Alien Knight Blind Date Disaster (Lumerian Knights Book 3)

by Becca Brayden

  Except she wasn’t made of wood. She was steel.

  Unbreakable. She would not surrender. She would rather die than be consumed. And she would not let him die. She would take the fire away from him, take it all. She would save him if it was the very last thing she did.

  “Bella.” The fire intensified as Falden’s voice reached her. “Stay with me.”

  I’m trying! She fought harder. Resist. Fight. Survive. That was life. She would not fail him. She pulled on the energy, on the blue light, swallowed the pain and pulled harder. Willed the fire to burn her alive, to consume her whole, to leave Falden alone.

  “Isabella!” A woman’s voice. But who?

  Isabella fought to open her eyes but could not see past the storm raging within them, within herself. Blue fire everywhere. Behind her eyelids. In her mind. In her lungs. In her veins. She was burning alive.

  “Isabella, let go. Don’t fight the fire. It’s him. The fire is Falden! You are killing him. Stop fighting!” The woman’s voice was adamant, determined. But could it be true?

  Falden? Are you the fire?

  Yes. His voice was clearer. Stronger. Yes, Bella. Yield.

  You are hurting me.

  Only because you resist. Let me in. Be with me. Stay with me.

  Falden made peace with his fate, with whatever Isabella would decide. Live. Die. It was her choice now, because he was hers. Body and soul and blood. Hers. He belonged to her like he’d never belonged to anyone or anything—not his people, his planet, his history. Not the Knights he commanded or the king and queen he now served.

  The raging storm within the sphere calmed as she reached for him with her mind. He held himself perfectly still, inviting her in deeper, where his soul could wrap around hers and offer comfort, solace, peace.

  Falden?

  I’m here. I will always be here. I love you, my Bella. Please, stop fighting and yield. Let me in. Be with me.

  If one could feel tears in the mind, he felt hers. Relief. Joy. Love.

  Fuck. That one nearly broke him. It hurt somewhere deep and lonely and needy. Somewhere he’d never dared to look—and that dark, hungry place was starving. An agony of emptiness. Of nothing. He was nothing. A shell.

  I love you. Three words and she let go. Live. Die. She no longer cared as long as she gave Falden what he needed, and he needed her to stop fighting. To let go. Perhaps it would kill her, but she was dying anyway.

  She stopped. Stopped resisting. Stopped fighting. She let down her walls and let the fire roar through her, into her mind where it dug into her memories and emotions, laid her bare for him to see. Her fears. Her life experiences. Her determination.

  She was an incredible woman. He saw it all. Her loneliness, her strength, her love and loyalty. Her willingness to sacrifice herself for him. For those she loved. He saw her soul and was humbled. She had to live.

  All that he was, he gave to her. Held nothing back. His strength. His love. His life. He gave without fear, without regret.

  Abruptly the electrical current disappeared, dropping them both to the ground. As one, they breathed. Their hearts beat in sync. Slowly the orb shrank until it disappeared into nothing and blinked out of the Earthen plane, back to the void until called upon again. With the orb’s disappearance, the cold air dissipated leaving Isabella and Falden lying unconscious on the floor, flesh cold to the touch. Barely breathing.

  Dagan rushed to their sides and lifted Isabella’s head, propped open her mouth and poured the maju water down her throat a few drops at a time. He didn’t ask.

  Motioning to Torrin to kneel next to Falden, Dagan instructed Torrin to assist the fallen commander. The two warriors spent long minutes feeding maju water to the newly mated pair as dozens of warriors stood in a circle, lending their support, their will to the pair fighting to survive.

  Falden would have been fine; he would have healed from his injuries. But now Dagan wasn’t so sure. Isabella and Falden both had blood leaking from their ears, their noses. Before the Yielding, Falden had been conscious, but now his heart beat slowly, with his mate’s. His color paled, his breathing shallow and too fast. Labored. He struggled to breathe for both of them.

  “Damn it, Isabella. Fight. Now it’s time to fight.” She had to live. Whatever it took, because if they lost her, they lost Falden.

  Neither loss was acceptable.

