Cosmic Bounty (13 page)

This time Kat did gape. “Are you sure this is alright? I don’t want to be the cause of any trouble.”

Her soon to be ‘adopted’ fathers all stared at her in astonishment, but quickly recovered.

“We are honored to have a daughter,”
Yul
said with a smile. “It is rare to find a female so … polite.”

“Rare?” Kat blinked in confusion. “I’m sorry, but I am finding your world and customs confusing. On my planet, it is common courtesy to be nice to one another, no matter the gender.”

“You have been lacking in educating your human,
Gol
,”
Tev
said, before again addressing her. “Demos females may
speak,
act and do as they please, and it is our duty to see their every demand is met.”

“Even if they offend everyone else around them?”

“We learn never to be offended by what our females say or do,”
Oul
spoke up.

She turned around and eyed her men.
“You four.
Why didn’t you tell me this when I asked about your culture?”

The four brothers looked sheepish, glancing at each other.

“We treasure you for your human traits, Kat. We thought if you knew…”
Gol
began.

“—
You
would want to be like them,”
Ric
finished.

Kat shook her head. “I am what I am, and I can't be anything else. I'm hurt you didn’t trust me enough to tell me the truth.” She hooked her hands on her hip. “You really thought I would turn into a first class bitch?”

“What is a bitch?” The question came from the brothers behind her.

“Someone who acts nasty and doesn't care for the feelings of others.”

Div dropped to his knees, snatching her around the middle, pulling her tightly into his arms. He pressed his face into her chest.

“Forgive us,
beauty,
we have no desire to lose you.”

She glanced up to see identical expressions of regret and worry. It touched her heart they cared so much and, at the same time, were so clueless. It wasn’t a wonder why they wanted her so much, if they were faced with having a Demos bitch as their
sheraz
.

Surely, not all the Demos women could be that bad. Could they?

“There is nothing to forgive, Div, don’t worry. I don’t want to let you go either. I care very much for all of you. I think you should start to have a little faith in me.”

“It is not a mistake we will make again,”
Ric
crowded in from her side, gently turning her head with his fingers, bending to brush his lips across hers. He was soft and gentle, unlike the heated kisses she was used to with her men. She felt
Gol
at her other side, stroking her, making her skin heat. Surrounded by her men, she felt secure, protected, but most importantly, she felt she was where she belonged.

Someone cleared his throat and her men backed up reluctantly, leaving her bereft of their warmth and comfort. She turned again to face the others—her ‘fathers’.

“We clearly see the affection you have for your chosen. We shall endeavor to get the proceedings over with as quickly as possible, so she can be your
sheraz
.”

“It is appreciated. Take care of her for us; she is our treasure,”
Gol
, said, giving
Tev
and his brother a respectful bow.

“We have to leave you now, but shall return in a few days. It will be worse to be parted from you than sending us to the ice plains,”
Ric
told her.

She nodded, yet still struggled to hold herself still and fight back the tears, as they each bid her goodbye before turning to leave.

She stood there for a moment staring at the door her men left through, wanting desperately to race after them.

Kat almost jumped three feet when a hand touched her shoulder. She spun around.

“I’ll show you to your room. Is there anything you desire?”
Yuv
asked, picking up her suitcase.

“Um, I am a little hungry and would like to freshen up, if that’s okay.”

The brothers all smiled with obvious pleasure.

“It will be an honor to make a meal for you.”
Tev
quickly vanished through to another door of the central room.

“You will have to excuse me, my daughter,”
Riv
said, “I must get back to my duties.”

“Oh, don’t let me keep you, please; um, should I call you Dad, or Father or something?”

The smile on the three, older males broadened.

“Is the word ‘dad’ another term for father?”

“Yes.” She smiled back. How easy it was to make these men happy. “Dad is used as a term of affection.”

Tev
paused, his smile quickly replaced with a worried frown.

“We would have you call us whatever you feel comfortable with.”

“I like dad; I never really had a dad of my own. My real father left my mother and
I
when I was still young.”

Identical expressions of horror crossed their faces. “How could one’s sire leave his child? Such a creature is without honor,”
Oul
stated.

They were really big on the honor thing, well, for the men at least.

“Oh, don’t
fret,
it’s not that uncommon on my planet. My mum and I got along fine without him.”

“But
Gol
told us you were unprotected and were stolen by the
Jorval
traders.”

“Something I would like to forget about,” she said with a sad sigh. “
Gol
and
Hul
rescued me from a worse fate, I'm sure.”

