His ridges went up an inch. “That was a good plan.”
Happiness lit up her face, pleased at his approval. “It’s everyone’s dream to be able to one day leave New Earth to go live somewhere else. New Earth is a shit pile. We all know it and no one is exactly proud of it. But no one has been able to escape to try and create a better life for themselves elsewhere. And it’s really hard to make the planet we live on better, because the Hurlians won’t let us trade or work with other species or planets, so we’re stuck there with what we can get from that planet, which isn’t much. And the snatchings…the snatchings are really what makes living there so hard. If we were no longer under Hurlian rule, well, life would probably be a thousand times better.”
“My retrieval of THX690 was recorded and the vid sent to the Bounty Hunter Guild for review,” he said. “They will note the existence of the Hurlians’ shameful Earth refugee planet. It will immediately be reported to the Xylan High Command. This situation is unacceptable. I am certain that the conditions on your planet will change shortly. You have no need to stay with me just to get yourself off that planet. Do not use that as a deciding factor when the time for review is up.”
“Oh.” That was terrific news. The best news ever. But she couldn’t get herself to feel an ounce of joy. She looked at his newly shuttered face. He’d already retreated into himself. She saw his eyes move and linger on the countdown clock on the wall. He was thinking of the review, probably reminding himself that this was some sort of temporary honeymoon and convincing himself all over again that she was going to drop him the moment she could. Because he didn’t think he was worthy, which was the worst kind of bullshit.
Fuck, fuck, fuck. How was she going to change his mind?
She had no idea.
You’d think the hot sex would do the trick. But her warrior had a battle-hardened layer of self-sacrificing honor built around his heart; it would take her forever to chisel it away. And she only had—she glanced at the clock—twenty hours left.
“Your family is very important to you?” he asked suddenly.
She blinked. “Yes, isn’t your family important to you?”
He swallowed and looked away. “My family was Banished ten years ago. I haven’t seen my parents or my brother in all that time. We are not allowed to communicate or live near each other.”
She was dumbfounded, completely amazed he was opening up to her. Maybe the sex was working. She bit her lip to keep from smiling.
She leaned forward. “Why were you Banished?”
“My father, Kroga of Seventy-Five, was a traitor. He committed treason, selling secrets to the Hurlians. This sparked the Cordovian Wars, which killed thousands of Xylan. My line was Banished from my home world, Chronos, for two generations.”
“Oh no, so you’re literally paying for the sins of your father?”
“Yes.”
“You can never go back to Chronos?”
“I can’t, but my offspring will be welcomed back, if they so choose.”
“Wait. The Xylans fought against the Hurlians?”
“Yes.” He smiled grimly. “We lost thousands, but they lost hundreds of thousands. Ultimately, we won the war. The Hurlians have learned to give the Xylan race wide berth. We will not be subjugated.”
She couldn’t help the enormous smile that spread across her face. “I like you more.”
Oh fuck. She liked him?
Why was he doing this? Why did he continue to talk with her and to breed with her? He needed to tell her the truth. Immediately. The more time he spent alone with her, mating with her, the more painful the eventual separation would be. And she was so innocent, unknowing of his true nature. It was not fair to her that she was making decisions without all the facts. His honor needed satisfaction.
He tried again to convince his female of the fallacy of her logic. “I am not a fit mate. Not only am I Banished, but I was also taken off the mating database. I am considered unworthy of a Bride. No unmated Xylan would ever have chosen to test mating compatibility with me. Your choice was taken from you. I grabbed you, unthinking, not knowing that it was possible for a human to mate with a Xylan. I was simply reaching for you to protect you from the Hurlians. My intention was not to force mating compatibility. On Chronos, forcing of mating compatibility is a serious offense. I want to stress to you that this was not my intention.”
“I know this, you said it before. You were simply trying to rescue me from the Hurlians. It’s all right—”
“No, no, you are not understanding the severity. That is what is wrong. You are not hearing me. If you choose to remain with me, you will have to live your life with a Banished warrior. We will never be accepted back to Chronos. And still, whenever we see other Xylan they will consider you a Margol, a half-color. Other Xylan of royal pigment will attempt to treat you like a second-class citizen simply for your lack of pigment.”
“And you’re okay with that?” she whispered.
“If anyone dares insult you to my face they will die.”
She smirked. “Well then, that’s okay. I can live with that. Plus, we just won’t ever go to Chronos.” She shrugged. “Like I care.”
His chest tightened. A hefty weight settled in his stomach. How could she not see?
How. Could. She. Not. See?
“I was taken off the mating database!” he roared.
She crossed her arms. “Okay, tell me the whole story. Tell me why you were taken off the database.”
Kia’s jaw clenched. He stared at her, not saying a single freaking word. Well, two could play at this game. She stared back, quiet as well. This went on for a good ten minutes before he stood up and paced around the small quarters.
“You are carrying the offspring of a warrior whose line is Banished for two generations,” he finally said. “I have a cybernetic eye from an honor battle where I was accused of cheating to take unfair advantage. I was also charged with scheming to force mating compatibility upon a female of royal pigment.”