  When he deemed them stable enough to survive being moved, Dagan issued his orders. “Take them to my queen. Now. Someone notify her that they are on the way and need help.”

  “Yes, sir.” The Caldorians who had survived the battle were filing in behind the Knights, and Dagan could hear their shock and questioning tone. Lifting Isabella in his arms, as Torrin did the same with the unconscious Falden, Dagan turned to face the Knights and warriors gathered as one unified force for the first time in Caldorian history.

  “Warriors, the allies standing before you are all that remains of the Lumerian Knights. They have been working to protect their people—and their royal bloodlines—from extinction, and we welcome them with open arms.”

  Gasps and shocked murmuring sounded all around them as the Caldorian warriors looked at the scattered, bloodied Knights.

  Yorek, a young Caldorian who had fought like a man possessed, stepped forward. “Thank you for your assistance in this battle, Lumerians. We would have been destroyed if not for your help.”

  Gareth flanked Torrin as a guard for Falden’s vulnerable form as Vander and Cassiel walked to Dagan and took Isabella from his arms with a gentleness he would not have expected in such fierce fighters.

  Gareth addressed Yorek, and all the Caldorians standing, craning to get a better look at what had, until moments ago, been nothing more than myth. Legend. “We share a common enemy, and King Dagan has been a strong and trusted friend. His queen is our queen. We fight with you until the end.”

  The severity of the words hung in the air as the stench of dead Darkoor, human and a few Caldorians, nearly suffocated Dagan with what lay ahead.

  Long seconds passed in silence before a cheer erupted, a wild, exuberant, uncontrolled celebration by the Caldorians who had just witnessed a battle to make the most hardened warriors fear the future.

  Even Dagan had never seen a Dark One fight.

  Vander and Cassiel stepped away to carry Isabella to a waiting vehicle. “Make sure Sasha heals her first. She saved us all.”

  “She did indeed,” Gareth agreed. “We do not possess the weapons necessary to battle the Dark Ones. If they are here, we have a problem.”

  Dagan agreed. “Live to fight another day, Gareth. Live to fight another day.”

  The Lumerians carried their precious cargo out of the building to return to base, and Dagan stood, hands on his hips to address the remaining Knights and warriors. “I want every DNA sample, every data trace, every piece of information, every message sent or received. I want to know what they ate, where they got their food, who they talked to and when. I want to know if there are more humans in this city helping them and where they live. Take this place apart.”

  “With pleasure, Your Majesty.” Yorek whistled and the Caldorians moved into their teams, training kicking in, as Dagan had known it would now that they had a purpose. A mission. A goal.

  He looked to the side, surprised to see Torrin’s mate, Juliette, leaning over one of his warriors, applying a field dressing to the wounded male’s leg.

  “Juliette, you should go.”

  She lifted her head and smiled at him with a look he recognized all too well, as his own human mate, Sasha, gave him the same smile when she was going to blatantly ignore whatever he was telling her to do. “I’m a nurse. I’m staying until the wounded are taken care of.”

  “And then you’ll go? Won’t Torrin worry?” He would be frantic, imagining Sasha in a place like this. Helpless. Without him there to protect her.

  Juliette stood and lifted her hands into the air above her head. Red-hot flames burst like a halo of power around her open palms. “With
this many dead, I figure you’re going to need me to burn up some evidence before the cops get here.”

  Fuck. He’d forgotten all about the human law enforcement officers. That was all he needed right now. Dark Ones. Darkoor. Aliens selling humans for their blood. For food. The political ramifications alone would take him months, if not years to smooth over with the human politicians. But only if they found out what had happened here. Better to keep the bureaucrats in the dark and deal with the military personnel. And even then, he didn’t have enough information to take to the human generals yet.

  Yet. Once they’d scrubbed this place, he had a feeling that would change.

  He yelled for the nearest Caldorian warrior, who happened to be Yorek. The young male was proving himself useful this day. “Stay with Juliette. She’s Torrin’s mate, and if anything happens to her, he’ll gut every one of us with that glowing sword, you first.”

  “Torrin? One of the Lumerian Knights?”

  Juliette smiled. “Oh yeah. He’s a prince.”

