Rocky: Stargazer Alien Mail Order Brides (Intergalactic Dating Agency)

by Tasha Black

  “Pretty much,” she agreed.

  “But you care about what you can share with others,” he said.

  It was a simple idea, and quite obvious to Rocky. But Georgia inhaled in a way that made it seem she was greatly surprised.

  “Is this not correct?” he asked. “I have observed you with your friends, guiding them and helping them. And in the way you choose to help Dr. Bhimani even though she has deceived you more than once, because you know the truth of her heart, and her love for you and your friends.”

  “I could see that she meant to do the right thing,” Georgia admitted. “Even if she went about it the wrong way.”

  “Yet, you did not once demand that she make things right,” Rocky pointed out. “Instead of acting in your own best interests, you chose to help her.”

  “I guess I never thought of it that way,” Georgia admitted.

  “And you were correct,” Rocky said. “Dr. Bhimani is a good person, yet she took a wrong action. This was hard for my brothers and me to understand at first, but now we are beginning to see that human interactions can be complicated - like wrong actions for a right reason, as you explained.”

  Georgia nodded, so he went on.

  “It seems to me, therefore, that for one human to rely on the right actions of another for its happiness is a reckless undertaking,” Rocky told her. “But a person who gains happiness from assisting others - this happiness is sure to be fulfilled. And that is why your own life will be filled with happiness, Georgia.”

  She was silent, and he wished he could see her expression better, but it was dim inside the blanket fort.

  Then she lowered her face into her hands and began to weep.

  He lifted the blanket off them.

  “I am sorry, I did not mean to hurt you,” he said, wrapping his arms around her, his heart filled with sorrow that he had not expressed himself properly. He felt sure that he was right in all he had said. How could a language confined to simple verbal utterances be so complicated?

  “No, Rocky,” she sighed into his chest. “You said just the right thing.”

  “Why are you crying?” he asked her.

  “I’m relieved,” she sniffed. “You showed me something about myself that I hadn’t seen. I don’t know how. We just met. You barely know me.”

  “I know you, Georgia Taylor,” he told her. “You are kind, loyal and strong. Everything else is extraneous and I will learn about it slowly, over the course of our long life together.”

  She laughed.

  “What about you?”

  “What do you know about me?” he asked.

  “You’re quick to act,” she said. “You don’t take offense easily. You’re laid back.”

  “Are those good qualities or bad?”

  “Good,” she smiled. “You have many good qualities, and only one bad one.”

  “Oh really, and what’s that?” he asked, fascinated and a little worried.

  But she only laughed and shook her head.

  He realized with a little thrill that she meant the mating.

  “I see,” he said playfully. “You’re unhappy because I don’t spoil you with every physical pleasure your heart desires.”

  “Maybe I should focus on your happiness instead,” she countered, blue eyes flashing.

  Oh.

  Rocky’s heart thudded as she studied him.

  Though he knew he should stop her, he was powerless to do so - paralyzed by the burning need to see what she might do.

  But a loud scream from upstairs roused them both.

  “Wait here,” Rocky advised her as he leapt from the bed and headed for the door.

  As he dashed up the stairs, he heard Georgia’s footsteps behind him and he silently cursed her for being so brave. Couldn’t a man trust a woman to let him protect her once in a while?

  When he arrived in the dining room, he found Dr. Bhimani, Jason, Posey, Bond, Rima and Magnum gathered around the glowing screen of a laptop.

  “What happened?” he asked.

  “It went viral! One of the videos went viral,” Rima exclaimed.

  “That’s terrible,” Rocky said. “Perhaps we could use some honey to battle the infection, as we did in the ship?”

  “No,” Posey corrected him with a grin. “It means we’re famous… Sort of. It’s only a matter of time before the tourists come.”

  “Do you have the social media pages up for the park?” Georgia asked breathlessly from behind him as she entered the room.

  “Done and done,” Jason confirmed with a wink.

