Page 21 of Their Human to Entice

“Let me say goodbye to everyone.” Diane wiggles in his grasp, but his fingers only clutch her tighter.

“Diane says goodnight,” Almaac raises his voice so it can be heard over everything else in the dining hall. A few of the demons call back in, saying goodnight to her, but for the most part, they all look and then return to what they were doing. “Keep an eye on Beren’s mate. We were told to tell him if she got herself in trouble.”

My cheeks feel warm again at the thought of Beren now asking two separate demons to tell him if I was doing anything that they deemed troublesome. I should find it humiliating, a bit demeaning. Instead, I’m having to tell my stupid heart that it means nothing and he’s just making good on his promise to keep me safe. Nothing more. I can’t even think about it being anything more because if I do, it will only hurt more when he flat-out rejects me.

“I’ll make sure she doesn’t get into too much trouble.” Deja waves Almaac and Diane away before leaning on her forearms over the table and narrowing her eyes on me. “Why’s your mate so certain you’re going to get into trouble?”

“I have no idea.” Which is the truth because I’ve done nothing since being here that would warrant him thinking I’m a troublemaker.

Sure, I want to have some demons woo me, but that’s been thought out and approved by the tribal leader. It’s not even happening tonight because all the demons think they need to go to Olivia first before coming to me. Maybe if they were throwing themselves at me, Beren might have reason to think I’m causing trouble. But as it stands now? I’m completely and totally harmless.

“Well, I want to know what your mate thinks you’re up to when he’s not around if he has so many demons watching over you,” Deja says, sitting back in her chair and picking her sewing back up. She only finishes a few more stitches before the great hall doors opening catches our attention. “Speak of the devil.”

Beren and Lyath come walking in, eyes scanning the dining hall for me. When they find me, they both seem to relax. Again, I don’t get my hopes up because, for all I know, they were worried about me being without them all day because I’m a weak human and not because they actually care about me.

The smile on Lyath’s lips makes my heart ache, though, and the way Beren stares at me with such intensity has me thinking maybe there’s something there. No, stupid brain and stupid heart. Thoughts like those are going to leave me hurt and without even a demon to be with on the side.

“Are you ready to go home?” Beren asks as he nears the table. He offers a hand to help me up that I take before letting it drop when I get to my feet. I set my shorts on the table, deciding to leave them until tomorrow because I still have quite a bit more work to do on them.

“I guess so.” I stretch my arms over my head and shift my weight from side to side.

“Good.” Beren pats my shoulder once before turning back to Lyath. Just like this morning, Beren tucks Lyath under one of his arms and offers me the same. I don’t take it. It’s too much and makes me want things I know I’m not supposed to want. So, I step beside them and let them lead me back to our home.

9

Nia

Finding a demon to want to sleep with me has proved to be more difficult than I thought it would. Who would’ve thought any of these demons would be hard to pursue when most of them have never been with a woman? In fact, the day after Olivia and Ralleth told them they were allowed to woo me, absolutely no one tried. Not even a little bit!

I’m not delusional enough to think I was going to find the perfect alien man. I’ve resigned myself to being okay with living a nontraditional life as the third wheel in a pre-established relationship. What I am not prepared for is not even having a side piece.

How hard is it for a girl to get laid on a planet of virgins? I mean, I guess it’s not the whole planet, but our tribe at least has twenty-ish males that aren’t mated to anyone. Which means twenty or so virgins who, I would imagine, want to figure out how it all works.

I chew on a piece of olack like it’s one of the males sitting around the dining hall, refusing to look at me. It’s been like this for the last five days when I come in here to hang out with all the other women.

The first day, all the women sat around talking, sewing, and eating. We pretended not to notice that no one came up and talked to me throughout the day. I told myself it was because I was sitting with all of the women, enjoying myself, and they probably didn’t want to interrupt.

On the second day, I purposefully gave myself some alone time. I sat on my own, sewing and enjoying listening to the chattering around me. I thought for sure that at least one of the demons would approach me. Instead, I spent the day either hanging out with the women or moving away for some alone time until Lyath and Beren came to pick me up that evening.

Third day, I made it a goal to speak to at least two demons to make sure they knew I was looking for a hookup. Every time I went to speak to one of them, they all of a sudden had something important to do. Even the other women were starting to question what was going on. I thought maybe it was some kind of joke, but nope, they knew as much as I did about what was going on.

Yesterday, I stayed in bed all day. Beren and Lyath both poked their heads in a few times to make sure I was okay. When I assured them I was, they left me alone. They were telling the truth about working on the farm, though. It’s actually starting to look like a farm, and they said they’re going to start planting the seed in the next couple of days. I’ve offered to help, something to get my mind off of how unlaid I am and maybe exhaust me so I can go to sleep instead of lying in bed frustrated.

Today, I’ve given up on giving a single fuck. I’ve decided my time is well spent seething in my seat while I try to figure out the best way to seduce a demon. Most demons and humans are busy listening to Alice, the human who was kidnapped and saved, tell the story of what happened. I’m listening in but trying not to seem too nosy since I didn’t ever talk to anyone in Unit A12 except for Simone and Deja. It feels weird to just butt into everyone’s conversations, even though that seems to be exactly how things work here.

“Beren’s mate looks angry,” Toron says as he slides into the seat across from me. His mate is sitting at the next table over, telling the other women everything that happened to her when she was kidnapped. She also has a young sitting beside her, his hand clutched in hers as he eyes every one in the dining hall like he’s not sure he can trust them. I’m surprised Toron’s willing to sit next to me when I know for a fact he wants to be holding his mate right now.

“I am angry.” I chew even harder as if punishing an already dead and cooked animal can make me feel better. When Toron just continues to stare at me, I sigh and let my shoulders fall. “What are you doing? Shouldn’t you be doing mate things with your mate?”

“We will do that later when Thro goes to bother others,” Toron says with a shrug as if this is normal for him now.

He and his mate finally made it back to the tribe yesterday after he went to get her back from being kidnapped. I was in bed, pouting to myself about my lack of a sex life when they got here. Which is for the best, I guess, since there’s no telling what all kinds of emotions were happening in the tribe. As much as I want to be a part of this community, being a part of the welcome home party for a demon and human I never spoke to seemed like something I should miss. They were able to be surrounded by people who cared about them, and I was able to sulk on my own without bringing down the mood.

“Why are you sitting over here alone?” Toron asks when I don’t say anything. “You could sit with your sisters. Or, where are your mates? Are they not keeping you entertained?”

“Mate, singular.” I hold up my pointer finger and bend it a few times before returning to my sewing.

I have two pairs of shorts that are in pretty good condition. Now, I’m working on making some for the other women since only Diane and I seem to be any good at it. As far as I know, Kendra made her lingerie and hasn’t sewed anything since then. We also haven’t seen the clothing either, but that’s probably for the best.

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