Rescuing Mattie

Science Fiction Romance

RESCUING MATTIE: LORDS OF KASSIS BOOK 3.1

First E-Book Publication September 2013

Cover Design by Melody Simmons

or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without
express written permission from the author.

All characters, places and events in this book are fictitious or have been used fictitiously and are

not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead, actual events, locale or
organizations is strictly coincidental.

Synopsis

Mattie Abrams has always had a knack for training animals. Touring with the Cirque de Magik,

she knows that she has finally found the ‘home’ she so desperately craves. She would do anything to
keep her small family of circus friends and her pets, including going where they went. When the
owner of the circus announces he is taking the circus to the stars, she never expects it to be quite so
far – or so dangerous.

Jai t’Dubar never expected to find his mate among the menagerie of humans returning to his

world. When a delicate beauty jogs by him, his world changes. His first thought is to chase her down
and capture her. His second thought is to keep her forever.

When she is taken as a hostage by a group of space pirates who invade the Kassisan Warship,

Seeker, he will do everything he can to save her.

Can he rescue Mattie from the pirates and traitors who threaten her before she is taken from him?

And if he can, will he be able to convince her to open her heart to him and let him show her when he
says ‘forever’, he means forever?

Chapter 1

Mattie Abrams giggled as Bouncer tried to steal Peewee’s squeaky toy. The huge Mastiff-St.

Bernard wasn’t about to let the little terrier mix have his favorite toy. Mattie looked affectionately at
her dogs. All six of them were pound puppies and she loved every quirky thing about them.

Runts, misfits and plain old peasant blood that no one really wanted, she thought with a wry

smile. Similar to me.

Mattie didn’t mind the fact that her mom and dad were happy not to have to communicate with her

anymore. Their responsibility for raising her was done. In fact, they had missed her birthday the last
three years in a row now they had someone else to concentrate on.

Her family now was the six dogs, four cats and a mixture of other small furry creatures that she

trained. Each animal had a special place in her heart, their own uniqueness that made them shine. But
most of all, they loved her unconditionally for just being her.

Mattie had spent her free time visiting the local humane societies in the towns or cities the circus

visited. She knew she had a soft heart when it came to those no one else wanted. She had poured her
love and loneliness into helping every stray animal she could as she grew up. Her parents didn’t care
as long as it kept her busy. She had trained ferrets, mice and an assortment of dogs and cats.

She had gotten so good at it that she had started her own business by the time she was twelve

training animals, mostly dogs. Her business had grown by word of mouth.

She became interested in training bomb-sniffing dogs after several deadly attacks around the

country. The death and devastation had shocked her and she hoped she could do something to help
prevent things like that from happening in the future. She had volunteered with the local police
department and found her niche which turned out to be very profitable.

By the time she was eighteen, she had already saved up enough to buy a house in a nice

neighborhood. She would have if she hadn’t gone to the circus that lazy summer day. The moment she
walked through the gates, she felt like she was home. She spent the next three days going to every
show and talking to the people who worked there. One of them had finally pointed her in the direction
of Walter. After her meeting with him, his wife Nema and their daughter Ricki, she had gone home
and packed her few belongings and Calico, her cat. She bought a truck and a fifth wheel camper
instead of a house and was on the road the next day.

That had been six years ago and she hadn’t looked back once. Her small family had grown to

include every member of the circus. She had a few close friends but none like her animals. They were
able to fill the loneliness she felt.

“What are you so deep in thought about?” Suzy asked as she came to sit on the step next to Mattie.

Mattie smiled at the former rodeo clown who was now one of the lead clowns for the circus. She

was also Mattie’s closest human friend. Mattie reached down and petted Chia and Oscar as they came
up to lie down next to her. Mattie looked around the huge storage bay where their current home
resided.

“Still trying to wrap my head around being in outer space,” Mattie admitted. “It’s hard to believe

that there really are aliens out there and we are heading to another planet with them.”

“It is pretty crazy, isn’t it?” Suzy said before leaning forward and touching Mattie’s arm. “Are

you worried? I mean,” her voice faded for a moment before she continued. “It’s a lot to give up, an
entire world, everything you’ve ever known. I have Curly, he’s my rock. Are you worried about
whether you will ever find anyone out there to be your rock?”

Mattie shook her head shyly. “No, I don’t even think of things like that anymore. I don’t want

anyone,” she replied quietly. “I didn’t have the best role models growing up and after… well, let’s
just say I get along better with animals than I do people.”

“Mattie, you’ve seen the guys on this spaceship,” Suzy began hesitantly. “I mean, they are hot. I’m

sure there is a chance of you meeting someone. Not all men are like George, you know. Having Curly
in my life … I can’t even begin to describe it.”

Mattie smiled at Suzy. Her friend didn’t have to say anything about Curly’s effect. She saw it

every time those two were around each other. Deep down there was a tiny hope she would one day
find someone as special as Curly but a part of her was afraid to open her heart again to the pain of
being in love with the wrong person.

She had done it once before when she was twenty-one. George had hired on as part of the setup

crew. She had believed his lies when he said he loved her. She had thought she was being cautious.
She had dated him almost three months before she let him move in with her. It was another six months
before she caught him with another woman at a seedy bar in one of the towns they were performing in.
Suzy and Curly had been with her. Curly had punched George and told him he was a dead man if he
ever came near her again.

Mattie looked down at the dogs who were now wrestling with each other. She didn’t like thinking

about that time in her life, she wasn’t sure she could have made it without her furry friends. They
were what made her get up every morning and push on. Frustrated at the way her thoughts were going,
she stood up and motioned for the dogs to come to her.

“Not everyone is lucky enough to find that special person like you and Curly have,” Mattie said,

not looking at Suzy. “The dogs need some exercise. I think I’ll take them for a short run around this
level. I haven’t seen much of the spaceship and it would be neat to see what it’s like.”

Suzy stood up as well. She knew it was Mattie’s way of avoiding discussing her feelings. She hid

from the pain. Suzy wished she could have punched Mattie’s parents in the nose as well. They never
appreciated what a beautiful, sensitive daughter they had. Instead, she gave Mattie a big hug.

“Just know that you are loved very much by all of us,” Suzy murmured.

“I know,” Mattie smiled, as she stepped back. “That is the only reason I agreed to come. I

couldn’t imagine losing any of you.”

“Go run,” Suzy replied gruffly. “I’m cooking dinner tonight. Make sure you aren’t late.”

“I won’t be,” Mattie said as she started to walk toward the entrance to the storage bay. “Love you,

Suzy,” she called out over her shoulder before she took off running.

Chapter 2

Mattie laughed as she watched the dogs play as they ran. The little ones had a lot more energy

than Peewee, her huge Mastiff mix. Of course, for every one of his steps the smaller dogs had to take
three.

She kept it to a slow jog as she didn’t want to run anyone over. There were quite a few ‘warriors’

as they were called walking the long curving corridors. Kelsey, another trainer who worked with the
more exotic animals like her pet zebras and spider monkeys, had passed her a few minutes before as
Peewee had dropped the huge pink chewy ball and had to chase it down from Oscar who had grabbed
it as it rolled.

She couldn’t help but remember how she had thought Walter had been pulling all their legs when

he had called a meeting just a few weeks ago. The entire crew of the circus had attended the
mandatory meeting. They had been discussing everything from Walter possibly having sold the circus
to just closing it down. No one had guessed he would drop the announcement that he was taking the
circus to a new level, one that included aliens, warships and moving the whole kit and kaboodle to
another planet.

She slowed as she passed by a warrior who was getting off one of the lifts. Her eyes flashed to

his before she blushed and looked away at the sudden heat that filled his eyes. Ignoring her own
sudden warmth, she picked up speed in an effort to get away from the gaze that she could feel
following her. She shook her head and forced herself to remember the announcement that had changed
everything she ever thought she knew about the universe.

Walter’s announcement had shaken the lot of them, well except for Marvin, Martin and Sebring,

their wife who seemed to have already known about it. That was one of the things she loved about the
circus, no one condemned anyone else for who they were or what they believed. Mattie didn’t know
anywhere else where two men could be married to one woman and it not be frowned upon.

She remembered Walter’s booming voice as if it was yesterday. “I’ve got something to say to the

lot of you. As always, what is said here, stays here. Every single one of you have signed a
confidentiality contract. This is especially important with what I’m about to tell you,” he had warned.

“Knock off the royal decree and just tell us what you want, Walter,” Jerry, the Tattooed Man, had

yelled out. “You know none of us would screw you over.”

“Yeah, besides if someone tried you know the rest of this sorry lot would kill them before you

even got a chance to,” Bombing Bill laughed out.

“Plus, you know worse things about us than anything we could ever say about you,” Marcus the

Magnificent added with a grin.

“Just wanted to remind you,” Walter responded amid the added comments and laughter. “I’m

packing the circus up and moving it.”

