Indiana: Stargazer Alien Mail Order Brides #6 (Intergalactic Dating Agency)

by Tasha Black

  Indy spent the rest of his day in a haze.

  He hardly noticed the odd looks of his fellow waiters. And he managed to avoid the steamy stares of the female wait staff too.

  At last the dinner shift was over and he walked out into the evening air.

  The Earth’s solitary moon drifted above its reflection in the lake, as if it had been fooled into thinking that it was dancing with its mate.

  The night birds cried and sounds of quiet talk drifted toward him from the pavilion. He turned back to see the warm glow of electric lights in every window in the stone lodge. It was so peaceful. A part of him longed to lie down in the misty grass and gaze up at the faraway stars.

  But his human side ached for company.

  He knew his brothers would be at the women’s cabin, so he headed up the hillside to join them.

  The women would be there too. His thoughts went straight to Nikki and the secret they kept. And the taste of her sweet lips this afternoon.

  Would she be as glad to see him?

  But when he reached the cabin, his hopes were dampened.

  “Hey, Indiana,” Honey said, opening the door. “Nikki’s got a rehearsal.”

  He couldn’t help wondering if she really did have a rehearsal. It was odd to feel so distrustful of mundane things.

  “Oh,” he said.

  “Come on in,” Honey laughed. “We’re playing cards.”

  “The game is called Bullshit,” Remington said happily. “It’s great fun.”

  “Wow,” Indy said.

  “Wait until you try it,” Kitt said. “You’ll be good at this.”

  Indiana allowed himself to be led over to the little sectional sofa where the other four were gathered around a stack of cards at the center of the coffee table.

  “Watch us first,” Addy said. “Then you can join in.”

  “Two threes,” Honey said, seating herself and placing two cards on the stack in the middle of the table.

  “One four,” Kitt said next, placing one card down.

  “Three fives,” Addy said.

  “Bullshit,” Remington yelled.

  “Are you sure?” Addy asked.

  “Very sure,” Remington said.

  “Damn it,” Addy said, taking the whole pile of cards from the table and adding it to the cards in her hands.

  “What happened?” Indiana asked.

  “We go around in a circle and put down cards in order, two through King,” Honey explained. “The goal is to get rid of all your cards.”

  “Then why has she taken them all?”

  “You’re allowed to bluff,” Addy explained.

  “What does this mean?”

  “It means that you can pretend you are putting down the proper cards, but they are really not those cards,” Remington crowed.

  “Oh, cheating,” Indiana said, surprised that such a thing would be allowed.

  “No, it’s not cheating,” Kitt said. “It’s allowed in this game.”

  “Bluffing is pretending,” Honey said. “And if you are good enough at pretending, then no one will suspect.”

  “So it’s like lying,” Indiana ventured.

  Honey’s smile turned into a slight frown.

  “I suppose so, but in the game it’s expected.”

  “I see,” Indiana said. Though he didn’t quite see. It was a funny idea that behaviors like cheating and lying were good in this game. Humans were strange creatures.

  “Two fours,” Remington said, placing two cards down.

  “Did you hear about the Bergstroms today?” Addy asked, sounding like she had a piece of juicy gossip.

  The Bergstroms were a fashionable couple who had come down from Manhattan to stay at Maxwell’s for the week.

  “One five,” Honey said. “No, what happened?”

  “Three sixes,” Kitt said.

  “Bullshit,” Addy said.

  Kitt lifted his cards. There were indeed three sixes.

  “Shit,” Addy said, taking the whole pile.

  “One two,” Remington said, placing down a card.

  “They left this afternoon,” Addy said.

  “No. They were having a blast. Why leave?” Honey asked, putting down a card. “One three.”

  “Two fours,” Kitt said, placing down two cards.

  “Their house account was overdrawn,” Addy said.

  “Oh my gosh,” Honey said.

  “What does that mean?” Kitt asked.

