Page 43 of What Makes an Alien a Dad?

You have the darkest eyes I’ve ever seen. They draw me in like the night sky. And just like the sky, they make me feel like I’m flying if I look deep into them.

I adore your smile. Do you know you have the cutest pair of dimples, but they can be seen only when you laugh? I find myself trying to make you laugh just to see them. Though, let’s face it, I’m not the funniest person out there. Making you laugh is hard work. But seeing those dimples come out is the best reward ever.

Don’t worry about the dress, my Maya, whatever it ends up being. No dress can spoil your beauty. I’ve seen you try on many different clothes, and you look simply stunning in all of them.

You’re such a warm, kind person. And your body... Well, I’d better not write about your body because just thinking about it fills my head with extremely inappropriate thoughts.

How can you even consider that pregnancy would spoil it in any way?

You’re carrying a new being inside you. One day soon, it’ll be a person who will forever trace the beginning of their existence to you. They may never remember meeting you, but they will never forget what you did for them.

The more I get to know you, Maya, the more I appreciate you. You were like a closed bud of a flower at first, but every letter exchanged between us is like a petal opening to reveal just another part of you. I don’t always know what I’ll find opening each and every one of them, but I’m looking forward to learning everything there is to know about you.

This, by far, has been the most extraordinary part of my life. And it’s all because of you. Whatever happens, I’ll be forever grateful for all your letters.

You are an amazing woman, my Maya. You deserve to be loved. Don’t ever let anyone make you doubt that.”

The drone paused reading, waiting for his instructions. Kear stopped pacing in the middle of his workroom and stared out through the window into the evening sky, the words of the letter echoing in his ears.

Did he really just write all of that?

When did it happen? How did he end up finding all these words? And even more astonishing was that every word made perfect sense to him. Because he felt them all. He no longer needed to search for romantic quotes. When it came to Maya, the words just poured out of him.

He gestured for the drone to proceed.

“Your body is beautiful in any dress. I’d give everything just to touch you, my flower.

Miss you.”

My flower...

The image of Maya in her green summer dress rose in his mind. And there it was, the nickname he’d been searching for. She truly was like a summer flower—vibrant, warm, and beautiful.

Not everyone could see her in bloom, though. Maya didn’t open up just to anyone. But what an amazing feeling it was to have her open up to him.

When he wrote to Maya, his brain stepped back, and his heart spoke. His chest felt warm when he finished, his entire body buzzed. He felt like either punching or kissing someone.

Restless energy urged him to move. He turned toward his exercise room despite the late hour. He preferred to exercise in the morning. But his established routine had been going off the rails lately. And he had no one to blame but the gorgeous pregnant woman with dark, alluring eyes.

His flower...

Fuck. What was he supposed to do when she inevitably left at the end of the study? The thought stabbed him like a knife, and he shook his head, chasing it away. There was still at least a month and a half until the birth of the baby. After that, if she wished, she could stay in Voran for one month longer as per the contract.

“Change the language and send,” he ordered the drone.

As the letter disappeared from the screen, a reminder pinged. Today was the night of his appointment at the spa. He’d skipped the one last week, after adjusting his schedule to spend more time with Maya.

But denying himself physical gratification last week could be the reason for his restlessness now.

Determined to keep tonight’s appointment, he headed out to his aircraft.

* * *

STRETCHING INSIDE THE pod, Kear relaxed his spine and let the machines massage tension and weariness out of his muscles.

Weeks had been flying by fast and yet not fast enough. Every day brought his study closer to completion. It also brought him closer to losing Maya. And he couldn’t think of any way to extend her stay in Voran beyond her contract.

Now that he had stepped in for her heartless boyfriend, she believed her relationship was well on track again, and she was eager to reunite with the bastard who wished to have nothing to do with her.

---