This is the seventh and final installment of the Sheppard's seed series:
Mating season.
Rose cleaned my wounds with alcohol wipes, "This is going to hurt," She said.
The pain registered somewhere deep in the recesses of my mind, but I was too preoccupied to acknowledge it.
"Don't worry, he's not feeling a thing," Stewart said, "His mind is on more important matters right now."
The gathering was over and everyone went home, everyone but me. I stayed because I needed to know more about Deana and Rose insisted on cleaning my wounds.
"How are you going to explain this to a doctor a week from now, when this has become infected? Hi doc, this is a bite from a woman," She said, pointing to the bite on my shoulder, "And this is from another woman, "Pointing to my ear, "What can I say, it was an interesting night."
"Who is she?" I asked, without looking at her.
Stewart laughed, "It's no use my dear, he's got the scent in his nostrils and he's not going to let it go," He said.
I looked at Rose, she bowed her head as she spoke, "I didn't invite her. I didn't know she was coming."
I looked at Stewart. The grin on his face told me that Deana's appearance was his doing. "Where is the power," I thought to myself.
Stewart was the man behind the curtain, pulling all the strings, then watching the drama play out before him.
"Who is she," I asked again, this time looking at Stewart.
"She's my sister," Rose said, finally.
"What was all of this about tonight? If she wanted me to breed her, then why did she disappear like that?" I asked.
"I don't think that's why she came here tonight," Stewart said.
"Then why," I asked.
I looked at Rose, but she wouldn't look back.
"If my guess is correct, she wants to mate with you," Stewart said.
"You mean, as in mate for life?" I asked.
"That's exactly what I mean. But I want you to consider this very carefully before you make any decisions. Deana is very different from any woman you've met here so far. She's the kind of girl who thinks bruises are foreplay, and drawing blood is a sign of good sex.
If you want to mate with her, you have to tame her. If you want to tame her, you'll need to take her down hard, then show her tenderness.
I know this seems counter intuitive, but trust me on this.
Another tip, don't ever lie to her. She used to be a very trusting person, but now, her trust in you will mean everything. Nothing else will weigh so heavily with her. You have to be someone she can place all of her faith and trust in.
The price of admission with her is high, and only you can decide if you are willing or even able to pay it. Just remember, with Deana, when you're in, you're in it for life," Stewart warned.
"How do you know all of this?" I asked, "Why does she have such a trust issue? She seems pretty independent to me?"
Stewart paused a moment as if he had to make a difficult admission, "Before I met Rose, I was with Deana. We weren't mated, but we had been together for a few years.
When I saw Rose, I instantly knew that she was the one I would spend the rest of my life with. Deana disappeared without a word. She was gone so quickly, I didn't have a chance to talk with her before she left, so you can see, her trust in you is a very important thing. It is also a very fragile thing with her. If you want to mate with her, you must build her trust in you, and never violate that trust."
"Why do you look so worried," I asked Rose.
"She doesn't want to loose you," Stewart said, "She's afraid that Deana will take you all for herself and not share you. Which is very likely."
"I don't understand any of this. Why me? Why do these women want to have babies from me?" I asked.
"Now you're delving into the murky science of evolutionary behavior. You see, a long time ago humans lived very much like our little tribe here does, except there were no husbands or wives, there were no rules telling us how we had to live or breed. People did what was best for the tribe as a whole, that insured the tribe would stay strong and grow, that's how humans and most animals are wired.
Back then men and women lived by their instincts, and women had very good instincts about which men to breed with, and which to avoid.
All these rules that we now learn as we grow up were invented by religious leaders a long time ago, who sought to eliminate from us any behavior that we shared with animals.
They were men who thought they had to elevate mankind above all else. After all, if they were going to preach to us that we were created by a supreme being, then we had to believe we were placed here to be above everything else on the planet.
There is a common thread that weaves through every religion. In order to show devotion to ones maker, you must deny your true nature, by denying yourself the things you truly want.
I'm pretty sure Deana hasn't made her mind up about you yet. If she does decide she wants to mate with you, there are a few things that you should know.
She will want to mark you in some way. I'll warn you now that it will be painful. She will want to mark you in someway that is permanent, and I'm not talking about something as civilized as a tattoo. She will draw blood I promise you."
I left their home and returned to my apartment. I couldn't sleep. I could only lay there and think about Deana. The warnings that Stewart gave me did not concern me a bit. If the price of mating with her was pain, it would be a price I'd gladly pay, over and over if necessary.
I eventually closed my eyes to sleep, but somewhere during that slow decent something inside of me became instantly alert. As I lay there with my eyes closed, I smelled something. It was Deana and she was close. I remembered her scent from when she held her body against mine. Was it perfume? No, I thought. It was her own scent, something I'd never forget.
I opened my eyes slowly and in the dim light of my bedroom and I saw her kneeling next to my bed. Neither of us said a word, we just looked at each other for a long moment.
I reached out my hand to her, she looked at it for a moment, then slowly bent down and kissed it. I put my hand on her cheek and held it there a moment before motioning for her to join me in my bed.
Deana's eyes locked on mine as she slowly climbed into my bed while never taking her eyes off me.
I took her into my arms and pulled her body next to mine, savoring the feeling of it all. I kissed her softly on the lips, and then I put my nose against her skin, inhaling deeply, drawing in her scent.
I knew I had to proceed cautiously with her and allow trust to build between us.
I held her gently next to me as we both drifted off to sleep.
When I awoke it was still dark and Deana was gone. "What next," I wondered to myself.
As the weeks went by Deana would appear and disappear without warning, but always when I was sleeping. She never spoke a word to me, but I would feel her slide into my bed without a sound and move her body up against mine. She would kiss me softly, then turn her back to me and then drift off to sleep.
I would rest my hand on her belly ans speak softly into her ear, "I love you."
I would take one last deep breath and drift off to sleep with her.
Deana and I continued this silent dance for several months, until one night I awoke with her standing over my bed.
"You need to go to Denver," She said.
My mind instantly snapped to attention, "Why?" I asked.
