Page 120 of Alien Prince's Fake Bride
“You don’t need it,” I agree, so relieved I have to concentrate to prevent my knees from buckling under me. “AndIdon’t. But the people of Khav do. They need to see our love be celebrated. And they need to know that the bad times are over. There hasn’t been a real Imperial celebration for many years, not since Juriniel and Craxallo got married. I think it’s time. And also, I lied.Ineed it, too. I need everyone to see me marrying you.Everyone. Now come with me.”
I toss Bellatriz onto the bed and carry Umbra into the waterfall shower. I strip her naked and drop my own battle-stained clothing. We clean each other for a good while as the water cascades over us, chatting calmly about recent events. The usual post-battle euphoria rises in both of us.
“Nowthisis magic,” Umbra sighs, standing under the waterfall and closing her eyes. “Getting clean in space. We don’t have indoor plumbing on our space station. Or outdoor plumbing. I could just stand here all day.”
I stroke one finger up along a soft breast. “Really?”
“Oh…” she moans. “Now you’re being naughty. Fine, we’ll get back to bed and celebrate that you finally realize we’re Soulbound. But then we’ll sweat and we’ll need to get clean again. And then we have to celebrate that we won the battle. And then we’ll need to get clean. And so on. You see where this is going?”
“We’ll be unusually clean?” I reply as I lean in and sniff her hair, which is now clean and wet, which makes it smell even better than before.
She scrubs her arms. “Well, obviously. We’ll be going back and forth between the bed and the shower for hours. Mareliux, aren’t you worried about the Calanian Guards on Khav clearly being on the Phrexz’s side?”
“Oh, I am. But two cohorts of shock troopers are getting ready to land at the palace and take control of it. With the Phrexz dead, the Calanians won’t have much motivation left. That part of the Syntrix is gone forever, and I’m sure they can sense it.” I let my hand slide along her wet, slippery behind.
She casually takes hold of my stiff rod. “Will you send Sigise with them? I just think it will mean a lot to her.”
“Hmm,” I pretend to think deeply while I stroke her lower back. “I seem to recall that those two cohorts will be led by a certain General Grast… is that the one you mean?”
Umbra frowns adorably. “No, she’s a col— oh! You promoted her!”
I grin. “She got you off Khav. I’ll give her a medal, too. No, two. Three. Big ones.”
“She really deserves it. She took a big risk.”
I can’t wait. My manhood is rock hard. “Tell me all about it later. Right now, I need my wife.” I lift her and carry her to the bed, both of us still dripping wet from the shower.
49
- Umbra-
Our gunship drops through the atmosphere, and Mareliux lands it in a palace courtyard ringed with hundreds of legionnaires in mirrored armor and one person with no armor at all.
Mareliux opens the door from the outside and helps me out, and then we’re back on planet Khav.
One of the legionnaires steps forward and raises her mirrored visor. “Welcome back to Khav, Your Highnesses. My Prince, it is my pleasure and duty to inform you that all of Khav is under your control. The Calanians have been defeated, and the Phrexz influence has been rooted out. We have taken Quaestor Preniat into custody, as well as the commanding Calanians. The Emperor is confined to his quarters, but has not been barred from entering the Throne room. We await your further orders, Your Highness.”
“Very good, General Grast!” Mareliux says, his deep bass echoing from the buildings around us. “As always, my shock troopers saved the Empire!”
A disciplined cheer rises from the soldiers.
I notice that where the legionnaires used to have the Imperial crest on their chest armor, these ones have replaced it with a hastily made symbol I recognize as Mareliux’s personal crest. Sigise has also painted a green ‘U’ beside hers, a real Earth capital ‘u’ that her AI must have told her about.
I point to it. “Is that for me?”
“Your Highness,” Sigise says with a shallow bow. “It is indeed. I wanted everyone to know who sent me. It is supposed to be the symbol for your name. Or the first part of it. I think?”
I go in to embrace her, and she bends down to make it easier. Again it’s like hugging a giant insect with a hard shell, but this time she at least doesn’t just stand there, but hugs me hard right back.
“Thank you,” I whisper in a throat that’s tightening up from emotion. “That means a lot.”
“It did to me too,” she replies.
“Was it a hard battle?”
“Barely a fight at all,” Sigise says and glances behind her. “Someone had already softened the Calanians up. We just had to march into their camp and take their weapons.”
With the formalities out of the way, Caret’ax finally feels that he can step forwards. “Greetings, Highnesses. It’s good to see you both safe. Though I understand you were not safe at all for a good while.” His torso is bare as always, and I spot a couple of new injuries.
