Chapter 20

Taylor

“Did you all make or find some Valentine’s Day gifts?” Gabby asked as she glanced at her mate out of the corner of her eye.

“I may have found something.” Tarak gave her a coy smile.

I had spent the morning and early afternoon gathering Brexl’s favorite sweet berries, mushrooms, and tubers. They were currently drying out in the sun, and tonight I was going to store them in a decorated pouch. My plan was to present them as a ‘just in case we get stranded together’ survival kit. I wouldn’t mind getting stranded with Brexl again. It might be nice to have another few days of alone time without him being injured, of course.

“What about you two?” Gabby asked us.

I was leaning against Brexl when she asked the question, and I was impressed by how casually he put his arm around me and pulled me to his chest. Maybe our cuddling practice did help.

“I found a gift of Valentine for my mate.” The low tenor of his voice reverberated through my skin, making me want to squirm. Heat filled my cheeks. I liked hearing Brexl call me his mate. I liked it a lot.

“I, uh,” I stuttered, trying to pull my thoughts together. “I found him something, too.”

I patted his arm and smiled up at him. He returned my smile and then shifted a little. I could feel his hard cock press into my ass. I don’t think I’ve ever sat on his lap without him getting aroused. I didn’t mind, though. I secretly liked having that much of an effect on him. It did make me wonder, however, how tonight was going to go.

Would we have to cut our kissing practice off early, so he could privately get some relief? Would he want to push past his arousal to keep kissing? Could I resist the urge to give into my own arousal?

Cuddling with him had been pleasant in a comforting kind of way. A warmth filled my soul when I was next to Brexl. He offered me safety not just in body, but in spirit too. I really felt like I could be myself around him, maybe more than anyone else here.

Our incident earlier had been embarrassing, but it had helped break my bad habit. I felt confident now that I could be with Brexl and also be myself. I just wished he wanted to be with me.

Earlier, when he pleaded for me to stay on his lap, there was a look in his eye that told me he wanted to say more, and I had held my breath, hoping he might confess that he did want a mate after all. But no such confessions were made, and we had gone back to our knitting.

“Alright, so for tomorrow, Ashley, Anusha, and Fatima are going to work together to set up the miniature golf course. Drovo is going to craft a canoe for couples to use on the stream, and Axon is going to mark a safe walking trail for the couples to use with his webbing. Then the day after that will be Valentine’s Day!”

Gabby raddled off the list of preparations that would take place.

“It will be a great day,” Tarak assured his mate with a smile.

“Savrix, may I join your table?” Sozu asked as he placed a fist on his chest and bowed.

“Of course,” Tarak waved the young sirret over and he sat down on a cushion near our table.

“I have an idea about our food problem.”

With those words, all the joy surrounding tomorrow’s events was sucked out of the room.

It was getting closer and closer to winter with each passing day. The animals had all burrowed deep into the ground for their long winter nap, and the ground had grown too cold for anything other than my favorite yellow flowers to spring up from the soil. The opportunity to store away more food for the winter had passed. We’d done the best we could, but we had fallen short. There was no doubt that after the offering, we wouldn’t have enough food to last us the winter.

“What is your idea?” Tarak looked hopeful.

“What if we hunted down a pair of the solete? They are massive and would surely feed us for an entire moon cycle.”

I’d seen these massive fire-breathing birds first hand as we all ran to the mountain when we first crashed on this planet. They were both huge and terrifying.

“It’s too dangerous. We will find another way.” Tarak said in a somber tone.

“Let me go,” Sozu pleaded. “I wish to prove myself as a worthy hunter.”

“You are a worthy hunter. Your sire and I have already agreed that when the snows melt you can start hunting alone, but this is too dangerous even for me.”

He patted Sozu on the shoulder and gave him a compassionate look.

“I will go,” Brexl spoke up and my heart sank into my stomach.

“No, my friend. It is too dangerous even for you.”

“I will join him,” Rhaz approached our table. “Brexl is impossible to take down and I am impossible to kill. Together, we can slay a pair of birds asleep in their nest.”

“Not without me you won’t,” Axon stepped up to our table as well, with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Axon will listen, Rhaz will scout ahead, and I will kill the birds,” Brexl stated, as if it were as simple as taking a stroll through the clearing.

Tarak looked the hunters over, assessing each one. “I will allow it.”

The three hunters all nodded to each other and went back to their tables. I didn’t like this, I didn’t like this at all.