The New Guy

BY

V.C. Lancaster

Text Copyright 2017 V.C. Lancaster

All Rights Reserved

Table of Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Chapter 28

Chapter 29

Chapter 30

Chapter 31

Chapter 32

Chapter 33

Chapter 1

“Okay, everyone, sit down, sit down, come on in.”

Maggie’s boss, Derek, stood at the front of the room, ushering the department further inside. With him stood five Teissians, looking strange in suits and ties that had obviously been made for humans and so hung loose or pulled tight in places. Maggie tried not to stare as she shuffled between the tightly packed rows of chairs that had been put out.

Everyone was curious, and the Teissians shifted nervously, some of them trying to smile at their audience, others glancing at each other in silent comment. The humans tried not to trip over chair legs or bump into each other while also keeping one eye on the aliens. Maggie took her seat when Lucy sat down in front of her, and tried to see more of the newcomers.

 Their scales were shades of green that went from yellow to black, and only one of them was significantly taller than an average human. Maggie couldn’t see much, as her co-workers were still moving along the rows in front of her, and she didn’t want to crane her neck to look at them as if they were an exhibit. The suits they wore covered a lot more of their bodies than the clothes other Teissians in the building preferred, which tended to leave their arms and lower legs free. The group looked like a mix of the different Teissian races, four males and one female. One of the males leaned over to whisper something to the one next to him, who appeared to shush him.

As the last of the Enquiries department took their seats, shifting as they got as comfortable as they could, Derek crossed the room to shut the door.

“Thank you all for coming,” he said with a managerial smile. Derek was a good boss, always willing to listen to issues and do his best to resolve them, but other teams had more cause to deal with him than Maggie did. She rarely had any complaints and didn’t deal with cases big enough to warrant his attention. He clapped his hands together and held them, apparently taking a moment to find his words, which was strange. He rushed on to cover it.

“I know we’ve all been busy recently dealing with all the extra cases coming in-”

That was an understatement. It was three days after the closing of Earth’s borders following the destruction of the Tiberius, and the mega-load of refugees who had arrived before the deadline had created a storm of uncertainty in the Teissian community, and not just in the new arrivals. Maggie had never known it to be so frenzied, and that made her wonder how they could afford to take the time out to have this meeting. The thought of the calls she must be missing made her anxious.

“But we’ve got some extra help now!” Derek said cheerily. She had known him since she started almost four years ago, and she thought he seemed to be floundering. She wondered just when he had found out about these newcomers.

“These helpful folk here have been assigned to our department to help us cope with the new volume of calls. I’ll let them introduce themselves in a moment, but just to fill you in a bit more, these new people are going to act as interpreters. We’re going to set up a new option in the menu to allow Teissian callers to speak to an assistant in their own language. This will hopefully relieve some of the pressure by creating clear pathways for callers, and reducing cultural misunderstandings. They will be going one to a team, and I will let you know their placements at the end.”

Maggie nodded along dutifully. She’d take all the help she could get, though she didn’t think she had the time to be training anyone new right then. It wasn’t the best atmosphere for new people to get settled in. But there were more than five teams in Enquiries, so not every team would be assigned a new person. Maggie’s team, Incomings, could use one though. There were other Teissians working throughout the department, but Maggie was one of five humans and they just had to do their best if they got a client whose English didn’t include the right vocabulary to talk about their tax or visa.

“Now I’ll let your new co-workers introduce themselves so we can all learn their names, and we can stop talking about them as if they’re not in the room.” There was a nervous chuckle as the polite ones in the audience acknowledged Derek’s joke, and he conceded the floor to the Teissians, who looked alarmed at having the spotlight suddenly thrown on them.

After a moment’s hesitation, the one closest to Derek stepped forward, obviously not relishing having to go first.

He was the darkest of the line-up, his scales a matt obsidian. Even his eyes seemed to be black from where Maggie was sitting. He had markings on his face and head, hot pink crescents on his cheeks that curved underneath his cheekbones like backwards Cs, and the ridge that ran along the top of his head from front to back was the same colour. Like all Teissians, his hands had two thick fingers and a thumb, each tipped with bone claws that were bright white against his dark scales.

“What should I say?” he asked Derek. His voice was soft and deep, with an accent that made him enunciate carefully and clearly. Maggie suddenly hoped he was on her team, or that they all sounded like that. He would be a dream on the phone.

Derek gave him a welcoming smile. “Just give your name, a little about yourself, so we know who you are.”

“My name is-” He seemed to catch himself. “Ro,” he continued, dragging the syllable out slowly, watching Derek for approval. Maggie knew from the various forms she processed that Teissian names were incredibly long, and they tended to choose a single syllable out of them to make things easier on the humans around them. It looked like this could be the first time Ro was introducing himself with his shortened name. Derek smiled and nodded encouragingly.

“I am from Bala. I arrived on Earth five days ago. I am happy to be working here.”

Derek nodded, and Ro stepped back into line in relief. Maggie hadn’t heard of Bala before. She hadn’t heard any of the Teissians refer to being from anywhere but Teiss before, but she felt stupid now for not wondering about it earlier. She knew there were different races, it made sense they would be from different places, different countries or continents.

The male next to him stepped forward. He was almost as dark, but there was a green tinge to his scales, and he had dark red stripes that followed under his eye sockets and marked out the ridge on his head.

“I am Kez. I am also from Bala. I also arrived five days ago.”

Maggie was growing concerned as the two of them announced they had only been on Earth for five days. Was it normal that they already be working? Weren’t there other Teissians who could have been assigned these jobs to give the new arrivals a bit more time to settle in? She knew a great emphasis was placed on integration, but these people didn’t seem to have sorted out their wardrobe yet, and they were already being expected to work? But maybe they had volunteered. She didn’t know what the atmosphere was like at the dorms. Maybe this was totally normal. After all, the Teissians were supposedly taught everything they needed to know on the transporter ships.

The next was a male who was all leaf-green, with yellow eyes and no special markings who identified himself as Tur. Then a male with a deeper green colour who was six inches taller than the rest introduced himself as Las. And finally the yellow-green female introduced herself as Mie. These three were all from Vol, though Maggie didn’t know where that was, or how it differed from Bala. None of the new recruits had been on Earth for longer than a week.

Maggie tried hard to remember their names, mouthing them as they spoke, imagining herself saying them. She wanted to look friendly. She couldn’t imagine moving to another planet. Maggie realised she didn’t actually know that much about how it worked on Teiss, or the transporter ships. She just knew what everyone knew: that Teiss had been infested by the Ypex, who the Rhacahr were waging a generations-long war against; that the trip from Teiss took two years and during that time, the refugees were taught languages and other skills they could use to find employment on Earth.

When the female stepped back into line with the others, Derek hesitated in case there was more to come, but the Teissians were clearly finished and uncomfortable being the centre of attention. “Thank you!” he said. “Now we all know who you are, I’ll explain to everyone how things are going to change…”

Derek then took five minutes to outline what updates would be made to the system and the caller menus to integrate this new ‘mother tongue’ option, and how it would affect their reporting procedures and case allocations. He used enough office jargon that Maggie thought it would be impossible for the newbies to understand, so she guessed he was trying to be quick and would leave it to the team managers to get their new person up to speed. Listening to him, Maggie tried to follow, but all she could think was that this was either going to turn into a big mess, because cases would be opened in a load of different languages, or it was going to make no difference at all because beneath Derek’s fancy managerial speak, it sounded like the same system they had always used.

Her eyes strayed back to the black Teissian with the nice voice, Ro. He looked like he was doing his best to follow along with Derek’s explanation, though he couldn’t have a hope to. Maggie resolved to make sure he was alright, whatever team he ended up on.

Derek opened the floor to questions, and took a few that related to the specifics of other teams, nothing that concerned Maggie. She imagined, if she got one of the new recruits, that she would just train them up as usual. On her team it was easy, there was a script, though it was only available in the most common Earth languages. She could see that it would be a good idea to get it translated into the Teissian languages, though none of her team could speak any of them, as far as she knew. She wondered why it hadn’t been done already, but then she guessed they weren’t much use if you didn’t understand what you were saying or what was being said. Maggie couldn’t, she had never taken languages at school nor at work, though maybe it would have furthered her career if she had. She knew DETI offered them, but it had never occurred to her that it would be something she would be good at.

“Alright, there’s just one more thing. I’ll let you teach these guys the basics today, because the new menu rolls out tomorrow, so we need our interpreters. I know a day isn’t much, but I trust you to support them in every way you can in this busy time. I think that’s everything for now, I’ll let you go. If I could get Kamal, Vicky, Kira, Jason, and Maggie to stay behind for a moment?” Derek finished.

Maggie looked at him in surprise as everyone else stood up to begin picking their way through the chairs to the door, some of them stopping to introduce themselves to the Teissians. She knew the others, they were the team leaders of Employment, Accommodation, Visas, and Requisitions. But she didn’t know why she had been included.

As the crowd thinned, Maggie made her way to the front of the room where Derek was standing with the team leaders, the Teissians gathered around them. She tried not to look out of place, but she knew the other humans at least knew she was. Derek gave them all a reassuring smile.

“Okay, so! As you might have guessed, yours are the teams these guys are going to be joining. If I could get Mie to go with Vicky, she’ll show you Visas. Kamal and Tur will go to Employment. Las and Kira can go to Accommodation. Kez and Jason to Requisitions. And Maggie and Ro to Incomings.” Derek looked around at the group. “Alright?” he asked.

There was a general murmur of agreement as the managers introduced themselves to their charges, shaking hands and exchanging smiles, gesturing them out of the room. Maggie stepped back to allow Kamal to pass her, trying to get a moment with Derek while Ro was distracted, but she failed. As the others trailed out, it was painfully obvious that she, and therefore he, was not going anywhere.

“Um, Derek, can I ask…?”

“Sure Maggie, what’s up?”

“Well, I’m not a team leader,” she said. She tried to speak quietly, but she knew if she wanted Derek to hear her, Ro would too. She glanced at him and he smiled pleasantly, a thin smile that only showed the barest strip of white between his lips.

“You’re the most senior member of the Incomings team,” Derek argued. “You’ve been training the new hires for years.”

“I know but… One day isn’t much.” She glanced at Ro again. She didn’t want him to think he was getting the loser team, or that she didn’t want him there.

Derek put his hand on her arm to get her attention. “Don’t worry about it, you’ll do great,” he encouraged her with a smile. “And if the new system works well, we’ll expand it to the other teams. Incomings might need a team leader then, eh?”

“Really? But you always said we didn’t need one, because we’re not specialised.”

He shrugged, and gathered up the few notes he had lying around. “You’re a great member of staff, Maggie. You’re friendly, you’re loyal, and you’re experienced. You’ve stuck with Incomings longer than anyone else I know. If anyone is going to be team leader, it should be you. Obviously I won’t force you if you don’t want the promotion. I’ll let you figure it out,” he said with a wink. “Now, why not show Ro to his desk and get him started, hmm?”

Derek didn’t stay behind to make sure she did, ducking past Ro instead to head presumably for his office so he could get some work of his own done. Ro let him pass with a bemused smile, then turned back to her, awaiting instruction.

Maggie tried not to wince at the impression she must have given him. “Sorry about that,” she said. “I hope you don’t think I have a problem with you joining me, I just wanted to make sure you got the best deal. Incomings has a pretty high staff turnover.”

“Pretty high staff turnover?” he queried, the individual syllables clipping out of his mouth as if he was rolling them like dice, examining them. His voice was soft and smooth like fresh sheets, and Maggie tried not to show her reaction to it. She was standing close to him now, close enough to smell him, and he had a dry smell like fragrant smoke.

“It means people leave. I train them up and they move to a different team,” she explained. From this distance, she could see that his eyes had an iris of a lighter colour, a very dark brown. “It’s not because of me, it’s just the work. It doesn’t have much… room for ambition.”

“Oh, I see,” he nodded, holding her eyes. He shrugged. “I have been assigned to you, and I would still like to learn if you will teach me. This is my first job here. I am interested to see how things work. I imagine it will take me a long time to learn.”

Maggie smiled, feeling somewhat reassured. “Not too long, I hope. We only have a day before I have to put you to work.”

Chapter 2

Reminding herself to be professional, Maggie led Ro out of the meeting room and across the department floor to the bank of desks where the Incomings team sat. They were the first set of desks in front of the doors, as if whoever had arranged them like that had imagined that people might come to see them in person. The four other members of her team looked up as they approached, and Maggie saw that her desk had been moved, so that now instead of facing down the two rows of two desks, it faced a new, empty desk in two rows of three.

“Ro, this is Lucy, Alex, Nina and Ben, they’re the Incoming Enquiries team,” Maggie introduced. The others had been in the meeting so she didn’t labour the formalities too much. They were clearly curious and excited to be working with a Teissian, but they were also all engaged one way or another. Maggie’s earpiece was silent where it sat on its little cradle, but a light was flashing in the desk screen to tell her she had missed calls and voicemails. She wouldn’t think about them for now, she needed to focus on getting Ro ready to answer calls of his own.

Maggie pulled out her chair and sat down, gesturing for Ro to take the seat at the desk opposite her. After so long, it felt strange to have her desk in a different position, and to be facing someone. Normally she was able to survey her whole team, able to spot any trouble and jump in if a caller was getting difficult or someone was getting lost. This position felt like she was being reminded that Ro was her priority for the immediate future.

“Did they tell you anything about what we do here?” Maggie asked him.

He shook his head.

“Did you even apply for this job? I’m just wondering because no one told us they were hiring.”

“I applied for a work allocation along with my accommodation and citizenship. It is part of the process. I was offered this position and accepted. That was yesterday.”

“Right,” Maggie said. It sounded like DETI had acted fast at least to deal with the surge in demand, even if she would have preferred to be training someone who had at least read a job description and knew what they were getting into.

“Well, it’s not too complicated,” she began. “What the Incoming Enquiries team do is receive messages from the public – in whatever form they take – create a case file, and assign it to the relevant department, unless it’s something simple we can answer ourselves. Even if it is, we still have to create a file for it, with a reference number and everything, so that DETI can log productivity and demographics and so on. The more cases we close on our own, the better it looks, but it’s not worth the risk of getting something wrong. If you don’t know or you’re not sure, you can ask someone on the team, and they’ll be able to tell you where to direct it.

“The information we take from the client helps the higher-ups decipher patterns like who have the most questions, or what questions are most common, and that helps them refine the immigration services they provide, as well as the information they provide to the human public. So the first thing we do is fill out a form like this.”

Maggie pulled out her tablet and brought up the form. It was simple, with slots for the client’s name and contact details, and a box for a description of the problem. She passed the tablet to Ro so he could look at it. He tapped the screen to zoom in and scroll, and she was relieved to see his claws wouldn’t be a problem.

“You fill that out from the email or while you’re taking the call, and when you click ‘Create File’ it will add it to the database and assign a reference number.”

Ro nodded along as she explained.

Creating a case file didn’t take long. Depending on the question, Maggie could do it in under five minutes. She knew the rest of the Enquiries department saw them as their secretaries, their receptionists. It was their job to answer calls and respond to emails. Maggie didn’t have a problem with what she did though.

Incomings was about good customer service. It was about solving people’s problems. On the surface, it was answering the phone, and forwarding emails, and redirecting enquiries to the relevant teams. But it was also about being polite, and kind, and compassionate, even when the client wasn’t. It was about thinking on her feet, and being ready for anything, and facing the unexpected with a smile. Some days Maggie would get the same question she’d answered thirty times that day, and sometimes she’d hear something she’d never heard before.

To be good, she had to have a working knowledge of every single team on the floor, in the building, even. She had to know everything about DETI so she could direct enquiries to exactly the right person. She knew more names, extensions, inboxes, opening hours, shift patterns, and break times than anyone else she could think of. She almost never had to consult her directory anymore, and she prided herself on never transferring a call to an unmanned desk. She knew who was busy and who had time, she knew who preferred to deal with what kind of enquiry. Some people liked the simple, rote stuff, and some people liked the complicated stuff, and she made sure everyone was kept happy.

“To help us, we have this directory, and a script.” Maggie opened her drawer and pulled out her old directory. It was scribbled on as changes had been made over the years, but it was what she had at the moment and it was meant to be an example. She passed it to Ro. “That’s got all the extensions and inbox addresses for all the DETI staff. It’s confidential so be careful. Once you figure out where an enquiry needs to go, you just forward it to somebody on the right team from in there. We can get you one of your own later.”

“This is the script you’ll be using. It’s in English, I’m afraid, so I don’t know how useful it will be to you. I suppose it would be difficult to try to translate it as you’re talking to somebody. We have mail templates for written enquiries which I can share with you.”

She watched him flick through the dusty folders, checking that he didn’t look overwhelmed. “How does that sound? We have everything set up for the basics, and if you don’t know what to do, just ask me.”

He looked up at her and nodded, smiling politely. “Very helpful,” he said.

“Do you have a log-in yet?”

Ro glanced at the computer as if checking that was what she meant. “No.”

“Do you have a staff card?”

“No.”

“Okay, we can get you those. Do have I.D. and proof of employment?”

“I have the offer they sent me, telling me to come here,” he said.

“That’ll do. Why don’t we go and get you set up with I.T. and I’ll give you the tour of the building? You won’t be able to do anything if you don’t have clearance,” Maggie said, getting to her feet and inviting him to join her.

