Page 17 of Stolen By Her Alien Mate

Something in his expression unsettles me. Something about the intense way he looks at me. Like he can’t believe this injustice. Like he wants to battle dragons on my behalf.

I have to shake myself to get free of his spell.

Battle dragons?

Where did that come from?

Flights of fancy aren’t really my thing. Not in real life anyway. Meanwhile, Brandon is still snoozing away on the floor at my feet.

“I’m an orphan. I’m sure they have them in your town too.” I try to soften my voice and give him a small smile. “Look, I’m sorry for whatever confusion led you to me, but I’m not who you’re looking for. I’m a nobody in a small dusty town in the middle of West Texas; I work at this fine establishment.” That draws a snort from Lorraine. “And I go to community college in my spare time to try to carve out a better life for myself someday. But I’m not a princess, and I’m not your mate. And I have work to do.”

I turn away from him then, not wanting to look at his ridiculously handsome face any more.

A guy like this—even one who is slightly bonkers—isn’t for me.

Hot, broody guys who want to protect me or even—and I blushed just thinking about it—just wanted to bury their cocks in my warm pussy, just aren’t part of my real life.

My life is syrup and making rent and instant ramen noodles and saving every spare dime for tuition. I’m happy with my life. Whatever emotional turmoil I have about being an orphan, about being alone in the world, about missing out on all the things that come with having a family of your own… I made peace with it when I was eighteen.

I don’t want to wallow in all the things I don’t have. And I don’t have time to. Not if I’m going to work my way through college and scrape together a better life for myself.

Ten minutes later, Lorraine finds me in the back supply room. I have napkins out to refill the dispensers, but haven’t made it out to the front of the diner yet.

“Is he gone?” I ask.

“Yep,” she says.

I glance down to see my fist around the napkins I’ve been holding. I smooth them out and set them on the table beside the napkin dispenser. Blowing out a breath, I turn around and prop my hip against the edge of the table.

Her angular features soften as if she knows exactly how confused I felt.

“I can’t explain it, hon. He clearly thinks he knows you. For what it’s worth, I don’t think he means you any harm.” She shrugs. “Maybe he’s just foreign. His accent is weird.”

I take a slow breath. Lorraine had had a rough life, much like my own, and when that happens, you tend to develop a quick and accurate impression of people and their character. I hadn’t felt threatened by Kael either. But nothing he said made any sense.

“Let me ask you something,” Lorraine says. “Did he scare you? Make you nervous?”

“No.” Neither of those feelings had ricocheted through my body. Desire, oh hell yes. Curiosity, most definitely. And something else, something I couldn’t quite put my finger on.

As if she can read my thoughts, Lorraine gives a snort. “Unlike Brandon Jacks in there who could give the creeps to that clown from It.”

“Is he still out?” I ask hesitantly, not really sure if I want to know.

“Nah. He left.”

“Really? I thought he’d put up more of a stink.”

Lorraine flashes a devious grin. “He probably would have, but I told him he fainted and said that no one could blame him for passing out from fright under the circumstances.”

“You didn’t!”

“I sure did.”

“And he believed that?”

She shrugs. “Mr. McEntire and Mr. Phillips backed me up. Those old codgers made it very convincing.” But then she steps closer and asks, “What did he whisper to you, when he was all up in your space?” Lorraine asks.

My cheeks flame. I don’t want to think on those hot words that had made me wetter than the last porn I’d seen.