Chapter 28
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Olivia had rested surprisingly well, but not without her troubled mind’s machinations first trying to keep her from any semblance of sleep. She finally had to ask the AI to give her a little something to help her get some rest. The system obliged, not only sending her to a restful slumber with a custom-tailored mix of relaxing energy pulses specifically tuned to her body’s healing factors, but also giving her a gentle purge yet again, as well as a soothing restorative mist mixed in.
She had woken refreshed, though her mind kicked into gear replaying the prior day’s events as soon as she rose. Free of either of the men’s pheromones influencing her brain it was painful to replay what had gone down, but it was necessary. Her time with each of them had been extraordinary, and if there had been only one of them, she’d have gladly settled into a life of flattering attention and amazing, mind-altering sex. But there were two. Two she felt an equally strong pull towards, and this was a problem.
The smashed flowers on the counter sparked an angry cringe.
“He was being an asshole,” she muttered, thinking on Rykker’s overblown reaction. “Sure, he had reason to be upset, but that was over the line.”
“ Shall I dispose of them? ”
She hesitated. “Nah. You can leave them for now. But thanks.”
“ It seems you’ve had a troubling time of it with your suitors. ”
“You can say that again. It’s just their damn pheromones. How am I supposed to figure this out when I keep winding up hornier than a pubescent boy around them?”
“ Would you like a set of nasal filters? ”
“A set of what, now?”
“ Filters. They are tiny, fitting inside your nose. So long as you do not breathe through your mouth, they will be quite effective at removing all contaminants from the air, including any naturally occurring substances the men may be emitting. ”
“Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”
“ I did not know it was a problem until just now. My apologies. ”
“Ugh. It’s not your fault. And yes, please , I could really use a set of those filter thingies.”
A mere second later a tiny disc floated to her. On it were two small ovals of a thin material unlike any she’d ever seen before.
“ They adjust automatically. Simply insert one into each nostril. It will resize and activate, filtering the air. The power should last much of the day if not longer, depending, of course, on how strenuously it must filter. ”
“Good enough for me,” she said, grabbing them and shoving them into her nose without a second thought. After what she’d seen of these people’s tech, she had zero reason to doubt what the AI was telling her.
She felt nothing. No pressure, no resistance to her breathing. Nothing at all. If she hadn’t just stuck the devices into her nose, she’d have had no idea they were even there.
Olivia jumped as her door chimed. She was seeing Arkness today, and she would be very curious to see how well these filters really worked. She keyed the door open.
There, on his knees, was Rykker. He was wearing the same clothes as the night before and looked as though he hadn’t slept a wink. His head tilted up, bloodshot eyes meeting her cool gaze.
“What do you want?”
“I’m sorry, Olivia. I was out of order last night.”
“You’re damn right you were. Throwing flowers in my face? What were you thinking?”
“I was not. I reacted poorly, and I am sorry for it.” He activated the scanner in his clothing a moment, looked at the display, then shut it off. “My Infala aches for you, but they do not match. It has unsettled me and set me adrift with confusion. But even if our Infalas do not match, the pheromone bond is strong between us. I know you feel it too. There is no denying it.”
Normally, she would have definitely felt it. Hell, she’d have probably been bent over and taking a vigorous pounding right about now despite the circumstances. But the filters were doing their job, allowing her the presence of mind to truly assess things, not react on a base level.
“It’s true, that does play a role between us. But there’s more to love than just that.”
“But can’t you?—”
“Look, I just need some time to think. You really overreacted last night.” She turned and looked at the smashed flowers on her counter, testament to his behavior.
“Just ask of me whatever you will, and I’ll do it,” he said quietly.
Rykker’s broad shoulders slumped even more. Here he was, this massive, powerful man, and he was reduced to groveling at her feet, his heart exposed and vulnerable in the palm of her hand. But she knew she needed space. Time to think.
“I ask you to leave,” she finally replied.
“But—”
“Go. I need to process this. I need to process everything , and in my own time. You seem to forget, I’m new here. Aside from Harper, I’m all alone.”
“You are very much not alone.”
“I mean my people. Others from my world. They might still be out there, you know, and they’re quite possibly my only hope at seeing my own kind again, don’t you get it? Can you imagine what it would be like, living your life as a freak? A strange, alien creature to everyone you meet?”
“Aliens are not looked down on here. Nor are they judged?—”
“That’s not my point. There’s more on my plate than just you and Arkness. Now go.”
“But—”
“I promise, we’ll talk later.”
“When?”
“Seriously? Jesus. Fine. We’ll talk tomorrow, okay? Come by at noon. But right now you need to go.”
She could see his emotions were all over the place, and sleep deprived as he was, he wanted to say more. But somehow his better judgment won out. Stoic, he rose to his feet, nodding his understanding with glistening eyes then turning and walking away, not quite a broken man, but definitely hurting.
Olivia closed her door and walked to her kitchen. “I know it’s early, but I could really, really use a drink.”