Of Another Dimension (18 page)

"Oh and Teila?" I called as I opened the screen door.

She looked up at me and raised a brow.

"Same goes for me."

She blinked uncomprehendingly and frowned.

I smiled widely.

"Huh?" she asked
, confused.

"I wouldn't touch
your
mate if he was the last male in existence!"

I flung the front door open and walked
right in.

I stepped over Teivel and Sieren as they sprawled on the floor in the entryway by the hall
, trying to untangle themselves and look innocent doing it.

They suck at it, by the way
.

They looked like they’d been
trying to ease drop from the hall and had tripped over each other in their haste to fall back when I flung the door open.

Probably trying to play it casual and failing miserably.

I snorted when they both blushed blue.

"Scuse me
, boys." I chuckled to myself and walked to the kitchen to wash up.

****

"What are you doing?" Sieren asked as he walked up to me, sitting down beside me on the ground.

His shoulders were huge and bulged with muscles, flexing as he settled himself.

He looks like a giant, red fleshed add for steroids.

He crossed his tree trunk sized legs and scooted around to get comfortable.

"Making a flower chain," I explained and placed the crown of flowers on my head.

"Whadda ya think?" Arms stretched out, I
gave a queenly pose.

Sieren laughed and plucked up a flower.

"Very…
regal."
He grinned and laughed at me.

I started to make another chain, this one a necklace and glanced up at Kieve as he rode around on his talanax.

"You really like him, huh?" Sieren asked quietly, playing with a blade of grass.

"I love him," I told him honestly
and waved at Kieve when he glanced over and smiled at me. "Why is that so hard for you to believe?"

"What is love?"

"He holds my heart. Love means the same thing."

"Oh," he said simply.

He fell silent after that and I welcomed the reprieve from his usual fifty questions, hurled at me a mile a minute.

Not that I don't admire his inquisitiveness, or the absurdity of some of them that has me in stitches, but sometimes a gal needs a break.

Glancing around, he snorted at Chub strutting around with a bunch of flower chains on his neck.

He looked at me dubiously and I shrugged.

"What? Don't judge. He likes it," I giggled.

Chub came up to me, chuffed happily and licked my hand.

"You look handsome, don't you, baby?" I asked my little Chub a bubba, giving my little buddy mushy air kisses.

He wiggled excitedly and tried to lick my face.

"Go herd some shaxnas, you handsome little devil you!" I cooed.

He took off and raced for the field in front of us.

"You are an odd female, chomcharra."

I shrugged again and grinned unrepentantly.

"So
you
say."

"It is not a bad thing. It is just... different," he amended.

"You know, you still didn't answer my question."

"What question?" he asked
, trying to mimic my chain technique.

Who ever thought I would be sitting in a field of shaxnas and flowers, making flower chains with a bulked up Sodraden who looks like he bench presses cars for fun?

Not me!

I put my newly finished chain around my neck and started on another one.

"Why are you bald? Is it the sex thing or something else? Hmmmm... Oh, I know!
Are you old?
Erm, I mean, are you older?"

"What?! Who says I'm old?" he huffed.

"No one! I was just guessing." I looked down and watched my hands so I didn't crack up.

If I look at him, I
know
I will.

"Well
, I'm not."

"Whatever you say
, dude." I put my hands up, shrugging.

I don’
t think he appreciates my placating tone.

His eyes narrowed and he crossed his arms over his chest.

"Did Kieve say it? I'm only fifteen revolutions more than him, that's not
old
." His voice was getting all huffy.

"How
old
are you, anyhow?" I asked, curious now.

"Thirty four revolutions."

He doesn’t look thirty four,
I thought idly, studying him.

Took me a minute before I realized he’d started glancing at me, waiting for me to respond.

"Oh, that's not old," I assured him.

"Thank you, chomcharra." He immediately
brightened right up, smiling again, happy to have someone on
his
side.

Hmmm....
Thirty four…

I
f he's thirty four and Kieve is fifteen years younger...

"Oh
, my god! If you're thirty four, then Kieve is only nineteen!"

"Yes," Sieren agreed
, fingers fumbling to tie two flowers together.

"I'm a cradle robber!" I cried, dropping my new flower chain.

"What's that?" He paused in making his own, frowning down at it to look up at me again.

"I've been dipp
ing in the young bucket!" I blurted, holding my hands up to my cheeks in distress.

"Oh," Sieren laughed. "You think
you
are old now," he chortled.

"Stop la
ughing! This isn't funny!" I scowled.

He laughed harder and I
whacked him.

He put his hands up defensively and let out a deep belly laugh.

I slapped at him some more, but this only seemed to keep him going.

"Stupid... laughing...
clown!
Thinks everything is
so
funny," I muttered.

I got up and started walking to a different spot.

"Wait! Where are you going, chomharra?" he managed to gasp out.

"Away from you!"

"Sieren! Quit teasing my female!" Kieve called, riding up to me.

