Arobi's Queen: A Mate Index Romance (The Mate Index Book 11)

by S. J. Sanders

“How likely do you think it is that we’ll be followed?”

  Simah, seated at her right, tucked a massive bite of spicy noodles into his mouth with an impressive snap of his sharp teeth and regarded her thoughtfully as he chewed. Swallowing, he shook his head.

  “I don’t think that there is any way to accurately guess one way or the other. There are too many unknown factors.” He held up one hand that was remarkably similar in shape to a human’s hand despite the small claw off the side of his wrist and the broader thickness of the fingertips. He held each one up as he ticked off his thoughts. “One—the most obvious—we don’t know if Tar-denovak will be able to get permission for a justified search. Two, we don’t know exactly what the nature of his interest in this situation is. Is he merely a concerned bystander, or does he have a more personal interest in you? And then of course there is always item three, will he even be able to find Ka’sumar to extract our whereabouts from him?”

  He finished with such a wolfish grin that Hayley had the impression that the male considered that a considerable feat.

  Clearing her throat, she bent a sweet smile upon him. “If that is the case, what would it hurt to reduce my restrictions once we arrive?”

  That alone was imperative to her plan. As nice as the males seemed, she just wasn’t of a mind to have a family again. However, that was going to require some leeway where they wouldn’t be hovering over her at all times or practically locking her inside.

  Simah looked thoughtful, but a low growl sounded from the other side of the table.

  “No,” Exeri said slowly, his voice still rumbling. “We will take no risks with your safety. You will remain in our home for as long as necessary. Only after I have determined that it is safe will you be allowed to move about more freely.”

  Her face fell, unable to hold back her disappointment.

  Exeri’s expression softened. “None know better than we do how cruel it is to keep another being locked indoors without the room to be free. It is a difficult burden to make such a decision knowing how unhappy it will make you. It will only be until I am confident that it is safe.”

  Hayley swallowed thickly, her eyes stinging with tears that she wouldn’t allow to drop. Instead, she stared down at her food, her jaw clenching before she forced her features to smooth out. All four males were watching her with near-identical expressions of concern. She wasn’t going to accomplish her objective any quicker if she made it seem like she wanted to be anywhere but at home with them.

  Those weren’t the actions of a happy, trustworthy mate.

  She blew out a breath and shaped her mouth into a soft smile. “It will take some getting used to, I imagine, but I don’t mind the time getting to know my mates better. It will make it all the sweeter when we see that this terrible situation is far behind us.”

  Exeri stilled, his head cocked as those glowing red eyes appeared to look straight through her. Had she gone too far? Alarm flooded through her, but she shoved it down and firmly kept her expression passive. His nostrils flared but then he grunted and gave her a small, understanding smile.

  “You are nervous, Hayley. There is no reason to be. Feel free to speak your mind,” he said.

  She could have laughed. That was what he thought she was struggling with? Well, it worked to her benefit then. She refused to feel guilty about it. That was just a little easier said than done. In truth, Exeri and his entire pack were really good guys once one got past the whole bribery, lying on legal documents, and mate switching. Tanji proved her point by shoving something that smelled like hot, crisped sugar toward her with a smile.

  “Do not worry,” he murmured with a purring growl to his words. “We will take very good care of our queen. You will barely notice the time slip by.”

  That was exactly what she was afraid of. That she would get comfortable and they would find their way into her pants and tell her all the things she would want to hear to convince herself to stay, against her better judgment.

  Still, she had no words to offer, so instead she just sank her teeth into the treat, her eyes widening with marvel as spicy flavors burst on her tongue over the taste of caramelized sugar and honey crisped deliciously over a thin dough. A tiny moan escaped her and the males around her chuckled.

  “Morith food is delicious, especially the toksa,” Bilax stated from his place at the table. “I would never wish to live on Mora Two—too much sand to get under my scales—but I always try to lure one to Antari Minor.” He chuckled.

