by A. G. Wilde
“She’s been awake the entire time, I believe,” Yce said. “I cannot endure her mind. It is...extremely frayed.”
“That has got to be the worst torture...” Piper said, her hand moving over her belly. “This world is...a scary place. It makes me almost scared to have this baby.”
“Baby?” Evren’s eyes fastened on the woman’s hand and when she looked back up at Piper, the woman’s cheeks were rosy with a blush.
“Surprise!” she said. “Found out a few days ago.” She grinned.
Evren’s eyes widened some more.
“Ohmigod!” She gripped Piper in a hug. “That’s amazing news!”
“So you found a way to tell her?” Kyro asked, his eyes on Crex, who nodded. “Congratulations, brother.”
When his eyes fell on hers once more, Evren didn’t miss the look that was there. It was a longing that was as clear as day in his gray orbs.
She didn’t know if children would ever be in their future, but if there was anyone who would be a great father, Kyro was it.
As the conversation continued around them, she smiled at him and crossed her arms over her chest.
To think she’d been worrying about her future when her future had been by her side all along.
46
He had to be the happiest man alive.
As his friends and their mates left, he moved over to his woman and pulled her into his arms.
He’d thought they’d bring up the fact that he hadn’t been truthful to them, that he had lied to them, pretending to be something he wasn’t for the entire time they’d known him. He’d thought they’d be scornful of him, wary even, or at least angry, but his brothers had displayed none of those feelings.
Instead, they’d treated him as if nothing had changed.
It created an unexpected feeling within him...freedom. For once in his adult life, he felt as if he wasn’t judged for the color of his skin or his abilities. He was simply seen as himself. Not different. Not more dangerous. Not something to be used and exploited. Just himself.
“Why are you smiling like that?” Her question caught him off guard.
“I’m just...happy.” He looked down at her. These emotions were all because of her. This lightness in his being, it was all because of her.
His hand slid to her stomach as he rubbed it gently.
Her eyes were guarded as she looked at him.
It must be obvious what he was thinking.
“Kyro?”
“Do you think...do you think that one day we could have the gift bestowed to my brother, Crex?”
It took only a second for her to smile.
“You want us to have kids?”
“You speak in the plural. I was thinking in the singular. I had never even hoped for one. To hope for many is more than I can even imagine.”
She chuckled then, a sound so light it felt like it flowed within him and made him feel light too.
“We can have as many as you want. I’ve always loved kids. But...”
He stilled.
Buts were never good.
“...I don’t know if we are compatible...”
His shoulders relaxed at that.
If they weren’t completely compatible, there was always biological assistance they could use.
He was going to say that to her but, instead, he had another idea.
Lowering his head so his lips brushed her ears, he whispered. “I know the best way to find out...”
“Hmmm?” She giggled. “What’s that?”
“Let me show you.”
Lifting her off her feet, her little yelp had him grinning as he brought her to the bed. He would enjoy testing whether they could bear young together.
He would enjoy it immensely and he would make sure she did too.
“You know what?” he asked as he settled her against the bedding. Looking down into her blue eyes reminded him of calm, calm waters. It settled him and made him feel grounded.
“I won’t be scared of living anymore.” His lips found hers as he took them between his. “Because every single day is worth living with you.”
Suddenly, he had a life to look forward to and he was going to enjoy every second of it.
Epilogue
“Kyr—Kh’Ziami?”
Evren moved through the section of the space station they’d colonized for themselves, checking the rooms for her male.
She’d taken to calling him by his birth name now that he was living his true self and they were alone.
There was no more need for disguises or pretense. The freedom it gave him created such change, she wasn’t sure he even realized how much he smiled more often.
“Kh’Ziami?
He was probably in the room they’d set up as the data room with all the computers and comms for gathering data. It was his favorite place to be.
Contrary to what she’d thought, she didn’t need to help him with his data. It turned out there was a whole section of the space station that had once housed a greenhouse with different plants and even a few species of insects.
She had her own data to gather on these species that would probably span the rest of her life.
She wasn’t complaining.
It was as if she’d gotten three wishes from a genie in a bottle.
She had traveled, going farther than most of her species had ever gone.
She had new species to study, and she had a man that she loved and who completely adored her.
Speaking of which...
“Kh’Ziami?”
A sound in the living quarters, which she’d converted into a large bedroom, caught her attention and she headed that way.
“Kh’Ziami?”
As she stepped through the entrance her steps halted as her eyes fell on Kyro. He was sitting on the bed, looking at her with a strange look in his eyes.
“Um...” she said, glancing around the room before her eyes settled on him once more.
“I’m going to show you something,” he said. “But first you must turn around.”
“Okay...” Her brow furrowed a little as she spun her back to him. Whatever could he have that she hadn’t seen yet? Had he been exploring the rest of the station without her? It was a pretty large station, much larger than she’d expected it to be and she reckoned they still had a lot more to go through before they could say they’d seen it all. Life support wasn’t working in some sections though, so she had to wait till Kyro fixed those areas.
When a few long moments passed and he didn’t tell her to turn back around, her brows furrowed deeper.
“Can I turn around now?” she asked. “Kh’Ziami?”
When he didn’t reply, she looked over her shoulder, her eyes widening.
