Page 21 of I Married A Lizardman

She pinched her lips and had the decency of looking somewhat embarrassed, realizing how offensive her words had been to me. “There’s nothing wrong with your people doing what they do,” Yarmir said coolly. “Butourpeople are Hunters, and my son is the greatest among them.”

“Fair enough,” I said, swallowing back the urge to snap at her. “But what’s the point of hunting if there are no animals to hunt? Hunting is a gamble. Farming, when done well, is pretty much a guarantee. Considering the difficult times our people are facing, don’t you want to consider options that could make sure we won’t starve?”

The savage expression that descended on my mother-in-law’s face twisted my insides. Her green scales taking on a pinkish—not to say reddish—hue was all the warning needed to know I better retreat immediately before I pushed her too far.

“You willnotput crazy ideas into my son’s mind, do you hear me?” she hissed with such venom it took all of my willpower not to run for the hills. She took one menacing step towards me. “Olix is facing enough challenges right now without you making him look weak. Once before, off-worlders nearly destroyed our people by turning us into dirt diggers. You will not enslave us again.”

On these harsh words, Yamir turned around and stomped back to the small table she had been working at amidst the others. Every single pair of eyes was locked on me, curiosity and worry shining within in equal measure. A female whose name I didn’t know asked Yamir a question as soon as she sat down. By the annoyed, dismissive gesture my mother-in-law performed, I could only guess the female had inquired about what had just happened, and that Yamir had refused to answer. No wonder, if she felt this strongly that my hint about the people farming could so severely undermine Olix’s standing.

The challenge I faced was going to be far greater than I had anticipated.

Chapter 8

Olix

The glow of pride I felt preening under the envious stares of the others as they gazed upon the trophy Susan had bestowed upon me faded at the sight of my mother’s anger. She had been so happy when she first went to greet my mate. What could have possibly transpired through their conversation to cause her to be so upset her scales would redden?

I excused myself and headed directly towards my mate who seemed both embarrassed and distressed. She watched me approach with a mix of relief and guilt.

“Good day, my mate,” I said, stopping in front of her. “Are you well? Is everything all right?” I asked before casting a sideways glance at my mother.

Susan shifted uneasily on her feet and chewed on her bottom lip while thinking of her answer.

“I’m fine,” she said carefully. “I guess I asked a question that your mother did not appreciate. I didn’t realize it was that sensitive of a topic. I didn’t mean to upset—”

My mate froze, her eyes widening as she gazed upon the leather harness adorning me. I puffed out my chest, making the harness stand out even more. Her eyes flicked to my wristbands and then to the hilt of the hunting knife hanging on my hip. I had woken at dawn and labored all morning on this.

“Is… is that blood?” Susan asked with an air of disbelief.

“Yes!” I said proudly. “Your gift to me.”

Her jaw dropped, but I couldn’t decide if horror or wonder prompted that expression.

“I have cut the sheets only to keep the bloody parts and treated them with tormedium,” I explained with enthusiasm. “It has darkened or burned out all the fabric that didn’t have blood on it so the blood would stand out. Then I have divided it into perfect sized pieces for my harness, wristbands, and weapons. You only see the dagger now, but I also have a part of you on my hunting lance and bow,” I added with a grin. “Then I covered the pieces in purified sotomac resin to seal them forever in this current state and then embedded each piece in the various accessories. I sewed them in the leather myself and did the blacksmithing as well. There is one last piece however that I have requested one of the Crafters to set for me,” I confessed sheepishly. “My touch isn’t delicate enough to craft jewelry, and I want two strands of your blood as ornaments for my quills.”

Susan continued to stare at me for a moment longer, apparently rendered speechless by what I had done.

“Wow,” she finally whispered in a tone that I couldn’t interpret. “You went through all this trouble to wear my virgin blood?”

“Of course! You have chosen me above all others to share your first and only blood. It is a great honor that I do cherish,” I said with sincerity. “I get to carry this special piece of you with me, everywhere I go. The other males are dying with envy. No other among our people will ever receive so unique a gift from his mate.”

A flurry of emotions fleeted over her features. Susan snorted then shook her head as if she couldn’t believe it before giving me a strange smile.

“You are very sweet, Olix. I am glad it pleases you,” Susan said in a soft voice.

She smiled and caressed my upper arm affectionately. The gesture reminded me of her touch on me last night, the softness of her around me, her moans in my ears. I clamped down on the thoughts as my stem threatened to harden again. Now wasn’t the time to couple with her. I just hoped she would wish to repeat it tonight.

However, looking at my female, it was plain to see she didn’t understand why I had done this with the bloodied sheets and probably found it bizarre. A part of me was disappointed my work hadn’t elicited the proud and joyful reaction I had anticipated. However, even though she didn’t quite understand it, my reasons for doing it had touched her. In the end, that mattered the most.

I smiled back before movement at the edge of my vision reminded me of our original topic of discussion.

“But, going back to your conversation with my mother, what question did you ask that upset her so much?” I asked carefully.

Susan looked troubled again. “We were talking about the public market and the fact that your people are crafting items for sale. I asked if you’ve ever considered using all the lands you have at the back to grow produce to sell at the market.”

My spine stiffened, and I barely reined in my own anger wanting to come to the fore.

“Judging by your reaction, it is definitely not the question to ask,” Susan said with a sad expression.

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