Captured: Warriors of Hir, Book 1 (21 page)

Twenty-three

“I think that’s enough pillows,” Jenna said gently as Ra’kur tucked yet another one between her side and the wooden bench, the orchard of the Erah enclosure warm and fragrant around them.

Zels—the slow-moving bumblebee-like insects of this world—flitted from flower to flower, filling the sunny afternoon with the sound of their humming as Jenna settled back. She tilted her head up to feel the warmth of Hir’s suns on her face, breathing in the sweet fragrance of the cali trees’ purple and white blooms.

There was no keeping this kind of thing quiet and news of her pregnancy had already spread across Hir, but if she thought the clan doted on her before, it was nothing compared to now. She’d beaten the Scourge, she was carrying the first child the Erah clan had in years; she was the hope of an entire race.

She wasn’t even showing and the entire clan was distressed if she even frowned.

That’s probably why he brought her out here today.

“You are worried.”

She fingered the bird charm around her neck as Ra’kur sat next to her. “Of course I am. The ruling council is going to start sending warriors to Earth any day now. I hate that we had to help them at all.”

“I know. But as soon as they seized my ship they began to extrapolate the location of your world. They were going to find it even without my help; it was only a matter of time,” he said, taking her hand in his. “Recall the concessions we were able to force from them in return.”

She nodded dispiritedly. The agreement they’d made with the ruling council gave the warriors who brought women back twenty-nine days to convince them to stay. If the women didn’t agree, if they wanted to go home, they had to be returned to Earth.

It just didn’t feel like they’d done
enough
.

“But now there’s the Purists to deal with,” she pointed out. Doctor Elaran wasn’t alone in his conviction in preventing the g’hir from producing “half-breeds.” Most males were eager to be chosen, a very few so much so that they argued for full-scale invasion of Earth while a small but vocal group calling themselves “Purists” were vehemently opposed to any intermating with humans at all. Certainly Yalar, mother of the two girls, wasn’t happy about a half-human baby stealing some of her children’s thunder at the enclosure—or the possibility of more human females coming to Hir. “And we’re still talking about women being forcibly taken from their homes.”

He brushed her hair away from her eyes gently. “Are you not happy—here—with me, my Jenna?”

“Of course I am. I love you. You know that. And you know I’m gonna give any Purist a right good piece of my mind, but we aren’t talking about me.”

“These women will be given everything they could wish for. They will be honored, cherished—”

“They’ll be kidnapped, terrified, miserable—”

“As you are?” he countered, hurt.

“No, of course I’m not. But I
chose
this.”

“Not at first,” he reminded. “You did not wish to leave your homeworld. You would not have come here at all.”

“At least I knew you! They’re talking about hunting women down like animals!”

“To capture a mate is the g’hir way.”

“The g’hir way,” she said. “Not the human way.”

“The competition to go to your world is fierce. These warriors know how fortunate they are to be chosen. Only one will be permitted to go this time and only a handful have even been deemed worthy to be allowed to in the coming months.” He searched her eyes. “Would you deny it to them? Those who have suffered years upon years of hopeless loneliness?  Who want only another to share their life with? Who long to have a family of their own, as we will have?”

He was right. Doctor Elaran was spending his life at a penal colony for trying to keep this chance from his people and he was lucky to get off so easily in the face of public outrage. These men—these people—had every right to try to survive.

But not at someone else’s expense.

Ra’kur looked toward the distant orchard gate and then stood, waving in greeting to the g’hir warrior there.

“Who’s that?” Jenna asked, standing too as the unfamiliar man started their way.

“I thought you would like to meet the first warrior the ruling council has chosen to voyage to Earth,” Ra’kur said with a nod at him as the man joined them. “This is R’har.”

He was tall, of course, and powerfully built as any of their warriors. His hair was a pale golden blond; his glowing green eyes were good-humored.

And really familiar.

Jenna tilted her head. “I’ve seen you before, haven’t I?”

“Yes, Mata.” R’har inclined his head. “I am of the Yir clan.”

“Sure, I remember you now. You were one of the clanbrothers who escorted Si’hala last time she visited.”

“Yes.” R’har’s eyes positively sparkled with anticipation. “And I am deeply honored to be chosen to seek my own mate among your kind.”

“Yeah,” Jenna murmured. Maybe she was wrong to worry about this, maybe the human woman that got R’har would consider herself lucky as hell. The ruling council had certainly chosen the first warrior well: he was intelligent, mannerly, and some kinda gorgeous.

“The council has given me only a single moon cycle to convince a female to be become my lifemate. I know I must choose a remote area, that I must remain clandestine in my search. I have studied all the information they gave me but I have come to beg for your wisdom.” He tilted his head. “Have you any further guidance for me, Mata? To call a human female to me?”

Jenna shifted her weight. “Uh, you know, I don’t know how much they emphasized this but you really want to hold off on the mating roar. You’ll probably just frighten her.”

R’har blinked and a rush of concern filled his green eyes. “
Frighten
her?”

“Look, whoever she is,
I can promise she won’t have seen an alien before. She won’t know what you are. Think of human females as delicate, fragile things.” Jenna laid her hand on his arm. “Things that don’t really like getting roared at.”

He looked genuinely worried now. “How do I call her to me then? My chosen one?”

“Just be gentle and kind to her.” Jenna gave an impish grin. “Oh, and don’t hold back on the mating-rumble thing. That’s definitely a winner.”

“But how can I make her love me?” he asked. “I have only a short time to convince her to be mate-bound to me.”

“Well, that I can’t tell you, R’har, even if you were human yourself.” She patted his arm. “It’s okay. You’ll figure it out.”

She met Ra’kur’s radiant blue gaze resting lovingly on her and she smiled. “And remember, just because she’s not expecting you, doesn’t mean you aren’t exactly what she’s been looking for all along.”

Book 2: Warriors of Hir Series

Taken

Hope MacGowan is a city girl but reeling from a break-up on top of a layoff has her determined to have a weekend away in the North Carolina mountains—even if all her friends have bailed at the last minute. Hope’s life is one big train-wreck and getting kidnapped by a tall, blond alien—even a gorgeous one—sure isn’t helping.

R’har crossed the galaxy to seek a mate on this newly discovered world and this delicate red-haired female is everything he’s dreamed of—except happy to find herself mated to him. R’har knows in his heart he’s her true mate, even if he’s not human. But taking her doesn’t mean he can keep her and somehow he has to convince Hope to choose him before time runs out . . .

Available Winter 2014

Acknowledgments

M
any thanks to my editor, Erin McCabe. Working with her is always a joy!

Thanks to my cover designer Steven James Catizone for your talent and, especially, your patience.

Thank you to everyone who supported and encouraged me and, most of all, to my family.

Willow Danes

Willo
w Danes is the pen name of a mother of two and hopeless romantic who lives in the Southern United States. 

She loves all genres of Romance but especially Sci-fi, Paranormal and Historical.