Sela's mind struggled to wrap itself around the unexpected arrival of her soon-to-be husband. Though he was standing right in front of her, and she knew of his arrival, he came a day earlier than expected. And, above all, he came at the worst time. When Sela and Kael had somewhere else to be.

The heat of Awanita's glare made Sela catch her trembling bottom lip with her teeth. Tension coursed through her tense muscles as she tucked her quivering hands behind her wet body. Her mother stood beside Tushka across the grass and crossed her arms to show her disapproval. Sela had no choice but to look away from her and glance back at the man she was to marry.

Tushka embodied the warrior spirit of his namesake. His broad shoulders and muscular frame had become even more defined since Sela last saw him, confirmation of his constant battles and trainings. Adorning his neck and partial upper chest was a pattern of crimson paint in sharp spikes that spread out from below his collarbone. The middle strip of black hair that wasn't shaved with the sides of his head stayed parted into two long braids down to his waist. A traditional look for the chiefs in his village.

His jaw strained with how hard he clenched his teeth. The swirl of confusion and rage in his eyes directed itself back to Sela with a flicker of his gaze.

No one in Mikasi breathed.

No one in Mikasi moved.

Not until he did.

"Sela," Tushka greeted, his voice tight. His knuckles on the hand that held his chief's staff were white with how hard he gripped it. "Miti." Come.

Sela swallowed. Kael's chest radiated with heat behind her shoulders and it took everything in her not to turn around and tuck herself into him again. She didn't want to face Tushka and answer his demanding questions, but she had to. They would be married soon and she couldn't very well avoid him forever.

So, she played on the strings of his heart. It was not a fair play, but she needed him to calm down before he attacked Kael. Not that he would in front of Mikasi, but Tushka was a protector. And now that everyone had witnessed her stumbling into the clearing, accompanied by a man who was not her betrothed, she knew well that his self-control would eventually falter.

Sela softened her features and released her bottom lip from her teeth. Her eyes rounded like a skittish doe, and she shyly looked up at him through the curls of her lashes. "Can we speak alone, Tushka?" she begged, keeping her voice as gentle as she could. They had known each other most of their lives; she knew how to get him to soften up.

Though Tushka still stood stiff, and his jaw clenched tight, the anger from his eyes smothered. He inclined his head towards her chukka and partially turned his body towards it. Waiting for her.

Sela breathed out a soft sigh and glanced just barely behind her. "Wait for me," she whispered under her breath.

"Sela," Kael warned, his voice hard. "He is too angry for you to be alone with him."

Though she knew Tushka would never hurt her, she still appreciated Kael's concern for her. It made her heart flutter just thinking about it. She wished she could stay behind with him rather than be in the company of her soon husband, but she needed to take care of his jealousy. Or things would not look so pretty between the chief and the crowned chief of the sea.

"I'll be okay," she swore quietly. "I will be back soon."

Sela did not wait around to hear more of Kael's concerns. Tushka's patience would only last so long, and the two men were already watching each other with heated glares as she made her way over to him. He waited for her to walk in front of him before he stepped close behind her and followed her up to her chukka. She rubbed her hands over her drying arms and took a hard breath to calm any shaking. The Creator will be there with her; she needn't fear.

Sela guided the two of them into her chukka and waited for Tushka to seal the wooden door behind him. Running her fingers through her damp curls, she welcomed the coolness of the air on her skin. The flickering candles danced on Tushka's pinched lips and clamped jaw as he watched her gather herself.

His sigh met her ears as he crossed his arms over his broad chest. "Sela," he started, his voice stern. "Why are you all wet? And why were you with a man I know nothing about by yourself?"

Sela leaned her body against the table behind her and fought to control her face from revealing anything. "Kael is new to Mikasi, and I was showing him the Bok. I thought I would be okay walking in, but the current caught me. And had it not been for the man you do not know, I would be gone."

A lie, but surely, she couldn't tell him the truth.

Tushka closed his eyes at her response and rubbed his forehead. "Sela, I have told you before to stay away from the water. It isn't safe."

The urge to defend herself sat unused on her tongue. She was not in the mood to fight with him. She had to hurry and get back to Kael and Pokni so they could figure out what his vision meant. And if that meant speeding up their talk, then so be it.

"I will remember that next time," Sela promised.

Tushka opened his eyes. The rage in them softened, as it always did with her. "I may not always be here, but I care about your safety. And being alone in a river with this man . . . "

His gaze hardened again. "I do not like it," he admitted through his teeth.

Sela sighed. "He won't be here for much longer," she confessed. The truth of that made her chest squeeze uncomfortably tight. She forced herself to continue. "We are trying to help him remember his home so he can go back. That's all."

"But why do you have to be the person to help him? Why not Luksi?"

"Because it is going to be me taking over Mikasi when we marry; not Luksi. This is my village, so the responsibility falls on me. If it was yours, I expect the responsibility to fall to you as well."

He did not deny it. Instead, he blew out a heavy breath and walked over to where she was resting. She was tired of the conversation already and just wanted to get out of her wet clothes. But she could do nothing until their talk was over.

When Tushka stood in front of her, a rush of the forest enveloped her nose. The lush greenery, the earthy pine, and the linger of a cool breeze wafted into her nostrils. She fought hard against comparing his scent to Kael's, and how Kael's almost made her dizzy with the desire to have more of it. She should crave Tushka's. He smelled good enough and looked even better. Not to mention he treated her well.

So why wasn't any of it enough?

"Sela," Tushka murmured, capturing her gaze with his brown eyes that flickered with longing. He grabbed her hands and pulled her closer to him.

Sela allowed his closeness. He did not feel like Kael, and their proximity did not make her heart race in her chest like it usually did with the crowned chief of the sea. The air did not squeeze itself out of the room and her body did not feel as if it were on fire with just eye contact alone. But she knew Tushka well and felt a friendly warmth towards him whenever he came to visit. So she didn't pull away.

Tushka grabbed her face softly between his palms and brushed his thumbs over the tops of her cheeks. "The next time I come to Mikasi, we will be betrothed to one another. And I cannot stand the thought of another man being that close to you between now and then."

Sela frowned. "Tushka, for this union to work, you will need to trust me."

"I trust you with my whole life, Sela. It is yours alone," he said. "But I know nothing of this man and if you wish me to feel . . . comfortable with him around, then I must meet him."

Her eyes widened at that. "Meet him?"

Tushka's lips thinned. He raised an eyebrow. "Will meeting him be a problem?"

"No," she quickly lied.

His expression relaxed. "Good. Seeing as how your father and I are finishing with our village treaties for the next few suns, it will give him and I some time to know one another."

Sela had no choice but to agree. He'd be suspicious if she didn't. "Okay," she allowed. "This evening, then."

He nodded. "This evening."

Tushka brushed the tip of his nose against hers, and she closed her eyes. His large hands drifted from her face, down the curves of her body, until they rested on her hips. She rarely minded his kisses or his advancements. Sometimes, she had rather enjoyed them. He was to be her husband and his touch was always gentle and full of such care and love. But something ached in the pit of her stomach that time. Something that made it clench up into a ball of guilt even though she had done nothing wrong.

"I have missed you," he whispered, brushing his lips against hers.

She wished she could say it in the same way he meant it.

"I have missed you too," she replied, and it wasn't exactly a lie. She enjoyed his company, but she missed her friend rather than her soon husband.

But Sela closed her eyes and let him kiss her. His lips were soft enough, warm and full of love. He plucked her name from her lips and muttered it softly to her. It tasted sweet enough for her to inhale more of him.

But Sela, much to her dismay, could not deny that she was imagining someone else whispering it instead.