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  Anna typed in her name in Nyal Common and looked for a notepad.

  “Second drawer on your left. Everything you are accustomed to is nearby.” Yem-lal smiled. “There is a buzzer on your desk that will contact me if you need anything. I will send Dey-lal to you when dinner is ready.”

  Anna looked up and smiled. “Thank you. Today was a wonderful day.”

  Yem-lal smiled shyly. “Thank you, daughter. You make me wish I had had a little girl to be protected by my two hulking boys, but even Hemcorl couldn’t manage that trick.”

  Anna felt the regret almost palpably. “Cross your fingers for a granddaughter.”

  Yem-lal grinned and left Anna alone to play with the information systems she had been granted access to.

  It was time to make a list of what she wanted for her parents, from transport, to shelter, to clothing. Everything had to be accounted for if they were to enjoy their retirement on Hemcorl.

  Since the moment Yem-lal had mentioned it, the possibility of having her parents there with her had been tempting. If she got her parents’ agreement, she wanted to make sure that they didn’t want for anything.

  “Anna, it is time for dinner.” Dey-lal was leaning in the open doorway.

  Anna blinked and pulled herself out of the data storm she had been analyzing. “Right. Of course. Sorry.”

  She made a note and shut down her terminal. She rubbed her eyes and patted her hair before standing.

  “You look like you just woke up.”

  She grinned. “I have been learning how to make money in the Nyal Imperium. Your mother indicated that if they wanted to, Hemcorl would allow my parents to live out their days here.”

  “She mentioned it. I think it would be an excellent idea, bringing the last of your bloodline back into Nyal space.”

  He offered her his hand, and she took it.

  “I am just working on making sure that I have enough money to support them through their retirement.”

  “You do realize that I can give you what you need.” He pressed a kiss to her temple before leading her out into the halls.

  “I want to earn it. I have already managed to increase the accounts by twenty-five percent. I am being cautious.” She smiled tightly.

  “You have nearly pulled in twenty thousand credits in one afternoon?” He was shocked.

  “Of course not.” She smiled smugly. “I made that in an hour.”

  She was smug all the way through dinner. She had finally found something that she was pretty good at that translated to her new circumstance.

  Yem-lal looked satisfied with the way things had worked out. She announced, “Dey-lal, please escort your bride to your wing. She doesn’t need to be segregated anymore.”

  “Yes, Mother.” He smiled and offered Anna his hand.

  She slipped her fingers along his slowly and with deliberate delicacy. “Good evening, everyone.”

  Anna let Dey-lal pull her to her feet, and they walked out of the dining room without another word. The men slowly returned to their seats when Anna glanced at them over her shoulder.

  “Is it usual for you to turn in for an early nap in the evenings?”

  His lips twisted in a different kind of grin. “I don’t intend to rest, do you?”

  She nudged his hip with hers. “Not particularly.”

  After an hour doing what she was good at, she felt downright cocky.

  He walked her down a sprawling hall and into the southeast corner. “This is the family wing. Mother has her quarters on an upper floor.”

  “And Karo-lal?”

  “He prefers to hang out in the northwest wing with the other Guardians.”

  “So, I was put in the tower because...”

  “Oh, we needed to keep you stranded. The same reason you didn’t have proper clothing. It is second nature to keep the female in question in a vulnerable situation. It isn’t polite, but it is necessary.”

  Anna chuckled. “Of course.”

  “You seem almost joyful this evening.” He squeezed her hand.

  “I am. For the first time in weeks, I feel like me again. The intense need to either run or have sex is finally deep in the background. I was able to risk five thousand of the money that is in my account and turn it into twenty in an hour. I still have the skills that I was developing at home. I didn’t change when the heat kicked in. I am me again, and I didn’t think I would be.”

  “I believe I understand. When my powers kicked in, I lost myself until they settled.”

  “Or you found a way to control them. The heat is something I can’t control.”

  He squeezed her hand again. “But you can recover from it. That is the part that truly matters.”

  He turned her down another hall, and the door swung open. It was an entire apartment of sitting areas, couches, a partnership desk and an archway that had a bed visible behind it.

  “So, have my clothes started arriving?”

  He grinned, wrapped his arms around her and lifted her off her feet, walking her into the bedroom where the bots were frantically unpacking her clothing.

  He set her back on her feet and smiled. “Good thing you don’t need them tonight.”

  Anna laughed and kicked off her shoes. “I wonder how different this will be without my blood on fire.”

  He knelt and pushed her dress up and over her hips. She bent forward, and he pulled it off her body.

  “My dear wife, setting you on fire is my goal. I will enjoy seeing what sparks the flames.”

  “Well, getting your suit off will be kindling. I would get to it.” She sat on the edge of the bed and primly crossed her legs. Anna’s shy mind was reeling, but her confidence was high.

  He pulled off the suit, and she watched the muscled expanse of his shoulders and chest with mouth-watering interest.

  When he shoved the fabric down over his hips, he had to break the mood by hopping as he shifted from foot to foot to remove his boots. His erection bounced from left to right.

