Theron Destiny (Brides of Theron) (11 page)

After ordering something that resembled a pizza, Zeb and Avery had returned to their living quarters. She was never so glad to be back in here where she knew no one else could see her. Greeting her at the door was Books. He rubbed up against her legs and meowed to be picked up.

Snatching him up, she began petting the long haired cat, “You miss me Books? At least you aren’t hiding in your carrier that much anymore. You hungry?” She and Zeb walked to the kitchen so that all three of them could eat together. Avery took out a saucer from the cabinet and placed some food that resembled fish on it and put it in front of her cat.

“There you are, Books. I am not quite sure what it is, but it does smell like fish. Enjoy!” She watched as the cat sniffed at the food and was satisfied when she saw him starting to take bites of the nasty smelling stuff. At least Books liked alien food.

Zeb watched every move that Avery was making. He saw a side of her that he thought he never be able to bring out. The soft voice she used while talking to the furry creature sent chills down his over-heated skin and seeing her run her fingers through its hair just about drove him mad. She was having a huge unconscious effect on him and he didn’t know if he was going to be able to control himself much longer. He wanted her to run her fingers through his hair and whisper with that sweet soft voice into his ear while he administered kisses all over her body. A tightening sensation in the front of his pants alerted him that if he didn’t stop thinking about Avery in that way, he was really going to be in trouble. He got out the plates and made them both something to drink to distract his mind from the sensual thoughts overtaking his mind.

“Where would you like to sit and eat?” He asked in a shaky voice.

Avery looked over to where he was standing behind the counter, “Can we sit near the window? I just can’t seem to get enough of the view.” She gave him a crooked smile and waited for his reply.

“We can sit wherever you would like. I often find myself sitting at the window too. It’s a great stress reliever.” Zeb carried over the plates and drinks and placed them on the low table that sat in front of the sofa. Avery followed him with the food that they had brought down from the dining area. They each took a spot on the L-shaped sofa, making sure that they were far enough away from each other so that their bodies wouldn’t touch by accident.

Avery reached for a piece of pizza or whatever it was called and took her first bite. Not sure what to expect, she chewed slowly so that she would be able to taste all the favors that the slice had to offer.

Zeb watched her and waited for her reaction then asked, “Do you like it?” With a mouth full of food all she could do was give a few quick nods and mumbled something totally unintelligible to him. Laughing in return he said, “I would take that as a yes. Do you want to know what it is made of?”

Swallowing hard she looked back over to him, “Do I really want to know?” She waited to take her next bite so that if he said it was made out of something that sounded disgusting, she wouldn’t have to spit it out. “I guess since you are enjoying it so much I won’t tell you what’s in it. I’ll save it for after you are finished. So go on ahead and eat your fill.” Smiling at her, he grabbed a piece of the pie and took a huge bite of it.

They continued to eat in silence until each had their fill of the alien pizza. Alien pizza was going to be an easy name to remember, so that’s what she named it. It had tasted much like pizza back on earth but with a bit more of a tangier taste, almost like a piece of yellow cake with similar traditional toppings on top. The sauce was green and had the consistency of a whipped butter.  Though, the taste of it she could not place or compare. Whatever it was, it was fantastic.

With stomachs now full, Zeb leaned back on the sofa and studied his mate while her attention was diverted to the view outside the window. He watched as her eyes searched the vastness of space and wondered what she was thinking. Once or twice he caught her looking out the corner of her eyes at him. Curiosity got the better of him and he wanted to know what she was thinking about. “Would you like to share your thoughts with me?” he asked softly, yet startling her.

“Why do you want to know what I am thinking? Do my thoughts really matter?” Her voice held sarcasm as she turned back towards him. “I would really like to know,” he replied.

