by Tasha Black
Kypha began to applaud as best she could with Opal in her arms.
Orion strode over to embrace her.
“Careful with her dress,” Kypha called out.
But he didn’t care about the dress, he pulled his betrothed close and devoured her mouth.
Finally, Hailey broke away panting and giggling a little.
“Are you ready to meet the press again?” he asked her. “This time on your own terms?”
“I guess,” she said. “Didn’t you say it was a fundraiser?”
“The press loves them too,” he told her, nodding. “It’s the free food.”
She laughed and he reveled in the sound.
“Just stay close to me,” he told her. “And follow my lead. It’s easy as can be.”
“Don’t worry,” she told him. “You won’t be able to shake me.”
Something wild and possessive in his chest roared with pleasure.
“Adorable,” Kypha said, holding Opal out.
Hailey snatched her up before Orion could even move and he smiled down at her.
“Ready?” Kypha asked.
He watched Hailey’s beautiful face and saw her adventurous spirit conquer her fear.
“Yes,” she said vehemently.
“Your carriage awaits,” he told her, offering her his arm so he could walk her to the car.
20
Hailey
Hailey’s cheeks were sore from smiling, but the event had gone well. She had managed to stay close to Orion for most of it, and his reassuring presence helped her stay calm.
She wasn’t used to a lot of attention in the first place, and this much was unprecedented.
A few of the wives had eyed her up and down and turned up their noses. But one or two had chatted with her.
As things were wrapping up, the older mother of one of the donors sidled right up to admire the baby and talk with her about motherhood. Her own son, a very grown-up Atlas Baldwyn, seemed like a bit of a spoiled rich kid to Hailey, but the older woman was more friendly and grounded.
“You’ve taken on a lot here,” Mrs. Baldwyn confided. “But you’re going to love this new life. Enjoy your baby, and that wildly handsome husband of yours. Everyone else will come around over time.”
“It’s all so new to me,” Hailey admitted. “I feel really lucky, but I’m also pretty sure I’m going to screw it up.”
“Not with the way he looks at you,” the older woman told her. “You’ll make mistakes, and he’ll help you fix them. And vice versa. That’s what marriage is about. I wish my son would open his heart to it.”
“He doesn’t want to get married?” Hailey asked, eying Atlas from across the room as he studied his comm-bracelet. He was certainly handsome enough, muscular and blond, with the chiseled features of a holo-star. She didn’t doubt that he would have his pick when it came to women.
“Look at him,” Mrs. Baldwyn said, rolling her eyes and nodding in his direction. “A whole room full of perfectly lovely women, and he’s fixated on his comm device.”
“He’ll come around,” Hailey said.
“I don’t know about that,” his mother said sadly. “He had a colossal break-up recently, and I haven’t been able to scare up a girl he finds more interesting than that damned bracelet. If he doesn’t get married soon, his grandfather’s bound estate will go to his cousin.”
“Wow,” Hailey said, not entirely sure what a bound estate was, but figuring it was a problem associated with wealth.
“Goodness, dear, I shouldn’t complain about such things to you,” the woman scolded herself. “I’ll run and get my coat. See you at the next one of these things.”
Hailey waved to her, then took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
The event had gone well, but it would feel good to get home. The servers were already clearing the tables. The music had been turned down, and the lights up. With any luck, it was only a matter of minutes before she would be heading home with Opal and Orion.
“Miss Jenkins,” a raspy voice said from right behind her.
She nearly screamed, but managed to restrain herself.
“Hello,” she said, turning to see an older Terran with a big mustache.
“Lars Offalt. Fun party,” he said in a voice that implied he was saying more than what the words meant.
“It was lovely, Mr. Offalt,” she agreed. She had no idea what he was trying to say, but being friendly was the name of the game today.
“Not as lovely as you, my dear,” he said.
He reached his hand around and pinched her rear, hard.
Hailey stepped away, shocked.
“Too bad the baby won’t have an ass like that,” he said, barking out a mirthless laugh. “But from what I hear, her real mother was a whore from the Outer Rings, so she should be down for a good time, too.”
Hailey gaped at him, horrified.
“Don’t worry, dear,” the man rasped. “Councilman VynFleet obviously likes trashy women. Your position is safe. Whatever position it is he likes with you…”
He waggled his eyebrows and let out one more horrible laugh as he eyed her up and down lecherously.
Hailey held Opal tight to her chest and walked away on trembling legs.
The cameras are still on. The cameras are still on. The cameras are still on, she reminded herself, though her blood was boiling.
She moved close to Orion again, hating herself for letting herself be separated from him, though talking to Mrs. Baldwyn had been lovely.
Orion was speaking with a man in a velvet suit with six arms, all of which were gesturing wildly as he talked about bridge repairs in Upper Arkadia.
Hailey glanced around the room and saw that at last, the broadcasting equipment was packed away.
Lars Offalt was back at the bar, downing one last free drink. Hailey guessed he’d reached the point of one too many about three drinks ago. She knew the best thing was to just leave him alone, but the things he’d said were already echoing in her head, and she was sure they wouldn’t stop anytime soon if she just ignored them.
