Worth Fighting For (Little Blue Book 1) (13 page)

After reaching his quarters, he secured the door, then opened his wings, but he continued to hold her.

“This is our room, for now. As you can see,” Tasid pointed to the boxes stacked up against one wall, “your things are already here. It is obvious there isn’t a lot of room for them right now, but when we get the new ship, you can completely unpack and settle in. Through that door,” he continued, pointing in the direction of an open doorway, “is what you call a bathroom. Before we do anything else, I need to show you how to use it. I understand it works a little bit differently from what you are used to.”

Still holding her, he stepped into the smaller room, and began to explain things to her. “That seat there, works much like your toilets, but doesn’t use water. Water is too precious of a resource. When you are done, you press this button to scan your soiled body parts to clean them. When you stand up, a lid covers the device, and a special fluid—which is easily made—washes it away. The fluid also helps break down the waste, and there is a facility that recycles it for other purposes.”

Tasid pointed to a stall on the other side of the room. “You can cleanse your body in this space right here.” He tapped on a button, and a holo-screen appeared, floating in front of him. “From this, you can choose the body scan, which will cleanse your entire body, or if you feel the need for liquid to flow down your body, which I sometimes do, you can choose that option. You can also adjust the temperature and pressure and even the amount of time it’s on. The fluid that comes out is the same kind that washes away your waste. Its properties can make you sick if you ingest too much of it, so do not drink it in.”

Tasid paused to let Juno process, and he hoped retain, the information he just shared with her. But with so much she had had to adapt to and learn in the last couple weeks, he expected he would have to repeat things until she got used to them.

A growl rumbled through her stomach. He was startled, but hid it when his mate’s creamy skin pinked.

“Sorry,” she said quietly.

“What was that?”

“My stomach. It means I’m hungry.”

Tasid’s eyes widened. “Fire-stars! I’m a terrible mate. I am starving you. Please, little mate, forgive me. I’ll get you something right away.”

“I’m hungry, but it’s not that big of a deal. It’s not like I don’t have weight I couldn’t lose.”

Tasid growled. “You are perfect how you are. You cannot afford to lose any weight.”

Tasid brought up a screen and connected to the galley. One of the cooks responded. “Yes, sir?”

“My mate is hungry. I have neglected to feed her. Do you have anything for her?”

“Yes, sir. We were able to procure a great deal of food from Little Blue, for the humans. We haven’t learned much about the foodstuffs, but we have learned some of the more simple recipes and prepared them. Will that be sufficient?”

Tasid looked at his mate. She shrugged at him, then looked back at the cook. “What do you have?”

Thirty minutes later, his mate was enjoying tomato soup and a grilled cheese sandwich. She encouraged him to try them and obviously enjoyed feeding him a taste. He didn’t much care for the soup, which to him looked too much like blood, but the sandwich wasn’t too bad. After she was finished, he noticed how droopy her eyes were getting, and he knew she deserved her rest. He sighed internally with disappointment. It was bad enough that he neglected to feed her, so he wasn’t about to let his own selfish desires interfere with her other needs.

He took off his clothes and helped her strip, then tucked his new little mate into their bed, and curled around her, content to just hold her … for now. Very shortly, he heard a slight snore coming from Juno. He buried his nose in her hair and breathed in her scent, thankful that he had done the right thing.

She has had many bad experiences lately, and many are associated with me,
he thought.
I will need to be patient with her.
A smile slowly spread across his face.
Perhaps I can use this time to plan the pleasures I will give her, to associate with me.
None of which, however, helped to alleviate his erection, which rubbed against her warm, bare skin.

****

Juno opened her blurry eyes and blinked several times as she looked at her unfamiliar surroundings. Her hazy thoughts tried to process where she was. Heat surrounded her, and she soon began to realize there was something hard pressing along the seam of her butt. Her memories of the previous day returned suddenly, and she realized exactly what was poking at her, and whose it was.

Him! He caught me, and now I belong to him!

Her heart sped up with excitement as she began to process the previous day’s events. She’d been caught by the one alien that she had been secretly obsessing over since she first saw him on TV. Sure, she’d seen others of his race, and certainly appreciated the beauty of the other races, but for some reason, Tasid was the one she felt drawn to. It was why she’d chosen the Zori race when she was given the option. But she never believed she would actually have been caught by him.

