She glanced out the window again and gasped when she saw a dragon fly by. “Holy crap!”
“Yes, we also have dragons in this world. Very real dragon shifters.”
She was on another planet. Now was not the time to explore, even though she wanted to. They were there to see Karel’s mom. She wanted to support him. He’d looked so torn when he’d told her.
Someone knocked on the door and a tall woman entered with a tray.
“Ah, there’s our tea and cookies.” Bella sat up, eyeing the platter like she was going to consume it all with her eyes.
Liv guessed the woman was a family member from the adoring smile she gave Bella.
“Enjoy,” said the woman as she left the room.
“Come on.” Bella turned to the table next to her where the tray had been placed. She grabbed a thin bite-sized square and munched.
Liv’s stomach growled. She was starving. She wasn’t sure how long she’d been asleep, but figured probably longer than shorter. “Let me go to the bathroom.”
Bella nodded, chewing on a green cookie. “There’s toiletries in there. Just wave your hand in front of the lower part of the mirror by the sink.”
She rushed to the bathroom and noticed how bare it was. Wave a hand? She did, feeling stupid until the glass slid open and a tray popped out with a brush, toothpaste, and a full grooming kit. It was like the coolest five-star hotel ever.
Once she’d brushed her teeth and washed her face, she returned to the bedroom where Bella sat, drinking tea.
“Great, you’re here. I was hoping you’d return before I ate everything. That was going to make me feel all kinds of guilty.” She grinned.
Bella’s happy personality was hard to dislike. She had an infectious smile and made Liv feel welcomed in the insanity of what was going on.
She took a seat on the other side of the small table and picked up a green cookie. It felt soft, like a freshly baked oatmeal cookie. It smelled like one too, but it was green.
THIRTEEN
“Try it,” Bella encouraged. “I promise it won’t be bad. I had to teach one of the cooks to make my favorite oatmeal cookies. Alyx tries to make me happy however he can so he watched me make a mess of the kitchens until we got them right.” She shrugged and the material of her top shimmered. “The only thing is that flour here is made of green seeds. It was weird at first, but if it tastes good, I don’t care about the color.”
Liv bit down and was pleasantly surprised by the flavor. It was better than an oatmeal cookie. The fruit was sweeter and the dough softer, yet crunchy. “This is really good.”
Bella nodded and picked up another. “You’ll be hooked on these. My best friend, Charlotte, lives in the ice mountains with her mates and she comes here just to eat my cookies.” She opened her eyes wide. “That didn’t sound right, but you get the idea.”
Liv laughed and picked up a teacup. She sniffed, a bad habit she had, and tasted. The drink was like lemon tea with a hint of honey. It was nice.
“So there’s other humans here?”
“Yes. There’s me, Charlotte, and her sister Rebecca, and now you,” she said excitedly. “Becca and I are the only ones pregnant though.” Bella eyed Liv with interest. “For now.”
“Do you like it here?” she asked, changing the subject. No way she was getting into any baby talks when she had no clue what the hell was going on.
“I love it,” Bella gushed. “Although, I’d love anywhere as long as I was with Alyx.” Her eyes filled with love and a happy smile curved her lips. “It will suck when Alyx goes away in the next few days. He’s got a big meeting with a bear clan on the other side of the planet and that means I get to stay here with other guards but none as nice and friendly as Karel. I’ll miss him.”
A buzzing sounded had Bella reaching into her pocket. “Oooh! It’s Gerri!”
Bella pressed a button and a holographic image of Gerri showed up by the wall.
“Liv? Are you okay?” Gerri asked with a frown.
“Hi! I’m great. Well, now that I understand more or less what’s going on.”
“That boy is just as bad as Alyx,” Gerri muttered. Liv was sure she referred to Karel. “I told him to give you time to get to know him. To talk to you first and explain the whole shifter planet situation before dragging you off to Aurora. Did he listen? Hell, no.”
“To be fair,” Liv said, coming to Karel’s defense for some reason. “I don’t think any explanation would have helped. I mean it sounds crazy unless you’re actually here seeing things yourself.”
“I know, darling. But in his haste to take you to his home, he forgot to make arrangements for your stuff and your belongings.”