in space provide full protection.”
She relaxed. “I’m sorry. This is just all very new to me. I didn’t mean to imply you’d risk our daughter’s health.”
His face cleared as he pressed a kiss to her temple. “I would never do anything to harm you or Abby. I love you. You’re my happiness.”
Damn, the man could melt her heart.
“Approaching the Kandovar,” Ari’k announced.
Lisa glanced at the front viewscreen and—for about the thousandth time since meeting Taelon—felt her jaw drop. Holy crap. It was like something right out of freaking Star Wars. The ship was huge. Sleek. Black. And as they approached, it reminded her of the beginning of the movie Spaceballs. The ship just went on and on and on. Except the exterior of this ship lacked the WE BRAKE FOR NOBODY bumper sticker.
A sliver of light appeared on one side as a small section of wall began to rise like a garage door. As they moved closer, she realized the small “garage” was actually a massive hangar that contained several other transports.
“What is that?” she asked.
“One of the docking bays.”
“One of them?”
He nodded. “This one is for civilian transports. Another is strictly for loading and unloading supplies. Most of the others are for fighters.”
“Fighters? Like fighter jets but in space?”
“Yes.”
Ami cut him a look. “Did you bring an entire regiment?”
“Yes.”
Lisa realized anew just how close Earth had come to getting its ass kicked. “What does an entire regiment include?”
Taelon hesitated. “Enough ground forces and fighters to completely decimate Earth’s communication systems and disable any military forces that might greet us with hostility.”
Seth swore. “Disable or destroy?”
“Destroy.” Taelon offered a sheepish shrug. “I thought they’d tortured and killed my baby sister.”
“Considering my history,” Seth mumbled, “I suppose I can’t criticize.”
Lisa didn’t know what that meant, so she shifted her attention back to the front viewscreen. “There are people moving around in there.” The opening to the docking bay wasn’t far now, and she was able to discern men and women in uniforms moving about inside it. “Shouldn’t the atmosphere be escaping through that opening? How are they breathing? They aren’t wearing any protective gear that I can see.”
“As long as the shield remains in place, the bay has the same stable atmosphere and artificial gravity as the rest of the ship,” he replied.
She glanced at Marcus. “Wow. Technologically speaking, we are freaking toddlers compared to these guys.”
“Such was my thought,” he murmured, his handsome features reflecting the same awe she felt.
“Ari’k,” Taelon called.
“Yes, Prince Taelon.”
“Have all personnel vacate the bay, please.”
“I will do so at once.”
The men and women stopped what they were doing and looked up as though listening to something. Seconds later, the bay was empty.
“Why did you want them to leave?” she asked Taelon. “Do we need to go through some sort of decontamination or something?”
“No. The computer on board the transport has not indicated we need decontamination. I’m just eager to speak to my parents and didn’t want a crowd to slow us down. Ami and I will greet them all once we’re done.”
Butterflies returned to Lisa’s belly at the mention of his parents. Would they think her beneath him because she was from Earth? Would they scorn her and their baby? Taelon didn’t believe they would, but what if he was merely seeing things through rose-colored glasses?
A brief flash of light lit the interior of the transport as they entered the bay.
“That was the shield,” Taelon murmured.
A clear shield they could pass through without disabling it first? She would love to know more about that—what exactly it was, how it worked. She had always loved science and intended to pepper Taelon with questions later if this meeting went well.
The transport set down so smoothly she didn’t feel a single vibration. Then Taelon unbuckled her safety straps with a smile. “Time to go.”
Chapter Eighteen
Lisa rose on shaky legs, glanced over at Marcus to see if he was as nervous as she was, and froze.
Marcus caught her staring. “What?”
“Your eyes are glowing.” Normally brown, his eyes now glowed bright amber as though someone held candles behind his irises.
He swore and drew a hand up to rub them.
Ami curled her hand around his arm. “You aren’t nervous, are you, sweetie?”
“Yes, damn it,” he grumbled.
Ami wrinkled her nose. “Yeah. I am, too. They’re going to be pissed at me for defying them and sneaking across the galaxy.”
Taelon laughed. “You know they’ll forget their anger as soon as they see you. Come on. Let’s go.” Taking Lisa’s hand, he guided her