I nodded.
A simulated banging sound made me jump on Eli’s lap and clutch at my stomach. It had come from outside of our shielding.
“That shouldn’t have been possible,” Drex said as he deactivated our privacy shield.
Sparrow stood on the other side of the door with Xavier behind her. “What are you doing?”
My cheeks heated.
“You told.”
“Sparrow….”
“No, I’m glad you did. Since Cormac and Rovek were there, I figured it was another one of their stupid Academy training missions. You can ask for help. You’ll probably have to do extra credit, though.”
“Technically, she was expelled, so I don’t see how it can hurt her scores,” Xavier said.
Sparrow said, “I made a decision on my own, too. Daddy is coming with us. I assigned him quarters. Okay?”
“Sure, he’s family.”
Sparrow looked at Xavier, Drex, and Eli. “My probes are in order and simple to operate. If you need my help, let me know. I’m bored with this project. All it consists of is monitoring. If you need a weapon built, let me know. I’ll blow up whoever started this shit. Come on, Teagan. I heard you’re having girls. I’m having a boy. Give me the baby clothes Niklos has outgrown so I don’t have to shop.” Taking my hand, she pulled me from Eli’s lap and out of the room.
We returned to my sitting room and found Neema sitting on the couch beside Yukihyo. A pout was on her face, her arms were crossed over her chest, and a stuffed bat was on the floor at her feet, having suffered her temper for the audacity of not being real. She started to open her mouth.
I held up my hand. “No. No bat. Forget it. We will look at the pets they have available for purchase in Chione’s market near the land port. A bat would be unhappy in space where we spend much of our time. Is that what you want?”
She frowned. “No, Neema wants…. I want to love it and make it happy.”
“Chirp.” Thunderdrop moved to her lap, blinked at her, and remained still while she stroked his back.
Peter gave a huge yawn from Zared’s chest where he was being cuddled. Niklos picked up the stuffed animal and placed it on the couch beside Neema. Then, Terre and Phillip walked in.
Phillip said, “We’re leaving? We just got here.”
Dario said, “If you wish to stay you may do so. Jazon and Tracy are staying to visit and have a stealth ship at their disposal. The Hadrian remains for the week.”
Terre shook her head. “The surface of this world isn’t compelling enough to entice me to stay. However, if we journey to Sinope, I would enjoy a lengthy visit.”
A few hours later, we were in orbit with our course set for Chione.
In the middle of the night, my dreams woke me up. They weren’t nefarious by any means, but they had been sent to me by my new, private nemesis, cravings. Sneaking out from between Yukihyo and Nico, I made my way into the kitchen. Violet, Sparrow, and Terre looked up at me with wide startled eyes, like racoons who I had caught foraging.
“You, too?” Violet asked.
I nodded and took a seat. Across the table was a smorgasbord of craving tamers. Olives, pickles, pastries, cheeses, meats, and containers of frozen ice cream made my mouth water. Sparrow passed me a spoon and a fork. It was just us at the table, and that meant freedom. I filled a bowl with chocolate ice cream and dropped a few cheese-filled olives on top, watching them slide down the creamy mound. It reminded me of sledding on Naxa. Smiling, I dove in. We were silent but for the soft clinking of spoons and forks to bowls and plates.
“Where did you get all of this? How did you hide it all from Phillip? He’d never approve of so much ice cream.”
Violet accidentally burped and scared us all. After a quiet laugh, Terre said, “On the contrary, when Phillip learned that I carry his son, all of the fight went out of him. He bought me everything I wanted and promised to keep his mouth shut.”
Violet chuckled. “Kaoti bought us additional supplies and has hidden them on the ship. We are having a son, too.”
“Does anyone know what Tracy is having?” I asked.
Someone walked into the kitchen. It was Xavier. He took out glasses, filled them with milk, and passed them around. “She is giving Jazon a son.”
Terre said, “Our children will have so much fun playing together. We should pitch in and purchase a merry-go-round like the one on the Galerius Estate.”
Each of us loved the idea.
I said, “With each of you having boys, we’ll need more baby clothes. I have lots, but probably not enough.”
