Mated: A Sci-Fi Alien Invasion Romance (Garrison Earth Book 3) Read online

  “No, I meant the waitress,” he said, stone-faced. “I very much like blonde hair in females.”

  A woman’s ego must have been located somewhere along the ribcage because that was where my next inhale hitched. What was wrong with him? Being Vetusian excused many things but showing up half an hour late and then complimenting the waitress like a jerk wasn’t one of them.

  I breathed away my annoyance, reminding myself that a baby was all I needed. Who gave a shit if he was an asshole? Not this lady, because I had bigger plans. Plans that required a lot of credits. Plans that required this guy to knock me up, even if I’d have to put a blonde wig on for it.

  “So,” I said, brushing the crumbs off my underarm. “The department told me you work for some sort of special unit?”

  “CAT. Counter Abduction Team, Alpha unit,” he said, grabbing a nacho chip and sniffing it before he scrunched up his nose. “I’m leading the investigation against the crime ring responsible for the abduction of Earth females. They sell them into forced prostitution on Odheim. My unit prevents three times as many abductions as other units and performs undercover missions in over twenty districts. How about you?”

  I fumbled with the edge of the menu. “I insert names into a databank and press enter.”

  He gave a vacant nod and held up the nacho chip. “What do you call this?”

  “Nachos,” I said. “My grandparents were immigrants from Mexico, and I thought it would be nice to show you the foods we like. I figured you might want to know a little about the woman you’re about to impregnate.”

  I said it as light-hearted as possible, pretending this wasn’t an awkward situation at all. Unfortunately, the department insisted on doing this the old-fashioned way for the sake of assimilation.

  He dropped the nacho back into the basket and folded his arms in front of his chest. “Since the contract states the Vetusian holds no rights to the hybrid, I don’t see how that information would be helpful in any way.”

  Before I managed to gasp at his response, the waitress walked up to us with a beer and my Margarita. “Are you ready to order?”

  “They synthesize the ingredients, but the meals are home-cooked here,” I said clipped before I turned my attention to the pretty blonde. “I’ll have the fajitas del mar.”

  “This one,” Balgiz said, tapping his index finger against the picture of a burrito.

  Things turned an uncomfortable kind of quiet at our table, making the murmurs and excited giggles from couples around us resonate even louder. They were fated to be together. That guy and I were not, and for once, I might have been glad for it.

  “Your fated mate died during phase one?” he asked.

  “Uh-huh. That’s what they told me, at least. How about you? Do you have a match?”

  His lips clenched for the fraction of a second. “I do, but we’re not bonded, and never will be.”

  Surprise surprise.

  That woman probably turned him down the moment he opened his mouth. He might have been a sexy stud, but that didn’t distract from the fact that he was a complete douche.

  Our food arrived soon after, and I took a generous sip of my Margarita before I dug into my meal. Even synthesized seafood was on the pricey side, but I was never someone to hold back on my order when a guy had invited me out.

  Balgiz, however, shoved his burrito around the plate, hesitantly licking the cheese sauce off his fork. Watching him finally take a bite was painful, but the way he leaned back and scrunched up his face even more so. He didn’t like Mexican food. Whatever.

  “Have you done this before?” I asked. “Enter a breeding contract with a human female?”

  He wrestled down a bite of his food. “This is the first time.”

  “Let me guess,” I said. “You want to leave something behind? Do your part in saving your race? Do right by the Empire?”

  He shoved a forkful of the burrito into his mouth, the cheese sauce clinging to his molars as he spoke. “Co-workers keep telling me how good it feels to mate a fleshborn female, so I want to join in on the experience.”

  At least he was an honest jerk.

  I grabbed the straw of my Margarita and sucked until the sourness ran goosebumps up my spine. “You do know there are women out there who charge credits for such an experience, right? No need to make a baby.”

  “So I was told,” he said, pushing the last bit of his meal into his mouth. “I considered it until a friend told me how much they charge. A breeding contract allows me to mate you six times each lunar cycle for free. It’s much more economical.”

