Page 51 of Legacy for the Alien Warrior

She nodded, though it took effort to override years of protective vigilance. “Would you like to see the garden?” she asked the children.

Rory was already eyeing a patch of wildflowers where insects hovered. Talia looked uncertain but curious.

“We’ll stay where you can see us,” she promised Thraxar.

He nodded, his expression grave but trusting.

Elrin led Thraxar into the house while she guided the children along one of the stone paths. The garden was even more impressive up close. Dozens of varieties of plants grew side by side, creating a harmonious blend of textures and colors.

“Look,” she pointed to a cluster of flowers whose petals opened and closed in a rhythmic pattern. “Aren’t they beautiful?”

Talia’s ears flushed with delight, while Rory crouched to examine the pattern of the movements.

They continued their exploration, discovering the promised pond where iridescent fish darted among lily pads. Rory settled at the edge, mesmerized by the fish’s movements. Talia dipped her fingers in the water, giggling when the fish came to investigate.

She perched on a nearby bench, keeping the children in view while allowing them space to explore. From here, she could also see into the house through a large window. Thraxar and Elrin sat at a table, deep in conversation. Thraxar’s expression was more animated than usual, his hands gesturing as he spoke.

The sight warmed her. In the days since they’d become intimate, she’d seen more and more glimpses of the being beneath his stoic exterior. Passionate, thoughtful, capable of great tenderness. The way he’d embraced Rory’s differences without question. The patience he showed with Talia’s fears.

She couldn’t bear the thought of losing him.

When they’d first boarded his ship, she’d seen him as merely a means of escape. Then as a potential ally. Now…now he was essential. Not just to her safety, but to her happiness. To her heart.

And what of Talia? The child had already suffered abandonment and abuse. How could they consider separating her from the only security she’d known?

Yet what right did she have to keep her? If Talia had family searching for her…

Rory distracted her from her thoughts as he raced over to her. He held up a small stone, smooth and round, gleaming with flecks of silver in the sunlight.

“It’s beautiful,” she said, admiring it, and he pressed it into her hand. Her throat tightened. “Thank you, sweetheart.”

Talia appeared at her side, holding a flower with petals that shifted color like her ears.

“For you too,” she said, clearly mimicking Rory’s actions.

She accepted it with equal gravity. “Thank you, Talia. It’s perfect.”

The little girl beamed, her ears flushing a pleased pink.

As the children returned to their explorations, her gaze drifted back to the window. Elrin was showing Thraxarsomething on a data pad, their heads bent close together. Thraxar’s expression had grown serious again, his brow furrowed in concentration.

Whatever they were discussing, it was important. Part of her chafed at being excluded, but she understood the need to shield the children from adult concerns until decisions had been made.

The garden’s tranquility worked its magic on her frayed nerves. After months of constant vigilance, the simple act of sitting in the sunshine while the children played felt like an unimaginable luxury.

This place represented everything she’d thought forever lost—safety, beauty, the freedom to simply exist without fear. The kind of place where children could grow and thrive.

A home.

The word caught in her mind. Home had been an abstract concept for so long—a memory, a dream, but never a reality within reach.

Now, watching Rory arrange stones in a spiral pattern while Talia carefully placed flowers between them, she allowed herself to imagine a future. Not on Earth—that was too far away, too much a part of her past. But somewhere like this. Somewhere they could put down roots.

With Thraxar.

The thought no longer frightened her. Somehow, in the space of mere days, the solitary warrior had become central to her vision of the future. His strength, his unexpected gentleness, the way he looked at her as if she were precious beyond measure.

The way he’d welcomed her son without reservation.

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