“Fine, Heatherbee.” Emily smiled at the woman, trying to unruffle her feathers. “I’ll leave everything else to you. You’ve never let me down, and your taste is impeccable.”
Sniffling stopped, Heatherbee gave Emily a sharp nod, then glanced at Jonathan.
“You really should be on your way now, Heatherbee,” Emily insisted. “I’ll be fine. Mr. Webb will have his tea, then go.”
“Your housekeeper is late again,” Heatherbee pointed out.
“Mrs. O’Rourke will be here any minute,” Emily assured her. “I promise you, I’ll be safe here with Mr. Webb.”
Heatherbee gave the man, who was now smiling as he sipped his tea, an appraising glance. “Well, if you’re sure, Miss Emily. I’ll be going then.”
“Thank you, Hattie.”
Once Heatherbee was gone, Emily let out a huge sigh of relief and looked at Jonathan. Her head was spinning. Taking her Starwanderer to Bryantown was a stroke of genius. But what would she do with him in the meantime? He certainly couldn’t attend her uncle’s party. Imagine! The president of the United States and an ambassador from another planet together under her uncle’s roof.
“No!” She shook her head. “That’s simply out of the question!”
The Starwanderer looked straight into her eyes, his face stern and determined. He’d been reading her thoughts again, she could tell. “I am going to your uncle’s party with you, Emily. I’ll not have you out of my sight until my mission is completed.”
“But you can’t…”
As she glared at him, she saw his frown stretch into a devilishly wicked grin. Suddenly, his eyes glowed green, and she saw the twin shafts of light start toward her from his gleaming pupils.
“Oh, please, no!” she cried, putting up her hands to fend him off. “Don’t do that thing with the beams! Not in broad daylight! It’s not proper! It’s not decent. I can’t think straight when…” Her words drifted off in a moan as his glowing, probing shafts played over her face, down her neck, and onto her breasts. “Oh, what are you doing to me?”
Slipping his arms around her, he pulled her out of her chair and onto his lap, then cut off her protests with his lips. They parted over hers, and his tongue, like rough velvet, teased the corners of her soft mouth. His hands played over her back, sending new thrills of hot pleasure coursing through her.
Not only did he silence her, but he convinced her. She didn’t want him away from her for a moment—not tomorrow night, not ever!
Emily Middleton Larchmont wanted to blend. Oh, how she wanted to blend!
“As do I when the time is appropriate,” he whispered into her ear after tuning in to her thoughts. “But at the moment, I believe your housekeeper is about to arrive.”
Emily jumped up from his lap just in time to bid a good morning to Mrs. O’Rourke, who gave the mistress and her early morning caller a highly suspicious look.
7
“The cat is truly out of the bag now, Jonathan.”
Emily and her Starwanderer strolled down one of the narrow streets of Georgetown an hour later, enjoying the fine spring air, on their way to a nearby tailor. Jonathan couldn’t get along with one rumpled suit of clothes, not even until the first of May.
“What cat?” he asked, looking about. “I saw no such creature.”
“I’m sorry. It’s a figure of speech,” Emily answered. “I mean, now that Heatherbee and Mrs. O’Rourke know, all of Washington will soon be aware that you are here. You’ll be a hero, and that can only mean trouble. What are you going to say when people ask you how you survived and where you’ve been for the past two weeks?”
“I don’t remember.”
Emily stopped abruptly and turned to him, smiling. “That’s good! That’s very good, Jonathan. We’ll tell everyone that you took a nasty bump on the head while rescuing me and don’t remember a thing from the sinking of the ship until you turned up at my door this morning. A simple and convenient case of amnesia.” Emily’s starry eyes were sparkling in the bright sunlight. “Yes. Yes! That will explain away any other lapses of memory, too. You’ll simply say you don’t remember.”
“I don’t,” he replied matter-of-factly. “I was in the water, then back on my ship, then in the garden with you, then in your room. How I got from place to place, I don’t remember. I think you must have called to me.” When she looked confused, he explained, “You are half Uruzian, Emily. You have the ability to summon with your mind.”
