Irresistible: A SciFi Alien Mail Order Bride Romance (TerraMates Book 9)

by Lisa Lace

  I felt my ribs. I didn’t think he broke them, but I would have some severe bruises. I hoped he hadn’t done any damage to my internal organs with those kicks.

  “I’ll be fine. Let’s get out of here. He might be only stunned.”

  “We have a few minutes. I doubt he’ll be getting up soon.”

  She hooked her arm through mine, making it look like we were a couple on a stroll. Our positioning allowed her to support some of my weight. I was still dizzy from the blow to the ear.

  “Speaking of stunned…” The bright lights of the spaceport made us both squint as we entered the building. I winced at the falsely conversational tone of voice. “Why did you move when he told you explicitly to remain where you were? He fucking shot me! I could be in a coma or dead right now.”

  We passed an older man. Emmy gave him a charming smile and then turned back to me, her eyes shooting daggers.

  “I could see the settings on the gun and knew you would only get a brief shock. We needed to get away from him. If anyone catches us, your plan isn’t going to work.” I looked away from her because I didn’t want her to see through my explanation.

  “That’s bullshit.” Her voice sounded furious. “You were angry and wanted a piece of his ass.”

  “Maybe.”

  We walked out the main door and found a self-driving hovercraft. After we entered the vehicle, I finally allowed myself to relax, ignoring the pain in my head and my side.

  Emmy programmed a destination into the hovercraft, then turned to face me again. “Maybe? That was a bone-headed move. You could have gotten me killed.” She paused. “I suppose you could have gotten yourself killed as well.”

  “I thought I was getting us out of trouble.” I didn’t like the feeling creeping up on me. Had I made the wrong decision? I preferred it when people didn’t question my choices.

  “What would you have done if I hadn’t knocked him out?”

  I didn’t have an answer for her.

  She answered the question herself. “It’s simple. You would have been beaten to within an inch of your life, and you would have screwed up everything.”

  We lapsed into silence for the rest of the ride. As we pulled to a stop on the corner of a busy street and got out, she put my hand on my arm. I looked down at Emmy’s hand briefly, then up at her eyes.

  “Promise me you won’t do anything stupid. We can figure things out together.”

  “Did you just ask me to be your partner? I was under the impression that you didn’t need any help.” I didn’t bother to disguise the bitterness in my voice.

  “I understand I need help now.” I felt my eyebrows go up in surprise. “But I’ll never need the kind that’s going to get us both killed.”

  “Fine.” I knew I wasn’t being graceful, but it was the best I could do. “I won’t do anything stupid, and we’ll make decisions as a team.”

  “Great. Let’s never talk about it again. I know someone who owes me a favor.”

  I couldn’t stand this woman anymore. I was following her down an alley in the middle of the city, and I was seething. She had called me stupid twice. I regretted coming along on her ridiculous suicide mission, and I could not believe that she had given me shit for trying to save her ass.

  What annoyed me most was the idea that she might be right. It had been an ill-advised move and one I would never have usually made. When he started talking about doing things to Emmy, his words had driven me over the edge.

  Was I supposed to stand there and listen to him? I saw red and jumped into action. I put my hand to my forehead as I finally calmed down and realized what an incredibly dumb thing I had done.

  And that was when I finally understood. In general, I was intelligent, but I had made a mistake. Making the occasional silly decision didn’t mean I was worthless.

  Sometimes everyone was stupid, and it didn’t matter in the long run. I didn’t need to let my feelings control me anymore. The world wasn’t going to end. In fact, it might be good that Emmy was smarter than me. If I did something idiotic, she could bail me out.

  I stared at the dirty wall of the building as she pressed her thumb against a small square on the wall. A screen lit up with the words Please Wait.

  All this time I had tried to run away from situations questioning my intelligence. I made sure to get a good job, never be caught flat-footed, and fill my head with knowledge, all so I would never have to feel dumb. In one shattering moment, my sense of self-worth was changing.

  I gazed at Emmy, feeling grateful. She would never know what she had done to set me free. “What is it?” She had noticed me looking at her.

  “Nothing.” I flashed my best smile, liking the way she blushed and dropped her gaze. We were still waiting as we heard the sounds of someone moving around on the other side of the door. “What’s taking so long?”

  “Morley warned me this person is extremely paranoid. I’m not sure what kind of security he has in place. He might be moving all the furniture away from the front door.”

  “Who exactly are we going to see? Are you sure you can trust him?” I folded my arms across my chest. Emmy unconsciously emulated my position, holding her arms across her front and making her breasts compress together. It had been hot all day, but now that the suns had set, it was getting cold. I could see goosebumps pebbled across her skin. We both needed a shower and a change of clothes.

  I hoped our host could offer us that much.

  The thought of her taking a shower was distracting. I tried to concentrate on the task at hand, rather than how her soft naked body would feel pressed up against mine as warm water dripped over our bodies. She was answering my question, and I tried to pay attention while the blood rushed out of my brain, heading south.

  “His name is David. Morley said I could trust him completely.”

  “And you believe him?”

  “He was never wrong.” She acted like that was enough to explain everything.

