Chapter Nine
Two days later, Riimal was off doing princey things, and Ival was working on her next book, set in Hyreno.
She got a call and smiled. “Hey, Hemma. How are you doing?” She put her up on the big screen.
“Nervous. Really nervous. They have narrowed it down to four possible patrons for me. What do I do?”
“So, they are all alphas and can breathe water. All Hyreno?”
“Two are Hyreno, and the other two are Sethir alphas who breathe water. They have homes in both places.”
“But do they play polo?”
“Oh. I can ask that?”
“You are not a standard escort; this is a courtship attempt. Ask them how big their cocks are and what they got their mother last Mother’s Day. You can ask it all.”
Hemma smiled. “Can you help me out?”
“Sure. Can you send me the files?”
“Yes. How are you and Riimal getting along?”
Ival chuckled. “Pretty well. I have a mark on top of the first one, and he’s grinning at people, and they are freaking out.”
“Why?”
“Because smiling used to be the last thing on his to-do list. Right now, he is grinning and beating the hell out of other alphas. I am answering mail and working on getting my characters into a compromising position.”
Hemma chuckled. “So, same old, same old.”
“Just a different location. Yes. A little less sleep.” Ival smiled.
“You look happy.”
“I feel... happy, I think. Certainly relaxed.”
“So, you two have—”
“Connected. We have connected. About five times a day the first day and three times per evening after that.”
“Wow. Is that normal?”
“He was in rut, so yes. Twice a night and once if I make a move in the morning will probably be about average.”
“Wow.”
“We waited a long time to find each other. His wait was longer than mine, so he is highly invested in making sure I don’t have regrets.” Ival smiled. “If I play my cards right, I can get a pony.”
Hemma burst out laughing. “One of the Sethir who is courting me is on the polo team.”
Ival smiled. “It’s a good starting point. You could hang out with Vallu during matches.”
“That’s... not a bad idea.”
“Make a list of things you want. I know access to Hyreno is one of them. You want to be able to visit Ekbert. You want to have someone that you trust when your gills open. There is a seventy-five percent chance it will make you insanely horny.”
“Yeah. I have done some research.”
“So, go on a date. Have some food. Pick what you like, even if it’s festival cakes or tacos.”
“Really?”
“Yes. If he doesn’t listen to this appetite, he is less likely to listen to your others. Oh, and always find a place for dessert.”
Hemma smiled. “Okay.”
“And get Keska to trick you out with trackers. I can have Roar to wherever you are in about a minute.”
“Thanks. Oh, and Salat still wants to meet with you.”
“The writing thing?”
“Yes. He thinks his comics are missing a certain something. He’s been reading your books and likes the romance and mayhem.”
“Fine. I will contact him. I have some time.”
“He’s also interested in your cover art.”
“Of course. I draw more realistically than he does.”
Hemma smiled. “He and Khytten are really nice.”
“I know. How is Ekbert taking things?”
“He’s taking half his graduating class to a live range tomorrow, and the whole thing is reserved for them. He’s adjusting.”
Ival chuckled. “He’s picked his research post?”
“Yup. The Nyvalli drop off.”
“That is a fantastic area.”
“You have seen it?”
“I did research for an underwater romance. It was lovely.”
Hemma smiled. “I think I will enjoy seeing bits of the world one day.”
“You just need someone to stand behind you, or in front of you. Either way, you need backup. Keska is an amazing shield, but you need a life of your own.”
Hemma nodded. “I know. Sorooth is also offering to vet all candidates, and he can, since he has status with a number of governments as a minder of integrity.”
Ival smiled. “Then, ask them the questions with Keska, Sorooth, and Kessie there. See how they respond to you having family. If there is a favourable response, you have another piece of the puzzle. You aren’t looking to get laid; you are looking for a partner.
Make sure they feel like one, act like one, and that you can breathe with them next to you.
Fast pulse is fine, but make sure you can breathe. ”
Hemma smiled. “Can you breathe with Riimal?”
“Yeah, breathe, gasp, moan, laugh, we do it all.” Ival smiled.
“Do you go into heat?”
“Nope.”
“Oh. You aren’t an omega?”
“I have a chemical activation. I am differenty.” She smiled.
“Riimal knows?”
“He checked fairly thoroughly. His beast keeps muttering that it isn’t time yet, so something is going on because he is also a chemical activation but with a shifter bias.”
“Have you seen his other form?”
“I have. Yes. Himera has said it is considerably larger now.”
