“She is,” S’samph agreed, “but I’m better.”
“Your ego isn’t as buried as deeply as you claim.” Eleri finished her organizing and started toward the door with laughter in her eyes. S’samph’s tail swished in response. “I know harvest season is mostly over now, but if you need to get back to your fields, I feel comfortable clearing you to start working again. I know you’ve been working and patrolling anyway. My sign off is just for official purposes.”
S’samph followed her to the door. “When are you going to join me in our nest?”
The question came with more precision than she had anticipated, and she couldn’t find any words tobroker a complaint. Living here with S’samph, it wasn’t an active thought in her head, but the more she thought about it, the more she warmed to the prospect. It would need modifications for her to live here safely, but she found herself on the brink of agreement.
“Soon,” she responded.
“When is soon?” he asked, his voice soft as though he worried he would frighten her away.
“Once you’re fully recovered. And after we make our mating official.”
“I am fully recovered. We can go register our mating this afternoon.”
Eleri sighed. She should have known better than to offer terms that S’samph could circumvent with literal interpretation. “You need to give me at least a few days to make arrangements. Besides, we can’t officially register our mating until the IA administrator comes to Laurus at the end of the month. The process requires an IA witness.”
“You looked into the procedure.” His frill stood at attention, and his expression became one she’d only seen described as ‘smug’ in the IA dossier.
“I did,” she confirmed. “So, we’ll wait and do it properly.”
“I’m a patient male.” S’samph bent closer to her until his face was aligned with the curve of her jaw. “You’re my mate regardless of whether you are living with me or not. A few more standard days won’t change anything.”
Eleri found herself leaning toward him rather than away, despite the intensity of his declaration. “Patient people don’t have to announce their patience.” She laughed up at him and he wrapped his tail around her waist.
“I’m almost as patient as you are stubborn, Eleri.”
She pushed him away, albeit with reluctance. “I have to get back to work. The clinic is opening for the afternoon.”
“Let me give you a ride.” S’samph reached for his shirt and pulled it over his head.
“I take it you’ll be driving?”
“You won’t be.” He rolled his shoulder as if testing its mobility.
“How am I supposed to learn if you never let me drive myself?”
“You don’t need to drive yourself. I’ll take you anywhere you want to go.”
“That doesn’t seem very practical.”
“What kind of male am I if I can’t at the very least accompany my mate wherever she needs to go?”
“One with a job,” Eleri laughed again. “I’m determined to learn eventually, but I guess it doesn’t have to be today.”
His tail’s grip on her waist tightened as he led her out of his nest. He stooped to pick up her medkit before she had a chance to protest and settled it into the cargo bay of his levibike with graceful efficiency. What happened next knocked the wind from her lungs as he lifted her bodily with his tail and settled her on the levibike’s passenger seat.
“S’samph!” She wheezed his name between shock and laughter.
“You said I was cleared for work.”
“I guess I did,” her tone softened as he approached her, removed her sun hat, and rested his forehead against hers. Eleri sucked in a sharp breath. Usually, latil’e were reluctant to enter close facial proximity with another person unless they were mates. From an evolutionary perspective, it left both parties too vulnerable to ambush, so it was a sign of great love and trust.
“My people don’t have the anatomy for the mouth meeting humans do. This is the closest latil’e equivalent.”
It took all her will not to laugh at his description of kissing, so instead she leaned closer into his touch, the rough texture of his scales firm against her soft forehead. “This is nice,” she said.
“It is,” he agreed. “But I won’t make the same mistake about your sun vulnerability. We will continue this exchange later when we are both inside.” He took a step back and replaced her hat, but she noticed his tail was still wrapped around her waist. S’samph mounted in front of her, keeping a hold on her with his tail, and Eleri leaned into him. She gripped around his broad waist to brace herself on the levibike instead of the passenger handle, and she had to admit she much preferred this manner of riding.
