Page 11 of The Alien Who Saved Christmas

“I mean… I’m trying to be open-minded about alien cultural norms.” She went on, ignoring his very logical pronouncement. “But my brain only opens so far. In my culture, things just don’t move that fast. We have to wait to have sex.”

“Until when?”

“We need-- like-- at least three dates.”

His translator told Xane “dates” were some kind of dried fruit. “Why does it matter that we have these things?”

“Because we need to be sure.”

“Be sure of what?”

“Each other.” She nodded, and brown curls bounced.

Xane’s mouth went dry, watching her magical hair glint. Her perplexing words faded from his mind, along with all rational thought. Gods, he wanted this woman. He had never been so sure of anything .

If she was a Weakness, it no longer mattered to him.

“We need to be sure this is what we want.” His tempting little bride went on, with no apparent comprehension of how precarious her situation really was.

Xane tried to find words that wouldn’t scare her.

It went against his nature, but now she seemed confused and wary.

He didn’t like that. “I am sure that I will never have another woman but you.” No one else would ever choose him.

Ever. “I am sure that I have no wish to waste any of my nights with the only female I will ever have. My sureness of you is immense.”

She frowned a bit. “You’ve never… um… been with a woman before?”

“No.”

“Like never? ”

He tilted his head, not wishing to lie. “Are you counting robots as women?”

“No.”

“Then never.”

“Have you been with men?”

“No, just robots.”

“So you’re a virgin?”

Xane shrugged, uninterested in debating the philosophical nuances of robotic sexuality.

“Oh.” Sadie mauled her lower lip. It was like she sought ways to torture him. “Well, wanting to experience sex isn’t really a good enough reason to sleep with me.”

“I can’t think of a better one.”

“Liking me. That would be a good reason.”

“I am your husband. I would die for you. Is that not sufficient?”

That seemed to surprise her. “You would die for me?” She edged forward, closer to him.

Xane made himself stay still, so he didn’t frighten her into retreat. “Of course. It is my duty, Sadie-Mal-Own.”

Just as it was his duty to help her with her plan to escape Corono.

It made more sense for him to try and keep her here.

Here she was dependent on him. Here he had a chance to hold her far longer.

But it was not safe for her on this planet, and so he had to get her off of it, as soon as possible.

“‘Sadie.’” She whispered. “I told you, it’s just ‘Sadie.’”

His eyebrows compressed. “You said you were named ‘Sadie-Mal-Own.’”

“I am. But, ‘Sadie’ is what people call me. The ‘Malone’ part is a family designation.”

“You come from an important family, then?” He wasn’t surprised. Without constant and expensive guards, she’d be long dead.

She shook her head. “I don’t have a family, anymore.

I was raised by my grandfather, but he died four years ago.

On Earth, people who are related to each other have the same last name.

And when they marry, women often take their husband’s…

” She broke off, like she didn’t want to say anything further.

Talk of marriage seemed to unsettle her.

“In your culture, women take the name of their mates?” Xane extrapolated. “Is Mal-Own the name of some former husband, then?”

She wrinkled her nose. “I never had a former husband.”

Satisfaction filled Xane. He didn’t know why, but he enjoyed being her first spouse. “So, you will take the name of my familial line, then.” Yes. He liked this custom. “My familial line is 1.”

“I have no clue what that means.” She said after a beat of confused silence. “Like… your last name is a number?”

“Yes. I am Xane 1. You can be Sadie 1.”

“No, I’m not going to be ‘Sadie 1.’ We’re not married, so…”

“We are married.” He interrupted firmly.

“You need therapy. Probably literally , given the trauma you’ve been through today.”

“I give others trauma. I do not experience it.”

“God, you’re just so… ergh! ” She made an exasperated sound, like she couldn’t decide on an insult, and stomped a foot. “I’m not arguing about this anymore.”

Xane watched her fume, inexplicably charmed by the small creature fate had dropped into his life.

