Chapter 11
Lift Off
Darren’s personal comm pinged, the alert flashing the ID of one of the females. He didn’t hesitate. The females’ safety came before everything else. He signaled to his brothers and headed for her cabin.
“You can meet them. They’re all pretty,” he told them as they walked. “But hands off my mate.”
“As if I care,” huffed Lero.
“Which one is your mate?” asked Blayze who trailed after them.
“The redhead. She’s mine.”
“In your dreams, bro.” Lero again, with a heavy dose of cynicism. “The females are for the Ohirins.”
And they needed to know the ship’s procedures before lift-off. Better to handle this now than deal with panic later.
Lero grumbled under his breath, clearly irritated at having his routine on Ohiri interrupted. Blayze, the youngest, bounced along with his usual optimism, taking everything in his stride. Darren ignored Lero’s mood. They had a duty, and he would see it done.
He knocked on the first door. No answer. The second slid open, revealing the yellow-haired female — Nayli, if he remembered correctly, the one who’d messaged him. All three women were inside.
“You called me,” he said, standing in the doorway. “How can we be of assistance?”
Her gaze flicked to Lero, then Blayze, then back to him. “Come in,” she said and stepped back.
They entered, scanning automatically for threats.
The black-haired one lounged on the bed, arms folded, watching them with sharp interest. The red-haired one — Aelanna — sat on the sofa hugging a pillow, looking dazed.
He hoped she wasn’t having second thoughts.
Not now. Not when Joel and the bridge crew were preparing for lift-off.
“How do you turn the water for the shower on?” the yellow-haired one asked.
That was it? Relief loosened his shoulders. For a moment, he’d feared something serious — like they had changed their minds and wanted to get off the ship.
“You step into the cubicle,” he explained evenly. “It activates automatically. Step out, and it turns off.”
She smiled, then flicked a glance at Blayze. “Of course it does. And I bet you don’t have towels either — just hot air that blows us dry.” She aimed the comment at Blayze, who flushed high on his cheekbones. With his bluish tint, she probably didn’t notice.
Darren inclined his head. “Correct. Would you like to meet my brothers?”
All three women perked up, but his female hadn’t released her tension, he noticed. He gestured at each in turn. “This is Lero, and this is Blayze.”
His brothers bowed. Darren added, belatedly, “I’m Darren.”
Son of a lizard! He’d nearly forgotten his own name.
“Presumably you have names?” Lero asked, tone clipped and superior.
The black-haired one shot off the bed and marched right up to him, chin lifted. Not intimidated in the slightest.
“We do,” she snapped. “I’m Kora. That one is Aelanna, and that is Taylor — but call her Nayli.” She pointed first at the red-haired beauty, then at the yellow-haired one by the door. “Our family names won’t help you right now.”
Aelanna. His mate. The sound, like a gurgling brook, melted his insides.
Suddenly unnerved, he cleared his throat. “We’re about to take off. The water won’t work until we reach cruising speed.”
A warning tone pulsed through the cabin.
“What is it?” Nayli asked, eyes widening. The women exchanged glances, then looked to him.
“Take-off warning,” he said. “You should secure yourselves. Afterward, I’ll escort you to the diner. My brothers will check on the others. I’ll wait outside.”
“We don’t know how,” Kora said.
His brothers slipped out, but Darren stayed and showed them the straps on the seats and bed. The system was straightforward — touch-activated, self-adjusting.
Kora flopped onto the bed with dramatic flair. “I’m taking your bed, Nayli.”
He secured Nayli on the sofa, then turned to Aelanna.
She sat quietly, hands folded, eyes down.
When he leaned over her to fasten the belt, her scent rose to meet him, captivating, and devastating.
His body reacted instantly. He trembled, swallowing hard.
She avoided his gaze, but he felt her awareness like a pulse between them.
He stepped back quickly. Too much. Too close. How was he supposed to survive days of this? Longing he couldn’t act on?
He stared at the wall. “You should strap in when you hear the warning. It will sound again before we enter a wormhole for an FTL jump, and for landing and take-off. Are your belongings secure?”
Can you hear yourself? You sound like a training manual.
“What’s FTL?” Kora asked.
“Faster than light.”
“What about you?” Aelanna asked softly.
Her voice — small, uncertain — hit him square in the chest. She looked up at him with anxious blue eyes, and his mind blanked.
“I’ll… I’ll find a seat in the corridor.”
