Page 31 of Resisting the Alien Commander

“I didn’t avoid it. Bannik asked me out on what I’d consider a date.”I hope. “Why wouldn’t I give him a chance? Besides, the queen gave her approval of him. She was extremely complimentary of his character.”

Olivia snorts. “What? You really think she’s going to say anything bad about one of her subjects when he could be the first of the Bohnari to find his bride, marry her, get her pregnant—with a girl, of course—and save their race from extinction?”

“I don’t think she would encourage any of us to accept just anyone by falsely praising him. If she didn’t actually believe what she said about him, she wouldn’t have said anything at all. Guys who are shitheads reveal their shittiness pretty quickly.”

Liv winces. “Not always.”

My shoulders drop. “Fuck. I’m sorry.”

She tries to blow off my apology. “It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not. I know how much damage Craig did before any of us realized what a monumental piece of shit he was. I should have thought about that before I spoke.”

Olivia reaches across the table and grabs my hand. “I wouldn’t have gotten through it without you, so I think that gives you a pass.”

“Thanks, Liv.”

She squeezes my fingers and releases them. “I shouldn’t have said that about Bannik, either. He does seem like a nice guy. I really hope you give him a chance.”

I glance over at him again to find him watching us. Crap. I hope he hasn’t heard anything we’ve been saying. How good is the Bohnari hearing? He rises from the table and approaches. I swallow down the trepidation that I fucked things up already.

“Sorry to keep you waiting.” I gesture at my empty plate. Thankfully the food also helped ease my headache. “Olivia and I were just finishing up.”

Bannik smiles easily. Or at least he appears to. “There’s no rush. We can go whenever you’re ready. I still need to pay for my meal anyway.”

I push my chair back. “I’m ready.”

“Excellent.”

Since I have to pay as well, I walk with him to the counter. Olivia joins us but remains a few paces away.

“Thank you for coming in today,” Erik says. “I hope to see you again soon.”

“I’m sure you will. Everything was delicious.”

He grins. “Didn’t I tell you it was the best thing on the menu?”

“Yes, you did.” I chuckle.

Once he’s taken the credits off our accounts, Bannik and I head for the door. Outside, Olivia waves.

“I’ll see you back at the apartments.”

“You sure you’re okay to walk back by yourself?” What if that Janik guy is still around somewhere?

She gestures around. The sun has fully risen and shines brightly from the clear sky casting a lovely glow over the city. It’s a stark contrast to what we saw when looking up back in the bottom tier.“I’m pretty sure this place is way safer than the bottom tier ever was and I walked alone there all the time. I’ll be fine.”

“No one would dare bother her,” Bannik adds. “Females, especially humans, are meant to be protected at all costs.”

Liv thumbs in his direction. “See? Nothing to worry about.”

“Fine. I’ll see you later then.”

“Have fun.” She pivots and starts off in the direction of our building leaving me standing alone with Bannik.

He turns to me. “Ready?”

“Ready.”

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