CHAPTER 5
A brief span later, Hannah finds me ‘getting a feel’ for avian-shaped cat toys and fowl flavored cat foods.
The dark furry feline who’s befriended me is perched atop my shoulder, rubbing the side of her face along the top of my head. Simultaneously she’s kneading her paws along the meat of my shoulder, intermittently sheathing and unsheathing her claws as she massages me in a rather dangerous-feeling fashion.
“She looks comfortable,” Hannah comments, laughing softly. “Cats have a thing for high places.” She looks me up and down, grinning. “Apparently your shoulder looks like the perfect spot.”
I give Hannah a very earnest look. “If I may point out, Mick is perched on your shoulder. Perhaps he should be relegated to the floor. Then she will no longer be confused.”
Hannah makes a face. “If Mick is on the floor with her, she may not play nice with him. Some cats are good, but not all.”
I turn my head to look at my shoulder friend. I find she is staring intensely at Mick.
I look at Hannah. “I would like to test if she is good. I think she is good.”
Hannah places her hand protectively over Mick’s head, and angles her body away so that he’s not an easy target if my shoulder cat decides to leap for him. “Too risky. What have you got there?”
I hold out the avian-shaped cat toy. “I like this pink bird toy for cats. When I offered it to this feline here, she bit it quite savagely.”
There’s a loud electronic beep.
Conditioned to respond to beeps, I glance down, but before my chin finishes lowering, I recognize that it isn’t coming from my Comm unit. It’s coming from Hannah’s pocket.
She sends me a sheepish look and says, “I forgot to turn it off. One sec.”
“It’s all right,” I say. “I don’t mind if you answer your missives.” I step away to give her privacy to communicate with whomever is reaching out to her. What if it’s a rival male?
The idea of it chills me. So does Mick’s taunting voice as he commands Hannah, “Kiss me.”
“Shush, Mick,” Hannah says. She absently closes her hand over his beak, making his crest rise slowly and puff out.
“I love youuuu…”Mick squawks sadly from under her hand, begging for Hannah’s attention.
Unfortunately, I can relate with his impulse.
“I love you too,” Hannah mutters to him, reading something on her phone that seems to have her concerned.
My hearts drop, hearing her declare this yet again for her other male.
“Thank you,” the parrot declares, relieved.
Picking up the pink parrot toy from the shelf again, I raise it to my shoulder companion.
Her pupils widen until her eyes look like black orbs ringed in steel—and she snaps her mouth around it.
Hannah makes a soft gasping noise that steals my attention.
I look over at her, concerned. “Is something the matter?” I ask, gesturing to her device.
Hannah looks up and makes a face. “My friend texted that some weird guy scared her earlier.”
“That’s terrible!” I say.
“Yeah, I guess it happened not far from here. She was on her way to see me.”
I shake my head in disgust that she was accosted by some scoundrel. “Is she all right?”
“Kiss?”Mick demands.
Hannah scans her cell phone unit. “Thank goodness, yes. She says he was actually pretty cute and she doesn’t think he was trying to scare her. You just can’t be too careful nowadays, you know?”
I nod. “This world is fraught with dangers.” You should leave with me. My planet extends our considerable protection to your kind. “I’m glad she’s well.”
“KISS!” Mick shouts into Hannah’s ear. And then he kisses her ear that he just attempted to deafen.
This seems like abusive behavior…
But Hannah doesn’t recoil or even twitch. Desensitized. “So am I.” She slips her cell phone unit into a rear pocket of her trousers that hug her curves in loving, artful ways. “Hang on. Be right back.”
A moment later, Mick’s screeches are emanating from the front of the store: “I love you! I LOVE YOU!”
Hannah finds me in an aisle. I’m holding a toy that has feathers that might have been plucked from a relative of Mick’s. My feline friend has deemed these very good training tools for sharpening her parrot-hunting skills.
“Where is Mick?” I ask, a band tightening around my chest as the hope that some stranger came into the store desiring to purchase an eardrum-damaging, demanding creature who doesn’t know how to share.
