning. That would be fun way to spend another evening.

“Will you serve me a meal in a beautiful setting?” he said.

That was two nights ago, at sunset and on the edge of a cliff. As the sun winked out on the horizon, they’d kissed. Couldn’t find anything better than that.

“Not this time. Is the blindfold okay? It’s not too tight?”

“It is perfect. I like wearing it.” His voice deepened, reminding her when he wore the blindfold to bed a few nights ago. He’d lain on their bed and let her do whatever she pleased. She’d had a lot of items on her agenda, and he’d been happy to oblige. “When my vision is gone, my other senses come alive. For example, I smell contrea flowers near, telling me we are standing on the bridge.”

Reaching out, she flicked a bud growing in a planter nearby.

“What else?” she asked.

“I…hear birds. And a timid wildarn moving carefully through the woods.”

She darted her gaze around as uneasiness skated across her skin. There was a wildarn nearby? Her plan involved traveling along the ground.

“I sense your nervousness, my mate, but never fear. I am with you.” He pressed a fist against his chest.

“What direction?”

He pointed, and her gut eased as they would travel on a different trail.

“And I also hear our friend Chee-chee.” He smirked as the alien monkey hobbled across the bridge to join them. The creature stopped by Mila’s feet and whimpered. He loved being carried because of his leg splint. His injury was healing nicely, and she’d remove the splint for good next week.

She’d left Chee-chee with the youngling of a friend, but Chee had a mind of his own. He liked to be with them, and could she blame him? She and Kral had a lot of fun together, and he loved to join in.

“Chee,” she said. Not in a chiding way, because she loved the little blue guy. But she’d kind of hoped to be alone with Kral this evening.

No matter. If Chee wanted to be with them, he would find a way. She stooped down and lifted him up. He clung to her neck with his four, furry arms and chittered in her ear.

Kral moved forward and stroked Chee’s fur. “Do you wish to be blindfolded too, my little meerdreg friend?”

“Chee!”

Mila laughed. Whatever that meant. “Let’s get going.” She took Kral’s hand and continued along the bridge. At the central platform, she pulled her flute and called vines to transport them to the ground. Then she led Kral along a trail weaving through the woods, taking care to make sure he didn’t trip or step on something he shouldn’t.

“Nice to see you, Leader Kral,” Elder Tricarn said as they met up with him on the path.

Kral stopped. “How is your son, Elder?”

Mila had to hand it to the Elder. He didn’t blink as he took in Kral walking in the woods while wearing a blindfold.

“My son is well, thank you,” the Elder said, his twinkling gaze meeting hers. So, maybe he did notice. When he bared his fangs, she had a feeling he approved. But then, the community was getting used to Mila and her mischievous ways. “I will leave you both to…your daela.”

Kral bowed, and his hand tightened on Mila’s. They continued into the forest, their feet crunching on sticks and dried leaves. Fall had arrived almost overnight, as if summer had packed up her shit and fled. The nights were getting cooler, making for perfect snuggling weather with her mate who radiated heat like a roaring fire.

“Much farther?” he asked.

“A minar or two more.”

Most days, Kral worked from early morning until late at night, managing everything for the clan to keep things running smoothly. He took one day off per week. Sure, he could sneak away—and they did—but he always felt he should be available if someone had need.

So far, she’d kidnapped him for short picnics at midday, for the occasional tumble on the bed in the late afternoon, and if he wasn’t horribly busy, they’d steal away for a few free moments, even if it was only to sit and talk. He deserved to have fun every now and then. Life wasn’t only about duty to others. It was also important he take care of himself.

Today, they’d do something she knew would hit his love of adventure.

Kral loved heights. Perhaps it came from living in the treetops or his bold nature. But today’s date would challenge even Kral. She hoped when he did the activity, he’d be able to forget about his job for a little while.

“Here we are,” she said, stopping by one of the larger trees in their area. That was saying something since the trees were universally huge in this part of the forest.

“Welcome,” Josik said, dipping a bow. “Everything is ready.”

“Everything is wonderful,” Sereel said, showing her fangs. “Josik and I ensured it functions as it should.” She linked her arm through Josik’s and leaned against his shoulder.

While they hadn’t announced anything yet, Mila had noticed a matebond mark on Sereel’s palm and another on Josik. She was thrilled for her friends and happy to see them moving toward a life together. Josik was a good guy. He’d had to make a tough decision about his mother and brother’s fate. He deserved someone in his life who could bring a fang-baring smile to his face.

Josik stepped forward, and he and Kral locked forearms as Vikir males did in greeting. “I wish you well, friend.” Laughter lurked in Josik’s voice, but it was good of him not to give anything away.

Sereel tipped her head back and shrieked. “You…I will not say anything.” She winked at Mila. “I hope you two have fun this evening.”

Mila couldn’t have done this alone. Rushing forward, she hugged Josik, who muttered and shifted his feet, though she could tell he enjoyed the friendly touch. Then Mila hugged Sereel, and the two women whispered together.

“Thank you so much,” Mila said. “You’re the best.”

“I am grateful you are in our lives. In Kral’s life.” She stepped back. “Go. Have a wonderful time together. And tell Kral…” She grinned. “Tell him to keep his eyes open.”

“This is hard when I wear this.” He tapped the blindfold.

“I’ll take it off soon,” Mila said.

“Want to come with me, Chee?” Sereel cooed, holding out her hands. The monkey leaped into her arms. There was nothing better than a friend who loved your pet as much as you did and was happy to pet sit when a girl planned fun activities with her mate.

The two left, strolling down the path hand-in-hand. Chee-chee peered over Sereel’s shoulder at Mila, but didn’t seem concerned Sereel was taking him away.

“How you doin’, Kral?” Mila asked.

Leaning in close, he found Mila’s lips and kissed her. His naanans stroked her shoulders and teased along the sides of her breasts. In no time, she was short of breath and contemplating ditching her plans to drag Kral back home and to their bedroom.

“Time for a…different activity?” he asked in a gravelly voice as if he’d read her mind.

“Nope. Not yet, dude.” Soon, though. Soon. She couldn’t wait much longer. She hadn’t seen him all day!

He moved in close. “I love when you call me dude.”

“Then I’m going to do it for the rest of our lives.”

His mouth lingered over hers. “Mila.”

They kissed, and when they pulled apart, she lifted her flute. “Time to start the surprise.”

“We are in the forest,” he said. “I smell leaves. I hear Josik and Sereel leaving. I smell your interest in me and a touch of nervousness.”

“That’s because I’m worried you won’t like this.”

“I will enjoy anything as long as I do it with you.”

He said it simply, but it was clear he meant. Damn, she loved him. She’d show him again soon.

Lifting the tiny flute to her lips, she blew a few notes, and vines descended. She and Kral held up their arms and were lifted up to the newly built platform.

“Okay,” she said, holding onto Kral so he wouldn’t inadvertently step off the open side. “Turn around carefully, and I’ll untie your blindfold.”

When she did, he studied the area, his brow ridges scrunching together. “What will we do here?”

“See that wire?” she said, pointing to where it was attached to the tree overheard and extended away from them.

His gaze followed it to a tree a few hundred feet away. “What is the purpose of this?”

“Josik and Sereel helped make this. It’s called a zipline.” She’d gone ziplining a number of times, and it was highly addicting. She couldn’t wait to show Kral how much fun this could be.

“We’ll need to put on harnesses,” she said, lifting one of the leather devices off the platform and holding it up.

“We will wear this?” He tapped his chin, and his eyes sparkled. “Tell me, will we be naked when we wear it?”

Now that was an idea…

“For the first time, let’s keep our clothing on,” she said, her voice gone husky.

He took a step toward her. “And after that?”

She smiled. “I’ll let you decide.”

He backed her against the tree, and heat swirled through her. His mouth captured hers, and as his hands teased underneath her shirt, his naanans stroked her neck, her jaw, and her breasts.

She was lost in the moment. Lost in Kral. As far as she was concerned, they could stay here all day and—

Hold on.

She eased away from him, and he growled and snagged at her arm.

“Kral.” Giggling, she shook a finger at him. “We’re going to zipline, and then we can do other things.”

“Will this line zip go quickly because…” He gestured to the hard-on straining against his pants.

“I think it’s going to go faster than you’d like.” She held up the harness again. “Put your feet in the holes, and we’ll strap it around your waist. I’ll put mine on to show you.”

A few minutes later and after more kissing and laughter, they both wore harnesses.

“See?” he said, staring down at where the straps outlined his private parts. “This garment is made for making love with my mate. Sad that I wear clothing, but that can be changed.”

Her snicker slipped out. “Perhaps all the Vikir warriors should wear this instead of a garlong.”

He posed. “Do you think future mates would enjoy this sort of garment?”

She couldn’t stop grinning. “I know I would.” Moving around him, she climbed the steps and hooked her harness onto the cable-pulley system Sereel had engineered after communicating with a ziplining company on Earth. Sereel had the makings of a true engineer and had ordered a bunch of engineering textbooks. Mila had a feeling her friend would soon be inventing devices that would boost their community. “Come up her beside me, and we’ll clip you to the pulley, too.”

He did so, and his arms went around her, holding her close while she attached his clip to the same pulley.

“What do we do next?” he asked, his fingers teasing across her belly.

“We jump.”

He glanced down but didn’t appear too upset about the drop.

It had to be a hundred feet down. The first time she’d stood here, she’d thought she’d have a heart attack. But her body no longer trembled. She could—mostly—jump off the platform and enjoy the ride.

“You give the word, and we jump together, correct?” he said.

“Yes. On three…two…and now!”

They leaped off together and zipped along the cable, heading for the next tree.

“Woo!” Kral yelled. He hugged her, and the joy on his face was reflected in his voice. “This, my mate. This! Woo!”

Her cheeks ached from smiling, and tears slid from her eyes as they flew through the air. There was nothing quite like this, and she was thrilled she could share it with Kral.

They leveled off and slowed as they approached the next platform, and came to a jolting stop when their pulley hit the wooden stop. After unclipping them, Kral stood on the second platform and looked around. “Please say there are more of these zips.”

“There are five runs altogether. Do you want to do the next?”

“Yes, I would like to do this but…”

She frowned. Was he disappointed? Her shoulders caved, but she kept her face as neutral as possible. She knew this guy; he enjoyed teasing as much as her. There had to be more to his comment, and he’d tell her.

“I would like to try the next run in a different way.” Baring his fangs, he reached for the fastener on his pants.

Oh.

“I don’t know if something like that is going to be physically possible.” Although, the way her insides were fluttering and her body was overheating, she was willing to try.

“Are you wearing your panties?” he asked, low and husky.

“Umm, no.” She’d given up wearing them after the last time he’d ripped them off. It was easier and a lot more fun wearing a dress with nothing underneath.

“Then let us try this, my mate,” he said. “We will taste your thrill for adventure.”

She had a feeling they’d both be tasting the same thrill for adventure.

The next run was a long one. “It will have to be a quickie.” With Kral, she was willing to try anything. If nothing else, it would give them a good laugh.

He stripped and when she would have advanced on him, he held up his finger like she had with him. “Be patient, my mate.” Wearing nothing but his ziplining harness, he climbed the stairs and clipped himself to the pulley for the next run.

Shit. He was gorgeous and sexy, and she couldn’t get enough of him.

Kral curled a finger her way. “Come join me, my mate, and we will ride.”

WULF

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR, BOOK 5

WULF

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, book 5

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

ASIN: B08HHBVSP

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Wren & Owl Eyes Proof & Edits

Created with Vellum

WULF

He’s a rough Vikir warrior.

She’s a mostly proper librarian.

Can an Earthling woman and a green-scaled

alien find love together in the stars?

After she’s kidnapped by blue-skinned aliens, Taylor escapes and bails from an alien space station in a shuttle she has no clue how to drive. She crash lands on a nearby planet made up mostly of jungle. Once she finds her way off the planet, she’s determined to return to Earth. Until Wulf, her Crakairian “mate” comes to her rescue. He says he won’t fight her if she wants to return home, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to change her mind. He’s gruff and scaly and much too appealing. And his kisses? If she could keep her hands off him, she might be able to think straight. But with jungle creatures trying to eat them, going home might not be an option.

As head of his Vikir clan’s warrior regiment, Wulf is scarred and unrefined, the exact opposite of his sweet female mate who speaks in a sophisticated manner and loves books. When she tells him she’s thinking of returning to Earth, he decides to show her what she’ll be missing, even if he can only do this in a rough and bumbling way. But with jungle creatures hunting them, their biggest challenge will be escaping the planet.

Wulf is Book 5 in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone, full-length romance has on-the-page heat, aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. You can find the rest of the series on Amazon here.

1

Taylor

T  aylor was going to kill the four-armed, blue-skinned alien jerk poking her in the spine.

“Go, you,” he grunted, gouging her with his taser stick.

As she stumbled down the hallway, she shoved her hair off her face and peered around, taking in the smooth metal walls and tiled floor that hummed beneath her feet. The ambiance reminded her of when she’d boarded the star cruiser that would take her from Earth to Crakair. Then a bunch of blue-skinned alien guys boarded to kidnap her and her two friends. “Are we on some sort of space vessel?”

“Talk, do not.”

Another jab of his stick made her breath whoosh out.

If he did it again, she was going to spin on her high heel and smack him. Some people thought librarians were serene and gentle, as they went out of their way to avoid confrontation, but those people hadn’t met Taylor. Yes, she came across calm and proper on the outside, but inside, she simmered, waiting for the right moment to boil over.

They passed a series of windows, and she slowed to look out. Forget her earlier idea about a space vessel. Long metal posts extended from the craft and small, round, pods that could be ships or satellite stations hung in space. Not a space ship, but a space station.

About a week ago, and this was only a guess on her part based on when the aliens brought her food, she’d woken inside a small room, strapped to a table.

An evil blue alien with wings had poked and prodded her, thankfully knocking her out for most of it. Jokes about alien probes were the laugh of the party until reality set in and creepy blue guys gouged at your skin with sharp objects.

They released her restraints periodically to let her take care of business in the bucket sitting in one corner, only to tie her to the table after, as if they worried she’d escape. Truly, she would have fled all the way to Earth if she could hijack a shuttle.

A few moments ago, she woke up to find this particular tall, blue-skinned guy standing beside her stretcher, feverishly ripping at the bindings keeping her ankles pinned to the table. She’d thought—for all of about ten seconds—he was freeing her. Until he latched onto her arm and yanked her off the thin mattress.

She’d tumbled onto the floor. Sitting on her butt with her back pressed against the stretcher, she braced her aching elbow against her belly. “Fuck off, asshole.”

Radical terminology right there for Taylor.

“Up, you get.” He kicked her in the thigh. “No hole of ass. No fuck.”

That was reassuring.

Hauling her up off the floor, he half-dragged her out into the hall, and when he brandished the taser stick in her face, she decided to do what he asked.

For now. But just watch out, jerk. One distracted moment, and she’d attack.

A few tears leaked from her eyes, but she sniffed and ignored them. Studies showed people cried when they were subjected to tense situations. Being kidnapped, knocked out by a lightning stick, poked and prodded for who knows what nefarious purpose, and then tied up each night was enough to make a girl weep. She earned these tears.

“Go. Quiet, you be,” he said, driving her away from the windows.

“Why are you talking like that?” she asked, her heels click-click-clicking down the hall. With each step, she cursed the shoes she’d been wearing when she was kidnapped. That would teach her not to insist on wearing a tee, comfy lounge pants, and sneakers instead of the pink juglier dress her protocol droid had insisted on. The stupid gown was snug from the waist down to her calves, making it impossible to run. And the loose, floaty top kept drooping forward, threatening to show off the fact she was braless.

“Escape, we do,” he said as if making friendly conversation. That idea was negated faster than she could appreciate it. “Hostage, you are. Go!” He stabbed her spine again.

With a growl, she picked up her pace, shuffling her feet along the tiled floor as fast as she could. “What do you mean by hostage?”

They reached the end of the hall, and he pushed her through a door and into a stairwell.

“Down,” he barked, and she scurried in that direction, hoping her legs didn’t trip her up and send her tumbling.

“Talk like this, all of us do,” he said.

This wasn’t worth quizzing him about. Maybe he watched a lot of Star Wars and idolized Yoda.

Speaking of Yoda, where was a lightsaber when she needed one? Actually, she needed Princess Leia to storm the space station and rescue her.

Instead, the hand she’d been dealt included a skinny blue guy, plus a useless pink dress and three-inch heels.

“Scream, you will not,” he said.

As if he could control it? If she wanted to scream, she sure as hell would. “Why do you need a hostage?”

“Yarris, I will go. Take you with, I do.”

She didn’t know where Yarris was, but the take you with part made her pause. “Why?”

“Escape, I will do.”

“Escape? From what I can tell, you’re free already,” she said over her shoulder. The lucky guy had wings and could avoid the StairMaster workout she was now being subjected to. He floated behind her, urging her on with his black stick. “What’s keeping you from getting out of here on your own?”

“Release me, they will not.”

“Ah.” Anxiety crawled through her belly on razor-sharp claws. “You’re going to use me as a shield so they don’t harm you during your escape attempt.”

“Go!” He thrust his weapon toward her.

She wasn’t sure she could withstand another blow like the one she’d taken the second day she was here, when she kneed the alien “doctor” in the chin, and he’d retaliated. Her skull pounded in sympathy, reminding her she liked her brain matter unscrambled.

If only she had taken karate instead of basket weaving at the local Y. Then she could spin and grab the stick from his hand. A few, well-placed kicks would show him how Earth women treated jerks.

That’s what Francis Mandrake, adventurer extraordinaire and Taylor’s favorite fictional character, did whenever she got into tough situations. She acted. Being a librarian meant Taylor got first dibs on new books before they hit the shelves, and the Francis Mandrake mysteries were worth staying up late to finish. Maybe Taylor could take a cue from Francis and look at this as an adventure. Easy to say when Francis toured the pyramids, stumbling over mummies with a hot guy by her side, while Taylor got…

Blue guy.

They exited the stairwell, out into yet another hallway. At the alien’s urging, she rushed through the corridor and turned left at an intersection. Taylor went as fast as her skirt would allow, but she was winded already. Okay, she was wheezing. So what if she enjoyed sitting more than running around the library? Somebody had to man—woman—the front desk, and after the University made budget cuts, she couldn’t hire a work study student to do the job.

She struggled to keep ahead of the alien. Some shield she was. She wanted to protest, tell him to slow the H-E double hockey sticks down, but she had a feeling he wouldn’t listen.

Partway down a final hall, he dragged her into an alcove. A few beeps on a panel, and a door whooshed open. He shoved her inside and followed. After the door had closed, air puffed around them, making her hair whip around her face. Another door opened, and when she stepped out of the tiny antechamber, Taylor found herself in what looked like a taxi station for alien spaceships.

“One that there,” the blue guy said, pushing her toward the ships.

While she scurried in that direction, he flew toward a bank of computers and pushed a bunch of buttons. With a whoosh, a panel lifted on the side of the shiny blue-silver capsule at the front of the line.

“In,” he said, flying back over to her.

“We haven’t seen anyone,” she said. “You don’t need me as a hostage. Let me go!” She could find a place to hide and then look for her friends. Were they on the space station, too?

“Shoot, they will,” he said, poking her spine. “Die, I will not.”

“Do you really think they’ll care one way or another about me?”

Wait. Whoever ran this space station would shoot at them? Her belly flipped. She was going to be blasted from the sky. Why, oh why, had she let her mom talk her into applying for the Extraterrestrial Matchmaker Service?

Oh, yeah. Babies. Taylor wanted lots of babies. And Earth was fresh out of baby makers.

The alien dragged her through the door, and as it closed and latched behind them with a dull thud, he took her down a hall to a tiny room on the end with a big window, a panel with a bunch of dials, and two black chairs.

“Sit,” he said, shoving her down onto a hard metal seat. He dragged straps from behind her and bound her in place in four-point restraints, then did something behind her with the bindings.

“What are you doing?” she asked, cricking her neck around.

“Make sure, no leave you do.”

“You’re binding me to the chair?”

“No escape.” Peering up at her, he sneered. “Never escape.”

“Where do you think I’m going to go, asshole? We’re in space.”

He frowned before he shook his head and straightened. “One cannot hole in ass be.”

“Suits you, buddy.” She struggled against the bindings, but he pinned her too well.

He rounded her chair and sat in the other, where he strapped himself in. Leaning forward, he pressed multiple buttons on the console. The vehicle trembled and shifted ahead with a few jerks.

“Maybe you should hire a driver?” she said.

He ignored her.

“Where are you taking me?” she half-shrieked. So much for mimicking brave Francis Mandrake. She’d reverted back to plain old librarian Taylor already.

“Noisy, you are.”

He hadn’t seen anything yet. “Irritating, you are. Tell me where you’re taking me.”

The vehicle jolted forward. A hole opened in the wall ahead, revealing stars and endless black space.

The alien pointed to the hole. “To Yarris we go.”

“You mentioned that before. Where is Yarris?”

“Home new yours.”

Home? She didn’t like this, not one bit. “Take me back to the Crakairian star cruiser, and I’ll make sure they reward you.” Perhaps. They’d pay a ransom to free her, wouldn’t they?

Wulf would. Maybe. Damn, she hoped so. But how could she know? She hadn’t met him yet. He might find it easy to forget her.

“Yarris, we go. No star cruiser.”

“I don’t want to go to Yarris.”

He scowled before returning his attention to his driving, which was a good thing. He had a lead foot, and he was touchy with the wheel. Sadly, in this way, Taylor was also not like Francis, who could ride a camel all day long without a twinge of an upset stomach. Bile churned in Taylor’s belly as motion sickness took hold. Vomiting would not make this situation better. If they lost gravity, it would float around the cabin. Her hair was disgusting enough already. She hadn’t bathed or washed it in a week.

With a whine of the engines, the vehicle shot out through the hole, the tip of one wing banging against the side of the opening. The alien maneuvered the craft around and pointed it toward a distant planet that looked nothing like Earth. Thankfully, the vehicle leveled off and stopped jerking in all directions.

This was not the fun adventure Taylor looked forward to when she’d signed up to be a mail-order bride.

Over a year ago, a mysterious ailment had swept through the galaxy, killing most of the women on the distant planet, Crakair, and the men on Earth. All seemed lost until a ping from Crakair was picked up with an invitation to share resources. At first, the Earthlings shouted no. Establish communication with an alien planet? How could they dare? But a contingent of Crakairians arrived, including Crown Prince Axil, and the governments on Earth had warmed to the idea.

The Crakairians came bearing treaties and advanced technology, including security systems to protect Earth from other, unfriendly planets. As Taylor had recently discovered, there were hostile worlds out here. The Crakairians gave Earth the chance to take a big step forward, into a new future.

The Crakairian government proposed something astonishing. Crakairians and humans were genetically compatible; why not arrange marriages? That was when the Earth-to-Crakair Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Service had been born. At first, Earth women laughed. I mean, who’d want to travel to Crakair to marry a tall, green alien groom?

A few brave women volunteered and the matches worked out. The guys were hot, sweet, and, rumor had it, awesome lovers. This was a chance to have a marriage and a family, something nearly impossible back on Earth.

Taylor had joined the most recent group. By now, she should have arrived on Crakair and met her groom, the Vikir warrior, Wulf. If things worked out and she chose to stay on Crakair after the ten-day trial period, they would have proceeded with their relationship with a goal of marriage.

What would Wulf do now? For all she knew, he gave up on her and ordered a new mail-order bride from Earth.

The idea burned through her. She shouldn’t feel jealous. He wasn’t hers—yet. But she did, especially after watching the video he sent her, where he talked about how he’d cherish her and treat her fairly. She’d read the kindness in his dark eyes. Swoon.

Deep in her heart, she looked forward to meeting and getting to know him. Hell, even having sex with him if they connected. She had hope for her future. So much for that idea. Her dreams had been torched when she was kidnapped off the star cruiser.

As if all that mattered now. She and her alien hostage-taker were barreling toward a planet Earthlings had never heard of. Taylor worried she’d die there.

Meeting Wulf was no longer an option.

A few more tweaks on the dash by the blue guy, and the vehicle picked up speed.

When a voice crackled through the speaker, he jumped and darted a panicked glance her way. Someone spoke again, but Taylor didn’t understand. The blue guy’s gaze met hers, and he cackled.

“What’s going on?” she asked.

“Shoot us, they will not.” He sagged in his chair, settled his four arms on the armrests, and propped his heels up on the dash.

Lucky her to avoid being blasted to smithereens only to wind up stranded with a blue guy on a distant planet. “What are you going to do to me when we land?”

“Sell.”

“I’m not for sale.”

He cackled again and tweaked more dials. The ship shifted course, still aiming for the planet below.

Yarris grew bigger and bigger until it filled the entire window in front of them.

She didn’t know what to do. At the library, she ruled. When she asked someone—politely—to do something, they did it. If someone was loud or rude, she would ask them to leave and they’d march out the front door. That life had not prepared her for this moment, and the realization scorched through her like her grannie’s hot sauce. Sure, with her friends, Taylor was bold. Much too chatty, actually, if she was being honest with herself. Inside, Taylor was still the shy girl on the school bus who was too afraid to say a peep because talking might draw the attention of bullies.

For the first time since the aliens attacked the ship and kidnapped her, she was truly frightened. Over the past week, she’d survived on adrenaline, fear, and bravado, the trademarks that made her a solid librarian. Through it all, she’d been convinced she’d be rescued.

Her chest ached, and she rubbed it. The ache wouldn’t go away, because… No one was ever going to find her on Yarris. How could they? It wasn’t as if she could leave a bread crumb trail behind in the stars.

Her lower lip trembled, but she bit back her tears, refusing to let them fall. Fuck bravery. Fuck trying to turn herself into cocky Francis Mandrake. Francis was fake.

But so was Taylor.

She hated giving the blue guy sitting beside her the satisfaction of seeing her weep.

Stiffening her spine and sniffing back her tears, she remained stoic as the ship hurtled toward Yarris and the end of her dreams.

When they entered the outer atmosphere, the shake of the ship rattled her teeth. She clutched the armrests, grateful she’d been strapped down. Otherwise, she feared she’d be projected through the windscreen. The ship bucked, like a beast trying to break free from restraints. A bang rang out, and she tipped her head back to stare at the ceiling. Seeing no dents surprised her.

“What was that?” she asked, her voice shaking as badly as her body.

“Silence!” He leaned forward and banged on the dials.

“Don’t break the ship,” Taylor said hoarsely. “You’ll mess things up and make us crash.”

“Assholed up already, it is,” he snarled. “Crash, we will.”

“What do you mean we’re going to crash?” She flicked her hand at the controls. “Drive this wreck. Land us on the planet.” To think, she’d been worried about what might happen tomorrow or the next day when it appeared her life would be over in about twelve seconds.

The ship rushed closer to the planet, and the blurs of blue and green merged into masses of green, purple, and light pink. Which was land and which was water?

“Drive, cannot do.” He lifted his hands in the air and shook them, then flopped them onto his thighs.

“What do you mean? You grab the wheel—wherever that is, and you steer this thing. You land us on the freakin’ planet!”

He shrugged. “Useless, you are.”

“It’s not my fault. You’re the one who kidnapped me from the kidnappers and tried to escape to Yarris.”

“Over, it is.”

Not if she had any say in it. “So much for selling me in a yard sale. In case you didn’t know, I didn’t volunteer for this mission.” Her hands hurt from gripping the armrests. “What can we do?”

“Nothing.” His head dropped, and he curled forward.

“Try, damn you.”

He didn’t move. He didn’t flinch when she leaned sideways and smacked his arm.

“Great. Give up, why don’t you?” she said through tears of frustration. “Like that’ll help.” Looking around, she tried to find something that would indicate how to drive this thing, but none of the dials had labels, and she didn’t see a stick shift or dials that might give her control. Taylor might talk a lot and cry more than she should, but she also hated letting fate take the wheel.

When she turned back to the window, she gulped. Fate had already decided.

The ground rushed up too fast. Was it good she was strapped down and would never get free? That would keep her from smacking against the windshield on impact, right? During Safety Week at the library, they showed older—okay, very old—films for the kids who hung out in the afternoons until their parents got home from work. One of the films highlighted the importance of wearing a seatbelt.

Her heart rattled behind her ribcage. Breathing normally was not an option.

Taylor was about to experience what happened when a vehicle going a billion miles an hour impacted with a planet. The end result in the film hadn’t been pretty, and those vehicles had only been going fifty-five miles per hour. She had to shut the film off before it finished. Kids had run from the room to vomit. Furious, Taylor mailed it back to the company, telling them never to suggest that movie for children again.

As she began to make out trees, mountains, and rivers, a cold sweat trickled down her spine. This was it. Her life would end on a world far from Earth. No one would mourn her loss.

Her mom… Did she know Taylor had been kidnapped? Tay could picture her mother waiting by the phone for the call that would never come. How long before everyone gave up on her?

Her pants rang out in the small cabin yet she barely moved. Her brain had shut down. Saliva pooled in her mouth, and bile crept up her throat. She was going to hurl and even the threat of the loss of gravity couldn’t stop it.

The ground rushed closer and, with a jarring roar, they made impact, hitting hard and skimming along the surface. They decimated trees and bushes with their clumsy passage. Flipping up and over a giant boulder, they smacked down on the other side. The ship spun to the right and then tumbled end over end so many times, Taylor lost count.

Her head snapped left and right, and her gaze blurred. She let loose a scream.

Beside her, the blue alien groaned, though the sound barely reached her through the screaming crunch of metal giving way to unforgiving ground.

With a thud that thrust her against her restraints, the ship came to a stop and…

Lights out.

Taylor woke dangling from the straps pinning her to the chair.

Was the ship upside down? No, it was on its side and Taylor hung upside down, thanks to the alien for pinning her to the chair.

“Blue guy?” she croaked.

No sound reached her other than a humming buzz, dull thuds, and bird calls, which made no sense. The spaceship had gone silent.

Twisting her head, she peered to where the blue alien had been sitting. He should be below her, maybe still bent forward like people did in airplane brochures, the fliers you were supposed to study as the stewards stood in the front of the plane talking about who should get the oxygen mask first.

Pain arced down her spine as she shifted around, but she had to see how the alien was doing.

Oh. No chair. No blue alien sitting beside her.

“Blue guy?” Panic bubbled up in her voice. What the hell…?

Warm, balmy air swirled through the tiny cabin, drawing her attention to the big window, and she couldn’t hold back her gasp. Light poured in where the glass had been. Something vaguely resembling a dragonfly, except it was the size of a house cat, buzzed past her head. It flitted around the cabin before zipping back outside.

Taylor’s jaw dropped open dramatically.

Beyond where the glass should be, a profusion of plants made up of blue, pink, and purple grew so thickly, her gaze couldn’t penetrate more than five feet. Had they crashed in a jungle?

The plants shifted in rhythmic jolts as if the earth moved beneath them or a marching band was coming her way.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Her skin prickled, and her heart leaped into her throat. Taylor had seen Jurassic Park.

Frying pan? Meet fire.

Why hadn’t she quizzed the blue guy about Yarris while she had the chance?

Where was he, anyway? He kidnapped her from her kidnappers and bailed the moment they hit the planet, taking his chair along with him.

Spattered stains on the wall below where he should be drew her eye, and she squinted, trying to interpret the pattern. Dusky and gleaming, they reminded her of the aftereffect of an explosion.

A quick brush of her hands on her body proved she had no obvious injury. So where had the blood…?

Thump.

Closer. Louder.

Scarier.

She gulped and held her breath until her lungs ached. Don’t move. Don’t make a freakin’ sound.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

Something roared near the window opening, its growling voice slamming across Taylor like a hot, moist tsunami. Her mouth went dry as she scrunched in her chair, trying to make herself as small as possible.

A purplish arm the length and width of a kayak with two-foot long claws shot inside the small capsule. It raked through the rubble and dragged out wires and computer parts.

“Blue guy?” she whispered. Please, please, please. If only he was here with a laser pistol in his hand.

No blue guy. No laser.

Her heart blasted up into her throat as the thumps came closer. She wasn’t a hostage any longer. Taylor had become bait, a tasty lure dangling from a fishing line.

In true, maiden in distress fashion, Taylor could barely hold back her scream.

Grunts erupted outside. Had the creature outside invited the neighbors to the feast?

The owner of the clawed kayak arm, a beast made up of six legs and deep purple skin, lowered itself onto the ground in front of where the window used to be. It peered inside the cabin with a solitary, gleaming yellow eye, its attention fixed on her.

As it reached inside to extract her like someone using a pick to pull meat from a lobster claw, Taylor yelped.

“Haiii!” someone yelled outside.

A tall green dude dressed in tight black leather pants and what looked like a fur shirt leaped from the top of the ship and landed on the beast’s back. He hefted a sword high and, with a grunt, drove the blade down through the creature’s head.

2

Wulf

While purple blood squirted rhythmically into the air, the spidaire shuddered and twisted. It collapsed to the ground and stopped moving.

Wulf leaped off the twitching creature, strode around it, and entered the remains of the Al’kieern space craft. His boots crunched on bits of metal as he moved toward the section beneath the Earth female strapped to a chair. Stopping, he peered up at her.

Was she his intended mate, Taylor, or the other missing female, Mila?

“Assistance, you would like?” he asked.

She snorted, but he couldn’t tell if the sound meant humor or fear. Her thick hair hung down in a lush wave, richer than the gleaming blue-black coat of the javeess who hunted only at night in the forests of Crakair. Was it coarse or soft, and why did he ache to touch it?

“Who are you?” she asked in a shaky voice, making it clear she was still terrorized by the spidaire’s attack. Annoying things. He was grateful he arrived before it entered the shuttle.

After wiping the gore from his titar sword, he slid it into the sheath hanging down his spine. He dipped his head forward, his naanans flaring out before settling across his shoulders. “Present myself, I will do,” he said, pushing out the words, striving to sound as worthy as possible. “I am Wulf Malak Cristod Hlagrun.” He gave her a short bow, as was expected when a Vikir male met an unknown female for the first time. By the scrunch of her face, he could tell his words had not come out as they should, but the healers said his implanted translator would take time to function fully, that once he interacted with an Earthling, speech would function in a seamless manner. “To meet you, pleased I am.”

“Wulf?” she echoed. “My Wulf?” Her voice broke, and her eyes shimmered.

My… The word sighed through him, and his hand shook.

This was Taylor.

“You…” His heart on fire, he fumbled a bow again, cursing himself when it came out jerky. “Dreafillar. Dreafillar!”

“Dreafillar to you, too,” she said with a watery smile.

“Sorry, I am. A protocol droid, we have not. The formal introduction I must make.” His thick brow ridges drew together.

“I’m…I’m…,” she said. “I’m sorry. I’m making a fool of myself already. You should know that I prepared a nice greeting for when I met you on Crakair. A bit of a poem I made up that was cute and fun, and adventurous but not too forward. I’d thought… Anyway. But then…” She released a squeak. “I’m really sorry. I’m spewing. Did you know I do that? Please, make me stop talking.”

“I—”

She held up her hand, but he doubted the gesture meant she was asking for a kiss. “I’m…” Her breath sucked in, and more words rushed out. “I’m Taylor Nina Willis. We were matched on Earth. If I hadn’t been kidnapped and I arrived on Crakair, we would’ve… Well…I already said that.” Her face scrunched. “Actually, I’m a wreck. Obviously. And meanwhile, you’re calm and collected, out there slaying dragons—”

“A spidaire, it was. No dragon.”

“Excuse me. Slaying a spidaire, while I’m dangling here doing nothing except running my mouth. You’ve introduced yourself like a pro while I’ve fumbled and said things I probably shouldn’t. My brain has become mush. Remember that.”

“I…will try.” His poor mate-to-be appeared to need a hug.

Her eyes filled again. He had never seen such a thing as watery eyes. Had they been injured in the crash?

“I can’t remember a thing I’m supposed to say to you,” she said. “Or what I should do! I read the protocol manual. I did! I’d bow like you have, but…” She tugged on a strap holding her in place. “I don’t suppose you have a knife on you I could borrow?”

“Knife, need not.” Pulling his sword, he slashed it in the air. “Keep you safe with this, I will do.”

She blinked fast as she watched the blade sing through the air. “It’s big.”

“This?” He hefted it again. “See to our needs well, it will do.”

“If you say so.” Her voice dropped to almost nothing. “Leave it to me to be rescued by a gorgeous green guy who’s not carrying scissors.”

Gorgeous? With his scars, that was not Wulf.

Glancing around, he did not find anything he could stand on. While he was taller than many of his fellow Vikir, he could not reach his mate-to-be well enough to ensure he didn’t cut her along with the straps.

“Wait, you shall do?” he asked. With a nod, he strode toward the half-open door at the back of the cabin.

“Sure,” she muttered. “I’ll be right here. Hanging out. It’s lovely here. The view is nice. The air is balmy. And the…okay, that thing—excuse me, the spidaire—smells worse than sweaty socks left in a gym bag for two weeks.”

He was not sure who gym was or why he was leaving sweaty socks in bags, but Wulf could ask Taylor about this later. He needed to proceed with his rescue.

“Long, I will not be.” After sheathing his sword again, Wulf stomped down the hall. With the ship tipped on its side, he had to walk on the wall shifting underneath him. To find something to stand on, he resorted to opening doors and peering into the dark rooms below. With everything in disarray, this would not be easy.

He was still amazed he’d not only found Taylor, but arrived in time to save her.

After leaving Kral and the Crakairian starship where it hovered outside the space station, he guided his own craft toward Yarris, following the one carrying an Al’kieern and an Earthling. The starship’s computers were not able to discern if the human was Taylor or Mila, but he was determined to rescue whoever had been taken.

Wulf had traced the shuttle to the planet’s surface and coasted past where the vehicle disappeared into the trees. A sense of urgency filled him, as if he’d lose something precious if he didn’t act this seclar. But his unease grew when his sensors couldn’t pinpoint the final location of the craft. The best he could do was land and seek the ship on foot.

After programming the controls, he unbuckled and rushed to the back of the room, where he strapped on weapons. Running back to the cockpit, he retook his seat. As he stared through the big window, he growled. He wouldn’t stop looking until he found Taylor. He knew what it was like to have no one, and he was determined to show her that he would not give up on her.

Wind buffeted the side of the craft and sent it spinning. He was coming in low. Fuck, it was tricky to maneuver the craft. He was a Vikir warrior, not a Crakairian spacefleet pilot. His shuttle hit the planet’s surface with a bone-jarring jolt. The vehicle bounced toward a thick mesh of trees, but he corrected and brought the craft to a shuddering halt in an open field. Flopping back in his chair, he palmed his face and raked his naanans.

The ship rattled when it shouldn’t. Wulf’s lungs caught fire.

Thud.

Growling low in his throat, Wulf hit the dials to shut the craft down before the tick of the motors called in a…

Thud.

Thud-thud-thud.

The rapid steps matched the feverish beat of his heart.

He unclipped his restraints and rushed around the chair, dropping down as the sounds stopped.

Wulf’s spine itched while he waited. He barely dared to breathe.

The vehicle shifted, nudged along the ground like a toy teased by a youngling. A snort was followed by another bump. If the spidaire smelled him, it would peel back the top of the craft and extract Wulf like a snack.

As if it sensed easier prey, it loped away. Wulf left the craft and followed the thuds, knowing in his gut what the spidaire stalked.

An Earthling female.

Thankfully, he arrived in time to keep it from hurting Taylor.

In the last room in the hall, he found a table and odd-looking stools. Reaching down, he hauled a stool up and eased his way back to the front of the ship.

Ahead, Taylor barked out something too mangled to understand. The fear in her voice sent him shooting through the door.

Seeing him, she garbled something and pointed.

A small spidaire poked its head inside the shuttle, and it spied him pulling his sword. Releasing a shriek, it blasted spittle. Its pedipalps snapped, and its fangs gnashed, seeking flesh. Wherever the creature’s saliva landed, wisps of smoke drifted up. Spidaires were not only deadly hunters, but their salivary glands also excreted a low-grade acid.

“Kill it, kill it,” Taylor shouted.

“I will, mate-to-be.”

Spidaires were rare on Crakair, but Wulf had encountered a few in the past. They were stealthy opponents, but this one was merely a youngling. Wulf could fight it off with one eye closed.

The spidaire thrust a tarsus at Taylor, claws extended.

She yelped and thrashed her legs, kicking at the claws. “You’re not killing it fast enough!”

Wulf eased himself forward, slashed out his sword, and severed the leg from the spidaire’s body. While the creature writhed, its spit flew and its remaining legs thrashed against the walls of the shuttle, making it rock. Wulf propped the stool beneath Taylor and jumped up onto it. It teetered, but like the times he raced through the Vikir treetops, he swayed with the motion while maintaining his balance. A few careful cuts with his sword severed Taylor’s bindings.

“Eeek!”

She tumbled into his arms, and he held her close while leaping off the stool and bounding past the writhing spidaire.

While Taylor clung to his neck and tucked her head against his chest, Wulf plunged into the vegetation. Maintaining a ground-covering pace, he stuck to the shadows while creating a path through the jungle, aiming for his ship. He kept his sword ready in case he stumbled on a spidaire nest. The creatures hid in packs. And while he hated using his noble weapon in this way, he hacked at vines to clear a path. Puste vines and giant, pale pink ferns grew in abundance, clustered so thickly together in some places, he couldn’t chop a way through.

“Thank you,” she whispered against his neck, almost too softly to hear.

His chest expanded with pride. “Welcome, you are.”

“Where are we going?” she asked, muffled and nearly silent. His mate-to-be was wise to keep her voice low.

“Not far from here, my ship is,” he said. “Safe, soon you shall be.”

“That’s great. I’m all about adventure, but this trip has taken things to the limit. Even Francis Mandrake would be a wreck by now.”

Had this Francis Man-of-the-drake been kidnapped as well? He would need to notify Kral the moment they reached his ship.

“She… She would know what to do.”

When Taylor took in a shuddering breath, Wulf berated himself. Francis would have to wait. At the minar, he needed to be here for his mate-to-be.

He hated what happened to her and that he hadn’t been able to protect her. His precious mate-to-be, the future mother of his younglings. But soon, they’d be flying to Crakair, where they could start over. A protocol droid would formally introduce them, and he would dress in his best clothing for the ceremony. He would show her he was worthy. She would not reject him like everyone else had.

He wanted to hold her forever, to tell her nothing would harm her again, but—

Thuds from their right sent him darting in the other direction. He rounded a clump of dusty purple plants half the size of the trees, but came to an abrupt stop.

In the open area ahead, eight kruchion snorted and chuffed, their eyes wide. They’d been stirred up by the spidaires scent. Three times Wulf’s height and with long, sharp beaks they used to impale their prey, they were a formidable opponent if roused.

The lead matriarch dragged one of her two clawed feet across the ground, creating ruts. Tipping her head back, she bellowed a challenge at Wulf.

She dropped her head and galloped toward them.

3

Taylor

J ust when Taylor thought things couldn’t get any worse, she and Wulf ran into a herd of pale pink, elephant-sized ostriches with long, pointy purple beaks and big horns on their heads.

While Wulf lowered her to her feet and tucked her behind him, the biggest bird screamed and ran toward them, its wings flapping and its neck outstretched. How was it possible for a bird to have fangs? They poked down on either side of the beast’s light purple beak.

Like he could take on all eight of them at once and come out the victor, Wulf bellowed a challenge and hefted his sword. As the ostrich drew closer, he braced his feet and snarled.

“Close you stay,” he hissed over his shoulder to Taylor. His long, black naanans flared out and settled in the middle of his back as large scales with deadly-looking points spiked up on his shoulders. One twitched forward, and something flew at the huge bird thundering toward them.

As if a fifty ton boulder had dropped from the sky and hit the creature on the top of its head, it crumpled forward, its beak impaling the ground. Its wings flapped a few times before flopping onto the dirt.

Two of the other creatures hissed and galloped toward Wulf on their clawed feet.

More flicks from his shoulder scales, and the incoming ostriches joined the first on the ground.

Thump.

The ground shuddered beneath her.

Thump, thump, thump.

The sounds came from Taylor’s right.

Sweat prickled on her face as dread took hold. She twisted in that direction, but found only dense vegetation. Except…The tops of the trees swayed as if something enormous shoved them aside.

What was this place? Jurassic Park on steroids?

Adrenaline surged through her veins, her instincts shouting for her to run until her legs couldn’t take her any farther, but she refused to bail on Wulf.

His sword held as if he was prepared to slice and dice veggies like the prize chef at a teppanyaki restaurant, Wulf stood facing the remaining ostriches, waiting for them to attack. They peered toward the forest, where the giant thing approached, before they whirled around and ran in the other direction. Whatever was coming roared, and the forest shook as the creature changed direction and plunged after the ostriches.

When everything stilled around them, Wulf’s posture loosened, and his sword dropped to his side.

“Those ostriches didn’t dare challenge you,” she said in a shaky voice. Her lips quirked up, and she was rewarded with a baring of Wulf’s fangs. She’d read this was the Crakairian version of a smile, and she liked it. She kind of liked everything about him, actually.

He was big, at least seven-feet-tall, and green and scaly, though most of his scales were no bigger than a quarter. And while lean, his taut muscles had multiplied into more muscles that rippled across his shoulders. His black naanans hung down his back almost to his waist, and two lifted toward her, seeking.

His hawk-like gaze swept the area. “Prepared are you to again run, my mate-to-be?”

While she knew their translators would catch up soon, the way he talked was kind of cute. She’d miss it.

She laughed, keeping it low. “Run? Sure. Sounds like my idea of a fun time.”

Wulf was her chosen match. Assuming he wined and dined her and then convinced her to marry him, they’d be together for the rest of their lives. So far, he was hitting ten for ten. Rescuing her from a giant spider and a herd of raptor-ostriches boosted him up a couple notches.

One little problem. Three days ago, she decided, if she was rescued, she’d return to Earth. Only now she was beginning to have doubts about that decision.

“How far is your ship from here?” she asked. As she strode close to him, she checked out his muscular arms and broad shoulders narrowing to a trim waist. Nice legs, and she’d already checked out his butt.

A tree creaked, and she stopped ogling Wulf long enough to face the woods to her right. Leaves rustled, and the tops of ferns taller than Wulf dipped to the side.

Her smile fled.

Low growls erupted from the bushes, and shivers rippled down Taylor’s spine.

“Time to bail on this shit show,” she hissed, rushing to Wulf. Why hadn’t she thought to bring her mace when she left Earth? And if she’d been savvy, she would’ve bought a bunch of nunchucks on Ebay and packed those, too—not that she knew how to use them.

Hell, where was a fully loaded AR-15 when a girl needed one?

“Run now, can you?” he asked, holding out his hand. His other gripped his sword, but his attention did not leave the woods.

Staying here meant being eaten.

Latching onto his hand, she linked their fingers, though it wasn’t easy as hers were much smaller than his. Would he think she was weird if she climbed his arm and wrapped herself around his shoulders?

He took off with her mincing beside him. Damn pink juglier gown. It was holding them back.

As they hurried across the open area, bushes parted to their right, and a tan-colored rat the size of a car bounded out and took off after them, its fangs dripping and its spiked tail whipping through the air. It slashed its head, and the solitary rhino horn above its whiskered snout squirted a dark substance.

Taylor froze, her mouth ajar.

As the rat plunged toward her, Wulf tugged her to the side, like Wulf was the bullfighter, the rat was the bull, and Taylor was the red cape. Wulf dashed toward the woods, pulling Taylor along with him.

Her heels churned as she raced beside him, but it was soon clear she was the weakest link in this duo.

The rat grunted and gnashed its teeth, its stinky breath hot on her spine.

Taylor did her best to keep up with Wulf, but her damn skirt wouldn’t allow her to stretch out her legs, and her damn heels sunk into the soil. Wulf kept shooting concerned looks her way. She couldn’t blame him. It was clear she couldn’t keep up.

“My ship is ahead,” he shouted, pointing toward a field about three hundred feet away.

The rat snarled behind them, its teeth snapping at their heels and its claws smacking the ground on either side of them as Wulf tugged her left and then right.

She was determined to make it to the ship even if she had to crawl to get there.

The rat growled and snagged the back of her dress, drawing her to a halt. Whirling around, she punched its snout. It reared up, gnashing its teeth.

Wulf spun, his sword lifting. As he urged her behind him, he thrust his weapon forward. Bellowing, the giant rat swung its head back and forth, and its horn connected against Wulf’s blade with a clang.

Taylor had to help. “What would Francis Mandrake, do?”

His sword thrusting up toward the rat’s throat, Wulf spared her a glance. “Francis…?”

“I’ll tell you what she’d do,” Taylor yelled. “She’d lift her chin, tighten her grip on her derringer, and stand beside her man to defend him.”

“I see,” Wulf said. Grunting, he slashed his sword out.

The rat’s horn plunged toward Wulf’s belly, and he wheezed, sucking in his gut.

“I can lift my chin,” she said.

Wulf whirled and stabbed the rat in the side, but the creature didn’t flinch. Its foot lashed out, knocking Wulf backward. He rolled and rose to a crouch, but his sword lay behind the rat.

“But I don’t have a derringer.” Her hands flailed and her voice rose in panic. She had to freakin’ do something! “I’m sorry!”

“Worry not.” Kicking out, his booted foot slammed on the rat’s foot.

It bellowed and reeled back. Gaining its footing, it rushed toward Wulf.

“I didn’t buy nunchucks,” she said. “I would if I’d thought of it.”

In a move rivaling a ninja, Wulf leaped up and landed on the rat’s back. The creature spun and Wulf flew off.

He landed in a crouch and rushed over to stand in front of Taylor again, his sword lifted.

“And I didn’t think to bring mace,” she said.

The rat stomped forward, pinning Wulf’s foot to the ground.

“Hold on,” Taylor said. She held up a finger. “Francis would improvise.” Her eyes widened. “I’ve got an idea!”

A thick, pale pink stick lay on the ground to her left. She scrambled over to it, wrapped her fingers around the end and whipping it out in front of her, raced to the rat.

As the beastly creature plunged its horn toward Wulf, Taylor smacked the rat on the nose with stick.

“Take that, rat,” she cried.

The beast reared up and shrieked, its neck twisting. Backing away, Taylor dropped the stick and smacked her hands over her ears.

Spiraling on its hind legs, the rat roared. Its body spasmed.

As Taylor’s jaw unhinged and she toppled backward, landing on her butt, the rat keeled over sideways, slamming onto the dirt with a jolt that shook the ground.

A few stuttered breaths, and the rat went still.

Taylor blinked. “I…I…”

Wulf leaped to his feet and rushed over to Taylor. He lifted her and whirled her around. “Wonderful, you are, my fierce, warrior mate-to-be.”

She shook her head, her hands braced on his shoulders. “I don’t understand. I barely tapped it on the nose.” Her gaze fell to the ground. “I hit it with a pink stick. Not that it’s normal to find pink sticks when one’s out trooping in the woods. Perhaps Francis would, but not me. However, it’s also not normal to find pink and purple trees, and that’s what we’re dealing with here on Yarris.” A flick of her hand took in the forest around them. “Everything about this place shouts color. I saw the pink stick and then, I—”

“What pink stick?” Wulf asked, shifting around with her still in his arms. It felt nice to be held by him. He was big and burly and oh-so-protective, and for this solitary second, she actually felt safe.

“It was here a second ago,” she said.

He lowered her to her feet and while she wanted to protest that, really, he could carry her around all the time if he wanted, she needed to find that stick. It was a lucky stick and infinitely better than nunchucks or mace. She’d take it with her on the rest of her journey.

She tiptoed around on her heels, but couldn’t find it. “That’s peculiar. I swore I dropped it here somewhere. I don’t understand how…” Something pinkish slithered into the deep vegetation on the edge of the small clearing. Horror shot through the top of Taylor’s head. “Oh, yuck, it was a snake. And I picked it up. Touched it with my bare hands.” She leaped around, shaking her fingers. “I hit the rat and the snake bit it, and it killed the giant rat. Yuck. Yuck!” She swiped her palms on her dress, but she couldn’t rid her mind of the feel of the creature’s firm yet smooth surface. “It bit the rat. It bit the rat!”

Whirling, she rushed over to stand in front of Wulf, who watched her antics, his brow furrowed.

“Who cares about fangs?” she said. “It was a slimy snake! I like bugs. Most of the time. Even spiders, though I’m not at all fond of Yarris spidaires. Rodents—little rodents,” she flicked her hand toward the dead rat, “smaller than that one, that is, I can deal with. But I Do. Not. Do. Snakes.” She stared up at Wulf who stared back at her as if she was the most fascinating thing on the planet. But that would be the pink snake, not the pink-dressed Taylor. “Is it okay that I killed the rat?” Her words came out limp, but really, the past week had been a tough one.

“Yes, mate-to be.” Wulf flashed his fangs. Why, on him, were fangs sexy? Because, on everything else around here, fangs were terrifying. “Okay to kill, it is.”

His smile fell as he raked his gaze down her form. Why hadn’t she noticed before that his eyes weren’t completely black? A band of emerald green ringed the dark center, a green richer than a forest. Well, an Earth forest. Here, purple and pink filled the woods around her. It messed with her mind and frankly, it was giving her a headache.

She was so mesmerized by Wulf’s eyes that she didn’t flinch when he flinched.

His sword slashed toward her.

4

Wulf

Wulf tumbled forward and rose to a crouch, slashing out with his titar sword. The blade impaled the glossy green xycar scurrying across the ground near Taylor.

With a yelp, she backed away, her hands lifting, her eyes bigger than a jinjin. “Fuck. A bug. A two-foot-long green beetle bug.” She grimaced at Wulf. “Did I say I like bugs? I better clarify that. I like Earth bugs. Simple, fun bugs, like a praying mantis or a ladybug. Not…” Shuddering, she poked her finger toward the xycar beetle he killed. “That.”

Wulf yanked his sword from the xycar and after wiping the guts off the blade on the ground, sheathed it on his back.

Why was Taylor breathing fast? They had only run a short distance and briefly tussled with the now dead rugier lying in the dirt nearby.

“Dead, the xycar is,” he said. “Harm you now, it will not.”

“Great, great. You’re saying it would’ve hurt me if you hadn’t killed it?”

“Nasty bite, they have. Festering skin, enjoy you would not.”

“Yeah. Right.” She crossed her arms on her chest, squishing the small globes he noticed soon after he met her but tried not to stare at too long. Later, when they settled for the night, he would ask her about them. He’d seen them on the other Earth women but decided to wait to discuss them with his mate-to-be. So far, he hadn’t seen her use them in defense. Perhaps they served as counterbalance to her beautiful, lush behind? Did they move independently like his naanans? He was eager to find out.

Wulf flicked the dead xycar beetle aside and turned to Taylor. He studied her while she fidgeted and dragged her fingers through her hair. He noticed the other Earth woman conduct these same strange rituals of touching hair and moving their feet, but he had no idea what the rituals could mean.

“What do we do now?” she asked. Her gaze fell on the enormous rugier lying nearby. “Do we need to bury the giant rat you just killed?”

“Leave it, we will.” Its bones would be picked clean before dawn.

When she started to speak again, he paused and held up a finger, listening. The subtle sound came from their right.

“Something’s coming…” she hissed, her head whipping around wildly. “And we’re out in the open. We’re bait!”

“A spidaire, it is not.”

“That’s not making me feel better, Wulf.”

The rumble grew louder, and he tugged her off the path and into a dense thicket of pricar bushes. The thorns kept most creatures away and should provide safety for a few minars.

A squealing trumpet sound heralded the arrival of the tricadore herd. The enormous, pale pink beasts slowly lumbered into the small clearing, their thick feet slamming on the ground hard enough to crush vegetation, and their segmented necks swinging side to side. They stomped around the dead rugier. Enormous racks of horns projected off the top of their noses, and they slashed them in warning. Only a brave warrior would dare challenge a tricadore herd. Savvy hunters would wait to pick off the straggler lumbering at the rear of the pack.

“Are they going to eat us?” Taylor asked in a bare whisper.

He shook his head. “Tricadore herbivores, they are.”

“Tricadore. That’s what they’re called?”

He nodded.

“They’re huge.”

“Watch,” he said, nudging his chin in that direction. “Travel they do in herds large, sheltering younglings in the middle.”

“Some younglings. Those babies must weigh five tons.”

Dust cloaked the air, driven off the ground by the pounding hooves.

“Will they hear us talking?” she asked.

“Over thunder of feet, no.”

“Then we’re safe here?” She took in the thicket surrounding them.

“Yes.” He snatched her hand back before she impaled it on a thorn. “Sedative, this is.”

“Touch it, I should not, right?” she asked, clutching her fingers to her chest.

“Unless sleep a daela you would wish.”

“I’ll pass on getting knocked out in a Jurassic Park jungle, thanks.”

He did not know what this park of jurasique might be, but he also did not care to be “knocked out”.

“Things to do, I must quickly.” They had a few minars to spare, and Wulf would use them wisely. Shoving aside the encroaching thorny branches, he knelt in front of Taylor.

She squeaked.

A quick glance around assured him no predator had entered the area. Taylor did not appear frightened, just interested in the tricadore and what Wulf might be doing.

Earthlings must squeak to show curiosity. He would remember that.

He lifted the bottom of her dress and tugged it up above her knees.

“Oh, okay,” Taylor said in a squealing whisper. “Is this some sort of alien, victory celebration ritual? I defeated the giant rat and now we’re going to have sex?”

“Sex, you wish to have?” he asked, his fingers stilling on her skin. Should he squeak? Because he was curious about what she meant. He hadn’t heard if Earthlings celebrated a kill with sex. If so, he could suggest three rounds of sex for his recent kills, plus one bout for her own.

“I…” Her attention fell on his mouth. “I’m not completely sure I know how to answer that question. I mean…” Her shoulders curled forward, and she scrunched up her face. “Perhaps we could? I don’t usually have…sex with a guy on a first date, though this is not a true date. And in case you were speculating, I’m not one of those girls who enjoys dates that involve hunting. Killing for fun? No, thank you. Not me. As I said, I enjoy studying bugs, but I do not kill them unless it’s absolutely necessary.”

His mate-to-be enjoyed talking. But while he enjoyed listening, her way of speaking hinted at a sophistication Wulf could never achieve. Wulf was simple. Uninspiring. Anything but sophisticated. How could he possibly impress his highly appealing mate-to-be with his gruff ways?

Do not give up, he chided himself. She was discussing sex and dates. Those were not the words of a female who found him unappealing.

He watched his mate-to-be, looking for signs of attraction or, worse, repulsion, but he also kept his ears trained on their surroundings. Rugiers did not hunt alone. As soon as the tricadore herd had passed, other rugiers would catch his and Taylor’s scent and give chase.

He shoved her skirt higher, and she squeaked again. Sadly, there was no time to satisfy his curiosity about post-kill sex.

Grunts were followed by thuds as more tricadore plodded through the open area, their long tails held high, the feathered tips fluttering in the breeze.

With a slice of his sword, Wulf cut through the hem of her dress. “Apologize, I do, but your dress, I must cut.” He did not wish to damage her clothing as it was the only outfit she had, but it was clear she could not run in this garment. He would gladly carry her through the swamps of destere if need be, but if he was taken down by a spidaire or oostire—the large birds he had recently killed—or any other predator that caught wind of their scent, his precious mate-to-be would be left alone. Whatever attacked would find her vulnerable despite her quick thinking with the poosar snake.

“Ah, I see.” Her hands slapped her cheeks that suddenly flashed pink to match the woods around them. He admired her ability to camouflage herself, to blend in with her environment. This would provide a vital skill if they had to hide. “You were, um, helping me. Jeez, just poke me when I take things in the wrong direction, would you? I thought you were trying to warm things up or celebrate a kill in an unusual, alien, hyped-up, sexy way,” she said. “And honestly, in the heat of the moment, I wouldn’t have taken much persuasion. All the while, you were trying to make it easier for me to run.” She chuckled, and the pink color fled her skin. “Silly me. Ugh. I’m sorry. I totally misread your actions.”

“Then celebrate your kill with sex, you do not wish to do?” After sheathing his sword on his back again, he spun her in a tight circle, tearing the rest of her garment until it hung to mid-thigh, rather than to her ankles.

“Wait, what?” Pink flooded her chest revealed at the top of her dress, and he felt envy for this camouflage ability again. Could she control it at will?

“Change your skin to colors other than pink, can you do?” he asked.

Her fingers splayed out over the skin on her chest. “Excuse me?”

Rising, he trailed the tip of a naanan across the rosy skin peeking around her fingers. The shiver she released told him she was cold, so he enfolded his arms around her to give her warmth. His naanans, willful things, teased her spine and the nape of her neck.

“Um…Um…” she muttered against his chest. “What are we doing?”

“Warming you, I am.”

Her laughter snorted out, not the reaction he had been expecting. “What makes you think I’m cold?”

“Shiver, you do.”

She leaned back in his embrace, and a smile teased across her lips. “I shivered when you touched me.”

His out-of-control naanans stilled on her back. “Good or bad is this?”

“Um…good.” She stepped away from him, which did not imply good, but he would reserve judgement.

Flustered to think she might be attracted to him, he returned to his task. Kneeling in front of her, he trailed his fingers down her lower leg. So strange to find hair on her head and a strip above each of her eyes but none here. Wait! She had tiny hairs sprouting across her skin. So intriguing. He ran his palms down the surface, delighting in the scratchy feel when he dragged them back up. How was something like this possible?

“What…what are you doing?” she sputtered.

His fingers stilled. “Sorry, I am. Touching, I must not do?”

“I guess it’s okay. Why not? After all, we’re talking about post-kill sex. What’s a little stubble stroking compared to that?” Her hands fluttered at her sides. “What did you mean by me changing the color of my skin?”

“Skin pink to camouflage yourself you do. Mask from tricador herd, you do?”

As her gaze flicked to the passing animals, her laughter barked out. “I haven’t heard that one before. It’s not camouflage. This,” she ran her fingers across the flesh exposed above her dress, “is called a blush. I was blushing.”

“Blushing.” He pondered the word. “Meaning this is?”

“It’s something that happens naturally when I’m embarrassed.”

Heille. He truly had made a mistake.

“Or when I’m excited.”

And maybe, he had not.

“Good or bad excited this is?” His words came out hushed, not to avoid drawing the attention of rugiers or the tricadore but slipping out before he could call them back.

“Oh, definitely good.”

“See, I do.” He glanced up, noting more color rising from above her chest counterbalance mounds to her face. Her rosy skin called to something wild inside him.

Would she be offended if he licked it?

His heart slowed to almost nothing before leaping around in his chest. Everything about her drew him in. Her scent, spicy and sweet, and unlike anything he’d smelled before. If he were a male who could craft words with his tongue, rather than a male who could only craft battle with his hands, he would write a verse to describe her beauty.

Would she laugh if he shared something like that?

Longing rose inside him like a wave rolling across the sea. If only she could be his… He shouldn’t be thinking of this. Dreaming of this. Wishing.

For too long, it had only been him facing whatever the world threw in his direction. What would it be like to share that with someone who supported and cared about him?

No. He must stop. Just because he met his selection match and she was discussing sex, it did not mean she might someday care.

How could a beautiful, sophisticated Earthling female such as her ever fall in love with an orphaned Vikir warrior like himself? No one had given him affection freely since his family died.

Urgency tumbled together with despair inside him. If only he had more time. But with less than ten daelas to convince her to stay, he was at a loss. Yarris would not provide him with courtship opportunities. They’d spend the next few days struggling to survive. His daelas would waste away until none were left. He would not be able to show her what he could offer.

Focus on what you are doing, Wulf! He needed to finish before the tricadore herd passed and more rugiers arrived.

“You’ve noticed I haven’t shaved,” Taylor said, blinking down at him. “I’m sorry. I usually keep things tidy.”

“What would you shave?” He tugged his hands away from her legs and placed them on her foot, attending to his task and not her rich scent clouding his senses.

“My legs. Shaving keeps them smooth.”

This, he could not fathom. He wasn’t sure what shaving meant, but this technique kept their skin smooth? It was a great puzzle to him.

Her hand dropped onto his shoulder, and her fingertips traced across the edges his sekair flaps. If he were a male who believed he stood a chance with this female, he would believe she was caressing him.

“As for my dress, I want to thank you. I should’ve thought of tearing off a portion days ago. I’ll need to take care not to rip it further, however, as it’s the only thing I have to wear.” She released a soft laugh. “Unless you’re good at fashioning clothing out of leaves.”

“This, I can do.”

“You’re kidding me, right? Good one.” The narrow hair lines above her eyes drew together. “A juglier. That’s what my protocol droid called this wretched dress. Truly, though, I call it a big mistake.” She released another laugh, low and husky. The sound wound through him, seeking the part of him he kept hidden deep inside.

“Frankly,” she said, pinching the skirt and flaring it out. “I’m happier wearing comfy pants and a tee, but I wanted to learn whatever I could about Crakairian customs. My assigned protocol droid was an excellent teacher, even if he was a pain in the behind sometimes.”

She had pain in her…behind?

“Rub this soreness I will do, if it pains you,” he said. His voice came out croaky. Would she believe he was ill? The thought of touching an intimate part of her body made his cock come to attention.

“Let’s, um,” she said, and her lips twitched. “Hold off on butt rubs for now, okay?”

“Of course.” That had been the wrong thing to say. “You look beautiful in this dress.” The color brought out the inky blackness of her hair and made her skin glow like rich creara. And the way it hugged her curves… He definitely should not be thinking of her curves. Or how they’d taste on his tongue or feel beneath his fingers.

“Do you think so?” she asked with a hint of vulnerability in her voice.

How could he miss it? It was echoed within him.

“Very much this is so,” he murmured.

“Thank you. That’s sweet of you to say.” The smile she gave him stole his breath. He’d never catch it again.

From when he was eight-yaros-old, standing over the graves of his family, he had ached to find someone to give his heart to again. Many would say trusting after such a loss could only bring more pain, but Wulf could never burn out the longing. No matter how many families offered to take him in, their doors opened solely for his help in their gardens or to repair a shed, he held onto his dream. He’d kept it tight within his heart, never sharing it with anyone, because letting another see his need would make him vulnerable.

When he grew up, he worked his way up to head of his clan’s warrior’s regiment. He’d earned scars on his face and body but also respect and a place in his world. Despite having more than he could ever have hoped to achieve, he was still alone.

“So, about these shoes,” she said with another laugh, unaware of how his thoughts raced or how his heart beat at twice the speed it should. “These damn heels have proven quite a challenge during the past week.”

“What?” He paused, his fingers lingering on her leg. One of his naanans coiled around her wrist and dared to touch the back of her hand resting on his shoulder.

She didn’t tug free.

She lifted one foot. “These shoes are a total waste of material. Who’d wear footwear like this unless they had to? Well, me, I guess. Although, again, it wasn’t my choice. My protocol droid insisted I wear them. Guess he didn’t realize I’d be running from wild creatures when he said they’d give me a stately appearance.”

He didn’t miss her ragged breathing or how she talked fast, something she called…running of the tongue? He couldn’t remember the words she used. Some might suggest she was nervous because he was close, but he’d be foolish to trust it meant anything. They were attacked. They ran. An insect had crept near. That was why she was short of breath. She wasn’t excited because he touched her.

When she ran a fingertip down his naanan, his hands stilled. Reaching up, he stroked her arm, savoring the warmth of her smooth skin, so different from a Crakairian’s scales.

“Wulf,” she said, soft and low.

At her husky tone, heat poured through him, centering in his groin.

“It’s a…what are we talking about?” She smacked her forehead with her palm. “I’m losing my train of thought, and you’re to blame.”

“Me?” He froze, worried she’d be upset like Riella had been when he’d accidentally spilled the stew she made while he carried it from the cooking kangeer to the table. He hadn’t meant to stumble, but it was heavy, and he was clumsy. That was the name she used for him from then on, Clumsy Wulf. He’d been nine-yaros-old and resigned to the new life he’d been given.

“Yes, you’re to blame.” She teased a finger down his face. “You’ve gone and blown my mind with your touch. I forgot what I was saying.” Her gaze fell on his hand now stroking her thigh, and while she sucked in a breath, she didn’t pull away. She followed her soft smile up with another glide of her knuckles down his face. “Your scales fascinate me.”

“This is…good?” He could barely swallow. It was all he could do to think. But he could feel. As if something burst inside him, his chest cracked. It hurt, but the pain was followed by joy.

“It’s very good,” she said, as if he wasn’t splintering into a billion pieces in front of her. “I like the way they feel. They’re firm, yet flexible.” Her gaze drifted to his neck, his chest at the top of his shirt, and then to his arms. “But why are you kneeling in front of me still?”

“I…” He couldn’t tear his gaze away from her face. Her expressions…they both soothed and unsettled him. “What does this blowing of a mind mean, and is it painful?”

Her snort shot between them. “It means… I’m not ready to say.”

That was either good or bad. Because life had rarely given him good, he would assume it was bad. She didn’t appear upset. Regardless, he shouldn’t be touching her before he began his courtship. He couldn’t help it. While he had a real purpose when he knelt in front of her, he couldn’t stop himself from trailing his fingers down her thigh, past her cute knee, and then along her shapely calf with its fascinating spiky hairs. Her leg quivered but she did not pull away.

Curvy, and lush, his mate-to be was highly appealing. The males in his clan would be eager to win her approval. How could he compete?

Her gasp brought him back to the present, and he cursed himself for taking his attention off their surroundings.

The tricadore herd had moved on and the rugiers would soon arrive to pick through whatever was left behind. What if the pack had attacked while he knelt in front of Taylor, dreaming?

“I…” She flashed a smile, but it faded. “Okay, I know this is more rabbit-mouth on my part, and you should know right now that when I’m nervous, I do go on. And on. And on. Everyone says so, and let me tell you, it can create a ruckus in a library. Talking? I’m usually the one asking others to keep it down. And, here I am, chattering when I could draw something to us that will chomp my head off and nibble on the rest.” Her gaze fell on his hand as it glided to her foot. “What are you doing?”

“This.” Carefully lifting her foot, he removed her shoe and placed it on his knee to keep it from touching the dirt.

“Is this a courtship ritual I haven’t read about?” she asked. “I don’t mind if it is, although I guess I need to learn what it means. Because I read the manual from cover to cover, and nothing mentioned leg stroking or shoe removal. Well, other than in conjunction with the booger.”

Booger? Booger. Ah. “You mean boodler. I apologize, but I was not able to bring one with me.” He peered up at her while holding her shoe. “Will that be acceptable?”

“What, you don’t have one in your back pocket?”

He frowned and patted the smooth material covering his ass. “I do not have a back pocket.”

“No worries. We can skip the boodler.”

“We cannot,” he said, horrified. “It is a step in the formal courtship process and vital to my efforts.” Without it, he would never win her affection. “Courtship. Marriage. Fucking. That is the suggested order to follow.”

“Hold all those thoughts for a second. You’re speaking normally.” She tapped the translator his government had implanted behind her ear before she left Earth. “I’m no longer receiving broken English.”

“Yes, this is true.” He flashed his fangs again, another thing he couldn’t stop doing whenever she was near. All she had to do was look at him, and he ached to smile. “Our translators are finally working.”

“Bonus for us. But tell me, are you a Crakairian Prince Charming?” She flicked her hand to the shoe. “In case you don’t know the story, he was a prince and Cinderella was a washerwoman who was treated like slime despite the fact that she was the daughter of a lord. Or a duke?” She frowned. “He must’ve been a duke because dukes are featured in so many historical romance novels. Anyway. It hardly matters. The point is, we already determined my shoe fits.”

He loved how she chattered. It soothed him. But he needed to finish because his ears had picked up rustling in the woods half a klek away telling him another pack of oostire was approaching. They would attack if they found him and Taylor lingering in their feeding grounds.

“So, Prince Charming.” A thrill came through in her voice. “Put my shoe on, and it’ll prove I’m the one.”

“The one what?”

Blinking slowly, her brow furrowed. “Don’t hire me as a stand-up comedian, okay? Because I’m a flop.”

“Flop of what?”

“I failed abysmally with my joke.” Her chuckle told him she wasn’t upset by the prospect. “In the story, Cinderella, her shoe fitting meant she was the prince’s fated mate. Or something like that.” Her face cleared. “We’ve been matched already. You could almost say the shoe fits, and—”

He clasped his fist to his chest. “I will strive to be this…charming of a duck, if you would like this of me.” He would do anything to show her his worth.

“A charming duck, huh?” She tapped her chin, and when her lips curled upward, he knew he had spoken incorrectly. Wulf was doing his best. That had not been enough for many, but perhaps…maybe, it would be enough for Taylor.

“Tell you what,” she said. This time, he read the tease in her voice and saw it in her smoky brown eyes. “Keep up the charm and I might just turn into your Cinderella.”

This was good, right? For this one time, he would trust it was. He could be her charming duck—duke.

“I see the herd has passed,” she said. “And I imagine your knees are sore from kneeling on them.”

“Yes. I was attending to your shoe.” It had fallen from his hand. Regaining control of his brain, he continued with the task of snapping off the heel. After sliding it back on, he repeated the process on the other side.

“Oh, cool,” she said, spinning in a circle. “I love the freedom of movement this gives me, especially combined with my awesome new mini-skirt.” Her easy grin fell on him, making his tongue freeze. “You’re a genius.”

“I…” He straightened, but before he could speak further—no, before he could deny her gushing words, stomps from the woods nearby sent him spinning in that direction. He whipped his blade from its sheath.

“More beasties,” she stuttered, her smile leaving too soon. She moved around behind him and clutched his side, peeking around his body. “What else is new?” Her hand slapped over her mouth, but she spoke around her fingers in a softer tone. “I’ll be quiet. Don’t want to draw them to us because that would be bad.”

“We need to get to my ship,” he said quietly, and she nodded. Taking her hand, he eased them from the thicket and hurried down the tricadore trail. They darted around mounds of steaming dung, already coated with blackflies. Abandoning the wider path, he led her down a narrow trail winding through the woods, going in the direction where he left his ship. As the trail was narrow, they couldn’t walk side-by-side, which presented him with a horrifying dilemma. If she was in front, she might step on or rouse something deadly. Behind him, whatever they stirred by their passage would lurk, waiting to attack the one in the back, the one easiest to take down.

He kept her in front of him, but close, almost touching. And he held his sword ready. If need be, he could place her behind him and take on a challenge.

He was possessed with a fierce need to protect her. To cherish her. To be with her fully. There wasn’t time for anything like that, even if she’d welcome it. There may never be a time for something like that, but he’d snatch each moment from fate and make the most of it.

He tapped her arm and pointed toward the open area ahead where he left his ship.

They hurried around a large clump of bushes, avoiding puste vines stretching toward them, drawn by their scent. The plant’s spikes trapped the unwary and pulled them close, tightening around their necks until they strangled. Then the mother plant would drag the body inside the trunk’s mouth, where it would slowly digest. Vines shot toward Taylor, seeking, and Wulf severed them with a snarl. The other vines stretching toward them snapped backward, the mother plant having learned a valuable lesson.

He brought Taylor to a stop before they entered the open area where his ship was. Stepping around her, he crouched and peered between two blesette bushes. The sweet scent of their ripe fruit made his nose tingle.

Gnashing his teeth, he suppressed his groan. A cluster of spidaire had woven a nest around his ship. Even worse, they planted an egg sack near the hatch. When it erupted, ten or more youngling spidaire would emerge, starving for flesh. If he knew spidaire, others had clawed their way inside his craft, as they often sought dark spaces to lie in wait for prey.

When his gaze met Taylor’s, she must have read the dismay on his face, because the excitement faded from hers.

“I hate to swear,” she whispered. “My mother always told me to use my words, that swearing meant a woman couldn’t express herself fully. But, in the spirit of my favorite fictional character, Francis Mandrake, we’re fucked, aren’t we?”

5

Taylor

T  aylor stood by while Wulf rustled through the bushes and stuffed things into his pockets. He backed away and faced her, he didn’t need to tell her they’d lost the option of escape in his ship. She read it in his eyes.

Without saying a word, he took her hand and pulled her back onto the narrow trail. They went in the opposite direction of the one they came from, taking the super-wide passage made by the giant herbivores who passed while Wulf altered her dress and shoes.

“What did you see?” she asked.

“Spidaire,” he hissed.

“One or two?” She lifted her arm and made a fist. “We could fight them off.” We being a generous part of that statement.

“Ten or twelve.”

So much for that idea. Her shoulders curled forward. “Too many even if we had Francis with us.”

He nodded slowly. “Even for Francis, whoever she may be.”

“Any way to distract them long enough to steal the ship?” She wasn’t offering herself as bait, but there could be a solution here.

“The spidaires will not leave their nest once they lay an egg sack.”

“What are the odds they’ve laid the egg sack? I mean, they just moved in. Surely, they need to buy furniture, dishes, and groceries before popping out the two-point-five kids. Or, in their case, two-point-five egg sacks.”

“The female carries the sack on her back. Once she has spun her web, she deposits the sack behind the mesh for protection.”

“Ugh.”

“Yes, ugh.” He tongued the word, tasting it. “I like this term, ugh.”

She snickered. There wasn’t much funnier than a seven-two, scaly green alien saying ugh.

“I still have to wonder if it wouldn’t be best to challenge one cluster of creatures than an entire jungle full of them.”

He paused on the path. “Do you have ideas? You said you enjoy interacting with insects.”

“That’s a stretch, but as long as they don’t crawl on me or try to eat me, we get along okay. There are tricks we could use to drive them away from your ship. Any chance we could locate some vinegar or bleach?” she asked, though she already knew the answer.

He shook his head.

“Another way I’ve evicted spiders from my apartment is by spraying diluted peppermint or lavender oil in the areas where they enjoy nesting the most.”

“I do not believe we will find those oils here.”

“Lemon or cinnamon?”

“No.”

“We’re stuck then, aren’t we?”

“Ugh, yes,” he said. “Which takes us back to my original plan.”

Their ship no longer an option added weight to their struggle. It made her feet drag and her spirits drop to the center of Yarris. She didn’t like it, but what could they do? At least she had Wulf with her. She was grateful for his protection. She enjoyed his comfort. And she liked him. As in liked, liked him. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t have to work hard to win her.

As they moved around a particularly high and stinky mound of tricadore poop, Wulf placed an arm in front of her to hold her back and nodded his head to a creature the size of a large dog standing on the side of the path, its gaze fixed on them. Its tall, spiky ears pricked forward, and its long snout with—like everything else here—fangs, lifted as it sniffed the air.

“A threat?” she whispered.

“No.”

That was a switch.

The creature dropped its head and rooted in the dirt. Something erupted from the soil beneath the alien dog’s paws and scrambled across the ground. The dog yipped and leaped into the air, coming down on all six feet with its claws unfurled. Snatching up a grub the size of Taylor’s hand, it tossed it into the air and caught it in its open mouth. One gulp, and the grub was gone. With a satisfied growl, the creature went back to digging.

When it moved to their left, they started walking again.

“Why did we have to stop?” she whispered to Wulf. “Were you afraid it would bite?

“We stopped to watch.” He briefly flashed his fangs. “They are fun. I wanted you to see.”

“It’s nice to meet a Yarris creature that isn’t determined to eat us.”

“Like everywhere, most Yarris creatures provide danger in one form or another.”

In a short time, Wulf had become someone she could rely on, but more than that, someone she could trust. If nothing else, from the shy way he talked and the gentleness of his hands on her legs, she could tell he wasn’t like Ben, the jerk she escaped when she left Earth. Initial appearances could be deceptive. At first, she thought he was perfect. Sure, he harped on her about her weight, telling her she’d be gorgeous if she only lost a few pounds, but otherwise, she hoped they’d be permanent.

About five months in, she started getting bad feelings about Ben. It wasn’t only his critical eye when they had sex—talk about making her wince—but the way he quizzed her about what she was doing and who she was doing it with.

When he took a donut out of her hand one morning and chucked it into the trash, she had enough. She told him they were done, that he could find someone skinny if that was all that mattered.

He protested, saying he liked her as she was, but that was an outright lie. If he did, he wouldn’t have talked about her weight. If only she’d listened to her sixth sense when they first started dating. Sadly, he didn’t let it go. He followed her to work, questioned her co-workers about who she was seeing, and showed up at her mom’s place when Taylor stayed there over a long weekend. Even a restraining order didn’t slow him down.

The weight complaints, she could brush off. Maybe. The stalking? Not so much. When she was accepted into the Extraterrestrial Matchmaking Program, she saw it as a chance to leave Ben behind and meet someone new.

Wulf paused beside a cluster of black-as-night flowers growing on a high bush and sliced one off with his sword. He handed it to her with a bow, his fangs flashing. Taking her hand again, he hurried down the trail.

She sniffed the flower, taking in the rich, earthy-perfume scent.

Damn him… She’d barely met him and her resolve to return to Earth was weakening. He didn’t fight fair.

“Don’t think about it right now,” she whispered. “Think about staying alive.”

Wulf glanced her way, his brow ridges furrowed.

She shouldn’t be talking. One peep could draw a giant rat or something worse to them.

What were they going to do? They had no food and no shelter. Wulf was handy with a sword but one injury, and they’d be vulnerable. How would they survive in a world filled with deadly creatures?

Trust fate, her mom always said, but how could Taylor do something like that? Fate had a way of blasting open the front door and ravaging through your house. It stormed out the back but left you with the bill to put everything back together.

He dug inside his shirt and held out his hand. “Try this.” A bright pink ball a few inches across sat on his palm. “It is food.”

“How do you know?” she asked, skeptical.

“I grew up in a forest and learned how to tell if something was edible or not. I recognized the blesette bushes, as they grow wild on Crakair. Trust me. You will like the blesette fruit.” When she took it, he dug another out of his pocket and popped it into his mouth whole.

She watched as he chewed and swallowed.

“See,” he said softly, his deep black eyes sparkling. “I have eaten one, and I am not dead.”

“Yet,” she said, and tentatively bit into the fruit. The outer skin gave beneath her teeth, popping like an apple. A tart flavor burst in her mouth unlike anything she’d tasted before. Hints of lime but also passion fruit. Man, it was delicious. Ravenous, she snarled as she ate, finishing it off within seconds. She shot a grin his way. “Do you have any more?”

His mouth loosened—had he been worried she wouldn’t like it?—and he pulled out four more blesettes. “Take them.”

“Nope, we’re splitting them. Two for you, two for me.”

He dipped his head in agreement.

At least Wulf wasn’t eager to starve her. She enjoyed salads as much as the next girl, but if she ate one, it would because she wanted to, not because someone else insisted that was all she should eat.

A chittering sound in the bushes to Wulf’s right sent her skittering forward. Her flesh crawled, as if something would leap out and bite her butt.

Wulf spun and braced himself with his sword lifted, but when the sound wasn’t repeated, he lowered his weapon. His sharp gaze swept the area, but nothing moved.

“I’m sorry I jumped,” she said. “My mind keeps flashing to scary dinosaur movies, especially a scene in a film I watched where small dinosaurs swept across a beach looking sweet and cuddly, only to attack a girl.”

“No worries,” he said. “There is much to fear on Yarris.”

He had that right.

Ahead of them, a crick-crick-crick was followed by bushes rustling, and the stomping of little feet.

Taylor froze. Wulf’s grip tightened on his sword.

Three creatures jumped from the bushes, landing on the path in front of them. While Taylor loved dogs, she was a cat person through and through. These beasties vaguely resembled house cats with stubby legs. Unfortunately, they also had huge claws, spikes down their backs, and long, pointy tails curled over their bodies like a scorpion. Spying Taylor and Wulf, they hissed. Their tails thrust forward, the points dripping a thick, red substance. Snarling, they stomped toward Taylor and Wulf.

“Quick,” he said, grabbing her hand and tugging her toward the Yarris house cats.

“No, wait.” She dug her heels in. “We need to run in the other direction.” Her heart jumped into her throat. She could picture the spikes sinking into her skin. What would the red gook do when it reached her veins?

The beasts darted toward them, crick-cricking, but Wulf encouraged her to run toward the scorpion-cats. When they were only a few feet away, Wulf swept out with his sword, knocking the creatures aside. They tumbled together like bowling pins, two toppling and the other skittering sideways. Their tails jabbed the air.

She and Wulf swept down the trail, leaving the alien house cats behind.

They kept up the furious pace, running what felt like hours but was probably only ten minutes. Taylor’s shoes rubbed, giving her blisters, and sweat trickled down her spine, working its way between her butt cheeks. They rubbed, as did her inner thighs, and she knew she’d be chaffed red soon. “Really,” she puffed out. “Running is not all it’s cracked up to be. To think some people do this for fun. Who would have thought signing up to be a mail-order bride to Crakair would turn me into a track and field star? Not quite a star, but I’m getting closer with each beast we flee from.”

A breeze swept down the trail, welcome on any day but today. It swept her hair into her eyes, her nose, her mouth, and she swore if it could reach, it would snag in other holes, too. Taylor muffled a groan. Stopping on the edge of the trail, she leaned forward, bracing her palms on her thighs. Wulf continued a few paces before turning to jog back to join her.

Standing with his sword in one hand and his other braced on his narrow hip, he resembled a hero who’d stepped from a fantasy movie. All he needed was a crown and a red cape dangling from his shoulders.

Straightening, she shoved hair off her face. “I’m a wreck, while you…You…” She snapped her teeth together before a snarl ripped out. It wasn’t his fault he looked as fresh as he had earlier. No sheen on his face, and even his clothing lay smoothly across his body. This wasn’t a fashion competition, but she hated wearing a dress and shoes that looked like they’d been worn to an all-night party in a gravel pit. Matts filled her hair and it hung in lank waves. Sweat coated the grunge on her body, and she stunk. She hadn’t bathed in a week, and her d.o. had ditched her at least five days ago.

“Why aren’t you winded?” she huffed.

“I have wind.”

“But you’re not even short of breath. It’s not fair.”

“I do not understand.”

“You’re too perfect,” she growled. “Too gorgeous.” Too sexy.

“I am?” he said eagerly.

Her lips twisted. “Don’t you know that already?”

He shrugged. “How could I?”

She knew females were scarce on Crakair, but didn’t they see how cute he was?

“What does my wind have to do with my appearance?” he asked.

“I mean,” she flicked her hand his way, “You look like a hero who walked off the set of an action film. Meanwhile, I look like…” She grumbled, refusing to say anything that made her sound pitiful. “I’m a mess, okay?” Wiping her hair off her face—again—she lifted it in a hand-held ponytail and flapped her other hand at her neck to cool it. A lost cause right there. “When did this place turn into a sauna?”

“You are warm,” he said, appraising her with narrowed eyes. “Sweat cascades down your body.”

How could his statement sound sexy and insulting at the same time?

“I’m not sweaty. I’m a delicate woman, and we call this dewing,” she said, trying not be snooty. “Why aren’t you dewing, too?”

Wulf’s brow ridges rose, scrunching the quarter-sized, mossy green scales on his forehead. “Why would I dew if it is an activity for delicate Earth females?”

Would it be unkind to kick him?

“We were running,” she said patiently.

“We were?” Sheathing his sword, he strode closer to her. “My poor mate-to-be. I see you are tired. Would you like me to carry you?”

He said it as if he meant it, but…no.

“You can’t be serious,” she said.

“I am.”

“You’ll find out what winded means if you start hauling my big ass around.” The second she said it, the impact her ex had made on her self-confidence hit her. Ben hadn’t boarded the spaceship with her, but his ghost might as well be standing on her shoulder, shaking his finger at her for eating three blesettes instead of one. He’d called her ass big, not her. Yet, here she was, doing the dirty work for him after she shoved him from her life.

Strolling around her, Wulf’s boots shuffling through the trampled blue grass, making seed pods on the tips rattle. An ordinary-looking bee—if you ignored the miniscule fangs—buzzed around him and landed on a pale purple flower growing on the side of the trail.

Wulf stopped behind her, and she spun around to face him.

“What is this you speak of?” His eyes gleamed. “Your ass is tiny.”

“What?” she sputtered. That was a new one.

Striding up to her, he didn’t stop until their chests touched. Man, he was tall. At five-nine, no one would ever call Taylor petite, but the top of her head didn’t reach his shoulders. “How tall are you, seven-two or three?”

“I am many sevens,” he said grandly. “And I like your tiny ass. I will grip it tightly when I fuck you.”

Why did her mind immediately take her to a scene where she braced herself on her hands and knees with her legs spread wide, while he rode her from behind?

“Fuck,” she moaned.

“Yes, fucking.”

Taylor was sedate. Proper. Mouthy on occasion, but every woman had a flaw. She did not think about fucking doggie style with a guy she just met.

Heat flooded her cheeks, more of that camouflage Wulf thought she could control at will.

His fingertip stroked her jawline from her ear to her chin. “Tell me, mate-to-be, do you also look forward to the fucking?”

“Wulf.”

“Yes?”

“We shouldn’t be talking about fucking.”

“I wish to do it soon.”

Jeez, so did she. With a few simple words, her body heated to boiling point.

“Do Earthling’s kiss?” he asked.

Where had that come from? His gaze fixed on her mouth, and she couldn’t resist gliding her tongue across her bottom lip.

“Your tongue is not forked like mine,” he said, poking his out.

Thick and long, it did have a fork on the end.

“Does it get tangled up while eating?” she asked.

“Not yet.”

And why was her smut brain taking her to images of him crouched between her legs, licking with that incredible tongue?

“Earthlings do kiss.” Her words jerked out, husky with need. Whatever heat was left in her body shot between her legs. Her gaze zoned in on his mouth, and she gulped. Shit. Was he going to kiss her? Should she let him? And…Why was she freaking out? It wouldn’t be her first kiss, and it sure wouldn’t be her last. In fact—

“Do you like to kiss?” he asked.

“I…do.” Everyone said women should be more assertive. Taylor ached to shout take me, please.

Wait, wait, wait. She wanted to return to Earth, didn’t she? If so, she should not contemplate kissing Wulf. Or doing anything else with Wulf. No kissing. No licking. No fucking.

Who would have thought she’d have such a dirty mind? She never had with Ben.

Ugh. Ben. She hated thinking about him during an exciting moment with Wulf. If only she could separate her past from her present and not drag what happened on Earth around with her like a bucket of rocks.

He must have taken her silence for consent because he lowered his head, and his mouth brushed across hers, light enough to tease but with enough intent to show he meant business. He smelled of sunshine, pine trees, and the fruit they’d eaten.

“I…” Slightly plump, his lips were a darker green than his skin. His fangs should be a total turn-off with all the fang encounters she experienced on Yarris today. For some wild and totally uninhibited reason, she found them incredibly hot. She had to glide her tongue across them. “I’d…Oh, hell, just do it. Kiss me harder. Please.”

Cupping her face, his thumbs stroked her cheeks while his lips touched hers gently then with growing fire.

As she watched the introduction video he sent to Earth, she wondered if his fangs would get in the way of kissing, but the pressure on her mouth added to the fire growing inside her. Standing on tiptoes, she grabbed his shoulders and clung. Greedy, she opened her lips to let his tongue inside. They could stay here forever, tasting each other, feeling the heat growing between them until the spark burst into a raging inferno.

Crick-crick-crick. The approaching sound was followed by a shriek that made her flesh crawl. More voices joined in, and their feet tromped on the ground as they hurried closer.

Wulf lifted his head. “You taste better than a spring day.”

Talk about swoon. “That’s incredibly romantic, but we’re about to be eaten.”

A pack of eight alien scorpion-cats lumbered toward them on stubby legs, their curled tails gouging forward like spears. As fun as it would be to kiss Wulf for the rest of the day, getting poked by scorpion-cats was not on the agenda.

“Run,” she hissed, grabbing Wulf’s hand.

They raced down the wide path with pale pink and purple, monster-sized trees looming around them, and while she should be scared to death about what they might run into and what might chase her next, fire roared through her veins. Wulf’s kiss… She wouldn’t mind doing it again.

Eventually, they left the turtle-paced scorpion-cats behind and were able to slow to a walk.

Wulf studied the area, his grip tight on his sword. Taylor, her spine aching, her legs shaking, and her hair a wild nest around her sweaty face, wanted to slip into a pool with a margarita in her hand. Unfortunately, there was no pool or bar in sight. Where was a spa when a girl needed one?

“This way,” Wulf grunted, stepping off the trail. She followed him down a wisp of a line easing through the jungle and over to a tree that had to be twenty feet across. Survival of the fittest meant Yarris grew big trees. Otherwise, giant beasts would topple or crush them when they moved through the woods. To compete, everything had to be super-sized.

“Please tell me there’s a door in the tree,” she said softly. “Inside, a troll built a condo and you rented it through Airbnb. The troll has stocked the little house with food and water and jugs of wine, because I need lots of wine. And there’s a hot tub and a shower with lots of body gel and a razor and a big bed with a puffy comforter.” She tipped her head. “Right?”

“What is a troll?”

Funny that he’d focus on that one part of her motor-mouth statement.

“No tiny house,” she said sadly.

“I do not believe so.”

“No puffy comforter.”

“Why would comfort need to be puffy?”

“I’ll explain another time.” She didn’t have the oomph to get into it now. Talking about showers and tubs only made her sadder, though it was hard to care about a tub when she didn’t have one sip of water. “Are we going to place our backs to the tree and fight anything that comes at us until we figure out how to escape Yarris? Well, you’ll fight. I’ll do my best to locate pink snakes and whack the predators.”

“Fighting together, with our backs to the tree?” The smile he flashed her way made her knees go weak. Really, he needed to stop it before she dropped to the ground and spread her legs wide. Naughty Taylor. “This idea holds promise, mate-to-be.”

“How do you see promise in that?” A practical woman, Taylor was more comfortable dealing with absolutes, not vague answers.

“No worries. I will keep you safe.” He flashed his fangs again, making alien butterflies dance around in her belly.

“Backed against a wall—tree—and fighting whatever challenges us doesn’t feel safe to me, Wulf,” she said.

“This depends on where we back against the tree.”

She frowned at the trunk, knowing she was missing something in this conversation. “So, tell me. How are we going to survive for even the next ten minutes?”

He sheathed his sword in the carrier on his back. “Can you climb onto my shoulders?”

6

Wulf

“O nto your shoulders?” Taylor said in a soft tone. Gnawing her lower lip, his mate-to-be looked around. “Maybe we should hide in a hole in the ground, assuming we can find one, or in thorny bushes, assuming we can find those.”

“You do not wish to meet the creatures living below the ground.” Or in thorny bushes, but she appeared overwhelmed already, so he chose not to mention them.

She shivered, showing him that she was completely worn out. All the color had fled her pretty cheeks, taking her camouflage along with it.

He did this to her, and the realization tore through him. What kind of protector was he if he couldn’t offer his mate-to-be a safe and secure place to relax?

“Once we are off the ground,” he said. “You will be safe. You will relax. After that, you will feel refreshed.” How could he assure her she’d be secure up there? As a Vikir, Wulf had grown up in the canopy, racing across the bridges his people made to connect their homes, or swinging on vines from one tree to another. He felt at home among the dense vegetation. If she would trust him in this, he could show her. Please her.

“Okay.” She stiffened her spine and lifted her chin, but her eyes glistened.

“What is this water your eyes make? Are you wounded?” Cupping her cheeks, he carefully glided his thumbs across her tricar-colored eyes. A rare and expensive wood, tricar could only be found deep within the Ikeline Mountain range. It was said that the gods favored whoever worked with the wood. Did his Earthling female command the ear of a god?

The tiny, spiky hairs surrounding her eyes intrigued him. Did the lines of dark hair spaced evenly on her brow feel as stiff as well? They appeared silky.

“I do not understand the wetness in your eyes,” he said. “But if you are injured, I will search the jungle for a tincture or leaf that will soothe the irritation.”

