Page 7

“I figure you have a few that you trust,” Simone says like it isn’t meant to be a dig at me. I do not let her see that my past interactions with females make my scales feel too tight since she is not impressed with my experience.

I plaster a false smile onto my lips, hoping to seem as arrogant as she likes to think I am most of the time when it comes to talking about bedding and pleasuring females. “I would say more than a few. Would you trust their judgment?”

Simone lets out a snort of a laugh that I can tell is her trying to ignore just how jealous she becomes when thinking of me with other females. I do not rub it in her face as much anymore because her jealousy will only truly be good when she is claiming me and reminding me who I belong to. Until she is willing to do that, her jealousy just makes my chest pinch because I do not like thinking of hurting her in any way. I might be a little insecure about what she thinks of me, even if I try to keep her from seeing it.

“I trust them more than any other stranger in this tribe.”

I know I should not ask, but a part of me is hoping that she trusts them because they have wonderful taste in males. So, instead of talking myself out of asking, I blurt out, “Why would you trust them?”

Simone narrows her eyes on me, and for a moment, I think she is going to skewer me with a cutting remark that will have me having to fake my confidence once again. I have never been a male who needed much to think highly of himself. I have a wonderful body that I take care of. I was blessed when I became a grown male in that my size is quite large. And I am among the favorites of the unmated females. Not that any of them will share my bed again. No, now I am a celibate male, waiting for his female to admit that she wants him. My cock has never been so abused in its disuse.

“I trust them because they at least have halfway decent taste in men,” Simone says. Her words are slow, like she’s having to force them out. I do not hide my smile or the way her words make my chest swell in pride.

“You would think them wanting to share my bed would make you trust them less,” I say, needling Simone to see if I can get more reluctant compliments from her.

Simone chews on the inside of her cheek, not in a timid and shy way like I have seen some of her sisters do in my brother’s tribe. Oh no, Simone chews on the inside of her cheek when she has something scathing she wishes to say but is thinking better of it. I have been on the receiving end of her cruel tongue when she is very angry, and she knows it will only have me wanting her more because I enjoy her when she is full of passion. Her angry passions are the next best thing to the passions she will show me when she admits she wants to warm my bed.

“I will listen to their opinions on the demons who want to go to the tribe,” Simone says slowly. “They’ll have more experience with them and can tell us if any of them are cruel or hateful.”

I nod because these are things that the females should be able to tell her. “There will be some brothers they have not bedded,” I tell her because I was not lying when I said the females have favorites.

“They’ll still know better than you how they treat women,” Simone says.

I nod, not knowing what else to say. I was hoping to get some more compliments, but unfortunately, Simone is thinking more so about what is best for her sisters in the tribe.

“I’m going to say that we get a list of demons from your tribe leader. You’ll go through it and tell me yes or no on them, and then maybe we ask a woman or two if any of the men aren’t safe to be around someone who won’t be able to fight them off.” Simone counts off the steps to her plan of finding males to allow into my brother’s tribe.

“If there are even enough males who want to go,” I tell her.

My brother’s tribe has many human females who will soon join his tribe, and they will all need males big enough to protect and care for them. However, there is something that my brother’s tribe and their females do not really know about other males of our species, males who know what a female of our kind looks and feels like.

“Why wouldn’t they want to go?” Simone asks, her brows crinkling because she honestly does not see what I have seen. “All of the others seem interested in humans.”

“Simone,” I start by saying her name and feel my cock twitch against the restraint of my pants when her eyes flash with lust for a moment. “You know I find you highly beddable. In fact, I often think of your naked body, which I have seen and have decided is the best-looking naked body I have ever laid eyes on.”

“Get to the point!”

“Sorry, yes, sorry.” I am not sorry. “Humans are an acquired taste.”

“Excuse you?” Simone narrows her eyes on me like I am offending her when I just complimented her very thoroughly.

“When my brother showed me his creature, I had to stop myself from recoiling. You are small, and weak, and covered in hair like an olack.”

I list off all of the things I tried to reconcile with when I saw my brother’s mate. She was not attractive to me at all, and I could not figure out why my brother would want to bed her other than that he had been without a female in his life for many years. Then, I saw Simone out in the trees, and I realized that human females, or at least this human female, could be the most amazing sight to behold.

“Wait,” Simone says, holding up her hand and rubbing at her temples as though she is realizing a flaw in her plans.

“I have already dealt with some of the fears of your ugliness,” I say, not waiting for Simone to figure out what she wants to say. When she lowers her hand from her forehead to stare daggers into my soul, I cannot stop the thrill that runs through me.

“My ugliness?”

“Not all the males will think you are ugly. But the ones who do might need some nudging to want to help out in the tribe. That is why I have told them that if they end up being drawn to a human, they will think she is more beautiful than anything they have ever seen. They will want for nothing but her. Their very soul will sing when she is in his presence.”

“My ugliness?” Simone asks again.

I ignore it and continue. “I would say about half the males will have no qualms about how humans look, but those that do will very much want to find their mate. We are very emotional creatures. You know this already. Even those who might find the humans they have met ugly will want to see if there is one for who their soul will be completed.”

“They might find the humans they’ve met ugly?” Simone says the words slowly, her eyes burning into mine, even as I stare at her with more joy than I have felt all day.