He served me a wonderful dinner of roasted chicken with rosemary potatoes, steamed green beans, and a red wine I had never heard of. “Did you get this wine from Earth? Or is it something the replicator made for you?”
“I picked up all of this food on Earth. Whenever we stop off we also fill up on basics like real meat, potatoes, and a few cases of wine. Earth wine is very popular back home and we can sell it for quite a profit.”
“So you can cook real food? Not just replicate?”
He laughed a hearty laugh, “No, the food goes into the replicator storage system and then we can actually make Earth meals very easily. Once the fresh food is gone, our replicator uses the basic proteins and nutrients we store on board to make our food. But for some reason, your food just tastes better when we use fresh ingredients from you planet.” He smiled and squeezed my hand. For some reason, every time he did that, I felt at peace. Like I was loved and protected. I guess I was if I really thought about it. He had already confessed his love for me and shown me he can and will protect me.
Once dinner was over, we moved into the living room and Venay asked me, “Would you like to dance?”
Oh boy! I wasn’t sure what to do. Other than the prom and a couple of high school dances, I didn’t really dance.
“I would love to, but I don’t really dance. Do you know Earth dances?”
“Yes, I have been to some nightclubs on Earth and took some lessons a couple of times. I really like one of your TV dance shows. Ballroom dancing can be fun. Do you know how?” He took me in his arms and we started to move to the music. We were moving quite well as long as I didn’t think about it, as soon as I started to think about the steps I would mess up. Venay really did know how to lead, a true alpha so far in every sense of the word.
When the music changed to another soft and slow song, he changed it up so that we weren’t really dancing, it was more like swaying to the music. He used this opportunity to wrap his hands around my waist and pull me up close against him. I put both of my hands around his neck. He was so tall I really couldn’t get more than my forearms around him, but it felt like I fit perfectly. My head was rested on his chest and it felt like heaven.
We continued to sway to the music for a couple of songs, not talking, just moving together as one. I had closed my eyes and just enjoyed being in his arms.
He leaned down and whispered in my ear, “Are you enjoying this night?”
I whispered against his chest, “Yes, very much.” And then I sighed contentedly.
He lightly kissed my ear and I felt shivers go down my back. We hadn’t kissed yet. Would this be the night we kissed for the first time? And I don’t mean the sweet kisses on the cheek kinda kiss, but the kind that would tell me if he was the man for me or not.
His lips kept brushing lightly along my jaw, stopping every couple of seconds to kiss me. Then when I thought I was going to die from the wait, he kissed my lips. It was soft and sweet at first, but as soon as I kissed him back, he put more pressure on my lips and then lightly nipped at my lower lip. This caused me to moan just a slight bit, but enough to open my mouth when his tongue slid in and slowly started to caress my tongue.
I felt more than just a shiver, it was like a lightning bolt went through my entire body and every part of me came to life. I slightly pulled back in shock of the feeling I just had. “What was that?” I whispered into his lips.
“That was the mating bond. Your body is accepting it.” He kissed me lightly again, “Next it will be your heart.” He kissed me more fervently, “And finally, your mind will accept me as your mate.” He pulled me tight against his body and kissed me until I could no longer breathe. It was everything I thought a kiss between two people in love should be, and nothing at all like what I experienced with my high school boyfriend.
He pulled away after a few minutes, but I wasn’t ready to let him stop kissing me. I almost said something until I noticed his veins, they were pulsing red. No other colors, just red. “Are you ok? Your veins, I haven’t seen them do that before. What’s happening?”
He chuckled, then kissed my lips quickly and released me from his hold. For some reason, I started to feel cold. I already missed the warmth of his embrace.
“I am fine, the kissing was a little too intense for me. Sorry about that.” He had the cutest smile when it was just the two of us. I think he might have saved that exact one just for me. When he smiled at me around others, it was not so warm and loving. This smile, made me feel all warm and cuddly. I wondered if they had fireplaces on his planet. I thought about what it would be like on a cool night to cuddle in front of a fireplace with him and drink hot chocolate and share a blanket.
I smiled at him in return, “Yes, that was very intense. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t enjoy it.” I looked down and looked back up at him coyly, through my lashes.
“How long before you agree to be my mate? I don’t know how much longer I can wait for you.” He walked away from me, and heaved a sigh while running a hand through his gorgeous head of black hair.
“Venay, I know for you it is instant, but for me it is going to take more than a couple of days. Please give me some time to get to know you better. Maybe later tonight we can just talk and tell each other about our pasts and what we hope for in the future? You know, normal dating type of conversation. Or at least that is what I think is normal. I haven’t dated anyone since I left high school.”
I walked over and sat down on the couch and he sat down next to me.
Just as we got comfortable on the couch, Venay received a message from his first officer. It was in their language but I couldn’t understand anything since I didn’t have the universal translator installed yet.
While he was talking, I decided I wanted that done right away.
As soon as he was done talking I asked him, “Venay, can I get the universal translator installed tomorrow? Would that be possible?”
