Episode Fifteen Ready to Go with You

H azlan

Although I agree with Lylah, it's clear her words made the elf and centaur uncomfortable.

"We'd all like that," the centaur intones, his voice calm. "Reese, the medic who performed the ceremony, indicated there would be a deep bond. He hinted we'd be tied together in ways we've yet to discover."

He's risen to his four hooves and now ambles to the elf. He holds his hand to the male who stands and leaps onto the centaur's wide back. They're lovers. Their affection shines for each other. I doubt they are any happier about this arrangement than Lylah and me. When this was proposed, we were too desperate to protest. They, however, volunteered knowing the repercussions.

The centaur continues, "I suggest we thank these two kind males who fed and protected us while we were healing and bid them on their way. Then the four of us can suss things out and discover what will happen if we separate."

I can tell already, he's a voice of reason, a cool head. We have that in common. What's also clear is the beautiful elf currently scowling on his back is not that kind of male.

The naga and griffon make a hasty exit after accepting our heartfelt thanks. They handed Lylah and me clothes they said one of the avians flew here from the Works. The males were probably relieved to flee our tense discussion.

"There were things I said to Lylah," I almost said "my new mate," but that would have been unclear since one or both of these males are now my mates as well, "when I was mating her. It's a mild day and I hear a stream rushing nearby. Lylah, if you're open to it, I'd like to take you there."

Although she was so ill I heard her death rattle when Reese was explaining the Energy Transfer, she's fit and healthy now. I'm sure the burst of her arousal scent when she heard my proposal didn't escape any of us. By the elf's thinned lips, he certainly smelled it.

Jealousy writhes through me like a living thing, squeezing my heart like a vise. Lylah and I might not know each other well, but we're mated. His cock was inside her. I have to clamp my eyes closed and ball my fists to keep from leaping across the furs and knocking the male off his mount. It's only when I take a deep breath and remind myself he saved Lylah's precious life that I calm down.

"I'd love to go with you, Hazlan." Her smile is shy, which tells me a lot about her.

"The stream is that way," Zoron says. "We'll go south and hunt some game for dinner."

"Bring some furs," the elf spits at us, clearly knowing what Lylah and I have in mind.

"Good idea," I say, wanting to placate him. Until we figure things out, we're a foursome. We need to get over any bitter feelings. Especially jealousy , I remind myself.

I stand and roll my shoulders. I was lying in one position for a long time. I suppress my desire to open my wings and flap them in the breeze because I don't want the three of them looking at my wings, least of all Lylah.

Could it be considered lying that I promised to fly her to the stream when I was coaxing her body to accept me? It was a pretty story I was telling her, a fantasy designed to help her relax to produce lubrication.

What will she think when I tell her we'll have to hike there? More concerning, though, is what I imagine the look on her face will be when she sees the stubs of my wings.

When Lylah stands, completely nude, to put on her clothes, I can't contain the hiss that escapes my lips. She was forced to wear no clothing in the rooms she shared with the human. He must not have allowed her to close the curtains, because the humans and males often looked toward that apartment during the day.

All the human females were kept naked in their own homes. Another aberration from Up Above. She must have gotten over any modesty years ago.

That doesn't mean I can tolerate it, though. Zoron and Eldar are my mates in name only. I don't want them to see her without clothes again.

The centaur clip-clops to the door, his eyes averted. When I growl, which is partially out of my control although I don't try too hard to stop it, the elf freezes. He's not ogling my mate. He's giving me an angry stare. I don't think he enjoys being told what to do—by anyone.

My anger evaporates when Lylah's lilting voice invades my thoughts. "I'm ready to go with you, mate ."

No other word in the language sounds so sweet.