Page 105 of I'm Not Your Pet

“I liked…” Huu-goh batted his lashes, peeking shyly up at me, his lovely lip still caught between his blunt pearly teeth. “Meeting new people. Seeing different species. Learning new things—” He blinked, flushing a dark luscious pink. “I liked that peoplewantedto look at me. That I was…” he swallowed.

“Desired?”

“Yeah,” Huu-goh admitted. He appeared ashamed, and while every emotion looked lovely on him, I hated seeing him feel so unsure. After what he’d told me earlier, this did not surprise me.Nodding, I made a vow to never allow him to feel ignored or unimportant again.

“You deserve to be desired,” I told him.

“Thank you.” Huu-goh’s smile was tentative and shy. “Roark?”

“Yes?”

“That one night…you…” His brow furrowed like he was too embarrassed to ask. “You came back with red spots one time.” It seemed my little love had some questions of his own. He didn’t need a list to recall them, however—he was far cleverer than I was.

I frowned, confused.

Red spots? What was he talking about?

“Why were you…” Huu-goh looked miserable and scared. “I mean…I know what they mean. And you came back like that. But you were with Ushuu—so I just…”

“When was this?”

“Right after we had lunch with Ushuu?”

I racked my brain, trying to remember what he was talking about. When I did, I couldn’t stop a laugh from escaping. “You…” I shook my head. “You were so cute, Huu-goh. Pillow creases on your cheeks. Grumpy.” My words were stilted and shy, throat hoarse. “I wanted to fuck you the moment I opened the door.”

“Oh.” I had never seen him more pleased. “Ha! Okay. I mean. Cool. Cool, cool, cool.” He only paused for a moment before he added, “I have more questions.”

“I have answers.”

He chewed on his lip again, quiet for a few beats as music flooded the air and he very obviously mulled over what to say next. His nose scrunched like he was thinking hard. I loved the way his speckles danced when he did that, like stars on his skin. “Why were you there?” Huu-goh blinked.

What did he mean?

I grunted in question.

“At the club,” Huu-goh clarified. “You don’t seem like the kinda guy who goes to pleasure houses. No offense. Not that you couldn’t go, orshouldn’t—or anything. But you just…yeah. I’m gonna shut up now.”

I shook my head, offering him a soft smile that I hoped would convey that I was not offended.

I do not want to get this wrong.

I picked my next words carefully before I spoke.

I will not lie or frighten him.

There was a fine line between acting protective and treating him like a child. Huu-goh had seen more than I probably would in my entire lifetime. He didn’t let the fear of what had happened to him taint his future or the way he looked at the world. He had been through more than I would ever be able to fully comprehend. He had adapted and thrived where most fell and withered. He was not weak or naive, by any stretch.

But hewasprecious.

The most precious thing in my life.

And he could handle the weight of fear that I carried easily.

“There have been an increase in pirate attacks lately. Not on my ship, but others.” Just talking about it was enough to cause me to stiffen. “Traveling during this time is stressful. We had been in space for many moons before we reached your planet. The men needed something to distract themselves with so I accompanied them to your place of business out of worry for their safety.” For a moment I almost left it at that. But…then I realized what that implied about our species, and I quickly added on. “Sahrk culture is not…” I frowned, trying to find the right words to explain. “We are not asfrivolouswith our physical affection as some other species. Sex is for mates, butlookingis allowed.”

“Sahrk,” Huu-goh echoed, rolling the name of my species over his tongue. He shook his head, then blinked, clearing his vision. “So, a strip club is kinda…the best thing ever for you guys then? And you were there because you wanted to protect the others?”

I wasn’t so sure about the first thing he’d said, but I nodded, because it seemed he understood.

---