Chapter 19
CHAPTER NINETEEN
Selena
A soft beep woke me.
I grumbled as I snuggled against whatever downy fuzz I’d fallen asleep on, rubbing the side of my face along it.
The beep sounded again.
A flash of memory.
A beep signaling another session on the Yaarkins ship...
Fear flooded me, and I jerked awake.
“Everything is okay, Selena. You are here with me. Someone is paging the door,” Xylo soothed against my ear.
Opening my eyes, I pulled my arms from around his body. I tried to lift off his chest, but the silver blanket was so tightly wrapped around us, I couldn’t move. The lights were still off, but light filtered in from the glass wall overlooking the terrarium.
“Can’t you tell them to go away?”
“If that is what you want. But I need you to get off me first,” Xylo chuckled.
My cheeks burned at the sudden memory of why I was in my current position, and I shifted on his lap.
Xylo untangled his vines from around our blanket cocoon and lifted me with a smile. Laying me back down on the mattress, he tugged the blanket over me with a soft caress.
“I will see who it is and be right back.”
Returning his soft smile, I nodded.
The beep sounded once more as I watched Xylo lock his wristband on and walk out of the bedroom.
I snuggled into the blanket’s silky softness and sighed. So much had happened last night, I wasn’t sure how to process it all.
Clearly, Xylo and I were compatible—I’d been able to trigger and accept his bonding spores.
Sex between us had been entirely pleasurable.
Much more so than with the father of my children.
There had been no pain, and other than me leading the initial foreplay, Xylo had taken care of everything.
As I thought back, I realized he hadn’t needed to thrust or move at all, unlike all the texts I had read on the Yaarkin ship or in my dreamscape.
Or during my one painful experience with him.
My stomach rumbled, and I realized I needed to get up and get dressed.
I crawled out of the nestbed, dropping the blanket and headed over to the door I hadn’t opened yet.
It opened to reveal a large walk-in closet, filled to the brim with clothes and accessories.
Wooden chests sat on the closet floor, and I itched to explore the many drawers.
Another time.
At random, I grabbed a pair of black baggy pants and a loose emerald tank.
Ignoring the rest, I searched for a pair of shoes.
My eyes lighted on a pair of golden slip-ons.
I scooped them up and headed to the bathroom through the connecting door.
Given my newfound love of water, I was eager to test out the divine bathtub.
I set everything on the shelf next to the tub, then paused to let Xylo know what I was planning.
I sought out the golden thread that connected us.
Did it seem a little more substantial today?
Thicker and shinier, the strand felt more refined, woven tightly throughout my mental shields—the mental shields he had taught me to build in our dreamscape.
Following the strand, I connected to Xylo, testing our strengthened link.
“Is it safe to take a bath? Or should I get dressed and come out to you?”
“Kaede was at the door. He is wondering why you have not had breakfast yet. Do you want to bathe before we eat?” his deep mental voice stroked along my nerves, making me shiver.
I looked sadly at the tub, then shrugged. Food first. I was hungry and didn’t want to keep anyone waiting. And I wanted plenty of time to soak and enjoy.
“Let me get dressed. I’ll be right there.”
I washed and dressed quickly, then walked out of the bedroom, snapping my wristband back onto my forearm.
Kaede wore the same uniform as yesterday and stood in the center of the room, whispering to Xylo.
“Good morning!”
Both males turned toward me and a smile crossed Xylo’s face. He seemed different—perhaps happier—today. Was completing our bond the cause of it? I hadn’t realized it would make such a difference to him.
“About time you got up. You shouldn’t be skipping meals,” Kaede fumed.
“What time is it?”
“Past lunch, which is the reason I’m here. I didn’t think babysitting was part of my job description.”
Rolling my eyes, I lifted my chin and stared Kaede down.
“I am twenty-five years old. I am fully capable of taking care of basic functions and knowing my own needs. Plus, I have Xylo—a Master Scholar who knows even more than perhaps I do—to make sure everything’s all right.”
Kaede grunted and looked away. When his eyes lighted on the side of Xylo’s neck, Kaede exclaimed, “What in Fate’s name happened to your neck?”
Xylo had a white mark on the side of his neck.
Stepping closer to get a better view, I stared.
Grabbing Xylo’s chin, I turned his head to the side, using my other hand to trace the mark.
