insult
him with your reference to the body part which eliminates
waste?”
“ Yes. He’s a huge
one.”
“ He did not hear
you.”
Bethany stared down at him. He looked
so sincere. So alien, she thought before a tired sigh escaped her.
“Come morning he’ll force his way onto my ranch. You need to rest
and recover as much as you can.”
“ I slept while you
showered. My head feels much better, and the room has stopped
spinning. Sit here.”
He patted the edge of the bed. She
obeyed without question and sat, fully aware of how her bottom
brushed against his firm abdomen. His position on the bed didn’t
change, but she felt as if he curled around her. The sensation
soothed her frayed nerves.
“ You are worried about
these males?”
“ I’m afraid of what they
might do if they find you. I don’t think Caleb will stop searching
until he finds out who killed his dogs. He hates all aliens.”
Bethany cringed. She hoped she hadn’t insulted him by calling him
an alien. His expression didn’t reveal anything about what he might
think. “He’s in charge of the local protest group, Pure Earth. I’d
be willing to bet he’s posted guards outside my front gate. Hell,
he’s probably monitoring the entire perimeter of my
property.”
“ Will this male harm you if
he finds me here?”
Bethany shrugged and shook her head.
“I don’t know, but I’m certain he’ll want to kill you.”
“ If my presence endangers
you, I should leave before these men arrive.”
“ No! You can’t do that,”
Bethany blurted and instantly realized she sounded pathetic and
desperate. For some reason, she didn’t give a damn. “They’ll track
you, and in your condition you won’t be able to get away. Maybe I
can call someone who can help. At NASA, perhaps?”
He blinked. “Perhaps it’s best if your
government is not alerted.”
He was right. He was caught between a
rock and a hard place with nowhere to escape. His own people
couldn’t legally rescue him, and if the planetary government got
their hands on him it might mean disaster for the negotiations. If
any of the protestors found out about him, they’d have a field day
claiming the Alliance couldn’t be trusted. Even worse, if Caleb
captured him the Pure Earth crazies might parade his dead body in
front of the media cameras for the whole world to witness while
they claimed he was some crazed murderer.
She couldn’t allow that to happen.
There had to be a way to keep him safe. Out of concern, Bethany
instinctively reached out and stroked his shoulder. The burly
muscles relaxed where her palm slid over the hot smooth
skin.
“ There’s a wine cellar in
the house where you can hide. The entrance is through a hidden door
at the back of the kitchen pantry.” Her father had added it many
years ago to store hundreds of rare bottles of his favorite wines.
“No one knows it’s there. Caleb won’t find you. You’ll be safe here
until your people can come for you.”
She tried to believe she
was only concerned about his welfare. In truth, she feared he might
walk out of her life forever . Stop trying
to keep everything you rescue. He’s not a
pet.
His brilliant eyes seemed to darken to
a deeper shade of green. “I can sense your fear, Bethany. You are
afraid of this male.”
“ Not really…well, maybe.
Actually, I’m more worried about you,” she admitted before she
could stop herself.
For a brief moment, he tensed as if he
prepared to… Bethany didn’t know what, nor did she find out because
he relaxed. His tail even stopped twitching.
“ Rest for now, Bethany.
This is your bed, and I would be honored if you’d allow me to sleep
with you.”
He wanted to sleep with her? Just like
that? With everything that was going on, danger closing in on them,
and he wanted to bump fuzzies? She studied him to try to figure out
if he was serious or just yanking her chain. Did he really expect
her to jump into bed with him and fuck? Just like that?
Sure. Why not? You
him with your reference to the body part which eliminates
waste?”
“ Yes. He’s a huge
one.”
“ He did not hear
you.”
Bethany stared down at him. He looked
so sincere. So alien, she thought before a tired sigh escaped her.
“Come morning he’ll force his way onto my ranch. You need to rest
and recover as much as you can.”
“ I slept while you
showered. My head feels much better, and the room has stopped
spinning. Sit here.”
He patted the edge of the bed. She
obeyed without question and sat, fully aware of how her bottom
brushed against his firm abdomen. His position on the bed didn’t
change, but she felt as if he curled around her. The sensation
soothed her frayed nerves.
“ You are worried about
these males?”
“ I’m afraid of what they
might do if they find you. I don’t think Caleb will stop searching
until he finds out who killed his dogs. He hates all aliens.”
Bethany cringed. She hoped she hadn’t insulted him by calling him
an alien. His expression didn’t reveal anything about what he might
think. “He’s in charge of the local protest group, Pure Earth. I’d
be willing to bet he’s posted guards outside my front gate. Hell,
he’s probably monitoring the entire perimeter of my
property.”
“ Will this male harm you if
he finds me here?”
Bethany shrugged and shook her head.
“I don’t know, but I’m certain he’ll want to kill you.”
“ If my presence endangers
you, I should leave before these men arrive.”
“ No! You can’t do that,”
Bethany blurted and instantly realized she sounded pathetic and
desperate. For some reason, she didn’t give a damn. “They’ll track
you, and in your condition you won’t be able to get away. Maybe I
can call someone who can help. At NASA, perhaps?”
He blinked. “Perhaps it’s best if your
government is not alerted.”
He was right. He was caught between a
rock and a hard place with nowhere to escape. His own people
couldn’t legally rescue him, and if the planetary government got
their hands on him it might mean disaster for the negotiations. If
any of the protestors found out about him, they’d have a field day
claiming the Alliance couldn’t be trusted. Even worse, if Caleb
captured him the Pure Earth crazies might parade his dead body in
front of the media cameras for the whole world to witness while
they claimed he was some crazed murderer.
She couldn’t allow that to happen.
There had to be a way to keep him safe. Out of concern, Bethany
instinctively reached out and stroked his shoulder. The burly
muscles relaxed where her palm slid over the hot smooth
skin.
“ There’s a wine cellar in
the house where you can hide. The entrance is through a hidden door
at the back of the kitchen pantry.” Her father had added it many
years ago to store hundreds of rare bottles of his favorite wines.
“No one knows it’s there. Caleb won’t find you. You’ll be safe here
until your people can come for you.”
She tried to believe she
was only concerned about his welfare. In truth, she feared he might
walk out of her life forever . Stop trying
to keep everything you rescue. He’s not a
pet.
His brilliant eyes seemed to darken to
a deeper shade of green. “I can sense your fear, Bethany. You are
afraid of this male.”
“ Not really…well, maybe.
Actually, I’m more worried about you,” she admitted before she
could stop herself.
For a brief moment, he tensed as if he
prepared to… Bethany didn’t know what, nor did she find out because
he relaxed. His tail even stopped twitching.
“ Rest for now, Bethany.
This is your bed, and I would be honored if you’d allow me to sleep
with you.”
He wanted to sleep with her? Just like
that? With everything that was going on, danger closing in on them,
and he wanted to bump fuzzies? She studied him to try to figure out
if he was serious or just yanking her chain. Did he really expect
her to jump into bed with him and fuck? Just like that?
Sure. Why not? You