Beauties and Beasts

Chapter 99: brought to you by healing cuteness

Because I'm not a heartless monster of an author and believe Shay's gone through enough crap and deserves some MORE cuteness and love. Also, because you're the reader who probably has their own crap to deal with, you need some cuteness and love as well. All the healing! All the muscles! ALL THE BABIES!!! Neeeyar nyar nyar! Also, I have a degree in English and write every day, but I've totally forgotten how to spell believe. Is that even right? WHY DO YOU KEEP TELLING ME IT'S WRONG, SPELLCHECK?!?

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Shay woke up in the evening to the gentle call of Harvey's voice.

"Shay. Dinner is ready."

She groggily pushed herself up, wincing as her hips and back cracked from the movement. Harvey's spotted ears twitched.

Though she had always been a heavy sleeper, after giving birth to the rabbits she found it took even longer for her to wake up and she'd been needing more sleep then she remembered. Harvey had voiced his theory that her body had been permanently worn down, like with age, and had therefore come less efficient with its energy. She didn't much care for that theory, but it made sense.

She took stock of her children and found that only the snake boys remained. The girls must have woken up earlier and wriggled out with Asher.

Harvey must have followed her gaze, for he said "The girls and Asher are eating already with Parker, and Muir is up in a tree keeping watch. Curtis and Ryan aren't back yet."

Her stomach sank and tightness returned to her chest. She hated the feeling, having grown too familiar with it. She took a deep, steadying breath to push it back.

All around her, the boys stirred. Tongues left butterfly kisses on her skin as she rolled to her feet. A veritable red sea of scales parted before her.

Harvey reached out to brush her arm when she drew near, his smooth eyebrows puckered with concern.

"Would you like a massage after dinner? And there's no need to worry about your mates or yourself. Everything's okay."

"Am I that obvious?"

Harvey fell in step with her as she made her way to the fire pit on the other side of the budding stone walls of the house. She could see Parker's head peeking out over it, leopard ears tall and straight.

Every other step, Harvey's tail would brush against her calf, just hidden beneath the hem of her skirt.

"I made it my way of living to be able to tell when someone was in pain or anxious. And I'm familiar with you."

"I'm sorry for making you worry."

"I do not worry much. You are home and loved. You'll be okay with time."

Will I? Her hand would never be the same, nor would her body, even if this world had modern technology. She had only been here a year and already she was being told her body had aged before its time.

She pushed the thought away and looked across the grass prairie to see the sky goldening over the distant, glittering ocean. It was still quite some time before the sun set, but she could already smell the faint musk of evening. As she focused on deepening her breathing, as though the beauty around her could soothe her fluttering breath, she could hear the whisper of snake bellies following in the grass behind her. Somehow the sound soothed her far better than anything.

Harvey brushed his knuckles against her arm again. His tail hooked behind her knee.

"There's a girl," he murmured. "I can already hear your heartbeat slowing."