Atargus' Mate: A Starlight Matchmaking Romance (Alien Legends Book 2) Read online

  Atargus’ Mate

  A Starlight Matchmaking Romance

  ALIEN LEGENDS Book 2

  EDEN EMBER

  Cover by Miranda Martin & Eden Ember

  Image credit: Deposit Photos

  Edited by Perfectly Plotted Books

  Copyright 2020 Eden Ember

  All rights reserved.

  This work of fiction is intended for mature audiences only. All characters represented within are eighteen years of age or older and any resemblance to persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. This work is property of Eden Ember, please do not reproduce illegally.

  Chapter 1

  ARIANA

  I will not give up. Briel disappeared two months ago with no trace. Her mother hasn’t heard from her either. She believes Briel is pulling a huge prank and instead ran off to Vegas to marry the hot guy she met at the matchmaking agency. I know better. Briel wouldn’t have done that.

  Bliss, Gemma, Anya and I kept searching for Starlight Matchmaking Agency after that day. When the lady shooed us away, saying that Briel had left already, we couldn’t understand how that could have happened. I mean, New York City doesn’t exactly have hidden back doors and streets.

  Bliss and I came back the next morning to find the sign gone, and the building empty. When we inquired about it, no one acted as they had heard of the business. We searched for a while, but life marched on and our little group separated. Anya took a job as a schoolteacher in Queens. Bliss moved upstate and started her career as a tax consultant. And Gemma sticks around, but she’s constantly needing a break from life and takes off on extended vacations.

  We meet when we can and sometimes we continue our search for the elusive matchmaking agency.

  “It’s as if Briel never existed,” I say as I stare at the empty building for the umpteenth time.

  “What are you looking for?”

  I jerk my head to the side. A lady with hair that has wild fire-red ends and black roots stares intensely at me. Her nose piercing matches the rings on her upper ear. Tattoos flow down her left arm and a long scar down the other. She smiles, her heavily-made eyes peering at me.

  “Um, there used to be a matchmaking agency here. Starlight Matchmaking. Ever hear of it?” I ask.

  “Oh, that. Yes. They move around a lot. In my circle of friends, we have sort of a fan club for the place. Kind of a secret society, you know,” she answers.

  I nod. “Yeah. I really want to try them out,” I say as I smile. Whenever I’ve asked others who may know of their whereabouts and tell them that I’m wanting to find Briel, they clam up and say nothing more to me.

  “I hear they moved to Chicago. There’s an avenue by the lake, sort of hidden in the back. You should check there. And good luck. I hear they are very picky about who can apply for their program. I hear it’s out of this world, though,” she says with a smirk.

  The chick gave me enough to go on, so here I am now in Chicago, looking in the alleys behind the lake view roads. It’s a ritzy part of town, thankfully. I walk between the buildings and through the darkened alleys. When I notice an old bookstore with a trendy-looking character, I enter.

  “I’m looking for the Starlight Matchmaking Agency,” I say to a man there.

  He looks up sharply. “You’re very warm. Go to the front, take the escalator to the second floor. Follow the hall to the very end, 2F.” He grins, the large gages in his ears larger than my hoops.

  I follow his directions. The fancy skyscraper looks nothing like the little rundown building they occupied in New York. Starlight Matchmaking Agency shines in small golden letters on the door. It’s not even listed on the manifold in the lobby as a business. I wonder why there’s all this secrecy about the place?

  Surprise sets in as I step inside the small office. The same woman who shooed us away in New York City now stands to her feet and greets me with a smile.

  “Hello, welcome to Starlight Matchmaking Agency. My name is Charsha. Are you here to register for a potential match?”

  “Um, no. I want to find out what happened to my friend in New York,” I reply.

  She squints her eyes. “Oh yes, I remember you. Yes, please, come sit,” she says as she holds out her hands toward the seat in front of her desk. The oddity of the room intrigues me. There is just a desk and two chairs along with the odd-looking computer. There is nothing else, besides a door directly behind the woman.