  Hayley grinned in reply, her smile only dropping when the door to their quarters opened. The chime that preceded it seemed to make each of them go alert, their bodies locked with tension at the intrusion.

  As the door opened, a purple male with long tentacles in place of hair walked in, his graceful frame sculpted with lean muscle beneath his uniform. His lips were pressed into a disapproving line as his dark eyes scanned them before finally coming to rest on her. Something flashed in those depths, and he let out a long sigh as he turned and met Exeri’s gaze.

  “Is this the reason that you felt you needed to pay for passage last-minute on my ship… to leave with a human you are not licensed to have?”

  Exeri let out a low rattling growl, but the Vazith raised his hand.

  “Do not bother trying to deny it. I heard more than enough from the male who was searching for any word of her—though I am surprised to see her in your company rather than with the Edoka he mentioned. I suspect that in itself was something of a ruse to get what you wanted. In any case, dealing with his questions has been a significant disruption. I was not pleased to hear from one of my crewmates that a female matching that description was seen hurrying into your quarters. Be clear that the only reason that I do not turn around and dock once more to hand her over is because the head of security made things uncomfortable enough for my crew with his incessant rechecking of my cargo and our licenses. Therefore, I am not of a mind to turn her over… nor will I report this.” His lips curled as he gazed down at the Arobi expectantly.

  “What do you want?” Exeri bit out.

  The male’s eyes floated over Hayley, making her skin crawl. Not that he wasn’t a handsome male. Actually, even with the tentacles draping back from his head, he was attractive in an exotic kind of way. It was the cold scrutiny in his eyes that turned her stomach. He stood so close that she could feel his body heat as his hand stretched toward her.

  The alpha’s snarl echoed within the room, his chair banging against the floor as he leaped to his feet. Exeri bared his fangs in a clear threat and was mirrored by the rest of the pack. The Vazith—one of few species that Hayley actually recognized on sight due to their frequent stops at Earth—raised his brows with a thin scowl. He dropped his hand away, and the pack surrounded her protectively.

  Exeri’s body shuddered with hostility as he slid in front, facing off with the captain. Despite the promise of death in his eyes, his voice came out slowly and evenly measured as he spoke.

  “With respect, we can offer you anything but that. An Arobi’s queen is never up for barter. She will not be paying our debt.”

  The Vazith sighed with obvious disapproval. “Females are wasted on so many species in this universe. A male’s own female is the best bartering chip he possesses. She is an asset, and yet everyone squanders it. I ask for only one small offering from your mate as a token of goodwill.”

  Her mates immediately bristled once more. Hayley had to put a stop to it before the situation turned violent.

  “Can I choose the manner of favor I give?” she interrupted loudly.

  Her mates fell into a stunned silence, and though he wrinkled his nose with distaste at the idea of having to bargain directly with her, the captain nodded.

  “Very well,” she chirped, ignoring the upwelling of aggressive protests from the Arobi. Reaching onto the table beside her, Hayley picked up a knife and, with one quick move, sliced a lock of hair from the sleek mass falling around her shoulders. Knotting the ends of it, she tossed it to the
bewildered alien who stared down at it perplex.

  “What is this?” he demanded, his brow dropping into a scowl.

  “Exactly what you asked—a favor. Human women offer locks of hair to men as a show of their favor, in place of more intimate gifts. Consider that currency the equivalent of a hasty fuck,” she said sweetly.

  The captain’s eyes narrowed, his chest expanding. Hayley could feel the tension of the males around her, just waiting to launch themselves. It felt on the edge of bursting when a slow, deep laugh slipped out of the Vazith, and he shook his head in amusement.

  “That is clever, female. And that is admirable. I shall take this token and honor our agreement. Welcome aboard,” he murmured with an incline of his head. Sticking the lock of hair into a pocket, he scanned the males in the room before he turned on his heel and strode out.

  Hayley’s breath left her in a shaky laugh, adrenaline coursing through her. It worked! But her smile fell as she turned and met the fury in the eyes of the males surrounding her. Exeri stepped closer, looming as he frowned down at her.

