Page 14 of Charmed By the Alien Warrior

A strangled sound emerges from my throat. “No thanks.” I can feel the heat rising in my cheeks and I quickly glance over to the “big teal guys” only to see Sorrin looking right back at me, his cocky gaze meeting mine as if in challenge.Ugh.I roll my eyes and turn back to my sister.

Maddie pulls me into a tight hug, whispering into my ear, “Just come back, sis. I can’t lose you, too. I love you.”

Her arms cling to me for a moment before she leans back. Unshed tears glisten in her green eyes. Eyes that are so much like my own. So much like our mom’s. I almost change my mind right then. Maddie and I have barely gone a single day without seeing or at least talking to each other for the last thirteen years.

But this is something that I feel like I need to do deep in the marrow of my bones. And as important as Maddie is to me, this is important, too. I need to help the other women if they’re out there, and I need to see for myself if there is some way off this planet.

“I will, Mad. I promise, and I always keep my promises, right?” I ask her, and a smile briefly flashes across her face before it’s gone. I give her another squeeze and whisper, “I love you, too.”

Then, it’s time to go and I move closer to the jumble of warriors and eponirs with trepidation, my heart racing in my throat.

Up close, the animals are taller than I expected, but then I guess they’d have to be to carry the large warriors. My head only comes halfway up to the animal’s chest, and I wonder how on Earth I’m going to climb on top of the beast.

Before I can look around or ask, two strong hands firmly grasp me around my waist, and I suck in a breath as I’m effortlessly deposited on top of the animal and into the strange flat saddle on its back.

The eponir snorts as a big body settles behind me and I’m engulfed in a cloud of heat as the warrior’s body presses too close against my back. My muscles freeze and I clutch at the front of the saddle trying to put more distance between us when I hear the deep rumble of the warrior’s voice as he gives the order to head out.

Shit. It’s Sorrin.That’s just what I need, stuck on a weird prehistoric unicorn withhim.

This is going to be a long trip.

Chapter 5

Sorrin

This is going to be a long journey.

My mouth turns down into a frown as I stare at the female perched in front of me.

The moment we left the village and took the trail winding through the jungle, her entire body stiffened, her spine so rigid I’m amazed it hasn’t snapped under the strain. Her tension is palpable, radiating off her like heat from sun-scorched stone. It is almost as if there is a battle raging inside this small female over something.

For some reason, more than any of the other humans, this one puzzles me.

More than puzzles me. She captivates me in a way I can’t explain. Her flowing locks sway with each step Kaja takes, catching the shifting dappled light. Her mysterious eyes—though I can’t see them now—somehow both draw me in and push me away.

She sits stiffly, her back a straight line, carefully ensuring no part of her body touches me. Her head remains forward, as if locked in place, but I know those sharp green eyes are most likely darting side to side, taking in every detail of the jungle around us.

I try to keep my attention focused on our surroundings, but it’s difficult with Mara in front of me. She is so near, and yet so far away. My eyes keep drifting back to her, tracing the line of her shoulders, the way her fingers clench the edge of the saddle.

After a while, I wonder if she can feel the touch of my eyes on her because she sits up even straighter, moving slightly forward until she’s nearly at the very edge of the saddle. Alarm spikes in my chest. If she falls, she could be trampled beneath Kaja’s hooves. The thought of her soft body bruised and bloodied sends an icy jolt through me.

I lean forward and place a firm hand around her waist, holding her securely in place. Her body is warm beneath my touch, and her curves are softer than I imagined making my tongue tangle in my mouth. I usually have no problem thinking of witty remarks, but with Mara, my mind always seems to become empty of any thoughts but her loveliness.

As soon as my hand touches her, she gasps and whips her head around to glare at me, her vivid green eyes narrowed in a look that, from any other warrior, might have made me take a step back. But instead, my mouth quirks upward at the corners.

This female will be my undoing.

“It would not do for a female as small as you to fall beneath Kaja’s hooves,” I say, my voice a little rougher than I intended.

She makes a sound in her throat at my words that reminds me of the squawking of an eponir newling, then she shakes her head as if clearing it and asks, “Is that your eponir’s name? Kaja?”

“Yes.” I slide my other hand down to pat Kaja’s side, my fingers threading briefly through her coarse fur.. “Kaja is a fine mount. The smartest and most beautiful in the herd.”

Kaja snorts and lifts her head up higher as if saying she agrees with my words, and a chuckle bubbles up in my chest. My mount picks up her pace a little, lifting her feet higher like she is showing off for the whole of Laedirissae.

Mara makes another of those strange sounds before she asks, “Can she understand you?” Her voice is nearly a whisper, and her quiet tone lodges inside me. I grit my teeth against the thoughts that race through my head. Thoughts of her soft voice whispering against my ear in the dark of night.

“Eponirs are intelligent creatures. They are trained to follow the commands of the warrior they carry, even in the thick of battle. I do not know if they understand every word I speak, but I believe they understand far more than we give them credit for.”

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