She frowned up at him. “Well, I don’t think you’d better mention your ship or my calling you or any other odd Uruzian attributes we might possess. We’d be in hot water for sure!”
“Then I most certainly won’t mention those things,” he agreed, “as water—hot or cold—disperses my mass.”
Emily made no attempt to comment on that. Instead, she continued, “There’s one other thing, Jonathan.” She turned her head slightly and glanced up to gauge his reaction to what she was about to say. “I think, in order to simplify matters, we should announce our engagement tomorrow night at my uncle’s party.”
“Engagement?” His sandy brows drew together in a handsome frown of puzzlement.
“It’s an Earth custom. An engagement means that we intend to be married.”
“And do we?”
Emily hadn’t expected this question. She knew he understood about marriage since they had discussed it earlier. Now she wondered exactly what his thoughts were on the subject.
“Don’t people marry where you come from?”
“No,” he answered. “We have no such bond.”
“Then are there no families? No husbands and wives—fathers and mothers to their children?”
He paused for a moment in the street and glanced around as if trying to decide something. Finally, he looked at Emily and shook his head. “I could never explain life on my planet to you,” he said, “no more than I could make you understand how I know that someday everyone on Earth will fly through the heavens or that in time some of your people will walk on the sliver of moon up there.” He pointed overhead at the faint outline in the blue sky.
Emily laughed, thinking he was teasing her to get her away from the subject of marriage.
“This is no jest,” he said soberly, “even as marriage to you is no laughing matter. Do you truly wish to marry me, Emily?”
She gazed at him, long and hard. If she were choosing a husband with whom to share her life, could she find anyone more to her liking? She realized suddenly that the answer was a resounding no! Her Starwanderer was caring and tender, handsome and gallant, dear and adoring, and as passionate a man as she could comfortably handle. And there was something else about him, too. When he was with her, she felt different—whole for the first time in her life. It was if she’d been searching for years and years, and finally that search had ended.
But…
“Jonathan, is there no chance you can stay here?” she begged. Without giving him time to answer, she rushed on. “I realize now that you are the only man I’ll ever want to marry. There’s something about you—something that tells me I’ve been waiting for you to come all these years. Even my marriage to Sir Harold seems part of the plan. Had I not been his wife, I would never have acquired the necklace. I would have drowned, and we wouldn’t have had this chance. To answer your question, Jonathan: Yes, I want to marry you! Even if we have less than a week together, I would cherish every moment of our time as man and wife.”
His turquoise eyes pulsing with deep emotion, he made a move toward her, obviously meaning to sweep her into his arms right there on the street and give her one of his soul-wrenching kisses or send his glowing beams over her, turning her to a mass of quivering jelly. Emily stopped him with a shake of her head and a backward step. “That’s not done in public,” she warned.
“Then let us go somewhere private,” he whispered. “Quickly!”
Her laughter was gay and happy. “Oh, dear Jonathan! Have you nothing else on your mind? There will be time and privacy—later.”
“When? Where?” he demanded. “I have a mission, Emily.”
“Well, your mission will just have to wait until after we’ve bought you some proper clothes,” she replied. As to where, she could only frown in answer.
“I could take you to my ship,” he suggested, his eyes—his whole countenance—glowing.
Emily glanced heavenward, as if she expected to see his flying machine somewhere overhead.
Jonathan laughed—a deep, warm sound. “I would not leave it hovering in full view,” he told her. “It is stealthed.”
“Stealthed?” she asked, perplexed by the odd word.
“I’ve rendered it invisible,” he explained. “But it is near, ready at any moment I need it.”
“How would you take me there?”
“Remote control,” he answered, once more soliciting a puzzled frown from Emily. He laughed again at her expression. “Would you like to see it?”
“Oh, yes!” she told him, excitement making the stars in her eyes glitter.
“Very well. We shall have privacy later—much privacy! But first, let us be done with this clothes transaction.”
