“I’m liking where this is headed,” Katie said with a grin. No doubt the wife put the man “in his place.” Just not the place a guy like Jorlan would expect.
Speaking of Jorlan, he nodded as if Frances had just spoken the gospel truth.
“Oh, yeah. Just you wait. It gets better.” Frances took a deep breath before continuing. “Irritated by her husband’s stupidity, the wife whipped off her panties and tossed them at her husband, telling him to try them on. Thinking to pacify her so he could still get lucky, he complied. When he couldn’t get the little scrap of material past his thighs, he told his wife he couldn’t get into her panties, after all. He was gloating, so she told him that was the way it was gonna be until he changed his attitude.’”
Katie chuckled. “A modern-day superheroine. I can’t wait to share this one with my brothers.”
Jorlan leaned back in his seat, pensive.
“I thought you’d like it,” Frances said. “Anyway, I thought a joke would be the perfect icebreaker to give you my news. I’m sorry, doll face, but I’ll be closing the café next month.”
“What! No, no, no,” Katie said, shaking her head.
“I’m gettin’ too old to run this place. But I still got bills to pay, so I’ll be looking for a part-time job somewhere, if you know anyone hiring.”
“I do know someone—me!” Katie bounced in her seat while clapping. “I’m in the process of restoring the old house on Gossamer Lane, and I could use the help. And the entertainment. And the snacks.”
Frances looked between her and Jorlan, as if she feared she was getting punked. “Really? Seriously? It wouldn’t be charity?”
Katie kind of hated when people acted as if charity was a bad thing. It wasn’t. Help someone now, and they could help someone else later. And one day, when you needed help, you’d have enough karma to cash in. It was a beautiful cycle, not an embarrassing one.
“I seriously need the help.” Katie usually hired outside help for renovations and restorations. For some reason, she’d been reluctant to hire anyone for the Victorian, wanting instead to do the work herself.
Lie! Not for “some reason.” Because of Jorlan. She hadn’t wanted anyone else viewing his statue. Even then, she’d been proprietary toward him.
“When would you need me to start?” Frances asked.
“Soonish.”
Beaming, the other woman said, “Let me think about it tonight and get back with you. Okay?” With another meaningful glance at Jorlan, she sauntered away, whistling happily.
Jorlan studied Katie, all curiosity and—dare she think it—admiration. “You were kind to her.”
“You expected me to be rude?”
“Nay. You are usually so prickly—”
“What! No, I’m not,” she said…prickly. “Fine. I’m prickly. I’ll try to do better.”
“I do not think you should change, Katie. I made a simple observation about something I like.”
Yeah, right. “You’re saying you like when I’m prickly?”
“I’m saying there are many facets to you and I’m determined to learn them all.”
She gulped. There’d been a note of challenge in his voice. Challenge…and eagerness. She’d told him she wouldn’t sleep with him because she didn’t know him, and he didn’t know her. The fact that he was taking the time and making the effort to change that…
She shivered wildly. I’m in big trouble.
* * *
JORLAN TRIED TO focus on the people around him. During every minute of his confinement, he’d dreamed of the day he would interact with other living beings. And, the more he learned about Earth’s people and customs, the better off he’d be. Yet…
As strong as he was, he did not have the strength to look away from Katie. The more time he spent with her, the more she obsessed him. Everything he learned about her, he liked.
“You’re staring,” she said.
“I know,” he replied, without looking away. “You make my eyes happy.”
Roses bloomed in her cheeks. He would have said more, but a wondrous aroma drifted to his nostrils.
Frances, the aging servant, placed numerous dishes on the table, then pushed them in his direction. His stomach rumbled.
Ravenous, he made short work of the entrées, devouring every crumb. So good! He relished the different tastes and textures. Some items were sweet, others savory. The light brown squares filled with dark blue spheres were his favorite.
When he finished, Katie was only halfway done. A blessing. With each gulp, she closed her eyes and uttered a wordless exclamation of ecstasy.
Considering dumping the food all over his body and playing the role of all-you-can-eat buffet, he settled back in his seat to watch her.
Her next bite, she moaned louder, and he shot hard as steel.
Needing a distraction, he speared a piece of her…what had Frances called it? Oh, aye. An omelet. He speared a piece to try.
“Well?” Katie asked. “What do you think?”
“Now that one need is satisfied, I need only a nice, leisurely pummeling to feel complete,” he said. “Mayhap the redhead would be interested.” Earlier, he’d gotten the distinct impression that Katie had been jealous.
Even the thought thrilled him.
Katie scowled, and he almost laughed. Whether she denied it or not, she was jealous. ’Twas the action of a possessive woman, and one that filled him with hope. Soon, I will have her.
Oh, aye, soon Katie’s body and heart would belong to him.
“Keep in mind,” she bit out, “that you have no money. Some women only sleep with rich men.”
“I have an abundance of riches.”
“Maybe in Imperia, but not on Earth. And I don’t see how you’ll get any without stealing it. No one but me will hire you, and really, any money you make belongs to me. You know, to reimburse me for your food and shelter. News flash. I’m not a woman who supports a man while he does nothing except watch TV, lie on the couch and drink beer.”
“So you wish to hire me?” Interesting.
After a moment’s hesitation, she nodded. “Why not? The last house I renovated didn’t sell right away, so I couldn’t buy my next property right away, and my usual employees had to take other jobs. I could use the muscle.”
“Do you, by chance, wish me to labor in the bedchamber?” he teased.
“You wish.”
“I do. I really do.”
The corners of her mouth twitched. “Well, the work I’m offering has nothing to do with being naked, getting naked or getting each other naked.”
He leaned toward her, his heavy eyelids sinking low. “Your dictate leaves many wonderful possibilities, for at times, clothing offers just as much, if not more, stimulation as flesh.” Aye, he could very well imagine her with a long, shimmery blue gown draped over her curves, covering every inch of her. Slowly he would raise the gown’s hem. Higher. Higher still, slowly revealing her succulent calves, then her thighs and finally her—
“You march yourself out of that gutter, buddy.” He thought she whispered, “Before I join you,” but couldn’t be sure. She slapped the table, glasses clanging together. “You’ll paint, put up siding, lay tile, shingle or whatever I happen to need done. Without complaint!”