Hazel and the Alien Biker (Intergalactic Brides 5) (8 page)

“It was one day, Reyvor. When you’ve gone a week without a drink, we’ll talk some more about it. Anyone can go a day or two. Show me you aren’t an alcoholic. Show me I can trust you, rely on you, and then we’ll see where we stand.”

“And in the meantime?” he asked.

“The girls and I would like to spend some time with you, get to know you better. Besides, you can offer them things I can’t. And I don’t mean expensive clothes. You could take them to the zoo, a museum, a movie… I can’t do any of those things. Ever since I lost my job, they’ve had to entertain themselves at home, until we had to leave and live on the streets.”

“And they can’t even do that now because they don’t have toys. I’m an idiot. I should have stopped at a toy store today.”

“If you take the girls, you’ll end up spending a fortune because they’ll want one of everything. If you really want to get them something, why don’t you leave us here to settle in and get unpacked? But don’t buy out the store! They only need one or two toys each to entertain themselves.”

He smiled, knowing he was going to do far more than that, but he would heed her warning about buying out the store. He didn’t want to get on her bad side by overindulging the girls, but he did want to spoil them a little. It was about time someone did. Reyvor had no doubt that when Hazel was working the girls had everything they needed, but how long had it been since someone had taken care of them properly?

Hazel finished putting away all the clothes and shoes Reyvor had bought for the girls and her, and then stood staring at his bedroom. Should she put his things away too? Would he want her snooping through his bag? He’d claimed he wanted her as his mate, which meant he didn’t have anything to hide from her, right? She straightened and marched into the bedroom and opened his bag. As she put his things away, she noticed there wasn’t a single pair of underwear in the bag.

Her cheeks flushed as she thought about him running around town commando. Now that she knew what he wasn’t wearing under his clothes, it was going to be harder to keep her hands to herself. When he’d kissed her, she’d never wanted him to stop, until reality had come crashing down on her. There were three little girls depending on her. She couldn’t just jump into a relationship without a care for the outcome. What if she jumped and everything went wrong? The longer they stayed with Reyvor, the more likely her girls would get their hearts broken. Hazel wasn’t entirely certain she still had a heart to give. The girls’ father had broken something inside of her during one of the many beatings, but she believed if anyone could bring her back it would be Reyvor.

So far, he’d handled her girls with a soft touch. She wouldn’t think about what his touch did to
her
. It hadn’t been a lie, when she’d told him his kiss was unlike anything she’d ever experienced. There had been more passion in a simple kiss than she’d felt making love with the girls’ father. She’d even started to think maybe there was something wrong with her, but now she had to wonder if perhaps her ex just hadn’t known what the hell he was doing.

Her lips tingled from the memory of that kiss. It would keep her warm tonight as she snuggled in the bed with her girls. Although it was going to be a tight fit. Maybe she’d use one of their sleeping bags and sleep on the floor. They deserved somewhere soft and warm to sleep for the night after the hell she’d put them through.

She heard their giggles in the other room as she put the last of Reyvor’s things away. Deciding it would be best to investigate what her munchkins were up to, she stepped out of his room and pulled his door closed. She didn’t want the girls going in there and messing with his things. They’d discovered the television and were laughing as they watched a silly cartoon. Hazel knew Nikki thought she was too old for cartoons now, but she was being a good sport and indulging her little sisters. Maybe one day she’d have her own TV and would be able to watch whatever she wanted. Until then, Hazel was grateful she was keeping the peace.

“What do you think of this place?” Hazel asked the girls.

“It’s better than any place we’ve lived before,” Winnie said.

“That’s because Reyvor’s rich,” Nikki sniped. “Unlike us.”

“Nikki! That’s a horrible thing to say. He’s more than just his wallet.”

“Not like we’ll ever get to find out. I bet he doesn’t want us hanging around forever. He’ll get tired of having to buy us stuff all the time. Why would he want a woman with three kids when he could find some young, hot girl who doesn’t have extra baggage?”

Tears filled Abby’s eyes. “But I want him to be my daddy.”

Despite the defiant tilt of Nikki’s chin, there was a vulnerability in her eyes. Hazel knew her daughter was like her, afraid to trust, and because of that Hazel decided to let go of her judgments and enjoy her time with Reyvor. What had she been teaching her eldest daughter? Nikki was too young to be so jaded, and Hazel knew she only had herself to blame.

