“Please take a seat,” Druze said; he gave the elder a hint of a smile.
Wow!
Druze’s whole face softened. His green eyes brightened a touch and the cutest dimples appeared on each of his cheeks. The guy wasn’t just hot, he was gorgeous. She wondered how he would look if he really smiled or if he ‒ heaven forbid ‒ laughed.
Just as quickly as the ray of sun smile had appeared, it was gone as storm clouds descended once more.
Delise chose to sit down right next to Craig, who shifted in his seat, suddenly finding more lint on his shirt. Brittney had to bite back a laugh again.
“Will you please excuse us?” Leukos asked.
“Of course, sire.” Druze stood up and inclined his head. “Thank you for your time.”
“You have both our numbers,” Talon said. “Please call if you require anything, otherwise I will see you all tomorrow with my mate, Vicky.”
The Feral men said their goodbyes and left.
“Can we get you something to drink?” Druze asked Delise, his face softening again.
The older woman smiled; she was nothing like the woman who had kidnapped them. “I’m not thirsty. You want to know about our females. About clutch sickness.”
“Let’s start with how long they are with clutch.” Craig blushed all over again, it was really cute to see him so out of sorts. He concentrated on his iPad screen, ready to take notes. “If that’s okay?” he quickly added, not looking up.
“Certainly.” Delise cocked her head, the movement reminding Britt very much of a bird. “A female is with clutch for roughly three and a half moon-cycles. Sometimes slightly shorter or longer but only by a couple of days.”
“Moon-cycles?” Craig asked looking baffled.
“I’m sure a moon-cycle lasts approximately one month,” Brittney said.
“Twenty-seven days,” Druze said, looking up from his own iPad.
“That’s not even three and a half months.” Craig looked shocked. “It takes a chicken twenty-six hours to make and lay an egg, on average.”
“We are not chickens, young human,” the elder intoned.
“Oh, I know.” Craig’s eyes were wide. “No offense. I just find it…bizarre, that’s all.”
“We carry our eggs inside our bodies, birds lay their eggs and then sit on their clutch for a period of time. A long period of time.” She choked out a laugh. “Feral are too active to ever be able to sit on a clutch like that for any amount of time. We would have died out as a species if that were the case.”
“Interesting,” Craig announced, typing enthusiastically.
“The eggs harden and then hatch within an hour or two of being laid.”
“So, they are soft when inside the female?” he asked.
“Not soft, exactly. The shells are like tough leather. Malleable but very strong. You can feel them when touching a female’s belly.”
“How many eggs?” Craig asked.
“Always three.” Delise nodded.
“Does a female deliver the eggs easily?”
Delise shrugged. “There is pain with the expelling but thankfully the eggs are not hard. The eggs come fairly easily within a few hours of the pains. The eggs are laid one after the other with very little interval between them. Again, it can sometimes happen that there is a short lull between eggs, but this is not normal.”
“Does the female tear when expelling the eggs?”
“Not normally but it does happen. Towards the end, before clutch sickness struck, there were more incidences of tearing.” She looked like the admission shocked her. “It is not something I gave any thought to at the time, or even since.”
“It might be significant,” Craig remarked, eyes on his screen as he typed. “How big are the eggs?”
“They are not shaped like a chicken’s.” She laughed at her own joke.
“Bigger, I’m sure.” Craig chuckled as well, he looked Delise’s way, quickly averting his eyes, which had turned large.
Men could honestly be like little boys at times.
“Much bigger and they have more length to them,” Delise said.
“I am certainly greatly intrigued,” Craig said.
“Can you tell us when clutch sickness struck? I have been led to believe that it was later on in the pregnancy.” Druze kept his eyes on hers.
Delise’s eyes became clouded.
“Are you okay to talk about it?” Brittney leaned forward and put a hand on her arm. “If it’s too painful…”
“It is painful, but I will tell you what I observed.”
“Thank you,” Druze offered.
