Page 15 of Reaper

“That’s excellent news,” I said, casting a swift glance at Doom’s Soulcatcher over my shoulder.

“Jessica is a great healer,” Janelle said with a pouty reluctance that was both adorable and confusing.

“But?” I asked, sensing one coming.

“She’s mean.”

My eyes bulged, and my head jerked towards our Medical Officer, an inquisitive expression on my face.

Jessica laughed and gave my mate an unrepentant stare. “I am not mean, I’m trying to protect you from yourself,” she said, giving a playfully stern look at my woman. She then turned towards me with a long-suffering sigh before gesturing at Janelle with her head. “This young lady is accusing me of starving her because I won’t let her have a big steak with mashed potatoes and a piece of pie.”

I burst out laughing. Janelle scrunched her face and tried to pull her hand away from my grasp. I tightened my hold and smiled at her, unsure how much of it she would see.

“Soon, you will be able to eat as much steak as you want. But right now, you need a more gradual transition,” I explained gently.

“She just wants to give me liquids. That’s not food,” my mate added, her bottom lip jutting in the cutest of pouts. “You promised I’d never be hungry again.”

“And I meant it,” I said in a slightly chastising tone. “The question is: are you hungry or simply dying to chew on something tasty? Be honest.”

She opened and closed her mouth a few times, before chewing on her bottom lip, defeated. I chuckled and caressed her hair.

“Is there anything that would be safe for her to eat instead of just being stuck with that IV and drinking clear broths?” I asked Jessica. “Maybe watermelon, cucumbers? They’re full of water.”

Jessica pursed her lips, checked the monitors tracking my mate’s vitals, then gave me a sharp nod. “That might work. BUTyouwill make sure she eats slowly and doesn’t gorge. We don’t know yet how well her stomach will handle solid food.”

“I’ll be happy to,” I said sincerely.

“Fine,” our Medical Officer replied. “I’ll be right back.”

Janelle emitted a high-pitched sound of joy that reminded me of those of a happy Creckel. Of course, she would have adopted some of their mannerisms.

“Thank you. You’re so good to me,” Janelle said with warmth.

“It makes me happy to take care of you,” I said.

“I hope you won’t tire of it.”

She’d said it in a joking tone, but the undeniable tension in her voice said otherwise.

“I will never tire of looking after you, Janelle. When I said that I will always be there for you, I meant it,” I said in a tone that brooked no argument. “But I am quite curious about you and what happened in the base. How did you end up there all alone?”

A disturbed expression descended upon her delicate features.

“If you’re not ready to talk about it—”

“No, it’s okay,” Janelle interrupted. “I’m not sure where to start.”

“Maybe at the beginning?” I said softly. “I’m assuming your parents were the scientists at the base?”

Janelle nodded, her face taking on a faraway expression.

“My mother was a xenobiologist on Dreija. She was studying the Creckels when the war came there. My father was a genetic engineer,” Janelle explained. “Both of them had worked in the early days with Dr. Xi to help create the Xian Warriors. After the success of the project and once the Vanguard was created, they couldn’t go back to Earth since humans didn’t even know aliens existed back then. Since Mom had worked with the Gomenzi Dragons, working on Creckels made sense.”

“So, your parents met during the program then went together to Dreija?” I asked.

“No. They were abducted separately but met in the base. Dad was twenty years older than Mom,” Janelle said. “They were not…”

Failing to find the proper word, Janelle clasped her hands together in a sign of strong unity.

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