Tail Dark and Handsome: Celestial Mates (Tail and Claw Book 3) Read online

  Tail, Dark and Handsome

  Celestial Mates

  Nancey Cummings

  Copyright © 2020 by Nancey Cummings

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Created with Vellum

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Epilogue

  Afterword

  Also by Nancey Cummings

  About the Author

  Chapter 1

  Thankful Cayne announced the engagement of his son, Winter, to heiress Rebel Ferre. Some speculate that the engagement is more of a business arrangement than a love match. Sources claim the two have known each other since they were kits…

  -Tal Tattler

  Marigold

  “He’s what?”

  “Not coming,” her brother said. Joseph had tamed his normal tumble of dark curls into a ponytail, and he looked sharp in his suit. Marigold had just been about to tell him he cleaned up well when Joseph blurted out the news.

  “Where’s Sandria?” Mari needed her friend.

  “About that. It seems Tomas and Sandria left. Together. Like, together together.” He bumped the sides of two fists together. “I’m sorry,” he added as an afterthought. He never liked Tomas, and it showed on his face.

  She slumped to the ground, the ridiculous dress creating a fluffy white puddle around her. The rose bouquet fell to the floor, releasing a gentle perfume from the crushed petals.

  “He and Sandria? How do you know?”

  “Once—”

  “I swear to the stars, if you say you caught them sneaking around and didn’t tell me, I’ll…I’ll…” Her brain stuttered from the sheer volume of information to process.

  “He left a note.” Joseph thrust a piece of paper at her like a shield.

  Mari took the sheet of genuine paper, not a note on a tablet or a sheet of reusable digital paper.

  She read. Her heart broke. Tomas fell in love with Sandria. They ran away. Together. Like, together together.

  “He’s not coming,” she repeated the impossible words, feeling a touch relieved and not understanding where that came from. Tomas had been so excited about their wedding, insisting on moving the date up when a spot opened unexpectedly in the Starlight Chapel.

  Wood timbers—actual wood—and strong, crystal clear glass—not actual glass—formed the chapel, framing the stars and darkness of deep space. Soft lights glowed within, allowing the starlight to filter through the timber and glass walls. Neat rows of wood chairs flanked either side of a deep red, plush carpet aisle cutting down the stone floor. Again, real wood and real stone, brought to the space station at substantial cost. Hell, the carpet was probably made from wool harvested during a full moon from sheep that only grazed in fields of wildflowers and sipped the purest spring water. Needlessly expensive, the end result was a stunning and very, very pricey venue, but Tomas insisted. He told her not to worry about the cost.

  He always said not to worry, and she liked that, relaxing her grip on responsibility and letting someone else take care of her. For once.

  Look where it got her.

  The entire time they were planning an extravagant wedding, he was falling in love with her friend? Sneaking around behind her back? Mari had felt him pull away, but she put that down to stress and pre-wedding jitters.

  Joseph rubbed her back comfortingly. This was terrible. The stupid dress. The expensive venue. The crowd of people outside waiting for her to march down the aisle. At least Joseph didn’t make it worse by offering empty platitudes. He knew she needed a few quiet minutes to gather herself.

  She pressed her fingers to the corner of her eyes, refusing to cry. Left at the altar. How cliché.

  Silently, Joseph handed her a tissue.

  “I’m not crying,” she said, even as the mascara dribbled down her cheeks.

  “No, not over that asshole.” Joseph handed her another tissue. She gave him a watery smile, grateful that her brother was also her best friend. When they were kids, they moved frequently from ship to ship. Their mother, Valerian, changed jobs almost as frequently as she changed hair color, but it was always the same type of ship: luxury cruises that entertained wealthy tourists from starports to exclusive resorts and the most stunning parts of the galaxy. That meant there were usually no children on board, but Mari and Joseph had each other.

  “Maybe he’ll change his mind,” she finally said and flinched for the sake of her battered self-esteem.

  “He cleared out your apartment and they left on a ship this morning.” Joseph paused, then cleared his throat. “He, um, used a different name.”

  “So it might not be him.” How did Joseph know? Sure, he was friendly with a lot of the crews that frequented the station, but he didn’t know. Not for certain.

  Hope, bitter and sharp, stirred in her chest, wanting it to be a mistake, even though she clutched a letter that explained exactly how his heart had strayed and how he wouldn’t be coming back. Tomas could change his mind. He could.

  Something heavy and sour settled in her stomach at the thought of Tomas walking through the doors, exasperated with the funny story that happened and kept him from the most important event of their lives. There was no other woman; no running away.

  She couldn’t hold on to false hope. Tomas did what he did. There was no going back.

  Maybe…this was for the best. The universe was throwing her a course correction. Or maybe Tomas sucked balls and she thanked the stars she avoided being legally tied with that hot mess dressed in an expensive suit.