“Can you hold her for a moment?” she asked Orion softly, not wanting her soon-to-be daughter to hear what she was about to say.
He took Opal without even looking away from the many armed man.
Good. She didn’t want him to hear what she had to say either.
She moved to the bar as calmly as she could.
“Lars Offalt,” she snapped once she was standing behind him.
He jumped, spilling his drink down his shirt.
“Shit, girl,” he said, sounding actually annoyed. “Don’t sneak up on a man like that.”
“There’s something I need to tell you,” she said
“Prettyboy not doing it for you, eh?” he said, winking lasciviously. “I’d be glad to show you how a real man does things.”
He reached out for her, and Hailey reacted without thinking, grabbing his hand and twisting his wrist in a direction it wasn’t meant to go. All those hours of self-defense lessons her mother had insisted on weren’t a waste after all.
“What in the seven hells…?” Offalt gasped in pain.
“You’re a horrible man, touching women who don’t want to be touched,” she hissed. “You’ve said insulting things about me, and that’s fine. But if you ever talk like that about baby Opal again, I will come to your house in the middle of the night and murder you. Do I make myself clear?”
He gaped at her, face still drawn in pain, as he halfheartedly tried to get his hand back.
“Opal is off limits,” she repeated. “Tell me you understand me, or I’ll have to break your wrist.”
“I-I understand,” he stammered. “Please. I’m sorry.”
“Get the hell out of here,” she growled, letting go of his clammy hand.
The evil little troll darted off toward the exit.
Hailey had exactly two seconds of grim satisfaction before she felt a hand at the small of her back.
“Go to the car, now,”
Orion hissed.
Crap.
“Did you hear what he said to me earlier?” Hailey asked calmly, turning to him.
“It doesn’t matter what he said,” Orion told her. “What I care about is what you did. A physical altercation at a fundraiser? We don’t settle differences in Upper Arkadia that way.”
The Upper Arkadia was a slap in the face. Even her fiancé judged her based on her upbringing.
“Even though you don’t care to hear my side of it, I want you to know that he touched me inappropriately, and then he started making inferences about Opal - that her mother was a whore and that she would grow up to be the same.”
Orion’s mouth fell open. Then he gathered himself.
“I wish you had told me,” he said. “I would have asked him to leave. But making threats and grabbing someone is never okay, Hailey.”
Technically, he’d tried to grab first, but Hailey was too angry to argue about that now.
“Wow,” she shot back. “I guess Phyrissa was right after all. Maybe Opal is just a prop.”
“How can you say that?” he demanded furiously. “I love Opal. I’ve upended my life for her. She’s the reason you’re here.”
“Well, I’m sorry marrying me is such a burden,” Hailey spat, turning away from him and directly into the glossy black eye of a video feed. “Oh.”
Orion turned to see what she was seeing.
“Nice,” Bragg Zigon said with an ironic smile as he lowered his camera. “It was kind of a boring day, but I’m glad I stuck around. That is going to make great viewing.”
“Bragg,” Orion said helplessly, handing Opal to Hailey.
“I might just get that Newsie award after all,” Bragg said, as if to himself.
“You don’t have to do anything with that footage,” Orion said softly.
“So, you plan to censor me a second time?” Bragg asked.
“If I’m elected ambassador, I’ll need an embedded press person on my team,” Orion said. “Think about what that would do for your career.”
“Oh, you’re not going to get elected,” Bragg laughed, turning on his heel and heading toward the exit.
Orion turned back to Hailey, a defeated look on his face.
She felt a moment of guilt, and then her anger pushed it away.
He was the one that should be sorry, and he certainly wasn’t going to make her feel bad about defending herself and Opal.
Hailey stalked off toward the exit, baby in arms, leaving Orion alone to wallow in his self-made misery.
21
Hailey
A few hours later, Hailey tried to hold still as she stood on the dais, an army of women and droids draping silky white fabrics over her.
“Yes,” Shavell, the dress designer, said brusquely, through a mouthful of pins. “No.”
The two droids who were each holding a swath of fabric scuttled off to their respective places, one storing away the fabric again, the other putting hers on the yes pile.
“No need to look so excited,” Shavell said drily to Hailey.
“Sorry,” Hailey said. “It’s all happening so fast that I get a little overwhelmed. I know the gown will be beautiful though.”
In truth, she would have been happy with a simple gown from the wardrobe printer. It certainly would have been nicer than anything she’d ever worn in Lower Arkadia. But Kypha had assured her that kind of thing simply wasn’t done here. A wedding gown needed a personal touch.
“Of course it will be,” Shavell grunted, her brows furrowed as if in confusion that there could have been any doubt. “Only the best for the councilman. He helped my daughter out of a jam once. So now I’ve stopped production of my whole shop to help his fiancée.”
“That’s very kind of you,” Hailey said.
“You only say that because you don’t know what trouble my daughter was in,” Shavell chuckled darkly. “But she’s on the straight and narrow now, thank the gods.”
Hailey smiled back and tried not to think about whether she was making a mistake.
On the one hand, she had no wish to marry a man who did not respect her.