As they walked out of the office together through the big glass double doors that looked fancy but could be a pain to open, Maggie looked Ro up and down again. The suit really did not fit him, wouldn’t fit any Teissian she suspected. It pulled tight across his knees, though they weren’t where knees would be on a human, and hung off his torso as if he was emaciated. The sleeves were too short, showing his wrists, and she wondered how he had managed to slide his hands through, since they looked wider than a human’s. The seams for the shoulders on the jacket were in the wrong place, and his shirt was barely long enough to be tucked in, his belt seeming to ride very low, making his torso look elongated.

He was also wearing shoes which she couldn’t remember seeing a Teissian do before. They were standard office-wear shoes, but even they looked funny somehow, too long and too wide, and she got the feeling he wasn’t walking comfortably.

Working at DETI, she had seen plenty of Teissians from all departments. Those who worked for the support teams wore uniforms which had been altered to accommodate Teissian bodies. They wore tight trousers that were cropped to allow for their elongated heel that acted almost as a second knee, and the talon that some of them had. They didn’t wear shoes, but dark rubbery socks that left the claws on their two toes exposed. Maggie knew some of them wore loose polo shirts that had slits in the sides, while some others wore tight sleeveless shirts or T-shirts.

The DETI employees without uniforms wore more varied clothes. She had seen them wear wrapped skirts as well as capris, and loose clothes on top, sometimes with a wide-sleeved jacket. They were always in professional colours, and sometimes they wore ties or something resembling one. Maggie wondered where they got clothes that fit them so well but still looked close enough to human to comply with the dress code.

Maggie wouldn’t comment on Ro’s clothes though. It was obvious he was trying, and he hadn’t even been on Earth for a week. His life must have been in chaos, especially since the support he could normally have expected from DETI and the Teissian community leaders at the dorms would have all been rerouted to the emergency arrivals that rushed in before the border closed. She would give him a couple of weeks to get sorted, and get the feel of the office and maybe talk to some of the other Teissians who worked there, then if he still looked uncomfortable she would offer her advice. She couldn’t imagine how he could wear shoes, unless his feet were radically different to other Teissians.

She decided they would take the elevator rather than the stairs, just in case.

“I’ll take you to Security first to get your staff credentials set up, then we can go to I.T. to get your system access. Then we might check out Printing to see if they’ve got any up-to-date copies of the directory or script for you. If you’d like it in a different language, just ask, but we only have Earth languages at the moment. I can see if Derek will okay a request to Language Services for a translated version. We should have that anyway, I think. It’s a good idea. If I say anything you don’t understand, stop me.”

Ro chuckled as if it was too late for that, and Maggie looked at him, amazed. He really did have a nice voice. He could do voice-overs for adverts. He deserved to be broadcast. She wondered if she should tell him, point out his chance at stardom, but she wanted him on her team for at least a little while.

He noticed her look. “I will… pick it up as I go along?” he said carefully, stirring the air with his claws as if searching for the words. He smiled, and Maggie got a proper look at the white dental ridges Teissians had instead of teeth. She smiled back, and wondered what he thought of the differences between them.

They reached the elevator and got in. Security had their offices in the basement, which was only one floor down.

“You’re doing very well, I must say. Your English sounds perfect.” Maggie tried not to cringe as she heard herself compliment him a little too enthusiastically. She would have to make sure her crush on his voice didn’t become too obvious, or unprofessional. She would hate to make him uncomfortable.

“Thank you,” he replied. “The transporter ship that brought me from Teiss had a human crew. I enjoyed talking to everyone on board.”

“What languages do you speak? I only ask because you’re going to be our interpreter, and I don’t want to put you on the spot with someone you don’t understand.”

“I speak Balin and Balor, and enough Volin though I am not fluent, and less Volon than that. And English, of course. A little Spanish.”

The doors dinged and they got out. The basement levels were brightly lit, with white painted cinder block walls. Anyone was allowed into this corridor, but to go further required clearance she didn’t have. She led them over to an empty reception desk and pressed a button for service.

“That’s an impressive list. I feel quite inadequate. I only speak English.”

Ro’s eyes widened. “I didn’t mean to offend you!” he rushed.

Maggie giggled and waved him off. “It’s fine, it’s my own fault. I should take a few language classes or you’ll be after my job,” she laughed.

“I wouldn’t!” Ro insisted, clasping her arm. She looked at him in surprise and he snatched his hand back. “I am sorry,” he said, hanging his head and looking like he wanted to retreat.

“Ro, it’s okay. I don’t mind. I was just messing around. I know you won’t steal my job, not after a day. You don’t need to be careful around me. I’m training you, but I’m not your boss. We’re equals,” she said, trying to reassure him. His hand had felt hard through her clothes, his grip firm, but he hadn’t hurt her, not even with his claws. It had been an alien touch, his fingers fewer and thicker than a human’s, and his thumb longer, but it hadn’t been unpleasant, not at all.

He peeked at her, and she had the strangest impression that brown eyes didn’t suit him, they looked at odds with the rest of his face somehow.

She changed the subject. “What’s your mother tongue? I’m sorry I can’t tell,” Maggie asked, a little awkward at not knowing enough about the Teissian races to be able to tell which one he belonged to.

He smiled at her. “I am Balin,” he said.

“Oh, of course, you said you were from Bala at the meeting. Am I saying that right? Bala? I should have remembered.”

“Bala, yes. And that is alright. Would you like to know how to tell the different Teissians apart?” he offered.

He seemed sincere, not like he was being sarcastic or making fun of her, or like she had offended him. Still, Maggie wanted to tread carefully. She didn’t want her ignorance to be taken the wrong way.

“I’d be interested to hear it from you,” she hedged.

Ro held up his hands. “Balin have curved claws,” he said, tracing the tip of one over the other, miming a hook though the bone itself stopped short of that. “So we are encouraged to file them down if we are going to be typing. And our scales are very dark, with colourful… hmm… spots?” He brushed his claws over the pick patch on his cheek to draw her attention.

Maggie nodded at his choice of words. “I know what you mean.”

A Teissian security guard appeared behind the desk, giving Ro a nod of recognition or solidarity. “How can I help?” he asked.

“Ro is starting with us today and we need to get his staff card set up,” Maggie explained.

The officer nodded and collected Ro’s I.D. and other paperwork, then went into the back office to check it all over. Maggie had done this enough times with new people to know that the guard would be doing a quick background check, making sure he really had been offered and accepted the job he said he had, and just that everything was in order. It would probably take longer than usual, since DETI was still in high alert after the loss of the Tiberius.

Left alone again, Ro picked up their conversation again. “The Vol people are greener. Volin have wings, and Volon are very tall. That is how you can tell,” he informed her with a smile.

“And what about the fourth one, the Balor?”

Something flickered across Ro’s face, his smile dropping for a second before he pulled it back, but he looked away from her.

“The Balor… wear lots of colourful clothes. They like to show wealth,” he said, but he sounded like he had to un-grit his jaw to do it.  

“I’m sorry, should I not have asked about them?” Maggie worried.

Ro seemed to relax again and waved her off. “It’s fine,” he said with a smile.

Maggie didn’t want to press, so she let it go. “If there’s ever anything you want to ask me, you can,” she said, trying to cover the stilted atmosphere.

“I will,” Ro replied.

They got a temporary, limited access staff card for Ro when the security officer came back. HR had yet to confirm him ‘in post’ so it would be a few days before he could get the proper one, but the one they gave him would get him access to the offices so he could do his job.

I.T. used the card to generate a log-in profile for him, and they dug out a special earpiece for him that would fit him better than the ones designed for humans. Maggie hadn’t even thought of that, though she realised she should have. He was happy to use the rest of their technology, like the keymaps and tablets, because that was what he had learned to type with on the ship.

Printing had a stack of directories to hand, so they had no trouble getting Ro one of those, and they would deliver a new copy of the script before the end of the day. They said they would need a file from Language Services before they could print a Balin version, so Maggie made a mental note to ask Derek to put a job through to them.

Maggie offered to help carry the increasing load of folders and maps and forms and contracts Ro was being weighed down with at every visit, but he refused, so she took them back to Enquiries when they were finished with their errands so he could leave it all on his desk. She asked the others how it was going, and got a variety of looks that made her feel bad for not being able to help.

“Fine,” said Lucy.

“Busy,” said Nina.

Alex and Ben were in the middle of calls and couldn’t answer.

“I’ll be able to help catch up this afternoon,” Maggie said apologetically.

Nina hummed sceptically.

“Okay,” said Lucy.

Maggie knew they weren’t really mad, just busy, so giving them up for a lost cause, she gestured for Ro to follow her out again so she could give him a tour of the building and go over the fire procedures and first aid points.

She found him surprisingly easy to talk to as she led him around, introducing him to the people they dealt with the most and filling him in on all that DETI did and how Incoming Enquiries fit into all of it. By the time she was finished, it was lunchtime, and she took them back to their desks so she could collect her things.

“You can take an hour. There’s a café in the lobby, or the staff canteen is on the top floor. You can also go out for lunch if you want, there are some restaurants nearby. It’s up to you. I’ll keep you company if you want, but I understand if you need some time to think about something else.” She laughed. “It’s meant to be your break after all.”

Before Ro could reply, one of the other new Teissians, Kez, came up behind him and brushed his back, laying his clawed hand on Ro’s shoulder and tipping his head at the doors.

“Lunch, fila?” he said. Maggie assumed the word was some form of Balin address. Kez’s voice was not rich like Ro’s, but crackled like tin foil.

Ro glanced at her, about to say something, but Maggie cut him off. “I’ll see you in an hour, Ro,” she said with a smile. She didn’t mind that he wanted to have lunch with his friend instead. She recognised that his brain needed to digest too and it would be helpful for the two Teissians – she guessed Kez was Balin as well, based on what Ro had told her – to compare notes.

Ro nodded. “In an hour, Maggie,” he agreed, and followed Kez out, who was already talking to him in Balin.

Chapter 3

Maggie wanted to take her lunch outside, to get out of the office and enjoy the sunshine a bit, stretch her legs. She needed to give her brain a rest as well, take some time to just turn off.

Walking through the lobby still gave her a chill. She had been there like everyone else, that morning the news came in that a transporter ship had been destroyed. It was only three days ago, and it still made her feel a little sick, a little shaky. It was too big for her to process.

Coming to work was still surreal. The grief and mourning was thick in the air, the sense of panic like a smell, an invisible trace of what had happened. The DETI building had always felt like a place of other-worldly competence, a nexus of Earth and the Universe, a bridge between humanity and beings from other planets. Now it was too quiet, like a mausoleum.

No one could wrap their heads around it, the loss. Over a million people, who had boarded that ship in an effort to survive, to keep living after losing their homes. That ship had been a promise, a helping hand reaching out across thousands of lightyears – piloted by a brave and generous crew, who sacrificed years away from their own homes and families to fly across the galaxy to help people who had no hope otherwise. And it had been incinerated by the Rhacahr, Earth’s allies. It had happened so far away but that seemed to only make it worse. No one wanted to die in space, with no witnesses and no burial. No chance to say goodbye, or look at the sky you were born under. Just vacuum.

And people were scared. The UNE had closed the borders, but everyone at DETI, at least in the San Diego office, knew a lot of softly-legal things had been done to rush as many refugees in as possible before that happened. They all knew tens of thousands of people had arrived overnight. People were still working overtime to process them all, get them all accommodation and Visas and I.D. while at the same time fearing for their jobs. If the borders stayed closed, did that mean no more DETI? But there was no time to think about that when the dorms were filled over capacity and food had to be ordered based on estimates, not concrete numbers.

And it wasn’t just fear for their jobs. It was fear for their lives. In the confusion before the official story had come out, the media had speculated about what had happened to the ship. They had suggested that, if it wasn’t the Rhacahr, was it a Teissian attack? Or maybe human?

Both groups had cause to object to the current alliance as it stood. Perhaps a radical group of humans had destroyed the Tiberius in protest of the Teissian immigration agreement, which they saw as an alien invasion of Earth, a disguised takeover, the beginnings of a competition for survival. Or maybe it was a Teissian protest of the Alliance’s policy of relocation, giving the planet Teiss up for lost, not worth fighting for, Earth lending no military support to the Rhacahr in their war against the Ypex who were enveloping the planet.

The President had explained that the Rhacahr had shot the Tiberius down because Ypex had got on board, but it was impossible to remove the idea of terrorism from people’s minds once it was in there. And if the Tiberius was a target, DETI could be too. It was perfectly logical. DETI was the face of Earth’s acceptance of refugees. If anyone had a problem with that, DETI would be where they went to do something about it. There were hundreds of DETI offices around the world, but people were still nervous. The USA took a huge number of refugees each year, and the San Diego office had been the last to close.

Security in the building was still high. The security teams had tripled the number of staff on every shift, rushing to vet new hires and outside contractors to give their current staff time to rest, but there was no end in sight. No one knew how long it would last; the pat-downs, and signing in and out, and out-of-hours restrictions. The giant TV screen in the lobby still ran the news, the same old story circling endlessly.

It made Maggie infinitely sad, but she was scared too. She was scared of being hurt, and of losing her job. No one knew what was going to happen next, and she wasn’t any different. She didn’t expect an attack on the DETI building, but no one had expected one of their transporter ships to be blown out of the sky either, and enough people were talking about it that she couldn’t seem to get five minutes to convince herself it wouldn’t happen to her. Her stomach was in knots all the time, and she slept uneasily. It felt callous to put her make up on in the morning and think about what to wear to work. How could she care about those things anymore? But she had to.

She had to keep going to work and doing the best she could to make sure DETI stayed strong, and offered the best service it could to the Teissians who had made it to Earth and needed their help.

She left the building and trotted down the steps and across the grand, expensively-architectured plaza with the big fountain. She knew behind the right side of the building were the Teissian dorms, tall towers arranged almost in a circle, with new ones being built all the time. If she turned right down the road and kept going, she would come to the beach. Maggie turned left, in the direction of downtown. She had no intention of going that far, not that she even could in an hour, but she liked to walk that way. There was a small deli across from a park that she could sit in and get a sandwich.

She thought about Ro as she walked, refreshing her memory on what she needed to teach him when she got back, and trying to think if they’d missed anything that morning. She hoped he and Kez navigated the staff canteen alright, if that was where they were going, but there would be plenty of other Teissians to help them out if they were more comfortable asking their own kind. After all, every Teissian in the building was an immigrant and could sympathise with how it felt much better than Maggie could.

She was encouraged that he seemed friendly and smart, and eager to learn. She had had to train people in the past who were clearly less than enthused to be there, and that had never been good. She got the feeling he would fit right in, and be good with the clients.

Her mind wandered to how nice his voice was. Anyone who got directed to his extension was lucky, she thought to herself. She remembered his strange black eyes with the brown sheen to them, and the bright pink shapes on his cheeks that moved with his expressions. She reminded herself again not to bring up the Balor, since he didn’t seem to like that, and wondered what it must be like to file down your finger bones for work. She shuddered. She didn’t see how it could be a pleasant experience, even if it didn’t hurt.

She hadn’t lived in California all her life, and still found time to appreciate how beautiful it could be when the sun was shining. She found the deli and pushed the door open, setting off a little bell. The inside was cold with air conditioning and the décor was pretty bare and minimalist, but it was quiet and they did good coffee. She approached the counter and ordered her usual sub before taking a seat at the bar in front of the window to watch the park across the road. The girl from the counter brought her meal to her in a basket when it was ready.

She got out her Gadgit and caught up on her social media accounts, idly scrolling through feeds and clearing notifications while she ate her sandwich. Sometimes she felt she should bring a book or something, make better use of the time, but it helped clear her mind to see what was going on elsewhere, what her friends were doing.

And these days it was important to stay on top of the news as more information came out every day. A location was being chosen for a memorial. Ships had been sent up to evacuate the transporters still in orbit that only held their human crews and no passengers. Then teams were going to go in to clear the ships of any threat, but landing an empty transporter was not a priority. Transporters that held passengers were being resupplied and refuelled, but procedures had not begun for getting them down safely.

Earth’s borders were still closed, and it looked like they would be for a while. Not every ship had made it back to Earth yet after being recalled. Maggie thought it must be getting quite crowded up there, which was probably why the United Nations of Earth were making the ships that hadn’t made it to Teiss yet a priority. Clearing them for landing was the safest, quickest, and most politically neutral way to just clear some space.

One article quoted a UNESS officer warning of the risk of a collision. Transporter ships were massive; bigger and more complex than any man-made structure on Earth. Most of their construction took place in space for precisely that reason, so the process of landing one was risky and complicated. There were only a handful of empty spaces on Earth that they could be parked in any kind of number as well, such as deserts and oceans, and that complicated things as well. The ships could dock to the construction stations orbiting Earth, but that would make the stations unwieldy and impossible to manoeuvre, almost guaranteeing a crash.

While the governments debated the best next step, at least the crews were slowly being brought home. Maggie didn’t like the thought of all those millions of Teissians and humans held at arm’s length from their safe haven, but she acknowledged that the fewer people stranded up there the better.

Other than the coverage of the transporter ships’ situation, one channel had got hold of a story that said the UNE were negotiating for a permanent Rhacahr envoy to Earth. It was unclear whether this had been a Rhacahr suggestion or a human one, but either way it raised a lot of questions. The Rhacahr were the most mysterious of the alien races, Maggie herself knew next to nothing about them. The general feeling was that they hated coming to Earth. Transporter ships crewed by Rhacahr had a tendency to dump their cargo and go, with no niceties involved, often disregarding timetables and making life harder than it had to be for DETI. But they were in the minority now, and so had less and less cause to ever approach Earth.

