by S. E. Smith
“Some women find his good looks and smooth talking attractive,” Paul said with a shake of his head. “I have to admit I was taken in by him at first but it didn’t take long to discover it was all bullshit. He was very good at hiding it from Trisha,” he said. “Help me get him on the couch. I want him to watch you burn the insurance papers to a crisp when he comes to. We’ll let him know that is what will happen to him if he ever tries to mess with my family again.”
Kelan bent down and grabbed Peter’s left arm while Paul grabbed his right. Neither wanted to get too close to him since he reeked of urine. Paul had to admit he was a little disappointed Peter hadn't fought or tried to make a run for it. He had been hoping he would just so he could watch the slimy bastard stew for a bit.
He glanced at Kelan and bit back a grin. This was the type of son he would have enjoyed having. He had found the Valdier warrior to be intelligent, caring, loyal and Paul enjoyed his wicked sense of humor. He had to admit as they settled Peter on the couch that Kelan's approval rating went through the ceiling when Kelan stated his desire for revenge. Kelan wanted justice for the hell Trisha had gone through because of her miserable ex-husband.
Kelan stood back from the couch and wiggled his nose in distaste. “He stinks,” he growled out in annoyance.
Paul chuckled. “Yes, in more ways than just because he pissed his pants.”
Kelan looked at Paul with a raised eyebrow. “By the way, neither I nor my dragon eat trash. I hope you didn't honestly think I would even consider putting my mouth on something this disgusting,” he added.
Paul just chuckled and shook his head. “No, but Peter didn't know that. Keep an eye on him while I go get the insurance papers. After he comes to and you burn them we need to get out of here. Trisha will get suspicious if we return too late. She'll know we were up to something.”
Kelan grimaced. “I have a feeling she already does,” he sighed. “She is very good at getting me to confess when I do things I don't want her to know about.”
Paul laughed as he turned and headed down the hallway. Yes, he thought, if I couldn't have a son then at least I have a son-in-law that I know will take care of my baby girl. He couldn't help but wish that Evelyn could have met Kelan. He knew she would have approved of him.
Chapter 5
The next two weeks flew by as preparations were made for the return trip to Valdier. Peter had sent Paul a certified letter showing the cancellation of the insurance policy and his sworn promise that he would never even think of Trisha again. Paul felt certain that Peter would keep his word this time.
Mason and Chad had been by every day going over details for Paul's absence and how to handle any inquiries as well as the maintenance of the ranch and his assets. Mason would continue to manage everything. The big house would be reserved for their visitors. Ann Marie would make sure it remained clean and stocked. Chad would handle any legal issues as well as all the financial.
Jaguin and Gunner, two of Kelan's warriors from the V'ager, were staying behind to search for mates and help secure the area with additional security technology. Kor and Palto had found their true mates and had returned with them the night before.
Unfortunately from what Kelan had been able to get out of his two friends, neither one of the women were being very cooperative at the moment. Kor had returned early last night with a female over his shoulder while Palto had returned a little later with one that was cursing, scratching and biting him. Kelan made sure that neither Paul nor Trisha saw his two friends. The last thing he needed was for Paul to decide they were invading the planet and stealing the women. While they were not doing the first, the latter could definitely be considered somewhere in the gray area according to Paul's attorney friend, Chad.
Kelan, Trisha, and Paul talked to Creon and Carmen late last night after they had departed Earth's orbit. It had been good to see his younger brother smiling and happy. They had talked about the attack on Mandra and how his uncle had changed his symbiot from positive to negative energy. Creon said Mandra, who had been seriously injured in the attack on his uncle’s hidden base, would recover but he and his symbiot needed to return to Valdier in order to do so. He also wanted Trelon and Cara to take a look at the red jewel that Ariel had been given.
Kelan turned as Paul walked onto the bridge of the V'ager. “We will be able to increase speed soon. It will take less time to return home. Cara has found a way to increase the speed with the use of our symbiots and different frequencies. I am ready to return. I am not sure Trisha will make it before our son is born though. She is due any day,” he explained worriedly. “Kor returned with a female doctor from your world familiar with delivering babies. She will work with our own medical staff. I did not want to take any chances,” Kelan said defiantly.
