Yet the hairs on my body raised from the familiar electrical pull of the transporter signaling her arrival. Her arrival. I glanced at Seth, who, while completely calm of face, was holding onto his control by a thread. His hands were in fists by his sides. Not to punch someone, but perhaps the only outward way of showing his fear, his anxiousness, his worry at what a mate would mean, and what would become of her were he to be killed in battle.
After he explained to me why he never wanted that damned Christmas gift—his exact words—from his sister, Sarah, his nerves made a hell of a lot of sense. Completely paranoid, but reasonable, considering our duties in this war. Even more for Seth, for what he’d been through when he’d been captured and tortured by the Hive.
I hadn’t been with him on the mission where he’d been taken, but I knew he’d been fucking lucky he hadn’t been killed, or worse, integrated.
He was whole. Lucky. Completely free of any cyborg enhancements. But he hadn’t seen it that way.
He saw it as a preview of the inevitable. He couldn’t have a mate for fear of leaving her, or any children they made, alone and defenseless. His views were nearly identical to a Prillon warrior’s despite the fact that Seth was from Earth, and had that planet’s odd perspective on a proper warrior’s mating. One male for a female. As Prillon, there were always two warriors for an Interstellar Bride. Two to protect, cherish, love and hell, fuck their mate into complete happiness.
I shifted my stance, my cock swelling at just the thought of claiming the female who was going to be mine. Mine and Seth’s. A female to share between us.
And when I woke up this morning, I definitely hadn’t thought I’d be getting a mate in bed, between me and my best friend. We were going to fuck her senseless, bring her so much pleasure she wouldn’t remember what planet she came from.
Cocky? Gods, yes. I’d waited my whole life for a mate, never considered it possible after my cousin’s death. I hadn’t been tested, hadn’t earned the right.
But Seth had been to hell and back. He’d earned a mate. Deserved one. Needed one.
“Incoming.” The transport technician’s voice broke through my thoughts.
Seth’s spine stiffened.
The sizzle and hum of the transport came to a peak, then silenced as a female form materialized on the metal floor of the pad. She looked like an unconscious escapee from the med unit, her small body garbed in a familiar gown, but the wording repeated on it as a pattern was unfamiliar. English. Seth spoke English and while I could understand perfectly the language when he spoke, the NPU didn’t work for the written word without a bit of practice.
Was she injured? Had she been hurt before transport? Seth rushed to her side, dropped to his knees before her.
“Call the med unit!” he shouted, not paying any attention to whether his command was being obeyed.
I was. With a narrowed gaze, I watched the two technicians closely to ensure a doctor would come immediately. This female was my mate and I wasn’t risking anything, even a delay because someone was sloppy in their job, when it came to her. I hadn’t even seen her face yet. Only that she was tiny in comparison to me. The thin gown covered her torso and down to her knees, but the slit in it—up the back—exposed the slim line of one thigh. Her skin was darker than Seth’s, but lighter than my golden tone. Her hair was black as never-ending space and when Seth scooped her up into his arms, swung long down her back and over Seth’s chest in a silky wave.
He stroked her hair back from her face as his gaze raked over every inch of her. “She’s breathing.”
I hadn’t realized how tense I’d become until a pent-up breath escaped. My shoulders sagged with relief. Breathing meant she had a heartbeat. She wasn’t dead. When she whimpered, a soft little sound, Seth groaned, pulled her in even closer to him.
I gave in and touched her, gently clasped her ankle, felt the heat of her skin, the softness of it. Felt the pulse in the valley between her small bones.
I met Seth’s gaze and his expression was unlike any I’d ever seen before.
Awe.
Surprise.
Possessiveness.
Yeah, I recognized all of that because I felt it, too. Every single one of those emotions. But as a Prillon, I also felt pride in knowing Seth held our mate, that he would protect her with his life as I would with mine.
“Where the hell’s the doctor?” I asked.
The technician paled and swallowed hard at my barked question.
“Sir, she’s on her way.”
“She’s waking up,” Seth said, his voice holding a tinge of hope and…amazement.
Shifting on my knees, I settled on her other side so while she was still on Seth’s lap, she was between us.
Her eyes fluttered open and I felt a kick to the gut. It was like being hit by an ion blaster set to stun. Her big eyes were green. I’d only seen a few people with eyes that color, and definitely a trait of those from Earth. But with her black hair and medium-toned skin, they almost sparkled.
I watched her narrow throat work as she swallowed, as her pink tongue flicked out to lick her plump lower lip. All at once, she came to, surprising me—and Seth. She stiffened, sat upright, hitting the top of her head against Seth’s chin. His jaw clacked shut and she scooted back, falling onto the hard floor.