Page 19 of Thrilled By Her Protector

Sadness and despair seemed to waft off her, but Zircon couldn’t process anything but his own grief. For the past few years, he’d tried it her way. He’d waited impatiently at times for her heart to soften towards the idea of being his mate. But she remained unmoved. Even after everything they’d been through as a team, as lovers, she remained unmoved. And he was running out of patience.

“I’ve offered you everything I am, Jenn. I don’t know what to do anymore.”

“Where are you going?” she asked, as he started to leave the room.

“I’m going to my room. Alone. You should go to yours, too.”

“Conny, I’m sorry?—”

“I know. But things are going to change now, Jennifer. From now on, it’ll be up to you to make the first move with us. I am done beating my head against a brick wall. I love you. Understand? I love you. Now it’s on you to decide if you can love me back.”

“What? Christ, Conny, you don’t understand! Whatever. You know what? We can go back to just being coworkers!” Jennifer shouted after him.

He heard the tears in her voice, her hurt and anger, and it was killing him, but he didn’t answer. His voice caught in his throat. This was one helluva risk he was taking, but what choice did he have? For all his trying to persuade her to choose him, Jennifer had remained firm in her refusal.

He would think her totally unaffected by him, except for one thing. When they touched. Then she burned for him like an inferno. Just as he did for her. Oh, he was tossing the ball in her court. But he had no intention of making it easy for her.

Now, it begins.

ChapterSeven

“So, he just left you there?”

“What did you want him to do, Caro?”

“I dunno, but if I told Jasper to fuck someone else, he’d likely spank my ass till it was all pink and shiny. Ooh, note to self,tell Jasper to schedule in some naughty us time.” Carolina murmured into her phone, and Jennifer tried not to cringe.

“Please, I do not want to hear about your sexcapades. Especially in your condition. What are you, like seventeen months pregnant?”

“Ha ha. Very funny. Don’t you think I know how fucking pregnant I am, you heifer?” Caro fake-growled and tossed a newly laundered baby blanket at Jennifer.

The two women giggled and went back to folding the baby clothes they’d pre-washed. A few minutes later, Daeja arrived with Kizzy and Luna. Both Drakein females were shy and sweet, and Jennifer enjoyed talking with them. Aliza, Serene, and Hydra came a little bit later.

The females were all quite striking. It was remarkable really how similar to humans they appeared, except for their hair and eyes. The coloring of which was a variety of hues, from bright blues and greens to purples and pinks. All quite different from Earth. Part of her lessons included introducing Earth fashion and conversational speech. What better way to teach than through actual conversations?

“Hey girls, come have a seat,” Caro said, smiling and making room.

They were working on getting the nursery ready for the twins Caro was carrying and that meant a ton of baby clothes had to be washed, dried, folded, and put away. Along with a million other odds and ends that needed sanitizing and putting together.

“Girls? We are women, are we not?” Hydra asked.

“Yes, we are definitely women, but when another woman says girls, it's more a term of endearment,” Kimberley explained with a kind smile.

“Ah, I see. It is what Jennifer Dylluan means when she says colloquial dialog, yes?”

“That’s right. You know, this is perhaps the first time in centuries where cultural assimilation can be considered completely necessary. I mean, you can’t just announce the existence of Aliens to the world. Everyone would go batshit?—”

“Everyone would shit bats?” Kizzy interrupted, eyes wide.

“No, not literally. Kimberley is in archeologist. She studies ancient cultures. What she means when she says batshit is that society would find it very difficult to believe,” Jennifer said.

The four Drakein females looked at Daeja, who nodded reassuringly. Jennifer watched with interest. On one hand, she was still experiencing feelings over Aliza’s announcement she had intentions towards Zircon. On the other hand, she was given this assignment to oversee their acclimation to modern human society.

Jennifer needed to stay objective. But it wasn’t easy. Especially when the beautiful Drakein kept staring daggers at her.

“Yes, very difficult. Humans would completely lose their faith in the government, their religion—basically everything. What you are doing, learning our ways to better blend in to keep the Shifter secret and, by larger association, the paranormal world as a whole, is one of the most generous and brave things I have ever seen. I think you’re simply remarkable!”

Jennifer listened in awe as Carolina, Kimberley, even Candy, who wasn’t all that familiar with the human world, welcomed and cheered the Drakein on. The nursery was done in varying pale shades of yellow and cream. The furniture, she knew, had been crafted by hand by the brothers Wessex, and the curtains and bedding had been hand sewn by Carolina and Kim.

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