How To Break Up With An Alien (15 page)

"Oh." I cleared my throat and tried not to stare at how well the man cardigan fit against Ace's broad shoulders. Man cardigans may be one of the unsexiest things I'd ever heard of, but damn could he pull it off. "Mom, this is Ace. Ace, my mom, Wendy."

"It's nice to meet you." They politely shook hands and I could swear that my mom was even blushing.
Weird
.

"It's good to meet you too, ma'am. I've read all your books. I’m a big fan." Ace's smile got even wider.

"Really?" Mom raised her eyebrows as high as they could go. "All of Fona O'Hera's Irish romances?"

"Even the novellas."

Gag
. I rolled my eyes. I told Ace about my mom's writing, but I actually didn't think he would read her books. I couldn't even stomach that.

Mom smiled and I think she even got flustered. Her cheeks turned a bright red and she flubbed her words before she spit them out. "Oh, we'll, thanks."

"Okay, can we go now? I'm sure Ace would like to get out of the airport."

"Oh, yes, right." Mom nodded and went ahead of us.

I leaned over toward Ace, when I figured my mom was out of earshot. "Did you seriously read all of her books?"

He pulled his suitcase with one hand and took mine in the other. It was good to know that he didn't completely hate me, since his hands were practically on fire, which meant he was happy to see me.

"What else was I suppose to do on a three-hour plane ride?"

I glanced ahead to make sure my mom wasn't listening and then looked up at Ace. "I really appreciate that you came. I wasn't sure that you still would."

"And miss my first time riding on a commercial flight, sitting next to the most awful smelling man in the world? Nonsense!"

"And what the heck are you wearing?"

He let out a short laugh, shaking his head as he pulled down his cardigan. "I let Jen order some human clothes for me. She assured me this is typical guy fashion."

"Yeah, if you are a male model."

It wasn't too far from the arrival gate to the parking lot. The afternoon sun peeked through the sparse clouds and a light breeze picked up. Finally the sweltering days of summer were coming to an end and just in time. If I was burning up from the heat of summer, I didn't know how someone who was cold blooded like Ace could survive, especially with his mounds of clothing. I know they were supposed to cover up his temperature control suit, but he had to be burning up under all the layers of manly fashion.

"Are we not taking Alex's car?" Ace stopped at my mom's sedan while she unlocked the driver's door.

"How do you know that this isn't Alex's car?"

Crap
, how would he explain that he had actually seen and ridden in my car? I fumbled, trying to think of something to say.

"I'm sorry I just assumed that Alex didn't have a vehicle that was this nice, my apologies." He was quick and cool as a cucumber. Why couldn't I be that good?

"Oh, well, you would be right. I just thought it was better to take my car instead of Alex's." She stared over the car her, eyes sizing up Ace from head to toe. "But if she would have told me you were this tall I may have suggested her car."

"I'm sure Ace will be fine." I hurried into the front seat, hoping all the questions would just stop. Luckily, mom took that as a good enough answer and she got in as well with Ace climbing in the back.

The ride back to the house would have been better if it were silent, but mom couldn't help but give Ace the third degree and ask him question after question. But Ace had an answer for everything, even about his family.

"So do your parents live in Arizona, too?"

I gulped as soon as the words left my mom's mouth. But Ace just stared out the window, not even missing a beat.

"No, my father passed away when I was young and my mom isn't much of a desert person. I don't really see her much either."

"Oh." At least that got mom to stop asking questions. I hoped he didn't come off as snobby, but at least he told the truth, sort of.

We pulled down Cunningham and through the white picket fence that lined our neighborhood. Ace never stopped staring out the window as we passed each house until we finally pulled into our driveway. I jumped out of the car as fast as I could with Ace following close behind. I needed to get him alone, to talk to him about everything.

"Alex?"

Crap
, once we stepped into the kitchen from the garage I was hoping to just escape to the basement, but instead I turned toward mom.

"Why don't you show Ace around and let him put his things in the guestroom?" She crossed her arms and if I could read minds she was probably trying to tell me not to go off somewhere alone because she would be watching.

"Um, okay." I swallowed and turned toward Ace. "This is the kitchen." I waved my arms out to the side and walked backward from the kitchen. "And this is the living room." I stood in the middle of the living room, trying not to step on any of Elijah's toys spilled over the rug in front of the TV.

"And down the hall is the guestroom."

I could see that mom was still watching us from the kitchen. There was no way I would get him alone in the house. It looked like our conversation would just have to wait, or possibly never happen.

Chapter 29

The last time I went to one of our high school football games was when I was in band freshman year and they forced us to. Now I was actually going by choice. Of course mom wouldn't let us leave the house until we had a family dinner. Or more like so her and Brian had a chance to grill Ace some more.

Why I was going to the football game, I still didn't know. Part of me wanted to see what the big deal was with the Fall Ball game and another part of me just wanted to get out of the house and away from my parents. But then there was another teeny tiny part that just wanted to show off my hot alien arm candy.

"So, Ace, that is an interesting name. Were your parents big card players or something?" Brian always had a way with saying the wrong things and when he said it with his mouth full of pizza it made it even worse.

Somehow Ace still kept a smile on his face, setting his slice of pizza down and clasping his hands together. "It's actually a nickname, my real name is Machiavelli, and so you can see why I would rather go by something else."

A piece of breadstick went down the wrong pipe and I coughed, trying to get the clogged piece of bread out of my mouth, pounding my chest with a closed fist.

Brian and mom stared at me.