  I had never met either one of these men. I wasn’t trusting anyone until they proved themselves. We needed help before we continued on our way, but I wouldn’t let him out of my sight around Emmy.

  I wondered why I felt overly protective. I supposed it was because she was my wife, whether in name only or not. She was my responsibility. I would take care of her to the best of my ability.

  The door finally opened, revealing a withered old face which scrutinized us. Apparently he hadn’t felt the need to enhance his physical appearance as he aged. I had never seen that many wrinkles before.

  “What do you want?” His furry eyebrows drew together.

  “Are you David?” Emmy said. “Morley sent me.”

  “Morley? It’s too late for him to send you anywhere. A cave-in collapsed on him. He’s dead, honey.”

  David didn’t attempt to soften his words. My heart ached as I saw Emmy’s eyes fill with tears.

  “I know. He was my friend. He said you could help me.”

  The man shrugged as if he didn’t care. “Fine. Come in and tell me your story.”

  Emmy smiled and stepped through the door. I followed her closely. She might believe David, but there was something fishy about him. I didn’t trust him at all.

  Chapter Fifteen

  VEN

  I hovered behind Emmy like a storm cloud as we followed David into the room beyond the alleyway. I don’t know what I had expected. Perhaps a dirty kitchen with stained walls and dirty floors. I had not imagined a full-blown forensics laboratory. Emmy looked around in wonder.

  “What is this place?” I asked.

  “It’s a dream come true.” She wasn’t looking at me, but she had a big smile on her face. “I’ve always wanted a state-of-the-art archeology lab.”

  The room was painted a crisp white and filled with counters and tables. There were screens and computers, as well as storage — hundreds of narrow shelves filled with trays containing bits of dirt and pottery.

  “It’s the place where Morley brought his treasures for analys
is,” David remarked.

  “Really? I’ve always wondered what happened after we found an artifact.” Emmy looked around the room intently. “This is where Morley would take the most valuable pieces after we had a big find? He must have come here to examine the artifacts in a sterile environment. I wonder why he never told me.”

  The man’s thin silver hair lightly floated as he nodded his head.

  “I wouldn’t let him. The laboratory is the city’s best-kept secret. Morley knew that there were other things to find here on Heralla.” The man turned to me and began to lecture. I didn’t come here to be treated like a student, but I tried to listen, knowing that it might be important to Emmy. “There was once a thriving civilization on this planet, founded by some of the best minds of the Great Race. There was a disaster and most of their inventions were lost forever.”

  He was silent for a moment, thinking about the past.

  “Fortunately for us, not all of their knowledge disappeared. Their scientists saved some and hid it for future generations. They used puzzles to conceal information, ensuring only worthy people would be able to find it. They hid the artifacts but left clues pointing to their location.”

  “So where are these clues?” I asked.

  Emmy was thinking carefully, her whole being focused on the strange old man.

  “An ancient order of monks existed on Heralla for thousands of years before the Great Race discovered the planet. They received some of the secrets.”

  “Wait a minute. How do you know this?” Emmy’s tone of voice sounded suspicious. “Morley said that I was the only other one who knew about these things.”

  She broke off her thoughts, and I realized she had stopped herself from mentioning the ladle.

  “Morley was correct.” The old man stared into Emmy’s eyes with unrelenting fervor. I stepped closer to her. It was hard to tell the difference between enthusiasm and insanity.

  “Look, I can do the math. If I know and you know, that’s three people.”

  She stopped speaking and looked at David carefully, tilting her head and examining him as if she was trying to unlock a secret. Emmy said something in a foreign language. It sounded like it hissing snakes and sharp poking sounds.

  David answered in the same language.

  I looked back and forth between the two, hoping I could learn an entirely new language without training and by observation. The foreign tongue was only the beginning of my problems. The next thing I knew, his face started melting away.

  EMMY

  From the moment David opened the door, something felt wrong. Morley said I could trust him, but something made me feel very uncomfortable.

  I couldn’t shake the feeling as we walked in and he revealed an amazing research facility. I was instantly jealous of David. If Morley and I had access to a place like this over the years, things would have been different. We could have preserved more of the excavations.

  The more he talked, the more my sense of unease increased. The last straw was when he mentioned the monks. Morley and I were the only ones who knew about those puzzle-loving monks. Had he forced Morley to tell him? Or was it something it else?

  I decided to try something in English. “The tide holds the knowledge, the highs and lows.”

  “Time is a portal, as it ebbs and flows.”

  “How do you know that verse?” I asked.

  He didn’t answer me directly. Instead, he gazed at me with eyes that suddenly seemed as familiar as my own.

  “Don’t take this the wrong way.” I hesitated. My breath started to come unevenly. “You’re supposed to be dead.”

  “Emmy, it would take more than a cave-in to kill me.”

  He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small remote control. David’s false face melted away. It must have been a creation of holographic technology. When the disguise disappeared, I saw Morley standing and beaming at me.

  Morley was a tall man. He had never revealed his exact age, but I knew he was probably in his sixties. His silver-gray hair was still quite thick, and the bright blue eyes that I had missed so much were dancing. I couldn’t believe he was here. I had wished many times for a moment like this and the opportunity to see him again.

