Chapter 18
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Lila
My dirty mind is still thinking about Saxon and Xavier fucking when he teleports us to an empty elevator in the hotel the circus has a deal with.
Our conversation flowed easily after he shared that I’m his intimate, and our hands were clasped the entire time until we had to place the holo emitters and activate the program.
Thankfully the area where the circus tent will be didn’t have much foot traffic, so we were in and out with lots of time to spare.
Xavier drags me through the opulent foyer, with marble floors and luxurious drapes strategically placed around the room, to the reception desk, telling them we are checking in before giving his name.
The guy behind the desk’s eyes widen, and he scrambles around.
“Of course, Mr. Colest, we have the penthouse suite reserved for you and your…” He trails off, and Xavier looks at me with a cheeky grin.
I know what he’s about to say will either force me to smother him in his sleep or jump him.
“Wife,” Xavier tells him with a wink. “We’re newlyweds.
You know, with the whole Vegas thing, I couldn’t stop myself from proposing to the most amazing woman I know.
Now we just want some alone time away from the rest of the crew, if you know what I mean.
” He lays on the act hard for the receptionist, but he seems to buy it.
Though I can see him looking at our outfits and judging them.
I giggle but don’t contradict him. It’s fun pretending, and I guess it’s not far from the truth.
Instead of freaking out when Xavier told me the story about being his intimate, I decided to just go with the flow.
Freaking out and getting upset isn’t going to change anything for me or him, but it explains why I felt connected to him at the very beginning.
The Skarrian mark only confirms the physical attraction.
I am also looking forward to meeting his parents and getting my memories back.
I know they were just following through on what they promised my mom and dad, but did they have to do such a good job of it?
I’m feeling anything but kind and generous toward them at the moment, so I’m pretty sure that meeting with the new in-laws isn’t going to go well.
That’s a challenge for future Lila to manage.
“Here are your keys. Just swipe the card and press the P in the elevator, and it will take you right up.” He peers over the desk. “No luggage?” he asks, raising an eyebrow, and Xavier shakes his head.
“No, we’re going to do some shopping. I want to spoil my new wife as a wedding gift.”
“Well, let us know if we can help with anything. If you could just sign here, we can view your credit card.” My heart stops momentarily when he asks to see our credit cards. I try to maintain my carefree smile, but inside, I’m panicking.
My purse is back on the pod with my phone and the rest of my belongings, and do aliens even have credit cards?
I shouldn’t have doubted Xavier though. He just reaches into the pocket of his designer ripped jeans and pulls out a wallet, which he opens before taking out a black American Express card. I guess that answers my question.
Minutes later, the two of us are headed to the elevator hand in hand.
The sexual tension between us is off the charts, and there’s the giddy feeling of anticipation thrumming through my body.
Once we get to our room, I throw myself onto a couch without even looking around, trying to get a hold of myself before I jump him.
“Holy shit, that was nerve-racking. I thought for sure we were going to get kicked out. First, for how we are dressed, and second, for lack of payment. We’d be out on the streets pandering for money, or I could always strip to pay our bills.
” I toss an arm over my head dramatically as my imagination goes wild.
“Stripping? No. Oh, Lila, I can’t believe you doubted me.” Xavier goes to the fully stocked mini bar and grabs a champagne glass before pulling open the fridge and grabbing one of the cute mini bottles of champagne. He pops the cork before pouring it into a glass and returning to me.
“Here you go. Why don’t you order some food, and we’ll relax for the next couple of hours. Once the pod lands, we can teleport to it and retrieve some of your things. We will have plenty of time to shop over the next few days.”
“Now that I’m living on the ship, I’m going to need a few more things. I don’t have anywhere near enough to last me months on end,” I tell him while taking the glass.
“Lila, we do have shops on the ship, and the planets we will be stopping at all have city centers with shopping opportunities.”
I wave my free hand at him before I take a sip of my champagne, the bubbles exploding across my tongue. The flavor is a little tarter than I expected, but not awful.
“I know, Xavier, but there are a few things I can’t do without, things I only want specifically from Earth.”
