Lovers of the Galaxy, Book Two: Bounty Hunters of the Heart (2 page)

Oshki burst out laughing.

Cries of pleasure echoed down the corridor to their
quarters. Loud, masculine groans occurred almost at the same time,
followed by feminine high-pitched squeals.

“Schizma!” Oshki banged an empty cup down on the
tabletop. “Do those three never sleep through a night?”

Miln smirked as he picked at the last of his supper.
“They are just beginning their relationships. New love is all about
the racing heart and the coupling. In a few more weeks, it will
have worn off.”

“You know how Azutuan men are about women in a
certain condition.” Standing, he threw a secretive look over one
shoulder.

Miln watched him suspiciously.

“They cannot keep their hands off their mates during
those times.”

The last bite of meat in his mouth lost all flavor.
“Are you saying she is…?”

A grin spreading across his companion’s face so wide
his small fangs showed. “Do you not sense it?”

“I have been concentrating so hard on security and
learning the dangers of this area that I have not paid
attention.”

His mate was right. Azutuan men had a special sense
about such things. Since Venus was probably not aware of this
ability, he wondered if their brother-friends had told her yet, or
if they were going to wait for her to learn it on her own.

After Oshki had put his eating utensils in the silver
metal basin Venus called a sink, he turned, leaned against the
counter, and crossed his arms over his muscled chest. “Jaxxon
guessed she was impregnated, but he confided in me that he wanted
to see if his brother sensed it yet. If not, he wants to surprise
Volund with the news.”

“Azutuan women conceive quickly.” Miln pushed his
braids back over his shoulders. “I guess it is only natural for
human females to do the same through an Azutuan mate. They did bite
Venus to save her life, so although she looks human, her body will
now function more like our women. I hope she is prepared for a
faster gestational period.”

A sobering thought struck him. He sat back in his
chair and sighed heavily, his enthusiasm for the first Earth
pregnancy suddenly dampened.

“What is it?” Oshki placed a hand over his.

“This drastically changes our situation. Ours, as in
the five of us and the unborn.”

“What do you mean?”

“Venus will bring the first child that we know of
into this nearly barren world. She is a viable female as it is, so
should anything happen to Volund and Jaxxon, it will be up to us to
find her a suitable replacement mate—if only for the purpose of
protecting her and her offspring.”

Nodding, Oshki sat back and regarded him soberly.

“Also,” he continued, his mind racing, “she and her
infant will require more rigid security from the Bone Eaters.”

“Very true, and Venus will detest it.”

A last disturbing thought slipped into his mind.
“Worse, what if this Randle human somehow returns to this time
period unnoticed? It is obvious he believes Venus is his female. If
he should return without detection, I am afraid he would kill the
child for not only revenge but because he would never raise another
male’s offspring.”

Drawing in a deep breath, his lover held it for a
moment and then released it slowly. “Thank you for sucking all the
joy out of my news.”

Half amused, he snorted. “I am ever the practical
one.”

“Regardless of the worries this pregnancy creates,
let us celebrate,” his partner suggested.

“Oh? And how will we do that?”

His mate rose, stepped around the table, and grasped
one of Miln’s hands. He tugged him to his feet. Sensing his
intentions, Miln he wondered how he could let him down easily.

“We have only consummated our mating the one time,”
his consort began, “and it was a brief and hurried union because we
feared being caught, so I do not count it. Now we are on Earth,
free of watchful, prying eyes. We no longer have to fear Tapio’s
laws and can be together without interference from those who do not
understand our love.” He cupped one side of Miln’s face, running
his thumb back and forth across his lips. “Please, fierce one. Let
us be together tonight. Let our cries tantalize and torment the
others under this roof.”

Desire surged through him and settled in his sapin.
Oh how he wanted Oshki, wanted to penetrate him, skewer his lover
on his shaft and hear his partner’s lusty shouts filling their
chamber, but…he couldn’t. He didn’t dare. Tapio was crafty, and it
wouldn’t surprise him one bit to discover surveillance kerks
attached to their possessions or even craftily woven in their
clothes. It was just too soon.

