The Alien Assassin’s Stolen Bride

by Michele Mills

  She pursed her lips. “Earth girls aren’t easy,” she quipped.

  His mate seemed unhappy and Heriot did not know why.

  And what did that mean—Earth girls aren’t easy? Easy to lift? His female was light.

  Her lips were a thin, straight line. She stood up immediately and turned her back on him.

  His mind returned slowly from chaos, pain and desire, back to his mission, his hit. His cock was no longer enflamed and was now the normal color of his skin. All of his painful rashes were retreating. This abatement was temporary, but he’d take any reprieve he could get. It would allow him the time needed to complete his mission.

  He tucked his cock back inside of his trousers and picked up the human clothing and pulled it back over his torso.

  Then he glanced at his female. She had turned back to him now and was quietly watching as he adjusted his clothes. A tenderness he’d never felt towards another female (besides his own mother) bled through his heart. A worry over her contentment.

  Didn’t his female require release, too? He’d been relieved this way in the past by pleasure mates, but this was nothing compared to the effect of his truemate. Shooting his seed with the touch and lips of his true mate, it the hardest orgasm of his life.

  “You look better already,” she remarked.

  He stared at his female, wishing he could have her naked in his bed at home. Hating the fact that he’d had to rut with his own mate while in hiding, like a puberty-struck R’Etor dealing with his first flush.

  He reached out and placed his hands on her soft shoulders. She was stiff in his arms. “Female, do you require relief?”

  “Relief?”

  He reached down and cupped her mound over her clothing. “I want to taste you here. Lick you until you come on my face and scream my name and I have to reach up and cover your mouth to keep you silent.”

  “Oh my God.”

  He licked her neck, loving the taste of her skin. She sighed and trembled in his arms.

  “No,” she whispered, and stepped back. “No,” she repeated, more firmly. “I was happy to help you, but you don’t need to do…any of that.”

  He wanted to give his mate the same intense orgasm she’d given him. But she was saying no? “Why do you not want this? I can smell your desire. This must make you uncomfortable. Allow me to relieve you in the way you did for me.”

  Her cheeks darkened to a lovely shade of flush. “I…I just don’t, okay? I’m fine, don’t worry.”

  “Hannah.”

  “I need time to think about what you said. About how you want me to leave with you and live on your planet. That’s a big deal, right? Don’t you see that’s a big deal?”

  It was?

  “You don’t see it. Well, it was a big deal. It kinda ruined the moment for me. Ordering someone to leave their home planet, it’s a big deal, even if you don’t realize it.” And then she sat down on the low wall and put her face in her hands.

  He sat next to her. He’d checked this location prior to pulling her inside. A drone flew above, assuring their privacy. Heriot took one of her hands in his and threaded his fingers through hers. Both her scent and touch were a calming mechanism against the roaring beat of “claim, claim, claim” that clamored within his mind and body.

  For the first time in his lifespan a female was staying with him after release, speaking to him. He usually returned the favor, making sure the R’Etor female had her orgasm, and then the female always immediately left. None had ever wanted to stay and…talk.

  He had no idea how to comfort his female. The words he’d spoken in a moment of passion were still the truth. She was leaving with him at the end of this mission. Whether he had to steal her or if she left of her own volition, the outcome would be the same. This human female was his and she was returning with him to R’Etor to be his true mate.

  She lifted her head. “Heriot.”

  “Yes?”

  She sighed and sat up, continuing to clasp his hand. “Let’s get back to talking about your mission. You need to get back to business, right, and take out your target?”

  He straightened. Yes, yes, he did need to get back to business.

  “I want T’Antor caught and punished as much as you do. So, let’s get back to that. Tell me everything. Please, I need to understand better what’s going on. Start at the beginning.”

  He squeezed her hand, pleased to know his female was so inquisitive. “You are my truemate,” he began, starting with the most important fact.

  “You’ve said that to me many times now, but what exactly does that mean?”