“And, you will need two of everything, so Poppy and Neema’s things won’t do,” Violet said.
Dipping a pastry in mustard and wondering why I had never before considered doing such a thing, I asked, “Are any of you feeling scatterbrained? I’ve been having an increasingly difficult time concentrating.”
Terre said, “I seem to be more concerned with food and sleep than anything else.”
“It’s difficult to care about other matters, and it doesn’t bother me that I don’t care,” Sparrow said as she shrugged.
“So, it’s not just me?”
“Nope,” Violet said.
Our eyes all locked onto a bare-chested Phillip. Sleep still partially claimed him as he stood scratching his belly. None of us cared about his abdominal muscles. What worried us was the criticism we were expecting or to learn our feast had been a trap.
Picking up a few plain olives, I began pelting him with them. “Out. Out. Be gone.”
Phillip reacted to each of the cold, wet hits by flinching and trying to get away from them. “Cupcake, relax. I just came out here in search of my wife and son.” Somehow, he had managed to catch each of the olives, popped them each into his mouth, and made a face while he chewed. “Gross.”
Violet gaped at him. “They are not gross.”
Terre said, “I’m glad you don’t care for them. It means more for us.” Coming closer, he kneeled at her feet. She ran her hands through his blonde hair.
Phillip put his arms around her and kissed her nightgown-covered stomach. “Are you full? Do you need me to make you something?”
Amused at our expressions of disbelief that she had in fact tamed and nullified the cranky doctor and his nutritional madness, she said, “Your son has been satisfied. Take me to our bed.”
Phillip blew a raspberry on her stomach which made her laugh and kick up her feet. Catching them, he tickled their bottoms. Terre’s laughter filled the kitchen.
“Phillip!”
He growled in response, like a bear. “Now, daddy’s hungry,” he said as he lifted her with her legs around his waist and carried her away while nibbling at her neck.
Xavier raised a questioning eyebrow at Sparrow. She said, “No, I’m going back to sleep.” Yawning, she went to the sink to wash her hands.
“Me, too,” Violet said.
Soon, I was alone in the kitchen with a huge mess. I spent the next thirty minutes cleaning it all up. Then, I checked in on my sleeping babies before crawling back into my warm spot in bed between Yukihyo and Nico.
When I woke up the next morning and went to the table, I knew Phillip had influenced Chef. Bowls of berries, nuts, fruits, and some sort of porridge were being served along with tea instead of coffee. Neema, Niklos, and Peter were enjoying it, and I had learned that it was sometimes necessary to compromise, so I didn’t complain. Phillip attempted to appear innocent beside Terre, but I knew he had decided to combat our evening grazing session with a nutritious breakfast.
Yukihyo smiled at me. Then addressing us all, he said, “It is now summer at our home. It will be somewhat colder than to what most of you may be accustomed. The snows will only remain at higher altitudes. With that being said, we will set up perimeter shielding so that our ladies and the children may enjoy the outdoors.”
His excitement had me smiling. He was eager for us to see his family home when mounds of snow weren’t covering it. We spent the morning lea
rning which of Chione’s plants were safe to touch and which ones were best to avoid.
Later in the afternoon, Eli and Quaid pulled me aside. “Yes?” I asked.
“We are taking a stealth ship and going on a reconnaissance mission. We will rejoin you before you dock.” Eli kissed my cheek.
I gave Quaid’s hand a gentle squeeze and watched as they entered the lift. Leaving my ship while in orbit would raise fewer questions.
Yukihyo had witnessed our exchange. With small steps, I went to sit beside him. “Let me guess.”
“It might be better if you didn’t,” I warned.
He snorted. “I’d bet my credits I know who planted it.”
“Oh, yeah? Who?” In my imagination, I saw visions of blue aliens with sharp fangs and white hair. I rubbed at the chill bumps my imaginary fear had raised on my arms.
