Page 15 of Grumpy Alien Boss

The elevator doors close with a soft ding. My heart pounds, but not from exertion. Olivia's disappointment cuts deeper than any weapon could.

"Olivia, allow me to explain?—"

"Explain that you're a hypocrite who only pretends to care about the environment?" The venom in her voice makes me flinch.

Words fail me. How can I justify my actions without revealing everything? The weight of secrets presses down, threatening to crush what's building between us.

The elevator jerks to a stop. Wrong floor. I didn't press?—

Doors slide open. A man in a black ski mask levels a gun at us.

"The planet can't fight back, but I can!"

Time slows. The gun barrel aims at Olivia's chest. No choice. I dive in front of her as the shot cracks through the air.

The bullet strikes my chest with familiar pressure. Like a finger poking through fabric. My scales deflect it easily.

Pure instinct takes over. I launch forward, wrapping my arms around the gunman's waist. We crash to the floor together, his weapon skittering across polished tile.

Red haze clouds my vision. This worthless human dared to put Olivia in danger. My claws itch to emerge, to tear his fragile flesh. To rip his head clean off his shoulders for threatening what's mine.

No. Control. I can't reveal myself. Can't kill him.

I backhand him with the barest fraction of my strength. His head snaps to the side. Teeth scatter across the floor like bloody dice. He slumps unconscious, jaw already swelling.

The rage subsides as I turn to Olivia. Her safety is all that matters.

"Are you all right?"

She rushes toward me. My arms open, expecting an embrace. Instead, her fingers fumble with my shirt buttons.

"Darwin, you were shot!"

"I'm fine, Olivia. Stop." I grasp her wrists gently, but she twists free.

"You took a bullet for me. Let me see!"

Her fingers work faster than I can safely stop her without risking injury. The holographic emitters need a fraction of a second to compensate for newly exposed skin. If she opens my shirt too quickly...

"Please, I just need to make sure you're-"

My shirt falls open. A gasp escapes her lips and my hearts stop. This is it. She's seen what I really am. Everything we've built together ends now in horror and rejection.

"I don't believe it."

I brace myself for her scream. For her to recoil in terror at the sight of my scales.

But instead, she holds something between her fingers. The flattened bullet that bounced off my armored hide, compressed into a disk of lead and copper.

"It's still warm," she whispers, eyes wide with wonder rather than fear. "How are you alive?"

Relief floods through me as I glance down at my still-concealed chest. The holographic emitters held. But now Olivia stares at me, waiting for an explanation about the bullet.

"Must have hit my tie clip." The lie tastes bitter on my tongue.

"You're not wearing a tie clip." Her eyes narrow, studying my exposed shirt.

Before she can press further, boots thunder down the hallway. Security rounds the corner, weapons drawn.

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