Mama and the Alien Warrior (Treasured By The Alien #1) - Honey Phillips Page 0,44

he would not use anything from one of those sad reminders of the past for his sweet daughter.

“No, I suppose not.” She bit her lip. “Maybe when you take us back to Earth, you could stay for a little while? I could get her some supplies there.”

He wanted to—oh, how he wanted to—but he knew he could not. “Confederated Planets law forbids contact with developing worlds. We will use the shuttle to transport you at night, but it would be too risky to stay any longer than absolutely necessary.”

“I suppose you’re right.” She didn’t sound any happier about it than he felt.

He attempted to distract her. “What are you doing with those garments?”

A number of uniform shirts had been folded into neat piles.

She pursed her lips. “I know these aren’t labeled, but can you tell who they belong to?”

He reached for one, then nodded. “Yes.”

“By scent? Even though they’re clean?”

“Yes, of course. Once an object has been worn, it picks up an… essence of the wearer that is not removed, even by washing. These all appear to have been worn.”

“Can you line them up on the desk? So that they’re as identical as possible?”

“Of course.”

He reluctantly put her aside, missing the feel of her body as soon as he did so. When he stood up, she closed her eyes. It wasn’t until he noticed that one of the shirts was his that he realized what she was doing. His heart began to pound as he set the folded uniforms in a neat row on his desk.

“They’re ready,” he said.

She opened her eyes and came over to join him. One by one, she picked up the shirts and lifted them all to her face, despite her obvious reluctance as they came close to her. Her face crinkled with each shirt, until she came to his and she finally relaxed as she held it closer.

“This is yours, isn’t it?”

“Yes, my flower.” His heart was singing but she looked too troubled for him to rejoice. “Does that worry you?”

“I’m not sure I understand what it means.”

It means that you are my mate. But he didn’t say the words aloud.

“TeShawna and Elaina are reacting the same way,” she said finally. “And Molly.”

“That is… unexpected,” he said slowly. “It was clear that there was an attraction, but they are acting more like Cire females.”

He didn’t mention that she was reacting the same way, but the knowledge hung in the air between them.

“This repulsion to another man’s smell—that’s normal?”

“Yes.”

“Do you—do Cire males react the same way?”

“Yes.” He looked directly at her. “I would know your scent anywhere, Abigail. No other would appeal to me.”

She bit her lip and gave a nervous little laugh. “But you’ll get over that, right? Once we’re apart?”

No. He strongly suspected that no other female would ever appeal to him. But he couldn’t tell her that. He didn’t want her to feel sorry for him, or for her to feel that he was trying to force her to stay with him. Instead, he shrugged and changed the subject.

“Do you require anything else for your females?”

“No.” She gave him a warm smile. “You have provided for us very well. Did you talk to Dr. Mekoi about the possibility that one of the girls might give birth?”

“Yes, and he is making preparations.” He added reluctantly, “Kwaret had been assisting him.”

“See? They’re not all bad.”

“No. I suppose all races have both good and bad members. Unfortunately, the Vedeckian culture places profit above all else. He is the only one I have met who seems to have some respect for other values.”

“After the girls wake up, I’ll go and see if I can provide any help. I might not have any personal experience but I’ve been through a number of births with my girls.”

He did not like the idea of her in the same room with the Vedeckian male—or with any male for that matter—if he could not be present, but he understood her sense of responsibility. “Is that your employment?”

“More of a labor of love, really. After I adopted Lucie, I didn’t want to leave her with a nanny all day. I was a chief financial officer for a large corporation and they thought that children should come second to the responsibilities of my job. I disagreed. So I resigned and decided to open a maternity home for pregnant girls with nowhere else to go.” She looked away from him. “That was another reason that John left. He wanted a partner with an impressive title,