Chapter Three
Sarra
After a brief sleep and an even briefer reunion with Haden, we took off from the shuttle station in Udora and made our way to my shifters high-rise in the city.
His home reminded me of a penthouse – taking up the top floor of the building, complete with extravagant chic furnishings and art. His large glass walls gave a breathtaking view of the city. The buildings lit up in the central district of the city like myriads of fireflies. They seemed to sparkle in the distance.
“I love it here,” I said breathlessly as I walked over to his living room window.
“I’m glad I could impress you so easily, my lady. I haven’t even shown you the kitchen yet; you’ll be ecstatic!”
I rolled my eyes playfully and laughed. “I meant the view; Udora.”
“Ooh,” he said with a drawn-out breath. “I am enjoying the view myself,” he finished as his eyes traced my figure up and down.
“Are you trying to be cheesy, or does this just come naturally to you?”
“Ah, and we’re back at men being ‘funny’ again.”
“Did I say it was funny?” I teased, wrinkling my nose in the cute way I did when trying to flirt.
“Well,” he gasped. “I never!” We both grinned at one another, and he walked across the floor to the window, staring out into the city with a lost stare in his eyes. He wore dark jeans and another blazer; black this time, to match his perfectly formed scales and beautifully dark features.
“I’m sorry. That was rude,” he said simply; his eyes glancing my way as I made myself comfortable on his taupe chaise. “Tell me what you love about Udora.”
“Everything,” I breathed.
The seasons here were somewhat similar to those on Earth, but spring and winter only. No middle ground. I’d arrived at the end of winter this time. The planet ran devastatingly cold, which was just perfect to me. The moss that famously covered every inch of the planet now had its color sapped from it. Grass turned, not to blankets of snow, but grew thickly coated with sharp ice.
There was something so bare-bones about the seasons here. Something unexplainably beautiful.
“So, you’re an advisor to the Koth?” I asked. “Seems funny we’ve never met, considering they are who I deal with most of the time.”
“It’s a new title,” he said with a dismissive shrug. “But yes, I am a diplomatic man with access to all the higher ups and any secrets you could ever want to know.”
“So basically, you just go to meetings and do a lot of nodding?”
“Basically, yes.” He grinned. “Don’t forget ‘telling people what to do.' That’s my favorite part.”
“I’ll keep that in mind,” I said while chuckling into my hand. “Good, because that’s basically what I do, too.”
“You don’t say? What will our alliance do when we’re in the same meetings getting along and actually agreeing on principles?”
“It will be a shock, that’s for sure.”
He set his jaw and gave me a look that seemed absolutely tickled. Walking past the bay window, Haden took a seat across from me after setting down two freshly poured glasses of wine. “One of the few things brought from Earth that I actually like. This,” he said as he took a long sip. “And you.”
“Don’t I feel special,” I flushed and took the base of the wineglass into the palm of my hand. “You don’t like anything else? Food, architecture, pigs?”
“Pigs?” he repeated with a laugh. “That was an odd reach.”
“Bacon!” I offered playfully.
“Ah.” He nodded. “Pigs are alright, I suppose. But as far as architecture goes, I’m much more of a fan of old Udora.”
“What?” I snorted. “Stone walls?”
He stared at me with an unreadable expression before his lips curved up into an endearing smile “And I do believe in time you will, too. Udora’s not all city, you know. It might seem like that, but it isn’t. There’s the city, the mine fields–”
“Not as dangerous as it sounds,” I quipped.
Haden gave a bashful blush and sighed as he continued, “Right. No. They don’t explode. Then there are the Were-valleys and the Old Udora.”
I bit my lip and stared down into my wine glass as he continued to give me a verbal map of the planet. Maybe Anita was right. Maybe the shifters really did make their landscape a point of seduction with their women.
“And what is Old Udora like? I have to admit, in all my years coming to the planet, I’ve never ever heard of that area.”
“We don’t take humans there,” he said, almost proudly. “It is as it sounds. A city in the midst of a mossy field, cracked with stone buildings from the old world. Back before we found Earth.”
“I see,” I hummed and took another sip of my wine before setting it on the table. “Hopefully I’ll be able to see it one day.” I tipped my head and gestured a faux curtsey to him, tilting my head in his direction as I finished, “If you deem me worthy.”
“But of course.”
We sat by his open window drinking wine for hours together. He had a good idea, it seemed: plying one another with alcohol until the conversation flowed smoothly. While I appreciated the liquid courage, something told me we would have been just fine without it.
“Which brings me to my next point, actually.”
“Oh, it does?”
“I am… well, part of the Koth.”
“Yes,” I stifled a giggle and fixed my short hair behind my ear. “I think I’ve heard rumblings here and there about it.”
“An important man; brilliant in nature. And being the stunning creature that I am, you’re considered to be a lucky woman.”
I nodded, suddenly taken aback by the subtle, if not playful, arrogance. “Good to know,” I stumbled.
“People tend to… want to celebrate a Koth pairing. There is going to be a celebration in a couple days.”
“And here I thought I’d have nowhere to wear my cocktail dress. So, it’s like a party? I have to say, in all the years I’ve been to Udora, I’ve never attended a party.”
“Something to cross off the bucket list.”
“That reminds me,” he said, no shifting in his chair. “Zaphira will be attending. She’s your higher-up, is she not?”
“Yes, and contrary to popular belief, she isn’t all powerful and full of doom and gloom.”
“Ah, yes. As they say.”
“She’s my boss,” I said flatly.
“So that means you are required to jump to her defense?”
“First of all, yes. And second of all, I would only be defending her if you were being critical of her. Were you?”
He laughed, hard. “I was just asking a question.”
I blinked several times as he continued to laugh at my reaction and then gave an audible sigh before downing the last of my wine like a teenager. “Sorry,” I said meekly. “Some people have a hard time with her. Her personality and all.”
Haden raised his hand in dismissal and moved closer to me on the couch. “No need to explain. So long as she doesn’t give you a hard time, then she’s fine by me.”
“She’s not as hard to work for as she is to negotiate with, if that’s what you mean.” I offered a smile.
The truth was, I was quick to jump to Zaphira’s defense. Sure, she was harsh, but she knew what she wanted. She taught me everything I knew. While she didn’t exactly have the warmest personality, I’d seen her care for the girls she sent to Udora. I’d seen her cry in the privacy of her office. I’d seen the love she had for this project and this alliance – and that side of her was mine to keep.
“Really,” I insisted. “She’s not that bad.”
“If you say so then it must be true.”
“You trust me already, huh?” I said, leaning closer to him and trying desperately to sound anywhere near flirtatious and change the uncomfortable subject.
“You’re right, what am I thinking?” he said, slapping his forehead. “You are in politics, after all.”
“She’s taught me a lot,” I said solemnly.
He raised a brow and had a coy, blithe look about him. “And I’m supposed to find this comforting?”