by KD Jones
“That’s over two years to complete building for one damn country. You people will never leave our planet!”
Everyone stared at Mitchell’s outburst. The room quickly filled with tension, and Lt. Colonel James tried to ease it.
“I’m sure we can hash out a timeline that would work for everyone.”
Mitchell snorted. “Of course, you would love to have these aliens stay here, it would mean that your daughters and their kids would also stay.”
Heather watched as the lt. colonel worked to keep his anger under control. His face was red and his left eye was starting to twitch. Devlon cleared his throat.
“I can offer two years, but after that, we’ll need to return the fleet back to Drasta. In fact, I may have to send for replacements for some of my people anyway.”
“More time dealing with the Drastans? I don’t like that thought,” Mitchell blurted out.
“We could train your people in apartment construction and extending the subway tunnels so that they can take over when we leave,” Devlon suggested.
Lt. Colonel James nodded his head. “Thank you Commander. I will relay your offer to the leaders but I am sure they will want to take you up on that generous offer. Get the plans together for the infrastructure rebuild as soon as you can. My people are going to want to help, which should speed up the process.”
“Of course. We’ll make sure that you’re fully equipped with supplies and capable of continue connecting to the rest of your people,” Devlon said.
“I think the commander and I can draw up the details and a good timeline on our own. We can reconvene in two weeks.” Lt. Colonel James dismissed the group.
Heather cleared her throat to get their attention. “I need to check out the progress on the apartments that have already been made so I can explain it to the other tribe leaders.”
“I’ll take you to see them,” Devlon told her.
“Fine.”
Everyone got up to leave. Heather was grateful that Lt. Colonel James stopped Devlon to speak with him privately. She needed some fresh air…or at to get away from Devlon long enough to catch her breath. He seemed to fill the room with his sexy muscular body.
Chapter 2
The woman was infuriating, but smart. Devlon couldn’t help but admire her ideas, her strength, and her nicely shaped backside as she walked out of the room. If the lt. colonel hadn’t pulled him to the side for a private conversation, he would’ve followed Heather to the nearest dark corner and kissed her—something he swore he wouldn’t do. The woman was mated. End of story.
“What can I do for you, Lt. Colonel?”
“We’re family now, you can call me David in private.”
“David, call me Devlon. What can I do for you?”
“Will you be coming by for Rachel’s baby shower?”
Devlon raised an eyebrow at him. “Was that really what you wanted to know?”
“No. I want to know what Liam and Kyle’s plans are for Maggie and Rachel. Will they remain here or return to Drasta?”
“They will return to Drasta, of course.”
“Is that what Maggie and Rachel want?”
“Maggie and Rachel are my son’s amahalas, wives. Their place is with their amahlos.”
David didn’t look too happy with his answer. “My girls have every right to stay here, where their home is, where their family is.”
Devlon sighed. He understood David’s reluctance to let his daughters leave. He would feel the same reluctance if his sons decided to remain on Earth. He had to make the other male understand this was the best thing. “They will be with their new family, and safe.”
“My wife and I just got my Maggie back after thinking her dead for years. I have a new granddaughter I want to get to know, and Rachel is about to have my second grandchild. You can’t just expect me to sit back and let you take my family from me.”
Devlon controlled his anger and spoke calmly. “Do you expect my sons to remain here on Earth and give up their military careers and their home world? There are humans here who hate us and would be a constant threat to their lives and their children.” Devlon knew they wouldn’t settle this issue today. It was the one thing that had torn a rift between his and David’s family.
David ran a hand through his short gray hair. “There’s no point in us getting into an argument over this now. We’ve got at least two years to work out a solution to the situation.”
Devlon fought the urge to growl at the human. “The decision will have to be made by our children, not by us.”
“Agreed.” David started to walk awaym then stopped by the door to say one more thing. “My wife Melissa did want me to make sure you know that you’re welcome to come to the baby shower.”
Devlon couldn’t help but smile at the grudging way David invited him. He was only doing it because of his mate. Melissa was a very good woman, and there were times he envied David for still having his mate. “Tell her that I’ll definitely be there.”
“See you then.”
Devlon watched him leave and regretted their harsh words. This situation was not going to be easy to deal with. Both his daughters-in-law need their families to be together, but staying on Earth for an extended period of time was just not feasible. Not until the human-Drastan conflicts were resolved, as least. As a grandfather, he couldn’t sit back while his grandchildren’s lives were placed in danger. His eldest son, Jared, didn’t have the same issues with his mate. Lily didn’t have any family on Earth still living; taking her and her son to Drasta wouldn’t cause any problems.
He also knew that going to Drasta wasn’t going to be a solution to everything. There were already some of his own people who resented the humans. It could be that they simply wanted to return to Drasta after years out on a mission. They might blame the humans for the delay. Also, there was sentiment that the humans had caused their own mess, and they should clean it up themselves. It made him wonder what type of reception they would receive on the Drastan home world.