“Hell, Walter,” Shakira the Strong called down from where she was sitting near the top of the

bleachers. “What’s the big surprise about that?”

Walter stood before the hundred or so crew members who had been with him for years and

looked at them with a serious expression that calmed everyone in seconds. They knew when Walter
had that look on his face that something serious was coming down. They grew even more uneasy
when Nema came up to stand next to Walter with tears in her eyes.

“The surprise is I’m taking the circus off this planet,” Walter said quietly. “Jo has returned. Some

of you know that. I’ve talked to Nema and Ricki about this. Jo, Star and River were kidnapped by
aliens. Jo has returned to get her parents. Nema, Ricki and I, along with a few others, have met this
alien. After some serious thought, I’ve decided that the circus needs a new start. I want to take it
somewhere it has never been seen before. I want to take it to a planet called Kassis, maybe even to
other worlds if we can.”

“Wait a minute,” Bill called out. “You want us to go with aliens that kidnap humans? To another

world? How do you know they aren’t going to do some… you know… weird stuff to us?” He asked.

Mattie remembered all the murmurs of concern. Walter patiently answered each one. Eventually,

Tony, Kid, Suzy, and Curly had stood up and talked about their meeting with the alien male called
Manota. Mattie had remained quiet.

The discussion had gone on for hours before a vote was taken. It was one of the few times that

Walter did a silent one. He had been determined that no one would be pressured into making such a
life altering decision.

The votes had come back one hundred and six for, zero against. Mattie had been one of the last

ones to hand her vote in. She knew no one would blame her if she voted against it but the thought of
losing the only family she had, besides her animals, was a huge influence on her decision to go. As far
as she had been concerned there was nothing on Earth to keep her there but the circus. Where it went,
she went too.

*.*.*

She had to admit, so far it had been surprisingly easy to fit in on-board the spaceship.

Warship, she silently reminded herself as she murmured an apology as she ran by the leader of the

aliens and Jo’s husband, Manota.

“Excuse us,” Mattie called out as she passed him. “They needed exercise,” she added

breathlessly, sweeping a hand over the dogs trotting around her.

She averted her eyes when he just glared at her. A shiver ran down her spine when she thought

about how huge he was. She didn’t know how Jo wasn’t terrified of the man. Just the look in the
warrior’s eyes that was getting off the lift was enough to send her blood pressure soaring! She
breathed a sigh of relief as she turned down another corridor and slowed to a walk before stopping
and placing her hand over her heart briefly to calm it.

Why was she thinking about the huge warrior’s eyes? Well, and the rest of him. She silently

scowled down at the floor. She was done with guys. George had taught her what happens when you
trust them. He had taught her how much it hurts to give your heart to them only to have them crush it
then make you feel like it was your fault. Her parents had done the same thing.

Maybe… well, maybe I’m just not a very lovable person. Obviously my parents and George

didn’t think so, Mattie thought dejectedly as she thought of what she had left back on Earth. Not that I
had much to leave behind, she thought distractedly as she checked Bouncer’s paw. Nothing but
heartache and loneliness.

She smiled sadly down at Bouncer who was nibbling on one of his paws. She knelt down to make

sure he was alright. She chuckled softly when Polly, the light haired golden retriever, came up and
licked her across her cheek.

“Well, maybe I’m not lovable to people,” Mattie teased as Chia and Oscar tried to get their licks

in as well. “But I sure am lovable to you guys. That’s all I need.”

Mattie was so focused on Bouncer that she didn’t hear the footsteps coming up the corridor. She

gasped in surprise when she heard the deep voice speaking to her. Turning, she looked up into the
intense, burning gaze of the warrior who had been getting off the lift just a few minutes before.

“Hello, female,” the tall warrior said as he stepped closer to her.

Chapter 3

Jai rubbed his aching brow and breathed a sigh of relief. He was off duty for the next eight hours.

He wanted a quiet place to relax, a stiff drink and a soft bed. He was determined to find a spot where
there would be absolutely no human females. Right now, he did not see anything even remotely
pleasant about them. He had been called in to cover for another warrior who had been injured while
training, otherwise he would have been happily focusing on engineering.

Unfortunately, the warrior had been assigned to the detention area where a human female was

being detained. Kev Mul Kar, the Seeker’s Security Chief, had told him she was called a reporter.
She was someone who asked questions and wrote information for her people.

“Asks questions?” Jai muttered as he stepped onto the lift. He closed his eyes and tiredly leaned

his head back against the wall. “She never shuts up! If I had heard the word ‘why’ one more time I
swear I would have stunned her ass.”

“Who were you going to stun?” Petre asked as he stepped into the lift behind Jai.

“The reporter,” Jai glanced at his friend and shook his head in resignation. “Lady Jo came and

finally took the female to the other humans.”

“Thank the Gods,” Petre groaned. “I was stuck with her the last shift. I thought humans needed

plenty of sleep. She drove me nuts asking questions and singing some song about rum and pirates and
such.”

“I just hope I don’t have to deal with any more human females if they are like that one. Lady Jo is

nice but she may be a rare treasure among the species,” Jai said with a grimace.

He had been very thankful when he was finally given a reprieve. Lady Jo had come down and

demanded that the female be released into her care. Jai had called Kev for approval. Once he
received it, he couldn’t turn off the shield holding the annoying female fast enough. The female had
just grinned at him and flipped her middle finger up as she walked away. Jai wasn’t sure what the
gesture meant but he suspected it was meant as an insult. He was just thankful for the peace and quiet.

He and Petre talked about other things going on around the warship before the lift slowed. Petre

walked off first. He fell back against Jai as a striped creature with a hairy limbed creature on its back
trotted by with a pale, red-haired female running beside it. Petre’s eyes widened as he looked at the
long bare legs of the female and her pert little grin as she waved. With a muttered oath, he turned to
follow her but was distracted when Kev called out to him.

“I want that female!” Petre muttered, glancing at her retreating figure before turning with a sigh of

resignation toward Kev who was waiting for him. “See if you can find out where she is going,” he
asked Jai as he walked away.

Jai had been so lost in his own thoughts that he had followed Petre without thinking when he

stepped off the lift. It took a moment for him to realize he was on the wrong level. With a curse, his
eyes flashed in annoyance to the second set of strange creatures running through the corridor.

The set of animals that ran by him this time were smaller and came in all different sizes, shapes,

and colors. His eyes swiveled to the figure following them. Heat filled him, immediately wiping
away the fatigue and irritation. A small female with lush curves ran by him. His eyes locked with hers
for the briefest moment before she pulled hers away. A heated blush turned her smooth, dark
complexion a light shade of rose. Her skin was darker than Lady Jo, more of a creamy mocha. Her
hair was a dark brown and cut short. She had it spiked with the tips touched with different colors that
showed off her creamy skin. Her eyes were a soft dark brown that made him want to drown in their
rich depths.

Jai watched as she raced past him, her rounded ass encased in a pair of dark blue leggings that

emphasized her figure. She wore a blue top as well but it did nothing to hide her generous breasts.
The thought of tasting her rosy tips jerked him out of his stunned reverie. He had never had such an
intense reaction to any female before, including those who sought to entice him into spending his
credits on them.

He jerked forward in a panic at the idea of losing sight of her. Fear washed through him at the

thought of another warrior seeing the female and claiming her before he had a chance to. He rounded
the corner and muttered a silent curse when he bumped into his commander.

“Excuse me, my lord,” Jai muttered, looking behind Manota in an effort to catch a glimpse of the

female.

He wasted precious moments answering questions and asking Manota if he had seen which way

the female had turned. He had been nervous Manota would rebuke him for asking and order him to
stay away from the female. He knew deep down he would end up being seriously disciplined for
disobeying a direct order because he knew he would have ignored any command to leave the female
alone.

A grin spread across his face as Manota explained his female had taken a right. Relief and

amusement burned through him at the slight look of resignation on his commanding officer’s face. It
was obvious Manota understood the impact the human females had on a warrior. With a quick ‘thank
you’, Jai raced down the corridor and turned at the intersection leading away from the direction he
had originally intended to go.

*.*.*

He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw the unusual female kneeling by one of the creatures she

cared for. He slowed his step, not wanting to startle her. She was the most beautiful, exotic female he
had ever seen.

A small smile curved his lips when he saw the shock in her eyes at the sight of him standing over

her. She was even lovelier the closer he got. Blood rushed to his cock as her lips formed a small ‘O’
of surprise. His eyes moved to her lips and he wondered what she would taste like. Just the thought of
them against his had him taking another step forward.

“Hello, female,” Jai said, stepping closer.

His gaze followed her as she nervously stood up and slipped her hands into the back pockets of

her blue leggings. The movement pulled her baggy blue T-shirt snugly against her full breasts,
showing the rounded pebbles of her nipples that swelled even as he gazed at her.

