Vareen & Mica (The Alliance Book 2) (15 page)

Mica kept his gaze focused on the judge. He was afraid of Vareen’s
reaction. Risking a look at her he saw that she was struck speechless. Even if
she had tried to talk the crowd was making so much noise it would be hard to
hear her.

He wasn’t being tested, Vareen was
.

“Silence,” the announcer yelled and the voices slowly trickled to a stop.

The judge continued, “There was some concern that you were unable to be a
true chosen mate to Mica. The reasons given at the beginning of this trial were
that you had lost the ability to feel emotions. Not only that, you were not of
Titus and might lack the skills and honor it took to be a good mate.”

As the judge talked Mica tightened his fingers around Vareen’s. Feeling
the need to clarify his position he yelled angrily, “I never had any of those
doubts. I always knew, from the moment I woke up on
The Reliant
that Vareen was meant to be mine. I would face a million
trials to be with her.”

He felt Vareen’s fingers squeeze his in
answer
and turned to see she was gazing at him. Her eyes were burning bright purple.

“Yes,” the judge waved his hand. “You told us all of that at the
beginning of the trial. We still needed to see for ourselves how Vareen Nas
would react.” Looking directly at her the judge announced, “We are very happy
with the results. Vareen Nas has shown ingenuity in getting into your tent.
Strength
of character in her concern for and
helping those on the river. Care for all the clans in her actions, not just the
Jataci. She told the truth even when it might be a detriment to her. She is a
sound tactician, utilizing all available weapons to fight against a threat.
Even fruit and wine when needed.”

The crowd burst into laughter at the reminder of yesterday’s challenge
when Vareen threw food at the guards to slow them down. Mica had been told
about it so often that he could picture it in his mind as well as those
gathered in the stands.

“Vareen Nas of the Jataci,” the judge used Mica’s clan name for the first
time in addressing her and his heart swelled with pride and happiness. “You
have proven that you are the chosen mate to Mica Jataci, heir of Martac Jataci.
Your touch stopped Mica in his valkie haze and your actions have shown again
and again
true
depth of feeling. We, the
judges, don’t require the additional three challenges to
prove
your worthiness.”

The judge nodded to the announcer and Mica stilled knowing what was
coming.

“Temloc Jataci,” the announcer called. “Step forward.”

Vareen swung her head to watch as Temloc strode from his position next to
Martac. Mica was too busy watching Vareen. He couldn’t seem to get enough of
watching her. She was taking everything so calmly.

When Temloc was next to them in front of the judges stand he bowed
slightly and faced the announcer and judges.

“You wished to speak?” The head judge asked.

“Yes.” Temloc turned to him. “I formally rescind my challenge. All of my
previous concerns regarding your chosen mate have been nullified.” After this
statement,
he bowed again and then to Vareen.

At this
news,
the Jataci crowd started
shouting and cheering furiously.

The head judge inclined his head at Temloc. “We accept your request for
withdrawal and hereby decree all remaining trials for the Jataci are
canceled
.”

The announcer held his hands out and called for silence.

When the crowd quieted down the head judge continued. “Today’s trials are
over.”

Cali, Nellia, Dani, and Risenal all rushed to hug Vareen and he was
forced to let go of her hand. He noticed she was laughing with her friends.

Mica was just glad it was over. Trying to keep the fact of the challenge
from Vareen when she’d visited in his tent had been hell. She’d trusted him
enough to declare her love and acceptance of his as a chosen mate and he’d let
her leave without telling her of the dangers. The fact that Temloc had
challenged not his father, or him, but his chosen mate had been a shock.
The worry
for Vareen’s safety had almost driven
him mad. Looking at her again where she stood with her friends, Mica could only
thank the moons that Vareen was his mate.

Drake, Arik, Tae, Dak, and Vathral were all talking to him at once and he
forced himself to pay attention. When he couldn’t take it anymore he pulled
away from his friends.

“I need to speak with Var,” Mica reached her side and bowed to her
friends. “Do you mind if I take Vareen for a moment?” Without waiting for an
answer,
he took her hand and walked away to
find a private spot.

“Sweetheart, are you okay?” Mica wrapped her close to him and enjoyed the
feel of her breath against his chest.

“Yes,
” Vareen answered without
hesitation. “Are you?”

“I wanted to tell you the first night you came to my tent, but I
couldn’t.” Mica turned her face up to his. “In order to satisfy Temloc and the
judges you had to be responding with no idea that it was you being tested. Do
you forgive me?”