The reason that was given for the Rhacahr never exactly extending the hand of friendship despite being Earth’s allies was that they simply did not see the point in anything that took them away from their war against the Ypex. They didn’t want to be here, they wanted to be out there fighting. They were a strictly military society with an all-consuming cause. So it seemed unlikely that a permanent envoy would be a Rhacahr suggestion, but if it had been the UNE’s idea, it had the uncomfortable air of hostage-taking in light of recent events. Whether the Rhacahr government agreed or not, the person chosen for the job would resent every second of it, if what people said about them was true.

A local politician by the name of Adam Wyatt, a man who had spent decades angling for the position of Governor without ever making it, was making a lot of noise now about the threat Teissian’s posed to humanity. His arguments were that they were unknown, strangers, and therefore not to be trusted. He insisted the UNE were lying about the cause of the Tiberius’ destruction, demanding independent investigations. His claims always seemed to come back to an idea that a planet could only support one sapient race, and that Earth belonged to humanity, and that if the Teissians were allowed to stay in any kind of numbers, they would eventually stage a coup for ownership of the planet. He said Earth didn’t have the resources, and equated immigration to invasion.

Maggie didn’t like him. It was obvious that he was capitalising on a tragedy to exploit people’s fears so he could grab for power. Everyone had learned in school about the energy crises of the early 21st century, and how population growth and industrial development had led to dangerous pollution levels. But people didn’t use fossil fuel anymore, everything was powered by clean, safe energies, and with the spread of birth control and gender equality, population numbers had become more stable and manageable. Innovations in pollution roll-back technologies had helped, and by the 22nd century, it seemed that humanity had been brought back from the brink.

Space exploration at the turn of that century led to not only the discovery of the first sapient race that humans had ever met, the Rhacahr, but also the colonisation of other planets capable of supporting human life. Now there had been almost a hundred years of humans moving off Earth to points further in the galaxy, so the planet had room to spare as far as Maggie was concerned.

Maggie saw the time and put her phone away, feeling more up to date but not better. The governments were still negotiating, people were still stuck in orbit with nowhere to go, the Ypex were still ravishing Teiss, and the public still didn’t trust the Rhacahr. No matter what the UNE or the President said, it was hard to forgive blasting a million people to death during a rescue mission. And people like Wyatt weren’t helping the situation.

Giving herself an emotional shake as she gathered up her things to walk back to the office, she thanked the servers at the counter and stepped back out into the street, the sun hitting her in the eyes and making her squint. Maggie turned her thoughts back to Ro’s training. She could only help the people who were here, she couldn’t do more than that. She sincerely wished the Teissians in orbit would be allowed to land soon, but if all she could do in the meantime was make Ro feel welcome and make sure he enjoyed his new job, she’d do it.

Chapter 4

Maggie had just made it back to her desk when she saw Ro and Kez come through and separate, Kez heading further down the floor to Requisitions while Ro turned off and headed over to the Incomings desks. Nina and Ben were still on their lunch, having gone later than Maggie, but Alex was back, and she had been able to fill Maggie in on how that morning had gone, confirming that it had been as busy as Maggie had worried it would be. Her desk lights were still flashing with missed messages and it made her anxious but she told herself there was nothing she could do.

“Did you have a nice lunch?” Maggie asked Ro when he reached her.

“I did, thank you,” he replied with a polite smile.

It seemed like an hour’s break was long enough for her to not be used to his voice anymore. Oof.

She smiled back. “Great, no problems in the canteen?”

“None. I met some Balin I have not seen in years. It was good to see them again.”

She bet it was. Maggie guessed that if they didn’t meet up with old friends or relatives on Earth, they’d never know if they were alive or dead.

“Ready to get back to your training?” she asked, trying to maintain an air of jollity and hoped he wasn’t getting tired.

“Absolutely.”

Maggie moved her chair next to his at his desk, and they got him logged on. She took him for a run-through of the software, and how to answer calls and mail. They figured out how to get his special earpiece tuned in to his extension, and she sent him all the mail templates he would need. When he was all set with everything he would need, she sent him a few test enquiries, and went through how to answer them with him.

Sitting next to him all afternoon was the closest she had ever got to a Teissian. She had stood behind them in queues at lunch, of course, and she knew several by name, well enough to exchange small talk with. Tol, the security officer, was nice. She often went over to the other teams in Enquiries to ask for favours or opinions on cases before she sent them on. And there were a few Teissians in other departments that always seemed to be the ones to pick up her referrals. She didn’t hang out with any socially though, and she wasn’t assuming Ro would change that, but she had to tuck her shoulder and knee in to avoid accidentally brushing against him, they were sat so close together. They had to be, if they both wanted to get their legs under the one-person desk.

It made her feel very unprofessional, to have to try not to stare at his scales, or his claws, or the pink patches on his cheeks. She wanted to know what they felt like. Were they warm? Dry? Soft or leathery? Would his claws hurt her if he touched her bare skin, or did he know how to avoid that? She wondered if his smell would cling to her somehow. And all the while, his voice trapped her like honey.

She knew he was a person and her colleague and it was his first day, and he probably wouldn’t appreciate her thinking about his body in such detail, but she couldn’t help it. She was kind of fascinated.

The last thing they had to practice was answering a call. It was getting to be near the end of the day, and she had tried to keep it simple and not overload him. She’d only showed him the bare bones of what they did so he would be able to cope with the common questions the next day and know where to find help if he got stuck. She rolled her chair away and back to her own desk, then she dialled his extension, listening to the tone in her earpiece. She watched him centre himself nervously, pressing open his script, and answer the call. Nobody liked roleplay.

“Good afternoon, DETI Enquiries, how may I help?” he flicked his eyes to her face, checking her reaction, and she grinned. His voice right in her ear gave her a shiver.

“Good afternoon. I’m worried about my work placement, it hasn’t come through yet,” Maggie said. She knew exactly what was in the script, and she watched him trace over it with a claw point, picking up the section on employment.

“What is your name please?” he replied, and he took it from there, taking all the right details, filling the case file form out as he went along, checking the database to see if there were any notes on the caller or any cases already open, which of course there weren’t. He did everything right, and Maggie kept it simple and clear, and they finished in a few minutes, and she knew he would get faster with practice.

“That was great, well done,” she said after they terminated the call, and he blew out a relieved sigh.

“Shouldn’t I do it in Balin?” he asked.

“Oh, good point. I wouldn’t be able to help you though. How do you feel about translating the script as you go along? Would it be difficult?”

“Perhaps we should practice it.”

“Okay, I’ll come around, and you point out what you’re saying and I’ll follow with an answer in English, just to see how it goes.”

She stood from her chair and went to lean over his shoulder, looking at his script. It was only once she had done it that she realised she probably shouldn’t have. She moved to kneel at his side instead, aware that she didn’t look very mature, but no one could accuse her of invading his personal space this way.

Ro stuck a claw point on the top of the script, the greeting, and looked at her to give him the go ahead. She nodded, and he cleared his throat and read from the page in a language she had never heard before. She knew what he must be saying, because it was right there in front of her, but she didn’t understand a single word. In his mother tongue, his voice sounded slightly different. He wasn’t being careful, he sounded more casual, and perhaps as a result of being more comfortable, his voice was a degree or two rougher, more masculine. She found herself wanting to hear more of it, even though he could have been cursing and insulting her ancestors as far as she knew.

She pointed to her reply and read it out in English, sensing that it was weird to be doing it this way, but they ran through a brief conversation and as far as she could tell, he hadn’t fluffed it. He had been smart about his translating, pausing to decide what the sentence was before he said it, so that he didn’t sound stilted or unsure, and his hesitation could be disguised as time taken to note down responses.

Maggie was glad to get off her knees when they were done and went back to her chair. It was twenty to five so she suggested they switch back to English for a few more practice calls until it was time to go home. She was tired too by the time they had finished, but she felt confident that she could let him take calls the next day. She didn’t exactly like it, normally she would run him through the less common scenarios as well, and not expect him to remember everything after hearing it once, but it was out of her hands.

She told him he could take the script home with him that night if he wanted to study it and work on his translations, but that he wasn’t obliged to. Outside of office hours, his time was his own, and she was in no position to give him homework. But he admitted it was a good idea and stuck the folder under his arm, saying that he had no other plans that night.

They ended up walking out of the office together, but they split up at the front doors as he indicated he would be returning to the dorms. Maggie wanted to ask what things were like there, with all the new arrivals crammed in where there wasn’t space, but she didn’t know if that would be rude. Maybe when it wasn’t his first day.

Maggie was glad to get home and relax, but she couldn’t pretend the day had been hard. After all, she’d done no actual work, and she had enjoyed spending time with Ro, talking to him and showing him around. She was glad he was on her team and seated across from her. She was looking forward to tomorrow.

Chapter 5

When Maggie arrived at work the next day, Ro was already there, along with a couple of I.T. guys in their DETI polo shirts and khakis. One of them was a Teissian and was under the desk, while the other was a young human man holding a bag of tools. Maggie smiled as they noticed her coming over, and she put her bag on her desk after greeting everyone.

“Is something wrong?” she asked. She hoped not, since Ro was supposed to start that day.

“No, we just have to programme Ro’s extension to accept the new menu redirect,” answered the human, giving her a polite nod.

Maggie started up her computer and logged in, then looked round at the scaly green feet sticking out from under Ro’s desk. She had heard the gossip like everyone else, that a Teissian in I.T. was dating a human woman who worked upstairs. The whole building had loved that story when it first came out, though of course it wasn’t any of their business. Maggie hadn’t assumed that Teissians and humans stayed rigidly to themselves, mixing at work but only in a professional manner. That didn’t happen. Humans and Teissians were friends all over the building, and if they could be friends, it wasn’t such a jump that they could date, but this couple were the first to make no attempt to hide it. There had been rumours of other flirtations here and there, but they had never been confirmed. These two walked through the lobby holding hands, fed each other in the café, kissed all over the place really.

It was a rare and novel enough occurrence that everyone hoped to catch a glimpse of them in action for themselves, as if they were a mythical creature. Maggie knew everyone was being nosey, and should really leave them alone, but they needed a little optimism in the building just then. Nobody said anything, but everyone was silently rooting for the couple, as if their interspecies relationship was some kind of mascot, some kind of metaphor for the future. A good omen.

Maggie wondered if the clawed feet sticking out from under Ro’s desk belonged to the Teissian male half of that relationship. If they did, she really wanted to see his face, so she could say that she’d met him.

The human with him caught her eye. “It is him,” he said with a cheeky smirk.

Maggie opened her mouth to defend herself, embarrassed to have been caught, but she had no excuse. She looked away. “I wasn’t…”

There was a noise from under the desk like a smothered rattling sigh. “Ty…”

“What? You’re famous, Zir. You should give the people what they want,” the human said, grinning now.

The male sat up, ducking his head to avoid hitting it on the desk. He had dark green scales, yellow eyes, and a ridge of coppery feathers lay flat along his head. His claws were longer than Ro’s, but straight and round.

“That is done now,” he said, pushing himself to his feet. He put some tools back into the bag his colleague was holding, then pulled out a tablet to close the job. Maggie had been through this enough times to know the procedure. Looking at his face, he didn’t look particularly happy or friendly, but if he was the Teissian with a human girlfriend, Maggie could kind of see it. She could see what a human woman might like about his sharp jaw and stern posture.

Ro was watching him too, looking confused. “You’re famous?” he repeated.

“He means people talk about me,” Zir replied, his tone neutral.

“Why?” Ro asked.

Ty jumped in, hanging off Zir’s back with his hands on his shoulders, almost pulling the Teissian over. “Because he finally got his crush to say yes,” he said, clearly enjoying the situation.

Zir narrowed his eyes and hissed at his friend, but he didn’t seem to be really angry, just disapproving. “Are you going to do this on every job we attend?”

“I don’t understand,” Ro said.

Zir looked at him. “I have a human mate,” he explained, elbowing Ty off him.

Ro’s eyes widened. “Is it allowed?”

Did Maggie imagine his eyes glancing at her just for an instant? Maybe he was just worried about her eavesdropping, which she was. She had been watching him closely, following their exchange with interest.

Zir shrugged, holding out a tablet so Ro could close the job. “It is allowed. Sign here please,” the alien said, pointing out the signature line. Ro signed and he took the tablet back. “Do you speak Volin?” he asked. “I am afraid I do not know Balin.”

“I know some,” Ro answered.

The Teissian nodded under Ro’s desk, and said something presumably in Volin. Maggie noticed Ro pull his feet under his chair before replying quietly. He was still dressed in human clothes, with shoes. Zir acknowledged his answer with a croak.

At that moment Ro’s extension started to flash, drawing all of their attention. Ro drew himself up, as if steeling himself.

“Look at that!” Maggie said. “Your first caller.”

Zir nodded as Ro put his earpiece in. Before Ro answered the call, Zir put his hand on his shoulder. “You are free here,” he said quietly. It happened in a blink, and Ro glanced at Maggie as if to check whether she had caught it. She smiled at him. She had seen it, but she felt like the significance was lost on her.

Zir continued at a regular volume. “I am organizing a visit to the redwood forests for the Teissians. I was thinking of the Volin, but you should join us.”

Without waiting for a reply, he led his colleague out of the department. Ro avoided any discussion by answering his call, and Maggie turned her focus back to her own work, finishing logging on and getting stuck into tidying up from the day before.

The morning had completely passed her by by the time she finally looked up and noticed the time. She had been absorbed in clearing as much from the shared inbox as she could, having agreed with the others that they would pick up her share of the calls so she would be free to help Ro. Her experience made her quick, and even though the queries were still pouring in, she managed to clear the backlog at least and get them up to date.

Ro did a good job, considering he had almost no training. He was meticulous in his note-taking, so any mistakes he made could be easily chased up. He still needed her help on almost every second call, though it got better through the course of the morning. He mostly just wanted to check that he had done the right thing.

The new mother tongue option on the phone menu was clearly working, because his extension was lighting up almost as much as the rest of the team’s. He was new, and he was doing the work in his second, third, even fourth language. By the time lunch rolled around, Maggie thought he deserved a reward.

She got his attention by covering the display on his extension. “Let me know when you get hungry or you want to take a break. I’ll buy you a coffee. You’ve earned it.”

He looked at her gratefully. “I would appreciate that,” he said. “I believe they serve choba here?”

“Oh, that’s right, they do!” Maggie said, suddenly reminded of the Teissian drink on offer in the DETI building, catching Ro’s gentle hint that he would prefer that to coffee. “I’ve never had that, is it nice?”

“Yes! It is very good for you, the algae is very nutritious.”

“Algae?”

“Yes, choba is an algae native to Teiss. Where I come from, it grows on rocks.”

Maggie stared at him, thinking he must be pulling her leg, but he looked totally sincere.

“I don’t think that’s for me,” she said, trying to be diplomatic. “I’ll stick to coffee.”

Ro looked a mix of concerned and disappointed, like she was really missing out and damaging her health in the process.

“Maybe I’ll try it,” she suggested, mentally crossing her fingers. It could be nice, she told herself. Never say never.

Ro lit up, his expression clearing. “I am sure you will like it,” he said.

Maggie laughed. “Come on then.”

She began gathering her things, redirecting her calls and marking herself as out of office, when she spotted Kez come up behind Ro and clap his hand on his shoulder.

“Ready, fila?” he said.

“Oh…” Ro looked uncomfortably at Maggie, who deduced Ro must already have plans. She put her bag back down.

“Hi, Kez, how are you getting on? Enjoying it?” she asked, smiling.

Kez looked at her, obviously hearing her, but he just nodded, then said something to Ro in what Maggie assumed was Balin as if hurrying him along.

“Maggie…”

She cut Ro off. “Of course you can take lunch now. That’s fine, Ro. You don’t have to ask me.” She smiled, but he still looked conflicted. She didn’t want him to worry about hurting her feelings; she had overstepped. Of course he would rather eat with his friend. “Go on,” she encouraged, and he stood and let himself be tugged along by Kez.

Maggie sat back down, waiting a few minutes for Ro to get clear before she would go and get lunch for herself. She would just get something from the café downstairs, assuming Ro would be in the canteen upstairs. She wasn’t avoiding him, just giving him space while he found his rhythm. He didn’t want her hanging around, it was only his second day. He would still be on alert around her, but he could relax with Kez.

Deciding enough time had passed, Maggie left her desk, messaging a friend in another department to meet her and keep her company.

Chapter 6

The next morning when Maggie arrived at the office, she put a steaming cup on Ro’s desk. He looked up at her in surprise and she winked at him.

“The choba I owe you. Milk and two sugars, right?” she teased, laughing when he looked stricken and a little sick, reaching for the cup nonetheless. “I’m kidding. It’s just fungus and boiling water, as nature intended.”

“Choba is an algae, not a fungus,” he corrected her, looking relieved when he peeled the lid off and saw that it was indeed just the usual swirling green.

Maggie shrugged with a smile, taking a sip of her coffee as her computer booted up.

“Thank you, Maggie. You didn’t have to buy me this. I am only doing my job, and only with your help,” he said.

It was worth it to hear him say her name in that voice of his.

“You never bought us coffee,” Ben mumbled beside her.

“You had more than a day’s training before you had to take calls.” Maggie replied, but he was right. She was showing Ro preferential treatment and she hadn’t even realised she was doing it. But she wasn’t his boss. It didn’t matter. She was just training him. They were equals.

