I’m about to let her know that this is perfect, considering I’m running out of savings and I reallydoneed to get serious aboutfinding another job… when a gap opens in the crowd. My gaze lands on an intimidating figure standing alone near the far wall.
Another Xylan not dressed in costume.
This one is nothing like the sexy, mysterious male in black who caught my attention earlier. This male is tall like the other Xylan, but his skin is deep as ancient night, compared to the medium brown tones of the Margol miners filling the cavern. The silver threading in the ridges on his forehead is thicker and more elaborate than any I’ve seen tonight. His long black hair falls in immaculate braids, not a strand out of place. Everything about him screams wealth and status.
And he’s not celebrating.
While everyone else laughs and dances and drinks, this male stands apart with his claws clasped behind his back, surveying the crowd like he’s counting inventory. His dark eyes drift across the room, cold and calculating. Assessing.
“Who’s that?” I murmur, nodding in his direction. “That guy standing alone over there. He looks like he’s ready to declare the party is over.”
Leah follows my gaze and frowns. “That’s Grytel of Thirty-Nine. CEO of Minecorp. He’s a Royal Pigment Xylan.”
“Royal Pigment?”
“They’re considered to be of a higher status than the Margol miners. They don’t really...” She pauses, choosing her words carefully. “They don’t mix much. There’s history there.”
I watch as Grytel’s dark gaze sweeps past a group of laughing miners. His lip curls slightly.
“He looks like he’d rather be anywhere else,” I observe.
Leah snorts. “He probably would. But he’s the boss, so he shows up to these things. Puts in an appearance.” She shrugs and angles her body away from his line of sight, as if she’d rather not be noticed.
“Would he hate the idea of a human being hired for the job you’re suggesting I apply for?”
“Probably, but I’m certain you would be the best candidate and that will win out. Don’t worry about him. He’s not really part of our world down in the mines.”
I look around, thinking more about the job offer. It’s sounding better and better the more I think of it. This could be an opportunity to take my highly reviewed artistic specialty from obscurity into the big time. I’m already itching to message my agent. “But there’s hardly any humans here on this planet,” I try to complain, because I enjoy living on New Earth and the thought of moving across the four sectors to a Xylan outpost is a bit intimidating. “Isn’t it weird, being one of the few living here, of your own species?”
“No, it’s not weird,” she explains. “It’s a lot like how it was when we were at university, but better. Tonight, there are a lot of Xylan because this is an event for their culture, but there are actually many other species on the planet, especially in the village. And all of Hook’s brothers happened to be mated to humans too, so I’ve got a group of friendly women in the same situation I’m in. You would like them too.”
“You’re devious.”
“I am,” she laughs, “and proud of it too. Theres no harm in wanting my best friend, who is in need of a new start in life, living here with me.”
I lift my glass and we do another mini toast and take deep drinks again.
And then I’m distracted again because out of the corner of my eye I see that same sexy male again. Finally, the crowd opens and he’s there, and even more handsome than I remember. I love the arrogant lift of his chin.
He’s also standing alone.
“Leah. Do you see that male?” I point and question. “Who is that masked man?”
Leah turns to look, but the crowd shifts and he’s gone again. “Who are you even talking about?” She takes another sip of her drink. “You know all the Xylan here are masked, right?”
“I know, but this one is different. He’s dressed like me—all in black, no costume. Just formal clothes and a mask.” I scan the crowd, trying to find him again. “He was right there a second ago.”
Leah shrugs, clearly unimpressed by my obsession with a stranger.
And then the crowd parts and I spot him. My stomach flutters again and I’m enthralled. He stands near one of the heavy wooden tables, alone, his posture rigid. Even from here I can see the tension in his broad shoulders.
“There,” I breathe. “Do you see him now?”
Before Leah can answer, I’m already moving. I don’t know what I’m doing. This isn’t like me. I don’t approach strange men at parties, and I never make the first move. But my feet are carrying me forward anyway, as if pulled by some invisible force.
Maybe I’ll just casually walk past him and make a comment about us both being the only ones without costumes…
A Xylan female in a bright, elaborate costume steps into his path. She wears green gloves of the unmated. Even from several feet away, I can see the hope in her body language as she asks him something.
