“I’m honored that she would want me to be her father,” Reyvor said. He focused his attention on Abby. “I’m afraid it’s a little more complicated than deciding to make you my daughter. There’s your mother and your two sisters to consider.”
“Nikki and Winnie want you to be their father too,” Abby said.
Amusement lit Reyvor’s eyes as he looked at Hazel. “It seems we’re outvoted. What do you say, Hazel?”
“I-I-I…” Her mouth snapped shut. He was joking, wasn’t he?
Reyvor quirked a brow then looked back down at Abby. “It seems your mother doesn’t care for the idea of being mated to me. I think you’ll have to look for a different father.”
Abby twisted and glared up at her. “Don’t ruin it, Mommy. Tell him I can be his daughter.”
Hazel wasn’t sure what to make of her daughter in that moment. Maybe she should have explained things to her better. Nikki and Winnie joined them, and Winnie climbed onto the sofa beside Reyvor. He wrapped his free arm around her and pulled her close too, just like he had with Abby. Despite the fact he didn’t have children, she couldn’t deny he was good with them.
“We want to stay with Reyvor,” Winnie said.
Tears gathered in Hazel’s eyes. They wanted to stay with a stranger rather than live with their own mother? Of course, they hadn’t outright excluded her, but it still smarted that they understood Reyvor could take better care of them than she could. She supposed she couldn’t blame them. She had, after all, done a horrible job of taking care of them over the past year. First, she housed them with their dad, who turned out to be an abusive asshole, and then she forced them into the streets, eating out of dumpsters.
“I believe what they’re saying,” Reyvor said, “is that they wish for us to become a mated couple. I think on Earth you call it married?”
Nikki leaned against Hazel. “You lived with Dad since you lost your job and stayed with him for the last ten years, and he was a rotten bastard. Why not give Reyvor a chance? At least you know he’s nice.”
“Don’t say that word,” Hazel said.
Nikki shrugged. “It’s better than what I wanted to call him.”
“You shouldn’t encourage them,” Hazel told Reyvor. “You know very well you have no intention of taking me as your wife. You’re giving them hope for something that will never happen.”
“Perhaps, if you won’t consider becoming my mate, you will at least consider permanent employment with me?” Reyvor asked. “I’m going to need someone who can cook and clean.”
“Will we still get to live with you?” Abby asked.
“I think your mother would prefer a place of her own,” Reyvor said.
Abby pouted and Hazel wondered if she would ever stop disappointing her children. It seemed as if she could never do anything right. Ever since she lost her job, one bad thing after another had happened to them.
“I’ll think about it,” Hazel said, but in her heart, she knew she would agree. “As long as the girls can come to work with me. In the fall, they’ll start school again, but I have nowhere for them to go until then.”
“Of course!”
She would be stupid to pass up this opportunity.
A knock sounded at the door and she went to open it. There was a man in a short-sleeve button down with sweat stains mopping at his perspiring forehead with a white handkerchief.
“I’m looking for a Mr. Reyvor,” the man said.
Hazel took a step back. “Come in. You must be the realtor.”
He looked surprised when he found Reyvor surrounded by her children, but he took it all in stride. He pulled a chair away from the table and brought it close to where Reyvor sat. He handed over a stack of papers Hazel assumed showcased the homes they’d discussed earlier.
“The top three are the ones I think you’ll like best, but there are a dozen homes for you to look at. I wasn’t sure how many bedrooms you wanted, if you wanted a guest house, or anything else extra like a swimming pool.” The realtor rubbed his hands up and down his thighs. “Of course, any other specifications you have I can put into my program and pull a new list of homes.”
Reyvor studied the sheets with a frown on his face.
“I know these listings aren’t quite as large as the home you showed me last night, but that one was marked way down. If you want something that large, you’ll have to spend about another fifty thousand or so.”
Reyvor held the papers up and beckoned Hazel closer. “Look at these and see what you think. None of them seem quite right to me, but maybe I’m missing something.”
Hazel flipped through them, bypassing the ugly ones right away, and perusing the details on the ones she liked. Reyvor was right though, none of them were quite right for him. She didn’t know what he was looking for, but she couldn’t see him living in any of these homes. And as much as he was doting on her girls, she imagined he would want a large family, which meant he would need more than three bedrooms.
“They’re too small. If you want a large family, you’ll want at least four or five bedrooms. I’m not sure how you feel about a guesthouse, but you might like to have one for visiting relatives or friends. When the kids are teenagers, they could use it for sleepovers so they don’t keep the rest of the house awake.”
The realtor stood and addressed Reyvor. “I hadn’t realized you had such a large family or I would have looked for larger homes. Your wife is right though. With three daughters, you’re going to want at least four bedrooms. Five if you plan to have more children.”
Reyvor’s lips twitched like he was fighting a smile, but he didn’t correct the man. Her daughters had a happy glow about them as they snuggled even closer to him, as if the realtor’s words would make it so. Hazel could see now it was going to break their hearts when they didn’t get to move into whatever home he purchased. But she’d given her word she would help him, and she couldn’t very well do that without taking her daughters with them.
“Perhaps a selection with more bedrooms and a guesthouse,” Reyvor said.
