Page 62 of An Alien for the Future

I freeze. “What now? They’re getting younger?”

Xarion shrugs. “Or aging incredibly slowly for your kind.”

My eyes widen, and I look up at Tovan, who is now staring at Xarion with an intensity that could melt steel. His face is tight, his tension clear.

“Well, shoot,” I say, leaning back against Tovan’s chest, forcing a lightness I don’t quite feel. “Why didn’t you tell me that before, honey? We could’ve skipped all this drama and gone straight to the altar!”

I swear, these men are a tough crowd. Nobody laughs.

“Just wait here. I’ll go get my shawl.”

Tovan stops me, his arm still around my waist.

“Lira’an,” he says softly.

“Lira’an?” Arnak whispers in shock under his breath.

“Don’t, Arnak.” Tovan slides a side eye his friend’s way before the glacier melts as he looks at me again. “Are you certain? This is not how I wanted this to happen. You shouldn’t feel pressured.”

“I was already going to go, sugar.” I lift my hand, cradling his jaw. “Besides, weren’t you the one who was so certain about us from the beginning?”

A flicker of his usual warmth returns to his eyes. “I am still certain.”

Arnak makes a sound in his throat. “The medic will still be open. If we leave now, we can have the results before the dawn.”

I nod, a strange mix of nerves and determination settling over me. “Let’s go, then. The sooner we put these rumors to rest, the better.” And the sooner I find out if Tovan’s really mine, that this love will be different from all the others, the sooner I can move on.

Turning, I head toward the door, my hand trailing down to grab Tovan’s claw as I pull him along behind me.

“Donna?” Xarion questions.

“Just a minute,” I say as I shut the door, blocking him and Arnak out.

There, in the small cozy interior of my home, I throw myself into Tovan’s arms, all my fear, my hope, my longing, all in this one desperate act.

Our lips crash together, a collision of need, of a love that I’m only beginning to let myself feel. I kiss him like it’s the last time, pouring every ounce of my being into that single, searing contact. When we pause to take a breath, Tovan leans his forehead against mine.

“Donna?” It’s a ragged whisper. One that breaks me in two.

Before I know it, his arms tighten around me once more, crushing me against his chest. His tongue invades my mouth, tasting, devouring, taking, and I give it all to him, freely, recklessly, lost in the heat of his embrace.

This kiss, this moment, it’s a goodbye and a promise all wrapped into one. A goodbye to the life I knew, to the woman I once was. And a promise of a future I can barely comprehend, a future where the melody of my heart beats in time with the rhythm of his soul.

17

DONNA

It’s strange arriving in town with this tension over my head. Every one of us in the transport is silent. All except for Xarion, who takes the moment to inform me of all that will happen after I’m matched.IfI’m matched.

The rut. The danger. The fact I will be wholly consumed by the Kari who calls to my soul.

Everything he’s saying is almost terrifying—because I can’t imagine going through all of that with some male other than Tovan.

My gaze shifts to Tovan now, sitting beside me in the back of the transport. He’s been watching me the whole time, but wherever I look his way, he pretends that he hasn’t been. Even gives me a soft smile, flashing just a bit of fang. Meanwhile, his claws clench and unclench consistently.

He’s worried. And I am, too.

I wrap the shawl tighter over my shoulders as Arnak pulls up outside a small building. My heart leaps into my throat as the transport comes to a stop. The small medical building looms before us, its windows glowing softly in the growing darkness. But it’s not the building that catches my attention—it’s thegathering of Kari males outside, their massive forms silhouetted against the twilight sky.

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