Ella and the Alien Gamer (Intergalactic Brides 10)

by Jessica Coulter Smith

  “You’re not just saying that because you think it’s what I want to hear?” he asked.

  “I’m ready, Valero. I don’t know what we have to do, but I’m ready.”

  “We have to finish our coffee and go to the Terran Station, and we’re not leaving until the council approves our mating.” He smiled. “And then I’m buying you a ring so all of the males will know to back off, that you belong to me.”

  “Will you wear one too?”

  “Gladly.”

  She kissed him softly. “Then forget the coffee. Let’s go.”

  They stood and hurried to the van. She couldn’t help but notice that Valero couldn’t stop smiling. She’d never seen him so happy before. At the Terran Station, he took her hand and led her to one of the conference rooms. The first two were in use, but the third had the doors wide open. They went inside and shut the doors, and then Valero used the Vid-comm to contact his council.

  Ella stood beside him, feeling a little nervous. She’d never met a councilman before, nor had she ever seen one. What if they didn’t approve of her? Could they deny the mating? And if they did, what would Valero do?

  A room showed up on the screen with three Terrans seated at a long table.

  “Councilman Larimar, this my chosen mate, Ella. We’ve come before the council to get your approval on our mating,” Valero said.

  “Welcome, Ella.” The councilman smiled. “You agree to the mating?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Valero, I didn’t realize you were seeing anyone,” Larimar said. “Why don’t you tell us a little about your chosen mate, since this is the first we’ve heard of her.”

  “Ella is a single mom who has worked hard to raise her son on her own. Connor is turning six today. They’ve already moved into my home, and I’d very much like to make our relationship official.”

  Larimar nodded. “And what is it you do, Ella?”

  “I, um… I was a waitress, but right now I’m out of work.” Her hand pressed to her belly. “I thought I might be a stay-at-home mom.”

  Larimar didn’t miss her hand’s position. “And is there another reason the two of you should be mated?”

  Valero cleared his throat. “Ella is expecting my child. Vyrex confirmed the pregnancy here at the station.”

  Larimar and the other two councilmen talked amongst themselves, too quietly for her to hear what they were saying. Minutes passed and she began to worry they would be denied. She reached for Valero’s hand, squeezing it tight. Her stomach rolled and she wondered if maybe she shouldn’t have come on an empty stomach after all. When Larimar looked at the screen again, she just knew he was going to tell her to leave Valero, that she wasn’t good enough.

  “Valero, most males wait until they are mated to get their mates pregnant.”

  “It wasn’t planned, Larimar, but I’m not sorry. Even if you don’t approve our mating, I’ll continue to have Ella and Connor live with me, and we’ll still be a family. Just an unofficial one.”

  Larimar nodded. “I figured you would say as much. We’re going to approve your mating. I’ll push the paperwork through today. Congratulations to you both, on the mating and the baby.”

  Ella let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding and sagged against Valero. The screen went black and he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her softly. She looked up at him, marveling that it had only taken one conversation for them to be mated. Did that make her Mrs… Mrs what?

  “Do you have a last name?” she asked.

  “No, just Valero. Why do you ask?”

  “Married women on Earth take their husband’s last name.”

  “We could call the council back and ask them to assign us a last name. Would you like that?”

  She shook her head. No, she didn’t want to call the council again anytime soon. Valero smiled, as if he could read her thoughts. He kissed her again and led her out of the conference room, leaving the doors open for someone else to use the room.

  “Maybe before the toy store we should see if there’s a jeweler open.” He grasped her hand and led her out to the van. “I remember seeing one not too far from here. We’ll try there first.”

  Ella had never been to a jewelry store before and was excited and nervous. The only jewelry she’d had before Connor had come from the jewelry counter in a big-box store. The place Valero stopped at didn’t look like much, but the display window was filled with diamonds, rubies, and sapphires. She’d never seen so many glittering stones at one time before.

  Valero escorted her inside, the bell over the door jingling.

