“I will not say and leave my family vulnerable while I am healing. I want two sets of guards on duty at all times. Have my parents stay with Natalie and Noah. Trust no one.”
Seton ushered Roark toward a strange, oblong coffin-looking thing glowing with light. Roark looked at me as they lowered him inside. “Protect Noah, mate. Trust Seton and my parents. No one else.”
He held my gaze until I nodded. Noah was tugging at my hair and I absently grabbed his little wrists, holding him in place so I could think without him yanking hair out of my head. “We’ll be fine, Roark. Heal. We’ll be here when you wake up.”
Roark nodded and tore his gaze from mine to look at an older man leaning over the edge of the pod adjusting the controls. “How long this time, Doctor Brax?”
The older gentleman sighed, a wry smile on his face, and I assumed this was not the first time Roark and the doctor had this conversation. “I recommend a full twenty-four hours, Councilor. You weren’t fully healed the last time.”
Roark grinned back at him. “That’s too long. I can’t leave my mate unprotected for that long.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but Seton beat me to it. “I’ll protect her with my life, Roark. I won’t leave her side. You have my word.”
Roark looked to his friend and I saw the decision there even before he nodded. “She is my life, Seton.”
“I know.”
Roark nodded and turned to the doctor. “Twenty-four hours and not a minute more.”
“Excellent. You are making the right decision, sir.” The doctor’s hands sped to twice their previous speed and I assumed it was to knock Roark out before my stubborn mate changed his mind. I wasn’t eager to have him asleep and away from me for that long, but if it meant he would heal completely, then it would be worth it.
“Gara.”
A transparent covering slid into place over Roark’s face and he was surrounded by bright light. He was staring at me and I watched as his eyelids fluttered, then closed as he was put under for the healing process.
Once Roark was completely under, everyone in the room turned to look at me. Me and Noah.
Sheesh. Talk about feeling like a bug under a microscope. I was wearing jeans and a T-shirt I’d tugged on before leaving for the airport, covered in Roark’s blood from the many times I’d used the ReGen wand to heal him. Miranda cleared her throat behind me and I took a step back, closer to her. I’d completely forgotten she was with me.
I turned to find her staring, her jaw open, as Seton broke the tension and walked straight over to us. I’d been on Trion for two days, not much more than Miranda, but I was not afraid. I was glad to be back.
“You must be Natalie.” His voice was deep and gentle, as if he was afraid both of us would bolt.
Miranda looked from him to me. I nodded to her that we were okay and turned to address Seton. “Yes, I am Natalie. This is Miranda.”
He bowed low and went down on one knee before me. Miranda’s hand came to rest on my shoulder and Noah stilled in my arms, looking down on the man with curiosity. “I am Seton, my lady. I pledge my honor to you and will protect you and your son with my life.”
My jaw went slack as I wondered how to respond. This felt like a formal ritual, and I had no idea what I was supposed to say.
“It’s customary, daughter, to accept his offer and give him permission to rise.” The voice was female, confident, and coming from just behind me. I turned to find an older female dressed in cream and gold, an older version of Roark standing just behind her looking almost as fierce and imposing as his son.
Licking my lips, I turned back to Seton, who remained on one knee before me, head bowed. “Thank you, Seton. I accept and, umm, you may rise now.”
Seton rose to stand before me, towering over Miranda and I both, just like Roark did. But I didn’t focus on him now. He was a known. He was Roark’s friend, the one man my mate said I could trust on this planet. Having him at my back made me feel confident enough to face the older couple—my in-laws—who may or may not want an alien daughter-in-law.
“My son?” she said to Seton as she peeked into the pod at Roark.
As if she didn’t need to say more, Seton explained the injuries and the duration of his stay in the pod.
“We have been briefed on what happened, although we will get more details from you. Later.”
I could only nod, pleased to know she was concerned for her son’s welfare and interested in learning the reasons for his wounds.
I turned, Noah in my arms, and found Roark’s father smiling broadly. He stood just behind his wife, clearly at ease with the situation. While he glanced at the pod that held his healing son, he looked to me kindly. Roark’s mother, however, had her arms crossed and scrutinized me from head to toe as if sizing me up, or deciding whether or not I passed inspection.
