Erun (Scifi Alien Romance) (The Ujal Book 4) (3 page)

Tabby’s words and actions decided the answer to the human’s question. The youngling, so trusting and spirited, shouted and then practically leapt from her
dam’s
arms.

Into his.

“Da man!”

Erun was in her house.
Still
in her house. And she couldn’t get him to leave. She’d
invited
him to leave. Did the whole “so I’m sure you have somewhere else to be” line.

Understanding subtlety was not his strong suit, it became clearer when he’d looked at her, no expression on his face, and simply replied, “I do not.”

That was the end of that. At least, as far as Erun was concerned. And her daughter, apparently. Because Tabby clung to Erun’s neck like her life depended on it, refusing to release him as he prowled the house, checking the doors and windows to see if they were locked. Bastard.

Vanessa took a deep breath and released it slowly. Erun wasn’t a regular Ujal off the street; he was the captain of Rina’s elite guards. He was
it
and the
shit
when it came to protecting her best friend. He might not have the best personality, but the unease she’d experienced all day completely vanished with his presence.

Which annoyed her… and comforted her. But mostly annoyed because she didn’t want a man—a male—to determine her comfort level. She was a strong woman, stronger than most since her husband passed. She’d pulled herself up by her bootstraps—whatever those were—and made a new life for herself and Tabitha.

Finally the last box made its way into the house, the larger (and cuter) of the two guys carrying it easily. He placed it on one of the nearby stacks and then dug in his back pocket for his datapad.

He strolled toward her, a hint of interest in his gaze, and she looked him over with pure feminine appreciation. She wouldn’t do anything about the attraction, but he would be lovely material for her later fantasies. “Mrs. Walker, if you’ll place your thumb—”

“Miss,” she cleared her throat. “Sorry. I kept my husband’s surname, but it’s Miss. You can call me Vanessa.” He could call her anything if he stripped down. Heat filled the man’s eyes along with sexual interest. (Man not male because he was human and she had enough
male
prowling through her house.) “Since, you know, you’ll be helping me move once I find a more permanent place.”

Somewhere affordable that didn’t make her feel like a
neglectful leech
. Stupid, infuriating Ujal.

“That sounds great, Van—”

“You must leave.” Erun spoke to the mover before addressing her. “The youngling requires food.”

She sighed and dropped her head forward, counting to ten. Five seconds. She couldn’t get five seconds of flirting before
someone
intruded. Normally it was Tabby, and Nessa was one hundred percent fine with her daughter’s interruptions. Nothing—
no one
—was more important than Tabby. But Erun? He could take a hike.

“Sorry, guy,” the mover’s voice had her raising her head to catch the hint of fear in his gaze and the way he held his hands up in surrender. “Didn’t think I was intruding, but if I am, no problems here.”

There were problems. Big ones. About six-two and over two hundred pounds of flesh and hidden scales.

Erun grunted. The mover held out his datapad, and Vanessa pressed her thumb where indicated. Two seconds later, she was in a house filled with boxes, a frowning Ujal, and a child who couldn’t seem to get enough of
da man
. Her daughter patted his cheeks, running her chubby hands over his face and he merely remained in place. He didn’t flinch away or stop her actions. No, he simply stared at her as if she were a strange, alien creature.

She almost snorted. From his perspective, she was.

Tabby squished his cheeks and pinched his lips, pale eyes alight with joy and Nessa allowed herself to take in her daughter’s happiness. They hadn’t had much of that in the last couple of years. Not with Con’s death, her struggle to keep them afloat, and then the move here.

Rina really was a scale-growing angel, and just as soon as she could, Vanessa would repay her best friend.

For now, she needed to eject one massive Ujal, feed her daughter, and then maybe kick back with a glass of wine. Yeah, liquid dinner was on the menu tonight.

“Momma!” Tabby had two volumes—silent and shouting. That time Erun
did
cringe.

Served him right for stealing her kid.

“Hey, Tabby Blabby, c’mere.” She padded toward the twosome, ignoring the Ujal as she snared her daughter.

Only to come up short when Erun didn’t release her. She raised a single brow. “You gonna let my kid go?”

