“He’s not too dangerous. It’s that people are scared of him,” Zara insisted. “It doesn’t matter what other people think. I’ve married him. A deal is a deal.”
“Good for you,” Naomi said sincerely. “I hope it works out for you. If you press that little icon on the bottom of the screen, that will take it out of hologram mode so you can listen and watch privately.”
“Thank you, Naomi. I prefer to see this privately,” Zara smiled, thinking she was going to like the other woman.
CHAPTER FIVE
After her experience with the hologram, Zara went through the tablet to find the tutorial that Jenna had told her was included. She explained that she could have interactive video chats with Korjh now that they were in space. Zara was excited to figure it out. So, they could talk in real time. It turned out to be almost as simple as her smartphone.
She was disappointed her first try because Korjh didn’t come to answer her call. It was a few hours before he commed her back in the middle of her night.
Zara went into the tiny bathroom so she wouldn’t wake Naomi. Brushed her hair quickly before she opened the tablet.
“Hi Korjh,” she said, smiling as his image came on to her screen. “So good to see you!”
“Sorry I was out, riding the fields to check my crops and machinery to make sure they are growing properly and receiving water,” he explained. “Is this a good time for you?”
“It’s actually the middle of our night,” she said quietly. “But it’s okay. We are on twenty-seven-hour days. First meal will be five hours from now.”
“That will be early evening for me,” he replied. “How about an hour after that?”
“That would be fine,” she said, “But I’m up now, I can talk a few minutes. My sleep schedule will have to be readjusted when I get there.”
“It will take some getting used to. We are on twenty-two-hour days. Sounds like your wake period runs into our night period,” he said, “I’m sure we can find something to do.” His sexy smirk told her precisely what he was thinking.
Zara blushed even as her body reacted receptively. She felt suddenly shy although she fully expected to be intimate with her husband in the not-too-distant future. This was the first time he had broached the subject face to face.
“I’m sure,” she said finally with a hint of a smile. The thought of being naked beneath Korjh’s big, sexy body with that exquisite mouth of his made it hard to breathe.
“Ah, Zara, sweetheart, we’ll take it slow,” he assured her. “We won’t join until you feel ready. I promise.”
“Thank you, Korjh, I appreciate that,” she smiled at him. “I am attracted to you, but we’ve never even had a date.”
“We will have dates if you wish,” he assured her. “I can wait now that you are mine.”
“Yours?” Zara frowned. That sounded like ownership.
“Are you not my wife?”
“I am, and you are my husband.”
“So, we belong to each other,” he added.
“Yes.”
“When you come to stay with me, you may have your own bedroom. I will prepare that for you,” he said.
“Is that what you want?” Zara asked, uncertainly. She wasn’t sure whether he was trying to be nice or didn’t want her in his bed.
“Zara, I’ve wanted you since the moment I saw your video,” Korjh said. “I’ve never done this before. I don’t want to frighten you or push you into my bed before you’re ready.”
“I understand,” she said softly, “that would be okay while we are getting used to being together. I think we will know when I am ready. We haven’t even sealed our marriage with a kiss yet.”
“Then we will start there, my mate,” he said, his eyes darkening with passionate longing.
When he looked at her like that, she knew it wouldn’t take long for him to make her want him. Not long at all.
“You should get some sleep, my love. I will com you this evening,” he said.
“I look forward to it,” she told him earnestly. Then her screen went dark. But sleep didn’t come so quickly as her mind was preoccupied with thoughts of Korjh.
Having sex with her new husband didn’t worry Zara, she’d had an intimate relationship with a young man while she was in college. It was a bittersweet memory as he had ended their relationship when he graduated a year ahead of her. Then he had gone out of her life forever. The sex had probably been the best thing about their relationship. It may have been the reason it lasted so long. If he had truly loved her, he wouldn’t have just dumped her when he finished college.
This was different. Korjh was her husband; whatever did or didn’t happen was between them.
Korjh commed about a half hour after first meal and had her blushing with his first words,
“Hello, my beautiful wife,” he began with a smile. “I can hardly wait to hold you in my arms and claim you in every way a man claims a woman.”
“Korjh,” she protested weakly. “I am looking forward to our first kiss, and to feel your arms around me.”
“You are just so beautiful and sexy,” he said with a heart-melting grin.
“I could say the same of you,” she said with a soft laugh.
“And you have a wonderful laugh,” he added. “This is so much better than one-sided conversations.”
“It is,” she admitted.
“Have people said things to you about me?” His expression grew serious.
“They think I don’t know what I’m getting into---I don’t understand why. Being a cyborg doesn’t mean you’re not human.”
“And I have never killed a human or even a humanoid, just Drayid bugs,” he asserted. “I swear on my life, I would never harm you in any way.” The expression in his eyes softened as he looked at her.
“I believe you Korjh,” she assured him. “I have believed in you all along, or I wouldn’t be on this ship coming to your world.”
