Page 80 of Captured
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Juliet
I stare at the peculiar golden orb floating against the backdrop of space, a knot forming in my stomach. This is where I will spend the rest of my life as the Amara to Rakir, the heir to the throne.
Draka. Home to a people at war with humans for generations. How will they receive me, a human who used to fight against them?
I’m pulled from my thoughts as Rakir enters the room. As I watch him prowl toward me, I’m stricken once more by the pure beauty of him. Long limbs, agile and strong, moving with a grace that only a predator can have. His yellow gaze locks with mine as he approaches and I feel it in my gut, that hook that burrows and furrows in the deepest parts of me. Bloody and raw, just like what I feel for him. I belong to him more than I belong to myself.
“Ready?” he asks, his face lifting up in a heartbreaking smile.
“What about the Rebellion?” I evade the question. I don’t think I’m ready. Maybe I’ll never be.
“Turns out they were more cautious than we thought,” Rakir answers as he stops just in front of me by the large, curved window. “Colonel Hicks suspected there was a traitor among them even before his predecessor was assassinated. He took every precaution to ensure his successor would keep up the fight.”
I sigh. This is good news. The war is far from over, but at last, the tide has turned.
“And what about the Black Star?”
“Never mind the Black Star.” Rakir embraces me, molding my back to his chest as he deeply inhales the scent of my hair. “The Senators are about to rip each other apart for power. This will give the Rebellion a chance to strike them down once and for all.”
I lean into Rakir’s hold, his strength making my stomach squeeze in the most delicious way.
“Sara will be going soon, then.” I pinch my lips. The General’s daughter has become a good friend in the last few weeks since I met her. It’s going to be hard to see her go with the Rebellion.
“Darhk is going to hand her over as we speak,” Rakir answers, but there’s something in the way he says it that makes me frown.
“You know he’s never going to let her go, don’t you?”
Rakir smiles again, then shakes his head.
“You really are too clever for your own good.” He laughs, then nuzzles the side of my jaw in that way that makes my belly flutter. “I don’t think he even knows it himself.”
“Well, Sara is sure to show him the way, then.” I scoff, remembering the gruff, stern military man.
We fall in silence again as the orb of Draka grows in the distance. The delicious feeling leaves my body as I stare at Rakir’s homeworld.
“They will adore you,” he whispers.
I twist in his arms to look at him, amazed that he understood my fear even though I never voiced it. When he looks back at me, there’s a depth of emotion there that still chokes me. “How can they not?”
“I wish I had your confidence,” I answer, leaning into the hard, warm chest of my Amare. “Your parents are King and Queen. I’m no one.”
“The King is my father. My mother is his Amara,” Rakir corrects me as he rubs his nose against the length of my jawline. The gesture is both erotic and tender, making my heart melt and my stomach flutter anew. “Drakians hold their Amara higher than any corresponding human title.”
I don’t argue, there’s no point to it. Rakir will never get that human society holds equality above all else. Although the title of Amara evokes a level of adoration and devotion that would make most humans - both men and women - jealous, it does not make the King and his Amara equal. Females do not hold positions of power in their world, at least not officially. After many weeks of travel aboard the Pearl with Sara and her Drakian female friends, I have begun to understand that despite not having any official titles, the Amaras of the high-ranking officers hold considerable sway over their mates. Theirs is a complex world of hidden politics and gentle persuasion.
It’s not surprising. Lovers are lovers, no matter the species. No Drakian Amare would dismiss his Amara’s opinion without careful consideration. I still don’t know how I will find my place down on this strange planet, full of people with customs I don’t understand, but I know one thing.
My place is with Rakir, with this man that is alien to me, but who owns more than a part of my heart. A part of my soul, carved out with pleasure and pain, with tears and laughter.
Rakir is my home.
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The End