Eve's Rescue [Coalition Mates 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Read online

“Yes?” she said cautiously as she grabbed the sheet back up and wrapped it around her like a toga.

  The door slid open, and an older man in white robes smiled and took a step inside. Eve recognized him as one of the doctors that was there when she woke up the first time.

  “My lady, you are awake. My name is Mhat-Am, and the pharaoh has asked me to make sure that your transition here is as pleasant as possible,” he said in a soothing voice.

  “Hello, Mhatam, I’m Eve. How do you use the bathroom in this place?” she asked, beginning to squirm a bit by this point.

  “My lady, my name is Mhat-Am, not Mhatam. Allow me to show you,” he answered as he walked into the bathroom and pressed a couple of panels on the wall. When the toilet and shower came out he showed her how to use them.

  “Okay, whatever. Thanks,” she said in a high voice as she pushed him back out of the bathroom and shut the door in his face before her bladder burst.

  As she came back out of the washroom she was surprised to see the man laying out a dress for her on the bed. It looked like a cross between an ancient Greek toga and an Egyptian-style dress with elaborate gold belting. There was also a pair of sandals to go with it.

  “Ah, my lady, do you need assistance dressing?” he asked in what she had to admit was a very non-skeevy tone for an older man asking a young woman if she needed help dressing, so she decided to give him the benefit of the doubt and not be a bitch about it.

  “Thanks, Matty, but I think I can figure it out. I appreciate the dress. Is there something else you needed?” she asked, trying politely to get him out of her room so she could try to figure out just what the hell she was going to do now that she was stuck on an alien spaceship.

  He tensed up and looked confused for a moment, then he must have remembered that she had no idea what she was doing here, because he relaxed and smiled patiently at her again.

  “Yes, my lady, your husband and his consorts have assigned me the honor of being your tutor and companion until you have acclimated to your new circumstance,” he answered proudly.

  Eve stood unblinking across from him for several moments.

  “I’m sorry, I think I just hallucinated. I thought you said husband,” she said with a seriously confused frown.

  “You are unwell, my lady? Shall we go to medical? The pharaoh would be quite distressed if we did not address this right away,” he said quickly, taking a step toward her.

  “Stop,” she said, her hands coming up. “Did you or did you not just use the word husband in relation to me?”

  Once again the poor man gave her the confused tilted puppy dog look, and she started to think perhaps it was just a translation error and that the word meant something else to these aliens. Relief instantly flowed through her. That had to be it. He must mean something completely different, and here she was, typical freaking out Earther newbie, losing her shit over some grammatical error. How embarrassing, well funny, yeah, but embarrassing nonetheless. Once he could see her relaxing he also let out a relieved sigh and smiled.

  “Yes, my lady, your husband, or would that be husbands by your Earth standards? Dhuaatian mating habits do not normally include anyone other than the primary couple. However, there certainly is no law prohibiting more than two persons from entering into a marriage contract. I have so many questions about your planet. We will learn much from each other over the next while, don’t you think?” he said, rambling on, sounding like an excited child talking about a trip to the zoo.

  Eve didn’t really hear much after the word husband came out of his mouth again, oh, except for the word husbands that followed shortly after it. She for damn sure heard that!

  “This better be some miscommunication, Matty! Because I’m one hundred percent sure that I don’t remember getting hitched in between getting kidnapped and waking up in here!” she yelled at the old man as his eyes grew wider and wider, realizing his mistake.

  “Miss, I am sorry to distress you. There was no other way for the pharaoh to ensure your safety. You had to be mated, or the slavers would just have tried to acquire you once again. This way you have the protection of the Coalition as well as the Dhuaatian people, and no slaver would dare come after you now,” he said, taking her hand, trying to soothe her.

  “But you said husbands. Did he marry me off to a harem or something?” she asked. She realized that shooting the messenger wasn’t the fairest of responses, but who the hell marries someone while they are passed out?

  “Oh no, my lady, the pharaoh married you himself. As well as the Sirotian security chiefs Lord Kai and Lord Roan. The four of you are now bound,” he answered.

