"Grey metal is in demand throughout the Five Galaxies," he said. "We have that in our favor. The mines haven't produced it in many sun-cycles."
"And we are allegedly at peace," Mansr agreed.
"I thought they weren't speaking to us at all," Kiera said.
"They are not," A'Ran said.
"You almost destroyed their planet, too. Not sure I blame them." She was smiling.
A'Ran eyed her, recalling just what he'd felt when he saw her on Qatwal after believing her dead. The longstanding blood feud between him and the Qatwali rulers was over, according to their peace agreement, but he harbored no warm feelings towards them. There was some sadness in nishani's gaze, which he knew came from missing her sister, who was the lifemate of the next ruler of Qatwal.
"I will contact them," A'Ran said. After all he'd been through, he wasn't about to let the Qatwalis' cold shoulder deter him.
"And then, come to lunch. I invited a guest," nishani tried to fake an innocent smile, but there was a wicked gleam in her gaze.
A'Ran crossed his arms. Mansr looked between them and then excused himself. A'Ran waited until he was gone to ask.
"Who did you invite to my table?"
"Our table," she corrected him. "Remember?"
With Mansr gone, nishani felt no need to keep her distance, even if they were on a ship and not in the privacy of their quarters. She moved to him and pried his arms down so she could wrap her arms around him in a tight hug. A'Ran returned the embrace with a glance towards the door. It would be an awkward display, if his warriors saw him. Kiera didn't have the restraint Anshan women did with showing her affections and didn't seem concerned with learning more than she had to about this particular custom.
It was one of the things he found most appealing and vexing. She sighed and relaxed against him, and he let himself enjoy the moment, loving the way her soft, sweet body fit against his hard warrior frame. He'd found the touch of his woman to be beyond satisfying, another reason he'd stopped chiding her so often about how she touched him.
"I invited Ketnan," she said at last, looking up at him.
A'Ran let a breath hiss between his clenched teeth. "I don't want that man at my … our table. I thought I made that clear."
"You know how sweet and warm and charming and wonderful you are to me?"
He snorted and kissed her forehead. He loved how freely she cared for him and his family.
"That's how he feels for your sister," she finished. "Talal deserves to be -"