Page 40 of I Married Amreth

Chapter 10

Amreth

That first night sharing this house turned out to be a lot more restful than I expected. A genuine connection occurred last evening. Instead of tossing and turning while longing to hold her again, the memory of how perfectly she felt in my arms kept me company until morning.

A part of me was embarrassed to be so keenly aware of her arousal as her aura loudly broadcast it. Obviously, it pleased me a great deal that she should be attracted to me. But I wanted an emotional and spiritual connection with Ciara before we took things farther. Because sex with one of us was guaranteed to be phenomenal, I needed to feel like we had more than just lust as a foundation.

But that hug…

I’d never been one to have an addictive personality, until now. There was no question my mate would become my new drug. And I welcomed it.

We woke up almost at the same time. After quickly getting dressed, we met in the living area where I shamelessly stole akiss from her, followed by a much-too-brief hug without wings. I might have tried to make it linger a bit, but the bright lights of approaching souls forced me to put an end to it.

As an Obosian, I could see souls in a very wide radius even through walls and other obstacles that blocked people’s normal sight. Even stealth shields could not fool me.

It turned out to be Aku inviting us to join the others for a quick breakfast before we each parted in our own direction. After the meal, the spectacle that greeted us outside blew us away. A handful of mounts awaited our companions and their escorts.

“These are Saguls,” Aku explained. “They allow us to travel much greater distances a lot faster than if we run or swing on trees. The previous humans who came here said they resembled horses and behaved the same.”

My mate nodded. “They certainly are the same size as a horse with a similar head. But the curves and shape of their bodies remind me more of a greyhound with the stripes of a zebra, the mane of a lion, and the horn of a unicorn, although three horns in their case.”

Aku and a couple of other Kreelars whose name I didn’t know stared at her with some of the confusion I shared. I knew of horses, lions, and unicorns, but greyhounds and zebras meant nothing to me. I suspected our hosts never heard of any of those other creatures either.

“They are beautiful!” Mehreen exclaimed with almost childish excitement. “Am I to understand we each get to ride one?”

Aku nodded. “Yes. I hope it will not be a problem?”

Ernst and Mehreen simultaneously shook their heads. “Horseback riding is compulsory training to be an Interstellar Doctor assigned to some of the primitive planets. It is often not possible or allowed by the locals for us to use shuttles. Sowe need to be able to adapt to whatever local transportation is available.”

A wave of shame surged through me at the instant jealousy I felt when Ciara eyed her companions with envy while the Kreelars taught them how to ride the Saguls. I’d been counting the hours, minutes, and seconds until I finally got to hold her in my arms as we raced through the skies to our destination. There was no way I would let some pretty alien creature steal my moment of proximity with my mate.

Thankfully, our destination was much too far for us to ride that mount. In fact, our escort—Enre—left ahead last night so that he could make it by the morning. To my shock, right before the two other doctors and their escorts were about to set off, a female entered the inner courtyard carrying a small package. She handed it over to her leader who then came to me.

“Here, in case you need them. I doubt it, but I would hate for you to find yourself in a precarious situation with little means to defend yourself or your mate. I trust you will show wisdom as towhenorifthey should be used at all.”

My jaw dropped upon seeing he had returned my blaster and my sword.

“Your trust honors me,” I said in all sincerity as I took the weapons from him.

“As your integrity honors us. Safe travels to both of you. May your trip prove fruitful,” Aku replied.

With one last nod, he turned around and hopped onto his own mount with incredible grace and dexterity that screamed of a lethal predator contained behind his controlled exterior. The extent of the importance of the work we were doing here and of the relationship we were currently developing with his people finally struck me.

Between their natural physical abilities and their newfound powers, the Kreelars would be extremely lethal foes on thebattlefield. The fact that they hadn’t achieved interstellar travel on their own meant nothing when clearly more advanced species interacted with them on multiple occasions in the past. Should one of those visitors—or worse still their friends—convince them to turn on us, things could get ugly quickly. Humans already gave them a reason to resent us. And their raid on the Gladius proved they could wreak havoc beyond their planetary borders if they wished.

I secured my weapons around my waist as we watched their mounts take off. Once they cleared the gate to the inner courtyard, I turned to look at my woman to find her staring at me with an air of pride that warmed me to the core. I hadn’t done anything special for our host to show me this level of trust, but it pleased me that she should delight so much in it. Her pride confirmed she’d claimed me and saw us as an extension of each other.

“Let’s go,” I said in a soft voice.

Ciara nodded and passed the strap of her bag around her neck so that it would dangle sideways across her chest. Thankfully, Enre took with him most of the equipment and medicines that my mate required last night, strapping them on his mount.

A flame sparked in the pit of my stomach when she approached me and slipped her right arm around my shoulders when I picked her up like a bride. She settled her bag on top of her stomach before glancing back at me. Ciara’s expression was unreadable, but a part of me believed she was also enjoying that proximity. It wasn’t lust swirling deep within, but a tender possessiveness mixed with an odd sense of well-being to have her so close, in my arms, where she belonged.

“Here we go,” I said gently before flapping my wings and taking flight.

As I ascended, Ciara gradually tensed, her hand around my shoulder gripping it more tightly while she pressed herself against me. She closed her eyes and buried her face in the crook of my neck. Tharmok take me! She felt so wonderful against me. But shame immediately crushed that warm feeling. As much as I loved that increased closeness with my mate, my protective instincts overrode my selfish needs.

“Calm, my Ciara,” I said in a reassuring tone while emitting some of mybakaanto appease her.

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