Star Kissed (8 page)

He signaled the navigator to take them back and then opened a communications channel to his mother.

“I take it things didn’t go well,” she said, appearing on the hologram before him.

Akkadi sat back, studying her. Despite her insistence earlier, she didn’t seem as if she’d ever been as undisciplined as Mandy. His mother was respectful and dutiful, even if she lowered her guard in private with him.

“It didn’t,” he confirmed. “The human woman might do well for Subakki. She’s older than even him, but he can have her, if he wants her.”

“She may be too old for children, then,” his mother said, considering. “But I will tell him. I’d rather your cousins marry humans that can’t bear them children than let the last of my kind be tortured by the monsters on the planet.”

“Father may not agree,” Akkadi warned. “A wife’s duty is to produce an heir.”

“I have ten children, son. As long as a couple of them find companions to produce heirs, your father will be flexible with the others.”

Akkadi didn’t openly disagree. War took a toll on families. They’d been fortunate that none of their family had been killed, but there was always the chance, which was why his father demanded heirs from all his children.

He drew a deep breath. He’d dreaded this moment for years but understood that their need for energy was reaching a crisis stage. The star gate had been opened and a potential mate had come through. Her eyes could stop his thoughts, but she was otherwise not suitable to be a mate. Speculation on who he would choose had been rampant since his twenty-first birthday, the age at which most Naki became betrothed. His father was not going to be pleased if he returned from his journey and Akkadi had neither a betrothal nor secured another source of energy.

“Mother, will you contact Hishele’s mother and arrange the agreement?” he asked. He had a feeling his father wouldn’t be too pleased with him; however, the Naki-king had four daughters and numerous nephews to marry the humans off to. As the only male heir to his father, Akkadi was entitled to first choice of any human women, even if he was the last born of the children in his extended family.

“Of course, son. You don’t want to give the human in your quarters a chance?”

“No, mother.”

“What flaw did you find with her?” His mother pushed.

“Only one,” he replied. “She’s too human.”

Faint pink crossed his mother’s features and her blue eyes sparked with fire.

“Very well. I’ll contact Hichele’s family immediately. Travel safe, son,” she replied in a clipped tone. She disappeared from the screen.

Akkadi considered contacting her again to ensure she understood he was not offended by
her
humanity but by that of the woman in his quarters. Unwilling to start an argument with his mother, he let it go. He had only spoken the truth. He didn’t want a human mate. He didn’t need the complication. He also didn’t want the inevitable reminder that he, too, was almost a purebred human after tens of generations of Naki kings and queens taking human mates. His mother was certain to bring it up again, if he chose to argue.

He tapped his fingers on the communications station, recalling the feel of Mandy’s soft skin and loose curls. Naki women wore their hair up or short, and it ranged in colors all across the rainbow, depending on what planet their families were stationed on. The Naki Empire extended across the galaxy, built after thousands of years of colonization efforts. Inter-breeding with the populations already on the planets had given the race a diverse outward appearance while also allowing the genetic plague to take hold.

Mandy’s hair was a captivating shade of honey, long with wild curls. He’d touched her hair more out of instinct than will before noticing the peachy glow of her skin and her full lips.

It was better that she went to one of his cousins. After their brief interactions, he found himself thinking of her too much already.

The craft docked at the station, and he pulled himself out of his thoughts. Now that the question of his bride was settled, he had more important matters to consider, mainly the trade treaty negotiations with a neighboring solar system. He needed more shards, and they needed the Naki army to help combat their enemies. It was going to be a dicey negotiation, one his father asked him to perform rather than their mother. The war-like Kini were more likely to take a Naki diplomat hostage than they were negotiate.

He moved through the halls to his quarters. He entered and passed the guard in the antechambers, not remembering the human within until he’d crossed half his room.

