Page 168 of The Alpha

“Mine feeds on music,” Shona said with a smile. She picked up the tree’s electrical cord and plugged it into an outlet. The tree lit up, but only half the lights worked. “Well, that’s disappointing.”

Pari sighed. “Uncle Al has a string of lights he puts on it to make up for all the ones that don’t work.” She stepped toward Shona. “So, what does Melvale’s heart feed on?”

Shona and Kitty exchanged a look. “That’s a good question,” Shona said. “If I had to guess, fashion, beauty, having things in order.”

Pari made another face. “He sounds obsessive compulsive.”

Kitty sat on the sofa. “He’s good at organizing and details. But he also likes turning something so-so into something beautiful.”

Pari unconsciously reached up and touched her hair, then looked at her bare arms. “I… I used to have really short hair. Like a buzz cut. It was this ugly yellow. And… tattoos. Lots of them.” She took in the shocked look on their faces. “Everything changed while Melvale and I were held prisoner. My tats disappeared, my nose ring fell out, my hair…”

“You had a nose ring?” Kitty interjected.

Pari nodded. “My hair grew into this cool pixie cut and turned pink overnight.”

Shona smiled. “You are becoming the desire of his heart.”

Her eyes rounded to saucers. “What?”

She nodded. “I didn’t change much for Dallan, but Zara, her sister was blonde haired and blue eyed.”

“Was?” Pari hedged. “What happened to her?”

Shona glanced at Kitty and back. “She died.”

Pari’s eyes locked onto the box of ornaments. “Oh, I see.” She took a deep breath. “What does Zara’s heart feed on?”

Kitty snorted. “Um, maybe you’d better ask Zara.”

Shona pressed her lips together to keep from laughing but failed. “Yes, ask Zara.”

Pari’s face screwed up in confusion, but she wasn’t going to push it. The fact that Melvale’s second heart had to feed on something was freaky. Was it the reason her hair changed, and her tats disappeared? Not that she was arguing. Those sudden changes saved her life. She’d be dead if her tattoos and nose piercing hadn’t disappeared when they did.

The front door opened, and Pari backed across the room to see who was coming in. “Melvale,” she breathed and went to him.

He gave her a pleased smile. “Miss me?”

Her cheeks heated and she began to fidget. “I… was wondering when you’d come back, that’s all.” She noticed the box in his hand and that he’d changed clothes. He wore a black tee-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and black boots. The man looked like he’d stepped out of a fashion magazine. Pari’s heart skipped a beat, and she forced herself to back side step out of the way.

Kwaku and Zara were right behind him. Dallan stood in the hall. He’d been guarding the door. Everyone acted like she was some porcelain doll that could break at any moment, but she couldn’t understand why. No one had disclosed to her she was some chosen one, or that she held a great power that could save the planet, or was some long lost alien princess raised by humans, put in danger, and rescued by a handsome highland warrior.

Pari looked at Shona as she brushed past Melvale to get to Dallan. The latter was her story, and Pari thought it terribly romantic. Pari turned to Kitty. She was single but not necessarilylooking. Both she and Shona told her Kitty had been man crazy for the longest time but had grown out of it. Pari couldn’t imagine being that way. She avoided men after her wild days as a teenager. She wasn’t even man crazy then, just stupid.

She hung her head as Melvale set the box on the love seat next to Uncle Al’s box of ornaments. He looked at the tree and a hand went to his chest. “Oh… stab… me. What isthat?”

“A tree, silly,” Kitty said and started going through the box he’d brought. “Wow, this is cool.” She pulled out a beautiful ornament that looked old. Real old, but gorgeous.

“A Christmas castle,” Pari said. “How pretty.”

“Yes, isn’t it?” Melvale said. “Unlike this tree…”

“Sorry,” Pari said with a shrug. “It’s all we have.”

“Not anymore.” Melvale smiled at Pari, then nodded at the front door where Dallan now stood holding a tree.

She turned and gasped. “Is that a live tree?”

“Yes. We made a little stop on the way back.”

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