Talia greets her, "Welcome back to the land of the living. It's nearly midday. They're getting ready to feed the children lunch."

Amazonia lies on the glide rocker with her head in Talia's lap. She tells Talia, "Too bad Bob's your uncle or I'ld recommend for you to try him. So where is your mate anyway?"

"He's at work while the rest of the men are working on the adult picnic table. I spent most of the morning doing math, reading and science with the children.

As for my Uncle Bob, Otter blushes every time he gets near her, you are laying here still high from your multiple o.r.g.a.s.m s.e.x-capades, while Zenith's in a bad mood for some reason."

"Multiple," inserts Amazonia with a nefarious grin.

Talia shakes her head amused and continues, "Richy spent the dawn hours trying to KO me with Cougar suggesting positions thanks to you. I'll be spending the rest of the day walking funny because I'm sore."

"Mmm," is Amazonia's response.

Talia slides out from under Amazonia's head and stands. She informs her, "If anybody needs me, I'm hiding in the tree house." She's just not accustomed to being around so many people. Normally she just suffers through socializing during lunch at work. She finds the children have dragged a couple of blankets and a few pillows up into the tree house and she settles down for a nap.

The sound of the dolly being used to pull something up into the tree house wakes Talia up. She looks and sees Cougar below using the ropes to pull the dolly up.

Cougar greets her, "Hey Tali, I brought you some lunch."

As she stretches she tells him, "That wasn't necessary."

"Yeah it was," Cougar tells her, "I told Richy, I'ld look after you while he was at work."

Cougar lifts and secures a fold down built in table and set two kid-size stools at the low table. He locks the dolly in place and sets the tray on the table. He pats one of the stools for Talia to sit on and sits on the other. The knees of his long legs make an acute angle. He and Richy are about the same height, not Roar's 7'2" tall or Amazonia's 6'6", but 6'4" is not shabby.

Talia sits on the stool he indicated noting the extra bowl, spoon and cup. "Are you expecting company?"

Cougar nods as he fills a bowl with stew and informs Talia, "Uncle Bob… Roar was talking to him about Zenith in the kitchen. Apparently, she's upset because Uncle Bob hasn't touched her even though she and Roar have offered."

Talia shakes her head as she accepts the bowl of stew, "My poor Uncle Bob."

Cougar agrees, "I can hide behind the fact that it's cheating until my divorce is final. Plus, I'm not new and fascinating. It's no big deal if I'm not trying to mount every available female in sight. That's Ba.s.s's job. And with you and Richy being a new couple along with being true-mates and all, no one is expecting either of you to be s.e.xually sociable."

Uncle Bob climbs into the tree house and sits with his legs dangling through the opening in the floor. He accepts the bowl of stew and the slice of corn bread Cougar hands him.

Talia smells his anxiety and asks concerned, "Are you alright Uncle Bob?"

Uncle Bob nods yes as he chews. Talia looks at Cougar who responds to her look of concern for her uncle with a shrug. They both eat slowly as they watch Uncle Bob wolf down his stew and cornbread. Then he hands his empty bowl to Cougar.

"Would you like more stew Uncle Bob," asks Cougar.

Uncle Bob shakes his head no as he answers, "No thanks."

"Thirsty," inquires Cougar.

Uncle Bob nods yes and Cougar hands him a cup of iced lemonade. Bob glugs half of it down in a few swallows.

"Talia I owe you an apology," says Uncle Bob sincerely. "I don't know how many times you told me things were just as complicated out here as in the city. Domesticated people like myself have it in our heads that just because free people don't have mortgages, leases, car notes, etcetera that your lives are simple and uncomplicated. Meaning we a.s.sume that as people we believe you're simple and uncomplicated. We don't realize that surviving in the wilderness requires more than strength, good instincts and the ability to camouflage as certain animals. It also requires superior quick intelligence… I've read your mother's books, Cougar. I even heard her lecture once. I have a feeling she deliberately glossed over quite a few things in order not to offend domesticated sensibilities. Because unfortunately most people like myself are happy to believe you're a bunch of wild s.e.x fiends running about helter skelter in the wilderness. The truth is that you're average domestic doesn't want to know that you're more than us, better than us."

"I don't know about better," says Talia thoughtfully, "certainly just as human and equally intelligent of course."

"Listen to you," Uncle Bob tells Talia a bit amused, "you're always so sensible and fair. Domesticated people are seldom sensible and fair; especially not when it comes to dealing with free people. I don't know how many times Reynold begged me to come out with him to meet his woman and my own nephew. And I refused because I didn't want mother and father p.i.s.sed at me the way they were p.i.s.sed at him; especially mother, who kept insisting there was no way 'the little b.a.s.t.a.r.d' was his… I've seen pictures and videos of my nephew, Hunter. But I never met him, never held him, never read to him, I never nothing with my own nephew… Mother was incensed when Reynold brought Panther home after Hunter's death. Panther could smell mother's hate for her. Mother was too proper to say anything to Panther's face or in front of her. But that didn't stop mother from sharing how she felt or what she thought when Panther wasn't present… Reynold had saved a lock of Hunter's hair. And when the DNA test Reynold had done came back proving Hunter was his son, he dared mother to call his son a b.a.s.t.a.r.d again. I admired Reynold and I wished I had his courage and strength as a young man. I just never had the guts to defy our parents in any way, especially not mother… Panther was nothing but respectful and gracious. Reynold had already taught her the basics of reading, writing and arithmetic. In no time she was doing so at a college level. It was socializing with domesticated people that gave her trouble. Reynold got her an etiquette coach and Panther worked hard to be the kind of daughter-in-law mother would approve of. She let mother drag her around to expensive shops and boutiques and dress her up like she was a life size doll. Reynold put a stop to that when mother brought her home one day from a solon with a very short haircut that Panther was in tears over. Reynold was furious. He loved Panther's hair… When Panther became pregnant with their second child, mother became strangely helpful. She found an OBGYN for Panther and volunteered to take Panther to her appointments while Reynold was at work. Panther became horribly ill and miscarried. By the time the estate was finished and Reynold and Panther were moving in, there had been three miscarriages and a premature stillborn boy… Panther became pregnant again shortly after they moved into the estate, Panther didn't tell anyone, not even Reynold. But of course after she started to show and couldn't hide the pregnancy anymore, mother was on the phone making the necessary appointments for Panther. Panther didn't want to go. She told Reynold the medicine might be good for tamed women and their babies, but she was sure it was bad for her and her babies. She also informed Reynold that Mother, the doctor and the nurses all smelled of deceit. And that baby boy was born stillborn barely a couple of months later. Reynold finally became suspicious and had a quiet investigation done… He learned that Mother had paid the doctor to ensure none of Panther's pregnancies were successful. Reynold ensured that his practice closed, that he gave up his license to practice medicine and that he would never practice medicine again. He confronted mother in front of Father. Father hadn't known what she'd done and he even called her an 'evil b.i.t.c.h.' Father moved into a separate bedroom from her and if she walked into a room he was in after that, he left the room and refused to speak with her unless there was some sort of social function going on that meant company was present. He and I barely spoke to her after learning what she'd done, just what was necessary for keeping up the appearance of a unified family. Reynold made sure Mother understood clearly that if she ever caused his family harm again, she'd get the death penalty for it."

"Me'-me' didn't tell me any of this," Talia looking at her great uncle intently. "I knew Paw-paw had secrets, but Me'-me' shared a lot with me."

"Reynold never told Panther what Mother did. But your grandmother was a smart woman. I'm sure she knew the truth." Bob stares out at nothing, "Your mother was born hale and hearty without Panther going to one OBGYN appointment. Mother was never permitted near Doe when she was an infant or a small child. Your grandfather didn't trust her near your grandmother anymore and he certainly wasn't going to let her near your mother. Our mother had already proven herself capable of murder. Yet it didn't stop mother from questioning Panther's maternal skills… Then at twenty-one, Doe decided to live wild. Our mother had fits. She ranted and raved about wasted education, that money had been wasted for Doe to go to college just so she could run naked thru the woods. And when talk of formal education for you began, she asked 'What for?' and said it would be a waste because you would just run off to live wild too… You were still just a little bitty thing when Mother finally pa.s.sed away, but none of us shed a tear. Except for my wife that is, and I doubt one of her tears was sincere. But my mother had actually liked her and my boys, heaven help them. I don't even like my own sons. Love them, but I don't like them. But Father, he had truly adored Doe and you. My boys were spoiled rotten and he hated that. No one is ent.i.tled to anything they didn't earn. He believed that and so do I."

"What's really bothering you Uncle Bob," asks Talia concerned. "You smell so sad and remorseful."

"I guess I just feel guilty and undeserving of the love and acceptance I'm receiving here," responds Uncle Bob resting his hands in his lap. They're hands that haven't known any real manual labor, but have truly enjoyed working on the picnic tables with the other men. He shares, "Most of what I know about free people isn't because I spent any significant amount of time with them, not like this. And even after I knew what Mother had done, I still wasted years trying to please her and be the perfect son hoping for some sort of compliment or sign that I wasn't a total disappointment… Panther, Doe and especially you, Talia, have given me the examples of what free people are really like, such kindness, patience, generosity and selflessness… After Father suffered his second stroke, he went to live with Reynold and Panther. Physically he was still a fine figure of a man, but the second stroke nearly robbed him completely of his power of speech. Yet somehow you, Doe, Panther and even Roar always understood him. He had very little patience for Reynold and me his last few years, probably because we didn't have the patience to try to understand him when he was trying to talk. Even less patience for my spoiled worthless sons, my ex-wife and absolutely no tolerance for his own wife… Yet here I sit after years of wasted effort and wasted time working on a doomed marriage, providing the best education to my two worthless sons who wouldn't even try and just flunked out. They actually expected me to buy them good grades. Such a thought would never even enter your mind, Talia… I guess I'm just feeling a little over whelmed by the unconditional love and acceptance I'm getting here. Roar's not my biological nephew, but I'm still having a hard time wrapping my mind around him being generous enough to share his mate with me, or any of these beautiful women wanting me for me with no concern for my money, nor material possessions or my power. None of that means anything to them. They just simply sense and smell my stress and offer me comfort. I certainly never considered s.e.x as a way to reduce my stress, and I didn't know it could be used to comfort someone else."

