Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 86162 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86162 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Solon felt his heart swell once more but he told himself to be cautious. He was going to have to take things slowly if he wanted to earn her trust. And there was nothing he wanted more in the entire universe at this moment than for his fated mate to trust him.
17
ABBEY
After she finally got to pee and wash her hands, Abbey came out of the bathroom feeling relieved. She had memorized the layout so she wouldn’t need a tour again.
She took Solon’s offered arm and he brought her into a large, echoing space that must be some kind of kitchen, though he told her it was called a “food prep area.” He got her seated on a high stool—so high that her feet didn’t touch the ground—at a table that came up past her breasts. Abbey surmised that the table and stool must be built for Kindred sized people and since almost all of the alien warriors were seven feet tall and over, it made sense for their furniture to be oversized.
“I’m putting a cup of T’sane brew right in front of you. Please be careful, it’s extremely hot,” Solon rumbled.
“Thank you.” Abbey felt carefully for the cup, which unfortunately was clear. Or she thought it was—at any rate, she couldn’t see it against the backdrop of the dark brown table.
“Is there a problem?” Solon asked, sounding anxious.
“No, no!” Abbey said quickly. “It’s just…this cup must be clear. Or else the same color as the table?” she asked.
“It’s made of clear glass,” he acknowledged. “Why?”
“Well, because I can still see colors, I use them as visual clues,” Abbey explained. “Lots of blind people and people with profound vision loss still use what vision they have left to help them get around and function in the world,” she added. “I’m really lucky I can still see colors and contrasts.”
“Would it help if I poured the brew into a different colored cup?” he asked.
“If you have one,” Abbey said. “Anything high contrast—if the tea is dark brown and the table is dark brown, a white or bright yellow cup would make it much easier for me to see.”
“Let me see what I have.” He stood up at once and Abbey heard him rummaging through the cabinets. A moment later he came back and asked, “Does this work?”
There was a flurry of motion in her field of vision and she saw a gold blur holding a white blur.
“Yes, that’s perfect.” Abbey nodded.
“Give me a moment.” He took the cup away as well as the one he’d placed in front of her. A minute later, the white cup filled with steaming, fragrant liquid reappeared. “There—please be careful, it’s still hot,” he remarked.
“Thank you.”
Abbey lifted the cup with both hands and brought it carefully to her mouth. She blew on the steaming liquid and then took a little sip, being sure she wasn’t going to burn her tongue. It was sweet and floral with a hint of mint—she liked it at once.
“Mmm, this is good,” she said, looking up at the golden blur beside her.
“I’m glad you like it.” His voice was deep and rumbling—though hearing it in her dreams had frightened her, Abbey found she liked it now.
It amazed her that she felt so comfortable with the big Kindred who she had feared so desperately just an hour ago. How had he gotten her to trust him so easily?
Abbey didn’t know, but she did feel a cautious sense of optimism. He had her alone with him in a strange place but he hadn’t hurt her—in fact, he’d saved her when she fell into the bathing pool and listened while she poured her heart out about Henry’s attack.
He’d also promised not to touch her unless she wanted to be touched—that was huge for Abbey. After what she’d been through, she needed assurances like that in order to feel safe with a member of the opposite sex—especially one as big and strong as Solon obviously was.
After they drank the tea he had made them, he asked her what kind of foods she liked to eat.
“I’ve got a lot of Earth cuisine meal cubes but if you have a special meal that you want, please let me know what ingredients to get and I’ll try to cook it for you,” he told her.
“Meal cubes?” Abbey frowned. “What are those?”
Solon explained that they were instant meals which rehydrated and expanded when placed in a rehydrator machine, which was apparently an appliance he had in his kitchen.
“The packaging becomes a plate in the rehydrator which holds the food. Afterwards, you can throw everything away together,” he told her. “I know it’s a lazy way to cook, but it’s also convenient and the meals are often quite delicious. The Kindred go to the most popular restaurants and dehydrate and shrink the fresh food while it’s still hot down into cube form for indefinite storage.”