Chapter 17
YIRI
I’m old enough that two months seems like the blink of an eye, normally.
But with my mate out of my reach and unavailable to take my calls, it felt like a year.
I spent the weeks working my ass of to prepare for her arrival.
My home was spotless, which… it normally was.
I was rarely there. But I had the staff deep clean everything anyway.
I thought about updating some of the furniture.
I didn’t know what was in style, but it had been at least ten or fifteen years since I’d had a stylist come in and tell me what to buy.
I put it off, though. Better to wait until Cora could weigh in.
Her security team was selected and approved by Zacal.
They were shadowing Della’s security team while Nerus trained their replacements.
I only picked soldiers I trusted, of course, but that left some two big holes in our ranks.
It took a lot of work to recover from the transition, but I was satisfied with our progress by the time I was ready to leave for Muria.
My cruiser sparkled in the first-moonlight, freshly cleaned inside and out.
I had even gone so far as to have Nerus bring his little sister over to inspect the interior.
Thisa was in her last year of school, but I thought that was still old enough to know if a female would be disgusted by my cruiser or not.
“It’s a little dark in here,” she said, looking around. “Are all the ports open all the way?”
“Yes,” I said. “These older models didn’t have the wall-to-wall ports they make now.”
“Hmm.” She wandered a little further in, surveying the living quarters skeptically. “You’re going to keep her holed up in here for how long?”
“Just the trip from Muria back home. It’s about three days.”
Thisa sniffed. “She’ll survive, I guess. I mean it’s kind of retro in here, but you could probably pass it off as a stylistic choice.”
“It is a—” I stopped myself, sighing. I wasn’t going to defend my age to a child, but I was not as old as my cruiser. “Is it clean enough? It doesn’t smell bad or anything, does it?”
“Oh, good,” Thisa said, a look of relief taking over her young features. “You already know about the smell. I was afraid telling you was going to be awkward.”
Nerus chortled from his position by the door.
“Right,” I said, dryly. “What does it smell like to you?”
Thisa made a face. “Male.”
“Being male, I don’t know what you mean,” I said. “Like… sweat?”
She shook her head slowly, thinking. “No. That would be so gross. This is more like… sea water and your cologne.”
“And that’s bad?”
“If she’s going to be your mate, she’s going to have to get used to it eventually,” Thisa shrugged. “And it’s tidy in here. No clothing on the floor, all you’re tech is put away.” She stopped by the bed, eyeing it like it was offensive. “You only have one bed?”
“I’ll take the couch if she wants,” I said.
Thisa nodded, but pursed her lips in obvious disapproval.
“What is it?” I asked, growing impatient with her less-than-helpful assessment of the cruiser. So far, she hadn’t given any advice, just made me insecure. Me. Yiri Ahlon, the most feared man in Eissoi. Such is the power of a teenage girl.
“You’ve had other females in this bed, I’m assuming,” she said.
“That’s not something I’m discussing with you.”
Thisa rolled her eyes. “Okay, well, ten credits says you have. If I were you, I’d at least replace the sheets, if not the whole bed.
If she is your Aneah, she might be able to tell.
I don’t know how this stuff works for Earth females, but I think you should treat her like she’s daernir when it comes to things like that. ”
My brows knitted together. She was probably right, and I should have thought of it myself. A daernir female’s instincts would tell her that bed wasn’t hers, the way I was supposed to be.
“I’ll get a new bed,” I agreed. “Thank you, Thisa. Anything else?”
She sighed, giving the cruiser one last look. “Not unless you’re willing to get a new vessel.”
“I’d rather not,” I said, “but if she doesn’t like it, she can pick out a new one when we get home.”
Thisa nodded, satisfied. “When do I get to meet her?”
“Della’s throwing her a party,” Nerus told her. “We’re invited.”
“When? Why didn’t you tell me? I have to find something to wear!”
“Maybe you can help Cora pick something out, too,” I suggested. “I’ll take you both shopping soon.”
She gasped and clapped her hands. “Really? That would be amazing! I can pick whatever I want?”
“No,” Nerus stepped in. “Nothing over the top. You want Mom to kill me?”
Ignoring him, Thisa danced excitedly around the cruiser’s main cabin and went up on her toes to kiss my cheek. “Thank you, Uncle Yiri!”
