Taken by the Alien Next Door (Aliens Among Us #1) - Tiffany Roberts Page 0,52

the way to a man’s stomach is through his heart?” Zevris asked, frowning.

“Um, yeah. That.” She bit back her smile, though it was harder to do once the food was in her mouth.

Zevris settled his plate on his thigh and scooped up some mashed potatoes with his fork. “I’ve been able to puzzle out the meaning of many such phrases, but I think I’m missing something with this one.”

“It’s nothing. Why don’t you, uh, tell me what you do as a soldier?”

He narrowed his eyes, keeping them on her as he slipped the food into his mouth. His jaw—his perfect, stubbled jaw—worked as he chewed. “You’re evading. You realized some meaning to what you said that you hadn’t considered, and now you’re trying to shift my attention away from it.”

“I am not. I’m just enjoying this delicious food,” she said, taking another bite.

His eyes rounded for a moment, and he grinned, giving her another glimpse of those wicked fangs. “That’s what it is. Heart is figurative in that saying.” He leaned closer to her. “You were implying that you love my cooking, and that it would lead you to loving me.”

“You can think whatever you want. I admit nothing…except yes, I love your cooking. But only your cooking!”

Zevris chuckled and leaned back again. He speared a chunk of meat and wagged his fork at her, much as she’d done to him before. “That’s a start.”

Tabitha watched him chew, studying the muscles of his square jaw, the strong tendons on his neck, and his bobbing Adam’s apple. Was there no part of him that she didn’t find appealing? She tore her gaze away and focused on her food.

After a few more bites, she stopped caring about etiquette and simply ate for the sake of filling her belly. It was only when a couple pieces of steak and a tiny pile of mashed potatoes remained that she set her fork down, unable to take another bite. She instinctively reached for her glass, having forgotten that she’d drank it all—but it was heavier than it should have been when she picked it up. Her brows creased as she looked at the glass to find it half full. A glance at Zevris’s glass, which was a little less than half full, filled in the blanks.

He’d poured some of his water into her glass without her noticing. As simple as a thing it was, it was also incredibly sweet and thoughtful.

“Are you finished eating?” Zevris asked.

She nodded as she brought the glass to her lips, drinking slower this time.

He took her plate, stacked it atop his own—which damn near looked like he’d licked it clean—and placed them on the nightstand. Tabitha watched him over the rim of her glass, unable to look away from the graceful play of muscles beneath his tanned skin.

How was he even real? How was any of this actually happening?

She set her glass down. Now that her hunger and thirst had been satisfied, there was another need making itself known, growing stronger by the moment. She glanced toward the bathroom door.

“I…need to use the bathroom,” she said, shifting her legs to take some of the pressure off her full bladder.

“Of course.” He waved his arm toward the bathroom.

Tabitha eased toward the edge of the bed and slid her feet to the floor. Every little ache and bruise from her fall from the fence and their tussle earlier made itself known as she stood up. She walked past him, her gaze flicking toward the bedroom door.

“You may shower while you’re in there,” Zevris said.

She stopped and looked at him, wrinkling her nose. “Are you saying I stink?”

Not that she’d blame him if he said she did. After everything that had happened today—including sitting on his bed for hours in damp, dirty jeans—she was sure she didn’t smell like roses.

Zevris tilted his head. Somehow, the gesture drew her attention to his pointed ears, and for an instant she longed to nip at one of them or trace its tip with her tongue.

“I have smelled nothing on a dozen alien worlds that approaches the sweetness of your fragrance, Tabitha,” he said. “And to be clear, I am not referring to any perfume you might wear, or the smell of your antiperspirant, soap, or shampoo. Your scent is a lure I will never be able to resist.”

Tabitha bit the inside of her bottom lip. Her cheeks felt warm, but they weren’t the only part of her that was flushed. She squeezed her thighs together. Why