The Beast of Sueva comes through the door as they’re whooping, and Gen stiffens in my arms.

He looks proud though, swaggering out like he’s won the prize and not just been trounced by four small human females.

Abby tenses in the corner, where the med techs work on scanning her and shooting her full of supplements.

The Beast is there in an instant, scooping her up. “That was a nasty trick, wife,” he says, his voice low and rough.

Her eyes are huge in her dirty face, and they widen further when he kisses her.

Only to be rewarded with a swift kick to his abdomen.

He laughs darkly, and Abby’s face is screwed up with rage.

“Put her down,” Niki says, her voice dangerous. “Now.” Draz steps closer to the pair, his tail lashing back and forth.

The Beast does as she bids, setting her down. Abby watches him with a guarded gaze, and he lashes out a talon, causing her to flinch, but all he does is run it across her cheek before turning with a laugh.

She glares at his back as he leaves the room.

“Okay, then,” Gen says as the door snicks shut. “Who’s ready to party?”

Bex bursts through the door at the same instant, jumping up and down, the rest of their crew pouring in, surrounding the newest Warlords and first humans to make it through our trials, cheering and clapping them on the back.

Gen squeezes my hand once, then allows the crowd of women to sweep her away from me.

I love seeing her happy. I love that something here on Sueva has made her so pleased.

She’s one of us now. A Warlord. A princess.

She’s mine.

OceanofPDF.com

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

OceanofPDF.com

GEN

The party’s raucous, everyone drinking more of the potent Suevan alcohol than is likely healthy for humans. Our entire crew is on the dance floor, even Juls, who’s being half-carried around by Bex and Michelle like the conquering hero she is.

Niki and Draz are locked in each other’s embrace, swaying together slowly despite the upbeat tempo of the Suevan music.

Bex keeps casting longing looks at Dergoz, who seems to ignore her completely, except… every once in a while, I see him staring at her, too. Maybe there’s hope for those two, after all.

Michelle and Alvez also manage to ignore each other almost completely. Michelle, because she seems genuinely oblivious to the way he keeps watching her. Alvez, apparently, because he doesn’t know what the hell to do with the brainy beauty. Hell, she intimidates me, and I’ve been her superior officer for years.

It’s Abby, though, who I keep glancing toward. The Beast, her husband, showed up, to everyone’s surprise, but the tension quickly faded as he made a beeline for Abby, who was already nice and toasty on Suevan alcohol.

Now they’re kissing, and truly, the woman has set a new bar for public displays of affection. I’m half-afraid they’re going to start humping in the dark corner

“Can you make sure she doesn’t go home with him?” I ask, biting my lip. “I don’t want her to do anything she regrets, and I watched her drink at least three cups of the alien go-go juice.”

“Go-go juice?” Kanuz repeats.

“Jungle punch. Trash can whack. Girl’s going to have a hangover from hell.”

“I will have the others make sure she is safe. But you need not worry. The Beast looks fearsome, but he holds the same morals as the rest of us. He will not take advantage of her.” Kanuz holds me gently, his hands on my hips as we both face the gleeful dancers.

I relax slightly, averting my eyes as Abby writhes against the huge alien.

“Do you not want to dance, my flower?” he asks softly, his lips brushing my earlobe. “You do not seem as celebratory as I imagined you would.”

I avoided the alcohol tonight, my stomach weird and unsettled, and simply thinking about it makes me nauseated. I lean my head against his shoulder, glancing up at him and smiling.

“Honestly, Kanuz, I’m ready for bed.” And I am. I am beat. I don’t know if it’s because of the stress of the last twenty-four odd hours in the Trials, or relief, or something else, but I am completely wiped.

“My Warlord is insatiable,” he murmurs, nibbling on my ear, and I chuckle.

“No, your Warlord is pooped,” I tell him.

“You are what?” His voice is aghast, and when I turn to look at him, his mouth is curled in disgust.

I can’t help laughing harder. “Oh my God. No. It means tired. I’m tired. I am completely exhausted. Take me to bed, Prince, but like, I just wanna sleep.”

“Say no more,” he says, pulling my hand and leading me from the throng of Suevans and humans celebrating their new Warlords. “I will give you a massage. I will loosen all your muscles, and you will fall asleep in my arms.”

“Mmm,” I say, looping my arm around his hips. “That sounds perfect.”

The sounds of music and revelry begin to fade behind us as we walk through the illuminated streets of Edrobaz.

I pause, my mouth suddenly full of saliva. I gag, one hand flying to my mouth, the other gripping Kanuz’s bicep.

“Oh, no,” I mutter. But I can’t stop it, and I lurch to the side, throwing up all over the street.

“What is wrong?” Kanuz is frantic, and I go to my knees, heaving again, as he freaks out.

“Carmen,” I tell him. “Get Carmen.”

He’s gone in an instant, and I sit on my knees, wiping my mouth, feeling, of all the things, idiotic. Like I’m stupid for throwing up.

Because even though I’m still weak and nauseated, I mostly feel better.

I don’t want to ruin anyone’s night.

Carmen appears, trailed by Michelle and clutching her little med kit the Suevans use.

“Shit,” she says, taking one look at me, my blue dress dirty where it trails in the street next to where I hunch over a pool of sick. “Did you hit your head? In the Trials?”

“No,” I shake it, then regret the motion instantly. “Not that I remember.”

“Are you having memory loss problems? What day is it?”

I rattle off the Suevan date, just as another wave of nausea hits me. I dry-heave, but nothing comes up, and Kanuz puts something cool on the back of my neck, his tail slamming back and forth on the street.

“Did you eat anything weird? Anything unusual?”

I shake my head, stars swimming before my eyes, and Kanuz leans me against his big body, holding me upright.

“Ah, okay.” Carmen frowns, and Michelle passes her the portable med scanner. “We didn’t see any pathogens in you when we scanned you after the Trials, but maybe it took time to develop.”

“Are you super tired?” Michelle asks suddenly, her eyes owlish in her face.

“Yes,” I say, Kanuz nodding his head in agreement.

“Have you been wanting to eat anything strange?” Michelle continues.

Carmen stares at her, then at me. “When was your last period?”

“Her what?” Kanuz asks.

My jaw drops open. “No.”

“Well, we’ll find out in a minute,” Carmen says, and a needle appears in her hand. She grabs my wrist, pricking my index finger without so much as a please or thank you.

I think she must be as shocked as I am.

“I have an IUD,” I tell her.

“They’re not perfect tech,” she says.

“What are you talking about? What is wrong with her?” Kanuz’s voice is frantic, and I can’t even answer him. My mind is spinning.

Michelle simply glances between us, astonishment clear on her face.

The machine beeps a moment later.

“Holy hell,” Carmen says.

“That’s not very professional,” Michelle admonishes.

“It’s positive,” I say faintly, my hand flying to my abdomen.

“What is she positive for? Tell me, my flower, and I will do everything in my power to cure you. We will travel to all the galaxies. I would negotiate with the Roth Overlord himself.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Carmen says, a beaming smile on her face. “She’ll be cured in about nine and half months.” Her mouth twists to the side. “Well, that is, if your gestation period is as long as human pregnancies. There are a lot of unknowns in an interspecies pregnancy like this.”