Page 19 of His Human to Learn

Marron is stronger than me. He turns from me before I can face him, and he's out the door before I can even think of moving my feet to chase after him. He's following the rules, and I need to do the same.

Kal doesn't have to follow any rules, so he's running after Marron. I hope he'll ask him everything he did earlier, but Marron can tell him. I need someone to help Marron since I can't be there for him yet.

"Before we leave." Diane takes a seat in one of the chairs against the wall. "We need to discuss who each of you might be interested in. We'll have a little dinner tomorrow night where you talk to the males and have them woo you. Some of you might feel pulled toward one of them already, or maybe even multiple. If you're not, don't worry. There'll be time for that tomorrow."

I raise my hand, wanting to make it abundantly clear that I'm following the rules and also claiming Marron as mine. There are a few more giggles behind me, and I'm almost positive I hear one of the women mumble something about not being surprised I already have dibs on someone.

"Tori, which males interest you?" Diane asks, sounding like she doesn't already know. She even pulls out some parchment and a pencil-like device.

"The last male." I don't say his name because each male was only given a number when we entered, and that's how we know them. I don't know if any of the women know I know Marron from working on Beren and Lyath's farm, but I don't need to flaunt that I'm perfectly fine with saying his name.

"Tori… interested in…" Diane mumbles under her breath as she writes on the parchment. She looks back up at me. "Anyone else?"

"Maybe the male you all but threatened?" one of the women says from behind me, and I feel my cheeks grow red in embarrassment.

"I want to know why you don't like that one," one of the others says before I can reply to the first woman. A couple more ask similar questions that have me turning into a bright red tomato in front of all of their eyes.

Diane is there to save me, though. "As much as I would love to sit here and gossip all night, my mate is expecting me home before morning, so let's get through this part of the ceremony, okay?"

The women all agree, and thankfully, the attention is pulled from me and set on the other women as Diane goes one by one through them, allowing them to say if they felt any special way about any of the males. Two others say that they're interested in specific males, but for the most part, the women don't feel any particular about them.

I stay with everyone until Diane stands from her chair after the last woman says who she's interested in. Most of the others left after talking with Diane about how they felt. I hope that by staying, I can ask her about the rules regarding my sneaking out tonight to see Marron. I need to know that he's okay.

When Diane ushers the last woman out and leaves the two of us alone, I try to appeal to her. Unfortunately, she already seems prepared for it and whips around much faster than I expect a heavily pregnant woman to be able to.

"No sneaking out," she says as though she's read my mind. The look on my face must confirm her suspicions because she's sighing and giving me a sad look. "You know I'm perfectly fine with how you two were dating or whatever the demons call it. We're just having to navigate a difficult situation right now, and I need you to be a little bit stronger. It's only two more days. Can you do that?"

"Do I have any choice?" I huff, hating how whiny I sound because, really, it all seems way too unfair.

"Of course you do," Diane says. "You sneak out tonight, mate Marron, and there's nothing any of us can do. In fact, a lot of us will be happy for you. I'm asking you not to do that only because it makes Olivia's mate's job harder. He wants this tribe to run smoothly, and if you and Marron disregard the rules he's tryingso hard to make the others follow, he'll have to make difficult decisions."

"You think he'd kick us out of the tribe?" I ask.

"I don't want him to have to even think about it," Diane replies, her hands returning to her stomach.

She's quiet for a while, and I don't know what to say either, so we stand in silence. Her hands move rhythmically over her abdomen until she decides she has one last thing to say.

"Things were easier before everyone else came. We found our mates and mated them when we felt like it. A part of me wishes it were still like that, but there are bad males out there. I guess there always will be, and I'd rather be too safe than for one of the other women to get hurt."

I nod, understanding what she's saying. I've heard stories from Nia and her friends about life before all the other women started coming to this planet. It was a small community that looked out for one another and was one giant family.

A part of me wishes Jen and I had been sent earlier so we could still feel that closeness. Then I think about how if we had come earlier, we might not have the family we do now with Nia, Beren, and Lyath.

Yes, my situation right now sucks, but it only has to suck for a couple more days.

"Will you make sure he's okay?" I ask. "I won't visit him or sneak out, but I need to know he's okay."

Diane's brows pull together, and then she wraps her arms around me in an awkward hug. It's not uncomfortable because of her, at least not on purpose. It's just that she's trying to pull me closer while her pregnant belly is trying very hard to push me away.

A soft knock on the door breaks up our hug, and the door slowly opens to reveal a large male with pink scales. He eyes the empty room before coming inside, a babe strapped to his chest.

"I did not wish to interrupt, but it is late."

"I was talking with Tori," Diane says, walking over to the male and wrapping an arm around his waist. She nuzzles her face close to the sling where her son's being held and coos at him. "Did you see her mate out there?"

"He's back in Toron's home now. Vex is looking at him to make sure he is not too badly injured." Almaac's eyes flicker red as he speaks, but they return to their deep black after a few seconds. "He is worried his mate might try to do something reckless."

"I would never," I say with faux outrage, as though I wasn't plotting a way to sneak out of the great hall to see Marron before Diane talked me out of it.

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