  He blinked and nodded. This female was different than any he’d ever met. She wanted to know him better. His chest tightened. He cleared his throat. “On R’Etor it means we will be together for our mutual lifespans. I scented you before you stepped onto the transportation vehicle. Your pheromones instantly entered my body and lit my mating receptors. It was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I’ve been told by other mated males that knowing when you’ve found your truemate is instantaneous. But it was still surprising. You are mine, and I am yours and we cannot now be separated. At the end of this mission you will leave Earth and return with me to R’Etor to live out your lifespan and bear our younglings.”

  His mate frowned. She bent her head for a moment, processing what he’d said. Long, smooth, flush-colored hair created a shroud around her features. Finally, she looked back up at him. He swept vivid strands of her shiny hair over her ear, unable to keep his hands off of that tempting mix of sex appeal and wonderous color. He waited, giving her time to speak.

  “So I’m different,” she responded. “I’m not just a female you desire, so your body is reacting, forcing you to want to mate me. I’m your truemate, sort of like…you, you think we’re married now?”

  “If married means that you are my mate for life, then yes, we are married.”

  She blinked and pursed her lips. “That’s not how we do this on Earth,” she said. “We get to know each other first, over many months, and then eventually a man asks a woman to marry him, to be his mate, and he puts a ring on her finger and then they get married.”

  He snorted, trying not to laugh over ridiculous human customs. He had a mission to complete and a Bride to steal. “I do not have time to perform lengthy human mating rituals. You are mine. We are truemates.”

  She blew out a breath. “So, you just expect me to drop everything in my life, leave my planet and all I’ve ever known and live with you on your alien world? Forever?” she asked.

  He smiled, happy to see she was beginning to understand. “Yes.”

  “I…but…oh, whatever, we’ll argue about that later. We’re wasting time here. Tell me more about T’Antor and what he’s done and why you’re looking for him.”

  He quietly explained everything to her. The contract. His mission. How his brother was hunting T’Antor’s brother in New Mexico. How T’Antor had a scanner too and they were both trying to pinpoint the exact location of the Illibrium.

  “So basically, we’re on this hilltop, playing a game of who can find the Illibrium first?” she remarked.

  “Yes,” he answered, “and when I find the Illibrium I’m also going to eliminate my target.”

  “You’re here to kill T’Antor and make sure he doesn’t get any of this crystal you say is super dangerous?”

  “Yes. Kill him; destroy the crystal.”

  “And meanwhile, you had no idea you’d meet me and discover I was your…mate?”

  He smiled. “That was an added bonus.”

  “And you’ve accidentally broken and lost your supply of the antidote that abates pigment transformation, so you’ll have to suffer through that while you’re chasing T’Antor.”

  “Yes, you explained that well. That is exactly my predicament.”

  Her lips twisted. “I’m kinda embarrassed at how T’Antor tricked me. I’d like to think my Spidey-senses are pretty good when it comes to sniffing out men who don’t have the best
intentions, but I thought he was okay because he convinced me he was Ron’s friend.”

  “Hannah, he’s a professional thief. A con artist. This is what he does and he’s very good at it. He tricks R’Etor citizens, making them think he’s innocent and trustworthy, right before he steals all of their currency and burns their domicile to the ground.”

  She let go of his hand and stood up. “Okay,” she said with a crisp, tight voice, using her hands to brush off the front of her pants. “Let’s get going. We need to find T’Antor and this Illibrium.”

  8

  Heriot enjoyed this side of his female—all business.

  “There’s our group again. Darn it, we missed the tour of all the guest houses, but we can catch up with them before they step into the main building. Let’s go.”

  His cock twitched in his trousers, already stirring back to life at her intensity, her focus. These were the hallmarks of a good assassin. Heriot exhaled, trying to calm his raging hormones. But it was difficult. His truemate’s sexual appeal was staggering.

