by Sky, Stella
“Hello, Meghan,” I said and raised my hand from my kneeling position so as not to startle her.
“Oh, Haden,” she said, pressing her left hand over her heart in relief. “Sorry,” she offered, “but, we’re locking up for the night.”
“Can I interest you in a nightcap?”
She smiled and folded her hands together, but shook her head in decline. “Thank you thought. I prefer to stay with the girls.”
I nodded. “Ah, yes. I’ve heard there was an incident on your flight to Udora.”
She pressed her lips thin and reluctantly gave a nod. “I obviously wasn’t, you know,” she shrugged, “awake for it and all, but I watched the footage. Scary stuff out there.”
“Indeed. That’s why we take precautions now, to protect girls like you.”
“It was my sister, actually.”
I nodded. I didn’t know much about Meghan’s first journey to Udora, but she hadn’t left in five years, so I couldn’t imagine she found it all that excruciating. She stared at me in a way that made me feel like I was expected to know more about her story. But, I didn’t.
In fact, remembering her name seemed like a feat in and of itself. No matter how hard I tried, names always seemed to escape me. In one ear and out the other. Another charming quality of mine that made me absolutely terrible at formal meetings.
She looked like she’d rightly given up on me when I finally remembered a tidbit about her. “How is that boy of yours?” I blurted out, standing up from the pod I had nearly attached myself to.
She smiled and her eyes beamed in the way only a mother’s could. Her face flushed and she gushed, “A handful. Getting to be more and more like his father every day.”
“Ah,” I chuckled. “And how does dear old dad feel about this?”
Her face fell again; her features twisting to some unfathomable pain. Clearly, there was something poignant that I’d missed.
“Uh, well he’s… He’s passed,” she mumbled awkwardly as the room continued to overflow with tension.
I cringed inwardly and berated myself for choosing such a stupid thing to chat about. Why, oh why couldn’t I just pay attention when people were speaking to me?
“I’m sorry to hear that. And that would be…?”
A deep crease formed between her thinly plucked brows, and she deadpanned, “Brenem, the Red Dragon.”
Brenem. Damn.
I pinched the bridge of my nose and looked up at her. “Right, I’m so sorry,” I expressed genuinely. “How could I not know that? He was my cousin.”
This sentiment caused her to brighten somewhat. Perhaps she’d thought I was going to judge her. After all, not only was Brenem a known hot-head, he had also chosen someone else during his time on Earth. Someone who was not Meghan Klein. Making her child one of infidelity and no doubt the scorn of his chosen bride.
Brenem was also an infamously violent fighter. He’d died putting a traitor to death, or so the rumor went.
“I didn’t know you were related,” she said, almost apologetically.
“We weren’t close,” I dismissed. “In fact, I didn’t know him very well at all. But, I’ve heard stories.”
“He had a soft side, too,” she defended in a small voice that almost sounded too tired to bother anymore. “Anyway… I guess I have to ask you to scoot now.”
“Right, right,” I breathed. As I looked down at Sarra once more, I began to feel a little defeated. Maybe that wasn’t such a bad deal, after all.
Chapter Three
Sarra
After a brief sleep and an even briefer reunion with Haden, we took off from the shuttle station in Udora and made our way to my shifters high-rise in the city.
His home reminded me of a penthouse – taking up the top floor of the building, complete with extravagant chic furnishings and art. His large glass walls gave a breathtaking view of the city. The buildings lit up in the central district of the city like myriads of fireflies. They seemed to sparkle in the distance.
“I love it here,” I said breathlessly as I walked over to his living room window.
“I’m glad I could impress you so easily, my lady. I haven’t even shown you the kitchen yet; you’ll be ecstatic!”
I rolled my eyes playfully and laughed. “I meant the view; Udora.”
“Ooh,” he said with a drawn-out breath. “I am enjoying the view myself,” he finished as his eyes traced my figure up and down.
“Are you trying to be cheesy, or does this just come naturally to you?”
“Ah, and we’re back at men being ‘funny’ again.”
“Did I say it was funny?” I teased, wrinkling my nose in the cute way I did when trying to flirt.
“Well,” he gasped. “I never!” We both grinned at one another, and he walked across the floor to the window, staring out into the city with a lost stare in his eyes. He wore dark jeans and another blazer; black this time, to match his perfectly formed scales and beautifully dark features.
“I’m sorry. That was rude,” he said simply; his eyes glancing my way as I made myself comfortable on his taupe chaise. “Tell me what you love about Udora.”
“Everything,” I breathed.
The seasons here were somewhat similar to those on Earth, but spring and winter only. No middle ground. I’d arrived at the end of winter this time. The planet ran devastatingly cold, which was just perfect to me. The moss that famously covered every inch of the planet now had its color sapped from it. Grass turned, not to blankets of snow, but grew thickly coated with sharp ice.
There was something so bare-bones about the seasons here. Something unexplainably beautiful.
“So, you’re an advisor to the Koth?” I asked. “Seems funny we’ve never met, considering they are who I deal with most of the time.”
“It’s a new title,” he said with a dismissive shrug. “But yes, I am a diplomatic man with access to all the higher ups and any secrets you could ever want to know.”