  “I need to find out what happened to my friend, Briel Sharp. She apparently had a match, but she was only coming into the office to find out more information. The next thing we knew, you were telling us that she took off to meet her perfect match. We haven’t heard from her since. I’m worried that something bad might have happened to her.”

  The woman’s smile doesn’t fade. “She’s perfectly fine and thrilled. Married, in fact. Would you like to register for a prospective mate? We have plenty who are looking. It just takes a drop of blood.”

  “Blood? Look, I just want to know where Briel is. Can you at least tell me that? Otherwise, I don’t believe you. I think something terrible has happened to her for her to just disappear like that,” I reply. My eyes threaten to fill with tears.

  “Briel is fine. That’s all I can tell you. She willingly registered and found a match immediately. She wanted to meet him and we worked quickly. You can do the same,” she continues.

  “If I register, will you tell me what happened to Briel?”

  “If you register, you will see for yourself what happened. And it’s nothing as terrible as you have made it out to be.”

  “Okay, then. I’ll register.”

  The woman rises. “I’ll be right back,” she tells me.

  I quickly send a group text to Gemma, Anya, and Bliss about what I’m doing. If I disappear, they’ll know why. They can then come looking for me.

  Charsha returns with a small tray. “Just a simple stick, a drop of blood, and I’ll put it in the database,” she says.

  “Don’t you want information about me?”

  “Your DNA will have all the information that we need. We look beyond things in common and go to a biological level. Did you know that Starlight has a one-hundred-percent success rate with perfect matches?”

  I shake my head as I hold out my hand. I’m doing this for Briel, to see for myself what happened to her. If something happens to me, at least I’ve left enough breadcrumbs so that my friends can come to my rescue.

  “Wait one moment while I run your results,” she says before disappearing again. Part of me wants to run out the door and not look back. But I can’t do that to Briel. She needs me, and I need to find her.

  “Splendid news. We have found your match. If you’re curious and want to find out more, please follow me.”

  I stand and follow her like a puppy following a master. Charsha stands at the entrance of a booth with a curtained entrance. “Now, you can read all about your match on the screen. Anytime during this process, you can leave. We don’t charge for our services, he pays for it. If you decide this isn’t for you, just let me know. If you decide you want to meet him, you can choose yes. You hit the YES button on the screen. Now, if you choose YES, your life will change. You can’t turn back. The choice is always yours. Think about it seriously before making your decision. And remember, we have no unhappy clients,” she adds.

  I nod. When the screen lights up, I’m flabbergasted by what I’m reading. This can’t be true. No way. Aliens? Like blue, very hot, aliens. They matched Briel to an alien? But then the name says it all. Starlight Matchmaking.

  The YES button bea
ms at me from the bottom of the screen. The desperation to know what happened to Briel supersedes my hesitation. I need to see for myself. I pull out my phone.

  Choosing YES at Starlight Matchmaking Agency. I’m going to find out what happened to Briel. This is surreal. Aliens for real. I’m doing this. If I disappear, that’s why. Please search for me if you need to know the truth.

  I hit send to Gemma, Anya, and Bliss. My hand shakes as I click the YES button on the screen.

  The curtain comes open. “Excellent! He will be pleased. Follow me,” Charsha announces.

  No one else is around. “Where are we going?” I ask.

  She smiles as we step into the elevator, and she hits the ROOF button. “To send you to meet your perfect match. You saw him on the screen, right?”

  I smile. My belly warms and my heart flip-flops at the thought of meeting this blue alien, if he’s for real.

  “What’s his name?”

  She laughs. “It’s hard to pronounce.” She makes a sound which is odd and I can’t understand it.”

  I laugh. “Okay, is he on the roof?”

  “No, the spacepod is and it will take you to the mothership, Astral Express. Your mate is leagues away and only traveling via the ship will bring you to him.”

  My eyes widen, my heart pounds inside my chest. “You understand, this all sounds completely beyond real.”

  “I know, dear. Here, I need to give you an implant, it’s a device that will help you understand when they speak to you on the ship. They will understand you.” She holds up the tiny implant and the tiny needle.

  “Um, implant?” I shake my head.

