by Reagan Woods
“I really…like you.”
“I like you, too, little Earther.” He smiled gently down at her, gorgeous golden eyes shimmering in the muted light. “I hope the General lets me keep you.”
Like a needle scratching across vinyl, his words penetrated her giddy, hot-male-induced haze.
“Wait. What? I thought…” She frowned, taking a confused step away from him and his addictive masculinity.
“There has been push-back from the Council regarding Claimed Females.” His warm grip on her hands tightened, then he released her, leaving her bereft. “Many warriors are refusing to fight if the Councilors renege on this because they won’t ever have the opportunity to find a female and bond.”
“And you?” she recovered her wits. “Where do you stand in all this?”
“As I said, I like you, Little Willa. I’m disinclined to let you go,” his rough voice seemed to carry a note of tenderness, but that might have been wishful thinking on her part.
“What will happen to me if you sign a bonding contract with a Corian female?” Like the one who all but threw herself at you the other night? She wanted to add.
“That won’t ever happen.” The warmth fled his dark lashed, golden eyes, making her shiver.
“What do you mean?” If warriors fought for the opportunity to bond, why wouldn’t he want a female of his own kind? Did she dare hope he might feel something for her, too?
“After my accident.” He gestured with one hand to the scarred side of his face, broaching the subject of his injuries for the first time. “My contracted mate could not be persuaded to go through with the bonding. I have no desire to expose myself to that again.”
“Oh.” She fought the urge to go to him and offer comfort, he would certainly reject any overture, however innocent, as pity. She wanted to ask him about his past and his injuries, to really get to know him, but she’d used up her reserve of bravery for the evening.
Willa bit her lip, unsure where to go from here. There was so much she wished she could say and do…she just didn’t know where to begin.
Chapter Twelve
For the first time in his life, Tiron needed to explain himself to someone. The beautiful little female had started out as a means to an end, namely to prevent his mother from guilting him into bonding Beandra, but now…no matter how she might push him away, he longed for her understanding and affection.
“My many-times-great grandfather Rion invented the warp core we still use today,” Tiron began, unable to resist reclaiming Willa’s smooth little hand. “As you can imagine, that kind of prestige brought a lot of opportunities to his descendants.”
The sight of her flawless brown skin next to his ruined flesh was jarring, but he couldn’t bring himself to let her go as he led her into the sleeping room. Tucking her under the sheets in the dark room, he settled next to her and told her his tale, the reason a female would never accept him.
“Throughout the years, my family has become influential in the CGA as well as our home galaxy. We’re related to the ruling family, and that made me attractive to many females,” Tiron did his best to strip all emotion from his voice, thankful that the darkness hid his face from her knowing hazel gaze.
“However, Corian females are very particular about appearances. Early in my warrior career, I guarded an exploratory vessel assigned to study a small planetary outpost. We never knew why the lab combusted, but it did, sending tens of thousands of my brother warriors to their graves.” He paused to be sure the lid he kept on his emotions was securely in place. “A few hundred of us survived, but I am the only one who was able to rehabilitate and return to service. Getting back to work saved my sanity, but nothing could save my contract with Beandra. She couldn’t look upon my scars without becoming ill…so she severed our relationship.”
Willa’s soft, exotic voice came to him through the darkness, “She was a fool to let you go, Tiron.”
He knew she said it to ease his pain, and he was grateful for her willingness to comfort him. Tiron deplored pity, but he realized he’d take what he could get from Willa.
“Beandra was doing what she thought was right for herself and her family,” he said softly.
It was over and done and, though he never dared to hope that the comely little Earther would desire him, Tiron was content with the decision he’d made to claim Willa and abdicate his familial position. Giaon would be a more presentable representative for their family.
Now, he had to focus on the bloody work of fighting back the Ventix dogs, or he and his brother warriors might lose the right to keep their Earthers. He was under no illusions, if the Council couldn’t use these Warriors, then the Councilors would find a way to confiscate their females.
“You should sleep now.” He swept a hand over her dark curls, wishing she were his female in every sense of the word. However, Willa wasn’t really his, and he needed to remember that.
∞ ∞ ∞
“Is this thing on? Hello?”
Willa jumped in surprise, nearly over-balancing on her braced leg as she wheeled around, trying to figure out who was speaking to her.
“Oh! Priya, you startled me!” Willa walked to the communication screen, getting a good look at Balcar’s lovely lab assistant. “Is something wrong?”
Priya looked disturbed, her large, dark eyes darting to and fro, forehead creased in a worried frown. She shot a furtive glance over her shoulder.
“Are you alone?” Priya asked in a low voice, apparently satisfied no one lurked about on her end.
“I am,” Willa stage whispered back. “The Commander won’t be back for at least another hour. Why?”
The other woman’s behavior set alarm bells clanging in her head. “Wait.” She stopped Priya before she could answer. “You should know that whatever you say will be recorded in the screen’s data bank,” Willa warned. Tiron had showed her how to com him and given her a quick tutorial when she’d first arrived.
“Good to know,” Priya responded, fiddling with the manual touch settings on her screen, a frown of concentration on her face. “It took me forever to figure out how to open a communication channel to your ship. I’m not sure how long I have before Balcar returns. Have you slept with him yet?”
