14 Rosalynn

I skip breakfast the next morning because I don’t need it.

Zinnar’s waiting for me when I open my door, dressed in a fresh uniform.

“How long have you been standing there?” I ask.

“Since before breakfast started.”

“Why not go eat?” I ask.

“I should ask you the same.”

I slump and look back at the tray. “I didn’t want any of that to go to waste, so I sat up and watched Stellar Sisters and tried to eat everything I could. I’m stuffed.”

“You didn’t have to eat everything on the tray.”

“You have never been poor, have you?” I ask.

Zinnar pushes off of the wall. “Technically, no. But I have lived in the dark with limited resources. And I do respect the caloric needs of soldiers on long missions. But you don’t have to worry about that here. Eat what you want.”

I zip up the neck of my racing suit and motion for him to lead on.

The first event of the day is a knowledge game, one I oddly suck at. Zinnar seems less than thrilled with it, too. I stare at him across the room and wonder if anything he does is genuine or just for the pact we’ve made.

He fidgets with his cloak, then gets frustrated and throws it behind his shoulder. I don’t think Zinnar was ever really interested in finding a mate or making a princess out of a woman. I think he just wanted to be a soldier. But the way he went down on me with such tact and lust—

My pussy slicks as I sit and stare across the room at him. He sees me watching him and smiles. I zone out for most of the questions and just ponder a life with him. He’s humble, caring, and has a hell of a tongue.

I guess this is worth it to get college paid for. That will give me one kind of better future.

The screen before us pops up with a question for the women. “What kind of engine does a RadiumJet have?”

My heart surges into action as I realize it’s something I know. I don’t know planets or alien species, customs or most of what’s out there. But I remember a handful of ships from college classes and other episodes of Alien Bride Race that I’ve watched with Aryssa.

I smash my button. My indicator light illuminates saying my microphone is on. When everyone’s attention turns to me, I choke.

Just pretend it’s like the mall.

“It’s—uh—actually a three-stage, tri-turbo Razer by Ceraphic.”

“Correct. Bonus question. What fuels does it use?”

“A polymer conversion fuel as a primer and starstream 601, non-ethanol with a 14,000 kilowatt backup power cell.”

“That’s correct.”

My light switches off, but I celebrate with a fist pump. “Yes! Finally got one.”

I get a handful of interested looks from males across the room, including Zinnar. He is by far the most attractive in my mind. And he apparently knows quite a bit about interstellar travel.

He answers several questions accurately and even has the guts to correct the game host on something regarding the time dilation of gravitational fields.

When the game is over, Tori has won on the women’s side and a pale yellow Jorbiun with their tell-tale nasally tone has won for the males.

We are then ushered outside for a quick snack of cookies in a hut.

“I’ll find you,” Zinnar calls to me as he’s guided away with the other males to a different prep station.

I’ve never worn a suit of armor of any kind, so when it’s handed to me, I can’t quite figure out how it opens up. I watch the woman who directs us, but struggle to get the harness of candy grenades, extra ammo, and the rifle situated on my thinner frame.

“Let me help.” A woman in an Abr staff uniform adjusts my harness so it fits snuggly to my body. The name on her badge reads Ohni. “You look terrified. Are you okay?”

“Just don’t know what we’re doing,” I admit. “I’m a bit turned around after being brought back.”

“Ah, you’re the one Prince Charming ran after.”

“He ran ?”

She sways. “That poor guy looked desperate. He called his private transport to him and paced the field until they closed in. Didn’t even wait for them to land.”

“He really ruined the moment,” I mutter. “It was all I wanted.”

“You mean, you expected .” Ohni’s eyes check my gear as she steps back. “Maybe you idealized that moment when really it’s about the chase. The actual race is just the symbolic start of the week’s activities. The point is to have fun and learn about your prospects while you’re here. Let loose. Get dirty . Besides, if it’s the chick I’m thinking of—” Ohni nears me and lowers her voice. “Total slut. If you should feel bad for anyone, it’s the prince. Nothing like coming here and being excited to catch a mate only to be rejected by her. It goes both ways, word?”

I think about it for a moment. “When you put it that way, I guess I’m not helping our situation by being stuck in my head about mine.”

“Be yourself. That’s the whole point. Let him see who you are.” Ohni hands me an extra cookie. “Good luck.”

