by Viola Grace
She wrinkled her nose. “Fine, in that case, we had better get going. I need to hit the registry office.”
He grinned. “You do?”
“Yes. May as well get me declared before I open my mouth and the actives break into the registry office. Give them something to find.”
“Excellent. Torenne, can you contact the registry office and have a counsellor waiting for us?”
“Auditor Gorith will be waiting for you.” She grinned. “I am making the call.” Torenne cupped Khytten’s cheek and kissed her softly. “Be safe, Khytten.”
She was taken out of Torenne’s grip by Salat, and she had to jog to keep up as they headed to his vehicle. “You still have to let me use this one day.”
“I haven’t been able to crack your vehicle records yet, and I don’t want you using this as a desert runner. It’s my toy.”
She snickered and waved at Torenne, who was on her com and heading for her own vehicle.
Torenne blew her a kiss, and then Salat accelerated. They were off.
Time to go change her future.
Chapter Six
She watched the scenery pass the window, and she sighed.
“Big sigh, little kitten.”
“I was just wondering at the strange sequence of events that got me here with my current focus of interest.”
“What?”
“The peculiar focus on sex when it has definitely not been a thing for me in my history.”
“It is a basic instinct, and I think you are because you can. Circumstances have changed, and you are now in a situation with very different stresses. Have you ever had the floral tea that blooms in a teapot? After being prepared, it is tight and has a bland aspect to the world, but drop it in hot water, and it becomes something extraordinarily beautiful.”
“I am a dried flower in hot water?” She smiled.
“You are Khytten and becoming more yourself each and every day.”
She smiled. “So, why are you interested in playing with me along this journey?”
He glanced at her, and the look asked if she was stupid.
“I have never met a woman that was more suited to me, nor I to her. I am enjoying the transformation. And you are now up to four.”
She blinked. “Four?”
“For insulting your own development and for questioning my interest.”
She chuckled. “You are kidding.”
He shook his head. “I am not. Now you get another for doubting my seriousness.”
She covered her eyes. “Right. Still on the date.”
He laughed. “Still on the date. You did specify that light discipline was acceptable in our original contract.”
“Yeah, but I didn’t think about what that would entail, and I still thought a date was three hours long.” She ran her hand down his forearm and stroked his palm. “You, I could not have foreseen.”
He grinned. “I do make my living with the element of surprise.” He took her hand and brought it to his lips.
“Yeah. I am frequently surprised around you.” She snorted. “You are one sneaky cat.”
He chuckled, kissed her hand again, and they were entering the city. The active registry office was never that busy, but they had gotten a message from Torenne to head around the back.
They left the vehicle and entered the office, escorted in by a young woman with a serious expression. “Auditor Gorith is this way.”
They were escorted into an office, and the door was left open as they sat and waited. The auditor appeared a moment later, and Khytten blinked.
Six foot eight, tanned skin, and gold hair, he was impressive. He looked at them and stared. “Miss, you are Khytten Danforth?”
“I am.”
“You are here to make your declaration as an active and change your legal registry to a single name?”
She nodded. “I am.”
“And he is here...”
“He’s my ride.”
Gorith nodded slowly. “The Demon Cat of Aksalla is your ride.”
“It is a very reliable means of transport.” Salat chuckled and took her hand to lift it to his lips.
Khytten smiled. “Comfortable too. Most of the time.”
Gorith nodded. “Right. I just need to run the audit, and then, the paperwork can be processed. You are registering as a lactator?”
“I am.”
“What class?”
“Pardon?”
“Do you know what class of lactator you are? There are two others on the books, but they only produce milk.”
“Um, when I first looked into it, I was the only one. I didn’t know we had classes.”
He smiled kindly. “Please, extend your hand and place it in mine.”
She glanced at Salat, and he nodded.
Khytten slipped her hand into that of Gorith’s, and she blinked when his fingers closed around hers and his eyes went white for a moment. Then, as he rubbed his thumb along her fingers, his lips moved slowly. Flashes of silver, green, and black occurred in his eyes, and when he finished, they resumed the bright blue. He looked at her in shock.
“There has to be a new class for you.”
She blinked. “What?”
She tried to pull her hand back, but he had a grip that couldn’t be broken. He rubbed his thumb along her knuckles. “Yes, a definite new class. You can really heal with it?”
Salat nodded. “Heal, feed, sedate, arouse. She can tailor it to the person at her breast or to a previously identified need.”
“Right. I am going to posit a class that we use for healers.”
Khytten blinked. “What class?”
“Earth mother class.”
She blushed. “Oh.” He held her hand for a bit more, and she wiggled her fingers. “Auditor Gorith, may I have my hand back?”
He looked down and chuckled. “Apologies. You are extremely soft.”
He let her go reluctantly, and she moved smoothly as she retrieved her hand.
“Right, so what is your current occupation?”
“Uh, I volunteer at the hospital in the NICU.”