“Hi,” Mattie replied with more than a touch of nervousness at the huge man standing just a foot or

two from her.

She had to tilt her head back to look him in the eye. He was tall like all the other alien males and

the fact that she was barely five feet four inches wearing her shoes only emphasized that. He wore his
hair in a short military style. His skin was a dark tan, slightly lighter than her own.

Mattie received her coloring from a combination of her mom who was from South Africa and her

dad who was Caucasian. Her parents had met at Columbia State University but their marriage hadn’t
lasted more than four years.

She took a step back when the male took another step bringing him even closer. She could actually

feel the heat from his body and catch his scent… Mattie briefly closed her eyes and inhaled. His scent
was causing her body to do things she didn’t even know was possible. She had read books that spoke
of a woman’s body turning to liquid but this was ridiculous!

How could the smell of someone turn you on? She silently wondered.

“What are you called?” Jai asked in a soft, deep voice that caused goose bumps to pop up on her

arms.

Mattie shook her head in an effort to get herself back under control. She tilted her head to the side

and scowled up when the man took another step closer. He was practically in her face now! She
refused to move back, even though that was what she wanted to do.

Who did he think he was! She had every right to be here. She glanced up at the male again. He

was intimidating in his uniform. The black leather vest, black pants, and mid-calf boots made him
look even bigger and more dangerous in her opinion.

Maybe it would have been better to have just jogged around the storage bay, she thought as she

suddenly realized just how alone they were. She wondered if anyone would hear her if she screamed.

“Mattie,” she responded as she gave in to her sense of self-preservation and took a tiny step

backwards. “What’s your name?” She asked, nervously biting her lower lip. She froze when he
reached out and gently touched her lower lip with his thumb.

“Jai,” he replied huskily. “What are you doing out of your area?”

Jai studied the small female that barely came to his chest. He liked that. He also liked her soft

rounded figure. It made him want to scoop her up and press her against his body.

Mattie shifted uncomfortably. “No one said we couldn’t explore,” she retorted. “The dogs and I

needed some exercise. Why? It isn’t like it’s dangerous or anything to walk the hallways or anything,
is it?”

“It can be,” Jai replied with a devilish grin.

He thought of how much he wanted her. The primitive urge to chase her, capture her, and claim

her flooded him the moment she ran past him. Now, standing closer to her and seeing how delicate

and feminine she was only made it worse. The thought of someone else finding her first drove him the
final step closer. He had to mark her as his.

Mattie gasped and took another half step back, almost tripping over Peewee who was lying by her

feet. She started to protest but the words died on her lips as Jai reached out and grabbed her arms,
pulling her closer to his body. She trembled and pressed her hands against his chest as he pulled her
closer.

“You are invading my personal space, you know,” she whispered nervously. “I… You… can let

me go.”

“I don’t think so,” Jai said as he wrapped his arms around her. “I am claiming you as mine,

female.”

“Claiming…” Mattie’s startled response was cut short as Jai bent his head, claiming her lips in a

heated kiss.

Mattie’s protest was smothered as his lips brushed against hers before he deepened the kiss. She

felt her feet lifting off the ground as he wrapped one arm under her butt and pulled her against him.
She gasped when she felt his hard length pressing into her stomach. He took advantage of her gasp of
surprise, sweeping his tongue inside her mouth to explore her taste. If anything, she was even sweeter
than he expected.

A low groan escaped from him as he finally pulled back. “You taste even better than I thought you

would. I want you,” he breathed as he brushed kisses along her jaw and down along her neck. “You
are mine, Mattie.”

Mattie jerked as she felt his lips lock on to her neck, pulling at the tender flesh. The sharp nip

caused her to arc into him. He tasted her pulse as it fluttered rapidly under the onslaught of his lips.
Her responsiveness to him ignited his blood until he felt like he was about to explode. Never had he
had such a reaction to a female. Never had he wanted someone so badly that he could think of nothing
else but taking her, claiming her, loving her.

“What… are you doing?” Mattie moaned as her head fell back.

“Making sure everyone else knows you are taken,” he growled out as he pushed against her.

Panic built as fear overwhelmed her. She didn’t know this man. He could just be playing with her.

He probably thought she was easy with the way she had been responding to him. She pushed against
his shoulders as he continued to try to kiss her. Finally, she cried out a sharp command in German to
Poppers, the Standard Poodle.

“Poppers, beißen seine Hose!” Poppers, bite his pants! Mattie cried out.

Poppers rose immediately and grabbed the back of Jai’s pants. The huge warrior let out a sharp

yell as the poodle grabbed a little flesh with it. Poppers growled menacingly, refusing to let go.

Jai cursed and released Mattie, carefully sliding her down his body even as he gritted his teeth

against the pain of having his ass pinched by the sharp teeth of the dog. He glared over his shoulder at
the poodle that just growled deeper and jerked her head, causing another curse to escape from his
clenched jaw. He turned to look at Mattie who was pressing her back against the wall even as she

scooted further away from him.

“Poppers, release,” Mattie whispered out, never taking her eyes from Jai’s furious face. “I have

to go. “Nach Hause gehen, guys.” Go home, guys, Mattie ordered as she turned back the way she
came and started running.

Jai watched as Mattie and her shaggy companions disappeared around the corner, almost

knocking Petre down as he came walking around it. He waited until he could no longer see her before
he reached a hand out and rubbed his offended butt cheek. A small chuckle escaped him as he thought
that he was going to be carrying her mark for a few days, on his ass. Unfortunately, it wasn’t the mark
he was hoping for.

“What are you laughing about?” Petre said glumly. “I couldn’t find the female I was looking for

and yours looked like she had a dozen Killian mercenaries on her ass.”

“Mine just had one of her creatures bite me in the ass to get away from me,” Jai said with a grin.

“And you think that is funny why?” Petre asked confused.

Jai looked over at his friend. “Because I left my mark on her neck. She is mine, Petre. Let’s go get

a drink. You look like you could use one,” Jai said suddenly feeling much better.

At least the pain in his ass was making him forget the one in his head. A few stiff drinks and

neither  one  would  matter.  He  needed  to  talk  with  his  friend  anyway.  He  had  noticed  one  of  the
warriors in engineering that he hadn’t seen before. He wanted to find out if Petre knew anything about
him.  He  had  a  funny  feeling  about  the  male  called  Mullox.  He  had  found  him  opening  the  coolant
panel for the engines yesterday when that was not his assigned area. He knew Petre helped with the
assignments  and  wanted  to  check  if  Mullox  had  been  reassigned  without  Banner,  the  Chief  of
Engineering, knowing or letting him know as he was second in charge of that area.

Chapter 4

Mattie giggled as Peewee reached up and sniffed at Bandit, her ferret, who was exploring on one

of the tables near the viewport. She had brought Peewee and Bandit out with her. She had given the
others a bath earlier and didn’t want them out where they could get chilled. Peewee and Bandit had
their bath the day before.

She had stayed hidden in the storage bay for the past three weeks and was about to go crazy. She

and her critters had explored every inch of both storage bays. She had even developed a few new
routines with them. She walked over to scratch Peewee’s head as she stared out into space. She had
heard Ricki and Nema talking earlier. They were saying they should be on Kassis in another week.

She reached down and picked Bandit up, cuddling the soft body against her own. She couldn’t

stop thinking of the huge male called Jai. At night, she dreamed of being in his arms again, his lips on
hers, his body pressed against her.

“What is wrong with me?” She turned and looked down at Peewee with an accusing expression.

“Why can’t I stop thinking about him? What did he do to make me ache the way I do? Hell, even
where he bit me the mark is still there! I thought hickeys were supposed to disappear after a few
days,” she muttered.

“Arh-whoo,” Peewee answered in his grumpy, growling voice.

“You were no help either, you know,” Mattie continued. “You just laid there while he kissed me!

You could have at least pretended like you were going to stop him.”

“Grr-ruh,” Peewee answered before he sneezed loudly.

“I know,” Mattie said stroking Bandit who was trying to climb up so she could curl around

Mattie’s neck. “I know. I should have at least talked to him when he came by to see me,” she said
grumpily. “I will if he comes again. I promise.”

Peewee sneezed again and looked like he was happy with the way their conversation was going.

Mattie felt guilty now. Jai had come by every day to see her, often bringing small gifts that he left on
the step of her camper.

She thumbed the braided bracelet and sighed. He came even though she hid in her camper. He

knew she was there. He would sit on the step and just talk. Sometimes he talked about how his work
was going, other times he talked about his family. He asked her questions but she never responded.
She just sat on the other side of the door hoping he would just keep talking. She loved listening to his
husky voice. She could picture the large farm where his family lived and worked. When he said
goodbye, she would place her hand on the door, willing herself to open it and beg him to come in.
Last night, she had but he had already left.

“I’m not going to wait for him,” Mattie said suddenly in determination. “I’m going to go find him.

