Page 48 of Pursued By the Dragon Alien

Lilas’ pulse thundered. She had always thought of it as an untouchable monolith, a structure so deeply tied to the Axis’ rulethat it would stand long after she was gone. And now, she was steppinginsideof it, and it wasn’t just stone and metal anymore. It couldmove. It was free.

Her mind spun, questions piling up against the relief she had tried not to let herself feel. They were in a room that looked more like a great hall than a spaceship. Comfortable sofas and tables sat before a hearth that burned white with an ionic fire. Before she could sit down and take a breath, quick footsteps echoed down the corridor.

“Lilas!”

Lilas barely turned before Fivra slammed into her.

The smaller female threw her arms around Lilas with surprising strength. Her delicate fingers clutched the back of her tunic. Lilas froze for half a second, then wrapped her arms around her friend, holding on just as tightly. She squeezed her eyes shut. The warmth of Fivra’s embrace, the scent of her hair—so familiar, so painfully missed.

“You’re here,” Fivra breathed. “You’re really here.”

Lilas pressed the side of her head to Fivra’s and let out a shaking laugh. “Yeah,” she choked out. “I’m here.”

A rougher voice cut in. “You better not be crying, Lilas.”

Lilas pulled back just as Fivra did and turned to the side.

Sevas stood there, arms crossed. Her crimson eyes glinted with her usual challenge. But her hair—Lilas’ breath caught. The dark, matted mass of hair she remembered was now a striking shade of yellow, catching the light like a flame.

“What thefekhappened to your hair?” Lilas blurted, blinking hard as if her eyes were playing tricks on her.

Sevas snorted. “Good to see you, too.”

Fivra chuckled beside her, but Lilas couldn’t look away. “I’m serious,” she said. “You look like you stuck your head in agantherflower.”

Sevas smirked, the corner of her mouth tilting up. “I’d been darkening it with soot to keep my father from seeing the color change. You know as soon as this happens…” She flipped the edge of her shoulder-length hair. “It means you’re mature enough to be given to a bondmate. Ireallydidn’t want one of them.”

“Alas, here we are,” said a tall, scarred Zaruxian who stepped forward. His deep green scales gleamed under the ship’s overhead lights, and the sharp angles of his face accentuated his fierce face. His piercing silver-gray eyes shifted to Lilas, assessing. Scars crisscrossed his arms and a faint one ran down the side of his jaw, a map of battles fought and won.

“Lilas, meet Takkian,” Sevas said with a grin. “My true love.”

Takkian guffawed in a deep rumble. He stood beside Sevas, their arms brushing in a way that was instinctive, unconscious. He inclined his head toward her, as regal as a king. “It is a pleasure to meet you, Lilas.”

Lilas blinked her eyes. “Same to you, Takkian,” she said without stammering. He was utterly intimidating.

Sevas rolled her eyes. “What nice manners, everyone,” she said. “Can we get to the part about how Lilas ended up running right into Ellion?”

“I didnotrun into the ov—Ellion.” Oh, it would take a while to get used to calling him by his name. “He snuck up on me and grabbed me from behind.”

“You were distraught,” Ellion replied, looking faintly hurt. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

She didn’t have a chance to reply to that, as a red-scaled Zaruxian, just as lean as he was broad, with an easy smile and dark amusement gleaming in his gaze, sauntered forward. He glanced at Fivra, then at Lilas, tapping his knuckles against his belt. “You must be the infamous Lilas,” he said smoothly. “The one my mate says has a comeback for everything.”

Fivra smacked his arm. “Cyprian.”

“You say that about me?” Lilas said with a laugh. “And you didn’t mention my excellent hugging skills.”

Fivra raised one eyebrow. “You hate hugs.”

“No, I don’t,” she said, quieter. “I never really did.”

Fivra put her arm around Lilas. “In that case, you’ll get all the hugs you want and more.”

“Oh, good.” Lilas winced. She glanced up to see Fivra’s mate watching her with curiosity. “Are you the one who ran the brothel?”

Cyprian made a dramatic bow that had Takkian sighing. “I am, indeed, the former director of Erovik, the luxury brothel.” He looked adoringly at Fivra. “This little Terian turned my existence upside down.”

“It was actually averynice brothel,” Fivra said in a whisper, patting her hand. “No one was forced to…you know.”

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