“From the glimpse I had of the technology, I can only assume Rupert Warren or one of his ilk had something to do with it. He wants to secure a contract with the Galaxic Militia to build their starships and sent out that illegal probe to collect all of the data he could on every piece of star faring technology available. Our photonic film has caused him some concern, along with our close ties to the Eloneave master builders. If I can convince Farowyn to go into business with me, we could run Warren out of business. His ships would be obsolete.”
My jaw dropped. Yukihyo’s shrewd mind never ceased to amaze me. “Before my incident in the cafeteria, my team and I had been investigating him. Since when, did you decide to dabble in shipbuilding?”
He studied me with white eyes. “I haven’t been working as a merchant. I need something to do. Ponidi Propulsions is making us a fortune and is running smoothly with Zeth’s help. Reinvesting with engineers who have some very promising ideas seemed like the best course of action. Anyway, Warren is who I suspect.”
“I hope you’re right, and it isn’t cannibalistic blue aliens. If he is responsible, he almost started a war.”
“War stimulates the economy and is good for business. However, none of that is my immediate concern. Hunting for my mate is. After I have done so, I will gladly assist in hunting down whomever you wish.”
He was so calm and certain, controlled and masculine, that liquid heat pooled between my thighs. Sensing my emotions, Yukihyo grinned, and the angry orange striations that talk of Warren and our averted war had brought into his eyes was chased away by streaks of pink and gold. “It has been days since I have felt your passion.”
“I’ve been passionate about food.”
Yukihyo threw his head back and laughed before picking me up and carrying me to bed. Sliding my loose top down my arms, he placed gentle kisses along my collarbone before his lips found their way to my inner arm. With a slight movement of his head, he captured my nipple in his mouth. Gripping his huge shoulders, I held on, enjoying the warmth of his skin and the strength which was all too evident beneath it. As he kissed his way back up my neck, I lowered myself to the mattress. He was heat and feral power above me, held in control by love. Lifting my legs to his hips, I held him between my thighs while he slowly entered me.
“Why is it when your body is joined with mine, concerns which moments before were mountains become pebbles too small to skip upon a still pond?”
“Because, Lady Wife, when you finally accepted that we as a family were one and divulged your mission to Eli and Drex, you finally truly healed the rift between you. It did the same for Quaid, who shares your mind.”
“You knew?”
He drew his hips back and then pushed them forward until he touched the place deep within me that made me tingle. “Am I the Clan Leader of House Ponidi?”
“Yes.”
Soon, he had me crying out that same response for a different reason.
Chapter Sixteen
The next day, and within the privacy of my ship, all pretext of secrecy had been abandoned in favor of an intense investigation into the sector of Chione’s space which Quaid had wanted to investigate. He assured us that the Galaxic Militia had already conducted extensive examinations of the financial records of prominent entrepreneurs who might benefit from war and had not found any promising leads. It was hard to prove any of them had provided funding for the probe’s creation and placement, and they hadn’t discovered any stored data of the probe’s findings in any of their systems. The news disappointed Yukihyo. I considered warning my former team that we had been in the process of forming an incorrect theory, but they hadn’t bothered to even attempt to communicate with me, so I didn’t bother calling them. My calls had been rejected enough. Clark, who had professed his love while between my thighs, didn’t care enough to answer my calls either.
Eli, Drex, Quaid, and Zared would be taking the Empress several parsecs away and sending Sparrow’s probes out to collect data. I was pleased they were working together. It was a far more efficient use of their time than keeping secrets and working at cross-purposes. Meanwhile, the rest of us would enjoy some time on Chione. While the men hunted, my ladies and I would find other amusements. I knew the children and Thunderdrop were eager to run around outside and play.
Currently, I was supervising the children while they played with modelling clay. Poppy laughed as she squished a pink glob of it through her fingers. Her mother was taking a nap, so I was trying to keep them quiet. My vid-screen signaled while I was trying to help Peter. He was concentrating on a blue blob of clay that kept getting stuck on his claws. Answering the call, I was startled by the stern face of my Papa. From his expression, it seemed as if he was aware of my mission no longer being a secret, but we had maintained silence in regard to it through our communications, or so I had thought. Had Eli or Drex told? Dread filled me. The last thing I wanted was for him to be disappointed in me.