Tell him I want him… Well, ask him to dinner,” she whispered. “I’ll ask him to dinner. That would
be a good start, wouldn’t it?” She asked Bandit who was curled around her. “You are no help either,
you know.”

Peewee stood up and wagged his massive tail. “Let’s go find him, Peewee,” Mattie said

excitedly.

They were almost to the door when she was thrown sideways into the back of a chair near it. She

gripped it tightly, one hand going to Bandit who woke up and jumped down onto the cushion. She
tried to grab her pet but the ship rocked again and she found herself falling onto the floor on her
knees. Peewee crawled over to her, whining pitifully.

“It’s okay,” Mattie assured her huge companion. “Bandit, come on, sweetheart. Come to momma.”

Bandit refused, instead the little ferret rushed for a low vent and disappearing into it. Mattie

cursed as she crawled over to the large vent cover and tried to pull it off. It was no use. The slats
were just the perfect distance apart for her skinny furry pet to squeeze through. There were metal
clamps holding it closed and Mattie couldn’t turn them, no matter how hard she tried.

“Bandit! Please baby, come to momma,” Mattie pleaded. She could see Bandit’s eyes glittering in

the narrow duct. “Come on, sweetheart.”

Mattie knew she was going to have to go get some of Bandit’s favorite snacks if she was going to

get her out. The ferret was one of her newest acquisitions and still frightened easily. Mattie knew her
little friend wouldn’t go very far from the opening.

“I’ll be right back, honey,” Mattie promised, scooting back up onto her knees. “Peewee, stay.”

She ordered hoping Bandit would stay near Peewee’s big shape.

Mattie climbed to her feet and hurried out of the exit. She ran into several warriors. She heard the

word explosives and engineering. Her eyes widened when she realized someone had set off an
explosive in the engineering level.

The level where Jai worked, she thought in horror.

“What if there are more?” She whispered as she ran. “What if one goes off and he gets hurt or

killed and I could have stopped it from happening?”

Mattie ran through the open doors of the storage bay heading as fast as she could to her camper.

She grabbed the handgrip by the door and swung up onto the step. Pulling the door open, she called
for the other dogs.

She jumped down off the step as they came barreling out of the camper. She whistled and took off

for the engineering level with the dogs in tow. She skidded into the lift just as alarms started to sound.
Giving the command for the Engineering Level. She watched as the lights flashed up two levels to
Level 6. She and the dogs poured out of the lift as soon as the doors opened. She looked wildly
around before looking down at her dogs.

“Sniff Sprengstoff,” Sniff explosives, Mattie ordered in German and gave them the hand gesture to

send them out.

The dogs took off in different directions, each with their noses down. Each had a unique bark. She

would know which one found something by the sound of their barking. She followed Polly, her golden
retriever. Nothing got by Polly, her oldest and best trained sniffer.

Mattie glanced as several warriors ran by her. She stepped around several large banks of panels.

Polly was moving rapidly, as if she was scenting something. She was able to move through the maze
of tubing, pipes, and conduits faster than Mattie could. Polly let out a sharp bark and headed toward a
male who was heading into another section marked by strange symbols that Mattie couldn’t read. He
turned his head at the same time as Polly froze, growling.

“Stop!” Mattie called out. “Help! He has a bomb!”

The male turned toward the door. He dropped something on the floor as he turned, half in and half

out of the doorway to the next room. A look of horror flashed across his face before a huge explosion
knocked Mattie backwards onto her back. She cried out and covered her head as she rolled closer to
a panel, seeking cover.

She screamed when she felt several sets of hands gripping her, trying to roll her over. She kept

her arms over her head as she was flipped onto her back. She peeked between her arms but all she
could see was Polly’s mouth and nose as she pushed between the men and Mattie.

“Move the creature,” a heated voice said.

“No! Don’t touch her,” Mattie croaked out hoarsely.

An unfamiliar man’s face peered down over Polly’s head. “Are you hurt?” He demanded.

Mattie shook her head and let the other two men help her to sit up. “No, I don’t think so.”

She glanced toward where the man with the explosives had been but she couldn’t see through the

huge male kneeling in front of her. A part of her was thankful because she had a feeling she would
have passed out.

“Who… who are you?” Mattie asked hesitantly.

“My name is Banner. I am Chief of Engineering. Who are you and what are you doing here?” He

demanded, shifting so that she was forced to turn away from where the other man must have died.

“I’m Mattie. I heard there was an explosion in engineering. My dogs are trained to sniff for

explosives. I was worried…,” she paused as Banner helped her to her feet. “I was worried Jai might
have been hurt in the explosion. I also thought that maybe whoever put the explosive here might have
put another one. I was right,” she answered quietly.

Banner turned her away from the mess behind him. “Yes, you were,” he replied before looking at

the other two men. “I need to get the engines back online. Come with me. I can’t spare anyone to
protect you.”

Mattie walked rapidly beside the male who still held her arm tightly in his hand. “What

happened? What if there are more bombs hidden?” She asked breathlessly as they rounded a corner.

“The warrior you saw damaged the coolant panel, knocking the engines offline. We are under

attack by pirates. I don’t know if there are any other traitors on board and I’ve received word that we
have been boarded,” Banner growled out. “Work on rerouting the coolant system override.” He
ordered before he pushed her into a chair. “You stay here. I’ve notified K’tar of the situation.”

“What about Jai? Is he alright?” Mattie asked, biting her lip in worry.

Banner’s expression softened as he stared down at Mattie. “I have not heard anything yet,” he

admitted.

Mattie bowed her head and nodded. She placed her hand on Polly’s head, gently running her hand

over the golden retriever to make sure she was okay. She looked around the huge area, worried about
the other dogs. The engineering department took up almost half of this level. She stood up when she
heard Oscar’s muffled baying. He had found another explosive.

Mattie looked around worried. She opened her mouth to call out when a movement out of the

corner of her eye had her turning defensively. A cry escaped her when she saw Jai’s grim face. Mattie
ran over to him, throwing her arms around his neck and burying her face in his neck.

“You’re okay,” she sniffled. “I was so scared.”

Jai’s strong arms wrapped tightly around her. He held her close, breathing in steadying breaths.

He had heard K’tar telling Manota about the second explosion and Mullox. He said that a human
female and her pet had stopped the traitor from destroying their crystals.

“What are you doing here?” Jai demanded hoarsely, cupping her face between his hands.

“Oscar!” Mattie said urgently. “Oscar has found another explosive!”

Jai’s eyes widened but he released her. “Where?”

“This way,” Mattie said, grabbing his hand and pulling him. “Polly, find Oscar!”

The golden retriever took off, weaving through the equipment. Mattie and Jai raced behind her.

Oscar’s soft baying grew louder as they raced to the far end. They rounded the corner of one set of
piping that lead up to the ceiling. Oscar was trying to dig a hole through one of the metal plates
covering a floor panel.

Jai cursed and slid his laser sword into his belt as he dropped down next to the foxhound. Mattie

called Oscar to her as Jai carefully pulled the release to the side and opened the panel. Under it, three
cylinders filled with liquid, wrapped in wires and set to a timer was exposed.

Jai looked up wildly, his eyes narrowing on a cabinet on the wall. Rising up, he ran over to it and

pulled it open. Inside was a toolkit. He grabbed it and rushed back. Pulling a splicer from it, he
carefully followed the wiring until he found the one he wanted. With a quick move of his hand, he
sliced through the wire. The timer flashed once before going out.

His head turned and he gazed at Mattie’s pale face as she hugged the foxhound to her. His head

tilted as he heard another howl. Mattie’s eyes widened in fear as she stood up and turned.

“Chia,” she said.

Jai grabbed the toolkit and nodded. “Lead me,” he said huskily.

Mattie took off, following Oscar and Polly. They found two more explosives set to detonate at

varying times. Mattie sent the dogs out over and over for the next hour before she felt confident there
were no more explosives in engineering. She looked over at Jai who was helping repair the coolant
panel that had been practically destroyed. Deciding there was nothing more she could do, she quietly
turned to return to the storage bay before she remembered she had to still get Peewee and Bandit.

“I have to get my dog and ferret that are in the lower lounge. Is there a way to get there if the lifts

are not working?” Mattie asked one of the men working on the programming.

He glanced at the dogs then back to her and shook his head. “You won’t be able to take your

animals with you. There is a crawl space that leads down to it but they won’t be able to go,” he said
nodding to a side door that stood closed. “Press your hand to the panel and I’ll program it to open.”

Mattie nodded and walked over to the panel. Pressing her hand against it, she waited as it scanned

her palm. A moment later, the door popped open. She smiled her thanks before telling the dogs to
stay. She climbed through the opening, turning and began descending as the door above her closed.

