Page 26 of 20% Stud 80% Muffin
Cameron had continually begged me to wax and cut carbs. My Adam’s apple bobbed.
My body’s fine.
Ginger firmly believed that I needed to come to terms with being happy in my current body. Maybe I didn’t believe the words yet, but it was a step.
I gathered the bundle of Makir’s pelts and blocked out my self-loathing. Then I gently unfolded them, shook them out and lined the nest Tino and Sully had dug for him. His scent covered me everywhere, burning like a juniper-scented fire under my hot muscles. My skin prickled where I uselessly rubbed over them.
Not bothering to suck in my belly, I called out a quick goodnight to Makir and the crew and rolled into my bunk, safely hidden under the covers. JayJay would be pleased. I’d followed his directions to the letter. This day couldn’t be over quick enough.
10
“Makir, this is D’Argonand D’Rasma.” D’irk slapped the back of my shoulder where we’d agreed to meet at the base of the winding path up to the Rowtees’ tree-top aviary. All three were Boola, had deep brown skin that glistened in the sun and wore enforcer-issued boots. Their heads tipped to the side in greeting. “They’re brothers, if you can’t tell.” The brothers shared the same broad shoulders and tapered hips, but D’Rasma’s more rounded chin set him apart. D’irk laughed at his own joke.
They rolled their eyes, and I lifted my chin in greeting. “Happy morning.”
D’Rasma’s gleaming white teeth shone. “Glad you came. We know you’re in the middle of construction. You’re luckier than the last winner of theintergalactic lottery.” He chuckled as he adjusted equipment on his hovercraft. “I think I’m last on the list for a dwelling.”
D’Argon’s arm swept out. “Sisip wants us to survey the outskirts of the mapped area of Tern, so we’re heading north.”
Except where the occasional weed popped up among the graneth stalks with the recent rain and sun, Tern was dominated by pink soil as far as the eye could see.
“Y’up for it?” D’Rasma asked.
I nodded and shook the morning funk off. I’d had the best sleep in a long time last night, but I’d been unsettled since I woke. The tether between Geo and me buzzed in agitation, not liking the distance between us. Disheartened to find Geo’s bed empty when I woke, I’d told JayJay I would be away for a couple of days hunting instead. Geo had probably installed a reinforced door on my dwelling before I’d even awoken.
D’Rasma sipped the syrupy dark drink most of Tern preferred. I would stick to hiscus. “D’irk has raved about your skill with a snare, and Sisip has told us nonstop how you’ll be her salvation with the hand warmers you’re crafting for her. Sisip and her cold hands…” D’Rasma’s long lashes trembled when he laughed.
“I think I have something to warm up those hands.” D’Argon thrust his hips out playfully.
D’Rasma’s narrowed eyes nailed his brother with a near-lethal glare.
Interesting. Sisip has an admirer.
“Quit harrasin’ your brother, D’Argon,” D’irk said. “Makir, show ’em the pelts you got when you slept out in the wastelands.”
My tail loosened behind me as the inclusion into this group settled over my shoulders like a warm blanket. I dropped my backpack full of gear on the rough ground and rooted through it for one of the pelts I’d packed.
D’irk had been part of the rescue crew when my hoverbike broke down in the wastelands. He had eyeballed the creatures I’d snared after they attacked me. Thelast time I’d seen him at the weekend market, his eyes had dipped to the vest I’d fashioned from them.
D’Argon inhaled and clicked his teeth. “A linobee! A huge linobee! You were right, D’irk.” D’Argon and D’Rasma smoothed their fingers over the thick fur, their dark skin a sharp contrast to the pearly white coat. “These are highly prized on our home planet.” D’Argon’s wide-eyed gaze caught mine. He cradled the pelt in the crook of his arm. “The ceremonial clothing for our mating ritual is entirely crafted from linobee. Only the species on our planet is much smaller.”
“Well, boys, are we done with the greetings?” D’irk projected a map of the surveyed area into the air from his wristport. “The sooner we get to where Sisip would like us to scout, the sooner you can get your hands on some linobee.” He pointed to a rocky outcrop in the center and tapped the place we’d be hunting in. “Linobee are pretty enough, Makir.” D’irk chuckled. “But I’m after a critter a whole lot bigger. Those mantus cook up real nice, plus they earn me a few credits at the market.”
I straddled my hoverbike, the trailer in tow behind. “Geo has my plans”—not that he’s following them—“and currently, I have no roof, so this is a perfect time to get away for a few days.”
Hmmm…maybe the linobees would earn me a few credits at the market.
My shoulders tensed when I thought about Geo as I secured my gear. I didn’t know what to expect from him. He’d hammered home the fact that my plans extended beyond what the Intergalactic Federation would provide and then proceeded to completely disregard them and built whatever came to mind. I just wanted a hovery.
I looked at the blue sky. The sun warmed the back of my neck, and I stretched into its heat. The rotation hummed with a sense of adventure. I would not let the emptiness of an incomplete bond between Geo and me ruin it. I turned over the ignition. “Let’s hit it,” I yelled over the downdraft of my hoverbike.
As I flew in line behind D’Rasma, I couldn’t help but worry that Geo had been upset with me when he crawled into his nest last night. He was always growlyand aloof, but something had been different. I might have put my finger on it if I hadn’t been so distracted by his magnificent chest—especially when he puffed it out. His blocky pectoral muscles, matted with swirls of damp fur, had driven me to distraction.
Deep inside my protective pouch, I grew hard and slippery. I caught Geo’s fragrance on my skin, and my bike dipped. When I swiped the sweat off my forehead, his aroma lingered. I had no desire to wash it off anytime soon. I loved that his scent covered me. My erection throbbed, and the channel that extended from my opening lined itself with slippery wax.
Blant!
Every sensation heightened, and waves of arousal rolled through me. I dodged a flock of woodskies. It all pointed to one thing. My heat is here.
