Just Friends (Planet Double Dick #17)

El-Frankin

I shove the vehz into top speed and tear over the swaying crop field, not as high as I should be going over it because I’m feeling reckless and frustrated. The heads of the stalks brush on the underside of my vehicle and the grating sound competes with the thoughts blustering around my mind.

Ar-Hagan is so blinded by his new Earth mate, at the thought of breeding, that he can’t think straight. He’s in love, his new life has begun and I’m mad at him for that.

How could he forget everything so easily?

All that we had. All that was. The beauty and the simplicity of King Athos’s world in which we were lucky to live with our indigenous females.

I curse in my native language, enjoying the forbidden sounds on my lips. Do it a bit more.

It’s not that I hate my brother for his newfound happiness. I just wish it would come as easily to me as it has for him.

He’s besotted with his Earth mate Mel. His eyes follow her around the room and I see desire flashing in them whenever she smiles his way. And now they are spending time with the king and queen. Their social standing elevated to a place I will never go.

And I don’t want to. I click my tongue against the roof of my mouth and my tail flicks. There’s a gash on the end from where I just thrashed it over the kitchen counter.

I ignore the blood.

The vehz veers right, toward the barn that holds our control center for the farmstead. I flick to manual override and avoid one of our robotic sowing and watering machines that is busy tending the land.

Tammy comes into my mind and when I briefly close my eyes her image pops into my head. Slender, pretty as a flower, sweetly scented and with rose-pink hair the color of the moon.

She’s soft, where I’ve touched her, and her lips are gentle and hesitant. She is like a skittish baby bird, ready to run at the first sign of danger.

And dangerous it can be here, not that she knows that.

I open my eyes. We’ve shared one kiss, at the barn. She’d walked for a long time under the hot suns to reach it and find me there. In-Sar was just leaving and her sudden appearance had startled me when she’d greeted him.

It had been so long since a mate suddenly appeared wanting me that I’d forgotten what it was like.

Forgotten how to react.

Should I have taken her then and started our breeding program? It seems that’s what everyone wants me to do.

But did she?

And I can start breeding. I could. If it just entailed bending her over a breeding bench and delivering my seed. But the king went to great lengths to make us all understand Earth women needed more than the physical act. They must be made to feel special. Cared for. Romance…whatever that is.

Light years of distance traveled and giving up everything they’d ever known meant that was the least we could do.

I arrive at the barn and the vehz comes to a halt. I get out, unfurling and then stretching my arms over my head. I am stiff. I slept in the chair the night before, not that I did much sleeping. I was fractious and irritable.

The day is warm and a lilac haze hangs over the mountains. I spot two big dark hirion in the distance and hope they haven’t taken a fancy to the crops. They don’t usually but when it’s hot their soft wet food becomes scarce and sometimes they take a nibble.

I drop my arms to my sides and roll my shoulders. The sun makes my horns tingle and I shake my head wishing I could rid the feeling of not being able to look forward instead of back.

I spot In-Sar’s vehz, it’s pale yellow and parked in the shade.

He’s here already.

I head toward the building. It’s low, one story, and resembles a white dome, panels on the roof provide the solar power for the control consoles and it’s rare for anyone other than us to be here, despite the immense size of the farmstead.

Artificially intelligent robots do most of the work, they just need monitoring and re-programming depending on the season and weather.

In-Sar is very competent at fixing them if there is a problem, and my role is to constantly update the programs and ensure we are in line with the royal food supply protocol.

A small bird takes flight at my side. A lute, and his golden wings flash. Normally that would make me smile but I continue to stomp to the barn.

Inside it’s cool and I stop and take a deep breath.

In-Sar stands from where he is tinkering with a small pesticide robot. “Hello,” he says, his voice deep.

I mutter a reply and walk past him.

His silvery tunic is open low to his waist where it is held in place with a thick silky band in the deepest purple.

His bricked abs are on show and impossible not to notice.

I try not to take in the length of his long, strong body wrapped in loose work pants teamed with sturdy hirion skin boots, laced halfway up his shin.

His tail lifts and judders at the end as he points at mine. “You’re bleeding.”

“It’ll stop.” I flick my tail out of his line of sight as best I can. A purple drip lands on the flooring.

“What happened?” He takes a step toward me.

“Nothing.”

“El-Frankin.” He frowns. “Don’t lie. Not to me.”

