Worlds Apart (Men of Orion Book 1)

by Laylah Roberts

  Kalia couldn’t see Talon’s other father. Talon had explained that even though he knew who his biological father was, he still thought of both men as his fathers.

  The woman looked over at them, her smile growing broad as she stepped toward them.

  “Garret,” she said warmly, holding her arms open.

  Garret walked over, giving her a brief hug before she turned to the other members of the team, greeting each of them by name. It was obvious they were all fond of her and soon Kalia found herself standing like the odd woman out, unsure what to do.

  Garret turned, looking over at her. He frowned and immediately walked back toward her.

  “What are you doing over here by yourself?”

  “Giving you all a chance to get reacquainted,” she said. There was a loud cry and she glanced over as a gorgeous woman threw herself into Talon’s arms, kissing him full on the lips.

  “Who the hell is that?” Kalia asked.

  Garret scowled, growling quietly. “That’s Sheena.”

  “Why is she kissing Talon?” Kalia said as Talon pulled the other woman off, setting her on her feet away from him. Just as well, Kalia thought grumpily. She studied the other woman, who had at least six inches on her. Her body was sleek with muscle, graceful, beautiful.

  “You must be Kalia.” Suddenly Talon’s mother was standing in front of her and Kalia blushed as she realized she’d been glaring over at the bitch who was standing far too close to Talon.

  “Kalia, it’s so lovely to meet you,” Talon’s mother said warmly.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am,” Kalia said, holding out her hand with a smile.

  “Oh, please, call me Arina,” she said with a laugh. Ignoring the hand Kalia held out, she drew her into her arms. “We’re a touchy-feely people,” she said, pulling back. “It still makes Garret uncomfortable.”

  Garret grunted, but Kalia could see his lips twitching.

  “Yes, I can see that you are,” Kalia said coldly as she watched Sheena cuddle up to Talon’s side as he talked to his father.

  Arina sighed. “I’m afraid Sheena still isn’t over Talon. She always dreamed about mating with him. She thought he would take over leadership from my Cain, but that wasn’t Talon’s path. Talon knew as soon as he met Garret that he was the one for him and now he’s met you.”

  Arina sent her a warm smile that she couldn’t resist returning. She might have been intimidated before, but Arina had a way of putting her at ease.

  “Come meet my mate,” Arina said, taking her hand. “Our other mate, Ruthen, will join us soon. He’s at the next village over, attending a birth. He is a respected healer. I can’t believe I’m finally going to be a grandmother.”

  “Oh, umm, you know it’s not Talon’s or Garret’s?” Kalia said hesitantly. Surely, Talon had told her that.

  “That’s where you’re wrong, honey,” Arina told her. “You’re going to be Talon and Garret’s mate. Your baby will be theirs. Cain, come meet your son’s mate-to-be.”

  Talon’s father turned, a smile easing the sternness of his face. Talon and Sheena turned as well. A cold look filled the woman’s face before she quickly smothered it. But Kalia saw the look and the way Garret stiffened beside her, so had he.

  Talon moved toward them. He placed his arm around her shoulders.

  “Father, meet Kalia. Kalia, my father, Cain.”

  “Nice to meet you,” she said.

  “And you, Kalia.” He pulled her in for a hug, his arms surprisingly gentle.

  “Come, you must be dying for some real food,” Arina said, putting her hand through Talon’s arm.

  “I know I am,” Ace said, rubbing his stomach. “I’m starving.”

  “When aren’t you hungry, Ace?” Arina said with a laugh.

  ***

  “I told you that you didn’t have to worry,” Talon said, pulling Kalia against him as they lay on the large bed. Garret was stripping off his clothes. “They adore you.”

  “They’re lovely people,” she said. She meant every word. Talon’s parents were everything she’d ever wished her own parents to be. Loving, supportive and it was obvious that they adored their son, as well as all his crew mates.

  “Do you visit here often?” she asked as Garret joined them. They were in a surprisingly comfortable cabin. She’d half-expected to find they lived in tents or caves.

