Page 31 of Breedable Boys from Outer Space
He’d been a man on a mission since our return from Lyll—finalizing the preparations to open his cafe. And he’d made it happen, even as he grew rounder by the day.
The menu was a mix of Earth and Lyll dishes—how it was easier to get food from another planet than getting through all the clearances and red tape for Earth ingredients I still didn’t understand. Employees were a mix of other Lalyllte and servicemen who had skills that were harder to place on a landlocked base and were awaiting retraining.
“Ready for your first day?” I asked, kissing the side of his neck.
He nodded. “I am.”
“Nervous?”
He shook his head. “I am excited. You do the work you love, now I can do the work I love.”
A kick under my hand. “Seems our little one is excited for you too.”
Lumi laughed. “Probably more excited about the food.”
I chuckled and kissed his hair. “Are you sure you don’t want me to be your first customer?”
“I am sure.”
I let out a dramatic sigh. “Fine. I’ll be your second customer.”
He turned around and smiled up at me. “You are silly. However, I will instruct that a table be reserved for lunch, so you may bring the men from the garage.”
“I’m still buying one of those cinnamon rolls before I go to work though,” I stated. “The one flavored with that fruit I can’t pronounce.”
He laughed. “I will sell you one, but you will be the third customer.”
I leaned in and kissed the tip of his nose. “Deal.”
I closed my eyes and savored the way he felt in my arms, the press of the baby bump against me. “I’m proud of you, my Lumi. You’ve worked hard for this. I hope your first day is fantastic.”
“It will be a good day,” he declared.
We both turned and looked at the sound of a car pulling into the tiny parking lot. The brigadier general got out.
I snapped to attention and saluted.
He nodded at me. “At ease.” He looked at the door, then at his watch. “I appear to be early,” he stated.
“I-I can open early…” Lumi started.
The general waved his hand. “You will do no such thing, son. This is a civilian-operated business. Neither I nor any man under my command has the right to dictate what you do with your business—as long as it doesn’t violate any rules of the base. Is that understood?”
Lumi straightened, then smirked. “It is understood. And because you cannot tell me what to do with my business, I shall open early for the base commander today.”
There was a moment where my mate and my commanding officer faced off, then the brigadier general burst into laughter. “I guess I walked into that one. Alright, son, let me get a taste of this cooking I’ve heard so much about.”
Lumi nodded, pulled out his keys, and I watched him open the door of his cafe for his first customer.
It was going to be a good day for my mate.
???
My beautiful Lumi had been in labor for hours, and apparently, he wasn’t the only one. When I called the base hospital to ask when I should bring him in, they’d informed me that unless his water broke, not to even head that way if the contractions were more than four minutes apart. Then they took my name and informed me that they’d call for an update if things changed on their end.
What had seemed a generous number of labor and delivery rooms for a small hospital, proved woefully inadequate when hundreds of men had unprotected sex at the same time with the intention of getting their mates pregnant.
And the Lalyllte were as fertile as we’d been told. I hadn’t heard of a single couple from our group who hadn’t conceived within a few months, with most having become pregnant in a matter of weeks.
