Seconds later, they were kissing, mouths seeking mouths, mating sites and every bit of available flesh.
Only Leo’s com-circle drove them up for air.He picked up.“Yeah?”
“Sly and Joe are almost here.They’ll land in ten minutes,” Saber informed him, and Betrys heard his words without difficulty.“Thought you’d want to know.”
“Thanks.”Leo rolled out of the sleep-bed.
Betrys was out and halfway to the cleansing room.She stopped, her gaze going to the spot where she’d bitten him.Instead of an angry wound, a tiny black cat had formed.“You have a tattoo, the same as mine.”
“I can’t wait to show Ma,” Leo said.“She’ll be so happy.”
As she hurriedly cleaned and dressed, she thought of Leo’s words, of his request for her to stay.She wanted to, she realized.She wanted it very much, but first, she needed to consult with Ricci.He’d seemed to like Leo on the dreamscape, but she wanted to ensure he enjoyed the resort before she committed.Although she hadn’t thought of an alternative, she was certain she would find one or two if she searched.
The shuttle had landed by the time they arrived.Saber and Eva, Felix and Casey, Scarlett and their mother Anna were all there to meet them, despite the fact the solar sun hadn’t risen yet.
One of Leo’s brothers walked off the shuttle and Ricci followed.
“Ricci!”Betrys shouted and she found herself running faster and more freely than she ever had before.She scooped her son into her arms and hugged him hard.
“Mother, you’re hurting me.”
“Sorry.”She released him and studied his face.“Are you all right?”
Ricci smiled.He actually smiled and her heart squeezed with love and relief.“Joe and Sly told me all about the resort.There are children who are the same age as me and I can swim in the sea.Will we live here now?”
Leo came to stand beside her and slipped his arm around her waist.“Would you like that?”
“Yes,” Ricci said.
“I think we should have breakfast.”Anna Mitchell stepped forward.“Pancakes, I think.This seems like a pancake kind of day.”
“What’s a pancake?”Ricci asked.
Betrys smiled.“I don’t know.”
“It’s an Earth food,” Leo said.“You’ll find them delicious.I promise.”
“Betrys?”
She turned to see Sly and another man.This must be Joe—the only Mitchell sibling she hadn’t yet met.His green eyes, shaggy black hair, and muscular build told of the blood relationship.They were twins, although their different hairstyles made it easy to tell them apart.
“Thank you.”She gave them both a swift hug and ignored Leo’s low growl of protest.“Thank you for bringing Ricci to me.”
“We got your currency for you,” Sly replied.
“And something else we thought you might like from Ricci’s room,” Joe spoke this time.
“That’s Ricci’s drawing book,” Betrys said.
Leo’s brother smiled.“Look at the pictures inside.”
She sought Ricci and found him walking with Leo’s mother and chattering away, so she accepted the book and opened it.A gasp escaped as she stared at the pictures her son had drawn.
“What is it?”Leo asked.
Betrys showed him Ricci’s picture of two black cats, one larger than the other.They were running on a beach, the jade-green water beyond, and Ricci had drawn himself in the picture, racing alongside the two cats with a big smile on his face.
Leo turned the pages and there were other pictures, drawn in different places around the resort, but all showing the same thing.Two black cats and a small boy.Ricci.
