by Dixon, Ruby
“Go back to sleep,” I say with a smile. “It’s very early.”
“You tired your hunter out,” he murmurs, eyes closed. He caresses my cheek and then rolls over, going back to sleep after all.
I bite back a laugh. I tired him out? Pot, kettle. He kept me up late with kissing and talking, and made sure I came at least twice more before we went to sleep. His mouth is…amazing. I knew oral was supposed to be incredible but I was not prepared for a man that just wanted to go down on me for hours. How can I resist? How can I resist any of this?
I dress and quickly comb my hair, then head out to the main fire. Willa’s there, stirring something while her mate Gren sharpens a spear nearby. When I arrive, Willa gives me a friendly smile and holds out a cup. “You’re the first in line for a big ol’ pot of shrimp tea. Want some?”
“I do!” I take the cup she hands me and the color is dark and rich. A sip makes me sputter. “This is incredibly strong.”
“I like my coffee strong enough to put hair on your chest.” She gives Gren a cheery wink. “Though some of us don’t need any help.” She stirs a pouch she has hanging next to the first one. “Breakfast isn’t ready yet. It’ll be a few minutes if you want to stick around.”
I drain my cup, grimacing at the strong kick of it. “I’m good. I think I’m going to go see what washed up on the beach before the games begin.” And before N’dek wakes up and completely distracts me with more kissing…or talk of kissing…or just looking over at me and making me think of kissing.
Oh man. I have it bad for this guy. I’m not even sorry. Just thinking about N’dek makes me want to crawl back into the tent, snuggle up to him, and see how long it takes for him to wake up if I touch his morning wood. That idea actually sounds like a lot of fun—
“D’vi!” a familiar voice calls.
I turn and see S’bren hurrying to the fire from the beach. He waves a hand over his head, racing toward me.
“I remembered,” he says. “I know where the cave is!”
I gasp, quickly handing my cup back to Willa. “The one with the large vertebrae?”
“Yes! Shall I show you?”
I’m practically trembling with excitement. “Yes, please!”
He waves at me and I race down to meet him.
N’DEK
I taste Devi on my mouth when I awaken, and lick my lips to savor one last hint of her. I smile as I put on my leathers and strap on my false leg. It aches a little, but every day the pain is a little less, and I almost welcome it because it reminds me that I can walk.
I emerge from the supply tent and head toward the main fire, but my Devi is nowhere to be seen. She will be on the beach, then, peering at the innards of some dead fish, her sharp mind mentally comparing it. I smile at the thought, turning in that direction. Perhaps she will not mind some company—
“Ho, N’dek,” J’shel calls from by the fire.
I turn, and he stands with his mate H’nah, both of them holding cups of tea. K’thar sits nearby, offering tidbits to Kki as L’ren talks to G’hail nearby. They all glance at me once J’shel speaks, and I immediately turn toward my clan, heading in their direction. I raise a hand in greeting. “Ho.”
J’shel is all smiles as he eyes my leg and my awkward gait as I approach. I may walk, but I am not graceful—yet. “I am happy to see you about! What a clever idea—stealing the legs of others to provide your own.”
“Devi helped me. Her mind is clever and thinks in ways mine does not,” I say, willing to give all the credit to my pretty human mate.
“Is that why you took her to your furs?” K’thar asks, all sly grins. “To thank her?”
“No.” I expect them to tease. They are my family, my clan. I can see in their faces they are happy for me. “I took her to my furs because she is my mate and I wished to please her.”
H’nah gasps, her eyes wide over the rim of her cup. “Resonance?”
“Not yet,” I say confidently. I refuse to think that it might not happen. I will not dwell on such a thought.
She exchanges a look with J’shel, who puts an arm around her shoulders and tugs her close. “Hopefully it will be soon for you,” J’shel says. “Strong Arm clan has had much luck with resonance so far. All the other clans are jealous.” He beams down at his mate, whose cheeks are flushed red as she takes another sip of her drink. “We have the prettiest females, too, and the ones with the biggest—”
“J’shel!” H’nah gasps, interrupting.
