Page 25 of Captured By The Alien Barbarian
Ariana suddenly stops talking and looks up at me with wide eyes. Her scent turns slightly acidic, fearful.
I step closer to her, only a small gap separating our bodies. I can feel the gentle heat radiating off of her, a warmth so light that I am tempted to draw her into my arms in fear of her being cold. Slowly, I raise my hand and place it against her shoulder, allowing my finger to caress her there. She watches my movements, but doesn’t flinch or pull away. “You can tell me, Nika. You do not need to fear me.”
Ariana’s eyes dart between mine, assessing. Eventually, she nods and takes a deep breath. She squares her shoulders and lifts her chin as if she is about to go into battle.
“When I came to this planet, I was married. Do you know what that means?”
I shake my head. “Please explain.”
“It’s sort of the human equivalent of being mated.”
Dread settles like a knot within my stomach. I feel as if I’ve been punched and can’t breathe. My Ariana cannot be mated to another. Is this why she is so hesitant to accept me and our bond?
“Is this... married...” The word feels foreign on my tongue. “Is it a mated bond or like taking a pleasure partner?”
Ariana frowns. “Humans don’t really have mates the way I think you do.” I open my mouth, but she holds up a hand and keeps talking. “The concept of mates is not unknown to humans. But I don’t recall ever having heard of a human experiencing the mating bond themselves. Not in the same way as their partners. It doesn’t mean they aren’t happy together; it’s just not something in our biology.” She shrugs one shoulder as she gazes up at me with concern-filled eyes.
I feel as if I’ve been struck. My Nika doesn’t experience the same draw to me as I do to her?
“I’m sorry,” she says. “Humans choose who they want to be with; usually someone they are attracted to, or sometimes someone who can help them have a better life.”
Humans choose their partners? I’ve wanted to please Ariana, a natural thing for mates to do. But now I realize just how important it is for her to like me. Ariana must choose me. She has to. I won’t allow her to ever love another.
“When I was younger, before I came here, I had an arranged marriage with a man from a tier-five family. Everyone kept telling me how it was a miracle he would be interested in me. I was lucky. The right person at the right time. He was kind to me, at least. We didn’t always see eye to eye though. I loved gardening. He didn’t like to get his hands dirty.”
She chuckles, the sound bitter. She’s absently looking past me, almost unaware of my presence except to talk. “He outright refused to plant anything with me. He said it was something only lower tiers did, and he would always look at me like he was disappointed.”
She blinks, her attention returning to me. “Anyway, he received a business offer to expand his family’s business into the galaxy. One of the first interstellar farms. It was a huge foothold on the market to be the first and only supplier of fresh food on the planet. He agreed. He wanted to run the business, deal with the merchants and stuff while I did the actual work.”
Her husband, this pleasure-mate, doesn’t sound like a good, providing male. It sounds like he forced Ariana to work hard for his own benefit, rather than seeing to hers. I can’t help the growl that slips through, my anger at the male building.
Ariana jumps at the sound. She pats my arm soothingly, just like I had done to her own moments before. And indeed, it works. Having her attention on me reduces the desire to hunt down this human male. She’s mine now, and no one will take her from me.
“He’s dead now,” Ariana says, smiling at me with closed lips. The expression is confusing to me, seeing her smile and yet seemingly not with pleasure.
“Not long after we arrived, he got sick. He passed away before any medics could be reached. Not long after that, Walter came knocking on my door. Everyone on board signed a contract to work for several years in exchange for the transport. My husband died early, and I got landed with his debt. I couldn’t afford to work on the farm, couldn’t afford things like the seeds and fertilizers until the debt was paid off fully.”
I gather little Nika in my arms, and this time, she goes far more willingly. “I wish I could say that I’m sorry for the death of this male, but I’m not. You’re mine now, and I’m glad that I don’t need to challenge someone you’re fond of.”
Ariana’s brow wrinkles as she frowns at my words, turning her head up to look at me. “I don’t like seeing you sad, though. You should only ever smile. Anything I can do to make you happy, I will do.”
Ariana steps back from me, smiling gently. Her next words fill me with dread. “What about you? Do you have family living around here, somewhere? Should I be worried about them showing up?”
My foot catches beneath me, kicking against a raised root on the forest floor, and I stumble. I have taken several steps away from her before I realize it. I turn away from Ariana, unable to look her in the eye.
“Oh. I’m sorry,” she says. Her small hand touches my arm, the touch light. “I didn’t mean to upset you, Taccit.”
I rake a hand through my hair, feeling the sharp sting of my claws scraping against my scalp. The pinch of pain brings clarity to my panicking mind.
“You deserve to know the truth,” I say.
ChapterEight
ARIANA
Hanging out with Taccit turns out to be way more enlightening than I ever imagined. I never thought I’d say this, but I’m actually enjoying his company—you know, when he isn’t bossing me around like a caveman.
And who’d have guessed? Taccit’s got needy days too! No kidding, I’ve never seen anyone so keen on physical contact as him. He seems completely oblivious to how often he reaches for me or brushes against my arm. It’s kind of cute, actually.