Devlon would need to speak with his world’s leaders to ensure that his family, and any other humans who would like to relocate to Drasta, were protected. He left the conference room and motioned for his security detail not to follow him. He’d tried to leave them behind on the command ship, but his son Liam insisted he be guarded.
His sons had become a little overprotective since he was targeted and injured a few months back. He could handle himself just fine, but he humored his boys. It warmed his heart knowing they cared for his safety. Maybe he hadn’t messed things up too badly as a father.
He caught sight of the bewitching human woman as she stopped to talk to a few of the dome leaders. He was impressed with her ideas. Heather had proved to be smart, competent, and sexy. She’d fascinated him since the beginning. If only she wasn’t mated.
He thought back to the first time he’d encountered the woman, when she’d come on board the command ship to check on some of her people who had been injured. There was an incident between Heather and one of the females Devlon used to have relations with—Lazar. She was trying to kill a subway dweller who was injured and vulnerable. He came in to the middle of things to see Heather protecting the poor girl like a warrior, ready to stand up for those who were defenseless.
*****
He heard the voices all the way down the corridor. Rushing quickly to try to defuse the situation before more people got hurt, he nearly knocked over others in the way.
Lazar’s voice screamed, “You can’t touch me, you’re not man enough to make me do anything!”
Devlon stood at the entrance to the mediko and watched, stunned, as Heather swung out and hit Lazar right in the face, knocking her to the ground, unconscious.
Heather stood over the downed woman. “Take that, you bitch!”
“Enough!” Commander Devlon yelled from the doorway. He motioned for one of his lieutenants. “Get the situation under control. Take Lazar to detainment.”
*****
When he’d
looked at Heather then, a spark of attraction had flared between them. It had grown bigger and stronger each day since. It was the female she’d been protecting, Hali, who had let it slip that Heather’s mate still lived in another district in the subway. Because of that, Devlon had decided to try to ignore his attraction to her. But despite all his efforts to keep his distance from her, he couldn’t get her off his mind. With his imminent departure from Earth, he didn’t need any more complications or entanglements.
He’d had an amahala once, and failed her miserably. Devlon met Lara when she was still in mediko training and he’d just been promoted to lt. commander. Their parents arranged their union and he was pleased with their selection. Lara was beautiful and brilliant. A perfect match for him, since she was so independent. She never complained when he left on mission after mission.
Devlon’s ambition to rise in ranks slowly wore away at their union. He loved Lara, but there was something missing in their relationship. He always got restless staying at home any length of time and quickly took the next mission. Lara didn’t complain except when it came to the children. Lara would argue with him whenever he missed one of the boys’ special events like birthdays or graduations.
He knew he had to work on their relationship; he didn’t want her to be unhappy. That was when she insisted on a third pregnancy. The medikos warned them that Lara wouldn’t be able to carry another child without risking her life, but she was adamant. He didn’t refuse her, though he should have. He was away when she’d gone into labor and died shortly after giving birth to Kyle. Devlon still felt such self-loathing and guilt for putting her at risk, and for not dealing with the situation the way he should have. He didn’t regret having Kyle, though. His sons, all three of them, had suffered because of his bad decisions. He didn’t deserve another chance at a relationship. That didn’t mean he didn’t satisfy his needs.
He didn’t feel he deserved another chance at a relationship, although that didn’t mean he didn’t satisfy his needs. He chose his bed partners carefully, only those looking for sex without a long-term relationship. Easy and quick; with no strings, as the humans would say. He didn’t have any problems finding females who fell into that category. They enjoyed the passion they shared, and if one got too clingy, he simply stopped sleeping with them and moved on.
Heather was human, and though he’d heard many humans also shared sex without adding the complications of a relationship, he’d made every effort to avoid entanglements of that sort with them...and with her. She was mated to another, and even if the male wasn’t present, the fact that he still existed and that their union was alive kept him from acting on the things he’d been feeling.
He’d overheard Heather telling his daughters-in-law that she was separated from her husband, and that if she could she would’ve divorced him right then. Devlon had not known what divorce was until he researched it and found that humans could break their unions for all kinds of reasons. This was unheard-of on Drasta. It made him worry for his sons and nephew, that their human mates might lose interest in them and want this divorce thing.
He also worried over what would happen to the children if there was a divorce. He had a beautiful healthy granddaughter, another grandchild on the way, and an adopted grandson by his oldest son. But as he watched his daughters-in-law and saw that their commitment to his sons was strong, it lessened his fears a little. They truly loved his sons and gave them what he’d failed to—a real family. For that he was grateful.
He followed Heather to the lift. He managed to catch it before it left, and he also caught her off-guard. Her scent was delicious, like one of the moon blossoms from Drasta. She was exotic sweet and delicate.
“Commander.”
“Heather, I’d like to talk to you more about the ideas you have. I thought that since we’re going to be observing the housing built for Maggie’s tribe, this would be the perfect time.”
“I guess I’m yours for the day, then.”