“Reyvor has asked permission to get to know us better,” Hazel told them. “He would like me to consider marriage to him, but I told him things were moving too fast. At no point did he say he didn’t want the three of you. I’d think the amount of money and time he’d spent would show you he cares about each of you.” Hazel smiled. “He may even like the three of you better than he likes me. Instead of marrying me for money, maybe he’s marrying me for my kids.”

Nikki looked almost hopeful. “Would that be so bad? He could be our dad for real. Take us to the park, drop us off at school… I bet he’d even come to parent-teacher conferences and open houses.”

“I’m sure he would. He pointed out he doesn’t have a job so he would have plenty of time to spend with us. So, I’m going to ask the three of you something. Do you want Reyvor to be part of this family? Think about it hard. If something were to happen and he were to lose that big house and all of his money, would you still want him around? If you only want me to marry him because he’s rich, then none of us deserve him.”

“You like him,” Nikki said.

“He’s a nice man, Nikki. He gave us a meal when we were starving, and a safe place to sleep when anyone else would have turned us away. It would have been easy for him to drop us off at a shelter this morning, but instead he took us shopping and out to eat, then asked our opinion on a home he wanted to purchase.”

“So if he’s so great, why did you tell him you needed more time?” Nikki asked. “Shouldn’t you snatch him up before someone else does?”

Hazel smiled. “It doesn’t work quite that way, Nikki. Marriage to Reyvor is a forever deal. He doesn’t believe in divorce, so I need to make sure this is the right path for us to take. What happens if we don’t suit? What if we find out later he’s like your dad and will beat us?”

Abby scowled at her. “Reyvor would never beat us. He likes us.”

“I thought your daddy was a nice man too. It would be foolish to jump into a relationship with Reyvor when we don’t know much about him.”

“He lost his mate, Mom,” Nikki said. “Did you ever think maybe he’s lonely? He smiled at us and laughs with us, but there’s still a bit of sadness in his eyes. I think he misses her, and maybe being with us makes things better for him.”

Her daughter was too insightful.

“I’m sure things are better with us around, honey, but you don’t know the details of his relationship with his wife. Reyvor talked to me about her and they didn’t have a fairytale romance. I have my reasons for being cautious. He’s a nice man, but he isn’t perfect.”

“Neither are you,” Winnie said. “He’s handsome. I think you’re pretty, Mommy, but Reyvor could probably date a model if he wanted to. But he doesn’t want to, he wants to date you. I think you should kiss him and get married.”

All of her daughters were against her when it came to Reyvor. He’d completely charmed them, and she had to admit he’d charmed her too. She just refused to fall into another relationship completely blind. The things he’d said today about not having time for his mate, about the guilt he felt, were enough to make her reserved. What if he got tired of them? What if he woke up one day and decided he’d made a huge mistake? Like Winnie said, he was very good looking and could probably have any woman in the world, so why her? It wasn’t like he was in love with her.

No, but he’s just the sort of man you could fall for
. And it was true, he was. He’d been very considerate, overly kind, and had the patience of Job when it came to her children. But Hazel was afraid if she gave him her heart, he would break it. She’d survived the abuse from her ex, but she couldn’t survive losing Reyvor’s attention. She could feel herself blossoming under his care already. What would it be like a week from now? A month?

“Will you at least consider marrying him?” Nikki asked.

“I’ll consider it, but I’m not rushing into anything.”

Nikki narrowed her eyes at her mother before gathering her sisters close. The whispering began, but Hazel couldn’t hear a word of what they were saying. It wouldn’t surprise her if they were plotting her demise, they were so set on Reyvor being their dad. Not that she could blame them. He’d been wonderful with them since they’d landed on his doorstep. Even now, he was out buying toys for children he hadn’t known before yesterday.

The girls nodded and broke apart. Without so much as glancing her way, they went back to watching television, going so far as to turn the volume up. Hazel knew she’d discover their secret soon enough. Until then, she’d watch cartoons with them and wait on Reyvor to return.

