Page 26 of The First Alpha on the Planet
“What about Noel?”
“Despite being insufferably monogamous, his genes are prolific and have spread far and wide.” Fel huffed. “As he says it, a genewhore.”
He said that word in the common Terran, making me ponder. “What iswhorein Naleucian?”
Fel shrugged. “We have no word for this. There are only Naleucian males who copulate much and males who copulate little.”
“There is no shame in excessive copulation?” I glanced over and Fel shrugged.
“Not until Gorm arrived.” Fel’s lips twisted as he stared at the floor. “He is not the most handsome of prospects, nor is he especially over-endowed. He’s rather average in all aspects aside from appetite and personality.”
Roan hesitated. “About fifty years ago… Yeah.”
Fel nodded. “Gorm is Noah’s Bana, and to be Bana of many more, though I suspect his role will be largely ornamental.”
Roan shuddered. “I am very glad he did not contribute to my impending situation.”
Fel shooed the strix away and stood, gesturing for me to follow. “If I know Friend Wallace, he will be waiting where we left him and be highly anxious.”
And Roan only wished he knew Wallace that well.
Chapter Eleven
Wallace
Should I leave? No. That wasn’t a good idea. I stood and sat down a few times, fretting over what I’d done. Fretting over the fact that IwantedRoan to stay with me andwantedmy own hatchling running around. Crazy as it was, a large portion of why I didn’t want to sleep around was because I wouldn’t be in those children’s lives. Though, I did consider donating gametes. Something about participating in the act of creation left me feeling responsible.
As the moments ticked by, I stood once more, pacing. I pondered poking Merriel, but the interface had been remarkably quiet as of late, making me wonder just what he’d gotten up to with Roan’s interface.
A polite scratch at the door, the Naleucian equivalent of a knock, alerted me to the presence of another. One of the omega employees of the health center popped their head in and asked if I’d seen Fel.
“He left after Roan a little while ago. I’m waiting for him.” I shrugged, and the pink-scaled omega glanced over his shoulder and frowned.
“Would you mind if beta Robard from the second ship waited in here with you for them to return? He should like to see Roan as well.” The male’s tail gave a hopeful flick, and I nodded uneasily, doing my best to pair it with an affirming gesture of my tail.
A silver-scaled male stepped in, eyes a haze of red and hair a shimmering bronze color. “Wallace. Hey. Looking good.”
I’d only seen the male in passing, and I nodded, holding up my tail. As far as I knew, Robard had always had one, butit flicked, more muscular and well-formed to his body since his change. Still, I gave him an appraising glance. “You, too.”
“I got some of that good N03 juice and I feel more whole than I ever have.” He seemed to glance around, assessing the small room before taking a seat on Fel’s stool with a hasty perch. “Speaking of. Juice…”
“Baby juice?” I gave Robard a glance that he met with a wan smile.
“Yeah.” His hoarse voice petered off as we sat in silence.
“Sooo…” I stared at him for a moment and received a shrug.
“I wasn’t really… I mean, I have, and… It’s different with Roan, I guess, because I know him better.” Robard laced his fingers and twisted his lips. “What do I need to do, I guess?”
“Well… I mated him. We’re bonded. What would you like to do with this information?” I threaded my fingers together and leaned over my lap, staring him down.
He breathed out slowly, shaking his head. “I never thought of myself as being a family man. You know? This is very new to me and… Progenitors’ sake… There’s a—”
He huffed and shook his head, words coming to his lips in broken syllables and falling away just as fast.
“You’ve met someone you want to mate, too?” Wallace raised a brow.
“Yeah. But I don’t know if he wants me like that. I mean, we’ve had a few nights and I’ve not been able to—” Robard choked as a rather stone-faced Fel stood in the doorway.