Even so… She promised herself she’d stop. Flirting was one thing, but this was his third day, only his eighth on the planet. She should give him some time to get acclimated. The choba was a gift to acknowledge a job well done under difficult circumstances. One was enough. She couldn’t let herself slip into behaviour that could be construed as harassment. She didn’t want Ro to feel he had to ask to be moved to another team. He wouldn’t like her if she made him uncomfortable.

Not that she wanted him to like her. Only as a friend.

Oh, who was she kidding?

“I will have to buy you a coffee next time,” Ro said, handling his words gently as always, and Maggie couldn’t help her smile as their eyes met and held.

“How are you doing anyway? Struggling with anything?” she asked.

He looked around his desk as if he would find something that had been giving him a hard time, some red warning light, but there was nothing and he shook his head. He smiled and the pink crescents in his cheeks folded. “Nothing at the moment,” he said.

“Yeah, it’s pretty easy once you get the knack.”

“The knack?”

“The hang of it.”

Ro gave her a confused shake of his head and she laughed, casting around for another phrase he might understand. “Once you learn how,” she eventually settled, and he nodded.

Her computer came online and she logged in. Ro’s extension flashed and he answered it, and they got to work.

It was now almost a week after the loss of the Tiberius, and they still weren’t seeing a reduction in the number of enquiries that came through to their line. It did look like a higher proportion of callers were getting through though, which was something. At first, people had been on hold for hours, or they kept getting kicked off the line because the system just couldn’t handle the volume of calls. Now their wait time was thirty minutes or less, which was a huge improvement, even if it didn’t feel like it to the caller.

New employees were settling in and getting up to speed throughout the whole building, so people’s problems were being solved, and staff were having to do less overtime and they were less stressed. It would probably be a long time before the work could be said to be back to normal, but it was a more liveable situation. As long as the dorms were overcrowded, and the Teissians who had been on Earth the longest were being pressured to move off-site, and thousands of people were waiting for job allocations, things wouldn’t be normal at DETI, but they were being given the resources to deal with it.

Ro had said he was fine, so Maggie started taking calls again. Truth be told, she liked it like this, a full team working like an engine, all of them on a call at once, shooting off emails all over the building, watching the inbox empty. She liked the efficiency of it and the feeling of a job well done.

Her calendar sent up a reminder about the office winter holiday party. Every department organised one for the staff once a year, and Maggie organised Enquiries’. She volunteered to help one year and somehow the whole thing had become her responsibility. She didn’t mind since she loved to see everyone having a good time, but it did mean she had less time to enjoy herself on the night. It had been forced from her mind in the last week, and now she winced when she saw it. It was a huge task, and they were still so busy, and it didn’t feel right to organise a party in the wake of a huge disaster like the Tiberius. She set the reminder to come back in a week, and went back to work.

Lunch rolled around, and she was just starting to get hungry when Kez arrived to grab Ro. This time she hadn’t made the mistake of trying to butt in, and she wouldn’t again. Those two were friends, and Kez had more in common with Ro than Maggie ever could.

“Maggie, would you like to join us for lunch?”

She looked up, startled by Ro’s voice. He was looking at her with an easy smile, but if she was reading Kez correctly, he hadn’t expected the invitation and wasn’t happy about it. Kez didn’t say anything, so Maggie opened her mouth to reply, at a loss for a moment. She looked between Ro and Kez, but Ro won out. As much as Kez may not have approved, Maggie wouldn’t reject Ro and miss out on an opportunity to get to know him better.

“Sure,” she said, quickly locking her computer. Ro smiled at her and it was worth it.

As Maggie came around the desk, Kez muttered something to Ro, and his happy expression faltered, but Ro didn’t reply, and smiled again as Maggie came up to his side, tucking her bag under her arm. Kez gave a her a tense smile that dropped quickly, and turned to march off out of the office. Maggie followed Ro after him at a more leisurely pace, as Ro seemed content to hang back with her.

“Thanks for inviting me, are you sure it’s okay?” she asked, giving a small nod in Kez’s direction.

“Of course,” Ro said, his voice soft like a pillow she could just fall into. It was hypnotic, any tension or awkwardness just poured off her as she believed him without question. “You have been very kind to me.” He didn’t say any more as they caught up to Kez at the elevators and travelled in silence to the canteen.

The DETI staff canteen took up the whole of the top floor of the building what with all the kitchen, counter, and table space needed. It had the feel of a rooftop café, with floor to ceiling windows encircling the bright white space. The furniture was simple and thin, faux-wood-patterned surfaces with curved metal legs. Dozens of tables long enough to seat twenty people took up the middle and right of the room, with shining chrome counters displaying food on the left.

Kez headed to the Teissian counter and Ro followed him, so Maggie tagged along, thinking she might find something there too, but she was wrong. She leaned forward to look down the short line at what was on offer, and didn’t recognise anything other than the bowl piled high with lemons. She touched Ro’s back, her palm just smoothing his jacket over his shoulder blade, getting his attention and making him look at her.

“I’ll meet up with you over there,” she said, pointing to a spot just next to the tills.

Ro agreed so she split away to get herself the soup of the day. The line was longer as there were more humans than there were Teissians, so Maggie had nothing to distract her as she watched Kez turn and snap something at Ro, who looked confused and started trying to placate him. Maggie had to look away to give her order and pay, but they were still bickering as she came up to them with her tray, forcing a smile as if she hadn’t noticed. They had waited for her at least. Kez couldn’t be that mad.

She wondered what his objection was. Had Ro broken separate plans with him, or did he just resent a colleague being invited to what could otherwise be a work-free hour? Maggie might have trained Ro, but she wasn’t his boss. She had seniority but that was it, the three of them weren’t formally separated by rank. She didn’t think Kez could have a problem with her personally, because they didn’t know each other at all, they had never spoken.

“Thanks for waiting,” she called, announcing her presence and giving them a chance to stop arguing before she got any closer.

Ro smiled at her. “That looks nice,” he said, nodding at her soup as they moved to look for a table.

“What’s that?” she asked in turn, nodding at Ro’s dish of… something that looked like spinach? Maybe?

She listened to Ro’s explanation, but one eye tracked Kez as he again went on ahead without acknowledging her, leaving them to follow.

They took their seats, Ro pulling out the chair beside Kez who had chosen the end of a table, while Maggie took the seat opposite Ro. She looked at Kez, but he was eating, his attention on his meal. She noticed he had two lemons on his tray.

“So, Kez,” Maggie began, deciding to go on the offensive. “How are you liking it so far? Getting on okay? Jason taking good care of you?” He didn’t have to like her, but she didn’t want him to dislike her for no reason. She wanted to get to the bottom of it.

He looked up at her, apparently in surprise at being spoken to, his mouth full. She examined his features, noticing that his eyes, like Ro’s, only appeared black, but actually had a dark brown iris. The red strokes under his eyes stood out against his dark green scales. She blew on a spoonful of soup to give him time to answer.

He swallowed. “Work is fine. I am learning. Jason is teaching me. I find it… interesting.”

“Requisitions, you mean?”

“Yes.”

“Why’s that?”

Kez seemed to cast around for the words. “Some things are allowed, and need only to be asked for. Some things are not, and we are not allowed to ask for them. Some things need special permission before we can ask for them. I don’t understand it.”

“Was it not like that on Teiss?”

Kez changed, something moved behind his eyes, an emotion she couldn’t quite read. “Where we come from, we were not given much. If you could take it, it was yours. If it could be taken from you, it was not.”

Maggie didn’t know what to say to that, swallowing another spoonful of soup to stall. She glanced at Ro, and he looked away from her quickly.

“That sounds very different to here,” she said lamely. “Would you rather I didn’t ask about Teiss?” She watched Ro for her answer.

“No, it’s alright, you may ask anything you want,” he told her politely, smiling but it didn’t show any of the white of his dental ridges so she suspected he was forcing it. She decided not to push it.

Maggie changed the subject. “I like your shirt,” she said, nodding at Kez. He had switched to Teissian clothing, and was currently wearing a white wrapped tunic that left his arms bare, black capris, and the rubbery socks. To Maggie, it looked far too casual for the office, but she readily acknowledged that any human design would not fit a Teissian body, and they were white and black at least. In contrast, Ro had stuck with the human suit and tie, and she still worried about it. If it was what he preferred, fine, but it was hard to see how, especially the shoes that couldn’t possibly be comfortable for him.

“Thank you,” he said. “You should say that to this one,” he pointed at Ro with his fork. “He wants to blend in.”

Ro frowned at him and said something quietly in Balin, and Kez’s smile turned nasty as he replied. 

Maggie watched the exchange uncomfortably. “Did I just put my foot in it?”

They turned their attention back to her, both frowning in confusion.

“Heh?” Kez said, the sound harsh in his crackling rasp.

“I mean, did I say something I shouldn’t have?”

“No, don’t worry,” Ro said, but he didn’t smile. Kez grunted and went back to his lunch, spearing a forkful of the soggy green leaves aggressively. Maggie bit her lip, worried she had somehow upset their friendship. Kez had been talking to her for once too, but that seemed to be over now as Ro turned the conversation to Maggie, asking her about California and where she had lived before, how long she had worked at DETI, safe topics like that.

The rest of the hour passed with her talking about herself, answering Ro’s questions about her family life and various aspects of Earth culture. Kez was mostly silent, though Ro smiled and laughed and seemed fascinated by what she was saying, though to her it was pretty average stuff. She would have loved to hear more about him, what Teiss was like, how he used to live his life, but she didn’t want to make things awkward again. Obviously they didn’t want to talk about what they had left behind when they would never get it back.

As they walked back to Enquiries, Ro kept pace with her while Kez walked ahead, ignoring them again.

“Is he alright?” Maggie almost whispered to Ro, not wanting Kez to overhear.

Ro glanced at his friend. “Yes, of course.”

“I don’t think he likes that I came.”

Ro shrugged, and then smiled at her as if he was hoping she’d forget about it. She almost did, probably would have if he had said something, but she plugged on.

“I don’t think I should join you for lunch again. He clearly looks forward to it and, you know, I get it. He can speak his own language with you. It must be a nice break from having to speak English the rest of the day. It doesn’t feel fair to intrude when you’re both still settling in. He shouldn’t have to worry about what he says on his break.”

Ro frowned. “He has been rude to you,” he said, his voice somehow deepening, rumbling. “He has made you feel unwelcome.”

Ro looked like he was thinking about confronting Kez so Maggie stopped him with a hand on his arm, pulling him back and bringing them to a halt. “I don’t mind,” she said. “You’re his friend. I’m not. You guys should just have lunch together.”

“But I want to be your friend as well,” Ro argued, and making Maggie’s heart stutter for a moment. She ignored it. He had said he wanted to be friends, nothing more.

“I don’t want him to hate me. I don’t want to cause trouble between you two.”

“I didn’t come to Earth to spend all my time with Kez,” Ro said.

“Well, what if we just… had coffee together? Before or after work? Then you can ask me anything you want to know about Earth or work…” She realised as she said it that it sounded like she was drawing a line, asking to keep any conversation impersonal, but that wasn’t what she had meant. She had just wanted to give him an excuse, a reason to say yes, so that he wouldn’t think it was a date and turn her down. She knew she was interested in him a little too much, but he didn’t need to know that.

Ro seemed to hesitate, and she worried he’d taken her words the wrong way, but then he said “Of course,” and smiled. “I owe you, after all.”

She smiled in relief. He’d actually agreed! “Okay, good. Do you want to meet tomorrow morning?”

They started walking again, arranging a place and time. It would just be in the lobby café downstairs, but Maggie was still excited. When they sat back down at their desks, Maggie met Ro’s eyes briefly and almost blushed, feeling they had something secret now.

Chapter 7

From then on, they met for coffee and choba every morning, and Ro had lunch with Kez every day. It was only the fact that Maggie met Ro every day, somehow without really planning it, that suggested it was anything other than casual, friendly, work-related. They never talked about anything personal, never flirted, but still they snuck in twenty or thirty-minutes’ chat. Maggie told Ro all the horror stories from the office, the worst callers ever received, and they made each other laugh. She filled him in on the process of planning the office party.

Ro asked her questions about work and Earth and her family, making her think about things in a way she never had before. She didn’t ask any specific questions about Teiss, and he didn’t take any of the opportunities she gave him to tell her more. It was as if he was two weeks old, with no life before that, and it made Maggie wonder. Obviously, he was a refugee, so he might not want to remember the destruction of his home world, but didn’t he have any happy memories he could stand to share?

Inevitably it came out that she was single, but hoped to find someone to spend the rest of her life with. When she turned the question back around on him, probing again into his past but trying to do it in such a way that he didn’t have to answer if he didn’t want to, he told her that no, he didn’t have anyone waiting for him. Not on Teiss, nor on Earth. He’d never had a ‘mate’, as he put it. When she asked if he wanted one, he seemed to struggle to answer, eventually settling on a shrug and that smile of his as if he hoped to dazzle her into forgetting the question.

She was quickly learning that smile meant that there was an answer, he just didn’t want to share it with her for some reason. It was starting to annoy her. The more time they spent together, the more she liked him, and she wanted to think he saw her as a friend at least… but every now and then he’d brush her off, and she’d be reminded that there were parts of him that he was keeping off-limits to her.

She found it frustrating, because she wasn’t keeping anything back from him, and she had hoped he could tell. She would tell him anything, other than the fact that she had a crush on him, which she had finally admitted to herself. It went beyond interest now. His voice was sexy, she found his smile handsome, and the way it dented the pink patches on his cheeks charming, and his dark, dark eyes almost mesmerising. Even in clothes that didn’t fit, she was attracted to him, but whenever he shut her out like that she had to wonder what they were really doing together.

When he came in on Monday to start his second week still wearing human clothes, Maggie decided to say something. He’d had the weekend to buy new clothes if he wanted to. If it was just the suit, she might leave it up to him and not say anything, but she simply couldn’t figure out how he could walk comfortably in human shoes. They must be killing him. She had paid more attention to the other Teissians in the building and none of them wore suits, and all the new hires in Enquiries had switched to the Teissian style of clothing. If he insisted she wouldn’t push, but she considered it her responsibility to make sure he knew he wouldn’t be breaking the dress code if he wore clothes that fit him. She would do it in private though, not in the office.

She waited for him in the lobby café, sitting at a table for two. Like usual, they hadn’t specifically arranged to meet, she just expected him to join her. It was an unspoken agreement between them, and Maggie wasn’t sure where it had come from, and part of her was waiting for the day he would have more important things to do, but for now she would continue to wait.

She spotted him as he walked in and watched him look around for her. When she caught his eye she stood to meet him so they could buy their drinks. Once they took their table again, she spoke first.

“I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”

Ro looked at her over the rim of his cup, his black eyes familiar to her now, but still captivating, like polished onyx.

“It’s not a criticism,” she continued. “Don’t take it the wrong way.”

His expression flickered as he clearly braced himself for what she might say, and she grew nervous too. She didn’t want to ruin their newly-fledged friendship.

“Okay. What is it?” he asked, laying his cup down.

“I just wanted to make sure you know you can wear Teissian clothes to work. You don’t have to wear human clothes,” she said as tactfully as she could.

“You don’t like it? You think I should dress differently?” he answered.

Maggie couldn’t tell if he was offended or not, relieved or not that that was what she wanted to discuss. “I just worry that you’re uncomfortable, especially wearing shoes like that. Obviously you can wear whatever you want, but if you’d rather wear Teissian clothes you can.”

“What would you prefer?” he asked her.

Maggie was taken aback. “Me? I don’t mind. It’s not up to me.”

He seemed to stare at her, holding her eyes while his expression gave nothing away, as if he was trying to find her true opinion by reading her mind. She found it confusing and kind of unsettling, as if there was some meaning she was missing.

“You wouldn’t prefer a male to look as human as possible?” he pressed.

“Um…” That was a weird question and she didn’t know how to reply. It must have been a translation error, though his English was normally perfect. “I just want you to be happy, that’s all,” she said, unable to think of anything else to say when he was staring at her like that.

He gave a quiet grunt in response as if she had said something worth considering, and looked away, releasing her from the hold of his gaze. He wasn’t smiling like he normally was.

“I’m sorry if you didn’t want to talk about it. You probably didn’t want my opinion,” she said, worrying that she had hurt his feelings.

He forced a reassuring smile then, and she felt some tension lift. “Don’t apologise. I do want your opinion. I thought I was doing the right thing. The truth is what you see Teissians wearing here are not Teissian clothes, certainly not Balin clothes. I have never seen them before. And before you say it, I would not be allowed to wear Balin clothes to work.”

He gave her a grin that she thought felt a bit cheeky, and immediately she wondered what traditional Balin clothes were like, and why he couldn’t wear them to work. Her only thought was that they must be too revealing, and she tried not to blush as she wondered what that would look like on him.

“I don’t own any of the clothes made for Teissians to wear to the office,” Ro said.

“They must be available at the dorms,” Maggie replied.

“Almost certainly. There is a well-stocked market there. But I wouldn’t know what to buy, what is appropriate.”

“I could come with you,” Maggie blurted out before thinking. She wanted to be helpful, but she instantly worried she’d overstepped. As far as she knew, humans were allowed at the dorms, and she would be with Ro, but maybe he didn’t want her that close to his home. Maybe he didn’t want to spend that much time with her outside of work. At the same time, she was curious. She desperately wanted to see the dorms now that the idea had been put in her head. She wanted to see Ro outside of the DETI building too. Going clothes shopping was something friends could do, but it was also almost like a date.

