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“Kalla, control yourself!” Ruka snaps.
“And how was I to know that?” Viro says, elbowing me off. “Consider my eyeballs turned off, alright? Now there’s still the question of why she’s here.”
All three of them— Viro, Ruka, and my mate together— turn expectant faces on me. Kaye is clinging to Ruka, a female she’s never met. Viro is looking like this is half entertainment to him. He has a taste for alien females, so I stand by my decision to make matters clear to him.
“She admitted to me herself that she was heading to the same colony from which she was recently kidnapped,” I state, clenching my fists at my side. “If anyone wishes to throw Mak’s influence into this conversation, go ahead. He’s already exiled me from the fleet, so what will he do, hm? Nothing. She is staying on this ship unless one of you can guarantee she’ll stay put onThe Rightful Heir. You’re welcome to volunteer as her personal bodyguard. But if neither of those matters can be settled, she will stay where I can verify her safety.”
“You know, for Kalla’s mind, that was surprisingly logical,” Viro says with a shrug. “If you can’t stand to be around your mate,” he addresses Kaye, “then why can’t you stay onThe Rightful Heir?”
I pace to release the mating tension while Kaye politely explains her promise about Captain Rossa’s brother and the tale of how the boy ran off to stow away on the ship. Ruka and Viro react sympathetically, but I can tell I already have Viro on my side.
“I’ll head to the bridge and check the comms and logs from the fleet,” Viro suggests. “Maybe I can find out what became of the young rascal.”
“That’s a great idea! Thank you!” My mate smiles at him with a sugary sweetness that makes me ill. It’s jealousy, plain and simple. I bite my tongue, but I want her smiles. What I’ll get is her absolute hatred, and I’ll deserve it too.
“I’d prefer not to involve myself in matters between a mated pair,” Ruka starts, “but this is different considering that she’s a human. Kalla, you can’t be so rash about a species that doesn’t understand our ways. In any case, if the female wants to go to some boring old colony farm to dig in the dirt… Why shouldn’t she?”
“Hey!” my mate protests. “It’s actually quite peaceful there.”
“It’s practically lawless,” I grit out. “The Alliance hardly pays any attention to these terraform projects. They send anyone who’s willing and then put their hand out for the produced grains! It’s sheriffed by Earthlings, I suppose, too? Which is why she’s already been easily snatched right off the place once already!”
“Up until that attack, our militia was doing a great job of fending off pirate landings, so I’d appreciate a little more respect for my own species,” Kaye says. “I already told you that attack was targeted, and we had no way of anticipating that humans would be such a valuable commodity at the time, and according to Rossa, the bubble’s already burst, and the black market has lost interest. Do you seriously think that I haven’t considered that before deciding to move back home? Don’t you think that if it were that much of a concern that the whole colony would be evacuated?”
“You two should hash this out on your own,” Ruka says awkwardly as I silently fume. “It’s really none of my business. But Kaye? You can come find me once he’s grated your nerves down to their limit.”
She throws me a smirk before making a run for it, joining Viro and the others on the bridge.
Bewildered by her loss of a perceived ally, Kaye’s trembling at Ruka’s escape. We’re left alone in the hallway. I can’t summon a word. I’ve made myself her enemy, and I’ll have to live with that somehow. At least I will be able to sleep knowing her body is safe, even if she hates me with all her will. Is this better or worse than spending an unknowable time period without seeing her face? I can’t decide.
“Go ahead,” she says, flourishing a hand. “Is this the part where you show me to my prison?”
It’s only fair play that she mocks me.
“Do you think I want it this way?”
“You had better want it. Because you made this choice, and you can’t take it back, not unless you turn around right now and take me back.”
Her cheeks burn pink, a sign of matehood. But humans are always red on the inside. There’s been no change in her. She doesn’t feel the same pump of desire in her veins. It’s anger making her body rigid, not desire. All the same, I respond. Her mass of orange-red hair is a strange halo around her, wildly tangled by running through the windy airfield. I’m forced to shift my weight to keep the blood from rushing to my length.
Her lashes are all aflutter as she gauges me. Like prey, she’s twitchy under my gaze, waiting for me to the make a move. She fears me; it’s my own fault. But could she also feel some attraction? Does the mating call pull at her, even through her anger and adrenaline?
“I’m not taking you back. Make peace with it. And so will I.”
“How am I supposed to trust that you’re really my mate?” she demands. “What proof do I have? You know, I saw this happen in the market and it wasn’t like this. It was different— What are you doing?”
I take her hand and press it to the erection I had no success in suppressing. Her eyes widen and her mouth drops, showing me her pink mouth. Inside? A pink tongue to match, pink like the inside of a cunt. It’s so erotic. I’m accustomed to seeing a black Kar’Kali tongue. Is that why I’m having visions of my cock sliding between her lips? Her fingers flex in surprise against the bulge in my air seal.
“Here’s my proof, little flame. Are you convinced? Or should I take it out for you?”
When the hesitation of shock wears off, she snatches her hand back like I’ve burned her. The pink on her cheeks spreads like wildfire, and a new splotch of color appears on her neck and chest. This demonstration of my effect on her only quickens my breath and makes my cock throb harder.
“I make many questionable decisions,” I tell her. “But one thing you should never doubt is that a male knows his mate when he sees her. Do you think I would care a rutting taps’ thought about what any other female did with her life?”
“I-I—” Her throat bobs. Her eyes drop for a glance at my crotch before searching the wall for another distraction. Has my cock got her flustered? Or have I simply gone too far? I shouldn’t be so perverse when she’s still recovering from the shock of my other unsavory actions. I pinch the bridge of my nose and look away from her before I pounce with mating aggression.
“Go wherever you wish for the time being,” I sigh. “I’ll give you a break before I continue torturing you with my presence… There’re matters to attend to on the bridge.”
I leave her in the hallway alone, clutching the hallway railing as if she expects the false gravity to malfunction at any second. Trading her safety for her hatred is not the worst trade I’ve made in this lifetime.
