“You can’t claim her, Hyvin Berrr. You are already bound.” The man in front of Shanna seemed to stop breathing as his chest froze all movement and then his shoulders sagged. He took a deep breath, sighing loudly. “Take her,” he said softly. “You must bound to her and if you treat her bad I will kill you.” He moved suddenly away from her.

Shocked, Shanna watched the new bare-chested alien approach her. “Mine,” he softly rasped, reaching for her.

“Don’t touch me!” Shanna moved on unsteady feet toward Hyvin Berrr.

The male frowned. “I won’t harm you. I am going to take you home with me where I will care for you, protect you and make sure you are always happy.” Her confused gaze flew to Hyvin Berrr, only to find his incredible blue eyes locked on her. She was shocked to see sadness looking back at her, and being a bartender had made her almost an expert on reading expressions and eye language. The fierce alien man she stared at looked depressed and defeated for some reason.

“I don’t want to go with him.” Her voice shook slightly.

Beautiful bright blue eyes blinked. “I’m sorry but you are now a citizen of Zorn who can never be returned to Earth. We’re a warrior race with very aggressive, dominating males and all women need a man’s protection to survive here. Oval is a good, honorable warrior who will lay down his life for you, little human. I saved you from slavery and abuse but I can’t save you from needing a warrior to protect you. This is for the best.”

Shanna saw movement out of the corner of her eye, realizing the other alien was inching toward her again. She resisted tearing her gaze from the big alien whose shirt she still wore, the male who had been kissing her neck less than a minute before, and let his words sink in.

Shanna Williams had grown up rough with two alcoholic parents, bouncing from foster homes in her teens after the courts had deemed she was better off in the system than at home. She hadn’t been but no one had asked her what she thought. As an adult she had sworn that no one would tell her where to live, with whom, ever again.

A hand gripped her arm, wrapping gently around her shirt-covered forearm. It jerked Shanna’s gaze from Hyvin Berrr to narrow dangerously on the big guy in front of her. He wasn’t round as the name Oval implied but his name probably meant something else entirely on this red-sky alien planet. She glared into a pair of seriously dark brown eyes that almost bordered on being pure black.

“Get your hand off me right now, asshole.”

He frowned, a soft growl issuing from his throat. “You insult me?”

“If you don’t get your hand off me I’ll do more than insult you.” Her gaze flew back to beautiful blue eyes. “So you’re saying I have to be with a man on your planet to be safe?”

Hyvin Berrr gave a firm nod of his head. “You must be protected.”

“I want to bound with you,” Oval informed her.

She glanced at Oval, watching lust burn in his dark gaze that raked up and down her body. She shook her head and jerked out of his grasp. She walked toward Hyvin Berrr. He’d said she was safe with him and she believed him so far.

“Then you take me home with you. You can protect me.”

Shock hit Hyvin Berrr’s masculine features. “I’m already bound.” Shanna translated that bounding meant marriage and that he already had a woman he had sex with. Her gaze flew down his huge body. He’d probably kill her if he tried to take her to bed anyway. He was just so massive that the math wouldn’t add up between them. She nodded, her gaze rising to lock with his.

“Perfect. You won’t bound me but you can take me under your protection, right?

Let’s go, Mr. Hyvin Berrr. I’m going home with you.”

Chapter Two

Hyvin Berrr was not a happy alien. His bright blue eyes had flashed shock when Shanna had demanded to go home with him. Oval had taken her demand a whole hell of a lot worse. He’d roared out in rage and tried to manhandle her into going with him.

He’d never gotten the chance to touch her when he’d lunged forward. Hyvin Berrr had leapt between them to growl at the only slightly smaller alien man.

“She has made her decision by stating she wants live in my home. Back off now.”

“You are already bound,” Oval had snarled, obviously seriously angry.

Shanna had watched the two men face off. Her money was on the blue-eyed alien if they fought. He was seriously buffed out in the muscle department and bigger than any of the aliens she’d seen so far in height and sheer body mass. Oval had finally dropped his gaze to the ground, his dark head lowering, and Shanna realized at that moment that these aliens were somewhat similar to animals in the way they showed submission to the largest and toughest of their kind.

Hyvin Berrr had turned to her at that moment, meeting her gaze to stare at her for long moments, not even bothering to hide the confusion he was experiencing. His full lips had twisted into a frown.

“I already am bound to a woman so I can’t bound with you. Do you understand this? Oval is a strong warrior who would be an honor to be bound to. I want to make sure that you understand what decision you are making. I could only offer you house helper status if you live with me and put yourself under my protection.”

“I understand completely,” was her calm response. She’d cleaned houses before and it sure beat the hell out of being some alien guy’s sex toy. “If I have to go home with someone then you’re my choice.”

He blinked a few times, finally nodding his head. “As you wish. I vow to you that you will be safe in my home and be well taken care of.” A sound reached her ears, causing her to turn her head as a black weird-looking vehicle came from down the street with a uniformed alien behind the controls. Her alien—she was starting to think of Hyvin Berrr that way—took a deep breath.

“Let’s go.” He waved at the vehicle. “He will deliver us to my home and I will get you settled.”

Aliens were gentlemen, at least Hyvin Berrr was, as he opened a back door for her to climb into the car first. She eyed the vehicle, which was comparable to an earth one, but there was a lot more space between the bench seat and the back of the front section with a much taller roof space. She glanced at the big man who climbed inside after her, thinking interiors would have to be bigger to fit the large guys. Their gazes met as the vehicle started to move.