by KD Jones
“Can you understand me?”
The male nodded.
“Are you Morin?”
The male shrugged. What did that mean? “Are you part Morin?”
The male nodded again.
Kitana! At this rate, he’d never get a straight answer. Sighing, he went outside.
“Take him back in, set up guards and give them water, but no food. Send someone to bring Zander here.”
“Yes, sir.”
ZenIM left to check in with the search for the fourth male. So far, all he knew was that these males were related somehow to the Morins, but they looked more like the Morinians. Did Kayley know about them? He couldn’t imagine she would keep their existence from the leaders or from him. If she didn’t know, then this could be a new potential threat to her and her people. He would have to notify her as soon as possible.
*****
Jenny left the bedroom, closing the door behind her. The exam went well. She was able to use the medical scope and transferred the image of their twins to the digital tablet to show Zander and HonORa. The expressions of awe and joy and pure love nearly made Jenny cry.
A knock on the door had her looking up in surprise to see TilEE there again. She thought she wouldn’t see the elderly woman until later.
“I hope I didn’t interrupt the exam.”
“No, we just finished up,” Jenny reassured her.
“I got a message that Zander is needed.”
He must have heard his name because Zander opened the door to the bedroom. “What is going on?”
TilEE gave him a concerned expression. “ZenIM has asked for your assistance at the holding cave with the enemy.”
“Let me tell HonORa. She’s going to take a nap. Could you stay with her until my sxrala returns?”
“What or who is sxrala?” Jenny asked.
“It means sister in Norad,” TilEE explained before answering Zander’s request. “I’m happy to stay as long as you need me to.”
“Thank you,” Zander said before heading back into the bedroom. She heard his deep baritone voice and then HonORa’s twinkling soft voice in response. He came back out and left.
Jenny shifted in her seat. “Is there anything I can do to help?”
“I’ve got this,” TilEE reassured her.
“Okay,” Jenny gave her a smile before leaving. She’d go back to her cabin and look at her research on Zander’s species. They had never been known to have multiple births in one pregnancy. She wanted to be prepared for any surprises.
*****
After ZenIM spoke to his warriors searching for the fourth attacker, he returned to the cave and found Zander sitting on a tree log, whittling.
“Have you been waiting long?”
Zander shook his head. “Got here about ten minutes ago.”
“Did I interrupt something?”
“No. Medic Sampson had finished her examination of HonORa when TilEE came to notify me of your request. My mate is resting now.”
That’s right, Jenny was supposed to see them today. He had stopped by her cabin too late the night before, and she was sleeping so he did not disturb her. ZenIM wanted to see her, check on her to make sure she was okay, hear her beautiful voice.
He wasn’t sure why he was so obsessed with her. They had spent so little time together, but there had been a sense of comfort and peace he had never felt with anyone. It was like he could relax and be himself. Now he questioned whether he wanted there to be something between them because he was lonely or whether there was a real connection between them. The only way to know the truth of it was to spend more time with her.
“How did it go?”
Zander smiled wide. “We saw the babies with the medical scope. It’s the most amazing thing I have ever seen.”
“I bet it was,” ZenIM couldn’t help but feel a little bit envious. Zander had what ZenIM longed for: a mate and young on the way. It seemed so easy for others. He shook off his melancholy.
“What do you need help with?” Zander asked.
“The attackers are related to the Morins, but there’s a language barrier. They can understand us, but I can’t understand them. I thought a translator implant would help, but none of my people use implants.”
“I have one,” Zander said with understanding.
“Exactly.”
“So, you want me to question them.”
“No.”
Zander frowned. “I’m not following.”
“I want you to stand there while I question them. I don’t want them to know right away that you understand them. I think they’ll talk to each other not expecting any of us would understand them,” ZenIM explained.
“You are very clever,” Zander said with appreciation.
“That’s why I’m the leader.”
Chapter 16
Jenny wiped her sweaty palms against her side as she walked the path to the center of the village. Floating lanterns lit the way, and she heard children’s laughter letting her know she was going in the right direction. She had changed out of her jeans into a skirt, blouse, and sandals. Her hair arced in a ponytail, and gloss covered her lips, but nothing else. She wanted to make a good impression on the villagers, but also, she wanted ZenIM to see her not looking like a disaster victim for once.
TilEE caught sight of her and left her little group of women to head her way.
“Good evening, Medic Sampson.”
“Call me Jenny, please.”
“Jenny. That is a lovely name. Does it have a meaning?”
“Fair and yielding. Not sure what the yielding part is supposed to mean. My mother always said I’m stubborn like a mule.” Jenny laughed.
“I am not sure what a mule is, but my grandson can be quite stubborn from time to time.”
“Is he back yet?” Jenny asked. She really wanted to know where ZenIM was but didn’t have the guts to ask. TilEE might try to play matchmaker. The way she spoke often of her grandson made Jenny feel like she was already trying to pair her up.
“He should be arriving tomorrow evening with more warriors to help protect the village. Leader LarIS may decide to keep warriors here on a more permanent basis.”
