Chapter 17 #2
“You rock brained.” Berkr’s instant reply was met with a disbelieving snort. “What Berkr notice?”
“If you haven’t figured it out,” Sorak muttered snootily. “I’m not going to tell you.”
“Speak funny. Stupid head. Berkr no care you say.”
“That’s all part of the problem, isn’t it?” Sorak murmured silkily. “Pretending you don’t care.”
“Say lots of words for male that say nothing.”
“You’re right.”
There was a pause like maybe Sorak had broken Berkr’s brain with that one.
“Eh? What you mean you say that, Sorry head?”
“You’re right. I don’t care if you had her heart first. You might be the first she fell in love with,” Sorak stated confidently, “but I’ll be the last.”
A series of strange spluttering noises that sounded like they were coming from Berkr sounded off.
Then silence.
“What mean?” Berkr asked softly, quietly.
Silence.
“Eh. Where Sorry head go? Not follow Candy-ass relieve room. No make it weird, Sorry head.”
“To ask our generous hostess a question,” Sorak said simply.
A literal unicorn man walked past the room.
Less than a minute later Dace passed by the room again, barely missing him.
“Sorry head speaks no sense.” Dace was barely into the room and Berkr was yammering at her. “No listen him. Him stupid. You listen Berkr- Eh? Hear words Berkr say? Candy-ass?”
“Hm? What?” Dace muttered absently.
“No ask Sorry be Candy-ass mate no more,” Berkr blurted.
Dace was quiet for a long moment. “I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” she responded softly.
“Say not Berkr busy-ness. It Berkr busyness.”
“Not really,” she muttered after a very long pause.
“Yes,” Berkr cut in quickly.
Instead of arguing, Dace just let out a long sigh.
“No make sound like that at Berkr. Like Candy-ass mean ignore Berkr. Berkr right here.”
“I never noticed how much you sound like Rek sometimes… until Pru started pointing it out. She was right. Sometimes you’re toxic.”
Loud gasping sounds rent the air, interspersed by shocked, mouth farting noises.
“Berkr not like Rek!” Berkr burst out, right as Sorak came striding back down the hall and into the room.
“Why sit all way over there?” Berkr mumbled.
“Away from you,” Dace got out around what sounded like a mouthful of something.
“She mean you,” Berkr told Sorak.
“Both of you,” Dace said easily.
“Need eat more. No food make Candy-ass grumpy,” Berkr grumbled. “Here. Candy-ass likes those. Eat those. Eat all those. Look skinny any the ways. All bones, not meat. Get sick, not fats on you, get sick-sick and die.”
“Stop bossing me around. I’ll eat what I want,” Dace muttered through another mouthful.
“Leave her be. She’s fine,” Sorak grumbled in her defense.
“Don’t stick up for me. I can stick up for myself,” Dace sniped at him.
“Tea, miqep?” Sorak asked.
There was the sound of liquid pouring. The clinking of what I assumed was a cup.
My eyelids slid shut for a moment— what felt like a moment— to pop open right as Sorak and Berkr started up again.
“Shhh,” a loud voice hissed.
“What are you doing?” Sorak rumbled.
“What look Berkr doing? Sorry head worry ‘bout self.”
“Leave her be. She’s exhausted. You’re going to wake her up.”
“Then shuts up and Sorry head won’t,” Berkr hissed right back.
Sorak made a noise in his throat. “Give her here.”
“No.”
“Where do you think you’re going?”
“Take Candy-ass home, what look like Berkr doing?”
“Taking off with my tebbikep,” Sorak bit out.
“Sorry speak the nonsense,” Berkr grumbled. “See you say you sorry awful name for Candy-ass ‘nother time”
“I have kepkies to tend to.”
“Go. Yes. Tendy to Sorry head’s kep-keps. Berkr take Candy-ass home, put to bed, so she sleep, left be ‘lone.”
“I’ll follow you out.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
“Fine.”
“You already said that,” Sorak taunted.
“Oh, shuts up!” Berkr barked.
Wriggling in Kehl’s arms, I rolled to my side so I could face him. What surprised me was to find my horned lover wide awake, staring down at me curiously, patiently.
“No want move,” Kehl whispered. “Worried Kehl wake up ‘gain, find my Purr-roo still long dreamings.”
“How long a dreaming did I have?” I blurted. When my hand lifted to cup his face, I froze and stared in wonder at the sheen of white peach fuzz flocking my hand. There weren’t patches of fuzz anymore. I was covered in it and most of it was snow white!
