The Alien's Mate (A SciFi Alien Warrior Romance) (Warriors of Luxiria Book 2)

by Zoey Draven

Vaxa’an grinned, liking the way she teased him. He liked everything that she did to him. It had only been a couple rotations since he’d fought for her, but he could not recall what his life had been before setting eyes on her. It must have been an empty, lonely place.

  Kat wrapped her arms around his neck, letting him carry her weight, her lush thighs clasping his hips in a tight embrace. She brushed her fingers through his hair, smoothing them over his horns, and he let out a purring growl, his eyes sliding shut at the simplicity of his mate touching him. Her soft lips landed on his own and their tongues met, lightly at first before growing in intensity. He still remembered the first time she had taught him how to kiss, on his vessel in space, in the washing stall. After learning and discovering the innocent and yet wicked pleasure, he couldn’t fathom why Luxirians did not partake in it. Almost all of his advisors had questioned him about it, all of them having seen him kiss his mate at one point or another. They had all been intrigued, if not a little suspicious.

  No doubt Rixavox and Cruxan had already tried it out on their various mating partners, he mused.

  Kate pulled away slowly, her lips swollen and pink, just the way he liked to see them. Softly, she said, “Vaxa?” He grunted, hardly trusting his voice. “If the baby is a boy…”

  He straightened at her suddenly serious tone, running a palm down her arm. “Yes?”

  Her eyes ran over the scars lining his flesh. “Will he be sent away to military training?”

  Vaxa’an said, “What brought this on?”

  “I’ve been wondering for a while,” she admitted, not quite meeting his gaze. She looked at his chest instead. “But it’s something I don’t like thinking about.”

  Vaxa’an let out a rumbling purr. “Female, it is an honor for all males to train. It is the Luxirian way.”

  “But he’ll be part human too,” she said, her voice soft. “What is he’s not as strong, or as resilient? You said so yourself…humans are physically weak compared to Luxirians.”

  “The child may not be a male,” he said, unsure how to soothe her worries.

  “I’m quite sure,” she argued.

  Vaxa’an looked at the silver pools, studied the way the water lapped at his mate. Finally, he said carefully, “He will be the Prime Leader’s son. The lavrix’an’s son. He must go, Kat. You realize this, do you not?”

  “I was afraid that you’d say that,” she said in that quiet voice, tilting her head down and blowing out a heavy breath.

  “I know that it is not the human way,” he continued. “But we are on Luxiria, not Earth. The consequences for him not training…there are not only political repercussions but social ones as well. All Luxirian males must complete the required years, no matter if they decide to stay in training afterwards or not.”

  “I know. It’s—it’s just hard for me to wrap my head around sending my son away, at such a young age. And he’s not even born yet.”

  “My mother struggled with it greatly,” he said. “But she held to our customs. You are mistaken if you believe that Luxirians are not affected. But they know that warriors are made and it is warriors who keep our planet protected, our galaxy protected.”

  Like all young warriors, he had struggled during military training. But it had made his mind and body strong. He didn’t know who he would be had his parents not sent him away…but he certainly wouldn’t be the leader he was now. He certainly wouldn’t be holding this female against him, this female who was heavy with their child.

  He could only wish the same happiness for his own son, for all the children that he would sire with his luxiva.

  “I won’t like it,” she said finally. “When the times comes, I know that I will fight you on it. I’m just warning you now. I will try to get my way because the idea is so…is so alien to me. Even though I know it’s probably for the best.”

  “I am no stranger to your claws, luxiva,” he told her. “And I like them. We will fight when he comes of age. But that will not be for many, many more rotations. There will be much to cherish and experience until then, much to learn about our son.”

  “One step at a time,” Kat murmured, meeting his eyes.

  His lips quirked. “Yes. For now, let us enjoy this place.” His chest rumbled. “Let me enjoy you.”

  Kat shook her head, pressing their slick bodies closer, and leaning her forehead on his chest. “Don’t you always?”

