Barbarian's hope

19

ASHA

Three Days Later

When I wake up on a chilly morning three days later, Hemalo has his head resting on my teats and his tail is wrapped around my leg, anchoring me to him. I slide my arms around him, enjoying the feel of my mate in my arms…until I notice my stomach rumbling with hunger. Strange. It has not been noticeable since I resonated, because the singing of my khui to Hemalo has drowned out all other urges.

Curious, I think of my mate and wait for my khui to begin its loud song, but there is only a gentle, sated thrumming.

That means…

I press a hand between our bodies, touching my flat stomach. Inside me is our kit. Three brutal season from now, I will be holding my own little one. I am both filled with wonder and utterly terrified at the same time. I close my eyes and hope that this one turns out healthy and strong. If it does not…

Hemalo’s arms tighten around me in his sleep, as if he can sense my thoughts.

If this little one does not turn out healthy and strong, we will grieve, but we will get through it together, I realize. I will not shut myself away from my mate with my sadness. I will tell him all of the hurt and anger I hold, and he will understand it and help me get better. I feel calmer with that realization, and slide out of the blankets. Hemalo sleeps on, even after I crawl out of bed. He is exhausted, my mate. We have spent the better part of the last several days in a mating frenzy, and between matings, napped and held each other as we talked. I am…starving. Starving and cold. Our fire has burned down to coals, and I put on a tunic and leggings, and shove my feet into my boots before heading to the fire to stoke it. We are out of fuel, though, and we are also out of dried meat. There is nothing to eat and nothing to burn. I should be a

I glance back at my sleeping mate and then pull a fur blanket over my shoulders, pushing the privacy screen aside and peering out into the vee-lage. Things seem quiet, which means it is early, but I do not mind that. In truth, I need only fuel…and perhaps the sight of one particular person. I am brimming with the need to tell someone about what has happened, someone other than my mate.

As if my thoughts have summoned her, Claire appears out of her howse, a bundle in her arms. She pauses in the road and glances down at my howse. I step out of the doorway and wave at her.

Her round, human face brightens, and a big smile creases her face. She heads toward me, waddling as fast as she can with her burden perched over her belly. “Asha!”

I put a finger to my lips, pulling my privacy screen back over the entrance of my howse, then move out to meet her. I am surprised—and pleased—when she puts her arms around me in a hug. It is amusing to think this small human is trying to hug me, and I wrap my longer arms around her and hug her back.

“I’m so glad to see you’ve returned,” Claire gushes, pitching her voice low as she glances around. “Everyone is wondering how things are going. You two have been so quiet in your house.” Her cheeks turn a bright red. “Well, not so quiet, but you know what I mean.”

I laugh. “We finally stopped resonating,” I tell her, and put a hand to my stomach. Mine is completely flat, and hers is rounded like a ball, but I feel like we are united at this moment. “This morning, I think.”

Her face lights up, and she gives a happy squeal, dropping her bundle as she flings her arms around me, hugging me all over again. Her joy just highlights my own joy, and I am laughing and crying all at once as she gushes about how excited she is for me. I am excited for me, too. For the first time in a long time.

She takes my hands and squeezes them, her gaze searching my face. “And you’re happy? How are things with you and Hemalo?”

“We are good,” I reassure her.

“Did you tear him a new one?”

“A new one what?” I ask.

“Human expression. Did you yell at him for leaving you behind?”

I shake my head. “It is a long story, better told around a fire.” My stomach growls again. “Hopefully with food.”

“Oh! I am the worst friend.” She shakes her head and then puts a hand on her belly, leaning over to pick up her bundle. “I was going to leave this on your porch in case you guys didn’t want to emerge just yet. I know when Ereven and I first resonated, it was hard to leave the bed for at least a week.” The red is back in her cheeks as she holds the bundle out to me.

I take it from her, touched at her thoughtfulness. Unwrapping it, I can see that it is a package of dried meats, some roots, and another bundle of dung chips for fire fuel. “You are a good friend, Claire.”

She waves a hand in the air. “Please. I’m just the first one to head over. You’re going to be inundated with well-wishers once people find out you’ve emerged. Everyone is so excited for you both. Well, everyone except Farli,” she amends with a small smile. “She wasn’t too happy to be kicked out of her own house, but she understands. She’s been staying with us until a roof is made for another one of the houses.”

“I will have to make it up to Farli,” I promise.