  “Nice,” Georgia said, and smiled back at Rocky. “It’s happening. We’re going to save the day.”

  Though it was night and the room was dim, Rocky felt as if he were blinded by the light of a thousand suns as he observed the pink cheeks and shining eyes of the woman he would make his mate.

  20

  Georgia

  Georgia hummed merrily as she laid out change in the cigar box they planned to use as a cash register for the few who wouldn’t want to swipe their credit cards at the park.

  The week that had passed since the videos hit the internet had gone by so quickly. When Georgia looked around at the refurbished entrance to the park with its hand painted signs, she couldn’t believe they had done it.

  Rocky smiled up at her from where he crouched over a bin of clip-on bracelets.

  “Are you ready?” he asked her.

  “I think so,” she said. “You?”

  He nodded, gazing into her eyes.

  The familiar current of electricity passed between them.

  It had been a busy week, a happy week, and an intense week since the heart-to-heart they’d had before Rima’s scream over the video had interrupted.

  Though she wasn’t ready to say it out loud yet, Georgia was feeling… open. Open to the idea of a serious relationship in spite of her plans for the future. Ready to think that maybe having someone in her life would make her stronger instead of weaker.

  For his part, Rocky had been at her side with a ready smile, helping with every aspect of the renovations to the park.

  Although there had been nothing spoken about it, Georgia felt that tonight was the night, and they both knew it.

  “You guys ready to go?” Bond asked, stepping into the entry area. “We’ve got a crowd out here already.”

  A crowd. Wow.

  “Um, yeah, are you ready, Rocky?” she asked.

  “Yes, ma’am,” he replied with an arched brow.

  “I do believe we’re ready, let’s do this,” she told Bond.

  He grinned like a pirate and headed out to open the heavy gates.

  Guests began to come in and Bond dashed into the park to get ready for his role in the haunted rides.

  “Welcome,” Georgia said to the group of teenagers at the front of the line. “Glad you could make it.”

  Half an hour later, they were finally down to only a few more guests in line. Everything was going great.

  Until Georgia realized the guy at the end of the line looked familiar.

  Carlton Briggs.

  “Georgia,” Rocky said, nudging her elbow.

  “I know,” she muttered. “It’s okay, we can’t turn him away. Just don’t make a big deal out of it.”

  “Georgia, is it?” Briggs said when he reached the front of the line.

  “It is. Have we met?” she asked, knowing it would irritate him.

  “Cute,” he chuckled. “You’re adorable.”

  “You’re by yourself?” she asked. “That will be twelve dollars.”

  Briggs slid a crisp twenty out of his wallet and slid it across the plastic table to her.

  Georgia grabbed a five and three ones for him, but when she offered it to him he paused before taking it.

  “I’ll see you again on my way out, let you know what I think of the park,” he told her, winking. “So don’t fly off anywhere.”

  Georgia felt Rocky move beside her, as if to pounce on the offending man. She pla
ced a hand on his shoulder, holding him back until Briggs had disappeared around the corner and into the park.

  “I don’t like him,” Rocky growled.

  “Clearly, none of us like him,” Georgia agreed. “I’d be surprised if his own mother does.”

  “No, I don’t like the way he looks at you,” Rocky said.

  Georgia figured Rocky had better get used to this feeling, at least for the next decade or two, since most men reacted pretty much the same way to her looks. But she decided against sounding vain and kept her mouth shut about it. Besides, something else was bothering her.

  “Did you notice how he used the word ‘fly’?” she asked.

  Rocky shrugged.

  “I noticed the way he studied your breasts as if they were the ones who were doing the speaking,” he said bitterly.

  “I know, right? No one else does that,” Georgia said pointedly to the top of Rocky’s head.

  He chuckled and looked up into her eyes. God, he had nice eyes. They were so dark and so large, Georgia felt she could lose herself in his kind eyes forever - like maybe she could see the future in them if she looked hard enough.