She looked down and saw two arms draped over her, keeping her pinned tight against his front. She could feel one arm was under the pillow that  her head was resting on, and the fourth arm was pinned between them, holding one of the cheeks of her ass. Juno fought the urge to laugh.

That is so typical of a man. I wonder what else he has in common with our men.

A new kind of heat radiated through her core, and she felt her vaginal muscles ache with desire. Juno rolled her hips in tiny circles. The arms around her tightened, and she heard him groan loudly over her shoulder. The hand on her ass began to massage the one cheek.

Juno played innocent. “I’m sorry, did I wake you?”

“Yes, but I have never enjoyed being woken up near as much, before. You can wake me like this every morning.”

Juno barely registered a chill down her back as Tasid’s body moved away, before she was rolled sideways onto her back, and covered by his body. His arms bracketed her as they held his weight off of her. His bright golden yellow eyes showed heat in them, as he stared back down at her. Her legs had automatically opened to allow him to settle over her, and he was now rubbing his rigid length up and down, over her slit. He leaned over and nuzzled the side of her neck.

“Having a mate is a huge honor, one that I never thought I would want. But I want everything with you, Juno. Never doubt your worth to me. Once the males of my kind land with their new mates, most claim them where they stand. Even though our wings would cover all of the action, we chose not to do that to the humans. Tell me truthfully, little mate. May I make my final claim on you? Are you ready, or do I need to wait longer? I will, for you.”

Juno couldn’t believe how thoughtful this large alien was to her. She was tempted to test him, but quickly dismissed that idea. Playing games like that would harm their budding relationship, and besides, she wanted him, too.

“Yes.”

A sexy, low growl tickled her chest as it vibrated from his. He leaned back, pulling her with him, then wrapped his guardian wings around her.

I love when he does this. I feel so safe.

Tasid didn’t stop moving until he was fully standing.

With the new position, Juno felt embarrassment at the onset of an entirely different sensation. As Tasid leaned down to kiss her, Juno was forced to pull away.

“Tasid, I’m so sorry, but now I really have to use the bathroom.”

This is so awkward.
She hated having to admit it out loud, but the urge was strong, and he had her completely secured.

Tasid jerked back. “Oh.”

He unfurled his wings and gently placed her on her feet. Juno scurried to the bathroom, just barely making it.

Phew!

Once done, Juno pressed the button and jolted, nearly bolting out of the seat.
Holy shit! That scan feels … naughty.

“Are you all right, Juno?” Tasid asked through the door.

“Yes, I’m fine. I was just surprised by the scan thingy. It’s going to take a little time to get used to it.”

After a tiny beeping noise, Juno guessed was a signal indicating it was done, she stood up. A clear seat cover automatically slid over the seat, and a white liquid that looked like milk washed down the sides. She was amazed watching it. The substance foamed and bubbled slightly in places, the biggest place at the bottom.
Curious. I wonder if it is reacting to the impurities
.

Looking around, she saw there was no sink. She may not have used her hands to wipe, but it just didn’t feel right not washing them. “Uh, Tasid?”

She heard his muffled voice through the door. “I am here. Are you all right?”

“Yes, but how do I wash my hands?”

“May I come in?”

“Yes.”

The door slid open, and Tasid stepped through, making the bathroom feel smaller. He stepped over to the shower and brought up the holo-screen. “Among the options, you can choose to only scan or wash specific parts or areas.”

Juno stepped closer, crowding against him to view the monitor. He stepped behind her so she could better access it. She didn’t know how to read the symbols and marks, but the holo-screen showed pictures. Tasid gently took one of her hands and held it up to the screen. He used her finger to highlight the hands on it. He held both of her hands up in front of her, and she watched as a red laser light moved over her skin, causing a tickling sensation, then turned blue.

“The blue means it’s done. See, it runs it over your skin once more, to double check that it didn’t miss anything, then turns off.”

A loud beeping sound came from the bedroom. She heard Tasid growl as he pulled away. Curious, she followed him.

Tasid walked over by the bed and hit a button that brought up a holo-display. The head of an alien she recognized as the same one who greeted them yesterday appeared.

“What is it, Horo?” Tasid’s voice was noticeably gruff.

