Page 307 of Bride of Choice

Noyel shook his head. “Sorry. Didn’t mean to get your hopes up. We’ll go see Kunkle Doodie tomorrow, huh?”

“Teach throw rocks,” Zhuel announced.

“Small rocks go far,” Tohkrii added.

“Over water, right? Not, uh, at anything?” I mumbled worriedly.

“Over water,” Noyel confirmed, eyeing me.

“What?” I muttered defensively, taking a seat at the table to eye him right back.

He shrugged his wide shoulders. “Seem… different.”

My face screwed up into a frown. I was just shy of scratching my head on that one. “Different how?”

“Not bad. Just different,” he replied, which told me nada.

“Right. Okay. Whatever that means.” Shrugging right back, I tapped my short but freshly painted natural nails along the table. “Whatever.”

“See.” He pointed at me and lifted his nose to sniff the air. “Say things but you don’t mean it, even a little bit.”

“And I did before?” I spluttered.

“You say things when your feelings are hurt. You smell upset,” he explained. “You’re just saying things to be silly, pester right now. You’re not saying it to hide or divert.”

“Huh.” My frown deepened. They could pick up on that crap, just like that, one hinty sniff? All this time? Well, crud. Of all of the things I could have said, I muttered, “You listen to your mother far more than she gives you credit for.”

I mean, really, duh, Joanie. They can like, smell a Lo denaii babe’s gender super early on in a pregnancy. Not with a human baby, apparently, or so I’ve heard Noyel’s dad Lukar mention. Had something to do with a Lo denaii babe’s development, he’d surmised.

Noyel cracked a smile and chuckled. “Tell Mama that for me sometime, yes?”

With a shrug, I made a face. “Perhaps. If ever I’m in a generous mood.”

Joining me at the table, shoving a mug of hot tea towards me to pour one for himself, Zhuii, Rosa, and one for Kehko and her brothers each at their kiddie table as they began coloring, he rejoined me to sit across from me. Tapping his mug, he made a noise with his tongue and the roof of his mouth. “Not feeling generous?”

He was teasing, but I liked this newfound comradery.

“I smell like I’ve been smoochin’ on your third-best friend or wherever Goph falls in the pecking order after your lady mate and fellow bro-mates or whatever. This is where you’re going with this.” It wasn’t a question.

Noyel made a sad, tsking sound. “Needs to kiss you more,” he surmised from the annoyed moue that pulled at my puss.

Nabbing up the kitchen towel between us, I chucked it at his head. “Rosa! Your mate’s being mean to me!” I caterwauled, making the kids giggle from their front row seat at their coloring table.

There was a short pause, making me think Zhuii was trying to hold her up, before she asked, “What did you do to him?!”

“Oh! Did you hear that? She tossed me over for a boy!” Grabbing at my chest, I pretended to stoop forward in pain.

Noyel crowed like he’d just won this whole back and forth.

Grabbing up the kitchen towel from him to pretend to dab at my eyes, I mock sniffed and wondered aloud, “What would Kookypants think about all of this?”

“Rosie!” Noyel called out to his mate. “Cousin Joanie’s being mean to me!”

With a giggle in her voice, she called back, “What did you do to her?!”

Zhuii cracked up along with her when Noyel let out a mouth-fart of a noise of disbelief. “Rosie-mine!” he fumed, struggling not to laugh.

Cackling like a maniac, I shot up, arms out, and did an absurd victory dance right there at the kitchen table. “Oh. What? Who’s loved most now, huh, punk? Take that! Woot-woot!” The kids joined me as I danced around it, hooting and hollering, kicking up a fuss. “That’s Auntie-Cousin Joanie to you, Noy-boy!” I tossed out, soaking it up when he made a distressed sound and made off down the hall where his mate had disappeared off to.

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