  “As often as we can,” Talon told her. “The others have all been adopted by my family.”

  Talon snuggled in behind her, inhaling her scent. “The ceremony has been set for tomorrow night. Tomorrow afternoon my mother and some of the women will steal you away to prepare you for the two of us.”

  “Prepare me?”

  “Yes, nothing scary. They’ll bathe you, dress you, and probably try to give you some advice. I promise my mother will be with you at all times.”

  “Okay then.”

  “How about we get some sleep?” Garret said. “It’s going to be a long day tomorrow and you need your rest.”

  She leaned forward and kissed him. “Love you.” Without waiting, she turned and kissed Talon.

  “Love you.”

  “Love you too, darlin’.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Kalia turned as there was a knock on the cabin door. She’d come back to the cabin after lunch to get some rest but had found herself unable to get to sleep. There were too many things going on through her mind. Tonight, she was actually going to mate Talon and Garret.

  It was kind of surreal.

  She was nervous and impatient. She wanted to get to the part where they were joined and no one could separate them.

  Walking over to the door, she opened it to find a child standing there. She looked to be around ten or eleven. She smiled at Kalia shyly.

  “Hi, I’m Lia.”

  “Hi Lia. I’m Kalia.”

  “I know. Auntie Arina sent me to get you and bring you to the pools. The women are setting things up for you.”

  “Oh, okay. Do I need to bring anything?”

  The girl shook her head and held out her hand. Kalia took it.

  “Maybe I should tell Garret and Talon where I’m going.”

  “They already know.” She tugged on Kalia’s hand.

  “Okay, well, let’s go,” Kalia said, letting herself be tugged along. She followed Lia out of the village and along a path through the forest.

  “How far away are these pools?”

  “Not too much longer.”

  “What’s wrong?” a high-pitched voice asked. “Can’t get your fat ass up the path?”

  Kalia looked up, shocked at the nasty words. Sheena stepped into their path. Had she been waiting here for them? She was flanked by two women. One was slightly shorter and a bit on the chubby side. The other was extremely thin, to the point of being emaciated.

  “You don’t deserve him. You’re weak. Look at you, you’re out of breath from a short walk.”

  “Don’t talk to her like that,” Lia said, stepping in front of Kalia.

  Kalia appreciated the gesture, but considering how tiny the child was, she wasn’t going to be much help against the three women. If they decided to attack them, there wasn’t any way they could win.

  “What do you want?” Kalia asked.

  “For you to crawl back under whatever rock you came out from,” Sheena said with a sneer. “You’re not good enough for him. He needs someone strong, someone beautiful. Not a fat, frumpy cow.”

  “You do know I’m pregnant, right?” Kalia said with exasperation.

  “Trying to pawn another man’s child onto Talon. You ought to be ashamed. He needs a woman to give him his own offspring. He’s going to be the Alpha one day. He can’t be raising your dirty little bastard.”

  “Oh, now I get it,” Kalia said. “You’re insane.” She sent the other woman a false look of sympathy. “Did they let you out of the asylum for this ceremony? I mean, you have to be mad to actually believe any of that crap you’re spouting. Let me make this v
ery clear so someone as stupid as you can get it. Talon loves me. He’s mating me. Then we’re going to leave. He is not going to become the Alpha. He is not going to mate with you. He. Does. Not. Want. You.”

  “You bitch!” Sheena screamed and jumped toward her.

  Whoops, maybe she’d taken that a bit far. Kalia jumped out of the way, avoiding Sheena’s grasp.

  Sheena turned with a snarl. Her eyes glowed. Fuck, this was not going to end well.

  “Enough,” a sharp voice cut through the air. Everyone turned to find Arina standing further up the path, three women behind her. “What is going on here?”

  Sheena and the other two women started rapidly talking, complaining that Kalia had been rude, and demanding she be punished.

  “Quiet,” Arina said sharply. “Lia, come here.” The small girl stepped toward Talon’s mother. “Tell me what happened.”

  Arina sent Sheena a quelling look as she tried to protest.

