Page 20 of His Human Rebel

Rake steps forward, so very close that I can again scent him. Even after all that time in the barn, he smells wonderful, like soil and sunshine. I should take a step back, but I want to be as close as possible to that chest. I lift my chin and meet his gaze.

He reaches out and brushes a strand from my ponytail over my shoulder. And then he looks very intently at my lips.

This man is so very hot. Basically, all I want right now is to be in his arms.

Is he going to kiss me?

He meets my gaze again. “Sleep well.” And then he’s out the door and it closes behind him.

I sigh with disappointment and walk over to open the cage. Thank gods he has more control than I do, because my body might want more, but my mind is not ready.

The babies make tiny tinkling cries of delight. I let them out and they walk around slowly and have initial anxiety, finally sniffing and exploring. Precious baby kitties.

I let out a deep laugh as I realize something very important. “Now I’m going to have three babies in my life. Two new cats to raise and a baby on the way. Maybe I won’t have time to fret as much as I thought about leaving everyone and everything behind. I miss my students so much and my friends there, but… this new life might not be so bad.”

Eventually I'm on the bed with the two kittens snuggled beside me on the bed, sleeping.

And then I fall asleep too.

Chapter 7

Rake

Stella thinks she's going to scare me away with talk about her loud personality or how difficult it will be to care for her while she is pregnant.

But that isn't going to happen.

I head downstairs and make my way out the front door, thinking of my dazzling female and the way she interacts in such an animated fashion. The more time I spend with her, the luckier I realize I am. I’ve been dreaming of starting a family line for the last two years.

I’m ready.

She’s not loud but instead confident, and her voice is lovely and clear. And I am honored to be the male to care for her while she brings our new offspring into this world.

Stella has not been formally introduced to the ranch hands, but there's plenty of time for that later. She was scared at first when she met Lorn but remained gracious to my ranch manager. This is important because I need a bound who treats my employees, family and friends with respect. I assumed she would be this way, and I was right in my initial assessment.

Yes, she was recently fired and kicked out of her last position. She claims unfair treatment by the community leaders, but there’s the possibility that she’s an unreliable narrator and that she was the actual problem in that situation. But I believe her story, which holds a ring of truth. It’s obvious from the time I’ve spent with her today that she is a being with a high code of ethics and morality and I believe her claims that she was an honorable human stuck in a bad situation.

And she truly understands why I want to stay here at the ranch. She knows this isn’t a normal job but instead a lifelong commitment and a promise to my ancestors. I feel close to her already.

It helps that she had an immediate affinity for the animals we raise. She enjoyed tending to the riding beasts. We spent time with the pyrotaur that was ill and lying in the stall, awaiting the arrival of the Doctor. Lorn was personally working with this beast because he’d raised it from a foal.

When we moved on toward the office in the barn, she cried out with joy when she discovered the New Earth pets that Lucy recently talked me into taking.

Stella swiftly took in those small beasts and treated them with such care. This also gives me an understanding of how she would then treat our future offspring, or how she would treat other beings and the other beasts under our care. After all, she is a teacher, a professional who teaches young children on her planet. I am impressed.

Stella brought the “kittens” into our bedroom. Not the best location in my opinion, but she insisted. She knows these beasts better than I do so I did not contest this plan.

I return to work while she naps; it gives me comfort knowing she's safe.

Finally, the workday ends.

The animals are all fed and bedded for the night. The veterinarian has left and my sick pyrotaur is asleep, doing much better. All the ranch hands have returned from a last check of the fencing. It was a busy day. I close the barn and return home as the suns set.

While I was gone, I was unable to communicate with Stella, which was troubling. She was nearby, in the ranch house, but I don't like that I wasn't able to reach her easily or that she couldn't get in touch with me in case something happened. My female is so new to the area, she doesn't have the proper emergency numbers and doesn't know anyone yet in my family. I'm going to need to fix that quickly.

I stride back across the field and over the drive and enter through the front door.

Faint sounds emanate from the back of the kitchen, letting me know that Stella is downstairs. But I do not pursue her yet; I've got filth and dirt all over me from that last fall I took in the mud when I wrangled the sick pyrotaur back into her stall. I rush upstairs to wash and change into clean clothing.