He thought about it for a moment, “That might actually be a good idea. I think we should start the implantation immediately.” He leaned forward and put his forearms on his knees.
“There is something I want to tell you, but you can’t tell any of the other humans, not yet. Can you keep a secret?”
“Yes, for now. But if it is something that will affect them, then I will want them to know soon.”
“That is fair.” He stood up and paced between the window and the couch. I sat there waiting patiently while he collected his thoughts.
“That message, it was from my second in command, Eereen. He has picked up transmissions from an enemy ship that isn’t far from us. We are watching them, but that ship shouldn’t be anywhere near here. Our two races don’t get along but we have had a long standing truce. This area is ours, and they are not to come into our territory. Once in a while we catch them here, and they usually run. But this time they aren’t running. They are headed to a planet where we usually stop and pick up supplies on our way home. The planet only has an outpost that is manned by a few hundred warriors, their families, and some slaves. If they head any closer to that planet, we will have to stop them.”
He came back and sat down next to me, “Do you understand what that means?”
“Um, you will have to attack them? Do you have better weapons than they do?” I reached out and took hold of his hand to offer my comfort and support to him. He seemed agitated.
“Our weapons are usually greater than theirs, but we have heard some disturbing reports lately. They have somehow made a truce with another species and gained more advanced weapons than what they had previously. This could be our first interaction with them and their new weapons. But don’t worry, we are at least a day away from them. They could just be trying to mess with us. Some of their newer captains like to play games. But please be careful. If you hear any claxon bells ring or see the red lights flash, stay where you are and find a way to keep yourself from getting injured. While we have a strong defensive shield, you could get jarred around and fall into something if
you are walking around. So please find a seat or someplace to strap yourself in.
“I will give you access to most areas of the ship, but not to the bridge or to the holding cells. Most quarters will have emergency seats with straps, so if you are near living quarters, just put your hand to someone’s ID lock and the occupant will open up for you and help you strap in. If no one is home, then you can override in an emergency. I will create a code for you to punch into the keypad. Can you do this for me? Stay safe if something happens?”
“Yes, I will find a place to sit out the battle until you find me. But how will you know where I am?”
“Once you have the universal translator installed, I can just call you. It also serves as a communication device.”
“No tracker, right?” I raised my eyebrows and pursed my lips while considering that he just might lo-jack me.
He chuckled, “No, some masters do put tracking devices on their slaves, but most don’t anymore. They rely on communicating with their slaves to find out where they are, when needed. And as my mate, you would never be subjected to a tracker.”
“Do you think there is going to be trouble?”
“I don’t really know. I need to get to the bridge. Cazon will come back to get you shortly and help you and Lisa feed our guests. But remember, the men in Alpha cell block only get the rations, nothing else. Do you understand?” He lightly took hold of my shoulders and turned me to look into his eyes.
“Yes, of course. I agree that they are to be punished. This is the best punishment for them. And no worries, I will stay away from the men. Cazon or one of the other guards will help Lisa feed the men.” I put one hand on his knee and squeezed it. For some reason I needed to touch him to assure myself as well. But I wasn’t sure what I was assuring myself of.
He called Cazon who came immediately to get me. While we waited I helped Venay to clean up the kitchen. That device I noticed when I first moved into his quarters, turned out to be a dishwasher. It wasn’t too different in the way it worked from some of our quicker restaurant style pieces of equipment.
Chapter 11
We walked over to Lisa’s quarters and picked her up. “Lisa, have you heard? We get to have our universal translators installed tomorrow! Isn’t that exciting?” Now I would be able to understand everything these guys said in front of me, no more wondering what they were discussing.
“We do? Rotna hasn’t told me anything about that yet.”
“Oh, well I just talked Venay into it. Well, it wasn’t so much as talking him into it, as it was just asking him. And he said yes!” I was giddy with excitement. While I was a bit leery about the procedure, I was excited to be able to eavesdrop on the warriors.
“How does it work, the procedure I mean?”
I stopped short and thought for a moment, “Oh, you know what? I didn’t ask him. I just know that it is a sub-dermal implant behind our ear.” I looked over to Cazon, “Do you know how the procedure works?”
He scratched his cheek, “Well, you have to be put under. I won’t lie, you aren’t going to feel all that great when you wake up. But the feeling should go away in a couple of hours. We have pretty good medicine, at least compared to what you have on Earth.” He smiled and motioned for us to follow him out of the room.
We made our way to the mess hall and prepared Cheeseburgers for everyone except the Alpha cell men, well and that idiot who hurt me in Beta. Most people were pretty happy with their dinners and the men in the Beta cells really started to warm up to Lisa, at least. I still wasn’t allowed to get near any of the men in either room. But, that didn’t really matter to me, I was excited to see my friends and for tomorrow.
The men in Beta better appreciate this. Once Venay found out about that one guy who grabbed me, he almost gassed the whole room to punish them. But, I was able to talk him down and make him realize that only the one guy was an idiot, the rest of the men in there distanced themselves from that idiot. They shouldn’t be penalized for the actions of one bad guy.