She hurried down the ladder until she saw the same symbol that was on the walls of the storage

bay. She leaned forward and pressed her hand on the panel next to the door and it slid silently open.
She was on the right level. She looked around before she stepped out into the corridor. The door slid
closed behind her. She turned away from the storage bay, heading to the far end where a service
lounge was set up for those working in the area. She was almost to the lounge when four pale males
unlike anything she had ever seen rounded the corner opposite of the lounge.

Her eyes widened and she let out a short scream when one of them yelled out and charged at her.

Mattie turned, emitting a loud scream as she tried to escape the male’s hands. Her next scream was
cut off as the male slapped his hand over her mouth. The noise was enough to alert two of the
Kassisan warriors who had been searching for intruders. They were able to shoot one of the pale
pirates before the male holding Mattie put his pistol against her temple and growled out a warning.

“No! Please, no!” She cried out struggling as he wrapped a big, beefy arm around her waist and

pulled her backwards into the lounge. “No!” She screamed as the door sealed her inside with the
three remaining pirates.

Chapter 5

“Where is Mattie?” Jai asked as Banner reattached the front panel to the coolant system. He

looked around with a frown at the five dogs lying in various stages of sleep. “Where is the human
female?”

Lyr looked up from where he was bringing the engines back online and frowned. “She returned to

Level 4. She stated that she needed to get a couple of her pets that she had left in the lounge.”

“You let her go?” Jai asked, outraged. “The ship is still crawling with pirates. You let a female

go unprotected?”

Lyr flushed as he looked up at Banner who had come to stand next to Jai. “With the weapons

systems back online, I thought they had either killed or captured all of the pirates,” he said with a
defensive shrug. “She sounded really worried.”

“Go,” Banner ordered Jai grimly. “The lifts should be back up now.”

Jai nodded and spoke quickly to K’tar asking for a status report on the pirates. He felt the blood

drain from his face when K’tar reported a hostage situation on Level 4. Three drakes had taken one of
the human females prisoner. A team was being deployed to take them out. Jai knew immediately what
would happen. The Drakas were known for their savagery. They would kill their hostage slowly,
sending a piece of them at a time out until they got what they wanted or were dead.

He ignored the lift and headed for the same access tube that Mattie had used. He knew deep down

they had Mattie. He would get off on level three and used the conduit tunnels to get to her. He would
kill the bastards.

*.*.*

Mattie looked around wildly for Peewee. Her eyes lit up when she saw the huge Mastiff’s nose as

he lay behind the long couch.

She cried out, “Verborgen bleiben.” Stay hidden as she was roughly pushed against the table.

A whimper escaped her as her head was jerked backwards by her short hair. She couldn’t let go

of the table. If she did, she would fall backwards either into the male holding her hair or onto the
floor. Either way, it was not where she wanted to be. The male stared down into her terrified eyes
and grinned.

“I want to take this one with me when we leave,” he growled.

The largest of the three males turned and snarled at the man. “They will not let us leave, you fool.

If you had not been chasing after the last female you saw we would have been off this warship.”

The male lifted his lip, showing off sharp teeth. “They are protective of these females. You saw

how those warriors fought to protect the other one. They will release us,” he said confidently.

“We should have been told there were females on board,” the last Drakas snarled. “Males fight

harder if they are protecting females.”

“There is nothing to do now about it,” the one holding Mattie snapped before turning his gaze

back to her when she whimpered as he tightened his hand in her hair. “I want a taste to see if they are
as good as they look.”

“No,” Mattie whimpered. “Please.”

The other two males laughed at her pleading. “She is already begging for you,” one of the said.

“Taste her but hurry. If this is my last chance to fuck, I want to make it last.”

Mattie screamed as the man bent her head back and bit into her throat. Her legs collapsed under

her and she fell back into his body. Peewee, hearing his mistress’ painful cry, pushed up with a dark
menacing growl.

The man holding Mattie, released her and she fell to the floor. She rolled to her knees as they

pulled their laser swords up. Grabbing her bleeding throat with one hand, she threw herself in front of
Peewee’s massive body.

“Verborgen bleiben, Peewee. Verborgen bleiben,” she sobbed, pushing her body between the men

advancing on her beloved pet and her. “Please. He won’t hurt you. I swear. Please, please…” Mattie
cried, spreading one arm out in front of the mastiff.

“What is it?” The male who bit her demanded, his gaze focused on the huge hairy beast.

“He… he is very, very special,” Mattie choked out desperately. “Very, very rare. There are no

others like him in any of your star systems.”

She knew that was the truth. Maybe if they thought they had another creature worth a lot they

wouldn’t hurt him. She could only hope that help came quickly because she definitely didn’t like the
way it was going.

The last male growled and took a step forward. “It will just be another thing to have to try to

escape with. Kill it. We can send pieces of it out to show them we mean business,” he growled out.

“No!” Mattie said, shaking her head. “I won’t let you harm him.”

The male who bit her threw back his head and laughed. “You won’t let us,” he chuckled darkly.

His eyes swept over the blood pouring down from where he bit her. His eyes moved over her lush
curves. “You have fire in you.”

Mattie shifted until she was kneeling in front of Peewee. “I won’t let you hurt him,” she said a

little more forcefully. “He is my family.” She stood up on shaky legs and let her hand drop from her
throat.

“Kill them both,” the male who wanted to kill Peewee said taking a step forward, raising his

sword to strike Mattie.

Mattie’s scream blended with the male when the one who bit her brought his sword up, severing

the man’s arm from his body. Her screams continued to echo even as the man turned and shove the
blade of his laser sword through his comrade’s chest. The other male just stood back. He might be
larger than the one who bit her but he obviously wasn’t as brutal

“Send his body out piece by piece,” the male said coldly. “Tell them the female is next.”

Mattie closed her eyes and turned her head as the larger male began to dismember his peer. A

whimper escaped her as she felt fingers under her chin pulling it around. When the pressure increased
until she couldn’t hold back the gasp of pain, she opened her eyes to look up into the icy cold ones
staring down at her.

“Undress,” he ordered.

Mattie violently trembled at his words. Her eyes filled with tears. A few coursed down her

cheeks but she refused to do what he said. He was going to kill her anyway. She would rather go
down fighting.

“No,” she whispered.

The male frowned and slid his hand down to her throat. “What?” He asked menacingly.

“I said ‘no’,” Mattie choked out as she brought her knee up as hard as she could into his crotch.

The hand on her throat tightened until she thought for sure he would crush it. One second he was

holding her and the next he released her as pain exploded through him from where she had kneed him.
Mattie didn’t wait any longer. She reached behind her and grabbed a computer slate left on the table
for reading and viewing vidcoms. She brought it upside the male’s head as she screamed as loud as
she could for Peewee to attack.

Peewee scrambled to his feet and charged the male who was sliding to the floor. Even as he sunk

his teeth into the man’s throat, Mattie was grabbing his discarded laser sword. She brought it up to
face the other huge male who was watching in disbelief as Mattie and her pet attacked. He dropped
the bloody head he had been holding and raised his laser sword to attack her. Out from under the
chair, Bandit ran. The small ferret was so frightened by all the noise that it just wanted to find a
higher place to hide. Since the huge male was the tallest, and closest, thing available, it raced up his
leg.

His startled cry echoed as he swung around to see what was attacking him from behind. He

swiveled around and around, knocking one of the tables loose as he slipped in the blood soaking the
floor. Bandit chattered before leaping off of the male’s shoulder towards Mattie who dropped the
sword she was holding to catch the tiny body.

Mattie gasped and backed up as the male turned toward her. She watched in horror as he raised

his sword over his head again. Just as he was about to bring it down, a sizzling hole appeared
between his eyes. Mattie cried out and fell onto the couch behind her as a figure rose up from behind
the chair where the vent that Bandit had escaped into was located.

She buried her face in Bandit’s fur and tried to curl into a ball. A soft voice ordered Peewee to

stand back. She shuddered when she heard the sound of a laser pistol discharging again. A moment
later, she felt hard hands urgently running over her. They lingered on the drying blood on her neck. A
soft curse echoed in the room before strong arms circled around her and Bandit and lifted them both
up. Mattie refused to open her eyes. She turned her head into Jai’s familiar scent and trembled
violently.

“I’ve got you,” Jai’s soft voice echoed. “You are safe. I’ve got you.”

Chapter 6

Over the next week, Mattie saw very little of the outside world. She lay curled up at night in Jai’s

arms. He had rearranged his schedule to match her sleep cycle. She had numerous visitors but the
only ones Jai allowed in were her furry friends. He quietly told the others that she was well but
needed more time to rest.

Mattie’s lips curved as she remembered him even refusing Manota entrance to see her. When she

told him she didn’t want to see anyone, he had taken it literally. Mattie knew it couldn’t go on forever.
In fact, it had to end today as they had finally reached Kassis but that didn’t mean that she didn’t want
it to continue. The last week had been incredible. Jai had put her needs first… always.

