Alien Protector’s Mate (Latharian Mate Program #4)

Chapter 9

9

J ay was… an odd one.

S’aad frowned as he made his way through the station’s corridors to his cousin’s quarters. What on Lathar would prompt a youngling to leave their home planet and risk coming to a station filled with unknown alien beings? So far, the Krin hadn’t found a way to get this far into human-held space, but that didn’t mean that other species didn’t act as intermediaries, trafficking the soft little humans for the carnivorous species’ food stores. S’aad turned the corner, shuddering at the thought of what would happen should even a single Krin get aboard the station. It would be an absolute bloodbath.

The lights in the corridor changed hue, and he hissed between his teeth. He’d lost track of time with Jay, and now he was late, something he hated to be. It irked him beyond measure when others were late, so he always made sure to extend the same courtesy. Usually. Tightening his grip on the box of pastries, he walked faster.

It didn’t take him much longer to reach his destination. He paused for a moment in front of Vaarn’s door, pulling his jacket into place and running a hand through his braided hair, the honor beads clinking softly against each other. The sound grounded him as he pressed the door chime.

The door slid open almost instantly to reveal Sadie, his cousin’s mate. She smiled warmly, her eyes sparkling with welcome. “S’aad! We were starting to wonder if you’d gotten lost on the way.”

S’aad winced as he stepped inside. The smell of whatever Sadie was cooking filled the air, making his mouth water. He didn’t know much about human food, but what he’d had, he liked.

“I’m sorry I’m late,” he said, bowing his head slightly. “I had a somewhat…unexpected encounter. I hope I haven’t delayed dinner too much.”

Sadie waved off his concern with a soft laugh as she led him through to the main living space. “Not at all. Vaarn’s just been pacing like a caged beast. You know how he gets when he’s hungry.”

As if summoned by his name, Vaarn appeared from the kitchen area, his wide shoulders all but filling the doorway.

“Cousin,” he rumbled with a nod. “We were beginning to think you’d been called away on some emergency.”

S’aad shook his head, offering the box of pastries to Sadie. “No emergency, just an… unexpected encounter. I’ll explain over dinner. I don’t want to delay things anymore, and it smells absolutely wonderful.”

Sadie’s face lit up as she accepted the box and opened it to peek inside.

“These are my favorites…” She looked up at him, her delicate features lit up with pleasure. “Thank you! How did you know?”

He shrugged and then grinned. “A little birdie may have told me.”

He’d picked up the phrase from the human women working with the LMP. He still didn’t quite understand whether Terran birds talked to people or not, but he understood how the phrase was used.

“Well… Thank you.” She grinned. “I’ll just put these away, and then we can eat. Everything’s ready.”

As Sadie bustled into the food prep room, S’aad settled into the comfortable chair opposite his cousin.

“So,” Vaarn began, casting S’aad a sharp look as he crossed to a cabinet and poured them both a drink. Tavkronian brandy by the looks of it. “Still no luck with the mate program? I thought for sure by now you’d have found your match.”

He shook his head, a small smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “Not yet. It seems the fates have other plans for me.”

Vaarn leaned back, his piercing gaze pinning S’aad. “Don’t knock fate. I count myself fortunate every day that I found Sadie outside the program. It wasn’t what either of us expected, but now I can’t imagine my life any other way.”

“Luck had nothing to do with it,” Sadie chimed in as she returned carrying plates piled with food. S’aad half rose to help her, but she shot him a warning look. “It was all down to stubbornness. I took one look at your handsome cousin here, and that was it. Woman down.”

She winked at Vaarn, who chuckled softly as he reached out to take his mate’s hand. “She’s right. I didn’t stand a chance. She pursued me with a determination I’ve rarely seen outside of battle.”

S’aad watched the couple’s easy affection with a smile and only the tiniest twinge of longing. “You two make it look so effortless,” he murmured.

Sadie perched on the arm of her mate’s chair, her small frame fitting perfectly against his larger one as he wrapped an arm around her waist. “It’s not always easy,” she admitted softly. “But nothing worth having is easy. It’s worth every moment.”

