She knelt beside the sleeping alcove, smoothing wild curls back from Lilani’s forehead. “What would you like to hear?”
“The one about the stars. The one Papa used to sing before you came.”
She glanced at Valrek, who had gone very still by the fire. His expression was unreadable, but she caught the slight nod he gave her.
“I don’t know that one,” she admitted softly. “But maybe Papa can sing it while I hum along?”
Lilani’s face lit up. “Really? Both of you?”
“Both of us.”
The song Valrek sang was an ancient Vultor lullaby passed down through generations, its words in a language she didn’t recognize but somehow understood. His voice was deep and rumbling, rough around the edges, and achingly tender. She found the melody quickly, weaving her hum around his words like vines around a sturdy tree.
Lilani was asleep before the second verse was finished.
They stayed there for a moment, watching her breathe, her small chest rising and falling with the easy rhythm of childhood exhaustion. Valrek’s hand found hers in the dim light, their fingers intertwining.
“She called you Mama.”
“She’s been doing that for weeks.”
“I know.” His voice was thick. “I just never thought…”
“I know.”
She squeezed his hand, understanding everything he couldn’t say. The lonely years. The fear that his daughter would grow up without a mother’s love because of what he was, because of what she was, because the galaxy was cruel and unforgiving to those who didn’t fit its narrow definitions of normal.
But we fit,she thought.Somehow, impossibly, we fit.
She rose quietly, drawing him away from Lilani’s alcove towards the mouth of the cave. The stars were bright now, scattered across the dark velvet sky like spilled jewels, and the ocean murmured its endless lullaby against the rocks below.
“Your plans,” she said softly. “Are they still… extensive?”
His eyes flared gold in the starlight.
“Very.”
He moved before she could respond. One moment he was standing beside her, the next he was pressing her back against the cool stone of the cave wall, his massive body surrounding her with warmth and strength. His mouth found the curve of her neck, and she gasped as his teeth grazed the mating mark he’d left there weeks ago.
“Valrek—”
“I’ve been patient.” The words vibrated against her skin. “I’ve been so patient, watching you all day, seeing you in the water and the sunlight, smelling your desire and not being able to do anything about it because our daughter has endless energy and no sense of timing.”
A breathless laugh escaped her. “She gets that from you.”
“Probably.” His hands slid down her sides, finding the hem of her shift, and lifting it slowly. “But right now, she’s asleep. And you…” His fingers traced the curve of her hips, making her shiver. “You are going to tell me exactly what you want.”
“What I want?” Her voice came out steadier than she felt. “That’s a dangerous question.”
“I like danger.”
She tangled her fingers in his dark hair and pulled his head up until she could look into his molten eyes.
“I want you to stop being careful with me.”
Something shifted in his expression, something primal and possessive and entirely beast.
“Ariella—”
