Dante’s crew don’t go in for pants as often as the other Sarkarnii, and I admit, on the occasions they have appeared, Dante has a bum which would make just about any other male weep. In short, he is gorgeous.
And he bit meby accident? Because hewasn’t himself.
After all of this, after he took me away, after he seemingly fought for me, allegedly is in rutfor me, it turns out it was all a mistake.
I don’t remember the last time I got angry. Even when my flat was repossessed, even when I ended up in my car because the council wouldn’t help a single homeless woman because I had no kids and no health conditions.
I could sleep on the streets for all they cared.
But I had a job, I just didn’t have the money to buy into a new place, not with my name blacklisted everywhere for the rent arrears I ran up, attempting to get my business off the ground.The ones I paid off as soon as I got paid, but it was already too late for my credit record.
When I first met Kerra on board the alien spaceship, I didn’t know how any of this would work out. How I could possibly trust anyone again. But she showed me the universe has a habit of giving you what you want when you need it the most, and finding a friend, even in a distant galaxy, made me whole again.
After all, if you have someone to rely on when you’re being chased by alien seafood, your lifehasto be complete, doesn’t it?
But Dante has managed to anger me because I defended him to my friends. I even got Kerra to persuade Darax to take over the guard duty on him. And all of this was for nothing.
For a Sarkarnii who is as feral as they all said he was.
“Come on, Rosie.” Kerra links arms with me. “We can go back to Darax’s sector while we wait.”
I want to tell her I’d rather take my chances out on the dusty planet’s surface, but I don’t. Instead I let her take me meekly through the neutral sector back through the airlock and along to the quarters we’ve been assigned.
Maggie and Lydia are waiting for us. Lydia is on her feet the moment we enter.
“What happened?”
“Darax said Dante was in rut for Rosalie, and apparently that changes everything,” Kerra says. She runs a hand down my arm. “I’m going to find out as much as I can about what might happen next,” she says.
“Tell yourmateRosie isn’t doing anything she doesn’t want to,” Maggie calls after Kerra.
I sit down in the lowered seating area which Kerra and Scarlett have told us is actually where the Sarkarnii rest in their dragon forms. I honestly feel like my brain is scrambled.
“So, what did happen?” Lydia sits next to me.
“What Kerra said, and Dante turned into a dragon.”
“Sounds about right.” Maggie snorts before plopping down beside me. “I mean it though—you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. I don’t care if they’re dragons or not.”
“I sort of think we have to care if they can turn into dragons though,” Lydia says, earning herself a glare from Maggie. “Mostly because we can’t,” she adds defiantly.
“But we can find out the codes to access their armory and get hold of their weapons,” Maggie growls.
I burst out laughing at the mental image of Maggie, Lydia, and me going head to head with a bunch of pantsless dragons armed with a few ray guns.
“I’ll get you some hot fee,” Lydia says as my shoulders shake. “You’ve had a shock.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” Maggie says.
As Lydia leaves the seating area, Maggie grabs my shoulders.
“Don’t…” I put up a hand. “I’m not as strong as you.”
“You are stronger than you know,” she says quietly. “You’re still here, after all. Did you ever wonder how many didn’t make it?” She looks across at Lydia who is pouring out cups of the hot, sweet drink the Sarkarnii drink when they’re not enjoying their ale wine, which is almost never.
Our friend, found in the middle of nowhere, only half alive, is still far too skinny for it to be good for her, and, despite all our efforts, she still wakes up screaming most nights.
“I know.” I dip my head. “I guess things could be worse.”