“My eyes do this when I’m happy or upset. I can’t control it.”

“You are upset.” This was not an expression of happiness. “I am sorry.”

“It’s nothing,” she said. “I’ll deal.” Sniffing, she nodded and pressed a smile onto her face that did not reach her eyes. “Tree climbing? I’m in. Let’s do it.”

“You are brave. You survived on the space station for seven daelas. What did they…?” He wanted to know, but he also did not want to know, because the knowing could crush him. His need to comfort her was strong, but he had to understand what happened to help her move forward.

“They didn’t do anything…sexually to me. They drugged me to do procedures.”

“What procedures?”

“They said they were assessing my fertility, that they planned to hold an auction once I was…ready to get pregnant.” Her body shook. “I assume that’s when the bad stuff would start, after the auction.” She released a sigh. “Other than that, they fed me—sometimes. They let me walk around each day in the small room where they kept me. The rest of the time, they kept me tied to a table.”

A growl rumbled in his chest. If they were here, he’d kill them all. “An Al’kieern escaped the space station with you.” Death came through in his voice. “Where is he?”

“He met an ending even he didn’t deserve. When I woke up, I saw spatters on the walls, and his chair was gone. I think…” She bit down hard on her lower lip. “I think the spidaire got him.”

“Did the Al’kieern hurt you?”

“He threatened me, said he’ll sell me once we reached Yarris, but he didn’t touch me.”

It was good the male was dead. One less for Wulf to kill.

“You are not alone now,” he said, stroking her hair off her face. So soft and fine, unlike his naanans that were thick and fibrous.

“Thank you.” Her lips trembled. “As for how I survived? I’m a librarian. We’re superwomen.”

“You are a superior woman. This, I could see from the minar we met.”

“Cute,” she said. She wiped her eyes and tipped her head back. “How are we going to get up there? Please tell me there’s a ladder, even the rope variety. I did that in gym class. Once. It wasn’t easy and I only climbed eight feet, but I could do more. Or you’re going to boost me up? Somehow. We’ve got a problem, though. I’m not seeing a convenient branch, one that would be wide enough for us to sit on while we wait for…” Her head tilted, and she frowned. “What will we be waiting for? Oh, rescue. That’s right. Except, as far as I know, no one knows we’re here.”

“Kral does.”

She turned a puzzled gaze his way. “Kral…?”

“Kral Lilgat Adhoh Shiel’qoin.”

“Say that one fast three times.”

“What?”

“Never mind. Who is he?”

“The leader of my clan and the future mate of Mila Dunkirk.”

“Oh, yes! I remember his name, now. How does Mila’s potential mate know we’re here? Has he found her?”

“He was about to board the space station when I left to follow your shuttle.” Wulf scanned the area. They needed to leave the ground soon. Something… It was still some distance away, but a large creature moved toward this area. “By now, Kral will have rescued your friend, Mila Dunkirk.”

“You think so?”

“Kral is the leader of my clan,” he said with complete confidence. “He will locate and rescue your friend, and we will meet up again on Crakair. That is the plan.”

“What about Lily?”

“Lily is safe and on Crakair already.”

“You don’t know how happy hearing that makes me.” She sagged against the tree, her eyes filling with liquid again.

This happy versus sad eye watering gesture confused Wulf. Females were complicated, especially Earth females. Before leaving Crakair, he went to a friend, Jorg’s home. There, he met Earth females. Pretty and kind, he had appreciated how welcome they made him feel. Strength hid in their tiny forms, but he could tell they were not made like a Vikir warrior. He would need to take special care of his delicate mate-to-be.

She sniffed. “Let’s hope Kral rushes in with a big spaceship. He can land nearby. The hatch will open, and a bunch of stormtroopers will rush down the ramp with lasers blazing, ready to take out the giant rats, ostriches, and spiders. We’ll board the ship and get out of here.”

“Storm poopers?”

She studied his face as if she wondered if he was joking, but he…

He smacked his forehead. “Of course. Stormtroopers. Not poopers.” He chuckled, and she joined in. “Sometimes, my translator twists words.”

“It’s okay. I like it.” She continued to grin, and he was happy he could make her feel better in this rough situation.

His smile faded fast when dull thuds in the jungle told him they needed to leave the forest floor soon.

“I will help you, but we must…”

“Yeah.” Her gaze was trained on the trees. “Let’s go somewhere safe. Assuming such a place exists on Yarris. Maybe we should run instead of climbing a tree.” She picked at her lower lip with her nails, and she hissed when the grass beside her fluttered in the breeze, brushing her leg. She stomped her foot and swatted at her calf. “Damn bugs.” Her concerned gaze met his. “Are there mosquitoes here? One tried to land on me.”

“No mosss-squish-toes. Other…bugs.” He assumed that meant insect. “Let us get up in the tree.”

“You say that so easily, as if it’s a given fact, I scale giant trees on a regular basis.”

“Do you not?”

“No, um, at most, I climb stairs. At the library. When the elevator is broken. Rarely trees.” She huffed. “Okay, I never climb trees. You pried that fact out of me.”

A dundair flew in close, its four clawed limbs extended to grab, but it darted away when Wulf brandished his sword. He huffed and glared at its fluffy backside as it cackled and dove into the bushes.

“To be honest, I don’t remember the last time I climbed a tree,” Taylor said as if she didn’t notice they’d almost been impaled by the dundair. “And it wasn’t much of a tree, just a maple on my grandmother’s front lawn. I brought a kitchen chair outside and propped it underneath the lowest branch. Standing on it, I was able to swing my leg up and over the branch. I leaned against the trunk and enjoyed the view until Grannie shrieked at me to bring the chair back inside.”

Another dundair landed on the ground nearby. It strutted toward them, its claws gouging the soil with each step. A low-flying creature, it would not follow them up the tree, assuming he could get Taylor up there soon.

When the dundair cackled, Wulf snarled and flashed his sword. The creature’s cackle cut off, and it fled, soaring back into the scrub bushes rather than continue its challenge. Carrion creatures, they usually sought the dead. Few were brave enough to take on a male protecting his mate with a weapon.

The vegetation around went silent. No bird calls. No hum of insects. Something deadly was coming, and it would be upon them within minars. His spine itched, a sure sign an attack was eminent.

“Hold on to me,” he barked out.

“You said something about climbing onto our shoulders? Hey, I’m game. You seem climbable. Lickable, too, but we’re not going there.”

He misheard her. She had not called him…lickable.

The distant hum of shuttle engines reached him. A quick look around showed they had decent cover overhead, which was why he chose this location, but a small opening nearby might be too revealing. Whoever flew near would have heat-seeking equipment that would pick them out on the forest floor.

He leaped onto Taylor and pressed her against the tree, sheltering her body with his own.

“Well, okay. Wow,” she mumbled against his chest. “A hug’s not a bad idea, but it won’t—”

He placed his finger over her lips.

“Oh. Sorry,” she mumbled around his finger. “Yup. I’ll be quiet.”

The ship passed over their location without slowing its engines, but he waited to the count of one thousand before stepping back, releasing Taylor.

“A ship,” she said, hopping in place and clapping her hands. “It must have been your friend!”

“It was Al’kieern.”

Her excitement dropped away from her like a sodden cloak. “The four-armed blue guys. Damn.”

“They have a compound on Yarris and, knowing you are here on the planet, they will seek you.” Wulf, too, if they spied his ship.

“Okey-dokey then. Let’s do this.” She moved closer to Wulf, stumbling over something, and fiddled her hands at her sides. “Should I hold onto your arm?” She stomped her foot. “Are you sure there are no mosquitoes here, because—” A shiver wracked her frame. “There it is again,” she said, bemused. “This place is full of—”

She squeaked as a vine wrapped around her ankle and jerked. Smacking onto the ground, her panicked gaze met his. She scrambled, her nails making grooves in the soil as the vine dragged her toward the densest part of the jungle.

“Wulf!”

His lungs on fire, he bellowed as he took off after her, racing past. With a grunt, he brought the blade down on the plant, severing it from the mother cluster. The living end snapped backward, and a rumbling cry echoed in the forest, echoed by other howls until a deafening litany drowned out whatever Taylor was shouting.

Heille.

Multiple vines snaked from the woods, flailing on the ground, stretching toward them. Reaching for them. One slapped against Taylor’s foot and latched on. Wulf cut it through and scooped her up in his arms. He bolted toward the tree and set her down only long enough to sheath his sword. “Hold on. Now!”

“I get it. We need to get out of here. Are you sure we shouldn’t run?” Her arms wrapped around her waist and she rocked backward, looking up. “The closest branch has to be thirty feet up. How in the world are we going to get there before—”

“I will climb,” he said. “You will cling.”

A vine grabbed his calf, but he kicked it away.

“I’m in,” she yelped. “Give me a second to figure out where to put my feet.” Head tipped, she studied the tree. “Where are handholds when you need them?”

Vines whipped the ground around them. If they didn’t get out of here, they’d be dragged away.

“I will take you up.”

“Wulf, you’re not strong enough to haul my bootie up two feet, let along thirty.” Her feet fidgeted. “I can’t help my size. I like burritos, and I’m going to keep on liking them for the rest of my life. Sue me.”

“Now.” Taking her hands, he brought them up to his neck and clasped them together. “Hold on!”

Snarls from the woods were followed by a pack of rugier bursting from the dense brush. The beasts rushed toward them, teeth snapping.

Wulf sighted and leaped upward. Stabbing out, he pressed the tips of his fingers into a groove in the bark and used it to drag them higher, rapidly climbing above where the rugier and vines could reach. Only then did he relax and more carefully pick the best locations for his hands and feet.

“Whoa.” She peered down as three rugier braced their front paws on the tree and snarled. “Any chance those babies can climb?”

“They cannot.”

“How about the vines?”

“Ground hunters.”

“Perfect.”

The rugier bumped off the tree and gnashed their teeth as they sniffed the area where he and Taylor had been standing.

“Just sayin’, I’m super impressed right now,” she said. “You jumped about twenty feet into the air. How in the world did you do that? Do you have springs on your feet?”

“I am Vikir.” He maintained his grip on the tree and dug the sides of his boots into the bark, holding them secure at this level while he caught his breath. That had been too close.

“You mentioned Vikir in the video you sent, but I’m not sure what that means. There wasn’t much about them in the protocol manual.”

“Crakair holds many races. Small clans of Vikir live in the forests while most Crakairians reside in the city or surrounding countryside.” Once he got his heartrate and breathing under control, he continued. Searching for the next handhold, he pulled them upward, moving as fast as he dared, taking them higher into the canopy and away from the lethal creatures on the ground.

“You know what’s funny?” she said. “I’m dangling like one of those hotel signs people hook over a doorknob. Do not disturb. No maid service today. I do not need towels.” A snort erupted from deep inside her, but she cut it off. “Be serious for once, Taylor. Just once! Aw, shit, I’m really sorry. Please know I can’t help it. You must have a clue about me by now. I talk a mile a minute whenever I’m nervous, excited, worried, or even when I feel normal. It’s a curse, I’m afraid.”

“I do not mind. Talk all you wish.” He shifted to their left and climbed higher.

“I appreciate your understanding, kind sir.” A tease danced across her lips, and tiny creases appeared on her brow. “I noticed it earlier.”

His body stilled. “Noticed what?”

“You have an interesting face.”

He grunted, not sure what she meant by the statement. His Earth female confused him. Intrigued him. Excited him.

“Earthlings don’t have thick ridges across their brows like Crakairians,” she said. “You have no hair either, but that’s okay.”

He was relieved. Despite how much he enjoyed looking at and dreaming about touching Taylor’s hair, he would not wish to replace his naanans with whispy locks that appeared to have no use beyond enhancing appearance.

Grasping a branch above them, he pulled them up until he could rise and use the flat surface to stand. He crouched and leaped again, landing on another limb farther up the tree.

“This is amazing. Other than the spasms in my arms, damn things, I could hang out a long time while you hopped from one branch to another. Since I’m a wreck after almost being eaten by a killer vine, and I need a distraction, I’m going to focus on your brow ridges. On some guys—okay, most guys—I’d find them intimidating, like I was dating the Hulk. Who also has green skin and muscles, by the way. I know you’re interested in that fact. The ridges fit you, though. They gave you distinction. Actually, they’re kind of sexy.”

“You…” He paused while dangling from a branch, completely stunned by her admission. “You believe I am sexy?”

“Don’t sound amazed. I said it not long ago, didn’t I? And why wouldn’t I find you sexy?”

That was a very good question.

Taylor found him—Wulf and not anyone else—sexy? Although, there was no one else around, other than the snorting rugiers below. Still, he took heart from her statement.

If he was climbing back in his village on Crakair, his muscles would be feeling the activity by now even without the addition of Taylor’s puny weight, but he suddenly had the strength of ten Vikir. Leaping onto a thick branch, he used it to lever them up higher, springing to a tree a farther distance away than he would have dared to challenge back home.

“Oh, interesting. There are new things on the ground,” she said, looking down. “Their bodies are pale purple with pink stripes. A new species and something we haven’t seen so far. Pretty if they weren’t deadly. They vaguely resemble tigers. Big tigers, with four legs and horns. Lots of horns in this jungle. And fangs. They’re both hot commodities. Do we need to worry about the purple tigers?”

Somewhat, but it was best to ease her into this slowly. She had received enough shocks during the past denjars. It was hard to believe they had only been on Yarris longer, though he feared they would be here a likar or longer. Could his mate-to-be withstand many daelas of danger?

“It will be dark soon,” he said, nudging aside her question about the creatures moving across the forest floor, prowling for food. The rugiers had fled, which told Wulf the “peerpel ty-geers” were something to avoid. He hadn’t seen this creature before and could not comment on their threat potential, but it would be unwise to believe they were safe around any Yarris creature.

“As for your lips,” she said. “I like the soft green color, and the way they make me feel when we kiss. Want to know something funny? Confession time. When I saw them on your video, I was worried about your fangs.”

“You do not enjoy my fangs?”

“Fangs in general? No. Fangs on Wulf? Yes.”

He wasn’t sure what that meant, but yes was good.

“I wasn’t worried about you biting, though I’m not opposed to a little nibbling every now and then, but I was concerned about how they’d play in a kiss. You blew that worry out of the water.”

He loved listening to her chatter. She revealed so much of who she was as a person. And he was intrigued by how easily she shared her thoughts about him. Stoic and silent, Wulf was more apt to hang back and let others do the talking. He had spent too many yaros trying to avoid notice. It was refreshing to feel…noticed. Yes, that was the word. Noticed.

“The scales on your forehead intrigue me. I want to touch them sometime if that’s all right.”

“You may touch any part of my body you wish.”

“Loaded statement right there, Wulf,” she said as he moved higher in the tree. A branch near the top would suit their needs. It would provide a space to rest with enough vegetation cover to avoid the Al’kieern heat-seeking scanners.

Once he reached it, he dropped down onto the wide branch and leaned back against the trunk, bracing them in place with his legs.

He settled Taylor on his lap, facing him.

“This is an interesting position,” she said, wiggling around to get comfortable.

If she kept at it, his cock was going to explode.

“We will sleep here tonight,” he gritted out, telling his body to ignore her sweet scent and nearness.

“With me planted on top of your…” She blinked slowly. “Ho-baby, you’ve got a missile in your pocket.”

“Missile?”

“It’s big.”

“Yes.”

“I’m okay with that.”

“That is nice to hear.”

She wiggled some more, settling on his lap.

If he tipped back his head and howled, how would she respond? Frustration soared through him. Patience, he shouted to his body. Give her time. “Courtship,” he muttered. “Marriage. Then, fucking.”

“I see.”

How could she? He was the one who must woo her and show her he was worthy. Easing her back on the branch and driving himself inside her would ruin everything.

“I’m going to choose to write this,” she waved to his groin, “off as you a tiny bit…excited because a woman is sitting in your lap. We barely know each other, so it’s probably not because of me. And hanky-panky is out for tonight at least.” Leaning back in his embrace, she tapped her chin. “I’d say we need a distraction, don’t we? To calm things down.”

Nothing was going to calm down his cock. His mate-to-be kept grinding herself against it. Her scent…

Do not think of her scent.

Gritting his teeth, he focused on the leaves around them. The rumblings of a pack of rugiers rutting on the ground nearby. The sun setting on the horizon.

“This is actually quite comfortable. And I can see why you find it safe. Yes, we’re high above the ground, but on Yarris, that’s a good thing.” She settled against him as if she belonged there. “Now that we’ve finished talking about your face, we can—”

“Tell me about you.” Distraction. Distraction. No pumping his hips against her. “Why do you speak about yourself—your body—as if it isn’t the most exquisite form in the world?” He thirsted for her. Ached for her already. How could she not see this?

“Exquisite? Where are your eyes?” She woofed out a breath. “But you’re right. I shouldn’t put myself down. I never used to talk about myself like this.”

“Why now?” He had not missed the implication something caused a change.

“Like many, I’ve got an awful ex in my past.”

“Hex?”

“Ex. A former boyfriend.”

A growl rumbled in his chest, not because she had been with other males but because one of them had caused her distress.

“You don’t seem to have noticed, but I’m not your usual skinny Earth bitch. And there I go again, swearing. And I’m faulting my fellow women who should be my best friends and support group, by calling them bitches. Do you mind that I’ve got a potty mouth? My mother always said I might look a tiny bit like a librarian, when I dress in proper clothing that is, but I have the mouth of a dockworker.”

“A dockworker?” Each word his tiny mate-to-be spoke was another piece of the person he wanted to know better. Reaching inside his shirt, he pulled out another blesette and offered it to her. She took it, munching as she spoke, though yawns crept in. Soon, she would sleep. He would doze lightly and protect her.

“Yes, a dockworker. Exactly. I take pride in my creative language. Just because I’m a librarian, doesn’t mean I have to talk like a walking encyclopedia.”

“Tell me more of this hex.”

“Funny how you focus on that part of my statement. I like that name, by the way. Hex. It suits him. His name is—was—Ben. And he was a jerk.”

“How did he jerk you? Did he haul on your limbs?”

“Jerk means asshole.”

“A hole in an ass. I have not heard this phrase, but I like it, almost as much as ugh.” Grunting, he tugged her closer, sharing his warmth. With the sun setting, it had grown cool. “Hole in the ass. Hole in the ass.” He chuckled. “I have known many males who are holes in the ass.”

“Me, too, I’ll tell ‘ya.” She grinned up at him, her lips shiny from the fruit. “I like you, Wulf. You’re funny. You’re entertaining to be around.”

For whatever reason, her comment made his face grow hot. Was this a Vikirian version of the blush Taylor had spoken of? It could not be. Warriors did not flash color on their scales as a reflection of their feelings.

“What did your hex, Bin, do to you?” Wulf asked, watching her face. He was relieved to find her tense expression had fled. Talking eased his mate-to-be. He would encourage her to keep doing it until the sun winked on the horizon. Then, they would need to be quiet. It was safer above the ground than on it, but nowhere was truly secure on Yarris.

“Bin?” She frowned. “Ah, Ben. But I like Bin better, so I’m running with it. Bin criticized me a lot. My size, what I ate. Even what I did for fun.”

“Why?”

“Because he felt out of control and by calling me names and criticizing me, he could make me feel insecure. Then he could feel powerful.”

“Power is not about being cruel to another.”

“You’re right.”

“Power comes from love. From the contacts you make in life and the relationships you build.”

“Interesting way to put it, but I agree. I hadn’t thought about it that way before. But like I was saying, I’m in awe of how you hauled me all the way up here. I’m a bit overweight,” she sucked in a breath. “And despite Bin’s nasty comments, I’m okay with it. Most of the time. No, all the time, because my personality isn’t defined by my exterior package. That’s just along for the ride.”

“You are tiny,” he grunted out. “But I see what you mean.” An interesting concept for Wulf, the idea that he could be whoever he wanted—inside. It was freeing, this feeling.

“Tiny? Who are you looking at because where I come from, this,” she nudged her head toward her body, “Isn’t small or petite or sexy. While I like me, my shape isn’t considered as attractive as someone small and skinny and with long straight hair, not fluffy stuff like mine that curls and goes wild in the rain, and—“

He stared at her until she stilled.

“What?” she said, her cheeks camouflaging again. He traced his thumb across her skin’s smooth surface.

She closed her eyes and shivered. “That shouldn’t feel so good.”

“Why not?”

“Because…” Her eyes popped open, and she stifled a yawn with her hand. “You’re dangerous. Too dangerous.”

“Only to those who threaten you.”

“You’re…” Pressing her forehead against his chest, she hid her face. What was she worried he’d see? “We shouldn’t be going here. It’s not… I really can’t say why.”

He did not understand.

The sun slipped away, leaving them cloaked in darkness. As the forest came alive with predators, he pulled her close. He flashed his fangs, though nothing came near.

“You kissed me not long ago,” he said softly.

“I did, and you kissed me.” Her voice came out muffled. Sleepy. Snuggling against him, he felt the tension leave her body. “I…liked it.”

Her admission burst through his chest like fire, lighting him aflame. “You are beautiful. Kissable. I will do it again.”

He waited for her to tip her head back and continue talking. When she did, he would claim her mouth. Claim her as much as she would let him. His precious mate-to-be.

His cock surged again, but he shut it down.

Courtship. Marriage. Then, fucking. The words repeated in his mind. Taking things out of order might ruin his chance of winning this tiny slip of a female he was half in love with already.

Taylor shifted on his lap and mumbled something too faint to understand. She slept, and he hoped she felt safe.

He held her through the night, growling whenever anything came near.

7

Taylor

T  aylor woke, toasty warm, and feeling secure for the first time in…how long had it been? Too long.

Something rigid probed between her legs and damn, Wulf’s cock felt awesome. Shifting, she savored the subtle vibration, unsure where it came from but enjoying the moment. Heat swirled through her, centering in her clit. It throbbed. Would it be considered improper to push aside her underwear and…

It would. She’d only met Wulf yesterday. What kind of woman ripped aside her panties and sunk down onto a guy she just met?

A greedy one, like Taylor.

This wasn’t her aching for sex from any guy. Only sex with Wulf would do.

And that thought woke her fully. Hadn’t she decided she wanted to go back to Earth? The idea she might be uncertain about her decision made her hands shake. She needed to think about this. About Wulf. And about the feelings blooming inside her.

“Wake, mate-to-be,” Wulf said by her ear. He nuzzled her throat, and she swore he bit down gently. He wouldn’t do that, would he?

Hell, she wished he would.

“We must travel,” he said, taking her earlobe between his fangs and rolling it.

Heat flooded her body. Fuck. Less than twenty-four hours had passed since she met him, and she was ready to spread herself wide and let him do whatever he pleased.

Focus on getting off Yarris. You can think about everything else after that.

She leaned back in his embrace. “Oh, um, hi. Good morning.” She clamped her hand over her mouth. Damn morning breath.

“Good morning, mate-to-be.”

Naturally, being as perfect as he was, Wulf’s breath smelled sweet.

He handed her a blesette. “Break your fast?”

“Thank you.” She bit through the thick skin and sucked the juices squirting from the sweet flesh while Wulf did the same with another piece of fruit. “Are we going to find a secure place to wait for Kral?” She spoke around her bite. “Personally, I’d love to find an oasis in the jungle where we can hide out for the rest of our lives, but that’s dreaming.”

“I will see if this is something I can arrange, but Kral will not come here.”

“Why not?”

“We arranged for me to find you and fly to Crakair.”

“Oh.” So much for the stormtroopers rushing around with their lasers blasting.

When she finished the blesette and licked the juice off her hand, he stood, miraculously still holding her with her legs wrapped around his waist.

“You are ready?” Taking her hands, he linked them behind his neck.

“Sure. Since there’s no convenient oasis, where are we going now?”

“Down.” With a nod he leaped off the branch.

Before the shriek building inside Taylor could rip from her lungs, Wulf grabbed onto a limb that had to be a billion feet below them and brought their fall to a stop. He rocked back and forth, holding one with one hand. She tried not to freak.

“Give a girl a little warning there, Tarzan,” she gulped out. Her breathing raged, her lungs on fire from the fall.

He, of course, was breathing normally and appeared unfazed by their near-death experience.

It was all Taylor could do to keep her fingers locked from around his neck. They ached already. At least her legs were still wrapped around his waist. An intimate position, but she was okay with it. It did, however, press certain body parts together again.

He was still freakin’ hard. She had to admire his body’s ability to maintain an enormous erection this long.

“Bad Taylor,” she whispered. “Do not think about this right now.”

“I do apologize for not warning you of my intentions,” he said. “I will be more careful.”

“S’okay,” she mumbled against his chest. “Just adding more entertainment to the morning.” Fuck, fuck, fuck. She needed to forget about the rod in his pants and what she truly wanted to do with it.

Her arms spasmed as he swung to another branch, taking them lower. She clung to him like a vine on a brick wall. Not the killer vines they encountered here on Yarris, but a good vine. One from Earth, like honeysuckle, clematis, or Concord grape. Damn, she missed normal plants, ones that weren’t out to kill you.

How had she fallen asleep, let alone remained asleep all night up in a tree? They were at least a hundred feet in the air, though she avoided looking down to measure the distance. “You’re like the energizer bunny. You keep going. And going. And going. How are you able to do this?”

“On Crakair, I climb.”

“You say it blithely, as if hauling me up into the canopy then returning us to the ground is nothing.”

“It is nothing. You weigh nothing.”

She laughed and then bit her lips, refusing to give into her urge to tell him he was insane, that of course she was heavy. Her physical appearance mattered to no one on Yarris except Wulf, and he said she was gorgeous. Why not trust his words?

Being close to him made her breathing rough and her head spin. Not a bad feeling. Would he kiss her again? She hoped so because the last had been like stepping close to a woodstove when you were half-frozen. His kiss hadn’t lasted anywhere near long enough to savor. Silly her to think of kisses when they were returning to predator territory. She’d have to remain on her toes down there. Watch out for pink snakes and, well, everything that moved on Yarris.

“One thing,” he said as he swung from one branch to another.

“Shoot.”

“I will not.” His horror gave way to a fang-baring smile that curled her toes. “You joke when you say shoot.”

“You caught that, huh?”

“I thought of your comments last night. Is it Bin who saw you as unattractive?” He snarled as he swung them to the right like he was Tarzan and she was Jane. “If you wish, I will kill him for you and mount his head on a pole.”

He let go of the branch and dropped what felt like thirty feet to the ground, landing with barely a jolt.

“Back up a second,” she said as he lowered her feet to the jungle floor. “Did you say you’d mount my hex’s head on a pole?”

“Would you prefer I mount the head of every male who has hurt you on a pole? Because that is also possible.”

He had to be kidding. “Do you have to cure the heads first?” Grunting, she flayed her hands in the air. “Never mind. Don’t answer that. I’m not sure I want to know. Let’s hold off on headhunting and body curing for now. Besides, you’d have to fly to Earth to kill them—him—for me. I do appreciate the sentiment, however.”

A growl rumbled in Wulf’s chest and damn, Taylor found the sound hot. She’s never been into the overprotective type, especially after Ben stalked her, but this didn’t feel the same. Wulf wanted to help fight her battles, not control her every action.

“No curing,” Wulf said. “I will kill the jerking hex in ancient Vikir ways.” His fists clenched at his sides. “I will dismember him, yank his innards out, and lay them around him, and then I will—”

“Whoa.” She held up her hand. “Double whoa. Let’s…hold that thought for now, okay?” Ben didn’t deserve her pity, though he’d earned her rage and Wulf’s eagerness to seek revenge.

Wulf grumbled but nodded. “Do not let anyone tell you that you are not pretty. To me, you are the most beautiful female I have seen. It is not solely about physical appearance, however. Your laughter makes my heart skip. And you are smart. I enjoy your taste. Your smell. The sounds you make in your throat when I kiss you. They are beautiful.”

Her eyes popped, and she brushed aside the taste, smell, and sounds part of his statement to focus on the rest. “I… Thank you.”

He dipped his head.

“No one has ever said anything like that to me before.”

“I will say it often.”

This guy blew her away. Emotions clogged her throat, and she wasn’t sure what to do with them.

Hands braced on her hips, she looked around. Somehow, after a decent night’s sleep, everything felt manageable—a relative term in the jungle. But Wulf was with her. He sheltered her through the night, and she could still feel his warmth in her bones. She felt more connected to him than she had after six months with her hex, Bin.

A crack in the forest nearby sent her skittering forward and into Wulf’s arms. He didn’t pull his sword, suggesting he wasn’t as concerned as she was about what might be creeping near.

He tugged her in close and when his head lowered, she thought he’d kiss her again.

Kisses should be forbidden to a woman who was thinking of returning to Earth.

Shut up, she told her pesky conscience.

It wasn’t fun feeling conflicted.

“What are we going to do?” she asked, giving way to the unease lurking inside her. A good night’s sleep couldn’t push away her worry about their future.

“Let us walk as we discuss this.” He took her hand and tugged her down a trail heading away from where she crash landed the day before.

“I’m game. You have a destination, I assume?” As far as she knew, he hadn’t been on Yarris before.

“Since I cannot use my ship, we will have to obtain another.” He paused by a tall shrub with deep fuchsia leaves. A long, thin black pod dangled from the upper branches. He leaped up like a superhero and snagged two. Dropping back to the ground, he handed her one and nudged his head to the trail. “Come. We walk.”

At least he wasn’t suggesting running. Her calves ached, and her thigh muscles trembled from yesterday’s exertion.

They started out, side by side.

She stared at the black pod that vaguely resembled a green bean the length and width of her arm.

“Eat,” he said. “It is good. Much like…willadork.”

“What’s willadork?”

The scales around his eyes wrinkled, and the deep green encircling the black sparkled. “If you try, you will know.”

When in Rome… She bit off the end of the pod and chewed. A bit gritty, like a pear, but also stringy. The hint of saltiness added to the meaty flavor. “Tastes like beef jerky,” she said around her bite. Swallowing, she bit off another hunk.

“More hexes jerking your arm? Who would you like me to stick on a pole this time?” he asked in all seriousness, but the baring of his fangs said he was teasing.

“No jerking my arm. No sticking hex’s heads on poles today. Hold the thought for tomorrow, though? I might have need of your services.”

“I am strong.” He flexed an arm muscle. “I offer you any service you need.”

She shouldn’t take his comment as suggestive, but jeez, he sparked something wild and untamed inside her. Lying in his arms all night had added an intimacy to their relationship she couldn’t deny. “Tell me where you hope to find a ship?” she said to distract herself.

“I know where to locate one.”

She lifted her eyebrows. “Locate is an interesting term to use. I think you mean steal one, right?”

He bared his fangs. Devilish, and she loved it.

“Why do I think this will involve running?” She sighed. Finishing off her jerky, she licked her fingers. “You do know I’m not big on exercise.”

“I will do all I can to protect you, but our odds will increase if we can escape this planet quickly.”

“I understand,” she said. “And I’ll do whatever I can to help, even if that means rushing around all day. I’ve got it in me. Somewhere. Just call me Francis.”

“Taylor Nina Willis. There is no Francis in your name.” He held up a finger. “Oh. I understand. This is a pet name you use for yourself.”

Her eyebrows lifted. “Nope. Francis is someone I admire a lot. I want to be just like her.”

“Taylor is better.”

“How do you know that? You haven’t met Francis.”

“I have met Taylor. I do not wish to meet Francis.”

“That’s sweet, but really, Francis is better at everything. Fighting, strategizing, and running.”

“You do not credit yourself enough.” He tapped her temple. “This Francis may fight and run and strategize, but she is not clever like you.”

“Regardless, if she was here, she’d be able to run beside you for days.”

“We do not need to run for daelas. Merely denjars for now. To make this easy,” he held out his arms, “I will carry you.”

“And run with me in your arms? You’re strong, and it’s sweet of you to offer, but if we needed to fight, you need your hands free. Besides, we’re a team and I need to pull my own weight. Like Francis would. This means me running beside you, doing my best to keep up.”

“It would be easy to run while carrying you.”

“For whatever reason, I’m thinking piggyback, which might be fun to try some time, but not when we’re escaping from giant spiders.”

He peered past her shoulder. “What is this pig on one’s back?”

“It involves me riding on your back with my legs around your waist and my arms around your neck.”

“The opposite of how I carried you up into the canopy?”

“Yes. But we’re not doing it. I know you’ll try to run all day carrying me, but if we’re attacked, you could be hurt.”

“I feel the same. I wish to keep you from harm.”

“Then we’re at an impasse. We’re safer if we both have our hands free.” She lifted an arm and showed off her own muscle. “See? I’m tough. Just watch me grab snakes and fling them around.”

“Let me be the sword, and you can be the mind. As a reader of books, you are infinitely smarter than me.”

“That’s not true at all. Look at how savvy you’ve been here. If you hadn’t rescued me, I’d be dangling from the chair still or dead.”

“You would have found a way free. You would have defeated the spidaire. You are resourceful.”

“I appreciate your confidence in me, but when it comes to survival on a dangerous planet, I’m useless. But back to the ship. Where do you plan to…locate one?”

“There is an installation several daelas walk from here.” He stared forward. “To escape Yarris and obtain a ship, we must infiltrate the Al’kieern compound.”

8

Wulf

T  aylor stopped on the trail and stared up at him, her mouth ajar. “We’re going to storm the Al’kieern compound? Me and you?” She looked around frantically. “Damn, I need to find me a bunch of pink snakes. Where are those babies when you need ‘em?”

“No snakes.” He waved for them to continue, and they walked in silence a few minutes. “And we will not reach the compound for three or four daelas.

“We’re going to walk for daelas—days?”

He nodded. “The compound is several kleks from here. We will need to run for many days.” In fact, they needed to pick up their pace. He sensed something following in the forest behind them. A spidaire? He was not sure. But he had no interest in taking time to find out. Better to run and put distance between them and the threat.

“I was afraid you’d say we had to run. I shouldn’t be complaining. I’m alive. I slept well, thanks to you holding me all night. You fed me awesome alien willadork jerky.” She nodded pertly. “I’m primed and ready to rumble. I want off this planet and if storming the compound is the only way, we’ll do it.” She snarled and glared at the jungle around them. “It’s a wild and crazy plan, but it holds promise. Anything beats setting up permanent camp on Yarris.”

How could he explain this? His mate-to-be was aflame when she should simmer. “I will storm the compound. You will—”

“Hang out in the bushes while you play hero? Uh-uh. No way. We’re in this together, dude. Really. I may have hinted I was a tiny bit useless, but that doesn’t mean I need to hang back and tend the campfire while you storm the castle. I might not be Francis Mandrake, but I’m Taylor. Bold, gritty, and, as you so kindly pointed out, I’m clever.” Her chin lifted, and she smacked her hands on her hips. “I’m also a librarian, and we don’t mess around.”

“It is my role to protect you. There are too many creatures near, eager to attack you. I will do this in as safe a manner as possible.”

“Is safe even possible? Come on, man. Be realistic. You against… How many Al’kieern are we talking about. Ten, fifteen?”

“At least. They’re establishing a presence on the planet to extract its resources.”

“So, we’re not necessarily talking about Al’kieern soldiers. They could be miners, engineers, geologists. They’re no match for me.”

“I need to do this alone.” He must remain firm on this. Heille, all he wished to do was please his mate-to-be, but she was delicate, unable to care for herself in this tenuous situation, while he was trained not only in combat but in deep-woods survival. Her librarian skills, while certainly worthy, were not a good fit for battle. “While I infiltrate the Al’kieern installation and steal a ship, you will wait in a secure location, mate-to-be.”

She growled and her fiery gaze met his. Few would dare challenge this female, but he would not back down. “No can do, mate-to-be. I’ll go with you. Infiltrate with you.”

He heaved a sigh. “We will discuss it.”

“Discussion closed. I’m going with you.”

“I will not place you in danger.”

“As if there isn’t danger all around us right now? Where are you going to hide me?”

“I will find you a secure location where you will wait. Then you will not need to worry about spidaires or other creature harming you while I steal the ship.”

Biting back her snarl, she tipped her head back to look up at him. “We’ll do it together.”

“Why do you wish to put yourself in harm’s way?”

“How is this any different than you putting yourself in harm’s way?”

He huffed, his chest expanding to twice its regular size. “I am a Vikir warrior.”

“Yeah? And I’m a librarian. It’s essentially the same thing. If you try to leave me, I’ll follow. I’m pretty obstinate in case you haven’t figured that out.”

“I can see.”

She grinned. “And you like it.”

“I do not know if I like it or not.” Liar. He loved it. His cock remained half-erect, primed for the fucking, and his heart flipped around in his chest.

“You do.”

“I said I am not sure.”

“Then why do you want to court me?

“I…” He frowned. “I wish to court you because I like you.”

“Is this a defining moment?”

“Perhaps.” He liked her, and it twisted his insides into a knot.

“I think I like you, too,” she said.

“Think.”

“It’s a start.”

“It is.”

“Don’t worry about it now,” she mumbled as he helped her over a fallen log as they continued down the path. A subtle glow bloomed above them, making it easier to see. “You can think about it later.”

“What are you saying, mate-to-be?”

“Nothing.”

When she grumbled, he girded himself for more battle. His Earthling female provided a worthy challenge at every turn.

“I shouldn’t feel hurt that you want to handle this yourself,” she said. “I mean, I get it. I’m tough and strong, but I’m no match for you. Heck, I wasn’t a match for a single Al’kieern stealing me off the space station, let alone twenty. But I’m worried about you doing this alone.”

Taking her hand, he squeezed it, and they continued through the jungle together.

“You say storming the compound, but the best way to steal a ship is to do it with stealth,” he said. “I will slink in and take the ship before they are aware I have entered the compound.”

“We have a few days to talk about it further, right?”

Wulf had not risen to the top of his clan’s warrior regiment by forcing battles. He would explain this again when they approached the compound, and she would understand.

For now, he wanted to win her. He had nine days left to court her, and fear tracked down his spine on razor-sharp claws. With no zinter bath or boodler for an emulsion, how could he proceed with the traditional courtship? There were ancient Vikir ways he could try, but would she balk if he suggested he give her an orgasm?

He had not missed her movements against his cock earlier, but she was sleepy, and she stopped when she woke, telling him she had not intended the gesture.

How could he court her on Yarris?

First, they must get away from whatever stalked them.

He swept Taylor off her feet and took off at a ground-covering jog.

“What’s up?” she asked, linking her arms around his neck. “Other than me, that is, lifted up off the ground.”

“Something…” He nudged his head toward the woods on their side, his ears cocked in that direction.

“I can run,” she said. “Put me down.”

“I will ask you to do so soon but for now, I wish to help you.”

“Exercise is good for me. People told me that all the time back on Earth.”

“You speak of the hex, Bin.”

“I shouldn’t. Why can’t I put his abuse aside?”

“Abuse?” His steps slowed, but when a growl rang out behind them, he bolted. “Tell me.”

Darting a glance behind them, she lowered her voice. “I already mentioned Bin was a jerk. I wised up fast but not soon enough. After I ended things with him, he wouldn’t accept it. He wouldn’t leave me alone. He stalked me.”

“He…”

“He followed me everywhere. He questioned my friends and family about where I was, who I was with, and what I planned to do next.” She gulped and Wulf hated seeing her in distress. “He wanted to control my life, and when I said no, he refused to listen. I was scared and I wanted out.”

“I do under—”

She held up her hand. “But that’s not all. When I signed up for the matchmaking service, I wanted…I don’t know. I wanted a change, yeah, and I wanted an adventure. But something inside me told me if I didn’t take this chance, I might miss out on the best thing life could offer.” Her gaze met his, and her eyes shimmered. When Crakairian females suffered great loss, they sliced through a naanan. The severed limb bled profusely, and it was said the blood contained some of their sorrow. Their pain would never leave, but the severing was said to bring the hope of peace.

“When I was kidnapped from the star cruiser, that same, trapped feeling I felt with Ben rose up inside me again. I realized I had no control over anything. But that wasn’t the only feeling. I cupped dreams in my hand, images of a happy life with a Crakairan guy who would cherish me and…” The smile she lifted did not reach her eyes. “And babies. I’ve always wanted lots of babies.”

He could give her babies, as many as she wished.

“After they took me to the space station and talked about selling me to the highest bidder, my dreams shattered as if something I could almost touch had been snatched away before I could close my hand around it. As with Ben, I was scared. I wanted out. They kept me tied to a table while they did things to me. Poked and prodded. They hurt me.” She sucked in a breath and released it. “I… I told myself I’d never remain in a situation where I felt out of control.” Her gaze lifted to meet his, and she stroked his face. “Then I met you, Wulf, and now I’m a big mess. I don’t know what to do.”

It was natural for her to feel hesitant about everything, even Wulf. She needed time, and he had that to give. Nine days could be enough for him to show himself worthy if he made each minar count.

“You do not need to do anything,” he said. “Just live. Experience now without worrying about what might come next.”

She chuckled. “I’m finding it hard to live when everything around me is trying to eat me.”

The sounds in the jungle behind them faded. Either Wulf outdistanced the hunter, or it caught scent of something easier. He slowed to a walk, relieved they were safe for now.

“Nothing is trying to eat you at the moment. Know I will protect you.” He could offer her the dream she mentioned. Babies, a happy life on Crakair with someone who cherished her. Wulf cherished her already.

“I feel safe with you. I don’t think there’s anything out there that could defeat you, and that’s awesome.”

As they walked, he pondered her words.

Perhaps…

What if…?

“This Francis,” he said.

She peered around; her posture relaxed. “Hmm, what about her?”

“I worried about her,” he said. “I thought she had been captured by the Al’kieern, that she was your friend.”

Her breath snorted out. “I’m sorry I wasn’t clear. I can see why you thought that, though. Francis isn’t real. She’s a character in a historical mystery series I read when I lived on Earth. I love those books. I’ve always wanted to be like her. To live her life. To seek adventure and find romance in an exotic location like she did.”

He swept his arm out. “Is this not an adventure? Is Yarris not exotic?”

She nodded slowly. “You know what? You’re right. It is.”

“How did your Francis find adventure?”

“She explored. She challenged herself. Although, I have to say, she failed in one thing. She never killed a giant rat with a pink snake.”

“You are braver than this Francis.”

“That has yet to be seen.”

“Tell me more about her.” Then he could decide if his plan had merit.

“She was a librarian like me. I think that’s partly why I chose this profession. Some people think librarians are sedate, boring people, but we crave a life filled with action and thrills as much as the next person. Many find it in books, but others find it by traveling the world and seeing what it has to offer. In the beginning of the series, Francis’ plane crashes in a desert, and she’s rescued by a scoundrel. Their romance ensues after that.”

“Who is this scoundrel?” Funny how Taylor’s current situation mirrored Francis’.

“They hated each other at first sight.”

His spine drooped. Maybe Taylor’s situation did not exactly mirror Francis’.

“Yet she found romance,” he said. “With the scoundrel?”

“Yeah,” she breathed. “He was irritating, and he pushed all her buttons, but that only made him more appealing.”

“How does one push buttons to attract a female?” Wulf worried his lower lip with his fangs, wondering if he could find a way to compress Taylor’s buttons. Where were her buttons?

“He challenged her at every turn. He pushed her to do things she never would’ve dared on her own.”

“Such as?”

“Jumping off a cliff and galloping on a camel across the desert to escape bandits.”

No cliffs nearby, but trees might…

“He was hot, sexy, and despite his snarky attitude, he attracted her like no one else had before.”

Taylor’s gaze met Wulf’s, and he read longing there. Did he attract his mate-to-be like no other? If only it was so.

“What is a camel?” he asked.

“They’re beasts a bit like…Well, okay, they’re not anything like the beasts here, but they’re herbivores like the tricadore we saw yesterday. Only smaller.”

“And she rode them?”

“They rode them together.” Taylor fanned her face and laughed. “It was steamy.”

“What did heat have to do with it?”

She wiggled the tufts of hair above her eyes. “I meant it was hot.”

“Steamy. Hot. Same thing.”

Leaning against his side, she looked up at him, blinking her eyelashes quickly. “It was sexy.”

“Ah. Sexy. Steamy. Hot. I understand.” He didn’t. Not truly. But he was close. “Tell me more about you. You mentioned your career. What exactly is this librareee-in?”

“I…” Palming her face, she rubbed. When her hands dropped, she’d turned her cheeks pink. Amazing. “I used to work in a building full of books.”

“Books for reading.”

“I love them,” she sighed. “They take me to worlds I’ll never travel. They’re an escape from boring everyday life. They boost me when nothing else can. I basically read my way through my heartache after breaking up with that hex, Bin. But you know about books. You have them on Crakair. I asked my protocol droid. I wasn’t able to discover if there’s a library in your Vikir village.”

“Some of us have books.”

“Do you?”

“Yes.” His voice grew hushed. Did she notice he squirmed? He had ordered a book from Earth. Oh, such joy to receive it, to be able to read words Taylor might have read herself. Only to have someone laugh when he showed them the book. “Not many books, however. You are very smart.”

“You’ve said this before, and I hope you believe that’s an asset. I can’t tell by your voice.”

“I am not smart.”

“What makes you say that?” she asked.

“It is what I have been told for most of my life so it must be true, correct?”

“I haven’t administered a test,” she said carefully, and an ache came through in her words. She rubbed her chest. “But you’ve already impressed me with how savvy you are.”

She must be teasing. “In what way?”

“You fought off the giant spiders, ostriches, and the rat. You knew how to get us through the woods to your ship.”

“Which I did not think to safeguard before I left it.”

She flicked her hand out. “Is there a way to safeguard anything from these creatures? I mean, how safe are we anywhere on Yarris?”

He tapped the hilt of his sword. With his weapon, he could fight off anything. “Very.” Holding back a branch, he waited for her to pass. He followed, catching up to walk beside her.

Her soft chuckle rang out. “I love how confident you are about being safe. I wish I could feel the same.”

“I will protect you.”

“You’ve proven it already. See? Smart.”

“That was brawn.” He lifted an arm and flexed his muscles. “Brawn is not intelligence. And there…I lack.”

“It sounds like you had mean parents. What kind of mom or dad would tell a boy they weren’t enough?”

“My parents died when I was eight yaros old.”

She rubbed his arm. “I’m sorry.”

“It was long ago.”

“You say long ago, but it still matters. It would for me.”

“I try to forget.”

“That they died?”

“That I was left alone.”

Her eyes shimmered. This wetness was not a reflection of happiness.

The crack in his heart widened. Did she feel sorrow for the lost youngling he’d been?

“Who raised you?” she asked.

“Everyone and no one.”

After kicking a rock and sending it flying into the brush, she reached up and swiped at her eyes. “You didn’t have a place to call home?”

“Sometimes.”

“Aw, Wulf.”

“For so long, I wanted to be with them,” he said softly.

“You thought of…taking your life?”

“Maybe?” He stiffened his spine. “No, I did not. My family would have wanted me to go on, to carry them with me. For so long, I felt as if a part of me had been carved away. The area had tried to seal closed, but it continued to seep. I seeped. As I grew older, I did form a scar but sometimes…” His chest rose and fell. “Sometimes, I think about my ma and da, and I feel claws rake across the wound and it rips apart all over again.”

She hugged him, pressing her cheek against his chest. “I’m sorry. I understand. Losing my dad was tough. I’ll be honest when I say—”

His lips curled up. “I imagine you will.”

“I’m pissed off at your clan for making you feel like nothing, like my ex did to me. And I’m sad for the little boy who grew up with a big ache in his heart.”

“Now I am the one who is sorry. All I hoped to do was…”

“What do you hope for?” Leaning back, she looked up at him. “I want to know.”

“I want to make you laugh. Your smile…I have never seen anything like it before. It is beautiful.”

“You’re a sweet guy.” She leaned against him, and her arms slid around his waist.

“I am a warrior. A scarred male who only wishes to find a place in this world to call his own.”

“One thing is clear to me. You’re as vulnerable and afraid about all this as me.”

He dipped his head in confirmation. Did he fear speaking the words? An admission like that could scare her away.

“For what it’s worth,” she said. “I don’t think you lack anything.”

“How can you say that?”

She shrugged. “You’re right. We barely know each other. How could I know?”

“Ah.” This was not a sweet tease but a rueful one.

“No, actually,” she said softly. “Here’s how I know. In the short time we’ve been together, we’ve laughed, fought off creatures as a team, and there’s awareness.”

“Of what?”

“Of us.” Her voice dropped off to nothing. “This takes me into unsettled territory, as if I’m a skater jerking across ice in the spring, watching the cracks spread around me.”

She was uncertain. About everything. About them.

“We will find a way,” he said.

“Oh, yeah?” She huffed out a laugh. “You sound confident about this, if nothing else.”

“Courtship, marriage, fucking. That is how we will proceed.”

“That’s how it’s supposed to go, right?”

Since he hated seeing her weep, he started looking for something, anything to show her. To cheer her. Pausing beside the tiny trail, he lifted a sundair beetle, and presented it to Taylor.

“Oh!” Her hand darted out, but she snatched it back. “A nice bug. They do exist on Yarris, I assume. Is it safe to touch? It must be or you wouldn’t hold it.”

“Would you like to hold it? They are said to have magical properties.”

“Magic, huh?” A smile teased across his lips. “There’s no such thing as magic.”

“There is. You need only seek it.” He eased the beetle onto her palm, and she grinned down at it. Her finger tentatively stroked the pale lavender strip on its back, and its wings opened and fluttered. Miniscule sparks shot off the beetle.

“See?” he said, watching her. Longing for her. “Magic.”

“They’re like tiny falling stars. Is it hurting the beetle?”

“Some say they do this to attract a mate.”

“Interesting.” Her gaze met his. “On Earth, everyone says if you wish upon a falling star, your wish will come true.”

“If you saw a falling star, what would you wish for, Taylor?”

“I don’t know.” Her head tilted, and a look of wonder filled her face. “But I think I need to find out.”

9

Taylor

T  hey traveled all day.

Taylor, of course, couldn’t let go of the idea of infiltrating the Al’kieern compound to steal a ship. It might be crazy, but she wanted to be with Wulf, to cover his back.

“I know you want me to hide while you play hero,” she said.

He sighed and kept walking.

She skipped beside him, brushing aside a Yarris gnat—pesky things left a sizeable welt when they bit. “Assuming we make it there, how are we going to keep from getting killed?” Or, in her case, captured and sold. If they were caught, that would be the end of Wulf.

The thought hit her in the chest like a brick. He was worried about her, but how could she keep him safe?

“I will be armed.” He tapped the hilt of the sword strapped to his back.

“What about me? I need a weapon, too.”

Pausing on the trail, he leaned over and removed a knife and sheath from his calf. “You will protect yourself with this.” Tucking it beneath his arm, he watched the palm-sized gnat buzz in close again. A clap of his hands, and the bug lay dead on the ground. Stooping to his knee, Wulf secured the knife to her thigh and slid the blade into the leather pouch.

“I’ll use it to protect you, too,” she said.

Something floating down from above caught her eye, and she assumed it was another gnat Wulf could dispatch with a bang of his hands. Wulf looked up at her from his charming of the duck—a.k.a., Prince Charming—position. Because she had a dirty mind, she had no problem picturing him doing other things while he was there. Yes, she was a sedate librarian on the outside, but inside, she churned. She was well read. Her library had numerous steamy romances in stock.

Damn, his eyes were gorgeous. It wasn’t fair that a guy had such beautiful eyes. The large scales on his shoulders had fascinated her from the moment she saw them lift and shoot the giant ostriches, and she couldn’t resist running her fingers along them.

His brow furrowed. “You will not need to protect me.”

“I want to.”

Snorting, he straightened. “I am the head of my clan’s warrior’s regiment. I will be protecting you.”

“How about now?” she said.

His head tilted, and he studied her face as though she was trying to trick him.

She pulled the knife and, standing on tiptoe, carefully moved aside the kitten-sized bug dangling from a web. It had slowly dropped while Wulf knelt at her feet. With care, she took it to the edge of the trail and placed it underneath a bush, making sure it was safe before turning back to Wulf.

His jaw hung. “A cuttlier,” he croaked. “They are deadly.”

Do not shiver. Show him you’re brave!

“See?” She smacked her chest with her fist like she’d seen him do and lifted one eyebrow. “I am Sheena, head of the Pizza Hut warrior regiment, and I just saved your life with my bug charming ways.”

“You did, and you are incredibly daring. Few would go near a cuttlier, and fewer still would treat one with such care.” His grave tone drove away her cocky smile.

“If you’re nice to bugs, they’ll be nice to you.”

He dipped forward in a half-bow. “Cuttliers spit a poison that paralyzes its victim on contact.”

A bit scarier than the daddy long legs she dealt with back home.

“Ugh.” After stuffing her knife back into its sheath, she hugged her body and shivered. “Double ugh. My hand came this,” she lifted her fingers to show the spread, “this close to touching it. I like bugs.” Her head tilted. “Did I tell you that? Creepy crawly things never scare me. If you find them in your house, they’re mostly lost and eager to get back outside. I scoop them up and put them in the garden.”

“I will remember this.” He gave her another bow, his eyes twinkling as he watched her.

They both burst out in laughter.

“I do go on, don’t I?” she said.

“I like it.”

“How can you? It drives everyone else out of their minds.” As she’d been told.

“It is you. You make me laugh. You bring joy to my life.”

How could she resist a guy who talked about her like that?

“Give it time,” she said. “You may join the driven out of your mind crowd before we reach the Al’kieern compound.”

“You must trust me in this,” he said in such a solemn tone, she had no choice but to believe him. “I know my mind.”

She couldn’t stop smiling at him. What did that tell her about her feelings?

That they were wild, crazy, and mixed up, but she knew one thing. She was falling in love with him. Some would say a few days wasn’t enough time for that, but she’d seen his best and his worst, and she’d shown him her own.

“Why did the cuttlier come near us?” she asked.

“We are bigger than its usual prey, but not so large that it could not enlist the help of its younglings to wrap us in a web and secure us for later.”

“I take it we’d be held for the next meal and not for karaoke night. Just so you know, I do a mean Sweet Caroline.” She hummed a few bars but could see by his frown he needed an education in the best things in life.

“What is kara-oak-eee night?”

“Only one of the best things to do on Earth. Please tell me you have karaoke night in your village.”

“Explain what it is, and I will see it done.”

Aw. She did enjoy how eager he was to please her. He was like a giant alien teddy bear. With muscles. A mouth that drove her wild. And the most gorgeous eyes she’d ever seen.

“People stand on a stage and sing the lyrics of popular songs while the music plays in the background. It’s fun.”

“You will do this,” he vowed.

“I can teach you a few songs. I don’t know the words to all of them, and we’ll need music.”

“My clan has musicians.”

“Perfect. I’ll teach them a song, and we can sing.”

He frowned. “You will sing.”

She leaned in close to him. “You.”

No missing his wince. “I will try.”

Come sundown, Taylor’s legs were dragging. The base of her spine had solidified into a knot, and her hair hung in straggly waves around her face.

Wulf paused on the trail. “Will we be stop—“

A screech overhead perked her up fast. Wulf pulled his sword so quickly, the blade blurred through the air. He nudged her behind him and braced his feet on the scuffed dirt.

A shadow coasted over them, followed by its screech.

Taylor’s jaw dropped. “It’s a flying centipede. What did I say about bugs? Whatever it was, I take it back. There are no Yarris bugs I’d dare be alone with in a well-lit room. In fact, I’m starting to get pissed off about all these threats.” Adrenaline burst through her, and she grabbed a rock off the ground and hefted it. Being kind to bugs back on Earth was one thing, but here, they’d eat her alive.

As the giant centipede dove toward them, she moved up beside Wulf. The centipede’s mouth opened, revealing—what else?—huge fangs. Its whistling scream sent shivers down her spine. Multiple clawed legs stretched toward them as its papery wings flapped.

“Behind me, mate-to-be,” Wulf barked.

“Just try me,” Taylor said, hefting the rock.

As the creature passed them, Wulf shifted to the side and swung his sword through the air, severing a wing.

Taylor followed his blow with one of her own, smacking the back of the centipede hard enough, it was projected up and over a big boulder. A solid thud followed.

“Will it be back?” she asked, her arms dropping. She maintained hold of the rock—just in case.

“I do not believe so.”

“Do they hunt in packs?” Her rock dropped from her trembling hands, creating a clunk by her feet. Were her knees about to give out? That would be cool. Face plant in front of the cute guy, why don’t you? A jungle was all fun and games until you had to fight off an enormous, flying centipede.

“They do not.” Wulf caught her before she fell, sweeping her up with one arm while seamlessly thrusting his sword into the sheath on his back with the other. “You, my mate-to-be, are a woman I am proud to have standing by my side,” he said into her neck. He kissed along her jawline to her ear. “But you are going to be the death of me. I do not know if I should court you or drop to my knees in front of you.”

Even dead on her feet, that comment lit a fire inside Taylor. “Is dropping to your knees a part of courtship?” Naughty, but she couldn’t resist.

“You would have to remove your clothing to find out.”

Swoon.

“But for now, we will find a safe place to rest for the night,” he said, peering around.

Wise on his part. Oral sex—even if he offered and she had the energy to enjoy it—would provide too much of a distraction. They always needed to be alert, not focused on body needs.

“Take me away, Calgon,” Taylor said. Linking her arms around Wulf’s neck and her legs around his waist, she clung to Wulf while he leaped up and grabbed a tree branch and began climbing.

“I talked about Bin, so you know a bit of my history,” she said as he swung from one branch to another. This was an intimate subject, but his comment about oral had made her curious, and she wouldn’t be denied. “Have you been with many…females?” She wasn’t jealous. How could she be? She and Wulf weren’t matched until recently. They hadn’t met.

“Enough.”

What was that? Two or ten?

She bit back her growl. Maybe a bit of jealousy burned through her.

“I haven’t dated a lot,” she said. “I’m actually not pretty, and I’m not saying that because I don’t like myself or I don’t believe I’m attractive, because I am.”

When his gaze flicked downward, she stiffened her spine. Let him look. She was tired of being judged by how she appeared on the outside when she loved who she was underneath her skin.

“I’m chunky, and my hair is too frizzy, and I swear I get zits on my face like clockwork when I…” No need to share everything. “Forget that part. You get the picture. I’m okay with it, because it’s me, and I like me.”

He kicked out and they swung forward, where he grabbed another branch. How was this possible? He made his Tarzan routine feel effortless, as if he lounged in a doorway with his arm braced on the frame. They had to be fifty feet above the ground. Who grew trees this tall? Oh, yeah, Yarris did.

“I like you,” he said. “All of you. Your lush curves. Your pert little nose. And these peculiar lines above your eyes.” His free hand rose, and he stroked a finger along the brows she had waxed before she left Earth. They must have turned into hedges by now.

“Eyebrows,” she said. “That’s what they’re called.”

“Yes, tiny liebrows above your eyes. And these,” he stroked her lashes. “I have never seen anything like them before. And this,” he traced his fingers down a band of her hair. “I would like to bury my face in these strands. Yet I have not seen them move like my naanans.”

They were stroking her shoulders. Normally, she wasn’t a touchy-feely woman, but with Wulf, she liked it. “No, my hair just hangs there. No natural movement.”

“Sad.” He kicked out and swung them up to a branch about five feet above. Truly, he was amazing. His kindness, his protection, and his bulging muscles. Especially those muscles. She couldn’t get enough of them.

“It is sad.” She’d never wished her hair could move on its own like an arm or a leg. Imagine what life could be like if she had multiple limbs on her head?

“Do not think for one minar that I do not see your value both inside and out,” he said fiercely. He leaped up onto a big branch and paused. His clenched fist pressed against his chest. “There are many things more precious than physical appearance.”

“There are. Like self-esteem and knowing others value you.”

“You are beyond precious. I worry I cannot compete.”

“Compete with what?”

“Other males who would wish to win you,” he said, pausing to study the trees around them.

“You’re sweet to say that, but I think you can feel confident in your own charms.”

“Ah, yes, I can be your charming duck,” he said.

She laughed. “Yeah. My duck. You don’t have competition on Yarris. I will admit, though, you might be neck and neck with the ostriches, but you’re way ahead of the spidaires.”

“Neck…”

“What I’m saying is I think you’re hot.”

Stilling, his gaze drilled into hers. “You do not mean body temperature. You mean sexy.” His naanans flared before settling, some on his shoulders, others on her. One teased along her jawline as if it had a mind of its own and decided to go exploring. It tickled, and her laughter teased through the air.

He leaped off the branch and snagged another, taking them higher into the canopy.

She, having raging hormones, couldn’t stop gaping at the play of muscles on his arms and chest. If only she could see his legs performing this feat. And his butt. Taylor was partial to muscular butts.

He paused, hanging from a branch, and peered around.

“Everything okay?” she asked.

“I think it is time to try…”

“Try what?”

He let go of the branch, and they plummeted toward the ground.

10

Wulf

A s they plunged toward the ground, Taylor gulped and clung to Wulf’s neck.

He bared his fangs. His new plan to win Taylor had begun. If he’d learned nothing in life, he had learned patience, a necessary skill in a Vikir warrior. As a youngling, he had not given up, no matter how others treated him. He persisted, proving he was a worthy member of his clan.

He would give Taylor the adventure and romance she craved. As her scoundrel, he would court her. He did not wish to irritate or argue like Francis’ mate, but Wulf could tease and court his mate-to-be. That would be the same thing.

They soared downward, the wind whipping his naanans in the air. It was freeing to fall, knowing he would not make impact with the ground.

As planned, he grabbed onto the vine he saw while climbing. While Taylor clung, her legs snug around his waist, he swung to another tree and settled on a branch on his ass with his legs dangling.

“Fuck, Wulf. That was… What just happened?”

“We jumped off a cliff.”

“You fell off the tree.”

“I did not fall.”

“You did so. You slipped and fell, and we almost crashed on the ground.”

“I grabbed the vine.”

“Well done on your part, but still. I almost had a heart attack.”

“I will take more care when I fall off a cliff.”

“Tree.”

He bared his fangs. Would Taylor’s Francis Mandrake call this arguing? If so, it would show Taylor his scoundrel side. He could see the appeal in this teasing banter.

Her heat grew, a pure scent in the air, telling him she found him hot. Not Francis’ scoundrel but Wulf. All Wulf.

“Are we going to sit here tonight or do you have other plans, Mr. I did not fall from the tree?” Her words came out sharp, but her grin softened the blow. Ah, she was responding to Wulf’s scoundrel. He liked this. Liked her. Very much.

With energy and a hint of lust, he sprang upward and latched onto a branch. It did not take long to find one where they could spend the night. He jumped onto the thick limb that had to be two arm-spans around and settled down with Taylor secure in his arms. Her position straddling his waist held considerable merit. His cock jumped into the game, surging upward. In the adventurous Francis Mandrake mysteries, did the scoundrel press his surging erection against Francis? He must have. Taylor had mentioned romance.

“Other than the near miss, that climb was unbelievable,” she said, wiping her hair off her face.

“Was it also an adventure?”

“For sure.” Her hands dropped from around his neck. “Never in a thousand years could I do something like this by myself.”

“If you had to, you would find a way.”

“You say that with such confidence, I almost believe it. While I can whip smart-mouthed teenagers into line at the library, and I’m not opposed to standing chin-to-chin with a parent who feels certain books should be banned, I know one thing. My power and confidence came from my comfort in my situation. The library was my second home for years. I ruled.”

“You do not give yourself enough credit.”

“Maybe? I don’t know.” Her hand flicked out to the jungle around them. “This… Everything on Yarris has shown me how out of my element I am. This is your territory. The spidaires would not back down if I stood toe-to-toe with them and raised my voice. The rat thing wouldn’t have died if I hadn’t made a mistake. The vines would have yanked me into the jungle and eaten me if you hadn’t been here to save me.”

“I will always be here to save you.”

“And you know what? I love that you are.”

“Truly?” Maybe his scoundrel behavior was working…

“Truly. Tell me. Are your glutes burning?”

“Glutes?” he asked, puzzled.

“Butt cheeks.”

“My cheeks of butt are not burning. You mean aching muscles. No worries. This climb was nothing.”

“They have to be sore. Your butt and your arms and shoulders, too. Hell, my arms are telling me I should never use them again, and my legs keep twitching from clinging to your waist.” Her gaze met his, and pure mischief resided there. “I’ll give you a massage if you return the favor.”

“Taylor,” he breathed. His heart floundered.

“Wulf.”

“Did Francis’ scoundrel kiss her?” His voice dropped, husky.

Taylor’s lips twitched upward. “Often.”

Cupping her cheeks, he touched her mouth with his own. His tongue glided along the seam of her lips, and they parted, giving him full access. He deepened their kiss, taking and giving, showing her all the pleasure he could.

She leaned into him, moaning, her hands clutching his shoulders.

He pulled her into him, binding his mouth to hers. His body ached. He wanted her more than anything.

A bellow below startled them. They burst apart, and she stared into his eyes. He sunk into her tricar brown depths.

He might have been lost, but she found him.

His naanans teased her neck and the counterbalance mounds on her chest. Panting, she arched toward him. Her head tipped back, her hair hanging freely as his naanans moved across her mounds.

His cock surged upward, seeking. He couldn’t restrain it.

Taylor leaned her forehead against his chest. She ground against him, surging her body back and forth, riding his cock. Only their clothing kept them apart.

“Wulf,” she gasped, pressing her face into his chest. Her fingers clutched her dress, dragging it up over her thighs. She thrust against him, opening herself to him. “I…need…”

“Take it, mate-to-be. It is yours.” His naanans stroked her back while his fingers sought the place between her legs revealed to him. When he touched the small, engorged nub at the top of her slit, she cried out.

Birds in a nearby tree took flight while Taylor sank against his hand. Her hair covered her face from her thrashing, and he stroked it back with his naanans.

He slipped two fingers inside her, and she parted her legs further. Relentless and greedy, she drove herself onto his fingers, grinding against his cock at the same time.

It was too much. It would never be enough. His body spiraled out of control. He wanted to press her to the ground and sink deep inside her, but if he tried something like that, they’d truly fall. It might not be bad, this falling, as long as he could pump into her on the way down.

She moved faster, and her gasps rang out. “Wulf. Yes. Oh, yes. Don’t stop.”

“Never.” He kissed her jaw and bit down on the sweet spot where her neck met her shoulder.

She sucked in a breath and pushed her hips against his fingers, while his thumb stroked her pearly bud that grew rigid and inflamed.

His cock grew thicker, longer, and the inner vibration added to the heat between them. Intensity built on her face, and her movements went quicker.

With a hoarse cry, she fell apart in his arms.

11

Taylor

T  hey walked the next day and the one after that, only stopping to pick willadork jerky and assorted fruit. For water, they sipped dew off broad leaves until the air around them absorbed it. It was not enough to satisfy her parched throat, but Wulf said they couldn’t trust the water in the tiny streams they passed during their travel.

Each night, they retreated off the forest floor, finding shelter in another tree, snuggling together for warmth and safety. The mind-blowing orgasm she experienced wasn’t repeated, sadly, and she craved another.

Assuming they escaped Yarris, she was no longer convinced she wanted to return to Earth.

Wulf.

It was easy to make decisions when real people weren’t involved.

On their fourth night on Yarris, Wulf took her to the canopy earlier than usual, before the sun had sunk below the treetops.

She settled on his lap, her favorite spot, and they munched on fruit and tuberous roots Wulf dug from beneath a cluster of thorny bushes and washed in dew this morning.

“Tell me about matebonds,” she said, chewing and chewing the chalky vegetable. They were unable to find jerky today, but she didn’t mind too much. She’d grown tired of it after eating it for every meal.

He turned his hand over and flexed it. No symbol on his palm, but she didn’t have one either. For a girl who felt uncertain about staying, she was awfully sad there was no mark on her palm.

“When a couple is destined to be together, a matching symbol appears on their hands,” he said.

“Destined? As in, there’s no free will?” A frown filled her face. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. On one hand, it might be nice to know someone was her perfect match. No long, boring dates trying to see if he was a fit. It was decided for you. On the other hand… “What I’m trying to say is, should it matter what the couple thinks or feels or even if they’re ready for something like that? Fate chooses and that’s who you end up with?”

What if she’d formed a matebond symbol with Ben? They weren’t Crakairian, but still.

“I have never heard of a symbol appearing on a couple who did not wish to be together. The male and the female always decide,” he said. “You decide. I will court you, and you will tell me your feelings. Your true feelings. A symbol or lack of a mark,” he lifted her hand, “means everything and nothing.”

“I don’t understand. It’s one or the other. Everything or nothing.”

“I will not force this if you say no.”

“Thank you.”

“For some, it does not appear until they are well into the courtship,” he said. “For others, never or not until after the fucking.”

There was something vaguely refreshing about how he discussed sexual intimacy. If they reached that point, would she feel as confident? Yes, she’d ridden his fingers, and it had been wild and uninhibited, but taking off clothing revealed everything. She wasn’t sure she…

Hold on. She refused to sink back into the world Ben had shoved her into, a place where she believed she didn’t have worth. She had to stop doing this to herself and find a way to live, words Wulf had spoken to her not long ago.

“I’m glad we stopped early today. How much longer do we have to travel?” she asked.

“Two more daelas, but tonight and tomorrow, we will pause for a break.”

“That sounds lovely. My legs are beat. My body is beat. And I’d love to sleep in in the morning. Will you make coffee and refrigerator croissants and wake me up when they’re ready?” She’d kill for a cup of coffee.

“I have no caff-ree but will find something similar.”

“It’s okay. I’ve gotten beyond the no-caffeine headache part and I’m sailing down the other side.”

“I see.”

“What will we do during the two days?” She hadn’t meant to come out suggestive, but she lobbed the ball into his court. She waited to see if he’d send it back or let it pass.

“I have many things planned,” he said with a sparkle in his eyes. “You have not seen all I can do for you yet.”

She doubted he meant anything sexual, but damn, she almost wished he did.

“And what’s that?” she asked, her voice husky.

His nostrils flared. “Whatever you may wish it to be, mate-to-be.” He eased her onto the branch with her back against the trunk. “I will leave for a short time to prepare, but you will be safe here.”

She peered around but didn’t see any overt threat. “Okay.”

Moving in close, he captured her lips, giving her a kiss that was both sweet and fiery. It seared through her veins, weakening her body. She clung to his shoulders and opened her mouth. His tongue dipped inside to tease across hers.

When he lifted his head, he bared his fangs. “You are very tempting.”

“Speak for yourself,” she said, unable to catch her breath.

His smile grew. “I will be back before you miss me.”

She already did.

“Where are you going?” she asked, trying to sound comfortable being left alone. The odds of anything attacking were next to nothing. They haven’t been bothered the past few nights. But still. He’d been with her. She relied on his protection.

“Not far.” He stroked her face and gently tilted her head so their gazes could meet. “Call, and I will hear you and return immediately. You are safe here.”

“Should I be concerned if you’re not back before the sun goes down?”

“You need not worry.”

She twisted her lips. “There’s a you in that statement.”

He hitched back on his heels and straightened. “Would you like to come with me?”

“What does coming with you entail?”

“I will move down lower, through the trees, seeking food we will pretend fits the first part of my courtship. I will then prepare for other courtship rituals, which may entail moving downed trees and evicting creatures from an area.”

“Yarris is a peculiar place for romance, isn’t it?”

“With you, mate-to-be, every place is the right location for romance.”

That made her smile because it was kind and sweet. “Are you going to wear a garlong when you serve my meal?” If it meant him stripping down to less clothing, she was ready for the courtship to begin.

A look of dismay appeared on his face. “I do not have a garlong.”

“Tell you what. If you bring back a meal, we’ll call it good. I’ll…” she made a tick in the air on an invisible pad of paper, “Give you a plus for that task.”

He grumbled. “I am sorry I cannot court you as you deserve.”

Crakairians took courtship rituals seriously. He sounded sad, making her heart twinge. “I don’t mind. I think you look great dressed the way you are. Who wouldn’t be excited about a guy in snug black pants?”

“My pants excite you?”

Frankly, it was what he hid behind the material that excited her.

“I will do my best with the meal this evening,” he said. “Plus other…rituals. You will be pleased despite my lack of garlong.”

If he made that statement in an alpha way, she might have called him on it. She’d be crazy to slip into a situation like the one she escaped from with Ben. But the hint of worry in Wulf’s voice hit her soft part inside that still hoped for true love, hearts, and flowers. Could Wulf be the one she’s been waiting for?

“Give it time,” he said as if he read her thoughts. “Give us time.”

“I need to be honest with you.”

He stilled. “Speak.”

“When I was on the space station, I decided, if I ever reached Crakair, I would ask to return to Earth.”

“You would not give this the ten days. You would not seek my courtship.”

“I didn’t know you.”

“And now?”

“You’re special.”

“But…?”

“I don’t know what to do.”

“I see.”

All she could do was nod. “I’m sorry.”

“I…understand.” His gaze moved from hers, focusing on the jungle. For one wild moment, she got the impression he felt completely alone, and it crushed her.

“I like you,” she said. “A lot.” Hell, she was half in love with him already and they’ve only been together a few days.

He grunted.

“And your kisses,” she said. “I want to keep kissing you for a very long time.”

He still didn’t look her way, but his lips twitched.

“So that’s why I’ve come to another decision.”

His stiffened body suggested he guarded himself for a blow. Her chest ached because she knew he expected her to say she still wanted to return to Earth.

She didn’t feel pity. There was no pitying this appealing alien male, not when he attracted her like no one else had. She hated seeing him sad. When he hurt, she did as well.

“Here’s the thing,” she said. “I’m going to see how this goes. Not Yarris, but whatever’s forming between us. I won’t decide until I know you, Wulf, because I need to see if there’s a chance for us.”

“Taylor,” he sighed.

“I hope it’s okay I told you about my earlier decision. I wanted to be honest with you. It isn’t fair otherwise.”

“It is K to the O.”

There he went, being cute again. She bit back her smile, not wanting him to think she was laughing at him. He seemed uncertain. Vulnerable. It crushed her to think of him in pain.

“You should go before it gets dark,” she said. Sunlight slanted through the trees as the golden globe eased closer to the horizon. In the forest below, a pack of creatures howled, followed by a pain-filled shriek. Kill or be killed. That was Yarris’ motto. Ugh. “I…I’m not worried about me. I’m going to hang out with my,” she smacked the branch beneath her, “with my tree. But you… Wulf, you be careful. You hear me? You come back. I mean it.” Her eyes stung, proving she was developing feelings for him. As if she didn’t already know. Once she decided to take a chance with him, the fear and uncertainty that haunted her after ending things with Ben came flooding back.

“Are you certain?” He studied her face, which she kept neutral. The last thing she wanted was him worrying about her. He needed to focus on his task without distractions.

“I am. Go. I’ll be fine.” Barking out a laugh, she scanned the surrounding treetops. “I’ll read a book. Which I don’t have, but I can…recite poems I memorized in college.”

With a nod, he turned.

When he leaped off the branch, she sat bolt upright, pressing her palm against her chest. Her breathing didn’t loosen until he landed on another branch lower than this one. He jumped again, but she didn’t freak as much this time. She waited until he blended in with the forest before looking away, as if by not watching, he’d be exposed to danger.

She was going to be a wreck while he was gone and not because she sat alone in the middle of a jungle. He was out taking on spidaires and ostriches and who knew what else solely because he wanted to please her. While she lounged in relative safety.

She tipped her head back and closed her eyes, taking deep breaths to make herself relax.

A subtle sound nearby sent her bolt upright.

Mila… A flat, luminescent creature plopped onto the branch about ten feet out from her. It reared back on its sort of back legs, reminding her of a tiny flying carpet but with feet and clawed paws on the corners where a carpet had tassels. Pursed lips were centered in the underside of the creature’s belly, reminding her of the time she went snorkeling with manta rays. This creature didn’t look rubbery like the mantas she’d touched, though. It almost looked fuzzy.

Mila… someone said. But notssss Mila.

“Who’s talking to me?” Wulf had not returned, and no one else appeared to be in the vicinity. Tired and overwhelmed after her day, she had to be imagining things. For all she knew, she fell asleep and was dreaming. As long as she didn’t fall off the tree while she snoozed, things would be cool.

Notssss Mila…

“Nope, no Mila here,” she whispered, worried about her friend. Had Kral found her yet?

Who’sss yousss?

“This isn’t happening,” she muttered. “No one is talking to me.”

The mini carpet paced forward. Who’sss yousss?

She was not only imagining things, but she was also carrying on a conversation with herself. Was that bad? She read that talking to oneself was normal, that it was good for a person’s mental health. She lifted her hand in a toast to mental health and decided to roll with it. “I’m Taylor. Mila was—is—my friend.”

The carpet creature inched closer, its mouth pursing and releasing.

“So, carpet dude. You’re not going to eat me, are you?” There wasn’t much she could do if the creature attacked. If only she’d asked Wulf to leave her a weapon. Oh! Her knife. If she pulled it, would the carpet see that as a threat? He was cute, and she didn’t want to offend him.

Welcome in lizzer tribe, Taylorssss. I Treessse.

“I don’t know who Treessse is,” she said, surprised. If she was talking to herself, why would she make up a name?

Speak in mind.

She blinked, her hands fluttering at her sides. “I’m not talking to a mini carpet. I’m not talking to a mini carpet.”

Treessse. Not carpetsss.

Roll with it! “How are you able to talk to me in my mind?”

Friend…

Maybe she was losing it. This creature couldn’t be speaking to her, but…

Are you sure you’re talking to me in my mind? she asked—in her mind.

Yessss.

Cool. What was next on tonight’s agenda? Dancing plants? It’s nice to meet you. I’m Taylor, like I said. I’m Mila’s friend.

Treessse.

She tipped her head forward in a bow that would make a Crakairian male proud. I’m honored to meet you, Treessse.

I watch. Owe debt to Mila. Paysss to Taylor.

“What did my friend do, and is she all right?”

Mila escapesss.

She did? She’s safe? Taylor asked.

Safesss.

Where is she now?

With male.

A sound made her head snap in that direction, but seeing nothing, she turned back to Treessse.

The carpet creature had gone.

12

Wulf

Darkness had fallen, and Wulf was worried.

Taylor was considering returning to Earth?

He had done his best to show her adventure, to act the scoundrel. Yet he hadn’t begun his courtship. Was that the problem?

He wasn’t giving up on her.

When he lost his family, he lost his sense of identity. Some in his clan made him a tool to be passed around to whoever needed him next. For tasks or labor. Never to share time with him or to know him. It had not always been horrible. Having no one but himself made him strong. He joined the warrior regiment and worked his way up to head of the battalion. He took pride in his position, in owning his own home, and in the respect he’d earned in his community.

He looked forward to bringing his mate to his village, to show her the world he built for himself with his own hands.

That female was Taylor and heille, no, he wasn’t giving up on them yet.

As he moved through the treetops toward Taylor, a sound—different than that of a creature—called to him. He paused, dangling, but when it wasn’t repeated, he continued.

It was nothing. Maybe.

He would be alert at all times.

He landed softly on the branch a short distance from where she sat, and she jumped.

“Oh, jeez. Wulf. There you are,” she said, her voice breathy. Leaning forward, her hands fretted. “While you were gone, a bunch of creatures started screaming like the ground underneath us was beast party central. I heard rustling, followed by grunts, and two giant hippo-ant combo units battled it out with their horns. I think they were trying to win the interest of the lady hippo-ant who hung out nearby. Anyway,” she slumped against the tree trunk, “I was worried when you didn’t come back. It’s dark.” Her laugh puffed out. “Sorry. I’m going on and on, chattering like usual. Worse, I’m harping on you like a wife upset her hubby didn’t come home immediately after work. It’s not like you stopped by the local bar for a brewskie with the guys, or you screwed a girlfriend on the side. Instead of complaining, I should welcome you back. Tell you I’m glad you survived. That I’m happy to see you again. Did you bring home the bacon?” Standing, she hugged the tree, peering at him over her shoulder while he watched her, amazed at all she revealed when she was nervous.

“Bacon?” he asked. “What is this con of bac?” Bac sounded like bake, and he did have a meal waiting for her. “I will bake for you, but not a con.”

She snorted. “It’s a saying. You went to work and came home with income. Or in this case, food?”

He bowed. “I did collect food but also this.” Pulling the licarn from behind his back, he tugged away the leaves he used to mask it. He wanted to watch her face when he showed her his first surprise—his first official courtship gift. He fretted as this was not something a Vikir warrior would give a prospective mate, but the traditional gifts could not be found on Yarris. This licarn came from his heart.

“Oh,” she sighed, releasing her hold on the tree and turning to face him. “What is that? It’s pretty.”

“A licarn.”

“What makes it glow?”

To show her, he moved closer and held up the globe by the thin piece of vine he tied to the top.

She leaned forward, her excited face highlighted by the yellow glow. She grinned, and his heart soared.

His Earthling mate-to-be brought him sunshine with every smile.

“The plant is symbiont with an insect species that glows,” he said. “The mother trusher lays her younglings in the flower and the young eat the pollen and grow as the plant forms a clear globe around them.”

“What does the plant get out of the deal?”

“The insect secretes a byproduct that enriches the plant, a nutrient not found elsewhere.”

She traced her finger down the side of the globe. “And they remain like this forever?”

“As the seasons change, the outer shell dries and cracks. The grown younglings emerge to mate and repeat the process.”

“And in between then, we have light.” The smile she sent him made his chest ache.

He held the licarn out to her, knowing it carried a tiny piece of himself within. It wasn’t magic or a star to wish on, but it was close. “It is yours.”

She took it from him and held it up. It spun, and the tiny trushers scattered light around them. “Thank you. It’s beautiful.”

She was beautiful. He’d told her that, but did she believe? If not, he’d tell her a thousand times more.

“This makes it cozy,” she said. “I thought we’d spend the night in darkness like we usually do.”

A longing he could not deny rose inside him. He hated that he did not have much to offer her outside the licarn. Except—

“Hold on there, Wulf.” Her gaze had fallen on him, and she moved the light closer. “What are you wearing?” Her fingers traced across his bare chest. “You’re, um, not wearing much of anything, Wulf. Were you hot?” She fanned her face. “Hell, I’m hot. A few minutes ago, I was chilly, but someone turned up the furnace.”

He loved the way she spoke. There would be no wondering what his mate-to-be was thinking. “I am wearing something similar to the traditional courtship garlong.” It was the best he could create. He hadn’t wanted to stay away from her long.

“You’re barely wearing anything.”

Her voice had lifted to a squeak. Did this mean she was curious? He could show her if need be, or maybe…

“Are you not pleased with my garlong?” he asked, hesitant for the first time since he’d donned the woven bits of plant he used to create the garment. Would she reject him before he could show her all a Vikir warrior had to offer? “I could change back into—”

“No!”

“No?”

“No,” she said softly. “I like it. You look…lickable.” She slapped her hand over her mouth. “Sorry. There I go again. Here you thought you’d worn me out enough walking today and I’d be quiet for a while, when instead, I took a power nap—well, a power rest for two seconds—which has rejuvenated me and given me the oomph to keep talking all night long. Bet you’re thrilled about that.”

“I am.” When she talked, he listened. He would always listen to whatever she had to say. He took the licarn from her and hung it on a nearby branch then tugged the improvised sack off his shoulder. This, he also hung on a branch.

He’d worried when she hadn’t sought him out again after that wonderful moment when she fell apart in his arms. He wanted her. Needed her. He decided to wait for her to come to him.

He advanced toward her because she had called him lickable. Heille, he wanted to lick her, too.

Lickable was not a rejection.

“What are you doing?” she squeaked. Her hands fluttered before settling on his chest.

“You said you want my kisses.”

“I wouldn’t go that far.” She paused, tapping her finger on her chin. Her tiny liebrows, the fine line of hairs lying on her brows, lifted. Hence the name, liebrows. “Okay, I would go that far. I do want your kisses. Licking can and should come along as needed.”

He tugged her close and captured her mouth, savoring her sweet scent and the moans she made in the back of her throat. The sounds drove his need to a fever pitch.

She pressed herself against him, clutched him.

When her mouth opened, he slipped his tongue inside, tasting her. Feeling her. He could not get enough.

His naanans stroked her neck and back. They teased the sides of her counterbalance chest globes. His curiosity was not yet satisfied. They fascinated him. He ached to touch them.

She arched her back, pressing against him.

His cock rigid, he floundered, eager to fuck her yet holding himself back. He had barely begun his courtship. He could not take what she appeared to offer now. Fucking did not come before courtship.

Lifting his head, he stared down at her, unsure what he would see on her face.

Her chin lifted. “I’m going to be honest and speak my mind.”

“I would expect nothing less.”

“Cute.” She smirked. “I can’t help noticing how ripped you are, from your broad shoulders to your narrow waist with cords standing out on your belly.”

His jaw dropped. She warned him, but he’d expected her usual chatter. Nothing like this. Nothing so…flattering. He loved hearing her thoughts. He loved how she spilled her mind.

“And let’s not forget your thighs, your muscular, let-me-massage-them right now thighs, showing beneath the tiny scrap of…whatever that woven leaf thing you’re wearing is called.”

“Biteme.”

Her liebrows lifted. “Excuse me?”

“The plant is called biteme.”

She snickered. “I like it. We should name plants like that more often, not the usual fluffy or unpronounceable words in Latin.” Her face smoothed. “Anyway, I got the feeling you’d want to hear my thoughts. As far as I’m concerned, you can wear your created garlong for the rest of our lives.”

Our lives. Not his or hers, but theirs. Ah, she was going to pierce him through the heart and leave him bleeding.

But not until after he had shown her all he could give.

He held out his hand. “Would you like to go on an adventure?”

“Yarris is an adventure. I thought we were going to stay here tonight?”

“I have a different location in mind. Do you trust me?”

“Actually, I do. Out of all this, you’re the one stable thing in my life.” She took his hand.

He tugged her close and wrapped his arms around her, savoring how wonderful it felt to hold her.

“You’re going to court me up here in the trees?” she asked.

“I have made arrangements elsewhere. Here,” he waved to the tree where she’d waited, “Was a place for you to rest while I prepared.”

“I don’t know how restful it was with the bugs and the small carpet that visited.”

“Soon, we will leave the bugs behind.”

“There are none where we’re going?”

He scoured the area he’d secured but would do so again. “Trust me.”

“Oh, I do.” She grinned. “Or I wouldn’t have let you haul my…gorgeous ass through the treetops.”

He loved watching her confidence grow.

And how she found humor in everything. He’d missed this in his life, having to be serious and hardworking to keep whoever he lived with from passing him on to the next family.

“Are we doing this piggyback or do I play door dangle?”

“However you are most comfortable.” He enjoyed having her pressed against him, especially when she wrapped her legs around his waist. It was all he could do to keep his cock from responding.

No fucking, he chided himself. Not until after the courtship, at the very least. But a few stolen kisses would never be enough.

He hooked her lantern to his hip and bent forward.

Jumping, she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. “This is a suggestive position, you know.”

“I do know.” His body perked up. He couldn’t help it. The more he got to know her, the more he wanted her.

“Some would even call it a turn on.”

“I would.”

She wiggled. Heille, she was going to kill him. “I can tell.”

“Taylor.” He tried to sound stern, but her name came out in a groan. He kept picturing the way she’d ground herself against him, her sighs of pleasure.

“I know,” she sighed. “I need to behave myself, right?”

He panted, and his arms wrapped around her. Stepping forward, he pressed her against the tree trunk and captured her lips. Plundered them like the Vikirs of old would do during courtship. In ancient tradition, Vikir males would give their prospective female an orgasm soon after they agreed to a courtship. Showing her what he would do for her.

She moaned, and clung to him, and he hoped she wanted him as much as he wanted her. He would try to wait, but he was hungry. For her touch, her sighs, her affection.

He lifted his head.

“See?” she said. “The position is suggestive, and you took the suggestion.”

“Taylor.” He put on his fierce face, but she just laughed. Naturally, he laughed along with her, but he couldn’t hold their position with her wrapped around him. Turning, he slunk down onto the branch. With his back braced against the trunk, and his legs splayed apart, he tucked her into his lap and put his arms around her.

“You,” he said.

“Me.” She snickered. “I love that you don’t mind my wild and crazy ways.” She lifted her hands in the air and raised her voice. “It’s freeing!”

“Not too loud.” He scanned the area, reminding himself he couldn’t drop his guard. But heille, this woman. She made him as wild and crazy as her, and he loved it. He was falling for his mate-to-be. How could he hold back his heart?

She was incorrigible but he loved everything about her, from her pert nose to her luscious ass, to her teasing and her endless chatter.

“I met a new friend while you were gone,” she said, nuzzling his neck.

He lifted his brow ridges and glanced around, seeing no one near. “Not Francis?”

“Nope.” Leaning back, she blinked slowly. He couldn’t read her expression—surprise? Mixed with confusion. “It was weird. He—it? I’ll call him he for now. He talked to me in my mind.”

“I see.” Talking in her mind. Wulf didn’t doubt her. He’d never doubt her. “Tell me more.”

She chuckled. “Sounds strange, right? But Treesse dropped down onto the end of this branch, and we talked, though it was a brief conversation. Treesse thought I was Mila at first.”

He had a frightening suspicion. On the way to the space station, he’d read everything he could find on the star ship’s computers about Yarris. One particular species stood out in his mind, not because they were big, but because they were clever.

Lizzers.

He gripped her arms, wishing he could wrap her up in his body to keep her safe. “Why would it—Treessse—believe you were Mila?”

She shrugged. “No idea. Maybe because I’m an Earthling woman? Two humans.” Her chuckle rang out. “We all look alike.”

“Tell me more.” He peered around, able to see well at night—a Vikir skill, but he didn’t see anything of concern. The sooner he took her to the place he secured, the better. “Could you describe Treessse?”

“He looked like a small carpet about a foot long and half a foot wide.” Leaning back in his embrace, she showed the distance with her hands. “He was flat, bluish-green and glowing, and on his underside, he had a puckered mouth. He reminded me of the manta ray I swam with one time when I went on a catamaran cruise in the Caribbean.”

He did not know the manta ray, but it was clear what Treessse was. His hands shook as he realized the danger she’d been in while he left her. She should have been safe here. “Did it approach you?”

“Treessse didn’t come close, though I wouldn’t have minded. He was friendly. Caring, almost. He rose up onto his back legs, and we talked in my mind.”

He had never heard of a lizzer speaking with anyone before. “It did not attack.” Of course it hadn’t. If it had, she would be dead. A lizzer attached itself to its victim’s face and extended an appendage into the being’s mouth, seeking brain matter. An unpleasant sweat broke out on Wulf’s spine.

“I wouldn’t mind talking to Treessse again,” she said. “But I’m glad he stopped by, because he said Mila was safe and with Kral, which is a relief.”

He stood with her in his arms. “We need to leave before this Treessse returns.”

She linked her arms around his neck. “More swinging through the jungle, Tarzan?”

“Who is this Tarzan? You have mentioned him before.”

“Another book, and a movie. They’re old, but I like old stuff. In the books, Tarzan was raised in the jungle. He’s wild and untamed until he meets Jane. She’s,” Taylor laughed. “She’s a bit like me. Proper—mostly—and educated. They hit it off, though, and there’s romance.”

He sensed a theme in her books.

“You are not Jane.” He held up one finger. “You are Francis, your great adventurer.”

“You know what?” she said, smiling up at him. “I believe I’m Taylor. Plain old Taylor Nina Willis. And I like that. I forgot how much after Ben, but I’ve remembered. I’m settling back into my bones and enjoying the view.”

“You are never plain Taylor.” He nuzzled her neck one last time before lifting his head.

“You’re right. I’m not.” Her legs linked around his waist. “Are you ready to tell me where you’re taking me now?”

“Someplace special.”

She squinted around. “I’m not sure there’s a place on Yarris where I could let down my guard enough for you to court me.”

“You will see. Hold tight,” he murmured by her ear. “I do not wish you to fall.”

“I don’t want to fall either. We’re too far up, and it’s a long way down. This place is something else. Actually, it’s scary, but I refuse to name it.”

“You just did.”

“Jeez, call me on it, why don’t you? The thing is, I was able to survive for a week on the space station. I can hold on for however long it takes to get off this planet.” She paused. “We will get off the planet, right?”

“We will.”

Even this high up, they weren’t completely alone. A six-legged, bright blue beetle the size of his hand crawled along the branch about ten feet from them, and the hum of other insects filled the air. Birds shrieked and batinas zipped past, snatching insects in their fangs.

“Let’s do it,” she said against his neck. “I’m ready.”

Easing sideways, he dove off the branch.

Her squeal pealed around them, but she cut it off with a laugh as he grabbed onto a branch, breaking their fall, and swung outward, to another.

“I’m never going to get used to this, and you know what? I don’t want to. This is exhilarating, almost overwhelming, but incredibly awesome. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m not always scared anymore. I like it here because you’re here with me.”

His hand slipped on a branch, but he thrust the other up before they dropped.

“Taylor. You say these things when I cannot kiss you. Hold you.”

“Sorry.” The teasing smile she released zipped into his bones like liquid fire. “I’ll stick to generic stuff until your feet are solidly planted on the ground, because I don’t want to miss those kisses and hugs and anything else you might choose to offer.”

More incentive to go fast.

As he swung through the jungle using vines he’d suspended and the limbs of various trees, she continued.

“Did you know there are fireflies on Yarris? I assume they’re fireflies. I saw them last night when I woke for all of two seconds. I think you were asleep.”

Each night, he dozed, not daring to relax his guard, but he missed her flies of fire.

“When I saw the tiny flickers of light, they comforted me. For a short time, I felt like I was on Earth, sitting with Mom beside the fire pit Dad built with bricks in the backyard.”

“You miss your mother and father.” He leaped from one branch to another. They were almost at their destination.

“Dad died from the disease. He was a fantastic dad. Mom’s still on Earth. I hope someday, Crakair will allow visitors, because I want my mom to come stay with me.”

Did Taylor realize she suggested she would remain on Crakair?

Excitement bloomed inside him, but he would remain cautious. She was still sounding out what she wanted, and he would not push her to decide.

He would win her with his courtship efforts.

He continued through the jungle, moving from tree to tree until he brought her close to the place he created for her. Taylor. His mate.

“I will say another thing,” she said.

Would she use pretty words to describe his back now? He was proud of its strength.

“Flying through the jungle is…incredible. I am Jane and you are Tarzan.” She grinned. “Will you beat your chest and yell for me?”

He flashed his fangs. “If you wish.” She would need to tell him how, but he would do it. How hard could it be to become Taylor’s Tar-zan? No harder than being a scoundrel.

“Whoa. Big ass mama dragonfly coming in,” she said, nudging her chin in that direction.

The driegon would not cause harm, so he paused, hanging from a branch, letting Taylor enjoy the creature’s visit. The blue driegon was joined with another in iridescent green, and they danced through the air, flitting in close before darting away, their bodies highlighted by the light of the two moons.

“Shy things, aren’t they?” she asked as the blue driegon buzzed in close, inspecting her. The length of his forearm, the creature had big, globe-like eyes and fangs. “Aren’t you a cutie,” she cooed. “I wish I had something to give you, but we’re fresh out of food.” She peeked at Wulf. “Do I need to worry about it biting my nose off?” Her low laughter rang out, silky and luring. The driegon zipped up over her head with the second giving chase.

“Driegons do not cause harm.”

“Driegon? Back on Earth, we had an insect like this only smaller. A dragonfly, it’s called.”

“The Driegon are an ancient people who used to live on Crakair.”

“You said the Vikir are ancient.”

“The Driegon are older than my clan. Ages ago, the Vikir would trade with the Driegon, who some say we are descended from, but we have not interacted with them for hundreds of yaros.”

“How is that possible?”

“They live in caverns deep below the ground.”