  Lia began retelling everything almost word for word. Kalia blushed as Lia told Arina and the other women all of Sheena’s insults. Her cheeks grew even warmer as the young girl recited what Kalia had said back. She should have kept her mouth shut.

  “She lies,” Sheena said.

  Arina pierced her with a gaze. “My niece does not lie. You, Sheena, have caused enough trouble. The three of you will return to the village at once. You are confined to your cabins. If anyone asks why you will tell them that you have incurred my displeasure. I will deal with you later. After my son’s mating ceremony.”

  “But-but—” Sheena stumbled over her words, looking at the older woman in shock.

  “Now!” Arina thundered and the three women turned, racing back down the path.

  Kalia turned back to find Arina standing right beside her. She drew in a shocked breath. These people needed to wear bells or something.

  “Are you okay, Kalia?” Arina asked.

  Kalia put her hand against her chest, feeling her heart beating rapidly. “Yes. Although I do wish people would stop sneaking up on me.”

  Arina smiled gently. “Are you all right to continue on to the pools or would you rather go back to the cabin to rest?”

  “I’m fine. Umm, I’m sorry.”

  “For what?” Arina asked with sincerity.

  Kalia waved her hand. “For what just happened. I shouldn’t have spoken to Sheena like I did. I should have taken the higher road.”

  “Sweetheart, I’d worry about you if you didn’t fight back. That girl needs a reality check. I’m just sorry she did this on your special day. I hope she didn’t ruin things?”

  Kalia forced a smile. “Not at all. Please lead the way.”

  ***

  “Garret!”

  Garret turned to find Griz waving at him. He turned and walked toward the other man, who was striding toward him.

  “What’s going on?” Garret asked. “I was just about to go and get ready for the ceremony.”

  “Just heard from my contact on Tinus. We need to talk.” Griz looked grim.

  Garret nodded. “Come to my cabin.”

  Griz followed beside him as they swiftly made their way to Garret’s cabin. As Garret opened the door, Talon turned with a grin. His smile quickly faded as he saw the tense looks on Griz and Garret’s faces.

  “What is it?” he asked.

  “Let’s sit,” Griz said. They all sat around the small table. “I have a cousin who lives on Tinus. Apparently most people think that Kalia ran away in order to avoid the marriage her father arranged for her. My cousin managed to bribe one of the servants in the palace for some information. Her father’s assistant has a bit of a drinking problem. The servant got him talking before he passed out one night. Turns out that the assistant is scared of telling Lord Tinus that Kalia has gone missing. He’s hoping the slavers will find her.”

  “So they were paying the Roxan to hold onto her? Why?” Talon asked.

  Griz shook his head. “Don’t know.”

  “They must have paid Roxan a lot of money for him to chase after her,” Garret said. “Roxan won’t want it getting out that she escaped. We need to tell her about this.”

  “There’s more,” Griz said looking grim. “Because Kalia isn’t there to marry that asshole her father chose for her, he’s going to give him the younger sister.”

  “Gods.” Garret felt sick. “How old is the girl?”

  “Seventeen,” Griz said grimly. “Her intended groom is in his fifties. How could a man do that to his own daughter?”

  “He gave Kalia to slavers. He is capable of anything.”

  Garret felt his stomach tighten. “I need to find Kalia.” He needed to hold her.

  Talon grabbed hold of his arm. “The women should be bringing her back at any moment. I’ll send word to my fathers; get some men to surround my parents cabin, which is where they will take her. Do we have to tell her about all this tonight?”

  Garret looked over at Griz.

  “No, we’ll wait until tomorrow,” Garret said. “But then we need to tell her. She needs to know what’s going on.”

  “She’s going to want to help her sister,” Talon said.

  Garret nodded. Looked like they’d be making a trip to Tinus.

  ***

  Kalia looked over at the two men who were going to be hers. As she walked toward them, the long gown she wore brushed the ground. Looking down, she saw someone had placed rose petals on the ground.

