friends at the bridal house if you’d like.”
“I’ve only been gone a day, but I already miss them.”
“It’s settled then.”
“Will you bring me home tonight?”
I love to hear her call my house her home. Although she has only been here less than a day, it has become the place she wants to come back to.
“It may be quite late. In that case, it will probably be better for you to sleep at the bridal house.”
“Are you trying to get rid of me already?” she asks, taking a bite of fruit.
“Never. I want you with me always. I would take you to the council meeting with me if I could. But I’m afraid there are important matters and confidential reports that must be given.”
“I’m just teasing,” she says, touching my arm softly with the tips of her fingers. It is such a delicate and affectionate gesture that my heart swells, and I want to crush her against my chest to experience that tender feeling again.
“At first, I thought maybe you weren’t attracted to me. And that’s why you were so distant.”
“And now?” I ask, the words catching in my throat. I can’t imagine her believing that I was not attracted to her for even a second. She is the most beautiful, desirable woman I could have imagined. And I am so utterly captivated by her that I would spend a lifetime on my knees just to see her smile.
“After last night, there’s no way that I could imagine you aren’t attracted to me. No matter what insecurities try to convince me otherwise.”
“Why would my beautiful, intelligent, talented Doris Gray have insecurities?”
“Well, if I had a man like you back in my life on Earth, maybe I wouldn’t have had so many. But the truth is that I wasn’t so lucky. I guess it started when my dad left my mom. She had to work a lot, and I spent a lot of time with my grandma. They were both wonderful women who loved me and took good care of me. But when your dad leaves like that without a word and never comes back, it leaves a hole in your heart. I guess I just started to believe that he’d left because of me.”
“What a stupid man. To leave his woman and his child. A man like that should have his testicles smashed.”
“I wouldn’t go that far. He was my dad after all. And he did send me birthday cards once in a while. It’s really my ex-boyfriend Ashton that deserved his testicles smashed.”
“What did your ex-boyfriend do?”
“He cheated on me with some bimbo from the internet. So cliché. But I guess I wouldn’t expect anything more original from such an unoriginal loser.”
“I hope the Mantises fling his bones to the far corners of the Earth.”
She makes a grunting laugh, and her fork clings on her plate. Her eyes go wide as if I’ve said something inappropriate.
“Have I offended you?” I asked.
“Well… Ashton was a jerk for cheating on me, but I don’t really wish him dead.”
“I understand,” I say, nodding.
I witness the sadness in her eyes and realize that this was not the best conversation. Her mother and grandmother are still on Earth. Unless they find somewhere safe to hide, they too will be eaten and destroyed by Mantises.
This is a fact that I do not voice. As I do not want to bring her more pain. I hope to the bottom of my heart and in the depths of my soul that I can be enough for her. That I can somehow, in some way, replace everything she’s lost. But I know I cannot. It only makes me more determined to be the best man I possibly can be for her.
20
After a long, pleasant breakfast, I excuse myself to finish preparing for the day. I’ve chosen a comfortable outfit that looks a lot like a tracksuit in emerald green with embroidered gold embellishments along the cuffs of the legs and sleeves.
After I finish my hair and makeup in a light breezy style, the AI informs me that Jaxxo is at my door. I stride to the door, smiling, with my heart full. I find him standing on the other side. He looks at me with dark eyes full of what I know is desire. His reserved manner and standoffish behavior belies the true depth of his emotions, which I now feel I have access to.
“Are you ready?” he asks.
“I am. But I’m going to miss you,” I say.
The words