General's Bride Read online

  ​“Come with me,” I tell her. I watch as questions swarm over her face.

  She nods slowly and stands, then walks with me to my bedroom. Our bedroom. I want to share everything with her.

  ​She walks slowly behind me, then enters the bedroom again. Her eyes scan the room, looking for some evidence that might tell her whatever she’s trying to piece together.

  ​She bends down and picks up one of her undergarments. Across the room, she finds her shirt. Oh, the way she looked when she pulled off all her clothes.

  ​I can’t believe this sudden turn of events. We had the most amazing night, and I need her to understand that we’re meant to be together.

  5

  Naomi

  I pace across the small room, then open the large window shade. Where I expect to see sand or water, I see dark space. There are stars everywhere, like I’m in the middle of one of those space movies.

  ​I don’t understand.

  ​“How?”

  ​The purple man is next to me, still as naked as the day he was born. Well, so am I, for that matter. I’ve never felt comfortable enough to walk around in the nude before, and for some reason, I don’t feel an urge to put back on my clothes.

  ​Because I want this to be a dream.

  ​I want to pinch myself and wake up, right back in my shitty life with my cheating ex banging on my door. With a bottle of whatever I just drank in my hands.

  ​His fingers glide tentatively across my lower back. I don’t want to react to him, but whatever we did, my body seems to remember.

  ​My breath catches.

  I hate myself for responding to him, but I’m also pretty annoyed that I don’t even remember everything we did.

  ​I stare out at the galaxy. I’ve never been a big sci fi girl, and I can’t remember ever looking at a picture of the solar system that looked so amazing.

  ​“Take me home,” I say, and I feel his fingers flinch before he withdraws his touch. I realize how ridiculous I must look, standing nakedly and staring out at the universe.

  ​“The App only brings females to us. We don’t have a way to send you back.”

  ​I spin around and glare at him, suddenly angry. “What? You think it’s okay to take a person? You think you have the right to claim whoever you want? What the hell?”

  ​He raises his eyebrows; two perfectly trimmed lines of hair right above his eerily black eyes. I stare at him, expecting his face to tense up in anger.

  ​But instead, he looks like he’s curious. Intrigued, perhaps. Definitely not angry. He looks more concerned than anything.

  ​“All of our females died when I was a child. All of them. All the races, except for one.”

  ​“Which one is that?” I ask, my voice suddenly quivering. Because I think I already know the answer.

  ​“Yours.”

  ​I shift my weight from one side to another, suddenly feeling cold. “I think I’d like to get dressed now,” I say. I don’t know what to do, to be honest.

  6

  Marv

  I don’t understand what happened, or why my female is suddenly acting like I’ve duped her or something. She did not seem so unhappy last night.

  ​“My love,” I try again, but she shakes her head.

  ​“I want to go home.”

  ​I sigh. There’s no way to take her back to her planet. The App is a one-way ticket, and I don’t really understand how it works. The V’aalarans invented it, and for some reason they decided to share it with the other tribes.

  ​“I can’t take you all the way across the galaxy. We’d die from old age before we’d get there.”

  ​Naomi bends down and picks up her undergarments, which she quickly puts on. She starts scanning the room for something else, so I bend down and start looking for her clothes, too.

  ​“Found it,” she mumbles.

  ​But instead of standing and getting dressed, Naomi bursts into tears and collapses beside me.

  ​“So, all the women on your planet were also taken?”

  ​ “Well, technically you’re the first woman that will be going back there. But I’ve got the App and my people will be so eager to find their mates.”

  ​“I’m not your mate,” Naomi states flatly.

  ​I shake my head. “Yes, you are. You are bound to me. You accepted me last night.”

  ​Naomi pulls her knees against her chest and begins to sob. “I was drunk. I was so wasted. I have no idea what I said, and whatever it was, I shouldn’t have said it.”

  ​“We did more than talk.”

