by Sue Mercury
Khann: Vaxxlian Alien Mail Order Brides #5
Intergalactic Dating Agency
Sue Mercury
Contents
About this book
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
Epilogue
Also in the Vaxxlian Alien Mail Order Brides series
Also by Sue Mercury
About Sue Mercury
The Intergalactic Dating Agency
Copyright © 2020 by Sue Mercury
Khann: Vaxxlian Alien Mail Order Brides #5 (Intergalactic Dating Agency)
All rights reserved
No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission of Sue Mercury. All names, brands, characters, and settings are purely from the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to real people, real brands, and real locations is a coincidence. Contact: [email protected]
Editing by Celeste Jones
Cover design by Croco Designs
Published in the United States of America
Sue Mercury, Sue Lyndon
https://www.suemercury.com
https://www.suelyndon.com
About this book
He’s the enemy—and she’s agreed to become his mate.
Stranded on war-torn Earth with her young daughter, Belle is devastated to learn she has a terminal illness. Who will take care of her daughter after she’s gone? When she discovers Vaxxlians possess the technology to save her, she doesn’t hesitate to sign up for Vaxxlian Mail Order Brides—even if she does view the powerful aliens as the enemy. She only wishes her matched mate, a muscle-bound warrior named Khann, wasn’t so kind and handsome. She doesn’t want to lose her heart to the enemy, but it’s difficult to think coherently when his passionate kisses leave her breathless with desire.
Khann longs for a mate and a family. When he meets the beautiful human female named Belle and her talkative daughter, Amie, he feels a warmth he hasn’t experienced in ages. Surely, they must be the answer to his prayers. He’s eager to mate with Belle and bring his new family back to New Vaxx, but Belle hesitates to leave Earth right away and insists they postpone their mating until they are better acquainted. Khann sets about romancing the human female as best he can. But not long after their first mating, he learns a terrible secret about her past loyalties, one which jeopardizes their future as a family.
Chapter 1
Belle stared at the introduction page of the Vaxxlian Alien Mail Order Brides website, her heart in her throat. Her entire body trembled as she browsed the site, studying the information provided about the alien culture and the planet of New Vaxx, as well as reading over the rules for applicants. She broke out in a cold sweat and took a few deep breaths, trying to fight back her rising panic.
She’d finally made it to the application page.
All that stood between her and the ‘submit’ button were a few basic questions. Vaxxlian males weren’t that picky—they just wanted young, single, fertile human females.
She ran a hand through her hair. How had it come to this?
How could she seriously contemplate a match with one of these barbaric aliens?
She shuddered. If another option existed, surely her doctors would’ve thought of it by now.
The alarm on her phone went off, reminding her it was time to take her pills. She sighed and reached for her medicine, gulped the pills down, and closed her eyes for a few minutes while leaning forward on the desk. The meds sometimes made her dizzy right after she took them.
Several minutes passed and she started to feel better. Thank goodness. She opened her eyes and peered around the hotel suite. She was seated at a desk located in the master bedroom of the luxurious suite. Her five-year-old daughter, Amie, was sound asleep in the middle of the king-size bed, her long dark curls splayed haphazardly about her head, and Mr. Melvin, her beloved stuffed bear, was tucked underneath her arm. Belle’s heart clenched at the sight.
She soon returned her focus to the mail order bride website.
She wasn’t doing this for herself. She was doing this for Amie, so her sweet little girl didn’t grow up motherless.
She started filling out the application form, though she had to pause every now and then. Sitting up in a chair and typing was making her fatigued, but she didn’t want to leave the application hanging until morning. The sooner she filled it out, the sooner she might be matched with a Vaxxlian male. The sooner the male would come to Earth and collect her, along with Amie, and take them back to New Vaxx.
The sooner Belle might receive the lifesaving nanobots Vaxxlians were rumored to possess.
Oh, please let it be true. She glanced at Amie again. Never in her life had she felt so alone and desperate. She was taking a huge risk by signing up for the mail order bride service, but she didn’t know what else to do. She wasn’t about to give up and die and leave Amie all alone at such a tender age.
Tears burned in Belle’s eyes and a lump formed in her throat.
Dark memories resurfaced. Hiding in a closet aboard the Dreusha Outpost during a Vaxxlian attack. Holding her breath and praying the enemy didn’t find her. Watching through a crack in the door as a huge, scary-looking Vaxxlian male dragged her adoptive father, Mikkal, across the floor. There was blood. So much blood.
A sob erupted from Belle and she clasped a hand over her mouth. She didn’t want to wake Amie up. Focus. Finish the form. Hit ‘submit.’
She blinked rapidly, trying to hold back her tears, and forced herself to complete her task.
