Loving Luc (Selkrian Tales)

by Gabriella Clark

  There were about ten donuts placed on long rods and arranged together. They were tied with a bow and wrapped in cellophane inside the box. I shook my head at the silliness of his gesture and grabbed one of the bouquets placing it on Yvettes desk next to me. I truly appreciated the gesture but I could by carry all these home with me on the scooter. I grabbed another two and distributed then on various female customers desk. That left me with two and I resolved to give the other to Jenny.

  I picked it up and headed towards the door. “Hey frank” I said as I passed his desk “ Let Andrew know I went to see the boss please.,

  Frank nodded “You got it”

  I could hear the whispers start up again the door closed behind me. I knew they would think that he had sent me the flowers and I was glad, that way they would know he was off limits. I strode down the hall and entered the elevator going to the lobby first to deposit the flowers on Jenny’s desk. I left her a little note to let her know I had left them and then went back to the elevator. Pressing the button for the top floor. I tode it to the top, thinking again about accepting his offer. I couldn't deny I was leaving very hard to yes but I was still scared. It's hard to reach out and grab something for yourself if your only used to bad things happening.

  I stepped off the elevator and strode towards his office noting that his secretary hadn't made it in yet. I knocked on his door and then opened it, seeing him sitting across the room at his desk.

  “Hey you” I said leaning back against the door and smiling at him. I love the way his face lit up at the sight of me, genuine pleasure filling his eyes. Hr smiled standing up from his desk and walking over to me. “Ke’Ola” he murmured warmly, taking my hands in his and kissing me.

  I sank into his kiss wrapping my arms around his neck and pressing against him. He was warm and hard and strangely enough he felt like...home. I pulled away shaken by that and holding his hand still, I walked towards the couch set upon one side of the room. He had a whole man cave going on on that side of the room. Along with the couch he had a few overstuffed armchairs, a marble coffee table and a entertainment center set up against the wall. I rolled my eyes as I spotted a game console and shot him s disgusted look over my shoulder. “Really?” I asked taking a seat on one end of the couch.

  “What?” He asked defensively “you don't play?”

  “Of course” I scoffed “I could whoop you any time, any place, any game.” I rolled my eyes at his laugh but continued “ I was just surprised at your choice of console is all. Would have thought you would have the one you make, I do”

  “Ah well there is one thing that humans excel at…..making casual games. I just went directly to the source”

  I shook my head but conceded the point tho him. “Thank you so much for the flowers and donuts. I have to tell Mia to stop helping you out with information on me”

  He winked and moved over to his desk. I watched curiously as he opened a drawer and took something out, holding it in a way that I couldn't really see. Hr walked back over to me with his hand behind his back. He sat on the coffee table in front of me and cleared his throat.

  “Arianna” he began seriously and I tensed suddenly fearful that he was about to break up with me. To announce he rather date one of his own kind and that he made a mistake when he said I was his Ke’Ola.

  “I don't think you took me seriously when I told you what you meant to me. Or maybe you've felt hesitant because we haven't known each other long.” He brought his hand from around his back and revealed the small box he had been hiding. I gasped as he opened the lid, inside was a beautiful tanzanite ring in a rose gold setting. The stone was an oval shape and unadorned by any other jewels, bringing the focus directly to the gorgeous blue/purple colour of the ring. I looked back up at him as I raised a trembling hand to my mouth.

  “Let this ring be my vow to never forsake you. To give you all the time you need and know that I will be here waiting. To protect you. To provide for you. To give you all you need that’s within my power, and find a way to give you whatever’s not” his gaze was earnest and steady, his hand rock solid as he reached out and pointed my hand from my mouth. “I know you may not be ready for all that I am offering now and I'm ok with that. I can give you the time that you need.” He slid the ring on my finger and I just stared at it, amazed at how perfect it looked there.

  “I will be here whenever your ready” he finished. I was speechless, my mind racing a mile a minute. “What if you change your mind?” I whispered staring down at the ring

  “I will not” he whispered back

  “What if you stop wanting me?”

  “I will never” he vowed

  “What if you leave me?”I asked

  “Death itself could not tear me away” he cupped my face and his hands and raised my head. I looked at him tearfully, wanting so bad to take what he offered but still unable to accept it fully. Coward I lashed myself. I knew the fault lay with me but I couldn't help it. While he was able to trust in knowing he had found the person he was meant to be with, I wasn't built the same way. Sure we believe in love but just as often those same people fell out of love, how could I be sure this would be different? I'd already had my mom taken from me, but that wasn't her choice. I don't think I could survive if Luc left me.

  “Shhh” he whispered “ I told you I understand, I'm not demanding anything of you, this ring is just a symbol of the promise I make you. Take all the time you need.” I nodded and smiled at him tremulously. He leaned over and kissed me deeply. I sighed into the kiss, grateful he understood and vowing to get passed this fear.