"Are you okay?" Ace patted my back.

I nodded, taking a drink of water and setting my glass back down. "Yeah, just went down the wrong pipe." Or I freaked out that he gave Brian his real name.

"Machiavelli, like the philosopher?" Brian could never let things go.

"The same." Ace's smile spread across his face. I may have been embarrassed by my balding stepfather, but Ace took everything in stride.

"Mister Ace?" Elijah hadn't spoken to Ace since he came home from preschool, just stared at him wide eyed like the neighbor's pit bull. This was the first time I had heard him speak in hours.

"Yes, Elijah?" Ace looked over at Elijah across the table.

"Did you come here in a magic spaceship like you usually do in Alex's bedroom?"

I couldn't breathe. Elijah did have a pretty big imagination, but somehow I knew that he had figured out Ace was different.

Ace just laughed and shook his head. "Not this time. I took a regular airplane."

"Oh, okay." Elijah nodded and took a big swig of his milk.

I cleared my throat. "Elijah sure does come up with some great stories."

"Oh, yes, he takes after his mother." Brian laughed, putting his big burly hand over my mom's and staring at her longingly.
Gross
.

"So, how did you two meet anyway?" Brian tore his gaze from mom's and looked over at me and Ace.

"The internship, you know that thing I was gone for all summer." I smirked, blotting my pizza with my napkin. I know pizza was our usual Friday night tradition, but I felt like it was all we had been eating lately. I guess it was better than my mother's attempt at cooking. She tried to make us homemade pizza once and we ended up with a burnt stove. How one could burn the inside of an oven was still a mystery to me.

Brian rolled his eyes. "I know that! But how? Did he see you across the room and it was just love at first sight?"

Ace and I looked at each other, sharing a knowing smile.

"I could never resist a girl that gives a thumbs up sign her first day on the job." Ace didn't even look over at Brian and kept his eyes on me.

I remembered the first time I saw his eyes, after I did the stupid thumbs up sign and got attacked for it. One would think that someone would tell them that a thumbs up sign was frowned upon in the alien world, but there were a lot of things that were kept from me. And now, now I was right in the middle of all things alien. Maybe it wasn't so bad after all.

"Are you too going to make out?" Elijah yelled from his end of the table.

Ace tried his hardest not to laugh, pulling his gaze from mine and looking down at his plate. If I knew his face could turn red, I was sure he would be blushing.

"Uh, well it is getting late and we don't want to miss kick off," I stammered, standing up from the table.

"Oh, is it already that time?" Mom stared back at the clock on the kitchen stove.

"Yep, time for us to head on out. You ready, Ace?" I looked down at him.

"Are you sure you don't want to stay a little longer? I think I have some frozen yogurt in the fridge." Mom stood up and walked toward our chairs.

I shook my head. "No, it's alright. We're fine. We won't be too long."

Ace stood up, pushing his chair in. "Thank you all for providing me with dinner." He nodded, almost bowing.

"It's no trouble at all." Mom waved her hand. "You two have fun now and we will see you when you get home. Don't be too late!"

I didn't even look back to make sure that Ace was following me as we headed toward the front door.

If it wasn't for Elijah being so young, mom and Brian might have actually asked to join us. Instead they had to stay home and put him to bed. Good thing because I had been waiting all day to finally talk to Ace.

Chapter 30

Ace and I got in my car. I pulled out of the driveway and through the neighborhood.

"I can't believe your mother allows you to drive this thing. It is a death trap."

"You are one to talk. Do you even have a license?" I turned to glance over at Ace, who was staring at my dashboard as if it were a disease. I just hoped he didn't try to open the glove compartment. I hadn't been able to get that thing open since I got the car and had no idea what was lurking inside.

"I have an earthly pilot's license."

"Psh." I rolled my eyes even though I knew he couldn't see it. "You don't need a pilot's license to be able to fly. I proved that one when I saved you from the queen's ship."

"Proof that I too do not need a license to handle this thing, or you for that matter." He leaned over nuzzling his face against my neck. His very touch still sent tingles through every part of me and I had to regain my composure so I wouldn't go off the road.

"So does this mean you aren't mad at me anymore?" I asked.

Ace let the air out through his nose and leaned back into his seat. "I was never mad at you. I just think there are certain things that we will never understand about each other and I'm okay with that."

"What?" I tried not to slam on my brakes as we came up to the only stop sign between my house and the high school. He threw me for a loop. I thought he was just mad about me accusing the queen of sleep creeping not upset about our whole relationship.

Ace stared out the front window. "We come from two different worlds and there are just certain things that we may never understand about each other's worlds."

"Um, where is this all coming from? Just because I think the queen is sleep creeping on people you automatically go back to the differences in our species."

Ace sighed. "Alex, you know we are different. It is something we have had to overcome since we first met." He took my hand in his and intertwined our fingers. "We will get through this, just like we always do."

"What differences do you mean? The fact that we are in some forbidden human and alien relationship or that I have better taste in movies?" I did my best to glance over at Ace without taking my eyes off the road too much.

"Always joking, Alex."

"What do you want me to say? That it sucks how we are from different planets and I just learned all this only a few months ago? Give me some time to get my head wrapped around it all." I tightened my grip on the steering wheel. This was not the conversation that I wanted to be having.

Ace let out a deep breath, squeezing my hand and then letting go. "I know how hard this all is for you and I'm sorry that I haven't been more receptive. I promise from now on I will try my hardest to let you in more. Tell you more about my world and everything that makes me tick."