Combustion, p.5
Combustion, page 5
“I never imagined it could be like this,” he murmured, not quite sure that he had actually spoken aloud.
He must have, because she said, “Neither did I.”
He straightened to meet her gaze and they smiled at each other.
“Now you’d better feed me,” she said. “We’re going to need our strength for round two.”
* * *
Zoey had Saturday off. Justin was spending the weekend in the country with Brandon, so she had the apartment to herself. She invited Wyatt to spend the day with her, starting with a homemade breakfast of fruit-topped waffles.
Afterward, they went for a walk and visited a science museum where they watched a presentation on stars and planets.
They walked home hand in hand, discussing what they’d seen.
“Do you believe in aliens?” he asked.
“Yeah. It would be incredibly self-centered to think we’re the only life in the universe.”
“Would you like to meet one? An alien I mean.”
She chuckled. “That depends on whether they’re friendly. What about you?”
“I agree. It depends on the alien.” He gazed at her with smoldering eyes and desire shot through her.
“If the idea turns you on that much, we could do a little role playing,” she teased. “Spice up the bedroom, not that it needs spicing up.”
“Which one of us will be the alien?”
Again she laughed and squeezed his hand. “I like you a lot, Wyatt, but you’re a weird guy.”
“Weird?”
“Unique.”
“Ah. That I can handle.”
When they reached the apartment, Zoey invited him into the guest room she’d been using.
Taking his face in her hands she said against his lips, “You be the alien. Show me what sex on your world is all about.”
“It’s all about raw desire. In ancient times, men fought for control of harems. Our sex drive peaks during a monthly cycle.”
Zoey smiled. “You’re good at this game. I had no idea you had such a vivid imagination. If you’re an alien in your monthly cycle, should I be nervous? Do you like it rough?”
“I like it however you want it. Pleasing you will please me.”
“Really?” She unbuttoned his shirt and parted the fabric, baring his gorgeous chest. Caressing it, she relished the feel of his warm skin dusted with cinnamon-colored hair.
He shrugged off his shirt while she unzipped his jeans. He was already starting to get hard and he grew fast when she caressed him through his briefs.
Stroking him turned Zoey on so much that her clit ached. She wanted him to touch her and she didn’t have to wait long.
Wyatt tugged her snug purple T-shirt over her head. Beneath it she wore a cream-colored bra. The tops of her breasts swelled above it and he bent to kiss them. She removed her bra and he cupped her breasts and trailed his tongue from one nipple to the other. It felt so good!
He grasped her waist and gently backed her toward the bed. Zoey lay down and kicked off her flip flops. She watched him unzip her jeans and pull them off.
While he finished undressing himself, she wiggled out of her panties.
Stretching out beside her, he caressed her hip and breasts.
“I’m guessing aliens like boobs?”
“This alien does,” he said, his voice rough with desire. He took her nipple in his mouth and sucked it. His green eyes closed and she noticed how long and thick his lashes were. While he teased her nipple, sending little thrills of desire through her, she caressed his face and hair. She loved touching him as much as she loved to have him touch her.
When he finished with her breast, he slid down her body and lifted her legs over his shoulders. Sliding his hands beneath her ass, he covered her clit with his mouth and gave it the same intimate attention as he’d given her breast. It didn’t take long for him to stimulate her to the edge of orgasm.
He reached for his discarded jeans and tugged a condom from the pocket. He sat up just long enough to roll it on, then his mouth returned to her clit. A few more lingering licks and she came.
Wyatt slid up her thrashing body and thrust his cock into her throbbing pussy.
He pumped into her, drawing out her orgasm, but he didn’t come quickly. Instead he kept moving in a steady rhythm. While thrusting, he kneaded her breasts. His long fingers teased her stiff nipples.
Another orgasm built inside her and she moaned, her head moving restlessly on the pillow. Bracing a hand on either side of her head, Wyatt kissed her deeply. He thrust faster and she came again, moaning into his mouth. Wyatt’s lean hips jerked and he came too, tearing his mouth from hers and gasping.
Zoey stroked his back and shoulders, loving the tension in his hard muscles. Finally he relaxed on top of her. He rolled onto his back and tugged her close.
She rested her head against his chest and listened to his heartbeat slow.
After a moment, he kissed her and said, “Be right back.”
He rose from the bed and walked to the bathroom.
When he returned, he pulled on his jeans.
“You aren’t in the mood to cuddle?” she asked.
He sat on the edge of the bed and caressed her face. “Zoey, I just got a message. I need to leave right away.”
“What?” She narrowed her eyes and pushed herself to a sitting position, tugging the sheet with her. “What message? In the bathroom?”
“On my… this.” He pointed to the strange watch he always wore. “I’m sorry this is so sudden, but I really need to go.”
“All right. I get you’re in the military and everything,” she said. Maybe he was special forces and couldn’t talk about his duty, and that’s why he’d always been so evasive, always directing the conversation back to her.
“Can you keep in touch?” she asked. “Or is this good-bye?”
“No.” He shook his head. “It’s not good-bye unless you want it to be.”
