Chapter 1
ONE
Kim Humphries surveyed her latest batch of bowls, fresh from the kiln after their first firing. One had cracked cleanly in half, two had noticeable dents, and one had exploded. One of them looked almost, but not quite, lovely.
She held up the one decent bowl with pleasure.
She had improved. Her first efforts had all been failures, but that was normal when learning a new skill like throwing pottery on a wheel.
Through all the years of taking care of her mother, then Grammie and Pa, she had dreamed of being an artist, and pottery had always called to her.
For what felt like forever, it didn’t look like she would ever have time to follow her own dreams, but here she was—hands caked with clay and a fresh set of bowls cooling on a wire rack.
The small studio she had set up off her lakefront cottage had come at a heavy price.
A year and a half earlier, Kim had applied to the Virilian Match Program, where human women entered for a chance to be matched with a gorgeous Virilian male.
The goal was to produce an offspring, which Virilians desperately needed.
They paid millions to selected human women who successfully produced a child.
Kim had signed up for the adventure—and hopefully some romance—with an open mind.
Virilian males were gorgeous, with a reputation for being incredible lovers.
After being chosen as a match, she had barely stepped foot on the transport shuttle before she was kidnapped.
It turned out that her match had a trade enemy who abducted her for revenge.
Thankfully, the worst she suffered was being held in a not-awful cell.
After two weeks as a prisoner on an alien trade base, her security escort from the match program, Amelia, who was now also her best friend, rescued her.
It had not been the adventure she had hoped for.
She’d spent that time in her cell, terrified of what would happen to her.
If Amelia and her Virilian mate, Taron, hadn’t come to the rescue, Kim would have been sold to a harem.
Her and Amelia’s return to Earth had made quite the splash.
Reporters and producers wanted her story, but all Kim wanted was to be left alone and to live a quiet life of her own—finally.
In a stroke of pure luck, her would-be Virilian match was so relieved to hear that she survived, he paid the entire five-million-dollar fee and released her from her contract. Kim had used some of the money to buy property on a remote New England lake.
All she knew about her match was his name: Klae Rillim.
He was a merchant of some sort. Sometimes when she lay in bed at night, she wondered what being with him would have been like.
It was probably best that she hadn’t had a chance to embarrass herself with the Virilian.
Having spent much of her teens and part of her twenties as a full-time caretaker, she had dated little.
She was woefully inexperienced in the relationship department.
Maybe, after everyone forgot about “the woman who was abducted by aliens,” she might try online dating.
Her cell phone rang. Kimberly placed the bowl down and checked the number.
She recognized it and gritted her teeth.
How many times did she have to tell the people from the Virilian Match Program to stop trying to contact her?
Nothing against them, but there was no way she was going to get back out there and stand for another choosing ceremony.
Maybe adventures and romance would happen for her one day, but not with a Virilian.
The phone call went to voicemail, and Kim set about tidying her studio. Her cottage was perfect. She had a dock with a boat tied to it. She was rich, and for once in her life, all she had to worry about was herself.
She went still at the sound of tires on her long dirt driveway. There were few other cabins on this lake, making unannounced visitors rare and a little unnerving. She was isolated. Maybe she should look into getting a big dog.
She peeked out the window to see a short, thin man stepping from a large gray SUV.
He wore a tidy black suit and tie and walked toward her front door with quick little strides.
His dark hair was combed back and slicked in place in a 1950s style.
He had a tidy, efficient look about him, making her think he might be from one of the government agencies she’d had to deal with upon returning to Earth.
Or maybe it was another lawyer trying to convince her to sue the Virilian Match Program for damages, which she wouldn’t do.
She opened the door, braced to say “no” to whatever he wanted.
“Greetings, Miss Humphries. My name is Mr. Mann.” The man held out his hand politely.
She shook it slowly, taking the whole of him in.
Up close, there was an odd look about him.
His skin was pale and his eyes were large.
His lips were very thin, but when he spoke, he appeared to take pains to keep his teeth hidden.
Kim crossed her arms. “Are you from the FBI? CIA? You’d better not be a lawyer.”
He smiled delicately. “Oh, no, miss. I’m not with any of those groups. I am a representative of Klae Rillim, the Virilian gentleman you were originally matched with.”
Kimberly tensed up. “I don’t know what you want, but I’m not interested.”
Ah, that was why he looked peculiar. This fellow was probably an alien, which meant he shouldn’t be on Earth like this.
There were rules—permits—required for aliens to be on the surface of the planet.
Her friend Amelia had experienced roadblocks before her Virilian lover had whisked her off to space months earlier.
“Please hear me out, Miss Humphries. You see, Mr. Rillim is still very much interested in meeting you. He declined to have another match sent to him.”
