by Celia Kyle
“Guarding me…?” She repeated dumbly. “What? Why? I didn’t ask for a security detail!”
“You are valuable to us,” Sevith informed her flatly, “the most valuable of any human. Therefore, we will do everything in our power to keep you safe. Including a security detail while you slumber.”
“I don’t understand.”
Sevith straightened, seeming even taller than usual as his eyes flashed with obvious warning and frustration. “Do you even realize how important you are? To us? And by extension, the entire battle fleet? Your safety and well-being are our primary concern, Jenna Perry. You should be thankful for our protection. You have never been safer—from any threat.”
“Me? And what about Noah and Beatrice? Are they important too?”
Sevith’s features softened. “Yes, my female, they are. You’re right. I worded that incorrectly and I apologize. The security was for you and your siblings, of course.”
What they were telling her… it didn’t make any sense. Didn’t they want only her and not her brother and sister? And yet, she knew there was no sense in trying to fight their words at the moment. They were here and it didn’t look like they were leaving anytime soon. And then she finally processed what Hiren had said earlier, “Wait, you want us to make breakfast, for your warriors, together?”
“Yes, the three of us will do this task.” He glanced around. “It looks like you’ve already eaten human food this morning, but this is a Drokten custom, making a meal to thank those who protect us. We will prepare food for them, and us, and some extra for the three of you to snack on.”
Hmm, that was nice of them. Making food for the men who were essentially their employees. So, she pushed aside her worries and doubts about these men and what it meant that they were here in her apartment and focused instead on working with Sevith and Hiren to cook a meal for the Drokten to eat.
Hiren pulled out a huge bag of marinated mystery meat strips from the refrigeration unit and set out some kind of alien meat brazier. It was all very strange—food and equipment she’d never seen before—but she was truly fascinated at the similarities and the differences in their two species. Pretty soon she and Hiren and Sevith had a system going where they were searing the meat and putting it onto baking platters. And actually, it was nice working with them like this. She enjoyed standing between the two of them in the tiny kitchen. They were being very respectful over the fact that she lived in a tiny rent-controlled apartment and not in some fancy, high-tech Drokten dwelling. Not snooty at all.
And they were both so big, blue and sexy. She loved watching them cook and smile, listening to them chat with each other about their favorite spices and what their moms used to make and whose dads made the best meat. Apparently, both of them had sadly lost their mothers when they were young, but they loved sharing memories of the mothers they’d lost and loved. She had to admit, it warmed her heart to learn more of their backgrounds, and it made her imagine what it would be like with the three of them in a different kitchen, on the Drokten planet, with Bea and Noah in the other room of their family quarters…
They kept saying they wanted her as their Oso, which basically meant they wanted to marry her. Right? They’d explained yesterday that this thing between them wasn’t a booty call, or just an affair. They wanted marriage.
Marriage?
Wow.
That meant they wanted her to move in with them onto their battleship and eventually back with them to their planet to live there for forever, having more children with them. They’d be a family.
And actually, she was totally softening toward this idea. The more time she spent with these two, the less scary this kind of commitment sounded. She was certain most women would be horrified at the thought of marrying two men at once and having two husbands, but it didn’t sound so bad. In the short time she’d spent with Sevith and Hiren already, she could see how this relationship could work.
But there was no way she could marry anyone if that meant being separated from her brother and sister. But…could these Drokten males learn to accept her into their lives as well as two young humans? Or was this wishful thinking? She couldn’t start something with them if Noah and Bea weren’t in the picture.
Sevith cut her yet another of his heated glances, as if he knew she was thinking about them. And what was weird was she had a feeling he did. These guys and their mind links. Could they read her mind too? Sometimes it seemed that way. After all, when she’d first met Sevith he’d managed to send her private messages.
Several minutes into the cooking process, when they were almost done, Bea and Noah came running into the kitchen with big smiles and bright eyes. They looked like they’d just met Santa. Or won the candy lottery.
“What?” Jenna laughed because their excitement was infectious. “What’s got you two so hopped up?”
“Is it true?” Noah blurted.
“I…is this really happening?” Bea gasped.
Jenna frowned. “Is what happening?” Uh oh. Had the warriors in the other room with them made some sort of promise they’d never be able to keep?
She washed her hands and turned her attention to Sevith and Hiren, looking for any clue as to what the kids were talking about, but their expressions remained unreadable and stoic. Hiren was busy putting the last platter of food into the oven and Sevith fiddled with the timer.
“Are we going to move onto the Avash and live with Commander Sevith and Ambassador Hiren?” Bea giggled. “Is it true?”
Giggled. Actually giggled.
Jenna’s eyebrows shot up and she shook her head with confusion. “Excuse me? Who is moving…where?”
One of the Drokten males who’d been watching over her siblings eased into the room with a guilty look on his face, as though he’d slipped up and made an embarrassing mistake.
Jenna sighed. “I don’t even know what you two are talking about. No one is moving. And also…” She glanced at the clock. Oh hell, they were all totally losing track of time. “You two need to grab your backpacks and get downstairs to meet the bus or you’re going to be late for school.”