The three remaining brothers glanced at each other, as if not sure what to do or say. They were probably used to handling their rude, demanding
sheraz
.

“You are officially free. I signed the document myself, so you have no reason to fear. We are more than delighted to have a daughter. In her own way, I know
Sarrbeem
is also.”

This was yet to be seen. Kat couldn’t help the thought. She didn’t want to worry her new dads.

Dads.

She held in a giggle. She barely had one on Earth and here she was with four. How the tides had turned.

“Yes, thank you, if you have to go, Dad,” she faced
Tev
, “please go.”

They were handsome when they smiled.
Tev
nodded and quickly headed out the same door her men left through, leaving her with
Yuv
and
Oul
.

“This way, Daughter.”
Oul
smiled, leading the way to another sliding door. They all looked much the same. It slid
open,
revealing a long corridor with a few other doors, again all the same shade of yellow. “These are the sleeping quarters. Our sons are down that way.”
Oul
pointed to the left. “They are out training and will not return until later next week. Our chamber is next to theirs and the third door is
Sarrbeem’s
. This room, my daughter, is yours.”

She followed him several feet down to the right and watched as he placed his hand on the panel, sliding the door open. Stepping back,
Oul
allowed her to enter first.

She walked into a huge, opulent room; the center was sunken with a large bed. It was covered in the same red and yellow sheets as in her men’s quarters on their ship. There was also a sitting area with a comfortable looking, black sofa,
a
large screen on the wall, which she knew was the communications device. There was a little table with a single, smaller chair, and near the other end was a single window, rising from the floor, six feet in height and three feet wide.

“Wow, you could fit my whole house, back on Earth in this single room.”

“You are pleased, then?”
Yuv
said from behind her, as she wandered through the suite.

“Are the buildings on your planet small also?”
Oul
was studying her with the same expression of curiosity as
Yuv
.

She smiled at him. “Not all of them. We like to build big and grand for those who can afford it. And yes, thank you, I’m very pleased.”

She moved to the window to stare out over the lights of the city. “It’s beautiful,” she murmured in awe. She hadn’t seen much of the city when her men drove her here, to her adoptive family in a windowless, airborne transport, which looked like a giant, black jellybean.

“The bathing room is through there.”
Oul
set her case down on the table, eyeing it inquisitively.

Kat walked over, unzipped her bag and flipped it open to let them look. “These are the only clothes I have. The
Jorval
trader was at least thoughtful enough to take my bag, when he abducted me.”

“You will need more clothing,”
Yuv
said in a matter-of-fact way. “
Sarrbeem
enjoys spending our credits. She will enjoy taking you to the markets, to get you whatever you wish for.”

“And much for herself,” added
Oul
tightly, glancing at his brother.

It seemed
Sarrbeem’s
spending was something of an issue, from the irritation she saw flicker in their expression.

“I don’t need much, really. I’m happy with what I have. Your family is being more than generous in adopting me.”

They again looked stunned but quickly hid it. “We insist you have whatever you want. Besides, your quads will cover any expenses.”

She suspected they were waiting for her to start demanding things and being bossy.

“I have no wish to insult you, if that is what you want.”

“What we want is for you to be happy with us. You can have anything you desire.”

Kat shook her head and smiled. It confused her to see how these big, strong, dominant soldiers were so whipped by their women.

“What I want is for you not to pander to my wants. As long as I have what I need, I'm happy. Be men, for goodness sake. I am used to males being demanding, not second-guessing everything. Are you not warriors, formidable on the battlefield?”

“We are.” They stood straighter and prouder.

“I’ll make a deal with you. Treat me with the same respect and courtesy as a male on
Galafrax
and I will do the same in return.”

The men hesitated. “Let us talk with our brothers first.”

Kat nodded.
Riv
walked in with a large tray, filled with foods and a large pitcher of liquid.

“We will leave you to settle. One of us is always here to see to
your
…”
Oul
paused.
“To your needs.
Never hesitate to ask for anything.”

“Thank you.” Kat smiled. The brothers gave a freaky, simultaneous nod before turning, following each other out.

For the first time since she was bought by
Gol
and
Hul
, she was alone. She had grown so accustomed to one or more of her men being around her, she felt their loss keenly.

Two
Galafraxian
weeks, which she understood was eight days to the Earth seven, was going to be hell on her body. The brothers had addicted her to having sex several times a day and night. Kat walked to the table, sniffing the delightful smelling food.