first batch of buns out of the oven when the doorbell pealed. He’d no sooner moved his head in that direction than two aliens, the ones known as Val and Willem, vaulted down to the first floor from the top of the stairs with guns in their hands. Their dramatic appearance caused him to wobble his tray and he scrambled to catch the buns before they fell on the floor. He landed on his knees with a jarring thud that made him wince, but he’d saved all but one of his baked goods. Then, already jackhammering, his heart skipped a beat when he heard the voice of the visitor.
“Hey, guys, what a warm welcome. Are those guns stuck in my face for me? ‘Cause I, you know, come in peace and all that.”
The tone of the human cop, Sergeant Jefferson—Craig—was easy-going, yet Alun heard the steel underneath it. This was a man who didn’t scare easily and was someone to fear in his own right. It didn’t surprise Alun that the aliens didn’t appear to succumb to the sergeant’s dominant nature, but his own reaction to the man was unexpected. He should have given him a wide berth, as he did with all men, human and alien alike. Yet he found himself perversely drawn to the cop. After his initial reaction to hearing the man’s arrival, Alun’s nerves calmed with the sound of the banter continuing between the human and his alien hosts.
“It’s too-fucking-early o’clock, Jefferson. We weren’t expecting visitors.” This from Val, the scary security chief who was nevertheless always respectful to Alun.
“Yeah, but here’s the thing, my man. Dracul’s goons aren’t going to ring the bell, so I had that logic going for me.”
“Forgive us if we’re a bit jumpy,” Willem replied.
“I hear you… Hey, Alun.” Alun froze and looked up to see Craig hurry over to him. He had to fight the impulse to cringe away. “Let me help you.” The man grinned as he crouched beside him and reached for the tray.
Alun was momentarily mesmerized—and not by fear. This man was unlike anyone he was used to dealing with. It wasn’t only his looks, either, although his dark skin was unusual in Alun’s personal experience, even before his enslavement. No, it was the way he telegraphed both trustworthiness and concern with a single expression. True empathy showed through his dark brown eyes and, at the same time, made Alun feel secure. It conveyed an ‘I’ve got you’ sentiment that let Alun know he didn’t have to worry about anything. Craig was in charge, although not to dominate. And the easy smile he gave encompassed his whole face, a genuine warmth that infused Alun with a sense of calm and protection.
It also left him tongue-tied. He opened his mouth but nothing came out. He didn’t know what to say or how to react. He simply allowed the man to relieve him of his burden, freeing him to juggle the buns that had fallen. Only one had touched the floor and rolled across it.
Val scooped it up and shoved it into his mouth. “Hmm, delicious.”
“It’s not even iced, like,” he heard himself say before he could stop his tongue from wagging. He shrunk back instinctively in anticipation of a blow that he understood wasn’t coming but that he feared nevertheless.
Craig took him gently by the arm and helped him to his feet. Funny how that gesture hadn’t startled him in the least. “No worries. I don’t think our giant friend here cares about those kinds of details, although apparently he follows the five-second rule. You know,” he added, when Alun could only blink back at him in confusion, “if it doesn’t stay on the floor for more than a few seconds, it’s safe to eat.”
“Yes, of course.” Alun didn’t know where to look or what more to say. It wasn’t for him to dictate what Val or anyone else in this household ate. It had been silly pride that his buns weren’t finished to his liking that had caused him to speak without thinking. That had gotten him into more trouble than he cared to think about. He was nothing and his feelings were of no consequence in this world. Forgetting that was a dangerous thing.
“I should finish the rest, though.” He didn’t move to do so, however, his mind a muddle from Craig’s proximity and touch. It was hard to think with him there. Alun both wanted those fingers to stay curled around his arm and longed