“Can’t you stay here?” Nayli asked, patting the empty space beside her. “You can answer our questions. Girls? Do we want our personal bodyguard to stay?”
He shouldn’t stay. It was improper. Too intimate. But leaving them alone felt wrong too. The warning chimed again. Time was running out.
He met Aelanna’s eyes. She looked down quickly, twisting her fingers.
“If you’re sure,” he said.
Nayli beamed. “Sure!” She patted the cushion again.
He sat beside her, grateful for the barrier she provided between him and the human he could barely keep his hands off.
Aelanna suddenly gasped. “I left my bag open on my bed. Should I have done that?”
The third warning sounded.
Darren was already unbuckled and striding for the door.
The cabin door slid open before he reached it.
The corridor lights shifted from sunset red to light amber as the third chime echoed through the cabin.
He sprinted the short distance to Aelanna’s room, pulled the loose bag on her bed to him, closed it, and slung it over his shoulder.
The ship’s engines rumbled beneath his feet, low, steady, gathering power.
He returned to the cabin just as the floor vibrated with the first deep thrum of the lift engines. The females looked up at him, wide-eyed.
Clutching the bag tightly by the handle, he shut the door behind him. “Straps stay fastened until I say otherwise.”
The ship shuddered, a rising growl reverberating through the walls. Darren braced a hand on the bulkhead. He’d done this a thousand times, but — bless the dimming — the females had not and their fear tugged at instincts he hadn’t known were still sharp.
He crossed the room and secured Aelanna’s bag beside her. She gave him a small, grateful nod.
The engines roared, and the artificial gravity wavered. Nayli gasped as the sofa jolted. Darren dropped into the empty space beside her, gripping the edge with one hand and bracing his boots wide, as he strapped himself in.
“Is it supposed to do that?” Nayli asked, voice tight.
“Yes,” he said. “This is normal.”
The ship lurched upward, pressing them into their seats. Kora swore from the bed. Aelanna’s fingers clenched around her straps, knuckles white.
Darren forced his voice calm. “The worst part is the first twenty seconds, until the legs retract.”
The cabin lights flickered. Aelanna sucked in a breath. He felt it — felt her fear like a pulse in the air. His body responded before his mind caught up.
He reached out. Over Nayli.
Stopped himself.
Orders. Protocol. Distance.
But Aelanna’s eyes lifted to his — blue, bright, searching — and something inside him snapped taut.
“You’re all right,” he said quietly. “I’m here.”
She relaxed, just a fraction, but he saw it.
The ship surged again, a powerful upward thrust that rattled the fixtures. Nayli let out a startled laugh. “Feels like a rollercoaster.”
Kora barked a laugh of her own. “Feels like death.”
Darren almost smiled. Almost.
The engines shifted pitch — higher, smoother — as they broke through the last layer of atmospheric drag. The pressure on his chest eased. The vibrations softened and there was a decisive clunk beneath them.
“Legs retracted,” he said. “Stabilizing now.”
The amber cabin lights faded back to sunset red, then to violet. The straps loosened automatically, though he didn’t move. Not yet. Not until he was sure they were steady.
Aelanna exhaled shakily, her shoulders dropping. She looked at him again — really looked — and something warm flickered in her expression.
He swallowed hard.
“Is it always like that?” she asked softly.
“No,” he said. “Sometimes it’s worse.”
Her lips twitched. “That’s not reassuring.”
“It wasn’t meant to be funny,” he said, but the corners of his mouth curved in a reluctant smile.
The ship hummed into a smooth glide. The worst was over.
“You can unbuckle,” he said.
Kora sprang up immediately. Nayli stretched her arms overhead. Aelanna moved more cautiously, fingers trembling as she touched the release.
Darren stood to help her but stopped himself again. He couldn’t keep reaching for her like this. Not when he wasn’t allowed to touch. Not when the bond tugged at him like a live wire.
Still, he hovered close enough that if she stumbled, he’d catch her, but she rose gracefully, smoothing her hair, and gave him a shy, devastating smile.
“Thank you,” she murmured.
His heart slammed against his ribs.
“We’ll head to the diner. Your bodies need time to adjust.”
Kora clapped her hands. “Food. Finally.”
Nayli grinned. “Lead the way, personal bodyguard.”
Aelanna said nothing, but her gaze lingered on him as she moved to the door.
He followed them out, pulse still unsteady.
By flaming Yithir, he was in trouble.
The corridor outside the cabin hummed with the steady throb of the engines, the ship settling into its post–take-off rhythm.