“And your paid occupation?”
She blushed brightly. “Escort.”
He paused and looked at her. “Escort?”
Salat smiled. “E-s-c-o-r-t. She is a contracted escort and occasional bounty hunter.”
“I am an escort with the Blind Date Corporation.”
Gorith smiled. “Ah, got it.”
She blinked and sighed. “You are a client.”
He quirked his lips and nodded. “I am. It is very convenient. I wonder why you never showed up in my options.”
“Usually, the lack of intersection means that we aren’t physically compatible. I don’t have what you need; you don’t have what I need.”
Salat chuckled. “And as Khytten is on exclusive contract to me.”
“Wait. We can do that?”
“If your escort agrees. It isn’t unilateral.” Salat held his hand out to Khytten, and she smiled and placed her fingers in his.
The kiss to the back of her knuckles was nice, but him rubbing his face against her hand made her heart stutter in her chest. She felt her lips part, her eyes felt sleepy, and he continued to move against her palm.
Gorith quickly entered his assessment results. “Right. Khytten, you are officially active. There is enough of a history for it to go through without question. Did you really go through peacekeeper training?”
“I did.”
“You didn’t graduate.”
“I did not. Family emergency.”
“Oh, you are close with your family?”
She smiled sadly. “I am not. My active adaptation lacks dignity and is socially embarrassing.”
He blinked. “Oh. I am sorry. You still left training for it?”
“Sure. It was life and death, and they are family.”
“You healed them?”
“Again
st their orders. It is a good thing that with the tubes in them, they couldn’t complain.”
“Huh. There is no family on your file.”
“They changed their names and moved.”
“Ah. Right. Well, you are all set. Your com data has been updated, so all is ready. You are now officially an active. Why did you wait?”
“Um, remember my parents? They refused to allow me to register officially, and then, they left.”
“I see. Well, you are cleared on the registry. Shame about the exclusivity.” He smiled. “Your wrist system will show active; the main system will take about an hour to update completely.”
Salat got to his feet and helped her to hers with the hand he still held.
Gorith smiled. “You are heading to the tribunal?”
Salat nodded. “We are.”
“I can’t show up, but please, keep Zera safe. I haven’t felt this human in years.”
Khytten smiled. “I will do what I can.”
He blinked and then looked her over. “A true shame.”
She smiled. “No room for shame. Have a nice day, Auditor.”
They headed out to the vehicle and headed for the tribunal. They got to the program control building and headed inside.
She was scanned by security and allowed through. Salat was stopped and examined but allowed to pass through. She laughed, and they headed for the large group outside the room that the tribunal was about to report from and stepped through the primarily male viewers who moved out of her way as she approached. Salat’s grim face behind her might have had something to do with the free pass they got through the gathered men.
They entered and walked up one of the aisles; Salat leaned against the wall and pulled her with her back against him, his arms around her. “You are doing excellent, kitten.”
She looked up at him, and he leaned down to kiss her softly, lifting his head as the bailiff called for order.
Khytten watched Zera questioned by the tribunal and was interested in the path the questioning was taking until it started to discuss the escorts. This was why Salat had brought her.
There were chuckles in the room, and the tribunal looked around. The speaker for the tribunal said, “There are some of them in here.”
Zera nodded. “Both masked and unmasked.”
Khytten steeled her nerves and called out. “Any questions?”
The tribunal stared at her ensconced in Salat’s arms, and she felt the protective aggression he was radiating.
“Uh, Miss...”
Salat grinned and growled. “She’s my kitten. Address her as such.”
The room at large chuckled, and Khytten lifted her arm and slammed her elbow back into Salat hard enough to make him exhale with a whoosh. She said, “Kitten is fine.”
The team members froze at her move, and the escorts chuckled.
The speaker asked, “Um, Miss Kitten, how long have you worked in this capacity?”
“Eight months.”
“How many interactions did you have in that time?”
“Three.” Salat nudged her. “Six. Three individuals and then one persistent repeater. Three formally arranged dates. I am now on an exclusive contract.”
The male on the left said, “I thought it would be more. You are a very attractive woman.”
Khytten snickered. “I am suited for a niche market. My active adaptation means that I am either very attractive or completely repulsive depending on my partner’s preferences.”
“What is your active situation?”
She grinned. “None of your fucking business. Odds are it would be trial and error, but Zera kept folks from going after me as a novelty. The two other guys I met up with were nice, but there were no sparks beyond the obvious.”
Salat murmured, “And as for her being for a niche market, I like her niche very much.”
Laughter rippled through the room. Khytten sighed in resignation.
Salat continued. “Fortunately, there are no restrictions against actives mating and breeding in Aksalla. We do not have any trouble with folk attacking our families. They know better than to bring in civilians or to risk being eradicated with extreme slowness.”
She could not believe that he had brought that up in a room full of actives who had to pay just to date someone.
“So, you are his romantic partner?”