Buying clothes for the Starwanderer proved a long and tedious task. He clearly enjoyed none of it—the choosing, the trying on, nor the fitting. All aspects of the ordeal solicited sparks of annoyance from those gleaming eyes, and he now seemed to wear a permanent scowl. Emily half expected her disgruntled alien to “stealth” the tailor and make the poor fellow disappear before they were done.
When at last the Starwanderer was outfitted in all the latest styles, including a formal suit for the senator’s party, his gentle smile returned. As they exited the tailor’s shop into the early afternoon sun, Jonathan said, “This business of having a body can be tiresome. I think I prefer my vaporous form. It cannot be contained in clothing, so no short, hairless man sticks pins into you.”
Emily giggled. “I’m sorry, Jonathan, but if you hadn’t squirmed about so much, he wouldn’t have stuck you.”
“I do like this Earth helmet, however.” Jonathan flipped off his new derby and twirled it on his fingertips, then plopped it back on his head and patted the crown.
Emily laughed in delight. “You do look quite the dandy in your new hat. Handsome as the day is long, my fine sir!”
Suddenly, he turned serious on her. She sensed the changed before she ever noticed the new expression on his face. “The day has been long, Emily. Will you come with me now? Let us go seek each other and blend in privacy.”
At the word “blend,” Emily felt herself blushing. It had seemed such a simple, natural thing this morning in her bedroom. But now, to have him speak of it in broad daylight, on the main street of Georgetown, where any passerby might overhear…
“If there were time, I would woo you—bring you flowers, take you for long promenades, read you sweet poetry under the shade of a willow tree. But with so few days, should we waste even one?” he asked quietly, almost sadly.
Emily felt a tug at her own heart. He was right, of course. Their time together was far too precious to be frittered away. And she knew, if she wasn’t careful, she would spend what little time they had dreading his leaving instead of enjoying his being here. This was all so unfair. She had always thought that once she finally fell in love, she would share her whole life with the man who won her heart.
She looked up at him, her face solemn as she said, “Yes, Jonathan. I think it is time.”
At her words, Jonathan took her arm and led her down a narrow, shadowed alley so that no one would witness their disappearance. Taking a thin black box from his pocket, he slipped his arm around Emily, holding her close to his body. Then he pressed a button and…
Emily immediately experienced the oddest sensation. The scene before her vanished. The ivy-covered brick walls on either side of them turned into swirling masses of color. A windstorm of crackling sparks enveloped them. The sound was almost deafening, like being caught up in the vortex of a cyclone. She felt weightless, formless, as if she had suddenly become a cloud of mist. An instant later, it was over. Silence, a greenish glow, and the Starwanderer were Emily’s only companions.
“You transported satisfactorily, Emily?” he asked, his voice husky with concern.
“I think so,” she said, taking quick stock of all her limbs—counting four, as usual.
She glanced about, examining her new surroundings. They were in a room of sorts that had rounded walls of glass. Far below, she had a bird’s-eye view of Georgetown and all of Washington City.
“Why, it looks like a dolls’ village!” she exclaimed.
Then she gazed up through the low, transparent ceiling. The sky was dark, and a million stars twinkled, looking so close she might have reached out and touched them.
“Oh, this is miraculous!” she cried.
Her Starwanderer had other miraculous things on his mind. Drawing Emily into his arms, he kissed her deeply, slowly, until his heat kindled a firestorm within her. His hands tangled in her hair, dragging through the long tresses—pulling her head back, thrusting her breasts forward. His lips trailed down her throat. Emily felt herself shudder with delicious pleasure at each new touch of his mouth to her hungry flesh.
“Oh, my darling,” she moaned.
Then he released her from their embrace and took a few steps back. “Stand just there,” he commanded.
She didn’t want to stand there; she wanted to be in his arms again. But she did as he requested. An instant later, she watched his eyes begin to glow. The twin beams inched from his pupils toward her. As she watched them come, she trembled slightly—not with fear, but with the knowledge that she was about to be gifted with exquisite pleasure. She had no understanding of these strange, wonderful shafts of light but understanding had little to do with the tingling ecstasy they gave her.