“There is no argument. Until you choose another or kill me with your chaotic scheming, I am your husband. According to the laws of this planet, and my planet, and every other planet in the civilized world, it was sealed when you chose me.”

She didn’t say anything, but her brow furrowed in thought.

Slightly encouraged, Xane pressed onward. “I want my wife in my bed, every night that I have you. Even if you will not consent to sex, you need to stay beside me.”

He wasn’t shocked by her refusal to mate. He wasn’t sure how the process would even work, given the fact she was so… soft. He was certainly willing to try . Desperate to try. But had he been Sadie, he would have refused him, too.

“You want me to just sleep next to you?” She asked cautiously. “Just sleep?”

He would probably not sleep, for a variety of reasons.

Sexual frustration, obviously. The need to be on watch, in case the Vipri awoke.

Xane’s own mind, whirling with thoughts.

Concern that his strength was sapped and someone might have followed them from the bar.

He’d covered their tracks, but still, there was a risk.

“At least in the same room.” Xane told her. “I will get no rest, if you are sleeping elsewhere.” That was true. “The gods themselves cannot predict what sort of trouble you might get into, if I allow you out of my sight for long.”

Sadie’s brows compressed, like she was thinking it over. “You promise not to hurt me?”

“Rtaharions do not make promises. We let our actions speak.”

She made an irritated face. It was oddly adorable. Everything she did captivated him. “Fine. Let’s try this a different way: In broad and rhetorical terms, would a Rtaharion kill someone who’d saved his life today?”

“In broad and rhetorical terms, it would depend on why my life was saved and who saved it.”

“For argument's sake, let’s pretend it’s a dumbass like me and she did it because of your very beautiful eyes.”

Xane snorted. “Doesn’t sound likely.”

Sadie grinned at his dry remark, her aggravation fading. It did stupid things to his insides.

He sighed and surrendered to the inevitable. “No.” He vowed softly. “I would not hurt such a woman, if she somehow existed.”

No Rtaharion had ever pledged such a thing before, but then no Rtaharion had ever held such a fragile and irreplaceable prize.

Sadie considered him for a long moment. “I will sleep beside you, but I won’t have sex with you.

” She eventually decided. “That’s a fair compromise.

” She jabbed a finger at him. “And I am not admitting we’re married.

If you do anything to make me uncomfortable, I’m going to kick you off my spaceship. I mean it.”

Her decision frustrated him on multiple levels.

He wanted to have sex, which sadly wasn’t going to happen tonight.

Instead, his wife planned to sleep next to him, expecting him not to touch her.

And most infuriating of all, the crazy female thought that she had some kind of control over a situation that was clearly unsafe for her.

She should not believe him when he promised not to harm her.

They were just words! She should demand he prove himself, before trusting him.

“Do you not see the danger in this plan?” He asked before he could stop himself. Above all, it was Xane’s duty to protect her, even from Xane.

Sadie moved forward, again. Now she was directly in front of him, close enough to grab. All four of his hands clenched against the urge. “I never play it safe when my instincts are telling me to go for it.”

That was an unacceptable strategy. Xane respected instincts, but they needed to be tempered with reason. “I am three times your size. How would you force me off this ship, if I chose not to go?”

“You were a slave.” She answered simply.

His expression darkened. “And you think this means I will blindly follow orders?”

“No. I think it means you know what it is to be forced to do things you don’t want to do. So, I don’t think you’ll ever do that to me. I think you understand why it’s important to be caring.”

“Caring.” He repeated, wanting to curse and laugh at the same time. “I am a Rtaharion . We do not know the meaning of the word.”

“You are Xane .” She corrected. “You can figure it out.”

He glowered down at her.

She smiled up at him.

“You should run from me.” He instructed, still annoyed. “Anyone else would.”

“Maybe.” Sadie shrugged, more confident now. “But I’m betting you haven’t told anyone else you’d die for them.” She headed around him, unconcerned with his scowl. “Let’s go to bed, big guy.”