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“Dios,” she whispered.
“I’m so sorry!” Lucia said quickly, in English. “We didn’t know you spoke Spanish. We didn’t mean to be rude—my mom is just worried about me, that’s all.”
“Of course she is,” Raze said, smiling to let them know he wasn’t offended. “I know I’m big—like all Kindred are—and I might look ‘scary’ to you,” he said to Lucia’s mother. “But I will give you my oath as a Warrior before the Goddess that I will never hurt your daughter or her little ones. Female life is sacred to us because women are scarce in my society.”
The older woman frowned at him and put a hand on her hip.
“And how do we know if your word is good?” she demanded. “My daughter just met you!”
“Mami!” Lucia exclaimed but Raze shook his head.
“No, it’s all right. I understand why you’d be scared. I’ve heard some of the things males do to females on your planet.” He frowned, thinking hard. “What if you brought your dog with you?” he asked at last, nodding at Lady, who was sprawled on the ground at his feet, looking perfectly relaxed. “I can tell she’s very protective of you all. She would certainly never let anyone hurt you—right?”
“Well…” Lucia’s mother’s frown softened a bit. “That might be an idea,” she said to Lucia. “Though I still don’t mind lending you my car, mija,” she added.
“Yes, but if I take your car I have to bring it back to you and then ride the bus all the way to work and back again,” Lucia pointed out. “That’s a long trip and I’ll probably be late in the morning.” She looked at Raze. “Speaking of which, you’ll have to get up pretty early if you really don’t mind taking the kids to school and me to work.”
He shrugged.
“Won’t I be up early anyway, feeding the kittens?”
“Yes, you will,” Lucia admitted. “Well, I guess if you really don’t mind…”
“I don’t,” Raze said firmly. “Will I see you in the morning then, Lucia?”
She smiled at him tentatively.
“Thank you, Raze. Yes—we’ll meet you in the lobby.” She nodded at her three children and Lady, the dog. “All five of us.”
“Six,” her mother said, frowning. “If you’re going in a car with a strange man, I’m following right behind you, mija.” She pointed a finger at Raze. “And I’ll have my cell phone set to 911 just in case, so don’t get any funny ideas.”
“Mami!” Lucia exclaimed, looking embarrassed. She looked at Raze. “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. Your mother is just being protective of you and your children,” he told her gravely. “I don’t blame her. Until you get to know me, I’m still just a stranger who accosted you in the middle of the night with a handful of cattens—kittens, I mean.”
He grinned and Lucia laughed—a warm, feminine sound Raze liked at once. Gods, she was lovely.
“All right then—see you in the morning,” she told him. “At six thirty sharp.”
“No problem.” Raze made certain all the kittens were secure in the small cardboard box Lucia had fixed for them and gathered the supplies she’d given him. He said his goodbyes to her mother, who still seemed suspicious and her children as well. The twin boys hid bashfully behind Lucia’s legs but Frannie, the little girl, spoke to him boldly.
“Be sure you feed the kittens at the right time,” she said, pointing to the box. “If they get too hungry they could get sick. So promise to be good to them!”
“Frannie!” Lucia looked horrified but Raze only smiled. He liked the little girl’s spirit and the fact that she was so protective of the little creatures.
“I promise,” he said gravely, bending down to look at her. “And you can hold their box while we drive to your place of education tomorrow. How would that be?”
She broke into a shy smile.
“I’d like that.”
“I thought so.” Raze nodded. “Then I’ll see you in the morning.”
Lucia walked him to the door of her small apartment and smiled up at him as her mother hustled the children off to a bath and bed.
“You know,” she said, “When you first came up on me tonight, I was scared to death. I thought this might be my last night on Earth.”
“Gods!” Raze shook his head. It was awful that females had to be so fearful of strange males on this planet! It wasn’t so in Kindred society. “I didn’t mean to frighten you, Lucia,” he told her. “I’m really sorry about that.”
“No, no!” she said quickly. “I’m just saying…” She made a frustrated gesture, as though looking for the right words. “You know how they say that first appearances can be deceiving? Or anyway, that’s an Earth saying,” she went on. “But it means…well, I guess it means I’m glad I met you. And not just because you’re going to give us a ride and try to fix my car. Because you seem like a genuinely nice guy.” She sighed. “And it’s been a while since I met one of those.”