“Well?” He smoothed his other hand down Miln’s bare
arm.

“I do not want you angry with me, nor do I want to
hurt you.” Worry prickled his conscience. He stepped back and
stalked across the chamber to a long, padded bench with a back on
it. He stared at the opposite wall, its surface a dreadful gray. He
much preferred the vivid colors of Azutu. “It is too soon. If we
are together physically, we run the chance of being caught.”

Oshki’s deep, rolling chuckle wrapped around him,
inspiring more desire to course through his veins. If only his
lover truly knew how much he needed him.

“By the Twelve Galaxies, how would Tapio even know?
We are millions of telens away from the Ruling Body of
Planets.”

“Through kerks, that is how.” That one simple
sentence nearly choked him.

“You are serious?” Shock laced Oshki’s voice. “You
actually believe Tapio would have had someone attach kerks to our
belongings? Are we that much of a concern to him that he would
track us all the way to Earth?”

Keeping his back to him, Miln shrugged. He couldn’t
bear to turn around and see the stunned look he knew was on his
mate’s face. “He is a controller and he hates us.”

“But we would need a kerkviaa to detect them, if
there are any at all.”

“I know,” Miln replied.

“Are you not making assumptions?”

He shook his head. “Tapio suspected all along that we
were in love. Have you forgotten security nearly caught us the
first time we consummated our union? What makes you think Tapio
would not keep track of us here, too?”

“I do not believe it!”

The sudden, agonized shout from his mate startled
him. He flinched and then slowly faced his mate whose eyes blazed
bright silver. His partner breathed heavily through his nose, his
mouth a firm, grim line.

“You are afraid!” With both fists clenched as his
sides, Oshki yelled, “You allow your fear to rule your life—our
lives! Why must you always push me away?”

The worst was happening right in front of Miln and he
was at a loss how to avoid the disaster. He took half-dozen steps
toward his mate, his heart thrashing against his ribs like a
terrified animal’s.

“Please, Oshki, just consider what I have said. Think
about it. You know how The Ruling Body of Planets feels about
same-sex mates. Repopulation is one of the main reasons Azutuans
are being sent to Earth. Although Tapio could not prove we were
mates, he sent us here because he knows we love one another. It was
his way of forcing us to take females, a way to prevent us from
being together. If each of us does not sire at least one child, we
will be under even more intense scrutiny. Do not think for a moment
that Tapio does not have us under surveillance.”

“This is complete schizma!” he roared, his face
turning even paler with fury. “I cannot stand to be in the same
room with you right now.” He spun on his heel and stomped to the
exit.

“Please wait!” Miln called out, rushing across the
room.

“Stay away from me!” He stormed out of their chamber,
his big leather boots thumping down the corridor.

Miln reached the door just in time to see Oshki
trans-shift himself. The shimmers of his dispersing body floated to
the ceiling where he vanished. Oshki liked the rooftop at night, so
he would leave him alone with his thoughts and stinging emotions.
Perhaps the night sky would calm his mate.

“Miln?” The door creaked open, followed by, “Can I
come in? Volund and Jaxxon are worried, and so am I.”

He turned to find Venus standing on the threshold.
Behind her, in the corridor, his brother-friends looked at him with
worry and curiosity.

“Is everything all right?” Concern brimmed in her
pale brown eyes.

“Yes,” he barked and stalked into the eating area.
“Oshki and I had a disagreement, but that is all.”

“I can’t understand you,” Venus replied.

He suddenly remembered they had been speaking in
their native tongue. He reached behind his head and pressed the
chip at the base of his skull. “My apologies,” he told Venus. “We
have a tough time with all the hard tongue sounds—or consonants, as
you call them—of your language. In private, we converse in Azutuan.
I often forget that, although the chip converts your language to
Azutuan, you cannot understand me in return.”

