Mama and the Alien Warrior (Treasured By The Alien #1) - Honey Phillips Page 0,5
to the little alien baby, still lying silently, her eyes wide open. Very carefully, she picked up the tiny figure, her throat tightening at the slight weight as she cradled her. For the first time, the baby made a tiny noise and seemed to snuggle closer.
“Who’s that, Mama?” Lucie peered over her shoulder.
“It’s another baby.”
“I ain’t putting no green baby to my boobs,” TeShawna said loudly. Then she took a second look at the tiny figure and sighed. “She’s awful skinny though. Hell, I reckon I can. I let Nick at ‘em and he was a worthless prick.” Nick was Vanessa’s father and had abandoned TeShawna two months before she gave birth.
“What’s a prick?” Lucie piped up.
“Something I hope you never have to worry about,” TeShawna said, with an apologetic glance at Abby.
“Thank you for offering, TeShawna, but the aliens said human milk wouldn’t work. They gave me that.” Abby gave the bottle a dubious look. “Let’s see if she’ll take it. Hand me the bottle, baby.”
Lucie picked it up and made a face. “It’s cold.”
“If that’s a bathroom back there, I can run it under some warm water. Maybe heat it up some?” Amber offered.
“That would be great. Thanks, Amber.”
Abby looked down at the baby to see she was looking back up at her. The tiny figure looked so helpless with her little sticklike limbs naked and exposed. The room was a comfortable temperature, but she worried about the child catching a chill. “Lexi, help me get this sweater off, please.”
By the time she wrestled her sweater off and wrapped it around the infant, Amber had returned. When Abby put the bottle to the baby’s lips, her mouth remained closed. Abby cuddled her closer, then stroked her finger along the tiny mouth until it opened a fraction. She managed to get a drop of the warm liquid on the baby’s tongue, and after a startled pause, her mouth opened and she began sucking with frantic urgency. Relief flooded Abby’s body.
“What’s the baby’s name?” Lucie had been standing at her elbow the whole time, watching curiously.
“I don’t know. We’ll have to give her one. What do you think would be a good name?”
“Oscar,” Lucie said immediately. “Like on Sesame Street.”
Abby hid a smile as she looked down at the baby. It was true that she had big dark eyes, a wide mouth, and an almost non-existent nose, but her smooth green skin was a long way from the Muppet’s wild fur.
“Oscar is a boy’s name, sweetie. What about Lily?”
Lucie frowned at the baby. “What about Tiana? She was green when she was a frog.”
Abby looked down at the tiny alien face, so strange but somehow still so sweet, and nodded. “I think that’s perfect, baby.”
Tiana was still sucking hungrily but her eyes remained on Abby’s face. She felt a small flutter and looked down to see a tiny green band clinging to her wrist.
“Look, Mama! She gots a tail.”
“So she does.”
“What’s it for?”
“I don’t know that it’s for anything.” But even as she spoke, the tiny tail pulsed around her wrist. It reminded her of the way Lucie had kneaded her breast while she gave her a bottle and her heart tugged. I’ll take care of you, little one, she promised silently.
A short time later, one of the aliens spoke to her through the wall. “Return the product to the incubators.”
“What do you mean?” Most of the babies had fallen asleep in their mother’s—or their surrogate mother’s—arms. Tiana was snuggled against Abby, her big eyes finally closed. Lucie, tucked against her other side, slept with her head on Abby’s knee.
“You have provided nourishment. Return it to the incubators.”
“Why can’t they stay with their mothers?” She tried to keep her voice calm, seeing that the girls were starting to look alarmed.
“The breeders provide nourishment only. The product no longer belongs to them. It would be as well if they accept this now.”
“But they will need more nourishment,” she protested.
“They will be returned at the appropriate time.” When she didn’t respond, his face grew even colder. “If you do not comply, you will be punished and the product will be taken anyway.”
“I understand.” You asshole. Taking a deep breath, she turned to the girls. “We have to put the babies back in the cribs. I think they’re going to return them to the other room.”
“But why?” Elaina wailed, holding Mikie tighter.
“They, uh, think it’s better for them. But they’ll bring them back to be fed again.”