Page 5 of Swept By The Alien Pirate Prince

“It would make sense,” I agreed. “When she was doped out, I could always tell. At first, anyone would be able to see it, but after a while — when she really started getting into the stuff hard — she was able to hide it better.”

“From you?” Carmela asked, her eyebrows arching.

“From everybody,” I said. “She tried to hide it from me, too, but I always had a better sense of being able to see when she was high.”

The color drained from Carmela’s cheeks again and her eyes flickered to her lap. “Because you were involved with her.”

“Yes, that was part of it. I knew her better than anyone. I knew when she was keeping something from me. I learned to see the warning signs, no matter how hard she tried to veil them.”

“That’s so manipulative.” Carmela puckered her lips as if she’d just tasted something sour.

“That’s the way Amada has always been,” I confessed. “After we broke up for good the final time, I knew she’d picked the habit back up. She tried even harder to keep it a secret from me, but like you mentioned before with the dilated eyes and everything — I was already familiar with the signs.”

“I’m so sorry you have had to deal with her selfish issues on top of everything else you’re going through,” Carmela said, her eyes shimmering with affection.

She took my hand in hers and kissed my palm.

“It all worked out in the end for me,” I said. “I have you now.”

Carmela blushed and her smile was humble, but grateful. “You’re just being sweet.”

“No, I’m not. I really mean it," I said.

Carmela leaned across her seat and pressed her lips to mine. Her kiss was delicate. It was like she was trying to show me without using words how much she cared for me. She was so much more emotionally balanced than Amada ever was, even when Amada was sober.

We were in a life-threatening situation but that didn’t mean I couldn’t count my blessings — and I often did.

When Carmela pulled away a few moments later, she kept her hands cradled around my chin. She traced the outline of my jaw with the tips of her fingers and smiled at me with so much passion that it made my head spin.

“I hope your guards caught her in the back.”

“I don’t want you to worry about it.”

“I worry about everything,” Carmela argued.

“You care about everyone, that’s why.”

Carmela shrugged and tucked her chin into the dent of her shoulder. She looked pensive.

“Amada is a threat, yes, but I am confident that they have her under control, even with all the ship moving I had to do.”

“It was scary,” Carmela admitted. Her features went from sobered to humored in a glimmer of a second. “Not as scary as Amada’s face, though.”

“If she is using again, it will only add to her impulsive behavior and her obsessiveness,” I admitted.

“It explains a lot, though,” Carmela said and brushed her fingers through her auburn hair.

“I should have told you sooner,” I said, guilt grounding me.

“You’ve had a lot on your plate,” Carmela sympathized.

“What about you?” I asked.

Carmela turned her head and gave me a puzzled frowned. “What about me?”

“How are you dealing with all this stuff? Are you okay?”

Carmela’s grin reached her eyes in seconds. “No, I’m freaking out.”

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