CROSSRepent by Hildred M. Billings

Author:Hildred M. Billings [Billings, Hildred M.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Barachou Press
Published: 2024-02-09T00:00:00+00:00

The Gardiahs’ hospitality hadn’t slackened since Devon’s last visit. Fanar never stopped talking, and his mother Sonjah still made some of the best home-cooked meals Devon had sampled in the Federation. I haven’t had many, sure, he thought while sampling the tesatah wine the Gardiahs got out for this occasion, but I know good food when I eat it.

Alicia likewise was impressed with the coziness of the farmhouse and the otherworldly flavors of the food. Every time she asked a question about what they ate, Sonjah patiently explained, and Fanar rattled off all the other things one could make with the same ingredients. Devon only recognized some of them. There was a Federation-inspired Four-Star restaurant back in the Bay Area, and while they served some Arrahite cuisine, they didn’t have anything like the stew put before him that first night in his original homeland.

When Alicia heard this, she asked Sonjah for copies of the family recipes. Sonjah agreed to hand them over, with the understanding that neither Alicia nor Devon would sell them until she was dead.

“Fancy yourself an Arrahite chef now?” Devon asked his girlfriend while the plates were cleared away. “I don’t think you can get half of the ingredients anywhere near where we live.”

“No, we fancy ourselves chefs now.”

“I was afraid you might say that.”

Some things threw Alicia off, though, and Devon kicked himself for not seeing such spots ahead of time. For one flummoxing example, Alicia inquired if there was a way to take a shower or otherwise bathe, and Sonjah immediately showed her to a room that had no running water or much electricity. At first, she worried that there had been a mistranslation with her Basic, but Devon showed up ten minutes later to show her which buttons to push. He ducked out of the way in time for the “spritz refresher” to spring to life—the same one that required Alicia to be naked in the room.

It turned out that proper baths were taken once a week to conserve water. Alicia could enjoy the relaxing world of soapy suds and hot water the following evening.

When they finally retired for the night, she fell asleep almost immediately. Devon was jealous, if only because the time change already got to him while he also struggled with the fact that he was “home.”

This wasn’t his first trip back to Gardiah Estate, after all. Yet it was the first time with someone he loved. What was she thinking? What did she deem the people who could trace their lineage back to Sonall Gardiah, a man who died without ever knowing about his unborn child? That was already a story he never relished telling Alicia, who discovered the truth behind her boyfriend’s past once they were back together again.

And what would she think when they left and had time to decompress?

He was so deep in his thoughts that he almost missed Alicia kicking him in her sleep.

“Ugh.” Her groan awakened with her. “Did I fall asleep at all? I feel like I’ve been hit by a truck, but also am still so tired.

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