She fell asleep in a matter of moments. She didn’t awaken until the next morning, when artificial lights mimicking sunshine slowly brightened the corners of the room. When she opened her eyes, she rolled over and found Nash sleeping peacefully beside her. She leaned up on her elbow with a sigh, and stared at the big alien beside her.
The masculine planes of his face were undoubtedly attractive. He looked like a cross between a young Laurence Olivier and Brad Pitt from way back in the day. In his relaxed state, he really was dreamy looking, and she couldn’t help swooning just a little bit.
He groaned and stretched beside her, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. She quickly looked away, not wanting him to know that she was gazing at him, or that his Draconian attractiveness was having an effect on her.
“Did you sleep well, my beloved bride?” he asked her, leaning in to kiss her on the cheek. The feeling of his full lips on her skin made her heart flutter, reminding her of the clenching of her nether regions when he came on her chest.
The memory both revolted and aroused her, causing a tangle of confusion in her mind so tight she didn’t think that she would ever be able to think straight again.
“I slept great. That bed is super comfortable. I’ve never slept in a bed so comfortable.”
“You were you not accustomed to fine things in life on your planet Earth?”
“No. My family has been poor all my life. I only got into college because I was on a scholarship.” The mention of college made her melancholy and sad. Knowing that she would never complete her life’s work, or use her talents and abilities, was a big loss for her.
“You are studying the human sciences in your university, correct?”
“Yep. I was a chemistry student. The top of my class. But, that’s all over now.” Saying it out loud made her even sadder, and she needed to get away from him.
Lexi rose from the bed and went into the bathroom to take a shower in the magnificent tiled behemoth of a shower. She got in and stood under the stream. No matter how long she stayed in there, it seemed the hot water never ran out. When she was beginning to prune she turned off the faucet, and stepped out of the shower into the steamy bathroom. A fluffy bathrobe was waiting for her on a hook on the wall, and she wrapped it around her shoulders, tying it around her waist.
The long, hot shower made her feel much better. She realized that she had only one set of clothes. She frowned as she looked at the pile on the floor.
With a bundle of dirty laundry, she walked back out into the bedroom to ask Nash where she could wash her things. When walked into the bedroom, she found a door open to a huge walk-in closet full of clothes.
Lexi blinked and leaned back in surprise. After overcoming her shock, she tiptoed across the room in her bare feet, circled around the bed, and went into the closet.
The latest fashions hung in her size all around her. She reached up and ran her hand over the fabric of a plush dragon scale print coat she’d seen on the covers of magazines.
Purses, scarves, accessories, and lingerie all had their own spots. Lexi had been wearing the same thrift store clothes for two years. Even as a scholar, she was impressed by the possibilities.
She stood there admiring the rich colors and textures, and didn’t notice Nash standing beside her until he put his hand around her waist. She looked up at him with surprise. The expression in his eyes made her heart flutter, as a smile broke over his lips.
“I hope these are suitable to you, my beloved mate,” he said.
“They’re great. Actually, I like them a lot,” she said meekly, having to admit to herself that there were some fringe benefits to this arrangement.
“Good! We did not think it appropriate for our human wives to wear Draconian navy garments. I hired a human stylist and a closet organizer to have this installed.”
“You went to a lot of trouble for my wardrobe,” she said, feeling a little taken aback.
“Nonsense. We all do this. I have a bit of extra means, considering I’m Commander of this armada. But, it has become our custom aboard the fleet. Now, get dressed and meet me in the dining room for our meal. We will share it together as mates.”
“Super,” she muttered, as he turned out of the room.
Lexi turned back to the closet and picked out a casual dress, tights, knee high boots, and a stylish jacket. She paired her outfit with a light silk scarf and gold earrings. After she did her hair and makeup from the supplies she found in the bathroom, she looked at herself in the mirror. It was like a whole new girl looked back at her.
She pursed her lips, and turned back and forth in the mirror. The sleek newness of the wardrobe showed off her sexy full hips and breasts in the best possible way. She was freaking hot.
She winked at herself in the mirror, suddenly feeling a little frisky. Nash stepped behind her. She turned to him and took in his massive size, his muscled form—the utter presence of him. It made her wet.
“Our meal is prepared. You look lovely, my beloved. You take my breath away with your presence.”
“Wow,” she said, under her breath. “I was just thinking the same thing about you.”
“What?” He looked surprised and then pleased.
“Nothing,” she said quickly, brushing it aside as she walked out the door. “Let’s eat!”
They walked through the living room into the dining room, and sat at a table laden down with the best dishes from every cuisine on Earth.
“Oh my God!” she said, putting her hands over her mouth. Her stomach lurched—she hadn’t eaten hardly anything in days.
Her eyes darted to a bubbling dish of lasagna, to a platter of battered fish, a bowl of Caesar salad—and a bunch of stuff she didn’t recognize, but it all made her mouth water, nonetheless.
