Those around me nod, but I let out an irritated sigh. What does he know of such things? He stole his wife and started this mess.
Besides, it’s not like anyone here would touch a woman without permission.
Would it please you if I was interested?
Melisa’s voice invades my head once again.
As if my strange thoughts called her, the smell of fragrant roses mixed with sultry cinnamon fills my nose. It’s like a forest garden grows right next to us.
But then I look to the side to see Melisa standing next to me.
My mouth parts, and she smiles.
“Good morning, Ra’Sa,” she says quietly.
Without thinking, my tail brushes toward her. She grins and reaches out to brush the furry tip. I shudder at such an intimate touch, then remember myself and snap my tail back to my body.
My heart stutters in my chest. “Melisa.”
Her name on my tongue feels different than before.
“What is this?” she whispers.
I roll my eyes. “Our king is treating us like infants.”
She grins, and my chest hurts again.
No one has heard us yet. How anyone could miss the woman at my side, I don’t know. Despite my best efforts, I can’t seem to stay away from her.
When I inhale, that somewhat spiced scent sings to me, inviting me to unwrap her mysteries one by one.
I still.
What are these thoughts?
“But there are so many of them. I can count at least eight houses that must be repaired if we hope to expand with so many families,” Foal, the scarred hunter, says.
Melisa leaves my side, but my eyes stay glued to her as she speaks. “If you think that a house will be enough to sway a woman into your bed, you might be right.”
Half a dozen whispers break out around me, shifting from surprise and curiosity at her arrival to determination. They scheme and plot for a place to keep their new mates. Some of them whisper over women that they hope to mate with.
Melisa’s name sounds once, and I turn to see one of my stone benders say, “That’s the one I spoke about last night.”
I give him a withering glare, but her words sink into my thoughts.
The humans just wanted... A home. Not gold or jewels.
I frown.
“Melisa, I do not know if it is wise for you to be here,” Teo says wearily.
Melisa steps forward and looks him up and down. She doesn’t bow—she doesn’t even dip her head. She uses no honorifics, either. It’s like she invites him to earn her trust.
Something about the blatant courage makes me smile. I like seeing him knocked down. Just a bit.
“I wanted to know what you were scheming about. And, believe me, I’ve handled worse than all of you,” she says. I don’t like the glint in her eye.
Teo, however, shifts his weight and crosses his arms.