Star's Storm: Lords of Kassis Book 2 (27 page)

He caught her in his arms just before they
exited their living quarters. “I love you, Star Ja Kel
Coradon.”

A shy smile curved her lips as she pressed
her lips against his briefly. “I love you too, Jazin Ja Kel
Coradon. Don’t you ever doubt it.”

Two weeks later, Jazin was watching in
disbelief and with no small amount of fear as his mate flew through
the air. His heart plummeted to his feet and didn’t return to his
chest until he saw her tiny hands grab the bar that was swung out
to her. He was about to storm into the huge tent set up in the
middle of the compound where Star’s parents and the other species –
humans – lived to get his tiny mate when two strange creatures with
unusual white and black paint on their faces stopped him. They
never said a word when he came. They just stopped him. There was
something about them that always made him stop even if he didn’t
understand what it was. They didn’t carry any weapons, they never
touched him, but there was something that froze him in place as
they acted like they had to search him, pulling outlandish things
like scarves, feathers, even a strange furry thing with a long tail
on it from his ear, the back of his vest, and other places. Then,
they would act like there was an invisible door they had to unlock
and open before he could enter. It was downright intimidating!

Personally, he agreed with his brother
Manota about the clowns but he could add a few other creatures as
well. He moved through the invisible door trying to reach out his
hand inconspicuously to see if he could feel anything as he went
through. He even bended his head like the two figures taught him.
He scowled deeply at them when they burst into fits of silent
laughter at him.

One of these days I’m going to find out
where in the Gods they found all those things on me,
he thought
as he shuddered when the hairy white creature with the long tail
came into his mind and he rubbed his left ear where they had pulled
it from.

He nodded at the two Frenchmen, Jon Paul and
Luc, who were sitting further down near the bottom of the seats
next to Madas and Gril. The two men were pointing out things to the
two Tearnats as different members of the circus moved about doing
different stunts. Jarmen had disappeared almost immediately when
the two of them arrived without a word. He just shook his head at
his friend’s unusual behavior lately. He was more concerned with
his own problems right now.

He climbed the metal seating that was set up
and moved up to the center where Star’s parents were sitting. He
had to admit he liked Alan and Tami Strauss. They had accepted him
warmly into their family. He had been introduced to many different
species – humans – over the last two weeks. His eyes moved to the
small man who was down near the center ring ordering people around
and watched as they scrambled to do as he told them before turning
back to the couple sitting contentedly watching everything.

“Good afternoon, Jazin,” Tami Strauss said
rising up to give him a big hug and a kiss.

“Lady Tami,” Jazin responded with an amused
smile.

He was still unused to the affection of the
humans. Star’s mom was as tiny and petite as her daughter with the
same white blond hair and light blue, twinkling eyes. Her father
was several inches taller and had a dark blond hair and dark blue
eyes. He reached out and shook Jazin’s hand before indicating he
might as well sit for a while.

“Jazin,” Alan Strauss nodded in greeting
before he nodded toward where his two daughters were flying through
the air. “They are beautiful to watch, aren’t they?”

Jazin swallowed again as he watched Jo catch
Star as she did a flip in the air. “Yes,” he replied hoarsely. “I
am not sure she should be doing this?”

Alan laughed as he watched Jazin’s face pale
a little. “You have to accept there is no stopping her. Tami was
eight months pregnant with Jo and still flying through the air.
Being a flyer is as much a part of us as the air we breathe.”

Tami reached over and squeezed Jazin’s hand
in encouragement. “All Star has ever wanted was to be accepted for
who and what she is. She may be small in stature but she is as tall
as Jerry the Giant.”