“Slept with who?” Willa was surprised that Priya would com her and ask such a personal question. She liked the other woman well enough, but they weren’t bosom buddies. They’d spent a few hours together, weeks ago.
“With the Commander, who else?” Priya responded impatiently flipping her long, dark braid over her shoulder.
“Not that it’s any of your business, but, no, I haven’t,” Willa replied uneasily. Something in Priya’s manner compelled her to answer honestly.
“Good. Don’t. Something about them, about their pheromones, makes us respond to them sexually,” she whispered. “I overheard Balcar discussing it with General Darvan. I couldn’t catch everything they said to one another but the gist is that they intend to use us for something, I’m not sure what.”
“Umm…okay. Thanks for the heads-up?” The idea that her attraction to the Commander was chemical was unsettling, but actually made sense to Willa. She found Tiron nearly irresistible, but he seemed to run hot and cold with her.
“I have to go, the decontaminator just kicked on. Stay strong!” Priya’s image disappeared.
Stay strong, indeed, Willa shook her head and returned to preparing last meal. Tiron had been nothing but respectful of Willa’s person, she didn’t think he was planning a big seduction anytime soon. As much as she’d like it if he did…
Chapter Thirteen
One Week Later
Sitting in his office, Tiron listened intently as the General wrapped up their screen conference. Someone had to bring the subject of the Earthers’ instability to the General’s attention.
The tiny Earther next door to his and Willa’s quarters was a prime example. She had finally submitted to medical testing. Her hormone levels spiked intermittently, and the medics couldn’t
pinpoint the cause. More concerning, they couldn’t find a way to regulate the resultant bizarre behavior.
“General, if I may?” Tiron wasn’t going to get a better opportunity.
“Go ahead.”
“My Willa, the Earther I claimed, is a sweet-tempered, giving female,” he assured the General, just in case Darvan dispatched the unruly females back to Earth. “But some of my warriors are having difficulty helping their Earthers acclimate. I don’t know how to advise these warriors.”
“Difficulty?”
“Most notably, Merik’s female panics every time he enters his quarters. She refuses food and drink. She believes Merik is drugging her somehow. Sir, he’s too honorable for such behavior,” he felt compelled to add.
“There have been similar complaints on the Horizon,” Vank seconded.
“I think every ship with Earthers on board is having this issue,” commented Commander Norkin.
“This is sensitive information: Dr. Balkar’s team examined the Earthers. During their war, irreversible sterilization occurred in the males. They can’t produce enough pheromones to influence female mating behavior. Rather than becoming desensitized by lack of stimulus, the females became hypersensitive.”
That made a certain amount of sense to Tiron, females and males put off pheromones to attract the opposite sex. But, if the Earthers hadn’t developed a tolerance, they would have difficulty resisting the biological stimulus to mate. It would be virtually impossible to ignore said pheromones in close quarters.
“In short, the Earthers feel they are being bombarded with sexual stimuli. Warriors don’t consciously attempt to influence the females; nonetheless, they do. This increased response is the reason Balkar’s team matched warriors with Earthers who have compatible personalities. Our scientists expect the radical attraction to diminish slightly. When that happens, we hope the Claimed females are content with their Protectors.”
“Since you want to ensure relationship stability, you must believe the Earthers will be granted Tribe status. Warriors who have not consummated their relationships will be in danger of losing their females,” Tiron voiced his fear aloud.
“I believe in being prepared. I shared this information so you can encourage your warriors to take advantage of enforceable proximity.” Tiron knew Darvan was referring to the rules requiring females to stay in their cabins, take meals with their Protectors and sleep next to them.
“If your warriors are unable or unwilling to communicate this information to their females, please contact Balcar. He has an Earther on his team with medical training. She will help explain that the affection and attraction the females feel for our warriors are legitimate biological responses to virile males.”
Norkin, obviously emboldened by Darvan’s willingness to speak about the Earthers, asked the question on everyone’s mind, “General, when will you put a stop to the machinations of the Doranos running the work camps?”
Rumor had it that Dorit, the Doranos in charge of the Texas work camp, was reconditioning some of the females in Doranese instead of Corian Standard. In the event of a military evacuation of the planet, poor communication could prove disastrous. Corian Standard was the official language of the Warriors, and, often, there wasn’t time to relay emergency instructions more than once. The Earthers could be in danger if they didn’t understand what was happening.
“Some of the Doranos on the surface are already laying the ground work to invoke the Right of First Refusal should the warriors be compelled to give up their claims,” Vank added his complaint.
The Right of First Refusal was in place to make sure a Claimed Female was cared for if her Protector was unable to carry out his duties, or if she chose to foreswear her Claimed status. In many such instances, her most recent lover had a short window during which he could attempt to convince her to stay with him. If there was no one to take over the Claim, her Protector’s next of kin could step in.
“If the Earthers become a Tribe, won’t the Doranos have the Right to Challenge any warrior who they believe has not consummated their relationship before the warrior can bond the female?” Vank asked.
