by Lily Anton
“So you were actually the Commander before him…” she paraphrased, wondering if she had heard correctly. “He reported to you?!”
“Apologies if you feel it was a secret kept from you. It is common knowledge.”
Leila shook her head. She wasn’t sure what was more surreal: her pregnancy or that Opho had been the fucking Commander.
“No apologies necessary,” she backpedaled against her shock. “I’m sorry if I offended you by implying you weren’t capable because obviously you must have been, and Ezon clearly learned a lot from you and oh my god that’s why you said he’d rip your head off!”
She burst out laughing, taking a while to calm herself. Opho seemed amused by her reaction.
“I am definitely going to want that story from you one day,” she warned him, wiping her eyes as her laughter subsided. “I cannot imagine you being in that role. You love medicine!”
Opho’s smile waned as his violet eyes lost some of their usual glow. “I am not the man I was. It was a long time ago.”
Leila reconsidered ever asking him about it when it was clear it was not likely to be a happy subject for him. “Well, for what it’s worth Former Commander Opho, I think you are perfectly suited to being a doctor and I trust you implicitly.”
He blinked rapidly, eyes shining brighter before returning to their normal violet hue. “Thank you. I am glad you have confidence in my skills.”
“So does Viv.”
At the other woman’s name Opho’s head snapped up before he caught himself, immediately reaching for his tablet.
“I am scheduling you for another examination at the end of the week and will send you some relevant information, which I expect you to read this time.”
Leila was like a dog with a bone now. “I just spent a few hours with her…”
Opho’s eyes flicked to the door. “If you feel any abdominal discomfort, please notify me immediately.”
“She spoke of you.”
“Muscle soreness and slight fatigue are norm- She mentioned me?” he perked up, medical advice and tablet forgotten.
Got him.
“She did. Viv clearly thinks very highly of you.”
“I…” he brought a fist to his lips, clearing his throat. “I think highly of Vivienne as well. She is a talented physician.”
Leila knew she should just leave it be. But it was so fucking obvious there was something there, and she knew Viv wouldn’t be the one to do anything about it. And Opho obviously was going to pretend it was all platonic.
A nudge was in order.
“Opho…”
Her gentle tone caught his attention. “I’m not saying she’s madly in love with you, but there is clearly something there. I just don’t think she’ll be the one to act on it first. It’s obvious she has been hurt in the past…”
Leila’s eyes widened as Opho’s whole demeanor changed. He suddenly appeared taller, more imposing, his back ramrod straight as he crossed his arms over his chest.
He looked intimidating standing there, especially as he fucking growled, a hint of sharp teeth showing.
“Rose has mentioned her father before.” He spat the word out, his voice dangerously low.
If he hadn’t been one of her favorite people and she hadn’t been absolutely certain that his venom was not directed at her, she would have probably backed away slowly. But she was, and so it only proved her point.
Also...Commander Opho was apparently still lurking just beneath the surface.
“I’m beginning to see the similarities between you and Ezon right now.”
Her comment had the desired effect, watching the man before her revert back to the mild-mannered doctor she knew.
It was a neat trick. Like Clark Kent and Superman.
“Just...ask her to dinner or something. Or do something that would involve Rose as well, like a walk along the beach. Whatever you do, don’t do what Ezon did.”
He smirked at her teasing. “Are you trying to play match-maker?”
“No,” Leila grinned. “The match has clearly been made.”
Opho grumbled under his breath. She had apparently cracked his facade and he hadn’t mended it yet. No doubt all evidence of it would be gone the next time she saw him.
If it all worked out, Opho would be one lucky man, Viv was going to be one lucky woman, and Rose was going to get an amazing dad.
“Do you...You think I should...?”
Could he sound any fucking cuter? Leila had a surprising urge to pat his head and tell him everything would be okay.
“Tell you what. I’m going to be planning another brunch. This one a large, more formal affair. I’ll make sure you’re seated by one another. If you’re able to enjoy talking to each other in a place that isn’t the medical wing, then I’d say go for it.”
“A sound strategy minimizing the risks,” he assessed.
“Thank you, Commander. I do try.”
“You’re going to keep calling me that, aren’t you.” It wasn’t even voiced as a question.
“Speak with Viv at brunch and I’ll stop.”
Opho’s mouth formed a firm line. She knew that look. “Yeah, that’s not going to work on me. Please remember who I’m bonded to.”
