“Sssshh,” I tell her.
“Is there something?” she whispers. “Do you hear something?”
“No, but I must check for predators.” I keep my voice low as I set her on the ground. “I will be too distracted once we are in the water.”
“We?”
“Wait here, Gemma. Do not leave this spot while I scout the area. I will be right back.” I cup her face and force her to look at me. “I will know if you try and run.” The shadows are heavy, but the moonlight is out. Even in darkness, she is beautiful. She is Gemma.
I wait for her to nod before I release her, slinging up into the branches above. I still suspect she will run when she has the chance, but I am beginning to trust her judgment. She won’t run in the dark.
I slip from tree to tree, searching for signs of recent activity or lingering animals, staying within hearing distance of my female and the water.
It is strange, patrolling like this.
Before the arrival of the humans, I never wanted the burden of a female or the companionship of another, knowing the cost it would demand of me.
Seeing Gemma and her red hair, I discovered how profoundly lonely I was… How large my nest was—and for no reason whatsoever. My world shifted that day at the facility, spun, and shook me to the pointless life I’ve been leading. Where other naga males journeyed to find the female nagas, I stayed in my forest. Where other males succumbed to madness or melancholy, I smiled, viciously devouring another meal.
All those smiles were fake.
I’ve been lying to myself for years… I know that now.
But I’m not liking how Gemma’s presence is making these feelings emerge.
I won’t let what happened to my father happen to me. Or what happened to my mother happen to Gemma. I will keep her safe—at all costs—and happy whenever possible. This bath is dangerous, but my need for her is strong, and how can I deny her when she offers herself so willingly?
Once I have claimed her, then I can relax. When she is nestled in the shield of my tail, plump with spill and sleeping soundly, I can finally sleep. Weeks with little rest is wearing on me.
Finding the creek and area around it empty of predators, I return to my mate.
She is where I left her, staring up at the stars.
Sliding to her side, she turns her head at my arrival, but her gaze doesn’t leave the sky. My eyes search for what she’s looking at.
“Earth’s moon is so bright,” she says, her voice soft.
“Are there other moons?”
She makes a noise. “Yes. Many. Every colony has at least one, some have dozens, but none of the ones I’ve seen are as bright as this one.”
My eyes slip to the pale column of her neck and the way her hair tumbles over her shoulders. Her red hair is the reason I know she belongs to me. We share the same color. She wears my color.
Only my female would have my coloring.
“I wonder what life would be like if the Lurkers had never come to Earth, if they’d left us alone and sailed on by, if we’d still be fighting the Ketts with everything we have… Still failing.”
I don’t know what she speaks of, what or who these Ketts are, only that they are the reason Gemma is here on Earth. I rub my fingertips together. They’re not her problem anymore. They’re not here. I reach up and cup her neck, reminding her who is.
She tenses, her gaze dropping from the sky. I catch her in my arms and pull her close.
“Vruksha—” she starts.
“The area is safe,” I interrupt, “for now. I do not wish to stay long. You are preciousss in these lands, and I can’t risk losing you again.”
She doesn’t say anything more as I lift her in my arms and carry her to the creek’s edge, to the deep, clear pool where I’ve often come to for hydration. I carry her into it.
She squirms. “I should undress first.”
“I will undress you.”
In the deepest area, I lower, enjoying the chill of the water gliding between my scales. Gemma’s trying to get out of my hold again. I submerge us both, and she gasps.
“Cold, cold, cold,” she squeaks. She pushes from my chest, slips out of my arms.
I catch her leg with my tail when she moves from me. I draw her back into my embrace. “I will warm you, little human.”
She doesn’t fight me, not like she has been. My member pulses, excited from the act of submission. Grabbing the edge of her jacket, I tug it off her shoulders.
“Vruksha, I don’t think this is a good idea. Maybe we should go back and wait until morning if it’s so dangerous.”
“We are here now, and I can’t wait any longer.”
“But monsters?”
Didn’t she hear me tell her it was safe? “Have you changed your mind? They’re not here, and if they come, they will have to deal with me.”
She shivers and raises her arms reluctantly, letting me take off her jacket. I toss it to the shore, reaching for her pants.
“I can do it,” she says, pulling my fingers away from her.
I growl and put my fingers back. “I will be the one to undress you this time.”
She drops all pretenses with a sigh. Excitement returns to me as she kicks off and wiggles out of her pants. I gather them and toss them next to her jacket.
How could I ever not have wanted this? Companionship? Quipping conversation? Pouty lips when they’re not getting their way? My member has only ever known my hands sheathing it, and now it will know her. It’s had a taste, and it’s even hungrier than before.
Gemma curls her arms over her chest, where her remaining layers cling to her enticingly. She lowers into the water to hide.
I’m an idiot.
What’s the point of living without a female to live for? To share my exploits with? To warm me