“Like?” he asks, sitting down on the couch next to me. He appears genuinely interested, but it’s weird to see him in his glamour, and it takes me a moment to reply.
“Well, chocolate for one, and then there’s wine and margarita mix, and I wouldn’t mind picking up a kindle and loading all my favorite books onto it.”
“Oh, and what is it you like to read?”
Well, fuck, that was an epic backfire. Now I have to explain about my love of monster alien porn and paranormal romance. I clear my throat and pray that my cheeks aren’t flushing from his innocent question.
“Oh, would you look at the view out of that window!” I get up, taking my glass with me, and go over to it.
“Susie and I always talked about coming to Vegas, but we never got a chance to.” I turn back to face him.
“Cas said I should call her and invite her to come see the show. Would you be able to get my phone from my room in the pod for me? Oh, and the charger. I’m sure it’s dead by now. ”
Hopefully my word vomit has done enough to distract him, but I can tell by the quirk of his eyebrow and devious grin that I don’t have this sexy warlock fooled.
“Don’t think I didn’t notice you avoiding my question about reading. I look forward to seeing this kindle. I too very much like reading. Maybe we can read together.”
Hmm, not sure how much reading we’d actually get done if he was sitting next to me while I was doing it.
Xavier waves his hand, and an unfamiliar phone and charger lands on the table.
Frowning, I pick it up and look it over. “This isn’t mine.”
“No, it’s a burner. I can’t teleport yours from the mothership, and I don’t want to leave you to go back and get it. I’m hoping you know Susie’s number, but you’ll have to charge it first.”
Aww, isn’t he the sweetest?
Sure enough, when I pick it up, it’s dead, so I find a socket and plug in the cord before grabbing the room service menu off the same table.
“Are you hungry?” I ask him before doing a double take. “Wait. Do you eat real food?” I question, because I really don’t know if he does or not.
“Yes, of course, it just doesn’t fuel my power like emotions do. Order me something, and we will have a nice meal together while I get to know you a little better. You can tell me about growing up in those foster homes and how you met Susie.”
I sit down next to him and drop the menu into my lap, biting my lip before I ask Xavier my next question. l feel a little guilty because I will be doing to Susie what his parents did to me, but I really need to get everything that has happened off my chest.
“Xavier, can you take memories away like your parents?” I inquire, playing with the menu in my lap and not looking at him.
A finger slides under my chin and lifts it so I am looking at the gorgeous man.
It’s so weird seeing him look human, and although he looks hot, I miss his true form.
“Do you need to hold your glamour while we are alone?” I ask before he can answer my first question.
He shakes his head, wearing a smug grin on his face as he lets his glamour fade, and I breathe a sigh of relief.
It was really bothering me that he had to hide himself.
I guess Cas will have to do the same if he comes and stays here with me.
Maybe it would be better if they all stayed on the ship.
I wouldn’t want them to feel uncomfortable just because I needed some girl time with Susie.
“As for your question, I can. Whose memories do you want to take away?”
I startle at his question since I didn’t specifically ask him to take them away. He clearly saw through my bullshit.
I sigh, feeling a little uncomfortable about asking him for this favor. “Susie’s. I want to tell her all about this, but of course I want to protect you all too. I don’t think she’d talk, but it is fairly out of this world—no pun intended—and I don’t even know if she would believe me.”
“You would need to ask your grandpas first, but if it is okay with them, I can remove her memories of your talk once you’re done. There is another option though. I can make it so that she remembers but can’t actually talk about it to anyone but you.”
“I don’t know what would be worse, to be honest—to know all those things and not be able to talk about them, or have the memory removed.”
“Okay, I’ll let you think about it, and you can tell me what you decide. Your grandpas may have an opinion too. They may not approve of you talking about the circus or aliens.”
I quickly agree and go back to perusing the menu. I just hope my phone doesn’t take too long to charge, because as much as I’m enjoying spending time with Xavier. I need my girl.
“Well, well, well. Look who has finally remembered she had a life before the circus,” Susie answers, sounding pissed, and I cringe at the verbal bitch slap I just received through the line.
“Fuck. I know, Susie. I’ve been a shitty friend. Let me have it.”