Kelsey woke to find sunlight filtering through a cas.e.m.e.nt in the ceiling, clear morning sky visible overhead. A royal-blue fleece blanket covered her-one she didn't recall falling asleep beneath. Perhaps Jared or someone else had covered her in the night? She stretched, pointing her toes, and for a minute wondered if it had all been a bizarre dream. Alien compounds and warrior kings and middle-of-the-night secrets. She even returned to her recurring fears that Jared might be some kind of cult leader. She was contemplating that, along with the possibility that maybe the whole "warring species" idea might be just a code phrase for some strange variety of terrorism, when a soft voice startled her.

"You're awake, I see."

Only then did Kelsey notice a striking, dark-haired woman sitting by the fire, legs crossed. "He doesn't usually allow any of us here," the woman offered. "Well, perhaps I should clarify. Our lord would never forbid us to come. But we all know that it is his place."

"But he let me in here," Kelsey said, planting both feet on the floor, curious as to who the large-boned woman was.

She gave Kelsey a brilliant smile. "Oh, I imagine he wanted you here, Kelsey Wells. That he wished to show you something of himself."

The woman waved her closer. "Come," she urged. "Sit with me by the fire. I am Anika."

Kelsey rose and, taking the blanket with her, approached the fire. "Are you Jared's cousin too?"

"An adviser," she said. "He has sent me here to watch over you until you wake."

Kelsey bristled at such protectiveness. "I was fine," she said, pushing a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Of course you were fine," Anika agreed with a firm nod. "But our commander knows our world here is unfamiliar to you. He wishes you to be comfortable." Another large smile. Anika's appearance was odd, different from Jared's: She possessed the same dark hair and eyes, but her skin was much fairer. She almost had the look of a dark-eyed Viking: the same strong bones, large teeth: "It's all a bit"-Kelsey hesitated, wrapping the blanket around her shoulders as she settled by the fire- "overwhelming, actually."

"Of course," the woman agreed. "Our lord is overwhelming-is he not?"

That was one way to describe the spell Jared had managed to cast over her in one week's time. She stared into her lap, avoiding the alien woman's questioning gaze. "It's all very strange," was all Kelsey admitted.

"Our war is not known to most humans," Anika continued. "This would be strange, I am sure. As would engaging in a relationship under such terms."

"A relationship?" Kelsey asked, glancing upward in surprise.

Anika's open face brightened with what could only be described as amus.e.m.e.nt. "Is this not what brings you to our camp?" she pressed. "A relationship with our commander?" She gestured toward Kelsey's throat. "And it seems you wear my lord's strake stone." Kelsey glanced down, surprised. The pendant had obviously worked its way free from beneath her sweater during sleep. She could offer no defense as to her reason for wearing it, but tucked it back beneath the turtleneck hastily.

"He wanted me to see this place," she said, though she knew something far deeper had led her here with Jared. "That's all."

"A place that he regards with the utmost level of security? A place where he has never once brought an outsider? Where only the highest ranking officers ever visit? Yes," Anika concluded with a firm nod. "This is highly unusual for our leader, and you must know it."

For reasons that Kelsey couldn't understand, she wanted to confide in Anika. "We only met once before," she admitted softly, trying to form logic out of such an illogical attraction to the man. "At the lake."

Anika gazed at her. "You believe in the possibility of true love," she observed after a searching moment. "I sense it. And you have waited for someone for a period of many years. And yet you question? It seems to me that your feelings were antic.i.p.ated for some time, Kelsey Wells. Perhaps it was their fulfillment that has confounded you so much."

Kelsey shivered, but said nothing. There was nothing she could say upon being a.n.a.lyzed in such a penetrating manner. After a moment of gauging Kelsey's reaction, Anika turned back toward the fire. "This morning, our commander meets with several key advisers," she said. "He hopes to see you in two hours."

Kelsey glanced down at her rumpled sweater and jeans, and felt painfully self-conscious. "I have nothing to wear."

Anika laughed, a warm bubbling sound. "Ah, a familiar refrain the universe over," she said, regarding her with a sideways glance. "We appear to be the same approximate size. Perhaps I can help with that."

Jared stepped out onto the deck where he'd finally discovered Kelsey after searching for her inside the cabin. She leaned against the wooden balcony railing, her chin propped in both hands. "And so it is morning," he said.

"A beautiful morning," she agreed, giving him a reserved smile. She wore an ice-blue ski sweater that matched her eyes in brilliant vibrancy, obviously some of Anika's doing, as were the formfitting Refarian uniform slacks that Kelsey wore. Blessed Anika and her love for her king, he thought, forcing himself to gaze into Kelsey's vivid blue eyes, not at her curving hips.

