8. Rake

Chapter 8

Rake

T he moon is out and the evening has a cool breeze.

We leave the house and head to the bunkhouse for dinner and for once I'm not alone and have my female by my side. She smiles when I take her hand and we stride together across the front of our domicile and cut across the road to the bunkhouse.

"This is so amazing to me, all the work that must've gone into you setting this new ranch up, as an offshoot from the original main ranch."

"It was hard work," I agree. "I moved out here in the wilderness and scouted out the best location to build a barn and later my ranch house. I hired Lorn, who was in charge of the pasture lands, directly under the ranch manager, for the main ranch while I was growing up. I've known him basically my whole life. He's fifteen years older than me but still going strong and he enjoys being the ranch manager with me here on this secondary ranch. The main ranch is a historic ranch, but this is a new operation and therefore a greater challenge. It helps that he's an expert at pastureland ecology considering I've got more of that than anyone else."

"What you do here that's different than your brothers? Or do you run your ranches the same?"

"My operation is smaller than either of my brothers' and I like to keep it that way. It's more intimate, but I do take in enough currency to make us highly profitable. This is because I've specialized in a specific type of pyrotaur that is raised only on sweet wildlands grass. Hyrrokin with specific allergies are happy to pay more for this delicacy. And there are enough of them to keep me in business."

We approach the two-story building that houses all the employees. "This is the barracks."

I open the door, startled to see my normally rough-looking employees looking so quiet and smiling. Lorn must've told them we would probably be having dinner and to expect us. All of them are clean and dressed in their best clothing.

Stella and I step inside and the door closes behind us. The Hyrrokin all stop what they are doing and stare at the glorious human female in our midst. Not one of them makes a single noise.

She remains still and hides beside me, gazing at them with eyes wide.

I squeeze her hand and introduce her to the assembled group. "This is Stella Smith," I announce, this time telling them the whole truth. "She is a human I originally purchased as a bound. But there was mistake and she was sent here under different conditions. When she met me in town and explained her situation, I told her that I still wanted her as my bound. She has agreed to remain here with me for the next month and I am in the midst of convincing her that she needs to walk with me to the courthouse."

The men all chuckle with good humor.

I glance down and see that her cheeks look flushed and she remains quiet, which is unlike my talkative female.

"She also carries the offspring of another human male in her womb," I continue, "and will give birth during the rainy season. This other male is not her mate and is not ever going to be this child's father. Therefore, I am declaring that Stella's human child is mine and will be raised as a Flagstone. When she accompanies me to the courthouse, I will formally adopt this child. I expect all of you to treat her pregnancy as if this child were biologically mine. We will raise this human offspring in the same tradition we would if he or she were Hyrrokin."

She glances at me with surprise.

I pull her closer and place a hand over her lower stomach. "They are both mine."

There are claps of congratulations and my staff reach out and shake my hand and give my female welcoming smiles and greetings and words of congratulations.

I whisper in her ear, "They can scent your additional pheromone trail, as I can, and they also know the child you carry is not Hyrrokin."

"Does that mean all the employees at the transporter station knew I was pregnant? Lorn knew when he met me earlier?"

"Yes, they knew and were confused. Now I've explained and we can all move forward."

"But I haven't fully decided yet on whether I'm staying or not," she whispers. "We just met."

"You can still change your mind later." I press my lips against her ear. "Although, my hope is that you will stay."

"Well, you are very persuasive."

"Good."

I guide her forward. And she soon begins answering questions and getting to know all the employees who are unusually eager to talk to my gorgeous female.

The dining hall is small but cozy. There is a small fireplace and a wooden table with enough chairs for everyone. Stella takes a place at the table right next to me. I sit up with pride and give a glare of challenge toward all the other males assembled nearby.

The plates are passed down and the food is served.

She chats and eats at the long table. "The dinner is very good. I love the meat. Thank you for cooking this wonderful meal," she tells the cook, who beams with pride.

My female can't drink fire ale, but instead I give her molten sweet drink, which is also flamed but perfect for children and pregnant females. I cut all of her meat to accommodate her lack of sharp teeth and blow out all of her flames.