When I’d bitten him in my frenzy last night, I had left a mark.
It was slightly raised, its ridges white above the charcoal skin.
It nestled between two of his blue and green splotches, almost like a constellation nestled in his space-patterned scales.
A beautiful mark on his gorgeous body.
“I did this?” I asked, releasing him.
“You think I am gorgeous?” he countered, shocked.
Standing on my toes, I placed a quick kiss on his soft lips.
“I have mentioned this to you before,” I said before glancing at Kaede, my eyes landing on his visor and drape. “Unlike Kaede, who’s decided no one gets to see anything about him other than his hair and ears.”
My stomach decided to make itself known with a vengeance and growled loudly.
“How about a late lunch? Perhaps at the cafe? I want to see if Odelm is playing.”
The three of us had lunch in the cafe. Sadly, there’d been no sign of Odelm or anyone else I knew.
Then Xylo had insisted on a trip to the infirmary.
The four healers had inspected me, discussing how to get a more accurate image of the offspring growing inside me.
They had explained Circuli had no need of imaging technology since their pregnancies lasted only three days.
The sexual organs didn’t develop until after they were born.
Gender was known from their birth color—females were born a pure white while the males were pitch black.
As they huddled in the corner and Kaede paced, I pondered my pregnancy.
They kept referring to offspring, but I wasn’t sure that felt right to me.
I wasn’t sure what term to use for whatever was growing inside of me.
Children is what I had read about in my Earth studies—but they were not entirely human.
Cubs, as the feline Aldawi used? I would need to give it some thought.
Xylo’s voice broke into my thoughts.
“Kaede. Can you come over here?”
Kaede strode over to the group clustered around a display panel and looked at the screen. He tilted his head to the side as the room fell silent. I couldn’t see what they were looking at—were they intentionally blocking it from my view?
My anxiety started to climb.
“What’s wrong?”
Kaede disconnected from the group and walked over to me. Xylo followed while the other three males simply stared at me.
“Congratulations are in order. I was clearly correct about this ship being outdated—or more like, they weren’t fully trained on its equipment.”
“What does that mean?” I squeaked, trying not to panic.
Kaede placed the large, thin, transparent screen they’d used yesterday over my stomach and turned it on.
The digital image I’d seen yesterday appeared.
Kaede’s black-gloved hand moved across the screen and the image disappeared.
A moment later, the room dimmed. A colored three-dimensional projection of my womb appeared above my bed.
“Looks like the size of your litter is three—not two. Your twin sons were blocking your daughter in their initial scans, which detected only two heartbeats. Aldawi identical twins are a rare phenomenon—not much is known about them—but it seems the hearts of your sons beat in unison.”
My mouth hung open as I stared at the projection.
I reached up, trailing my fingers through the image of my unborn children. My other hand rubbed my growing stomach. I blinked. For the first time, the fact I was pregnant—that I was going to have children—hit me hard.
I was going to be a mother—to a species so very unlike my own.
I glanced up at Xylo in panic.
The understanding in his gentle teal gaze steadied me. Looking down, I placed both hands on my belly in wonder.
“It looks like you’re going to be the father of three.”
“F-F-F-Father?” Chyox stammered.
I glanced up at the group still standing on the far side of the room. Their faces ranged from shock to confusion.
I smirked.
“I accepted Xylo last night. He is mine. He agreed to co-father any children I may have—no matter the sire—and I have given him the freedom to continue his job at his discretion. We are bonded, but I do not want everything to revolve around me. I want a large family based on affection and mutual respect. Equality.”
Kaede pressed a few buttons, and the projection disappeared. The lights came back up. He pushed aside the display and offered me his black-gloved hand. Taking it, I climbed off the exam table and straightened my shirt.
I joined Xylo and slid my hand in his.
“A large family?” Chyox queried.
“She is not against having multiple mates but will not be actively pursuing them. I believe cohesion and a healthy family dynamic is what she is seeking. All she wants is love and acceptance for who she is.”
I looked up at Xylo in shock. How could he know my thoughts so intimately? Had completing our bond strengthened our mental connection so much?
“I’m surprised none of you mentioned the bite mark on his neck,” Kaede laughed.
A flurry of questions ensued amidst surprise I’d attack Xylo. Chyox snidely remarked he’d known I was a savage. They all wanted to examine Xylo for diseases. I wanted no part of this discussion.