Page 43 of Alien Knight Teddy Bear Troubles

Ion squeezed as hard as he could, his little boy arms wrapped around her neck as he buried his head in her neck. “We are good. He missed you a lot.”

“He did?” She kissed him--and his bear--on the cheek. “I missed you, too. Did Marcano take good care of you while you were traveling?”

Ion lifted his head and glared at the stoic Knight being introduced to everyone in the room. He was kicking his feet, as little boys liked to do, and Cassie was grateful that Taeger had honored her request to wear armor rather than a dress. He loved her the way she was, and she was just not a dress and heels kind of woman. “He made me eat gross stuff. Said I had to or I couldn’t grow up strong like Uncle Taegie.”

“Oh, yuck. What kind of stuff?”

“Green stuff. Orange stuff. He said they have vite-mins.”

Cassie laughed out loud and hugged him close. She had not laughed so much in years. She had Taeger and Ion, even Marcano and his antics with the boy to thank for that. Kids the universe over apparently did not want to eat their vegetables. Ion burrowed in close and sighed. “I’m tired. Can I have some rest?”

What an odd question. “Yes, buddy. Of course you can.”

He placed his small palm flat against her chest and she lost her balance as he pulled energy from her body. A lot of energy. She had plenty to spare since her transformation, but normally only Taeger managed to give her that kind of relief.

Shocked, she glanced down into his smiling face to find his eyes were brighter, his skin had a better color and he was now squirming to get down. “Ion? What was that?” she whispered.

“Shhh.” In very dramatic fashion, he lifted his finger to cover his lips. “I didn’t want Marcano. He tastes funny. I like you best.”

Cassie’s mouth dropped open as she settled the squirming little alien prince onto his feet.

Did the others know what Ion was doing? Taeger had never once mentioned it. She would have to ask about it later. In private.

On his feet, Ion immediately dashed across the room to chat up Queen Sasha, who smiled and greeted him with a very formal bow and charming handshake. Ion was a prince, after all. And little. And adorable. And apparently, he had saved Cassie’s life. Over. And over. And over. Every time she’d felt sick before her yielding with Taeger, Ion had been there. He’d been siphoning her energy away, buying her time. Keeping her alive. “Holy shit.”

A pair of thick, strong arms wrapped around her waist from behind and she leaned into her mate’s embrace. “I missed you.” His hot breath teased her ear and she smiled.

“It’s been about thirty minutes.” Thirty minutes she’d used to contact General MacGregor, inform him that her ship and the weapon had been lost. That both Smith and Charlie had recently arrived on Earth and were being taken care of by Caldorian medical teams. She’d given him the high level account, saving what she knew about the Lumerians until she’d had a chance to discuss things with Taeger and Falden, the two ranking Knights who had been protecting their people for thousands of years.

The general still expected a full report, but when King Dagan formally requested that Captain Cassandra Davis be his new direct line of communication between the Caldorian forces and the General, she had seen the gleam in her former superior’s eyes. They’d known each other for years, fought together. General MacGregor trusted Cassie to have Earth’s back, and he wasn’t wrong. If she listened hard enough, she was sure she could hear Admiral Peltier and Space Force General Falcione cackling to have one of their own on the inside.

The General had released her into King Dagan’s service so long as she remained in contact and kept the lines of communication open at all times. She had a new cell phone in her pocket and the generals, the admiral and a handful of their most trusted people had the number. One call and they’d have answers.

The humans were thrilled with this new development. And as to the weapon? She and Taeger had discussed it with Falden. Since it appeared Cassie was the only one who could initiate the interdimensional phase shift--or whatever the hell it was called--required to use the weapon, Taeger and Cassie kept it in a hidden location on base. Except Taeger’s Knights, who she trusted with her life, no one but Falden and King Dagan knew the Black Star weapon existed, and Cassie was pleased to keep it that way. It was the smart thing to do.

Smith would have something to say about it, no doubt. But she had no problem lying to him, telling him it had been destroyed in the battle with the Dark Ones. He had no proof otherwise, no matter what he might personally believe. And they’d been through a lot together. Smith had even thanked Taeger when the evacuation ship he’d been on had landed at the Caldorian base. Smith had nodded at her and walked away.

She got the message. Smith wasn’t going to ask.

Cassie was in love, that was true. But she knew what was out there now, and she intended to make sure humanity was prepared to face it. With King Dagan’s and Prince Regent Taeger’s help, of course.

“Thirty minutes too long,” Taeger grumbled. She smiled and turned her head to kiss him lightly on the jaw before returning her attention to the interaction between the young prince, the Caldorian king and the most powerful woman in the universe. Taeger had told her the crystals that coated every bracelet, headband and necklace on the new queen were there to pull energy away from her at all times. Even Sasha’s mate was not strong enough to keep her alive without the additional crystals. And Sasha, like Cassie, had been completely human before her transformation. That was a frightening thought.

When compared to Dagan’s queen, who had crystals covering her like she had a serious jewelry obsession, or the other human, Juliette, with the bright red crystals embedded in her flesh, Cassie decided her twinkling rainbow colored markings were, in fact, what Taeger said they were. Delicate. Feminine. Beautiful.

Which was odd, since Sasha was a queen and Cassie was a soldier. But it appeared the universe had a funny sense of humor.

There was nothing funny about the bright blue markings that covered Taeger. She had spent hours and hours making sure no other Knight would have more bright blue markings than her man. And she’d succeeded. He was lit up like a christmas tree. And Falden, Isabella’s Knight, was covered as well. But she noticed with no small amount of satisfaction that neither Falden nor Dagan’s markings glowed as brightly as Taeger’s. Cassie hadn’t met everyone yet, and she was already losing track of names. She was used to being either alone, or with a small group of five or six on a mission. This many people around all day every day was making her a little crazy.

When another Knight walked into the room, this one tall and dark with a beard, Taeger let her go and moved to stand slightly in front of her. He dropped his chin and executed a slight bow at the waist, as did Marcano.

“Prince Torrin, I am pleased to see you again,” Taeger said.

“No need to bow to me, Taeger. I owe you a debt I can never repay.”

Cassie’s head snapped to attention. Prince?Anotherroyal?

How many kings and queens and princes could one people have? Seriously.

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