The Alien Commander's Surrogate

Episode Twenty-Two

Hillary

A tear slipped out, falling onto my leg as I sat, curled up in the corner of my bed reading from the tablet Salex had sent over. There were endless amounts of novels, and I was devouring everything I could about the Trenzian's.

But nothing in these lines of glowing text should've been making me cry. I brushed a hand over my abdomen, whispering as to not bother Ghantlan from where he was sitting at his desk. "Are you making me cry?"

Ghantlan glanced up, briefly registering my emotions before ducking his chin. "Are you alright?"

"Yes, I just," I cleared my throat, "you know what, nevermind. Probably hormones or something."

Ghantlan set down his writing utensil and gave me his full attention. "Tell me."

I rolled my eyes, shifting until I was deeping into the blankets. It was late afternoon and Ghantlan had come back to the quarters to check on me after my medical appointment with Salex. And then he'd settled right back down and gotten back to work...on whatever he did for Salex all day.

"No."

"You are a disagreeable roommate you know."

I watched him over the edge of my tablet, hoping he might go back to work, but he didn't. Sighing with exasperation I put down my tablet on my bump. "I just don't understand all these emotions today. I was so mad earlier, now I'm crying over absolutely nothing." I pointed at him, "I know you didn't know me before I was a walking baby oven, but I don't cry. Like ever."

Ghantlan raised a scaled brow, his chest rising as if he were about to laugh at something. I sat up, poking a finger his way.

"You know something. Tell me, is this some kind of Trenzian emotional warfare?"

This time he did chuckle, "I'm afraid not. It's just simple biology."

"I'm starting to hate that explanation."

Ghantlan tapped a black claw at the edge of the desk. "Your bond with Salex must be growing."

"Why so?"

My roommate looked away, his cheeks doing that flushed dark thing again. I was always embarrassed by this poor guy. "I know for a fact that Command Salex had a rather sensitive meeting this afternoon with Lieutenant Adra."

"Oh," I blinked a few times, "And why would that make me cry?"

"I believe that Adra was going to be very disappointed about how the meeting will proceed. Commander doesn't have a choice though. He hates that." Ghantlan shrugged at me. "It will make him sad."

Realization sunk into my body, making my heart beat even faster. "You think I'm crying because he's sad."

The Trenzian shrugged. "It's a theory. Keep reading, some of those texts talk a lot about shared emotions and thoughts. It's part of the reason mate bonds were so dangerous to warriors."

"Because you could be mid-fight when suddenly your partner gets scared and distracts you."

Ghantlan nodded, "And a bonded Trenzian will always choose his mate."

"Really?"

"Really," Ghantlan said before turning back to his work. I slowly picked up my tablet and tried to read more, but my mind kept wandering back to Salex. Suddenly, I wanted to see him. Not because of the bond, well not that part of the bond at least.

I wanted to be sure he was okay. Because the sadness still filling the middle of my chest was unlike anything I'd felt before. I hated knowing it was his. Curling away from Ghantlan I pressed a hand there, between my breasts, as if I could comfort him this way, as if somehow knowing I was also bearing the burden of his pain, it might help just a little.

I might know him well, but he was a part of me, at least for now.

A knock sounded on the door and after pressing a series of buttons to the side of his Ghantlan's door swooshed open. A guard stood there in a nearly identical uniform to Ghantlan's. In his hands, he held a pile of what appeared to be clothing. A second after that thought slipped across my mind, I was off the bed and approaching the newcomer.

"What are these?"

The guard looked at me, wonder and shock on his purple face. "A gift from Commander Salex."

I took them, eagerly tucking them close to my person as I leaned in to smell them. A part of me that was still Hillary from Earth who never planned on leaving the planet, registered how odd that was, but the rest of me couldn't give a fuck. They smelled, God they smelled divine.

"Hillary, stop that, these smell like they are straight from the fighting pits."

The newcomer seemed to shake himself free of his trance. "They are, Ghantlan."

Ghantlan's jaw dropped, but I wasn't paying attention anymore. I had exactly what I wanted. They smelled so much of sales, they were a little sweaty maybe, but more so just thoroughly covered in his rich smell. I bounded back to the bed, tucking them into the blankets up to my chin and fixing a glare on the edge of my comforter at Ghantlan.

Both males watched with wide eyes, then slowly looked back to each other. Ghantlan nodded and that must've been some kind of signal because the other male gave me a short bow and backed out of the room.

I giggled, wrapping the clothes up closer to my neck as Ghantlan crossed the small space to sit in shi desk once more.

"Humans are so weird."

I huffed in more of Salex's scent. I didn't care what he thought. Only that somewhere on this ship, a big alpha male was thinking of me. 

AUTHORS NOTE:

I don't think Salex is all that keen to share his feelings...but that pesky bond is going to force it!  What do you think? 

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