  “Good morning,” said the man behind the counter. “Are you looking for something special today?”

  “Wedding rings,” Valero said.

  The man nodded. “And do you want plain bands or something a little flashier?”

  “Plain is fine,” Ella said.

  Valero frowned at her before addressing the man. “Plain for me, but maybe something a little flashier for my wife.”

  The man nodded and began pulling out black velvet displays with glittering rings. He motioned for them to come a little closer and Valero guided her over. Ella’s eyes went wide when she saw some of the larger stones, knowing she’d never feel safe wearing something like that. She’d be worried about someone stealing it or her losing it.

  “That one,” Valero said, pointing to an emerald and diamond set.

  “It’s too big,” Ella said.

  “No, it’s perfect. It matches your eyes.”

  How could she argue with him when he said sweet things like that?

  The jeweler held it up for her inspection and she slid it on her finger. It fit perfectly. The diamond heart on top winked under the lights, and she admired the alternating emerald and diamond pattern down the two bands. She had to admit it looked beautiful on her hand, and she liked the way it felt.

  “We’ll take it,” Valero said. “And I’d like a band that same color.”

  “It’s platinum,” the man said as he reached for the men’s bands.

  “This is going to cost a fortune,” Ella said.

  Valero smiled. “I’m good for it. Besides, how often are we going to buy wedding rings? Can you think of a better time to spend some money?”

  “I guess not.”

  It took a few tries to find a band that fit Valero, but once the ring was on his finger, he paid the man and ushered Ella out of the store. She couldn’t believe he’d paid over five thousand dollars as easily as most people bought groceries. Just how rich was her new husband? No, she didn’t want to know. As long as there was a roof over their heads and food in their bellies, that was all that mattered. Anything else was just extra.

  They went to the toy store next, where she had to rein in Valero. He was like a kid in a candy story, wanting to buy one of everything for Connor. She could only imagine how he would be when it came time to buy stuff for the baby’s room. She might have to confiscate his credit cards just so he didn’t bankrupt them in the toy shop. Although, she had to admit he was pretty cute with his enthusiasm.

  “What about this?” he asked, holding up a T-Rex that roared and moved.

  “I’m sure he would love it, but it’s kind of expensive.”

  “Stop looking at the price tags and just tell me if he’d like it or not. They have an entire set of them. We could get this one and two others so he’d have several to play with. It’s not like he can do much with just one of them.”

  “Valero?” a male voice interrupted.

  Ella looked over and saw a Terran with a blonde woman walk up.

  “Thrace. Avelyn.” Valero smiled and shook the man’s hand. “It’s good to see you both. What brings you to the toy store so early?”

  “Getting a present for your son,” Thrace said with a smile. “Judging by the ring on your finger I’m going to assume congratulations are in order?”

  Valero nodded. “Connor doesn’t know yet.”

  “And you must be Ella,” the woman said. “
I’m Avelyn. Our daughter, Lily, will be at Connor’s party this afternoon. Is there anything in particular he likes?”

  “He’d love anything you picked out. It seems we’re buying a few dinosaurs, but he likes trains and cars, puzzles, art supplies. He’s really easy to please. You don’t even have to get him anything. Just showing up at his party would thrill him,” Ella said.

  “Oh, we’re definitely bringing something. I told Lily she could help wrap it when she gets home from school. She was really excited about making a new friend. How old is Connor?” Avelyn asked.

  “He turned six today,” Ella said. “How old is Lily?”

  “She’s seven. So, they’re close in age. There are a lot of kids in our little group. I’m sure Connor will make lots of friends this afternoon.” Avelyn smiled. “If you ever need a babysitter, just give me a call. We weren’t able to have more children, and the last two adoptions we applied for were denied. It seems the Intergalactic Adoption Agency isn’t too thrilled that Thrace is married to a human.”

  “I’m so sorry.” Her heart ached for the couple. “What about adopting children here on Earth? Or would your council not approve?”

