“May I remind you, talana, that it was by my ‘awful fangs’ that we were bonded and have stayed together all these years?” Sylvan said dryly. He was sitting on the couch in front of the fireplace and Sophia was curled up at his side.
“Yes, but you’re male—it’s socially acceptable for you to have fangs,” Sophia pointed out. “I’m afraid that Kara having them will condemn her to a life of loneliness. She’s such a beautiful girl but none of the warriors on the ship want anything to do with her.” She put a fist to her chest. “It just hurts my heart, Sylvan.”
“From a father’s point of view, lack of suitors isn’t exactly a problem.” Sylvan sighed. “But I understand how you feel, sweetheart. It’s hard when your child is different—hard to see them rejected and hurt. At least Kara has her brother to stand by her.”
“And what happens when Kaleb finds a mate?” Sophia demanded. “It won’t be long now. Shad is already bonded and you know War and Peace have had their eyes on Ziza forever. And Daniel’s bound to find someone soon too. What happens if they all pair off and Kara is left all alone?”
“I don’t believe that’s going to happen,” Sylvan said calmly. “I remember when I myself despaired of ever finding a bride. I even took an oath never to call one—don’t you remember?”
“That was just because that old girlfriend of yours on Tranq Prime broke your heart,” Sophia objected. “Speaking of Tranq Prime, I heard a rumor somewhere that they have a treatment for fangs there. They use it on Kindred males but—”
“Don’t even consider that.” Sylvan’s voice was uncharacteristically harsh and Kara saw her mother’s eyes widen at his tone.
“I just thought…your aunt and uncle, Zeelah and Grennly are there—”
“No!” Sylvan’s voice cracked like a whip in the quiet living area. “It’s dangerous, Sophia. Something the Primes invented because of their hatred of the Kindred. Don’t speak of it again.”
“I’m sorry,” Sophia said in a low voice and the tears that had been glimmering in her eyes rolled down her cheeks. “I just worry about her so much, Sylvan! And if it wasn’t for those fangs—”
“Fangs or no, Kara will find someone in the fullness of time,” Sylvan said firmly. He gathered his mate into his arms and cradled her close to his broad chest, kissing her tears away. “Don’t cry, talana—the Goddess has someone for everyone. She brought you to me, didn’t she? She won’t allow Kara to live a lonely, unfulfilled life. You just have to have faith.”
“It…it would be different if she wanted to be alone.” Sophia sniffed miserably. “It’s not because I want grand babies, although you know I do someday. Some people are made to be single but I just don’t believe Kara is one of them.”
“The Goddess will send her the right male,” Sylvan said again. “It’s all right, sweetheart. Everything will be all right…”
As he went on comforting Sophia, Kara slipped back to her room. Her appetite had deserted her—her stomach was tied in knots. Her mother must have heard about the break-up with Jason and that was why she was so upset. But her assumption that Kara would never find a male who would accept her as she was shook Kara to the very core. If even her own mother didn’t think there was any hope for her, well…then what hope was there?
At least Daddy still has faith in me…or he has faith in the Goddess, anyway, she thought darkly, crawling into bed. Closing her eyes, she tried to go to sleep.
But the conversation between her parents kept running through her mind and the memory of her mother’s tears kept Kara up long past the time she usually drifted off.
Those awful fangs, she heard her mother saying over and over. It was something Sophia would never have said to Kara’s face—no one would have. And her mother meant no harm—she loved Kara and just wanted her to have a happy, normal life.
But what chance did she have of that when she wasn’t normal herself?
I wonder what that procedure she was talking about was—the one on Tranq Prime?
Her father had seemed to think it was dangerous but Kara was beginning to feel desperate. Maybe it was something to consider, whatever it was. She did have relatives there—her father’s aunt and uncle. Kara had never met them but she knew the people of Tranq Prime were intensely clannish—she was certain if she could get to her father’s home planet they would welcome her as part of the family.
Maybe, she thought as her eyelids at last began to grow heavy. Maybe it’s something to consider. She didn’t want her fangs pulled or anything drastic like that, but if she could somehow shrink them so they became unnoticeable…
And maybe if my fangs shrank, the urges that go with them would shrink too, Kara told herself. It would be such a relief not to have the desperate urge to bite anymore…to sink her fangs into willing male flesh as that same flesh was sinking into her…
Unbidden, an image of the Y’lyn Kindred—the Unbondable—rose in her mind’s eye. He was so tall…his shoulders so broad. Kara could imagine sweeping his heavy curtain of wild black hair to one side and sinking her fangs deep into the strongly corded throat…she could almost hear his low rumble of pleasure as he gave himself to her. And down below, she would be giving herself to him…riding him…taking his shaft deep inside her pussy…
No, she told herself uneasily. No, that would be wrong. I can’t let myself think like that… can’t fantasize about letting him change the color of my eyes…
She knew enough of Tranq Prime heritage that once she had sex with a male it would have an obvious outward physical effect. Her eyes, which were the same ice blue as Sylvan’s, would change color to reflect the fact that she was no longer a virgin. And Kara could just imagine her parents’ reaction if she came to the breakfast table one morning with different colored eyes and she was still unbonded.
Her mom and dad were fairly progressive about a lot of things but her father was extremely old-fashioned when it came to sex—specifically sex outside of a bonded relationship.
And you can’t bond with an Unbondable, she reminded herself uneasily. Still, why was she getting worried about such things? The Unbondable male was only here for a short time and the Mother Ship was a big place. Kara would probably never see him again.
I don’t even know his name, she thought sleepily.
Yet it was his darkly handsome face and those silver-ringed eyes that followed her down into sleep when she at last began to dream.
Three
Kara had a job in the tech hub of the Mother Ship and the morning commute on the public transport was unusually crowded. To one side of her she was jostled by three Kindred warriors with a glittery sheen to their skin, which appeared to change colors subtly as they moved. Kara wondered if it was some kind of camouflage. To her right, were two venerable-looking elders of the Fr’Enson people.
The Fr’Ensons had excess skin all over their bodies, much like a Shar Pei dog, which puffed up when they felt upset or threatened. The unfortunate fact that they also had their organs of sexual reproduction protruding from their foreheads like some kind of floppy, obscene unicorn horn, made them look decidedly strange—at least to Kara.