Chapter 7
CHAPTER SEVEN
Lila
As I struggle my way out of the darkness, the first thing I hear is shouting.
A warm, cozy feeling surrounds me, and I feel myself carefully being placed on the ground.
My eyes shoot open, and I look up into a pair of magenta eyes surrounded by long, thick black eyelashes that any girl would be envious of.
Blinking a couple of times, I realize the person in front of me is paler than anyone I know, almost corpse-like, but he also has a vibrancy to him that’s entirely unexpected for a person that could pass for dead.
Okay, I’ve never seen a corpse, but I bet they don't look like him.
He has flawless bone structure that any supermodel would be envious of, with a thin nose and full lips.
He studies me as deeply as I study him, and when I unconsciously reach up a hand to touch his face, he flashes a grin that exposes pointy fangs.
When I reflexively pull away, his grin turns to a smirk as he breaks our staredown.
“She awakes.” His voice is deep and gravelly, not what I had expected from such a refined-looking specimen.
The magenta-eyed honey backs away from me, and the grandpas crowd in, all with various expressions on their faces.
John looks concerned, William has a devious, calculating look on his face, and Eric, well, his is plainly gleeful. He speaks first.
“Holy shit, you were like Storm from X-men!” Huh, I knew it. Holding up my hand, I offer him a fist to bump, which he does enthusiastically. Creepy grandpa is cool!
“Shut up, Eric,” says John. “She could have been badly injured. Thank god for Saxon, with his speed and quick thinking. I can’t believe he caught her as she fell.
” He’s anxiously rubbing his hands all over my arms and legs, probably checking for injuries.
“How are you feeling? Are you ok? Just sit up slowly. Where’s Link?
I want him to check her over for damage. ”
“I’m ok, I think,” I say as I follow his direction.
The slight tingling is still running throughout my body, almost making my muscles itch to move.
Maybe that will help dissipate the feeling?
I bring my hand up to my face to push away my hair, and as I do, John, who is sitting in front of me, slowly rises off the ground.
“Arghh!” I shout, flinging my hand back down.
He drops like a sack of bricks, letting out a grunt when he hits the floor. Okay, maybe that was accidentally a bit more violent than intended.
“Help! What do I do? How can I turn it off?” I turn to William as Eric continues to cackle with glee.
“Take a deep breath then let it out. You’re just worked up, so it’s happening involuntarily. Once you calm down, it will settle.” William scowls at Eric, giving him a not so gentle smack to the back of the head. “You sound like a hyena. Give the girl a break and get her a glass of water.”
“No!” I shout, but I manage to keep my hands still.
“Hush,” he admonishes, “it’ll be fine. Only the first time should have such a big reaction.
Granted, I don’t know that any of us were expecting that.
” He says that last part in a mumble, probably not realizing he’s still close enough that I can catch his final words.
With that, he stands up and starts to shoo away everyone who is crowded around, watching the drama unfold. “Give Lila some room.”
As people start to move, my eyes catch on the one pushing himself to the front.
My head aches, but I can still recognize male perfection at its best. He has a shimmer to his skin tone as if he isn't quite real, and his hair is a silver I’ve never seen on a human unless it came out of a bottle.
It’s perfectly styled, with a sexy tousled look to the longer fringe.
My eyes scan him when he stops to speak to William.
He’s wearing a uniform similar to the ones that were in my closet, so I can see all the sleek lines of his body, streamlined like a swimmer, with nice shoulders and a trim waist. They both turn to look at me, so I quickly stop my perusal and drop my eyes down to my lap.
I’m supposed to be shocked and possibly in pain, not totally perving on the stranger.
They both approach me and crouch down. “Lila, this is Link. He’s the ship’s doctor, and he’s going to scan you to make sure you’re not injured anywhere. Humans are a bit more delicate than most of us, and we can’t have any sneaky internal injuries going without treatment,” William explains gently.
“No, it’s fine. I’m okay,” I argue, shaking my head. I’m not sure if I’m ready to be examined by an alien doctor. What if there's probing… Hang on, sign me up.
“Let me be the judge of that.” His voice is low and gentle, and when I look up, his eyes are the same silver as his hair.