  “Georgia,” he began.

  But just then, Posey dashed around the corner, her blond hair bouncing over her shoulders.

  “Oh my god, you guys, this is awesome. Those teenagers are practically peeing themselves they’re so scared,” Posey laughed. “Let me cover for you a minute, you have to go in there and see.”

  Georgia smiled at her friend and grabbed Rocky’s hand.

  “Thanks, Posey, we won’t be long,” she called over her shoulder as she dragged Rocky around the corner and into the park.

  It was dark, but the lights hung by the Stargazer Community Theatre volunteers deliberately revealed the creepiest aspects of the park. The decrepit merry-go-round was lit from below in blue. A crew of high school students was taking selfies in front of it.

  The recreation area was alive with carts selling hot dogs and creepy themed desserts.

  “This is unsettling,” Rocky announced.

  “Yes, it’s meant to be,” Georgia agreed.

  “And humans wish to be unsettled?” he asked.

  “Yes, at this time of year,” she nodded.

  “During a holiday,” he said.

  “During Halloween,” she allowed. “This would not be popular at Christmas.”

  “Humans are strange creatures. Why would you wish to be frightened?”

  They arrived at the duck boat pond. Underwater lights gave it an otherworldly glow.

  Something burst out at them suddenly from under the surface of the water.

  Georgia shrieked and leapt into Rocky’s arms, burying her face in his chest, even as she heard laughter around her.

  “Do you like it? Is it not scary?” Bond asked. “I modeled it from the seat ejector mechanism in our ship.”

  Georgia peeked to see one of the old aliens from the park entrance, cleaned up, painted and set on a sort of metal spring coming from under the water.

  “Ha,” Rocky laughed, kissing Georgia on top of the head lightly. “And now I understand why humans like to be frightened on holidays. Excellent, Bond, excellent.”

  They continued their exploration of the park. Everywhere they went people seemed to be having fun. And, based on the ticket sales today, they should be able to pay Briggs back by Halloween. Especially once the people enjoying themselves started to spread the word.

  “We should go relieve Posey,” Georgia said when they had officially made the rounds.

  But when they returned to the front gate, Posey shooed them away again. So they wandered the park, taking in the giggling patrons and the fruits of their week’s labor.

  Rocky was delighted with the freshly grilled hot dogs and ate several, while Georgia watched fondly, wondering if a police officer’s salary would be sufficient to keep him fed.

  Then they walked, hand in hand, back to the duck pond and sat under a tree to watch as couple after couple scared themselves silly at Bond’s clever spring loaded pond alien.

  Georgia wondered if Rocky felt as shy as she did about their evening. He certainly seemed relaxed, though they were both quiet.

  They enjoyed each other’s company until closing time.

  The whole gang pitched in to clean up trash, and check that all guests had actually left the park. Ellie, Calvin and Tom even cleaned the bathrooms, a task Georgia had not been looking forward to.

  At last it was time to go.

  Georgia gazed up at Rocky as they walked to the exit. She hoped she was making the right choice - trusting that the fact that he was a good man, and that he understood her, was enough.

  It felt right to be with him.

  When they reached the exit at last, she was surprised to see someone there, waiting for them.

  Briggs.

  He smiled when he saw her, but the smile was a cold thing. It smacked of snapping steel traps and the crying out of small creatures.

  “Georgia,” he said.

  His voice sent a cold tingle down her spine.

  You’re perfectly safe. You’re with your friends. There is no reason to fear this man, she told herself.

  Rocky stepped slightly in front of Georgia. For once she wasn’t sorry.

  “Carlton,” she replied, in a voice she hoped sounded more bored than terrified.

  “I must compliment you on your park, young lady. It’s quite an experience. The soul literally soars.”

  “Thank you,” she replied. “We need to lock up now.”

  “Of course. No need to fly off the handle,” he chuckled lightly. “The real reason I stuck around though, was that I wanted to ask you to dinner.”

