Inferno: Alien Castaways 5 (Intergalactic Dating Agency) Read online

  * * * *

  Something tickled her nose, and Geneva brushed it away.

  It came back. She swatted.

  A chuckle rumbled in her ear.

  She opened her eyes to find Inferno holding a strand of her hair. “Hey,” he said, and kissed her.

  “Hey, yourself. How long was I asleep?”

  “About half an hour.”

  “Did you sleep?”

  “I dozed.”

  Lazily, she caressed his chest, toying with the rose quartz pendant. He’d had it on every time she’d seen him. “Does this have special meaning for you?”

  “It’s supposed to bring love.”

  That sounded like something Mandy Ellison would say. “Did you get it at the Inner Journey?”

  “Yes.”

  “I have a bigger one of these on my coffee table. I bought it because pink is my favorite color and I thought it was pretty.” She didn’t ascribe any mystical properties to crystals. As she released the pendant, she squinted at his throat and jaw. “Your neck is thinner.”

  “Yes, now that I’ve mated, the swelling has subsided.”

  “Was it painful? The swelling, I mean?”

  “Sometimes.”

  “Will you swell up again?”

  “Not the mating gland in my throat.” He leered.

  She giggled. “Okay, then. We’re all good.”

  His gaze earnest, he brushed her hair away from her face. “We are very good. To have bonded with my life partner means everything to me. I promise to protect you and care for you for the remainder of your days. Whatever you desire, I will strive to give you.

  “We are mated for life, but I understand many human females also wish to bless their union with an Earth marriage ceremony. All my brothers’ mates did so. Would you also wish to get married?”

  Oh. Oh. Oh. Whoa. Seriously…whoa. He could not be talking about marriage already. She sprang up, pulling the sheet over her breasts. “Inferno…you’re moving a little fast.”

  “It is not moving fast for me. I have waited my whole life for you.”

  “We met a little over a month ago.” For most of the time, she’d avoided him. “We haven’t gone on a real date.” She didn’t count looking for cars and grabbing a bite to eat afterward as a real date. Falling into bed had given him the wrong idea. Most men would have treated this scenario as a casual sexual encounter. Except he wasn’t most men. ’Topians didn’t share the same culture or belief systems, which provided another reason to proceed slowly.

  “Where would you like to go?”

  “You’re not hearing me!”

  “I don’t understand.”

  Oh, this was hard. She hated to hurt him, but she couldn’t allow him to assume his dreams were being fulfilled, when they weren’t. Maybe at some point in the future, who could say? But right now? She needed time to process, to adjust. Panic fluttered in her chest. This was moving way too fast.

  Sure, she’d dreamed of meeting her soul mate—and maybe this hot, sexy Luciferan was him—but it was too soon to tell! She liked him, had been attracted to him right from the start, and even as panic began to rise, so did desire. Staring into his handsome, sincere, adoring face, her body responded automatically. However, she made the decisions, not her hormones!

  She couldn’t risk repeating the same mistake or making a worse one. She’d believed she’d known Trenton, and he’d thrown her a curve ball.

  Of Inferno, his background and his people, she knew little. All she had were a few basic facts, that he seemed attentive and gentle, and he was hot as heck, but infatuation and sexual attraction weren’t enough to guarantee a relationship would endure. She couldn’t commit to a lifetime because of an incendiary sexual encounter.

  This conversation might have been better delivered if we weren’t lying in bed naked.

  She squeezed his hand. “I like you. We have potential—but we need to let it play out as it’s meant to be.”

  “What are you saying?”

  “Don’t build castles in the air. My castle requires a foundation. It has to be grounded on something solid.”

  “You want to live in a castle?”

  Frustrated, she said, “We can’t get serious yet!”

  “We already are. Our genetics have bonded us.” His undeterred gaze was gentle and warm as he caressed her hand, causing her stomach to flutter with an attraction that couldn’t be denied. He tempted her to ignore her inner caution and common sense and plunge head first into passion and sensation. But feelings had led her astray before. She’d been wrong about Trenton.

