Page 25 of Bride of Choice

“Do you really think I’m a bad female?” My scowl doubled, realizing I’d voiced this out loud. He was so hung up on that. Why was it so damned important to him that I was good in his eyes?

Rek’s scowl matched mine as his gaze whipped in my direction. “Who say my Jojomine’s bad?” he half muttered, threading our fingers to urge me down into our tunnelway to love town.

I dug my boots in once more when he would have dragged me down there, said all the right things, and got exactly what he wanted to pull his shit on me all over again.

“Say you want me, just as I am. Say it and mean it, or go on into the tunnel by yourself.” My voice quavered but I held firm.

Rek made a muffled noise, a smothered snarl, looking at me askance. “What you say? My Jojo no know what she say. Come. We go. Come with Rek. Come, my Jojo.”

“Not until you say you want me, that you take me just the way I am. You have to mean it. I’m serious, Rek.” I held firm, feeling like I was holding my breath, chest tight to the point it was constricting, and waited.

“Jojomine has the sillies. No knows what you say. Come. Be Rek’s good female. Listens to my Jo’s Rek. Come.” Once more, he gave my hand a tug.

All those things I’d been advising those Lo denaii about came rushing back. “There’s nothing silly about this. I mean it, Rek. I want to hear you say it and mean it. If you can’t, don’t, or won’t, I won’t be coming with you.”

Rek’s nostrils flared, eyes narrowing as he rounded on me. “Joanie say she no come, Rek not do Joanie wants.”

“You’re making it sound like I’m manipulating the situation, and I’m not. I’m saying, you’re trying to force all these things from me to get your way, and you can’t even say, Joanie, I love you just the way you are.” Slipping my fingers in his, I pleaded, “Can’t you understand what I’m saying? Am I asking you to have a brain transplant?”

Shaking my hand off, he snorted. “Want Rek change but no want change for Rek.”

“How is asking you to drop your demands bullshit the same as asking you to accept me as I am?!” I was done being quiet, prepared to shout the roof down around us if that’s what it came to. “You want me to change, and I won’t. That’s what this whole thing boils down to, and I-”

“No. Jojo wants Rek say yes, all the times say yes, and Jojo do what Jojo want, no care what Rek want!” He kept his voice low but he might as well be shouting at me.

He didn’t get it. The fool just didn’t get any of it at all.

Wrapping my arms around myself, I took several steps back. “I think you should go.” My throat worked as my eyes threatened to water. I was always angry at first, but that anger with him inevitably bled into other emotions.

Rek hesitated, something shifting in his eyes as he stared at me, watched me fighting off tears, angry as he was. His anger, apparently, won out as he snarled softly, “Wet eyes no make Rek say what Jojo-knee want.”

Unable to look at him without breaking, my voice hardened as I muttered, “I think you should leave.”

He snarled but moved in closer. His touch was gentle, despite the snarl in his voice, as he brushed the back of his hand along mine. “No say that- Those things to Rek. Come. We go.”

“No,” I said simply. “I can’t- I don’t trust you anymore, and… and I think we’re in two completely different places. We need to face it. This’ll never work.” There. I’d said it. One less elephant in the room.

“Rek and Jojo-knee work!” The roar he let loose made me jump. It was so long and loud it rattled my whole hut. My head shot up in shock to watch him disappear beneath my bed.

Swiping at my eyes, pretending I had the sniffles and nothing more, I grabbed one of my now empty suitcases and shoved it under the bed, effectively blocking the hole under there.

A loud knock on my door moments later had me jumping with a yelp.

“Jo?” a familiar, wholly unwelcomed voice called out as the knocking paused, then resumed.

Tossing a few thickly scented dung chips on the fire and spritzing my hair with enough hairspray to stink up the place, not thinking for one moment Berkr would buy that I was using the dust of shame to deodorize my hut, I flung the door open with a huff. “It’s kinda late to be making house calls, don’t you think, Pepé?” I was all huff and a ton of puff.

Berkr grunted, sharp gaze darting about. “Bad Jo know Berkr name.”

“As do you mine, Pee-pee. As do you mine,” I replied sweetly.

Leaning in, his nose wrinkled after the first sniff and his eyes immediately began to water.

“Did my hair, how you like?” I purred, smiling inwardly in self-satisfaction when he pulled back and went so far as to lean away. Hah!

“Smelly,” he admitted.

“Aw, Pee-pee, you flatter me,” I cooed, fluttering my plain ol’ boring lashes at him.

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