Epilogue
EPILOGUE
Kitty
T wo years later
The sound of the hover cart approaching had me straightening from where I was kneeling in the garden. I pulled my hands free of my gloves, dropping them to the ground next to where I'd been working. I rested a hand on the top of my bulging stomach as I surveyed my handiwork. I had been planting flowers in the beds that flanked the small cottage Jon and I called home.
The garden beds were currently turned dark rich earth, but soon they would flower, bringing a splash of bold color to contrast with the white stone fence that kept the grazing animals away from the house. I smiled, pleased with my progress, and patted my bump. “It’s going to be lovely here, just like your Great Gran’s garden.” A kick was my only reply, and I smiled before straightening and pushing to my feet.
I stepped onto the white stone path that led from the front door of the cottage to the gate, putting my hands to my lower back to stretch before walking to the gate to meet the hover cart as it approached.
“Hello, Kitty!” The cheerful voice of Leesa, the human woman who ran the local delivery service, greeted me. She pushed the wide-brimmed hat back off her head and waved, a friendly smile spreading across her face. She was a tiny woman, even shorter than me, with black hair that fell to her waist in a thick braid. Her deep brown eyes were hidden behind protective goggles that she wore when doing her delivery runs.
Leesa was the only other human on this planet, and I had been pleased to make a friend, even if she was rather closed mouthed over how she had ended up here. But that was the unspoken rule here; you didn’t ask questions, and you were left alone. For the last two years, Jon and I had built our life here, and we were happy. Here he was simply Jon, and I was Kitty. No last names. No titles. Just us.
And neither of us wanted to jeopardize our life here because we snooped into somebody else’s business. So I was friends with Leesa and didn’t ask questions about her background.
“Good morning, Leesa!” I called in reply, leaning against the gate as I waited for her to pull the cart to a stop. She turned to rummage through the bag next to her, pulling something out and reaching down from the cart to hand it to me.
“What's this?” I asked, turning over the parcel.
“Something that mate of yours ordered, by the looks of it,” she said. “For the baby, perhaps? How is your pregnancy going?”
I smoothed a hand over the swell beneath the tunic that I wore and smiled. The first time Jon had bitten me hadn’t resulted in a pregnancy. It turns out there was a lot more to it than just biting me and hoping for the best. It had taken over a year for us to conceive and we were patiently—or not so patiently in my case as this kid liked to kick me in the bladder—awaiting the newest member of our family.
The little one wasn't due for another few months, but I looked like I was about to pop any day. “Who knows with a human and Gnaggarrian hybrid?” I said with a shrug. “As far as I can work out, they gestate for twice as long as we do.” The thought of being pregnant for that long made me shudder. And with summer approaching? I grimaced.
Lisa read my expression and quickly changed the subject. “You don't know any decent men around here, do you?”
“You mean apart from the one I’m mated to? Sorry, can’t help you there,” I said. I laughed as Lisa rolled her eyes.
“I might have to send off planet for one.” She groaned.
“A mail order husband?” I offered with a grin.
We shared a laugh. “Maybe that’s what I need to do,” she said. “I’d better get going or I won’t deliver these before dark.”
“You could use drones, you know.”
“But how would I get to know my customers? Hmm?” She raised an eyebrow as she started the hover cart and headed off with a cheery wave. “Say hello to that mate of yours for me.”
“I will!” I called in reply, watching as Leesa’s cart disappeared further along the track that led to the next farm.
I turned to walk back toward the cottage, tucking the package under my arm. The small, white stone path that Jon had laid led to the front door. The cottage itself was made of the same white stone, of which there was ample in the area he had bought land. The roof was made of a special solar tile that generated the energy we used in the home. The climate here was warmer than I had been used to on Earth, and more humid. It didn’t snow in the cooler months, and it was steaming hot when the rains that fell during the summer. Jon had built our home in the shape of a rectangle, with a large central courtyard filled with plants and a small fountain. It was my favorite spot to sit in the heat of the day.
And that’s where I headed now, easing myself into the padded chair Jon had found for me when I had complained of a sore back.
I turned the package over in my hand.
“You can open it.”
I looked up to see my mate wiping his hands on a towel as he walked into the courtyard. He smiled, pushing an errant strand of hair back over his shoulder. I let my eyes dance over him, taking in the broad shoulders that had only become more muscled from the increased manual labor. His tail swished in a gesture I knew to be impatience, even if it didn’t show on his face.
My mate had an expressive tail.
“What is it?” I asked, looking up at him.
“Open it,” he said, walking toward me to squat down beside my chair, his head at the same level as mine. “I ordered it the first week we arrived, but it has taken a long time to get right.”
My eyes widened as they locked onto his, the parcel clutched to my chest. That had been almost two years ago. What was this? Intrigued and excited, I turned back to the package and opened it, a small red velvet box falling into my hand.
“Oh, Jon,” I said, gasping as I opened it and saw what was inside.
“I hope you like it,” he said, a slight blush covering his sun-darkened cheeks. He plucked the ring from the box and slid it onto my finger. “I wanted you to have something of your home. And besides, it’s almost Christmas.”
I lifted my hand, tears filling my eyes. It was a Claddagh ring, a traditional Irish band with two hands holding a heart and a crown. In the center was a sparkling cluster of pale purple gemstones.
“It’s beautiful. Thank you,” I said, leaning forward as much as my expanding belly would allow to kiss him lightly on the lips. Jon rose and tugged me to my feet before sitting and pulling me onto his lap. He adjusted me so I was tucked under his arm.
“Only the best for my mate,” he said, kissing me on the forehead. He rested a large hand over mine on my belly, fingers tracing circles through the tunic I wore.
We shared a smile, and I thought—not for the first time—that this home we had built together was so much more than I had ever hoped for.
What a Christmas gift, indeed.
The End