“There isn’t anything to forgive. I’m not crazy about the nature of the
trials,” Vareen kissed his chin. “I’m just glad it worked out. Can I ask you
for a favor?”

“Anything,” Mica answered without hesitating.

“Can we go home? I just want a few days alone with you. No visits from
your father, as much as I love him. Just you and me.” Vareen looked up at him
under her lashes.

“I think that can be arranged. We don’t need to be here. My father and
Dani can show our families support for the other leaders during the rest of the
trials. It’s looking as if the other challengers are falling behind and the
leadership should remain the same after this Challenge of Succession. I’m
hoping for my father that the leaders keep their lead over the challengers. The
leadership council as it stands work well together and
are
all great friends.” Mica kissed Vareen tenderly on the top of
her head. “I’ll make the arrangements immediately for a pod to take us to the
teleporting center.”

“We can come back for the last day of dancing and parties if you want,”
Vareen offered.

“Why don’t we see how we feel in a few days.” Mica grabbed her hand and
pulled her toward where their friends, and by this point the other leaders,
were standing.

Mica was happy to be going home. He was worried about Vareen and all the
excitement that she’d been put through. There was also Luna, who he’d been
unable to get any communication on from his cousin while in isolation. Truth be
told, he was just happy that Vareen wanted to be alone with him. He returned
the sentiment and couldn’t wait to get back to Jataci.

Vareen used her elbow and nudged Mica. “It’s your turn to feed Luna.”

Mica groaned dramatically and draped his arm over her waist. “Is there
anything I could do that would convince you to do it?”

“No.” Vareen shook her head adamantly. Pushing more forcefully on his
shoulders. “You’ve talked me into doing it for the last two nights. It’s your
turn to slog that hunk of meat.”

“Please…” Mica rolled over and pulled her over his chest. “Luna has
turned into such a hellion since we got back. Every time I try to throw the
meat into the guest house for her to eat she chases me all the way across the
lawns. I still have the claw marks on my ass from the last time.”

“I’ll never forget the sight you made running from your own pet.” Vareen
broke into laughter, her body shaking against his.

Mica put his fingers against her ribs and wiggled. “I’ll give you
something to laugh about.”

“Not
tickling
.” Vareen rolled away
and tried to crawl across the bed.
Mica’s
full length pressed against her, effectively blocking her escape. “I’ll give
you anything you want. Just no tickling.”

“Anything I want?” Mica pressed his hard arousal against her.

“Yes.” Vareen pushed back against him, her body reacting to the feel of
him behind her.

*****

When they had both caught their breath, Vareen whispered, “You still have
to go feed Luna.”

“Can you come with me and protect me against my crazy cat?”

“I’ll come with you.” Vareen conceded. “Maybe we can do something crazy
under the full moons again.” She was referring to the first night of the dual
full moons. Mica had made love to her under the brightly lit nights’ sky, the
two moons making an ethereal glow.

“Maybe that is what has Luna acting so crazy.” Mica grabbed her and
rolled them both off the bed.

“Maybe.” Vareen thought about the effects the two moons might have on the
ocean tides, the axial tilt of the planet, the length of day, the darkness at
night and the shifting of this
planet's
land masses. It was possible that when the moons did happen to be full at the
same time, which was a rare occurrence, the biological life reacted in a
strange way.

“Or perhaps she sees you as a
threat
while I have no special mojo to scare her,” Vareen teased.

“Special mojo?” Mica handed her a robe.

“Yes. Your abilities might scare her since she’d be unable to defend
against you if you became a threat. Even domesticated animals would have a
primitive fear of a higher predator.”

Mica rubbed his chin thoughtfully, “I never thought of it that way. That
might explain why she refuses to leave her babies at night and has to be hand
fed. She must see threats everywhere now.” They entered the great room and Mica
broke away to head for the kitchen. “I’ll grab Luna’s midnight snack.”

“I’ll start toward the guest house.” Vareen moved through the doors onto
the lawns behind the main house. She knew that Mica was disappointed that his
pet wouldn’t allow him close to her litter. Vareen was sure that it wouldn’t
last much longer. The “cubs” as Mica told her the baby cats were called, were
getting much larger and would be able to start hunting with their mother soon.

Mica joined her on the path and they walked together in comfortable
silence.

They had reached the guest house and Mica frowned. “Here goes nothing.”

