by Anna Zaires
No wonder she’d felt like a zombie during those seven weeks in New York. She’d been trying to resurrect the old Emily instead of coming to terms with the person she’d become.
They walked in companionable silence until they reached the lake. It was hot and humid, and when they got to the clear water, they both gladly dove in, swimming for well over an hour until Emily got tired.
“Will I be stronger when I have the nanocytes?” she asked, holding on to Zaron’s shoulders as he swam toward the shore, towing her on his back from the middle of the lake without any sign of exertion. “Will I be able to keep up with you in this and other activities?”
“No, I’m afraid not,” he said, stopping and bringing her around to face him. His strong legs scissored in the water below to keep them both afloat. “You won’t age or get sick, but you’ll still be human, with all that it implies. But because the nanocytes will rapidly heal all damage inflicted on your cells, no matter how minute, you’ll recover faster from intense exercise and will have greater endurance. So if you exercise a lot, you could become as strong and fit as any of your top athletes in a much shorter period of time.”
“Oh, wow.” Just thinking about that made Emily’s heart beat faster with excitement. “I can’t wait.”
“You won’t have to wait long,” Zaron said, a warm smile appearing on his lips. “You’re getting the nanocytes tonight.”
And drawing her to him, he kissed her with such passion she was surprised the water didn’t boil around them.
Chapter Forty
“Are you ready?” Zaron asked, holding Emily’s hand. He could see the fear in her eyes, but she lifted her chin and smiled brightly.
“Yes, of course.”
“Good.” Zaron gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, then turned to face Ellet. “Is everything set?”
The human biology expert nodded. “I’ve run the simulations, and everything is ready to go. Emily, I’ll be putting you under now, okay?”
“Okay.” Emily’s smile dimmed slightly, her hand tensing in Zaron’s grasp. “It’ll be just for a short while, right?”
“Yes, don’t worry.” Ellet approached her with a small jansha-like device. “It’ll feel just like a dream.”
“Okay, then, go for it,” Emily said, and Ellet pressed the device against her neck. Instantly, Emily’s hand went slack in Zaron’s hold, her eyes closing as she fell into a drugged sleep.
“Everything is normal,” Ellet said, switching the jansha-like device for a more sophisticated nanocyte-dispersion tool, and Zaron realized some of his worry must’ve shown on his face. He knew the procedure was safe—it had been done to humans for thousands of years—but it still made him uneasy to see Emily like this: unconscious and acutely vulnerable.
It reminded him of how she’d been in those first couple of days in his house, when she’d been healing from her fall.
Of course, this wasn’t his house. It was Ellet’s new lab in Lenkarda, a place equipped with the latest Krinar medical technology. Even the most basic device here was infinitely more advanced than anything Zaron had at home.
That knowledge should’ve calmed him, but the anxiety remained, gnawing at him like a parasite. The risk of something going wrong during the procedure was about the same as that of the world ending tomorrow, but that didn’t lessen his irrational worry. If anything happened to Emily… No. He couldn’t think that way.
He couldn’t let fear dictate the course of their relationship again.
“You love her, don’t you?” Ellet asked as the procedure continued, and Zaron tore his eyes from Emily long enough to glance at the Krinar woman and nod tersely.
“Of course I do,” he said, his voice tight. “Why else do you think I’m here?”
Ellet smiled, her hazel eyes filled with gentle encouragement. “It’ll be all right. You’ll see,” she said, and he knew she wasn’t just talking about the procedure.
“I know.” Turning his attention back to Emily, Zaron stroked the inside of her palm with his thumb. “I know that.”
And he did. Losing Emily would always be his greatest nightmare, but he’d never let that drive them apart again.
Their time together was too precious for that.
Emily’s hand twitched in his grasp, yanking Zaron out of his thoughts, and he realized she was already waking up.
“It’s all good,” Ellet said when he glanced at her in concern. “The nanocytes are in place and functioning as intended. Here, I can show you.” She reached for a small knife, likely intending to scratch Emily to prove her point, but Zaron caught her arm before she could get anywhere near Emily’s skin.
“Don’t,” he said harshly. He knew he was being insanely overprotective, but he couldn’t bear the thought of Emily getting injured in any way.
Nobody would ever hurt her on his watch.
Ellet looked startled but recovered quickly. “Of course, whatever you wish.” Pulling her arm out of his grasp, she put the knife back on the floating table. “She wouldn’t have felt it—she’s still a little numb—but if you don’t want me to do it, I won’t.”
“That’s right.” Zaron’s muscles were coiled tight. “I don’t want you to do it.”
“Zaron?” Emily’s voice was soft and sleepy-sounding, but it acted on him like a lightning bolt. His attention instantly snapped back to her, his hand tightening around her slender palm.
“I’m here, angel,” he said, watching her eyes flutter open. “How are you feeling?”
“Um…” Looking disoriented, she tried to sit up, and Zaron helped her, wrapping his arm around her back. Her long hair tickled his face, the soft blond strands silky and fragrant, and he inhaled deeply, drawing in her delicate scent before pulling back to meet her gaze.