He blinked as images filled his mind of what he would like to do to her the whole day. The thought made him flush. “Excuse me…”
She laughed. “It’s just a saying, Commander. It means that I’m available to go with you to the tribe district.”
He nodded and turned to look away from her. Being in such a small area alone with her was not a good idea. Her scent was getting stronger, and it was damn intoxicating. He glanced down at her, fighting his own body’s reaction. Heather was beautiful, with her dark brown hair and golden brown eyes. Her was pale and flawless. She was taller than most of the human women he’d met and had a very nice figure. Her hips were trim, and her breasts...they were full, stretching the top she wore.
“You’re human, and a woman.”
She laughed again. “At least you noticed.”
Oh, he’d noticed. He couldn’t stop noticing. “I mean... I need help picking out something for my daughter-in-law, Rachel. She’s expecting a baby and they’re having a baby shower. I haven’t found a present to bring yet.”
“I’m not an expert on that kind of thing.”
“But you’re female.”
“I’ve never had a child, or even been pregnant.”
She sounded defensive to him. Maybe this subject was a touchy one for her. “I’m sorry to bother you. I’ll find something.”
Heather sighed. “Do you know if the baby is a girl or a boy?”
“A boy.”
“Perhaps you can get a quilt or something with the baby’s name on it.”
“That’s a good suggestion. Any others?”
“A rattle or some kind of plush toy for them to hold that’s soft and won’t hurt them.”
“Ah, yes; my granddaughter has both of those things. The rattle makes a weird sound.”
Heather smiled. “I have to confess, whenever one of my friends was expecting, I hated it because I never felt like I could pick out the right gift. Half the stuff they had for babies was plain creepy. And then the whole breast pump thing. I always thought it was some kind of torture device, created by a sexually frustrated man who wanted to watch women have their boobs sucked by a machine. I can’t imagine that those things feel good.”
Once again, Heather stunned him with her words. “A machine that…”
She raised her hands to hover over her rounded breasts without touching them. “They help suck the milk out so that the mother doesn’t have to breastfeed the baby directly. Anyone can give the baby a bottle with the pumped milk.”
His eyes were zeroed in on her breasts, and he couldn’t seem to look away. “That does sound...odd.”
“Hey, Commander, my boobs aren’t doing the talking. My eyes are up here, big boy.”
He felt heat rise to his cheeks. “Right, no breast pump then. What other ideas do you have?”
Chapter 3
The doors to the lift opened, and they exited onto the platform at the top of the dome. Heather stood next to Devlon inside the above-ground structure as they waited for transportation to come and get them.
“Did you really want to talk to me about baby gifts?” Heather asked suspiciously.
“No, I didn’t.”
“Then what?”
“I was curious why you would insist on rebuilding the underground homes, when the domes offer more than enough space.”
“Like I said before, we don’t trust the dome leaders, who are mostly military. They turned away so many people and left them to die.”
“If you’re angry with your government’s decisions, why not let us relocate you to a more livable planet? Or relocate your people to Drasta?”
“How do we know that the grass is greener on your side?”
“I don’t know what that means. You have no vegetation above ground.”
“It means that things always sound and look better somewhere else, but when you get there it could be worse than where you came from.”
“I would think anywhere would be better than living in dark, some times dirty tunnels.”
�
��Are your people prepared to give us weapons if we relocate?”
He didn’t answer her, but looked off into the distance. She already knew what he would say, anyway. She didn’t blame him; her people had basically destroyed themselves with weapons meant for their own defense.
“Moving to another planet without a means to protect ourselves leaves us vulnerable to attack by other species. Also, relocating to Drasta isn’t a cure-all for our problems. There are Drastans who don’t like humans and who would resist a major influx of them.”
“I’ll be speaking to the high chancellor of Drasta about the humans emigrating to Drasta being allowed citizenship. Those who are mated will automatically be granted full citizen rights but those who are not mated, will need to go through the citizenship process.”
“I know the easiest and best thing would be to relocate us, but if we ever hope to reclaim our planet, we’ll need to be here to help rebuild. You must think all of us humans are crazy and idiotic for causing such destruction to our own world.”
He paused before responding. “At first I may have believed that. Some of your people are crazy and idiotic, but not all of you are. I try to look at the situation as if I were in your place, and I have to grudgingly admit I’d probably make some of the same decisions that your leaders are making—that you’re making.”
She understood what he was trying to say. “You understand our need for those in the tribes to keep their foothold within the subway tunnels?”
“I do. That’s your leverage, your means of making sure that your government and the dome leaders deal with you fairly.”
She breathed a sigh of relief. He really did understand why it was so important. “That’s exactly it.”
“However, we cannot allow your people to interfere with our humanitarian efforts. We’ve spent too much time, energy, resources, and manpower. There have been lives lost, and only now are we starting to get some of the peace back that this place desperately needs.”
How could she argue with any of that? “You’re right.” He looked so stunned that she agreed with him, it was almost comical. “I can see reason, Commander.”
