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She looked at Nell. “Things are good with you and Loka? Being with an alien lover isn’t too... difficult?”

“Things are amazing.” Color burned across Nell’s cheeks. “Let’s just say the difficulty is worth the effort. Loka has a very effective tongue. I’ve never experienced anything like this with a human guy.”

Hayley laughed. “What about you, Avril? Being in a relationship with a Mehab works?”

Avril grinned. “It’s incredible fun. Iska still fights his urges sometimes. There are still times when he pins me down and holds me in place because his primal urge dominates. Every time he gets a bit rough or tries to hold me down, I pull on his tail to let him know I’m not going to harm him. He loves it. It gets him so hot. It’s our little signal.”

“That sounds kinky.”

“Kinky works for us,” Avril said.

Hayley nodded as she picked apart her sandwich. She’d acted harshly with Elias and had not given him a chance to explain himself. Having seen Retar mating in action, he deserved a second chance, at least an opportunity to explain why he’d made the agreement and then changed his mind. His comments about wanting a life and being able to raise his children lingered in her mind. Everybody wanted to live. Why should Elias be any different because he was raised in a society that clung to old traditions?

“Is your Retar research more for personal reasons?” Nell asked quietly. “They are gorgeous aliens.”

Hayley opened her mouth to respond just as Diadora strode into the office.

“You, come with me.” She pointed a finger at Hayley before turning and walking out, without waiting to see if she would follow.

Avril grimaced at her. “Diadora doesn’t look happy.”

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen her look happy.” Hayley jumped up, concern running through her. Had Diadora figured out she was a fraud? From the scowl on her face, this meeting couldn’t be good news.

“You’d better go after her,” Nell said. “Diadora hates people not following her orders.”

Hayley nodded, her throat so tight she was unable to speak. This was it. This was the day she’d been dreading. She’d been rumbled. The game was up, and she was about to be fired.

Chapter 12

It was late evening, and Elias had finished work an hour ago. He was still in the docking bay, tinkering with an old watch at a work bench in the corner. He’d brought the watch here to repair while he waited for the Class One Retar ship to arrive. He wanted to get a first look to see if he knew anyone on board.

He turned over the watch and read the inscription on the back. To darling J, with all my love, K.

These inscriptions intrigued him. Who was the mysterious couple who shared this watch? Maybe it was an illicit romance or a happy couple showing their love through this gift.

Elias eased open the back and inspected the intricate workings of the watch through his Mag Tech eyeglass.

His passion for repairing broken things stretched across all types of mechanics, whether it was ships or tiny watches. He loved to see something damaged be repaired and become useful again.

He placed the watch down. It needed a new part, and he didn’t have anything that would fit. He’d have to order it the next time he got paid.

Elias’s attention turned to a small silver watch in his collection. It had no inscription on the back, but the craftsmanship was excellent. He knew a valuable watch when he saw one. He planned to fix this and give it to Hayley. Maybe he’d put an inscription on the back for her. It could be his way of saying sorry for messing things up between them.

He hoped she’d like it. Elias needed to gain Hayley’s trust and show her he could be relied on. His one mistake had been to break his promise to Princess Isolt. He didn’t want it to haunt him forever. There had to be a life after this error and an end to his nightmares and gruesome flashbacks that stopped him from taking a lover.

Elias longed to experience a lot more open-mouthed kissing with Hayley. It had plagued his thoughts all day, ever since he’d decided to try again with her. Her tongue in his mouth had felt like liquid fire, and he still imagined he could taste her.

“That is one pretty piece of jewelry.” Tegor leaned over Elias’s shoulder and looked at the watch.

“I picked it up at an auction a few months back.”

“How many have you got now?” Tegor pushed up his sleeve to show the watch Elias had given him when he’d celebrated his last birthing day.

“It must be fifty.”

“You could start a niche business with what you do,” Tegor said. “I know we don’t need watches to tell the time, but it’s neat having something like this on your wrist, a focal statement piece. They’re works of art, the watches you repair.”

Elias nodded. “It’s satisfying to get antiques working again. You know what it’s like when working on some engineering problem. Nothing gets the engines to start, and no one knows what to do. Then you have an idea, try a new part, and it works. There’s nothing more satisfying.”