Delise nodded once and then cocked her head again in that odd way. “The birthing pains would start up, only the eggs didn’t come.” She shook her head. “The pains would become worse and worse and worse. Days would pass. Sometimes as long as a week. Mercifully, a female would pass out from time to time from sheer pain and exhaustion. The eggs would stay inside. The female would eventually…” She bit down on her lower lip. “At first it was a handful of females who became ill. Then there were more and more, until every female who became with clutch died. Every last one.” Her eyes had a far off look.
“Why didn’t they stop?” Craig asked, eyes wide. “Why not wait until a cure could be found?”
“We are a base species, driven to procreate. Even when females knew they would most likely die, they still tried for a clutch. It might seem crazy to a human, your instincts are not as at the forefront as ours. We couldn’t help ourselves.”
“I can’t imagine,” Brittney whispered. She only hoped they could find a cure in time for Cordia and Vicky. It sounded horrific.
Chapter 7
Druze was pumped for their afternoon session. They were going to meet with females who had survived the surgery to remove their eggs. There were three who had agreed to talk with them. They were making progress already. Knowledge was power. From there, they could begin researching potential reasons for the illness.
First, though…lunch.
He contemplated grabbing something and retiring to his chamber for the duration but decided against it. They were a team. As much as he didn’t enjoy small-talk and mingling, he did need to make an effort with these humans. They needed to work closely for the next two months to devise a solution. What had caused this sickness? How could they stop it from taking Vicky and Cordia? He couldn’t allow Stone to suffer any more loss and heartache. Not on his watch.
Druze realized that Dr. Baker was talking to him. “What did you say?” he asked.
“You seemed far away.” She smiled. Her face was radiant when she smiled. Her dark eyes danced. They almost seemed black they were so dark. Like good quality chocolate. Upon closer inspection, there were flecks of gold around the irises. “I wanted to know if you would like mayo on your sandwich.”
He realized he was standing around, watching Craig and the female work. “I’m happy to make my own.” His voice was gruff. He cleared his throat. “I appreciate the effort but there is no need,” more evenly delivered.
“No effort at all. Three of us in the kitchen would be overkill. Maybe you can grill the steaks tonight, if you feel up to it?” She smiled at him, making him feel uneasy. “Do you want the mayo, or not?” She raised her brows.
“No…thank you,” he pushed out, trying to be…nice.
“Okie dokie.” She turned back. He noted that her black pants fit snugly around her ass. They were tight. He hadn’t noticed earlier because she had worn a jacket. Maybe he needed to put a dress-code in place. Couldn’t have a female running around all these males in sexy clothing. Then again, the pants ‒ like the blouse she had worn on the day of her interview ‒ weren’t meant to be sexy.
“Did you guys notice that there’s only one bathroom for all four bedrooms?” Dr. Baker shook her head.
“You’re kidding me!” Craig said, looking shocked.
“Nope, the three of us are going to have to share, I’m afraid. I also noticed that there is no light in
the guest restroom here in the living room. It only has a toilet and basin so we can’t even use that.”
“The Feral are still learning about humans. They’re still figuring it out,” Druze said.
“Hey,” the female smiled, “we’re not complaining. We’ll be okay. I really don’t mind sharing.”
Druze didn’t feel the same way. He was private. It was not his idea of ideal living conditions.
“By the way,” Craig said, still working on putting his sandwich together, “is Delise going to be joining us this afternoon?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder. The male was smiling.
“Why?” Dr. Baker laughed softly. She knocked shoulders with Craig. “Does she make you feel uncomfortable.”
“She’s very sweet and was extremely helpful, but…” He didn’t continue, just chuckled, hunching his shoulders a little.
Dr. Baker put down her knife. “So, she did make you feel uncomfortable.” She had a playful tone to her voice.
“Um…” Craig cut his sandwich in half. “I guess so.”
“I thought you were keen to see a couple of topless Ferals.” She all-out laughed, picking the knife back up.
