by Lisa Lace
When he put it that way, it was a rather compelling argument. I felt myself start to capitulate.
"Airik, let me help you out with this. I'll go through the process for you. You'll just have to sign on the dotted line. There are interviews you'll have to do yourself, but I'll do everything possible. Consider it my birthday present to you."
I felt my mind scrambling for other options. There were none. I was running out of time. This solution would give me a wife. No questions asked, no strings attached. I didn't like to get serious with my girlfriends. An arranged marriage was the least serious relationship I could imagine. It was more like a business deal.
Besides, I didn't have a choice, as he had pointed out. My career was everything to me. I wouldn't jeopardize it for something as stupid as The Akuna.
"Okay, Kartar. I didn't know what I was going to do."
"No problem, big brother. You've helped me out more times than I can count. I owe you."
Just like that, I was getting a wife.
I stood in the transporter room, feeling more nervous than I ever had before. A woman on that ship was going to be my wife. Even if we were only married for a year, it was an enormous commitment. And one taken seriously on Koccoran. I was going to get married today.
I had never met my fiancee.
I heard the unmistakable sound of a transporter beaming in and looked up to see a beautiful woman shimmer into solid form.
She wasn't too tall. I estimated she would come up to my chin. But she was willowy, with long limbs, graceful fingers, and a delicate oval face. Her hair was jet-black and loose, reaching to her waist. She gazed at me with piercing blue eyes. No one on Koccoran had blue eyes. For a moment, I wondered where my brother had found her. Then I pushed the thought out of my mind. I didn't want to bring preconceived notions to the table. I wanted to form my own opinion of my wife.
The last thing I noticed about her physical appearance was that her skin was so pale it was almost translucent, and completely without a blemish. No one had skin that color on Koccoran, either. I found myself longing to touch it. Was it as smooth as it looked?
I didn't realize I was staring at her, and I struggled to find my voice.
"Welcome." I swallowed. "My name is Airik Buhari."
She looked blankly at me.
"You don't speak Galactic Standard?" I said with a frown. What kind of a marriage agency was TerraMates? Standard was a language spoken everywhere in the galaxy. Eventually, with all the millions of languages in use as populations from different planets met and interacted, it was necessary to adopt a language everyone would use that was common to all worlds.
After the Union of Planets had passed the Language Standardization Act, all the planets that were a part of the Union were required to adopt it within twenty years. That was fifty years ago. I thought by this point everyone spoke Standard. If she didn't, I was starting to wonder about her home planet.
"Oh, no. I speak Standard. And English."
"English. An ancient language," I said. "Interesting. I have a fascination with ancient languages." I made a mental note to work on my English.
I was curious where she was from, but I didn't ask. Kartar hadn't given me any info on her and it was better that I make up my mind about her without any preconceptions.
I held out my hands crossed at the wrist. She looked down at them, and an expression of panic flitted across her face. She rubbed nervously at a bright red scar on her neck. It was in the shape of a circle. I hadn't noticed it before because her long hair hid it.
"It's a greeting on Koccoran. Hold out your hands like mine."
She nodded and crossed her arms. I smiled. "You must be Quinn?"
"Yes, that's me," she said. "I'm sorry. I'm not usually such an idiot. But I'm afraid I lost the folder containing information about Koccoran culture and everything about you. I'm flying blind here."
There was a folder? I hadn't received anything. I wondered if Kartar had forgotten to give it to me, or if he had done it on purpose.
"Me too. I never even got a folder to lose."
She looked as uncomfortable as I felt.
"Shall we go? We'll be traveling to the next town over, where I live. We'll be getting married today. You know we have to get married within 24 hours, right?"
"Right." She paused. "Are we having a religious ceremony?" She looked upset at the thought, and I wondered why.
"No. Marriage is a civil or social custom and is run by the government. We have no religion on Koccoran."
"That's perfect," she said. Quinn was more relieved than I would have expected. I gave her a forced smile and turned to leave the transporter room, wishing the transport attendant long life.
I knew the attendant was a telepath. She had a strange look on her face as I left. She had probably never seen me tongue-tied. Now that I thought about it, I don't remember having problems speaking like this before. I hoped it wouldn't continue. It would be a long year if we were going to be this uncomfortable together.
We had only just met; I was determined to give us a chance. I needed to marry her. I didn't care if we sat in silence for an entire year. She was the reason I would keep my career.
We arrived at the garage, and I found some warm outerwear that arrived for her. TerraMates provided it.
"Here you go. These are your outdoor clothes."
Quinn stared at them with mild distaste in her eyes. "I have to change what I'm wearing?"
"You don't know anything about Koccoran, do you?"
She swallowed and started to shiver. It was cool in the garage because the door was always opening and shutting, letting people and air into the Transporter Center.
"It's below zero outside," I said. "You need to protect yourself." She didn't move. "Maybe you didn't know to bring your gear?" I said, pulling on snow pants over my regular pants.
"I don't have any gear," she said, slowly.
"You don't? How is that possible?"
"At home, there's no snow. It never gets colder than twenty-one degrees."
