Lin's Challenge

by Mara Jaye

“Tira can try.” He scooped up all of our clothes with one hand and opened the bathroom door. “Come on. Let’s find something substantial for you to wear.”

  He opens a dresser and tosses me a towel. It’s as thick and soft as the other fabrics in the room look. I wrap it around me and watch him as he dresses. The clothes he puts on are simply cut, a dark gray with gold piping along the seams. A shiny black leather mantle goes over his shoulders. He’s slender but muscled, elegant, if a male can be such a thing, and hotter than I think I deserve. As long as he’s fine with our bond, I am, too.

  I hug the soft towel draped around me and sit on the bed. He’s avoiding the discussion about his punishment. I don’t blame him. Still, I don’t want his life to be ruined because of me. Belatedly, I turn on my search bionans and begin looking up military punishments for Enforcers.

  It’s not good. Stripped of rank, accounts frozen, exiled. He took a huge risk in even talking to me. My heart hurts over what he’s done to keep me alive. “What will you do with my old clothes?”

  He’s still searching for something to fit me. “Have them washed and returned to you. After that, it’s whatever you want to do with them. Keep them as a relic from Earth, wear them once in a while, or even throw them away. I’d recommend selling them as genuine artifacts before destroying them. You’d be set for life.”

  “Good idea.” I watch as he continues to search for clothing in my size. With my information access, I know the rooms come with Alliance uniforms and basic needs provided. Still, this isn’t his home any more than a motel would be mine.

  He stands with a black shirt and pants and brings them to me. “You’ll need to get underwear from a female officer’s wardrobe. Shoes, too.” He sets them down beside me and kisses my cheek. “When we get home, I’ll take you shopping for everything you’ll need or want.”

  “Careful with that particular promise,” I say with a smile. “I can be dangerous in a store.” He chuckles and watches me dress. I really want a bra and go to retrieve mine. “I can hand wash these, so you don’t have to bother anyone.”

  He sits on the bed and watches me. “Have you searched punitive measures for what I’ve done, yet?”

  “I have.” I turn to face him, my underclothes clenched in my hand. “I promise you I will do whatever it takes to keep your punishment to a minimum. Lie, cheat, steal, eat the green slop they fed us down there,” I pause and smile when he chuckles. “Whatever it takes. And if the worst happens and you’re exiled? I’m going, too, and doing anything and everything to keep your life the same as it is now.”

  “You can’t promise…”

  I lean in to kiss him quiet. When he relaxes and begins to respond, I stop kissing him to say, “I can and I will. You saved my life. Now I need to save yours.” He’s irresistible, and I kiss him again until a whistle stops us. I frown. “Did you hear that?”

  “Yes, it’s a priority signal.”

  As soon as he said the last word, a message over the innercom began. All personnel, please report to the command center for a special guest. I frown at Turkh, and he shrugs. The announcement starts again, and he stands. “Now and do they mean me, too?” He nods, and I need to know, “What will I do about shoes?”

  “I can find some foot cover for you to wear temporarily.”

  Foot cover? He goes to the drawers, fishes around for a second or two, and pulls out a pair of socks. At least I won’t be near a special guest barefooted. “Thank you.” In no time, my feet are warmer, and I’m following Turkh out of our quarters. “Do you have any idea who our guest is?”

  “I have a suspicion and hope I’m wrong.”

  His jaw is set, and the tension flows through to his movements. The hallway seems brighter than earlier, less red and more yellow. Later, when I’m not feeling Turkh’s nerves, I need to look up if the lighting changes are a status indicator.

  Turkh stops several feet from the command center door. He doesn’t look at me. “Whatever happens in there, know that I love you, will protect you and will do anything for your happiness.” He takes my hand, still staring at the door.

  His palm is slightly sweaty, and I give him a squeeze. “I feel the same way about you. We’re truly mates.”

  He gives me a glance and a slight smile before stepping forward. I go with him as the automatic doors open. The room is crowded with people. The doctor, G’nar, and the director are all there. Everyone wears a similar uniform to Turkh except one man in the middle of the room. Where they wear gray or black, the tallest man wears white. His edging is gold as is his shoulder mantle. Even in profile, with his lighter bronze skin, metallic-like all the others, and blonde hair, he’s devastatingly handsome. If I didn’t have my everything in Turkh, I’d give the stunner a second glance or more. Probably more.