  After the women had helped her bathe, much to her embarrassment, they’d brought her back to Talon’s parents cabin to dress her. She felt relaxed, beautiful and impatient to mate the two gorgeous men standing before her. Talon grinned at her, his love clear to see. Garret remained stoic, but he watched her with an intensity that made her shiver.

  When she reached them, they moved her between them. The two men kneeled and drew her down with them, supporting her.

  The priest stepped forward. She’d been introduced to him earlier. He had bright red hair, which he wore down his back in a large plait. “Please form a circle and hold wrists.” The priest moved around them, singing something in a language she couldn’t understand. Every so often he’d flick some liquid over the three of them.

  This continued on for at least five minutes. Then he stopped behind Talon.

  “Talon, son of Arina, Cain and Ruthen, and brother to the wolf, do you take this woman to be your mate. Do you promise to protect and cherish her, to love her forever?”

  “I do,” Talon replied, looking into her eyes.

  “Hold up your right wrist.” Talon raised his arm and the priest took out a small, ornamental dagger, slicing shallowly through Talon’s wrist. They’d warned her about this part, but it was still a shock to see the blood dripping down Talon’s arm.

  The priest moved behind Garret. “Garret, son of Jenna and Atticus, do you take this woman to be your mate. Do you promise to protect and cherish her, to love her forever?”

  “I do,” Garret said firmly, meeting her gaze.

  “Hold up your right wrist.” The priest quickly cut Garret’s wrist.

  The priest moved behind her.

  “Kalia, daughter of Beatrice and Barton, do you take Talon and Garret to be your mates? Do you promise to protect and cherish them, to love them forever?”

  “I do,” she said with conviction. She wanted this more than anything in the world.

  “Raise your right wrist.”

  Shaking, she raised her wrist. Luckily the priest was quick and it only stung slightly.

  “Put your wrists together.”

  She placed her right wrist against Garret and Talon’s. Their blood mingled together and as the priest spoke some more words, Kalia felt something tingle in her stomach, bubbling through her body. She swayed as everything around her grew darker, dots dancing in front of her eyes.

  Then she suddenly snapped back into reality. Taking a deep breath, she realised that she was now sitting on her butt on the ground. Talon and Garret were supporting her on either side.<
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  “Okay, baby?” Garret asked, brushing her hair back.

  She took a deep breath and nodded. They each kissed her before someone stepped forward to bandage each of their wrists.

  “I can’t believe we’re finally mated,” she whispered.

  “Believe it,” Talon said with a smile. “Can you feel us within you? Close your eyes and just feel.”

  She closed her eyes and there they were. Talon was ecstatic, happy and horny. She grinned. And Garret, he was happy, but it was more intense than that. He was fierce and she felt his love.

  Opening her eyes, she glanced up at him. “You love me.”

  He smiled. “I do. I’m not very good at talking about my feelings, but now you will always know how I feel about you.”

  “If you need to know how either of us feels you can just search inside you. How are you feeling?” Talon asked.

  “Good. A little shaky.”

  “They’re preparing a feast for us now,” Talon said. “How about you lie down for a bit and we’ll come get you when the food is ready?”

  “Will the two of you join me?” she asked.

  “You wouldn’t get much rest if we did,” Garret said in a low growl. “We’ll take you to the cabin and put in an appearance. Later, though, you’re both mine.”

  ***

  Kalia came awake with a gasp as a hand was pressed over her mouth. She grabbed the thick wrist, trying to push it away from her mouth. But the person trying to smother her was far stronger.

  She was dragged up and pulled back against a large body. She kicked back, desperately trying to free herself, but the person behind her didn’t budge. Another figure stepped in front of her, quickly gagging her before tying her wrists and ankles together.

  The person behind her picked her up in his arms and carried her quickly out of the cabin. She fought, but it was futile. Even knowing no one would hear her, she screamed.

  ***

  Garret dropped the plate he was holding and searched the crowd for Talon. Suddenly, Kalia’s terror filled him, nearly overwhelming him. He saw Talon’s face pale, his eyes widen as fear took hold. They both took off for their cabin.