“So basically, you just go to meetings and do a lot of nodding?”
“Basically, yes.” He grinned. “Don’t forget ‘telling people what to do.' That’s my favorite part.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said while chuckling into my hand. “Good, because that’s basically what I do, too.”
“You don’t say? What will our alliance do when we’re in the same meetings getting along and actually agreeing on principles?”
“It will be a shock, that’s for sure.”
He set his jaw and gave me a look that seemed absolutely tickled. Walking past the bay window, Haden took a seat across from me after setting down two freshly poured glasses of wine. “One of the few things brought from Earth that I actually like. This,” he said as he took a long sip. “And you.”
“Don’t I feel special,” I flushed and took the base of the wineglass into the palm of my hand. “You don’t like anything else? Food, architecture, pigs?”
“Pigs?” he repeated with a laugh. “That was an odd reach.”
“Bacon!” I offered playfully.
“Ah.” He nodded. “Pigs are alright, I suppose. But as far as architecture goes, I’m much more of a fan of old Udora.”
“What?” I snorted. “Stone walls?”
He stared at me with an unreadable expression before his lips curved up into an endearing smile “And I do believe in time you will, too. Udora’s not all city, you know. It might seem like that, but it isn’t. There’s the city, the mine fields–”
“Not as dangerous as it sounds,” I quipped.
Haden gave a bashful blush and sighed as he continued, “Right. No. They don’t explode. Then there are the Were-valleys and the Old Udora.”
I bit my lip and stared down into my wine glass as he continued to give me a verbal map of the planet. Maybe Anita was right. Maybe the shifters really did make their landscape a point of seduction with their women.
“And what is Old Udora like? I have to admit, in all my years coming to the planet, I’ve never
ever heard of that area.”
“We don’t take humans there,” he said, almost proudly. “It is as it sounds. A city in the midst of a mossy field, cracked with stone buildings from the old world. Back before we found Earth.”
“I see,” I hummed and took another sip of my wine before setting it on the table. “Hopefully I’ll be able to see it one day.” I tipped my head and gestured a faux curtsey to him, tilting my head in his direction as I finished, “If you deem me worthy.”
“But of course.”
We sat by his open window drinking wine for hours together. He had a good idea, it seemed: plying one another with alcohol until the conversation flowed smoothly. While I appreciated the liquid courage, something told me we would have been just fine without it.
“Which brings me to my next point, actually.”
“Oh, it does?”
“I am… well, part of the Koth.”
“Yes,” I stifled a giggle and fixed my short hair behind my ear. “I think I’ve heard rumblings here and there about it.”
“An important man; brilliant in nature. And being the stunning creature that I am, you’re considered to be a lucky woman.”
I nodded, suddenly taken aback by the subtle, if not playful, arrogance. “Good to know,” I stumbled.
“People tend to… want to celebrate a Koth pairing. There is going to be a celebration in a couple days.”
“And here I thought I’d have nowhere to wear my cocktail dress. So, it’s like a party? I have to say, in all the years I’ve been to Udora, I’ve never attended a party.”
“Something to cross off the bucket list.”
“That reminds me,” he said, no shifting in his chair. “Zaphira will be attending. She’s your higher-up, is she not?”
“Yes, and contrary to popular belief, she isn’t all powerful and full of doom and gloom.”
“Ah, yes. As they say.”
“She’s my boss,” I said flatly.
“So that means you are required to jump to her defense?”
“First of all, yes. And second of all, I would only be defending her if you were being critical of her. Were you?”
He laughed, hard. “I was just asking a question.”
I blinked several times as he continued to laugh at my reaction and then gave an audible sigh before downing the last of my wine like a teenager. “Sorry,” I said meekly. “Some people have a hard time with her. Her personality and all.”
Haden raised his hand in dismissal and moved closer to me on the couch. “No need to explain. So long as she doesn’t give you a hard time, then she’s fine by me.”
“She’s not as hard to work for as she is to negotiate with, if that’s what you mean.” I offered a smile.
The truth was, I was quick to jump to Zaphira’s defense. Sure, she was harsh, but she knew what she wanted. She taught me everything I knew. While she didn’t exactly have the warmest personality, I’d seen her care for the girls she sent to Udora. I’d seen her cry in the privacy of her office. I’d seen the love she had for this project and this alliance – and that side of her was mine to keep.
“Really,” I insisted. “She’s not that bad.”
“If you say so then it must be true.”
“You trust me already, huh?” I said, leaning closer to him and trying desperately to sound anywhere near flirtatious and change the uncomfortable subject.
“You’re right, what am I thinking?” he said, slapping his forehead. “You are in politics, after all.”
“She’s taught me a lot,” I said solemnly.
He raised a brow and had a coy, blithe look about him. “And I’m supposed to find this comforting?”
Chapter Four
Haden
I stared across at the lovely creature before me. She was dodging my questions regarding Zaphira and her work. I knew I didn’t want to push my inquiries too far, but my curiosity had gotten the better of me.