He’d had Shavic come to his quarters and heal her after he rescued her from the pirates. After

Shavic had left he had tenderly bathed her tired body, gently washing away the blood from the now
healed wound. She still blushed when she thought of him undressing her and caring for her. She had
never felt so loved in all her life. She turned as the door opened and Jai came in from his final shift.
She was dressed in her own clothes today. For the past week, she had worn nothing more than one of
his shirts.

“Hello guys,” Jai murmured quietly as all the dogs gathered around him. He handed out the treats

he always saved for them but his eyes were glued to her. “Hello Mattie.”

Mattie brushed a hand over her cheek and shyly smiled. “Hi, how was your day?”

Jai swallowed as he looked at the female he had held every night in his arms and spent every

waking moment with when he wasn’t working. It was killing him to hold her but not touch her in the
way he wanted. To touch her delicate skin but not claim her as he needed.

“It was good. I have to work the next few weeks but I will be off after that for several months. I

plan to return to my family’s farm to help out,” he began.

“Oh,” Mattie said looking away.

“I do not have a place within the East House suitable for you to stay with me,” he said walking

toward her.

Mattie glanced at him before focusing on the room around her. It was small, especially with all

the animals in it, but she had been happy in the cramped quarters. It wasn’t much different than living
in her camper.

“I guess this is it,” she responded in a husky voice. “I… Thank you for helping me this past

week.”

“Mattie,” Jai said softly, waiting for her to look up at him. He smiled tenderly down at her when

she finally did. “I would like to stay with you, if you don’t mind. Until I can get approval for a larger
living area.”

“Oh,” she whispered, before she nodded. “I have plenty of room. Well, not really but it is more

than you have here.”

“That is perfect,” he answered. “Only know this, I will not just be holding you in my arms any

longer. I need you, Mattie.”

Mattie’s eyes widened at the desperate plea in Jai’s voice. She smiled as she reached up to touch

his cheek. She loved him so much. This past week with him had shown her that.

“I need you too,” she whispered, blushing.

Jai closed his eyes and breathed deeply before he opened them and shook his head in amazement.

“I really wish you would have told me that last night. It has been pure torture,” he chuckled.

Mattie grinned up at him. “Tonight will be pure pleasure,” she teased before brushing a kiss

against his lips. “I love you, Jai.”

“I have loved you from the moment you ran by me, Mattie. Gods, I only hope I can wait until

tonight,” he muttered before he sealed his lips over hers again.

Neither one of them heard the dogs groan as they laid back down to wait for their mistress again.

Chapter 7

Mattie looked around nervously at her new home. The planet was gorgeous, at least what she was

able to see from the shuttles that brought them down from the Spaceport. The area where their
campers were located was just outside the main city. Ricki, who had been debriefed on everything by
Lord Manota, had explained that construction had already begun on more permanent housing for them
as soon as Lord Ajaska heard they were coming. She explained everyone would eventually have their
own home.

Mattie was amazed when she finally saw the compound from above at how fast the construction

was going. Ricki explained the houses were prefabricated modules that could be hooked together
relatively quickly and added onto if needed. Crystals were embedded in the houses as they were
being constructed and provided a natural energy source and light.

The compound covered over one hundred acres of land and included room for their current living

quarters which had already been delivered and set up, in addition to animal pens and a special area
for the Big Top. A small group of scientists and healers were being assigned to assist the human vet
and nurse with any issues.

A holographic image had been presented to the entire crew in a meeting before they were

escorted onto shuttles to take them down to the planet. Kev Mul Kar, along with Walter and Ricki,
had shown everyone the area, set up and answered any questions the crew had. To protect the humans,
a large perimeter fence had been erected. Kev emphasized that the fencing was for their privacy and
protection and assured everyone they had the freedom to come and go as they pleased.

Mattie couldn’t get over the beautiful area where their campers had been set up. Huge trees

shaded their homes and each had a large lot providing them privacy. In addition, a flowing river with
crystal clear water emptied into a nearby lake. Mattie excitedly peered out the window of the shuttle
and wished that Jai could have accompanied her. She hadn’t even been able to bring her animals as
they were being brought down on separate transport shuttles.

Ricki had explained the animals would be kept in quarantine for a few days so they could be

thoroughly checked by the Kassisan scientists. She emphasized that it was much like what happened
when they traveled to different countries, only she had less paperwork to file. That drew a laugh out
of everyone as they knew how much Ricki did to make sure everything flowed seamlessly for them.

“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” Suzy whispered looking over Mattie’s shoulder. “I can’t believe we are

really here!”

“It is beautiful,” Mattie replied in awe. “Look at how clear the water is! I can see all the way to

the bottom.”

“Look! There it is!” Suzy excitedly exclaimed, pointing. “There are some of the animals!”

Mattie looked over to a section that was fenced off. Pens, set up to model each animal’s habitat,

had been constructed. Some of the larger animals, like the three elephants Tony had, were already
inside their structure. Mattie could see several people walking around the outer perimeter of it,
observing Sydney, Myrtle and their calf. Another enclosure showed Katarina’s lions and tigers.

“They did a great job,” Mattie murmured.

“I overheard Ricki talking to Nema about it. She said that Manota had K’tar download

information on each animal before we left Earth,” Curly replied trying to look out the window as
well. “Man, does that sound weird or what? Before we left Earth,” he chuckled and shook his head.

Suzy sat back and reached for her husband’s hand. Mattie watched as the couple stared into each

other’s eyes and smiled. She recognized the look in Curly’s eyes. It was the same way Jai looked at
her. She turned her head and looked back down as they approached the landing area. Hope blossomed
as she thought about what was going to happen later that evening. A small smile curved her lips as she
planned for how she was going to greet Jai when he came home later that night.

No, he would be holding her in an entirely different way if I have any say in it tonight, Mattie

thought as they landed.

*.*.*

Jai waved to several people as he walked toward Mattie’s new home. He couldn’t believe how

nervous he was. He was beginning to think the day was never going to end. He had met with K’tar and
the rest of an elite group of guards for most of the day going over plans and reports. Petre had teased
him when he caught him daydreaming instead of listening.

He grinned as he remembered how he had bolted from the room when they were dismissed. He

had rushed to the single bedroom with a bath that he used when he was on duty in the East House. He
showered and packed a bag. He had looked around the small room and realized just how small and
lonely it was. If he had his way, he would never be alone again.

He jogged the rest of the way once he saw Mattie’s camper. His hand was just reaching to knock

on the door when it opened. He looked up at Mattie and felt his heart stutter before it exploded. She
was wearing one of his shirts and he suspected nothing else. It barely reached her upper thighs and
from this angle, he could catch just a glimpse of shadow between them.

“Mattie,” he breathed out hoarsely.

Mattie tilted her head and smiled down at his awestruck face. “I missed you today,” she admitted

before opening her arms.

Jai slowly climbed up the steps. He dropped his bag inside the door, reached behind him and

pulled the door to the camper shut, fumbling with the lock before he reached for her. His arms swept
her up against him even as his lips captured hers.

Mattie gasped as he slid his hands under the shirt she was wearing. His rough palms felt hot on

the bare flesh of her hips as he traced the curve of her ass and lifted her. The move forced her to wrap
her legs around his waist.

“Where’s the bedroom in this thing?” He muttered against the side of her neck as he pressed hot

kisses to her overheated flesh.

“Toward the back,” Mattie choked out. “Big bed. Need you. Now.”

Jai didn’t wait for her to say anything else. He loved the way her arms and legs tightened around

his body. He was going to fuck her until neither one of them could see straight. His cock felt like it
was about to burst from just the feel of her hot pussy rubbing against the front of him. He walked
through the narrow kitchen and small bathroom until he reached the back of the camper. His eyes lit
up when he saw the row of mirrored storage. That would come in very handy. Even better was the
huge bed.

He gently set Mattie down on the very edge of the bed. With a jerk of his hands, the shirt was

pulled over her head. He wanted nothing hiding her when he took her. Before she could say a word,
he sunk down onto his knees between her legs. When she tried to shut them, he gripped her thighs and
placed them over his shoulders so she couldn’t close him out. Leaning forward, he buried his face in
the soft hair covering her mound. Her shocked cry was followed by her wrapping her fingers in his
short hair and holding his head to her as he began to attack her with his lips, teeth, and tongue.

*.*.*

Mattie stared in disbelief at the mirrored reflection. Her plump breasts brushed the top of Jai’s

head as he licked and teased her clit with his teeth and tongue. The sight was so shockingly erotic all
she could do was tremble as she watched. The pressure built inside her so fast that she was shocked
when her body exploded.

“Jai!” She cried out as she locked her legs around him and fell backwards, writhing as he

continued his erotic attack. “Oh god!” She gasped as her body continued to pulse with her orgasm.

“Mine!” Jai snarled against the soft brown hair. “You are mine, Mattie. I will never let you go!”