I set my attention on the bank of screens, all of which show different machinery and robots around the farm, working as per schedule. I lean forward, fists clenched, knuckles on the desk.

“It’s deep.” In-Sar grabs the end of my tail and examines it. “Not good.”

“What? Get off…” I try and flick it to the right but he’s got a tight grip on it.

“This needs treatment,” he says, “what happened?”

“I thrashed it, some plates were in the way.”

“You thrashed it? In the bala?” He raises his eyebrows at me. “But…why?”

“I was frustrated, okay.”

A tendon twitches in his cheek and his eyes narrow. “No, not okay. Thrashing isn’t for in the home.”

He’s right of course, us males are taught that from an early age. Thick muscular tails can be lethal if not controlled.

He sighs and releases it. “I’ll get the medical kit.”

“I wish you wouldn’t.”

“Why?”

“Because I deserve to bleed, deserve for it to get infected.”

“What?” He steps up close to me. “Why would you say that?” Concern flashes in his eyes.

“Because I am not the male everyone wants me to be.”

“You’re being very intense for this time of the morning.” He tips his head. “What happened when you left here last night?”

“Nothing, I guess that is the problem.” I look into his pale gray eyes. He has thick lashes and heavy brows and whenever he puts all of his attention on me the rest of the planet feels as though it fades away.

“El-Frankin.” He shakes his head as though seeing my problems. “Sit, we will fix up your tail and then work out a solution.”

I do as he asks and watches as he gets healing danae tonic and a bandage. He shakes the bottle and opens the lid. Instantly the sharp citrus scent of the danae tickles my nose. “I hate that stuff, it stings.”

“Then you shouldn’t thrash your tail indoors.” He dabs some onto a cloth and sets about cleaning the gash at the end of my tail.

The sting is acute and sharp and I flare my nostrils but take the pain. If my tail had caught someone it would have been a nasty injury for them.

He concentrates on the task with his long hair falling forward over and around his horns in that casual way he does everything; effortless, graceful, and with the patience of a bird waiting to catch an insect.

His long fingers are skilled and gentle and soon I am patched up.

The shame of my temper-thrash is visible as a bandage.

“There.” He clicks the medical kit shut and stands. “Should be healed in forty-eight hours.”

“Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me.” He sits in the chair opposite me. The control panels light up the right side of his handsome face. “Just tell me what else I can do to help.”

“There is nothing anyone can do to help.”

“El-Frankin.” His tone is stern. “I might be younger than you, as you are constantly reminding me, but I am capable of understanding the problems other males experience.”

“I know you are.” I reach for a bottle of mountain water and take a sip. “But this is a female problem.”

“Go on.”

I shake my head.

“I’ve seen you in a very dark place, El-Frankin, a place so black it stole your speech for a long time. I’ve seen you at your worst, my friend.” He leans forward and sets one hand on my knee, over my loose work pants. “I can handle what you need to share.”

“Why do you think I need to share?” His touch sends a tingle up my leg and through my spine to my scalp and horns.

“Because you have that look in your eyes that tells me you are being torn up inside by something.” He pauses, rubs my leg. “I don’t want that for you.”

I’ve known In-Sar to be wise and compassionate when I have been at rock bottom so I place my hand over his. “It’s my new Earth mate. The problem that is.”

“Go on.” He doesn’t appear surprised.

I take a deep breath. “She’s beautiful, I mean really beautiful. Petite, perfect skin, small snub nose, lips that are made for kissing…you know.”

“Yes, I remember. She really is very beautiful.”

“I am sorry.” I sigh. “You must think me ungrateful…weird.”

He shakes his head. “No, I think you are confused but if you explain what about exactly, put it into words, it might help you figure it out.”

“It’s just.” I lean back and rub my horns.

The bases itch. “I want to want her the way Ar-Hagan wants his mate Mel. I want to have the urge to breed with her, as the king expects. There is no reason not to, she is a fertile woman and science has proved we are compatible as species. Our offspring are born healthy and viable.”

“That is true.” He sits back on his chair and also reaches for a bottle of mountain water. “Is it the two breast thing? Does it look odd when they are naked? Off putting.”

“What? Er…no, I don’t think it’s that.” Not that I have seen her naked but her clothes are pretty revealing of her body shape.

He nods slowly. “The fact she has only one womb? Is that off putting to you?”