She loves to talk and her pleasant, loud voice carries far across the table so they can all hear her engaging stories. Her nervousness has disappeared and she seems loose and happy. None of these Hyrrokin have ever had the opportunity to speak to a human, so they ask her many questions and she patiently answers all of them.

I lean back and watch her with pride. She is fabulous. How could her community on New Earth have let such a smart, generous, vivacious female slip through their claws? Their loss is my gain.

After dessert we move outside to the firepit behind the barracks. All of us have more fire ale.

I find a comfortable wooden reclining chair for Stella and she takes the seat. Then I growl at the younger male who tries to take the seat directly next to her. He scurries away and I sit next to her.

She laughs heartily at the jokes the men tell. Then two of them stand before the fire and act out a great fire hunt from ancient times, complete with arcs of flame from their own jaws. She shrieks but then claps with delight.

Finally, I glance over and see her eyelids falling. She is growing tired. "Do you want to return to the house?"

"Not yet," she sighs. "I think I'm just suffering from the time difference. On New Earth it would be much later at night. I need to try and force myself to stay up a bit longer. Plus, it's so beautiful out here. What a gorgeous summer evening. Thank you for inviting me."

I stand and scoop her out of the chair, lifting her in my arms, then sit back in my own reclining chair, with my female on my lap and against my chest.

"What? Oh, you don't have to do this. I'm…I'm sort of heavy. Am I squishing you?"

"Heavy? You are small and light as air."

"I love it when you say that."

"Did Stella say she was too heavy for you to hold?" Lorn loudly questions.

They all chuckle because it's a good joke.

I wrap my arms around her. "You looked cold. I will keep you warm."

She leans against me and rests her cheek against my chest. "Ooh, you are warm." Then she sighs with delight and snuggles closer.

Pride glows in my chest as I hold her close in front of all the other males. I know they are jealous that I have a female who allows me to protect her in this way. This is another mark of my possession. I have not yet mated with her, nor have I walked with her to the courthouse. She does not carry my offspring in her womb, but they know she is mine and that I am protecting them both.

More stories are told and there is another flame throwing contest. Then the fire begins to die down and I decide it's time to take her back to our bed. She's done her best, trying to remain awake, but she is falling asleep. I gently shake her awake. "We are leaving."

She rubs at her eyes. "Oh, okay. Are you sure? I can stay as long as you want."

I lift her from my lap and place her on her feet. "No, we both need to sleep."

"I want to check on the kittens too."

We say our goodbyes and I guide her back. As we walk to the house I can imagine doing this always and in the future with small children in tow. It is definitely a time in my life when I'm ready for a mate and offspring.

I open the front door and then sweep her into my arms again and carry her upstairs.

She wraps her arms around my neck and holds on tight. "I can't believe you're doing this again. No one has carried me since my mother when I was a child."

"I will carry you often."

In the hallway I set her down on her small feet, covered by those thin foot coverings. I open the bedroom door and we both step inside.

Stella rushes to the cage in the corner and checks on the tiny beasts. They cry out a greeting. She opens the door and they both come rushing out to play.

The small beast with entirely black fur races across my foot. "When Lucy first brought these two, I took them into the barn because that's where all my other animals remained, so it seemed appropriate. I must admit they are both adorable yet fierce, with their small fangs. I suppose I wouldn't mind if these two lived in the house with us."

"Good, because that's where they are staying," Stella chuckles. Then she squeaks with surprise when I flash flame to start the fireplace. "Are you going to do that every day?"

"Yes, that's why there is a fireplace downstairs and one in every bedroom and even my office. Hyrrokin enjoy open flames nearby."

She puts both small beasts back inside the cage and then stands and stares at the bed and then at me.

"Yes, we are sleeping here together tonight," I confirm.

She wrings her hands. "But you said that you are constantly, um, hard, for me and that you want to…"

A grin widens across my face. "You're concerned that I cannot control myself?"

"Well…"

"I'm not a human male," I remind her. "I am making a vow to my mate that I will not touch you until you request relief."