She shut the door, leaving her mates outside, and
strode over to him dressed in only a tiny undergarment and a big
shirt of some sort that revealed the outlines of her nipples.
Voices in the hall alerted him to the brothers’ continued presence.
He knew them well enough that they wouldn’t pry, but since it was
often a female’s duty to mediate between the male kin, he sensed it
would be only moments before Venus began delving into the
matter.

She followed him. “Care to talk about it?”

He shrugged and sat at the table again.

She settled across from him and met his gaze with
wide, curious eyes.

“There is not much to talk about.” He placed his
forearms on the tabletop, hands down, and stared at them. “Oshki
wants to finish consummating our relationship, and I fear doing so
because of the Ruling Body of Planets, more precisely one ruler,
Tapio.” The ache in his chest grew stronger by the second. “He does
not believe me, but he is much younger and has not developed
patience, nor the ability to tune in on subtle things with much
meaning. He tends to think with his heart first and allows his
wants and needs to overwhelm his rational mind.”

“I didn’t realize you were older than Oshki.”

“We do not age like humans, so it is difficult to
judge our years. In comparison to Earth time, I am roughly twelve
years his senior. “ He smiled wanly. “He thinks I am giving him
excuses, that I do not truly want him as my mate.”

“Do you?”

“Yes, very much so, but I know how sly Tapio is, and
if we are not careful here on Earth, it is quite possible the
Ruling Body of Planets’ security will arrive to take us back to
Azutu and either imprison us again or worse, sentence us to
death.”

“What?” The shock in Venus’s voice must’ve carried
out into the hall. A soft rap on the door reached them, followed by
Volund asking if all was well. “We are fine, Volund,” she called
and returned her attention to Miln.

He couldn’t help but smile at her outraged
expression.

“I’m not saying I don’t believe you,” she began, “but
how is it possible for this Tapio person to keep track of you and
Oshki?”

Quickly he explained to Venus what kerks and kerkviaa
were and how they were used. “So, you see, these tools are very
intricate, advanced technology. Only the Ruling Body of Planets has
access to them. Our everyday communications to other worlds, such
as Azutu, can travel through time and space, but there is a delay
of about two dientorics before the receiver gets the message.”

“Dienotorics?”

He paused and did the mathematics to convert Azutuan
measurements into Earth’s. “A dienotoric is roughly two Earth
weeks, so the delay would be about a month your time.”

He met her gaze for a long moment. He could almost
see the intense thoughts dancing and whirling in her mind.

Finally, she tipped her head to one side and frowned.
“If Tapio has kerks in your belongings, how can you know he won’t
come after you right now? If he can see or hear you, even if it is
delayed time, won’t he send security to claim you and Oshki based
on what has happened here tonight?”

He shook his head. “It is possible, but too hard to
prove. A same-sex couple must be caught in the act. Tapio already
imprisoned us for six dienotorics on the suspicion of our
relationship, but it could not be proven, so we were released.”

“I am so sorry,” Venus said.

“Our love is worth it.”

“Then you need to tell Oshki the same thing.” She
stood and looked down at him. “I have an idea. You said kerks could
be attached to your belongings?”

He nodded, curious.

“What about your ship?”

“No. We were in suspended animation for the duration
of the trip here, so Tapio would not need surveillance during the
space travel.”

“What about your Slicers, Trans Shifter rods, and the
like?”

“No again. Kerks must be able to adhere to fibers
such as clothing, wires, and circuits. The innards of our Slicers
and other personal tools are too small and too intricately
detailed. The kerks would pull things apart when they adhered to
them.” He studied her for a second. “What are you thinking?”

“Oh, just that maybe you should enjoy your first
night in the Old West.” She beamed at him and nearly danced in
place with her enthusiasm.

“I do not understand.”

“When you go back in time to find Randle, you’ll
leave your personal belongings here. I’ll even find you the proper
time-period clothing and other essentials to take with you. That
way you won’t have to worry about Tapio.”

He smiled, his pulse slowing and his worry easing.
“It is a good idea that may work.”

Venus playfully swatted his shoulder. “What do you
mean may? It will work! Come on.” She pulled on his arm. “Let’s go
to the roof right now and tell Oshki the good news.”