Alien Ruler Needs a Nanny: Alien Nanny Agency #3 Read online

  ALIEN RULER NEEDS A NANNY

  ALIEN NANNY AGENCY #3

  TASHA BLACK

  13TH STORY PRESS

  Copyright © 2022 by 13th Story Press

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof

  may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever

  without the express written permission of the publisher

  except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  13th Story Press

  PO Box 506

  Swarthmore, PA 19081

  [email protected]

  Cover designed by Sylvia Frost of The Book Brander

  CONTENTS

  Tasha Black Starter Library

  About Alien Pilot Needs a Nanny

  Alien Ruler Needs a Nanny

  Tenet 88:

  1. Yasmine

  2. Ba’sh

  3. Yasmine

  Tenet: 2

  4. Yasmine

  5. Ba’sh

  6. Yasmine

  7. Ba’sh

  8. Yasmine

  9. Ba’sh

  10. Yasmine

  Tenet: 94

  11. Yasmine

  12. Ba’sh

  13. Yasmine

  14. Yasmine

  15. Ba’sh

  Tenet: 37

  16. Yasmine

  17. Ba’sh

  18. Yasmine

  19. Yasmine

  Tenet: 1

  20. Yasmine

  21. Ba’sh

  Tenet: 32

  22. Yasmine

  23. Yasmine

  24. Ba’sh

  25. Ba’sh

  26. Yasmine

  Tenet: 107

  27. Yasmine

  28. Yasmine

  Tenet: 121

  29. Ba’sh

  30. Yasmine

  31. Ba’sh

  32. Ba’sh

  Tenet: 58

  33. Yasmine

  34. Ba’sh

  35. Ba’sh

  36. Yasmine

  37. Yasmine

  38. Yasmine

  39. Ba’sh

  Tenet: 74

  40. Yasmine

  41. Yasmine

  42. Ba’sh

  43. Yasmine

  44. Yasmine

  Tasha Black Starter Library

  About the Author

  One Percent Club

  TASHA BLACK STARTER LIBRARY

  Packed with steamy shifters, mischievous magic, alien adventures, billionaire superheroes, and plenty of HEAT, the Tasha Black Starter Library is the perfect way to dive into Tasha's unique brand of Romance with Bite!

  Get your FREE books now at tashablack.com!

  ABOUT ALIEN PILOT NEEDS A NANNY

  He’s in charge of an entire planet, but only she can rule his heart…

  Ba’shir Kreed is a hardworking single dad who also happens to be the leader of a planet of two billion souls. He is used to dealing with any issue that comes along. But he knows he’s got real problems the minute he lays eyes on his kids’ new Terran nanny. After all, the palace publicity team gave him only three rules for dating: No one too young. No one from off-planet. And never, ever, ever hit on the help. Falling for sweet Yasmine would mean breaking all three. But Ba’sh has always been a bit of a rebel. And the more time he spends with Yasmine, the less he wants to follow the rules.

  Yasmine Hall has some unhappiness in her history, but she’s excited to set her eyes on the future and her new gig as a nanny for the most powerful man on the planet. Thankfully, energetic Pia and soft-spoken Jax are amazing kids. And their father may be intimidating, but something about the way he talks to her makes Yasmine feel seen for the first time in a long time. She’s just starting to feel like she’s connecting with them all when her past suddenly catches up with her. She may have thought she landed an incredible nanny gig because of her work with the elderly on Terra-17, but it turns out the life she vowed to leave behind was front and center all along.

  When danger arrives at the palace, Yasmine may have to choose between protecting her peace of mind, and defending the family she has come to love. Will Ba’sh give in to temptation, even if it means breaking all the rules? Or will Yasmine put her principles ahead of her own happiness, and run before she ever gets the chance to follow her feelings?

  If you like strong women, hunky aliens, wild adventures, steamy sensual scenes, and happily-ever-afters, then you’ll love the world of Alien Nanny Agency.

  Be sure to grab them all!

  -Alien Architect Needs a Nanny

  -Alien Pilot Needs a Nanny

  -Alien Ruler Needs a Nanny

  -Alien CEO Needs a Nanny

  ALIEN RULER NEEDS A NANNY

  TENET 88:

  Keep an open mind.

  - Dr. H. VynFleet, 132 Tenets of Childcare & Maintenance

  1

  YASMINE

  Yasmine Hall stretched for the sun, her eyes dipping to view her students with satisfaction as her own muscles rejoiced in the movement.

  Despite being quite a bit older than she was, some of the students were following her stretch without any trouble, their arms reaching for the heavens in a near-perfect imitation of hers. Others wobbled and worked on their balance with expressions of intense concentration. Two in the back were mostly just giggling, but they definitely looked happier than before class began.

