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He braced himself for the anger he’d expected earlier. “You will. I… I know that must be a shock.”
She beamed. “It’s amazing! Don’t you see? I have decades of research to do on the hawks. It’s a lifetime’s worth of work and now I have several lifetimes to do it.”
“That’s one way to think about it.” Once again, he marveled at the way Rin approached things.
“It’s the only way to think about it.” She raised her hands and then flicked out her fingers as if casting something away. “Oh sure, I could dwell on the fact I’ll outlive my friends and family, but that could happen anyway. I could be unhappy about being confined to this planet because that’s what the other human colonists agreed to when they came here, and it will probably apply to me, too. But this place is amazing, with new species of birds to be documented, and I’m the only ornithologist on the whole planet.”
He caught her under the chin with one finger and lifted her head so she was looking at him. “And if you like… you can live here. With me. I’ve got plenty of space, and Amun seems to like it well enough.”
She didn’t say anything for several painfully long seconds. Fraxx. He shouldn’t have said anything.
“Did you just ask me to move in with you? Live with you? In the house no one has ever even visited until today?”
“Yes, I did. And I’m still waiting for your answer.”
She gave a soft squeal of delight and hugged him. “Yes. I know it’s too soon and we’re both crazy, but the answer is yes.”
At that moment, he swore he heard the walls around his heart crack. “I don’t think I’m crazy. I think I’m falling in love. Though I’ve heard it’s hard to tell the difference.”
Rin squeaked. At least, that’s the only way he could describe the adorable little sound she made as she peppered his face with kisses.
“I’m falling for you, too. I told myself I couldn’t because you were part of my project and because you were so far out of my league you might as well be in a different galaxy.”
That stunned him. “Why would you think that? You’re lovely, sexy, sweet, and smart as hell.”
“Keep saying things like that and you’re going to be stuck with me forever.”
“Challenge accepted.” Axe gathered her close and rose from the bed, lifting her with him.
“Where are we going?”
“It’s time we started your tour of our house, my effervescent little beauty.” He would need to make a list of compliments for her and use them all. “First stop, the bath.”
“That sounds wonderful. I’d love a chance to clean up.”
“I thought you might. I’ll get the bath running and then give you a few minutes of privacy. Then you and I are going to enjoy a long, hot bath together.”
Rin groaned in delight, the sound traveling straight through him and sending all the blood in his body straight to his cock.
“That might be the sexiest thing anyone has ever said to me,” she said.
The thought of anyone else saying seductive things to Rin made him growl and grumble under his breath. If anyone even looked at her the wrong way, he’d tear their arm off and beat them with it.
“Whoa. What was that?” she asked.
He shrugged. “I just discovered I’m the jealous type. You’re mine, sunshine. No one else gets to talk to you the way I do.”
She laughed and patted his cheek. “The same goes for you, growly.”
He set her down and kissed the top of her head. If anyone else had called him that, he’d make them regret it. But when Rin said it, he didn’t mind at all. That confirmed what he already suspected… he really was in love.
How the fraxx had that happened?
The sanitation room was another surprise to Rin. The tiled floors were textured and colored to look like pale beach sand with smooth tiles the same color on the walls. One entire end of the space was an open shower, and next to it was a large, square bath, more than big enough for two. The wall above the tub had a window that let in air and light while providing a view of the forest outside. For a man as rough around the edges as Axe, he certainly liked his personal comforts.
Hot water poured into the tub, blending with a citrusy scented product Axe had added before he left her alone for a few minutes.
The last thing she did before calling Axe back was to pop a quick dissolving dental-tab into her mouth. The mint-flavored foam worked quickly, freshening her breath and cleaning her teeth.