Abby tugged on his braid. “And a pool.”
He smiled broadly. “And a pool. The women have spoken.”
“Of course, Mr. Reyvor. I’ll go to the office right now and run another search for you.”
“We’re going out for a while, but call me when you have another set of homes. If we’re near your office, we can stop by and pick them up.”
The realtor nodded and Hazel walked him to the door. After he’d left, she whirled to face Reyvor with her hands on her hips.
“He thinks we’re married!”
He seemed unconcerned.
“Well, aren’t you going to tell him the truth?” she demanded. “And why didn’t you tell me you had so much money? Those houses cost a fortune!”
“Is that what really has you ruffled? The fact I have money? On my world, I’m considered average, financially. Transferring my Terran funds into Earth money has made me very well-off. Only the leaders on my world, and perhaps our best warriors, would have as much money as I do here.”
“Is that why you decided to stay here? So you could be rich?” she asked.
“I’m no longer welcome on my world. When my mate died, I didn’t react well. I caused a bit of destruction and was asked to leave. Earth gave me refuge, and as part of my agreement to reside here permanently, they compensated me well when I transferred part of my money.”
“If you’re going to live here forever, why do you still have money on your world?” Nikki asked.
“I don’t know. I suppose it would make more sense to transfer the balance.” Reyvor pulled out his phone and made a call.
From the one-sided conversation, Hazel figured he was talking to an accountant. When he was finished, he didn’t make a move to get up. She wondered if he was just going to sit there snuggling her daughters all day, not that the girls seemed to mind.
“What do you say we do a little shopping, have some lunch, then see if John has found some decent houses for
us?” Reyvor asked the girls.
“Do we get to ride on your motorcycle?” Abby asked.
He laughed. “No, little one. But we can ride in a limo. Do you know what that is?”
Abby’s face scrunched. “One of those long cars?”
“Exactly.”
“That sounds fun,” Winnie said, bouncing a little.
“What are we going to shop for?” Nikki asked.
“Well, I thought you girls might like some more clothes and maybe some new shoes. Is there something else you need?”
Nikki chewed on her fingernail.
“Or perhaps it’s something you want?” Reyvor asked.
“Could we get some books?” Nikki asked. “I had one, but it was stolen at the shelter. That’s why we don’t stay there anymore. Well, that and some nasty man sneaked in and tried to take Abby.”
Reyvor’s gaze jerked toward Hazel. “Someone tried to take Abby?”
Hazel nodded hesitantly.
“Your days of living on the streets are over, Hazel. I don’t care how much you want to fight me on this, but the girls and you are going to stay with me.”
“We can’t live with you indefinitely. You’re going to want a mate and children of your own,” Hazel pointed out. “What happens when you find a woman and want to settle down? She won’t want us in her home.”
“We’ll discuss it later.”
Reyvor placed a call for the limo and when it arrived, Hazel watched as he lifted Abby into his arms and carried her out to the waiting car. Winnie clasped his other hand and Nikki stuck close. Hazel trailed behind them, closing the room door behind her, wondering what she’d gotten herself into. In the car, the girls settled around Reyvor, leaving Hazel to sit across from them. She felt a twinge as she looked at them, wondering why their father couldn’t have been as caring as the alien across from her.
“I thought we’d go to the mall,” Reyvor said. “I’ve never been, but I’ve heard it’s a place Earth females enjoy visiting.”
The girls squealed and bounced, and Hazel realized they looked happier than they had in a really long time, even before they became homeless. Was she being selfish by not wanting to stay with Reyvor? Should she give in to his demands and let him make a home for her girls? Yes, there was a risk it could all be taken away from them in the future, but what about right now?
She watched as he interacted with her daughters. He seemed genuinely happy to be around them and Hazel wondered if he had experience with kids, or if hers the first he’d been around. She didn’t know much about him, other than that he was kind. The woman he’d been married to must have felt like the luckiest girl in the world. She imagined he would be attentive to anyone special in his life and she envied the woman he would eventually marry. There was no way he’d remain alone forever. He might be a widower, but he’d already had someone special in his life. Wouldn’t he want that again?
Hazel looked out the window, trying to tune them out. Her heart thumped in her chest as she realized she wanted this view every day. Not the view out the window, but the sight of her girls being happy and cared for by an incredible man. They’d missed so much in their lives by having a rotten father.
Staying with Reyvor wasn’t smart, especially when she was so attracted to him, not that she thought he’d ever think of her that way. He’d already said his wife had been her exact opposite. Hazel was short and blonde, and while that was the type a lot of American males liked, it apparently didn’t appeal to this particular alien who now claimed Earth as his home.
It shouldn’t bother her, but it did. She didn’t want her lust to be one-sided, but if he felt even a hint of attraction toward her, he didn’t show it. She glanced his way and caught him watching her as he chatted with her daughters. Her cheeks flushed and he smiled before she looked away. All right, maybe he was a little interested. Was that why he’d offered her a job? Not that she would turn down the chance to earn some money to take care of her children. And they had a place to stay for the time being, which meant she could actually rest at night and not be on constant watch for bad men.
