Her arrival would be known throughout the battle group in a matter of hours and the ship would be a dangerous place for my new mate until I claimed her, especially with Harbart’s royal entourage aboard. Stealing females had once been very common on Prillon Prime, and some old fools, like Harbart, longed for the days when men took their brides by the strength of their sword or their armies.
Fools. Many fine warriors had died at the hands of their new brides before the archaic laws had been changed by the current Prime, killed by brides angry and savaged by the loss of their chosen mates. Even now, I refused to jeopardize my bride by showing too much interest. The more I valued her, the bigger target she would be for calculating and power-hungry bastards like Harbart. He was not the only elder or the only politician onboard my ship. They could all rot, as far as I was concerned.
“I will not neglect my duties or become distracted by a mate.” I rose from my seat and the warriors under my command followed suit, all but Prince Nial. My cousin grinned up at me.
“We’ll see about that, cousin.”
With a scowl, I stared back at him. “You will go on the next scout run with Dare, cousin. Try not to get yourself killed.” Dare was my second and my best combat pilot. I didn’t trust the prince’s safety to any other.
Nial grinned. Harbart blustered protests, and I exited the meeting room and walked onto the command deck of my ship, already issuing new orders to my navigator. “Now that the transport is complete, there will be no more waiting. Alert the captains. Prepare for departure. We leave for the front within the hour.”
“Yes, commander.”
I left the command deck and made my way straight to the ship’s engine rooms for my scheduled meeting with the engineers. I did my best to listen, but all I could think about was the female waiting for me in the medical bay.
What would she be like? Would she tremble in fear at first sight of me, as so many females did on my home world? Would she bow and avert her eyes in deference to my battle prowess and superior rank? Would she dare defy me, or would she submit to my will in all things? Would she be soft and curved with large breasts like the women programmed into the ship’s pleasure simulators or would she be lean and strong, like the warrior women from my home world?
The third time I was forced to ask the engine mechanic to repeat himself, I ended the meeting. I was tired of waiting.
The medical deck was not far, and within minutes I stormed into the space expecting to find my bride awake and waiting for me.
Instead, the doctor hurried to my side with a concerned slant to his brow.
“Commander, she has not yet regained consciousness.”
My chest constricted with an unfamiliar ache and I scowled at the man. “Why not?”
“I don’t know. All of her scans appear to be normal. Her name is Hannah Johnson. She is from a place called North America. And this is interesting, commander, she is the first volunteer I have seen from Earth. Most brides from that planet are criminals.”
Doctor Mordin held his monitoring tablet out for my inspection, but I didn’t care to read about her on a machine, nor did I care where she came from. I had been in many battles with Mordin, and counted him a trusted friend. If anything were seriously wrong with my mate, he would have informed me already. I did not care what the bureaucrats in the Interstellar Bride Program had put on their ridiculous forms. She was mine now, she was here, and I wanted to see her in the flesh.
“Take me to her.”
“Of course.” He turned and went into a private suite normally reserved for visiting royalty or high-ranking officers. It was the only private bay in the medical station, and I
was thankful for his discretion.
I stood in the doorway as he hurried to my bride’s bedside with his scanners. Arms crossed, I allowed him to finish his scans. I could not see much of her, for the man blocked my view. Despite the fact that I now had a mate only due to my mother’s interference, I discovered that since she had arrived, I was very… interested. Eager, even. “Is she well?”
“She appears unharmed, but I can’t perform a full breeding diagnostic until she is awake.”
“Has anyone come to inquire after her?”
The doctor’s smirk was pure malice, and I was grateful to call him a loyal and trusted friend. He was not just trained to heal, but to kill, and was a fierce warrior. “Oh, the prince’s puppet was here, but I turned him away.”
Fury pumped through my veins. “Excellent. Thank you.”
He nodded once. “My honor, commander.”
“Leave us.”
He grinned. “Of course.”
I waited for the door to slide closed behind him before turning to the small bed on which my bride slumbered.
I expected golden hair and amber eyes. But my mate’s hair was long, straight, and black as night with shimmering strands that looked soft to touch. Unusual, but beautiful beyond reckoning. Equally dark eyebrows arched over delicate eyes, and black lashes rested on pale cheeks. Her skin was the palest I’d ever seen, much fairer than my darker coloring. I couldn’t miss her full pink lips or the hint of blush on her cheeks.
I longed to see her eyes, to discover if they were as exotic as her dark hair and smooth skin.