She glanced down to her folded hands then back up to look him straight in the eye, “I want to go home. This is not my home, down there is my home, my life and you stole that from me. I didn’t have any say so in coming here and if it were up to me, I would never have chosen this.” She continued to look at him as the words spilled out. “I don’t want this. I feel like an insect inside of a jar, trapped with no way out. I was stolen from my home, sold to the bidder and am now forced to be a mate to someone I don’t even know and have his babies. How would you feel if you were in my position?” Her voice had begun to shake as she said those last words and he could see the tears that were threatening to spill over and fall down her cheeks. He wasn’t quite sure what to say to her in order to comfort her. How was he ever going to convince her that they would have a good life together?

He waited a few moments before answering then said, “In time you will begin to think of this as your home and I as your mate. I know you want to go home, but that is just not possible. Your people have an agreement with us.  I know that both sides wish to honor that agreement.”

Anger started to rise up in her. “I had no say so in this agreement. I was never informed that I was going to be hunted, kidnapped and sold. You may want a mate but I do not. I liked my life back on earth and you aliens took that away from me with even asking. Did you ever think about finding women that would actually want to come here of their own free will? I am sure there are plenty of them down there that would be more than willing.” She was now standing and pointing out of the window and shouting. The anger was building and she just knew that she was going to explode again like she did the other night.

Zeb, sensing that she was on the verge of exploding, stood up, came around the table that separated them and stood in front of her with his arms folded and glared down at the small figure that just moments ago had been calm and enjoying her alien pizza, as she called it.

“I do not advise that you have another one of your tantrums. It will get you nowhere, Avery. You must accept your situation. You are my mate now and I will not let you go.” Waiting for her response didn’t take long. A fraction of a second later she jabbed her finger into the middle of his chest and looked him straight in the face, “I will NEVER accept this. I do not want to be here and most of all I DO NOT WANT TO BE YOUR MATE!” With each word she jabbed him in the chest to try and make her point clear but it didn’t have any effect on him which irritated her even more. “Do you hear me you big, big….you big whatever the hell you are. I WANT TO GO HOME! This is not my home. My home is on earth.” She was now pounding her fists on his chest and had tears streaming down her face.

He grabbed her arms in order to get her to stop but it wasn’t enough. She just kept to shouting she wanted to go home. Without a second thought he pulled her to him, pinning her arms up against his lower chest, trapping her in the his embrace. She continued to struggle and shout even though her face was now pressed to his body. For an earthling she had fair amount of strength when angered. “If you do not calm yourself you will force me to call for Zane again to administer a sedative.”

Slowly she came back to her senses. She stopped struggling but continued to say that she wanted to go home. The arms around her loosened enough so that she was able to turn her head and breathe in fresh air. She opened her eyes back up and through teary eyes she could see the blue and white marble that was her home. She could see the clouds of white as they swirled around while Earth slowly turned on its axis. She didn’t know how long they stood there watching the Earth turn before them.  Soon enough, all the energy was drained out of her body and she felt like a ragdoll, limp and worn out.

Zeb stood there holding her in his arms until he was sure that she had calmed enough for him to release her. He lifted her tear stained face up so that he could look into her eyes. There he could not only see the pain she was in but also feel it. Feel it in his heart. He did the only thing he could think of doing at that moment, he brushed his lips softly against hers.

Pulling back a fraction he looked into her eyes, “I promise I will protect and take care of you until the day the Gods take me away from you. I am very sorry for your pain and sorrow. I promise, I will do everything in my power to make you happy. I am hopeful that one day you will come to accept me.”

There was no point in fighting it any more, Avery thought. This was her home now. Zeb was her husband or mate or whatever they called it here on this ship. Her life was never going to be the same again. Would she be able to adjust to this new life? She only knew one person on this entire ship and that was Zeb. No friends, no one to talk to. Looking at earth one more time with a heavy heart, Avery looked back up to Zeb and tried to give the best smile that she could give.

Zeb, sensing her surrender, lifted her up into his arms, and carried her to the bedroom. With one hand he managed to pull back the covers on the bed and gently place her down up against the pillows. Rising, he softly touched her cheek then turned to leave the room.

