Chapter 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Lila
Eric walks me back to my room through corridors that are busier than I have ever seen.
People are loud and chatty, with no one paying too much attention to us.
But as we get to my room, I can see Dylan standing outside of the one next to mine, arguing with someone beyond the doorway.
The super nosy part of me, which is most of me, is dying to know who it is since I haven’t met my neighbor yet.
Eric and I pause while I pull my lanyard from around my neck, but before I get a chance to swipe it, Dylan notices us and clams up.
The situation only becomes more awkward when all my wave gets in response is a nod.
Okay then. That hurts a bit, especially after our most recent conversation, but as I turn to open my own door, the person he was arguing with steps out.
Caspian is in human form this evening and looks like he’s freshly showered, wearing only a pair of sweatpants. His vivid purple hair and skin are glistening with water, and his skin is the same color as mine at the moment unlike when I first met him. I feel my mouth go dry at the sight of him.
Oh, will you look at that. Caspian’s room is directly next door to mine. Nobody said anything about that. I scowl at Eric, but he just winks at me and steps toward the two guys. I feel the mark on my back pulse when Caspian catches sight of me.
“Are you guys all set for departure?” Eric asks them both.
“Maybe you should make your way to your room now, Dylan, since it’s down the other end of the ship.
” He slaps Dylan on the back a little harder than necessary then gives him a shove.
Alright, that confirms it. Those shifty grandpas have some kind of telepathy because there’s no way he heard what Dylan said to me earlier.
“But, but...” he tries to argue, but Eric’s having none of it.
“No, go. I don’t want to tell you again. And Dylan, you might want to think about the things you said to Lila and how they may have hurt her.”
Yep! Let’s add telepathy and really good hearing to the list of grandpa abilities. Super snoopers, for sure.
Dylan's eyes brighten with flames, but he turns and does as instructed. “I’ll catch up with you when we’re on the big ship, Lila,” he shouts back over his shoulder before he disappears around the curving corridor.
“Please tell me his room is far away from mine on the big ship too?” I ask Eric. “His mood swings make me dizzy.”
Caspian has been quiet through the whole exchange, but I could feel his eyes on me the entire time. Another siren sounds out, this one slightly different from the first.
“Fuck. That’s the five-minute warning,” Eric curses. “Quick, I need to show you what to do and then hightail it back to our room.”
“If you would like, I could show Lila what she needs to do so you could make it back before the ship departs,” Caspian offers.
“Yes!” Eric practically shouts. “Thank you.” He leans in and gives me a kiss on the cheek. “Enjoy your first ride, and I’ll see you on the other end.” He gives me another wink and disappears in a blur of speed. Damn creepy grandpa and his innuendos.
“Ah, do you want to come in then?” I’m left asking the hottie octoman now that it’s just the two of us.
“I can’t very well show you what to do out here, can I?
” he says gruffly, and all awkwardness disappears.
There he is, the grumpy man I’ve seen each time.
There’s something a little comforting about that.
His attitude might not be as pleasant as Dylan can be, but at least he’s not giving me emotional whiplash.
I swipe my card through the door, and it buzzes us in. Stepping into my little room, I make room for Caspian to join me, the two of us now alone once that door closes.
Looking around, I wince. Fuck my life. On my bedside table is my favorite bad dragon dildo and a book of alien erotica. I’ve been horny all damn week, and last night I finally did something about it.
I hurry toward them in the hope he doesn't notice, shoving them into a drawer as nonchalantly as I can, which is probably a huge failure. When I turn back, his eyes are on the drawer I just closed. Yep, I’m still going to pretend he didn’t see anything. Avoidance, thy name is Lila.
“So what do I need to do?” I ask, hoping to distract him. He scans my room then picks up the control tablet.
“See this icon here?” He points to a rocket ship taking off. “This is the icon that sets you up for space re-entry.” With a tap of a button, things start to whirl around.
The chair tucks under the desk before both of them retreat into the wall. I can hear things going on in the bathroom and closet, so I stick my head in to check it out. All the drawers have done the same as the desk, and the hanging space now has a wall in front of it.
“It gets a bit shaky on take-off, and things can bounce around if they’re loose.
” Caspian is so close to me now, I can feel his breath on my neck.
