I can’t take it any longer. The bliss of his tongue, the toy, his hand around his cock, all winds together and I erupt like a pile of fireworks. Stars explode in front of my eyes, so bright I’m nearly blinded, and even I’m startled by the shriek that comes out of me. Suddenly the toy feels much too big, the stretch too intoxicating, and I pant, “Please, take it out!”
 
 Hurriedly, Egorr withdraws it, and I collapse to the bed in a pile of spent mush. Egorr tosses the toy aside with the first one, and crawls up the bed to lie down next to me. I can barely take a full breath, my lungs shuddering as I try to return to Earth again.
 
 “Wow,” I mutter in a daze. I roll over so I can face Egorr and take his cheeks in my hands. He’s grinning like an idiot, too, and I lean up to kiss him, wrapping my hands around his big tusks. He kisses me back with a tenderness that makes me want to cry.
 
 “I loved seeing that toy inside you,” he murmurs, nuzzling my nose with his. “And soon it will be me.”
 
 Oh, that can’t come soon enough.
 
 While we lie there looking into each other’s eyes, I trace my hand down his belly to his cock, which is still alert and hard between us. I give him a slow, intentional hand job, smearing his cum around as it leaks out the tip. Soon he’s the one panting and shivering under me as I bring him closer and closer, taking my sweet time. I love how he loses himself in the pleasure, gripping my arm tight in his huge hand as his hips rock in time with my movements.
 
 “Thank you,” I say in a quiet voice as he moans. “Thank you for taking such good care with me, Egorr. Thank you for everything.”
 
 And then, he goes rigid, and cum shoots out in a waterfall, painting me from my breasts to my belly. Egorr lets out an immense sigh of contentment and pulls me in close, even though I’m covered in him.
 
 “Always,” he says, kissing the top of my head and then resting his cheek against it. “I’ll always take care of you, Maddie.”
 
 ChapterSeventeen
 
 After our afternoon escapade with the toys, Egorr and I are both reluctant to get out of bed—until his stomach grumbles, and we admit it’s about time to make dinner.
 
 Tomorrow is Saturday, though, which means we get to spend the whole day together. Even better, Egorr already has an activity planned: going on a hike into the hills behind his home. There are only a few good days left before winter comes, and he wants to make the best of it.
 
 “We might see deer, rabbits, foxes, maybe even a bear,” he says as we start chopping vegetables and meat together.
 
 I glance up from the cutting board. “I bet you could take on a bear.”
 
 Egorr snorts. “I think I could, too. But I doubt I’ll ever have to.”
 
 The thought reminds me of how glad I am to be here, out in the world and beyond the walls of New Eden, where there are plenty of places to explore and wildlife to see. This is what I wanted when I first went to live with Shisek, and now I finally have it.
 
 * * *
 
 The next morning, there’s a chilly breeze in the air when we head off into the woods, but once we’re surrounded by trees, I feel safe and warm. Egorr holds my small hand in his big palm as we hike up the hill, deeper into the state park. It’s not long before I spot a big yellow mushroom growing out of a gash in a tree trunk.
 
 “Whoa!” I crouch down to inspect it. “Is this dangerous? I feel like mushrooms are dangerous.”
 
 Egorr laughs. “Some of them are, and you definitely shouldn’t taste one without knowing for certain first.”
 
 “Can you eat this one?”
 
 He leans down to get a closer look. “I think that’s a Chicken of the Woods. But I don’t have my handbook with me.”
 
 I shake my head, giggling to myself. Of course he has a handbook for mushrooms.
 
 “There are all kinds of things you can forage in these woods,” Egorr explains as we walk onward.
 
 “Like, things you can cook with?”
 
 “Sure. All the vegetables we eat now started as wild plants.” He pauses for a moment, like he has something else to say but isn’t sure whether he can.
 
 “What is it, Egorr?” I prompt.
 
 “In the spring, there are lots of wild onions and garlic out here.” He rubs his bald head through his beanie. “They’re great for cooking with. We could… we could go foraging together.”
 
 I smile, because I understand his hesitation at discussing where we might be next year. We have no way of knowing now if we’ll get that far.
 
 “That would be fun,” I say, deciding I should just go for it. “This has been a lovely hike, and I wonder how different things would look in the spring.”