Page 8 of Errik

Was this really happening?

Was she truly about to leave Earth?

Yes, she’d always dreamed of traveling and seeing new places, but since space travel was well out of her price range, she’d settled on driving around North America in an old solar RV her brother had helped her refurbish.

Despite her anxiety over the fact that she would have to mate with a Vaxxlian warrior—a complete stranger—she felt a rush of excitement over the prospect of leaving Earth, traveling through the wormhole known as the Eshunna Passage, and living on a picturesque alien planet.

New Vaxx. She’d seen images of the world the Vaxxlians had recently settled on, and though she’d visited a lot of scenic locations on Earth, New Vaxx was a whole new level of beauty. The city of Starzzia was filled with white-stone buildings and houses, walkways and streets made of the same gleaming stone, fruit-laden trees, wildflowers, and other lush vegetation. Outdoor markets and shopping districts were spread throughout the city in between the residential areas. Many of the homes had rooftop gardens too.

Even better, the sky was blue, the air fresh and breathable.

And she would soon live there.

Within forty-eight hours, Errik would arrive on Earth to claim her, to take her away from her homeworld forever.

At first, she’d felt a pang of sadness over having to leave Earth. Yes, many areas of her homeworld were dangerous, polluted, and overcrowded, which was why she’d gravitated toward the more rural areas during her travels. But she hadn’t visited every location on her bucket list yet. She’d always imagined that after the war, she would be able to resume her journey, resurrect her blog and social media accounts, and finally make it as a travel influencer.

But her diagnosis had changed everything.

She could stay in rural areas, trying to avoid rebels and government forces while waiting for the war to end, but she couldn’t outrun time completely. And Dr. Rowan had made it very clear that she didn’t have much time left. Not unless she could come up with six thousand galactic credits. Oh, and safely drive a hundred miles to that hospital…

Logically, she knew the VAMOB program was her only option for survival, and she appreciated that the doctor hadn’t just told her about the mail order bride service but had placed the application directly into her hands.

Holly shoved her phone into her pocket, headed to the back of the RV, and sank down on the lumpy sofa. Slowly, she gazed around her beloved home, taking note of the framed photos of her parents and brother, the small paintings and wood carvings she’d bought from local artisans during her travels, a jar of beach glass from the shores of Lake Erie, and an impressive sixteen-inch pinecone from a coulter pine tree in Southern California.

For a reason she couldn’t fathom, her throat abruptly burned.

Okay, maybe she understood her sadness a little. She loved her RV and regretted that she wouldn’t be able to take it with her to New Vaxx. She had fond memories of Arnold helping her refurbish it and add extra solar panels to the roof. It was also a symbol of the freedom she’d cherished, the ability to drive off in whatever direction her heart desired and go exploring. And she’d turned it into a cozy home, a place where she could relax and unwind after a day of hiking, sightseeing, or working one of the odd jobs she often took.

For the first time since leaving the clinic, Holly allowed herself to think about what she was really giving up.

She was giving up this. Her little home on wheels. Her freedom. All that was familiar. The ability to wake up in one town and decide, on a whim, that she wanted to see the next one.

And in exchange, she was getting a second chance at life.

She was also getting an alien mate.

Errik.

What would he be like?

The only thing she knew about him was his name and the fact that he was a Vaxxlian warrior. She didn’t even have a picture of him. The congratulations text from the Intergalactic Dating Agency hadn’t provided one. For all she knew, he could be twice her size, covered in scars, and terrifying to behold.

But no. She didn’t really care what he looked like.

All that mattered was how he treated her.

Whether he was kind, compassionate, and the sort of male who would make a good father.

She tried not to think about what she would do if she discovered he was a hardened warrior with a penchant for cruelty. She thought about the disclaimer she’d read at the top of the VAMOB application. Vaxxlians mate for life.

A nervous laugh escaped her.

So much had happened recently that it was difficult for her to wrap her mind around all the changes.

She’d spent the last few weeks suffering from increasingly poor health while watching the country she called home all but collapse as the violence and unrest worsened. She’d learned she had a fatal heart defect. She’d been told she needed surgery she couldn’t afford.

And now, somehow, she had to accept that she would be leaving Earth soon with an alien warrior she’d never met.