Whirling, I find him chest to chest with me, and my heart skips a beat.
With his stormy blue eyes and those nipple rings practically at mouth height, he’s just daring me at this point.
I place my hand on him and gently push him away as something starts to happen to the bed.
With a chuckle, he moves over, letting me watch the bed transform from something you’d find in any bedroom to something that is definitely futuristic.
It shrinks a bit, turning from a king-sized bed to something probably closer to a double.
Once the shrinking settles down, a lid, I guess, is lowered from the ceiling and clicked into place.
A section of the lid slides back, allowing me access.
“Climb in,” he says, once again super close to me. Is he trying to make me uncomfortable, or does he just find it hard to stay away? If he feels the same kind of pull that I do, it must be messing with his mind since he was so anti-me to begin with.
The warning siren sounds once more, and a panicked look crosses Caspian’s face. “Shit! Hurry, I still have to get back to mine, and that’s the one-minute countdown.”
I kick off my shoes, hoping that they survive the trip, and awkwardly climb into the pod as the ship starts to shake. The inside of the pod is different too. The texture of the mattress has changed to a thick almost jelly-like consistency, and I sink down. The ship starts to shake even more.
“No time. Move over,” he demands and crawls in behind me.
Once in, he pushes another icon on the tablet that has the pod closing then being covered in a thick gel.
I guess it’s the same as what we’re laying in.
Once Caspian takes his place next to me, he presses one more button then pushes the tablet into the thick gel matrix where it rests.
Straps come up and over the both of us, holding us in place.
“I’m sorry to barge in, but the take-off from Earth is too dangerous for anyone not to be strapped in. The g-forces and turbulence will kill someone.” He does sound apologetic, but I can’t turn my head to look at him thanks to the strap.
Suddenly, the lights in the room turn off until only the pod is lit up with a strange bioluminescence.
“Here we go.” Surprisingly, I feel his hand in mine as the ship starts to move.
“Breathe, Lila, everything will be okay. I've got you.” Huh, Caspian actually said something that was… nice. Well, that’s not good.
It was easy enough to ignore our attraction when he was being a douche, but this could change things.
I gasp as I realize I’d been holding my breath, and without any other signs of warning, the ship starts to move. Nothing changes in the pod, thankfully, and although the ship is bucking like a bronco, the two of us are stable.
The ship lurches to one side, and I scream, unable to stop it before it leaves my mouth.
“Shh, it’s okay. That’s perfectly normal,” Caspian croons to me, and I manage to move my head so that I’m facing him. Who the fuck knew Caspian could croon? He’s watching me with soft eyes and a gentle smile. It’s the most open I’ve seen him so far.
A tear trickles from one of my eyes as my terror gets the better of me when the ship lurches from side to side. My heart is racing, and I fist my other hand in the substance below me. It shudders even more, so I squeeze my eyes closed, expecting a free fall back to Earth at any second.
“Hey, Lila, look at me,” Caspian orders, but I keep my eyes closed. “Lila.” He growls my name this time, but I still refuse to open them.
Suddenly, movement on my leg has my eyes popping wide open. There’s a gentle caress around my naked calf followed by the suckling motion of what feels like hundreds of little mouths giving me kisses.
My now wide open eyes meet Caspian’s, and he smirks. “Lila, a mark showed up on my shoulder this evening after I accosted you in the elevator. Do you want to talk about that?”
“Shall we talk about what is currently wrapped around my leg?” I deflect, wondering if he’ll admit to his own attraction.
“I can partially shift, and I thought you needed the distraction. You didn't seem to mind it in the elevator, and by what I saw on your nightstand, I think you’re probably just a little curious. Are you curious about me, Lila? I’m not like your human men.
” Caspian’s words are a little mocking, like he’s worried I'm going to say no and he doesn’t want to get hurt.
“I am very curious, Caspian, but you haven't really gone out of your way to make me feel welcome. So either you’re playing games with me, or you’re afraid to admit how you feel.
” If he can call me out, I’m going to do the same thing to him, especially since he can’t run away from me at the moment.
I’m not opposed to the idea of speaking my own truth, but he and I didn’t get off on the best foot.
Tentacle? Whatever. So if I’m going to put myself out there, I think I’d like to get some honesty from him too.