Jai pulled back and stood. He quickly shed his clothes, kicking them to one side. Reaching for

where Mattie lay trembling on the bed, he lifted her legs in his hands and aligned his throbbing cock
with her slick and swollen channel. He pushed through the moist curls, impaling her in one steady
drive all the way to her womb. He threw back his head and roared out as she fisted him. The lining of
her vagina was so hot, so slick and still pulsing from her orgasm. He almost came from just the first
thrust, it felt so good.

Jai trembled as he tried to hold onto his own need to come. He wanted her to come again before

he found his own satisfaction. Sweat beaded on his brow as he held still and breathed deeply.

That was a big mistake, he thought with a grimace as he smelled their combined arousal in the

air.

“Jai, please,” Mattie’s pleading eyes met his. “I need you.”

“Gods, Mattie,” Jai said as she wrapped her legs around his waist and locked her heels against

his taut ass. “I won’t last this first time.”

“Then we’ll just have to do it again,” she teased.

Jai stared down as the plump mocha breasts with the dark areolas. He reached down and pinched

the swollen tips between his fingers as he leaned forward and began to pump in and out of her.

She was so damn tight around him it took everything in him not to curse. Each movement, whether

he was pulling out or pushing in, ran the length of his cock. He groaned loudly as he felt the tip of his
cock rubbing against her womb. Her hot core was sucking him in, caressing him and wrapping him in

its silky heat until it was impossible to contain his own release. He reached down desperately
between them and flicked the nub that he knew was extremely sensitive.

“Argh!” Jai growled out as he threw his head back as she arched into him as she exploded again.

His hips jerked over and over as he poured himself into her. “Mattie, my Mattie.”

His body stiffened and he wrapped his hands around her breasts marveling that the globes

overflowed in his large hands. He gazed down at her face, twisted in ecstasy as she shattered again.
Nothing had prepared him for the intense feelings rushing through him. He leaned down over her,
pushing even deeper as he did. His lips hovered over hers as he caged her within his arms. He waited
until she slowly opened her eyes to look up at him.

“I love you, Mattie,” he whispered. “Never doubt that. You are mine and I keep what is mine,

Mattie. Forever.”

Mattie smiled up at him. She ran her hands up over his chest to his shoulders. She gazed up at him,

her smile growing as she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him down the rest of the way.

“I can live with that,” she murmured as she kissed him deeply.

Chapter 8

The next few weeks flew by. Mattie felt like she was in a dream. Jai left early each morning but

not before loving her as thoroughly as he had during the night. She spent her days with her dogs, cats,
rabbits and ferrets practicing for the big performance that was coming up. She had been warned that it
would be dangerous that night and anyone who wanted to stay away could. Jai tried to convince her to
remain in her camper where she would be safe but she had to support the clowns who used her furry
friends in some of their performances.

Now, as she watched the last act being performed, she wondered if she had made a mistake. The

nightmares she had from being held by those males on the warship were just beginning to fade. But as
the tension mounted inside the Big Top, those fears came rushing back until she jumped at every
noise. Her eyes searched the dark shadows for anything out of the ordinary. She desperately wished
Jai was with her but he had been assigned somewhere else.

“Mattie, are you okay love?” Harold asked as he handed her Bandit as he came back behind the

curtain.

Mattie nodded and reached for Bandit, slipping her into the small cage beside the cats and

rabbits. The dogs all lay quietly around her as if sensing her nervousness.

“I just wish tonight was over,” Mattie whispered.

She looked over to the stands. Her eyes stopped on the man sitting with two unusual women. She

shivered as she watched as one of the women looked coldly at the stands where she thought the royal
family was sitting.

“At least your dogs didn’t pick up any explosives. That would have really livened tonight up,”

Harold said as he patted her on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. We are ready for anything. You just find
a nice place to hide.”

Mattie looked at Harold with wide eyes. “Aren’t you scared?” She asked softly looking into his

wrinkled face covered in makeup.

“Naw honey,” Harold said looking at the stands. “I was in Vietnam. You don’t get scared of much

after that.”

Mattie watched as Harold walked away. There were so many of her friends that she really knew

very  little  about.  Her  eyes  moved  back  to  the  stands  just  as  the  man  stood  up  and  screamed  ‘Kill
them!’  Mattie  watched  in  horror  as  men  rose  and  began  firing  at  where  Marcus  was  standing.  One
minute  Marcus  was  standing,  the  next  he  was  covered  by  a  huge  creature  covered  in  thick  scales.
Thick,  silver  scales  the  size  of  half-dollars  that  belonged  to  Marvin,  only  it  was  a  Marvin  she  had
never seen before! She stumbled backwards when Martin charged the stands. Turning, she fell to her
knees and crawled across the floor until she could curl up under the cage holding Katarina’s tigers.
She whispered to the dogs to come to her. They crawled on their belly’s imitating her until they were
up under the covered cage as well. Mattie pulled Chia into her lap and shivered as she listened to the
tigers pacing and snarling under the covers concealing them.

She covered her ears against the screams and yelling. Images of the males cutting their friend up

danced through her mind and she started rocking and humming in an effort to drown out the noise of
the fight. She had no idea how long she stayed hidden. It wasn’t until Jo came up and called her name
several times that she opened her eyes to stare in terror at the slender blonde.

“Mattie, I need your help,” Jo whispered. “Please, I need you to get the dogs to find someone.”

Mattie crawled slowly out from under the cage, looking back and forth. “Who?” She asked, her

voice trembling.

She watched as Jo pulled a small piece of fabric out by the corner. “Tai Tek. Please, I know your

dogs can find him,” Jo said.

Mattie looked at the torn cloth. She reached out a trembling hand and took the piece of torn

material from Jo. She called the dogs to her. Giving them a quiet command, she dropped the piece on
the ground and watched as they sniffed it. Once she was satisfied they had a good scent, she gave
them the command to ‘go find’. Oscar took off running as fast as his little legs could go, the other dogs
following close behind.

“Let’s go,” Jo said with a grin as she turned to follow the dogs.

Mattie nodded not saying anything. She doubted if she could over the lump of terror threatening to

choke her. She averted her eyes from all the blood soaking into the floor of the center ring. She
pushed aside the huge flap of the tent and breathed in a deep breath of the clear night air. She glanced
and saw Oscar running toward the animal compound.

They were rounding one cage when Mattie heard Jo cry out as a dark shape came from behind it.

She watched as Jo fought against a huge male. He was darker than the ones who had held her but he
had the same look in his eyes. They were cold and deadly. She bit her lip to keep from crying out
when she saw the male knock Jo backwards. She waved her hand to signal the dogs to move in. If
they got a chance, they would attack.

“You will lead me out of here,” the male growled out to Jo. “Dead or alive, I will use you to get

out of here.”

Mattie’s head turned when she heard another voice speak softly out of the darkness of the night.

“Dead sounds good to me.” A moment later, the male crumpled to the ground, dead from a knife to the
back.

Mattie sank down and pressed her body against the side of one of the fences. She bit back the sob

that  threatened  to  escape.  She  was  so  tired  of  death.  She  had  never  been  around  so  much  violence
before and to see people actually killing for enjoyment was too much for her. She hated violence. She
hated anyone or anything getting hurt. Mattie listened as Jo and Shannon, the young FBI agent that had
snuck aboard the warship disguised as one of the crew, asked each other questions. She was about to
stand  and  tell  them  she  had  to  get  out  of  there,  that  she  couldn’t  do  this,  when  the  dogs  started
growling  again. A  moment  later  she  heard  Shannon’s  soft  exclamation  as  she  drew  a  gun  from  her
waist and pointed it, firing rapidly twice.

“Bingo!” Shannon muttered darkly.

Mattie screamed and covered her head as a huge male fell forward, dead near the first one. She

tried to jerk away when she felt a set of slender arms wrap around her shoulders.

Shannon muttered a curse as she came to kneel next to Mattie. “That bastard has been following

me for the last ten minutes playing cat and mouse. I knew if I stopped long enough he would show
himself. Hey, are you okay?” She asked in concern when she saw how much Mattie was shaking.

“No, I’m not okay! Ever since I made the mistake of coming to this horrid world I haven’t been

okay. Why I ever thought it would be better I don’t know. I want to go home!” Mattie cried out before
silent sobs overcame the slender thread of control she had left. She was not cut out for this type of
life.

Mattie let Shannon help her up. She felt bad about breaking down in front of the two women who

were so much stronger than she was. She pulled her shoulders back and tried to hide her fear and
embarrassment.

Mattie sniffed and shook her head. “Take Oscar. The command is ‘Go find’ in German. He’ll find

the man you are looking for. Just tell him ‘hush’ and he won’t bay.”

Mattie turned to Shannon making sure she kept her eyes turned away from the dead men. She drew

in a deep steadying breath, waiting until she felt like she could talk. She knew she couldn’t ask the
other woman to protect her when she was obviously strong enough to help with the fight.

