A Baby For The Alien Royal: A Sci-Fi Alien Warrior Romance (Epsilon Quadrant Fated Mates Book 2) Read online

  A Baby For The Alien Royal

  Celeste King

  Copyright © 2019 by Celeste King

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  1. Nina

  2. Jubal

  3. Nina

  4. Jubal

  5. Nina

  6. Jubal

  7. Nina

  8. Jubal

  9. Nina

  10. Jubal

  11. Nina

  12. Jubal

  13. Nina

  14. Jubal

  15. Nina

  16. Jabul

  17. Nina

  18. Jubal

  19. Nina

  20. Nina

  1

  Nina

  The day started off beautiful. The sun was shining and there was a warm breeze wafting around the kids and me. The few pine trees that still grew around scented the air.

  I was working with a bunch of kids who had shown an aptitude for architecture and engineering. I came from a long line of architects and engineers, and it was my duty to continue teaching the kids.

  Normally, I had three or four classes going at the same time, since I worked with the younger kids all the way to the older kids and adults who had shown an aptitude for the craft.

  Today the lesson was about how to find the best kind of materials for building different structures. We were lucky enough to have our village next to once was a massive river. Now, it was just a small stream. However, there was a lot of sand and rock in the river bed that could be used for a multitude of purposes.

  We were talking about the different grades of sand, when a small hand tugged on my shirt. “Miss Nina. There are some cars coming.”

  I turned to look and saw a row of black cars headed our way. My heart dropped into my stomach. That was never a good sign, because the government would destroy people and villages for no other reason than they wanted to. I should have known that the day started off too beautiful. It was a teaser that predicted something horrible to come crashing down into my world.

  Although I tried not to be, most of the people in this village referred to me as a fatalist. I chose to call myself a realist.

  Trying to keep the panic out of my voice, I told the kids, “Take your drawings home and put them someplace safe. Don’t come back out of your houses unless I or your parents tell you it’s okay. Walk calmly, but hurry.”

  Although my order sounded conflicting, they knew exactly what I meant and why.

  I took a deep breath trying to steady my nerves. I was trying to figure out what any of us could have done to get the attention of the government. I supposed that I was about to find out.

  One of the kids had gone to get the village leaders. They stood with me as the cars approached.

  Before the lead car, a black limo, had even rolled to a stop, a short older man with a thin face and beady eyes jumps out. The first thing I noticed was that he was wearing a horrible toupee. His suit was gray pinstriped and he had a bright red bow tie around his neck.

  He reminded me of a clown who forgot his makeup. Two women who are wearing short skirts and low-cut shirts, who remind me of street walkers, jump out of it, holding cameras.

  The clown walked straight over to me as though he knew me. One of the women was right there, with a camera shoved in my face.

  “Hi, Nina. I’m Jack from Pitch Perfect, the company that helps you find her perfect partner in life. I am here to invite you to an upcoming ball.”

  “Nope.” Then, before I could swallow the words, I turned toward the woman. “If you would like to live to see tomorrow, I strongly suggest you get that thing out of my face.”

  The woman backed off.

  I turned to walk away, but Jack grabbed my arm. I look at his hand and look at him with my eyebrows raised. He gets the message and hastily removes his hand.

  “I was pretty sure that’s what your initial answer would be.”

  “That she needs to get that camera out of my face?”

  Jack looked completely exasperated that I refused to play his game but continued in his cheerful voice.

  “I knew that you would say ‘no.’ However, in exchange for you attending the ball and going on a date with one of the men present, we are prepared to deliver enough stone and wood to your village to build a hundred houses.”

  Apparently, the man and his group have done their homework, knowing how to get to her. She thinks about it for a second, looks at the leaders, who are careful to keep their faces blank. She knows how much this could mean to her village, as they could not only take care of their own building needs, but use the materials and their skills to barter for food and other items that they needed.

  “Enough for 500,” I answered.

  “Done,” Jack replied.

  I trusted this man, Jack, about as much as I trust the Universal Peacekeeping Organization, the Big Brother organization that was originally created to promote peace between all of the different alien races. The UPO was the only organization that could arrange for this quantity of supplies.

  Once again, I turned to the leaders, who are trying to not influence my decision, but they were pleading with their eyes. The village really needed the supplies.

  “Supplies first.”

  At that point, a woman in a black suit and sensible shoes from one of the other cars spoke into a comm system.

  After a few minutes a huge plume of dust filled the air and we could hear the roar of a fleet of loud trucks.

  They were loaded with the supplies promised to me. I told them were to put everything.

  Once that was done, Jack looked at me expectantly.

