Page 92 of Mutant Mine

“Oh, sweetheart, no,” she says. “It’s allgoodnews!”

43

Rory

SO, HEREare some things I now understand about us.

First up: Roth and I are mated.

“Mated?!” I ask Selene.

She pulls a face.

“I know… It’s a weird word. But yes, you and Roth have a mating bond.”

Mated. Fuck. That sounds soanimalistic.Which (I flush, hoping Selene isn’t reading my mind again) sounds about right.

“Okay, but what does that actually mean?”

“The extraterrestrial species that Roth was spliced with — at Watergap, we called them Species X. Our research suggested that they form one, lifelong mating bond. The same is true of Roth, Weaver, and the other X-human hybrids.”

“So how… how would we know if that’s what we are?”

“Well, you tell me. Once the bond is triggered, a special gland in the male’s neck releases pheromones whenever the mate is in close proximity. The pheromones aren’t discernible to anyone else, but you and Roth would be affected physically. They make everything very…intense.” Selene arches an eyebrow. “Does any of that sound familiar?”

I think of the smooth bumps under the skin of Roth’s throat that I wanted to suck and lick — and how he shuddered when I did. That sweet, smoky scent that I can’t get enoughof. My heavy eyelids and warm, tipsy feelings whenever he’s close to me. The way he makes me feel more turned on than I’ve ever been before — more turned on than I even imagined was possible.

“I’ll take that blush as a yes. And you will also have noticed that the sex is… different?”

I nod, sinking through the floor into a realm beyond embarrassment.She only knows because she’s done this too, I remind myself.

“Yeah, it was…”

“Insane, I know. No refractory period, multiple climaxes... It’s only like that with the mating bond.”

Another thought occurs to me, and I frown.

“What’s up?” asks Selene.

“I was just thinking… Roth said he knew that there was something new and different happening between us. And he was really worried about whether it was his choice, or just his biology. I told him that it was all of him, human and alien. Now I’m wondering if maybe I was wrong about that?”

“I think you were exactly right. In different ways, both halves of Roth started falling for you the day he met you. If it helps to put it in human cultural terms, he recognized his soulmate.”

“That does sound nicer than just ‘mate’.”

Selene laughs.

“Call it what you want, honey. It might have taken you a little longer without that biological boost, but I assume you got to the same place eventually?”

“I did,” I whisper, almost reluctant to let a third person see these new, private feelings that Roth and I have sheltered between us.

“In that case, there’s something else you need to know.”

I look at her questioningly.

“Okay,” Selene says. “This is the big one. So, almost three years ago, Weaver and I had a son. Lucas. He can’t wait to meet you, by the way.”

“A son?” My head spins. I had an annual contraceptive shot before I boarded the Hades, to get rid of my periods, so I’m not worried — but it’s still news to me that Ishouldworry in the future. “They can get us pregnant? I just assumed…”

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