And I can't blame him. An invisible mist of melancholy has settled over the whole village after Tryk's news. Poor Aloryk. He was so happy about going on this search party. He was utterly convinced he would find the girl in his dreams. And now he's-
I stare hard at the life-stone star Mavyx made for me above the baby's crib. It's glowing bright tonight since Mavyx slathered lots of 'fool's mate' paste on it. Should I be saying a prayer for Aloryk? Should I assume he's ...gone? Is he like my mom, now? One of the bright stars in the dark night sky? Mavyx's tail squeezes me where it's spiraled around my calf. It's as if he can hear my thoughts - can feel me start to well with emotion.
I lay tucked into his side with my cheek resting on his chest, my fingers making rippling patterns with his skin-stars there. I hear his heart thumping a slow, rhythm beneath my ear. It's a comforting sound.
"Are you ok?" I ask.
Such a stupid question.
Mavyx sighs and pulls me even closer into his side with that big, heavy arm of his. "I should be out there with them."
Oh, absolutely not.Leaning up on my elbow, I look down at him, my palm to his chest, covering his heart-stars. "So you could be the one those scary-ass chimps carry away next? No.Not happening." He is silent for a little too long. "Are you thinking of going out there?!" When he still doesn't answer, I get to my knees, turn and sling my leg over his torso. "Mavyx," I demand, looking down at him, hovering over his face and near drowning in the golden pools of his eyes. "Tell me what you're thinking."
His huge hands find my thighs, his thumbs brushing gently back and forth as he blinks up at me. I watch him swallow, his throat bobbing as his gaze flits between my eyes.
"You can't go," I tell him, my stomach twisting in knots at the thought of something happening to him. "I forbid it."
Mavyx is as still as a predator beneath me, those golden eyes watching me so intently it's like he's trying to see all the way into my dreams.
"You trained those males," I remind him. "They know what they're doing."
When still he doesn't answer, I decide to pull out the big guns because thinking of Mavyx flying out there to a fate similar to Aloryk's is too much for me to bear. Gently, I press my lips to his - once, twice, three times. "Promise me you won't leave me, Mavyx," I beg, my voice coming out both soft and raw all at once. "Please."
Mavyx's chest starts to vibrate with a deep purr before he leans up to capture my mouth in a firmer kiss. Both his strong arms, and huge wings wrap themselves all the way around me, locking me into a cocoon - locking me intohim.
And I wouldn't want to be anywhere else.
Our kiss slows to leisurely pecks and nips, feeling so utterly different to all the hungry kisses we've shared before. "Ah-Lanah," he murmurs into my mouth. "I willneverleave you, my mate."
The alarm bell that one word might have once set off in my mind doesn't come and I let it slide.
We don't fool around that night, but Mav holds me in his arms until the double alien suns rise. He looks to me as we're washing up and preparing for the day. "Come," he says. "I am going to speak with my High Spear about the Eastern Search party. You should be there too so that you and all the other humans can be informed and have input."
It's a small thing -such a small thing -but my heart skips a beat. Is there anything more important to any relationship than support? Being seen?
Mavyx supports me.
Mavyxseesme.
And the reasons I had for not letting him be anything important to me seem to be falling away one-by-one like dominoes.
Turning, Mavyx reaches up to the high shelf that I have no hope of ever being able to reach. Some days, I think that perhaps he had it planned all along that he'd just move in here with me while he was building it. All his personal items are up there and everything else I need is within easy, human-level reach. Not that we've discussed it. It just kind of happened that way. He's always here and I... Iwanthim here.
I watch the play of Mavyx's arm muscles while he's moving things around up there, bringing down a leather cord he ties his dark hair back with while flexing and stretching out his massive wings.
I almost miss that ugly-ass pot up there, but once I spot it, it's all I can see.
"Why do you have that thing?" I demand, wiping a wet rag across the back of my neck. Mavyx turns to face me but it's obvious he doesn't know what I'm talking about, so I clarify, "that hideous jar I made."
Mavyx stares at me. He swallows thickly and I watch his throat bob with the movement. And... is heblushing?
"I meant to gift it and its contents to you yesterday at the youngling shower, but I-"
Oh no. "I swear to God, Mavyx," I start, pinching the bridge of my nose, "please tell me you're not giving me a jar of your cum."
"I am not giving you a jar of my cum."
Thank fuck for that. I'm pretty good at receiving unwanted gifts gracefully, but I don't think there's a woman in the galaxy who could convincingly smile and 'bless-your-heart' her way out of that one.