Vaarn nodded, his expression dropping serious as he turned back to S’aad. “For the love of the gods, don’t be a thick-headed draanthic like I was, so focused on duty and protocol that you miss what’s right in front of you. If you see a chance with one of the human women, take it, whether she’s in the program or not.”

He shifted uncomfortably, not used to being put on the spot about his personal life, especially by family. “I know you’re just trying to help, but my duty to the program?—”

“Is absolutely important,” Vaarn interrupted him, his tone softer than normal. “I know that more than anyone, but… S’aad… it shouldn’t come at the cost of your own happiness. You deserve love. Don’t forget that.”

S’aad nodded, offering a polite smile. Wrapped up their own happiness, they’d forgotten that others weren’t so fortunate. Even with the mating program algorithms running constantly, it would take years to test every male who was signed up against the few females who had signed up. And even then, sometimes there were only partial matches. Matches that they’d had to let through, even though they knew there might be a stronger match out there given enough time. It was a closely guarded secret, one that could cause chaos if it got out. And the reason he’d insisted they develop a personality and psych profile matching system alongside the genetic matching. Just so they didn’t mess up completely.

But he couldn’t tell them that. Couldn’t share that knowledge even with his own cousin. If it got out that there was more than one match for each female, it would be… he shuddered mentally, not even wanting to think about it.

“Thank you.” He inclined his head. “Your concern and care for me is appreciated. Now, you must tell me how things are going in engineering. Is Sadie running the place yet?”

“Not quite,” she said with a smile and pushed off from her perch on Vaarn’s chair. “But before you two get too deep into work talk, we should eat.”

His stomach growled loudly as if agreeing with that idea, and Sadie winked at him. “Sounds like someone at least agrees with me. Right this way, I hope you like it.”

Vaarn and S’aad rose and followed her through to the dining area. The table was set with an array of human dishes, some he was familiar with but others that were completely new. It was certainly a lot more varied than the standard fare of a Latharian warrior, that was for sure.

“The food looks wonderful,” S’aad commented as they took their seats. “Though if I’m honest, I have no idea what half of it is.”

Vaarn chuckled, a sound that still surprised S’aad. His cousin had been a grumpy draanth before he’d met Sadie.

“You’ll learn,” Vaarn said, his eyes softening as he glanced toward his mate. “Human cuisine is… an adventure.”

“Says the man who literally ate chocolate cake for every meal before meeting me,” Sadie said, serving generous portions onto their plates. “So… what was the unexpected encounter?”

“I came across a young human boy on the station today. Alone, unprotected. He was… in a difficult situation.”

Vaarn frowned, fork pausing in midair. “A human child? Here alone?”

S’aad nodded, his expression tightening. “He was being harassed by a gang of young Lathar who are causing trouble in the civilian areas.”

Sadie’s eyes widened in concern and her gaze flicked toward the door to the sleeping chambers, no doubt thinking about her own son. “That poor boy! What happened? Is he alright?”

“He’s fine,” S’aad reassured her quickly. “I intervened before he got hurt. But…” He hesitated for a moment, picking his words carefully. “I’ve taken him in. Temporarily, of course.”

Vaarn and Sadie exchanged a glance.

“S’aad,” his cousin began cautiously, “I understand your desire to help, but taking in a young human you know nothing about… It’s risky.”

Sadie nodded, her brow creased with worry. “What if he’s dangerous? Or connected to some criminal element? I can’t think of a good reason for a child to be up here alone, but I can think of plenty of bad ones.”

“He’s not a child.” A flare of defensiveness rose hard and sharp in S’aad’s chest. “I would say he’s a youngling… a teenager?” he said for Sadie’s benefit. Some words didn’t translate well through the translation matrices.

“And he’s harmless,” he insisted. “Just a scared, hungry youngster trying to survive. And I’m not an idiot… I’ve taken precautions. All my weaponry is in a bio-locked trunk in my sleeping chamber.”