  “We haven’t asked them, but maybe we should. I really do want more children.”

  Ella hugged Avelyn. “I’m sure it will work out. There are lots of kids out there who need a good home.”

  “Thanks. I guess we’d better get to shopping or we’ll still be here when school lets out. It’s hard to drag Thrace out of here sometimes. If it were up to him, Lily would own the entire store.”

  “I think Valero is going to be the same way. It was nice meeting you.”

  Valero was watching her with some amusement and ushered her toward another section of the store, three dinosaurs taking up room in the shopping cart. When she saw they were heading toward the video games, she nearly rolled her eyes. Did everything with her new husband have to circle back to gaming?

  She let him talk her into two video games for Connor and then she put her foot down. No more presents. As it was, her son was going to be spoiled rotten. She only hoped he didn’t expect treats like this all the time.

  Chapter Eight

  Valero couldn’t believe he was willingly going into Puck’s Pizza Palace again. The back of the van was loaded with five presents, a box of more goodie bags, about two dozen balloons, and a large dinosaur cake. Connor hadn’t seen everything yet, but he’d been bouncing in his booster seat ever since Ella had told him he was going to have a party. From the looks of the parking lot, they were the first of the group to arrive.

  “Go inside and make sure the party room is ready. I’ll start bringing things inside,” Valero told Ella.

  “They have a cart you can borrow to bring in everything at one time.” She smiled. “No sense making several trips to the car if you don’t have to.”

  He kissed her on the cheek. “Then let’s go inside and get it. I’ll let Connor and you go to the party room while I bring everything in.”

  Connor practically ran for the door, dragging Ella with him. Valero couldn’t help but smile at his enthusiasm. He was glad they’d made an extra stop to purchase a digital camera today. Between him and Ella, they were going to fill the SD card he’d installed in it.

  While his wife and son got settled in the party room, he pushed a two-tiered cart out to the van and loaded it, tying the balloons to the corners. Then he locked the van and went back inside, hoping he didn’t lose anything off the cart along the bumpy parking lot. Inside, kids were running and screaming, the noise level already through the roof. He made his way back to the party room, happy to see there were two workers ready to help out. They took the cart from him and started setting things up, even tying a balloon to each chair and the remainder on the birthday boy’s chair.

  “Can I go play?” Connor asked.

  “First, there’s something we need to tell you,” Ella said. “You know how you wanted Valero to be your daddy?”

  Connor nodded.

  “Well, Valero and I are officially mated now. Which means, in human terms, that we’re married.”

  Connor’s eyes went wide as he looked at Valero. “You’re really my daddy now?”

  “I’m really your daddy.”

  Connor ran toward him and Valero knelt to catch him, lifting him into his arms as the little boy squeezed him tight. It was the best hug he’d ever had, and one he would remember forever. He set Connor down and took his hand.

  “Let’s go purchase a wristband and you can play until your guests arrive. Then you’ll need to come meet everyone and have some pizza.”

  Connor nodded and held his hand tight as they went to the front counter. Valero made sure he had the best wristband and picked up the things he’d ordered the night before. Connor scampered off after he had his wristband on and Valero went back to the party room to wait with Ella. He knew she was nervous about telling Connor he was going to be a big brother, but maybe she was right to wait. This was Connor’s day and there would be plenty of time to tell him about the baby.

  Avelyn and Thrace were the first to arrive with Lily. In hindsight, he probably should have warned Ella that Lily was not of Terran descent, but if she was surprised by the red-skinned little girl, she took it in stride. Connor had seen Lily arrive and was curious about the little girl who was so different from him. He didn’t stare -- much.

  “Connor,” Valero said. “This is Lily. She’s here for your birthday party.”

  “Hi,” Connor said. “Want to play?”

  Lily smiled and nodded.

  “Let me get a wristband for Lily and then you can show her your favorite things here.”

  “Better get a handful,” Thrace said. “I think everyone is coming.”

