Saving Verakko: The Clecanian Series Book 3 by Victoria Aveline (books to read for teens TXT) 📕

needs and that never in her life would she find herself struggling to survive, but he couldn’t rightly promise her anything at the moment. “You won’t have to worry about that. Citizens in most of the cities on this planet are supplied free housing, food, clothing, and medical care. If you marry—” Verakko glanced away, hiding his scowl and the snarl rising in his throat, “—your husband will make sure you have everything you want for however long you remain with him.”

Lily remained quiet, thoughtful.

“Do you think you’d ever want to marry?” Could she hear the pathetically concealed interest in his voice?

“On Earth, no. My last boyfriend proposed, but I turned him down. You said it’s different here, though, right? Only lasts for a few months. What’s the point of it? It sounds more like dating to me.”

A fiery mix of jealous rage and bitter approval roared through Verakko upon hearing she’d turned down her male. He made sure his voice was even when he answered, “The main goal of marriage is often pregnancy. Like I said, our people are going extinct. Females enter into short marriages to decide whether they want to have a child with their husbands, and then they can either extend the marriage from there and try to become pregnant or they can marry someone else.”

“What happens if a woman gets married but decides not to try for children?”

“If it’s clear she’s actively attempting to not become pregnant, it’ll be assumed she didn’t deem the male worthy. Nothing will happen specifically, but the male will have a harder time negotiating his next contract.”

Lily’s lips thinned. “Well then, definitely no marriage for me, at least not right now. I’m not even sure I want to have children.”

“Is that why you turned down your boyfriend?” Verakko questioned, stumbling over the odd phrase for the male she’d been interested in. He was intent not to make the same mistakes her last male had.

“No. On Earth, marriage is different. It’s meant to be for life, and ideally two people should marry because they’re in love and want to be together forever. Nathan was nice, but I just didn’t feel that thing.”

“Thing?”

Lily lifted her hands to the fire. “You know. That thing. That spark. The feeling that you can’t go another minute without seeing the other person.” Shrugging, she continued, “I’m not sure I believe in marriage long-term, anyway. Fifty percent of them end in divorce.” Lily scowled in disgust. “You know how many of my married male clients at the salon have hit on me? It’s like they don’t even care about the person they’re married to anymore. Such assholes. And don’t even get me started on guys I’ve met who have girlfriends they somehow forgot to mention.”

Fuck. Would she consider Ziritha my girlfriend? He didn’t understand all the phrases she’d used, but the thought was clear. He wasn’t technically married, but in his culture, he was as good as married, and he’d venture a guess that was how Lily would see it as well.

Should I tell her about Ziritha now? No, Verakko decided. I won’t be marrying Ziritha. I’ll find a loophole in the contract and somehow get Lily to agree to stay with me. There isn’t anything to reveal.

Lily continued, unaware of Verakko’s inner turmoil. “My parents were married my whole life, but they were more like companions than anything else. Friends who worked really well together. If they ever had a spark, it was long dead by the time I grew up. I don’t want to end up like that.”

Verakko shoved a hand through his hair, itching to throw something. Lily didn’t want a Clecanian marriage or an Earth marriage, and she may not even want children. He’d never particularly rejoiced at the idea of having children, but he’d also never thought about it much. A child would be a blessing, and it was his duty to do whatever he could to have one. Whether he actually wanted a child had never entered the equation. Verakko pondered this for a moment. When the image of Lily cradling a small girl with brown eyes popped into his mind and longing spread through his chest like warm liquid, he cursed.

She raised a brow and peered at him. “Do you want to get married?”

As was the case in the question of children, no one had ever asked him that before. Did he? It was an honor to be chosen for marriage, something all males strived for. He’d never considered any alternative. If he knew anything for certain, he knew he didn’t want a temporary marriage. He wanted a mate—Lily—for life. But this conversation had only made the situation more complicated. If he told her the truth and admitted he wanted to be with her, he might scare her off.

“It depends on who I’m marrying,” he replied at length.

 “And that’s up to your mother? You can’t pick yourself?”

Tell her the truth. “I’ll be obligated to marry who my mother chooses,” he said instead.

“And that’s why you ‘can’t.’”

Verakko stilled, realizing what she was referring to. Goddess, his mivassi was confusing. “If you don’t believe in marriages of any kind, then why do you care?”

Lily chuckled. “Is that how it is here? Marriage or nothing?” She sighed. “I’m not saying marriage is completely off the table—Earth-style marriage, that is,” she quickly corrected. “I just think it would have to be a pretty spectacular relationship for me to consider it. That’s why I like dating. You’re saying you can’t date?”

It took Verakko a moment to realize his mouth was hanging open. He’d learned a little about dating from the human named Alice and knew he’d love nothing more than to date Lily and convince her to stay with him forever. But that would take time, and time wasn’t an option for him right now. What could he say?

He