Alien General's Baby (Brion Brides 7)(13)

All he needs is a white horse and I'm being courted by Prince Charming, only with the possible temper of a volcano and the abs of a Greek god, if the rumors are anything to go by.

In short, Naima was worried. Brions didn't have the most accommodating personalities and telling one of their powerful generals "no" on any matter was widely considered a suicide attempt. Watching the gigantic flagship grow bigger and bigger in the view screen on the wall, Naima feared the general wasn't really Prince Charming.

More like the Beast. Once I enter his castle, I don't think I'll be let out.

Gathering all her courage, Naima forced that ominous feeling to the back of her mind. They were about to embark on the most important mission in known history. Her personal fears could take a back seat. The scientist in her would have plenty of time to dissect this new turn of events to its last iota of sense or senselessness.

She comforted herself with the fact that Brions were also insanely protective of their geshas. Braen would never hurt her.

He would also never let her go. Whether that was a good or a bad thing, she wasn’t so sure yet… but she was certainly starting to feel more like Belle than Cinderella.



Dark, was Naima's first impression of Braen's warship.

Back on Matthos IV, leaving with the Brions had sounded almost romantic. Everything had been larger than life itself. Since the stakes were so high, she didn't really question what she was doing until the ship's hatch opened and all she saw was black.#p#分页标题#e#

First the ocean, now this. Give a girl a break.

Naima was about to open her mouth and say something, but Braen beat her to it.

"Lights!" the general commanded. "We have a guest aboard."

The way her body reacted instantly to his strong, commanding voice was a bit embarrassing to her, but Naima kept her mouth shut. He didn’t need any more ammo than she’d already given him, staring into his blue eyes like a lovesick teenager on the fighter.

Stepping out of the fighter and onto the floating fortress Benevolent, her excitement faded. All the stories she'd heard about the Brions came back and along with that, the bitter edge of regret and worry. At the very least, she thought she should have asked Captain Gordon or Doug to come with her.

It wouldn’t have been fair to put them in danger, she reminded herself, calming her frazzled nerves.

Her hand kept gravitating toward the pocket in which she hid the shard of lifestone, however. Every time that her attention was distracted from the general, she found herself creeping towards the stone again. She wanted to slap her hand away, but didn’t, clasping her palms together behind her back instead like a naughty kid getting caught stealing candy.

The fact that Braen seemed to be reading her mind didn't exactly help, either.

"You have nothing to fear here," the general said.

The tone of his voice forced Naima to believe him against all reason.

"This is my ship," Braen went on. "Everything aboard belongs to me and nothing of mine will ever harm you."

A few weeks ago, she'd been sloshing her feet in dark waters out of boredom and now she had all the excitement in the world, along with all the responsibility. He looked at her like she was the sun and the stars, and Naima couldn’t help but feel like a black hole instead, ready to gobble up all the light around her with her choices.

Not that there was much of that on the Benevolent. Until…

Around her, lights slowly came on. They didn't entirely illuminate the dark ship, but at least she no longer had to stumble around blindly.

Braen was waiting for her. As she followed him, going deeper into the ship, Naima noticed the general's eyes never left her. There was more than desire – at least that’s how she found herself interpreting it – in Braen's eyes now, something much more powerful.

The rational part of her was a little worried, all alone on an alien warship. But for some reason, above everything else, she was excited.

I wanted an adventure, I got one.

Naima barely noticed when they entered a set of rooms and the doors slid shut after them. It was a testament that despite everything, she hadn't been able to take her eyes off the general either.

Realizing they were alone brought Naima out of her musings.

Most of them had guiltily been about what Braen looked like under his armor. As her dignity was in question, she dearly wished that all the rumors about Brion warriors and their incredible senses were over-exaggerations. But luck hadn't really been on her side lately.

"You will be staying here, for now," Braen said. "The rooms are connected to my own in case you need anything. If you do not like them, let my men know. They will rearrange it all to your liking."

There was something odd about the for now, but Naima was too busy looking around to press him on it. The fact that she thought she could push a Brion general for anything was… odd, to say the least, as well.

The quarters were quiet and brighter than the rest of the ship. Everything was modest, but tasteful and utterly un-Brion-like. Other than some consoles on the walls and weapon racks, it gave the impression of being an officer's quarters on a Terran ship. In fact, everything seemed to be fitted for a human.

"It's lovely," Naima said, walking around and glancing into rooms, arranged in a circle around the central one where they were standing. "And way too much for me! I thought Brions didn't care for aesthetics."

Braen shrugged, an amused grin on his lips.

"The union   has a very active imagination when it comes to us," the general said. "What did you expect instead of this? Enlighten me."

Naima hesitated, but Braen's levity prompted her to relax. So far, speaking freely hadn't gotten her into any trouble. She could get used to that. Palling around with a Brion general wasn’t something she could say that she got to do often.

So maybe the stories were blown out of proportion…

"Something rougher," she admitted. "I'm not sure. I've never been on a Brion ship. I thought you didn't allow others aboard."#p#分页标题#e#

Braen gave a slight nod and she thought she glimpsed a shadow crossing over his face for a moment.

"That used to be true," the general admitted. "We have come a long way since then. And you aren't wrong. This is not what the warrior rooms look like. It has been set up specifically for you."

"Me?" Naima asked, surprised.

"Yes," Braen said, looking at her seriously. "Like I said, we've been looking for you. It certainly would have helped if you'd reported finding the lifestone repository sooner."

"I needed to be sure," Naima said, tracing the patterns on her bracelet with her fingers absentmindedly, trying to swallow down the lump of guilt that wanted to crawl up her throat.

"Is that so?" Braen asked quietly and the gaze of his piercing blue eyes seemed to cut right through her.

The general walked towards her with purposeful, slow steps. His attention alone was enough to nearly stop Naima's heart.

Please don’t let him read my mind, please don’t let him read my mind!

She had never met anyone like him. Braen had the gift of placing himself firmly in her sights, no matter what. His attitude was overwhelming– that mightier than thou arrogance -, but she couldn't deny another part of her was holding her breath, waiting for the general to make a move. To kiss her. To grab her in his arms again.

It was clear to her that he wanted to.

Is that what I want? We’re supposed to be tracking down the scariest monster in the galaxy, and all I can think about is how he tastes… Get a grip!

You don’t need this, not with everything that’s going on. You’ll tell the nice warlord that you don’t want this and that he has to be mistaken about the whole gesha thing and we can complete the mission and never see one another again.

One look at him told her that it was all well and good as long as she was saying it in her head, but she had no certainty she could actually behave according to her convictions on the matter. Naima wanted to believe she would pull away if that happened, if he grabbed her again. In addition, she imagined herself saying a few words about propriety and manners, but that was a lie and she knew it.

"The Brion Elders think it's useful," Braen said, coming closer, making Naima back away. "To let the union   believe every ridiculous rumor that's out there and there are many about my people. I can tell you this, though. I really can tell when someone's lying to me."

Shit.

Naima's back hit the wall. The word trapped sped through her mind, but it was very far from an unpleasant realization.

Braen was so close to her.

She could feel the general's armor press against her chest just slightly. He didn't hurt her, but there was no way out either. The warrior was so tall she had to crane her neck to meet his flashing eyes, reading her like an open book. His valor badges hummed with a low, white glow.

When Braen spoke, Naima could feel his breath on her skin and muffled a whimper of need at the last moment.

"Your heartbeat's quickening again," Braen said. "I could guess why, but first... tell me the truth."

"Stop doing that," Naima gasped.

Braen's hint couldn't have been accidental, she knew. Naima could feel herself blushing a little at the idea of the general knowing what kind of an effect he had on her.