Jazin’s eyes followed where a huge human
male, almost eight feet tall stood nodding at whatever the small
ringmaster, Walter, was telling him. He watched as a young man
walked in with several huge animals called horses. The man swatted
the one in the lead on its rump and it took off at a fast trot into
the ring followed by the others. A few minutes later, his eyes rose
to the top of the ring where two long ropes unfurled and Jo and
Star worked their way down them. As the huge creatures passed under
them, they dropped down lightly onto their backs. A light film of
sweat beaded his forehead as they both stood on the backs of the
massive creatures as they circled the ring before jumping into the
arms of a couple of clowns that came out of nowhere to catch them.
The man who had brought the horses in whistled and the four
creatures moved back out of the ring and through the tent exit on
the far side.

“Walter is very, very strict about safety,”
Alan said looking at Jazin with understanding. “He would never
allow them to do anything that could harm them.”

Jazin released a deep breath as he gave Tami
and Alan a shaky smile. “I have never formally welcomed you to our
world. Or formally asked for your daughter. In truth, I was not
sure how you would react to your daughter mating with someone
different from her.”

Alan chuckled as he pulled his wife closer
to him. “Look around you, Jazin. Star has been raised her whole
like to accept those that are different. I won’t say we were not a
little worried and concerned when we first met Manota or saw the
shuttles that ferried us up to the spaceship that carried us to
this remarkable world,” Alan began.

“Or when we heard that Star had been hurt,”
Tami added softly squeezing her husband’s hand. “But, we have
always hoped that our daughters would find someone who could make
them happy, complete. I feel that you do that with Star.”

Jazin saw the sincerity in their eyes. “I
would give my life to protect your daughter. I love her deeply. She
has proven to be a warrior in her own right. I would have died if
not for her skills,” Jazin admitted as he watched Star and Jo
laughing with several people who had joined them down below.

“Is it true that your people believe that
Jo, Star, and River are part of a prophesy?” Alan asked hesitantly.
“Your brother mentioned it.”

Jazin’s head turned in surprise that Manota
had shared this information so soon. He would have thought his
brother would have held back, concerned that Jo and Star’s parents
would be reluctant to allow their daughters to mate with them
knowing there was a possibility of danger to them.

He cleared his throat before he answered.
“Yes, it is believed them are the three warriors mentioned in a
prophesy from long ago. Their strength and skills will save and
unite the House of Kassis. I have to believe it is true. River
saved my brother, Torak, from an assassin. Star saved my life when
I was kidnapped. Star….,” Jazin paused as his gaze softened on his
mate’s glowing face. “Star had a vision. She saw us together in
another lifetime. I am named after a great warrior from long ago.
Our world had been attacked and our people were brought to the
point of extinction from the invasion. On the night when the two
moons of Kassis formed one, the stormy skies opened up and from the
heavens, the Gods and Goddesses rained down like rain destroying
our enemy. One fighter descended to where my ancestor stood in
fierce defiance. From the fighter, his mate, the Goddess Starla,
appeared before him. He claimed her and together they built the
House of Kassis, bringing hope and love to its people. Just as your
daughter has brought hope and love to me.”

Tami wiped a tear from her cheek and gave a
small, embarrassed laugh. “Well, who are we to deny that!”

Alan pressed a kiss against his wife’s
temple. “Welcome to the family, son. I know you’ll take good care
of our little girl.”

Jazin looked down and smiled before he
looked at Alan and Tami with a resigned smile. “I think she will be
taking just as good care of me as I will her. I would like to
invite you to our home for a dinner to welcome you to our
world.”

“We’ll be honored to attend,” Alan said.
“Isn’t that your father?”

Jazin looked down as his father and
Ristéard Roald walked in to the huge tent. They paused to talk
with Walter who came hurrying up to them when Ristéard raised a
sword at the two painted-faced men who were always stopping him at
the entrance. “Yes, he has been stopping by regularly to talk with
Walter.”

“Who is the other man?” Tami asked eyeing
the huge, blue-skinned man who was looking around the arena with
narrowed eyes. “He looks a little scary. I wouldn’t be surprised if
Walter doesn’t try to hire him.”

