closer to The Brink's area, other beings became fewer and fewer until she could hear her footsteps echoing down the corridor. Rounding the curve, she was surprised to find Jamis and Taarig already there.
"Cali." Taarig was the first one to see her, a welcoming smile on his face.
"Sub Commander," she acknowledged. The only thing she'd decided as she walked was that Jamis and Taarig were going to have to make the first move. Yes, she was keeping something vital from them, but they were the ones who planned on taking another female to their bed. Her gaze shifted. "Commander. You wished to speak with me?"
"We did," Taarig answered for both of them, his smile dimming at her cool response. "We felt we should explain."
"Explain what?"
"What occurred between Tecumseh and us."
"Tecumseh… Tecumseh…" Cali tapped a finger against her lip as if she were trying to remember. "Oh, you're referring to the Si female the two of you took back to the Commander's quarters to fuck."
To their credit, they both looked abashed, but it was Taarig who continued to speak, "Yes, that's what we wanted to talk to you about."
"Really? You think I want to hear about your getting naked with another female before she attempted to kill you?"
"No!" Taarig denied. "But we need to explain what happened and why."
"I already know what happened, Taarig. Ruk! Every being on the Star Base knows. As to the why, I know that too." She turned her attention to Jamis. "What was it you said back when we were in that survival shelter, Jamis? That I should fuck you because I'd get to experience something no other Earthan ever had? Well, I think that's why you did it. Both of you. So you can brag that you've fucked an Earthan."
"That's a lie!" Jamis growled, moving forward until he’d caged Cali between him and the wall. He knew the kind of male he was and what had happened in the past, but he'd never, in his entire life span, used a female the way Cali thought he had her. And he refused to let her believe he had. "I admit I wanted to fuck you from the moment I first met you. You attract me as no other female ever has, and I'm not used to denying myself."
"That's well known." Cali had to tip her head back to glare at Jamis. But she refused to back down even though her back was literally against the wall. "Now, take a step back."
"No. You will listen to what I have to say."
That had Cali pausing. Isn't that what Mae had encouraged her to do? To listen to Jamis and Taarig before making her decision. That little Galaian gave good advice. "Then talk."
"While my past… interactions with females are well known," Jamis began knowing she needed to know it all. "What isn't known is that every time I'm with you, my creation sphere wants to lower."
"What?" She couldn't have been more shocked if Jamis had suddenly struck her because she knew what that meant for an Apre. He had to be lying but searching his swirling grey eyes; she saw only sincerity.
"It also occurs with me." Jamis had shifted so Taarig could stand beside him.
Looking to Taarig, Cali found the same sincerity in his eyes.
"Then why?" she whispered, looking back and forth between them.
The hurt in Cali's eyes and voice gutted Jamis, and he knew he had to be brutally honest. After all, she was his Lalla. "Because I was terrified."
Cali's eyes widened in disbelief because an Apre would never admit that. "Of what?"
"Of all my future happiness, resting with a being whose life span is so much shorter than my own." Jamis’s gaze had softened, and he lifted a hand to caress her cheek gently.
"Jamis…"
"Please, let me finish." The please had Cali nodding because she knew it was a word Jamis rarely used. "I fought against my feelings. That's what the other female was about, but I know here," he touched an area over his heart, "that I would never have gone through with it. I couldn't because my heart, mind, and soul belong to you and always will. You are my Lalla, Cali, and if you give me a chance, I will spend the rest of my life span proving I'm worthy of you."
"Your Lalla…" she gasped.
"Our Lalla," Taarig said, gently caressing her other cheek. He'd remained silent as Jamis expressed his feelings because it was something Jamis so rarely did, but now it was his turn.