Page 30 of Claimed by an Alien Warrior

“Okay, so maybe I’m enjoying this just a teeny, tiny bit.” Lifting her right hand, she brought her thumb and forefinger close, leaving only a miniscule gap between them. She looked at him in the mirror again and burst into laughter at his expression.

“Insufferable female,” he said. “I should have waited for a different vehicle last night.”

Zoey pressed her hand to her chest. “That cuts. It really does.”

She reallyshouldn’thave been enjoying it so much, but she was having more fun than she’d had in a long time. More than she’d ever had with Joshua.

Ren actually listened to her when she talked, and, apart from a few offhand comments, always took what she had to say into consideration. And the trust he’d placed in her thus far… It seemed wrong, given his situation, tolikefeeling needed, but she couldn’t deny it. He needed her help, and that made her feel good. He wasn’t just trying to mooch off her. Rendash genuinely needed her.

“You like me, admit it,” Zoey said.

He grunted, and she felt his leg shift against the back of her seat. The only way he could fit in her car had been to sit with his back to the passenger-side door, legs stretched across the rest of the seat. He’d slouched to mask his true size a little.

“I do,” he finally replied, perhaps a bittooseriously.

“I think that deserves a prize.” She reached into the bag sitting on the passenger seat and pulled out a Twix bar, holding it up. “Don’t think I didn’t notice that empty wrapper in the motel.”

His hand darted around the seat and snatched the candy bar from her grasp.

“It was moderately enjoyable,” he said over the sound of crinkling foil.

Zoey returned her hand to the steering wheel. “Oh? Well, in that case, I won’t buy anymore.”

“You may continue to obtain them, human,” he said through a mouthful of chocolate.

“What?Human, you say?”

“Are you of some other species? Have I been mistaken this whole time?”

“I suppose not,alien.”

“I certainly look the part of an alien, after yourmakeup.”

Zoey snickered.

“Thank you, Zoey.” His words were punctuated by a crunching of cookie.

“You’re welcome,” she replied.

She drove on in silence, focusing on the busy interstate around her. They were making decent time, but she hoped traffic would thin out and they could move a little faster once they left Vegas behind.

“There are far too many vehicles nearby,” Ren said after a while. “The likelihood of someone taking notice of me is great. Are there no other routes we can follow to avoid so many humans?”

“Ifsomeonehadn’t smashed my phone, I’d have easy access to maps that could show us all kinds of routes. As it is, this one is the most direct. I’mnotgoing to sit here with the road map I bought open on my lap, trying to puzzle out all the little lines around this city.”

“But if I am seen—”

“That’s what the disguise is for. Iknowit’s not good, and Iknowyou’re not comfortable, but just relax and keep looking ahead. Most humans avoid eye contact with each other while they’re driving, anyway. They have a lot of other stuff they’re focused on, and unless you cut them off, they couldn’t care less about you.”

“Cut them off? Is combat a frequent occurrence when traveling on this planet?”

“No. It’s if I were to swerve into another lane in front of someone without leaving much space between our cars.”

“How do your people keep track of their words when so many of them have multiple meanings?”

“Our language is ever-changing,” she replied, “but I guess it’s easier to keep up with when it’s all you know. Sort of. I’m still not sure whaton fleekmeans.”

Gaudy casinos rose over the interstate on either side. The only other time she’d driven through Vegas had been at night, when she’d first gone to California, while everything was lit up and gorgeous. It seemed to lack a lot of that magic during the day, but it was still a struggle to keep her eyes from wandering.

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