“If I say yes will you leave?”
Leila nodded. “Most likely.”
“Fine. I will attend.”
She didn’t move, much to Opho’s annoyance. “I will attend and I will converse with Vivienne during the course of our meal.”
Leila nodded in approval.
The commander-turned-doctor motioned to the door. “Your role as a diplomat suits you.”
She patted his arm as she passed. “I know you mean that as an insult but I’m taking it as a compliment. See you later, Commander.”
“Leila?” Several feet separated them as she was already in the hallway, Opho’s voice stopping her as she pivoted on the spot.
“Congratulations.”
Leila smiled, bowing her head in acknowledgment. “Thank you, Opho.”
“Please read the material I sent you.”
Her laugh echoed down the hallway as she turned and continued on her way.
“Brunch first!” she called back out, her hand briefly touching her stomach as she now had to figure out when and how to break the news to Ezon that he was definitely going to be a father.
NEXT IN SERIES: SNEAK PEEK
THE HEALER'S FATED MATE
Opho
One Year Ago…
As soon as he’d heard the explosion, he knew.
The sound was one he had learned to recognize over the course of his life, one that was followed by violence and death. He had come to know it well, and the human screams and shouts that followed suit had him running out of the medbay of Section 10, and peering over the ledge from where he was on the fourth level.
Hundreds of humans had poured out of their quarters on the lower level below, drawn by the sound of the noise.
A mistake, he thought grimly, his heart racing.
He may not have been a commander any longer, but recent years as a physician could not strip away years of experience and responsibility that had come with that role.
Being stationed on Earth at the Debir Embassy had been a welcome reprieve, allowing him to escape his violent past and focus on healing others. The humans had such primitive medical technology that he had welcomed the opportunity to not only learn about their unique biologies, but also help those that needed it.
The explosion below felt like his past had come back to haunt him. His fingers flexed, seeking the weapon at his side that he no longer carried.
Thick, acrid smoke wafted through the section center below, the color as red as human blood. He spotted several Debir readying themselves to jump down, and barked a sharp order to stand down that could barely be heard over the echoing blast.
He may not have been the commander, but his order was given like one and while many hesitated, they still obeyed.
“Alert the c
ommand deck. Baza are on board,” he directed sharply, keeping his eyes glued to the frantic scene below.
It should have been impossible for the Baza -a violent and ruthless people- to have been able to breach the ship, let alone get close enough to be allowed to do so.
Something was not right.
“Commander Ezon is aware. They are formulating a plan.”
An officer beside him had crouched down, many now staying out of sight.
Debir had extremely good eyesight, especially over long-distances and in the dark, making most of them excellent marksmen. Unfortunately, there was a risk of hitting a human or causing panic. Something that the Baza would no doubt take advantage of even moreso than they had already.
“Humanssss…” the voice of the Baza reached him from forty feet below. “You belong to the Baza now... Do not fight us or you will die.”
Anger rushed through Opho with an intensity he had not felt in decades. He was helpless to act until a plan had been put in place.
The only thing he could be certain of at this moment was that none of the Baza would be leaving here alive.
Years of assessing situations within split seconds had him focused on the Baza leader emerging from the plumes of smoke, only to be met with angry yells coming from a single Debir that approached.
Opho’s violet eyes flashed in shock.
Krase, Chief Steward on board the Tyrrhenian, was fearlessly (and foolishly) arguing with the invaders.
‘Traitor’, Opho’s mind hissed.
Despite the cacophony, he immediately picked out the frantic cries of a human female from amongst the frey, watching in silent horror as one of the Baza grabbed a hold of a child and threw her without so much as a passing thought.
Her small body hit the water, the large pool in the center Section 10 thankfully there to soften her fall and prevent injury.
The mother’s cries only increased as the child had not swam up to the surface, and Opho was already running down the open corridor towards the back end of the pool as soon as he realized she could not swim.
Her screams for her child had frustrated the Baza enough that she was thrown in after her child, and without any more thought, Opho leapt over the railing, diving into the water.
He could only hope that he had not caused too much disturbance to the water upon entry and that the Baza were focused elsewhere.
The water was deep, as was common for all indoor pools, even the ones meant for infant Debir, who were adapted to time in the water. So to see a small figure struggling as they sank lower in the water’s depths, and a mother fighting to reach her, only spurred him on.
