Lucas whipped his head around and glared at his brother, fiercely whispering back. “I didn’t bring her here under false pretenses. You bunch did. You can just tell her now that you made a mistake. I won’t be bullied into this.”

“Oh dear, I hope you don’t think I’m trying to bully you.”

Lucas glanced back around at her with surprise. For a woman as ancient and wrinkled as the matchmaker appeared, there certainly wasn’t anything wrong with her hearing. Before he could reply, she pulled a tiny scrap of lace from her bag and started dabbing at her eyes with a gnarled hand. “I’m sorry,” she sniffled. “I don’t mean to get so upset. It’s just that it was such a long way to come, and then to find out you didn’t need me after all…that you don’t even w-want me.”Her little bosom heaved up and down as she covered her face with the handkerchief.

“There, there, Mistress Katya, please don’t cry.” Nikolai, Lucas’s cousin jumped to his feet and patted her awkwardly on the back. The difference between his huge form and the little woman’s was so remarkable. He looked a bit like an organ grinder with his little monkey. Nikolai looked up at him pleadingly. “Just hear her out, Lucas. It’s the least you can do.”

Lucas looked from her to the accusing glares of his family and heaved a sigh. Throwing himself back down in his chair, he admitted defeat. “All right, I give up. Go ahead, Mistress Katya. Tell me what you want me to do.”

Springing to her feet like a woman half her age, she advanced quickly on him, pulling a small comp-pad out of her voluminous bag. She flipped it open and shoved it in his face. “The minute your brothers contacted me, I made inquiries on your behalf, and I’ve already found the perfect match for you. This is the female I’ve chosen for you. Isn’t she lovely? A royal, too, dear. She’s from the planet Scythia in the Andromeda system. All the warriors on this planet are female. In order to have children, they usually have relations with male warriors from a neighboring planet called Alger, but there are currently no Algeran princes available. This is a rare opportunity to mate with a Scythian. They’re a very private people, and almost never interact with outsiders, unless they are trying to forge an alliance. When the children are born, they keep only the females, and raise them in agricultural pursuits, or to hunt and be strong warriors.”

“What about the boys?” Nikolai asked, peering over Lucas’s shoulder.

“The boys are—rejected. Anyway, this beautiful female is named Princess Kai. She’s the second daughter of the Queen Ashlan, ruler of Scythia. Second daughters don’t inherit the throne, of course, so they find husbands for them. As I said, such royal marriages are with powerful kings or leaders, like you, Alpha, who can make astrong ally for her planet. The Balenescu name is legendary, even in Andromeda, so the queen is most anxious to make this match.”

“She is, is she?” Lucas grumbled. “What about her daughter? What does she want?”

“Princess Kai will be only too happy to be the mate of a powerful alpha such as yourself. She is most willing to do her duty to her family.”

Lucas gazed down at the picture and felt a tiny flutter of something in his stomach. It must have been something he ate that disagreed with him. No way was he interested in a female, no matter how beautiful she might be. The woman in the picture had long brown hair and beautiful golden brown eyes, fringed with long lashes. Her nose started out straight, but turned up ever so slightly just at the tip, making her look young and vulnerable. Her lips were almost sinfully full and luscious. All in all, she was a beautiful woman—if Lucas had been into women.

“I don’t know, Mistress Katya. Does she and her mother know I prefer males? I could try to get an heir, but that’s about it. I doubt I could satisfy her. Hell, I don’t even know if I’d be able to do anything.”

Nikolai leaned over his shoulder. “She looks like a big girl. Maybe she could be in charge. She could use a strap-on,” he said helpfully. “Then you could just close your eyes, lift your legs and think of Lycanus.”

“Shut up,” Lucas said, cuffing his ear.

Mistress Katya folded the comp-pad and slipped it back in her pocket. “Leave everything to me, Alpha Lucas. I’ve already arranged the meeting—just in case you did say yes,” she said at his outraged look. “Then if both of you are happy, we can arrange the immediate wedding and you can bring the princess back home to Lycanus 3.”

Lucas frowned, not overly thrilled with the prospect of bringing a female to his home. Unlike the rulers of other planets, Lucas lived modestly in a large, well-appointed home, but it wasn’t a castle or even a mansion to be sure. He could ensure she had her own room, maybe even her own servant, but that was about it. He wondered what this unknown girl’s life was like. Was she used to luxury? Did she wear silks and furs? What would she expect of him? He didn’t know much about satisfying a woman.

