AllFreeNovel
Share Us
The government refused to confirm the ‘dissenters’, not wishing to stir up panic, but Ezul and his brothers weren’t taking chances with Cordelia’s or Delilah’s safety.
Delilah nodded as the door to the armory slid shut behind her, trapping them together, alone. He’d asked her to meet him here, in secret, hoping to speak with her.
The room had been cleared of weapons–for some reason Sahin wanted Delilah nowhere near them–and now it was more of a guest room than anything else. A bed, a desk, and two chairs now filled the space, giving it a utilitarian feel.
“How did you distract Cordelia?” Delilah asked.
“She’s taking a nap.” Her second one of the day, which was a bit odd, but clearly her body needed the rest. “Did you tell Sahin what we were doing?”
Delilah shook her head, stepping further into the room. “No, I don’t want to make him feel bad. If he hears us, he might think that we missed out on something special when we mated, or that he needs to do something different to make me happy, and he doesn’t.”
“I see. Then we will keep this to ourselves. Are you ready to begin?”
“Yes, but I think instead of covering courtships, I want to go over relationships in general, and what women on Earth typically expect in a partner. I think that will better help you with our customs overall.”
That sounded like a better plan than he’d originally come up with.
Delilah made her way over to one of the chairs, taking a seat and pulling out a holopad. He followed suit, taking the chair opposite the desk from her. She dropped the holopad onto the table, clicking the screen.
An image of a piece of jewelry appeared before him, floating above the holopad’s screen.
“Okay, so you had questions about engagement rings. This is just an example of what I mean. There are usually jewels embedded into the band that can vary in size and color.”
“Do they have meaning?”
“Yeah, they can. They can be different birthstones. Some people love a certain kind of gem and their partner has that added. But a lot of people are just happy to receive one from the person they want to marry, so the kind of jewel isn’t always important.”
Ezul studied the image, and Delilah placed her finger on the holopad, moving the image around slowly so that he could see all of it. “There is writing on the inside band.”
“Yes, some couples will have their wedding date, or anniversary of mating, engraved on the inside. Or they’ll include a small message for the person being gifted the ring. It just makes the ring more sentimental.”
Interesting.
“I’ll see about contacting a jeweler, though I’m certain we won’t have any Earth gems as they aren’t worth much here.”
“I think Cordelia would love anything you gave her,” Delilah said with a small smile. “And now that we’ve got a quick idea of rings, let’s move on to the more important things.”
The image in front of him shifted to a list, and his brow rose as he read it aloud.
“‘She is always right’…? I am confused.”
“Well, there is a saying on Earth, Ezul. ‘Happy wife, happy life’.”
Ezul shook his head. “Cordelia is not my wife; she is my mate.”
Huffing, Delilah pointed to the top of the list. “You’re wanting to embrace Earth customs, so her being your wifeisone of them. Trust me on this. Treat the list as a guide.”
A guide… He could do that, though he was seriously beginning to doubt the integrity of Delilah’s list.
“And this means that Cordelia must always be right? But what if she is wrong?” Why would he lie to his mate?
“I’ll let you in on a little secret.” Delilah leaned in conspiratorially. “We’re not always right, but it’s important that when you have a disagreement, you can see her side and listen. Listening is extremely important.”
“I can listen,” he mused. Moving on to the next line, he relaxed a fraction. “I have already done this.”
“You took her out?”
He nodded. “We went shopping days ago.”