  Was that supposed to be funny, Dagan wondered? “Behave, female.” She grinned but said nothing else. “And Yorek, when you are done, bring the bodies here.”

  “All of them?”

  Juliette smiled, lowered her hands to aim a stream of flame, and burned away the blood and gore closest to the king’s boots, missing his toes by less than the width of his wrist. “Yes, all of them, Yorek. I’ll destroy the bodies when you’re done with them.”

  “Yes, Lady Knight.”

  “Lady Knight?” Juliette dropped her hands to her hips, palms still burning, the flames licking up her forearms like she was a candle and her arms were twin wicks. “I kinda like the sound of that.”

  Dagan shook his head. It was going to be a long, long night.

  Falden woke with warm blankets covering him and a naked Isabella in his arms.

  Blinking away his stupor, he was relieved to find Queen Sasha and Gareth seated in identical chairs within his quarters, the queen next to his bed and Gareth in full armor guarding the door.

  “Thank you.” He spoke to both of them as logic told him exactly what they had done.

  Sasha had healed him, healed Isabella with her amazing gifts, cleaned them up, and settled them in bed. And Gareth, his closest friend, closer to him than a brother, had stood guard while Falden was too weak to defend himself or his mate.

  His mate. The humming energy of the new bond felt like melted sugar in his veins. So warm. Sweet. Sexy.

  Home. Isabella was home.

  Sasha leaned forward and took a closer look at Isabella, whose cheek was nestled in the crook of his bare shoulder. “She should be fine. I’m not sure when she’ll wake up, but she’s just in a normal sleep now.”

  “Thank you again. I cannot thank you enough.”

  “Hush. From what I hear, we all need to be thanking her.”

  Gareth cleared his throat but kept his arms crossed over his chest; his armor still covered in blood and debris from the battle. “She saved us all. We need to get our hands on some real weapons, Commander. Where there’s one, there are a thousand of those fucking things.”

  “I know.” His heart sinking just a little, he looked down at Isabella’s arched brow. Her full lips. The soft curve of her cheek. “We will.” He had more than just his people to protect now. More than royal bloodlines and duty.

  “But not tonight.” Sasha was on her feet, shoving Gareth out the door. “Leave them be. Falden’s awake. You’re home. You’re safe. Go get cleaned up. You two can talk about killing monsters tomorrow.”

  Gareth would obey the queen he’d sworn to serve, but still he looked to Falden to make sure his commander was fit to defend his mate.

  Falden nodded. “Tomorrow, Gareth. Go take care of your wounds.”

  Gareth grunted in irritation when Sasha latched onto his arm. Falden chuckled as the door to his quarters slid closed behind them, the queen’s voice carrying to him where he lay, cradling Isabella.

  “You’re hurt? Gareth! I swear, I’m going to beat you. Where? Show me.”

  “I’m fine.”

  “You’re not fine…” Their voices faded, and Falden allowed the peace and silence of the moment to seep into his weary bones, into his soul. He held Isabella, stroked her long, silken hair with gentle fingers, tried to come to grips with the fact that she was his. Forever.

  Time passed. Minutes? Hours? He had no idea and didn’t care. He was content.

  “Falden?”

  Her voice, so soft, so sleepy, so fucking perfect. “Yes, mate.”

  “Am I dead?”

  Confront things head-on, that was his Bella. “No, my Bella, you are not dead.”

  “Dreaming?”

  He chuckled and rolled her beneath him so she could feel the hard length of his eager cock against her thighs. “No, you are definitely not dreaming.”

  A soft smile played across her face. She opened her eyes, her sexy, dark eyes, to stare up at him. “Why am I not dead?”

  He leaned down, kissed her gently. “Sasha is a healer. They brought us back to base, and Sasha healed both of us.”

  “I’m naked.”

  He lowered his head to nibble on her jaw, lower to the new array of sparkling crystals that formed a dazzling vertical pattern up and down her neck, like a lattice of diamonds sparkling within her skin. It was stunning. Beautiful. And more proof that she was his forever, that she’d used the paste, that she was part of his world now. His. “Yes. I like you naked.”

  She shifted her hips and he groaned. She laughed. “Obviously.”

