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  “That was nice of him.”

  “Some of our males have really enjoyed learning things, but especially cooking. We like food.”

  “It was really good. There were so many flavors.”

  “What did they feed you after you left Mercile?”

  “Mostly oatmeal, eggs and lots of soup. It wasn’t that good. I barely got meat since I was only allowed to use plastic spoons.”

  “No wonder you are so thin.”

  She smiled. “I actually missed the meat strips from Mercile.”

  “I’ll cook you a steak. I am good at that.” He stood.

  “Not right now. I’m full.”

  He grinned. “Sorry. I’m eager to get you better. The females at the women’s dorm are baking for you. They are going to drop off a cake, a few pies and some cookies today.”

  “That’s really nice of them.”

  “Everyone is concerned about you, Candi. They want to help you gain weight. I went there while you showered this morning and told them Tammy said you need lots of chocolate.”

  It touched Candi to learn that so many people wanted to help her. It also made her wonder if any of those females were ones he’d shared sex with. She didn’t ask, not wanting to ruin the morning because of her jealousy. It was something she needed to deal with. 927 was really trying to integrate her into his life and that’s what she needed to focus on, not what had happened in the time they were apart.

  “How would you like a tour of Homeland today? Everyone is excited to meet you.”

  She hesitated.

  “Too soon?” Concern showed in his eyes.

  “I just want to spend time with you,” she admitted.

  “I understand. I remember when I was freed. It was amazing to see all those Species, but it was a little overwhelming. I spent a lot of time in the room they assigned me, just touching things and trying to figure them out.” He suddenly grinned. “Television! It’s a wonderful thing. How would you like to watch a movie with me? I have some of my favorites on DVDs. Those are round disks that store it and you can play it over and over, as much as you want.”

  “Okay.”

  “Do you know what is good for movie watching? Popcorn. I’m out, but I know a few males who also got hooked on that treat. I’ll go knock on their doors and see if they have any. I’ll be right back.”

  “Popcorn?”

  “You’ll like it, and it has lots of butter. That’s probably helpful to gain weight. I’ll be right back.” He moved fast, unlocked the door, and left.

  She shook her head, amused. 927 seemed determined to feed her until her stomach burst. She stood and carried the plate to the sink. She paused, glancing at the dishwasher. She had no idea how to use it. He’d given her a tour of his home that morning, and pointed out what things were. She decided to hand wash her plate, something she was confident she could do. Someone knocked on the door so she turned away and opened it.

  Breeze smiled at her. “How did it go? I heard you spent the night with Hero.”

  “I did. He let me sleep with him.”

  “Good. I’ll relieve the officer since he’s no longer needed.”

  “Come in.”

  “I’m on my way to work so I just have a minute.” Breeze lowered her voice. “Did it work? I smell him on you, but you showered. Did he mount you?”

  “No, but he held me while I slept. He’s afraid he’ll cause me damage.”

  Breeze glanced down her. “Understandable.”

  “He’s going to wait until I weigh more.”

  “Does he understand that could take a bit of time?”

  “I don’t think so. You should have seen the huge breakfast he fed me, and now he went to get some kind of treat. Popcorn. He might hurt me with too much food instead of sharing sex with me.”

  Breeze chuckled. “A for effort.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “Sorry. You look so human I forget. It means he’s trying and going all out to do it.”

  “He has his friends cooking for me.”

  “Aw. That’s so sweet.”

  “I know. I just wish he wouldn’t worry so much about me. I’m strong.”

  “Did you tell him that?”

  “Yes, but he’s not listening. He told me I could have a baby and he’s afraid, in my condition, it could be very bad.”

  Breeze entered and closed the door. She lowered her voice. “He’s not here, right?”

  Candi shook her head. “He went to find popcorn.”

  “Okay.” Breeze lowered her voice. “I heard you yesterday. You have almost zero experience with males and sex since you only were mounted once when you were young and drugged up. Are you afraid of touching Hero?”

  “No.”

  Breeze smiled. “Good. Our males have a high sex drive. It means they constantly get hard-ons. They all keep lotion in their nightstand drawers and use it. You could do that for him and he could use that lotion on you if he doesn’t actually want to mount you.”

  “Lotion?”

  Breeze groaned. “You’re probably the only Species female not to know about masturbation. Have you ever seen a male completely nude?”

  Candi shook her head. “927 never removed his pants at Mercile in front of me. He even had me close my eyes and turn away when he needed to use the toilet. Christopher ordered him to hide that from me. I never pushed because I didn’t want him to be punished. He’d get hard sometimes and I could see the outline of what he looks like down there.”

  “What about the feline?”

  “I closed my eyes. He took me from behind so I couldn’t have looked even if I wanted to. I didn’t.”

  “Did he prepare you? Go down and put his mouth on you?”

  “No. I didn’t want him to touch me in any way he didn’t have to. I just wanted to get it over with and asked him to do it fast.”

  Breeze snarled and annoyance creased her features. “That had to have hurt.”

  “I try to forget everything that happened inside that cell.”

  “I don’t blame you. It won’t hurt with Hero.”

  “It wouldn’t matter. He’s my male.”

  Breeze reached out. “I’m going to hug you. Deal with it.”

  Candi didn’t mind when the female put her arms around her and gave her a squeeze. “Thank you.”

  Breeze released her and lowered her head, peering into her eyes. “Okay, males like to put their mouths on your sex down there. It feels amazing. You’ll like it. Don’t be shocked when Hero wants to do that. There’s nothing to fear. Our males really enjoy it if you put lotion on your hands and rub up and down on where he gets hard. Expect a mess when he gets off. That’s normal. I can understand why he is leery to share sex with you, but you can do those things without fear of getting pregnant. He’d have to come inside you for that possibility. Is that clear enough?”

  “Yes.”

  “Find his lotion and get him undressed. That should motivate him to want to touch you back. It’s going to be at least a month or two before you’re at a size that will make him feel secure with mounting you. I don’t want him picking fights with other males out of sexual frustration, and sleeping with you every night is going to make him snap at some point. I also don’t want you to have to suffer his bad moods. Our males get testy when they are sexually frustrated. You’ll both be happier.”

  The door opened and Hero entered. “Breeze.”

  “I was just checking on your female.” She smiled. “My shift is starting. I have to go. Carry on.” She left.

  Hero closed the door and locked it. He showed her two flat bags wrapped in clear paper. “I got us popcorn. I’ll throw them in the microwave. How long was Breeze here?”

  “Not long.”

  “What did she say?” He entered the kitchen.

  “She said it could be months before I gain lots of weight.”

  He spun, horrified. “Months? No. I’ll feed you plenty.” He turned away and yanked open a metal box thing that was built into th