“Still?”

He shrugged. “No one knows.”

“Fascinating.” She smiled. “How are you doing there with me hanging off you?”

“I am fine. We will leave now?”

“Go for it.”

Turning, he released the branch.

“Wulfffff!” Taylor pressed her face into his chest as he snagged the limb he was aiming for and swung them forward to land on a broad mesh of sticks on a prictar tree. “This is unbelievable. I’m a rollercoaster girl. Bet you didn’t know that.”

“I did not.”

“I love ‘em but this is even better. It’s more thrilling than El Toro at Six Flags.”

“El Toro translates to…the bull.” He bared his fangs. “Yes, I am more thrilling than the bull.” He jumped forward and grabbed onto a vine—a sedentary vine unrelated to the monsters nesting on the forest floor. They swung forward, rushing toward a broad clurg tree. He landed on a branch and paused.

Taylor trembled in his arms; her face pressed into his chest.

Had she been harmed while he traveled?

“Taylor…”

She tipped her head back and loud laughter burst from her throat. “Damn, Wulf, you make me laugh. You are more thrilling than the bull. Is taking us through the jungle like Tarzan your second task in the courtship? Because it was perfect.”

“You…I was merely bringing you to where I will begin to court you.”

“I think all of this is your courtship.” She flicked her hand out to the world around them. “Yeah, this place is awe inspiring. But somehow, you keep it sane. You ground me and make me feel safe. Nothing can replace that except…”

“What?” He waited, suddenly worried this wonderful moment would pop.

“Except I need to ride El Toro again.” She nudged her head to the forest.

He flashed his fangs in an easy smile, his shoulders loosening. “I will show you.”

Energy surged through him. Praise was a novel concept for him, and to think his mate-to-be admired him shot him up into the sky. It was hard to remain grounded, to focus on what he was doing. He couldn’t endanger his precious cargo.

He leaped forward and grabbed a vine, their momentum carrying them to the next tree. Below, a herd of trunadars grazed in a circle on the deep grass with their younglings jumping and kicking in the center.

“It’s beautiful here,” Taylor said with awe in her voice. “Fresh and unspoiled. It’s wild. Life can be snuffed out in one moment, but these creatures live. Thank you for sharing it with me.”

This was not the courtship he would ever plan for a mate-to-be, but if he had to be stranded on a hostile planet, he was grateful he was with Taylor.

When he landed on the final branch, a short distance up from the ground, he paused to listen. He secured this location, but that didn’t mean creatures hadn’t moved in while he went to get Taylor.

And that sound he heard earlier… He waited, but nothing felt amiss.

Confident they were alone, he grabbed onto a vine and slid down.

“A fireman’s pole,” she said.

They landed on the ground, and she let go to stand in front of him. He missed her closeness already. He knew the rules. He must court her fully before there could be fucking, but his impatient cock did not understand.

“Are you prepared to be courted?” he asked.

“I am.”

His heart raced in his chest. What if he did not do this correctly? These next few minars would be vital. “If you will come with me, I will feed you a meal while dressed in this garlong. I have also prepared the zinter bath, though I do not have zinters. And I will emulse your feet.”

“I think we can skip the zinters. I read about them and while I’m intrigued by the idea of bathing with tiny fish-like organisms that swim around me, eating the dirt off my skin, I can wait for the full experience. I’m excited about the emulsion, however. Since I took on the Yarris El Toro challenge, I’m eager to see what you can come up with next.”

“Then we will begin.” He bowed. “Dreafillar.”

13

Taylor

“T  his way,” Wulf said, gesturing to a slender trail etching through the woods with the licarn lantern he gifted her.

“Where are we going?” Taylor asked.

“You will see.” The excitement in his voice lit a fire inside her, and her steps picked up.

The best thing about the trail was it kept vines and other vegetation from brushing against her body. The worst thing about the trail was that it had been made by creatures who might lurk ahead of them, ready to pounce. Sure, the light of the two moons—two freakin’ moons!—made it easier to see, but it was night. Things hunted. She and Wulf were bait.

The fact that Wulf held his sword was both reassuring and scary, because it meant he didn’t trust where they were walking.

“Do spidaires hunt at night?” she whispered.

“Rarely.”

Now that was reassuring.

“No worries. There were no nests in this area.”

Also reassuring.

They emerged from the path and crossed a small open area with a line of enormous boulders on one side. Beyond the boulders, a steep cliff rose a couple hundred feet, craggy and filled with shadows where the moonlight didn’t reach. Hardy bushes grew along the face, blooming with flowers.

“Are we there yet?” she whispered.

“We are there—here—now.”

She studied the boulders but didn’t see how they could be incorporated into courtship. “Are you going to serve a meal here?” she asked, eager to see what this might entail.

“Inside.”

“Inside the rock?”

He held out his hand, and when she took it, he tugged her near. “Hold on?”

“There’s no tree nearby.”

“Do not be ornery.”

“Whoa.” Reeling back, she grinned at him. “What if I like being ornery?”

“Close your eyes,” he said.

“Why?”

“Because I wish you to.”

“Okay,” she grumbled, but she couldn’t hold back her excitement. Eyes closed, she shut out the night.

He swept her up in his arms, crouched, and leaped, landing with a thud on the top of something—likely one of the boulders. After he lowered her to her feet and turned her to face away from him, he spoke near her ear. “You may look now.”

“Oh… It’s so pretty. Are those licarns?” Twinkling lights been hung around the perimeter of a small area below them, between the cliff and the boulders. The small grove was made up of shorter trees, colorful bushes, a small open area filled with grass, and a darker circle in the shadows.

“I gathered the licarns and hung them here to surprise you.”

“You’re too kind to me. You know that, right?”

“I would do this a thousand times to see you smile.”

“Thank you.” She rubbed her chest, where it ached.

“Would you like to see more?”

“Yes.” She hopped in place like a little kid. No one had ever done something like this for her before. It both thrilled and humbled her. “I can’t believe you found an oasis for me.”

“When you speak, I listen.”

That was a first for a guy. How had she lucked into someone so thoughtful? “When did I mention anything like that?”

“When we ate blesettes.”

“We’ve been eating a lot of blesettes. They’re the staple of our diet.”

“Not tonight.”

“How did you do this in such a short time? I can’t believe this place was hidden in the middle of a deadly jungle.”

“I did it for you.”

The hope, excitement, and vulnerability in his voice broke her. Broke everything inside her.

How could she consider going back to Earth when she could be with Wulf instead?

There was no need to spend the rest of her life looking for “the one” when he stood beside her. This guy tugged on the part of herself that she’d never shared before, not even Ben. He made her never want to leave him.

“What does this part of the courtship entail?” she asked, her voice croaky with emotion. This was her defining moment.

“In Vikir tradition…” He smirked.

“What?”

“Technically…”

“What aren’t you saying?” Whirling on him with a laugh, she tried to tickle the answer out of him, but he stood stoic and watched her hands tease along his abs. Nice abs, by the way. The best abs she’d seen in her life. Everything about him was larger than life.

“You may not be interested in ancient traditions,” he said.

“What if I am? I respect all cultures and people.” She glided her fingertip along his scaled arm. “Why else would I have agreed to leave my planet to travel into outer space to meet and possibly marry someone sight unseen?”

“I sent you a vid. I introduced myself.”

“You did, and I was grateful.” She watched it a billion times, studying how he moved and the words he said. It made her eager to meet him.

She studied the oasis again, and her heart skipped a beat. The dark circle… “Is that a pool?”

“I have no zinters, remember?”

“If it’s water and there aren’t poisonous creatures lurking, eager to bite my toes, I’m ready to jump in.”

He placed his fist against his chest. “I am going to court you in the Vikir way, Taylor, and you are going to be impressed. You will have no wish to return to Earth.”

“That sounds serious.” Who in her past had ever cared enough to woo her? Ben sure hadn’t. He took her out a few times, and he even paid, but she suspected he thought she should feel grateful he gave her any attention at all.

“I have never been more serious about anything,” Wulf said.

Ben was the past. Wulf…was her future. She knew that now. She’d savor his courtship and his skimpy clothing which teased but didn’t reveal enough. Odd how big his ass was, but who was she to comment about lush asses?

And she’d tell him.

“Would you like to see more?” he asked. He scooped her up in his arms, making her squeak.

“Curious, are you?” he asked.

“Sure.” What did he mean by curious?

“I am learning my mate-to-be’s signals.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Your squeak. It means you are curious.”

“It does?”

Wulf was cute. No denying that. He was the sweetest guy she’d met. The differences between them could be humorous on occasion. She liked it. It was fun nudging together two vastly different people then seeing them walk the same path. Scary, too, but she could deal with that.

Stepping forward, he dropped down about twenty feet, onto a smaller boulder then onto the ground, where he lowered her onto the pink grass. The licarns swayed in the breeze, creating dancing shadows, but it was romantic, if an oasis in the middle of a deadly jungle could be romantic.

“Nice touch,” she said. “I like what you’ve done to the place.”

His palms glided down her arms. “I, uh… Thank you?”

“That’s a phrase that means this looks wonderful. You’ve created a slice of heaven and a haven at the same time.”

“Ah, yes.” He swept an arm out grandly, taking in the tall, spiky pink grass, the paler pink trees, and the clumps of purple-tipped shrubs. All nestled within a circle of enormous boulders. “Allow me to show you the secure area I have created for you.” Dropping to one knee, he took her hand. “We will remain here a few daelas, and I will show you all I have to offer.”

Her brain took her back to his comment about how she’d need to remove her clothing if he was on his knees in front of her. Skin tingling, her imagination took over. It wasn’t hard to picture her lying on a lush bed of pink grass while Wulf crawled in between her legs.

Fuck.

From the moment she met him, she’d been attracted to him. Who wouldn’t be turned on by his immense size, his scales, and his rich skin color? Top that off with a shy yet bold personality, plus his naanans that lent him a Reggae appearance, and there was no way she could resist him. He was a male of few words, but she had more than enough words for them both. Yet with a few simple gestures, he showed her his feelings. Perhaps she should take a cue from him.

She cleared her throat. “I have a question.”

He waited, silent, staring up at her with hope in his eyes.

“Not long ago, we joked about you kneeling in front of me, and here you are, doing it. I’m not joking, now. What would you do if I took you up on your suggestion and removed my clothing?”

He gulped, the Adam’s apple in his throat working. “I would…” His hooded gaze traveled down her front. “Taylor… I…”

She’d stunned him, and she wasn’t sure if this meant she made things worse or better. But, hell, Taylor had never been someone to back down from a challenge. Not until Ben, and that asshole belonged in her past, not hovering over her shoulder picking at her self-confidence. She mentally shoved him aside. Time to lock him out and throw away the key.

“Will I offend you if I do it?” she asked.

“What? No!”

Damn, she couldn’t stop smiling. She lifted her dress over her head and tossed it aside, leaving her only in panties. She skipped the bra when she dressed in the juglier.

“I want you to see me,” she said with a lift of her chin.

“I do.” Rising, his gaze drifted from her face to her breasts, and his gaze widened, the beautiful forest green ring eclipsing the black.

“I mean really see me.” Was she stupid to do this? If she remained hidden, discretely removing her clothing only in the dark, she wouldn’t be exposed. “I’m not perfect.”

“You are.”

How could he sound so certain?

“For example, my boobs.” Cupping the undersides, she lifted them. “I wish they were bigger.”

“Should they be bigger?”

“Some guys think so.”

“I am not some guys.”

He’d proven that over and over. Why had she found it hard to believe him?

“I wish my waistline was smaller.” When she pushed on her hips, she accentuated her belly. Bad move. Releasing the skin, it jiggled. “Shit. Double shit. No, make that triple shit.”

“Much shit.”

Her laughter snorted from her. “And let’s not forget my ass.” Turning partway around, she tapped a butt cheek with her palm. “Yeah, it’s big. Too big, I suppose, but I think it’s cute.”

“I do as well. You have used that word before, but I am not sure what it means.”

“And my thighs.” Might as well get this over with. Then he’d see why he should put the brakes on this courtship. It hurt to think that, but if he saw everything, he would, right? “My thighs are too big.” She pinched the skin, leaving red marks. Way to accentuate her cellulite.

“Too big for what?”

“I don’t know. Me? Yeah, they’re too big for me.”

“I do not understand.”

“See me!”

When she would have spun and run into the water to hide, he rose and held her in place with a firm grip on her shoulders. He urged her to face him, but damn, she couldn’t look up. She couldn’t bear the disgust she’d find on his face.

“I see you, lovely Taylor. All of you.”

Lovely? Wait. “You don’t see me because, if you did, you’d reject me.”

“Never.” How could he make the word sound like a vow?

“Why not?” she asked, truly curious. “I don’t get it. Get you.” He should be avoiding her eyes and looking anywhere but at her body. That’s what other guys did. Instead, his gaze devoured her. Damn, that was hot. Seeing pure lust on his face made her blood churn through her veins. Languid heat flowed through her bones, making her knees weak.

“Mate-to-be, I have gotten you.” His fingers trailed from her shoulders to her face. “I see what is on your outside but even more, I see who you are inside. You are beautiful. How can you think you are not worthy when your value to me is not based on what the world sees but what I see? You are perfect.”

“But my boobs and my waist and my thighs—“

“Are also perfect.”

“That’s not true,” she sighed.

“These brutes.” His gaze dipped to her chest, and his fingers followed. Her nipples tightened, and tingles shot from her head to her toes. “I am fascinated by the globes on your chest with flushed targets in the center.”

“Flushed targets. Why does that sound romantic? It shouldn’t.”

He winced. “I am creating a pile of triple shit with my words, correct? I am saying this in the wrong way and offending you.”

“Actually, you’re not.” She flicked her hand toward him. “Keep going.”

His lips curled up briefly. “This waist you scorn.” His fingers trailed across the tops of her boobs then cupped them like she had. “One minar. I will get to your waist. Soon.”

Her lips trembled before her smile burst through. “Take your time. You won’t hear complaints from me.”

“It is acceptable to touch your brutes?”

Someday, she’d fill him in on the difference between brutes and boobs, but why ruin the moment? “You can touch them all you want.”

“And this is…pleasurable for you?” His nostrils flared as if he could smell the arousal she made no effort to hide.

Fire shot below her waist, where she throbbed.

“Very much so.” The words stuttered out of her, but how could a woman find the brain power to talk when a hot alien guy was stroking her boobs with his fingers?

“What about the flushed targets?” he asked, his voice huskier than she’d heard before.

“I guess you could call them targets. Or bullseyes,” she said. “They do draw attention, don’t they? Even though I still wish they were bigger. Perkier. Hell, friskier, if boobs can be frisky.” She was running her mouth again, but she couldn’t stop. And maybe, just maybe, it was okay.

Francis would never have acted like this with her scoundrel, but Taylor did not want to be Francis.

She wanted to be herself because Taylor had Wulf.

His thumbs glided across her nipples, and she gasped.

His hands lifted. “I am doing this wrong. Touching the targets is painful for you.”

“It’s not!”

He studied her face. “You were not jousting when you said they were pleasurable? You truly enjoy this touch of the targets?”

Jousting? Oh, jesting. This was cute. He was cute. “I love it when you touch my…targets.” She thrust her chest forward, happy about her boobs for the first time since they sprouted on her chest. Sure, they could be bigger, perkier, whatever-er, but right now, Wulf was staring at them like they were a full buffet presented to a man who’d eaten nothing in a week.

“I wish to please you, mate-to-be,” he said. “If I spend more time stroking your targets and perhaps, if you wish, tasting them, will that offend you?”

“Hell, no. You can touch whatever you want.” All her blood had gone to her clit, and she must be dripping. What should she do next? During orientation on the star ship, she’d been told Crakairian males were adamant about courtship coming first. Then they’d propose. Only after that, could they “commence”—their word, not hers—with the fucking.

Bypassing the beginning stuff and savoring a rock-hard sample of the latter sounded like a good plan to her.

His tongue glided across his fang.

“It’s forked,” she barked. Shit, shit. His long tongue was forked. And he’d implied Crakairians enjoyed oral sex.

There was no missing the stiffy underneath his improvised garlong. Big. No other way to describe it. It wasn’t hard to imagine it stretching her. Filling her.

“The Crakairian handbook did not mention dick size,” she murmured.

“Dick. Dick.” He cocked his head. “That is a proper Earthling male name, correct?”

“Dick is short for Richard, but dick is also slang for penis. A.K.A., member, organ, sex, erection, pee-pee, prick, knob, tool, equipment, root, boner, length, meat, pego, machine, thing, rig, rod, stalk, weapon, and, if you live in Ireland, mickey.” Sometimes, it paid to be a librarian. She spent a lot of time doing research.

“You mean my cock.”

“A big cock. What does it taste like? I’ve only given head a few times, but I enjoyed it. And fuck. Double fuck.” She slapped her hands on her hot cheeks. “I shouldn’t be focusing on your willy or plonker—in the U.K.—or pinto in Brazil, which I always found funny. To me, a pinto is a bean, and no guy wants to be told his tool is the size of a pinto bean.” She looked up to find his bemused expression focused on her face. “I’m talking too much again, aren’t I? And it’s draining all the life from this special moment. Make me stop. Please, make me stop. I told you I run my mouth when I’m nervous, right?”

“Why are you nervous?”

“Because I’m worried you’ll treat me like Ben. I know you’re nothing like my ex. You won’t shame me or say things that make me doubt myself. You’re the kind of guy who’ll lift me up. Tell me I’m gorgeous even when I have bedhead and a zit on my chin. And I bet you’d be happy to have me stand by your side, not behind you like a Stepford woman.”

Now that she laid it out, she didn’t know what to expect. Would he tell her she was wrong, that none of her beliefs about him were true? She’d been a fool to think she stood a chance with this awesome guy. But pushing him away only caused pain. She wanted to live in the moment.

How could she take the first step to make it happen?

“I shouldn’t even bring my ex into this. He’s gone from my life.”

“Except he is still here.” He tapped her chest.

Was he? She thought she loved Ben until everything went sour, and he showed himself for the asshole he’d been all along. Now? How did she feel at this moment?

Free.

No longer connected with everything that held her back on Earth. Her size that would never be a zero or even a ten. Her worry about what others thought when she ate a second piece of pie. And her jerk of an ex, who could search for her forever but never find her.

Only here and now mattered.

Wulf. He mattered.

“I wish I could show you how I feel inside.” With his fist pressed against his chest, he bared his fangs. “You, mate-to-be, are cut. Incredibly cut.”

“No one has ever told me I’m cut before. You mean I’m ripped?” She lifted one leg up onto the toe, admiring the subtle play of muscle. All this walking was paying off. “I do work out. A little. Every now and then, though more recently. But I’ve never considered myself anything but toned.”

“Everything about you is cut,” he said. “Your face.” His fingers traced down her cheek. “Your brutes with their teasing targets.” When his thumbs trailed across her boobs, she jerked her chest forward. But he wasn’t done with her yet. “Back to your waist I can almost span with my fingers.” He demonstrated and fuck, there was something to be said about a guy with long fingers. More double fuck. She needed to stop thinking about where those fingers truly belonged before her clit exploded. “Your tempting ass is also cut. But the cut-est bits of you are the parts you keep hidden from the world.” He tapped her chest. “You asked if I see you, and I say I do. Trust in this if in nothing else. I see all of you, from your boldness that rivals your adventurer, Frances, to your warm heart that chooses to shoo away a deadly creature rather than kill it, to the vulnerabilities you hide behind a wall for protection. I wish I could wrap you in my arms and hold you close forever. I wish that my touch, my support of you, could still your vulnerability until you are filled with nothing but joy. Until you drop the walls and never rebuild them again.”

“Wulf.”

He teased a finger along her jawline. “And that, mate-to-be, is who I see.”

She blinked fast as her chest exploded with something she couldn’t define.

Wulf did see her. And as wild as it sounded, he enjoyed the package she was wrapped up in.

Despite seeing her exposed, he still wanted more.

“That’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me,” she said.

“Please remember, when you are nervous or sad, that to me, you are the cut-est female I have had the privilege to know.”

Cut… Oh, cute. Whatever. It worked. “You’re gonna make me cry.”

“Which is not my intention, though any emotion you share is welcome.”

“I think, right now, I want to smile.”

“Then do so. Always, if it pleases you.” His fingers stilled on her arms, and his gaze darted away. “You have shown yourself to me, and I see you for who you truly are, mate-to-be, but…” His hand went to the tie at the top of his garlong.

She gulped. “What’s up, Wulf?” No holding back her snicker. “I mean other than your joystick.”

He tugged the tie loose and let the garment fall to the ground. “It is time for you to see me.”

14

Wulf

“Ho, baby,” she breathed. Her gaze focused on Wulf’s…Stick of Joy. He liked that term and would use it from now on.

“It is big,” he said. He wasn’t being…cocky, merely stating a fact. He’d taken zinter baths with enough of his peers through his youngling years to know his stick of joy was larger than most. “You are petite, and I do apologize for my stick.” Sex…He desperately wanted to have sex with Taylor, but he did worry he’d hurt her. She was petite, and his stick was large. It could harm her.

How could such a tiny female accommodate his size?

“Stick? Must be a Crakairian term.” She shook her head, and her brutes jiggled. He liked this movement. If he asked her nicely, would she do it for him often? “Why are you apologizing about it? It’s not like you have any control over the size of your cock.”

“As you have no control over the size of your brutes.”

“Hey, you’re right.” She flashed him a smile, and emotion pinched behind his ribs. “I didn’t think of it that way.”

“Do you see me?” he asked. “All of me, with my imperfections on display? For example,” he lifted one of his naanans, “these are black. Blue and green naanans are better.”

“Can I touch?” she asked, her hand stretching up but not making contact.

“You may touch anything you wish.”

She stroked the naanan stretching toward her. He muffled his groan.

“You like this,” she said.

“It feels good.”

Her lips curved. “Then I will do it more often.” She tilted her head. “Why are you concerned about the color of your naanans?”

“Because… I do not know why, but blue and green are colors I have heard females prefer.” He held up a finger when she would speak. “There is more. We must discuss my scales, another deficiency I wish you to see.”

“I’m still stunned you think your naanans are not gorgeous.”

“They are black.”

“Gorgeous black. Like the deepest night.”

Were they? Ah… To Taylor they were. He wanted to share his vulnerabilities as she did. In doing so, he learned more about his mate-to-be. She liked his black naanans. They, overjoyed, of course, moved toward her, entwining around her shoulders and the back of her head. She laughed as they tickled.

“What about your scales?” she asked. “I think they’re cool.”

“With this, you do not mean temperature. I have heard the word cool during a conversation with Jorg. Cool is a good thing.”

She nodded. “It is.”

He savored the taste of the word, and it made his pulse sing because she had used it with him. “Back to my scales. They are round when many say those that come to a fine point are the most desirable.”

“Why does their shape make a difference? I can see pointy being a good thing if you used them for defense, but from what I’ve read, only your sekairs function in that way, and they lift and shoot poisonous darts.”

“Yes. You are right. But we are focusing on my other scales.”

“Which must serve to protect you from the elements or… Why do you have scales?”

“They serve as armor. While Crakairians have evolved through the years, and battles are rarely fought in close combat, our scales have remained with us.”

“Huh.” When she traced her finger across the scales on his chest, he shivered. Her touch would undo him. He could lose control if he was not careful, and he had more to discuss.

His stick of joy did not mind her attention. It thrust upward and precum coated the bulbous tip.

Focus, Wulf. She was not interested in his precum. Although, her eyes kept straying to his stick of joy. Unless shock kept her staring, it may not be a horrible thing to have a large cock.

“Now we must discuss my ass,” he said solemnly. She would notice if he did not point it out. How could she miss it? Through his youngling years, others had pointed and laughed until he hid that part of his body.

Shame flushed through him, and while his skin did not change to a beautiful camouflage pink like Taylor’s did, he winced. Would she reject him for this flaw?

Her lips twitched. “What’s wrong with your ass? I think it’s cute.”

“Cute? Not cut?”

“Both.”

He was confused but the difference between coo-t and cut could be settled later.

She darted to his side and leaned around to see his ass, but he shifted, keeping himself facing her.

“Wulf,” she said with a slant of her brows. “Show me your ass. We can talk about it and put it,” a grin bloomed on her face, “behind you.”

“Heille,” he said, raking his fingers across his naanans.

“Heille?”

He dipped forward. “Again, I apologize. I am triple shit swearing and many find that offensive.”

“I like it. Heille.”

Before he could act, she rushed around behind him.

He froze, waiting for her scorn.

“What am I supposed to dislike about this awesome ass?” she said. “I hope you know I’m a touchy-feely kind of girl. Like everyone else in my life, I’m going to offend you with that at one time or another, too.” Her fingers traced along the swell of his butt. “You do know you’re flawless. How did you luck out and be born with cute scales, awesome naanans, and a hotter-than-heille butt?”

“Hotter-than…” He shook his head, and his naanans flared out in agitation. “Surely you see my biggest flaw?”

“You don’t mean this, do you?” Her finger traced down his tail, and he closed his eyes and groaned. “Why do you keep it hidden? And I know you do because I didn’t see it before. It was stuffed inside your pants, I guess. If I had a tail like yours, I’d cut a hole in my pants and let it hang free.”

“Crakairians have evolved from our distant driegon ancestors.” She must see how humiliating it was to possess a tail when so few of his fellow males did?

“What do you mean, your distant ancestors?”

“On Earth, there are tales surrounding large reptilian creatures with wings, correct?”

“Flying alligators?” She continued to stroke his tail, which was highly distracting. If she kept doing that, he…well, he would never force her, but he would be tempted to show her what true teasing was.

“I do not know about al-ig-atories, but in your legends, these creatures breathe fire.”

“Oh…” Awe filled her voice. “Hold on. Your ancestors were freakin’ dragons?”

“Somewhat.”

Her hands glided down his tail again, and his cock jerked upright, stiffening even further.

“Taylor…”

“Am I doing something wrong? Maybe I’m not supposed to touch your tail, but it’s amazing. It hangs almost to your knees and it’s thick, but it narrows to a forked tip. Really, I wouldn’t hide this from anyone. It is awesome.”

Like his naanans, his tail functioned as an independent limb. He could control it. Mostly. Sometimes, also like his naanans, his tail had a mind of its own. While he couldn’t see, he could feel as his tail teased across her brutes and stroked a flushed target. The forked tip wrapped around the tiny nub and tugged.

She gasped, but he was savvier than he had been earlier, when they began their exploration. He could tell by the sound—and the scent of her arousal in the air—she enjoyed the touch of his tail.

His knees shook, something a Crakairian male would never admit to. But his trembling came from the emotion his mate-to-be dragged from deep inside him.

A matebond had not appeared on his palm, but that meant nothing. Taylor was meant for him, and he was destined for Taylor. He needed to convince her of this fact. But how?

The courtship! He was not doing this correctly.

“I imagine you are disappointed with me,” he said gruffly.

She strode around to stand in front of him. “I’m not.” When he started to speak, she placed the tip of her finger on his lips. “I think your tail is sexy. It’s wonderful. It’s you. But you haven’t let me tell you what I see.” Her hands propped on her hips, and her brutes jiggled again. He could barely take his eyes off them. She was correct in stating the eyes of the bulls drew attention. Perhaps that was their purpose. “When I’m with you, I see all of you.” Standing on her toes, she shifted his long naanans over his shoulder to his back. “I don’t only see naanans like the deepest, darkest, richest night.” As she lowered herself to her heels, her hands sliding down his shoulders. “I don’t see rounded rather than pointed scales. I see how they could be used to defend a mighty driegon from the elements. I guess if you’re going to breathe fire, the other guy needs some protection.” She paused. “Please tell me you can breathe fire.”

“I cannot, sadly.”

“We can’t have everything, right?”

He shrugged, eager to hear what she would say next.

“As for your tail, it’s super-hot.”

“Which is better than cool.” His tail curled around his hip and stroked her thigh.

“This, um…” A moan slipped from her lips. “This tail…”

“My tail…”

“Can it…” She tapped her arm. “No. Naughty Taylor. Do not even go there.”

“Where do we go?” Other than into the water for her not-zinter bath. What did she think—hope?—his tail could do?

When she looked up at him, her face had taken on its camouflage again. “I need to drop this before I embarrass myself.”

“You can say anything to me.”

“And maybe I will. Someday. But not now, because this is about you, not me.” She gave him a curt nod. “Back to seeing you.” She tapped his chest. “All this stuff you named is physical attributes. They’re not the person I see.”

“Tell me,” he breathed. Being shuffled around from one home to another after his family died taught him to hold tight to the one thing he owned: himself, the person he was deep inside.

“I see a shy, kind Crakairian male who very much wants to please me.”

“You are my mate-to-be.”

“A computer decided that, not us. But this,” she placed her palm on his chest. “This is you, the person I’m falling for already. Is it too soon? I don’t care. Heille, I wouldn’t be the first to get carried away by emotions and hormones. But the point is, I see you, Wulf. You’re heroic, willing to sacrifice yourself to keep me safe. You’re self-sacrificing, because I know you spent every second you were away setting this oasis up solely to impress me.” Her eyes glistened.

“I did this for you.”

“And when did you last eat?”

“I cannot remember. Earlier.” His belly reminded him of that fact the minar she mentioned it. But he had a meal planned. Tonight, he would court her. Convince her he was worthy.

“See? You’re generous with your time and emotions, doing things for me when you have needs, too. You don’t address them, do you?”

He sighed, but he saw her point. Not that it would stop him. He would do it again. They joy on her face when he gave her the licarn would stay with him a long time. That was why he sought out the trusher bugs encased in the clear, oval plant. To gift her this simple thing because he hoped to see her smile. “But—”

“No buts about it. You sacrifice yourself for me, and I see that. I see you, Wulf, and I like what I see. A lot.”

“You…humble me.”

“I’m telling the truth.”

Overcome with emotion, he stroked her face. “I believe you.”

She gave him a watery smile. “We’re quite a pair, aren’t we?”

He bared his fangs. This female. His female. His mate-to-be. Impressing her was his goal tonight, and he would do that if he did nothing else. The traditional way was through courtship, but he had begun to believe a formal courtship was not the only way to win Taylor. Nor was being a charming duck or giving her a life like her idol, Francis. Yet win her, he must.

“I think…” She lifted her chin. “No, I know I want this.” Her lush body swayed as she turned from him and sashayed toward the pool.

Heille, her ass…

She peeked over her shoulder at him. “When we reach Crakair, I’m staying. Forever, if you want me.”

15

Taylor

“Y ou want me?” Wulf said hoarsely.

She giggled. That was right. A mostly proper librarian laughed like a teenager on her first date with the cutest guy in the class. This wasn’t too far off from her current situation as it was the first date with the cutest guy she knew. It didn’t matter that he was the only male on Yarris; she wanted him.

And heille, it was clear he wanted her, too.

How freeing. How wonderful.

After kicking off her shoes and ditching her undies, she splashed into the water. Wulf said it was safe, and she trusted him.

With a growl, he followed.

Warm water flowed around her calves and then her thighs as she went deeper. The pool wasn’t big, maybe fifteen feet across. How had he found it in a jungle full of madness?

Pushing off, she eased into the center. The water wasn’t deep, coming only to the tops of her breasts. Being small, swimming was not an option, but it felt awesome. Wulf joined her as she tipped her head back to wet her hair. The heille with it. She dunked under the water, getting fully wet. Bobbing up, she wiped her eyes. A grin had frozen on her face.

“This is fantastic. Thank you so much. Do you know how long it’s been since I bathed? I stunk, right?” She held up her hand. “Don’t answer that. You wouldn’t happen to have a—“

He held up a rock. “There are no zinters to cleanse your skin, but this will work as well. I will also use it to emulse your feet after.”

“What is it?”

“Lathreen.”

The idea of him rubbing anything all over her body… The water might be chilly, but she was heating up fast. She was wary of Yarris creatures and squinted at the oval rockish-thing he held in his hand. “Exactly what is it?”

“The root of a plant that grows in marshy areas.”

“And you somehow found one while randomly strolling through a marshy area.”

“I challenged a swamp crant and emerged victorious.” He bared his fangs. “And now, I will give you a zinterless bath with the lathreen.”

“What’s a swamp crant?”

He stretched his arms wide. “A beast with ten legs, long teeth, and spikes down its back.”

“Sounds like someone I’d invite to a party. I mean, not really, but how in the world did you challenge it? Did you wrestle in the swamp?”

“I am teasing.”

“Oh.” She swiped her hand across her brow in dramatic fashion. “I’m glad you didn’t have to take on a swamp crant to find the lathreen. What do you plan to do with it, Wulf?” Name it. Name it, please. He hadn’t mentioned her confession.

“In true courtship tradition, we would normally bathe together with the zinters,” he said.

“Sad that we’re zinterless.” She didn’t miss being swarmed with fish. When she read about this part of the courtship, she braced herself. Sure, she’d try almost anything, but she was skeptical. How could anyone enjoy bathing with a swarm of tiny fish nibbling your body?

Wulf nibbling? Awesome. Wild fishies? No, thanks.

He gnashed his fangs. “Please know, I did look for zinters.”

“I’m sure you did.”

“While I found a species similar to those I am familiar with, the Yarris variety was…problematic.”

She tilted her head. “In what way?”

“Instead of carefully gliding across my scales, they tried to rip them off.”

“That will never do. We’d bleed all over the place and attract bigger predators. Of which, there are many.” She peered around, taking in the licarns hanging from trees along the edge of the pool and the row of big boulders encircling the tiny grove. “Were the boulders here already?”

“Yes. A yirdire pack lived here, but I asked them to leave for the night.”

“What are yirdire and how did you talk to them?”

“I jumped up onto the boulder, and they shouted I must be a god because I was so amazing. They had lived in this tiny area for many yaros, and after I shifted one of the boulders to the side, they—“

“How did you shift a boulder the size of a house?” This was a very tall tale.

“With my arms.” He lifted them, showing off his muscles.

Her laughter pealed out. “You’re making this up.”

He leaned in close. “You do not believe I am a god?”

“You’re godlike, all right. But you didn’t find anyone here.”

“How can you be sure?”

“Because… Why would they live here?” She peered around but didn’t see any evidence someone had been in this tiny oasis for years—yaros. “The grass isn’t trampled down.”

“They fly.”

“Yet you said they never left this little area.”

“They remained for the water.” He dropped his hands on her shoulders and turned her to face away from him. “But it is time to commence with the courtship.”

“Is this where we get to the good part?” Her voice came out ragged. The warmth of his hands sunk into her, contrasting with the cool water. A simple touch, and she was heating up already.

“I spoke of bathing you.” He rubbed the lathreen between his hands then glided the slippery solution across her shoulders and upper back. Wherever he touched, she tingled, and the feeling didn’t come from the lathreen. “What do you consider the good part?”

“The last.”

“Which is…?” His fingers dipped down her spine and across her butt. If she spread her legs and leaned forward, would he “wash” in between?

“I was thinking of…” Shit, shit. Just spit it out! She wanted it. His solid cock suggested he wanted it as well. They were two consenting adults. She told him she was staying on Crakiair. No need to be shy about this. “The fucking.”

His hands stilled on her butt cheeks. “You wish for fucking now.”

“Yes.” There. No need to be coy. Lob the ball into his court and see what he did with it.

“Taylor.” He said her name in a guttural groan. The lathreen plopped onto the surface of the pool and floated. He moved in close to her, covering her back while his hands and his naanans stroked her neck and the tops of her breasts. His cock felt like a fence post, rigid against her butt. “I will do whatever you ask of me.”

“But what do you want? This should be a mutual thing. Not you doing this because you know I want it.”

“I am still amazed you ask for it.”

“Unless you want it as much as I do, we can wait. I can wait.” Maybe. She was the most turned-on she’d been in her life. If he’d just shift a bit, his cock could move between her legs.

His tail curled forward, wrapping around her thigh.

Unable to resist, she spread her legs. What would he do next? She’d laid it out for him, told him she wanted to be with him, but if he was unsure, they would wait. The Crakairian courtship rituals had rules, and she wouldn’t force him to break them despite how eager she was.

The tip of his tail rose to stroke her breasts. Tipping her head back against his chest, her moan slipped out. She shut her eyes and focused on the sensation of his lightly scaled, rigid tail carefully teasing her nipple. The forked end split, wrapped around the bud, and tugged. Her clit throbbed, but she wouldn’t beg.

“I want this,” he said. “I want you. You said you wish to stay on Crakair and that fills my heart to overflowing. Taylor.”

“Wulf.”

“Conventions and rules mean nothing compared to my feelings for you.”

“Only if you’re sure,” she said. “You don’t need to do this to make me happy.”

“Oh, yes, I do.” He chuckled, and the deep sound glided across her skin, much like his tail moving down her belly. Would he touch her where she needed him most? “Pleasing you pleases me. I had…”

“What?”

His hands cupped her breasts and his thumbs stroked across her nipples. “I’ve wanted to do this since I met you.” His tail teased across her thigh then moved between her legs and stroked along her slit.

“Yes,” she breathed.

“This is what you asked about earlier, correct?” The tip of his tail teased her clit, and she widened her legs to give him full access. “Should I stop?”

“No!”

A laugh rumbled in his chest, and he leaned over to kiss her shoulder. His mouth moved up to the back of her neck and when his naanans shifted her hair to the side, he bit down gently with his fangs. “This? Should I stop this?”

“No. No. Shit. Shit. Shit. Don’t stop.”

“I will triple shit not stop, my mate-to-be.”

His cock pressed against her spine, and she ached to feel it moving inside her.

“Wulf,” she sighed.

The end of his tail continued to stroke and tug her clit, and she leaned forward, lifting her ass toward him. Her moan echoed around her, and she bit back her scream. She needed this. Needed Wulf.

“I do not want to hurt you,” he said. “I am big.”

“Do it. I can’t stand it any longer.” A fire built inside her. No, a raging inferno consumed her. She wiggled and strained to give his tail full access as it stroked her clit, driving her closer to the brink. “I’m going to explode.”

“Do it,” he said. “Fall apart for me, mate-to-be.”

“I want you with me when I do.” She’d never been confident she’d orgasm with other guys. Wulf would be different. She knew it. And that confidence boosted the bold side of her she kept hidden. “I need you inside me. Now.”

“Are you sure?”

“Did you expect to be my mate but never have sex with me?”

His fingers stilled on her nipples. “No.”

“Then what’s stopping you now? If it’s the rules or the setting or, I don’t know, my ass, then speak up.” She laughed, actually laughed, because she knew it wasn’t her ass. He liked her ass. “I can take it. If we don’t try, we won’t know if it fits.”

“You are right.” He growled, his hands stilling on her breasts. “Nothing is stopping me except fear I need to push aside. I want to be with you, Taylor.” His hands left her breasts, but his naanans took over, tugging at her nipples. Two naanans centered on each nub, the tips vibrating. Shock waves centered in her groin, and her clit throbbed.

He braced her hips with his hands, holding her steady, while the bulbous head of his cock pushed against her folds.

His tail… Sweet mother of everything, his tail…it alternated gliding across her clit and wrapping the forked tip to pinch.

“It’s…oh. Wow.” She shifted her hips because heille… “Something’s vibrating down there. Please tell me it’s you and not a creature sharing the pool with us.”

“All me.”

This could get addicting. But she needed that vibration buried deep inside her.

Holding her steady, he flexed his hips forward, pushing hard. The head of his cock stretched her folds before he pulled back.

“No.” She shifted, staying with him, holding the tip of him inside her.

“You are greedy,” he said with a laugh. He bit down on the spot where her neck met her shoulder, holding on while he rocked against her, teasing. Never giving her everything he had yet pressing inside enough it was driving her out of her mind.

The end of his tail pressed down on her clit and rubbed in circles.

She whimpered. “More, Wulf.”

“Like this?” He pushed inside a tiny bit farther, and she moaned.

“Yes.”

His cock’s vibration sunk into her bones. “This… This… You need to get a patent for that thing.”

“My stick of joy?”

“Give it to me!”

“Yes, greedy mate-to be.” Bracing her hips, he pushed forward hard, driving at least half his shaft inside her. The stretch. It was almost too much.

“Please,” she panted. Her arms splayed out, seeking something to hold onto, but encountered only water.

He lifted her up, still partway inside her, and moved forward until they reached a smaller boulder. This brought them above the water level, and she was able to lean across the smooth surface.

“Yes,” she said as he pressed deeper. He still wasn’t buried inside, and she needed to feel it all. “More, Wulf. More!”

He eased back and nudged forward. She wasn’t sure she could take it. It burned but it also felt better than anything ever had before.

His tail wrapped around her leg and teased, making her gush with wetness. He touched every aroused part of her, bringing her to a peak. She couldn’t handle much more, but she couldn’t stop. She needed to feel it all.

Pulling back, he drove himself forward, seating himself fully. They both groaned.

“Too much?” he asked. He leaned over her, his rapid breathing hot in her ear.

“No. More.”

“I give it freely.” Holding her hips steady, he pulled out and pumped into her, going faster until his hips smacked against her butt.

She whimpered and held on as the exquisite feeling built inside her to a fever. She crested the peak.

When he bit down on her neck, she exploded. Her guttural cry rang out, followed by Wulf’s.

He collapsed on top of her but quickly braced himself with his arms, keeping the burden of his weight off her.

Her body trembled as shockwaves echoed through her.

He sunk backward, into the water, taking her with him, still locked together.

As they floated, she nestled in his arms. His naanans stroked her hair and shoulders, and his furious heartbeat ticked in her ear, slowly returning to a normal rhythm.

Turning, she faced him and wrapped her legs around his waist. Her head nestled on his shoulder as she lazed with him in the water.

“We’ll stay here forever, okay?” she said.

“I need daelas with you. But you have not seen the best part of the evening.”

Lifting her head, she grinned. “I believe I have.”

“My meal will amaze you. You will be in awe. It will rival my stick of joy.”

“This, I’ve got to see.” She peered around the tiny grove. “Are we cooking on an open fire tonight?”

“No fire. It would draw creatures.”

“Of course it would. Where I come from creatures are afraid of fire. Here, they probably eat it.”

“Or bathe in it.”

She shuddered. “Let’s avoid that one, then.” Her belly rumbled, reminding her it had been willing to wait while she and Wulf had fun, but it was time to fuel her furnace.

“Let me finish bathing you, and then we will eat.” He snagged the lathreen floating on the pool’s surface and rubbed it between his hands.

He glided his fingers down her back. She leaned away to give him access to the front and, as she expected, she was soon moaning, and he was sporting a rigid cock. Her breathing picked up, and her pulse thundered in her ears.

He carried her over to the rock, and she got ready to eagerly flip onto her belly. But he laid her on her back and spread her legs wide.

Fangs flashing, he dropped down between her legs. “Let me taste you, mate-to-be.”

16

Wulf

Wulf was eager to feed his mate-to-be, but first, he would give her more pleasure. He also needed to taste her.

As he studied the glorious pink folds laid out like a feast before him, her chest fluttered.

“What, no chatter?” Leaning forward, he glided his tongue up her slit.

Her hips jerked, and she sighed. “No talking. Not when you’re about to go down on me. Too many men back on Earth complain they don’t understand women. If they read a few romance novels, they’d know how to keep a woman satisfied. Nothing beats a guy eager to put his mouth on you, especially a guy with a forked tongue.” Lifting her head, she grinned. “I said I wasn’t going to talk, but here I am, chattering. I’m going to shut up, though, and savor everything you do to my body.” Laying back on the rock, she chuckled. “Do feel welcome to do whatever you want.”

While his tail wrapped around her ankle, he moved in close to her. His tongue dipped out and he licked.

She bucked. “You’ve just started and shit. Shit.”

“No shit mate-to-be. Just this.” He sucked on the nub at the top of her folds then encircled it with his tongue. Because he couldn’t resist, he slid a finger inside her. Her smooth, soft walls enveloped him, and he ached to replace his hand with his stick of joy. He’d found satisfaction with her only minars before, but he craved her again, more than he had.

While she squirmed beneath him, moaning, he savored her taste. He pumped his fingers inside, tweaking a small nub he found within while sucking on the one above her slit. He loved how she was created and how responsive she was to his touch. He could suck and lick her all day long.

“Wulf!”

“Yes, mate-to-be?” he asked, not looking up. Just one more taste… He slid his tongue inside her while a naanan played with her engorged flesh.

“Oh, yes, yes.” She squirmed beneath his mouth. “Like that. This… Get a patent for your tongue, too, while you’re at it. My eyes are rolling back in my head and…” Her words dissolved in a moan.

As she tightened beneath his touch, he nibbled, tasting and stroking her until she panted and squirmed.

“I need you.” The words burst from her. He wanted to taste her mouth, too, but that would have to wait. He couldn’t stop licking her, enjoying her sighs of pleasure as he brought her to the edge.

“You have me.”

“You know what I mean. Heille, don’t tease me any longer. I need it. I need you.”

Rising over her, he lifted her legs onto his shoulders and centered himself at her core. She jerked her hips upward as he drove himself inside, burying himself as deeply as he could.

“Yes,” she said, her head thrashing on the rock.

He took everything she had to offer and gave it back tenfold, driving her to the crest before slowing, then taking her there again.

Over and over until she screamed his name.

“I’m pleasantly sated,” she said as she leaned into his side. They sat near the pool and while he had not donned his handcrafted garlong, preferring to remain naked at her request, he was feeding her a meal he had created for her.

He held up the leaf with pinair nuts, offering her more, but she nudged his hand away.

“I can’t eat another bite.”

“Arient?” A fruit he’d collected.

“I can’t stuff in another. Truly, I’m full to the brim. If I eat anything else, I’m going to explode.”

He eased away from her and stood. “Then I will put the rest away for tomorrow.”

She stared up at him, and when her gaze traveled down his body, his stick of joy responded. He would never tire of fucking her, but he wanted to ensure his courtship was complete. It was a matter of principle.

“What’s next?” she asked eagerly. “I’m really enjoying this time together, by the way. It’s been a welcome break from the hell surrounding us. And after my week pinned on the space station, it’s nice to relax, enjoy a good meal, and…” Her gaze drilled his cock. “And other things.”

“I wish to discuss your library, and the book I brought from Earth. As you know, there is no… librareee in my clan.”

“Cool. I’ll create the first! I have all sorts of ideas. I’ll start with a tiny library and build from there.”

“Many have books in their homes,” he said, squirming. Did he dare tell her? “And there are books at the small school where our younglings attend.”

“That’s good. It’s a start.”

He stroked her hair with his naanans. “Your hair tufts fascinate me.”

Her liebrows rose. “Tufts?”

“Is that not what Earthlings sometimes call these strands of keratin? Back in my village, after I was chosen in the Selection, I sent for a book about Earth.” He had to tell her. A few of his fellow clan had snickered, though others had expressed admiration and asked to borrow the book.

“What book did you choose?”

“A dicteern-airy.”

She widened her eyes. “What book is that? I’m not sure I’ve heard of… Oh. You mean a dictionary?”

“Yes, that is the name of the book. Dicteern-airy. I read it, studying all the words that refer to Earth customs and traditions. Tuft. A bunch or collection of threads, grass, hair, etc., held or growing together at the base. It is another name for hair, is it not?”

“It…could be.” Her head tilted. “You really studied a dictionary.”

“I did.”

“Wow. That’s dedication. To think you did this to impress me.”

“Is this humorous, something to be mocked?” He braced himself, but he never should have doubted her. Doubted them.

“It’s amazing. I’m very impressed.”

His shoulders loosened.

“I brought some books with me. They’re…” Her smile fell. “They were on the star ship traveling from Earth. Do you think I’ll see them again?”

“We will escape Yarris and travel to Crakair. I am sure your books will be there, waiting for you. You will share them with me? Books are rare in my village. My dicteern-airy was popular. Other males have applied for the Selection and hope to be chosen. They are studying, as well.”

“I will help you.” She beamed at him. “I’ll help all of you.”

He ran his fingertips down her cheek, and she quivered.

“Hot damn. What kind of pheromones do you emit? With every touch, you deploy Cupid’s arrows. Whenever I’m with you, I’m a floundering mess. My emotions go haywire, and my brain freezes. My tongue has no clue what to do but ramble and—”

“I like that I make you go to the wire of hay. That you flounder in a mess. That your tongue has no suspicion of what to say, because I feel the same.”

Her fluttering fingers stilled at her sides. She bunched the grass tightly. “You do?”

“Yes.” He dipped his head forward. “Emotions are funny things, are they not? I…for so long, I have dreamt of having someone special in my life.”

“Me, too, but I was scared.”

“It hurts to give your heart and lose the one you love, but if you do not give your heart, you never know what it is like to truly live.”

“I want to live.”

“Then do not worry about what each touch or word means. Close your eyes and feel.” He stroked her hair again, smoothing it with both hands before gliding the ends back and forth across her shoulders until she laughed. “Soft. My naanans are firm. I still marvel that your hair does not move on its own.”

“Sometimes, the wind grabs it and whips it around, but then I pull it up in a ponytail.” She lifted it to show him, then let it drop to swirl around her shoulders.

A light breeze skipped through the area, cooling his scales.

“I have never thought to make a tail of the pony with my naanans but I should.”

“That would be interesting,” she said with a smile. “You could make a man bun by coiling it up in a circle.”

“You must show me. As for your coo-peed with the arrows, this being must wait. I have more courtship to do. I will emulse your feet. This is tradition.”

“I’ve read about emulsion. Were you able to find a creature similar to the one used on Crakair?”

“I was not, but I did locate something better.” Reaching into the bag he’d crafted from broad truntar leaves, he pulled out the fibrous plant substance he located while foraging. It was close. Near enough to satisfy his mate-to-be?

Stooping down at her feet, he placed the plant substance beside his knee.

“You need to know I’m ticklish,” she said. “Do your thing but know I’ll laugh to the point of tears all the way through it.”

He cocked one brow ridge upward. “Is that a challenge?”

She flicked her hand at him and lay back in the grass. “Do it, Wulf. I’m going to lounge around and giggle.”

This was a solemn occasion, but he couldn’t stop flashing his fangs. His mate-to-be had brought sunshine into his life.

Lifting her foot, he carefully laid the ectar plant on the ground beneath and lowered her foot on top of it. While he encased her in the fibers, she spoke.

“What’s the real purpose of emulsion?”

“It soothes your skin and enhances your nails.”

“Nail enhancement? I can’t wait to see what you mean.” She nibbled on her lower lip, something he wanted to do. “What kind of enhancement are we talking about?”

“You will like it.”

She snorted. “A promise or a threat?”

“Relax,” he said, stroking her leg, savoring the prickly feel of her skin. “Enjoy.”

“What am I supposed to feel? Because, so far, it’s not tickling.”

“You will not laugh to tears. Not today.”

“I’m not complaining. Sure, tickling is fun, but it’s one of those almost-painful things you don’t mind but also don’t seek out.”

He could not imagine such a thing as this tic-lash. Crakairians were not tic-lash.

When the emulsion had finished, he carefully unwrapped her foot then repeated the process with the other.

“Can I look?” she asked, starting to sit up.

“Not yet.” He gently pushed her back and leaned over her to steal a kiss. He’d never get enough of her taste and her sighs.

Moving back to her feet, he unwrapped her foot and stared down at the result. Yes, this would do.

“You may see,” he said.

With liebrows lifted, Taylor sat up. When she spied her feet, her eyes widened.

“You do not like it,” he said, concerned but not truly worried for the first time since he was matched with an Earthling female. He had confidence in her affection, in them. That would not be torn from him now.

“I do. It’s… wow. I’ve never had florescent orange toes before.”

“On Crakair, this is considered very sexy.”

“I’m all about more sex appeal.”

Leaving her feet, he straddled her hips and leaned over her. His naanans got to work, teasing her flesh. “You have more sex appeal than a bleender.”

“I’m going to roll with that and not ask for specifics.”

“You will like it.”

“I like this.” She rocked her hips up, seeking…

“It is time, mate-to-be, to ensure you are fully satisfied.”

They chose not to dress, deciding it was more fun being naked.

“Sleep?” Wulf asked as they stood in the moonlight watching each other. The small pool gleamed, a dark treasure where he discovered the joy of being with Taylor.

She peered around. “Sure. What do you have in mind?”

“I have created a safe place for us.” Wulf took her hand and tugged her toward a wilter.

“Up in a tree?”

“When we reach my—our—home, you will enjoy the house I have built.” When he’d been chosen for the Mate Selection, he used the lunairs between notification and her anticipated arrival to make his home perfect. “I cannot wait to show you.” Rustic before, as it was only him living in the space, he expanded within the center of his tree, adding another level and two rooms, plus an open deck on the top where they could sit together and watch the stars. “You will like living in the treetops.”

“I’ve enjoyed snuggling with you each night in a tree.”

“My home is better.”

She stroked his face. “I’m not sure anything can be better.”

“You will see.” He led her toward where he hung his clingling.

“I read about the houses the Vikir built in the canopy,” she said in wonder. “I can’t picture what they’re like, but I’m excited to see.”

“No Vikir has slept on an open limb in generations unless he was away from the village, hunting,” Wulf said, stopping at the wilter he inspected and prepared earlier. “And even then, they bring a clingling to hang between branches. I have constructed a clingling for us and later, when we leave here, we will take it with us.”

“What’s a clingling?”

“A bed in a wilter tree.” He tugged her near. “Will you share my clingling with me, mate-to-be? This is an honor among Vikir.”

Her breath eased out, and she grinned up at him. “I thought you’d never ask.” Stepping back, she nodded. “Take me to your clingon.”

“Clingling.”

“Whatever.”

She teased. With a snort, he wrapped his arms around her. “Hold on.”

“Here we go again. I’m ready, Tarzan.”

“Tarzan is heroic.”

“He is.”

“And muscular.”

“That, as well.” She chuckled. “Where are you going with this?”

“Tarzan, however, does not have my stick of joy.”

Her lips curled up and mischief filled her eyes. “I’m not sure about that. Perhaps you need to show me.”

17

Taylor

A  few nights later, something woke Taylor. A sound on the ground?

The scraping shuffle reached her again, and when Wulf loomed up over her and placed a careful hand over her mouth, terror rushed through her.

Something was happening.

He leaned close to her ear. “Remain here?”

She nodded.

He eased backward and leaped off the branch where he’d created a nest for them about twenty feet off the ground in the wilter tree.

She sat up and, making as little noise as possible, slipped on her dress and shoes. The moons had fled, leaving the sky dark and sullen. Something cried out in the forest beyond the boulder wall, and she froze, staring in that direction. When the sound wasn’t repeated, she eased across their nest, gathering up their few things that had scattered.

She savored lying in this simple bed with Wulf each night, snuggling up to his warmth. They’d loved each other most of the night, and while her body twinged in places it never had, if he was here with her and eager to be together, she’d do it again. He made her insatiable for him.

A crack from the ground beneath her made her still. She clutched the bag Wulf made, where she’d stuffed the rest of their food. Fear made her hands shake. What was happening? Was Wulf okay?

Her heart galloped in her chest, and she couldn’t control her breathing.

When a shadow loomed beside her, she bit back her yelp. She tumbled backward, almost falling off the clingling, but Wulf grabbed her shoulder and kept her from going over the side.

He pulled her into his arms. “It is all right.” His voice did not rise above a low murmur.

“What was it? Why did you leave so fast?” she whispered. It took a big swallow to push down the lump in her throat.

“I heard…” His head jerked up, and he scented the air. Grabbing her hands, he squeezed them. “We need to leave. Run.”

“What’s out there?”

“I found tracks but did not locate those who created them.”

“Inside our oasis?”

“On the other side of the boulders. Whoever it was came in close and remained there for some time before leaving. They ran. Some on foot. Others…not.”

Her mouth went dry, and she couldn’t stop her hands from shaking. “The Al’kieern.”

He nodded.

“So, we’ll run. Where?”

“Toward their compound.”

“It’s still a few days travel away.” She slipped the strap of the bag over her shoulder. “Can we travel through the trees? I know it’s more work for you, but I don’t know how far I can run.” She tightened her spine, but her eyes stung. There was nothing wrong with being scared. They’d have to travel at night, when Yarris creatures hunted.

“I cannot travel through the trees the full kleks,” he said. “But I will take us as far as I am able.” He darted his gaze around their tiny utopia. They’d only been here a short time, and she’d miss it. For a few days, she felt safe. Loved. She made memories here that would last a lifetime.

She moved close to the trunk, and he gathered the clingling, stuffing it into a bag on his back. After making sure his sword could be pulled easily, he tugged her close. “Hold me tight.”

Her tears wouldn’t stop flowing, but she let them come. She’d known they’d have to leave for the compound soon, but she’d fooled herself into thinking there was safety on Yarris. From the moment she crash landed, something had hunted her. She’d pulled Wulf into the web with her.

Wulf leaped up and forward, grabbing onto the branch of a tree near the one they’d slept in. He didn’t stop. Swinging, he flung them up over a boulder and to the next tree. Another after that. Over and over, until she lost count.

His breathing became ragged, and his pace slowed.

“I’m holding you back.” If only she could do something besides hang around his neck while he did the work.

“I am holding us back, and I do apologize.” He paused on a wide branch, and she slid to her feet, clinging to his arms when the branch creaked and shifted beneath them.

“It’s not your fault. You’re doing everything you can.” She peered around but couldn’t see further than the reach of her arms. “Do you think they’ll follow?”

“We must assume they will. If I can secure a place for you, I will hunt them,” he said. “Bring it to them before they bring it to us.”

“Does a safe place exist on Yarris?” She’d be honest, if only with herself. She was not only useless in defending herself against everything here—short of flinging snakes or nudging aside cuttlier—she was slowing Wulf down. “You go on without me,” she said. “It would be easier for you to get into the compound if I wasn’t literally hanging on you, right? Take me to a treetop and leave me there.” She nudged her head against the bag on her back. “I packed food. I know how to find water. I will survive until you—”

“No.”

She pushed against his chest, but she might as well try to shove a mountain. He crossed his arms and said nothing.

“Tell me where to go,” she said. “I’ll come along behind you and catch up by the time you’ve stolen a ship.”

“I am not leaving you behind.”

“You have to. I’m a burden.”

“You are everything. You are the reason I am here.”

“And that’s another weight I carry, knowing you’d be safe on Crakair if you hadn’t had to come after me.”

“That is where you are wrong. I did not have to come after you.” He held up his hand when she would’ve spoken. “Commander Vork could have sent others to the space station, an entire fleet of vessels. The station would have released you. The Al’kieern would not wish to take on the superior Crakairian military. If I had stood down, if I had remained on Crakair and let someone else do this, I would not be here. I want to be here. I am grateful I am here.”

“You’re in danger. I put you in danger, and I hate it.”

“I volunteered to follow your ship to the surface. Do you not see? I want to be with you.”

Her eyes burned with unshed tears. “Really?”

“Really.” He held her arms. “Have I convinced you that you are not a burden?”

She snorted. “Sort of. I’m sorry.”

“It is…okay. That is the right word. Kay of O is not correct. I do not fully understand this expression, but you use it, and I will as well. Know this, my love. We are in this together. I will not leave you, and you are not a burden. We go forward at a pace we can both sustain. Kay of O?”

“Kay of O.” She felt silly for bringing this up.

He dropped his face down close to hers. “Do not do this.”

“Do what?” Her lower lip trembled. By bringing this up, she added to the weight he carried.

“Do not be hard on yourself about this.” Straightening, he pressed his fist against his chest then moved it to hers. “Do not tell yourself your feelings have no meaning. I value them. I value you.”

“All right.” She raised her chin. “Let’s do this. What’s next?”

“Next, we need to reach the ground and move on foot.”

“I’m ready.”

“You are amazing.” He bared his fangs. “Hold on to me again, because I am about to become your Tarzan.”

She jumped up and wrapped her arms around his shoulders, her legs around his waist.

He dove off the tree.

18

Wulf

He hated that Taylor doubted herself.

But he was strong enough for both of them. The might of his arms, the skills he’d learned from his warrior regiment, and his confidence in her would carry them for now. With time, she would come to see herself as he saw her, as a capable, kind, funny, and worthy woman.

He was proud of his mate-to-be. She faced one adversity after another with her chin lifted. It was natural for her to break on occasion. She’d spent a likar in captivity followed by a crash, then running for her life on a dangerous planet. Other than while in their oasis, when had she last had a full night’s sleep or a solid meal? His garlong-prepared feasts had satisfied, but they could not rival what he could provide for her on Crakair.

With a grunt, he landed on the ground. He’d scanned the area before dropping the final distance, not willing to risk his mate without assuring himself nothing lurked in the area.

“We run from here?” she asked, peering around. “Which direction?”

He took her hand and tipped his head to the right. A small track wound through the forest, and he’d follow it as long as it took them in the correct direction. If they were lucky, they’d make good progress. By mid-morning, they could rest, then run some more.

He didn’t expect her to keep the pace he would’ve if he traveled alone. He would carry her for part of the journey. It wasn’t weakness on her part. She wore dainty footwear. She was not a warrior, not in the traditional Vikirian sense. Not on the outside, that is. Inside, she rivaled any of his ancestral driegons. She may not wield a sword or shoot flames from her mouth, but her heart contained the same fire as Wulf’s. He was proud to have her with him.

Something roared to their right. A spidaire. Thuds told him a pack hunted nearby. They would pick up his and Taylor’s scent. Fuck. He’d hoped the creatures would be sleeping by now.

At the cry, Taylor skittered forward, and he kept pace, sweeping her up as he passed her. He raced down the narrow trail, leaping over fallen logs and evading the projecting spikes of puste vines. No time to pull his sword and slice through them. Danger lurked everywhere in the Yarris jungle. Could he keep his mate safe?

A hum from behind grew in volume. He knew that sound, and it sent chills through his bones.

He heard it daelas ago but dismissed it.

“That’s…” Taylor’s wide eyes met Wulf’s. “A ship is coming. Do you think it’s your friend, Commander Vork?” Her smile bloomed, but it fell when she took in his grim expression.

His stomach twisted, and he jerked his head no. “We need to get away.”

“You think it’s the Al’kieern, don’t you?” She gaped at the dense vegetation surrounding them. “Where can we hide?”

A laser blast hit the ground beside his foot.

Wrapping his arms around her to protect her, he dove off the trail. He landed hard and twisted, taking the brunt of their fall. Taylor hissed but remained silent. Once again, she amazed him. She sensed his need and acted, not squealing or putting up a fuss. This was a female he was proud to claim, proud to have standing by his side.

Engines whirred as the vehicle coasted overhead, too close for comfort. If he knew the Al’kieern, they’d have heat-seeking equipment that would pin down their location.

Had he and Taylor been seen leaving the grove? The footprints he found had pointed to a good-sized group of Al’kieern. Fifteen or twenty. They must have found his ship, or the one Taylor used to escape from the space station. They searched, tracking his and Taylor’s progress through the jungle.

He needed to get his mate off this planet before it was too late. Captured, they would kill him and sell Taylor for a high price.

Lowering her to the forest floor, he took her hand and tugged her through a denser part of the jungle, moving them away from where the ship had stalled above the treetops. He remained underneath thick foliage, hoping it would be enough to mask their heat signal.

A flash of light ahead of them was followed by a burst of flames.

Fuck, they were pinned down.

His shoulders tight, he pulled Taylor close and, sheltering her, urged her to crawl beneath a cluster of pricar bushes. The thorns snagged the back of his shirt, and he prayed none scraped his skin. If the sap coating the tips reached his bloodstream, he would be unconscious within minars, leaving his mate defenseless.

Another blast rained down from the ship, searing across the ground, a jagged slice that scorched the earth and set the vegetation ablaze. It roared their way.

Beasts screamed in the jungle, and hooves thundered as a herd rushed this way. If Wulf played this right… He had no choice.

Deviating in that direction, he scooched along the ground on his belly with Taylor at his back. If they could get to the herd, they could run with them. Maybe. From here, he could not tell what species approached. But with shots being fired and the jungle ablaze, most predators would be more interested in escape than hunting.

He reached the edge of the pricar bushes and paused to wait, placing his finger over his mouth when Taylor started to speak.

A massive cluster of spidaire, kruchion, and tricadore thundered toward where he crouched with Taylor. Bellows were followed by shrieks as laser blasts rained down around the creatures.

The beasts stomped past, their necks outstretched, their feet slamming on the ground.

Wulf darted out among them, pulling Taylor behind.

They raced among the creatures, dodging stomping feet and lashing tails. A kruchion spied them but kept running, shoving a tricadore in the side to make room for the three younglings thundering with her.

This might work. If they could remain with the beasts, the animals would mask their heat signals. The question was: were they visible from above?

Lifting Taylor, he leaped, landing on the back of a tricadore. If the creature knew they were there, it did not care. It continued down the trail, herding its youngling ahead of it.

“We’re riding,” Taylor yelled.

He spoke near her ear. “Francis, we are rushing across the desert on camels.” Sort of.

“I’m not Francis,” she shouted and lifted her arms overhead. “I’m Taylor.”

“Do you not wish for Francis’ scoundrel? For Jane’s Tarzan?”

She leaned back in his arms. “I only want you.”

An agitated spidaire rushed up beside them, its frantic gaze looking for a way through. When the tricadore family didn’t dash out of the way fast enough, the spidaire spit poison. It splattered the ground around the tricadore at the back of their group, and the earth smoldered.

Laser blasts hit the forest, razoring fire from the sky.

Wulf’s heart slammed behind his ribs, and his thigh muscles burned from gripping the sides of the tricadore. He could only imagine how Taylor felt. His tiny mate was not used to any of this. Wulf, at least, had ridden wildarns. She’d valiantly kept up, but the limp he noticed earlier had become more pronounced. He’d seen the blisters on her feet, and it ripped through him.

Standing their ground would be suicidal. The Al’kieern outnumbered them and were heavily armed.

What could Wulf do?

A spidaire charged toward the tricadore they rode, and Wulf scooped up Taylor and leaped off the side. He tumbled on the ground, shielding Taylor, then sprang up. A jump, and he grabbed a branch overhead. He swung them up and onto the wide limb.

Taylor clung to his neck, and her panicked gaze met his. “Let me go! You can get away. I’ll stay here.”

Heille, no.

He sprang forward with Taylor in his arms and landed on another tricadore. The beast snorted and reared back. Wulf slid down its spine, his heels digging into the creature’s butt. When he reached the tail, he propelled them up and across the beast to the other side. They landed on the ground among the youngling, but the adults gave them no notice, more concerned about protecting the younglings from the spidaires.

The spidaire roared and gave pursuit. So much for the creatures being too frightened to notice he and Taylor running in their midst.

Wulf raced around a kruchion, and it shrieked. Spinning, it attacked, its beak slamming toward them. Wulf dove to the side, taking Taylor with him, but he wasn’t able to protect her from harm. She cried out as they hit, and the terror in her voice burned through him like laser fire.

He couldn’t protect his mate.

Rising, he rushed to the edge of the trail, ducking beneath the broad, leafy branches of a wilter tree. He lowered Taylor to the ground and stood in front of her, his drawn sword in his hand.

As the spidaire scrambled toward them, and the kruchion lifted a clawed foot, prepared to slam it down on Wulf, something hit him in the spine. He stumbled forward as pain stabbed through him.

“Wulf,” Taylor shrieked. “Wulf!”

Like a tree sliced through by a wudar, Wulf toppled to the ground.

The world rushed in. Then everything went black.

19

Taylor

A  flash hit Wulf in the back, and he fell.

Taylor leaped forward and snatched his sword from the ground. It was all she could do to lift it but damn, she would defend Wulf to the death.

While creatures bellowed and rushed past them, she braced herself over Wulf and shrieked a challenge at the relentless spidaire. The beast stomped forward, its claws clacking and spittle flying.

Arms trembling, Taylor lifted the sword. She was a mighty warrior. She was an Earth woman protecting her Crakairian mate.

She was a fuckin’ librarian.

As the spidaire thundered closer, she held the sword steady. If she was lucky, she’d get in a blow before the creature trampled them.

The beast’s hot breath hit her face. Around her, the ground sizzled and fried from the spidaire’s spit.

Taylor screamed and slashed out with tears of rage running down her face. She wouldn’t give up on Wulf. She wouldn’t give up on them.

The spidaire reared back, its claws cracking together. With a grunt, it descended, fangs gnashing, claws reaching toward her.

An arc of light blazed past her and slammed into the spidaire’s chest. It stumbled backward and, writhing, released a high-pitch shriek. Pivoting on its hind legs, it staggered, trying to escape, but another blast hit its spine, and it tumbled. Its face bit into the dirt, and its legs spasmed.

As the last of the other animals fled, leaving dust clouding the air and the taste of defeat on Taylor’s tongue, she turned to see who approached.

It was clear what the blast meant. One had hit Wulf.

Laser pistols in hand, at least fifteen winged Al’kieern flew down toward her. Others rushed close on foot.

She hefted the sword. “Don’t come near us!”

The Al’kieern in the front of the pack laughed. “Earthling female foolish. Weapon down.”

“I mean it. I’m deadly with this thing.”

Four broke off from the pack and flew out wide, flanking her. The rest crowded in at once, and the blue-skinned, four-armed alien in the lead leaped onto Taylor.

She fell backward, twisting to keep from hitting Wulf.

“Leave me alone!” She slashed out with the sword, but the Al’kieern wrenched it from her grip.

While she scrambled to pull the knife from the sheath on her leg, he tossed the sword aside. Latching onto her arm, he held it tight, grinning. “Buyers wait, breeder.”

She kneed him in the groin and reeled backward, but she came to a shuddering stop. Her eyes widened as she stared around.

They were surrounded.

“Treessse,” she stuttered. “You brought mini-carpet friends.”

Hundreds of tiny treessses ringed the area.

I watch. Owe debt to Mila. Paysss to Taylor? Treessse said in her mind.

She bowed. Thank you. These Al’kieern want to capture me and sell me as a breeder.

No sell. No capture. Taylor needsss be free.

“You’ve got that right, friend,” she said.

“Attack,” the head Al’kieern shrieked, waving toward Treessse’s friends.

Lasers blasts ricocheted, setting the jungle on fire.

Treessse and his friends flew at the Al’kieern, landing on their faces. While the Al’kieern smacked at the creatures and whirled around, some flying up and crashing into trees, more of Treessse’s friends descended. They flung themselves on the Al’kieern, who stumbled into thorn bushes and shrubs. Others toppled to the ground, overcome by the army of mini carpets.

In an impossibly short time, the forest went silent.

Taylor stood among the rubble made up of fallen Al’kieern, Treessse and his friends, and smoldering vegetation.

With a cry, she dropped down beside Wulf. She rolled him onto his back and studied his face, too terrified of what she’d find if she checked for a pulse. Crakairian anatomy hadn’t been covered in the protocol manual. Even a kick-ass librarian couldn’t do anything to save Wulf now.

Book smarts meant nothing when someone you…someone she loved lay motionless in front of her. If he was dying, there was no way she could do a damn thing to save him. It was ripping her apart.

Why did she wait to tell him what he meant to her?

“Wulf,” she said, carefully stroking his face. “Please. Wake up.”

Debt is paid, Taylor, Treessse said in her mind. Tell Mila.

She sniffed but didn’t look up. “Thank you, Treessse.” Her voice croaked. She couldn’t look away from Wulf. What should she do? The blast to his back… She saw it. Even if he still lived, there was no way she could help him survive in a jungle. His wound would fester. They’d be attacked while they remained on the ground. She was not capable of carrying him up into a tree.

Crakairian male wounded, Treessse said, tiptoeing over to her on his carpet fringe feet.

I…there isn’t anything I can do for him.

No matebond. Find another?

She snarled. “I don’t care if we’re not matebonded in the Crakairian way.” Tipping her head back, she held up her hand. “See this palm, world? It doesn’t have a matebond symbol, and I don’t give a shit.” Her voice broke. “I don’t! We have no matebond symbol, but I love him. I choose him.” Thrusting her hand higher, she screamed at the top of her voice. “I choose Wulf!”

I can heal him, Treessse said.

Taylor crumpled. “You already paid your debt,” she whispered, stroking Wulf’s naanans. Move. Please. Wulf. Don’t die. “You don’t owe me anything else.”

Friends help friends, correct?

Hope bloomed in her heart. Was it possible?

Yes, Treessse, they do. She lay down beside Wulf and pressed her forehead into his shoulder. They do.

Then I will heal him.

“Thank you.”

Treessee bowed and, as Taylor got to her knees, multiple mini carpets clustered around Wulf. They turned him onto his side and one leaped forward, plastering itself over the gaping wound in his back. The creatures around them swayed and hummed, filling the world with an eerie, discordant song.

Magic is all around if you seek it, Treessse said.

Magic. He was right.

The humming stopped and silence echoed around them.

The creature who had attached itself to Wulf’s back slid off, onto the ground. It eased backward, half-staggering.

Tears sprang up in Taylor’s eyes as she stared at the spot where the wound had been. “It’s… It’s gone. How is this possible?”

Where there is love, there is life.

“Thank you, Treessse. I owe you, and I’ll pay the debt any way I can. You don’t happen to need books, do you?”

Booksss?

“With books, you can go anywhere. You can see the galaxy, learn about other cultures, and be whoever you choose to be.” Even yourself.

I would like booksss.

“Then I’ll get some for you.” She had no idea how she’d do it, but she’d find a way.

Taylor and Crakairian male must leave. We will destroy the blue invaders’ compound and retake our home. Yarris is for us, not those from other planets.

“I fully agree, and you’re right, we need to leave.”

Wulf rolled onto his back, and his eyes opened. “Taylor?” he croaked. “Are you safe?” He started to rise but fell back to the pink grass. “I need to rest.”

“You do, love.” She dragged the sword close, keeping it near in case she needed it. “I’ll watch over you instead of the other way around.” Leaning over him, she kissed him, savoring his taste and the fire he lit inside her whenever they touched.

His arms lifted to hold her close, and he groaned.

When she came up for breath, only Treessse remained nearby. His friends had merged with the forest as if they’d never been here.

“Hey, Treessse,” she said as Wulf sat up and tugged her onto his lap.

She wrapped her legs around his waist and cupped his shoulders, stroking his scales while his naanans teased along her spine.

Yesss?

“I don’t suppose you know how we can get off this planet?” Her lips twitched as she looked up at Wulf. Damn, he was hot. She was eternally grateful she still had him in her life.

Have ship. You owe favor? Pay back by taking ship with you.

She held out her hand for a mini carpet high-five. Treessse hesitated but then leaped up and smacked her hand with his own.

“Tell you what, buddy,” she said with a laugh. “Take us to the ship, and you’ve got a deal.”

20

Wulf

A fter putting the ship into autopilot, Wulf left the captain’s chair and strode to the chair secured beside it.

Taylor sat with her legs curled up and her arms wrapped around them. She grinned at him. “How long before we reach home?”

Home. Their home. His heart sang with a feeling he couldn’t describe, a combination of hope, love, and belonging.

“Five daelas to reach Crakair and then a daela travel inland.”

“I can’t wait. I want to meet everyone in your village and settle into our home together.”

“Taylor.” Her name came out in a groan. His chest expanded, threatening to burst. He could not stop baring his fangs. This woman. His mate. How had fate been so kind?

She loved him. She told him over and over again while they traveled to the ship.

Part of the journey was a blur, but what stood out most was Taylor declaring her love for him. Yes, a computer on Earth had matched them in the Selection, but with no matebond symbol forming on their palms, the decision to stay with him or leave had been hers.

And she chose him.

“Five days, huh?” She rose from the chair and wrapped her arms around him. Tipping her head back, she grinned. “Gee, what do you think we should to do with all our free time?”

“I would finish our courtship, if you would let me.”

“Ah yes. Courtship. Marriage. Fucking. I think we took things out of order.”

“I will rectify that soon. You do not mind that I switched the order?”

“I’m yours. As for the courtship…” She took his hand and led him off the bridge. They traveled down the hall and stopped at the washroom outfitted with an enormous tub. No zinters, but a male could not be picky. “I think we should take a nice long bath.”

“You wish me to worship your body, do you not?”

She winked. “How could you tell?”

“Because nothing would make me happier than to love you for the next five daelas.”

“How about the rest of your life?”

“I have also chosen. You are mine, and I am yours.”

After a long, heady kiss, Taylor sashayed into the washroom, calling out over her shoulder. “If you massage my…back, I’ll massage yours.”

With a growl, he gave chase, sweeping her up in his arms. He spun while she laughed, then he kissed her until they were both silly.

21

Taylor

Wulf and Taylor had cooked up a surprise.

Before they landed on Crakair, they spoke with Commander Vork via holoimage. He mentioned a surprise party Mila had organized for Kral. The timing was awesome.

Together, the three made a plan…

“Surprise!” the happy voices reached Taylor and Wulf as they stood on a wooden platform at the top of a tree.

“This place is amazing,” Taylor said, looking around. She couldn’t believe how lush everything was and how well-made the houses in Wulf’s village were. To keep with the surprise, they hadn’t told anyone they were coming. Commander Vork arranged for a ship to take them from the spaceport to the Vikir village, where they hurried through the woods to the main access tree. “All of you live here in the treetops?”

“We do.” Wulf bared his fangs. Tugging her into his arms, he gave her a quick kiss. Then another, longer kiss filled with promise.

They pulled apart and smiled at each other. It had been wonderful spending days with him, learning his likes and what made him tick. They grew closer, and spent a lot of time in the bed they found in the Captain’s quarters.

“We have to go, or we’ll be late,” she said, taking his hands and squeezing. “We don’t have to stay long. I just need to make sure they’re K to the O.”

“We will visit with your friends, and then we will go home. To our home.”

“I can’t wait to see it.”

“I hope you will like it.”

He said that more than once, enough she could tell he worried.

“Don’t you know?” She stroked one of his naanans and the shiver he released sent heat arcing through her. “I was happy sleeping in a tree with you and in our tiny oasis in the middle of a jungle. If you live in a hut or an open field, I’m still yours. You’re not driving me away.”

“You.” He tugged her close and hugged her, resting his chin on the top of her head. “I could not be happier.”

“Me, too.” She snuggled against him, content. Who needed parties and friends? They had each other, and that was enough for her.

But a spark of excitement lit inside her. She hadn’t seen Mila and Lily since they were kidnapped off the star ship. Commander Vork told her they were happy with their mates, but until she saw this with her own eyes, she wouldn’t relax.

They approached the door and, as arranged with Commander Vork, they entered the house without knocking. Laughter and the muted gurgle of a baby reached them where they hovered in the small entry.

“I’m nervous,” Taylor said, rubbing her hands together. “Watch out. Chatter alert.”

Wulf kissed her cheek. “No worries. These are our friends.”

“You’re right.” Tension left her with a whoosh, but her feet still fidgeted on the floor. She’d been thrilled to ditch her pink juglier dress in the city and put on something clean and comfortable. She added cute flats and jewelry. It was nice to feel confident in her appearance. “Are you ready?”

He nodded and, taking her hand, walked with her to the open doorway.

Ahh.

She didn’t know some of the Crakairian males and women in the room, though she recognized the crown prince, Axil, and his famous mate, Julia. Their baby girl’s face showed up regularly on TV, and Taylor couldn’t wait to hold her. Look at those tiny naanans!

Taylor’s gaze met Thea’s where she stood with her mate, Gaje. They’d also been featured on the popular TV show, Get to Know Our Aliens, and they sent regular reports from Crakair. Obviously pregnant, Thea nestled in Gaje’s arms.

“Taylor!” someone shrieked. Lily galloped across the room and barreled into Taylor. The two women laughed and jumped around together, giggling while their mates watched, their fangs bared.

“This is Jorg,” Lily said when they parted. She tugged a tall Crakairian male forward and grinned at him.

He dipped his head. “Taylor. I have heard many nice things about you. Before anything else, I wish to thank you for your bridal shower gift.”

Leave it to a librarian to give her friends edible undies.

“You’re welcome. I hope they were fun.” Taylor brought Wulf forward. “This is my mate, Wulf.”

“Nice to meet you.” Lily gave him a big hug. “No formality among friends, Wulf,” she said with a laugh, stepping back. “You make Tay happy, and we’re friends for life.”

Wulf flashed his fangs, his face smoothing. Poor guy. Had he been worried? He’d soon see her friends were awesome, that they’d make him feel welcome. They’ll soon be one big happy family.

“Where’s Mila?” Taylor asked, peering around the room but not spying her other friend.

Evie, Commander Vork’s mate, waved. She stood beside a woman who must be Lily’s sister, Sadie, since the two women looked alike. Sadie waved, as well, and leaned into the side of Bryk, her mate.

So many matches made. Happy Earthlings and Crakairians all around.

Lily frowned and peered past Taylor. “Mila was here a few minars ago, but I think she had something to show Kral outside.” With a soft frown, she pointed. “Go down the hall, to the left, and out onto their back deck. I think you’ll find them there.” She turned to Jorg. “I’ve got to go make sure Bane doesn’t make the chocolate seize. He was adamant he could handle it, but you know how picky I am about chocolate.” She smiled at Taylor. “Find Mila and bring her back. We have so much catching up to do!”

With a grin, Taylor tugged Wulf from the room and down the hall. But when she peeked through the back door and found Mila making out with a Crakairian male, she turned back to Wulf. “Let’s leave them alone a little longer,” she whispered. “They’ll come inside soon, and we’ll see them then.”

“I am sure they will.” He wrapped his arms around her and urged her close. Nudging her hair to the side with a naanan, he kissed her neck and nibbled his way up to her mouth.

They kissed before turning to return to their friends in the living room.

“Come, mate,” he said, taking her hand. “You must show me this choco-lait. I wish to try it.”

“Mate,” she said pertly. “I noticed you’re no longer calling me mate-to-be. I’m the real deal.”

“You are.” He stopped in the middle of the kitchen and, lifting her hand, kissed her knuckles.

A pinch, and she frowned at their clasped hands. “Wait. What was that…?” Had something bitten them?

His eyes widened then smoldered. “Mate,” he breathed. He said it stronger, louder. “Mate!”

They separated their hands and held them out to each other, palms up. Two matching matebond symbols had appeared where only smooth skin and scales had been before.

With a big grin, Taylor jumped into Wulf’s arms, wrapping her arms and legs around him.

He whirled her around until her head spun.

Tipping their heads back, they laughed together.

Bonus Epilogue

TAYLOR

“A re you ready for your surprise?” Wulf asked Taylor, coming up behind her in their small kitchen. His arms went around her waist, and he kissed her neck.

Delicious shivers shot through her. They’d finished dinner and it wasn’t time for bed, but…

Oh, yeah, he told her earlier he had a surprise.

“More than ready.”

“I believe you will like this.”

“I know I will.” She loved their tiny house nestled in the upper branches of a huge tree. She loved making friends among the people in their village. And she loved pleasing Wulf. Nothing was going to change that.

Turning in his embrace, she grinned. It seemed she spent her entire day grinning. But she was with Wulf, and he guaranteed happiness. “Tell me what you’re planning. Come on. You know you can tell me anything.” Tracing her fingertips along his side, she leaned into him, drinking in his scent and the way he made her heart race whenever he came near.

“You cannot make me tell,” he said, his voice full of laughter. “Even if you…tinkle.”

She held back her snort. Tinkle. Tickle. Same thing.

“We must leave, mate, before it gets too dark,” he said. “You only need to wear this.” He held up a long strip of cloth.

“That won’t cover much. I’m going naked?” She wiggled her eyebrows.

“If you wish.” He bared his fangs. “Though I believe you would startle the perimeter guards as we passed.”

“Wouldn’t want to shock your regiment buddies.” Who’d been nothing but kind to her, but still.

She’d been pleased to note the deference the other warriors paid Wulf. He was respected and admired for his knowledge and skills, as he should be. Since they’d settled into their home together, his confidence had grown. He was currently training a new batch of Vikir recruits, bashful-bumbling teenagers who worshiped the ground Wulf strode on.

But then, so did she.

“I will place this across your eyes,” he said.

“You can blindfold me.” Please. Maybe he planned a moonlit picnic in the woods. Or a walk through the section of the forest where scented flowers only bloomed at night. Even better, a long soak in their private heated zinter pool—her favorite activity so far. They’d lounge in the water and then rolled around in the grass. Each day with Wulf was a new adventure, and Taylor woke up ready to savor whatever he suggested. Would their life together always be this awesome? She sure hoped so.

She pivoted and let him tie the binding around her face, blocking the setting sun from her view.

“We will need to swing through the trees,” he said by her ear in a deep, husky voice as he led her out onto their tiny deck.

Her skin tingled. “Maybe we should stop by the bedroom on the way?”

“Do not tempt me, mate,” he growled.

“I think you’re the one offering temptation.”

His low chuckle zipped through her like lightning, setting her ablaze.

“You’re sure?” she said.

“Very.” He turned her to face him, cupped her hips, and he urged her to jump up and wrap her arms around his neck. Her legs secured around his waist.

Despite his commitment to the evening, he had a hard-on. Only fair since she was just as eager to be with him.

“Ready?”

“Sure thing, Captain!”

They both laughed.

He leaped off their deck and swung through the treetops. With her vision blocked, the rest of her senses took over. The woods echoed with chirping insects and the calls of night birds, and in the distance, she swore she heard the dull, thudding footsteps of a wildarn herd moving through dense vegetation.

When they landed on the ground, Wulf’s arms went around her, and his mouth sought hers.

He lifted his head, and she heard the joy in his voice. “We will walk from here.”

She slid down his body to the ground, deploying a little of her own teasing ways. This guy. He took great pleasure in distracting her from whatever task she’d set herself for the day. It was only fair she return the favor.

His groan was her reward.

“None of that, mate.” Taking her hand, he tugged her forward. “Later.”

“Is that a promise?”

“Most certainly. But first, you will enjoy my surprise.” The statement didn’t come out demanding. In fact, he almost sounded uncertain.

“Can I have a hint about what it is?”

“Only one. This is something you have mentioned you miss. Something unknown to Crakair. A gift of my heart to you.”

“Aw, Wulf. You’re killing me here.”

“Then my love will build you anew.”

“You really are a poet,” she said as she padded along beside him on what must be a trail as her shoes didn’t snag in deep vegetation.

“My heart sings for you, Taylor.”

“Wulf,” she sighed. “How did you arrange this? The only time we’re not together is when you go to work or I visit a friend.”

“I have been crafting this for daelas, waiting for tonight.” He came to a stop and eased her around in front of him with her back nestled against his body. Reaching up, he untied the blindfold.

They stood in a decent-sized clearing, surrounded by dense woods. Overhead, stars filled the sky, tiny winking lights that at first had felt foreign but now made her feel at home whenever she looked at them.

“You once mentioned wishing on stars,” he said by her ear.

“No need to wish upon a star.” She leaned into his embrace. “I’ve already found my alien from afar.”

He kissed her cheek. “Wish. What do you want more than anything?”

“I’ve already got it. You.” She gulped. Was now the time? “And…”

His body stilled. “And what?”

“I’ve been waiting to be sure, but now feels like a good time to share my surprise.” Hope and wonder filled her voice. They hadn’t talked about anything like this, and she hadn’t wanted to make assumptions. Would he feel the same way she did about her news?

“Taylor.” Turning her in his embrace, he studied her face. Light from Crakair’s three moons bathed him in light. “Tell me?”

“We’re…going to have a baby.”

“Ah…” He bared his fangs, his mouth stretched wider than she’d ever seen it. “A youngling? Ours?”

“No one else’s.” Again, she couldn’t stop grinning.

She didn’t know why she’d been nervous to tell him. They hadn’t used birth control, and he’d signed up for the Selection because he wanted a mate and family. But babies were complicated beings. They brought changes, and she and Wulf had enjoyed their time alone together. When she started to suspect, she’d rested on their bed and stroked her still smooth belly, wondering about their child.

If their baby was anything like them, he or she would be strong and sensitive. Caring about others. It didn’t matter if they were born with naanans or hair, green scales or human skin. Her eyes or Wulf’s, she’d love this child until the day she died.

Dropping to his heels in front of her, Wulf cupped her waist. He tugged up her shirt and kissed her belly. “Taylor. A youngling made of you and me.” Awe made his voice deepen, and tears sprang up in her eyes.

“Yup. You ready to be a daddy?”

“Daddy. This is an Earthling word for father?” He stared up at her with his face aglow. “I like this. Daddy.”

“I’ll be a mom or mommy, whichever our child prefers.”

He straightened and held her close. “Our child, made from our love.”

A true gift.

“Women gestate nine months, but I understand Crakairians give birth sooner.” She chuckled. “That’s going to make it hard to know when to get the nursery ready.”

“I will build a new room, starting tomorrow. I will youngling-proof our entire home. This child—our child—will not want for anything. I will love him or her so much, they will never have doubts.” He took in a deep breath and released it. “I fear my surprise is not as wondrous as yours.”

“Being with you is wondrous enough for me. And a baby! I never thought I’d have a family, but I do with you already. We don’t need anyone or anything else to make us happier, but a baby… I have to admit, I’m really excited. But I also want to see your surprise.”

“Then you shall.” He stepped away from her, his fangs flashing in the moonlight, and swept out his arm toward the middle of the clearing. “What about this?”

As if he’d hit a switch, something impossible in the deep woods of Crakair, something lit up a short distance away.

“Aw, Wulf!” She clutched her hands to her chest, and she couldn’t help it. Her body shook with sobs.

“You are upset.” Wulf’s voice cracked. He tugged her close and rocked her. “I am sorry.”

“No, my tears mean you’ve made me the happiest person in the world. No, in all the galaxies combined.”

“You like it?”

“I love it.” She stepped forward and he followed. Unable to stop smiling, she approached the tree he’d decorated, covering it with handmade ornaments and lights. “Where did you find licarns?” She tapped one of the globe-like lights housing tiny, glowing insects, and it swayed. “I can’t believe you made me a Christmas tree.”

“You said you missed your holiday, Christmas.” He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “I do not know if the date fits, but I wanted to give you something that would bring you joy.”

“You know I’m going to be singing Christmas carols from now on.”

“I will sing with you.”

“And I need to tell you about Rudolph! We’re combining humans and Crakairians in a youngling, and we’ll share our traditions.”

“The best life ever,” he vowed.

She turned in his arms. “Thank you for the surprise. I love it and I love you.” Standing on tiptoes, she kissed him, and his groan rumbled in his chest as he swept her up off her feet.

He spun her around before stopping and letting her slide down his body until her feet touched the ground. “You, Taylor. You and our youngling make me complete.”

LYEL

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR, BOOK 6

LYEL

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, book 6

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

ASIN: B08KPCLY7Z

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Wren & Owl Eyes Proof & Edits

Created with Vellum

LYEL

An alien warrior seeking redemption

meets a captured Earth woman

being treated as a pet.

Will their love survive in a hostile world?

Kidnapped by four-armed, blue skinned aliens, Isabelle “Isi” is sold to the head of the Al’kieern kidnapping operation. Isi has accepted she’ll live and die as a songbird pet to the queen. If nothing else, performing for the Al’kieern beats being sold as a breeder. But a Crakairian warlord storms the Al’kieern compound, determined to destroy everything and everyone in his path. When he’s captured, Isi offers to free him if he helps her get away.

Scorned by Crakairian society after his father tried to murder a respected military commander, Lyel is willing to die to redeem his family name. He takes on a suicide mission to destroy the Al'kieern kidnapping operation on the moon, Mara. But as he’s about to blow the place to heille, he sees Isi. As she sings, a symbol appears on his palm, telling him she’s his destined mate. He’ll do anything to free her, but to escape, they must cross a grueling wasteland filled with deadly traps and with the Al’kieern hot on their heels. Will their growing love survive this challenge?

Lyel is Book 6 and the final book in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone, full-length romance has on-the-page heat, aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger. You can find the rest of the series here.

1

Lyel

L yel crawled through the long-abandoned tunnel beneath the Al’kieern stronghold on Crakair’s moon, Mara, evading the hairy vister bugs dangling from the tunnel ceiling. A vister’s wispy appendages secreted toxin. When the toxin makes contact with the person’s skin, it stuns them. While the victim lay twitching, the mother vister descends and wraps her victim in a sticky mesh. Dragging the cocooned body to her nest, she leaves them as a tasty treat for her hatching children.

Lyel’s death would not be at the claws of a vister bug. He was not afraid to die—he expected such an outcome today—but destroying the cursed Al’kieern kidnapping operation had to come first. He welcomed passing through the veil, where he would reunite with his deceased mother and little sister.

Stopping, he opened the pouch he dragged with him and pulled out a dynatem device filled with explosives. After nudging it carefully into a crack in the crumbling wall, he attached the detonate harness micro-linked to his com. Leaving the dynatem, he pulled himself farther down the passage, stopping periodically to plant more dynatems. When he reached the end of the channel, he crawled up the rung ladder leading to a tiny hidden cave below the first floor of the stronghold.

The only thing left to do was ensure the heads of the Al’kieern kidnapping ring gathered together in the great hall. Crakairian intelligence learned the covert group’s leaders would meet tonight to discuss their new plan to take ships to Earth to kidnap females they’d sell to breeders. An army of Al’kieern would remain on Earth. They intended to build a complex to facilitate ongoing capture and transfer of Earth breeders throughout the galaxy. Any Earthlings who did not fit breeder criteria would be killed.

After their failure on the jungle planet, Yarris, where the compound was destroyed by a lizzer army, plus the destruction of their space station, the kidnappers were getting desperate. They had to know the Crakairians were on to them. If their Intel was as sophisticated as that of the Crakairians, they knew the Crakairians would do everything they could to stop the project.

Once Lyel did his part this daela, the organization would be decimated. The galaxy could rest easy for the foreseeable future.

Checking his com and seeing he was ahead of schedule, he settled on the ground. Before he activated the dynatems, he’d leave his hiding spot dressed in a holosuit that would project an Al’kieern image and infiltrate the great room where the organization’s top generals planned to meet. Once he assured himself they were all present, he’d block the exits, activate the sequence on his com, and run, hoping to get far enough from the location before the dynatems deployed. The explosion would eliminate the compound and those plotting to take over Earth.

If completing this task meant his death, so be it. At least he would die restoring his family’s honor. Not long ago, his father, Piersag, declared a vengeance against Lyel’s childhood friend Vork, intending to steal Vork’s Earthling bride. Lyel was forced to fight in his father’s place, but he could not find the will to kill his friend. His father was wrong. The vengeance was wrong. Lyel allowed Vork to win, and in a rage, Piersag tried to kill Vork himself. His father died from his efforts.

Lyel watched a centitrillion approach a tiny fly that landed on the stone wall opposite where he leaned. The centitrillion pounced, eating the fly with one gulp. It stared at him, its antennas twitching, before scurrying into the gloom.

To think it had come to this, spending his last minars beneath the ground on the Al’kieern moon, Mara. Alone other than for random insects. An ache filled Lyel’s chest. No, he did not need to spend this time alone. He lifted his wrist and typed on his com. He needed a good memory. Pulling up the holoimage of his little sister, he projected it in front of him.

While Therena dipped and swayed, her gown dancing across her ankles, Lyel’s lips twitched and slowly rose to a pain-filled smile. During happier days, as he walked through the estate’s gardens, he heard his sister’s laughter. Moving closer, he saw her dancing and paused to catch the image and store it. She was unaware he watched, he never had a chance to tell her. She and their mother died three weeks after the image was taken, when the plague swept through the galaxy, killing most of our females.

Watching his sister this daela hurt, but it felt fitting.

“Soon,” he murmured. “I will restore our honor, Therena, and we will be together again.”

He missed her. His ma, too. His father? Turbulent emotions jumbled together inside Lyel. His memories of a father, who handed him a youngling-sized kalina and taught him the ancient khatalm fighter ways, battled with flashes of a hard, cruel father who drank too much and cut everyone around him with his hands and words. Lyel and his father lost the people they loved during the sickness, while his father spiraled into anger, Lyel clung to his humanity.