  Anna fought the giggles that welled up, but her mind went straight to seriousness when he approached her with a predatory intensity that sent amusement scurrying.

  He gripped her waist and lifted her back to the bed, settling her near the headboard.

  Dey-lal grinned. “You might want to hang on.”

  She reached back and wove her fingers around the carvings, holding tight as his hands moved rapidly over her, lighting her skin on fire with a thousand light touches in the space of a second. She wanted to tell him he wasn’t playing fair, but her breath was sawing in and out with her gasps the only sound in the room.

  His hands found every bit of skin that made her jerk at his touch, the quivering of his fingers was a deadly, dangerous seduction technique.

  She was content to twist against his hands until he moved one of those clever hands between her thighs.

  Anna lost all dignity, she sobbed, she begged, she whined, and when she was an inch from shattering to pieces, Dey-lal slid into her with a few rocks of his hips.

  He was smirking at her as he thrust, and she couldn’t begrudge him his smugness. In under ten minutes, he had her crazy enough to claw at the hardwood headboard.

  She latched her legs around him and lifted with every inward surge of his hips.

  He freed her hands from the headboard, one by one, placing them on his back. His burning eyes told her what he wanted, so she drew her nails across his skin, forcing him into her hard as she pulled his ass into her and dug in her fingertips.

  He groaned and shuddered against her. He jerked his hips into her again and again.

  She held onto him as he slowly lowered his body to hers.

  He pressed a kiss to her temple. “That was not my best effort.”

  She laughed. “I have no complaints. It’s nice to not have to worry about getting off to please my partner.”

  He growled and delicately licked the sweat from her skin. “No, but it means that I rushed things.”

  She snickered and then gasped
as he moved a hand between them. “I am really—oh dear—ohh lord—ahhh!”

  It was his turn to laugh as her near miss with an orgasm changed direction and tossed her into her release. She felt her inner muscles convulse and held onto him with all her might.

  When her body stilled, she was still flattened underneath him, and it was a fairly comfortable position.

  It was a heckuva housewarming for her on the first night in her quarters. It was a damned good thing that the bots weren’t paying attention.

  * * * *

  Yem-lal watched the display and smiled, as her son didn’t leave his wife unsatisfied. It boded well for their future together. Anna would have a hard enough time gaining a foothold on a world completely alien to her without sexual frustration entering the picture.

  She closed her mind to communicate with her husband. Yes, Kriok-eth, he is finally getting used to the idea of being a father. He can stand on his own again, anyway.

  Thank the stars. I remember when I learned you were carrying; it took two days to get my legs under me. It appears to be a family failing. His voice came to her as if he was in the next room.

  She felt him stroking her shoulder and sighed. This was the best part of being part of Hemcorl. Her husband was always with her, no matter how far away his body was. She returned the caresses on the psychic plane, and soon, they were tangling together, as they had for decades. Location wasn’t a factor when it was a true meeting of the minds.

  Chapter Eight

  Dey-lal had disappeared in the middle of the night when the alarm sounded. Anna woke, got breakfast with Yem-lal and then headed for her office. She now had fifteen thousand credits to play with. She was keeping her capital.

  She began with commodities and then worked into a few mild speculations. A few investments in small businesses on Hemcorl would eventually find their profits down the road. Quick trades on currency helped her build her available portfolio quickly, and using her access as a Terran let her find information that others would have ignored, like the activities of Guardian bases with Terrans posted there.

  It was information that was available to anyone, if they knew where to look. She had simply taught herself where to look.

  “If you keep working like that, you are going to go blind, sister.”

  Karo-lal was leaning in her doorway, eating an apple.

  She stopped and pinched the bridge of her nose. “You know, there is this thing called knocking. I know that you have it. I found it in the Nyal archives. Everyone believes in it.”

  He laughed. “What are you working on?”

  “I am getting enough funds together to bring my parents here. Yem-lal and Hemcorl said it was allowed. I want them to be able to live comfortably, so I am taking my bride money and making it into funds for them to live on.”

  She smiled at him.

  “You might want to stop for dinner. Mother asked me to check in on you.”

  Anna squinted at the time displayed in a corner of her data screen. “Oh damn. Why didn’t—never mind.” She pushed herself to her feet and swayed.

  Karo-lal came around her desk and offered her his arm. She held on, and he walked with her through the halls to the dining room.

  The men looked a little the worse for wear. Yem-lal was bustling around them and sighing. “I am sorry, but the volcanoes are necessary. They relieve the tectonic pressure and allow for new land to expand.”

  Dey-lal had discolouration on the side of his left cheek. “Does Hemcorl have to set them off so close to habitation?”

  Yem-lal chuckled. “He warns them. He warns them several times but will not change the path from where his children want to pursue. They have the right to the most fertile soil on his world, but it has its risks.”

  Karo-lal chirped, “And we get to go in and save them from their own determination.”

  Dey-lal got to his feet and moved slowly toward her. “You look like you are walking into daylight for the first time, Anna.”

  She squinted. “The first time today.”

  “What were you working on?” He kissed her softly in greeting.

  She touched the dark mark on his cheek. “Something less dangerous than you were.”