  About Inferno, too. She couldn’t forget how she’d leapt to conclusions, reverting to old programming the first time she’d seen him. She’d mistaken him for the devil, and she didn’t believe in Satan! Even after she’d realized her error, she’d dodged him, refusing to accept he’d come from outer space. She couldn’t rely on her own judgment anymore, and if she couldn’t trust herself, how could she trust him? Her head needed to be screwed on straight before she could commit to anything.

  She used to assume if she met her soul mate, the truth would shine like a neon sign on the Vegas strip. It would resonate irrefutably in her soul, for lack of a better word. The fact she had doubts threw everything into doubt.

  She doubted her doubts! Surprisingly, one thing that didn’t bother her was that he was an extraterrestrial. Once she’d opened her eyes to the truth, acceptance had come lightning fast.

  “Listen. It’s not you, it’s me—”

  “You’re breaking up with me?” Alarm raced across his handsome face.

  “No! Why would you think that?”

  “It’s-not-you-it’s-me is what one says when one is breaking up.”

  In fact, Trenton had uttered those very words to her when he’d told her he intended to file for divorce. Of course, he’d meant the opposite. It had been her. He had fallen out of love with her—if he’d ever been in love.

  “My bad. Poor choice of words.” She canted her head. “I didn’t think genmates could break up. Didn’t you say they bonded for life?”

  “We do. But ’Topians do have sexual relationships of convenience beforehand.”

  An unexpected and unwarranted jealousy soured her stomach as she pictured him with somebody else. What is wrong with me? He says he wants me, and I tell him to slow down, and now I’m getting jealous of somebody he might have slept with in the past?

  “I like you. I’m attracted to you, but I need to examine my feelings and get to know you better before I commit to anything serious. We all move at different speeds. Can we please take this moment by moment?”

  A shutter came down over his eyes, and she’d felt like she’d kicked a puppy. “All right. If that is what you want.”

  “It’s what I need,” she said.

  Wasn’t it?

  Chapter Eleven

  Mandy set a mug of mocha in front of Inferno and settled onto the opposite sofa. “Things not going well with Geneva?” she asked.

  “You can see that?” He sipped the chocolatey coffee. She’d fixed it exactly the way he liked it—sweet.

  “If you mean did I have a vision, then no. It’s written all over your face. I’ve never seen a man so despondent.”

  He’d stopped by the Inner Journey before the store opened. Once customers descended, Mandy would be too busy to talk. He needed advice. While his brothers were sympathetic to his plight, none of them had had to deal with rejection. And Tigre was unmated. Crying to him felt like he was rubbing salt into the wound. Tigre probably wished he had Inferno’s problem.

  Mandy was a wise woman with the gift of second sight. She would be the most likely person to have a solution.

  “When I think I’m making progress, I fall behind,” he explained.

  “What happened?”

  “We mated, and then she said she needed time and space.” He tapped his chest. “The bond between us is so strong, I don’t understand why she can’t feel it. How can we be genmates and her not r
ealize it?”

  “Shadow and I didn’t.”

  “But you were drawn to each other. Even believing you weren’t meant to be together, you couldn’t stay away from each other.”

  “Humans don’t move as fast as ’Topians. Humans prefer to choose their mates. At least they like to think they do. Geneva is skeptical by nature. She’s cautious and methodical. The fact she’s slept with you is big! Until you came along, she didn’t believe aliens were real. You’ve achieved tremendous progress with her. Give her time to trust her own feelings.”

  “So what do I do in the meantime?”

  “Don’t give up. Be a steady presence. Be there for her. Let her get to know you at her pace.”

  “What if she never comes around?” That was his biggest fear.

  “It’s way too soon to worry about never or always. Spend time with her, but don’t be pushy.”

  “Be a presence.”

  “Yes.” Mandy coughed into the crook of her elbow then wrinkled her nose. “Do you smell smoke? Something burning?” She glanced around the shop.