Vareen watched from the grass as Mica took the steps cautiously and then
tip-toed to the door. Using the console, he opened the door and from inside
Vareen heard an unholy growling noise.

“Luna, it’s me,” Mica whispered. “Here is some food.”

The growling got louder and you could just hear some faint cries from the
babies. Luna had delivered three cubs. Two boys and one girl. One of the boys
was black with green eyes like his mother. The other boy was
gray
with light blue
eyes
while the female was a frosty white color with blue eyes.

Mica tossed the meat into the room and backed away. Turning triumphantly
to Vareen he smiled, “She didn’t attack me this time.”

“I’m sure that’s a good sign.” Vareen shared Mica’s happiness. He’d been
a grouch ever since Luna refused to let him into the guest house. “Do you think
she’ll start taking them out to hunt soon?”

“We’ve only had to feed her at night, she’s been leaving them during
daylight to find food. I may have to check with an expert to make sure, but I
think she’ll take them out soon. I never learned because I wasn’t expecting to
breed Luna due to her size. She’s so small I was afraid it would harm her.”

“Luna is small?!” Vareen exclaimed. “You’ve got to be kidding.”

“No. She’s considered quite small for her breed. In the
wild,
they are much larger. Possibly due to the
abundance of food, or just that domesticated animals have been bred smaller.
I’m not sure, but Luna is much smaller than any feline I’ve seen.”

Vareen vowed to never wander into the wilds of Titus if what Mica was
saying was true and she had no reason to doubt that it was.

“Wow. I’ll stay close to the inhabited areas of Titus, thank you very
much.”

Mica drew her into his arms, her legs coming off the ground as he swung
her around. “Have you thought about the ending ceremonies and celebration dance?
Tomorrow is the last day if you want to attend.”

Vareen bit her lip thinking. “Is it worth traveling to Metari for the
closing ceremonies? What would we be missing out on?”

Mica put her down and took her hand to walk her toward a hammock set
between two trees. “Well, there are a few things going on tomorrow. The judges
will officially announce the winners of the challenges. In a Challenge of
Succession when there aren’t any
challengers
,
the trials can be entered into by anyone. It’s a good way to test your skills
and there is an award presented at the end. Since this year every clan had a
challenger
, the leadership will have been
decided.”

“Does everyone know who won already?” Vareen stopped at the hammock.

“Pretty much. The consensus is that the leadership isn’t going to be
changed. All of the leaders are ahead of the challengers in this Challenge of
Succession.”

Mica helped her into the hammock and then joined her. The gentle rocking
motion of the swing was very relaxing. After a
moment,
Vareen spoke into the silence.

“I think we should go to show our support for the leadership. Not to
mention that the dancing sounds fun.” Vareen was tucked against Mica’s side,
her fingers rubbing against his bare chest. She never got bored playing with
the slight dusting of hair.

“I’ll make arrangements for travel back to Metari. Just to warn you, the
closing ceremonies are much more crowded and the partying goes well into the
next morning.”

“We can stay as long as you want. I don’t mind the idea of such a big
party, it sounds exciting.”

Mica sighed, “I’ll find someone to feed Luna. We’ll only be gone the one
night so it shouldn’t be too hard.”

“Poor Luna. Have
you
given any
thought on who might make good homes for the cubs?”

“Drake won’t do. He has canines and they don’t get along with felines.”
Mica’s fingers massaged against her arm absentmindedly. “There is Arik, he
hasn’t gotten a canine and might appreciate the companionship of one of the
cubs. Tae lives in a high rise suite in the middle of Takari city and I don’t
think he’d like a pet.
Dak
might work. He
lives in a rural part of Denary. I will ask around at the ceremonies tomorrow.”

“Is it possible to keep one of them?” Vareen asked innocently. She’d been
eyeing the
gray
male with light blue
eyes. Every time she fed Luna that male cub seemed drawn to her and she to him.

Mica’s fingers stilled on her arm, “Why do you ask?” his voice was mildly
curious with a hint of humor.

“Well, if we have enough room I wouldn’t mind keeping one of them. Say,
the
gray
male…”

Mica started shaking and Vareen went up on one elbow to look into his
face. This set the hammock to swinging. “Are you laughing at me?”

“Var. If you want one of the cubs, you don’t have to hesitate to ask.”
Mica’s eyes were turning blue with emotion. “I would never deny you something
so simple. I need to ask you something first.”

“What?”

“Have you thought about what it would mean to bond with a pet and then go
back into
space? If
that’s what you want
to do
for
a living.”