  She smiles. “It’s okay. Briel has one as well. Perhaps you will meet up with her soon. I know she’s hoping to see her friends again. Ax’Lok promises to bring her back to Earth.”

  Am I crazy? The injection of the implant behind my ear barely stings. The elevator opens to the roof and there sits an odd looking silver contraption.

  “I’m the pilot. Are you ready?”

  I suck in a deep breath. “Ready as I’ll ever be,” I reply with some confusion. Two things propel me forward. Briel and the hot looking blue alien I saw on the screen minutes ago.

  The spacepod soon blasts off. If I weren’t sitting beside Charsha myself and careening toward the sky, I wouldn’t believe this was happening. Charsha explains some of the structure of the pod. For one, it has a special skin for re-entry into the atmosphere. She seems very happy to tell me all about this for the few minutes it takes us to reach our destination. The Astral Express looms ahead, orbiting far from Earth. The pod careens through space so fast that I have very little time to consider that I have never been to space before.

  “Do the people of Earth know about this?” I ask.

  “Of course. They know a lot more than they let on. I have permission to conduct business on Earth and to come and go in this pod.” Her smile never leaves.

  In a matter of moments, we dock with the larger ship. Blue aliens who look very much like the one on the screen greet me after the door of the pod opens.

  “Ariana, pleased to meet you. Come this way,” one of them says to me. His light eyes beam at me, his skin so dark blue that I want to touch him to see if he’s real. We march through the corridor as Charsha turns and leaves in the pod back to Earth. Maybe Gemma, Anya, and Bliss will find her and have the same cool experience that I am having.

  “You know my name, but what is yours?” I ask the huge blue alien.

  “You can call me Captain Atargus. I’ll show you to your room. We’re traveling to Eradau where you will meet your match, the prince of that frosty world,” he tells me. My heart skips a few beats as I simply smile and follow him.

  Chapter 2

  ATARGUS

  Ariana smiles at me and my dual hearts pound in unison for the first time. It takes everything I have not to throw her down and claim her as my mate right now. Starlight Matchmaking Agency promised to deliver the perfect DNA match, and the proof comes with my hearts synchronizing. Eradauians know beyond the shadow of a doubt when they meet their mates.

  “Captain Atargus, nice to meet you,” she says, her eyes narrowing.

  “Right this way,” I say and lead her to her room. She follows, her footsteps softly padding behind me. When the door opens, she steps inside, and heaves a deep breath.

  “Thank you.” Her eyes take in the room, which has a window to the universe above the bed. The Astral Express offers the best in traveling and the block of rooms near my suite are very accommodating.

  “I hope it’s to your satisfaction. The royal prince of Eradau anxiously awaits your arrival. Even though we are traveling in the fastest ship around, it will still take two Earth weeks. I hope you will find the accommodations comfortable. The elimination and cleansing closet is here.” I open the door and she steps in as a grin stretches across her face.

  “Interesting. I guess aliens have to use the facilities like humans. I would have never guessed,” she tells me.

  I chuckle at her curiosity of the elimination fixture and the cleansing station. It’s an all-in-one contraption, which is perfectly set in space-age metal. Nothing will rot here. “You are just now learning about aliens? To me, you are an alien, you know?” I say.

  Her big copper eyes peer up at me. “I suppose so. But you’ve known about me for some time, whereas I just now found out that aliens exist at all. You look so familiar, though.”

  I straighten myself. Yes, of course, the images of me on the Terran computer. “We all look very much alike. Eradauians. Again, I could say the same of you,” I add.

  “It’s all good. I just...I’m in shock, I guess. Disbelief. Yet, here I am.” Her bright eyes gaze around the room. I notice that the softly curved bed matches her curves. My hearts flutter when she turns her attention back to me.

  “I believe we have on board food that will serve you with the nutrients you need to thrive. Our foods are basically the same.”

  She steps toward me, looking at my body and making me tense as her hand comes out. “May I? You need to understand, this is the first time I’ve ever laid eyes on an alien. Your skin looks so soft and blue and I want to touch it.”

  “You’ve met an alien before me,” I reply. The smile stays on my face.

  “I have?” Her eyes widen.