The human was curled in the middle of
his
bed. Her blonde hair was loose and framed her head. Her skin was pale, and the skin under her eyes red. She’d been crying, her fetal position like that of a child who’d had a nightmare. Her skin was smooth and flawless, her face oval-shaped. The strange aura his mother possessed hung around this human as well, a combination of purity and warmth. Where his mother’s eyes were rich blue like his, Mandy had blue-grey eyes that seemed to change color with her mood. She was tall and slender with a shapely body he found his eyes roving over.

Even in sleep, she was distressed. He leaned over and rested his hand on her forehead. Her skin was soft and warm. He sat on the edge of the bed, entranced again by everything about her. He ran his fingers through her hair. Her breathing deepened, and some of the tension left her frame.

Akkadi’s gaze lingered on her. He hadn’t thought to check her for injuries after her time on the planet but scanned her body visually. She had some scratches on one forearm.

“Send a healer to my quarters,” he whispered, knowing the transmission would be sent through the multi-function device at the base of his neck.

He untangled his fingers from her hair and rose. He’d opened the star gate and discovered the humans. Now, he had to go back to his normal routine: battle with the Ishta, clandestinely supplying Urik with the means to occupy Ishta on the planet and negotiations.

There was no room for Mandy, no matter how enchanting she was.

Akkadi left his quarters for the battle deck. No sooner had he stepped foot when a transmission came in. He strode to the command room and the private communications console in the corner.

“Akkadi.”

He’d heard stories of how barbaric the Kini race was. However, the Kini needed help building ships that didn’t break a part in space, and Akkadi wanted access to their energy stores. He had to find common ground with them.

The image on his screen was of an unkempt man with a bushy beard and uneven teeth. The address was inappropriate for a Naki.

“My king. It is a pleasure to-” Akkadi started.

“When are you coming to the planet?”

“My understanding was –”

“Two days is acceptable,” the Kini king barked. “Bring your best weapons.”

“We do not travel on diplomatic missions with weapons.”

The Kini laughed and closed the communication.

Each race had its quirks when dealing with negotiations. He had a feeling trying to secure an agreement with the Kini would be more of a challenge than normal. Despite this, he logged plans to travel to the Kini home world in two days time.

Akkadi suppressed a sigh, not looking forward to the journey.

Chapter Five

When he returned to his quarters later, he expected to find the human awake or gone. She’d been determined to escape earlier, and he hadn’t locked the doors on the way out. Instead, she was still sleeping, this time in grey clothing provided her by one of his servants. She was clean, stretched out on her stomach, her long legs and rounded bottom drawing his gaze.

He frowned, aware he’d have to trade her off to one of his cousins or find her a new place to stay, probably in the slave quarters. Based on their discussion earlier, he sensed sending her there would involve him in an emotional exchange he didn’t want. He needed some rest after his day, preferably in his own bed, but wasn’t about to provoke an argument with someone whose sense of logic was inferior.

He shook his head. Did he really not want to deal with her, when he negotiated treaties with creatures that had no sense of logic? Or was there something more?

Akkadi started forward to wake her, blaming his exhaustion for the purely human thoughts.  

“Visitor.” The guard at his door told him. The whisper came from the device at the base of Akkadi’s neck and was just loud enough for him to hear. “Hichele.”

Akkadi glanced around, sensing the sight of a woman in his bed wouldn’t go over well with his betrothed. He left his quarters and joined the guard and the Naki woman in the corridor in front of his quarters. He acknowledged her bow with one of his own.

“You have broken protocol,” he chided quietly.

Hichele’s features were bright, marked by the high cheekbones and firm chin of his race. From there, the differences between her and the human in his quarters were pronounced. The Naki race largely took on the characteristics of whichever galaxy or planet they came from. Hichele’s skin was translucent, her hair and eyes blacker than space. The result of the contrast was facial features that looked small and too close together, with no real beauty in them. She stood a few inches shorter than him and was slender in the way of most Nakis.

“Forgive me, my prince,” she said with another bow. “My father informed me of your decision. I came to express my gratitude and assure you I will perform my duty as required.”

Finally
, he almost said aloud. He was at the end of his patience after dealing with emotional humans like his mother, Urik and Mandy.

