by Renee Rose
She studies me. “So, what happens now?”
I lift my shoulders. “You don’t have to do anything. I won’t let them touch you, all right? If you want me to go steal another airship and fly you somewhere else, I will. But I beg you to just give Zandia a chance. Not me—you don’t have to ever speak to or see me again if you don’t want to. But I didn’t lie when I said Zandia was a safe place for humans. You could make friends here. Make a life.”
She blinks at me. Her golden skin flushes a bit. “You called me your mate—back in the med bay.”
My horns thicken and lean in her direction. I try again to swallow. “I want you as my mate, yes. If you’d have me.”
She doesn’t answer.
“But matings must be approved by the king. I don’t know if I’d be granted the privilege.” I pick up one of the tiny crystals on the edge and roll it around between my fingers.
“Especially if I don’t help the doctors, right?”
“I’m not certain,” I admit.
“Did you just get in more trouble by taking me away from there?”
I shrug. “Possibly. I don’t care. You were frightened and alone, and I wasn’t going to sit around obeying orders when you were suffering.”
“You’re an idiot,” she says, climbing to her feet.
A stone sinks in my belly. “Yes,” I agree.
She loops a leg over me and straddles my lap. “Thank you.”
My breath catches. Horns go rock hard. I fill my hands with her ass and yank her hips over my erection as I claim her mouth.
“Veck, Kailani.”
She rubs her slick pussy over my erection, writhing in my lap. When she reaches down to grip my cock and guide it inside her, I don’t hold in my growl of satisfaction. I nip her neck, suck on her nipple. Then I grip her ass and lift and lower her hips over mine. Her glorious breasts bounce in front of my face. She loops her slender arms around my neck and puts her mouth over one of my horns.
I roar with the pleasure of it, yanking her hips in snug against mine, nearly coming. “Stars, Kailani. If you do that again, this will be over way too soon.”
Her laugh is husky. “Is that so?” She takes my entire horn into her mouth, her tongue swirling around it. She sucks hard. My thighs quake. Balls draw up tight.
“Kailani,” I choke.
She pops off the horn, and I groan, impaling her with my erection as I pull her over me in quick bounces. She swirls that velvety wet tongue around my other horn.
“Veck, veck, veck,” I groan. “I won’t last another moment.”
“Mmm,” she hums around my sensitive appendage.
I can’t take it any longer. I flip her on her back on the soft moss and slam into her like my life depends on it.
Her head falls back in pleasure. “Yes, Khrys. Yes!”
I’ve never been happier to hear those words. Veck, I thought I’d lost my mate forever back there, and now. she’s screaming my name while I pound between her legs. By the one true Zandian star, I don’t care if my honor is never restored. This is what matters. This is where I belong.
I force myself to slow down, arcing in and out of her smoothly as I lower my head to tease one of her nipples with my tongue.
She moans and grips my horns, causing me to slam in hard again.
“Little warrior,” I murmur. “I need you so vecking much. I love you, Kailani.”
She gasps and wraps her legs around my back, pulling me in tight. Her eyes shimmer with tears. “I love you, Master Khrys. My mate.”
Her mate.
Veck.
I’m lost.
I brace one hand on the moss and pound into her, leaning my forehead against hers, our panting breaths mingling. For a few moments, time suspends. We are in ecstasy together—the balance point of love and lust and need and everything wonderful. Then, need topples the scales, and I plow into her even harder, making her scream my name until she’s hoarse, and we both pitch off the precipice into satisfaction.
Her tight channel squeezes my cock, milking it for its rainbow-hued essence. I kiss her face, her eyelids, her soft, silky hair. “I love you, Kailani,” I murmur, knowing without a doubt it’s true. Even though love is more of a human expression, not an emotion I ever imagined I’d know.
“I love you.”
She lifts her small hand and strokes my face. “I love you, too.”
I drop beside her, and we spoon, looking at the waterfall and the myriad of rainbows around the crystal grotto. I search for and find another perfect crystal on the ground and hand it to her.
