by KD Jones
“Lindsey!” Her father had thrown on a pair of pajama bottoms and was running out of the bedroom. “I can explain.”
Lindsey held up her hand. What was there to explain? Her father was fucking the Prime Leader’s mother. Shit, just shit!
“Lindsey dear, it’s not what it looks like.” SandELa came out wearing the top to her father’s pajamas. They were the silky red pair that Lindsey bought for him last Christmas.
Lindsey turned angry eyes to SandELa, “It looks like the two of you were fucking your brains out.”
“Lindsey Rose Carreli! I will not have you speaking that way to Sandy.” Her father puffed out his chest and gave her the look, the one that said she would get a spanking if she didn’t straighten out.
“Where is Lisa?” Lindsey demanded.
“She is spending the night with RendEL and Cassie,” her father answered.
Lindsey looked back and forth between SandELa and her father. They were both flushed. “How long has this been going on?”
Her father ran a hand through his still dark hair. “Sandy’s been a great help with Lisa while you were away. We spent a lot of time together. We hit it off and … one thing led to another.”
“I care for your father greatly,” SandELa told her with a blush rising to her cheeks.
“Does RendEL know about this?” She already knew what the answer to that would be. He didn’t know or her father would be in the Medic Wing being treated.
“Well … no. Not yet. This is still new to us. We couldn’t help ourselves.” Her father looked like a teenager caught necking with his high school sweetheart.
Her love life was non-existent but her father was obviously getting around. This was not going to go over well with the Primes at all. They were extremely protective of their women.
“This needs to end. You can’t see each other anymore.” Lindsey had to do damage control.
“Hell no!” her father’s face turned bright red with anger.
“Leo, calm down.” SandELa touched his arm and got his attention on her.
He took a deep breath. Then he smiled gently at SandELa. He leaned down and kissed her on her lips. “Go get dressed while I talk to my daughter.”
“You won’t yell?” SandELa looked worried. She obviously cared about Lindsey’s father. It made her feel a little guilty for overreacting.
“I will control my temper,” he promised. SandELa nodded her head and went back to Leo’s bedroom.
Lindsey and her father stood there staring each other down. Finally, her father broke the silence. “I won’t give her up.”
“Dad …”
“No, Lindsey. You listen to me. I have been alone for a long time—too long. I always thought I had plenty of time to find someone. When I got sick, I thought that was it. I would never get that second chance at love. Then my cancer went into remission and we came here. I felt an instant connection to Sandy. She is kind and loving. Lisa adores her. She makes me feel like a man again. But it’s more than physical. I feel … I’m in love Lindsey. For the first time in my life, I am in love. So,no, I won’t give her up.”
Lindsey plopped down on the sofa. The wind left her. She was seeing her father in a whole different light. He had always been her father, but now she realized that he was also a man. A man who found a woman he wanted to be with. He had always been there for her and Lisa. When their mother abandoned them, he was there. He supported Lindsey with everything she did. How could she deny him a chance at happiness.
“How does she feel about you?” she asked.
He sat down beside her. “She says I am her … bond mate. She is a wonderful woman. Please give her a chance, Lindsey girl.”
“Okay.”
“Okay?” her father looked at her questioningly, not quite believing her. He turned to nod at SandELa who poked her head out of the door. She made her way over to him.
“If the two of you are serious about one another, then I won’t stand in your way.”
“Oh, baby girl, that is wonderful to hear.”
“Of course, you will need to let RendEL, KydEL, and SydEL know about your relationship,” Lindsey said.
Both Leo and SandELa paled. “We had planned to tell them … eventually.”
Lindsey smiled deviously, “Why not tell them now?”
“Well … SydEL and Kat’s mating ceremony is the priority right now. We were hoping to wait until things settle down,” SandELa explained quickly.
Lindsey stood and started heading for her room. “I have to meet with the Prime Leader and Prime Commander to discuss the alliance details. Let me know when you are ready to spread the good news.” Actually, Lindsey hoped to be nowhere near the Primes when they find out her father was dating their mother. She knew one thing for sure, the shit was going to hit the fan.
