Rykhan (Book 1 of Mate Search Series) (30 page)

Leah shrugged. She really had no clue why they
were even there much less what the discussion would reveal. But the
fact that she was suppose to meet with Rykhan’s boss’s boss carried
some weight. “We can only be ourselves, right?” she hissed
back.

“Gotcha, girlfriend,” Pam returned with a
wink.

“Greetings, Earth females,” a booming voice
interrupted and Leah’s eyes immediately went to the middle-aged
blonde man in the holographic image before her. There was no
denying the man cut an intimidating figure with his filigreed
circlet and robes of varying shades of green. It was the expression
in his eyes though that had Leah’s stomach tumbling.

“Uh, hi,” Pam squeaked, obviously unnerved at
both the sight and sound of the Committee leader.

“Yeah. Uhm, greetings,” Leah mumbled, plucking
at the knee of her jeans.

“I am so glad of the opportunity to meet with
you especially since you both have so graciously agreed to help our
Protectors in their quest for mates.” Something about the guy’s
voice and lip movements were wrong to Leah’s eyes. However, before
she could work it out, Pam leaned over.

“It’s a kung-fu flick,” her bestie whispered.
“He must be using some kind of translator.”

“I’m not sure of your customs of greeting but
may I get your names?” No, it wasn’t just the overdubbing that
rattled her, but the snake-oil salesman-like pitch of the man that
made Leah uncomfortable. “I am Commander Gwynt Stege, supreme
leader of the Gal-Trol Quest Committee.”

“I’m Leah and this is Pamela,” Leah responded,
her eyes narrowed as she watched the man’s reactions. She wasn’t
about to give him any additional personal information which might
encourage a background check on either her or her
friend.

“So are you, like, the top dog of this
operation or what?” Pam joked. How could the woman seem so relaxed
when Leah was so anxious?

“Excuse me. My English translator didn’t
understand your words.” Of course it didn’t and Leah tucked that
little bit of knowledge away knowing she might somehow need it in
the near future. “Could you say again?”

Pam waved a hand as if it was of no importance.
“You wanted to see us?”

Leah was glad they hadn’t been required to meet
with the man separately because the look in his eyes absolutely
terrified her. There was, as the saying went, safety in
numbers.

“Yes, well,” the man replied after clearing his
throat. “It is my understanding that you have offered assistance in
helping our Protectors in their glorious quest.”

Overblown didn’t even begin to describe Stege’s
attitude, much less his repeated words.

“Yeah. Your guys have a timeline but have been
only exploring the tip of the iceberg in order to find women.” Leah
thought succinct was the way to handle their conversation. “Since
we’ve been dating a long time, Pam and I think we can help them
expand their efforts.”

“A long time? Yet neither of you have secured a
pairing?” The man in the holographic image seemed to do some kind
of the Picari version of ‘tsk-tsk’. “Is there a reason for that?
Perhaps there is some sort of deficiency in one or the both of you
that has prevented you from being claimed?”

Leah couldn’t help her gasp at the out-right
gall of the man in deciding just because the girls hadn’t snagged
themselves a man that they were somehow sub-par.

“Fuck you and the horse you rode in on,” Pam
announced slow and controlled. Leah liked her friend’s attitude but
wasn’t sure if that was the right tactic to take. At the confusion
she saw front and center on his visage, Leah knew the translator
hadn’t noticed Pam’s cursing.

“Our rituals for pairing are
different than those of the Picari. We are more selective and take
our time in choosing a man to spend our lives with,” Leah
explained, using more formal words than she would otherwise. “And
since I have been blessed with Rykhan’s
wahrom
, isn’t it fortuitous that I
wasn’t claimed before?”

Pam looked at Leah, shooting her a thumbs-up at
how she channeled the Picari warrior’s speech. “You tell him,
sistah.”

