Page 37 of Alien Protector's Mate

As she reached for the mug, her fingers brushed against the surface. She bit back a cry as pain lanced through her hand, and she nearly dropped it.

“Oh dear, you poor thing,” Mara clucked, quickly setting the mug on the table next to the machine and gently taking Jade’s hand to examine it. A bright red welt was already forming on her skin, the pain sharp and immediate.

“We’d better get some cold water on that,” Mara said, leading Jade to a small sink behind the reception desk. She sighed in relief as the cold water hit her skin and the pain in her fingers went down.

“Best to leave it under there for a while. You’re new here. Right?” Mara asked, her brown eyes warm with interest. “S’aad’s been working himself to the bone lately. It’s good to see he’s finally got some help.”

She nodded, managing a small smile through the pain. She’d burned herself plenty, and it always hurt like a bitch. “Yeah, I just started today.”

Before Mara could respond, the reception area doors slid open behind them with a soft hiss. A young woman strode in, her high heels clicking against the polished floor like gunshots. She was utterly beautiful with long, flowing blonde hair and impeccable makeup. The kind of woman who made the celebrity pages of gossip sites. Jade’s heart sank. This was the kind of woman S’aad should be with, not some street rat pretending to be a boy.

“Excuse me,” the blonde said, her voice sharp enough to cut glass. “I have been kept waiting for my afternoon spaappointment for over ten minutes, and no one has shown up yet. Is this how you treat a potential mate here?”

Mara’s expression shuttered as she turned toward the younger woman, her warm demeanor replaced by cool professionalism. “I do apologize for the delay, Miss Hartley. Just give me a moment and I’ll check on your appointment right away. Jay, you can dry your hand. Keep an eye on that burn, though, and if it blisters, go to the medical center.”

Jade nodded as Mara moved to her computer terminal. Miss Hartley tapped her foot impatiently, her gaze sweeping dismissively over Jade. “And who…no, what areyousupposed to be?”

Jade felt heat rise to her cheeks, a mixture of anger and embarrassment. She opened her mouth to respond, but Mara beat her to it.

“Jay is one of our technical staff, Miss Hartley,” Mara said, her tone carrying a hint of warning. “He works directly with our lead technician, S’aad V’Renn, who I am sure would prefer you treat his staff with respect.”

Miss Hartley rolled her eyes. “Yeah, right. Whatever. Can you hurry up with my appointment? I have better things to do than stand around here all day.”

As Mara dealt with the demanding woman, Jade bit her lip. What if S’aad matched with someone like Miss Hartley? The thought made her stomach churn. He deserved someone kind, someone who would appreciate his gentle nature and brilliant mind. Not this self-absorbed princess.

Once Miss Hartley had finally left, Mara turned back to Jade with an apologetic smile. “I’m so sorry you had to witness that, dear. Some of these potential mates can be quite… challenging.”

“Are they all like that?” Jade asked, keeping her voice gruff. “The potential mates, I mean.”

“No, thank the stars.” Mara shook her head. “Miss Hartley is a special case. Most aren’t quite that… abrasive.”

Jade nodded, but she wasn’t convinced. What if S’aad ended up with someone awful? Someone who didn’t appreciate him? The thought made the center of her chest ache.

“Don’t you worry about them,” Mara said, handing Jade two thermo-mugs instead of the ceramic ones. “They’re for us to deal with. Now, get this coffee to S’aad before it gets cold.”

“Thank you so much,” Jade said and walked out of reception balancing the two mugs of coffee carefully. The last thing she needed was to burn herself again and end up in the medical center. Not that she thought they’d pick up she was a girl just from looking at her finger and treating her for a burn but because the best way to avoid detection was to minimize how many people she interacted with.

As she neared S’aad’s lab, the sound of his voice stopped her in her tracks. He sounded serious, like something was wrong. She paused, her hand hovering over the door controls, as she listened.

“I understand your concerns, Maax,” S’aad said. “But we can’t just ignore the discrepancies in the matching algorithm. If someone is tampering with the system…”

Her breath caught in her throat. Someone was tampering with the system? Didn’t they have like really high-level alien tech? Who could possibly hack that? She leaned in, but she couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation. S’aad must have an earpiece in or something.

“I know. I know,” S’aad continued, frustration ringing in his voice. She could just see him running his hand through his hair the way he did when he was wound up. “But think about it. If the matches aren’t genuine… if someone is manipulating the system, it could bring down the entire program. Human females would become nothing more than a commodity.”

Her eyes widened. Shit. This sounded bad. Really bad.

“We need to investigate this quietly,” S’aad said. “If word gets out before we have proof, it could cause panic. Just… keep an eye out for anything unusual. Alright? I’ll do the same on my end.”

She waited for a few seconds, just in case S’aad hadn’t finished. Then, taking a deep breath, she triggered the motion sensor on the door and walked in. S’aad looked up from his desk, pinning her with his green-eyed gaze. For a moment she couldn’t move. Couldn’t breathe. But then he smiled, and the moment passed.

“Coffee,” he said, his deep voice sending a shiver down her spine as he reached for the mug. He grinned as he looked up at her, and her cheeks burned. “It’s going to be a long day, I’m afraid, Jay. We have the new data to compile, and some orientation classes to oversee this afternoon. I’m going to need you to keep this stuff coming, or I’ll be asleep on my desk by midafternoon.”

S’aad stood waitingat the entrance of the Latharian Mate Program offices, scanning the corridor for any sign of his cousin’s mate, Sadie’s, arrival. He didn’t need to wait for her. Not only was this section of the station perfectly safe for the human females who lived here, but Sadie was also mated to Vaarn, the station’s chief engineer. Every male aboard knew Vaarn would tear the entire place apart if anything should happen to her.

No, he wasn’t watching out for Sadie’s benefit but for his own.

S’aad closed his eyes on a soft groan. He might as well call it what it was. He was hiding out here so he didn’t have to face Jay.Didn’t have to face everything that had happened this morning between them. The kiss with Jay lingered in his thoughts, desire and guilt swirling in his chest. The warmth of Jay’s lips, the softness of his skin…it had all felt so right in the heat of the moment. S’aad’s fingers unconsciously traced his own lips, remembering the sensation. He shook his head, trying to clear it while shoving the feelings down deep and locking them away.

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