Chapter 9 #2
As the first VIPs enter the room, River puts on a little show for them and whips off his cloak, followed by a theatrical twirl and jazz hands.
“Hello, my fabulous friends!” he shouts. “It is I, the mighty River Sullivan, aka KirklovesSpock4eva, and I’m so excited to be here with all of you.”
Gasps and squeals of excitement fill the air as people in line try to push forward before Nirblob shuts that down real fast. I’m grateful we have a handful of security personnel standing at attention in strategic positions by the door and behind River’s signing table.
I don’t think any of these fans are truly dangerous, but I’ve learned I have to be vigilant where River’s safety is concerned.
I plant myself beside him as he takes a seat, leveling each person in line with my most intimidating gaze.
River gives them all a little wave. “Let’s get this party started, y’all.” He points to me. “By the way, this is my super amazing hubby-boo, Kai. As you can see, he’s also my self-appointed bodyguard for the evening.”
There are some giggles and sighs among the fans in line, and several of them are eyeing me in a disturbingly interested manner. I school my features.
“Isn’t he super fucking dreamy?” River asks.
“You’re a lucky man! Iyarans are so fucking hot!” someone cries.
“You nabbed your very own tentacled hero. Right on, River!” another cheers.
“You bet your sweet ass I did,” River replies with a shit-eating grin.
My cheeks warm, and River winks at me, his face alight with joy. He’s clearly loving this moment, so I’m more than happy to indulge him. One of my tentacles comes out to join in on the fun and coils possessively around River’s shoulders.
That sets his fans off as they scream encouragement at us—some of it not remotely appropriate for anyone underage, either.
River beams up at me and flutters his eyelashes. “Well fucking played, sir. I think you’re getting the hang of this.”
I cross my arms and shoot him a smug grin. “I have a few tricks—or rather, tentacles—up my sleeve.”
“So sassy, so damn hot,” he whispers.
Eventually, Nirblob brings back order and gets everyone settled down. For someone with such a small stature, he can be downright intimidating when he wants to be. River once told me Nirblob has his moments when he fully channels his inner Lord Vardox, and I’m starting to see what he means.
One by one, River’s fans step up to his table, gushing with enthusiasm.
Some are on the more bashful side, and River, being the incredibly empathetic person he is, manages to make all of them feel at ease in his presence, smiling and joking with them as he signs books, T-shirts, and, in a couple of cases, bare appendages.
Many of his fans stop to take photos with him as well, and they all leave elated and more than a little starstruck.
I don’t blame them. I secretly felt the exact same way when I first met River.
Hell, I was half in love with him before we ever met.
Like all of these people, I too was a fan of The Tentacular Tales of Captain Starblade.
It was my one outlet and indulgence from the mountain of work I buried myself in most of the time.
Now, I get to listen to him brainstorm ideas for where to take Captain Starblade and Lord Vardox next or am the first person to read his latest chapters.
River is one of the most talented people I know.
He has many gifts that make him special—not only to me, but to so many others who meet him.
Often misunderstood by humans while growing up because of being a bit extra, as he likes to say, he has found his people among the extraterrestrials of the universe and has an uncanny ability to make friends with nearly every one of them he meets.
Quite a few have become his staunchest allies, even.
Perhaps that’s a superpower tied to his Quintharian heritage, but I suspect it’s just River’s unique charisma and charm.
There’s a vibrant energy about him that’s downright magnetic.
He inspires and motivates everyone, including me.
In no time flat, he earned the love and loyalty of every core member of our team back at the Alliance.
Okay, Zamir is a bit of a dark horse. Many find it difficult to read his stone-faced expressions, including River.
But I understand him better than most, and although it took him longer, I know Zamir finally accepted River as a full member of our team during our showdown with Shilgar the Deadly.
The man wore an Elvis costume for River.
That tells me everything I need to know.
With time, I’m sure they’ll grow closer, but right now Zamir’s in a pretty dark and confusing place.
His ex-boyfriend and our former team member, Wilder Vadera, was seriously injured during Layne Madison’s attempted invasion.
We won the day, but Wilder paid a heavy price.
For now, he’s in a medically induced coma back on Earth and needs more advanced medical care at an Intergalactic Alliance space station.
However, our medical team on Earth fears he’s still too fragile for travel and shouldn’t be moved.
Zamir’s been by his side every day, and I can’t even imagine how difficult all of this is for him.
I’ve just been offering him my quiet support and letting him know he can come to me if he needs to talk or simply a shoulder to cry on.
I’m pulled out of my somber thoughts when I notice that River is starting to sound a bit hoarse from talking with his fans.