  “Never place yourself in such a position again. It is not for you to deal with the likes of the Vazith. Your care and safety are our priority and duty,” he growled.

  “The hell you say,” Hayley objected in disbelief.

  A perplexed look drifted over the male’s face and he struck one claw lightly behind one ear where she suspected the translator was implanted. She smothered a laugh, determined to hang on to her anger. She wasn’t going to have anyone acting all high-handed with her. Exeri shook his head and regarded her with narrowed eyes.

  “It is a matter of your safety,” he put in sternly. “What if it had gone wrong and the male demanded a higher price than what you offered? You do not know how things work, with the Vazith especially—we do. You were fortunate. Do not do such a thing again,” he bit out.

  “Okay…” Hayley drawled. “But you’ve got to admit it was pretty funny watching how completely bewildered he was when I threw the hair at him.”

  Exeri stared down at her, his ears twitching until finally a reluctant smile tugged at the corners of his mouth.

  “It was amusing,” Tanji agreed with a low chuckle.

  “And there is one good thing that comes from this,” Bilax said with a tilt at the corners of his mouth. “At least we don’t have to scurry around here for the next week trying to keep her hidden. It will be much easier on our queen, and on us.”

  The murmur of agreement was subdued, but the positive change in tone was a relief. She just needed to wait this out. No problem. Within a week’s time, dipping in and out of wormholes through space, she would be at Antari Minor. Everything was a matter of waiting for the most opportune time. Hayley just wished she was blessed with more patience to deal with all the waiting that she had coming her way.

  Dragging her hand down her face, her eyes examined her surroundings before finally coming to rest on her mates. “So, what do we do now?”

  They all exchanged a confused glance and Simah shrugged. “Usually, we just rest,” he offered with a small smile. “I regret to say that there is not much else to do when traveling in this fashion. There is no entertainment.”

  “Rest,” she echoed unenthusiastically. The males nodded and stepped forward over the thick mat before flopping casually on an assortment of pillows. She watched as they made themselves comfortable, uncertain of just where she should situate herself.

  Bilax grinned up at her from where his cheek rested on a thick purple pillow. “You are overthinking, queen. Just come lay with us. We will not bite… unless you ask us very nicely.”

  “Who are you fooling?” Tanji barked in amusement. “She could order us to serve her, and we would fall on her eagerly.”

  “Some of us are more disciplined,” Simah said with a heavy sigh.

  Hayley laughed nervously as she continued to look over the surface of the mat. There was hardly enough room between any of them to fit a small human body, much less her generous bottom.

  “Where…?”

  “Anywhere,” Exeri barked.

  “You can lie with me,” Tanji whispered. “I will treat you good.” The red fire of his eyes seemed to brighten, catching her attention.

  “Enough,” the alpha sighed. Pushing himself up to a half-seated position, he wrapped his arms around her before pulling her down beside him. He settled back into the mat, his muzzle nuzzling her as he shifted to make them both more comfortable. Once he did, a long sigh racked his powerful frame. “Now rest,” he grumbled.

  With nothing better to do, she found herself soon succumbing to his directions as sleep came for her. His body was warm. and curled protectively around hers as they yielded to the nothingness of sleep.

  She would have plenty of time to plot her next moves later.

  Chapter 9

  Hayley didn’t have any actual sense of when it was “morning” on the ship. The lights in their personal quarters were still dimmed. She supposed that if she went out into the hall outside their doors, she could see whether or not the rest cycle settings were still in place. The idea didn’t fill her with enthusiasm. In fact, she didn’t care enough about what cycle they were on to risk encountering another Vazith to check. In any case, everyone knew that the intergalactic Space Operating Time had nothing to do with any movement of a sun, but rather an arbitrary number of hours selected in which to carry out operational duties through various sectors of space.

  In short, it really didn’t fucking matter.

