Total pages in book: 50
Estimated words: 47569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 159(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 47569 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 238(@200wpm)___ 190(@250wpm)___ 159(@300wpm)
I back Ava up until we’re in the corner Surgient and Mia vacated. Finally I clasp my mate’s face in my large hands and tip her head back. “She’s safe, Baby girl. You’ll see her when we get home.”
“Home?” Her voice squeaks. Her eyes are wide, big brown eyes I will get lost in for the rest of my life.
I smile at her, trying to calm her with my presence and my eyes. She’s so stunning. Of course I would think so no matter what anyone else thought, but I’m pretty sure she truly is gorgeous even by human standards. “My planet.”
She licks her lips. Full pretty lips that are covered in a pink gloss. It too has a slight scent, berries I think, though I can’t be certain what berries on Earth smell like. I’ve never eaten them. We bring our own foods from Eleadia. Foods on Earth are horribly unhealthy. There is almost nothing humans consume that is pure and natural, unadulterated. Even their fresh foods are covered in chemicals and ripened after they’re picked.
Ava is panting again. “That other man is taking Mia with him?”
“Yes, Little one. You will see her again. We live near each other.”
“We work together. We share an apartment. Are you really going to take me with you?”
I know her thoughts are flying all over the place. It’s normal. “Yes, Baby girl. You’re mine.”
Chapter Three
Ava
I think I’m going to hyperventilate. This can’t be happening. What were the chances? I know I joked about the possibility and even pretended I didn’t care if I was claimed and taken to another planet, but now that’s it’s real, I’m not so certain.
Except at the same time, I’m oddly sure this is the right decision, too. It doesn’t really feel like I have a choice, and that’s unnerving.
“Why me?”
His smile is dazzling, and now that I’m facing him, it’s hard to focus on anything because he is a truly gorgeous man. His blond hair is thick and hangs in a sexy wave across his forehead. His skin is lighter than mine. His eyes are a rare shade of green that makes me feel like I could get lost in them.
He crowds me farther, setting his elbows on the walls near my head. He’s blocking me from seeing anything or anyone. Suddenly I realize it’s the other way around. He’s blocking everyone from seeing me. Protecting me. They were snapping pictures. He’s forced them to stop, though I’m sure it’s too late. My face is probably plastered on the social media apps of everyone on Earth by now.
When he smiles broader, dimples come out on his cheeks. “I could say you are the most stunning female in this room, the most beautiful female I’ve ever seen, and that is accurate, but it’s not the reason you’re mine, Baby girl.”
I flinch, not sure I understand what he’s saying.
“We’re fated, Little one. As soon as I spotted you, I knew you were mine. As soon as I stepped onto the crowded dance floor, you sensed me and knew it, too.”
“That’s…not a real thing.” But I know he’s right. I can feel it. I did sense him long before he was close to me. My skin had begun to prickle even though my back was to him. I hadn’t turned around because nerves were gnawing at me. I could feel my life slipping away as he grew closer.
Not that I was dying, but that everything I’ve known up to this point is now gone. My job. My apartment. My peripheral friends. Even Mia, though I’m relieved to learn she has also been chosen.
I don’t have much in the way of family, only a few distant relatives I haven’t spoken to in ages. I knew coming here was a gamble, but seriously? What had the odds been?
“For my people, it’s a very real thing, Baby girl.”
I shiver as his endearment washes over me. He’s called me baby girl several times. It’s sweet, but it’s not really me, and I need to tell him. “You do realize I’m not exactly small by human standards.”
He slides his elbows closer and strokes my cheeks with his thumbs. “Ava, you’re so tiny compared to me that the few inches taller than other females you might be makes no difference.”
I lick my lips. My mouth is so dry. I haven’t even had a drink tonight. Mia and I hadn’t made our way to the bar before this enormous behemoth staked his claim. The fact that I’ve had no alcohol means my brain should be sharp, but it seems to be anything but sharp. “Okay, but I’m not…Little. Just so we’re clear. Mia is Little. I’m not.”
It seems important I make this distinction. If Ganrax and his friend saw Mia and assumed we were both into that sort of kink, he’s dead wrong.