Page 43 of Master (The Outlander Book Club… in Space! #3)

"It's your choice, darlin'," Tarook whispered. "We can stay here if you want."

Oblivious to the eyes of my friends, I turned, holding Tarook's handsome face between my palms. "My choice is to stay by your side, weapon master." I pressed my lips to his, feeling his smile.

"We have to say goodbye," Daisy sniffled as Daicon drew her into his arms.

"It's not forever goodbye, sweetling," he promised, gently rocking her back and forth. "We will visit often."

“Yes, we will,” Tarook agreed.

I held onto Tarook's promise to visit as we moved through the village square. Most offered sincere appreciation for our help with the mumje attack. Many offered hugs and offers of a home should we choose to stay.

Mei stood under a massive tree in the center of the square, watching Bartholomeus and the small boy, whose name I knew to be Cuietsu, play with a toy spaceship. Tarook joined the boys in play as I sidled up to Mei's side.

"I think I might love him. How crazy is that?" she whispered, dark eyes trained on Bartholomeus. His gray skin oddly complimented the little boy's reddish color.

"Not crazy at all." I nudged her with an elbow, grinning. "Be happy."

"I'll be busy," she chuckled with a roll of her eyes that told me while she might complain, Mei secretly loved it. "The Alliance wants me to develop a strain of sweet potatoes that makes it easier to extract the DMNT."

One of the few times I’d left the cottage in the past few days was to join Mei in a videoconference with the head of the Alliance science unit.

The lavender female with green tentacles for hair seemed duly impressed that a couple of backwater humans found a cure for the worst drug in the universe.

She seemed even more impressed when we gave the cure to the Alliance, turning down the small fortune she offered for the formula.

"That's wonderful, Mei." I hugged her so tightly the small woman gave a faint grunt.

"Bartholomeus said he'd help me with Cuietsu." Her eyes glazed happily at the male giving the childa ride on his shoulders.

I knew that look. Mei was totally in love.

I let my gaze filter toward where Tarook stood, laughing at the pair.

My imagination immediately painted a picture of Tarook giving our son a ride on his broad shoulders, and my heart nearly snapped in two with joy.

My daughter and granddaughter would always hold a special place in my heart.

I had engraved it there, unchanging. But life moves on for everyone, and as much as I regretted , as much as I missed them, I needed to continue with my own journey.

Nearby, Daisy and Daicon moved through the crowd.

Daisy's hug found each child, while Daicon promised each one, just as he'd promised Daisy, to visit soon.

At their side, Ewok lingered, the sadness he felt at leaving friends on Tau Ceti replaced by the adoration he felt for his adoptive parents.

The same adoration I saw in little Cuietsu's eyes.

We left Mei and Bartholomeus ensconced in their happily ever after, with a whispered warning that she better not have a wedding without me. Mei feigned shock, but the curve of her lips suggested a wedding might not be too far off.

Lingering by the dessert table, Buck and Lula explained to their new son Fred the many wonderful uses of sweet potatoes. The relief on the boy's face when we interrupted made me giggle.

"We'll miss you so much." Lula pulled me in for a tight hug while Tarook shook Buck's hand.

"We will visit again soon," my mate promised.

"Isn't Fred just the most handsome little man," Lula gushed, watching as her brand-new son sampled every dish on the dessert table, an expression of rapture on his strange features.

"I'm so happy for you." I hugged her again, laughing through tears.

"I'm happy for you, too," Lula shot back. "Tarook is one of the good ones. He'll make a great dad."

"He will, won't he?" I sighed as the vision of myself, belly swelled with Tarook's child, flashed through my mind in premonition. A tingling warmth spread through me as the knowledge settled. I wanted babies with Tarook. I wanted everything with him.

Our farewell was a typical one for close friends, full of both laughter and tears. I wiped the wettness from my cheeks as Tarook and I walked away from a place that had become special to us in such a short amount of time. The place we fell in love.

"We have one more stop to make," Tarook steered me toward the general store.

"Why do we need to stop here?" I wondered aloud. The darkened storefront obviously wasn’t open for business.

"Back here!" Bartholomeus called from the rear of the store as a bell over the doorway heralded our arrival.

Tarook took my elbow, steering me through the stacked shelves toward a doorway to the right of the counter.

While the space appeared to serve as a stockroom, a small desk stood in the corner.

Stacks of computer equipment and what looked like a satellite dish covered the surface.

Bartholomeus sat in a chair that appeared much too small for his frame in front of a keyboard, fingers flying.

"I was afraid you would miss your window." His dark eyes darted to us briefly, a broad grin splitting his gray face as one eye closed in a conspiratorial wink.

"What's going on?" My gaze bounced from him to Tarook and back.

"Do you remember your daughter's telephone number?" Tarook asked as he led me nearer to the desk.

"Of course." I rattled off the number, a tingled mix of confusion and excitement growing along my spine.

"Why?"

Tarook only grinned in answer.

The low beep of dialing codes sounded while Bartholomeus handed me a piece of paper.

"This is the story Emmy said would be best."

"What story?" My gaze flickered over the paper. "Tarook, what's going on?"

"Mama? Mama, is that you?"

The voice buckled my knees. I would have fallen if not for Tarook's arm around my waist, holding tight.

My daughter's voice came from a small speaker on the desk. There was static, and she sounded muffled... but glorious. My mouth opened and closed a few times before I found my voice.

