by Tracy Lauren
Chapter 26
Carly
Dorran and I are at the school early and all around us booths are being set up. There’s an egg drop arena, which I imagine is going to be the hot ticket of the day—I mean, what middle school kid doesn’t want to launch a raw egg into the sky and see if it smashes into a million pieces? There’s bits about global warming and deforestation, the Sea Center has a booth and it looks like they’ve brought animals for the kids to interact with. Dorran looks at it all with giddy interest—and giddy really is so adorable on my big alien.
“Where would you like us to set this up?” I ask Principal Montgomery.
“Let’s see—next to the egg drop is no good. There might be debris, you know?”
“Yeah, somewhere the eggs won’t be raining down on me please,” I agree with a smile.
“How about next to the college’s booth?”
“Oh, UCSB is here?”
“There’s a couple of doctoral students from the neuropsych department giving a presentation of frontal lobe development in adolescents.”
My heart drops and I scan the crowd. Sure enough…there’s Shawn. “Oh, Mr. Montgomery, anywhere but there. I’ll take the egg drop splash zone over that.”
Mr. Montgomery gives me a concerned look, and because he’s so fatherly I share with him my reluctance. “That’s my ex-boyfriend over there.”
“Oh!” Mr. Montgomery chuckles. “I imagine you and your current boyfriend don’t want to spend the day next to him.”
Dorran takes the opportunity to pull himself away from surveying the other booths; he’s all smiles. “I’m not her boyfriend,” he explains to Principal Montgomery in a very self-assured tone. “I’m to be her husband.”
“You’re engaged? Congratulations, Carly! I’m so happy to hear that. And it seems you’ve found a wonderful partner in life; he’s been so dedicated to helping you with this project here.”
“It is Carly’s dream to work at this school. I will do whatever it takes to help make that goal possible,” Dorran tells him proudly. In the distance I can still see Shawn—and damn if he doesn’t pale in comparison to the alien at my side.
“How about we put you next to the Sea Center and Natural History Museum? Your exhibit’s sure to get plenty of attention there.”
I beam. It’s an amazing location. “That sounds great, Principal Montgomery.”
“And, Carly, congratulations again. On the engagement and hopefully on the job as well.”
“You don’t know how much I appreciate this opportunity.”
“You’re going to make us proud.”
“Yessir. Thank you, sir.”
Dorran and I corral a few stray students after that and have them help us move the erosion table to a shady spot near the other booths and I’m thrilled to notice that they linger, peeking at the different hands-on activities I’ve prepared.
“Are you nervous?” Dorran whispers quietly as he sets up one of my presentation boards.
“Not at all, hun. This is where I shine.”
He gives me a loving look. “You shine in all arenas, my Carly.”
“Flatterer.” I shoot Dorran a wink.
“Hey.” His expression grows serious. “You want me to get rid of that one?” he offers, nodding in Shawn’s direction. I notice my ex is staring. But all I can do is laugh.
“We’ll be fine, Dorran. I’m not concerned with him.”
“You change your mind, you tell me.”
“Gotcha.”
From there the day is absolutely perfect. The kids all gravitate toward my exhibit. It’s open and interactive, so they can take it at their own pace or listen in as I lead a discussion. We take pictures of the erosion process throughout the event and I have a slideshow running on my laptop. And I’m so wrapped up in working with the kids and their families I don’t hardly even notice when I catch the board’s eye. Mr. Montgomery is there with them though, and I can tell he’s singing my praises.
And the whole day, Dorran stands back and watches me with a smile on his face—his pride a physical thing. A stark contrast to Shawn lurking in the background, scowling at me as if I’m throwing my life away rather than following my dreams.
Eventually all the eggs are dropped. The science projects are judged. The creatures from the Sea Center are packed up. And Principal Montgomery comes over to let me know how everything went.
“The board was very impressed, Carly. I let them know what a dedicated teacher you’ve been and that you’d be my top pick to fill Margery’s old position, but it was your ability to connect with the students and families that really took their notice today. Everyone was talking about it.”
