Page 64 of The Weaver

A shudder ran through him. “Your words have made my heartsthread thrum.”

She cupped his jaw between her hands and smiled. “You have made mine thrum for a long, long time.”

A low, content purr rumbled in his chest. Ahmya dropped her arms as he straightened and stepped back.

Those dexterous hands of his folded the dress with all the grace and precision she’d come to expect of him before hehanded it to her. “Bathe, my mate. Prepare as you must. What time you need is yours.”

She accepted the dress with a smile, trying to ignore the heat coursing beneath her skin, trying to suppress the excited energy pulsing at her core.

Rekosh remained in place.

Toeing the ground with her boot, Ahmya lifted her eyebrows.

He canted his head.

She held the dress against her belly. “Um, Rekosh…”

“Yes, Ahmya?”

“The preparation is usually done in private.”

His mandibles fell again. “Private?”

“Yes. If you could maybe”—keeping hold of the dress with one hand, she raised the other and pointed toward the edge of the clearing—“go over there and turn around for a bit?”

He turned his head to follow her gesture with an unhappy hum. “You wish to be alone? The bathing is not done with your mate?”

“It’s not.”

“It is not safe.”

“I won’t be alone-alone. I’ll just be by the water and can call for you if I see anything. But I…I need this. I want to do this. For you.”

Rekosh searched her face silently before he nodded and rose, plucking up his spear in one hand and his bag in the other. He reached inside the bag and rummaged through for a moment before taking out a little cloth bundle tied with a silk string, which he held out to her. “Nath’jagol.”

Cleanleaf.

Ahmya beamed up at him as she took the bundle, touched by his thoughtfulness. “Thank you.”

Rekosh grasped her jaw and tipped her face up toward his, keeping his hold gentle but firm. “I will be near,vi’keishi.” Hisgaze dipped to the dress, and another trill emerged from him, this one softer, warmer, and all the more endearing for it. “Call for me ifanythinghappens.”

“I will. I promise.”

He stroked his thumb claw over her cheek, hesitating before he released her, and turned. He strode away, disappearing behind a large rock.

She didn’t like it when he was out of sight, when they were separated, but knowing he was close was enough to keep her calm. She’d requested privacy, and he was granting it.

And he wasn’t likely to leave her alone for long.

I’m getting married.

Ahmya grinned, clutching the dress and cleanleaf to her middle, and bounced in place. It didn’t matter that Rekosh was a vrix. He was going to be her mate.

Crouching, Ahmya gathered the shoes and the cloth and leather that had swaddled the bundle, then made her way to the pool’s edge. She surveyed the area for any lurking creatures, and when she was sure there were no predators about to pounce on her, she set everything down, spreading the leather out on a rock and the dress and shoes upon it to keep them protected.

Not wanting to waste time, Ahmya tugged off her clunky boots and undressed. Though she’d been living in the jungle for months, she still hadn’t quite shaken her self-consciousness. She always felt like people were watching her even when she knew nobody was around.

It was…silly to hold onto such modesty. Ivy, Callie, and Diego had done away with it, and Cole never had any qualms about stripping and streaking through the village without a care in the world, dick swinging freely. But Ahmya, Lacey, and Will still struggled with it.

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