Ramliel: The Teague Bride Experiment: Intergalactic Dating Agency

by A. M. Griffin

  In all that time, he’d never recorded another message or apologized. The familiar pain of rejection slowly seeped its way into her pores. Mia rubbed at her chest but couldn’t reach the pain. It was a deep heart ache that might never go away. No one liked being rejected. Especially without knowing why.

  Stop it.

  She snatched her hand away and balled it into a fist. She wouldn’t think about Ram. Not thinking about him was for the better.

  “I’ll be fine.” She meant that wholeheartedly. She would be fine.

  Mia thought it would be hard adjusting to life on Teague. New planet. New species. New home.

  And it was.

  But she was doing it. Her neighbors had stopped looking at her like she would grow a second head and had even started saying hello back to her now. She was different from them and she found it comical that seven-foot-tall people who resembled sasquatches would be leery of her, a barely five-foot-five hairless woman from Earth.

  “How about this one?” She tapped a fingernail on the screen, sending the job advert she was reading to Hinduru’s tablet.

  He stopped his snooping to slide his tablet disk from a storage space on his communication link. When he took it out, the tablet unfolded and became hard and glass-like. Hinduru read the advert and after a few, uh hm’s, he typed something on the tablet then stored it.

  “The job is yours.”

  Surprised, Mia jerked upright. “Wait. Like that? Don’t I have to apply?”

  “I already did for you. I sent them your information.”

  She set her tablet down and straightened into a seated position. “Exactly how does getting a job on this planet work?”

  “A job request goes out and it is applied for.”

  “Okay, so almost the exact same process on Earth. What about an interview process and them reviewing all of the qualified applicants to make an informed decision?”

  “Ramliel owns a majority stake in that medical facility. He wouldn’t mind you working in the family business.”

  The world seemed to stop spinning. The whole reason she wanted a job was support herself. She didn’t want to further entrench herself into her mate’s life. “Never mind. I’ll find another job.”

  “The job was for a medical professional who specializes in human anatomy.”

  “Yes,” she answered slowly.

  “You are a medical professional who specializes in human anatomy.”

  She blinked a few times. “Yes.”

  Hinduru faced her calmly. “I know what you’re thinking and I’m telling you to take the job. You won’t see him there as he doesn’t visit. You can make your own money so you won’t feel as though you’re not earning your way. It’s the perfect job for you.”

  She glanced down and read the advert again. This was the perfect job for her. She wasn’t qualified to do anything else here. She didn’t understand ninety-eight percent of the job titles and couldn’t figure out the job descriptions, but this job, this job she understood. She would be helping a team of doctors understand human feelings as well as provide counseling services to the women on an as-needed basis. Human women.

  “You’re right. I’ll take the job.”

  “I almost always am.” Hinduru winked at her. He gathered his stuff and headed for the door. “They’ll reach out to you regarding your start date and assignment.”

  “Thank you, Hinduru.”

  * * *

  “What do you mean Zephon won’t meet to discuss the contract?” Ram balled his fists, trying to contain the anger coursing through him.

  He’d worked on this contract personally to make sure it was right. He’d even made sure to increase the profits to favor Zephon’s precious jewel business. It was a no-brainer for him to accept.

  “Zephon receives many offers daily from people who want to transport his jewels to distant planets. He is amendable to expanding his business reach, but he wants to first review the available options and once he narrows down his choice, he will meet with the potential business associates,” Zephon’s assistant said.

  Of course, there were other transport companies vying for Zephon’s business. Since announcing his mining company was expanding their reach and looking to transport goods outside of their sector, every transport company on Teague and in their star system scrambled to partner with Zephon. It would be a boon for those involved and very lucrative.

  Ram had hoped their childhood relationship would set him apart from everyone else seeking to win the contract. Although they hadn’t spoken in many years, he and Zephon had grown up in the same circle. Surely that should have qualified for preferential treatment.

