Chandra sat there, in stunned silence for a moment. She shook herself to reality only after she heard something. She smiled and closed her eyes again, apparently speaking to Freyr. I sat there, sipping my coffee while she conversed with my patron.

After a few minutes, she opened her eyes, smiling broadly. She set the little figurine on the table. “Well, Bubbs, it seems that you have had quite a time. You’ve met gods, angered one; as I knew you’d wind up doing eventually, received the blessings of another, and it seems things are about to seriously change for you. I’m happy for you,” she said. In a louder voice, she said, “I’m actually happy for both of you. If you’re as good a person as both he and Freyr say you are, Gruldia, I can’t wait to actually meet you.”

“Thank you!” came Gruldia’s reply.

“That’s not all, darlin’. Look at this,” I said, pulling out my phone and loading my banking app. “I get a monthly stipend for being part of The Council. Enough that I can do almost anything I want,” I said, turning the phone around to face her.

Her jaw dropped. “This is monthly?” I nodded. “You’ll be able to buy a whole damn island in a year,” she said.

Gruldia laughed. “He said the same thing!”

“She’s right. I did. The only question is where do I go from here? I have friends out there in our universe that I want to have come visit me. You know what my dream has been for the longest time, Chan. I can get it now. As far as I’m concerned, you and your family can come, too. Hel, maybe I could talk The Council or The Multiversal Entity into letting me have you as an advisor. With your insight, we could make some serious positive changes out there. And here. I may be clever, but you have skills that I think would be extremely valuable. And even if you can’t join me, I can always ask you for your thoughts on the matter. As long as you’re willing, that is,” I said excitedly.

She sat back in her chair, contemplating my offer. “I like it. I would have to talk it over with everyone, first. If you wind up getting the land you’ve been dreaming of for years, I highly doubt they’ll have a problem living there. Out away from prying eyes? Able to just go wander into the woods whenever? Maybe have some lake access or a stocked pond for fishing? Fuck yeah, that sounds awesome,” she said.

“And, I don’t think any of us will need to worry too much about money again. You guys are family, Chan. As far as I’m concerned, my family comes with me. You guys can have your own custom built house. Or houses. If you need to get away, I can build you a little retreat all for yourself. Just think about it. I don’t require an answer or anything in return. You already do more than enough for me,” I said softly.

“You still have to build that communications antenna or whatever, though. Tell you what. Get the land, build your dream home or whatever, then build your antenna. Once we have that done, and the Earth is introduced to the galactic stage, then we will talk about us coming with you. That’ll give me enough time to talk with the others about it, and for us to make up our minds,” she said.

“Fair enough. In the meantime, if you need anything, I can take care of it. Finally,” I said with a smile.

“I may take you up on that, Bubbs. For now, though, I don’t wanna take away from your time with your beloved. We need to get together soon. And now that your only real job is The Council, we can do that any time. I’m so excited for you and proud of you, Bubbs,” she said, getting out of her chair.

She opened her arms to me and I swept her up in a tight hug. “Love you, Chan. Always,”

“I love you too, Bubba. I don’t care how much fun your girlie is, you better keep in contact with me. I mean it,” she said with a smile.

She turned and walked to my bedroom door. “Gruldia? I’m getting out of here. You two lovebirds have fun, okay? And I seriously look forward to meeting you. And the rest, if possible,” she said to my little Goblin.

“Okay, Chandra! I can’t wait to really meet you, too. I have a feeling that we can be good friends. Be safe getting home,” she said.

“I will. Talk to you guys later!” Chandra said, and walked out of my home.

I went over to the blinds and saw her get into her car. “It’s safe to come out, Gruldia,” I said.

Gruldia opened my door and skipped over to me. She lifted the blinds a little, seeing Chandra backing out of my driveway. “Damn. I wish I could see her. She sounds pretty cool,” she said regretfully.

I pulled out my phone and brought up a picture of Chan and I cheesing for the camera. “This is her. She’s been my best friend for almost seven years. Always there with support, always there with love. She’s kicked my ass into gear so many times it ain’t funny. A lot of who I am right now is a direct result of her advice and her just not giving up on me. Couldn’t ask for better family,” I said.

“Wow. She’s really beautiful, Ivor. How could you want a stubby little Goblin like me when you have her as your friend?” Gruldia asked.

“You really don’t get it, do you, baby?” I asked, kneeling down. She shook her head, confused. I took both her cheeks in my palms and smooshed them a little as I said, “Chan is my friend. That’s all we can be for the other. We had that discussion years ago, and decided that we will work best as family. Brother and sister. Not lovers. While I do love her deeply, I also know that she isn’t meant for me. Someone else is. I’m talking to her right now,” I said, planting a kiss on her soft lips. “I have a beautiful family that I can’t wait to introduce you to. My blood family will like you, as well,” I said softly.

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“Are you sure they’ll like me? I’m not even Human,” she said in a quiet, thin voice.

“You make me happy. That’ll be enough for them. And if they don’t like it, well that’s their problem. I’m doing what I want to do for me. My choice. My turn. And I’m choosing to have you by my side,” I said, hearing her give a bewildered chuckle.