  Yasmine had taken the job at the Helios Eldercare Community as a personal care assistant almost a year ago. Without a nursing degree, she was basically a glorified changer of sheets, comforter of sad patients, and runner of errands for the band of highly qualified nurses who ran the facility with military precision.

  But when she offered to teach a free Tai Chi class on Saturday mornings, the nurses surprised her by arguing passionately on her behalf with the director until she agreed to allow it.

  Now Yasmine was helping the seniors to relax and strengthen their changing minds and bodies just as she had been helped by Tai Chi when she was recovering from combat.

  The practice space was large and well-lit with a view over the patient-tended garden and its overflowing hydroponic containers of tomatoes and ärta-pods. Students of all skill levels and motivations smiled up at her, as Yasmine soaked in the happiest and most peaceful hour of her week.

  When her comms went off just as they finished the first stretch of the morning, she swiped her bracelet to deactivate and silence it, surprised that she had forgotten to turn her comms off before class began.

  But when they rang a second time, she realized someone must have paid for a priority interruption. Two of them now. What could be that important?

  Nothing good.

  Terror squeezed icy fingers around her heart, and she gestured to the class to stretch and move freely for a minute while she took the call.

  “Hello,” she murmured, slipping out the glass doors and onto the patio overlooking the vegetable garden.

  “Is this Yasmine Hall?” a woman’s businesslike voice asked.

  “Yes,” Yasmine replied, desperately trying to interpret the woman’s tone, searching for tragedy before it could be conveyed officially.

  “Excellent,” the woman replied. “I’m reaching out about an employment opportunity.”

  “Thank you,” Yasmine said, relieved. “But I told the agency I found something months ago.”

  Her work at the nursing home was not paid well. As a matter of fact, it was paid so poorly she often found herself deciding between eating dinner and using electricity in the evening.

  But she was doing good things for people who needed her. And the Tai Chi class was a dream come true. She couldn’t change the past
, but this future felt like a chance to give back for some of what she had taken.

  “This is something special,” the woman on the other end of the comm was saying. “Whatever you’re doing now doesn’t compare.”

  That was a little insulting, but Yasmine prided herself on being polite.

  “I’m not interested in changing jobs,” she said firmly. “But thank you.”

  Zanfredd, one of her favorite residents stepped outside. She playfully referred to him as her “boyfriend,” and honestly, he was about as close as she wanted to get to a real one at this point in her life. She had too much stuff to figure out about herself to even think about dealing with someone else. He lifted his shaggy eyebrows at her in question.

  One of the nicest things about her elderly charges was that they completely understood her feeling that tragedy was always about to strike.

  “Job offer,” she murmured, shaking her head and rolling her eyes.

  He nodded, looking impressed.

  “I’m calling from the Alien Nanny Agency,” the caller said.

  “A nanny agency?” Yasmine echoed. “I have no experience with children.”

  “They’re looking for someone calm, caring and discrete,” the woman said. “And you were specially chosen by the family.”

  “Why discrete?” Yasmine asked, curiosity temporarily overcoming her disinterest.

  “The father is a VIP,” the woman replied. “He’s also a widower. There are two children. Beyond that, I can’t share anything without a confidentiality agreement.”

  That was a sad idea, needing a nanny because your wife had died, whether you were a VIP or not. Yasmine felt an unexpected pang of compassion.

  “The pay is more than we’ve ever offered even our most experienced nannies,” the woman added, as if that information were an afterthought.

  The money shouldn’t matter. It really shouldn’t, she told herself, even as she fantasized about how nice it would be to turn up the heat a little at night, or upgrade to the hologram feature on her comms so she could see who she was talking to.

  “May I have a little time to think it over?” she asked, hedging.

  “You can have five minutes,” the woman said crisply. “I’ll send the confidential compensation offer so you can consider that as well.”

  Her bracelet buzzed as the audio cut out. The agency wasn’t fooling around. But a nanny? Where had they even gotten her name for something like that? She certainly hadn’t included childcare in her skillset with the employment agency that had landed her this job.

  She swiped to check out the compensation package, allowing Zanfredd to look over her shoulder. She hadn’t signed any confidentiality agreements just yet.

  “Sweet Outer Rings,” Zanfredd hooted when he saw the number.

  She couldn’t have said it better herself.

  “Looks like I get room and board, too,” she said, reading on.

  “It’s probably not fancy,” Zanfredd warned her. “People aren’t normally generous with the help, especially when they’re Terran.”

  He wasn’t wrong. As relative latecomers to intergalactic travel, Terrans still faced prejudice on many fronts. But she was used to that by now.

  “Not fancy still sounds heavenly,” Yasmine said, and promptly regretted it. She wouldn’t want him worrying that she lived poorly. “I have simple tastes,” she added.

