Mate For Two: Helan Universe, #1

By Lynn Tyler

(Menage, Erotic Sci-Fi, M/M/F, HEA)

This book has been previously published.

It's not easy being king, especially when you're the king of a dying people. But that's exactly what D'Arik is. Now, he and his consort, Varin, are faced with the task of finding a female mate to carry their child.

Jacy Townsend is enraged by the thought of human women being bartered as broodmares to an alien race and helps to fund a rebellion. But what will she do with she is closed to be the queen of the very people she is rebelling against? And what will D'Arik and Varin do when they find out she is supporting the evacuation of human women?

As emotions and passion clash with fundamental differences, Jacy, D'Arik, and Varin must find a way to come together if they want to have any hope of savings the Helan race.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lynn Tyler
• Release date: Mar 4, 2019
• ISBN: 9781989220030

Lynn Tyler

Lynn Tyler, erotic romance author, has been writing since she was young. An Amazon bestseller and a strong believer in happily ever after, Lynn writes predominantly male/male paranormal romance. Visit Lynn’s website lynntylerbooks.com

Book preview

1

The statistics never really changed, at least not the way D’Arik wanted them to, but he stared at the latest analysis anyway, hoping that one of his men had made a simple mathematical error. Maybe a scientist from sixty years ago had misplaced a decimal point or something.

He always had the same thought when he opened a new report and was always disappointed.

This time was no different.

The best scientists and statisticians all agreed. The population of Helan was dangerously low. If a compatible species wasn’t found soon, the entire Helan species would die out in about three generations. His own physician believed they had fifty, maybe one hundred years at best before the Helan species was completely eradicated, erased from the universe. It was entirely conceivable that he could witness the end of his own species.

He gazed out the window, staring at the blue-and-green planet remarkably like his own home. The people on this small planet thrived, numbering in the billions. If only they knew what they had. Gods, if the Helans numbered even half of this species, he would be back at his own home, in his own room with his big bed instead of crammed into a tiny bed with his very large consort. Not that he minded snuggling up to Varin, but there was something to be said for having enough room to stretch out without his feet dangling off the end of the bed. And poor Varin was even taller than he was. Luckily, Varin had simply smiled and told D’Arik that he’d slept on worse.

He forced aside the thought of the male waiting for him, asleep in their bed, and focused again on the report in front of him. His eyes snagged on one of the last paragraphs, detailing the conclusions of the report. In their incessant attempt to breed the ultimate male warrior, his ancestors had actually ended up breeding their women’s ability to carry female fetuses right out of their species. The few Helan women who were still alive were well past childbearing age and had never produced any female offspring.

D’Arik pushed the papers aside and dropped his forehead to the table. The dread and despair may as well have been water filling his lungs. He was still only a young man, not even in the prime of his life, and the responsibilities on his shoulders made it hard to breathe. He was barely able to keep his head above water at the best of times. Sometimes, it was all too much and he felt like he was drowning.

These humans were their last hope. If this species wasn’t genetically similar enough for the females to carry Helan children, they were out of luck. They probably wouldn’t be able to find another similar species in time to save themselves. Even if these humans were able to carry Helan children, there was no guarantee they could boost their population enough to matter in the long run. The scientists had warned him that if they found a compatible species, it may only buy them another few generations before the whole crisis started again. At least a few more generations would give their scientists more time to figure out a solution to their problem.

But their problem wasn’t the only thing he’d been agonizing over. He stared down at the planet his ship orbited. Humans were far from a space-faring species. There were crude satellites and even a primitive space station orbiting the planet, but humans didn’t have the technology to travel past their own moon, let alone far enough out of their own solar system to run into any other life forms.

Helan and their allies had a policy that stated they wouldn’t interfere with the development of more primitive societies unless absolutely necessary. History had taught them time and time again that nothing good would come of exposing a society to other life forms before they were really ready.

However, as Helans were on the brink of extinction, all their allies had agreed that, should a compatible species for breeding be found, they had the option of making contact.

But just because he had the blessings of his allies, didn’t mean he actually wanted to drag these people into his mess.

He pushed the chair away from the desk and rested his head against the backrest as he closed his eyes.

Gods, he was so tired. He’d been staring at various reports for hours, praying with all his strength and faith that something would change and illuminate the solutions to every single one of his problems.

Weight crushed down on him, and he collapsed into himself, shoulders hunching and abdomen contracting so that he was bent at the waist. The only thing that stopped him from being bent completely in half was the fact that his forearms were resting on his thighs, essentially propping him up.

The situation was utterly hopeless, and fear had been his constant companion since his parents had died, leaving him the King of Helan. He was so damn scared that he would watch his people die out before his very eyes and not be able to do a fucking thing about it.

A hot wash of anger flowed through him. How could his ancestors do this? How could they not have foreseen the results of their crazy endeavor to produce the perfect warrior?

Rage continued to pound through his veins as he leapt to his feet and began pacing the floor. How dare they saddle their descendants with such an impossible-to-solve crisis?

A glass of his favorite alcohol, the miri Varin detested so much, caught his eye. He seized it in one hand and threw it as hard as he could until it smashed into the wall. He stood, glaring at the miri dripping down the wall and onto the shattered glass.

