Ramliel by A.M. Griffin

Chapter Seven

 

“Because I need one, Hinduru.” Mia squinted at the tablet screen in front of her.

One of the glass tablets she’d first seen Hinduru with sat on her lap as she stretched comfortably on one of the couches in her house. Soft music played in the background. She found that she liked the melodies this particular station played. It calmed her down when she was stressed—which was all the time—and grounded her.

“You simply cannot have a job. Ram will not approve of it.”

Hinduru walked through her kitchen, opening one cabinet after another. She could see him easily from her vantage point. Her house was open and spacious and she liked it that way. It was his weekly visit to check in on her. Since she’d refused to take on an assistant, he’d taken on the job himself.

Why did she need an assistant? After the first day she and the unknown woman basically stared at each other. Then she’d peppered Mia with questions about humans and Earth. At that moment, Mia had decided she didn’t need even more stress.

She could acclimate herself into the Teague society and when she was lonely and needed company, Lina and Diana were a short hovercar ride away.

Mia rolled her eyes without looking up at Hinduru who was now checking something on the food processor controls. “Well, Ram isn’t here, is he? Pft. He won’t care what I do as evidenced by him not bothering to meet me.”

She wasn’t upset. Well, she wasn’t upset most of the time.

The first week had been an emotional ringer. She kept thinking Ram would change his mind and want to meet her. Then, the second week came and the pain of him not showing was brutal. Then the third. By that time, Mia realized he really had no intentions of meeting her. She wasn’t all that torn up about it—sometimes.

After a month on Teague, she’d settled into a routine. She didn’t think about the life she was supposed to have. She only thought about the life that she had now and it was kind of good.

But after a while she’d grown bored.

Hinduru made a noise that was part grunt and grumble. It was a noise Mia had gotten used to. He did it when he was perturbed by something she’d said or done. Which was often.

“Besides,” she continued. “I can’t sit around here bored for too much longer. And! I’m sure he’ll appreciate me bringing in an income. He can keep his money and I can use mine to take care of myself.”

The quicker she found the means to detangle herself from an absent mate, the better.

Hinduru snorted. “Ram does not need his mate to work or to take care of herself.”

“I’m his mate on paper only. He doesn’t care what I do.” She said the last sentence under her breath.

There was hurt Mia refused to let anyone know of when she thought about how dismissive her mate was regarding her existence. If not for Hinduru, she would have struggled to make her way.

What had changed Ram’s feelings about her so abruptly? Had there been something in her file that turned him off? Whatever it was, it had to be something big because he’d held on to his dislike for her for a long time. Although she’d only heard his last words four months ago, it had been almost thirty years since Ram had uttered them into the holovid.

In all that time, he’d never recorded another message or apologized. The familiar pain of rejection slowly seeped its way into her pores. Mia rubbed at her chest but couldn’t reach the pain. It was a deep heart ache that might never go away. No one liked being rejected. Especially without knowing why.

Stop it.

She snatched her hand away and balled it into a fist. She wouldn’t think about Ram. Not thinking about him was for the better.

“I’ll be fine.” She meant that wholeheartedly. She would be fine.

Mia thought it would be hard adjusting to life on Teague. New planet. New species. New home.

And it was.

But she was doing it. Her neighbors had stopped looking at her like she would grow a second head and had even started saying hello back to her now. She was different from them and she found it comical that seven-foot-tall people who resembled sasquatches would be leery of her, a barely five-foot-five hairless woman from Earth.

“How about this one?” She tapped a fingernail on the screen, sending the job advert she was reading to Hinduru’s tablet.

He stopped his snooping to slide his tablet disk from a storage space on his communication link. When he took it out, the tablet unfolded and became hard and glass-like. Hinduru read the advert and after a few, uh hm’s, he typed something on the tablet then stored it.

“The job is yours.”

Surprised, Mia jerked upright. “Wait. Like that? Don’t I have to apply?”

“I already did for you. I sent them your information.”

She set her tablet down and straightened into a seated position. “Exactly how does getting a job on this planet work?”