  Aside from that, Ram ran the largest transport company on Teague. The refusal for immediate acceptance stung. He grumbled under his breath. “I’m only asking for a short meeting.”

  “Zephon is really busy. But…”

  Ram perked up. “But what?”

  “He’s planning to attend the benefit gathering to celebrate the human research and development medical facility.”

  “Zephon took part in the Human Bride Program?” Ram hadn’t known that.

  “Yes. Don’t you own stake in the Teague Medical Facility? Will you be attending?”

  Ram leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers together. His father had invested in the facility when he’d signed Ram up for the bride program. There were annual events and his family had a long-standing invitation. His father used to attend and Ram had attended sporadically since his father’s death.

  He hadn’t gone to one of the events in the past four years, finding the attendees with their fake smiles and even faker conversations taxing. If attending meant he would have a chance to discuss business opportunities with Zephon, Ram would do it.

  “I do and will. Thank you.” Ram disconnected the line and initiated his comlink. “Hinduru, confirm my attendance for the gathering at the medical facility.”

  Hinduru spoke a few seconds later. “Confirmed. How long do you plan to be on Teague?”

  “Just long enough to get this business taken care of.”

  Although Teague was his home, it hadn’t felt like home in a long time. It was a place with some good memories, but the bad memories had overshadowed those. He didn’t have a family to speak of. Just distant relatives who stayed distant. Whenever he went back it was out of necessity. He couldn’t stand to be there longer than a few weeks at best.

  “Shall I put a dinner date with your mate on your calendar as well?” Hinduru asked.

  Ram grimaced in distaste. His life was his own. He didn’t need a mate complicating his freedom. “Absolutely not.”

  Chapter Eight

  Ram eyed the attendees. Everyone wore their finest to be seen. Expensive jewelry accentuated glitzy dresses or well-tailored tunics for the males. It didn’t escape his notice that most of the jewels sparkled under the lighting, hinting at their exorbitant cost. Ram couldn’t help but wonder if they were all pieces from Zephon’s mines.

  The jewelry adorning Ram was specifically worn for that reason. He hoped it would catch Zephon’s attention.

  Ram knew a majority of the people who meandered about in the ballroom, either dancing, eating or huddled into small groups scattered around. The elders had been coming since he was a child and he’d had business dealings with the others.

  Ram’s father had taken the family business and grown it exponentially. Nothing came on or went off the planet that didn’t have a Takeria family crest on it. Ram maintained the business relationships his father had cultivated over the years and built on that. With Zephon as a client Ram saw expansion to other planetary systems in the future for Takeria Transport. He wanted this contract.

  And what Ram wanted. He got.

  “Why aren’t we dancing?” the vixen on his right cooed in a high-pitched voice she thought appealed to Ram.

  Spoiler alert. It did not.

  He’d told Varona many times before, but she didn’t seem to care and he’d stopped reminding her
. Instead, he’d taken to gritting his teeth and ignoring the shrill of her voice when she spoke into his ear during sex.

  “We’re not here to dance. I’ve told you that already.” He picked up the glass from the dinner table in front of him and took a healthy swig of the green liquid.

  As he swallowed, the warmness of the drink coated his throat and pooled in his stomach. A relaxing sensation spread throughout his body. The alcoholic beverage wouldn’t be enough to incapacitate him or send him into a drunken stupor, but it would help to warm bones which he welcomed on such a brutally cold night.

  Even while sheltered inside the ballroom of the medical facility building, he felt the chill from outside. Some of it seeped in through the windowpanes. The wind made the glass on the windows rattle and the howling outside competed with the band playing for the guests.

  As expected, Varona pouted lips painted bright red. “But I want to dance.”

  He flicked his gaze over to one of the males standing off to the side. The male had been eyeing Varona since they’d arrived and Varona, the flirt, had been eyeing him back. “Feel free to dance with someone else.”