*****
Kat and Prime Medic SydEL had a small ceremony. It was held on a large balcony with just SydEL’s family and their friends. Lindsey and her family was invited as well.
It was a lovely ceremony. The torches that were lit made the atmosphere very romantic. Not that Lindsey had much romance in her life to go by. Her father, on the other hand, couldn’t take his eyes off SandELa. It was sickeningly sweet. Lindsey watched the mating ceremony wondering if she would ever meet someone that she would want to mate.
“I, SydEL Prime Medic of Katiera claim you, Katrina Lynn Morris, as my mate.”
“I, Katrina Lynn Morris claim you SydEL, Prime Medic of Katiera, as my mate.”
“I now rename you Prima Katrina, mate to SydEL, Prime Medic of Katiera,” the small group of people applauded.
Lindsey wondered if this would be the type of ceremony that AriELa and KadEN would have. No, it was going to be a much bigger event. The joining of the two nations was a big deal. Even now, arrangements were being made on Kiljor while AriELa was here on Katiera.
At least Lindsey didn’t have to deal with KadEN’s presence. She hadn’t spent any time with AriELa despite the younger woman’s offers. It was just too uncomfortable. Lindsey was keeping things from AriELa in an attempt to protect her, but it was actually causing a strain in their friendship.
She was lonely and feeling friendless. On top of all that, she had to witness the blooming romance between her father and SandELa, Sandy. She still couldn’t bring herself to call her that even when she insisted. It looked like it was getting serious. They didn’t have any more sleepovers at Lindsey’s suite, but her father did sleep over at SandELa’s suite, a lot. Her father was right though about how much Lisa loved the Prima. And SandELa was the mother that Lisa had always wished for. It was hard for Lindsey not to like the older woman when she tried so hard to gain her approval, and she obviously adored her father.
Lindsey needed to get away from the happy love fest going on. She decided to take a walk along the shoreline. She had to admit that she preferred Kiljor to Katiera. The air there seemed warmer to her there. She loved their blue waters that reminded her of Earth. All of that reminded her of KadEN with his dark eyes and sexy smile. She missed him and his kisses. She sighed.
“May I join you?” AriELa asked coming up to her from behind.
Lindsey nodded but didn’t say anything. She waited for the other woman to catch up and then began walking again.
“I feel like you’ve been avoiding me,” AriELa told her.
Lindsey stopped walking and looked at AriELa. She couldn’t take it anymore. “I didn’t mean to. It’s just that … I didn’t know how to tell you. I was afraid it would hurt our friendship.”
“Tell me what?” AriELa looked at her questioningly.
Lindsey was silent. She couldn’t look AriELa in the eyes. How do you tell your friend that you have ‘the hots’ for her guy?
AriELa smiled sadly, “You have feelings for KadEN?”
Lindsey nodded at her looking tortured.
“I suspected as much. Does he have feelings for you as well?”
“I don’t know if he does. He kissed me when we were on Kiljor, but he said he w
as going to mate you anyway.”
“The alliance between our nations is important. He is under a lot of pressure to make sure it happens.”
“I get that. I was just thrown off by the kiss. Nothing happened other than that one kiss.”
“Sometimes one kiss is all it takes.” AriELa looked off in the distance.
Lindsey looked over at the woman and saw her age right before her eyes. What the hell happened to AriELa to make her look that way?
“I would understand completely if you were angry with me and didn’t want to continue our friendship,” Lindsey told her with tears in her eyes.
“I’m not angry. You can’t help whom you have feelings for. It just happens sometimes. I just wished that you had told me sooner. I value our friendship.”
Why was every man that Lindsey fell for unavailable? First RendEL, now KadEN. Why couldn’t she have fallen for someone nice and available like MerIC?
“I am supposed to be going back to Kiljor soon. I haven’t officially accepted the offer of mating, and the Kiljorns would like me to spend time there. I would like for you to come back with me.”