“—hearts,” he finishes, a teasing look in his eye as he grins at me. We both know he was not going to say “hearts.” It surprises me to hear J’shel so very bold in his words. He has always been a talker, but as I look at how H’nah blushes and leans in to him, I suspect we are going to hear him talking of H’nah far more than we would want.
Still, he seems happy, finally.
K’thar just rolls his eyes, feeding another bit to fur-wrapped Kki in his lap. The flyer scolds him with a chittering sound and snatches the bit from his fingers, nibbling.
“I am glad to see you all here,” I say. “Because I need to ask a favor.”
“Ask it and it shall be yours,” J’shel says immediately. His tail curls around H’nah’s upper thigh and she swats him away, her face red, but she is smiling. So is he.
“I want to build a hut for Devi. Nearer to the water than yours, but still far enough to be safe. She will want a wood floor and strong walls.” I think of J’shel’s fine hut he built for H’nah. “I will need help gathering materials, I think.”
“I wish to build a hut for L’ren, too,” K’thar says with a fond glance at his mate. She glances over at him, a smile curling her mouth, and gives him a wink full of promise that makes him grin. “She wants a floor as well. Says she is not going to have our kit on the sand. Plenty of time for that yet, though.”
“The sooner the better,” L’ren calls out, and then moves to K’thar’s side. She stands behind him and loops her arms around his neck, pressing a kiss to the top of his head with easy, casual affection.
I see my clan-mates with their females and a sense of pride fills me. We have been lucky, I realize. I think of M’tok, who is miserable, and T’chai, who has been robbed. I think of A’tam and his problems with B’shit, and I think of R’jaal, who watches the females with such hungry longing, and whose chest is utterly silent. We are very, very lucky.
“After today’s games, then?” J’shel asks, his tail sliding up H’nah’s leg again, his expression one of innocence.
I nod. “What is today’s?”
“Horn locks.”
K’thar rolls his eyes once more. “I suspect Tall Horn clan made sure to include that.”
“Climbing is tomorrow,” J’shel says and flexes his arms.
“I’d like to know when the humans get to participate,” H’nah exclaims.
“You can climb if you want to,” L’ren adds. “I think it’s just who gets to the top of the cliff to earn a point, not who gets there fastest.”
J’shel jerks his mate closer to his side, his smile disappearing immediately. “No, she is not climbing. Not when she carries my kit.” One hand goes to her belly.
H’nah’s face goes red again, but she looks pleased. “I’ll wait for a sewing competition, maybe.”
“You and me both,” L’ren says, reaching over K’thar’s shoulder to tickle Kki. “What about Devi? Where’s she this morning?”
“On the beach,” I begin.
H’nah speaks up at the same time. “I saw her heading off with S’bren.”
I frown. Devi left my furs to go spend time with S’bren? I remember her kissing me when she left, but I do not remember her saying such a thing. “Are you sure?”
H’nah shrugs, looking a little uncertain. “I always see him hanging around her when she’s on the beach. That’s why I was a little surprised when you two got together. I thought they were…well, it doesn’t matter.”
I grit my teeth. I trust Devi, but I do not trust S’
bren, who hovers around her far more than he should. I glance toward the beach, but I do not see a lone figure there. A few clusters of people walk the shore, and one hunter from Tall Horn pulls in nets.
I do not see Devi, though. Or S’bren.
I frown, heading toward the beach.
J’shel moves to my side. “Is everything all right?”
I wave him off. “I do not need help. I am just going to find Devi.” And possibly snarl at S’bren, who does not know when to leave a female alone. He knows she is mine. All of the tribe knows we are together as pleasure-mates. Why does he insist on bothering her? Devi is too nice and too easily distracted. He will only have to show her a fish to get her attention, and then my mate will be so entranced that she will not notice if he tries to kiss her until it is too late—
I bite back a snarl of jealousy.
