Page 40 of Bikar

Time passing means little as we work through her panic.

Eventually, her breathing slows, and her tears stop, but the scent of her embarrassment is so strong it makes my nose wrinkle. Strands of curly hair tangle with my thick beard as I rub my cheek against the top of her head.

“Please do not feel embarrassed.”

“Sometimes I forget you can smell my emotions. It’s a little unfair.”

Smiling, I have to admit she has a point. “Valid, but females are confusing enough as is. A male needs every advantage possible to understand you.”

I lift her head with the tip of my finger until I can see her beautiful face. Her inner light shines so brightly, I feel blessed to have her in my life. “You are breathtaking, Bambi.”

Snorting out a laugh, she rolls her eyes at me. “Yeah, sure. My nose is leaking snot, my face is red and blotchy, and my eyes are crusty with salt.”

“Yes, these things are true, but all that aside… youare beautiful, and always will be the pinnacle of desirability to me.” Bambi starts to shake her head. “No, do not shake your head at me. Your people have a saying, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder,’ and nothing could be truer.”

Standing with her safely ensconced in my arms, I ignore her peep of surprise at my abrupt motion. “Come now. Let’s go meet a grouchy fracker named Vornek.”

“Why do you sound… gleeful about that?”

“Ohhhh… no reason.”

“That innocent tone of voice doesnotwork on me, Bikar. Don’t you dare start something when we literally just got here!”

By the time she has finished admonishing me for my future shenanigans, I have carried her through the Scythe and across the small docking bay to the exit ramp. It is there I stop and look down, enjoying her singular company before we leave the semi-privacy of the ship and enter into a social situation beyond my control.

I can hear Slavic and Ruarc speaking to someone and…

“Why is Heather screaming?”

Human hearing must be better than I thought, but then again, her friend is rather loud.

Tilting my head to ascertain what we are walking into, I do nothing to stop my evil grin as it forms. “It appears as though your Heather has met Bhastas, and it is not going well.”

“Oh shit.”

Things just got rather interesting.

CHAPTER 36

BAMBI

Bikar carries me down the ramp, lifting a wing to shade the intense light of the dual suns. It takes a minute or two for my vision to acclimate to natural lighting after being on the Scythe for so long. Leaning up, I whisper in his ear. “Bikar, shouldn’t you put me down and hide your wings?”

Growling, he hefts me closer to his chest. “No. You may not have accepted our bond, but you have not rejected it either. That means the other males present must know you are not available for their attentions. As for my wings… it is best that all knowwhatwe are in order to successfully integrate into the society they have built.”

Okay, I have to admit that makes sense.

When we get to the end of the ramp, we walk into a shit show.

Heather is poking someone who must be the infamous Bhastas in the chest with her pointy nail, simultaneously cussing him out in a combination of English and Italian.

For his part, Bhastas is… standing… sitting… I’m not sure what a being without legs does exactly, but he’s allowing her to berate him for… something.

Patting Bikar on the chest gets his attention. “Uhm… I need to go get Heather before she’s the one that starts something she can’t take back and gets us kicked off this rock.”

Deep chuckles rumble out of his chest. “That might be wise. Although, might I add, everything she is doing is considered a form of flirting for his species.”

“Oh, shit.”