by R. E. Butler
"Oh, that's a relief," she said sarcastically, as if being handled by women while she was unconscious was going to take away the humiliation of it.
He opened and closed his mouth several times before he finally said, "I'm going to make us something to eat. Take as long as you like, Ashleigh."
He left. As she heard the bedroom door snick shut, she fell to her knees and wept.
* * * * *
She used the drying towel after her long bath, and it really soaked up the water fast. Even her hair was perfectly dry after only a couple of minutes wrapped up in the towel. Using a brush left on a small counter in front of an oval mirror, she brushed her hair until it shone, falling in waves past her shoulders. Her hazel eyes were ringed with dark circles and red from crying, and her face was blotchy. Not that she cared. It would be better if he hated her or found her repulsive, but something told her that he wouldn't, no matter what she looked like. Eden looked at her like she was a missing part of himself.
She scoffed at the notion and opened the cabinet. She opened one of the narrow drawers inside and found silky undergarments. She selected a pale peach set. The bra was lightly lined and very comfortable, as were the panties, which rode low on her hips. After looking through the clothes, she selected a navy blue tank and matching slacks that were made out of a soft but shiny material. She slipped on a pair of soft ballet-style slippers that matched the outfit, and looked at herself in the mirror. The top and pants highlighted the lush curves of her petite body. The top had a low, square neckline and wide straps, and it cut just under her belly button, so a little bit of flesh showed before the waist of her pants.
The bedroom door opened as she neared it, and her stomach growled as soon as she smelled the food sitting on the table. Eden was standing by one of two chairs, and she took the one he pulled out for her and sat down. He picked up her plate and talked about the dishes as he put some of everything on her plate. The meat was an animal that sounded a lot like a cow, the mound of yellow mash was made from root vegetables they grew in a garden on the ship, and the noodles were actually the stems of a flower, which he also used to make the soup. In a small blue crock was mirsh soup. She tried that first, and was pleasantly surprised to find it tasted like cheddar cheese.
She drank a sweet fruit juice and ate everything, feeling like she hadn't eaten in days, which prompted her to question just how long she had been out of things.
“Our days are similar to yours, but we call them dins. The drugs kept you unconscious for half of one din.”
She could tell that he wanted to talk more, but she wanted to think, so the silence hung heavily between them.
When they were finished eating, he sent her to sit on the couch with a refilled glass of fruit juice while he cleaned up. As he moved quietly and efficiently through the small kitchen area, she mused on the situation. He had said that she couldn’t go back to Earth. But if they had come to Earth, then they certainly could take her back. Perhaps if she was rude or mean to him, then he might not like her, and he would be willing to arrange for her to be sent back. Then her brain’s equivalent of a warning bell went off. What if he rejected her because of her behavior, and she was sent off to some kind of slave camp or something?
When he sat down on the ottoman in front of her again, she had the strangest feeling that he was setting himself below her, as if he didn’t think he deserved to sit on the couch with her. Something about that thought, about the way he held himself shyly away from her, made her heart ache. But just a little. She wanted to go home. She didn’t want to care about this man who had stolen her from her home.
"Can I see the women who were in the cell with me?"
"No. There isn't any contact allowed between the brides until a moon cycle has passed on our home world."
She frowned. “What’s a moon cycle?”
“You would call it a month. There are twenty-eight dins in a moon cycle.”
They probably didn't want the women all gathering together and rising up against their captors. Although it was kind of hard to see shy Eden as a captor. "So how long does it take to get to your home world?"
"Two moon cycles."
Two months of travel, and then they didn't allow contact for another month after that. They must want to make certain the women were happy with their men before they allowed them contact with their own people. Well, so much for conspiring with Kate or any of the other women.
He licked his lips nervously, "I can put on a vid, if you'd like to watch something."
"Vid?"
He gestured to a screen hanging against the wall, and she realized that by vid he meant a movie or show. "I'm kind of tired."
"Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking. Let me turn the bed down for you."
She was going to protest that she could turn down the bed herself, but he was standing up and holding out his hand to her with such an earnest look on his face that she didn't have the heart to say no. She let him lead her into the room, where he first opened the cabinet, pulled out some clothes and handed them to her, saying she could change in the bathroom, and then he busied himself pulling off the mounded pillows.
She changed out of the top and pants and found that he'd given her a set of comfy-looking pajamas, a short-sleeved top and a pair of shorts in light pink. She stepped out of the bathroom and found him standing in the doorway wearing only a pair of lounge pants with a drawstring waist. His upper body was bare, and in the low light of the room, she saw how well-defined his muscles really were. Although not large, he was perfectly sculpted, as if someone had sat down and molded the perfect man.
She knew he caught her looking at him, and embarrassment made her lash out. "You can't sleep with me. I'd rather be on the couch."
That same sad look skated through his eyes, and he took in a slow breath and said with a soft voice, "Goodnight, Ashleigh."