A soft chime from his com told him it was time. Opening the bag on his lap, he tugged out the sheer, skin-tight holosuit that would fool even the most discerning eye. He tugged it over his clothing, careful to tuck his naanans beneath the membranous hood. After adding an Al’kieern laser pistol to his belt, he stuffed the bag into a depression in the wall. He closed his eyes and sent out a wish that this would go as it should. It was never easy taking a life—let alone multiple lives—but this act would save others.

Carefully edging up the secret hatch overhead, he listened, ensuring his location had not been revealed. It took the Crakairians many likars and more dinars to locate this rumored passage and secure it. When they made plans to send in a single operative, Lyel volunteered.

“If you are captured, they will kill you,” Vork said through gritted teeth when Lyel stepped forward to give himself for this role.

“I am aware of this,” Lyel said dryly.

“We cannot allow it.”

“You cannot stop me.” He rose from his chair and paced across Vork’s office, pausing to stare out the window at the Ikeline Mountains. Turning, he faced his old friend. They’d only spoken twice since they fought the vengeance, first when Lyel approached Vork with a formal apology and the second, via com, when Lyel contacted Vork two likars ago to volunteer for this mission. Vork told him to come in to discuss it. “This is something I need to do. You know that.”

Vork raked his hands across his naanans. “I do. But…”

From Council papers Lyel found in his father’s desk while tidying the estate, he learned about the government’s plan to stop the kidnapping operation. He knew then what he must do.

Vork grumbled, but Lyel could see he relented. His protest was a mere formality. He rose and came around his desk. “We appreciate your offer to do this.”

“What kind of support can you provide?”

“The Al’kieern airspace missile system will not allow a craft to land outside the Mara capital, and we need to place you beyond the wasteland. We have a new cloaked transfer system we have used with some success. Complications experienced by a friend have been corrected. We can get you to the edge of the wasteland, but we will not be able to extract you after. You will need to escape Mara on your own.”

Assuming Lyel lived. They both knew the odds of that were slim. After this, no one would say the Sastray family lacked courage or honor.

“If you are successful, get to the city and send word. We will do our best to extract you.”

Lyel dipped his head. “Thank you.”

“Be aware. Any attempt to use your com beyond basic functions will not pass through their atmosphere. Until you reach the city, you will be on your own.” Vork’s grim gaze met Lyel’s. “There are other ways. We can still—”

“Nothing this certain, am I correct?”

“You are,” Vork’s naanans flared out in agitation. “I do not like this.”

“It is for the best.” In his heart, Lyel knew this. Only by going in himself could Lyel make the galaxy safe again.

“All the yaros since our fathers argued,” Vork said, steepling his fingers beneath his chin. His probing gaze met Lyel’s. “We have not spoken.”

“I regret this,” Lyel said, emotion clogging his voice. “I missed you, old friend.”

“Yet you did not communicate.”

“I honored my father’s wishes to cut all ties between us.” Why had he let Piersag dictate this? Yaros ago, Lyel’s father attempted to steal a military appointment offered to Vork’s father. When he lost, he slunk to his estates and plotted, determined to seek what he saw as revenge. And he had. Rumor had it Piersag killed Vork’s father. But that was not enough to satisfy Piersag. When Vork was matched with an Earthling bride, Lyel’s father tried to claim the woman. Piersag declared the vengeance and forced Lyel to fight but paid the price with his life.

Some males would retreat to their estate and avoid showing their face in society again, but not Lyel. He had to make this right, even if he also paid the final price.

Lyel closed the hatch, masking the entrance to the hidden tunnel from view. As he was told to expect, he found himself in a small closet. Moving around brooms and buckets of murky water, he cracked open the door, listened, and peered into the stone hall, noting the passages leading to sleeping chambers, droid service areas, and the main function room where the Al’kieern kidnapping operation’s leaders would gather—directly above the explosives Lyel planted.

After engaging his holoimage, Lyel strode out into the corridor, shutting the door behind him. He squared his shoulders and ensured his laser pistol would slip easily from its sheath.

“Halt,” a guard barked from farther down the hall.

Lyel stiffened. His spine twitched, and his heart thrust up into his throat while he waited for a laser blow, for the Al’kieern to call for guards, or for him to see through Lyel’s disguise. When nothing happened, he turned, his fingers twitching near his pistol.

“Were you speaking to me?” Lyel frowned at the Al’kieern guard striding toward him.

“Why are you in this area of the compound?” The male returned Lyel’s scowl. “You should be with the others.”

“I was using the facilities, and I became…lost.” Lyel studied the Al’kieern, waiting for an aggressive move, but the male didn’t twitch.

“This is not a valid excuse.”

Sweat trickled down Lyel’s neck, and he controlled his breathing. One wrong move and this would fall apart.

“You dare to question me? Do you know who I am?” It was time to test the holosuit, so he moved out of the shadows. Lyel should appear as an Al’kieern general, but what if the suit failed? “I am tempted to take your name and rank and report you.”

“Oh, no, Sir,” the guard sputtered, his attention dropping to the floor. “Please do not. You are right, Sir. I…I misspoke.”

“Good,” Lyel barked. “Now direct me back to the main hall and go about your business.”

The Al’kieern bowed. “Straight ahead and then a left at the intersection, Sir. You will see—and hear—the hall from there.”

Lyel tilted his head in acknowledgement and strode away from the guard, maintaining an even stride and projecting a confidence he did not feel. Inside, he heaved a big sigh. His suit worked. However, the mission wasn’t over yet.

Worst case, if he was caught, he’d detonate the dynatem wherever he was, but he wanted to ensure the head of the operation was inside the room before doing so. Intel suggested Fedeema, the self-appointed queen of the group, would not arrive until the last minar. Removing her would set the organization back yaros, giving the Crakairian government time to secure Earth’s airspace and keep the Al’kieerns from interfering. The kidnapping operation would be left in tatters.

Rumor had it, the Al’kieern government had appointed a new leader in the capital, and it was hoped this person would step in and prevent this from happening again.

The scent of roasted meat and sickly sweet rutlar hit his sinuses when he hit the intersection. Once a bottle of rutlar was opened, the heady aroma of the hallucinogenic wine filled the air. They were drinking, which would make it easier for Lyel to avoid detection. His holosuit held enough power to maintain his Al’kieern holoimage for thirty minars. After that, he’d be exposed.

He strode up to the open archway and carefully assessed the situation. At least one hundred Al’kieern pirates sat at long tables set up in rows throughout the room, their boisterous conversation filling the air. Huge platters of food sat in the middle of the rustic wooden tables, and the hands of the almost-exclusively male Al’kieern reached in and scooped out meat and tubers. They ate directly from the community trenches, washing the food down with big mugs of rutlar.

Good. Lyel recognized faces from the intel vids the Crakairian military sent him. Fedeema was not present, but that was expected.

He slipped into the room and settled on the end of a bench, close to the others but not near enough to touch. If someone made contact, his holosuit would chew through the power caps quickly, and the energy needed to maintain his false image would fail. Eating was not an option either, but he doubted anyone around him would notice. To be safe, he hefted a glass of rutlar and toasted, placing the glass against his lips without drinking.

A horn sounded and silence swept through the room, leaving only harsh breathing and a rare burp breaking the pall. An arched door in the back of the room opened. Lyel, like everyone else, watched raptly. Behind him, the doors in the front of the room closed, and guards secured them with wooden bars, making Lyel’s task easier.

From the back door, Fedeema strode into the room, her long, silver gown swishing around her ankles. Her bald head gleamed in the lamplight and her eyeridge spikes whipped back and forth. Her height was enhanced by spiky heels, and she’d glossed her wings with something to make them sparkle. As she strode toward the head table mounted on a dais, her four arms swinging freely, Lyel sucked in a breath and ensured his com was ready. Once she sat, he would act.

“Therena… Sister. I will be with you soon,” he said softly.

The queen dropped into her seat and waved for a mug of rutler. Her gaze surveyed the room, thankfully skipping over Lyel without pausing. She sipped her drink and held up her hand.

Lyel’s finger hovered of the detonation switch on his com.

It was time.

His belly lurched.

Three… Two…

The door behind the queen banged open again, and a winged Al’kieern strode into the room, a leash clutched in one of his four hands. He yanked on the chain, and someone stumbled out from the shadows.

An Earth female dressed in a pale pink gauze gown was hauled over to stand beside Fedeema. Fasteners on the female’s leather collar winked in the low lights as the Al’kieern guard handed the leash to the queen.

Fedeema tugged, dragging the woman down close to speak in a voice too low for Lyel to hear.

How could an Earthling female be here? The Crakairian intel had not indicated such a thing was possible.

The woman shook her head, making her pink and golden…not naanans, but…flares. Yes, that was the term. Flares. The flares on her head swirled across her shoulders, prettier than a sunset. Was the color natural? Lyel had not paid much attention to reports about Earthling females, feeling unworthy of applying for the Selection after his family’s dishonor, but he swore none of the women he saw had flares like this on their heads.

The queen paused, and her nose twitched. Her gaze scanned the room, studying each face, but she skimmed over Lyel.

His heart started beating again. For a mina… No, the suit would hold.

As if nothing had happened, Fedeema shoved the woman and barked out a command.

With a shudder, the female straightened and stiffened her shoulders. She climbed up a short flight of steps to stand on a raised platform mounted at the front of the dais. Her lips trembled, and she closed her eyes a minar before opening them to stare dully into the room.

Lyel leaned forward, unable to drag his attention away from her.

Her teal-colored eyes met Lyel’s, and she blinked in confusion.

She wrenched her gaze from his and took a deep breath. As she released it, hush descended across the room. With a tilt of her head, she met Lyel’s gaze again and began to sing, her voice pure and sultry and unlike anything Lyel had heard in his life. It reached deep inside, speaking to an untouched part of him.

“I want to be where the people are,” she sang in a lilting tone. “I want to see, want to see them…”

He couldn’t look away and neither could the rest of the room. Everyone watched her, eager to hear what she’d sing next. Like a majestic songbird perched on a tree tweeting joyously to the world, she held the room bespelled. Lyel was equally mesmerized.

Her voice rose, and a few Al’kieern sobbed into their rutler mugs, overcome with the emotions she stirred in them all.

Even Fedeema seemed enthralled. Other than speaking quickly to a guard who inched along the side of the room toward the entrance, the queen stared at the woman.

Her voice fell as she sang the last bit of her song. “Part of that…world…”

She finished to roars of approval from the audience. Fedeema, surveying the room, released a sharp smile. She lifted an arm, and something banged behind Lyel.

It was time. The Earthling woman’s gaze met Lyel’s again, and his hand twitched on his lap. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t make himself touch his com.

Heat burned across his palm. Flipping his hand over, he stared down in amazement and horror.

A matebond symbol.

Unable to drag his attention off his hand, he didn’t look up until a shadow passed over him and held.

The queen stood across the table from him, and a force of Al’kieern crowded behind Lyel.

“I smelled you the minar I entered the room,” she said pleasantly. “How could you, a lowly Crakairian male, hope to escape my notice?” Her hand lifted. “Toss him into a holding cell. I shall deal with him later.”

Lyel surged to his feet, reaching for his kalina, the spear he carried with him from Crakair. The Al’kieern hollered battle cries.

He released a guttural yell and jumping up onto a table, sliced out with the blade mounted on the tip of his kalina, severing the windpipe of the first Al’kieern to come at him. While others tried to grab his arms, he flipped up and backward, landing on the floor in a crouch. He stabbed an Al’kieern in the chest and raced for the door. If he could lift the bar… Others flew after him, landing on his back and shoving him forward. He stumbled, righted himself and pivoted, his kalina whistling through the air, eliminating two more Al’kieern. So many. In a battle with seven or eight, Lyel stood a chance, but against nearly a hundred? He was doomed. But he would take down as many as possible before he was captured.

Despite the combat, his gaze sliced through the air, seeking her. His mate. Fedeema held the woman’s chain. With a yank, she hauled the Earthling in, wrapping the leash around her hand. The woman clutched the collar, pulling it away from her throat.

She looked toward Lyel, where he fought two Al’kieern at once, and the sorrow in her eyes cut deeply.

Winged Al’kieern flew up and over Lyel to flank him. They flapped toward him while others challenged his front. Surrounding him, they closed in, sneering.

While he bellowed and sliced his kalina at another Al’kieern, the others used numbers to overcome him. One ripped his spear from his grip while others pinned his arms behind his back. They threw his kalina across the room and it clattered on the floor.

Tossing Lyel down, they bound his hands and feet and dragged him across the room.

As he was wrenched through a side door, he looked up, seeking her again.

They’d already taken her away.

2

Isi

L ifting the chain pinning her to the foot of the Al’kieern queen’s bed, Isabelle—Isi to her friends—shifted her hips across the thin cushion on the floor where she slept each night. On the bed above her, a snort rang out. As far as Isi knew, Fedeema, who referred to herself as the queen, didn’t snore, but both of the two four-armed guys she slept with each night did.

Isi had remained awake for hours, waiting for them to finish wearing each other out and go to freakin’ sleep. Lying here while they did it made her want to gag, but at least she hadn’t been forced to join them. Fedeema didn’t share.

Leaning close to the post attached to her chain, Isi carefully stuffed a tiny metal poker into the lock and wiggled it back and forth. She’d stolen it from the meal hall her first night here and had initially kept it hidden in a crack between the floorboards to use as a weapon, paltry as it was. A week ago, she discovered it made an awesome tool.

Someone moved on the bed, and a groan cut through the silence. Isi froze. Sweat trickled down her spine, and her fingers slipped. The metal tool fell from her hand and clinked when it hit the floor. Awesome. Just awesome. Her back flinched, anticipating a blow that thankfully, did not come. Counting to a thousand, she waited with a solid knot in her belly until one of the Al’kieern rolled over and started snoring again.

Her mouth dry, she lifted the pick and carefully slipped it into the lock. After twisting it and biting back multiple unvoiced swears, it clicked and opened. With her heart in her throat, she tugged the bracket away from the bedpost and lowered it to the floor beside her pallet. She coiled the chain connecting to her collar around her palm, making sure the links didn’t bang together. After hiding her pick, she rose to a crouch and counted to one thousand once more.

When the room remained quiet, other than the threesome snoring, she held her breath and tiptoed to the door, inching it open to peek out.

As usual, the guard sat on the floor on the other side of the hall with his head tipped back and his eyes closed.

Perfect. She wasn’t eager to try one of the karate moves she learned while growing up on Earth.

She bit her lower lip and watched while counting, but he didn’t move. Some people would have said the risk was too great and crept back inside, relocked themselves to the bedpost, and tried to get some sleep.

Not Isabelle Clara Wadsworth. While daring was a word no one had ever used to describe her before, she wasn’t chicken shit. She knew just enough self-defense to be dangerous. Tonight of all nights, she needed to take the risk.

This wasn’t the first time she slipped from the room at night, and it wouldn’t be her last, though she made a few mistakes after they brought her here.

Six months ago, Isi worked for a well-respected accounting firm. When she noticed some improprieties in one of her regular accounts, she brought it to the big boss’s attention. The account was taken from her, and she was told to forget what she saw. Leave it to her to log in after work and go through the account one last time, only to discover they were laundering money.

That was mistake number one.

Her second was sneaking onto a Crakairian starship docked at the spaceport. But really, did she have a choice? It was her only way off Earth. She either bailed on her home world or let someone put a bullet in her head.

Isi eased past the sleeping guard, keeping her footsteps light. Once she reached the end of the hall, she darted to the right, moving as quickly as she could. She was on a vital mission, but if she was caught…

It would be best not to think about what happened when they found her struggling with the front door handle the night after she arrived. The scab lines on her back had just passed the itching stage. Another beating would not only reopen the wounds, but it might also result in her death.

It hurt, being hit like that, but it had almost been worth it. She came so close to escaping.

Try again, Fedeema taunted as she secured the collar around Isi’s throat, and you’ll see my full wrath. I can buy another songbird.

Songbird—the name Fedeema gave her after she purchased Isi from the guys who kidnapped her off the Crakairian ship. Fedeema didn’t ask Isi her real name, and Isi wouldn’t give it. Names were a piece of a person’s soul, Isi’s grannie told her before she died. After Grannie passed on, Isi moved into foster care.

Isi darted into the great hall and…yes. They’d ignored the warrior’s spear lying against the wall. She crossed on light feet, snatching it up. Staring down at it, she contemplated keeping it. It would serve as a better weapon than her pick, and she knew how to use it.

But no. She had a plan and intended to follow it. Leaving the great hall, she crept down an eerily empty hallway and reached the stairs. She took them as fast as she could while her skin crawled with fear. She hit the ground floor and bolted across the open lobby toward the hallway leading to the kitchen. Hunger gnawed on her bones. As usual, the queen forgot to call for Isi’s tray when they reached the room earlier. Fedeema was too interested in talking about what she’d do with the Crakairian male she caught. Isi’s needs came last.

After they’d left the great hall, Fedeema stomped back and forth in the room, gnashing her fangs. “How dare he sneak into my compound. What does he want?” she shrilled at Isi, who shrugged. “The Crakairian government is involved, that is for sure, but they will not get away with it.”

“What will you do?” Isi asked, rubbing her aching belly. Singing for her supper was all well and good until no supper appeared. Did she dare ask Fedeema to send for a tray?

Fedeema glared at Isi. “Why do you ask?”

Isi shrugged. She didn’t care. Not too much. But something about him… She’d be stupid to care. He’d be dead soon.

“I was only curious about what you plan to do to him,” Isi said.

“Because I am willing to satisfy your curiosity—this time—I will tell you. Soon, I will throw him into the Orcal.”

Isi’s limbs froze. From what she overheard, the Orcal was a grueling race across the desert with creatures hunting whoever was thrown into the “game”. To make it interesting, the Al’kieern set traps along the route. One person made it through the course, but whispers suggested they weren’t the same after.

“When do you plan to do that?” Isi asked, tracing her finger along her leather collar.

“The newly appointed Al’kieern leader arrives in two days and I need a distraction from…”

Her organization. From what Isi gleaned, the Al’kieern government recently lost their leader to a suspicious death and this person’s daughter assumed command. Fedeema told the original head of the Al’kieern government she was working on a solar and sale extraction project in the desert. While Isi was unaware of what the queen was doing instead, it was clear no one was extracting salt, let alone setting up solar panels.

“The Orcal will please her.”

Why would Fedeema need to distract the new leader?

“Tricardi! Fitzwit,” Fedeema cried. The door opened and her latest boy toys strode into the room wearing matching grins. Fedeema took them to bed. At least the males wore Fedeema out. As long as she slept, Isi could set her plan into place…

Creeping through the sleeping building at night reminded her of when she tiptoed through the Crakairian starship after she snuck on board. A girl needed to eat and wash her face every now and then. If only Isi hadn’t chosen that particular moment to leave her hiding spot in an unused supply closet and venture into the main part of the craft. And if only she hadn’t run into the Al’kieern pirates who boarded the ship to steal women. They didn’t care that she wasn’t an official bride. She was an Earthling and female, that was all that mattered.

They sold her to Fedeema who asked if she had skills. Isi mentioned singing, and after a quick demonstration, Fedeema took her to this compound. Isi performed each night. It was getting tough, though, as she was running out of Disney songs. Next, she’d sing the 2010’s greatest hits. Her Grannie had been a singer, playing in clubs when Isi was little, and Isi inherited Grannie’s voice.

As she swept through the kitchen, Isi snatched a loaf of bread off a wooden platter and bit off a hunk. Bread was a loose term. The Al’kieern enjoyed something similar to a pita pocket made with what Isi hoped were black beans. She didn’t look closely at the inky flecks peppering the “bread”.

Ducking across the room, she hurried down a back hall and creaked open the door on the end. During one of her late-night forays to the kitchen, she snooped and found this led to a dark, dingy basement full of enormous cobwebs, bugs she chose not to examine too closely, and empty holding cells. A dungeon, she supposed, though this was a fortress in the middle of a vast desert.

The one time she took the stairs to the bottom, she only walked down one hall flanked with empty cells before scurrying back upstairs. What she heard was enough. Wind howled through cracks in the stone foundation, a ghoulish sound that haunted her sleep for nights. Ghosts resided down there.

At the bottom of the rickety wooden stairs, she paused to listen. Glowing blobs encased inside half globes mounted on the wall oozed around the inside of the glass. Were they creatures or something else? Standing on tiptoe, she squinted at the blob. It flung itself forward, plastering itself against the glass. Four rows of razor-sharp teeth scraped along the surface and clawed the sides.

Isi reeled backward and gasped when she became entangled in a big spider web. The urge to rush back up the stairs overwhelmed her, but she shoved it away along with the web. Raking the sticky mess aside with the warrior’s spear, she bolted down the hall, her bare feet smacking on the hard-packed dirt floor.

At the end of the hall, she came to another running perpendicular to the first and halted. Right or left? With a shake of her head, she went right, scurrying past more empty cells. Halfway down, she found the one holding the Crakairian.

He lay on a bunk with his back facing her. While she couldn’t see his features, from behind he looked different than when she last saw him—watched him—in the great hall. Then, she saw his image waver from Al’kieern to Crakairian while he battled. Whatever covering or costume he used was gone. His skin was no longer Al’kieern blue but a dark, mossy green like a forest cloaked in misty dawn. Nearly naked, he wore only a small scrap of cloth wrapped around his waist.

As if he sensed her attention, he rolled over. His eyes met hers as she gripped the bars and pinched her face between them.

Rising, he limped toward her. She chomped back her growl. She didn’t like that her heart ached to see they hurt him. She didn’t know this guy. Why should she care about his injuries more than any other alien being held in these cells?

But she did, and she needed to stop that emotion right now. She took in ten deep breaths while he moved toward her, the action helping her regain control of her emotions.

“Name, have you?” he asked, stopping a few feet away from her.

She took in his numerous muscles and thighs like tree trunks. Small scales covered his body, though there were larger, pointy ones spanning his shoulders. No hair, just…she wasn’t sure what his thick dreadlock-appearing things were called, but they moved like arms, reaching toward her.

She took a step backward while her heart rushed around faster than it should.

“I’m Isi.” Her name came out easily, considering her protestations about following Grannie’s rules for not sharing a piece of her soul.

“Eeee-see,” he said softly.

She also shouldn’t like how he pronounced her nickname, but damn, she did.

He dipped forward in a jagged bow, his rough movement telling her it hurt to move. “Dreafillar.”

“Is that a greeting on Crakair?”

“Yes. Someone special it is for.”

He couldn’t know her plan. Why did he think she was special?

She bowed. When in Rome… “Drea…fillar.” She hoped she got that right. First impressions could make all the difference, Grannie always said.

“Music you make…” His lips quirked up on one side—much too sexy—and he bared two-inch fangs, causing her lungs to freeze. Would he bite? “Beautiful, you like.”

You like… Oh, like you.

His gaze—black pupils ringed with blue of a stormy sea—met hers. He tapped his chest. “Lyel Tair’im Iradran Sastray.” He bowed again. “Dreafillar.”

“Drea…” She snagged a strand of pink and gold hair and yanked on it. “I’d say nice to meet you, Lyel, but the circumstances are awful.”

“Here you are, why?” he asked. His gaze took in the empty hall. “Unsafe, it is.”

“Partly for this.” She poked the blunt end of the spear through the bars.

Hissing, he took it. “Welcome, this is.” Hefting it, he tested the weight. “Harmed it is not.”

“Good. Good.” She had no idea why he was talking like Yoda, but who cared? That wasn’t why she was here.

Back to business, Isi.

“I wanted to talk with you,” she said. At least she could understand him, unlike some of the species she met. Although, they wouldn’t be together long enough for it to matter.

Back on Earth, when she read the women traveling to Crakair had translators implanted behind their ears, Isi paid a guy named Tito a lot of money for an implant. While Isi might be stupid for snooping into the accounting files, and for stealing aboard a Crakairian spaceship to escape Earth, she wasn’t completely clueless. To survive on Crakair, she needed to fit in. Understanding the language could make all the difference. “I suppose I should get right down to business. I’m here to get you out.”

“No. Flee, you must.”

“That’s a problem. Fedeema will kill me if I’m caught.”

“Flee, you must.”

“As I said, that’s the idea, but I have a few conditions before we take this further.”

“Tell me, you must.” His gaze drifted down her front and with any other guy, the gesture would make her twitchy. For some reason, coming from this seven-foot-tall, scaly alien, it felt like a caress. She needed to watch out. This guy was dangerous.

“Condition number one,” she said, her voice shakier than she liked. He was too close. Too naked. Too…male. “I want you to take me with you.”

“Nothing else, I would do.”

That was easy. “Good. Good. Condition number two. I want you to get me off this planet and to Crakair.”

“A mate, you do not have?”

He said it like a question, but it must be a statement. “Yeah, that’s an issue, but I plan to find my way around it. I won’t be returning to Earth.”

“Agree, I do.”

Again, that was easy. Too easy?

Creeping closer and pressing her face between the bars, she held up her hand. “Hold on a second there, dude.”

He leaned forward, and his lips captured hers. Whoa.

She should be jerking back. He could be anyone. He could have…alien herpes! Instead of backing away, she reached through the bars and clutched his muscular arms. Damn, who would have thought a guy with fangs could be such a good kisser?

It didn’t last long enough. He backed away and dipped forward again in a bow. “Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.”

“Slow down there. No courtship. No marriage. No fucking.”

“Like fucking, you will.”

“This is not why I came here,” she fumed. He unsettled her and made her want…something she couldn’t define. It was vital she regain control of the conversation, assuming she’d been in control. “You kissed me without my permission.”

“Ask me, you did.”

She huffed. “In no way, shape, or form did I ask you to kiss me. “

“This.” He lifted his hand. “Gesture kiss you made.”

“You actually think I wanted you to kiss me because I did this?” She lifted her hand but slapped it back down by her side. What if he was right? She wouldn’t use his secret Crakairian kissy signal again. “We’re going to shove that aside, though your gesture is timely and relates to my third condition.”

“Condition is?”

“Assuming we can escape, it won’t be a friends with benefits situation. Despite the kiss.”

“Like my kiss, you did.”

“It doesn’t matter if I liked it or not.” She had, damn her.

“Like, you did.”

She growled. “I’m not going to admit it.”

“Fair, that is.” The scales on his face stood out starkly in the low light and he bared his fangs. Some women would’ve found his fang-baring thing frightening. On him, it only enhanced his appeal. Which irritated her. She wasn’t here for sex.

She stormed up to the bars. “Why do you look smug?”

His arms lifted out at his sides, and she paused to admire the view. Damn guy had too many muscles. “Smug?”

“Cocky.”

His hands went to the scrap of cloth covering something bigger than it should be. “If cock, you wish to see—”

“No!” After glancing around to make sure no one was running in their direction after she essentially shouted, she lowered her voice. “No. I don’t want to see your…cock.”

“Fair, that is. Soon, you will.”

“You’re pretty confident, aren’t you?” Of course, if she was as gorgeous as him, she’d be confident, too.

“Mean, what do you friends benefits?” he asked.

“It means, if I go with you, there will be no sex. No kissing. No inappropriate touch. This is a business deal. I’ll get you out of this cell and you’ll take me to Crakair. But you leave me alone in between then.”

“Unless beg you do.”

“Excuse me?” Her eyebrows flew up. “Why the hell would I beg?”

“Mate, you are.”

“I just told you, I don’t have a mate on Crakair.”

He cocked his head. “How here, did you arrive?”

“I was kidnapped. Purchased.” She shuddered at the memory, “I was brought to this fortress when they heard me sing.”

“Free soon.”

“I hope so.”

“Go, we will.” His attention fell to her hands gripping the bars. “Key, you have?”

“Key?”

“To door.” He pointed to the lock.

“Not yet.”

“No key.”

She had to hand it to him, he didn’t sigh.

“I only came here to negotiate. Tomorrow, we’ll get you out. Fedeema told me the new Al’kieern leader’s arriving soon, and she’s planning to throw you into the Orcal as a distraction.”

“New leader?” He growled.

“The old one recently died and was replaced with his daughter.”

“We… Get out of here I must do.” He shifted his arm as if looking for a watch. “Com, I must find.”

“Com?”

“Communicator.”

“Who would you communicate with?”

“Government my own. And controls dynatem, it does.”

She had no idea what dynatem was and doubted it mattered. “We need to get you out of here before she puts you in the Orcal. I’ll find the key and come back tomorrow night. As a consolation prize, I brought you your spear and this,” she thrust her hand between the bars with the bread.

“Thank you.” Taking it from her, he shifted it around, studying it.

She, of course, cringed because it was obvious from the hunk missing on one end, she’d been gnawing on it. “I was hungry.”

“Understand, I do.” Lifting it, he bit where she had.

Why did that not gross her out? Instead, it made heat swirl through her, as if he put his mouth on hers.

No. She shouldn’t be thinking about how awesome his kiss was. He was nothing but a way out of this hellhole. He’d drop her on Crakair and say see ya’ later, just like Isi’s mom did when Isi was ten.

He carefully ate the bread, finishing it. She watched, wishing she’d brought a second loaf.

“I can get more,” she said, realizing he must be as starved as she was most of the time.

“Good, this was. Enough.”

“You’re sure? The kitchen is—”

“Fine I am,” he said softly. “Feed me, you have, before garlong, I wear. Worry not, someday, also zinters.”

Lots of alien terms in his statement, but they could talk about them later.

“All right, then.” She stiffened her spine. “Do we have a deal?”

“If key you get, yes. Escape together, we will do. Conditions, I will try to meet.”

“Try?”

“Try.”

She supposed she couldn’t ask for more than that. “As long as you put in a good effort.”

“Effort, I will do. Yet, condition, I also must offer.” His scaled face gave nothing away.

“What’s your condition?”

“Persuasion, you will allow.”

This conversation shouldn’t be a turn-on. Why was her heart thumping behind her ribcage like a herd of giraffes were galloping through? She was scared, that was it. Worried about being caught. If only she could convince herself of that.

“What kind of persuasion?”

“Touch simple.”

“What does touch simple mean?’

“Court you, I must.”

“Don’t sound too excited about it, there.”

His lips twisted, but his eyes sparkled. “Tease, I shall. Simple touch, I will do.”

Okay, she got that. He wanted permission to persuade her into giving him more. Hot, he was. Hold herself back, she could do. “What if I tell you to stop?”

“Stop, I will.”

There had to be a trick here somewhere. She couldn’t figure it out, but she knew herself. He could turn on the charm, but she’d be able to resist him like she did everyone else. “I accept your condition.”

He dipped his head forward. “Dreafillar, mate. Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.”

“Getting ahead of yourself a bit with the courtship, marriage, and fucking, aren’t you, dude?”

“See, you shall.”

She grunted, which was not agreement. “Why are you talking about all that? As far as I’m concerned, we’ll get to Crakair and say goodbye. You’ll go on with your life, and I’ll build mine.”

Moving closer, he tapped her hands gripping the bars. “Hands, see?”

Another odd ritual? If so, there was no harm in this one. She flipped them over, baring them to him.

She wasn’t sure what his wince meant, but it hardly mattered. He was the means to an end. Nothing more. She could control her attraction to him until they reached Crakair. After that, she’d be the one saying see ya’ later.

Holding out his hand, he showed her a tattoo on his palm, a swirling symbol that compelled her to touch. Reaching out, she traced her fingertip along it. He hissed, and his gaze met hers, searching…

“What feel you do?” he asked, his voice husky.

“Feel? I don’t know what you mean. What am I supposed to feel?” Nothing, right?

Keep lying to yourself.

Shut up.

And now she was carrying on a conversation with herself. A snarl slipped past her lips. This was silly. Flustered for no apparent reason, she snatched her hand back and latched onto the bars to hold her body up. Why did he unsettle her? He was a green-skinned, scaly alien. Sure, he was hot, but so were a thousand other guys. She needed him, and he needed her. This was a business exchange, nothing else.

“All right, then. We’re good.” She backed away from the bars. His closeness…unsettled her. She was hyped up, strung out, and nervous about the situation. Not him. Never him.

“Good, we are.” Turning, he walked slowly to the concrete bunk and sat, facing her. There was no missing the creases on his face. His gaze darted to the hall behind her. “Hide, you must do, before—”

Something banged, coming from the stairs. Shit. Isi spun in that direction, but didn’t see anything. Yet. Voices echoed. Someone was coming!

“Go,” he said, standing and moving toward her with the stealth of a panther. “Hide.” The urgency in his voice made her heart flip.

“I’ll find a way to free you tomorrow. Watch for me.” The voices behind her grew louder. “They chain me at night, but during the day I have a bit more…freedom.” A relative term, but at least she wasn’t secured to the bedpost 24/7.

“Go. Catch you, they will.”

Beat her, they would.

No thanks.

“Go!’ The concern in his voice hit her in the solar plexus, stealing her breath.

With a jerk of her head, she ran down the hall, hoping to loop around and approach the stairs from a different direction.

Somehow, she evaded the guards.

Slipping up the stairs, she raced back the way she’d come. With shaky fingers, she eased open the door to Fedeema’s room.

A few more steps, and she’d be secure on her tiny bed. She’d lock herself to the bedpost and…

Lights flared in the room.

Fedeema stood in the middle of the room, glaring. Her guys had left.

“Guards,” Fedeema yelled. “Grab her!”

3

Lyel

Easy—he loved her name. She was beautiful, from the pink and golden striped flares on her head, to her lush frame, to her teal eyes.

That kiss…

It kept him tossing on the stone bed. That, and worry she had not gotten away. But the guards had merely strolled past his cell, ensuring he remained inside. No shouts and no cries told him she could be safe.

Easy. Such an unusual name.

While he hadn’t applied to the Selection, he still matebonded with an Earthling female. Who would believe this was possible?

She did not carry a matebond mark, but he knew she was his fated mate. He only needed to convince her. This presented a dilemma. He had not come here to find a mate. Death had been his expectation. His plan was in tatters.

Finding a mate here of all places…

She made it clear he was not to touch her. It would be wrong to push her for something she did not ask for, but she agreed to his persuasion.

His matebond to her would not drive his behavior. A warrior, he was stronger than that. When she sang, his matebond blood surged, overwhelming him. The moment she reached this floor of the compound, it rushed through him again, telling him she was near. Her sweet scent hit him before she stood in front of his cell.

It burned that he waited here, unable to protect his mate, while she secured his freedom.

Grumbling, he lay down on his bunk and plotted how he could locate his com so he could finish his mission. His mind kept drifting to Easy. That kiss…

Somehow, he slept, waking to footsteps in the corridor outside his cell. Rising, he stretched the kinks from his spine and crossed his arms on his chest, waiting for whatever came next.

A mass of Al’kieern crowded against his cell, Fedeema in the front of the group.

“Today, we will celebrate,” she said.

“Anything in particular?” he asked, fearing what she might say. When they captured him, they took his com. He failed his mission. But it wasn’t over yet. He still had hope for eliminating the operation. This time, instead of remaining here to die, he would escape with Easy. He would choose honor with life, not death.

“Our plan is in position,” Fedeema said rubbing her four hands together. “Soon we, the underappreciated Al’kieerns, will have the respect of our brethen.”

“I do not know what you speak of.”

“Do not play with me, Crakairian. I know who you are. Lyel Tair’im Iradran Sastray, son of Piersag, formerly of the Crakairian High Council.”

Dread froze his lungs.

“You are mistaken,” he said, grateful his voice did not shake. “I am a lowly Crakairian named Takir Ai’terren.”

“Do you lie to me, Lyel?”

“I do not come from a noble family.” This was true. His father dishonored the Sastray name.

She pressed up close to the bars. “Why are you here in my compound, you lying Crakairian?”

He bowed. “I am a lowly scientist, here on Mara to study the desert and its creatures.”

She gripped the bars tight, her fingers blanching pale blue. “Tell me!”

“I have. Release me. My financiers will be disappointed if I do not relay information about my research to them soon.”

“You persist in this silly tale,” she said with a twist of her full, deep blue lips. The fine scales on her face glistened with her secretions. “A scientist has no reason to enter this compound.”

“I sought respite from the sun.”

“Another lie! Tell me the truth, and I may consider releasing you.”

“You have no interest in releasing me. Tell me what you plan to do to me instead.”

“I need answers.”

“Which you will not receive from me.”

Her ridged brows flickered, and the hairs spiked forward, dripping with toxin. “I have ways of obtaining information. You would be wise to tell me.”

Even under torture, he would protect his country, but this was no longer about him alone. His mate was here, bound with a collar and owned by the Al’kieern pirate queen. How could he manipulate this to save them both?

“I am a lowly Crakairian here to do research,” he repeated.

Her fangs snapped together. “Enough.” Turning, she strode through the opening created by her blue-skinned, winged entourage, but she stopped after a few steps down the hall and returned to the cage. “Since you refuse my offer of leniency, I have a plan you will enjoy.”

His gaze never left her face, watching in case she revealed something.

Her chest rose and fell with her sigh. “It is boring here. But the newly appointed Al’kieern leader will arrive soon. She… needs to be entertained.”

She needed to be distracted, the queen meant. The leader would not be pleased if she learned what Fedeema planned. If only he could contact Vork. Then the Crakairians could work with the new head of the government. Perhaps she would not approve of this awful plan.

Had the pirate ships left for Earth yet? He thought…No, he was told if he eliminated Fedeema and her sycophants, the project was over.

“I am afraid I do not understand,” he said, aiming to look thoughtful yet knowing he could not pull it off. Lyel was no actor. Your face shows everything, his sister used to say.

Therena. He had looked forward to seeing her face again in the afterworld, but he could not leave now.

“You do not understand?” Fedeema mocked. “I do not need to explain this to you, Lyel Tair’im Iradran Sastray.” She turned to the winged Al’kieern beside her. “Prepare the course.”

“Yes, the course,” the Al’kieern she spoke to keened, his arms fluttering. “Which items shall I make ready?”

Fedeema studied Lyel. “All of them. It will be more interesting that way. Allow him…one sinar of water and two trungeons.” Her wings stretched before retracting to her body. “We will release him in the Orcal and the new Al’kieern leader will enjoy the game. She will leave, unaware of what we…” Snarling, she shut her mouth.

Lyel’s suspicions were confirmed. The new Al’kieern leader was unaware of Fedeema’s plan and would not approve. If he could get word to Vork, his government could reach out to the new leader. Perhaps they would end the kidnapping operation themselves.

As for the Orcal, he read about the gruesome game they played with prisoners. The Al’kieern dropped the person into a vast wasteland filled with venomous, hunting creatures. While they tried to cross the wasteland—and most did not make it—the Al’kieern flew ahead and set up traps. If the person made it to the end, they still needed to find a way around an electrified fence. Beyond that, lay the capital. There, Lyel could contact Vork.

Failure… Lyel did not wish to think of this.

“You would put a research scientist in the Orcal?” he asked, continuing his ruse. “How do you expect me to survive? I am no warrior.”

“Yet you managed to kill many of my guards when you were captured.”

He shrugged; grateful he’d hidden his spear underneath his bed. “That was luck.”

“Do not play me for a fool, Crakairian. Few fight with a kalina.”

“If you must do this, give me my com,” he said as politely as possible. “Surely I can have that back before I run the Orcal.” If she came close, he would wrap his fingers around her neck and squeeze until the smirk left her face. “It has sentimental value to me.”

Her brow spikes drew together. “I do not know where it is.”

One of the other Al’kieern dangled it in the air, and she snatched it from him. She stared down at it lying on her palm before lifting her gaze to Lyel. With a sly smile, she dropped it onto the floor. Her foot came down on it, crushing it.

She pivoted and strode down the hall, calling over her shoulder. “Prepare this male for the Orcal. Our glorious new leader will arrive soon, and I would like the game to begin.” Her gaze met his. “As for you, Lyel, I have a surprise. Someone will join you in the field.”

An opponent?

“My songbird is determined to take flight. It appears she needs to learn a permanent lesson.”

Sweat broke out on Lyel’s forehead. Fuck. Songbird was Lyel’s mate, Easy.

Wings fluttering and clawed feet scrambling on the floor, the other Al’kieern followed her down the hall. A door banged shut, and the click of a lock rang out.

Lyel burst forward, skidding onto his knees. He thrust his arm between the bars and straining, reaching his com. He dragged it toward him and lifted it, hoping…

Triple fuck.

He stared down at the mangled fragments in horror.

When she crushed his com, she activated the detonation sequence.

Lyel had three denjars to escape his cell, find Easy, and get out of the compound before it blew up.

4

Isi

When Isi arrived back at the room, still buzzing from her conversation with Lyel—never mind that kiss! — Fedeema was waiting.

She snatched Isi by the hair and dragged her from the room and down the hall to what she called the punishment room.

Isi attacked the moment the Al’kieern let go, striking out at his throat, but he winged backward, snickering. Two more leaped on her, driving her to the floor. While she struggled to catch her breath, she was tied to the wall with her arms stretched overhead.

Standing on her toes, Isi clung to bindings wrapped around her wrists. Closing her eyes, she tried to put her mind somewhere else.

When the first blow hit her back, she flinched and stifled her groan.

Each time Fedeema hit Isi, a scream rose in her throat. She clamped her lips tightly together to hold it back. She focused on Lyel, trapped in the basement. Moss found only in the most beautiful forest; that’s the color she’d use to describe his skin. Scales the size of nickels. And warm eyes filled with trust, a novelty for Isi. He believed she’d find a way to free him.

She would hold strong. This would end soon. Then she could plot. If she didn’t get him out of the compound soon, Fedeema would throw him into the Orcal, where he’d die.

Anyone would have sympathy for someone forced to run the Orcal, but it was more than that for Isi. Her chest ached when she thought of Lyel struggling to make it across the wasteland while the Al’kieern hunted him. Would he know what the game entailed? Locating water and food would be a challenge.

She was amazed by how Lyel battled the Al’kieern in the dining hall, but against the Orcal, he didn’t stand a chance.

After her first beating, within days of arriving here, Isi’s wounds became infected. Her fever raged, and she nearly died. Fedeema brought in an elderly, blue-skinned alien who coated Isi’s skin with an ointment that cleared the infection and accelerated healing. After, he rubbed her arm and told her to behave in a gruff, kind voice.

“I told you not to try this again,” Fedeema growled behind Isi. She smacked out with a strap, hitting Isi’s back another time.

Her throat aflame, Isi closed her eyes and held in her tears.

Lyel’s scales had a silvery sheen that… Pain burst through her brain, making it difficult to focus.

Silvery scales… Silvery scales!

After two more hits, Fedeema tossed aside the weapon. “Coat her back with the potion,” she said. “I want her to heal quickly, in time for…” Her voice devolved into a whispered conversation Isi couldn’t—and didn’t care to—hear. The alien witch strode to the door. “Take her to my room. I will send for her shortly.” She tossed something at Isi. It hit her shoulder and fell, clattering on the floor. The pick she used to release her binding to the bed; the pick she planned to use to open the lock on Lyel’s cell. Defeat filled her, but she shoved it away. She’d make a new plan.

After applying the ointment, an Al’kieern loosened the bindings keeping Isi upright and when she would’ve slumped to the floor, he caught her. He steadied her on her feet and guided her to the door, making her take the steps rather than carry her.

Her back on fire, she stumbled, her vision wavering. Only six blows, but still. Her shoulders and spine screamed with each step she took. Sucking in a breath stretched the skin. Her head pounded.

At the door to Fedeema’s room, the Al’kieern shoved Isi inside. The panel banged shut while Isi swayed, trying to remain upright. The world spun, and darkness crowded across her vision. She forced herself to walk to her thin pallet, each step a living nightmare. Moaning would do her no good.

“I…” she mumbled. “I have to get out of here before they finish me off. But I need to…rest.” She dropped to her knees and slumped onto her side, pressing her cheek against the thin folds of fabric. Now that she was alone, she let her tears flow. She crushed her sobs with her fist, refusing to release the guttural cries. This took her to the brink. Her mind wanted to tumble down the other side, where oblivion waited. She wanted to give up. The ointment helped; she could feel her skin knitting together already, but wounds to the soul never sealed shut.

She might’ve passed out, though she wasn’t sure. All she knew was she woke up and her back felt better. Her mouth tasted like a herd of horses had galloped through it. Groaning, she got to her feet and staggered to the low cabinet set along one wall holding a pitcher with water and mugs. Nothing felt better than the brackish liquid sliding down her throat. She drank her fill, until it sloshed around in her belly.

She pivoted to return to her simple bed, but her attention was snagged by something gleaming on the floor near one of the tall, wooden armoires. Hobbling in that direction, she leaned forward very carefully and picked it up. A knife?

Awesome.

Hope bloomed in her heart, but she told herself not to get too excited. If they found it on her, they’d take it. But damn, it felt good to have some sort of defense, even if it was a puny, two-inch blade.

There was no guarantee it could be used to pick open cell doors, but she was going to try. No better time than the present.

She shuffled to the door. Her legs ached, and her back twitched, but her skin was not broken this time.

She twisted the knob, but it wouldn’t open. “Locked,” she groaned. Stooping down, she inserted the knife tip into the lock. But after wiggling it around, the door wouldn’t open. Heaving a sigh, she returned to her bed and sat, leaning her side against the bedframe.

The doorknob jangling woke her, and Fedeema strode into the room.

“Get up,” she said, kicking out at Isi.

Isi moved as fast as she could, scrambling to her feet and backing away before another blow hit. Her thigh hurt, but she wouldn’t give the Al’kieern fiend the satisfaction of seeing Isi rubbing the fresh wound.

“It is time.” Pivoting on her heel, Fedeema strode to the door. “Come.”

What now? She carefully tucked the knife into her pocket, grateful she’d been allowed to keep the jeans she arrived in. They dressed her for singing but left her alone otherwise, and her Earth stuff comforted her. Her jeans, that is.

Her t-shirt was long gone, torn by the elderly alien when he treated her wounds. Fedeema tossed Isi one of her own stained tunics. Having four sleeves made it fit oddly, and the gaps in the back for wings let in cool air when she huddled on her thin bed each night, but it beat striding around naked.

Three winged Al’kieern ushered Isi to the door, one prodding her back. Each poke made Isi wince. They took the stairs to the ground floor and pushed her around to the back, toward a door she tried to open once when she crept through the compound. An Al’kieern unlocked the panel and swung it wide, and Fedeema swept onto a landing with Isi following. Globes with glowing nasty creatures lined the stairwell.

Fedeema skipped off the top step and floated down to the bottom, her gown fluttering behind her.

Isi took the stairs as fast as she could and rushed out into the hall behind Fedeema. She kept pace with her all the way to the Crakairian’s cell.

He must’ve heard them coming because he stood in the center of the stone floor, his arms crossed on his broad chest, a scowl on his forbidding face. Being in such a dire situation should keep Isi from seeing anything but Fedeema and her henchmen, but she noted how broad Lyel’s shoulders were and how they led to a muscular chest and a narrow waist. How would his silvery scales feel beneath her fingers?

No, no, no. She’d made a deal. No friends with benefits. Why was she regretting her decision already? It was stupid. Fedeema hadn’t brought her down here to gawk at Lyel. She was pissed off at Isi for sneaking out again, and her warning from last time rang out in Isi’s mind. Mess with her once but never twice. What did she plan to do to Isi now?

“Are you ready for some light entertainment, Crakairian?” she asked.

Isi doubted Fedeema understood the real meaning of entertainment.

Lyel’s watched Isi and ignored Fedeema.

“Crakairian?” Fedeema shrieked. Really, she was a walking cliché. After she arrived here, Isi kept looking for a soft spot in Fedeema, something she could use to her own benefit. So far, she hadn’t found it. The queen didn’t have a pet she adored, though she seemed fond of the guys parading through her bedroom on a regular basis.

Lyel sighed. “Yes?” He dragged his gaze from Isi.

She waved her hand toward the door. “Open it and bind him.”

Once the barred door swung open, five Al’kieern flew into the cell, piling onto Lyel, and driving him to the ground. He got a few blows in, sending one of the winged aliens smacking against the wall, and he scrambled to retrieve his spear from beneath the bed, but he was dragged to the floor and trussed up like a pig for slaughter.

With anxiety making her shake, Isi bit her bottom lip until it stung. It was all she could do not to run into the cell and smack the aliens.

“How did you obtain this?” the queen asked, lifting the spear with two fingers. She reeled on Isi, who cowered. “No matter. We will allow you to keep it, as it will add to the fun. Bring him upstairs.” She flounced down the hall, calling out to Isi over her shoulder. “Come, Songbird.”

They took the stairs to the main entrance and walked into the council room, where the queen sat on her throne. Yeah, she had a real throne, complete with silver gilt and red cushions. Tacky as far as Isi was concerned.

She sat and drummed her clawed fingers on the cushioned arm. With a flick of her hand, she indicated Isi should sit by her feet. No singing today, then?

Fear made Isi’s knees quake. Fedeema punished her, but if Isi knew the witch, she was planning a new way to make Isi pay further.

Winged Al’kieern carried Lyel into the room and dropped him on the floor in front of the throne, close to Isi. If she leaned forward, she could touch him, but Fedeema had the chain wrapped around her hand, and Isi wasn’t eager to choke.

He remained silent, but his gaze met Isi’s, and she swore she read panic there.

She shrugged to show she had no idea what might come next, but a dark suspicion was growing inside her. Naming it might make it come true, so she didn’t.

Eight or ten Al’kieern entered the room and stood milling together in the back.

“Today we will enjoy some fun, boys,” Fedeema said grandly. “We have a Crakairian eager to play.”

Damn, did she mean the Orcal? It was too soon! Isi still hoped to find a way to free them both.

The Al’kieern jeered, jostling each other and releasing gut-rolling chortles, their version of laughter. They sounded like they were trying to hurl, but what did Isi know about Al’kieerns?

“I thought we should sweeten the game,” Fedeema said.

Of course. She’d never pass up a chance to add a twist.

Her gaze darted to Isi. “Do you think the male will fight harder if more than one life is at stake?”

There was no denying what she was saying. Goosebumps peppered Isi’s skin, and she cringed when the queen spoke again.

“We will throw them into the Orcal together!”

5

Lyel

C heers erupted in the room.

Lyel watched his mate’s eyes widen. She knew what this meant, then.

“Give the Crakairian his kalina. A research scientist.” Fedeema sneered. “Do you think me stupid to believe that?”

He hoped. Believed? No. She would not have risen this high in the organization if she wasn’t clever.

Why give him his kalina, though?

He would not complain. Armed, he could defend them. They needed every possible advantage if they were going to survive the upcoming challenge.

From his internal clock, they had twenty, thirty minars at most to escape the compound before it blew all to heille. He had to get them out of here. If that meant through the Orcal, then so be it.

“You tease,” he said, goading Fedeema, hoping she would become angry and move faster. “You will not go through with this. You do not dare.”

Growling, the queen stood. “You think not?” Her glare fell on Easy. “You, Songbird, will not be able to sing your way out of this.”

If Easy pleaded, Fedeema might change her mind, but she didn’t. She stood stoic; her attention trained on the floor. She wished to escape the compound, but surely she knew their odds of surviving the Orcal were slim?

“Take them to the course,” Fedeema said. “I will follow.” Her attention drilled into Lyel. “We will see what you are made of, Crakairian. Will you abandon the Songbird or fight to protect her?”

He’d guard her with his life, but he refused to give Fedeema that weapon. She already had the advantage. Once they entered the course, there was no way out other than dubious sanctuary on the opposite side of the wasteland. If they reached the city, they could hide until he arranged transportation off the moon.

“What are the conditions?” he asked, well-aware of the stakes but hoping to gain some concessions.

“Why do you believe I will give you an advantage?” Her lips curled, and she coiled her four arms together. “Because I am generous and because I have enjoyed my Songbird if only for a short time, I will give you your kalina and one flask of water.”

“Two.”

“This is not a bargaining opportunity. Do not test me.”

He grumbled but said nothing.

“You will have a fifteen minar start and then I will follow.”

That would not do. If he could find a way to keep her here while he and Easy were removed from the compound, this might work the way it should. Best case scenario, they would be on this side of the fence when the place blew up. Worst case, they’d be inside the course. After that, there was no choice but to cross the wasteland, but their odds of survival would improve if they didn’t have Al’kieern flying overhead, laying traps, and stirring up beasts living in the desert.

Fedeema waved her hand. “Take them outside.”

Easy’s gaze met his, and her lips twitched before she turned to the queen. She gripped the collar snug around her throat. “Remove this.”

“You do not make demands,” Fedeema said, shoving past Lyel’s mate. “I like the idea of you trying to survive with a chain dragging behind you. It will teach you to listen.”

“My role has never been to listen.”

Fedeema snorted. “You have no role. You sang because I gave you a voice. Now you will play this game because I thrust you into the course.”

“My voice is my own, and I do not play games.”

“I do not expect your cooperation in this.” Fedeema started across the room, but stopped, not turning back. “If I know the Orcal and the wasteland, you will die quickly.”

Not if Lyel had anything to say about it. But the collar and chain posed a problem. Perhaps, with his kalina…

Four Al’kieern lifted Lyel off the floor and flew toward the broad double doors while others grabbed Easy. She winced and shook off their arms, choosing to lift her chin and follow Lyel on her own. He admired her strength of will and her courage. It would serve her well in the upcoming challenge.

They continued through the front door, and the sun hit his face, making his eyes sting. Lifting him higher, the Al’kieern flew across the scrubby surface, aiming for a three-story fence surrounding the property. The compound did not fence in the wasteland; the Al’kieern fenced themselves off for protection. Their ability to fly allowed them to travel short distances, but they needed frequent rest. For longer travel, they used shuttles like everyone else, and star ships for interplanetary distances.

“I’m going,” Easy shouted. “Stop pushing me. You know that hurts.”

They were hurting her? A growl rumbled in his chest, and the Al’kieern carrying him gulped. Lyel tried to yank free but all that did was make him bleed when his bonds cut into his flesh.

They soared up over the fence and dropped quickly, tossing him to the ground. His kalina and the flask of water landed in the sand beside him.

Two Al’kieern lifted his mate up over the fence and lowered her nearby. Diving forward, she grabbed his kalina off the sand and stood over him, glaring at the encircling Al’kieern. She slashed the weapon as if she knew how to use it, impressing Lyel.

“Back off, assholes,” she snarled. “You don’t want to deal with me.”

The Al’kieern sneered but maintained their distance, flying around them in a widening arc.

Stopping near the other side of the fence, the queen snickered. “I am looking forward to this. Two unique beings facing adversity together. Will one aid the other or turn and slash their throat? One skin of water will not last long.”

Lyel’s mate stood over him with his spear in hand. She would protect him. Fight for him. And he would do the same.

This was it. A fifteen minar lead was not much. If they weren’t picked off by creatures living in the wasteland, Fedeema would kill them from above.

“Bindings, will you cut?” he said, sitting up and holding out his hands to his mate.

“Oh, yes, sorry.” She stooped down beside him and carefully sliced through the ropes they used to pin his hands.

Once free, he took his kalina from her and cut through the bindings at his ankles. He stood, grabbed the water pouch off the ground and slung it over his shoulder, and held his hand out to Easy.

“The Orcal begins,” Fedeema said with death in her voice. She held up her hand and an Al’kieern standing at the top of a tower along the wall lifted a trundar, the instrument’s golden surface gleaming in the sunlight. The Al’kieern pressed his mouth to the instrument and a long, mournful call echoed in the air.

The ground rumbled.

“Run, can you?” Lyel asked. Fuck. The beasts heard the call and knew the game had begun. They would swarm the area.

Easy’s wide gaze met Lyel’s. “Tell me what to do. We have to cross the desert, but there must be some way to win this. Where can we go?” Scanning the desert around them, she shivered. “I’ve heard about the Orcal. We won’t make it fifteen steps before we’re eaten.”

“Trust, you must have.”

“In what?” Panic heightened her voice.

“Me.” He tugged her away from the fence and into the desert. Ahead, big, sandy hills loomed in the distance, a few scruffy trees spotted the landscape. The sooner they put distance between them and the compound, the better. There wasn’t much time left.

“I’ll try to trust you, but I can’t offer much more than that,” she said. “I don’t trust easily.” She picked up her pace to a jog, and he was grateful she wore pants and a tunic. Her unusual footwear appeared to have decent tread and looked sturdy. He hoped they held up. “And I don’t know you.”

He loved how she challenged him, how she stood her ground. “No worries, mate. Soon, you will know and trust me.”

“Mate?” She pried her hand from his. “Don’t get any ideas.”

“Court you, I will. Marry you. Fucking after.”

“Confident of your charms still, Lyel?” She paced beside him, unwinded.

As he moved, he dipped forward in a short bow. “Courted you will be, mate.”

“Mate, mate, mate,” she panted. “You saying it doesn’t make it so.”

He bared his fangs. “See, you will.”

“Sure, sure. This isn’t what I call persuasion.” She continued up a hill beside him. Would she be able to run far? He could carry her, though he had a feeling she would balk at the suggestion. “Where did you say we were going?”

He hadn’t because he wasn’t sure himself. Away from the compound before it exploded. Across the wasteland. Those were the goals. “Faster, you must run.”

“Got it.” She sped up, the compound growing smaller behind them. “When are you going to talk normally?” she panted. “I like Star Wars as much…as the next person, but don’t you think it’s…overkill?”

“Translator training. Talking, eventually we will do. Improvement, you will see.”

“You’re saying this isn’t permanent.”

“No.”

Her face cleared. “Good…good. Any…time, now, would be nice.”

They crested a hill, and he stopped to look around and to give her a short break. From what little he read about Mara, the wasteland continued for many kleks, but he grew up hiking the mountains, surviving on his wits and his will. He would see them through this.

His internal clock told him the time was nearly out.

“Faster,” he grunted, pulling Easy behind him down the hill.

“Are they coming?” She shot a look over her shoulder. “They’re picking something up. I’m not sure what it is, but it’s long, thin, and gray.”

“A net.”

“They’ll trap us?”

“Pin us down so beasts can more easily find us.”

She darted past him, her gaze alight. “I’m running. Keep up, Lyel!”

Savoring her humor, he raced with her until the ground twitched beneath his feet.

A soft woof was followed by an ear-shattering series of bangs.

Lyel leaped onto his mate and grabbing her, carried her to the ground.

6

Isi

A s the world exploded around them, Lyel protected Isi’s body with his own.

Hunks of blue and pink flesh rained down along with stones and hunks of metal.

Her ears rang, and she caught a smell she remembered from when she was a kid and a house a few blocks over from Grannie’s place burned. Sharp and musty, it hit her sinuses hard. Like old, dead things were smoldering.

Lyel climbed off her and tugged her up to her feet. His arms went around her, and he spoke, but she couldn’t make out what he said over the ringing in her ears.

“What was that?” she hollered.

He cupped her face, holding it steady, and his gaze met hers. “Compound gone.”

Halleluiah. If they were lucky, the explosion took out all the Al’kieern with it.

He kissed her forehead, and she hated that he smelled so good. What did they call this mix of cedar, fresh air, and sunshine? This guy was a lust-inspiring hunk of pure alien male, and he was wreaking havoc with her resolve.

As he pressed himself against her, she noticed a few things. Most of them, like the warmth of his arms and the feel of his hair-thingies caressing her shoulders, she could dismiss. One unforgettable thing stood out, the sizeable mass beneath the scrap of cloth wrapped around his waist. It didn’t feel erect, just…big. Why the hell was she thinking about his cock size at a time like this?

She stepped out of his embrace before she gave into her overwhelming urge to taste his lips. This wasn’t like her. She was a boring accountant who was equally boring in bed. All her ex-boyfriends said so.

He bared his fangs and for whatever reason, it made her want to dance around, grinning. He made the same gesture before. The first time, she was hit with a mix of this-guy-is-hot and why-am-I-not-scared? Now his fang-baring made her knees weaken.

No. His version of a smile wasn’t making her feel dreamy. That was from the explosion.

Right. Right. Just keep telling yourself that and you won’t try to ditch one of your conditions.

Only now did she fully understand the temptation of friends with benefits.

Beyond the fence, smoke billowed into the sky.

“It’s all gone?” she yelled, knowing she was speaking louder than she needed to, but unable to hear herself without raising her voice. She sort of heard herself; in her mind, at least.

He shrugged. “Perhaps.”

Fedeema took flight and rose from the smoke and up over the fence. But when it seemed she’d fly toward them and take revenge, she turned and flew toward the remains of the compound.

Perhaps the leader had arrived and Fedeema needed to scramble up some answers to some pertinent questions.

“A vengeance, she will seek,” Lyel said. Taking Isi’s hand, he nudged his head toward the desert, indicating they should keep going. “Go, we must.”

She wanted to live but at the moment she had to wonder what the point of running was. The queen would rally her surviving troops and come after them in seconds, lobbing nets and dropping rocks on them from above. Or simply blowing them to pieces with laser pistols. Her henchmen would fly with her. They wouldn’t stop until Isi and Lyel were dead.

Her foot hit something hard. A rock? She kept running, pushing for speed, but it was tough. Her back stung from the movement, and her feet bogged down in the sand. And the collar… It made deep breathing a challenge. She kept a tight grip on the coiled- up chain.

When a jagged piece of metal stabbed up in front of her, she leaped sideways to avoid running into it. Another spear shot from the ground, almost impaling her. Around her, metal rods thrust up from the ground like pokers.

Lyel’s fear-filled gaze met hers, and he lifted her off her feet. Flinging her over his shoulder, he jumped, shooting into the air at least fifteen feet. He came down hard and rolled, somehow avoiding crushing her. Flinging himself to his feet, he bolted with her over his shoulder. Behind them, the spear forest disappeared into the sand.

He ran for what felt like an hour before he slowed and lowered her feet to the ground.

“For once,” she huffed. “I’m not going to complain about being manhandled.”

“What handle of the male is this?”

Her gaze shot to his groin before she dragged it away.

“Earthlings a cock man handle called?” He chuckled.

She snorted. “Not to my face, but I’m sure they use the term in private. They have all kinds of words for it.”

“Cock I prefer.”

“You can call it whatever you please.” Peering toward the sky, she didn’t see anyone following them. “Do you think they’ll give up? Fedeema must be busy sorting through the compound after the explosion and fire.”

“Fedeema angry is.”

“She’s fuckin’ pissed.”

“Like this term, I do.”

“It fits, doesn’t it?”

He took the chain from her hand and dropped it. Lifting his spear, he tucked his hand beneath her collar. “Still, you will hold.”

“Or impaled, I will be?”

He flashed his fangs, and her insides warmed up fast.

A quick slice and her collar parted. It fell to the ground, and she kicked it.

“Glad that’s gone.”

He nodded and frowned as he studied her neck. It had to be red. The damn thing rubbed. A growl rumbled through him, and he shot a glare back in the direction they came from. “Walk we shall.”

She stepped forward carefully. “Do you think we’ll come across more spears?” If so, could she dart to the side before she was impaled?

“Know I do not. Dangers many await.”

“Awesome.”

A shadow passed overhead, and she gaped up as a large bird swooped past them.

“Predator alert,” she said, jerking her head toward the sandy colored bird. She’d never seen one with six wings before.

Lyel lifted his sword. “Touch us, it will not.”

“I hope you’re right.”

Passing a scraggly tree, she avoided the thorn-encrusted branches. A smaller bird, about the size of a thin chicken with four clawed legs, peeked around the trunk. Its gray-blue feathers gleamed in the fading sunshine. Where had the day gone? Oh, yeah, she’d spent some of it sleeping off her beating. Her back felt…okay. Not wonderful, especially after the jarring she took while lying on Lyel’s shoulder, but she’d live. Trying not to be obvious about it, she carefully stretched, testing the skin. It stung, but it was more a dull ache than the sharp, mind-numbing pain she felt immediately after.

“Where are we going?” she asked.

Lyel pointed to a pile of rocks ahead, to their right. “Shelter we will seek there.”

It looked as good as any other place to hide. But how long could they stay among the rocks? Fedeema would track them down and drive them out into the desert, where she could pick them off. She’d expose them to the elements and whatever Hunger Games trap she had in store for them next. Especially after the compound blew up.

Hold on. Isi’s pace slowed, and Lyel looked back at her, his ridge brows lifted. “I don’t suppose you had anything to do with that explosion?” He told Fedeema he was a scientist, and Isi found that cutely nerdy and appealing. Scientists could build bombs, but it sounded like he was someone who did research, not work as a secret agent sent to destroy the Al’kieern compound.

Flashing his fangs, he nodded. “Effective, am I not?”

“Very. I can’t believe it.” She sped up, passing him, aiming for the rocks. “How did you do it?” How had they randomly escaped being blown to pieces along with the building? It was horrifying to realize they were inside a few minutes before.

“Explosives beneath compound, I planted, setting to detonate at command of mine, but Fedeema my com crushed, putting into motion the sequence.”

“We barely escaped.”

He nodded grimly.

“Are you truly a scientist?”

“No.”

“A secret agent, then?”

“What this agent of secrets is?”

“Like a cop or someone who works for the government, a la, James Bond. A secret agent takes on impossible tasks knowing they might die, but they’re willing to do so for the betterment of others.”

“Ah. Agent of secrets, I am.”

“No way,” she said, studying him further, but he didn’t look any different than the Crakairians she saw on TV. “You’re really a secret agent?”

“Yes. Good, this is?”

She swore she heard glee in his voice. “It’s cool. We can call you… What’s your last name?”

“Lyel Tair’im Iradran Sastray.”

That would take time to learn. Why did she think they’d be together long enough for her to memorize his full name? “Do all Crakairians have long names?”

“Length normal this is.”

“All right, then. You’re Sastray. Lyel Sastray, double-oh…one. I think you should be number one.”

He bared his fangs. “Always, I am your number one agent of secrets.”

She grinned, enjoying how he twisted her language. She’ll miss it once her translator caught up.

They reached the edge of the rock pile the size of a house, and Lyel paused to study it. He strode to their right and stooped down, stretching his arm into a gap between two large boulders. Turning her way, he waved, urging her near.

Behind her, something shifted across the desert floor but when she spun to look, she didn’t find anything other than endless sand. The sun hovered near the horizon, preparing to dip from view. Did creatures hunt the desert at night?

She hurried over to Lyel, he tugged her down between his thick thighs, and nudged her onto her hands and knees.

Well. This was an interesting position.

And she needed to forget about how little clothing he wore.

While she contemplated what she shouldn’t, he tapped her butt. He leaned over her, much like he would if they were naked and doing it doggie style. How could she be thinking of crap like that at a time like this? They were being hunted. Fedeema would be lobbing bombs or rockets at them soon, and all Isi could think about was the rod he sported between his legs.

He pressed closer.

Hell, he had an erection. She guessed she wasn’t the only one distracted by the position.

Fortunately, she saw where he was urging her to go. Not onto her knees for a humping but forward, into a wide crack in the rock pile.

She inched inside and was enveloped in shadows. Lyel’s hand stayed on her butt, pressing her to go deeper into the crevice.

Crawling, she came to a small opening. Muted light entered from overheard, like the little area had a moon roof. Sand covered the floor, and a circle of boulders rose around them like turrets on a castle.

“Here,” Lyel said, tapping her butt again. “We wait.” Sitting, he patted his lap, urging her to climb onto his broad thighs. “Rest, Easy.”

“Easy?”

“Name, you. Eee-see.”

“It’s Izz-ee.”

“Ah. Not Easy.”

She smirked. “Not always.”

He patted his lap again. “Sit. Izz-ee.”

“If I did that, you could definitely call me easy.” A girl only has so much willpower. She dropped down onto a scrap of ground beside him.

He huffed, but them’s the breaks. If—and that was a big IF—she changed her mind and decided she might consider a few of the sizeable benefits he had to offer, it would be on her terms. No more hugging and smooching until she could keep her brain from spinning at his touch.

“Eaten today, have you?” he asked.

“Last night, same as you.”

“Sorry, I am. Poor mate, I am not to provide food.”

“We’re in a desert, man. No worries. I’m sure there’s a bug or snake around we can eat if we get too hungry.”

“Snake, you would eat?” he asked.

“If I had to. Beats nothing, right?” She’d never eaten snake, but she had tried a Cajun scorpion once. Crunchy. Spicy. Like fishy beef jerky.

“Snake, I will find.” Pressing his fist to his chest, he leaned back to look down at her. Damn, even sitting, he was big. At five-four, she had to crick her head back to see his face. Standing, her eyeballs were a little below his nipple line. He didn’t have nipples, but that was the general area. Sitting, they were a bit more even than when standing, though the top of her head hit level with his neck. And broad! He could be a linebacker.

“Do you play football on Crakair?” she asked.

“Think so, I do not.” His gaze glided down her legs. “Food I will find and serve you, I will. Emulse your feet, we must, but no boodler, do I have.”

“I’m not sure what that has to do with football. And what do you want to do with my feet again?” She tucked them underneath her butt to protect them because…boodler?

“Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.”

“Sounds lovely, but we’re in a desert. The Al’kieern are hunting us. I doubt there will be opportunities for courtship, let alone the other two items on your very specific agenda.”

“Rest, we will. Running, we must do.”

“I get it. We need to run across the desert, but what then?”

“Safety, we will find.”

“Is there another compound on the opposite side of the desert? A village? Hell, will we find an airport?” Then she could go back to Earth. She could get a fake I.D. and hide from the mob. They’d lost her scent by now, right?

He wrapped his arm around her and tugged her close. “Rest.”

Her gasp slipped out because it hurt when he touched her back.

His brow ridges drew together as he looked down at her. “Pain where is?”

She flicked her hand and steadied her breathing. “Oh, it’s nothing.”

“Something it is. Show?”

“Really. It’s nothing. Fedeema was pissed off about me sneaking out of the room. She…hit me.”

Stiffening, his throat rumbled. “Where?”

Isi squirmed at the intensity in his gaze. “It doesn’t matter. It’s over. We got out. She won’t do it again.”

“Please. Show.”

Scooting around, she faced away from him and lifted her tunic. “See? It’s nothing.”

His breath hissed, and he carefully traced his finger down her back. “Kill her, I will.”

“I appreciate that, but as long as we get away, I’m happy.”

“Happy, I am not.” His breath eased out. “Sorry, I am. Protect you, I did not.”

“How could you? You didn’t know I was there.”

“Protect you, I would have.”

That was sweet. “Thanks.”

He eased her shirt back down and tugged her onto his lap. “Rest. Protect you now, I will.”

“Mmm,” she mumbled into his chest. It did feel good sitting here. He was warm. Not soft, but she’d be the last to complain about his muscles. “I will.”

How was she expected sleep with this guy wrapped around her?

Start by closing your eyes.

Easily said, but then her other senses kicked in. She could hear the wind whistling through the rocks, a good thing because it meant her hearing was returning. Lyel smelled awesome when he shouldn’t. He’d been locked in a cell and should reek from sweat or smell like three-day-old cooked cabbage.

She probably smelled like three-day-old cooked cabbage. Fedeema was as generous with bathwater as she was with food.

What other senses were there? Eyes closed meant no vision.

Touch. His scales were scratchy against her cheek, but his warmth cupped her like a heated blanket on a chilly day. She felt secure with him. Safe.

Taste.

It would be unwise to taste Lyel, though she was tempted.

Why was she tempted?

He was hot, but it was so much more than that. When he fought off the Al’kieern yesterday, she was amazed. And today, he again showed them who was boss.

Things could be worse. She could be facing this alone instead of with an alien who could fill in for a full SWAT team.

Her agent of secrets.

What else? He… She yawned.

Stress from hiding on the ship jumbled together with the gut-wrenching fear she lived with since her capture. The two smacked together and dragged her down…

She woke to silence and warmth. Snuggling into the heat, she nuzzled the neck of the guy she…

Hold on. Guy. Neck.

Warmth beneath her.

Lyel shifted, and his arms tightened around her. She soon found herself lying under an awake but sleepy hot dude with his thick, dreadlock-like appendages draping around her shoulders. One teased her jawline while she swore another traced the side of her breast. That couldn’t be happening; they were hair!

Groaning, he nuzzled her collar bone and traced his tongue along her jawline to her ear. He bit down, his fangs pinching the tender flesh. While she quaked and desire flooded her, his mouth moved down the column of her neck to her shoulder, where he bit again, not hard enough to break the skin, but firmly enough to mark her and send exquisite pleasure through her body.

Damn, she was going to have alien hickeys.

She should buck him off. Tell him to climb off her and leave her alone. Remind him of their no-friends-with-benefits agreement.

Maybe later…

She wove her fingers into his hair and the strands responded to her touch, entwining around her hands and teasing down her arms.

Lyel fanged the top of her tunic and tugged it aside, exposing one of her breasts. She’d long since lost her bra, and sultry air hit her skin like honey. Lyel’s hot breath followed.

He lifted his head, but a band of his hair teased the side of her breast. “These…”

“Breasts?”

“Breasts,” he breathed. “Lovely.” His mouth trailed down her skin, and he paused over the nipple. It peaked from the change in air temperature and plain old anticipation.

She arched her spine, seeking something she’d never felt before. Lyel could give it to her.

His tongue slipped out, long, thick, and forked on the end, and he licked her nipple.

A moan jumped from her throat.

“This is not pain,” he said as if he needed confirmation.

“It feels good.”

His fangs flashed, and he straddled her hips and leaned closer. Cupping her nipple with his lips, he tugged it into his mouth. His tongue swirled across it, his forked tip entwining around the nub, teasing and pulling.

Shockwaves flashed to her groin, and she shifted beneath him in blissful agitation. Fuck the no friends with benefits idea.

Keeping his mouth on her breast, he shifted backward to let his fingers trail down her belly and lower, cupping her through her clothing.

She groaned, unable to bear how wonderful his mouth felt on her breast. His hair stroked her other breast, which wasn’t physically possible, and something vibrated against her nipple, the sensation roaring through her like an inferno.

He rubbed between her legs, his big hand teasing and stroking. She bucked beneath him, wanting more.

Her hands shot down to her pants to undo them. She didn’t care about the world. About Fedeema. About needing to cross a freakin’ desert.

She needed him pumping inside her.

He shifted down, kissing her belly while his hand rubbed harder.

Light flickered overhead as if something passed over the roof opening. The throaty roar of a large bird was followed by a squeak.

A creature plunged toward her; its claws extended.

7

Lyel

His senses might be dulled by lust for his mate, but the blood of warriors ran through Lyel’s veins. Tumbling off Easy—Isi—he rolled with her secure in his arms. He flipped up to a crouch and nudged her behind him. His kalina lay on the ground, and he grabbed and brandished it.

“What was that?” Isi asked, peeking around his side. Her hands held onto his hips as her body pressed against his spine. He liked her there, but he enjoyed her beneath him even more.

Straightening, Lyel lowered his kalina. “A charlong.” The creature sat in the center of the room, and he watched the palm-sized being for sudden moves, though he believed it was no threat. It appeared unable to bear weight on one of its legs.

“What’s a charlong?” Anticipation rang in her voice. Did she hope to eat the creature?

He pulled his kalina again and stomped toward the small beast. “It is wounded. I will kill it. Tonight, I will roast it and serve it as an offering to you while wearing this modified version of the traditional garlong.”

“It’s hurt?” She leaped around him and stretched out her arms, blocking his access to the charlong. “Hold on. There’s a lot of stuff going on here. First, you’re talking normally.”

“Our translators have synced.” He flashed his fangs as he remembered her moans while he touched her. “As have we.” Grabbing her hand, he flipped it over and sighed. No matebond symbol, but deep inside, it was clear she was his true mate.

Courtship, he reminded himself. She would not be able to resist him if he courted her in the proper Crakairian ways. This was the honorable thing to do.

The thin lines above her eyes lifted. “What we did a few seconds ago,” her hand flipped toward the sandy floor, “was a momentary aberration on my part. Trust me, it won’t happen again.”

“We shall see, mate.”

“No, we won’t, mate.”

“I like that you call me mate. As you should.”

“I was being sarcastic. I was not calling you mate.”

“You were.” He eased her to the side. “Remain here, and I will kill for you.” When she jumped ahead of him again, he straightened with a huff. “The creature is wounded. Allow me to slit its throat. I will skin it and cook it, and you will be happy with my courtship.”

“Leave it to a male to think a woman will swoon because a mighty hunter slayed a defenseless bird-like creature.” Her lips twisted. “You have a lot to learn about Earth women.”

His shoulders drooped. “This is the way to win a female’s affection. Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.”

“You keep mentioning those three items in that order. I don’t understand why, but I imagine you have a reason.”

“Traditional Crakairian courtship rituals will please you.”

“Why do you think murdering a little creature will please me?”

“Because you will be fed. This is also our way.”

“I get it. Courtship. Then comes marriage and,” her gaze slanted to where they’d been entwined in the sand. “All that other stuff, which we’re not doing. Remember? We had a deal.”

Mostly. He would not force this, but that did not mean he wasn’t above teasing a response out of her. He bowed in acknowledgement of her words, choosing not to remind her of what she had also agreed to. His persuasion was working.

“Keep that in mind at all times, and we’ll do well together.” She turned toward the charlong. “Is it deadly?”

“I do not believe so. Some Crakariains tame creatures such as this for pets.”

“You mean like a parrot or a pet crow?”

He did not know those terms, but he nodded to the word pet.

A shadow passed over the air vent above, and Isi looked up. “Aw, I bet that big predator bird attacked the little one. That’s why it’s hurt.” She raked her flares off her face and secured them up with something that stretched. Interesting material. He would examine it later to see if it would serve as a weapon. For now, he could only stare at her glorious cascade of pink and gold flares dangling from her head. Infinitely desirable. When she lay beneath him, why had he not buried his face in it as he wished to do the minar they met? Oh, yes. He had been fascinated by the soft, lush mounds on her chest—breasts.

Lyel was not completely naïve about Earthling females. He read a booklet about them. They used these mounds to nurse their younglings, unlike Crakairian females who projected a fleshy tube from their abdomen to deliver nutrients. He doubted Crakairian females moaned when their fleshy tube was caressed. Isi’s response to him touching her breasts was unusual and appealing.

“For now,” she said. “I’m ignoring most of what you said about slitting throats and skinning the poor creature, because ew. No thanks. I don’t want you doing anything like that on my behalf.”

“It is tradition to provide a courtship meal.”

“The way to a girl’s heart is through her stomach, huh?” She tapped her chest. “Not this girl. We’ll find something else to eat.”

“If I cannot kill and cook the charlong or emulse your feet, you must tell me how to court you in the Earth manner.”

She cocked her head. “I must, huh?”

Perhaps he was too demanding, but he ached to show her what he could offer. “If you are willing,” he added with a sigh.

“That sounds more like it. We can talk about ways to win an Earth woman later. Right now, I have to help this little guy.” Turning, she dropped to her heels and extended her hand.

He stepped forward, his kalina lifting. “Your fingers…”

“Are fine. You poor thing. Your leg looks sore.” She tipped her head back to look up at Lyel. “We need to help him.”

“Him?”

“Or her.” She faced the charlong. “It doesn’t matter, does it, baby? How can we help you?” Scooting down onto her ass, she stretched out her legs.

The charlong hopped closer, avoiding using its wounded leg.

“My grannie had a pet parakeet when I was little,” Isi said. “It was super old, like twenty, and it died when I was twelve, but I loved that bird to smithereens.”

“What is a smithereen?” Let alone a para-tweet. He stooped down onto his heels beside her, keeping his weapon ready if the charlong became aggressive.

“Smithereens is a saying. For example, you blew the compound to smithereens.”

“I like this word smithereens. I will find new ways to use it.”

“Go for it.” She shifted closer, keeping her hand outstretched. The charlong twirped, and she laughed. “Do you have a home, little charlong?”

“Charlongs do not need homes.” He moved forward along with Isi, ready to protect her with his life.

“This one does, don’t you?” she cooed. “Look at it. It’s so sweet! I love its four, clawed legs like a chicken’s, and pretty, grayish-blue feathers. And that beak. Would you look at that? I’ve never seen a bird with a purple beak before, let alone fangs. And wings. Those clawed tips look like they could do some serious damage.”

“It is a charlong. They all look the same.”

Isi stretched out her hand and the charlong hopped backward, evading her touch.

“I won’t hurt you, but you’re shy, aren’t you?” Isi asked. “You come near when you feel safe, baby. I’m patient.” She grinned at Lyel to share the moment, her smile hitting him in the chest like a rapitire. “I think it likes me. I’m going to hang out here for a while and see if I can get it to trust me. Do we have time?”

He’d stay here forever if she granted him another smile.

The charlong edged closer, pausing by her foot. Cocking its head, it examined her clothing before moving up to her outstretched hand. It squinted at her fingers but didn’t attack.

Feeling foolish, Lyel lowered his kalina. He was disappointed he could not prove his bravery to Isi by slaying the creature. She was bonding with it when she should, instead, be bonding with Lyel.

He was not jealous. Not too much. He was…Heille, he did not know what he was. Wild, untamed emotions raged around inside him. Lust for his mate who had so exquisitely responded to his touch. Protectiveness. Anger at Fedeema for hitting her. It hurt to think of anything causing her harm, even this puny charlong. And a growing affection for this tiny Earthling female who teased him like no one had before. He didn’t know what to make of it or of her.

Isi cooed to the charlong, coaxing it closer. It took one hop in her direction before skittering back to the wall. Its twirp showed it was relenting, however. If she kept at this, she would tame the heart of the tiny beast as easily as she was taming Lyel’s beastly heart.

“Do you have family, Lyel?” she asked.

“Not any longer.”

“I’m sorry. What happened to them?”

For the first time, he wanted to share his history with another—with Isi. “My father—Piersag, as he insisted I call him—often said, ‘without regular blows, one will spoil a youngling’.”

She flashed him a concerned look. “What are you saying?”

“I loved my father—for many years.”

“I’m sure you did. I hear a but in your statement.”

Her hand remained extended, but she stilled as if she didn’t want to miss a single word Lyel spoke.

“As I aged, I started to see more than the image I created in my mind. Piersag was not a kind, caring person. He was not a good parent. What started as occasional blows became more frequent, especially when Piersag drank vintip. This was why my mother retreated to her own estate, taking my sister along with her.” He closed his eyes as memories surged through him, blocking out everything else. “I suspect Piersag extended those blows to Therena and my mother, too, not just the youngling son he was determined to control. It guts me to think I did not protect them.”

“How old were you when your mother left?”

“They visited.” The last time only weeks before they died.

“Not an answer. How old were you?”

“Old enough.”

“Lyel.” Her voice dropped off to almost nothing. “Tell me?”

“Twelve yaros.”

“A boy.”

He opened his eyes and the sadness in hers burned through him. “Big enough to protect a mother and younger sister.”

“You have a sister?”

“They both died when the disease swept through.”

“I’m sorry. But you weren’t big enough to protect anyone from an adult, not even yourself.”

And that was true. “Again, I had no honor.”

“Honor has nothing to do with it.”

“It has everything to do with it. My father destroyed our honor.”

“When he hit you.”

“That and when he…”

“What?”

He could not meet her eye. “He forced me to battle in his place in a vengeance.”

“I don’t know what a vengeance is, but he shouldn’t have forced you to do anything. You didn’t owe him.”

“I owed our family. Our name. And when I threw the battle—I was unable to kill my former friend—my father’s rage ignited. He…”

She waited in the hush that followed.

“He died, as he should. And that is why I am here. I am no agent of secrets. I came here to destroy the Al’kieern organization and restore my honor.”

“You expected to die, didn’t you?”

He could only nod.

Her shoulders slumped. “You’re already honorable.”

“I am not.”

“You succeeded.”

“Fedeema lives.”

“She’s defeated.”

He sighed. “I wish that were so, but I must still kill her.”

“I’m all for that, but not if it means your life.”

“You do not understand.”

She cocked one brow ridge. “Are you sure?”

He crossed his arms on his chest. It ached in there and he did not know why. “I do not wish to discuss this further.”

“I feel bad for you. Your mother left you,” she said softly. “Why didn’t she take you with her?” Bitterness came through in her voice, but he did not know why.

“She did try.”

Her lips compressed. “In that, you were lucky.”

Luck had nothing to do with it. “Piersag refused, stating a youngling male needed to be raised by his father. Rather than face his wrath, my mother relented.”

What would it have been like to grow up under his mother’s kind, caring touch, instead of his father’s heavy hand? Lyel soon learned to lock down his emotions because showing them—especially fear or sadness—only incited his father’s rage and made the lesson worse.

The charlong twirped and tilted its head, watching Isi.

She blinked fast, and her eyes shimmered. “I’m sorry, Lyel. I… I know what it’s like.”

Did she?

Before he could ask more, her sigh leaked out and she turned back to the charlong. “Come on, baby. I won’t,” she swallowed hard, “I won’t hurt you.”

It tiptoed over to her and tapped her foot with its beak. Isi released a surprised huff and held her palm out. “Hop on, buddy. I’ll check out your leg and find you something to eat.” She looked up at Lyel and sniffed. Sorrow still creased her face, and it touched him that she cared about this, if nothing else. “What do charlongs eat?”

“I do not know. Insects?”

“Sounds about right. Looks like I’ll need to go hunting.” She looked around and plucked a cricorn beetle off the wall and held it toward the charlong. “How about this, little guy? You hungry?”

The charlong snatched it from her and tipping its head back, swallowed the insect whole.

“Whoa. You’re starved. Let me see if I can find you more food.”

When Lyel approached Vork with an apology, Vork asked Lyel why he’d fought for his father. Lyel had not been able to give Vork an answer.

Perhaps, now, he knew.

He did it to protect Vork. By allowing the defeat, he was able to break free. He showed Piersag he was his own male, not one dominated by the whims of an abusive father.

Piersag died before he saw the person Lyel was, a male of honor. His final curses still rang in Lyel’s ears. His anger, even while dying, would haunt Lyel for many yaros.

He thought of sharing this with Isi, too, but his emotions felt too raw to reveal. They were getting to know each other. He did not wish to frighten her away.

Perhaps Lyel was no better than his father. After all, he obeyed his father’s wishes regarding a good friend. He fought Vork in the vengeance instead of refusing.

“Abuse can haunt a kid,” Isi said, not looking up from the charlong who hopped forward and stopped close to her, looking up. It twirped.

“Kid?”

“Youngling, I think you call young Crakairians, but you know what I’m saying.”

Did he? He waited to see if she would speak more.

“Do you want to be my friend, little alien bird?” she cooed, holding out another beetle, which the bird snatched from her and ate. “You can’t walk, but I can carry you around.” She tilted her head, and he knew she spoke to Lyel now. “I imagine you blame yourself for how he treated you.”

“It is proper to discipline a youngling.”

“Discipline? What did you do wrong?”

“Nothing specific, just everything.”

“Ah, Lyel,” she sighed. “I doubt you ever did anything bad enough to deserve being hit.”

“I…”

“What?”

“One does not carry a charlong,” he said, focusing on the words she had spoken to the charlong. She was wrong. Piersag’s punishment had been appropriate.

Hadn’t it?

He suppressed a growl. Throughout his childhood, he’d tried his best to be the youngling Piersag demanded. Sometimes, though, he wanted to be himself. To run and yell like the other younglings. To push the limits and be rewarded for taking chances. Watching Isi lure the charlong closer made his throat hurt, and he rubbed it. He didn’t envy how kindly she treated the creature, did he?

“There’s no harm in carrying the poor thing, is there?” she said.

The weak are abandoned—his father’s words. Only now did Lyel see how harsh, how cruel they were. “A charlong flies or runs across the desert floor,” he said weakly. He could barely focus on the charlong. His mind remained locked in the past.

Piersag had been wrong about many things, but mostly about Lyel.

“My grannie’s parakeet rode on her shoulder,” Isi said. “Do you think charlongs can be taught to repeat words? Our parakeet was a heck of a lot of fun.”

He loved how Isi distracted him, how she pulled him forward, dragging his mind from a past that could not be changed and into a future where anything was possible. “What would you teach the charlong?”

“I don’t know. Ahoy matey? People teach that phrase to parrots, but I bet a charlong could learn it, too.” She dropped forward, putting her face within striking range of the creature. Lyel held his breath, but the charlong did not attack. “Ahoy, matey! Can you say that little guy? Ahoy, matey.”

Lyel’s breath eased out, and his fingers twitched on the hilt of his kalina.

“Hello!” Isi chirped. “Try that instead, little bird. Hello! Hello!”

Lyel swore the bird was as puzzled as him. Its tiny brow feathers scrunched together.

“We should leave.” Lyel peered up. Night had fallen while she coaxed the bird. It would be difficult for Fedeema to track them in the dark. While Crakairians saw well at night, Al’kieerns did not.

“All right,” Isi said but she did not get up off the ground. “Is hello too hard to say, little bird? We have lots of other words and phrases we can try, don’t we? Thar she blows! How about that? Can you say thar she blows?”

The charlong cocked its head. Lyel felt like doing so himself.

“You need a name if you’re going to join the family,” she said.

“Family?” The word popped out of Lyel.

“Figuratively speaking.” While her words reinforced her caution, the smile she shot him warmed his insides to boiling. “No reason our charlong friend can’t come with us, right?”

They might die, and if the charlong was with them, it could die as well, but he chose not to say that. “It…could.”

“Awesome.”

The charlong hopped close enough so Isi could carefully touch its wounded leg.

“It doesn’t appear cut, just banged. Maybe it has a bruise, and it hurts to put weight on it. No matter.” Standing, she scooped up the bird as if it wasn’t a threat under normal circumstances and dropped it on her shoulder. It wavered, but its small claws dug into her tunic to maintain balance. “How do you like things up there, Buccaneer? And just like that, he has a name. Buccaneer. Bucko, for short.”

Lyel expected the creature to rake her throat, and he hefted his kalina, but the bird only glared his way. He glared back in warning. The creature needed to behave. It was not too late to find itself on a plate as Lyel’s courtship meal.

Cooing, the charlong—Booko—rubbed its face against Isi’s cheek, making her laugh.

“I think we’re ready, right Bucko?” she said.

“Ahoy!” the bird cried.

Turning toward the narrow tunnel, Lyel sighed.

8

Isi

When Isi emerged from their hiding spot and out into the desert, a hoarse, barking cry echoed in the distance. She scrambled to her feet, almost unsettling Bucko clinging to her shoulder.

“Watch the claws, buddy,” she hissed, prying them away from her skin one by one.

The barking cry repeated, and her mouth snapped shut. Her skin peppered over with goosebumps, she pulled her knife, but nothing rushed their way.

“What is this?” Lyel asked, pointing to the blade.

She showed it to him. “I stole it from Fedeema.”

“Smart,” he said. “You do not need anyone to save you.”

“I’m trying.”

“Doing.”

Heat flooded her cheeks. She shouldn’t be embarrassed by his compliments. She’d gotten them before, though not from a hot guy. “Thanks.”

He dipped his head. “You are a worthy mate.”

Her lips twisted. Why tie this into his belief they were destined mates? “Thanks?”

“The question is, am I worthy of you?”

That popped her irritation balloon. “Aw, Lyel.” Her emotions had been screwing with her since they met. After he shared his past… What she felt was not pity; it was something she could hold onto. But she was a stubborn person who hated to back down, and she… Okay, she worried if she trusted him, he’d hurt her like her mom did when she left.

Foolish, but there it was.

“You have so much to offer a woman,” she said.

“What about you?”

“I…” She shook her head. “Me, too.”

“That is enough for now.”

Overcome with her new, raw feelings, she strode out into the desert and stopped, letting the night enclose her. To hide her before he saw something she wasn’t yet ready to reveal.

Inky blackness coated the land, and a desolate aloneness sunk claws into her skin. If Lyel wasn’t here with her, Isi would crawl back into the tiny hideout among the boulders and stay there for the next month or so. What did tonight hold for them? Would they survive until morning?

“Hello!” Bucko called beside her ear, making her jump.

Yips resounded across the desert, followed by the barking cry. It reached through the darkness, making Isi shiver.

As much as she loved how quickly Bucko was learning to speak, now was a good time to keep quiet. She stroked his long, sharp beak. “Shh, there matey. If you keep that up, we’ll be cast to the fishies.”

Joining her, Lyel’s brow ridges scrunched together. “Fishies?”

“It’s a saying that means we’ll be dead,” she whispered.

“The cry was a woosterine. It hunts but it is not moving in our direction.”

How could he tell?

“That’s a relief.” Not really. Girding herself, she stared around. Two moons shone down from overhead, one tannish gray, as if the planet was made up of sand, but that would be wrong, because that was her view of Mara. The other moon’s minty green color reminded her of leaves in the spring. And Crakair…whoa. She could make out lights on the surface. A city? Lyel’s home world was huge.

Would she ever reach there safely? If so, how would she survive in a strange culture and among people she didn’t know? Maybe she could get an accounting job. Numbers were numbers, right?

Except…her translator worked for oral language, but it was unclear if written would translate the same.

Lyel would help her settle in on Crakair if she asked, wouldn’t he?

She watched as Lyel surveyed the area, his hand tight on his weapon. He moved with the cunning of a warrior yet when he spoke, she could tell he was well educated. He used his spear with a skill that suggested years of training. His scrap of material fluttered in the light breeze, and his scales gleamed in the moonlight.

So gorgeous, it almost hurt to look at him.

Her gaze flashed to his sizeable groin. The two times they kissed, she felt him—it—but the beginning of a stiffy pressed against a person wasn’t the same as seeing and holding an erect cock in her hands.

Was he scaled there, too? Interesting that was she eager to find out because she hadn’t felt that way initially. The more she got to know him, the more he worked his way beyond her barriers. She shouldn’t be thinking of him in a sexy way, though it was clear he thought of her that way.

She huffed. As tempted as she was to see where this took them, they needed to pay attention to their surroundings. If the woosterine came after them, she could be dead before she had time to gasp.

But Lyel spoke to her, to the person she was inside, and she wasn’t sure she could let that go.

Taking his hand, she linked their fingers. “I feel a bit overwhelmed.”

“By me.”

“By everything, but especially by the feelings you stir inside me. I don’t know where it’s going, and I know this isn’t the time to figure it out.”

“We have time.”

“Do we?”

He nodded slowly. “I will not pressure you, mate.”

“Just try to persuade me, right?” she teased.

“Can you blame me?”

“Actually, no, I can’t.”

“This is enough.”

For now—the thought was left unspoken. One of these days, he’d bring this conversation back. Would she be ready for more by then? Only time would tell.

“We must leave,” he said, his attention trained on the direction the howl had come from.

“I’m ready. You, too, Bucko?”

The bird fluffed its feathers but remained quiet.

She walked with Lyel around the boulders, and out into the desert.

She welcomed the distraction of moving. Everything in this world was big, from Lyel to the wasteland to the creatures around her. She couldn’t process it, maybe because she was sore and tired or maybe because, for the first time in her life, she was with someone who unsettled her. He drew her out from behind the wall she built for protection and showed her things could be different.

“We will walk at night and find shelter during the day,” he said.

“Shelter from Fedeema.”

“And her army.”

“How long will it take to cross the desert?”

“Many daelas, but we can do it.”

She loved how confident he sounded, but she’d wait and see.

“What are the moons called?” she asked softly. Her sneakers shifted on the sand, making each step a challenge. If she was looking for a workout, she would get it. Sadly, they had a long way to go before they could find safety.

He tipped his head back, and she noted he kept his sword ready, as if he expected something to attack them.

Her spine tingled, as if something watched, and she kept her knife ready.

It came in a whoosh.

Bucko shrieked as something smacked into Isi’s back, driving her onto her knees. She spun and swiped out, hitting whatever it was.

It flopped on the ground while Bucko cowered against her neck.

