Alien Paladin's Redemption - Mina Carter Page 0,7

no horns or other non-Lathar features he could see. And he didn’t need to see... every instinct he had told him what his heart and soul knew instantly. Impossibly, somehow, they were Lathar. He breathed the same air as rare and prized females.

“Nyek S’Vaan?” the war commander spoke, his deep voice demanding all Nyek’s attention. He nodded, unwillingly tearing his gaze away from the two females.

“I am indeed. It’s an honor to make your acquaintance, War Commander K’Vass,” he said, thumping his clenched fist against the center of his chest when he reached them.

Had Danaar K’Vass been more highly ranked, he would have added a small bow. The S’Vaan had always been a much lower-ranked clan, his father’s constant source of pride the elevation from J’Vaan to S’Vaan, but even he had never once lifted his ambitions to become K’Vaan. To do that required an honor from the emperor himself, or for a mainline S’Vaan to gain a mate from the imperial line.

“Likewise.” Danaar’s expression didn’t change as he swept an assessing glance over Nyek. In that one look, he knew the big war commander, easily twice his mass, had taken in everything about him from the well-worn leathers to the equally well-worn weapons about his person.

“It’s nice to see a warrior holding to the old ways,” Danaar said, nodding toward the blades sheathed at Nyek’s hips.

“The S’Vaan have always been traditionalists,” he replied.

It was a polite way to say his weapons were old, forged in a style not seen for at least a century. They had been his grandfather’s blades, begrudgingly gifted by his father when he’d reached adulthood. No Lathar clan could send a son out into the world unarmed, but Ravel S’Vaan hadn’t been prepared to spend script on a son he couldn’t bear to look at, so old weaponry it was.

“May I present my mate, Lady Madison K’Vass.” Danaar turned slightly to the taller female.

She was dressed in a way Nyek had never seen before, in a form-fitting sheath that left her legs bare but covered her shoulders. Her hair, a glorious dark gold, tumbled over her shoulders. Bright blue eyes considered him with a hint of a smile.

“My lady,” he murmured, and this time he did add a bow. As far as he was concerned, all females were highly ranked, no matter the circumstances of their birth or what clan they’d been born into. “You must forgive me, but I do not recognize your clan of origin and thus cannot give the correct greeting.”

He straightened up and looked at Danaar. “I was not aware any females had been found. Which clan was harboring them?”

A peal of laughter from the second female rang across the deck. “He thinks we’re Lathar. Oh, honey, what rock have you been hiding under?”

He narrowed his gaze as he focused on the second female. Unlike the first, whose appearance and smile was welcoming and gentle despite its hint of steel, this female was all spikes and aggression.

Not as tall as the first, against him she would appear petite. She had hair shorn closer to the scalp than a war commander, the longer dark curls on the top clinging to her like a jealous lover. Her eyes were almost as dark as his and sparkled with amusement and intelligence. His gaze swept down her. Lithe curves showed under the vest top and the ship suit knotted at her waist. Heavy boots encased what had to be tiny feet.

Heat surged through him, as did anger. That he had been caught out in a lack of knowledge frustrated him, and to have it pointed out for everyone on the command deck was embarrassing as well as impolite.

“No rock, I assure you, my lady,” he said, gritting his teeth so he didn’t say anything... unwise… as he offered her the same bow of respect as he had Lady K’Vass.

Perhaps this one was mated to one of the war commander’s senior warriors. He wished the male luck; he would definitely need it with this female’s sharp tongue. “Merely duty on the outer edges of the galaxy. Places news is somewhat... slow to reach.”

Her words registered and he took a step closer. “You are not Lathar?”

Every instinct he had said she was Lathar, but the closer he got he realized the differences. She was built on a much smaller scale than the average Lathar. While he might not have seen a female of his own kind for many years, he didn’t remember them being quite so tiny