The door slid shut as he turned and walked out into the other room, and she stood next to the bed in dumbfounded silence for several minutes. Had she seen scars on his back?
She said "lights off" after she was settled under the covers, and the room became pitch black in an instant. As she stared into the darkness, she thought about Earth. Her mother. Her friends. If she’d known that those last few minutes were going to be her last on Earth, she would have done things differently. Called her mother the night before, even though she would have already been in bed, so she could apologize for not calling and let her know how much she loved her. Thanked Gwen for being such a supportive friend. Hugged her book club friends a little tighter, a little longer. Regret hung heavily around her and tears stung her eyes, but she didn’t let them fall. She didn’t know what would happen to her, but she couldn’t give up on the hope that she would return to Earth at some point.
Her mind replayed over and over how she’d been so close to pushing the 'call' button on her cell and talking to her mother. She prayed she would get a chance to make that call. Exhaustion settled over her, pushing away the sad thoughts, and she slipped down into sleep quickly.
Chapter 3
She woke up to what sounded like someone crying out for help. For a moment she thought she was back home in her bed, but when she reached for her alarm clock to turn it so she could see the time, she fell off the bed reaching for what wasn't there.
Cursing, she said, "Lights on!" The room illuminated brightly, and she groaned at the intensity. Doing what Eden had said, she grumbled, "Lights dim!"
Her eyes adjusted to what amounted to candlelight, bathing the room in soft amber. Rubbing first her eyes and then her knees from where she'd landed on the floor, she stood up and went to the door. It opened, and she didn't hear anything, but she could see from a small flickering blue stone on the side table by the couch that Eden was sleeping there. He looked asleep still, so she was moving to go back into the bedroom when he began thrashing on the couch and cried out in terror, "No! Don't take her from me!"
She rushed to him, ignoring the pain in her knees as she dropped by the
couch and grabbed his flailing hands. "Eden. Eden!" she said loudly. His eyes popped open and his wild gaze took a few seconds to focus on her; then he grabbed her to him in a fierce hug. "I thought they were taking you, Ashleigh."
Something warmed through her, and although she knew it was foolish to sit there and let him hold her when she was trying to figure out a way to get back home, she didn't try to break his hold. She put her hands around him gingerly and said in a low voice, "You were having a nightmare, it's okay now."
He froze and released her abruptly. Sitting up and scooting away from her, he untangled his legs from the blanket and said with a trembling voice, "Th-thank you for coming out here. I'm sorry that I grabbed you."
She was going to tell him that it was okay, that she understood nightmares because she’d had her share as a child, but he didn't give her a chance. He asked if he could use the bathroom before she went back to bed and she nodded mutely and watched him stumble into the bedroom. This time, she clearly saw the scars on his back and had felt them under her fingers. Whatever had happened to him in the past, he'd not been treated well.
The flickering blue stone caught her eye and she reached a tentative hand out for it. There was no warmth coming from it, so she let her finger graze it lightly. It looked like a blue crystal with a little flame inside.
"You'll be okay?" she asked when he returned to the couch.
He nodded, embarrassed, and said goodnight. She walked back to the bedroom and climbed into bed, wondering why it bothered her so much that he'd had a nightmare. He dreamed about her being taken? She shivered at the thought.
Sleep took a long time to come, and when she did doze off finally, she dreamed about Eden.
* * * * *
The next morning, Eden put a bowl in front of her that looked like blood-red oatmeal. She stared down at it. A bubble rose and popped and she gasped and scooted back in her chair. Eden chuckled and put a metal spoon in the bowl, stirring it up. "That's normal. It's fermented, mashed jilo-root, mixed with the grains of the hoir plant. It's a traditional morning meal."
When he stirred it, the color deepened. Her stomach took that moment to rumble, and she picked up a spoonful and took a delicate sniff. It smelled mild and slightly bready.
"What is normal for your people?"
"Coffee and donuts," she answered. When he didn't say anything, she looked up and found him waiting for an explanation. "Oh, uh, coffee is a dark, slightly bitter caffeinated drink that most people drink in the morning to help them wake up. And donuts are fried lumps of dough covered in sweet glaze, sometimes filled with jellies or icings."
He smiled and hummed in his throat. "I will try to find things that might be more to your liking, but do try the dish, it tastes better than it looks."
"It would have to," she muttered under her breath. She took a small bite off the end of the spoon, chewed and swallowed. It tasted very mild, almost like plain cream of wheat, but with a really lumpy texture like bread pudding. But the color was just so off-putting. She concentrated on the table in front of her and ate without looking into the bowl, finding that once she got used to the taste she could pick up some different flavors. It was grainy and lightly sweet.
After breakfast, Eden showed her how to work the vid, and they watched a movie about his planet. Once more, instead of sitting next to her on the couch, he sat on the ottoman.
The vid was like a documentary, although it was utterly self-serving, which was probably the point. Like the one she'd seen in the room with the other women, it was made from the standpoint of explaining the Norlan world to newcomers. It showed only the best parts of the land, citing their military's ability to keep their shores and skies safe, their scientific and engineering brilliance at space travel, and the incredible beauty of the land.