  ​“I figured that out, Mr. Alien Man. Obviously. We were both naked.”

  ​I don’t know what to say to that. She isn’t wrong. But it hurts to know that she doesn’t seem to remember what we did.

  ​“What is… drunk?”

  ​Naomi looks up at me, her eyes surrounded by fresh dewy tears. “I had vodka. It’s a drink.”

  ​“Vodka?”

  ​“Yeah. I was trying to forget… and then I forgot everything.”

  ​“Vodka.” I shake my head again. “We don’t have anything like that up here. Forgetting juice would be problematic.”

  ​She rubs her eyes, pushing away her tears. “I used to joke about vodka,” she tells me. “But vodka makes the clothes fall off.”

  ​“I liked that part,” I tell her. Our eyes meet, and I know she probably wants to drive a dagger through my face or something, but I won’t lie. I enjoyed mating with her.

  ​And I would give anything to do it again.

  ​“So now what?”

  ​I take her hand and gently guide her back to a standing position. “Now, we get ready for our first full day together. And tomorrow, we fly back to my planet. Our planet.”

  ​“But…”

  ​“Naomi, love. We can’t stay here. It isn’t safe. There was a Foog attack this morning, and it appears that they’ve formed an alliance with the Ta’al. Those are two enemy tribes.”

  ​“And they’re here?”

  ​“Of course. This is an intergalactic research station, so we allow all tribes to come here.”

  ​“And you’re from what tribe?”

  ​“We call ourselves the Narulians. I am from the planet Narul.”

  ​She pauses, then sounds out the name. “Narul.”

  ​“I will be a good Mate. I will take good care of you.”

  ​“I didn’t ask to be taken care of,” she says, but her voice doesn’t sound as angry this time.

  ​“Then I will make it my life’s purpose to spend every waking moment keeping you happy.”

  ​She shrugs. “No one can promise that.”

  ​“Perhaps no Earthling. But I’m Narulian,” I boast.

  ​She doesn’t say anything to me after that. Instead, she wanders back to the window and stares at the spacescape. I glance down at the bundled-up clothes that she never finished putting on before walking over to join her.

  7

  Naomi

  “Once, when I was little, I asked my Mama what space was like,” I say, touching my fingertips to the thick glass that separates me from the galaxy around us.

  ​“And what did she tell you?”

  ​Marv seems harmless. He’s instantly next to me again, his firm purplish body waiting for me. Will he really always be beside me?

  ​I’ve never had a reason to trust a man before. They all cheat, lie, take what isn’t theirs. Marv took, but that somehow seems different. I was intoxicated, but apparently his people don’t know about liquor.

  ​Forgetting juice.

  ​I glance to my left, where Marv stands in silent companionship. He is definitely checking me out but trying really hard to be nonchalant about it.

  ​My eyes dip lower, and I catch another eyeful of his glorious cock. Why does it have to look so amazingly inviting?

  ​And more importantly, why can’t I remember anything? His beautiful body is muscular in all the right places. Mmm.

 
; ​I turn my attention back to the solar system.

  ​“How far away is your planet?”

  ​Marv licks his lips. “Narul is in the Badlands,” he tells me, then points somewhere straight ahead, but just right enough that his arm comes into my space. Nice trick.

  ​“It will take us several Earth hours to arrive there. I will take you in the morning, alright?”

  ​I nod. It’s not like I have any other choice. I mean, it’s either ‘stay here where it’s dangerous’ or ‘go there where I’m the only female.’ Right. Great options.

  ​“So, what do we do for the rest of the day?” I ask innocently. I swear I don’t mean anything by it, but his cock tenses up like it’s ready for action.

  ​And I’m curious. So, I reach over and touch him, before I can think twice. He immediately lets out a moan, then turns to me with such sudden need that I’m not sure I’ll be able to turn him away.

  ​When his lips connect with mine and he pins me against the window, I realize I won’t want to.

  ​I need him. I need the sweet release that he’s offering.

