Page 71 of An Alien for Her Heart

“Yes, this is Xarion. I need to speak with your mate, Eleanor Taylor.”

I hear Eleanor’s response to Xarion, her voice so happy on the line that the sound is distinctly at odds with the dark gray cloud suddenly moving over me.

“Zynar?” she asks on the line. “Why do you need Zynar?”

“It’s his siblingkin,” Xarion says. “His core-rhythm. It has sung.”

There is silence on the other line before there is a screech as Eleanor screams in delight. Xarion stretches the device away from him as my head slowly turns in his direction.

“Where is he?” the gruff voice on the line is no doubt Varek’s brother. I can just barely make out his image on the screen because it feels like I’m still in a trance. As if none of this is really happening. And then my brain picks up the strings, the pieces, the coincidences, the way how one thing relates to another, and my heart clenches some more.

Because this feels like I’m being left again. As if I’ve opened my heart and made myself vulnerable, only to have it shattered once more. Except this is nothing like when my previous partner died. This is worse. As if a part of me that I never knew is being ripped out by the root.

“I need to go to him,” I whisper.

“He has gone in his hover truck. Possibly to his quarters to lock himself away,” Xarion relays.

“Frakk,” Zynar curses. “He’s done it to protect her. Like I did for Eleanor. She doesn’t know, does she? She doesn’t know about the rut.”

Xarion’s gaze shifts to me.

“I need to go to him.” My head lifts slowly, the certainty of that one statement all I can rely on.

“You can’t let her. There’s no telling how this will turn out. I must inform her of the dangers first. If you let her leave and she doesn’t—”

I grip the device, facing Zynar. “I know.”

His throat moves. Yellow eyes that look so much like the ones I love look back at me and I can see the fear within them. “Catherine—” Zynar starts.

“He told me. Varek told me everything.”

Zynar regards me for a long moment. “And you’re sure?” The big alien male on the other end of the line seems to plead with me, his eyes giving everything away. “You’re sure you want this? That you want my brother?” He pauses.

“Of course. He’s everything—” My heart clenches. “He’s everything I’ve ever wanted. Everything I’ve ever needed.”

Behind me, Donna makes a soft sound while Zynar studies me from the other side of the screen. Then I hear a female voice; Eleanor’s voice. “She loves him.”

Zynar’s throat moves. “Then I will do my best to assist you, mykahlesta.” He says the word with complete reverence, bowing his head to me on the vid feed. “Together, we will save my siblingkin and your matehood.”

From the corner of my eye, Xarion steps toward me. “Unfortunately, I cannot let that happen.”

I wouldn’t call myself a physical person. I’ve never put my hands on a stranger. Never thrown a fit in public. Never assaulted anyone.

But in this moment, I could move a mountain. “I’m going to Varek, and that’s final.”

“That’s my girl,” Donna praises at my back like the sidekick I never knew I needed.

Xarion holds up his hands in a placating gesture, his long ears folding backward again. “Catherine Richmond, please. My duty is to ensure your safety. I cannot in good conscience allow you to put yourself at risk. The rut couldkillyou.”

But I’m done listening. Done waiting. Every fiber of my being is screaming at me to go to Varek, to be with him, no matter the consequences.

In one swift motion, I lunge forward and tug the door with all my strength. Caught off guard, he stumbles forward, his red eyes wide with shock.

“I’ve faced death many times. This time isn’t any different.”

I don’t wait for him to recover. Seizing my chance, I yank open the door and burst out of the house, my feet pounding against the packed earth as I hurry toward the waiting ooga. If they rode them here, I can ride them away. They can’t be that different from riding horses.

“Catherine Richmond!” Xarion’s desperate shout follows me, but I don’t look back. Can’t look back.

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