Kehl captured my hand and nuzzled the fuzzy back of my hand. His purr was everything.
“Dades not leave, whole time. Stay, protect Pur-roo and you Kehl. She say, any the one touches the single hairs on heads, they die. Took Berkr long time get him knife back from Dades. Males come close, she say she take the balls off, they come try. Dades goot friend my Purr-roo.” Kehl smiled as he spoke.
“Very loud for very small female. Berkr and Sorak not leave ‘til Dades leave.”
“Where are we?” I whispered softly.
“Rothy house. They help, ‘tect too.”
“They- They’re protecting us?”
“Just case.” Kehl nodded.
His horns just itched to be touched. He had no idea how gloriously handsome, how dangerously sexy I found him in this form. My hot, horny rebel with a heart of gold just did it for me, what can I say?
Kehl let out a soft rumbling noise and reached out to smooth his fingers over my head. “How head? Hurt? My Purr-roo stop the screams, then get quiet, too quiet, worry Kehl.”
I was screaming?
I opened my mouth to answer but then I felt it. Mouth dropping open, my hand lifted and my fingertips followed along with his. “I’m fuzzy from my head to my toes, aren’t I?” I blurted.
My mouth felt kind of weird too. My fingers brushed along my teeth next. One, two, three sharp chompers, I’ve got in there? “I hust hook hinhane,” I breathed.
Kehl smiled down at me sweetly as he tugged my fingers from my mouth, examined and then kissed each one, then pressed his mouth firmly to mine in a curl my toes kiss that had him growling happily.
“Missed my Purr-roo. Kehl worried.” Gathering me up in his arms, he buried his face in my throat.
“Worry- Worry for my Purr-roo.” His voice cracked several times. He struggled to choke out the words.
“I’m so sorry you were forced to out yourself,” I mumbled as I nuzzled against him as well.
Pulling away, Kehl shook his head. “Kehl not see Kehl way my Purr-roo do. Kehl worry Lo denaii not ‘cept Kehl, make Kehl leave village, Kehl never see my Purr-roo ‘gain.”
“Like hell would those assholes ever be able to keep us apart,” I growled out furiously.
“I’d go with you. You’d have a hell of a time getting rid of me, even if you are more stubborn than a pack of goats.
They find Dace waving around a knife enough to fend them off, pfft, they don’t want to deal with me being separated from you. There would be hell to pay.”
Kehl grinned at my words, though I doubted he knew what a goat was, or hell, then I was rewarded for my murderous musings with a kiss.
As my lips parted and his tongue softly danced with mine, I felt myself sliding deeper and deeper under his spell when a loud, “Eh! She wake!” sounded. Heavy feet thundered down the hall as I jumped and a growl startled out of me. “My Rothy! Come the quick! She ‘wake!”
“Oh, thank heavens!” Dorothy cried out from somewhere in the house. “We’ll be right there!”
“Wait! Need the min-nut, they doing the long smooches, happy she be ‘wake!”
Kehl didn’t pay them any mind, smiling against my lips as I blushed so hard my face felt hot and my ears burned.
“My Purr-roo? You ‘kay?” Kehl rumbled out softly.
“Are you?” I asked.
“My Purr-roo ‘kay, Kehl ‘kay,” he purred happily.
“How bad is it?” I wondered aloud as I lifted my hand to study it. This was definitely going to take some getting used to.
It helped immensely when Kehl growled out, “My Purr-roo purredfect.”
Cupping his face, I stared deeply into his eyes, then pecked a kiss to his misshapen nose. “So are you.”
Kehl’s response was to crinkle his nose, wiggle it, kiss my laughing face breathless, then cuddle me close.
Nuzzling into his chest, I murmured, “You’re going to have to sell to Daisy or she’s just going to make herself a nuisance, you understand that, right? She’s nutsy cuckoo for the fabric you have. Charge her more but let her have it.”
Kehl let out a soft chuff. “Kehl not sell anyone bad to my Purr-roo. Fight all Daidzee males, then she see who bullies to Kehl into any the things.”
The idea of the diminutive woman bullying to get her way, picking on towering Lo denaii, would be funny if it weren’t true. She was an unholy terror when she had a stick up her butt about something.
“If she tries to sicc her mates on you again, I can’t promise she’ll stay intact.” A growl tore from my throat.