“I was,” Craig mumbled. He turned, rolled his eyes and then laughed as well. “I guess I was hoping for someone younger. I mean, you get to ogle all the naked men around these parts. They’re all seriously buff. I thought I was a decent-looking guy but damn, there’s no comparison. I have no hope of getting lucky while on this trip.” He widened his eyes at Dr. Baker who was grinning broadly.
“Don’t be so hard on yourself,” she told Craig. Was the female interested in Craig?
Then Dr. Baker turned to him and held out a plate with two sandwiches on it. “You looked hungry, so I made you two.”
He nodded once and took the plate. “Thanks,” he pushed out.
They all walked to a table and took a seat. The female sat next to Craig on the other side. Craig took a big bite of his sandwich while she opened a bottle and took a sip.
“You don’t have to look so hard done by,” Dr. Baker countered.
“How so?” Craig was grinning around his food.
“You do look hard done by and quite frankly…jealous. I’m sure there will be more topless women in your future.”
“God, I hope not.” The pained expression on Craig’s face was classic. “Unless, of course, you’re offering to do the deed, Britt.” He snickered. “There would be no complaints from me.” He shook his head and laughed. Dr. Baker laughed as well. Something twisted in Druze’s gut. Craig was being completely inappropriate, and the female was lapping it up.
Dr. Baker put her brows up. “Oh, really now?”
“For sure,” Craig said. “Feel free anytime.” He laughed harder, putting his sandwich down.
“You wouldn’t blush and look away?” The female was giggling. “Because I think you would.”
“Not a fuck!” Craig laughed. “I mean, I might blush but there would be no looking away. You have really great—”
Druze hit his hand on the table, which made a cracking noise. Fuck! He hoped it wasn’t broken or about to fall apart. He hadn’t meant to hit the thing quite so hard, but his blood was near boiling point. “That’s enough.” He tried to use a calm voice and failed. It came out in a snarl.
“I was only joking.” Craig had turned pale. Good! The male had overstepped the line.
“That type of talk could be considered sexual harassment.”
“I don’t think Craig meant it that way.” Dr. Baker also looked a touch pale. She shook her head.
“He was referring to your…female anatomy. He wants to see your…mammary glands. Have you walk around without clothing.”
“I don’t think he was being serious. It was a joke,” Dr. Baker said.
Was she that clueless? Of course the male was being serious. Who wouldn’t want to look at her breasts? Any red-blooded male would give a left ball for the opportunity.
“You weren’t being serious, were you?” She looked at Craig, who shook his head.
“Of course not! I agree, it wouldn’t be appropriate.”
“That type of talk is not acceptable. Do you understand me?” He kept his eyes on Craig.
“Yeah…of course. I won’t joke around like that again.”
“We have to work together…closely. The two of you cannot flirt with one another. Or—”
“We weren’t flirting.”
“Could have fooled me,” Druze countered. “That’s what it looked like and it can’t happen. No flirting and certainly no—”
“What?” Dr. Baker shook her head so hard that some hair fell out of her ponytail. “We have no plans to ever date.”
“I was talking about fucking, Doctor, not dating.”
“Holy shit!” Her eyes were wide. “We aren’t going to sleep together. I teased Craig and he teased me back. That’s all. It doesn’t mean we want to have sex.”
“You are a female and he a male. These things happen, especially when talk goes below the belt,” Druze growled.
“It won’t happen again,” Craig said. “You can rest assured.”
“Good.” Druze picked up his plate. “I think I’ll finish up in my chamber.”
“Okay. Again, apologies,” Craig remarked.
“You should apologize to Dr. Baker. Not to me. I don’t want distractions or complications. We have a job to do.”
“Understood…and you can call me Brittney,” she said.
Druze turned and walked from the room. There was no way he was calling the human by her first name. No way in hell. Druze was reeling. What the fuck! Why had he become so angry? The interaction had been in fun and Britt…Dr. Baker had not been upset in any way. It had seemed harmless and yet he had over-reacted.
