Alexandre (2 page)

Wary blue eyes studied him closely as if he might bite. Alex bit back a wolfish smirk. If he weren’t here on such an important matter, he’d be tempted to sink his teeth…

Hell, where was his head? Janaya Morgan hadn’t looked as if she was joking and frankly, he didn’t want to test the theory. It was strictly hands off, business only with this woman. Besides, he had goals he intended to conquer.

Alex thrust out his hand in the Earth manner, ready to seal introductions and get down to business. He was excited that his long two-moon rotation of Earth research and careful, painstaking schemes were working without discovery. Not one Earthling had pointed at him or screamed “Alien”. Pride bubbled through his mind. He fitted in, and it would remain that way since the sole Earth person who needed to know he came from Dalcon was Lily Morgan.

“Alex Bell,” he said. “I met your brother on Dalcon, and he suggested you might help me with a business proposition.” When she failed to reciprocate, Alex reached inside his shirt pocket and pulled out the crumpled letter of introduction he carried.

Her mouth rounded to an O. Her hand fluttered to rest on one plump breast. “You…you…”

“Yes?” he asked.

“You’re an alien,” she blurted.

Alex tilted his head and surveyed her closely. “Does that make any difference? I assure you I’m willing to pay.”

She opened her mouth even farther. Her brow scrunched up and the cute little dots on her nose stood out more than ever. Hell, he hoped she didn’t scream.

Alex imagined Lily’s family rushing to the rescue, his demise at the hands of Janaya, and hurried into speech. “I have access to New Zealand dollars. Please, read the letter of introduction.” He’d never considered failing at the first hurdle. Not once. “I’ll read your advertising material while you read the communications from your family, then we can talk.”

Alex grabbed up a glossy travel magazine before she decided on a reaction. Perhaps if he acted in a non-threatening manner, she’d relax instead of taxing his ears with a screech.

Lily couldn’t help but stare. The man was an alien.

An alien.

They sure had a good design team up on Dalcon if Janaya and the golden man were typical samples. Lily realized her jaw sagged open and snapped it shut lest she trap any kamikaze flies. For a moment there, she’d forgotten she was off men. She thought of her ex-husband, Ambrose, and his boyfriend, Garrett, and instantly, she was back to normal. Or, as normal as she could be, with an honest-to-goodness alien stalking around her travel agency.

“How did you get here?” she demanded. “Did you come alone? Do you have a ship?” She peered out the front window of her travel agency. Everything looked normal.

“I came aboard a space freighter. The captain dropped me on the outskirts of Papakura and left again. I walked to find your travel merchant shop.” He frowned slightly, then the lines on his brow cleared. “Travel agency.”

Lily nodded. Okay. They stared at each other before she cleared her throat. “The letter?” she murmured.

“Sorry. I got distracted.” His smile was dazzling as he handed her a crumpled white envelope. Their hands brushed during the transfer. Lily held her breath, her gaze trapped in his. Time stood still while they stared at each other.

The thump of the door when the mailman entered broke the spell.

Lily tugged the envelope from the alien’s hand. He stepped away and reached for a brochure on Australia to add to the one on the Cook Islands he already held. Lily drew a cautious breath. She smelled his scent. Something green, mysterious as a jungle cat, and just as hypnotic.

“Mail, Lily,” Jason, the mailman, said in a loud voice.

Lily shook herself back to the present. Jason handed her several envelopes and parked his butt on the corner of her desk. A grin stretched his mouth. “There’s a concert in the park on Saturday night. I’ll pack a picnic. What do ya say?”

“I—”

“She’s busy on Saturday,” Alex said.

Jason stood abruptly, his hands curling around his red postbag. “I was talking to Lily.”

The tension in her office ratcheted up sharply. Testosterone poured off the two males in crashing waves. Jason stepped toward Alex, his jaw flexing in a belligerent manner.