Curling in closer to Kehl, I murmured, “Take me home? I want to be home, alone, with you right now.” I didn’t care if we just snuggled in his bed like this, I just needed to be near him right now.
To make sure we were on the same page, I clarified, “To your hut. I don’t want to sleep alone ever again.
I’ll take you any way I can have you, I just don’t ever want to be another day without you ever again. ”
“All know Kehl has Krampus in Kehl now.” Pulling back, his hand lifted towards his face and he grimaced. “Stuck.”
He was stuck in this form?
“This form, the Lo denaii one, you could toss in a third if you like, I don’t care. I love you. I need you. Any way I can have you.” Brushing my hand along the side of his face, it slowly slid higher, lightly tracing several large scars along his temple, then higher.
Closing his eyes, he purr-rumbled like a madman. “Kehl has the luffs for Kehl’ Purr-roo,” he rumbled out.
“We should probably get out of bed and have a minute with everyone here before taking off,” I pointed out.
Kehl cracked an eye open as my hand stilled where it was admiring him. “Have to?” he muttered, which of course made me laugh.
“I’m pretty sure,” I got out on a chuckle.
My stomach chose that moment to let out an ungodly gurgle, horrible timing as always.
Kehl’s lips tipped up into a silly grin as a stupid blush flushed my skin. “Feed my Purr-roo, let healers look over, then we go,” he leaned in to whisper, then press his lips to mine as I nodded, as if to seal the deal.
“My Rothy! They ‘cide they want eat! I help! Bring food!” one of Dorothy’s mates called out.
“Someone run over to Dougie’s and tell them she’s awake for me, would you?! Elle has been popping over every hour on the hour to check in on her for them, bless her!” Dorothy called back.
“You ready, come lived in room,” Dorothy’s mate called out as he walked past our open door and down the hall. “Griever need bring chairs, sets up table.”
Kehl smiled happily as I hugged him to me anew.
When he would have gotten up, I wrapped my arms around his and forced him to stay where he was or risk jerking me up along with him. “Where are you going?” Leaning in, I bit playfully at his neck.
Kehl growled and a shiver stole over him. “My Purr-roo want eat first?” His voice had gone evil villain dark, deep, just shy of guttural.
“Maybe.” My lips tipped up as they pressed into his furry flesh.
“Feed you Purr-roo first!” Griever called out. “Then mate!”
That did it. Like a bucket of cold water had just been dropped atop my head, I let go of Kehl, spluttering at Griever’s brash words as I plopped back down onto the bed.
Kehl dropped down atop me, grinning evilly when I splutteringly insisted he let me up so we didn’t get reprimanded by Griever loud enough for the whole neighborhood to overhear what he was saying again.
“My Purr-roo not want Griever tell all my Purr-roo want her Kehl too much to eat the foods?” he teased.
“Eat the foods, then make the babies!” Griever called out agreeably.
“Now, I know you are not tormenting those two as they share a moment, my love,” Dorothy thundered out as she stormed down the hall with a hot dish leaving a trail of steam behind her in her wake.
“Who? Griever?” Griever grumbled.
“You’re a right butt when you decide to be, did you know that?” she shot back.
Griever laughed, the sound long and loud. Then, “Come. Give Griever, my Rothy best mate, the biggest kisses.”
A series of scoffs sounded off from elsewhere around their place. Dorothy’s mates all began growl-speak barking things at Griever, until he was huffing and chuffing and growling nonsense at them right back. The whole thing had me in stitches.
Realizing Khel had gone quiet, my gaze darted his way. “The head popping thingy unbroke the part of my brain that forgot how to understand the growl-speak.”
“You understand?” Kehl asked slowly in his native tongue.
“Yeah,” I said easily. “I still don’t know how to speak it, though, and some words I don’t know. They don’t make any sense to me. What’s a benass?” I blurted.
“Who say that?” Kehl asked.
“I heard Berkr grumble it at Sorak.”
Kehl let out a belly rumble at that one.
“What? What does it mean? What’s a benass?”
Shaking his head, Kehl stood and held his hand out to me.
“You’re not going to tell me, are you?” I muttered as I stood, grew a little wobbly legged, so he scooped me up and carried me to the bathroom.
Kehl just shook his head.
“On a scale of ass-butt to butt munch, what are we talking here? Little bad word? Big one? If I call someone one, how offended will they be?” Peppering him with questions, even long after I’d stopped caring as he helped me wash the stink off me and change into the clean clothes Dace had left for me, it was worth it just to hear him laugh like that.