CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Odelm
After an easy bartering session with the rude shopkeeper, Odelm left with the armbands and purple nightgown Selena wanted—and a black version with metallic details, which included a matching robe and sandals. The quality was exceptional compared to the other pieces they’d viewed so far today.
He envisioned Selena smiling as she proudly wore the outfit, her silver hair bringing out the metallic designs as her spots glowed a variety of purples and pinks from how much she loved it. He wanted to bring joy into her life and make her feel beautiful for once—for she was the one who brought life back to his world.
As soon as he laid eyes on it, he had the sudden urge to buy it. It called to him. He rarely bought anything he didn’t need with his income. Most of it he saved and only spent whenever he came across an instrument or musical literature. Now that he had Selena as a nestqueen, he had an excuse to spend his credits on her and their cubs—and he would.
Clothing and jewelry weren’t something the Circuliwore—slings, packs, and utility belts that had carrying purposes, but not a fancy robe and matching sandals.
Odelm strolled along the bazaar with a smile on his face as he followed his nestqueen bond thread. Xylo walked beside him, stealing glances randomly at him as they passed other potential shoppers going on a stroll.
“Do you want to tell me what that was about?” Xylo asked a worried orange tint flooded their connection.
Odelm slowed down his steps, stalling their return to Selena and the princes.
“What do you mean?” he replied as his tentacles tightened their grip on the sling, securing his precious gifts for Selena.
“You know what I am talking about, nestbrother,” Xylo scolded, his orange becoming an angry red. “What has become of you? Since yesterday you have become different—needier… Has Selena done anything to cause this? It is like you are trying to prove something to her.”
He looked over a passing couple, meeting Xylo’s hardened gaze for a moment before returning his focus on where he was going.
“Has she ever mentioned offspring to you?”
“The only offspring we have ever discussed are our cubs,” Xylo replied, matching his stride shoulder to shoulder. “Do you honestly believe she would be in the mood to talk about more offspring while she was pregnant with cubs she didn’t plan for? She had her own problems to deal with, including not knowing what would happen to her and our cubs once we arrived here.”
“You never thought about siring offspring of your own? Don’t you have this itch, this drive deep down, telling you that you need to prove yourself to her?”
Xylo gripped his arm and pulled him to the side, out of the way of the passersby. They faced each other, standing next to a food stall selling sweet and tart treats.
Odelm jerked his arm away from his nestbrother, notneeding to be touched.
Xylo studied him, and his vines loosening their default hold, agitated.
“I am not your enemy, Odelm. No one in Selena’s bed is,” Xylo snarled, the anger from him rolling off in flames of red. “Selena has no Favored and never will. Get that through your head. You have nothing to prove! She is your nestqueen, and it is too late to sever her bond with you. She isn’t that uselessluwskthatishedwith your head.” Xylo tapped his forehead with two fingers and stared at Odelm pointedly. “I am happy just being in her clan, whether I share the center of her nestbed with her or get picked to have a chance to sire her next offspring—if and when she wants. Just because she offered herself to others doesn’t mean she cares any less about me. I know where I stand and don’t need her to worry about me like she constantly is about you. Think about what you are doing to her before you act on it.”
Xylo stepped away and took a few steps before glancing over his shoulder. “What hurts the most is that, for a moment, you thought I was the enemy, even though we share a nestbrother bond. You cannot hide that fact.” He left in the direction of Selena’s location.
Anger. Disappointment. Sorrow.
Those were the emotions flooding Odelm, grounding his feet, preventing him from moving to follow Xylo.
He was right.
Odelm could not help the fact his own personal insecurities had blinded him to what he already had.
He was accepted and loved for who he was. She did not care that he was a severed male, a musician, or was colored femininely. Selena saw past all of that and wanted him for him.
Odelm had a growing clan—with cubs—and she welcomed him to share the center of the bed with her, not caring if his tentacles roamed freely.
He had a nestbrother who sacrificed his privacy to share an additional bond with him, so they could work as a united front to provide for Selena.
And he’d failed him.
“Xylo!” he called out.
No reply met him. Xylo couldn’t block him. They were open to each other with no way to shield from each other, unlike Selena. He was ignoring him.
