was their chosen, and they would die to protect her.
Nikolai closed the distance between them so quickly Alayna barely saw him move. He was faster than a man his size had any right to be, enhancements or not. She raised her arms out of instinct, ready to ward off the blow she half expected to be dealt. Instead, he hauled her up against the broad expanse of his chest and held her, one hand cradling the back of her head as they stood there in silence for a long moment, her cheek resting against his bare chest.
“You are not a sex toy.” His voice was rough and she could feel the tension vibrating through his body with every word. “You are our chosen, but that doesn’t mean you’re our slave. You still have rights. Do you realize how important you are to the Alliance? No one, not even the Council members, are as protected as you are. You can’t be threatened or harmed, on penalty of death. Now that we’ve claimed you, no other man can ever lay a hand on you. If they do, one of us will kill him.”
“I’ve done just fine protecting myself all these years. I don’t need your help. And if I’m not your sex toy, then what would you call me, a broodmare, maybe? You want kids, and I’m the one you’re going to fuck until I give them to you.”
“Who taught you this shit? Yeah, we want kids. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t have worked our asses off all these years to get permission to claim a scroll—fuck. Sorry. Permission to claim someone like you. But it’s not to turn you into some mindless baby factory, fulfilling your duty to the Alliance.”
The last few words came out on a bitter snarl and Alayna was more convinced by his anger than by his words. “So, I still have a say?”
“Now you’re getting it.” He chuckled a little and stroked her hair. “Why else do you think you have the only bedroom door that locks?”
“Well, how was I supposed to know I had the only one? I don’t know anything about anything at the moment. Hell, I don’t even know your last names.” Alayna tipped her head back so that she could look up at him, and he cocked his head to one side to flash her a smile.
“Grekov and Nielson. You better remember them. They’re your last names, too.”
“Mine?”
“Uh huh. Your name is now Alayna Grekov-Nielson. Colin’s already gone to register it into the system.” That news left her feeling a little strange. She finally had a last name. Hell, she had two. Two last names and two men. For the rest of her life. She wasn’t ready to face that reality yet. Not all of it, anyway. She decided to pick a less terrifying topic to speak about.
“So, how come it’s Grekov-Nielson and not Nielson-Grekov? Did Colin lose the coin toss?”
“That was to appease my family. They’re an uptight bunch of snobs. I promise you won’t be seeing much of them.”
Oh great. This day just kept getting better. “Why is your family snobbish? Are they important? Fuck, are you important? I, uh, I mean, I know you’re a general and all, but uh, I have no idea if your name should ring any bells.” She glanced around the room and raised a brow. “This place would lead me to believe that you’re certainly not rich.”
Nikolai burst out laughing at that, happy to see a bit of her sass returning. “I knew you were perfect for us. You have no idea who my family even is. They’re rich, I’m not. And yeah, they’re important, or at least they think they are. Tell you what. Why don’t you go grab a shower while I find you something to wear? Your things are in the wash, so you can’t have them back yet. Then we can have breakfast while I tell you a little about me.” He let her go and stepped back so he could look her in the eye. “And I want to know more about you.”
“So you can report it?”
He frowned and shook his head, a spike of frustration slamming through him again. “No. And quit thinking that way. This isn’t going to be an interrogation, it’s just breakfast. I’d like to know a
Nikolai closed the distance between them so quickly Alayna barely saw him move. He was faster than a man his size had any right to be, enhancements or not. She raised her arms out of instinct, ready to ward off the blow she half expected to be dealt. Instead, he hauled her up against the broad expanse of his chest and held her, one hand cradling the back of her head as they stood there in silence for a long moment, her cheek resting against his bare chest.
“You are not a sex toy.” His voice was rough and she could feel the tension vibrating through his body with every word. “You are our chosen, but that doesn’t mean you’re our slave. You still have rights. Do you realize how important you are to the Alliance? No one, not even the Council members, are as protected as you are. You can’t be threatened or harmed, on penalty of death. Now that we’ve claimed you, no other man can ever lay a hand on you. If they do, one of us will kill him.”
“I’ve done just fine protecting myself all these years. I don’t need your help. And if I’m not your sex toy, then what would you call me, a broodmare, maybe? You want kids, and I’m the one you’re going to fuck until I give them to you.”
“Who taught you this shit? Yeah, we want kids. If we didn’t, we wouldn’t have worked our asses off all these years to get permission to claim a scroll—fuck. Sorry. Permission to claim someone like you. But it’s not to turn you into some mindless baby factory, fulfilling your duty to the Alliance.”
The last few words came out on a bitter snarl and Alayna was more convinced by his anger than by his words. “So, I still have a say?”
“Now you’re getting it.” He chuckled a little and stroked her hair. “Why else do you think you have the only bedroom door that locks?”
“Well, how was I supposed to know I had the only one? I don’t know anything about anything at the moment. Hell, I don’t even know your last names.” Alayna tipped her head back so that she could look up at him, and he cocked his head to one side to flash her a smile.
“Grekov and Nielson. You better remember them. They’re your last names, too.”
“Mine?”
“Uh huh. Your name is now Alayna Grekov-Nielson. Colin’s already gone to register it into the system.” That news left her feeling a little strange. She finally had a last name. Hell, she had two. Two last names and two men. For the rest of her life. She wasn’t ready to face that reality yet. Not all of it, anyway. She decided to pick a less terrifying topic to speak about.
“So, how come it’s Grekov-Nielson and not Nielson-Grekov? Did Colin lose the coin toss?”
“That was to appease my family. They’re an uptight bunch of snobs. I promise you won’t be seeing much of them.”
Oh great. This day just kept getting better. “Why is your family snobbish? Are they important? Fuck, are you important? I, uh, I mean, I know you’re a general and all, but uh, I have no idea if your name should ring any bells.” She glanced around the room and raised a brow. “This place would lead me to believe that you’re certainly not rich.”
Nikolai burst out laughing at that, happy to see a bit of her sass returning. “I knew you were perfect for us. You have no idea who my family even is. They’re rich, I’m not. And yeah, they’re important, or at least they think they are. Tell you what. Why don’t you go grab a shower while I find you something to wear? Your things are in the wash, so you can’t have them back yet. Then we can have breakfast while I tell you a little about me.” He let her go and stepped back so he could look her in the eye. “And I want to know more about you.”
“So you can report it?”
He frowned and shook his head, a spike of frustration slamming through him again. “No. And quit thinking that way. This isn’t going to be an interrogation, it’s just breakfast. I’d like to know a
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