Could he make her happy here on Lycanus 3? It was beautiful to him, but he wondered what it might look like to an outsider. Most of the habitable portion of the planet was desert, dotted with huge volcanic rocks. The Lycan settlement was like an oasis in the middle of the vast desert, and the Lycans mostly worked in the mines. One of two sister planets to the home planet of Lycanus, Lycanus 3 was the site of one of the largest bauxite mining operations in the galaxy. Bauxite was used in the making of aluminum, and in the manufacture of space ships and space ports. The mines on Lycanus 3 had become as valuable as the diamond mines on the home planet.

The Balanescu family had ruled the planet for many centuries. Since so much of the planet was uninhabitable, not that many people actually lived there, though it teemed with visitors. Most of the ones who did live on Lycanus 3, including Lucas, lived in Balenescu City, a thriving little metropolis filled with trading posts, restaurants, bars and of course, hotels, to house the many visitors who came to the planet to trade for bauxite.

Lucas was wealthy, and could provide this princess with riches, if that was what she wanted. What he couldn’t do was love her, though he hoped they could come to like and respect each other. He would certainly try. He could buy her a male concubine, if that’s what she wanted, to keep her happy and satisfied. He sighed. They would both do their duty. He only hoped it would be enough.

“All right,” he said, his voice heavy with reluctance. “Since you’ve arranged the meeting, I’ll go. But just be sure she knows exactly what she’s getting herself into.”

* * * *

Scythia, 2257 CE

Kai paced up and down in his chambers, his palms sweaty and his heart racing out of control. The Lycan contingent had arrived. Merrial had come rushing in to tell him, and his mother had sent word that the delegation would be meeting with her to sign the necessary agreements in the reception room. Merrial had been sent to get him ready to meet the man who would become his new husband. She was rushing around behind him now, throwing silks wraps and robes on the bed, trying to find something suitable for him to wear.

“I think this blue silk would be lovely, don’t you dear? Men seem to like blue, or so they tell me, and it would go well with your coloring. Hurry, Kai, stop daydreaming. We need to get you in the bath.”

“Daydreaming? More like a waking nightmare, Merrial. ”He stopped his pacing and gazed up at the ceiling. “Gods, why did I let my mother talk me into this?”

“Because you had no choice in the matter, dear. I know your mother. A wonderful queen, but she is an unstoppable force. She’s taking a terrible risk in doing this, you know.”

Kai gave her a sharp look. “A risk? What do you mean?”

“The Lycans are known to be very important members of the Planetary Alliance. It’s a powerful group that governs the galaxies. Surely your tutors taught you about the Alliance?”

Kai shrugged. “A little. I know that they made universal laws for all the planets that belong to it. We’re in the Alliance, but very small and out of the way, so they don’t pay us much attention.”

“Yes, and some of our ancient ways would be…let’s just say frowned upon by the Alliance. If they knew about certain things, they would be most unhappy. They could even arrest your mother.”

“What? Arrest the queen? How dare they?”

Merrial patted his shoulder. “Don’t you worry your pretty head about it, child. And don’t tell your mother I even mentioned any of this to you. The royal children are always to be sheltered from the outside worlds. Come now, let’s get you ready. Now that Delanon is wed and trying to have a child, it’s even more urgent that you leave Scythia. If she ever discovered your mother’s long-ago deception, she’d be furious. She might take it as some kind of threat to her own succession. ”

Merrial was busily undressing Kai as she spoke and pushing him toward the bathing chamber. “No, dear, it’s far better to leave this planet and get as far away as possible from Delanon. You’ll just have to keep quiet about our ancient customs, and never, never let the Lycans know.”

“What do you mean?”

Merrial lowered her voice. “The male children, Kai. The Alliance must never know what happens on Scythia to the male children. Such things are strictly forbidden by Alliance law. They would punish our planet severely.”

Kai’s mouth fell open. “They would punish my mother?”

“Yes, darling.So you see why you must keep our secrets. Whatever the handsome alpha does to you for tricking him will be far better than what the Alliance would do to our planet or what Delanon would do to both you and your mother if she ever finds out.”

Kai was quiet for a moment, thinking over what she’d told him. He wished he had more education and hadn’t been kept so totally in the dark by his tutors. On Scythia, the royal heiress was given a good education, but the second or third royal children were considered to be little better than bargaining chips. They existed only to forge important alliances with other worlds through marriage. They were kept as ignorant of worldly matters as possible, the council believing their child-like innocence increased their value. “Handsome alpha? Have you—have you seen him then?”