Sadie arched an eyebrow. “And did you lock away the knives in the kitchen units as well? S’aad, you have to sleep sometime.”

The two Lathar chuckled at her remark, and Vaarn reached out to squeeze her hand. “No human can get the drop on any warrior worth the name like that. Now,” he said, looking at his plate with enthusiasm. “Let’s eat. Shall we?”

They all dug in, any awkwardness forgotten. Conversation was light and entertaining but not as amusing to S’aad as seeing the change in his cousin. Vaarn, previously famous for his gruff manner and seriousness, was laughing and smiling. And his gaze kept returning to Sadie, a tender light in his eyes that S’aad would never have thought possible in the hardened warrior.

But halfway through the meal he noticed that Sadie was only picking at her food, her skin paler than normal.

“Are you okay, Sadie?” he asked, concern coloring his voice. “You seem… uncomfortable.”

Sadie blinked and then smiled at him, but it was dimmer than usual.

“It’s probably nothing. Just feeling a bit off today. Some of the smells are… well, it’s odd. I love pot roast, but tonight my stomach doesn’t seem to like it.”

“Hmmm, keep an eye on it. Okay?” he said, his healer’s training coming to the fore as he made a mental note to schedule a pregnancy test for Sadie when he was in the lab tomorrow. “If it gets worse, let me know or head straight to the medical center. Kellat, the base lead healer, is excellent. He’ll figure out what’s wrong with you on no time.”

She nodded, rubbing a hand over her stomach. “If you’re both finished, perhaps we should move to the sitting area, and I can get this all cleared away.”

“You will do no such thing,” Vaarn growled, chasing her out of the room. “You cooked. S’aad and I will clear away. Won’t we?”

“Of course.” He inclined his head at his cousin’s question, and rose to help Vaarn despite Sadie’s protests. It didn’t take long for them to tidy the table and set the dishes in the cleaning unit. They made their way to the cozy seating arrangement in the main room.

S’aad settled into a plush armchair while Sadie curled up against Vaarn’s side, her eyes growing heavy. He watched as his cousin gently stroked his little mate’s hair, a look of pure contentment on his face.

The peaceful moment was interrupted by the sound of little feet. S’aad turned to see Ollie, Sadie’s young son, toddle into the room. The boy rubbed at his eyes with small fists as he made his way to his mother.

“Mama,” the child mumbled, his voice thick with drowsiness. “Bad dream.”

Sadie stirred, reaching out to pull her child into her arms.

“It’s okay, sweetheart,” she murmured, pressing a kiss to his forehead as she rocked him gently. “Mama’s here.”

Recognizing that his presence was no longer needed, S’aad rose to his feet. “I should take my leave,” he said softly. “Thank you for the meal and the company.”

Vaarn nodded, his arms encircling both his mate and her child. “Of course, cousin. We’ll speak more about your… guest tomorrow.”

S’aad made his way back to his own quarters, deep in thought. He liked spending time with his cousin, but the evening had been a reminder of everything Vaarn had that he didn’t—a mate, a family. But even though he wanted nothing more than a mate and a child of his own, he couldn’t stop thinking of Jay. The idea of him waiting brought an unexpected warmth to S’aad’s chest.

S’aad moved quietly when he walked into his quarters, not wanting to wake Jay if he was sleeping. He peered into the spare room, expecting to see the boy’s small form curled up on the bed. Instead, he found the room empty.

His heart lurched. Had he gotten it wrong? Had Jay not wanted to stay here with him after all and had left… run off at the first opportunity?

Stepping into the room, he beat down his panic and looked around. Jay had no possessions to speak of, but there were signs he’d been here. The door to the washroom was open from this room, and he could see dental cleaning equipment had been used. He turned and his eyes narrowed as he realized the bedding had been removed from the sleeping platform. He’d missed it on his first glance into the room. He frowned. That was a lot of bedding, so unless Jay was running around wrapped in it, he was still here.

Somewhere.

But the last place S’aad expected to find him was in the closet.

