Page 34 of Adtovar (The Alliance Rescue #1)
“The Bardaga wasn’t exactly on a covert mission,” Willa confessed, her voice tinged with a hint of embarrassment. The corners of her lips curled into a sheepish smile as she shifted her weight, pulling closer to her mate. “We were cloaked and hidden until we could get the bounty off my head.”
“What?” Adtovar barked, his voice sharp and edged with irritation. I sensed the worry roiling within him, and I placed my hand on his thigh, rubbing softly, hoping to offer some comfort and calm.
“You remember the Zarpazian shapeshifter I killed?” Willa began tentatively.
“How could I forget,” Adtovar snorted.
I knew this story, too. Willa suffered capture by Duke Ako’s son, Nansar, who planned to use her as a pawn in the scheme to assassinate his father.
However, it wasn’t Willa herself who would carry out the deed.
The plot involved a Zarpazian shapeshifting assassin named Vreses assuming her likeness to kill the Duke.
The plan unraveled when the Zarpazian took on the appearance of Charick in order to get close to Willa.
But Willa saw through the deception and was able to kill the imposter, thwarting the assassination attempt.
“Well....” Willa drew the word out as if trying to avoid what came next. “Apparently, Vreses mother put a bounty on my head.”
“What?” Only my grip on his thigh kept Adtovar in his seat.
“Don’t freak out,” Willa insisted, waving her hands in a calming motion. “It’s fine now. The Alliance Prime took care of it. The Zarpazian queen had the choice to remove the bounty, or the Alliance was going to blow their planet to smithereens.”
Charick laughed softly, slipping his arm around his mate, and pressing a kiss on her temple. “My mother would let nothing happen to her favorite daughter-in-law.”
Adtovar told me his daughter had mated the son of someone called the Alliance Prime, essentially the leader of the Interplanetary Alliance that ruled the universe. Apparently, a handy connection to have.
“You’re safe?” Adtovar pressed. I could hear the tremor of concern beneath his steady tone, like the distant rumble of thunder before a storm.
“Completely,” Willa assured him. “We’re on our way to Tau Ceti to drop off a couple of women we rescued from Kolox Prime.”
“Where is the Historia now?” Charick asked. “Khaion said Ako refused your next rescue mission.”
“We are in orbit around Saturn,” Adtovar said, the tension I’d felt in him waning. “Duke Ako is taking a shuttle to Earth.”
“Earth?” Willa blinked. “No shit?”
I would suspect, like me, that Willa never expected to get close to Earth again. I also suspected that, like me, she had no desire to return to our home planet and leave the man she loved.
“Bozzo, the gladiator boss we arrested, had knowledge of Ambassador Yaard’s whereabouts,” Adtovar muttered, both anger and concern clouding his tone.
“Earth.” This time, Willa said the word with more dread than curiosity.
“Yaard is going after Helene,” Charick muttered with a faint growl.
“And he went alone.” Willa’s voice suggested she had experience with the Kerzak. Not a pleasant experience.
“Duke Ako can handle himself… even against a Kerzak,” Charick reassured her with a hug.
“When fighting to protect one’s mate… it makes you strong,” Adtovar concurred, his voice carrying the weight of conviction. To me, it seemed as though the arm draped around my shoulders tightened, his grip becoming firmer and reassuring, like a steel band infused with warmth.
We sat in silence for a minute, the air heavy with unspoken thoughts, each of us lost in contemplation about Duke Ako’s mission. The room felt tense, as if even the walls held their breath, hoping alongside us that Duke Ako would reach his mate before Ambassador Yaard found her.
Finally, Willa released a soft grunt and gave a vigorous shake of her head. Her whole body seemed to ripple with the motion, like a bird ruffling its feathers after a storm, casting off the lingering weight of tension and unease.
“We need to plan a meetup,” she announced, her blue eyes sparkling. “I’ve got to meet Maddie in the flesh so I can give her a big hug to welcome her to the family.”
“I’ve hugged her plenty,” Adtovar quipped and proceeded to prove it.
“Oh, I’m sure you have,” Willa laughed.
