The Alien King's Desire, page 14
Atlanta: No. My duty is with the security company. When will you make the announcement?
It wasn’t her business, but her heart wanted to know.
Melisizwe: Soon.
She disconnected the line and traveled the remainder of the distance with a heavy heart.
When she arrived at Payton’s office it was to find her sitting behind a desk with her feet up and arms bent behind her head. Today there were seven braids in her hair, large and small, and the they all seemed to be pointed in different directions.
“Come on in. I’m glad you came. The boredom was getting to me.”
“Why not leave and do something else with your time?” Lanta made her way into a room that was bigger than her apartment on Luur. It was decorated like much of the other rooms in the palace: luxuriously.
“I can’t leave. Not yet anyway. Themba makes me spend a few hours a day in here. Something about seeing to my official palace duties.”
Lanta noticed she was dressed more formally today. Payton had on a burgundy and black one-piece outfit that looked more expensive than a month’s salary. The small jewels lining the collar assured Lanta of that.
“I think the guys gave me and Chikondi all the duties they didn’t want to do themselves.” Payton leaned forward and picked up a small disk, then squinted as she read it. “I’m supposed to oversee a dispute between two rival manufacturing companies. One thinks the other has gotten ahold of proprietary information.” She waved her hand toward one of the empty chairs. “Sit.”
Lanta sat in one of the seats offered. “It seems your mate is trying to acclimate you into his society. It is a good thing. To be accepted as one of their own.”
“When I first came here, I wasn’t sure if I would fit in or if anyone would accept me. But that wasn’t the case. I’m glad for it.” She gave Lanta a pointed look. “What about you? Was it hard fitting in with the Oncuns?”
Lanta tried not to scowl. Oncuns didn’t scowl. “It was difficult. At first. But after…” She didn’t want to say that after her mother died it got better, because that wouldn’t come out right at all. “My mother doted on me. That made things hard because Oncuns don’t normally show signs of affection. Then…later…when I didn’t have anyone encouraging me to laugh or cry, I was better able to fit in.”
“Well, ah, that sounds, um…”
“That’s one of the reasons why I decided to visit you.” Lanta fisted her hands in her lap. “I’d had my emotions under control for a very long time, but since meeting you, they’ve been much harder to rein in.”
Both of Payton’s eyebrows ticked upward. “Controlling your emotions? You seem to do a good job at that to me. I have no clue how you’re able to stand so still and stone-faced all the time. I wouldn’t be able to do it. I would have so many phantom itches; my nose, my ear, I’d want to scratch my scalp.” Payton touched and scratched everywhere she’d mentioned. “See? I wouldn’t be good at it.”
“I didn’t have a choice. The Oncuns don’t like to express emotion.” She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth then let out a sigh. “They’re…different from a lot of species. I’m very lucky they decided to let us stay with them. The decision wasn’t made lightly on their part.”
“They don’t express emotion? I’ve watched your partner and I don’t think she’s ever cracked a smile.”
“Most people think they don’t express emotion because they can’t. That’s not true. They can. The problem is that emotional stimuli makes them uncomfortable. Mentally. They have a hard time expressing their feelings, but I know I’m cared for and loved. I’ve never doubted that.”
“And how long have you had to rein in your emotions?”
“All my life.”
Payton made a pitying face.
Lanta straightened, raising her chin higher. “It was necessary to fit in. But I was…am appreciative of Aunt Varlah and her help. Without her my mom might’ve died on that research vessel and I might’ve ended up as a test subject as well.”
“Your aunt? I thought it was just you and your mom?”
“She was the one who saved my mom and later adopted me. She isn’t related by blood, but that’s what I’ve called her all my life.”
“Your mom must’ve thought highly of her. It’s common for human women to have their kids refer to their close friends as ‘Aunt.’ It’s done out of love and respect.”
Her mom and Aunt Varlah didn’t always get along, especially when it came to Lanta’s upbringing, but there was mutual respect there, and her mother owed Varlah her life.