“Where…Where are you going?” She asked since she was surprised that he was leaving the room.

“You have had a long and trying day. Adjustment to our new life will take some time. Go to sleep and hopefully in the morning you will feel better.”

She didn’t know what else to say. She twisted the sheet in her hands and asked, “But where are you going?” She didn’t want to be left alone even if it meant sharing a bed with him.

He looked at her, sitting in the bed like a little lost child, and sighed before reassuring her, “Don’t worry little one I am not going far. I have some work I need to attend to in my office. I promise I will not leave you alone tonight.”

She nodded her head at his response then slid down under the sheets facing away from door that he was standing in. “Lights off” she heard him say right before the room went dark and the door closed. Lying on her side, she put her arm under the pillow to raise her head up a bit. The bedroom also offered a view like no other and she was able to lay there and watch the earth spin. How much longer were they going to be here? How long must she endure watching her home from far above? What would Zeb’s home planet look like now that it was in ruins?

She wasn’t sure how long she laid there before finally falling into an exhausted sleep. Tomorrow is another day and she would somehow have to make the best of it.

After closing the door to the bedroom, Zeb leaned up against the wall and shook his head. How in Gods’ names did he manage to get himself so involved with this Earth female? It wasn’t a spur of the moment decision to bid on her at the auction. But he never imagined it was going to be this hard to win her over. Had they made a mistake by coming to this planet and wanting to take away their females without their consent? There had to be a better way of acquiring brides for his warriors rather than stealing them and then placing them up for auction. Their race was much more civilized than that.

Pushing away for the wall, he headed for his office to finish up some paper work he had left earlier today. The doorbell to their quarters chimed before he reached his office, “Now what?” he said impatiently. He pressed the green unlock button on the wall to see who was disturbing him at this late hour.

The door slid open to reveal Zane standing there with some sort of tin cans in his hands, “You up for some Earth beverages?”

“I hope it’s something strong.” He stepped aside to let Zane in.  He lead them both into his office, closing the door.

“That I don’t know my friend. One of the other men brought it back when they went back down to scout the surface of the planet. Here catch.”

Zane tossed one of the blue and silver cans towards Zeb. “Pull up that little tab on top. Like this.” He showed Zeb how to do it and then put the can to his nose and inhaled. “Doesn’t smell too bad, what do you think?”

Zeb sniffed the strange liquid too and put the can to his lips. “Here goes nothing, old friend.” Both men tipped the cans and took long swallows of the cold earth drink. “I could get used to this stuff. What is it called?”

Before Zane could answer he had to wipe the excess liquid from his lips. “It’s called beer and I agree. I like it.” Each man went on to finish the rest of the can in silence, then open another one before they continued talking.

“What brings you here so late? Shouldn’t you be with your new mate?” Zeb gave Zane a crooked smile and waited for his reply. 

“That’s what I came to speak with you about. Gracie is having a hard time adjusting. She won’t come near me anymore and refuses to sleep in the bedroom.” He ran a hand through his short cropped hair.

“You’re not the only one with problems. Avery is having problems too. I almost had to call you again in order to give her a sedative. Just the thought of sedation calmed her down quickly. We had a relatively good day, or so I thought. She seemed to be happy until we came back here and she looked out the window and saw her world. Then we were right back to square one.”

“At least you got Avery out of the living quarters. Gracie refuses to leave unless it’s to bring her back down to her planet.  We both know, of course, is out of the question. I will not let her go. She is mine now. I feel something for her that I can’t explain.  I want to protect her, never let harm come to her.” Zane flopped down into a chair that sat in front of Zeb’s desk.  Zeb saw the pain his friend was feeling in his eyes and wondered if his face projected the same pain.

Zeb took another long swallow of the stuff called beer then asked his longtime friend, “Do you think we went about this in the wrong way? I mean, just taking the females?”