Ro smiled, a genuine one. “Thank you. I would like that,” he said.

“I mean, I can help you pick stuff out,” Maggie amended hastily, trying to recapture some ambiguity about her intentions.

“I would be grateful for your help,” Ro said, his smile not fading.

Maggie grinned back. Maybe he didn’t mind if it was almost a date. She took a sip of her coffee to try to look casual.

They arranged to meet after work and he would escort her to the dorms. The market usually traded until nightfall, so they would have time. They didn’t plan whether or not Maggie would then follow Ro back to his apartment, and she didn’t ask. She was happy to help, no matter what happened.

As it got closer to five o’clock, Maggie found herself peeking at Ro, tuning into his conversation with callers as she often did just to listen to his voice. She was excited and eager. She hadn’t been on a date in a long time, not that that was what this was necessarily. She hadn’t liked anyone, or been liked, or been in a relationship for even longer, so it was exciting for her.

Unfortunately she was on a call that turned into a long one, and she wasn’t ready to leave until ten past, but Ro waited for her. She made apologetic faces at him as the caller continued to explain a situation she already understood, but he waved her off, unoffended. Finally, the customer accepted that she would sort her problem out for her, and ended the call.

“Sorry!” Maggie said, hurrying to finish her notes and shut everything down. There were still plenty of people in the office also tying off loose ends before going home, but she felt bad for keeping Ro waiting.

“It’s alright, Maggie. You are good at your job,” he said, standing and waiting for her to make it around the desk to his side. “It’s admirable.”

She laughed. She was good at her job, but no one had ever called her admirable before. “Thank you,” she said.

They walked together out of the building, then turned into territory that was unfamiliar to Maggie. She looked around, examining everything as she saw it for the first time. There were other Teissians on the same path, and other humans with them.

“Have you ever been to the dorms before?” Ro asked, looking across his shoulder at her.

“No, never.”

He gave her a humble smile. “I wish I could be a better guide, but I haven’t been here very long myself. I still find it…”

“Intimidating?”

He chuckled. “I suppose that’s right.”

“Well, don’t worry. You’re more informed than I am. You get to teach me now,” Maggie said, bumping his arm with her elbow.

She noticed they were slowing, and looked away from him to see that there was a short line to get into the compound, stopped at what looked like a military check point. “Has this always been here?” she asked.

Ro shook his head. “It wasn’t when I first came here. It has been here for about a week now.”

“Is it because of the Tiberius?”

“Yes. I believe it is because of the undocumented Teissians living in the dorms.”

“Oh, come on. What do they think they’re going to do?”

“I don’t know,” he said.

Maggie was annoyed. “They’re not just going to slip off into the night with no citizenship, housing, or employment. This planet is completely new to them. They’re probably terrified.”

“I know, Maggie.”

She glanced at his face. He didn’t seem annoyed, but she got his point. “Right. Of course you do. Sorry.”

They reached the checkpoint and they both had to show ID and go through a security scanner. It was quick and painless, but still annoying. Ro lived there, he should have the freedom to come and go as he pleased, without needing permission. And Maggie didn’t like that the officers weren’t wearing DETI uniforms, but instead looked like soldiers, and soldiers meant guns.

“Anyway, they’re not undocumented. The community officers recorded their arrivals at the dorms, and DETI have caught up with everyone by now. That’s what I heard. Intake aren’t busting their asses working overtime for this.” Maggie couldn’t let it drop yet.

Ro watched her little tantrum out of the corner of his eye.

She let out a calming breath. “I’ll stop. It’s just annoying. They shouldn’t make you live like this. You’re citizens now too.”

“Thank you,” Ro said, and there was something so sincere in the intonation of his voice that made her do a double take. He wasn’t thanking her for shutting up, but for what she’d said.

She took a chance and slipped her hand into his, giving it a squeeze. His scales were warm and dry and firm, and his claws felt smooth as he squeezed her back. “No problem,” she murmured. She tossed her hair back. “Now show me this market.”

Chapter 8

The Teissian market was set up in the plaza-like quad in the middle of the circle of high-rises. It was mostly wooden frames with display tables and colourful fabric roofs, but it looked like the ground floor rooms had also been converted into shops. Maggie could smell all kinds of food cooking. The stalls were densely packed at the foot of the buildings, so much so that Maggie couldn’t immediately see her way through.

The apartment blocks were round towers in a sandstone colour, and they cast shadows over the market as Ro led her through the crowd. Most of the people around them avoided the market by entering the buildings by doors facing out rather than into the circle, but some of them headed into the crush. Ro kept hold of Maggie’s hand as it got too crowded to walk side by side. It wasn’t that there were a lot of people, but that there were so many stalls that seemed to have spawned one next to the other like a massive game of noughts and crosses rather than in any kind of logical pattern.

Maggie tried to look around and see as much as she could, anchored by Ro’s grip on her hand so that she didn’t fear getting separated. They moved slowly, and Maggie didn’t recognise anything. Not any of the food, or the items on display. She couldn’t even guess the purpose for them. She assumed they had meaning on Teiss for them to be being recreated on Earth. She noticed as well that the different races sold different things, and that they didn’t seem to shop from each other’s stalls. Evidently they had different cuisines and fashions on Teiss, and Maggie wondered what Balin styles were.

When she pointed out how many empty stalls there were, Ro told her it was because most of the stall owners had been at the dorms for over a year, and so had been heavily pressured to move off-site into private housing in the city. She understood it was to make room for the people who had arrived after the Tiberius, but she still felt a twinge of pity. Ro didn’t know what had happened to any of them, after they had been forced to leave their businesses and friends behind. Maggie hoped they were doing okay, and that they found enough customers to support a shop in the city if that was what they wanted to do.

None of the stall owners who were there called out to her, but they smiled politely if she met their eye. There were only a handful of humans in sight, but the Teissians didn’t stare at her. She supposed they would be used to seeing humans. She wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for them, even if she was holding hands with Ro. One or two called out to him as they passed, and he would reply briefly before moving on, always pulling her deeper into the network of stalls without letting her linger. She thought he seemed almost nervous. Maybe he didn’t want to be seen holding hands with her, she thought sadly. She tried to pull her hand out of his, but his grip tightened and he looked over his shoulder to check on her, so she smiled.

“I’ve never seen any of this stuff before. What is it for?” she said, reaching out to touch some carved items on the table next to her.

Ro stopped, following her gaze as if just noticing the stall goods for the first time. “These are Volon weapons,” he told her.

“Are you serious?” Now that he’d said it, it was obvious. What she had thought was maybe bulky jewellery was actually small blades on chains carved from what looked like ivory, jet, and wood. There was something metal that looked like a machete, but she had assumed it was decorative, or ceremonial, or used for cooking. She hadn’t known there was a weapons trade at the dorms and she wasn’t sure she liked the idea. She glanced at the tall merchant who smiled, but she wasn’t sure it was entirely kindly. He was dressed traditionally, with his chest bare and cuffs on his arms, and some kind of sheath hanging from a belt at his waist.

Maggie nudged Ro and they moved on. He pointed things out to her after that and explained what it was all for. She learned about Volin clothes, brightly coloured wraps with geometric patterns. Apparently they dressed themselves by just tying fabric around their bodies with no distinction between upper and lower body. There were Volin household goods as well, like boxes that played forest sounds to help them feel at home. Ro showed her the whetstones the Balin used to file down their hooked claws, and the merchant was happy to show her his unfiled hands. His claws looked savage to her, like they belonged on a velociraptor. She wouldn’t say she was happy Ro filed his down, but she was used to that now, and she didn’t know how he would be able to touch her at all if he didn’t.

Maggie’s eyes went wide when she spotted a stall that looked more like a sultan’s tent, decked out with so much gold-tasselled, fringed and threaded fabric it looked like it was on the point of collapse. It was half as big again as the stalls around it, the peaked roof standing tall over the rest of the market. Maggie couldn’t see what was actually on sale there and she wanted to go for a look, but Ro tugged her away.

“Not there,” he said.

“Why not?” she asked, following him.

“That is a Balor tent.”

Maggie had heard of the Balor before from him. He didn’t seem to like them, so she didn’t press. She didn’t get the impression that he hated them, more that he was afraid, worried. There was so much else to see at the market, she was happy to leave the Balor tent alone.

They seemed to hit a section of hot food being served, as opposed to all the food they had passed that had been packaged up to be prepared later. They had already passed more choba than Maggie thought any society could possibly need, and here it was on sale too in cups and bowls, but interestingly the majority of it wasn’t served in hot water like it was in the DETI building. Instead she saw people eating it cut into solid cubes, or drinking it as a thick sludge out of bowls, or licking chunks of it off sticks like lollipops.

“Is it not meant to be drunk hot?” Maggie wondered aloud.

Ro shrugged. “We don’t, but every human building has the facilities for coffee or tea. It is easier to use those.”

“But you would rather have it like this?”

He smiled, and she thought he was trying to think of a way not to answer. “I would rather have it than not have it,” he said diplomatically. He turned to look at her, using the full force of his smile and captivating eyes on her. “It is very good for you,” he reminded her, his voice almost a purr, and she forgot what she was worried about.

“Can I buy something?” she asked.

It occurred to her that her money might not be any good at the alien market, but Ro said “Of course. What would you like?”

Maggie looked around. She didn’t want to embarrass herself or offend him by buying something she didn’t want to finish, but the food here looked even more alien than what was offered in the DETI canteen, which she was beginning to suspect was the watered-down version. She took notice of a lone stand half the size of the others selling human treats and roses, obviously meant for Teissians wanting to buy gifts for a human. It didn’t look like it saw much custom.

Eventually, she spotted some meat skewers and figured that the meat had to be an earth animal at least. She didn’t think Teissian livestock was welcome on the transport ships.

The merchant was happy to sell her one each of the two safest-looking kebabs, and when she turned around, Ro had bought a stick of choba from somewhere and held it out to her.

“Would you like to try?” he asked.

Maggie hesitated, but she couldn’t refuse, so she steeled herself and leant forward to lick the green block that looked like waxed felt, juggling her two skewers. The texture of the choba left a lot to be desired. It was initially smooth like nougat, but turned rough as if some outer coating melted under her tongue. She couldn’t say it really tasted of anything, except for faintly of carpet. It smelled quite strongly of the inside of a well. She grimaced, and Ro laughed while she quickly chased the taste away with a bite from each of her skewers which she was confident were chicken and pork.

“Are you going to finish it? I don’t have to eat the whole thing, do I?” she said, eyeing it. She had licked it, but he had seemed to expect that she wouldn’t like it, so why buy it if he didn’t mean to eat it? She wasn’t sure how Balin felt about eating things that another person - indeed another species - had licked, but he had made her do it.

Ro laughed again at her expression and took the choba back, licking the other side quite happily.

“I don’t know how you can like it that much,” she said, taking another bite of chicken. It tasted nice. It was spiced in a way she hadn’t encountered before, but it was certainly edible.

“We have different taste buds,” he said, opening his mouth to show her his tongue as if she would be able to tell by looking. His tongue was pink and pointed, and somehow it hadn’t been stained green by the choba.

“Is there anything humans eat that you find gross?”

He laughed again. “Oh, yes,” he said. He didn’t elaborate, so Maggie didn’t ask. She didn’t want to hear him say he didn’t like chocolate or pizza or something like that. Hating coffee was bad enough.

They finished their snacks as they walked. The air was growing cooler as the evening came down around them, and Ro led them to the far end of the market near the buildings. Maggie noticed it growing darker as more and more awnings were spread between the stalls, blocking out the light. The crowd got thinner too, until the only people Maggie could see were Balin. They all had dark scales with colourful patches. The stall owners were all Balin, and she felt Ro relax, slowing his step. She hadn’t noticed that he was tense until then. He looked around more, as if he was actually shopping, actually interested in what was on offer. Was it because these were his people? Things he used?

Ro pointed to a stall selling clothes and said “There,” leading them over. The merchant nodded at them in greeting, saying something in Balin Maggie didn’t understand, but she caught the word “fila” again that Kez always used around Ro. He turned to Maggie and smiled politely. “Miss,” he said. He was dark, dark red, with yellow patches running up his arms and down his front, with a V on his forehead like antennae.

Maggie looked down at the table. It was mostly folded fabric that she could tell from the texture and colours wasn’t intended to be worn to the office. It must have been traditional Balin clothing, but that wasn’t what they were looking for.

“I need clothes for work,” Ro told the merchant in English, presumably for her benefit.

The merchant nodded and turned to unhook clothes that were hanging up on the wall of the stall behind him. Maggie would have liked a light or something, but the Balin seemed perfectly happy, and the way the sun was being blocked by tarpaulins had to be deliberate. The merchant laid the clothes down on top of the ones on the table and Maggie moved closer. She was there to help, but she didn’t want to crowd Ro. She would let him pick and wait to be asked for her opinion.

The clothes looked fine to her. They were clearly handmade, and Maggie wondered if they would be expensive. They were cut from cotton and wool, and were mostly white, black, or occasionally navy. She flipped through them, recognising the wrapped shirts and short trousers the other Teissians wore.

Ro went through them with less enthusiasm, looking lost. She wondered if maybe he didn’t want to spend the money, since he probably hadn’t been paid from his job yet. He must have some income though to have been eating for the last couple of weeks, and he never complained about joining her in the café.

“What if we separated them into top and bottom half?” Maggie suggested, beginning to pull trousers out of the pile. “Do you like any of these?”

In her opinion, they were remarkably similar and boring, and she suspected the Teissians made and wore these clothes because they had to, not because they liked them. She didn’t see any particular attention to detail or design in them. “Will they fit? Do you know your size?”

“They are his size,” the merchant chimed in, smiling politely.

Maggie guessed that must mean he was like a tailor or seamstress who could take your measurements just by looking. She wouldn’t argue, but she did glance at Ro to see if he believed it, but he wasn’t reacting, holding up a shirt to look at it as if he hadn’t heard.

“You don’t have to get a complete wardrobe today,” Maggie said, changing the subject. She pulled out a pair of trousers that weren’t just black, but had a faint diamond pattern woven into the thread. They were the most interesting pair in the pile. “What do you think about these?”

Ro took them but just held them in one hand. Maggie was beginning to suspect that just like a human man, he was useless at clothes shopping. It looked like she was going to have to step up if they hoped to get out of there any time soon.

“Well, navy will clash with your scales, so we’ll get rid of those,” she said, going through the pile and handing things back to the merchant. “How much is everything?”

After hearing the merchant’s answer, she calculated a quick budget in her head. The clothes were surprisingly cheap. Three shirts and a pair of pants was probably the best way to spend a reasonable amount of money. Assuming Ro did his laundry at the weekend and bought a few extra items before the end of the month, mixing in his human clothes from time to time where necessary, that would see him through.

Maggie proceeded to hold clothes up to Ro, testing colours and cuts. She decided against the patterned trousers as the grain was different from that of his scales and she found it distracting and not in a good way, like an optical illusion. Plain black would go with everything and no one would notice if he wore them often because people typically had more than one pair of plain black slacks.

The shirts were harder as there was more than one design.

“Well, what’s closest to what you would normally wear?” she said, trying to be constructive when he failed to have an opinion.

His eyes flicked up to catch hers and he smiled slowly. It was the merchant who answered. “Traditional Balin dress doesn’t include covering our upper bodies,” he said, gesturing to his own bare chest. He too had a smile like she’d said something funny, and she tried not to get flustered.

“I didn’t know that,” she argued, looking down to avoid the two men smirking at her.

“We show our colours,” the merchant said, dragging a claw tip up the yellow chevrons on his arms. “And our crests.”

Maggie watched as the merchant’s webbed crest unfurled like a yellow mohawk marbled with orange. Beside her, Ro suddenly snapped something in Balin, his voice harsh and his expression almost angry. The merchant held up his hands in peace, and his crest deflated to lie flat against his head again.

“She likes my colours, fila. I got carried away,” he said, and Ro grumbled under his breath in Balin.

Maggie looked at Ro, confused. Clearly something offensive had just happened that had gone over her head. She hoped it wasn’t too bad. She felt safe with Ro, but if he was angry she was sure it wasn’t without cause.

Bearing in mind that Ro didn’t have wings like the Volin did, and therefore didn’t require shirts with slits in the sides, Maggie pulled a standard white wrap shirt out of the pile, followed by a close-fitting one, and a pin-striped button down that was cut long and narrow to suit his frame. There weren’t many colours to choose from, and she had to pick ones that wouldn’t clash with black or pink, and she stayed away from black shirts so that he wouldn’t be walking around like the shadow of an undertaker.

“There, let’s get these, if you like them,” Maggie said, turning to Ro. “I think they would suit you best from what’s on offer here.”

Ro considered the pile and while he didn’t look convinced, he didn’t argue. He reached for his wallet and Maggie followed the movement, catching sight of his feet.

“Oh, I forgot! You need those sock things so you don’t have the wear shoes anymore,” she reminded him.

The merchant frowned at her and leant over the desk to see Ro’s feet. “You are wearing shoes, fila? How are you doing that?” He sounded genuinely surprised and almost appalled. He quickly reached under the desk and added a couple of clear plastic packages with dark rubber inside.

Ro replied in Balin, his voice still a little hostile. Maggie was getting the feeling he was deliberately cutting her out of the conversation when he did that, and she didn’t like it. She didn’t mind respecting his privacy, but it made her feel invisible.