The little human was hidden behind a large trunk, curled up at the very back of the closet in a makeshift nest of blankets.

S’aad’s heart clenched as he crouched there, looking down at the human. Even in sleep, Jay’s face was pinched with tension, his body coiled as if ready to flee at a moment’s notice.

Understanding dawned, and S’aad sighed softly, wanting nothing more than to reach out and stroke away a strand of pale hair that had fallen over Jay’s face from under the cap he still wore. This wasn’t the behavior of someone who was a potential threat but of someone who had learned to protect themselves, even in sleep. The closet, small and enclosed as it was, had obviously offered a sense of security to Jay that the bed in the middle of the room couldn’t.

Keeping his movements silent, S’aad retreated from the closet, leaving Jay to his sanctuary, and headed for his own room to get ready for sleep. It had been a long day, and he had another one ahead of him tomorrow. Using the facilities, he stripped off and slid into bed. Even though he knew he shouldn’t, he couldn’t resist the temptation to check his personal comms again before sleeping. But like every other night, there was no match notification for him.

Disappointment filled him, but strangely not as keenly as it had on previous nights. He must be more exhausted than he’d thought. Closing his eyes, he allowed himself to drift off to sleep, his last thoughts of the odd human hiding in the closet.

A jaunty tune woke Jade up, the melody reaching her through the crack in the door in front of her. She blinked, her brain fuzzy and disoriented from sleep as she looked around the unfamiliar surroundings. It must be the middle of the night. Her “room” on the balcony outside the Morgans’ apartment was never usually this dark except during the hours the city lights were shut off between one and three in the morning.

She moved, feeling the soft, plush clean bedding, and the memories of yesterday flooded back. The closet. S’aad’s quarters. Safety. Her muscles screamed at her as she uncurled from her makeshift nest, her body stiff from sleeping curled up.

Jade inhaled deeply, as a wonderful smell reached her, her stomach growling loudly. Quickly, she checked her cap, making sure all her hair was still hidden. She emerged from her sanctuary on her hands and knees and then smoothed her rumpled clothing down before making her way toward whatever smelled so good.

As she walked into the kitchen area, the sight that greeted her stopped her dead in her tracks. S’aad was already up, standing at the cooking unit, his broad back turned to her.

He was naked to the waist.

And he was ripped. Utterly ripped.

Her eyes widened as they traced the contours of his muscular frame. He was lean, yes, but every inch she could see was rippled with well-defined muscle. Scars crisscrossed his golden skin over his back and sides, making her wince. What kind of battle had he been in? Or had he been in an accident? Surely with all the advanced technology the Lathar had, they could have dealt with his scars for him?

Heat burned her cheeks, and she quickly looked away. It wasn’t fair for anyone to look so damn perfect. The smooth planes of his back, the strong set of his shoulders… it was like looking at a sculpture from one of the ancient masters.

As if sensing her presence, he turned, flashing her a brilliant smile that made her heart skip a beat when he saw her.

“Good morning, little one,” he rumbled, and his deep voice sent a shiver down her spine. “I hope you’re hungry. Please, sit down.”

She nodded, not trusting her voice as she slid onto a nearby stool. The kitchen counter was set with plates and utensils, the matching set totally different to the chipped, mismatched dishes she was used to.

S’aad turned back to his cooking, and she looked at him again, unable to tear her gaze away. The way the muscles moved beneath his skin mesmerized her. For such a big man he moved with a grace and strength that spoke of years of training and discipline.

She shook her head and forced herself to look away. This was dangerous. S’aad… couldn’t know she was a woman. So she couldn’t look at him like that in case he turned around and saw her. He wasn’t hers. Never could be. He would hate her for lying to him.

“I hope you like bacon and eggs,” S’aad said as he set a plate in front of her.

Her eyes widened. The plate was piled high with the kind of food she’d only ever seen on screen. The bacon sizzled enticingly, its rich aroma mingling with the buttery scent of perfectly cooked eggs. Her mouth watered and she had to hold herself back.