  Without a word, I ducked into my shack, followed by one of the bimbos, as though they didn’t trust me. I grabbed my things, which included a picture of my parents and grandparents, a few articles of clothing, and my books. I shoved the heavy bag of books at the woman, finished stuffing the second bag, and headed back out.

  I looked back over the village where I had spent the last twenty-four years. Then, with a quick nod at the leaders, I got into the limo with creepy Jack and his lady friends. I refused to look back as we headed down the road toward destination unknown.

  2

  Jubal

  I was stuck in the office with my financial officer, Ramos, who took care of all of the money, debits, assets, credits, etc., for the entire planet of Baria. The planet was desert, with large oasis areas that were run by overlords I had carefully chosen for their honesty and integrity. Still, I knew that power corrupted even the finest of people. Therefore, their accountants reported to my financial officer, who had an uncanny sense of anything that might be suspicious.

  This was especially important because we used a lot of aqueduct systems throughout the deserted areas to make sure that all people had access to fresh food and water. It was the overlords’ jobs to make sure that the desert people received their share of monies and supplies. I would not tolerate even one person going hungry because of someone else’s greed.

  Although I knew it was my duty to go over the books with him, I would much rather be outside with my army, practicing and training.

  My steward, Tavius, knocked on the door.

  “I’m sorry to bo
ther you, My Lord. However, there is a large UPO ship that just landed on the strip.”

  “Hellfire and damnation,” I spouted. A huge growl emitted from deep within my gut. The last thing I needed was people from that group here. I had enough to deal with as it is.

  If anyone from that organization had come to visit then there is sure to be trouble to follow. My gut told me, and everyone around, that they were up to no good, although no one could ever find proof that the UPO, or any of the people associated with it, are behind anything sinister.

  I had told myself in the past that it could simply be gut feelings. Perhaps it was a personal dislike of the idea of a larger, universal government. Whatever the reason, I didn’t want them here on my planet.

  Not seeing a way I could avoid the situation, I reluctantly got up. After patting my account on the back for a job well done, I headed to meet them, dreading anything they had to say or request. Ducking into my chamber, I donned my royal garb and headed into the throne room where I officially greeted guests. Several dignitaries are there, as well as a short man with a hideous toupee.

  Why don’t bald men just go bald? They would look a hell of a lot better than wearing what looked like dead cats on their heads.

  With that thought, I forced myself to focus my attention. I couldn’t afford to miss any nuance in anything that was said. The tiniest loophole could land me, or my planet and its people, in a world of hurt.

  The man with the dead cat looking toupee approached the throne and knelt. When I told him to rise, he introduced himself as Jack from Pitch Perfect the dating company.

  “We are having a ball to make matches between kings and their potential mates. As a king, it is your duty to have a wife who can carry out her duties and potentially bear you an heir.”

  I squinted at this tiny, ridiculous man who dared enter my chamber and tell me what my duty is. I knew what my duties were and I didn’t need to be reminded by this puny human. I simply bit my tongue to keep from saying something sarcastic, and waited for him to continue.

  Apparently, he wasn’t as dumb as he looked, because he could tell that I was a bit irritated with his impertinence. The little man swallowed hard. I saw the lump in his throat moving up and down as he gathered his courage to continue.

  “There will be several suitable human women there, who are knowledgeable, intelligent, and competent. Any of these women would make you the perfect mate.”

  My best friend and trusted advisor, Drota, whispered in my ear that it might be a good idea. “You do need a mate and there are no great candidates on this world. The few women who have managed to survive are still not strong enough for the job. Plus, you might be able to get a clue as to what the UPO is up to. Whenever their fingers dip into anything, it is never good.”

  I had to agree with him, but I wasn’t going to make it easy on Cat Head.

  Jack must have sensed that I was seriously considering his proposition, so he decided to throw in some incentives.

  “If you decide to come with us, we will give you the resources you need to update your aqueduct systems. We will also provide you with different plants and seeds so that you can have additional food and medicinal sources.”

  I took a deep breath to make Jack think that I was still pondering the situation.

  I looked at Cat Head out of the corner of my eye. “What if your idea of suitable and my idea of suitable are not the same, and I can’t find anyone I can connect with? Are you going to swoop down here and take all your supplies back?”

  Jack looked at me with a knowing smile. “The supplies are yours to keep. I’m willing to bet that you will find a perfect mate.” Then, he added in an off handed way. “Who knows? You might even find your fated mate.”

  Someone behind Cat Head cleared his throat loudly, as though in a warning.

  I got the distinct feeling that Jack knew something that I didn’t. Did the UPO have a way to know who our fated mates were?

  I looked at Drota, and he could read the question in my mind. He shrugged his shoulders.