With an angry screech, the predator bird she saw earlier took off. It soared at a crooked angle, favoring one wing.

“Will it be back?” Isi asked.

“We will watch for it. You…amaze me.” He shook his head, his hair lifting up and around his face. One of the thicker bands reached toward her.

“Why does it do that?” she asked, keeping her eye on the speck of bird limply flying away from them.

“Why does what do what?”

Jumping up, she tapped the end of the band of hair that reached for her cheek. “If this was a horror film, I’d be shrieking it’s alive.”

“It is alive.”

“You know what I mean.”

“My naanans are like my arms. They move independently.”

“You’re saying you don’t have hair.”

“Hair?” He huffed. “I am mistaken. I thought…” His laughter snorted out as they started walking again. “I thought your beautiful tresses were called flares.”

“My hair is brightly colored, but it’s plain old hair. It’s not alive. Truly.” She tweaked the tip of a longer naanan, making Lyel shiver. “Does that hurt? If so, I’m sorry.”

“My naanans enjoy attention.”

“Ah.” She nodded slowly. “Sexual attention?”

“That, too.”

“And they have minds of their own?” They must since he didn’t seem to control them.

“Not usually.”

“Which isn’t exactly an answer, dude.”

“I can direct them but sometimes…”

“They direct themselves?”

“Yes. They feel the matebond and respond.”

Huh.

“About the moons,” he said, she assumed he must want to steer her attention away from his naanans. Did they give him away? “Mia is the smallest and is made up of wasteland.”

“From our surroundings, I thought Mara was the only wasteland moon in the neighborhood.”

“Only this part of the planet. A good part is covered with city, and there are vast oceans beyond that.”

“And the other moon?”

“Tress. A vacation paradise for Crakairians.”

“Maybe someday, I’ll go there. I could work at a resort, assuming they have any. You know, sing for my supper.”

“How long have you been a singer?”

“Most of my life. My mom and Grannie…” It hurt to remember her mother, because she bailed on Isi, but… “I used to sing with my mom when I was really little, then with Grannie. Sometimes, Mom and I would harmonize together. She taught me how to control my voice.” Until she left.

“A good memory. Does your mother still live?”

“I don’t know. She abandoned me when I was a child. I was raised by my grandmother until she died, then foster parents. They were decent, but they had four other kids and with full time jobs, they were busy.”

“I am sorry about your mother and grandmother.”

“Grannie was the best.” She missed the fun they had together. “After Grannie died, the state looked for Mom, but couldn’t find her. When I aged out of foster care, I didn’t look for her myself.”

“Why not?” He studied her face. What did she reveal?

“Because I cut her from my life when I was ten.”

“Perhaps she had a reason to stay away.”

“She bailed and she didn’t come back. There’s no reason in that.”

“Sometimes people need to disappear.”

Like Isi? She paused but started walking again. Stomping, that is. Isi and her mother were nothing alike. But she couldn’t dismiss Lyel’s question. What if Mom needed to hide? She may have left Isi behind to protect her, knowing Grannie could give a world of love to her grandchild.

Isi would never know, but Lyel’s comment made her think of this from another angle. They started across a long stretch of smooth sand peppered with rocks the size of grapefruits. “Mom’s reasons no longer matter. I’m not going back to Earth.”

“That is right. You will be a singer on Tress.” He stared forward, but if he saw anything in particular, his loose posture suggested it didn’t concern him. “When I heard you sing, it stilled something inside me.”

His words stilled her. Her steps faltered, and she halted beside one of the black rocks. “Thank you.”

“Your song shared a slice of you.”

“I’m not quite sure that’s true. A song is just words and a melody.” Disconcerted, she started walking again, stepping over a rock. They climbed a small hill and Lyel paused at the top to survey the area. With a grunt, he started down the other side, she kept pace with him, her feet sliding in the soft sand. Bucko rode along, swaying with her movements, his head dipping back and forth as he studied their surroundings. At least the predator bird hadn’t returned. Yet. Isi’s back loosened, and she was grateful she avoided an infection this time. Her ointment had blown up with the compound. Where would she find treatment in the wasteland?

“What did you hear in my song?” Why was she asking? It would be easier to let this go, to suppress…feelings. Whatever he said would make her turbulent emotions rise to the surface all over again. Caring was to be avoided at all costs.

He was a means to an end, someone to share defense with until they escaped this planet.

But she did care. No harm in admitting it to herself. From the brief time she’d known him, Lyel had impressed her and not only with his fighting abilities. He was sweet if reserved, protective of her and, if she was honest with herself, he sparked something inside her no one else had.

Her footsteps slowed. Emotions. Damn things were crap. Who needed them?

Maybe…Isi did.

No. She didn’t. She didn’t dare. Catching up, she kept pace with Lyel, moving around another black rock.

“In your song, I sensed longing for something beyond your touch,” he said.

Huh. That was too close for comfort. “The words say that, how the girl feels like she’s on the outside looking in, longing to be part of something she’s never known. They were her words, not mine.” Liar.

“It is true words can be statements unrelated to feelings. But when you sang, you put your heart into your words. I felt it,” he pressed his fist against his chest, “here.” His hand dropped to his side. “But that wasn’t all I heard in your song.”

She didn’t want to know. Each of his comments picked away at the scar surrounding her heart. After mom left and Grannie died, Isi decided things went better when you relied only on yourself. Trusting others only resulted in disappointment. If you didn’t let someone in, they couldn’t hurt you. Words to live by, and she held them close.

“It’s nothing like that,” she said. “You heard nothing. The song is from a cartoon movie completely unrelated to me.”

He tapped her chest. “Your song came from in here.”

She shrugged away from him. She couldn’t look at him, couldn’t let him see that vulnerable side of her she kept hidden. “It’s not true.”

He nodded slowly. “I imagine when you say this, others believe, but I see something else. You sang about being a person who had nothing but longing for what could be. Hope surged in your song. You carry this feeling because you pray one daela, you will feel complete.”

“This isn’t true,” she said through a throat choked off with pain. “I’m complete. I don’t need anyone else to make me feel real.”

“You are correct. You only need yourself.”

“That’s right,” she huffed, her arms snaking across her chest. “I only need me.”

“Relying on oneself is the first step.”

She didn’t like where this was going, but she also had a feeling nothing she said would stop him from naming it. Another thing she kept hidden inside. She started counting to ten—

“Once you love yourself, your heart will open to others.”

“I love myself.” It came out defensively, but she heard his words. Had she pinned Mom’s leaving on herself? For so long, she tried to figure out what she’d done to drive Mom away. Grr. “I don’t have time for this.”

She didn’t want to make time for this.

“Are you sure?” He turned toward her. “Isi, I know what it is like to feel this way, to hold yourself back to keep from being hurt when, deep inside, you are still that child who wants to give and receive love. Your song spoke to me. One day, I hope you will trust me enough to share all of yourself.”

“You’re wrong. Your mom left but she still loved you. Mine took off to spend a weekend with a boyfriend but never returned. Sure, we got a nice, legally written letter in the mail, saying Grannie could have custody, but Mom bailed on me when I needed her. I was a kid who loved her, not trash to be thrown away. She left me with my grandmother, who did her best to give me a home, but she had Mom late in life. She was old. And she died, leaving me alone like Mom did.”

He tugged her into his arms and held her. Bucko offered his version of sympathy, cooing in her ear and stroking his beak on her face.

She didn’t cry. She cried herself out when she was ten.

“I am sorry,” Lyel said. “I did not wish to upset you.”

Tipping her head back, she looked up at him, trying to read his face. It was cloaked in shadows, but pain came through in his voice, a feeling echoed in her heart. “You said something about obedience.”

“He… I defended him for so long. No, I defended him until the bitter end. When all that time, he did not defend me. Not against the world and mostly, not against himself.”

“It was wrong of him to hit you.” Her chest spasmed at the thought.

“If a youngling is not disciplined, he will grow up wild.”

“Do you think that or are you repeating what you were told? He hurt you, and that’s so wrong.” Her eyes stung. No denying she felt pain for the child Lyel had been, for the man his upbringing molded him into.

“It is done.”

“Is it ever over, though? I’m here to tell you I don’t think it ever is.” She stepped out of his embrace but kept a grip on his forearms, needing the connection. “You were right about me. What you see is the glued together bits of a life that was shattered. Even now, there are times I can barely keep from falling apart.”

“Isi.” A world of emotion came through in his voice, and while it was too much, too soon, she couldn’t pull away. Stepping back from him now would undo the progress she made and it could hurt Lyel. Something she realized she never wanted to do.

“I think, in some ways, you’re also pieces of yourself glued back together,” she said softly.

His chest rose and fell. “Perhaps.”

“Only perhaps?”

“It is hard to open myself up.”

“Boy, do I get it.” She laughed ruefully. “But if you don’t let it out, if you trap it inside, it festers, and that does you no good.” She well understood how holding back feelings could make things worse. Perhaps it was time for her to let it out, too.

“I will think about this.”

“It’s a start. Let me know if you come to any conclusions.”

They started walking again, and Isi’s steps felt lighter, as if sharing had released a fifty-pound weight she carried on her shoulders. She hoped Lyel felt the same. Life was too short to cling to past pain.

He approached a scraggly tree silhouetted in the moonlight, its shadow stretching across the arid ground in ghostly fingers. Stooping down, he dug at the base of the tree.

She joined him, placing her hand on his shoulder. Again, she needed this connection. “What are you doing?”

He pointed to where he dug. “See?”

She dropped to her knees beside him, and Bucko hopped from her shoulder to her knee then to the ground. The bird limped to the edge of the depression and peered inside like Isi did.

Lyel carefully shifted the bird to the side and reached into the hole with both hands. He pulled his cupped palms out and held them toward her. “Drink.”

“You found water?”

“This tree has deep roots that pull liquid from deep beneath the ground. Wherever you find a juliter tree, you will find something to drink.”

She held his hands and sipped the brackish liquid. It might not taste the best, but it granted life. After she quenched her thirst, she did the same for Lyel, reaching into the hole and cupping water for him to sip from her palms.

His fangs flashed in the moonlight, and he traced his finger down her cheek before drinking.

There was something wildly intimate about sharing this way. Did she like it? She sucked in a breath. Yes.

While danger lurked in this direction, it was also freeing, like she faced a tall wave roaring in from the ocean. If it broke over her, she would drown. But if she jumped up, she could crest the peak and glide down the other side.

They drank their fill and got to their feet while Bucko leaped into the tiny depression. He floated across the thin surface, dipping his beak into the water.

“Finished, Bucko?” she asked, and she swore he nodded. She scooped him up out of the hole and dropped him onto her shoulder. He settled on his fluffy butt, dampening her shirt, but she didn’t care. She was grateful to have his friendship.

“Come on, matey,” she said. “It’s time to weigh the anchor and hoist the mizzen.”

“Mizzen?” Lyel asked as they started across the desert again.

“It’s another pirate saying, but I’m not sure what it means.” Her laughter snorted out. “I’m warning you. I won’t be able to stop coming up with them. I’m stuck in a pirate rut, which is kind of funny considering there’s next to no water around and we’re not on a ship.”

“Teach me as you teach Bucko, then. We will be pirates together.”

“Sure, thing, Jack.”

“Jack?”

“He was a famous pirate. He had hair,” she tapped the end of a naanan, “a bit like yours.” And he was equally sexy, though Jack had been sexy in a flirty way while Lyel was pure, unending, masculine heat.

“I do not know if I prefer the name Lyel or Jack. How about you?”

Lyel. She preferred Lyel.

“I think…” She tripped over one of the black rocks and scowled as she kept moving. Damn thing. Rocks couldn’t jump, could they?

“You think…”

She stared straight ahead; her emotions too raw to share yet. But she was nothing if not honest. “I prefer Lyel.”

“Isi.” He said her name like something precious.

Too much. Too soon.

Maybe.

She pulled ahead of him, jumping over yet another black rock, and he caught up.

“You mentioned your song came from a cartoon, but I do not know what this is,” Lyel said lightly. She appreciated that he wasn’t pushing this. Despite resting together and his kisses…well, and all the rest, they were only starting to get to know each other.

“A cartoon is animated like a drawing come to life, played out in a movie form.”

“Like a vid?”

“Yes. Crakairian males matched with Earth women send video introductions to their prospective, right?”

“They do.”

“Have you sent one to an Earthling woman?” Why had she asked that? She truly didn’t want to know.

“I have not applied for the Selection.”

“Did you plan to?”

“No…” He paused and looked around; his head cocked.

“Ahoy, matey,” Bucko said softly by her ear. He ruffled his wings and settled onto her shoulder again.

Lyel shook his head, his naanans flaring out before settling around his shoulders. He started walking, and Isi stayed with him, weaving around an open area peppered with black rocks.

When she started to speak, he lifted his hand.

A mass of black rocks skittered across the desert, rushing toward them.

9

Lyel

G rowling, Lyel rushed forward, his kalina lifted. He met the wall of dark creatures scampering toward them and swiped out with his blade. Vardeks. He’d heard of beasts like this. They emerged from the ground at night to feed.

They would not eat Lyel or Isi.

“Ahoy! Ahoy!” Bucko squawked, flapping his wings. Isi, her knife in hand, backed toward the hill they’d descended.

When his kalina hit the lead vardeks, they snapped and cackled. His blade deflected off their hard shells. They marched toward him with their retractable pincers extended.

Sheathing his kalina, he ran to Isi. He scooped her up and raced toward the wall of vardeks, leaping up and over them, landing with a jolt on the soft ground beyond.

Bucko yelped but clung to Isi’s shoulder.

“What are those things?” Isi shouted. “They don’t seem friendly.”

“Vardeks, and they will eat us.”

“Let’s avoid this, secret agent Lyel.”

“I am doing my best.” The vardeks spun and charged them. Bolting across the wasteland, Lyel leaped over more clusters and darted to the sides to avoid others.

The vardeks jumped, attempting to latch onto him, their claws scraping his hide, but his scales protected him from penetration. This would not last, however. They’d pinch and slice until they broke through. His blood would draw more, as they hunted by scent.

“You didn’t tell me you were a superhero, able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.”

“I am super, but I am no hero.” His feet churned through the sand as he put distance between them and the vardeks. Fortunately, they hunted in groups and did not coat the entire desert.

“What you’re doing is heroic to me.”

His steps faltered, and he slowed. A glance over his shoulder showed the creatures were not following. “How is taking you away from the vardeks heroic?”

“Oh, I don’t know.” Her arms linked around his neck, and he liked how she leaned into him. “Maybe it was the way you ran forward, taking on the…vardeks all by yourself with only a spear.”

“What else would you have me do?”

She shrugged. “I have a feeling hitting them wouldn’t have done much, and my knife is too short to make much difference. I could’ve kicked them like balls, I suppose.”

“They would have latched onto your feet, and your blows would not have penetrated their exoskeleton.”

“Latched on, huh? Let’s avoid that.” She shuddered, and he tightened his grip on her. “Blow is being generous. I studied martial arts, but I’m no ninja. But that’s not all you did. You picked me up and leaped like Aquaman over the creatures.” She patted the charlong perched on her shoulder. “Even Bucko wasn’t dislodged.”

“Who is this man of aqua? He is someone you admire?” He was not jealous.

“Just sayin’, Jason Mamoa is something else, and he has many admirable features, but he’s an actor. In Aquaman, he plays a superhero. It’s a cartoonish movie.”

Like the other, where she found her songs? “Did he sing in this vid?”

Cresting a hill, Lyel continued down the other side at a jog. They’d left the vardeks behind for now, but he liked holding Isi. Would she mind if he carried her longer?

She snorted. “He did not sing, and I’m not sure I’d want him to, either.” Her fingers traced through his naanans, and he ached to close his eyes and savor her touch. It made his cock twitch. “He had lots of muscles, scales, and he had hair a bit like yours.”

“My naanans and scales are better than this man of aqua’s.”

“They are.” She said it in a solemn tone, but her lips curled upward. “They move independently, which is better than hair.”

He liked her hair, lying like the softest down on his arm.

“I like them,” she added.

And they liked her, if their weaving into her hair and across the back of her neck was any indication. One teased her collarbone, and he swore it ached to dip lower, but naanans did not have emotions. He controlled them, not the other way around. The naanan stroking her cheek suggested otherwise.

Heille, they did what he wished he could do.

“Another Aquaman move?” she said. “You’re carrying me as you run across a desert, and I’m no lightweight.”

“You are tiny.”

“Everyone’s tiny compared to you.”

“I am of average build.”

“The Crakairian average, perhaps, but where I come from, men are not as tall or broad as you.”

Lyel puffed out his chest. “I feel bad for the remaining Earth men.” A thought occurred to him, and his chest deflated. “Are you saying I am too big?”

The lines above her eyes rose. “That’s an interesting question.”

“In what way?” She should tell him. Put him out of his misery.

“You’re big in ways I shouldn’t mention, but no worries, I’m not scared. Not that we’re going there yet.”

“Where are we not going yet?”

“Into that realm.”

He was confused.

“As for the rest of you, I wouldn’t be the only woman to call you big, but you’re impressive not intimidating.”

Rest of him. Rest of him. Oh. “You refer to my cock. I will show it to you when we stop to rest.”

She grinned. “Are all Crakairian males eager to flash women?”

“Flash of what?”

“You know.” She wiggled her face. Tipping her head to the side, she peered behind them. “We seem to have left the vardeks behind. You can put me down now, and I’ll move under my own speed.”

He slowed, stopped, and lowered her to her feet.

“Hey, this will work.” She darted a few feet away and hefted a stick, swinging it through the air as she pivoted. “I appreciate your heroic efforts on my behalf, but next time, I’m going to play baseball with the vardeks.”

“Their bite can be deadly.”

“I’ll kick them, too.”

“Jump over them. That is best.”

“As long as you’re aware my jump is puny compared to yours. I’m short in case you didn’t notice.”

“I will carry you again if more vardeks attack.”

“That’s the thing. I don’t want you to carry me. I get wherever I go under my own steam.”

“You are independent. I appreciate this in you.” If he couldn’t help her with this, how could he convince her he was a worthy mate?

Remember the courtship rituals.

He had not prepared a meal while dressed in his fake garlong, as she refused to allow him to kill Bucko. He found water and from her behavior, he could tell she was softening but not sufficient to win her agreement to marriage.

“Thanks.” Jumping forward, Isi slashed the stick. She poked at the ground and smacked a rock. “This will work nicely. I took karate for a while, though it was ages ago, but I still know some moves.”

“Karate?”

“It’s a type of martial arts, a system of unarmed combat where those fighting use their feet and hands to deliver and block blows. Some do it for exercise and to hone their fighting ability. I did it because…”

“What?”

“I needed to protect myself. I also took self-defense classes, so watch out.”

He bowed. “I respect your defensive abilities.”

“Hello!” Bucko called. “Ahoy, matey.”

“Cute,” Isi said with a grin. She stroked the charlong’s back. “Aren’t you a clever bird. How about thar she blows? Remember that one? Thar she blows.”

“Blows,” the charlong repeated.

Isi snickered. “Close enough.”

“On Crakair, we have khatalm warriors. They are deadly.” His father used them for protection. “You have khatalm warrior skills?” This would be helpful.

“Don’t get too excited. I only got to blue belt, which means I learned just enough to be dangerous.” She rushed forward and stabbed the sand with her stick. “Bucko, try this one. Shiver me timbers.”

“Shiver she blows,” Bucko twirped.

Isi slashed out at a clump of wispy grasses, severing the seedpods from the main shaft. She stopped, staring forward, and the stick trembled in her hand. “Oh, shit. What’s that?”

He followed her gaze to a small herd of jiera. The spindly legged creatures with dusty gray fur, extended their necks and peered their way. Their musky scent tainted the air. Shifting their feet, the lead one stomped to give warning.

“Will they attack?” Isi whispered, backing toward Lyel.

“They will not but—

The ground rumbled around them, and the jiera bolted, racing in the opposite direction.

Anxiety clawed up Lyel’s spine when the ground shook again.

Isi turned as she walked toward him, and fear spiked her voice. “Is that an earthquake?”

The ground erupted underneath her.

As a xarton shot up through the ground, its enormous mouth opened. Isi was sucked downward, into the gaping maw.

“Lyel!” She stretched her arms toward him, but she tumbled away from him too fast.

He leaped forward, landing on his belly and snapping his arm out toward her. He latched onto her fingers, and her panicked gaze met his.

“Don’t let go!” Isi cried.

“I will not.” Easing forward, he tried to get a better grip on her arm.

The xarton’s tongue wrapped around Isi’s body and yanked, pulling her from Lyel’s grasp.

As he bellowed with rage, the xarton’s mouth snapped closed.

It sunk back into the sand with Isi inside it.

10

Isi

“Wailing never did a soul any good,” Grannie always said, and Isi believed it with all her heart. When in trouble, fight instead.

“Thar she blows,” Bucko shrieked, clinging to Isi’s shoulder as she tumbled down into a mouth the size of a school bus. She kept a death grip on her stick. Death being a word too close to comfort. Dank, musty slime coated the surfaces around her and teeth about three feet long glistened with spit.

She’d never forget the look of devastation on Lyel’s face as his grip loosened and she fell away from him, into this monster.

After the jaws closed, darkness enveloped her in an odorous pall. What she wouldn’t give for a flashlight. The creature’s tongue worked, shoving her down its throat. Not tonight, Satan.

Like a freight train, the body moved. Isi wavered, trying to remain on her feet on a squishy surface that felt like a tongue.

Thinking was all well and good, but actions bring results—another Grannie phrase.

It was now or never, and Isi wasn’t a girl who believed in never.

“Hold on, Bucko!” Spinning, she delivered a roundhouse kick to one of the front fangs and followed it up with a gouge of her stick on the tongue.

The creature came to a grounding stop, making Isi pitch against the side of the mouth. She pried herself off the gooey wall and stabbed the stick into the beast’s upper palate.

It shuddered, a groan worked its way up from the belly.

“Shiver me timbers,” Bucko cried, clinging to her shoulder. Extending his neck, he pecked the beast’s mouth.

“Hold on, matey,” Isi cried. She punched forward, thrusting her fist against the wall, then used the kin geri move she perfected in karate against a fang. The tip snapped off, and the beast swayed, trying to knock Isi off her feet.

Using a pirate’s wide stance, she bucked along with the ride, using the opportunity to spear the sidewall with her stick.

Another kick, and the creature blasted upward, a rocket aiming for Crakair.

Thrashing, the beast’s tongue worked, thrusting Isi up instead of down.

She flailed at the wall with her stick and kicked a lower fang, breaking another tip. Yeah, that’ll teach it!

Smack, smack. She thrust the stick up, impaling the upper part of the mouth, its cry bursting up from below.

The mouth opened, and like Isi was a giant hairball, she was hurtled forward, passing the teeth close enough they scraped her arm.

She landed in the sand on her butt, her body coated with slime, and her arm stinging. Miraculously, Bucko held on, his claws creating a death grip on her shirt that would leave holes in the fabric. Leaping to her feet, she watched as Lyel flung himself off the ground and onto the back of the creature. It flailed like a giant worm, trying to toss him off, but he held true.

He lifted his spear and brought it down, impaling the creature in the neck.

It shuddered and whipped back and forth.

Lyel went flying. He tumbled through the air and landed on his feet, making sticky, sand-coated Isi envious. Racing forward, he slashed the creature beneath the chin. It bellowed and dropped back into the sand like a subway leaving the station at high speed.

A sandy whirlpool swirled before the ground went still.

Lyel nodded curtly at the bare ground. His gaze sought Isi’s and in one leap, he stood in front of her. “Are you injured?”

“I don’t…know?” Her arm hurt but at least it was still attached to her body. “Its teeth…” She pointed to the scrape. Blood beaded on the surface and trickled across her skin. The world went into sharp focus then blurry. Focus. Blurry. “Something’s not right, Lyel.”

“Isi,” he groaned.

He caught her before she hit the sand.

Isi woke with her arm on fire and elephants stomping through her brain. She wiggled, and Lyel’s arms tightened around her.

“I’m alive,” she croaked. When she opened her eyes, sunlight stabbed deeply.

“It will take more than a xarton to defeat you.”

“Ahoy, matey,” Bucko cried from Lyel’s shoulder. If he wore an eye patch, his pirate appearance would be complete. Seeing her awake, the bird hopped along Lyel’s upper back and jumped, his wings flapping. He landed on her chest and clambered up onto her shoulder. “Hello! Hello!”

“Hello to you, matey.” She shifted her arm, grateful Lyel didn’t need to cut it off, and ran her fingers across the bulky dressing. “Xarton. Is that what that thing was called? What was it?”

Lyel walked, his footsteps eating up the desert.

“How long was I unconscious?” she asked.

“A day. The xarton’s poison invaded your body. I made the antidote and gave it to you, but it took time to work. I carried you while you recovered.”

“Have you been traveling long?”

“All daela.”

She lost an entire day, and nothing around them had changed.

Lyel’s feet churned through the sand, taking them up a small hill and down the other side. He made it seem effortless, but it couldn’t be.

“Put me down, and I’ll walk,” she said.

“If I carry you the entire way, I can protect you.” The stark pain in his voice hit her in the chest like a blade.

“I appreciate it.” She stroked his face. “You already have protected me. You found an antidote and gave it to me. You didn’t abandon me to die.”

“Never,” he vowed.

“Let me walk. Please. I feel useless. And we should stop so you can rest.”

“At nightfall.”

Which hovered nearby. Gold and pink beams streaked across the sky as the sun approached the horizon.

“Please.” She squirmed, and he sighed. Coming to a stop, he eased her feet to the ground and steadied her when she would’ve fallen.

“See?” she said. “I’m stronger than a…xarton.”

“Blow me down,” Bucko said.

“Don’t rub it in,” she said. “I know my legs are shaky, but a girl has to start somewhere.”

“How did you escape?” he asked, taking her hand. His arm went around her back, and though it stung where she was hit, she needed his support. He was right; the poison had done a number on her body and it would take time for her to fully recover.

“Wait. My stick.” She couldn’t shake her need to keep it close by. It had served her well. “Did I lose it?”

He pulled it from the sheath on his back containing his spear and brandished it, holding it toward her like a king bestowing knighthood. “I kept it safe for you.”

“Thank you.” She dug into her pocket but found nothing. Silly that she hadn’t thought to use her blade against the xarton. “I lost my knife.”

“I also collected it for you.” He stopped and untied a slender pouch strapped to his calf. “A warrior braver than a man of aqua deserves a noble sheath to hold her blade.” He dropped to his knees and secured it to her leg. Looking up, he bared his fangs. “You are a mighty fighter. Stronger than a battalion of khatalm warriors.”

She snorted. “I doubt that, but I’m proud of how I handled it. I’m not sure what would’ve happened if I hadn’t fought back.”

“I would have come for you.”

“How?”

“Dug my way into the xarton’s warren and killed it. Sliced it open to find you.”

She held onto his shoulders, outlining his larger shoulder scales with her fingertips. “Lyel. How can you suggest you have no honor after that?”

He straightened. “I had honor, but my father threw it away.”

“He threw away his own honor, not yours.” She tilted her head. “You came to Mara to destroy the compound, feeling that would restore your feeling of worth, but don’t you know? It was there all along. Your father could hurt you. He could demean you. But he could never take away that core person inside you who makes you who you are.”

He cupped her face. “Isi. Please.”

“Please, what? Don’t point out something you need to hear? You can’t stop me. You’re a good person. Your father was not. But you’re not tied together. His actions have no impact on who you are.” She pressed her palm against his chest. “Not inside here.”

“You do not understand.”

“Like I don’t understand about my mother? I wish you believed in yourself as much as I believe in you.”

“Isi.” Bracing her shoulders, he captured her lips with his own.

She moaned and pressed into him, her arms going around his waist. Why was she fighting this when it was something she wanted almost from the moment she met him?

His naanans glided along her shoulders and cupped her neck, while others teased the sides of her breasts. She wanted to tug off her clothing and drag him down onto the ground on top of her.

He had a hard-on, and she savored the feel of his full length pressed against her. Other than a few hours hiding in the tiny rock cave, they hadn’t had a moment together where they weren’t on the run or injured. What would it be like to relax and savor time getting to know each other?

Lifting her off her feet, he spun her around. He bared his fangs then nuzzled her neck, his laughter tickling her skin.

A fluttering sound tugged at her attention, but she ignored it. This moment was for her and Lyel.

He lowered her to her feet but kept his arms around her. “I like you, Isi. It is not just the symbol on my hand saying this.”

“I don’t have a symbol, but I like you, too.”

He grinned. “What shall we do with this liking?”

“I think we should—”

Something slammed into Lyel’s back, thrusting him forward. He pulled her with him, shielding her body with his. They tumbled to the ground and Lyel rolled across the rough surface, taking her with him. He jumped to his feet and thrust her behind him, but he staggered.

Six flying Al’kieern hovered nearby with stun sticks and laser guns lifted.

“Take them,” the leader shouted. “Fedeema would like to speak to them.”

They rushed toward her and Lyel.

11

Lyel

L yel’s back stung from the stunner, but he shrugged off the pain. He had to protect Isi.

She liked him! But he might die before he had the chance to show her how much she was starting to mean to him.

Snarling, he pulled his kalina. Isi moved around to stand beside him, brandishing her stick and knife, one in each hand.

“Let’s kill them,” she said.

“My thought exactly.” But how?

“Split up,” she said, bolting to the right. Two Al’kieern took off after her, their jeers filling the air. They might find Isi a greater challenge than they assumed.

This left four for Lyel, an easy number to defeat. As two rushed toward him, he flicked darts from his shoulder sekairs. A direct hit took two of the Al’kieern out as the poison darts killed them immediately. They tumbled to the ground and the others paused, frowning.

A quick glance at Isi told him he’d been right. She stood, swinging her stick, while the Al’kieern flew around her, looking for a way to grab her. One came too close, and she thrust forward. Her stick connected with the Al’kieern’s face, and he reeled away, bellowing.

Lyel’s two remaining challengers flew wide and came in from each side. His sekairs flicked, but his darts missed. One of the fliers hit him on the right, and he flung himself forward. Rolling, he came to his feet and slashed out with his kalina. The Al’kieern zipped backward. They lifted their laser pistols and fired.

Lyel dove to the side, the blasts hitting where he’d been standing.

The ground rumbled. Heille. His gaze met Isi’s, and it was clear she felt the movement as well. Flying, the Al’kieern probably hadn’t.

He waved for her to come closer.

When the second flier dove toward her, she spun, swinging out with her leg. Her foot connected with the Al’kieern’s chest. He shrieked and tumbled backward, spinning through the air.

Lyel’s jaw dropped.

Joining him, Isi grinned, her feet planted solidly in the sandy ground. “You need help with the last two?” Her smile faded fast. She hefted her stick and swung it at one of the three remaining Al’kieern darting in close. “We need to get out of here before a xarton arrives for a snack.”

The ground shifted again, sand swirling to their right.

“I’ve got an idea,” Isi said. She grabbed Lyel’s hand and tugged him toward where the xarton was rising from below.

Run toward the xarton? It was suicide, but if Isi said she had a plan, he’d follow. He kept his kalina ready, however.

The Al’kieern gave chase, flying in close and trying to grab them. They ducked and then bolted again, aiming for the swirling sand.

“When I say go,” Isi called out. “Grab me and jump.” She stomped her feet, and the sand shifted faster. The xarton was coming, aiming straight for them.

The Al’kieern swept over them, carrying a net, but he and Isi split, darting to the sides.

As the Al’kieern reeled the empty net in and came around for another pass, the xarton erupted from the sand, its mouth agape.

Lyel grabbed Isi and leaped, soaring over the xarton.

The net dropped and snagged on the xarton’s fangs. Its jaws snapped closed, and it flopped onto its side, dragging the Al’kieerns down with it. Two let go, but the other was trapped, his hands snagged in the mesh. The creature dove into the sand.

Lyel landed on the opposite side of the xarton as it snaked into the ground. Its tail whipped out, and Isi was snagged by its forked tip. The ends wrapped around her ankle and she was swept off her feet and dragged toward the hole.

Latching onto her arms, Lyel was pulled along with her. They plunged into the sand behind the xarton and were sucked down beneath the surface.

12

Isi

A s she was hauled into the ground, Lyel grabbed her wrists and held on. Bucko leaped off with a squawk and flew toward safety.

Isi and Lyel slid into the hole after the xarton together. The sun winked out as they dropped below the surface, and darkness coated the world, gritty and scratchy. Sand was shoved into Isi’s mouth, and she gasped, unable to breathe.

This was it. They’d die and be eaten by the xarton.

She hadn’t had a chance yet to… What did she want? Her sole goal had been to escape Earth for Crakair and find a way to eke out an existence.

She hadn’t planned on Lyel and now, when it seemed the choice would be taken from her, she wanted more. So much more.

They were pulled deeper into the ground, smacking against what vaguely felt like walls, as well as each other. Through it all, Lyel held onto her, protecting her with his own body. When he could’ve released her and saved himself, he tightened his grip.

“Hold on,” he shouted over the shifting sand and creature’s growls.

The xarton emerged into a tunnel deep below the ground. Isi flopped along a hard surface, dragged behind the creature down the passage. Miraculously enough, Lyel hung on. Their gazes met. How was it possible she could see? This wasn’t a manmade structure but some sort of tunnel system where the xarton must live.

“It’s taking us to its nest,” she shouted, her voice filled with panic. “We’re gonna be eaten alive.” She kicked, trying to break free of the tail but the grip tightened, choking off the blood to her foot.

Lyel released one of her hands, and her eyes widened. He wasn’t letting go. She’d stake her life on it. But what was he doing?

Using her for leverage, he pulled himself toward her.

When their faces were close, he bared his fangs. “No worries.”

She found herself grinning, which was silly. She was about to die; how could she find even a speck of happiness in this moment?

The xarton flicked its tail, and they were tossed against the wall. Isi’s teeth clanked together, and her bones shuddered.

Lyel grimaced and latched onto her shoulders, then her waist, moving down her body. Reaching over his head, he hefted his kalina.

“No worries,” she said through chattering teeth. “Love your attitude, Lyel!”

A slice of his spear, and Isi was cut free.

As they tumbled away from the xarton, the creature screamed. Its tails smacked out, aiming for them, but Lyel scooped Isi up and bolted in the opposite direction. The xarton shrieked and scrambled around to give chase.

A glance showed Isi where the light was coming from. The blob-like creatures pinned inside globes in the compound, the ones who tried to attack her, peppered the ceiling. They shifted as she and Lyel ran beneath them.

“Watch out for the blobs on the ceiling,” she hissed. “They’re not friendly.” What if they dropped down onto them?

“Arins. They taste good.”

She shuddered, remembering the beastie from the dungeon below the compound. The creatures of light flung themselves against the glass. Their long teeth and claws stood out in her mind, and she tried to shrink closer to Lyel. “You eat them?”

“Roasted, they have a nutty, sweet flavor.”

Somehow, she couldn’t equate nutty and sweet with the gleaming blobs. Maybe with barbeque sauce…

“When we pause for a break, I will roast one for you and serve it to you while naked.”

She must be mishearing him. “You didn’t say naked.” Panting, she continued to race beside him.

“I do not have a true garlong. Naked is almost as good.”

How could Lyel wearing a garlong be better than him striding around without clothing? She shook her head, dismissing the thought. Right now, it was run or be eaten. No time to think about Lyel naked.

But her mind kept leaping in that direction. Curiosity supposedly killed the cat. Would it burn Isi?

While the xarton roared and slithered behind them, they ran faster, down one tunnel and into another. At an intersection, they took a right, then another.

“Do you know where we’re going?”

“To the surface.”

“How can you tell which way will take us there?”

“I have an excellent sense of direction.”

“If you’re like most guys, you think you have an excellent sense of direction when, in reality, it sucks.”

“What do you wish me to suck?”

Her mouth dropped.

“Suck as in stinks.”

“I do not stink.” He sounded affronted, but he was right. How was it possible for him to still smell good? He’d run for hours through the desert yet here he was, tossing around a woodsy sandalwood smell while she probably looked and smelled like overcooked broccoli.

“Never fear, I will suck,” he added. “Soon.”

Her mind, naturally, went to all the areas she’d like Lyel to place his mouth. What kind of person thought of sex at a time like this? The xarton could catch up—though they were running awfully fast—and gobble them down in one bite. She could almost feel its teeth sinking into her skin. Rocking in a corner and wailing was the normal response in a situation like this, but it was hard to be scared when she had a big, mossy-green alien protector willing to do almost anything to keep her safe. He was armed and rather savvy with his spear, if she did say so herself.

“What would you have me suck first?” he asked, and she swore she heard humor in his voice. Could he tell she wanted to rip off the tiny scrap of material he wore around his waist?

“I think you should suck whatever you please,” she said. There. Let’s see what he did with that!

“All of you,” he said. “I will suck all of you.”

“Our timing is off.”

“We will hold this thought for later.”

The idea of what he would do later sent tingles shooting through her bones. “Do you think we’ll get a later?” she panted out.

“We will have many laters.” He scooped her up in his arms, which was good because she was flagging. Though neutralized, the xarton’s toxin still chugged through her veins.

While being dragged into the ground by a predatory beast, Isi had an epiphany. She wasn’t intimidated by the idea of being with Lyel any longer. Sure, she was scared. It was hard to trust someone not to hurt you. But if she didn’t take this chance… If she didn’t give Lyel a chance, she’d regret it for the rest of her life.

“Do you think Bucko is all right?” she asked. “He jumped off me when the xarton grabbed my leg.”

“He survived without us before we found him.”

“Not very well. He was hobbling though the desert, hurt. That big, mean predator was after him. I bet he’s scared and wonders where we are. I hope he hides.”

“We will find him.” The certainty in his voice eased her concern a tiny bit, but she wouldn’t feel good until they escaped the tunnels and tracked down her friend.

“We’re a family,” she said. “We stick together.”

His steps slowed, but he bared his fangs. With a shout of joy, he picked up his pace, running faster. “Yes, we are a family.”

“How are we going to return to the surface?” she asked. The tunnel appeared to widen ahead, and the number of gleaming blobs on the ceiling had lessened.

“There will be an exit somewhere soon.”

“You’ll run until you find it.” It wasn’t a question. She was beginning to know Lyel well. He never gave up. Kinda like how he continued to pursue her affection. She had to admit she liked that about him.

“I will.”

“We’ve been running a long time.”

“You?” His naanans flared out and his brow ridges scrunched together. She was tempted to kick him, because damn, he was cocky.

“Yeah, me. I’ve been running, too. Put me down and I’ll run some more.”

His brow ridges lifted. “How long and how fast can you run?”

“Long and fast enough. Didn’t you see me kicking Al’kieern ass a short time ago? I’m good for it.”

“I did not see kicking of the ass, but…”

When she wiggled, he released her. She slid down his body, trying not to get turned on by the friction. So much for that idea. Heat flushed through her, centering below her belly. What was it with this guy? Did he strew Isi catnip around wherever he went? Good thing she decided to stop resisting.

Yes, yes. Give in, a little voice inside her said. You know you want him.

“Shut up,” she said.

Lyel shot a confused look her way.

“Nothing,” she said. “Absolutely nothing.” Waving her arm, she indicated they should keep going.

She jogged beside him and they continued down the tunnel that gradually widened. They stopped at the end where it emptied into a cavern rising multiple stories. Vines draped down the stone walls, and way up high, much higher than even the Jolly Green Giant—who was not Lyel—could reach, a tiny pinprick hole in the ceiling let in light. A few light blobs oozed along the walls, generating enough to see, and big bugs or birds flitted around near the hole. She hoped they were birds.

“This doesn’t look good,” she whispered, gaping at the recliner-sized eggs evenly spaced around the football field sized room. “Xartons in waiting, I assume.”

“Yes.”

“And the momma xarton is going to catch up to us, and she’s going to be fuckin’ pissed off that we’re here.”

“We will not be here long.” He gestured to the opposite side of the room where another tunnel waited.

“How are we going to get across the room?”

“Any way we can.”

“You’re an awesome jumper, like Olympic quality, but I think the distance is too far even for you.”

“We could…climb.”

She tipped her head back. “The hole looks too small to fit through.”

“For me, but not for you.”

“If you think I’m going to leave you here as xarton bait, you’ve got another thing coming. You promised me a meal cooked while naked, followed by sucking, and I’m holding you to it.”

“Isi.” He tugged her into his arms and his mouth landed on hers, stealing her breath and any thought she had about the eggs, the xarton, and escape. He lifted his head too soon.

They hadn’t been matched like the Earth brides going to Crakair, but did that matter? When you find someone who could mean the world to you, you grab onto them and don’t let go.

Determination drove her to the lip of the big depression where the eggs had been laid. She was going to get out of here and see what came next with Lyel. “Why don’t you climb the vines and work your way over to the other tunnel? Meanwhile, I’ll book it across the egg patch. I didn’t do well in gym class when they made us climb a rope. I got about halfway up then slid down. I was picking rope splinters out of my palms for days.”

“The urdranes would sting me.”

Great. They weren’t birds. Giant hornets? “Avoid the urdranes.” She peered up at him.

“Normally, they eat carrion, but they will also hunt and kill moving prey.”

“Here we are, moving.”

One of the hornets spied them and with wings whirling, dove toward them. Others joined in, creating a discordant sound that grated on Isi’s nerves.

She tipped her head back and belted out a middle C worthy of an opera singer. Holding the note, she lifted her voice and added a lilting cadenza.

The hornets slowed then started flying into each other and smacking against the walls. Stunned bodies dropped around them. Some twitched, others lay silent.

Lyel gaped at Isi.

“I had no idea if that would do anything but stir them up, but hell, that was fun.”

“How… I heard you sing before, but nothing like this.”

“I’ve had a little training. A lot actually, courtesy of Grannie. I’ll never be asked to perform at the Metropolitan Opera, but I sure did wow Grannie’s neighbors.”

“You are amazing. Someday, would you sing for me?”

That touched her, deep inside. “I’d be happy to sing for you, Lyel.”

“Then let us escape this trap and get off Mara. We have so many things left to do together.” He took her hand and they jumped off the edge, landing with a thump on the soft ground near an egg.

“We’re going to just stroll across the room?” she whispered. “Seems anticlimactic.”

“Sometimes, the best solution is the easiest.”

“Lead on. We’ve got some courtship to do.”

Marriage? That was a bit too much to contemplate right now. And for the third component of Crakairian relationships, the fucking? Was it wrong to be excited about that component?

She went from being afraid to being eager to drag Lyel off to the bedroom. Or the ground. That would do, though not this ground.

They moved around the eggs, rushing for the other tunnel.

“How long until they hatch?” she asked softly. Silly to think talking in a regular tone would make them spontaneously burst from their shells, but with her luck, they might.

“I do not know, but we will not remain here long enough to find out.”

Crack.

“You jinxed it.”

The sound came from behind her and was echoed by a high-pitched shriek coming from the other tunnel.

Isi spun. A fissure etched down the side of an egg. And momma xarton was going to whip their butts for being around for the blessed event. After that, she’d feed them to her soon-to-be hatched young.

“Time’s up,” Isi hissed. “How about more of that running?”

With a nod, Lyel bolted, and Isi stayed right behind him as he wove around eggs forming cracks. Chunks of shell rained down, but she didn’t pause long enough to see what the babies looked like. People said all babies were cute, but she had a feeling she wouldn’t be cooing about mini xartons.

They were only halfway across the room when a roar from behind told them Momma was home and she was about to kick some alien ass.

“Faster,” Isi cried. She hadn’t much speed left in her. Worn out from the running and poison, she couldn’t keep up.

Beside her, the top of an eggshell popped off. It crashed to the ground in front of her and rocked.

A series of clicks was followed by a grunting shriek.

Isi’s legs pumped. Sweat trickled down her spine, and her heart had to be galloping a thousand beats per minute. She wasn’t stopping to count.

More shell fragments bombed them, dropping like jagged rocks. They jumped over some and darted around others but were not making progress fast enough.

The mother xarton plunged through the room, somehow avoiding hitting her babies. She saw them and was determined to pin them down for her babies’ first meal.

A large hunk of shell smacked on the ground in front of them, blocking the path between two hatching eggs. Without pausing, Lyel swept Isi up in his arms and leaped, carrying them to the other side. He dropped her to her feet and, holding her hand, kept going.

Only thirty feet or so left. They were going to make it!

The adult xarton shrieked and oozed toward them, her segmented body squishing into itself before snapping forward. She was gaining and there wasn’t anything they could do about it.

A shell ahead of them split wide open and a xarton—mini compared to Mamma—plopped out. It rose onto its lower body and wavered in the air.

Fangs snapping, it plunged toward Isi.

13

Lyel

I t was clear Isi wanted to defend herself, and she’d proven she had the skills to do so. But against a xarton youngling? Only together did they stand a chance of escaping this heille-hole.

While she gritted her teeth and brandished her knife, proving yet again how fierce she was, the xarton youngling’s head wove in the air. If they didn’t avoid eye contact, it would hypnotize them with its gaze.

Isi mumbled something. Her fingers twitched, and her arm started to lower.

Lyel placed his hand over her eyes and spoke close to her ear. “Do not meet its gaze. It will hold onto you, and you will not wake up.”

When Isi nodded, he released her. Kalina in hand, he plunged forward, and she bellowed, following with her knife raised.

A few lethal slices with his spear, and the youngling plopped on the ground in pieces.

Behind them, the mother xarton screamed. With fire in her eyes, she rushed toward them.

Sheathing his blade, Lyel grabbed Isi’s hand and pulled her to the right, around an unhatched egg. A crack sliced down the center, and another youngling stuck its head out. Its attention locked on them, and it oozed out of the shell, falling onto the ground with a wet smack.

They reached the end of the room and, wrapping his arm around her waist, Lyel jumped up onto the raised area. They didn’t stop, but ran for the tunnel, ducking into the darkness. If they were lucky, the mother would be too preoccupied with her surviving younglings to follow. If they were unlucky, the mother and younglings would rush into the tunnel, seeking revenge.

Overhead, arins oozed along the jagged rock ceiling. One dropped down, smacking into Lyel’s shoulder. Before he could respond, Isi jumped and knocked it off. It hit the wall and slid down the side, leaving a wet streak on the surface.

“They’re attacking?” she asked, her voice shaking.

“It fell.” So he said. He wasn’t sure. He’d never seen one behave in this manner before.

As they jogged through the tunnel, other arins released their hold on the roof and plunged downward, hitting the ground around them and smacking against their heads and shoulders. Ducked down, they continued to run, leaping over clusters of arins and beating others aside before they made impact.

“Where’s my stick when I need it,” Isi panted. “These things are falling like bowling ball sized hail.”

“We will find a way out of here soon.”

“What were you saying about eating arins?” Isi groaned as she ripped one off her head and flung it toward the wall. “I’m going to take a hard pass on that, if you don’t mind.”

“I will serve you something else.”

“While naked,” she puffed as they raced around a corner and started down another passage. “Don’t forget the best part of your upcoming meal preparation.”

“You wish to see me naked?” he asked, unable to keep the amazement from his voice. She responded favorably earlier when he mentioned serving her without a garlong, but he wasn’t sure if she was teasing. In a few daela’s span, she went from telling him there would be no benefits to their friendship, to suggesting he strip off his clothing. And to think he had yet to formally court her. He did not understand, but he would not complain. He was beginning to believe he would never understand this Earthling female, though he would be happy to spend his lifetime trying to figure her out.

“Oh, shit.” Ahead of him, Isi came to a stop and her arms whirled in circles in the air. A vast pit stretched ahead of them, filling this section of the tunnel. “We’ve got to turn around and find another way.”

Hissing groans followed by slopping smacks told Lyel the xarton younglings had caught their scent and had entered the tunnel to hunt.

“There is no going back,” he said. “Only forward.”

Isi gulped. “The jump is too far.”

“We have to try.” Taking her hand, he backed up while assessing the gap ahead. It was farther than he’s ever jumped before. But what choice did they have? Staying here meant being killed and consumed. Better to fall to their deaths than wait for the xartons. He stooped down. “Climb onto my back and wrap your arms around my shoulders. Hold on.”

“I’m nervous but…I trust you.”

She offered what so few others had. How could he show her how much this meant to him?

With a nod and a shimmer in her eyes, Isi darted around behind him. She scrambled up onto his back and her hands linked together beneath his chin. “Ready!”

He straightened and stepped back a few paces. After taking in a gust of air, he ran forward, his feet smacking the ground and his heart on fire. He would make it. He had to make it. He failed his mission to kill Fedeema, but in this, he could prove he had honor.

At the edge of the pit, he jumped, soaring over the dark, inky blackness. Straining forward, he hoped he—

His right foot hit the lip, but the ground gave way.

They plunged down into the darkness.

Isi yelped but hung on to him while they tumbled down the side of a steep, black cliff. Too far. They were going to fall all the way to the bottom. His heart thundered, and his matebond blood roared with rage. He had to save them—save her.

His hand snapped out and latched on to something jutting from the side of the cliff. They dangled while his furious breathing echoed around them.

With fear and disappointment in himself clouding his mind, Lyel looked around for handholds and places for his feet, but found nothing but a smooth, almost glossy surface and the root he snagged while falling. No, on closer inspection, it was a fang from a long-dead xarton. How it got here was a mystery.

“That was scary,” Isi said in a shaky voice.

It was still scary. How was he going to get them out of this? The side of the cavern he was aiming for was too high up from where they dangled. Down could be an option, but he had a suspicion about what might wait for them if they were able to make it there.

How was he going to save his mate? He was foolish to take on this challenge. He should’ve grabbed her when he heard her singing and run. They could’ve hidden somewhere until he got them off the moon.

Stupid Lyel for hoping to restore his family’s honor by completing this mission single-handedly. He should’ve let Vork and the military handle it instead of—

“I have an idea,” Isi said softly, her words breaking through his downward spiral. He swallowed back the lump of pain in his throat, but it would not move. “Can you reach that branch sticking out to our right? It looks like it’s higher than this one. If we can find another, we might be able to climb. At least we’re on the right side of the hole.”

“Yes, that branch will do. I am going to ease you off my back.”

“Tell me what I need to do.” Her legs wrapped around his waist dropped down and she hung against his body.

“While we do this, I will not let you go until I am sure you will make it there,” he vowed. “If you start to slip, I will catch you and keep you secure.”

“I know you will, Lyel.” The quiet confidence in her voice amazed him. Did she truly trust him or was she pretending?

“I will grab your hand and throw you over to the branch. Actually, I believe it is a fang, not a branch.”

“I wondered. I recognized it from when I was inside the xarton’s mouth. How did it end up here, sticking out of the cliff?”

He assessed the distance between him and the fang. Once he released Isi, she’d be airborne. One misstep could mean her death. “I have heard of this but never imagined seeing it. When a xarton is close to death, it throws itself into a pit such as this. Other creatures wait at the bottom to consume the carcass. I assume, over time, a few are snagged on the sides and do not reach the bottom. They fuse with the cliff face.”

“So, we’re literally hanging out in a burial pit.”

“Yes.”

“Let’s get out of here A.S.A.P., then. Once you throw me to the branch, what should I do next?”

She did trust him, and that humbled him. They dangled inside a pit that plunged what appeared to be half a klek deep, and she didn’t fear he’d make a lethal mistake.

“Once you reach the fang, I want you to try to climb up onto it. It is closer to the top than this one. From there, you will be able to reach the edge. Once you reach the top, keep going down the tunnel and you’ll find an exit from the warren.”

Her pause went on a few ticks. “Not me, us. We’ll find an exit from the warren.”

And here was where he had to be honest. “I will get you to the branch, but I do not believe I can reach for myself.”

“You’re an Olympic material jumper. You can do it.”

Not unless he could brace himself, and there was nothing around for him to stand on. “Are you ready?”

“Hell, no. I’m not leaving you here. Don’t even suggest it, Lyel.” Her voice came out tight with what he assumed was anger, but a glance at her face revealed gleaming eyes. Tears. He’d read about them in the booklet about Earth women. Their eyes seeped when they were happy or sad. Lyel doubted this was from happiness.

The notion made his heart expand in his chest, making it a challenge to breathe.

She cared, and it was shredding him because finally, he found someone who might be willing to share her life with him, only to lose this chance. Just like he lost his chance at a lasting friendship with Vork. Only now, when he faced his likely death, did he fully realize his regret. If only he had reached out to Vork sooner…

“Instead of flinging me to the fang on our right,” Isi said, interrupting his doom-filled musings. “Why don’t we go down? I see a few more fangs and branches projecting from the surface, and they seem to continue for some distance.”

“I told you, creatures wait at the bottom to consume the xarton.”

“So you’ve heard.”

“Many say this. It is not a myth.”

“I’m willing to chance it. It beats me trying to get out of the warren without you while you fall to your death. Let’s go down there and kick some beastie butts then find a way out from that direction.”

“And if we cannot kick the…beastie butts or there is no way out?”

“Then we’ll climb back up and find a different route, one that keeps you with me.” Her voice broke. “Because Lyel, I want you with me, now and for as long as we have left.”

“Isi. It breaks me when you say things like this.”

“And it breaks me when you suggest I go on without you. We’re a team, Lyel. Maybe at first, we were pseudo adversaries, but we’re together, right? If you, um, still want me. I might’ve put you off already because I’m not exciting enough, pretty enough, or kickass enough to be worthy.”

“Isi, you are so much more than worthy.”

“And so are you.”

He sighed, and with the exhalation, some of his self-loathing eased. “We will try to go down.”

“Yay.” She pressed her face against the back of his neck. “I want to kiss you, but with our positions, a hug will have to do.” Her legs linked around his waist again. “Can you make it to the fang on our left? It’s a few feet away and lower.”

With her faith in him, he could climb the tallest, most jagged cliff in the Ikeline Mountains.

Swinging his leg out, he used the motion to propel them down and lower, catching the spike sticking out with ease. The second fang was closer, and he barely stopped before reaching out and taking them in that direction.

“This is working well,” she said. She kissed the back of his neck, making his scales tingle. “Thank you for trying, for giving us a chance.”

Each time he tried to sacrifice himself for her, she refused to take his offer. Some might feel this diminished him but, for whatever reason, it made him proud. Of himself and of her. She was right. They were a team. It was time for him to start acting that way. This gorgeous Earthling female was offering him a future. He would be a fool—a dishonorable fool—not to take the hand she held out to him.

Reaching out, he snagged another fang, then moved to the next, slowly weaving his way down the steep gleaming surface. A few of the stretches were almost more than he could handle, but with Isi’s confidence in him, he was her agent of secrets. He would not betray the trust she put in him.

He swung his leg out, using the motion to carry them down and to his right. If he gauged the distance correctly, they were nearly halfway down. What waited on the bottom? He would make sure his kalina was ready before dropping the final distance.

“Almost there,” Isi said, echoing his thought. “You’re amazing, by the way. I’m in awe.”

“You would do this yourself if I was not here with you.”

“I told you about my school rope incident. There’s no way I could do this by myself.”

“With strength of will, one finds the way.”

“We have a similar phrase on Earth, where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

“Two cultures, two vastly different species, yet so similar. We are entwined.”

“Entwined,” she breathed. “I like that.”

Once his honor was restored, he would claim his mate. A glorious future waited them on Crakair. But first, escape this trap then the Orcal. Once they reached the city, he could contact Vork.

He swung a leg out and reached for the next fang, but it shifted when he grasped it.

The projection loosened, coming free.

Isi gasped. Her hands tightened on his shoulders, and she buried her face in his neck as they shot down the smooth surface.

14

Isi

A s they slid down the cliff, Isi reached out and snagged a root sticking out of the wall. She was ripped from Lyel’s back but held onto the root to break their fall. He tumbled farther but grabbed onto her ankle before plunging to the bottom.

Close! She’d come very close to losing him.

“You okay?” she asked, her breathing jerky. The strain on her body was immense. He was no puny, five-footer, but a big, tall alien. She wouldn’t be able to hold him for long.

“Yes. Are you o…key. Is that a word, okey?”

She released a rough laugh. “Only if you use it with dokey.”

“I do not know what a dokey is. Or an okey. But I am all right. I see a fang projecting from the cliff face directly below me and will let go and drop down to it. Dokey okey?”

“Dokey okey.” She swiped the tears of relief from her eyes and sniffed. What if he kept falling? Losing him would’ve—

He let go of her ankle, and she watched as he slid down the wall, easily latching onto the fang. Pulling himself up onto it—something she could never do in gym class or anywhere else—he balanced on the projection, lifting his arms toward her. “Let go and join me, mate.”

“Mate, huh?” Her smile made it clear she teased.

“Mate.” Pure satisfaction rang in his voice. “We are going to be friends with many benefits.”

Her skin shouldn’t tingle. Not here in this dangerous place. But there it was. Love came at you no matter where you might be. It didn’t wait for the perfect opportunity. And that’s what this was, love. She’d never been a fan of insta-anything except her instapot, but how could she not fall for Lyel? When she fled Earth, she hadn’t expected to meet someone special, but Lyel was everything she could ever hope for in a guy. A mate. LOL. Who would’ve thought she’d end up falling for an alien?

“Let’s renegotiate our deal when we reach the bottom and have finished kicking unknown creature butts, dokey okey?” she said.

“Dokey okey.”

“I’m letting go now.” She closed her eyes and released the branch. Her body glided down the surface, into Lyel’s waiting arms.

“I have you,” he said gruffly against her throat. He nipped her skin, and her tingles went haywire, zipping around inside her like tiny lightning bolts.

“You do have me.” Man, did he ever. Now wasn’t the time for sharing her feelings, but she could take a second for a quick kiss, right?

Wrapping her arms around his shoulders and her legs around his waist, she placed her lips on his. He groaned and pulled her against him, secure, safe, and set aflame. His tongue teased across the seam of her lips, and she opened, letting him in. She clung, taking all he had to give.

When she lifted her head, he bared his fangs. “Isi.” The satisfaction in his voice made her want to cling to him forever. And she would, sorta. She’d hold on as long as he wanted her. But they had to get to the bottom of the cliff, out of the sub-tunnels, and off this moon before anything else could happen.

“We need to get off this cliff, dude, because I have plans for you,” she said.

One brow ridge cocked up, and his eyes sparkled. “Plans?”

She grinned. Damn, it felt good to let go, to let a moment take her wherever it pleased, even in this tenuous situation. “You’ll see.”

“See I will. Dude.” He rolled the word across his tongue, his glorious forked tongue she also had plans for. “You used this before and I like it.” He nodded. “You may call me dude whenever it pleases you.”

“Glad you like it…Dude.” She chuckled. “How about getting us to the ground, Dude?”

“Watch me.”

With renewed superpower energy, Lyel dropped down to another fang, swinging forward without stopping and leaping to a root. He used branches, fangs, roots, and jutting rocks to quickly carry them downward, but stopped before dropping the last ten feet or so.

She expected to see bones littering the ground, but maybe the giant worms didn’t have bones. They oozed, like the arin lights, and could be made up of…she was no biologist, but cartilage, skin, and…gook. That was scientific. Gook. Sue her. She was an accountant and avoided gook.

About the size of a small pond and circular, the room was made up of black stone. Knee high lumps of purplish things she didn’t want to examine closely lay strewn about on the flat surface. The cliff rose up on all sides around them, smooth except for the handholds she and Lyel used to descend. Worst case, they could climb back up, but she hated thinking of that option, as the xartons would be waiting. The room had two exits, like a gladiator arena, which wasn’t a good thought right there. Why had that idea popped into her mind?

She leaned in close to his ear. “Where are the beasties?”

“Hiding?”

“Do we dare sneak down there and find a way out? If they can leave, so can we, right? Maybe we can scoot out a convenient exit and avoid them altogether.”

He nudged his head toward the thick root he clung to. “Take hold of this. I would like to go down and look around by myself, if you do not mind.”

“I do mind. We’re together, dude. Get used to it. Well…” She gulped, realizing how demanding her words had come out. She and Lyel weren’t exactly committed yet, though he was calling her mate and insisting she was “his”. “What I mean is, I want to cover your back. Remember, I’m a wannabe ninja. A khatalm fighter. Sort of. Maybe. Someday. I’ll need more training but I’m badass already.”

“Your ass is bad. We will remain together. You have proven you are capable of protecting yourself.”

Heat filled her face, and she wanted to hug him to show how much him saying that meant to her. “Thank you for believing in me.”

“Always.”

And that warmed her up even more.

“You are perfect the way you are, but I will train you further if you wish,” he said.

“You’re a khatalm fighter?”

“I studied with them for many yaros.”

“How many…yaros are we talking about?” And what was a yaro?

“Since I was five-yaros-old.”

Oh, yaro meant year. But talk about being impressed. “You really are an agent of secrets.”

Nodding, he showed her his fangs, but his gaze darted away. Jeez, was he shy? As far as she could tell, Crakairians—and the Al’kieern—didn’t blush, which could be because they had scales instead of skin. She liked seeing a hint of shyness in him. It made him more…human wasn’t the right word as he was alien, but it was the only one she had in her vocabulary. It made him relatable.

“Since you wish to come with me, get ready,” he said. He released the rock and dropped the final ten feet to the ground below. Made up of what looked like big slabs of ledge, his boots made barely a sound.

She slipped off him, savoring the feel of his rock-hard body on hers. Other things were stirring, but they didn’t have time for that. Damn creatures kept getting in the way of the important things in life.

Turning, she put her back to him and looked around. Her trusty stick was gone, but she had her knife, secure in its sheath. Time to pull it out.

On closer examination, the mounds appeared to be dried out lumps of…intestines? She wasn’t sure and it might be best to leave it at that. Alien flies the size of her palm buzzed around the clumps, their low hum filling the air.

Above the hum, a scraping sound drifted into the room from one of the exits, echoing around them.

“I’m not feeling good about this,” she mumbled, squinting toward the arched opening. It was too dark to see beyond a foot or two, but she sensed something lurked there. “Let’s run in the other direction?”

He jerked his head to the archway on their right, and they raced that way. But as they got close, scraping sounds came from this opening, too. Coming to a stop, they backed away.

“Should we wait in the middle of the room where we can see what’s coming before it bites us?” she whispered.

“Yes.” Lyel took her hand and they hurried to the center then stood back-to-back. He lifted his sword while she tightened her grip on her knife.

Spying a fang lying on the ground, she snatched it up. “Two weapons. Look at me, closer to ninja status.”

Lyel tossed a grin over his shoulder, and his eyes sparkled despite the lines of desperation on his face. “You are amazing.”

“So are you, agent of secrets. We’re going to fight off whatever’s coming and escape. Any ideas what we’ll face?”

“I have heard—”

A pack of five-foot-tall, gray and pink, alien kangaroos hopped into the “arena” from both archways.

“Aw,” she said, unsure if she wanted to fight them or skip over to them and dole out pats. “They’re cute. Well, except for their fangs. What is it with everything around here having fangs? And my, look at those claws. I imagine they’re good at eviscerating prey.”

“Why would you think of things like that now?” he asked, keeping his sword handy.

“Because they are. They’re sweet and fuzzy and I bet they’re cuddly.”

He looked at her like she had two heads, but that would be the alien kangaroos.

One hopped closer, its gaze intent on them. The others followed, spreading out to surround them.

“Do you know anything about them?” she asked through clenched teeth.

“I have never seen or heard of them before. I only believed something waited at the bottom.”

“Do you think they have weaknesses?”

“All do, do they not?”

“Not you, honey. You’re my agent of secrets. You have no weaknesses.”

“That…is not true, but you are kind to say so.”

She and Lyel eased backward, aiming for one of the archways. The kangaroos, followed, cooing and tilting their heads.

“Maybe they haven’t seen anything live before. You said those dying throw themselves off the edge. The fall must kill them.”

“Does it matter? If they see us as food, they will attack.”

“Unless they’re waiting for us to flop on the ground.”

“We will not do this.”

“Good plan. How about this one?” She darted a glance his way. “Run.”

They bolted for the closest exit. As they approached the archway, Isi had a dilemma. Should she encourage Lyel to enter the unknown first or take the lead in case something horrible waited inside? Silly to think she was best to face the horror, but as eager as he was to protect her, she felt the same.

“You go first,” she said, stopping beside the opening. She hefted her knife and growled at the kangaroos galloping toward them, their heads lolling around like demented bobbleheads. How in the hell did they function with rubber necks? They shouldn’t prove a challenge, but her skin prickled with fear. Sometimes, the unknown was worse than what was before your eyes. In this case, both ruled.

“No, you go first,” Lyel said, leaping in front of her and hefting his sword. He swung it at a kangaroo who came to close, and the creature whistled and reeled backward.

“They seem more curious than eager to bite,” she said. “I wonder…”

“We are not going to try to tame one. Our family is growing, but this,” he waved his sword toward the lead kangaroo, “is too big to ride on your shoulder.”

“Might be fun to teach it pirate phrases, though, amirite?”

“No.”

Chuckling, she stepped closer to the exit. “Maybe we should enter at the same time; it’s wide enough for that. Then we can protect each other.”

“I like this plan.”

They plunged into the darkness.

Lyel groaned and reached for his back as if something hit him. His body hitched, stumbling forward.

Her heart on fire, she reached out to break his fall and tumbled to the ground with him.

15

Lyel

L yel woke with his head lying on something soft. Where was he and why…?

Isi!

With a groan, he started to rise.

“Hold on there, dude.” Isi stroked his forehead. “Lay back down and rest. You were,” her voice choked, “I swore the kangaroo killed you when it rushed forward and kicked you.”

“In the back.” A dull ache was working its way down his spine but when he shifted, he could tell he had no lasting injury.

“You were pushed forward, and you hit your head on the wall.” Her voice choked off. “You fell like a chopped tree and didn’t move.”

He shook his head, and his naanans fluttered. His right temple pounded, and a dull throb in his mind made him wince, but again, no lasting injury.

“Where are we?” He peered around, taking in a small, stone-walled room with a ceiling so low, he would not be able to stand upright. A dirt floor beneath him. Isi sat, leaning against the wall, with his head on her lap and her fingers woven into his naanans. They coiled around her wrist, holding tight.

“I couldn’t wake you up, so I dragged you in here.” She sniffed. “Other than your head injury, which bled a bit but seems to have stopped, I don’t think you were badly hurt. I… I hope it’s okay that I checked you out.”

“You…?” What did it mean to check out?

“I ran my hands over your body to make sure you weren’t wounded or hurt.” She stroked his forehead, taking care not to touch the stinging place on his temple. Tears shimmered in her eyes.

He hated seeing her sad. He was going to be dokey okey. How could he reassure her?

“I have one regret,” he said gravely. Perhaps he could tease a smile out of her.

“What?” Her face fell.

“My regret is that I was not awake while you…checked me out.”

Her laughter snorted out, followed by more tears welling in her eyes. They trickled down her face. “I was scared, Lyel.”

“I am sorry I was not here to protect you.”

“That’s not it. Don’t you see? I was worried you wouldn’t wake up and not because I needed you to protect me. You know me. I love—mostly—to kick ass. I’m able to defend myself. But I can’t bear the idea of losing you.” Stark fear filled her face, it was his undoing.

He sat up and tugged her into his arms, holding her while she sniffed and snuffled against his chest. “I am sorry for teasing.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry I’m soaking the front of your chest.”

“I will dry.”

Leaning back in his embrace, she ran her fingertips over his naanans. Unruly things, they entwined around her wrist and stroked her. Continuing her assessment, she ran her fingers across his shoulders. “Is your back all right after moving?”

“I am dokey okey.”

“I’m glad to hear it but you still need to rest.” She helped ease him over to sit beside her, leaning his back against the wall. “We can stay here for a while. The giant kangaroos tried to get inside but I stabbed them, and they backed off. They howl every now and then, but they’ve been respectful.”

“You amaze me.”

Her hand dropped onto his thigh, and she squeezed. “You would’ve done the same.”

“You say one of the creatures hit me?”

“It leaped up and smacked its feet against your back. You tumbled forward and were knocked unconscious.”

“I am sorry.”

“Not your fault! I’ll be honest, I was furious, which made me act stupid.”

“What did you do?”

“I grabbed your spear and charged them. They took off like, well like a xarton mama was after them, and bolted through the exit on the opposite end of the arena. I looked around and found this small alcove and dragged you down the halls to it and pulled you inside.”

He peered at the stone walls surrounding. A small room, he couldn’t imagine what its use might be.

“The stupid kangaroos were scared at first, but they’re curious things, which is why I think one poked its head inside the small opening. I haven’t heard a peep from them since I poked the first one in the snout. It roared and yanked its head out of the opening.”

“You…I wish I could have seen this.” He could picture her standing over him like she had when he was bound, his kalina in her hand, thrusting the steel blade at the creature.

“I’ve never fought with a weapon like it before, but I’m a quick study. I’ll freely admit, I’m a marginal fighter. We’re lucky we weren’t both killed. I’m going to need training to take on bigger challenges.”

“I will teach you.”

“You’re going to be teaching me for a long time.”

“We have this time, do we not?”

“Do we?” She leaned her head against the wall and tipped it backward, staring toward the ceiling. “I’m beginning to think we’ll never escape this moon. We’ll be stuck in these tunnels until I’m sixty years—yaros—old and then we’ll spend my next twenty yaros crossing the desert. I’ll be gray haired, hobbling along beside you by then.”

“I will be hobbling beside you. Always.”

Her breath caught and her eyes swam with tears again. “Lyel, you say things that wreck me sometimes.”

Had he offended her? He spoke from his heart. “Is this…dokey okey?”

“It is.” She leaned her head against his shoulder, and he put his arm around her waist. “If I’m going to be wrecked, I want it to be with you.”

“Isi. You say things that wreck me.” So simple yet profound. Lyel had rarely felt love. His father’s affection came with conditions Lyel could never meet. His mother loved him enough to speak up for him once, but she left. His sister…heille it hurt to think of her. She had truly loved him for who he was, and he missed having that in his life.

Isi was not saying she loved him, but her emotions spoke to him. She cared—they cared—and it was a huge step for them both.

“Rest,” he said. “You watched over me and now I will do so for you.”

“You hit your head and were knocked out. You could have a concussion. I think you should rest. I’ll keep you safe.”

He dropped his chin onto the top of her head. “We will keep each other safe.”

“We will,” she sighed.

He was proud of his mate. She defended him from the creatures she called kan-gar-oots. She found a good place to hide. How she had dragged him through halls and the tiny opening, he did not know. As much as he would like to remain here until they regained their strength, without food or water, they would be driven from this place soon.

The gnawing pain in his head crowded out all other thoughts, and he allowed himself to doze. She was right. He needed rest to regain his strength.

Isi slept and while he let himself relax, he watched over her as she had him. This was honorable behavior, correct? It counted for something.

Mumbling but not waking, she climbed up onto his lap and faced him, wrapping her arms and legs around him. As she leaned into him, he held her, praying he could protect her, not only in this small room but until he could take her to his estate on Crakair. She would not be sixty-yaros-old before they left these caverns. He would get them back to the surface and then through the wasteland. Soon, they would reach the city. A port many species visited, they could blend in, though an Earthling would stand out among the others. It was unlikely humans had visited Mara other than when Crown Prince Axil and his mate, Julia, crash landed here months ago.

Once he secured their location in the city, Lyel would contact Vork and his former friend would send a ship for them. Except…

Lyel must finish his mission before departing Mara. The queen still lived. If he was unable to take care of this soon, he would need to remain on the planet until his assignment was finished.

Then, he could leave Mara and proudly claim Isi as his mate.

She woke all at once and stretched. Gazing up at him, she smiled, soft and sweeter than jinjin fruit. His emotions in a tangle, all he could do was smile.

“Hey,” she said in a low voice. “How’s your head feeling?” Her concerned gaze scanned his temple. “No bleeding.”

“I am well.” The throbbing had eased off to a dull ache. He could live with it.

“And your back? How does that feel?”

“Also well.” He was more focused on how wonderful it felt to hold her. That feeling surpassed all others. If he buried his face in her neck, grazed his fangs along her jawline, and captured her lips, what would she do?

She cupped her hands at the back of his neck and urged his head down to meet hers.

They kissed, and fire burst through him, centering in his groin. He wanted her. He’d want her forever.

Taking things at a slow pace was not easy, not while his matebond blood surged through him demanding he make her his, but his patience would be rewarded when she came to him willingly.

She stroked her tongue across his fang, and he groaned.

His naanans glided along her back, while others stroked her breasts. He couldn’t get enough of her. He needed more. Pulling her into him, he deepened their kiss, teasing her tongue with his own.

They burst apart, and she arched her spine, inviting his naanan’s touch.

“I want…” She shook her head. “I need you, Lyel.”

Claiming her fully would have to wait. Their first time would not be here, in a hole beneath the Maran desert. But there was no reason he could not give her pleasure. In fact, satisfying a mate was part of ancient Crakairian courtship rituals.

He eased her back on the ground and followed, bracing himself over her, memorizing the breathless expression on her face.

“Lyel,” she moaned, tugging him closer. “Kiss me. Touch me.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes.”

He kissed her jaw and nibbled her earlobe. While his naanans stroked her breasts, focusing on her nipples, she writhed beneath him, moaning. He cupped his hand between the legs, and she bucked against him.

Tugging on the waistband of her odd pants, he eased them down over her hips. She kicked them off her feet and removed the odd scrap of fabric she wore beneath.

He started at her mouth, kissing her again as passion grew inside them to a fever pitch. Moving down her body, he paused and helped her remove her tunic. He could not get enough of her beautiful breasts, so different from a Crakairian female yet infinitely exciting.

He stroked them, and his naanans could not stay away. One latched onto her nipple and vibrated.

“I love it when you touch me,” she gasped, her head thrashing. “You did say something about sucking…”

Sucking sounded wonderful. He took one of her nipples into his mouth and stroked his tongue across it. His reward was her moans. While a naanan tugged on her other nipple, he nibbled her sensitive flesh, drawing it out deeper, bringing more furious cries from his mate. If only he could love her body forever.

“Lyel,” she sighed, stroking his naanans. His cock throbbed, and he ached to bury himself deeply inside her. Waiting would only make the moment they came together sweeter.

He kissed across her belly, teasing the small indent in the middle, then moved between her legs. A feast lay before him, and he planned to indulge. Bringing her joy would satisfy him more than anything else.

Lifting her legs onto his shoulders, he exhaled on her exposed flesh, making her shiver. She rocked her hips up to meet his fingers.

He stroked her folds then bent closer and licked up her slit.

“Ah,” she cried out.

“Tell me what you like, my mate,” he said, his voice hoarse. She tasted exquisite. He had to have more. He nibbled the nub at the top of her slit while she thrashed on the floor.

“Don’t stop. Don’t! I like it all.” Her fingers sunk into his naanans, and they twined around her arms. “Whatever you want to do. Just do not stop.”

“I will not. Not until you come for me, mate. And then I believe I need to ensure you come again.”

“Lyel,” she croaked. Sliding a finger inside her, he stroked her inner walls while wrapping the forked tip of his tongue around the bud at the top of her slit. “This is…” Her words dissolved into a moan.

While his naanans teased her nipples, he pumped his fingers inside her, gliding in and out. She bucked, rising to meet his touch. He pulled his fingers out and licked them. “You taste amazing. And you like this.”

She snorted. “What gave you that idea?”

“Do you like this?” He pressed his tongue inside her, sucking and stroking her inner walls while she groaned and urged him on.

“You’re killing me!”

He yanked his head back, dragging his tongue from inside her. “This is not true.”

She fisted his naanans and snarled. “If you stop now, I’m going to scream.”

Chuckling, he returned to her body. “Oh, mate, I do wish you to scream. Let me see what I can do to make that happen.”

“It’s gonna happen. Hell, this is torture.”

“Sweet torture, correct, mate?” He felt her heat rising beneath his palm resting on her belly. Her body quivered, and her moans became frantic. He captured the bud at the tip of her slit with a naanan and the inner vibration motion engaged while he licked deep inside her again.

She gasped; her body wracked with quivers as he carried her over the edge. Her keen lit up the room as she shuddered around him, as she lifted her body to him. He kept sucking and licking her while she eased back down. Still, that was not enough.

“Lyel,” she said in a lazy voice, her fingers stroking his quivering naanans. His cock was a solid bar beneath his scrap of clothing, and he ached to drive inside her, but he would wait.

“I wish to do this again,” he said. Bringing her pleasure was all that mattered.

“I don’t think I can so soon.”

“Are you sure?” He teased the nub at the top of her slit, and her body jolted.

“Oh fuck. You’re right. I can.”

Nothing made a male happier than to satisfy his mate. Multiple times.

Rising over her, he flashed his fangs. He nibbled her breasts and worked his way up to her jawline. Her earlobe got extra attention and a bite before he claimed her lips.

Soon, he would claim all of her. He could not wait.

“That was…” She smiled. “You’re awesome. I don’t know how you were able to make me come so many times.”

Grinning, he leaned forward to kiss her. “I am an agent of secrets, am I not?”

16

Isi

I si lay curled up in Lyel’s arms, her body tingling with satisfaction.

He still had a substantial hard-on.

Easing back onto the ground, she smiled up at him. “I think my favorite alien is uncomfortable.” Actually, he looked quite pleased with himself. His Cheshire cat smile told her he enjoyed making her fall apart multiple times. She was eager for him to do it again, but it wasn’t fair she had all the fun.

She’d seen her share of Al’kieern alien dicks when Fedeema’s nightly boyfriends strode around the room, but she had not seen a Crakairian male until Lyel. Was his cock similar to the Al’kieern’s or was it more like a human? The Al’kieerns had long, skinny cocks with big bulbs on the end.

Lyel had one and that was about all she knew.

Reaching for his pants, she undid a fastener she had never seen before but was simple to use.

“Isi,” he groaned, strain filling his face. “I cannot take—”

“No, let me take. It’s my turn to please my mate.”

“Mate.” His fingers wove into her hair, the soft look he gave told her all she needed to know. He felt the same way about her as she did about him. “Isi. I do not know what to say.”

“Maybe sit back, or lean back in this case, and just feel? No talking needed.”

His tight nod spurred her on.

She tugged the scrap of material out from around his hips like she unwrapped a package on Christmas morning—the one she looked forward to the most.

With his clothing gone, she sat back on her heels and looked him over. Long and thick, his cock fit his seven-foot-plus size. It had a bulbous tip like a golf ball, and ridges encircled the shaft. It grew thicker as it reached his large balls beneath. As she watched, it vibrated, but that couldn’t be true. She leaned in closer, watching it. Hell yeah, it did vibrate. Did it do that while it was inside?

His lips twitched as he watched her watching him. “Should I be worried?”

“Only if you don’t know how to use it.” Bold of her, but accountants were into more than numbers.

“I do, mate. I promise you this.”

“All talk. You didn’t use it yet.”

“I wish to wait.”

She placed a hand on her hip. “That’s a new one, coming from a guy.”

He stroked her face, and she leaned into his touch. “I wish for,” his gaze took in the tiny room, “more. I wish for our first time to be perfect.”

“I’m not sure the location makes a difference. Some people do it the first time in the back of a car.”

“I do not know of this car, but when we will do it, it will be special.”

“So we wait? For how long?”

“Until the time is right.”

“I’m not pushing this.” Her hand flapped toward his rigid cock. “I’m not pushing you. But if you don’t want me to touch, lick, and suck on your cock, tell me now.”

He groaned. “Lick… Suck… I have not experienced this.”

“For a guy who just drove me out of my mind at least three times with his mouth, I’m a bit surprised.”

He shrugged. “I have not wished to do this with anyone else.”

“Wait.” Her jaw dropped. “Are you saying you’re a virgin?”

“What is this virgin?”

“It’s a name for someone who hasn’t had sex.”

“Then yes, I am this virgin. A virgin of secrets to go with my other name. Perhaps I need to work in dude, as I like that as well.”

“You…” He undid her, and she loved it. “Should I tell you I’ll be gentle?”

He flashed his fangs. “Please do not.”

“For you, I’m more than willing to accommodate.” She leaned in close and nipped his neck. While she might not have fangs, she could bite every now and then, too. “You tell me if something doesn’t work for you, K? It’s been a while since I was a virgin.”

“You can touch or…lick all you want.”

His voice, low and deep, shot zings through her body. He’d given her three orgasms already. How could she want more?

“Oh, I want,” she said, her voice so low, she barely recognized it. “I want more.”

Leaving his scaled, delectable neck, she worked her way downward. “You have the most amazing chest, and this case you’re wearing on your abs drives me out of my mind.”

His deep chuckle rang out. “What would you do with my case of abs?”

“Later. For now, I have a single focus.”

“What might that be, mate?”

“This.” She stroked her finger down his cock, and it twitched. It released a steady vibration that almost made her come, and a slippery liquid coated the tip. This dude was lethal if he could turn her on with only visual stimuli. But she had a taste of what he could give her. It was only natural to want the full package.

“Isi,” he growled in warning. “Do not tease.”

She cocked her head. “Is it a tease when I fully intend to deliver?”

His naanans flared out before settling on her shoulders. “How…?”

“Watch me.” Scooting down, she took his glorious cock in both hands and stroked it.

“Isi…”

No warning there. Pure lust filled his voice, and it drove her on.

She bent forward and licked the underside. He groaned and shifted his hips, impatient. She wanted to make this—his first time! —as perfect as possible. He was right, though. They should wait to have full sex until they weren’t scared about being eaten or dying. Her snort vibrated through his cock. He huffed, but the sound she made wasn’t intended as a turn-on. Her rueful laugh had slipped through.

Time to focus on giving him as much pleasure as possible. Who knows what tomorrow or even the next twenty minutes could bring? He deserved the best and while she wasn’t sure she was it; she’d show him what he meant to her and hope it was enough.

She took the head of his cock into her mouth and sucked. Damn, he tasted good. Like everything perfect and male. A bit salty with a hint of sweetness. Cinnamon? Maybe. Or some other spice. It hardly mattered. Taking as much of him inside her mouth was her goal, not evaluating his flavor.

He groaned and tipped his head back against the wall, pumped up, mimicking the movements she ached to feel between her legs.

She couldn’t get enough of him, but he was big and wide. Swirling her tongue along him, she held him at the base and pressed her lips and tongue along his length.

His wonderful, huge cock vibrated, showing her his pleasure.

Sucking the end into her mouth again, she moved fast, tugging and pulling.

He pitched his hips up, and his eyes rolled back in his head. “Isi…” he hissed. “I…”

“Just feel,” she said, coming up for a breath. She dove back in, taking as much of him as she could, determined to show him how awesome he was.

He pumped in a frenzy. His cock lengthened, vibrated faster, and then he stilled. His gaze met hers, and he cupped her head with his big palms while his body shuddered.

Groaning, he moved faster, driving himself into her mouth. She took him in, her tongue sweeping his length.

When he fell apart, she caught him.

17

Lyel

L yel had died and drifted up into the clouds.

“Isi.”

“Was that okay? You liked it?” She smiled and licked her lips.

His cock, satisfied, twitched again eager for more. “It was amazing.” He had never imagined anything like this.

If only he could lay her on a soft bed and love her for daelas.

But they had to leave.

Rising to his knees, he wrapped the material around his hips and secured it. He helped Isi up and kissed her long and deep, trying to show her how special this moment was for him.

They burst apart, grinning at each other.

“There’s more where that came from,” she said.

“Soon, mate.”

“I think the term mate is growing on me.”

He did not know what a word growing on her meant, but the happiness shining in her eyes made his heart surge. “Do you prefer mate over dude?”

She leaned against him, looking up at him. “Either works but mate… It feels special.”

His arms tightened around her. “You are special.”

“So are you.” Her gaze darted to the opening. “Let me make sure the coast is clear.”

More unusual Earth words but he vaguely understood.

Crawling to the opening, she carefully poked her head out. “Nothing out here. I think we should make a run for it.”

They left the tiny sanctuary and he glanced around. More tunnels, but he swore the one on his left sloped upward.

He held out his hand, and she took it. They moved quickly through the tunnels. There had to be a way out. The creatures would not survive solely on the inconsistent rate of dying xartons.

Shuffles and thumps behind them told him the pack followed. Would they attack? He kept his kalina ready. Isi held her knife and kept shooting concerned looks over her shoulder.

“How much farther, do you think?” she panted.

He hated that she’s been on the run almost exclusively since the compound exploded. If only he could find a secure place where she could rest and feel safe. Maybe once they reached the surface, though he was not holding out hope for that. They still had a considerable distance to cross before they reached the fence on the opposite side of the wasteland.

Coming to an intersection of tunnels, they paused.

“Which way?” Isi asked. She raked her unruly hair back and swiped her flushed face. “Left, right, or forward?”

“It continues to slope upward if we go forward.”

“For now. We don’t know where any of them go.” She frowned. “I have an idea.” Using his kalina, she sliced a strip of material off the bottom of her tunic. She entered the chamber he suggested and jumped up, snagging the tiny piece of shirt on a root jutting from the surface. “There,” she said, returning to his side. “This way, we’ll know we took this channel already.”

“Very wise.”

She tapped her temple and grinned, though her smile showed strain. “Accountant brain right here. It’s not just about the numbers.” Looking past him, her eyes widened. “Oh, shit. Time to run.”

He didn’t need to turn to know the creatures had caught up. Grabbing Isi’s hand, he bolted. They rushed up the tunnel, and he swore he smelled fresh air. But it soon sloped downward, and Isi’s fear was proven true.

They rounded a corner and found themselves at the intersection again. Without a word, Isi pulled another scrap of fabric from her pocket and tagged a second passage. They ran downhill, and he worried this would be a wrong turn as well.

Grunts and huffs reached him from behind. Too close.

Isi kept going, her face pink, and her breathing uneven. “We’re gonna make it. You can do it!”

“As can you.”

They rounded a corner and a steep, rising hill waited for them.

“Love hills,” she panted out. “But I hope this one leads to the surface.” She started up, her pace slowing. By the time they reached the top, she’d straggled to a fast walk. “I can do it but damn, let’s avoid hills from now on, okay?”

Ahead lay a section of the tunnel with no light. Had the arins been eaten? Lyel’s assumption was the glowing plant made up the majority of the kan-gar-oot’s diet.

“Creepy,” Isi huffed, jogging forward.

The kan-gar-oots crested the top of the hill behind them, their numbers grown. At least thirty gave chase. If they didn’t find a way out of here soon, they’d be fodder.

He let Isi pull ahead and hefted his kalina. If she slowed or the kan-gar-oots caught up, he would stop and do battle. He should be able to kill five or more before he was overrun. That would buy Isi time to keep going.

“No,” Isi cried from ahead.

He spun back to face her and stifled his groan. Rushing forward, he stopped and gazed up the smooth wall surface.

“Dead end,” she said. “We’ve got to turn around and go back to the third option.” Pivoting, she released a soft cry. “Too late. We’re trapped. But…” Staring upward, she scowled. “How energized do you feel, agent of secrets?”

“Very energized.” What she had done for him back in the small room… The wonder of her mouth and the satisfaction she gave him. He would never forget. He wanted to be with her again, which meant he needed to tap his agent of secrets power. “Climb onto my back.”

She grinned. “You’re gonna do it, aren’t you? Damn, you’re amazing.” She pointed. “There’s light up there, at the end of the passage.” Scrambling around behind him, she jumped and latched onto his shoulders. “Ready. Do it, dude.”

Dude. The nickname lit him on fire. He could do this, for them both.

He crouched and sprang upward, soaring into the narrow tunnel. Almost there. It was going to happen!

His fingers scrambled on the stone edge, but he lost his grip.

They started falling.

“Roots!” Isi cried. “Grab on.”

He caught one as they slid down the cliff and brought their descent to a halt.

“Yes,” she hissed. “You are awesome, and I’m crazy about you.”

He hoped that was a positive thing but would wait to ask later.

“Here we are again,” she said, breathless. “Just you and me, hanging out together, taking a moment to chat. Trying not to be eaten by ginormous kangaroos gathering beneath us. If we drop, well, we’ll hit them like a bomb or a bowling ball impacting pins. Strike!” A thread of anxiety wove into her high-pitched giggle. “I’m okay. Really. Or dokey okey. I love the way you twisted that, by the way. Thought I should say it before… Not going there.”

“We are getting out of here, Isi,” he said. If he had a free hand, he would place his fist to his chest, but he would not let go of her or the root.

“I don’t see how we’re getting out of this one, Lyel. There are no roots or fangs or rocks above us we—well, you—can grab onto.”

“Watch me.” He released the root and dropped down onto a fang he spied while they rose toward the top. Crouching, he sprang upward again, landing securely on a flat surface above the shoot.

“Whoa,” Isi said, sliding down his body to the ground. “You…” Barreling around to his front, she leaped into his arms and clung. “You did it. You did it,” she said into his neck, over and over. “You’re so much better than Aquaman.”

“You are amazing.” One of his arms went around her, holding her tight. “You have been braver than anyone I know.”

“You’ve guided us and kept us safe.” Leaning back in his embrace, she gave him a watery grin. “And you give great orgasms.”

“I need to give you more.”

“You do.”

She turned and backed into his arms. “Do I see light ahead?”

“Could be arins.”

“Or a way out. I think we should look into it, don’t you?”

He took the hand she offered, and they strode through the tunnel. Reaching the end, they could go left or right, but light beckoned on the right.

Isi squeezed his hand. “We’re going to get out of here soon. I feel it in my bones.”

“I do, too.”

“We’ll be in the desert again.”

“We will.”

She lifted her chin. “And we’ll be closer to the end of the Orcal.”

“I hope so.” Underground, it was hard to tell.

They reached the end of the passage and found another stretching above them, narrow but with protrusions they could hold onto.

“Jump or climb?” he asked. “I think I can reach the top.” Where the light shone brightly. Were they finally at the end of this?

“Climbing is a bigger challenge, I assume.”

“On my back, mate, and I will take us there.”

She clambered onto him and pressed her face into his neck. “Why do you still smell good? I know I reek. Yet, here you are, smelling like fresh-cut grass and cinnamon, and everything naughty.”

“This is natural for me.” He bared his fangs, overwhelmed with happiness. Their situation was dire, but somehow, they’d found each other while taking on each part of the challenge. Nothing could tear them apart.

“Go-go! I hear kangaroos scrambling up the wall.”

Would they follow all the way to the surface, or did they know something he and Isi had yet to discover? Perhaps this was another end of the dead, as Isi called the tunnel below.

With a jump, he sprang upward, driving them up through the chute. He propelled them forward once they cleared the tunnel and landed easily on a sand-strewn platform.

“No more going up,” Isi said, tipping her head to the side to look around his shoulder. “Straight ahead it is. At least there’s natural light in that direction.”

He strode forward with her still on his back, his strides eating up the sandy distance to the end of a wider tunnel opening into a large room filled with xarton eggs.

“Mama’s gone shopping,” Isi whispered. “Why don’t we creep around the slumbering babies and escape out the other side before she’s standing in the doorway, her claws filled with groceries?” She pointed to a wide archway on the opposite side of the room. “I’ll climb off you.”

“Stay.” After making sure she held on, he leaped forward, landing partway through the room. Not stopping, he continued with another jump, taking them deeper. Around them, eggs rocked, but none hatched, and no mother xarton appeared to issue a challenge.

He raced around a row of eggs, aiming for the archway only to see a smaller opening on the right. It was too late to stop and take another route. As he passed the opening, the enraged cry of a xarton echoed in the big room.

“Forget grocery shopping. Mama’s awake and she hasn’t had her coffee,” Isi said.

He did not know what coffee was, but he got the gist of what she said: Run!

He bolted for the archway and leaped up onto the flat surface in front of it. Not stopping to see if the mother xarton gave chase—she most likely did—he raced through the opening, finding yet another tunnel. Would this ever end?

“She’s behind us. Go!” Isi pumped her hips against him as if she rode a wildarn across the plains of dunare.

Picking up speed, Lyel took them up an incline and down the other side. Another hill was followed by a third, but with each, they climbed higher.

Meanwhile, the mother xarton chased them, her body rolling through the passage.

“She’s gaining on us,” Isi said. “Any rooms nearby where we can hide?”

Lyel had one goal, to get them out of the tunnels and back to the surface. He pushed for speed, his legs pumping, his blood roaring through him like flames licking across dry tinder.

At the end of the channel, they came to an opening. Sunlight poured in.

“You’re gonna do it, agent of secrets?” Isi kissed the back of his neck. “Have I told you how amazing you are yet?”

“You have. Recently.”

“But not within the last second. You’re freakin’ amazing. You got us through it. You—”

He stepped out into the light and came to a shuddering halt.

Fedeema floated above the desert floor with a full battalion of Al’kieern soldiers flanking her.

Each pointed laser pistols at Lyel and Isi.

18

Isi

I si slid off Lyel’s back. “Damn, the wicked witch is back in business. Any ideas for getting out of this alive?”

“Step to the side of the opening,” he said softly, inching her over to the rock wall to their right. “We will wait here. Do not move.”

“I don’t think I can,” she said, her teeth chattering despite the oppressive heat rolling off the wasteland. “I swear, I can feel a collar tightening around my throat already. Although this time, I’ll probably avoid the collar since I’ll be dead.”

“Not happening,” he said.

Fedeema drifted closer. “Come forward into the light, Songbird. I wish to see you before I kill you.”

Isi said nothing, but what could she say? Let us go wasn’t an option, and she doubted pleading to finish the challenge would result in Fedeema agreeing and waving for them to continue.

The ground rumbled, softly at first but with growing volume.

Awesome. Were more xartons arriving for the feast?

“The hills are alive,” Isi sang, her voice shaky but loud enough to overwhelm the jeers of the Al’kieen troops.

Fedeema paused, staring at Isi. “I do not wish to hear you sing, not even a song you have not gifted us with before.”

Isi had been saving the Sound of Music for a special occasion. Why not now?

She lifted her voice. “With the sound of…”

As Fedeema and her entourage floated closer, compelled by Isi’s voice as they were whenever she sang, the mother xarton burst through the archway. She leaped toward the queen but Fedeema reeled back, her wings flapping. The xarton’s fangs snapped closed and she dropped back to the wasteland. Her shriek of frustration blasted through the air.

A pack of giant kangaroos galloped from the opening, grunting and squealing, delighted by the feast on display.

Isi and Lyel inched farther to the side and found a small, recessed area on the hill’s surface. In the shadows, they could hide.

Lasers blasted from the Al’kieern, taking down the front line of kangaroos, but others surged from the tunnel. A never ending stream of hopping furry bunnies with long tails, fangs, and beady eyes. They leaped and snatched Al’kieern from the air. Tumbling to the ground, they stomped on the blue-skinned aliens and proceeded to rip them apart, swallowing great gulps of flesh, not caring if their victims were dead or alive.

Fedeema rose above them, shrieking in fury. She glared toward where Isi and Lyel hid and with a few straggling Al’kieern beside her, fled, leaving the rest of her crew to be eaten by the kangaroos and mama xarton.

“I assume we’ll remain here until they’re…done eating,” she whispered, having no interest in drawing attention.

“Yes.” Lyel sank to the ground and stretched out his legs. He patted his lap, and she dropped down onto it, facing him.

“We leave at sunset, I assume?” she said with a shudder. She swallowed deeply more than once. “Too hot to travel during the day?”

“You may not have noticed while we were below ground, but we are closer to the fence. I anticipate most of a nights’ walking to reach the end, but I could be wrong.”

If they could avoid xartons and whatever Fedeema planned next, they might stand a chance. “She’ll be after us once she rallies.”

“We can handle her.”

Isi snorted. “So you say.”

“So we will do.”

“And then what?” she asked. “You said the fence is tall. Can we climb over it or will you jump?”

“The top is electrified.”

“We can’t risk jumping then.”

“From what I hear, it is too high for even me. We will find another way.”

“You say that so casually.”