Talia adds to inform her uncle, "It also strengthens social bonds. Sharing Zenith with you is another way for Roar to bring you closer to him like working on the picnic table together has done for all the males here."

Uncle Bob nods his head with his eyebrows furrowed. He asks, "So what are the rules for this situation? I can tell I'm hurting both of their feelings with my reluctance."

Talia shrugs, "I'm kind of out of my element here," she admits. "By remaining a virgin for so long, I'm kind of socially crippled."

But Cougar's not socially crippled like Talia, "Well, if you're that uncomfortable with it because you think of Roar as a nephew, just explain it to them. They'll understand. But it's not unusual for a male to share his mate while she's pregnant or nursing full-time. She can't get pregnant while she's already pregnant and nursing full-time stops a woman's cycle decreasing her chances of getting pregnant. Yet depending on who the other male is he may not care if she gets pregnant by him and will still treat any other man's child his mate gives birth to as his own. Free males usually aren't as generous with their mates while they're nursing, mostly because every time she's finished nursing the baby he's going to mount her and nearly any other female that takes a turn nursing or suckling his baby. Free females share nursing all the time. Sometimes babies aren't hungry and just want to suckle. Young women who haven't had a baby yet or are newly pregnant are often asked to step in so the mother is free to take care of something else… Anyhow, no one expects you to do anything you're truly uncomfortable with. But the basic rules are: you don't mark another man's mate, no hickies basically. You don't scent mark another man's mate. You don't have the glands necessary for that, so no problem there. And normally, Roar would watch like he did with Ba.s.s to make sure he respected his mate. But because of the level of trust and love Roar has for you, he'll allow you privacy with his mate that he wouldn't give me or Ba.s.s."

Uncle Bob still doesn't know what to do, so he asks, "Talia, what would you do?"

Talia is surprised by the question and answers, "I'm not sure… Probably sacrifice some of my dignity and pride to save face and keep from hurting anyone's feelings."

"So," Uncle Bob asks, "what if Lance hadn't had a premature e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n problem?"

Talia doesn't like her answer, but she answers honestly, "I would have endured his intimate attention just like I endured his asinine childish sense of humor along with his groping and s...o...b..ring on me while he was sloppy drunk. I'm not sure how many times I endured him humping me too drunk to find the hole and c.u.mming on my inner thigh or on my a.s.s."

Uncle Bob is surprised by the intimate details Talia has just shared. But he's even more surprised by the amount of revulsion in her voice. He hadn't realized that Talia had been sacrificing pieces of her dignity and pride putting up with Lance simply for appearances sake in domesticated society. He may be uncomfortable with the thought of having s.e.x with his nephew's pregnant mate, but he wouldn't be sacrificing pieces of his pride or dignity. And it wasn't an affair or cheating because Roar was giving him permission. This morning in the kitchen Roar had nearly begged him to do Zenith while they were talking.

Then another thought pops into Uncle Bob's head and he asks Talia, "You said you would have endured Lance. What if you had gotten pregnant by him?"

Talia actually s.h.i.+vers in disgust, not at the thought of being pregnant by Lance, but at the thought of actually having to mate with him. She answers, "Then I would have had his baby. But I was never going to marry him."

"Why would you have his baby," asks Uncle Bob. "Why wouldn't you terminate the pregnancy?"

Talia's mouth drops open shocked by the suggestion she terminate her own baby. Talia can't even respond.

Cougar answers him instead, "A free female would never terminate her own baby, no matter who the father was, no matter how unpleasant the conception was. For free people, that's murdering an innocent child who's a victim too."

Uncle Bob nods his understanding and starts climbing down out of the tree house, "See you kids later."

"Later Uncle Bob," calls Cougar.

Talia steps up to the banister of the gazebo style tree house and leans on it. Cougar steps up behind her and leans over her with his hands on the banister on both sides of her. The children are playing nearby on the swing set and jungle gym. There's something going on over on the other side of the yard, but they can't hear the conversation.

Talia can smell Cougar's arousal and feel his erection pressing against her heart shaped bottom. He presses firmly into her as he inhales her scent. He smells her get wet for him.

Cougar whispers in her ear, "I still love you, Tali. Always have. Always will." If he had known how unhappy she was, he would have gone after her.

"I know," responds Talia softly.

Cougar begins to slowly grind against her bottom and kisses her neck. He asks her in a whisper, "Do you still love me Tali?"

A tear rolls down Talia's cheek. "Why do you ask a question you already know the answer to?"

He tells her in a whisper, "Because I need to hear you say it. Because it's been so long since I heard you say it. Please, I need to hear you say it."

More tears escape from Talia's eyes, but she tells him, "I love you too. Always have. Always will. Now you need to stop."

Cougar kisses the sensitive spot he knows is there just blow her ear. "I just want to dry f.u.c.k you, Tali, like when we were teenagers. Play mate, like when we were children."

"Then get permission from Richy like you had from my parents when we were teenagers," she tells him. "Besides, your Sheila is devious enough to have hired a private detective, who may be sitting out there with a telescopic camera waiting to catch you doing something naughty."

Cougar sighs and settles for holding Talia with his chin resting on top of her head. He asks her teasingly, "So you wouldn't help poor Lance find the hole."

Talia smiles and giggles amused, "h.e.l.l no. If he couldn't find it, he didn't deserve to get it."

Uncle Bob steps up to Roar and Wildcat and ask, "What's happening?"

"A challenge," answers Roar.

"Ba.s.s got bold and asked to mount Amazonia," explains Wildcat. "Except you left her so well sated she tried to shoo him away. But Ba.s.s has b.a.l.l.s, told Amazonia whatever you did he could do just as well and just tell him what to do."

"She still tried to send him away," shares Roar, "but he insisted she tell him what to do and let him try. Now if he can satisfy her as well as you did, she'll recommend him to other females. A recommendation from Amazonia, Chief of the Amazons, will carry a lot of weight and make him quite popular with the ladies."

Amazonia tosses the long seat cus.h.i.+on from the couch sized glide-rocker on the ground, lies on it on her back and begins telling Ba.s.s what to do.

"Where's Zenith," ask Uncle Bob.

"In the house," answers Roar. "In the family room, I think. She mumbled something about TV."

Uncle Bob nods and heads into the house. Immediately upon stepping through the sliding gla.s.s doors, Bob hears crying. He pauses at the top of the steps leading down into the family room where he sees Seal trying to console Zenith. Bob had forgotten how sensitive pregnant women could be.

Bob steps over to Zenith and Seal on the couch and request, "Miss Seal, may I please speak with Zenith alone."

Seal nods yes and makes herself scarce by going outside to check on the children.

Bob sits next to Zenith as she quickly wipes her tears, embarra.s.sed to be caught crying by a man. Bob turns her face toward him and caresses her cheek with a thumb. He tells her, "You're too lovely to be crying like this. Why are you so upset?"

"I've heard domesticated men don't like pregnant women because they're fat. I was telling Seal that you must be disgusted by me, that fat women must really turn you off," answers Zenith.

Bob acknowledges, "Some domesticated men are turned off by fat women and think of pregnant women as fat. But I'm not one of them. Pregnant and fat are two different things, and a little extra meat on a women is often a good thing. After all, bones are for dogs while steak is for men. You don't turn me off, quite the opposite. What I'm having trouble with is the fact that you're my nephew's woman."

Zenith tries to understand, "But you're not Roar's uncle, you're Talia's uncle."

Bob nods agreeingly, "Biologically, no, Roar's not my nephew. My niece Doe was not his biological mother. But in her heart where it matters most, he is her son. He's Talia's big brother. And here in my heart, he is my nephew. And domesticated men don't share their mates. I wasn't aware free men did until quite recently."

Zenith is a little confused, "But your brother was a member of Animalistic Tribe. He never shared Panther with you?"

Bob answers honestly, "No, and I never would have dared asked him to do such a thing. Even if he had offered, I would have thought he was losing his mind. I wouldn't have understood."

Yet Zenith still asks, "So there's nothing wrong with me?"

Bob smiles as he answers, "Absolutely not. You are a truly beautiful desirable woman. And if you truly desire my attention, dear lady, then I'm all yours."

Zenith asks him, "Would you like to mount me like you did Otter?"

"Actually," Bob tells her, "I would like to be able to look upon your lovely face. We'll figure something out." Then he kisses her neck feeling like he needs to make up for hurting her feeling with a little extra special attention. Her top is halter style and he unties the straps exposing her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Pregnancy has turned her already chocolate nipples to an extra special dark chocolate and he takes one in his mouth. As he suckles her breast, she slides one of her long legs behind him and undoes his shorts.

Zenith takes Bob's manhood in her hand and runs her thumb over the tip. Having never been with a man as Caucasian as Bob, she says a little surprised, "It's so pink."

Bob smiles amused and tells her, "Lie back for me."

Zenith lies back for him and lets him adjust her to his liking. He puts the leg she slid behind him over his shoulder pulling her up at a slight angle as he leans over her bracing himself on the arm of the sofa behind her head. He watches her face as he takes his time working his manhood inside her. He asks her, "How do you like it, dear lady, fast or slow?"