Tears prick my eyes.
“Your résumé is at the top of the callback list. Interviews should be the second week of June.”
“Oh I’ll be ready, Mr. Montgomery.”
“I’m sure you will be, Carly. Good job and congratulations again on your engagement.”
I grin and cast my gaze back to Dorran, who’s already cleaned and packed up the majority of my presentation. I rush to his side and he pulls me into a warm hug.
“I’d kiss you right now if there were not so many youths still present,” he whispers against my ear.
“Well, let’s get out of here so we can celebrate properly then.”
We’re giggling and smiling as we finish packing up and Dorran tosses a heavy arm around my shoulder as we make our way to the parking lot.
“Were you worried when you saw Shawn was there?” he asks.
I shrug. “I don’t exactly enjoy being around him, but it was kind of nice actually. It’s like I had all my paths laid out before me and it was just so clear which I should take—which make me the happiest.”
“You’re talking about me, right?”
I cock my brow. “Of course I’m talking about you. You really supported me today Dorran, in ways that Shawn never would have. That’s important.”
“I wish to be your mate Carly; I will support you in anything and everything you wish to do. This is just the beginning.”
I grin up at him, doe-eyed, smitten, almost completely in love.
“Just imagine all the support you will need when I fill you with my children.”
I let out a little yelp. “One at a time please. Oh gosh, it will be one at a time, right? I won’t have a litter, will I?”
“Let’s have it be a surprise, eh?” Dorran says with a teasing lilt. And then we’re both giggling again, until Dorran’s stop short.
He grunts. “Don’t let this ruin our day, but I see another familiar face.”
I follow his gaze only to see Andrea leaning against the back of a car, looking bored out of her mind.
“Ugh, just don’t make eye contact and we can avoid her—” But my words drop off, because I notice something curious. She isn’t leaning against her own car. As a matter of fact, I don’t see her car at all. She’s leaning against Shawn’s Subaru. When she sees me she gets a wicked grin on her face.
“Andrea. Funny running into you here.”
“Funnier than you know,” she tells me, her eyes focusing on something behind me. I don’t need to look though; I know it’s Shawn crossing the parking lot. Because suddenly, a lot of things are finally falling into place.
Shawn joins our awkward little group. “I thought you said you were going to wait in the car?” he says hotly to Andrea. Her evil smile slips a bit, but she doesn’t respond.
“So, you guys are…dating?” I ask. I mean, obviously, right?
Shawn just clears his throat and shoots Andrea a quelling look.
“You know I don’t care, right? I’ve moved on. I mean,” I gesture toward the big hunk who has his arm wrapped around me.
“No offense to your roommate,” Shawn starts, “but I’m just so tired of all this, Carly—all these games. I get it, you want to be an elementary school teacher—you think it’s noble or something—”
“She wishes to be a middle school science teacher,�
� Dorran corrects.
Shawn curls his lip at my man and continues to address me. “Point is, we both know you could be more. But I’m willing to look past this fixation you have. I can be the bigger person. Let’s just stop all this fighting and have things go back to the way they were.”
Andrea makes a strangled noise and I’m just too embarrassed for her to even look in her direction.
Dorran captures my gaze, not bothering to lower his voice. “Where I’m from, Carly, I would be expected to make this one bleed,” he says with a nod in Shawn’s direction. He’s asking for permission to hit him, and despite how fucking awkward this is, Dorran can still make me smile.
“No making anyone bleed, please.” I sigh and turn to Shawn. “I think there’s been some kind of misunderstanding, Shawn. I’m not playing any games. We broke up. I’m done with you, I’ve moved on. Dorran and I…”
“We will be married before the month is over,” Dorran adds helpfully.
“You’re engaged!? How could you do this to me, Carly?”
My eyes go wide. “Do what to you, Shawn? We aren’t together, we haven’t been for a long time. What I do has absolutely nothing to do with you at all.”
