Alien's Reluctant Bride: A Sci-Fi Alien Romance (Mail Order Human Book 3) Read Online Free Page A

women and children, gone in the matter of two days.”
    “I’m sorry to hear that.”
    “My people, the fifty-nine men who were aboard the Starship Fhaabha settled here on New Protemeda to restart our civilization. We are now one thousand strong, and most of us live in the caves on the Lerruna Mountain,” he said, nodding at the rocky expanse in the distance. Now that they’d traveled closer, she could see some green atop the mountain, and at least it didn’t look gloomy or cloud covered. The sun beamed down upon even the highest peaks.
    “We live simply and only use technology when we must. We will never repeat the mistakes of our ancestors.”
    “What about you? Tell me about you and your family, Naad,” she said, using his name for the first time and liking the feel of it on her lips.
    “I am a scout leader, like my father. My job is to seek out new worlds and new methods of procuring women. I help locate planets with compatible women, or almost compatible women, and we go on raids to take them. I organize the raids, and when I’m not doing that I’m hunting, working to keep our settlement safe, and teaching hand-to-hand combat.”
    Ally tried to pull away from Naad, but he tightened his hold on her.
    “This shocks you, doesn’t it? The fact that we have kidnapped most of our women?”
    “Yes, you could say that.” It made them no better than the Hanz gang. What would life on the Mountain of Doom be like? Did the women live as second class citizens? Were they treated as slaves? She couldn’t speak for the rest of Earth, but in her particular village women hadn’t been treated well. Her hopes that New Protemeda would be different faded.
    “You won’t escape me, Ally. I’ve waited for you for a long time, and now that I have you, I won’t let you go anywhere. Do you have any idea how much gold my family paid for you?”
    Ally dropped her gaze to the ground, afraid she might burst into tears if she as much as glanced at Naad. No matter how handsome he was or how delicious he smelled, he was a brute, and she once again entertained the idea of escape.
    His people went on raids to other planets. To steal women.
    She looked up as a giant bird soared atop the trees. Was life really better on Earth? Or just a different kind of horrible? Even if it were possible to return, she couldn’t return to the same village where her father and Heath had died.
    Was there a safe place anywhere on Earth? She had been cut off from the world and honestly had no idea. All she knew were the rumors, rumors that claimed the whole world had plunged into madness and that no governments stood anywhere, in any country.
    At least on New Protemeda she wasn’t constantly looking over her shoulder for fear of being followed by one of Hanz’s men. In fact, the constant nervousness in her stomach from this particular terror had lessened during her weeks aboard the Starship Matchmaker . But now a new fear was growing inside her. All her life, she’d wanted a say in her future, even knowing her father would choose a suitor for her. She’d hoped to sway his opinion when the time came and have some measure of power, a few little freedoms.
    She didn’t feel free as she walked next to Naad. Though he hadn’t mistreated her—yet—she felt very much his prisoner in this unfamiliar alien wilderness.
    Please, God, tell me what I should do .

Chapter Three
     
    Naad escorted Ally under the white stone arch. Several of his people, including his father, stood at the entrances of their caves, watching as he officially made Ally his bride. Of course, the poor thing didn’t know what walking under the arch meant. He’d kept silent about the significance of passing under it, fearing she would put up a fight and wake up those who had already gone to sleep.
    She had been quiet for much of their journey, hardly speaking even as they stopped for a quick meal of dried veshina and berries. Each time he glanced at her, he discerned she was deep in