“Uncle Yiri when you’re going to buy her something,” Nerus said, scowling, “That old grumpy butt when you slightly inconvenience her weekend.”
I made a face of mock offense. “You said that about me, Thisa?”
She tossed a flippant hand. “You are an old grumpy butt. I hope this female of yours can stand you.”
Replacing the bed in the cruiser (and sending word to my household staff to replace a few of the beds at home) took a couple of hours.
It would have been quicker, but I wanted the best for Cora.
New pillows, new blankets. She could replace it all if she hated my tastes, but Thisa was right.
This might be the first bed I shared with my Aneah.
It shouldn’t be tainted with memories or lingering female scents.
If she picked up on it, the chances she’d ask me to mate with her right away would be next to zero.
The couch would have to go, too, but I was out of time.
If I didn’t leave for Muria by second moon, I’d be late meeting Cora.
I settled in the pilot’s seat of the cruiser and fired up the engines.
Takeoff was smooth. Eissoi’s weather was always pleasant this time of year.
Cora was arriving in the perfect season.
It would be clear days and beautiful moon rises for another few months.
Plenty of time for her to fall in love with the coast before the rainy season.
After leaving Venastea’s orbit, I put the cruiser on autopilot and settled down on the new bed.
Maybe I should have left it pristine for her.
A better male would have waited for an invitation even to his female’s bed, whether she was in it or not.
But I wasn’t a good male, was I? Something primal in me wanted her to lie her pretty head on these pillows and smell my scent.
I wanted her wrapped in blankets soaked in it.
The truth of it was, I didn’t know how things would go.
If she didn’t ask for me, I wanted her marked with my scent while I waited.
I pulled up that rec she sent me, watching it over and over.
I’d long since memorized every gasp and moan she made, every twitch of her lips, and the heavy way her eyes drifted to slits right before she let go.
I got off to that rec so many times I was trained to be painfully aroused at the slightest whimper.
I had two days to get a grip, or I was going to hear her voice and come in my pants in the middle of the transport station like a teenage virgin.
I needed a distraction. It was rare that I left Eissoi for more than a day at a time, and even rarer for me to go alone.
Usually, I was on business with Zacal, or Nerus, and a contingent of soldiers.
Plenty of other assholes to keep in line and keep my mind occupied.
How long had it been since I’d had more than a few hours of free time?
Years. Nearly a decade? Fuck, it was probably longer.
I didn’t feel overworked, but what would my mate think of my dedication to the job?
And what could I do with myself now with two days to myself?
I thought about smoking some sellah, but it took me the better part of a week to air the cruiser out.
I probably smoked too much. I needed a fucking hobby.
At home, I’d go for a swim with the cekets on the reef, feeding them chum I bought at the market or whatever chump had recently tried his luck against Ahlon.
What kind of hobby is that? Idly, I stroked the skin over my ribs where a stylized ceket was lasered into my flesh.
They were misunderstood creatures. I hoped Cora would like them.
Sighing, I let the rec play a few dozen more times, stroking myself off to the sweet sounds of my Aneah, and eventually I drifted off to sleep.
A call interrupted the Transport Station’s docking instructions. Seeing Nerus’s name, I accepted the call and switched back to the station’s audio.
“Wait, Nerus. I’m docking.”
He grumbled something in the background but didn’t interrupt until I had the cruiser safely in place inside the station and had disconnected comms with the transport authorities.
“Te’ve’s run into some trouble with the Agollan fruit guys. They won’t honor the price we negotiated under Masoh.”
“Good thing I’m here, then,” I said.
“Yeah, no shit,” Nerus said. “They’ve already reported Te’ve to Customs.”
“You’re fucking kidding,” I muttered, powering everything down and setting up standby security for the cruiser.
“It’s a shit show,” Nerus confirmed. “They’re in the usual spot in the market.”
“Fine.” I disconnected the call with Nerus and grabbed a blade I didn’t mind losing.
I could get it into the market no problem, but I’d never get it past BMM’s security.
They kept the Earth women under tight lockdown until their husbands came to collect them, and it was a good thing, because the Muria Transport Station was a rough and dangerous place.
Cora would be better off with the BMM guards while I dealt with Te’ve’s situation, but the Agollans were going to fucking regret making me late to pick her up.