“But it has to be true!” Noah whined. “I want to go live on the battleship. I want to see where the Droktens live.”
“We belong on the Avash!” Bea protested fiercely. “Besides, we already agreed to move there.”
Jenna’s heart skipped a beat. “What? Bea, what are you talking about?”
Bea rolled her eyes and released an impatient sigh. “Don’t you remember? The r-r-release you signed before you went on that catering job at Drokten Main?”
“Yeah, what about it?” A bad feeling gathered in Jenna’s stomach as she pressed a hand to her middle.
“I told you to read the fine print!” Beatrice sniffed. “I read it, and it clearly said that by agreeing to work the event, you consented to being considered as a potential mate for a Drokten pair. And, if you were picked, you agreed to immediately move to the Avash or the planet Drokt.”
Nine
Jenna’s emotions struck them both at the same time—shock and horror.
Hiren was surprised to discover Jenna’s triad link was so strong this soon, allowing this level of connectivity. But her feelings rushed into him as well as Sevith. She flinched at her sister’s words, and then her feelings broadcast to them both.
There was fear and dread at the thought of being torn from the planet she’d been born and raised on. Immediately afterward was conflict. She wasn’t sure this would be good for her siblings, and she was deeply concerned she’d be separated from them.
Actually, she’d radiated these same emotions minutes before her siblings ran into the kitchen, excited at the thought of moving with the Drokten.
Hiren understood that if he and Sevith wanted Jenna in their triad, he’d need to first make sure she understood that they wanted her as well as her siblings. This was exactly why they were in her apartment that morning, but they needed to make their intentions were explicitly clear to their Oso and put an end
to these tumultuous emotions that careened through her.
“Groden,” his Azi growled at the leader of their security team—the male who had spoken much too freely to the two offspring in his care. “Return to your task of caring for the human offspring. We need to speak to our Oso in private.”
Groden gave a curt nod in reply and turned back to gather the young ones.
“Beatrice?” Hiren said to the younger female. She looked up at him in surprise. “Could you give us more time alone with your sister?” he asked. “Can you take your brother back to the bedroom so we can discuss this possible move with Jenna?”
“But aren’t we going to miss the bus to school?” the girl, Beatrice, inquired.
“Don’t worry,” Sevith soothed her, “we’ll make sure you both get to school on time.”
Bea nodded quickly and then departed with her brother and the other Drokten, thankfully leaving the three of them alone in the front room in silence.
Meanwhile, Jenna turned on them, her hands on her hips. “Are you kidding me? Is it true that I’m contractually obligated to marry you two and move to your planet? And you’ve known this all along? Even when I was shouting how I was never leaving Earth?”
“Yes, it’s true.” Hiren grinned. “We knew even then. And you are beautiful when you’re angry.”
“I agree,” Sevith replied. “Her eyes glow Drokten-blue and her cheeks are bright with color.”
Jenna blew out a breath at Hiren, and her sharp embarrassment moved through them like a harsh wind.
He was certainly the worst Bahn to ever walk the universe to take such joy in her fury, and he knew Sevith felt the same. But she really was adorable when angry. Like a hissing earth kitten.
His Azi gestured for their female to sit. “Come, we have time to wait while the food finishes cooking.” He pulled out another chair near the kitchen table and turned it toward hers. “I realize now that we have been too hasty and not on the same book.”
“Not on the same page,” Hiren corrected his Azi’s rudimentary use of human speak.
Jenna made her way over to sit facing Sevith. Hiren sat behind his female.
She seemed amused by that, looking a little confused. “What do you mean?” she asked. “And why are we sitting like this? I can’t see you both.”
Hiren sensed she had an idea of what they meant, but she wanted to hear an explanation from their own mouths and his Azi was quick to meet her request.
“That we are not on the same page about this arrangement among us,” Sevith confirmed, nodding. “About the fact that we are mates. And,” he scooted her chair closer and Hiren smiled, loving the sight of their female in her proper position, between them both. His Azi in front, or on top, and him behind, or on the bottom. This was the beginning of their new relationship and his chest warmed at the thought.
“Now you think I need to know everything?” she blurted, half-incredulous. “After I signed a binding contract without even realizing what I was getting into?”
“We… were not informed of all stages of the arrangements for that other evening,” Sevith admitted, his eyes roving over their female.
Hiren leaned forward and whispered against her ear. “Are we moving too slow, now?”
She visibly shivered and Hiren smiled to himself, pleased that their Oso was not unaffected by their nearness.
“No, no, don’t get me wrong,” she breathed. “I appreciate your… openness. This is just a lot to wrap my mind around. Especially now that I know I didn’t mean to sign up for this. I’m also having trouble keeping up with the way you two think, if that makes sense. I’m getting the impression Drokten think… differently.”
“We do,” Sevith answered. “Let me explain.” Then he reached forward and took Jenna’s hips in both claws. Before she could protest, Sevith’s powerful arms lifted her and brought her to sit on his lap, encouraging her to wrap her legs around his waist. Then he enveloped her in his arms in a close chest-to-chest embrace.
