Page 66 of Alien's Luck
“Two months, now stop talking and listen,” she said, her voice growing annoyed. “I’ll explain everything in a bit but be quiet for one minute. First, telling me that you love me right before turning to stone for a century was a dick move.”
“I could not endure the Stone Sleep without confessing my heart.”
“Sweet, but still a dick move. Second, I love you too.” She wiped her eyes again. They were puffy and red now and the most beautiful eyes he had ever beheld.
“You sound angry.”
“Oh, I’m pissed.” She sniffed, swiping the back of her hand across her nose. “I’ve never really loved anyone before, not like this, and it scares me. My parents had a horribly toxic relationship, and I’m terrified I’ll make all their mistakes.”
“No. You are aware of your shortcomings.”
“What happened to being quiet?” She glared at him, but the effect was wasted. She confessed her love. His heart filled with a warm happiness that could not be discouraged by simple glaring. She continued, “So I guess I’m saying that your timing could be better, but I’m in. Whatever this is, I’m in. I’ve got all these feelings and they’re horrible and exciting, and they make me feel—” She waved her hands in front of her face.
He had zero idea what that was meant to convey.
“And I like it. Love it.” She moved in closer now, smiling despite the tears in her eyes.
“You love me,” he said.
“Yes, I love you.” She leaned in, kissing him softly. “And you love me.”
“Beyond reason.”
“I don’t know what tomorrow’s going to be like, but I want you there.”
“I will be here as long as you have need of me.” Gently, he rubbed her back, stunned at his good fortune. She loved him. She wanted to spend her tomorrows with him.
“I’m always going to need you,” she said without hesitation.
He took her hand, stunned at her outpouring of emotions and all that it stirred in him. Fingers laced together, gray against beige, hard against soft.
This could not be real. He had died, and this was a hallucination produced in the last gasps of his dying brain. Or, more likely, this was a simulated reality designed to torture him for the next century as he served his sentence.
“You are my hondassa. My chosen mate,” he said. “I did not know until I was faced with losing you. A century locked in my own mind is bad enough, but not having you there when I woke was unbearable. I took comfort in the idea that you would return to Earth for a comfortable life. Even now, I doubt this is real and only phantoms in my mind.”
“When have I ever suggested I wanted to go back to Earth? There’s nothing for me there.”
He did not understand. Despite his own bitter family legacy, he yearned to return to Duras. “It is your home.”
A soft smile touched her lips. “Home is with you.”
His wings shivered at her words. “Now I am certain I am dreaming.”
“Oh, this is real.”
“How?”
“I’ve got skills,” she said, her voice taking on a teasing tone.
“Carla, what bargain did you strike?” he asked, fearing he would not like the answer.
“It was a straightforward, honest trade. Remember that comm bracelet I lifted off Delandra? Turns out she’s more notorious than you.”
“I murdered the head of an ancient noble family,” he said, unsure why he had to defend the infamy of his crime.
“Well, she’s a blackmailer, and a lot of powerful people want to get their mitts on her. I couldn’t give the Patrol her location, but the comm bracelet was never remotely wiped. It had her messages, contacts, and schedule. I handed her to them on a plate,” she said, obvious pride in her voice.
“For your friend’s care?”