“Go,” Mattie said. “I’ll be fine. I have the other dogs. I’ll find my own way out of the shield.”

Shannon looked down at the younger girl with a frown. She could see how badly shaken she was.

Her eyes moved to the dogs sitting and watching their mistress.

“You know, I was trained for this,” Shannon said quietly. “They desensitize you in the Academy.

Plus, my dad was a police detective. I was used to hearing about it.”

Mattie nodded, not looking at the other woman. “Thank you,” she said. “They need you. The dogs

will see me home. I just… it would be better if I wasn’t in the way. I’m not used to violence and I
find it very… upsetting.”

Shannon reached out and gave Mattie a quick hug. “Neither could my mom. That is why it killed

her when my dad was killed. Good luck,” she added before she turned and disappeared into the night.

Mattie motioned for Peewee to stay next to her while Polly took up the lead. “Let’s go home.”

Mattie followed the dogs through the maze of cages, animal pens and storage units. She only had a

few more yards to go before she reached the area Ricki and Walter had said the border of the shield
was located. She cried out when a figure suddenly grabbed her from behind, holding a sharp blade
against her throat.

The dogs growled menacingly as the man backed up against the storage unit he had been hiding on

top of. Peewee snarled and pawed the ground with his massive paws. Even Chia was growling.

“You will lead me out of here,” the man snapped. “If they attack, I will slit your throat! Tell them

to leave.”

“Go home,” Mattie whispered as the blade cut into her throat. “Go! Go home!” She ordered with

a slight wave of her hand.

Peewee whined and moved back but refused to listen to her. The knife cut deeper into her flesh

and she cried out at the sting. Her hands went to his arm out of reflex.

“Please! They won’t listen if you hurt me,” Mattie cried out.

“Then I guess you die,” the man growled out in her ear.

Polly, who had been in the lead, had come back around the storage container. She charged the

man, biting down on his leg. Mattie had wrapped her hands around his arm and felt it when he jerked
backwards. She pushed his arm away from her and fell to the ground. She scrambled away from him
as he swung out.

Mattie heard Polly yelp when the man sliced the knife along her left leg. Peewee charged at the

man and knocked him back against the storage container with a vicious growl. The man swung
around, this time with a laser sword in his hand. He struck Peewee along the side of his face opening
a long cut.

“No!” Mattie screamed as she smelled the scent of singed fur and flesh. “Peewee, come!”

Peewee and Polly both hobbled over to her. Mattie wrapped her arms around the two dogs,

ignoring Popper, Bouncer and Chia’s yapping and frantic barking. The man looked down at his
bleeding leg before looking back at Mattie in fury.

“You and those creatures are going to die,” he snarled.

Mattie’s eyes widened as the man took a step toward her. Her mouth opened to scream when a

dark shadow came out of the night like an avenging angel. Jai had heard the dogs barking frantically.
He had been battling two mercenaries when he heard Mattie’s scream. A dark rage burst from him
and he had cut both men down without mercy as fear flooded him.

“You are the one to die tonight,” Jai said as he struck out.

Jai ignored everything but the male he was fighting. He had to cut him down so he could make

sure that Mattie was safe. That was all that mattered to him. She was supposed to have hidden once
the fighting had begun. He struck out again and again with cold calculated moves designed to weaken
his opponent.

He watched as the male fell backwards. Moving in, he swung his sword across the man’s wrist

slicing a mortal wound across the vein. The male’s furious cry rang out in the night. Jai stood over the
male as he grabbed his wrist.

“I should have killed the bitch,” the male moaned.

“She is not a bitch,” Jai said coldly. “Her name is Mattie and she is mine. No one touches her but

me.”

Mattie turned her head as Jai brought his laser sword down and across the man’s throat. She

buried her face in Peewee’s neck. Her hand wrapped in his blood soaked fur. She shuddered but
refused to cry. She slowly lifted her head when she felt tender hands cupping the back of her head.

“Are you hurt?” Jai asked huskily.

Mattie shook her head, looking him in the eyes. “No, are you? Hurt?”

Jai’s lips curved slightly as he brushed a trembling hand over her hair. “Only if something

happened to you,” he responded quietly.

“You rescued me again,” Mattie whispered. “You saved my life.”

Jai helped her to stand. He looked down with concern when he saw the blood on her hand and

arm. He looked down at Polly who was trying to lick Peewee’s muzzle where a long, thin cut oozed.

“I will always come for you, Mattie,” Jai said. “You are my heart. I told you I would never let

you go.”

Mattie wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly for a few precious moments

before she pulled back. She straightened her shoulders and forced a smile to her lips. She could be
strong, just in a different way. She might not be a good fighter but she was never going to be a quitter.

“I need to take Peewee and Polly home to see how badly they are hurt,” she said, taking a step

back. “You need to go kick some bad guys in the butt.”

Jai chuckled. “Go, the shield is just a few meters further. I will join you as soon as I can,” he

said, brushing a kiss across her lips. “Be sure you are wearing just my shirt when I get home.”

“Always,” Mattie promised. “Be safe.”

“I will,” Jai replied. “Wait for me.”

“Always,” Mattie whispered as she faded away into the darkness.

Jai watched as Mattie walked away. He didn’t turn to leave until he knew she was safely on the

other side of the shield. Only then did he return to the fight.

Epilogue

Two years later:

Mattie opened the front door of the large house and looked out over the fields to see what the dogs

were barking at. She squealed with delight when she saw Jai walking through the tall grass that
covered their small farm. Pushing the door open, she ran down the steps and across the uneven ground
to meet him. The dogs barked excitedly as they raced ahead of her. Jai petted each one before he gave
the command for them to go play. His eyes never left the beautiful figure running towards him
throughout their enthusiastic greeting.

Jai laughed and opened his arms to catch his rounded mate as she threw herself at him. Mattie

pressed wild kisses all over his face before sealing her lips over his mouth. He returned her kisses,
deepening them as he pulled her down into the tall grass. He felt like a man dying of thirst who had
tumbled upon a beautiful oasis. His hands greedily roamed her figure. He had missed her so much.
The last two months had been pure hell. The only thing that kept him sane was his daily conversations
with her.

Never again, he swore, never again would he leave her for so long.

“You are wearing shorts under my shirt,” Jai growled out as he pressed her into the soft turf.

“You are supposed to only wear my shirt when I am home.”

Mattie giggled and cupped his face in her hands. “I would if you were the only one here but your

parents are visiting,” she whispered. “I didn’t want to cause your dad to have a heart attack. Besides,
I think Jayden is getting a little old for me to be walking around without shorts on,” she reminded him.

“I was afraid of that,” Jai groaned as he pressed his lips to the rapidly beating pulse in her neck.

“I knew I shouldn’t have told my parents I was heading back.”

“Nonsense,” Mattie replied laying her head back as his hot lips explored her neck. “They come at

least three days a week to see Jayden. Plus, your mom wanted to make sure I was doing alright.”

Jai pulled back and looked down at the swell of her stomach. He gently laid his hand over the

growing mound. His eyes widened and a grin pulled at his lips as he felt the movement underneath his
palm as their daughter moved. His eyes moved back up to look intently at her.

“You have been ill?” He asked in concern. “You did not mention it last night when we talked.”

Mattie laughed. “No, I’ve been fine. Your mom was just looking for an excuse to see the new

puppies as well as her grandson,” she responded before she sobered and searched his face. “How
long are you going to be home this time?”

Mattie was worried he would be sent out on another assignment. He had been gone for almost two

months on a mission to Elpidios this last time. She had been terrified as it was the longest he had been
away since she had come to Kassis. She had missed him desperately even though they had talked at
least once a day.

“Forever,” Jai responded, running his hand tenderly along her cheek. “I have resigned my post. I

do not want to ever be separated from you and our children again. I have talked to my father and

brothers about raising Boshkas with them. They are growing in popularity and we have more than
enough room. I thought maybe you could help me train them,” he said quietly referring to the horse-
like creatures his family raised.

It took a moment for Mattie to understand what he was saying. When she did she cried out in joy,

throwing her arms around his neck and pulling his mouth down to hers. Her life was filled to
overflowing. Jai had rescued her and filled her heart with a love that she had only dreamed about
back on Earth. The sounds of the dogs barking and the laughter of their son and Jai’s parents echoed
in the background as they came closer, reminding them they weren’t alone.

She looked up into his eyes as he pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. “I love you,

Jai.”

“I love you too, my Mattie. You are mine and I always keep what is mine,” he whispered.

“Forever.”

The End…

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Susan Smith has always been a romantic and a dreamer. An avid writer, she has spent years

writing, although it has usually been technical papers for college. Now, she spends her evenings and
weekends writing and her nights dreaming up new stories. An affirmed “geek,” she spends her days
working on computers and other peripherals. She enjoys camping and traveling when she is not out on
a date with her favorite romantic guy. Fans can reach her at

SESmithFL@gmail.com

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