“Do you mind if I ask you about human, er, I mean, about our emotions specifically?”
“Shoot.”
Lanta glanced over her shoulder then, frowning, she patted the sides of her belt where she would normally keep her blasters. “I don’t have my weapons, but even if I did, what would you want me to shoot?”
Payton chuckled. “Sorry. I’m still trying to get used to not using idioms when I speak. It’s confusing the hell out of everyone around here. I meant, ask me what you want.”
Lanta tilted her head to the side. “That is a human way of speaking?”
“Not all humans. Mostly Americans.”
Questions, different ones that had led her to Payton’s office were formulating in Lanta’s mind. She must’ve done a poor job of hiding her excitement, because Payton said, “I can tell you all about that later. Go ahead and ask me your original question. Unless you want to talk about human speech patterns more? I mean, I have a few hours to spare.”
The topic did interest her, but so did all things human. Lanta gave her head a shake. “I don’t have a lot of time. I’m on guard duty once Una returns to the suite.”
“We don’t have to answer all your questions right now. Tell me what’s going on with your emotions and I can help you try to figure them out.”
Lanta scooted to the edge of her chair. “Before meeting you, when I saw an attractive male, I would make a mental note of it, but otherwise none would be the wiser. Now.” She furrowed her brows, searching for the right words. “Now I’m overcome with emotions, and I can’t stop thinking of him. During the day I have…thoughts, fantasies, and at night I dream about him.’
“This is getting juicy. Go on.”
Lanta wanted to ask Payton about her use of “juicy”, but figured it was another of her words that had a different meaning and dismissed the question. “Whenever I see him my stomach twists and turns. It hurts to breathe. My heart feels like it might explode. I can’t think and my decisions aren’t appropriate. Bad choices are being made. Did this happen because I’m in close proximity with another human—you? I might be leaving soon. Will I return to normal then? Will distance help to normalize me? Is there a way to make these feelings stop?”
Payton stared at her, unblinkingly, for a minute. “Wow. That wasn’t the question I was expecting. So, um, yeah. I have nothing to do with what you’re going through. What you’re describing sounds more like a crush.”
“Crush? I’ve crushed something?”
That sounded right. Lanta had obviously crushed and broken something in her body. Maybe in her chest or abdomen? Those were the organs that seemed most affected by this phenomenon.
Payton shook her head and let out a heavy sigh. “I have really got to get better at this. No, I mean, the feelings you’re describing, back on Earth it would be called a crush. It’s just an influx of emotions you experience when you’re attracted to someone.”
That made her happy. Not that she was experiencing it, but because it had a name and didn’t imply she needed to have a medic fix her. Having a name somehow made it feel normal, like she wasn’t broken,
Crush.
“How might I turn this influx of emotions off?”
“If I knew how to do that, I wouldn’t have made half the mistakes that I made in the past with my ex.” Payton chuckled and shook her head. “It usually has to run its course. Sometimes the guy does something that turns you off—not literally, that means they do something that you don’t like and it kills all feelings for them—or the crush turns into something more. Love.”
Lanta thought about that. What could Melis do to turn her off? Hm, she didn’t know how he had turned her on, so that was a mystery.
Love? She wasn’t as naïve to believe that Melis could ever love her. For some reason they were intrigued with one another and had acted recklessly, but it wouldn’t lead to something as permanent as love.
“Um, so, who is the lucky guy? You said all these feelings started when you met me—I’m not the cause of that, by the way, it’s just a coincidence—so whoever it is must be on Ipakethe.”
Heat burned Lanta’s cheeks. Whenever she was embarrassed, her face flushed with a red undertone she couldn’t hide. No matter how hard she worked at controlling her facial expressions that was one she couldn’t do anything about. “No one.”
Payton let out a cackle. “Yeah, right. Tell me.”
