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ALEENA

It all seemed like a beautiful dream. Bear took her to several nice shops and let her buy whatever she wanted. He even suggested things for her that were much more expensive than Aleena would have chosen for herself.

He got her three new breast nets—a silver one for everyday wear, a silver and gold one for slightly nicer occasions, (she had put that one on to wear to the restaurant,) and a golden one encrusted with jewels that was even nicer than the one her stepmother, Grindelia owned, to wear to fancy formal events. (Bear assured her they would be attending several galas, since he was dealing with the Karpsian government in an official capacity.)

He also got her many new skirts and sleeves, which were joined in the back with a panel of cloth to keep them together, so she wouldn’t always be having to pull them up. He even bought her new underpants and slippers to wear, because in his words, she needed “new everything.”

When they finally finished shopping, Aleena was dressed as nicely as any of the high-class women she saw strolling arm-in-arm with their husbands down the street and the back of the hovercoach was crammed with boxes and bags.

They ate at a cozy little restaurant that specialized in small plates and Aleena was able to show her new husband many types of Karpsian cuisine. Bear had an enormous appetite and he ordered almost everything on the menu and encouraged Aleena to try anything she wanted.

She was surprised and touched by her new husband’s generosity—in her culture, for a man to offer a woman some of his food meant that he truly loved her. She didn’t know if Bear knew that or if he was just being generous, but either way, every time he held out a bite of some delicacy for her to try, she felt her heart flutter in her chest.

After eating, they stopped at a public trash receptacle so that she could throw away her old clothes and breast netting. When Aleena saw them disappear down the chute, she looked up at her new husband and smiled gratefully.

“You’ve been so good to me, my Bear,” she said, really meaning it. “Thank you so much, but you shouldn’t have spent so much on me!”

“What else should I spend my money on?” He grinned down at her and put an arm around her shoulders to pull her close. “Besides, you look gorgeous in that new breast cover—and it keeps other males from looking at my wife,” he added with a possessive look at her chest.

Aleena felt her cheeks heat with a blush.

“I always was embarrassed to wear that old breast net out in public,” she admitted in a low voice. “So many men would shout and call at me, asking me awful questions—like what price it would be to change the color of my eyes.” She blushed harder as she spoke, dropping her gaze.

“Bastards!” There was a low growl in her new husband’s voice. “Why couldn’t you just wear a scarf or something to cover up?”

“Oh, I couldn’t do that!” Aleena protested, looking up at him. “An unmarried female is never allowed to hide her assets. All males must be able to see her, to judge if she would make a good wife or not.”

Bear growled again.

“Fucking ridiculous!” He seemed angry but Aleena didn’t think his anger was directed at her.

“I don’t have to worry about it anymore, though,” she pointed out. “Now that I’m a married woman, I can hide my breasts behind the beautiful new nets you bought me.” She smiled up at him. “Thank you again, my Bear. You’re more than generous.”

“I just want you to look decent when we go out in public,” he grumbled, but Aleena saw an expression in his golden eyes that seemed to say he liked the way she looked in her new breast net and the other new clothing he had purchased for her.

That look sent a tingle through her entire body and for the first time, she wondered what it would be like to have him change the color of her eyes without a twinge of fear.

I suppose I’ll find out once we get home, she thought. It had been a long day and the shadows outside the hovercoach were growing long. Surely when they got home her new husband would want to take her and make her his completely.

Aleena just hoped she could please the big Kindred and that taking him into her body wouldn’t hurt too much. He was, after all, so very large. But she would do her best to accommodate him, she told herself.

She wanted him to never want to leave her and to love her as she was already beginning to love him.