He held out his arms and lifted me up, placing me in front of him.

"Why didn't you tell me you were nineteen?" I accused, crossing my arms over my chest.

"Because age doesn't matter to me. I love you and you love me. We have each other's hearts and
that
is what I care about."

His arms wrapped around me and I leaned back, savoring his warmth.

I grumbled, but let my arms trace over his.

"Well said
, sir. Nice save."

"Thank you
, baby. I always aim to please you," he murmured huskily and licked the shell of my ear.

"Keep talking like
that
, you cheeky little demon and I'll make you pull this beastie over right this minute, mister!"

Chapter 14

"Where is everybody?" I asked as we made our way downstairs for morning meal.

"It is just us for the next few days
, baby," Kieve said with a wink, "Teila said she had to go to the inlet for some
things
and Sieren is a half a day's ride away by talanax, helping one of the other shaxna herders. His mate is having a 'baby' as you call it, or for us Sodraden, a
youngling
."

"Do you use my words instead of yours sometimes for my benefit?" I asked as the thought struck me.

"Yes, it makes it easier. I also find your words more interesting," he assured me and gave me a quick nuzzle to my temple.

"Oh, well
, thank you then. What's an inlet?"

"It's like your Earth stores you told me about, but much more basic."

"Bare essentials." I nodded. “Gotcha.”

I walked over to the counter and started grabbing out everything I'd need.

"Alright, my bottomless pit, how do you want your eggs?"

He didn't answer, so I turned around and snorted when he wasn't there.

"I thought he said he was starving," I told the empty room. "Oh, well," I called out loudly, "more for me!"

"More what for you?" Kieve called as he walked back into the room.

He had his hands behind his back and a pleased smile on his face.

"Whatcha got there
, handsome?" I teased.

"Who
? Me? Oh, nothing..." he said slowly, drawing it out as he approached me.

I smiled, enjoying his game.

"Hmmm... then show me your
nothing
." I grinned and reached up to play with the ties of his shirt.

He brought his hands forward and held out a clam shaped and sized object to me. It was almost pearlescent with its shiny hard surface. The color of the hard shiny outside was a beautiful electric blue that made me think of Sieren's crazy eyes.

"For me?" I asked, surprised.

He nodded and took my hand in his, placing it in the palm of my hand.

I closed my fingers over it and gripped his shirt, pulling him down with my other to kiss him silly.

We jumped apart when my clam started to vibrate. I opened my palm up and the top of it came off, gravitating above the bottom piece, the haunting melody that Kieve used to sing to me coming out of it.

The sounds it emitted reminded me of the chiming notes on a music box.

"You put our song in it," I whispered happily,
holding it out for him to see, pleased with my gift.

"No," he grinned, "
You
did."

"Huh?"

"You did. When you touch it, the compla plays what you want to hear."

"Oooh. I love it! Thank you
, Kieve! I'll treasure it always."

I closed my eyes and cupped my hands over the compla. I opened my hands up and waited. It closed and opened again and a new song tinkled out.

It was a love song.

I set it down on the counter and took Kieve's hands in mine.

"Dance with me, demon lover," I commanded in an imperious tone.

"Dance? Mmmm..." he smiled crookedly and
looked at me funny.

"Come on," I cajoled, "For me."

I looked up at him with big doe eyes and batted my lashes.

"Sodraden
don't really have any dances for females. I don't think you want to do a warrior’s dance, baby. You don' look like you'd be good at catching a flaming sword. ...or tossing one for that matter."

I paused at that.

"You don't have any couples dances? What the heck do you guys do for a little fun around here? I mean, really," I huffed, warming up to my shtick. "You don't have television, no movies, no malls or bowling alleys... I have yet to see any form of fun. Erm, other than sex and riding around on a talanax chasing wayward shaxnas all day."

"Yes, that pretty much sums it up. We aren't a very interesting sort I guess," he laughed.

"If I wasn't here, what would you do with your free time?" I asked curiously.

"Masturbate," he said
immediately and laughed when I slapped his chest.

"I meant besides
that
and you know it!" I huffed.

"Alright. Alright. Hmmm...."
He grew thoughtful, cupping his chin in his hand. "I would sharpen my blades, fix anything that needs fixing. There's always something breaking around here. I don't know...” He shrugged, “I'm really not that interesting."

"Of course you are," I insisted, "you like to sing and you have a beautiful voice."

"Males don't want to be beautiful, baby," Kieve complained, grimacing at me.

"Okay, fine. You're uglier than a hairy talanax butt and you sound like a love sick chomcharra w
hen you sing. Happy now?" I grumbled, throwing my arms up in exasperation.

"Yes," he chuckled and pulled me close.

"I don't like you right now," I mumbled into his shirt.

He ignored my mumbles, reaching over on the counter, closing my compla to turn it off.

He ran his fingers through my hair, singing our song to me, his lovely voice vibrating his chest, making me smile as he held me against him.