Yes, she was my mother-in-law. Cue the horror film music.
She stepped forward, her gaze never leaving mine. I held my chin up and refused to look away. I was not going to be cowed by some fifty-year-old alien woman, even if she was my mother-in-law. No. Especially because she was my mother-in-law. Show weakness now and she’d run roughshod over me for the rest of my life. I’d heard all the horror stories and seen all the movies. I knew the score.
“You must be Roark’s mother.”
“I am Tracen. Roark is my son.” Her gaze drifted lower, settled on Noah briefly, then returned to my face. “You must be Natalie, Roark’s matched mate.”
“Yes.” I had no idea where this was going. Roark had told me his mother suggested the brides program because he needed a mate, to breed her. From what I remember, he’d said he’d agreed and found the perfect match. Me. But that didn’t mean Roark’s parents approved of an Earth woman for their son. I didn’t know if they would want their grandson, a child who was half-alien. My own mother hadn’t wanted anything to do with Noah, so I didn’t expect what happened next.
Roark’s mother stepped forward and wrapped me in her arms. She sobbed, squeezing Noah and I both so tightly my son started to fuss.
“Welcome, my daughter. The gods have blessed us this day with a new daughter and a grandson. You brought Roark back to us, Natalie of Earth. I can never repay you for this miracle. Welcome. Welcome to our family.” Her voice cracked on the last, her cheek pressed to mine where I felt the wet trail of her tears.
I stood there, stiff, my arms wrapped around Noah as she hugged us both and cried. It was awkward and I glanced at the sleeping Roark in the pod, wishing he were awake to help me.
Roark’s huge father stepped forward and wrapped his arms around his mate, me, and Noah, and I immediately felt safe and protected. “Welcome, daughter.” His deep rumble was so similar to Roark’s that even little Noah stilled.
“I— Thank you.” I had no idea what to say, or how to react. This was not what I expected. First, Seton kneeling like I was some kind of princess, and now this.
Had they let me go, I would have been fine. But they did not release me, not for long minutes, as if they needed to drink us in, their new daughter and precious grandchild. Their love was palpable. I assumed it was love. I’d never felt such drowning emotion from my own parents. Not once. Not as a child coming home for summer break, high school graduation, college graduation, when I gave birth. Never.
This was what I’d been missing.
I cracked, and tears tracked my own cheeks as they continued to hold me in the shelter of their arms. “Roark is a lucky man, to have parents like you.”
Tracen chuckled and finally pulled back. “Not to hear him grumble.” Her smile was genuine and full of teasing. Shell-shocked, I stood still as her gaze lowered to Noah and her smile went from warm to raw, barefaced love. “He looks just like his father.” Her gaze darted to me, then back to Noah. “But he has your eyes.”
Holding Noah in my arms brought me great comfort, knowing he was safe. “Yes. His name is Noah.”
Noah squirmed and Roark’s parents stepped back, both of them
looking at him like the doting grandparents I’d dreamed he could have.
“May I hold him?” Tracen asked.
I smiled. God, I was so fucking easy. One real hug and she’d completely won me over. Just that fast, I was willing to hand over my child. “Of course, but he’s going to be hungry soon.”
Tracen held out her arms and I settled Noah there before turning to Miranda. “Did we transport with the diaper bag?”
“Of course. But not enough to last forever.” Miranda looked at Tracen, then at me, apprehensive. “I… I don’t know what anyone is saying.”
I stared at Miranda, not realizing why.
“Why doesn’t she have an NPU?” Roark’s father asked.
Oh, hell. I’d forgotten all about that stupid needle thing, and the neuroprocessor that Warden Egara gave me to understand their language. “We were rushed by Roark’s injuries. She didn’t have time to get one.”
“We will have that taken care of right now. Poor thing, she must be so lost.” Roark’s father turned to the doctor. “Doctor Brax, this woman needs an NPU immediately.”
