BROOKE

As the sun goes down, the fire’s built higher and higher until we have a bonfire going. It surprises me to see such a big fire, because most fires the sa-khui make tend to be small and designed only to give a bit of heat and light. Since they run off of dung, that’s a lot of dung, but here on the beach, we’re burning wood and it reminds me starkly of home and bonfires back on the beach when I was a teenager.

“There’s a lot of driftwood,” Harlow explains to me as we sit near the fire. Both Rukh and Taushen stand close to it, skewers in hand, and quietly chat with Salukh and Pashov, who are showing the others how to roast their own food. “The fire comforts the newcomers. They feel safer with a familiar fire, and there’s so much driftwood that washes up that we started pulling it in from the tide and airing it in the sunlight.”

“But where’s all the driftwood coming from?” I ask her, bewildered. I think of all the trees I’ve seen in the past, the flippy, sticky, pink ones that cover the valleys, and the wispy blue ones higher in the mountains. These logs are enormous and thick, like trees back on Earth. “Not that I’m complaining. It’s just weird to see.”

“Who knows,” Harlow says with a shrug. Angie comes and sits down next to her, and Harlow beams a smile in her direction, her attention diverted. “How are you doing?”

Angie’s smile is soft, shy. “Hanging in there.”

“Hungry?” I see the motherly aspects of Harlow starting to take over, judging from the protective smile on her face as she watches Angie. I guess someone has to look out for the poor pregnant lady. “I’ll get Rukh to cook enough for you, too,” she says, and reaches out to lightly touch her mate’s arm.

“I shall feed you, An-shee. It will be my honor.” One of the reddish twins steps forward, his hard face impassive. He carries a thick slab of bloody meat and holds it out to her. “Does this meet your approval?”

“Oh. Uh.” Angie blinks and looks at me and Harlow, uncertain.

“I think Angie probably prefers her meat cooked, big guy,” I tell him helpfully. “Pregnancy belly and all that.”

The red guy stares down at the meat in his hands, and then back at Angie. “Then this does not meet your approval.”

She bites her lip. “I, um, things stay down better when they’re cooked.”

He bows at her. “I will correct this shameful mistake.” With that, he takes the meat and retreats to the far side of the fire, leaning in close to speak to his brother. There’s a scowl on his face.

Angie looks worried. “Did I do something wrong?” she whispers.

“I’m sure it’s fine,” I tell her breezily. “He can suck it up. You don’t offer pregnant ladies raw meat, even on Earth. And Taushen can cook for you if your friend’s too pissy to cook, right, babe?” I reach out and stroke Taushen’s tail.

My mate stiffens, back going ramrod straight. It’s like I just grabbed his dick in front of everyone, and he shoots me a wide-eyed stare. Whoops. “Is my food ready?” I say brightly, hoping that no one notices in the firelight that I’m blushing. Harlow’s discreetly looking away, and Salukh clears his throat—or maybe he’s laughing. It’s hard to tell.

“I will feed you,” Taushen replies in a choked voice, and I notice my cootie’s rather loud, which means his is, too. Whoops again. I resist the urge to cross my arms over my now-pricking nipples.

“So what do you guys call this place?” Devi asks from across the fire, taking a big bite of raw meat and letting it gush down her chin.

“Well, some of us are Star Wars nerds,” Liz says proudly. “So—”

“More like just you,” Harlow retorts. “No one else knows this stuff but you.”

She shrugs, pleased. “Least I didn’t name my kid Jar Jar. Or Dooku. Anyhow, we call this place Not-Hoth because it’s like the snow planet in that movie, but not.”

Devi’s brows draw together and she frowns. “Oh, you can’t call it that.”

“Why not?” I ask, curious.

“It needs its own name. If I discovered a new species of butterfly, for example, I couldn’t call it Not-Monarch. It’d be something entirely different and it deserves its own moniker.” She shrugs her shoulders. “Otherwise we just go around calling everyone not-humans or we’re eating not-chicken.”

“We do that anyhow,” I point out, thinking of not-potatoes.

“Doesn’t seem right,” another girl chimes in. “We need a real name.”

“What would you call it?” Vektal asks, moving to stand near the fire. He watches everyone with weary eyes, and it looks to me like he’s more than ready to go home. Poor guy. I bet he misses Georgie something fierce.

“Hell,” Hannah mutters. “Frozen over.”

A few people chuckle.

Devi ignores that. “Something all its own. I don’t know. I’m not good with names.” She spreads her hands and then stares at them. Then she licks her fingers surreptitiously and grins at her neighbor.

“Something that talks about a fresh start, maybe,” another girl chimes in.

“Two Suns?” another adds. Steph, I think.

“Home?” someone else quips.

“Icehome,” Angie says in a soft voice.

“Oh, I like that.” Harlow smiles. “Same, but different.”

“I like Icehome, too,” another person chimes in.

“I like Not-Hoth,” Liz says with a shrug. “You say potato, I say not-potato.”

“It can be Icehome to us,” the young girl—Tia—says.

“It can be Icehome for everyone,” Vektal agrees, nodding with approval. “As long as it is home.”

“Well, it’s not like we have any other options,” Nadine replies, laughing. A few others chuckle. Some—like Hannah—don’t. It’s going to take time for everyone to adjust.

Heck, they have all the time in the world.