"T—Tori?" Tears flowed down my cheeks. My whole body trembled to the point I couldn't stand on my own. Tarook held me tight, his warm breath on the back of my neck calming.

"Oh my God, Mama. Are you okay? Where are you?" She sounded frantic with worry.

Gently, Tarook lifted my hand upward, and I became conscious of the paper I held in a death grip.

"I—I'm okay, sweetie." My voice came out as a mixture of laughter and sobs. "I'm so sorry I worried you."

"Where are you, mama? You… your friends… the disappearance was international news. I've been sick with worry."

My eyes flickered over the paper, Emmy's loopy script laying out the story.

"We're okay. All of us." I swallowed, trying not to sound like I read.

"We were hiking on the Appalachian trail and came across…

we saw something very dangerous." Not a lie, exactly.

"The military rescued us, and we're all in protective custody.

" Again, not a lie, just an omission that the military in question was an alien species.

"When are you coming home, Mama? Mavis misses you. I miss you."

And just like that, all the arguments, misunderstandings and heartache of the past few years evaporated. Remaining in its place was only love. Pure, simple love.

"I miss you too, sweetie, but I may be gone a while," I said, following the script. "We must stay in protective custody to keep ourselves and the people we love safe."

"You're okay, though," My daughter insisted.

"Better than okay," I promised, glancing at Tarook. "All of us."

Bartholomeus cleared his throat and pointed to a timepiece mounted on the wall.

"I have to go, sweetie." The words burned in my throat, hard to say. "It's not safe to talk long."

"I understand, Mama." My daughter's voice broke. "I love you. I miss you. Stay safe."

"I love you too, sweetie. Give Mavis a hug for me."

"I will. I love you, Mama."

As voice faded to static, I dissolved into a blob of heavy sobs in Tarook's arms.

"This did not make you happy, darlin’?" He murmured, a large hand stroking through my hair.

"So happy," I cried, burying my face in his chest, drenching the section of his skin not covered by the vest. I never expected to speak to my daughter again. Joy burst in my veins like fireworks.

"I only want your happiness, my mate." His lips brushed across the top of my head. “Mei told me of your wish to speak to your child once more.”

I raised my face to gaze at him, then looked at Bartholomeus, who sat at the keyboard, grinning broadly.

"I thought the Alliance forbid contacting with Earth. How—how did you do this?"

My favorite broad shoulders shrugged, accompanied by a sheepish grin curling my favorite lips.

"My mate developed the antidote for mumje. That’s worth a few chits with the Alliance."

"A lot of chits," Bartholomeus chortled.

"Thank you." I laid a hand on his dark gray cheek.

"It was my very great pleasure." Bartholomeus rose, bowing curtly from the waist. "Now, if you will excuse me, I need to return to…." His dark eyes sparkled happily. "My mate."

We followed him out of the store. The afternoon sun rose in the pale blue sky, its golden rays painting the landscape with a warm glow.

I tilted my face upwards, feeling the gentle caress of sunlight on my skin.

Tarook's muscular arm wrapped around my waist, providing both comfort and a subtle thrill that sent shivers down my spine.

"A lot of chits," he repeated absently as we watched Bartholomeus walk away. Wrapping my hand with his, Tarook led me toward where the shuttle sat in a small grassy field. A heavy sigh tinged with sadness broke from his lips.

I cocked my head to watch his face, struck by the mix of determination and resignation flickering in the golden eyes.

"The Alliance is so grateful for the antidote…." He swallowed hard. "Khaion told me they are open to the possibility of returning you home."

"Home?" I blinked.

"To Earth. To your daughter. If that is what you want." The muscles in his jaw pulsed after each word.

"You want me to go home?" I didn't believe it for a minute, but I needed to hear how he felt.

"I want you to be happy." Tarook cradled my face between his palms. "If that means my heartbreak, I will gladly bear it."

In that fleeting moment, the realization struck me that while Curtis loved me deeply, what Tarook felt for me transcended mere love. It was a force of nature, a primal connection blessed by the gods that went far beyond our individual feelings.

I slipped my arms around his waist, squeezing tightly.

"I am happy. Happier than I ever thought possible." I beamed up at him. "I love my daughter and granddaughter. I'll miss them every day."

Callused fingertips stroked my cheek as he studied my face.

"You wish to stay… even though you could go home?" He said the words slowly, as though he feared to let himself believe them.

Raising on tiptoes, I pressed my mouth to his, feeling his lips curve upward in a smile.

"You are my home now, Tarook. I love you."

"My mate," he growled.

"Your mate," I whispered before he crushed his mouth against mine.

The taste of his lips was intoxicating, and our tongues danced together in perfect harmony. Nothing else mattered in that moment except for me and him, completely entwined in each other's love.

In the distance, an engine rev crested and ebbed over the sounds of breeze and birdsong.

Tarook gave a low, pained moan before breaking the kiss.

"The shuttle is summoning us," he groaned against my lips.

"Let's go home." I stole a few more kisses before we headed for the shuttle and a new life among the stars with my mate.

From the town square, the smooth sound of guitar strings filled the air, accompanied by a voice that was as surprising as it was familiar.

Take my hand,

Take my whole life, too,

For I can't help falling in love with you.

Glancing up at the male holding my hand… and my heart, I couldn't help the amused murmur that escaped my lips.

"You got that right, Elvis."