“You weren’t on the campaign, so don’t call me lazy.” Mave narrowed her eyes on the large female. “I’ll take you right now.”
“You didn’t bring your swords!” Yenni laughed, throwing her head back.
“Don’t need them.” Mave jumped, tackling her friend out of the chair, sending at least two glasses of wine flying.
“Hey, now!” Allaina called. “Be gentle with her!”
Mave and Yenni rolled in the dirt, taking potshots at each other. Senri laughed, but Allaina’s calls for them to break it up were what Mave heard the most.
Mave was able to pin Yenni and looked up.
“We’ve done this before. You know we aren’t going to hurt each other.” Confused, Mave met with Allaina’s ruby gaze.
“Well…” Allaina huffed.
“She’s invested in me now,” Yenni explained with a laugh. “I’ve convinced our pretty mativa to try new things. Or I should say, her curiosity got the better of her.”
Mave moved off of the female, frowning.
“We’re sleeping together,” Allaina clarified as Mave just stared at her. “We started sleeping together at the spring festival. Alcohol was involved.”
It felt like a rock was thrown at her, finally breaking through her dense skull. Mave nodded slowly as she looked between them, then shrugged.
“Well, I never thought you would fall for a female, but okay.” Mave shrugged a second time. She could see it from Yenni because that was Yenni. She was an ahin, a female who found pleasure with other females and had little to no interest in males. Allaina, however, always struck Mave as a female who loved males to the point of no return. It was what had made their relationship so contentious when they met. Mave had Mat, and Allaina had always wanted to keep him to herself.
“I have not fallen for her,” Allaina said, blustering.
“Oh, she’s fallen pretty hard,” Yenni teased. “Her males have been damn okay with it too. They enjoy having me around. Another pair of hands to keep her in line when her head gets a little too big. I stay in their spare room now.” Yenni wiggled her eyebrows.
Senri snorted. Mave tried her best to keep a straight face as Allaina’s blush began to match her eyes.
“You’re not in my mayara,” Allaina reminded her female lover, the big warrior too flirtatious for her own good.
“Yet,” Yenni fired back.
“Well, I’m really happy for both of you,” Mave said politely, standing. She brushed the dirt off her pants, then held out a hand to help up Yenni. “And I’ll be more careful with you now that someone expects you to come home unbroken.”
“Ah, damn. I guess I can’t have it both ways, can I?” Yenni laughed as Mave pulled her up. “I can’t have the jaw-dropping mativa and flirt with the Champion.”
“No, you cannot,” Allaina said, a tense note coming through. “You should ask about Matesh one day. Mave and I have competed before, and I lost before I could even reenter the race. I’m not going to make that mistake again. So, no, please do not flirt with the Champion.”
“Ahhh.” Yenni’s eyes went big as she looked between Mave and Allaina.
“Let’s not,” Mave said, shaking her head. “Let’s not go there. Let’s just enjoy that we’re friends now, and you have three amazing husbands and Yenni.”
“I do,” Allaina agreed, smiling. “I…Sorry. I shouldn’t have inferred that you would try to take Yenni.”
“Or that I would pick the Champion over you,” Yenni said softly, walking closer to the mativa.
“You’re right,” Allaina said softly, tilting up so Yenni could kiss her. It was a sweet, romantic thing.
“Save me from the lovebirds,” Senri said blandly behind them.
“Are they always like this?” Mave pointed as she walked past them.
“Hmm.” Senri only smiled indulgently. “They don’t display their affection in front of the village because ahins are more frowned upon than bedins. This is a safe place for them, and it’s away from Allaina’s husbands, who have no problem, but do sometimes compete for time.”
“Well, if you two ever need a place to stay, I still have a spare room,” Mave offered, looking back at the lovers as she righted her chair and sat back down.
“It’s a breeding thing, and it’s not common that anyone has a problem,” Yenni said with a snort, fixing her own chair once Allaina let her go. “They’re not going to be mad at Allaina because she has husbands and could have children with them. They’ll be mad at me for not letting them breed me.” Yenni’s growl at the end was soul-wrenching. “In my lifetime, I’ve probably met ten Andinna who were vocal. Others just give me strange looks. It goes against Andinna instincts, and I get it. It gets frustrating to deal with, so we prefer to keep our new relationship quiet.”
“But no one cares about Alchan and Rain,” Mave pointed out.
“No one cares about Rain’s side of the relationship and being a bedin,” Senri corrected. “A good many people care about Alchan.”
Mave sighed. “Because he carries the royal bloodline.” She should have known. “Has anyone given him problems yet?”
“Leria sent a particularly pointed letter I read,” Allaina said softly. “I got pissed, then showed Alchan. She’s fine with him having a male lover but believes he needs to focus on finding a female and having a child, especially with a new war. We had a healthy and strong royal family before the last war. A queen, three female heirs, and two male heirs. We ended that war with only one remaining member, and he’s leading an army and has been risking his life for a thousand years. He’s also already nearly nineteen hundred years old. He should have a child by now.” Allaina picked up the thrown glasses and refilled them. Mave took hers as Allaina sighed.
“Even though the situation is pressing, I don’t believe anyone has the right to meddle in Alchan’s affairs. He’s the king. If anyone truly understands his burden, it’s him. On top of that, I am his mativa, the leader of the community around him. I don’t need or want Leria deciding she can enforce her opinions on my people,” Allaina growled.
The conversation turned, no one wanting to continue discussing Alchan’s sex life. Mave watched Yenni and Allaina closely, seeing how Yenni fell into a more male position and did things Mave’s husbands often did for her, like refilling her glass while she wasn’t watching.
Oh, Allaina, she’s already in your mayara.
Mave caught Senri’s eye, and her mother winked. Senri must have been thinking the same thing.
“So, I saw you hanging out with Emerian the other day,” Allaina said, smiling.
Why are we talking about that pretty boy?
“The day after I got back?” Mave raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, I found him sparring with Trevan, and Dave was hanging around. I hung out with them until Rain came by, and he and I went for a hike.”
“Trevan and Dave are…” Allaina waved a hand. “Not the point of the discussion. You were hanging out with Emerian.”
“Has something happened I need to know about?” Mave was trying to get Allaina’s meaning, but it was clearly flying over her head.