Part 13 (2/2)

Mandra growled out as Ariel moved around him. He wrapped his arm around her waist pulling her possessively closer as he shot a look of warning at both men. He would get her what she wanted.

”I will program you some coffee in,” Mandra muttered sitting Ariel down next to his chair. ”Trelon's little mate uploaded it into our system before we left.”

”Cara is the most wonderful being in the universe and has my undying devotion for the rest of my life!” Ariel groaned out as she sniffed the brew Mandra handed her. ”OMG! This is heaven. I might not have to kill anyone today, after all.”

Adalard chuckled. ”I look forward to meeting your little friend.”

Mandra shook his head. ”No, you do not. She never sleeps, never stops and is always getting into everything. She drove Trelon to the limit of his control.”

”And he loves her and accepts her for who and what she is,” Ariel growled out in warning.

”He needs to tame her before she gives birth,” Mandra said arrogantly looking at Ariel in warning.

Ariel sat up and looked pointedly at Mandra. ”And what exactly is that supposed to mean?” She asked in a deceptively calm voice.

”She needs to learn to obey Trelon and do what she is told to do. It is for her safety and for their younglings. It is not right for her to be endangering her life or that of their offspring. She needs to rest and listen to what she is told,” Mandra explained calmly not understanding the darkening look on his mate's face.

Ariel was quiet for the rest of the conversation. Mandra finally gave in about taking Ariel with him when she said could always model some of her new clothes. She figured she could see what the guys in the training room thought of them. It might develop into a side business for her back on Valdier. Mandra had forbidden her from modeling anything without his approval first. One look at his mate's determined face and he knew she would do it anyway. She was upset with him about something and he didn't have time to figure out what it was. With a sharp command to Zebulon to make sure the shuttle was ready, he and Adalard went off to check on the weapons they would need while Ariel went to get her boots.

”Learn to obey, my a.s.s!” Ariel growled as she angrily stomped into their living quarters.

She was so p.i.s.sed at Mandra's chauvinistic att.i.tude she didn't notice all the little fur b.a.l.l.s at first. They were moving in and out through the vent under the dining table, das.h.i.+ng back and forth around the couch in the living area, and hopping out of their sleeping quarters. She stopped putting her boots on to look around with a frown.

Where did all the little fur b.a.l.l.s come from? She wondered vaguely shaking her head before shrugging. Maybe someone else had some on board and they knew she would take care of them.

Ariel petted a dozen or more of the little creatures as they hopped up, curious to see what she was doing. She laughed as a couple of them played with the strings on her boots. She loved watching them as they rolled around on the floor.

”You guys sure are having a lot of fun. Where did your little friends come from? You do know Mandra is not going to be happy if he sees all of you in here, don't you?” Ariel chuckled affectionately before setting two of the furry creatures down. ”I have to go. Be good and don't get into anything.”

She would have to remember to ask Mandra if he knew where the others came from. Maybe he wanted to surprise her. Ariel didn't see the dozens of little creatures scurrying through the vents or escaping out into the corridor as she turned to get her jacket at the last minute.

Chapter 20.

The journey down to the unnamed moon was uneventful. Ariel was still mad at Mandra for his 'do as you are told' comment so she ignored his huge a.s.s. She focused on the banter between Zebulon and Adalard. Adalard was cute in a dark and dangerous kind of way. She tried to think which one of her friends back home would be a good match for him. She was about to give up when it hit her.

”Samara!” Ariel blurted out.

Mandra, Zebulon, and Adalard stopped talking and looked at Ariel funny. ”What?” Mandra asked.

Ariel laughed and shook her head. ”Not what... who. Samara Stephens,” she responded bemused looking at Adalard with a twinkle in her eye. ”I was trying to think which of my friends would be the most suited for you, Adalard. I was about to give up when I thought of Samara,” Ariel studied Adalard for a moment before shaking her head again. ”Maybe not, she would eat you up and spit you out.”

Adalard's eyes flashed at the insult that a female could do such a thing. He was about to snap out a cutting remark when Zebulon glanced over his shoulder with a grin. Adalard shot Zebulon a nasty look at his amused chuckle.

”Which one do you think would be good for me?” Zebulon asked jokingly.