“Will ZenIM object?”
“ZenIM won’t like it, but this is the second time in the past year the village has been exposed to danger. He’ll do whatever it takes to keep his people safe. Did you know his mother helped found the village?” TilEE took her arm, and gently led her farther into the crowd gathered around.
“I did not.”
TilEE told her the story of how ZenIM’s mother helped locate the perfect spot, how she organized everyone, and was considered the leader of the village, first female to ever hold such a powerful position.
Jenny got in line behind a few other people while TilEE was asked to speak with one of the older women she had been talking to earlier. Jenny assured her she would be fine on her own. Everyone walked through a line to get a bowl of something which smelt absolutely delicious.
When a young girl handed her a bowl and spoon, she had to ask. “What is this? It smells wonderful.”
“Our famous vegetable stew. The broth is really good for warming you during cooler nights. Not that we get many cool nights here in the jungle,” the girl said.
“Jenny! Over here!”
Jenny turned to look for who was calling her. It was Zander’s sister Lizetta. She sat on a bench arranged with others in a semicircle. HonORa sat next to her with her own bowl of stew.
“Hi,” Jenny greeted them.
“Come, sit with us.”
She gave them a smile and made her way to them. Taking the seat on the other side of HonORa, she noticed someone was missing.
“Is Zander not back yet?”
“No. I hope he’s not doing anything dangerous. He had asked ZenIM for more responsibilities in the village regarding security. He doesn’t like to be idle, and he wanted to get his people more involved so they would feel like they are contributing to the village.”
>
“With twins on the way, he won’t be idle long. Twins are a handful,” Jenny said with an easy smile.
“Twins, I still can’t believe what a miracle it is. The Goddess blessed me doubly,” HonORa said with such gratitude in her voice.
“I heard you are or were a priestess?” Jenny asked carefully, not sure if she was asking too personal a question.
“I still consider myself a priestess when I perform prayers on behalf of the Goddess. It’s an honor to serve her in any way I can.”
Jenny ate her stew while watching a few of the smaller children run around laughing and playing. She’d always thought, maybe one day, after she was settled in a position at a hospital of her choosing, she would marry and have one or two. It never occurred to her by agreeing to leave Earth, she would be putting that possible future at risk.
It just so happened her partner traveling from Earth was male, and someone she had a very good rapport with. On the outside, he was exactly right for her. They shared the same interests, worked in similar medical fields, and were physically attracted to one another, but something was always missing between them, an emotional connection. Maybe it was foolish, but she wanted to have what Zander and HonORa had. Love so strong and pure, it filled the room.
“Zander!” HonORa called out. Her whole demeanor changed from worried to joyful at the sight of her mate.
Jenny stood to give him the seat next to his mate. Zander sat and lifted HonORa up into his lap. She giggled and buried her face into his neck.
“Zander.”
“I need to hold you for a few minutes.”
HonORa nodded her understanding. “Are you hungry?”
Lizetta jumped up. “I’ll get you some stew.”
Jenny looked around the people gathered expecting to see ZenIM.
“He went to his quarters to clean up.”
She looked at Zander in surprise. “I’m sorry, what?”
“ZenIM. If you’re looking for him, he went to his home to clean up.”
“Oh. Well, that...” She honestly didn’t know what to say. Was she that obvious?
“I bet he could use something to eat,” HonORa suggested.
Evidently, she was that obvious. Nodding, she placed her empty dish in a tub with other dirty bowls and grabbed a clean one. No one asked her who she was getting it for, but she needed to know something, so she asked Lizetta.
“Lizetta, where does ZenIM stay?”
Lizetta gave her a curious look then smiled widely. Pointing to a path she had yet to travel, the girl said, “Down there, when you get to a large boulder on the right, stop, and look up.”
Those directions sounded strange, but she didn’t ask any further questions. She carried the bowl of stew down the pathway Lizetta indicated. The moon shone brightly helping her find her way, but she had to stop and squint a few times getting turned around a bit. There had only been a few cabins on this path, then a long stretch of emptiness. She stopped at the large boulder. Now what? Lizetta said once she reached the boulder, look up. So tilting her head back, she looked up squinting, and nearly dropped the bowl.
“Oh my God, he is Tarzan,” she whispered in awe.
“Jenny?” a gruff voice said behind her, scaring her. She spilt some of the stew on the ground when she turned around.
“Bloody hell!”
Strong hands reached for her arms steadying her. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“It’s okay. I’m all right.”
He reluctantly let her go and took a step back. “What are you doing here?”
“I...brought you some stew.” Wow, she sounded like some lovestruck teenager taking treats to her potential boyfriend. It was then that she noticed his hair was still damp from his shower, and he only wore a pair of pants, no shirt. Oh my goodness.
“You brought this for me?” ZenIM asked, taking the bowl from her. He seemed so surprised.
“Yes. You saved me and AkER. You brought me the berries to eat. I thought, it’s the least I could do.”