“I hope you will be happy with me, Zara, because once I hold you in my arms, I don’t think I could give you up.”
“I don’t give up that easily. Besides, the matchmaking service considers us soul mates genetically speaking,” Zara remembered. “They don’t differentiate because you are a cyborg. You passed the psych profile. Besides, every marriage takes some adjustment. I am coming to you with the belief I will fall in love with you.”
“I will do my best to make that happen. I’ve waited a long time for the service to find you because I am a cyborg and because I’ve been a warrior most of my life.”
“But you were cleared psychologically,” she reminded him. “You wouldn’t have been cleared to settle on Modonne without it.”
“That mean’s nothing to a lot of people who have never fought to survive. My cybernetics make me sub-human as far as they are concerned. The nanites have altered me genetically,” Korjh said, “and they will change you as well.”
“I know, but they’ve assured me these changes aren’t harmful. In fact, they said the nanites will keep me healthy and make me heal faster,” Zara said. “I’m ready to get some of those little buggers.” She smiled at him.
“That’s my girl,” Korjh chuckled. “They will also slow the aging process and ensure that we can make babies together.”
Korjh went on to talk about his day and show pictures of his horses and his farm and a beautiful sunrise. He had already given her a video tour of his home which had been excavated from the rock four feet under the topsoil. Most of the house was comprised of modules transported out into the desert. There were also more rustic rooms with rock walls of granite smoothed and polished.
It all made Zara long to be there with him. When they finished their com-chat, she went back and played back the recording. His words and the look in his eyes made her long to be in his arms with her body pressed against his.
She wouldn’t let anyone convince her that he was going to be anything but the love of her life. She believed in Korjh. It didn’t matter if any of them did or not.
“Then you will have a friend here besides me,” he said. “Perhaps we can see them after their bonding period is over.”
“Captain Zeke and his wife Jenna are meomee---which is Narovian for soulmates,” she added. “Captain Zeke is Narovian, and he met his wife Jenna while on a mission to rescue some Earth women from a slave auction on Se’Nar….”
Zara went on and told him the rest of the story because it seemed so romantic.
CHAPTER SIX
Zara and Korjh kept up their com-chats for the entire journey to Modonne. She socialized with the other passengers through meals, the gym, and movies in the conference room. The ship’s AI held thousands in its memory of both entertaining and educational programs.
All of them had already been supplied with literature and videos about the Alliance and the worlds their mates lived on. The most fascinating was the many humanoid species and subspecies that held membership in the Alliance. More surprising were the numbers of homo sapiens and the multitude of racial variations found just in Alliance sectors.
The two main reasons the Alliance formally recognized Earth and invited them into the Alliance were human trafficking and to save the planet. When they made the offer, they never expected an attempted invasion by the Drayids. The Alliance had arrived in time to drive them off, but not in time prevent a great deal of destruction to the planet. The death toll was estimated in the millions.
Even so, the world was still overpopulated. That could be remedied by more people going out into the galaxy to settle on the colonial planets that needed people. Modonne was just one of those worlds. The group agreed that more people would probably leave as the Alliance was working on a program to help subsidize families who want to move to colonies from non-space faring worlds like Earth.
With their significant presence on Mars, Earth and Earth’s moon, the Alliance had begun construction on a public starport outside Chicago. It would accommodate larger passenger shuttles and freight shuttles than the Alliance base in West Virginia. It not only meant people of Earth could leave the star system, but they could also return.
The routine on the Zephyr reminded Zara of the family cruise she and her brother took as kids with their parents when they were still together. Jason had loved the ocean and decided he would join the navy when he grew up. Zara enjoyed it because there was always something to do.
On the Zephyr, Jenna tried to keep everyone entertained. There were games, movies, eBooks, music, the gym and even a walking route around the ship. No one needed to be bored. That was one of the things Jenna had hated on the slave ship aside from the monotonous food. There was nothing to do for weeks on what seemed an endless journey.
Zara participated as much as possible to pass the time and because she liked Jenna and Captain Ba’Kal and the crew. Three months seemed like a long time until suddenly it wasn’t and she debarked from the Zephyr shuttle at the Modonne Starport in Sezrop.
Both Captain Zeke and Jenna were at the shuttle exit to say goodbye and wish both Zara and Naomi well. As Zara started down the ramp, Jenna looked up and saw a big man with his arms folded across his broad chest dressed in khaki cargo pants and a tan t-shirt. Despite his handsome features, he had the look of a battle-hardened commando. His grim, humorless expression made him look a little scary.
Jenna looked across the landing bay at him and felt a chill of apprehension for Zara. “That’s him, isn’t it?” she said to her husband.
Zeke knew precisely who she meant because he had seen the big man at the same time she had. “It is. He sure looks intimidating, but most cyborgs do,” he said.
They watched as Zara approached him. The look on the cyborg’s face changed instantly from grim to joyous. He picked Zara up in his arms like she was feather light and held her, cuddling her head on his shoulder with a powerful hand. His eyes were closed, and he seemed to savor that first moment with Zara in his arms.