Tiron felt his stomach drop. He would definitely lose Willa in a Bond Challenge. Any male, not just the Doranos, could contest a bonding contract. He and Willa were going to have to have a frank discussion about her status. Soon.
The remainder of the meeting was lost on Tiron. He was too distracted to take in the many other complaints and observations.
∞ ∞ ∞
“Where are we going?” Willa walked next to Tiron down the drab hallways until they came to a lift. He’d insisted that she bring her canes along, and she was glad she’d listened, they’d covered a lot of distance.
“I thought you’d enjoy the viewing deck.” He smiled down at her, moving to stand between her and the Warriors who’d crowded in behind them like eager puppies.
After smiling shyly at the newcomers, Willa tilted her head back, way back, to address Tiron quietly, “I’ve only ever seen space from a view screen.”
“I should have brought you before.” A frown furrowing his brow, he ushered her out the door. “This deck is closed,” he told the warriors who tried to follow them into the hallway.
Tiron’s big body blocked her view of them, but she heard a distinctly surly, “Of course, Sir.” Before the doors closed.
He wanted to be alone, with her. Her eager little brain cells started doing the Happy Dance and chest bumping one another as he led her towards a set of imposing doors.
Finally! He felt their connection, too.
Willa’s breath left her lungs in a whoosh when they entered the room. There was no artificial light, and the cavernous gallery boasted an entire wall of viewing panes. When the doors slid shut behind them, it was as though they floated free in space among the stars.
“This is amazing,” she breathed in awe.
“It is,” he agreed quietly, from somewhere off to her right. It was far too dark to see him, but she was fairly confident she could sniff her way to him. Was it possible that he smelled better today than he had yesterday? Definitely.
Ahead of her, she saw a completely alien view of the galaxy. There were distant stars and close planets, but her brain refused to attempt to triangulate their location, the stark beauty before her was too fascinating for such academic thoughts.
“Thank you for bringing me here.” She felt unable to tear her eyes away from the magnificent view.
“We need to talk,” a harsh note entered his voice.
Crap. Willa collided with cold reality. He didn’t want to be alone with her to reveal his undying love for her, he wanted to tell her something she wasn’t going to like. Of course, he’d brought her to a neutral setting.
“Nothing good ever comes of a conversation that starts with those words,” she commented, eyes searching blindly for him in the darkness. “At least, turn on the lights so we can see each other if you’ve got bad news.”
“I’d thought to spare you from the unpleasantness of my ruined countenance,” his voice held surprise and a touch of…was that resentment?
“You did not just go there,” Willa challenged, the burn of anger building in her chest. “Tiron, you have got to stop feeling sorry for yourself. So you were in an accident, big deal! You survived. That’s what matters.”
“You do not understand,” venom dripped from his words, but she heard the pain beneath the poison.
“Then tell me, for the love of God. Don’t just expect that I won’t be able to relate. Hello! I’ve had my share of adversity, too.” She banged one cane loudly against the other, the sound echoing in the darkness. “Don’t stand here and spout nonsense. Talk to me.”
Usually, she said her piece in more palatable words, but he’d stumbled onto her pet peeve: self-pity. Sister Mary Felecia had encouraged and loved Willa when she was at her lowest point, Willa would never forget her for that. Now, she chose to extend the same steadfast support she’d learned from the holy woman to T
iron… with an added helping of head-thumping held in reserve, to dish out if he wouldn’t open up.
Chapter Fourteen
Tiron had to admire Willa’s spirit, the Earther wasn’t afraid of speaking her mind. His repellant exterior didn’t intimidate her, she stepped boldly into his space and demanded more.
Part of him longed to heed her entreaty, to tell her what it had been like without the hope of simple companionship, the need for which she’d filled so well, but now was not the time to indulge his weakness. They had bigger problems to address.
“Lights thirty percent.”
Tiron studied Willla’s striking features as the lights came up. Her curly dark hair spilled enticingly over her strong shoulders. Wide eyes regarded him steadily from beneath delicately arched brows. A perfect, rounded nose rested just above generous lips, the bottom one slightly fuller than the top.
And her body…Tiron felt himself harden standing across the room from her. Full, succulent breasts topped an impossibly small waist. Her generous hips and rounded back-side tapered into long, sexy legs. With or without mobility aides, she was the most beautiful female he’d ever known.
“Let’s sit.” He gestured to the bank of cushioned benches lining the interior wall of the observation deck.
Willa promptly chose a seat, back straight, eyes steadily boring into his.
“Start talking, Commander.”
“I claimed you with the intent of sheltering you so you wouldn’t have to return to Earth.” Tiron sat, keeping the length of a bench between them.
“And I appreciate that,” her tone was notably cool. “Go on.”
“It behooved me to claim you for several reasons: First, Corian females won’t bond with a male who resides with another female. You provided me with an excuse to halt contract negotiations.”
The Earther’s lovely face wore an expression of disappointment, Tiron couldn’t fathom why. She covered her luscious, kissable mouth with a dainty hand.
“Second, my family would not allow me to forswear my position as first-born male. I had hoped, once I’d demonstrated that I wouldn’t be alone, they would release me from those duties.”