  He sniffed, smelling herbs, aromatherapies, candles, and potpourris. “No.”

  She shrugged. “Must have been a vision because I don’t smell it anymore.”

  A couple of women came up to the store and pressed their noses against the glass. Mandy patted his hand. “I need to open up; we can talk in between customers.”

  “No, I’m all right. I don’t want to distract you anymore.” He downed the last of the mocha and slid out of the booth. “Thank you for the mocha and for talking with me.”

  Mandy let the customers in, and Inferno left.

  Be a presence. I have to be a presence.

  * * * *

  After Inferno had gone home, Geneva had tossed and turned into the night, her emotions pushed and pulled in two directions. Move forward? Or retreat? Surrender to emotion? Or listen to her head? She felt guilty for hurting him.

  He’d practically asked her to marry him. Who did that after just one night together?

  An alien who believed in love at first sight.

  A man getting this serious this fast meant bad news. If a friend had presented this scenario and asked for advice, she would have suggested she run in the opposite direction as fast as she could. But she couldn’t do that. Despite her caution, he drew her in like no one ever had. So what did such strong chemistry mean? Could it mean, like he said, they were biologically predisposed to bond?

  The questions kept her up half the night, so she overslept, not awakening until midmorning. She dragged herself out of bed, fortified herself with strong coffee, showered, and then walked to the church. She normally didn’t work weekends, but after taking most of Friday off to shop for cars, her conscience demanded she repay the time. And she needed the work to occupy her mind so she didn’t obsess over Inferno.

  What was he doing today? Could she have responded in a kinder or gentler way? Should she call to check on him? Or would that encourage him further? She didn’t wish to discourage him; she hadn’t rejected him, merely requested he slow down. Maybe she shouldn’t have said anything. Maybe she should have waited it out, let the relationship run its course and see what happened.

  Did I learn nothing after Trenton? I need to wise up!

  Entering the hundred-year-old building through the front, she inhaled the familiar comforting mustiness of candle wax and old timber. In Europe, a century-old structure would be considered modern and new, but in the western United States, it equated to a historic monument.

  Passing through the nave with stained glass windows depicting various Biblical scenes, she paused to study the one of the serpent tempting Eve with an apple. The sun wasn’t positioned the same now, but she remembered how the light had fallen upon Inferno and formed a ring around his horned head. The devil with a halo. For a heart-stopping second, she, an ardent atheist, had mistaken him for Lucifer.

  If I was wrong then, maybe I’m wrong now. I should call him. Her heart leapt at the thought.

  The church doors opened to admit a delivery man with a huge bouquet of red roses. “Oh, good! I was afraid nobody would be here on a Saturday,” he said. “I have a delivery for Geneva Walker.”

  “I’m Geneva.” Her stomach clenched as ambivalence rolled through her.

  “Perfect.” He handed her the flowers. “Have a good day.”

  She carried the flowers to her office, which had begun to resemble a florist’s shop. She cleared a space next to the printer, there being no more room on her desk. She plucked out the card.

  I can’t let you go. You mean too much to me.

  The card fluttered from her fingers as dismay washed over her. I can’t let you go? An ominous shiver slithered up her spine.

  The notes. Three bouquets of flowers, his insistence they were meant to be together, a near-marriage proposal? It was too…much. Too extravagant. Over the top.

  She picked up the card from the floor where she’d dropped it. After he’d agreed to slow down, he did this?

  What did I get myself into? I should have trusted my first instinct. Would he progress from sending flowers and notes, to stalking? She recalled the times she’d walked across parking lots and sensed she was being watched. She’d dismissed the foreboding as an overactive imagination, but had it been? Had he been following her? She pressed a hand to her racing heart. Hadn’t he shown up at Millie’s Diner during her lunch? Inferno said Mandy had suggested the chicken-fried steak, and Geneva had verified his story with the shop owner…but had she asked the right question?

  She had asked if Mandy had recommended the chicken-fried steak to Inferno, not if she had sent him to Millie’s. Perhaps Mandy had made the suggestion after he’d indicated he’d planned to go there?

