Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Bayzon
“My vision is perfect.” She tilts her chin up defiantly. “I know what I see.”
“And what do you see?”
She makes a show of examining me slowly, deliberately, from the top of my head to my boots and back up again. The appraisal is so thorough that heat spreads up the back of my neck.
“Tall,” she announces. “Ridiculously tall. Broad shoulders. Good posture. Hair that’s somehow both wild and intentional?” She gestures at my braids. “The fangs are a lot, but I’m adjusting. And you have kind eyes, which I wasn’t expecting.”
“Kind eyes?”
“Don’t let it go to your head. You also have ‘touch her and I’ll remove your hands’ energy, which is less kind.”
I bark out a laugh…a real one, surprising myself. “I’ve never been described that way before.”
“Really? Because your brothers certainly seem to think so. They kept dancing with me specifically to watch you get upset.”
“My brothers are menaces.”
“They’re delightful,” she counters. “Cannibal promised to cook for me. The one with the long fangs called me ‘a delightful human’ and thanked me for helping him torment you.”
“That was Maxon. The youngest. He’s the worst of all of them.”
“I liked him.”
“You would.”
She grins at me, and I realize I’m grinning back like a fool. When was the last time I smiled this much? I can’t remember.
“So I’ve won the grand prize,” she says, gesturing at her mask, the only one remaining in the entire cavern. “I’ve heard that means I’ll win a cruise of the Nebula. I’ve always wanted to see it.”
“You’ll enjoy it. The views are spectacular.”
“You’ve been?”
“Once. Before my parents died.” The words slip out before I can stop them, and I see her expression shift to sympathy. “A long time ago now.”
“I’m sorry,” she says quietly. “Leah mentioned... she said your family has been through a lot.”
“We have. But we have each other.” I shake off the shadow of grief. Tonight is not the night for old sorrows. “And soon, perhaps, we’ll have another member to add to our chaos.”
She bites her lips and shifts on her feet. “You’re very confident about this.”
“I am confident about most things. It’s a flaw, according to my brothers.”
“I don’t think it’s a flaw.” She meets my eyes. “I think you know what you want and you’re not afraid to say it. That’s... refreshing. Most men I’ve known play games. They say one thing and mean another.”
“They were weak human males. I am Xylan and I will never play games with you,” I promise. “If I say something, I mean it. If I want something, I’ll tell you. If I’m wrong about something, I’ll admit it.”
“That’s a lot of promises from someone I just met.”
“I know.” I hold her gaze. “But I intend to keep every one of them.”
The prior dance ends and the last song begins, signaling the close of the evening.
Voices ring out around us in a loud cheer.
The crowd grows ever more raucous. A crush of bodies rush for the floor, to partake in the final dance.
Many exhausted Xylan have already left for home and their beds.
Those of us that remain are the ones who enjoy the finality of the countdown clock and watching the dark side of the moon along with the announcement of the grand prize winner.
Naomi is the only being in the room left wearing a mask.
Half of the Xylan around me have stripped off their costumes now too, in order to more easily dance.
I hold out a gloved claw and smile wide. “After dancing with two of my brothers and most of the other competing crews on this mine, have you saved the last dance for me?
She laughs and puts her gloved hand in mine. “Only because you ask so nicely.”
“If we dance, I’ll fully scent you,” I warn. “Do I have your consent to inhale deeply and confirm our bond?”
She blinks. “What does that mean?”
“If I stand closer and hold you in my arms, I’ll be able to fully scent your pheromones and know if you are my Bride.
It is very similar to clasping hands for testing mating compatibility.
We do not have to dance if this is something you are not ready for.
I know you wanted to hear my explanation earlier. ..”
“Does this mean you will instantly become enflamed?”
“No,” I rasp, because sudden explicit sexual images flash through my mind, of me, emptying my seed between this female’s thighs.
I lick my lips. “But you are human and I need to explain this to you carefully. Pheromones are powerful indicators for Xylan mating. We’ll both know that later, if we want to become mates, we can clasp bare hands and that’s when I will become enflamed.
And then we will immediately need to perform the claiming ceremony in the holosuite, which is a recreation of an ancient chase between mating Xylan in our forests on Chronos.
This is how we officially become legal according to the Scales of Xylan Law.
Do you understand a claiming and feel this is something you can do? ”
“Yes, Leah told me all about it when she married Saxon.”
I nod. “But I might become possessive once I inhale and confirm that you are my future mate. Just watching you this evening and standing next to you is already affecting me, so a deep inhale will certainly increase my need to keep you close.”
“You’re that certain we’re mates?”
“Yes. And I’m hoping that you’ll decide to take that new position offered to you and remain with me, here on Timbur.”
She smiles. “You do?”
“Yes.”
My Bride stares at me hard for a moment, processing all I’ve told her. Then the next song begins. “I understand. Let’s dance.” And she pulls me onto the dance floor.
I grasp her hand through two layers of fabric and feel the heat of her skin.
Never have I wanted so badly to touch a female’s skin.
My fangs scoring her and my tongue licking up her essence.
I’m losing my mind with want. I place my claw on the small of her back and swing us out among the other couples who are also enjoying the last dance.
Automatically, I move to the beat of the drums, taking her along with me.
“You’re good at this,” she murmurs, allowing me to guide her through the steps.
“I told you I enjoy dancing.”
“You did. I didn’t quite believe you.” She looks up at me through her lashes. “You seemed so determined to stand on the sidelines and glower.”
“I was glowering with purpose.”
“And now?”
“Now I’m dancing with purpose.” I pull her slightly closer. “Much better.”
The music swells, deep drums layered with a haunting melody that vibrates through the crystal-studded walls of the cavern.
