Page 18 of The Arabis Triad

That was all right. He could work with that. Despite her words, on some level she felt the mating bond. It would only be a matter of time before she was theirs, but he wanted her head and her heart, not just her body.

Her species did not have the bond and he wondered what drew them to partner with each other. Did they even have that level of intimacy in her culture? There was so much he wanted to know about her, so much he wanted to share, but that was all right too. They had the rest of their lives to discover each other.

For now, he was content to hold her safe, sated that he had bathed her and cared for her. She was almost unrecognizable after he’d finished. Her skin was a delightful pink.

Her hair was even more of a discovery. The strands were finer than his. They were like spun silver etched with moonlight, so soft he barely felt it over the callouses on his hands.

As he’d washed her, he’d fought down the rage welling in his chest thinking about what she’d suffered. Not even her sublime naked form was enough to obscure the horror of her bruises and abrasions. There’d be time enough for discovering her sweet body when she was well. His first and foremost concern had been washing and healing her.

She was soft perfection, as a female should be. He would need to warn his brothers to always treat her gently, even in the height of passion. He traced the outline of her form over the blanket he’d wrapped her in, over the dip of her waist and the swell of her hip, her body so tiny in relation to his.

Already his protective instincts were undeniable. He would gladly stand between her and any harm that might befall her, take physical injury so that she would remain unscathed as was true and right. Evelyn didn’t know how precious she was. She couldn’t possibly know the pleasure he derived simply through lying next to her, keeping her safe in the sanctuary of his arms.

But it had been a while now. Their mate was fast asleep and needed her rest, and he wanted to talk with Coltan and Ashir. Carefully, he unwound his arms from beneath her and eased off the bed. He took a moment to watch her. Her face was peaceful and he hoped she was having sweet dreams.

He crept from the room setting the alarm on the door before he left, and made his way to the eating area. If his brothers weren’t outside, they would be in here. He found them both eating a meal at the small dining table, the contents of their meal half finished. They’d been conversing, but as he entered, both Coltan and Ashir broke their conversation and tipped their anxious faces toward him.

“Well?” Coltan asked.

Paxt ran a hand over his face. He really needed to get out of these leathers. The dryer had not done that good a job of drying them off. Things were starting to chafe and it wasn’t a pleasant feeling, especially given the low level arousal pulsing through his veins.

Once Evelyn was well, he knew their bond would strengthen and he wouldn’t be able to ignore the pull of taking their mate. Putting that to the back of his mind, he concentrated on his brothers.

“She is sleeping,” he said. “The medi-bed didn’t heal all of her injuries, but I’m hoping rest will do a big part. At least her bones healed, but there are numerous scrapes and bruises left.”

Ashir clenched his fist. “I will kill every scaled one I find.”

“As will I. Did you do a patrol while I bathed our mate?”

Ashir nodded. “There were no more disturbances. Our message has reached Trum and he has set course for this planet, but it will take two weeks before they arrive.”

“And what of his mate?” His mind flicked to the female Trum had rescued alongside their Evelyn. He hoped she was recovering.

“She is frightened. Confused. In much the same condition as our mate. They didn’t want to leave her alone and so they made her comfortable on board the Head of Fleet,” Coltan said.

“They’re flying theHarbinger?”

That was a good craft. Stealthy, sleek, with enough firepower to bring down a cruiser—or a craft of scaled ones. There was enough room on board for a battalion, and he was sure Trum was bringing one with him. He was also sure they would be ready and waiting to kill any scaled ones they came across. Who knew how many human females had been abducted, and how many of them would turn out to be true mates?

“What of the Erion Triad?” The last thing Trum had said was that they’d gone after one of the scaled ones’ crafts.

“They managed to recover their crystal with the human female the scaled ones had taken with them,” Ashir said.

“Is that the female our mate was worried about when he found her in the cage?” Paxt said.

Coltan nodded, “It is.”

Paxt relaxed a little. They could at least offer their mate some good news. “Have they restored the crystal to their tower?”

“As far as I know yes, however I haven’t heard of any Quads forming,” Ashir said.

Paxt frowned, “That doesn’t sound right.”

“I think this situation goes deeper than any of us understand right at this moment,” Coltan said.

Paxt had to agree. He couldn’t worry about the Erion now though. They still needed to plan the retrieval of their own crystal. “Have you found the exact location of the scaled ones on this planet?”

Paxt coded a meal into the meal-preparer and waited for it to rehydrate. He hoped their mate would like some of their rations. It could be trial and error discovering what she might like to eat. Hopefully, their food wouldn’t be incompatible. He rested back against the counter and crossed his arms while he waited.

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