Page 78 of Alien Prince Fake Fiancé

Ashlyn stoppedseveral feet in front of the large double doors. This was it. The place she, or rather C’Nar, had arranged to meet someone. Or several ‘someones’. She had no idea who to expect, although she really did think Councilor Dur'vok was a scumbag and wouldn’t be at all surprised if he showed up. Her heart was beating faster than a hummingbird’s.

Earlier in the day, she and Zade landed in The Reaper and made their first official appearance on Cappra. Thousands of Capprans, of all sizes and species, came to the docking station to greet the new Councilor and her Caldorian mate. Dr. Kubro hadn’t lied. The people seemed genuinely happy to see her. They’d cheered and thrown flowers, following them to the official residence. Thanks to the translation mushroom Rachel had given her, she had no difficulty understanding and communicating with everyone. They’d made her feel like royalty.

Once inside the massive residence, they’d plead fatigue and retired to their sleeping chambers with instructions not to be disturbed for the rest of the night. Then, Bren transported themdirectly from their bedroom onto C’Nar’s warship, where they landed a second time. She and Aro, appearing as C’Nar and Ocliver, made a point of being seen. Ashlyn had fun acting like an asshole, smashing furniture and throwing C’Nar’s personal belongings around as the A.I. bots packed his belongings in preparation for the transfer of the estate to C’Bor’s widow, Councilor Faro. Her.

“Do you require anything else of me, my lord?” Ocliver asked from beside her.No, that’s Aro. Ocliver doesn’t exist. What the hell am I doing? Stop daydreaming.

Ashlyn cleared her throat. Cleared C’Nar’s throat.Shit. Think, damn it.What was she supposed to say? What had they rehearsed? “Stay here. Don’t let anyone in.”

“Of course, my lord.” Ocliver turned his back to the door, ready to guard the entrance, exactly as planned.

Ashlyn stiffened her spine. C’Nar was quite large, at least a foot taller than her, and the height difference was disorienting. It was like walking on stilts. Everything looked different from the higher vantage point.

Worse? C’Nar’sthingwas uncomfortably squished inside his uniform. He was hot and sweaty.Itwas hot and sweaty, too. Gross. And one side was sticking to his leg.Just say it, Ash. Your dick is stuck to your leg. You’re a male. You have a dick. Perfectly natural. Nothing to see here. Don’t fidget. Do. Not. Fidget.

She looked to her left, then to her right. The hallway was empty. Not surprising, since they were in C’Nar’s private wing of the huge palatial residence. Ashlyn could see that everything was new. There were no dirt smudges, no marks on the floor. The old residence had burned to the ground and the Ubrions had spared no expense building a new one, as they had been expecting to occupy it.

She smirked at the irony. Here she was, in her new home for the first time, pretending to be the man who had lied to her, tricked her, tried to kill her, put chains of obedience on her and married her without her consent. Asshole. She was going to enjoy burning all his stuff.

With that happy thought in mind, she took a deep breath and strode the rest of the way to the door. She placed her hand on the scanner off to the side and waited while her handprint was analyzed. Next, she submitted to an ocular scan.

The door slid open with a satisfying ‘whoosh’. Where was Zade? She knew he was there. Somewhere. She didn’t want to enter the next room without him.

Almost as if reading her mind, a sudden heaviness settled on her shoulder. Zade’s hand. Cloaked. Relief flooded through her system.

The interior of the room was dark. She stepped forward, expecting the room to automatically light up. When it didn’t, she froze. All her senses flared. Was someone watching her?

“You’re late,” a voice said in the darkness. A male voice. Deep. Gravelly. “I dislike waiting.”

This was it. The true test. Could she fool whoever was there, in the dark? She didn’t recognize his voice, so it couldn’t be Councilor Dur'vok. One of the others, perhaps? Someone she hadn’t met yet? She wasn’t late, was she? What would that asshole, C’Nar, say if someone dared tell him he was late? Her lip curled. “Then leave.”

The male chuckled. “You are arrogant for someone who has been stripped of all his power.”

Ashlyn snarled, really getting into the role. “I’ve been stripped of nothing.”

“Oh? Did the human woman and her mate not just oust you from the Council? My contacts said you have lost everything. Iwill have to start over with someone who can get me what I want.”

“Your contacts are misinformed. I’ve lost time, nothing more. The human is merely an inconvenience. I am in an infinitely better position than I was before.”

The silence became oppressive, but Ashlyn refused to give in and talk first. Whoever was in the dark, he was well informed. She needed to find out who he was.

Finally, the man spoke. “Explain.”

Ashlyn smirked. “The female wears my chains of obedience. She’ll do whatever I tell her to do and then promptly forget why she did it.”

Again, silence. “And the Caldorian?”

“He’s distracted, too busy fucking his new toy to pay attention to what’s going on.”

Tap. Tap. Tap. Ashlyn strained to see who was making the noise. Whoever was making it was too far back, hidden deep in the shadows, away from the light streaming through the open door.

“My requirements have changed.”

Ashlyn frowned. Was she supposed to know what that meant? Maybe. “I’m not prepared to change the terms of our agreement.”

“Hmm. That’s what your partners said, too.”

Suddenly, light from a small corner lamp flooded one side of the room. There, sitting in three of the five chairs around a medium sized conference table, were Councilor Thal'kor of Zephyria, with yellow reptilian eyes and emerald skin, Councilor Seraphina from the Lorian Alliance with her silvery hair and iridescent wings, and Councilor Jorax of Ventri Prime, his tentacled mouth gone still. Lifeless. All three were dead, their eyes removed from their bodies. Blood, dark and thick, had coagulated in their mouths, where their tongues used to be.

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