A disbelieving noise scrapes out of him. “Never.”
His rejection stings a little after what we just did, but I guess today isn’t our first-kiss day. That’s fine. It was a lot of other firsts. Nice ones. So I try to be content with those.
First meal shared. First day as coworkers. First shower together. First orgasms. First night in the same bed. That’s what I’m thinking about while I fall asleep, all those firsts.
But when I wake up with a kink in my neck from sleeping in such a strange position smashed up against him, it’s hisneverthat I can’t get out of my mind. That’s his answer for everything,but with his come dried on my stomach and knowing what weare? He can’t mean it.
So when he cracks open his lids at my movements, and I can see his swirling gray irises, I sit up and ask him, “Why wouldn’t you kiss me last night?”
“R’Hiza take me,” he swears, rolling over and pulling a fur over his head, muffling his voice. “Is this how it will be, waking up next to you every day for the rest of my life?”
My belly warms at his complaint because I know what he’s trying to tell me. If he pictures waking up next to me, he’s not going to banish me to the floor anymore. And he’s thinking about our future together. That’s better than a kiss at this point. “Never mind. Don’t answer. It’s not important.”
“It is important.” He pulls the fur off his head and sits up, running his hand over his scalp like he’s trying to clear his head. “You want to know why I won’t touch you mouth-to-mouth? Because my mouth has two sacred purposes: eating and praying. Neither of which I want polluted by you.”
Wow.Okay. Someone’s extra grumpy in the morning. This guy needs alien coffee, not deep conversation.
“Why don’t we go find some firstmeal. And maybe hit the cleansing unit on the way?” I suggest, plucking at my stained pajama top.
“As if I have a choice where to go and what to do.”
That snide remark earns him an eyeroll. Even I have my limits. After checking on Elvis, I decide to hit up Oljin and Rose for some nomo. Maybe the Irran chill-out beverage will make us both a little less tense.
“Guess what you’re having for firstmeal?”
He raises a skeptical brow. “Ration bars? That dirt-tasting excuse for wafers? I didn’t see anything else in that provisions closet of theirs.”
I shrug off my instinct to defend the Frathik food. They’ve had to optimize nutrition to make sure their entire population is well-fed, even without land to farm or forage. That means perfectly balanced ration bars are the best they have to offer. But he’s right, they don’t taste great. And besides that, they’re not what he’s used to. There’s no reason heshouldlike them.
“Nomo.”
Lyro’s eyes widen. “How?!”
“Your uncle. He hoards it. I know it’s challenging for you, but you better be nice and thank him, or you won’t be getting any more,” I warn him as we head out into the passageway.
“It is not difficult to say thank you when one genuinely feels gratitude.” I catch a little smirk before he schools his face.
I hide my smile, too. “Good to know you’re capable.”
We don’t talk in the cleansing unit because we don’t need to. As the unit hums and my shirt gradually becomes un-stiff, his roving eyes and shifting colors say he’s thinking about the same thing I am:last night.
We were so connected for those minutes that Lyro let down his guard. We felt in tune with each other. It was a little peek at what could be.
Before the cycle shuts off, I blurt out, “If you kiss me now, your mouth will be clean before it’s over.”
I grin at his answering glare, letting him in on the joke. But I’m only half-joking. I want a little sign of our closeness. Proof it isn’t all in my head.
Chapter 10
Lyro
Lena’s mouth is like her body, slight and soft, and I can’t pull my eyes away from it. Her suggestion to let the cleansing unit purify me is tempting, but it’s another easy excuse. When I said her kiss would pollute my mouth, I didn’t mean actual dirt. I meant it would ruin my mouth for any other purpose.
I step closer to her and reach out to grip her jaw. Her nearly invisible lashes flutter as I tip her face up. Her lips part, expecting mine.
I lean over her, stopping short of contact, and press my thumb over her lips to silence her protest. “It will never happen. If I tasted you, worshipped you...how could I eat or pray any other way?”
“Oh,” she says breathily, lips moving against the pad of my thumb. “But that just makes me want to kiss you more.”