“Of course I don’t want it to be, but when will you be back?”
“I don’t know exactly.”
She rose from the bed and pulled on her robe. Her arms folded across her chest, she paced the room. “What’s going on, Wyatt? At least be honest with me.”
He lowered his gaze and sighed. “You do deserve that much. I should have told you before. I tried to, but… Zoey, by having sex with me that first night, you saved my life.”
He lifted his gaze to hers.
“What are you talking about?”
“If I didn’t make love to you, I’d have died.”
She laughed humorlessly. “That’s the worst line I’ve ever heard.”
“It’s not a line.” He stood, his expression serious. “You deserve to know the truth. I’m not human. I’m a visitor here from a planet called Pixie in what we call the Silver Iris Galaxy.”
Zoey broke into laughter. “Pixie? Like those little winged fairies? Babe, you don’t look remotely like a Pixie. I get it. This is part of the role play, right? You’re still in character. We can drop it now, Pixie.”
“We’re called Pixiens, not Pixies.”
Only when he didn’t so much as crack the faintest smile did she realize he wasn’t joking.
“My ship crashed and I’ve been searching for my crew. The problem is, my species must mate when our cycle comes, roughly every month by Earth time. If we don’t have sex, releasing a certain chemical created by our bodies and reducing a deadly fever, we won’t survive. We have medication that can stop the effects, but it was on our ship and I haven’t been able to locate it.”
Zoey was stunned. Either this guy was trying to stage an elaborate hoax to make a fool of her or he was completely out of his mind.
“You’re telling me that a spaceship crashed on Earth and no one noticed? And you, claiming to be an alien, can’t locate it?”
“My communication device was damaged.” Again he pointed to his crazy watch. “Until I fixed it, I couldn’t find my crew. The ship has a device that makes it impossible for your Earth technology to detect it. I’ve been working on repairing my device and have been trying to send a signal to my crew. I’ve just been contacted and I need to go.”
“Well you sure have all the answers. Are you thinking of this shit as you go along, or did you have it planned from the start?”
“It’s not shit and if I had all the answers, I’d be on my way home.”
“That’s a great idea. Go home. Now.” She picked up his shirt and threw it in his face. “Get the hell out of here.”
He stared at her. “You don’t believe me. What about all those idealistic words you had about life on other planets?”
“I can’t believe you’re treating me like I’m stupid, but I must be in order to sleep with you. If you wanted to hook up for just a week, you could have at least said so instead of spewing bullshit.”
“Zoey, please --”
“You’re either a total asshole or out of your mind. I hope for your sake it’s the former.”
“I’m telling the truth.”
“If you don’t get your ass out of this apartment right now, I’m going to kick it out.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Not half as sorry as I am.”
He left and she followed him, locking the door behind him.
Zoey leaned against it, feeling used, furious and sick to her stomach. If only Justin wasn’t gone for the whole weekend. She really needed someone to talk to.
She also needed a shower. A moment later she stood beneath the stream of hot water, scrubbing herself with soap, though nothing could wash away the memories of Wyatt.
How had this happened? It was her own fault. If she had stuck to her ideals instead of surrendering to her emotions, she wouldn’t have gotten involved with him. She wouldn’t be as miserable as she was at this moment.
Why was she so miserable? Because, no matter how much she was ashamed to admit it, she didn’t think Wyatt had actually spewed bullshit. Her gut feeling told her he really believed he was an alien and she had absolutely no idea how to handle it.
Yes, she was actually falling in love for the first time in her life and the guy turns out to be either playing her or insane. Not that any of it mattered.
He was leaving.
This was his way of breaking it off with her and it sucked.
She climbed into bed and lay staring at the ceiling. A few tears leaked from her eyes and she roughly brushed them away.
In the morning, she was still depressed.
She decided keeping busy would help her feel better, so she cleaned the apartment. When she got to the bathroom and was about to dump the waste basket, she noticed Wyatt’s condom from the night before.
Anger shot through her, then shame.
Then worst of all she was overcome by curiosity mixed with a pathetic shred of hope.
She was a research scientist who specialized in DNA. If he was an alien, like he claimed, then his DNA wouldn’t be human.
“Zoey, you’ve lost your mind,” she said. “Of course he’s human. He looks like a human, talks like a human and he sure as hell fucks like a human. Alien my ass. I’m a mature, educated woman and I do not believe in the lame stories of a damn fool like Wyatt.”
Still she couldn’t bring herself to dump the evidence, not before she checked it out.
Chapter Six
“Zoey, I’m really worried about you,” Justin said.
The two sat eating lunch in the hospital cafeteria.
It had been over a week since Wyatt had left, a week since she’d discovered something unbelievable. Yet she had to believe. The results from his DNA test told her that Wyatt wasn’t human.
“Don’t be worried,” she said. “I have a lot on my mind. That’s all.”
“Since that jerk Wyatt left, you haven’t been the same. It’s my fault. I pushed you into seeing him.”
“Justin, get serious. I was attracted to the guy. I had fun while it lasted, but I couldn’t care less about him.”
“Liar.”