  Luc

  I rejoiced inwardly as she accepted the ring. I watched hope flicker to life on her eyes, she was really beginning to trust in what I was telling her and I knew it wouldn't be long before she let me bond with her. I did with her when she got up to leave, enjoying watching her ass sway in het pencil skirt as she moved towards the door. I walked behind her quickly and snatched up her hand

  Ignoring her murmur of surprise I pulled her back towards me and caught her against my chest. I lowered my head towards hers and kissed her ruthlessly, driving my tongue into her mouth and laying claim. I wanted to imprint myself on her make sure there was no doubt in her mind who she belonged to. She moaned breathless into my mouth and kissed me back. I ended the kiss by placing a small peck on the corner of her mouth and turning her back towards the door.

  I winked when she glanced back at me, loving her blush before she closed the door behind her. I blew out a breath once I was alone and walked back towards my desk. When she had first came in I had been in the middle of reading through some documents sent to me by the archive elder. No word yet on the God stone but I think I've discovered who the man at the party was. We’d always assumed that Lautaro Ager wss an only child. There's never been any sighting, any activity besides his and his father's since his mother's…..accident.

  From what I've read however there had been two children born to Mal Rai Ager and Dolann Ager. Lautaro was the first born but there had been another…..Lucien Ager. He was a wild card as we had no information on him besides his birth record. We didn't know what his purpose here was or where he'd been this whole time before entering now. I had hope that he was on our side though, why else would he have warned us?

  Lucien

  I rocked back and forth clutching my head in my hands tightly. The voices were screaming at me, warning me of what was to come. I was tormented night and day with visions of what was to come. I could by close my eyes without seeing the bodied on the ground their unseeing eyes staring up at the sky. I prayed for just a moment of peace, a moment of rest but the voices wailed louder.

  “I did what you wanted, I did it!” I yelled at them. They quieted to an insidious whisper it is not enough, she is scared she will not accept him until it is too late. Their voices rose again YOU MUST INTERVENE! I stood in a rush, a vision of what must be done filling my gaze. I nodded and left my room heading towards where I now knew my target was. They wou
ld not thank me for what I must do now, but the alternative was even worse.

  10

  I stood at one of the workbenches a couple days later, putting the tablet through its paces. I wanted to check the new series of coding I had embedded the previous day. We were supposed to have checked it before we left yesterday but one thing led to another and the only thing that had been checked was the sturdiness of my desk in the research lab. I smirked to myself deliriously happy with how things were going with us. He had even spent the night with me last night, claiming that if I came back to his place that I would disappear when the sun rose.

  I had rolled my eyes but secretly been happy that he was in my space. We’d cooked dinner together last night and played a few rounds of video games. I’d won but just barely and my prize had been sex in the shower. I could feel myself falling even faster for him and was dangerously close to seeing hearts and cupid floating around his head every time I saw him. I was thinking of inviting him with me when I left next week to visit mama, it was time I introduced them. We’d talked about my mom and everything that had been going on with me in the last few years. He’d offered to pay the rest of the hospital bill for me no strings attached, but I’d refused. I may take him up on that in the future but right now I didn't want him to think I was with him for what he could do for me. The money was nice but I wasn't used to it, we’d been poor when as I was growing up and while I was doing ok now, I definitely was not used to having money.

  Besides that’s not why I was with him in any case, it was a bonus but I would take him if he worked in the copy room. I touched the app and watched the hologram flicker to life in front of me. We'd chosen both female and male options and the could customize their looks as they saw fit. I was using the default model though so I could test out the commands we'd programmed it to respond to.

  I couldn't deny loving my job and I was thankful for the opportunity I had been given. I knew I couldn't have gotten here without help from my old neighborhood. I smiled to myself as I thought of them fondly, it would be so good to see everyone again. I usually only made it down once a year around mamas birthday and I was excited to see everyone again. I glanced at the ring on my finger and felt warmth suffuse me. It was like everything was finally falling into place for me and I couldn't be happier.

  I frowned as the hologram twitched and the image wavered before disappearing entirely. I sighed, we had already worked through the bugs with the protection and it shouldn't be doing this. Holding the treachery in my hand, I turned towards the door and left the lab. As I walked down the hall I glanced at my watch and frowned slightly. Luc was a little late meeting me here but I had just chalked it up to a meeting or something coming up last minute.

  I stepped into the elevator and pressed the button for his floor. I need to show him this and hoped I wouldn't be interrupting something important. I stepped off the elevator and paused, I could hear someone shouting from his office with Luc speaking to them calmly.

  “Your nothing! You hear me! Nothing! Just some bastard alien trying to take over the world! I won't let you!” Was that...Tyler? From Totality? What the hell was one of the accounting managers doing here ? This wasn't even his home office? Well someone's fired I couldn't help thinking as I stood next to the elevator and waited for Luc to calm him down before getting rid of him. I didn't want to add to Tyler's embarrassment if he knew someone was listening. I could just pretend I had just gotten off the elevator when he came around the corner.

  “Tyler I'm sorry for whatever it is that's happened. But I need you to calm down. Nobody needs to get hurt, put the gun down” Luc said. I straightened wait a minute, a gun? Shit I thought worriedly whipping out my cell and dialling 911.

  “911 what's your emergency?”

