by Hope Hart
He steps closer, and I grit my teeth as my nipples harden. What the hell is happening to me?
“Why would you not want to be with me?” Confusion and surprise war on his face and I almost laugh.
“I have a life. I have no intention of leaving it. And I don’t even know you.”
He waves his hand. “A small human life. You would rule a warrior race. No human man would ever be able to give you what I can give you.”
A jolt of pain in my jaw tells me I’m grinding my teeth again. “I like my small human life,” I hiss. “Move on and find a new mate.”
He frowns at me. “You know I cannot do that.”
He steps closer again, reaching out with his hand. I jerk my head back but he’s too fast, capturing my chin in his hand.
“So soft,” he murmurs, stroking my skin.
My thighs clench and I realize I’m damp. To my mortification, he breathes in deeply.
“You do want me,” he says triumphantly.
“I want to wake up now,” I say, and my voice trembles slightly.
“Don’t make me chase you anymore, mate. You waste your time and mine. We are destined, and every day you stay away from me is dangerous for both of us.”
I’m sick of this ‘mate’ stuff.
“I have a name,” I snap.
“Yes. Har-low.” He lingers over my name like it’s a fine wine, and moves his fingers down my jaw, stroking just below my ear. I break out in goosebumps.
“Get this through your head. I will never come to you. Move on and leave me alone.”
“Harlow. Harlow. Harlow!”
I frown, looking around for whoever is calling my name.
The Arcav King suddenly looks furious.
“Harlow!”
I jolt awake, sitting up in my bed. Josh is standing by the door, face pale. “Wow, you were really in a deep sleep.”
“Just a dream,” I murmur in relief. But God, it felt so real.
Varian
I slam my hand on my table as my mate breaks free of her dream. Har-low, I correct myself. She wants me to call her by her name.
Actually, she doesn’t want me to call her anything at all, I think, stunned.
I stare down at my body, wondering if something has changed. No, I’m still tall and strong. Muscles ripple as I move, my skin gleams in the dim light, and my cock can give a woman more pleasure than she’s experienced in her lifetime.
How can Harlow not want me? Me?
She had wanted me though. I hadn’t missed how her body had tensed, and her desire had filled the air. She didn’t want to want me, but I have no doubt that I can change her mind if I can just convince her to let me take her to bed.
I smile. Or anywhere else she would like to fuck.
A knock at the door disturbs me from my musings.
“Enter.”
Jaret bows sharply and steps forward. “Did your mate tell you where she is?”
I frown. “She is being stubborn.” A sudden thought occurs to me. “I need you to check for any history of mental illness. It doesn’t make sense that she would run from me.”
Jaret’s horns straighten in surprise. “I’ve already checked your mate’s records. She has no history of any such problems.” He shifts awkwardly for a moment and I pin him with my eyes.
“What is it?”
“Human females are much different to Arcav females. Particularly females like your mate who are tasked with keeping the peace on earth. It’s not… unexpected that she would not want to come to you at first.”
I clench my jaw. “It’s unexpected to me.”
Jaret’s eyes lighten and I have a feeling he’s holding back a laugh. “I understand.”
I sigh, relaxing, and sit on my bed. Jaret is the only one trusted enough to see me in my personal space, and the only Arcav I would consider close to a friend.
“Convincing her to come to me may take more time than we have,” I tell him. “We need to find her.”
His face darkens. “I agree. We also have a problem that I need to bring to your attention.”
He gestures with his hand, and a viewing screen appears on my wall. At his command, a video begins to play.
Every muscle in my body tenses as I watch a large man hit my mate in the head and carry her toward a car.
No, I realize as I see her face. That’s not my mate. But it is a human who looks very much like her.
Jaret plays another recording, and I watch as a woman much older than my mate is dragged kicking and screaming from a human shopping center. She has the same colored hair and looks around the same height, but every other feature is almost laughably different.
“There are more like this, your majesty. Humans are looking for your Queen- likely because they want the reward. If they find her, they could accidentally kill her.”
I feel my horns lengthen at the thought of my mate being hurt or killed by a human, all because she refuses to come to me.
“I will give them all a message.”
Harlow
Josh and I are both silent as we drive, busy with our own thoughts. I glance at Josh occasionally, and when he meets my eyes he looks almost guilty. We meet an HAA member named Cheryl, who chats with us for a few minutes before we swap cars, and then Josh goes to find us some food.
My mouth waters at the smell of my sub, and I reach for it eagerly when Josh returns.
“What’s going on, Josh?”
“Nothing.”
I almost smile. It’s like we’re kids again.
“You’re acting weird.”
“So are you. This situation isn’t exactly normal. My sister is the Arcav King’s mate.”
“I wish you wouldn’t say that.”
“Why?” he shrugs. “It’s true.”
I take a deep breath, hoping to find some patience from somewhere. I don’t know why I expected my brother to make this trip easier.
“You know, you can tell me whatever’s on your mind.”