“I can’t wait to meet you both,” I said, my voice bubbling with excitement.
A faint, high-pitched whistle pierced the air. I thought for a moment it issued from the Historia until I caught the grimace flashing across Willa’s face.
“Crap.” She glanced at something off-camera, and her expression softened somewhat. “That’s the call for the briefing for our next mission.” Her gaze fell lovingly on Adtovar. “We gotta go, Grandpa.”
“I don’t think you can call me Grandpa any longer. I’m a newly mated male,” Adtovar teased, although I secretly loved the moniker.
“Nope.” Willa’s face morphed into her widest smile yet.
“You better get used to it.” She captured Charick’s hand in her own and laid them both over her stomach.
A universal signal even in the far reaches of space.
The way Charick’s expression softened only solidified it.
“We’re going to be calling you Grandpa for real now. ”
A deep, resonant sound of surprise rumbled from Adtovar’s throat. It seemed to hang in the air, a palpable expression of astonishment, before he finally managed to reclaim his voice.
“You—you are expecting a youngling?” A broad grin split his face, and his voice shook with excitement. “Congratulations!”
Adtovar’s joy upon hearing about Willa’s pregnancy was utterly adorable.
His eyes sparkled with excitement, and his laughter rang out joyously, filling the room with warmth.
As I watched him, thoughts of having a child of our own drifted softly through my mind, filling me with a dreamy sense of possibility.
“Congratulations yourself,” Willa giggled, her laughter light and musical before her expression softened into a tender smile.
The love she held for her alien father was evident, glowing in her vivid blue eyes.
“I can’t tell you what it means to see you so happy.
I love you,” she added, her voice warm and sincere, as if wrapping him in an embrace from afar.
“Talk soon!” The hologram flickered and then vanished, leaving us enveloped in silence.
The happiness radiating from my mate felt overwhelming, like a tidal wave crashing over me, its force and intensity impossible to ignore. His smile was so broad and deep that I doubted a blast of gunpowder could wipe it from his face.
“A youngling,” he whispered, shaking his head before laughing, deep and completely joyful.
“Would you… do you want a baby?” I asked, my voice trembling slightly. I’d never considered children before. Then again, I’d also never been abducted, dragged to outer space, or met the love of my life before, either.
Adtovar’s pale blue eyes met mine. There was a flicker of reminiscence, the memory of another child lost to him long ago, but this time, the memory seemed a comfort rather than a heartache.
“I thought my chance to be a father was lost to me,” he said softly, his words measured. He lifted a hand, trailing his fingertips along my cheek before cupping my chin. “But the blessings of the gods and goddess are greater than even I imagined. I would love to have a child with you.”
His words flowed over me like a gentle stream, each syllable carrying affection and happiness, so acute it felt as if my heart might burst from the sheer intensity of it.
I climbed onto his lap and nestled against his solid chest. His muscular arms wrapped around me, holding me tight with an embrace that felt both loving and protective.
“You know… George mentioned something about coming back in if I wanted a birth control shot,” I said, letting my fingertips trace around the buttons on his tunic. “Maybe I should tell him no.”
“And telling George no means....” Adtovar’s words danced lightly in the air, carrying a playful tone, yet beneath their surface lingered a subtle hesitation, a fragile thread of hope woven into his voice.
I leaned my head back, gazing deeply into the striking, otherworldly face of the male I loved so desperately. His eyes, a mesmerizing shade of pale blue, held me captive while his pale skin shimmered faintly under the soft ambient light that made his horns glisten like pearls.
“Yes, Adtovar, I would love to have a baby with you.”
His lips crashed upon mine. I could taste the sweet essence of his happiness and the love he held for me.
Never in my life had I felt so adored, so deeply cherished.
Reflecting on the insane events that brought me to this moment, cradled in the embrace of my mate, it was plain that the spirits had orchestrated my journey, perhaps with a little help from my ancestors.
Truly, there was no other way to describe it.
Simply magic.
Thanks so much for reading ADTOVAR, the first book in the Alliance Rescue series.