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I leaned back, pressing against the boulder. “Nope. Nuh-uh. Not happening.”

His eyes narrowed, tail flicking in obvious irritation. He took another step closer, towering over me.

I crossed my arms over my chest, glaring up at him. “I feel fine, thank you very much. Don’t need whatever alien drugs you’re pushing.”

And then—he purred.

The sound was nothing like a house cat’s gentle vibration. This was deep, resonant, a physical force that rolled through my bones and settled warm and heavy in my chest. My muscles relaxed involuntarily, my brain suddenly fuzzy around the edges.

“That’s cheating,” I murmured, struggling to maintain my defensive posture.

Taking advantage of my momentary weakness, he moved with lightning speed. One large hand cradled the back of my head while the other pressed the device against my neck.

I yelped as a sharp pinch shot through my skin, followed by a brief burning sensation that spread outward like liquid fire before quickly fading.

“You asshole!” I swatted at his arm, scowling up at him. “You don’t just go around injecting people with random alien tech! There are rules about this kind of?—”

“There now. Not so bad, kitten.”

I froze. The world tilted sideways.

My heart stopped beating.

My stomach plummeted straight through my feet.

Because I had understood every single word.

Every. Single. Word.

Slowly, I tilted my head up, mouth hanging open in shock.

The alien cat-man smirked down at me, satisfaction written across his feline features. His golden eyes glowed with amusement, his lips curved to reveal the tips of deadly fangs.

“Now we can talk,” he said, his purring voice rich and deep, exactly as it had been in my dream.

My head spun with impossible questions. How could I understand him? What had he injected me with? And most importantly—how was he the same alien from my dream?

I opened my mouth, closed it, then opened it again.

“Who—what—” I stammered, backing away from him. “What did you do to me?”

His smirk widened into something dangerous and thrilling. “Just a universal translator. Standard issue for the Legion.” He took a step closer, his massive form blocking out the sun. “The real question, little human, is what are you doing so far from your home planet? And why—” his nostrils flared as he leaned closer, “—do you smell like my mate?”

4 /ZEHN

The transformation rippled through me,my battle rage subsiding as bones and muscles shifted beneath my skin. I exhaled, a low growl escaping as my claws retracted and my height diminished by those crucial two feet that separated my daily form from the killing machine I’d just unleashed on the forest predator that dared approach what was mine. Standing over the shredded remains of the jungle cat, my eyes found her—the human female who’d appeared from nowhere and changed everything with a single scent.

The shift came swiftly, muscles realigning, my body shrinking slightly as my claws and fangs retracted. I exhaled sharply, shaking out my limbs, the last remnants of my battle form fading as my instincts calmed.

It had been a close call. Too close.

The universal truth rang through my blood, as absolute and unyielding as the stars themselves: Never get between a Rodinian and his mate.

If I’d had any doubt about what the dream had meant, it was destroyed the moment I tore that creature apart and gathered her into my arms.

She was real.

She was here.

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