Paul raised his eyebrow at Kelan and waited. He almost grinned as Kelan shifted uncomfortably under his scrutiny. He could hear the hesitation in Kelan's voice and noticed the way his new son-in-law refused to meet his eyes after he explained about taking the human doctor. After the silence lengthened into minutes, Paul released a deep sigh.
“Let me guess,” Paul said drily. “You took first, then asked if she wanted to come.”
“Not me - Kor,” Kelan said before glancing at Paul again and shrugging his shoulders. “I wanted the best for Trisha,” he muttered defensively. “Besides, the female turned out to be Kor's mate anyway,” he grumbled out in a low voice.
Paul sighed again. “Did she have any family?” He asked, worried about the girl.
Kelan shook his head. “Not that she talked about,” he said in relief. “Kor believes she had not seen her family in many years and was not close to them.”
“You promised that you wouldn’t take any female without their understanding and acceptance,” Paul reminded Kelan calmly. “Your men have to think of the woman and if she might have a family who will love and miss her.”
Kelan rolled his shoulders and turned to look coldly at Paul. The look of compassion and understanding on Paul’s face soon changed the look to regret. It was hard for him to be upset with Trisha’s father. The human male reminded Kelan of his own father. He had the same keen intelligence and ability to understand combined with patience. Kelan knew he and his brothers were going to be in trouble if they thought to outsmart or bully this man.
“I will speak with them again. It is difficult,” Kelan admitted ruefully. “Once our dragon and symbiot have accepted the female it is impossible for the man not to accept her as well. It is a dream come true for a warrior to discover their true mate. Given enough time, the three parts of ourselves will win the female over. It is difficult to do so on your world as we might be caught during the courtship,” Kelan added with a mischievous grin.
Paul’s lips twisted into a wry smile. “Nice try,” he replied drily. “The men still need to ask first. As long as the woman says ‘yes’ then I consider it okay.”
Kelan’s eyes narrowed and his brain sped through the different conversations he’d had with Kor and Palto. He remembered both men saying the women said ‘yes’ at least once. It might not have been to leaving, but they had said the word so that meant they had satisfied Paul’s requirements.
“I will ask both men but I am sure they and the other women did say the word ‘yes’,” Kelan said with a satisfied grin.
Paul looked at Kelan suspiciously. “What do you mean…. and the other women?” he asked.
Kelan grinned and chuckled. “Let us just say it was a very good trip for many of the warriors.”
Paul grumbled under his breath about feeling like he was stuck with a bunch of teenage boys on a field trip who have just discovered girls. He shook his head and decided he would go find a quiet spot with the information tablet that Palto had given him. He was just about to tell Kelan he would see him and Trisha later at dinner when medical buzzed to tell them Trisha had gone into labor.
Kelan swayed on his feet and his face turned pale before he clenched his teeth. “Let us go welcome my son in
to the world,” he said hoarsely.
*.*.*
Morian looked over at the twins who were crawling across the floor trying to get to Zohar who was chewing on a toy while sitting on her lap. She bit her lip to keep from bursting out laughing when Amber charged as fast as she could on her hands and knees toward him with a gleam of delight in her eyes. Jade was not far behind her. Both girls had their mother’s red hair minus the purple streaks that Cara liked. Jade sneezed suddenly and fell onto her stomach with a low growl of frustration before she started whimpering. Before the second whimper was out Trelon burst into the room looking frantically around.
“What’s wrong?” He demanded. “Which one is hurt?”
Morian couldn’t contain her laugh at Trelon’s frazzled look and even more frazzled hair. “What happened to your hair?” She asked, not even trying to hide her amusement.