  Varona straightened her shoulders and sneered. The pretense of being nice dropped. “So quick to get rid of me, are you?”

  He took another drink, regretting that this was a work trip and he couldn’t get anything stronger. “Not this again, V. I’m offering you the chance to dance and enjoy yourself. At least one of us should tonight.”

  She raised her chin and huffed. Varona was a beautiful female. As a Dorian it was a given that she would be the most stunning person in the room. Her people were naturally attractive, and the body enhancements their world was known for made her almost irresistible. Almost. There was no accounting for her attitude.

  Varona smoothed a slender hand over the long, silvery braid in her hair. The strapless dress she had on accentuated every curve and matched the color of her hair. Although her neck, shoulders and arms were the only parts exposed on her body, it was enough. Every male’s gaze lingered on her more than once.

  Ram knew the look in their eyes as they glazed over, hyper focused on Varona. He’d once been prey to her charms and wiles. They wanted to touch, caress, kiss and smell her pink luminescent skin.

  “I think I will go dance,” she said with an indignant sniff.

  “Please do. Once I conclude my business we can leave.”

  She paused to glare at him. “Maybe I won’t be leaving with you tonight?”

  Something else she’d threatened him with many times before. He let out a deep breath. “That’s also fine by me.”

  He was tired of playing these childish games with her. He’d stayed with Varona longer than any other woman he’d had. Mostly because she didn’t mind that he could never mate with her. In the beginning of their relationship, she’d claimed she didn’t want to mate with anyone. She’d wanted her time to be her own.

  Now, it seemed like it was bothering her. Or maybe, she was feeling the same about him as he did her. She could be just as bored of his company and tired of this relationship as he was.

  Varona narrowed silver eyes at him then in a smooth movement, stood. A glass dropped and shattered on the floor. Deep sighs were heard. Someone coughed. There was a moan. All of this a reaction to her showing off the tight-fitting dress. Although Ram’s money had been used to pay for the dress, he didn’t mind everyone else’s approval. He had good taste when picking out clothes and females.

  Varona sauntered toward the dance floor, not seeming to care that she walked alone. As she shouldn’t. By the time she reached the dance floor, there were five suitors clamoring for her attention and hand.

  She accepted the hand of the male who’d been watching her while they’d eaten, turned to give Ram a smirk, then let him lead her to the crowd where they were swallowed by the other dancers.

  Ram shook his head and took another drink. It didn’t have the bite needed to get through the rest of this night. He put his glass on the tray of the passing waiter and stood to make his way toward the bar.

  The drinks the waiters had on their trays didn’t have enough kick to them. He needed something stronger to soothe his irritation. He’d approached Zephon as soon as he’d arrived. With a smooth smile, Zephon had shot him down, telling him to have his assistant talk to his.

  Ram had already tried that route with no luck. Not wanting to press Zephon, Ram had bowed out of the conversation.

  Zephon wanted to see him squirm. Ram understood, while he didn’t agree. Although Ram’s proposal was a lucrative one for both of them and their businesses, Zephon wanted to make sure Ram understood who had the upper hand. Since Ram didn’t have a contract to transport Zephon’s jewels, it was clear that the upper hand wasn’t Ram’s.

  His plan now was to stick around for a little while longer, try to speak with Zephon again, then bid everyone a good night.

  “I thought the rumors were untrue.”

  Ram turned toward the deep voice that came from his side. It was his oldest and best friend Cohn, dressed in a crisp and finely tailored uniform. Cohn had joined the enforcement agency at a young age and had advanced through the ranks. He now ran the special division that was birthed a few years ago to accommodate the new human population. Cohn oversaw their safety and concerns.

  Ram had grown up envious of Cohn’s life. Ram had never told Cohn this, but he was proud of the male he’d grown up to be.

  “Pray tell, what rumors might that have been?”

  Cohn punched in his order on the processor. “That you’re visiting Teague.”

  Ram snorted. “I live here.”