  The waitress was pretty.

  I was… economical.

  Electric impulses ran up and down my legs, and I had the urge to jump up and walk out on him. Of course, they had to hook me up with the biggest Vetusian brute out there. Did I really shave my legs for this guy?

  The moment I shoved my plate away, my appetite lost, he fumbled a stuck pepper peel from between his teeth, mumbling, “Can’t blame you for not finishing. I’m just waiting for this stuff to give me indigestion.”

  Oh my god. Oh my god. Oh my god.

  I sensed myself shrink into the booth, but not small enough to disappear between the crannies. What the fuck did I get myself into? That guy suddenly didn’t look so handsome anymore, and I wished he would just quit talking.

  Each time my eyes flicked toward the door, my heart pumped waves of adrenaline into my tingling limbs. I should have just gotten up and walked out of there, but… shit, I really needed those credits.

  Focus, Rosie.

  Balgiz might be an ass, but he was also my ticket to upward of forty-thousand credits. He was an ogre, but also a step toward a goal.

  Would I have fucked a guy like him before the invasion? Hell no. But this world ran on different terms now. Vetusian terms. That breeding contract? Rock solid. Unless I was lucky enough his cock would fall off on our way out, turning him down was not an option — unless I would pay the penalty fee.

  “I’d say let’s get this started,” I suggested, lifting my hand toward the waitress before I mouthed, “Check, please.”

  Balgiz nodded his approval and gulped down his beer.

  The waitress came and reached her hand out to Balgiz for the transfer of credits. “I can take it right here. The receipt will automatically go to your databank.”

  He took her hand into his and swirled the holograms around, then rose and said, “I need to go to the cleaning chamber. Be right back.”

  Long strides took him toward the exit where the bathrooms were located, giving me a moment to collect myself. This might have been the worst date ever, but it wasn’t like I needed to like him to get pregnant.

  “Ma’am?”

  I gazed up at the waitress. “Hmm?”

  “Are you ready to complete the transaction?” she asked, her eyes flicking down at that hand she now reached toward me. “I still have a margarita, and the fajitas del mar here that the gentleman didn’t pay for.”

  Motherfucker.

  Liquid rage churned my stomach, and I regretted that I hadn't even finished my meal, considering I had to pay for it. Not that I should have expected him to take care of the check. How to wine and dine a woman was clearly not part of his skill set.

  With a huff, I reached my hand out, praying that he would at least be a halfway decent fuck.

  Five

  Balgiz

  * * *

  The female remained quiet while the skycar brought us to her habitat, a five-level building on the opposite side of where I lived in this district.

  Darkness had settled onto the area, the streets empty since the Empire had to place a nine to five curfew on every human not in the company of a Vetusian. Angry mobs and demonstrations had gotten out of hand lately, and the Empire had to meet precautions.

  I strolled over to the door of the habitat and waited until Rosie paid the driver of the skycar, since she’d refused to ride on the bike with me. She walked straight past me without giving me a glance, un
locking the DNA-coded door to the building.

  I followed her up the ramp, which spiraled at the center of the building until we reached the fifth floor. There, she unlocked the door to the left and led me into what humans called their place.

  “You can leave your boots over there,” she said and slipped out of her shoes. “Let me just put some music on, and I’d also like to freshen up a bit.”

  Traces of Earth spices clung to the air, mixing with hints of coffee and sweetness, immediately giving this away as the habitat of a human. Rosie’s place was small but sufficient, with an entire wall of windows offering a stunning view over the district.

  I stepped out of my boots and followed her into the living area. As an unbonded female without children, she had no separate sleeping chamber. Instead, her bed stood in the left corner, only separated from the rest of the room by a glass partition.

  “Activate playlist Magic Mike,” she said into the room.

  Deep bass and playful beats sounded from her cosmikin. She nodded her head to the music, black curls dancing around her shoulders, plump lips moving to the lyrics.

