“I love you, Rager,” Ann said, just because she wanted to say it once again.
“I love you, Ann, forever.”
20
Five Years Later
“It’s amazing, isn’t it?” Ann asked from her seat in the backyard of the building used as headquarters for the government of the sector now. She stared up at a second mothership, one that hovered close to the first one that came to the Earth five years ago. “It’s going to Europe in a week, to begin projects there.”
“Wow. I’d like to go with them. I always wanted to go to Europe,” Skye said from the seat beside her. Ann’s two small children, Stella and Anthony, ran around the playground set up for all children of government personnel.
“I heard they may take some of us with them. If you want, I can find out?” She looked over at her friend, still amazed after all these years, at just how beautiful the woman was.
“Maybe. I’ve trained a few more medics that could take my place for a little while.” Skye had seemed restless lately and a little unhappy. A trip like that might be just what the other woman needed.
“I’ll look into it for you.” The first transporter came down and the women gathered the children up to take them inside.
A nanny came out of hiding and took over the care of the two children, so Skye and Ann walked up to the entrance hall. Ann nudged at Katy, still in her pocket, and smiled. The dog would never get tired of sleeping on Ann. Even when she’d been pregnant with Stella and Anthony, Katy still liked her daytime naps to be somewhere on Ann.
“We’ve made this a good world,” Skye said out of the blue and Ann turned to look at her.
“What brought that on?” Ann asked, curious.
“All of this.” She waved her hands around, and Ann looked at the gaily decorated entrance hall. “We’ve put up welcome signs and have all these activities planned for these new aliens coming in. Ten years ago, we’d have all been running in fear.”
“Ten years ago we were too busy trying to survive,” Ann reminded her friend. “But yeah, you’re right. The government would have tried to blast them out of the sky and there would have been a very short-lived war that could have made this all go very differently.”
“We still have problems. That lunatic out in Texas wants to bring slavery back.” Skye said, as if she wanted to remind herself that this new world wasn’t perfect.
“He’s not gaining any ground, though, and if he makes too much trouble, Rager will take care of him.” Ann had learned over time that Rager would listen to her, and when she heard news about men like this one, she passed it on to her mate. He would take care of it, and eliminate the problem.
Word had started to spread throughout the population of survivors that this was a new world and bullshit from the past wouldn’t stand for long. Not long at all.
“I was glad he took out that place down in Mexico, where the women were being taken.” That was Skye’s polite way of saying a human sex trafficker had been caught. That man, and his crew, were all sent off-planet.
It was a punishment for those that committed the worst crimes, and was worse than death from what Ann understood. She didn’t, couldn’t feel bad for these people, women or men, that committed such terrible atrocities. She had a feeling the man in Texas would be the next one sent off-planet. It seemed some people just couldn’t help themselves, and wanted to make others suffer for their own gain.
That idea had ruled the world for at least 2,000 years, if not more. Those at the top would reap the rewards of those that labored below. It didn’t fly in this world. You could profit, but your workers had to as well, and the ultimate goal was to ensure that everyone had exactly what they wanted. There were fewer people in the world now, it was possible to have all that you desired, within reason. As long as it didn’t break the new laws of this brand new world.
“Hi, babe. Glad you made it.” Rager interrupted her thoughts, and Ann’s face lit up with pleasure.
“Hi there, yourself, handsome.” She leaned up to kiss him and brushed at his cheek. “Always so breath-taking you.”
“If you say so. How are the kids?”
“Fine, they’re with Angela.” She’d asked the woman to work for her after Anthony was born. Between her work with Rager, work at the medical clinic, and the hospital, Ann now had to spend a lot of time away from home. She hated it, but Angela helped, and she brought the kids with her when she could. It was a compromise she’d made,in order to take part in this experimental new world she’d helped to create.
“Good. Here they come.” Rager spoke softly, and Ann inspected him.
He stood proudly, his face smooth, his eyes clear, and his body still in top condition. He wore one of the usual uniforms of the alien race, all black, but clean and neatly pressed. He didn’t look the old world’s version of a ruler or a king, but he did look like he meant business. Ann’s heart fluttered as she looked at him, the passion still there, even after two kids and five years.
His hand reached out for hers, and she went to stand beside him. She was dressed in a simple black dress, made of t-shirt material, that flowed down to her ankles. It had long sleeves that covered her hands up to her fingers, and she felt like she presented a proper image to these newcomers. She was down to earth, but a professional, that should be taken seriously.
She’d studied hard with baby Stella at her side, and she’d become a medic right alongside Meg. She wasn’t quite a doctor, that would still take more study, but she was as close as any of them were now. She was proud of what she’d achieved and had earned the respect of those around her ten times over.
Ann was jerked out of her thoughts by a noise at the doors. The doors came open and she could see a long line of people that waited to get into the building. Two men came in, one of whom looked a lot like Rager, but smaller.
“My youngest brother,” Rager whispered down to her when she looked over at him in surprise. “His name is Thadeon. A bit of a scamp, but he means well. He’s going to work in Europe with Melvenon there in the front.”
“I see,” she said softly, and waited for the rest to come in. Another group of men, soldiers with a high rank, and then a woman.
“My youngest sister. Her name is Athera. She’s staying here, with us, to instruct us on new medical equipment she’s brought with her.”
“Oh. Skye, did you hear that?” Ann turned to see that Skye hadn’t heard because she was too busy staring at Rager’s sister.
The woman was tall, as tall as Rager, with long black hair tied in braids down her back, with glittering eyes a lighter shade of Rager’s orange. She wore the customary uniform of Rager’s people, but it was obvious the woman had a body that deserved to be painted. Slim, fit, with curves in all the right places, Ann could see why Skye was so… enraptured.