  Chapter Eight

  Holy crap, she thought as she sat back down on the bed. Evangeline Scott, curvy redhead on a dating dry streak of one year… Okay, three years. First gets kidnapped, taken into outer space, and now married to one golden god and two muscle-bound gorgeous bookends. If Sally were here right now she’d be getting high fives like crazy.

  “Okay, so I’m married to all three of those guys. How did they marry me when I was passed out?” she asked, eyes narrowing on the sucker that had to deliver the news.

  He shrugged like it wasn’t a big deal. “All that was required once the Coalition awarded mating rights to the pharaoh was for it to be registered on Dhuaat and then of course Sirus where your other two mates are from.”

  “Well that’s pretty high handed of all you bastards, don’t you think?” she said. Now that the initial shock, and then giddy awe—which was of course appropriately short due to her feminist outrage—had worn off she was moving quickly into a pissed-right-off phase.

  Mhat-Am looked at first offended that he’d been lumped in with said bastards, then he seemed to do a double take at Eve’s apparent rage, he lowered his gaze and adopted a remorseful posture. That’s right buddy, no sudden movements she thought to herself. He was treating her like a wild animal about to pounce. Which then of course made Eve start to feel bad. It wasn’t like this guy had done any of this or could have stopped the pharaoh if he wanted. There was no use in beating up on the one person who was supposed to help her learn her place here.

  “I apologize, Mhat-Am. I know none of this is your fault. I’m just frustrated that this is all so out of my control,” she said on a sigh as she fell back on the bed and looked at the strange metal ceiling.

  “It’s fine, my lady. I understand,” he said as he made his way over to the table and spoke into the intercom, ordering some tea and refreshments. “Why don’t you dress and then come and sit with me, and we will discuss it.”

  Two pots of tea and countless cookies later, she was stuffed, but feeling much calmer about the entire situation. At least she knew that Khaman-Ra was a reputed fair man, and a rich one at that. Mhat-Am knew less about the Sirotians, Kai and Roan, since they had only been aboard the ship for a month or so, but they were well respected by the crew. He did however give her a great deal of information on the Sirotian species that was very interesting. It seemed that two of her husbands came from a world that produced the most talented courtesans in the entire system. They were speculated to have various talents aside from the regular pleasure and seduction training, such as hypnosis and the ability to control the release of their hormones. It was fascinating and horrifying all at the same time, and it made her wonder if they were really as beautiful as she remembered them being in the med bay. Surely they couldn’t really be that hot, could they? She must have muttered the last question out loud, because Mhat-Am gave a startled laugh.

  “Yes, my lady, I may be an old man, but those two are quite an attractive pairing indeed. There are a large number of men on this ship who are in mourning now that you’ve claimed the three most attractive members of our crew,” he said with a teasing twinkle in his eyes.

  Eve laughed with him for a moment, and then her body caught up to what he’d just said, and as her mind started to paint a picture of the three beautiful men, naked and touching one another, she went from relaxed to burning up in secon
ds.

  “You mean…the three of them are lovers?” she asked him, blushing.

  Mhat-Am seemed to think about the question for a moment as if she’d just asked him something as simple as if they played sports, then he answered thoughtfully.

  “You know, I’m not certain they were lovers as the original mating request was placed by the pharaoh for himself alone. But being in the same room with all three of them one certainly couldn’t deny the chemistry. Some of us were surprised that the pharaoh took on two additional males for his mates. It is common in our society to take on lovers outside of the marriage contract, but the contracts are primarily to secure lineage of offspring.”

  Eve was confused. “So are they gay?” she asked.

  “Gay? I’m sorry, my lady, I don’t understand your question,” he said, looking perplexed.

  “I mean do my husbands prefer to have sex with men?” she asked point-blank.

  Mhat-Am looked at Eve for a moment, then understanding seemed to dawn on him and he smiled.

