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Pless. I turn her around to rinse her glorious hair and body. I don’t want to promise if I can’t deliver, yet, she’s asked me and I can’t say no. “Fine. Yes. I won’t goad the emperor into a rage.”
“Promise?”
Her blue eyes are so solemn. I can’t resist giving her everything she wants. “Yes, I promise.”
Jessica hugs me and I’m already stirring for her. She chuckles and runs her fingertips up and down my cock. “I know this isn’t helping, but damn, you’re fine.”
Groaning, I step back from her touch. “No, not helping and I have to be fine to keep you.”
“True,” she says and steps out of the shower. “I need a towel.”
I reach up and sure enough, there’s a few on top of the shower. “Here,” I say, giving one to her. “If you need help, don’t be shy.”
She laughs and begins drying off. “Never with you. Especially when being the exact opposite of shy is so rewarding.”
I grin because she’s right. Anything Jessica wants from me, she’ll get. As gratifying as making love to her is, I’m not completely distracted from my looming encounter with the emperor. “Do you know how much time we have?”
Jessica’s searching the room, only stopping when she finds clothes in storage under our bed. “Not long. They know we’re cleaning up for the audience with him, but they’re expecting us soon.”
“Good to know.” I find something to wear that fits me, then watch as she begins pulling out shirts and pants, holding each up to her body until satisfied with a complete outfit.
Pulling on her clothes while I slip on shoes, she then runs her fingers through her sonic damp hair. “It’s amazing how fast this stuff dissipates.” She watches me as I do the same, trying to move my unruly hair into something a little more presentable.
Soon, we’re both ready with our overnight bags slung over our shoulders and greeted by two guards when we leave the room. Both they and Jessica are communicating. I hate my lack of tech but keep quiet as we follow one guard down the hall with his cohort close behind. I don’t need to hear the words between them and my mate to know what’s going to happen. Still, I’m a little curious. “Where are the others?”
The first guard doesn’t turn to me, saying over his shoulder, “On the planet surface. Only the crew are on board.”
Jessica takes my hand. “Stacie went with S’Tou to talk to the emperor. Nilt has a group of friends waiting for him. I’ve talked to S’Tou about Ghar accepting Quin as a citizen. He’s a topic S’Tou plans to talk with the emperor about, too.”
I wait until we’re at the airlock to hear more from her but she’s quiet. They said nothing about me or her, hmm? I’m concerned but not worried since there’s not much I can do beyond plead my case to the empire.
We step out into the open space port, one I’ve been to before. I examine the area. Enough time has passed for my home planet to seem oddly new and somehow familiar, too. Everything has changed, yet, everything is the same. I try seeing my former home through Jessica’s Sixth worlder eyes but give up. Instead, I ask her outright. “This is the second planet you’ve been on since leaving Earth, isn’t it?”
She nods, looking at everything as we go with the guards toward the open bay doors. “Yes. It’s amazing. So modern.” She glances back for a few seconds at the rear officer and the ship beyond her. “This seems like a dream.”
Warm Gharian air flows in, ruffling our hair. I close my eyes for a moment and enjoy the fresh scent of civilization. The metal, other people’s clean fragrances, and the hint of rain wrench my heart. “I’ve missed my home.”
Jessica takes my hand. “I’m sorry and I can see why. It’s beautiful.” She’s so busy examining every little thing that she never looks at me. Something I completely understand. “The guards are awfully trusting,” she says in a low voice. “We could run away together.”
“It’s possible, but where would we go? What could we do?” I nudge her to tease her and to increase the contact between us. “Besides, they’d find your Kostan nanos in milliseconds.”
She squeezes my hand. “No way out but through, then.” Lifting her chin, she stares ahead at the imperial palace. “Considering your animosity toward the emperor, maybe you should let me plead your case, or do you already have a lawyer?”
“Your words have no meaning to me,” I admit to her, partially in shame over my lack of access to the datalinks, and from what I suspect is an Earth only situation. “We state our own circumstances and a decision is made.”
“By the emperor only? How many Gharians are there in the universe, anyway?” She frowns at me. “How can he settle every dispute personally?”
Her rat-a-tat questions amuse me and I reply. “Not by him, usually. He has leaders to make smaller judgements. He only listens to the serious cases.”
“Hmm,” she hums. I glance over to find her chewing on her lower lip like she hates her skin. “I don’t like the sound of that, but all right. I can plead you down.”
“You know I can handle the inquest myself, don’t you? Are you forgetting who protects who on this world?” The guards move to our sides as we wait for the massive throne room doors to open. “I’m the native here and it’s my duty to protect my mate.”
“Which is also my duty as well, since I also have a mate.” She grips her bag’s strap and puts her free hand on my arm for a moment. “Don’t worry. I’ve got this. I have a lifetime of watching legal shows and I’ve been studying what the Kostans know about Gharian law. You’ll be home in time for lunch.”
Somehow, I doubt her prior and new knowledge can help me. With his Earther wife at his side, I’m sure the emperor will consider my mate a welcome addition to the alliance, even if I’m included.
Except, I probably won’t be. Not by him.
I squeeze my bag’s strap until my hand aches. Pless, I’ll receive a harsh sentence no matter how adorable the emperor considers Jessica to be. Even worse, I happen to agree with the emperor in this instance. I shouldn’t be allowed to rejoin society as if I’d never been guilty. Raylin deserves my incarceration.
Jessica squeezes my hand as the doors open. “Stop worrying, okay? Remember, I’ve got this. You helped me on X-113. I’m helping you here.”
The throne room’s doors are in front of us, I realize with a start. I’d been so internally focused on my mental spiral of doom, I’d ignored my surroundings. The doors open into the long room with Emperor LucKrell Eldan, Empress LucKrell Paxton, and even the Crown Prince ElKrell Daneul.
I’m in deep, deep shit. The three stare at us as we enter the room. Even worse, three leaders on each side of the throne’s dais sit, waiting for us. The royal guard stands at attention, five on each side of the imperial family. They’re superfluous since we have hidden security all over our palace. I know because I helped program the newer, or now older, programs.
The doors behind us close with a clang, leading both of us to turn for a few seconds. When our eyes meet, Jessica gives me a wink. “Don’t worry. Remember. I got this.”
Letting go of me and striding ahead as if she’s the emperor, she strolls down the crystalline carpet path, leaving me behind. "Hello. I'm Jessica Talbot from Earth and am here to represent Innovator VilKrell Cinq. Shall we get started?”