"Relief?" she chuckles.

I take a deep breath. "Your arousal is still thick in the air. And it is only for me. I confirmed this when we were with the others. Only my touch will bring you relief."

She places her hands on her hips. "I just think I need to be clear with you. Yes, you're rich, but this isn't a reason for me to stay with you. I don't need a man to take care of me financially. I can take care of myself. I need a man to be a friend, a lover and someone who cares about me and I care about him. I will stay with you if you treat me as an equal and with respect. And I need someone who will accept my child and be a good father. If you can't do those things, I'm out in a hot second and on the next transporter disk to New Earth."

"You also need a mate who can satisfy you sexually."

"This is true."

"I am that male."

"I think you are…it's just that…"

I wait quietly.

She waves a hand at me. "I've now come to realize that you're quieter than me. You spoke to me a lot when we were alone, but when we were with the others you were quiet. You seem to be the type that only speaks when you have something important to say. I bet if I wasn't asking so many questions you would be very quiet. You don't mind that I talk so much?" she questions. "Because I've always been like this and I don't see myself changing."

I snort but don't respond.

"I suppose that means yes?" Stella stares at my chest and down toward my tented crotch. She bites at her lip. "I'm…I'm going to use the bathroom." She scurries away and shuts the bathroom door behind her.

I chuckle as I stride to the closet to change. Off go the pants and now I have on nothing but thin sleep shorts and no underwear. My shaft is as thick as ever, still ready to perform. It aches and needs relief too, but I can wait for her to request my touch. I suspect I will not have long to wait. I've had more than one mated male confess in my presence about tending to a pregnant mate who needed extra sexual relief. I suppose Hyrrokin and human females will not be all that different in this respect.

I enter the bedroom again. The door that connects the bathroom and the closet opens and closes. I use the restroom myself and then return to the bed and pull down the covers on both sides. Then I lie down with a smirk on my face and my hands resting on my chest.

The closet opens and she stands there, staring at me with a hungry gaze. "Can't you wear more clothes than that?"

"This is comfortable."

"But I can clearly see the outline of your…"

I shrug. "This is what you do to me."

"You're not playing fair."

"Neither are you."

She tugs at the bottom of her short nightgown that barely covers her ass and shows me most of her glorious breasts.

Her odd human "hair" attractive, which is odd considering my whole life I've admired a female with a nice shine on her head and particularly sharp horns. But I can easily imagine myself holding onto that soft hair and fucking her from behind. "You are barely dressed," I explain. "Your follicles are tied higher off your shoulders and neck, allowing me to see more of the curve of your head, which is enticing to a Hyrrokin male. This is as difficult for me as it is for you."

Stella touches the fall of soft human follicles affixed to the top of her head. She bites her luscious lip, looking doubtful, then strides over to her side of the bed and lies down too, imitating my own sleep position.

We turn our heads at the same time and make eye contact.

"It's too soon," she tells me. "I know that sounds odd coming from me, the woman who had a one-night stand with a stranger which resulted in this pregnancy, but that was sort of a crazy night. I'd gone on vacation and was hanging with girlfriends from college and we went out and drank too much, and I ended up meeting someone and doing something I wouldn't usually do. But I want you to know the reason why I feel like I need to take things slower with you is because…I, um, I consider this more special? I want this to be real and that makes me overthink things."

"I consider this special too. We will touch when you decide and you tell me exactly what you want."

Her eyes trail up and down my body, starting at my shoulders and down to my tented crotch. "I would love it if we slept close. If I could snuggle with you like we did outside in the chair. But that's all we do, snuggle."

"I would also enjoy sleeping with you so close," I agree. "Your scent in my lungs will help me sleep better."

I reach out an arm and she smiles with delight and moves close. In a moment I have her in my arms. I turn to face her and she turns towards me. We move and adjust until she is curled in close and both my arms are around her. I place my chin on top of her head.

She takes a deep breath and doesn't say a word, which is unusual for Stella, considering her love of speaking.

Soon I hear only the crackle of the fire and her even breaths.

And then my own eyes drop and I fall into a deep, contented sleep.