  “It means that one of them spent all the money they had on their tab at the resort, without telling the other one,” Honey said.

  “What will they do without money?” Indiana knew the Bergstroms. And he knew it was impossible to live on this planet without money.

  “They aren’t out of money in general,” Addy explained. “They’re just out of the money they had put in the account to spend at Maxwell’s. They have more money in their bank accounts at home. They’ll be fine.”

  “Oh,” Remington said. “That’s good.”

  “Then why are they leaving?” Indiana wanted to know.

  “They’re both angry,” Addy said. “They don’t want to stay.”

  “I don’t understand,” Indiana said.

  “It’s not really about the money,” Honey explained. “It’s a matter of trust.”

  “One of them spent all that money without the other one knowing,” Honey said. “It makes them feel like they can’t believe in each other if one of them is keeping secrets like that.”

  “I’m glad I never have to worry about that with my brothers,” Remington said. “Or their mates,” he smiled at Honey and Addy.

  Addy shoved him in the shoulder, but in a benevolent way.

  Indiana felt an icicle in his heart. He already had a secret from his brothers, a big one.

  “Speaking of mates,” Remington said. “How’s it going with Nikki?”

  “I saw you guys walking this morning,” Addy said. “What were you talking about?”

  Addy was waggling her eyebrows and all four of them were leaning intently toward him.

  It would be very difficult to betray Nikki’s secret, but now was his chance to tell the people he loved the truth.

  “We played a game of tennis,” he said with a shrug.

  The others nodded slowly, leaning back.

  There it was. He’d had a chance to tell the truth.

  Instead he had covered her.

  His stomach twisted with guilt and he felt achingly, wholly human for the very first time.

  It was ironic that he had longed for true humanity and he found it only in his shame. This doing a wrong thing for a right reason, and being proud and guilt-stricken about it all at once - it was the stuff of art for his adopted culture. He understood it now, to his bones. It was like the tragedy of Romeo and Juliet or the comedy of Tootsie - epic in its glory and deception.

  “Are you okay?” Honey asked him.

  “Oh,” he said. “Yeah, sure.” He gave her a wink, to let her know he was fine.

  “Where were we?” Honey wondered, looking around at the players.

  “Hey, does anyone know how to play poker?” Indiana asked. “I would like to learn.”

  Nikki

  Nikki picked her way through the trees on her way back to the Senior Women’s Staff Cabin.

  It was late. Maybe Honey and Addy would be asleep already.

  But she doubted it.

  The men generally came to their cabin to hang out in the evenings. And now that Honey and Addy were bonded to Kitt and Remington, being apart from each other seemed to stress them out.

  Indy was probably there too.

  Her heart raced and she willed it to slow.

  He had promised to keep her secret. Surely he wouldn’t have ratted her out so quickly.

  But for all his confident charm, Indiana was like a baby in some ways - straightforward and unpracticed in the art of deception.

  The warm glow of lamplight greeted her through the trees ahead and she could hear t
hem all laughing.

  Home, sighed a little voice inside her head.

  But of course the cabin wasn’t home and the people inside it weren’t her family. Like any good actress, Nikki was just losing herself in her role.

  “Nikki,” Addy said happily, looking up from a handful of playing cards, as Nikki came in the screen door.

  “Hey, guys,” Nikki said, looking around.

  No one was staring at her, and there didn’t seem to be any tension in the room.

  Except for Indiana’s intent gaze.

  When she caught his eye, he shook his head almost imperceptibly, then winked.

  She grinned back at him. He hadn’t told her secret.

  “We’re playing cards,” Honey said.

  “You don’t say,” Nikki replied.

  Honey laughed at herself for stating the obvious and Kitt tousled her hair, teasing her, but fondly.

  Indiana patted the sofa next to him.

  The idea of cuddling up next to him was so tempting.

  But something had changed between them now that there was a secret… and a kiss. It would be too hard to sit next to him and pretend there was nothing between them, like before.

