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“Theyspankedyou?”
The female nodded. “My disobedience risked injury. I was foolish and frightened my mates. I could have died.”
Louella couldn’t believe the next question that came out of her mouth. “Why did you disobey them?”
“I thought I knew better than they,” she admitted, then added in a rush, “but I was wrong. I failed to ask them to explain why they forbade me to … to …”
“What did they forbid you to do, Alfanith?”
The female shook her head. “I do not recall.”
Incredulous, Louella asked, “You don’t remember something that got you spanked?”
“It was almost seventy years ago. I do not remember the order I disobeyed, only that I disobeyed, risked injury, and was punished for my disobedience.”
“Do you think the punishment was merited?”
The female nodded. “I could have died. The spanking was a lesson I have never forgotten. My mates always have my best interests at heart, and they will explain their reasoning to me if I do not understand or agree with them. But I must ask if I do not understand.”
Louella nodded. “And if they explain and you still don’t agree? Do they listen to your argument? Do they consider your opinion and change their decision? Or do they just expect you to obey?”
“They always listen to me. Sometimes they change their decision.”
“Did they ever hit you again?”
“No, never.”
“Thank you, Alfanith.”
The female jumped to her feet and hurried away.
Determined to be thorough, Louella interviewed all one hundred sixty-four females. Among them, she found only one who complained about her mates’ strict treatment of her. With further discussion, she soon decided the female–who appeared to be foolish, defiant, argumentative, and spendthrift for no other reason than sheer narcissism–probably deserved the tight control of her spending and restriction of her associations. She rather thought the female’s mates were too lenient with her.If ever a woman needed a man’s strong control, it’s that one!Ifeel like smacking her!
When the long day finally ended, Jarvis escorted her back to the royal apartment.
“Jarvis?”
“Acknowledged.”
“Will you let Yas’kihn know that I would like for him to join me? Please?”
“Acknowledged.” The panel flashed blue, white, green, and blue again. After a moment, the robot said, “Emperor Yas’kihn replies that he will join you tomorrow morning. He has much work to do yet this evening.”
Louella wanted to complain, but she only said, “Thank you, Jarvis.”
She ate a late supper in solitary splendor then went to bed. The next morning, Louella went through her normal routine and sat down at the table for another lonely meal. She poured herself a mug of coffee and sipped the dark, rich brew.
The door opened and Yas’kihn entered, again looking every inch the emperor. He took a seat at the table and reached for an actual muffin. Louella had coordinated with Evangeline and Marisol to acquire a handful of her favorite muffin recipes. She’d given the recipes to Jarvis and charged the robot with procuring the ingredients and baking the muffins.
“What is this?” Yas’kihn asked, turning the muffin around and looking at it.
“It’s a lemon poppyseed muffin,” she answered. “It’s my favorite kind of muffin from Earth and I wanted to share it with you.”
He lifted the muffin to his mouth and took a bite. A couple of chomps and the entire pastry was gone. “It’s sweet and tangy at the same time.”
He reached for the pink eggs.
“I’ve missed these,” Louella said as she tore off a piece of her muffin. She popped it into her mouth and chewed. In a softer, quiet tone, she added, “I’ve missedyou.”
