Alien Hope (Fated Mates of the Sea Sand Warlords, #14)

by Ursa Dax

It had never made me feel like my heart was a seabird with desperate wings

He gave an unintelligible grunt in reply. “Is that... Good?” I pressed, unable to help the smirk that stretched my mouth. I decided that I really liked this big awkward lug.

Miriam, Catalina, and Sloane, the last unmated women here besides me,

For a reason I could not name, the idea that she might want to rely on me in some small way was viscerally satisfying.

“Yes,” I agreed, unsure what else to add. She did not seem to expect more from me, and I relaxed slightly, realizing that perhaps I did not need to come up with anything clever to say in her presence. She seemed to accept my silence as readily as my words.

But, as I’d learned long ago, emotions often tended to be absurd. Which was why it was so much easier to not bother trying to explain them to anyone.

“Was that a joke, Kohka?” A smirk pulled at my snout.

“So you gotta know your fucking shit. Knowing shit means surviving. Don’t rely on anyone else to know it for you.”

“Waves of our fathers,” Kohka swore.

I will search out this interloper on my braxilk.

“I understand,” Chapman said. “I mean, I don’t, because I’ve never gone through something like that. But I understand your reasoning.”

I felt totally at ease with Tilka, despite having only just met her. She exuded charismatic confidence that was tempered by sincere kindness.

In Abby’s arms, I felt like a Hakah.