Page 1 of Alien Protector's Mate

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Another day, another successful match. This would be his… he paused to check… twenty-eighth successfully matched couple since he’d started working at the mate program here on Devan Station.

S’aad hummed softly to himself as he moved around his lab, his long fingers dancing over the holographic input consoles as he prepared for his next appointment. One of the new human females who had arrived on the station last week had been matched with a warrior after the program’s algorithms had been updated.

All he had left were the final checks to make sure the matching system had indeed matched the two correctly, and then he would introduce the human to her mate for the first time. It was his favorite part of the job, and one he’d recently been “promoted” to because of his easygoing manner and the fact that the human females seemed to trust him.

His jaw tightened for a moment as he cleared away the last of the clutter from his work this morning. That’s what the official report said, but it had far more to do with the fact that one of the warriors had gotten way too handsy and belligerent with hispotential match the other week. The older human female who had been sitting in on the first meeting hadn’t been able to stop him, and her cries for help had drawn S’aad out of his lab. He’d dealt with the troublemaker within seconds and now they had expanded security in place to ensure it didn’t happen again. If he didn’t sit in on the first meeting, another warrior from station security sat with one of the human staff to ensure none of the new mates were bullied into anything or felt uncomfortable.

The LMP’s primary objective was to match as many human females with Latharian males as possible, but he’d be damned if that was at the expense of the females themselves.

Pausing for a moment, he swept a last look around the room. Everything was in its place. The bio-scanners hummed softly, ready to confirm the genetic compatibility of the couple in question before he took his charge through to the meeting room. He’d made sure to have human drinks and snacks ready. Most of the women were nervous and couldn’t eat, but he’d learned that having familiar things around was helpful. He nodded to himself, satisfaction rolling through him. He was as ready.

The door chimed, and he straightened up, plastering a wide smile over his face as he headed toward the door.

“Come in,” he called out, just as the door slid open with a soft hiss to reveal a young human female.

She hesitated for a moment at the threshold, her dark eyes wide as they darted around the room. He didn’t need any expanded senses to tell she was nervous. Her hands shook and she practically vibrated with anxiety.

“Welcome back to my little office, Eliza,” he said, stopping where he was so he didn’t crowd her and dialing back his smile to a gentler expression. He remembered her from her intake examinations. She’d been all but terrified, so just nervous was a definite improvement. “Please, come in. There’s no need to be nervous. I don’t bite. I promise.”

The little human took a deep breath and walked in. The door closed behind her with a quiet whoosh, but even that made her jump a little. He watched as she wrapped her arms around herself defensively before her gaze finally settled on him.

“I… I’m not sure I’m ready for this,” she admitted, biting her lower lip.

His heart went out to her. He’d seen this fear written on the faces of many of the human females before, and it always got to him. The official line might be that the females who signed up to the Latharian Mate Program did so of their own free will, but he’d long since figured out that there was more to it than that. Much more. Most of them signed up willingly, yes, but because they had no other choice—no job, no place to stay, or in the case of Prince Rohn’s mate, a violent partner. There was always a reason, and it was usually not a nice one.

So he softened his manner, making sure not to loom as he sat down and indicated the chair opposite him. In all his interactions with the human females, he made sure to make himself as unthreatening as possible. It helped that they assumed he was younger than he was.

“That’s perfectly natural… This is a big step, and it’s totally okay to feel unsure about it.” He smiled as she sat down. “Why don’t we talk through the process again one last time, and if you’re not ready, I can take you back to your quarters?”

She nodded, her fingers tracing over the padded seat of her chair. He gave her a moment to settle before pulling his chair a little closer and positioning himself at a respectful distance.

“Okay, for a start, let me reassure you that everything we do here is designed with your comfort and safety in mind,” he said, his tone warm and professional. At least, since last week it had. “The mate program is about creating strong partnerships between our couples. It’s not just about biological compatibility.”

The little human’s shoulders relaxed slightly, but her frown was still in place as she looked at him. “I get that. I do. But…” She nibbled her lip again. “How can you be sure? I mean, your people are so different from us.”

He leaned forward, his expression earnest. “We are, yes. But different isn’t always bad. The Lathar and humanity have a lot in common as well since we’re genetically related. And our screening process makes sure you and your match are compatible on the genetic level. But just to be sure, I’ll do a failsafe check today.”

He paused for a moment, watching her out of the corner of his eye as he pulled up her files.

“But beyond the science,” he went on, “the male you’ve been matched with has been carefully selected based on personality traits, interests, and values that complement your own.”

A flicker of curiosity passed over her face. “You can determine all that from genetic tests?”

He chuckled softly. “Not from genetics alone, no. We’ve recently updated our matching program to include psychological profiling and cultural analysis. This holistic approach has really been proving successful.”

He pulled a small tray on his desk toward him. “Now, if you’re comfortable, I’m going to do the last check to make sure we have the right people, and you’re not like… your own twin.” He shot her a quick smile. “This won’t hurt at all. It’s just a quick scan.”

She hesitated for a moment and then nodded. “Okay. What do I need to do?”

“Just sit and hold your arm out for me, palm up, and try to relax,” he instructed as he activated the device. A soft violet light washed over the skin of her inner arm.

He nodded in satisfaction as the readings scrolled over his screen, matching up with the data he already had. “Everythinglooks great here, Eliza. You’re definitely the right lady, and actually, your health indicators are much better than when you arrived.”

She smiled slightly, rubbing the inside of her arm even though he hadn’t touched her.

“The food here issogood,” she whispered. “I’ve never seen so much of it in my life. And the chocolate cake! Oh my god. I could live on that alone.”

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