The Alien King's Mate

II - Easy Day

"Out of everything you picked a t-shirt and jeans?" He grumbles dragging me back to the hover.

"I wanted something simple to get hammered in this morning." I retort settling myself in the passenger seat while he mocks me under his breath.

"Oh? And is that your plan?" He chuckles under his breath dropping us at the local spot I spent time with Vale at.

"It's always the plan, now come on money bags, you're buying."

He didn't find me funny.

Our noses are hit with the protruding smell of sweat and beer when we enter, the earth drinks slowly taking over our people as trade gets more popular. I let my eyes trail over the tables that line the wall begging for at least one to be open. Ryder spots one first, nodding me over to a circle in the back corner a beautiful waitress approaching us soon enough, "And what will it be today?"

"Tequila, on the rocks, top shelf."

"I'll have a coke."

I groan at him as the lady runs off, "You're no fun."

He rolls his eyes, "Only because I am choosing to take care of you while you have a good time?"

My flips flatten, of course he would be the one to bring up such an obvious reason not to drink, but I don't care, I want to have the most fun I can before the social elites take him from me and change him into someone crazy, "Fine. Get to talking."

"The shop is just a completely legal way to earn money. My family is very well versed in communicates with the Elites, and more so on how to get things that they can't. Our frost abilities come in handy when needing to get in and out of sticky places, as the body is mostly water we are able to freeze, or slow, people for just a moment, long enough to slip past them."

"Holy fuck, Ryder." I groan into my drink the waitress sets down on the table. Something about her seems familiar, but the knowledge that the man across from me is a black-market dealer, and a damn good one, is alarming.

"And you? Hiding yourself from the public?"

"We both have our secrets, huh." I mimic his earlier comment twirling a piece of hair around my finger. I swallow getting ready to lean in and speak low, "Klataz has a group of people that are looking to harm the crown, and their support is growing."

"The Star Whisperers?" He mumbles back laying his hand over mine.

"You know them?"

"I know of them. My clients either agree with them and support them financially or hate them and want me to nab what they love most. Whether that be a piece of work, a car, or money."

"Have you ever taken..." A woman? A child?

"I have never, and will never, harm a woman. If that is where you are going with such wild thoughts." My body relaxes, him shaking his head, "Don't let such things cloud your thoughts."

"My parents requested that I stay hidden when in public. The people haven't been informed of my ability, and with the new laws that allow me to travel freely some would be more than grateful to snatch me off the street. And while I know a few things in self-defense, most of my defense is very defensive. Running is always my first choice since I can blend easily."

Ryder growls deep from his chest, a grimace coming over him, "You should be able to protect yourself. What happens if I'm not around?"

"Then you're not around. When things get serious between us we won't be attached at the hip, you'll have to trust to me."

"Is this not serious for you?" He retracts his hand glancing over my face.

Serious? Are we? I assume that it would happen at some point with the nature of our relationship. It's not like we can just be friends with benefits forever, "Serious to me is announcing you as my mate to the people. You giving up everything you know to become the King."

"Okay, and?" He seems calmer than I expected.

"You'll have to give up your connections, the shop, free time, the ability to travel freely... being at the top is more restricting than you were led to believe." I whisper to myself trying not to get depressed.

"As long as it's with you, then I'll suffer day in and day out. My past, while pleasurable, isn't what I lived for. It's not what I decorated my apartment with my mom for, or why I learned how to cook. You are what I want, a future, a family... everything else will fall where it needs to."

"That's a lot of emotion so quickly." Overwhelming.

"Even so, I dream about you even when I'm not around you. You've turned me upside down. If you asked me to lay on the ground so you could stab me to death, I'd ask to help you pick the knife." He takes a breath calming himself, "I thought I understood the bond, the feelings I would have for you, however nothing prepared me for the absolute beauty I saw last night, or the way your voice rolls over my skin like a calming wave."

"Ryder?" My lips tremble, his honesty rocking me sideways.

"If your mother hadn't called you that night, Lily, I would have tied you to that bed to keep you to myself." He stands up reaching out a hand towards me, I take it needing something to steady me, "But we need to go. There's a difference between fashionably and horribly late to meeting your mate's parents." 

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