"Hard and deep," Zenith informs him. "I like a hard deep mating. Make me scream if you can."

Bob smiles as he responds, "As you wish." Then he begins to give her as she requested immediately, ramming hard and pus.h.i.+ng deep, eliciting sounds of pleasure from her open mouth as she grips his forearm with one hand and his a.s.s with her other hand. As the first o.r.g.a.s.m hits her, she gasps, "Yes, yes!" But Bob continues to give it to her like she asked for until her body is spasming uncontrollably from multiple o.r.g.a.s.ms and the involuntary noises exiting her are basically screams. Then he finally allows himself the luxury of climaxing deep inside her.

Bob pulls out of her slowly as he wipes tears from her face. He reties the straps of her halter behind her neck and straightens her skirt down over her rubbery thighs. He kisses her cheek and informs her, "I'll fetch you a gla.s.s of ice water." Except when he gets back with the gla.s.s of ice water, Zenith is sleeping. He sits the gla.s.s of ice water on a coaster on the coffee table, runs his hand over her baby-belly and smiles when he feels the baby kick. He covers her with a blanket that was draped over the back of the couch. Then he steps into Richy's office to make a call. His mobile phone is off up in the bedroom. He turned it off after informing his a.s.sistant he would be unavailable while Talia was ill. Taking time off from work like this is something he wouldn't have done twenty to thirty years ago.

When Uncle Bob steps back outside, Ba.s.s is laying on his back in the gra.s.s grinning from ear-to-ear like a Ches.h.i.+re cat as his hand caresses Amazonia's quivering thigh. Amazonia's still lying on the cus.h.i.+on, her thighs quivering uncontrollably like jello, her hands resting on her ribs below her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. She's not shedding any tears of ecstasy like she did for Bob. She would never allow herself to shed tears of any kind in public. She is the current Amazonia, Chief of the Amazons. Even with her long legs slightly bent, the height difference between her and Ba.s.s is still obvious. Ba.s.s is currently the shortest male here at a height of 5'9". Without Ba.s.s, at 6' even, Uncle Bob would be the shortest man here.

Wildcat smiles knowingly at Bob, "Seal said you were talking with Zenith. It smells like you did a little more than just talk."

Uncle Bob responds in very businesslike manner, "Well she's sleeping peacefully now. She was a little upset. She thought I found her undesirable because she's pregnant which isn't true. And I had forgotten how sensitive pregnant women can be."

"Roar will be relieved," shares Wildcat. He glances back toward the children where Roar is giving a stern lecture after breaking up a skirmish between the two oldest boys that Seal and Otter were having trouble pulling apart. He informs Bob, "Amazon women have egos like men, but they're still women, every bit as sensitive and loving despite the tough guy exterior."

"How many children does Amazonia have," asks Bob recalling the softness of Amazonia's b.r.e.a.s.t.s in his hands and spotting a few stretch marks on her abdomen as she lays there recovering on the cus.h.i.+on on the ground.

"Just one," answers Wildcat with a smile, "my granddaughter, Nubia, my only grandbaby thus far. She's four and she is a joyful little pip."

"Just one," says Bob kind of surprised she doesn't have at least two or three like most free women even though he's not sure of her age. The fact that she's a chief indicates she's most likely a little older than Talia.

Wildcat explains, "Amazon women usually wait until they're at least sixteen to dispose of their virginity which gives them time to get to know their cycle well. They learn when their fertile time is and avoid intimate contact during that time until they decide they're ready for a baby. I think domesticated doctors call it the Rhythm Method. Gives free women just as much control over their reproductivity as domesticated women without risking their reproductive health or future illnesses caused by too many years of using medicines for birth control."

"My next question may offend you," Uncle Bob tells Wildcat, "so please forgive me if it does. But… why didn't it bother you to see or rather how could you watch Ba.s.s with your daughter?"

Wildcat's not offended, just surprised. It actually seems like a good question as he thinks about it for a moment before he answers. "I just don't see it the same way I would if he'ld been doing Squirrel or Angel. I'm just watching her have fun. It doesn't actually register as s.e.x in my mind. It falls under my daughter playing. And she's kind of uptight and very serious. The opposite of Cougar. She needs all the fun she can get… I guess because she's my daughter, there's a barrier in my mind that prevents me from seeing it the same," Wildcat shrugs hoping he explained it sufficiently since he never thought about it before.

"So did Ba.s.s meet the challenge," inquires Bob sitting on a stone by the fire-pit.

"Yeah," answer Wildcat from his stone. "Amazonia's being stubborn about it. He's a young buck and while he did the job, I think it lacked something for her. But more mature males like ourselves got more heart. We put our hearts into all that we do which is something women appreciate. She'll recommend you first, but she'll give him a recommendation too. Plus Angel and Squirrel were visibly impressed with his performance. Squirrel already liked him because he's cute and they've been getting together every time the moment presents itself. But Angel had kind of been ignoring him and now she'll try him out and if she likes how he does, she'll recommend him too."

After arriving home from work, Richy goes straight into the house and changes out of his uniform into a pair of jeans before he heads outside to join everyone else. The children are already sitting at their new picnic table eating supper. He greets them and asks how their day was. Other than the skirmish between the two oldest boys, Beaver and Howl, they had a great day and the two boys are best friends now which Richy tells them is good to hear because they're family now. He ask them where Talia is and they tell him she's still in the tree house where she's been most of the day.

He stops by the new adult picnic table and greets everyone there. The only two people missing are Cougar and Talia.

Roar informs Richy, "Cougar just went to see if Talia's going to come eat with us."

Wildcat adds, "I think she's a little over loaded socially. For years she's spent the majority of her life alone except for two to three days in the city every new moon, then two to three days with Roar, the boys and me while the rest of the tribe shunned her. I think she needed some down time. She spent quite a bit of the day laying on a good sized limb over the tree house, dozed a little, but mostly she just watched the rest of us interact."

"It must be so hard for her," Otter speculates. "At least when Fjord isn't around things basically go back to normal for us within our tribe. But she's never really known normal."

Roar is curious about what things are like when Talia goes into the city, so he asks, "Uncle Bob, what's it like in the city and at work for Talia? She never really talks about it."

Uncle Bob shares, "At work, she's loved. Her personal staff absolutely adores her. She's the boss. I don't hire or fire anyone without her approval. She meets all potential employees after I've interviewed them, and the first thing they learn is that she's the boss. They may initially deal with or technically deal with someone else as their direct supervisor or department head on the daily basis, but Talia calls the shots… Now outside of work, there's always the no shoes issue to deal with. Many people are flat out rude and unfriendly and even more so when they know they're dealing with a free person. So she doesn't like to leave our building. But once in a while someone will manage to drag her out for dinner or to a night club for dancing. She loves dancing, but she hates being surrounded by strangers. She's simply hates being stuck in a crowd of strangers no matter the situation."

Richy sees Cougar climbing down out of the tree house, but Talia's not following him. He tells the others, "I'll be back," heading for the tree house intending to have Talia come down and eat with everyone else. Except on the way to the tree house he pauses to greet Cougar and doesn't like what he smells. He smells Talia on Cougar. He knows what he smells happened hours ago and that nothing truly intimate happened, yet he still grabs Cougar by the back of his neck.

Cougar may not be a guardian, but he's not a submissive male. He and Richy have always been equals, but the gesture tells Cougar they're not anymore and he tells Richy, "Richy nothing happened."

"She got wet for you," states Richy angry.

Cougar informs Richy, "I just wanted to dry f.u.c.k her. But she said no, not without your permission."

Richy releases Cougar with a slight shove and continues to the tree house. Cougar calls after him, "Richy don't," as he leaps up through the opening in the floor of the tree house. She's laying on her right side. Her left side has a large thick scab and is still tender and sore. The bruises Fjord left her with the previous day are already starting to fade and are less purple and more yellow.

Richy lands in a crouch at Talia's feet. She immediately smells his anger and begins to scoot away. Richy grabs her ankle firmly and Talia freezes. Tears begin to well up and over from her eyes and spill down her cheeks as she says meekly, "Richy … Richy you're angry…"

Richy pushes Talia's legs apart as he moves over her. "You got wet for Cougar."

Despite her tears and how upset she is, Talia's face sets firmly for a moment as she tells him, "It was brief, too brief to call a count on." She tucks the excess of her knee length skirt between her thighs and over her crotch.

Richy responds angrily, "Long enough to stain him with it for the day," as he unzips his fly.

Talia attempts to push Richy away unsuccessfully as she informs him, "He was on my a.s.s, but nothing happened. He just wanted to dry-f.u.c.k but I told him not without your permission."

Richy inhales her scent deeply, "Yet you still got wet at just the thought of a little dry-f.u.c.king with him. But smell you now; even though I'm angry and your upset and a little scared with just a touch of p.i.s.sed off, you're still hot, wet and ready for me."

Talia shoves her hands down over her crotch to keep him from pulling her skirt out from over her privates. She spits out, "So, you touch me and I get wet. You breathe on me and I get wet. You step into the same room with me and I get wet. I don't care how wet, hot and ready I am for you. I don't want to mate with you while you're angry like this."

Richy grabs her hands and pins them above her head by her wrists with his left hand. He pulls the bunched up skirt out of his way. Then despite her verbal protests, he pushes his c.o.c.k inside her. Talia's body betrays her by cooperating with Richy's body. Her hips push up to meet his of their own volition in time with his thrusts. Her verbal protest become moans and sighs as he suckles the sensitive spot on her neck below her ear while his free hand slides under her top to squeeze a breast. His mouth moves over hers and her mouth accepts his deep probing kiss.

