parents’ shuttle is on the way.”
Tydella stepped back. “Right. Well. Goodbye, Ador.”
She turned and left him, focusing on taking the blast from her parents. If they were both here, this was bad.
Her crew formed up around her, and she couldn’t even look behind her. The entire space was taken up with her guards.
She was back to being surrounded and protected. Hooray.
* * * *
Ador pulled his clothing on, and he headed for his vehicle. He wasn’t going to let Tydella go that easily.
His secretary came out of the house and said, “Your Highness, where are you going?”
“To the palace. My mate has been repossessed by her guards, and the emperor is on the way. If you would like to see the clusterfuck of a lifetime, get in.”
Mkkoric got in next to him, and Ador piloted them up and toward the palace, skimming along the edge of the allowable height for vessels and trying to get to his parents before Tydella’s family arrived.
“Your Highness, what did you mean, the emperor?”
“The Kiidar emperor, the overlord of the Dynaris System. Tydella’s father.” Ador glanced at his secretary. “Did you know?”
Mkkoric looked ill. “No, Your Highness. I did not know. Do you think that she holds a grudge?”
Ador chuckled. “I don’t think you need to worry. She was the only one of us who knew what was going on the entire time. Why didn’t the med scan come up with her origin? I am fairly sure she is a unique blend.”
Mkkoric nodded. “I will check with the physician.”
“Never mind. I think Tydella had a hand in that as well. She knew what would happen if her pattern was checked against other species.” He smiled slightly. For someone who looked so innocent, she was very good at seeing a few moves ahead.
The shuttle that Tydella was in had just lifted off and was heading toward the palace. It seemed that he was going to beat them to their destination by ten minutes. He was one step ahead of her, for ten minutes.
* * * *
Tydella wasn’t pouting, she was trying not to bite her nails. She sat with her hands in her lap and tangled her fingers. None of her guards were speaking to her right now. Despite most of them being close to a decade older than she was, when it came to dealing with her parents, they were all going to catch hell.
The small vessel that zipped away from the house probably contained Ador. He was going to warn his parents that the emperor was on the way. She chuckled. She could see how that would be unsettling. Hell, she was unsettled, and she had grown up with her father.
Kimal glanced at her from the controls. “Is that him?”
“Probably.”
“Do you want me to shoot him out of the sky?” Kimal grimaced.
“You do, and I will put my claws through your throat and leave Abra a widow.” She used her sweetest tone.
Her guards were suddenly wary. She rarely threatened to use her claws. Her mother had told her that deadly force was only called for in defense of loved ones. Tydella blinked. No way. She had issued the threat without a thought and didn’t regret it. No one was killing her except him.
She blinked at that realization. She put her head in her hands and groaned. “No, nope, definitely not.”
Sashen smiled at her. “You just had an epiphany. Those hurt.”
“Yeah. You are not kidding.” She looked at her friend. “It was just a few days, right?”
Sashen chuckled. “You have been around literally thousands of Kiidar. Have any of them set you off like he does?”
Tydella widened her eyes. “No.”
“Then, a few minutes was all you needed.” Sashen smiled. “It was how I picked Uren.”
Uren looked over, and he smiled. “I believe that you will acknowledge that I did the picking.”
Sashen waved him off. “I caught his scent in the court, and I followed him into the guards’ changing room. He was half-naked, and when I caught his stripe pattern, I memorized it.” She smiled. “Of course, at that point, I was grabbed and tossed back into the main hall, but that was it. He was going to be mine.”
Uren blinked. “Huh. That is new. I had no idea that you were the creeper that was tossed out that day. I mean, I had already gotten myself into your path four times by that point, I am glad it finally worked.”
The guys chuckled, and the ladies frowned. Sashen just winked at Tydella, and Tydella had