Page 23 of Elias

Hurt flashed across his face, but he was quick to shut it down. “I knew you wouldn’t understand.”

“I understand well enough. You let someone down who liked you.”

“Princess Isolt didn’t like me. She barely knew me. That’s what she does. That’s what all the royals do.” He looked away and sucked in a deep breath. “They think they’re better than everyone else. They think they can use us in any way they see fit.”

Hayley couldn’t shake the nagging disappointment in her head. Elias had committed to something. He’d understood how it worked, and then he’d changed his mind. “You don’t have to explain anything to me.”

“I do.” The desperation in Elias’s eyes made her heart clench. Hayley couldn’t fall for it. She couldn’t let him into her life. It was too much of a risk.

“What’s to say this princess wasn’t made pregnant by you?” Hayley said. “You abandoned her when she needed you the most.”

“Highly unlikely. We hadn’t finished the act of mating before she turned on me. She got what she wanted and attacked. She did not want me to be the father of her offspring. She wanted me for one reason only, to satisfy her primitive desire.”

“You can’t be sure of that.”

“The proper mating act was not completed by each partner. I am sure.”

Hayley gave a swift nod and stood from her seat. She needed time to process this. “I should go.”

“Don’t leave. Not like this. All I want is a normal life. An actual life where I get to experience things. I want to see my own children and be a good father to them. I don’t want to be the first meal their mother had after they were conceived.”

Hayley brushed aside his comments as she stepped away. In the back of her mind, she understood. It made sense, but it still showed Elias couldn’t be trusted. “I have to leave. I must get back to work.”

“Hayley, wait!”

She hurried away without a backward glance. She didn’t need somebody like Elias in her life.

Chapter 10

Elias scraped a hand down his face. He’d barely slept and still felt like the pond scum he was after his argument with Hayley. He’d been an idiot to reveal his secret to her. He should have kept it to himself.

“If you tighten that bulkhead screw anymore, it’s going to snap,” Tegor said as he peered into the compartment Elias worked on.

Elias stepped back from the Lillip ship. He’d barely been aware of what he was doing. “The job’s done. Everything should be working if you want to fire her up.”

“Good to know. I’ll just double check your work.” Tegor leaned into the compartment.

Irritation bristled through Elias. “You don’t think I’m up to a simple repair like this?”

“I know you are. However, I also know when your mind is somewhere else. What’s the problem, more girl trouble?”

“It’s not important.” Elias wasn’t talking about Hayley. Or thinking about her. She’d shown him what she thought of him when she’d abandoned him yesterday. He’d opened up to her, and she’d kicked him in the nuts.

“Hey! Get your lazy asses over here and fix my damn ship.” A tall Rolon stalked over and glared at Elias. “You’re not doing anything. I need to leave in the next transport window. I’ve got an engine misfiring and expected it fixed by now.”

Elias repressed a sigh. He could do without any crap from uptight pilots today. “Did you schedule a repair?”

“I haven’t had time to schedule anything. My ship needs fixing, and you need to fix it. Now!”

“If you’re not on the rota for a repair, you’ll have to wait your turn.” Elias gestured to the three ships standing nearby. “We need to work on these before we do anything else. Those are the ships who had their work orders scheduled.”

“Forget those worn out bits of scrap. My trip is urgent.”

“If it was that urgent, you’d have booked your repair when you docked and not started swinging your dick around barking orders when you want something done. We aren’t mind readers. If your ship is faulty, you have to tell us.” Elias was in the mood for a fight. This jerk would do nicely.

“Who’s in charge around here?” the Rolon snarled. “I’ll have your job for this.”

Tegor ducked out from the compartment and stood between them, an affable smile on his face and a large wrench in one hand. “There’s no need for that, sir. I’m sure we can get around to your ship’s repair in plenty of time.”