She continued down the barely discernable path, her mind humming with the happiness of a mother recently reunited with her sons. Having her line nearby was one of the joys of her life. Recently, the judgement of disbursement and banishment of her immediate line had been lifted. Not that she’d cared. The moment she’d left the Swirl she’d been in the care of her sons and their Brides and she hadn’t been apart from them for a moment since.
Because no one was fucking separating her from her offspring ever again.
No. One.
On Chronos she’d grown up in the enormous compound of House Ulmath, then when she’d joined with her husband she’d committed to his much smaller line. As her career grew, she’d enjoyed a large network of Xylan family and friends.
And then she’d lost everything.
Joyzal of Seventeen had stepped in—he’d been a stranger, a Margol of zero standing who’d saved her in her time of need. She’d been shamed by the taint of her traitorous mate and House Ulmath had been forced to turn from her. Everyone she’d ever known had turned away. None of the royal pigment-sponsored stations or outposts would take her.
But under Joyzal’s sponsorship she’d been able to live in peace at his compound on Zamarilla and slowly but steadily rebuilt her reputation and contacts within expat society. She’d eventually contacted her mother and sister, reconnecting with her loved ones on Chronos. She could never again return, but this didn’t mean she couldn’t send messages to her extended line. But, she was not allowed contact with her sons. Her immediate line was banished and disbursed. Only her grandchildren had the legal right to return to Chronos and restart with the standing of honorable warriors, free of the taint of treason.
But now all those rules were lifted. And yet she found herself not even remotely wanting to return to Chronos. She and her sons had built lives out here in the four sectors, separate from the society she’d been raised in, and it seemed none of them cared to return to the planet that had discarded them.
She thought back again to those initial ten years with Joyzal. She’d grown to care for him as her own son. And later, when she’d discovered he’d initially taken her in as a gift to her own son, Rayzor, her trust in this male had been confirmed. She’d always suspected Joyzal had an ulterior motive for choosing her as his Manager. Why else would a Margol who wanted off the mating database want a Manager? She tried hard to find his Bride, only for him to discover his mate through an accidental testing. This was the bane of a Manager’s existence, knowing her whole job had been worthless. Although Melachine adored Jacole. That human was a daughter to her.
And even after she’d found out about Rayzor and Joyzal’s friendship she hadn’t been able to make official contact with her son for four more years. It was illegal. She’d found a way to secretly message Kayzon. But these tiny forms of contact and communication had been entirely unsatisfactory.
She took a deep breath and exhaled. Fourteen long years without her children or their children, or their Brides. And the years apart from her mate.
Yesterday, Rayzor pulled her aside into the office he shared with Becca. He sat her down and forced her to look through every bit of evidence he’d gathered which proved his father’s innocence. She’d sat for hours going through everything. Apparently, even the High Command had rendered a judgement, absolving Kroga of treason. All charges had been dropped against her mate. These last three moon cycles he’d been living at a secret Imperial Military location, giving them intel about the Hurlians.
Okay, she could accept that he’d been telling the truth about being controlled by those red-skinned assholes, which would be the only way he would commit treason. This made sense. But the rest of it? He’d kidnapped her and he’d…
Flashes of the intimate way Kroga had touched her, his smell, his taste, entered her mind. The countless orgasms. Damn him. She was still so, so, so very angry at that man. Everyone else in her immediate line seemed to have already accepted Kroga’s innocence and let go of the past, but she hadn’t. Nope. Not yet.
Strangely, Kayzon, who’d been physically damaged due to the disbursement of his line, was the first to move on. He’d returned from the Swirl and spent many days in deep meditation and prayer. Her youngest son was very strong in his faith. As a result, he seemed to have achieved inner peace and was able to forgive his father and let the past go.
Melachine was not this far along in her own honor path.
She’d spent the last four moon cycles dividing her time between Zamarilla, New Earth and Zamarian Prime. And now she was living with Rayzor and often spent time with his precious son Ray and a heavily pregnant Becca. She enjoyed going out with her son’s Bride to help her monitor the harvest. Everything that was grown or harvested on the farm—the entire business operation—was due to the smarts of this human female. Her son had mated well. Melachine was also truly surprised at how Rayzor had morphed from a vicious Bounty Hunter into an ambitious agri-business farmer, or how he could so easily switch between the two roles. That morning she’d seen him leave to direct the new fleet of robo-tractors they’d purchased, and that evening he was running through simulated combat in the holo deck.
Melachine had already decided that she wanted to settle on this planet.
There was a site on the edge of Rayzor’s farmland which bordered this ancient forest that would be a perfect location to build a Xylan hunting lodge. She could live there herself and have her alone time, and Rayzor and his family could also have their space. And she could have guest quarters so Kayzon and his family could have plenty of room to stay when they visited. She planned on convincing Joyzal and Jacole to relocate to Zamarian Prime and use it as their home base for their Bounty Hunter activities. They could also build a lodge nearby and they all could recreate the lifestyle of a Xylan family compound on this working farm. It would be lovely.