Darren stepped out first, scanning automatically.
Clear. Quiet. The females followed, blinking against the rosy ambience after the near dark of Nayli’s purple and silver cabin.
Kora strode ahead like she owned the corridor. Nayli drifted beside him, curious and bright. Aelanna stayed close behind — close enough that he could feel her presence like a warm pulse at his back.
Blayze and Lero waited at the junction, both straightening when the women appeared.
Kora’s gaze locked onto Lero immediately.
Lero tensed even more, if that was possible.
Ah. So that was how it was going to be.
Kora planted her hands on her hips. “You look less grumpy now. Did someone feed you?”
Lero blinked, taken aback. “I am not grumpy.”
“You are absolutely grumpy,” she said, breezing past him. “It’s practically your aura.”
Blayze snorted. Lero shot him a murderous look.
Darren hid a smile. Barely. He hoped the friendships with the females would take the brothers’ minds off the loss of their planet, if only for a short time.
Nayli drifted toward Blayze, who straightened like a startled cadet. She reached out and brushed a bit of lint off his shoulder—absent, caring, instinctive.
“There,” she said. “You look more official now.”
Blayze froze; he went rigid. His ears flushed a deep purple.
“Th-thank you,” he managed.
Nayli grinned at him, oblivious to the effect she’d had.
Aelanna crept to Darren’s side. He forced himself to relax, adjusted his pace to match hers without thinking.
He mustn’t show his powerful attraction to her, he felt, even more so, their grief over the loss of their planet.
It would dampen the easy mood between these females and the brothers to tell them the tragedy of Planet Dhelta.
It would serve no purpose, and he’d keep the focus on her for the time being.
“Are you feeling steady?” he asked quietly.
She nodded. “A little light-headed, but… better now.”
Better now. Because he was here? Or because the ship had stabilized? He didn’t dare ask.
They reached the elevator.
Nayli looked around her. “Where are the others?
“The others?”
She frowned in confusion. “You said there were seven other women — females — aboard.”
Of course. How stupid of him.
“Five chose to be in stasis for the journey.” Lero reported. “And two are feeling unwell. They’re in their cabins.”
“In stasis?” echoed Nayli.
Kora snorted. “They’re missing all the fun.”
Darren hid a smile and placed his palm on the elevator touch pad. The doors opened and he gestured them inside. The women stepped in first; his brothers followed. Darren took the last spot, standing closest to the doors.
The elevator descended smoothly, but Aelanna swayed. Darren’s hand shot out and steadied her elbow. She looked up at him, startled.
“Sorry,” she whispered.
“You don’t need to apologize,” he said, releasing her reluctantly. “Your body is getting used to the shift in gravity.”
Her lips parted as if she wanted to say more, but the elevator chimed, and the doors slid open.
The diner level was busier — crew members moving between shifts, the scent of warm food drifting through the air. Conversations paused as the group stepped out. Curious glances followed them. Darren felt Aelanna inch closer, seeking the comfort of proximity without touching.
He positioned himself slightly ahead of her, shielding her from the attention.
Kora noticed the stares too. “Do they always look at newcomers like we’re exotic pets?”
Lero answered before Darren could. “You are newcomers. And you are exotic.”
Kora spun on him. “Did you just call me exotic?”
Lero’s expression didn’t change. “It was an observation.”
“Well, observe this,” she said, marching past him with a toss of her head. “I bite.”
Lero’s eyes widened — just a fraction — but Darren saw it.
Blayze leaned toward Darren. “Is biting… a threat?”
“From her?” Darren murmured. “Probably.”
Nayli laughed softly and looped her arm through Blayze’s without thinking. “Don’t worry. She only bites people she likes.”
Blayze nearly tripped.
Aelanna’s quiet voice drew Darren’s attention back to her. “Is it always this lively?”
“Not usually,” he said. “But you’re… of interest.”
“To everyone?” she asked.
“To many,” he corrected. “But you don’t need to worry. You’re under our protection.”
Her eyes softened. “I know.”
That simple trust hit him harder than the take-off had.
They reached the diner doors. Darren stepped forward to open them, but paused, glancing back at the women.
“This area can be loud,” he warned. “If you feel overwhelmed, tell me.”
Kora rolled her eyes. “We’re not fragile.”
Aelanna whispered, “You might not be.”
Darren’s chest tightened. It was as he’d thought; she’d been hurt. Was it by another male? He’d tear him limb from limb and then he’d kill him.
He opened the diner doors.