Khytten blinked. “Um, yes, but he still has to book me.”
Salat grinned. “A bargain at twice the price.”
“You... he still has to pay?” The woman was surprised.
“Sure. I still have bills. Housing, that kind of thing.” When she managed to find a place. She had the feeling that it was going to be tricky to find the time to locate a home of her own.
In sudden understanding, the female member of the tribunal lifted her head, looking from her screen to Khytten and back again. “Oh, my god, you are the milkmaid.” The woman blinked. “I saw your file... you...” She blinked. “Your name is actually Khytten.”
Khytten wrinkled her nose. “Yes, and don’t call me the milkmaid unless you want a solid punch to the nose.”
Zera grinned.
The tribunal looked at each other and brought up Khytten’s file based on their next question.
“How will you deal with your partner being a citizen of a country you are banned from?”
Khytten snorted. “First, that is in the future, and second, we don’t need to live in the same place to spend time together. We don’t now, so I don’t foresee an issue.”
Salat growled. “It will be sorted.” He tightened his arms around his kitten until she squeaked.
Zera smiled. “They are the first solid match that the Blind Date Corporation has created.”
Khytten blushed. She was coming to understand that it was the eventual goal to hook active up with matching partners by getting comparative profiles. She looked up at Salat. Being the first match was going to draw a lot of attention. She was going to have to toughen her emotional stability again.
The tribunal was concluded, and Zera’s case closed. She and Torun left the chamber with the occupiers of the seats getting up and following her.
Salat waited and then took her hand, kissed it, and followed the stragglers out.
A man waited to speak to them, and she recognized the set of his shoulders. He smiled. “Your name is Khytten?”
She nodded. “Yes, Patron.”
Salat chuckled. “This is one of your earlier clients?”
“Yes, Salat.”
The man bowed. “My name is Bothin. It is a pleasure to actually meet your gaze for a change. I just wanted to thank you for the help you gave me.”
“I am glad that it worked as well as hoped.”
Salat inclined his head. “Please, excuse us. We have other places to go today.”
That was news to Khytten.
“Well, Khytten, if you ever need anything, you can just call team dispatch and ask for me.”
A huge hulk of a man leaning near the door nodded. “Or me. Sthuthan. While I was conflicted, Khytten, I always meant to contact you again.”
She nodded. “Thank you. It is nice to have a list of emergency numbers. Thank you very much.”
She headed for the door and heard three men murmur, “So, fucking polite.”
Salat said, “Even when she is begging to cum.”
Khytten stared at him, but he scooped her up and tossed her over his shoulder. It was a point that he was making, but it was embarrassing as the team members, other escorts, patrons, and anyone else that hadn’t cleared the lobby were watching.
He ran his hand up her thigh and patted her butt.
“You are such a dead man.”
“Seven.”
She pounded her fists on his back. “Asshole!”
“Eight.”
“Fucking jackoff! Humourless dick! Butthead!”
“Oh... kitten. You are up to eleven and fourteen
for the pounding that my back is taking.” He smacked her on the ass through the tight leather, and the sound caused the entire assembled lobby to stop and turned toward him. “That’s one.”
The second smack rang out, and there were a few nervous chuckles. She whimpered and pushed herself up a little, seeing a lot of hungry, dark gazes staring at her. There was another smack, and a few of the men staring at her must have seen the lust flare in her eyes. A few were scenting her heat, and she really didn’t like being in a room full of actives while this was going on.
“Um, Salat, can’t you get us out of here?”
He chuckled. “I can put you down, and you can run, kitten, but that would not be a wise idea. You have gained a lot of attention, and it wouldn’t be appropriate to set off their hunting instincts.”
“Um, Salat...”
“Yes?”
“They are getting closer.”
He turned and snapped his teeth at the other men before stroking her butt and leaving the building.
He kept her over his shoulder, and then, he set her on her feet next to the vehicle. He placed his thigh between hers and pressed it against her clit. She exhaled slowly before he kissed her against his car, lifting her, so she was suspended by the flexing of his thigh against her.
She wrapped her arms around his back and held him as he kissed her and teased her body into a short, hot climax. She whimpered his name as she shivered in his grip.
His gaze was sleepy and smug as he lifted his head. “Now, we have to get some lunch, and then, I need to have you with your babysitter by five.”
“That is humiliating.”
He chuckled. “There are about to be a lot of team members and other actives looking for a woman just like you. So, we need to hide you.”
“So, you dangle me out as bait, humiliate me in public, and then put me in a box?”
“Were you humiliated?”
“No, not really. I don’t care what they think.”
He grinned. “That’s my kitten.”
“Where are we having lunch?”
“I have reservations at a barbeque place. You know how I love licking my fingers.”
She groaned. “Fine. Let’s get in the vehicle and go. The traffic cameras probably caught everything.”
“Yeah, it’s a good thing that I parked where six converged on our location.” He held the door for her.