  “I didn’t expect to see you here today.”

  Geneva squealed. “You startled me!” She stared at her uncle.

  “Somebody’s getting a lot of flowers.”

  “Yeah.” She wet her dry lips. “Do you think it’s…too much?”

  Uncle Mike peered over his bifocals. “Well, it’s a little extravagant, but it appears he’s courting you. He’s an alien. He’s not familiar with our customs.”

  “Trenton didn’t send me three sets of flowers in ten years of marriage.” He’d bought flowers once—wilted ones from the grocery store when he’d forgotten her birthday and needed a quick gift.

  “It’s different when you’re married. Nor can you compare Inferno to Trenton.”

  She could agree her ex, who didn’t have a romantic bone in his entire body, wasn’t the best measuring stick.

  So, maybe she was overreacting. She wasn’t used to being treated nice. Maybe she was the one unfamiliar with dating customs. Perhaps showering one’s future partner with gifts and love notes was standard ’Topian operating procedure. Perhaps she’d let the near-marriage proposal freak her out.

  “What’s the situation with Wanda? How did car shopping go?” her uncle asked. “You see anything you like?”

  “Jocko says she isn’t worth fixing and suggested I junk her for parts. Inferno has a friend who might be able to get her running again. If he can, I’ll keep her. Otherwise, I did see a couple of cars that might work. I’m kind of attached to Wanda though.”

  “Let me know if and when you need to borrow my car. We can work out some sort of schedule.”

  “Thanks. It shouldn’t be too long before I hear something,” she said gratefully. Inferno had volunteered to chauffeur her around, but she was reluctant to lead him on by accepting any more favors. She shouldn’t have handed Wanda over to him.

  “Go home. Better yet, go spend some time with your young man. You don’t need to work today.”

  “I was out most of yesterday.”

  “Work will still be here on Monday. You’re entitled to a life.”

  Wasn’t that the problem? She didn’t have a life, except for the job. She’d been hoping she’d meet Mr. Right, but now that she’d met a man she was attracted to and who was crazy
about her, she balked at moving forward.

  “You’re here,” she pointed out.

  “I dropped in for a sec to check on a few things. I wrote a list…” He patted his jacket pocket and frowned. He slipped his hand inside and pulled out a white envelope. She could see it had her name on it. Her uncle’s expression turned sheepish. “Sorry. This came for you a while ago. Someone slipped it under the front door.” He handed it to her. “I put it in my pocket and forgot about it. I apologize.” He found his list in the other pocket.

  “It’s okay.” Another love note? Did she dare open it?

  After her uncle left, she tore it open. May as well see what kind of crazy I’m dealing with.

  Dear Geneva,

  I am sorry if I did anything to offend you or scare you. When I saw you in the church, I realized you are the woman I have been waiting for all my life. I am not from your world, and I know I look different, but I hope you will give me a chance to prove that I am your genmate.

  Sincerely,

  Inferno

  When had the note come? She dashed after her uncle. “Uncle Mike!”

  She sprinted through the church and pushed open the entrance doors in time to see him drive away. Darn it!

  She reread the note. She thought she and Inferno had come to an understanding. Apparently not.

  Chapter Twelve

  Inferno hid the hover scooter behind a cluster of bushes. He’d arrived early, but he spotted Geneva sitting on a bench under a cedar.

  He approached with trepidation. She’d called and asked him to meet her Sunday morning at the park near the school. Her guarded tone suggested the meeting wouldn’t be a positive one.

  “Hi,” he said. Despite his anxiety, both hearts swelled with emotion at seeing her again. Since their physical union, his need and love for her had grown deeper.

  “Hi.” She smoothed her hands over her denim-clad thighs. She needed new pants, he noted, as hers were ripped in several places, her knees sticking out of big holes in the fabric. Despite the sorry state of her pants, she was still beautiful. Sunlight glinted on golden-blonde hair. The reflection off her pink short-sleeved top added rosy color to her smooth cheeks.