Page 6 of Caldar
“Very well. He slithers away from justice today. Lucky male,” he said, gently nudging the unconscious man with his shoes.
“I don’t know how lucky he is. He’ll have a hell of a headache when he wakes up,” she said.
“Not my concern.”
Oddly, she agreed.
She didn’t run, but her walk definitely had more hustle than usual. They emerged from the park near the port. The crowd parted for Caldar, like sheep skittering out of the wolf’s way, and Sonia followed in his wake. Finally, the brightly colored logo of the cruise ship’s shuttle came into view. She damn near sprinted the final stretch.
“Thanks,” she said, panting and sweaty in ways she didn’t enjoy.
“You may express your gratitude and share a meal with me,” Caldar said, not sweating or even panting a little to be polite. The monster. If anything, his eyes sparkled from the moderate exercise, and his silvered hair had just enough of a tousle to suggest what it’d looked like after rolling around in bed.
“No,” she said quickly, perhaps a little too sharply.
Passengers walked around them, complaining not so subtly about rude people blocking the way. Someone’s bag bumped into Sonia’s arm, making her yelp. She rubbed her smarting elbow.
Caldar drew her to the side, out of the way of foot traffic. “It is a meal. Nothing more,” he said, his voice smooth.
“Oh no. You aliens are tricky. I agree to a meal, the next thing you know, you’re claiming I’m your mate. Not interested.”
“That is a very judgmental statement. I am tricky,” he said, placing a hand over his heart. “Do not lump me in with all the others. They do not have the game.”
“Was that… Are you throwing shade?” Sonia asked, wondering if the mangled idiom was on purpose.
He grinned, showing white fangs against his aubergine complexion.
Yeah. He wasn’t going to tell her anything.
“Is this male bothering you?” the security guard asked.
Sonia shook her head. “It’s fine.”
“Ship leaves in five minutes. You need to be in your seat, or you’ll have to catch the next shuttle.”
“One minute.” She faced Caldar. “Thanks for, you know, kicking butt and helping me out.”
“My stalking is useful to you,” he said with a nod.
“No, no,” she said, stressing the word. “I’m not giving you permission to stalk me. Why do you have to go and ruin this? You were almost not creepy.”
He grinned, as if thoroughly amused.
Frustrating, impossible man.
Rather than say goodbye, she thrust out her hand to be scanned. Caldar couldn’t follow her onto the cruise ship.
“You should report him to the local authorities,” the guard said.
“We’re leaving soon. What’s the point?” The scanner beeped, allowing her on board. She hurried through and slumped down in the seat.
The shuttle filled to near capacity. People cluttered the aisles and packed too much stuff into the overhead bins. Sonia fought her way to an open seat at the back. The air filter couldn't compete against the scent of sunscreen and sand. Before long, everyone had their seats and the shuttle left orbit.
Sonia closed her eyes when they left the atmosphere. The shuttle lacked artificial gravity, and she lifted off the seat, pressing against the safety harness. She gripped the straps, as if expecting them to snap.
Caldar was a problem. She tried ignoring him, but he kept turning up when the ship docked. Not at every port, though. Sometimes he was gone for weeks, then he’d be back, lounging in those ridiculous shorts like he was on vacation.
She couldn’t go to any planetary authorities. They’d take one look at her visa and see right through her dodgy exemption. Best case scenario, they would send her back to Earth. Worst case, alien jail.
