Page 6 of The Monster at the End of This Courtship

Now, I wasn't so sure. Her best friend was always hanging around. James. I hated the guy. He grated on my last nerve. He took her out to the movies or dancing on the weekends I had to work. They went barhopping until the bars closed. I never expected Rosanna to be the girl who stayed home reading books, but something about her friendship with James always put me on edge.

When Merritt dismissed class, I grabbed the piece of cloth Priestess Alma had left for me and held it to my snout. Damn. I couldn't explain the effect it had on me. I'd never wanted anyone like this, not even Rosanna. She was the furthest thing from my mind as I entered the priestess's classroom.

One of her students was talking to her at her desk, so I held back by the whiteboard and waited. She motioned me forward, and I caught a whiff of a similar scent, but not the same, from her student. I brought the cloth to my nose again.

"What is this?" I asked.

"That's the scent of your omega. I borrowed one of his pocket squares to see how you would react. Merritt says you're straight."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Where did you grow up, dear?"

"Burnsville, Texas."

"Small town?"

I nodded.

"What did you do for a living?"

"I worked retail. Sporting goods."

She nodded. "You never questioned your sexuality?"

"Why would I? Girls were constantly throwing themselves at me." Boys too, if I were honest, and yeah, maybe I noticed, but Inever acted on it. "Is that part of being an alpha? Everyone wants you?"

She laughed. "Not necessarily. It's usually only your fated mate, your omega, who wants you." She wrapped my fingers around the pocket square. "His name is Tuft."

"I know. We met."

"He would like to get to know you before hormones and mating rituals take over."

"Like a courtship?"

"Yes, exactly like a courtship."

The old-fashioned word seemed bigger and more formal than dating back on Earth. I was somewhere between overwhelmed and terrified of it. "How long before I can tell him I'm not interested?"

She blinked her wide amber eyes. "If that's still how you feel when your tail falls off, I suppose there's nothing we can do about it. It's just …" she sighed.

"Is he dying of cancer or something?"

"What? No. We don't get cancer." She laughed. "We don't succumb to most human diseases, though we did run the risk of making ourselves sick when we had to stay underground to raise our young. You'll be able to raise yours in the cabin we've assigned to you. Once your courtship is complete, Tuft will move into the cabin with you to nest and raise your hatchlings."

"Nest?" More and more, I was beginning to think I was a character in my favorite movie, except I wasn't a cool paleontologist. I was one of the dinosaurs.

"You'll learn more about being an alpha in Merritt's classes, but by now you must know we lay eggs."

"Yes, Ma'am." It had been a hard sell, but Merritt had convinced me I was part kobold and part human, and the kobold parts took over when mating.

"That's all I'll say about it, then." She sighed. "Be careful with him. Tuft hasn't had an easy go of it. Promise me you'll at least try to like him."

I glanced down at the yellow pocket square in my hand, but I couldn't keep the concerned wrinkle from my brow. "What's wrong with him?"

"A bit of impatience and a strong desire to please anyone and everyone who comes along."

"Including me?" I asked. I didn't trust suck-ups. Never had.

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