“Yeah. I like that, Ivor. Let’s get back to the movie. I want to be close to you,” she said.

I nodded and stood, taking her hand and walking to the couch, where we sat snuggled up under a blanket and finished the movie.

**********

Things continued like this for the next four days. Gruldia and I got even closer than before. We watched my entire collection of movies, and I showed her several video games, which she wasn’t terribly interested in. We researched land areas and housing costs across the globe, trying to find somewhere that was isolated enough to let her run freely outside, but close enough to civilization that we could have the amenities that would be needed for a modern lifestyle. We even looked at various different housing styles and layouts together.

We, of course, had sex in literally every room in the house, also. Her libido matched mine in intensity and frequency, which was a blessing. I doubted I could have this newer, more fit body and not want sex as much as possible. I also introduced her to several “toys” that I thought would be beneficial to her while we were apart from each other. She was rather enthusiastic about having them.

On the day before she was to leave, we were lying on the couch together, watching a new movie that I had had delivered when I heard a ping, and checked my messages. It seemed my laptop was done with the conversions and searches. I checked the file size, and noticed that it was far too large for any email. I got up and went to my computer to purchase an Advanced Dropbox plan, and shunted the file there, routing it through my link to my phone, which was connected to my computer via a cable. I figured it would take a while to upload nearly four terabytes of data, so I left it alone to do its thing. I set an alert on my laptop to notify me, and went back to the movie.

“What was that all about?” Gruldia asked as I returned.

I lay down on the couch, and she snuggled up to me. “The laptop is done with the plans and the analysis. I’m having it all shunted to a storage service online. I’m going to order a new custom-built computer tonight that can do the things I want. Hel, I can afford it now. And now, I have a good reason to get it, too. I’ll probably need the processing power for the modeling I’ll undoubtedly be doing for the communications device,” I said, running my fingers through her soft hair.

“Mmm… That feels so nice, Ivor. I love it when you play with my hair. Makes me feel wanted,” she said.

“That’s because you are wanted. I want you. Always,” I said, gently running my short nails across her scalp.

She shivered. “That feels good. I’m wanted, huh? You mean here?” she asked, and in one swift motion took me into her mouth, causing me to gasp in shock.

“Holy shit! You just had that an hour ago. And now you want another bellyfull?” I asked, feeling myself stiffen from her ministrations. She nodded. “Then be a Good Girl and take your meal. I’ll make even more for us both to eat afterwards, how’s that?” I asked, moaning softly.

“Mm-hmm.” she hummed, and I settled in for what wound up to be one of the best oral sessions I’d ever had.

When she finished, I sat up, and hauled her up to my face. “That…was amazing. I’ll be certain to return the favor tonight,” I said, kissing her softly. She giggled and blushed.

“What are you going to cook for me tonight?” she asked, bouncing on my stomach, which caused amazing ripples in her chest.

“How does steak and lobster sound? You remember what I ate at our meeting with the gods? I had some ordered yesterday, and it’s just begging to be inside you,” I said, arching an eyebrow.

“Well, then Mr. Chef, I’d suggest you get to it. You know you shouldn’t keep a Goblin waiting on something inside her,” she replied with a wink.

I chuckled and sat up, causing her to slide down into my lap. I kissed her softly, then got up to cook dinner.

Preparing a Surf-n-Turf wasn’t terribly difficult, but it was a little time consuming. I wanted it to be right, after all. This was probably the last dinner she would have with me for a couple more months. I refrained from mentioning that to her. The last thing I wanted was to make her sad.

Thankfully, I had dry-brined the steaks as soon as I got them, and they were ready by now. I pulled the meat, seasoned it and let it rest while my cast iron skillet heated up. I turned the oven up, and prepped the seafood. Once the skillet was ready, I seared the steaks on all sides, then put it in the heated oven. After a few minutes, I set the lobster tails, along with a bowl of water, in as well. I put together some instant mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese while I waited. Ten minutes later, I pulled both out. The steaks were nice and plump, and the lobster had been cooked just right. I put together two plates and called out to Gruldia.

“Dinner’s ready!”

Gruldia hopped off the couch, where she had been reading one of the books I had, and skipped over to the table. “Yay! Time to eat!”

She sat across from me, and we both dug into our food. After a few minutes, she looked up and said, “I still can’t believe you can cook. And what’s more, you actually enjoy it.”

“Well, you better believe it. Cooking is one of my ways I display my love. To see you enjoying the food that I make for you; the food I make with love, brings me more joy that I think I know how to express,” I replied.

“Silly man. You can’t put love into food. It’s not a tangible thing,” she said with a smile.

“You’d be surprised. You can actually taste the difference between someone cooking for love, versus someone doing it because they have to, and someone doing it who simply doesn’t care. I’ve experienced all of it. It’s a real thing,” I replied, taking a bite of my steak.

She giggled and we made general conversation for the next couple of hours.

Once dinner was done and the dishes washed and put away, we plopped back down on the couch to relax with another movie.

Only this time, Gruldia had other plans for me. Wonderful plans, indeed.