“Even after I told you that KadEN and I kissed?”
AriELa nodded, “The two of you need to resolve whatever this is going on between the two of you.”
She was right. She needed to confront KadEN, get rid of these feelings once and for all. She couldn’t do that from Katiera.
“Of course, if I do accept the mating offer, you will probably want to come back to Katiera. It may be too uncomfortable for you to watch first hand and I would have to insist on it. Though I do not love KadEN, I only have kind feelings for him. We will be committing ourselves to one another and that is serious. We Katierans do not share our mates.”
Lindsey nodded sadly, “I understand and I would feel the same if I were in your shoes. When were you planning on going back?”
“Some time in the next few days. I want to spend time with my new little cousins. They are adorable and seem to grow bigger each day. I will miss them the most when I move to Kiljor.”
When? AriELa already sounded like she had made up her mind about the mating. Lindsey felt jealous and hated it. Maybe her going back to Kiljor wasn’t a good idea after all. She said her goodbyes and headed back to her suite. She would spend as much time with her family before she left again.
*****
“AriELa said that you agreed to travel with her back to Kiljor, Prime Leader RendEL asked her the next evening when he met with her and Prime Commander KydEL.
“Yes, if that is okay?” Lindsey realized that she should have asked the Prime Leader first before she agreed to anything.
“Of course. I know AriELa will appreciate having a friend with her. To be honest, I needed you to help finalize a few things with the alliance.”
“Won’t Prime Commander KydEL be going as well?” She glanced over to Kyd who was on his comm link.
“No, my mother wants him to stay a little longer. His near death experience really shook our entire family.”
“I understand. When my father was going through the worst of his chemotherapy treatment, I used my paid time off that I earned and spent as much time with him as possible. I felt that I could always earn back the time for work that I used , but I couldn’t get back that precious time with my father.” Lindsey gave him a sympathetic look.
RendEL nodded his head. “We feel that way now too. In truth, my brothers and I want to spend time with my mother. We have been so caught up in our own lives that we haven’t paid much attention to her, as we should. We are worried about her. She spends a great deal of time alone in her suite. She has turned down Cassie’s offer of dinner a lot lately, which isn’t like her.”
Lindsey looked down at her hands. She knew why his mother was spending so much time in her own suite. She was spending it with Lindsey’s father. It wasn’t her place to tell RendEL. She worried about what RendEL and his brothers would do once they found out. She didn’t think they would handle the news very well. Her father was no match for one Katieran man, much less three angry overprotective Katieran men.
“I will do my best to help finish up the details of the alliance. Just let me know what you want.” Lindsey picked up her digital tablet and made some notes.
“Sir, what news do you have of an alliance with the Colonists?” she had spoken with KydEL and RendEL about it since she first arrived back on Katiera.
“I have requested that Prime Leader KadEN include you in the meetings he has scheduled with the Colonist leader LarIS. I will send my notes to your correspondence to look over.”
“I am looking forward to meeting the Leader LarIS. I am very curious about the Colony. I met Commander TylOR’s brother, AshOR, briefly. He seems to be a … handful.”
“Who’s a handful?” Prime Commander KydEL asked as he turned off his comm link and came to sit down next to Lindsey.
RendEL laughed. “AshOR, Commander TylOR’s brother.”
KydEL growled. “I don’t like him. He flirted with my Jaxon.”
Lindsey smiled; the young man was definitely spry when it came to women. “What did you do?”
“Nothing, Jaxon threatened to cut off his male parts if he came anywhere near her,” KydEL said with pride.
“On that note, I think I will take my leave,” Lindsey said. She would have to have a talk with both SandELa and her father. If they were serious about one another, they needed to let SandELa’s sons know. If not, they needed to end it. Pissing off the Primes would not be a good idea.