I thank her and eat as I gather with the other women outside of a hedge maze. The objective is a golden egg at the center, but I’m not really listening. I’m trying to find Zinnar in the crowd of males. I want to apologize, set the record straight, and explain how important this is to me.

A starting gun spirals fireworks into the sky, and the sides clash in joyful screams and the first grenades going off.

Sweet pink powder fills the air. Purple paints the side of my mask as I hunt for Zinnar.

One of the males that liked my answer about engines in the last game sees me through the crowd and starts toward me. But I don’t want to get stuck with him.

I see Zinnar among a group of others, some male, some female, as they enter the maze. So I duck and dodge my way through the mass of people and hustle in that direction.

Another grenade goes off that fills the sky with pale blue clouds that make the world shimmer. A high eases my mind and makes me feel warm. I slow as it breaks up my thoughts.

“Rosalynn, right?”

I look back to see the horned Selephaton eyeing me with interest. He gets close enough to sniff me but when I get a whiff of him, I know. “We’re not compatible.”

He seems surprised by that. And as much as I want to be wanted, I can’t stand his scent.

I don’t know what it is because it isn’t a scent class we were trained in at the store. It’s something unique to humans and aliens, a mammalian scent that I’ve picked up on since I was a child.

“I’m sorry,” I say.

He shrugs and walks off. I return to my hunt for Zinnar, enter the maze, and pass a couple rolling on the ground, making out like a couple of drunks.

What the fuck?

A few corners in, I find Zinnar with his back to a hedge, tucked in a shadow, hyper ventilating.

A small group runs past me, laughing as they escape another blast, this time in green.

“Zinnar?”

The air fills with colorful smoke and paint, and I lose him in the haze.

“Rosa?”

“Stay there, I’ll find you.” I drop to my knees, beneath the haze, and search for his scent. It’s a mix of warm amber and spices with a hint of ionization residue, likely permeated into him from battle like perfume lingers with me.

I find his boots and crawl up his brawny legs until I stand before him again.

He swallows and gasps for air. “What the hell is this stuff?”

His badge responds. “Hormorne enhancers. Didn’t you read the event plan for the week?”

“Who’s that?” I ask.

“Bai’rin, one of my friends, an elite from our forces. I called him and Joltas to assist.” Zinnar rolls his head and grimaces. “I can’t think through this.”

“Maybe you’re not supposed to.” I offer, running a hand up his deliciously firm abs toward his chest. The drugged, sugary weapons make me want to cave more to my desire for Zinnar. But I can tell Zinnar is lost in his head. He’s never been through such a cloud before. Maybe gunfire or actual bomb blasts. The mark on his arm suggests he’s taken a few hits in his life. But I don’t get the sense he’s ever had much time for pleasure.

“Is that her?”

Zinnar isn’t listening. Another grenade goes off nearby, throwing a fresh pink cloud into the air and descending over us.

“Hi Bai’rin. You two can talk later.” I tap off his connection, then pull Zinnar’s face down to my level. “Hey.”

He opens his eyes, exposing dilated irises that move slowly as they trace my every feature.

It’s not just the powder. I’ve wanted him since I first laid eyes on him.

“I am barely holding it together, Rosa. I don’t know if this is because of the stuff or what.” His cells begin to darken, and I remember what he said about war-mode. That can’t be good.

“I have literally nothing to go back to. No job, apartment, nothing. I could stay with my friend, Aryssa. But I would basically be starting over.” I kiss his bottom lip, then draw it between my teeth, remembering the way he pleasured me on Elix’s ship. “So I am all in.”

He lethargically collects me, lifts me up by my hips, and kisses me deeper. Zinnar’s erection grinds into my mound.

“Want to head back?” I ask. “I can help you clear your head .”

He turns to leave with a drunken grin and stumbles. Zinnar’s arms tighten firmly around me as branches scrape over us.

He catches himself and straightens. In the haze, we’ve walked into a secret alcove in the hedges, grown over but carved out from the inside—a private room.

In one corner beyond a bed of moss bubbles a tiny fountain. A sign tucked in another corner reads: To all those who find this place, keep it quiet or you’ll destroy the race.

He sets me down. “Destroy it?”

“Maybe they mean the magic of it, the special memories we can make together.” I pull his mouth to mine again.

“We don’t have to do this,” he mutters like he’s wasted.

But I want to. He’s served me quite well, and after what Ohni said, it’s time I do something for him.