"You won't miss the fresh air and the greenery?"
"If I do, maybe we could take a vacation somewhere? Do you do that? Vacations?" I turn my head, glancing at him over my shoulder. "Or is that just a human sort of thing?"
"Vacations are a thing," he says, amusement crinkling the corner of his real eye. "But I never take one."
"Maybe it's time you start."
He chuckles. "And where would you like to go, oh bossy one?"
I just roll my eyes at that. We both know he likes my bossiness. I roll over and sit up, and then push him onto his back and sling one leg over his hips, then settle over his cock. It never takes long for Zakoar to get a second wind—I’m starting to think that's a trait of his race, because I've never met a man with stamina like his—and I can feel his cock hardening underneath me. I rock my hips against him, my body swaying as I think. If I can go anywhere, see anything…"Someplace with an ocean, maybe? I love the beach."
Zakoar's hands go to my hips. "We can do that. We can do anything you want." He grinds me down against his cock and spur, and I moan, arching my back.
"But first," I tell him as I lift my hips so I can slide his length inside me. "I want to go home."
He growls with pleasure, as if the thought pleases him beyond words. "And where is home?"
"With you," I tell him, sheathing his length. "You know my home is with you."
My big, fierce alien groans my name as I begin to ride him, and it's like that that Lucy discovers us, peering into the window to see if I'm awake.
It's…probably not what she expected to see.A short time later, we're in the kitchen of the small house, half-dressed and eating Lucy's crumbly fresh-baked muffins as the vid-com plays the frowning face of one of the officials. The mesakkah—a big wall of a guy named Rektar who's almost as stout as he is tall—shuffles records on his desk and shakes his head. "There's nothing in the procedures about a human abandoning a claim once it's been given."
"But I can leave, right?" I ask. "I'm not forced to stay?"
"Of course not." Rektar looks indignant. "This isn't a prison. This is a refuge. We want to make certain the human females feel safe." He picks up a data pad and begins to tap on it. "Your land can be re-allotted to someone else or you can keep it, as long as you are in residence for at least two weeks out of the year."
"But what about her farm?" Lucy breaks in, twirling a lock of her long, wavy black hair.
"She would have to pay a tithe to Lord va'Rin just like everyone else. As long as she finds someone to run it, I don't see a problem with her being an absentee owner."
Lucy leans forward and mock-whispers to me. "I can do it for you for a share of the profits."
I glance over at Zakoar, then back at Lucy. "That's…fine? Then we're free to go?"
"Speaking of free," the alien named Rektar says. "I'm going to need to see emancipation documents from your previous owner declaring you a freed slave. If we have that, I'll feel a little more comfortable with letting you leave. Not entirely, but somewhat." And he levels a suspicious look at Zakoar. "I'm also going to need for the human female to pass a physiological response test to ensure that she's not being coerced."
"Physiological response test?" I echo, confused. "What's that?"
Zakoar looks like he's ready to spit nails. "To see if you're lying when you say you want to go with me."
Oh no. This sounds like it's getting a little more intricate by the moment. "Zakoar's a good man. Of course I want to go with him. I wouldn't lie about that." I reach for his hand under the table, a little worried. What if I'm nervous and fail the test? I don't want to go through all of this just to lose him again, and I panic, just a little.
"You two could always get married," Lucy offers, taking her second muffin and nibbling on it. "Wouldn't that work?"
"Married?" The official—Rektar—repeats. "A human ceremony of some kind?"
"It's a mating ceremony," I stammer, worried. Zakoar holds my hand tightly, as if he's got all the confidence in this world that everything will turn out fine, but I'm not so sure. Too much in my life has gone to crap too easily. "You vow to be faithful and in love with each other and be partners for the rest of your lives. It's a civil ceremony in front of witnesses."
"And you kiss," Lucy adds. "Very romantic."
Rektar rubs his ear, looking uncomfortable. "I see. Declaring a mate as a partner before the law would be acceptable. When would you like to accomplish this?" He continues to make notes on his data pad. "I can be available for a two-hour window this afternoon, once I handle my regular duties."