It was just that the idea of Dr. Baker with her chest bare had made his balls tighten and his blood rush. He had wondered ‒ in that moment ‒ if her nipples would be dark or a light pink. He had wondered how they would taste in his mouth. The thought had been so inappropriate that he had acted out. How was he going to spend the next two ‒ or more ‒ months working with this female?
* * *
“What the hell was that?” Britt took a sip of her water.
“I guess I was a little out of line. Do I owe you an apology?” Craig looked upset. “I didn’t mean it in a bad way,” he went on. “I think you’re really pretty, but I’m not attracted to you in that way.” He held up his hands. “Which is a good thing. I can tell you feel the same, so a bit of messing around wasn’t the end of the world, was it? I was joking, that’s all.”
“God, no. I didn’t take it in a bad way. I know you were joking.” She took another sip of water. “I swear you didn’t offend me, and I didn’t feel sexually harassed in any way. What’s up with Druze? I’m really beginning to think he hates me. Why did he even employ me in the first place? He was right, we have to work together. I’m not sure that’s even going to be possible if he doesn’t like me.”
“Where do you get that idea?” Craig took a bite of his sandwich, looking amused.
“I mean, hello…” she waved at Craig, “were you even in the room just now? He calls you Craig, but he won’t call me by my first name. Talk about the height of sexism. He told me I’m not allowed to have sex with anyone while working on this project.”
“What?”
“Yep. You heard right. I almost feel like that whole naked display yesterday was to test me. Then this whole episode. I don’t know what to make of him.” She shook her head, picking up a sandwich but not taking a bite.
“If you ask me…and I’ve seen it before…the guy has the hots for you.”
“What?” She dropped her food, the insides of her sandwich spilling out. “Oh, please.” She laughed. “He doesn’t even know me.”
“You don’t have to know anything about a person to be attracted to them. He was acting all jealous just now.”
“No way.” She pushed the filling back into her sandwich and licked her fi
ngers. “I’m telling you, he just doesn’t like me.” She shrugged. “That’s all there is to it.”
“I don’t think so, but even if it is true, he might dislike you, but he would also dearly like to fuck you and is pissed because it can’t happen.”
Britt dropped her sandwich all over again. “Dammit.” She started pushing the ingredients back inside. “I think you’re way off course, and you’re right about it not ever happening. Druze is my boss. Forget about our stupid joking around. Sleeping with your boss would be considered highly inappropriate.”
“You look disappointed.” Craig chuckled.
“What?” She shook her head. “You’re seeing things that aren’t there.” Britt took a bite of her sandwich.
“You couldn’t look at his dick hard enough yesterday.”
She just managed to get her hand over her mouth as she choked on her food.
“Oh, don’t even try to deny it. I saw you looking at him.”
Britt swallowed her food down. “I’ve never seen a guy look quite like…like…that before, so excuse me for…for—”
“Eyeballing the hell out of him…and by just like that I’m assuming you mean well-hung?”
Her cheeks heated. Brittney took another bite of her sandwich. Not because she was hungry but because she didn’t want to answer him.
“Aha!” Craig all but yelled. “I’ll take that as a yes. Just so you know, they were all pretty well-endowed. Not just him. Not that you would know since you couldn’t take your eyes off of our boss.”
She covered her face with her hand. “It wasn’t like that,” she groaned. “I don’t know him and quite frankly, he’s a bit of an asshole.”
“I told you, physical attraction isn’t about knowing someone. Or even about liking them or not liking them. You don’t have to know someone to want to jump them, and I think you want to jump our boss just as badly as he wants to jump you.”
“I still think you’re wrong about him.” She felt her cheeks burn as she shoved another bite into her mouth.
“I see you aren’t denying it,” Craig chuckled, taking a bite of his own. He chewed a few times and swallowed. “You want Druze.”
Doctor Dragon: Earth Dragons Series: Book 6 Page 5