  * * *

  Kate woke before Vaxa the next morning, for once. Through the small opening at the top of their tent for the fire smoke to escape, she could see a heavy shroud of silver mist and pink fog. If the creaking, breathing trees swayed just right, she could make out brief streaks of the coming dawn.

  Kat looked up at her mate, careful not to disturb him, for she knew he was a light sleeper. He needed to rest. He’d needed a little break from his duties and responsibilities. And while she knew Luxirian needed less sleep than humans typically did, her mate was dead to the world, catching up for lost time.

  The furs were slung haphazardly over his body and the majority were wrapped around her. He’d accused her before of being a fur-stealer and now she had the proof. Not that she could feel particularly sorry about it as her eyes ran over her mate’s nude body. His cock was tucked against his thigh, hard even in his sleep. A light smile touched her lips, not being able to resist leaning over him to lightly touch the swollen ridges lining it. She was obsessed with his body, completely obsessed.

  He shifted and groaned, eyes blinking sleepily up at her.

  “You wish to mate, female?” he rasped, already turning her so that he could slide between her legs.

  She laughed and pushed at his shoulders, wiggling out from underneath him. “No, go back to sleep. I shouldn’t have done that.” She’d known better than to rouse her mate in such a way. Because once she showed the least bit interest in having sex, he was all over her. And he needed to sleep.

  Kate rose to her knees, eyeing the fire that was nothing more than a few tendrils of wispy smoke. It was cold in their tent and she added another piece of wood to it, hoping it would catch on the last of the dying embers.

  Nature called and she looked over her shoulder to find Vaxa on the verge of sleep once more.

  She leaned over to kiss his forehead and murmured, “I’ll be right back.”

  “I will go with you,” he murmured.

  “No, rest,” she said, gently pushing him back down when he tried to rise. “I won’t be long.”

  Kate slid away from him before he could say more and shrugged on her robe, tying it into place. It would at least provide some protection from the cold as she went about her business.

  The morning was crisp and fresh when she emerged from the tent and she couldn’t stop the smile from appearing. She loved mornings like this and briefly, she wondered whether the seasons changed on Luxiria, like they did on Earth. Would Luxiria see a winter? Or was it perpetually summer on their mountain?

  True to her word, she didn’t venture far. Her bladder was like the size of a pea during her pregnancy, something that amused her mate greatly whenever she went scurrying to the bathroom. Thankfully, Luxirians believed in working plumbing, but whenever Kate and Vaxa left the city, she had to squat to relieve herself.

  Once she was done, she emerged from the private little cluster of trees, readjusting her robe. Just as their tent came into view, a plume of smoke rising from the opening at the top, she saw something move out of the corner of her eye.

  Kate froze.

  At first, she thought the tall Luxirian male that stood just beyond the tree line of their clearing was Vaxa. He looked the same height and build, the same long dark hair, the same proud curling horns.

  Except it wasn’t.

  This Luxirian wasn’t dressed in the leather pants and soft tunic shirt that most males in the Golden City wore. He was wearing something that resembled a loincloth for one and he was bare-chested. No gold bands circled his arms or wrist, but his nipples were pierced through, just like the
warriors that had completed military training.

  He was watching her with piercing blue eyes, his hand tight on the spear weapon he grasped. He was wearing a fur throw over his shoulders for warmth, but it shocked her how…primitive he looked.

  She opened her mouth but no sound came out and unconsciously, she moved a hand to place over her belly, protecting her child just in case. Her eyes flickered to the tent where her mate slept and she wondered just how long this intruder had been hanging around their tent. Had he been watching them this entire time or had he just come across them that morning?

  Kate’s movement drew his hand to her stomach and she saw his eyes widen. He took a step towards her, reaching out a hand, but before she could make a startled sound, she heard Vaxa. Relief crashed through her as he called for her from inside the tent, his voice rough and slightly panicked.