“What are you doing?” she gasped as she braced her palms on his chest and tried to push away, but almost the second her ass touched Sevith’s hard cock that tented his trousers, she stopped, eyes wide.
Hiren sucked in a sharp breath, experiencing their rush of heat at the point of contact. He stood and moved onto the chair that Jenna had so recently vacated and scooted close. He tangled his legs with Sevith’s while pressing himself against the back of their female. He wrapped his own arms around her slim waist and rested his chin on the top of her head.
They all three fit together like a puzzle clicking into place. Sevith pressed his head against her cheek and shoulder. Their female breathed steadily and accepted this tight embrace. In fact he could feel her joy and happiness as well as the calm that entered her mind and body. Plus, there was the blinding lust she felt for both of them.
At once.
Equally.
Now they were in the form of their triad.
It would not be complete until they were all physically joined for the first time, but this was the first step in their binding. And this would give their female the opportunity to understand the special flow of thoughts and feelings between a triad.
Hiren closed his eyes and took a deep breath that Jenna matched, probably without realizing she was even doing such. As soon as the rest of the world was shut out, Hiren was able to dig deep and saw Jenna’s emotions like stars in the night sky, some twinkling comfortingly while others shone harshly.
Most of her feelings were about Noah and Bea. Hiren understood why she regarded them as her own children. She really did love them, but there was a loss associated with them—a painful loss that had affected them all. At this first blush of their triad, prior to the formal claiming, Hiren could not plumb the depths of her memories yet, but he could see flashes of the pain and desperation his female and her siblings had gone through during the Zignill invasion and the loss of her parents.
He shared the loss of his own mother and the staggering loss of Drokten females, planet-wide. Sevith opened up in this manner too, letting their human Oso understand that they, too, understood the pain of a devastating loss.
“What are we doing?” Jenna whispered after a few moments.
“Holding you in a triad embrace,” Sevith answered in the calm, deep voice he had seldom used in the past. “You are our Oso, Jenna, and this is proof. Whatever you are feeling now is natural and right. We want you to understand the way we think, to know that we communicate not just through our words, but also with our thoughts and feelings.”
Hiren explored his Oso’s mind, digging farther into her emotions, and the more he saw, the more astonished he was at the beauty therein. She was riddled with worries, but to Hiren, that just meant she cared deeply about everything she was involved in. Humans seemed to worry about much, and all that told him was that they didn’t know where and how to channel their worries.
“Fear is acceptable,” Hiren assured her out loud, his voice as soft and comforting as he could make it. “You need not shy away. It merely tells you there is a risk. But a life without risks is not a life worth living.”
She said nothing in response.
Her fears seemed to come with even more love than anxiety, though. What kind of man would Noah become? Where would he put all that energy? Would his sickness ever be cured?
Sickness?
Hiren felt Sevith’s surprise at this too. Neither of them had realized Jenna was carrying the burden of a sick sibling on her frail shoulders.
Jenna adored Noah, and that made Hiren learn to care for him, too. Like her, he felt the desire to see him flourish in this new world he grew into. Jenna wondered how he would handle being part of the first generation of humans who would have spent their entire lives with non-humans in the picture. That was something not even Hiren had considered, and it made him thoughtful.
Bea was just as much of a mystery that Jenna adored. She was smart, terrifyingly so. Jenna worried about the devastation her sister had witnessed and
the anxiety she was trying to overcome from past trauma. A dozen questions came behind every answer Hiren uncovered, and each one showed him how empathetic Jenna was. It made him want to know even more about her.
“Tell me what you’re feeling,” she asked, and Sevith gave his head a slight shake. Hiren knew his Azi was almost in a trance, much like himself, as they sorted through Jenna’s emotions.
“The need for safety,” Sevith said honestly, furrowing his brow. “Worry for my comrades. Worry for the things I love. They are your feelings, Jenna, but I know them well. I have felt them since the day I began fighting the Zignill on Earth. Those feelings kept pushing me to fight through everything I have seen in all the battles I have won—and lost. You felt some of that. Did you not?”
Hiren knew Sevith’s mind dealt with something new. He wasn’t used to such strong drives for anything but war. Drokten males could lose themselves in martial life if they weren’t careful. The love of family that Jenna cherished so dearly made itself known in Hiren and Sevith’s minds.
I want that, Hiren announced through their link, hoping his Oso could hear a faint echo of the truth in his heart. I want a family with you.
I want the same, his Azi answered.
And then the timer in the kitchen buzzed.
“Breakfast is ready!” A tiny voice shouted from the bedroom, followed by the soft thump of feet.
Hiren smiled and then he let go of his Oso and stood. He reached down to help her to a standing position as well. She stood between them, using her hand to brush her hair back from her face as the room flooded with the noise of the young ones and his fellow Drokten.
“Wow,” she whispered, a genuine smile spreading across her beautiful face.
Hiren met his Azi’s gaze over her head and felt a new feeling pass between them, a bond in knowing they’d pleased and comforted their mate in her time of need. A new level of understanding had grown between the three of them, which was the first step toward their triad.