The merchant accepted Ro’s money, folding it and tucking it into his belt. Ro picked up the bundle of their purchases and moved to leave.

“Wait,” the merchant stopped them. He reached under the desk and produced some colourful silk, passing it to Maggie. “For the offence,” he explained.

Maggie looked at Ro, confused. He scowled at the merchant.

“Your offence was to me,” he said.

“And are your woman’s smiles not compensation enough?” he said smoothly with a smile.

Ro looked at Maggie as if considering. Maggie examined the silk in her hands. It was light as a feather and so smooth she could barely keep it folded as it kept trying to slither apart. It was midnight blue, but beautifully marbled in all kinds of colours, like a galaxy or mine rich in gold and copper. It was the most exotic thing she’d ever owned. She tried not to blush as she waited for Ro to deny that she was his woman, but he didn’t.

“This is for me?” she asked, and she couldn’t help the smile that grew on her face. “What is it?”

The merchant smiled at her. “A beautiful outfit for a beautiful female,” he said, giving her a wink.

Ro growled and snatched her hand, making her lurch as he pulled her away, the merchant’s laughter fading behind them. He stomped out of the market, which was luckily emptying as the evening progressed. The after-work rush was over and the Teissians were heading indoors for their dinner, their errands run. After a minute or two, Maggie pulled back on Ro’s hand to make him slow down, and he gentled his grip. She tried to examine what she had been given with her free hand. He had said it was an outfit, but she couldn’t see how that could be true. If she balled it up it would be smaller than a baseball, the fabric was so fine and light.

A loose piece fell to the floor and she dug her heels in, crying “Stop! I dropped something!”

Ro turned and watched her go back for it. As she put her hands through it, she saw it was a loop of fabric in exactly the same pattern as the rest, which she shook out and held up, trying to make sense of it all.

“Oh, they’re shorts!” she said. She judged they would come to just above her knees, where they tightened into cuffs of beautiful dusky blue ribbon that matched the waistband. They must have been designed for a Balin female. “But they’re torn…” she said, lamenting over two slashes that ran from knee to hip on either side. She didn’t think she could have done that. Had the merchant known they were broken and given them to her as a joke?

“They’re not torn, they are meant to be like that,” Ro soothed, sounding like he was putting his insult aside in the face of her appreciation of the gift. “As the male said, we show our colours.”

“So all Balin pants have these? No wonder you said you couldn’t wear them to work,” Maggie remembered, making him chuckle. She tried not to imagine where on Ro’s body his ‘colours’ might be. “So what’s this?” Maggie asked, holding up the loop of fabric she couldn’t identify. “Is it a belt?”

“No,” Ro said carefully. “That’s for your… upper body,” he informed her.

For a moment Maggie couldn’t picture it, then she got it and her face flamed. It was a bra! Or a crop top, but it was tiny! She hurriedly bundled it up with the shorts as if she was trying to hide it. She glanced at Ro and saw he was glaring back at the market in the direction of the merchant, his eyes narrowed.

“Ro?”

His attention snapped back to her.

“I don’t have to keep it,” she offered. It seemed to be making him angry, and she didn’t want it if there was some hidden meaning.

He sighed as if he was trying to calm himself. “If you like it, please keep it,” he said. “I was just wondering how he knew your size,” he growled, and Maggie grinned. Maybe he was just being protective rather than jealous, but she liked it anyway. She took his hand and squeezed it.

“I’m sure it’s wrong,” she joked, hoping to placate him. He rumbled in doubt, but he didn’t look back at the market. “Are we going back to your apartment?” she tried to distract him. He looked surprised and she back-peddled. “We don’t have to! I just meant so you could try the new stuff on. I don’t have to come for that, I can just go home, but I thought you were pulling me that way.”

He looked down at their joined hands, then over his shoulder at the dorms behind him as if only then realising where they were and what he was doing. “Oh…”

Maggie waited, letting him sort it out. She didn’t want to invite herself again. She’d had a good time, and truth be told she didn’t know what would happen if they went back to the dorms. It might be hard to stay purely friendly with him. Going home was probably the smart thing to do.

“I don’t mind if you come with me, but you might not like it. Balin are used to the dark and my apartment is underground,” he said.

“So I wouldn’t be able to see at all?”

“There are some lights that I can turn on but… I don’t know how good your eyes are compared to mine.”

Maggie thought about it. She wanted to go. She didn’t want to go home yet and she wanted to see where he lived. She wanted to get closer to him, even if it wasn’t the smart, professional thing to do.

“I can give it a try,” she said, giving him a smile.

Chapter 9

Ro unlocked the external door of the tower he lived in, or rather under, by scanning his keyring. He pulled the door open and stood back to let her through, then led her through a lobby to the elevator. He pushed the button for the second basement level, and when the doors opened again, Maggie immediately understood what he meant about the darkness. It was pitch black as far as she could see. She hesitated, knowing she wouldn’t be able to see a thing if she left the elevator’s light.

Ro stepped out and flicked a switch, and a couple of weak white wall sconces lit up. They barely did more than show the dimensions of the corridor, but it was something. She couldn’t have described the colour or pattern of the walls or floor at all. Ro offered her his hand and she took it. As long as he was leading her, she supposed she’d be alright, as long as there was more light in his apartment.

As they walked, the lights ahead of them turned on and then turned off as they passed, clearly on a motion sensor. The elevator door slid shut again, and the hallway got even darker. The pale white lights were almost the only things she could see. She looked over her shoulder to assess her retreat but the elevator was invisible, there was just a wall of darkness.

“Maggie? Are you alright?”

“I’m okay…” she said. “I just really can’t see much.”

He was just a shadow to her, only visible when they were right next to a light, except somehow the pink on his cheeks seemed to draw the light to them, almost glowing.

“We will be there soon,” he said.

He stopped at a door and his hand left hers while he unlocked it, and she tried to stay calm. Her eyes were starting to adjust and it wasn’t so bad. She could see the floor. She could find her way back if she had to. It was just claustrophobic to know they were underground with a whole apartment block over their heads.

“Wait here,” Ro told her, his voice sending shivers down her spine in the dark.

She heard the door open and Ro moved from her side. After a moment, light came through the open doorway and she sighed in relief, going into the room. It wasn’t much light, but it was a huge difference compared to the corridor.

Ro’s apartment was small, simple, and nice. On the far side was a small table lamp which was where the light was coming from, throwing the room into soft golden mood lighting. He had a two-seater couch in front of a TV, an empty bookcase, an end table, and a kitchen separated from the living room by a breakfast bar. There were no personal decorations or even any items that didn’t look like they had come from the same catalogue.

He turned to her and smiled. “Better?” he asked.

She returned his smile. “Much better.” The lighting was still pretty cosy, it wasn’t enough to do her make up by for example, and if she wanted to read she’d have to sit right next to the lamp, but she didn’t have to worry about tripping or walking into a wall.

“Please sit down. Would you like a drink?” he said, and she moved to the couch.

“A glass of water would be nice,” she said. She watched as he lay the new clothes on the breakfast bar and got her a glass. Her being there suddenly felt strangely intimate. They’d never been alone together before. It felt too quiet, like they could say anything.

He came to give her the glass of water and she tried to look innocent. “So, are you going to try the clothes on and let me see?” she said, trying to keep it playful.

“Is that what normally happens now?” he asked.

Maggie looked away, putting her mouth to the glass to hide her face as she tried to make herself believe that wasn’t an invitation to tell him what else normally happens when a man and a woman were alone together. She wouldn’t make suggestions. Just because she was in his home didn’t mean he wanted anything. He was just being friendly. They weren’t dating and they hadn’t kissed. They had just held hands for almost an hour.

She wanted the water to cool her blush but she didn’t think it worked. She hoped the light wasn’t good enough for him to notice, but he looked concerned.

“Are you feeling ill?” he said, stepping closer, and then his hand was on her cheek, the points of his claws on her temple, in her hair, and at the corner of her mouth. She watched his eyes flick back and forth as they looked between hers, the almost-invisible iris the only indication of movement. She could smell him, like an outdoor fire, smoke in October. Her heart raced and she couldn’t believe he wasn’t doing this on purpose anymore. She couldn’t believe they were, should, or could be just friends anymore.

She opened her mouth to respond just as her attraction to him choked the words from her throat. She laid her hand over his, her fingertips following the path of bones and tendons under his firm scales to hold onto his wrist.

“I…” Maybe she should just lean in for the kiss, start that way. She had no pretty words. She hadn’t prepared for this.

Ro frowned. “Sit down,” he said.

Maggie blinked. “Huh?”

“Sit down, rest,” he said again, moving his hand to her shoulder, the other one cupping her elbow to support her as he gently pushed her down onto the couch. “Are you hungry? Perhaps the meat didn’t agree with you? Do you feel sick?” He crouched in front of her, touching her like he was looking for symptoms.

“No,” she was able to reply, the realisation that she had read the mood wrong like a bucket of cold water. “I’m fine. Really – I don’t feel sick.” She caught his hands to get them off her body, keeping them still in her lap.

He didn’t look convinced. “Drink your water, maybe that will help. Do you want me to get you anything? I don’t have any human medicine.”

“No, of course not, why would you?” She tipped back the water and forced a smile. “I’m fine, really. Why don’t you go show me how good you look in your new clothes?” she said, biting her tongue too late. He looked like he didn’t want to leave her so she tried again. “A quiet minute is all I need.”

He watched her for another moment, trying to read the truth in her eyes, and she forced herself to smile and look innocent.

“Alright,” he agreed. “I’ll be back soon. Stay seated until I return.” Then he stood and left her.

Maggie waited until she heard a door close down the hall, then she slumped against the sofa back and rested her head, looking at the ceiling. She felt worse than she would have expected, emotionally not physically. In fact, she felt tears prick at the corner of her eyes. Why? What was she getting all emotional over? Just because she had a crush on a handsome, kind, fun, sexy, charming, smart guy who was so unaware of her as a woman that he could touch her face and look deep into her eyes and feel nothing? Because she hadn’t had a date in eighteen months and it didn’t look like she was going to get one anytime soon? Because she was going to have to sit opposite Ro every day feeling the way she did and not be able to do anything about it? Who cared about that?

Whoever said office romances were a bad idea was right. They sucked.

She closed her eyes, forcing herself back to composure. Maybe she was just tired, or hungry, or her body really was rejecting the foreign skewers. Maybe it was the choba, she could believe that stuff was poison. She drank more water. It was okay, she told herself. She’d only embarrassed herself a little.

She continued to talk herself down until she heard the door open again, then she pulled her head back up and screwed her smile into place. This was still a good day. She still had a mission here, and she couldn’t let her mood ruin Ro’s when this whole thing had been her idea.

She turned to look at him and was glad she’d already made up her mind to smile so that her jaw didn’t drop. The pants fit him like a second skin, blending in with his black scales in the half-light until she could only assume they were there. She saw his legs, with his extended heels and his wide clawed feet that looked powerful and positively vicious, and convinced her he could only have been using magic to fit them into human shoes. His shins were marked in pink, the single lines slightly curved like shading on a painting.

 He had chosen to model the white wrap shirt that was so popular with the other Teissians at DETI, but if it had ever looked like that on any of them, she’d never noticed. The wrapping gave it almost a V-neck, exposing his collarbone and neck, and giving just a tantalising peek of something pink in the centre of his chest at its deepest point. The fabric hung loosely, and shone like pearl against his black scales. The sleeves were just the right length, baggier than she was used to, giving the impression of a comfortable and full range of motion, and reminding her of romantic leads in period dramas.

His head was ducked as he fiddled with the clothes, unused to them, tucking a loose bit of shirt into of his waistband before plucking it out again, then tugging the pants up and then down again. He looked at her, obviously unsure, looking worried and shy.

“Oh my god, Ro!” she said, trying to sound just like she would if he was one of her girlfriends, not like she had to hold onto the couch just to stay seated. “You look amazing!”

He watched her carefully, his head still ducked. “Do you think so?”

“Of course!” she replied a little too passionately. “I mean, are you more comfortable now?”

“I am, but…”

“But what?”

He looked conflicted, like he had something to say he wasn’t sure about. Maggie stood up and walked around the couch to face him, leaning against the back of it to keep herself anchored. As long as she could feel it against her, she knew she was at a safe, friendly distance. She crossed her arms, and then her ankles. She raised an eyebrow and waited.

“Do I look too… alien?”

For the second time, Maggie had to keep her jaw from dropping. That was his problem? But now that she thought about it, she couldn’t remember ever hearing him say that word before.

“I mean, you can see my legs, and my claws,” he explained, standing on one leg to touch his ankle self-consciously. “Will DETI accept this?”

“Ro…” Where to begin? “People already dress like that at DETI. It’s fine. We know you’re- I mean, we don’t expect you to look human. We know you’re Teissian. I hate to break it to you but it’s not your legs that give it away,” she told him as gently as she could, but he still flinched. “Hey, come on. Come here. Sit down with me,” she said, returning to the sofa and waiting for him to join her, which he did reluctantly.

“Do you mind if I take my shoes off?” she asked.

“No, go ahead,” he said, waving a hand to give her permission.

She kicked off her smart court shoes and pulled her feet up under her so she could sit sideways to face him properly, though he stayed facing forwards, looking at his claws picking at each other in his lap.

She thought about taking his hand to get his attention, but she didn’t. She’d been holding it all day, but they didn’t have that kind of relationship. “You know if you want to wear a suit, you can, no one is going to stop you. Though to be honest, I don’t know how you managed to walk in those shoes, or even get them on.”

“I use athletic bands to bind my claws together to make my feet narrower, and then fill the heel with a rubber prosthetic.”

“That sounds painful,” Maggie replied, trying to keep her voice level. The truth was she was horrified he had been doing that to himself, crushing his feet like that. “Why did you do that?” She didn’t think it needed pointing out that he must have noticed none of the other Teissians did.

He shrugged. “I wanted to prove I was- that I could be-”

“What?”

“…Human enough.”

Maggie was honestly speechless. “I don’t understand,” she said.

For a moment, Ro didn’t answer, but Maggie wasn’t going anywhere. She was just thinking of something else to say when he spoke.

“I came here for a new life,” he said.

Maggie waited for more but none came. “Okay,” she said to prompt him.

He sighed. “On Teiss, being Balin means something different than being from Vol. Bala is different. I don’t want that to follow me here.”

“Okay,” she said again. He was being cryptic and cagey and she assumed there was a reason for that, so she didn’t ask about the past.  “I believe that you can have whatever kind of life you want to have here.”

He looked at her, again as if searching her eyes for the truth or a lie.

“But how is this related to clothes?” she had to ask. “You want to blend in? That’s what Kez said, isn’t it?”

He pulled a face at the mention of Kez’s name, as if frustrated by his friend’s big mouth.

“Everyone at DETI respects you. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t like you. If you’re worried about your work, you’re new and everyone understands that and you’re doing really well-” Maggie shut up as Ro growled and pushed to his feet, walking a few steps away from her to lean against the wall, his back to her. She stayed quiet. She didn’t know what he was going to do. She wasn’t afraid of him, but all this over a change of clothes?

He turned his head to speak to her over his shoulder. “And you?” he growled.

“Me?”

His eyes pinned her to the spot and she suddenly felt like the future of their relationship depended on what she said next.

“Of course I respect you. I respect you a lot,” she almost whispered. It wasn’t what she meant but it was all she could say. “I think you’re really… smart.”

He huffed a bitter laugh through his nose, turning away from her. Apparently it hadn’t been the answer he was looking for. Waiting for what he would say next was agony.

“Thank you,” he said, sounding defeated. It felt like the end of the conversation, like whatever had come to the surface of him had been forced back down.

“And I think the new clothes look really good on you. And I don’t care that you’re Balin. It doesn’t mean anything to me,” she added.

At that he pushed off from the wall and walked towards her. She found herself shrinking back from him as he came closer. He stood with his shins against the cushion, leaving her nowhere to put her legs, and put his hands on the sofa either side of her head, leaning down to box her in, his face inches from hers as he stared at her. She was close enough to count the individual scales on his nose, but she daren’t take her eyes away from his. She might have thought he would kiss her if he was in a better mood, but she didn’t expect that now.

She couldn’t take the scrutiny anymore. She couldn’t bear to fail anymore of his tests and hurt him again. “Please just tell me what you’re thinking,” she whispered. “I don’t know what you want me to say.” She heard the scrape of his claws against the cushion behind her and cringed. “I don’t like you like this, you’re scaring me.”

It was like a switch was flipped. He blinked quickly, his eyes moving to his hands as if his position surprised him. He stood up stiffly, taking a few stumbling steps away from her, giving her room to uncurl from the ball she had held herself in.

“I apologise,” he said, sounding back to normal. “I’m sorry.”

Maggie put her feet down and quickly shoved them back into her shoes. She grabbed her bag from the floor and stood up.

“I think I need to go home now,” she said.

“Maggie, don’t,” he said.

She ignored him. “I’m hungry and it’s going to take me a while to get home. But I had fun today.” She couldn’t look at him, but she tried to make her voice sound light. She just wanted to get out without crying. She made for the door.

“Maggie, please.”

She ignored him again, struggling with the latch with shaking hands, until his grip on her arm made her whirl to face him.

“Let me go,” she said reflexively.

“I would never hurt you, not even if my life depended on it,” he told her, his sonorous voice serious like a funeral knell. It was nice to hear, but she couldn’t go soft now, not when she had no idea what had just happened between them but she knew it wasn’t good.

“Let me go,” she said again, not trusting herself to say anything else.

