when he entered, and their eyes met across the room. He almost swayed at the impact. Her eyes were of the palest green, like the most secret parts of a female’s body. His cock, which had barely bothered to stir in many years, suddenly stiffened.
What the hell was wrong with him? Why was he reacting to a human female, let alone one who would be returning to her planet in the very near future?
He forced his attention away from her and turned to the red-haired human. He could find no resemblance to his sweet daughter in this female, and the fear that had been haunting him since he began this journey loosened its grip.
“Captain Armad. Is this the emissary you promised me?” The pleasant, low-pitched voice interrupted his thoughts and he did not need to turn around to know that the dark-haired woman had approached. A hint of sweet, spicy fragrance reached his scent receptacles and his cock stiffened even further.
“And why is his tail touching me?”
He turned and found his tail had wrapped itself around the female’s wrist. She looked surprised rather than angry as he hastily pulled it away, tilting her head to study him. Fuck. This was not the time to be distracted by a female, no matter how tempting. He forced himself to give a formal bow.
“I am Inzen Var’Narian.”
“I’m Jade Arlington. Are you going to help me search for my daughter?”
His heart beat rapidly, and he couldn’t tell if it was from relief or trepidation. She was the female? He looked closer and realized that she was dressed in a medical gown that swamped her small figure. A bandage disappeared under one sleeve, and he remembered the ensign’s words. Someone had harmed this delicate female? His tail lashed angrily and he saw her eyes follow the movement.
“Is that not your child?” he asked, looking at the infant she carried.
“Justin? No, he belongs to Naomi.” Her odd little mouth twisted in an endearing gesture. “I’m just holding him while she works her wiles on the crew.”
“Wiles?”
“You know, flirts?”
He recognized the term from something Cassie had said, and he frowned.
“Cire warriors do not understand this flirting. They think she is looking for a mate.”
Her brows drew together. “She already has one of those. Naomi,” she called to the other female. “He thinks you’re looking for a husband.”
“Who says I’m not?” the female said.
“I think Stefan might object.”
“But he isn’t here, is he?”
Inzen drew in a shocked breath, but Naomi patted the warrior’s tail and then came to join them. Behind her back, he could see the hopeless longing in the face of the young warrior. All of the systems that comprised the Confederated Planets had suffered from the plague known as the Red Death, but the Cire had suffered most of all. Their entire female population had died—or so they thought. But even with the discovery of a few isolated survivors, the prospect of a mate and children was out of reach for most Cire warriors. It was cruel for this female to toy with him.
“You should not have done that,” he said sternly.
“Jeez, relax. I was only playing with him.”
“I don’t think he understands that, Naomi.” Jade was also looking at the young male, her eyes sympathetic.
While he appreciated her concern, he did not like her looking at another male. He shifted his position so that he was between the two of them.
“You will come with me now,” he ordered.
“Excuse me? I thought we weren’t on a slave ship anymore.”
He closed his eyes. Fuck, he was handling this badly.
“I apologize if I seemed peremptory. I understood that you wished to accompany me.”
“You have news of my daughter?” she asked eagerly.
“Perhaps,” he said evasively, unwilling to commit. “We know that the Vedeckians made previous trips to your planet. We rescued one of those ships, and the females and infants we freed currently reside on the planet Trevelor.”
An adorable scowl twisted her small features. “Why didn’t you return them to Earth where they belonged?”
“None of the females chose to return.”
Naomi’s eyes widened. “You mean we don’t have to go back?”
“Naomi, you can’t want to stay here!” Jade exclaimed, and his heart sank.
If she did prove to be Lily’s mother, she would also want to return. She would want to take his daughter away from him. He scanned her features, looking for a resemblance, but the astonishing variety of human features was still a mystery to him. Her hair was much darker than Lily’s. Lily also didn’t possess those