by Kelly Goode
‘Just follow me,’ she replied on a shaky exhale. ‘And act like you belong here.’
Lydia directed Jonah towards the lift that took them down to the basement. Once safely inside, she relaxed slightly. She led him through a set of double doors and into the main laboratory where she collected the items she needed. She was pleased to see at least two pieces of broken equipment had finally been replaced.
‘Firstly, I need a sample of your blood to work with.’
‘Of course,’ Jonah replied, and began unbuttoning his shirt. His fingers worked swiftly and she imagined his hands making light work on her own buttons.
‘You can keep your clothes on.’
‘I could, but it’s more fun if I don’t.’
He winked at her and she immediately felt a pulse of desire deep inside her stomach. She also found it hard not to stare. Don had always kept in shape, but Jonah was something else entirely. His chest was wide and hairless, and his stomach muscles were perfectly sculpted down to his narrow waist.
‘Sit down, please,’ she said, then coughed to clear the husky tone that had crept into her voice.
‘Be gentle with me. This is my first blood test.’
‘There’s nothing to worry about. I’ll take the sample from the inside of your elbow, as your veins should be relatively close to the surface like a human.’
Lydia took a tourniquet from a drawer and placed it around Jonah’s upper arm. The closer she got to him, the headier the scent of cedar became. Her hands barely fitted around his bicep and she tried not to touch him any more than was necessary.
‘This will slow down the flow of blood, so your vein swells enough for me to extract the sample.’
‘You don’t need to talk me through every step, Lydia. I trust you.’
Lydia took an antiseptic wipe from her supplies and wiped it over his skin. She resisted the urge to resume her commentary, as she took the needle and inserted it into Jonah’s vein. The needle was attached to a special syringe that extracted his blood.
‘This shouldn’t take too long,’ she said, as she slotted the first vial into the syringe. ‘But tell me if you start to feel dizzy or faint.’
‘I guess now would be a good time for you to ask any jaktten-related questions while you have a captive audience.’
Lydia had so many questions about the elusive alien species, but the only ones that came to mind were about Jonah specifically.
‘Why do you look the way you do?’ she asked.
Jonah shrugged his bare shoulders, as a sexy smile curled the corners of his lips.
‘Just good luck, I guess.’
‘That’s not a truthful answer.’
He laughed. ‘It’s the only answer I can give you. After landing on Earth, jaktten discovered they could shift into humans. We don’t get to choose our hair colour or skin tone for example. My DNA somehow replicates human DNA and I shift into this form.’
It was a very nice form, but she held back that remark for fear of boosting his ego.
‘Can you shift into multiple forms?’ she asked.
‘No.’
‘Can you shift into someone else?’
Jonah raised an eyebrow. ‘What like you?’
Lydia nodded, as she took out the first full vial and replaced it with an empty one.
‘No, but it might be cool to take on someone else’s identity for a day. As you had three questions, I should get three in return. I’m keen to learn more about humans too.’
‘Ok.’
‘Let’s start with a simple one. Why do you look the way you do?’
Lydia rolled her eyes, ensuring he saw the gesture.
‘Humans don’t get to choose their genetic make-up either. Next question.’
‘Do you like the way you look?’
‘No.’
‘Why don’t you wear make-up?’
‘Not much point when I spend most of my time in the laboratory wearing protective glasses or a facemask.’
Jonah tilted his head and studied her face. She tried not to fidget under the weight of his stare, but it felt as if he was assessing every crease and blemish.
‘Do you prefer women that wear make-up?’ she asked, then wished she could take it back as it sounded as if she cared what type of women he found attractive.
‘Not all women need make up,’ he replied instantly, ‘but there’s no denying it can enhance a pretty face or even hide an ugly one, although I suspect that’s not the answer you really wanted.’