  Mari grabbed the rose bouquet from the floor, threw it to the floor again, then stomped on it for good measure. She hated how desperate hope made her feel. If Tomas wanted to run, she’d let him run. Better to rip that bandage off and get the worst part over, rather than waiting and hoping for him to walk in through the chapel doors. Hope felt so much worse.

  “Love sucks,” she said, leaning into Joseph.

  “It does, but he sucks in particular.” He picked up the tattered bouquet. “Do we want to salvage this or toss it in an incinerator?”

  “Fiery destruction. No question.” She’d toss all Tomas’ clothes, including the finely tailored suits she thought looked so good on him, into the incinerator.

  A knock sounded on the door. Mari’s mother peeked her head into the room. “All right, love? Any word on Tomas? What is going on with your aura?” Valerian frowned and snatched at the air around Mari’s head.

  “Mom, not now—”

  “Sunshower in a Marigold Field Moonquest, stay still. You can’t get married with all this negative energy.”

  Oh no. Valerian used her mortifyingly embarrassing full name.
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  Mari turned pleading eyes to Joseph. Somehow, she had to be Sunshower Marigold, and he got to be plain old Joseph. Not fair. He owed her and needed to save her. Normally he enjoyed watching her being chastised, but a grim expression set on his face. He hated this awful situation as much as her.

  He informed Valerian of the change of plans. “Gone? This has to be a misunderstanding.” She clutched the crystal pendant that hung around her neck.

  “He cleared out our apartment,” Mari said.

  “But I did his star chart myself. I was sure—” Valerian trailed off and Mari didn’t know if her mother was more upset about Mari being left at the altar or her star charts being wrong.

  “Yeah, well—”

  Valerian removed her crystal pendant and placed it in Mari’s hand. “You need this more than me. Let it soak up all your negative energy.”

  Mari’s hand curled around the crystal pendant. She didn’t believe in all the star-age philosophy—the bitter part of her whispered it was nonsense—that Valerian embraced wholeheartedly. Crystals, aura cleanses, spiritual node alignments, exercise technique to unblock a person’s life force, and star charts. Valerian happily took the most out-there beliefs from several planets and alien species, embracing each new set of metaphysical values and wisdom with enthusiasm. After all, a woman who unironically names her child Sunshower in the Marigold Field also believed in guardian spirits and past lives.

  Moonquest was the family name, believe it or not. Way back when humans first left Earth to colonize the stars, some enthusiastic pioneers ditched the old Earth names for new ones. Starbuck, Moon, and Polaris were as common as Smith and Jones.

  “I’ll take care of the crowd while we figure out what to do. Don’t worry,” Valerian said.

  “Thanks, Mom. I don’t think this day can get worse.”

  A knock sounded on the door before the chapel’s event coordinator entered. The pinched faced woman clutched her tablet. “The police are here.”

  Valerian gasped, then jerked off the crystal-encrusted bracelet that dangled off her wrist. She shoved it at Mari. “Don’t tempt the universe. You have a powerful shadow over you,” she said.

  “I don’t suppose the police are here for a good reason,” Mari said. Unless Tomas was abducted or someone filed a missing person’s report.

  “I’m sure I don’t know,” the woman sniffed. “I placed them in the groom’s dressing room since that is not being used.” She drew the words out like she wanted Mari to squirm. Well, she got her wish because Mari squirmed and wished the wall would open up and vent her right out into space. “There’s also the matter of the bill.”

  “You have the deposit,” Mari said.

  “Yes, and the remainder is due today,” the woman replied.

  “And you have my credit information.”

  “That was, unfortunately, declined.” Her words and tone were sympathetic, but her expression radiated glee, like she called the police on Mari for freeloading.

  “It must be a misunderstanding. Tomas and I set up an account just for our wedding.” She had been funneling every spare credit into the savings account, as had Tomas. Disbelieving, she dug out her communicator and logged into the shared bank account.

  Empty.

  Well, shit. Bet that wasn’t in Tomas’ star chart.

  Valerian looked over Mari’s shoulder and made a noise that sounded like a wounded beast. “That man! And to think I aligned his chakras.”

  “Do you have an alternate form of payment?” the woman asked.

  “Um, hold on,” Mari muttered. Disbelief numbed her. Tomas not only left her at the altar, but he ran off with their savings. She logged into her personal account only to find it equally empty. “Son of a—”

  Joseph grabbed the comm from her, scrunched his brows, and passed it to Valerian. “That bastard robbed you,” they announced together like they had been practicing for such an occasion.

  Mari needed a drink. The room was too crowded, and she needed to get drunk out of her mind. Mostly, she needed this day to end. “How about a refund? The wedding obviously isn’t happening.”

  “Sorry, no refunds on last-minute cancellations.” The woman grinned like she was having the time of her cold, hateful life.

