“Don’t worry. I won’t ask for too much.”
I grimace.
He burst out laughing. “You didn’t honestly think that I wouldn’t make you work for this, did you?”
“A girl can hope,” I grumble.
His grin stretches even wider. “This little baby is worth a lot, especially on this planet, so if you aren’t willing—”
“What are the terms?” I ask in a rush.
“Easy. All you have to do is go on a date with me.”
I lift my eyebrows and blink a few times. “A date. I thought your kind…”
“We do go on dates and court and all of that. It’s not just fucking. That’s the Novans. I’m a Kurian.”
“Right. Sorry. I really shouldn’t be so judgmental. It’s just… A date? Really? Can’t we—”
“It’s a simple thing, really. Do you think you have anything else I might want?”
I scowl. “A date. What exactly do you have in mind?”
“Don’t you worry. I have plenty of things in mind.”
His grin is somehow even wider, revealing complete happiness, and I don’t detect a trace of lewd intentions. In fact, he kind of seems to be a bit giddy about the whole idea. It’s a little comical and maybe a little cute too, not that I’m going to admit that to him. He has me curious. What exactly does he consider a date? Will it be anything like a date with a human? But he’s human. I need to remember that. Just because he’s a Kurian doesn’t mean he’s not human.
“All right. Fine. Is this acceptable, or do I need to get changed?” I ask, standing up and waving my hands down toward my legs to encompass my clothes. “I don’t own any fancy clothes or a dress.”
"No dresses, huh?" he murmurs, his eyes trailing up and down my body. I squirm under the heat of his stare, but I can't say I blame him for looking, considering I basically gave him permission to.
“No. I have a few shirts, several pants, and two pairs of shorts.”
Obviously, I also have undies and bras, but I don’t mention them for obvious reasons.
“I want you to be comfortable,” he says after a moment. “Do you hate dresses? I’m just curious.”
I gape at him. It seems like an innocent question, but it’s not, not to me. When people have tried to take me in under their wing, unwillingly on my part, they would first always want to cut my hair, give me makeup, dress me up, try to turn me into something I’m not.
“If you want me to be comfortable,” I say stiffly, “then don’t ask questions.”
"Not even about your favorite type of cuisine?" he asks. "I haven't tried nearly all of the food options you all have here. I do recall Chinese food is delicious. Oh, and I love burgers and fries."
“Have you ever had Italian?” I ask.
He considers and then nods.
“What about Asian? Japanese? Korean?”
He blinks a few times.
“Sushi?” I try.
“What’s that?”
“Raw fish.”
“That sounds good. Do you want sushi?”
“I only had it once, a single piece, but I did like it.” I hesitate. “If you don’t like it, though, you might hate it. Not everyone likes it and—”
“I eat just about anything.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes.”
Why does that make me wonder if he likes to eat women out? What the hell? Why would my mind betray me like that? It's something I've never experienced, and I don't know if I want to. It just seems… weird. I don't know. I probably shouldn't knock something I haven't experienced, but the idea of it, of sex in general, makes me a bit closed off. I've never been intimate with anyone. Too intimidated, and I don't like the idea of letting someone that close to me.
But a single date for a plasma morpher? That I can handle.
“You ready to go and do this?” I ask.
Rix laughs. “Someone’s willing to get this done and over with, isn’t she?”
“Yes,” I admit.
“Honesty. I like that. All right then.” He glances around and then places the plasma morpher inside a box.
I march over and shut the box.
“Will it be safe if we leave it here?” he asks.
"Yes," I say, maybe a little too quickly.
He laughs again, and I have to admit he has a nice laugh. “I’ll try to not be upset about you wanting to be back here already.”
I shrug. “I just hope you like sushi.”
“I’m happy you’re concerned about me.”
“About your stomach,” I clarify.
“Ah, yes. Isn’t there an Earthling expression about a guy and his stomach?”
My eyes widen. A Novan might not have picked up on that, but Rix had a human mother. Oh, and the chip that helps him with English and other Earthling terms.
“There might be,” I say with a shrug. “Sushi.”
“Yes, yes. I won’t keep you waiting, but, ah, you might have to lead the way.”
“Not a problem. Say, do you have access to a centuricmobile or centuricar by any chance? It’s a long walk.”
“Hmm. And you haven’t driven one in a long time, have you?”
“Maybe.”
His grin is back, and maybe I’m grinning too.
7
Rix
Ava hasn’t stopped smiling since I brought her over to a centuricar. I’m so grateful that I met Lloyd and the others. He’s the one to let me borrow his vehicle, and he winks and nudges me when I explain that it’s for a date.
“Go and get some, Rix!” he whisper-shouts, and I’m hoping Ava didn’t overhear him.
When Ava and I walk to the vehicle, she doesn’t seem upset or unnerved at all, so I take that to mean she didn’t eavesdrop. I’m not sure how good humans can hear from long distances. My mom can hear like a bat, but I somehow always thought that was because she had some kind of radar for when my friends and I were planning some mischief. One way or another, she would always know when we were plotting trouble. Granted, that was more times than not, so she had a good chance of being right.
Not that we did anything too serious or violent. None of
