“I thought if I moved, you’d come out of the trees and eat me.”
“I wanted to, but not in that way.”
“Did I give you tension?”
Vruksha rumbles. “Yes.”
I smile.
“After you left, running from me and into the facility ruins, I knew there was no way I was leaving without you. I planned to steal you.”
“You did?”
“I scouted the perimeter of the facility a hundred times, searching for weakness, for a way in and out where I wouldn’t be caught. I searched for you constantly, hoping for another glimpse. Each time I saw you, I became more obsessed, more certain you belonged with me, and during my plans, I found other naga males doing the same. They saw you and the other females within and wanted you too. I was desperate. We fought because we all wanted the same thing—you. When we realized attacking the base was a bad idea, Zaku decided to approach your males—”
“And make a deal with Peter,” I snap.
“What else were we to do? If we attacked, you and the other females could be hurt. You could escape into your ship and leave? The very idea of those possibilities stopped me and the other nagas from sneaking in alone, from attacking at all. The risk was too great.”
I shake my head. “It wasn’t right.”
“Yes, it was,” he growls.
“And if I fought tooth and nail? And still fought you right now? What then?”
“I would make you see.”
I sigh.
“But this isn’t why I was… unhappy, female.”
I sigh again and play with the scales on his chest. “Go on.”
“After it was all said and done, and I finally had you, you chose Azsote.”
Sitting back up, I glare at him. “I told you why I chose him.”
“You did.”
“I wish I could go back in time and make a better choice… But I can’t.”
“When you had to make a choice again, you chose Daisy.”
My brow wrinkles. “She was in trouble.”
Vruksha shakes his head. “You called me your mate when you did. It was bliss, hearing you say it aloud, but then it infuriated me. I hated it. Helping your friend is one thing, but in doing so, it brought back everything.”
My heart sinks. “I didn’t mean—”
“Stop. I understand why you did it now. I also realize you didn’t do it on purpose. I’d… forgotten what it was like not being alone, being a part of a clan. I… liked it. I remembered when we met up with Zaku, Azsote, and even your friend, how there’s strength in numbers and there’s comfort in sharing your worries with others who are like-minded. It’s been years since I last saw my father, and I’d forgotten.”
“What about today?” I whisper.
“You haven’t called me mate since,” he tells me.
I close my eyes hard, finally understanding. I manipulated him, used his insecurities to get what I wanted. I hadn’t even realized what I had done until now. I knew how much he wanted me, how protective he was, how paranoid he gets, and I must’ve known calling him mate in return was a priceless gift. Even subconsciously, I knew. I did it anyway, not thinking if it was the right place or time.
And I used that power he’d given me to force him to take me to Daisy. I can’t stop the thick ball of guilt squeezing my heart.
I sit up and lean back. His arms loosen around me.
“I choose you,” I say, almost gasping the words.
His eyes hood. “What?”
“I choose you,” I tell him louder. “Mate,” I add.
“You don’t—”
“I’m saying it not because you want to hear it, but because I need to say it and you need to hear it again. Because there’s nothing else I want but you. There’s nothing else I want than to be your mate. I will tell you every day if I must, but it’s the truth. I’m not going anywhere. I will prove it.”
“Your humans are still here, and so is their ship.”
“I know.”
Vruksha searches my eyes. His tail closes in tightly around us. “You won’t try and run? Like your friend? I couldn’t bear it. Not after seeing what it did to her… Her screams.”
“I won’t run,” I promise him. “I love you.”
“Love,” he says. “That’s a strange word.”
“You’ll hear it from now on. It won’t be strange for long.” I’ve never felt how I do for Vruksha for anyone else.
He pulls me close, resting his chin on my head, and I settle against him. Moonlight shines through the cracks of the building, and I watch the flurries of dust in the dim silver light. It’s such a simple beauty, but one I’ll never take advantage of again. Earth may not be the place it once was, and there may be obstacles in our future, but for now, I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be.
I know what’s at stake. What’s been given up, and I vow to protect what’s left with my life. There’s something wrong with this new Earth, and I’m going to figure out what it is.
While I do, I’ll be with Vruksha.
He gently brushes his fingers through my hair, lulling me to sleep.
“Love,” he whispers.
It’s the last thing I hear before sleep. Then his warmth takes me away, leading me to dreams of mountains and the alien men who rule them.
Twenty-Eight
Once a Secret
Gemma
We leave the building before the sun rises the next morning. He’s eager to be back home, and so am I. I want the pelts and the warmth of Vruksha’s nest, and he wants me to prove that I’ll keep my word.
He doesn’t have to say it; I know it.
I want to prove it too. Baby steps, rights? He’s earned my trust, now I need to earn his.
For how alien Vruksha and his naga brothers are, they’re still a conglomerate of softness and insecurity beneath their rough exteriors. Even Zaku, I bet.
I hope Daisy’s made the right choice staying with him, but even if she regrets it already, now that I know where she is, I’ll check in on her soon.
Even
