Selena looked up from their enclosed hands to face the doctor while Zirene gripped her shoulders as if trying to prepare her for some bad news.
Had he kept their condition from her all this time?
“We placed you both in the Cryopods thirty-two days ago,” Kaica replied, standing from the end of his Cryopod. “Later that day, I caught the news that my brother was on his way home with Selena. We’ve been keeping watch ever since and running Destima until she arrived. She decided it was the right time to wake your clan.”
“Thirty-two days,” he breathed, unable to grasp how much could have changed while he was in stasis. “Have my nestbrothers been unconscious this whole time?”
“Ninety-two days to be precise,” Kaede added. “Ninety-two days have passed since I failed and Selena was taken from us.”
“I told you I don’t blame you for what happened.” Selena rolled her eyes and sighed. “I blame Xenak for everything.”
V’dim’s gaze landed on the marks on Selena’s neck, which peeked between the strands of her shoulder-length hair. Hissing, he ignored his stiff muscle as he sat up and used his other hand to brush her silver strands away.
Spanning her neck from below her cheeks to where her shoulders met were multiple bite marks. Concerned, he pulled back her collar, only to reveal more. All were recent but not fresh.
She shouldn’t have any new marks. The only one she wore was from Zirene, but these new teeth marks looked different—two fangs coupled with a mouth print similar to hers.
All of her mates were on Destima, waiting for her arrival—and none had fangs.
“Who did this?” His eyes locked on to hers as her cheeks darkened, and her spots started to flicker between a worried orange and the pinkish purple of love. “Who marked you?”
“I did,” Kaede announced, stepping behind her possessively. He stroked one hand over his shoulder, and his suit rolled back, leaving the top of his chest bare for the room to see. He displayed a similar amount of bite marks, recent but not fresh, all over his body.
“Selena claimed me as hers on our return journey. Sheclaimedme. I wanted to wait until all this”—he waved at the Cryopods—“is taken care of and the clan is together once again before pursuing a relationship, but the Stars had other plans.”
“I didn’t want to discuss this now,” Selena muttered. “Not when you only just woke up.”
“Here I thought Xylo’s marks were bad,” Chyox mumbled. Selena’s head twisted in his direction, and he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. “I misspoke. I was just thinking about your first days on theDestiny.”
“I am sure Kaica can mark you up if you are feeling left out.” Selena made a display of clamping her teeth together, biting the air. “I won’t judge your mating rituals, if you don’t judge mine.”
“You have nothing to worry about, Sister,” Kaica soothed. Her hair matched her aura, a nervous yellow. “My clan—we know our place.”
“I appreciate it, but that’s not the point. No one but Kaede and I know what happened between us during our journey.” She stood, pulling her top down to reveal an ugly jagged scar between her breasts. “Kaede saved my life then traversed the galaxy to rescue me once again. Who I take as a mate, and when, isn’t anyone’s concern. However, I won’t disrespect my clan by taking in a stranger who may not get along with them.”
“They would be as blind as you two were, if they couldn’t see how much you two stubborn idiots wanted each other. We all placed bets on how long it would take for you two to finally give in,” Kaica intoned, crossing her arms. “It’s only natural for you to seek his comfort after everything you’ve been through. To be honest, I’m surprised it took so long, but I know my brother puts honor and duty above all else, so I am sure you had to push him to see things your way.”
“I can be very convincing, but we aren’t here to discuss my love life.” Selena wrapped an arm around Zirene and glanced between Z’fir and V’dim. “It’s late. I’ve accomplished more than I expected since arriving. Do you believe my princes would be fine retiring in the nestroom with the rest of my clan, or do they need to be under medical supervision here?”
“Circuli heal better in the presence of their nestqueen. The longer you are nearby, and the more you touch, the quicker they will heal. Their mating spores are a part of you, so you are familiar to them—a home to return to,” Suvax explained, scanning the charts on the central display table. “Their vitals are stable, but their bodies will be too weak to move—”
“That won’t be a problem,” Kaede interjected, smirking. “I can teleport anywhere on this moon with a mere thought. If you say they are fine, then I will transport them wherever they, or Selena, want.”
“Teleport?” V’dim shivered.
He had never needed to teleport before, and he feared the mere thought. Something about being cut off from the world for a few seconds and appearing in another location didn’t sound… right. What if he never reappeared? Or teleporting somehow damaged him and his connections?
“Yes. I can give you the freedom you are lacking until you are healthy again.”
“I’ll do it,” Z’fir announced, wiggling his limbs. “It beats being stuck in the infirmary.”
“Then that settles it.”
“Thank you.” Selena wrapped her arms around her guard and kissed him on the lips. “This means a lot to me.”
“I’m your guard, so I’ll always be nearby.” Kaede brushed her hair back. “It wouldn’t be right of me to not offer when I am capable of providing a simple service.”
“I don’t want to be the reason Selena is stuck inside for days on end until we heal,”Z’fir pathed, his tone serious.“Ninety-two days she’s been gone. If she wants to enjoy her villa, we shouldn’t make her feel guilty. Who knows how long it will take us to heal?”