  ​Wordlessly, he slides down my panties and inserts a finger into my pussy. I’m instantly wet with need.

  ​I don’t even know how he was able to arouse me so quickly, but I’m done thinking about it. I spread my legs as far as I can, daring him to take me, right here.

  ​He removes his finger from my pussy, but then moves it upwards, finding my clit. He begins stroking me with such passion that there’s only one thing that can calm me down. Only one way to tamper this rising heat between us.

  ​I can’t even tell him because his lips are locked with mine.

  ​But he knows. As soon as I feel his cock entering me, a brief memory from last night floods through me.

  ​My voice, saying, “I’ll be your one and only mate,” and his cock exploring me for the first time.

  ​I open my eyes and stare at him.

  ​How did he do that?

  ​Marv pushes himself deep inside of me and begins driving himself further and further inward with each thrust. My ass is plastered against the window and my legs are wrapped around him, letting him take me right here.

  ​He releases me from our lip-lock and I moan loudly. He’s memorized my body and I’m still playing catch up.

  ​But he doesn’t seem to mind. He begins licking my ear, right at the top, just where I like it. My hands fumble through his short dark hair, feeling my way through his thick, short hair.

  ​“Naomi,” he moans.

  ​We cum together, my ass frozen in place from a sudden burst of movement. He picks me up and carries me back to his bed, where he lays me down and begins a gentler version of making love.

  8

  Marv

  I’ve never felt as content as I do right now. My mate is asleep on my chest, and she finally seems relaxed. I’m sure she’ll still have a lot to say to me when she wakes up, but at least I feel like she will remember our lovemaking this time.

  ​Her dark hair rests against my chest. It’s silky and smooth. It tickles a little, but I want to feel her beside me more than anything. I want to hold her in this moment forever.

  ​Because this morning was heartbreaking. I’m ready to give her everything, and she doesn’t seem to feel the same. I am certain that she isn’t in love with me, but a lifetime together should change that.

  ​Her breathing changes and she starts to stir in her sleep. When she lifts her head to look at me, she doesn’t seem afraid.

  ​“Is this what it will be like?” she wants to know.

  ​“Mmm?”

  ​“Will you always want me like that?”

  ​I’m not sure that I understand the question. I know from my studies that Earthling females are not generally treated well by their mates on their planet. But she seems so fragile.

  ​“Of course.”

  ​She seems satisfied by my answer and lays her head back down again. She’s not sleeping, though. Her head is atop my heart, and she’s running her fingers through the coarse hair on my chest.

  ​“I like the way you make me feel,” she says. “But I need to know something.”

  ​Her head rises again, and I see that her eyes are watery.

  ​“What is it, Love?”

  ​“How did you make me remember what I said?”

  ​“What do you mean?”

  ​“When we were, you know, at the window? You gave me a memory of what I’d said to you.”

  ​I don’t have a clue what she’s talking about. So, I tell her. “I don’t know what you heard.”

  ​“When we… started. I had a flash of a memory. Me telling you that I’m your mate.”

  ​“I liked it when you told me those words.” I muse.

  ​“I’m being serious. How did you do that?”

  ​I shrug. “You’re the only mate I’ve ever been with. This is all new to me. If something happened, well, we just have to wait and see if it happens again.”

  ​“If you’re doing mind tricks... I’m not okay with that.”

  ​I sigh, then wrap my arms around my restless mate. “No mind tricks. I am an honest male.”

  ​“I guess time will tell,” she says, then buries her head back on my chest.

  ​I rub my hands down her back to help her relax. She seems so stressed, and I have no idea why she got so upset with me.

  ​I need a crash course in Earthling females, stat.

  9

  Naomi

  When I awaken, the first thing that I notice is my skin. It’s lavender.

  ​“Why am I purple?” I ask drowsily. “I don’t understand.”

  ​Marv is laying next to me, completely asleep. I am considering waking him up, but instead, I stand and cross the room again. I want to see the galaxy again.