  “I knew I picked you for a reason,” Zanfredd teased. “I like a girl who is grateful for what she has.”

  “That’s why I have to turn it down,” she decided, wondering if she was going to regret her decision when winter really kicked in.

  “Are you kidding me?” Zanfredd asked.

  “I have a job already,” Yasmine said. “I really like it here.”

  “We love having you here, sweetheart,” he told her. “You’re a breath of fresh air around this place. But you can come visit us anytime. You need to make money and have some adventures with folks your own age.”

  “But these would be little kids,” she pointed out.

  “Even so,” he said. “Go do something interesting and get yourself a nest egg. If it doesn’t work out, they’ll have you back here, I’m sure of it. We’ve never had an assistant work as hard as you.”

  “It does sound like the family needs help,” she thought out loud.

  “Just don’t let the dad hit on you,” Zanfredd advised in solemn tone.

  “He won’t hit on me,” she laughed. “He lost his wife. That’s why he needs a nanny in the first place.”

  “They always hit on the nanny,” Zanfredd said sagely. “And you’re the prettiest young girl he’ll have ever seen. Means you have to keep your wits about you.”

  If he only knew just how capable she was of looking out for herself…

  But those thoughts only brought pain.

  “Want to come with me?” she offered with a wink. “Keep an eye on me?”

  “If I were even twenty cycles younger, I’d follow you to the ends of the system,” Zanfredd said, hand to his heart. “But take my comms and promise to call if you get into any trouble. I’ll do whatever I can to help.”

  He touched his bracelet to hers and she felt it buzz to record the contact.

  Tears prickled her eyes, and she wrapped an arm around him.

  “What did I ever do to deserve you?” she wondered out loud.

  “I don’t know, but it must have been a doozy,” he teased. “Go on and call them back before they withdraw that offer.”

  “But the class,” Yasmine said, glancing inside.

  “I’ll get back in there and take over for you before the biddies in the back break into the pitchers,” he told her. “I think they really only come for the lemonade.”

  “As long as they come,” she laughed. “Thank you.”

  “It’s my pleasure,” he told her, winking before heading back in.

  She took a deep breath and looked at the offer again, more carefully this time.

  The agency would arrange her transport to the family off-planet, which was good since she definitely didn’t have enough savings to cover interplanetary travel. The rest was straightforward - insanely generous salary, room and board, weekends off, and a confidentiality agreement.

  She took one last look around the garden and inside the studio where Zanfredd was now leading her class. It was safe here, and her humble life was full of more simple pleasures than she deserved. Leaving seemed like madness after everything she had been through.

  But Zanfredd was right, of course. If the facility ever had to downsize, she was the newest non-skilled staff member. And she had no savings to rely on.

  The only responsible thing to do was move out of her comfort zone and back into some version of the real world.

  The upside was that no one on another planet would be likely to know about her past.

  Taking a deep breath, she swiped her comms to return her last call.

  2

  BA’SH

  Ba’shir Kreed looked around the palace grounds with satisfaction, and the same sense of wonder he had felt the day he first saw them.

  Being elected Ulfgard’s leader at age thirty-four had been an almost surreal experience. But the brand-new palace, complete with fairytale gardens, was as concrete as a thing could be. Somehow, it made his rulership feel real, too.

  This new life would come with challenges, but it would also give him the opportunity to change Ulfgard for the better.

  “We prioritized the living area so that you and your family could move in and get set up as soon as possible,” his architect was saying. “There is still work to be done. But I am not willing to cut corners on labor or materials. The west wing will be completed when everything else is as it should be, and not before.”

  “I would expect nothing less from Ulfgard’s greatest architect,” Ba’sh agreed, nodding once.

  It was a compliment, and Ba’sh could sense a wave of pride coming off the man, but it was well-deserved. Drayven had been hired bec
ause he was the best. The big Kotenka man was dead serious all the time, except when it came to his wife and kids, who were wandering around the gardens somewhere. Emilia had designed every inch of the landscape with the same exacting criteria her husband had for the palace itself. Ba’sh was impressed with them both.

  “Thank you, My Ruler,” Drayven said, bowing.

  “Thank you,” Ba’sh replied, offering the man his arm.

  Drayven clasped it against his own furry forearm, and they shook twice.

  Brytt Tommen, one of the journalists that covered the political beat, lifted an old-fashioned, handheld camera and snapped away as his photo drone hovered over his shoulder, recording a feed.

  At least Ba’sh would get one good photo today. The two big men probably oozed masculinity clasping arms. It was bound to generate some clicks.

  Lately, it seemed like Tommen only wanted to catch him with out of context quotes and awkward photos. It had been clear on the campaign trail that Ba’sh wasn’t his favorite candidate. But Ba’sh had allowed the man full access anyway, thinking it was good to have people around who weren’t licking his boots.