“Sit,” Nash said, sitting himself.
She slid into the high-backed chair beside him and stared at everything for a moment. Nash scooped a ladle full of mashed potatoes onto her plate. “Eat,” he said. Coming out of her shock, she began throwing everything on her plate. At first, she tasted bites of each thing slowly. She looked up at Nash and found him watching her with an amused smile. Eyeing the enormous feast, she just went at each dish with her fork, sampling all the different flavors.
When she found something particularly delicious, like the battered fish and chips, she dished more on her plate, and savored it.
“I can’t believe this,” she said, wiping her mouth. She took a long drink of water, and a deep breath. “Wow. I was so hungry. You can’t imagine how long it’s been since I had a good meal. We live out of the convenience store most of the time. I’m talking about M&Ms for breakfast, twinkies for lunch, that kind of thing.”
“Hmm, I believe I understand.”
“Thanks for this,” she said. “And, the clothes.”
“Do not mention it, beloved. Now, tell me about yourself, Lexi Garcia. I want to know all there is to know about my fated mate!”
She shook her head at the fated mate thing, and made a dismissive sound under her breath. “Well,” she said. “I grew up in south city Seattle. My Mom was a nurse and my Dad was an HVAC installer. My Mom died of cancer the year before the Draconians came. My Dad had been out of work for a while already, when my Mom was sick. Things were tough. I worked really hard in school and got a scholarship. My Dad took out some loans for new Draconian computers that would allow him to work as a data miner in the dark Internet. Then, he started taking these new Draconian drugs that allowed him to tap into the computers more, and stay hyper focused. His debts grew, and then this mafia asshole named Mario Rici started threatening the family. He’s got a thing for my little sister. She’s a real beauty—super sweet and sensitive. He wanted to take her away. So anyway, I decided to leave school to pay the debts. My Dad had other ideas, and that’s how I ended up here.” There, it’s all out now.
“What a minute, where are these drugs coming from?”
“I don’t know. It’s all underground, illegal shit. The mafia runs it. I
think my Dad’s job is even illegal. It’s a total mess.”
“That isn’t right. We never approved such technologies for the human populace.”
“Whether you approved it or not, it’s there. The world has gone to hell since you arrived. Haven’t you noticed?” She couldn’t believe that his incredibly intelligent alien race couldn’t see what was happening right in front of them.
“It isn’t within our mission to oversee the human populace.”
Nash looked downcast. Her world was changing too fast. It was falling apart. People couldn’t handle it. There was too much corruption. The Draconian invasion had become a nightmare.
“It was never our intention for that to happen. We didn’t know the civilization had progressed so quickly. It is uncommon for a people to change so fast. When we were here five thousand years ago, you were far different. We were Gods to you, then. Females came to us willingly, and in great numbers. We hadn’t expected to give the humans new technology. It was part of a last ditch effort to avoid nuclear war and the loss of your gene pool, to propagate our race.”
“I get it,” Lexi said, putting her palm up in front of her and shrugging. “But, you have a responsibility to us now. You can’t just have our genes and have no further interest. What about the next time you come back? What if we end up blowing ourselves up because you interfered?”
“This concerns me a great deal. The illegal technology concerns me even more. The government back on Draconia must be notified about this immediately.”
He hit the table with his fist and stood. Lexi blinked up at him. She hadn’t expected him to be so angry about it. He seemed determined to do something.
“You should do that,” she said, eyeing a piece of chocolate cake. She scooped it onto a clean plate and took a bite. “This is really good,” she said, pointing at it with her fork.
After she’d eaten about five bites, she stopped and leaned back in her chair, gazing at Nash.
“Do you think it’s going to help get men like Mario off the streets?”
“I can only hope.”
7
Nash gazed down at his cute little bride as she continued to shove chocolate cake in her mouth. Everything about her was absolutely adorable, but he wished that things were moving more quickly between them. She still seemed resistant to accept him as her mate. This sort of thing had happened before in the fleet. The families of the girls, desperate for money, would pressure them into signing up. Usually though, the girl would be impressed with the lifestyle the Draconians were able to provide for them, and quickly submitted.
Nash, on the other hand, had a bride who seemed determined to resist him with every fiber of her being. It concerned him. But, he knew that eventually she would come around. He could see the pheromones in his semen already taking effect on her. With his dragon raging in his brain to mate, it couldn’t happen fast enough. He had to find a way to earn her trust.
First, he had to contact the government back on Draconia and tell them what his bride had revealed—there were unauthorized technologies in human hands.
If the Draconians came back in five thousand years, and their influence had brought about the destruction of the human race, it would be bad for everyone, including the Draconians.
He smiled at his bride and headed toward the door.
“Beloved bride. I must leave you now, briefly, to attend to these matters we have discussed. The government of Draconia must be informed that illegal technologies have leaked to the humans from this armada.” She looked up at him with searching eyes, as if she was heartily surprised by his concern for her race. His bride was highly intelligent—he could see that about her already, and he appreciated that his woman would have such a mind.
