Page 23 of Warrior (The Outlander Book Club… in Space! #2)

Daisy

I twisted the shirt in my hand, dazedly staring at the remaining grayness around the collar, no matter how many times I’d scrubbed it. The chalky type of rock I used for soap lathered well enough, but there was only so much it could do against year old stains.

The water filtered from underground, making it rich with minerals and warm from the fiery core of the moon.

A ten-foot waterfall fed three small ponds in this cavern.

The larger one we used for bathing, another for dishes and laundry, and the third, smallest pond held our cooking and drinking water.

The rock in this area was pale gray and, with the mists from the heated water, gave one the illusion of existing in solid fog.

Unless you made the mistake of stepping into the one small unheated pool, then the surroundings reminded one of the arctic tundra.

I glanced at the shirt in my hands, realizing I’d folded the same garment for the last five minutes.

I intended to toss it on the washed pile but couldn’t remember which was the washed pile and which was unwashed.

There was a minor difference between the two.

The only thing the chalk soap was good for was getting the stink out and imparting a nice astringent scent.

Normally, I didn’t have any trouble separating the clean from the dirty.

Normally, I found the chore meditative and peaceful.

Normally, I wasn’t swarmed with memories of Daicon’s head between my legs.

The heat that crept over my face was part embarrassment and part worry. Daicon left for the tunnel before I woke, so other than the sweet nothings whispered between lovers in the aftermath, we hadn’t talked about what happened.

What if he regrets it?

I don’t know quite how I feel about it myself.

I'd never casually dated. I’d barely dated at all until Gavin. I certainly never did anything like last night, and I’m rather scandalized by how much I enjoyed it.

Hopefully, Daicon enjoyed it, too.

He certainly acted like he did. The problem is, I needed a frame of reference on how to decipher Daicon's behavior, or mine, too, for that matter. I was a virgin when I married Gavin, so there was no awkwardness the next day after our first time. No worry about whether he would call again.

Sweet fancy Moses! I hoped Daicon would do the equivalent of calling again.

The way he made me feel.

Sex with my husband was enjoyable, but Daicon played my body like a virtuoso.

I’d never orgasmed that hard in my life.

I didn’t even know it was possible—so intense I barely clung to consciousness.

Being with him was the closest thing I’d ever experienced to the elusive ‘ heaven on earth’ —make that ' heaven on an alien moon '.

I knew I had a crush on Daicon—what woman in her right mind wouldn’t? But after last night, if I’m being honest. It’s more than a crush.

I like Daicon.

I like him a lot.

I might even more than like him, and that scares me.

What kind of future would I have with an alien warrior?

One filled with unbelievable pleasure. That’s what kind.

“This stinks.”

The voice caused me to start, my eyes finding a pair of short, furry legs underneath a large laundry bag.

Ewok carried the bag to the water’s edge, dropping it with a thump. His nose curled adorably, although the reason wasn’t cute at all. Daicon told me Kerzak had a scent range of up to twenty miles. To me, the bag he carried smelled faintly musty—I couldn’t imagine how awful it smelled to him.

The furry darling tottered over beside me, the grimace on his face fading, replaced by curiosity as I watched his flat, black nose twitch.

I reached for another shirt from what I thought was the washed pile, laying it atop my lap and smoothing the damp, wrinkled fabric. Ewok leaned closer and inhaled deeply.

“What are you doing?” I laughed.

Ewok's dark eyes settled on my face, holding a slightly accusatory glint.

"Did you mate with Daicon?"

“What?” The shirt went flying from my fingers like it was the offending party. “What? Why…. what…why…?

Ewok leaned closer, inhaling deep.

“Stop that,” I scolded, feeling my face redden. “Why would you ask me such a thing?” I was never good at lying, but I could evade the question, or at least try.

“You smell like Daicon.” He shrugged, as though the comment didn’t make my cheeks blaze with embarrassment. "When adults carry the other's scent, it usually means they've mated."

“No, it doesn’t,” I argued, although I couldn’t think of another reason that might mark me with Daicon’s scent. Except wrestling, maybe, and I didn’t want to admit to that either.

The look Ewok shot me said plainly he didn’t believe me.

“You like him, don't you?"

“Of course, I do.” I snatched up another piece of laundry to keep my hands from fidgeting. “I like everyone.” I winked at Ewok. “Especially you.”

A deep grin etched his teddy bear face. “You are very happy when Daicon is nearby. He is happy, too."

