AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I know. It was never my intention to hurt you. It was wrong and I’m sorry.”
Dora tilts her head up at me. “That was a very sincere apology.”
“I mean it. Almost losing Jamef made me realize just how much both of you mean to me. Just the thought of losing one of you absolutely crushes me.” I clench my hand at my belt, because even thinking about it makes me uncomfortably tense. “So please don’t hate me. Let me make it up to you.”
“Bethiah,” she says, voice calm. Dora sets the skillet down and turns to me. “I’m not mad, okay? If things were super peaceful and you withheld it from me I’d be furious because there’d be no reason for it. But we’ve both had so much to stress over lately, I’m glad in a way that you didn’t say anything. It let me focus on Jamef. Maybe that’s weird of me, but I feel safe with both of you. What am I going to do on a station anyhow?”
“Well if it makes you feel better, Jamef and I can’t really go on station until the bounties get lifted on our heads, too.”
“Great. That’ll give you both time to show me how to fly the ship. I can be the getaway driver. Just…I need to be part of the team, all right?”
“You absolutely are,” I reassure her. “You’re a huge part of the team.” She moves into my arms, hugging me, and I squeeze her tight, so thankful that she loves me enough to not be too mad over things. “And if you want an arm cannon, say the word and we’ll get it done.”
Dora laughs, and I know she doesn’t hate us. Thank kef. We got out of that one easily. Next time…
Actually, no. There won’t be a next time. Because Dora’s my mate, and mates don’t have secrets.
One Hundred Thirty-Four
DORA
I should be mad. I really should be. But all I can think is that they were protecting me again, because they love me and worry about me, and it fills me with a warm glow. I can tell Bethiah is anxious about my reaction, and the realization that clones are being hunted is a little frightening, but I know Bethiah and Jamef won’t let anything happen to me.
We don’t need to go to Three Nebulas to have dinner. We have friends right here, on Jerrok’s junker station. Or we can visit Kaatir again. I wouldn’t mind seeing Hazza again. She’s a good friend. So I’m smiling as I plate up more food and hand one to Bethiah and keep one for myself.
“You sure you’re not mad?” she asks, wary.
“If you keep asking me, I might get mad,” I tease. “But no. You were looking out for me. We’ve been stressing over enough lately. I’m not going to stress over even more. Maybe later on when I’ve slept on it for a few days I’ll get upset, but right now I’m just going to enjoy dinner with my two mates and enjoy some good conversation.”
She pulls me in, mindful of our plates, and kisses my forehead. “You’re amazing, you know that?”
“Flattery will get you everywhere.” I bump her hip with mine, and then we head out to the rest of the diners.
There are distinctly uncomfortable looks on their faces as we enter, and Tessa’s expression is one of utter chagrin. Sophie picks at her plate, and the only one that seems comfortable is Freyja, the plump carinoux, who noses Simone for another bite.
I move to Jamef’s side and when he looks up at me, I kiss him on the mouth. “It’s fine, guys. We’re all good.” I sit down next to him and Bethiah sits on my other side, her tail wrapping around my waist.
“I’m very curious how your triad works,” Tessa says brightly. “You all seem so happy together. I know if another woman even looked at Zakoar, I’d get jealous. How is it no one gets jealous with you three?”
“If they get jealous, we work it out of them,” Bethiah says, and Jamef places a hand on my thigh, as if he wants me to remember that I belong to both of them. It makes me feel good. They’re going to go overboard for the next while trying to reassure me after Bethiah’s omission…and I’m going to eat up every bit of the additional attention.
Sophie chuckles, and Jerrok covers his mate’s hand with his. “I’m just glad Bethiah is happy. Maybe now she’ll settle down in one place.”
I snort at the same time that Jamef does.
“Maybe not,” Bethiah teases. “I like adventure and new things. I like seeing the universe. And once we get these bounties off our heads, we’ll do some exploring together. First, though, we’re going to hide out for a while and Dora needs to learn how to pilot the ship.”