“Is this the crystal that fuels your bodies?”
“Yes. Zandian crystal. It’s used in laser technology and is only found on our planet, so it’s what makes us rich. Which is also why our species was nearly wiped out.”
“When your planet was invaded.”
“Yes, when I was young.”
“And your brother died taking it back.”
“Yes.”
The sound of voices cuts through the roaring of the water—a young’s laughter and a mother’s call.
“Eek.” Kailani scrambles up.
I laugh and urge her back into the water, following right behind her.
Kailani
We dive under the waterfalls. Khrys swims for our clothing while I hang back and watch the family on the bank of the crystalline pool. They are a blended family—three Zandian males and one human female with twin boys—mixed species, maybe three solar cycles old—splashing in the shallow waters. The sight is completely foreign to me.
The human, indeed, appears free. She sits on a blanket spread on the ground, eating food from silver containers with two of the Zandians while the third stands at the water’s edge supervising the children. Her repose is casual. There’s a smile on her face. And I can’t tell what she’s eating, but it looks like real, whole food—not the gel packs I’ve been eating in space or the protein bars I was fed on Kraa.
My stomach suddenly rumbles.
Khrys climbs out of the water, beautifully unabashed at his nudity, and waves to the family. They wave back. I watch his muscles ripple as he steps into his clothing then picks up mine and walks around the bank in my direction. I swim over and climb out, shaking off the water droplets and letting his large body shield me from view as I dress.
“Who are they?” I ask, peeking around him, fascinated by what I see. They appear happy. I’ve never seen happy beings before. Especially not a human.
“A Zandian family. Come, I’ll introduce you.”
“You know them?”
“Zandia is small. I don’t know them well, but I recognize them.” Khrys hands me my shoes, and I slip them on. He takes my hand in his, and we walk over to the blanket.
The three stand to greet us. In the pool, the other Zandian scoops up the children and carries them over.
“Greetings.” Khrys lifts his arm with his elbow bent at ninety degrees. The Zandians reflect the same gesture. “This is Kailani. She arrived on Zandia this planet rotation.”
“I’m Riya.” The female shocks me by speaking for the group. “And these are my mates, Jax
Tarren, and Ronan.”
I try to keep my eyes from bulging in my head. “All three are your mates?”
Her smile is almost sultry. “Human females are lucky on Zandia.” She trails her fingers over the rigid abs of Tarren, the shirtless Zandian who was down at the water with the young. He’s tall, and his face is badly scarred. I would find him frightening if it weren’t for the familiar and almost possessive way she touches him. “We can have more than one. They’re desperate to repopulate and spread their genes around.”
She touches the heads of the children. Both boys have lighter skin—somewhere between the light purple of the Zandians and her human coloring, tiny horns on top of their heads.
“This is Tarrian and Rylan, our boys.”
“I want to go back to the water,” one of the boys begs, tugging on his father’s arm.
“I�
�ll take you,” Jax offers. “Race you to the edge.” All three take off running, Jax jogging easily along as the little boys pump their legs vigorously.
I watch, fascinated.
“Are you hungry? My mates packed enough food for all of Zandia.”
“Well, the boys require food at an alarming rate,” Ronan explains. “Alarming for us, anyway. Just when we got used to how much an adult human needs to eat, we had to learn never to let a halfling’s blood sugar dip.”
“Do they eat a lot?” Khrys sounds surprised. He considers me with a warm gaze, and I find myself blushing, guessing at his thoughts.
“I would love to eat,” I admit.
“Sit down,” she urges, and we all sink to the blanket. She opens all the little metal boxes and places them in front of me. “These are heirloom tomatoes, originally from Earth. King Zander’s mate Lamira was originally an ag farm slave, and she’s shown Zandians how to farm since the human population requires food.”
I pop one of the small red fruits in my mouth, and it explodes with juices and flavor. “Mmm,” I moan. “Sweet Mother Earth, I’ve never tasted anything so good in my life.”
