Noir Kioko had only ever seen one human before his undercover work brought him to the diner at the Luna Terminal, and that was at a distance. Humans are rare, most of them disappear without a trace, and he hopes hanging around the restaurant will give him a lead on the smuggling ring he’s investigating. There was no way he could’ve known the human would turn out to be his mate, and no way he can let it show without putting his mate in danger and possibly jeopardising his mission.<br><br>Max Welch is the proud owner of the only restaurant within a light year’s distance. He left Earth four years ago to create a better life for himself, but he hadn’t considered the possibility of scary alien pirates making his restaurant their favourite hangout spot. As a measly human there isn’t much he can do about it, but as one of the pirates starts coming by almost every day he has to come up with something before he loses all his customers. That the giant cat man is rather nice to look at changes nothing.<br><br>When rumours of another human arriving at the space station start to circulate, Noir's species trafficking infiltrate and observe only mission may need a revamp. But will Noir be able to protect his mate and another one of his rare species?

It Doesn't Translate

Noir stared at the Reptoid. “Humans do this?” They were damn strange.


The Reptoid nodded. “Yes, while it doesn’t translate well when I’m trying to ask him about it, I think it’s honour-bound.”


“And...” The hairs on his tail began to stand, asking for guidance was not something a dominant Nekoid did willingly. “Do customers in this restaurant understand it?”


A mix of a chirp and click sounded, and Noir suspected the Reptoid was laughing at him. “No, it’s a human thing. I’ve tried to explain it to him but...” The Reptoid shrugged. “He’s stubborn.”


Stubborn huh? Could such small creatures be stubborn?


“I’m gonna go talk to him.” Noir started to get up.


“No, you’re not. If you want to talk to him, you do it when he’s by your table.”


Chapter 11