"Has your time been pleasant so far, here in my camp?" he asked, taking a position along the balcony edge with her.

"Pleasant?" Her smile broadened. "Wow, that seems awfully formal, don't you think?"

"Formal? I did not mean it so." He suddenly felt himself a boy, quivery and unsure of himself-as uncertain as he'd been the day of his coronation. G.o.ds, how he wanted to say just the right thing with this human! It seemed suddenly to matter a very great deal.

She shrugged. "Well, I guess for a king, you're not too terribly formal, not really."

"I-I have some trouble with your language."

"You're great with English," she disagreed. "That's not it. It's just... you could have told me that you're a king." Her tone was contemplative as she stared across the sun-dappled valley. "You could have trusted me."

"It has nothing to do with trust," he said, forming clouds with every breath. "I usually save that information when I can," he admitted. "Not that I can very often, since most everyone in my life knows precisely who I am. And always has."

She turned to him, and when she did he saw flecks of gold reflecting the sunlight in the depths of her blue eyes- something he hadn't noticed previously. Blue teased with green, mated with gold, taunted the king.

"Why didn't you want me to know?" she asked, making a sweeping gesture with her hand. "You brought me here to show me your life."

He sidled up to the railing, draping one arm over it, studying her. She raised a crucial question, and the answer was simple-but he wasn't sure he wanted her to know just yet. "The element of surprise," he answered, locking his eyes with hers in challenge, "is key to any battle plan."

She folded defiant arms across her chest. "This is not a battle, and I'm not your enemy."

Her denials brought out something playful and flirtatious within him. "Ah, so you say, my human."

"Your human?" She laughed, giving her long curls a toss. "I am not your pet either, thank you."

c.o.c.king his head sideways, Jared studied her, confused. " 'My human'-this term conveys affection. Not ownership."

"My," she replied. "In English, 'my' means ownership. Belonging."

"You do not wish to belong to anyone," he observed. It was true, and from the beginning he had found her independent spirit more than a little alluring. Yet a part of him also longed for her to understand-to acknowledge even- that they were bonded on the deepest level. "You wish to be alone in life, perhaps?" he pressed.

"It's not that I-I don't wish..." she hesitated and he saw the faintest crimson invade her cheeks. Then she blurted, "It's that, well, that I-"

He lifted fingertips to her lips, silencing her awkward attempts at a reply.

"Your heart longs for much, Kelsey Wells," he interpreted, tracing the outline of her soft, delicate mouth. "But you are strong and independent. I like this in you. Very much. I admire it as well."

She met his gaze, her eyes watering unexpectedly. "It's gotten me into a lot of trouble in the past."

"You have not loved strong men," he observed. "Who could handle this trait in a woman."

"I loved a man once." She turned from him. "Or I thought I did. And he wanted to have me all to himself, wanted me to sacrifice the things that were important to me. I think he wanted to own me, in a way."

"Humans own others?" This revelation he found confusing, as he did not believe such was common among her kind here in the western part of this planet, at least not at this point. "A man may own a woman?"

"He wanted a relationship with me, but only on his terms," she clarified, laughing softly. "And I was willing... for a while. Until he hurt me.".

He felt an irrepressible flash of fury: That any man might have hurt his bondmate awakened the warrior in him. His hands clenched at his sides, his full body tensed, and it was all he could do to suppress an audible growl of protection.

But he managed, forcing himself to grow calm again before answering.

"My human," he said, intentionally invoking the warm term again, "this is an endearment. It conveys strong affection. Tenderness, if you will. These cultural things are sometimes difficult."

"Oh." Her eyes widened, and she blinked, swallowing visibly. "Tenderness. I get it."

He smiled at her, noting that her pupils seemed to dilate in emotional response to his explanation. "Perhaps 'my Kelsey' sounds better?" he suggested in a gentle voice.

"Probably less Star Trek," she agreed, her nose crinkling as she smiled. "If you don't mind my saying so."

Reaching out his hand, he cupped her face, surprised yet again by the pristine softness of her skin. "My Kelsey," he whispered, "you look very beautiful in the morning light. This soldier should be so blessed every day."

She dropped her head, self-consciously fingering the stone that glinted there at the base of her throat. The strake's presence had electrified him from the moment he'd first seen it on her this morning. Not that she'd have laid the pendant about carelessly, but still, the look of its dark beauty against her skin had caused him to tremble with an unfamiliar sensation-the thrill of having claimed a mate. She has never agreed to such a plan, Jared. Move slowly, a voice warned. But the man inside refused to back down, and the thought of proceeding cautiously seemed an unbearable task. Perhaps he could at least steal a kiss this morning? He took an intrepid step closer.