When the first o.r.g.a.s.m rips through her, Richy releases her wrists. He exposes her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and sucks a nipple into his mouth. Talia's hands fist at her sides as the next o.r.g.a.s.m rips through her. She turns her head away from his next kiss, but Richy grabs her by the hair and turns her head back. She accepts his mouth unhappily. Her feelings are hurt and her body has betrayed her. Her tears continue to spill from her eyes.

A few o.r.g.a.s.ms later, Richy realizes she's not purring for him like she usually does even though her legs are trembling uncontrollably from repeated o.r.g.a.s.ms. He hooks his arms under her knees as he pushes up over her, pulling her legs open wider for him so he can push deeper. He had already been hitting the end of her before that, but this position allows him to hit her cervix dead on. He f.u.c.ks her as hard and deep as he possibly can until he finally c.u.ms deep within her and she's twitching helplessly beneath him, biting her fist to keep from hollering out loud.

Richy tucks his c.o.c.k away into his jeans as he sits back on his heels. He looks at Talia, really looks at her. She's laying there looking away from him as she continues to cry with her nose running like a child. Only part of her body's twitching is caused from the multiple o.r.g.a.s.ms. The rest is from her chest hitching as she fights sobbing out loud. He finally notices that she changed into something pretty. The matching gypsy style top and skirt is a dark yellow that looks glorious against her beautiful tan skin.

Richy straightens her skirt back out and fixes her top back over her b.r.e.a.s.t.s. Then he sits back against a wall of the tree house, pulls her into his lap and hugs her. He can't remember exactly what he was mad about or what he was trying to prove. Was he trying to prove something to himself or to her? Now he just feels like a big dumb jerk as he rocks her not knowing what to say.

"Cougar," Richy calls knowing he didn't go eat and is waiting below the tree house.

Cougar quickly climbs back up into the tree house from where he had been pacing below it. His worry and concern is as clear on his face as it is in his scent. "Man, Richy," he says with his heart aching for both of his friends.

Richy doesn't know what to do or say. But he remembers what Wildcat said about Cougar always being good with Talia that he just always seems to know what to do or say to make her feel better, and he's seen Cougar with her and knows it's true. He knows that Cougar knows Talia better than he does. He tries to articulate something to Cougar, but fails. Instead he hugs and kisses her as he sheds some tears of his own.

"Richy, please, let me hold her," request Cougar slowly putting out his hands to take Talia. "It's okay," he a.s.sures, "I'm not going anywhere with her. We're going to stay here right by you." And he slowly takes Talia in his arms.

As Talia slowly puts her arms around Cougar's neck the tears begin to flow unrestrained and she sobs softly. It's the most mournful sob Richy has ever heard and it's breaking his heart to hear it and he knows he caused it. He watches the way Cougar gently soothes her with soft touches, his hands gliding softly over her tan skin. One of his hands occasionally slides into her hair while other makes slow circles on her back.

Cougar a.s.sures her softly, "It's ok my lovely. It's going to be alright my beautiful, beautiful Talia."

Richy listens as a Talia manages to articulate to Cougar what happened. "I, I … said no… But he, he, he… pa, pa punished me. … I said no (She exhales a soft sob and sniffs.) not, not, not without his permission. An, an, and he still (She sniffs.) he pa, pa, pa, punished me."

Richy doesn't attempt to wipe the tears from his face as he rest his head in his hands. She thinks he was punis.h.i.+ng her. Was he punis.h.i.+ng her? He's not sure what he was trying to do, but make her cry like this sure wasn't it.

A tear runs down Cougar's cheek. "It's my fault," he tells her. "I'm not good for you. I'm always getting you in trouble."

Talia makes the saddest sound Richy has ever heard in his whole life as she clings tighter to Cougar and sobs softly, "No, you're good."

Cougar shakes his head as tears squeeze from his eyes, "I'm sorry my lovely. I'm bad for you."

"No," Richy says pus.h.i.+ng his fingers back through his dark hair. "You're good for her, Cougar."

"I don't understand Richy," says Cougar sadly. "She didn't do nothin' wrong. She's a good mate. Even if she had let me dry-f.u.c.k her, it's nothing to get mad about. It's such a little thing and she wouldn't even do that much without your permission. She's yours Richy. I couldn't take her from you if I wanted to. She can't leave you and she doesn't want to. She's your true-mate and she loves you."

"She loves you too," Richy tells Cougar, "and I guess I was feeling threatened by that. I realized the other day that you're in love with her, that you've always loved her, and that in the not too distant future I would be sharing her with you even though I'd rather not. I'm trying to absorb and accept that, and I don't know… I smelled her arousal for you, but it wasn't just the smell of her arousal. I could smell her longing for you. And we've not been together long but I still know she's not one for being casually aroused. She loves you. It's why she said yes to you after telling all the others no… You always want to give the ones you love that which you know will make them happy. And no one would just let you two be together and love each other. It made me realize I was already sharing her with you because she was in love with you first. Blew my little illusion of having her to myself for a while right out of the water and I just wasn't ready for it."

Cougar shakes his head sadly. "Richy, you're her true-mate. Her love for you comes before her love for me. She can tell me no and walk away. She can't do that with you. Her body will obey your body's demands even if her heart and mind don't want to. So you need to be careful not to abuse that."

Richy nods his understanding to Cougar. Then he request, "Talia, will you look at me please," as he gently touches her hair.

"It's ok beautiful," encourages Cougar, "look at your mate."

Talia's not crying anymore, but she's reluctant to look at Richy.

Richy asks her, "Did you hear your mate, Tali. He said it's ok to look at me."

Talia's been listening to the two men she loves. And she clearly heard Richy call Cougar her mate. She slowly turns her head toward Richy. Her eyes are wide and shocky.

Cougar starts to say, "I'm not…"

"Yes you are," Richy smiles, "just as much as I am and in some ways more… Tali, he's you're mate too. After you've had a chance to think about it, you'll know it's true. But there can be no actual mating until his divorce is final. If it got back to Sheila somehow it would be bad. But the dry-f.u.c.kings ok, just keep it inside and out of sight.

And this may be a selfish dominant male need of mine, but I need the first baby to be mine. And I need this…" Richy pulls a small velvet box from his pocket. He opens it revealing a lovely diamond engagement ring. "Maybe I'm not you're only mate, but let me be your husband. Let me own that. I know I don't deserve it. And it's a guarantee that I'm going to screw up again along the way. But please marry me. Let me be your husband please."

Talia looks at Cougar for what to do.

Cougar tells Talia, "He's the best one for that job."

She looks back at Richy, slowly holds out her left hand and nods. Richy slips the ring from its box and with a shaky hand slides it onto her ring finger.

Talia continues to hold onto Cougar with her right arm across the back of his shoulders with her pet.i.te right hand gripping his left shoulder as she sits in the security of his lap. She uses the first two fingers of her left hand to guide Richy by his chin to her for a kiss.

Richy rest his head in the crook of her neck. She pulls the fingers of her pet.i.te left hand through his smooth dark hair and he relaxes.

"Kiss him," Richy directs Talia. "He's dying to kiss you."

"But we're outside," Talia cranes her head to scan the area. "Someone may see."

"We're on the floor of the tree house at least 10 meters in the air with banister-walls over a meter high." Richy scans the area too. "They'ld almost have to be directly over us. And even then, the roof of the tree house along with all the branches and leaves over us would still block their view."

All three of them scan the area for another minute. Then Cougar turns Talia's face toward his. He runs a thumb over her full lips as his licks his own. Then he runs his thumb along her cheek as he slides his hand back behind her neck. Richy watches waiting to possibly feel jealous or a spike of anger or some other negative emotion. He watches as there's a soft tentative touch and pull of lips that progresses into a deep devouring kiss. But no green eyed monster rears its head, no flames of anger erupt, no negative feelings over whelm him.

What Richy does find himself feeling is awe at the intense eye contact between Talia and Cougar as they attempt to make up for years of no kissing, no touching and not seeing each other, years without contact with the one person that always understood the other. And Richy feels a little sad because he can feel how much they love each other. It's just as strong as the love he and Talia feel for each other. And he's a bit surprised to find himself aroused. The smell of her arousal for Cougar is different than the arousal scent she produces for him. If he was asked to describe the difference, he would say the scent of her arousal for him was zestier while the scent of her arousal for Cougar has sweetness to it.

As Cougar's hand slides down to one of Talia's b.r.e.a.s.t.s, Richy leans in and capture that spot on Talia's neck, causing her to gasp into Cougar's mouth as she arches into Cougar. Richy's hand slides over her other breast as they lay her back on the blankets on the tree house floor. Each man sucks in the nipple of the breast on his side as a hand from each slides under her skirt. Cougar messages her c.l.i.t as Richy slides two fingers inside her. As Richy finger f.u.c.ks her, Cougar captures the sounds from Talia's mouth with his own mouth as he messages her c.l.i.t.

After the first few o.r.g.a.s.ms explode through Talia, Cougar and Richy's hands trade places. Cougar's mouth slides down to the breast on his side and recaptures the nipple. Richy establishes eye contact with Talia. He wants the same eye contact from her that she gave Cougar while he kissed her, and Talia gives it to him as he swallows her gasps, moans and cries of ecstasy as Cougar finger f.u.c.ks her while he ma.s.sages her c.l.i.t.