Trelon looked at her with bruised eyes. “Cara put the girls in bed with us last night because they wanted to play instead of sleep. She didn’t realize I had given them some fruit earlier and their hands were still sticky from it,” he grimaced as he tried to run his hand through the long strands but found it was too knotted to do anything but make it stand out even more. “I haven’t had a chance to get a shower since Cara went out for a little while. I thought it would be good to give her a break. The girls have been very active,” he said tiredly.
Morian searched her son’s exhausted face. “Are you having difficulty sleeping, Trelon?” She asked in concern. “Cara asked if I would come watch the girls for a little while so you could get some sleep. She is worried about you. I thought they would like to come play with Zohar. I was able to talk Zoran into letting me take Zohar out for a little while.”
Trelon walked over to sit on the edge of the chair where he could keep an eye on the girls. He set his sword down on the floor then had to immediately pick it back up when Amber giggled and headed straight for it. He winced when he saw her little face scrunch up and a wail burst from her lips. He reached down and picked her up, settling her in his lap. Amber giggled and reached for the sword on the arm of the chair with a squeal of delight. Trelon tried to shift her away from it but she refused to be denied the prize that she wanted and grabbed a handful of his tangled sticky hair, forcing him to put the sword down again so he could untangle her little fingers from it.
“I have to protect them,” he grumbled, grabbing his sword and moving it to the other side of him as Jade pulled herself up on the chair and reached for it. “I don’t want any of the warriors getting ideas about them. I….,” he stopped as Amber tried to crawl up over his shoulder while Jade started to make a beeline for the other side where the sword was balanced on the table until she discovered his booted foot. “I…. sweetheart, you can’t have daddy’s sword. No Jade, don’t chew on my boot. Amber, honey, that is my ear you are biting,” Trelon said gruffly as he tried to get one wet, slobbering mouth off his ear and the other off his boot.
Morian finally took pity on her exhausted son just as Cara came bouncing into the room with a big grin on her face. “Morian! Thank you for coming. Trelon, why is Jade chewing on your shoe? Amber, let go of daddy’s sword, honey. You have to be a little older before you get one. Morian, I was down at the workshop and I made a baby monitor for the girls so we could keep a better eye on them,” Cara said dropping the devices she was carrying on the couch as she hurried forward to pull Jade off of Trelon’s boot where she was growling and shaking it back and forth.
Trelon looked at Cara in disbelief. “You said you were going to the market and maybe for a short flight,” he growled out then winced when Amber bit down really hard as Cara took the handle of the sword out of her little fist. He winced again when Amber began crying in his tortured ear.
“Oh, I did that hours ago while the girls were sleeping,” Cara grinned. “We need to get the girls in their own bedroom and until we can figure out how they keep getting out of their crib, I thought a video monitor with an escape alert would come in handy,” she said holding Jade up and nibbling on her belly drawing giggles from her squirming daughter. “Yes, mommy taught you too well on how to escape, didn’t she?” She teased, chuckling when Jade leaned into her and gave her a big, wet kiss.
Trelon wrapped his arm around Amber as he surged to his feet in aggravation. “They will not be out of our sight!” He snarled. “I will protect them with my life! No one will get near them.”
Morian rose and set Zohar on the floor while Jade and Amber stared back and forth between their parents. “Trelon, give me Amber. Cara, give me Jade,” she demanded.
Trelon held Amber who heard her Grand Dola’s words and started squealing with delight. Jade was hanging upside down in Cara’s arms where she was trying to get loose. Zohar was giggling and pounding his toy on the floor at all the excitement.
“What are you going to do?” Trelon asked as held the squirming little body as best he could.
“I am going to take the children to my living quarters until tomorrow and you….,” Morian paused, looking pointedly at Trelon. “You are going to get some sleep. Cara, I expect you to totally exhaust my son so he can’t keep his eyes open.”
Cara looked at Trelon with a raised eyebrow, noticing the wild hair and the dark shadows under his eyes. “Why? He looks like he’s about ready to crash as it is,” she said. “How can I get him any more exhausted?” She asked looking at Morian.