The wind kicked up around them, sweeping a twined curl of auburn hair across her face; he reached, carefully tucking it behind her ear. The color in her cheeks deepened as he made his move, resolving that he would finally kiss her. Although he remained well aware that those inside the cabin might see him do so, he closed the small distance still separating them, and turned her face upward toward his.

At that precise moment, Scott burst out onto the deck, followed by another of his soldiers. "Commander! We-" The first soldier gasped, and Scott glanced from Kelsey back to Jared and then to Kelsey again.

Then, apparently understanding whom the woman in his arms obviously had to be, Jared's best friend actually had the gall to scowl at him. Bitterly. Then he coughed, and all the while Jared couldn't seem to activate his brain to simply release Kelsey from his grasp.

It was the other soldier who spoke at last, murmuring, "So sorry, sir," with a bow. "My apologies." Then the man bowed even lower, the greatest show of respect.

Jared returned the gesture and rolled his eyes at Scott, who still stood gaping. Like himself, Scott was keenly curious about humans-but probably more quizzical about this particular woman Jared had actually brought into camp. "In a moment?" Jared prompted Scott when he did not turn away.

"Commander," he whispered, and turned on his heel without another word.

Jared watched them go, wondering if he'd made a mistake in not introducing Kelsey to Scott at that moment. But he wanted to do so later, when his lieutenant could spend time with her. When he might better understand his commander's attraction to the alien woman.

After both men had left them, he turned back to Kelsey. "I've asked them not to do that," he told her.

"Do what, exactly?"

"Oh, bowing and treating me that way," he said, rubbing his jaw. "But I think they need it, even if I don't."

"Everyone needs to remember the reasons for what they do."

This concept resonated deeply, and he nodded. Perhaps Kelsey might understand the reasons behind the

bond he had forced upon her. Perhaps she might accept it-and forgive, even as he begged her forgiveness for having gazed so deeply into her soul during that quiet flash of a moment. He wanted to believe that.

Then he reached for her hand and closed it in his larger, darker one. "Kelsey, there is much you do not know," he began, "about the war I fight. You will learn more in time, but..." She squeezed his hand, urging him onward, so he continued. "I need for you to meet with my cousin, Thea Haven. You saw her last night."

"As if I could forget," she said.

He had no doubt that Kelsey had recognized Thea's possessive jealousy from the moment they'd entered

the cabin. The last thing she probably wanted was to spend more time in her company. "I need you to trust my cousin," he urged. "She is a good woman and a good soldier."

"Even if she didn't like me very much?"

"She liked you fine," he disagreed. "She doesn't trust humans. But she's the one I need to pair with you

because of her intuitive abilities."

"Why would you want me with her?"

Jared dropped his head, his black eyebrows drawing sharply together. "Kelsey, I had to leave something

in your care," he admitted, his voice thick. "That night, at the lake." Across their bond, he sensed how hermind raced- an object? a weapon? She had no idea of anything that he'd left with her.He answered her unvoiced question. "Not an object," he said. "Nothing like that. Information.""Where? I don't know of-""Sweet human, please forgive me," he whispered.

Sweet human, please forgive me. Forgive him for what? Fear began to choke Kelsey's thoughts, because his apology seemed to portend something dark, frightening. Gauging by the stricken expression in his dark eyes, she guessed she wasn't far off base. "What did you do to me?" she asked in a tight voice.

"The night of my crash," he began, but then halted, staring into her eyes. "Kelsey, that night something fantastic happened between us. We both know that."

Setting her jaw, she only said, "Go on, Jared. Tell me what you did to me."

"I left important information inside of you, for protection," he said. "Information that I feared would fall into enemy hands."

"I see," she said, disturbed by his formal, distant att.i.tude.

"I-I fear that you won't understand."

Her heart softened at the words. He wasn't acting odd because he'd done something horrible to her-he

was afraid of somehow losing her. That she wouldn't understand a split-second decision when he was horribly injured. "I did tell you that I wanted to help," she reminded him. "That night. Remember?"

"But it wasn't fair to you," he said, staring out across the valley. "I placed you in danger. Terrible danger."

"That's why you came for me," she said, suddenly understanding, and she couldn't fight back the wave of

disappointment at realizing that he'd come for data-not for her.

He turned back to her. "Sweet Kelsey, I came for many reasons," he said in a husky voice. "Most

especially for you." Had he known her thoughts? Read her mind? His words were deeply melancholy,the tone one of wistfulness-the kind one used when talking about lost dreams."You're going to take the information and then send me away," she answered, realization dawning. "Back to Laramie. Aren't you?"

He set his features. "You do not belong here."