First, she had to tell Rayzor and Becca of her plans. She was certain they would agree, especially since she would offer to watch their children while they worked. This would be no hardship, it would be her honor to care for the youngest offspring in her extended line.
“Kroga wants to see you again,” Rayzor had remarked over breakfast that morning.
“I bet he does,” she’d snorted, slightly annoyed that the two of them had been speaking about her.
“Are you ever going to return his messages?”
“Maybe…”
Or maybe not.
And then she heard the crunch of undergrowth and whipped out the personal blade strapped to her hip, ready to confront the pack that had foolishly been following her. Except it wasn’t local predators. It was someone else entirely.
The wind picked up and she inhaled his scent on the breeze. “Kroga.”
He stood behind dense foliage, his bare chest gleaming in the dark. “My Be’Ih,” he replied with the rough voice of a warrior in heat.
Her body immediately responded to his deep sexy voice, her nipples growing hard, her core hot and needy.
Damn him.
“What are you doing here?”
He didn’t respond, just gazed at her hungrily, like a ravenous beast.
Oh hell. She hadn’t seen this male in four moon cycles. He looked amazing. She loved the gray in his braids. Kroga was still the handsomest warrior she’d ever seen. “Rayzor told me they discovered the Hurlians really were on their way to murder us,” she commented.
“Yes,” he answered slowly. “They arrived at our section two diurnals after I’d left. All they found was an empty facility.”
“Heh.” She lowered her weapon and stepped closer to her mate. “There is much I can let go about the past because it is now fact that you are innocent, and I feel for my mate who was trapped in a body that was performing unspeakable crimes that he was unable to stop from happening. You lost all those years with your offspring…”
His chest rose and fell. A heavy exhale misted the cold air. “I am here to make up for lost time. With you, and with my sons.”
“You w
ere gone for fourteen years…” She lifted her chin and narrowed her eyes. “But, the fact remains that you fucked me on every single surface in that facility and all the while I was unaware of my past.”
“I agree with this assessment. I was unable to keep my claws off of you and I’d convinced myself that I was tending to your needs, but that does not make it right. Therefore, I am here to perform an honor battle with my Bride.”
She grunted an acknowledgement. “Yes, it is my right to restore the balance of power.” She hefted her personal blade, ready to confront her mate.
“This will be an informal battle. You will take your fill of my flesh until you are satisfied.”
She gave him a grim smile. “I accept.”
Kroga stepped forward from behind the saplings and now she could see all of him—a male both naked and aroused, his monstrous erection jutting out from his hips.
She hissed out a breath, acknowledging the fact that this warrior was playing dirty. “So that’s how you want to do this?”
“Yes.”
She paused to strip her own clothes off. The jacket, the thin body suit and her walking shoes—all of it came off. Soon they were both naked and ready for combat.
He lifted a claw and gestured. “Come and take your flesh.”
“Oh, I will.” She raced forward and slashed his chest with her curved blade, drawing the first mark and then twisting to slice into his back, marring that gorgeous flesh with his punishment—leveling the honor balance between them.
His back bowed and he shouted out his pain.
She swung again but this time one of his mighty arms shot out and knocked the blade out of her grip. Grr. She snarled, baring her fangs and slashed his chest with both of her claws. He threw his head back and let out a booming roar.
Thunder cracked overhead and the rain intensified. Lightening flashed, illuminating Kroga’s harsh features and the rivulets of blood running down his impressive chest.
A wave of satisfaction hit her hard.
But she was not finished.
She tackled Kroga to the muddy ground, ready to get more personal with his flesh. His arms went around her slick body, grappling for purchase. She struggled, secretly enjoying the feel of his hard muscles pressed against her naked skin. She had no armor, or even a weapon, therefore it was inevitable that this much stronger warrior would win this hand-to-hand fight.
He rolled them over, pinned her underneath him and held both her arms captive above her head. He slammed his lips down on hers for a punishing kiss.
Oh gods, his kiss.
His taste, the swipe of his tongue and the scrape of his fangs—she melted at the glory of her mate’s possession. She hadn’t tasted him for the last four moon cycles and desperately missed his touch. He devoured her mouth and her legs scissored with her need to feel his cock sliding inside of her hot cunt.
He broke free from their kiss and rolled them over again. This time he was on his back holding her on top of him. She moaned with delight as he cupped her breasts, scrapping his claws across her sensitive nipples. Then he grabbed her ass, positioning her directly on top of the hard ridge of his erection, the seam of her core against his cock. She reached down, eager to position him in order to slide down that firm shaft.
His claws tightened on her hips. “Wait.” He paused, his cock notched at her sopping wet entrance, to stare into her eyes. “Do you want this, with me?”