Before I have to kick your ass.

She would. Maybe. Okay, totally not, but she’d go down fighting to get her child away from some overgrown, entitled, opinionated asshole who wanted to give her baby to
the authorities
.

Erun grunted and released Tabby into her arms. Her child nestled into her grip, resting her head on Vanessa’s shoulder and wrapping one arm across her throat. Her daughter might be all laughs and smiles, but she was also sensitive and needed comfort. Her tight grip told Vanessa it’d be a long night of comfort-giving. She rubbed her cheek on Tabitha’s head and breathed deeply, drawing in her natural scent. Except this time it was tinged with a hint of musk and man and she definitely didn’t like it.

At all.

“Let’s see what’s for dinner, huh?” Nessa murmured into Tabby’s hair.

“Baby iggles.”

“Baby wiggles it is.” She padded toward the kitchen, completely and utterly ignoring Erun. She wasn’t even going to acknowledge he was taking up her entire living room with his presence. Or that she liked it. In the kitchen, she reached for the freezer door, thankful she’d taken time to shop yesterday.

“Baby iggles?” His deep baritone sounded way too close for comfort and she found him standing beside her when she pushed the door closed.

Vanessa held up a small pre-portioned pack of frozen meat. “Shrimp. She saw them on TV once. She calls lobster wiggles because of how they move. These are baby wiggles.”

She didn’t wait for a response and instead headed toward the sink. She grabbed the ever-present large mixing bowl she kept for
just
this purpose and placed it in the steel sink. From there it was a quick toss of the bag, a flick of the faucet, and their meal was quickly defrosting.

One arm still supporting Tabby, she carefully lowered her daughter until her butt she rested on the counter. Then she glanced over her shoulder to see Erun staring at her intently.

“You can leave, you know. Or do you still think I’m such a poor mother that I’ll somehow kill her?”

“I do not believe—”

Tabby whimpered and wiggled, reminding her she needed to remain calm and keep her emotions in check. “Save it,” she snapped and regretted it when her daughter twitched. She took a calming breath and stared at Erun once more. “Look, I can’t argue with you until I put her to bed. Are you leaving or not?”

“Not.”

Of course he wasn’t.

“Fine.” She was so going toe-to-toe with him—okay, probably Rina—later. “Do you eat shrimp?”

“Yes,” he slowly nodded. “We refrain from scaled ocean dwellers.” He frowned. Did the guy do anything else? “Your youngling does not wish for some land mammal?”

Vanessa wasn’t sure why, but she humored the male. “No. She doesn’t eat chicken or beef. Shrimp, lobster, crab, and prawns. Occasionally she likes squid or scallops. Oysters but only fresh and those take me forever to shuck and she gets impatient. We stick to easy sea life.”

“I have heard humans can be picky. They state females are the worst of your kind.”

And there went any hint of friendship. “Yeah, well, it is what it is.” She shrugged. “Tabby is a good kid. If the worst I have to deal with is a picky eater, I’ll happily take it. It’s not like she favors sugar over healthy food.”

Erun grunted. Great big ball of conversation.

He padded forward, gaze intent on the sink. He stared at the bowl of overflowing water. “You are defrosting her
iggles
. Fresh would be better.”

There were a lot of things that could be better in her life. She should get him a list and save him some time. “I’m sure they would, but we eat what we can afford. This works for us. We get fresh once a week at the market. For some reason Tabby enjoys picking out her own lobster.” And watching her toss it in the pot, but she wasn’t going to tell Mr. Disapproverton about that. “During the week, we eat frozen. So, if it doesn’t destroy your sensibilities and you’re staying for dinner, grab a couple more bags from the freezer. Dinner doesn’t take long. She likes her meals cool and without seasoning.”

Another grunt. “I will obtain fresh
iggles
.”

“What are you…” Then he took off his shirt, whipped it right over his head and bared his naked chest to her. “Wha…” His hands went to the button of his jeans and she snapped her eyes closed while also placing her hand gently over Tabby’s face. She was pretty sure her daughter was half-asleep since Erun’s presence probably tired her out, but she wasn’t risking Tabitha getting an eyeful. “Can you please not strip in the middle of my kitchen?”

