Chapter 11 #2
“I’m sorry, what was that?” Arcanthus leaned back and cocked his head to the side, eyebrows slanted down. “I thought we’re supposed to discuss personnel matters before any decisions are made?”
“I only say that because I can’t trust you to make thoughtful decisions,” Drakkal replied.
“That’s not fair at all, azhera. You’re bringing someone into our home, someone the rest of us don’t know, and—”
Arcanthus snapped his mouth shut when Drakkal pointedly shifted his eyes toward Samantha.
The sedhi looked at his mate, frowned, and drew in a deep breath before saying, “That was an entirely different situation.”
Drakkal shook his head and folded his arms across his chest. “Samantha’s your mate. Shay is mine.”
Arcanthus lifted a finger and opened his mouth to speak, but he hesitated before any words came out. “All right. But let me point out, Drakkal, that Samantha didn’t rob me when we first met.”
“Point noted, sedhi. Doesn’t change anything.”
“Oh my God, I can’t believe this. Drak has a mate!” Samantha pushed her chair back and stood. “She’ll need a room...um, unless she’s staying with you?”
Drakkal’s tongue slipped out and ran over his suddenly dry lips. His ears drooped. “She, uh…hasn’t exactly agreed to anything but the job, so far…”
Sekk’thi leaned back in her chair and cackled. “A terran is giving you trouble, Drakkal?”
“If only you knew,” he muttered.
“I’ll get a room ready for her,” Sam said.
Drakkal nodded and offered Samantha a gentle smile. “Is there anything extra she’ll need? She’s carrying a cub.”
“Huh? A cub?”
He lowered a hand to his stomach. “A…baby.”
Sam’s mouth dropped open. “She’s… You… Already?”
“You azhera have strange ways if you make younglings before accepting one another as mates,” Sekk’thi said.
“I’m not the cub’s sire,” Drakkal said. The irritation creeping into his voice wasn’t because he was not the cub’s father, but because he wanted to be—whether tied by blood or not.
“How far along is she?” Sam asked.
Drakkal shook his head and shrugged. “Don’t know. Not really sure how to judge it with terrans.”
Urgand sighed. “I guess it’s a good thing Arcanthus has had me studying terran medicine.”
“You should be proud that you’re expanding your knowledge,” Arcanthus said.
The vorgal narrowed his gaze on Arcanthus. “I believe I was promised a bonus in exchange for the extracurricular studies, boss.”
“Isn’t the work itself a reward?”
A mischievous light sparked in Urgand’s eyes, and he grinned. “I suppose it can be, considering the body parts I’ll get to see.”
Arcanthus’s expression fell. Something sank in Drakkal’s stomach even as fire flared in his chest, accompanied by a tightness that threatened to seize his heart and lungs.
“What?” Arc and Drak demanded in unison.
Samantha cleared her throat and eased toward the door. “I’m...going to get that room ready now.” She hurried out of the room, and the door slid shut behind her.
Sekk’thi shifted in her chair. There was a thump under the table, and Urgand jumped in his seat, legs bumping the table’s underside and rattling everything atop it.
Without betraying any emotion on his face, Razi reached out with both hands and caught several gurosh bottles before they could topple over.
Sekk’thi jabbed a finger at Urgand. “Behave. I will not step in if you provoke them.”
“I was joking. Just didn’t realize it was in such poor taste until the words were out of my mouth,” Urgand said, scooting his chair away from the table—and from the end of Sekk’thi’s lashing tail.
“Of course, everything will be in the capacity of a medical professional. What did you think, I’m just going to coach her through birth over a commlink? ”
Irrational anger, Drakkal told himself. There’s no logical thought behind this.
The tightness and heat in his chest didn’t diminish.
Arcanthus closed his eyes and ran a hand over his face. “Why didn’t I consider this before I asked you to look into it, Urgand?”
“You will both just have to get over your instincts so your females can be cared for,” Sekk’thi said, sweeping her gaze from Arcanthus to Drakkal before settling it on Urgand. “And you will need to keep their feelings in mind as you work.”
“My patients are my priority,” Urgand said, frowning at Arcanthus and Drakkal, “but I understand. I’ll…choose my words with more care, since you’re all a bunch of oversensitive dicks.”
Urgand’s comment drew chuckles from the people gathered around the table, even Arc and Drakkal. Drakkal’s irritation faded slowly.
“Guess this means the game’s over,” Razi said, shattering the silence. “You all lose again.” He leaned forward and swept the credit chips piled beneath the board toward the others stacked neatly in front of him.
Arcanthus turned his attention to the cren. “Slow down, Razi. Sam had the biggest section of the board. That means she gets the biggest portion of the pool.”
Razi lifted a hand, palm toward the ceiling, and shrugged. “But she left the game. She forfeits.”
“Well, none of us forfeited,” Arcanthus said.
Razi arched a brow. “Do you really think you have to? Might as well save us all some time.”
Arcanthus sighed and threw his hands up. “When you’re right, you’re right. All for the best, though”—he rose from his seat and slapped Drakkal on the shoulder—“since it’ll give me more time to help Drakkal look his best before he picks up his mate.”
Drakkal leveled a skeptical gaze on Arcanthus. “Look my best, sedhi? I’m already doing that. All day, every day. That’s why you can’t take your eyes off me.”
Arcanthus caught his lower lip between his fangs as his center eye dipped, raking over Drakkal. “Old friend, it’s about time someone explained it to you—you look like something the cat dragged in.”
“Fuck you, Arcanthus.”