  “Fine, I’ll attend your ball. After you deliver the promised supplies. I will take my own vessel down to Earth.”

  Jack held up his finger. “There is one more requirement I forgot to mention.”

  I glared at him.

  Once again, he swallowed hard. “If you meet someone you connect with, you will take her on a first date, which we are allowed to film and broadcast throughout the universe as an advertisement for our company.”

  “Fine.” I growled at him. “Now, blow.”

  He and his crew blew, leaving me alone with Drota to try and figure out what the UPO was up to.

  3

  Nina

  Although I would have taken a hot poker in the eye rather than admit it, I enjoyed the shopping experience. One of the bimbos gave me a credit card, and told me to go have fun. So, I did. I purchased several new blouses, some regular shirts, and several pairs of jeans that were impossible to find back home and were very rare. I also bought some work boots and athletic shoes. Every swipe of the card sent a little thrill through my body. I almost felt giddy.

  Since I had to attend a ball, I had to buy the appropriate get-up. I also bought a jade green dress, matching shoes, and some jewelry. I almost felt guilty for spending so much, but then I realized who was footing the bill and decided to simply enjoy myself.

  I kept expecting the credit card to be denied, but it went through, every single time it was approved.

  I decided to test it and hit some book stores. I found several books on architecture that I thought would be great, as well as some paranormal mysteries that I always loved. There were only a couple at our ancient library back home, so these would be a rare treat. The credit was approved. Every time it was ran, I felt my muscles tense. Although, I was expecting it to be denied, it would still be embarrassing. Each time it was approved a goofy sigh of relief escaped me.

  Finally, I picked up a tablet that would give me access to even more books and resources. Hopefully, it would work when I went back to the village, because I was pretty positive that I would remain single after this trip. After handing the card to the cashier, I crossed my fingers and squinted my eyes shut. When the woman gave the card, she said I could buy anything I wanted. I didn’t know if she really meant I could buy anything, or if there was a limit.

  I finished my spending spree with lunch.

  Perhaps I should go buy some tools and a truck for my village.

  Eyeing the card, I laughed at myself. I could almost see the card self-destructing if I even tried that.

  Although I enjoyed myself, I am well aware that this spending spree is going to come at a cost. Not only would I have to pay for it with my participation at the ball and the so-called first date. Also, the charges were another way to track what I bought and what I was interested in. That could be relatively harmless information or it might be useful to the UPO. My father always cautioned me to share as little information as possible with people because knowledge was power.

  I just hoped that they weren’t going to use the charges and supplies as a way to force me to find a mate. If that was the case, then I would just hand everything back. Deep down inside of me, though, I hoped that there would be someone at the ball I could connect with. Which girl didn’t dream of finding her Prince Charming and live happily ever after?

  My prince charming would be handsome, of course, and well built. But he would also be intelligent and like the same things that I did.

  I also had to admit to myself that I didn’t always like being alone. I didn’t have too many friends at the village, as I was more of a leader and a teacher. There was no one I could seriously consider to be a husband. I guessed I was a little hopeful for the ball.

  The day of the ball arrived. A hairdresser and a make-up artist descended on me like a pack of wolves.

  Apparently, my hair was not up to the hairdresser’s standards. Her first question was “Who did this to you?” Then, she made tsking noises
as the scissors flew around my head. I just hoped she didn’t get my ears.

  Finally, they were done. I looked like a little China doll. Inside, I felt a little thrill because I did like being all dressed up. I can’t remember being dressed up ever before.

  I tried to slide into the ballroom, snaking along the wall so that no one would notice me. If no one noticed me, then no one would want to dance with me or date me, and I could go back home.

  However, I noticed a couple of women talking. One was a beautiful black woman with shoulder length curly hair and the other was a Hispanic woman with long black hair. For some reason, I felt a pull toward them.

  I introduced myself, and we started talking. Soon, three other women, Maura, Ryver, and Sara, joined us. The six of us felt an instant bond as though we were long lost sisters. It was a little uncanny.

  Maura interrupted our conversation about the purpose behind this ball to point out a group of men. One of the men, who was tall and a beautiful iridescent blue with silver hair, walked over and asked Maura if she would like to dance.

  She hesitated for a minute, but then, decided that in the spirit of the ball, she agreed. They actually made a cute couple, and seemed to find it easy to talk to each other.

  The five of us resumed our conversation. I was surprised to see that a tall man, with dark red skin, almost burgundy colored, with blond hair and brown eyes has joined us.

  His smile was beautiful, but he seemed to be almost shy, as he spoke quietly to me.

  “I am Jubal. I was wondering if you would care to dance?” he said, as he bowed over my hand.