“Ranek?” she whispered. “You okay?”
He didn’t answer. His brows knit together and he rolled away, leaving her suddenly feeling very alone on the floor. She pushed herself upto find Ranek sitting with his head in his hands.
“Ranek?”
He turned to her. “Is that my name?”
That had her frowning. “Do you not remember?”
“No. I…” He shook his head, then grabbed it with his hands like it hurt. “I remember nothing.”
He glanced around, taking stock of their situation, his eyes moving from the cell bars to the room around them. “But I know that this is a ship’s brig. A very old ship that is no longer in use. I do not know how I know. But I do. And you are inside with me, so you must not be my enemy. Unless they sent you in here to seduce and control me.”
Suddenly he was on her again, but the roughness of his hold only lasted a second, because he buried his face into her neck like he couldn’t stop himself, and his touch turned amorous.
Maya swallowed hard. “Do you have any memory of me at all?”
He stared at her, and the apology in his eyes came before the words. “I do not. But you smell like me and sex. If you were sent to seduce me, then you have already succeeded.”
“I’m not. We’re on the same side.”
He glanced around the cell. “We have not been here long. Should I know you?”
“We don’t know each other well or for very long, but yes,” she said quietly. “You should.”
He looked down, frustration tightening his jaw. “I don’t… I don’t remember anything. And I should remember a female who is as beautiful and smells as wonderful as you, even if your face is alien to me.”
“What about everything else?” Maya asked. “What do you remember?”
After a long moment, he shook his head again. “There is nothing, like everything’s locked away somewhere I can’t reach.”
“Okay. So you lost your memory. You did hit your head very hard when they zapped you with that weapon. Maybe it’s temporary. But it’s okay, we’ll get out of this together.” Maya continued speaking while she had his attention, explaining their immediate situation with the pirates. She wasn’t sure she wanted to bombard him with too much information about how they’d met yet, so she stuck to the very basics.
As she did, he sat and pulled her into his lap, cradling her like she was something precious. She didn’t know how to react, but she was so worried about his memory that she let him. Also, itmade her feel better. They might be in a shit position, but they were in it together.
He closed his eyes, like he was absorbing everything she told him, and when he opened them again, something had shifted.
“I might not remember anything. But how could I forget who you are?” he murmured, shaking his head as if the idea itself was absurd. “I may not remember any details, but I am sure of one thing and one thing alone.”
He cupped her cheek, his fingers firm and possessive. “You are my mate.”
Chapter 14
Ranek
The words tumbled out of him before he could stop them. “You are my mate.”
The cell fell quiet. The cold air pressed against his skin, and the faint glow of the red lights on the wall flickered across her features. Her eyes widened, her breath catching as she stared at him. Shock moved across her face, and he knew immediately that she did not believe it, even if he knew deep inside that it was the absolute truth.
The female backed away from him, pressing herself against the cold bars of the cell. It made his chest tight that she moved away from the comfort of his arms, but one whiff of the air around him, still heavy with the scent of her arousal, told the truth. She was his.
“I think you hit your head too hard when you fought with the pirates. I am not your mate.”
His head did hurt a lot, but he’d never heard of head injuries creating false mate bonds.
She’d mentioned that they did not know each other for long; had they still been testing for compatibility?
He didn’t recognize her species at all and hadn’t seen anyone like her in his entire life, but surely a mate bond wouldn’t trigger unless they were compatible. She didn’t have the Tallean cheek crease, and her body was rounder and softer than that of Tallean females. Her breasts were generous and her figure full, like she was fertile with young, but she did not smell pregnant. It intrigued him. And despite her alien features, he found her incredibly attractive.
