Bianca D'Arc (12 page)

Authors: King of Cups

Tags: #romance, #sci fi, #space, #aliens, #space opera, #science fiction, #scifi, #futuristic, #erotic romance

BOOK: Bianca D'Arc

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She, who was always so sure about the future. It was
reassuring in a way, to know fate could still throw her a curve now
and again. It kept life interesting, that was for certain.

“
Are you with me, Del? Do you want
to come again?”

“
Again? Alex, I never stopped!”
she complained with a hearty laugh even as he moved faster inside
her. “Alex!” She shouted his name as the crisis neared
again.

He powered into her, holding her shoulders. Even as
lost as he was to passion, he still was careful not to hurt her. He
overwhelmed her, but that was in the best possible way. She loved
being overwhelmed by his power, his strength, his forceful
presence.

“
Come for me now, Della, my love.”
He surged once, then twice more in rapid succession and she felt
him shoot his warmth deep inside, watching as his muscles strained
above her. His eyes closed as his face showed the wonderful stress
of his climax. Then she followed him up into the
heavens.

When the earth claimed her again, she found herself
spooned against Alex, his big body keeping her warm. She was as
sated as she’d ever been, deliriously happy and fulfilled in a way
she had never expected from her life. She had it all. For this
moment out of time, she had the love of a man she loved more than
life, the promise of a future and of a child with him. All was
right with her world. Righter than it had ever been.

“
Let’s get married.” Alex
surprised her with the wistful tone of his words. He rose on one
elbow so he could meet her gaze. “Let’s do it before we leave
Solaris Prime, here in the temple. I don’t want to wait, Della.
We’ve waited long enough already.” His fingers trailed over her
cheek, down to her shoulder and she felt the tenderness in his
every touch.

“
All right. I think Theos would
like that too. His rituals are very important to him. We can marry
here in the jit’suku rite, then do it again when we get back to
human space with our families and friends.”

Alex’s smile lit the entire room. “I love you,
Della. Now and forever.”

* * *

The High Priest performed the marriage rite in
private, with Theos and Tren as witness. The party that followed
was shared with the crew members from Theos’s ship and some of the
councilors and novitiates who had witnessed Della’s little
miracle.

“
We hope you will consider making
your home here on Solaris Prime.” The High Priest surprised them
with the request. “You are one of us now, Alex, and your lady is a
miracle. An oracle of the Lady such as hasn’t been seen in
millennia.”

Before Alex could come up with a polite answer,
Della stepped in. Her soft voice seemed to sooth anyone who heard
it and she used that gift now.

“
We must return to the Milky Way,
but that doesn’t mean we will cut all ties with you and your
people.” The High Priest seemed disappointed, but handled it well.
“If it’s any consolation, I firmly believe that... visitation...”
she hesitated over the word, “...was a once in a lifetime
occurrence. I doubt I’ll ever be so blessed again.” Her eyes took
on a faraway look. “But our daughter might be another story. She
will come to you when it is time.”

“
Something you’ve seen, love?”
Alex asked, concerned.

“
A feeling. More like a
knowing.”

Theos had joined the group as Della spoke. “You’ve
foreseen a daughter?” he asked, eagerness in his eyes.

“
Even better than a vision. Doctor
Terva told us.” Della glowed with the joy of their news. “I’m
pregnant.”

Theos beamed with happiness, hugging Della for a
long time. Congratulations were offered by the High Priest as well.
Before this news became any more public, Alex had one thing he
wanted to clear with Theos.

“
Father, we were considering...
That is...” Now that the time had come, he didn’t quite know how to
put this.

Once again, Della’s diplomatic skills saved him. She
took Theos’s hand and smiled one of those beatific smiles up at the
old man.

“
If you don’t mind, we’d like to
name her Amalina in honor of your late wife.”

