Page 17 of Braden

“For centuries he said.” Braden stopped walking and drew her to a nearby bench. “Listen, I get that this isn’t going to be easy, merging our two lives. I’ll have to resign from the military for one thing, because now I have you, I’m not about to spend my days crawling around in alien jungles and carrying out bug hunts for months on end, away from you. My family has been after me to get out and come home for years now. We have a portfolio of various businesses needing my attention but I’ve been resisting. Why don’t we compromise a bit? Come home with me on the Ardannan ship, meet my family, check out the moldering documents situation at the primary castle and we can make a solid plan for the future. I can go back to your world with you and help you close out things there and ship your belongings to Ardanna Prime.”

It was immensely appealing. Elodie didn’t want to be separated from Braden now they’d found each other. Besides her job she had few things to tie her to her home planet, a family she wasn’t at all close to and only a couple of real friends. “Does your friend the duke really believe I might have a chance at the royal archivist job? My work is important to me and my professional identity is a huge part of my life.”

“Nikko’s a standup guy. He wouldn’t say there was a job opening if he wasn’t sure. He’s tight with the king and the other royals and I know he’d give you a strong recommendation.”

“I am published Sectors-wide,” she said, growing more excited about the possibilities. “I’ve given talks at various events and taught classes at the university affiliated with my archive. And having the chance to explore and organize a completely untapped trove of historical documents and artifacts would be a dream job.”

“See, your resume and qualifications will seal the deal with the king, I’m sure.”

“All right, you’ve convinced me to give your plan for our transition to being together a chance.”

Braden gave her an enthusiastic kiss, uncaring about the passersby who stared and smiled. “I’m sorry if I’m rushing you. I forgot for a minute you weren’t one of the women who came here for the five day arranged date. They all knew there was a chance they might be going home to Ardanna right away if they matched with their date.”

“Can you get your friend to see about setting up an interview? Or tell me who to contact to do it myself? I’ll draft a proposal for my planned approach that I can present.” Her mind was whirling in a thousand different directions. The challenges were exciting and she realized she’d grown a bit complacent with her current job and the status of the archived collection there.

“I’ll talk to Nikko again, no problem. But if we’re going to get your hotel room cleaned up and have lunch before the rehearsal, we’d better get moving.”

They continued on their way to the hotel and as they were crossing the lobby, the desk clerk got their attention. “The hotel can give you a different room for the remainder of your stay, Ms. Farantson.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Elodie said, knowing she was going to stay with Braden for the last few days. Easier to leave the room sitting empty. “But thank you.”

“Oh and there was a delivery for you earlier this morning so we sent it up to your room.”

“I hope it’s the darn box Chet is hassling me over,” Elodie said as they strolled to the gravlift entrance.

“What’s in it anyway?” Braden asked as they ascended.

“I have no idea. He says mementos of his childhood or something. Why it was pushed all the way to the back of my side of the closet in our old apartment, I have no idea. I missed it when I was cleaning out all his possessions after breaking up with him but he contacted me almost immediately to demand I hand it over.” She rolled her eyes. “No apology for fucking three women in our bed but he wants his kiddie tisba cards or whatever. It’s our last tie and I can’t wait to have it severed.”

Braden insisted on entering the room first and doing a rapid check that there was no one lurking and no new damage. “It’s clear,” he announced.

Elodie took a deep breath and stepped into the mess the thief had left behind. “I’m afraid we’re going to have to trash a lot of things. Whoever did this sure was careless.”

He pointed to a large flower arrangement on the table. “Should I be jealous, babe? Who’s sending you flowers?”

With a frown Elodie walked over to read the card tucked in amongst the colorful tropical blooms. “It’s from the Stellar Paradise Review dancers. How sweet. Nothing about the other night was their fault but it was nice of them to send these. This must be the delivery the desk clerk mentioned.” The note thanked her for being a good sport and wished her well for the rest of her stay on the planet.

They worked for two hours, packing up her possessions and making a huge discard pile of items she didn’t want to keep after an unknown person had touched them. The dresses he or she had slashed went into that pile as well. Elodie heaved a huge sigh and wiped away tears as she laid the last ruined garment aside. “This was my favorite sundress and you hadn’t even seen it yet. Silly to cry over a piece of clothing, I know.”

Braden came to give her a hug. “I’m sure I would have loved it but you know we won the big gift certificate at the volleyball game. I think a shopping trip is definitely in order after we send this stuff off to my hotel.”

“Half of those credits are yours,” she reminded him.

“And I choose to give them to you. I’m a pretty basic guy and don’t need much beyond what I already have. Besides, I’ll enjoy seeing you in your new clothes. And removing them at some point.” He brushed a tear off her cheek. “I think we’re done here. Let’s get the concierge to arrange to transport your luggage to my hotel suite and then it’s time to have lunch. Nikko told me about a great place on the beach for sushi or if that’s not your thing, I’m sure we can find other alternatives. This resort has pretty much every cuisine in the Sectors available at one restaurant or food truck or another.”

“I need a feelgood or two as well,” she said, managing to smile because his good mood was infectious and the ugly task of dealing with the fallout from the room’s burglary attempt was done. “The rehearsal this afternoon will be brutal I’m sure.”

Braden made a concerted effort to improve her mood at lunch, keeping the conversation light and then they spent the next hour and a half roaming the stores in the retail area. Elodie was satisfied she’d replaced her lost clothing with even better selections after the shopping was done and the purchases were on their way to Braden’s hotel.

The wedding was being held in the hotel’s garden, which overlooked a secluded portion of the beach and the ocean beyond, so they made their way to the venue for the rehearsal a little early. One of Migs’s assistants checked Elodie’s name off on her handheld and directed them to where the chairs had been set up. “Your date can sit and watch if he wants.”

“Got nowhere else to be,” Braden said easily. “I’ll be interested in how this whole show comes together.”

Elodie knew he was actually determined to guard her in case anything else untoward happened and she squeezed his hand in gratitude. As soon as she walked up to the wedding party, which was still assembling, Tamarind gave a dramatic shriek, came straight to her and drew her away to the side.

“I heard your room was burglarized,” she said anxiously. “Are you all right? Was anything important missing?”

“I’m fine. I wasn’t there at the time thankfully and Braden took care of me. The police don’t have anything to go on so we’ll probably never know who did it or why. You weren’t robbed though, right?”