Ann smiled and nudged Rager. He looked down and smirked with satisfaction when he saw Skye’s face. “I knew this might happen. My sister doesn’t care for men in her bed. I thought she might make a good mate for your friend.”
“Our friend!” Ann pointed out, but did it with a pleased smile. “Thank you.”
“My pleasure, now, let’s welcome the newcomers.”
Ann did as was expected, but she kept an eye on Skye. The other woman skirted around Athera, made eye contact occasionally, but didn’t quite have the courage to introduce herself yet. Skye had been alone for five long years, Ann knew, so it must be exciting to have this happen.
Ann had learned a lot about the mating phenomenon in the last few years. Some mates were joined together out of expedience and muddled along together. Others were soulmates, meant to be, and would be drawn together, no matter what. Ann had a suspicion this was the case for Skye and Athera.
She was pondering how imperfect the world was as Rager spoke with his younger brother a few hours later. There’d been a few more battles as men determined to make others their subjects fought the aliens that they could not defeat. Their efforts were misguided in their notions that they could defeat
the aliens, that would never happen. It was impossible.
Their desire to subjugate others was just evil, and Rager and Ann, along with others, worked hard to root out the last of the resistance, and the few people that tried to build their own little kingdoms. They could not police the entire world, so there might be places where people lived in slavery, but not in this part of the planet.
That was the reason the newcomers had arrived. Even back then the aliens had known they’d need to bring more people over. Ann was glad they were there and that they would be on the other side of the planet, ensuring that the ideals and hopes of this side of the world were carried across.
“She’s worked up her nerve,” Rager said as he slipped up next to her and whispered in her ear.
“Oh my. I see she has.” Ann glanced over where Athera and Skye were eyeing each other up, exchanging a word or two. “Two warriors, preparing for battle. Why can’t they just say hello?”
“I think Skye had a rough life before she came here. Your world was cruel in a lot of ways to people like her. As for Athera, that’s just how she is. Everything has to be a battle with her.” Rager smiled, and she saw something in his eyes that looked like mischief. “I think they’ll be at war for the rest of their lives, but look at how they look at each other. They’ll fight to the death for the right to be together every day.”
“That will suit Skye just fine, I think.” Ann chuckled and looked away from the couple. “I’m glad we aren’t like that though.”
“No.” Rager came even closer until her back was up against the wall and her eyes stared straight into his. “I’d much rather fuck you than fight you.”
A shiver ran through her, a memory of pleasure he’d given her a thousand times, but still never grew old. “You’d better. I’m a much better lover than I am a warrior.”
“That you are, my dear.” He nuzzled her neck in the dark corner where they were hidden, but then he let her go with regret in his eyes. “We have duties to attend to. But we will continue this discussion later.”
She put her hand in his and they walked out of the corner, their heads high as they continued to circulate with the crowd. Ann met a lot of new faces, some that would go off to the other side of the world, and some that would stay with them. She tried to remember them all, but it became a jumble after a while.
Later, at dinner, she saw that Skye and Athera sat next to each other, but they both spoke to the people beside them, rather than to each other. It would come together, in time, she thought. It was fascinating to watch.
Ann looked around and caught a flash of light outside. Rain had returned quickly to the planet and along with it, storms. The lightning outside was just one more reminder that the world was getting back to normal. A good thing, in some ways.
“I want to take this moment to welcome you all to the new world, the new Earth. We are lucky that some of the people of this planet survived. With the help of Earth women, and the new women of our species we will rebuild this world for the children that we create. We have kept some of the ideas of the past, but some old ideas remain. You should all remember, as you take your new posts on this planet, that I am the leader of this entire planet. This is not our world, it’s the world we are creating for our children. We should make it a place they can be proud of, and under my guidance, I know that’s just what we’ll create.” Rager stood as the crowd in the dining hall clapped and murmured in approval. “Now, that’s all the speech-making we’ll have, if you don’t mind. Please enjoy the rest of your evening.”
“Not bad, Rager.” Ann leaned over to whisper to her husband. “Short, to the point, and succinct.”
“I hate long speeches,” he replied, but then nuzzled her ear. “I have much better things to do with my mouth.”
“That you do, and I do believe we’ll be able to explore those things in about another hour.” She turned with an intense heat in her own eyes, a heat only he could create. “It’s 59 minutes too long, but I can wait.”
“Well, if you’re desperate, I can get started right now.” His hand moved under the table to skim up her thigh until he found the center of heat he knew like the back of his own hand.
“I think I’d be too loud, right now. Save it for later.” She kissed his cheek and he moved away with a disappointed frown. “I love you, you know.”
“I love you too, Ann. More than I could ever explain.” His eyes flared, and she felt him in that place inside of her that only he had ever occupied. That place around her heart where he lived as a warm part of her soul, a warmth that would never die. Her children had their own spots, but that one was only his.
With a last reluctant look, she went back to charming the older woman next to her, come to teach the earthlings about the planet that the aliens came from. It was part of the new curriculum at the schools they’d started for the children and coming children of the new world.
It was going to be a good place, for all of the new people of this Earth, Ann would make sure of it.
About the Author
Selina Coffey is a romance writer who lives happily in London with her husband and son. She is a hopeless romantic who grew up always believing in love and she is not ashamed to admit this! It is this belief that makes her so passionate about writing crazy love stories.
A stereotypical girly girl, she loves shopping. So whenever she gets a chance and the spare cash, you will probably find her browsing online for the next pair of shoes to add to her collection.!
You can find her online at
www.selinacoffey.com
Contact her at
[email protected]
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