  Rosie stepped up to me and rubbed a hand down her arm. “Make yourself comfortable. I’ll go to the bathroom really quick and get ready, okay?”

  I somehow managed a nod, my heart pounding inside my chest. What was I doing here, about to mate a female that wasn’t mine? She wasn’t anybody else’s either, though. If I couldn’t have a family, was it so wrong to allow myself at least this? It wasn’t like I was committing myself to anything here, other than to seed her.

  The moment Rosie disappeared into her cleaning chamber, I strolled about the room, getting a sense of the future mother of my child without giving her the impression that it mattered. This had to be kept strictly business, no matter my curiosity, getting emotionally involved only a recipe for disaster.

  I couldn’t like her.

  I wouldn’t let her like me.

  She kept everything neat, the pillows on her couch aligned in a perfect row. But it was the picture frames on the wall that caught my interest.

  Groups of humans stood huddled together, Rosie among them, their faces all smiles. They all had slightly tanned skin, dark hair, just like her. My reflection caught on the glass, momentarily giving me the impression that I was part of something bigger. A family.

  If she accepted my seed, she would display our child on this wall in one sun cycle from now. As much as I had wanted a family, I comforted myself in the thought that my offspring would grow up in one. That had been my main motivation for this contract, and it had to be enough.

  “Alright,” Rosie’s voice came from behind me, soft and with enough doubt on the undertone for the both of us. “I guess I’m ready.”

  I took a deep breath and slowly turned around, my lungs refusing that next exhale. Rosie looked precisely the same as only a few moments ago, and yet everything seemed changed. How come I hadn’t noticed those shapely hips of hers, full and wide, tying so perfectly into the slender waist of a young female?

  One click, and I opened my belt buckle. HQ was full of stories about what it felt like to mate with something that didn’t self-clean and sterilize after. No matter how I had vowed myself I would take care of my fated one, I couldn’t deny myself this. I wouldn’t.

  What was a body compared to a soul?

  I’d give one away. The other I’d keep.

  Rosie fumbled with her fingers, pulling on each one as she stared at me, lips slightly parted. And I could have sworn a small gasp escaped them when I worked my shirt over my head, letting it drop to the ground. Was she pleased with my body?

  Layer after layer, I stripped down until I stood before her, naked, jerking penis on display. Vetusians were large, but among them, I was massive in more ways than one.

  She gulped and dropped her gaze, mumbling something about hung and horse before she looked back up, only to gulp again. A faint blush settled above her cheekbones, providing such nice contrast to her darker skin.

  When she neither moved nor spoke, I ran a hand over my shaft and squeezed my girth, saying, “I’m ready.”

  She gave a small jolt as if she’d forgotten for a moment why we were here. “Yeah, I can, um… it’s quite obvious.”

  Hands went behind her neck to untie her dress, making the fabric slip down along her body until it gathered by her feet. She only wore her panties now, a color not belonging to any stratum because she was unclaimed, unbonded, and would remain so even if she carried my child.

  I stepped up to her, my crown pulsing as it almost touched her belly. Roughened hands stroked her soft waist, climbed upward to cup the fullness of her uncovered breasts. Blood pumped along my shaft, turning everything so sensitive, a draft of air threatened to have me spill my seed.

  When I began to knead the mounds of flesh, thumbs rubbing across pert nipples, Rosie moaned. “Mmm, that feels good.”

  That sound of her pleasure tightened my balls.

  Hands climbing upward to stroke through her hair, I whispered, “Where do you want me to mate you?”

  She pulled away from me and walked over to her bed, slipping out of her panties before she climbed onto the mattress. There she sat with her legs spread, pink mating cleft for the taking, making me so fucking hard it hurt.

  Rosie let herself fall onto her back, her eyes narrowed with a mix of unease and what I hoped was a primal longing for my body. Just once in my life I needed a female to want me, if only for the sake of mating without creating a bond. For fun. For the Empire. For whatever.

  “What are you waiting for?” she asked. “It’s not going to lick itself.”