Above us, through the massive opening in the ceiling, I can see the moon beginning its final approach toward total eclipse.
The light is changing, shifting from silver to something deeper, more primal.
“The eclipse is beautiful,” Naomi breathes, looking up.
“Yes,” I agree, but I’m not looking at the moon. I’m looking at her.
She catches me staring and laughs. “That was smooth.”
“I meant it.”
I gaze down at her beautiful features, still half disguised by her lone mask. Dancing with her in my arms is as wonderful as I assumed. She’s striking, with her black hair up at the nape of her neck. Her gown exposes the perfect slope of her shoulders and my arm is around her waist.
Our eyes lock and I admit, “I’ve been drawn to you since the first moment I saw you across the room. That’s never happened to me before. I don’t react this way to other females. Only you.”
Her eyes are on my lips. “I feel the same. And you smell wonderful. It’s addictive. Like sunshine and soil.”
“Sunshine and soil?” I repeat. “I work in a mine. I’m not sure those scents should apply.”
“And yet.” She inhales near my chest. “That’s exactly how you smell and I love it.”
“You feel it too,” I murmur. “The pull.”
“I feel... something.” She shakes her head slightly, as if trying to clear it. “I don’t understand it. I’m not usually like this. I don’t meet a man and immediately want to—” She cuts herself off and lets out a nervous cough.
I crook an eye ridge. “Want to what?”
“Nothing.”
“Tell me.” My voice has dropped lower. “Please.”
She won’t meet my eyes. “I don’t usually want to strip a man naked within hours of meeting him, okay? This is very confusing for me.”
A rumble of satisfaction rolls through my chest. “It’s the bond. Our pheromones recognize each other.”
“Is that what this is? Because it feels like temporary insanity.”
“Perhaps both can be true.”
We dance as if it’s just the two of us on the dance floor.
The fabric of her dress brushes around my legs.
This dance normally allows space between partners, but I pull her close, so her body is against mine and she allows it.
All the others fall away as if we are the only two beings left in the room.
The light and the noise of other voices and their movements drown away and it’s just us circling and circling.
And I’m now following the steps through muscle memory.
My arms tighten around her as we swing in close circles, ignoring everyone else.
“The other Xylan are watching us,” she whispers.
“Let them watch.”
“They’re going to talk.”
“They’re already talking. Lycrus over there has been running a betting pool on when I’d finally approach you. I believe the current wager is on whether I’ll clasp hands with you before dawn.”
Her eyes widen. “They’re betting on us?”
“Miners are bored. We find entertainment where we can.” I spin her gently, then pull her back in. “Don’t worry. I’ll make sure Maxon wins. He bet on midnight.”
“You’re going to rig the betting pool?”
“For my brother? Absolutely.”
She laughs, and the sound is the most beautiful thing I’ve ever heard.
I bury my nose in her human hair and inhale deeply, allowing myself to take in her fresh scent.
It’s nothing like I’ve ever felt before.
My lungs fill with warmth as I fully inhale her pheromones which light up receptors I never knew existed.
I’m not fully enflamed. I know this because my cock is not hardening but I feel an even stronger need to keep her close. I cannot let her out of my sight.
“What’s the verdict?”
My personal crystal is bright and warm in my pocket, continuing to confirm the Illibrium likes her too. “You’re mine. Does this frighten you?”
She reaches up and cups the back of my neck. “No. No, not at all,” she says with a hint of surprise. “I’m...happy?”
I bend down and lean my forehead against hers. “Good. And the reason you like how I smell is because my pheromones affect you as much as yours affect me.”
She laughs nervously. “Is this some crazy silent mind trick?”
“Maybe.”
“I was told I needed to make sure I wore the gloves of the unmated at all times, which I’m doing. I’m following the rules, but I’ve still started something with you. Is that wrong? Are they going to kick me off the planet and not hire me?”
“No, we have both been following the rules. Usually, Xylan clasp bare claws with another unmated Xylan during a formal mating compatibility test. But for me, I know ahead of time. No need to put us both through the ceremony.”
“But what if you’re wrong?”
I swing us around again. “I’m not wrong. It’s always correct. It’s always been you. I’ve been waiting for you to arrive on Timbur my whole life.”
She laughs. “You’re out of your mind. Have you been drinking?”
“No,” I chuckle. “The only one who has been drinking was you.”
“You saw that?”
“I’ve seen everything.”
And then the music stops and the clock strikes midnight.
“I win,” she shouts.
“You do.”
The other Xylan around us start offering their congratulations on Naomi’s win, but also our obvious connection, which they’ve been watching unfold all evening.
“Congrats, Chief on finding yet another human Bride to add to the fever brother’s growing collection,” a familiar voice chuckles in my ear. This is Lycrus, the crew leader always second best in our competitions.
A break in the crowd forms, allowing Naomi a path to the stage to accept her eventual award.
And then the lights cut out leaving only a shaft of moonlight from the opening above. A drumbeat starts, signaling the arrival of the Dark Moon.
“Outside, on the ground,” I tell her, “the entire planet is now being covered in darkness by the eclipse, which also affects the mine. We are about to experience utter darkness through the hole in the roof of this cavern. The lights are set to power down too, so we can comply with Dark Moon. It’s exciting for Xylan to perform this on Timbur because we are lucky to have this eclipse occur here, similar to Chronos.
All the other Xylan that live off planet must recreate Dark Moon on a holosuite, but we have the real thing here on Timbur. ”
Suddenly, a white mist fills the cavern, surrounding us and reaching tendrils up toward the ceiling.
Naomi turns. “Oh, is this mist part of the party too? Is this how it ends?”
A deep growl rumbles in my chest. “No, this has never happened.”