“Be that as it may, you seem rather old and
unstudied in the ways of how a male and a female are
to…”

“Commander!” Bronsyn thankfully cut
the other man off. “This is the mate
Tsiran
has chosen for one of our
Protectors. We must treat her with all the respect her warrior’s
symbol demands.”

As Gwynt sat back and looked between
the two females, Leah found herself crossing and then re-crossing
her legs in the ensuing silence. Finally, the man responded. “My
apologies for going beyond the limits of privacy. But would you be
willing to show me your
wahrom
, Rykhan’s Leah?”

What could it hurt? Especially if it kept the
guy from going fully into the douche-bag attitude he seemed to want
to wallow in. Leah nodded and reached for her sleeve only idly
aware of being the center of attention. But when she slid the
sleeve of Rykhan’s oversized t-shirt up to her shoulder and turned
so her metal was fully visible, she was unprepared for the reaction
from Commander Stege.

“Gyed’s
hair,” he breathed. “Oh dear goddess of us all, it’s not
possible.”

“See and believe, dude!” Pam’s utterance seemed
to take the commander away from his awestruck perusal of Leah’s
armband. With his gaze directed elsewhere, she felt comfortable
enough to let go of the sleeve.

It took Gwynt more than a few moments before he
pulled himself together. “You have his armband, that much is true.
Which more than signifies that you and Protector Rykhan are mates.
But I would like to learn more as to why the two of you Earthlings
feel it’s important to aid us in our quest.”

Leah and Pam looked at one another after they
had each done a comprehensive eye-roll at the acceptation and
assumption that Leah and Rykhan were destined for one
another.

“Because you pay better?” Pam’s answer was
honest and to the point but was given in such a flippant tone that
Leah found herself giggling and joining in.

“With better hours and a work environment that
can’t be beat,” she announced. “I mean just the scenery alone is
enough to get any ‘unpaired’ girl’s engine started.”

Gwynt’s eyes sought out Bronsyn’s. “They again
speak words that make no sense.”

Leah turned to look behind her and caught
Bronsyn’s sparkling eyes and the tremble of his mouth as he
surpressed a smile. “It is their cultural colloquialisms which we
are all trying to learn and understand, sir.”

“Well, make them stop and speak to be
understood!” Gwynt demanded on a huff. The man needed to pull the
stick out of his own ass and just get down to whatever it was he
needed to do. All his arrogance and formal posturing meant
diddlysquat to her.

“Listen, your supreme-ness or whatever your
title is. I just wanna help your guys meet women. Girls they can
connect with in order to make a family. Your plans were for shit
and didn’t even skim the surface of the available bank of women
looking for men.” Leah spoke from her heart, hoping to stop things
before they made a left turn into a bad area.

“Pam and I are convinced we can help you
succeed. We know things you don’t. Know how Earth’s females, as you
call us, think and react. Of what the women of my area want in a
man and how to mold your warriors into something every girl will
crave to be around. So aren’t we all on the same page?” Leah sat
back and Pam gave her another thumbs-up in approval, although she
wasn’t sure if it was because of her speech or her bravery in
dealing with the problem directly.

“And you two think you are the best the Earth
can offer to help our males?” Stege’s tone alone let both the women
know he more than thought they were nowhere up to the task.
“Please. You who think you are Rykhan’s, have only had one
relationship and it was with a male who decided you were not enough
to help him reach his political goals.”

Christ! How had the man learned of her time
with Tony and how the scumbag had summarily dumped her, explaining
that she did not fit the physical mold of a potential senator’s
wife?

“As for you, Unclaimed Pam?” The
dripping sarcasm more than foretold of the zinger Bronsyn’s boss
was gonna spew forth next. “Is there a male left in your city who
hasn’t been between your legs?
Gyed’s
locks, but you are the worst
of womankind on any planet! With the right provocation, you’ll join
with any sort of male who finds you even marginally enticing. I
believe the most interesting English word for your sort of behavior
is one of ‘whore’.”

He sat back in his chair satisfaction written
all over his face. “What? No protestations? No denial of the type
of females I’ve discovered you to be?”

