Chapter 3 Jasmine
Jasmine
There was a Vandar inside my bakery.
That was the only coherent thought my brain could manage as I stared at him, my hands still buried in dough and my breath snagged in my throat.
I'd never seen a Vandar in real life before.
We'd all heard the stories of the raids, the violence, the savage warriors who fought the Empire with a brutality that matched their reputation. It was rumored that they were more dangerous than someone who’d gone night-season mad.
But stories were just words, and words could never have prepared me for the reality of this. Of him.
The warrior was massive. Easily seven feet tall, maybe more, with shoulders so broad he'd had to turn slightly to fit through my doorway.
I would have sworn he was human, if not for the long tail swinging behind him that was tufted with dark fur.
His skin was bronze, marked with swirling black tattoos that covered his bare chest and disappeared beneath the silver fur cloak that hugged his shoulders and hung open.
The fur was the only concession he'd made to the cold or indication that he’d been outside.
Only the tops of his thighs were covered, and even then merely with hanging straps of leather that revealed muscled legs that could have kicked through a wall.
Heavy boots encased his feet, and were, by far, the most practical thing about his outfit.
Aside from the curved axe strapped to his back.
But it was his eyes that snatched my breath.
They should have been as black as his tightly braided hair, his tattoos, or the scruff on his cheeks.
But they weren’t. They were golden, but not the gold of sunshine.
They were molten and intense, like looking into the heart of a roiling star.
They locked onto mine with an intensity that made my knees wobble and my heart race.
I hated it. I hated the way my pulse jumped, the way heat flooded my face, and the fact that I couldn’t look away. That I didn’t want to.
Someone nudged me, and I realized it was Kaya. On my other side, Brielle had backed up several steps and would soon vanish through the doorway.
I snapped from my trance with a mental shake. This was ridiculous. He was just a soldier. A very large, scary, barely dressed soldier who'd invaded my bakery before dawn, but just a soldier. I was used to soldiers.
"What do you want?" My voice came out sharper than I'd intended, but I didn't regret the edge to it.
He blinked, and the heat of his gaze broke as he looked away from me. His eyes swept the bakery, taking in the cooling racks lined with fresh bread and the baskets waiting to be filled. He then crossed to the counter where we'd arranged the morning's first batch.
He picked up a rustic wheat loaf, lifting it to his nose. His eyes closed briefly as he inhaled, and the tautness in his face softened. Then those golden eyes opened and fixed on me once more, and I felt that unsettling tug again, as if gravity had shifted and he was the center.
I hated it. Hated him for making me feel off-balance in my own space. Hated myself for the way my stupid heart constricted.
“You have to buy that now," I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest.
He nodded, the movement slow and deliberate. But before he could speak, Kaya stepped forward, her voice bright and pleasant in a way that I knew was completely calculated.
"It's on the house," she said quickly, shooting me a warning glance. "Welcome to Lexxona."
I turned to glare at her, hoping that my sharp look would remind her that we couldn't afford to give away bread, alliance or not, but then I caught the slight tightening around her mouth that meant she was managing a situation.
Of course. These were the aliens who would be protecting us from now on. Antagonizing one would be monumentally stupid.
On the surface Kaya was an incorrigible flirt, but I knew better than anyone that beneath the giggles and sweet smiles was a woman who was constantly reading a room, always looking for the best angle.
The Vandar studied Kaya for a moment, then turned his attention to me. His tail had stopped twitching.
"Thank you," he said, his voice deep but not as gruff as I'd expected. It was almost a purr, and it sent an unwanted shiver down my spine that I tried desperately to suppress.
His command of the common tongue was better than I'd anticipated. The stories made the Vandar sound like barbarians who could barely grunt, but this one’s words were measured and calm, almost a caress.
I managed a stiff nod, not trusting myself to speak.
He inclined his head and turned toward the door. Despite his size, despite the axe glinting on his back, despite the reputation of the Vandar, I knew he wasn't a berserker or a barbarian. This was a disciplined warrior. Somehow, that made him more dangerous, not less.
The door closed behind him with a muffled ting of bells, and I finally allowed myself to exhale. My hands were shaking so I shoved them back into the dough, needing something to do with them, needing the familiar comfort of the work.
"Next time you want to pick a fight with a Vandar," Kaya said dryly, tapping one foot on the floor, “pick a smaller one.”
“I wasn't picking a fight." But even as I said it, I knew it was a lie. I'd been antagonistic from the moment I'd opened my mouth, unable to help myself.
"You told a Vandar he had to pay for bread.” Brielle emerged from the doorway, her voice steadier than I'd expected. "While glaring at him like he'd personally insulted, well, one of us.”
I worked the dough harder than necessary, the rhythm helping to calm my spiking pulse. "The Vandar are raiders. Just because the colonial council made a deal with them doesn't mean they’re our friends.”
"There's a difference between being besties and provoking someone,” Kaya said.
I was about to argue that I hadn’t been trying to provoke anyone, but my sisters were right.
I’d been uneasy about the alliance with the Vandar from the moment the colony leaders had announced it.
“Everything has a price. If the Vandar are protecting us from the Empire, what are we giving them in return? "
"Whatever it is," Kaya said finally, "we'll deal with it. We always do. And right now, the Vandar are keeping the Imperial soldiers away, which means we can breathe a little easier and pay less tribute. Besides, the hot aliens will be gone soon enough anyway."
I groaned at my sister while Brielle laughed. “They are not hot.”
Kaya held up her hands. “Maybe your eyes aren’t working properly, but the Vandar who just left was hotter than our bread ovens.”
I rolled my eyes, unwilling to admit how much I agreed with Kaya, but before we could continue our debate, the bell over the door chimed again.
I tensed, half-expecting the Vandar to return, but the figure that stepped through the door was smaller, bundled in a heavy cloak against the cold.
She stamped her feet and rubbed her hands together, the fog of her breath evaporating in the warm air of the bakery.
Then she threw back her hood, and I sighed with relief to see that it was Skye, my best friend and one of my fellow resistance collaborators.
She put her hands on her hips and leveled her gaze at each of us in turn. “Did I just see a huge Vandar walk out with a loaf of bread?"