Talia finds herself laying on the floor of the tree house catching her breath with Richy on one side and Cougar on the other. Both with their head on her shoulder still ma.s.saging the breast on his side as Talia pulls her pet.i.te fingers through their hair. The two men are nearly negatives of each other. They're nearly the exact same height, weight and build. Richy's hair is a deep dark chocolate brown so dark it's nearly black and almost arrow straight. Cougar's hair is a golden blond, thick with large smooth banana curls like his older sister. Richy's skin is nearly the same shade of tan as Talia's, but it's a shade or two lighter with a little more yellow to it, while Cougar's is nearly Caucasian pale like his father. Light enough that if he had lived back in a time when skin color mattered, he would have been mistaken for Caucasian. His hypnotic electric blue eyes from his father would have helped him pa.s.s for white. Richy's brown eyes have tiny black flecks and an almondish slant to their shape.

Richy props up on one elbow to talk to Talia and Cougar, "I've never seen two people make such intense eye contact while they kissed. Most people close their eyes."

Cougar responds, "We've always looked each other in the eyes while we kissed."

"Why'd you close your eyes when we've kissed before this," Richy asks Talia

Talia explains, "I took my cue from you. You were closing your eyes so I closed mine."

Richy smiles at Talia's logical yet simple answer. "So how long has it been since the last time you got to kiss her? Since that incident you told me about when you were teens?"

"Not quite that long," answers Cougar. "Immediately after that incident Talia became really withdrawn. She wouldn't make eye contact with anyone, not with me or even her own mom. None of the boys would go near her, too scared of her Dad, which meant none of the other girls would hang out with her… But you know me Richy, I'm a jacka.s.s. I didn't care what her Daddy said or what anyone else thought. I'ld sit with her, put my arm around her and hold her hand. If her Dad got near us, she'd flinch in fear; tuck herself into a ball and rock back and forth… I don't know what prompted it, but our parents had a discussion and then they informed me that I could play-mate with her like when we were kids, but not in front of the rest of the tribe. Black Bear didn't want any of the other males in the tribe thinking it was okay to touch her… Jacka.s.s me had to make sure I understood clearly exactly what I was allowed to do with her and asked, 'So I can dry f.u.c.k her, suck her t.i.tties and stuff?' I don't know who was more p.i.s.sed at me for that one, her father or my mother. But Black Bear laid it out for me, 'You can do anything you want with her to get off as long as it doesn't involve you putting any part of your anatomy in her woman's channel, not even a finger or so much as your little toe. Her woman's channel is to remain untouched until she's twenty-one.' I had permission to do anything I want with her as long as it didn't involve her 'woman's channel.' So I dragged her thru the forest to a little cave I had found exploring. I lit some candles I had stashed in it, but I don't know how long it took her to just look at me."

"My hair had begun to fall out," recalls Talia.

"What," Richy and Cougar asks together confused.

"That's what prompted their meeting," clarifies Talia, "Mama was brus.h.i.+ng my hair and a large clump fell out in her hand. It terrified her. She called Daddy into the tepee and showed him. They argued in hushed voices. Mama ordered him to look at me. She said something about none of his plans for me would 'bear fruit' if I was 'too broken to function.' He left the tent and she went after him. My mother was a quiet, respectful and supportive mate most of the time. But she wouldn't hesitate to yell at him in front of the whole tribe if necessary… I don't know how long they were gone. Just that when they came back, Wildcat and Irene were with them. There was more serious hushed talk. I heard it all but it all sounded so far away. At the time, very little of it registered or made any sense to me. Mostly it just sounded like gibberish… Then Wildcat brought Cougar into our tepee. Yours was the only voice I heard half way clearly Cougar. And you were brighter than everyone else. But I was afraid to look at you because Daddy was so angry and frustrated… You can call yourself a jacka.s.s if you want, and there are times when you are one; but to me, your voice sounded like music and you looked like an angel."

Cougar thumbs a tear from Talia's face and kisses her lovingly.

"What else do you remember," asks Richy, "What happened next?"

Talia recalls, "Cougar carrying me… Darkness and then soft light… Cougar was talking to me, telling me about the cave." She looks at Cougar, "You were asking me if I heard you, asking me to look at you. Then you were begging me to look at you. Next you were lying next to me crying. I didn't know what to do. You were always comforting me. I didn't know how to comfort you. And I was afraid of what Daddy would do if he caught us alone together. I didn't want him to hurt you and my head hurt so badly. But I remembered lying down with someone for warmth or comfort wasn't bad. It's ok to do that. So I laid down in front of you and scooted back into you. I put my head on your bicep for a pillow. And when your other arm came around me, I took you're hand and clutched it to me…

You asked, 'Tali do you hear me?'

I nodded yes.

Then you asked, 'Can you look at me Tali?'

I nodded, but I didn't do it. I was afraid to."

Cougar shares, "Then I requested, 'Please, Tali, please, look at me. Look at me please,' and you slowly turned your head, very slowly, but you finally gave me those big brown eyes and I said 'Hi.' You looked lost as you blinked at me. But after a long pause you said, 'Hi.' I told you, 'I've missed you,' and you asked me, 'Where did I go?' I said, 'I don't know, but it was too far away. Don't go there again. Stay with me.' You just said, 'Ok.' I asked you to tell me what happened after you left the swimming spot, but you just said, 'No, please.' I asked, 'No you can't tell me or no you won't tell me?' You touched your face and looked confused for a few moments before you answered, 'Won't.' …I know somethin' happened after you left the swimmin' spot. You didn't leave your family tepee for days afterward. I sat by the side I knew you slept on. I talked to you, but you didn't answer. Yet when I slipped my hand under the bottom, you held it. Even after you came out, you didn't talk for weeks and didn't look at anybody. Tali, what happened after you left the swimmin' spot?"

Talia touches her face remembering how her father hit her, but she shakes her head no. She won't tell Cougar what happened. She doesn't plan to tell anyone what happened.

"Your dad told me he hit her," Richy informs Cougar.

"He hit her," repeats Cougar shocked. "He hit you, and you never told me. Talia, why didn't you tell me?"

Talia covers her face with her hands as she shakes her head. Besides just never wanting to speak of it, she especially didn't ever want Cougar to know. "It serves no purpose for either of you to know."

"How many times did he hit you," asks Cougar. Now that he knows, he wants details.

Talia shakes her head no. She doesn't intend to discuss it.

"Answer him," insist Richy. "Your mate has asked you a question that both of us want to know the answer to."

Talia holds up two finger, "Twice. He told me to go to mother, but I didn't know where she was. So I went to our tepee. I was sitting in a ball when he came in asking why I wasn't with mother. I stood to answer, but before I could, he slapped me and yelled for me to get dressed and forbid me to go naked. He slapped me so hard I stumbled and fell. My lips were busted and blood was dripping from them as I slipped a deer skin tank dress over my head. He was yelling at me about being disobedient, that I was supposed to say no. I told him that I did say no. I told him I told them all no like I was supposed to. I hadn't let anyone mount me. He asked me just what the h.e.l.l I thought was happening down there. I said you only asked to taste me that you didn't think that could hurt anything. Then he told me he couldn't believe I was that stupid. I didn't know what to say." Talia sobs, "He yelled, 'Stupid, stupid girl!' Then his fist hit my face and I hit the ground flat on my back. I heard a high pitched keening sound, like a wounded animal dying. He grabbed the front of my dress. I couldn't focus. He was saying something, I don't know what. My head felt like it was going to explode and that dying animal screaming was hurting my ears. I think he was going to punch me again, but mother came in followed by Wildcat and Irene. Mother was screaming and yelling, but it sounded like gibberish. I smelled shock, pain, anger, shame, and sorrow. But between my splitting head and the dying animal screaming, their voices just jumbled together… Wildcat leaned over me and did something to my face with his hands. His hands were b.l.o.o.d.y afterward and then things just went black. After that, things are all fuzzy and jumbled until I'm in the cave with you. Day and night all blurred together. I remember holding your hand while I tried to focus on the music of your voice coming from outside the tepee. I wanted to know what you were singing. I wanted you to sing some more. And every time you went away, I cried. I don't know how much time pa.s.sed like that. But in the cave alone with you, Cougar, I felt safe. And I remember crying when you said we had to go back. And you made me feel better by a.s.suring me we'ld come back another time."

"So what did you two do while you were alone in that cave together," ask Richy.

"I was a h.o.r.n.y teenage guy who had been given permission to do anything with the girl of his dreams as long as I didn't touch or disturb her 'woman's channel.' So I did everything else I could think of to do with her, experimented to see what I could get away with doing with her without making any scents that would tell others what we'ld been up to because Black Bear didn't want any of the other males in our tribe getting ideas. Plus he didn't want them angry about me having special privileges with Talia while everyone else was totally banned from her."

"You weren't allowed to put any part of yourself in her v.a.g.i.n.a," that part is perfectly clear to Richy. "So, this was the first time you ever got to finger f.u.c.k her."

Cougar nods yes.

Talia smiles nefariously, "I liked it. You two cooperate well, like you've had practice."

"We've shared a few women before," admits Richy, "mostly during college. We both attracted a lot of females, but Cougar was better at chatting them up for one night stands. I know the typical guy fantasy is to have a three some with two women. But we've both been there done that and it's a lot of work pleasing two women at the same time. Plus they recover faster. It's actually easier for two guys to share one woman than it is for one guy to please two because you share the work. And if she's really open minded and game for just about anything, we can both get off at the same time."

"Richy's got the triple X size c.o.c.k," adds Cougar a bit unhappily. "So when we found one with an open mind, I got stuck with all the a.n.a.l and oral action. There's not a woman in her right mind that would let Richy stick that up her a.s.s."

"I'm not interested in a.n.a.l anyway," responds Richy.

"Hey, v.a.g.i.n.al s.e.x is always my first choice," Cougar informs Richy upset. "I'ld actually rather m.a.s.t.u.r.b.a.t.e than do a woman a.n.a.lly. Besides, there's no way for you to do a woman a.n.a.lly without hurting her."