“A job request goes out and it is applied for.”

“Okay, so almost the exact same process on Earth. What about an interview process and them reviewing all of the qualified applicants to make an informed decision?”

“Ramliel owns a majority stake in that medical facility. He wouldn’t mind you working in the family business.”

The world seemed to stop spinning. The whole reason she wanted a job was support herself. She didn’t want to further entrench herself into her mate’s life. “Never mind. I’ll find another job.”

“The job was for a medical professional who specializes in human anatomy.”

“Yes,” she answered slowly.

“You are a medical professional who specializes in human anatomy.”

She blinked a few times. “Yes.”

Hinduru faced her calmly. “I know what you’re thinking and I’m telling you to take the job. You won’t see him there as he doesn’t visit. You can make your own money so you won’t feel as though you’re not earning your way. It’s the perfect job for you.”

She glanced down and read the advert again. This was the perfect job for her. She wasn’t qualified to do anything else here. She didn’t understand ninety-eight percent of the job titles and couldn’t figure out the job descriptions, but this job, this job she understood. She would be helping a team of doctors understand human feelings as well as provide counseling services to the women on an as-needed basis. Human women.

“You’re right. I’ll take the job.”

“I almost always am.” Hinduru winked at her. He gathered his stuff and headed for the door. “They’ll reach out to you regarding your start date and assignment.”

“Thank you, Hinduru.”

* * *

“What do you mean Zephon won’t meet to discuss the contract?” Ram balled his fists, trying to contain the anger coursing through him.

He’d worked on this contract personally to make sure it was right. He’d even made sure to increase the profits to favor Zephon’s precious jewel business. It was a no-brainer for him to accept.

“Zephon receives many offers daily from people who want to transport his jewels to distant planets. He is amendable to expanding his business reach, but he wants to first review the available options and once he narrows down his choice, he will meet with the potential business associates,” Zephon’s assistant said.

Of course, there were other transport companies vying for Zephon’s business. Since announcing his mining company was expanding their reach and looking to transport goods outside of their sector, every transport company on Teague and in their star system scrambled to partner with Zephon. It would be a boon for those involved and very lucrative.

Ram had hoped their childhood relationship would set him apart from everyone else seeking to win the contract. Although they hadn’t spoken in many years, he and Zephon had grown up in the same circle. Surely that should have qualified for preferential treatment.

Aside from that, Ram ran the largest transport company on Teague. The refusal for immediate acceptance stung. He grumbled under his breath. “I’m only asking for a short meeting.”

“Zephon is really busy. But…”

Ram perked up. “But what?”

“He’s planning to attend the benefit gathering to celebrate the human research and development medical facility.”

“Zephon took part in the Human Bride Program?” Ram hadn’t known that.

“Yes. Don’t you own stake in the Teague Medical Facility? Will you be attending?”

Ram leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers together. His father had invested in the facility when he’d signed Ram up for the bride program. There were annual events and his family had a long-standing invitation. His father used to attend and Ram had attended sporadically since his father’s death.

He hadn’t gone to one of the events in the past four years, finding the attendees with their fake smiles and even faker conversations taxing. If attending meant he would have a chance to discuss business opportunities with Zephon, Ram would do it.

“I do and will. Thank you.” Ram disconnected the line and initiated his comlink. “Hinduru, confirm my attendance for the gathering at the medical facility.”

Hinduru spoke a few seconds later. “Confirmed. How long do you plan to be on Teague?”

“Just long enough to get this business taken care of.”

Although Teague was his home, it hadn’t felt like home in a long time. It was a place with some good memories, but the bad memories had overshadowed those. He didn’t have a family to speak of. Just distant relatives who stayed distant. Whenever he went back it was out of necessity. He couldn’t stand to be there longer than a few weeks at best.

“Shall I put a dinner date with your mate on your calendar as well?” Hinduru asked.

Ram grimaced in distaste. His life was his own. He didn’t need a mate complicating his freedom. “Absolutely not.”