Chapter 56
Havali
Havali spent the days it took to travel back to Turv denned up with his female. And it was probably the best days of his entire life.
They took a break to finally heal his wounds on the second day, but that was the longest Havali let Scarlet be separated from him.
His female had given herself leave to become pregnant, and he fully intended on planting his pup in her belly before they were forced to emerge.
Pretty soon, he would have to share her with Earth.
There was no doubt in his mind that the return of the females would be global news.
Everyone would be watching them. There would be those for and against the alien presence among them.
There always was during a first contact.
No first contact in history ever went perfectly.
But it was his job to be ready for whatever might happen.
And regardless of what did happen, Scarlet was his mate.
Finally, since the first time he saw her, that pressure of wanting to claim her was gone from his mind. He knew the true peace of being a mated male.
The two of them finally left their room after the Jutiron Stor emerged from the subspace swing. Turv was approaching out of the viewing deck. The familiar green and purple marble made him smile as he stood beside Scarlet, watching it approach.
The others were elsewhere on the ship, he knew, doing the same.
Scarlet rested her head down against his shoulder. “It’s like coming home.”
He grinned. “Because you are coming home.”
“Then, what will returning to Earth feel like?”
“Returning to your childhood home.” He pressed a kiss to the top of her head. “They can both be your home. And once we have everything established with Earth, you will be able to visit whenever you wish.”
“That sounds amazing.” She snuggled deeper into his side. “And when we get back, we can start building our home together.”
He hummed in agreement. “You will be nesting properly by then. I can’t wait to see what you do to my space.
Her head dropped back so she could smirk up at him. “That confident, are you?”
“Atem and Romival both impregnated their females almost immediately. There’s no reason to assume I cannot do the same.”
“Those could be flukes. We don’t know the exact fertility rate between our people. The sample size is too small.”
“Then, I think we are duty bound to make it bigger. Track yourself carefully, healer. I’m sure you and Donivi will be quite interested in watching you gestate my pup. You won’t want to miss it.”
She laughed as though he were joking. He was absolutely not.
She was right in that the sample size of hybrid pups was too small.
They were still waiting to see what complications might arise.
Holly was carrying as well as Peony had, but there was no guarantee that Scarlet would, and he couldn’t trust the math with only two other data points.
Never let it be said that Havali didn’t contribute to science.
He put his arms around Scarlet and held her close, because, joking aside, she was the most precious thing in the entire universe. The privilege she granted him of planting his seed within her, of claiming her for his mate, of letting him walk beside her, was beyond measure.
And for the first time in his life, he felt like a worthy male.
How could his urges be wrong when they made her happy?
How could his desires be bad when they made her feel good?
How could he be dishonorable, when she made him so great?
She smiled and it made him happy.
“Almost there,” she said as the ship came to a halt. They would be returning to the surface in a landing shuttle, but only staying there for a few days. Only as long as it would take to prepare the Jutiron Stor for its trip and extended visit to Earth.
There was a lot of work to do going forward, but he looked forward to it as he held Scarlet in his arms, while she was eager to return to her homeworld.
“Ready?” She asked when the intercom overhead called the landing party to the shuttle bay.
“To end our time together? Never.” He kissed her forehead. “But I suppose I can tolerate a brief separation until tonight.”
She laughed, like he knew she would. It was such a delightful sound and it lit him up inside. He felt he could do anything with that sound echoing in his heart.
“Let’s go.” He pulled on her hand, leading her back into the ship.
She stayed right at his side, fingers interlocked, head resting against his shoulder. A contented smile on her face.
Havali’s mate, happy and safe and content.
Because of him.
He was a worthy male, for her.
And she was everything to him.