His arms tightened around her. “Do not fear. All is not lost yet.”

“I love how you remain confident, no matter what happens.”

“I have a mate to protect. Someone I am growing to care for very much.”

Her heart pinched, and she strained toward him. “Lyel. You’re killing me here.”

“That is not my wish, but it is a sweet death, is it not?”

She buried her face in his neck. “Very.”

In a surprisingly short time, the kangaroos and xarton finished the Al’kieern. The xarton melted into the sand, and the kangaroos hopped back into the cave.

Silence ruled, punctuated only with a rare bird cry as carrion eaters moved in to pick over the bones.

She and Lyel got off the ground and looked for a way down off the ledge.

Lyel plunged down onto the sand, and held out his arms. “I have you. Jump.”

She did without thought. Trust had grown between them. She had his back and he had hers.

Holding hands, they started walking.

While she didn’t want to draw the attention of a xarton, she did want to find Bucko. “Hey buddy?” she whispered, hoping he’d hear. “Ahoy, matey?” She turned to Lyel. “I’m worried about him. Maybe we should go back and find him? I hate to think he’s somewhere injured, hoping I’ll—“

Twirp!

She spun around to find Bucko half-flying, half-scurrying across the sand toward them.

“Buddy!” she cried, racing toward him. Tears stung behind her eyes, and she let them fall. They’d been through one hardship after another. It was wonderful to find something to smile about if only for a few moments.

Scooping him up, she danced around in the sand while he stroked his face against hers.

“Watch the fangs, little guy,” she said with a snort as they scraped her sensitive skin. She lifted him up onto her shoulder, and he settled down on his fluffy bird butt.

Tipping his head back, he twirped. “Ahoy! Batten down the hatches!”

She frowned. “I didn’t teach you that.” Tipping her head to the side, she studied his birdy face, but he only bared his fangs and twirped again. With a shake of her head, she caught up to Lyel, who waited with a grin on his face. “Did you teach him to say that?”

His ridge brows lifted. “Me? How would I learn Earth pirate phrases on my own?”

This was weird.

They started walking. She knew they’d soon locate a place to settle until the sun set. Hopefully in the shade, though very little existed.

“Pirates are everywhere,” she said.

“They are. The Al’kieern are our quadrant’s pirates. Mara is a pirate planet, and we will need to take care once we reach the city.”

“If we reach the city.” She peered over her shoulder, but the sky remained clear. Chills tracked down her spine. “I’m surprised the queen isn’t after us already.”

“She will be.”

“Again, I hate how confident you are about some things, but only because this means we’ll have to face her again.”

“I plan to kill her,” he grated out.

“Take a number. Can I call dibs?”

“You wish to kill her yourself?”

“Don’t sound too amazed.” Her steps slowed. “She…hurt me. You know that.” While her back only ached with vigorous activity, the sting inside would take a long time to go away.

His arm went around her waist, below where she’d been hit. “I do understand the need to show someone you are not powerless.”

“Your father.”

He nodded.

“I think we’re both carrying our past around with us on our shoulders. It weighs us down.”

“It does.”

“How can we be free?”

“I came to believe that I must prove I was not my father’s actions.”

“And now?”

“Hmm…” He squinted forward to where the desert shimmered. If she believed her eyes, something moved ahead of them, but that was mirage for you. They were deceptive beasts. “I do not know how I feel now. After my father forced the vengeance and I fought on his behalf, as was the correct thing to do for my family, I thought my honor was gone forever. I volunteered for this mission.”

This explained why he was so determined to carry it through.

“I believed I would die but completing my quest would restore my family honor.”

She leaned into his side as they walked. “I can see where it would be easy to think that. But you know honor lies with the person. You’re not responsible for your father’s actions. He was a big boy; he knew what he was doing.”

“He did, I agree. But family…”

“They can be complicated. I get it. Remember my mom?”

“Who made it difficult for you to trust.”

“Yeah.” Her voice hollowed out. “I’m working on that.”

“As am I.”

“Back to killing Fedeema. She left. Maybe she doesn’t intend to come after us. We trounced her—with our creature friends’ help—enough times to teach her a lesson.”

“Hello!” Bucko cried. “Jack! Jack! Hoist the mizzen.”

She soothed the bird, wishing he’d be quiet. They didn’t need to draw the attention of anything lurking nearby.

“Completely destroying the operation is a worthy goal,” she said. “They kidnapped me. I want it shut down. But perhaps the best way to do it is by taking the battle to her instead of waiting for her to give chase. That puts us on the defensive.”

He cocked his head. “You are right. Do you have ideas?”

She was grateful he didn’t go all alpha and suggest he would handle this while she, the little woman, hid in the background. From the moment she met him, she could see he respected her and her abilities. It made her like him even more.

“We could put me out as bait,” she said.

He growled. “We will not.”

“She wants me.”

“She wants to kill you. There is no guarantee she would not simply fire her lasers at you.”

“You’re right.”

Lyel led her over to a juliter tree, where he dug for water. Once sated, they walked again. She swore she could almost see the fence stretching across the desert far ahead of them, but she must be imagining it.

“We don’t have much to work with,” Isi said.

“I believe she will wait at the fence and challenge us there.”

“Then let’s fool her and go back the way we came.”

He glanced over his shoulder. “Your idea has merit.”

“We need to do something unexpected. We’re walking toward the fence that’s supposed to be our only way out. We need to turn this around and do something else.”

“Going back is not a likely option.”

“Maybe some of their ships survived the blast. We could steal one and escape the moon.”

“You are suggesting we not kill Fedeema.”

“We keep coming back here, but does revenge serve either of us? Yes, we want to eliminate the kidnapping operation, but maybe we should get to Crakair and talk to someone who can help us do that. Many minds thinking up solutions instead of one.”

“It was my mission.”

“And you’ve done a wonderful job. You killed most of them and blew up their compound.”

“Fedeema was the true target.”

She sighed as they stomped to the top of a hill and paused to survey the desert around them. Nothing but sand, sand, and more sand. If there was a fence waiting, she couldn’t see it now.

“So you’re saying we have to kill her, no matter what. Why can’t we let this go until we reach Crakair, regroup, and discuss options?”

“She is sending a fleet to Earth.” The dread in his voice made her mouth go dry.

That didn’t sound good. “I assume not on a we come in peace mission.”

“For the Al’kieern, it has always been about profit.”

“They don’t want to negotiate for brides.” Why hadn’t she seen this? “They’re going to invade and take people, aren’t they?”

“There will be no negotiations.”

“This is horrible.”

“Which is why I must stop her.”

“Blimey, throw them in the brig,” Bucko cried.

Good thought, but… “Are you sure you didn’t teach Bucko new phrases when I wasn’t looking?” she asked Lyel.

“When have you not been looking?”

Never. She watched him all the time.

Isi started down the hill and then across a flat, open area, with Lyel beside her. The sun hovered on the horizon, and she assumed they’d keep walking into the night, as they hadn’t located a place to escape the rays. “You’re right. I do look.”

He grinned. “As do I but it is the nature of the mating.”

“Mating. What convinces you we’re destined to be mates?”

“This.” He showed her his palm.

“I saw that back at the compound.” She flipped her hand over, showing its blank surface. “Only guys get the mate symbol thing?”

“Usually, it is both.”

“Maybe I’m not your mate. He or she could be someone else.”

He huffed. “It is not Fedeema.”

“Maybe you’re bi and it’s one of the guys.”

“Guys… This could be true, but I do not believe it in my heart.” His fist pressed against his chest. “In here, I know you are my destined mate.”

“Does anyone have a destined mate? I mean, you meet someone, and you like them. Or you don’t but he slowly grows on you.”

“Like a plant.”

She chuckled. “Sorta.” Staring forward, she tried to see the end, but it didn’t appear as if they’d made any progress despite hours of walking. “On Earth, we don’t have mates and we don’t show a sign that someone is the one we’re meant to love.”

“How do you know when you have found that person?”

He sounded astonished. What would it be like to know?

“Maybe we decide inside here.” She tapped her chest. “But lots of couples don’t make it. They break up, sometimes for valid reasons but other times because they just…I don’t know. Fall out of love, I guess.”

“This does happen on Crakair.”

“Where someone with one of those symbols breaks up with their mate?”

“Never that. Somehow, fate knows. But when one carries the symbol and the other doesn’t, it can mean they are not fated mates.”

She didn’t like where this was headed. Now that she was committed, she worried she wasn’t his “true” mate, that they’d choose to part. It hurt to think that. “It sounds like you have something like divorce too. That’s what we call it on Earth when a couple breaks up permanently. Their marriage legally ends.”

“This will not happen with us.”

She showed him her hand again. “No symbol.” Why did that sting? It shouldn’t. They weren’t fated. She was silly to believe in something like that. It was time to decide in her heart if Lyel was the one. If he wasn’t, she needed to end this before they took things too far.

“I trust in the bond, Isi. You must as well. Life would not share you with me only to snatch you away.”

She grimaced. “It happens.”

Pausing, he turned to face her, taking her hands and squeezing. On her shoulder, Bucko snored. Lucky him, being able to sleep while they walked. “You do not trust easy, but can you give this to me?”

Could she? She wanted to. Since she was little, she wanted to believe a forever home waited for her. Could it be with Lyel?

Now or never, Isi.

No, he was not asking her to choose; he was asking her to give him her trust.

For the first time in forever, that was easy.

She nodded, a shy smile blooming on her face. “I trust you, Lyel.”

19

Lyel

His heart soared at her words. He would not abuse her trust, as he knew how difficult it was for her to give it.

Leaning forward, he kissed her. A promise that he would not betray that trust.

Perhaps he did have honor after all.

They walked through the night and when dawn crested the horizon, they approached a hill and climbed to the top. Ahead stood the fence. Isi was right, though. They could not do what Fedeema expected.

“We will surprise her,” he said.

“How?”

He stared toward the long metal structure spanning the end of the desert. Beyond, rolling hills speckled with deep blue grass led to the city. There, they could find sanctuary and a shuttle off the planet. Freedom was close, but it could be snatched away from them any minar.

She cleared her throat to clear the dust. “Two options as far as I can tell. We could say she’ll expect us to try a different route, rather than straight across. Thus, she’ll have traps waiting everywhere else. Or she’ll decide we assume that, and we’ll instead run straight forward, so she’ll lay traps there.”

“Or there are traps in all the possible routes.”

“Which is likely the reality.” She huffed, sending hair shooting up off her face. “Then let’s bull in a china closet our way forward. We’ll take on whatever might be waiting for us and reach the fence. Then what? You said the top is electrified. How will we get through? Is there a gate or weak area in the fence? Can we break or cut it?”

“I do not know,” he said. “We will find out when we get there.”

“Our odds are not looking good.”

His sigh showed he agreed. While frustration poured through him, he studied the terrain between here and the fence, looking for indications someone had created traps, but the wind smoothed the surface. If something lurked, waiting to spring on them, he couldn’t see it.

“Hello!” Bucko cried.

Isi jumped and gave Lyel a sheepish grin. “I’ve created a monster.” She stroked the bird’s feathers. “But he’s cute. He can do whatever he pleases,” she said in a sing-song voice.

“Hello!” echoed behind them.

Lyel spun, lifting his kalina, but he saw no movement and no one coming at them. With a huff, he lowered his weapon, but he was slower to turn back to the fence. Something had echoed Bucko. He would remain on high alert, as he’d been for much of this journey.

“I’ll keep my knife handy,” Isi said.

They started down the hill, their feet sliding on the sand, dragging them down quicker than they might wish to traverse the distance. When they reached the bottom, they walked cautiously toward the fence, taking care where they placed their feet.

Bucko peered around but didn’t seem concerned. A good sign. Animals often sensed danger and sounded the alarm.

“Oh, shit,” Isi hissed, coming to an abrupt stop.

“What?” Lyel also paused, his weapon ready, but he didn’t see anything of concern. His sekairs lifted, prepared to shoot poison at the threat.

“Something shifted under my foot.” She peered down, unmoving.

“The sand?”

“It felt different. Harder, but not stone.”

Lyel’s heart thumped once then raced like a wildarn being chased by a javeess.

“Climb onto my back,” he said softly. There was still no one around as far as he could see, but that meant nothing. “I will run.”

“I don’t dare move my feet.” Her voice shook, but her posture remained stoic.

He reached out and grabbed her, hefting her up onto his back in one motion.

A bang, and metal bars thrust up from the ground, creating a fence around them. Another clang, and a top snapped into place, securing them in a cage. The ground shifted, lifting from the sand, showing a base attached to the rest.

“I’m sorry,” Isi said, her voice breaking. “I caused this to happen.”

“One of us would have. I am sure this area is filled with hidden cages.”

She slid off his back and strode to the edge. Gripping the bars, she tried to shake them, but they didn’t move. With gritted teeth, she strained, trying to pull them apart. He joined her and added his strength, but they didn’t shift.

Dropping to his knees, he ran his hands around on the bottom, looking for a way out. There had to be one, and he’d find it. Sweat coiled down his spine, and he ached to scoop up Isi and run as far and fast as he could, but they were trapped.

Isi kicked the bars, over and over, until he stilled her by tugging her into his arms.

She wept silently into his chest while he rubbed her low back.

“It is dokey okey,” he said, hoping his twist of her phrase would bring on a hint of a smile, but how could it? She had every right to be upset.

He needed to get them out of this before—

A fluttering sound sent him spinning. Three winged Al’kieern approached. As they drew near, they cackled.

“Caught like a moosa in a trap. How do you like your new room, Songbird?” a male cried.

“Sing for us, Songbird,” another shouted.

Isi stiffened and remained silent.

“Ahoy,” Bucko cried. “Ahoy! Matey, ahoy!”

“Ahoy!” someone cried, and Lyel swore it was not one of the Al’kieern.

Odd, but nothing he could investigate now.

“The queen suggests we leave you here to bake in the sun,” an Al’kieern said. “I think poking you sounds better.” He flew in fast and threw a rock at the cage. It deflected off a bar but the next he chucked passed between.

Bucko cheeped shrilly.

Lyel and Isi ducked, and the rock sailed over them, hitting a bar behind them with a bang. Another flew into the cage, and Lyel knocked it to the side with his kalina.

“This is stupid,” Isi said. She stormed to the edge of the cage. “You really intend to fly around and throw rocks at us?” When a rock flew into the cage, she snatched it out of the air. Quicker than he could blink, she hurled it back at the Al’kieern. It hit him square in the chest and he reeled backward, spinning end over end before correcting.

Growling and rubbing his chest, he flew in close. “I will kill you for that.”

“Old news, buddy,” she said dryly as she handed Bucko to Lyel. “Try something else.” Tumbling forward, she rolled and swept up another rock and hurled it. This one hit the Al’kieern in the head.

He dropped to the sand like the rock and lay unmoving.

“One down, two to go,” she said to Lyel, who watched her with his mouth ajar. She casually took Bucko back and placed him on her shoulder.

“Walk the plank!” Bucko chirped. “Walk the plank!”

“I didn’t teach him that either, but I’m runnin’ with it,” Isi said.

“After what I saw, you need to train me in fighting skills, not the other way around.”

She blew pretend smoke of her finger pistol. “Watch me. I’ve got a few more tricks up my sleeve.”

The two remaining Al’kieern flew up high and conferred. Snapping and snarling, they shot down to their unconscious friend, grabbed him by the arms, and darted toward the fence.

“Don’t leave so soon,” Isi called after them. “The party was just getting started!”

The Al’kieern continued up and over the fence and flew toward the city.

Isi’s arms dropped to her sides. “This feels anticlimactic. Like, something more should be happening, shouldn’t it?”

“You must not—”

The floor gave way beneath them.

20

Isi

When the metal floor shifted underfoot, Isi latched onto a bar and Lyel at the same time.

Instead of being swept downward with the rocks and sand collected on the metal, they dangled with only Isi holding on.

“Been here, done this already,” she said. “We’re not going down again.”

Bucko flew off Isi’s shoulder and clung to a bar. He peered down at them as if to say, why are you foolin’ around?

Lyel grabbed a bar, and she released her knuckle-white grip in his arm. That had been close. While she showed bravado on the outside, inside, she quaked. Her hands wouldn’t stop shaking and spent adrenaline made her knees ache.

He pulled himself up beside her and hung as if he stood leaning against the bar at the local club, grinning while he flirted with a girl he just met.

Oh, true. They hadn’t known each other long. But in the time they’d been together, they saved each other’s lives, had hot not-quite-sex, and learned to trust each other. Who needed a lifetime for that?

“So, since I kept us from being sucked into the ground,” she said. “It’s your turn to come up with a way out of this trap.”

“Challenge accepted.” Baring his fangs, he tightened his grip on the bars and used them to ratchet himself higher, until his full body hung against the wall of the cage. He swung out and when his body flew toward the bars, he lifted his feet and hit them solidly against the side of the cage. Over and over.

The cage rocked, tipped, and toppled over. Isi found herself lying on the bars with the floor of the wasteland beneath her. Letting go of her death grip, she stood. Bucko flew from the cage to her shoulder and settled, chirping as if to scold her for misbehaving.

“Not my fault, buddy,” she said, gulping at the big hole. If she fell in, she’d be swallowed.

“Aye, aye, Captain,” he cried.

She really had no idea where he was learning these phrases, but he was cute. It was funny. And it wasn’t as if she could ask him.

“I have an idea,” she said.

He grinned. “It is your turn to act.”

“Walk with me.” She strode the edge and looked downward. “Good thing we avoided that.” The hole went on forever and this time, there didn’t appear to be roots, fangs, or rocks to grab onto to break their fall.

They’d be dead, which was Fedeema’s goal.

The thought of dying, of losing Lyel… It filled her with sorrow and rage.

Lyel joined her, and she jumped onto his back. “You’ll have to perform again, sweet cheeks, but maybe you can take us across that opening?” She waved to the gap beneath where the cage’s floor had been.

“I will take you anywhere but please, I prefer dude to sweet cheeks.” With a simple leap, he landed on the other side of the pit. Free. Sort of.

“Dude it is,” Isi said. “Although…” Damn, it felt good to smile. “Are you sure I can’t call you sweet cheeks?”

He swept her up and spun in a circle. When he lowered her to her feet, he kissed her.

She clung to him, having no problem admitting she loved this. She wanted his kisses, his touch to last forever.

His kiss ended too soon, and she growled, feeling greedy.

He stroked her face. “I guess I could live with sweet cheeks.”

Her laugh snorted out of her. “You…”

“Me…”

She shook her finger at him. “One of these days…”

“I am going to hold you to that promise.”

“Oh, no worries,” she said. “I intend to keep it.” Turning, she leaned into him and looked around. “What are the odds there are more cages between us and the fence?”

“There must be. I think…” He turned her around and honestly, she wanted more kisses, but he waved to his back. “Hop on.”

“You have a plan?” she asked.

“It is my turn, is it not?”

“One of these days, it’s going to be our turn.”

“That it is, mate. That it is.”

“Heave ho!” Bucko cried. “All hands-on deck!”

Isi rolled her eyes. “I’m being outdone by a bird, but he’s right. Time to heave ho and get out of here.” She jumped onto Lyel’s back and gripped his shoulders, wrapping her legs around his waist.

They must look like the fable where the dog stood on the donkey, the cat stood on the dog, and the rooster hopped on top of the pile. Except she was on Lyel, and Bucko perched on her. As if to cement the impression, Bucko fluttered up onto her head.

“Dude,” she said.

“Yes?” When she said nothing, just grunted, Lyel tipped his head to look back over his shoulder. “Are you holding on?”

“I am. Where are we—“

He leaped forward and the second his foot hit the ground, he projected them again, running the distance between the cage and the fence in huge bounds.

Bucko squawked and his claws wrapped around her hair. Ugh. She hoped she had some left by the time they stopped.

Behind them, cages jutted out of the ground, giant steely jaws, but they snapped shut empty because she and Lyel had already left the area.

He stopped when they were inches from the fence. Bucko released his death grip on her hair to hop onto her shoulder. She rubbed her head to take the sting away and make sure she still had hair. So far, so good.

She gazed upward. “This sucks, huh?” The damn thing had to be fifty feet high, as if they knew Crakairians might try to hop over it. “Can we dig underneath?”

“I have heard the fence extends some ways beneath the surface.”

“So, no.” She slid off his back.

“Ahoy? Ahoy?” Bucko cried.

She swore his voice echoed in the low hills behind them. “Do you think it’s safe to walk alongside the fence or is that booby-trapped, too?”

He shrugged. “Do not go far.”

She held out her hand. “Let’s face whatever waits together.”

He bared his fangs, but his smile fell fast.

Their situation was tenuous. They couldn’t stay here long as Fedeema would arrive with new backup. Xartons would sense their presence and attack. Other creatures must be lurking about, eager for a snack.

The fence stretched for miles in either direction, which meant there would be no walking around it. Not in this lifetime, that is. No going over. No going under.

She growled, squinting at the metal mesh fence. “You don’t happen to have wire cutters with you, do you? Or claws you can use to snip the metal?”

“I do not. Sadly, Crakairians have evolved beyond our Driegon heritage and lost our claws.”

“Driegon. I haven’t heard of them before.”

“We believe they have died out. Ages ago, everyone lived in an enormous cave system below the surface of Crakair. Something happened. An argument, perhaps? No one remembers. But many left the caves and migrated to the surface, where they evolved into the Crakairians you see today. Occasionally, someone is born with Driegon features, but most appear as I do.”

“I see.” She gripped the fence and tried to shake it, but it remained solid. “What features are we talking about?”

“The claws you referred to, though the Driegons were said to only have claws where we have a thumbnail. Tails, horns, wings, spikes down their backs, scales like mine, though rumor has it they were bigger.”

“Naanans?” She loved how Lyel’s stroked her, how they functioned as independent limbs.

“I do not believe so, though I am not sure why.”

“Your Driegons sound like Earth’s mythical dragons. Do they have any human-like features?”

“Two arms and two legs. Faces like Crakairians, I believe. I do not know otherwise. We have no pictures.”

She wiggled her eyebrows. “They sound sexy.”

He growled. “You wish I had a tail or wings?”

“Only now.” She tipped her head back and took in the fence looming over them. “If you had wings, you could fly us up and over the top.”

“Now I wish I was Driegon.”

Stopping, she squeezed his hand. “It’s okay. I think you’re perfect just the way you are.” He was cute, kind, and he wanted to please her.

Twirp.

“Not now, Bucko,” she said with a wave of her hand. There had to be a way past this fence; they just needed to find it. In frustration, she kicked the fence but got nothing for her effort other than sore toes.

Twirp!

Sighing, she tipped her head, crossing her eyes to look at Bucko, but he wasn’t gazing at her. She turned to where the bird’s attention was fixated.

“Holy shit,” she said.

“Heille,” Lyel echoed.

At least a thousand birds like Bucko littered the ground a short distance from them.

“Ahoy!” they chirped in unison.

21

Lyel

F or the second time in a span of minars, Lyel’s jaw dropped.

“Aren’t they cute?” Isi cooed, starting toward them. He held her back.

They were … not cute, but he would wait to see how this played out before making final judgment.

“Ahoy!” they called again, tiptoeing across the sand toward them.

Isi dropped to her heels and held out her arms as if she would hug them all. “They’re gorgeous.” She tipped her head back to smile at Lyel. “Look at their beautiful grayish blue feathers. Yeah, they resemble skinny chickens with fangs, but chickens are sweet creatures. Aren’t they amazing? Bucko, are these your friends?”

Bucko twirped. He flew off her shoulder and joined the other birds clustering around Isi.

Lyel wasn’t sure if he should keep his kalina ready or drop to the ground and join Isi in welcoming Bucko’s family. Family? Wait a minar. How was he going to provide for all these birds, let alone get them to Crakair. This could be a problem.

This was demented. Unnatural.

Entertaining.

Isi was the cause, somehow. And if nothing else, she would bring humor to his life as long as she remained a part of it.

He hadn’t had much chance to court her, yet she showed she cared. Was it possible to woo a mate without the formal courtship rituals?

“I can’t believe how many of you there are,” Isi exclaimed, patting one bird after another. “You’re all so awesome.” She tumbled backward, onto the sand, and a few jumped up onto her chest for pats.

“Take care, mate.” Their claws… Yet they treated her with utmost gentleness, walking cautiously across her body. Soon, they surrounded her.

She sat up, grinning, and the tension that had creased her face since he met her was gone. “I’m not sure what to do with them all.”

Bucko flew up onto her shoulder and others joined him, crowding together. Their claws sunk into her shirt, but she didn’t flinch, so they must not be digging into skin.

A few flew up onto Lyel’s shoulders, and he peered at them, unsure of their intentions.

Isi stood. “It was nice seeing all your friends, Bucko, but they should probably leave before Fedeema gets here.” Her worried gaze met his and the creases reappeared on her face. “We should leave, too.”

“Walk the plank,” Bucko chirped. “Walk the plank! Ahoy!”

More birds flew to Isi’s back and latched onto her shirt. Others did the same with Lyel, clinging to his scales. They pulled, but not unpleasantly. Yet.

“Should I fight them off?” he asked, seeking a cue. She bonded with Bucko, and he trusted her instincts in this. His hand tightened on his kalina, but there was no way he could fight them all off if they chose to attack.

“Hold on,” she said. “I think…”

Their wings flapped, and they lifted her up off the ground.

“Holy…” she squealed. “This… I don’t know what’s happening, Lyel, but I’m going to find out!”

He was lifted as well, higher and higher. If they dropped him, he’d suffer grave injuries, but they didn’t appear to be hostile. Their wings flapped, creating a stiff breeze that swirled around him.

The birds flew him and Isi over the fence. They continued to fly half a klek or more, taking them away from the fence and closer to the city.

Slowing, they drifted down to the ground and carefully set them in the scraggly blue grass. Releasing them, the birds settled on the ground around him and Isi, watching them.

“I wish we had something we could give them as a reward,” Isi said. “That was unbelievable. I never imagined anything like that could happen.”

“Perhaps this is our reward for helping Bucko. If you had not protected him, he would be dead.”

“Maybe.” She dropped to her knees and held out her arms. The birds fluttered in close, seeking their share of affection.

Movement in the desert drew Lyel’s eye. In the distance, dark specks appeared, coming this way.

His heart flipped. Fedeema.

“We need to leave,” he said.

Isi followed his gaze and groaned. Rising to her feet, she flicked her hands toward the birds. “You guys better hide. Trouble’s coming.”

As if they understood her—maybe they did—the birds shot off the ground en masse, Bucko included. They circled around overhead before splitting, each flying away in a different direction.

“I guess we’re not taking a bunch of birds to Crakair,” she said forlornly.

“This is a very sad thing,” he said, not actually meaning it but wanting to reassure Isi.

Her shoulders slumped. “Even Bucko left.”

He gathered her into his arms. “He is with his friends.”

She sniffed. “True, but I’m going to miss him.”

“There are many creatures on Crakair you can befriend. My home is in the country. You will see.” This was the first time he’d suggested she come with him, not only to Crakair, but to his estate. How would she respond?

Tipping her head back, she gave him a watery smile. “I can’t wait to see your home.”

“Our home, if you would have me.”

She took in a deep breath, and he girded himself for her refusal, but her smile grew. “I like that Lyel. Our home.” She held out her hand. “I know we need to get away, but my heart is happy for the first time in a long time. Let’s get out of here and find a way to Crakair.”

He nodded as he took her hand. As they raced toward the city, he shot a glance over his shoulder, but they’d moved far enough away, he could no longer see the fence.

A cry of rage rang out, echoing across the hills.

Fedeema had reached the fence and found them missing.

As Isi would say, the so-called queen was fuckin’ pissed.

22

Isi

A s they ran toward the city, low sandy hills with scraggly vegetation gave way to lusher blue grass and trees.

“We’re going to get away, aren’t we?” Isi puffed as she raced beside Lyel. “Thanks to Bucko and his friends.”

“We might.”

“You don’t sound sure of that.”

“Fedeema will not be stopped by a fence.”

“You’re right. She’s got wings, and this is her turf. Can we hide in the city?”

“For a short time,” he said.

“Once we’re inside the city streets, we can blend in with everyone, except… I don’t blend well.” She scrunched her face. “But we’ll find a way to avoid notice and escape Mara. Is there a regular shuttle going to Crakair?” Wouldn’t that be nice? To think, they could be close to leaving this wasteland behind.

“There is no shuttle, but we will find a way once we have finished here.”

“You still want to kill Fedeema.”

He dipped his head. “The mission must be completed.”

“To restore your honor.”

“It is more than that. I do this for us. For Crakair. And for Earth.”

“We do need to keep her from enacting her plan, but will killing her accomplish that? Won’t someone else take her place?”

“I assume the explosion killed most.”

“You’d think her own government wouldn’t want her drawing attention to this planet.” They raced through an area peppered with spiky trees with dark blue trunks. Overhead, broad, golden leaves reminiscent of banana trees, blocked the sun and hopefully kept Fedeema from finding them.

“She is doing this outside the jurisdiction of the Maran government.”

“Then let’s go to them and let them handle it.”

“The former government approved of her actions.”

Ah. She nodded. “And no one knows the new leader’s thoughts. Fedeema seemed frightened of the new leader. She mentioned providing a distraction when the leader visited the compound.”

“Which I destroyed.”

“The evidence is gone. Do you think the leader will be suspicious about the explosion?”

“Perhaps.” His naanans flared out before settling on his shoulders. “We cannot take a chance until we know this person’s thoughts.”

When they reached the outskirts of town, they passed rundown, abandoned buildings with overgrown lawns. Their pace slowed to a walk.

She had to admit, she was worn out. Days of hiding on the Crakairian starship, followed by pleasing Fedeema to avoid her strap, had been topped off with a run through the desert with creatures trying to eat them. Isi needed a rest or even ten minutes where she wasn’t frightened. Would that time ever come?

“Why not notify the Crakairian government about the new leader and let them handle it?” She asked, staring at the broken-down equipment sitting in a fallow field.

“I plan to.” Lyel’s brow ridges lifted. “Though I do not expect much will come of it. There are few laws on Mara and those in existence are lax, permitting most to do as they please.”

“And we’re walking into this town.”

“There is no other way to escape.”

They stopped on top of a small hill.

“The city awaits,” she said, staring toward the cluster of buildings, none higher than three or four stories. It wasn’t big; maybe a mile across, though she couldn’t see how far it stretched from here. “How many people live in the city?”

“There are about a hundred thousand residents in Qe’ket, though the number changes substantially depending on the seasons and what is happening in this quadrant of the galaxy. Qe’ket is a pirate port where those skirting the law come for ship repairs, to sell merchandise, and for refueling.”

“And here I am, without my pirate sidekick.” She missed Bucko already, though she knew he would be happier with his friends and family.

“You are welcome to teach me your pirate phrases and I shall…I love to twist your words, but I cannot say I will kick your side.”

“I like that in you, Lyel.” She squinted up at him as they stepped onto a gravel road winding through the wooded area, heading for the city. “Yer the finest pirate’s booty I’ve ever laid me eyes on.”

Lips twitching, his brow ridges quivered. “You have not seen many pirate booties, then.”

“Lyel, you’re gorgeous. You know that, right? You’re the hottest guy I know.”

“I am the only…guy around.”

“Still the hottest.” She tapped her chin. “How about this one? Show me yer buried treasure.” Before he could speak, she held up her finger. “Would ye like to shiver me timbers?”

He chuckled. “Whenever you wish, mate.”

“I believe I want to be shivered soon.”

His steps slowed. “You do?”

She squeezed his hand. “You didn’t know that already?”

“How could I?”

“Lyel,” she said. “One of these days, we’re going to be safe enough to explore this.”

“Not now, but you are right. Soon, mate.”

She hoped their time would come. She wanted to share whatever the future gave them.

Ahead, a road wound from the right, cutting through a forest that continued in that direction as far as her eyes could see. Small caravans of creatures vaguely resembling horses except with six legs and spiked tails pulled carts with blue-skinned aliens driving.

“You are an Earthling,” Lyel said. “We need to find you a disguise before we travel farther.”

“Short of getting wet and rolling in the sand, we’re out of disguises.” She peered backward. “Unless we want to go back and see if there’s something I can wear in one of those abandoned houses.”

“Anything of value would have been stolen by now.” Turning to face her, he took her hands. “I will need to leave you. Once I have acquired something we can use to hide your appearance, I will return.”

She nodded. “Will a Crakairian stand out in Qe’ket?”

“Not as much as an Earthling female.”

“I’d be seen as breeder material. Something to be stolen and sold to the highest bidder.” That’s what she was initially threatened with. If Fedeema hadn’t heard her sing and used her for entertainment, who knew where she’d be now? She wasn’t grateful to Fedeema, but she was grateful she had not been sold as a breeder.

Glancing around, she didn’t see any good hiding spots. “Where can I wait?”

Leaving the path, he wove through the woods, taking her deeper into the thickets. Birds called overhead, and the low hum of insects rippled through the air.

Lyel approached a small, falling down house, the word “house” being generous. Hovel would work better. Boards had been secured together to form an A-frame structure. Most of the roofing had peeled off, and if there had been a door, it had fled the scene. He ducked inside, but he wouldn’t be able to stand upright, as he was taller than the building. Poking his head out, he waved for her to join him.

“Cozy,” she said when she entered and looked around. About six by eight feet in length, holes peppered the rotting floor, and straggly bluish grass grew up through where some boards were missing. A tiny fireplace covered the back wall, and a cabinet with a cracked door leaned forward, ready to topple forward. Other than a chair with two legs and the remnants of a straw-stuffed mattress, the solitary room was empty. Light peeked in from all sides. No cobwebs but Lyel may have gotten rid of them. “Do I dare sit?”

“I would trust that.” He waved to a flat rock propped up beside the fireplace.

She wiggled it flat and dropped down onto it.

He knelt in front of her, cupping her face in his big, warm hands. “I will not be gone long, but try to…”

“Keep quiet. I get it. The last thing I want to do is draw anyone’s attention.” She gave him a quick kiss that turned into a lot more. It felt like a promise.

With a curt nod, he rose and crept from the tiny house. His footsteps faded, quick and filled with purpose.

She stretched out her legs and hugged her waist. It was easy to come across as confident when Lyel was here, but this place was a bit too creepy for Isi. She was glad daylight streamed in through the cracks in the roof and she wouldn’t be alone in the hovel long. To think someone once lived here. Maybe when the door and roof were secure and the fireplace was lit, it was cozy.

A thud outside made her freeze. Her skin rippled with goosebumps, and she swallowed the lump of fear in her throat. It could be Lyel but… He hadn’t been gone long.

She carefully rose to her feet and gripped her knife tightly. Glancing around, she spied the fire poker lying near the opposite wall. It was a question of did she dare cross the rickety floor to reach it. That poker would add to her reach. It would make a difference.

She started toward it, keeping her footsteps light to avoid making a sound.

The building shuddered, and the roof collapsed on top of her.

Knocked forward, she hit the boards hard. The world wavered and went out of focus.

23

Lyel

T  he moment Lyel entered the part of the woods where he left Isi, he knew something horrible had happened.

He wanted to rush forward with his kalina raised, but a move like that could see them both killed.

Moving stealthily and using the trees as cover, he worked his way to the small building. He bit back his groan when he found the structure collapsed and no one around.

He listened and when he determined no one waited to attack, he leaped forward. Landing near the building, he ripped off the roof, praying Isi was beneath while also praying she was not. Crushed, she could be… He shook his head, and his naanans were a riotous mess around his head. He did not wish to think about what it would mean if she was lying beneath the rubble.

He would find her.

“Isi,” he whispered as he searched the remains of the structure.

Gone.

Frantic, he searched the ground around the building in widening circles, finding tracks leading deeper into the woods.

He hefted his kalina and with fear and anger licking through his veins, he picked up his speed to a run, following the tracks made by at least three beings.

Utter silence surrounded him, and his furious breathing cut through the air.

Ahead, the tracks led to an open area with tall grass and sunshine beating down from above. He burst into the clearing to find wagon dents in the grass leading from the open area to a road.

Unless someone had flown Isi from the destroyed building, whoever made these tracks had taken her. Since the marks in the grass were fresh, he bet on the latter. Few bothered to capture another unless they hoped to make dinars in the market.

He bolted toward the city, his footsteps eating up the distance.

Unfortunately, while he overtook wagons heading to the market, none held trussed-up Isi in the back. He garnered much anger and raised brow ridges with each kalina-induced inspection of their wagons.

Darting around the last vehicle he inspected, he rushed toward the market, taking the narrow back streets at a dead run, his heart aflame, and his hands shaking. What if he did not find her?

Isi!

Al’kieern and Trugeons, plus others of races he hadn’t seen before, plastered themselves against buildings as he roared, shoving his way through the crowd.

As he drew closer to the marketplace, jeers and boisterous voices reached Lyel’s ears. Would he get there on time? Rarer than cut corlire stone mined deep in the Ikeline Mountains, an Earth woman would fetch a high price. She would be the featured auction in the marketplace.

He hit the open area where they put items on display at a run and wove through the crowd gathered around the stage.

Isi stood in the center. With her hands tied in the front, she stared forward dully. A red mark on her face told him she’d fought, and they subdued her. They drugged her to ensure she behaved.

His blood roared, and he ached to lay waste to everyone around him.

How was he going to rescue her? He had no credits to bid, and his kalina and his strength of will alone would not be enough to defeat the crowd surrounding him.

Fuck this. There was no way out, but that never stopped Lyel before.

This wasn’t about honor or proving something to those who scorned his family. This was about rescuing the woman he loved.

Crouching, he leaped, bursting above the crowd. He soared over them and landed hard on the wooden platform. Tumbling forward to break his landing, he rose to his feet in front of the auctioneer whose single eye widened.

The auctioneer bared his jagged teeth. “Capture heem! Take the Crakairian and throw him into the dungeon!”

Winged Al’kieen flew at Lyel, and he spun, his kalina whistling through the air. It sliced through the Al’kieern, and they reeled back, squealing.

A solid punch in the plexus sent the stubby zennier male backward against the rail. But he rallied and pulled a laser pistol from his belt.

As he lifted it, Lyel rushed forward and used one of Isi’s moves. His leg swung out and knocked the pistol from the male’s hand. Lowering his head, the auctioneer ran toward Lyel, determined to impale him with his horns.

Lyel leaped up and flipped mid-air, landing in a crouch behind the auctioneer.

Guards rushed up the stairs to the auction platform.

Lyel ran to Isi.

“Lyel,” she gasped, and her pained gaze met his. “They…” She shook her head. “My brain… Help.”

“I will get you out of here, love,” he said, lifting her into his arms. When a guard came near, Lyel kicked out, sending the guard back into the others rushing up the stairs. They tumbled down and jumped to their feet, growling.

“Love.” Her lips quirked upward before falling again. “I…” She sagged against him.

As more winged Al’kieern flew toward the stage and the crowd roared, he flung himself from the platform. He landed solidly on the cobbled street behind the crowd and raced away from the marketplace.

Al’kieern flew after him, the lasers hitting the buildings around him. He zigzagged down a narrow street and when he hit an intersection, he turned right, weaving into another busy market area. The smell of roast wildarn filled the air. Vendors selling various wares shouted as he passed, telling him to slow down, to stop and check out their “special price for the female”.

When a laser blast hit the ground near Lyel, the vendors faded back against the stone buildings behind them, hissing.

Lyel ran through the crowd, shoving aside anyone who got in his way. He turned into an alley and raced to the end, finding a solid wall. A crouch, and he flew upward onto the roof of a low building. He raced across the top while Isi clung to him, her face buried in his neck. She kept repeating his name, over and over, and it ripped his insides apart to hear the sadness in her voice.

He jumped, spanning the distance to another building and plunged to the ground on the other side, landing in the seedy bar district of the city.

Blending in with the boisterous patrons, he remained beneath the awnings stretching across the main thoroughfare, hoping to lose the Al’kieern. When no lasers hit his spine, his hope grew.

He darted into a narrow alley beside one of the “nicer” inns in the city, remembering a stay here when his father visited the city in an official capacity for the Council.

A jump took him up to a deck on the second floor, and another to the platform of the third. He peered into the window and seeing no one inside, carefully lifted the glass panel.

He climbed through the opening and after ensuring the room was unrented, laid Isi on the bed.

She clung to him but when she gave him a sleepy smile and whispered his name, he took heart. He reached her in time.

He smoothed his fingers along the mark on her face, wishing he could erase it with his touch and cut her bindings.

“I will be back,” he whispered.

She smiled again. “Matey…” Her unfocused gaze drifted across him, and she swallowed. “Wanna swab your deck.” Her arms lifted toward him.

“I want you to swab my deck, but only when you are in full control of your mind, love.”

She yawned. “Tired…”

“Rest.” He crept to the door and turned to look at her, reassuring himself she was okay.

Then he went downstairs to procure this room for the night.

24

Isi

I si woke and stretched, savoring the squishy mattress beneath her and the scratchy yet warm blanket on top of her.

Until memory set in.

A lizard alien hauling her out from beneath the rubble of the tiny A-frame. Trying to run but him tackling her to the ground. The alien hauling her off the ground. He yanked her arms in front and tying her wrists, binding them tight enough they bled.

She kicked and punched with both fists, but the gray-skinned, lizard-like alien snapped his five-inch fangs and snarled. He socked her in the face with his tail and hauled her to her feet when she fell, dragging her through the woods to a wagon, where he tossed her inside.

The long, bumpy ride into the city while the alien shouted something over and over resulted in other aliens cheering and following like the lizard was the pied piper.

When the wagon stopped, aliens crowded around, pointing and jeering. A round, one-eyed alien grabbed her ankle and dragged her out of the wagon. Propping her up in front of him, he exhaled into her face and the world swam.

He’d drugged her with his breath. Somehow.

She vaguely remembered…an auction.

And Lyel? But he couldn’t be here, or he wouldn’t have left her alone in a room.

Shit, she must’ve dreamed him rescuing her and calling her love.

Had she been sold? A quick scan of her body told her she hadn’t been violated, but whoever bought her might plan to wait until she woke up.

No way in hell would she lie here waiting to be raped.

At least her hands were untied. Leaping from the bed, she staggered but righted herself, grateful whatever the one-eyed alien breathed into her face had cleared. She turned back to the bed and using pillows, made it look like she still slept underneath the covers.

A quick look around told her she not only lost her knife but there were no weapon up for grabs. That didn’t stop Isi. Striding to the desk sitting along the side wall, she poked through the drawers and found something vaguely resembling a pen long forgotten in the back. It was better than nothing.

Gripping it tightly, she crept over to stand beside the door. When it opened, she’d be ready. After she stabbed her alien captor, she’d flee.

Then she needed to find Lyel, if it was possible in an Al’kieern city.

The doorknob rattled, and a key turned in the lock.

Fear made her skin flush, and she tightened her sweaty hand on the pen. When the door opened, she leaped, landing on the person’s back.

“You’re not raping me,” she shrieked, lifting the pen.

“I would never rape you, mate.”

“Lyel?” Her terror fled, replaced with remorse. She’d almost stabbed him!

Sliding off his back, the pen clattered on the floor. When he turned, she leaped into his arms, trembling. Her legs went around his waist.

“Hey,” he said, patting her low back. “It is dokey okey.” Leaning back, he bared his fangs. “I tease when I say dokey, you know.”

“I did know,” she said against his neck. “I like it. It’s ours.” She inhaled his scent, drinking it in through her pores. She wanted to melt into him and never break free. “I didn’t know it was you.”

“I understand.” He cupped her bottom and turning, nudged the door closed. He backed until his legs hit the bed. Sitting, he pulled her close, murmuring in her hair. “I am sorry I left you alone. I told you I would be back and thought you understood.”

“I don’t remember. My mind was mush after the one-eyed alien breathed in my face.”

“This species secretes a drug through their fangs, something that relaxes the victim and makes them compliant. I thought it was wearing off when I left you here. I went downstairs and secured this room for the night, plus transport to Crakair.”

Her heart leaped in excitement. “We’re leaving?”

“Tomorrow.”

“This is wonderful.”

He nodded against her hair. “We will remain here until it is time to leave. You are safe.”

A weight dropped from her body, leaving her light and carefree. “It’s truly safe?” She trusted him, but after what happened, she would need time to feel secure again. Actually she might not feel secure until they reached Crakair.

“The innkeeper will send up a meal soon, but we will remain here until morning. I will not leave you again, and when we go out on the street, you will be well disguised.”

Was it truly over?

When she left Earth, she was determined to find her way alone. She didn’t plan on Lyel, but she wouldn’t have this any other way.

“What about Fedeema?”

“I…” He sucked in a breath and released it. “I spoke with my friend, Vork, and the Crakairian government will handle it.”

“How do you feel about that?” Leaning back, she watched a myriad of emotions flick across his face, ending with resolve.

“This is how it should be.”

“Should.”

“I will not risk your life again.”

“What aren’t you telling me?” she asked.

“I will work with the Crakairian government. If they need my help, I will give it.”

“You’ll endanger yourself.” She held up her hand but frowned at it. “This isn’t me saying I want a kiss, though I do. I want you to hear me out.” At his nod, she continued. “I understand wanting to do something, and I know how much your honor means to you, which is why I will state right now that I support you in whatever you choose to do.”

“Even if that means I need to leave to go after Fedeema once you are safe on Crakair?”

It hurt to swallow, but she forced the lump down. “Yes. You do what you must. If it’s important to you, it’s important to me.”

“Isi.” He drew her into his arms. “Thank you.”

She didn’t have to like it, but she did feel she had to be here for him no matter what he chose to do. Who was she to say how he lived his life? If she held him back, it wasn’t true love, was it? As everyone always said, someone was only yours if you set them free and they came back on their own. It wouldn’t be easy, but it was something she had to do. Keeping her face buried in his chest, she blinked back tears. Being supportive was tearing her apart.

“I will be careful, no matter what I do,” he said. “And if I leave, I will come back to you.”

She nodded and sniffed. “And I will be waiting.”

He held her in the silence that followed, until her heart lightened.

Leaning back in his embrace, she looked up at him. “We’ll stay here tonight, then.”

“Our meal should be here soon.”

How could she be hungry when her emotions had hitched onto the back of a rollercoaster?

A scratch on the door made her jump. “Our food?” she whispered. When Lyel nodded, she slid off his lap and slunk around the bed. “I’ll hide.” Dropping to the floor, she hunkered underneath the frame.

The mattress creaked when Lyel rose, and she tracked his footsteps to the door, which he opened.

“On the desk, please,” he said.

The clang of dishes, on what sounded like a cart bumping across the floorboards, was followed by the smell of meat and something sweet.

“Thank you. I will not need further services tonight,” Lyel said.

Whoever delivered the food spoke in a language Isi did not understand, then left, shutting the door behind them.

Isi waited to the count of ten to make sure they didn’t come back, then crept out from beneath the bed. She took in the cart loaded with food. “How are we paying for this? When we arrived, you were almost naked.”

“Once I communicated with him, Vork arranged for dinars. In the morning, I will go out and buy disguises we will wear to reach the spaceport.”

“Sounds good.” Her belly rumbled.

“Are you hungry?” he asked.

For whatever reason, her mind shot to hunger for something other than food. Though she denied it, she’s wanted this guy almost from the moment she met him.

Her mouth went dry. “I am…hungry.”

He curled his finger her way. “Come closer, love, and I will serve you.”

“What are you going to…serve me?” she stuttered out. Was serving meals a Crakairian custom? If so, she was all in. She hated cooking.

“I believe I made a promise, did I not?”

“Which one?” she stuttered out, gulping.

“I said I would court you naked, my mate.”

25

Lyel

“C ourt me?” Isi said, her eyes widening. Her voice dropped to a bare whisper. “I was hoping you were going to give me a strip tease. If only I had a dollar…”

He did not know what a dollar was. As for strip tease, he could cipher that out. She wished to see him strip off clothing. It would be a tease. He liked this idea and would add it to his courtship repertoire once he had clothing.

“Please be aware, I do not have a garlong,” Lyel said, his voice deep and gravelly. Strips and teasing would have to wait. He must approach this in a serious manner. Now that this minar was at hand, his hands shook, and his heart fluttered behind his ribs. Isi made it clear she wished to be with him, but a Crakairian courted his mate, he did not drag her across a desert then rescue her from slavers. None of that would win a female’s affection.

A matebond had to be handled in a formal, Crakairian manner. This was not about his family’s honor, but about his own.

Isi was the most special female he had ever met. She deserved to be wooed.

“I’m not sure it matters if you have a garlong, though I don’t know what a garlong is.” Her gaze remained fixed on his groin, and his cock twitched, eager. It would need to wait. “You’re enough for me already, Lyel. You don’t need to do anything else to win me.”

But he did. This was important. How could he help her understand? “I wish to court you, as all Crakairian mates are courted. I honor you by doing so.”

“That’s sweet, and I want that if it makes you happy. The last thing I want to do is interfere in something you feel is important, but know I’m all in, Lyel. You don’t need to jump through hoops to convince me you’re the one.”

Hoops? He was not sure how him jumping through a circular object would convince her he was worthy of mating, but he would do so once he obtained a hoop.

Wait. She said she was “all in,” stating again she wanted to be with him.

“I am all in, as well, Isi, which is why I will use this evening, here in this lowly inn, to court you.”

She strolled toward him, her hips swaying. He could not drag his eyes away from the languid movement of her body. His throat choked off with longing. Soon. Very soon.

Stopping in front of him, she traced her finger down his chest to his abdomen before lingering. “How long does courtship take?”

“For some, a yaro.”

She blinked fast as if processing his statement. “Do you plan to court me for a full yaro?”

“If you wish. It will be torture to wait that long, but I will do so.”

“I’m not saying I want a yaro of courtship.”

“If you could set the time limit, how long would you suggest?”

“You said we have tonight? That works for me.”

He bowed. “I will do my best to show you I am your fated mate.”

“I want you, Lyel. If it takes a night or even a year for us to be together, I’ll be patient, but as far as I’m concerned, you already courted me.”

He tilted his head, and his naanans strained toward her. Pesky things: they revealed his heart. “How do you mean?”

“Don’t you see? You don’t need to do things to win a person’s love. It’s about showing you care. For example… Tell me what a Crakairian courtship entails.”

“First, a Crakairian feeds an intended mate a ceremonial meal while dressed in a garlong.”

“Kind of like first dates on Earth. Dressing up to impress and going out to dinner.”

“Interesting. Earthlings and Crakairians are not that different.”

“Our appearances may vary, but we all want the same thing, to impress someone we like,” she said. “What else?”

“Next, a Crakairian male would emulse their intended’s feet with a boodler.”

“I assume we have no boodler.”

“This bothers me deeply.”

Her lips twitched, but she nodded solemnly. “I can see it does. If we have no boodler, how else could you…emulse my feet?”

“The emulsion is a form of massage.”

“If you massage my feet, I’ll be in heaven.” Her eyes sparkled, and he appreciated how seriously she took his suit.

“After that, I would bathe you in a zinter bath.”

She cocked her head toward the corner. “That’s a tub, right?”

“It is not a zinter bath.”

“Can we pretend it is?”

“Without zinters?” he grumbled. “That would be difficult.”

“Are there zinters on the menu?”

His gaze shot to their covered meal. “We do not eat zinters. They eat us.”

“Why am I suddenly concerned about this form of bathing? But since others have taken a zinter bath before, and they’re still alive and kicking, I’m going to assume “eat us” is a general comment and not reality.”

“They do not eat us, you are correct. They…nibble around us while we lounge in the tub.”

“Maybe, um…” her fingertip teased his abs. Completely distracting. His cock throbbed, and he suppressed the urge to take her to the bed and climb on top of her. He must do this in an honorable way. “Perhaps…” Her finger poked his chest. “You could substitute for the zinters?”

His flesh went hot. “I would…” He gulped. “I could do this if you feel it would be an adequate substitute.” Why had he not thought of this?

“I’ll try not to be disappointed. I mean, we’re talking about zinters.” She tipped her hands back and forth as if weighing something. “You nibbling or zinters. Hmm. It’s a tough choice.”

He could not tell if she was teasing or completely serious. But courtship was serious business, so he would treat her comment in this manner.

She stepped in closer. “Here’s what you need to understand, because I think you’re coming at this from the wrong angle. Your courtship was in the way you listened to my song and heard so much more than the words I spoke. You heard my soul. It was in the way you protected me in the tunnels beneath the wasteland. And in the way you leaped to my defense in the auction market, which I thought was a dream but was really you. I can’t believe the risk you took. Am I mistaken or did you jump over the crowd, land on the stage, punch the one-eyed alien, sweep me off my feet, and then run through the city with multiple aliens chasing you?”

“I did all that.”

“And you don’t think that impresses me?”

“Did it?”

Her heartfelt sigh fell between them. “More than anything else you could do.”

“Isi, you break me.”

She cupped his face. “I don’t want to hurt you.”

He gathered her close. “You do not. You humble me. When I am with you, I wish to be your hero and a hero always acts with honor.”

“I’ve been holding out for a hero, and he is you.”

“We can…” His naanans, nervous, lifted and settled on her shoulders. She tipped her head and rubbed her face on one, and he swore it hummed. Or his body hummed. It was hard to tell because his soul was singing. “I do not remember what I meant to say.”

She stepped back and sat on the bed. “Why don’t you show me your version of the Crakairian courtship rituals. Like you said, we have tonight, and this gives me a chance to learn more about you. We can wait for…other things until you’ve completed your rituals.”

“We will.” She was open to his formal courtship! He would not disappoint her in these simple tasks. Stepping back, he bowed deeply. A feeling of rightness filled him. “Dreafillar.”

The smile she gave him chased away his shaking limbs. This was going to work out as it should. He would court her tonight and tomorrow morning, he would worship her body. “You said that before when we first met.”

“It is the formal courtship greeting.”

A smile flitted across her lips. “Is there a formal courtship greeting women say in response?”

“Dreafillay.”

She dipped her head forward, and the movement did not hide her sweet smile. “Dreafillay.”

26

Isi

I si woke the next morning, nestled in Lyel’s arms. She traced her finger across his chest scales, though softly with no intent to wake him. Savoring being close to him was all that mattered. They hadn’t had sex—yet, but he’d taken time to court her. Who could complain about that?

His scales felt smooth and supple, which he’d need for quick movement, but also firm enough to withstand an attack by something resembling a dragon, if his talk about the Driegon race was to be believed. Crakairians had evolved, but they held onto some of their dragon features.

She rose onto her elbow and watched him sleep. There was something both sweet and fearsome about Lyel at rest. When challenged by a foe, this male was lethal. Yet he could be gentle, as he was last night when he emulsed her feet. She did her best not to giggle, but jeez, it tickled. They both ended up tumbling onto the bed together with her trying to find even one ticklish spot on Lyel without success. They ended up making out, but when she wanted to give him everything, he told her to rest, that he still needed to bathe her. He said she was tired, and he wouldn’t take advantage of that. Again, he showed her how caring he was. They laid together in the dark, talking about their former lives. Night stole through the room, and she drifted to sleep.

She wanted to show him how much she cared, to give instead of take. There was no denying her heart. Fire licked through her, and she had no wish to put the flames out this time.

Rising over him, she stared at his mouth, eager to taste him again. Fangs. Scales. Nannans. This person was truly alien. But somehow, like two pieces of a puzzle, they fit together.

Would he know if she kissed him?

Leaning forward, she put her mouth on his, drinking in the feel of him beneath her. His arms rose to wrap around her, and he tumbled to the side, taking her with him and then rising over her.

“You dare to wake the beast,” he growled, showing her that he was a quick study and she had ticklish spots.

Her lust turned into laughter, but when he spoke again, she stilled.

“Are you ready for nibbling, mate?” he asked.

“Oh, please,” she moaned. “Feel welcome to nibble at will.”

He rose off her and strode to the tub. Dragging it out into the center of the room, he stared down at it. “It is not a zinter pool.”

“I can see this bothers you, but I’m interested in your nibbles, not a fishes.” She sat up on the side of the bed. “We need water, though.”

He returned to the wall and fiddled with a long dark tube, stretching it out until it reached the side of the tub. He stroked its length with his fingers, and water spurted from the end.

“Is there a faucet in the wall?”

“Hmm?” He looked up from the hose. “This is a yarlish. The creature lives in the walls. If we are kind to it, it pulls water up from beneath the ground, heats it within its body, and gives it to us.” Stroking the “hose,” he hummed.

“Does singing help?” she asked.

“Your singing always helps.”

“I’ll keep it low. I don’t know how thin the walls are. No need to draw attention.”

“Wise.”

She sang softly. “You’ll be in my heart… From this day on! Now, and forever more.” Her song rose and fell, and she put everything inside her into the words.

“Isi,” Lyel’s guttural voice cut through the silence once she finished. “My mate.” Swallowing deeply, he directed his gaze to the water, blinking rapidly. “I would bathe you. I wish to show you even a fraction of my feelings for you with my courtship.”

She slid off the bed and approached him. “You have more integrity than anyone I know. I just wanted to say that. This,” she waved to the room, “and everything you’ve done for me show me what an honorable person you are.”

He wrapped his arms around her and dropped his chin on top of her head. “You continue to break me, love.”

“If I break you…” She tipped her head back, hoping her feelings showed on her face. “Then let me put you back together.”

He bared his fangs. “This makes me happy, but I am eager to nibble.”

“Far be it for me to stop you from nibbling if that’s your goal.” She stepped out of his embrace and tugged off her shirt. After shimmying out of her jeans, she faced him in her undies.

He gulped, his heated gaze falling down her body like a heavy caress.

Her underwear joined her jeans on the floor, and she stepped into the tub.

He crossed the room to the desk and returned with a bristly plant the size of a quarter, handing it to her.

She stared down at it; grateful it wasn’t alive. As far as she could see. “What does this have to do with nibbling?”

He placed a second one in his mouth and chewed.

“Food?” she asked.

“This…cleans one’s teeth? Freshens one’s breath.”

“Oh, like a mint, only bushy.” Without reservations, she popped it into her mouth. It tasted vaguely like spearmint and as she chewed, it shifted across her teeth. Back at the compound, she’d done the best she could with water and her finger, but she hated not being able to floss and brush. “Do we swallow it?”

He nodded.

Her mouth feeling better than it had in too long, she sank deeper into the water.

Lyel dropped down beside the tub and lifted a small piece of cloth.

“That’s not going to nibble me either, is it?”

“Once I bathe you, I will nibble.”

Her grin couldn’t be denied. There wasn’t anything sexier than a guy you loved eager to please you. He was going to rub a cloth all over her body before using his mouth on her flesh.

He started with her back, covering it with broad, gentles strokes, dipping lower. Eyes sliding closed, she sighed as he washed her hair with something vaguely floral, then washed her feet and legs.

The cloth climbed higher and higher. She scooted down and propped a heel up on his shoulder, and he moved the cloth closer. A few more inches, and she was going to scream, but he teased, rubbing almost to where she wanted him before gliding away.

He moved to her breasts, where he was bolder, running the cloth over them until her nipples peaked.

When she moaned, he dropped the cloth. Lifting her from the tub, he dried her quickly then carried her to the bed. But when she tried to pull him down on top of her, he slipped backward.

“Let me…”

He ripped off the scrap of cloth he wore to bed and jumped into the tub, giving her a decent view of his ass. He cleansed himself quickly then rose from the water, standing and watching her while liquid sluiced down his god-like body.

Stepping over the edge of the tub, he ran a dry cloth over his body but tossed it aside before finishing. He strode to the bed and climbed up over her.

“Isi,” he sighed. His mouth caught hers and when his tongue glided over the seam of her lips, she opened to him. She ran her heels down his calves, delighting in the scratchy-smooth feel of his scales. Lifting her legs up around his waist, she welcomed the heat and firmness of his body on hers.

His rigid cock probed her opening, but he lifted his head before claiming her. “Time to nibble.”

“Don’t tease. I want you now.” Her body aflame, she ached to feel everything.

“Soon.” His mouth trailed along her jawline, and he did nibble, biting down with his fangs on her neck, across her clavicle and down to her breasts. Sucking and nibbling, he gave equal attention to each breast before moving down her body. He spread her legs wide. “Lovely.” Playing with her folds, he rubbed her clit, driving her to a fever pitch. She thrashed on the bed while he replaced his fingers with his mouth. His fangs grazed her clit, and her hips bucked. She panted, moaned, and begged him to give her everything, but he kept teasing, nibbling on her clit while pressing a finger only a tiny bit inside her.

When she thought she’d scream, he backed away, his mouth curling up with satisfaction.

“Come, love,” he said, tugging her upward, onto his lap.

“I need you, Lyel,” she whispered into his neck.

“And you shall have me. Take me as you wish, mate.”

“Lay on your back,” she said, feeling bolder than ever before.

“Tell me what you want, love.” When he complied, she climbed up over him, centering his big, vibrating cock at her entrance.

“I want this,” she said, stroking his enormous cock. “All of you.” Only now, when she was about to feel everything, did she wonder if it would fit. “I, um, I’ve never been one to compare cocks to vegetables or fruit before, but…”

“Fruit? Vegetables?” His chest shook with his laugh. “Which am I, mate? I do hope you name a decent-sized vegetable.”

No matter where you went, guys still worried about cock size?

“More than a banana,” she said with a grin. “Though not as wide as an eggplant.”

“Is it acceptable that I am not as wide as the plant with an egg?”

“If you want to be inside me, yes.”

“I do wish to be inside.” His voice came out deep and husky.

“Maybe we could call you an overgrown cucumber.”

His thumbs glided across her clit.

Her eyes closed, and she shifted forward, welcoming his touch. “I am wetter than I’ve been in my life.”

“I want you wet, mate. Very wet.”

“I’m gonna do it. I am going to take all of you.”

“My cucumber.”

Her laughter snorted out. “Other Earth women have been with Crakairians. I can make it fit, too, right?”

“We will. Together.” The need on his face and in his voice pushed aside her lingering doubts.

“I want you and I’m going to have you.” Pressing down, she felt her entrance expand to accommodate his girth. “Oh, wow.”

“Too much cucumber?” he panted.

Do. Not. Laugh. But it felt awesome chuckling through sex.

His naanans stroked her breasts while others teased her spine.

“I think your cucumber is just the right size.”

Sweat beaded on his scales and trickled down his temples. His body shook with anticipation. “Take as much cucumber as you wish.”

“I wish for it all.” How awesome would it be when he was buried inside her? She pushed down harder, and he slipped deeper. It ached and burned but felt fantastic. She had to have it.

Rising, she spread herself and dropped down hard.

He pressed upward, ramming himself into her, and they both gasped.

“Yes,” she hissed.

“Isi.”

She lifted and plunged down again. Damn, he was big, but she could take him all.

Holding her steady, he sat up and they rocked together. Her moans were echoed by his groans. Their pace got furious as they ground into each other.

“I… I need you,” she cried.

He lifted her up and onto her hands and knees then braced her hips to drive himself deeply inside with one stroke.

“Yes.” Her guttural cry rang out, and she quivered around him.

He went faster, nearly driving her into the headboard, but she held on, taking him, while her orgasm crashed over her.

He groaned and his cock tightened as he released himself inside her. Muscles straining and his body rigid, he gasped and shuddered.

She dropped to the bed and he lowered himself onto her, keeping them connected.

“You are amazing, mate,” he said, kissing the back of her neck.

She shifted slightly, and his body stirred. Oh, my. Stamina in addition to size? She wasn’t sure she was ready for…

He pumped slowly, and his cock vibrated, the sensation sinking through her bones. Her spine tingled. Everything tingled.

He nibbled her shoulder, biting down with his fangs. Heat shot to her clit. Okay, maybe she was ready for more.

27

Lyel

He left the room only long enough to fetch breakfast and obtain disguises.

After eating, they left the room with Isi covered from head to foot in draping cloth and Lyel wearing a headdress that made him resemble a verdisque warrior. It wasn’t much, but it was the best he could do without giving away his identity to the world around them.

“Am I going to stand out dressed like this?” she asked as they took the back door exiting out into the alley. He did not wish to bring her through the open sitting area spanning the front of the building. Too many patrons would be eager to collect the bounty.

He saw the posting while he purchased their breakfast in the bakery next door, announcing a reward for a Crakairian and an Earth woman.

“No more than me,” Lyel said, adjusting the headdress. It kept slipping forward, covering his eyes.

“How far do we have to travel?”

“The spaceport is half a klek away. We will travel through the back streets, where there are fewer prying eyes.”

She took his hand and squeezed. “We’ll get there. Soon, we’ll leave this planet.”

He kept his gaze trained on everything around them and Isi. Always Isi. He wanted to think about the wonder of them coming together not long ago but did not dare. A simple distraction could prove lethal.

Reaching the end of the alley outside the inn, he poked his head out into the intersection then retreated to lean against the wall of a stone building.

“Anything?” Isi whispered.

“Locals setting up stands. It is market day.”

“At least I’m not the hot ticket item.”

He tucked his arm around her waist and drew her closer. “You will always be my hot ticket item.”

“And you’ll be my…”

“Your cucumber?”

They both snickered, but he sobered soon. “We will need to travel down this road to reach the one that will take us to the spaceport.”

“I was afraid you’d say that.”

“Stay close.” He couldn’t take her hand as he needed both his hands free for defense. “While I was purchasing our breakfast, I…found this.” Pulling a second kalina from under his cloak—an item he also found hanging on a peg in the inn’s front room—he offered the blade to Isi. “I realize you still wish training.”

She took it and delivered a few careful swipes. “I love it. Let’s hope I don’t need to use it.”

He studied her face, finding only confidence reflected there. No fear. This woman would make any male a worthy mate.

They hurried down the street, passing warnoks and truleeds hawking their wares.

“Fruit for the verdisque warrior? A new shawl for the…female?”

When he and Isi didn’t stop, the aliens moved on to other possible customers.

Shouts rang out behind them and while Lyel was tempted to grab Isi and run, he instead paused by a stand full of glittering jewelry. The vendor, believing he might make a purchase, descended.

“As you can see, we have a lovely selection of…”

Lyel nodded while carefully peering over his shoulder, toward the commotion. A fleet of Al’kieern soldiers interrogated a warnok. They dragged him from behind his stall and flew up, lifting him with them. The warnok shrieked, her six arms flailing.

Wailing, she pointed toward where Lyel stood with Isi.

“Oh, oh,” Isi said softly. “Time to run, right, dude?”

He clipped a nod and they hurried away from the jeweler.

They were halfway down the road when the bustling crowd ahead of them stilled. A sharp cry rang out, and everyone parted, revealing…

Fedeema stood at the end of the road with a battalion of Al’kieern behind her.

28

Isi

“C ome, Songbird,” Fedeema said, her voice a whip on Isi’s spine. She pointed to the ground at her feet. “I have decided to forgive you. This time. A new collar waits for you.”

Absolutely not! She would not willingly subject herself to what was forced on her by the queen.

Isi lifted her chin and tightened her grip on the kalina. “No.”

Fedeema’s chest rose and fell with a heavy sigh. “That was your last chance.”

“I’m staying with Lyel.”

“Then you will die with…Lyel.” Fedeema lifted one hand and when it fell, the Al’kieern behind her flew up and over her, roaring toward Isi and Lyel.

Yelping, the crowd scattered, leaving Isi and Lyel standing in the middle of the empty street.

“Run,” Isi cried, grabbing Lyel’s hand. But when they would’ve fled, the crowd pressed back on them, shouting taunts and jeers. They crowded around, pushing them toward Fedeema.

While Isi kicked out, taking down the alien in the front, but more shuffled forward, creating an impenetrable alien wall.

“Hold on,” Lyel said, lifting Isi off her feet. He jumped, but smacked into a mass of Al’kieern. Rebounding off them with his feet, Lyel flipped and smacked back down on the road.

Angry aliens massed around them, shoving them toward Fedeema.

“I hoped it would not come to this, mate,” Lyel said with sorrow.

“It’s not over yet,” she said, tossing off the cloth drapes that had done little to disguise her and hefted her spear. “We’ll fight them.”

“Don’t. You will be hurt.” Lyel snagged the back of her shirt. “I have dishonored myself and you.”

“There’s no honor in the queen’s actions. This is slaughter.” Part of her fumed; the rest mourned. They came so close to escaping, to getting a chance to start a life together. “I’m not going down easily.”

As her Al’kieen henchmen dropped to the ground and lifted their lasers, Fedeema flew over them.

Isi and Lyel braced themselves, facing her.

Isi snarled, and Lyel’s rumbling growl made a few in the crowd take hurried steps backward.

Shouts from the end of the road made the queen turn, but when nothing revealed itself, she turned back to Lyel and Isi. “How did you escape the wasteland?” she snapped. “Who helped you?”

“Birds,” Isi said. “Pirate birds.”

Fedeema snarled. “Do not lie to me. You know what happens when I am displeased.”

“I won’t let you hit me again,” Isi said, brandishing her weapon.

“You have no say in it.”

“I do.” Lyel flung his spear forward, impaling the queen in her thigh. She clutched the area with all four hands and staggered backward. Stiffening, she yanked it out, and it fell from her fingers and clattered on the cobblestone road.

With a roar, Fedeema pulled a knife from her belt and rushed toward them, waving the weapon wildly. Rage burned in her eyes and there would be no more chances.

It was kill or be killed.

Lyel nodded to Isi and stepped behind her, covering her from that side.

Isi rushed forward to meet the queen who was anything but queenly. This horrifying, pitiful alien female had hurt Isi, and it was time to teach her a lesson.

Fedeema slashed out with the knife. Isi blocked the blow with the fleshy part of her arm and twisted Fedeema’s wrist, holding tight until Fedeema groaned and dropped the weapon.

Spinning, she delivered a side kick to Fedeema’s chest, hurling the woman into her Al’kieern minions. She bounced off them and landed on her ass.

Her Al’kieern contingent rushed to her, their hands fluttering.

“Kill them,” Fedeema hissed. “Now!”

As Isi backed away, joining Lyel, the Al’kieern soared toward them.

“Thank you for showing me what it means to love,” Isi said, her heart aching.

“Isi.” Regret filled Lyel’s voice. “When they reach us, run. I will hold them off. Slip into the crowd and hide.”

“No way. I’m not leaving you.”

“Please.”

She shook her head. “I won’t. Don’t ask me again.”

The Al’kieern descended, sneering and waving their laser pistols.

They didn’t stand a chance.

He sighed. “I hate that— “

“Halt!” someone shouted.

The Al’kieern kept coming. It would be over soon.

“At least we’re together,” Isi said. Her voice shook. Facing death would never be easy. She took his hand and squeezed it. “I love you, Lyel. Not sure I told you.”

“You showed me, mate, and I love you, too.”

“I said halt!” The voice was louder, but really, could anyone control the queen’s minions other than Fedeema? And she was fuckin’ pissed.

As the Al’kieern engulfed them, Lyel sheltered Isi in his arms.

“Hold tight, love. We will…”

Shots rang out, and the Al’kieern shuddered. They dropped like flies, smacking on the ground where they lay quivering, their eyes staring toward the sky.

“What’s going on?” Isi asked, climbing to her feet. Her gaze was drawn to an Al’kieern standing not far from her and Lyel. In the woman’s hand, she held a gun Isi had never seen before. She strode toward them, and Isi girded herself for death again. The woman might only be one soldier, but her weapon could level a crowd.

The alien stopped not far from them and dipped forward in a short bow. “You may leave. I will handle…” Her gaze shot toward Fedeema cowering on the ground. “Her.”

“Please, my queen,” Fedeema whimpered. “I…”

“Silence,” the woman shouted, stilling Fedeema. Her gaze fell on Isi and Lyel again. “I should introduce myself. I am Bredera, the newly appointed leader of Mara. Fedeema may think she will usurp me, but it is time for her to learn a lesson. My predecessor suffered an unfortunate…accident, and I have assumed command.”

Lyel dipped his head. “I am Lyel Tair’im Iradran Sastray.”

“I know who you are,” Bredera said slyly. “I appreciate your efforts in the wasteland, but I ask you to leave Mara. I will handle eliminating the rest of the operation.”

“You will not send ships to Earth?” Lyel asked.

“This is not in our best interest.” Bredera studied Isi. “You, I do not know, but I respect a female with your fighting abilities.”

“Thank you,” Isi said. “What are you going to do with Fedeema?”

“I believe we have the perfect solution for her.” Bredera pivoted, and her voice lifted as she spoke to her Al’kieern guard. “Clip Fedeema’s wings and throw her into the wasteland. Alone. Allow her one skin of water. No food. And make sure the fence is secure. I do not wish her to escape.”

As the Al’kieern guard hauled Fedeema off her feet, Bredera’s wings extended and she took flight. The group carried Fedeema up and over the low buildings, in the direction of the desert. Fedeema’s scream rang out, but she no longer posed a threat.

Dropping her kalina, Isi turned to Lyel and took his hands. “Lyel?”

“Yes, mate?”

“I want to go to Crakair. I…” She sucked in a deep breath and released it. “I’m ready to go home.”

29

Lyel

T  hey left Mara in a shuttle for Crakair, and were met at the spaceport by Vork, Lyel’s old friend.

After the debriefing, Vork walked them out to the platform where they would book transport to Lyel’s estate.

To Lyel’s surprise, Vork embraced him. “I am grateful you survived your mission. I worried, my friend.”

For too long, Lyel had ached to reach out to his childhood friend. Now, Vork had done it for him. He braced Vork’s forearms, the gesture good friends used when they met up after a long parting. “Thank you.” His gaze darted to Isi before returning to Lyel. “Perhaps we could get together soon.”

“I would like that,” Lyel said, his heart lightening. “Com me?” He had to wonder if this was a true overture on Vork’s part or if Vork truly would get in touch.

“I will,” Vork said.

Isi’s gaze flicked back and forth between the two males but she did not speak.

They boarded a craft to take them to Lyel’s estate. As their transport left the station, Lyel gave Vork a solemn nod. It contained a promise Lyel would go more than halfway to deliver if his friend felt the same later.

He stared out the window for a minar, unsure what this might mean for his future, until Isi took his hand and squeezed it. He tugged her close and held her as the craft zipped across the city and headed into the country closer to the mountains.

It was late by the time they reached his—their—estate, and they immediately went to bed.

When he woke the next morning, Isi was gone, but she left him a note, saying she was walking in the gardens she saw from the window.

Lyel followed, but a hail on his com stopped him on the front steps.

Vork.

With his fingers trembling, though he had no idea why he was nervous, he tapped to open the conversation.

“Lyel.” Vork’s voice gave nothing away.

“Is everything all right on Mara?” Was Fedeema stirring up trouble?

“Rest assured. There are no issues on Mara. We are working with the new leader to establish a truce between our nations. All is going well.”

In the silence that followed, Lyel ran through a variety of reasons for Vork to hail him.

“I…I wanted to invite you to a party.”

This was not one of the reasons. His heart stilled. “A party?”

“Yes. A few males with Earth mates would like to gather together. The females…they enjoy talking.”

“I have noticed this.”

“Some more than others.”

“This, I have also noticed.”

“We—I—thought you and your new mate would like to join us. It is all right if you cannot—”

“No!” Lyel lowered his voice. “No. I can. We can go to a party. I…I would like this. It would be nice to see you again, Vork. To talk.”

“Yes. Bold of me to say, Lyel, but I miss what we had as younglings. I would like to find our way back to that. To friendship.”

Lyel rubbed his chest. Funny how it hurt. “I would like that too.”

“Time passes too quickly, my friend.”

“It does. I am grateful you reached out. We would be happy to come to your party.”

“That would be awesome,” Vork said. “My mate, Evie, she enjoys to cook Earth dishes.” Vork grumbled. “Some are delicious. Others…” He coughed. “We could make…sporgotti. I believe that is what it is called. It is one of the better Earth dishes.”

“It sounds…delicious.” Truly, just getting the chance to be with his friend…to talk…would make his life complete. He did not care what they ate.

“We were thinking of getting together in two days, if you could join us then.”

On what Isi called the weekend, when Lyel did not work. “I—we—will be there.” Lyel sagged against the closed door behind him.

“Very good,” Vork said. Silence ticked through the com. “Thank you.”

“I am glad you called, friend.”

Vork’s voice deepened with emotion. “I am, too.”

They ended the call, and Lyel stared toward the gardens, stunned. Stunned and happy.

His grin soon took over.

This… Such a welcome surprise. He could not wait to see his old friend again, to bridge their past with the present and move forward together from there.

But for now…Isi.

When he reached the high slester hedges, her lilting voice tugged him along the paths weaving through the maze to the center. His mate called to him, a siren’s lure he would be happy to listen to for the rest of his life.

Pausing beside the slester hedge surrounding the small garden where, a yaro ago, he had watched his sister dance, Lyel lifted his com.

This minar. This. He had to record it.

“Waiting here,” she sang in a pure, compelling voice that sunk deeply into Lyel’s soul. “It’s so very clear. This is where I’m meant to be…”

He stepped forward. “Isi.” His heart shone in his voice.

“Lyel.” She grinned and held out her hand. “You’ll never believe what happened.” When she flipped her hand over, a matebond symbol gleamed on her palm. “It appeared a few minars ago, when you entered the clearing. Guess you’re stuck with me, matey.”

He crossed the small grassy area and wrapped her in his arms. A searing kiss followed.

Honor? Restored. Though not in the way he envisioned.

Love? It was his and he would treasure this female for the rest of his daelas.

Happiness?

He bared his fangs as he kissed his mate, and he swore he heard his sister’s tinkling laughter.

30

Isi

“What if they don’t like me?” Isi asked as their transport craft zipped toward the city. She smoothed the dress she’d finally chosen, hoping it was the right choice for the party. What if everyone else was wearing ball gowns while she showed up in a sundress? The Crown Prince was going to be there!

Lyel squeezed her hand. “They will love you as I do.”

She gnawed on her lower lip. “I’m not one of them.” One of the matched brides, that is. “I stole on board the ship. They must think I bumped ahead in the line. And then, when—”

Turning her to face him, he cupped her cheeks in his big hands and kissed her. “Vork said you are welcome.”

“Because he’s part of the government. He has to say that. I bet I caused a diplomatic crisis. I was a stowaway, and now they’re stuck with me.”

“Trust me in this?” His words broke through her anxiety. Tugging her up onto his lap, he held her.

She pressed her face into his chest, and his scent and presence soothed her. Her shoulders drooped. “I’m sorry I’m freaking out.”

“No worries.”

“I have no reason to be afraid. Here I am acting silly when I should be supporting you.”

“I… Strangely enough, I welcome this. I have missed my friend.”

She rose up and kissed him. “Tell you what. I’ll hold your hand if you hold mine.”

He flashed his fangs. “Deal.”

The craft landed on a rooftop platform and the hatch slid up. Isi stepped out and waited for Lyel to join her. Night had fallen, and someone strung what looked like twinkle lights around the open rooftop patio but were probably some sort of bug or plant that emitted light. A waist-high wall surrounded the roof, and tables had been set up with cloth coverings topped with flowers in tiny vases. Overhead, the three moons shone down on them. The terror she’d lived through on one of them had started to fade. What happened on Mara was the past. Lyel was her future.

Vork and an Earth woman came down the steps to greet them.

Vork strode forward and braced Lyel’s forearms. They performed a sort of bro-hug thing then stepped back, both baring their fangs. “Welcome, friend.”

“I…” Lyel’s face creased with hope and a hint of joy. “Thank you. It is nice to be here.”

“The first of many gatherings,” Vork said. It wasn’t a question, and he held up his hand. “I am not pushing. Not too hard. But I have missed you and do not want to let more time pass without bringing you back into my life.”

“You humble me, Vork. Let tonight be the first of many,” Lyel echoed. His gaze met hers, and she read the elation shining there. Tears stung in the back of her eyes, and she sniffed. If they were alone, she’d hold him, kiss him, and tell him how happy she was that he was getting a second chance with his friend. The loss of Vork had left a big hole in Lyel’s life. She was glad to see it starting to fill in again. They were taking first steps with many more to follow.

Vork leaned around Lyel, and she marveled anew at how big these guys were. “Welcome, Isi.” He stepped back and put his arm around the Earth woman, urging her forward. “This is my mate, Evie. And,” he stroked the chin of the baby Evie held, “this is Jacob Lyel Mabir Javaar, our son.”

“Vork,” Lyel choked out. “You did not.”

“I—we—did. I hope it was not too presumptuous. I…I wanted to show faith in our friendship.”

“I do not know what to say.”

“No need to say anything.”

They crowded around Evie to check out the youngling boy.

“Aw, he’s beautiful,” Isi said, stoking the baby’s scaled cheek. His skin was dark green, like his dad’s, and tiny fangs poked through his gum line. He stretched his little arms up, and the blanket wrapped around him fell backward. “He has hair!”

“I love it, don’t you?” Evie said, stroking the short, silky strands. She grinned at Vork who’d wrapped his arm around her. “Someone around here was hoping desperately for naanans, but now he’s decided hair is better. Which it is.” The smile she gave Isi included her in the tease.

Isi wasn’t sure which she’d prefer in a child. As long as the baby was healthy, it didn’t matter. So far, she didn’t suspect she was pregnant, but… Wait. When had she last had a period? She couldn’t remember, which meant she might be carrying already. Whoa. Her hand went to her belly, but she didn’t feel anything yet. The idea made her chuckle. If she was pregnant, she wasn’t far enough along for a baby bump.

Lyel winked, but he couldn’t know what she was thinking. Once she was sure, she’d share. Hell, she might share anyway, and they could do whatever stood in for a pregnancy test on Crakair together.

Vork’s com buzzed, and he frowned down at it.

“A call?” Evie asked, watching Vork’s face.

“Hmm. From the Council.” Vork tapped into it, and a holoimage of an older Crakairian male dressed in a robe was projected above the device attached to Vork’s wrist.

“Commander Vork,” the Councilman said. His grayed naanans flared around his head, and his long robe swished forward as he shifted in agitation. “We have a diplomatic crisis, and I need you to come to the Council Chambers immediately to help us handle it.”

Isi took Lyel’s hand and squeezed. Were the Al’kieern acting up?

“What is the issue?” Vork asked, his voice grim.

“The Driegons.”

Vork and Lyel shared a concerned glance, and Vork’s posture tightened. “Our extinct ancestors?”

“They are not extinct after all,” the older man said. “They have sent an ambassador to the Council.”

“This is amazing,” Lyel whispered to Isi. “I cannot believe they still live. It has been hundreds of yaros since anyone interacted with them. They are thought to have died out.”

“You’re talking about the Crakairians with the dragon-like features?” She couldn’t imagine meeting someone with horns, a tail, and wings, but she never thought she’d meet aliens. They were an Area 51 myth, not reality. Yet, here she was, mated with a green-skinned, scaled alien, and loving every minar of it.

“What is the crisis?” Vork asked.

“The disease killed most of their females, as it did here on Crakair,” the older man said. “They are asking us to facilitate a relationship with Earth. They want—”

“Mates?” Vork’s wide-eyed gaze met Lyel’s. “How is this possible?”

“That is our challenge,” the Councilman said. “We need someone to serve as a liaison for this, and you are the best choice.”

“Of course,” Vork said. “When do you need me at the Chambers?”

“First thing tomorrow.”

Vork’s fist pressed against his chest. “I will be there.”

“Thank you.” The Councilman’s image winked out.

Vork sighed. “This is unexpected.”

“But welcome, right?” Evie said, leaning into Vork’s side. “I have to admit, I’m curious to meet the legendary Driegons. Wings, you said? I can’t even imagine.” She shook her head. “I wonder how Earth women will feel about matches with a new alien race?”

“I’m curious, too,” Isi said, though by the response to the Crakairians, she had a feeling they would be just as interested in getting to know guys who were part dragon.

“It is time, Evelyn,” a droid said, whizzing over to Evie. “I will take the child, now.”

Tension rippled down Isi’s spine. Why would a droid believe it could command such a thing?

“This is Bane,” Evie said as if she sensed Isi’s worry. “He lives with Lily and Jorg, and he loves kids. Don’t you Bane?”

“I have solemnly taken on the task of raising the first generation of Crakairian-Earthling offspring. I will ensure they are taught proper protocol.”

What kind of protocol did a baby need to be taught?

The droid held out its arms. “The child, please.”

Evie handed her son over without a care. “Burp him, if you don’t mind.” She grinned at Isi. “Jacob makes a mess whenever he does it so I tend to foist that task off on Bane, who doesn’t mind at all, do you?” She patted the droid’s shoulder.

Bane grumbled, something Isi couldn’t imagine a droid doing. With the baby in his mechanical arms, he zipped toward the side of the room where someone had set up what vaguely looked like a playpen constructed of living vines. He laid the baby on his shoulder and delivered tender pats to the child’s back.

“It seems odd to have a droid babysitter, but this is Crakair, a world completely different from our own,” Evie said. “We’re a hodgepodge of Earth and Crakairian customs, and Bane somehow fits in with it all. He’s actually a sweet guy—droid. Okay, guy as he’s developing feelings.”

Impossible, right? Isi watched Bane carefully settle on the ground, cupping his arms around the baby who seemed quite content to be held by a droid.

“Anyway.” Evie latched onto Isi’s arm. “Everyone’s dying to meet both of you. And food! We’ve got a bunch of appetizers. But save some room for dinner. I made a big pot of spaghetti, garlic bread, and we have chocolate lava cake for dessert.”

“Really, truly lava cake?” Isi asked, salivating already. She loved Crakairian food, but sometimes a girl needed chocolate. “Where did you find the ingredients?”

“Would you believe a few women have come to Crakair—outside the matchmaking program that is—and opened shops in town? The Council freaked out initially but when one of them formed a matebond with the baker, they changed their tune.” She led Isi toward the others. “In addition to the bakery, we have a pizza place, and the start of a farmer’s market. Jenny brought seeds and is carefully cultivating Earth fruits and vegetables she plans to sell. Right now, she only offers herbs, but everything grows like, well, weeds, here. You know what I mean. Her blueberries are going to be fabulous.”

Isi would have to talk Lyel into coming to town every now and then. “Did you really say there was a bakery here?”

“Yup. She makes the best bread. Pastries. Cakes. And despite a few Crakairians sticking their noses up at the idea, many have discovered Earth treats are awesome.” Her arm looped around Isi’s waist. “While you haven’t met everyone yet, I hope once you get to know us better, you’ll feel welcome. Vork isn’t the only one who needs friends.”

“You’re sweet to say that.”

Evie grinned. “Crakairians are the best, but sometimes it’s nice to talk about things we remember from Earth, right?”

Lyel was Isi’s best friend, and she was getting to know the Crakairians who worked on the estate, but she missed the camaraderie of Earthlings, too. It thrilled her to think she’d make new friends tonight.

“Axil,” Evie said. She raised her voice and waved to a male Crakairian whose back faced them. As he was hunched forward, Isi couldn’t see what he was doing. “I’d like to introduce you to Isi.”

This was Crown Prince Axil?

“It is very nice to meet you, Isi.” Axil turned, holding onto the hands of a tiny girl. The sight of such an enormous guy taking care with a part-Crakairian, part- human child essentially crushed her heart.

Evie chuckled. “I can’t believe she’s walking already. Isn’t Alicia a big girl now?”

The baby cooed at Evie.

“She’s sort of walking,” a petite woman with long red hair and green eyes said, striding their way. Pausing beside Axil, she stroked his shoulder. “Alicia’s only a few months old, but she loves when her daddy helps her walk.” The woman held out her hand. “I’m Julia, by the way. And you’re Isi, right? I’ve been looking forward to meeting you.”

They shook and Isi stooped down to gush about the baby. “Alicia, you have such cute naanans.” They floated around the baby’s head, giving her a medusa-like appearance that was unbelievably cute topping a chubby baby face.

Lyel’s hand glided along the back of Isi’s neck, and her skin tingled. What would a baby they made look like? She couldn’t wait to find out. She straightened as another couple joined them.

“I’m Thea, and this is my mate, Gaje.” Lifting their clasped hands, she kissed his fingers. “So happy you could join us tonight. We get together about once a lunair, and each of us takes turns hosting. So, tag, you’re it!” She grinned and tipped her head to other couples. “I just left our daughter, Stephanie, with Bane, and I’ll introduce you later.”

So many babies, but when Earth and Crakair set up matches, that was the goal.

While Jacob slept in Bane’s lap, Stephanie clung to his neck like a monkey. He carefully plucked the girl off his shoulders and settled her on the ground. “No more of that, Stephanie. Good behavior is essential in the daughter of the kingdom’s vizier.”

“By the way she follows Bane around, you wouldn’t know Stephanie was ours,” Thea said with a laugh. “But since she’s occupied with Bane, I’m free for a few seconds and can hit the appetizer table. Babies. I love her to pieces but every now and then, it’s nice to take a break from being mommy. Would you like to have a snack before you meet everyone else?” Thea linked her arm through Isi’s.

“Sure.” It was something Isi could do with her hands. She didn’t know why she was still nervous, but there it was. Nothing she could do about it now but go with the flow and hope she loosened up soon.

With Lyel following, she went with Thea over to the table set up with a mix of Earth favorites and Crakairian specialties she recognized after eating with Lyel back home. Stuffed mushrooms! She snatched one up and popped it into her mouth, then wiggled, her eyes closing. “This is awesome,” she said around the bite. She grabbed another and tugged Lyel close. “Try.”

Reeling back, he narrowed his eyes. “One eats this?”

“It’s yummy. Give it a chance. You’ll like it.”

“I like you,” he said, his arm going around her waist to tug her near. “And if you enjoy this Earth delicacy, I am willing to try it.” He opened his mouth, and she slid the treat in. After chewing for a moment, his eyes gleamed. “I like this almost as much as you, mate. What is it called?”

“Stuffed mushroom. A mushroom is a fungus. Back on Earth, they’re grown in horse manure.”

He gulped and swallowed. “Manure?”

“They wash it off.”

“I see.”

“They do!” She chuckled, and he joined in.

“I’m Lily,” a woman said from beside Isi. She tugged a tall Crakairian close. “This is my mate, Jorg.” Leaning into his side, she grinned. Her hand stroked her baby bump. “It’s so nice to meet you. I want to hear about your adventures on Mara. Jorg and I had our own mishaps on Mia, the smallest moon. Those damn Al’kieern. But I hear you’ve taken care of that problem for good.”

“Nothing made me happier than hearing the Crakairian government has formed a treaty with the new queen of Mara,” Jorg said, his arm draped around Lily’s lower back. “The Al’kieern kidnapping operation has been eliminated.”

“What happened with Fedeema?” Isi asked.

“She is serving out her punishment on Mia in the sand mines.”

“What does that entail?”

Grim satisfaction shone in Jorg’s eyes. “Much physical labor.”

A worthy punishment for the “queen”.

“There are only a few more of us left to meet,” Lily said. “And good news! There won’t be a test later. But to round it out, the two couples dancing are Kral and Mila, and Taylor and Wulf. To help you tell who is who, Mila is the one with brown hair, and Tay’s is black.” She pointed. “Mila, Taylor, and I were on the same ship you stole aboard—a story I have to hear because holy shit that’s amazing. We each had our own adventures, and we’re eager to hear all about yours.”

“I can’t wait to talk about what happened,” Isi said.

“Bryk is over by the entrance into the main building with my sister, Sadie. The youngling racing around is Bryk’s son, Weld. He’s smart and the sweetest kid you’ll ever meet.” She grinned. “And I think that wraps it up.”

Bryk and Sadie were kissing, Sadie’s pregnant belly jutting between them.

Isi laughed, feeling better all the time. The women shared a connection that couldn’t be denied: they’d fallen in love with Crakairian males. And Isi wasn’t an outsider after all; she was one of them. It made her eager to burst into song, but she’d hold back until she got to know everyone better.

With a happy nod to Lily, Isi drifted toward the dance floor and clapped along with Evie and Julia as the two couples swirled and dipped to the music.

Lyel wrapped his arms around her from behind. “Everything dokey okey, mate?” He kissed her neck.

“Dokey okey,” she said, tipping her head back to meet his mouth for a kiss. “I’m not worried any longer.”

“You are not?”

“Your friends are wonderful. And I’m one of them. I’m glad we came here tonight.” Leaning into his embrace, she returned Taylor’s wave. Mila grinned her way then stood on tiptoe to kiss her mate. Kral jokingly growled and swept Mila off her feet, spinning around while she laughed. Not to be outdone, Wulf twirled Taylor and then dipped her low to the floor. He kissed her neck, and her fingers wove into his naanans.

Could the night get any better?

“We’re one big family,” she whispered to Lyel.

His fingers linked with hers. “We are.” Satisfaction rang out in his voice as Vork came over to stand beside him. “Finally.”

Eight months ago, when Crakair’s signal connected with Earth, no one could guess what might come from contact with these aliens.

But to Isi, the end result was perfectly clear.

They’d found love.

And there wasn’t anything better than that.

Bonus Epilogue

I t was the date of Isi’s birth or as close to it as Lyel could come on a planet far from Earth. They did not share the same calendar.

He wanted today to be special.

He woke her with kisses then loved her body, taking joy in her sighs and moans. After, while she slept, he rose and finished his preparations. Over the past lunair, they had visited with Vork and Evie, and he and his friend were finding their way back to the friendship they’d shared as younglings. Isi and Evie were, as Isi called it, “besties”. During one of their visits, he’d quizzed Evie for ideas, things Earth women enjoyed, and anything else he could learn to make today one of the best of her life.

Everything was soon in place, and he returned to their bedroom.

“Morning,” she said, stretching after he’d kissed her awake again. He was beyond tempted to join her in bed, but his surprise waited.

“Good morning to you, mate. Happy day of your birth.”

“Ha.” She grinned. “I guess it is, isn’t it? Do you celebrate birthdays on Crakair?”

“The date of our birth is a wondrous day. In the days surrounding this momentous occasion, we are pampered.” He bared his fangs. “My daela of birth is in three lunairs. You may start pampering me tomorrow.”

Her eyes rolled, and he savored the gesture. He’d been practicing and hoped he could deploy it himself soon. What a wonderful way to show sarcasm.

“What do you want for your birthday?” she asked.

“You.”

“Done. Anything else? Can I get you a Harley? Lots of guys love those. Or an antique Mustang?”

“I do not wish for a…hearse.”

“Horse.”

“Same thing, is it not?”

“Sort of. It’s actually a car.”

What is a car?

Releasing a snicker he had no way of interpreting, she rose and slipped on clothing.

They’d zinter bathed the night before, and her smooth skin glowed in the late morning light. He could not touch it enough.

Naturally, his body responded and he was tempted again to lay her on the covers, spread her legs, and give her what she needed.

She stopped in front of him, a sultry smile lifting her perfect lips. “Maybe you want an early birthday gift?” Her fingers trailed down the front of his pants where his cock bulged.

“Later.” Strain came through in his voice.

She touched his lips with her fingers, and he kissed them.

“Do not tease,” he growled.

“You love it.”

“I do,” he sighed, nudging his head to the door.

“I have a surprise for you,” he said as they left the room.

When she glanced up at him, her relaxed, joyous expression made his heart clench tight. To think she loved him. Wanted to be with him always. He could not be any happier.

“What sort of surprise?” she asked.

They walked along the big balcony overlooking the living area.

“The best kind of surprise.”

“Just so you know,” she said. “I have one for you, too.”

“No hearse, I assume, and it is not my birthday,” he teased. Hearse. Horse. They must be the same. She had been joking.

“My surprise can’t wait three lunairs.” She winked and skipped down the stairs. He followed, watching her curvy form move ahead of his. His body was eager for action, but it would have to wait.

“Tell me,” he said, tapping her gorgeous ass.

“Later.” She twisted his word and set it back at him with finesse.

“My surprise cannot wait either.” He took her hand and led her across the living area and into the front lobby.