  As it was, she wasn’t particularly inclined to leave the bed. At some point while they slept, the Arobi had clustered into an odd, comfortable sort of dogpile. She didn’t know how her head ended up pillowed on Bilax’s belly, but his scales there were soft against her cheek, and the heat from the bodies surrounding her drove off any trace of chill that seemed to perpetually linger in spaceships.

  There was absolutely no reason she could think of that could convince her to get up...other than the pressure on her bladder, that was. Sighing, Hayley flopped over and wiggled out from beneath Simah’s arm that lay over her hips. Rising to her feet, she hopped over the sprawled males, doing a little dance as she went.

  Gotta pee, gotta pee!

  She hissed in alarm when Exeri’s arm snagged one of her legs, but with a kick she dislodged herself so she could practically fly the last few feet to the tiny cleansing unit attached to their cabin.

  Completing her business quickly, Hayley washed her hands and stepped out of the cleansing unit. Turning a contemplative eye to the bed, she debated crawling right back in among the males. She could easily sleep for hours despite whatever “time” the Intergalactic Union decided it was. But even if it was the middle of the night cycle, her stomach didn’t recognize any sort of standard operating schedule either as it protested its hunger.

  Simah’s ears tilted toward her at the sound, being the male closest to where she stood, but he didn’t otherwise rouse.

  Perhaps getting around her mates wouldn’t be as hard as she had thought.

  Hayley crept toward the far side of the room where a beat-up replicator was fastened to the wall. Although it wouldn’t provide anything as good as their previous meal, she knew from experience that even the older models would offer up a passable facsimile of eggs and bacon if she didn’t look too closely and pretended not to notice the rubbery texture. The coffee—the very essence of the gods—was decent, so at least there was that much going for her.

  Punching a button on the replicator, it hummed so softly that it was barely audible.

  “What are you having?” Simah yawned.

  Startled, Hayley glanced over to find the male sitting up, his dark claws scratching languidly at the scales on his side. He gave her a sleepy smile and pushed up to his feet.

  “Just some breakfast,” she replied, turning her attention back to the replicator. “Eggs and bacon. Coffee, three cream and four sugar portions.”

  The replicator whirred loudly then, making Hayley flinch
, but seconds later there was hot food and coffee waiting for her. With a smile, she took the plate, once again making sure she didn’t look directly at the food, and made her way to the table while Simah shifted closer to the replicator.

  By that time, the other males were pushing up, their nostrils flaring as they scented the air. One moment they were all leisurely stretching, and the next they bounded forward, practically knocking against each other as they made for where Simah stood. The male in question hunched his shoulders as if preparing to be bulldozed as he snapped out his order.

  It was only by some miracle that the rest of the pack didn’t plow into him in their haste, and he was able to collect his food and worm his way out from among them as each pack member sidled up to put in his order. Hayley would almost have thought that the other males would have deferred to Exeri and waited for their alpha to order and eat, but it seemed that Arobi didn’t hold to such a rigid hierarchy that it affected their eating habits. She had been too distracted to really notice it last night, but it was obvious now as she watched them interact.

  It was actually a relief. A rigid social structure would be a lot harder on her to deal with, much less break out of.

  Simah sat by her with a shy grin as he nodded toward his pack. “Don’t mind our pack. I hope you are—what do humans call it?—a morning person. Frahnkee always accused us of being the worst sort of morning people she’d ever met. I am afraid our pack is full of energy when we rise.”

  Hayley squeezed her eyes shut and groaned. The gods had to hate her… Morning people, really? Not just morning people. Super energetic, rambunctious puppy morning people.

  “I take that as a no.” Simah laughed as he scooped up some unidentifiable food from his plate and wolfed it down in two bites. She was pretty sure it had legs and eyes, whatever it was, and tried not to gag. Instead, she took a huge gulp of her coffee.

  Resolutely not looking in his direction, Hayley attacked her own food, blocking out any thoughts of disgusting glob creatures as she ate the near-tasteless meal and washed it down with what was left of her coffee.