  Cohn grabbed his drink when it was available and lifted the cup toward Ram. “You hardly come back. I’d thought you ran off and found a new love and new friend.”

  Ram glanced toward the dance floor and couldn’t sight Varona “Not a love. Someone for right now that I’m about to end things with.” He turned back to Cohn. “New friend? Someone better than you? I could find dozens.”

  “Replace me? Never?” Cohn let out a boisterous laugh and took a swig of his drink then grimaced. “This is awful.”

  Ram set his now empty cup on the receptacle. “But it does the trick.”

  “Why didn’t you let me know you were on planet? I could’ve tried to clear my schedule.”

  “It was a last-minute decision and I don’t plan on staying long. On that note. You’re close with Zephon. Do you think you can sway him to give me his contract?

  Cohn chuckled deep and low. “We’re friends, that’s exactly why we separate business and personal matters.”

  Ram lifted a shoulder. “It was worth a try. If you’re free we can meet tomorrow and catch up before I leave again. How are your mother and father?”

  Ram loved the elderly couple. Ram’s mom and Cohn’s mother had been best friends and had introduced their children to each other when they were born. After Ram’s mother had succumbed to a hereditary illness, Cohn’s mother had become the mother he’d lost. When his father died later, he’d moved in with Cohn and his family.

  “They’re good. I’m sure they would love to see you before you leave again.”

  Ram nodded. “I’ll make sure to stop by. So, what about us taking lunch or dinner tomorrow?”

  Cohn shook his head. “If I’d had a few days to prepare, I could. But I just received a special assignment. I’m meeting with one of the humans tomorrow.” Cohn thrust fingers through his hair. “Her mate passed away.”

  Ram frowned. “Really? While she was enroute?”

  Cohn shook his head. “No. Earlier this week. She was allowed time to grieve but the associates are eager for her to find another. They’ve given her a month to pick someone new or they will assign her a mate.”

  “Make someone mate with her is more like,” Ram snorted.

  Cohn chuckled. “For every one person who grumbles about the humans and don’t want them here, there are one hundred who do. The human relations office is already fielding requests
for potential suitors. If she doesn’t pick a mate there won’t be a problem finding one.”

  “Can mine be taken off my hands?” Ram asked on a chuckle.

  “It’s only a matter of releasing her from your contract. If you don’t want her someone else will.”

  Ram ordered another drink as he thought about it. He could give up his mate and wouldn’t have the guilt associated with her welfare. The associates would vet whoever wanted to claim her and Ram could be free to mate with anyone he chose.

  “Mmm. Something to think about.”

  Cohn tapped him lightly on the arm. “I have to call it early for tonight. I just wanted to show my face. Don’t forget to see the parents before you leave.”

  “I won’t.”

  Ram watched Cohn leave, snaking his way through the crowd.

  “Ramliel!”

  Ram turned toward the direction of the call. It was from Ivo, one of his father’s oldest friends and a friend to the family. He’d headed the medical facility since Ram was a child. During their last conversation, Ivo had told Ram he would head the facility until the day he died. Which was fine with Ram since replacing Ivo would be hard to do.

  Ivo had his arm up, waving for him to join the small group of people he was with. The only reason Ram didn’t give a curt nod and continue to the bar was because of who called him and the specimen standing next to him.

  Human.

  He recognized the female for what she was immediately. His father used to have holo-pics of female humans around the house when Ram was younger, trying to make them appealing to him. He vaguely remembered a picture of the female everyone claimed was his mate but he’d destroyed that particular holo-file in a fit. He regretted the fit, not the destroying of the picture.

  Ram had wanted to mate with a female he’d thought himself enamored with at the time. It was a passing fancy—as his father had warned him. But that hadn’t really been the issue. The issue had been that he was mated to someone he hadn’t chosen for himself. Also, because he was mated he couldn’t date or explore females as everyone else his age did. Even now, he had to go to a different planet to find a willing partner.