“We’re going outside?” She danced on her toes. “Now this should be interesting. Is it something big?”

“I will not say.”

“So it is something small, then.”

“That, I also did not say.”

“Okay, I give up. What did you get me?”

“Something you have longed for since we arrived.”

Her eyes widened. “Coffee?”

“Actually yes, but you will consume it after the first surprise.”

Latching onto his arm, she tugged. “You’re not joking, right? You really, truly got me coffee?” Her voice rose to an eager screech, and she leaped away from him, darting for the kitchen.

He held her back. “Soon, mate. Patience is very important.”

“So says the guy who wouldn’t let me finish him off last night. Oh, no, he had to,” her voice deepened, “have you now”.

He huffed but she knew he wasn’t upset. Who could be upset with something like that?

Her arms lifted overhead, she sashayed around him. “Coffee, coffee, coffee. Please tell me you got me more than one cup.”

“I ordered a case of your jumping beans.” When she frowned, he realized his mistake. “The coffee does not make one jump?”

“Oh, jumpy. Caffeine can wind you up, that’s true.” She released a heartfelt sigh. “I can’t believe I’m going to drink coffee again. I’ve missed it. Almost as much as…” Her words trailed off, and her face fell. “I know he’s happy where he is, but you know what I mean.”

He did. And he needed to see a smile on her face again. Whenever she was sad, it crushed him. “Remember when you drink your jumping bean liquid. Only I wind you up and then unwind you.”

One eyebrow rose. “Cocky.”

He trailed his fingers down her cheek, wondering again what she saw in him, why she chose to stay. He would give thanks every day of his life. “You enjoy this in me.”

“I do.” Standing on tiptoe, she latched onto his shirt and dragged him down for a kiss.

“As for your surprise…” He opened the front door and encouraged her to go out ahead of him. On the lawn, he’d placed a table with a bright cloth.

“Balloons,” she exclaimed, skipping toward them. He followed, eager to show her his surprise. It hid nearby.

Evie stepped out from the shade of the trees and burst into song. “Happy Birthday to you!” As she sang, Vork grunted along, as did Lyel, though he did join in for the final chorus. “Happy Birthday to you.”

“Sit, Birthday Girl,” Evie said, waving to the table. She grinned up at Vork, who bared his fangs.

The cake Lyel had baked with his own hands sat in the center of the table, and his hands shook as she walked around it, examining it from every angle.

“It…” He gulped. He’d tried, but it was not as attractive as the ones he’d viewed on com vids.

“It’s gorgeous,” Isi said, coming over to lean back against him. Her eyes filled. “This is so sweet, Lyel. You’re—all of you—are gonna make me cry.”

“I still do not fully understand tears,” Vork said abruptly to Lyel. “I do not believe I ever will.”

“We share this, friend.” It felt good to use the word.

Evie nestled into his side. “Just roll with it, dude.”

Isi sat, and Lyel took a spot to her right where he could watch her face.

Leaning forward, Evie lit a solitary candle she’d placed in the center of Lyel’s questionable cake. It looked…odd. Had he forgotten an ingredient? What if it tasted horrible?

“Make a wish,” Evie said, sitting across from him and Isi. Vork joined her. “Then blow out the candle!”

Lyel and Vork shared looks. Earth customs confused them but they would not trade minars like this for anything.

Isi closed her eyes and blew, and the flame blinked out.

Evie sliced into the cake and passed plates around.

Lyel stared down at his piece, fear blossoming inside him all over again. It looked even stranger inside. What was this dark substance all the Earth women craved? Chocolate sounded…unappetizing.

Isi ate a bite. Her eyes widened before closing, and she gyrated in her seat. “Oh, my freakin’ god, this is amazing. Who made it?”

His face grew hot. No idea why Crakairians could not blush.

Lyel can take all the credit,” Evie said.

Vork ate a bite and tipped his head as he chewed, his brow ridge scrunching. His face cleared. “I will eat more of this…chocolate. We will send to Earth for many boxes.”

Evie leaned her head against his arm. “A man after my own heart.”

Growling, he put his arm around her and tugged her close. “I have your heart already.”

“That you do.” She grinned at Isi and they shared a look that told him they communicated silently.

They finished the sweet, and Lyel’s heart heaved a relieved sigh. It had tasted wonderful, and no one had gotten sick. So far.

“Open my gift.” Evie slid a gaily wrapped package across the table.

Isi tore into it and laughed when she pulled out a bottle. “Wine!” Carefully setting it on the table, she cupped her face with her hands and squealed. “I’m not going to get to drink this for a very long time.”

“No,” Evie said in a hushed voice. Her excited gaze leaped to Lyel. “You did it!”

He reeled back. “I did what?”

“Yes, what?” Vork asked, equally perplexed.

“Something wonderful,” Evie said, her eyes gleaming.

Lyel relaxed. “What am I missing?”

“Jeez, I’m awful with secrets. I can’t keep this one any longer.” Isi’s smile swept across him, and her eyes shimmered. But happiness spilled into her voice. “You know what I wished for when I blew out the candle? A healthy baby.”

“A baby!” Evie clapped her hands. “More babies. Our kids are going to grow up best friends.”

“You’re…” Lyel blinked fast, overcome with emotions. “We will have a youngling?”

She nodded through her tears.

“This is…” He couldn’t form words. This female. Whenever he felt filled to the top, she added more joy to his life. Rising, He tugged her up from her chair and hugged her. Kissed her, searing their love into this one minar. He dropped to his knees, tugged up her shirt, and kissed her soft belly. “My mate. My youngling.”

She stroked his naanans. They reached for her, as always. “I think I’m about a month along, so five lunairs left to go, right? Do you want a boy or a girl?”

“Both.”

“One at a time, there, okay?” She may sound as if she scolded, but she tipped her head back and laughed.

“Ahoy. Ahoy!” a voice cried out.

Isi stilled in his arms. She stared at Lyel with her mouth dropping open. “No,” she whispered.

“Yes.” He bared his fangs and watched her as it sank in.

“Bucko!” Whirling, Isi raced across the lawn, aiming for the four-legged little bird with gray-blue feathers gleaming in the sunshine.

The military liaison who worked with Vork stood with the bird but he stepped back when Isi stooped down in front of Bucko.

“How you been, buddy?” she asked the bird.

“All hands on deck,” Bucko cried, flying up to land on Isi’s shoulder. “Hoist the flag. Hoist the flag!”

As Isi rose, stroking Bucko, Lyel joined them. He nudged his head to the liaison. “This is Ruske. He was secretly leading a Crakairian counter mission on the moon. He worked with Bucko, trying to train the bird to carry a com to spy on the Al’kieern, but Bucko was more interested in talking than spying.”

“So I wasn’t the only one to teach Bucko pirate phrases?” Isi asked.

“Pirates of the Caribbean is my favorite vid,” Ruske said with a flash of his fangs. “I taught this creature all I know.” His gaze drifted down to Isi’s chest, and Lyel released a low growl.

Crakairian males needed to get in line if they wanted to find a true love mate from Earth. Isi was taken. To reinforce that, he put his arm around her shoulders and then stroked Bucko’s back.

The creature preened and chuckled. He ruffled his wings and stretched out his neck.  “Shiver me timbers!”

“He is yours if you wish,” Lyel told Isi. “Ruske will leave him here when he departs.” Which will be soon if he keeps staring at Lyel’s mate.

“I can keep him?” Isi asked, gazing up at Lyel with tears and her heart in her eyes.

“You can.” He kissed her forehead. “Happy Birthday, love. May all your wishes come true.”

Her arms tightened around him. “They already have.” Standing on her toes, she kissed him. “Because I have you.”

AXIL

PLUS A BONUS SHORT STORY, GAJE, MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR NOVELLAS

AXIL

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, a novella

GAJE

Mail-Order Brides of Crakair, a novella

Copyright © 2020 Ava Ross

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book with prior approval. Names, characters, events, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to an actual person, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

Cover art by Germancreative

Editing by JA Ireland

Created with Vellum

AXIL

An alien prince.

A spunk Earth woman.

Can they find love together

among the stars?

En route to meeting her alien fiancé for the first time, Julia gets lost inside the lower corridors of the alien starship. When she slams into a grease-spattered alien and he grabs her, she does what any self-respecting Earth girl would do—she stabs him. He flings her over her his shoulder, hauls her to his room, and tosses her onto his bed. Then he kisses her.

No puny Earth female should dare to assault him, yet this one challenges him at every turn. He wants her, and he’s used to taking whatever he wants. When she signals for him to kiss her, what’s a hot-blooded alien to do? He climbs over her and captures her mouth with his own.

An Earth woman and an alien prince collide on a starship bound for the planet, Crakair. Will the seven-foot-tall scaly alien warrior release her or take her as his bride?

Axil is a prequel novella in the Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone romance has on-the-page heat, aliens who look and act alien, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger.

Look for the complete Crakairian Series on Amazon.

1

Julia

T  onight, Julia would meet her alien fiancé for the first time. Leave it to her to get lost within the depths of the alien spaceship fifteen minutes before the formal introduction ceremony between the Earth mail-order brides and their Crakairian grooms.

Her best friend, Thea, skittered beside her, gaping around at the dimly lit gray metal halls they’d rushed through for so long even Julia could no longer tell which way was up and which way was down.

“You sure this is the right way?” Thea asked.

“At this point, who knows?” Julia cringed. “I’m sorry. I messed up. They’re going to be pissed off at us, aren’t they?”

Dressed in formal gowns sent to them by the Crakairian government—which were too damn long—they hurried down a hall that led to another, only to find themselves at an intersection with four more halls. Right or left?

Julia growled and flung her hands up into the air, then snatched at the rolls of the dress she’d tucked underneath her belt. Safety pins hadn’t been enough. How tall were Crakairian women, anyway?

“They’re going to think we stood them up,” Thea said. She released a high-pitched, nervous giggle.

“They’ll wait.” Julia paused in the next intersection before leading them down a ramp to a floor below. If only she could find an elevator, assuming the ship had elevators. “It’s not like they have many choices.”

“Maybe in my case they do. I mean, I’m marrying a regular guy, assuming scaled alien guys who are seven-feet-tall and have muscles on their muscles can be considered a regular guy. I imagine he’ll wait. But your guy?” Her dark eyebrows lifted, and her brown eyes gleamed. “Your situation is a bit…different.” She gave Julia a short curtsy. “My queen.”

“My fiancé is the Crown Prince of Crakair, not the King.” Julia stopped to study a diagram affixed to the wall, but while a you are here arrow pointed to this location, she couldn’t figure out how to get from this location to the ballroom where the formal reception was supposed to take place.

“Okay, then,” Thea said, releasing another nervous snort. “All hail the Princess of Crakair.”

Maybe? Julia’s future title hadn’t been explained to her yet. A lot of this hadn’t been explained to her yet.

A year ago, a mysterious disease swept through the galaxy, killing most of the women on the planet Crakair and the men on Earth. In a quest to continue their species, the Crakairian council had sent messages into the stars, seeking brides. One of their pings connected with Earth.

Attack! That’s what the people on Earth initially thought, and they scrambled to prepare for an alien invasion. But when Earth’s tentative reply reached the Crakairians, the Council Elders sent a delegation. An agreement was formed. Mail-order brides from Earth would be sent to Crakair to become mates for eager Crakairian grooms.

When the idea was presented to the public, Earthlings laughed. Until pictures of the available men arrived.

Yes, they had appendages jutting off their heads that resembled thick dreadlocks—called naanans—and the guys were universally green and had scales in place of skin. But they provided Earth women a chance to have a family outside of artificial insemination.

Julia and Thea applied and were accepted in the first group of five women. Julia was intrigued, nervous, and a bit excited to see what came next. And now she could be blowing her chance with her alien fiancé before she even met him.

A bang behind them made Julia leap forward. Her breathing came fast and her heart bolted up into her throat. While it was silly, she felt better with her jackknife in her hand. She flicked the blade free.

“What was that sound behind us?” Thea whispered, her wide-eyed gaze meeting Julia’s.

Julia’s hand tightened on the grip of her blade. “I’m not sure I want to find out.” She snagged Thea’s arm and they jogged forward.

Her skin crawled with goosebumps. Who knew what kind of creatures they’d find wandering around in the basement of the ship?

Overhead, the lights flickered.

“Oh, jeez. Oh, jeez.” Thea’s voice rose to a screech.

“Run!”

They bolted forward and turned right.

Julia smacked into a rock-solid wall of green muscle. Big hands grabbed her forearms and held tight. She gaped up at the super-tall, scaly alien male holding onto her. Grease speckled his face and clothing. A mechanic? If so, his helper stood beside him, his hands securing Thea, who stared up at him with her mouth ajar.

“Holy hell,” Thea whispered.

The alien holding Julia studied her face before he gave her a short bow. “Dreafillar.”

“Let me go.” Julia wrangled in the mechanic’s grip, but his hands tightened.

When he tried to tug her closer, she shrieked. Before she could think, her arm rushed forward, and she stabbed him with her knife.

As he grunted, her knees quaked and horror rose from her belly, threatening to burst from her throat.

“Oh, shit. I’m sorry,” she blubbered as blood pooled in a growing circle on his white shirt. “I’m a nurse. Really. I don’t usually…stab people.” Her gaze followed the blood as it trickled down the leg of his black leather pants.

He frowned at the knife still clutched in her hand. Prying it from her fingers, he tossed it aside. He latched onto her wrists again, unbalancing her, and she tumbled forward into his arms. He hefted her up and flopped her over his shoulder.

While Thea wiggled and screamed, the other alien dude did the same with Julia’s friend.

“Damn you, let me go,” Julia yelled. She kicked and flailed.

The alien smacked her butt.

Oh, my freakin’ no.

“What did you just do?” she bellowed. “What did you just do!?”

The males parted, the other guy striding down the corridor they came from while Julia’s alien carried her in the opposite direction. Thea and the other alien turned a corner and disappeared from view, leaving Julia with nothing but her friend’s sputtered protests.

The guy holding her pressed a button beside a door and the metal panel swept open. Stepping inside, he grunted something she didn’t understand, and the small room shuddered. The door opened again, and the alien stepped out, still carrying her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

She pummeled his back with her fists. “I said put me down!”

His hand smacked her butt again, harder, and he barked out a command. While it didn’t translate, she also didn’t want his big palm landing on her ass again.

Maybe. She’d never thought that was her kind of kink, but who the hell knew?

She must be out of her mind to be thinking about sexy times with an alien who was abducting her.

But come on, her inner demon said. He’s kinda hot. Actually, this whole situation is kinda hot.

Julia fanned her flaming face.

He has muscles on his muscles.

Grease-covered muscles.

She huffed at the inner voice. Julia had a fiancé. She didn’t need a quickie with a hot alien handyman. She was saving her quickies for Axil, her intended, though she hoped he was up for more than a few quickies. Julia preferred longies.

The alien strode down a hall with better lighting and shinier walls.

He’s got cool, thick dreads, the inner demon girl said.

One of the appendages stroked across Julia’s ass.

She shouldn’t be turned on by this.

Like you can help it? demon girl shouted. Steamy alien abduction is your secret catnip.

“Shut the fuck up,” Julia hissed. So she read every single alien abduction book she could get her hands on. That didn’t mean she wanted to act them out.

“Yes, fucking,” the guy said.

You spoke aloud, her demon said, not me.

“You are me!” When Julia growled, the alien did too, the rumble of his chest rising up and teasing her belly.

His palm glided across her ass again, and he murmured something too low for her to understand.

Back on Earth, she had a translator implanted behind her ear, but was told it might take time for the device to learn her speech patterns and perform with accuracy. They’d be able to communicate, but it would initially sound rough.

She’d planned to get her translator up to speed with her alien fiancé.

Stopping at a door, he entered a series of numbers in a keypad and the panel swooshed open. He stepped inside and locked things up.

Turning, he tossed her onto a bed on the side of the small room.

Climbing up and over her, he braced his legs on either side of her thighs. When she slapped at him, he grabbed and pinned her hands over her head.

With a guttural grunt, his full, hard length pressed down on top of her.

2

Axil

A xil only meant to take her to his quarters and talk with her while bandaging the puny poke she’d made in his side with her blade. Heille. This human female was feisty, and it stirred his appetite for more.

Not for rape. Females were to be pampered. Indulged.

Though seduced whenever possible.

“Get the hell off me!” she yelled, bucking beneath him.

Fortunately, the starship had been orbiting Earth long enough for multiple Earthling delegations to visit and train his implanted translator. While she may not understand him fully yet, he could understand everything she said.

Her wiggling beneath him made parts of him stir that hadn’t found satisfaction for longer than he wanted to remember.

“Oh, shit.” Stilling, she stared up at him, her lips forming an O. “I can’t believe it. You’ve got a freakin’ hard-on.”

She’d attacked him, forfeiting her life to his, but he did not wish to frighten her. When she squirmed and whimpered, he lifted himself up and off her. He crossed the tiny room—palatial by the ship’s standards—and tugged open the top drawer of the bureau. He returned to the bed to find she’d crept farther up the surface and huddled in the corner.

She thrust a pillow between them. “You stay away from me, you…you…fiend!”

This Earth female amused him. Slight and tiny, the top of her head barely reached his shoulders. Her smooth, pale skin revealed above the top of her dress held a spattering of tiny brown spots, like earthy moon drops. They wandered across her cheeks and the bridge of her nose. Since she was without scales or glorious naanans, no Crakairian would ever consider her pretty, yet her smooth skin and delicate shape drew him in like a treenser to a contrea bud.

His gaze fell to the mounds on her chest. Intended for suckling young, they were called breasts. Crakairian females had fleshy tubes that projected from their abdomens after childbirth. He wondered what the mounds would feel like under his hands. While he wanted to dismiss them like one would a foot or an arm, he couldn’t stop staring.

She lifted the pillow higher, masking the lumps from his view but not from his mind. “Back off, buddy,” she said sharply. “Stop gawking.”

He ripped off his shirt and tossed it into the corner.

She gulped and her gaze glided down his chest to center at the bulge pressing against the front of his leather pants.

“Don’t touch me,” she shrieked.

It appeared more seduction would be required.

He undid the top button of his pants and as she watched him undo another, the pillow dropped from her limp hands and flopped on her lap.

“Oh, shit,” she whispered, watching his hands move on to the third button. “Is your entire body as ripped as your chest and abs?” Her hand slapped over her mouth and the skin on her face pinkened. A blush, he believed it was called.

While he’d love to tease her further, the tiny wound she’d made in his side still seeped and he must tend it. Rounding the bed, he strode up to the small cabinet by the top.

She gasped and lifted the pillow again. “You are not going to ravish me, you fiend. Fuck. I sound like a virgin in the dark ages. Ravish. Fiend.” Her chin lifted, and her steely gaze met his. “Whatever you intend, I’m not going to let you do it.”

Opening the cabinet, he pulled out a healing packet and ripped it open. He removed the square of cloth inside and dabbed it on the tiny slice. The embedded skin sealer in the pad engaged, and his wound closed.

“Sorry,” she said softly, her gaze falling to the tiny pink spot. Her lower lip trembled. “I really didn’t mean to hurt you.”

For the first time in his life, a woman’s emotions hit him like a sucker-punch in the gut. He was drawn to her. Recognizing the feelings he couldn’t deny, his cock twitched and vibrated slightly—an inherent ability in all sexually aroused Crakairian males.

“It’s… You…” she stuttered, her gaze focused on the movement in his pants. “It’s alive.”

He bared his fangs in a wide grin.

She blinked. “I should be horrified by your fangs. Why aren’t I? Actually, they’re a bit of a turn on.” Her palm smacked her forehead. “Why am I not screaming and running for the door instead of lounging on your bed like I’m eager for the upcoming ravishment? Which, I guess, a part of me is.”

Frowning, he tilted his head. Initially, he’d let her speak, hoping to learn more about her. From the information he’d learned en route from Crakair, Earthling females enjoyed dominating the conversation. Rather than give offence, he chose to hold back speaking.

“Thankfully, you can’t understand me.”

Yet he could.

“Your translator, like mine, is trying to get up to speed. Assuming they implanted one in a mechanic.”

He lifted his thick eyebrow ridges, curious to hear what she’d say next. Though, time was slipping by. Instead of teasing her by pretending he didn’t understand, he should be bathing, dressing, and…

“Are you going to ravish me?” Her words came out like a demand. She tugged a loose thread in the woven material covering the pillow. “I guess, if that was the case, you would have done it right away. Which…okay, since you don’t understand, why not bare my soul to you?” She peered up at him through her eyelashes.

He’d heard about the tiny hairs around a human’s eyes and seen examples on vids. Crakairian females had no hair, yet this Earth female not only had lush waves dangling from her head that resembled every hue of a Crakairian sunset, she also had tiny hair spikes surrounded her eyes. Did she have hair elsewhere on her body?

He stepped toward her, unable to resist her allure.

“Stop right there.” She held up her hand with the palm facing him, displaying the gesture Crakairian females used when they wished to be kissed.

Restraining himself from the fucking was one thing, but if she made a request…

He sat on the edge of the bed and tossed the pillow aside. Leaning forward, he cupped her face. Silky beneath his fingers, her exterior surface wasn’t scaled like a Crakairian female’s flesh. The feel of her hair on his hands made his cock twitch.

“Oh, shit, oh, shit, oh, shit,” she hissed. “You’re gonna ravish me now. I just knew it. I should not be getting turned on by this.”

He barely restrained his chuckle, enjoying the way she shared her every thought as if unaware he understood.

The scent of her arousal hit him and his cock surged upward, vibrating harder.

“I should be smacking you with my fists,” she said. “Why aren’t I? Crap, maybe because I need…something.” She tilted her head, and her green eyes, like the rarest jewels mined in the Ikeline Mountains, met his. “If we…” her hand flicked back and forth between them, “If we did…that… So, I haven’t actually met my intended yet. Would it still be considered cheating?”

He bared his fangs and with his hand cupping the back of her neck, tugged her nearer. She didn’t resist, and he ached to take the kiss she offered.

With a lift of her chin, he captured her lips and plundered them with his own. He ravished her mouth as she requested.

She collapsed, falling back onto the bed and yanking him down on top of her.

While his mouth roved across hers and his tongue tasted her inner sweetness, he braced himself over her. His fingertips traced down her sides and up onto a breast. A tiny bud beneath the material pebbled, responding to his touch.

His cock strained to break free of the last button binding it in place. Its vibrations increased, humming through the material to her body. Her legs parted and her thighs wrapped around his waist. She pressed herself against him and moaned, opening herself to him like a flower to a treenser.

Fuck.

She whimpered and shoved her chest up against his hand. The bud…

Someone banged on the door.

Flicking his arm out in that direction, he continued to devour her while her hips rose to grind against him.

His fingers trailed down her soft belly, and he bunched up her dress, dragging it up higher so he could reach—

“Crown Prince Axil?” a voice shouted on the other side of the door.

His hand froze on her warm thigh.

Another knock. “Are you there, my Prince? They are waiting for you at the reception. It is time to meet your intended mate.”

3

Julia

P rince. Intended mate.

The words sunk through Julia’s lust-filled mind, and she froze. Her legs fell away from the alien’s waist. Talk about someone throwing a cup of cold water in her face.

Wide awake now, thank you very much.

A mechanic wasn’t giving her the best kiss of her life.

Crown Prince Axil was. Her alien fiancé.

His hand left her breast—damn—and he levered himself up and off her.

“Greetings, my bondmate,” he said, his voice gravelly with suppressed hunger. His upper body dipped forward in a small bow. “Dreafillar.”

She sat up and raked her hair off her face. “You… you!”

“Me… me.” His fangs gleamed in the low light.

“You understand me completely.”

“I do.”

“Why didn’t you tell me who you are?” Crap, she went on and on, spilling verbal diarrhea about how hot he was and how much she wanted to hump his bones.

“I wished to give you opportunity to speak first.”

Heat rose into her cheeks, and she clapped her palms over her face, hiding her eyes.

The bed compressed as he leaned near and tugged her hands away.

“No fear, my little one,” he said softly. “I will not fuck you. Not yet.” His grin ignited her skin like a spark on dry paper.

“I am so pissed off at you right now.” She nudged his hands away and climbed around him and off the bed. Knuckles grinding into her hips, she straightened and glared. “You knew who I was.”

“The minar we met up in the hall.” Lounging back on the bed with his boots hitting the covers and his hands clasped behind his neck, he bared his fangs. She’d read this was a Crakairian grin. Frankly, every time she saw his fangs, her spine tingled, but that was the last thing she’d admit to him.

“You brought me here, threw me on your bed, and you made me think you were going to rape me.”

“Never rape.” One of his thick brows rose. “Fucking? Yes. Soon.”

“Fucking, fucking, fucking. Is that all you think about?”

He sat up and, snagging her sleeve, tugging her between the legs he dropped over the side of the bed. “Is it not what you are thinking of, my mate?”

“I’m not your mate.”

“You shall be.”

“Only if I consent.”

“Which you shall.”

She huffed. “Not without considerable courtship, buddy.”

His brows drew together. “Who is this buddy? Call me Axil, not buddy.”

She rolled her eyes. “My point is, you could’ve told me who you were.”

“I teased.”

And she found it incredibly sexy. To think, if their courtship went well and she accepted his proposal, she could lie back on his bunk and let him do whatever he pleased with her body without a speck of guilt.

Do not go there right now.

He waved to the bed. “I am not averse to showing you what I can offer in our matebond.”

She growled. He smirked.

Someone knocked on the door again. “Prince Axil? Do you need help to prepare for the reception?”

“I need to get out of here,” she said, half furious, half aroused. “If I stay here much longer, I’ll…”

“Come, mateling. Remove your clothing and sit on my lap for a bit.”

Beyond tempted, she ground her teeth together. “You are too damn cocky.”

Frowning, his gaze shot downward, to his pants. “I have never heard complaints.”

“I don’t imagine you have.” She flung her hands up in the air. “You’re a freakin’ hot alien sex god.”

The tip of his forked tongue glided across a fang. “Thank you.”

She moaned then shook her head to reset her wits. “The point is, I need to leave. You need to put some clothes on and—”

“Do you not enjoy my state of undress? This is not what your moans said a minar ago.” His hand flicked toward her chest. “Your mounds excite me.”

Mounds? Ah… She needed to stop thinking about his warm fingers rubbing… “We have a reception to go to.”

Rising, he nudged her backward. She followed his rock-solid abs up to his massive shoulders and focused on his scaled face as he towered over her. Shit, he was huge. A seven foot hunk of dark green, too-hot-for-his-own-good alien. Even his spicy scent invaded her senses and made her legs quiver.

“You do whatever you need to do to get ready.” She smoothed her gown and tried to fluff her hair back into the pretty arrangement she made before she left Earth. “I’ll meet you in the ballroom.” Turning, she started to stomp toward the door but he snagged the back of her dress, bring her to a halt.

He loomed up behind her, surrounding her with his heat, his scent, and the heady feel of his arousal pressing into her spine. Shifting her hair to the side, he kissed that sweet spot where her shoulder met her neck.

Eyes closing, she leaned back against him and moaned.

Maybe they didn’t need to have a long courtship. They could get right to the fucking.

Her eyes popped open and she would swear flames huffed from her nostrils. There she went again, using his smutty terminology.

She eased away from him and rushed to the door. Her hand paused on the knob and she wasn’t sure she dared turn. If she looked at him again, she’d be tempted to let him finish what he started.

“I’ll see you at the reception?” she said, struggling to sound demure.

“You may count on it.”

A rustle behind her made her peek.

He’d undone the last button and tugged down his pants.

His cock sprang free, bursting to attention. Big. Green. And vibrating.

Wrenching open the door, she fled.

She smacked into another alien in the hall who woofed and reeled backward with his naanans flicking around his head.

As she ran down the hall, she was chased by Axil’s husky laughter.

4

Axil

A xil’s gaze honed in on his mate the moment he arrived in the ballroom.

His commanders saluted and grunted out a greeting in unison. After acknowledging them with a ceremonial bow, he strode across the room and halted in front of his intended mate.

Julia.

Even thinking her name made his pulse surge. He drank in the sight of her slender form outfitted in the engagement dress he had made especially for her, seductive and sweet at the same time. Her gaze met his before darting away, and the blush rising into her face made his cock twitch.

She may insist she needed a courtship before deciding, but she knew his body had already claimed hers.

He gave her a short bow. “Dreafillar.”

“Ah, Crown Prince,“ the head of the Earth federation said. Her benign smile swept Julia’s way, and she nudged Julia with a tap on her spine, inching her closer to Axil. “Allow me to present your matched bride, Julia Meredith Chandler. Julia? This is Crown Prince Axil Kavven Xigead Brancik Dhan’eth.”

Axil took Julia’s hand and bowed over it. “Welcome, my mateling.” He kissed the tips of her fingers, and her shiver traveled up his arm, catching the breath in his throat.

“Um, hi,” she said softly. “It’s…nice to meet you?”

The other Earth females standing nearby tittered. Their hands fluttered, and they drew together, whispering.

Color rose into Julia’s face, and he sensed her embarrassment. No one would mock his mate.

He drilled the Earth federation leader with his steely gaze. Heille, he would—

Eyebrows rising, the woman waved her hands at the other women, who scurried away. Her pleasant expression restored, the older female tapped Julia’s back again, essentially shoving her toward Axil. “Don’t be shy, my dear. This is your intended.” Her attention fell on Axil. “I’m sure you two would like to begin your courtship as soon as possible.” Her hand lifted toward the corner where instruments sounding like the screechings of wildershawns were playing. While he was confident they had not engaged wildershawns for entertainment, he was not confident this was music.

Yet the Earth females nearby swayed, their gowns shifting across their lower legs.

“I’ll leave you two alone, then,” the Federation leader said. She eased around Julia and approached a group of other women. “Come, girls. It is time for your introductions.” Her head tilted toward Julia. “I wish you well, dear.”

Taking Julia’s hand, Axil led her away from the wildershawn wails, over to a table with beverages. “Would you like something?”

“Oh, um, no,” she said softly. Was she shy? How was that possible after their kiss? “Unless there’s some wine?”

A lift of his hand and a server rushed their way, a tray braced on his palm. The male dipped the tray filled with glasses toward Julia, and she selected one.

Taking a sip, she glanced around. “I want to apologize again.”

“It was nothing.”

“I stabbed you. I’m a nurse. The last thing I’d ever want to do is hurt someone.”

“You were startled.”

Her soft laugh trickled down his spine and settled in his groin. “Instead of offering excuses, shouldn’t you be chastising me? Calling for your guards? Locking me up in your dungeon?”

“There is no dungeon on this spaceship.”

She rolled her eyes. “I’m not sure I find that reassuring.”

“In some cultures, the tiny prick you made could be considered a proposal of marriage.”

Her brow furrowed. “Which culture?”

“Crakairians have not always been…civilized.”

“They’d really fight before they could mate?” she asked in a tiny voice. “If you’re looking for a battle, I might not be the right girl. Despite me stabbing you, I tend to run, not attack.”

“I assume you will never be forced to battle for my affection but if you were, I believe you would find a strength you did not know you had.”

“That’s…”

“Bold of me?”

“I’m not sure how you can see that in me.”

He took her wineglass and dropped it on the table behind her. His arm swept around her waist. “You have already shown you will stand and fight, not run and hide.” He nudged his head toward the dancers. “Is this something you wish to do? Move your body in this manner?”

“Dance?” Her nose scrunched, driving the cute brown spots on her face together. “I’m not much of a dancer. When I’ve had to do it, I just hold on and let the guy lead.”

“And that is why I know we will be compatible.”

Her low chuckle rang between them. “I might surprise you with my spunk.”

Lowering his head, he nibbled along her jawline. “I am counting on it.” He straightened and took her hand. “I will begin the courtship immediately.”

“Sounds like a threat.”

“A promise.”

“What’s first on the agenda? I read the literature Crakair sent and there was something about loincloths and bathing in exotic pools?”

He had no idea what a loincloth was. Onboard a ship, his courtship opportunities were limited, but he was quite happy to improvise. “Come with me, and I will show you.” She took his hand, and he led her across the room, stopping only briefly to nod at those who called out, then striding out into the hall and down to a sub-control room. A whoosh and the door swept open. He bowed and waved for her to enter ahead of him.

She tiptoed inside the darkened room. “Where are we?” Laughter came through in her voice. “Is it time for the ravishment?”

He moved up close behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her back against his frame. His voice dropped to a bare murmur. “When it is time for the fucking, you will know it, mateling.”

“I’m not telling you how hot that sounds.”

“Of course you are not.” He chuckled. He trailed his fingertips down her arm to her hand and took it in his own. How small she was. Delicate even.

Now that he was coming to care for her, he worried he’d break her with his mating. But the healers assured them Earth females were stronger than they appeared, that they could not only endure the mating rituals but could bear Crakairian young. When his match was announced, he only thought of the potential children, never the female he would mate with.

Now he couldn’t stop thinking about Julia. He wanted to kiss her again but would resist until she gave him the signal.

“This has been my favorite place to escape to since leaving Crakair,” he told her. Did she hear the aching need in his voice?

“Really? It’s kinda dark,” she said with hesitancy. “And quiet. Quiet’s good, though.”

“When I was a youngling, my father brought me with him when he traveled the stars. I would sneak away to a place like this where I could hide.”

“Hide from what?”

“Responsibilities. Expectations. Duty.”

“What kind of responsibilities are given to a child?”

“Mine began the day I was born,” he said, hoping she’d understand because as his mate, her life would change in ways she could not begin to imagine. She, too, would soon find herself weighed down with burdens.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’m sure you would’ve preferred to be a kid. Playing games. Running around outside. Hanging out with friends.”

“This is the life that chose me.”

“So you’d come to a place like this and stand in the dark?” Pure tease came through in her voice.

“Let me show you.” He took her hand and led her forward, one inch at a time. Arriving at his destination, he tugged her around and pulled her back against him. He sank onto the chair’s leather cushion with her snug on his lap, then pressed his thumb against the screen nearby. A few clicks and a soft whir hummed through the room. The panels between them and the clear glass ahead swept to the side, revealing the heavens.

“Oh,” she sighed. “It’s beautiful.” Awe filled her voice. “Look at all the stars.”

“As we approach Crakair, I will be able to show you our moons.”

“I read there are three and they’re blue.”

“One is barren. The second is a lush paradise. And the third…”

“The third?”

“Is home to the country of Al’kieer, an independent nation.”

“Are they friendly neighbors?”

“On occasion.” Mostly, they were rebels. Pirates eager to steal from container ships passing too close by, which was an ongoing source of irritation for Axil’s father. “They…present a challenge.”

“That kind of neighbor, then. The one who parties all night, plays loud music, revs their car engine at dawn, and constantly borrows your lawnmower but never returns it.”

He did not understand much of what she said, but nodded in solidarity.

“How long until we reach Crakair?” she asked, pointing to a passing meteoroid.

“Two likar. We will leave as soon as the Earth federation has departed from the spacecraft.”

“Ah, two weeks.” Her pause went on for several minars but he remained patient, knowing she was thinking. “I’m looking forward to this.” Her hand splayed toward the glass. “To seeing more of what life has to offer. And getting to know you.” Tipping her head back, she kissed his jaw, her lips softer than fleeter down. “Thanks for sharing this with me.”

His heart bursting, his arms tightened around her. He dropped his chin onto the top of her head and they stared at the heavens together.

5

Julia

T  he warmth of his arms should have lulled Julia, but she didn’t want to fall asleep. How could she when she was lying on top of his body?

“Courtship,” she said. “How are we going to go about this?”

“I will do the courting.”

“And how do you plan to start?”

“By trying to seduce you, naturally.”

Her breath caught as a spark ignited inside her. “And how do you plan to seduce me?” A languid heat came through in her tone, one she couldn’t deny. Damn, she was wet for him already. Could he sense it?

“Kisses should you request them.”

“Only if I request them?” her eyebrows lifted. “You don’t plan to steal them like you did back in your room?”

“This.” He lifted her hand, holding it up like she was the Queen of England, prepared to wave. “All you need to do is give me this signal.”

“There’s a signal that tells you I want kisses?” No denying her shock. Had she done that earlier? She must’ve. “Okay. Gotta remember that one. How else will you lure me into your web? I’m still thinking about those loincloths.”

“What is a cloth of the loin?”

She bit back her grin. “It’s a scrap of material, like leather.” Her fingers traced along his thigh, merely to show him what she meant by the fabric of his pants.

Sure, keep telling yourself that.

“It doesn’t cover much, just the important parts.”

“And what parts might those be, mateling?” he murmured by her ear.

One was digging into her spine. She couldn’t stop remembering him standing in his room, stark naked, his body a dusky-mossy green all over. Scales peppered his skin and his naanans dangled halfway down his chest like he was some sort of prehistoric chieftain. And his cock was freakin’ huge. Like, barely-get-her-hand-around-him and wondering-how-it-would-fit huge.

“I think you know what parts I’m referring to,” she said.

She loved how they played with words, how the heat built between them. A flicker that erupted into a roaring blaze within seconds.

“Following tradition, I will prepare your food while wearing a garlong. Cloth of the loin, I suppose one could call it. And I will bathe you.”

“With fishies.”

His low laugh shook his chest. “You will enjoy the…fishies.”

Not sure about that. “And what else does courtship entail?”

“I will touch you.” His deep voice inched across her bones like the finest silk.

“Is there a signal for that?” she croaked. Damn, if there were ways to tell him what she needed with body gestures alone, she was going to be his most rapt student until she learned them all.

His cock twitched beneath her, growing bigger if that was possible. She ached to rip off their clothing, flip over, and center herself over him.

“There is no signal for touch.”

“Now that’s sad. What if I want you to touch me?” She kept pushing them both to the edge, convinced the fall down the other side was going to be heaven.

“Ask.”

She squeezed her eyes tightly shut. “Touch me, Axil.”

“Command me and I am yours.” His hand rose, and he trailed his rough knuckles down her cheek, a mix of scratchy and erotic, all at one time.

“Such soft flesh,” he said. “I ache to taste it.”

“You ached to lick my cheek?” Though she was teasing, her words came out in a hitch. Her breathing was ragged and the thud of her pulse drummed in her ears. “That’s, umm…” She could barely think. Did she really need to speak?

“I will also taste this.” He brushed the back of his hand across one of her breasts. “These chest mounds. I cannot resist.”

Chest mounds. Wasn’t that romantic. Her soft laughter fled the moment his hand settled on her breast.

“I have heard the mounds bring human females pleasure. My friends, when I told them, scoffed. How can body parts created for our young serve any other purpose?”

“You might be surprised. Touch them and find out.” Was that her voice coming out smoky?

When his fingers traced across the tops of both breasts, she couldn’t hold back her moan. Her head fell back on his shoulder, and her eyelids slid closed. Forget the stars outside; he was creating his own meteors inside this tiny room.

He stroked her breasts, tentatively at first, then bolder, while she shivered in his arms.

Her nipples hardened, and he latched onto them. Tugged them through the thin fabric of her dress.

“Axil,” she sighed. Her legs shifted across the tops of his thighs, spreading wide.

He eased the chair back, leaving her splayed out across his front. His cock dug into her back, a solid, vibrating bar. Why hadn’t the manuals told her these guys had vibrating cocks? Once word got out, they’d fill the matchmaking databanks within minutes.

“I will seduce you, sweet mateling.” While his naanans took the place of his fingers on her breasts, pinching and stroking, and somehow flicking, he moved his hands lower. He tugged her dress up, the silky material gliding across her thighs until he’d exposed her to the night sky.

“Yes,” she said, thrusting her hips up, mimicking the movement she’d almost kill to find with the massive cock vibrating beneath her.

A rip and he shredded her thong, something she put on at the last minute instead of her usual low-cut briefs.

He traced his fingers down her bare skin, but he paused.

“Fuck,” he hissed. “Hair?”

Her eyelids popped open. “I’m… sorry? I don’t shave. Should I?”

“Why would you cut this?”

“A lot of girls shave it off. And before you ask,” which a billion guys already had, “yes, it matches the color on my head. Red, auburn, whatever you want to call it.”

“The purest sunset across the Ikeline Mountains.”

And that was sweet.

His naanans had inched beneath her dress and bra. They latched onto her nipples and…

“Oh fuck, they…”

“While for protection, naanans can serve another purpose.”

She imagined that fluttering tip moving to other locations and her hips bucked, seeking…

“Axil,” she moaned, thrusting her breasts toward his naanans. He pinched the tight flesh and the flickering strokes drove her insane. She writhed and begged for more.

When he glided his thumb down her slit, she arched up toward his finger.

His movements stilled.

“Fuck, don’t stop now!” She shoved her hips up against his hand.

Her clit pulsed. It ached for his touch.

With a grunt of pleasure, he stroked it, rubbed it, while she moaned and panted.

Her head thrashed. “Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

“Like this?” he said, teasing her opening with his thumb. She’d seen his hands earlier. This alien male was big all over.

“Yes,” she sighed. Would he finger fuck her or would he pull away, tug down her dress, and remind her there was to be no hot stuff until after the courtship was finished?

While he rubbed her clit, he drove his thumb up inside her folds.

She arched her spine and shrieked as ecstasy shot through her.

6

Axil

T  he scent of her arousal hit Axil’s nostrils like a blast of wind on the Munsire Desert. The vast wasteland stretched for many kleks beyond the Ikeline Mountain range that sheltered the capital city.

He pulled his thumb out and shoved it back inside while she rode him, bucking against his pumps.

Fuck, he was going to fall apart, and his cock wasn’t even inside her. What would it be like to turn her around, spread her legs wide, and shove himself in to the hilt?

While rubbing her clit, a bud he’d read about but had not yet experienced as no Crakairian female possessed one, he pumped his thumb in and out of her, increasing his pace.

Her cries filled the room, but he wanted more.

He dragged out his thumb and stopped rubbing.

She moaned and writhed, rolling over to face him. “If you stop now, I’m never marrying you.”

He laughed and sat up, sweeping her toward the console with the motion. He laid her down and tugged her legs up onto his shoulders.

Leaning forward, he spread her wide and licked up her slit.

She fisted his hair and pulled him closer. “Fuck. That forked tongue. It’s big and long and…” Shivers wracked her frame.

He drove his tongue deep inside and flicked.

“Yes. Like that! Damn. You know I imagined this earlier.”

Had she imagined this as well? While a few of his naanans stroked her breasts, another moved down to the bud at the top of her folds. It latched onto the small nub and the inner membrane twitched.

“Fuck!” she shrieked, wiggling, driving herself down onto his face while he licked and stroked and pushed his tongue deep inside.

As she mewed out her pleasure and her body tensed, he shoved two fingers inside her along with his tongue, pushing deeply while she bucked and her legs flailed.

She ground down on him, her legs spreading wide then cupping his head, yanking him close.

“Yes. Yes. Yes,” she cried. Her head dropped back, and her spine stiffened.

She crashed, her insides pulsing around his tongue and her tiny nub turning rock solid.

While she whimpered and rode his hand, he soothed her body with his naanans, stroking her breasts and her neck and her sides.

When her legs flopped down and she sagged, he sat back and gathered her into his arms. A cocky smugness filled him. He’d tasted her pleasure, and he wanted more.

Kissing his way from her earlobe to the soft skin at the base of her neck, he bit down with his fangs, though he didn’t break the skin. His growl rumbled through his chest like thunder. “You are mine.”

His cock still harder than a steel rod, he dropped back into the chair, dragging her down on top of him.

She didn’t protest. Didn’t deny his claim. Nestled against his chest, she sighed. “Damn.”

“My seduction pleases you?” She couldn’t see it, but he bared his fangs.

“I can’t believe I let a guy I just met finger fuck me.”

“And suck on the nub at the top of your slit.”

“Clit. It’s called a clit.”

Heille. “I will need to suck on it again, now that I know its true name.”

“Fuck,” she breathed.

“Yes, fucking. Soon, my love.” His fingertips trailed down her spine, and she quivered.

“How long did you say this courtship needs to last?” she asked.

“For Crakairians, a yaro.”

Her head lifted, and the tiny wisps of hair above her eyes drew in close. “You’re kidding me, right? You’re going to finger fuck me for a year before we do anything else?”

So, she was eager already for the full fucking. This warmed him from the inside out.

“Until the courtship is completed and you have consented to marriage, there will be no full mating.”

“So marry me.”

“What?” He couldn’t remember the last time anyone had shocked him, but this little slip of an Earthling made his jaw drop.

Rising, she braced her palms on his chest. “I’m proposing to you. Axil, will you marry me?”

“This is not how it is done.”

Her fingers trailed down his chest and cupped him through his leather pants.

“I think you know exactly how this is done.”

Unable to resist, he pumped up toward her touch.

“Is that a yes?” she asked. Her hand stilled. “Hold on. I’m not coercing you or trying to manipulate you into saying yes so you’ll get to have sex with me. I want to be clear about that. If you’re not ready, I’ll back off and wait. You can court me.” She gulped. “A full freakin’ year if you need to.”

Rising to his feet with her still in his arms, he growled and backed her against the wall. His mouth caught hers and plundered.

When he came up for air, he stared into her gorgeous eyes. “I accept your proposal.”

7

Julia

“O h, yay,” Julia whispered.

“Ours will be considered the shortest courtship in history.” Laughter came through in his voice. When his fangs grazed the tops of her breasts, she shivered. Her legs were already wrapped around his waist, but she hauled him tight against her. Damn, he was vibrating again. The motion sunk into her pelvic bones and made her blood sing.

“Is short a good or a bad thing?” she asked.

“For courtship? Good.”

“And everything else?”

One of his thick brows lifted. “Nothing between us will ever be short. I enjoy taking my time.”

Talk about swoon. This guy knew exactly which words made her knees collapse.

“Perfect.” She grinned. “Does that mean we can get on with the fucking?”

With a growl rumbling in his chest, he kissed her, his mouth drinking from hers. His tongue plundered, an alien pirate prince staking his claim to a captive.

Her arms pulled him close, and she bucked, driving herself against the hard rod moving beneath the leather. A gasp and she shuddered, clinging to him as he rocked her through another climax.

Her future with Crown Prince Axil was going to be one heady moment after another.

“Why aren’t you taking off your pants?” she asked, her words coming out breathy. Yeah, her limbs might feel like rubber bands, and a pleasant buzz lingered between her legs, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t be talked into something more.

She’d never been insatiable, but Axil had dragged the needy part of her to the surface.

“I will not commence with the fucking here,” he said, his voice like grating sandpaper.

“I don’t mind walls. Never done it against one, but I’m sure we can figure it out.” And tick off an item on her sexual fantasy list, created while reading alien abduction romance.

“No wall.” He lowered her feet onto the floor.

“Never?” she whined.

“I will take you against the wall, on the floor, on the side of a bed, and even on a star if you wish.”

She smirked. “Talk about wishing upon a star, huh?”

“You are incorrigible.”

“And you have a hard-on that keeps on going, like the energizer bunny. I’m eager to test out your batteries.” Look at her, dirty talking like a pro.

“Soon.” He took her hand and tugged her from the room.

“Why the delay? We kinda bypassed the courtship and I know the marriage will need to take place on Crakair, so what’s holding us back from the good stuff?”

He backed her against the wall and cupped her face. He kissed her with so much heat she thought she’d combust. Bam. Like the big bang many theorized formed Earth, pieces of her would fling out into the cosmos before being sucked back in for another round.

“Once I begin the mating process,” he said. “I do not wish to stop until the bond is complete.”

“How long a mating process are we talking about here?”

“At least a week.”

Stunned, her mouth dropped open.

He led her down the hall.

“Sounds complicated,” she said. “It takes a lot of sex to…bind us together?”

“If it works…”

Her gaze cut to his groin where his pants still bulged. “Are you suggesting you might have a problem with full function?”

Growling, he flung her over his shoulder and smacked her ass. Hard.

“Axil!” Her laughter snorted out. “Your bio didn’t mention this as your kind of kink.”

“Kink?”

“Sexy times that some might consider…outside the norm of traditional society.”

“I do not even begin to know what that means.”

“In your case, spanking.”

“I do not spank.”

She rolled her eyes.

“If you keep teasing,” he said matter-of-factly, “we will never be alone.”

“Don’t put the blame for this on me.” Her head pounded from the upside down position, but she had to admit. She sure loved an alien caveman.

His hand smoothed across her ass. “Again, I do not spank.”

“Methinks he doth protest too much.”

He growled.

She laughed. This constant dirty talk was a complete turn-on. Despite two orgasms already tonight, she was eager for a third, even if it involved no spanking. Except, this time, she wanted him to deliver the full package.

Axil strode into the ballroom that had started to clear out. Which was just as well since she was in a delicate position.

“Your highness,” someone stuttered. Since she was draped down Axil’s back, Julia couldn’t tell who was speaking other than the light accent and deep tone suggested it was a Crakairian male.

“I would like my private shuttle prepared for departure,” Axil said.

“The main spaceship is leaving port as we speak, Sir.”

Her hair must be a wreck. Her dress was a wreck. And she bet she smelled like sex. But who the hell cared? She was officially engaged. If Axil insisted after they’d been fully together, she’d be happy to back things up and talk about the courtship rituals like bathing with the fishes. Or him walking around in a loincloth. No reason they couldn’t do them while engaged.

“The Princess and I will be traveling alone to complete the mating rituals,” Axil said.

Princess? When did that come about?

“I see, your highness. Are you sure, your highness?” the man’s voice squeaked. She imagined the guy’s naanans flinging up around his head in dismay. “Has the courtship been completed already?”

“You dare ask?” Axil growled.

“Well, no…Sir.”

“For everyone’s benefit, since it appears we have drawn an audience, the courtship has concluded and the formal proposal has been issued.”

Titters erupted around them.

“Well, then, Sir,” the guy said.

“The shuttle,” Axil said. “Ensure the Princess’s bag is secured onboard, Jakir.” The name came out in a snarl.

“I’ll see to it right away, Sir.” Jakir hustled around Axil but paused when his eyes met Julia’s. With a huff, he stared down his nose at her. “This…” Sneering, his eyes shot to her position on Axil’s shoulder. “Is highly unusual…Princess.” He spat out the title.

Maybe Axil was helping her, and that was why he was carrying her. Maybe she’d hurt her ankle. Maybe this guy should fuckin’ mind his own business.

“I do hope this is not an example of the future of Crakairian rule,” he hissed.

Okay, be that way. She’d heard rumors some Crakairians were opposed to the arranged marriages, and this guy must be one of them.

“Will there be anything you need for the journey?” Jakir asked when Axil started to turn.

As if Julia would know?

Actually, she’d like forty protein bars, a case of champagne, and three bottles of lube. No, make that ten bottles of lube. “I’m sure my…fiancé will give you a list.”

When the picks were announced, everyone told her she’d have to deal with snooty attitudes, because she was marrying royalty. It was too much to expect the entire Crakairian population would welcome her, but it stung to be presented with hatred so soon.

Her lower lip trembled. This sucked.

But as a nurse, she was used to dealing with crap. If she could stare down a cranky doctor at midnight to get what her patient needed, she could handle this conceited alien dude just as easily.

“Enough,” Axil said with steel in his voice. A few aliens nearby turned their way. “You will not speak to the Princess like this, Jakir. Your family will hear of it.”

Jakir guy bowed. “Yes, Sir. I am…” His lips curled with distaste. “I do apologize…Princess.” He backed away, but his flinty gaze held hers until he left the room. He might pretend he’d behave, but he’d attack the moment she let down her guard.

Axil growled. Pivoting, he strode from the room, leaving a cluster of pointing, whispering aliens behind.

Heat flooded Julia’s face, and her eyes burned. So, okay, maybe she wasn’t as excited about going to Crakair after all.

“We will be on board soon,” he said.

“On board what?” Her voice came out tight.

“We are taking my private ship.” He stopped to wait for the elevator. “It will be quicker.”

“I thought we were only a few weeks from Crakair,” she said, trying to put the incident in the ballroom behind her. She was engaged. She was about to have wild, alien sex.

Shit. Why did she still feel like crying?

“I would us to be alone and the best place for that is on Tress, one of our lunar planets.”

Her heart, a solid lump in her chest, warmed at his words. Maybe things would be okay. She’d show everyone how wonderful Earthlings were, and they’d accept her. “Is Tress the moon that’s barren, the one that’s lush, or the one that’s the home of the Al’kieer?”

“Tress is a paradise.”

That was reassuring. “Tell me more about the mating rituals,” she said to get her mind off the tinge of worry burrowing deep inside her.

“They are arduous.”

“Like, do you have to do it while maintaining a cartwheel?” She thumped his back. “And can you put me down, now?”

His hand landed solidly on her ass again. “I like you here.” Pure tease came through in his voice. “Perhaps this is my kink.”

“You are so going to get it.”

“That is what I am hoping for.”

The door opened, and he strode inside.

She propped her head on her elbow, though the position didn’t improve her brain function. Despite being upset about Jakir, Axil’s damn cute ass kept distracting her.

Exiting the elevator, he strode down a hall. He stopped at his door and keyed in the code to open it. Inside, he lowered her to the floor. His warm hands cupped her face again. “I am sorry. I will speak with my staff and this will not happen again.”

She shrugged away from him, though she was well aware he wasn’t the cause of her lingering sadness, and paced the tiny room. “I know not everyone is going to like me.”

“Jakir is… His family has served the royals for generations, but I will not tolerate this type of behavior.”

“What can you do? As you said, he’s been with the family forever.”

“He will be removed from my staff.”

That would go over well. “It’s going to hard enough for me to win your people’s favor. Firing someone on my behalf won’t help.”

“I will do what I must to protect you.”

“And I appreciate it.”

“My—our—people are going to love you, as I am coming to love you.”

Startled, she whirled back to face him. “You…love me?” For whatever reason, his words didn’t feel like they came too soon. Everything about this man lit her on fire, but sexual attraction wasn’t his only draw. She already sensed his complexity, his kindness, his fun sense of humor. She was eager to know everything about him. “I mean, how…?”

“It is too sudden?” he said. His naanans writhed around his head like snakes. “I apologize for speaking of my growing feelings. I have offended you.”

She crossed the short space and leaped into his arms. He caught her easily, and she had a feeling he’d always catch her. Peppering his face with kisses, she couldn’t hold back her laughter. Sure, Jakir was mean, but he would be an anomaly. Between them, she and Axil would make this work out.

Axil’s hands cupped her ass. “You are not upset at my words?”

Leaning back in his embrace, she grinned. “How can I be upset when I feel the same?”

His flaring naanans dropped down around his shoulders. Then they stroked her head, her neck, and teased down her spine.

They’d come together fast, but sometimes in life, when you met the right one, you knew.

His mouth crashed down on hers, and his tongue teased along the seam of her lips. She let him into her mouth as she was letting him into her heart, with hope and happiness and pure lust.

Her arms wrapped around his neck and she held on tight, desperate never to let go.

When he lifted his head, his pupils had gone solid black, and she swore flames flickered there, a fire lit solely for her.

“We will leave now,” he growled. “And the matebond will be complete before we travel to Crakair.”

She slipped her legs down to the floor but held on tight to his arms. “Why is it so important now when it wasn’t before?”

“I am not sure you are aware, but as royalty I—we—have largely ceremonial roles in Crakairian society. My father can suggest policies or rulings, but the final decision lies with the elected governing council, who, thus far, do not approve of Earth mates.”

“I heard that. I’d planned to win them over with kindness.” She wasn’t sure what other skills she could offer. It wasn’t like she could paint them their first Mona Lisa or offer her nursing services.

“A few on the Council will not give you that chance.” He stared forward, past her shoulder. “But if we arrive with a secured matebond, they will not be able to protest our marriage.”

She nibbled on her lower lip. “Was that a possibility? I thought the council set up the mail-order bride program. They negotiated the contract with Earth.”

“My father sent the initial missives into the galaxy.”

“Oh.” She gnawed on her lower lip. “I get it now. He did this all on his own.”

“And the Council was not pleased.”

“And now you’re bringing me, an Earthling, to Crakair. They’re going to rip my head off.”

“I will shield you with my very body,” he vowed.

“So, to be on the safe side, we’ll make sure we secure the matebond.” She didn’t remember a matebond being mentioned in the literature. “What does that entail?”

“It is a chemical reaction. Once we have been together, if all goes as it should, a symbol will appear on my palm.”

“What about me?” She stared down at the blank canvass of her hand.

“No one knows if this is possible for Earth females.”

“And if it doesn’t happen for me?”

“They may demand I return you to Earth.”

8

Axil

She curled against Axil’s chest. “We’re just going to have to make sure it happens.”

“Hence being alone and spending as much time together as possible,” he said, his fingers trailing down her spine. He struggled not to let worry consume him. They would be together soon, and things would go as they should.

She shivered. “My determination alone will see it done.”

If only he could protect her from this. He’d hoped to bring the matebond up while they traveled to Crakair, but Jakir had forced the issue. The minar they arrived at the palace, Axil would notify the head of his household about the male’s termination. If his manager worried about offending Jakir’s family, they could put him in a new position far from Julia.

“Let’s get going, then,” she said with a watery smile. “I’m ready to do whatever it takes to make the symbol appear on my hand.”

He stroked her hair, unable to resist touching the silky soft strands.

“Let me notify my assistant, and we can be on our way,” he said, stroking her face, another part of her he couldn’t resist touching. He would spend the next daelas showing her in every way possible what she meant to him, that he was worthy of her affection.

Stepping back, she sniffed. A trace of moisture remained in her eyes, but she pressed her lips upward in a smile.

He opened the door and waved to the man waiting outside. “Pack my things and bring them to the shuttle.”

“Shuttle, Sir?” The male’s gaze flitted to Julia, but Axil detected no derision, which made him grateful. While he’d willingly fire and replace all the staff if they would not respect his mate, he’d rather they accepted her from the start. Once they reached Crakair, he would meet with his administrative staff and discuss ways of changing attitudes throughout the country toward Earth females.

None would be derided or scorned or heille, they would feel his wrath.

“Come,” he said to Julia, holding out his hand. His heart warmed when she took it without hesitation. “It is time.”

“We’re outta here,” she said, her smile coming stronger. “I’m actually looking forward to this.”

As was he. He strode down the halls with her at his side, his warrior Princess who had already shown the strength she would need to weather any storm. At the hatch to his private shuttle, he typed in the code on the keypad and the door swept open.

Julia walked inside and looked around the main cabin. “Cozy.” She traced her hand along one of the two chairs facing the viewscreen and strolled past the control panel.

“It is small,” he said with a wince. How could he impress her with such a simple environment? Once on Tress, he could treat her to the luxury she deserved, but they wouldn’t reach the moon for days.

“This is more than enough to make me happy.” She moved in close. “I’m assuming there’s a bed here because otherwise…” Her gaze took in the chairs.

She should not discount what could be done in a chair. He’d show her. Soon.

“There is a private cabin.” Heat burst inside him, centering in his cock. The minar after he’d programmed the craft to take them to Tress, he would commence the matebond fucking. He couldn’t wait to feel her writhing beneath him.

“Your…things,” Jakir said, creeping around Julia. While he kept his distance, the sekair guard flaps on his shoulders lifted the material of his tunic in either defense or attack mode.

As a male in the early throes of the matebond, Axil’s responded to the implied threat. A low growl rumbled through his chest, and he nudged Julia around behind him. She peeked past him, scowling at Jakir.

Striding forward, Axil fisted the front of Jakir’s tunic and lifted him off his feet. “Do not think of causing her harm.”

Jakir’s feet spun and his face grew florid. He gulped out a sputter. “No…Sir!”

“What do you have to say to my mate?” Axil snarled.

“Sorry, Princess. I did not mean insult, Princess!”

Axil tossed the other male toward the door. “Get out.”

Jakir didn’t pause but bolted for the door, and it swished closed behind him.

Axil reeled around to face Julia.

Her green eyes wide, she struggled to smile. “Damn, that was something else. And hot.”

“The temperature of the room can be adjusted.”

She sauntered close to him and curled her finger between them. “I mean you’re hot. You defending me is incredibly sexy.”

His shoulders loosened, and his sekairs settled down on his shoulders. For a minar, he’d been concerned he’d scare her with his fury, but when Jakir’s sekairs lifted, blood rage poured through Axil’s veins. All he could think of was to protect his mate. “You are hot as well.”

She smirked. “Thanks.” Her gaze flitted around the room. “What’s next?”

“Sit.” He waved to the co-pilot’s seat.

“Cool.” She dropped down on the leather cushion and glanced on either side of the armrests. “Seat belt?”

“Why would you belt your seat?”

She smacked her forehead and grinned. “Oh, yeah. It hardly matters if we crash. We’ll be pulverized even if we are belted.” Slouching back, she hooked her leg over the armrest. She lifted her arm and pointed toward the closed screen. “Make it so, Axil. And…engage.”

He did not understand half of what she said, but he did enjoy her enthusiasm. Her tears had ripped his insides to shreds. If only he could ensure she never had a reason to feel sad again.

“I shall engage,” he said, baring his fangs widely her way.

Her attention drifted down his front. “I certainly hope so.”

Fuck. With one look, she made him want to shred her clothing and drive himself inside. But she was slight. All Earth females were. He didn’t want to hurt her. He would have to ensure she was completely ready before he began the full mating.

A few clicks on the control panel, and the viewscreen opened.

“Whoa,” she said, taking in the stars. “Wait. I should be shouting, to infinity and beyond!”

“How about Tress?” he said, keying in the coordinates.

“May the force be with us.”

One daela soon, he would have her explain the meaning of these phrases.

A pop and the vehicle dropped away from the main spaceship.

“Live long and prosper!” she said. High-pitched laughter burst from her, shaking her shoulders.

“Do you fear what will come next?” Finishing the programming, he set the vehicle on autopilot. Barring anything unusual, the shuttle would wing them to his family estate on Tress without any further intervention on his part.

Turning in her chair, she faced him. “A little. I mean…”

“I will not pressure you to do anything you do not wish.”

“Oh, I’m ready for all that.” She waved to the back of the shuttle. “It’s just…I’ve never left my home before this. And now, here I am, with a hot guy I’m pretty much in love with who is taking me on the equivalent of a honeymoon. I’ll likely never see Earth again. The people I hoped would welcome me to Crakair are hot and cold, but we’ll replace the evil ones. And then there’s the Council who I thought was excited about Earth brides but instead is demanding we fit in fast with symbols magically appearing on our hands or we’ll be shipped home on the next shuttle. Throw into that the fact that you’re about fuck my brains out. Naturally, I’m freakin’ out a bit.”

His naanans reached toward her, offering comfort he was unsure she’d take. “Freakin’…” Stupid to focus on that one word from the barrage, but it was a place to begin.

“It means I’m a wreck.”

“I will not crash our craft.”

Her eyes spun in her head. He’d seen this gesture before, though he wasn’t completely sure what it meant.

“The shuttle is programmed,” he said, standing. “All else can be dealt with when it arrives.”

“One day at a time, right?”

“Yes, one daela in the usual order. Our version of your Earthling saying.”

Her lips twitched. “I like it. I like you.”

“I also like you, my mateling.”

Her face softened at his use of the pet name he’d given her. He would use it at all times if only she’d maintain her smile.

“Do you trust me with your heart and your body?” He held out his hand. “I will not cause harm or give you pain.”

“I do.” Without hesitation, she took it, and he tugged her up from her seat. “That’s an Earth wedding phrase, by the way. I do.” She cupped his face. “I do take you, Axil Kavven Xigead Brancik Dhan’eth, as my mate for the rest of my life.” Her lips twitched. “Well, we don’t use mate back on Earth, but you get the idea.”

To think she had taken the time not only to learn all his names but the correct pronunciation. “And I take you, Julia Meredith Chandler, as my forever mate.”

Even if a matebond never appeared on her palm.

9

Julia

Her hands shook and her knees couldn’t decide if they should give out or not.

“So, wall time?” she quipped. Whenever she was nervous, she reverted to sarcasm. Because…okay, she was a tiny bit worried about what would happen next. Not because they’d have sex, per se. Hell, she’d done that before.

She trusted him. She knew he would never cause her harm. But these guys were big all over. And while she was tall at five-nine, her body had been made to accommodate cocks a bit…smaller.

Leave it to Julia to complain about a guy’s dick being too big.

“The wall will come later,” he said. He lifted her hand and kissed it, then tugged her into his embrace. “Let us start slowly. I will progress only as you make demands.”

“Demands, huh? Interesting word choice there.”

“Do you think I will not make you beg for my touch?”

She was begging for his touch already. What they’d done so far had only whetted her appetite. He’d already proven he had a creative tongue and hands. She imagined he was good at most everything he did in the bedroom. As a prince, he must have…

“Have you been with lots of women?” she asked, decidedly uneasy. “I’ve…just been with a few guys.” Work kept her busy and when she had free time, she was happy hanging out with friends. Her inexperience was bound to show.

He shrugged. “I have never been with you and that is all that matters.” He led her down a narrow hall with four doors. “The engine room and storage are below the deck. This is the upper level. Here, on the left, we have a small bathroom.” He opened a door, and she peeked inside, checking out a toilet and sink combo unlike anything she’d seen before in her life. “And on our right is a galley where we will prepare our meals.”

“I love to cook.”

“That is good because I cannot.”

Faking irritation, she propped her knuckles on her hip. “Did you assume I’d be your personal chef?”

His arm went around her waist and he tugged her against his rock-hard body. “Perhaps I only wish to eat you.”

There went her knees again, sagging.

“Ahead, on the left,” he said, continuing his tour guide personae as if he hadn’t just made her hot then left her hanging. “Is a small study. And at the end,” he opened a door and gestured for her to enter ahead of him, “is our cabin.”

She’d expected something similar to the tiny room he’d taken her to on the main ship, but her jaw dropped when he turned on the lights. “Guess I’m boldly going where no one has gone before.”

“It is small,” he said in a tight voice that warmed her up inside. Was he nervous she expected more?

The room had to be twenty feet across and fifteen feet deep. A ginormous bed dominated the center of the room, made up with a monogrammed dark blue comforter and matching accent pillows. A small sofa sat off to one side with a table in front. On the opposite side of the bed, she saw an alcove with two comfy chairs and a big window that looked out at the stars.

He flicked a switch by the door and the ceiling glided to the sides, leaving clear glass overhead, showcasing the galaxy.

Her jaw dropped at the display. She couldn’t imagine sleeping when she had access to that view. “This is…unbelievable. It’s gorgeous.”

“You are gorgeous.” He came up behind her and swept her hair to the side to kiss her neck. Sinking into his touch, she tilted her head and closed her eyes. When he grazed his fangs along her skin and nipped her earlobe, she moaned.

His naanans glided across her arms, moving around to her breasts. She leaned back against his chest to give him free access, and the thick appendages stroked along the sides of her breasts before pinching the nipples.

Arms wrapped around her, he tugged her fully against him, and his stiff rod vibrated at her back. As his tongue teased her ear, his hands trailed down and cupped her through her dress. She thrust her hips forward, eager for his touch.

Easing her around, he swept her off her feet and strode to the bed, where he laid her on the blanket.

He stepped back and lifted off his shirt.

She’d had two orgasms with this man and hadn’t seen him naked except for one quick peek. Rising up onto her knees, she inched forward and stroked his scaled pecs. “I saw pictures, but couldn’t imagine how they’d feel.” Her lips twitched. “They’re firm but supple.”

“They’re defensive,” he said. “Your hands…”

Her gaze flashed to his, and she pulled her hand away. “Am I hurting you or not doing this right? I have to admit, I’m curious about you. About your body. I just want to touch.”

He took her hand and returned it to his chest. “Your skin… even on your palm, it is smooth. Soft. Crakairian females are scaled, too, though theirs are thinner and more flexible. Yet their bodies are built to withstand differing elements.” Staring down, he stroked the back of her hand and traces his fingers up her arm. “I need to touch you.”

“You can touch me whenever you want,” she said.

“And so may you.”

“What about these?” Her fingertips glided up to his shoulders where his sekair laid down smoothly. “I heard they lift.”

“Also in defense. They spike up and are sharp on the ends.”

She traces her finger across the ridges. “They’re cool.”

“The opposite of hot.”

“The same as hot.”

“Hot is cool. Hmm.” His chest vibrated with the sound.

“The English language is strange, right?”

“Which should be the opposite of left but in this way you use it, it is not.”

“Right.” Her smile lifted in a tease. “Your naanans, I’ve touched.”

“Nowhere near enough.”

“You like it when I stroke them.”

“They are highly sensitive.”

“I imagine they’re for defense, also.”

“In some ways. In others, they function more as limbs, such as an arm or a leg.”

“Take off your pants so I can explore more.”

His breath hissed in.

Her head tilted. “Afraid?”

He growled, but it came out playfully. “Revenge will be sweet, mateling.”

“Actually, I’m looking forward to it.” The more she touched him, the more she ached to feel him rising over her, moving inside her. Heat pooled in her belly and her legs limped out. She wanted to drop back on the bed, spread her legs, and let him do whatever he pleased with her body, but she wanted to give him pleasure, as well. “Dude.” She pointed. “You said I should make demands, and I’m telling you to take off those pants.”

His fangs bared briefly before he reached for the top button. “You are so going to get it,” he said, stealing her earlier words.

“I sure hope so.” When her tongue darted out to lick her upper lip, his hand stilled on the second button.

He groaned and yanked the fabric apart.

His massive cock sprang free, and her breath caught.

Greedy, she reached for it. She had to touch it. Her hand didn’t quite fit around it but she glided her fingers down to the base then squeezed as she stroked to the top.

While he pumped his hips, his head tilted back and his eyes closed. His naanans flared outward as he groaned out his pleasure.

Leaning forward, she licked the tip then took the end into her mouth.

His hoarse breathing echoed around them. “Julia. This… this touch of your tongue.”

“You like?”

He groaned again.

“I take it I might not be the only one making demands?”

Tugging her face away, he growled. “Time for you to get it, love.”

“I think my hull breach is imminent,” she said. She slid her dress up and over her head.

“What is this thing you wear,” he asked, his finger tucking beneath the bra strap.

“A torture device.”

His ridged brows drew together. “Yet you wear it.”

“All day long, and let me tell you, by the end of the day, I can’t wait to get it off.” Reaching around to the back, she undid the hooks and tossed the garment aside.

He climbed up onto the bed on his knees and loomed over her. Watched her. “These.” His fingertips flicked her nipples, and they beaded instantly.

“Nipples.”

“I love your nipples.”

Her laugh spurted out. “I think that’s a common theme for guys.”

“I am going to suck on them. Suck all of you.”

“Now there’s the man I was hoping to see. All that talk about fucking and then nothing.”

“Is this nothing?” He waved to his impressive cock bobbing against his equally impressive abs.

“Is this where I get to make demands?”

Growling, he scooped her up and laid her on her back. Rising over her, he kissed her, his tongue tangling with hers. His naanans traveled down to her breasts while his hand ventured further. His fingertip glided to her slit then tweaked her clit.

She bucked against him, her body begging for more. Her sharp pants grated harshly in the room.

Leaving her mouth, he kissed down her neck and across her collarbone. He moved lower and while his fingers teased her opening, his lips latched on to a nipple. A naanan attached and fluttered on the other.

She rocked against his hand, and he slid a finger inside. When she gasped, he pulled it out and shoved it back in.

He kissed down across her abs then nudged her legs wide. His tongue, that glorious, thick, forked tongue drove inside her while a naanan clung to her clit and quivered.

Her eyes rolled back in her head, and she shrieked.

He continued to work her body. Naanans on her breasts and clit and his tongue delving deep inside her.

Head thrashing and writhing on the bed, she cried out. She fisted the blanket and yanked. And she begged.

He rose over her and centered himself between her thighs. After lifting her legs up to lock on his shoulders, he took her hands and linked their fingers.

“Mateling,” he murmured. The cords on his neck stood out sharply, and he trembled as he held himself in check. Teasing forward, he pressed the end of his cock inside her.

Damn, it felt wonderful. Awesome. And huge. Even just a small amount told her he was going to fill her to the point she’d explode.

“Please,” she whimpered. That vibration…

He inched forward, his body stretching hers. Moving slowly, exquisitely inside her.

She strained up for more, but he held himself steady, controlling the thrust.

“I’ve gotta have it,” she cried. “Please. All of it!”

“Slowly, mateling. I would love you all night, not for just one minar.”

“No,” she ground out, her eyes wild. “All of it now!”

He chuckled. “Demanding, are you?” He pulled back, then advanced and held the same position. Again. Slowly stretching the delicate tissue while she panted and writhed beneath him.

She wanted it. Wanted him. And he wasn’t giving it to her.

Wiggling, she urged him off.

Surprised, he backed away, settling on his thighs. “Too much?”

She grabbed his shoulders and tumbled him back onto the bed, then rose over him, straddling him.

“This,” she grated out, centering herself over him while his eyelids hooded and his gaze went smoky. “This is how it’s done.”

She drove herself down onto his cock. It filled her so completely, she thought she’d burst. But man, it felt absolutely wonderful. Freakin’ vibrating cock. Who the hell would have thought?

She lifted herself and sank back down onto him again.

They both groaned.

“I do enjoy your demands, mateling,” he said hoarsely. “But…”

She placed a fingertip over his lips, and he nipped it, his fangs almost breaking the skin. His tongue flicked out and smoothed across the end as he drew it into his mouth and sucked.

While she lifted up and down, his cock hummed through her bones. His naanans teased her nipples while his thumb rubbed her clit.

But while she kept reaching toward the peak, sobbing and crying out, she couldn’t quite…

He rose and pressed her back onto the bed then followed, driving himself deep inside with one heavy thrust.

“Yes,” she yelled. “More!”

He lifted her legs onto his shoulders and sank into her, over and over, while his fangs grazed her neck and shoulders.

As she drew closer, she panted and writhed.

He slammed into her to the hilt, giving her everything she demanded and more.

Her body crested, and she spilled down the other side, shaking and quivering.

He went faster. With a hoarse groan, he found his own release but kept going, pummeling into her while she continued to shatter around him.

Collapsing, he braced much of his weight on his arms. His lips sought hers, slow and languid, a kiss filled with love.

His forehead pressed against hers. With his fangs bared, he teased. “Tell me, mateling. How was my hull breach?”

10

Julia

T  hey lounged in bed for the next two days as the ship winged its way toward Tress, the moon where Axil owned an estate. They’d continue building their matebond there.

A matebond that had not formed on either of their palms yet.

While she enjoyed trying to make it appear, Julia was worried. Most Crakairians assumed it wouldn’t show up on her palm but if one didn’t appear on Axil, the Council might send her home.

She couldn’t bear for that to happen. She loved him.

Turning in his arms, she snuggled against his chest, where she lay half-draped over him. His fingers trailed down her spine, and heat sunk into her bones.

They’d had each other in more ways and positions than she could remember, and the dull ache inside her proved it. She’d had more sex in two days than she had in her life, and while her body savored each time, it might need a break.

Sliding out of his arms, she inched toward the edge of the bed.

“Do return, mateling,” he said, nudging back the blankets to reveal his rock-hard cock.

She stood beside the bed, aching to leap back onto him, but she really had to pee.

“I won’t be long,” she said with a smile as she backed toward the doorway. Really, she might ache in a few places but how could she resist him when he bared his fangs at her like that?

Completely naked, she tiptoed down the hall and used the facilities.

When she was halfway back to their room, a boom rang out, and the space shuttle shook. She braced herself on the wall while Axil shouted. His feet stomped toward her and he blazed out of the room, his sekairs lifted on his shoulders in full defensive mode and his naanans spiking in every direction like spears.

He latched onto her arms and looked her up and down then spun her to check her backside. “You are hurt?”

“No, not at all.” She peered around, her heart galloping in her chest like a herd of stampeding horses. “What happened?”

“I am not sure, but—”

Another boom shook the ship, and when her gaze met his, fear flashed through them, replaced by determination. “Grab your things. I placed your bag in the closet.”

“What’s going on?”

“The ship is—”

They listed sideways. Before she slammed into the wall, Axil wrapped his arms around her and spun to take the brunt of the impact with his body.

“Dress quickly,” he said, releasing her and nudging her toward the bedroom. “I need to go to the main cabin and…” He didn’t finish but bolted in that direction.

Using the wall for support, she wobbled toward the bedroom, her feet sliding down the floor that should be level. What was happening?

Her mouth flashed dry as panic took hold. Had the booms been explosions? If the ship ripped apart, they’d be dead in seconds. It wasn’t as if they could jump out and walk away, like after a car accident.

As she hurried across the bedroom to the closet, the ship shuddered like a newly snagged mouse being wrangled by a cat. She tumbled to her knees then crawled to the closet. She located her bag and dragged out another empty one then stuffed in a variety of Axil’s clothing hanging in the closet.

He joined her in the bedroom and nodded his thanks for her packing. “Something’s…” His sekairs had settled in among his scales but they lifted again. “We will have to take the ship down. I’ve engaged a landing program but it will be rough.”

“This is when I’m wishing those chairs up front had seat belts.” She yanked on clean undies and then fastened a bra. Unsure what the right clothing might be for a crash landing, she tugged leggings, a top, and boots out of her bag. “Where exactly are we going?”

“Mara.”

“The moon where the Al’kieer live?”

His brows ridged together. “Yes.”

The unfriendly neighbors. If only she had time to bake cookies to bring with them. “You don’t sound happy about our destination.”

“We have no choice.” His shoulders tightened. “I will keep you safe.”

She had a feeling he said it to reassure her, but the steely look in his eyes sent a twinge of worry shooting across her skin.

“You will need to dress in this. Quickly.” As the ship shuddered, he reached into the closet and pulled out what looked like rags. Ratty black leather leggings, a brown tunic that would hang to her knees, and a black jacket with a hood.

“Why these in particular?”

The ship tipped, sending them toward the wall but Axil righted himself, holding her securely in his arms.

“We will need to be…incorrigible.” He frowned. “That is not the correct word.”

“But a good one.” She pressed for a smile but it wouldn’t come. Fear bolted through her like wildfire.

“We must fit in with those who live on Mara.”

“We’re going incognito.”

“Yes, that is it.” Releasing her, he yanked on similar pants and a deep blue tunic. He tugged on a black jacket and with his naanans spilling down his back, he looked a bit like a pirate she’d seen in a movie once, set in the Caribbean.

“Tell me more about Mara,” she said, dressing fast while he yanked on black boots that came to his knees. As she tugged on her own boots, he strapped on a sword and other assorted sci-fi movie looking weapons and handed her a blade longer than his forearm.

“I assume this isn’t for cutting steak.” She shivered as she stared down at it lying in her hands. “Just so you know. I have no clue how to use it.”

“Gouge it at anyone who rushes toward you.”

“That’s some fun neighbors you have there.”

“They believe my father killed their former governor.”

She tilted her head, watching his face. “Did he?”

He winced. “It was an accident.”

A heavy sigh burst from her. She strapped on the belt he handed over and slid the knife in the scabbard. “I’ll try not to slice off my arm with it.”

He growled. “I will defend you with my life but…”

She wrapped her arms around his waist and snuggled into his chest. “I’ll do the same.”

His huff told her he appreciated that she cared for him but he doubted she’d be able to host much defense. He was right, unfortunately. This is what happened when a girl chose horseback riding lessons over karate.

Alarms blared, and lights flashed red alternating with white.

Snatching up her bag, he snagged a pack from the closet and secured both to his back. He took her hand and pulled her with him into the hall where he lifted a hatch in the floor and waved for her to go ahead of him.

Metal stairs descended into the darkness.

11

Axil

A xil skipped the stairs and leaped down into the lower ship’s compartment and urged her toward the front hatch. Around them, the ship rocked and shook. They were reaching the moon’s outer atmosphere. Within minutes, they’d be ripped apart.

“Are we going to huddle in a closet like people do during a tornado back on Earth?” Her delicate brows drew together. “Or is that a bathtub? I grew up outside of Boston. No tornadoes there.”

He wasn’t sure what a tornado was, but it hardly mattered. “We will not…huddle in a bathtub.” Reaching around her, he twisted the handle hard, and the hatch hissed open. “We will have to share.”

“Share what?” She tipped her head back to look up at him as she stepped over the doorjamb, but stopped so short, he bumped against her back. “Hell, no.” Whirling, she tried to get past him. “I’ll take the tub.”

“The tub will soon be no more.”

“Hold on. This is serious. I thought…” She shook her head. “Jeez, you’d think with the way I watch sci-fi movies, I would’ve seen it. I’m a leaf in the wind, and you’re gonna crash your pretty ship.”

“My…pretty ship will soon hit the outer atmosphere and disintegrate.”

Her skin paled, making the moon kisses speckling her cheeks stand out in sharp contrast. “Poof.”

“Big poof. It has been sabotaged. The controls have been tampered with and I cannot manipulate the descent to control the angle. When the hull hits the moon’s outer atmosphere, it will go…poof, as you say.”

“Sabotage?” Her face stilled. “Do you think Jakir is involved?”

“Someone did this.” He nudged her forward and yanked the hatch closed and secured it behind them. After tossing their sharp weapons and bags into a closet that was so small, he had to hip-check the door closed, he moved around her and dropped down into the sole seat in the tiny space pod. He yanked her down on top of him. “Quickly. We haven’t much time.” Heille, he hoped they had time.

Another bang and the ship shook. Only this time, it didn’t stop. As the entire craft tipped to the right, his arms wrapped securely around her. He pulled a harness up over himself and then added a rigged attachment that would hold her across the front of his body. It wasn’t perfect, but there was no other way they could withstand a possible impact with the planet.

He didn’t want to tell her his fear that the smaller craft’s controls might also have been tampered with.

Leaning around her, he flicked the button to engage the engines and unlocked the ties holding them to the main ship. The dropped away and were buffeted by the solar wind. The tiny ship rocked and swayed, but he gained control and shoved the throttle, taking them away from the bigger ship as fast as possible.

Julia gulped while he banked the craft to the left. Ahead, Mara, the closest moon, waited and too far beyond her, Mia and Tress. He didn’t have enough fuel to make to Tress, their original destination, courtesy of their saboteur, and the moons’ current orbits. As it was, they’d be lucky to reach Mara.

He blocked their signal from the planet. If they caught on that someone was coming in fast, it would be over before he and Julia made it through the outer atmosphere. The government—and Axil used that term loosely—would kill to get their hands on the Crown Prince of Crakair. While they might demand and receive ransom from his father, they’d ensure his stay was not pleasant. As for his mateling…he shuddered, not wishing to imagine what they might do to her.

She was his, and they’d know that the minar they captured him.

The matebond symbol had appeared on his hand. He hadn’t mentioned it to Julia yet, as he couldn’t help noting she did not have one herself. He hated to think he’d lose her, either to rogue forces on Mara or due to the strict rules of his own government. The minar they made it to Crakair, he’d speak to the Council. With so few women, it was vital they allow Earth females to remain even if they didn’t exhibit a full matebond mark.

When they hit the outer atmosphere, the craft shook and shuddered.

“Hold on,” he shouted through gritted teeth.

Julia whimpered, and he hated that he couldn’t make this better for her. In his mind, they would have arrived on Tress smoothly, landing on the large lake adjacent to his estate. He would have carried her from the ship and taken her straight to his bed, where he would have continued their bonding.

Instead, they were fighting for their lives.

“It’s horrible,” Julia shouted, her entire body shaking along with the ship. “We’re gonna break up and explode into a billion pieces. They’ll have to collect the bigger parts of me with a sieve.”

He stroked her cheek with his naanans while holding her snug in his embrace. And he kept the shuttle on course. “This is normal. Bear with it.”

“How can…I…bear…with it?” she said through chattering teeth. “I’m falling apart.”

“Close your eyes.”

“What?” she shrieked. “Then I won’t be able to watch while my limbs go flying in different directions!”

“That’s not going to happen. I promise.” He hoped not, anyway.

She cried out, and her tears dripped onto his neck where his shirt was open at the top. “I can’t stand it. Please. Make it stop.” Her whimper wretched his innards sideways. “Make it stop.”

“When I was a boy, I was kidnapped,” he said as he controlled their descent with the flaps. So far, everything on the craft was functioning as it should. Maybe Jakir hadn’t had time to sabotage more than the main ship.

Her body stilled. “Is this a fake story to distract me?”

“No, it is true. My mother had gone to a market near the palace, and—”

She shifted around, turning onto her side as far as the snug restraint would allow, which wasn’t much. “Wait. What palace are we talking about?”

“My parents’ palace.”

“Like with towers and turrets and a moat?”

“No moat.”

“Well, that’s a relief.” Her eyes did that rolling around gesture again, and he mimicked it, enjoying the feeling it gave him, much like a huff. “Please tell me you live in a condo and not at the…palace.”

“What is a condo?”

“It’s like a small apartment.”

“I do not reside in a con-do.”

“Oh, shit,” she sighed. “You have a gigantic house, right?”

“We have a palace.”

“Please say it’s tiny.”

“It is smaller than my parents’.”

“Okay. I’m game. Tell me about the kidnapping.” Shifting around again, she laid back on his chest. Her left hand linked her fingers with his as she watched their future approach.

Mara was a dump. A wasteland filled with rogue gangs, cutthroat syndicates, and the random plague. No Crakairian came here if they could avoid it. Yet some people chose to live here, perhaps to evade prosecution or because there were no rules other than eat or be eaten.

“My mother was pregnant with my younger sister—”

“You have a sister?”

“She did not survive the disease.” Like her death happened this moment, his soul went stone cold. Tria. If only he could hear his little sister shriek with happiness one more time…

“I’m sorry. The disease…took my brother, too.” Pain leached into her words, and his breath was stolen all over again. He tightened his arms around her, wishing he could’ve been with her then to offer her the shelter of his embrace.

“And I am sorry for your loss,” he said.

“Thank you.”

She sniffed, and he soothed her by rubbing his naanans on her shoulders, hoping it would comfort her further.

He frowned as he stared through the window. They were approaching the planet too fast. Leaning forward, he made a few adjustments to the trajectory and to accommodate the planet’s wind currents. If all went well, they’d land in the desert, not far from the city of Qe’ket. They could blend in with the caravans traveling into the market to sell their goods, then locate one of the palace’s connections. They’d be on their way to Tress within denjars.

“What happened to you at the market?” she asked as he guided the vehicle through the thick cloud cover and into the dense smog coating the city in a thick sludge. “And how old were you?”

“Ten.”

“Were you a cute kid?” The smile hummed in her voice.

“Of course I was.”

He could feel her spinning her eyes again and continued the story. “My mother was desperate for some liliandra tea, but the bush she cultivated in the palace gardens died the previous winter. Rather than have someone purchase the leaves for her, she decided to go herself. My mother was born a commoner. My father met her while out riding and swept her off her feet—literally. He refused the arranged marriage with another continent’s princess and insisted he would only mate with my mother. They were happy together until she died.”

“Was she lost to the disease, too?” Sorrow came through in her voice.

“She was killed in an accident not long after my sister was born.”

“I’m sorry.” She wiped her eyes. “So she wanted liliandra leaves to make tea.”

“Yes. She disguised herself in regular clothing and crept out of the palace, without retainers or protection, which was silly but she always said she hated being followed, hovered over. My mother had Vikir warrior blood running through her veins.”

“Vikir?”

“Tribes living deep in the forests of Crakair, much like your hunter-gatherer society that was once a part of Earth.”

“And she—and you—are descendants of these people.”

“Vikir blood runs through my veins, too.”

“We have something similar in the Amazon on Earth, in that people still live the way their ancestors did. Though current society is encroaching, and they’re losing their old ways of survival.”

“Life adapts to the environment,” he said. Someday, he would like to meet these people who lived the old ways in the Amazon.

“What happened with your mother?”

“I was a curious youngling, and I followed her.”

The ship parted the clouds, and he leveled it off, coasting above the broad mountain ranges until he reached the edge of the barren desert. It stretched ahead for numerous kleks.

“We will be landing soon,” he said.

“And from there?”

“We will secure passage to Tress.”

Her shoulders eased, and he was grateful she didn’t press him for more details about their landing. He wasn’t yet convinced the ship had not been sabotaged.

“While we’re coasting over what looks like a desert,” she said. “Tell me more about being kidnapped.”

“As I said, I followed my mother into the market. It is a wonderful, scary place for a boy, filled with exotic creatures, textiles, unusual foods, and everything else imaginable for sale. I gaped around and stopped at each table to touch. I soon lost sight of my mother.”

Her fingers tightened on his. “And you were alone.”

“They grabbed me.”

Her body jolted, and her breathing picked up. “Who?”

“Three males. They tied and gagged me and stuffed me into a cart with bars on all sides.”

The desert was coming up too fast. Despite how many times he tried to engage it, the landing gear would not lower, and the flaps that would slow their descent appeared to be fluttering rather than holding steady to maintain their course. He could not control the situation, and it wrenched him apart.

He had not had enough time with his mateling, his Julia, yet. Greedy of him not to appreciate what they had shared already, but he wanted more. A lifetime more.

“I love you, mateling,” he said softly.

Her gulp rang out. “The ground’s rushing toward us too fast. Damn Jakir.” She sniffed and clung to his hand. “I love you, Axil. I wish…”

“I do, too. For both of us.”

His arms tightened around her as the vehicle impacted the desert floor. The craft bit into the sand and flipped. Tossed end over end, the shuttle groaned and shook. He and Julia were jerked around in the restraints that threatened to let loose and send them through the viewing screen.

Julia’s scream burst from her throat.

Axil’s hoarse cry echoed, entwining with hers as the vehicle plowed deep into a hillside.

12

Julia

A  low hum and a steady tick-tick-tick woke Julia. Her right arm hurt. Spasms kept shooting down her back. And her skull had invited a rock band over to party.

She opened her eyes but closed them quickly when the sun sliced through, clawing at her brain.

Her moan slipped out. When she tried to move, she couldn’t. Something pinned her in place.

Someone. Axil.

Her eyelids flashed open again as panic grabbed hold of her bones and shook her.

“Axil?” she whispered.

He groaned and shifted beneath her.

The ground rumbled. Was it an earthquake?

With a clumsy jerk, Axil unclipped the straps holding her to himself and then his own belts. “We have to get out of the ship,” he hissed. His chest rose and fell, which should be reassuring, but his pulse thundered.

“Is the ship going to explode?” Had they survived the outer atmosphere challenge without burning to a crisp, followed by crash-landing on an alien planet, only to be blown to bits?

“A Xarton is coming.”

For some reason, she didn’t think a Xarton was part of the planet’s welcoming committee.

The ship quaked again, jarring her teeth together as she climbed off Axil and stood, holding onto the seat’s armrest to keep from falling. Her legs shook, limp from spent adrenaline. When she flexed her neck, it creaked and resisted. Damn whiplash. “What will the Xarton do when it gets here?”

“Eat us.”

Her breath caught. “Yeah, not up for that today. Or any other day, for that matter.”

He bolted to his feet and rushed the short distance to the closet, and she followed, holding onto the wall to keep from falling. Wrenching things out of the closet, he handed her the scabbard and blade. His sword, he belted in place. Bending forward, he tucked knives inside his boots. At the back of his waist and even behind his neck, under his naanans, he slid three-pronged weapons that looked vaguely like mini versions of Poseidon’s trident. He yanked two things from the closet that looked like metal shish kababs but probably weren’t, and then strapped on a set of pistols unlike any she’d seen outside of sci-fi movies.

“Do those shoot lasers?”

He nodded grimly.

Despite the dire situation, a flush of heat burned through her. Damn, but he was hot. Her very own alien pirate prince.

Pausing, he turned to her, his nostrils flaring, his naanans seeking her skin. He cupped her face and kissed her slowly enough to melt her knees but too fast to gain any form of satisfaction from it.

“Hold that thought, love,” he said. “It is mine.”

She was his. No denying that fact.

He strapped their bags on his back. Reaching around her, he yanked open a drawer beside the cabinet and grabbed sacks that clinked, stuffing them into his pocket. He did the same for her.

“We need money?” she asked, weighted down with what felt like a king’s ransom. Or a princess’s, in her case.

“We’ll need to buy our way off the planet.”

The ground shook. The ship tilted, and they both slid into the wall.

Axil spun and twisted the wheel on the hatch door, but it jarred and wouldn’t open. “Fuck.” He slammed his body against the wheel and kicked it. Still wouldn’t open.

A creaking, scraping groan erupted from outside, as if giant teeth scraped across the top of the ship.

Fear rose up into her throat, clogging it, but she swallowed it back down. No time for that.

“Let me help,” she said, nudging his hands to the side.

He slanted her a heavy look but was wise enough not to name his thoughts.

“You’re a man. This is like a stuck jar of pickles.”

“This is not a jar,” he growled.

“Same thing.” She flexed her arm muscles. “I’m a woman. Women possess infinite finesse. Men seem to think brawn fixes everything.”

He scowled.

The ship tipped further onto its side and shook as if a child had grabbed hold of it and tossed it across the floor.

Julia’s teeth snap together and panic bolted through her, shouting for her to run.

“Finesse it quickly, then, love,” he said, peering up at the ceiling where bits of sand trickled through a pin-prick hole in the roof.

She twisted the wheel and it caught as it had with Axil.

Something slammed into the ship, and a screechy-groan echoed around them.

Her heart on fire, Julia backed the wheel up and eased it forward again, slowly.

Axil shouldered past her, and the door finally gave. He yanked it all the way around and the panel hissed open about an inch.

“I loosened it for you,” she scoffed, her hands trembling. Every part of her body trembled, actually. Something was attacking, and it was big enough to shake a small spaceship.

What fresh hell did she find herself in?

Grunting, Axil yanked the door inward. Light burst through the opening, plus half a beach’s worth of sand, covering her boots halfway up her calves.

Axil plowed out through the dark brown grit, the sand reaching as high as his thighs. He climbed up and out of the narrow opening, then turned and extended his arm toward her. One jerk and he’d pulled her up beside him and onto the desert floor.

She stood, blinking, taking in the rolling sandy hills around her and the uneven, gleaming rooftops of the distant city.

No creature in sight. Perhaps it had left?

A shadow crossed over them, a cloud momentarily covering the sun, but it remained. Drip-drip-drip. Water fell onto her head as if it rained only in this one spot.

Tipping her head back, Julia bit back a shriek as a gaping mouth the size of a school bus descended.

Axil leaped sideways, taking her along with him. They tumbled across the sand as the creature’s mouth engulfed the space where they’d been standing. Rearing up, the huge, worm-like beast turned and plunged toward them again.

They dove to the side together, and the creature missed.

Axil sprung to his feet and pulled his sword. He tucked Julia behind his body. Like David taking on Goliath, he bellowed and rushed toward the giant, segmented, multi-legged worm.

The creature lunged toward him, its jaws surrounding them.

Julia screamed and covered her head.

Dark. Too dark. They were being eaten alive!

The ground underfoot shifted as the jaws closed in beneath them. It would scoop them up and swallow them whole.

Dank, musty slime coated the surfaces around her and teeth… Longer than her femur, they glistened with spit.

“Time to beam me up Scottie,” she yelled. Her blade. She yanked it from the scabbard and whimpered. Talk about using a toothpick on a killer whale.

Axil sprang forward, his sword a blur. He spun, a lethal barbarian—no, a Vikir—with his sekair flaps lifted, his naanans spiraling around his head, and his fangs snapping. He became a lethal dance of a glinting sword and battle cries ripping around her while she gaped in amazement.

The creature wreathed, throwing her off balance, sending her smacking against the slimy inside the mouth.

Axil gritted his teeth and slashed his sword in a blur while the creature shuddered around them.

The world dropped out from under her feet.

They fell, plummeting down onto the sand.

An enormous plop, and segments of the creature dropped around them. Smaller chunks feel like bloody rain.

Bile boiled up in her throat, but Julia swallowed it back.