  ​I think I can see my ass print on the window. I move down a few feet.

  ​There’s so much I don’t know. He doesn’t seem to know, either. But I stretch my arm out in front of me, and it is lavender. Like a field full of little wildflowers. A walking bouquet.

  ​I glance back at my sleeping giant. His skin is dark purple. Is this some weird mating ritual?

  ​Gross.

  ​I want my life back.

  ​But somehow, as I study my newly purple skin, I wonder if that’s even possible.

  ​I decide to find clothes. He doesn’t have a closet, but there’s a suitcase looking box thing by his bed. I open it up and find a book with weird letters in it, a handful of herbs and dried fruits, and some sort of robe. Does he wear robes?

  ​I pick up the robe and study it. It has some of the same weird letters on it. The fabric is soft, light brown, and feels like silk. I drape it around my shoulders, reveling in the feel of this strange new material around my body. It feels too large, but it also feels warmer than laying around in the nude all day.

  ​“Hey,” Marv says. He’s suddenly beside me again. How does he do that?

  ​“Hi.”

  ​“You look beautiful,” he tells me. Fine, he can have some good boyfriend points. I mean, if that’s what this is. His whole “mating” philosophy is making me a little nervous.

  ​“Thanks,” I whisper. “Um, I’m sorry I went through your stuff.”

  ​“It’s okay. We’re mates now.”

  ​I swallow hard, thinking about what that means. He definitely feels a connection.

  ​I’m worried that I do, too.

  ​And then I remember that I’m purple. “Hey, Marv?” I ask. “Why is my skin suddenly purple?”

  ​He smiles, then leans in for a kiss. “That means that we’re mates. You have some sort of gene that gets activated when you choose a mate. And then your body releases something to make us match. I’ve only read about it, but I’ve never seen it. I heard that the V’aalaran queen took after her king, but I’ve never seen her.”

  ​“Really?”

  ​He nods.

  ​“And that happens in all the tribes?”<
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  ​“Well, sure. Except for the Earthlings. You guys have the, uh, recessive genes. We have the dominant ones.”

  ​“Figures.”

  ​He looks at me strangely but doesn’t say whatever he’s thinking. I guess that’s for the best. I’m not in the mood to argue.

  ​“I’m a little hungry,” I tell him. “What type of foods do you eat?”

  ​Marv grins like a schoolboy. “I travel a lot in space, so I’ve gotten really good at cooking up here.”

  ​He crosses the room and opens a drawer I hadn’t noticed earlier. He pulls out a pair of pants and puts them on quickly. “Can’t risk getting burned while cooking,” he tells me, half-teasing.

  ​Okay, so maybe he isn’t so bad.

  ​I follow him out of the bedroom and take a tour of his tiny space kitchen.

  10

  Marv

  It is so hard to focus when my beautiful female is standing right beside me. She’s forgotten that she didn’t want to be with me just a few hours ago.

  ​And now she’s taken on the skin tone of my tribe. I’m so eager to take her home to show her off to my people. And to give them the App before we launch back into space.

  ​“When you said you spend a lot of time up here, what did you mean?”

  ​I shrug. “I’m usually at our smaller space station, above Narul. We were sent out here for the meeting, but then I am supposed to go back there and run the station.”

  ​“So, we’re not going to live on your planet?” She looks around nervously. “I’m going to spend the rest of my life in outer space?”

  ​I pause. I’m in the middle of stirring up a batch of sea veggies and protein patties over the flame when she catches me off guard. “You don’t want to live in space?”

  ​“I thought we were going to Narul.”

  ​Her lower lip is trembling a little. I think back to when I first came out to the station, and how isolated I felt.

  ​“It’s only short term. I do short missions, and then go home.”

  ​“But you’re not leaving me alone on a planet that has no other females?”

  ​I reach over and brush my fingers against her cheek. She feels cold. “No, you come with me, Love.”