eyes darkened. And her pretty features creased with winces and grimaces periodically, indicating she was in pain.
Glancing over, she caught him staring. “What?”
He shook his head. “You’re making me revisit my opinion of Earthlings,” he admitted, his voice still hoarse. So were the soldiers in black they had encountered while making their escape. Those men had been there, risking their lives, to free their friends from the butchers.
Just as Lisa had risked her life to save his.
Her lips turned up in a faint smile. “Then we’re even. Because you’re making me see aliens in a whole new light.”
He chuckled, then grimaced and clutched his chest as agony speared him.
Her brow furrowed. “You need medical attention. But I’m afraid to take you to a hospital.”
He shook his head. “Once the drug wears off, I should begin to heal.”
She motioned to his chest. “Whoever closed you up did a real half-assed job of it. I’m worried those stitches won’t hold.”
He was, too, but would rather die than put himself in the hands of more Earthling doctors. “I have strong regenerative capabilities. I’ll heal.”
“From that? Really?”
“Yes.” He probably shouldn’t reveal things like that to Earthlings, but Lisa had more than earned his trust.
She hissed in a breath and shifted in her seat. Taking one hand off the wheel, she slid it over the mound of her stomach.
“You’re in pain.”
She clamped her lips together and slowly breathed in and out several times. “It’ll pass.”
What had they done to her? He had seen other Earthlings—both female and male—with large stomachs, but they had been large all over, their faces rounder, their arms and legs plumper.
Lisa was painfully thin everywhere except her abdomen. And her chest.
Against his will, he glanced at her large breasts.
He hadn’t meant to grab her earlier. He had just been trying to protect her and was relieved she’d understood that. His hand still tingled from the contact. Women on his planet were highly valued. Grabbing an unbonded woman’s breast was a punishable offense.
“Are you bonded?” he blurted.
She glanced over at him. “What?”
“Are you bonded?”
“I don’t know what that means.”
“Are you bonded to another for life?”
Her brow furrowed. “Do you mean romantically? Are you asking if I’m married?”
“Yes.”
“No.” She returned her attention to the road. “Are you?”
“No.”
A hint of humor entered her expressive features. “Then I don’t have to worry about some alien woman coming down and beating the crap out of me for seeing her man naked?”
He laughed. Again agony shot through him. “No.”
“Good.” She motioned to a sign on the side of the road. “Looks like we’re coming up on a motel. I think we should stop, maybe get something to eat and catch a little rest while we decide what to do now that we’re free.”
He frowned. He knew they would have to stop eventually, but… “Do you think it’s safe?”
“Can you do that thing where you make people see what you want them to see?”
“Yes.”
“Do you remember what the soldier who gave you the clothes looked like?”
“Yes.”
“Okay.” She slowed the vehicle and pulled into the parking lot of a wide one-story building with a timeworn sign declaring it a motel. She parked at the far end, then turned to face him. “Here’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to walk into that office over there.” She pointed to the opposite end. “This is a small place, so there will probably only be one or two people manning the desk. I’m going to approach it first. I want you to make whomever I speak with think you’re standing beside me in casual clothes even though you’ll actually be standing behind me. I’m going to tell the clerk I need a room for me and my husband. He’ll give it to me. I want you to make you look like that soldier and—once I leave—ask for a room for one.”
Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a fistful of papers. Peeling a few off, she handed them to him. “Here’s some cash. If he asks either one of us for ID, make him think whatever we hold up is ID. Can you do that?”
“Yes.” He plucked the image of an ID from her thoughts so he’d know what to make the proprietor see.
“Okay. Let’s go.” She exited the Humvee and waited while he slowly made his way out and circled around to her. “Make sure the clerk doesn’t see any of the blood. And tell him you want the room farthest from the office because you want quiet. If he