  He appeared a moment later, storming from the flaps of the tent, naked as the day he was born, his eyes darting around the clearing. When Kat turned back to where she’d seen the other Luxirian…he was gone. He’d disappeared into thin air it seemed.

  “Kat,” Vaxa murmured, hurrying to her, encircling her in his arms as his eyes continued to scan the jungle.

  “There…there was a male,” she said quietly, pointing a finger to where she’d seen him. “He was watching me…just there.”

  Vaxa was silent and when she looked up at his face, his expression was drawn and intense.

  “I thought you said no one knew where this place was,” she said. She was slightly shaken from the encounter. The male hadn’t harmed her…but he could have. Kate had seen the quickness and the strength of Luxirians. And she knew that he had been as puzzled by the sight of her as she had been from him, as if he’d never seen a human before. That was when she knew he wasn’t from the Golden City, or any of the outposts…

  “I said that no one outside of my family knows about it,” he said, swallowing, his eyes never leaving the spot from where she pointed.

  “Your family?” she whispered, her eyes widening, casting her head about the clearing once more. “Your…you mean…was that your brother?”

  Vaxa stayed silent, cocking his head to listen. His mouth was drawn down into the deepest frown she had ever seen etched into his face and his body was tight with tension.

  “I felt him,” he said quietly. “Just like when we were young…”

  Because blood connected Luxirians, she realized. Was it like the blood bond she shared with Vaxa? It made sense.

  As if confirming her suspicions, he suddenly yelled, “Jaxor’an!”

  He waited, his entire body going still. Kate’s heart pounded in her chest and she knew that Vaxa would be able to feel it.

  He tried again. “Jaxor’an!”

  There was no response. The jungle remained quiet, except for the breaths of the trees.

  SIXTEEN

  Vaxa was quiet during the journey home.

  Her heart ached for him. He’d told her about his brother briefly and she’d learned more from Keriva…like how the brothers were polar opposites, how Jaxor’an had left the Golden City after their parents’ death in search of the rogue tribe of Luxirians. Even though Vaxa had seemed almost dismissive when he told her these things, the expression on his face told her that he had loved his brother very deeply. It told her that he was still very hurt by his brother’s abandonment.

  Kate could not do much more than try to offer him silent comfort. She knew what it felt like to be abandoned. She knew that he’d sensed his brother in the clearing and it had dredged up old memories for him. Not just of his brother, but of their parents as well, and the unimaginable grief of losing all of them around the same time.

  No wonder he didn’t feel like talking.

  They’d left the lallarix shortly after, even though they’d planned to spend the rest of the afternoon lazing about. Vaxa handled his emotions very differently than she did and Kate knew that he needed to distract himself with his work. It was his coping mechanism…and she couldn’t fault him for it. Even though it might be healthier to confront those feelings instead of burying them under mounds of work, her mate was prickly when it came to expressing his emotions.

  The Golden City came into view just a little after midday.

  Kate sighed, leaning back against Vaxa’s chest when she saw it. Their little vacation was over and a selfish part of her just wanted to keep her mate all to herself. She turned her head to look at him and stood on her tip toes to press a kiss to his neck.

  “I love you,” she murmured, hoping that those words said everything that she didn’t know how to convey. “Thank you for showing me the lallarix. I know it is special to you.”

  Her mate looked down at her and it seemed like he was seeing her for the first time since they’d left the silver pools that morning. He dropped a kiss to the top of her head, before guiding the hovercraft closer to the city. “It was my honor to share it with you, luxiva.”

  Seeing the city reminded her of everything that had happened in the past week. It reminded her of the Trials and reminded her that she still hadn’t told Vaxa about his attacker. She’d been waiting for the right time—when her mate wasn’t stressed or tired or he didn’t have other, more important things on his mind—but now she realized she’d just been making excuses. No time would ever be the right time and she would much rather be honest with her mate, just like they’d promised they would be.

