I burst through the doors of the med-bay. I came here as soon as I got the message from Dr. Singh, but the man is nowhere to be found.

Aria is lying in her hospital bed. Her eyes do not meet mine.

I sit down next to her and grab her hand.

“How do you feel?” I ask. “Are you okay?”

“I-I’m fine,” she stammers.

“Are you sure?”

She nods.

The human female still refuses to look me in the eye.

Is she mad at me?

Does she think I took advantage of her?

“About what happened,” I start.

“It was the alien spores,” she blurts out, her cheeks turning red.

“The what?”

“The doctor said there was some kind of drug in the air. He’ll explain it better. But that’s why… you know.”

Her face is now so red it matches mine in color.

I had suspected as much, but at the same time, the casual way in which she brushes our mating aside hurts me more than I thought possible.

It wasn’t some drug-induced mistake.

It meant something.

It meant the world to me.

I’ve never had a connection like that, with anyone. I’m trained to be a soldier, a general, a leader. My emotions are there to be controlled. Pushed away. Bottled up.

Never have they poured out of me.

Never have I felt someone understood me and accepted me, body and soul.

“I see,” I say, keeping my face in check.

I can’t show disappointment. I can’t argue about it with her.

Not here.

I’m such a fool.

It’s clear she wasn’t in her right mind.

Why did I let my mind run wild with thoughts of making her my mate, of spending an eternity with her? I’m getting ahead of myself.

* * *

Aria

I can’t blame my feelings on the alien spores.

Why am I lying to Dost?

Is it because I’m afraid of the truth?

That I’m wildly in love with him, head over heels, smitten, love struck?

This man is going to be the father of my child. The moment of conception was only an hour ago, give or take, and I know anything could still happen, theoretically, but… I can feel it in my bones.

My baby is going to be a healthy Zoran boy.

Yet I can’t even open my heart up to my baby’s father…

I don’t even know where to begin. How do I explain this to him?

“Ah, you’ve made it.”

Dr. Singh walks into the room. He’s all smiles, for he has an ‘exciting alien compound’ to study, and a human/Zoran pregnancy to monitor… at least someone is happy about out predicament!

“Congratulations, general.”

Dost frowns. “What for? That she is safe?”

I shield my eyes, fidgeting with my thumbs.

“Don’t worry, your secret is safe with me. I know it’s technically against Federation protocol to, shall I say, fraternize with subordinates, but there’s a little thing called doctor-patient confidentiality. Neither the Federation nor the Zorans will hear a peep out of me, rest assured. Makes sense you were so worried about her safety, now that I think about it.”

“What in Zora’s name are you babbling about?!” the general growls.

“Leave,” I snap at the jolly doctor. “Please,” I add. I should be the one to tell Dost.

The doctor holds up his palms and backs out of the room.

“I’m not one to get in the middle of a lover’s quarrel!” he says before closing the door behind him.

Dost turns to me, his radiant eyes filled with questions.

“What’s going on Aria?”

Oh boy.

Here it goes.

* * *

Dost

Dr. Singh raised more questions than he answered. I study Aria’s features, my brow furrowed.

I do not like the feeling of being in the dark. It seems everyone knows what is going on except for me.

Aria takes a deep breath, her eyes moving up to meet mine for the first time since I entered the room.

“Promise me you won’t freak out,” she says.

“I am a Zoran warrior. I don’t ‘freak out’.”

The mere suggestion is insulting, but I let it slide. This time.

“Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”

“Is it about the alien spores? Are they dangerous? Is Delta Y uninhabitable?”

She shakes her head. “No, it’s not about the spores. They… they lower inhibitions, but only temporarily, according to the doctor. You’ll have to ask him for the specifics. The planet should be safe for us now.”

My body still burns with lust for Aria, the thought of what we’ve shared together still a fresh memory. I can still taste her on my lips, despite the kuhla I have drunk. If what she says is true, I cannot blame the drug for my feelings. They are genuine. They are real.

“I am pregnant,” Aria blurts out in one quick breath.

I blink. I move in my seat. I look for the right words, but I don’t find them.

I don’t find any words, for that matter.

“You’re what?” is all I manage to come up with.

“I’m pregnant,” she repeats. “It showed up on the doctors scan. It’s a bit premature, but I… I believe him.”

“So I am…”

“You are the father,” she says. “Most definitely.”

This changes everything.

Both of our lives, changed in an instant, forever. My father will disown me, the Exon Movement will try to strip me of my command… but none of that matters.

I’m going to be a father.

A little Zoran warrior of our own.

“What are you thinking about?” Aria asks. “You’re quiet.”

I look up to see tears have filled her eyes, a single one sliding down her cheek, and my emotions overtake me.

The same emotions I’m trained to withhold, to ignore, to forget about. They pour out of me like a damn waterfall. I squeeze her hand as I try to say the right words.

“That we’re going to have a family!” I say.

She glances away.

“I barely know you,” she whispers.

“You’ll have a lifetime to get to know me.”

“It’s all happening so fast.”

“And I’m glad for it.”

Aria looks up. “Do you… do you mean that?”

I nod decisively. “On the graves of my ancestors, on Exon Prime, on my soul I swear it. I have never meant anything more. It is fate that has brought us together, that has blessed us with a baby. I welcome it with open arms.”

* * *

Aria

This is really happening.

I’m having a Zoran baby — and gaining a Zoran mate at the same time. I’ve never seen Dost like this before. He’s swearing loyalty to me, promising to protect me and our child, in this life and the next.

I’m moved, but also wary. I’m not ready to be a wife, let alone a mom. I barely have my own life on track — now I’m responsible for two?!

“Do you accept fate?” Dost asks.

His radiant eyes, as beautiful as two jewels, are pleading with me. I can’t say no to that face.

“Maybe,” I say. “Like I said, it’s all happening so fast.”

I half-expected Dost to storm out, to curse at me, to bemoan the fact he was going to be a father. Isn’t that what guys are supposed to do when they accidentally knock up their one-night-stands?

I never expected him to pledge his undying love for me! I suppose Dost is no ordinary man, and I am no one-night-stand.

“Can we take things slow?” I ask, almost feeling guilty. I wish I could jump into the unknown so freely as the Zoran warrior seems capable of, but unfortunately that’s not how I’m wired.

“Of course,” he says. “We’ll take things at any pace you desire.”

“I think it’s best if we keep it a secret for now.”

“Yes, I agree,” Dost says. “I am needed back on the surface of Delta Y. The mission must continue… but I will return as soon as I am able.”

“I want to come with,” I blurt out. “I don’t want to be alone right now.”

“Are you sure? It’s safer for you up here.”

“Please?”

“Of course, my mate,” he says. “If that’s what you want. I will speak to the doctor now, about the spores on the surface, to make sure it’s safe for you.”

Dost rises from his seat, and I reach out for him. “Do I not get a kiss before you go?”

A wide, ear-to-ear smile spreads out across Dost’s chiseled face.

“Of course.”

He leans in and kisses me deeply, one hand cradling my cheek. I close my eyes and let the sweet taste of his kiss distract me from our new and scary situation.

If our kisses keep being as good as this, we’ve got nothing to worry about.