Morian raised her eyebrows at Cara and grinned. “By fucking his brains out, of course. I wouldn’t mind having more great children to chase after if you need another reason.”
Cara’s laughter drowned out Trelon’s shocked hiss at his mother’s words. Before he could say a word of protest, Cara had pulled an excited Amber out of his arms and tucked her safely into the carriage that Morian’s symbiot had formed. Morian deposited Jade in next to her sister and scooped up a happy Zohar who happily crawled in between them.
“Goodnight Trelon,” Morian said with a wave of her hand as she strolled out the door of their living quarters. “We’ll see you tomorrow.”
Trelon watched in shock as his mother walked out the door with his infant daughters. His mind was too dazed and tired to protest too much. He turned and looked at Cara who was studying him with a critical eye, noting the lines of fatigue around his mouth and eyes.
“Did my mother just tell you to fuck my brains out?” He asked in shock.
Cara burst into laughter all over again. “I think she did,” she murmured pulling him toward their bedroom. “I think I’m going to give you a bath first. You smell like a fruit salad.”
Trelon looked at Cara and his eyes turned a dark gold as she licked her lips. “How about you see if I taste like one?” He growled out, snatching her up in his arms with a low rumble as she squealed in delight.
*.*.*
Morian walked back toward her living quarters cursing silently, a furious blush on her cheeks. She couldn’t believe she just said that to Cara and Trelon. She fanned herself as her symbiot moved silently beside her, the three little ones wrestling with each other and giggling.
What is wrong with me? Morian asked herself silently. I swear I’m reverting to my youth again! Goodness knows that should happen. I got in enough trouble the first time to know the heartache it can cause. I definitely don’t need to go through it again.
Mate is closer, her dragon purred. I feel it. My true mate is coming.
Not that again! Morian said in shock. I thought you were over that!
Not over, just beginning, her dragon purred.
Morian was saved from answering her dragon by Ariel who was hurrying down the corridor toward her. “Morian! Trisha had her baby. Kelan wants to show you,” she exclaimed excitedly. “Come on! Mandra is talking to him right now. The baby is adorable.”
Morian felt her symbiot shiver with excitement. The three little ones playing must have felt it also because they began squealing even louder and rolling around. Poor Zohar was on the receiving end of the girls. One was lying acros
s his belly while the other one was trying to grab his toes so she could chew on them. Morian chuckled when she realized it was Jade. That little one was always chewing on something. Morian picked up speed as she hurried after Ariel.
“When will they be home?” Morian asked anxiously as she walked through the door of their living quarters and over to the viewport that had been set up in the living area. “Mandra, should you be up yet?” She asked worriedly as she saw her second son sitting in front of it.
“I’m fine,” he growled out. “Ariel has made sure I get plenty of rest.”
Ariel blushed as she glared at him. “I haven’t heard you complaining,” she muttered under her breath. “Now scoot over so your mom can talk to Kelan and Paul and see the baby.”
“Paul? Trisha’s father?” Morian asked horrified as her hand flew to her long, tangled hair. The first thing Zohar had done when she picked him up was pull her hair loose from where she had it pulled back. “I….” She didn’t get any further before Ariel was pushing her down into the seat Mandra had just vacated.
“Kelan,” Morian breathed out nervously. “How is Trisha?”
“She is fine. Paul, bring my son over,” Kelan said smiling proudly. “He is very strong. Just like his mother,” he boasted.
Morian’s eyes widened when she saw the handsome male step closer to the viewscreen. Her hands started shaking and she felt faint as her breath caught in her throat. Her dragon snapped to attention and began purring. She could feel the damn thing rubbing against her skin wanting to get closer to the male.
Oh shit! She thought stunned. He is my true mate.
Chapter 6
Paul’s head jerked up from where he was smiling down at the tiny infant in his arms when he heard the husky voice of the woman on the other side of the viewscreen. His eyes narrowed as he took in her flushed cheeks and shy look as she stared back at him. A wave of unexpected need washed through him, surprising him and making him scowl at the fierce response.