I didn’t look up. Masoh and his crew weren’t here yet, and all my guys were in place. “Yes.”
Zacal scoffed. “Masoh insulted you. You aren’t concerned?”
“It’ll be handled when he shows his ugly face,” I muttered, re-reading my conversation with Cora and checking again for any missed messages. Nothing yet. I wanted to wait until she reached out to me. Any other time, I wouldn’t be so over-eager to hear from a female who may not return my interest. But this was no time for pride.
“You’re not playing a game, are you?” Zacal asked, annoyed.
“No. I’m not Evik.”
“Then what could possibly be so interesting? You’re going to get us killed if you don’t pay attention.”
I grunted, gesturing vaguely around. “We have soldiers to make sure that doesn’t happen.”
“Let’s hope they aren’t as distracted as my nephew,” Zacal groused.
“I’m just doing what you ordered,” I said. I felt his frown, heavy on the side of my face. Looking over, I explained, “Finding a mate.”
“Ach.” He shook his head. “You should prepare yourself to mate with D'vinda. You’ll never find a female willing to take you before your time runs out.”
“If I mate with D'vinda, you should prepare yourself for war with the Cendaquans. I’ll tolerate a lot from a female, but I won’t let her put a knife in my back.”
“Dramatics,” Zacal said. “If I started a war every time Della tried to kill me, we’d all be dead by now.”
“Della’s heart isn’t in it,” I said dismissively. “For some reason, she loves you.”
“She’s a strange female, it’s true,” he said fondly. “You’ll grow to care for D'vinda, too.”
“I won’t be mated to her,” I answered. “Talk to Evik about how to care for hateful creatures.”
“He cares for you,” Zacal said dryly. “He already knows how it works.”
Chuckling, I caved and pulled up a new message to Cora, my dark-haired, ocean-eyed beauty.
Me: Good morning, Aneah. Are you well-rested?
To my surprise, she answered back only a moment later.
Cora: It’s afternoon, but yes. I slept late, and today is looking much better than yesterday.
Me: You said it was a long day. Was it not a good day?
Cora: It was bad. I lost my job.
Me: You work? Your family doesn’t provide for you?
Cora: Ha ha ha. No. They do not. But that’s the norm here. Women don’t work in Bion 8KV?
Me: Some do, but only if they want to.
Cora: Interesting. Do they work in the home?
Me: If they want to.
Cora: So, who raises the kids? Cooks and cleans? The MEN?
Me: Of course. Females have a lot of pressure on them to conceive, and smart males will take care of those things if they want to keep their mates happy.
Cora: I see.