Kim sighed. “Look, tell Mr. Rillim that I very much appreciated him paying the full fee, but if there are strings attached to it now, I will return the money.”
“There are no strings, miss.” Mr. Mann shook his head vigorously. “You are under no obligation to accept this offer—”
“Good.” She cut him off with a bright smile. “Then I’ll be saying good—”
“—However, Mr. Rillim would like to express his regrets at your dreadful experience and offer you a two-week, up-close tour of your own solar system with luxury accommodations. It would be an experience of a lifetime, with Mr. Rillim’s personal protection.”
Kim struggled not to smirk. She half expected Mr. Mann to follow up with, But wait, there’s more!
“What’s the catch?”
“There is no catch,” he said. “At the conclusion of the two weeks, you will be returned to your home. Mr. Rillim’s only desire is for you to enjoy yourself.”
She raised an eyebrow. “His only desire?”
Mr. Mann, who Kim decided was definitely an alien, didn’t blink.
Maybe he didn’t have eyelids. “Mr. Rillim stresses that sexual contact is not required. Any physical relations would be that of your choosing only, although he has not stated an opposition to the practice, should you feel so inclined to—”
“Okay. I get it.”
“This is simply a gesture of goodwill, apology, and the pleasure of meeting you in person.”
“Oh.” She blinked in surprise. “Look, that sounds nice, but I have no wish to go back into space after what happened last time.”
“Of course, Miss Humphries. Of course.” The man nodded sagely, as if he completely understood.
“I will deliver your response to Mr. Rillim. He was very worried for your safety while you were held captive by the Tulashi. I should have mentioned before that you would have the full protection of a custom, fully armed, Nebula-3 Trade Cruiser and an expert security detail.” Mr. Mann paused and seemed to debate his next words. “He could not get you off his mind.”
Kimberly raised her eyebrows. She had no idea what a Nebula-3 Trade Cruiser was, but a pleasant thrill uncoiled through her belly.
Of course, she thought about him, too. What would it have felt like to be held in his arms?
She could only imagine the details. There would always be a part of her that wondered what she had missed out on. “But he never met me.”
Mr. Mann smiled vaguely. “He is trying to rectify that.”
She had to admit that the idea tempted her. “I wasn’t expecting this.” She bit her lip, weighing the options.
On one hand, it would be amazing to see the solar system, perhaps even touch down on one of the planets. And her curiosity about Klae Rillim wasn’t going away. Would she regret passing this up? Probably.
On the other hand, she enjoyed having both feet on the ground.
What if there was a problem up there and the Nebula-whatever was attacked?
Kim shuddered at the thought of being abducted again.
The ship could be attacked, or have a malfunction, or run out of air, or…
The list of things that could go wrong in space didn’t have an end.
Mr. Mann stepped back from her door and folded his very long hands. “I cannot linger here, and I am sorry to say I must have your answer now.”
Kim nodded, feeling shaky in the gut. “I, um… Just a minute.”
“I forgot to mention one other thing,” said Mr. Mann. “Mr. Rillim asked me to tell you that if you accept his offer, one stop will be to visit your friend Amelia on the star cruiser she shares with her mate, Taron Bando.”
Kimberly’s gaze snapped to his. “Seriously? We would get to visit with them?” She and Amelia still spoke regularly, thanks to a secret communication device Taron had smuggled to her, but it wasn’t easy to hold conversations with someone light-years away.
She was burning with curiosity to see what her friend’s life was like since getting on that massive black spaceship and flying away.
That was quite the carrot to dangle out in front of her.
Mr. Mann nodded. “As I said, Mr. Rillim would very much like to meet you. Anything that may entice you to come to him, I am authorized to offer.”
All those what-ifs, the worst-case scenarios of space disasters, faded at the promise of seeing her friend. “If I go, I want something documented for people here in case something happens and I disappear again…”
His head bobbed again. A pleased glint lit his enormous eyes. “All I have proposed is approved by the Virilian Match Program. Your whereabouts will be regularly tracked and transmitted to them.”
She raised one eyebrow. “My government doesn’t know you’re here, does it?”
Mr. Mann gave a quick grin, revealing a flash of small, sharp teeth before hiding them again. “An oversight, Miss Humphries. One that will be rectified.”
“Sure.” She drew in a shaky breath, but excitement filled her. Maybe it was time to go on an adventure after all. As for the romance, well, what could really happen in fourteen days? “Okay. I’ll go.” She held up a finger. “But two weeks only, then I’m home.”
“Excellent. I have all the forms and agreements between Klae Rillim and the match program. Yours to review.” Mr. Mann drew a thin, metallic rectangle from his inner jacket pocket and handed it to her. “Mr. Rillim will be most pleased.”