  “Fear not, my lady, while most species in the Coalition do not pick their sexual partners based on their sex alone, I can assure you that all three of your husbands find you extremely physically attractive. We had to do an atmosphere flush in the med bay after they met you just so we could all get back to work without their pheromones driving us to distraction,” he answered, patting her hand reassuringly.

  “Well then where are they? If they were so eager to marry me shouldn’t they have been there when I woke up?” she asked, sounding a fair bit more shrill than her feminist alter-ego found appropriate, but whatever, sometimes a girl just wanted a little effort from the men who rescued her from a life of slavery and then married her without her consent, right?

  “They thought perhaps it would be less overwhelming for you if they gave you a bit of space to absorb all of this. They have requested however that you be moved into their suites this afternoon, so you can begin the bonding process. The rest of the belongings we have acquired for you are there now. Shall we go so I can show you your new family rooms, my lady?” he answered as he stood and offered her his arm to escort her.

  “First of all, Matty, you can cut out the ‘my lady’ crap. That’s going to drive me crazy. You can call me Eve, or Evie if you’d like. I’m not so sure I’m ready to move in with my ‘husbands’ as you call them, since I barely know them and all that, but sure, we can go check out their rooms,” she said as she took his arm. Her curiosity about these men she was married to was slowly edging past the anger she felt toward them, and Evie just knew it was going to get her into trouble. Whoever came up with that cliché phrase, “Be careful what you wish for, because you may get it,” was kind of a nasty bitch, but annoyingly enough, not entirely wrong.

  Chapter Nine

  As they walked down the halls, Eve noticed that all the crewmen they passed looked her over with a healthy dose of curiosity and more than a little lust. She had to attribute it to the banging white toga ensemble that Matty had picked out. She felt like she was an Egyptian goddess with the soft flowing gown swishing around her legs as she walked and the golden belting acting in place of a push-up bra, making her C-cups look more like D’s in the deep V-neckline. Eve also noticed that they hadn’t passed or seen any women, which could explain the male interest in her fabulously wrapped-up curves, but she chose to ignore that option and put an extra sway into her walk.

  “So, Matty, why haven’t we seen any women yet? Why the sausage party?” she asked, returning the flirty smile of a particularly cute crewman that passed.

  “Well, Lady Eve, most Dhuaatian females prefer to stay planetside to be closer to their families. Usually exploration and military vessels such as the Nomac are crewed by unattached males thirsty for adventure. You are currently the only female we have on board. The other rescued females were transferred this morning in their stasis pods to be taken directly to the Coalition rehabilitation center to be woken and assessed,” he answered as he glared at another one of the smiling crewmen who passed. It was obvious he did not approve of their interest in her.

  “What? You mean Sally’s gone? But I didn’t even get to make sure she was all right,” Eve said with a note of panic in her voice as she thought about her missing friend.

  “I’m sorry, Lady Eve. It was imperative they be taken to safety as quickly as possible. Having them all in one place was making just too tempting a price for any other ambitious slavers. What is the description of your friend? I’m sure we can confirm her identity for you to ensure that she was one of the survivors,” he said as he paused by an access computer on the wall and started pushing buttons.

  “She’s taller than me, about 110 pounds, has long blonde hair and blue eyes. Oh! And she has a long scar on her left arm about four inches long,” she said as he typed and scrolled through the data. “What is it with these slavers being all obsessed with us? Do you guys have a shortage of women or something?”

  “Ah, yes. Your friend Sally was among the females rescued and in fine health. Once she has been resettled we can arrange for you to contact her,” he said with a satisfied look, taking her arm again to lead her down another hall. “The slavers illegally went to your planet and kidnapped females because there was a recent discovery by a Zornan group that had stumbled upon one of your females by necessity and ended up forming a permanent bond with her. It was quite the uproar in the scientific communities. The Zornan government had approached the Coalition science board to get help because they were losing the ability to find permanent bond females within their own society, and the birth rate had plummeted by over seventy percent within five decades. Within six months the female was breeding and further research found that many of our Coalition species are also compatible breeding with Earth females, so of course the slaving black market became excited to capitalize on the newest exotic export.”

