Page 32 of Her Alien Delegate
"He didn't stick around to watch?" I asked with fascination. This was not what Bode had explained to me about necia customs.
"Was he supposed to?"
I opened my mouth to answer before closing it again. I wasn't an expert on necia culture. I forced myself to relax and admit, "That's a relief. That wasn't really the kind of adventure I was signing up for when I joined the exchange."
"You wanted to get laid, but not in public," she teased, but it was full of acceptance. I flushed and merely nodded at her. She was right. That was what I wanted before I met Ter-ak. My experience on Trillume kind of ruined things for me.
Violet plopped on the bed next to me and then stretched out, unconcerned with her state of undress. She was like a cat reveling in the aftermath of a good dose of catnip. She couldn't get her mind off of the commander that had escorted us. I smiled. I was glad she was enjoying this. One of us should.
"I never did say thank you. You didn't have to come with me, and you might still be in trouble. What I mean to say is that I'm glad I'm not alone. Thank you," I confessed to her while keeping my eyes on the wall in front of me instead of ogling her chest.
"It was nothing. Don't worry about it. I didn't do it for you, and I've been more than compensated, if you ask me."
After a heavy silence, she sighed and continued, "I left Earth to get away from my past, from a guy, and...."
I could feel the tremble of her arm next to my thigh, and I reached out to place my hand on her shoulder for support. She was holding on to something heavy, and I felt like there was this string between us that tugged at my own heart. It was moments like these that bonded girlfriends for life.
After her personal confession, I felt guilty for not revealing anything of myself, but I didn't want to take away from her experience, either. Her story wasn't mine to tell, and I waited until her burdens were unloaded before I spoke again.
Violet bolted up, only to collapse against me. I squeezed her close and confirmed what she already knew. What we both already knew about the men of our past. It felt like a shared hurt as I said, "That wasn't love."
Tears absorbed into my shoulder as Violet cried. A strong woman, capable of walking around naked without shame, and taking a spike in the hand without crumbling.
As my head rested on hers, and I stroked her back in comforting strokes, I couldn't stop my mind from wandering to the way a warrior once told me, "You can be my eyes, and I can be your legs."
It hit a little different in the moment as I thought about what it meant to be someone's eyes or legs. I was probably overthinking it, but it made me think that it was okay to not always be the legs that are forced to stand and stay strong. Right now, a woman that was most definitely stronger than me was using me as her legs to hold her as she healed.
Me. The weak one, held someone else up.
It was in this moment that I decided I didn't need a mate—I needed her. Violet was mine. It was nothing sexual. It was just a bond I never knew I needed. With a smile, I kissed her head. It felt good being needed by someone, and that I could be her legs for a moment.
Chapter twelve
Broma
"Your ormete are discolored," Romek said offhandedly like it was basic conversation to talk about something I didn't want to be discussing with a traitor. It's been over a Dan star since I could feel the ends of them,but even knowing that the ormete that had been reattached were nothing more than ornamental at this point didn't pain me as much as feeling the last bit of my bond with my mate disappear from absence.
It had been long enough without being around her that I knew I wouldn't be able to feel the warmth of knowing she was near, even if she was. I knew the day she left the Blue District by the way my ormete ached from the loss. It was like my every fiber rejected letting her go. The nerves were dying, and I could barely lift even the parts of my ormete that were closer to my skull.
"You should cut off the dead parts before it spreads," he offered unsolicited advice.
"After you, then," I goaded him. Being stuck in the same room with him was becoming unbearable. We haven't even been able to use the lav station to clean ourselves, and his smell was making my nose burn.
He sighed. "We both know there is only one cure for your condition. You need to let go of the mate bond. It's already been rejected by being away from her for too long. Either you cut off the rot of being rejected, or you need to be close to her again. And soon."
"Lucky for us, our confinement is up as soon as our current blood samples are cleared," I dismissed his concern for my wellbeing.
"You can just bond with her again; there's no need to cling so hard to a broken bond."
"As soon as I felt her leave, I knew I couldn't let go. She may not have my essence anymore by now, but as long as I keep the bond, then I'll know when I'm close to her again."
He lifted a brow.
We hadn't talked much, but knowing I'd be rid of him soon seemed to loosen my lips.
"You wouldn't recognize her otherwise?" His confusion turned into understanding. "You don't even know her name, do you..."
"There was only one name that matched the criteria available. Her name is Violet."