“But all of these charges are untrue, right?” She stood up, her hands trembling. “And wait, I’m pregnant?”
“Of course they are untrue, but their judgments still stand. I must live with the consequences of each, and as my Bride, so must you.”
“Hold on. You said I was pregnant?”
He stared at her. “Yes,” he answered solemnly. “You carry my seed in your womb. I tried to tell you earlier, before we mated again, but you interrupted me.”
“You did? When? Oh, whatever.” She pinched the bridge of her nose. Then she looked up and met his gaze with pleading eyes. “Please take me to the medical bay. Now. Show me.”
He gave her a curt nod, took her hand in his giant claw and walked with her out of his quarters and down the hall.
Within minutes Kia stepped into the medical bay, stunned at the glory before her. Everything gleamed. It was so high tech, like nothing she’d ever seen. This whole ship was a box of wonders. She had no idea if Kayzon’s ship was considered top of the line or not, if it was big or small. To Kia, it was the best of everything. Never would she take anything here for granted. Kayzon had told her that he’d taken her to the medical bay after he’d tranqed her in order to heal any wounds left over from her encounter with the Hurlians. The computer had fixed all of her childhood bumps, bruises and breaks, even providing something he’d called inoculation, which was supposed to make it so she almost never got sick. She sighed, thinking of her family and wishing such a gift could be bestowed upon them, too.
And, dear gods…she was pregnant? Already?
Her life was spinning out of control—too much happening too fast.
“Sit,” he ordered, pointing at a white reclining seat. It was long enough to hold a seven-foot tall Xylan, so when she scooted onto the chair she felt she barely covered it. Her head only brushed the slight pillow contour at the top, and there was plenty of room left at the end.
“Computer, run diagnostic, is Kia of One pregnant?” Kayzon asked.
Kayzon took her hand. “It is quick and painless,” he explained.
She turned her head and met his gaze. “I’m just surprised you knew I was pregnant so quickly. How did you know that?”
“When I checked your physical arousal with my Hunter suit when we were in the marketplace on New Earth, I saw then that you were in your Breeding Cycle. When a female is in her Cycle, mating is allowed to happen immediately because both the male and female are in desperate need for culmination.
“Oh.”
“Examination complete,” the computer announced. “Confirmed, Kia of One is pregnant.”
She sucked in a breath. Her nose started to sting. She squeezed Kayzon’s hand. Then she remembered that she’d once seen a vid show of a couple who saw their baby on a screen. “Computer, can we see a visual of the baby?”
Kayzon tensed. His claws held her hand in an almost painful grip. “No,” he said. “I do not want to see.”
“But…why wouldn’t you want to see your child?”
He let go of her hand and stepped away from her. “Why would I want to see the very thing that will be taken from me?”
“Who is taking your baby away from you?”
“You are…” His voice softened. “When you choose rejection.”
“Me?” she squeaked.
He pointed at the countdown clock on the wall. “When the review ends and you choose disavowal at the time of judgment, the offspring will be terminated.”
She sat up, anger coursing through her veins. This was un-freaking-believable. “I am not leaving. You are stuck with me. We are a family now. I would never let this baby be terminated. That is crazy talk. This is your offspring. We are going to watch our baby together for the first time.” She put her hand out. “Come here,” she ordered.
He stared at her.
“Please,” she said softly. “Please come here and look at our baby with me, together.”
His jaw clenched, and she watched the indecision flicker across his harsh features. Finally he stepped forward and clasped her hand.
She glanced at their joined hands then back up at his face. “I am not leaving,” she repeated firmly.
He shook his head and sighed, obviously not convinced. “Computer,” he said. “Show vid of the offspring of Kia of One.”
“The offspring of Kia of One and Kayzon of Twenty-Six,” she corrected.
He grunted.
A holo vid screen immediately appeared before them. And there was her baby. Tears welled in her eyes. Her free hand went to rest on her lower stomach. It was unbelievable. Yesterday, when she’d left the house with Harmony, never in her wildest dreams had she thought she’d end up on a Xylan warrior’s ship, his Bride and pregnant with his offspring. Her life was flipped upside down, and she didn’t know what to make of it. Well, one thing was certain. She was going to be a mother. Kayzon was her mate. They were family. And Kayzon might not understand, because he still didn’t know her that well, they’d just met. But to Kia, family was everything.
They watched their tiny peanut, a cluster of cells that had already formed into a small shape and a beating heart. It was beautiful. She could hear the swishing of blood through its double heart chambers, much like its father.
She squeezed Kayzon’s hand and glanced at his face. His eye was wet.
Chapter Eight
Kayzon guided his Bride from the medical bay. She was quiet, which was unusual for her. Normally she enjoyed talking often. But he also felt unlike himself, stiff and uncomfortable, his thoughts dark and confused. He’d seen that spark of life, the offspring that was technically still optional, making it more real in his mind, making the eventual termination grind against his hearts.
So he took her back to his quarters to show her his Cabul. It seemed a good decision to spend time training. He was tired of trying to convince his Bride of how unacceptable he was as a mate. To prove his unworth. And he did not want to linger over thoughts of the offspring he’d witnessed in the medical bay. The physical exertion would be good for the both of them.