Ariel studied Zebulon for a moment before her lips curled into a knowing smile. ”Annalisa Hollins. That is if you could catch her before she killed you. She wasn't feeling too friendly toward men when I left. I can't really blame her. If some guys were trying to kill me, I wouldn't like them too much either.”

Zebulon stiffened in anger. ”What do you mean 'tried to kill her'? Why would a male want to kill your friend?”

”She is, or rather was, a detective from Miami. That is similar to being head of security in a way. She had a really tough case that she had been working on for about a year. Anyway, she was finally able to crack it. The problem was the bad guy was the son of a really rich man. The dad put out a hit on her while the son thought he could use a more personal approach to silence her. She ended up killing the son when he tried to kidnap her. The dad was finally sent to prison but Annalisa had to go into a witness protection type program for a while because daddy was still p.i.s.sed at her for killing his worthless son,” Ariel explained. ”I can tell you guys this since the likelihood of you ever meeting her or going to Earth is probably nil. She's working as a deputy in my hometown of Casper Mountain, Wyoming.”

Zebulon didn't turn around or ask any more questions. Ariel figured the guys would ignore her again. She was surprised when Adalard suddenly turned to her with a curious expression on his face.

”Why do you think this Samara would eat me up and spit me out?” Adalard asked.

Ariel shook her head. ”She has five older brothers almost as big as you. She is a small thing but meaner than a hungry dog with a bone. All the guys are scared of her. She works for Trisha's dad. She handles all the horses for him. I just thought if anyone could handle her, it might be you. She couldn't intimidate you, at least not easily.”

”Well, maybe I will go find this Samara and show her I am not a male she can scare!” Adalard said with a grin.

”Maybe,” Ariel replied with an unsure look on her face. ”I'm telling you, she has taken bigger men than you and put their b.u.t.t in the dirt.”

”We are almost to the mountains,” Zebulon called out suddenly. ”There is a sand storm brewing and the winds have picked up. Make sure you are strapped in tight.”

Mandra moved over to sit in the seat next to Ariel while Precious moved to lay at her feet. Thin gold threads wound up on either side of her almost like a type of netting. Ariel giggle as some of the threads moved over her bare belly tickling her.

”I don't think it is going to get that bad!” She whispered affectionately.

Warmth filled her as the threads tightened slightly when the shuttle jerked. ”Why didn't we just beam down,” Ariel called out to Mandra above the roar of the shuttle and outside wind.

”The moon has a natural ore in it that interferes with the beam making it unstable,” Mandra replied as he gritted his teeth and protectively pulled Ariel closer to his body. ”Storms also pop up unexpectedly. If we were to beam into this, we would be dead within seconds from the sands cutting into us.”

Ariel didn't say anything else. She was grateful for the warm support of Mandra's body and Precious as the shuttle jerked against the fierce weather battering it. She might be mad at him but she wasn't an idiot, she knew when to pick a battle. Right now, she was more than happy to rely on their strength and protection.

They had to wait for the storm to pa.s.s before they could disembark from the shuttle. They landed at the foot of a narrow line of mountains. Ariel got up to use the restroom leaving the men to finish discussing their plans for attacking Raffvin's base. Her dragon was getting impatient to get out.

What is wrong with you? Ariel asked impatiently as she brushed out her long hair and braided it.

Want to fly. Want to touch my mate, her dragon grumbled.

I want to touch him too. I'll let you have your way as soon as it is safe. I love how it feels to fly with you, Ariel whispered gently.

She finished up her braid and returned to where the men were sitting near the front of the shuttle. Ariel stopped as she neared the front looking out the front of the shuttle at the diminis.h.i.+ng storm and shook her head. Her life had changed so much in such a short time. She barely thought of her old life anymore. If she stopped to think, the only thing she could honestly say she missed was Trisha's dad. Paul Grove was like a second father to her. He had been her there for her and Carmen all their life, especially after their own parents were killed. Maybe she could talk to Mandra about returning to Earth to get him. She knew Trisha would never be happy without her dad close by.

Ariel jerked in surprise when she felt the hand on her chin. ”What is it, mi elila?”

”I was just thinking about how much my life had changed in such a short time,” she replied looking up into Mandra's concerned face.

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