Page 25 of Royal Alien Mate

But she hoped it didn’t take one hundred years or more to change circumstances on Earth, and as she finished bathing and got dressed, a sense of determination flowed through her, boosting her confidence. Even if the king and his advisors made her uneasy, and even if Vaath was hesitant to empathize with her point of view, she would not give up. No matter how long it took, she would keep trying.

Dressed in a fresh gown, this one a darker shade of blue than the one she’d worn to breakfast, she walked from room to room, exploring Vaath’s enormous chambers. All the rooms combined were larger than her apartment building. A couple of times, she became lost as she moved between rooms and had to backtrack to figure out her location.

She saw no sign of him as she explored, but after he’d drawn the bath for her, he had said he would clean up in another bathroom and that he had duties to which he must attend. He’d informed her that she was free to roam the palace and the surrounding grounds, if she so wished, but she would not be permitted to leave the gates and venture into the capital city by herself.

Given the danger posed by the anti-Earthers, she had no such wish to leave the palace grounds, so this edict didn’t bother her. Besides, from what she’d seen of the palace already, it was a beautiful place and those who lived here, minus the king and his advisors, had been welcoming to her so far. She would be able to get plenty of exercise just walking around his chambers, let alone the palace.

She came to stand upon a balcony that overlooked the capital city of Ressiktron. Large orangish-red houses stretched to the horizon, and she supposed thousands of Martians called this city home. She wasn’t quite sure how many Martians there were in existence, between their settlements on Earth and Mars, but she’d heard whisperings that the human population was still far higher, despite how many humans died during the war. For some reason, there weren’t many female Martians.

What had happened to them? Esmay couldn’t repress a shudder as she considered this question. Of course, she’d heard rumors from time to time about this subject, but she didn’t know for certain what tragedy had befallen the Martians that resulted in the loss of so many females. At least she assumed it must’ve been a tragedy. Surely it wasn’t natural for an alien species to possess so few females of their own kind?

Small vessels occasionally zipped through the air, and two larger spacecrafts descended from the clouds, heading for the landing platform near the palace. Apparently, more human females were being delivered. Esmay hoped they found happiness with their new mates, though she supposed many of them would be frightened when they first met the Martian males with whom they would spend the rest of their lives. She thought back to the coldness that had gripped her when she first realized Vaath was her mate.

She turned and walked to her closet, searching for her backpack. She hadn’t opened it yet, as Vaath had provided for all of her needs thus far, but she decided now was as good a time to unpack as any. She hung up her threadbare dresses next to the fancy Martian gowns, and placed her folded pants, sweaters, and shirts in a drawer. She tucked the warm socks her mother had knitted for her into an empty basket that rested atop a dresser, deciding she wanted this reminder of her mother out where she would see it every day, even if it was too warm here to wear the socks.

She placed the beautiful carved wooden hairbrush from her grandmother on a vanity in the bathroom, then set about decorating the bedroom with her prized gemstones. Most were rather large and looked like pieces of art, at least to her, rather thanweird rocks, like her sisters had always called them. A distant cousin had mailed them to her family when she was around five years old, saying the collection had been passed down from a great uncle on his father’s side, but the cousin had no need for them and had kindly sent them to Esmay’s family.

“They’re somewhat valuable,” her mother had said upon opening the package.

“Perhaps we can sell them in the antique market,” her father had said while holding up a large chunk of rose quartz.

Esmay had held up a purple stone, turning it so it sparkled in the light. “Could I just keep this one?” she had asked in a timid voice. At the age of five, she knew money was tight and resources were becoming scarcer in their city, but she had seen magic in the sparkling stone she would later learn was called an amethyst, and she hadn’t been able to resist asking her parents if she could keep just this one.

Tears welled in Esmay’s eyes as she recalled what had happened next. Her father had smiled down at her and then exchanged a knowing look with her mother, before he’d patted her on the head and passed her the entire box of gemstones. “Here you go, my sweet girl, you can keep all of them.”

Joy had filled her to bursting and Esmay had felt like the luckiest kid in the whole wide world. She sniffled and wiped one lone tear away as she remembered her parents’ kindness. Even when times had been especially tough over the years, including more recently, they had never asked for Esmay’s gemstone collection so that they might sell it. How many extra cans of food in the cabinets could these stones have provided?

If anyone deserved a better life, it was her parents. She didn’t regret leaving Earth. Not for a moment. She eyed the nearest video comm, but only a few hours had passed since she’d spoken to them this morning. They wouldn’t be awake yet. She would call them after lunch.

She turned at the sound of the door zipping open, and her heart filled with warmth to see Vaath entering his chambers. He was holding a large tablet and he appeared excited. He passed her the tablet and she peered at the screen, a bit confused by what she was seeing. It was an image of a cabin with a large wrap-around porch, nestled at the end of a long gravel driveway and surrounded by a huge green forest. It looked like something from a fairytale.

“Is-is this on Mars? Or Earth?” She glanced up at Vaath, wondering why he was showing her this picture. It happened to be the perfect place for her family to live, but how would he know that? He couldn’t read her mind. At least Wyvonus claimed he couldn’t.

“This is the home your parents have selected to be relocated to. It’s in Zone 5.”

She gasped. “Alaska.” When he gave her a strange look, she clarified, “Before the war, Zone 5 was known as Alaska. It’s not a very populated area and the air in this zone isn’t as polluted as most other places on Earth.” Excitement bounded within her. “But how have my parents selected this location so quickly? It’s not even morning yet in Zone 18. I didn’t think they would be awake yet.”

He smiled as she handed him the tablet. “I instructed a representative from Martian Affairs to call upon them very early in the morning, well before they would leave for work. They don’t need to work again, Esmay, I will see that they are always provided for, even as your sisters get older.” He swiped his hand over the screen on the tablet, zooming out from the house to show the landscape the cabin sat upon. He passed it to her and she held the tablet with trembling hands, her growing elation making her unsteady.

Her throat burned with emotion, happiness filling her. “Vaath, this-this is incredible. I never knew a place such as this still existed on Earth.” She stared at the image in awe. The cabin sat on the edge of a small village tucked in front of majestic snow-capped mountains. There were no large apartment buildings or trash-filled alleys in this picture, only sturdy looking cabins, as well as stores lining the main street of the picturesque village.

“Your father has requested you call him as soon as possible,” Vaath said, taking the tablet from her as he guided her toward a video comm.

Before she sat down to call her parents, she turned and gazed up at her mate. Her family was headed to safety, to a place that looked like heaven on Earth. She would never forget his kindness, his generosity, for as long as she lived. She stood on her tiptoes and reached for his face, cupping his cheeks in her hands and pulling him down for a kiss. She pressed her lips to his briefly before stepping back.

“Thank you, Vaath,” she said, her eyes brimming with moisture.

He set the tablet aside and placed his hands over hers, a look of profound tenderness entering his dark eyes.

It was in this moment that Esmay first thought she might one day grow to love him.

Not because he was providing for her family, but because he seemed to genuinely care about those she loved most.

He kissed her forehead and nodded at the video comm. “I’ll give you some privacy, my sunshine, and I will return shortly to escort you to the banquet hall for the midday meal.”

“All right.” She smiled up at him. “I’ll see you soon, my-my mate.” Her face burned. She’d almost said, “my love,” though it would’ve only been spoken as a casual endearment, like when he called her sunshine. Still, the near slip confirmed her suspicions—she was starting to fall hard for the big blue alien with sexy dimples and twinkling dark eyes.

Chapter 19

---