  “I think I’ll make some tea,” Nikki said lightly.

  “Excellent,” Addy said. “Are there any cookies or anything?”

  “I’ll see,” Nikki smiled. Addy’s rigorous swim schedule meant she was always famished.

  She headed into the tiny kitchenette and grabbed the kettle from the cupboard.

  “Hey, can I help you?” Indiana’s deep voice took her by surprise and she jumped a little, dropping the kettle on the countertop.

  “I didn’t mean to startle you,” he said, catching her around the waist.

  Nikki looked up into his dark eyes. As usual, one was almost hidden by a lock of dark hair overhanging his forehead. The other crinkled as he smiled down at her.

  She smiled back, reflexively, and felt his arms tighten.

  He was so big, so warm. And he smelled like good things to eat.

  It’s only because he works in a restaurant, she tried to tell herself.

  But her inner animal was humming the tune even without the words. A man who smelled like that was a good provider. And he was so muscular…

  “This is nice,” he said softly.

  She could feel the vibration of his words in her belly.

  He leaned down and brushed her lips with his, like he had done a few hours ago.

  What had left Nikki breathless this afternoon sent her pulse pounding greedily now.

  Indy pulled back slightly without loosening his grip on her waist.

  Without thinking, Nikki went up on her toes, twined her arms around his neck, and kissed him.

  Indiana kissed her back passionately, sliding one hand up to tangle in her hair while the other pulled her closer, closer, until she was pinned against his hard muscles, the unmistakable evidence of his desire for her pulsing between them.

  Happiness bubbled up in Nikki’s chest, butterflies or magic or something was rising up inside her, filling her with lightness.

  Laughter from the other room brought her back down to Earth.

  Nikki pulled away, slid out of his grasp, and turned on the water to fill the kettle.

  Indiana made no move to stop her.

  She filled the kettle, put it on the burner and turned back, ostensibly to grab some mugs from the other cupboard.

  Indiana was leaning against the counter, his eyes bright, observing her the way a tiger might watch a deer before pouncing.

  “Do you want tea?” she asked brightly, praying for the strength not to start kissing him again.

  He smirked and then shook his head slowly. “That’s not what I want.”

  “B-but will you have some anyway?” she asked.

  “Do you want me to have some, Nikki?”

  She nodded, pretty sure they were still talking about tea, but not entirely certain she would have noticed if the conversation had gone elsewhere. Her brain seemed to be temporarily out of order.

  “Come on, lovebirds,” Addy yelled from the other room. “I’m hungry.”

  Indy laughed and didn’t try to stop Nikki when she applied herself to rustling up a snack.

  There was a loaf of fresh bread on the counter from the little bakery in town. She sliced it into six large pieces and slathered butter on each, then pulled out honey and jam, plates and knives, and set them all on a wooden tray.

  While Nikki prepared the snack, Indiana grabbed the box of tea and placed a bag into each mug.

  By then the kettle was hissing, so she poured the boiling water into the mugs.

  Indiana carried the tray and Nikki brought up the rear with milk and sugar.

  “That looks so nice,” Honey said admiringly.

  “Oh, sweet. Fresh bread,” Addy said, grabbing her slice and eating a third of it in one bite.

  When Indiana sat in his usual spot, Nikki found herself sitting beside him in her normal place.

  He stretched and rested his arm across the back of her seat.

  Every fiber of her being told her to lean back into the arms of the man who made her laugh, gave her butterflies when he kissed her, kept her secrets…

  That’s not who you are, Nikki Fortune. You’re a journalist. You can’t put your selfish wants ahead of the good of the world.

  She leaned forward and away from Indy, pretending to fuss with the tea.

  But she felt a bit unhinged.

  That inner lecture had always filled her with a sense of warmth and pride, and a tingle of importance.

  Tonight, she only felt cold.

  Indiana

  Indiana was back in the restaurant.

