that he didn't have two heads in addition to everything else. "Except for your hands and your ears, you don't look much different from most folks I know."
Ralph snorted. "He looks a damn sight better than a lot of people I know."
"Of course, your skin is an unusual color,'' Dolores said, trying not to stare at him. "And your eyes are a little strange, slanted the way they are. And that blue glow is a trifle disconcerting, but..."
Ralph laid his hand on his wife's shoulder. "Let it go,Dee ."
"I think he's beautiful," Lainey interjected smoothly. "French toast okay for everybody?"
Lainey stood beside Micah, his arm draped around her shoulders, as they waved good-bye to her mom and dad. During her parents' visit, Lainey had pointedly refrained from mentioning the baby, but she knew her folks were having the same doubts she was, even if no one spoke them aloud.
Her parents had taken the news of the wedding in stride, but then, what was the point in objecting? Lainey was old enough to make her own decisions, and there was a baby on the way. Lainey had talked it over earlier with Micah, and before her parents left for home, she had suggested they all drive to Vegas the following weekend. "If that's what you want, sweeting," her father had said, giving her a hug.
"Well, that was a unique experience," Lainey declared as they went back into the house and closed the door.
"An experience," Micah muttered. "Is that what you call it?"
Lainey slipped her arms around his waist and gave him a squeeze. "I know it wasn't easy for you, but it had to be done sometime."
"I'm not sure it was a good idea, telling them about me."
"Why not?"
Micah sat down on the sofa and drew Lainey down beside him. "I just don't think it's wise to tell anyone where I'm from."
"I had to tell my folks," Lainey said. "I mean, I didn't think I'd ever see you again, and someone had to know, in case something went wrong while I was in labor."
Micah nodded. What she said made sense. "Have you told anyone else?"
"No. Who would believe me?"
"It's obvious your parents didn't."
Lainey grinned. "Well, I thought they believed me when I told them that night you left, but now that I think about it, I guess they were just humoring me."
She laughed as she remembered her parents' reaction to Micah's transformation. "Did you see the look on my Mom's face? I guess seeing really is believing, but don't worry, they won't tell anyone."
"I'm not worried."
Lainey bit down on her lip. "Micah, I've decided to have the baby at home."
He didn't have to ask why. Hospitals asked questions, took blood tests.
"I'm sorry, Lainey," he said quietly. "I've made a mess of your life, haven't I?"
"No!" She took his hand in hers and held it tight. "Don't even think that. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be having this baby at all." She looked up at him, her eyes bright with love and acceptance. "You gave me something no one else could, something I've wanted all my life. Something that was impossible, until I met you."
"Maybe we shouldn't get married until after the baby is born."
Lainey shook her head, knowing he was offering her a way out in case she changed her mind, in case the baby died and she decided life with an alien was more than she could bear.
"I don't want to wait, Micah. No matter what happens, I don't want this child, born of our love, to be a bastard."
Gently, he drew her into the circle of his arms and rested his chin on the top of her head. Would she still look at him with that same depth of love and devotion if the baby was born horribly deformed or dead? Or would she look at him with hatred and revulsion, recoiling from his touch? Would she then be sorry she had agreed to be his wife?
"I love you, Lainey," he murmured fervently. "Love you, love you."
And love her he would, he thought. No matter what happened in the future, he knew he would love Lainey St. John as long as he had life and breath in his body.
"You're awfully quiet," Ralph St. John mused as he slid into the flow of traffic on the freeway.
"I'm not quiet," Dolores replied. "I'm stunned."
"Yeah, it's a little hard to swallow all right, but, hell, you can't doubt the truth of your own eyes."