Alien Holiday by Tracy Lauren
Chapter 22
Resa
Lo has ruined me. Poisoned my soul with some kind of sickness. I can’t go back to the way life was without her and she is a tenacious thing…not once coming back to apologize…or just to visit and talk with one another.
So, if I cannot live without her, and she will not come back to me—the only alternative is to go to the alien village. I do not know what to expect. It’s been so many years since I’ve seen another group. I cannot tell if I am surprised when the males take an aggressive stance at the sight of me. Every one of them jumps to their feet, one spreads his wings, and there is growling coming from more than one aggressor.
I spread my own wings and stand my ground.
“Shit, you guys can see him too, huh?” one of the females says, her tone lazy and unconcerned.
Someone shouts at me. “State your business!”
“I am here with a Christmas gift for Lo.”
“Is that Santa Claus?” a drunken male whispers. I narrow my eyes at him.
“Sorry, guys, this is my…this is Resa. I know him. He’s not a threat or anything,” Lo hurries to say, defusing the tension. “Go ahead, keep celebrating.”
“You know this guy? From fucking where?” someone wonders aloud, seeming utterly shocked by my arrival. Lo kept my secret then, even after our fight.
“Sorry. I’ll explain later.” Lo hurries over to me, her cheeks flushed and her brows drawn down. The others stare, but slowly resume their singing and low chattering.
“What are you doing here?” she whispers.
I hold out her gift. “I’m not a good cook—not the way you are.”
“Okay…”
“But I know you value things you can consume.”
Lo blinks, clearly confused.
“It’s a gift. I made you ceata sachets. It is the kind my mother used to make. I hadn’t gone to the trouble in many years…”
“Resa…I never meant to cause you trouble.”
“There was no reason for trouble before. It was always just me.”
Lo looks down at the ground, her fingers toying with her gift.
“I don’t mind when you cause trouble…” I offer, but she frowns and I shake my head. “That didn’t sound right, even to my ears. What I mean to say is, I enjoy going to the trouble—for you.
“You came to me on the mountain, Lo, and I know we only spent a few days together, but it changed me—it opened my eyes. I was pretending the whole time.”
“Pretending?”
“That I didn’t look forward to your arrival each day, that I wasn’t desperate for your voice even when I couldn’t understand your words. I was lying to myself when I filled my cave with flowers. That had nothing to do with wanting to save myself trouble, what I wanted was to give you something—anything to make you smile. I wanted to take care of you, but I didn’t know how. And perhaps I still don’t.”
“Resa—”
“Please, Lo, I must say these things. Even if you will not have me in your life, I’ve spent years in silence, yet only in the days since you left has it been deafening. You completed something in me.” I tap my chest. “Something I didn’t know was missing, and now, I don’t know how I can live without it.”
“But this village, here in the temple, these people—” Lo waves her hand at the others. They’ve gone quiet and abandoned all pretense that they aren’t listening to every word we are saying. “This is my family, Resa. I need them.”
“I know. I just came to ask if you could need me too?”
Lo lets out a sob, but she bites her lip—choking it back. And her eyes, they glisten with unshed tears. “You’d stay here?”
I don’t trust my voice in this moment, so I nod, praying she will keep me. I should have given her everything the moment she asked for it. And if she allows me the chance, it’s a mistake I won’t make again.
“Even with…” She looks back at her family and drops her voice into a whisper. “It’s a little crowded compared to your cave.”
“Perhaps crowded can be a good thing, I suppose that means my mate will never be alone.”
Her voice cracks. “It can get noisy. We like to sing.”
“Not all of it is so bad.” I point at the drunken alien who thought I was the Santa Claus. “He is terrible though; we should not let him sing.”
That earns me some snickers from the others, and it’s a strange thing… I find that I’m pleased they understand my sense of humor. Lo beams a bright smile at me. Hell, it’s brighter than all the fires lit in the temple’s courtyard and it warms me deep in my soul.
“Some people say I talk too much.”
I shake my head. “Fools.”
“I’m stubborn.”
“An admirable trait.”
Tears start to leak from her eyes, but her smile does not falter.
“I can be needy.”
“I can give.”
“My feet get cold at night.”
“I will warm them for you, every night, Lo, for the rest of our days if you let me.”
Then, I cannot tell if she is laughing or sobbing, but I do know that she is in my arms—and it feels so fucking good to be held. I can think of no greater gift—until…
“I love you, Resa.” Then, she kisses me and it feels like everything before this moment was part of some great, tragic tale. It’s over. I can be happy now. I can live.
I take Lo into my arms and hold her the way she deserves to be held, joining her in our kiss. Her soft lips are on mine, her tongue passionate and eager—I moan against her and Lo digs her nails into my shoulders. I relish the sensation as I lift her off the ground. Her legs wrap around my waist and I whisper how much I love her over and over again between kisses.
“I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but dang…get a room.”
There are chuckles all around and Lo hides her face in my neck, suddenly shy.
“Which room is yours?” I whisper.
Lo drops her feet to the ground.
“I can carry you.”
Lo’s cheeks turn a darker shade of pink and she grabs my hand, tugging me along behind her. And the others…they all cheer. I know my Lo is a prize, but I am proud they all know it as well, for she is my mate and I want the whole world to see her value.