“I’ve been thinking about that,” Vareen admitted softly. “I don’t want to
return
to space duties right away. Not that
I’ve been assigned one anyway. I hope you won’t think less of me, but I want to
take things slowly.”

Mica held her tighter. “Oh, Var. It is impossible for me to think badly
of you. I’ll support whatever you want. As for being assigned a ship, is this a
bad time to tell you that one has been gifted to you by the council?”

“What?” Vareen tried to sit up and the hammock rocked. “I’ve been
given
a spaceship?”

“Yes.” Mica’s voice was thick with emotion. “The Council felt your
contribution to the rescue of the five heirs and the sacrifice you made in
getting
The Reliant
home was worthy
of honoring.”

Vareen was struck speechless. She could only drop her head against Mica’s
shoulder in stunned silence.

“It is the same model as
The Cali,
”
Mica continued when she remained quiet. “You wouldn’t remember being
onboard
since it was after your stay at the
Realignment Center.”

Coming out of her state of shock Vareen asked, “It’s a reconnaissance
ship? One made for exploration?”

“Yes.” Mica’s fingers were lazily caressing her arm. “Are you pleased to
have command of your own vessel?”

“Of course.” Vareen had been worried that Mica would see her decision to
take things slowly as a waste of her talents. Now she was being told that she
had her own ship to command, and when she was finally ready to travel and
explore space she could. Leaning up Vareen kissed Mica in excitement over the
idea of her own command. Then a thought hit her. If she left to explore space
Mica wouldn’t be able to travel with her. He had duties here on Titus and they
would only grow more time consuming for him.

As if sensing her sudden dour thoughts Mica tensed. “Is something wrong?”

Damning his heightened senses, she paused then asked, “Would you be able
to leave Titus and explore with me?”

“I wouldn’t be able to go out with you every time.” Mica’s strong hands
rubbed her back and Vareen felt calmed by the motion. “When you feel the pull
to go explore, I’ll support your decision to go. At some
point,
there might be other things that take
your mind off space travel.”

Vareen heard the note of whimsy and knew where his thoughts had turned.
“Other things?” she asked. “What could possibly compare to the excitement of
scanning a newly discovered Nebula? Or the thrill of classifying a new
lifeform? Or—”

Mica suddenly ran his hands up her ribs and she bit back a startled
giggle at being tickled.

“Are you teasing me? You know I’m speaking of the
cub,” Mica offered exasperated.

“The
cub
?” Vareen had almost
forgotten that is what started this whole conversation. Her desire to keep one
of Luna’s cubs.

“That is what you were thinking of wasn’t it?” Mica’s
confusion
was obvious.

Vareen
stilled. Their talk had certainly
taken a
crazy circle. “I wasn’t thinking about the
cub
,” she admitted. “I was thinking about
children and our home here on Titus.”

 
“When you are ready we’ll have
children.” Mica’s voice held a note of surety that gave Vareen goosebumps.
“Until then, other than space travel, I’m sure there is something here on Titus
that you might enjoy doing. What are your other interests?”

“I love working with and learning about plant life. That is a hobby I
carried over from Cestori.” Vareen paused and then shrugged. “I might try
animal husbandry and/or the study of your animal life. That might be fun.”

“Well, keeping one of Luna’s cubs would be a good start.”

“Are you sure you’re okay with everything?” Vareen felt a surge of
excitement that she could have one of the cubs, captain her own spaceship, and
have a home with Mica.

“Yes. I want you to know that you have choices here on Titus. You are not
going to be pressured into doing anything…except train your new cub. I draw the
line at having that duty.”

“Thank
you,
Mica. I’ll take good
care of him,” Vareen laughed happily. Truly free from pressure in what felt
like years.

“I know you will sweetheart.” Mica kissed her forehead tenderly. “Have
you thought of a name for him?”

“I’d like to get a feel for his personality first, but I was thinking
Smoky or Sterling.”

“Those are both good names. When we get back you should spend more time
with Luna and the cubs, get a feel for him if you want. We both know Luna will
let you closer than me.”

“I love
you,
Mica. Thank you for
being so open to keeping the
cub
.”

“As I said before. I can’t deny you…anything.” Mica’s voice had deepened.

“Anything? Really.” Vareen smiled wickedly. “I’ve been dying to try this
one thing. How sturdy is this hammock?”

She let her fingers trail down his stomach to Mica’s already eager and
willing arousal.