On the other, she couldn’t imagine what Opal’s life would be like if she didn’t have a true ally around. Someone who understood what it was like to have people assume she was stupid or easy, based entirely on her parentage.
Until today, Hailey had felt lucky to have Opal in her life.
Now she was starting to think that luck might go both ways.
You will NOT run away from that child, her heart screamed.
And she knew she wouldn’t. She couldn’t.
“You’re one lucky woman,” Shavell said, shaking her head.
Hailey nodded, buttoning her lip before she could share her problems with the other woman. Shavell wouldn’t have sided with her anyway. She was too enamored of the councilman.
In fairness, Hailey had been too. Even before she had met him and spent time in his bed, she had admired his fierce determination to help both halves of Arkadia. He seemed to stand bravely for all that was fair and true.
But in reality, like most people, Orion was clearly more worried about what other people thought, and how to accomplish his own goals, than he was about actually doing the right thing.
“Sweet angels, you’re beautiful,” Kypha yelled from the doorway.
“You see?” Shavell said, as if Hailey had denied it.
“Thank you,” Hailey said. “Shavell is an artist.”
“Of course I am,” Shavell said. “No.”
The droid who had been approaching with a lace veil retreated.
“You okay?” Kypha asked Hailey, eyeing her shrewdly.
“Fine,” Hailey said. “It’s just been a long day.”
“I heard you guys had to let one of the nannies go last night,” Kypha said. “Did the baby keep you guys up?”
Hailey thought about what had kept her up last night and felt her cheeks go hot.
“No, she’s a perfect baby,” she said quickly. “But something the nanny said bothered me.”
“Everything they say bothers me,” Kypha replied. “What a bunch of snobs. I swear they all come from the same Inner Ring boarding school.”
Hailey frowned.
“What did she say?” Kypha asked.
Hailey glanced at Shavell.
“Oh, I’m a vault, honey,” Shavell said, sticking a couple more pins in her mouth as if to prove she couldn’t talk.
“She said I was as much hired help as she was,” Hailey said softly. “She said that Opal was just a prop for Orion’s career.”
“Ouch,” Kypha said.
Shavell hissed in a breath, somehow not inhaling any pins.
“You can see that it’s nonsense though, right?” Kypha said.
“I don’t really know him yet,” Hailey said carefully. “And he doesn’t know me.”
“Seems like you’re getting to know each other,” Kypha said suggestively. “But seriously, he’s a good man. He could have sent the baby away and moved on. Instead, he found you, and the three of you are amazing together. Give it a little time.”
“There always seems to be a camera on us,” Hailey said sadly. “Is that what being an ambassador’s wife will be like?”
Kypha took a deep breath and let it out through her nose.
“I don’t want to say anything that will risk your happiness,” she said after a moment. “And please believe me, I think marrying him will make you the happiest girl in the system. But, yeah, being an ambassador’s wife would mean you’ll be in the spotlight, even more than now, to be honest. I’m guessing you’ll get used to it. You did great today.”
Clearly, Kypha didn’t know yet what had happened at the end of the event.
Hailey found herself feeling just a tiny bit grateful to Orion for not running to her immediately to tattle.
“Okay, you can look now,” Shavell said suddenly.
Hailey turned around to view herself in the full-wall viewing screen and gasped.
The dress was exquisite, piles of satin and tulle, somehow both clinging to her curves and flowing unencumbered.
A row of tiny pink tuffleflowers were embroidered into the bodice, bringing out the soft pink color of her new hair.
She would have looked like a fairy princess, if it weren’t for the uncertainty in her lavender eyes.
22
Orion
Orion hauled back and let another punch sail at the bag, pivoting his hips crisply to add force to the hit.
“Gods of the rings, man,” Titan groaned from behind the bag. “Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed.”
His sparring partner wasn’t wrong.
After a mind-numbingly bad day yesterday, Orion had arrived home late last night, looking forward to making up with Hailey in the best way he knew how.
Unfortunately, he’d found her dead asleep on the daybed in Opal’s nursery.
And after she’d spent the day ignoring his comms, he figured he didn’t quite dare wake her up in the middle of the night.
So instead, he’d slept in his bed alone. He had never noticed how massive and lonely his rooms were until Hailey had given him someone to miss.
The worst part of the whole situation was that he was sure that he was right.
“Seriously, dude, what’s going on?” Titan asked reasonably. “You don’t want to get married all of a sudden?”
“It’s not that,” Orion said. “It’s just… I don’t know.”
“Well figure it out quick, man,” Titan said. “I don’t want to wind up in the hospital.”
Orion couldn’t help chuckling at that. Titan was massive, even compared to Orion’s large form, and absolutely rippling with muscles.
“I could probably hit you with my transport craft and not send you to the hospital,” Orion teased, rolling his eyes.
“I still have feelings,” Titan said sadly. “You’re my buddy, You’re supposed to tell me what’s going on. I have no frakking clue what’s happening in your life. One day you’re floating along as usual, the next you have a kid and a fiancé. Then you’re trying to kill me. Cut me some slack, dude.”
