Page 33 of Right on Time

“You flatter me, but–”

“That’s not flattery, it’s what I believe. Once on Earth, you will be so high in demand you might wish for the quiet times without women chasing you.”

“I don’t want females chasing me,” he said without hesitation, surprising both himself and Loe.

“Why? Have you… set your sight on… one particular woman?” Her eyes bore into his, as if she could read the answer in there.

Goddess almighty. What if Loe could? But even if she couldn’t, he was not capable of lying. Not to her, not to anyone. Not even to himself at this moment.

His hand moved at its own volition to cup the side of her neck, his thumb tracing her delicate jawline. “Yes, Loe. I have eyes for only one female.”

“Who?” The question was like a puff of air coming from between her parted lips. A puff of air that he felt against his lips, for he had leaned down, her mouth now but a feather away from his own–

Level 3.

The automated voice in the elevator returned Nitiel to reality with the subtlety of a wing hitting his face in battle. And good thing it did, because a moment later the door slid open to the busy corridor of the top ring’s Level 3.

He moved away from Loe so fast that the backs of his wings hit the curved elevator wall.

“Nitiel! Are you alright–”

“This way, Lady Loe.”

Her face fell, but she moved out of the elevator and to the left, as he had motioned for her to do.

Nitiel felt like tearing his horn nubs out for saddening her. Then again, it was for the better. What would have come out of his full confession?

For a moment there in the enclosed space, wrapped in Loe’s heady scent and mesmerizing gaze, he had gotten lost in the dream of a relationship with her. But this was not a female he could declare his interest in and ask for a chance to woo.

Loe was Siriniel’s! However interested in Nitiel she might look now, the second she met her niel, there would be no other male for her in the future. She wouldn’t even remember the males she had been close to in the past. A polite nod in greeting was all Nitiel could hope to get from Loe if they ever met again afterward.

He could enjoy her company in the present, cherish the touches and warm looks she bestowed upon him, but nothing more. No tucking her under his wing, no snuggling, no tasting her inviting lips, nothing!

“The Arboretum’s main entrance is just around the turn of this corridor,” he told the quiet Terran walking beside him, unable to stand his own thoughts any longer. The silence between them was just as unbearable. “There are three more entrances, but those are further away. The garden is vast, it would take a day to walk to the opposite end.”

“Wow.”

“Indeed. This garden will ensure you do not miss the green spaces on Terra.”

“Perhaps, if I were staying. But I’ll be back to my good old neighborhood park in a few days.”

“Lady Loe…”

“I know, it could be more than a few days, given how Commander Twirly Horn is having cold feet. But I’ll be on my way home immediately after our meeting.”

Nitiel clenched his jaw. She was saying this just to torment him. He should not get into the argument she was seeking. And yet, it was tempting. “I beg to differ, my lady. After said meeting, you will not wish to leave the cabin of Commander Siriniel of the Swirling Horn Clan, let alone the space station.”

“It is you who will not wish to leave the station, my lord.”

He stopped in front of the Arboretum’s entrance, the huge transparent gate awaiting the scan of his pinkie, and faced Loe. “And why is that, my lady?”

She crossed her arms over her chest. “Because you will be afraid to go to Earth, where I will be waiting for you–”

“You will be waiting for me?”

“–to talk your feathers off for having wasted my time! Coming here was a mistake.”

“Loe–”

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