Jazin’s chuckle was rich and deep at the
thought of Ristéard Roald, the Grand Ruler of Elpidios, being
ordered around by the little human male. While he could appreciate
the authority the small man obviously had over those in the circus,
he highly doubted that the man would have a chance in hell of
success at bossing the huge warrior around. Jazin’s eyes widened
when he heard a low, deep snarl erupt from Ristéard. His eyes
followed where the Grand Ruler was looking and he chuckled. It
looked like something had caught the big blue warrior’s attention
and he didn’t like the idea of someone else having the same
thoughts.

A tall slender female wearing knee high
black boots, a slim skirt that ended just about her knees, and a
soft, blue long sleeved blouse was talking to the two men who had
stopped him when he first came in. She glanced over at Ristéard
with a dark frown on her face before turning her attention back to
the men. He studied the female carefully. She was very tall for a
human female, over six feet if he was to make a guess. Her dark
blond hair was pulled back into a tight bun at the back of her head
and she was wearing something over her eyes. She was lovely in a
long, gangly way. She reminded him of the slender animals that
gazed in the forests near his mountain retreat.

He heard Walter yell out something and the
female turned with the frown still on her face. “Who is that?” He
asked curiously.

“That’s Walter and Nema’s daughter, Ricki.
She handles all the travel, legal, and business issues for the
circus. She is the glue that keeps everything together. She is very
thorough and keeps everything running smoothly in the background,”
Tami responded.

Jazin looked from Walter’s small figure to
that of the female who was walking toward him. He had also
remembered that Walter’s mate was even smaller than he was. How was
it possible for them to….

“They adopted Ricki when she was an infant,”
Alan explained seeing Jazin’s confused expression. “She was left on
the steps of their trailer. A brief note begging them to care for
the baby.”

“Nema couldn’t have children and Ricki was a
blessing to them,” Tami said as she watched Ricki listen carefully
to what her father was telling her. Tami gasped suddenly as the
huge blue man took a menacing step toward the shy girl.

“He will not harm her,” Jazin assured Tami
and Alan. “My father would not allow it.”

Alan chuckled as they watched Walter turn on
the huge warrior with a deep scowl and let into him as Ricki turned
on her heel and left the tent quickly. Jazin wasn’t sure what was
being said but the look on Ristéard’s face was enough to let him
know that the Grand Ruler was not happy. The Grand Ruler’s eyes
didn’t return to Walter until the female could no longer be
seen.

“Hi!” Star said stepping in front of him,
blocking his view of the Grand Ruler, his father, and Walter.

He looked up startled and grinned before he
realized what he was doing. He was a warrior and here he was
grinning like a young boy with his first female. He reached out and
grabbed his mate and pulled her down onto his lap, kissing her
passionately right there in front of her parents, those crazy
clowns, his father, the Grand Ruler, and the Gods and
Goddesses.

Who the hell cares if he had a grin as
goofy as those two Frenchmen they had rescued or as stupid as a
young lad,
he thought as she returned his heated kiss.
He
was just fitting in with the rest of the strange and unusual
characters his brother had brought back.

He ignored the sighs next to him and the
loud whistles filling the huge tent as pressed his claim. His life
had changed so much since a tiny warrior from another world entered
his life and he wouldn’t change a single, solitary thing about it.
Clowns, drunk Frenchmen, an adventuresome Tearnat female, or the
other two beautiful warriors who helped corrupt the one in his arms
every chance they got.

No, I don’t care one iota
, he thought
as he lost himself to the storm his amazing little warrior from
another world stirred up inside him.

To be continued…. Jo’s Journey

Susan Smith has always been a romantic and a
dreamer. An avid writer, she has spent years writing, although it
has usually been technical papers for college. Now, she spends her
evenings and weekends writing and her nights dreaming up new
stories. An affirmed “geek,” she spends her days working on
computers and other peripherals. She enjoys camping and traveling
when she is not out on a date with her favorite romantic guy. Fans
can reach her at
[email protected]
or at
http://sesmithfl.com
.

Additional Books:

Abducting Abby
(Dragon Lords of
Valdier: Book 1)