  He smiled. “I will heal. I just don’t take to the regenerators as much as others do. They can only get me so far.”

  Yem-lal chuckled. “It is because both of my sons operate with sonic frequencies. They disrupt the machines after prolonged exposure. They vibrate at the same frequency as the healers.”

  Anna pulled Dey-lal’s head down to hers, and she kissed the burn on his cheek. “There. The only thing I can offer.”

  He smiled. “You have done wonders. Now, tell us about your day. Ours just involved screaming villagers and a volcano.”

  He escorted her to the table, and she sat next to him, trying to remember everything.

  “Yem-lal, were you serious when you said I could invite my family here?”

  Her mother-in-law smiled. “Of course.”

  “Good. I have amassed enough funds to transport them safely, as well as set them up in a home with vehicles and enough funds to last them the rest of their lives, including medical expenses, should they need them.”

  Dey-lal brought her hand to his lips. “You did all that today?”

  “Well, I started yesterday, but today, I just kept going. I have priced out everything that I imagine they would need and worked toward that goal. It’s done.” She grinned as the bots brought the evening meal to the table. “And I am hungry.”

  Yem-lal smiled. “Your husband can help you with a communication to your family, if you wish. If they want to come, they are more than welcome. I will sign all necessary documents to make it happen.”

  Anna Baxter Aricor felt a curl of joy unfolding. It was a flicker of hope. Her parents might not want to come, but it was her one chance to bring them to her before she started a family of her own.

  Dey-lal smiled. “I will arrange the communication after dinner.”

  He was true to his word. They entered the com office, and he started the time-consuming process of sending a secure communication to a destination in the stars.

  It took three hours, but when the link was made, Anna was there.

  Her parents looked worried when they appeared on the screen.

  Her mother teared up. “Anna? Oh, baby. You made it.”

  Her father was more practical. “Honey, why are you calling?”

  “Mom, Dad, I have a question for you.”

  Her parents glanced at each other and then nodded. Her father said, “Go ahead, Anna.”

  “Would you consider leaving the Earth and coming here to join me? I have asked, and it is not only possible, the permissions have been given if you say yes.”

  Her mother hesitated, but her father said, “Yes. What do we need to do?”

  Her mother looked a little more hesitant, but she nodded. “If you want us, we are on our way.”

  “You can think about it for a few days, but I would like to have you here when the baby arrives.”

  Her mom went from hesitant to delighted. “Yes, can we go now? Babe, start packing.”

  Her father looked at her mother, and he grinned. “The word has been given.”

  Dey-lal was behind the screen, and he nodded. They had discussed how this was going to go down.

  “Recruiter Norz will be contacted, and he will be in touch with you. Your passage is paid for; you don’t need to bring many clothes; you will be outfitted with local clothing when you get here. So, pick things that you can’t possibly replace. Norz will help you turn the photos into holograms.”

  “We will wait for the call, Anna. We hope to hear from you soon.” Her mother kissed her hand and pressed it to the screen. Anna did the same.

  With a sigh, she smiled and waved before hanging up.

  Dey-lal chuckled. “Three hours of waiting for a three-minute communication?”

  “We said a lot without saying much. Why wasn’t there a time lag?�
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  “The secure lines use Relays. Relays are living beings that can pass on the information with the speed of thought; they are a very secure method of communication.”

  “Wow. Well, can you send the message to Norz?”

  “My mother is handling that. As Avatar, she has a bit more weight when it comes to such matters.”

  Anna was giddy with excitement, but she had another appointment before bed.

  She got to her feet and said, “Okay, now, let’s go see your mother in medical so that she can check on the next generation.”

  When it was confirmed that the tiny clump of cells was progressing properly, Anna was ready for bed.

  The moment Dey-lal was naked, she saw the damage that was rapidly healing. “I think perhaps tonight is one of those just cuddle nights.”

  He grinned and stretched. “It might not be a bad idea.”

  She tried not to react to the sight of all that muscle moving from left to right. She failed but took off her gown, folding it on the back of the chair at her dressing table. The breast band and panties came off, and she draped them on top of the gown. She stretched as well, and when she moved back toward the bed, she saw that she also had an avid audience.

  She crawled onto the bedding and leaned over him. “So, perhaps we should try the cuddle night another time.”

  She nipped at his lips and ran her tongue along the seam.

  He held her head and gave her his wordless agreement in the most obvious of ways.

  There was more bureaucracy involved in transporting free Terrans into the Nyal Imperium than an entire ship full of slaves.

  When the day finally arrived, there was a chance for all the Guardians to assist in the welcoming of the two new citizens of Hemcorl.

  Yem-lal had been in communication with what she termed her new brother and sister during their voyage.

  Dey-lal had one arm around her, and she felt a little awkward greeting her parents with her belly nearly ready to blow. All day, she had been feeling twinges, but she had refused to give in to the urge to surrender to labour. This was her day, damn it!

  Anna blew the air out of her lips as softly as possible. Yem-lal kept giving her worried looks, but Anna was focused on the ship that was being cleared by Hemcorl immigration and customs.