Tears gathered in the old man’s eyes. “I can think
of nothing more perfect.” He wiped his eyes. “Emperor though I was,
no one has ever given me such a gift. Thank you both.” Theos kissed
Della’s cheek and gave Alex a back pounding hug. It was clear the
old man had been touched deeply by their gesture. He left
accompanied by the High Priest.

“
I think we made the right
decision.” Alex put his arm around her as they shared a private
moment.

“
I know we did.” She snuggled into
his side.

“
You know, instead of cutting ties
with this galaxy and its people, we only seem to be creating
more.”

“
In the long run, that will turn
out to be a good thing, I think. We’ll have to come back after
Amalina is born so she can meet her grandfather.”

“
Not many humans ever venture into
jit’suku space and live to tell the tale, my love. Every time we
cross that boundary, we would be taking a massive risk. Are you
certain you want to expose our child to that?”

She turned to look up at him, a light of amusement
in her eyes. “We are about to become frequent flyers of the
intergalactic lanes, Alex. You’d better get used to it.”

And sure enough, Theos surprised them a week later
with a wedding present he’d had commissioned specifically for them.
It was a small ship, top of the line, capable of intergalactic
travel and built for speed. With that ship and the gate codes he
supplied, they could travel from the Milky Way anytime they chose.
Alex had never dreamed he’d own his own ship. That was something
for rich folks—or people with rich relatives. He supposed he was
one of the latter now, through no fault of his own.

He and Della would enjoy the luxury of owning their
own ship and the ability to visit their new friends and family here
in the jit’suku galaxy. The bonus? The little starship was big
enough for a growing family. Alex knew that would come in very
handy in the years to come. He and Della would do their best to
fill it up with happy, boisterous, talented hybrid kids.

It was the least he could do. It was also the
natural outcome of the love he’d never thought he’d have in his
life. Their life might seem unorthodox to most, but for Della and
Alex, everything had worked out perfectly.

###

Notes on the Jit’Suku
Chronicles

The
Jit’Suku Chronicles
are a collection
of stories set in the far future of the Milky Way Galaxy. Within
this universe, there are several stories to be told as the human
race comes into conflict with a neighboring humanoid alien race
called the Jit’Suku.

The
Arcana
stories are set in a time
period when the aliens have been pushed out beyond the galactic
rim, back into their own galaxy. Relations are rocky between the
two races, but hostilities have ratcheted down slightly.
King of Cups
is the
second story in the
Arcana
series. The first story is titled
King of Swords
and was
first made available in the
Fortune’s
Fool
anthology from Phaze Books, which is
now out of print.
King of Swords
has been reissued and is currently available in
ebook formats. More stories are planned in this time
period.

The
Sons
of Amber
stories are set in a later time
than the
Arcana
series. Desperate for victory, a mad Jit’Suku emperor
unleashes a bioweapon on the human populations of the Milky Way
Galaxy. Human males die by the millions, leaving a galaxy populated
mostly by women, a few immune males and a somewhat larger
contingent of male soldiers who have been genetically Enhanced. The
Enhancement afforded them protection from the virus.

Ezekiel
is the first
Sons of Amber
story.
Michael
is the second. Both have been released in a
single print edition titled
Sons of Amber:
Ezekiel and Michael
, by Phaze Books. More
stories are planned in this time period as well.

About The Author

Bianca D'Arc has run a laboratory, climbed the
corporate ladder in the shark-infested streets of lower Manhattan,
studied and taught martial arts, and earned the right to put a
whole bunch of letters after her name, but she’s always enjoyed
writing more than any of her other pursuits. She grew up and still
lives on Long Island, where she keeps busy with an extensive
garden, several aquariums full of very demanding fish, and writing
her favorite genres of paranormal, fantasy and sci fi romance.

Other Titles by Bianca
D’Arc

Arcana

King of Swords

King of Cups

King of Stars
(coming soon)

Sons of Amber

Ezekiel (ebook only)

Michael (ebook only)

Ezekiel and Michael (print anthology)

Dragon Knights

Maiden Flight (ebook only)

Border Lair (ebook only)