  “Well, I’m not getting married today. I’m the victim of a con man. I need to file a police report and…and…” Change all her passwords. Get new accounts. Run a credit check to see if Tomas ran up any debt while using her name. Probably. He always had such nice clothes and expensive tastes, but he also had a good job as a pilot, so he claimed. She never questioned where he got his money.

  Oh, and make an effigy of Tomas to toss in the incinerator along with his expensive clothes.

  How had she been so trusting? Tomas used to whisper in their tender moments that he loved her trusting nature, that he loved how she viewed the universe with innocent wonder. Those words used to make her melt, but now it felt like he had been laughing at her. Silent guardian spirits, he had dropped clues and practically waved his plan in her face like a red flag.

  The crystal dug into her palm as she squeezed tight. There weren’t enough crystals in the galaxy to protect such a naïve, lovesick fool.

  Her stomach rolled with stress. Empty or not, the contents of her gut would not stay put.

  She dashed for the small toilet attached to the dressing room, her enormous dress barely fitting through the door. Kneeling on the ground, she retched and gagged on the taste of bile.

  While busy maintaining her dignity in a ladylike fashion, she heard Joseph settle the bill. “I paid for a party, so we’re having a party. We’ll skip the ceremony and go straight to the reception,” he said.

  “I’ll inform the staff. And the police?”

  “Give her five minutes. This is a shock, you understand.” To put it mildly.

  Mari rinsed out her mouth and scrubbed off the ruin of her makeup. She did her best to avoid her reflection because she just didn’t know if she had the strength to stare into the eyes of the woman who got screwed. Hard.

  He always seemed so glad to be with her, holding her hand even when they were just sitting on the couch watching a show. He smiled and teased her in the sweet, subtle way, like they were the only ones in on a wonderful joke.

  Apparently, the joke was on her.

  Shit. All her money. All their plans…

  Were those even real? Had he always been planning to abscond with her pitiful savings, or was it a crime of opportunity? She didn’t care about the money—okay, she wasn’t an heiress, she obviously she cared about the money—but she loathed the dirty feeling that crawled over her. Tomas and Sandria violated her home, her trust, and her heart. She felt…wrong, like her mother needed to smudge her aura to clean away the negative energy.

  What a disaster.

  Joseph handed her a glass as she exited the tiny toilet. Valerian snatched at the clumps of negative energy in her aura.

  “Thanks, Mom. I hope this is vodka,” she said, taking a gulp.

  “Water, but I understand someone is paying for an open bar. I suggest we put a hurt on the sucker,” he said. He watched her drain the glass, concern evident on his face.

  She hated that look on her baby brother’s face. Joseph was the fun, carefree one. She was the responsible one. Everyone said so, especially when they were kids. Joe was a great guy. He’d make someone very lucky when he eventually settled down. Someone deserved to be lucky.

  Sweet celestial bodies, she sounded maudlin. “You sure that was water?”

  “Positive.”

  “I’ll tell the guests about the change in plans. Take your time,” Valerian said, giving Mari and peck on the cheek and a hug.

  Mari leaned into the hug. Mom hugs were the best. “Thanks.” She did not look forward to the pity and condolences of a hundred people, most of whom were her mother’s friends and business contacts.

  “And we’re going to eat a delightful meal, eat cake, and dance,” Joseph said. He took the empty glass an
d handed her another with a sparkling golden liquid. That was more like it.

  “I like all those things,” she said, gulping the sparkling wine like a lady, because she had manners, dang it, and only sputtered a little when the bubbles tickled her nose.

  “Do you want to wear the dress or not?”

  Mari looked down at the concoction of lace and tulle. At one point, the dress made her feel like a fairy princess, Princess Sunshower in Marigold Fields. “It’s terrible, isn’t it?”

  “Keep wearing it. Go for the full Miss Havisham,” he said.

  “Nerd.” She didn’t want to smirk, but there it was, a tiny smirk. She’d be okay in the end. Screw Tomas and Sandria. “Do you still think we can find a pair of costume fairy wings?”

  “On it.” He already had out his communicator, ready to order. “We can hang out here until the drone arrives and be mysterious.”

  “Or we can drink.” Mari waved her empty glass at him, then sighed. “Thanks for footing the bill. I’ll pay you back, you know.”

  His dark eyes gleamed. “Don’t worry about it. Consider it your future gift for when you get married for real.”

  “That outlook is not good,” she said.

  “I mean, I don’t understand the compulsion, but I am 100% behind you.”

  “You’d have to be in this dress.” He snorted at her snarky comment. Mari couldn’t explain the compulsion, either. One day, she realized that she was thirty and felt like she had a clock ticking down in her chest. Living on a busy space station meant that she met tons of people, but relationship material people? Not so much. Joseph seemed to be content with flings, but Mari wanted something with substance. She wanted to wake up to the same face, not for a handful of days while they hung about the station waiting for a connecting flight or ship repairs, but for years.