Page 6 of An Alien for Her Heart

I dip my chin slightly in affirmation.

She struggles to right herself as I set her on her feet. “I didn’t expect you to arrive so soon.”

Her voice… It’s like a song. If I wasn’t still reeling from the impact of her body against mine, I might be more focused on listening to her speak.

“You shouldn’t be out here,” I say. It comes out all wrong. Gruff and unfriendly, though that’s far from what I intend.

“Oh, I—” The human takes a shaky breath, trying to compose herself, but I can still sense the tension in her frame, the way her muscles remain coiled and ready to spring. Inwardly, I groan at my horrifying social skills.

“I’m Catherine.” She stretches an arm toward me and I look down at it. My siblingkin didn’t tell me much about human customs. I have no clue what she wants me to do. Something of meaning, no doubt, because her arm hangs still outstretched between us.

I do the only thing I can think of. I lean down and press my nose against her skin, inhaling deeply as I take her scent in. A low rumble of appreciation hums in my throat. One that sends a spark through all the thoughts I’ve been having of her. I never imagined what she might smell like, but even if I had, I couldn’t have ever imagined this. Her scent is subtle. A blend of earth and something distinctly her own. Something warm and comforting. It stirs memories of long, lazy afternoons on Karicek, lying in the grass with my siblingkin and watching the sky. When I stand straight again, her eyes are wide pools.

“Thanks for coming.” She blinks away the surprised look and meets my gaze in earnest. “I should have probably stayed in the house until you arrived, but I couldn’t just leave them.” Her voice is a mixture of relief and defiance. “They’re my responsibility.”

I admire her spirit. That frown on her brow doesn’t ease, however, even as she adjusts the tunic on her frame. The trappedanimal behind her takes that moment to kick out again and the human jerks to the side, a flash of distress showing in her gaze. I would have missed it, because it disappears just a click later.

My eyes narrow slightly. She is just as I remember her. An enthralling otherworldly beauty despite the anxieties of moving to this planet on her own. Dark and silvery mane with those startling green eyes. A lithe frame, her limbs thin and long as if she’s meant to sway or dance in the wind. With the chaos around us, I hope I’m not obvious in the fact I can’t pull my gaze from her now.

“Your strength and effort are noted, human.” Gruff again. Frakk me. I give her a nod as I turn to the trapped ooga, using it as a distraction. I wouldn’t be surprised if the human runs away and hides frommenow. Dodging another kick from the animal, I stretch an arm toward it. My grip is firm but gentle, and the creature calms down enough for me to begin guiding it from the fence. All the while, I’m aware of the human’s presence.Catherine. She’s still not hiding. She’s gripping the neck of her tunic with one fist while the other arm is wrapped tight around herself.

Her throat moves as she swallows hard. Anxiety and fear waft off her in waves. And yet, outwardly, there’s no trembling. None of the waters I’ve learned flow from human eyes when they are distressed. Her gaze shifts from my gentle coaxing of the animal to the other oogas that are still running around the field, some colliding with the fence and sending vibrations through it that work against me.

It’s an effort to keep the animal calm as I work its neck from within the trapped wires. An effort to focus on the task and not on the female behind me. Every single ooga in the field is running around in confusion, and beneath all that, spots of black fur appear and then disappear in the grass at various intervals.

I manage to guide the animal out of the fence and it dashes off to join the chaos of the herd. Catherine watches, her gaze shifting across the field and I wonder what she’s thinking.

“How…how did you do that?” she whispers. “How did you get it to calm down so easily?”

“Luck,” I reply. I don’t tell her it’s simply experience. Somehow, I feel that will make things worse. Experience is not something she will have. Not yet. She’s only just arrived on this world while I have lived on it for a very long time. “Now, let me deal with those umus.”

I don’t expect her to follow me, but she does. She has all the right to. This is her farm. Her livelihood. She has every right to be out here protecting her animals. But she is small and the oogas are panicked. Safety would be to head back to the lodge, away from this chaos. My shoulders are tight as I listen to the soft crunching of her boots. But I can’t turn her away, so I let her come, slowing my pace and parting the tall grass as we move together through the field, me in front and Catherine only a stride behind. In front of us, small furry creatures scatter through the grass at our approach. The umus. They’re quick and elusive, darting around in a blur of motion. I crouch down, waiting for the right moment before I catch one. Catherine’s inhale is sharp at my back.

“Careful,” she whispers. “It might bite.”

I almost smile at her concern over my safety. When I bring the little creature closer to my face, I can tell she stops breathing.

“They don’t bite.” I try to reassure her though I’m not sure I do a good job. My voice is still far too gruff to soothe any female and attempting to change it is only making it worse. “They’re harmless. Just playful.”

Her lack of faith in my words is evident. It’s so distinct, it’s the only truly unmistakable emotion I’ve seen in her eyes thus far.

“Playful?” She echoes, her voice lilting. “They’re little demons!”

This time, slight humor tugs at the corners of my lips. “They’re prone to mischief.” I pause, allowing my gaze to venture to hers. “Would you like to hold it?”

She blinks at me, lids fluttering over the vivid green of those eyes. She shakes her head, hands tightening where she’s still gripping the tunic by her throat and I wonder why she’s holding it so tightly. To prevent the tunic from exposing her skin? Another dangerous thought as my gaze slides down her frame. She’s probably pale all over. No scales.

“I don’t think holding that thing is wise.” She shakes her head, eyes still on the umu in my grasp, and I’m reminded of what I’m doing here. It’s enough to make me swallow to wet my suddenly dry throat. It’s been a long time since I’ve stared at any female long enough to wonder what she looks like bare. I swallow again, claws retracted as I stroke the umu’s furred head, aware of every single breath the female takes behind me. Rising, I lift the umu just to show her how docile the little things are.

“Wild umus stay away from other beings. These ones are friendly. Chances are, they belonged to this very farm a long time ago.” Cradling the thing to my chest, I turn to face the human. Her eyes are even larger pools in her head as she stares at me.

“Wh—” She makes a sound in her throat. As if something’s stuck and she’s clearing it away. “Do you think so?”

I would give her the Kari salute for assurance, but my arms are full. “I’m positive they’re yours. They are little terrors when upset but they’re mostly very playful. Their coats can be spun into soft threads.”

That seems to have caught her attention. Her digits loosen their grip on the fabric at her neck just slightly. “Like wool?”

I don’t know what or who this ‘wool’ is, but I’m silenced as she takes a step forward. “Now that you say that, their furisa lotlike wool.” As she peers closer, she releases the neck of her tunic, revealing her throat and the upper part of her chest. My focus locks onto her bare skin as she continues speaking. “This is the closest I’ve gotten to one since this all began.”

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