Page 47 of Catching the Kot'oll Driver

Chapter seventeen

Chapter 17

Kendra

Irub the fabric inside the pocket of my coat, staring at the floor as Grihul and I make our way to the parking lot. If I were on my own, I’d take my time looking at the decorations of the mall, but now...

Part of me wants to spend more time with Grihul and take my time enjoying his presence, but part of me...

Fuck... He asked whether I wanted to try dating him and become mates...

Do I agree to try? He said he’d move here. I’d get to see him all the time and that’s not too bad. But at the same time... Will it be dangerous to be with him? Is he...

I shake my head, trying to shake away my stupid thoughts. There’s no reason for him to want to hurt me. He may be a bigger being, but it doesn’t mean he is there to annoy me.

He and I come from different worlds, though.

I pause and he hurries to stop before he bumps into me. Maybe I should just give him a chance and also give myself a chance. How bad can it be?

It isn’t like I don’t enjoy spending time with him.

I shiver when the door to the outside slides open. A cold breeze blows in my face. I wince as I make myself take a step. Winter on this planet isn’t fun at all. I hate it so much. This shopping mall should have made indoor parking in the basement or somewhere so that it’d be a bit more bearable.

Grihul pats my shoulder. “I’ll drive the spaceship here.”

I shake my head. “It’s okay, I’ll go with you.”

He watches me for another moment before he nods and starts walking. Having long legs is good, but he follows my pace.

The wind isn’t very strong, but it is strong enough for me to hate my own existence.

He wraps an arm around my waist. “Here, do you want me to carry you there?”

I roll my eyes. “I know you’re a big kot’oll.”

He flexes his arms. “I can put these to great use.”

He... In my mind, how he held me and fucked me flashes back. He can use those arms well for sure, but I don’t need a reminder of that.

I want to think about whether I should give us a chance and date each other. It should be a serious decision that I can’t make on the spot, which he seems to understand.

I shake my head. “I’m good.”

He shrugs. “No problem, just let me know.”

It isn’t snowing. There are still piles and piles of snow at the sides of the road. It is also getting dark, which makes it...

I take a breath, trying to calm myself. I’ve never been big on walking around in the dark even though there are streetlights. Maybe I’ve been a police officer for so long that I can’t help but raise my awareness when things don’t feel right.

Grihul doesn’t seem to be remotely bothered. Either he doesn’t feel the danger lurking somewhere, or bigger beings tend to feel less intimidated. If I were his size, maybe I’d feel safer.

We turn a corner into the back street, which is the shortcut to—

A few shadows pop up out of nowhere. I flinch and reach for my gun at once, but I’m not on duty and I don’t have it with me...

Those say nothing and start whacking their thick bats at me. I duck from the first hit, kicking that guy in the stomach.

Grihul grunts. “What is this?”

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