"Shush," Talia tells Cougar soothingly as she touches him comfortingly.

"What's wrong," Richy asks Cougar, "Why are you upset?"

"I hurt Tali once," admits Cougar. "The first time went ok. But the second time I got over zealous and hurt her."

"You two have had a.n.a.l s.e.x," asks Richy surprised.

Cougar reminds him, "I told you I was a h.o.r.n.y teenage guy with permission to do almost anything he wanted with the girl of his dreams. I couldn't touch the one orifice I really wanted, but none of the others were off limits."

"Cougar," Talia says softly, "it was a long time ago, and you weren't trying to hurt me. It was an accident. And even though you never asked that of me again, I would have submitted to you. Even now I would."

Richy asks Talia, "Have you given him oral too?"

Talia blushes embarra.s.sed as she nods and answers with a soft, "Yes."

Richy sits up and leans back against the tree house wall. His brain needs a minute to digest what he's just learned about his new mate. The woman he's in love with, whose virginity he took as she was bent over his kitchen table before him, in many ways was no virgin at all. She'd done more things with Cougar when they were teenagers than he's ever done with any one woman. Of course Talia and Cougar have basically known each other their whole lives and have a comfort level that only years of love and friends.h.i.+p can develop. Richy's never had a relations.h.i.+p with a woman long enough to develop that type of comfort level. h.e.l.l, he's just approaching the one month mark with Talia.

Richy asks himself if this information changes anything and the answer is no. He loves Talia. He wants to marry her and make babies with her. Cougar is still his best friend who's like a brother to him. And Cougar won't do anything with Talia he's uncomfortable with. And Talia won't do anything with Cougar he hasn't given permission for them to do, not even something as simple and harmless as dry-f.u.c.king.

Richy looks intently at both Cougar, his best friend, and Talia, his mate, sitting together side-by-side on their heels looking back at him; there's a lot of worry and concern on their faces and in their scents, especially on Talia's face.

Talia looks at Cougar and tells him, "He doesn't want me because of the things we've done together."

Richy tells Talia, "It doesn't change anything. It's not how I imagined things would be when I found the woman I would spend my life with, and that's ok. The belief that you can only be in love with and dedicated to one person at a time is a domesticated idea. So what if our lives don't fit domesticated ideals of perfection. I still love you Talia. I still want you, and I want to make babies with you."

Richy reaches into the toy box and pulls out a container of baby wipes he keeps up here for the kids, "Let's clean up. It won't take odors out of our clothes. But it should tone it down enough that it'll just seem like you got real close while we were having s.e.x Cougar. Eventually everybody will know. But we don't want n.o.body knowing our business for now with Sheila out on bail and Fjord running around with too much information as it is. It wouldn't surprise me at this point if he knew Sheila somehow."

Talia was surprised by how well the baby wipes worked. Except for the odors that had been absorbed by their clothes, the wipes completely removed the odors from their skin which left her and Richy smelling a little too clean, but left Cougar smelling like an innocent bystander. Richy didn't believe anyone here was any kind of a tattletale. But the wrong or right thing said at the wrong or right time, place or person could be potentially potent in the future. Now whether that was a positive or negative thing always depended on where you were standing when the s.h.i.+t hit the fan; behind the fan, no problem, directly in front of the fan; well, you get the idea.

Cougar and Richy sit Talia down at the new adult picnic table to have dinner. And despite her insistence she can make her own plate, they insist on doing it for her. All the other adults have eaten and have scattered to do their own thing. Most are watching the children or playing with the children. Zenith and Aunt Seal, Grandma if you're one of the kids, are twirling a jump rope for the kids. Angel is nowhere in sight which isn't unusual. She's a bit of a loner so she's probably doing what Talia spent most of the day doing; up in a tree laying on a limb dosing. Roar and Wildcat are sitting in the gra.s.s watching the children jump rope. They are talking and glancing in Talia's direction which means the two men will be coming over to check on Talia shortly.

On the other side of the yard in the shade of some mature trees is handmade lawn furniture that's been white washed: a love seat, two chairs, a coffee table and two end tables. Talia can see her Uncle Bob sitting on the love seat with Otter straddling him. Otter's wearing the same gypsy style outfit as Talia in orange. Seal made the outfits for both of them. The knee length skirt covers Uncle Bob's lap completely. But what's happening underneath the beautiful orange skirt is still obvious as Otter's hips rise, lower and roll over Bob's groin, one of his hands squeezes Otter's ample round bottom as she tosses her head back for a moment. Bob cups a breast and his mouth locks onto it.

Talia claps her hands over her mouth to keep from laughing out loud. Cougar asks her, "What's so funny?" pausing his conversation with Richy concerning what Talia's already eaten today and what they should put on her plate for supper.

Smiling a large amused smile, Talia motions toward her uncle as she exclaims, "Uncle Bob, I've never seen him like that before. I'm sure he's never done it outside before… Oh, is that coleslaw? If that's coleslaw, I definitely want a little."

Richy gives her a nod and wink of confirmation. A little coleslaw on her plate there will be.

Cougar watches Uncle Bob and Otter for a minute, "They're definitely hot and heavy over there." Then he looks away from them and sees they're about to get company, "My dad and Roar are headed for us. They saw the way you grabbed me earlier Richy. I'm sure they're concerned."

Talia gives Richy a sour look for grabbing Cougar. Richy shrugs sheepishly in response to her sour look. Then he tells Cougar, "Sorry about that," as they bring Talia her plate and sit on either side of her to eat with her.

"Is everything alright," ask Roar concerned.

All three of them look at Roar, nod and answer, "Fine."

Roar nods in return, "We were a little worried. We saw the way Mist grabbed Cougar. You were obviously angry Mist."

Richy admits, "I over reacted a bit. But n.o.body's angry now. We're cool. We worked it out."

"Not without some hurt feelings first," states Wildcat. "You've been crying Talia. I can smell it. You all smell of fear, shame, anger and s.e.x and yet you all smell too d.a.m.n clean at the same time."

Talia sighs, "Richy was angry and over reacted a little. He admitted that. Yes, I got upset and cried. But we're all grownups. We discussed it, agreed on a solution and the problem's solved. It's over. We don't feel the need to discuss it further. Thank you for your concern."

"Huh-huh," Wildcat is unconvinced and irritated, "Keeping secrets now are we?"

Talia glares at Wildcat, "Perhaps, but we're adults, and occasionally we can solve our own problems. And sometimes some things are no one else's business. Now, I love you and I respect you. But please don't ask the wrong question and make me tell you it's none of your d.a.m.n business."

Wildcat smiles at Talia, "Panther p.i.s.s, you got your grandmother's temper."

"I've got something I want to discuss," states Cougar turning toward his father, "And it's a secret too. What I want to know is, when were you going to tell me Black Bear hit Talia over the incident at the swimming spot?"

Wildcat looks like someone smacked him without a warning.

"Dad hit you," questions Roar in shocked disbelief. "Is that why I spent that week in your tepee," he ask Wildcat.

Wildcat's eyes fill up with tears as he answers, "yeah." He informs Roar, "Your father didn't want you to see what he'd done. He never wanted to see that look of horror in your eyes that's there now. And that's just from knowing he hit her. You didn't see her. Thank Mother Earth you didn't see her."

Wildcat goes over to the fire pit a few meters away and sits on one of the sitting stones surrounding it and buries his face in his hands a few moments. Then he beckons Talia to him, "Please, Dearest, come to me."

Talia gives the hand of each man on either side of her a rea.s.suring squeeze and goes to Wildcat who pulls her onto his lap. He holds her tightly for a few minutes. Then he kisses her forehead and begins to articulate what he saw that day. There's no need to keep it a secret anymore. Talia knows all too well how difficult this is for him to recall it and share it. It's one thing to recall something traumatic. It's another thing to try to articulate traumatic painful memories to others.

Wildcat shares, "I heard Black Bear yell at you to go to your mother. As parents, Irene and mine's first concern was for our own child. But Cougar's first concern was for you. He came up out of the water spittin' and sputtering and ready to run after you to make sure you were alright. As he had come up for air, he saw Black Bear yank you up by the hair and give you a hard rattle. Cougar pushed me and Irene away shouting that he was fine. He just wanted to get to you. He asked us if we were blind, hadn't we seen what he's just done to you? …I look over at your father and there was a look in his eyes I had never seen before. I literally knew the man his whole life. I'd seen him happy, mad, sad, grief stricken, but I have no words for the look in his eyes at that moment. I think he may have wanted to kill Cougar for possibly ruining all his carefully made plans. Instead, he ended up taking it out on you… I knew where you were going. The last place your mother had been when you left to go swimmin' was your tepee. But I knew she had gone to wash clothes with some other women further down river. I sent Irene to get her. Irene ran. I didn't know she had it in her to run. I should have run too, but I didn't want to alarm the tribe and I couldn't imagine him harming you. Plus, me running in a panic would have panicked the tribe.

When I stepped into the tent, you were hitting the ground hard."

"How hard," ask Richy. "How hard did she hit the ground?"

Wildcat is silent a moment as he re-sees the event. Tears make a run for it as he answers, "Her head bounced… Dearest, ya hit so hard yur head bounced. I yelled 'Black Bear!' because he grabbed you by the front of your dress and punched you and was pulling his fist back to do it again when Doe came slicing by me. She tackled him, knocking him on his a.s.s and asked him if he'd lost his mind… And the cry that came out of you… I never heard anything like it before in my life from a human being or an animal. Everybody heard it. They talked about it for days. They all thought it was some animal dying a horrible death somewhere nearby."

"That was you," Roar asks Talia.

"I guess," Talia shrugs, "I remember hearing a mind splitting high pitched animal scream. It sounded like it was right by my ears."