  Even though his mind was no doubt filled with thoughts of his family and his brother…she knew she could put it off no longer.

  Which was why, after they finally landed on their terrace and unpacked most of their supplies off the hovercraft, she asked, “Are you leaving for the council?”

  She stood in their living room next to the pile of their supplies that she would unpack and organize while he was gone. A huge collection of the pods from the trees were rolled onto the floor. They had taken her mate almost three trips to unload and they weren’t light.

  “Tev, I am sorry,” he said, inclining his head. “There is still much to be sorted even though I would never take back our time yesterday.”

  She gave him a short, soft smile, but then sobered. “There’s something that I’ve been meaning to tell you,” she said, looking up at him. She knew she had nothing to fear from her mate, but whenever it came to her protection and her safety on Luxiria, if anything or anyone threatened that…he went absolutely crazy. She didn’t know how he would take the news.

  He straightened. “Tell me.”

  “I don’t know if it even matters, given what happened…but that male—the one who attacked you during the Trials…that was the same male from the marketplace. The one who grabbed my wrist,” she said, nibbling on her bottom lip, looking at him.

  At first, he didn’t react, as if it took him some time to process her words. Then the lines of his face went hard and fury lined his body.

  “You tell me this now?” he asked, his voice deceptively quiet.

  Kate went quiet, feeling frustration eat at her. There was a good reason why she never liked to tell him these things.

  “Let’s not do this again, Vaxa,” she said quietly. “Please.”

  He didn’t hear her. “We promised that we would stop this. We promised that we would not keep things from each other and yet, it continues to happen.”

  Her brows shot up. “You’re going to play that card? Really? Then let’s talk about all the things you’re hiding from me.”

  His lips pressed together, his shoulder muscles bunching.

  “Let’s talk about why you’ve been having secret little talks with Lihvan. Or Rixavox. I heard you during the Lunar Celebration, Vaxa. I heard you tell Lihvan to prepare. What do you need to prepare for? You want to talk about not telling each other things? You didn’t tell me about the Trials until I confronted you about it. We’re both guilty of doing the exact same thing so don’t act like I’m alone in this.”

  Vaxa cursed under his breath, a string of harsh Luxirian words
, running his hands over his horns.

  Kate took a deep breath in and approached him, touching his arm. When he didn’t pull away from her, she continued, softening her tone, “Maybe this is just how our relationship operates, Vaxa. We don’t tell each other things because we don’t want to hurt each other. And maybe it will take a while for us to work on it, but I’m trying to. I just need you to meet me in the middle.”

  Her mate inhaled and then let out a deep breath, trying to gain control of his breathing. One thing she’d learned about Vaxa was that while he had a quick temper, he could return to his usual level-headed self just as swiftly.

  Kate felt herself relax when he clasped her shoulders, sliding his palms down to her wrists, where he circled them with his fingers.

  “Forgive me,” he murmured. “You are right, luxiva.”

  “I was hesitant to tell you at first,” she started, “because the bastard had injured you and you were recovering. I didn’t want you to do something when you were in that state…and then it just got easier not to tell you. I knew how stressed you were and I didn’t want to add to it. I knew I would need to eventually. I’m sorry it took me so long.”

  He pondered her words carefully. She could practically see the way the wheels in his head were turning. Finally, he said in a gruff tone, “He will be punished severely. I promise you this, luxiva.”

  “That’s your decision. You are the Prime Leader,” she said quietly. She studied him. “Are you going to tell me what’s going on, Vaxa?”

  “It is…” He sliced his hand through the air, a dismissive gesture she recognized. “They are council matters.”

  “Vaxa,” she murmured, shaking her head. He didn’t get it. “I’m trying to build a bridge here. But I need you to help me. Or else this is going to turn into a very big problem for us.”

  Her heart pounded in her chest, but she already felt a spike of dread when he didn’t immediately answer.

  Please, Vaxa…please, she thought, silently urging him along.