“There’s a cage for him up by the pet store”s register. He was being obnoxious, so I left him there and covered him so he can calm down.” Hannah gestures up at my face. “Anyway. You have this cat who really likes you. How do you feel about that?” She crosses to me and reaches up, her hand moving for my neck…
My mouth falls open. My eyes are glued to her.
She pets the cat beside my neck.
The cat, who has her face pressed into the side of my neck. Which means, thanks to this animal, now Hannah is almost, almost touching me. Her hand is one cat away from caressing my skin!
“I adore this cat,” I tell Hannah.
Hannah’s smile could light up the sky. It lights up all of me for sure. “She’s easy to adore.”
Staring at Hannah, I agree. “She is.”
Hannah’s lips purse in a small smile and she drops her hand.
“She’s beautiful,” I add, although I’m not only saying this about the cat. My eyes are still on Hannah’s.
And my mate notices. She glances away, flustered or shy—but she’s still smiling. “You’re a charmer.”
I blink, because not even her proclamation could force me to transform myself until I was charming. “Hardly,” I utter with absolute honesty.
“If you say so,” Hannah says, meeting my gaze again. “But this cat really likes you. And you know what they say about animals’ instincts about people.”
“No. What do they say?” I ask, fascinated by the way Hannah’s teeth are a little crooked and how moonringed cute the overall imperfection is. It doesn’t mar her beauty; it gives her earthy character.
Hannah’s gaze is fixed on mine with intensity. “That you should trust an animal’s instincts. If they like someone, they’re probably good people.” She licks her lower lip, and my gaze couldn’t be dragged away from the sight of her tongue if you hooked my eyes to an aircraft and engaged jet thrust. “She usually takes a lot of time to warm up to someone—that’s why she’s still here. People love the cute little kittens, and they overlook this giant, slightly reserved, sometimes standoffish adult girl. But she’s a really good cat. She’s never bitten or scratched and she likes to be shown affection if she likes the person giving it.” Hannah tips her head. “That is, if you want a cat.”
“I want a cat,” I tell her, my voice involuntarily deepening… and I trail off, because Hannah’s eyes are giving me a definite once-over. It’s a sort of deliberate perusal I’ve only ever seen between mates who are signaling their interest for a tryst. Hope causes my wings to instinctively flare. They are, of course, trapped by the confining garment that I have to hide them under, yet still it’s a struggle to calm them down.
Careful not to jostle my shoulder companion, with the arm opposite her, I reach up and tug at my shirt collar, because my sweat glands have gone into overdrive.
All too accustomed to not having positive sexual interest returned, I’m unprepared for this unprecedented inspection Hannah is paying me. I’m not sure what to say, or what to do, so I hold still until the feline stands, stretches, and lithely steps behind my neck. She easily crosses to my other shoulder, sitting down and wrapping her tail around the back of my neck tightly—so tightly it might as well be an instructor’s coaching hand. A soft, kind one. I turn enough that I can see her directly, and she gazes into my eyes with a strange feline intensity. Then she drops her forehead to my cheek and drags her ear and the side of her face across my skin in a highly affectionate-seeming manner.
“Awww,” Hannah cries. “You two are so cute!” She looks genuinely happy—for me or for the cat I’m not certain, but I’m grateful. Because seeing Hannah happy makes me happy. Hannah bites her lip and looks hopeful. “Did you mean it? Do you want this girl?”
Staring into Hannah’s eyes again, I utter a heartfelt confirmation. “I have met the female that I want.”
Cheeks flushing, Hannah chirps, “Umm, do you need supplies?”
That”s essentially the last moment I can clearly recollect. In a whirlwind, I’m handed a low-sided pan, a special type of gray sand, two ‘dishwasher safe’ bowls made of glazed fired stoneware, pet food, an assortment of toys that smell like herbs and thankfully do not screech but instead jingle pleasantly like bells, along with a brush and a set of claw trimmers.
Hannah also sells me a front harness pet carrier that she assists me in fitting myself with, and to do this, she places her hands on me. Just the pressure of her fingers causes my internal temperature to skyrocket. I try very hard not to let my eyes roll back in my head in bliss.
For her part, the feline is surprisingly accepting of being fitted into the contraption, which forces her legs to dangle as it grips her trunk to my torso as if she’s a pup in a Rakhii pup harness.