"Dearest, that was you," Wildcat informs Talia. "I still can't believe that not only did you survive, but your face healed almost perfectly. Your beautiful lips were swollen and split wide open. Your right eye was black and swollen shut. Your nose gushed blood and it was no longer in the center of your face. I pushed it back into place and straightened it out as best I could just before you pa.s.sed out. If you lived, we didn't think it would ever look proper again. We thought your face would be disfigured for life. But except for your nose being slightly thicker than it originally was, it's perfect.

When you were conscious again, your mother begged you to bring up your guardian. You looked like you were trying to, but something wasn't working right that first day. The second day you were able to bring it on at least half way, but only for a few minutes at a time. You didn't actually sleep the first couple of days. You just slipped in and out of consciousness. You didn't talk or make any eye contact with any of us. The only person you responded to was Cougar which just p.i.s.sed your father off.

But by the time you were healed enough to come out of the tent, your mother didn't care about your father's grand plans anymore. She just wanted what was best for you and your father and his fancy plans be d.a.m.ned. If you responded to Cougar, then by Mother Earth, you were going to be free to spend as much time with him as you needed. I still didn't think you would ever stop flinching away from your father; even though, you had made significant progress by the end of that summer."

"Are you speaking of the summer Talia turned thirteen," ask Uncle Bob as he walks up with Otter, sits on a stone near Wildcat and guides Otter onto his lap.

"Yes," Roar answers Uncle Bob.

Uncle Bob shares as he recalls, "Reynold was in Megalopolis when they brought Talia home at the end of the summer. Panther knew something was wrong, but no one would tell her what happened. She called Reynold and told him Talia smelled like a wounded animal, that her father smelled of anger, deep worry, hostility and guilt. All Doe and Black Bear would tell her was that there had been an accident, which Panther knew was a lie, but they wouldn't tell her what actually happened… Reynold had Panther get their house supervisor to drive them to Megalopolis. He had their family physician check Talia out thoroughly: x-rays and everything, the works. Do you remember Talia?"

Talia nods her head yes, "Dr. Zanicki had lots of tests run. But they didn't discuss any of it with me. Me'me' was very upset. She and Grandpa both slept with me for a long time after that. And she insisted on learning to drive after that."

Uncle Bob shares, "The x-rays and scans showed that your nose had been broken and there were healed fractures in your right eye socket. He wanted to know what plastic surgeon you'ld been to, to fix your face, because he couldn't find any evidence of surgery. He said your nose would have required a lot of skill and possibly three to four surgeries to have gotten it so perfect… Then he said he didn't know how you had survived the severe skull fractures. He asked Reynold and Panther again if they were sure you hadn't been treated for your injuries. He told them the one fracture was so severe he would have considered it a miracle if you had survived in a vegetative state. The fact that you were walking and talking left him at a loss for words. He said your speech center had been damaged and that's why you were either slow to respond, didn't respond at all and why your speech was sometimes stuttered and clipped or you didn't finish what you were saying. At the time, he couldn't say whether the speech problems you were having were temporary or permanent. And he told them, you may have trouble with incapacitating migraine headaches for the rest of your life."

"Dearest do you have trouble with your head," asks Wildcat concerned. His fingertips tenderly slide over her forehead. His hypnotic electric blue eyes are filled with worry.

"Occasionally," admits Talia, "At first, all the time. But now, not usually any more than once a month."

Roar lifts Talia's face and asks, "What do you do when your head aches? How do you deal with it?" His large fingers explore her round tan face, tracing her seemingly perfect nose.

"Do like I did today," Talia explains, "find a place that's quiet and comfortable, take a nap, try to sleep it off. I don't like to rely on medication. But at work, in my desk, I keep ibuprofen, acetaminophen and prescription codeine. If a few ibuprofen don't work, I take a few acetaminophen. And if that doesn't work, I take two codeine."

"Two codeine," says Uncle Bob concerned, "and how many is a few of the others. Zanicki has never mentioned Codeine."

Talia smiles but it doesn't reach her eyes. "I've been an adult for a while now. Dr. Zanicki only mentions what I give him permission to mention. For a domesticated person like yourself, one or two acetaminophen or ibuprofen would do. But for me a minimum dose is four, but sometimes I need eight. If that doesn't work, I take the codeine. One would probably put you to sleep. Two still don't make me drowsy. But it will allow me to function until I can lie down in a cool, dark, quiet room and sleep it off… Please try not to worry. I seldom get one that bad anymore. And if I catch it right when it's starting, the acetaminophen and/or the ibuprofen usually work."

Uncle Bob missed most of the conversation, so he asks, "So what happened Talia? How were you injured?"

Talia's reluctant to answer, so Roar informs him, "Dad hit her."

"At least twice," adds Cougar. "He slapped her and Talia remembers he punched her so hard she went over backward and landed flat on her back. My dad saw her hit the ground hard and saw him grab her and punch her. So I think he actually hit her three times, one slap and two punches."

Talia sighs, "It was a long time ago. All gone now, and I'm fine." She stands up from Wildcat's lap, "I'm fine and I really don't want to talk about it anymore or ever again." A goofy grin spreads across her face, "Now what I want to talk about is what you and Otter were doing over there. That's a very beautiful young woman on your lap Uncle Bob."

"My stones," exclaims Uncle Bob embarra.s.sed, "You saw."

Talia giggles as if she were being tickled. "Why are you embarra.s.sed? It's nice to see you having a good time, funny too."

"Uncle Bob asked me earlier about being able to watch my kids mating," Wildcat informs Talia. "I explained it the best I could that it was just like watching them play. But maybe you can explain it better. I'm not sure I did very well."

Talia shrugs as her eyes continue to twinkle with amus.e.m.e.nt. "Ok, I know you and Otter were over there having hot s.e.x. I know that, but it just doesn't register as that. It was like watching Roar, who thinks he's the king and all the women want him. But for me he's just my oversized goofy older brother and he's not king of anything and he's lucky Zenith wants him."

"I'm not goofy," insists Roar, "and lots of women do want me and find me desirable."

Talia giggles and tells Uncle Bob, "Roar and s.e.x just equals ridiculous and funny in my mind with his grunting and growling and 'mmm, yeah, I know you like it.'"

Cougar laughs, "Funny is my sister with her, 'I'm gonna ride you into the ground.'"

Otter shakes her head smiling, "Ba.s.s is hilarious. He thinks all women want him, but just don't want to admit it."

"I don't know if that helped," Talia shrugging amused, "but I just didn't see hot s.e.x."

"You just wait," Roar tells Talia, "I've seen Mist urinating, and you and him doing it has got to be ridiculous because there's no way that fits properly in little bitty you."

Cougar laughs and tells Roar, "You and Richy both have triple X size c.o.c.ks, and you always manage to make yours fit properly."

"Look at how small Talia is;" Roar tells Cougar, "I've never tried to fit it in a woman that tiny. I only mount full-sized women."

Talia tells Roar, "There aren't any other women in the tribe as short as me, silly."

Uncle Bob notices the glint on Talia's left hand and asks curious, "What's that on your finger Talia?"

Talia beams as she holds out her left hand for Uncle Bob and Otter to see and says, "Oh you mean this."

"Oh," exclaims Otter putting her hand over her heart, "It's beautiful."

Uncle Bob asks, "Is that an engagement ring?"

"Yes," answers Talia with a happy giddy smile, "Richy asked me to marry him."

"And you obviously said yes," states Otter with a smile.

Talia responds, "It's on my finger, ain't it?"

Otter hops up from Bob's lap and hugs Talia tightly, "That's wonderful."

Uncle Bob stands and takes Talia's hands, "You two haven't known each other long so I think this is moving a little fast. But if you're happy, I'm happy." Then he kisses her cheeks and hugs her.

"I don't see the point," says Wildcat, "You're true mates. It's a given that you're going to spend the rest of your lives together. Ya don't need no stupid domestic ceremony to make it so."

Talia sadly places her left hand over her heart and covers it with her right hand. She repeats one word from what Wildcat just said, "Stupid..."

Wildcat may be the oldest and wisest of all the men here, but he's still a man. It's been years since he's stuck his foot in his mouth like this. But Talia's scent and the look on her face tells him he just hurt her feelings very badly.

Richy gets up from the picnic table and goes to Talia. "Come on. Come eat your supper. You've hardly eaten a thing." As he guides Talia back to the picnic table, he glances back at Wildcat and gives him a hard glare.

As Richy sits back down at the picnic table with Talia, Wildcat sees his son Cougar giving him the same hard glare. He watches the way his son and Richy crowd Talia protectively. He knows both young men are mated to Talia and wonders if they realize it. He considers that perhaps that's why they didn't want to talk after they came down from the tree house smelling way too clean. Their clothes smell of s.e.x, anger, tears, sadness and love. Their clothes smell of those things but they don't. He can't tell whose done what with whom or whether they've done something altogether and perhaps that was the point. He knows until the divorce is final if Cougar has s.e.x with anyone it's cheating.

The last person Wildcat would ever want to hurt is Talia and he feels horrible as he sits there by the fire pit with his elbows on his knees, chin resting on his laced fingers watching as Talia rest her head on Cougar's shoulder for a moment. Cougar kisses her forehead. Wildcat watches the way both young men crowd her protectively, touch her tenderly and offer her words of comfort. He knows they have agreed to share Talia which just makes the domestic marriage idea more confusing for Wildcat. He doesn't see the point.

"Please try to eat something," Richy encourages Talia.

"Can we just go in and lay down," Talia ask Richy and Cougar. "Maybe… maybe I'll be hungry later."

Richy looks at Cougar and Cougar nods yes.

"Ok," Richy tells Talia, "let's go lay down."