Khrys picks up some kind of berry and lifts it to my lips, wanting to feed me. “Have you tried lemonberries? They’re not from Earth, but they are delicious.” I hold his gaze as I take it, savoring the moment, which is shimmering and unreal to me.
I take some kind of fluffy bread and bite into it, groaning at the delicious taste and texture. For a few moments, I just eat, absorbing the wondrous scene I am a part of—the incredible tastes, the casual, friendly conversation, the children’s laughter and splashing in the water.
“Your young are healthy?” Khrys asks Tarren.
The enormous male shakes his head. “They both have been diagnosed, but we aren’t seeing any effects yet. We made the decision to go on as if things are normal until they’re not.”
My gaze flies to Riya’s face, and I catch a haunted quality I’d missed before. “They have the…” I— try to swallow— “the Z4-A virus? The one affecting your young?”
I look at Khrys, and he nods.
Unexpectedly, I burst into tears.
“Kailani.” Khrys sounds alarmed. He tugs me into his lap.
I shake my head. “I’m all right.” I don’t know why I’m crying. Not because I’m sad for the children because I’ve already made up my mind. If I have the means to save those sweet beings, I’d do it in a heartbeat. It’s more a release—all the fear and trauma of my past. The beauty before me. The kindness and openness of this marvelous blended family.
“You don’t have to do it. You don’t have to do anything,” Khrys murmurs, misunderstanding my tears.
“Do what?” Riya asks.
“You don’t have to,” Khrys soothes. “I won’t let it happen.”
“What is it? What’s wrong?” Riya asks.
“No, it’s all right.” I give a watery laugh. “I can do it. I’ll do it right now.” I push to stand from his lap. I felt like a victim before—like it was something being done to me. Now I see that it’s clearly my choice. And knowing that makes all the difference. I’m no coward, and I’ve endured the worst kinds of pain. I know I can handle a little more. “I’m going to do it. Let’s go back.”
Khrys scrambles to his feet. “Are you sure?”
I nod. “I’m sure.”
Chapter 13
Kailani
“I want to donate. I’ll give you my blood and cells.”
I squeeze Khrys’ hand tightly, but my voice doesn’t shake. “Khrys convinced me to do it, and it’s because of him that I… offer myself to you.”
This time my voice cracks. But I hold my chin high as I look at the array of Zandians before me, warriors and important beings. The king.
“I beg, in return, you forgive him for what he did. I’ll give you blood whenever you want it.” I hope I’m not overdoing it, but I’m desperate to convince them to let Khrys go free—and be with me.
Then I bow, like I saw Khrys do at the waterfall with the family there, showing proper deference to the king. Beside me, Khrys offers the Zandian gesture with his arm and bends down as well.
As we wait to hear our fate, I glance at my Zandian warrior. His handsome face, so full of worry but also full of love, makes me melt.
“I love you no matter what,” I whisper. “You’re my mate.”
“Did she call you her mate, Captain Khrys?” The king, whose ears are clearly as good as mine, steps closer. His voice isn’t cruel, but I don’t want him to be angry with me. He sounds like a being who has power and is used to wielding it as necessary.
Khrys stands. “Yes,” he says. “I have not pierced her yet, but I claimed her on the ship. I intend to request permission to take her as my official mate and care for her for the rest of our lives.” He puts his arm around me. “And if you give me the chance, I will serve Zandia with all of my heart, to the best of my ability.”
I notice that Khrys’ voice has lost a certain weight and tension that it held, even in our good moments together. He sounds confident and bold, instead of slightly on edge and sad.
I think the king notices, too, because he tilts his head and examines Khrys carefully.
“And I’ll definitely keep giving you the best possible blood and you know, bone marrow or whatever you need, if you do,” I add quickly, snaking an arm around him. “Because my adrenaline and cortisol levels will be within the desired ranges, I’m sure of it, if I’m allowed to be with Khrys.” My whole body trembles with anxiety, and truth be told, I need to feel Khrys next to me in order not to pass out or fall into anxiety. I grab him and try not to hyperventilate.