Hannah steps away when the harness is secure and finishes ringing up my purchases. “Your total is four hundred dollars and fifty-four cents,” she declares, wincing. “Is that okay?”
I wanted this woman when I entered here, but I’ve ended up buying half the store and a cat as my consolation prize. I blink at Hannah, reeling.
Giving me a worried look, Hannah bites her lip.
”Yes,” I assure her, not because I’m comfortable with the shockingly excessive cost of an Earthen cat, but because giving my mate a reassuring word is my first instinct.
And if the female of your dreams poses a question while she’s gazing up at you, her lip held in her teeth just so—well, see if you can give any other answer than an affirmative no matter how emotionally torn you are.
I retrieve the bills that my human friends on my home planet instructed me to use sparingly and carefully, all while silently castigating myself for spending this amount of money on an impulse when I do not have a need for a cat. Although... I do like the idea of having this elegant companion animal. She is quite nice, and she’s done all she can to bring Hannah and I closer together. But I can’t help regretting the fact that this has not been a terribly prudent purchase.
“What’s wrong?” Hannah asks, startling my eyes to hers.
“Oh,” I say. “I was just…” I hesitate, but decide to share the truth with my mate whenever I can, if the answer doesn’t relate to the fact that I’m not native to her planet and I’m desperately searching for a way to court her and woo her into agreeing to leave her home planet and join me on mine. “I really shouldn’t have spent this money on a pet. I like her,” I say quickly. “But it wasn’t the wisest use of my funds.”
Hannah nods sympathetically. “Buyer’s remorse.” She pats my arm, making my wings twitch forward. My eyes widen—they’re attempting to curl forward. To capture Hannah!
“Do you want me to cancel the sale?” Hannah asks, looking worried.
“No,” I say quickly. Anything to dispel the guilty look from my mate’s face. “I thank you for the offer, but I will not fail to honor this sale I have agreed to.”
“Well…” Hannah says slowly. “Can I tell you something?” Her face goes very serious. “But promise me that you’re really sure you don’t want me to cancel this sale.”
“I promise you that I’m very sure I don’t want you to cancel this sale,” I say, obeying her order.
She blows out a breath. “Whew. Thanks.” She gives me a saddened look. “Because the owner only likes me if I make a sale. And this?” She gestures to the feline-carrying harness she’s fitted me with and the somewhat opaque, excessively crinkly bags that she placed all of my new cat’s purchases in. “This is going to make the owner really like me.” Now she gives me a greatly relieved smile. “So thank you. Seriously.”
I stare at her in shock. “You have an owner?”
Outrage fills me. My mate is owned? I must buy Hannah’s freedom! Has this owner been treating her well? My eyes scan her person, searching for bruises, welts, and I spy something strapped to her wrist that I assumed was an item called a watch, but now I wonder if it’s a type of electronic collaring device. I suck in a breath. Perhaps it sends punishing electronic pulses to her wrist when she attempts to leave this place.
“Of this store. The boss has this deal where she pays an hourly wage, but if her employees make four-hundred dollars in sales during the month, she pays a commission on top of the regular wage. Not only did you just earn me a bonus, you also saved my bacon because I haven’t been very productive on the pet store side.”
“Why not?” I ask.
Hannah winces and gives me a guilty look. “Because most people know that they can order off Monopolyzon and get everything they need cheaper than they can here, except for live animals.” She gives me a small, apologetic shrug. “So usually it’s only buyers who need immediate supplies,” she gestures to the item she told me was a litter pan, “who pay for hardgoods here.” Hannah sends a pleading look up at me that she doesn’t seem to know is so effective, I would agree to anything she needed. “But now I can officially contribute toward my half of the rent fund. So I mean it: thanks.”
“I’m glad I could be of assistance,” I say fervently.