She pulled against his grip and it released, his hand going back to his side.

“At least let me walk you back to the elevator,” he said.

“I got it,” she replied, getting the door open and bolting through it.

It snapped shut behind her and she was plunged into total darkness, no light at all. She wobbled on her heels and reached with her hand for the wall to her left. They had come from this direction, so she started walking, and after her first step the white wall sconces woke up and softly guided her back to the elevator like fairy fire.

Chapter 10

The next day, Maggie waited for Ro in the lobby café as usual, but he didn’t come. She had only gone herself out of habit, not wanting to run from him a second time. She wanted to see him in the light, so they could talk about it. As she sat surrounded by people chatting over coffee, same as always, it seemed ridiculous that she could ever have been afraid of him.

She only realised she’d expected him to come when she was disappointed. She didn’t know what else she’d expected, but it should have been that. It seemed obvious, the way their evening together had ended. She’d run from him. It was unlikely he was interested in meeting her socially again after that. When she couldn’t wait any longer, she gave up and headed over to Enquiries.

Part of her had held out hope that he was just late, or sick or something. That there was some other reason for him not joining her. That hope died when she saw him sitting at his desk, his computer all booted up like he’d been there a while. She was surprised by how much that hurt. She tried not to trudge over to her desk. She wouldn’t be a baby about this. They were both adults, and if their non-relationship that, really, had been entirely in her head had come to an end, the least she could do was not let it affect their work. They had turned out not to be compatible. Better to end it before it began.

She felt his eyes on her as she sat down, but when she glanced at him he looked away. He didn’t say good morning, or anything in fact, so she didn’t either. Lucy, who sat next to Ro, gave them a strange look, obviously sensing the atmosphere but wisely not commenting on it. Maggie sighed as she turned her computer on, feeling like she’d already done a day’s work. She was exhausted just by the prospect of sitting across from him all day, seeing his face, hearing his voice, and knowing that he probably thought she was crazy.

She opened her drawer to pull out her tablet and blinked, for a moment thinking she was crazy. But no, the clothes she had been given the day before at the market, with their deep midnight blue colour and chaotic marbled pattern in all the shades of the sunrise, really were in her drawer. She put her hand inside to feel them, and the silk was as cool as a fresh mountain spring. Of course, she had left them on Ro’s sofa, she’d left in such a hurry. He must have found them and snuck them into her drawer, so he could return them without having to speak to her.

She took a breath, suddenly feeling stifled, and it shuddered. She felt him watching her again and this time when their eyes met, they held. He looked sad.

No, she couldn’t do it. She threw the drawer closed and shot to her feet, whirling away. She tried not to attract any attention as she marched to the bathroom, resisting wiping any tears until she was out of sight, gritting her teeth to keep her composure.

She wasn’t alone when she shouldered through the swing door, and kept her head down as she passed the pair of women at the mirrors, forcing herself to walk normally and keep her breathing quiet. She took the stall on the end and put the lid down, sat on the toilet and cried, gathering fistfuls of toilet paper because she knew she’d need it. She managed to cry quietly, but it was not pretty. She would be blotchy and all her make up would wipe off. She wouldn’t be able to return to her desk for a good ten minutes, and everyone would know she’d been crying in the toilets at work. What a mess.

When she tried to think about why she was crying, she just cried harder. They hadn’t even been dating, so why did she feel like she’d just broken up? Maybe it was the guilt, feeling like she’d wrecked the relationship she’d wanted with him herself. If she hadn’t pushed him, if she had been more understanding, if she had just let him dress however the hell he wanted to... She had noticed he was back in human clothes that day. God, who had she thought she was, messing with him like that? If only she had been better, he wouldn’t have got angry like that. If only she’d been braver, she would have stayed and worked it out.

So she had her cry, hearing the other women leave after a minute. She made sure she was alone when she was ready to come out of her cubicle, walking up to the mirror to assess the damage. It was bad, exactly as she had predicted, but she felt a bit better, as if her emotions had evened out even if they hadn’t picked up. She felt resigned. She wished she had her bag with her back-up make up in, or even a paper towel to wash her face with, but she didn’t. Cold water might have helped, but she was out of luck. Taking a deep steadying breath and letting it out slowly, she felt better. She could be brave starting now.

She opened the door back onto the office floor and did her best to scurry unseen back to her desk, hiding her face behind her hair as best she could. When she got there, all eyes were on her. She ignored them, but she faltered when she saw that Ro’s desk was unoccupied.

“Where’s Ro?” she asked before she could stop herself, sounding more worried than she would have liked.

“He left,” said Lucy.

“What? Permanently?” Maggie said incredulously, leaning towards her for answers. 

“No! He said he didn’t feel well and was going home,” Lucy said, eyeing Maggie suspiciously.

Maggie took her seat, worrying her lip between her teeth. So she’d chased him away, he couldn’t even be around her anymore. Maybe she should request a transfer to another team for one of them so that he wouldn’t quit at least.

“Do you want us to beat him up for you?” grumbled Ben beside her. 

“What? No, of course not,” Maggie replied.

“Seriously, are you alright?” Alex asked. “What did he do?”

Maggie sighed. As she’d thought, they all knew. “I’m fine. I’ll get over it. And he didn’t do anything, it was me. I got nosey and meddlesome, and he was totally within his rights to get annoyed with me. It was all personal stuff that happened outside of the office, so please don’t give him any shit for it, okay? It was my fault. It shouldn’t have ever happened in the first place. And that’s all I’m going to say about it so let’s leave it at that.”

She made a show of facing her computer and getting to work, so her team all begrudgingly did the same, but not without a few last words of encouragement.

“Okay, but if you need anything…”

“Yeah, let us know.”

“Men aren’t worth it, Maggie.”

“Hey!”

Maggie could almost smile at her team. Maybe none of them had been there a year yet, and they would probably move on soon like everybody else, but for the moment, they seemed to like her, and she needed that.

She lost herself in work. Without Ro, there was more work for the rest of them, and it was easy for Maggie to just log one case after another, focusing on the voice coming through her earpiece. It was how it used to be. In one way, it was easier. It didn’t hurt like having to sit opposite him would have.

At the same time, however, a part of her brain was always wondering, always worrying about him. She couldn’t believe he’d taken a sick day just because of her. Had she really made it so awkward between them that he couldn’t stand it? What did that mean for their work, their team, her? If he requested a transfer from Derek, and explained why, she could forget any kind of upward trajectory for her career. Derek had hinted she might get promoted if things went well with Ro, but things had not gone well in the slightest, or rather they had gone a little too well before crashing and burning.

The rest of her team didn’t bring it up again, though she could tell they wanted to. They kept looking at her out of the corner of their eyes, but she made sure she kept on as normal. At the end of the day, she took her Balin outfit home, stuffing it in her handbag until she was out of sight. She had intended to jam it in her underwear drawer and never look at it again, but as she pulled it out, she couldn’t bear to. It was too beautiful, the fabric too soft. Someone had made it with delicate care. She pulled off her clothes to try it on, moving in front of the mirror.

It felt like nothing she’d ever worn before. The silk instantly warmed to her skin between her legs but somehow stayed cool on the outside of her thighs. The ribbons that cinched the waist and knees didn’t pinch, sitting against her as if they were barely there. The short were slightly baggy, like half-length harem pants, and the dark blue looked great against her skin. The slits up the sides showed just tantalising flashes of thigh. She rubbed her hands up and down over her legs just to luxuriate in the feeling.

The top piece was a different matter. Maggie stepped into the loop of fabric and pulled it carefully up her body, inching it over her hips where it tightened. She pulled it over her breasts, but she knew she could never get away with it. It was too small, squishing her boobs and pushing them up until they almost spilled over the edge. She didn’t know how the merchant had got her size so wrong when he’d got everything else perfect. The shorts felt divine, but she wanted to take the top off almost immediately.

She sighed as she undressed. It was a nice outfit she would never have the occasion to wear, but it made a good souvenir of a wonderful evening at the end of a brief friendship. She folded it up and put it away, getting into her pyjamas so she could make dinner and eat it in front of the TV.

Ro was off sick the next day too, and the day after that. Maggie worried that he wasn’t coming back. She began to hope that he really was sick, because if he was taking time off work just to avoid her, eventually he’d have to quit or be fired. She considered getting his private number from the records. Because Incomings had no team leader or manager, everyone gave her the same access because someone had to have clearance. It was all unofficial, but everyone knew her and trusted her. Even if Ro hated her, she didn’t want him to lose his job.

Finally, when she went in the following Monday, her mind already made up to confess everything if he wasn’t there, there he was. Ro was sat as his desk like normal, and she almost forgot to be awkward around him as she set her handbag down on the sea-green touch screen surface of her desk. She looked at him without speaking, trying to verify with her eyes that he was okay. He didn’t seem to have lost weight or anything. He was wearing the cropped Teissian pants they had bought together.

He watched her survey him for a moment before she noticed.

“You’re back,” she said lamely.

He cleared his throat. “I was not myself, I apologise,” he said stiffly, avoiding making eye contact.

His voice hit her like a sledgehammer. How had she forgotten it? How would she stand it? It was just so nice. If it was visual instead of aural, it would be a close up video of chocolate fudge ice cream being churned, only in her case it was being played in a salad bar.

She was only stunned for an instant before she remembered to feel guilty and then anxious. She would have to learn to be okay around him and soon.

“That’s alright,” she said. “Everyone gets sick now and then.”

She sat down and let their screens form a barrier between them.

Chapter 11

Ro and Maggie didn’t speak more than necessary after that. It wasn’t that they were fighting, it just felt like whatever had been going on between them had ended. They weren’t going to be friends anymore, certainly nothing more. They didn’t meet for coffee in the mornings. Ro didn’t invite Maggie for lunch.

Maggie wanted to be okay with it, to just fall back into the old rhythms of her job, but for some reason there was a pall over the team that hung around without clearing. The others didn’t joke with each other like they had done. They stayed quiet and looked at Maggie and Ro’s end of the bank of desks as if they were unsure how to act, afraid of poking the bear.

Now Maggie was glad for the extra work of organising the office party, the extra calls she had to make on her lunch break, the extra hours she had to stay in the evening. She printed flyers and put them up, noticing one for Zir’s trip to the redwoods already on the notice board, next to a call for volunteers at the Teissian children’s home. She sent invitations to other departments, collected names of plus ones to get a number for catering. She negotiated a menu with the canteen staff upstairs and a budget with Derek.

She set a dress code (seasonal sweaters welcome) and began taking requests for the playlist, making sure the one from last year hadn’t corrupted. She made sure the decorations were still in storage where she expected them to be, and even spent an evening clambering about in a dusty storage locker checking that everything still worked. She sent round a request for volunteers to help her get everything ready on the day of the party.

She ended up getting really ahead of herself. Her checklist was getting all ticked off, and it was still October. But she liked to keep busy, because as long as she had to sit opposite Ro every day, she couldn’t get over him. It wasn’t like they could just ignore each other after all. He still had to ask her for help on odd cases. She had to keep him up to date on their targets and call stats. Sometimes their feet would touch under the desk by accident, and they’d both recoil and apologise too much. She still had to hear his voice and see his face.

He did wear the Teissian clothes they had bought together occasionally, but neither of them said anything about it.

Maggie wanted to talk to him, even just to make small talk, but she couldn’t work up the nerve. As the days passed, it felt ridiculous that she couldn’t ask him how his weekend was, if he had any plans after work, if he’d had a nice lunch. But she couldn’t bear his rejection if he didn’t want her taking an interest in his life anymore, or if she found out he had plans with another woman, or if they became friends again, and she had to play along, keeping her distance when she wanted him for herself.

And he never asked her any of those things. He never reached out to her, or tried to mend bridges. She had to follow his lead, after what had happened. He probably thought she was crazy, or she’d offended him by implying he could hurt her. The situation they were in could have been better, but at least she knew where the lines were.

Then one day, her attention was drawn to him because she could hear that his caller’s voice was raised. He must have been yelling to be as audible as he was to Maggie from where she sat. Maggie watched Ro; it was her responsibility to jump in if he couldn’t handle it, though she knew this wasn’t his first shouter and she’d told him how to handle callers like that. She couldn’t understand anything that was being said because none of it was in English, but she could tell from Ro’s tone that he was trying to be soothing and polite.

She caught his eye and gestured between herself and her own extension, asking him if he wanted her to take over. He could transfer the call to her, but she also knew how to dial into his call. Derek had given her that authority when she had begun training people in case a newbie lost their temper and needed to be booted off the call.

Ro shook his head without losing his rhythm, but Maggie could still hear yelling. She might need to make an incident report. She made sure the call was recording in case they had to blacklist the caller, which was rare but not unheard of. Then Ro seemed to just freeze. That was a big red flag to Maggie. Ro was usually good at his job, she’d seen him take a lot, but she’d never seen him look like that. She dialled his extension but didn’t hijack the call just yet, giving him a chance to recover.

Ro’s hands twitched over his desk as if looking for something to save him. There were pauses in the shouting now, so the caller was clearly expecting Ro to be answering him, but instead Ro’s eyes were wide as he looked down. Maggie had seen people reacting to callers hurling abuse at them, they got angry. Ro wasn’t angry. He looked scared. He looked conflicted, like the caller was demanding he do something he didn’t want to do. But Maggie knew Ro knew the procedures for that. He knew what to say and he knew he was allowed to terminate a call if he was being harassed.

Maggie took over the call. She didn’t like watching him struggle, and clearly whatever the caller was saying was bad, and Ro didn’t look like he was going to be able to salvage it, or even reply.

Immediately, her right ear was hammered with shouting in a Teissian language.

“I’m sorry,” she said in her politest sing-song phone voice. Ro snatched off his earpiece and threw it down onto the desk, bolting to his feet and storming away. Maggie continued, keeping her eyes on him. “There has been a technical fault on your line. Please hold to be reconnected.”

She muted the bastard. He could take a few minutes to calm down. She tried to see where Ro had gone, but he had disappeared. He had left the department, so he could have been anywhere in the building. She sighed, and Lucy gave her an inquisitive look, indicating Ro’s empty seat with her eyes.

Maggie waved it off. “Asshole caller,” she said as if it was nothing, but Ro’s departure had been a bit more dramatic than she could really cover for. She hoped he was alright. Lucy looked sceptical, but didn’t press.

Maggie took a deep breath, preparing to do battle, and unmuted the call. “How can I help?” she asked sweetly.

The caller was clearly steaming, but he calmed down when he realised he was speaking to a human woman now, and Maggie actually got through the call without any problems. The guy was unquestionably an entitled prick, blustering over the slightest delay or inconvenience, but Maggie smooth-talked him with promises that it would all be sorted out, and that he could apply for new accommodation with that team. He never told her what was so “unacceptable” about his housing allocation, but she didn’t ask. She wanted him off the phone, so as soon as she’d identified whose problem he was going to be, she wrapped it up.

She created a case file for him, including a warning that he had abused one of her staff, and sent it off to Accommodation. Then she opened an email to Derek outlining what had happened, keeping it extremely brief, and included the file number and the recording of the call. That was standard procedure. If Derek took it seriously instead of just filing it away, he would need to get an interpreter to go on record with a translation, and Maggie had to admit, she wanted to know what had been said. She hoped he would keep her in the loop on his own, but if not, she might risk looking nosey and ask. She was pretty sure Ro wouldn’t tell her if she asked him, but if it affected his work, she needed to know.

He hadn’t come back yet.

She wondered if she should go and look for him. Maybe they weren’t friends anymore, but this was work related. No one knew about it except for her and Derek, and maybe it was naïve, but she thought he would prefer to talk to her about it than the big boss.

When he had been gone almost ten minutes and she thought she was going to have to go look for him before someone noticed and said something, he came back. She opened her mouth to say something, ask if he was alright, but the way he threw himself back into his chair and the scowl on his face made her close it again. He was furious. She would let him pretend it hadn’t happened, at least in front of the rest of the team.

Then Derek came to get her.

“Guys, can we have a quick chat in my office?” he said in that hyper-pleasant, overly-friendly way managers have of sugar-coating something you’re not going to want to agree to.

Maggie knew she couldn’t say no, so she pushed her chair away from her desk, straightening her skirt. Ro looked at her, obviously a little alarmed, but he followed without comment.

They walked across the department floor to Derek’s office, Maggie trying to look innocent. Derek closed the door behind them. He swivelled his screen around so they could see Maggie’s email with the attached audio file. Maggie recognised it immediately, but Ro leant forward to read it, and she saw his hands clench behind his back as he realised what she had done.

“So what happened here?” he asked, perching on the corner of his desk rather than sitting on any of the chairs in the room.

“Nothing,” Maggie said. She spoke first so she could try to communicate to Ro that she was on his side. She’d cover it up if that was what he wanted. She wasn’t snitching, just trying to help. “There was an abusive caller. We all get them. You asked that we send them to you when it happens,” she said, shrugging as if it was nothing.

“Mm-hmm, okay,” Derek said, nodding along. “Ro, you want to tell me what was said?”

They both looked at him as they waited to hear how he would explain it. It was then that Maggie realised she really didn’t know what had happened. She had assumed the fault lay with the caller, but she hadn’t understood a single word of the conversation either. She didn’t even know what language it was in.

Ro cleared his throat with a rasp. “It is as Maggie said. The caller was… abusive.” He didn’t sound convincing, even to Maggie.

Derek’s face gave nothing away. “What did he say? Sorry to make you repeat it, but it’s my duty to investigate these things and protect my staff.”