  “Just because we get pregnant easily, that’s a good reason to kidnap someone and sell them into slavery?” she screeched at his explanation.

  “No, lady, I don’t believe there is ever a good excuse to force anyone into servitude. However, moral outrage has not stopped the unscrupulous and the elite from wanting to own what should never be sold. I know that in the history of Dhuaat there was a time when slavery was a common occurrence, and I believe from the new records written by the Zorn on your own planet’s history it happened in your species as well. Is that not correct?” he said with a look and a raised eyebrow that had her quickly getting off of her own moral high horse.

  “Yes,” she said with a sigh. “I guess you’re right. No matter where you go in the universe you’re bound to find assholes who think money can buy anything, even people.”

  “This is very true. With many of our advances in science and technology there seems to be an inherent curiosity to tinker with things that should be left in the hands of the gods. The penalty many species have paid has left them struggling to maintain their populations. Whether it be plant and animal hybridization or outright gene manipulation many scientific egos have blatantly disregarded the lessons of other civilizations for the possible glory of new discoveries,” he explained as they walked, a disapproving note to his tone.

  “Wow, that’s awful. I take it that you aren’t one of those egotistical scientists?” she asked him with a teasing tone, trying to lighten the mood.

  “No, my lady,” he said with a small smile. “I’m just a simple physician who’s fascinated by new things. What more could one ask for at my age?”

  “Ahh, Matty, how old can you be? All these guys have been checking you out the whole time we’ve been walking. Obviously you still got something going on,” she said, giving the sweet old man a wink.

  He barked out a laugh at her. “My lady, the pharaoh and his lords have a treasure in you for certain.”

  “Oh, they have no idea,” she said, patting his hand with a wicked grin on her face.

  Chapter Ten

  When they finally arrived at the large door with a set of gua
rds at attention Eve finally got a little nervous about seeing the men again. Since waking, in between her fits of outrage at what Mhat-Am had told her, she had begun to formulate a plan on how to manage her new beaus. They had to be put in their place right at the start of this relationship. Eve had no interest in being some alien bride, barefoot and preggers in the kitchen or whatever these guys cooked in. Just like puppies, she needed to rub their noses in their mistakes if she expected them to learn that women from Earth won’t just roll over and be moved around like little dolls. The only problem was that she suspected keeping her hormones from taking over long enough to prove her point was going to be the biggest battle. She remembered these men being the most beautiful males she’d ever seen in person. Her body had gotten hot and wet just from them touching her leg and hands. This was going to take some serious self-control that she hoped she had. So Eve took a big mental breath, put on her “I mean serious business” face and stepped up to the door.

  “Man, this is way nicer than my room was,” she said as she looked over the high-end furniture and luxurious finishing and textiles once they’d gone into the suites.

  “Yes well, these are the pharaoh’s suites, and you were in one of the guest quarters nearest the medical bay in case there were any issues when you woke,” Mhat-Am answered as he directed her to the left side of the room where there was a glass doorway separating what appeared to be a large office.

  The door swished open as they stepped up to it, and her breath immediately caught as she saw the golden sculpted pharaoh sitting with his bare chest behind the desk while both Kai and Roan sat in chairs on the other side dressed in black leather breeches and vests. Obviously the temperature of the ship was kept on the warm side to accommodate the Dhuaatian fashion sense, but Roan and Kai must have been used to the heat to be able to wear leather. They looked so dangerous and sexy compared to Khaman’s golden ethereal presence, and God, why did they have to smell so good? When the door opened and she got a rush of warm sandalwood and male musk her pussy began to ache and immediately all she wanted to do was go over and rub herself all over them. Which of course was exactly the kind of slutty alter-ego thought she needed to give her head a shake and put her plan into the works, so she purposely looked each of the now smugly smiling men up and down before she turned back to Mhat-Am and said, “You were right, Matty, this place is much nicer than mine. I’ll totally move in, but where are these guys going to stay?” she said with a thumb pointed toward the men.