Date: June 6, 2440 Time: 8:25 AM CST
L’Tani saw the look on her sister’s face when she entered Matthew’s bedroom and found her still in bed with him. In that moment, for the first time in her life, L’Tani felt true fear—and the weight of what she had done finally sank in.
“I’m so sorry,” L’tani whispered, beginning to slide out of the sheets.
“Stay in that bed,” Angelina ordered from the doorway, firm but composed. Once satisfied that Matthew was stable, she guided T’mari out and shut the door behind them.
“You want her in there?” T’mari asked as they entered Matthew’s private office. “People are already beginning to talk.”
“I need her in there,” Angelina replied. She was not yet ready to admit she was managing the rumor and had already put together a social media campaign to fan the flames of shared grief, finding an outlet. Lola Rhea was no doubt doing her part, talking up the broken chair, jeans on the fan, and her inside-out panties dangling from his ankle when the household AI called medical after he collapsed from the fucking good fucking. He would move from epic, clear past mythic, and into immortal territory by the end of the day. Her next trick would be pulling a hat out a rabbit and make the public believe that was the way things were supposed to work.
“I spoke with your mother and my husband—he’s a biochemist. We’re not sure what prolonged exposure to V’ren pheromones might do to a human, especially in that concentration. But we all agree: if he wakes up and feels abandoned, the psychological impact could be severe.”
“Who’s abandoned him before?” She wondered if that was why he had kept his distance from her.
“There’s a condition we call Abandonment Syndrome. It’s not about actually being left—just feeling the sudden absence of someone important. He’s lived through that pain more than once. His father died by suicide when Matt was thirteen—terminal cancer was eating him alive, and he just couldn’t deal with it anymore. He was supposed to pick him up from school… instead, he parked the truck downtown and shot himself in the head. Matt found the body. A few years later, his mother died after a series of strokes. He coped, but barely. You’ve seen how tightly he holds to his sister, his wife’s memory, and those twins.”
“I have,” T’mari said quietly, her expression softening. “He carries so much. When I saw his grief… I just wanted to hold him. Make it better. I’ve never seen someone so strong look so vulnerable.”
“I think you still can,” Angelina said.
“But I tried to entice him—and he didn’t respond.”
“No, he showed remarkable restraint. You sort of even smelled good to me, and I am not into women. He told me some things afterward. You’ll have to get him to admit them himself.”
“Our pheromones shouldn’t even work on humans. And we come from different houses—our bonding chemistry isn’t compatible.”
“That’s where things get complicated,” Angelina said. “Your mother and Floyd talked about it. It is true that your mating markers require certain genetic matches—but that rule might not apply to humans. Floyd thinks it’s possible human males respond to multiple markers. Your mother confirmed she had a similar experience after your father’s death.”
T’mari nodded slowly. “It’s rare, but not impossible among the V’ren, to be compatible with completely different men. Bonding with my father’s brother or a close cousin had they been available would have been fairly easy, but to find someone so different is much more rare.”
“So I am learning. L’Tani in that bed reinforces the exposure—but your mother says she won’t be able to trigger that level of reaction again for several days. Floyd thinks it’s safer for him to come down from his exposure to the pheromones together. We’ll be waking him soon, and when we do—if you truly want to be his wife—you won’t leave his side.”
“I do. But can we at least change the bedding first? The whole room reeks of my sister.”
“I noticed,” Anglina laughed. “Have you had the chance to smell a skunk?”
“That was what I was thinking. When I met Rayya, his daughters said he had been skunked two days before. I can smell the resemblance. I hope that is not what Matt is into,” T’Mari said with a little laugh.
“He most certainly isn’t into Rayya smelling that way,” Angelina laughed. “I’ve already ordered a new mattress and linens. But there’s something else I want you to do. I want you to redecorate his bedroom—make it yours. Amy picked out that space. It’s time for it to reflect the future, not the past.”
T’mari blinked. “You want me to—?”
“Yes. Choose your colors, your textures, your style. I’ll help. He needs something new to wake up to with you.”
“And my duties?”
“I’ve already spoken with W’ren, and K’rem, plus a few others, about your skillset. One of my lesser-known roles is the head of Freehold HR. I want you to be the Director of Strategic Communications. I will give you a lot of freedom to do things your way and find your own voice, but for a while, we will work very closely to make sure the messaging is tight. He already knows to listen to my advice, but I want him to trust you as well, so we will work closely on this. Don’t worry, you’ll still have access to your engineering projects as well. I think having an engineer around he is attracted to has helped him come out of his shell, too. He brags about you like you’re one of his proudest projects,” she said, exasperated by men, even if the cramping had disappeared, thanks to a pill she got from T’monn last night. They would have to market these very soon if they threw any more big parties like the night before last. She sneered at the press who suggested it might have cost in the high six or low seven-figure amounts since they were already nearing an eight-figure mark.
“He… brags about me?”
“To anyone who’ll listen. He’s already approved 90% of your project submissions. The others, he just hasn’t had time to review.”
“I’m only a junior communications officer.”
“You hold the same level of academic degrees as he does. Sure, he’s got twice the field experience, but in terms of brains, you’re equals. Maybe even superior in some areas. Be proud of that.”
T’mari smiled faintly. “We have a saying: if your head gets too big, someone will knock it down for you.”
“I’m good at ego deflation,” Angelina smirked. “Ask Matt.”
They both laughed.
“My sister’s the one with the inflated ego,” T’mari added.
“I believe it. For the record—I actually like her. She reminds me of my own oldest sister. You might meet her soon; she’s been trying to visit. Brilliant geneticist. Even better, I think L’tani might be the sort of role model my MJ will listen to and take guidance from.
There was a knock at the door.
“Enter,” Angelina said.
Two teenagers—Kevin and Mall—walked in.
“Sit,” she gestured. “Not together.”
Kevin glanced at Mall, then reluctantly took separate chairs rather than the loveseat.
“You’re not in trouble,” T’mari reassured them with a calm nod, but did notice something that looked like a bite mark on his collarbone and wondered what the story was.
Angelina didn’t waste time. “Have you two been having sex?”
Kevin’s eyes went wide. “No! My father said if I got her pregnant—”
“It’s fine. I just needed a no, not an explanation,” Angelina chuckled. “You’re a cute couple. Matt and I both approve. But we’ve learned more about V’ren physiology, and I need to separate you for a while.”
“Mall, you understand the effect our bodies can have on men, yes?” T’mari asked.
“I do. I’ve been very careful.”
“That’s what I needed to hear,” Angelina said. “Now, do either of you understand what discretion means?”
Mall tilted her head. “It’s when you don’t speak of something you’re pretending didn’t happen.”
“Exactly,” Angelina laughed. “Rumors are already spreading—not by you, I know. But they’re out there. Probably about you two as well. That’s why I’m splitting you up.”
She softened. “Mall, I’m making you my apprentice. You’ve impressed me—always finding work that needs doing and doing it well.”
Kevin straightened. “And me?”
“You’re getting a promotion. Your father told me you want to learn to fly. Commodore W’ren Th’onn approved your early enlistment. You’ll be the youngest in the new human pilot class. My daughter will be in it too—she’s fifteen. Don’t get any ideas. She prefers girls and has already told me she thinks Mall is cute too.”
The door opened without knocking.
Matt walked in, fully dressed and looking smug. L’Tani followed behind him, calm and composed.
“Well,” he said, taking his seat behind the desk as if nothing unusual had happened, “Looks like the meeting’s started. Where are we on things?”