She smiles up at me, relieved. “You really were.” She brightens. “I want you to leave me your number if you want to work here. I’ll text you a link to the application I’ve set up.” She grimaces. “Technically, like I said, I don’t have the owner’s ironclad agreement yet that she’ll hire someone—but I’m hoping that if I get a good applicant, I can strongarm her into getting me some help so I’m not doing two jobs. And I promise it’s a better job than I’ve made it sound just now, I realize. Oh! A bonus I forgot to mention? The store is closed on Wednesdays, which is kind of a neat break in the week. So leave me your number,” she says shyly as she turns her body adjacent to mine and gives me the barest nudge with her shoulder—
The contact renders me speechless.It takes me a moment to regain the ability to speak. “I don’t have a number,” I tell her, memorizing her every feature.
The Na’riths offered to program my Comm to act as an Earth receiver to accept calls, which are transmissions of human speech converted into electrical impulses sent from human cell phone devices, but it is an expensive luxury. So is the option to convert my Comm into a receiver for Earthen messages sent via texted alien languages.
The tenuous justification that these options would be helpful for when I’m wooing my mate have become a dire need now that I’ve actually found my mate. I desperately wish I’d opted to pay the Na’riths whatever they asked for this technology.
I can almost feel the heat off of her cheekbones as she grows flustered under my gaze. Until suddenly, my statement must register with her in an alarming way because her eyes fly back up to mine and her posture has gone stiff. “You don’t have a phone,” she clarifies, deadpan.
“I have a different sort of communication device,” I tell her. “But it doesn’t quite work like a phone. You wouldn’t, for example, be able to call me using your cell phone unit.”
“Is that so?” she says, and if I’m not mistaken, her voice and body language cues—a darted look up at me, then to the door of the shop, telegraphs that she’s growing wary.
“My device is made in my homeland,” I explain. “And thus it is not compatible with yours here.”
Her shoulders relax and her posture loosens; she’s accepting this explanation and is eased by it. “Ah. Where are you from?”
I am reluctant to change the subject and risk making her feel her question ignored, but panicked, I do. Because I’m even more reluctant to tell her where I’m from and frighten her, thus I abruptly and without finesse change the subject.
“I find this cat most lovely,” I tell Hannah honestly, and drag my filed-flat claws under my cat’s chin, making her rumbling intensify. “I fervidly hope I am hired,” I share. Because if I’m not, I need to a devise a way to meet Hannah again, and somehow, somehow convince her that we are soulmates. Devising will be difficult particularly because it’s painful to contemplate leaving her behind. But I must. I’m no Rakhii—I can’t just take a woman. “And until I am, I suppose I must leave you now and return to my shi—erm, my vehicle.”
“You can swear,” Hannah says, a sweet smile creeping over her suspicion-clouded expression.
“Excuse me?”
“You were going to say ‘shitty car?’ I’ve heard curse words before you know.” She winks, giving my hearts palpitations. “But I appreciate how polite you are. My roommate isn’t going to believe you’re even real.”
“You have a mate?” I ask, crestfallen.
“A… roommate,” she stresses. Then her mouth firms and she repeats her question in a way that tells me she will be detrimentally displeased if I don’t answer her. “Where are you from?”
I try very hard not to fidget, or wince, or drop my gaze. My unofficial expedition leaders expressly forbade me from acting guilty when I tell a lie. But instead of vomiting up the pre-approved story of me being an advanced foreign exchange student from the tiny peninsula of Crimea—my human instructors ensured me that no other human I will come into contact with will have ever heard of the Earthen location, let alone be familiar with it—I find the truth striding out of my lips instead. “I’m an alien.”
The moment the words leave my mouth, I”m cringing. My friend Isla all but forbade me to cringe! I straighten, and feel my eyes widen with panic. I clutch my cat more tightly to my front. “I’m sorry. I—”
“You’re a foreigner,” she states.
My wing punches at my cloak. If I weren’t wearing said cloak to conceal them, I would have just whipped myself in the face. “In a manner of speaking, that is correct. Yes. I am very foreign.”
She bites her lip, her eyes traveling over me in a way that makes my body warm, my system flare with processes and flood with instincts, and the front of my trousers becomes uncomfortably tight. I make fists and rest them directly in front of my… front, in order to preserve my modesty.
Hannah’s eyes dip down to my hands, to the placement, and the small smile that curls her lips makes my untimely erection throb. But her words shock me. “We’re going to close here in about twenty minutes. How about I take you to my place?”