“He doesn’t even care about you anyway,” Andrea insists awkwardly from the sidelines.
I don’t even know what to say to her.
“Even when you guys were together, Shawn was always hooking up with me.”
I blink at her. “Gross…but okay.”
“Okay?” Shawn echoes angrily.
“I don’t care, Shawn. I didn’t love you when we were together and I sure as shit don’t love you now. I already knew you didn’t care about me—you proved that when you dumped me because I want to be a teacher. Should I be surprised that you’re a cheater too? Call me crazy, but I’m not.”
I still have my arm around Dorran’s waist and I can feel how tense he is against me. He groans as if trying to restrain himself. “Please let me hit him, Carly.”
“Don’t forget who dumped who,” Andrea adds.
“Yeah, I know, Andrea. I just said who dumped who. And if you’re smart you’d dump him. Did he really make you wait in the car for the whole expo? This thing was like five hours long. It’d be illegal to do that to a dog.”
“Are you calling me a dog?”
I grimace, feeling sorry for her. “Look, best of luck to you guys, but Dorran and I have someplace to be.”
“Where?” Shawn demands.
“Literally anywhere but here.”
“I thought you were smart,” Shawn hisses spitefully. “Maybe I’m dodging a bullet if you make such stupid life decisions. Good luck getting anywhere on 40 grand a year.”
“I am rich enough that I can buy Carly the biggest mansion in all of Santa Barbara if this is where she wishes to be. Tell me, how much do you make at the University?” Dorran asks.
Shawn remains silent. And so we turn and leave them, Dorran groaning as if in pain. “I wanted to hit him, Carly! I wanted to hit him so bad! He cheated on you!”
I stop in my tracks, pursing my lips. “Okay. Just one. In the stomach. No blood.”
Dorran presses a kiss to my lips, then jogs back over to Shawn. “One more thing!” I hear Dorran call, before he slugs Shawn in the stomach. My ex folds in two before dropping to his knees, whimpering. Andrea huffs out her indignation and hurries to help Shawn off the ground, but he just shoos her away.
After that, we don’t look back. We’re only looking at each other as we head back to our apartment.
Chapter 27
Carly
Our hands are roaming even before we get in the door. Dorran’s got his lips against my neck and ear, he’s whispering sexy promises while I struggle to fit the key in the lock. We’re kissing when I fumble the door open. But our heated makeout session is brought to an abrupt halt by someone’s gasp.
My eyes shoot to the living room. Brad’s sitting on the couch and Sarah’s standing with her hands on her hips, giving me her most angry look.
“I’ve been calling you for four days! I thought you were dead!”
I look over to the kitchen counter and see my phone lying there, very likely out of battery.
“Sarah? What are you doing here?”
“She thought you were dead,” Brad reiterates, though with none of the same concern that’s in Sarah’s tone. I actually think he’s looking at one of the bridal magazines I bought.
“Sarah?” Dorran asks excitedly. “We finally get to meet in person!” he thrills, rushing over to my best friend to wrap her in a hug. That gets Brad looking up.
And Sarah, her eyes are wide with surprise. “You guys were making out,” she notices, all too late.
“Because she is my wife,” Dorran agrees.
I didn’t know Sarah’s eyes could go any wider.
“Not yet,” I hurry to say.
“Not yet?!” Sarah all but screams. “What they hell do you mean, not yet? I don’t talk to you for four days and now this guy says you two are getting married? Tell me this is a joke!”
I bite my lip. “I was going to tell you—”
“Oh my God.” Sarah looks faint. “He asked you to marry him and you said yes?”
“Well…I don’t think he’s asked officially…”
Dorran looks surprised. “Do I need to ask? I thought we had already agreed?”
“Most people ask, but it’s pretense, so don’t worry about it,” I assure him, waving away his concern.
But Dorran is determined. “I wish to ask you. How do I do it?”
“I did it on a tropical island,” Brad says, looking up briefly from the wedding mag.
