of people telling her to suck it up and accept the status quo. All her life, she heard it in some variation or another, and no matter where she was, it followed her. Her temper surged, and she growled in frustration. Rhyst merely stared back at her, unimpressed. Alien monster man or not, he was a complete ass! Stubborn as a fucking mule.
Well, so was she. She wouldn’t bend on this matter.
Setting her hands on her hips, she squared off against him. She wasn’t at the colony, forced to behave and keep her head down. “I understand your point, and respect it, but right now all I know is that I’m tired of everyone telling me that my needs and wants don’t matter. You don’t have to agree with me, but I won’t leave without it. Yes, you can force me, but it will be a lot better if you just give me a break and do this one thing for me. I need your help separating it from its dam.”
“I will not,” he hissed.
“For fuck’s sake, it’s just a baby!”
She watched as he jerked in surprise at her wording, but he didn’t remark on it. Gods, this male was infuriating. Couldn’t he see how much it needed them? If not for the fangs that she could see peeking out from the lips of the white fluff ball, she would grab it from the mud herself. She didn’t have Rhyst’s thick fur if she accidentally startled it. Taking a calming breath, she softened her tone and tried once more to gain his cooperation. “Please?”
“No,” he growled.
Un-fucking-believable.
“To hell with it then! I’ll do it!” Charlie huffed.
But when she moved to go to the baby, who even now cried for the dead mother it was curled against, Rhyst stopped her. His face was hard as he grasped her around the hips and placed her on his back. “A female should obey when a male tells her no,” he said. “But since you are determined not to listen, do not move.”
Charlie didn’t argue as he began to slowly step toward the creature, the bulk of his body swaying beneath her. Big red eyes turned on them, blinking once, then twice, before it turned its face back into its mother’s corpse. Charlie held her breath, and her fingers burrowed into the long mane that fell down his back as Rhyst reached forward. Just as he brushed his fingers over the fur, the little beast turned around and latched onto his finger.
“Blessed En’el preserve!” he roared with dismay.
She bit back a laugh as Rhyst shook his hand and stumbled back, making Charlie clutch tighter to him in the process, but the ball of fluff wouldn’t let go. He swung his hand sharper, jerking with the momentum and forcing her to cling to his mane for dear life. Her restrained laughter burst out of her, startling him.
But when she began to slide off his back, his lower hands supported her as he continued to fend off the small creature. To her surprise, it released his finger and launched straight at her. Charlie shrieked. But instead of using its fangs, the baby dove into her arms as if knowing she would protect it.
Triumph flowed through her as she pulled the baby close to her chest and gave Rhyst a defiant look. “I’m keeping it!”
“You will not.” His eyes narrowed on her.
Little did he know that Charlie wasn’t about to give in that easily. She had left behind too many animals in the lab that were probably still being poked and prodded with no one to care about their welfare. How could she leave a baby behind to die? She refused. This was something good she could do, another way for her to make up for what she had been a part of.
“Please understand. I can’t leave it to die.”
His eyes softened marginally, and hope surged within her. Something flew overhead, but they were too busy looking into each other’s eyes to notice. Rhyst scowled, but finally, with a decisive nod, he turned until they were facing the correct direction and began to walk forward.
“When it bites, you will wish I had killed it with my bare hands.”
That was always a possibility, but as a soft tongue moved over her hand, she didn’t regret it at all. Just like she didn’t regret saving him. She stared at the profile of his face, admiring the strong jaw, the fur slightly longer as it edged his features, feathering down to