“Yes, my queen.”
Fuck. The queen must have known I wouldn’t do it. Of course she did. I had forgotten how observant and cunning our three kings’ mate truly was.
And if this stunning creature in my arms was anything like her, we were all going to be in trouble.
4
Geros
I walkedbehind our queen and Mal, who was carrying Smith to our new quarters. Kayson kept pace on my right and I remained on high alert until the queen had wished us a good evening. Once inside our new quarters, Mal had--reluctantly--placed Smith on her feet. She still wore nothing but the blanket. Knowing she was naked beneath was not helping any of us remain calm.
We had to work with her for the next few weeks. Get to know her. And keep our hands to ourselves. But fuck, that last part was going to be like holding sweets in front of three big babies and telling them not to eat.
Never had I seen a woman as beautiful as Smith. Everything about her was soft. Feminine. Her eyes, her lips, her neck, her collarbone and her breasts… fuck, her breasts. The curve and color of them were the perfect. They were not too big, nor were they too small. They were perky, the areolas small and puckered. She was pale, but not with a deathly pallor--rather, she had a healthy glow and luster that made her radiant. Smith was beautiful. And I wanted to keep her.
Smith watched us. We tried not to stare at her as she looked around our new and very private quarters. The room was bigger than anything we'd had before; two bedrooms and a large living area. The S-Gen machine was in the corner between the dining table and living area. I noticed, not displeased, that the sofa was more than large enough for all four of us.
Smith held onto the edge of the blanket, clutching it to her chest. She held her ground as we approach, forming a loose semi-circle around her. This was the first time we had all been alone. I wondered if she was nervous or afraid. I wanted to reach out and hold her, but that was not my place.
I watched as she tried to make sense of the room and the technology, I was sure she had never seen before. To her credit, she was not shaking nor showing any outward sign of distress. If not for the rapid pulse at the base of her neck, I would have believed her completely unaffected by her adventure. She traveled across the galaxy to work for a queen she had never met. Would now pretend to be mated to three experienced warriors who wanted to strip that blanket from her shoulders and show her ultimate pleasure. And yet she stood commandingly before us, seemingly calm and in control.
It appeared she wanted to talk. "So you three are the lucky ones, huh?"
"Indeed." Mal's sour countenance was not going to win her heart anytime soon.
"Do you guys take on a lot of missions like this?"
"This is the first." Kayson perched on the arm of the sofa, I suspected so he would not appear so tall. This human female was delicate and small. It would not do to frighten her.
"And the last." Mal nearly growled the words. I expected her to be offended. Instead, she grinned.
"You, too? I don't want to be here either."
Her words shocked me. "Then why are you here?"
She walked around the edges of the room slowly, taking it all in, lightly running her fingertips over furniture and trinkets. There was not much, as this was a new space designed for matched mates to live. The majority of the decorative choices were generally left to those who would live there. Permanently.
"The usual." She answered but did not turn. Avoiding eye contact.
So...not completely unaffected.
"I assure you, what may be usual on Earth will not be the same here." Kayson spoke softly, but it was clear he wanted further explanation.
"Oh, it is. This is the same everywhere. Honor. Duty. Service. Following orders. Plus, if I pull this off, my boss has promised me a new position and a lot more money."
“A promotion?” I asked. We understood that term. Higher rank. More power and more responsibility. This female must be regarded highly to be given such a delicate mission.
"Why does your boss care what happens here?" Mal moved toward her, a scowl on his face.
"He doesn't. He cares about the queen of Viken owing him a personal favor."
Mal reached her side and loomed over her. Instead of shrinking away, she stood boldly, face to face, even though she had to tilt her head nearly as far back as it appeared to be able to go.
“What? You don’t like working with a woman?”
"I adore females.”
“I’ll bet you do.”