“You can feel free to invite who you like, to the party, I mean,” I said, brushing the back of my hand up Sarra’s arm. She felt warm and amazing against my skin. “I know you mentioned you have a lot of friends at work.”
“My brother?” she asked, perking up ever so gentle in her seat. I loved how when women became excited their voices went up an octave.
“No,” I said with a breath. “Sorry. That was a bit of a tease, wasn’t it?” I said, now feeling embarrassed that I’d brought it up at all.
“Oh,” she sunk back in her chair a moment before composing herself in a professional manner.
“Sorry,” I repeated. “I’m sure you know that shifters aren’t fans of human males. I have no problem with them personally. It’s just all… bad blood from before.”
Sarra offered me a put-on smile and a nod of acknowledgment. I could see the conversation had once again taken an awkward turn. Weredragons, in the days before the alliance with the Earth sphere, used to come and take women as we pleased. Human males often became casualties of this excursion.
In shifters minds, men proved to be nothing more than in our way. I’d since met plenty of men whose company seemed perfectly fine, but I was the minority in that opinion.
“I’m sure I can think of someone,” she smiled.
I told her more of the party, and she seemed excited once again. I told her who would be there and what would be expected of her, though I had no doubt that she would have managed more than adequately without my help.
Several glasses of wine later, I found myself with my arm wrapped around her and she leaned into me with ease. “What do you love?” I asked, genuinely curious about the little wonder who was now resting her raven hair on my shoulder.
“In three words? Olives, nature hikes, mysteries.”
“Ah, the writer emerges,” I nodded. She laughed and shrugged as though she wouldn’t argue my statement. I felt a rush of uncertainty at the thought that, not only was my chosen a member of Riddell, she had also been a reporter. If she liked mysteries, I thought, I had the perfect one to bend her ear with. But I would need to approach it with care.
The truth was there were disruptions happening within the Koth, and I was making it my personal mission to ensure the Earth sphere didn’t get wind of it. There were whispers of a rebel organization looking to take down the Koth.
“If you love a good mystery,” I said, my mind reeling, “I think I have one for you.”
“Aren’t we supposed to be focused on mating?” she said with a wry smirk.
“We can certainly do that, too,” I said, trying not to be too distracted by her sudden offer. “There’s a shifter locked up in the old country. There’s a secret jail there.”
Her flirtatious air suddenly disappeared, and her ears perked up. “What? We have no record of that.”
“Thus the ‘secret’ bit,” I said in a whisper. Humans, as per our deal, were allowed to look into some of our prisoners in order to keep an account of how safe Udora was for their scientists and breeders. No doubt the lack of this knowledge would infuriate them.
“Right,” she breathed. “Why is he there? Who’s being held?”
“His name is Rerdig. We don’t know why, exactly. But, it’s rumored that he had a dispute with the Koth.”
I played coy, but I knew exactly what had happened between the orange dragon and his captors. But if this was going to come out, it would come out in the way that I saw fit.
“Off the record, of course,” I added; forgetting myself.
“Well, you never actually said that,” she snorted.
I raised my finger to her to give air to the severity of what I’d just shared with her. “For your safety and mine. It’s off the record,” I warned lightly.
She stared at me for a moment, her green eyes darting back and forth with the excited rush that comes from learning of a conspiracy. Finally, she said, “Why tell me this?”
“Because I like you,” I shrugged. It was true. “And I guess I don’t want you to think there are no more mysteries left fo
r you here.”
“Of that, I have no doubt.” She smiled, and I took this as an invitation to lean in. I moved closer to her and brushed the dark hair from her face, cupping her sharp jawline in my hand. I leaned in and kissed her thin lips. Happily, she kissed back.
Our kiss was shy at first, and then the intensity rose. I could taste the tart grapes on her tongue as it brazenly entered my mouth. She dipped her tongue in and out and flicked it against mine. I felt my body respond to her and suddenly it was hard to control myself. I pulled away to look at her, lips red from our sudden passion.
Her green eyes looked at me, hungry for more. She climbed into my lap so that her legs straddled either side of my thighs and our lips met once more. I kept my hands nervously lingering near her waist, careful not to offend her or to give in to my baser, primal instincts.
Sarra pressed into my pelvis so I could feel the full weight of her on me. She let out a drawn out, breathy moan as she continued to kiss me and I lowered my hands down her sides.
With that one movement, she broke our kiss and moved off of me.
“Thanks,” she said quickly; breathlessly.
“Yep, no problem,” I quipped back. “That is the service I provide here.”
“Wine and kisses,” she exclaimed in a both playful and nervous fashion.
“And amazing views.”
A thought suddenly crept over her face, and her expression changed from glazed over with lust to innocent flirtation once more. She stood from the alcove we had made in a bed of cushions and shuffled toward the hall. Turning back to look at me, she said, “I should… get to bed. I assume an important shifter, such as yourself, will have a perfectly luxurious guest bedroom?”
I felt a deep crease form between my brows, and I blinked in surprise. “You won’t sleep with me?” She blanched at the sentiment, and I laughed. “Not like… Not like that. You know what I mean. In my bed,” I clarified.
“No,” she said with a small grin.