Lily’s heart pounded in sudden fear. They couldn’t fight. She had to do something straightaway. She eyed the golden man in trepidation. Janaya, her new sister-in-law, could fly. She could toss her husband through a window on a mere whim. No telling what powers this alien possessed.

Lily rushed between the two men and placed one placating hand on Jason’s forearm. A soft growl sounded behind her. Alarm made her fingers flex on Jason’s arm. “I… Thank you for asking me, Jason, but I have four presentations to finish for Monday. I need to work during the weekend.”
Please take the hint. Please.

“Perhaps another day?”

She nodded and tried to ignore the warmth emanating from the male behind her. His spicy green scent filled her lungs. “Sounds…good, Jason.”

The golden man’s second growl made ignoring him impossible. Lily used her elbow as a weapon without a blink. The
oomph
of expelled air brought home the stupidity of her actions. He was bigger than she for a start, and he was an alien. She couldn’t forget that part. Silently, she willed Jason to leave, to step away from the danger that warmed her back and prickled her skin.

“Well. Okay then. See you tomorrow.” Jason yanked open the door, glared at Alex and stomped out, leaving them alone.

Lily turned slowly and retreated. The intent, determined look on the alien’s face made her swallow. She stepped behind her desk, very aware of the large male. Not that it would do her much good if he decided to ravish her or chose to experiment. Aliens were tricky with their powers. Luke had told her this although he’d been a bit vague with details. Her father had said so, too. Lily realized she’d made a big mistake by not asking for more information about flying and superhuman strength and anything else alien related. In this case, too much information was a good thing.

Lily gritted her teeth and stared in horror as the male strode closer. Stupid. Stupid.
Stupid
. She wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

“What…what are you doing?” The clear stammer brought a frown. Confidence was the key in dealing with most things. Aliens couldn’t be any different. She stood straighter and thrust back her shoulders. “Did you want something?”

He stepped around the corner of the wooden desk and halted a foot from her quivering frame. His brown eyes settled on her face then drifted to her breasts. Her nipples peaked against the cotton of her bra while she was suddenly very conscious of the drape of her top and the fit of the elastic waistband of her black skirt. His spicy scent enticed her to think outrageous things that an innocent human had no right considering. Lily desperately wanted to touch. To run her fingers down his broad chest, grasp his hips and pull him close.

Lily heard a low groan. It came from her. Mortified color flooded her cheeks, bleeding downward to her neck and upper chest. She couldn’t look him in the eye and see the pity on his face. Because that’s what she’d see. Men didn’t look at women like her. Aliens probably wouldn’t be any different.

She stepped away from him, away from temptation and further embarrassment. Lily dropped into her swivel chair, ripped the envelope and started reading.

Lily,

This place is amazing. Dad and I are having a ball. Not sure when we’ll be back—it all depends on the company Hinekiri is negotiating with to update charts.

We met Alex on our travels, and he spent several days with us before he left for Earth. He seems an okay bloke and since Dad and I knew you’d welcome the business, we sent him your way. He gave us his word he’d treat you with courtesy—

Lily snorted. How did Luke think he could enforce a promise when he was in Dalcon? By ESP?

Janaya had a word with him, too. Don’t know what she said but it put the fear of God into him.

Anyway, he wants to start up in the tour business running tours from Dalcon all over the universe. He intends to include Earth as a destination so I figured you should profit. He’s willing to pay big bucks for your expertise. From what I can gather, he wants someone with local knowledge to show him around New Zealand.

Love, your big bro,

Luke

Lily extracted another sheet of paper from the envelope aware of the golden male pillaging her office, picking up brochure after brochure. At the rate he was going, she wouldn’t have any left to offer customers. She unfolded the other sheet of paper and frowned at the unfamiliar writing.

Dear, Sister,

I hope we’re doing the right thing sending this male, Alex, to you. Now that I have a sister, I don’t intend to lose her in a hurry. I’m afraid you’re stuck with my Aunt Hinekiri, and me.