Papa hid his emotions and smiled at the children. “How are my beautiful grandchildren today?”
Neema said, “Hey, Gapa! Mommy gots two girls in her belly. Rio and Fitz are gonna be their daddies and mine.”
“Is that so?” Papa asked.
“Yep. Daddy said we getting lots of pink stuff when we go to Rack knee.”
Hiding a laugh, Papa asked, “When are you going to Arachne?”
Dropping her glob of blue clay, she shrugged and took the vid-screen from me. “We going to Chee on. Daddy’s getting me a pet.” She frowned at me. “Neema wanted sweet baby bat, but Mommy said no.”
Papa said, “If your mommy said no, she must have had a good reason. Pass the vid-screen back to Mommy, my darling.”
“Okay, Gapa. I love you.”
“I love you very much,” he said.
Neema handed the device back to me. Now, it was decorated with blue smudges and tiny blue fingerprints. I gave Papa my sweetest smile, hoping to remind him how much he adored me so he wouldn’t be annoyed with me. “I love you, too, Papa.”
“And, I you, my darling. Fitz and Dario must be overjoyed that you will be giving them each a daughter to love as much as I love you.”
I gave him an even sweeter smile. I was adorable. How could he be mad at me? For good measure, I sent him our most recent scans of the babies. Then, I distracted him with Peter, Niklos, Poppy, and Thunderdrop for a few minutes. When the scans finally arrived on his device, I watched his face as he opened them. How could he be angry with his sweet, expectant, princess?
“My darling, the last thing I wish to do is to intrude upon your joy. However, I think it is prudent to inform you that certain members of the Warrior Caste are in pursuit of your ship with the intent of displaying to you their loyalty and support.”
So, I wasn’t in trouble? “Support of what?”
Papa held his hands together with his index fingers pointed upward and his elbows resting on his desk. “Word has spread throughout the Empire of your expulsion from the Inquisitors Academy. Not even Cormac was able to keep it quiet. The Materfamilias Caste has practically declared civil war on the rest of us.” He tapped at his screen and played for me a video clip.
&n
bsp; A group of angry and very wealthy society ladies were speaking to a reporter. “The Princess has survived untold tragedy. She has overcome upheaval and loss, but despite it all, she has embraced our culture and demonstrated strength and loyalty. How is she repaid? She has been repaid by being thrust out of the Academy of Inquisitors. Why? She has been cast out for the audacity of carrying within her womb Parvacian offspring!” The view panned out to show diamonds glaring like suns before the image corrected itself to show a bejeweled crowd of furious females.
Papa said, “The Materfamilias Caste threatens to withdraw their sons from the program if you are not reinstated.”
“You could tell them the truth.”
Papa’s look was stony.
“Or not,” I corrected. “I’m surprised anyone cared. The boys don’t miss me at all. I was probably annoying them. All I seemed to be doing was eating, sleeping, and fainting while I was at school anyway. I’ve called them a few times, but they’ve been ignoring me. I haven’t heard a peep out of them, not even Cedrenus. I guess he’s mad at me about Clark. I thought they were my friends, but friends don’t ignore you.” I shrugged. I had been doing my best not to think of them, but they had hurt me.
“Teagan, your team was reported missing shortly after your ship left Parvac. Rovek believed they had secreted themselves aboard your ship. However, a careful search of it disproved that theory. Recently, they were discovered locked in a warehouse a few miles from the land port. Apparently, they had planned to stowaway aboard your ship. One of your Imperial Guards prevented it. At least, he left them with water and rations. Currently, they are aboard Cormac’s ship which will join you on Chione. If you wish to communicate with them, you will first need to deal with the one within your own household who has prevented it.”
I listened to Papa in stunned silence. So, they hadn’t been ignoring me? One of my guards had locked them up? My eyes roamed my deck. Rozz had an amused look on his face, Zared shook his head, Xavier grinned at me, but Izaac’s face was red. I’d talk to him in a moment.
Into my thoughts, Rozz whispered, “Someone is jealous.”
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