Page 6 of Her Alien Mercenaries
“Say again? Found who?”
Torren grinned to himself and dragged out his next words.“I found our mahaya.”
He counted off the seconds while Zanyr processed what he’d said. It took the male nearly five seconds to speak again.“You’re sure?”
“I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life. Drop what you’re doing and meet us.”
“Where are you?”
He didn’t feel like explaining that he’d fled from a bunch of curious students. Instead, he glanced down and tried to figure out a good place to land—somewhere quiet but maybe not too private. The female probably wouldn’t be comfortable if she found herself alone with two unknown males claiming to be her mates.
“Meet us outside the Bar None. Oh, and let Saral know we’ll need a table in the back. If she makes a fuss, tell her why.”
Zanyr laughed. “She’ll throw out some poor unsuspecting fool and clear the table herself if I do that. I know what she’s like when it comes to matings. Speaking of, are you going to tell me our mahaya’sname?”
“I would if I knew it. We haven’t had time for introductions yet. Get your ass in the air already.”
“I’m airborne. What can you tell me about her? Something. Anything.”
Torren looked down at the delicate female curled against his chest and felt a thrum of possessive desire that made it hard to think.
“She’s beautiful, Zan. She’s also…”He trailed off as his attention wavered and he gave in to the temptation to nuzzle the crown of her hair.
“Also what? If you don’t finish that sentence, I will break off one of your wings and beat you with it when next we meet.”
Torren chuckled to himself, amused by hisanrik’sfrustration.“She’s human.”
3
She wasout of her mind. That had to be it. There was no other possible explanation for what she was doing. Why else would she be flying over the colony in the arms of an impossibly attractive stranger?
Maybe it was a dream? Jenna considered the possibility, but her dreams were never this vivid. From the wind rushing by her ears to the feel of his scales beneath her hands, everything screamed to her that this was real. And if that was the case, this was happening. She’d found her mate. No, she corrected herself. Mates. Plural.
That thought triggered a rush of increasingly graphic images. Her with two males. Naked. Friction. Hands stroking, mouths…whoa. It took more time and effort than she expected to tear her attention away from the rich fantasies filling her head. Despite the cool wind, she felt overheated, every part of her sizzling with the need to touch and be touched in turn.
She buried her face against his chest, using his body to stifle the low moan that tore from her throat as her clit began to throb in time to her pounding heart.
It took three deep breaths before she felt like she was in control again and three more before her higher brain functions kicked in and she could think with relative clarity. It wasn’t ideal, but it was an improvement. Jenna kept a handle on her anxiety by ensuring she was always aware and in control of herself. Staying unobtrusive and unremarkable was the only real protection she’d had back on Earth. As one of the “staff,” she’d been expected to enhance her employers’ lives by managing to do her job and remain invisible as much as possible.
But that was on Earth. She wasn’t there anymore, and the old rules didn’t apply. Shadow, Skye, and the other females had prepared all the new colonists for this possibility. She knew what to expect. They all did. It was just that she’d never imagined it would happen toher.
Jenna went through what she knew about thesharhal. The mating fever was triggered by pheromones. It was unstoppable and irreversible, binding strangers together in a lifelong bond. It involved none of the courtship and complications of choice that came with human bonding. In theory, it sounded amazing. Who wouldn’t want a relationship that guaranteed there’d be no interest in any other being? No cheating. No doubts.
Now that she was experiencing it in reality, though, she felt more than a little fear. What if her mates didn’t like her? Or worse, what if they were somehow involved with the beings who had tried to recruit her as a spy?
Damn it to the stars. She needed to talk to Maggie and find out who they were and if she was safe with them. Why hadn’t that occurred to her before she’d agreed to fly off with—what was his name again?—Torren. Yes. That was it. She had no idea who hisanrikwas, but he had to have one. Nearly every Vardarian male had a blood-brother.
What would he be like?Veth, what were either of them like? Saska didn’t seem concerned about leaving her alone with Torren, so that had to mean he was a decent male. And he was a teacher. Species and cultural differences aside, no one wanted unpleasant or cruel beings around their offspring.
Once they could talk, she’d get to know him better. When would that be? And, for that matter, where were they going?
Raising her head, she shouted, “Where are you taking me?” But the wind tore her words away the moment they left her lips.
Determined, she tried again, this time tangling her fingers in the soft fabric of his vest and levering herself up close to his ear. Only, she didn’t repeat her question. Instead, she traced the curve of his ear with her lips. Despite the wind, she caught a tantalizing whiff of his scent, something that reminded her of the first time she’d walked through the local woods. Whatever it was, she liked it. A fresh surge of desire made her want to laugh and kiss him at the same time. Never in her life had she felt like this, and she wanted to keep feeling this way.
Torren turned his head toward her and nuzzled her cheek. Instantly her stomach was full of butterflies, only these must have been mutants because they felt like small spacecraft buzzing around inside her.
They stayed like that for what might have been a few seconds or a few minutes. She had no way to tell. Being this close to him consumed all her attention.
