Page 4 of Zylonn's Human Bride
Taken aback by his great size, she studied him for a moment. God, he was huge and muscular—intimidatingly so. Having glimpsed plenty of Tarkkuans before, when they came to visit her dome-city on official business, she had not expected to see an alien this large here in Ashorr, and she felt a stab of pity for whichever human woman found herself mated to this male. He was easily more than two heads taller than her, and aside from his size, this particular Tarkkuan seemed overly stern.
An involuntary tingle raced across her bottom at the thought of enduring a punishment from the no-nonsense male who was glaring down at her. Despite her fear, her face heated and a sudden ache throbbed between her thighs. She quickly lowered her head, hoping he did not notice her blushing.
What was wrong with her? How could she experience such a visceral reaction in the presence of one of these savages? She lifted her chin, reminding herself of why she was on Tarkkua in the first place. Not of her own free will, that was for certain.
She resented having to leave her home and spend the rest of her life here, and she’d promised herself she wouldn’t become attracted to her mate, or worse—develop tender feelings for him. But the odd tremors racing through her left her shaken, and she tried to push her sudden uncertainties away.
She would do her duty and marry the Tarkkuan that she’d been assigned to, but she wouldnotdevelop tender feelings of any sort for her mate. Her marriage to Zylonn was a business arrangement and nothing more. Hopefully her mate wouldn’t stare at her with the same feral intensity as this alien, and hopefully he wouldn’t be as large and strict, either.Or as ruggedly handsome, she thought, fighting back another flush as she helplessly admired the way the lantern light danced over his blue skin.
“Excuse me,” she said, trying to walk around him. “I must get inside. My mate will be waiting.” The rest of the women were inside the building now, as were all the guards, leaving Nova alone with this fierce-looking alien. Her pulse thundered in her ears.
The Tarkkuan stepped aside, though he held her gaze the entire time. As she walked by him and entered the building, Nova felt his eyes hot upon her back. But at least she’d managed to get past him, and hopefully he wouldn’t tell her new husband what she’d done.
With a sigh, she searched for the official crest of her dome-city, New Leesburg, painted on the floor. It wasn’t difficult to locate, as the cities were placed in alphabetical order, and she rushed to stand at the base of the painting that depicted a sun rising over a lush green valley. She tried to shake off the pang of homesickness that resonated in her chest.
This is home now. Stop thinking of Earth.
Glancing around, she found it curious that a Tarkkuan male already stood next to each woman, but her mate hadn’t yet approached her dome-city’s crest. She waited, alone, as the crowd around her murmured, and on a dais high above the gathering, five males in red robes stared down. From her studies of this culture, Nova knew they were the priests that would perform the wedding ceremony. Her gaze traveled higher to a balcony section where dozens of Tarkkuan males and females were seated, the latter being a mix of full humans and half-bloods. Some of the males were probably half-bloods too, but she’d heard such men usually didn’t differ in appearance from a full-blooded Tarquan. The trade agreement had been in effect long enough for the children born of the first Tarkkuan–human matches to have reached adulthood already. The number of males, though, vastly exceeded the number of females.
Where was her mate? Had Zylonn changed his mind? Or was he simply running late?
Her mind spun as she considered all the possibilities for his absence, but before she could worry herself any further, a tall male came to stand beside her. His muscular blue arm brushed against hers, and she glanced up, ready to greet him, but only a gasp escaped her lips.
Oh, God. It was the same Tarkkuan who’d scolded her outside.
“Zylonn?”
“Hello, Nova.”
“You-you’re my mate?”
“Yes. I am. You would do well to keep that in mind before you make any more brazen comments about the arrangement my people have with yours.”
Before she could think of a response, the music ceased playing and the crowd quieted. The wedding ceremony was about to begin.
Chapter 4
Zylonn inhaled the sweet, feminine scent of his new mate, Nova. She was a small creature, but quite pleasing to the eye. In fact, he found her to be the loveliest female he’d ever seen, with luminous blue eyes and wavy golden hair that swept down past her shoulders. His pulse raced and his blood heated as he stood beside her, watching as she trembled and stared at the floor while the priests bestowed a blessing on the mass of gathered couples.
When he’d overheard Nova’s rude remarks outside, he hadn’t known she was his mate, as the only thing he’d known of his mate beforehand was her dome-city and her name. However, when he’d overheard her rude comments about his people, he’d been enraged. She ought to be grateful his people were helping hers survive.
Outside of the climate-controlled dome-cities, Earth was a dangerously hot barren wasteland. Without the Tarkkuan’s technology, humans might have had to abandon their planet entirely, and millions, if not billions, of souls would have perished. All that the Tarkkuans asked for in exchange for the use of their TEC600 reactors and a continuous supply of reactor material was the gift of a female from each dome-city every year.
The sound of a horn being blown by the oldest priest indicated the ceremony was over, and all the human females had officially become the property of their Tarkkuan mates. Eager to escape the crowd, Zylonn grabbed Nova’s arm and guided her outside into the humid night air.
“Where are your belongings, little human?”
She glanced at him, wide-eyed, before nodding at a small black suitcase with a purple ribbon tied to the zipper. He released her arm only long enough to pick up her luggage, then continued leading her away from the building.
He couldn’t wait to get her home, alone, this little human female who was now all his.
Of course, there was the matter of her disrespect to address first. He couldn’t ignore her earlier comments, nor the irritated tone in which she’d spoken them. He couldn’t risk her speaking in such a rude manner again, particularly in public.
If others heard her, it might cause discord among the human females. His people would not tolerate any form of rebellion from their otherworldly mates, thus any females who spoke out against the arranged marriages must always be dealt with firmly.
Judging by her rapid breaths and her incessant shaking, Nova likely realized he hadn’t forgotten about their earlier conversation. She knew she was in trouble.
They continued walking through the streets in silence, the rest of the crowd already dispersed. The breeze picked up, blowing Nova’s golden locks about her shoulders, and bringing the sweet scent of her directly to his nostrils.
