don’t become litterbugs would, in her culture, be enough to show her I’m into her? Fine. I freakin am into her.
I drive us the rest of the way to work like I’m being tested for my driver’s permit. I don’t even use my middle-finger to assist in directing any traffic, not once. We steer slowly into our parking lot, I get us to our usual spot of honor (an extra wide parking space with THE BOSS spray painted on the asphalt), and with a shell-shocked exhale of disbelief, I put us in park.
After a moment of staring out the windshield, I turn for Inara. Bringing her close, making a fist in her hair, I keep her head angled for my mouth to take her. When I pull back enough we can look at each other, with her eyes pinned to mine, I make the declaration I should have started with months ago. I should have told her how I felt, used these words the moment I knew.
“I love you, Inara of the Bone Grinder’s cave.”
Her eyes go wet at the fact I remembered the name she gave me on the day we met.
“I’d ask you to stay here with me if I could, because I love my home too. Since that’s not a safe plan, I guess we’ve got to find a way for me to live on your world, because, baby? You’re not getting rid of me.” I brush my knuckles over her soft-scaled cheek before placing my hand on her stomach. “Let me group text my mom and sisters.”
CHAPTER 24
It’s the day after Inara’s announcement; a gorgeous, sunny Saturday. My family arrived at my place sans their husbands, because those smart bastards knew the moment they heard Me Before You that they wanted no part of movie dust-in-their-eyes hell.
So it’s just my mom and sisters who meet Inara.
They stop dead when they see her.
Inara waves. “Hello, Matthew’s beautiful family. I’m Inara.”
“She’s an alien from another planet,” I tell them. “And no, this isn’t a prank.”
My family would probably still assume I was pulling one over on them, or trying, except Inara happens to be cooking our steaks using nothing but a frying pan and fire from her own mouth, and coupled with her ears and tail, which move too fluidly to be a prosthetic, plus her scales, I suppose, everyone settles into a shocked sort of silence for the first, oh, thirty-one and a half seconds.
And then everyone’s talking at once.
“Hold up,” I say, laughing. “Inara, meet my Mom, Lillian Shawnessy. Then over there in the pink blouse is Elaine. Kate is in the sundress. This here is Kaley, and Kerry is rocking the fire engine-red hair. Wow, Kerry. How does Doug feel about being married to Jessica Rabbit?”
“It’s called Red Velvet, and I love it,” Kerry says, fluffing her hair with a goofy smile. “So does Doug.”
“I bet,” I mutter, eyeing her siren-red locks.
“It’s lovely,” Inara says with genuine appreciation—and these two words get everyone’s attention back on her, and the questions start flying.
What planet are you from? What kind of alien are you? How did you find Matt? Why are you here?
Thankfully, she does not tell them that she came here to escape her overprotective brothers and rake in the nookie.
“Guys,” I chastise them at one point, wrapping my arm around my woman’s shoulders. “Let’s not grill Inara, please.”
Inara pats my stomach. “They’re curious. It is fine. And besides,” she grins, flashing her sharp teeth, “I like grilling, remember?”
She proceeds to answer every one of their questions with incredible aplomb. They pass her gifts that they brought, because our mom raised us to always bring a gift when you want to show someone they’re important.
And there are so many questions. They want to know every aspect about her.
Then they have a blast telling her all about me, especially all their favorite growing-up tales. We feed them, and they dish on me, and Inara gasps and laughs.
Of course, I’m expecting them to share all the embarrassing stuff so I’m thrown when they pepper in stories where I sound like quite the catch.
“...and I never got pushed around on the playground again,” Kaley says. “The bullies were terrified that Matt would give them another beat-down.”
I give my little sister a hug. “You can bet I would have.”
Inara reveals that she’s bonded to me, and because of this, she can’t simply separate from me now. The heartsbreak will destroy her.
“Aww, sweetheart,” I breathe, because I didn’t know. I mean,