Page 20 of A Mate for Vasek (Tallean Mercenaries #11)

Dawn

Dawn didn’t know who she expected to greet her at the top of the rescue cable, but it certainly wasn’t the multicolored-haired woman currently helping her out of the makeshift harness Vasek had made for her with his belt.

“Hi, I’m Roxy. You must be Dawn. Welcome aboard the New Horizon .”

The woman wore a jacket with the ship’s name on it, a jacket that was very clearly tailored for her body. No Tallean female was that busty. She looked and acted like a part of the crew, so Dawn assumed she was. The woman held out a hand.

As the door of the ship closed behind her, Dawn reached for the offered hand, but instead of a shake, the woman pulled her in for a big hug. As she looked over Roxy’s shoulder, she realized Roxy wasn’t the only human on board.

Dawn gawked at the very human grins and faces that stood in the next room, waiting to greet her.

Vasek had told her that a few of the males onboard, including the captain, had human mates, but he’d failed to tell her that half the crew was human.

Well, maybe not half the crew, unless this was a very small crew.

Maybe the humans were just all here to greet her?

Dawn and Vasek found themselves ushered into the larger common room, and she realized she was staring and being rude. Oops.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to stare. I’m just a bit shocked.”

She knew Trenton’s ships were manned by humans, but Vasek hadn’t mentioned that this was one of them.

And of course, there were the Wildview starliners, but this wasn’t a cruise ship either.

Were there others as well? It would make sense considering how many Earthlings had ended up in the outer planets.

Of course there would be other ships with human crew. Duh!

“Vasek didn’t tell you we’re a half-human crew?” asked a man in a polo that looked like it belonged more in a business casual office back on Earth than on a Dominion warship in the outer planets. “I’m Dex, by the way.”

He offered a hand, and this time when Dawn reached for it, she braced in case it was another hug. But instead, the man kissed her hand.

Behind her, Vasek let out a low growl. In an instant, he was between her and the new man. Dex danced away behind one of the biggest Talleans Dawn had ever seen. It was the male on the screen, except he was even bigger in real life. That guy was a mountain.

“Dex,” the captain said, still leaning against a wall, his muscular arms crossed over his chest. “Try not to antagonize our guest.”

Then Dex proceeded to name everyone. Vasek seemed unfamiliar with many of the crew, so it must be his first time meeting them as well.

The giant guy Dawn had seen in the video feed was Berus; he was easy to remember because he was huge.

Next to him was a pretty human woman with light, reddish brown hair and brown eyes named Camila.

The captain was Uzzar, and his mate, a dark-haired woman in coveralls and a pair of pruning shears sticking out of one of the pockets, was Lana.

Dawn tried, but couldn’t catch many of the other names. She was still too much in shock. She’d even forgotten Roxy’s mate’s name, though Dex had just said it a moment ago.

“Why don’t I give you a quick tour of the ship?” Dex offered with a wide grin. He’d somehow gotten next to Dawn again. He offered her an elbow with a wink.

The guy was a bit of a flirt, but Dawn didn’t get any bad vibes from him.

He didn’t come off as sleazy or anything, just fun and playful.

Dawn wasn’t exactly interested in a fling or anything else right now, but she wouldn’t mind a tour either.

She’d always wondered what the inside of a Dominion warship looked like.

But Vasek was in between them again before she could even react.

“She does not need a tour,” he growled.

What the fuck. Why was Vasek acting like this? Was he… jealous? This wasn’t the reaction of someone who just wanted to drop her off to fulfill his promise.

The captain stepped up, and Dawn took an automatic step back. He positively reeked of power even though he looked older and past his prime.

“Dex, your job is to put those brain cells of yours to work and get his shuttle out from the tree in one piece. Roxy can give her the tour.”

“Aww, fine. Roxy gets all the fun jobs.” But Dex didn’t seem that upset at all as he gave Dawn a flirty wink.

“Ignore him,” Roxy said, taking her aside as Dex, Uzzar, and one of the other Talleans disappeared into a side room. “Dex is harmless, but he does get kinda annoying over time. Come on, you’re going to love the greenroom.”

Roxy started leading her down one corridor, and Cami followed them. They were soon stepping into a lush tropical jungle, right there on the ship. Everything smelled fresh and green. The captain’s mate was already inside, reaching for a wayward vine with a pair of pruning shears in hand.

“Welcome to my little piece of paradise,” she said. “I’m the greenroom tech.”

It was only now that Dawn realized that the ship’s name and logo were on the woman’s coveralls as well. It had been covered by her hair during the introductions.

Dawn wondered if Lana had gotten the job first, then had an onboard romance with the older captain, or if she’d gotten the job because they were mates.

“This place is beautiful,” Dawn said honestly. “I used to collect houseplants, and always wanted an indoor jungle like this, but I was never this good at it.”

“These plants are specially selected for use on the ship. They all work together synergistically. I barely have to do anything except keep the growth under control.”

“Whatever,” Roxy said with an eye roll. “Don’t listen to Delaney. She’s a miracle worker with these plants. We all tried to save this place and failed before she came around.”

“You guys were killing it with love!”

Then, before Dawn could figure out what felt a bit off about this interaction, because something was, Cami asked, “Can I bring these over for the tepins?” She was standing next to the basket of discarded vines and plants.

“Give me one moment, I’ve got a few more.”

Lana quickly clipped a few more vines and tossed them into the basket. Then Dawn was following Roxy out of the greenroom. They didn’t go far, just across the hall. Cami went in first with the discarded vines.

“This is our food production lab,” Cami said. “Here’s the herbs I’ve been growing.”

Dawn frowned at the very familiar plant, then found herself walking toward it. “It is… oh my god, it is! It’s basil!”

Cami joined her, pinching off the top of one of the growth points and handing it to her. “Sure is! This stuff grows like weeds hydroponically, and we’ve gotten the Talleans on board liking it too.”

“This is your job then?” Dawn asked.

“Yep! Well, technically, running this and cooking is a two-person job, but I only cook proper meals every few days. The other days are fend-for-yourself days. Plus, Berus helps with the tepins,” she gestured over to the enclosures stacked one on top of another on the other side of the room, “since he doesn’t do much on the ship. ”

“Well, considering he eats most of the tepins, he better help,” Roxy said.

“If we’re going to split hairs, Nibbles eats more than Berus does now.”

Nibbles? That was a strange name for a human or a Tallean. It must be a nickname. “Who’s that?”

“Nibbles is just the most adorable little cutie patootie on this side of the galaxy,” Roxy replied, dissolving into baby talk.

That was not very helpful. That description could be anything, and Dawn still had no idea what Nibbles was.

Cami went to the other side of the room and opened one of the clear enclosure doors and started stuffing handfuls of the discarded greenery into it. Almost immediately, several chubby birds came to fight over the scraps.

Dawn had prepared and eaten tepins before, but she’d never seen the meat in bird form. Heck, she didn’t even know they were birds. The meat had come prepackaged in strips, ready for cooking.

“So those are tepins! I had no idea they were so cute.”

“Yep,” Cami replied. “Their biggest downfall is that they’re so tasty.”

“I’d call it a rise to fame and not a downfall,” Dawn said. “Their tastiness means they will never go extinct.”

“I agree!” Roxy said, nodding. Then, seeing that Dawn had started helping Cami feed the chubby little birds, she said, “I’m going to go get Nibbles from my room. Why don’t I meet you two in the hall in a few minutes?”

“Sure! We’ll see you there.”