Guardian by Kaitlyn O'Connor (ebook e reader txt) 📗

He checked his chrono andsaw he did not have time to make other arrangements. He had likefifteen parsects to make the decision to bring them or inform his boss that hehad blown his cover and it was not safe to send them.

And that was not sufficient time todebate and also act if necessary.

He decided to make it work. It wouldnot be the first time.

He would just have to keep the familyin his place until it was safe to move them to the halfway house hehad arranged for.

He felt a split second of doubt justbefore he sent the message that he was ready and waiting toreceive.

Marilyn had only accepted hisinvitation because she was looking for an opportunity to snoop—notbecause she was attracted to him. He may have thrown everythingaway for a woman that cared less than nothing for him.

And she did not even know he wasalien.

Somehow, that seemed worse.

He shook the thought, remindinghimself that she had felt as she should have when they had mated.She had taken pleasure in it, given of herself.

He was absolutely certain of that andhe had no intention of second guessing his instincts at thisjuncture of his life.

Of course, it might not matter. Ifthis mission went sideways, he could end up dead or in jail for therest of his prime mating years.

Brushing it off, he contactedheadquarters. “Guardian Jarowd el-Karaket. Ready for thepackage.”

* * * *

Marilyn felt like she’d been cocoonedwhen Jarrod walked away from her, as if she’d magically beenencased in a cotton envelope that sealed her off from the world andeven herself. She watched him until he disappeared.

Then, like the slow return ofsensation after a shocking accident, she began to feel littlepinpricks of pain that threatened to become a monsoon.

With an effort, she made herself move,heading toward ‘home’, her cave, her safe harbor.

She was going to be ok once she gotinside her place, she assured herself, refusing to examine any ofthe thoughts beating at the back of her mind.

She was still gripped by shock whenshe got inside her fortress, but she could feels the crackswidening, feel the pain pouring through faster andfaster.

She sat down on her favorite chair andstared at the blank TV screen for an endless time and finally gotup and headed into the bathroom to take a hot shower. The hot watereroded the dam. The hard knot in her chest gave way to the delugeand she cried.

She’d lost him.

He hadn’t said that, but she’d seen itin his eyes.

She’d caused him so much trouble andhe hadn’t done a thing but attract her notice.

She was a horrible person.

She was a kook, imagining all sorts ofthings going on when absolutely nothing was.

When had that happened?

It didn’t matter, she decided. Whatwas done was done and it couldn’t be undone.

She really, really liked Jarrod andshe’d ruined any possibility of it ever becoming more than friendswith benefits.

She couldn’t even summon any revivinganger—because it was all her fault. All of it.

She cried until she was exhausted andthere wasn’t any more hot water and then dragged herself out andcollapsed on her bed half dried, but too hot from the water tocover up.

The chill that replaced the heatroused her after a while.

She felt like warmed overshit.

She’d cried until she could barelyopen her eyes and even when she did her vision was too blurry toread her clock, but she thought it must be around suppertime.

Not that she was hungry.

She dragged some clothing out of herchest of drawers and put it on—comfy worn and looseclothing.

Sloppy.

Unattractive.

It matched her mood.

And then she wandered around herkitchen for a little while and finally just took a handful ofgrapes and went into the living room and turned on the TV andstared at it until she began to weave in and out of sleep, dozingand having horrible dreams that woke her.

She owed him an apology, she decidedwhen she woke up and couldn’t go back to sleep.

It was lame and it didn’t undoanything, fix any harm she might have caused, but it was the leastshe could do—admit that she was wrong and tell him how sorry shewas.

He probably wouldn’t even let her inthe door.

She had to do it, though, she decided,while she had the nerve and then she wouldn’t bother himanymore.

She lost her nerve before she got tohis door.

She had no idea what time it wasanyway, she realized in dismay. He was probably in bedasleep.

It felt really late.

She stood indecisively for severalmoments and finally straightened her spine and continued, figuringshe could at least check if she heard sounds indicating he wasstill up. She’d already raised her fist to knock when she saw theweirdest blue light flickering around the edges of hisdoor.

She blinked several times, trying todecide if she’d dislocated her eyeballs or something while she wasindulging her self-pity, but the light was still there and itbrightened while she was looking.

She didn’t hesitate, despite the bitchslap she’d already gotten for snooping. She moved closer and stuckher eyeball to his peephole and looked in.

His entire apartment was glowing, butthe main source was way to the back, coming from hisbedroom.

“What the hell?” shemuttered.

Was it some invention?

She really hadn’t believed he was aninventor.

And what the hell would this beabout?

Straining, she managed to get an anglethat allowed her to see just a tiny segment of Jarrod’sbedroom.

Just as something out of this worldstepped from the closet.

She sucked in a sharp breath andclapped a hand to her mouth.

When she did, Jarrod came into view.Frowning, he glanced around the living room and then, thankfully,turned and headed back into his bedroom.

The thing, moved into the living room,looking around as if curious.

It was … well, roughlyhuman-like—humanoid, she supposed, struggling to keep frombreathing for fear it might hear her.

Just as she was trying to decide if itwas possible to move away from the door quietly enough to keep frombeing heard, she saw the blue light flare and another creature,much like the first emerged.

“My god,” she breathed.“It’s an invasion.”

She didn’t see any weapons and aftershe studied the second alien for several moments, she realized itwas a female.

She thought it was anyway.

Which meant nothing! Like aliens wouldbe as gender bigoted as humans!

But what could she