  His body was tired, but his mind was in torment.

  How could he be growing more sure that Nikki was his intended bride, even as he was becoming less sure about whether what she was doing was right?

  Wade Travers, Mr. Travers’s son, was clearly a horrible man. But that did not necessarily mean that his father had done anything wrong.

  And even if he had, Indiana was not certain that made it okay for Nikki to lie about her purpose here.

  To make matters worse, she had drawn him into her secret. Or more truthfully, he had pushed his way in.

  Indiana had tossed and turned all night, finally going walking in the cool, dark woods, trying to shake the pervasive sense of dread he had from hiding something important from his brothers.

  When he returned, finally tired enough to sleep, Jonah had awoken. He must have assumed that Indiana was just waking up, rather than getting into bed. Jonah had immediately began asking him endless questions about Aerie, and his experience as an alien on Earth, so that he might be better prepared to step into the role if anyone came snooping around on the trail of aliens.

  Though he knew that Jonah was trying to help, there was something increasingly obnoxious about the endless questions. Especially since the video didn’t seem to be getting them the kind of unwanted attention they’d feared. At last, Indiana had fended him off by telling him he had to get ready for work.

  So here he was, having arrived an hour before his start time, pouring ceaseless cups of hot coffee for the early golfers, and trying to avoid sultry looks and conversation from the female staff.

  At last Remington and Kitt emerged from the kitchen entrance, looking fit and refreshed, to begin their shifts.

  It was hard not to resent the spring in their respective steps after a night spent in the company of their chosen mates.

  “Hello, brother,” Remington cried from across the room.

  Indiana smiled in spite of himself and waved back at the both of them. It was not Remington’s fault that he had won Addy’s affections, nor Kitt’s that he had won Honey’s.

  It was best to concentrate on the guests.

  Soon the dining room was full, and Indiana had entered a mental state where the rhythm of his tasks consumed him. Greetings, drinks, orders, check, and on and on and on.<
br />
  He was refilling some glasses when suddenly there was a commotion. Indiana nearly dropped the pitcher of water he was holding when he saw who was shouting.

  At the head of the best table by one of the palladium windows, stood Mr. Travers, his face red with fury.

  “I had it, I set it down, and now it’s gone,” he yelled. “This man took it.”

  Travers gestured to Remington, who looked like he wanted to disappear into the center of the Earth.

  “Please, Mr. Travers,” Malik said in a calming voice, “I’m sure we’ll find your notebook.”

  “You’ll find it when you search him,” Travers yelled.

  “Where did you have it last?” Malik asked.

  “I had it out at the tennis courts,” Travers said immediately.

  That made sense. Indiana knew that the schedule for lessons had changed since there were two pros on staff this week. Travers would have gotten it out in the changing room to write down his new lesson times.

  “Is there a chance it might have been left there?” Malik asked politely.

  “Of course not, you idiot,” Travers spat, although he didn’t look quite as certain as he sounded. “No, I left it right here on the table here when I went to the bathroom just now. And this thief must have taken it.”

  “Mr. Travers, it’s an appointment book,” Malik said softly. “Why would your waiter want to steal it?”

  But Travers’s face only turned purple and he looked as if he might explode.

  Something clicked into place for Indiana.

  It was 2:44 PM.

  Each week while standing at the bulletin board and pretending to note his own simple set of work hours, Indiana glanced over the schedules for all of Maxwell’s to pass the time.

  The schedules laid themselves out neatly in his mind.

  At 2:30pm Housekeeping gathered the towels from the tennis court changing room.

  They went from the tennis court to the swimming pool at 2:35pm, and then on to the boathouse at 2:45pm.

  Which meant that they were heading to the staff cabins next.

  Chances were excellent that Mr. Travers had left his book on the bench in the changing room after noting his new lessons.

  Then it would have been picked up by Housekeeping before anyone noticed, since the next set of lessons hadn’t started yet.