"Wow," I said, feeling worried. "You're in for a bit of shock. We're in the middle of winter right now."
She looked upset, but then she lifted her chin. "I'll be all right. It's just cold. Right?"
I gave her another tight smile. "That's right."
I wasn't smiling on the inside. This was not a positive development. I should have told Kartar to put down something about the weather or the environment. Now I was stuck with a fragile flower who wouldn't be able to handle the cold. I didn't like coddling people.
She pulled on the clothes awkwardly. I noticed the red coat looked stunning with her black hair and fair skin. She was truly beautiful.
"If you pull your socks over your regular pants before you put on the snow pants, they won't ride up. Just a little tip for next time."
"Thanks," she said. I waited until she finished dressing, then led her through the garage to the small door that led outside.
As we stepped out the exit, the wind hit us in the face with some snow that had blown off the roof. She flinched in shock. I looked at her with pity and concern.
"Pull your scarf up, Quinn. It will protect your face."
She nodded and clumsily pulled her scarf up without taking off her gloves. I walked over to the nearest snow car. It was similar to vehicles I had seen on planets where they didn't have snow ten months of the year. Instead of wheels, it had tracks to go over the snow and travel between cities. During the brief, two-month summer, smaller self-driving cars were used for transportation.
The driver opened his door. "Hey buddy, we need a ride to Nivan."
"I can do that," he said. "Hop in."
I opened the door and let Quinn climb in first. An hour later, we were in the small town of Nivan. During the walk from the parking lot to the wedding location, Quinn struggled to move in her big boots. It had snowed heavily yesterday. The snow removal division was still in the process of getting all the sidewalks cleared. They hadn't gotten to thi
s one yet, and it was up to our knees.
Finally, we got to the door, and I opened it, holding it for her. I didn't miss the sigh of relief that she let out when she felt the warmth inside.
"Come over here and take your extra clothes off," I said as we stepped through the second set of double doors. To our left was a coat room. We removed our boots and set them on a mat. The snow would melt and drain into a shallow trough underneath the footwear. On the wall, there were hooks for hanging up our snow pants and coats.
I motioned to a device that looked like a long radiator but had loops pointing up on the top. "Put your gloves, hat, and scarf here to dry. The loops heat up and dry off your clothing. The theory is that they will be warm and dry before you go out again into the terrible weather."
"Nice," she said. She put her gloves and hat each over one of the loops, then wound her scarf around a couple of them. I felt entranced when I watched her movements. She was lovely and elegant. When she looked up at me after she finished putting all her outdoor clothes away, her crystal clear blue eyes ensnared me. I couldn't seem to look away.
I wondered if she felt it as well. The moment stretched, but she looked away first.
"We should go this way," I said, turning away from her. Why did I feel guilty? Quinn was going to be a temporary wife. My true love was somewhere far away on a backward planet. I had to nurture the hope that she would be safe until I found her. I wasn't sure how far into the future my vision was. Perhaps it was a year or more away, and I could still find her and save her. I had no business getting interested in another woman.
We walked through the large entrance and into a corridor. I turned into a room whose nameplate read:
Maloney-Buhari Wedding
Quinn gazed at the sign and read the words slowly. There was no time for hesitation.
"Come on," I said, taking her hand. She looked at me in surprise. "We have to keep up appearances. My mother and my brother are the only ones who know you're from TerraMates."
"Oh." Her eyes were big.
"Can you pretend you like me? Hopefully, you will, soon enough."
She laughed and then shook her head.
"I like you, Airik. I won't have to pretend."
The words warmed my heart but made me feel guilty at the same time. Even if I wasn't getting involved with her, wasn't it was a good idea to like my wife?
"I like you too, Quinn," I said. "Ready?"
"Ready."
I opened the door and lifted my head high as we walked into a room packed with over a hundred people. I heard Quinn's shocked gasp. To her credit, she kept her smile firmly in place.
"I thought you said we were meeting your family," she said out of the side of her mouth.
"Yes," I said as we walked forward.
"What are all these people doing here?"
I turned and smiled at her. A genuine smile for the first time.
"This is my family."
Chapter Five
QUINN
By my estimate, Airik had about a million people in his family. It appeared they were all coming to my wedding. I had already met about twenty of them, but I couldn't remember a single name. I was starting to freak out.
My Dad was on another planet. I was on my own in a sea of people.
Airik hadn't let go of my hand. It was a small measure of comfort that made me feel secure. Occasionally, we had to release each other when our wrists crossed, but then he would take my cold hand in his again as we made our way through the crowd.
I wished again that I hadn't mislaid the folder about my prospective husband. I couldn't believe I lost it. I had considered asking Mrs. Lynch for another one, but I couldn't work up the courage. I was worried she would think I wasn't responsible enough to be a mail-order bride.
The truth was, Mrs. Lynch terrified me. She was a harpy. I should have asked her despite my misgivings. Now I knew nothing about these aliens and their culture. What if I offended someone by accident?