  His words hung in the air.

  Georgia could practically hear her friends’ distaste, though no one spoke a word.

  Why would he ever think she would…?

  Then it clicked. His attitude. His choice of words.

  He knew.

  She wasn’t sure how, but he knew Rocky could fly.

  Her heart dropped in her chest.

  She couldn’t risk anything happening to Rocky.

  Visions of government agencies, handcuffs, and scrubs flashed before her eyes. They would lock him up. They would do experiments on him.

  “I would be delighted to accompany you to dinner, Carlton,” she said, trying not to choke on the words.

  “Excellent. Why don’t you drop by my office tomorrow at seven,” he said, slipping her a business card.

  It was a frothy affair - heavy card stock, loopy font - a sure sign of a small man with a lot to prove.

  “Thank you,” she smiled. “See you then.”

  He nodded to her and then disappeared into the parking lot.

  “Whoa,” Bond said, arriving around the corner with Posey in tow.

  Posey elbowed him hard in the ribs and he left it at that.

  “Let’s go,” Georgia said, daring any of them to say something to her.

  The ride back to the observatory was interminable.

  On the way in that morning, she and Rocky had been snuggled together in the backseat. Now he sat stiffly beside her, staring out the window. Georgia had to fight back the angry tears. But in the harsh moonlight she didn’t dare give way to her private feelings.

  At last the boxwood hedge was flying past and Rima parked the old station wagon in the driveway.

  Everyone piled out and headed into the observatory, except Rocky.

  He stood in the shadow by the stairs, waiting for her.

  Georgia got out of the car at a measured pace. If life had taught her one thing it was that playing it cool was the best way out of every bad situation.

  “You’re going on a date with that man,” Rocky said.

  “No, I’m going to have dinner with him,” she replied calmly.

  “That’s what going to dinner means,” Rocky said.

  Georgia was impressed that he’d picked up on that much pop culture, but his instinct was going to m
ake things harder.

  “Dr. Bhimani owes him money,” Georgia began.

  “Money,” Rocky repeated bitterly, shaking his head. “No, you will not go to dinner with that man, no matter who you think it might help.”

  Of course, it wasn’t Rima’s mom she’d taken the date to protect, but she wasn’t about to tell him that.

  “You don’t own me,” Georgia retorted with more anger than she felt. It was easier than trying to explain. “I’ll go out with whoever I want.”

  “You are a foolish woman if you think going to dinner with that man will solve your friends’ problems,” he said.

  Foolish? Her mock indignation began to give way to the real thing.

  “You’re jealous,” she accused him suddenly.

  Anger flashed across his handsome features.

  “I am not jealous,” he said, casting his eyes down. “I care about you, Georgia. That man wants to destroy you.”

  But he was jealous, she was sure of it. Which meant her innocent alien had learned to lie.

  Sadly, he was right about the rest of it, though. Briggs no doubt did want to ruin her, to ruin all of them. It was what he did.

  But it didn’t matter. All that mattered was saving Rocky from a twisted fate. Even if she was so mad at him right now she could spit.

  He was not the boss of her.

  “Well, it’s not your decision,” she told him. “I’m going to bed now.”

  In spite of their angry words, some small part of Georgia still dared to hope that he might decide to join her anyway, that they might still have the night she had dreamed of. Or that he might at least offer to come and hold her and talk with her, as he had done nearly every night.

  But Rocky only tore his tortured eyes from hers, turned, and went into the observatory.

  Georgia stood looking after him for a moment.

  And then the door closed behind him and she was alone.

  The breeze had stopped and the air was cold and still. Instead of following him inside, she found herself walking through the tall grasses, out toward the pond.

  She stood on the dock for a long time, looking at the stars reflecting in the dark water.

  When she was in elementary school, a teacher had told her class once that the stars were so far away that what you saw when you studied the night sky was what had been there hundreds of years before, and not what was actually there now. That some of the stars had surely been extinguished long ago.