  “So… nine for the five and over crowd?” Valero asked.

  Thrace nodded. “And four for the younger ones. Unless one year olds can’t play here, then you’ll only need three.”

  Valero looked at Ella, having no idea if a one year old could do anything at Puck’s.

  “There’s a toddler area,” Ella said. “Just make sure to tell them you need a wristband for someone under three. Are the others over three?”

  “They’re four,” Thrace said. “I think.”

  “I’ll go procure enough for everyone. I already ordered our food, I just need to get some pitchers of drinks and cups. I’ll take care of that and the wristbands.”

  Valero took off with Connor and Lily in tow. He ordered the correct number of wristbands -- he hoped -- and enough cups for everyone, with four pitchers of soda. It was going to be a hectic few hours, but the smile on Connor’s face made it all worthwhile. The kids ran off to play and he went back to the party room to wait for the next wave of children to arrive.

  By the time all his friends were present, and their children off running like a bunch of wild monkeys, he was exhausted and hoped there was a nap in their future. Something told him Connor wouldn’t cooperate with that idea. Everyone got along great with Ella and welcomed her with open arms. Rory and Zwyk came, even though they didn’t have any children yet, and he knew Ella was grateful for a familiar face. Even though she’d met Avelyn and Thrace earlier, she’d known Rory since they were kids.

  The pizzas arrived and everyone ate, decimating all the food in sight and making Valero question if he’d ordered enough. By the time the kids were finished, they were begging for cake and Connor was eyeing the mountain of presents on the table. For a little boy who had only ever received one present for his birthday, it must have seemed like he’d won some grand prize. He got a father and probably twenty presents all in the same day. Maybe he should have told his friends to go easy on the birthday spending. Ella cast a few looks his way as he handed Connor the gifts, but if she was mad about how many there were, she kept it to herself. He had a feeling he’d hear plenty about it later though.

  Connor loved everything, especially the dinosaurs and video games. Thrace and Avelyn had given him a train set with a small table to put
it on. Syl and Brielle had brought a gift from each of their three children, as had Xonos and Victoria. Reyvor and Hazel had probably given him the best present of all, though: a new Playstation 4 and a gift card to Gamer Plus to pick out some games for his new system. It was extravagant, but they argued the gift was from four children and not just one.

  “Thank you,” Connor said. “I love all of my presents. This is the best birthday ever! I get my first party and I get a daddy too!”

  The adults laughed a little and the kids dragged him back out into the chaos outside of the party room. Valero knew they wouldn’t have the room for much longer, so he gathered everything up. He needed two carts to get everything back out to the van, but one of the workers helped him. By the time he was finished, everyone was starting to head home. Connor looked like he was going to be wide awake for the next century, but they loaded him into the van and drove home.

  At the house, Ella looked nervous and he wondered if now was the time she was going to tell Connor about the baby, or if there was something else on her mind. She asked Connor to sit on the couch while Valero carried all the new toys into his son’s room. But he tried to hurry because if Ella was going to tell Connor about the baby, he wanted to be there too.

  It seemed mother and son were having a staring contest when he got back to the living room. Ella’s gaze broke away to look at him, as if she was seeking answers that he couldn’t give. He gave her a nod of encouragement and went around to hold her hand for moral support.

  “Connor, you know that Valero and I were married today and that he’s your daddy.”

  Connor nodded, a huge grin on his face.

  “I know it’s a big change,” Ella said. “It’s just been the two of us for so long.”

  “But now we have a family like everyone else in my class,” Connor said.

  “Yes. Do some of the people in your class have larger families? Maybe they have a brother or a sister?” Ella asked.

  He frowned and seemed to be thinking about it. “You mean like Dexter has Emily and Mrono?”

  Well, Valero hadn’t expected the boy to use Syl’s children as an example, but it worked. He watched Ella to see what she would say or do next. She seemed to be thinking, but she was nodding in agreement to what Connor had said.