Could she? No. If it ever got out her career would end and she’d just gotten it back on track. “Someone from the waitstaff.” She hated to lie but the truth would do more damage.
“Oh, really? What’s his name? I can put in a good word for you.”
Lanta cocked her head to the side. “What word is better than the rest?”
Payton scrubbed her hand down her face. “Name. Please.”
“I-I don’t know it.”
“Hm, I wonder if I can figure this out by cross-referencing everyone who worked the same shifts that you were on princess duty.” Payton tapped the top of her desk and the hologram projected. The command screen flickered to life. “I’m going to warn you though. The Ngonyamas like to play in and braid hair. As soon as you hook up with one you’ll be walking around here with crazy-ass braids going every which way.”
Lanta put up a hand. She’d told the lie because it was better than admitting the truth. She didn’t want to dig herself deeper and deeper into it. “Stop. Really. I’m embarrassed by this all. I’m not going to act on this feeling. I’ll just have to control it as best as I can until our job here is done. Then I’ll leave and never see him again.”
Payton swiped virtual employee files. “I just suddenly became depressed for you. You’re here. You have some free time. Why not enjoy a little of it?”
“I can’t. If I engage in any unbecoming activities while on duty, I’ll get fired and my aunt’s business might be affected.”
“Not even a little secret rendezvous?” Payton leaned forward. “Is it the whole two cocks thing? I can promise you it isn’t as scary as it seems. You can make it work. You and your waiter guy would be fine to bump uglies, I mean, have sex.”
Lanta felt the heat rushing up her neck and spreading across her face again.
“TMI. Sorry,” Payton said quickly.
“I-I’ve never had sex—”
Payton’s eyes grew wide. “Oh my God! You’re a virgin?”
“What? No. I was going to say that I’ve never had sex with anyone I wasn’t compatible with sexually.”
“We’re compatible with the Ngonyamas. We have two holes and they have two cocks…”
Lanta dropped her face into her hands. The embarrassment was overwhelming. “I read in the files that humans sometimes used their anal cavity for sexual pleasure. I didn’t believe it. The Oncuns would never think of such a thing.”
“Girl, if your sexual experience is tied to the Oncuns I feel sorry for you. Those people don’t strike me as being sexually progressive. And what you read in the files?” She humphed. “Most of that is bullcrap. Themba showed me a file he’d been given in The Hunt titled, Getting to know your human prey. I don’t know who wrote it or in what century, but it’s wrong. My advice? Experiment. See what you like and what you don’t like. And what better start than with this Ngonyama that you have feelings for?”
Lanta dropped her hands and slumped. “I couldn’t.”
“Why not? You’re not a virgin. You’re single. Live a little. You deserve it, Lanta.”
Experiment? Could she? “I’ve only had sex once and it wasn’t really good. I don’t know if I necessarily want to partake in that activity again.”
Payton dropped her head to her desk and groaned.
“Did I say something wrong?”
“So much work to do and so little time.” Payton groaned again. She finally lifted her head. “This might sound weird, but please, for all things holy, let me find you someone to experiment with. I’ll ask around. It doesn’t have to involve feelings. It’ll just be a way to…”
“I want to try again with a human. A human would better understand my feelings and emotions. Preferably one who has more experience than I have.”
“Do you know any human men you can make this request to?”
Lanta shook her head.
“Lanta, you can have all that and more with the right partner. Human or not.”
“And Themba is the right partner for you.”
“I love Themba and he loves me. I would love him no matter what species he was.”
Love. That word again.
“If you had a choice between mating Themba or a human, would you still have chosen Themba?”
“I would choose Themba a hundred times over. He’s my true lifemate. The person I’ll be with in this world and the next. Our souls are connected.”
“I didn’t know humans believed in true lifemates.”
“We don’t until we find ours.” She let out a sigh. “Lanta, despite where or how you grew up, you aren’t Oncun. You’re human and you’re meant to show, express and receive love. Take my advice. Don’t fight this feeling you have with the waiter. See where it leads you. It may be a fling or it may turn into something more meaningful.”