“Sheila, I am going to be one of the first to get my universal translator installed tomorrow. You won’t see Lisa or I tomorrow, but I hope to be fine by the next day.” I was just too excited to keep the news to myself. There was a giddiness to my actions that hadn’t been there for a long time. I think I even had a permanent smile glued on.
“Paris, what has gotten into you? Why would you want to be the first one to get that? Don’t you know anything about alien tech? It could be a tracker or a death device of some sort! Haven’t you seen Suicide Squad?”
“Huh? Oh, you mean the movie? No, I really didn’t see movies.” I shrugged my shoulders and leaned in close to her, “This means that I will understand everything any of the warriors say.” I raised my eyebrows while I waited for that to sink in.
I could see the moment realization dawned on her face, she stood back a bit and her mouth formed an O shape and her eyebrows went up almost to her hairline. When she squeaked, she covered her mouth with her hand. “Oh, that is really smart!” Then she looked around as she realized how loud she said that.
Then she whispered, “Sorry.”
“It’s fine, so don’t expect us tomorrow. However, I do think Cazon will be spending more time with you while I am away.” I winked at her and sauntered off. She was going to have a nice day without me or Lisa getting in her way. That actually made it all the better. As much as I liked having Cazon around, I might want to ask Venay to assign someone else to my detail. Cazon needed more time with Sheila. She would jump at the chance to become his mate, but he needs to feel more comfortable with asking her. Only time spent together would do that.
The next morning I was up early and ready to go before Venay even came out of his room. But to be fair, he was up really late the night before. I had been asleep for what seemed like a few hours before he finally came back and went to sleep.
He woke me up when he leaned over and kissed my forehead. I smiled up at him and kissed him back quickly on the lips. “You know, you really could sleep in my bed and I promise to keep my hands to myself.”
“Hmm, I think I am fine on the couch. Believe me, after five years living on the street, this is the most comfortable and luxurious bed I could ever ask for.” I closed my eyes and started to fall back to sleep.
I heard him murmur, “One of these days you are going to tell me your story.”
My response was a sleepy, “mm hmm.” And the next thing I knew it was morning, or what the ship simulated as morning.
I had noticed that the lighting around the ship changed to match the time of day. I guess that made sense since we were in space and time was not measured by the sun and the moon out here. So the lighting throughout the ship simulated a V’Zenian day, or so I was told by Cazon.
I was in the kitchen having my morning coffee and breakfast when Venay joined me.
I looked over the rim of my coffee mug as he walked in and he smiled at me and said, “Good morning, sorry I woke you up when I came in late last night.”
“No worries, something tells me that I am going to have to get used to that. Do you work a lot of late nights?”
“Yes, I actually do. That is something I will have to work out with my staff now that you are here.” He fixed himself coffee and breakfast and joined me at the table.
“How long will I be at the clinic today? Or what do you call your medical place here on ship?”
“We call it a med-bay. I think that is the closest English word for it. And I think you will be there for about six hours before you wake up, then a few more before I can take you home. I have a lot to do today, so while you are out I will be working on the bridge. But I have already instructed the doctor to call me when you wake up. I will come and visit you for as long as I can.” He put a comforting hand on mine as it sat on the table.
Thirty minutes later we were walking into their med-bay. I looked around and had to tell myself to close my mouth. It reminded me so much of a movie set. The colors were various hues of blue an
d silver, it was very comforting. The beds were a lot like what I had seen on some of my favorite sci-fi movies and TV shows. I couldn’t imagine them being comfortable, but when I sat on one, it was actually nice. I think it was like those funky beds with the model that puts a glass of wine on the bed and then jumps up and down and the glass doesn’t spill. Either way, I liked it.
An alien male came into the room and smiled at me. He was a hybrid and his veins were pulsing many different colors of the rainbow. It was very soothing. He walked over to me and stuck his hand out, “Hi there, my name is Dr. Pleebs, it is nice to meet our Commanders mate.”
I shook his hand, “Nice to meet you as well, and I am Paris.”
He smiled at me and bowed slightly to Venay, “Sir, she is in fine hands here. I will call you when she wakes up.”
“Very well, but I would also like a call after the surgery, just to let me know everything went as planned.”
Dr. Pleebs bowed his head, “Of course sir. As soon as I am done I will message you.”
Venay came over and kissed my cheek and said goodbye before heading out of the room.
The doctor explained the procedure to me and within a very short time I was falling asleep. One minute he was asking me to countdown from ten and the next thing I knew I was waking up in their version of a recovery room. But their version was so much nicer. They didn’t have the drab egg shell colored walls that most hospitals on Earth do. Theirs was a very calm shade of green, it was like I was in the forest or something. One wall actually had a painting or wallpaper of some sort depicting a stream going through a bamboo garden. There was a slight sound, as I was waking up I thought I might actually be next to a bubbling brook or something. Then as I fully came to I realized it was a soundtrack of some sort, like those alarm clocks in the fancy gadgets stores in the mall. I was going to like this place.
Worlds Away: Sci-fi Alien Romance (Alpha Alien Abduction Tale Book 1) Page 8