“See?” I manage to hold up my wrist. The stupid armband shows all green lights. I don’t know what they mean, but apparently, they indicate my health status.
Dr. Daneth makes a sound of approval. “That’s very good. Much faster than I expected, given her initial condition.”
The king looks at us both, eyes traveling over our faces. “Hmm.” He nods to himself. “Dr. Daneth, please take her to the med bay.”
I don’t know if this means yes, he accepted my deal, or whether it means veck you, we do what we want, and we’ll still throw Khrys in prison.
But I’ve offered myself up, and I won’t take it back.
The stiff Zandian from the med bay comes toward me. “I am pleased that you changed your mind,” he says without intonation, but the briskness of his movements indicate that he is indeed excited. “Please come with me.” He points ahead. “One of our young is near death, and we need your antibodies as quickly as possible.”
I pause and look back. “Please. I-I need Khrys. Can he be with me for it?” Now my voice trembles. I want to be brave, but there’s no telling what will happen with me when I see the needles. Khrys makes me feel strong, though. He makes it all bearable.
There’s a long terrible silence, and then the king says, “Yes. Go with your mate, Captain Khrys.”
I exhale in relief and reach to take Khrys’ outstretched hand. “Oh, thank you, thank you,” I cry out, but I’ve buried my face in Khry’s shoulder, and I don’t know if the king can hear me. All I know is that finally, my life is starting to come together in a way I’d never dreamed possible.
“Captain Khrys, return next planet rotation,” the King orders. “There are still some issues I must discuss with you.”
“Yes, my lord,” agrees Khrys. His voice is as full of relief as mine, though. It’s clear that even if the king is still angry, Khrys’ fate won’t be a bad one. And we’ll be together, which is the most important thing in the universe.
Khrys
Kailani looks terrified, but she sits on the smooth bench and lays her arm out flat on the shining table as instructed by Doctor Daneth. I’m beside her, holding her other hand.
Bayla turns to us, her smile gentle. “I know you’re scared.” She touches Kailaini’s shoulder. Her voice is low and reassuring. “First we’ll give you a numbing age
nt, so you don’t feel pain. Then we’ll use a series of needles to extract blood and bone marrow. You’ll feel pressure, but it won’t hurt. Afterward your arm will be sore for a few solar cycles, but it will heal up like nothing happened.”
“Okay. I can do this.” Kailani’s has a death grip on my fingers. “I want to help.”
“It is an enormous help. You could be the answer.” Bayla pulls a small holo device from her pocket. “Let me show you something, Kailani.”
She taps, and an image flickers to life. I lean over, too, and she hands me the device, so I can view it clearly and hold it up for Kailani to see.
“This is a Zandian young before the sickness.”
On the screen, an impossibly small halfling being runs up to a human woman, his arms full of branches.
“Mama!” He cries out, his small face bright with excitement. “Look at what I found! I’m going to build a huge fort.”
He drops his bounty, and the woman scoops him up into her arms. He giggles and wiggles and wraps his small purple arms around her neck.
Then a new image plays. It’s the same boy, but now he’s listless and ill, breathing roughly, eyes closed. His mother’s face is pinched and tear-stained. “He’s getting worse,” she whispers to the viewer. “His breathing is harder. I just don’t know…”
The holo zooms in on the boy’s face. It’s pale and the skin is damp. He’s a million light years away from the robust child running and playing.
Bayla takes the holo device back. “That’s just one example. Dozens of our young have fallen ill. They may die. They’re the future of Zandia. And of humans.” She touches Kailani’s hand. “We believe your blood has antibodies that can save them, Kailani.”
“Do it now. I’m not scared anymore.” Kailani takes a deep breath. “I want to help.”
The doctor comes back. “You’re not going to flinch or pull away, are you?” He has his perpetual serious look on his face. “It’s important for you to stay still during the procedure, and I know you don’t like to be tied down.”