“To tell you the truth, it surprises me that you care so much,” Lexi said. “I didn’t think that you Draconians gave a crap about humanity. I thought that you were just here to take our women.”
“Well, we do want your women,” Nash said with a grin. His bride rolled her eyes and went back to eating.
“Farewell for now, beloved. I will be back to escort you in a tour of the ship before the end of the day. If you need anything, please contact me through the Com system, and I will pay attention to your needs with all haste.”
“Will do,” she said, scooping up a piece of pie. Nash tilted his head at her and made his exit through the sliding front door of their chambers, headed out into the hallway.
Stepping onto the command deck, his men rose and bowed their heads to him. Nash quickly ran through the status updates for the rest of the ships, asking questions of his officers as they gave their reports. Nash had to uncover where the technology leak was coming from. But, this with a delicate situation.
When they were done going through the reports, Nash left the command deck and went to his private communications chamber to call his government contact back on Draconia.
He sat in his communication chair and flipped through the holograms until he saw his government contact.
“Greetings, Vice Chancellor Zorron,” Nash said as the image of the stately, older Draconian came onto the screen. He was dressed in an intricately embroidered green taffeta robe that highlighted his green skin.
“What news have you from the mating armada?” the Vice Chancellor asked.
“I regret to inform you, Vice Chancellor, that we have unforeseen difficulties regarding the humans. There seems be some kind of technology leak—the humans have access to technology we never approved for their use. These technologies have entered their black markets, and are causing crime to escalate.”
“It is not our responsibility to oversee their society,” the Vice Chancellor said.
“Yes, I understand that. But, if we allow these technologies to destroy the human society, the next time we come back to Earth to use human DNA, there may not be a human race left. It would be a great tragedy if the technologies we provided them destroyed their species. That was the entire reason we chose to give them technology in the first place.”
“Yes, it was. I understand your concern. I will bring this information to the President, and will contact you again with an advised course of action.”
“Thank you, Vice Chancellor. I await our next communication.”
The image of the Vice Chancellor blipped off of the screen and Nash was left sitting in his chair, staring at the blank space. He had hoped for more direct support from the Vice Chancellor. But, his reaction was as good as Nash could have expected. The Draconians resisted direct social involvement with the cultures with whom they bred.
With the wars back at home, they couldn’t extend any further resources. The mating armada was not equipped with an extensive armory. Its purpose was mostly the housing of Draconian brides, and the resulting children, in the years that the armada would be stationed in orbit around Earth. The crew of the fleet had little experience in diplomacy, or statesmanship—the fleet was populated by the males best suited for breeding the next generation of Draconians. Nash was the Commander of an army of husbands and fathers.
Half were warriors who would leave with their brides back to Draconia as soon as they were mated, to be replaced with another set of warriors. The other half was Draconians from every other level of society—technicians, healers, engineers, and builders.
The Draconians one purpose on Earth was to find women to breed, not to create a human utopia. Nash had hoped for better news for Lexi, more definitive action on the part of his government.
In the meantime, he would begin his own investigation into the leaked technology originating from his fleet. The idea that one of his men had betrayed the entire armada made anger boil in his gut.
He began looking through his starship logs, checking the comings and goings and communications systems used by each member of the fleet.
At first glance, absolutely nothing looked suspicious. But then, he found some irregular communications logs and transport coming from the waste-management ship. There seemed to be one cargo transport
per week coming from the waste management ship, and going to Earth. Why would a transport from waste management go to Earth?
8
After Nash left Lexi alone in the apartment, she spent the time using a shipboard computer to access the regular Internet, and catch up with her friends back at school. She wished more than anything that she could complete her education. She had to shut the feeling deep down inside of her, otherwise it would eat her up and make it impossible for her to carry on.
About an hour later, Nash returned to the apartment looking sexier than ever. Lexi growled at herself for feeling so attracted to him.
When he found out she didn’t want to be there, he should have just let her go. That wasn’t something that she could easily forget. Even if he did look unbelievably hot in that skintight uniform. Even if he did make her wet every time his glowing yellow eyes focused on her curves.
“I would like to take you on a tour of the ship,” Nash said, coming to stand in front of her. She glanced up at him from where she sat on the couch, facing the TV.
With the way that he made her feel every time he was around, she was seriously considering letting him do things to her that she never would have considered before.
“That sounds great. I was getting bored sitting around here.” Liar.
“I wanted to show you something special today. I believe this will make you happy, and fill you with satisfaction. It is my greatest hope—it is my greatest pleasure to bring you pleasure,” he said with a shy smile on his face, and her stomach flip-flopped.
They went out into the hallway and into a small room that reminded her of the vessel that had brought her there. They sat down, were strapped into chairs, and were quickly propelled out into space.
“Where are we going?”