If only the mail order bride service would match her with another alien race. Anyone but a Vaxxlian. For as long as she lived, they would always be the enemy.
In the end, the love she held for her daughter gave her the courage to hit the ‘submit’ button on the application form.
She inhaled a shaky breath and stared at the screen.
Thank you for submitting an application to Vaxxlian Alien Mail Order Brides. A representative will contact you soon via the email address you provided. Most prospective human females are matched to their Vaxxlian mate within a day, however, wait times may vary.
Belle closed her laptop and rose to her feet. Within a day. Dear God.
She padded across the plush carpet and headed for the window. It was early morning and the glow of the sun hovered on the horizon. Plumes of smoke dotted the Baltimore skyline. Three times during the night, she’d heard a boom and felt the ground shudder. She didn’t bother turning on the news though. It was always the same thing—rival gangs, political unrest, or a rogue attack by an enemy of the state who often went unnamed in the news broadcasts.
She wouldn’t be sad to leave Earth. The only reason she’d come to this planet in the first place was because of her illness. Unable to find adequate treatment for the seihzana virus she’d contracted, she’d chartered a vessel to Earth, the planet of her biological
parents. She had hoped the human doctors might be able to help her, but unfortunately, every single doctor she visited claimed the seihzana virus was fatal.
The hospital she’d visited yesterday was right across the street, a tall blue building that had felt like the end of the line when she’d stood on the sidewalk staring up at it yesterday morning. She had been all over the world, and this particular hospital was her last stop. Her last hope—a consultation with a team of doctors that specialized in exotic alien viruses.
Coldness gripped her when she recalled the hopelessness she’d experienced during the appointment. All seven doctors had looked at her with pity, as if she were already dead. But then as she exited the hospital, the oldest doctor in the group, Dr. Tanner, a tall man with a shock of white hair, had approached her and asked to speak in private.
“Vaxxlians. I’ve heard rumors that they possess nanotechnology. I’ve heard they inject all their mates, including the human females they take as brides, with the healing nanobots. It’s said such technology can heal any disease. It’s believed to slow aging as well.”
And so, Belle had left the hospital utterly shaken. A possible cure existed, but it came at a great cost—she must become a mail order bride to a Vaxxlian.
The enemy. She had to mate with the enemy, and Vaxxlians mated for life.
Mikkal’s kind face flashed in her mind. A second later, the heaviest guilt she’d ever known crashed down upon her, almost suffocating in its intensity.
“Forgive me, Father,” she whispered. “Please forgive me. Please understand.”
Her phone dinged and she pulled it from her pocket. An email. She already had an email from the mail order bride service. Pulse racing, she opened the message, holding her breath as she read the contents of the missive.
It was a congratulations letter. Not ten minutes had passed since she’d hit the ‘submit’ button and already she’d been matched to a Vaxxlian.
Khann. That was his name.
To her shock, his expected arrival date was tomorrow. She hadn’t expected to be matched within minutes. She’d thought she would have more time to get used to the idea of mating with a Vaxxlian. She wiped at the tears that now flowed freely down her face.
God, how she hoped Dr. Tanner was right. If she found herself mated to a Vaxxlian only to discover the rumor about healing nanobots wasn’t true, she would have ruined what little time she had left. Then what? If she died after mating with Khann, what would become of Amie?
No no no. She sank to the floor and cried harder, heaving sobs that stole the last of her energy. She only ever cried like this when Amie was sleeping. When the little girl was awake, Belle did her best to remain strong and happy and optimistic. The last thing she wanted was for Amie to worry about her future, to worry that she might lose her mother.
Belle didn’t remember her biological parents, as they’d died when she was an infant. But the pain of losing her adoptive father, the Irrcon male she’d affectionately called Father, when she was eighteen, was still a painful wound, one which would never heal. She couldn’t imagine Amie experiencing that sort of devastating loss.
Amie started to stir in bed and Belle ceased crying. She wiped her face on her shirt and then managed to crawl across the floor, hoping to reach her pills. Though it wasn’t time for another dose yet, she took one anyway, needing the slight boost of strength that always followed the nausea. Thankfully, by the time Amie opened her eyes, Belle was able to stand up without clutching onto the furniture.
“Good morning, Muffin,” she said.
“Morning, Momma!”
“Vacation must have tuckered you out. You slept for over ten hours!” Belle said with a smile. She never let on that she was sick and constantly told Amie they were on vacation. That was why they’d come to Earth and why they never stayed in one city for long. During Belle’s doctor appointments, she would hire a hotel babysitting service to entertain the child.
Amie covered a yawn and then giggled. “Momma, Mr. Melvin just said he wants pancakes for breakfast!” She held up her stuffed bear and waved him around.