“Shall I take you to an island, Carly?”
“Oh. My. God. What is even happening here?” Sarah looks like she’s about to pull her hair out.
“Dorran isn’t from here, his customs are a little different. I swear I was going to tell you, but I’ve been busy for the past few days.”
“Too busy to text me? Too busy to let your best friend in the whole world know that you’re alive and some cowboy, drug-dealing stripper hasn’t murdered you?”
Brad snorts.
“I take offense to the drug dealing portion of that commentary. And the murder part,” Dorran tells Sarah.
“I had a thing with the school, Sarah, a position opened up and Mr. Montgomery offered me an opportunity to make a presentation that the school board would see.”
Sarah gasps and grabs her chest. “AND YOU DIDN’T THINK TO CALL AND TELL ME?! I should have been rooting for you!”
I bite my lip and wring my hands. There’s a lot I haven’t told Sarah over the past few days. Some things I can’t tell Sarah. But it’s time to play catch up, I suppose. “Also, Andrea’s been sleeping with Shawn since forever and Dorran punched him in the stomach.”
“No shit?” Brad says, looking up again.
Sarah is frozen with her jaw hanging open. “And when did you find this out?”
“I swear, it was right before we got here. I’ve only known for the past twenty minutes.”
Sarah looks at Brad and gestures wildly at me. “I leave for, what? A week? And this—all this—”
Sarah drops down onto the couch and Brad gets up in the same instant, heading over to the window.
“Sarah,” I say, my tone pleading. “I was going to tell you everything, I swear. But the past few days have been…seriously crazy.”
“That’s exactly when you’re supposed to lean on your best friend. Is this how it’s going to be now, with us living in different cities? Is our friendship going to fade away into nothingness?”
“No! Of course not!” I’m telling her, but I’m having to raise my voice over…I don’t know, white noise?
“What the hell is that sound?” Brad asks, opening the French doors to the balcony. It’s even louder when he does.
Dorran rushes forward, looking up at the sky. A wind seems to have picked up and it’s whipping at his hair. “I know that sound.”
&n
bsp; Brad looks left. He looks right. And finally…he looks up. “Holy shit.”
Sarah and I clasp hands and walk together, slowly, cautiously, to the balcony. I think I can guess what this sound is too.
Sarah’s grip on me tightens when we see it. Hovering just above the apartment’s courtyard, in broad daylight, there’s a fucking spaceship.
“I have one more thing to tell you,” I say to Sarah, wincing when she looks at me. “Dorran’s an alien.”
Her eyes go wide. There’s a scream that rips from the courtyard and we look down to see Mrs. Doherty sprawled out on the grass. The old woman has fainted.
“Dorran, what’s happening?” I ask. I wasn’t expecting an invasion, if that’s what this is.
“This.” He gestures up at the sky with a frown. “This is Niro Hydera’s ship. Tereza’s father.”
Something in Dorran’s pocket chirps and he pulls out what looks like a little phone, but when he activates it a holographic screen opens up and there’s a purple alien scowling at my man.
“What are you doing here, Niro? You are breaking countless laws bringing this ship where humans can see it.”
“Well, then I suggest you come aboard so we can have a discussion someplace less conspicuous.”
“I am not going anywhere without my mate,” Dorran tells him.
“Mate, my ass, you’ve only been on Earth for a few days!”
“You heard me, Niro,” Dorran tells him firmly.
“Fine, bring whoever you wish—as long as we talk.”
“Standing by for boarding,” Dorran agrees, shutting off his communication device. “Do you mind, Carly?”
Do I mind joining him aboard a spaceship that belongs to his betrothed’s father? “Um, is it safe?”
Dorran scoffs. “You will always be safe with me, Carly.”
“Then yeah.” I nod. “I’ll go.”
Sarah grabs me by the arms and forces me to look at her. “I’m going with you!” she declares.
Brad baulks. “Going with her?!”
“Carly is my best friend! I am not letting her get on an alien spaceship without me!”
