Page 71 of Wanted By the Alien Warden

“There are extra blankets in the closet.”

It took me a second to realize that he’d noticed me shivering, and he knew what it meant because he’d read the book. For some reason, that didn’t make me feel better. He was almost too observant. Like he could take one look at me – at anyone – and know everything about them. Every desire, every fear, every flaw.

“Thank you.” And then, when he still didn’t leave, I tentatively added, “Goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

He finally left the room, closing the door behind him.

I breathed out, letting myself relax. I hadn’t realized how much tension had gathered in my shoulders in Warden Hallum’s demanding presence. Stretching my neck by leaning my head towards one shoulder, then the other, I walked to the window and cracked it open. Cool night air rushed in.

Along with the sound of someone swearing.

“Tenn?” I called, opening the window wider. I had a feeling Warden Hallum wouldn’t be out there making that kind of racket.

Tenn was directly beneath my window, attempting to set up the tent on a rocky, uneven stretch of ground.

“What are you doing out there?” I asked, leaning my forearms on the windowsill.

“I am setting up my tent,” he gritted out. “Or, trying to.”

“Why don’t you go over there?” I asked him, pointing at a much nicer, flatter spot between some trees about five metres from the back of the house.

“Too far away,” Tenn grunted, finally succeeding in getting the tent to stand up.

“Too far away from what?”

“From you. Obviously.”

Obviously?

Excuse me, sir, but that actually is not obvious at all!

Especially after he’d been so insistent on me sleeping inside and him taking the tent. When he’d said as much to Warden Hallum, it made me feel like he was embarrassed to be seen as wanting to share a sleeping space with me. And yet here he was, trying to get as close as he possibly could without actually tunnelling into the solid wood wall from the outside.

“How’s your room?” Tenn asked, switching subjects before I could internally combust over my own confusion. Now finished with the tent, he tossed his bags into it, then came to the openwindow to hand me mine. Despite the fact that he was outside standing on an incline, and I was in the house, our height differences meant our faces were exactly level with each other.

“Thanks,” I said, taking my bag and dropping it on the floor. “The room is good. Very clean. Warden Hallum is certainly an interesting guy.”

Tenn frowned. White sparked in his eyes. “He’s not that interesting.”

“He’s just different, that’s all.”

“Different from what?”

“Well… From you.”

“But you still prefer me.” Technically, Tenn’s sentence was a statement. But there was a warble of uncertainty, a subtle shift in his tone, that turned it into a question.

Affection filled my chest until it became hard to breathe. If I leaned out this window, just a little bit more, I could kiss him.

“Yes, Tenn,” I murmured. “Never thought I’d say this, but you are definitely my favourite Zabrian warden.”

“Good,” he said quietly.

His gaze went to my lips. Goosebumps broke out along my arms. The wind gently buffeted me, pulling a few loose strands of hair from my bun. Tenn caught one of those strands between his claws and held it gently for a moment. Then, he tucked it carefully behind my ear.

“You really don’t have to sleep right here,” I said, even though I was secretly glad he’d chosen to be so close. “You’re going to be on all those poky rocks the whole night.”

---