Chapter 4 #2
More laughter drifted through the window and they both looked that way.
Juni was on the other side of the square, her hands moving as she talked to one of the vendors.
The male, older and grizzled, nodded along, obviously charmed.
Goraath’s jaw tightened. In one morning, she’d made more connections in the colony than he had in years.
“She’s a natural with people.” Grall watched her. “Already got old Raaith wrapped around her finger. He never gives away produce, but look at that.”
The vendor was pressing vegetables into Juni’s hands, waving off what looked like protests. She beamed at him, and even from here, he saw the way the old male’s expression softened.
Heat coiled in his gut. Not jealousy. Couldn’t be. He crushed the thought before it formed. Jealousy over a female he didn’t even want? Draanthing ridiculous.
Two younger males had joined the group. One of them said something that made Juni laugh again, and he leaned closer, clearly interested.
The heating coil package crumpled in Goraath’s grip.
“Careful with those.” Grall’s voice held amusement. “They’re fragile.”
He dropped the package into his cart and moved to the next aisle. He needed to focus on the list. Not on the way that male was standing too close to Juni, or on how she didn’t seem to mind.
The bell above the door chimed.
“Well, look who got lucky.”
Tarex stood in the doorway, arms crossed, his expression unreadable as he glared at Goraath. They’d known each other since childhood, trained together before Goraath had followed his mother into warrior service. Once, they’d been close as brothers.
That was before.
“Tarex.” He kept his voice neutral.
The other male moved into the store, gaze sliding to the overloaded cart. “Lot of supplies for one person.”
“Two people now.”
Something flickered across Tarex’s face.
“Right. Your female.” The words came out wrong, twisted with a hint of what might have been bitterness. “Saw her outside. She’s... small.”
Tension crawled up Goraath’s spine.
“Soft too. Those curves.” Tarex’s jaw worked. “Not built for this life, is she? Probably won’t last the winter.”
“She’ll adapt.”
“Or she’ll leave when the warriors return.” His old friend studied a shelf of preserved goods, too casual. “Might be better for everyone if she did.”
Goraath turned. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing. Just... not everyone thinks this program is a good idea. Bringing in outsiders, changing everything we’ve built here.” Tarex’s eyes were hard. “Some of us were fine with how things were.”
Some of us.
Some people believed the colony should maintain its “pure” Latharian heritage rather than dilute it with human blood. Such views edged disastrously close to Purist leanings.
“The vote was passed,” he said. “They’re here.”
“For now.” Tarex moved toward the door, then paused. “You always were lucky, Goraath. Getting things you didn’t even want.”
The bell chimed as he left.
Grall whistled low. “That was... interesting.”
Interesting. That was one word for it.
Goraath went back to shopping, but his mind churned. Tarex had wanted to enter the lottery. Had argued for it at the council meeting and then lost when the names were drawn.
He moved closer to the window. Juni had moved on to another stall. The vendor was showing her fabric. Bright and colorful fabric. The kind that would stand out against his dark stone walls.
His feet moved before he decided and he found himself in the depot’s back corner where Grall kept what he called “nonessentials”…
decorative items. String lights that ran on battery cells.
Preserved plants that kept their color when dried.
Fabric in jewel tones that would fade in the brightness of the twin suns.
Draanthing stupid. She’d been here two days and already he was breaking his own rules.
But he remembered her face when she talked about Christmas. The way her eyes had lit up. The pathetic garland she’d made from scraps…
He grabbed the string lights. Three sets. The preserved plants, a vine with silver leaves that caught the light. A bolt of deep red fabric that served no purpose on a ranch but might make her smile.
“Thought you weren’t participating in her Earther traditions.” Grall’s voice came from behind him.
“I’m not.”
“Uh-huh.” The older male moved past him, pulling down a box from a high shelf. “My mate carved these from wood for midwinter. Frivolous, she said, but she’d always spend hours arranging them just so.”
He pressed the box into Goraath’s hands. He lifted the lid and his gaze flew to Grall’s in surprise. Inside, there were dozens of small carved stars and spirals, all nestled in soft fabric. They were delicate, and obviously made with care.
The kind of thing that had no place in a utilitarian ranch house… the kind of thing he already knew would make Juni’s face light up.
“I can’t—”
“Take them. They’re just collecting dust here.” Grall’s expression softened. “Sometimes the little things matter most.”
Goraath added the box to his pile. The cart was overflowing, but Grall processed it quickly, putting the balance on his tab. It would be cleared when he brought the krulaati to market in the spring.
The sound of high voices greeted him as he pushed the door open and stepped outside. The females were saying goodbye, hugging again.
He loaded supplies quickly, his hands moving on autopilot. Heavy work usually centered him, cleared his head. Not today. His mind circled back… her laughter with the others compared to the silence when she was with him.
“An hour.”
He turned. Juni stood by the transport, a little out of breath and her cheeks pink from cold or from hurrying… he wasn’t sure which. She’d wrapped his jacket tighter around herself, and the sleeves still swallowed her hands despite being rolled up.
“You’re right on time.”
Her eyebrows rose. “I said I would be.”
He finished securing the last crate and closed the cargo area. The supplies only just fit in. He’d bought too much. She moved toward the passenger side, then stopped. “Did you get everything you needed?”
He thought of the string lights. The carved ornaments. The red fabric.
“Yes.”