He opened the cabinet along the wall and watched as his Bride gaped at his travel Cabul. His chest puffed with pride. He’d spent many years collecting his own Cabul. He did not have one passed down from his line. He’d had to craft his own and create one mainly for his ship because he did not have a home world he resided on. He lived on his ship. His altar, his Cabul, his meager belongings, they were all on his ship.
“What is this?”
“This is my Cabul. All Xylan have their own Cabul. These are the weapons we use for all ceremonial occasions. This—” He pointed. “—Is my personal blade. And this is the invisible blade. Here—” He picked a curved sword up off of its shelf. “—Is the bone shredder.” He grinned. It was his favorite.
“Wow, can I try out some of these?” she asked.
“Of course.”
He placed his own personal blade in her clawless hand with the extra appendage. He was amazed at the glory he felt in seeing his Bride holding something as simple as his personal blade. He was unprepared for the possessive warmth that bloomed in his chest at the vision of his Bride with that particular weapon in her small hand.
When he had first seen the humans together in the marketplace he’d been unnerved by their colorless appearance. Many of them were literally without color, which was absurd. The lack of ridges or claws and their extra appendage made them appear…ugly. Although as a scarred warrior he had no place to monitor another’s appearance…but he did find their visage unpleasant.
But his Bride—his Bride was different. If he thought about it, he could see he’d found her attractive from the moment he’d seen her in that marketplace. Her teeth were intriguing, her raspy, deep voice made his cock instantly harden. Her hair…he could run his claws through her shiny, royal hair that smelled of sunshine on Chronos for planetary rotations on end. And as he watched her hurl knives and warrior axes at the target on the wall in the holo deck and swing an invisible blade in an arc of death…he watched the way her lithe form moved. She was slim and small and yet so very strong. Deceptively strong.
His Bride was an invisible blade. His very own private invisible blade.
He smiled. His human Bride, the female he wanted most in the world but could not keep. She was stunning.
She’d convinced him to view his offspring, which he had wanted to avoid, to decrease future heartbreak. But she’d demanded they watch together, claiming she would never terminate their offspring and that they would never part, that she was his and he was hers and they were family.
Huh.
He took a deep breath and hurled a Xylan beheading ax at the target. It hit the middle with a resounding thud. His Bride clapped with delight.
After their training they sat side by side, on the floor, knees bent. Sweaty and satisfied. His head rested back against the metal wall as he waited for his breathing so slow. The holo deck was no longer lit up like a black and red Xylan training hall, it was now in stasis mode with comforting cool gray walls and floors. The doorway was lined with a glowing line of yellow light.
He handed her a bottle of water. They were silent for the moments it took to drink. They’d talked often since the moment they’d met, which was unnerving. His voice was slightly hoarse, his throat raw from previous disuse. He hadn’t spoken this much to another being in over eight planet rotations. But his Bride continued to ask questions of him and to expect answers. She listened to him and asked more, went deeper. If he went quiet she waited and then spoke again to pull him back into their conversation. It wasn’t annoying; he didn’t mind speaking with her. Actually, he enjoyed conversing with his Bride.
She was entertaining.
He just wasn’t used to talking, having anyone talk to him or care what he thought about personal issues. He spoke with co-workers about Bounty Hunter-related concerns
. He issued death threats to targets. That was the extent of his dialogue.
With Kia it was different. The allure was powerful.
She put down the water and started retelling the story of how he’d rescued her from the Hurlian snatching. Hearing her tell it was mesmerizing. She made him out as a hero. But in actuality, he’d been the one who was enthralled. She’d been powerful and tough. Her actions had surprised him. He would never forget the image of her grabbing one soldier around the chest and swinging up and kicking another soldier at the same time. It was a brutal move that had given him an instant cockstand.
Her smile was dazzling, her raspy laughter contagious. He could listen to that sound for the rest of his life.
“How can you tell jokes in the midst of Hurlian capture?” he asked.
“I choose to laugh rather than cry,” she replied. “Also I have my family. Don’t you ever tell jokes and just… smile?”
“Warriors don’t smile.”
“I have seen many warriors, and they smile often. My Dad’s bright smiles would light up my day.”
“Those are humans. Xylan do not smile.”
“That can’t be true.” She leaned forward. “Are you ticklish?”
“What is ticklish?”
She laughed. “Oh, this is great. Let me teach you what ticklish is.”
She bent forward and poked fingers into his side, and he actually laughed. Laughed out loud at the surprise at her action and the sensation it evoked. He hadn’t laughed like that since before his youth.
He turned and grabbed her and threw her to the ground. She gasped with surprise and then fought back. They rolled on the floor; he enjoyed touching her this way. She shouted with frustration at his overwhelming size and strength. He grinned. They rolled again, and Kayzon ended up on top of her.
He kissed her. He couldn’t help himself. That mouth, that delicious mouth. He couldn’t stay away. He had to taste her again.
Kayzon's Wish Page 8