When they got inside, Zuri placed the baby in the crib, then asked him a question that he'd been dreading, "Since Uri is gone...what...what am I supposed to do now?" She fiddled with her nails for a second, then added, "Am I still a prisoner or...?"
The words were hard for him to say, "You cannot go back to Earth, but otherwise you are free to go."
"...I can't even start to think about leaving. I don't know where to go, or how to get a job on this planet!"
"Any work we would have an ooman preform is despicable, unless you go to other yautja settled planets. My advice is for you to find a loyal mate...If you wish, we can try to locate that male that protected you from me that one day."
He wanted her to say no, but instead, she actually looked like she was considering it. Jealousy boiled inside him, and his breathing became slow and shallow. He walked forward, crowding Zuri until her back hit a wall. She looked up at him with confusion and worry. He braced his arms against the wall at each side of her and let his heat and musk reach out to her.
Yautjas weren't ones to play coy, so be said it bluntly, "I will help you search for another partner if that is what you want-but know that I'd like to mate you."
Zuri let out a short giggle, as though the suggestion was ridiculous, but he wouldn't let that damage his pride.
When Keta-ki didn't back off, she tentatively asked, "Do you mean 'mate' like sex, or marriage?"
Keta-ke let out a deep purr and said, "I'd greatly enjoy both."
Zuri blushed, red color filling in her cheeks as she tried not to smile.
"Don't deny that you would enjoy it too. I can smell your arousal, just from you thinking about it right now."
Her mouth dropped.
Keta-ki wouldn't touch her, not until she gave him consent, and he didn't want to push her too fast. He leaned away, taking his hands off the wall. Keta-ki stared into her beautiful multicolored eyes for a moment, then turned away. He headed for his trophy room, already filled with several magnificent skulls. He would give them all to her if that's what it took-but if he proposed and she said no, she would get to keep the skull, so he had to make sure she wanted him as a mate first.
that it was time for him to start winning her over, and he was not about to play fair. One morning, he fed the baby, did some house work, and waited for Zuri to wake up. He knew she wasn't going to be all that happy when she did, so he made sure to have breakfast ready. Eventually, Zuri came out of the bedroom naked, only wrapped up in a shaggy fur pelt from the bed.
"Where's all my clothes?" She demanded.
"They were all maternity clothes, so I threw them out."
Her voice got high pitched and squeeky, "You threw all my clothes away? What am I supposed to wear?"
He responded casually, "Well, they were donated, but yes." Then, he held up a gorgeous dress for her, "But I bought you this instead."
Zuri grabbed it from him, looking it over. It was a stretchy fabric that would hug to her curves. The top V neck part of it would plunge down her chest, showing off her cleavage. It was a short dress, ending just under her ass, and allowing for the most movement. It was a deep red with an exotic sort of camouflage-pattern, and there were slash marks in the fabric a though it had been mauled by an animal.
"I...no, I can't wear this."
"I'll take your out and buy you whatever you want, but you'll have to wear that dress or the pelt that your have wrapped around your torso for now...unless you'd prefer to go naked, and in that case I wouldn't mind."
Of course, she settled for the dress. As soon as she had it on, Keta-ki couldn't stop staring at her. And the more he fawned over her, the more she liked the dress. When they went out, she started picking out plain boring clothes, but then ended up buying dressed, skirts, corsets, and more. Keta-ki was happy to spoil her.
The middle of his day was a full day for her, as yautja days were almost twice as long as earths. As she was getting ready for bed, Keta-ki nudged his mattress closer to hers while she wasn't looking. Then he did it again, just moving it an inch. Zuri glanced at him suspiciously for a second, then climbed in bed and got comfy. Before she shut her eyes, he bumped his bed closer.
"What are you doing?"
"If we push the beds together, we will have one very big bed to play on." He tempted her.
She bit her lip and shook her head, her cheeks gaining color again. He left his bed where it was, just a bit closer to hers now, and headed for the door. She needed her sleep. The hunting hound was getting nippy and hyper, so he decided to take him out for a run. Since the hound was still young though, it didn't have the strength or stamina to keep up with Keta-ki.
He ended up having to pick up the puppy and use him as weights on the way back home. Back at the house, he put the hound in the floor and it went right for a drink of water, then flopped down in its bed. Odd noises were coming from the living room, and he quickly went to go investigate. He quickly recognized the grunts and cries as sex sounds. Keta-ki found that the hologram had been left on, and it was a recording of an amorous couple enjoying each others bodies.
Keta-ki's body warmed, an automatic response to mating. He flushed away any thoughts of sex and turned off the screen. He went to check on Zuri then, and was happy to see that she was awake. Sometimes she slept more than eight hours at a time. She was on the end of the bed, combing her fingers through her long, dark hair.
His throat tightened and he couldn't get out even a simple greeting. His heart started to pound, finding that she was very obviously staring at his package. After a moment, her eyes flickered up to meet his as her eyebrows rose, seeming impressed with the bulge ghost she could see bring his clothes. His loins stirred in response to such a provocative gesture. He was almost ready to pounce on her when the baby started crying.
She dropped her hands from her hair and stood to go to the nursery. Keta-ki followed her. He watched her. He wanted to undress himself and really show her what he had to offer. But Zuri fed the baby and then brushed past him without so much as a glance.
He followed her to the kitchen, trying to push away the naughty thoughts in his head as she prepared herself a meal. Keta-ki wasn't really hungry, but he made himself a plate as well. He took small bites, his body still feeling overly eager. However, she hardly looked at him as they ate. When Keta-ki's mind finally switched from sex to the food though, she spoke up.
"I wonder if that table is the right height for our pelvises to be aligned during sex." She gestured to the octagonal prisms that Keta-ki had once thrown across the room.
Keta-ki just about choked on the slice of meat as it went down his throat. His head slowly turned to stare at the cluster of tables, his mind quickly coming up with at least six different positions to have her in on the table. Before he could respond, Zuri continued eating, acting as if she'd never said anything. He sipped his drink, his fingers overly tight around the glass. She stood and cleaned her plate, then headed to the bedroom.
Before she reached the room though, she turned and commented, "Actually, I think the table is short enough that if you leaned back I could straddle you." Then, she continued into the bedroom as though it was just a fleeting idea.
Keta-ki was left sitting there stunned, completely caught of guard. But she was in the bedroom. She'd made that comment, then gone to the bedroom. With that realization, he jumped up and stormed to the bedroom door. He tried to slide the door open to get to her, but found that it had been locked.
Keta-ki had to force himself to calm down, as he was suddenly acting like a sex-deprived young blood. He wanted to knock the door down and tear the clothes from her body. How dare she tease him like that! When he realized that he was pacing in front of her door, Keta-ki drew in a deep breath and went to the kehrite. He needed to destroy something.
When Zuri walked in, he tried to ignore her. With his thoughts still on sex though, he was missing every single target. Keta-ki switched from weapon to weapon, trying to find his focus. Finally, he settled for the weapon that be was most trained in: the throwing knives. He got them out, and watched Zuri stand in front of the target board as he'd had her do before.
He lifted one of the tiny blades, taking in a slow and steady breath as he aimed, but then Zuri asked, "Do you think the floor is too cold for us to have sex on?"