"We'll live there." He gestured to a large map that popped up on the screen. "Where it says Polona. It’s a small town outside of the capital of Kyvern City."
She folded her arms in annoyance. "My home is back on Earth. I have a nice little apartment that I'd like to get back to."
He ignored her snarky comment and said, "There is a museum within walking distance and a really nice park. There's not a lot of property, but enough for a small garden, if you like to do that?"
She sighed. He was so enthusiastic and sweet it was hard to be dismissive, especially when he looked like a wounded puppy. "I never had any place to grow anything. But I might like it, if I had the time."
His brown eyes glittered happily when he looked at her, and he went back to explaining the wonders of the street that he called home while she groused internally at being unable to keep him at arm's length. She wondered how the other women were faring.
When the vid was over, he said, "What did you like to do on your planet?"
"I worked as a daycare teacher."
"What is 'daycare'?"
"It's a place where parents can take their children during the day. Usually, if the parents work, they will take them to daycare and other adults will watch them, along with other children their age, and they'll learn and play."
He nodded, and she said, "Do you have daycare on your planet?" Although she still wanted to go home, she couldn't help but wonder...if she was stuck on Norlan, what would she do?
Shaking his head, he said, "No. One parent is home with the children at all times, until they are old enough to go to school."
She found herself frowning. She'd wanted to get married and have babies and stay home with them, the way her mother had with her. But she'd planned to do that on Earth. She was a little bit relieved to know that it was something that the two planets had in common, that one of the parents was a caregiver while the other one worked.
"What do you do, Eden?" she asked, aware he hadn't really told her much about himself. He'd talked at length about the planet, but had revealed little personally.
He froze for a moment, and she wondered if she'd said something to upset him. When she was going to ask him if something was wrong, he said suddenly, "I saved money before this trip so that we could spend time together once we were back on-planet. When the time comes, I'll find work." He spoke animatedly, but she felt like it was a false happiness. Before she could ask him to elaborate, he said, "Tell me what you did when you were not at the daycare with others' children."
He seemed genuinely interested in her, and she found herself warming to him. She told him about her monthly book club, and the historical romance novel she'd just started for the group; her twice-monthly trips to local dance clubs with some of the women she worked with; and her obsession with a TV series about vampires.
"Vampires are not real, though? I read something about them when I was studying your people."
"No, not real," she laughed. It felt good to laugh. And to share.
"They sound like the ligaru, a mythological race of flesh-eaters. They have sharp teeth and hide in the shadows. Parents use them to frighten their children into being obedient."
She wrinkled her nose. "That sounds like the bogeyman from my planet. The vampires I like looked and acted human, but drank blood instead of eating food. They're a myth, though, too. When I was seven, an older neighbor boy told me that the bogeyman liked to hide in closets and under beds. That night, I was so terrified of my open closet door and the darkness inside that I screamed myself hoarse and scared my mom and dad to pieces. I slept with a light on after that. For a long time."
Eden's eyes narrowed, and a particularly feral look crossed his face. "I would string up that young boy for terrifying you, if I could."
Her face flushed and she dropped her eyes. She'd never had a man want to avenge her honor before. Peeking up at him through the veil of her lashes, she was sure that he would go after Tommy Perkins if he could.
That evening, he cooked dinner for her and she watched. In the small kitchen area was a cooker, a refrigerator that he called a ‘refrigerated cabinet’ and an oval- shaped sink. The stove and sink, like the bathtub and lights, worked by voice control.
The refrigerated cabinet was square and contained shelves stocked neatly with containers of food and drink.
He laid out two saffron-yellow pieces of flat bread and arranged strips of pink meat he had fried on the cooker on one side of the bread. He had asked her to slice a pale green vegetable that was shaped like a carrot, and he added those thin slices to the meat. Dabbing a white cream on top, he rolled the flat-bread up like a wrap sandwich and placed them on plates. A scoop of crispy noodles with light brown gravy sat to the side of the sandwich.
"Oh, this is really good, Eden!" she exclaimed after taking a bite of the sandwich. The meat was crisp and salty, the vegetable was crunchy and mildly sweet, and the cream was tangy.
"Thank you." He blushed. "It's my favorite. Esot with guiu and freks."
She had to laugh. "I have no idea what any of that stuff is, but it tastes good."
After dinner, they watched a vid that was a popular evening show and a lot like a nighttime soap opera. It was about a wealthy family and the fictional town that they lived in. Despite her best intentions, Ashleigh found herself enjoying not only Eden's company, but the things about his planet and his life that he was showing her.
The nightmare came back for him again that second night, and she felt even worse for him then she had the night before. Already she was starting to care about this alien far too much, but she just didn't know how to stop herself. It was only going to be the two of them together for three months. How was she supposed to stop from feeling anything for him after so much time? It was a battle she was already losing, and she was both frustrated and disappointed with herself.
