“Human,” a voice hisses, and an all-too-familiar woman stomps into Kemli’s cave without bothering to scratch a greeting. “Come and get your mate!”
“Asha,” Kemli says in a dry voice. “Come in. My cave is always welcome to visitors.”
Asha tosses her thick, dark hair and glares at both of us. I get to my feet, feeling just a little fat and awkward at her presence. The female sa-khui is utterly gorgeous, her skin a lovely shade of flawless blue, her eyes bright and snapping fire. Her stomach is lean and hard and reminds me that my belly is starting to distend and my ankles have a tendency to swell lately. She’s magnificent and she knows it.
She’s also kind of an arrogant ass. She looks down her flawless nose at me, her expression imperious. “Do you not think we have enough to put up with right now? Can you not make Aehako behave?”
“Make him behave? I don’t understand.” I rub the slight bulge of my belly as I get to my feet. “What’s he doing?”
Her gaze goes to my stomach, and for a moment, pain flickers in her eyes and I feel like the biggest jerk. Then, the sneer returns to her pretty face and Asha looks at me with such disdain. “He is harassing Hemalo over dye. He says he will upset you and Aehako now says such things are not allowed in his cave while his mate is pregnant.”
I wince. “Oh boy. I’m coming.”
“Good,” Asha says viciously. “Are we all supposed to sit and stare at the fire until your kit is born? Because that is what Aehako will reduce us to.”
“This is his first kit, Asha,” Kemli says mildly. “All males lose their minds when their female is pregnant.”
“I do not care.”
“I’ll talk to him,” I say to the women. While it’s sweet that Aehako is so, so protective of me, Asha also has a point. The entire cave can’t tiptoe around while they wait for my baby to be born. I don’t know if I’m going to be pregnant for nine months or twenty, because the sa-khui carry for so much longer than humans. Either way, Aehako needs to learn to cope, and I do, too.
We’re not the only ones that live here. It’s an entire cave system full of people and they can’t cater to one pregnant lady.
So I follow a huffing Asha out of Kemli’s cave and to the back of the South Cave, where the storage areas are set up. Sure enough, Hemalo is set up in the one cave set aside for hides—cured, uncured, dyed and undyed. He’s in front of a stretched skin, a bowl of pungent junk at his feet, and I can smell the concoction even before he comes into view.
I smile brightly even though the scent of it makes my eyes water and my gag reflex rise. “Hi guys, what’s going on?”
Aehako immediately comes over to my side, all big protective body and flicking tail. He’s got a slight frown pulling at the edges of his normally smiling mouth. “You should not be in here, Sad Eyes. The smell will make your stomach upset.”
“I’m fine,” I tell him, keeping the fakely cheery smile on my face. “I heard you and Hemalo were fighting?”
The big male behind Aehako gets to his feet. Of all the people in the tribe, I would think both Hemalo and Aehako would be last on the list of fighters—my mate because he doesn’t take much in life too seriously, and Hemalo because he just seems all soul and art. He’s not a warrior or a hunter like the others. He’s a creator and loves nothing more than fussing with leathers.
Hemalo gives me a mild smile, his soulful eyes full of apology.
“We are not fighting,” Aehako says, his voice surprisingly tight. “I am simply telling him that he cannot dye leather with you so close by.” Even now, his big hands—though gentle—are steering me toward the entrance of the cave, as if he doesn’t want me anywhere near the tanner. “In fact, you did not sleep well last night. Perhaps you should take another nap.”
If I take another nap, I’m going to fall asleep out of sheer boredom. “Aehako,” I protest, letting him pull me along. “I’m not tired.”
“You are,” he insists.
“No, I’m not.”
“Yes, you are.” He takes my hand in his and when I plant my feet, he just grabs me and carries me away.
“Aehako!” I protest. “Stop this!”
“I know what is best for you, Sad Eyes. Do not be stubborn.”
I want to grab his shoulders and shake him, but his movements are making my stomach churn a little. Either that, or the smell of the dye really is affecting me. I twist my hands in his warm tunic, holding on as he carries me in his arms back to our cave as if I’m nothing more than a naughty child. He eventually sets me down oh-so-gently in the middle of our quarters and then looks me over.