"I'll be up in a couple of minutes," Cougar tells Richy and Talia. "I'll take your plate to the kitchen, wrap it up and put it in the fridge." Then he watches Richy lead Talia into the house. When they're out of sight, Cougar smacks the top of the picnic table and says, "d.a.m.n it Dad."

Wildcat responds, "I didn't mean to hurt her feelings. That domestic engagement and marriage thing caught me off guard. I just don't get it."

"You don't have to get it," Cougar tells his father. "All you have to get is it made her happy. And you made her feel stupid for it."

Wildcat's eyes well up with tears, "You know it wasn't intentional."

"She'll stand here and insist she's fine when we all know she's not," Cougar tells his father. "She's hid the fact that she's been suffering from migraine headaches for years. And Black Bear didn't just leave her hurt physically, he left her damaged emotionally. Right before he punched her to the ground he told her how stupid she was for trusting me. She's constantly worried she's not living up to a dead man's expectations of her… After she started talking again, she told me she knew her father wished she was a boy because boys can't get pregnant. And she wasn't talking at first after he nearly killed her because she couldn't talk. She was hearing gibberish when we were talking. So when is it finally going to be alright for her to be happy? When is it finally going to be alright for Talia to just be Talia?"

Cougar takes Talia's plate from the table and walks away to the house. Wildcat exclaims "s.h.i.+t," softly as he watches Cougar step into the house.

"Wildcat," Roar's voice is soft and understanding, "Talia loves and respects you. Her feelings were hurt, but she won't hold a grudge."

"It's because she loves and respects me I should be more mindful of what I say," responds Wildcat angry with himself. "She takes my words into her heart. I heard your father tellin' her she was stupid before I stepped into the tepee and saw her hitting the ground. And never once did I think to say something to counter what he said… And your father wis.h.i.+n' she were a boy is true. While she was unconscious he was trying to explain his loss of temper to me, Irene and mostly to Doe. He had no faith in her. He doubted she could successfully carry the burdens we were putting on her shoulders. He wanted Doe to stop her birth control and try for a boy with him. It was Black Bear's idea of a backup plan. But Doe was never going to forgive him for his fit of temper and told him she would never have another baby with him… Doe never doubted Talia. Where Black Bear saw weakness, she saw strength. Where he saw stupid ignorance, she saw honest innocence. And all she was at that time was an innocent young girl. She wasn't trying to defy him in any way. Yet none of us ever thought to tell her we believed in her. None of us have ever thanked her for her sacrifice made for the sake of our tribe. We've never thanked her for not only keeping our territory from being shrunk further, but for also recovering huge chunks of our lost land. Instead, we stood by and let our tribe, her own tribe, treat her like she's some kind of freak… I wish she would get angry and yell at me, punch me in the gut like she did Fjord. Mother Earth knows I deserve it."

"You're not the only one who deserves it," Roar tells Wildcat. "I was supposed to be keeping an eye on her that day. It was her first day back for the summer. But it seemed like she was being a good girl to me, she was politely telling the boys no explaining it as she just wasn't ready yet. Then I got distracted by a newly ripened young beauty. So while Dad was having his fit of temper on her pretty face, I was busy deflowering a virgin. And never once did Dad ever ask me where I was, why wasn't I doing as I was told and keeping an eye on her? And Mom only asked with her eyes. I knew something was wrong, but I didn't know what it was. And when I asked what was wrong with Talia, Dad told me to mind my own business. And I did, I obeyed that without any problems… I couldn't keep an eye on my little sister like I was supposed to, but I could mind my own business when it came to my little sister's wellbeing."

"So, neither of you is blameless," interrupts Uncle Bob. "But neither of you hit her. Neither of you nearly killed her. So, don't beat yourselves up over it. Tell her you're sorry if you feel you need to. Beg her forgiveness if you feel you need it. But start treating her like you know she deserves to be treated for Heaven's Sake or Mother Earth's Sake, but especially for Talia's sake. Treat her like she deserves and needs to be treated and don't allow anyone else, tribe or not, to mistreat her anymore."

Wildcat and Roar watch Uncle Bob walk away with Otter in tow. Uncle Bob slides the sliding gla.s.s door shut behind them after they step inside.

"It sounds simple enough," Roar says to Wildcat.

Wildcat responds, "You know just as well as I do, it ain't never as simple as it sounds."

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Wildcat finds himself standing in the doorway of the master bedroom watching them sleep. He wonders why they're not naked. Richy and Cougar are wearing boxer style briefs and Talia's wearing one of Cougar's tank t-s.h.i.+rts. She's laying on her good side against Richy. Her left leg is resting on him with his right hand gripping her thigh. Cougar is spooning her with his left hand under her arm cupping a breast as he humps her bottom occasionally in his sleep.

Wildcat stifles a laugh into a silent chuckle as he watches his son make little humping motions against Talia's heart shaped bottom. To Wildcat it's just as cute as when they were kids play mating.

"Oh that's cute," comments Otter stopping for a moment with Bob on their way to his room for the night.

"Yeah," agrees Wildcat with a smile, "It reminds me of when they were little. Cougar didn't want no other little boys play mating with his Talia. If he caught another boy pretending to mount her and hump her bottom, that other boy would find himself shoved down into the dirt. The summer she was eight and he was eleven, he shoved down Greywolf who was twelve and about a half a head taller than him. Greywolf got up and shoved him back and Cougar promptly bloodied his nose. Greywolf's a guardian and he was just coming into his powers about that time. It could have been suicide for Cougar, but I guess Greywolf figured he was crazy and let it go."

"The skirmish between the two boys earlier today," Uncle Bob asks curious, "what was that about?"

"Older brothers can sometimes be very protective of their little sisters," explains Wildcat. "Howl has taken quite a s.h.i.+ne to Beaver's younger sister, Minnow. It's Howl's first real crush and he and Minnow have been play mating. And Beaver was ok with Howl play mating with Minnow when he was just humping her bottom. But Howl decided to make things a little more personal. He had Minnow lay on her back for him and he was stealing little peck kisses. Beaver didn't like it… Don't look and smell so shocked Bob. I wouldn't be surprised if Howl and Minnow grew up to be mates. When a boy shows that much interest in a girl, that's usually what happens. I've seen it happen lots of times before. I've been around long enough for that. But everybody's different."

"Why are you so sad," Otter asks Wildcat concerned.

"I'm an old dog with a lot of memories," answers Wildcat. "Sometimes when you look back, you can see clearly what you would have done differently for things to have turned out better. Other times something you thought was a bad thing works out for the best and you're grateful you didn't have the power to go back and change things because you would have ruined a good thing… People think I'm wise, but mostly I've learned the hard way like everybody else. Black Bear kept expecting her to be more like her mother and grandmother, more Amazonish. Not size wise, Doe was about your height Otter while Panther wasn't much taller than Talia. Of course how pet.i.te Talia is did bother him. He definitely saw it as a weakness or a physical flaw… But personality wise he kept expecting her to be more like them. Panther's Great Grandfather was an Amazon and a lot of their ways got pa.s.sed down to her. So Panther disposed of her virginity at sixteen like most Amazon females do. h.e.l.l, I was the one she used to dispose of it with just a couple of months before she met Reynold. I was part of the crowd that had gathered and was teasing her about the way he had a hold of her… Doe had waited until she was sixteen too; even though, Panther and Reynold had gotten her a birth control implant when she was thirteen. But she didn't dispose of it the way an Amazon female would. She let a young man mount her and take it. There were a couple of other boys waiting to mount Doe next. Except Black Bear had been waiting patiently for Doe to decide when she was ready to be mounted. When she came to spend time with the tribe, sometimes just with her mother, sometimes with both of her parents, he always made it a point to pay attention to her, sit and talk with her. He loved her smile… Anyway, those other two boys didn't get to mount her that day because Black Bear waved them away. He monopolized her from the other males every time she came to visit the tribe after that. Black Bear was a big man like his son Roar. And when he decided he wanted to be chief, he gave Eagle the choice of stepping down and being his advisor or they could fight and Black Bear would take the job from him. Eagle was a smart man and he stepped down. But the change in chiefs strained our relations.h.i.+p with a few of the other tribes as such things often do… To ease the tension between our tribes, the Amazonia of the Amazon tribe at that time offered Black Bear his choice of the young women to take as his mate. He chose the tallest of them available at the time; hence Roar is even taller than he was. It being an arranged mating, there was no love between the two of them. Doe hadn't liked the situation. But she still thought it tragic when Brazil died right after giving birth to Roar. He was a big baby. But Doe couldn't have loved that boy more if she had birthed him herself. That was when she started to live full-time with the tribe, with Black Bear… But I know Black Bear a.s.sumed Talia would wait until she was sixteen. That we would have time to explain to her what we were wanting from her and perhaps by that time they would have found a birth control device that would have worked for her and it wouldn't be an issue anymore. But we all know what happened now. And no matter how much I wish for it, I can't undo it."

"You're over thinking it," Otter tells Wildcat, "Get some sleep and release your ghosts."

"We'll see you in the morning," Bob tells Wildcat. Then he leads Otter into his room for the night and shuts the door. Wildcat knows they won't be going straight to sleep and he closes the master bedroom door. Instead of going to the other spare bedroom across the hall to sleep, he finds Ba.s.s banging Angel on the living room floor using the position Amazonia taught him. And Angel, who's usually silent during s.e.x, is whimpering helplessly beneath him. He heads up to the room over the garage with its four large futon. The children are all lumped together on one futon sleeping peacefully. Howl is spooning Minnow and he does a little hump against her bottom in his sleep. Wildcat smiles. They are future mates for sure as long as no one does anything to prevent it.