“I am sorry, sir, but you and your mate have slept late, and all of your new crewmembers and their mates are in the conference room, waiting for you. I wasn’t sure if you wanted to meet the mates of our current crew, so instructed them to continue their duties, and wait for further notice. Also, Norlo has been quite concerned that your mate has yet to eat today. He has been harassing me incessantly, regarding the care of his mate’s sisters, and yours is the only one left who hasn’t eaten.”

Juno saw Tasid rub his hands down his face. “We only just woke up. We’ll be right there.” The screen disappeared, and Tasid looked up at her, giving her an apologetic look.

“I am sorry, my mate. I have neglected your needs again.”

His voice sounded so remorseful, to her. She walked over and wrapped her arms around him. “You didn’t do anything wrong. I’m sorry you can’t make your final claim on me. I was looking forward to it.”

Tasid ran his hands up and down her back. A shiver of pleasure nudged at her spine, and goosebumps prickled on her arms.

“Me too, little mate. I wish I can say this won’t happen again, but I’m afraid it will, and probably often.”

“Then we’ll just have to make the times in between count most. Do we have time to at least shower?”

“We have time for the body scan.”

Juno squirmed through the body scan. The naughty sensation roving over her skin, while watching her mate strip naked, nearly had her begging him to ignore his duties to the ship, and just take her. Then she saw the size of dick. It was proportionate to his size … which was huge. Her vaginal walls fluttered and her mouth watered as thoughts of tasting him pinged through her mind.

Wow, I had no idea I could be such a nympho, and we technically haven’t even done anything yet.

After the scan, she dug through her clothes to find something to wear, while Tasid was scanned. They both dressed quickly, and before she knew it, they were headed out of the door. They stopped, briefly, when Tasid acknowledged the two males who were standing guard outside their door. Then he continued guiding her through a maze of halls, with the two males close behind.

That’s so weird. I have bodyguards, like some kind of rock star.

Chapter Fifteen

Tasid knew he’d never wanted any higher of a title than being captain of his own ship, and this was just another reason why. His dick ached to sink into his new mate’s soft warmth, and normally, he would have let his crew wait, but some of them had mates, too, and he didn’t want to be responsible for their neglect or discomfort.

Reaching the cafeteria, he spotted his head cook, Norlo, standing with his new mate, by a table with Juno’s three sisters. As the girls greeted each other, he turned to Norlo.

“Where’s Errim?”

“He and Sharrow had some things they wanted to get done right away, so they dropped off their mates so they could eat, and left.”

“I have to meet with the new crewmembers. Some of them have new mates who will be there, too. Do you know if they’ve eaten yet?”

Norlo shook his head. “I do not believe so. Every female I have seen was with a male I recognized. It’s standard procedure not to join for meals until one reports in to his new head commander.”

Tasid let his mind shift through that bit of information. It
was
standard procedure, but mates were an exception. However, it was a new thing to have a mate while still a working crewmember, on board a ship.
They must have not known what to do and defaulted back to what they knew.

“Unacceptable. I want it known that
any
female on board this ship, at any time, will be allowed to eat, unless a physician says otherwise. Have a meal sent to the conference room. We can all eat while they introduce themselves and their mates for those who took one.”

Tasid turned back to Juno. He briefly thought about letting her stay here, to eat with her sisters, but he rejected the idea. He wanted to show her so many things, and simply spend time with her.

“Are you ready to go, little mate?” he asked her.

“Yep. I’m looking forward to seeing more of the ship. And maybe I can be a help, or comfort to the other girls. All this is so new for all of us.”

His heart warmed in his chest. He leaned down and brushed his lips across hers. Her scent filled his nostrils. He began leading her out of the cafeteria, when he caught movement. Turning his head, he saw Jeri following behind them, just in front of Juno’s guard detail.

“Is there something you wanted?” he curiously asked.

“Nope. I told you, I’m Juno’s bodyguard. I go where she goes.”

Tasid felt his forehead crinkle when his brows shot up. “Sharrow agreed?” He briefly saw the puzzled faces of the two male guards.

Jeri pinned him with a deadly look that made him cringe.

“Agree to what, exactly? I’m a grown woman, proven when he claimed me. But I don’t care how good he is with his dick—which FYI, he rocked my world, over and over again last night until I practically passed out—I can make choices on my own, and if Juno needs a protection detail, I’m going to be one of those protectors.” Jeri had kept her voice respectful enough, but the look she gave him was almost challenging. Juno pulled on his arm to get his attention. When he glanced down at her, he could see her pleading look.