He would not dare.
18
N’DEK
Devi is not at the beach.
I walk the shoreline twice, just to make certain. I see no sign of my tall human female or her long mane, no hint of pretty brown skin in the distance. I see no sign of S’bren, either, and that makes my gut clench with anger.
Others walk on the shore, gathering driftwood, seaweed, or picking through what washes up. No one has seen my Devi this morning.
Frustrated, I start to walk the shore again, when a dark-skinned female comes up to me. She is trailed by one of the bright-red hunters. N’deen has a worried look on her face. “Someone told me you were looking for Devi?”
“Yes. Where is she?”
The female exchanges a look with the male—Thrand, I believe, because he is not with the new mother, A’nshee. “I saw her heading off with S’bren earlier. Past the tide pools. It was really, really early, too.” She points at the far end of the beach, where the sand gives way to rock and even more rock, and dozens upon dozens of tiny pools. “Is everything okay?”
“It will be,” I say, nodding to her. “You have my thanks.”
Everything will be fine once I find my Devi and pry S’bren’s head from his neck, that is.
I take a deep, calming breath, thank them for their help, and then march down the beach toward the tide pools and rocky shoals. They will be difficult to traverse with my false leg, but I do not care. I am not going back until my Devi is safely returned to camp. That she has been gone so long worries me. Devi is easily distracted, but she would not miss the games…or me.
“N’dek!” a voice calls behind me.
I turn, frowning at K’thar, L’ren, and J’shel as they approach.
“Is everything all right?” L’ren asks, panting, as they get to my side. “The games are about to start and everyone’s looking for you, Devi and S’bren. The red team’s down by three people.”
In this moment, I do not care about games at all. “They will have to wait. S’bren has gone somewhere with Devi and I am going to find her and bring her back.”
J’shel and K’thar exchange a look.
“What?” I growl.
J’shel looks back at me. “R’hosh stole his human female when they resonated. Rukh did the same. It seems to be a tradition with the sa-khui. If S’bren resonated to her…” He trails off.
The growl rumbles louder in my throat. “No.”
“But—” L’ren begins.
“No,” I say again, firmly. I will not allow myself to think such a thing. Devi has not resonated to anyone else. She is my mate—pleasure-mate or true mate, it does not matter. “Even if such a thing happened—and it has not—she would want me to come for her.”
K’thar and L’ren share a look, and then K’thar nods. “Very well, then. We will help you find them.”
“I’ll run back to the tent and get spears,” L’ren says. “Give me five minutes.” She gives K’thar a quick kiss and then races off, light on her feet.
“We are getting weapons?”
K’thar’s expression is grim. “If he did steal her away…”
My fingers itch to curl around S’bren’s neck. The thought of him stealing Devi—my Devi—while she screams and cries for help? It sends a bolt of fear down my spine and rage pumping through my heart. I clench my fists at my side. “Then we take her back by force.”
He does not get to keep her.
And when L’ren returns with spears and G’ren, the big, hulking beast of a hunter, I know my friends will help me retrieve my female by any means necessary.
DEVI
I eye the small pinprick suns in the sky, frowning at how high they are. “It’s pretty late in the morning,” I point out. “We should be getting back soon. Aren’t there more games today?”
“It is not much farther,” S’bren says, smacking the end of his spear against each jutting outcrop of rock before stepping on it. “Follow close, D’vi.”
I lick my lips, trying not to worry. I followed S’bren because he said it wasn’t far, but clearly his version of “not far” is very different from a human version of “not far.” We’ve left the beach behind, we’ve left the tide pools behind, and we’ve been following a very narrow strip of rock along the cliffs as the tides churn and bang far too close. This area is unhospitable, nothing but boulders and rocks, and it worries me a little to be so far from the others.
“How did you come out this far?” I ask S’bren, curious.
He shrugs, hopping over to the next rock. “I wished to see what was here. There are many caves along the rock, you know.” He gestures at another hollowed-out area that we pass by. “I wanted to see if there was anything in them.”