Akkadi motioned for them to walk down the hallway. Hichele’s hand had been offered to him years before, and he’d refused, claiming it was customary in his family to await the twenty-fifth year or beyond to take a mate. She’d gone to every station he went to, following him around the galaxy, waiting for her chance. If nothing else, Akkadi knew she was loyal. As a Naki, she also maintained the ability to use logic above emotions.

Most importantly, her family had the energy supply Akkadi needed as the head of operations for the human’s planet.

Glancing at her again, he recalled part of the reason he’d folded to his mother’s insistence that he open the star gate first instead of accepting Hichele when he turned twenty-five. He felt nothing for her, and he’d had a moment of human weakness that made him
hope
there was someone more compatible out there. Someone more like his mother, whose affection was out of place in his society but had helped mold ten of the strongest Naki leaders in history.

When he saw Mandy on the planet, he was drawn to her beauty first and her raw human expressions second. He found himself needing to comfort her despite being taken aback by the emotional mess she was. For a split second, he thought she was the mate he was waiting for. Unfamiliar warmth had bloomed within him.

It was that warmth – clearly a sign of human emotion – that made him take a step back and realize what it meant to be with a human like Mandy. It meant he couldn’t be Naki, and being Naki was all he had ever striven to be.

His attention slid back to Hichele. He wasn’t sure how he should regard her, but even basic attraction would be tough with a bride like this. He didn’t want to feel the connection he did with Mandy, and he was certain he could never return Hichele’s apparent happiness about their future together. He took no pleasure in accepting her as his wife. In fact, he felt nothing towards her.

It was beyond her plain looks, though, that kept him from wanting to accept her earlier, for her family was marked by controversy. There were rumblings of deals made to keep her and her sisters from arranged marriages, as was customary for Naki elite. Instead, their wealthy father was said to have paid his way onto the advisory council of Akkadi’s father and use his influence to marry off his daughters to the highest-ranking Nakis he could. Akkadi ignored these rumors; his father ran the same kind of interference for Akkadi’s four sisters, bucking tradition. They were exempt from arranged marriages, waiting instead to discover humans purebred enough to keep their bloodline healthy.

Darker rumors spoke of an intent by Hichele’s family to overthrow the ruling Naki. Akkadi listened to these mutterings, albeit skeptically. His father was smart enough to see what most could not and would never allow it to happen.

The woman beside him was from a wealthy, respected family, one that had tried to marry into the Naki ruling family for generations. He should at least be pleased.

“You understand your duty,” he said. “Produce an heir and raise him or her to the standards of our people.”

“Of course, my prince.”

“Your station will not be an easy one. My mother and sisters spend many days negotiating treaties and representing the noble family to other races and galaxies. They travel a great deal.”

“I will strive to execute my duties with their grace and diplomacy,” Hichele said.

“She will meet with you tomorrow and begin the introductions and instruction of customs that will be required for your new station,” he said. “It is customary for the ceremony to occur three months after the betrothal. I trust this is enough time for your family to prepare.”

“Yes, my prince.”

“Very well.” He said and faced her. “Give your father my most respectful regards.”

Her face glowed. She bowed again and walked away.

Akkadi watched her go, aware that he
did
feel something towards her after all, and it wasn’t what he expected. Hichele said and acted the right way and understood that Nakis valued duty over everything else. As co-leaders, the mates of Naki elite carried numerous responsibilities like the Naki nobles they married. Mates were chosen as much for their bloodlines as their ability to handle difficult negotiations and think on their feet. He should’ve viewed Hichele – largely regarded for her shrewd intellect – as perfect.

But he was dissatisfied instead.

Restless, Akkadi returned to his quarters to find the human awake. She stood before the windows, staring at what was left of her planet after thousands of years at war. His gaze went over her body. A familiar stirring that marked desire spread through him. While he’d never taken a mate, he’d taken consorts to bed. He’d had the choice of any Naki daughter he wanted, and he partook when he felt the need.