She watched as the minutes ticked by and as afternoon became evening, she worried something had happened to the sexy alien. He’d been gone far too long to have purchased only a handful of toys. She should have asked for his number, but it hadn’t crossed her mind he wouldn’t return. Had he changed his mind about them? No… his clothes were still here. A knot formed in her stomach as she thought of the horrors she’d seen living on the streets. He could have been mugged, shot, held for ransom. Anything could have happened to him!

Her heart had just started to race when she heard the door open behind her. She jumped from the chair and whirled around, stifling her cry of relief as Reyvor stepped inside. Only for that cry to turn to a growl of frustration as she saw what had taken him so long. The driver and several hotel staff brought in bag after bag from the toy store. Her hands fisted at her sides as she heard her girls’ cries of joy. As Reyvor handed out Barbie dolls, stuffed toys, games, and other goodies, she realized something horrible about herself. She wasn’t angry he’d spent so much money on her girls. She was angry she hadn’t been able to do it.

Her children’s faces were alight with joy and laughter as they discovered the treasures hidden in the sacks. When Reyvor was finished passing everything out, had tipped the staff and shut the door, he turned to face her with a sheepish look on his face.

“I know I said I wouldn’t buy out the store, and I didn’t, but I couldn’t resist spoiling them a little. I’ve never had the opportunity to buy toys for anyone before and it was a lot more fun than I had imagined. Forgive me?”

Now she really felt like a bitch.

“I forgive you, but you really shouldn’t spoil them this way. They’ll expect you to buy them whatever they want whenever they want it.”

“And that’s a bad thing?”

She sighed. “Yes, Reyvor. That’s a bad thing. I don’t want them to grow up to be spoiled, self-entitled little monsters. From now on, no big gifts unless it’s a birthday or Christmas. Deal?”

His smile broadened. “Deal. You do realize you just insinuated I would be around for future birthdays and Christmas, don’t you?”

Her cheeks flushed. She’d certainly stepped in it that time. The words had just spilled out without thought. He looked downright gleeful and she couldn’t take the words back. Thankfully, her girls were so busy with their toys they were completely ignoring the adults in the room. Wait a minute. Those weren’t toys Nikki was playing with.

“Reyvor, what did you do?” she asked, pointing at Nikki.

“She seemed a little old for toys. I asked the sales lady what a girl Nikki’s age would want and she pointed me toward some popular dolls and stuffed animals, but with the younger girls getting so much more… I thought she might like a tablet and it doesn’t hurt for one of them to have a cell phone.”

“Reyvor,
I
don’t even have a cell phone.”

“That’s, um…” He cleared his throat and handed her a small sack. “That’s not entirely true.”

She peered inside and saw a smartphone she knew cost as much as the rent on her old apartment. She should be angry with him, really she should, but… No one had bought her a gift in a really long time, especially not one this nice. He’d gone out to buy things for her girls and had thought of her while he was away.

“Thank you,” she said softly. “You shouldn’t have, but I appreciate it.”

“I added Nikki and you to my plan so you don’t have to worry about anything. I just thought it would be nice if you had a way to contact either me or the Terran station if you were out and got into trouble. And I wanted Nikki to have a phone in case the girls needed help and no one was around. I want her to feel safe.”

Tears misted her eyes and her throat tightened. He was offering her everything she’d wanted these past few months, and she was being stupid and throwing it all away. Maybe her daughters were right and she should take down some of the walls around her heart and truly give Reyvor a chance.

“I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

She sniffled. “They’re happy tears. It’s been a long time since someone tried to take care of me.”

Reyvor reached for her, pulling her against his chest. His arms went around her, holding her close. She felt safe. Wanted. His touch was gentle as he wiped the tears from her eyes and another crack formed in the wall around her heart. Would loving Reyvor really be so bad?

They’d had a wonderful dinner at a five star steak restaurant, despite the fact they weren’t really dressed for it. The diners around them had worn fancy dresses and suits, but none of that had mattered to Reyvor. He’d been determined to show his girls a good time, and if the restaurant had thought something as silly as a dress code was going to stop him, they had been sadly mistaken. Once the manager had gotten a look at his little group, he’d immediately chastised the man standing at the podium -- there was a name for someone in that position, but hell if he knew what it was -- and had seated Reyvor near the windows.