Page 69 of Treasured By the Alien Rogue

With a sigh, I started tugging logs off the pile and resetting them.

Chapter 32

Amanda

Xax came back and made breakfast, not mentioning why Tribon was looking for him. I didn’t ask. If he wanted to tell me, he would.

After, we left the home with Maverick riding on my shoulder, his bushy tail coiled around the back of my neck. Xax assured me he’d see us as his parents now and wouldn’t try to run away. I didn’t mind if he wanted to live in the wild, but he was too young to take care of himself for now.

“I’ll see you later?” Xax asked, stopping outside my new tea shop. “I have a few things to take care of in the woods.”

“Sure.”

“Stay within the village,” he said. “Don’t go near the woods.”

He seemed so concerned about me being safe that I didn’t chide him for the warning.

“You’re going into the woods,” I said.

“I’ve been trained from the time I was little. I know how to protect myself.”

“I know how to protect myself too.”

“You do, to some extent. I’ve seen that.” He stroked my face. “Please?”

“Alright.” I guessed there was no harm in remaining close. It wasn’t like I had much to do beyond the village—not yet—though I had some ideas.

“Thank you,” he said.

I watched as he strode down the trail and entered the woods before turning back to my tea shop.

I wasn’t completely sure what I’d do inside my new business today, but I’d find something to keep me busy. I also wanted to go from one home to the next and introduce myself. If I was going to run a tea shop, I needed customers. This wasn’t going to work out the way I’d anticipated back on Earth. I doubted I could charge for my product, though I’d try to make trades eventually. It was common for a business to give away samples at first. Once people realized how much they enjoyed tea and how wonderful it was to sit in my shop while drinking it, they’d start to come on a regular basis.

I still hadn’t figured out what I’d do about milk or sugar, let alone baked goods, but without tea leaves and a way to steep them, the rest didn’t matter.

“There you are,” Gerain said as I strode into my shop. She and Floosar sat on stumps near the back. “We have some wonderful herbs for you to try, and frankly, I’m eager to sample them myself.”

Smiling, I strode over to join them.

“Why is a drettire riding on your shoulder?” Floosar asked, squinting at my new pet.

“This is Maverick.” I stroked his soft pelt. “Xax and I found him in the woods, and we placed him on a low tree branch. We think his mother was taken, that he’s an orphan. Xax went back yesterday, and Maverick’s mother hadn’t come back for him, so he brought him to the village. He lives with us now.”

Gerain studied the drettire. “Why would you want it to live with you?”

“Haven’t you ever had a pet?” I asked. “He purrs when I pat him, and he loves to snuggle.”

“I’d like to have a drettire as a pet,” Floosar said wistfully. “I love to snuggle. No male in the village has shown a mark to prove he’s my fated, and I’m not yet ready to choose someone else. I could cuddle a drettire instead.”

“He will not offer you meat, daughter,” Gerain said with a huff.

“Meat’s all well and good, but too often, meat doesn’t come with cuddles.”

Gerain chuckled. “Then you’re not selecting the right meat.”

I couldn’t stop grinning. I hadn’t had many friends on Earth. It was hard to make them when everyone was busy all the time. Being a foster kid could be lonely. My foster parents brought in other kids, but they were all younger than me. I was more a babysitter for them than a friend.

If I stayed here, Floosar and Gerain could be my friends. My heart swelled, pressing against my ribcage, and I couldn’t keep the smile off my face.

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