During a brief moment of freedom while Nirblob goes to let in the next round of fans, I grab a bottle of water on a side table and hand it to him.
A grateful look fills his eyes as he chugs most of it in a couple of seconds.
“That hits the spot,” he says, smacking his lips. “All this talking and signing for fans is hard work.” He shakes out his hand. “I’m starting to feel it in my grip.”
“You’re doing a great job. Fans are leaving with smiles on their faces and a pep in their steps.” I frown with worry. “Are you sure you don’t want to take a real break?”
River flushes happily, then looks toward the door. “No, I’m good. Let’s keep going. How many more folks to go?” he asks as Nirblob brings in the next round of twelve.
“I’ll check,” I assure him, and gesture for Nirblob to come over as I step away from the signing table.
He glides to my side on his skates.
“How many more people are waiting to meet River?” I ask quietly. “He’s getting tired.”
“We’re making good progress. I’d say there are only a couple dozen more ticket holders.” Nirblob glances at River. “Do you think he can manage that?”
I glance at my husband, all bright-eyed and talking a mile a minute with one of his fans. “He’s got surprising stamina when it comes to things like this.”
Nirblob nods contemplatively. “Indeed. It is most likely a benefit of his Quintharian heritage.”
“Could be. Whatever the case, I know he’ll want to meet every single person who’s waiting. There’s no way he’d deliberately disappoint a fan who took time out of their day to queue for hours just to see him.”
Nirblob nods. “That sounds like River. Although I don’t think he fully realizes how much of a major celebrity figure he is among everyone here. Or if he does, he certainly hasn’t let it go to his head. He remains genuinely kind and welcoming to everyone he meets. He’s quite a rarity, I must say.”
I turn my attention back to the man of the hour, my chest swelling with pride. “River’s one of a kind, and I already know he’s going to leave behind a legacy with his life and his stories that will take a long time to fade from memory.”
“Indubitably,” Nirblob says, then skates back to monitor the doorway.
I move back into my position beside River, ready to intervene if necessary.
Fortunately, we at last send off the last ticketed VIP and survive the hours-long signing relatively unscathed. I heave a quiet sigh of relief that everyone heeded Nirblob’s warning and behaved themselves, although I’m sure it helped that we had a security presence on site, including myself.
Grinning from ear to ear, River stands up, stretches, and then whimpers when we hear a cracking noise.
I immediately start massaging his neck and shoulders. “You okay, love?”
“My back’s a bit unhappy,” he admits.
“You’ve been sitting in the same spot for too long. Don’t worry, I’ll give you a more thorough full-body massage when we’re alone,” I promise.
He grins. “You’re on, babe. Also, guys, the signing was totally epic.” His cheeks are flushed and his eyes sparkle. “I’m so pumped right now that I think I could run a mile faster than I ever have before. Take that, Zamir!”
I chuckle. My love’s never quite forgiven Zamir for the fitness regimen he created to get River in shape and on par with the rest of the team. Zamir’s goal was to get River better prepared to handle our work in the field and during any dangerous situations that might arise.
However, the word that describes Zamir best is hard-ass.
He definitely didn’t take it easy on River during his training. He pushed my husband to his limits in order to better protect him as a new member of the Alliance. I’m incredibly grateful to him and I don’t think anyone but him could have accomplished it. But River’s still a wee bit bitter.
We leave the room, River still talking animatedly about how much fun he had meeting his fans.
When we reach an intersection in the hall, Nirblob gives me the hand signal we agreed on earlier, and I give him a sharp nod.
He turns to River, who is oblivious to the entire exchange.
“My friend, we’re having a little celebration, and you’re invited.”
“Ooh! A party for moi? Sign me up.”
“Excellent. If you’ll follow me,” Nirblob says.
As we get closer to the room, I make a show of stopping all of a sudden and gesture at a restroom nearby. “I need to take a quick bathroom break. I’ll meet up with you in a moment.”
River flashes me a huge smile. “No rush. I can wait for you here.”
I turn a panicked look on Nirblob.
Thankfully, the little green guy steps in and saves the moment. “River, my fellow organizers have gathered to meet you, and since they helped us make your signing event happen, I would hate to keep them waiting too long.”
River hesitates.
“Go,” I say. “I’ll meet you there in a few minutes.”
He frowns. “Are you sure?”
“Cross my hearts.”
He hurries to my side and plants a smacking kiss on my lips. “Okay, see you soon, babe.”
Then Nirblob corrals him and shoos him in the right direction.
I bypass the bathroom and dart into a small room Nirblob prepared for me in advance.
It’s time to finalize the preparations for my next big honeymoon surprise for River.