  His female took a deep breath. “I can do this,” she muttered to herself. Then she grabbed his hand and they walked to the edge of the group and rejoined their original tour. A few of the humans turned their heads and looked at them with surprise. Some snickered. He did not care. They were civilians. Beneath his notice.

  He placed his hand on Hannah’s back, needing the connection. She glanced up and gave him a tremulous smile. Warmth bloomed in his chest, and every protective instinct he’d never had until now, doubled in capacity.

  They were now standing in an open square in the middle of the estate, the large ornate doors of the main building in front of them. The tour guide spoke, explaining details of the façade and what they would be seeing inside. Heriot looked around and up at the building with twin bell towers jutting up into the blue sky. He glanced around to the blooming foliage spread all around. Beyond that was a view that stretched across the hills to the ocean and the horizon.

  He shrugged.

  “I can’t believe you’re not impressed with this place,” his female whispered. “This is one of the most beautiful spots on Earth. It’s a representation of the best of my world. Art from all over the planet. The gardens, the architecture are the best of the best. And you’re just blowing it off like it’s nothing, which, you know, hurts a little. I feel like I’m standing on a slice of heaven,” she said. “Can you smell that? The jasmine? The gardens are filled with so many flowers in bloom the air is like a soft perfume.”

  It was pleasant enough.

  The guide led them all around the right side of the main building, to a smaller door, and gestured for the humans to enter. Good, he could start looking for the Illibrium inside, which was where he expected to find it.

  “Can you believe this?” she continued to whisper. “This place is called a castle, so I bet before people come here to visit they think it’s going to be a gray stone castle, like in Europe, but it’s actually a collection of five buildings made to look like we’re in a village on the Mediterranean. This place is an art and history mashup of Medieval and Renaissance Europe, and the California coast in the 1920s and 30s.”

  He shrugged again, not even needing to look around. “R’Etor is better.”

  She cocked her head to the side, her bright blue eyes narrowing with suspicion.

  “You don’t believe me?” he questioned.

  “I’d say you’re biased.”

  He looked both ways for an all-clear and pulled out his tablet. “Look,” he said, showing her a picture of his home.

  Her lips parted, and a wide smile spread across her face. “It’s like a golden castle in a magical, snow-filled valley.” She looked up at him. “Heriot, that’s not real.”

  “It is.”

  “It’s too beautiful to be real.”

  He grinned. “This is my home. You will love it there. The air, water and soil are clean.”

  She handed the tablet back to him and averted her gaze. “This is nice, but I’m not leaving,” she responded. “I’m happy we’re together while you’re here, and I want to help you, but I can’t leave. I live here. This is my home.”

  His chest tightened. He hated hearing this from his mate. His mind began racing, searching again for the right words and actions to convince her to peacefully leave this planet with him, so he wasn’t forced to drug her and steal her away.

  Because he would. He so would.

  “You are my mate,” he replied. “You will leave with me because we belong together.”

  “I’m not leaving with you.”

  “You are.”

  “I’m not.”

  “Shhh,” an older mated female wearing a red hat hissed. “I paid for this tour,” she gritted. “I know the two of you think you’ve got more important things going on, but the rest of us want to listen.”

  Hannah glanced over and gave Heriot a rueful smile. “Sorry,” she mouthed.

  Later, while the group listened to boring human-speak from their guide about dead humans he had no interest in, Heriot was fuming over the glacial speed of this mission. He’d been able to visually inspect two large rooms so far and scan one object he thought might possibly hide the Illibrium, without the humans noticing. But this was not enough. The domicile was very large, he needed to be able to move freely…

  And then his mate rammed a painful elbow into his side. “Oh my God,” she hissed. “That’s him. Look, it’s T’Antor!”

  Heriot turned around quickly.

  T’Antor passed by at a distance, walking with another group to a different location in the main building. Heriot made eye contact with his target. The asshole lifted his hand and placed a thumb under his top teeth and flicked him off and kept striding away. Heriot’s jaw clenched. He was so going to love taking this fool out.