She had to turn fully so she could see properly but it didn’t make the shock lessen.
“What the...”
There, sitting on top of Kyro’s trousers on the bed, was the ugliest cat she had ever seen in her life.
At least, she assumed it was a cat. It was a bit larger than a regular cat.
Its ears were at the side of its head instead of on top and its eye sockets were just a bit too large. Its whiskers were long and a bit too thick and its nose was larger than a cat’s usually is.
It was white all over except for the black and orange patches and on its side was a black patch in the shape of a heart.
Evren’s heart seized for a second as she stared into the cat’s gray eyes...Kyro’s gray eyes.
He had tried to shift into the form of her cat Nigel.
She didn’t even remember describing Nigel to him.
“Oh, God.” She moved forward, her eyes brimming with tears.
Kyro’s gray eyes suddenly became anxious and she realized he must be confused by her reaction.
Coming to stand in front of him on the bed, she covered her mouth as she willed her tears to keep at bay.
A low chuckle started in her throat as she looked at him.
He had really tried. He really had. But s
till...
“You are the ugliest cat I have ever seen,” she choked out between a sob. Kyro blinked up at her. “The ugliest cat but the most beautiful person.”
Kyro rubbed his head against her outstretched palm and she swallowed hard, letting out another small laugh after she did.
“I didn’t expect this,” she said, stepping back as he began to shift once more.
As he grew in front of her into his usual form, she threw her hands around his neck, burying her face into his chest.
“Thank you for that,” she whispered. “It was a lovely gift.”
“You said it was ugly.”
His words made her chuckle again, she couldn’t help it.
“It was ugly...but beautiful at the same time.”
“I don’t understand,” he said.
Lifting her head from his neck, she looked him in the eyes. “You’re beautiful.” She smiled. “You’re a beautiful person.”
Kyro cleared his throat. “Does that mean you will marry me?”
“Marry you?” She had to lean back a little so she could look at him properly. “Marry you? Your species get married?”
“No. But yours does.” He searched her face. “I researched this for Kyris. He and his female will be getting married. I want us to do so as well. If you want to. It is a promise humans make that they will stay together forever. I want us to make that promise. Together.”
She couldn’t help but grin at him.
“Kinda jumped the gun there, hon. We’ve already eloped forever.”
The look on his face made her smile as her heart filled with warmth. He was looking at her as if she’d been his only hope for a date and she’d turned him down.
“We’ll get married then.” She leaned in to brush her nose against his. “I’ll marry you.”
“You will?”
“Yes.” She grinned. “And then I’ll be your wife, I’ll have your babies, and you can Hulk out anytime someone threatens to tear us apart.”
“Hulk out?”
Evren laughed. “Human reference.” She sobered as their eyes met. “Just know that I love you. I always will.”
“I love you too, my Evren. And I will always love you.”
As Kyro pulled her closer, falling back on the bed with her, their lips met.
They were words of great value, words she would always hold dear to her heart—a promise of forever, sealed with a kiss.
A note from A.G
Wow.
I knew Kyro’s story from the very start of the series when I put Xul on paper, but he still managed to surprise me.
I hope you loved him as much as I do (I’m having a hard time choosing which one of these heroes I like the best now).
If you’ve been following me on social media, or maybe because you’ve read this book, you probably know by now that the series will be continuing. What will happen to those people in the stasis hold they found? Or that guy from Yce’s planet who is being held captive. Will they win the war?
I’ll be doing a spinoff on the Restitution in a new series that’s linked to this one. So don’t worry, you’ll be seeing your favorite characters once more when they do “cameos.”
I can’t wait to explore more of this universe! If there’s anything you’d love to read about, shoot me an email. I’d love to hear.
I’ll also be launching a few new series this year into early 2021. The next series is Riv’s Sanctuary, which is already being written.
For updates on my writing progress, check my website. I have a handy little section there on the front page where you can check how far I am in writing your next favorite read.
Loved Kyro? If you would like to leave a review on any of your preferred platforms, I’d appreciate it. If not, that’s okay as well.
Keep an eye out for Riv’s Sanctuary and the Restitution series! Coming soon!
♥ A.G.
Next Series
RIV’S SANCTUARY
Abducted from Earth over a year ago, Lauren spent most of that time getting accustomed to her new life as one of the “animals” in an alien zoo.
When she’s sold by the zookeeper, her life takes a turn she wasn’t expecting. She has no idea where she’ll end up till she’s brought to a sanctuary owned by a tall blue hunk of an alien called Riv.
Riv’s life is quiet and peaceful in a place as far away from civilization as he can manage. So when an annoying chatterbox of a human ends up on his doorstep, he’s less than pleased. The human disrupts his life and his solitude and he can’t wait to get rid of her.
He’s not interested in helping her, and he’s definitely not interested in love.
Except…she’s managed to wheedle her way in and suddenly those barriers around his heart don’t seem so strong anymore.
He has two options: Let her go.
Or let her in.
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Acknowledgments
Thanks to Mr. Wilde and the little Wildes running about.
If not for you, I’d have probably written about six books already this year.
I love you, nevertheless.
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About the Author
A. G. Wilde is an avid reader, a gamer, a lover of all things space, alien, and sci-fi.
She is addicted to intense romance, irresistible heroes, and deliciously naughty things.