“You don’t owe me anything, Jenny. It is my pleasure to take care of you.”
“Well, I am very appreciative.”
“Would you like to come up?” He motioned upward at the largest treehouse she had ever seen.
She looked at the monstrosity, him, then the ladder built into the large tree trunk. “I’m not a good climber.”
“I have a pulley with a cart I use to bring supplies up. Sit in it, and I’ll pull you up.”
She followed him to the other side of the tree and helped her into the cart and handed the bowl to her. Then she watched as he disappeared up the tree.
“Are you ready?” he called down.
“Yes, well, as ready as I’ll ever be.”
The cart jerked a little then it started to lift up, and up, and up. She closed her eyes to keep from getting dizzy. She never cared much for heights. The cart finally stopped, but she couldn’t get her racing heart to slow.
“Jenny?”
She opened her eyes, and saw he’d extended his hand to help her stand. The cart sat on a wooden platform. The base didn’t have any railing except on the side where it connected to a hanging footbridge leading to the two-story cabin tree house. Two stories?
“Wow.”
“Do you like it?” he asked.
“It’s lovely. I had a treehouse once when I was a little girl, but it was nothing like this, and it was only ten feet off the ground.” She laughed as she thought about it for the first time in many years.
“My father and grandfather spent a whole weekend building it. They weren’t really good at stuff like that. There was a big space between the first and second step, they couldn’t get the little door on, so it was left open and it leaned to the left. I loved it.”
“Come, let me show you the inside.” He took the bowl from her and led her into his home.
She followed him across the very sturdy bridge to the deck, admiring the craftsmanship of the railing surrounding the cabin. He opened the door and waited for her to enter. Jenny turned around in amazement, her eyes fixing on the spiraling staircase that wrapped around the huge tree trunk leading up to the second floor.
“What do you think?” ZenIM asked, placing the bowl on the table but keeping his eyes on her.
“It’s incredible. Did you build this yourself?”
He smiled with pride. “I had some of my people help with the first level, but I have been working on the second level myself, little by little.”
“It’s beautiful.”
She turned back to him find him a foot from her. So close she could feel the heat from his body. Her breath caught when he cupped her cheek with a large warm hand.
“You’re beautiful,” he whispered.
Then he moved the final step bringing their bodies together, and he kissed her. One kiss and she was lost.
Chapter 17
ZenIM couldn’t stop kissing Jenny. Her lips were so soft, sweet, and addicting. Jenny was shy and tentative with her response. It was like she had no idea how lovely or sexy she was. Her normal reaction to things was to stay cool and calm, think logically. However, she had passion hidden within, and all she needed was the spark to set it off. With a sigh of pleasure, she gave in to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissed him back.
Their embrace went from passionate to explosive. He bent down to pick her up in his arms, then carried her to the stairs.
“ZenIM,” she whispered his name with a husky sexy voice.
“Tell me now, beautiful, if you do not want this. I will honor your decision, but I need you to say it.” It killed him to have to pull back from her, but he would always give her the choice.
She hesitated, but then touched his lips with her fingertips. “I want this.”
He kissed her again before heading up the stairs to his bedroom. She nibbled his earlobe, nearly making him stumble. Growling his pleasure, he allowed her body to slide down his until her feet touched the floor. Her softness felt
good against his hard body. It amazed him how small she was. Among his people, he was considered extremely tall. Standing next to her, the difference in their size was undeniable. The top of her head barely reached his shoulders.
The shirt she wore was a silky-smooth fabric that felt fragile beneath his fingers, and he wanted to shred it until nothing was left. Stepping back just enough, he took the hem of the blouse and slowly raised it until it cleared her head. He tossed it to the floor behind him. She wore one of those underclothing over her breasts he had heard about, but this had been the first time he had seen one.
He reached out and touched the tiny strap on her shoulder easing it slowly down her shoulder. “What is this called?”
“A bra. Your females don’t wear anything like this do they?”
“No, but I find it, tantalizing. Do you have bottoms as well?”
She nodded.
“Show me.”
Jenny reached behind her to undo a button, then a zipper. The blue material slid down her hips then her legs to fall at her feet. She stepped out of the circle of material and kicked off her sandals.
His breath caught at the sight of the small patch of material covering her feminine core. He wanted to bury his face there and lap at her juice. His heart raced, and a low growl emitted from his throat.
“Does that mean you like my underwear?” she asked with lowered lashes.
Taking a step toward her, she took a step back toward the bed. “I love your underthings, but I prefer them off.”
He stepped closer, and she backed with every movement until her knees hit the mattress, falling backward, landing softly. Leaning over the bed, he dragged her underthing down, exposing her smooth feminine mound. He took a deep breath.
Her scent filled his lungs, arousing him almost to the point of pain. Her scent was distinct to her, and he would always be able to track her no matter where she went or how far.
He unhooked the bra clasp in the front and removed the last piece of clothing covering her from his view. Sitting back, he stared down at her, memorizing every inch of her.