  “Why isn’t he flushed?” his female asked. “Shouldn’t pigment transformation be affecting him, too? It had already started for him when we were on the bus. You said it happened if a male of your species feels desire for a human woman. Well, come on, from right here I can see two beautiful young women wearing way-too-short dresses in the same group as T’Antor. Don’t tell me he doesn’t desire them or any number of other women walking around out here. He doesn’t have me anymore to use to force mate… Didn’t you say his symptoms were supposed to get worse and worse? I mean, I know why you aren’t flushed anymore, but he should still be in the midst of it, right? It should be hitting him hard.”

  Heriot took a deep, calming breath. He knew exactly why T’Antor wasn’t flushed anymore.

  “Heriot, did you hear me? Why isn’t he…?”

  He watched his mate and could see the moment she made the connection.

  “No,” she gasped, her eyes wide with horror. “No! He found a different woman to force mate, didn’t he? He’s raped someone here while taking a tour on the hilltop? Oh my God. Do you think…do you think he killed her?”

  “Yes.” It was logical assumption. T’Antor couldn’t leave a witness behind.

  “Yes? Holy shit! We need to stop this guy before he rapes and kills another woman. Let’s go!”

  She pulled his arm and he followed her down a hall, towards the room T’Antor’s group had disappeared into. Heriot stopped and shook his head.

  “This is not the most logical course of action,” he said. “I need to continue scanning for Illibrium to complete my mission.”

  “But shouldn’t we follow T’Antor? Don’t we need to protect other women, make sure he’s not hurting anyone while he’s up here?”

  He crossed his arms over his chest. “I am not law enforcement or military. I am here to assassinate my target. That is all.”

  “What? So, you don’t give a shit if he rapes twenty women here on Earth before you happen to find the time to take him out? Come on, you were pretty intent on making sure he didn’t rape me. Why do you suddenly not care if it happens to other women?”

  “You are my mate, they aren’t.”

&
nbsp; “Oh Christ. You know that’s wrong, don’t you? Totally wrong.”

  “I am an assassin,” he reminded her.

  “You’re not helping me to want to be with you, you know. Why would I want to leave my planet and go live with a mate who doesn’t protect others? So what, you’re just an indiscriminate murderer? A killer for hire?” Her eyes watered.

  He lifted his chin. “I am the best assassin on R’Etor. Heriot & Jadzion is the most profitable assassination business on R’Etor, with the highest kill ratio.”

  She threw her hands up. “Oh great. On your planet, you’re the top bad guy? The villain. You’re the antagonist…I’m not sure if I want to be an assassin’s Bride.”

  Her words hit like a blade twisting in his heart. His truemate was considering rejection? Heriot reached out and cupped her chin. “I only want you,” he said, his voice heavy with the emotions he carried inside. “I am a killer for hire. I’ve never cared about beings other than my brother and my mother. But what I care about most in the universe is now right here, before me.”

  Her jaw clenched, and she blew out a breath. “But, Heriot, I can’t stand by and be with a man who hurts other people and is a blight upon the universe and look the other way.”

  “I will kill any R’Etor who tries to touch you. I will always protect you and keep you safe until my last breath, know that.”

  His mate stepped closer, her pheromones slamming him with that insistent nag of desire.

  “Thank you,” she said. “That’s great. But still—”

  “And also, I can smell your desire. You cannot keep your hands off of me.”

  It was true. His Bride was even now, standing with her arms around his waist, her hands trying to slip underneath his shirt and touch his skin.

  Her cheeks darkened with that partial flush he loved. “Oh damn,” she sighed. “This isn’t fair. I can’t think clearly when you’re near me.”

  “I will kiss you and remind you of why you want to mate with an assassin.”

  “No.” She shook her head and stepped back away from him. A rueful smile played across her perfect lips. He felt the loss of her touch immediately. “No.” She put her palms up. “I need to keep my head in the game.”