When it comes to his hair, it’s this cool silver fox look even though he appears young enough, but those silver eyes are just mesmerizing.
As they meet mine, one of them does something weird.
It’s like the pupil twirls and then begins to glow.
He starts to run his eyes along my whole length.
If it was any other guy, I would think he was checking me out, but I don’t think this is the case this time.
The scan is too slow, and it looks like he’s taking in everything, not just my tits and ass.
I look at William, and though he stays silent, he gives me a simple but encouraging nod.
Reaching for my hand, Link picks it up, simply holding it in his.
His thumb comes over and brushes across it before I feel a pinching in the middle of my palm.
Gasping, I glance down. There’s a drop of blood welling and a needle-like probe retracting back into his skin.
He puts his index finger over my blood, and I watch, completely amazed, as the blood sinks into his skin and disappears.
A moment later, he pushes back the sleeve of his uniform, revealing a forearm that’s weirdly attractive.
Have forearms always been attractive, or did the water do something to my libido?
His shimmery skin gives way to a screen.
Its setup seems similar to an iPad, but it looks way more advanced.
I mean, how could it not? It’s in the middle of his goddamn arm!
His fingers fly across the screen, his poker face not giving anything away.
“Body scan is normal. No broken bones or any damage to her internally. Blood tests also look normal, but I would need her back in my lab to do extensive tests for DNA and things. She is slightly dehydrated, exhausted, and..” He breaks off, and a blush crosses his cheeks.
The silver of his skin is now tinted with a delicate hint of pink, and somehow, it’s almost kind of adorable.
“What? What else?” John asks from where he’s still sitting next to me.
“Horny,” the doctor says dryly, recovering from his embarrassment, and now it’s my turn to blush.
“Agh, well, yes, okay, I didn't need to know that.” John scrambles to his feet, not waiting for Link to check him over. He holds out a hand to me as Eric joins us, another glass of water in his hand. “Thank you, Link, for coming so quickly.”
“No problem, boss. I was already having dinner.” He reaches down and helps me up.
His skin against mine feels cooler than normal human temperature, and it’s a lot smoother too.
I wonder how cold other parts of him are…
He helps me slowly get to my feet. “It was nice to meet you, Lila. I hope to see you around. Maybe next time it won’t be as a patient. ”
“Actually, she needs to have the galactic translator implanted. Can we get you to do that for her tomorrow?” William asks.
What? Hang on now. I didn’t sign up for implants.
My poker face is definitely not in place because I don’t even voice my objection before William is sharing a counterargument.
“Lila, not everyone in the circus speaks English. Yes, it’s the Skarrian language so most of our performers somewhat speak it, but there are many languages spoken throughout the galaxy, and you need to know them.
It’s only a little chip that gets placed behind your ear.
Everyone has them, and all it does is translate; no other surprises, I promise. ”
“Okay, fine,” I grumble, now feeling tired and getting grumpy because of it.
“Of course, come and see me whenever.” Link smiles at me before gently dropping my hand and walking away.
My eyes follow him as he rejoins a table across the room and starts chatting with the occupants before he looks up, those eyes meeting mine again.
He shoots me a cheeky wink, and I almost fan myself.
Damn him, I can’t believe he could tell how turned on I was.
I grab hold of John as he moves back toward the table. “What is he?” I whisper, not sure how good Link’s hearing might be.
“Link is from the planet Cybartronian, and he’s a cyborg—half man and half machine.
They are technological geniuses, and their species is responsible for creating the pleasure bots that are used in a lot of the brothels around the galaxy.
Their creation decreased abductions and sex trafficking exponentially.
Not to mention they’re responsible for so many other technical advances. ”
Pleasure bots and brothels? “Sex robots? You mean sex robots!” I shout, and he shushes me as he guides me over to the table so we can sit back down.
Slowly, I sip the water, my mind whirling at the thought of sex robots and cyborg doctors.
Tapping a finger on my hand to get my attention, William begins speaking.
“Tomorrow, we’ll work on your powers in the morning.
Then get you familiar with the dome in the afternoon and the show tomorrow night.
Let’s not get too worried tonight.” I smile at his no-nonsense attitude.
Suck it up, Lila, he’s trying to distract you.
He turns to the room and raises his voice.