  “Yes, Charsha is a Glitra. She’s a shapeshifter. Her true self is, how do Terrans say it, sparkly. She works with many races in the galaxy. Earth offers an enormous resource of potential DNA matches to many males who are looking for their mates.”

  “I guess I’m wondering why a human? Why not look on your own planet for a mate? I mean, we have dating services for humans on Earth. I don’t get it,” she says.

  “Sometimes it’s hard for us to find our mates among our own people. Evolution has us mating with beings outside of our race. Males dominate many planets, and the reason Starlight Matchmaking focuses on Earth is that your home is one of very few which has more females than males,” I answer.

  She shrugs. “Makes sense.” Her hand touches my lower arm. My muscles flex, her skin is so incredibly soft. “Wow, you are soft, yet firm underneath. There’s a mass of muscles. Most human men would be jelly of your physique. What about you?”

  “What about me?”

  “Do you have an Eradauian mate?”

  I laugh. “No. I’m a captain. This is my job. I transport for the royal family of Eradau,” I reply.

  “Oh, that’s too bad,” she replies.

  I leave her to her room, after showing her the clothing meant for space travel hanging in the wardrobe. She’s muttering about how we’ve thought of everything before I close the door and return to the bridge.

  Egera glances at the screen. “Set for hyper-speed.”

  “Have at it,” I say as I resume my spot on the captain’s chair. Before now I owned a shoddy ship called Anticipation, working as transport to the neighboring systems, bringing goods back to Eradau. The frosty atmosphere makes it necessary to fl
y in our foods except for what we grow in the giant domed greenhouses and under the ice of our sea.

  “What do you think of your new mate?” Egera asks.

  “Remember, she’s not my mate, she’s the mate to the prince of Eradau,” I answer.

  “Aye, the same though. You will not tell her then?”

  “No. I need to find out if she’ll be faithful. A prince deserves only the best mate, one who will be faithful to him,” I say with a chuckle.

  “Your hearts?” His prominent brow lifts.

  “Synchronized.”

  “Then I should put in a request for a mate,” he says with a laugh.

  “Aye, you should. But only after I bring my mate to the palace to meet the family.”

  “You should be forthcoming with her, Atargus. Lying about one’s lineage and mate won’t come to any good,” Egera advises.

  “I have it handled.” I’m cocky. My newfound lineage comes in handy with the crew who agree to anything I wish.

  Ariana is none the wiser to the truth, and I want to get to know the real her. Terrans are fickle people. They behave a certain way around celebrities and royalty. If she doesn’t know the truth, perhaps she will be genuine with me.

  One week into our flight, we come out of hyper-speed to refuel at Sector 635 near the Enen System. The wormholes are approaching and we need as much fuel on board as possible to get through each one. I escort my fair Terran onto the Station for non-space ship food.

  She makes a face at her container. “This reminds me of stew, only it tastes like lamb. I’m not a fan, but I’ll eat it. Excellent source of protein?”

  I laugh. “Yes, that’s fresh eimdo right from Grassin. The planet is within the system, close enough to supply the station with food. Very rich in nutrients, and, how do you say it, vitamins.”

  “Okay, I’ll eat it. I miss cheeseburgers, though,” she tells me.

  Cheeseburgers. I make a mental note to figure out the best Eradauian dish to match it. “Tell me, Ariana, are you happy to meet the prince of Eradau?” I ask.

  She sighs, which is not a good sign, as she looks at her hands. “Can I be honest with you, Captain Atargus? I mean, I chose yes to meet this mysterious prince of Eradau, but it’s not the only reason. Okay, yes, he’s hot. Like smoking hot. In fact, you remind me a lot of the picture I saw. Anyway, my friend Briel stepped into a Starlight Matchmaking place in New York City and she never came out. Charsha, who I met in Chicago, said Briel had met her perfect match and is living happily with him. She said I might discover what happened to her if I chose yes. And yes, she explained that by choosing yes my life would change, blah blah blah. So I’m on this ship for a week now, wondering about Briel. I mean, this is all surreal, know what I mean? I just want to find out for myself if she’s okay. Do you think this prince will let me do that?”