“Yeah,” he said with a sheepish grin. “I did something naughty, so my manager is making me keep a low profile until it blows over.”
“What did you do?”
He grimaced. “Got caught making out with a famous guy’s daughter.”
“That doesn’t sound so bad,” I laughed. “Is PDA not allowed?”
His eyes went distant for a moment, then cleared. “Public display of affection? I’ll have to remember that one.Pee Dee Ayy.” His voice sounded a little different when he sounded the letters out, and I noticed his lips matched up a little better to what I was hearing.
“Is there a delay?” I asked. “I’ve never done this before.”
“Sometimes it’s delayed, but not usually,” he said.
“You sounded different for a second,” I said, frowning.
He paused, and then his face brightened. “Oh! It’s your translator. Not everyone can handle my real voice. It is very sexy, so be sure you’re prepared to declare your love for me before you try it.”
I snorted, rolling my eyes, but asked, “So I’m hearing what? A computer?”
“Nexus tech,” he said. “It renders my voice in your language. Doesn’t always get the tone and inflection right, but it’s pretty close to what I’d sound like if I knew your Earth language. Which one do you speak?” His voice changed a little as he said, “Eeng-liz? Zyah-poh-nez? Zhy-neez?”
Oh gosh, this alien was cute. “English,” I said, giggling. “You talk to a lot of girls on here, huh?”
He grinned. “Yeah, but they always get snatched up by daernir guys who actually want to get married. You’re not going to do that to me, are you?”
My features twisted with guilt. “Not planning on it.”
“Good!” He said, rolling up on his elbows. “I noticed you changed your status. We’re courting, huh?” he waggled his silver eyebrows.
“I was getting way too many messages,” I said. “My phone was goingbloop, bloop, bloopall day. It was like being followed around by a school of noisy goldfish.”
He laughed, and held up a hand, “Hold on, the translator is giving me a visual ofgohld fezsh.” He shook his head, bemused.“But yeah. I like you. You can only mate a daernir if he’s Venastean.”
“What about someone from Eissoi?” I was joking, but his eyes lit up.
“You’re talking to someone there? He’s loaded if he lives on the coast.”
“Oh yeah?”
Qhev nodded. “Yeah. I love it, but the cost to live there is super high. I’m visiting Eissoi this summer, though. Looking forward to it. If you break down and marry your rich Eissoini, maybe I’ll see you there.”
“Is it a small place?” I wondered.
“No, it’s huge,” he said. “But if you’ve got a guy who can afford to live thereandbuy himself a pretty bride from Earth, he’ll be in society, going to the galas and all that shit.”
“So you’re saying he’s probably an aristocrat?” I scrunched my nose at the thought. “People like that on Earth are pretty stuffy and boring. I don’t get that vibe from him.”
“Trust me,” Qhev said. “That’s what you’ve got. But hey, if you match up with him, he’ll probably give you anything you could ever ask for. That’s a nice life, huh?”
“Are you trying to talk me into this or out of it?”
He cocked his head, gazing through the screen at me. “I don’t know,” He said. “What’s this guy’s name? I’ll look into him for you. If he’s a cool guy, you should maybe do it. We could hang out when I’m in Eissoi.”
“I mentioned you to him, and he wanted your name, too,” I said.
“Did you tell him?” Qhev asked, seeming more curious than concerned.
“I said Qhev,” I said. “I didn’t tell him about the K.”