“I want all of you,” she breathed.
He nodded and they both moaned as he lifted his hips, spearing his cock inside of her, parting her hot flesh. It seemed so long since she’d had him. So long. Her claws dug into his shoulders as he thrust up and down, up and down.
It wasn’t even taking long, she felt the tension immediately, right on the edge. The thickness stretching her so deliciously. He moved a claw between them, right where they were joined and rubbed her clit as he rutted.
Oh gods.
She cried out as the pleasure hit her hard, her pussy contracting around his pounding shaft. It seemed to continue forever, tightening across her lower stomach and down to the tips of her toes.
At that same moment Kroga’s entire body tensed, his claws digging into her hips. She watched this magnificent male throw his head back, groaning out his release. One last pump and then he stilled as his cock pulsed inside of her, spilling all of his seed. Every last drop.
Afterwards, her pulled her close, their sweaty bodies smashed together, rough breaths evening out. She lay in his arms, allowing the warm rain to wash away the blood of his wounds while she listened to the steady beat of his hearts. “I love you,” she admitted. “So very much. Until the end of time.”
“I know,” he answered. “I love you too. And you have no idea what you do to me. How much I want you and only you.”
She smiled against his chest. “I think that’s why I was so traumatized when the memories returned. Why I’ve been so upset. It was as if you’d been given back to me but snatched away again.”
“I am never leaving you again.” He kissed the top of her head and dug his claws into her ass. “You are my entire world.”
“I want you here, with me.”
“Here? In this forest?”
She chuckled. “No, what I mean is…will you live with me on this planet?”
“I will live wherever you are. I closed down our facility and sold it to a group of three Creekans who’d recently arrived. I have been cleared by the Imperial Military for civilian life.”
“Good, because I want us to build a Xylan hunting lodge here, next to this forest, and live out the rest of our lives near our line. Will you join me in this?”
“Of course.”
“We will spend our time either tending to small grandchildren or working to help Rayzor and his Bride, Becca, grow their agri-business. The rest of our line will either visit or live here too. Does this sound acceptable?”
“It sounds idyllic.”
She pushed up into a sitting position and looked down at the male she loved with all of her hearts. A gentle mist fell from overhead. The wind settled, and the clouds parted to illuminate their bodies with glowing moonlight.
“Where are our kittens?” he suddenly asked.
She threw him a brilliant smile. “They are with me at Rayzor’s house. You’ll be surprised at how much they’ve grown.” She grabbed his rough claw with her smaller hand. “Come, let’s go home.”
He nodded in agreement. And they stood and walked naked, hand-in-hand, through the forest and into the rest of their lives.
THE END
Author’s Note
The Alien Bounty Hunter series is over! *crocodile tears*
I hope you enjoyed reading this series as much as I loved writing it. I had more fun than humans were meant to have creating stories about these honorable warriors and their fierce human Brides - they will always remain in my heart. And I appreciate that you came along for the ride! *hugs* An author’s ‘art’ is always incomplete without the readers who read and enjoy what was written.
And no worries, ABH isn’t REALLY over - there’s more stories in the works! House Ulmath, the Hunter Guild (Trax and Rengeli), Hector and Dale on New Earth, Daxon’s brothers on Timbor… All of these males eventually need their HEAs! Stay tuned - there’s plenty of sexy, action-packed SFR stories still to come.
Psst- want to keep up with my new releases, giveaways and/or chit-chat about all things hot romance? Join my Reader Group—I’d love to see you there! I love talking with readers!
xoxo
Michele
Want more Xylan warriors and stories with characters from New Earth? Try these spin-off series: The Swirl, The Fever Brothers and Monsters Love Curvy Girls!
About the Author
Michele Mills lives in California and leads a life of quiet, G rated desperation with her husband and two sons. In an attempt at a fulfilling, R rated inner life that does not include Disney movies and Nickelodeon; Michele reads and writes filthy romance and, well...
filthy romance. And she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Also by Michele Mills
Alien Bounty Hunters
Kroga’s Bride
Rayzor’s One
Joyzal’s Prize
Kayzon’s Wish
Syrin’s Mate
Zhoryan’s Game
Daxon’s Hostage
Kroga’s Redemption
The Fever Brothers
Mean Right Hook
Big Bad Claws
Monsters Love Curvy Girls
His Human Nanny
His Human Surrogate
His Human Assistant
His Human Organizer
Battle Beasts - Alien Fantasy Romance
The Vandal and the Virgin
The Catastrophe Series
Die For You
Kill For You
Live For You
The Swirl - Reverse Harem Romance
Cyborgs’ Claim
Warriors’ Claim
Gladiators’ Claim
‘In the Stars’ Series
The Alien Assassin’s Stolen Bride
Caught Between Two Blue Aliens
The Alien Bounty Hunters Complete Series: Books 1-8 Page 79