Emily closed her eyes, hardly daring to breathe. Her whole body grew tense, waiting for his first caress. Would he tingle her eyelids, her lips, or play with her tender earlobe? Her breasts ached. She wished she dared tell him how they longed for his touch.
There was no need to tell him. Even as the thought crossed her mind, the twin beams of light found their mark. She moaned and swayed slightly as she felt his pulsing heat fondle her, circle her erect nipples, then radiate outward.
Through a dazzling haze of pleasure, she heard him say, “I have wanted this for so long, my darling. You are as I supposed—soft, tender, ever so wonderful to touch.”
When the tingling stopped, her eyes flew open. He had withdrawn the beams, but only by inches to adjust their aim. When next they touched her, she went almost faint with a sudden jolt of intense feeling. Her sensitive Starwanderer had found the very center of her longing. His loving light passed through her skirt, petticoats, and pantalettes to caress, to massage, to probe ever so gently, ever so lovingly. Emily had never imagined that she could feel this way. Something was happening to her—something bizarre and wonderful and exquisitely delicious.
He knew exactly the moment to withdraw his fondling beams. An instant later, and her ecstasy would have peaked and passed. As it was, he left her trembling, quivering inside and out, wanting him so that nothing else in the whole universe mattered.
Even as his lights released her, he claimed her once more, drawing her into his arms, kissing her, undressing her—using infinite patience to unfasten her bodice and slip the straps of her camisole from her shoulders.
“Oh, my Emily,” he murmured tenderly. “Was there ever such a woman? Was there ever such a love as this passion I feel for you?”
His strong hands kneaded her arms while his mouth traveled ever lower to find the puckered crown of her breast, the very pleasure points he had stimulated with his loving lights. When he stroked her nipple slowly with his tongue, the breath hissed in Emily’s throat. She sagged weakly against him.
Jonathan slipped one arm beneath her and lifted her up, holding her in his powerful arms. Her head fell back, her long hair trailing over his arm, as he t
ortured her aching breasts with his tongue and lips.
Moments later, or perhaps it was an eternity, he placed her on a low, wide bed. Quickly, he stripped away the rest of her clothes.
“So beautiful,” he whispered. “So exquisitely beautiful!”
The bed beneath Emily’s naked skin felt as cool and slippery as quicksilver. It seemed to flow and writhe against her flesh, ever heightening her desire.
She watched, dazed with longing, as the Starwanderer cast off Jonathan Webb’s new clothes, yet remained wearing his body. And a wondrous body it was—all hard planes and angles. Soft golden hair gleamed on his powerful arms and legs, while darker curls covered his chest and loins. His face, as he stared down at her, was darkly intense. She could not see him clearly in the soft glow of the cabin, but she could tell that he was ready to blend—as ready as she.
He sank down beside her and took her into his arms, flesh meeting quivering flesh for the first time. “I have studied the word ‘love’ in my Earth file,” he whispered. “It confounded me for the longest time. But now, Emily, I believe I understand its meaning at last—your verb ‘to love,’ as well as your noun love.’” He leaned over her and sought her lips once more, then said, “I do truly feel love for you, darling, so I am going to love you now.”
As much as Emily adored hearing those words, they made her tense. The moment had arrived. She wanted him. Oh, how she wanted him! But was she was ready?
Reading her anxious thoughts, he murmured, “You are as ready as I, sweet Emily. You see, this is my first time, too, in an Earthling body. I am unsure of myself in this form. Be gentle with me, won’t you?”
Her last fear vanished. Her last doubt faded. As the quicksilver bed massaged her body underneath, her Starwanderer stroked, fondled, and caressed her from face, to breasts, and on to her toes. She tossed beneath his loving touches and kisses, burning with a fire that only he could ignite, only he could extinguish.
Night and day fused. Present, past, and future dissolved. Nothing mattered; nothing counted. Nothing except that Emily accept and acknowledge this love that was so much more profound than anything she had ever imagined. Her whole life made sense now, her whole existence.
Stars in Her Eyes Page 7
