Beyond Midnight

|10|

Fray

Earth has spun all the way around twice. Two days. Two nights. And I have not seen Soleil once in that whole time.

Fear prickles my spine, aching deep in my muscles, leaking the strength from my body like a drain. I don't feel my best when I can't see her. I want her. I need her. I want to be near her. I pray that she'll be my mate.

But, she can't exactly be my mate if I don't see her. I can't convince her to choose me if she's ignoring me. I've spent so much time sitting in front of the window. Standing in front of the window. Pacing in front of the window. Cursing the window.

My precious little female has disappeared.

I can't help thinking it has something to do with me. Actually, I know it has everything to do with me. As soon as Soleil saw the ship that brought me to her planet, she fell silent. She changed. I knew it.

Her brown eyes grew round and alert. Every little sound made her flinch. Every new hallway we walked through had her moving her head back and forth in curiosity. Painfully quiet curiosity that pained me. I couldn't breathe when she made those faces. I knew even then that they didn't mean anything good. Now I'm proved right.

Despite her odd mood, it was still a wonderous thing to even be with her. Physically standing beside her. Smelling her. Standing over her. I couldn't stop touching her. Her soft hair, her delicate shoulders that fell right above my hips. She was such a tiny thing. So sweet and cute and wonderful. Her tan skin was soft and buttery to the touch, and I didn't want it to end.

But it had to end. After the rain stopped, Soleil kindly asked me to take her back. I remember how much agony that sparked inside of me. I had wanted to bring her to the technology room, where I could give her a translation device, but it would seem she had other plans.

We only have 2 extra translation devices. There aren't many laying around on Rytaria, everyday citizens don't need them, only warriors who interact with alien species. As soon as we found the barbaric humans, the tech labs began making many more translators as we capture the hearts of the human females.

Unfortunately, that's not going well at the moment. Because, I let Soleil return. I brought her back to the den that I stole her form, and she hardly talked through the whole trip back.

She smiled reassuringly at me when I fussed over her, but I could see the fear there staring back at me in her beautiful gaze.

Fear. She was afraid of me, or more accurately, afraid of what I am. Soleil didn't know that life outside of her world existed, and now she's been shown the truth. She's acting as if she'd rather never know. It should offend me, but I find myself more anxious than anything. What if she doesn't ever come back?

I should not have let her go back.

I'm in agonizing pain standing around and waiting for her to show up. I miss her so much that it hurts.

I wonder what she's doing, I wonder if she's thinking about me as much as I'm thinking about her. I became more reserved when Soleil disappeared. When I'm not sitting by the window wall waiting for her to come back, I'm spending time alone in my tent, avoiding the questions and the eyes of the Rytarians around me.

My female and I weren't alone when we met in the flesh. Despite the wide scapes of land, there are 25 males here, and we were spotted by a few of them. Word spread, and fast. I'm not surprised by it, but I am annoyed.

The warrior badgered me with question after question, and I answered as best I could. Most don't understand why I couldn't just grab the female and stash her on the ship, or convince her to tell the others about our plan. One of those males is Locanas. He is upset with me, but he won't admit it. I can see it in his eyes, feel it in his presence. He's irritated. He thinks me a fool for not taking charge.

What none of them understand is that I won't force anything on Soleil, or any other female. Of course they are more valuable than any rare jewel, more desirable than any spice or fruit on Rytaria, but that doesn't mean that they are objects. That's what my team fails to realize. I have a feeling they will, if any of them receives a mate, they will learn.

As much as I want to possess Soleil, she is her own person. She can choose not to belong to me. As much as it pains me to acknowledge that, I have to.

I exit my tent as the sun sinks low behind the trees and mountains. Wildlife buzzes around me. The bugs and the feathered creatures never fail to make noise. I stare at the pink sky with too many emotions.

Hope that she'll be there. Fear that she won't.

I trudge through the grass, avoiding the gazes that trail my every single step. I have insisted that no one follow me, or bother me when I go to meet my female, and they've respected my wishes. I'm pleasantly surprised by their obedience.

The warriors have proved their devotion to me.

I don't even look around at my surroundings when I climb the fence and drop down on the other side of it. I don't care if another human sees me at this point. Let them see me. Let them know my purpose. I am not ashamed.

I can feel my desires shifting by the second. I no longer have the need to be secretive and safe around this human den. I just want Soleil. She is all I care about.

Before I even get to the wall of glass, I know she's not there, I feel it deep in my bones. I want to yell. I want to break the window in with all of my strength and raid the den before they can get away. I want my female safe in my arms where she belongs.

Reason fights it's way up inside of me. I can't storm this holding, I can't terrorize a community to steal their females. This has to be their choice, I've known that since the beginning of this mission. If we take away their agency, then there is no point. They have to be willing to come with us. They have to be willing to start a new life on a new planet. They have to volunteer to love us, to create relationships and grow kits in their little bellies.

I stare at the building with my heart aching. It's a lot to ask someone to leave their world behind. I guess I was a fool for thinking that Soleil would do that for me. Maybe this whole thing was one sided after all.

Defeated, I turn around, leaving with my heart aching and my head pounding. There has to be another way, there just has to.

Double update! Keep reading :)