Belle walked to the bed and sat next to her daughter. They embraced, with Mr. Melvin now tucked between them. “If Mr. Melvin wants pancakes,” she said with a chuckle, “then that’s what we’ll have for breakfast. I’ll call down for room service in just a moment.” She hugged Amie tighter, her heart swelling with emotion.
I love you. I’ll do whatever it takes to stay with you.
Belle’s mind reeled. She would soon have to explain to Amie that a Vaxxlian named Khann would arrive in the morning, that the alien warrior would become her new stepfather. How would she explain to Amie her reasons for marrying a complete stranger in a way the child would understand?
Not for the first time since she’d gotten sick, Belle longed for her adoptive father. He always knew the right thing to say. Always gave the best advice. Always made her feel safe and loved.
But he was long gone. Killed by a Vaxxlian.
Years after the tragedy on the Dreusha Outpost, she was on Earth, a single mother battling a terminal illness, and in her darkest hour she was turning to the very enemy that she loathed.
Tomorrow. Khann would arrive on Earth tomorrow.
Please let the rumors be true, she thought again, as she pressed a kiss to Amie’s forehead.
Chapter 2
Khann navigated his ship through the Eshunna Passage, the newly discovered wormhole that made travel from planet New Vaxx to Earth conveniently fast. In less than a day, he would arrive on the human planet and claim his matched mate.
Belle. That was her name. He glanced down at his wrist comm and displayed his bride’s information again. She lived on the east coast of the United States, and the form also listed her hobbies—travel, reading, swimming, watching movies, and playing board games.
But the detail that stood out most was that she had a five-year-old daughter named Amie.
A wave of uncertainty hit him. Khann would automatically become a father to a little human girl he’d never met. He hadn’t expected his mate to already have children, but it sometimes happened, and full-blooded human offspring were welcomed into Vaxxlian society.
Many of his fellow warriors had already once been mated and fathered children, only to lose their families during the war against the Irrcons, when the dishonorable aliens destroyed their beloved home planet of Vaxxlia. Now that females were scarce, Vaxxlian warriors were expected to claim human mates and help grow their population.
Khann didn’t know much about raising children, but Vaxxlian Alien Mail Order Brides had matched him to Belle, and despite his unease over suddenly becoming a father, he resolved that he would honor the match to the best of his abilities. He would take care of Belle and her daughter, protect them and shelter them and see to all their needs.
But am I capable of affection?
He couldn’t stop the unwanted thought, and his jaw clenched in frustration. He could provide for his mate and her daughter’s physical needs, but would he ever come to care for them? Was it even possible?
Ever since the war, he hadn’t felt like himself. Star God, he didn’t recognize himself. When he looked in the mirror, he saw cold, unfeeling eyes staring back at him.
Hardened. He had become a hardened shell of his former self, incapable of warmth or the smallest glimmer of joy. He had killed thousands of Irrcons during battle and a dark part of him had enjoyed the slaughter. After all, they had destroyed his homeworld and killed nearly all Vaxxlian females, along with countless children. He loathed the despicable aliens to the very depths of his being. He would kill a thousand more if given the opportunity.
A growl escaped his throat when he recalled the time he’d been briefly captured by the Irrcons. They had attempted to extract information from him by use of torture. They had beaten him with a shock stick and even took a knife to his chest at one point. To this day, even after an injection of enhanced nanobots, which weren’t developed until later on in the war, he st
ill bore the scars of his captivity.
But he’d fought his captors and managed to escape their vessel after killing a good number of them. He rejoined his fellow warriors and continued battling the enemy until they eventually surrendered. The Irrcons were no longer a threat, as they’d been driven far from the surrounding sectors of space. Vaxxlian cruisers routinely patrolled for any sign of the aliens, and a powerful protective shield had been erected around planet New Vaxx. The Irrcons would not succeed in taking one more Vaxxlian life, not a warrior or a female or a child.
He exhaled a long breath, trying to calm himself. Whenever he thought of the war, his hands always curled into fists and he longed to punch something. In fact, he’d done so numerous times, but the blasted nanobots in his system muted the pain and healed his bloody knuckles faster than he would like.
Fluxx.
He stared ahead, following behind his older brother Axall’s vessel. A glance down at the radar screen showed his younger brother Myadd’s ship was close behind. The three of them had survived the war, and now they were all heading to Earth at the same time to claim their human mates. Were his brothers as nervous as he was?
Perhaps nervous wasn’t the right word. Even though he longed for the normalcy of possessing a mate and having a family of his very own, he felt increasingly unsettled by the impending prospect. He wished he knew for certain whether or not he would experience tenderness for his mate, and whether or not he would become attached to his new daughter.