And I wished Airik had told me ahead of time that I was going to have to act like we were in love. But when could he have told me? I just arrived on the planet. He let me know as soon as he could, I guess. And I supposed it wasn't a big deal. It was merely another part of our sham marriage.
I didn't know why he wanted to marry me. Keeping up appearances seemed important, so I would do that for him.
I meant it when I had said that I liked him. He seemed kind. There was something reassuring about him. He projected confidence and calm. It seemed he was usually in charge and knew how to put people at ease.
If I could only get through this day, I was sure I could get through another year. Airik introduced me to his closest family members. I met his mother, his father, his three brothers and two sisters. My mind started melting when friends said hello, followed by favorite cousins, aunts, uncles. By the time we finished lunch, I was exhausted.
There were two full days to rest on the space station before the shuttle left for Koccoran. I was over my jet lag. There wasn't anything physically wrong with me.
But I hadn't been around people for years. Mostly my life was Dad and me, especially at the end when we were always looking over our shoulders. I stayed at home alone all day and spent time with my Dad, or trusted friends would come over. I hadn't been in a group this size for a long, long time. And frankly, it was making me nervous.
"Are you ready to go back to the room?" Airik said when he noticed I was finished eating.
"Yes, please."
He said our good-byes for us and we headed up to the hotel room. When we arrived, I collapsed on the couch. He asked me if everything was all right.
"I'm okay. I'm just tired. I haven't been around this many people in a long time. Probably not since I was in school, so it's overwhelming along with everything else."
"I'm sorry, Quinn. We'll have a few hours to rest but then the wedding and the reception are coming, along with more crowds."
"I know. That's okay. Of course you want your family here. I didn't know there would be so many of them. I don't know anything about you, do I?"
"Right," he said, looking worried for a moment. His expression evened out. "We'll get to know each other."
"Yes, we will," I said. My voice had more conviction than I felt. Right now Airik was a complete stranger. I thought I would never know him any better than I did right now. It seemed like an impossible task.
"It's a suite," he said, walking to a door and opening it to reveal a bedroom. "Do you want to sleep for a while? I have some work to do, but I can get it done at the table."
"That sounds wonderful." I sank gratefully onto the bed and pulled off my thick sweater. Underneath I had on a pink T-shirt. "Thanks, Airik, for being understanding."
I looked up, and he was staring at me in a way that made my body tingle. I felt my heart rate accelerate, and my breath came more quickly. Our eyes were locked. His gaze felt like foreplay.
I hadn't been in a relationship since high school. There was one guy that had been a loner. He was an artist and different from everyone else, like me. One night, down by the river, we had both lost our virginity.
Another guy seduced me at the bar one night when I was twenty-two. We went home together, and he disappeared before I woke up. But there hadn't been anyone since then.
I hadn't wanted anyone, until now. I swallowed.
"Rest well, Quinn," he said. When he spoke, I imagined a kiss on my lips.
"Thank you," I said.
He nodded and left.
I fell back on the bed. My body tingled. I felt alive for the first time in years. What was going on? And what about the man I was supposed to be in love with in a year's time? How could I consider anything with Airik when my mystery man was still out there in the universe?
I briefly wondered if it could be Airik. But what were the chances I would have a vision of my true love, and he would turn out to be the man I had already married? Slim to none.
It felt strange to be panting over Airik when I knew
there was a different someone out there for me. It was almost like cheating. But if I hadn't had a vision, I wouldn't know anything about the man from the future, and I wouldn't have any misgivings about having sex with my husband.
What about all the people a person dates before they find the person they want to marry? Does that make them disloyal to a person from their future? Of course not. When they're dating the person, they don't know what's going to happen.
Did it even matter? We weren't going to be jumping into bed together. We would get to know each other first and then if it seemed like a good idea, something might happen. I remembered how it felt locking eyes with him halfway across the room, and my body disagreed with my mind. My body didn't see a need for a getting-to-know period.
It wanted him. And that was that.
I sighed, pulling my pants off and crawling into bed in my T-shirt and underwear. All my philosophical thoughts would have to wait until later. I needed a nap if I was going to be able to face my wedding and reception. I sighed at the thought.
How was I going to live through the rest of this day?
Have a nap, I counseled myself. Everything will look better when you wake up.
I curled up on my side and quickly fell fast asleep.
I woke slowly, aware that there was a foreign scent in my vicinity. It was a little spicy, a little exotic and it made me weak with need. I had been dreaming of Airik. The content of my dreams made me blush. My heart was still pounding because I had woken up as we were about to become intimate.
"Quinn?" I heard Airik's voice calling softly from above me. Wait a second. He was sitting next to me on my bed. My pulse raced.
"Quinn, your face is changing color. Do you feel okay?"
I didn't answer immediately. I was too embarrassed. I didn't think he had much experience with fair-skinned people. On Koccoran, it would be impossible to tell if people were blushing or not because they were many shades darker than my pale skin.
Eyes closed, I responded to him. "I'm blushing."
"Oh," he said. "Why? Am I making you uncomfortable?"
Was his voice huskier than before? I felt myself getting wet. This would not do. I needed to keep our relationship platonic. Didn't I?