At Drucilla’s wedding, Francine had skipped the receiving line on the way into the reception and lined up with the servants to file into the cheap seats, as they called them on Earth. Fat lot of good that did.
“Where to next?” Raphael asked, breaking into her unpleasant reverie.
Francine looked around. “We should go into downtown Alienn and hit a few places. Cosmos Café so that Aunt Dixie can help get the word out, maybe the Earthbound Travel Company to pretend to look at trips to Niagara Falls. That should set the town’s tongues to wagging. Maybe even a trip to Lovers’ Lane to really cement things.”
“Lovers’ Lane?” A predatory smile appeared, making her wonder if he even knew what that was.
She grinned. “Well, maybe not. No need to go crazy, right?”
He shrugged. “I’m game either way.”
“We’ll see how our day goes.”
“Because you have to work tonight?”
Francine blinked. She’d forgotten. “Yes. That’s right. I’ll be working by the time we could go to Lovers’ Lane.”
“We can’t go there before dark?”
“Nope. Those are the unwritten rules, no daytime hanky panky on Lovers’ Lane.”
“I see.” She didn’t think he believed her, but it didn’t look like he was going to give her crap about it.
“Let’s head for the Cosmos Café.”
“Lead the way, fiancée of mine.”
Francine really loved the sound of that, but reined in her exuberance. She was hisfakefiancée, not a real one. It took effort not to sigh dramatically.
Chapter Five
Wednesday Morning
Raphael spent two days planning the journey with Francine. He arranged transport and lodging for all the stops on their whirlwind trip, including the stopover on Alpha-Prime the day after the wedding on Ichor-Delta, although they wouldn’t disembark the transport ship. It would help with the follow-on trip to the Ossuary Valerian Space Station. He booked a house there for a week, though he didn’t plan to stay that long. He didn’t want to be too clear about their travel plans, in case anyone was watching him or taking note of their itinerary.
He didn’t know what sort of clothing Francine planned to wear, but added two extra days to the front of their journey for a trip to an exclusive designer on Ichor-Delta. They both needed all the trimmings for the proper wedding guest attire befitting a royal. They certainly couldn’t dress as servants. He hadn’t kept any of his more regal clothing after leaving his family home. Bounty hunters, as a rule, weren’t trying to make any fashion statements. It was always best to blend into the surroundings and not be noticed.
Raphael wanted to acquire several more casual yet regal outfits for their journey after the wedding celebration, searching for a fake wedding reception or honeymoon destination. Royals, at least on Ichor-Delta, changed into fresh clothes with every separate event during the day. He’d changed seven times on one particularly busy day when he lived at home. He did not miss that life even a little, but he’d have to mimic his past to ensure his royal cover held up under close inspection.
After the reception and before they reached the space station, he hoped to discover more information on how much trouble Victor was in. If he didn’t get a message to the contrary when they stopped at Alpha-Prime, Raphael would know Victor was still in hiding. He didn’t expect Victor to attempt to leave any safe haven unless forced to. If anyone caught Victor, word would spread across the galaxy like the induction force at the edge of a black hole.
In any event, he made his travel plans as if he and Francine truly were the epitome of a royal Boudreaux couple about to be married, touring potential places to hold their wedding or enjoy their honeymoon before returning to Earth, his possible new home base. If any or all of the visits weren’t needed, they’d go as planned to keep their undercover engagement viable until their return to Earth.
If he and Francine stayed together after this adventure, he would certainly consider making the Alpha-Prime Earth colony his base of operations.
The thought of having someone to come home to after long journeys for work was appealing on many levels and an idea he truly hadn’t considered practical before now. Or perhaps he’d never met anyone he wanted to make any huge sacrifices for until a certain kitten-owning redhead had fallen into his life.
Meeting Francine—and especially kissing her—gave him a new goal to reach for. He never would have taken a chance on interacting with his family if it weren’t for her. Was this a sign of something deeper? Should he seek a private meeting with Will and discover his elder brother’s frame of mind regarding Raphael and his life choices? Maybe Will wasn’t like their father. Maybe Raphael could have some, if not all, of his family back. Once he arrived on Ichor-Delta, he’d consider initiating a private meeting with Will after the wedding and reception.
This was the first time he’d looked forward to attending a wedding, all because of the possibilities it offered regarding closing the door on his past and opening another to a future with Francine and his estranged family.
While arranging their itinerary occupied a large portion of Raphael’s time, he also kept tabs on Edgar. So far, the slobbish bounty hunter hadn’t done much in the way of attempting to track down Victor. Mostly he’d hung around the Big Bang Truck Stop, spending the bulk of his time at various sub-surface drinking establishments each evening until they closed. He’d often drunkenly make his way back to his quarters, sometimes with a woman in tow.
While he and Francine had told friends, acquaintances and strangers alike about their engagement, they didn’t tell a soul they were leaving Earth soon. Francine thought it best to just show up at the wedding with the invitation he’d managed to snag for them to attend as an envoy from the Boudreaux royal family. No notice was better than giving her parents time to check things out. He agreed.
The only other possible problem would be if any of his close relatives saw the ring Francine wore. His father, and possibly his elder brother, might cause an uproar if the discovery were made public. Raphael decided he’d burn that bridge once he crossed it. As far as he was concerned, the jewelry was his to do with as he wished and he dared anyone to disagree. That particular ring was the last thing his mother had ever given him. Speculating about a confrontation over the ring made him wonder if he secretly wanted a confrontation with his family. Maybe. Maybe not. He would be ready either way.
