“Bluebird!Leave that jar alone,” Eva said.
Bluebird ignored her to stretch his neck and peck at the jar filled with the dead Spiderus.Saber plucked the bird up before placing the container on a higher shelf.He set Bluebird on the floor and the bird strutted over to the shelf, glanced up at the jar, and gave a honk that sounded disappointed.
“A puppy is another Earth creature.I’ll take you to visit Jerrod once we’re able to move about the resort without worrying about Iseult.”Leo grinned at Bluebird’s antics.
Leo enjoyed having dinner with his brother and sister-in-law and he thought their presence tamped down some of Betrys’s concern for her son.
“Congratulations,” Saber said in a low voice when he and Eva were leaving.
“Thanks.”Leo glanced at Betrys and saw she was occupied with Bluebird.“I didn’t plan it.But it felt right so I went with my gut.”
Saber’s brows drew together.“She doesn’t know.”
“Not yet.I thought she had enough to worry about.”
“There’s a tattoo forming.She’ll notice in the morning.”
“I know.I’ll have to take it slow with her, but it looks as if Ma has her first grandchild,” Leo said, and the grin that spread across his lips felt normal instead of forced to hide his true emotions.“He’s a great kid, Saber.So serious with eyes that have seen too much.He needs to learn how to play.”
“You’ll teach him to play,” Saber said.“Ma will be beside herself, trying to work out why our mates all bear the mark of the cat.”
The laugh that burst from Leo felt good too.“Thanks for coming and bringing dinner.”
“I’m just glad you’re doing better.”Saber drew him in for a quick man-hug.
“Bluebird, are you coming?”Eva asked.
Bluebird honked and remained next to Betrys.Her hand slowed in her petting, and he thumped his head against her leg.
Eva laughed and shook her finger at her pet.“Oh, you faithless creature.”
“He can stay,” Leo said.“He’ll let us know if he wants to leave.”
Once they were alone, Betrys turned to Leo.“I like your family.Eva told me she used to own restaurants in the city on Dalcon.”
“Casey used to be in the military.There’s no reason why you and Ricci can’t live here.We’re expanding in new directions at every opportunity.”
“I’d need to find a job.”
“Talk to Saber,” Leo said, instinct telling him not to push.Instead, he’d plant the seeds and play a waiting game.No, he’d make love to his mate, take her to bed and seduce her to his way of thinking.Betrys had escaped one prison with Iseult, and he didn’t want to make her feel as if he’d placed her in another cage.
Humidity drew beads of sweat to Iseult’s forehead as she exited her climate-controlled bungalow.The solar sun had left the sky, and the landscape beyond the resort lay in darkness.Perfect for her men to lie in wait until she requested their aid.
Iseult strode along the gravel path, anger holding her form together and keeping her stomping toward her goal.Somehow, Betrys had seduced one of Pretty’s brothers when the brother should have belonged to her.A vein pulsed in sync with her furious footsteps and the crunch of the gravel beneath herElsadesigner shoes.
Her nostrils flared as she followed Betrys’s scent.Her path took her away from the colored lights and the excited cries and screeches of the women who were attending the dress-up party in the main ballroom.Instead, she pursued her assistant’s scent trail, the seductive male aromas that crisscrossed Betrys’s direction almost intoxicating with their delicious notes.
The bouquet intensified, almost overpowering her assistant’s.Iseult halted and breathed deep to decipher the different layers.She followed a fork to the left and lost the trail.
“Ah,” Iseult said with triumph after backtracking.“I have you.”
This time, she followed the trail to a building, a separate bungalow.Iseult opened the door and walked inside.
Felix trotted into the ballroom, full of women in fancy dress, and searched for his brother.He found him trying to fend off the advances of a determined alien woman.Her hair tendrils were curled around his older brother’s arms, holding him close even as Saber tried to retreat without making a scene.It would’ve been funny under other circumstances.
“Saber,” Felix barked.“Excuse me, ma’am.We have something that needs the boss’s attention.”Felix signaled for one of their employees, and he hurried over to ask the woman for a dance.
“Thanks.I tried to tell her I was mated, but she wouldn’t listen.”