“Come. Do you want to go sit in the main lodge, or do you want to come visit by my fire?” Claire asks, putting her arm around my waist as if she is not the size of a kit and heavily pregnant. “I can feed you if you are hungry. Or do you want to return to your mate?”

I consider this. I do want to return to Hemalo, but the thought of talking to Claire is both soothing and fills me with excitement. I can tell her what happened and hear her opinions, and she can tell me what I have missed in the vee-lage while we were gone. And Hemalo will probably be asleep for a few hours yet… “Do you have something to eat at your howse?”

“Eggs,” she says triumphantly.

I struggle to keep the smile on my face. Well, it is the brutal season and I ca

She erupts in laughter at my expression, then shakes her head. “I’m teasing. I have stew from last night, and I just laid out some fresh red meat I was going to smoke. Ereven and Farli are both out hunting, so it’d be just you and me.”

“Fresh meat sounds good,” I tell her, tucking the bundle under my arm. “So how did the haw-lee-deh go? Did you enjoy yourself?”

She makes a face. “Did I tell you I found out who my secret gift-giver was? It was Bek! He was trying to apologize to me. It’s sweet, but it still made me feel awkward.” She sighs. “We are working on being friends again, but I still feel like I have to give him a gift as a thank you.”

“You will think of something,” I reassure her. Claire is one of the most thoughtful people I have ever met. She will come up with the perfect present to make Bek happy. I think about my mate, sprawled in my furs, asleep. “I did not make a present for Hemalo. I wish I had something to give him.”

Claire pushes the screen away from her door and leads me into her cozy little howse. The fire is flickering in the pit, and it is warm and comfy in here. “Can you make him furs? Cook him something?”

“I am poor at both.” I sit by the fire as she heads to her counter along the stone wall and begins to chop something. “But I want to make him happy. To show him I care.”

Claire brings a small plate over to me, bits of fresh, juicy meat piled atop it. She sprinkles tea into her water pouch and then gives me a thoughtful look. “You could always blow his mind…do something surprising in the furs.”

I lean in, curious to hear what human tricks she can share. The mouth-mating is fun, and I would not mind learning more. “Like what?”

She shrugs, sitting on a stool next to me. “This is going to sound personal, but it depends on what he likes. Is he into blow jobs? I know Ereven had never heard of them when we got together, so I don’t think it’s a sa-khui thing.”

I tilt my head. “A below jab?” It sounds painful and not erotic. “Where ‘below’ would I jab him?”

“Blow job,” she corrects. She pats my knee. “Girl, let me tell you all about it, then.”

A short time later, I leave Claire’s howse with my bundle of fuel and dried meat, and my head spi

When I return to my howse, it is cold inside and Hemalo is on his back, snoring in the furs. I rebuild the fire and peel my leathers off, then slip back into bed with my mate. Instead of curling up against him, though, I begin to press kisses down his chest. Claire’s instructions on blow jobs are so simple, yet so foreign to me. Hemalo has put his mouth on my cunt many, many times and pleasured me, yet I have never reciprocated. It has never occurred to me that it is something that is done. Of course, now that I have been told, I ca

Hemalo groans in his sleep, his hand going to my mane and stroking it as I lick at his navel. “Do you wish to mate, my Asha?” he asks sleepily.

“Soon,” I tell him, and continue to lick lower. “Right now I am giving you a present.”

“A present?” He sucks in a breath when I flick my tongue over his spur. “What is it you are doing?”

“I am going to pleasure you with my mouth,” I tell him, gripping the length of his cock in my hand and then licking the tip of it. The taste of him is salty and musky, but fascinating. Why have I not done this sooner? I watch him shudder when my tongue touches his skin, and I feel a sense of intense power and arousal at his response. “Do you want me to stop?”

“Never stop,” he murmurs. His hand tightens in my mane.

I chuckle and let my mouth explore his length, my lips tracing along the ridges of his cock, exploring his spur, and testing out what things he likes. My fingers stroke his sac as I drag my tongue along the length of him. He sucks in a ragged breath, and when I lightly suck on the tip of his cock, he jerks his hips, as if trying to mate my mouth. I am intrigued by this reaction and take him deeper into my mouth.

“Asha,” he rasps. “I might spill my seed. I am close. This is…too much.”

I lift my mouth off of him and give him a smile. “Then you spill it in my mouth and let me taste you, like you have tasted me so many times.”