“You don’t look too bad yourself,” I teased.
“Perhaps we can leave the party early to have more of a private celebration.” He wiggled his eyebrows, causing me to cackle.
“I’d like that.” I had barely uttered my sentence when Orsu hurled me over his shoulder and walked back to the mountain.
We ‘celebrated’ three times in three different positions that night. It was amazing.
Chapter 19
Orsu
“It’s beautiful out today,” my mate commented as she closed her eyes and let the cool breeze sweep across her face. Julie had asked if we could get some fresh air and I was happy to take a walk with her outside the mountain.
“The cool breeze is a sign the seasons are changing,” I remarked. I was looking forward to the winter. It would mean lots of time spent indoors with my soft, warm mate.
“Let’s stop by the stream and put our feet in the water for a minute.” Julie pointed to the shallow water that ran alongside the mountain.
“Are your feet bothering you? Should I rub them?” I asked, half concerned, half excited about the possibility of bringing Julie some relief. It had become a routine for me to rub the knots out of Julie’s shoulders every night. I loved watching her shoulders relax once I was done. I was often rewarded with cuddles afterward. I discovered that I enjoyed being the ‘little spoon’ as Julie called it. My mate may be small but I felt safe with her on an emotional level that I hadn’t known was possible. When she embraced me a warmth filled my soul that lingered long after we parted.
“They don’t hurt. I just want to feel the water on my feet,” she grinned up at me.
We sat by the river and let our feet soak in the cool water.
“You know when I was just five seasons old, I fell into the river near my home. I nearly drowned. If it wasn’t for Lumod I probably would have.”
“He saved you?”
“Yep, he was a strong swimmer, even back then.”
Julie looked pensive for a moment before responding. “I think Fatima is right. You were probably born with the shifter genes, but those genes weren’t activated until you hit puberty.”
“Genes?”
“Yeah, ‘genes’ is short for ‘genetics’. It’s something that’s in your blood that makes you, you.”
“I see.” The idea of us being born with our abilities had never occurred to me before. I had assumed it was a sudden curse by the goddess like everyone else had.
“I wonder if our sietlings will be born with shifter abilities.” I let my words hang in the air. We hadn’t discussed children yet. It was yet to be determined if it was even a real possibility. We’d soon find out if Tarak’s seed had taken root in Gabby’s womb. The full moon was only a few days away, marking four weeks since they’d first mated. Sirret females would usually start showing signs of pregnancy four weeks after a mating. I hoped it would be the same for humans, too.
Julie remained quiet for a moment and I worried that I had offended her somehow. Maybe she didn’t want to have shifter sietlings.
“I hope so.” She smiled and her eyes lit up with hope. “I want our children to be as much like you as possible.”
My chest filled with joy. I longed to see Julie heavy with my sietling, and knowing she wanted that too was beyond my wildest dreams.
“Maybe Gabby will show signs of pregnancy soonand that will confirm if it’s possible.” She spoke aloud what I’d been wondering.
“Yes, I would like to see my Savrix surrounded with sietlings of his own.” Tarak was a good male who would be a good sire.
“Let’s check on the grain. I want to look at the results of our hard work again.” Julie said as she stood up and dusted the dirt off her pants.
“I’d like that, too.” I offered her my hand and together we walked up the hill to the wooden structure Drovo and I had built a few seasons ago, but it looked different. It was still a distance away, but I could tell something was wrong.
“Why does it look like that?” Julie asked and I knew she had noticed something was off as well.
“I’m not sure. Let’s take a closer look.”
We quickly walked up the hill and my stomach turned into knots as I saw the door hanging open. It had been sealed shut with a locking mechanism Drovo had invented. No animal or beast should have been able to open it.