  The dignitary turns to face us and his dark gold eyes narrow. Turkh stops, puts a fist over his heart and bows his head. “Emperor. It’s an honor to be in your presence.”

  Shitty shit shit! Emperor? I don’t know everything about the Alliance, but enough to moonwalk out of here. I’m horrified to be braless and in socks. I think I’m going to cry. My nose stings and I close my eyes to keep tears from forming. After pulling away from Turkh’s hand, I mimic his fist over chest salute, complete with bowed head. “An honor, sir.”

  I hear a little bit of a sexy masculine chuckle and footsteps. As they approach, I open my eyes to see the Emperor standing in front of us. He shakes his head. “You’re not a citizen of the Alliance. There’s no need for an homage. A simple greeting will do.”

  My brain doesn’t work. Even the bionans are frozen. He’s everything an emperor of the galaxy should be. I glance at Turkh. Ah, but the emperor isn’t mine like he is. I need to do what I can for my love, so I smile and turn back to the ruler. “I’m not a citizen yet, but I want to be. How can I make that happen?”

  “Ordinarily, being born in the Alliance territories is enough.” He glances from me to Turkh. “Humanoids from lesser worlds are Alliance wards and not eligible for citizenship until their planets are promoted. Earth has no single leader, so, you won’t be allowed to join from there until they have one voice.”

  The news hurts my heart. As divided as everyone at home is, the borders, the wars, there’s no way I’ll live long enough to belong here. Before I can despair, he steps in front of me and gives me his focus. “We’ve all seen the broadcasts from your planet for a long time. Since they started. But what’s it really like? Are all the terrains of the universe on one sphere? How do people choose where to live when there’s such variety? Are the animals as friendly or sentient as they appear to be?”

  I can’t help but smile at his curiosity. He knows little about something I’m a subject matter expert in. “Yes, the planet has an amazing array of landscapes, temperatures, weather, and animals. If you don’t like how the air feels, drive, er, go a couple of hundred…” I search for their word closest to my mile, “Nars or so and everything can be different. Our axis is tilted, so we have seasons, extreme ones compared to Ghar. Half of the year where I live, lived, is getting ready for being hot or cold. The plants change, the animals hibernate during the cold times, and everyone wears warmer clothes. Then, when you’re used to freezing, the weather and climate change to hot.”

  I try to remember what all he’s asked about and smile. “Some animals are wonderfully friendly. They’ve been domesticated and need human help to survive. Others are still as wild as ever. We keep the endangered animals in a group of enclosures called a zoo and try to repopulate their species.

  He frowns. “Are any of your animals sentient?”

  I won’t lie, I have to look up sentient. “Yes. Which is why we make the enclosures as much like their natural homes as possible.”

  “But it’s still a cage.”

  “Yes.”

  “Interesting.” He looks over at Tira. “Which reminds me, Director LureShell, I have a task I’d like you to see to personally.”

  “Yes, your excellence.”

/>   He nods at her salute and back to me. I’d prefer he declare Turkh and me united before going on his way. I also want to ask him questions, but with the database the bionans give me, there’s no need for impersonal queries. “We love our animals, though we are omnivores, and struggle to be as humane as possible.”

  “Your planet does seem to struggle with the concept in general,” he says, and before I can react, he continues, “What I’d like to know from both of you, Enforcer KirKrell in particular, is why your union seemed like a good idea during this mission.”

  “It wasn’t a good idea, ever, your excellence,” Turkh says.

  I look from him to the emperor. No wonder he’d said all that back in the hallway. He was going to push me aside in front of everyone. I had to help. “I agree. We, or I, was there to work and survive day to day. He was there to gather evidence. Nothing more.”

  “I see. When did you know?”

  The emperor’s question puzzles me. When I think back to when I first saw Turkh, I have to admit, “I don’t remember not being interested in him,, and it’s as if I’ve always loved him.”

  “KirKrell?”

  “When I first held her in my arms after she’d been attacked. The match was made and accepted, unwittingly, by her at that moment.”

  “Hmm.” He takes a couple of steps back. “You have bonded?”

  Before I can stammer I’m not sure what he means, Turkh answers for us. “Yes. We have. We’re mates for life.”

  The life thing sort of unnerves me. Sounds awfully permanent but when I look at him, for life seems like not long enough. He’s a handsome man, inside and out. I love him and if I had a choice over being abducted and finding Turkh? I’d choose him every time. “I can’t regret leaving Earth since it means I’ve met him. Whatever happens is worth his love.”

