Chapter 6 #2
Khawla sighed, his clawed hand reaching for the back of his head to scratch beneath the long braid of nearly black hair.
“You were always an observant one, weren’t you, Zathar?
” he said, and now he moved closer, his posture relaxed, his shoulders hunching a little as he passed beneath the statues.
Khawla really didn’t like being here, near the Ancestor Caves, and I recalled that he tended to be a little superstitious.
“Zeti and Rossh saw you retrieve those strange beings from that sky-ship. That’s why she’s here, she wants to see them for herself.
I’m sure that’s all it is. Just a trip to sate her curiosity.
” The master scout spoke in hushed tones, pitching his voice low so that nobody could possibly overhear him.
I appreciated his attempt at reassuring me, and I was glad that I now knew what this was about.
I could prepare because I sure as fuck wasn’t going to let my mother see Vera or the mating sigils.
I had decided my mate wouldn’t be safe in the village and seeing that… I knew what she’d do.
“Wait here,” I said to Khawla, “I will inform the others of the visit.” I turned around and headed back beneath the giant gate into the caves, not worried that Khawla would try to follow me.
The male winced as I went inside, probably imagining all kinds of bad things befalling me for what he imagined was an insult to our ancestors.
I updated Corin quickly and then tried to figure out how to explain the situation to Vera.
She was stirring in my nest, a very adorable, slightly confused expression on her face when she sat up and discovered she wasn’t where she went to sleep last night.
Then she frowned, glaring at me from all the way across the chamber and I knew she was mad about it, but I couldn’t regret spending hours with her in my arms, covering myself in her tasty scent.
The male, Reid, was up. Neatly folding the furs he slept in, his posture relaxed.
He wasn’t worried when I passed close to him either, good, he’d need that if I was going to show him off to my nosy mother.
I hoped he wasn’t too much of a curiosity for her, my father was dead and she liked to flit from one young unmated male to another until she had her fill.
Reid wouldn’t enjoy that kind of attention from her, it never boded well.
Leaning down near my nest, I ignored the fierce glare on her pretty face and cupped her hornless chin in my palm. “My mother is arriving soon,” I said, ignoring the fact that my touch was more intimate than the ‘impersonal’ touches she’s stipulated where allowed.
“Ah, and you don’t want her to see me, is that it?
” she said with a sharp edge to her tone.
I nodded because yes, that was absolutely it and I was glad she immediately understood but I couldn’t shake the feeling that she was upset with me for saying this.
There was no time to figure it out, to have a real conversation about any of this, I could hear the approach of more Naga outside the caves, we were running out of time.
“She knows we rescued beings yesterday, she is just curious. Please convey to Reid that I need him to come out with me so she can see him, while you and Cosima hide.” I helped her to her feet, with a hand this time, not my tail like I wanted to.
Once she stood, she dusted off her strange coverings, then strode right past me and headed for Reid with her chin held high.
I didn’t like the sight of her approaching another male so confidently, the sway of her curved rear far too enticing. I needed to pull in a steadying breath and force my eyes away from the shockingly erotic side of her swaying ass.
“We’re called humans you know, hu-man. Remember that,” she said over her shoulder.
I could still understand every word she said, which meant…
I hadn’t even realized my tail had followed her, the tip curled around her ankle.
She really had me in knots; she had no tail, but I was still trapped in her coils.
Hurrying after her, I added a palm to the small of her back once she squared off with Reid and quickly and concisely conveyed what I wanted from the male.
He was nodding, saying things back to my female that made her angry.
Things like, he’s right, you should stay hidden.
And more about how she needed to tread carefully with unknowns approaching.
What mattered was that he agreed to come.
“You need to warn him, my mother, the Queen of the Thunder Rock Clan is without a mate. It’s possible she’ll find him interesting and try something…
He needs to make sure she doesn’t try to touch him with her coils, it’s taboo.
” She frowned at me for a long time, her gaze dipping down to the tip of my tail, looping around her ankle.
Yeah, I knew I was breaking the rules myself, she was just too irresistible.
The difference was, that she was my mate, my one, which meant I was driven to please her, to make her happy, and keep her safe.
I wanted to fill her with my offspring. The Queen had no such limits on her, if she wanted the hu-man male, she would have him, toy with him, and then toss him like he was garbage.
Vera explained this to Reid as well but he just crossed his arms and shrugged.
Then he jerked his chin at the entrance to the chamber and barked out a few short words that clearly meant ‘let’s go.
’ I would have gotten that even without the benefit of touching Vera right now.
I dipped down to her, nuzzled my face against her silky hair, and then with much regret, I led the way outside.
“Stay hidden,” I warned her just before slipping the tip of my tail from her leg.