“This is real food?” she asked, looking up at him in surprise. “Like not reconstituted? You must be very wealthy to afford this.”

He chuckled, the deep, rich sound doing things to her body that should be illegal. “Not wealthy, exactly. But I do have access to certain luxuries because I work for the mate program.”

She froze.

“The mate program?” she asked carefully. Shit. She hadn’t realized that. Was that where the job was? It was the last place she wanted to be. What if they figured out she wasn’t the boy she was pretending to be? “That thing they keep banging on at women back home to sign up to?”

“Yeah, that would be the one.” Amusement washed over his face as he slid onto the stool next to her, a large plate in front of him.

She blinked. There was less food on S’aad’s plate than on hers. And he was much larger than she was.

“You’ve given me more than you have. Are you trying to fatten me up?” she asked, attempting to keep her tone light, even as her heart raced with anxiety.

“Yes,” he said simply. “You’re underweight for a human male in his teen years. It’s not healthy.”

She bit her lip, guilt churning in her gut. She focused on her plate, eating to avoid meeting his concerned gaze. The food was incredible, flavors exploding on her tongue in a way she’d never experienced before. The bacon was crisp and salty, the fat melting on her tongue in a burst of richness, and the eggs were creamy and perfectly seasoned.

She forced herself to slow down and not wolf it all down at once, savoring each mouthful as if it might be her last.

She looked up as they ate, noticing a dark bruise on S’aad’s left shoulder. The purple-blue discoloration stood out against his warm skin tone and looked painful.

“How did you get that?” she asked, gesturing with her fork.

He glanced down and shrugged. “It’s from training this morning. Nothing to worry about.”

She blinked in surprise, her fork pausing halfway to her mouth. “This morning? You’ve already been out before I woke up?”

He nodded, a small smile quirking the corners of his lips. “Of course. A warrior trains daily, even during peacetime.”

Her gaze dropped to the network of scars that covered his torso. This close she could see that some were thin and faded, barely visible against his golden skin, while others looked angrier, more recent, raised and pink as if still healing.

“And those?” she asked hesitantly. “Are they from training too?”

Hise expression shifted… softened as he lifted a hand to trace one of the more prominent scars. The movement was absent, as if he’d done it unconsciously.

“They are not,” he said in a low voice. “They mark me as a healer, even though I don’t practice as one.”

“A healer?” She dropped her fork in surprise, the metal clattering against her plate. “What… like a doctor?”

“Similar, yes,” he replied, his green eyes twinkling with something that might have been amusement. “Although our methods and practices differ quite a lot from human medicine.”

She nodded, processing the new information as she finished the last bites of her breakfast. Then the question that had been nagging at her since the previous evening bubbled to the surface.

“Did your, um, date go well last night?” she asked, immediately regretting it. Heat washed up her neck and flooded her cheeks as soon as the words were out of her mouth.

He turned his head to look at her, his brow arched. “Date?”

“I mean, you left with a present, so I assumed…” She trailed off, feeling her face grow even hotter. So hot he could have used it to cook the eggs for their breakfast. “I thought maybe you were meeting a woman. Or a man,” she added quickly. “I don’t know what Lathar cultural norms are like. You could be into guys, not girls.”

To her surprise, rather than being offended, he chuckled, the sound rich and genuine. “Ah, I see… No, it wasn’t a date. I had dinner with my cousin and his mate. The pastries were a gift for her.”

Relief flooded through her, catching her off guard. What the hell was that about? Why should she care if he was dating someone? It wasn’t as if… She cut off that train of thought abruptly. Nope, not going there. No way, no how. Dropping her gaze, she focused on clearing her plate. The scrape of her fork against the ceramic was loud in the sudden silence, and she winced at the sound.

As she set down her fork, S’aad rose from his seat and held out his hand for her empty plate.

“We should get ready,” he said. “We need to leave for work in a few minutes. Use the facilities if you need to.”

She nodded as she slid off her stool.

Work. At the mate program. The last place she wanted to be. But she squared her shoulders as she headed for her bedroom. She could do this. She had to.