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Maybe she really was touching him to prepare him to mate with her.
Suddenly, the pale one untangled herself from his body. She lunged away from him, moving those short, useless tails until there was space between them. Space for both of them to breathe, which he realized he desperately needed to do.
His scales had clasped onto her scent, he realized with horror. His body wanted to keep her on him so that all others would know that he was entertaining a female.
The pod would know.
His family would know that he’d seen a female and covered himself in her scent. What a fool he was! He couldn’t afford this, not when he was already struggling to find a mate of his own. He didn’t...
By all the gods of the sea, she was pretty.
With her hair all spiraled around her head like that, he could easily see how red her cheeks had become. She turned different shades of lovely mottled red, and he had never thought her kind could do that.
“If you’re interested in me,” he started, trying hard to clear his throat and not sound too eager, “We may perhaps speak of this, achromo. I do not know your kind, nor have I ever considered trying to see what is possible between our species. But I am willing to try if you are.”
She had no way of understanding him, but he thought perhaps he had startled her. She said nothing in return, not that he could understand her either. But as she swam by him, making sure he didn’t move as she passed by, she reached out and trailed her fingers along his shoulder. He reached for her, spinning only his torso as she let her fingers glide along the entire length of his arm.
And oh, her scent hadn’t changed. That musky, delicious scent made his mouth water as she gathered up the tube in her arms and swam away from him. It was slow going, and she used her hands to pull herself faster.
A mate like her would be difficult to keep safe. She was so small, and clearly couldn’t fight for herself. She wasn’t cut out to live in the ocean either, although he knew that was a silly thing to even consider.
But as he swam behind her, keeping out of her line of sight so she thought she was fleeing from him, he could still smell her need. Her desire. And he knew without a doubt she would be back.
This time, he would be ready for her.
Chapter
Three
Perhaps she’d lost her mind. That was the only thought that brought Alys back to the same kelp forest every single week. Then it became twice a week. Multiple times a week. Almost every day.
Her father was going to realize soon that she wasn’t researching the area. He was a shrewd man with an eye for her habits, and she knew that sooner or later she’d have to answer to him. But right now, she was enjoying herself far too much.
Stalling the submarine in the same spot where she had been leaving it for days on end, she waited while holding her breath. Her eyes locked on the kelp in front of her, every muscle in her body seized as she waited.
“This is getting ridiculous,” her droid muttered inside the wall. “Eventually you’re going to have to do something other than stare at him.”
“I’m not staring at him,” she replied. “I’m waiting for him.”
“Sure looks like staring to me.”
They couldn’t even speak with each other, but that didn’t matter to Alys. They talked in other ways. Hand gestures, heart felt looks. She knew without a doubt that he foundher as interesting as she found him. And together, they were discovering so much about each other’s species.
As far as she knew, no other human had seen a species like his. Sure, there were plenty of creatures in the ocean they knew very little about. Fish and crabs and wild looking octopi, those were all being discovered by countless droids that were assigned to certain scientists. But had anyone made contact with a species that had a language and emotions and... looked so eerily human when they felt strong emotions?
The kelp parted around a darkened hand, the flash of green scales already letting her know that he was here for her. The grin on her face almost hurt as she bolted toward the hatch above her.
Alys had made sure to wear something pretty today. Usually she wore clothing that was practical for swimming. She chose tight-fitting pants and wetsuits that allowed her to at the very least be warm. But the water here was already warmer.
The volcanoes had finally stopped their madness, which meant she could easily swim in this water because everything was still pretty warm. At least she wasn’t boiling or freezing. She’d take it.
So today, she’d worn a dress. A bright blue dress with a tight bodice and many layers of skirts that she knew would billow around her prettily in the water. She wanted to see what he thought about a dress. She wanted to feel... pretty to him.
Because he was so thoroughly intriguing to her.
Placing her goggles and air over her mouth, she made sure the door beneath her was sealed into the more electronic parts of the sub and then opened the final hatch. The water rushed in so quickly she had to brace herself against the wall with all her limbs.
But this time, a strong arm reached in with it and drew her out with ease. When he did things like that, it always made her breathless.
