Page 18 of Devin
"What did he do?" Val asked.
"Didn't you learn from the last time?" Jane asked.
"The last time brought Odette, and then you and Meadow. And Humility. It all worked out perfectly!" Kave said Humility with a bit more wistfulness than the other names. That was probably his mate.
"Did you tell Humility what you were planning to do?" Jane asked.
Kave opened his mouth to speak, but his skin rippled into a sickly green color.
"You didn't, did you," Meadow said, eyeing him up and down.
"I didn't want to bother her in her condition."
Both of the women scoffed at that remark.
"I can't believe you'd do that again," Jane said.
"What did you do?" Val asked again.
"When a warrior wants a mate, he submits a form to his warlord, marked with preferences and whatnot. The warlord signs off on it, and the request goes to the central computer which finds him a mate with the closest match. Like a giant cosmic dating service. Except Devin stated that he specifically did not want a mate. He repeated it several times," Meadow said.
"He will change his mind," Kave said, sure of himself.
"When we first got here, we heard stories. This one," Meadow pointed to Kave as she ignored his comments, "had apparently been put in charge after ordering a mate for his warlord without permission. Because his warlord had forbidden any of the warriors to have mates."
"It is unnatural for a clan not to have mates," Kave said.
"So he ordered up Odette and then, get this, made her jump out of a cake!" Meadow exclaimed.
"Is that not a Terran tradition?" His voice was weaker, as if he knew the correct answer. The two women glared at him. "Well I know better now." His skin was turning a rather unappealing shade of neon green.
"Then you should have known better than to order up a mate for Devin!" Jane said.
"It all worked out in the end. This will too. I think Humility is probably awake." Kave turned on his heel and practically ran out of the cubicle.
"So what does this mean?" Val said.
"It means that Devin is going to have to change his mind," Meadow said.
"Or we're going to have to change it for him," Jane added.
Chapter 10
Devin
Her scent still lingered in the cabin. It would probably take a week to air it out properly. Devin circled the camp, having finished his last survey. He didn’t see anyone out and about. Good. He could safely walk through camp without having anyone question him about the female. She was haunting him. Those brown eyes and dark hair staring up at him. She needed protecting. She needed a mate to bite her neck and fill her with his seed.
No. He did not want a mate, Devin reminded himself. And when he got a mate, she would be a helpmeet. Someone who would complement his skills as an architect. She would be sturdier than one of those frail Terrans that needed protecting from even the smallest creatures night and day. He did not need one who could get her face smashed easily.
Devin still wanted to kill whatever had touched her. That would at least be satisfying. Perhaps, it would even satisfy the drive to bury himself balls-deep into that troublesome Terran.
Just before he was able to slip to his quarters unassailed, he saw his new warlord who had the audacity to grin at him.
"You may hit me, if you like. However, I will have to strike you back, as I am the warlord," Kave stated as he approached. It finally clicked in Devin's brain that this was all Kave's fault. He had ordered the temptress on purpose.
Devin did not think when he drew back his fist and he planted it with all the force he could muster in the same spot that Val's attacker had managed. For his word, Kave did not even try to duck or avoid the hit. He took it gleefully and returned it with equal force. Devin was not honor-bound to stay put, so most of the blow bounced off and he rounded another punch to the other side of Kave's face.
The warrior grunted with delight and the fight was on. Devin knew from the start he was going to lose, he had to lose. To win would be disastrous for his own career and for the clan. Kave was not a large warrior, none of the Etlonian Mahdfel were. He wasn't slow or hulking. Kave was much more elegant in his fighting style, trained with the prince himself, and Devin had little more than his basic training and first tour of duty under his belt.
