Page 17 of Resisting the Alien Commander

I curse that I missed his arrival.

“It’s merely excitement.” Although his assessment isn’t too far off.

My cousin side-eyes me. “They’re nearly salivating.”

A bit of amusement strikes me and I can’t hold back my grin. “Perhaps I do see a hint of rabidness in their gazes.”

Alik barks out a laugh. “So youdohave a sense of humor. There may be hope for you after all.”

The sound of faint conversations draws our attention. All the males have shifted in their seats and stare at the doorway to the banquet hall. Standing there are twenty females, each with varying degrees of nervousness lining their faces.

Chapter9

Quinn

I’m not sure why I’m surprised to see so many people—men—staring. It’s been like this since we arrived, except I feel more exposed now. Maybe because we’re in such close quarters. Plus we’ve been invited here to meet our potential husbands. Mates. Whatever they call them on Bohna.

Nobody moves though. Not the Bohnari. Not us women. Not even the group of people sitting in the corner who have stopped playing whatever interesting looking musical instruments they hold. It’s the most awkward sensation to just stand here and stare at each other.

“Okay, ladies, let’s do this.” Olivia gives a sharp nod. “It’s why we came all this way after all, right?”

She snags my arm and guides me forward with no chance to think about stopping her. That’s the thing about Olivia. She’s like a bulldozer and drags everyone along with her for the ride. Based on the sound of footsteps, at least Devon and Lindsey follow us.

I try my best to appear friendly by smiling and nodding at the males we pass on our way to the large empty table I assume has been left reserved for us. Olivia and I take our seats, as do the others. The silence continues for an inordinate amount of time.

“I leave the room for mere moments, and none of you can greet our guests properly?”

All our heads turn at the feminine voice that scolds from the other side of the room. There’s no mistaking the fact the female standing there is the queen. It’s not even the crown she wears that gives her away or the way she’s glaring at Alik and Horek. It’s her regal bearing. She strides forward like she owns the room, her satiny cape billowing behind her until she reaches the table where we’re sitting.

“Please forgive my son’s rudeness.” She scans down the table, pausing briefly on each of us before continuing. “Welcome to Bohna. I am Queen Veroneek. Thank you for joining us this evening. I hope the food and drink are to your liking. More so than the present company of males who clearly need to be reminded of their manners.”

When she glares again, this time over her shoulder at the entire room, I press my lips together to hide my smile. Not that I’ve ever met royalty before, but I have a strong suspicion Queen Veroneek is unlike any other.Teal hair is plaited and wound into a bun at the base of her head while her horns are visible over the top of her jewel-encrusted crown. But her most outstanding feature is the kindness on her face. I like her already.

“I look forward to getting to know each of you lovely females before the night is over,” Queen Veroneek tells us and claps her hands in front of her.

A bevy of staff rush forward and pour some fruit-scented liquid into the cups already placed on the table in front of us.

“The meal will be served momentarily. In the meantime, drink, converse, and try to enjoy yourselves.” She tips her chin down and heads for Alik and Horek.

The musicians play their instruments again and a lovely melody adds to the quiet conversation that picks back up amongst the Bohnari males.

“How much do you want to bet someone’s getting lectured? And by someone, I mean the prince.” Olivia snickers and takes a careful sip of her beverage. She makes a smacking sound. “Damn, that’s some good stuff.”

I slowly sniff it and the barest hint of fermented fruit emanates from the cup. Alcohol and I don’t always get along well, but a small taste can’t hurt. I drink the tiniest bit and bubbles tickle my tongue. My eyes widen at the flavor. “Oh, wow, that’s nice.”

“Told you.” She’s a little too proud of the fact.

I cast what I hope is a discreet glance out onto the Bohnari seated around the room. They still study us, but at least it’s not quite as blatant as it had been when we first arrived. My gaze catches on the guy who brought my belongings to my suite yesterday. Bannik meets my stare and nods his head just slightly in my direction. My cheeks warm and I give him a small smile.

“Looks like Quinn’s already found a potential date,” Devon practically coos.

Olivia nudges me. “And you didn’t even want to come.”

She’s right, I didn’t. Honestly, I’m still not sure being on Bohna is the right decision, but I’m here and I need to learn how to love it and make it my home.

Someone appears out of the corner of my eye, and I lean back as a Bohnari places food on my plate. He moves on to Olivia and keeps going down the line until he is met in the middle by another guy coming from the other end of the table serving food as well.

It took a few days on the ship for my stomach to get used to real food. For thirty years, I survived on protein bars. It’s the only thing to ever make me envy the upper tier and the things they had that I didn’t. Although there’s no division on Bohna that I’ve discovered, Ifeellike I’m now a member of the wealthy population that took great pleasure in making the lives of bottomers hell.

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