His voice is soft and gentle, and my heart aches for him all over again. Like I give a crap about his last name. I squeeze his hands back. "You forgot to say that you're going to fill me with young," I tease gently.
He flushes, and one of his ears twitches. "And fill you with young," he adds, voice choked.
"Now the human must promise to love, honor and obey her mate," the alien registrar intones.
Funny how “obey” has made it all this way into deep space. I decide I'm going to ignore that part. I watch Rektar, but he's still not looking at me, and I squeeze his hands as I recite my revised vows. "I promise to love and honor my mate, as long as he looks me in the damn eye. If he doesn't, all bets are off."
Rektar's head jerks up. He gives me a startled look, then glances at the registrar. "Give us a moment," he tells the alien and then pulls me away a few steps so we can speak privately. My soon-to-be husband leans in, looming over me. "Lucy…I am not trying to offend you. I am trying to be polite. I was told humans will be afraid if I look them in the eye and I am to avert my gaze to appear unthreatening. I am so much larger than you and I don't want you to be scared of me."
I blink, absorbing this nonsense. "Who told you that?"
"It was part of our interspecies training prior to our arrival on Risda III," Rektar tells me in a grave voice. "I take it very seriously. I would like to be the best custodian I can…and I most especially do not wish to frighten you."
I look up at him. His cheeks are flushed and he still looks damn uncomfortable. I reach up and put a hand on his cheek. "When you look away all the time, it makes me feel like you don't want to look at me at all. Like I'm unpleasant."
His gaze meets mine, and there's surprise there. "That is not the case. At all."
"Then look at me," I tell him. "Look all you want. I'm not scared of you. You don't frighten me. And if you aren't sure how to act around me, ask and I'll tell you."
Rektar nods, his gaze locked on me. This time, there's no confusion in his eyes, just bald hunger. Possessiveness. Yearning.
God, that's so much better. I press my luck and decide to keep pushing. I stroke his cheek with my thumb, fascinated at how soft his skin is. It's like touching suede, and I want to pet him all over. "Are you marrying me out of duty?"
"I want you to be safe," he says automatically, and then catches himself. A moment later, he adds, "And…I want you." The words come out strangled. "I know I am not a worthy male—"
"Shh," I tell him, my fingers skimming over his lips to silence that sort of talk. "I won't hear you say such things about yourself. You're a good, strong, fierce man, and you're the best one I've ever met. I don't care if your last name is al'Aira'n or Supercalifragilisticexpialadocious. I still want to marry you. I've wanted you since you got here."
"Then let us marry," he murmurs against my fingers.
I'm in a daze as the registrar finishes the rest of the bastardized ceremony. Rektar holds my hands and we sign off on official paperwork, where he adds my name to his assets and designates me as his spouse in every record possible. I know from my experience that most mesakkah are very loose with mating unless someone's at the head of an important house and has to produce an heir, so this is a high compliment. Rektar could have just declared himself as my mate and that would have been it. Instead, he's ensuring that everyone knows he's mine and I'm his.
It feels like a dream.
It feels even more like a dream when we return to the custodial office so he can speak with Khex. There, I learn that the guy that was showing up on my property? He's already in custody and about to be shipped off to a prison planet. There was no need for Rektar to marry me. He just…wanted to. Maybe I should be upset that he didn't tell me that my stalker was taken care of before we got married, but all I can think about is that he wanted to be with me enough that he went ahead with things even when he didn't have to.
And when Khex mentions that Rektar basically told Khex that he couldn't have me? I'm practically beside myself with pleasure.
Rektar swaps schedules with Khex, and now he's going to be off of work for two days to celebrate our marriage. Khex waves goodbye with a smirk on his face as we get back into my air-sled and drive to my farm. I glance over at my new husband as I drive, and he's staring at me with such a hungry, avid gaze that I nearly lose control of the sled.