The limo pulled to a stop in front of the mall and her children scrambled out of the car and bounced impatiently as Reyvor eased out, then held out his hand. Her fingers slid across his palm as he lifted her from the vehicle and she felt tingles shoot up her arm. Her nipples pebbled and she blushed again, knowing he could see them. He may have purchased her a bra, but being a typical male he’d picked one based off looks, which meant sheer and lacy. There wasn’t much of a barrier between her boobs and her shirt. She damn near felt naked at the moment.
“The first place we’re stopping is the shoe store,” he said in that imperious way of his that said My word is law.
She glanced at her shoes, and then her daughters’ shoes. All right, so they were filthy and had seen better days. They didn’t, at all, go with their new outfits. They followed Reyvor into the mall and stopped as he perused the map. She watched his finger slide down the glass display until he found the words Shoe Stores. He frowned and looked her way.
“I don’t know which of these are appropriate for what we need.”
“The discount store is fine,” she said, pointing it out on the display.
“If I’m buying you shoes, I’m going to buy good ones that will last a while. What about this one?” he asked, pointing to a store she knew would cost over fifty dollars for a pair of tennis shoes, and even that was a discounted rate.
“Reyvor, just because you’re determined to spend money on us doesn’t mean you have to wipe out your account doing it.”
He rolled his eyes, a move so human it startled her, then tucked his hair behind his ear. “I’m only going to say this one more time. I have more than enough money to provide for the kids and you. I’m paying cash for whatever house I buy and I will have plenty left over to furnish it. As I said, I’ve only transferred part of my money into a bank here on Earth and the rest of my credits are still on Terran. I’m not the richest man in the world, but I’m far from destitute.”
She felt the blood drain from her face and he cursed under his breath.
“I didn’t mean anything by that,” he said. “I know you’re doing the best you can under the circumstances. I don’t know all of the details, but your girls did share a little with me this morning. You were in a bad situation and did what you thought was best to make sure your children were safe. Now why don’t you let me do what I can to assist you in that goal? You may not be in a position to provide for them right now, but I am. My mate and I never had children because she was taken from me too soon, but I’ve found I like spending time with your daughters. Give me a chance to show them all men aren’t monsters.”
Tears gathered in her eyes and she slowly nodded. “The shoe store you pointed out will be fine.”
He nodded, then took Abby’s hand and began to walk in the direction of the store. She noticed people were watching them with interest and she wondered how often the Terrans came to the mall, if ever. She even saw a few with their cell phones snapping pictures. Hazel wasn’t too sure how she felt about her daughters being photographed and more than likely plastered all over the Internet.
At the store, a clerk hurried forward and asked if she could be of any service. With the way she was eyefucking Reyvor, Hazel had a pretty good idea what type of service she’d like to give him. And the big, purple alien was completely clueless. Or so she thought. When he reached for her hand, pulling her to his side, she wondered if maybe he did know the redhead wanted him.
Winnie was standing in front of them and turned to tug on Reyvor’s shirt. “Can we get any shoes we want?”
He smiled. “Any shoes you want. Maybe we’ll even get more than one pair.”
Winnie’s eyes lit up and the clerk looked at them with a confused expression.
“Show my girls anything they want,” he told the clerk. He then nudged Hazel toward the shoes. “All of my girls.”
Hazel looked over her shoulder and saw the c
lerk blush and nod before trailing after the three little girls. Hazel narrowed her eyes at Reyvor, but he just smiled at her, completely unrepentant. Although, she had to admit she wasn’t overly angry with him. His words had made her heart leap and for a moment she’d wished it was true, that they did belong to him.
With three girls, it took forever to find shoes that were practical and that the girls would like. Nikki was getting to the age where she wanted dress shoes or boots with high heels, but Hazel told her she had to wait a few more years. She thought her daughter was going to argue the matter until Reyvor showed her some cute boots with a flat sole. It seemed her daughters were just as smitten with him as she was.
An hour later, they had each purchased no less than two pair of shoes. Reyvor sent off a text and led them back to the mall entrance. Hazel thought her daughters were going to die from disappointment, until the limo driver stepped inside and retrieved the bags from Reyvor. They went to two popular clothing stores for little girls, each time returning to the entrance and handing off their bags. When it came time for Hazel to shop, the girls looked tired and she knew she would have to hurry, but Reyvor once more took charge. He contacted the limo driver, then handed off her daughters and some cash.
“Take them to that cookie shop in the food court and get them a treat while Hazel finds some clothes,” Reyvor said. “If you have any problems, call me.”
The driver nodded and gathered the girls, herding them further into the mall. Hazel opened her mouth to protest, then stopped. She trusted Reyvor’s judgment, but this was the first time in months she hadn’t had the girls attached to her. She looked around the department store and wasn’t quite sure what to do. There weren’t dirty hands reaching for her, no one dragging her in two different directions, and there was no squabbling.
“Are you all right?” he asked. “I shouldn’t have sent the girls off without your permission. If you want, I can have them brought back to you.”
She shook her head. “If you trust him, then I trust him.”
“Then what is it?”
Hazel and the Alien Biker (Intergalactic Brides 5) Page 4