Chapter 53: Welcome to Earth

His bride stared up at him with defiance, and he could see her try to project confidence. Were all cyborg females this fine, or did Balthazar choose the one he knew would appeal to a human male?

He took her hand in his. It felt delicate and breakable in his, the folds in her palm soft against his skin. His callouses scraped over her fingers when she hastily tried to withdraw her hand, and her eyelids fluttered when he kept hold of it. She stared up at him with widened, exotic, sloe eyes, the vertical pupils set in a soft yellow iris, her lashes finer than the males and with more orange to frame those oddly beautiful eyes. She smelled like flowers, a smell that was almost familiar to him, but the exact fragrance and flower escaped him.

"Delightful to meet you, Anatu." He didn't bother to match his words to the look in his eyes. She knew they were enemies, and he had no doubt she had orders from Balthazar to obtain information and maybe sabotage his office.