  With a sigh, she lifted her arms and wrapped them around his neck, buried her fingers in his hair. “Is this real? Really, really real?”

  “Yes.”

  “Promise?”

  “Anything, Bella. I’m yours. You know that. You can feel it.”

  It was true. She could feel him, his feelings like warm sunshine in her heart, in her mind. She could just lie here and melt. “I love you.”

  She wasn’t sure if she’d told him or not, but she wanted to say it. Saying the words mattered.

  He froze at her declaration, lifted his gaze to hers. Held himself there, staring, the moment long and silent and so intimate she was going to cry. “I love you, my Bella. Forever.”

  “Shut up and kiss me.”

  He didn’t need to be told twice. He made love to her mouth until she shifted and sighed, until her hips lifted in urgent demand. He worked his way down her body, kissing every part of her, lingering when she moaned or gasped or tugged on his hair.

  With a groan, he pulled back, a slow, sticky kiss letting her know he wasn’t finished with her. Not by a long shot. Reaching over to a cylinder full of maju paste that he’d noticed, he pulled the lid off. “It is an ancient tradition for a Lumerian woman to paint maju paste on the markings of her chosen mate, and vice versa. We are a possessive people,” he said with just a tinge of sadness for his lost world.

  Isabella took the cylinder from him gently. “Your people are not lost to you. You can rebuild. We can rebuild together, Falden.”

  He nodded, his heart bursting. “Will you honor me with paint, Isabella? Will you light my markings?” he asked with a slow grin. “Again?”

  With a laugh she nodded, happier than she’d ever been before. Dipping her fingers into the maju paste, she then slathered it over every inch of his body, this time watching his markings get brighter with full knowledge of what that meant. He belonged to her. Forever.

  When she was finished, he took the cylinder from her. “Now it’s my turn,” he murmured. “You have markings now, too, my Bella. I hope they are pleasing to you.” With reverence he applied the paste to the crystalline pattern on her neck that was so unlike his own. His markings were raised below the skin. She was human, and the microbes within the paste had gone below the skin, growing from the inside. They’d integrated with her. The swirling crystals were part of her skin now, beautiful and unique.

  “Yes,” she whispered, love in
her eyes. They both knew she was talking about more than her new appearance. More than the paste.

  Smearing the paste over her new markings, he watched with wonder as they lit with opalescent fire, dazzling to the eye.

  She moaned, his touch somehow erotic. Her body began to tingle. Her heart raced in anticipation.

  “I’m going to apply this paste everywhere,” he warned her. “Not just your markings. I want it everywhere.”

  Panting, she closed her eyes and tipped her head back. “Yes. Yes. It’s like little tiny kisses.”

  With a wolfish grin, Falden smeared more paste over her body. Her neck, her breasts, her hips and thighs. He was very thorough as her moans turned into gasps with each stroke of his hand.

  “Spread your legs,” he ordered. “When I said everywhere, I meant everywhere.”

  She obeyed without hesitation, wanting to please him. Wanting everything from him. She was on fire for him, every cell in her body tuned to his. Tingling with electricity.

  He dipped two fingers into the past and his gaze burned into her own before he pressed the paste into her waiting sheath. Arching back, she cried out, bucking as he drove his fingers deep.

  “Keep your legs spread,” he ordered, his tone brooking no argument. “Grab your knees.”

  Again she obeyed, spreading herself as wide as she could, her body open and exposed to him at every level. Heat spread through her, a rosy flush blooming across her cheeks, her breasts. Her core throbbed, nub engorged. She wanted. Needed.

  With a growl, he pulled his fingers free, only to push deep again. In and out. Over and over again. “Come now, my Bella.”

  With a scream, she let go, her orgasm so intense she shook with each spasm.

  He wasn’t finished. Refused to let her recover. Her wet heat beckoned, and he feasted, slipping two fingers back into her hot core, his mouth teasing and suckling her clit until she exploded in his arms again.

  And when she was breathless and trembling, he pushed his cock deep, joining them into one body. Pounded inside her with a perfect rhythm.

  “Yes.” She arched her hips, took him even deeper, demanded more, which he was all too willing to give.