Chapter Four

My mother always told me I'd be cursed with children as stubborn as me, but I never expected that to be true of my mate as well. Not that I ever thought I'd find a mate or have children…

The pain is excruciating as Araceli walks away from me, but it seems to affect her far more. I'm still able to walk, but she slumps against the wall and quickly drops to the floor. Perhaps there's something about human physiological differences that makes the pain more severe. Whatever the case, she has lost consciousness and is on the ground by the time I can get to her.

I roll her gently to her side, brushing her soft hair from her face, then angling her leg so she doesn't slip onto her belly. I let my hand rest on her side to hasten her recovery. It doesn't take long. Her eyes flutter until they open fully. She gives me a dark look and closes them again. "I'd hoped this had all been a dream."

"Are you able to stand?"

She doesn't respond, instead, she pushes into a sitting position and tries to get to her feet on her own. I know she doesn't want my help, but it's far easier for me to lift and support her than to watch her struggle to stand. I pick her up and pull her close to my chest. The soft, abundant hair she has on top of her scalp brushes against my nose and I can smell it–the thing that drew me to this building–home.

She smells exactly like home.

Immediately she starts to thrash and fight my hold. "PUT ME DOWN. I need to get home. My dad needs to eat," Araceli says.

"Please refrain from thrashing. Direct contact will allow you to recover faster. I have to come with you. The bonds force us to stay close."

"For how long?"

"How long?" I repeat, not wanting to answer her question.

She looks up at me. "Yes, how long are you my literal ball and chain?"

I shake my head and try to think of how to break the bad news. Well, if the face she's making is any indication, it will be bad news to her, I'm sure. "It lessens once we've successfully produced a child."

"A child?" her eyes search my face for a moment. Then she laughs, but she doesn't sound amused. I can't read the emotion behind it. "Well, that sucks for you. You picked the wrong person to be your mate. I've never carried a child to term, and I don't think even super-magic alien sperm is going to change that. Not that I'll be in contact with your sperm anytime soon, of course–"

"I didn't pick you. The mate bond occurs when two individuals with the highest chance of reproducing meet."

She smirks, "Touche. Nice to know men are the same galaxy-wide." She pushes against my chest with both hands. "Put me down, Kai. My car's in the back. I have shit to do. Let's go before I change my mind about this."

Gently, I place my mate on the ground and follow her to a gray vehicle. I press my face to the glass and scan for any predators before she gets inside and closes the door behind her.

"I thought I was to accompany you," I tell her through the glass.

She starts the engine, and the glass slowly recedes into the door.

"What did you say?"

"I thought I was to accompany you," I repeat.

Araceli blinks, tilts her head a bit, and sighs. She leans across the interior and a door opens on the opposite side. "Get in on that side. I don't care if you can fly around in your supersonic alien spaceship, I'm not letting you drive my car."

"The ships I've piloted approach speeds far exceeding supersonic," I tell her as I sit in the seat next to her.

She meets my eyes for a moment, then turns her gaze to the road before us. "I'll bet."

She does not look my way the entire trip, but the long journey here has forced me to become comfortable with silence. I watch the landscape we pass as we move from the more populated area of her place of employment to a desert setting that feels more like my home. The colors are all different here. More greens than the mostly browns and blacks of home, but it's visually appealing.

Occasionally, we pass large signs along the road with pictures of men who describe themselves as a hammer, a gorilla, or a lion. They wear lots of clothing and smile too brightly. In my prior job as a soldier, I'd been to many planets, but never with a species quite so fixated on covering themselves.

Eventually, she stops the vehicle in front of a small building and exits without a word. I copy her movements and manage to open the door on my side of the vehicle without any assistance.

A large tree circled by bright plant life is the only thing in the small yard. She stalks off to the building's front door without me, but my legs are longer and it takes no time for me to catch up.

I'm on her heels when she stops so suddenly, I nearly crash into her. "My dad is blind. I expect you to be on your best behavior," she hisses. "He has the hearing of a rabbit, so be careful what you say."

"Who did you bring home, mija?" a man calls out as we enter a small room filled with furniture for sitting. In the far corner, an older man sits in a large chair, an animal of the porcine variety at his feet. The animal stretches and waddles over to Araceli who reaches down to pet it.

"Dad, this is my, uh…this is Kai."

The older man stands and reaches out a hand. I grasp his hand in mine and give him a firm handshake.

"Kai, this is my dad, Abel Gonzales."

"It is a pleasure to meet you, Abel."

"Good to meet you too, young man. Glad to see my daughter is getting out in the world and meeting new people."

"I'm not meeting anyone," Araceli grumbles. "What do you want for dinner, Dad? I have ground beef. I can make tacos, or hamburger patties with cheese on top, but I don't have any buns."

"Whatever Kai likes is fine with me. Chorizo is hungry though. Can you feed him first?"

"Sure, Dad. C'mon, Chorizo."

The creature follows Araceli out of the room. I hold my breath, knowing what's coming. Seconds pass and then, the pain begins to fill my legs, seeping up through my torso and running out through the very tips of my fingers. There is a pause and then the pain slowly recedes.

"Kai, can you help me in the kitchen?" Araceli calls. She is attempting to sound unbothered, but there is a note of distress in her voice.

Araceli is correct in her assessment. Her father does in fact have excellent hearing. "Mija, are you okay?" Abel calls out from his chair.

"I'm fine, Dad. I just need Kai to reach something from the top of the cabinet for me."

I step into the next room and find Araceli leaning against the counter, her head resting on her hands. Chorizo noisily eats from a bowl in the far corner. I come to stand near her and when she doesn't put distance between us, I put a tentative hand on her back.

She lets out a long slow breath and says nothing for a long while as Chorizo works his way through his food. "Stay close so I can get dinner on the table."

"How may I assist you in your task?"

She opens her eyes and stares back at me. "I don't need help. I just need you to stay close enough to let me get things done and far enough away to not be in my way."

"We should measure the distance you can tolerate."

She says nothing in response for a long moment before looking up to meet my eyes. "This is real, isn't it?"