The woman visibly startled, air bubbles escaping her lips as she caught sight of his much more imposing body swimming towards her.
He ignored it, wishing that humans were capable of speaking underwater so he could reassure her that he’d come to rescue them. Instead, he was forced to swim past her, kicking his powerful legs with as much strength as he was able and grabbing a hold of a tiny hand.
Opho immediately brought the small, limp form towards him, and began swimming diagonally upwards and grabbing the woman along the way.
With both his arms full, it slowed down their time up to the surface, but they broke through near the waterfall, hidden from the Baza’s eye line.
The woman was violently coughing, but she was alive and breathing and not Opho’s immediate concern.
The human child was so small in his arms, and she looked smaller still with no signs of life.
He had no time to take her back to the medbay, and with no portable medical devices in hand, set about reviving her the old fashioned way as he laid her out on the ground and jumped out of the water, catching sight of the woman slowly making her way out.
“Please...please...Rose...no...my baby...please…”
The woman cried even as she struggled to breathe, and Opho ignored the pain his chest at the sound of her agony.
He breathed into the young girls mouth over and over again, and while it had only been for a few seconds, they each felt like a lifetime until he saw her chest heave. At once, he rolled her over onto her side, allowing her body to expel all the water she had inhaled.
Rose’s mother was instantly by her daughter’s side, sobbing quietly as she carded a shaky hand through the child’s wet hair.
“We must leave,” Opho said, although he came out sharply, and he saw the woman flinch away from the sound of it.
If it were any other time, he would have apologized, but time was not on their side.
He leaned over to pick Rose up, the poor girl crying and coughing in equal measure, only to have her mother all but throw herself over her child.
It took Opho a moment to realize the woman was protecting her from him.
Her green eyes blazed with motherly fury, like a wild altaica protecting its cub.
He jerked back, his own violet eyes flashing silver as he raised his hands.
“We are in danger if we remain here and there is water in her lungs which needs to be removed,” Opho stated with quiet urgency.
The situation had momentarily been lost on her it seemed, her eyes flicking behind him to the source of their danger.
“Can you walk?” he asked, not giving her time to argue about what must be done.
She nodded, slowly standing up and watching him carefully as he picked up the child who was now shivering against him, her eyes closed as she curled into his chest.
As he stood to his full height, it was obvious why the woman had been scared. She was small, even by human standards, and he felt almost double her height. “Come, let us go.”
The woman all but ran beside him in order to keep up, never once asking him to slow down as he hurried them through another corridor and towards another section of the ship.
“What about the others? And those...things?” she asked, her teeth chattering.
“It is being handled.”
His concern for Baza on board was now secondary; no doubt Commander Ezon and his officers were formulating the best approach to the situation at hand. That left him to focus on what he did best, which was to help and heal.
Section 12 was empty, although its layout was similar to the section they’d been in, and thankfully there was always consistency in medbays across the ship.
Despite his own clothes being thoroughly drenched and weighing him down, he immediately went to work, laying the child down on the soft medical bed.
“Remove her clothing. There are medical garbs and blankets in there,” he said, pointing at a cupboard in the corner.
The woman did not respond, and Opho frowned at the expression on her face.
“Are you a doctor?”
The challenge in her words was clear.
“Yes.”
Her sharp, green eyes looked him over, searching for some sign of deception.
He did his best to ignore how her gaze scanned his body, and resisted the urge to do the same to her.
Without another word, she walked over to the cupboard, while he went and prepared the medical scanner.
Water dripped from his uniform jacket onto the equipment, pulling a frustrated growl from his throat.
Deciding to rid himself of the garment, he made quick work of the buttons, fighting to pull it off. He tossed it aside, hearing it hit the floor in the corner with a resounding plop.
“Mommy…”
Rose’s voice washed away his frustration as he turned around, briefly catching the woman looking at his back where his shirt still clung to him like a second skin.
“I’m here, Rosey. Mommy’s here,” the woman crooned, hurrying over to the girl’s side.
It took some time to get her dry and warm; Opho patiently answering all of the woman’s very specific questions about the medical equipment he was using and causing suspicions to form in his mind.
The water that had remained in her lungs was removed easily enough courtesy of Debir technology and it was only when Rose was fast asleep on
the bed that the woman allowed herself to be seen to.