  Oral stimulation.

  I’d heard about that.

  I climbed onto the bed and ran my hand along the inside of her thigh, her feminine scent luring my face toward her mating cleft. It was an intoxicating aroma, ominous, and so unlike anything I’d sensed before. It was so overpowering, so intriguing, I couldn’t help but grind my penis into her bedding as my tongue ventured toward the source.

  I ran the entire pad of my tongue over her sex like a starved animal. In a way, I was, spreading her taste over the roof of my mouth, sampling her. Rosie moaned at the move, and her pelvis tipped away slightly before she brought it back against my mouth.

  “You like this?” I asked, letting my words whisper over her glistening lips.

  Her answer came as hands grabbing my hair, pulling and prodding me to continue.

  I shuddered at the primitive gesture and pushed her legs farther apart, uncovering more of that slickness that lubricated her entrance. This female was ready to be mated, seeded, and pride swelled my chest over the fact that I would be the one doing it.

  I pushed my tongue in and out of her, not sparing that little hard button that hid underneath a hood of skin, which had her jump and moan. They always started throaty but rose in pitch the more pressure I applied. I relished the sounds of her pleasure and thrust my penis over her blanket in impatient search of friction.

  I had to have her.

  “I will mate you now,” I said, anxiously working myself up until I nestled my hips between her legs.

  Where I expected some hesitation, Rosie dug her hands into my buttocks and pulled me against her heated body. “Come on. Take me.”

  The demand of her words had me so excited I worried I wouldn’t get two strokes in before I released my seed.

  Eager for my first mating, I grabbed her knee as if pinning her in position before she changed her mind. She was so small compared to me, so easy to move around and mold as I pleased.

  I gripped her waist, held her steady, the sensation of my crown searching for her entrance driving me wild. Each time I thrust, I glided over her soaked folds, spreading her juices along my shaft.

  I couldn’t help it. Couldn’t bear the loss of that friction and kept grinding along her sex. A pulsing head nudged against her wet hole, only to drive upward along her pubic bone. Shit, I was so close to release, but I needed to get inside of her.
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  “Let me help,” she said.

  I shook my head, worried about what that help of hers might trigger. “No, let me.”

  Her eager fingers slipped down between us while my hips wouldn’t stop rocking. I wanted to enter that breeding tunnel of hers and coat her womb with my semen. Wanted to —

  Her hand wrapped around my shaft, firmly, guiding the tip of my penis toward her warm mating cleft. Pressure built around my crown, not even reaching my corona yet when it happened.

  My hips jerked, and I began rutting in every direction but the right one, grinding my shaft inside her fist as I spilled my seed at the junction of her legs.

  She let go of me and pushed herself onto her elbows, a brow arched, lips parted. “Don’t tell me you just came.”

  But I had.

  Translucent white, fat drops of my seed covered her puffy lips, either dripping onto the blanket or running down her ass.

  Sert.

  I knew little about mating a fleshborn female, but even I understood this wasn’t how it was done. In hindsight, now I would have taken those two strokes I had been so concerned about.

  Heat flooded my body, though I blamed the way she had grabbed me unannounced that triggered this mess. “I asked you not to help. The way you touched me… it was too stimulating.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  I pushed myself back to kneel and took myself in hand. “Give me just a moment, and we can get this over with once and for all.”

  “Sure,” she said in a drawn-out tone, her eyes slowly lowering to my flaccid penis.

  No matter how hard I pumped, stroked, or pulled, he wouldn’t comply. So I came up with the only reasonable course of action.

  “Suck me until I’m hard again,” I said, and rolled onto my back next to her. “Earth females do that, right?”

  Given the way she tilted her head sideways, irritation narrowing her eyes, perhaps oral stimulation was only a one-sided thing on this planet. It did little to help me with the issue at hand.

  Eventually, she let out a sigh, pushed herself up, and climbed between my legs. She lowered her face down, and I felt myself swell just at the sight of her round ass rising behind her.