Josh sneers at me and then sighs. “You’ve got mustard on your chin,” he says, handing me a napkin. “Look, you’ve got enough of your own problems to worry about. Leave it alone.”
I shrug, trying not to feel hurt. I do this over and over again, attempting to form a relationship between us that simply doesn’t exist. And maybe it never will.
It’s my turn to drive, and we travel in silence for the next few hours. I’m exhausted when we finally make it to the next motel, but I switch on the TV and call Blake as agreed while Josh heads straight to the tiny bathroom and turns on the shower.
Blake picks up, and I flip channels, freezing as I look into the eyes of the Arcav King.
“Hold on Blake.” I turn it up so I can hear what they’re saying.
“One thing is for sure, humans will need to be very careful if they think they spot Harlow Black,” says the anchor, and the Arcav King begins to speak.
“It has come to my attention that women with a similar likeness to my mate are being harmed.” He pauses and smiles, flashing his fangs.
Blake curses, obviously watching the same channel. “Scary bastard.”
“Let me be very clear. If my mate is harmed in any way, the consequences for humanity will be beyond your wildest nightmares.”
I shiver at his words, and the camera turns back to the news anchor who has paled.
“This warning comes as women around the country with a similar appearance to Ms Black have been attacked and kidnapped. In Texas today, a mother of three is in a coma after she was attacked by a crowd in a shopping mall.”
“Oh my God.”
“Harlow.”
“They’re attacking women who look like me! Jesus Christ, this is all my fault.”
Blake curses soundly. “It’s not your fault at all.”
“A woman is in a fucking coma!”
“That’s on the Arcav. Not you. You didn’t choose this. And you didn’t hunt down those women.”
“If I hadn’t run—”
“You’d have been
taken from your life. Look, don’t watch the TV anymore okay?”
I turn it off, disgusted with myself. “I need to go,” I mutter, and sit on the sagging motel bed while I stare at the black TV screen, numb. Josh strolls out of the bathroom, whistling, and I grab my bag, hauling it into the tiny bathroom.
I sit on the floor of the shower and let the water run over me. Finally, the hot water runs out and I turn it off. I grab a towel, wrapping it around me as I stare blankly at the water slowly dripping from the faucet.
Drip, drip, drip.
A woman could die. Three kids could lose their mom because she looks like me. I shiver at the thought. I’ve lost a mom, and I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy.
Drip, drip, drip.
When I was young, I asked my mom why the other kids didn’t like me. Now I know it’s because we dressed in old clothes, and it was obvious we were poor. Children are little savages, and will gang up on the weakest among them if given a chance.
“You don’t need them to like you, baby.”
“But I want them to!”
She’d sighed, reached out and fingered a hole in my sweater. “I know it doesn’t seem like it right now, but one day, you won’t care what these kids think. All that matters is you can look at yourself in the mirror, and not look away.”
My lower lip had trembled. “But I want them to be friends with me!”
Six year old me couldn’t appreciate my mother’s wisdom.
Today, I get it.
For once, I don’t know if I can look myself in the eyes without flinching. Maybe it’s time to think about turning myself in.
Drip, drip, drip.
I dry off and crawl into bed, listening to my brother’s snores from the other bed. And I’m not at all surprised when the Arcav King visits me in my dreams.
Chapter 6
Varian
“Of course, you’re here again,” my mate says dully. “Why would I think this day would get any better?”
She stares at me like I’m an earth insect, and I feel my stomach sink as I realize I’m no closer to seeing her smile. It’s galling to admit, but I would give almost anything to watch the corners of her plush lips tip up when she looks at me.
“I’m dreaming aren’t I?”
“Yes.”
“But you’re really here, aren’t you?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
I shrug, unwilling to let her know about the Criel Stone.
She snorts and ignores me, staring at the bed as if trying to will herself awake.
I clear my throat. “Are you well?” This conversation is awkward. I used to be known as a man who could simply look at a female and they would be ready to mate. Now, I’m as uncertain as a young boy.
She turns toward the window and her shoulders shake.
I stalk around the tiny, hard sleeping platform, sneering at the worn coverings. I long to take my mate from here.
I grab her shoulders and turn her toward me. She wipes her eyes, face flushed, and I realize, she was… laughing. I rub the base of my neck as I frown at her. I know she is not happy. Her laugh does not sound like she is filled with joy.
“You want to know if I’m well?”
I nod. I would not have asked if I did not want to know.
“Of course I’m not well,” she spits out. “I’m on the run, staying in shitty motels with my clueless brother. And now other women are getting hurt because they look like me.”
“Oh,” I say, relieved. “There is a simple solution to this, mate. You just need to tell me where to find you, and both of these problems will be solved.”
She steps back from me, and I wonder how I don’t burst into flames from the heat of her glare.
“That’s not as simple solution!”
I run a hand over my horn in frustration. This is not how I imagined finding my mate. I thought she would run into my arms, and we would go somewhere quiet to learn each other and maybe even rut before her coronation. Instead, she seems to loathe me, and shows no signs that she wants me inside her.