The anger faded from him as quickly as it had risen, leaving him with a weird sense of dissociation. Those ancestors were long dead, and anger really wasn’t helpful.

He dropped to his knees and automatically began cleaning up the sharp pieces of glass, not even flinching when an uneven edge sliced through his thumb, leaving blood welling from the shallow cut. He stared at the small wound, completely at a loss as to what to do. He was dimly aware that he was displaying symptoms of shock but couldn’t figure out why.

D’Arik? Varin’s soft inquiry invaded his distress, and he latched onto his mate’s deep voice as if it were his sole anchor in the sea of his insanity. "Why don’t you come to bed, liro?"

D’Arik winced at the term of endearment. How could Varin refer to him as his dear one after D’Arik forced the other man to mate with him all those years ago? Varin should hate him for making him give up his top position in the space fleet. Varin had worked his ass off to make it to admiral in such a short time. His determination was just one of the things that had attracted him, still attracted him, to the man.

A rough palm cupped his hand, and long, graceful fingers blotted the blood from his thumb with a square sheet of silk. He looked up, startled to find that his mate was squatting in front of him, speaking to him quietly, although he couldn’t quite wrap his mind around the words. D’Arik hadn’t even heard him move. He allowed Varin to pull him to his feet and staggered a little while his head spun.

Maybe that half a bottle of miri hadn’t been the best idea.

Stretching out an unsteady hand, D’Arik caressed Varin’s bristly cheek, letting his thumb linger over the full lower lip he loved so much. There really wasn’t anything about his mate that D’Arik didn’t love. "Oh, liro, he whispered as he traced the line of Varin’s strong jaw. How is it that you don’t hate me for forcing you to mate with me?"

How much have you had to drink? Varin steered him toward the sleeping quarters, and he let himself be led along. He just didn’t have the strength to do anything else.

Varin began peeling the robe off his broad shoulders and letting it drop to the floor. The brush of Varin’s fingers across his naked chest stirred something deep in his body. His cock came to life and bobbed near his stomach. Unfortunately, while his body was raring and ready for his mate, his mind was fuzzy, and he couldn’t seem to shake the feeling enough to initiate anything. And really, how selfish was it that he was ready to have sex when his people were on the brink of extinction?

He must have said that last part out loud, because Varin kissed his temple and pushed him toward the bed. It’s all right, D’Arik. It’s natural for your body to react to my closeness. We are mates, after all, and our mate bond is strong.

Flopping down on the bed, D’Arik watched his mate strip. The bed dipped as the heavier man slipped between the sheets and propped himself up on one elbow so that he was looking down on D’Arik. As much as D’Arik wanted to want sex right now, and as much as his body seemed to want it, he just couldn’t seem to really get in the mood to accept any sort of pleasure. That didn’t mean he couldn’t please his mate, though. He reached for Varin, wrapping his arms around his shoulders and pulling him down for a kiss.

They kissed for a few minutes until he slid a hand from his mate’s chest to grip his ass and pull him closer. He closed his eyes as Varin’s hard, erect cock rubbed against his own. The flesh under his fingers was firm enough to bounce a coin off and he sighed into Varin’s mouth. He could never get enough of touching his mate.

Maybe having sex was a good idea after all.

Varin shifted his hips, putting some distance between their lower bodies, and ended the kiss. "No, liro, not like this. You can barely keep your eyes open. What you need is sleep."

He dropped his arms from around his mate’s neck and covered his eyes with the crook of his elbow. Everything he’d managed to forget for those few brief moments came crashing back. What I need is for these humans to be compatible genetically and for them to allow us to mate with their females.

A soft stream of warm air fluttered across the side of his jaw as Varin heaved a huge sigh. You still have to sleep sometime. Let me help. Here, roll over on to your stomach.

He grunted but rolled over anyway. He may be king, but he was a slave to his mate’s demands. A ribbon of warm, viscous liquid poured in a line down his back, and he couldn’t hold back a groan when strong thumbs dug into his tense muscles.

Soft music filtered from above and he let himself float, let his mind relax and his worries dissolve as Varin worked out the knots and kinks that had accumulated in his back. The last thing he remembered was Varin’s voice quietly crooning in his ear.

2

Varin kept up the massage long after D’Arik finally fallen asleep. He was worried for his mate. In the past few years, D’Arik had gone from the happy, affectionate, warm prince to the grim, stressed-out, distracted king he was today.

Recapping the massage oil bottle and placing it on the small table beside the bed, Varin wiped his hands clean on a small towel and gazed at D’Arik with concern. The stress of the past few years was beginning to show on the handsome man. Lines carved by the constant worry and strain fanned out from his eyes and the corners of his mouth, softening only a little in sleep. He was losing weight, and dark circles ringed his eyes. The man didn’t eat enough anymore, and he slept even less. Unless Varin forced him to eat and sleep, D’Arik would skip meals and stay up all night poring over statistics that never seemed to change. His heart broke for his mate every time a new report was transmitted.

His cock twitched and pointed straight out from his body at a ninety-degree angle, reminding him that he hadn’t made love with D’Arik in a few days. He looked ruefully down at his dick. There was no way his erection was going to subside on