“Please, Tasid? Think of it as moral support.”

Shit, this is going to be fun. And I really didn’t need to know about Sharrow’s sex life.
However, a small bit of jealousy niggled the back of his mind.
I’m probably the only male who hasn’t been able to fully claim his mate.

Unwilling to argue with her at this time, since looking at Juno hinted he would be outnumbered, he quietly turned and continued on his course.

Several of the new crew was some part of security, and many were pilots for the talons—talons that now crowded their cargo holds.
A lot of good they are going to do there.
But he had nowhere else to put them.

He was pleased to see Oduz there, with his new mate.

“Oduz, it is good to see you and your new mate looking so well,” Tasid said as he greeted the couple.

“Yes, sir, thank you.” Oduz pulled his small but curvy female forward slightly. She had shoulder length, dark brown hair. Tasid could see uncertainty in her brown eyes. “This is my new mate, Anna.”

“Anna.” Tasid dipped his head in greeting. “I was informed you refused to leave Oduz’s side while he was being healed. After what happened to you, that was very brave and noble.”

She looked fondly up at Oduz. “He’s amazing. He risked himself, for me.” Anna looked back at Tasid. “I wanted him to know I was his, and that I completely supported him. Emotional support is just as important as physical.”

Tasid was impressed by her wisdom and stood back as Juno, Jeri, and Anna talked. Soon, they were surrounded by several other females, while the mated males stood nearby, watching amicably.

“Which of you carries the highest rank?” Tasid asked the males.

“None of us are military,” Oduz answered. “At least, not anymore, so we are all the same rank. Ambassador Jurresh didn’t want any of our ranks interfering with your current crew, and since you are no longer tied to an alliance, he wanted to send you a crew devoted to you and the humans, and not under the command of the individual militaries, where a conflict of interest could occur.”

Tasid nodded his head. It was logical, really.

One of the other males asked, “Sir, how will this work, with our mates on board?”

“Why would it be a problem?” Juno asked, as she returned to his side. She looked around at the males, and Tasid noticed the other females were listening, as they, too, returned to their males.

“Even before the war, females were greatly protected. The best place to do that was settled somewhere solid, not onboard a moving ship fraught with danger and restrictions,” Tasid answered.

“So they are never allowed to live or travel anywhere else?” Jeri asked.

“They do travel, but usually only for special occasions. Ambassadors, emissaries, and other diplomats, as well as merchants, take their mates with them, to whatever territories and planets they are assigned to, but those are usually homes in capital cities. It’s very uncommon for a female to be living on a space station or ship.”

“So why start now?” Juno asked. “Not that I’m complaining. I think it will be fun living on a spaceship. But if you guys really wanted to live planet-side, you could have asked, and been given a base on the ground.”

“The current health of your planet is unacceptable,” Tasid said, in as kind of a voice as he could. “Until your planet’s health is returned, it is too unsafe. Also, your human leaders believed we would be in a great deal of danger from extremists. So to keep peace, we are building the base on the moon, and will be using a space station for the military support. We also don’t want to risk unwittingly allowing someone with a nefarious purpose into Earth’s atmosphere.”

“Is that about the plague thing?” Anna asked.

“Partly, yes,” Tasid replied sadly. “We don’t want the plague to spread to anyone here. So far we have been able to find ways to detect it, but not cure it. But because of the humans’ compatibility with so many other races, Little Blue will be in the most danger from other biological attacks. So access to Earth is going to be heavily limited. The moon is as close as many will ever get.”

Juno tilted her head, and gave him a curious look. “Little Blue?”

Tasid fought to control his embarrassment at the slip. He kept his hands still and his voice calm.

“Yes. When we first discovered Earth, we didn’t know what to call it. We started calling it Little Blue, and after we learned the name of your planet, Little Blue became more of a title of endearment. I hope you do not take offense.”

Juno gave him a warm smile that made him feel like he would melt inside. He glanced around at the other females when he heard a series of admiring sounds. Each had a similar smile.

“That is so cute,” Juno said. She stood up on her tiptoes, so Tasid leaned down and was rewarded with a kiss on his cheek. “I’m not offended. I like it,” she told him.

