“My cat.”
“I don’t understand.”
I shoved a hand in my hair, gripping the strands in a tight fist. What in the actual hell was happening to my life? Fighting the growing panic, I tried to explain. “Lucy. She’s a small black animal. Please, she relies on me.”
He formed an approximate size for Lucy. “The thing that slept on top of you was Lucy?”
“Yes,” I said, ignoring the terror of how he’d known about her sleeping on me. “I need to get back to her. She could go to a shelter. Black cats have very low adoption rates, and some people aren’t nice to them. She could die. I have to get her.” The black spots were coming back, and the pressure in my chest started to build again.
“I didn’t understand most of your words, but you’re responsible for her?”
“Yes.”
“Since you are mine, through you she is mine.”
“I don’t care,” I said, though part of me rankled at some random guy claiming me. “I need Lucy. Please. You’ve kidnapped me. Wrecked my life. The least you can do is get my cat.”
He stepped closer, less than an arm’s length. “I will get your Lucy. It will all be fine, Seth Harris.”
My jaw clenched. I refused to thank the person who’d abducted me and tricked me into mating him, but I did nod. He didn’t react, so who knew what it meant to him?
Chapter 4
Cats are odd.
I led Seth Harris out of our quarters. He would not even look at me. My tail quaked, desperate to wrap around his leg or arm and hold him close. I had waited my entire life for this moment, and my mate couldn’t even stand the sight of me.
The Crystal had chosen Seth Harris. Out of everyone in the universe, he was my perfect match—my soulmate. The Crystal had chosen people outside of our species and on far-distant planets before, but, to my knowledge, never from an unsanctioned planet. I was skirting the laws by simply being here, yet how could I not?
When we entered the lift, my touchstone grew warm in my pocket, and I drew it out. Captain Talvax’s clear voice resonated in my ear, though my mate wouldn’t hear her words. “We are ready to depart.”
“We cannot leave yet. My Seth Harris has a dependant who is now my responsibility. I must retrieve her.”
“We have orders to fetch your mate and no one else.”
“If we leave, she could die. I cannot, in all honor, abandon her.”
“Report to Command at your earliest convenience, Prince.”
“Me and mine are on our way.” I disconnected, dropping the touchstone into my pocket.
“Is there a problem?” Seth Harris asked.
His voice slid down my spine and made me stifle a groan, stirring my cock. It was wonderfully deep, though hesitant. Still, I longed to hear him calling my name while I pleasured him. From his demeanor, I assumed he wouldn’t allow me to taste him anytime soon.
“We are going to retrieve Lucy.”
He hugged himself. “Alright.”
When the lift opened, I motioned for Seth Harris to proceed me. My tail curled, almost wrapping around his ankle, but I controlled the action. He and I hadn’t discussed permissions. Until that day, I would keep my tail and hands to myself, though it was difficult.
We stepped into Command, which was on deck one, right below the observation deck where our bounding ceremony had taken place. The curved walls were covered in screens with consoles below them. In the center of the room were three standing consoles with the three top-ranking officers. Finally, a cushioned stool for the captain sat before the consoles, facing the screen spanning the front of Command.
Captain Talvax rose. Her rich brown scales glimmered in the artificial light, and her bright orange hair was cut in the military fashion—short on the sides and longer on top. Her pale green eyes swept over us, remaining on Seth Harris as if she were evaluating him. I stepped forward, my tail edging near his boot. An instinct rose from the depths and urged me to draw Seth Harris behind me, shielding him from sight.
“Is there a problem, Talvax?” I asked.
“No, Prince.” She continued to stare at my mate.