“Is it a big, gold dragony thing?”
“Yup. He likes to check on me during the day, and I pretend I don’t notice.”
“You might want to; he’s getting closer.”
Ival sighed and turned around. “Oh. Riimal. You look bigger than the last time I saw you.”
The huge gold-and-scaled head was looking at her, turning its head from side to side.
If this version of him had bitten her, he would have sliced her in half.
He moved in through the open floor-to-ceiling window.
He swayed in toward her, a snake that extended across the courtyard and coiled in the practice area.
He pressed his head to her. She murmured, “Aren’t we just the biggest boy?” She stroked his scales and rubbed between his eyes.
There was a muffled laugh from the com unit behind her. Riimal didn’t care. He just let his lids droop, and he pressed his muzzle to her. His head was wider than she was.
She patted him. “Coming home for lunch?”
He nodded against her.
“Okay, then you go and stop scaring your trainees and come here, and we can have lunch and then dessert.”
His eyes flared open, and she heard the happy hiss as he backed out of the window.
Hemma had her hand over her mouth. “Wow.”
“Yeah, I know, he normally has pants on.” Ival smiled and went to tell the housekeeper that Riimal was going to come for lunch and he would be extra scaley. The housekeeper grinned and nodded.
Hemma was waiting. “You handle him really well.”
“I don’t handle him. I give him honest responses to honest queries.
He wants a mate, and I want to be held. We can meet in the middle, and we both get what we need.
Figuring out what you need is the actual key to being happy.
When someone can work to give that to you, and you can help give them what they need without injuring or humiliating yourself, you might have the chance to find something good.
But hold your emotional health to a high standard.
If something wobbles it, jump on that shit—friends, therapists, doctors.
Understand what is going on. You had a complicated adolescence.
Don’t think that won’t mess up your relationship dynamics. ”
Hemma sighed. “This is complicated.”
“It is a whole new activity in your life. Think of it as training for a new job in an exclusive partnership.”
“A job?”
“Yes. It takes work on both your parts. Eventually, the work becomes a habit, but it still requires maintenance. Adaptation. And evolution.”
Hemma blinked. “How do you...”
“I was married. I was married for several years to a man who risked his life daily and who had a mother who hated my guts. I put up with her for him. When he died, she sold me back to Uradda. He taught me that love could be balanced and that fear could be lived with. That let me survive what happened after he died. I appreciate joy in life now. I know it when I see it.”
Hemma blinked. “So, what should I do?”
“If Salat and Khytten come by with Baola or Lyric, ask if they can help you see your true partner.” She smiled.
“Don’t ask a seer who will make you happy.
They will show you a mirror because you are the only one who can make you happy.
Others only give you the potential to be happy.
It still requires a leap of faith. Find someone you want to have faith in.
Zera has already taken care of the physical compatibilities, so that worry is gone.
They are alphas, so when you go into heat, that is taken care of, and awkwardness can be managed with some instruction if things don’t follow precisely according to the script.
Recommendation is that you start having sex before the heat takes hold. ”
Hemma blinked. “I think I am going to write notes.”
“I will send you a synopsis.”
Hemma laughed. “Thank you, and call Salat.”
She heard the door open. “Yup. Gotta go. Lunch is here.”
She winked at Hemma and disconnected the call.
She got up and walked into the kitchen, staying at a safe distance. The housekeeper grinned. “He’s in the dining room with a bib on. He muttered something about dessert first, but I will wait until you rap twice on the table before I bring in the meal.”
“Oh, that’s safe. I knew I liked you.”
The older woman laughed and shooed Ival into the dining room, and she stopped when Riimal did indeed have a bib on. He grinned. “I have a meeting with my brother after lunch, so I didn’t want to stop to change.”
She laughed and walked to him, leaning down for a kiss that somehow ended up with her on the table with her thighs over his shoulders. Dessert first.
She wasn’t mad about it.
Tea with Himera was weirdly quiet until the queen finally blurted out, “What is going on with Riimal? He’s huge!”
Ival sipped her tea. “Nothing that the affections of a good woman couldn’t inspire.”
Himera blinked. “That’s all?”
“He kept himself stunted. People here were already upset by his size. He didn’t want to be a two-hundred-foot sand dragon looking for a partner. Partner has been acquired. He can be himself now.”
“And what about you?”
“I can be a happy little writer with a partner to lean on. My activation is resetting still, but I can use the oil from my hands as a topical anesthetic so far.”
“You have tested it?”