Total pages in book: 37
Estimated words: 32810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 32810 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 164(@200wpm)___ 131(@250wpm)___ 109(@300wpm)
I'm tempted to reach over and slap his face for yelling that, but I'm too baffled by his request. "Why would you want to go on a date with me? You don't even like me."
"Correction," he says, grinning. "I don't know you. This will help me understand you better. Plus, I can show you we're not all evil males out to kidnap humans. Some of us actually like helping people. And it'll help your situation, too. If those praxiians hang around town, word will get out that you're seeing me and they'll leave you alone. And of course I'll keep your secret. Doesn't this sound like a good idea?"
Ugh, he sounds so very pleased with himself. "If I say no, are you going to tell everyone my secret?"
He smirks down at me. "Maybe."
"You really are a prick," I mutter. "You sure you don't just want a blow job, custodian?"
"While I am intrigued by your offer and what it could possibly mean, I'd rather have the date." He leans in toward me. "And my name is Khex."
“Well, Khex, I’ll go out with you, but quit yelling.” I glare at him, imagining him being dropped off of a very large cliff somewhere. “And quit talking slow to me. I’m hard of hearing, not an idiot.”
Though I feel like an idiot for agreeing to this.
CHAPTER 6
KHEX
Rektar thinks it's a terrible idea.
Ainar and Sinath think I've taken leave of my senses. Dating such an angry human? She's not even one of the more attractive ones, or the flirty ones that try to trade favors for credits or safety. Ashley actually seems to have a terrible reputation around Port. She ignores people, I'm told. She shows up to some of the human gatherings but never talks to anyone. Rektar's wife Lucy complains that she's tried sending a few comms to Ashley to invite her over for a visit, but Ashley never answers.
Hearing all the irritated complaints about Ashley actually fills me with guilt. Now that I know her secret, it fills in all the holes in the stories, the parts I didn't quite understand. She ignores people because she doesn't hear them talking to her, especially if they're behind her and she can't see them speaking. She shows up at the human gatherings but doesn't talk. I imagine she can't make out their words. I doubt she even hears the comms that sweet, friendly Lucy sends to her.
I didn't share her secret, of course. It's a silly reason to keep a secret, but I remember Rektar's words about humans processing their trauma. If she doesn't trust anyone with blue skin, of course she won't trust us when we tell her that she's safe or she's no longer a slave.
So I just tell them that I like her fire and I want to get to know her better. Sinath smirks and makes a crude gesture with his hands about just how I intend to get to know her better, and Ainar chuckles. "If you want a romp and nothing more, there are easier females to chase," he says. "Unless you like the conquest?"
I just grin, ignoring their surprise. "I like her. She makes me think." I tap a finger on my desk and glance over at Rektar, who is no doubt sending a message on his data pad to his wife Lucy that I've lost my keffing mind. "So what does one do on a date with a human?"
Sinath makes the crude gesture again.
Rektar looks up. "You mean you don't know?"
I shrug. Most of my encounters with humans are of the fleeting sort. I've slept with a few of the females in Port when they offered, and when they didn't show further interest, I kept my distance. It suits me just fine because I'm not looking for commitment, and most of those females are just looking for an itch to be scratched. I'm happy to scratch at them and we both get what we wanted.
But that's not what this is about. Ashley needs a friend, and, well, I aim to be that friend.
"Where would you take Lucy?" I ask Rektar. "If she wished to go on a date?"
He spreads his hands in a helpless gesture. "Lucy decides. I comply."
Sinath makes the crude gesture again.
Rektar's face turns dark with a flush and he glares at the younger custodian. "Stop that!" He turns back to me, rubbing one of his ears. "As for a date, I would find out what she likes and fulfill that need." He shoots another furious look over at Sinath before he can make the gesture again. "A need like a desire to go out to dinner, perhaps. Or simply taking a walk in a field. There are some nice flowers down by the cliffs. Females like flowers."
"They do," Ainar agrees. "I picked a few for Meredith and she was very, ah, grateful."