He gave a husky laugh. “Welcome to Shimeria, Sharon. I am honored to be your link.”
She said weakly, “Thanks.” This planet was one surprise after another.
Liken and Tair both laughed. Tair walked through the doorway and headed into the silvery night. Liken pressed the button and the wall slid soundlessly shut.
Putting his arm back around her shoulders, Liken began walking Sharon toward the bedroom. His voice was still amused as he said, “Relax,
A horrifying thought struck her. “Are you and Tair linked? How did you…”
He couldn’t help it. She looked so repulsed. He laughed. “Yes, Sharon, but two Shimerian males do not link in the way you just did withTair.We simply drop our shields and establish a mutual link. It requires a great deal of trust.”
So, the weird linking relationship was because she was female and notaShimerianmale.She and Tair were linked and that meant they had a kind of casually intimate relationship. Liken wasn’t jealous at all. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that. Liken and Tair made it seem so natural. Sexuality on Shimeria was very different. Even Jadik had kissed her and that was okay. But, Liken had seemed jealous when other males paid her too much attention, like in the eatery. Could things get any more confusing?
When they reached their bedroom, she sank down on the bed. She wasn’t going to think about the bizarre customs of Shimeria. She’d sort it all out tomorrow. She wasn’t going to worry about it tonight.
Liken sat down beside her and bent down for a kiss. His mouth paused over hers as he whispered, “There will be no worrying,
Chapter 13
The next morning Sharon murmured sleepy objections when Liken gently shook her shoulder. She was exhausted. She heard a low chuckle next to her ear.
Liken said, “
Her lids felt like lead weights as she gradually came awake and opened her eyes. He was sitting on the edge of the bed, smiling down at her. She smiled back and said, “Good morning.”
His smile broadened. “Indeed it is.” He placed a soft kiss on her mouth. Drawing back, he looked regretful. “I am sorry to wake you, Sharon, but I must leave for a time. A few matters at my workplace require immediate attention. It was unexpected. I am sorry but it is something I must handle.”
“An emergency?”she asked, still half asleep.
“No emergency. Just a few details that cannot wait until after our knowing period.” His voice was filled with regret.
She nodded her understanding. Her sleepy brain was beginning to function. “It’s no problem. I’ll just drop by the library or something.” A thought struck her. “Liken, can I ask you to do something for me today?”
He nodded before she even finished her question. “What is it,
Memories of yesterday were beginning to swirl in her head. The lovemaking and the fighting. She needed some time alone to process them. She needed some space. She needed him out of her head, but she didn’t want to disturb their fragile peace. She raised unconsciously pleading eyes to his face.
His eyes turned tender and he gave a half laugh. “When you look at me with those eyes,
Sharon said carefully, “I don’t want to hurt your feelings, but I’ve got a lot to think about today. A lot has happened in the last ten days. I really need some time to myself, okay? I mean, I don’t want to be self-conscious worrying about you randomly tuning into my thoughts.”
He sighed. “I understand, but I do not scan your thoughts for entertainment, Sharon. It is the way of my people. It is a special closeness that lovers share. I wish you could become more comfortable with it.”
She said softly, “Maybe I will if I have some time to sort it through. I don’t know.”
He nodded. “I will withdraw and block you if that is your wish. At least for today. You have my oath.”
Sharon knew that if he gave his word, he would abide by it. His emotions told her that he wanted to keep contact, but would do as she asked – for today, anyway. She gave him a smile of gratitude and said softly, “Thanks…It means a lot to me.”
He leaned down and kissed her slowly. It was a sweetly searching kiss, strangely different from any other they had shared. They lingered, mouths seeming to convey things they couldn’t put into words. When they slowly pulled apart, they stared at each other silently for a moment.
Finally, Liken cleared his throat. “I will return before evemeal,
She sat up and moved to the edge of the bed. Standing, she walked to the far side of the room. Pressing a button on the wall, she stared at a hologram of herself. Like the one at the shop, it served as a mirror. It was nice to have one at home, although she was still growing used to it. More than once, she had been startled by the three-dimensional depiction of herself. It was like having an identical twin mirroring her every move.
Today, the image greeting her didn’t look like her twin. She was staring at a stranger. The woman facing her looked nothing like the Sharon Glaston she knew. Her dark hair was tumbled around a face with glowing eyes and swollen lips. Her nude body had small red marks from a night of passion. She looked rumpled and strangely sexy. The passionate creature staring back at her looked powerfully female and mysterious.
Sharon backed away and sat down hard on the bed. Her image stayed in her mind. She was that woman. Maybe she had always been that woman, and it had taken Liken to make her see it. He had ripped her out of her safe little world and stripped away that protective outer shell that she presented to everyone around her.
She had always thought of herself as a cautious woman who was content to lead a rather routine life. She was everyone’s dependable friend, the person who could be counted on to be reasonable. Other people led lives of messy emotion, she was the one that could be relied upon to help them clean up the mess.
She was stable and structured and even a little boring in some ways. No surprises, no real passion, and no real pain. But, underneath all that lived a woman who could rage and fight and hurt like anyone else. A woman who could be passionate and difficult and not at all reasonable. A woman who could love deeply.
Sharon’s head dropped to her hands. There, that was the crux of it. People who loved deeply risked being deeply hurt. And in the last ten days, she had fallen passionately, deeply, foolishly in love with Liken. There was nothing cautious or reasonable about it. It was utterly ridiculous. It made absolutely no sense, but it was undeniable.
He made her feel out of control. He challenged her and seduced her and pushed her at every turn. It was frightening, but she had never felt so alive in her life. He was arrogant and domineering at times. He could be sweetly tender and giving. Physically, he was a fantasy male come to life. Sometimes, he understood her better than she understood herself. At other times, she wondered if he knew her at all. All she knew was that the last ten days had been the most incredible, happiest, most confusing days of her life. And she didn’t want it to end. She wanted to spend the rest of her life loving and fighting with Liken.
She thought of the library on Earth, her job, her friends. She knew she could get a job on Shimeria, probably even at the local Earth library with Gar. Her heart twisted in her chest at the thought of being separated from Kate. More than anything right now she wished Kate were here so that she could talk to her and tell her how she felt. Of course, if Tair had his way, Kate might be living here, too. She cheered at that thought.
The bottom line, though, wasn’t whether she should give up her old life or not. The bottom line was whether she had the guts to step out on a very high limb. She would have to start a new life on an alien planet with a man she loved-a man who might or might not love her back.
She thought sometimes he did love her. When he looked at her with such melting tenderness, she could almost believe it. But, at other times, she felt like a possession he had claimed and wouldn’t give up. He had tried very hard
