And Carly knew just how pathetic that made her.
Chapter 15
Saying one thing, and doing something else was another. Ria had told Kristor she had to work today, and she did. She might own her own business, but that didn’t mean she could take off whenever she wanted. Most of the time, she put in long hours at her shop. And until she’d hired Jeanie and Katie, she rarely took any time off.
Not that she was complaining. She enjoyed grooming. It was all Ria had ever wanted to do. She loved animals, even tiny terror Sukie.
So why was she bored today?
Granted, keeping up with the books was not her favorite thing to do. She looked at the open ledger, and the numbers ran together. She closed her eyes for a moment and massaged her temples.
Maybe she needed to open the window. Her tiny office was located at the back of the shop and it was the size of a small walk-in closet. From here, she ordered supplies and tallied receipts.
The office was dark and dismal as the walls closed in around her. Why hadn’t she at least painted it a pretty yellow? She hated looking at the dull brown wall color. It was enough to make anyone depressed.
Deep down, she knew that wasn’t her problem. She had sort of hoped Kristor would drop by. There, she had finally admitted it to herself. She missed him.
But had he stopped by?
Nope, he’d stayed away, and she was surprised at how much she did miss him. Oh, Lord, how could she let him worm his way into her heart? Was this what he meant when he said she would change her mind about going back with him?
No, she hated heights. She had a fear of flying. Flying! Ha! It was a hell of a lot more than that! He was talking about zipping through outer space, and that was so not going to happen. Not just no, but hell no!
It was the sex. That’s the only thing she was interested in. Had to be.
She leaned forward and rested her head on the desk and closed her eyes. The sex had been really good. She’d never had multiple orgasms before Kristor came into her life.
“I had plenty of orgasms, thank you very much,” she said without moving.
“If you’re trying your hand at being funny, I’m not laughing.”
“Uh, Ria, who are you talking to?” Carly spoke from the doorway.
Ria jerked to a sitting position. “Carly, I didn’t hear you.” Her laugh came off worse than weak. “I was just thinking out loud.”
“Sounded more like you were carrying on a conversation.”
Now would be a good time to change the subject. “I thought you were coming over to my house tonight?” Ria came to her feet, smoothing the wrinkles out of her shirt.
“I thought we could run by the grocery store and grab what we needed. Maybe a pizza, and I have a bottle of wine. How’s that sound? I know neither one of us wants to cook.”
“That sounds terrific.” And it did. Anything to break up the monotony of her day and get her mind off Kristor.
Carly smiled. “It will be great catching up. Did you know the bank is planning an Alaskan trip? We’re giving a discount if they can get twenty people to go.”
“Are you going?”
Carly shook her head. “No way. So far, most of the people who have signed up are elderly. I think as soon as you have Katie trained, we can finally take that cruise we’ve been wanting to go on, though.”
“A cruise sounds really good right now.” But running away wouldn’t solve Ria’s problems. Not thinking about them tonight would at least help. “So what are we doing?” she asked.
Carly shrugged. “We haven’t gotten to talk girl stuff in a long time. I had that godawful cold, then you sort of hooked up with your alien….”
Ria hugged her friend’s arm. “You’re right. Let’s watch
Carly grinned. “And cry until we run out of tissues.”
They both laughed. Ria realized just how much she valued Carly’s friendship. They’d been through nearly everything together. This was exactly what they both needed. It would be great to forget about the fact she was part alien, and a shapeshifter at that.
She studied Carly for a moment. What would her friend say if Ria told her that she had shifted into a frog? She grimaced. Carly would probably cry through a box of tissues and tell Ria not to worry that they would find help for her. Probably even mention the doctors in Dallas.
No, she couldn’t tell her without proof, and Ria had already decided never to shift again. Tonight, they would relax, and Ria wouldn’t worry about a blasted thing—including being part alien. And she especially wouldn’t think about Kristor.
But she couldn’t stop the niggle of frustration that Kristor wouldn’t be around. Not around to hold her, to caress her, to make passionate love to her.
How’s that for taking a trip—a guilt trip. Carly was her friend and they hadn’t done a girls’ night in a really long time and all Ria could think about was Kristor. They would make up for it tonight.
They went shopping, then met back at Ria’s. The pizza was in the oven, and they each had a glass of wine when a motorcycle roared in Ria’s driveway. Carly looked at Ria, her eyes accusing.
“I swear, I didn’t know he was coming over.” Ria still couldn’t stop the flutter in her chest as she got up from the sofa and went to the door. She pushed the screen open. “Kristor, hi.”
He strode inside, his presence filling the room. Carly came to her feet. Ria looked between the two.
“We were having a girls’ night,” she told him. It was only fair that she keep her promise to Carly.
Kristor looked between the two women. “I have interrupted.” He caressed her face with the back of his hand. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“No,” Carly spoke up, a smile pasted on her face. “Stay with us. Unless you’re afraid to be in the room with two women who plan to watch a really sappy movie.”
He squared his shoulders. “I am a warrior. I fear nothing.”
Ria chuckled, but sobered when she looked at Carly. “Are you sure?”
Carly nodded. “More than sure.”
Ria felt as if she had the best of both worlds. It was strange, but she wanted Carly to like Kristor. Maybe it was a good thing he’d dropped by the house. It would give Carly a chance to get to know him better.
“The pizza should be ready,” Ria said, and made her way to the kitchen.
“How do you like Texas?” Carly asked as she followed.
“It’s very different from my home,” Kristor said.
Carly reached into the cabinet and brought down the paper plates. “I hope you don’t mind paper plates. Ria and I always eat off them when we have a movie night so we don’t have to do dishes, but I’ll get out the real thing if you’d prefer.”
“A paper plate is good.”
Carly acted as if Kristor was a guest who wouldn’t be around much longer. At least, that’s how it seemed to Ria. It was almost as though Carly were marking her territory.
Ria shook her head. She was reading too much into the situation. Carly was doing no such thing. She was only being polite.
They carried their pizza back into the living room. Kristor had chosen an orange soda rather than wine. The guy was getting a serious addiction to orange flavored drinks.
