“This is Commander LemAN.”
“Commander, we are approaching the third location. Our sensors have picked up turbo exhaust particles.”
“I’ll be there in ten minutes.” He ended communications and pulled himself to a sitting position.
“I have to go.”
“Okay. Should I stay or go back to my place?”
“I want you to stay here because it’s safer.” He smiled when her stomach growled. “Perhaps you should go get something to eat then come back here.”
“I’ll go to my quarters, shower, and change. Then I’ll go to the meal room for food and come back.”
“I’ll have a warrior escort you.”
“Is that necessary?”
“It will ease my mind that you’re protected.”
She couldn’t deny him when he was only being protective of her. It was kind of nice to have someone think of her for once. “Okay.”
He kissed her, lingering as long as possible before standing up to grab clothes. “Get some rest and I’ll have a warrior come and wait for you outside.”
She lay on her side and watched him as he got dressed. She didn’t try to cover up. After he’d worshipped every inch of her last night, she felt more confident about her looks. He paused at the door, eyes filled with desire as he looked at her.
“You are a temptation, my Teagan.”
“No more than you are to me, my LemAN.”
He left and she rolled onto her back and stretched. She ached in all the right places and some places she didn’t know she could ache. She wanted to talk to him about their relationship, about where he saw them going. She felt anxious to tell him how she felt. What if the reason he hadn’t claimed her with his seed was that he didn’t feel as strongly? She would be devastated if he walked away, because she had fallen in love with him.
Deeply and honestly she loved him and everything about him. She loved his stern look when she would take something apart. She loved his voice when he said her name or pretty much said anything because he had a sexy voice. She loved how stern but fair he was with his warriors and how compassionate he had been when they were helping the Balar people after they were attacked. He was everything she could ever want in a mate. What did she have to offer him?
She was nerdy and sometimes got so consumed with taking things apart to see how they worked that she never really worked on her people skills. She had few women friends, because they were always interested in makeup, shopping, or men. She was a tomboy at heart and it made life pretty lonely.
It was times like these that she wished she had a friend to talk to. Sighing, she reached for LemAN’s pillow and pulled it to her head. She inhaled his scent and groaned from need. His scent could do such strange things to her. Snuggling the pillow to her, she allowed herself to finally fall asleep.
*****
LemAN walked onto the command bridge and tried to ignore the strange looks he was getting. “Report!”
His second commander, BorIS, answered him. “We’ve picked up the trail and it looks like the Morin transport was hit heavily. They’re losing fuel. It’s a matter of time before their ship is dead. It will slowly lose life support. Should we attack them now or wait it out?”
His first instinct was to attack. These were Morins, the enemy who almost killed off his people. The Morins caused the mutations in their people and ultimately affected their females’ ability to reproduce. In a way, they were to blame for what happened to his LoraLI.
He could almost hear Teagan’s voice asking,“Why was the other Morin transport attacking them?”It was too strange a coincidence. He needed answers.
“No. Hail the transport.”
“Excuse me, Commander? You want us tohailthe Morin transport?” one of the lieutenants asked in shock.
LemAN narrowed his eyes. “Did you not hear my order the first time?”
The lieutenant jerked to attention. “Yes, sir.”
BorIS stepped up next to him. “You have to admit this is not our standard protocol for dealing with the Morins.”
“I know, but I am looking at things from a different perspective. Why would the Morins turn on one another? Their people are dying out, their home world is unlivable. Why would they kill each other off?”