Chapter Eleven
Nothing was as sweet as seeing your home for the first time after you have been gone for a while. Lindsey couldn’t understand why she felt an overwhelming sense of homecoming when she spied Kiljor in the distance. Her heartbeat sped up. She was anxious to feel the sweet warm air on her skin and to walk barefoot on the soft white sand. She glanced at AriELa and noticed the other woman slept.
Prime Commander TylOR and his brother AshOR were flying the shuttle down to the planet. It was an interesting trip to say the least. Whatever TylOR said, his brother would say the opposite. The young male antagonized his older brother on purpose.
They were good-looking men. Kiljorn Commander TylOR was at least seven feet tall. His brother was slightly shorter at about six feet eight inches tall. Both men had baldheads, which was very unusual among the alien men. Kat had told her that their hairless state was a side effect from the virus the Morins had introduced. Lindsey was curious about what other side effects the colonists had. She hoped that when she met their Leader, she would have her questions answered.
“We will be landing shortly.” Commander TylOR called out.
Lindsey reached over to shake AriELa gently waking her up. “We are about to land,” she told her.
“Thank you.” AriELa glanced quickly at the viewing screen but didn’t seem to react any differently. She glanced behind her where TarAK sat with the Earth female Second Lieutenant Lucinda Daniels. Jaxon had convinced Prime Commander KydEL to send Second Lieutenant Daniels so that she had an opportunity to expand her training experience. She would be assisting TarAK in protecting AriELa.
On board the Kiljorn Transport ship, Second Lieutenant Daniels shared stories of her and Jaxon’s military mishaps. The Kiljorn men weren’t sure whether to laugh or yell at the two women for all the times they nearly got killed. It made the trip go by much faster.
AriELa was fascinated with the female warrior. She was worried that maybe she had asked the other woman too many questions, but the Second Lieutenant was always helpful and answered each and every question asked of her. The three women had shared sleeping quarters on the Transport ship, so she told AriELa and Lindsey to call her Lucy.
She was tall, close to AriELa’s height. Slim in her hips but voluptuous on her top and backside. Her dark mocha skin and ebony hair was so exotic, the men could not help but to stare at her.
AshOR jumped up from his seat to help the three women off the shuttle. When he h
eld onto AriEla’s hand a little longer than necessary, TarAK growled at him threateningly. Commander TylOR had to say something to him to get him to help with the luggage.
Lindsey looked around the landing platform but did not see Prime Leader KadEN. Several members of the Kiljorn High Council were present to welcome AriELa back. But KadEN was not there.
They were shown to the same suite that they used the last time. Lindsey started to unpack. An hour later, the buzzer to the suite went off. AriELa answered it.
“Welcome back, Prima AriELa.” KadEN bent to kiss her hand.
Lindsey felt an overwhelming surge of jealousy. He looked her way and her breath caught in her throat. Oh how she missed his beautiful eyes.
“Miss Carreli, a pleasure to have you back.”
“Thank you.” She was grateful that her voice didn’t crack.
He turned his attention back to AriELa. “I apologize for not being there to greet you when you arrived. I was making arrangements for when the Colony leader arrives.”
“It was no problem. I understand.” She gave him a sweet smile.
Lindsey wondered why was she watching them? It hurt to see how easy KadEN and AriELa related to one another. They had so much in common. They were both Primes. They both had responsibilities to their Nations. What could Lindsey offer him?
“Well, I would like to make it up to you. How about I take you on a special tour tomorrow after Morning Meal?”
“Lindsey and I would enjoy that.”
What? How did she get roped into going on their special tour? Fuck! Lindsey smiled a sideways smile. “That would be great.”
KadEN said that he had a few more meetings to attend to and said his goodbyes. Lindsey, AriELa, Lucy, and TarAK shared the Evening Meal together. It was a bit awkward because AriELa and TarAK didn’t really talk to one another. They kept giving each other looks when they thought the other one wasn’t looking. She would have to ask AriELa about that later when they were alone.
TarAK showed Lucy how to ensure the suite was secure before he went to his own suite. Once Lucy headed to her own bedroom, Lindsey decided to question AriEla. “What’s going on with the two of you?”
