stammered.
His face hardened, and he looked truly angry.
"Do you understand that a woman that refuses to marry the male who
chose her loses all rights to herself and her body until she is
chosen by another male? And she may never be. There are women in
the Bordelayz who have been there for years."
She swallowed hard. "What happens if her
husband dies?"
"When the mating ceremony is complete, the
bride becomes a citizen of our home planet immediately. If her
husband should die, as long as she was not the cause of his death,
she retains her freedom and citizenship and can choose another
husband if she wishes, or she can remain single for the rest of her
days."
"Freedom? How is what you are doing to me
freedom?"
"You're no less free than in a marriage on
your planet. I've done my research, Ashleigh. Human men and women
belong to each other in marriage, there's mutual love and respect,
sharing of household and family duties. It's no different on my
planet. The only difference is that you didn't ask to be taken, and
I understand your anger at the situation, but I only want you to be
happy. Ask me anything, except to take you back to Earth, and I'll
go to the ends of the universe to see it happen."
Of course he would say, "except to take you
back to Earth". Damn smart alien.
She shook her head and moved away from him,
unable to say anything to that statement. She could see the truth
in his eyes. He really did care about her; he really did want her
to be happy. She just didn't understand that. It had only been a
few days.
The lights went out suddenly, and she spun in
the darkness as fear spread through her. She felt Eden's strong
arms circle around her, and he said, "Screen clear." The light from
a million stars and planets became visible as the walls and ceiling
faded to clear glass. Dumbfounded, she stared up at the ceiling,
the inky darkness dotted with stars. She gripped Eden's arms.
"Where are we?"
His voice tingled in her ear as he said in a
low voice, "This is the Gasar Galaxy. Beautiful, isn't it?"
Awed, she could do nothing but stand there
and stare, mouth open, at the awesome expanse of space. She moved
from his arms and he let her, and she walked to the glass and
touched it, finding it slightly cooler than the air in the
room.
He moved next to her while she gazed out at a
galaxy she had never heard of. The inky darkness, dotted with
stars, was mesmerizing. She kept reaching her hand out and brushed
it against the cool glass.
All too soon, he said the time had come for
them to return to their room, and she was still so surprised by
what she had seen that she didn't correct him by reminding him it
was his room and not theirs .
Before she went into the bedroom that night,
he said, "You don't have to keep coming out here."
"What do you mean?"
"My nightmares. I, I appreciate that you come
out for me, but it's not necessary."
"If you don't want me to, I won't." She felt
strangely disappointed.
"It's not that; it's hard enough to be here
in this room with you while you push me away, but when I wake up
and find you in front of me, concern on your face, it just makes it
that much harder."
The pained look on his face made her want to
walk over to him and hold him tightly and tell him she was sorry,
but she did what she'd been doing since she got there, and walked
away.
Chapter 4
The next several days were the same. They ate
together, watched vids, and talked, but there was a tension between
them, and she didn't know how to fix it. She hadn’t gone out to him
when he had his nightmares, and it tore at her to remain in bed
while he was being tortured in his dreams.
She was still keeping Eden at arm's length,
even though her feelings for him were growing steadily. Grudgingly,
she had accepted that she wasn’t going to be taken back to Earth
and was sad for what she had left behind: her job, her friends, her
family. But she was surrounded by things that probably would not
have happened in her lifetime back
His face hardened, and he looked truly angry.
"Do you understand that a woman that refuses to marry the male who
chose her loses all rights to herself and her body until she is
chosen by another male? And she may never be. There are women in
the Bordelayz who have been there for years."
She swallowed hard. "What happens if her
husband dies?"
"When the mating ceremony is complete, the
bride becomes a citizen of our home planet immediately. If her
husband should die, as long as she was not the cause of his death,
she retains her freedom and citizenship and can choose another
husband if she wishes, or she can remain single for the rest of her
days."
"Freedom? How is what you are doing to me
freedom?"
"You're no less free than in a marriage on
your planet. I've done my research, Ashleigh. Human men and women
belong to each other in marriage, there's mutual love and respect,
sharing of household and family duties. It's no different on my
planet. The only difference is that you didn't ask to be taken, and
I understand your anger at the situation, but I only want you to be
happy. Ask me anything, except to take you back to Earth, and I'll
go to the ends of the universe to see it happen."
Of course he would say, "except to take you
back to Earth". Damn smart alien.
She shook her head and moved away from him,
unable to say anything to that statement. She could see the truth
in his eyes. He really did care about her; he really did want her
to be happy. She just didn't understand that. It had only been a
few days.
The lights went out suddenly, and she spun in
the darkness as fear spread through her. She felt Eden's strong
arms circle around her, and he said, "Screen clear." The light from
a million stars and planets became visible as the walls and ceiling
faded to clear glass. Dumbfounded, she stared up at the ceiling,
the inky darkness dotted with stars. She gripped Eden's arms.
"Where are we?"
His voice tingled in her ear as he said in a
low voice, "This is the Gasar Galaxy. Beautiful, isn't it?"
Awed, she could do nothing but stand there
and stare, mouth open, at the awesome expanse of space. She moved
from his arms and he let her, and she walked to the glass and
touched it, finding it slightly cooler than the air in the
room.
He moved next to her while she gazed out at a
galaxy she had never heard of. The inky darkness, dotted with
stars, was mesmerizing. She kept reaching her hand out and brushed
it against the cool glass.
All too soon, he said the time had come for
them to return to their room, and she was still so surprised by
what she had seen that she didn't correct him by reminding him it
was his room and not theirs .
Before she went into the bedroom that night,
he said, "You don't have to keep coming out here."
"What do you mean?"
"My nightmares. I, I appreciate that you come
out for me, but it's not necessary."
"If you don't want me to, I won't." She felt
strangely disappointed.
"It's not that; it's hard enough to be here
in this room with you while you push me away, but when I wake up
and find you in front of me, concern on your face, it just makes it
that much harder."
The pained look on his face made her want to
walk over to him and hold him tightly and tell him she was sorry,
but she did what she'd been doing since she got there, and walked
away.
Chapter 4
The next several days were the same. They ate
together, watched vids, and talked, but there was a tension between
them, and she didn't know how to fix it. She hadn’t gone out to him
when he had his nightmares, and it tore at her to remain in bed
while he was being tortured in his dreams.
She was still keeping Eden at arm's length,
even though her feelings for him were growing steadily. Grudgingly,
she had accepted that she wasn’t going to be taken back to Earth
and was sad for what she had left behind: her job, her friends, her
family. But she was surrounded by things that probably would not
have happened in her lifetime back
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