“I don’t feel any different,” Emily said, blinking at him in confusion, and Zaron smiled, joyous relief filling his chest.
The procedure had gone well. His angel would be healthy for centuries and millennia to come.
“You’re not supposed to feel any different,” Ellet said as Zaron lifted Emily into his arms. “At least not right away. Over time, you’ll notice some improvements. You won’t get colds, for instance, and if you ever injure yourself, you’ll heal faster.”
“Thank you, Ellet,” Zaron said, regretting his harshness with her earlier. “I really appreciate it.”
“My pleasure,” she said with a warm smile, and Zaron headed out, holding Emily cradled against his chest.
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George greeted them with a loud meow as they entered the house, and Zaron carefully placed Emily on her feet, letting her walk on her own. She no longer looked woozy, but she was a little quiet, and he knew she was still recovering from the procedure.
He let her pet George for a couple of minutes, and then he couldn’t wait anymore.
“Come,” he said, taking her arm and leading her to the bedroom.
“Again?” she asked, her eyes wide. “But we just had sex before dinner.”
“I know,” Zaron said, pulling off her dress. His body hardened at the sight of her slim, naked curves, but sex wasn’t what he was after—not at this moment, at least. Removing his own clothes, he picked Emily up and placed her on the bed, then lay down next to her, pulling her into his embrace.
Understanding what he wanted, she nestled against him, laying her head on his shoulder and draping her leg over his thighs. Her breasts were soft and full against his side, her body fitting against his like she’d been made for him. Ignoring the lust lashing at his body, Zaron held her tight and let himself feel the dizzying perfection of simply being with her… of loving her. Happiness, fragile but real, was within their grasp, and he was no longer afraid to reach for it. The pain of losing Larita would never go away completely—his former mate would always have a piece of his heart—but loving Emily made the grief bearable.
Loving Emily made his life worth living again.
“I love you, Zaron,” she whispered, lifting her head to gaze at him, an
d he smiled, knowing she’d somehow sensed the direction of his thoughts.
“I love you too, angel,” he said softly, looking into her bright, clear eyes. “You’re mine—now and for all eternity.”
Epilogue
Ten Months Later
“Are you okay?” Zaron asked, his dark eyes trained on her face, and Emily nodded, though her heart was jackrabbiting in her throat. George meowed in her arms, so she bent down to put him on the floor. The cat instantly jumped up onto a floating plank—his new favorite piece of furniture—and started licking his paw, displaying none of the nervousness Emily was feeling.
The last year had been utterly surreal, but the adventure she was embarking on now superseded her wildest imaginings. In less than two minutes, the Krinar spaceship they were on would leave the Earth orbit, carrying Emily, Zaron, George, and hundreds of Krinar scientists to Krina.
In less than two minutes, Emily and her cat would be on their way to their new home in a different galaxy.
Zaron had gotten the three of them a private room near the hull of the ship—so Emily would have the best views, he’d explained. From the outside, the bullet-shaped ship didn’t look particularly futuristic, but inside, it was like Zaron’s house on steroids. Everything was light and airy, filled with floating furniture, exotic-looking plants, and intelligent Krinar technology. The best thing of all was that the outer walls were transparent from within, enabling Emily to see Earth from an astronaut’s vantage point.
Turning, she stared at the pretty blue ball that was the birthplace of humanity. “You said we’ll fly at subluminal speeds at first, right?” she said, tearing her eyes away from the mind-blowing view to glance up at Zaron. “We won’t go straight into the warp jump, correct?”
“That’s right,” he confirmed, his beautiful lips curving in a smile. “We’ll first spend several days flying away from Earth. That’s to avoid causing disturbances when we warp space-time.”
“Okay, got it. Just a little run-of-the-mill warping of space-time. No biggie,” Emily said, trying not to sound as anxious as she felt. “It will be just like going for a walk.”
“It will be,” Zaron promised, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “You’ll adapt to space travel just as well as you’ve adapted to everything else.”
His words—and the warm look in his eyes—calmed her a bit. Zaron was right: Emily had acclimated to her new life with him with surprising ease. Far from missing New York and her career in finance, she’d thrived in Costa Rica. Within a month, she’d grown as comfortable with basic Krinar applications as she’d been with human technology, and with the aid of a neural language implant—which she’d gotten a week after her nanocytes—Emily had spent the last ten months learning everything she could about Krinar science and society.
Her knowledge base had grown so rapidly she was seriously considering exploring her childhood dream of being a scientist.
She’d expected Zaron to laugh when she’d mentioned the idea, but he’d been overjoyed and had immediately set out to teach her all about the different species of plants and animals on Krina. His passion had been so infectious that Emily was now thinking about being a biologist like him.
“You don’t have to decide now,” Zaron had said when she’d told him about that idea. “In fact, you don’t have to decide at all. Many of us dabble in different fields, and you can too. It’s all up to you. I know that whatever you choose to do, you’ll be successful at it.”