I’d forgotten all about the translator thing. When I’d had mine inserted, I’d just finished that flaming-hot testing dream. Miranda had been dragged ten light years, to an alien world, and couldn’t understand a word anyone but me was saying. “Sorry, Miranda. They’re going to give you one of their translators so you can understand everyone.”
“If Miranda will sit in one of the exam chairs, she can have that done right now. Please reassure her it doesn’t hurt and… well, you’ve had it done.”
“Thank you… um, I don’t know what to call you,” I said to Roark’s father as I took Miranda’s hand and led her to the chair Doctor Brax indicated.
“Aran.”
I nodded in reply, then explained everything to Miranda. I stood and held her hand as she had the NPU inserted in the bone of her temple, just behind her ear.
Noah began to fuss in Tracen’s arms. “He’s probably hungry.”
“Yes,” Tracen replied. “I’m surprised he’s not asleep. All of you. The first time you transported, you slept when we came to meet you.”
“I did?” I wasn’t even aware of their visit.
“Yes, our son is very possessive. I can see why.”
“Better?” I asked Miranda, once she started to look around wide-eyed, understanding everyone in the med unit.
She smiled now, much more at ease. “Wow. It’s amazing. Thank you.” When the baby fussed again, she said, “Do you have infant formula here? Natalie does her best to feed him, but he’s a hungry little monster and her body just can’t keep up.”
Tracen was cooing and nuzzling her grandson, and didn’t bother lifting her head as she answered. “I do not know what infant formula is, but I’ve raised two children. We will make sure you have everything you need.”
My shoulders sagged. Was it really going to be this easy? I couldn’t believe it. Roark would be completely healed by this time tomorrow, and I’d finally have the family I’d always dreamed of.
Roark’s father turned to Miranda. “I am surprised you accompanied Natalie on such a great journey.”
I had no idea what the protocols would be, but I wanted her protected, so I interrupted before Miranda could respond. “She’s my friend and Noah loves her. I couldn’t leave her behind.”
“Of course not.” Tracen smiled and hugged Miranda with one arm, Noah in the other. Noah squealed with excitement, his hunger temporarily forgotten, as he focused on Miranda’s face. He truly did love her, as she’d helped me care for him from the day we brought him home from the hospital. “Welcome to the family, Miranda. You belong to us now, and we will protect you as we do Natalie and Noah.”
Miranda blinked slowly, letting everything sink in, especially now that she understood. I smiled at her like I had a thousand times before, like sisters, and she smiled back. “Thank you.”
Tracen let her go, but Noah screeched and reached his chubby little arms for the familiar comfort of Miranda’s arms.
Reluctantly, Tracen let him go.
“He just doesn’t know you yet,” I hurried to reassure her.
“Oh, I know, dear. Don’t worry. That won’t be the case for long.”
Behind her, Roark’s father chuckled, pulling his mate backward and wrapping his arms around her. “He will love you, gara, as your son and I do.”
She turned to look up at her mate and the love I saw shining between them made my heart skip a beat. So much love, after so many years. My parents had never looked at each other the way these two aliens did. Not once.
Seton cleared his throat behind me, where I’d completely forgotten him. “My apologies, my lady, but we should get you to a more secure location for the night. All of you.”
I turned to look at him, but was immediately distracted by the sight of Roark’s unconscious form inside the pod thing. “I want to stay with him.” I couldn’t leave his side. Not again. Especially since the bad guys—what else was there to call them?—wanted the medallion and I had it. With Miranda here, and Roark’s parents, I knew Noah would be safe and protected. Roark, however, was alone. I didn’t want him to be alone. I wanted my face to be the first thing he saw when he awoke.
Turning to Miranda, I was prepared to plead, but she was already shaking her head. “No problem, Natalie. I can handle Noah for one night. Stay with Roark. He needs you.”
Seton stepped forward on my left. “He is unconscious, my lady. He will not even know you are here. You should rest.”
I opened my mouth to protest, but my gaze met Tracen’s before I could form the words I needed to argue.