She didn’t respond to his claim. She concentrated instead on switching the second full vial for a final empty one. When she’d finished, Jonah lifted his free arm and slid a finger under her chin until she was forced to lift her head and meet his eyes. She felt vulnerable as she stared at him. Not only because even though he was sitting down, he still towered over her, but for the first time in a long time she actually cared what someone thought of her.
‘I suspect what you really want to know,’ Jonah continued, ‘but are too afraid to ask me, is whether I would prefer you to wear make-up.’
Lydia snorted. ‘You have a high estimation of yourself if you think I care about your opinion.’
Jonah lowered his head until their faces were barely a few centimetres apart. She felt his warm breath against her mouth and the briefest sweep of his lips against hers.
‘You do care,’ he murmured. ‘And the answer is no. I think you’re perfect just the way you are.’
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘For your blood, I mean.’
She removed the last filled vial and then released the tourniquet. She removed the needle and pressed a cotton wool pad against the tiny insertion wound.
‘Keep applying pressure,’ she said. ‘Sometimes the skin can bruise.’
‘I used to be part of the jaktten army. I can take a bruise or two for you.’
33
‘Let’s play a game.’
Lydia adjusted the magnification of the microscope and watched the miniscule cells come to life. Jonah’s blood was fascinating. The cells replicated and mutated frequently, which was what allowed him to shift forms. If she could harness their secrets, she could work on an antidote to her unwanted changes.
‘I don’t like games,’ she said, not needing to look up to know he was staring in her direction. At least he’d put his shirt back on. The sight of his bare chest had been more of a distraction than she’d expected.
‘Figures.’
The disappointment in his tone was enough to divert her attention from the microscope and she looked up.
‘What do you mean by that?’ she asked.
‘When was the last time you had fun?’ he countered.
‘I have plenty of fun.’
‘Staring into a microscope is not fun, Lydia. What do you enjoy doing when you’re not working?’
‘I like codebreakers. I read scientific journals-’
‘Boring,’ Jonah cut in and she resisted the urge to swat him around the back of the head. His giant frame took up most of the space in the small room next to the main laboratory, but although she’d never admit it out loud, she liked having him close.
‘I’ll have you know I cracked a particularly challenging code last week,’ she replied. ‘It was immensely fun.’
Jonah moved from his side of the desk to hers. His scent filled her senses and his body heat made her pulse quicken. He clearly knew the affect he had on her from the smirk on his face. She wished she knew how to mask her attraction to him.
‘When was the last time you did something for the hell of it?’ he asked.
‘I don’t understand.’
‘When did you last dance? Or go to the theatre? Or get drunk?’
‘I don’t do any of those things.’
‘Why?’
She considered his question. She used to go out with Don, but that was before the children came along. Now he preferred drinking and socialising with his old rugby pals than with her, and she didn’t have any female friends to call upon.
&nb
sp; ‘There’s no time,’ she said.
‘They’ll be no time when you’re dead either. Work to live, not live to work. That’s a motto I’ve adopted since arriving on this planet.’
Lydia scowled. It was different for him. He was rich, handsome, and charismatic; he probably had a large social circle and never felt intimidated when he went out.
‘I’m trying to stop an alien invasion,’ she said. ‘I don’t have time for pointless activities.’
Jonah reached over and pushed a stray piece of hair behind her ear and then gently massaged her earlobe, which up until that moment, she hadn’t even realised was an erogenous zone. Men like Jonah didn’t usually pay such close attention to women like her.
‘You can’t stop the alien invasion, babe. It’s already happened. I’m proof of that.’
‘Don’t call me babe,’ she snapped automatically.
‘Why not?’
‘That’s what Don calls me…I don’t like it.’
‘It suits you.’
‘No, it doesn’t. I know what I am and where I belong. Here in this laboratory, I make a difference. I collect the evidence and process the facts. I live to work, because if I don’t do my job, innocent people die.’
Jonah shook his head, as his hand moved from her ear to her collarbone. Her stomach fluttered and the muscles in her neck seemed to tighten under his touch until she felt as tightly strung as a harp.
