Page 7 of Guarded By an Alien Hunter

For some reason this story bothers me. “You were mated?”

“No, not mated, but almost. He was my fiancé and he left me for my best friend. I lost the two most important people in my life, while living in a town far from my own family. It was a bad time. It makes me wary.”

I grunt in understanding and take another large bite of the dessert she has now given me—“pistachio ice cream.”

“Have you ever mated? Do you have a wife and kids back on your home planet?” she asks.

“No. I am unmated.”

She blinks. “Really? You’re single? You don’t even have a girlfriend?”

“I do not have a long-term pleasure mate, or an actual mate due to the nature of my job. I move around too much to be able to commit.” I meet her gaze and inhale the scent of her arousal towards me. “And I never form relationships with my clients.”

Her face pinkens again. “Oh, I didn’t mean…I’m sorry, I would never act unprofessional towards you.”

I finish my dessert. “And I will never act unprofessional towards you either, human.”

And then she stands and takes both of our plates and walks over to the kitchen sink. She bends down and I’m staring at her perfect ass for a beat too long.

What is wrong with me?

I continue to find her form attractive, which never happens. Her breasts are not large but look like exactly the right size to fit in my hand. And I like the fact that her hair is long. Most of the hunters in my clan have long hair too, but I’ve cut mine short because it’s easier that way when I’m on stakeouts or having to fight or lug weapons.

I’ve worked with other human females and never felt this spark of attraction. My last job was keeping some sort of famous human songstress safe during a worldwide tour while she went into two different cities where there had been bomb threats. I formed the normal protector bond with her as I do with all my clients and made sure she was safe. She seemed to want to talk to me and often invited me into her room. I was unmoved and remained in separate quarters until it was time to fly into action. And when the job was finished, I easily unlocked the hunter instinct as I always do and moved on.

But here I am, in this cold, windy city near the ocean, and I am the one who wants to talk more and stay closer than needed.

I suppose I didn’t strictly need to stay in her quarters. For all my other situations I’ve stayed in rooms nearby, or on the top floor, or in another domicile. I’ve even slept in vehicles. Whatever it takes. But this one time I’m isolated with this female in her home, in the room next door with an adjoining wall.

“I am going to bed,” I announce. “You need to go to bed too because you have to get up early. We are leaving for jury duty together tomorrow morning.

And before she can answer, I am gone.

I takeoff all my weapons and place them strategically nearby. One is under my pillow; another is on my chest. All the windows and entrances, no matter how small, have alerts. Every neighbor has been checked for clearance. Every line of sight to this house has been visually confirmed and eliminated as a threat. The streets are empty for a one-mile radius because I’ve placed deflectors that I will remove later, when I leave.

I fall asleep on the tiny bed, with my feet hanging off the end.

Strangely, I want to be beside her. Or even under her large bed. Whatever it takes to keep her safe and have… have her scent in my lungs.

Chapter 3

Katie

The next morning, I wake up early because I have to make it into the courtroom on time.

I didn’t get enough sleep because all I could think of was the sexy male sleeping in the room next to mine. My mind ran over every bit of our dinner conversation, the sound of his voice and the curve of his lips. And I learned that he likes my pizza. Watching him devour that pizza and ask for more was simply amazing.

I’m losing my mind.

I sit up and push my hair back from my face, forcing myself to get started. No sleeping in today. The distance from my home to the courthouse isn’t all that far, but because of crazy San Francisco traffic it will take an eternity. It would technically be quicker to walk or bike to the courthouse, but because of the recent danger, I can’t be exposed like that on the streets. Darn it.

I step into the small hallway while dressed only in my cutest robe and underwear and glance at the door to the second bedroom. It’s standing open. Vander is long gone. His bed is made and all of his weapons look neatly organized.

Hmm.

I hear banging sounds from the kitchen. Is he making coffee? I hope so.

“I’m taking a shower,” I yell out. “I’ll be in here awhile dominating the bathroom. I hope that’s okay and you won’t need it?”

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