Steam drifted off the chunks as Axil swiped his sword through the sand, then sheathed it at his waist.

He extended his hand to help Julia up, and she stumbled against him, her knees turned to rubber.

“That was…unbelievable,” she said.

“Finesse,” he said, smacking his fist to his chest. With a smirk, he bowed and lifted a hand toward the buildings far in the distance. “After you, my love. As we walk, please share with me how much you appreciate my finesse.”

She gathered her wits and found the oomph to breeze past him, jumping over the larger hunks of Xarton. “You are a damn sexy, cocky alien male.”

He caught up and strode beside her, his long legs eating up the ground. “My sexy is strong. My cock is yet stronger. But me…” Another fist against his chest. “I possess true finesse.”

13

Axil

A s they approached Qe’ket, Axil stopped beneath a scrang tree and pulled her hood up, covering her fiery hair. Nothing would disguise her lush curves or the succulent mounds on her chest, but their masquerade did not need to hold up for long, only until they had reached his contact in the market.

Memories floated through his mind as they walked through the outskirts.

Being taken. Tied.

His mother seeing it happen and giving chase.

A Xarton erupting from the sand and engulfing the small caravan of thieving slavers not long after they reached the desert.

His mother, her sekairs shooting poison at a slaver, then snatching his sword from the scabbard. She slashed and spun, cutting her way through them to reach Axil.

In her blood rage, she killed the six slavers and the Xarton within minars then released him from the cage. Her hand landed hard on his butt, the first and only time she touched him with anger. Dropping to her knees in front of him, she yanked him into her arms and clung, her heart beating a furious tempo in her chest.

He shared this with Julia in hushed tones as they slunk down a shadowy street on the outskirts of Qe’ket. Chatter and calls told him the market lay ahead.

“Your mom was quite the warrior,” Julia said softly. Envy came through in her voice.

“Few would challenge a Crakairian mother protecting her youngling.”

“I’m sorry I won’t get to meet her.” Taking his hand, she squeezed it as she did his heart whenever she looked his way.

The matebond rose inside him, eager and full of wanting, but he suppressed it. Soon. Soon. First, he must get them off Mara.

They slunk along the edge of the market, keeping to the darkness beneath vendor stalls. When they couldn’t hide any longer, he blended them in with the bustling crowd.

Axil watched everyone, waiting for someone to spring.

Excitement burst from Julia’s skin. While she trotted beside him, her shoulders hunched forward to mash her chest, she couldn’t stop straining to the top of her toes to peer around. Her head spun and her jaw kept unhinging. She pointed to a vendor selling colorful shei’rks, the bright pink bird-lizard’s wings fluttering to capture the breeze. Their clawed legs clung to vines engulfing the vendor’s stall. As he and Julia passed, one of the bird-lizards tipped its head back and shot sparks into the air.

They reached the middle of the market, weaving around aliens from so many different planets, he lost count. The rich scent of cinerrara and meerchen drifted through the air, followed by sweat from the crush of people hawking wares while others shook fists as they bargained in shrill tones.

No children. Next to no women. Mara was not a place for the meek or the vulnerable.

Axil guided Julia past a potted living garden, its branches reaching out to tangle around her arm. She yelped and skittered sideways, then gaped over her shoulder at another stall where multiple strands of lalleer vignets stroked the face of a bearded hubraian. The male dickered, arguing about the price of the plant with the seller.

A pack of carafels thundered past, herded along the edges of the street by a jardeen mounted on a snorting evera. The carafels chittered, their heads swayed, and their long, forked tails spiked up into the air. Axil ached to tuck Julia into his side, to shelter her with his body, but for their ruse to succeed, no one must suspect she was female.

Or that he was the Crown Prince of Crakair.

Julia paused at a stand selling a variety of food, her longing gaze taking in the offerings.

“You would buy?” the proprietor asked, his sharp gaze drifting across Julia before seeking her face, still hidden within the folds of her hood.

Axil grunted and sifted a coin from one of his small leather pouches, nudging his head to the sticks of spicy vegetable protein and cornling. Two in hand, he hustled Julia away, around a corner, and out of the crowd. The skin between his shoulder blades itched. The sooner they were on board a safe vessel, the happier he’d be.

He handed Julia one of the sticks.

Her teeth yanked off one of the wide, juicy lizard eggs and chewing and swallowing fast, she ripped a hunk of tomatir right after. “Mmnn. Shish is arsome.” She swallowed again and grinned up at him. “I don’t even care what it is. I’m so famished I could eat a xarton.”

He didn’t point out that their flesh contained a neurotoxin that acted within minars of eating.

“Frumplsastic,” she mumbled around another bite. “Luv shish-bab.”

He handed her the flask from his pack, and she drank deeply then swiped the back of her hand across her mouth.

“This counts as a courtship meal, doesn’t it?” she asked with a smirk.

He was grateful he carried the burden of fear for their safety. Though she’d been cautious, he preferred her being mostly unaware of the growing danger.

With a brief flash of his fangs, he devoured his food quickly while scanning those passing the narrow alley. No threats so far that he’d seen, but time melted from beneath them and at any minar, someone would recognize them and attack.

After they finished their meal, they tossed the sticks into a fire pit at a smithy shop. The four-armed smithy worked in the cool shade of his shop, sweat pouring down his naked, muscular body while he pounded a large hammer on a strip of steel.

A purring cheep drew Julia’s eye and as they made their way through the center of the market, she steered them to the left and stopped in front of a stall with a row of cages, empty except for one. Behind the stall, the owner bustled around, loading the empty cages onto a cart.

“What is it?” she asked, leaning close to Axil to whisper. She stooped down and stared into the cage. “Aw, aren’t you sweet?”

The purring cheep grew in volume as the fluffy creature with clawed limbs crept toward her. “It looks like a combination of a Yorkie and a crab.”

“She.” Axil had no idea what a Yorkie or a crab was, but it hardly mattered. “She is a brindle.”

“She’s so cute.” Julia’s finger poked between the bars and the brindle rubbed against it, its neck muscles vibrating in a chirping flutter.

“Pups sale for you no more,” the owner said, coming forward and noting Julia’s interest. “More tomorrow. Plenty brindle pups.”

“Pups?” Julia said.

“This caged pup is for…display. Is that the right word?”

“An example of what he sells, yes, a display.” Horror filled her voice.

“He means this one is reserved for breeding stock only. He will bring more of the younglings tomorrow.”

Behind them, someone shouted and Axil watched as a youngling of about fourteen yaros darted through the crowd holding a loaf of mullar bread over his head. He gaped back at a seller who shrieked as he came after the boy, a rolling block swinging through the air with a low whistle.

Julia reeled back from the cage. “Are you saying this is like a puppy mill and this poor pup just watched this man,” her finger poked toward the owner who glared, “she watched this guy sell all her siblings?”

“It is the way,” Axil said, confused as to why she was upset.

The owner flicked his one-eyed gaze back and forth between them, his eye flaps turning deep yellow with dismay.

Julia crossed her arms on her chest, making her mounds squish. The brindle breeder’s gaze dropped to where the tunic stretched across them, and he mumbled something low and deep Axil was glad Julia couldn’t understand.

“We need to leave,” Axil hissed, tugging on her arm.

She wrenched free and stomped toward the vendor. “Not good enough. This is wrong. Don’t you see? It’s not fair.” Her stormy eyes met Axil’s. “What if someone did that to one of us? It’s not that far a stretch to arrange for a…” She leaned in close. “A mail-order you know what to come here solely to breed babies.”

“I would not give away or sell my young.”

“That’s not the point,” she fumed, her gaze drawn again to the cheeping brindle.

His spine twitched, telling him someone was creeping up behind him. Always trust your instincts. He peered around while Julia lamented about the mistreatment of brindles, yet Axil saw nothing but customers shopping, vendors making sales, and endless groups of aliens hustling through the market.

Yet at the cornling and vegetable protein stand, two armed tritierions stared their way.

Slavers.

His heart slammed up into his throat, and he instinctively pulled his sword.

The brindle seller floundered backward, his four arms lifting. Emitting a yip, he turned and leaped into his cart, where he gathered the reins dangling over the backs of his harnessed carafels, and smacked them down onto the beasties’ backs. The cart clattered down the alley behind the row of stalls, leaving nothing but a cloud of desert dust behind.

“He left the pup,” Julia said, her shoulders deflated. Wetness shimmered in her eyes. “He took off and actually left the poor brindle here to starve.”

“We must leave,” Axil said, watching the slavers shove through the crowd, heading in their direction. He snagged her arm and pulled her into the stall, planning to take the same route out of here as the vendor.

Julia peered over her shoulder. “I get it but—”

Rolling his eyes—he really enjoyed this gesture—he rushed back to where the pup gazed longingly at Julia. With a twist, he broke the lock and snatched the pup from inside the cage. He barreled back Julia and dumped the cheeping creature into her arms.

One of the slavers’ eyes met Axil’s, and the tritierion bellowed.

They’d been seen and identified.

“We are out of here,” he said, while Julia snuggled the palm-sized fluff ball under her chin.

“Earth female,” someone shouted, followed by, “breeding stock!”

Fuck.

“Run,” Axil hissed. He tugged Julia into the alley and they darted left. Another turn spilled them back into the market, however, and the tritierions gave chase.

Her gaze filled with panic, Julia raced beside him, the brindle pup tight in her arms. The creature, unconcerned about the rush, cooed and cheeped as it rubbed its face on her chin.

A gust of wind swept down the street. It hit Julia’s hood and flung it backward, revealing her fiery hair.

“Capture her,” someone yelled and pandemonium broke out. The crowd gave chase en masse, each eager to be the one to snag the prize slavers would universally kill to possess.

Axil would fight to the death to keep it from happening.

Sword in hand, he ran with Julia at his side. They darted down an alley with the full crowd roaring behind.

“Female,” some cried.

“Slave!”

“Priceless.”

“Earthling!”

A hubraian tackled Axil, and they toppled to the ground. As he rolled, Axil pulled his laser pistol, but the hubraian kicked it aside with one of his six legs. Blades slashed in his four hands, weaving a lethal pattern in the air, coming at Axil.

Axil lunged forward as the blades glided across his back. He lunged and sliced off one of the hubraian’s legs. While pale yellow blood flew through the air, the hubraian bellowed and drove its knives toward Axil.

Bending forward, Axil tucked in his belly to avoid being eviscerated.

A crowd gathered around, some jeering, others taking bets. Axil put Julia at his back. Matebond blood raged inside him, and he slashed his sword at the hubraian, severing a hand. The hubraian shrieked but kept attacking.

Julia had tucked the brindle under one arm and had her blade out, but other than keeping the crowd from creeping in at his backside to finish him off, the short sword wouldn’t be much use against the more lethal weapons on Mara.

The brindle leaped from her arms and stood in front of her, hissing in protective mode. While the creatures did little harm, their aggression couldn’t be discounted.

His slashes a blur, Axil thrust forward, driving a frontal assault at the hubraian. Julia clung to his back. His blade sang, slicing off another of the creature’s legs. It toppled sideways and scrambled to find purchase on the ground.

With a battle cry erupting from his lungs, Axil moved in to end this.

The hubraian’s tail whipped around and the spiked end drove into Axil’s side.

Julia screamed. The brindle snarled and flashed its claws at the crowd. The hubraian roared as it teetered on its remaining feet.

His hand clutched to his side to hold in his guts, Axil toppled backward, landing beside the brindle.

“Axil,” Julia cried.

14

Julia

“C atch the Earthling.” The chant from the crowd made Julia’s blood freeze solid.

She was no fighter, but she stood over Axil and slashed her blade when a few of the bolder aliens rushed toward her. They reeled backward, but others bolted around her, swords gouging the air.

She’d hold them off as long as she could, but her heart sank. How was she going to get them out of this?

Prepared to defend Axil to the death, she bared her teeth and growled. The crowd shoved forward, eager to take her down, truss her up, and sell her to the highest bigger.

Over her dead body.

But Axil. He wasn’t moving.

So much blood. Too much, it pooled beneath him.

Someone latched onto her arm from behind and yanked her backward. Stumbling over Axil, she spun, her blade whistling through the air.

The multi-legged beast that’d stabbed Axil loomed over her. It was missing limbs, but a fire still blazed in its eyes.

With rage singing through her veins, Julia leaped upward and drove her blade up through the creature’s throat.

A hush descended, and the crowd stilled. A few mouths dropped open.

With a groan, the beast toppled to the ground, sending dirt flying into the air. Its sides heaved once, twice, and then nothing.

Julia reeled around and stood over Axil, glaring at the crowd. “Come at me. I dare you!” she blubbered. She swiped tears from her eyes while the little brindle leaned against her leg and cheeped shrilly. “I’m gonna hold all of you off. Get it?”

“This, I shall see,” someone called out from deep within the crowd.

The crowd parted like you’d stumble away from a rabid dog, falling back to allow a tall, spindly, and decidedly blue alien to stalk through the opening, his four arms swinging loosely at his sides.

“Earthling? Star Wars?” the alien cried. “Likee them me!” He wore nothing but a linen loincloth dangling down onto the front of his spindly thighs. This loincloth was not sexy. His genitals shifted behind the cloth as he rocked back and forth, from one bare heel to the other. “You comee with me!” His hand snapped out and knocked the blade from her hand, but when he grabbed her arm, his gaze fell on Axil. Tipping his head back, he sniffed the air. “Earthling you be,” he announced. “Earthling him not.”

Behind the alien, the crowd hissed. Once the ruckus backed down, the alien bowed to Julia. “Earthling with me come. Safe for now shall you be.” He tapped his chest and his eyes gleamed. “Promise, I do.”

Christ, she was being rescued by a wannabe Yoda.

The alien’s gaze swept across those gathered behind him, and they cringed and scattered as if his gaze sprayed battery acid. They scurried into the alleys. cockroaches hiding under the baseboard.

“Come with me you shall,” the blue alien said. He pointed to his chest. “Fylee. Yoda.”

Shrugging away from his touch, Julia couldn’t take her gaze off Axil. Was he still alive? He seemed to be breathing. But the blood… She couldn’t stand it.

“Healer have I,” Fylee said. He lifted one of his arms and two short, round aliens lumbered closer. Were they his guards? He’d need them in a place like this.

“You have a healer?” Julia asked, grateful for the help. But she’d keep her eyes on Fylee. She wasn’t stupid. This alien possessed power.

The short aliens took Axil’s arms and legs and hauled him over to a silver vehicle parked near a building. The domed lid creaked up as they approached, and the short aliens dropped Axil inside the back.

“With me come?” Fylee said softly. “Likee me you shall.”

Did she have much choice?

She followed Fylee to the vehicle and climbed next to him in the front.

The domed lid smacked down, encasing them inside.

A snap and Fylee had secured Julia’s wrists with nylon bindings. She bucked and shrieked but couldn’t break free. “Let me go!”

“Healing we shall do,” Fylee said. His thick lips peeled back, revealing long, jagged teeth. “Then slavers will we call.”

15

Axil

A xil woke. His side throbbed, but he didn’t care.

He bolted upright. “Julia!”

“I’m here,” she said from beside him. She sat on the edge of the thin pad he lay on and stroked his forehead. Creases lined her face, and a lifetime of pain shone in her eyes. “Lie back. It’s okay.”

“I…” He shook his head, and his sekairs dropped onto his shoulders, fusing with his scales.

“You’ve been out all day. I was…” She swallowed hard, as if her throat hurt. “I was worried.”

“Where are we?” A glance showed he sat on a raised pad in a small room. No window, only a door with no viewing panel and no furniture other than the bed.

She huffed, and her shoulders eased. “Some guy who thinks he’s Yoda pretended to rescue us after I killed the creature that stabbed you.”

“You…killed the hubraian?”

“If that’s what it was called, then yes.” Her grin was only fleeting, but it still stole his breath like a fist to the chest. “Guess I have some spunk in me after all.”

His arm went around her, and he tugged her close. “I believe there is a story here, but first, tell me more about this…Yoda.”

“You were stabbed and went unconscious.” Her fingers traced along his naanans and, despite the situation, an ache to be with her rose inside him. “I couldn’t find a bump on your head. I couldn’t tell what was wrong.”

“There’s toxin on the hubraian’s sword.” He lifted his shirt and was pleased to see the wound was sealed. “You found a healer.”

“Yoda did help with that, but that was about the only thing he was good for.” She rubbed her wrists, and he growled when he saw abrasions encircling them.

“They bound you.” He cupped her face and watched her eyes, awaiting her flinch. “Did they hurt you?”

“He only tied my wrists. Nothing else.”

“Then I don’t have to kill Yoda. Yet.” He traced the marks on her wrists. Kissed them. Fury built inside him, feeding his blood rage. “How did you get me to the healer?”

“That’s where Yoda came in.” She traced her finger along one of his naanans absently, unaware of how her simple action lit him on fire. When he frowned at the name, she explained. “This guy thinks he’s a character from a movie, named Yoda. When he pushed through the crowd and said he could help, I trusted him, but as soon as he had us inside his vehicle, he bound my wrists and said something about slavers.”

Fuck. “Describe him.” He didn’t like the sound of this.

“Tall. Blue skin. Four arms. He wore a loincloth.”

“Fylee.” Double fuck. Could the situation get much worse?

“You know him?” she said.

“I have not met him, but I have heard of him. He has a bad reputation.”

Her lips twisted. “You’re telling me.”

“He is the governor of this colony.”

“One of the bad guys, then, of course.”

He moved his legs toward the edge of the mat. “Help me up.”

Her hands nudged his shoulders, making him lie down. “You were just bleeding to death. Unconscious. Rest.”

“We cannot wait for the slavers to arrive.”

She tapped her lips, frowning. “If they haven’t come by now, maybe they won’t come at all.”

“Fylee has contacts he uses exclusively. They will be here. Soon.”

The lock on the door rattled.

Julia stood and dragged a light blanket up over him. “Pretend you’re still unconscious.”

He flung back the blanket. “Absolutely not.”

She nudged him back down again and tucked the blanket around him. “It’s our only chance. Let me try to talk our way out of this.”

He grumbled but could see where playing unconscious could work to their advantage. He would not allow her to be his sole defense.

Julia moved away from the bed and stopped in the middle of the room, facing the door. Her right hand held something… Nestled against her thigh, he couldn’t identify what it was.

Fylee strolled inside and shut the door behind him. From what Axil could tell, the lock did not engage.

“Awake he is?” Fylee asked, the weight of his gaze falling on Axil.

“Not yet.” Julia fretted. “I’m worried about him. Why hasn’t he woken up?”

“Matters it does not,” Fylee said. “Slavers take him they shall.”

“Fuck you, Yoda.”

Axil’s eyes snapped open in time to see Julia lift one of his three-pronged serafinn blades she must’ve removed from his boot. She slammed against Fylee and poked the blades up against the blue male’s neck. “Proven, I am. Kill you, I shall,” she barked. “You’re nowhere near Yoda.” Scorn dripped from her words. “You’re an asshole.”

Pain actually creased Fylee’s face. Who was this Yoda and what hold did he have over the governor of Mara?

“Die, you shall for this. Yoda, I am!”

“Don’t try me.” Hand tightening on the grip, Julia wiggled the blade up against Fylee’s neck. He yelped. “Yoda was brave. Strong. Short. Okay, that’s the wrong attribute, but still. He never would have kidnapped Luke or Leia.”

Fylee’s chest deflated, but he quickly rallied. His gills expanded and his spine tightened. “Then Darth Vader I am.”

Julia’s lips twisted. “You’ve got the height but you lack the hiss.”

“Jabba Hut, I be!”

“Sure hope not. I don’t look good in a bikini.” She maneuvered him around until his back faced Axil. Maybe talking wasn’t such a bad idea. This gave Axil the chance he’d waited for.

He leaped from the bed and tackled Fylee, avoiding the poison secreting from the ridges on Fylee’s back. His knee held him in place while Axil yanked Fylee’s hands around to his back.

Fylee looked up and snarled at Julia. “Honor, you have not.”

“Yeah, well, I’m not Leia, okay?” She poked her thumb against her chest. “I’m just Julia, mate to…” Her grin became true when it fell on Axil. “My very own pirate prince.”

“Mate you shall never be,” Fylee said.

Julia’s shoulders curled forward but only for a minar before she straightened and looked Fylee in the eye. “You don’t know a damn thing about me. It’ll happen.” Her voice lowered. “I’ll make sure it happens. “

“Where’s your closest shuttle?” Axil asked Fylee, poking the Al’kieern in the back with the blade he took from his mateling.

“We’re on a ship,” Julia said. Her hand flicked toward Fylee. “Yoda here beamed us up.”

Could it be that easy?

“I’m pressing your com,” Axil said, meaning the communication device Fylee wore on his wrist. “Command your crew to leave the ship.”

Fylee stuck his nose up and sneered. “Do it, I shall not.”

Axil poked his blade harder, drawing blood.

Fylee squealed and shimmied along the floor. “Do it I shall!”

The announcement was made overhead. Below deck, the engines whirred, powering up to accommodate the energy needed to transport everyone to the planet.

“Happy are you now?” Fylee asked after the engines backed down.

“Not yet, but I will be.” Axil removed the com and tossed it onto the mattress. He lifted Fylee off the floor and nudged him forward with the blade. “Time for you to abandon ship.”

“Thief, you are,” Fylee shouted.

“This would get old fast,” Julia said, her nose scrunching. “Gone, you must be. Soon.”

They wound through the halls of the ship until they reached the transport pad, where they sent Fylee back down to the planet. Then they ran to the control center and Axil reprogrammed the transport system and the ship itself so it would respond only to his commands. He set a course for Tress.

Julia grinned when he’d finished. “Cool.”

“Only cool?” he said, leaning back against the panel, his fangs bared. He held out his arms.

She stepped into them and smiled up at him. “Actually, you’re the hottest alien pirate I know, and I’m glad you’re mine.”

16

Julia

T  hey arrived at Tress about eight denjars—hours—later. Axil set the ship down on a lake and maneuvered it close to the shore.

“No transport,” Julia asked, lounging on Axil’s lap. He sat in the captain’s chair, and she fell asleep on top of him. Ever since he was hurt, she hadn’t wanted to let him out of her sight. The easiest way to do that was to sit in his lap.

A ping sounded and a light lit up on the control panel.

“Should we answer that? Could be Yoda, eager to tell us the force is with him and not us.”

Alex chuckled, but she doubted he understood.

When the light pinged again, he leaned around her to answer it.

“Unusual craft,” someone said through the speaker. “Looks Maran to me. Fylee’s?”

“How did you guess, Gaje?” Axil said with a smile.

“The odd green guy with big ears painted on the front gave it away. But the ship’s name. Huh. What the heille is a millennium falcon?”

“Yoda,” Julia said with a laugh. “He painted a frickin’ Yoda on the front?”

“Julia?” her best friend cried through the speaker. “Is that you?”

“Thea!” Julia hopped off Axil’s lap and scooted in close to the panel, as if that would bring her closer to her friend. “Where are you?”

“At Gaje’s—well, our—estate. Ha-ha, I love the sound of that. Estate. Has a nice ring to it, doesn’t it? Anyway, it’s on the palace grounds. Gaje says he saw you arrive through the security system at Axil’s place by the lake. Are you okay?” Worry deepened her voice.

“Thea,” Julia said with a half-sob, half-laugh. “I’m so glad you’re safe. You’re with Gaje? Is that the—“

“Seven-foot-tall green guy who carried me away? Yup. Would you believe it? I was his mail-order bride and now we’re mates.”

“So happy for you!”

“Yeah,” Thea sighed. “He’s awesome. We’ve…” Julia could almost picture her friend sitting up straighter. “A matebond symbol appeared on my hand this morning.”

Axil came up behind Julia and wrapped his arms around her, lending support. How had he known she’d need him at this moment? Because…there was no symbol on her hand. Not yet. What if one never appeared?

Axil tucked her hair to the side and grazed his fangs along her neck, driving away her sadness. Delicious shivers glided through her. She’d never get enough of his touch. His taste.

“Gaje and I have had quite an adventure,” Thea said. “We almost crashed the ship and— “

“We did not,” Gaje insisted with a growl.

“Well, sorta. We got stuck on a meteor. He had to go out and—”

“Really?” Julia said, only half-listening as the two teased each other about their adventure, because Axil’s naanans were gliding around to her breasts. They tucked underneath her tunic and sucked on her nipples.

Her knees crumpled, but he caught her with an arm around her waist.

Shit. Closing her eyes, she gave in to the wonderful sensation and moaned.

“Julia?” Thea said sharply. “Are you okay? You’re not hurt, are you?”

“Yes…” Julia’s eyes opened. “I mean…no. I’m fine.” So much more than fine.

“I know you two want to be alone for a while,” Thea said. “Truly, I get it. But the second you arrive at the palace, let me know and I’ll come visit.”

“Will do.”

Axil unfastened her leather pants and slid them down over her hips. She kicked the material aside as he bent her forward, over the control panel. Good thing the ship was in park. Or out of gear. Whatever. At least she wouldn’t hit a lever or button and jolt them back into orbit.

He spread her legs wide and stooped down behind her.

“I really can’t wait to see you,” Thea said. “I miss you!”

“Miss you… Oh…”

One of Axil’s naanans had found her clit and the inner flutter mechanism engaged. Axil glided his tongue down her crease and delved inside.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

“Are you okay?” Thea asked. “You sound…strange. I wish I could see you and make sure there’s nothing wrong.”

Really wouldn’t want to share what was going on, even with her best friend.

“I…need to…go,” Julia said, spreading her legs wider to give Axil better access.

“Well, okay,” Thea said. “I’m so glad you’re safe. And I can’t wait to see you.”

“You, too. Bye!” Julia ended the call with a push of the button. “You fiend,” she growled at Axil, but how could she be irritated with someone who made her pulse sing?

“That is me,” he said from between his legs, his fingers gliding into her wetness. “I am a fiend with finesse.” Silence fell over the room as his tongue joined his fingers inside her. He sucked and laved and flicked her G spot until she was panting and begging for release.

Standing, he spread her legs even wider.

As he drove himself inside, she moaned and urged him on, rocking back to meet each of his thrusts.

He held her hips steady and went faster, smacking into her and pushing her to the brink.

She tightened inside, and their groans mingled in the air.

As she spiraled up to the stars, secure in Axil’s arms, she glanced down at her hand and grinned.

A gleaming matebond symbol—one that matched Axil’s—had appeared on her palm.

It’s not over yet!

Turn the page for Gaje.…

GAJE

It isn’t every day an Earth woman

is chosen to be a mail-order bride

for a hulking male of

an extraterrestrial race.

A mail-order alien bride en route to meet her groom, Thea’s kidnapped by an alien pirate. Ravishment might be in her future, but she won’t go down without a fight. If only Gaje’s touch didn’t light her skin on fire.

Gaje is a mass of rock-solid alien brawn who takes whatever he wants. When his skin connects with Thea’s, his matebond ignites. Now there’s nothing he won’t do to claim her.

Gaje is a prequel novella in the complete Mail-Order Brides of Crakair Series. This standalone romance features aliens who look and act alien, on-the-page heat, a guaranteed happily ever after, no cheating, and no cliffhanger.

Look for the 6-book series on Amazon.

Chapter 1

THEA

T  he hem of Thea’s Crakairian mating gown—the Crakairian government’s name for it, not hers—swished around her ankles as she and her friend, Julia, hurried down a dingy metal corridor in the depths of an alien spaceship orbiting Earth.

A short time ago, they’d taken the shuttle from Earth and soon, they were supposed to meet their alien fiancés for the first time. By tomorrow, they’d be flying toward their new lives and new homes on the planet, Crakair.

Instead of dancing and drinking champagne, or whatever the Crakairians did to celebrate occasions like this, she and Julia got lost. Something about Julia being convinced the ballroom was at the bottom of a stairwell, at the end of a long hallway. Who would put a formal reception area in the hull of a spaceship?

In fifteen minutes, Gaje, Thea’s intended, would be waiting in the ballroom, eager to sweep her off her feet. Sorta sweep her off her feet. They’d actually go through a formal courtship before he would propose marriage. No hot stuff between the covers until she agreed. So said the rules decided upon by Earth and Crakair when the mail-order bride arrangement was negotiated.

“We’ve got to get to the ballroom,” Thea said, gaping around the dark, dimly lit gray metal halls they’d been rushing through for so long even Thea couldn’t tell which way was up and which way was down. “Are you sure we’re going in the right direction?”

“At this point, who knows?” Julia cringed. “I’m sorry. I messed up. They’re going to be pissed off when we don’t show up.”

“They’ll wait for us.” While Thea said this in complete confidence, her belief was eroding fast. What if they never made it to the ballroom? “Who else would they marry?”

“Other Earth women.”

A twinge of jealousy she had no right feeling shot through Thea. While she hadn’t met Gaje, she felt like he was hers already.

“Ours are two of the first five matches,” Thea said. “If we don’t show up, would it cause an intergalactic war?”

“Ugh,” Julia said. “Leave it to us to be responsible for something like that.”

They reached an intersection and Thea peered around, trying to decide where to go next.

A year ago, a mysterious disease swept through the galaxy, killing most of the women on Crakair and the men on Earth. Eager to continue their species, the Crakairian council had sent messages into the stars, seeking brides. One of their pings connected with Earth.

Earth women laughed when the matchmaking proposal was introduced to the public. Until pictures of the Crakairian men arrived. Despite the appendages jutting off their heads that resembled thick dreadlocks, and their scaly green skin, a match with a Crakairian male was a chance for an Earth woman to have a family other than through artificial insemination.

A clang behind them sent Thea scurrying forward. “What was that?” she whispered, her wide-eyed gaze meeting Julia’s.

Julia revealed a small knife in her hand. “Don’t worry. I brought protection.”

“Do you know how to use it?”

“Let’s hope I don’t have to.” Julia snagged Thea’s arm, and they hurried forward.

Shivers crept up Thea’s spine when more bangs rang out, stomping her way. Who knew if alien creatures lived on the spaceship? For all she knew, something was hunting them right now.

With fear bolting through her, she kept pace with Julia, rounding a curve and racing down another ramp.

“I don’t like this,” Thea said. “I think we should—“

They turned a corner and smacked into two alien mechanics—if their grease-stained clothing was anything to go by. Each hulking green male grabbed one of them by the arms and held tight.

“Holy hell,” Thea said, gaping up at the guy towering over her.

He bared his fangs, lethal-looking things that hung halfway down his jaw. The dreadlocks on his head—called naanans—flared up before settling around his shoulders like thick, living bands of hair.

After dipping forward in a short bow, the alien holding Thea spoke. “Dreafillar.” He murmured something else, but her translator was implanted a few days ago. It would need time to acclimate to their speech patterns before they could fully understand each other.

Julia struggled with the alien holding her while Thea did the same, shrieking and kicking, but she couldn’t break free.

The alien who grabbed Thea revealed his fangs again as if he found her struggles amusing. With a soft grunt, he stooped forward and tossed her over his shoulder. She landed on his rock-hard muscles, releasing a woof.

His big hand slapped down on her ass.

She squirmed and beat her fists against his back because hell, no, she wasn’t up for an alien abduction, especially if it came with probes. But he chuckled and his fingers bit into her butt. His long strides ate up the corridor, taking her away from her friend.

“Julia!” Thea cried as the other woman was lifted and taken in the opposite direction.

“I’ll find you,” Julia shouted, her voice echoing through the corridor. “Hang on!”

With her hands braced on the guy’s back, Thea couldn’t miss the alien’s tight butt shifting as he walked. She growled. Why the hell was she checking out his ass?

She flailed, bucking and hitting, but the alien only tightened his hand on her butt.

He turned a corner and pushed a button beside a door, making it open. Striding forward, he took her through a series of halls before reaching another door on the outer wall. A few clicks and the panel opened. He stepped into a narrow hall that ended at a hatch that hissed open when they approached. Inside, she spied a chamber as small as an elevator. Two chairs sat in front of another window.

Holy fuck, the whole universe waited through the glass.

The alien sat on one of the chairs and shifted Thea around until she faced him with her legs straddling his hips and hanging down between the armrests. This was a rather intimate position.

Something big stirred beneath her…

Crap, crap. He was getting a frickin’ hard-on!

“Met we have,” the seven-foot tall, hulking alien said. When he bared his fangs, a delicious shiver shot up her spine. “Mate we shall.”

Wait, wait. This was going way to fast.

“Mate?” she gulped out. “As in we’re going to have sex? I don’t think so. You need to get that idea out of your head yesterday.”

He scowled, making her wonder about her translator. Nevertheless, she persisted.

“You should know right now,” she said in her best kindergarten teacher’s voice. “I’m engaged to another man. I don’t do the horizontal tango with strangers.” Her gaze drifted down to the bulge growing in his pants. Oh, shit, was something down there humming? Who the hell carried a vibrator around in his pants? Unless… Her eyes flashed up to his, and heat climbed into her cheeks and settled in for the long haul. “Does your cock vibrate?”

He dipped his head and showed his fangs again, and his attention remained centered on her mouth.

Flames pooled in her belly and dove downward. “Fuck,” she moaned. “I can’t even imagine how that would—”

“Yes, fucking,” he said matter-of-factly.

“No.” She shook a finger at him, trying to gather her scattered wits. “There will be absolutely no fucking.”

“Yes, fucking.”

Heaven help her. She’d been abducted by a horny caveman alien if his one-track mind was anything to go by. He was going to fling her onto the floor and have his way with her.

Reaching around her, he pressed a button on the panel. A pop and her belly dropped. No, they dropped. Stars blurred past the window.

“Hold on a second,” she spun around to take in the view through the glass. “You just…disengaged from the spaceship.”

“Mate we shall,” he said.

“Yeah, hold that thought.” She flicked her hand in his direction. “If this is a kidnapping attempt… If you’re some kind of space pirate… I want to formally object to your methods.” Scrambling off his lap, she stood in front of him, waggling a finger in his face. “I will not allow you to get away with—“

His tongue dipped out, thick and long, and forked at the tip. It teased the end of her finger. Tingles shot up her arm.

Double holy hell.

“Don’t even think about the variety of uses you could find for that tongue,” she whispered to herself.

Grabbing her hips, he tugged her close, his legs separating to allow her near. He leaned down and his fangs grazed her neck.

“As I said…” Her voice came out breathy for no good reason. Okay, she had a very good reason. A hot alien pirate had kidnapped her and was trying to seduce her. “I have an alien intended already. A groom I’m supposed to marry. Do those words translate?”

His tongue glided along her jawline, teasing the skin all the way to her ear, where he nipped with his fangs.

Delicious shivers dropped down into her belly.

Her will to resist was fading fast.

“My alien fiancé is gonna be pissed off when he hears you stole me.” Her voice came out weak. “He’ll come after you and…” What would he do? Oh, yeah. “And he’ll kick your carcass into the next galaxy.”

She hoped so. She really didn’t know what Gaje would do when he found out she’d been taken. Would he come after her or look a new mail-order bride?

The alien’s fingers traveled up her back, and he dragged her fully against his rock-hard body.

“His name is…” She blanked but shook her head to clear it. “His name is Gaje. Maybe you know him. He’s gonna whip your ass.” A brave thing for her to suggest when she’d yet to meet the guy, but anything to stop the imminent ravishment. “Get it? Gaje is gonna kill you for this.”

Leaning back, the alien bared his fangs and poked his chest. “Gaje.”

“Not falling for that one,” she said with twisted lips. “You can’t do this. You don’t understand.”

“Understand,” he grunted. His naanans rose and stroked her shoulders, reaching around to cup the back of her neck. Her body aflame, she tried to maintain control of her brain before it dove over the cliff and into his arms.

“Like…” What was she saying? Something about… Wait. “You can’t just march onto a ship and grab a woman, haul her to a mini spaceship then say, hey, I’m your fiancé, let’s fuck.”

“Yes, fucking,” he growled against her throat. “Much fucking.”

As heat pooled between her legs, she struggled, giving one last attempt to break free from his heady seduction. “Please. Let me go?”

Head lifting, the alien gently tapped where her throat met her chest. His fingertip trailed down the skin exposed at the top of her engagement dress until it nestled between her breasts. “Thea.”

“How do you know my name?”

“Gaje.” Another poke at his chest was followed by a tap on hers. “Thea, Gaje. Mates.”

Her breath caught.

Holy fuck, this sexy alien pirate was her future husband.

Chapter 2

GAJE

G aje’s translator might not be fully functional, but enough of Thea’s words came through.

She was confused about who he was.

She thought he was kidnapping her.

She already wanted him.

Heille. After he’d been chosen in the first Selection, he and four other Crakairian males made the long journey to Earth to claim their human female brides.

Per the agreement his government made with Earth, rules must be followed. They each must first court their intended mates before proposing marriage. Assuming she accepted—and he couldn’t imagine his sweet little Thea saying no—they would then commence with the fucking. Like every Crakairian male deprived of female companionship for a very long time, he was eager to get to the end goal.

But as much as he ached to carry her to his sleeping chamber and solidify their matebond, he must first court her.

Leaning around his mate, he pressed a few more buttons, programming the shuttlecraft with the coordinates for Crakair. Once set on autopilot, he would be free to pursue other matters.

It would take three daelas to reach their destination, and he intended to be fully mated with Thea by the time they arrived. They could proceed with the marriage when they landed, after which, he’d take her to his small estate on the outer boundary of the palace, located in the city of Tri’Arteele.

As vizier to Crown Prince Axil, he would then continue his work at Axil’s side, and his mate could raise their younglings, of which there would be many.

“I can’t frickin’ believe this,” she shrieked. “You’re the guy I’m supposed to marry?”

He nodded; thankful he understood most of what she said.

“Then where the hell are you taking me?” Her hands flicked to the gown covering her curvy form. “Reception, remember? Meeting up politely over cocktails that I’d overindulge in because I am a frickin’ wreck right now. You’d bow and greet me, maybe compliment me on my hair or whatever. We might dance—”

“What dance is this?”

She blinked before her face cleared. “You do know what dancing is, right?” Her hips shifted back and forth while she hummed a discordant tune. “Dancing.”

She wished to dance? This was not one of his skills but he would give a valiant effort if it pleased her.

“Plans of change,” he said, wishing he could make himself better understood. Damn translator. “Leave Crakair now.”

“So we had to shift plans?” she said. “I mean… I knew we were leaving tomorrow but… I guess I thought I’d get to say goodbye. What about my mom?” Wetness filled her eyes, a new occurrence for him. Seeping. Was that the word he’d read for this eye dripping? No…weeping. Humans did this when they were happy but also when they were sad.

He hated that he’d somehow been responsible for her sadness.

He winced and lifted his hands, though he was unsure what to do with them.

Tugging her close, he pressed her against his chest. Hugging, he did understand; the gesture had to be universal.

She sniffed and seeped—weeped—wept—a bit more before leaning back in his arms. “Thanks. I’m sorry I got your shirt wet.” Her fingers traced the dark spots on the material.

“Worry not,” he said. Lifting his tunic, he pulled it over his head and tossed it aside.

“Lots of, um…scales you’ve got there.” Her eyes drifted across the segments that spread across his upper chest and shoulders then down across his pecs to his… “Holy abs.” She covered her lips with her hand. “You, um, planning to put on a dry shirt?”

“Time later.” Right now, he was more interested in drinking in the appreciation shimmering in her brown eyes. While emotions between them would come later, he was encouraged by her obvious attraction for his male form.

Perhaps if he made things clear between them, she would feel more settled. She would relax and allow him to proceed with the courtship.

“Leave Earth,” he said.

“Kinda obvious, don’t you think?” Her hand flicked to the stars streaking by outside the shuttlecraft. “Why now?”

“Duty.”

“Ah.” She nodded slowly. “So you had to leave early and when you ran into me in the hall, you decided you might as well get things underway.”

While he wasn’t confident of the meanings of all her words, he got the gist of what she said. Thankfully, his translator was beginning to function as it should. “Now leave. Sorry, am I goodbye not.”

She stared past his shoulder a minar. “Oh. I get it. We had to leave and you’re sorry.”

He nodded.

A soft sigh tugged down her shoulders. “It’s okay, I guess. I was going to be leaving soon anyway. I just thought…” she gulped, “that I’d have one more chance to see my family.”

“Family again see.”

“How is that possible? Unless I decide we’re not compatible during the ten-day trial period and opt to take the next ship back to Earth.”

Their governments had arranged this. While a Crakairian couple might go through a lengthy courtship, sometimes up to a yaro or more, Earth had specified that their females could decide at ten daelas if they wanted to stay on Crakair or return to their home world. Gaje was already determined to convince his Thea to stay. She called to him like no other had before.

“Compatible us,” he insisted. There would be no backing out of this mating. She was his and he would keep her. But how could he convince her of this?

Ah, yes, courtship. Following the ancient Crakairian rituals would show her the seriousness of his intentions and what a relationship between them could be.

Her lips curled up slightly. “I do believe you’re right about compatibility, but still.”

He placed his hands on her hips, grateful she agreed because… while it was sudden, the emotions swirling inside him suggested he would want more from his mate than just fucking.

“Family see.” He pressed his fist against his chest in a vow. “Gaje promise.”

Her mood visibly lightened, and her lips curled up fully. “Okay, cool. Thank you.”

Since mating protocols still needed to be followed, he must make his intentions clear.

“Courtship,” he said, taking her hand. He kissed it, something he read human females enjoyed. Since he was selected in the matchmaking program, he’d studied this species as much as he could. Earth had sent manuals detailing Earth customs and outlining ways to win the emotions of human female mates. They enjoyed…walks, which would not be possible on the spacecraft. Moovees. From what he could tell, moovees resembled vids. Would Thea enjoy watching repair tutorials? Dancing. Gaje would shift his hips if it impressed Thea.

He growled. Earthling females seemed complicated, and their ways much different than Crakairians. Without dance, vids, and walks, how could he convince her?

While Gaje was eager for the fucking, he also now hoped to win her affection.

“Yes, courtship is supposed to come first,” she said, and he read the wryness in her tone. “Not abduction.”

“Abduction courtship is.”

She snorted. “Maybe in your eyes but not in mine.” Her brow creased and he studied the lines of hair above her eyes, so different from his heavy brow ridges. What did the hairs feel like? Would she reel back if he touched them? “Although… I guess this hasn’t been a horrible first date.”

“Flowers there will be,” he said. Something else mentioned in the win-your-mate’s-heart manual, though there was no living vegetation in outer space.

“Ah, yes.” Her delicate brows drew together. So strange, these human females. Crakairian women had no hair at all and certainly not on their faces or heads. Yet on Thea, the small fluffy lines above her eyes added distinction. Beauty even, despite her differences when compared to women from Crakair. As he studied her form, his heart thumped once. Twice. Then faster than it should. He was enthralled by his little human already.

Now to ensure she felt the same.

“Flowers are nice,” she said added.

See? The manual was correct. While he did not have flowers aboard his small spacecraft, they flourished on his estate.

The manual also mentioned that friendly touch would be welcome.

His naanans drifted forward, as eager to taste her skin as his fingers.

Eyes widening, she reeled back as they approached. “These…naanans.” Her lips twisted but he read curiosity, not distaste in her expression. “They’re like hair but they’re not, correct?”

“Not hair. Touch. See.”

“You mean I can touch them?” At his nod, her fingertip trailed down one thick band to the tip that was highly sensitive and could stimulate him to arousal. The end latched onto her fingertip and the inner strands fluttered.

She yipped but her gaze went languid. “Do they… Shit. I shouldn’t even be saying this. I mean, we just met.”

“Tell.”

“This…fluttering thing inside your naanans. Do you use them during…sex?”

“Naanans are for defense.” His thick, scaled brows drew together. “Where would they be used for intimacy?”

“Ho, boy,” she sighed. “One of these days, you and I are going to have to talk about multipurpose body parts.” She tugged her finger away from the pulsing flutter and ran it down another naanan.

Heat charged to his groin, and his cock rose, shoving against the stiff leather of his pants. He wanted to rip them off—her clothing, too—and taste every inch of her creamy, medium-toned skin. Then start all over again and taste her some more before he drove himself deep inside her.

Damn courtship rituals and protocol.

Like the males, Crakairian females had scales, though they were smaller and finer than a male’s. But they did not possess smooth skin like Thea. He did wonder how this seemingly fragile surface could withstand battle. But perhaps Earthlings no longer stripped and fought naked?

Since she was exploring, he would, too. He trailed his fingertip down her neck to her shoulders then along her arm.

She closed her eyes, and a soft moan escaped her lips. But her eyes popped open and she stepped backward, putting distance between them. “You can’t.”

“I shall. Mate you are. Mate we will.”

“I’m beginning to believe that might be part of my future, but jeez, Gaje, you ever heard of a little foreplay before diving between the sheets?”

“What foreplay is?”

“Hell,” she growled. Her eyes spun in a circle, making him question the functioning of her mind, but her wry tone suggested indulgence. “I hope you’re not a slam it in, pop off, and sag back onto the bed kind of guy.”

“There will be no sagging,” he said vehemently, not completely sure of the rest of her statement but determined to assure her of his prowess.

“Whoa.” Her eyes widened. “You just spoke full English there. Yay for translators getting up to speed.”

“Tell me more about this foreplay.” His gaze dipped to the large protuberances on her chest. Breasts, they were called, and made for suckling young. Crakairian females did not have mounds to nurse infants. He read a few other things about female lumps in the manual, though he couldn’t remember exactly what he read.

She lifted her chin. “Foreplay is how a guy gets a woman ready for…”

“The fucking.”

“Yeah, the fucking.” She shifted her eyes around again. “You do have a one-track mind, don’t you?”

He fisted his chest. “Courtship. Marriage. Fucking.”

“In that order?”

“Courtship is always first.”

“But then…”

“I will grant you one daela—”

“Day?”

He nodded. “One daela to acclimate to me before I will seek consent for the fucking.”

Chapter 3

THEA

Despite how abruptly this relationship was progressing, Thea couldn’t hold back her swoon.

There wasn’t anything more arousing than a hot guy making it perfectly clear he not only wanted to get to know her better but he was eager to take whatever she’d offer.

And they were going to get married. Sure, she had ten days to decide but she was the kind of woman who made up her mind fast.

She liked Gaje, she was attracted to him, and he had a cute, kind way about him. Despite all his talk about fucking, he wasn’t pressing her for something she wasn’t ready to give. They were alone. If he wanted, he could do whatever he pleased. She was almost half his size, unable to defend herself against him if he pushed.

Courtship was supposed to come before everything else but it sounded like they could twist things around a bit after that.

She wasn’t sure how she felt about putting “the fucking” before marriage, but holy frickin’ hell, she already wanted him. Emotions? She wasn’t as clear where she stood there. Although, he was cute in a gruff way, and whenever he flashed his fangs, her knees went weak. That had to count for something.

This relationship had been set up for procreation…

From what she’d seen already, it wouldn’t take much persuasion on his part to gain her consent.

She stepped backward because this guy was lethal. Sure, they were sort of engaged, but that didn’t mean they would hop into the sack the first time they met. She had her principles and first dates were for kissing and a little touch. No set rules after that.

Dropping into the other chair, she put her heels up on the dashboard.

Alarms blared, and lights flashed around her. Oops.

Her feet dropped to the floor with a thud while Gaje lurched forward. He fiddled with a bunch of dials on the dash. The craft took a nosedive, righted and leveled off, and then continued flying forward, into the stars.

The lights stopped flashing and the alarms cut off.

“Sorry,” she said, hiding her face in her palms.

“No matter. But perhaps…”

“Don’t touch a damn thing?” She grinned, and he bared his fangs. Was this his version of a smile?

“Are you hungry?” he asked.

Her belly rumbled on cue. “I assume you have food onboard?”

“I do.” Rising, he strode around his chair and opened a cabinet on the wall. He settled back into his seat and handed her one of two wrapped bars. “I will offer you better food once we reach my—our—home.”

“Thank you.” She peered down at it, wondering what it was made of but shrugged. Even if it was congealed bark or bugs, it wasn’t as if she had much choice.

As she picked at the wrapping, she lifted her head and stared through the window. Since her first trip off-planet had been inside an enclosed shuttle to the big spaceship, she hadn’t seen the outer atmosphere. None of the constellations looked the same but then, they wouldn’t. Her viewing angle had changed. “How long will it take this ship to reach Crakair?”

“Traveling at this speed, the timeframe is approximately three daelas.”

“That’s right, no sunrise or true sunset when you travel through the stars. It’ll take about seventy-two hours, then.”

He nodded while she tore off the wrapper and bit into the dark gray bar. Tasted like sweet cardboard but she assumed it contained the nutrients she’d need to maintain life.

“What are we going to do to pass the time?” she asked around the bite.

His gaze flicked down her front, and delicious tingles spread through her. Could she put more distance between them? When he looked at her like that, she wanted to strip off her clothing—his, too—and climb onto his lap. Climb onto everything.

Would it be considered improper to ask if his entire body was dark green?

They’d been given some information about Crakair and their computer-matched males, but the details had teased more than they revealed.

A civilized society, the Crakairians lived on an Earth-sized planet with about one-tenth of the population. The planet had three moons in orbit. The surviving female Crakairians had a status similar to what Thea was familiar with on Earth, but it was less clear about the rights of Earthling women. No matter, she’d get it sorted out soon.

Gaje held a position as the Crown Prince’s Vizier, and he lived on an estate outside the city of Tri’Arteele. The Prince…

“Was the other guy, the one who grabbed my friend Julia, the Crown Prince?” When Gaje nodded, her shoulders loosened. “Phew. Then she’s safe.”

“She is with her mate.”

Hopefully, she was having as much fun as Thea.

She finished up the bar and he took the empty package from her. After staring at the stars for a while, she got bored. Sleep might be an option but what if he asked to join her? She wasn’t sure she could resist if he turned on the charm. There must be something they could do to provide a distraction.

“You happen to play cards?” she asked.

“What are cards?”

She sighed. “If I had my bag, I’d be able to—”

“This?” He lifted the duffle she’d sent to the ship two days ago in preparation for leaving Earth. They weren’t allowed to bring much, just the bag, but it was nice to have it with her.

“Yes, that’s mine.” He handed it to her and she unzipped the top, pulling out the deck of cards she brought with her. Cards didn’t take up much space, and she adored playing solitaire. “How about a rousing game of…” Okay, she was a total imp. “Strip poker?” No worries on her part. Her dad had been a card shark, and she’d grown up around casinos. Before he died, Dad taught her all his tricks.

“What is this strip the poker?” he asked, intrigued.

She tugged the cards from the package and, tossing everything else onto the floor, shuffled the deck. After explaining the rules, she grinned. “You up for a few hands?”

“As long as you are…up…for losing your clothing.” He studied her frame as if he could see through the silky layers, and her nipples tightened.

“Don’t worry about me, dude. Think of yourself.” Her gaze glided down his tall, muscular form. Fair was fair. He stared, and so could she. “From what I can tell, you’re wearing pants and boots. Socks, maybe. I’ll grant you the shirt for your first loss. No need to put it back on.” Please, don’t put it on. “Other than that… You going commando?”

His thick brows furrowed, making the dime-sized oval scales on his face glisten in the low light. Larger scales trailed across his torso, gleaming silvery green. She couldn’t stop staring at his gorgeous form.

“No worries,” she said lightly, though her voice shook. If looking could get her this hot and bothered, what would happen if he touched her? “I imagine we’ll find out.” After dealing the cards, she sat back and looked at her hand. Cool. The only way he’d beat her would be if he had…

Crap. How had the guy been dealt a royal flush?

Ten minutes later, her gown had been shimmied off and draped across the back of her chair. Her shoes had been tossed aside. She sat in the leather chair in her very skimpy undies. While she might be a kindergarten teacher, she shopped high-class. These babies had not only cost a fortune, they made her look like she’d been crafted from gold.

Gaje’s heavy-lidded gaze remained locked on her chest. Oh, yeah, Crakairian women didn’t have breasts. Was he intrigued or horrified by them? Frankly, she’d always been pleased with their size and shape. They made up for her crooked nose—broken when she was twelve and wrestled a fifteen-year-old neighbor kid—and her fine, dark brown hair that hung past her shoulders.

Everyone said blondes had more fun but it looked like blondes would envy Thea now.

He dealt the next hand and she studied her cards, strategizing how she might at least win enough rounds to see what was pressing against the front of his pants.

Damn, two threes.

They finished the hand and laid down their cards. He’d scored two tens and three queens.

“This means I win. Again.” His gaze smoldered when it met hers. “What will you remove now, my mate? This?” His fingertip traced from her neck to the crest of her breasts peeking above her push-up bra. “Or this…?” His hand continued down her belly and he coiled the stretchy fabric of her panties around his fingertip, tugging it snug between her legs, where she burned.

“I, um…” She rose to her feet. Which should she remove?

Holy hell, he watched her like he planned to fling her against the wall and drive himself inside. She half wanted him to do it.

No, she completely wanted him to do it.

Reaching for the thin band on her panties, she tugged them slowly down over her hips. She flung the scrap of fabric aside with her foot then straightened and stood boldly before him.

Chapter 4

GAJE

G aje ached to touch the patch of hair between her legs, something he’d never seen on a female before.

“What comes next in the courting process?” she asked, her voice aquiver. When she stepped back a pace, he caught a glimpse of the flesh between her legs. “Maybe we should work on your courtship checklist instead of playing more poker.” A spurt of laughter burst from her throat. “Otherwise, I’m going to end up stark naked.”

“Flowers,” he said in a monotone, unable to remove his gaze from her body. Tiny, he had to wonder how this bit of a human female could endure all he had to give. The healers had assured them that Earthlings could not only withstand the mating but carry and deliver Crakairian young. He would not break her.

But he did not wish to hurt her.

Standing, he stretched to his full height, towering over her petite frame.

“You mentioned flowers already,” she said. Her gaze drifted from his bare chest to his groin, and she gulped. “Holy fuck.”

“Yes, fucking,” he said absently. “As for the courtship…” Why was his brain scrambled? He’d never had anything like this happen to him before. “Next, we must…dine together.” One step and he would be able to feel the heat radiating off her skin.

“Done. We had those bars.”

She was correct. They had already progressed further in the courtship than he’d originally assumed. Although… “According to custom, I must wear the gajong and serve you tetria, as tradition dictates.”

Her head tilted. “What’s a gajong, let alone tetria?”

“Gajong is a scrap of cloth worn over…” He gestured to his rigid cock as he moved closer to her.

She backed up, and her ass hit the wall.

Heille. The scent of her arousal hit his nostrils like a stiff breeze filled with jiera musk.

“Did you happen to bring one… a gajong, with you?” she asked in a breathy voice.

“I did not.” He had not believed they would be close to completing the courtship before they reached Crakair. Could he bend the rules this one instance and set the ritual meal aside to pursue other courtship ventures? “Tetria is a breakfast food grown and consumed by my ancestors.”

She tilted her head, her attention focused on his pulsing cock. “It’s not breakfast time, is it?” Her small tongue dipped out to stroke across her lower lip.

His mind scattered, and his sekairs spiked upward on his shoulders before settling back into place.

“What was that?” she asked, more with admiration than fear.

“My sekairs are for defense. The spikes… They contain a substance that can kill if I choose to deploy it. The victim is rendered motionless and drops to the ground.”

“You won’t need those to keep me motionless,” she said as if admitting something she wished to keep secret.

He braced his palms on the wall on either side of her head. “Without the formal breakfast, the next step would be bathing.”

“Got a tub around?” Her finger lifted but hesitated before touching. When it impacted with his skin, he hissed. He watched as she slowly trailed it down his stomach until it reached the top of his leather pants. “Still can’t get over your abs. They’re gorgeous. A twelve, not a six-pack. Is it okay for me to touch you?”

“You may touch as much of me as you wish.”

She peeked up at him before returning her attention to his groin. Her fingertip skimmed along the top of his pants, leaving him quivering in her wake. “Is touch part of the formal courtship?”

His cock on fire, he pressed it against her naked flesh. “Yes. After bathing comes touch. Taste.”

“Oh, shit, with that tongue?” Her gaze shot to his mouth.

“If you wish.”

“Then do it. I can’t stand it any longer. I’m ready. You won. Call this a seduction success on your part.”

He teased his finger down her cheek, her neck, and along the top of her breasts. “Where would you have me place my tongue?”

One corner of her lips curled up, and mischief filled her eyes. She tapped her lips.

Lifting her chin with both hands, he held her in place while his mouth descended. But before they touched, he stroked his tongue across her lips.

She shivered and pressed herself against him. “Hot damn.”

“Yes, damn, you are hot, my mate.” Sliding his hands around to the nape of her neck, he plundered her mouth with his own, gliding his tongue inside to mate with hers.

A moan worked its way up her throat and burst between them.

While his naanans traced her shoulders, he slid his hand down her belly and cupped the flesh between her legs. She was wet for him, and the notion scattered him. He could barely think. All he wanted was to feel.

“Gaje,” she whispered, her head tipping back to land on the wall. “Please. Stop teasing. You know you’re not giving me any of that fucking stuff yet.”

“No tease,” he said. His finger glided along her slit and she thrust her legs apart, granting him full access. “You will always know where we stand.” When he stroked across the tiny nub at the top of her slit, she writhed, her breathing filled with sighs.

Interesting. Crakairian females did not have tiny buds in this location. For stimulation, the male must bury himself deep inside and the vibration of his cock brought them both to satisfaction. Yet Thea… He liked that he could gain a response from his human mate before penetration.

She bucked against his fingers. “Fuck.”

He nibbled her neck, his fangs lightly scraping her flesh. “Yes, soon, my mate. Fucking.”

“Tell me what the hell else needs to happen with courtship before we can get to the next part,” she shouted.

He stooped down in front of her and nudged her thighs apart. “This.”

His tongue reached out and slipped between her lips while one of his naanans latched onto her nub. The inner naanan pulse fluttered.

Her knees buckled, and he held her upright with his hands spanning her hips. She jerked forward, seeking his mouth. A moan ripped from her lips.

When she mentioned using his naanans for intimacy, he had been listening.

No one ever said Gaje didn’t learn fast.

Chapter 5

THEA

When his naanans glided down her belly and one latched onto her clit, Thea shrieked. “Holy hell!”

“This,” he said in a guttural tone. “This…nub. It likes this, does it not?”

“Hell, yeah. Don’t stop!” So much for the fancy courtship she imagined back on Earth. This guy—she might as well face it, her mate—plowed through her defenses like a wrecking ball, leaving her a trembling mess.

She liked it. Liked him. A lot.

He seemed to have been made especially for her.

Damn that tiny fork on the tip of his tongue. While she thrust toward him, it dipped inside and probed, the ends wrapping around and tugging on her G spot.

While she writhed and panted, the dreadlock thing flickered and sucked. She heaved and spasmed, her body a limp mess already.

Sensing how weak her knees were, he lifted her, pressed her against the wall, and dropped her thighs on top of his shoulders. The thicker, larger scales—sekairs—scraped beneath her skin, sending liquid fire through her veins. He pressed her back against the wall. With his face buried between her legs, he literally consumed her.

Bucking and thrusting, she rode his mouth while he licked and sucked and drove her out of her mind.

With a sharp shriek, she came, spilling herself all over him. He licked and drank as she shuddered, her hands clutching his naanans.

When he’d drained her to her last speck of will, he tipped his head back and licked his mouth. “I will do this again. Now.”

She fanned her face. “Can you give a woman a second to recover? I’m, like, still half-humming.”

“I could, but I do not wish to.”

Damn he was arrogant. If only it wasn’t so swoon-worthy. He barely needed to turn on the charm and she was panting for him. “Things don’t always go the way you please, you know. Welcome to life, dude.”

“If I do this…” His fingertip dipped slowly inside her while his thumb gently rubbed her clit. “What will you ask me to do?”

So soon after coming, the sensitive flesh burned, but it also felt good. In Thea’s experience, even one orgasm was pushing it for some guys. Now Gaje was interested in seeing if he could give her two?

She definitely needed to marry this guy. Oh, yeah, she already was marrying this guy.

Her grin was met by him baring his fangs.

“I am correct, am I not?” he said in satisfaction. “I will have more.” Without waiting for a reply, he leaned in and proceeded to drive her to the edge all over again.

But before she flipped out all over him, he backed off and played, teasing her clit with that wicked forked tongue while his fingers dipped inside just enough to make her thrust forward, before he’d back it out and hold her steady.

When she shrieked and yanked on his naanans and ground herself into his face, he relented with a peek of his fangs.

“Now this is the human female I wish to marry,” he said. “Show me how wild you can be, my mate.”

One wild kindergarten teacher, coming up.

Literally.

After, she sagged down on top of him. He lifted her enough for her feet to flop onto the floor but before they met the ground fully, he scooped her up in his arms.

He strode back to the command chair and sat.

Leaning around her, his nose poked against her hair. “You smell good,” he said before he flicked a switch and pressed a few buttons on the dash.

“I smell like sweat and sex.”

“Good.”

She considered sighing as if sorely put upon, but his comments, no, his grittiness were a perfect match for her tendency to hold herself back. With other guys, she never would’ve felt this spontaneous. Gaje dragged her willpower away from her and scattered it on the wind. He reached inside her and tugged her wild girl to the surface, where she became a mass of feelings and reveled in his touch.

“About that bath,” she said. “It really might be nice to soak in a tub.” She never realized she could produce so much…fluid before.

“I will bath you. That is the tradition.” He rose then dropped her into his chair. “Will you allow me to prepare for the ritual bath?”

She flicked her hand his way. “Have at it.”

He dipped forward at the waist in a bow. “Please await my return.”

As if she had anywhere she could go? They were in the middle of a galaxy, riding in a tiny spaceship. Other than hanging out here, she had nothing on her agenda.

“I promise not to touch anything,” she called as he strode down the narrow corridor behind the main cabin, but he didn’t reply.

While she lounged, naked other than her bra, she stared at the stars. For a moment, she felt melancholy. Everything was so strange, even the heavens surrounding her. It reminded her of how far from home she was.

She might never see anyone on Earth again. Sure, Gaje said he’d make it possible for her to see her mom, but in the paperwork she signed when she agreed to be a mail-order bride, it said unless she chose to return after the ten day trial period, the woman must be prepared to leave Earth and make her new home on Crakair.

No looking back; only moving forward.

She’d hadn’t realized it would hurt this much.

“I have prepared everything as best I can with what is available on the ship,” he said from the doorway.

Turning, her mouth dropped open. “What the holy fuck?”

He looked down and slapped at the fabric covering—barely—his groin. Her god-like being wore nothing but a skimpy loincloth and his scaled, mossy green skin. “It is the garlong. I would combine courtship rituals and wear it with the bathing.”

“Wasn’t there supposed to be something about playing with my feet?” She read something about that in the training manual the government sent.

His thick brow ridges drew together. “You have studied the material from Crakair.” It sounded like an accusation. “I have done as I am able with what is at hand. If we were on my home planet, I would do this as it should be done.”

“Hey, no problem. I’m sure a few substitutions are perfectly reasonable. We’re in space. No one expects everything—even a courtship—to be perfect.”

He studied her face as if trying to decide if she was being sarcastic, and she kept her features neutral. Because really, he was cute in his skimpy loincloth, this big, burly, scaled, green guy who was so eager to please her. She wouldn’t want him to feel she wasn’t taking this seriously.

She smiled. “Lead on. My bath waits.”

He scooped her up in his arms. While she could’ve walked, it was always nicer being carried. What Earthman would do something like this? Not many, that was for sure. Thea was no skinny minny and she didn’t care. Starvation had never been on her menu, thank you very much. But back on Earth, a guy would’ve groaned if she suggested he even lift her onto a bed.

As Gaje trooped down the hall, he hummed a monotone tune that should be pleasant but was, instead, rather discordant. But she wanted him to know she appreciated his efforts, so she bobbed her head to the rhythm and tried to hum along.

Until he frowned.

Okay, so maybe the courtship thing didn’t include singing in harmony. They could save that until after the wedding.

He hip-checked a door in the tiny hall and stepped inside a small room. “As I said, I had to improvise. There were no zinters to be found on Earth.”

“Bummer,” she said, her skin cringing. What the hell was a zinter?

“You will like my substitution,” he said grimly.

“Sure I will. I mean, if you can’t locate zinters, you might as well go with…”

He pulled back the curtain surrounding what looked like a big round barrel, placed in the center of the bathroom.

“Rubber duckies?” It was all she could do not to giggle. He’d filled the tub with them. “Is there water in there, too?”

“Of course there is. How else will I bath you?”

“Maybe in just water,” she mumbled.

“What did you say?” Now, he sounded affronted.

Nope, nope. She refused to offend a man who was willing to eat a woman out twice in one session.

Chapter 6

GAJE

G aje lowered her carefully to her feet. “We must remove this binding on your chest before I can begin the bathing.”

“Go for it,” she said, watching his face.

Acting as neutral as he could, because this part of the courtship must be treated with the utmost respect, he reached toward her covered chest protuberances but paused before touching. How did one go about removing this apparatus she’d strapped around her body?

He fumbled with the front, sliding his fingertip beneath the snug fabric and pulling outward, but it did not snap free. He tried to tug it down over her mounds, but the bands arching up and over her shoulders resisted his efforts.

She giggled. At least, he believed that was the name for the sound. Crakairian females bared their fangs, tipped their heads back, and shrieked when they experienced happiness. Most males just bared their fangs. And if Crakairian females were especially overjoyed, they had other, appropriate ways of expressing their joy. Never had he seen one shake her chest while curling her lips upward.

Strange, but he liked it.

“I’m ticklish,” she said, as if that explained everything.

“The word has no meaning for me.”

“It means when you touch me, it makes me laugh.”

That was not the effect he was hoping for. “Instead of this ticklish, I wish for you to be enthralled by my presence.”

Her laughter snorted out. “Don’t go too heavy on the alpha, okay? I love a bold guy but some take it into alphahole territory and that’s not my thing.”

Again, he did not understand the terms she used but believed she was cautioning him not to make many demands. No matter. If his courtship went as anticipated, she would be the one begging.

She nudged his hands away and, reaching behind, pulled the garment snug before leaving it hanging across the flesh he was eager to view. While he knew the mounds were for younglings only, he’d been fascinated by Thea’s female body parts hidden beneath her clothing since he’d met her.

A pink flush took over her cheeks. “I shouldn’t feel weirded out by this. I mean…” Her fingers flicked toward the juncture between her legs. “You’ve seen and touched and…” She gulped and more redness filled her face. Was she ill? “Tasted. Anyway. My point is, I shouldn’t be embarrassed about baring my breasts to you.”

“They are for sucking, are they not?”

“Holy…” She gulped again, making him concerned she might have a salivary issue that would need to be addressed by the healers once they arrived on Crakair. “Yeah, they’re for sucking. God…”

“Then why are you, I do not know if this is the correct term, shy to bare the parts of your body made for sucking?”

“Maybe because I didn’t know you existed until a week ago and now, here I am, stripping naked in front of you.”

“Met we have. Mate we shall.” He repeated the words by rote, believing they would reassure her.

From her sigh, he could tell he hadn’t and that made frustration burn through him. If they couldn’t understand each other, how would they proceed through the courtship?

She had ten daelas to decide if she wished to remain on Crakair, and he was determined to convince her she wished to stay by three. He would have to do all he could to show her she belonged with only him during the trip to his homeworld.

“Why don’t we get this over with, okay?” She reached up and pulled the mound covering forward, slipping her arms through the straps that had suspended the garment over her shoulders. She tossed it aside then straightened, firmly meeting his eye.

He liked that she didn’t act shy once naked but once his gaze left hers, he couldn’t stop staring. Her mounds had rosy circles in the middle and they appeared puckered.

His hand reached out to touch but stalled. Who knew the protocols surrounding males touching suckling bits?

“Is it acceptable to obsessively study your body?” he asked, his voice suddenly deep and husky. His cock stiffened further, engorged inside his pants. Matebond blood roared through him, insisting he take her. Now. “In some cultures, behaving in this manner would be considered an insult.”

She lifted his chin, dragging his face and gaze up to meet hers. “I’ve kinda gotten used to stares since I matured early. I was a solid C before I hit thirteen.” Her wry tone made him curious.

“Others have insulted you about your sucking parts?”

“A lot of guys act gropy whether the girl wants the attention or not.”

“If you are saying males have pressed unwelcome sexual advances on you, I will seek vengeance,” he growled, reaching for the blade he usually wore at his hip but had removed per the request of the Earth delegation.

“Hold on there, hero. They’re back on Earth, and we’re in a spaceship. Alone.” Her voice dropped an octave. “Forget them. I sure have.”

The menacing fury building inside him retreated. He’d heard of the mate blood rage but never experienced it. A flip of his hand did not show the matebond symbol on his palm, but it was rare for it to appear before the fucking. Yet here he was, in the throes of the rage.

“I thought we were pushing through this courtship so we could get to the good stuff?” she said. “As for staring at my…sucking bits, go right ahead. Might as well get to know the landscape, right?”

“There will be no more staring. I must bath you.”

“With the duckies.” Her infectious laughter rang out again, and he joined in before he realized what he was doing. Perhaps he should try tickle her more often, as it pleased them both. “Do I just step into the tub?”

“I will assist you.” He swept her up and into his arms and the heady musk of her lust hit him like the whip of a xarton tail in the head, stunning him. She was marking him as hers already. The sooner he commenced the fucking, the better.

He lowered her down into the steaming water, and she sighed as it glided across her skin.

Stooping down beside the tub, he lifted a cloth to show her his intentions. “With this, I will bath you.”

“This is going to get sexual, isn’t it?” she asked without a hint of color staining her cheeks. She sounded eager, which was as it should be.

“Would you like the bathing to become sexual?” he asked. “It is not always the case.”

“Not sure where your females come from but on Earth, if a guy ran a cloth all over a woman’s body, she’d get turned on.”

“I do like turning you on, so I shall do so.”

“Boy, oh, boy.” She fanned her face. “This is going to be interesting.”

“Normally, if this were the traditional courtship bath, the zinters would consume your dead flesh.”

“Let’s hope the duckies are vegetarians.”

He frowned, unsure of her meaning. “And after they had eaten, the zinters would sink to the bottom of the tub and leave your skin coated with their oils.”

“Are we talking about some weird, sci-fi lube because maybe you should’ve brought some zinters with you after all, despite my resistance to the thought of anything consuming my dead flesh.” She shivered.

“Lube?”

“You know. Sometimes a girl needs to make things more slickery down there.”

“Explain further.”

This time, pink splotches did arrive in her cheeks.

“Lube is used to ease…penetration.”

“Ah, for the fucking. No concerns.” He dipped the cloth in among the smiling, yellow flotation devices and wrung it out. After coating the scrap of material with scented oil, he proceeded to glide the fabric across her back.

“Shit, that feels fantastic,” she said, leaning forward to give him easier access.

He dipped the cloth lower, along her behind and between the cheeks.

“Shit, shit, shit. Don’t stop.” Her butt wiggled.

Her arms and shoulders received equal treatment.

She leaned back against the natural, soft cushion with her body slouched and her legs splayed wide. Did her culture consider this an invitation?

“You and I will not need lube,” he said as he reapplied the oil and glided the cloth across her sucking protuberances. The puckered centers hardened, and his cock twitched. “My tongue will serve this purpose.”

“Holy hell,” she said.

His hands froze on her mounds. “Is it forbidden for any but the youngling to touch these? I neglected to ask first.”

“More, more,” she said, arching up toward his hand. “Holy…”

“Tell me about these,” he said as he stroked the cloth across the small circles in the center. The rosy hue had darkened. He liked the way the nubs solidified and would like to take one into his mouth. He was not a youngling but he did enjoy sucking. “I would know more about your suckling bits.”

“Like what?” her words came out in a moan as he firmly rubbed.

“For example…” Pausing, he laid the scrap of material on the side of the tub and pinched the pink nubs between his fingers.

She gasped and jerked her chest upward.

He blinked slowly, curious about her response. “This is sexually arousing for you.”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

“I am Gaje.”

“Have you never touched breasts before, Gaje?” Her eyes remained closed.

“Crakairian females have fleshy tubes that project from their abdomens when our younglings are born. They use those to feed the young. Before you, I have never seen nubs like this on a female’s chest.”

“On Earth,” she cupped the mounds and lifted them, “we have breasts, but they’re not just for…younglings. Guys like them, too.”

“I will admit I find them intriguing.”

Her eyes opened, and the heat filling her gaze shot straight to his cock. It responded as if she’d voiced a mating call.

“Since you’re fascinated by my boobs…” One corner of her lips curled upward. “Why don’t you try sucking on them yourself?”

Chapter 7

THEA

When he lowered his head and exhaled on her wet nipple, shockwaves blasted through Thea. She was going to have another orgasm before he touched her between the legs.

His tongue—that glorious, forked tongue—glided across the bud before he pulled the entire areola into his mouth. His tongue stroked while his fangs gently bit down.

A naanan latched onto her other nipple, and the inner mechanism fluttered and vibrated.

He lifted his head and bared his fangs. “I do like these protuberances. I will suckle them often.” He backed away, onto his heels.

“Don’t…”

His head tilted as he lifted the cloth. What could only be taken as pure devilment gleamed in his dark eyes. Ass. He knew exactly what he was doing to her.

“You wish to proceed with the courtship, do you not?” he asked. “We cannot do anything further until each step has been completed.”

Fuck. He was going to drive her out of her mind with lust before he finally took her, but she had a feeling she was going to savor each moment.

“Okay. Wash me. Feed me. Then fuck me,” she said, feeling more wanton than she had in her entire life.

A low growl rumbled in his chest. “It is all I can do not to remove you from the tub and carry you to my bed.”

Only one of her eyelids lifted, and she slanted him a heavy glance. “What’s stopping you?”

“Rules must be followed if I hope to achieve a full matebond.”

“What’s all this matebond talk about, anyway? I heard something vague about it before but it didn’t make sense. Is it like a wedding ring?”

Coating the cloth with oil, he dragged the fabric across her “boobs”. “Perhaps a firmer abrasion will make this less sexual.”

She moaned and arched her spine. “I don’t think that’ll get you the effect you hope to achieve.” How could she even talk? Her clit was on fire, aching for his touch. One stroke and she was going to explode.

“My control is slipping,” he said, his voice deep and sensual. “The matebond is rising inside me.”

“Gotta like a matebond,” she panted out. It was all she could do to speak as he ran the cloth down her belly.

“I do not wish to cede control to the matebond.”

“Why?”

“I am large where you are small. I do not wish to hurt you with my advances.”

“Honey,” she said, stilling his hand with her own. “I don’t think there’s anything you could do to me that will hurt.”

“I am not a honey.” He stroked the cloth along the tops of her thighs.

“It’s a nickname. An endearment.”

His brow cleared. “Then I will permit you to call me honey.”

She couldn’t contain her smile. “Perfect.” She waved to her groin. “Proceed with the bathing. I believe you’ve missed one area.”

He leaned forward and his tongue dipped out, but his spine stiffened and he straightened.

“Finish the bathing,” he muttered. “That is the rule.” He coated the cloth with oil and shoved the duckies so hard across the surface, a few hopped out of the tub. The cloth dipped down, into the water.

She closed her eyes because… “Holy fuck, don’t stop.”

Rough and lightly abrasive, he coaxed the material across her slit. He tweaked her clit then rubbed as if he needed to ensure the oil coated every available surface.

She bucked and pressed up against his hand, her brain turning to mush and her lungs on fire.

As she rose toward the peak, he withdrew the cloth.

She deflated like a popped balloon, and her eyes snapped open. “Why did you stop?”

He lifted his hand and ticked items off one by one. “I have worn the garlong and fed you a suitable substitute for tetria.” One finger was folded toward his palm. “I have bathed you, and though I lacked zinters, I have utilized the duckies and oil. We have exchanged touch and fluids.” Only two fingers left. “I have delivered the first, most basic level of intimate satisfaction.”

“Wait.” She grabbed the only available finger, his thumb. “There are levels to…satisfaction?”

His eyelids hooded. “Naturally.”

“How many?”

“Ten.”

“Oh, fuck.” She couldn’t imagine how she’d scream if they ever reached that level. But hold on. “One finger left. What are we missing?”

“My family tradition insists I cannot proceed further until I have made a sacrifice in your honor.”

She frowned. “How in the world are you going to do that? We’re in the middle of space. It’s not as if there’s a cat stuck in a tree you can climb to rescue or a youth center where you can volunteer, though that would be nice. Too few people are willing to give their time to help kids.”

He pressed his closed fist against his chest. “I will do this on Crakair.”

“So we’ll wait to do anything until after we arrive?” Why did the idea make her sad? She was the one who was telling him not to rush things.

It was easier when emotions were not involved. She didn’t love Gaje. Not yet. But she had a feeling she could.

He lifted her from the tub and standing her on a fluffy mat, rubbed her dry, bring her heat back into full focus.

“I admire how you wish to follow your family’s courtship rules,” she said. How could she be upset with a guy who wanted to treat her with respect before dragging her off to bed? But jeez, she was horny. “Any ideas for how we can complete that last bit before I turn fifty?”

“My minar will arrive,” he said, pressing his fist against his chest. “I will seize it and sacrifice in your honor.”

“I guess I should get dressed then since I doubt sacrifice will involve rubber ducks,” she said, trying not to sound forlorn.

After dropping a new gown over her head and tucking her arms through the sleeves, he cupped her face and kissed her, long and deep and full of promise. “This time will pass quickly.”

“I’ll find a way to deal.” She took his hand as they left the bathroom. “Can you make me one promise?”

“Of course.” His fangs gleamed in the low light.

“After you’ve completed the last, honorable step of the courtship, and we’re headed to home plate, will you make sure we hit all the levels?”

“Level ten involves very creative…fucking. I do not know if you will be able to withstand the brisk movement.”

“Just try me.”

“Then yes, I will bring you to level ten.”

He was leaning over for another kiss when a shrieking sound ground through the hull of the ship, followed by a bang that made the craft shudder.

His eyes widened.

Swearing, he took her hand and hurried with her down the hall toward the cockpit.

Chapter 8

GAJE

I mpact with a critical event in twenty seclars. Commence countdown. Nineteen… eighteen…

As the mechanical voice blared through the ship and lights flashed, Gaje made sure Thea had taken her seat and secured her four-point restraint. Then he smacked down and engaged his own.

Seventeen… sixteen…

“What’s going on?” she asked, her arms wrapped snugly around her waist.

He could tell by her tight face she was trying to remain strong, but her voice shook.

Fifteen… fourteen…

“Meteor cluster.” He disengaged the autopilot and took over the controls. While many of his fellow Crakairians would allow the ship’s computer to decide how best to withstand the impact, Gaje had a light touch and a lot of luck. He’d pulled himself through too many tough situations in the past to let a computer hold the fate of his mate in its hands.

Thirteen… twelve…

His fingers blanched as he gripped the lever that would allow him to guide the ship through the field.

Critical event.

Fuck. That meant they were barreling toward a rock large enough to rip the ship apart. He had to find a way past it.

Eleven… ten…

“We’re gonna hit something, aren’t we?” she barked. “Holy hell.”

“Heille, not if I can help it.”

“Will getting us through this count as your sacrificial event?”

“If I can get us through this, it will count for a lifetime of sacrificial events.”

Nine… eight…

“I’m scared,” she whispered, her hand seeking his.

“I am, too, but I will do my best.” He took her hand and squeezed it, wishing he could hold her and give her the reassurance of his arms around her. “Close your eyes if that helps.”

Her shrill laughter echoed around them. “You gonna close your eyes, too? Hell, what am I saying? Someone needs to drive this thing.”

Seven… six…

Tightening his fingers on the stick, he studied the rock coming straight for them. To evade impact, his biggest challenge would be the two other, smaller meteorites flanking the larger. If he could tweak the ship’s trajectory slightly to the… He eased the lever a fraction of a wisp to the right and the ship corrected course.

High-risk event eminent. Five… four…

No longer critical. Good. One more correction.

As bile rose into his throat and his pulse thundered, he squinted and bit down on his lower lip. His muscles strained as he focused every bit of his concentration on guiding the ship.

A slight tilt and the larger meteor passed overhead. A harsh grinding noise filled the cabin, and the ship was pitched to the left.

Moderate risk event eminent. Three… two…

Moderate. Okay.

“Hold on,” he groaned, tendons standing out in his neck. “And…”

One.

He shoved the stick forward.

The bottom of the craft screamed as it was dragged across the multi-klek long meteor. If his luck held, the ship would reach the end and coast off the other side and into clear space.

“What’s happening?” Thea shouted, her voice rising above the crunching screech of metal on stone.

“Almost through,” he said. Spasms racked up his arm as he held the ship steady.

The craft bucked and jolted and when it should’ve sailed off the end, they hit something hard and were thrust forward against their restraints.

Lights flashed and new alarms pierced his eardrums.

He scrambled with his buckle while Thea swiped her hair out of her eyes and turned his way with fear a living thing on her face.

“What’s happening?” she cried.

“We are stuck.”

“What do you mean, stuck?”

“We have snagged on a cryst or in a pocket on one of the smaller meteors.”

She cringed. “Are either of those things alive?”

He shook his head, and his naanans lifted. The sekair flaps on his shoulders bristled, eager to shoot poison to protect her but the enemy was not inside. Standing, he rushed to the hall and opened up the closet containing the gear he needed to see this through.

“What are you doing?” she asked, tiptoeing up behind him.

“Going out there to free the ship.”

“I was afraid you were going to say that.” She gnawed on a fingernail but then shoved the hand down by her side. “I’m going with you.”

“I have no suit your size.”

“Crakairian women are giants but you must have something.”

“They are the same height as males, though most are slighter in build. And no, I do not.” He moved around her and dropped his suit on the floor. For the life support systems to engage, he would have to wear it with no fabric between the suit and his skin. A few quick twists of his wrist and he’d undone the fastenings securing his garlong. He shucked it down over his hips and stepped out of it, kicking it to the side.

“Now you’re stripping,” she said, pushing out a rueful laugh with her gaze focused on his cock. “Don’t mind me. Sarcasm is my go-to when I’m stressed, but holy green…”

He dropped the spacesuit and tugged her into his arms. “I will do all I can to protect you.”

“I know that.” She sniffed and her eyes seeped—wept. “That doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“I will return to you as soon as possible.” Assuming none of the other meteors impacted with the ship or himself while he worked to break the craft away from this rock.

Pulling her closer, he kissed her for what he hoped wouldn’t be his final time. He couldn’t help himself. He plundered her mouth like his ancestors had when they’d captured mates instead of courting them.

She pressed herself against him and desperation came through in her touch. She’d guessed what he refused to say.

That he might not make it back.

Chapter 9

THEA

T  hea watched as Gaje attached clips to his spacesuit and strode back to the hatch.

He stood still, his back facing her, his spine stiff with resolve. “I will exit the craft from the outer hall,” he said. “Do not open the hatch or follow or…”

“I could be sucked into outer space.” She swiped the useless tears from her eyes; they wouldn’t bring him back any faster. “I’ll wait here. I won’t touch a damn thing. And…”

“And…?”

She scrubbed her face with her palms then strode up and wrapped her arms around him from behind. Her forehead dropped onto his back. “Be safe out there.”

“I will.”

“Come back to me.”

“I will.”

“Because…” She sniffed. “I know this is fast and all, and it hasn’t been long since we met but, okay, I’ll say it because…” She gulped back the tears welling in her eyes all over again. Despite her will to drive them away, they persisted. “I think I’m falling in love with you.”

His chest deflated, and he turned.

She couldn’t touch his body while he wore the silver spacesuit, but she could see his face through the glass panel in the helmet. Reaching up, she traced her fingertip across the material closest to his features.

Could she memorize this moment just in case…?

No. Do not think that.

She pressed for a smile and it came from her heart. “I’ll be waiting.”

He lifted a gloved hand and trailed the back of his knuckles across her cheek. With a curt nod, he turned and opened the hatch. It banged closed behind him and the circular metal knob spun.

Without a window, she couldn’t watch through the hatch. She scurried to the front of the ship, hoping she’d see him working outside. As long as she kept him in sight, he’d be safe, right? He’d come back to her. Because the thought of going on without him ripped her apart.

Slumping down into her chair, she tucked her legs up beneath her butt and waited.

Time ticked by, the long seconds broken only by creaks and groans from outside. The sounds had to be the ship settling into its new home or loosening from whatever held them pinned in place. She wouldn’t let herself believe the cries came from Gaje.

To think she’d only met him a short time ago. The heart recognizes the missing piece of itself. This was something her dad told her once before he died. He’d taken that piece of his heart with him when he passed on, and her mom had been a shadow of herself ever since.

Would Thea become another shadow?

Steady bangs were followed by the ship tipping to the right. The frame shuddered and screamed.

Then silence.

She sat in the chair while the echo of nothing wrapped around her, chilled her, and dragged her into despair.

She counted to one hundred. Again. A thousand.

Still…nothing.

Her heart split down the middle.

Rising, she staggered into the hall. She’d find his bed. If she was lucky, the sheets still held his scent. She could wrap herself up in everything Gaje and pretend he was still alive.

He was safe. He was coming back to her. Everything would be okay.

Her hand reached to open the door.

A creak and the hatch wheel turned.

She dropped to her knees as the door opened and a seven-foot-tall silver spaceman strode into view.

After shoving the hatch close with his hip and twisting the wheel, he unclipped and wrenched the helmet off his head.

She rose on shaky feet and finding her strength, rushed over and jumped into his arms. They wrapped securely around her as he captured her mouth. Kissing her, he spun her around until she tugged away and tipped her head back. Her laughter rippled around them, followed by his own.

He bared his fangs. “I do believe I have fulfilled all the courtship rules.”

Her heart went pitter-patter. “You’ve more than sacrificed yourself for my honor and no longer need to rescue a cat from a tree.”

“I will engage the ship’s autopilot and then…”

She slid down his body until her toes touched the cool metal plating that made up the floor. “And then…?”

“I will introduce you to the first level.”

She couldn’t contain her grin. “Make it level three or four and it’s a deal.”

“How about seven?”

Her finger tapped her chin. “Now that you mention it, I’m actually holding out for level ten.”

He took both her hands and stared down at her solemnly, his heart in his eyes. “Courtship. Marriage—”

“I haven’t said yes.”

His thick brows lifted. “But you shall because…”

Her lips twitched.

“I love you,” he said softly.

“Gaje.” Her eyes stung with tears and her heart soared.

“You haven’t answered my proposal,” he said.

“Yes, yes, yes!”

His naanans rippled around his head before relaxing back on his shoulders.

“Set that autopilot, captain,” she said, stroking her fingertip down his spacesuit-encased chest. “I’m going to wait in your bedroom. I believe it’s time for us to get to the fucking.”

Chapter 10

THEA

T  hea sashayed inside the bedroom while he ripped off his suit. Thumps rang out as he ran toward the front of the ship.

The engines roared and with a light scraping sound, she could tell they left the meteor behind.

As she knelt on the edge of the bed, a solid, aroused alien male came up behind her and pressed himself against her. He nudged her hair to the side and trailed kisses from the nape of her neck up to her earlobe, which he nipped with his fangs. Damn, she never thought she’d be into a guy biting her but with Gaje, she was all in.

While his naanans stroked her shoulders and moved around the front to her breasts, she leaned back in his embrace. Her eyelids half-lidded as she gave into the heady sensation of the thick strands sucking and flickering. She’d never get enough.

He eased her onto her back on the bed and straddled her hips. His mouth slaked over hers, while his naanans continued to tease her nipples.

She bucked, eager to feel the full weight of him driving inside.

He kissed down her neck and grazed his fangs across her breasts, bringing her to a feverish peak. While his naanans continued to drive her closer to the brink, his mouth moved lower, tracing across her belly and to the juncture between her thighs.

Her moan was ripped from her throat as his forked tongue glided down her slit.

He pressed her legs wide apart. “You are beautiful.”

She writhed, too far gone to be embarrassed that he was up close and personal with her lady parts.

His tongue, that glorious tongue, stroked her clit. He bit down gently with his fangs, rolling the nub until it grew rigid. While he pushed one finger then two inside her, he continued to suck her clit.

Her head thrashed on the bed as he took her higher, shooting her across the galaxy with his touch. His love.

She screamed and her moans dissolved into guttural cries of need.

He pulled out his fingers and his tongue took their place. It flicked deep inside her while a naanan latched onto her clit and vibrated.

Grinding down on his face, she tried to drive his tongue deeper. “Gaje. Please. I need it. Need you.”

“You will have all of me, mate. I promised.” He licked and probed and the forked tip teased, driving her closer to the edge.

Pressure built inside her, a fever that couldn’t be denied.

Pulling out his tongue, he tweaked and sucked her clit before sitting back on his heels and licking his lips.

“Is this what you need?” he asked, climbing up over her and centering his enormous dark green, lightly scaled cock at her entrance. “Tell me, love.”

“Yes,” she moaned, reaching up and dragging him down on top of her. “Give it to me now.”

His soft chuckle shouted pure satisfaction. “Greedy human female, are you not?”

“Gaje!”

He lifted her legs and dropped them onto his shoulders. “Spread yourself for me, love.”

While he braced himself with his arms on either side of her head, he nudged forward.

Fuck. Her body screamed at the stretch.

His dick vibrated, and the hum traveled through her bones like molten lava, scorching wherever it touched.

He braced his hands beneath her hips and urged her to spread wider, and pushed in a tiny bit more.

It wasn’t going to fit. She was going to be left writhing and screaming for him, and he wouldn’t be able to get it inside.

His fingers tucked inside her, beside his cock, pressing and probing to ease his passage. More straining, and he inched a bit more inside.

She could feel herself dripping. His tongue had done what he’d promised. Fuck, the exquisite burning he delivered was going to make her come before he had a full taste.

More finger probing was followed by a sharp thrust forward that fully seated his gigantic, vibrating cock deep within her.

She panted beneath him while he panted over her.

Was he afraid to move?

He carefully eased out and pushed back inside. The sting eased, followed by a need to feel him driving himself into her.

“Am I hurting you?” he asked hoarsely, his nose buried in her hair.

“Only if you don’t go faster.”

Lifting his head, his fangs gleamed in the low light. “Like this?”

He lifted her hips off the bed and after pulling out, plunged back inside. Again. Almost splintering her in two. He rode her so hard, her body was driven up the bed. She couldn’t get enough of the feel of him shoving and vibrating inside her.

When he pulled out and left her wanting, she whimpered.

Climbing off the bed, he tugged her across the surface and rolled her onto her belly with her legs hanging down the side.

While his naanans latched onto her breasts and clit, he thrust her thighs far apart then centering himself and shoved inside. Lifting her lower body to meet his, he pummeled her slick folds over and over.

She panted. Bit down on her knuckles. And released her shrieks into the blanket. All the while, her body tensed. The world could explode around her and she wouldn’t care.

She wound tighter until… She shattered, falling apart in a screaming mess.

He groaned and shuddered and kept moving, driving her over the edge then back up that hill.

A second orgasm blasted through her, her body tightening around his, squeezing and rocking his cock while it continued to vibrate and twitch.

He half-collapsed, bracing himself over her. His fangs bit down on her shoulder, nearly breaking the skin.

If she knew Gaje, he was marking this moment.

After easing out of her, he climbed onto the bed and tugged her up on top of his chest.

Their slick flesh fused them together.

“Was that the second level?” she asked, completely spent.

His cock twitched beneath her then softly hummed.

“That, my love,” he said, lifting her hand and kissing a new mark on her hand. “Was your first taste of a matebond.”

~THE END~

About Ava Ross

Ava fell for men with unusual features when she first watched Star Wars, where alien creatures have gone mainstream. She lives in New England with her husband (who is sadly not an alien, though he’s still cute in his own way), her kids, and a few assorted pets.

You can find her on Facebook and in her reader group, Alienistas, where she shares hints about upcoming releases, gives away books, and introduces her favorite alien authors.

Find her on…

Twitter: @AvaRossWrites

Amazon

***

Books by Ava

MAIL-ORDER BRIDES OF CRAKAIR

VORK

BRYK

JORG

KRAL

WULF

LYEL

AXIL, Book 0

GAJE, Book 0.5

BRIDES OF DRIEGON

MALAC

DRACE

RASHE

TERAN

KRUZE

(Companion novella)

IN LOVE WITH AN ALIEN ANTHOLOGY

NEERE, a Brides of Driegon short story

ALIEN EMBRACE ANTHOLOGY

SKOAR, a Brides of Driegon novella

FATED MATES OF THE FERLAERN WARRIORS

Enticed by an Alien Warlord

Tamed by an Alien Warlord

Seduced by an Alien Warlord

Tempted by an Alien Warlord

You can find my books on Amazon.

If you enjoyed this series, would you

leave a review?

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I’ll love you forever!!!

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Want to hear about what I’m working on next?

Sign up for my newsletter.

You can find me on Facebook and in my private reader group shared with fellow author, Ella Blake, Alienistas, where I share hints about upcoming releases, give away books, and introduce my favorite alien authors.

Twitter: @avarosswrites

Amazon

Table of Contents

Title Page

Dedication

Contents

Vork

Copyright

VORK

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Bonus Epilogue

BRYK

Copyright

BRYK

1. SADIE

2. BRYK

3. SADIE

4. BRYK

5. SADIE

6. BRYK

7. SADIE

8. BRYK

9. SADIE

10. BRYK

11. SADIE

12. SADIE

13. BRYK

14. SADIE

15. BRYK

16. SADIE

17. BRYK

18. SADIE

19. BRYK

20. SADIE

21. BRYK

22. SADIE

23. BRYK

24. SADIE

25. SADIE

Bonus Epilogue

JORG

Copyright

JORG

1. JORG

2. LILY

3. JORG

4. LILY

5. JORG

6. LILY

7. JORG

8. LILY

9. JORG

10. LILY

11. JORG

12. LILY

13. JORG

14. LILY

15. JORG

16. LILY

17. One Week Later – LILY

Bonus Epilogue

KRAL

Copyright

KRAL

1. Mila

2. Kral

3. Mila

4. Kral

5. Mila

6. Kral

7. Mila

8. Kral

9. Mila

10. Kral

11. Mila

12. Kral

13. Mila

14. Kral

15. Mila

16. Kral

17. Mila

18. Kral

19. Mila

20. Kral

21. Mila

22. Kral

23. Mila

24. Kral

25. Mila

26. Kral

27. Mila

28. Kral

29. Ten Days Later - MILA

Bonus Epilogue

WULF

Copyright

WULF

1. Taylor

2. Wulf

3. Taylor

4. Wulf

5. Taylor

6. Wulf

7. Taylor

8. Wulf

9. Taylor

10. Wulf

11. Taylor

12. Wulf

13. Taylor

14. Wulf

15. Taylor

16. Wulf

17. Taylor

18. Wulf

19. Taylor

20. Wulf

21. Taylor

Bonus Epilogue

LYEL

Copyright

LYEL

1. Lyel

2. Isi

3. Lyel

4. Isi

5. Lyel

6. Isi

7. Lyel

8. Isi

9. Lyel

10. Isi

11. Lyel

12. Isi

13. Lyel

14. Isi

15. Lyel

16. Isi

17. Lyel

18. Isi

19. Lyel

20. Isi

21. Lyel

22. Isi

23. Lyel

24. Isi

25. Lyel

26. Isi

27. Lyel

28. Isi

29. Lyel

30. Isi

Bonus Epilogue

AXIL

Copyright

AXIL

1. Julia

2. Axil

3. Julia

4. Axil

5. Julia

6. Axil

7. Julia

8. Axil

9. Julia

10. Julia

11. Axil

12. Julia

13. Axil

14. Julia

15. Axil

16. Julia

GAJE

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

About the Author

Books by Ava

Afterword