I’m not surprised there’s a lot of caves here. The waves bang against the shore with force, and the water’s sweeping in closer to the shore with every surge of the tide. I imagine they sometimes hit the rocky cliffs, and enough weathering down creates caves. The base of the cliff sometimes reminds me of Swiss cheese it’s so hollowed out in places. Most of them are too small to hide anything interesting, though.
“Many of the caves here look the same,” S’bren says, holding a hand out to me when we cross a particularly narrow spot. I grab him and he helps me over, and then we continue forward. “That is why I got confused. Then I remembered this late last night as I slept, and knew that I should show you.”
“And you’re sure we’re not lost?” I ask, not wanting to seem like too much of a worry wart, but a little concerned anyhow.
“Not lost,” he agrees. “But we should hurry. I always forget human feet do not move as fast as mine and if the tide comes in, it will cover our cave.”
“Then let’s hurry,” I agree. Part of me wants to turn around right now, but since we’re already this far, we might as well take a peek. I absently wonder if N’dek is awake, and touch my mouth, smiling. I think of his kisses and how he touched himself last night in front of me…
And his tail.
My thighs give a little squeeze of remembrance at the touch of his tail. I can hardly wait to see him this morning. I want to smile at him. Hold his hand. Drink a cup of tea with him and tell him about my morning. I know he’ll be as excited if we find anything as I’ll be, because he knows how much it means to me. If we do find something, maybe I’ll fake having a headache and hide out in the tent to inscribe everything onto a skin so I don’t forget…and then spend some quality time with my man.
I can feel my cheeks get warm at the thought. I have a man. He wants to be my mate. I’m not sure Nani or my mother would approve, but I’m trying to put the Earth way of thinking behind me and embrace this planet, shrimp tea and all.
“Do you think P’nee has her eye on a male?” S’bren asks casually.
“I’m not sure. I don’t talk to her as much as some of the others. She sleeps in the cave with all of the other single women, though. Why do you ask?”
“Do you…think she has noticed me?”
Aw. S’bren has a crush. That’s sweet, and I’m glad he’s recovering so quickly after his crush on me. “Have you talked to her?”
“No.”
“Then she probably hasn’t paid much attention to you, no.”
He pauses ahead of me, his expression crushed. “You think not?”
“You might say hi to her over breakfast one day. Or bring her some shrimp for her tea.”
S’bren considers this. “I should?”
“It’s just a suggestion.” I gesture at the water. “You like fishing. Why not offer to take her fishing? She likes going out hunting and she seems eager to learn.”
S’bren sighs. “Because it is hard to speak to females. I am not as good at talking to them as A’tam or O’jek.”
“I wouldn’t consider A’tam an expert, buddy.”
He looks back at me, then laughs. “I suppose not. It is just…Tall Horn was a complicated clan. We never had as many females as say, Shadow Cat, so they were heavily guarded by family until they resonated to a chosen male. I never talked to any female but my mother.”
Okay, I can see how that would be strange. “But you talk to me just fine.”
S’bren frowns in my direction. “It is because you are not interested. Because your heart belongs to N’dek. That makes you safe…like my mother.”
It’s the first time I’ve been compared to anyone’s mom, and it’s pretty damn weird. “I see. Maybe you should work on being friends with her before you even think about getting into the furs with someone? I mean, you might not get along.”
“Impossible. I will like everything she has to say.”
I can’t decide if that’s cute or naïve. Poor guy. I’m busy trying to think of ways to get the two of them together easily without S’bren freaking out or comparing Penny to his mom (which might be worse). I should leave the matchmaking to someone who’s better at it, like Tia.
Actually, no, Tia’s not that good at it either. I think she was the one that introduced Bridget and A’tam via that awful spin the bottle game and look where that got them.
“Here is the cave,” S’bren announces, jumping over to a rock and then peering into the side of the honeycombed cliff.