  “I must think about your consequences. “ The emperor stares past and between us, his eyes a little glassy from the internal processing. I can’t even become worried from overthinking before he’s finished. “An instant bond is something to treasure. As such, my impulse is to pardon you both and return to normal status. I can’t do so and remain fair to other transgressors.” He glances around and the others. “These two are guilty of several crimes which I will post in information. Their punishment is to be served concurrently.” He stares at me for a couple of seconds before saying, “KirKrell Turkh and Lindsey Daniels are to be confined to Ghar for two solar sas. No exceptions.” He moves to stand before Turkh. “You will still serve as an Enforcer, but planetside only. You will need a proxy for emergency intersolar and interstellar travel. I expect you to prepare your mate for the citizenship requirements she’ll need to meet after two sas are completed.”

  “I will, your excellency and thank you. You truly are just.”

  A grin breaks across the emperor’s face, and his eyes twinkle before he grows somber again. “I know. But even I have my limits as to when two people accept their bond.” He takes a breath and sighs. “Some things are beyond anyone’s control. You two may go. There’s no need to entertain me while I have a discussion with MacKrell G’nar about his actions or lack thereof.”

  He turns toward G’nar, and I’m so glad we’re dismissed. I glance at Turkh for confirmation, and he grins at me before giving a final salute. I do the same, just in case. Via the innercom, he says, Let’s scram before he changes his mind.

  Great idea.

  We leave, and as soon as the door closes behind us, he picks me up and twirls me around. “We’ve been sentenced!”

  I hug him back but don’t understand his happiness. “How is house arrest a good thing?”

  He gives me a bone-melting kiss before leading me down the hallway to his, our room. “Because I get to spend it with you.”

  I love this man. He’s crazy, and I have to tell him so. “Look, you’re used to traveling the galaxy. How are you going to be happy for two years, or sas, cooped up on a planet?”

  We’re at our room, and the door opens. He pushes me inside and over to the bed. When he sits, he brings me between his knees and looks up into my eyes. “I don’t know how to tell you in mere words what spending the time with you will be like. How I’ll treasure every moment. How this gives me a reason to explore Ghar with you. We’ll see everything, you’ll meet all of my family. I want to give you my world in addition to my love and my life.”

  I bury my fingers in his dark hair. “Thank you. You were my happiness when I thought all was lost and you saved my life several times. I’m honored to be your mate.” After giving him a kiss on his forehead, I think to ask, How long will it take us to go home?

  Five days.

  Good. I might be tired of making love to you by then, I send before pushing him back on the bed.

  You can try.

  Author’s Note

  Hello and welcome to my universe! Lin’s Challenge is just the beginning of adventures I have planned for the galaxy’s finest of the Intergalactic Alliance. Somehow, these hot sexy alien men find their true loves from Earth. The problem is, as you may have read, Earth is a huge nope for Alliance citizens. It’s so much fun overcoming that obstacle and making sure everyone has their very own happily ever after. I so hope you join me on this wonderfully entertaining zip through our part of the universe.

  Next up? Pax’s Emperor. I already know the story is going to be an ugly cry type. There’s a reason Pax meets and beguiles her emperor and a reason why he meets her. Here’s a link to the preorder and the blurb.

  Thank you a thousand percent for taking a chance on my debut book in science fiction romance. Do I have other books published? I do, more than twenty, and in a genre far different than this one. I ran home every day in fifth grade and endured an hour of Bonanza to get to the good stuff, Star Trek. My love affair with the future never stopped, and I hope you love this book as much as I do.

  Am I social? Yes! Please come see me at www.facebook.com/authormarajaye because hardly anyone knows I’m there right now. Hang out at my new website, www.marajaye.com or email me at authormarajaye@yahoo.com with suggestions, comments, or even debates about starship captains and who’s the best one.

  Finally, if you enjoyed this book, let me and others know by leaving a review. You don’t have to spend tons of time on it. Just write something short, sweet, and honest. I vastly appreciate your time and effort in doing so, too.

  Thank you so much for coming along on this trip outside our solar system and don’t get comfortable. There are lots more from me to come.

  Love!

  Mara

  Reading List

  Lin’s Challenge (this one!)

  Pax’s Emperor (in progress)

  (There are more planned, but they’re top secret for now.)