Chapter Thirteen
“A match with Princess Lu would be beneficial. Her family has many valuable allies with the major shipping companies. That could net us a discount on goods we hope to export off-world.” Imgin tapped his fingers on the conference table to the beat of a familiar musical composition. “Yes, we could benefit greatly with an alliance with her.”
Melis held in his surprise. When he’d first told Imgin of his plan to take an off-worlder as a mate, he’d objected—loudly. He believed in the old ways of doing things and hadn’t wanted to bring an outsider to such a high position in the royal court. While there were off-worlders who lived on Ipakethe within the bu Kumkani Kingdom borders, Imgin didn’t trust them to have Ipakethe as a priority.
If he could convince Imgin of the benefits of an off-world alliance, Melis might have a chance convincing the Kgosis from the other kingdoms.
“Hm,” Hamend studied the holo-pictures projected above the conference table. “I like Bienke for the position of Queen. She’s poised, knowledgeable and her family has wealth—enough to buy their seat on the governing body of the AC-141 XM3 sector. They own the only pleasure planet worth mentioning in this sector.”
Mxolisi chuckled. “Chikondi and I are on the waitlist for a visit. It’s a year-long wait. Maybe if Melis takes her as a mate we can get bumped up.”
“All the females invited have wealth, influence and proper allies. The Kgosi will need to pick someone he’s most compatible with, and who he doesn’t mind spending the rest of his life and having children with.” Themba turned to Melis. “You should have some idea by now, who you wouldn’t mind by your side?”
Melis did have an idea. In fact, he’d had it since first laying eyes on her.
“Kgosi?” Themba asked, when he didn’t respond.
With all eyes on him, Melis cleared his throat and peered at the holo-pictures. Themba was right. He’d chosen each and every one of the females because they could bring to Ipakethe something his planet lacked. He hadn’t chosen any of them for their appearance. Some of them were beautiful and some were plain. Some he found the conversation easy going and invigorating and others he would rather stick swords in his ears than talk to.
“Kgosi?” Themba asked again.
“I haven’t made a final decision yet. I’ll have to cull the group and focus on the candidates I’m leaning towards.” Something he should’ve done well before now, but he’d been procrastinating. Melis reached up and touched Sira’s holo-picture, and as he did a checkmark appeared across her face. “She can stay.”
He repeated the same with Bienke, and Lu. He then looked at Una’s picture. Hers didn’t have a checkmark. She was the reason why he hadn’t done this sooner. When she left Ipakethe, so would Lanta.
While Una was beautiful in her own right, he couldn’t bear to think of spending any more time than necessary with her. She was childish, immature and selfish to the point where it was embarrassing. Her family had powerful allies, but it wasn’t worth the headache bonding with her would bring. She wasn’t going to be his queen.
“The decision has been made,” Themba announced to the small table of advisors. “We can send the others home. We’ll have to do it tactfully though. We want to capitalize on the alliances, albeit fragile as they are, we’ve made so far.”
“How should we break the news to them?” Mxolisi asked.
“Delicately,” Themba said. “In the meantime, I’ll contact security and have their accesses revoked to certain parts of the palace.” Themba pushed his comlink. “Enne?”
The best thing Melis could do for Ipakethe was send Una home and Lanta with her. At least then he might forget about Lanta and focus on what was best for his kingdom and planet.
She’s my true lifemate.
And she was beautiful. Smart. Easy to talk to. With her he wasn’t just a Kgosi, he was himself.
Every molecule in his body screamed for her.
“Wait.”
Being around her was wreaking havoc on his life. His body. His soul.
Themba turned to look at him. Melis took a deep breath.
Let Lanta go.
Instead he reached up and tapped Princess Una’s picture and a checkmark appeared.
Never.
* * *
Atlanta: You’re sending some of the guests home.
