Redsand Canyon Put your hands on my _____.

He couldn’t know it but that was such a loaded question. Towhee didn’t really know how to answer it, at least not without giving it several moments’ thought. She held up her good paw to indicate she needed a moment to mull her response. She wanted to speak candidly and with honesty, for both Maxim and herself.

I guess ‘considering’ would be a word I’d use, she eventually replied, speaking slowly and not bothering to sign as she needed all her awake brain cells just to form words with her tongue. The thing is, I don’t want a romantic partner. I’m not built for it. I tried it once and it was a catastrophic failure. Towhee paused. But marriage in Mereo isn’t necessarily about romance. It can be a business partnership. Look at Germ and Rue, she said, forgetting to use his title in her muzzy state.

She fell silent for a few beats before deciding to share, I do think about having more kids. But I know it requires marriage here. And I want to stay here. My #1 priority is being here for Rue and her kids. So… uh, I guess you could say it’s complicated.

Her orange eyes probed his face. Towhee didn’t say it out loud but her expression wondered, Why do you ask? Probably he regretted it.