“You’ve noticed he’s happy around me?” I blurted before I could catch myself.

Sweet fancy Moses. The next step was to get Ewok to pass Daicon a note. Do you like me? Check yes or no.

Ewok settled at my feet, pulling a shirt from the washed pile, sniffing it, and tossing it into the unwashed pile.

“George says you act like you are mating,” he said conversationally.

"George?" I swallowed hard, trying to keep from sounding like a daydreaming teenager. "How would George know?"

Ewok found a shirt he considered clean enough and folded it neatly. “He knows like he knows how to heal. It’s in his dee-een-aye.”

“Really?” I made a mental note to avoid George for the next... well... forever.

"George says mating is different depending on what species you are." Ewok sniffed a pair of trousers, considered, inhaled again, and then began to fold. “Garoot, like him, feel a tickle in their brain when they find their mate.”

“A brain tickle?”

Ewok shrugged, apparently as dumbfounded as I by the concept. “He said my kind, the Kerzak, bathe in blood together.”

“That’s … interesting,” I offered, for lack of another response.

“It’s gross,” Ewok snorted, his face scrunching adorably. “Cuietsu’s kind lets the female choose which male they want.”

“I like that idea,” I laughed.

Ewok’s eyes met mine, his grin waning. “George says the Vaktaire mating is worst of all.”

“Why?” A shiver raced over my skin.

“It kills you.”

“What?” I blurted, not even trying to conceal my curiosity. “How?”

"Something about how it stops your heart." Ewok watched me carefully, the concern on his face lightening when I forced a smile. "George says it's very dangerous, and only Vaktaire can survive it."

“Well, that’s frightening,” I said, not meaning it the way Ewok probably thought I did. Why did the idea of not being Daicon’s mate fill me with such unease? It’s not like I was even thinking about it.

Was I?

What am I getting so worked up about? It’s just two little alien boys having a conversation about adult things. It's probably as silly and incorrect as two little earth boys’ logic.

"Your heart hasn't stopped, has it?"

Ewok’s question brought me out of my thoughts. “I think it’s still beating.”

“Good.” He fashioned his face into a scowl. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

I leaned over and ruffled the fur atop his head. The brown and gray strands stood on end.

"I love you too," I told him, his face melting into a smile.

Ewok picked up another piece of laundry and brought it to his nose, hissing in discomfort. “Kida, are you sure this is the washed pile?”

I wasn’t. “Since when did you become the laundry inspector?” I teased.

Ewok rolled his eyes, clamoring to his feet. "I need to head to the mine." He stepped away before glancing over his shoulder at me with an abashed smile.

“I love you too, kida.”

The kiss I blew him held every bit of adoration I felt for the furry darling.

I lifted a shirt from the pile and brought it to my nose, inhaling deeply.

Crap.

This had to be the washed pile. The clothes in what was supposed to be the unwashed pile smelled even worse.

Crap!

Did I even wash the clothes? My memory lingered on the hours spent in my bed with Daicon, fettering out anything else as non-essential.

George says it's very dangerous, and only Vaktaire can survive it."

Why was I so worried about this? It might have taken a toll on my sixty-year-old heart, but that organ was young again, like the rest of me. Was there pain or just indescribable pleasure so intense one died from it?

I could see that.

Mating certainly would explain the pull I felt toward him. A pull so strong it sometimes caused physical pain to resist. It might also explain how my body responded to him in ways I never imagined.

But if that’s the case and we are starting to mate, why did he leave this morning?

Maybe because of the same reason, I couldn’t think about seeing him again without blushing.

Last night changed things between us… forever.

There was no way—at least for me—to pretend it didn’t exist. The only thing to do now was figure out our new normal.

How we moved forward and whether it would be together or—and I resisted this idea—separate.

The old Daisy would have hidden and ignored the awkwardness. The old Daisy would have pretended nothing happened. But I wasn’t the old Daisy anymore. I was a new Daisy. A Daisy who fought to protect those she loved. A Daisy who was bold and brave and went after what she wanted.

And what I wanted was Daicon.

I piled the laundry next to the pond—since I couldn’t remember what was clean and what wasn’t, it would all have to be rewashed.

Oddly, though, the idea didn’t hamper my spirits.

I didn't believe a chore existed that could dampen the excitement churning inside me as I walked from the cavern, taking the small incline that put me in the upper tunnels.