“You have no right…” Pam sputtered as her butt
came out of her chair.

Leah though took a different route.

“So you’ve investigated us, tried to find
things in our pasts in order to bring us into line.” She was deadly
calm as she spoke to the man who was millions of miles away. “And,
yeah. We might have experienced things you don’t find
acceptable.”

Swallowing a sigh, she glanced at Pam’s flushed
face. Damn, this conversation had gone to hell in a hand-basket.
“But this is Earth,” she said firmly. “Our ways aren’t yours. And
you have no right…I repeat, no right…to make us feel bad about
ourselves while you try to decide if we are ‘worthy enough’ to help
the Picari warriors fulfill the goals of your mission.”

Glancing again at Pam, Leah found
her courage, her center. “To my way of thinking, you need us a
helluva lot more than we need you. Yeah, we Earth people may not be
the best of the best. Especially us Earth girls in my part of our
planet. Nevertheless, it was here that your warriors landed! Right
in my own backyard. According to your group,
Tsiran
placed the metal bracelet on
my damn arm. So I guess we’re the ‘females’ you’re kind of stuck
with, douche-bag! Maybe it’s time you and yours got over that
particular fact.”

“God, Ley…” Pam breathed, finally settling her
ass back in her chair. “Preach it, girlie.”

It was more than apparent Commander
Stege took umbrage at what she’d spouted but he didn’t take her to
task. Instead, he only glared at her before announcing, “You have
three of your Earth weeks in which to accomplish your goal. If
things have not improved you will be summarily dismissed,
wahrom
or no.”

Leah did a quick calculation in her head. Three
weeks on Bronsyn’s payroll equaled almost three months of what she
had been making at the DMV. More than enough time to look for a
better job if she and Pam failed.

“Just to make it interesting, what’s your idea
of ‘accomplishing our goal’?” Pam asked with a challenging chin
lift. Yep, her bestie had caught on the same verbiage Leah
had.

“We need another two warriors paired,” was the
stern reply.

“Done,” Leah averred.

“Done,” Pam firmly shouted with a fist
pump.

Without looking at each other, Leah and her
friend stood in unison. A move not calculated but brought their
so-called ‘meeting’ to a close nonetheless.

Leah thought it was the most gracious exit of
her life.

Chapter
Twenty-One

“Welcome to the first seminar of Picari/Earth
Dating Techniques!” Pam’s voice rang out as the last of the men
lowered themselves into chairs at the large table directly across
from where the two women stood at the bar. The unfortunate part was
that the last man entering was Wyst, causing Pam’s voice to
wobble.

“Welcome, fellas,” Leah offered, moving off the
stool in order to stand before the group. “We have an aggressive
target. One your Commander Stege has ordered. And that is to get
another two of you paired within the next three weeks.”

“Yep!” Pam’s chipper voice picked up where Leah
had stopped. “It’s a dare and one that I wouldn’t bet money against
because Leah and I are determined to help you meet that
goal.”

Leah nodded, glancing around the large table
and noting the different looks on each of the men’s faces. Gyard
was scowling while Laxon looked confused. Tyshar seemed calm but
Arbrynt was twining his fingers. While Rykhan was smiling up at
her, poor Wyst wasn’t focusing on any specific thing in the
room.

And Bronsyn?

The leader looked uncomfortable. It was the
first time Leah had seen him since the god-awful meeting with
Commander Stege. The one where she’d finally confronted someone and
had let loose in refuting his summation of whom or what she was. It
had been a glorious moment for her, one that had found her reveling
in her newfound backbone in the face of the man’s
opinions.

What had been the backlash though?

Had the supercilious man placed the burden of
blame of her and Pam’s behavior on Bron?

“So our goal today is to take you through the
initial contact, the first meet and then a subsequent date, if you
feel a particular lady is a match for you,” Leah continued,
avoiding Rykhan’s admiring gaze. She didn’t need him to get her all
hot and flustered. She had a job to do.