I head for my entertainment room and flip through the vids I’ve procured. There is one I have not watched that seems particularly promising, and so I click it on and watch.
Right away, it becomes obvious that this is not a vid about courting practices. It is a mating video, pure and simple. The female, dressed in a ridiculous costume, simpers at the male’s bedside and when he pulls out his cock, she drops to her knees and begins to suck on it with loud, enthusiastic noises. I cross my arms and snort as I watch this unrealistic mating ritual. I do not know much about Kim, but I know if I pulled my cock out, she would not drop to her knees and suck on me, no matter how much I might dream of such a thing. Likely, she would run away screaming instead.
This is useless.
A soft throat clears behind me, and my ears go back.
Kef me. Why does Kim have such terrible timing? I fight back a groan of frustration as I hastily click the vid off and turn around to greet her. “Good morning. Or good afternoon,” I correct, since it is past lunchtime.
Kim looks better than she did this morning, the puffiness gone from around her eyes and her hair is smoothed into a knot at the base of her neck. She still wears her clothing from yesterday, though it is wrinkled and stained, and I make a mental note to get her new things to wear.
…provided she stays, of course.
Because now Kim is watching me with a most suspicious look on her face. “Why were you watching porn? Human porn?”
25
KIM
It’s interesting to watch Nassakth’s reaction. His face is slightly furry so he doesn’t exactly blush, but his ears go flat and his tail flicks wildly when I catch him watching the smutty vids. I’m not angry about it, because it’s not like we’re a real couple. He’s a guy, and guys are into porn. It’s the fact that he’s watching humans go at it that makes me a little suspicious.
“It is…not what it looks like.”
I cross my arms. “It looks like human porn.”
He hesitates, and then his big shoulders slump. “I was hoping to learn human courting techniques, but I do not think there is anything applicable to be found in those types of vids.”
I soften at that. Nassakth always tells me what he’s thinking, even if he knows I won’t like it. I appreciate his honesty. He’s said several times that he wants this to be a real mating at some point, so of course it makes sense that he’s watching something like that to pick up tips. “Yeah, those aren’t about courting as much as they’re about…fornicating.”
The praxiian’s fluffy tail swishes. “I noticed.”
“You could have asked me.”
I could swear the fur ruff—his mane—prickles just a little, as if standing upright. His expression grows stiff. “A male is supposed to know how to court his female where I am from. We do not ask for guidance. It is considered insulting to ask a female how to court her.”
Funny how he’s so uncomfortable about asking me how to woo me, when he was fine with whipping it out and jizzing on my door to try and impress me. “As a human, can I just say that the best way you can court me is be my friend? Be nice to me? That’s all I want.”
Nassakth goes completely still, and for a moment, his expression looks so very, very sad. “Is that all you want?”
For a moment, I want to relent, but the words stick in my throat. Of course that’s all I want from him. This is a marriage of convenience, nothing more. Friendship would be a lovely bonus. “I think so.”
“I understand.” His voice is grave. “I will not press my feelings upon you again.” He moves away from the vid display and walks past me, heading for the kitchen area. “I have made you lunch. Come and eat. We will take the rest of the day and recover from our excess of wine. Tomorrow, we will return to your farm.”
And somehow, that is that. No arguments, no protests, just a boundary set between us. So why is it that I feel so very…disappointed?
That lingering disappointment sticks with me the rest of the day. Like I’ve done something wrong. Nassakth says nothing to make me feel that way, of course. He’s extremely courteous, takes the dishes as we’re done eating, and then disappears into his gym to work out for hours on end.
It’s the perfect time for me to work on my chapters that I can send to my ladies, but…I find it’s difficult to concentrate. I set up in the bedroom, lounging in the bed, but it reminds me too much of last night and just how comfortable it was to be curled up with him. If I’d been sober, I’d never have invited him…and yet now I can’t stop thinking about it. How warm and soft he was to cuddle up against. How good it felt to have contact with another person—comforting, affectionate contact.