‘You’re not living, Lydia. You’re hiding.’
‘From who?’
‘Hell, I don’t know. From everyone and anyone. From your family, your husband, even your friends.’
‘I don’t have any friends,’ she stated.
‘I’m your friend.’
The sincerity on his face had her wishing that were true. She could do with someone in the corner. She was tired of shutting people out, but didn’t know any other way to behave.
‘You’re not my friend,’ she said, as Jonah caressed the sensitive hollow where her neck met her collarbone.
‘I could be,’ he replied, his gravelly tone doing silly things to her womanly parts. She wasn’t some hormone-crazed teenager; she was a scientist and he was an alien. She should be studying his anatomy for research purposes, but somehow any visions of a naked Jonah concluded with them having sex, rather than with him dissected on her autopsy table.
‘You don’t care about me, Jonah. The real reason you’re here is because you feel obligated after biting me.’
His grey eyes narrowed and he pulled away from her. She immediately missed the feel of his hand against her skin, but felt her armour slowly slide back into place. She needed to keep her guard up around him. She had to push him away, and the only way she knew how to do that was to be the ice queen everyone accused her of being.
‘And don’t think you can use the fact your DNA has mutated with mine to your advantage,’ she hissed. ‘I’m not that careless and you’re not that persuasive.’
34
Damn it, the woman frustrated him. Jonah stared at Lydia, meeting her accusatory stare with one of his own. He resisted the urge to grab her and throw her over his shoulder like a caveman. He’d studied human history and felt an affinity for those prehistoric men. Back on Jakttera, he’d lived a simple life based on feeding, survival, and mating. On Earth, men no longer claimed women like a possession, but he was finding it hard to convince his inner-jaktten of that. He fought back the primal urges that wanted Lydia naked beneath him. Maybe he just needed to have sex. Maybe she wasn’t really his mate after all.
‘I could be somewhere else, you know,’ he said. ‘Spending time with a willing female companion, rather than you. So let’s be clear, I don’t need to charm my way into anything where you’re concerned.’
He’d wanted to hurt her, in the same way she’d hurt him with her rebuke, but when her face fell slightly and her eyes misted, he didn’t feel better. He felt like an arsehole. He’d heard the way her husband had spoken to her and now he was doing the same thing.
‘I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.’
‘Don’t be sorry. Just don’t let the door hit your arse on your way out. We’re done.’
She stormed towards the exit and Jonah followed. When he was close enough, he reached out and held the door shut.
‘Don’t walk away from me Lydia. I said I was sorry.’
She turned on him with her teeth bared like a wild animal and he fell back a step. Her eyes elongated and changed from dark brown to glowing amber. Her cheekbones seemed to crack beneath her skin and the entire shape of her face shifted as her spine bowed.
The shift only lasted a few seconds, before she inhaled sharply and her eyes rolled back inside her head. She slumped to the floor and Jonah just about caught her before she hit her head on the concrete. He scooped her up into his arms and followed the signs towards the medical bay. Her skin was deathly pale and her small body shook against his.
‘Stay with me, Lydia.’
The sensible thing to do would be to call for help, but he was an alien surrounded by agents trained to kill him. If they thought for a second, he had anything to do with what had happened to her, they’d shoot before he could explain. Lydia told him she’d kept their association a secret and he wanted it to stay that way.
‘I need you to wake up. Please, Lydia. Listen to my voice.’
Jonah couldn’t open the door to the medical bay, as it was locked and needed a key code.
‘What’s the entry code?’
Lydia remained limp and unresponsive.
‘Come on, Lydia. Please wake up. I need your code.’
‘What the fuck are you doing here?’
Jonah turned to face the approaching voice, which belonged to the last person he’d wanted to encounter, but maybe the only one that would understand his predicament.
‘I need your help,’ Jonah said.
