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We followed her through her front door and headed to the kitchen, while she headed to her washroom. I had been in Astrid’s home enough to know that she had a small table in her kitchen to accommodate guests. There was a more formal dining room attached, but she rarely used it. I absentmindedly stroked the back of Piper’s hand with my thumb, loving her soft skin. Her hand looked so delicate in mine. I looked up at her face to see her brow furrowed and mouth turned down.
“Hey, where are you right now?” I asked as I cupped her cheek.
“I am worried Astrid will deem me unsuitable to lead and that you will have to take another mate,” she said, her voice tight.
I scoffed, “Impossible. The Elska bond is respected above all.”
“Even with a human?” she questioned, giving me a shaky smile.
“Even with a human,” I said, leaning in to give her a delicate kiss.
It was, of course, at this moment that Astrid walked in.
“Ah, I see the mating frenzy is still in effect,” she said, smiling knowingly.
I pulled away from Piper, feeling the heat rise on my cheeks.
“More or less,” I responded, trying to sound neutral about it.
“Is she not pregnant with your young yet?” Astrid asked me pointedly.
Piper responded, “Ah, no. I am on birth control.”
Astrid pursed her lips, “Do you not want young?”
“I don’t know, honestly. Back on Earth, we don’t have Elska mates and I hadn’t met anyone that I wanted to spend my life with,” Piper responded.
“And now that you know Agnarr is your Elska mate?” Astrid prompted.
Piper’s cheeks tinged pink again.
“Well, we haven’t had a chance to talk about it yet, but yes, I think I would like to be a mother one day,” she said quietly, looking at her lap.
I couldn’t let her sit there, uncertain. I grabbed both her hands and pulled her to me.
“I would love to see you grow ripe with our orklings, but only when you are ready,” I said, kissing her roughly on the mouth, before returning my attention to Astrid.
Astrid looked pleased that we planned to have young at some point, even if not immediately. She looked sympathetically at Piper.
“I don’t mean to imply that you must have orklings in order to be jarlin. However, I know that the elder orkin of our tribe would see your position as jarlin solidified if you were to bear Agnarr’s young,” Astrid explained.
“I would be honored,” Piper said forcefully, looking up from her lap quickly, “I just don’t know that I am ready to do it today. My world has been turned completely upside down. I’d like some time to adjust to the idea of being a mother to an orkling. I had reservations about becoming a mother back on my home planet, even if I did meet someone.”
Piper spoke with such ferocity I was taken aback. It was easy to only see her anxiety and forget about her claws.
Astrid looked at her, then nodded,“While I can’t claim to understand what it would be like to be dumped on another planet and then find my mate almost immediately, your feelings are understandable.”
Piper’s expression softened a little, “I’m sorry, it is just a lot to ask for me to lead the tribe that might not accept me, a group of women that have been abducted, bear young, and adjust to life on a new planet all at once.”
Astrid nodded before turning her attention to the kitchen to make us a midday meal.
PIPER
My stomach unclenched as Astrid looked at me with understanding before turning to prepare us lunch. I hadn’t even thought of children with Agnarr and now here it was. I was honest with Astrid. Ididwant children with Agnarr, just not quite yet. I surprised myself with the acknowledgment. Before Agnarr, I had yet to be in a relationship where I wanted to have children with someone. Earth was such a dumpster fire that the idea of bringing children into it seemed almost irresponsible. But with Agnarr, I could absolutely see myself being a parent. Agnarr would be a fantastic father. He accepted my anxiety and my panic attacks and supported me every step of the way. He’d proven himself to be a ‘worthy male’ in all ways possible. While adding babies into everything we had coming seemed a bit hasty, I had no doubt that I would happily have children with Agnarr at some point.
“Astrid, we were planning on announcing our matehood and our future with the tribe at this evening’s meal if you think the timing is appropriate,” Agnarr stated.
Astrid continued to move around the kitchen without saying anything. It remained silent for so long I thought perhaps she hadn’t heard him. Finally, she approached us with two plates of food.