If you feel threatened or need help handling the male—

Well, that was a given
. Lily raised her eyes to his denim-clad butt and shuddered. Oh, yeah. She felt threatened all right, but it was her hormones that were the problem. For some unknown reason, she couldn’t stop looking at him and that made her grumpy. Very grumpy. She would tell him to go to hell. That’s what she’d do.

But you can’t afford to
, a little voice of reason whispered. Not if he’s offering business. She put Janaya’s letter down and glanced at the man—Alex. “Can you tell me what you had in mind?”

The golden man turned away from the brochures with a slightly glazed look in his amber-brown eyes.

Lily’s mouth set in a firm line. Was she that dull and boring? She heaved an inward sigh, thinking that she didn’t know why she was worried. Her virtue was safe from the golden cat.

“What did you have in mind?” She drew in a deep breath and felt as though she were teetering on the edge of a precarious cliff. “How much are you offering to pay me?”

“I want to see both the North and the South Island. A month would give me time to research places to stay and sort out reliable contacts. That is what I need your help with—figuring out the right places to visit. As to payment—I can’t afford to pay much. How does one thousand dollars a day sound plus shelter and meals?”

Shock kicked her in the gut, robbing her of speech, but thoughts galloped through her mind. One thousand dollars. A day.
One thousand dollars
. There were thirty-one days in March. That equated to thirty-one thousand dollars.

“How much?” Lily asked hoarsely.

“It’s not much, I know.” A frown marred his handsome face for an instant before his brow smoothed out. “Once I start bringing tours through, I’ll need help. We can discuss this—maybe I could pay you a commission as my local agent?”

Lily nodded abruptly. “Where do I sign?” She worked hard to restrain her celebratory cheer. Any sudden moves might scare off her cash cow before she’d signed on the dotted line. She didn’t want that.

“I have a treaty with my belongings. I left my bags in a secret hole until we had time to talk. We can discuss the rules and regulations over dinner.”

Dinner. That meant dressing up. “Can’t we do it now?” Her one good dress was at the cleaners after she’d had a wee accident involving her food and the wandering hands of the man who’d sat next to her at the travel agent convention last month. She couldn’t afford to collect it yet. “Or at least discuss the details so we can formalize the agreement tonight.” Lily scowled inwardly. Rules and regulations sounded rather daunting.

“Time is of the essence,” he agreed in his accented drawl. “Before I left, I had word of an entrepreneur in the Jupiter sector wanting to set up a similar business to what I have in mind. I intend to be first.”

Lily’s eyes widened. “Just how many aliens are there on Earth?”

The curves of Alex’s mouth lifted in a wide grin. “Frightened we’re going to experiment on you? Perform kinky sexual deeds to see how you work?”

“No!” Lily’s cheeks felt as though they had caught fire. The trouble was he wasn’t far from the truth. Except in her graphic imagination, she was the aggressor. It astounded her that she’d have these thoughts let alone visualize doing them with an alien. “Of course not!” Time to conduct this conversation along official paths. “Tell me what you’ve done in the way of research. What places did you want to visit?”

“I’ve spent the last two moon rotations researching Earth and its people—one of your Earth years. I want to visit both islands of New Zealand. Your brother suggested I ask you to take me to the main sites.”

Lily found a notepad then searched for her pen. She patted the papers on the desktop before remembering it had somersaulted onto the floor. For an instant, she considered grabbing another pen but superstition propelled her to search for her lucky pen. She dropped to all fours and crawled under her desk.

A soft choking noise made her freeze. Her cheeks heated anew and a fine tremor ran the length of her body. She didn’t want to start imagining how she appeared from Alex’s perspective. But since the damage had occurred…

Lily ran her hands across the tight pile of the gray carpet in search of her pen. Ah!

She seized the silver pen and backed from under her desk. Halfway out, her bottom connected with something hard. Lily glanced over her shoulder in puzzlement and twisted about to come face-to-face with Alex’s legs and manly equipment. Startled and totally flustered, she shot upward. The side of her head connected with the desk. Pain exploded through her skull, shooting stars soared past her closed eyes.