“Forget about Wyatt. Here’s a hypothetical question for you. Say you found out that there are aliens here on Earth --”
“At least it would explain the hospital administrator.”
Zoey couldn’t keep from chuckling at that.
“Be serious and let me finish,” she said. “If you found out aliens are here and you’re the only one who knows about them, what would you do?”
“I don’t know. I mean, could I prove it?”
“Yeah. You could prove it.”
“Then who would I contact? The FBI? CIA? Hollywood?”
Zoey stared at him hard. “I’m serious.”
“So am I. Who would one contact? If you did tell the government, would it be the right thing to do? Would they try to capture them? Do an autopsy? Torture them?”
“Justin, stop it.” That had been Zoey’s fear as well. She’d been torn between reporting her findings for the good of her world, but afraid of what would happen to Wyatt if he were discovered.
Why had he confided in her? More important, why were his kind visiting Earth? What did they want?
If she told the authorities, what would happen to her? She had proof that aliens were here. Was it actually possible that no one else knew about them? Would the government try to keep her from going public? What if Wyatt wasn’t an alien at all, but the result of government testing? Maybe she should go public first? No that would definitely end in disaster.
In truth she couldn’t think of any scenario in which there was a happy ending.
“Zoey, I’ll say it again. I’m really worried about you. Maybe you’re working too hard. You’re constantly at the hospital.”
“I’m not.”
“You are.” Justin reached across the table and took her hand. He held her gaze. “How is the new condo working out? Do you like it?”
“It’s fine.” She forced a smile and stood, picking up her tray. “I need to get back to work. See you tomorrow.”
“Okay. Call if you need anything.”
“I will. Thanks.”
Maybe Justin was right. To keep her mind off Wyatt and aliens, she had been working long hours, arriving at the hospital early and not getting home until after eight.
Today she left at six. Her new condo wasn’t far from work. It was spacious with soft white carpets, a cheerful kitchen and a little balcony outside her bedroom.
She’d hired movers to bring her furniture out of storage, but she hadn’t unpacked everything yet.
After making a quick dinner, she decided to have a soak in the hot tub. The condo had both a tub and a shower. Since moving, she had only had time for quick showers, so lounging in the tub would be relaxing -- or so she hoped. Maybe if she managed to get her stress level under control, she could find the right solution to her problem regarding Wyatt.
She had just settled into the hot water when her intercom buzzed. Sighing, she stood and pulled on her terrycloth robe.
Justin had probably stopped by for a visit.
“Yes?” she said, answering the call.
“Zoey, it’s Wyatt. May I please come in?”
Zoey had never fainted in her life, but her heart pounded and she actually needed to steady herself against the wall for a moment.
“Zoey?”
“Yeah. Come up,” she said, sounding much cooler than she felt.
Waiting for him by the door, she trembled. What did he want? How had he found her? She doubted Justin would have told him her address before checking with her.
A moment later, he tapped on the door. She took a few seconds to compose herself, then opened it.
She’d told herself that if they ever crossed paths again, he wouldn’t get to her, but when she looked at him, her stomach clenched and she tingled everywhere.
Dressed in a black shirt and trousers, his reddish hair neatly combed back from his angular face, he stared at her with those penetrating green eyes.
“I know you probably don’t want to see me, but I couldn’t leave without saying good-bye. I didn’t want us to part the way we did before. Zoey, I want you to know how sorry I am that I hurt you in any way. It was never my intention.”
“I know.”
“I wasn’t trying to make up a lame story to break up with you, which is what Erica said you’d probably think.”
“I know.”
“If I left with you believing…” He paused and his brow furrowed. “Did you say you know?”
“Yes. I know you’re… get in here.” She grasped his wrist and tugged him inside, closing the door behind them. Staring hard at him, she asked, “Wyatt, what are you doing? If anyone else finds out about you not being human, there could be all kinds of trouble and I don’t know if you’d deserve it or not. What do you want with me? With this world?”
A disbelieving smile touched his lips. “You do believe me. What changed your mind?”
“What do you think? I tested your semen. You’re clearly not human. I want to know what your story is -- the real story.”
“I told you. I’m from Pixie.”
“What do you want with us?”
“We’re here for research only,” he said. “We have no intention of doing any harm. I’ve been here before.”
“Apparently. You sure know how to blend in. And me? Was that story you told me about needing sex to save your life true?”
“Yes. It’s true.”
“You mentioned Erica a minute ago. Who’s she?”
“My pilot.”
“Are you and she --”
“Zoey, you’re the closest thing to a girlfriend, as you call it, that I’ve ever had. On my home planet I had something called a relief partner. We met once a month to have sex so we wouldn’t die. No emotions were involved. Being with you is like nothing I’ve ever experienced before.”
“Same here. This is really too much to handle.”
He cupped her face and held her gaze. “I know and I’m so sorry. You deserved to know the truth, but maybe telling you was a mistake. I’ve only burdened you.”
“Wyatt.” She covered his hand, pressing it closer to her cheek. She closed her eyes for a moment and he kissed her mouth, then her cheek and forehead.
