Page 6 of My Big Fat Fake Alien

And if he so much as looks at Raven the wrong way, I’ll rip him apart.

CHAPTER 3

RAVEN

Islam the door behind me, my hands trembling so hard I can barely get the key out of the lock. The air in the apartment feels too thin, and I lean against the wall, trying to steady my breathing. My heartbeat thuds in my ears, loud enough that I almost miss the sound of Madison’s voice.

“Raven?” she calls from the kitchen, her voice muffled by a mouthful of something crunchy. I hear the rustle of her snack bag as she rounds the corner, barefoot and in nothing but a tank top and underwear, her bowl of chips balanced precariously in one hand. “Whoa. You look like you just saw a ghost. What happened?”

“Some guys,” I start, my voice shaking. I swallow hard, trying to force the words out. “They tried to… I don’t know, grab me or something. Outside the club.”

Madison’s eyes widen, and she sets the bowl down with a clatter. “Are you serious? Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”

“No, I’m fine,” I say, hugging myself tightly. “Someone… someone stepped in. He stopped them.”

“Who? A cop? Security?”

“No,” I say, my mind flashing back to Kirk. The way he’d moved, like he was made of something harder and faster thanflesh and bone. The way his hands had felt when he’d kissed me, like they were the only thing holding me together. “It was Kirk Stevens. That billionaire guy that's always in the news.”

Madison scrunches her nose. "Kirk Stevens? That name sounds familiar."

"Tech billionaire. Always in the business news." My fingers twist in the hem of my shirt. "He was in the VIP section tonight."

"And he just happened to save you?" Madison plops onto our ratty couch, patting the cushion beside her. "Come on, spill. There's more to this story."

I sink down next to her, pulling my knees to my chest. "Giscard assigned me to his table."

"And?"

"And nothing. He ordered champagne." The memory of his intense gaze sends me on a hot spiral. "He asked me to sit with him."

"Did you?"

"Yes." Heat creeps up my neck. "I don't know why. There was something about him. Like gravity pulling me in."

Madison leans forward, eyes sparkling. "Was he hot?"

"That's not—" I press my lips together. "He was... different. Powerful. Not like the other rich jerks."

"Different how?"

"Just different. Commanding. But gentle too." My chest tightens. "Look, can we not?—"

"I still don't get why he saved you, or why you left work early in the first place."

The words burst out before I can stop them. "He kissed me, okay? And it was amazing. Like nothing I've ever felt before. But I got scared and ran away."

Madison's jaw drops. "He WHAT?"

"He kissed me," I repeat in a little girl voice. "One thing just kind of led to another, we were talking, and…he kissed me."

Madison’s eyebrows shoot up. “Wait, wait, wait. The same guy who was flirting with you at the club is the one thatsavedyou?”

“Yeah. He… he just showed up out of nowhere. He took them down like they were nothing. One second they were coming at me, and the next they were on the ground. I’ve never seen anyone move like that.”

“Okay, hold up,” Madison says, holding up a hand. “Are we talking, like, action movie moves here? Was he doing flips and shit? Did he have a sword?”

“No, it wasn’t like that,” I say, trying to piece it together in my head. “It was… it was like he didn’t even have to try. He was just faster. Stronger. Those guys didn’t stand a chance.”

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