Page 74 of Her Alien Neighbor

Simultaneously, they say, “No,” but it’s clearly a lie, based on the volume and tone of their voices. Hmm.

I lean down next to Sam’s ear. “I’m gonna need to get that story from you later.”

She dismisses me with a scoff, waves hello to the rest of the brothers, and takes a seat on the couch in the center. “So, why am I here?”

Kyan, Zev, and Mylo make their way from the kitchen to the living room and take their seats. Axil remains standing by my side. “Right,” I begin. “I think the best way to do this is to lay it all out there at once.” I look to Axil. “Yeah?”

He nods, chewing on the inside of his cheek.

I take a deep inhale, then launch into it. “So, Samwich, these fine gentlemen are actually aliens from a planet called Sufoi. Their spaceship exploded outside of Earth’s atmosphere, and their pods crashed in the middle of the woods in the suburbs of Boston. They have the ability to change their skin color to any shade, and can hide their horns––yep, they have horns––at will.

“They can also shapeshift into these humongous dragon-type creatures that breathe fire. Several years ago, four of the five moved in next to my Aunt Franny, and they grew to be close friends with her. I, too, have gotten close to them,” I nod in Axil’s direction, “one of them, actually. Anyway, um, he’s not a fan of what Trevor did to us, and last night he ended up killing him. Any questions?”

“Yeah,” she replies. Her eyes dart between me and Axil, then she leans forward and rests her elbows on her knees. She lays her chin against her fist and sighs. “What are we planning on telling the cops?”

Mylo barks out a laugh. “That is your question?That?”

“Yes, why?” she replies with a serious face, looking somewhat offended.

“Out of everything Vanessa just said, your main concern is how we are going to handle the cops?” Kyan asks, narrowing his gaze at Sam.

“I mean, I figured there was something off about you guys,” she says, shrugging. “I just assumed you were serial killers, or part of some incestuous orgy ring, or something.”

“Um, you thought they were serial killers but didn’t think to tell me about that theory?” I ask, mildly insulted that she would just let me continue banging someone she thought was a murderer. Although, I suppose he is, technically.

“Well, I didn’t know for sure,” she says quietly. Then she throws her hands up. “You think I didn’t try to dig up more info on you all?” she shouts. “You’re four insanely hot brothers who willingly live together despite clearly having enough money to afford your own homes. That’s shady. None of you are on social media. Shady. And you chose to settle here in the middle of fucking nowhere,” she counts off on her fingers. “Shady, shady, shady.”

“Now that you know the truth?” Mylo says, his chin jutting forward as if eager for her response. Far more eager than anyone else in the room.

“Honestly, I’m relieved,” she says, leaning back and sinking deeper into the couch. “Aliens, I can handle. Serial killing orgy bros, I cannot.”

“That is fair,” Zev says with a smirk.

Wow, she’s taking this much better than I expected. Much better than even I did.

“Okay, so back to Trevor,” she says, looking at Axil. “How and why?”

I wince. I’m pretty sure I don’t want the answers to either of these questions. It feels safer to not know. Plausible deniability, and all that. “I don’t think we need to get into the details. What we should really be––”

“Wasn’t asking you, Vanilla,” she mutters dryly. Her brows lift as she continues staring at Axil. “Well?”

“Uh,” he begins, fidgeting with the button on the collar of his flannel. “I, uh, I do not wish to upset Vanessa, so…” he trails off.

I wait for him to expand on that, but when he doesn’t, I proceed with the paper-thin version of a plan that I currently have. “Okay, so I think we shou––”

“Actually, I changed my mind,” Axil declares, a muscle ticking in his jaw as he steels his spine. “I will tell you how. I will tell you everything.”

CHAPTER 20

AXIL

Iwant to deny it, if only to remove the look of horror on Vanessa’s face, but I cannot. The events of the previous night begin to play in my mind from the moment I left my mentor’s house earlier in the evening.

Rubbing my palms together, I address Sam. “How, you ask?”

A smile tugs at my lips as I turn onto Route 106 in Loudon. Another excellent dinner at Rick’s house. Upon finishing our root vegetable gnocchi, we went out to his shed and he showed me some new woodworking techniques he picked up from a recent trade show. He has been an invaluable resource when it comes to perfecting my work. He is also a generous, kind man. It is a shame he never got to meet Lady Norton. Perhaps they would have enjoyed each other’s company.

I notice I am running low on fuel, and since there is a storm coming later, it might be best to refuel now while the roads are clear. Pulling into the nearest gas station, I go through the motions, still thinking about the gnocchi. I should get the recipe from him. Perhaps it is a dish Vanessa would like.

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