Blake shook his head. ‘I caught your scent at a crime scene yesterday, but even I didn’t think you’d stoop so low as to break into ISCU. What did you do to Lydia?’
Jonah looked down at Lydia’s small form. ‘I didn’t do anything to her, and I didn’t break in. Lydia is my…friend.’
He’d almost said mate and Blake seemed to sense it, as his eyes narrowed.
‘You don’t have friends, so I’ll repeat my question. What did you do to her?’
Jonah rearranged Lydia in his arms. ‘I see you’re still a stubborn son of a bitch. Open this damn door and I’ll tell you.’
Blake shrugged his wide shoulders. ‘I can’t open it.’
‘What do you mean?’
‘It’s secured with a code.’
‘One they don’t trust you enough to have.’
Blake’s jaw clenched, indicating Jonah had prodded a sensitive subject.
‘Is Carson here?’ Jonah asked.
‘You’re not going anywhere near Carson,’ Blake snapped. ‘She’s mine.’
‘Calm down, I didn’t mean it like that. Besides, I think I’ve found a human of my own.’
Jonah tried his hardest not to look down at Lydia when he spoke, but failed. Blake hesitated for a few seconds and then pressed a series of numbers into the keypad beside the door.
‘I thought you said you couldn’t open it.’
‘I can’t open it, but Carson can.’
‘You used her code. Does she know you can do that?’
‘Yeah, she knows.’
Blake didn’t elaborate and Jonah didn’t push the subject.
‘I know there’s some bad blood between us,’ he said instead. ‘But I really do need your help.’
They stepped inside the medical bay and Jonah laid Lydia on the bed while Blake secured the door behind them.
‘How did you two even meet?’ Blake asked, and his green eyes were as wild as the dark blond hair that brushed his shoulders. ‘Lydia practically lives inside her laboratory. I doubt she frequents the bars and clubs that you do.’
‘Short version is someone attacked her and I rescued
her. Long version involves me coming to ISCU a few days ago in an attempt to barter for the information you said you had and finding Lydia instead.’
Blake shook his head. ‘You were on my case for weeks about getting that watch list and the moment I hand it over, you want more.’
‘I can’t help the way I’m wired. Information is power. It’s my main motivator. Or at least it was until I met Lydia.’
Jonah checked Lydia’s pulse, which was slow but steady. He opened her closed eyelids and checked for a response. Her pupils dilated and he let out a sigh of relief.
‘I feel like I’m losing my fucking mind whenever I’m around her,’ he continued, his voice strained with emotion. ‘I’ve spent decades on this planet collecting information and making money. I was never interested in settling down, but now it doesn’t seem like such a bad idea.’
‘You said someone attacked her. Was it a desquamater?’
‘No, just some drugged-up kid. I gave him a chance to walk away. That’s why you caught my scent in that alleyway. I was protecting Lydia.’
‘Did you kill him?’
Jonah nodded. ‘He was going to rape her.’
‘What happened afterwards?’
‘I was still in my jaktten form and I…’
His voice trailed off and he swallowed deeply. Blake reached out and placed his hand on Jonah’s shoulder. Whether the move had been to comfort or contain him, he couldn’t tell, but it gave him the courage to finish his sentence.
‘I bit her, Blake. I bit this woman and now as crazy as it sounds, I think I’m falling in love with her.’
35
Lydia squeezed her eyes shut and tried to keep her breathing pattern regular. She wanted to maintain the façade of sleep, so she could to listen to more of Jonah and Blake’s conversation, as what she’d heard so far had caused her heart to constrict. Jonah had said he was falling in love with her, but that wasn’t possible. They didn’t even know each other, not properly, and yet she couldn’t deny she felt a connection to him far greater than to Don, a man she’d already shared half her life with.
Silence stretched out and her eyelids trembled against the compulsion to open, but she knew they wouldn’t talk freely unless they thought she was still unconscious. Her nose started to tingle and the need to sneeze caught her off guard.