“To Icehome,” Devi says, raising a chunk of raw meat into the air.

“Ew, gross, are you seriously going to eat that?” Tia squeals.

“Why not?” Devi says with a shrug. “When in Rome and all that.”

“To Icehome,” I say, raising my waterskin into the air. I like the thought.

“Icehome,” Taushen replies, glancing back at me. His eyes are warm, and I feel my khui beginning to purr a little harder. Oh boy. I suddenly want to grab his tail again.

I suddenly want to grab more than his tail.

I must show it on my face, because Taushen turns toward me, stepping away from the fire. He kneels in front of me and offers me the skewer of barely cooked meat. “Hungry?” His voice is husky and low and oh-so-delicious.

I grab a hunk off the top and shove it into my mouth, not caring that it’s so raw it’s practically twitching. I chew fast, swallow quickly, and then eat another hunk while Taushen watches me with hungry, hungry eyes.

“Wow, you must be starving,” Harlow comments.

“Totally,” I manage between bites. “Sooo hungry.” I eat as fast as I can, and when my skewer’s empty, I jump to my feet. “I sure am beat now, though.”

Liz snorts, her eyebrows going up. “Ain’t gonna be the only thing getting beat tonight, if you know what I’m saying.”

Someone giggles.

I don’t even care. “See you guys in the morning.” I’m not even going to fake a yawn. I just grab my mate by his belt and give him a meaningful look. “Ready to go to bed?”

“More than ready.” He grabs me and, to my surprise, hauls me into his arms and then over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. His hand goes possessively to my butt, and he nods at the others. “I must take my mate away now.”

Laughter and a few waves send us off. I could swear Vektal’s lips are twitching with amusement as we leave the fire, but I have to admit I’m not paying all that much attention. I’m far more fascinated by the hand on my butt.

We leave behind the light of the fire and the low murmurs of conversation, and it’s quieter the closer we get to the water. “Our cave is set up this way,” Taushen explains, and I could swear the man’s practically racing across the sand. His steps are hurried, as if he’s just as eager as I am.

“Mmm, sounds good to me.” I wonder if I can undo the laces on my tunic while he walks.

We make it to the cave a short walk later, and then Taushen sets me down inside, ever so gently, on my feet. “Wait here and I will make you a fire,” he tells me, and then cups my face and gives me a quick kiss.

“Fuck the fire,” I breathe, grabbing at his tunic. “We’ve got furs, right? Good enough for me.”

He groans, and then we’re ripping at each other’s clothing, desperate to feel skin. I manage to pull his tunic over his head and get his pants down around his knees before he figures out my clothing, but that’s okay. I help him pull the rest of it off of me, and then we both fall into the furs, together. Our mouths are frantic, our kisses heated, and I push him onto his back.

“Let me,” I whisper, and slide a leg over his chest.

I love the way he sucks in his breath and goes still underneath me, like he doesn’t know what’s going to come next, but it’s going to be glorious. I love that about him. I love his sweet, innocent side, as well as the dirty, hair-pulling side. I love how protective and caring he is. I love how good he makes me feel. I love his smiles.

I take Taushen’s cock in my hand and guide him to my core, skipping foreplay entirely. I don’t need it, I’m wet with need and my cootie’s going a mile a minute, singing to his like there’s no tomorrow. The breath hisses between his teeth as I sink down onto him, and I can’t stop the moan that breaks from my throat. Like this, he feels so very deep inside me, and when I sink down just right, I can rub his spur against my clit in the best of ways… “We might have to do this more often,” I tell him with a gasp, rising up and then sliding down onto him again.

“Anything you want, my mate. I am yours.” His words are fervent, breathless.

I guide his big hands to my waist and as he holds on to me, I ride him. I’m not the most gentle, but he doesn’t seem to care. One big hand leaves my waist and plays with my breasts while I keep a steady, rolling rhythm with my hips. It feels so good, so powerful to move on top of him like this, and I feel like the sexiest woman in the world.

I come with a shudder, and he grabs my waist and plunges into me, raising his hips to meet mine, and then he’s coming, too, his body rigid under mine, my name on his lips. I caress his face, whispering his name while he releases. I love this moment, the sheer bliss in his face even as his expression contorts with the force of his orgasm. I slide down onto him as he relaxes, and his spur jabs me in an overly sensitive place, so I roll off of him.

He immediately pulls me against him, not caring that we’re a little sticky and sweaty from our heated lovemaking. “My mate,” he says, pressing a kiss to my shoulder. “Is this your home?”

It seems a strange thing to ask, but then I remember the conversations about Icehome, and Hannah’s unhappy look. “For a while, I wasn’t sure,” I admit honestly. “I cried a lot when we first got here. I was scared, and then I didn’t like the thought of being stranded. But I’m coming around.”

“What has changed your mind?” He nuzzles my throat.

I chuckle. Fishing for compliments. That’s cute. “Humans have a saying, you know. Home is where the heart is. I thought it was just silly nonsense until I met you. I love everything about you, Taushen, and I’m glad I’m here with you. Icehome really does feel like a home now. My home, because my heart is here.”

I feel him nod against me, his face buried against my neck. “Even though I was born here, I feel I did not have a place until you kissed me.”

I wrap my arms around this sweet, beautiful, strong man. “Then I’m glad I’m here to bring you home.”