“I think she will be okay,” Zeke said. “The droid’s unloading the luggage. Let’s go find our passengers.”
When Zara saw Korjh was waiting for her inside the building, tall and intimidating with his grim expression, she almost stopped. She knew it was him as he looked just like his hologram, but he was smiling in that. Had Zara seen him like this, she would have had second and third thoughts about becoming his mate. He looked almost menacing, and the feline waiting, she assumed for Naomi, had given the cyborg a wide berth.
Zara walked toward him tentatively and said his name softly, suddenly not so sure she had made the right decision. He looked angry like he could kill anyone who crossed him without a second thought.
But the instant he heard her say his name, his expression changed from grim to happy in an instant. This was the Korjh she knew and fell in love with though she had never said it to him. As she walked toward him, she didn’t know whether to hug him or not. Korjh took that decision out of her hands when he scooped her up into his arms in a firm but gentle hug, kissing her cheek.
“Zara,” he murmured, “you are even more beautiful in person.”
“I am so glad to finally meet you, Korjh,” she said with a smile and impetuously gave him a peck on the lips, eliciting a low groan from him.
He let her down slowly then took her hand in his while they waited for the droid to unload her trunks and suitcases and carry them to the exit by the aircar lot. She had already said her goodbyes to everyone on the ship, so she was ready to start her new life with Korjh.
Zara and Korjh could hardly stop looking at each other. Cyborg or not, Korjh was one gorgeous hunk of man. He was so big, he seemed to tower over her, but the way he looked at her didn’t frighten her at all. She couldn’t think that way about him. What she did think about was his hardness against her breasts and the press of his erection against her core.
It was going to be a long ride to her new home. Korjh said they would take things slowly, but he clearly wanted her. Even though he was legally her husband, they had just met for the first time. She felt like she already knew him through their daily com-chats, although they had never even touched until today. But when she had seen him looking so disturbing and dangerous, she’d started to wonder if she had chosen the right mate.
Zara was exhausted by the time the Zephyr’s shuttle touched down on Modonne. As excited as she was to finally meet her new husband, the several restless nights before they touched down at the starport had taken their toll.
Zara found herself nodding off soon after Korjh set the aircar in motion. So, it didn’t seem like such a long ride after all. She didn’t wake up until Korjh was carrying her down the ramp into his home.
“Oh, Korjh. I am so sorry,” Zara said, “I’ve been so excited the last few days, I haven’t been sleeping so well.”
“I have been the same way.” He smiled down at her as he waited for the door to open automatically. “But I don’t require that much sleep.” He walked through the entrance as soon as it opened. “The droid will unload your things. Would you like to rest some more before second meal?”
“Yes, I think so. This is still sleep time for me,” Zara said draping her arms around his neck. She liked being in his arms. She loved the scent of him, clean and masculine. It all contributed to a sudden vision of her beneath him waiting for him to take her.
She sucked in a quick breath, blushing, sure he would know with his enhanced senses as her inner walls contracted. Zara stole a glance at his face. If he scented her arousal, he gave no hint of it.
“Your room is adjacent to mine,” he said as he carried her down the long hallway. “I am in the master bedroom I believe you would call it. When you are ready, I hope you will share it with me---but I don’t wan
t to rush or pressure you.”
“Thank you,” she said as he set her on her feet. “I am glad to finally be here with you.” Zara wanted to say more, to talk with him the way they did on com-chat but she was swaying on her feet with exhaustion.”
Korjh turned back the bed for her then reached out and caressed her cheek with his fingers. “Me too. But I can see you are worn out from your journey. Get some rest, and we will have second meal later.”
Zara nodded and sat on the bed to slip off her shoes then laid down, and Korjh covered her.
“If you need anything, call me. My home AI will signal me. I have some work to do. Rest, and we will talk later.”
Then he was gone. Despite her excitement to be in her new home with her new husband. She closed her eyes and slept.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Korjh went out to the barn and saddled his big black, genetically engineered stallion once he knew Zara was asleep. He knew it would take time for her to adjust to the time change from her voyage so she could sleep during Modonne’s night time. He needed to keep busy while she rested.
There wasn’t much he really needed to do except monitor the growth of his crops and make sure the watering system was working correctly. Everything was fully automated, but Korjh rode different sections daily, more to give himself something to do that because he needed to.
His home AI ran all the systems and had drones to fly over the planted fields and livestock pastures. Korjh just liked riding in the open spaces on his magnificent equine. It brought peace to his soul after all the years spent defending the Alliance against the Drayids.
Korjh rode for hours, returning his horse Bakus to the barn in time for third meal if Zara was up for it. His AI hadn’t reported any movement, so he knew she was still asleep. All he had to do was signal his AI through his cybernetic processor, and it would relay the command to the food processor to prepare their meal.
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