Page 14 of Taming the Alien Outlaw
No, she doesn’t. “By all means, continue.”
She makes a strange noise that causes her body to jerk. Her laugh that follows strikes me in the gut. It is the first one that sounds genuine. There’s no bitter note to it, only true amusement.
“I think I might be a little drunk. Huh, so this is what it feels like,” Olivia muses with a glassy hue to her dark eyes.
“You have never been intoxicated before?”
She shakes her head. “Nope.” The word ends on a popping sound. “We couldn’t afford booze in the bottom tier. And most of us didn’t want to risk getting caught with illegal hooch.”
The spies I have within Horek’s guards mentioned the human females being from something called the bottom tier. It is, from my understanding, the poorest residents of their planet. Ones who do not have real food, but rather eat protein bars. They also rarely have enough credits to pay for other living essentials like a place to live. “How did you survive?”
Olivia’s gaze clears slightly as she looks at me. “Not having hooch?”
“No. This bottom tier where you came from.”
“What else were we going to do? Roll over and die? I mean, I’m sure those in the upper tier would have liked that, but fuck them if they thought I’d give them the satisfaction.”
“You’re a surviver.”
Olivia chuckles and downs the rest of her tavese. “More like stubborn bitch.”
One who is going to wake up with an aching head, no doubt.
She picks up a piece of flakis and wags it at me. “This is the best meat I’ve had. What is it?”
“Flakis.”
“Such an alien name.” Olivia giggles and pops it into her mouth. “Speaking of names. How did you know mine? I certainly didn’t tell you.”
“I had one of my lackeys—as you called them—find out for me.”
“When?” she asks around the food she’s chewing.
“When, what?”
“When did you ask your lackey to get it?”
Ah. “Right after you threatened to knee me in the sac the first time.”
Olivia crinkles her face. “That was almost a month ago. Moon cycle. Whatever you call it here.”
“Yes.”
She cocks her head slightly and stares intently at me. “I don’t understand you.”
It is my turn to laugh. “What’s there to understand?”
“You’re just not what I expected is all.”
“Whatwereyou expecting?” No doubt Olivia’s heard any number of stories about me and the other rebels from those under Alik’s rule. Especially since this friend of hers is mated to Commander Horek.
“I already knew you were arrogant.”
“Confident,” I remind her with a grin.
“Arrogant. But you also have a pet wolf who seems to really like you, although I have no idea why. You’re also not as…murder-y as I assumed you to be.”
It would appear that no matter how many times I say otherwise, Olivia won’t believe I’m not a murderer.
