He tilted his head and shrugged, giving me a smile. “I have been through more jump points than you have days in your Earth year. It is normal for me. But I think the real trick is to start very young.”
Well, that was out.
“How long will it take for us to get there?”
Rema smiled, his sharp canine caught on his lower lip, and I was momentarily transfixed, my heart stilling. No man should have lips that full, it was criminal.
“Patty?”
God, the way his mouth moved when he talked made me bite the inside of my cheek hard enough to draw blood. A heady floral scent spread throughout the bridge, and the spicy taste of Rema mixed with it to create an intoxicating effect.
“Patty, please.”
I blinked my gaze away from Rema’s lush mouth and noticed all the flowers on my arms. I peeked at Rema and winced. The poor male was pressed back against his seat, muscles rigid, with his eyes squeezed tightly closed. His jaw was clenched so hard that all the muscles in his face stood out. Whoops.
I started plucking the flowers, tossing them to the ground. “Sorry, sorry. It’s involuntary. I don’t know how to make it stop.” I did. I totally did. It would stop when I got me some prime, grade A Rema dick, and often. No pressure. Bad Patty, bad. Down, girl.
“It is okay. I will learn better control. I want you just as badly. It is a pressing thing, bearing down on me, even before your ability to flower. The amplified scent of your arousal merely shreds my ability to control myself, and that is a disciplineproblem. Please do not apologize for something you can’t help, Patty.”
Rema took a deep, cleansing breath and blew it out before opening his eyes. They were so dilated they appeared black.
I pulled a few more flowers out of my hair and one from behind my ear and threw them onto the floor with another wince.
“This is going to be a weird conversation when your family eventually asks why I keep blooming,” I said, laughing softly.
When Rema didn’t laugh with me, I looked up. He was staring out the vid screen windshield, his jaw tense again. I followed his gaze and drew in a deep breath. A planet loomed in front of us, deep purple with swirling pink clouds. We were close enough to see the lights of civilization covering a large continent surrounded by dark blue oceans.
“The capital of Tuanov, Imyathume. My family House is here.” He shifted in the chair towards me, face stern. “My family is… difficult, Patty. In order to gain support, we might need them to stand with us when we have our audience with the Court. It isn’t only the Queen’s approval we will have to gain but also that of the other Houses. It will not be an easy task. They disapprove of me.”
I stiffened at that. What the hell did they have to disapprove of? A steller military career? Standing for justice and the safety of all? Killer abs?
My eyes narrowed. “What do they disapprove of?”
Rema opened his mouth to answer when a ding sounded over the comms. “Rijiteran vessel Nin Nova, you are cleared to dock,” a harsh male voice said from the command desk.
A deep, guttural female voice answered him. “En Rema Usutuku and Nin Patty Dells will disembark at their leisure. Stand by.”
I quirked my eyebrow at Rema. “Usutuku? And who was that talking just now?”
Rema flushed pink, shifting in his seat. “Usutuku is my House name, my last name, as you humans would say. The male speaking first was probably the docking security, and the female answering was Anu’s doing. It is a Rijiteran voice recording, modified for our use.”
I knew En, and Nin was Lord and Lady respectively, which was hilarious that Nin was being directed at me, but Rema was a sort of royalty if I understood correctly. I grinned at him. I was bagging me a prince. The little girl still dancing in my soul squealed in delight.
“When you smile at me like that, it makes me nervous.”
I laughed, earning a wide smile from Rema. “I was thinking that it was my younger self’s dream to marry a prince, and here I am with one.”
Rema’s smile faded and he scooted forward in his chair, reaching for my hands with his primary ones. “There are things you should know before we leave the ship. I do not want you going in unprepared.” His hands squeezed mine, and his secondary ones twisted in his lap. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “First, I am not a prince. I am a high ranking member of my House, yes, but there are no princes on Tuanov. There are princesses. My people are matriarchal, so it is the females that lead.” He met my eyes and gave me a pinched look. “It is a misconception that our females are shy and solitary. One we have allowed to spread. Not many outsiders come to our planets, and that is how my people like it.”
He sighed, letting go of my hands to stand, his wings twitching like he wanted to flare them. All four of his arms crossed and he turned to look down at me. “Most of the people you are about to meet are… prejudiced. They do not like outsiders and think that most other races are inferior to them.” His wings shruggedbehind him, feathers fluffing up. “It is shameful, and I am sorry that you are going to witness it and have that dislike directed at you. I will shield you as much as I am able, but you should be prepared for some remarks that may hurt you. If one should say something disrespectful to you while I am away from you, please tell me and I will take care of it.” His voice had dropped as he spoke, his face hardening.
I bit my lip to keep from smiling. Rema was just so adorable when he got all protective of me, it was one of my very favorite things about him. I wouldn’t tell him that my skin was so thick it might as well be its own armor by now. Growing up on the streets, being an addictanda sex worker, I dealt with so much shit talking and disgust that I was immune to it now. There was nothing these aliens could say that I hadn’t heard a thousand times. It was kind of a superpower, I liked to think, not being affected by the poison people threw at me. It was always satisfying to see the frustration on their faces when they realized I didn’t care and they couldn’t hurt me that way.
“There is more.” Rema’s hands fell to his sides and he began to pace. “I was courted by two members of the Royal House. Or at least they tried. When I rejected their courting, it was considered a slight against the royal family and my own House was very angry with me. I fear that grudges were held.” He stopped, coming to kneel in front of me, taking my hands up again. “Patty, they may prove an obstacle in our courting and… marriage?” He said marriage as a question, his voice soft and unsure.
This male… I pulled my hands from his and reached up to take his face in my palms. I pulled him to me, placing a soft kiss on his lips before smiling. “Rema, I came all the way here to get our relationship officiated. I knew full well that it meant a marriage. I want you, in every way I can. Sure, this is a little backwards than what is usually done on Earth, but I’m not letting youget away from me. We can figure out all the rest after we’re married.”
Hell, getting married first and then getting to know your spouse wasn’t all that crazy a concept on Earth either. Old fashioned, sure, but I could roll with it. Anything to keep Rema. I’d been in lust with him from the first moment I’d seen him, and that lust had grown alongside the friendship and deep feelings that had built as we fought side by side together.
