Page 76 of I Think I’m in Love with an Alien

Stargazer: I honestly am not sure, but I think it’s #1.

Jeneticist: I’ll vote with the bloc. #3 from me too.

FarfromHome: I am stunned to declare Star is the only winner. 😲

Stargazer: Woo-hoo!

Jeneticist: Back up, you’re not vegan and you have a pet rooster?? Really?!

JazzyPlum: Yes, we need details. 👂

FarfromHome: I eat honey, so technically, I am not vegan. Removing it doesn’t hurt the bees if one is careful. And the rooster is named Kevin.

SquidHead: …you named your pet rooster Kevin?

FarfromHome: He came with the property. He was already named Kevin.

Stargazer: This might be my favorite convo we’ve ever had.

Seeker: Same. 😀

Jeneticist: Would love to see pics of your garden sometime, FFH.

JazzyPlum: Me too!

SquidHead: Hate to break up a good time, but I gotta go. I’ll take my turn next time.

JazzyPlum: Bye, all!

27

Jennette

This moment feels as delicate as spun glass.

Seeker has stilled, and I want to touch him so badly that I ache. But I don’t. Instead, I search his countenance for some sign that he feels the same way. Yet his features are difficult for me to read; it’s just like the aliens in the games and stories that I’ve loved. This person is precious to me but also unlike anyone I’ve ever known.

He moves then, just a fraction closer. I reach out, hovering in the space between us, and I don’t think I could make it clearer without asking for verbal permission. It feels as if the sound of my voice would break the spell. We probably don’t have long before people shove in behind us to walk around inside the ship.

In answer, he steps into my space and I reach for him slowly. If this isn’t what he wants, if he’s unsure, he can move back at any point. His arms—I’m calling them arms because they’re similar, even if he has more fingers—come around me as I get close. He’s seen many human entertainments so I’m sure he knows what we’re doing.

“Is this okay?” I whisper.

“It is.”

His skin feels warm, but so different from mine. Heat blooms where our bodies align; he adjusts to my body temperature, matching it. I try not to stroke his back too much since I don’t know where his erogenous zones are. I definitely want to learn.

“I’m honored,” I say, trying to keep it light.

I’m failing at that because this feels like…everything. Everything I ever wanted.

When he eases back to gaze at me, there’s something so vulnerable in his gaze that my heart clenches. “Jen…”

I press my face against the warm skin of his neck, where a pulse unlike mine thrums gently. As I hold him, the realization crystallizes within me like a shard of ice melting away to reveal a dormant seed. I’m falling for him, so hard and fast that if we revisit the icebreaker games we play in the chat group, I’ll reconsider my answer about skydiving.

Closing my eyes, I nuzzle my face against the velvety skin at his throat and receive a rumble of sound in response. Somehow, the vibrations feel sexy in a way I can’t articulate. The spices of his scent brighten. Voices get louder; someone is laughing close by. And I step back, not wanting the moment to be ruined by someone yelling, “Get a room!”

I let out a faintly unsteady breath. “Should we move on?”