  “I'm at Autonomous address 501 park blvd. There's an employee holding a gun on our boss” I whispered into the phone as I crept slowly to the corner. I peeked around at and saw that one of Luc’s double doors was closed while the other was partially open. I answered the 911 operator's questions distractedly as I thought frantically about what I could do.

  “ The police are on their way ma'am. Is there somewhere safe you can hide?” the operator said. Sure I could hide somewhere but I was not going to leave Luc alone to deal with this. I murmured reassurances into the phone and hung up. I eased my way against the closed door and peered through the gap left by the open one. I saw Luc standing in front of his desk, his hands held up in front of him as he continued to try and talk Tyler down. Tyler was in front of him about fifteen feet away. He was pacing back and forth ranting incomplete sentences about his wife and how Kale had interrupted him at the meeting. My brows rose as I heard this, if he was mad at Kale why was he here?.

  He was waving the gun back and forth, pointing it at Luc and then pointing it around the room. Luc was watching him intently obviously searching for an opening to disarm him. “Your brother wasn't there but you'll do. Oh you'll do just well! I can't believe that bitch left me! Me! But I'll show her just as soon as I'm done with you!” I watched in horror as he turned back to Luc. He stood with his legs braced apart and swung the gun around towards Luc.

  I knew what he was going to do and I couldn't let that happen. I burst into the room at a dead run “NO!” I shouted and heaved the tablet at him, hoping I could hit his arm and throw off his aim. The gun went off with a loud BANG still aimed towards Luc as the tablet hit Tyler on the side of the head.

  “Ow! What the..?” Tyler started to turn towards me, the gun now pointing down at the floor. I watched with my heart in my throat as Luc moving so fast he was a blur collided with Tyler and tackled him to the ground. I skidded to a halt and watched anxiously as he wrestled the gun away from him and flung it to the side of the room. With one well placed punch to the jaw from where he straddled his chest, Luc knocked him out.

  Luc stood up chest having as he turned towards me. “Are you ok? Nothing happened to you right?” Hr walked over to me quickly his voice frantic his eyes searching every inch of me. My eyes filled with tears and I reached for him, running my hands over his chest and arms searching for any sign that he'd been hit.

  “It's ok Ke’Ola I'm ok” he soothed, gathering me into his arms and holding me tight against him. Tears fell silently down my face as I heard movement out in the hall.

  “Police! Is everything ok in here?” Four uniformed officers rushed into the room guns drawn and ready. Two rushed over to where Tyler lay on the carpet and another moved over to the gun and begin to use his radio. I watched the other move towards us through a sheen of tears, thoroughly shaken by all that had just happened.

  I didn't listen as the officer begin to question Luc and he answered in return. All I could think about was the fact that I had almost lost him. If he hadn't been so fast he could be gone from my life right now. Never would I see his smile again or hear his laugh. He wouldn't be able to hold me so close or tight against him again. I wouldn't be able to lay my head against his chest and just listen to him breath.

  The fear that I would lose him one day, that he would voluntarily leave me faded. I realized that at any moment he could be taken from me against his will and I would have wasted so much time with him. I should be holding him close and cherishing every moment we have together. I didn't want to be filled with regrets that I couldn't change because it was too late. In the moment that gun went off I saw my whole future without him and I didn't want that. I loved Luc and I would take every moment I could have with him.

  Luc

  I led Arianna over to the couch after I finished explaining what had happened to the police. She hadn't said anything yet and I was worried about her. I'd asked the officer for sometime before he questioned her and seeing the state she was in he'd agreed he told me apparently it had been her that called them a evidently shed come up to my office and seen something was wrong. I sat her on the couch and sat next to her keeping her within the circle of my arms. She burrowed her head against my chest and took deep breaths.

  I
'd never been so scared in my life as I'd been when she'd burst into the room earlier. I'd been trying to talk Tyler down instead of harming him. I was faster, stronger and had a good fifty pounds of muscle on him not to mention the training that all male Selkrians did to become elite fighters. We may be explorers and inclined to lend helping hands to other species but we were able to defend ourselves fully if they need arose.

  Tyler though was obviously going through a difficult time in his life and had decided to pin all his animosity on Kale due to some slight he had made against him. Kale hadn't been available when the dam burst though. So he'd traveled over here to take it out on me. I thought wryly I would have to talk to my brother about his interactions with his employees if this was the result.

  I wanted to shake Arianna and demand she never put herself at risk like that again. I also couldn't help the surge of pride though when I pictured her running through that door, hell bent on protecting me. It warmed my heart to know that she cared about me enough to place herself in danger for me. She better not do it again I thought, never wanting to see her come to harm for any reason.

  I felt her lift get hand and peered down at her nothing the tremulous smile she gave me. I returned it tenderly and brushed my thumb over her cheek. “Are you ok?” I whispered searching her eyes. She nodded and looked at me seriously.

  “Yes” she said

  I nodded relieved and replied “ good. When your ready the police have some questions for you”

  “No that's not what I meant” she looked a bit nervous, glancing down and then back up at me quickly. I cocked my head at her confused but then my eyes widen as I realized what she was saying.