Rebel Mine: Interstellar Portals, #3

By Jinx Layne

Shawna

I never should have dared Leah to take that treacherous hike in Kauai. 

Now my best friend's gone and the weight of my guilt is drowning me.  

That's why I know it's karma when a sudden downpour sweeps me out to sea during a swim near her final resting place. 

And after finding myself on an alien shore, it only gets worse. 

Because the frightening group of creatures that capture me are definitely not human. 

Ever wonder what would happen if you crossed a man with a big leafy plant? Well, it's these guys.

And from the way they're leering at me, I'm the score of the century.

So why is their leader — towering and majestic, with abs that could grind diamonds — dead set on protecting me? 

And why does he stir a heat within me like no human man?

Ga'rek

The human female is an opportunity — one who can sway the tides of power for my clan.

Yet, as I vow to shield her, my ambitions blur.

A primal need to please her, satisfy her, and drive her wild with desire consumes me. 

I've never been one to trust destiny, but the future I yearn for is in her eyes.

Will my plans hold once I take her as more than leverage, claiming her as mine?

Rebel Mine is a short, steamy, fated mates romance. It's the third book in the Interstellar Portals series, which features alien heroes and the human women they're destined to love.

• Language: English
• Publisher: No Regerts Press, LLC
• Release date: Apr 9, 2024
• ISBN: 9781957933115

Book preview

1

SHAWNA

Rest in peace, Leah.

I waded into the warm blue-green waves and huffed out a sob.

This beach was roughly a mile away from where my best friend fell to her death.

Talk about tragic.

And all my fault.

Why did I have to convince Leah to take that hike? The one I’d read about in Shape magazine, that included scaling the side of a mountain off the coast of Kauai.

She’d never done any hiking. Sure, she was independent and well-traveled, but the last thing I should’ve done to help her get over that scumbag, Darren, was to dare her to do something so dangerous.

How could I have been so inconsiderate?

It probably had something to do with the asshole I was stuck with at home. I guess I felt the need to live vicariously through Leah because my man barely looked my way. Yet he had plenty of opinions of how I should live my life.

I should’ve gone with you, girl.

Above me storm clouds suddenly appeared overhead. When had those moved in?

Turning to look back at the shore, I’m somehow much farther out than I realized. The frothy waves reached my shoulders now, and the ocean swelled with the rough tide.

The sky had turned from a clear blue to a dark gray, the water taking on a similar shade.

What was going on?

In an instant, my feet were swept out from under me, as the sea pulled me out further. Barely keeping my head up I glanced at the huge wall of water in front of me, the size of a house.

I’m fucked.

My whole body ached.

Eyes flying open, I covered them quickly. Oh my god, that’s bright!

I felt sand under me. Dry sand.

I remembered the ocean throwing me around before I ducked under that massive wave.

Then nothing.

Could that wave have carried me back to the shore?

I carefully pushed myself up to a sitting position. Ouuchh! Sand was everywhere, and I mean everywhere, inside and out of my bikini.

I checked myself for bumps, bruises, and scratches, amazed at the lack of injuries on my body. That monster of a wave had to have tossed me around like a ragdoll. How I didn’t drown in the process was a mystery.

You’re one lucky bitch, Shawna, I whispered aloud. My eyes had adjusted and I looked in front of me.

Everything was…different.

I spun around and around.

Besides the sparkling sand, intense colors of the plants and trees, and the pink flowers in the distance…there were absolutely no signs of people.

I swore there were buildings off to my right before. And posted signs warning me not to litter. Not to trespass. Yeah, yeah. I know.

But I didn’t see anything there now.

Could this be a different beach? Could I’ve been washed out that far?

I stood up and brushed myself off. Even the sand felt…softer. Still uncomfortable when wet and in every bodily crevice, but at least it felt nice under my bare feet.

I walked toward the forest—or maybe it was more of a jungle—in front of me.

When I reached the hot pink flowers I saw from the shore, I had to touch them. They were so vibrant, with soft and velvety