“Let her stay, Seton. He’ll know she’s here. Trust me. He’ll know. The guards can escort her should she wish to come to Noah at any time.”
Seton crossed his arms, one eyebrow raised, and looked to Roark’s father, who shrugged. “Don’t look at me, Seton. They are matched. And our females are stubborn. You can’t win this argument.” He looked at his son in the pod, his eyes clouding with anger. “Unless you are worried for her safety here. Can you protect her? Roark will have both our heads if anything happens to his mate.”
Seton unfolded his arms. “Yes. I have more than enough guards to protect two locations. But Miranda and Noah will need to stay with you. I do not have enough men I trust to guard three locations.”
“Of course, she’ll come with us.” Tracen slipped from her mate’s arms and went to Miranda’s side, wrapping her hands around the younger woman’s arm. “Come with us, dear. The guest room at our house has a nice, soft bed, and we’ll get Noah fed and settled. Then you can get some rest. How you are still awake after transport I have no idea.”
I stepped forward and kissed Noah’s soft, downy head before waving Miranda and my new in-laws away. Seton stayed by my side, nodding to a group of guards who saluted and followed my new family out of the medical unit and into a hallway. I had no idea what time it was, but I was exhausted, just as Tracen had said. First, Roark had kept me up half the night making love, then I’d woken before dawn, the attack, the panic, the rush to Miami. And the transport halfway across the galaxy.
I deserved to be tired, right?
Maybe they had one of those pods for exhausted new mothers?
“May I have a chair or something?” I asked Seton.
“Of course.” He hurried to the side of the room and brought a chair to me where I stood next to Roark’s unconscious form. We were not in a sandy tent, more like a surgical suite in a major hospital. The floors were something like concrete, the walls stone. Everything was sterile and solidly built. “Where are we?”
“Xalia City,” Seton answered. “This is the capital of the southern continent, and where Councilor Roark keeps his permanent home.”
Whatever. We weren’t in the desert, and that worked for me. I had to assume Xalia was a large city, or at least a city with walls.
“Thank you.” I sat in the strange sling-style chair. It looked like it folded u
p for easy transport, but it was soft and comfortable. I curled my legs up underneath me, reassured by the heavy weight of the dagger tucked into my boot, and laid my head on my arms, watching my mate, willing him to know I was here.
“I’m here, Roark. I won’t leave your side.”
Seton paced behind me. The doctor was working on something on a panel a few steps away. I assumed he was monitoring Roark’s healing process, but had no idea what he was truly doing. At the room’s entrance, two guards stood at attention. Everyone else was gone.
I turned to look up Seton. “Two guards? Are there more outside?”
“Yes. Do not worry, my lady. I have a full dozen guards surrounding the transport station, and another dozen with your son. Commander Loris is in charge of protecting the station and he is a trusted and well-trained officer.”
I didn’t care who was in charge. And twelve didn’t feel like enough, not after what I’d been through the last time I was on this planet. To him, it had only been ten days, but to me, it felt like a lifetime had passed. “Are there Drovers nearby?”
“No. We are not at Outpost Two. You are in the north, my lady, in a large city. The nearest Drover territory is hundreds of miles from here. You are safe.”
Hundreds of miles sounded good, but I wished it were thousands. Millions. But I’d been ten light years away and danger still found me.
“Okay.” I returned my attention to Roark.
“Are you hungry?” Seton asked.
To my surprise, my stomach lurched at his question. I was starving. “Yes. Thank you.”
Seton bowed and ordered a guard to bring me something to eat. I ate quickly, the warm stew mild but filling. The vegetables were odd, but tasty, and I finished two bowls and a chunk of bread in record time. Stomach full, Roark safe, my eyelids began to drift closed and my head dipped, falling as I slipped into slumber repeatedly.
“My lady.” Seton’s soft voice didn’t fool me. He was going to order me to go lie down somewhere and rest.
“No. I won’t leave him.”
Seton sighed, and I lifted my arms to the side of Roark’s pod, rested my head on my arms and promptly fell asleep in my chair.
Her Mate's Secret Baby (Interstellar Brides Book 9) Page 13