The distinctive sound of cloth falling to her tiled floor reached her. “I will return.”

“Where are you going?”

“As I said. I will get the youngling fresh
iggles
. I mean shrimp.”

“Now?” She couldn’t hide the surprise in her voice and at some point her mind decided getting a nice, long, naked look at Erun was a good idea. She kept her hand in place on Tabby and swung her gaze to him.

Oh boy. All that skin went on and on. He was a deep tan, the color coating every inch of him. Mostly. Because as she stared, little flashes of purple came into sight only to disappear before she got a good look at the hue. She followed each flare with her gaze, her eyes skating over his broad shoulders, wide chest, trim waist, and…
Oh
.
That
part of him was a hint purple for an entirely non-scaly reason.

He was hard. Him, Mr. You’re a Neglectful Leech, was long, thick, and hard. Her center heated, growing warm and tightening. She wondered what it’d be like to be held by him, possessed by him. Even people who didn’t like each other—maybe even hated each other—could get it on. Someone had coined the term
hate fuck
for a reason.

She licked her lips, wondering what he tasted like and she fought the shudder that threatened. Then he shifted his weight from one foot to the other, the move so tiny she almost missed it, and she realized two things. Erun was naked in her kitchen. While Nessa held Tabby in her arms.

She slammed her eyes shut once again. “You’re going fishing?”

“That is not what we call it.”

“Then what do you call it?”

“Does it matter? I am obtaining food for the youngling.”

He had her there. “No, I guess it doesn’t.” She swallowed hard and fought her lingering desire. “Do you know how to clean them? I mean, devein them or whatever. I only ever buy fresh lobster so I’m not exactly sure what to do with shrimp.”

“I will take care of it before I return.”

“Okay, well—”

The slam of her back door told her she was alone. All right then.

Erun did not know why he leapt into the seas, intent on gathering
iggles
for a human youngling. And yet he dove beneath the waves and allowed his scales to venture forth. Between one stroke and the next his tail formed, his legs fusing to allow his true form to overcome him. The salt water enveloped him in a gentle hug. Or, at least, what he imagined a hug to feel like. He did not know for he did not recall such a sensation. The time with his
dam
had been beaten out of him long ago.

Vanessa hugged her youngling. Thinking of small Tabitha, he realized the youngling laughed with joy at the sight of her
dam
as well.

Were neglected younglings filled with joy?

He would explore the station’s data to discover the answer. For now, he would assume Tabby could not be left alone. It was only through the blessing of the sea that the small one had made it so far.

He drew the seas into his body, filtering the necessary air through his Ujal lungs. Long ago, when the Ujal first arrived on Earth, the waters were almost like sludge, slow moving with hardly any wildlife left to sustain the humans. Their planet was dying and his people knew how to reverse the effects of their neglect…

For a price.

The old king did not tell them he would have assisted regardless for Earth could be a new home for them. Ujal had become crowded, overpopulated, and corrupt in the darkest depths of their planet’s seas.
Something
had to be done.

Earth became the answer.

Today the waters were fresh and clean, even the water vehicles of the humans no longer poisoned the oceans. Now he sought the most healthy
iggles
for the young human.

He traveled away from UST and down the coast, searching for the areas humans had declared
preserves
. The whole Earth was preserved. He did not understand the designation, but he also knew no humans were allowed along the shore. Which meant there was no fishing or other methods to diminish wildlife.

The
iggles
would be plentiful.

With a flick of his tail, he sped through the water, intent on his destination. So much so, he did not realize he had company until he felt a tug on his tail.

Erun flipped through the water, a twist of his body halting his progress and spinning him to face his attacker. When he spied the floating black body, he glared at the male.

He did not surface and merely projected his voice through the seas.
“Rhal.”

“What are you doing?”

He did not miss the male’s smirk and he realized Rhal must already know.
“Do not ask a question when you know the answer.”

Rhal shrugged.
“That does not negate the question.”

He remained silent. If he kept quiet long enough, the guard would fill the silence. Then he remembered he spoke with
Rhal
and not some sentinel who had more fear than sense when Erun stood before them.