Zane (Alien Adoption Agency #4) - Tasha Black Page 0,2

a memory to him now. Though he tried to approach caring for the whelp with the cool dedication of a professional soldier, it was impossible not to grow fond of its strange sounds and expressions of wonder as it discovered the world all around them. Its warm weight on his chest was a comfort he dared not acknowledge out loud. Zane was a warrior. He should have no need of a whelp to console his heart. His heart should be made of iron.

But it was not. The little one had wrapped a chubby fist around his heart, and it felt like it was made of warm melted chocolate now.

He only hoped that the whelp’s new mother would allow him to amuse and nurture the little one when she was busy with other tasks.

If she would not, he supposed the Invicta would still have what they wanted - a soldier willing to give his life to protect a whelp of Imber. A few weeks of unintended bonding had been enough to seal his loyalty forever.

A racket from above distracted him from his thoughts.

“Gods,” Rexx murmured. “I hope the adoption agency didn’t cut corners in other regards.”

Odin made a low, growling sound and wrapped his arms more tightly around his own whelp.

Zane felt sorry for the new mother of that small one.

They all watched as a rickety spacecraft lowered itself nearby, wavy grasses blowing flat under the blast of its thrusters.

A foul-smelling exhaust was spewing from it, and Zane had to fight back the instinct to run for cover with the whelp.

It felt like a trap, like so many of the situations he’d found himself in under active duty on Falnnos. But he had left the dangers of the pirate belt behind in exchange for service on a peaceful frontier. He had to adjust his expectations.

A hatch opened, and workers in bio-suits scrambled out, hastily pitching a decontamination tent.

“Bah,” the whelp said in complete surprise, gazing at the flapping tent in wide-eyed wonder.

“That’s to make sure no one brings in anything bad for the moon,” Zane explained to him.

The whelp chirped like an airlock warning and whacked Zane on top of the head with his little arm.

It was certain that the whelp understood almost nothing that he said. But Zane felt compelled to speak to him anyway. The babes of Imber matured more slowly than dragonets, but one day his words would begin to have meaning for it.

There was a commotion inside the tent and then the flaps flew open to reveal a woman he’d never seen, but who was somehow familiar to him.

She had dark, straight hair and she wore a low-cut swirling gown that was completely at odds with the serious look on her face. She clutched a bag in one hand and something that was either a fighting baton or a walking stick in the other.

As Zane watched, she took two tentative steps, light as a fawn, and her face went soft with wonder.

Something inside him shattered, leaking warmth through his chest until he radiated like a star. From deep within him came one single, unmistakable notion.

Mate…

But that could not be.

Could it?

He watched, gobsmacked, as she marched right up to him, all business now that she had gotten her footing in the slightly lower gravity.

“I’m Sarah,” she said, “Sarah Flynn. Is this my son?”

3

Sarah

Sarah let her gaze rest on the baby. He had large, intelligent eyes and he was nice and sturdy. He would be a tribute to his grandfather.

But it was suspicious that his skin had the same strange coloration as the man who held him.

“Why is he… yellow?” she asked, holding her arms out. “I thought he was from Imber.”

“I am a golden dragon warrior of the Invicta,” the man said calmly, without meeting her eyes. “The people of Imber are known to be very adaptable. This whelp is golden because he has been in my care. My hue has imprinted on him.”

She noticed that he didn’t offer her the baby, even though she was clearly holding her hands out.

“Are you with the Alien Adoption Agency?” Sarah asked suspiciously.

“No,” he replied, sounding surprised. “I’m the baby’s guard.”

“I see,” Sarah said. “Well, I’m his mother. May I hold him?”

“Of course,” he said, meeting her eyes at last.

The intensity of his look nearly caused her to take a step back.

There was something about his bright blue gaze, something almost familiar. But that couldn’t be. She was certain she’d never met anyone like him before. There was very little need