I think about last night, when the scent of her called to me so sweetly. Maybe she does want me. Mating is biological. My spirits rise slightly as I remember that her mind may not want me, but her body does.
“What can I do to make you happy, mate?”
She snorts. “First of all, you can stop calling me mate.”
“Harlow,” I say, and from the expression on her face I can tell her name sounds different coming from my mouth. “How can I make you feel better?”
“You can stop chasing me and leave me alone.”
I cross my arms as I study her sternly. “Other than that.”
She sighs and crosses the room to sit on the edge of one of the sleeping platforms. I almost groan as I have an immediate vision of rolling her onto her back and covering her with my body.
“Then there’s nothing you can do.”
“Surely there is something you would like.”
She stares at me for a minute, and I’d give anything to know what thoughts she is thinking.
“I want you to fix the woman who is in a coma,” she says finally.
I raise my eyebrows. “Do you know this woman?”
“No.” She shifts on the bed and her face is sad. “But she got hurt because she looks like me.” She meets my eyes. “I know you have much better technology than we do. If you want to help me feel better, use that technology to help her.”
I consider this, open my mouth to agree, and then pause.
“What?” Harlow asks nervously.
“I want something in return.”
She narrows her eyes. “Of course you do.” She looks disgusted, but I know I must stand my ground if I want her to grow closer to me. The biological implications of a mating mean that she will never find a man as physically compatible for her as I am. If I have to bribe her to get close to me physically, than that’s what I’ll do. I strengthen my resolve. The only chance I have to convince my mate to come to me is if she sees just how compatible we are.
“I want a kiss.”
Her mouth drops open in surprise. “A kiss?”
I nod my head. “My people do not do this, so I would like you to teach me.”
“Why don’t you go learn with someone else?”
“I only want to learn with you.” I push down the hurt and frustration that my mate would want me to share this experience with another. I would kill any man who thought to put his mouth on her. I feel my horns lengthen in rage at the thought, and Harlow eyes them warily.
I take a deep breath, fighting to get myself under control. This small human forces me to experience numerous emotions during a single encounter with her. Joy, rage, lust, hurt, it all flows through me. Just a few weeks ago, all I felt was hopelessness and the weight of responsibility.
She frowns as she thinks it over, and I look away, feigning unconcern. My body is tense though, and I silently urge her to agree to my deal.
“What kind of kiss?”
I keep my face blank. “There are different kinds?”
Something shifts in her eyes and she gives me a false smile. I know it’s false because her eyes do not light up. I’m learning these things about her. One day she will give me a real smile.
“Nope, I misspoke. Kissing is easy, you simply press your lips together for a couple of seconds.”
We stare at each other. She seems to think I’ve never seen humans do this kissing. I know it often lasts more than ‘a couple of seconds,’ but I’ll take whatever she gives me.
“I want you to fix all of the humans who were hurt because they looked like me,” she says, crossing her arms across her chest.
Harlow seems to think I will argue. My mate obviously has a kind heart. If this act will stop her from looking so sad, I’ll do it a hundred times.
I nod. “I will do this. But you must kiss me first. And you must call me by my name.”
“How do I know you’ll really do it?”
My horns jut forward, and I feel my face heat in anger at the suggestion that I would lie to her. “You think I have no honor?”
She leans away from me. “Okay, okay, take a chill pill.”
“I do not have a chill pill. What is this?”
“Forget it.” She sighs and stands, moving closer to me, and I feel my body begin to vibrate at her nearness. Will she really touch her lips to mine? I remind myself that if she had just come to me a few days ago, we would have done much more, and I wouldn’t be begging for scraps of her affection.”
Harlow tilts her head at me. “Are you still angry? You know Blake’s right, you’re a scary bastard.”
“What is a bastard?”
“Never mind.” She peers up at me, and I’m reminded of how small she is.
“You’ll need to lean down,” she says, and I comply.
I reach out to touch her, and she jumps back out of the way. “No touching.”
Am I not to feel her soft lips against mine after she agreed?
I stare at her. “How are we to kiss if you will not allow me to touch you?”
She looks around and then cautiously reaches out and grabs my arm. Her skin feels cool compared to mine, and I’m momentarily stunned at the contact. She pulls me toward the bed, and directs me to sit on the edge the way she was before.
Ahh, I understand. Now we are almost the same height.
“If we’re going to do this, you need to place your hands behind your back.”
I frown. Harlow does not want me to touch her at all. I swallow down bitterness as I realize she will give me the bare minimum of herself, and only because she worries about the health of other humans.
She thinks to control the situation, and imagines that she will have no reaction to me. I will show her differently.
She gestures for me to open my knees so she can stand between my thighs, and her eyes widen at my erection. My body is covered with the thin fabric our people love, but we do not trap our cocks in tight fastenings. She immediately glances away, and I lean back on my hands, hoping she will look back down. Instead, she bites her lip nervously, and inches toward me. I’m entranced by her small, blunt human teeth, and the way they sink into her pillowy lip.
