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Chapter 4
Serval
“My name is Serval,” he said, using all his years of training in dangerous war zones and prison camps and criminal empires to keep his words steady.
He knew that humans were sensual bordering on obscene. He’d seen vids and pics of the ones already mated to others and thought he was ready for what was to come.
None of them were even close to the beauty of this female in front of him.
She was small – of course she was. Humans were smaller on average compared to the rest of the universe. But the reality of just how delicate and little she was tripped an instinct in him that he didn’t even know he had. He wanted to bundle her up and bring her to a warm pool to soak and relax. One without anything sharp to cut that soft, warm, brown skin.
But she was also so beautifully curved. Her breasts were pressing at the neckline of her dress, close to falling out, while the blue sash around her waist emphasized her small waist but flared hips. She had hair on her head, on her brow, on her eyes – but he rather liked it. The brown strands, darker than her skin, but still somehow shining in the light, dipped and rose like the waves of the ocean, like the waves of her body. Everything about her was soft and rounded and seductive. Even the very breaths she took pushed those breasts against her dress.
And this glorious creature was to be his mate?
He couldn’t believe it. There was no way. This had to be some kind of prank.
Her giggle, so nervous and cute, set a fire in his belly. Her lips, plump and pink and parted, somehow seemed almost obscene. The touch of her hand on his, both of them still holding on despite the traditional human greeting surely being fulfilled by now, was like a spark from a stinging sea nettle.
But he wasn’t triggered.
And, looking at her again, he became a bit concerned.
How were his mating instincts supposed to trigger? She had no olules. Humans, as far as he understood it, were completely terrestrial as well. How was this supposed to work between them?
Because it was supposed to work, right? They had proven that in the past, right? So, how…?
“I got you a present,” she said suddenly, ripping her hand from his. She turned and snatched a box off the table behind her before presenting it to him.
“What is this?” He asked, taking it. He could read the human language across the top thanks to the language imprint he’d received, but he had no idea what ‘chocolate’ was or what made it artisanal.
“It’s a sweet,” she said, clasping her hands behind her back. “A treat. Chocolate is very important on my planet. It’s a huge dessert food. And since my channel is sweets themed, I thought I’d bring you the best sweets on Earth.”
“Thank you,” Serval said, running his hand over the cover. Stunned.
Did she know?
The allowee courting process wasn’t long, but it did have a specific set of steps. More cultural than biological, it began with the female presenting the male of her affections with a gift. Not necessarily food, but there was nothing that said it couldn’t be.
“I hope you like it,” Sophie said, smiling. “No harm if you don’t, of course. I’ll get to know what sweets you like soon enough.”
Serval didn’t really like sweets. But he didn’t say that. He accepted the box, pulling it to his chest, and gave her a smile. “Thank you, Sophie. I readily accept this gift.”
She looked surprised by the sincerity of his words, but then she lowered her eyes, a pleased smile stretched across her lovely face.
Only the knowledge that they were being watched, recorded, kept him from grabbing her then and there and embracing her. Nibbling at her skin. Finding out what someone so beautiful smelled like, tasted like. Drowning himself in her like he may never want to breathe again.
The second step of the courting process was his to fulfill. After accepting her gift, he was to show her his home. Show her where they would live so that she could approve of it. So she could make sure the nesting pool he had access to was suitable for her.
He didn’t have a nesting pool here, of course. His family pool was back on his homeworld, but his home was his starship, and he’d have her there soon enough.
“So, Serval,” she started nervously. “I hope this isn’t a rude question, but what are you? I mean, like your species. I really only know domini and ratchi. Those are the two common ones that we tend to see on Earth.”
“It’s not a rude question. Those two are your sponsor species, of course you would know them.” Serval smiled gently. “I am an allowee. My species is a semi-aquatic one from the planet Wav’aii.”
She smiled. As though that knowledge pleased her. “Wow. That’s amazing. I can’t wait to see it one day. Or, er… I mean, that’s not too forward, right?”
“Too forward for my mate to expect to see my home? I think not.” He chuckled, hiding his sudden unease. Was she already feeling the pull towards the nesting pools? Human females adapted to the males they mated, and just because he hadn’t been triggered yet, didn’t mean that her mating instincts hadn’t been.
