Memories flooded his mind. The first time he had met her in battle and how she’d insulted him with a smile on her face, shocking him with her knowledge of Dzexet. The day she had set foot on the starbase for the first time, disguised as her twin brother as she offered her hand in greeting, unfamiliar with his people’s customs. Days of peace talks as they tried to iron out the treaty, unaware that their work was doomed to fail in the end. Watching her battle in the practice arena and losing control, feeling the need to prove that he was the stronger, dominant male. She’d thrown her life on the line and protected him, nearly getting herself killed in the process. He was healing her injured body with his golden scales. The betrayal he’d felt discovering that she was really a female and the regret that plagued him for ignoring her, thus forcing her to face her doom alone.
The first touch of her hand. The look in her eyes when he bent to kiss her. The feel of her body beneath him. The way she tasted when his tongue danced with hers.
The magnificent feeling of watching her claim him in more ways than one. How she took control and directed their first time together, granting him the greatest pleasure he had ever known while seeking her own.
Stirring from a restless sleep, Idris reached for the warmth beside him and slid his arm under a thin blanket and around a slender waist, drawing her back tight against his chest. He planted a row of kisses along the graceful curve of her bare neck and shoulder as his tail snaked between her legs, lithely rubbing against her folds.
Her body shivered, and a moan filled the room. Leaning back into his embrace, she rubbed her bare, tail-less behind against him as her body came alive under his touch.
If not for their endless bouts of passion between preparations for the ceremony, he would have taken her in that instant. But his cock lay deflated, content from all of their lovemaking over the course of the past few days.
A satisfaction he never thought he would feel in his life, and yet here he was with his starmate in his arms.
Today was the pledging ceremony. Ushyaz wanted to officially swear in Jaiya and her wing, so they could join the ranks of Daextru warriors. It wouldn’t matter that they weren’t created from the same star; they had proven themselves to be one of them.
She was planning a larger celebration than necessary to boost morale while honoring the lives they had lost. The crew needed this week to recuperate and relax before they prepared for the next battle. It may be a while before Ushyaz, and her men returned to the starbase, as their next mission would take place on the command ships.
Those thoughts could wait. He wasn’t going to allow them to cast a shadow on the day’s activities.
“Jaiya.” He kissed the back of her neck, squeezing her tightly one last time. “As much as I would love to spend the day with you wrapped up in my arms, we need to get ready. I don’t want Erlyn to embarrass himself once again by walking in on us in bed.”
Laughter rolled from her body, the vibrations traveling through his. “He needs to learn to page us before entering, or he will keep seeing things he wished he didn’t.”
“It will take time,” Idris chuckled. “He has spent the last thirty-five years worrying about taking care of me. It’s only natural for him to forget that I’ve finally settled after resisting for so long.”
“I know,” she sighed, snuggling closer. “But I hope he doesn’t harbor any ill feelings against me, especially since I like to poke fun at him.”
“Just don’t ask him to join in next time he catches us,” Idris growled, nipping her shoulder. “You are mine, and no one else's.”
She turned in his embrace, his tail twisting along with her. Her hand threaded in his hair, gently pulling it back and away from his face. “I will tell you this once. I don’t want any other. You are my endgame, and I am sorry for ever making you doubt what we’ve built between us.” She pecked his lips as he gazed lovingly into her eyes, the golden spots in her green irises dancing with emotion. “Humans tease each other, especially when it comes to awkward situations. I know he wasn’t actually going to join; it’s against your species’ very nature. But making that joke was a better alternative to yelling at him to get out and making him feel any worse over a simple mistake. Nudity isn’t an issue with me, so I was more embarrassed on his behalf than my own, but that doesn’t mean I want to put on a show. You are mine, and I am not going to let you go, even if it means I have to kill the competition.”
“You would have every right to do so.”
She shot him a vicious smile. “Good because I know how to fight.”
A bang echoed throughout his royal chamber.
“And that must be Erlyn, looking for us.”
Laughter rang once again. “At least he learned his lesson.”
* * *
The assembly was full and lively as Idris entered with an arm wrapped around his starmate. The crew was blissfully chatting, dancing, and enjoying the refreshments.
The room was large enough to accommodate every crew member aboard the starbase, its size rivaling the hangar bay. In a pinch, the room could be used as a hangar bay itself. It had a smaller opening and landing strip, used to move cargo into storage. In the past, loot from pirate ships or abandoned crafts had sat here, along with trade vessels found smuggling illegal products.
Recently, they had used storage bay boxes to create makeshift quarters for the tributes until his mother came up with a better solution. They had lost many lives in the last battle, but without Jaiya’s warning, the death toll could have been much worse. Still, many rooms were now vacant, so Ushyaz was able to shuffle residents on the floor with the newest openings to other floors, vacating the level to make space for all the tributes.
Female warriors were placed on guard duty, making sure no males roamed the floor unless invited, to help create a safe space for the women. Idris hoped his mother would get back to him with a plan. Out of the fifty-one tributes, only seventeen had an occupation or skillset useful to the base. Jaiya had tried to convince him that employing the three hairstylists would be to his crew’s advantage, arguing that they could work wonders on any head of hair, but he remained skeptical. He knew there were plenty of companies willing to hire on new human workers, but finding the perfect fit for each woman would take time. Until then, he would provide them asylum, even though he hated the idea of civilians on a military starbase.
He found Ushyaz laughing as she stood near the stage, her assistant Hwonk whispering something in her ear. He rolled his eyes. It was clear those two were in love with each other, but neither was willing to act upon the emotion, afraid of the image they might project to the public. Though his sister never abused her position of power, she did seek out her assistant to burn her battle lust after every fight.
Hwonk reminded him of Jaiya in many ways. He wanted to be known as a royal assistant to Ushyaz, the first Warrior Princess in generations. He didn’t want to be known for beingwithher. As long as both of them were happy, Idris didn’t care what title Hwonk held; it didn’t change how much he respected the male.
“How are you, my dear sister?”
Merriment danced in her eyes as she turned to him. “We were wondering when you might arrive. I was about to send a search party after you both. Good thing I had Erlyn check your quarters first.’
