Chapter 64
Alex sat on the shore, her eyes following Uralial hatchlings as they darted playfully around each other, some on the beach and some in the water as they chased each other in an elaborate game of tag.
After seeing the solemnity of the shinara, she had not imagined something so simple and pure could exist deep within the Aglatha, Not only that, the skills of the Uralial were impressive.
The sahguin pants and tunic she wore were loose and yet somehow warmer and more comfortable than anything provided by the colony.
Vi lowered herself to the ground beside her, a bottle in one hand. She tipped it toward her in offering, one dark brow arching curiously at her. “Wool gathering, huh?”
Alex shook her head in response to both the question and the silent offer. “Not really. Just... waiting.”
Vi at the gently lapping water in front of them and smirked. “Are you just going to sit here until he pops out of the water like Daddy Triton?”
Alex’s lips curled with amusement at the old pop-cultural reference and shook her head.
“No, but when he shows up, I want to be here. I just... miss him.” She sighed heavily and shook her head in grim amusement.
“I never thought I would be the emotionally dependent sort, but we haven’t been separated for so long since meeting.
Even when he had to return to the shinara, the few hours that passed felt like an eternity.
And now... it’s all I can do to convince myself that he isn’t dead. ”
She could feel the other woman’s eyes on her, studying her. Suddenly, Vi sighed, startling her. “Yeah, it’s a bit of a crapshoot, isn’t it? You are accustomed to looking out for only yourself, and now suddenly you can’t hardly breathe without them.”
Alex’s lips twitched. “You and Ehsash, huh?”
Vi shrugged and took a sip from her bottle.
“Yes and no. Things are weird between us. Complicated would be a better word, I guess. But when have they not been? Ever since I rejected him back in the colony when he was coming on hot and heavy like a teenager with a bad case of puppy love, there has been this push and pull between us that can’t seem to resolve itself. ”
“Have you fucked?” Alex asked bluntly, and Vi choked, water spraying from her lips as she began coughing violently.
“What?” she gasped amid her hacking.
Alex grinned and slowly turned toward her. “You heard me. The claiming part, I think, is what is really intense. So, did you do it?”
“We may have fooled around a bit,” Vi muttered as she raised her bottle quickly to her lips once more. “No claiming of any kind was involved though.”
“Ah,” Alex murmured. “Your choice or his?”
“I couldn’t rightly tell you,” Vi admitted. She shook her head, the corner of her mouth inching upward. “How did this get flipped to talking about me? You are the one sitting here looking all lost and love-lorn.”
Alex shrugged, her gaze drifting back to the water.
“I was just curious. Ehsash was very... nervous carrying me. I kind of think that if you had shown up, he would have dumped me on my ass in a heartbeat just to make sure you see it. Very awkward married man vibes.” A smile crept once more to her mouth.
“Given that there were some rumors going around Raza, I figured that it didn’t hurt to ask. ”
Vi grimaced. “If he is feeling like a married man...er, mated alien... he certainly hasn’t shared that with me.
Sometimes I think he would be happy to dump me on someone else so that I could be their problem instead of his.
He has inferred that he feels obligated to take care of me since the crash. Not exactly some great romance here.”
“Maybe you need to do exactly that then and see how he really feels,” Alex pointed out. “I mean, you aren’t mated, and if he is saying all that, then make him put his money where his mouth is. Hell, you might find something better.”
Vi’s gaze swung to her in surprise, but it quickly gave way to a thoughtful expression as she considered Alex’s words. “You know, I am going to do that. There is an Uralial male who has been eyeing me. Why the fuck not go for it?” she said as she rose to her feet.
“Go on then,” Alex laughed, waving her off. “No reason to torture yourself about a maybe that isn’t going anywhere?”
“What about you? Are you going to just sit here and wallow in your own brand of torture?” Vi paused to ask, a look of guilt descending on her face. “I really shouldn’t just abandon you to sit here by yourself.”
“Yeah.” Alex smiled at the water wistfully, her gaze occasionally shifting to the playing nestlings.
Unconsciously, her hand skimmed over her belly, wondering what it would be like if she and Therxian had their own.
It was possible after all. Lori had proved that much to both species.
“I kind of signed up for this brand of torture. You go ahead and have fun.”
“All right,” Vi replied with a reluctant sigh. “But when I am finished flirting, we are going to go grab some lunch. I can’t cook worth shit, but my neighbor is a culinary gift from the gods. Even better, she loves feeding people.”
“Sounds like a plan,” Alex agreed. “A girl’s gotta eat.”
Not that she particularly felt like eating. She didn’t feel like doing much of anything except waiting for her mate. She wondered what he was doing at that very moment.