Chapter 15
I would keep her safe forever.
Filbur
Isat in the pink sand, the seashells warm in my hands as I attached them to Tamara’s new teal dress’ straps. My perfect human bride was twirling around in the sea, her little feet splashing water everywhere.
Naked.
The temptress.
Juni came by this morning to bring Tamara some new clothes—including the teal dress that she had apparently been ogling before our partnering ceremony. Safe to say that we were busy when she showed up and nearly did not hear the knock on the door.
When I came back in, Tamara had left our current mating spot and was dancing on the shore. Unbothered by potential wandering eyes. Unguarded. Absolutely hypnotizing.
So I just sat there with the dress, adding seashells and watching her.
My perfect bride.
“This tastes really good,” she said, licking the juice from her lips. The sight sent blood straight to my cock. “What did you call it?”
“It is satha juice. It grows on beach trees, we have lots of them.”
“It’s the sweetest thing I ever had.” She took another sip. “The fruits on my planet are…not good.”
“You can have as many as you want here,” I said, pulling her closer to me, plastering her back against my chest. “Do you like the dress?”
She turned her face to give me the most beautiful smile. “I love it. And I love it even more with the seashells.”
“Really?” I asked, pulling one of her braids to roll it between my fingers.
“Yes, really.”
We stayed silent for a beat. Her, quietly drinking her satha juice and looking at the sun setting on the sea while I distractedly wove some seashells into her hair.
“Thank you,” she said softly after a moment.
“For what?”
She shrugged. “For giving me a home. For making me feel safe and cherished. For giving me time to heal with you.”
The back of her head met my chest and she sighed. Content. Relaxed. I kissed the top of her hair.
I would keep her safe forever.
Tamara’s hand was small and soft in mine as we walked the narrow street. The second group of our people had arrived today and the celebration had already started. Colorful food stands lined the streets, merchants selling trinkets called from their tables, Cancos from other clans arrived to visit.
My human bride looked at everything and everyone with wide eyes and a huge smile on her face.
“This looks like a fancy holiday resort,” she said as I pulled her closer, saving her from colliding against someone else.
“I have no idea what this means.”
“And I have no idea how to explain. It was a long time ago and I’ve only seen pictures and read articles about it.
” She frowned, like trying to force the memories back.
“The island I was born in used to be one. People came from all over our world for their vacation. They paid a lot of money to stay in very fancy hotels, enjoy the beach…They did leave trash everywhere, though.”
I was still not closer to understanding. What was a vacation? Money? Hotels? Trash? That word sounded harsh.
But I just smiled. “Is it a good thing?”
“Not sure. Your world is better. People look more respectful. Even breathing is easier. I wouldn’t want tourism to destroy this.”
What the fuck was tourism?
“So it’s good most people don’t know about this system,” she continued. “I’d hate to see it become like Earth.”
She squeezed my hand tighter and pulled me toward a food stall. Good. It was time she stopped thinking about her past. It was time she only focused on the present and the future.