It was that kind of encouragement and unwavering support from Zaron that had given Emily the courage to agree to move with him to Krina. Zaron had been offered a new research opportunity there, and he was looking forward to reconnecting with his family and mending the rift between them—something Emily very much approved of. It had bothered her that Zaron had parents who loved him, yet he was estranged from them. She’d encouraged him to make up with them, even though she’d worried they might disapprove of his relationship with her. However, Zaron had spoken to them in virtual reality last month, telling them all about her, and he’d told her afterwards that nobody had a problem with her being human. They were all eager to meet her, he’d said, and Emily was now excited to meet them. Still, she was more than a little nervous about leaving Earth.
It didn’t help that her friend Amber had told her she was being insane.
“You’re already living next door to an alien colony—with an alien,” she’d hissed at Emily when they’d met in person in New York last month. “And now you’re thinking of going to Krina? What the fuck are you going to do there? You don’t even speak their language!”
Emily couldn’t tell Amber that, thanks to the language implant, she did speak Krinar, so she’d kept quiet and Amber had railed on, making all kinds of dire predictions about Emily’s fate on Krina. Emily had taken her warnings with a grain of salt; like most people in the wake of the Great Panic, Amber feared the Krinar so much she’d refused to meet Zaron. Unfortunately, Emily couldn’t dismiss her friend’s concerns out of hand, either.
Not all Krinar were as enlightened in their attitude toward humans as Zaron; that was why she’d been worried about Zaron’s family. Even in Lenkarda, where most residents had spent time among humans, Emily had encountered quite a few Ks who seemed to regard her as a cross between Zaron’s pet and sexual possession.
If she hadn’t been certain that Zaron both loved and respected her, she wouldn’t have agreed to go to Krina.
“Angel…” Zaron framed her face with his palms, and the heated intensity in his gaze chased away the anxiety that had swept through her again. “You have nothing to worry about. I’m with you, and I won’t let anything happen to you, okay?”
“Okay,” Emily whispered, further reassured by his words, and Zaron wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pressing her against his side as a soft chime sounded, marking the start of the ship’s journey.
Mesmerized, Emily stared through the transparent wall as the ship began moving, carrying them away from Earth. The pretty blue ball that was her home planet was getting smaller with each second, but the journey ahead no longer frightened Emily. Whatever the future held, she’d face it together with the man who embraced her with such tender possessiveness, the Krinar who’d saved her life and captured her heart.
She was with Zaron, and that was all that mattered.
THE END
Thank you for reading! If you would consider leaving a review, it would be greatly appreciated.
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While Emily & Zaron’s story is complete, there are other books set in this universe, including a complete trilogy featuring Mia and Korum (please click HERE). You can also check out Swept Away, a short novella about Arus and Delia’s meeting in Ancient Greece (click HERE), and The X-Club, a short erotic story featuring one journalist’s encounter with a K (click HERE).
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I also write dark, sexy contemporaries. If you haven’t read Nora & Julian’s story, I encourage you to try the Twist Me trilogy (please click HERE). There’s also a parallel dark romance series with Lucas & Yulia called Capture Me, and you can get the entire box set by clicking HERE.
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If you’d like to be notified when the next book is out, please sign up for my new release email list at www.annazaires.com.
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Additionally, if you like audiobooks, please click HERE to check out this series and our other books.
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And now please turn the page for a little taste of Close Liaisons, Twist Me, and Capture Me.
Excerpt from Close Liaisons
Author’s Note: Close Liaisons is the first book in the Krinar Chronicles trilogy. All three books are now available.
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A dark and edgy romance that will appeal to fans of erotic and turbulent relationships…
In the near future, the Krinar rule the Earth. An advanced race from another galaxy, they are still a mystery to us—and we are completely at their mercy.
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&
nbsp; Shy and innocent, Mia Stalis is a college student in New York City who has led a very normal life. Like most people, she's never had any interactions with the invaders—until one fateful day in the park changes everything. Having caught Korum's eye, she must now contend with a powerful, dangerously seductive Krinar who wants to possess her and will stop at nothing to make her his own.
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How far would you go to regain your freedom? How much would you sacrifice to help your people? What choice will you make when you begin to fall for your enemy?
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Breathe, Mia, breathe. Somewhere in the back of her mind, a small rational voice kept repeating those words. That same oddly objective part of her noted his symmetric face structure, with golden skin stretched tightly over high cheekbones and a firm jaw. Pictures and videos of Ks that she’d seen had hardly done them justice. Standing no more than thirty feet away, the creature was simply stunning.
As she continued staring at him, still frozen in place, he straightened and began walking toward her. Or rather stalking toward her, she thought stupidly, as his every movement reminded her of a jungle cat sinuously approaching a gazelle. All the while, his eyes never left hers. As he approached, she could make out individual yellow flecks in his light golden eyes and the thick long lashes surrounding them.
She watched in horrified disbelief as he sat down on her bench, less than two feet away from her, and smiled, showing white even teeth. No fangs, she noted with some functioning part of her brain. Not even a hint of them. That used to be another myth about them, like their supposed abhorrence of the sun.