“I think it is very flattering,” Anna said. “Especially after hearing how badly you feel towards our pollution problem. Not that I blame you, most of us hate the pollution, too.”

“Would we be allowed to visit the moon station or space station?” one of the other females asked.

“Maybe not the space station. It is going to be for military, and possibly for visiting major political representatives,” Tasid answered, “but the station on your moon will be public. It’s sounding as if it may become a large city. Your galactic council is already hiring humans to work there, while my crew looks over applicants from other races to work there.”

Everyone began eating and mingling with each other, settling into pleasant conversations that quietly filled the space. Tasid had hoped to be able to return to his quarters, with Juno, right after the meeting, but Errim joined him in the conference room before they left, forcing him to put a hold on those plans.

“Sir, an urgent matter has come up.”

Tasid bit back a rude retort. He did growl, however. “What is it?”

“There was an accident at the construction site on the moon. Sharrow is on call with the director of the moon base and the construction master.”

Curses!
“All right.” He turned to Juno and gave her an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, little mate, I need to check out what is going on.”

“I understand. How about I use this time to look for a new ship?”

“That would be fine,” Tasid said, surprised. He turned back to Errim. “Would you please bring up a display of all the ships available to choose from?”

Errim guffawed. “Try making a list of ships you
don
’t want. It would be considerably smaller. The registries Ambassador Jurresh sent itemized every available model, with every available variation, allowed, and several modifications that are regulated. The list isn’t just Zori, or UPALE even. There’s a list from the Crown, too.”

Sadly, Tasid didn’t feel surprised. Juno hopped up and down beside him. He gave her a curious look.

“Oh yeah, this is gonna be awesome!” she said excitedly.

He was unable to hide his astonishment. “Juno, I’m not so sure you realize just how many ships that will be, not to mention the options.”

“Probably thousands,” Jeri said, looking every bit as eager, “but what you don’t know is that most human females love to shop. This will be so cool. We should get Benny, Kaycee, and Maggie here to help.”

Juno looked up at him with pleading eyes. “Can they help, too?”

Tasid couldn’t tell her no, and it really was a good idea for her to have help. Jeri was correct to assume there were thousands. He nodded his head and was rewarded with a show of excitement from his mate. To be the one to cause her that much happiness lifted his spirits considerably.

“I’ll call for Benny, and have her bring the other sisters,” Errim told them.

Tasid placed a kiss on top of Juno’s head before he left the room, eager to get away from the cackle of excited females that now swarmed together, but inside, he laughed with joy at hearing their extreme delight.

****

Juno was nervous about bothering Tasid while he worked, but she didn’t know how else to get in touch with him. He had been gone all day. She understood that he needed to tend to the emergency, which made her even more nervous about approaching him, but Norlo was confident she would be fine, especially if she was bringing him something to eat. The two males assigned to be her protection escort—who had been following her since they relieved the first set, from this morning—were showing her the way. Jeri was close beside her, which gave her a little bit of comfort.

The door in front of her made a swishing sound as it automatically slid open. She gaped at all the floating monitors around the room, which showed a view of the space around them, and the planet below. It made the monitors look more like floating windows.

Juno noticed nearly every male was looking at her. They weren’t friendly, but they weren’t unwelcoming either.
Maybe they’re curious?
She spotted Tasid conferring with Errim, and began to slowly make her way over to him. He looked up at her as she approached. A look of pleasant surprise crossed over his face, followed by remorse. He opened his arms, and Juno walked into his embrace.

“I am so sorry, little mate, for having been away all day.”

“It’s all right. You had an emergency to take care of. Norlo said that he didn’t believe you had eaten since breakfast, so he wrapped something up I could bring you.”

Juno pulled out of his arms and held up the covered plate she had been holding.

Errim interrupted them. “Why don’t you go back to your quarters, sir? Eat, rest, and bond with your mate. I’ll stay until Horo reports for his shift. Then I’ll be bonding with my own mate.” He gave a mischievous smile that made Juno giggle.

“Thank you, Errim, I’m going to take you up on that. Come on, little mate. Let’s head back to our quarters.”

Juno stayed close to his side as they made their way off the command deck and through the halls.

“So did everything turn out ok?” she asked, referring to the emergency.

Juno thought Tasid suddenly looked overtired. “We lost two people in the accident.”