“Even the shower curtain,” Rue interrupted in a mystified voice. “What monster takes the fucking shower curtain?”
“A desperate one,” Jessie answered from across the aisle, her attention apparently not on the book in her hand and instead on their conversation. Nodding at their clasped hands, she raised her brows. “Are ya’ll together?”
“Oh no,” Lucy snorted.
“Hard pass,” Rue said, shaking her head and making a face, only to laugh when Lucy dropped her hand dramatically as if offended. “In regard to the general eating of the pussy, Luce. Not you in particular.”
Her defense got some laughs from the women strapped into their seats.
“Gross,” Tabitha muttered.
“What was gross?” Rue asked, leaning forward to see Tabitha on the other side of Lucy. “The fact that I said the word pussy or that I prefer not to be face deep in one? I have no problems with lesbians. I simply don’t partake of the pussy myself.”
“Partake of the pussy?” Lucy snickered, covering her face with her hands where she sat sandwiched between the two women who were glaring at each other. “Try saying that three times fast.”
“You probably are a couple of dykes,” Tabitha sneered.
At those words, every single female zeroed in on her.
“Hey, now,” Jessie spoke up first, uncrossing her legs but staying seated. “I suggest you watch your mouth before anymore bigotry spills out.
“I second that,” Rue hissed, her glare as sharp as her voice as it cut across the space she was filling between the pair.
“Anyways,” Tabitha said, backing down when she realized every female was giving her the exact same look of disgust as they watched the drama unfold.
She made a sour face at the women still looking at her before slipping her earbuds in. Lucy, grateful that the tension had eased, turned back to Rue, who’d once again reached for her hand.
“So…” she drawled, filling the silence.
Rue snorted before bursting into snickers, trying to hold back her laughter. Of course, that only prodded Lucy to give in to her own case of the giggles.
“Well, that was uncomfortable,” Lucy said when she was finally able to control herself.
“Pffft.” Rue blew a raspberry. “I live to make people uncomfortable. It keeps things spicy.”
Lucy acknowledged the truth of her friend’s words by squeezing the hand she was holding. “I like you spicy.”
And she did. She truly did.
The pair had been fast friends for years, having grown up only a few blocks away from each other. The neighborhood had gotten so used to seeing the pair together that people often thought they were sisters, despite their different coloring. Rue’s skin was the perfect creamy tan year-round, thanks to her Mexican background, while Lucy was as pale as snow, except for the freckles that covered her skin, thanks to her Irish father who split when she was twelve.
Lifting their linked fingers, Rue wiggled their clasped hands between them. “If I ever was a lesbian, I would be one for you, Luce.”
“Gee, thanks.” Rolling her eyes, she leaned back in her chair and let out a deep breath.
When they’d boarded earlier, the Phaetons had warned the trip down to the surface of Djaromir would be quick and a bit bumpy. So far her stomach had stayed silent, but every now and then a dip would remind her they were literally flying through space. The idea was so wild she could barely wrap her mind around it.
“Whatcha thinking?” Rue asked.
“I don’t know. A little bit of everything I guess,” she said before biting her lip nervously. “I mean, this is crazy right?”
“A little, but we’ve gone over and over the list, Luce.”
“What list?” Jessie interrupted from the other side of the aisle again, closing her book and placing it on her lap. “I don’t mean to be nosy, but honestly, I need something to distract me from my own nerves rising up. I’ve read the same page since I buckled my seat belt, and I’m about to go crazy if I have to do it again.”
Lucy turned her head to look at Rue, who just shrugged back as if saying “go for it.”
“We made a list of pros and cons before volunteering to be a mate of Djaromir.”
Jessie gave her a wry smile. “I’m pretty sure you’re not the only ones that did something like that. What were your pros?”
“Well,” Lucy began, holding up her fingers to begin ticking them off. “Security. A relationship.”
“Because dating on Earth is a fucking joke,” Rue muttered, her brows lowered.
“A home full of kids. Adventure.”
“I think that was it, Luce,” Rue said with a nod. “Security, a relationship, a stable home with the standard 2.5 children, and the chance at an adventure.”
“Did you also apply for the Bridal Pact with the Phaetons?” another bride asked, her name Lucy couldn’t remember.
“No,” she answered, shaking her head. “I thought about it and probably would have at some point if the agreement with Djaromir hadn’t been announced. For some reason…this place felt like the better choice.”
“What about you?” Jessie asked Rue, who was tapping her chin in thought.
“I guess I prefer the idea of the Djaromir mating over filling out a questionnaire and being assigned to a Phaeton. I mean, don’t get me wrong. I think if you find the one for you then that’s amazing, it doesn’t matter how it came about, but if I were to choose between the two ways that they match volunteers? I like the Djaromir way better. I guess it figures though; my favorite romances are the ones that center around mates. The type of mates that are together because they’re unable to stay apart.” She paused for a moment, tapping her chin. “I’ll be honest, it doesn’t hurt that they added a hefty chunk of change if we end
