Page 147 of Cosmic Captain

I held my mate tighter. I wanted to linger in this moment of isolation with him. Vince and me—no one else was welcome, not even my brothers. “I’m unavailable to everyone, no matter the reason. Disconnect now,” I ordered before it could come back with Hallonnixmin’s response.

NAID wouldn’t bypass the privacy laws, which could be overridden for a true emergency, but Edith would. Hopefully, with Seth and Kalvoxrencol on theAdmiral Ven, she wouldn’t be in a mood to prod around in my system, but one could never tell with her.

I pushed the thoughts from my mind. All that mattered was Vince. Everything else could wait.

I grunted as the water sloshed around me. Vince chuckled, beads of water running over his pale skin, clinging to him. “It’s your own fault, Sweetheart,” he commented as he scrubbed my scales. “You refused to clean my cum off you, and now it’s dried onto you.”

He’d insisted on cleaning me. I couldn’t say why, even though I could hear his thoughts on exactly why he liked washing me, but Vince took pleasure in simply caring for me, and I adored it.

Once he was satisfied, Vince settled on my lap as we soaked in the warm water. His head rested back against my shoulder as we simply remained silent. He was content, and so was I. Even the bathroom around us spoke of his comfort here. The stone shower and tub were the same, but I could see his products and new drying cloths and even more artwork in here.

Drakcol, in general, weren’t a creative species. We didn’t value art in basically any form, which was why all of our clothes were the same style, no artwork or decorations covered our walls, and we rarely wrote our own novels or created our own experiences.

But humans were different, and it pleased me to no end that Vince had placed his touch on our space in my absence. It spoke of his desire to stay. I swallowed as my tail curled around his ankle. He would stay, wouldn’t he?

Vince didn’t notice my tension. His mind was peaceful with little thought, basking in my warmth. He played with my hand and stared out the window, watching the curtains flutter in the never-ending breeze.

I trailed my fingers through his hair, adoring the way the black strands slid around my scales. My mate was here, and I could hardly believe it.

Vince kissed my palm, and I tensed even further as his thoughts began to change.

“Relax,” he whispered. “Just relax, Sweetheart.”

My breath rushed out. I was terrified of scaring him away. I knew what it was like to live without him, and I could never do it again. Never again.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, and he wasn’t meaning my current tension. Vince was thinking of my rough appearance. When I didn’t say anything, he turned around to face me. “What if I promise not to get mad?”

His thoughts shifted to wondering if I cheated on him, then felt guilty for even assuming that. I growled and said, “I did not fuck anyone else.”

Hooking his arms around my neck, Vince asked, “Then what? Something’s wrong?” Before I could lie, he continued, “If you came home and saw me looking as bad as you do, wouldn’t you want to know? Wouldn’t you demand I tell you?”

I pushed my forehead against his. Vince was, of course, right. I would’ve insisted on knowing what was wrong with my mate. He loved me as much as I loved him. I’d promised myself that I would be honest with him about my needs, and now was the time, but I feared Vince would be angry, even if he promised not to be. I knew my mate well, and he would be furious.

“I won’t ask you to not be angry, because that will not be possible,” I said.

“Are you dying?” he asked, voice barely audible as a terror so visceral ripped through him that my soul spasmed in pain.

“No,” I replied instantly, holding him close. “No, I promise.”

Vince kissed my neck, tightening his hold. “Talk to me. Trust me.”

Was that what this came down to? Trust? I’d worked so hard to gain his trust, but had ever given him mine? No. I’d hidden—afraid he would hurt me in the end. I cupped his cheeks so I could look into his blue eyes.

“I love you,” I said.

He lifted his eyebrows. That wasn’t an answer.

“When you left me to go to the station,” I started, mouth dry and muscles tensing, “I thought that would be the last time I would see you.”

“But I told you we were still together.”

“I didn’t think that meant you would wait for me. I thought you were going to return to Earth.”

He closed his eyes. “Sweetheart, why didn’t you tell me that all the times we talked?”

“I was afraid.”

“Of what?” Vince asked.

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