  “Morley!” I yelled, throwing myself into his arms. “You’re alive!”

  He hugged me tightly and stepped back to look at me. “The last time I saw you, I wasn’t sure if I would ever see you again.”

  “They said you were dead.”

  “Missing and presumed dead,” he clarified. “They presumed wrong. I had to get away from Abel’s men somehow. When the roof of the cave came crashing down, and I knew I had a back way out, the solution seemed obvious. I couldn’t ask for a better opportunity to fake my death.”

  I looked at him in disbelief. “You put me through hell. You know that, right?”

  “I’m sorry, dear. It was all for Zelia’s ladle. You know that.” He put his hand on my shoulder. The hint of an apology shone in his eyes.

  Ven cleared his throat and spoke in Standard. “Are you going to tell me who this person is, Emmy?” He was trying to keep himself under control.

  “Of course. Ven, this is Morley. He’s been hiding from Abel’s men so they couldn’t get any information about Zelia’s ladle from him.” I hesitated until Ven started glowering at me. “Morley, this is my husband, Ven.”

  Morley’s eyes nearly bugged out of his head. “You told me you weren’t going to get married. You said your work was everything.”

  I heard a hint of disappointment in his voice. I wasn’t surprised. I was disappointed in myself.

  “It wasn’t on purpose. I was helping out a friend.” I glanced at Ven quickly. I wondered if I would be in trouble when we were alone again, but I didn’t care. Morley was alive! He would fix everything.

  “How is this possible?” He gave me a stern look. “I’m sure this story is fascinating.”

  “It’s about as interesting as a dead man returning to life. I was running away from Abel’s men. They tracked me to Earth. I went to the spaceport hoping to get a ticket off-planet, but everything was sold out.” I glanced at Ven, but his expression was unreadable. “I met a woman there. A beautiful, tall, thin blonde woman.”

  The excessive description was for Ven’s benefit.

  “I begged her to let me exchange her ticket.”

  “Why would she agree to something like that?”

  “Well, I had to sweeten the deal. I offered her the entire 500,000 credits you gave me to pay for the trip back here.”

  Ven’s eyebrows drew together. I realized this was the first time I mentioned a payment. Did he think his chosen bride was a saint who would help someone because she was a good person? If that was true, he had been a poor judge of character.

  Morley nodded then. “That makes more sense.”

  Ven still looked upset. “She wouldn’t help you out of the goodness of her heart without payment?”

  I shrugged. “Money makes the world go around. We’re not all independently wealthy. I didn’t think much of it at the time. I could have been trying to swindle her out of her ticket, you know.”

  “She didn’t have to take that much. You gave her more than the cost of the ticket.”

  I looked at him with compassion. That naive alien must have thought Montana was something special.

  “She was Ven’s perfectly chosen woman, but he ended up with me instead.”

  “So you just whoever walked off the spaceship instead of the other woman?” I knew Morley was trying not to be judgmental, but he was failing.

  “It’s not as bad as it sounds.” I surprised myself by defending Ven. “He needed to get married so he could keep an inheritance from his uncle.”

  That was possibly the worst thing I could have said. Morley quietly stared at me. As always, his silence said more than his words.

  “I meant what I said when I married Emmy.” Ven said took a step and stood beside me. “I promised I would protect her and take care of her. I’m do
ing that now, to the best of my ability. I wouldn’t let her come here alone.” He positioned himself so his arm touched mine. He didn’t have the courage to put his arm around me, though I imagined he wanted to. “She wanted to face everything alone.”

  Morley nodded. “Emmy can take care of herself.”

  “With all due respect, sir, everyone needs some help sometimes.”

  There was a pause while we waited for Morley’s evaluation of Ven. We waited in vain. Morley tended to delay his judgment until he had all the information.

  “Well, we shall see what will come of it.” His words sounded mild, but I knew there was a challenge behind them.

  I looked back and forth between the two men, wondering if they had finished their testosterone show. I had more important things to do.

  “You two had better get showered and dressed. You’ve got a ball to attend,” Morley said, patting me on the back.

  “I do?”

  “It’s time to play Cinderella, Emmy.” Morley had a grin on his face. I didn’t know what he had in mind, but I had a feeling I wasn’t going to like it.

  We were walking quickly through the streets. I tried not to stumble in the lovely but impractical shoes Morley insisted I wear. Ven was parking the hovercraft as close as he could in case we needed to leave in a hurry.

  “When I got to the cave and saw the mirror and the riddle, they looked familiar. I noticed they were almost identical to the ones at City Hall. A clue to Zelia’s ladle has to be with the mirror. The mirror and the riddle are connected somehow. We just have to figure it out.”

  I nodded again. We had been over this three times already. I tried to change the subject, knowing he was getting anxious because he couldn’t help himself.

  “The festival of the Stone Goddess lasts for a week. We’re lucky we arrived in time for the final day of celebrations,” I said.

  Morley nodded. “It’s fortunate, but there’s no such thing as fate. Everything happens for a reason.”

  “Fate has definitely taken a hand in all this,” I said, thinking about Ven.

  “Do you love him?” Morley sounded more curious than anything.