For a moment Ro didn’t say anything. Maggie took what she hoped was a subtle step towards him. She wanted to take his hand but she knew she couldn’t do that, even if they had still been on good terms. She still wanted him to know she was on his side though.

“He realised I am Balin,” he said at last.

“Okay, and then what happened?” Derek pressed.

“He was Balor,” Ro said.

“I’m afraid I don’t understand what you’re getting at, Ro,” Derek said.

Maggie was starting to get a bad feeling about where this might be going. She knew Ro had a problem with Balor but she had never known why. It looked like the Balor also had a problem with him.

“He tried to use that to order me to do what he wanted,” Ro said, sounding tense. It was clear he was dodging around something, some important piece of information he didn’t want to explain or admit to.

“Why would that make a difference? Are you saying this was racially motivated?”

Ro appeared to lock his jaw and fix his eyes on the floor.

Derek sighed. “Maggie, do you know anything about this?”

Maggie shook her head. “No,” she said hurriedly.

“Ro… You understand in this case I can’t accept your translation, I will need to ask someone else?” Derek said.

Ro looked up, alarmed. “Who?”

“If this is in Balin, how about Kez? You’re friends, aren’t you? And then we could keep it in the department.”

“The call was in Balor,” Ro corrected him.

“Oh right. But you’ve taken calls from Balor before, haven’t you? And you haven’t had problems with them?”

Ro hesitated again. “The other Balor have been polite, yes,” he confirmed.

“Alright then.” Derek got up and Ro moved to stop him.

“Don’t make Kez listen to the call,” he said.

“Why not?”

“It is not good to listen to, for a Balin,” Ro told him.

Derek sighed, aggrieved, as if this was a minefield he didn’t feel equipped to navigate.

Maggie knew he had to hear a translation of the call in order to investigate properly, and he definitely had to investigate now that it looked like his employees could be suffering racial abuse at work. If the mother tongue menu option was opening the Teissian staff to racial discrimination, it needed to be revised immediately. If Derek did nothing, he could be in serious trouble if it came out later. But he couldn’t trust Ro’s translation because he might be lying to cover up a mistake of his own. He couldn’t ask another Balin because Ro was telling him it would be upsetting, which meant there was no way he could ask a Balor.

His best and really his only option was to put in an official request to Language Services for one of their people to have a look at it, so that if the translation turned out to be false or inaccurate, they would be the liable ones, not Derek. But that would make the whole thing so much more official. He wouldn’t be able to write it off as a one-time thing, not without writing a report and doing loads of paperwork on it anyway. If it went to Language Services, it would be out of the Enquiries containment field and it could be gossiped about throughout the building, eventually reaching the ears of Derek’s bosses.

It was an awful pain in the ass for one phone call.

“Are you sure?” Derek said. “I know you two are friends, but Kez is a professional as well. Even just an informal second opinion could go a long way to assessing this issue.”

Ro seemed to hesitate. It was obvious what Derek wanted, and Ro hadn’t even held his job for a month yet. One of the team leaders might have been able to put their foot down, but Ro clearly didn’t know if he would be risking his job by arguing.

“Warn him first,” Ro said, and Derek nodded and left the office to go and get Kez.

“Are you okay?” Maggie asked as soon as they were alone. “I’m so sorry, this shouldn’t have happened to you. I didn’t want to cause trouble, it’s just procedure.” She bit her lip, worried that this would make him dislike her even more.

Instead he smiled at her, one of his tight, polite, fake smiles. “It’s fine, Maggie. You did nothing wrong.”

“But-”

The door opened again and Maggie cut herself off. Derek brought Kez into the room and shut the door. Kez looked suspiciously at Ro, obviously wondering what was going on.

“I was hoping you could help us out with something, Kez,” Derek said. “Ro had an incident with a caller earlier, and we were just wondering if you would mind giving us a translation of the call? I’ve been told it could be upsetting.”

Kez looked away from Derek as if ignoring him, and asked Ro something in Balin. Ro answered quietly. Derek interrupted. This would be pointless if they were allowed to confer in secret, in case Ro was telling Kez what to say.

“Well, Kez?” he said, raising his voice to cut them off.

Kez shrugged. “Play it,” he said.

Derek reached across to tap his computer and get the call to play. Kez snorted at the first words, identifying the language as Balor. Maggie watched, and listened to the strange language coming through the speakers. It was fascinating how she could almost understand what was being said from Ro’s tone alone. It was the same pleasant, rhythmic phone voice they all used, his smooth clear pronunciation doing him credit.

The caller was getting angry and loud, drowning out Ro’s attempts to talk him down. Kez looked annoyed, but he hadn’t reacted as if anything being said was anything more than the normal levels of rude. Then something was said that made him hiss, his clawed hands flexing suddenly and his crest shooting up. Derek and Maggie shared a worried look. Kez growled, and looked at Ro, speaking quickly and angrily in Balin, gesturing to the computer furiously. Ro replied, obviously emotional but less animated than Kez. Derek stopped the playback.

“Kez? Can you explain what was said?”

Kez openly ignored Derek and continued his argument with Ro. It looked to Maggie from their gestures and tones as if Kez was berating him, and Ro was taking a “what else could I have done?” stance.

“Kez?” Derek said, raising his voice again.

Kez looked at him and snorted almost like a bull. “The caller is not happy with his accommodation because it is near others who are not Balor. Ro is polite and follows the script, I tell you that,” he said, pointing at Derek, still angry.

“Okay, and can you confirm that the caller is being discriminatory?”

“Heh?”

“Did he say anything racially offensive to Ro?”

“You mean because he is Balin? Yes, he tried to use that to order Ro to move him.”

“What does Ro’s race have to do with it?” Maggie asked, jumping in when she probably shouldn’t have.

Both the Balin looked at her, Kez still steaming. “Balor think they are better than everyone,” Kez said, but she could tell from his voice that he was hiding something. She’d heard it from Ro enough times, back when they were still talking. It was too careful, too clever, answering a question she didn’t ask.

“What did he say that made you so angry?” she said. There had been a clear point that had made Kez lose it, some inflammatory phrase or suggestion. That would be what Derek was hunting for, confirmation that some kind of slur was used. Something like that could get the caller blacklisted immediately, and that was what Maggie wanted. If the same person called the Incoming Enquiries line and selected the mother tongue option, he was guaranteed to get Ro again. She didn’t want that to happen. She didn’t want Ro to ever hear that voice again.

Kez snarled, but it didn’t feel like it was directed at her. “I will not say it. We have left that word behind us.”

“Does it have a translation in English?” she said.

Kez huffed. “Why? So you can use it?”

Ro snapped at him in Balin and they started off again, talking over each other. She had never seen Ro so angry before, his eyes narrowed and the pink in his cheeks drawn long in a scowl, his clawed feet scratching at the carpet.

“Guys! Guys!” Derek stopped them. “Of course none of us are going to use it. But if the caller did, then it’s proof of racial targeting, okay?”

Ro turned, pinning Maggie with his eyes, freezing her to the spot. His black eyes looked as blank as glass, his tone empty as if they had never been friends.

“In your language?” he said, his accent coming through just a little as he switched back from his mother tongue. Maggie didn’t miss that he had drawn a line between them. His hands balled into fists at his side. “You would say ‘slave’.”

Chapter 12

There was a stunned silence, until Kez laughed bitterly, waving his hand at the shocked human side of the room as he said something to Ro, who grunted in reply, releasing Maggie from his mesmerising hold on her.

Slave? It echoed round Maggie’s head, but she still couldn’t understand what he meant by it. Why would the Balor call him that? It didn’t make sense. It couldn’t possibly be literal, could it? She knew Ro stayed away from Balor, and that he had never talked about his life on Teiss, but… It just wasn’t sinking in.

“Alright,” Derek said, his voice heavy. “I’ll report this. I’ll put in a job to Language Services for an official translation. There’ll be an investigation into the new menu system and the caller will be blacklisted. Ro, I apologise again that this happened. You’re free to go, and don’t worry about finishing today. You can go home now if you want. Maggie, good job today.”

Maggie recognised the dismissal for what it was. Derek would take it from there, but if he was requesting an investigation, he wouldn’t be allowed to talk about it in detail until it concluded. Kez opened the door and they filed out silently. Ro aimed for his desk with his head down, so Kez gave his shoulder a squeeze and went back to Requisitions. Maggie followed Ro.

As he shut down his computer, she made a snap decision and did the same. Ben glanced at them, but luckily couldn’t say anything because he was on a call. Maggie noticed Lucy raise her eyebrows. The team could talk after they’d left, she didn’t care about the gossip. There’d been plenty already.

Ro strode out of Enquiries and Maggie quickly got her things together and jogged after him, catching up to him in the corridor and reaching for his arm to stop him.

“Ro, wait,” she said.

He turned and faced her but didn’t say anything, looking at her hand as if he wanted her to remove it. 

“Let me buy you a drink,” she said, taking her hand back and adjusting her bag on her shoulder to cover the motion.

“Why?” he said.

“Because.” She still couldn’t put her reason into words, but she couldn’t just let him go home alone.

He nodded as if he understood. “You pity me,” he said.

“I want to talk to you,” she said, her frustration at the days of silence slipping out. “I’m sick of not talking to you,” she mumbled.

He stared at her, making her feel like he was studying her, like she was a sample in a petri dish he couldn’t make sense of.

He sighed in defeat. “I don’t feel like any more choba,” he said, starting to walk again.

She kept up with him, smiling. “I didn’t mean that, I meant a real drink. I know a place that’s open near here.”

“Why, Maggie?” he asked again.

She shrugged. “It seems appropriate,” she said.

They left the building and Maggie led him a few blocks down to a sports bar and grill. It was always dark on the inside and there were plenty of tables that were tucked out of the way, as if the place was deliberately aiming for the misanthrope, day-drinker crowd. It was a bit before four pm, so there weren’t any diners, just a few people sat watching the game at the bar. One guy eyeballed Ro as they walked in, but soon turned back to the screen and his beer.

Maggie led them to a booth at the back, and Ro slid in opposite her. A waitress put two glasses of water down for them, and Maggie got the drinks menu. When they were alone again, Maggie spoke first.

“Please let me apologise for how I acted in your apartment.”

Ro looked at her but didn’t say anything, and his expression gave her no clues.

“It was… immature of me, and I never meant to imply anything. I know you wouldn’t really have… done anything.”

Ro made a small hum, as if he was curious or surprised, and picked up his menu. “You were right to leave. As I said, I wasn’t myself at that time. I deeply regret my behaviour.”

“Wait, are you apologising to me?” Maggie said.

“Yes.”

“But it was my fault.”

“No it wasn’t.”

“Then why haven’t you been speaking to me?”

“I thought you didn’t want to speak to me!”

She stared at him. “So… you still like me? I mean, as a friend? You still want to be friends?” She wasn’t going to make the mistake of asking for more.

Ro looked at her as if shocked she would even ask. “Of course!” he said, his voice dropping a note until it was richer than molasses.

Maggie stared at him, disbelieving. Had all her angst and grief of the past week been for nothing? Then her stunned expression split into a wide grin, and he smiled back at her, his pink moons bending with the size of it.

“Yay,” she laughed, for lack of anything better to say.

For once it was Ro who looked away first, as if he couldn’t bear to hold eye contact. He scanned his menu, so Maggie did the same, though she expected to get the same mixer she always did: coconut rum and orange juice. It tasted like a pina colada but cheaper, and the vitamin C was good for her skin, or so she told herself.

“These are alcoholic?” Ro verified with her.

“Yep. On me today, so don’t worry about it.”

“Because of the Balor?”

“Something good might as well come out of it,” she bit out. Reconnecting with him had almost made her forget the reason they were there, but she was still mad. She wanted to find that Balor and give him a real kick in the jimmies, and she was not normally a violent person.

“What would you recommend?” Ro asked.

Maggie welcomed the change of subject. They would get to what had happened soon enough, or leave it alone if that was what Ro wanted, but Maggie wanted some booze to grease the way, and give her a glass to fiddle with for the awkward bits. Maybe it was cowardly, but she was shy. It mattered to her what Ro thought and she wanted this to go well. It hadn’t been her intention to do anything other than help him drink his problems away when she had followed him out of DETI, but now they were alone, and apparently friends again, there was an atmosphere that she couldn’t shake. If she messed this up like she had messed up the last time they were they alone together, she couldn’t see how she could show her face again.

“What do you like?” she asked, putting her menu aside and leaning forward on the table. They discussed it until the waitress came, and they ordered. Maggie bought Ro a Yo-Ho, which seemed to be made entirely out of lemons, with limoncello providing the alcohol content. The waitress left, and they were alone again.

“So…” she began, unsure how to breach the subject. “Want to talk about it?”

Ro sighed. “I didn’t want you to know,” he said. “What Balin are on Teiss.”

“Why don’t you tell me about it? I still feel like I don’t know anything. You’ve never told me anything about your life before you came here, but I want to know. I want to know about you,” she said, not sure if she was over-stepping. It was the truth, she did want to know, she wanted to know everything about him and it wouldn’t change how she felt, but maybe if she was in his position, she’d want to forget everything too. “If you want, you can lie, I won’t know,” she offered.

That got her a flicker of a smile. “What do you want to know?” he said, scratching at a groove in the table top.

She hesitated. “Why did he call you… what he did?”

Ro sighed, and looked away. “On Teiss… Balin live underground. I never saw the sun, or the sky, or felt the wind until I landed on Earth. Where we live, choba grows in many different bright colours, and the Balor want those colours to dye their fabrics, and make paint. At first, generations ago, the Balor traded for the choba. Then they took control of the lands above where we lived, and stopped trading. Instead they threatened us.”

“How?” Maggie asked, horrified.

“They usually cut off our light,” Ro said. “We had tunnels for sunlight to come through, and they would cover them. We don’t need much light to see, but we do need some. And with no sunlight, our food wouldn’t grow. Sometimes they flooded our tunnels, or threw fire into them.” Ro spoke as if it was old news, normal, but Maggie couldn’t imagine living like that, forced to farm or risk being starved or plunged into total darkness.

“They gave us quotas of different colours, and they punished us if they were not met. Always their demands got higher, and their tempers shorter. The choba got so important, we stopped eating it ourselves, grew less food to make room for it. It made us sick and weak, but the Balor didn’t care. We became desperate and cruel to each other. I am glad not to live like that anymore,” Ro said wistfully. “On the transporter ships, the crews told us we did not have to work for the Balor anymore, and they told the Balor not to expect it, but some of them refuse to change.”

“That’s terrible,” Maggie said. “If anyone ever tries any of that shit with you, tell me and they’ll regret it!” She was aware she probably didn’t look or sound very dangerous, but she felt mad enough to make it happen.

Ro smiled a wicked smile that sent a chill between her shoulder blades, and leaned forward, folding his clawed hands on the table top. She leaned forward to meet him without thinking, and he whispered for her, “I think you are probably right. I am finished taking orders from them.”

She swallowed.

The waitress arrived with their drinks, and Maggie jumped back, straightening up almost guiltily, but Ro eased back slowly as if he was perfectly at his leisure. They each sipped their drinks as if to test them, and Maggie watched Ro for his opinion.

“Like it?” she asked.

He nodded. “So drinking alcohol in the afternoon is normal?” he asked.

She laughed, a little uneasily as she remembered that she had left work without permission or even telling anybody. “Well, it doesn’t sound great when you put it like that. But it’s pretty common to get a little drunk if something bad happens, or a lot drunk, depending what it is.”

“I have never been drunk on human alcohol before. I’m not sure I can be,” he mused, turning his glass in his hand as if looking for instructions.

“Well, I don’t recommend it this time. It’s more of a night-time activity,” Maggie explained, propping her chin on her hand and watching him. She sure hoped alcohol wasn’t poisonous to Balin, but she thought she would have heard about it if it was. It was poisonous to humans though, and she still drank it. “Tell me more about Teiss,” she prompted.

“What do you want to know?” he asked. It seemed like the seal had been broken now the big secret was out, but she still felt like he was a little cagey, braced for a question he didn’t want to answer.

“What was that merchant in the market talking about with the ‘colours’ thing? The way he said it made me think it meant something.”

Ro laughed. “Of course you would ask about that,” he said. “How to explain… To Balin, colours are very important. We live with very little light, and our scales are dark, but our colours shine. Our colours are determined by the choba our mothers eat while they are pregnant, so a Balin with bright colours, or many colours on his body, is considered healthy, well-fed, from a good family. The contrast between the dark and coloured scales helps to show them off. The darker the scales, the brighter the colours, or the more colours a Balin has, the more desirable they are,” he explained, a genuine smile twisting his mouth as if he was trying to hold it back, then it faded. “The oldest of us had many bright colours, but our mothers could only eat a little choba, because of the Balor’s demands. It became common to focus on one colour, in the hope that it would at least be bright. The females did the best they could.”

“Wow, I would never have thought of that,” Maggie said.

Ro shrugged and sipped his drink.

“So… if you don’t mind me asking, you must have been pretty popular,” Maggie pointed out.

Ro made a noise that was half-choke, half-laugh, then said something in Balin that she thought must be some kind of curse or exclamation. He wiped his hand over his head, his eyes wide in disbelief.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have commented,” Maggie said, trying to take it back. “That was probably rude of me.”

“No, no, not rude… Very forward, if you were Balin. Flattering, very.” He laughed again. “Ahh, Maggie. Careful,” he said, shaking his head.

She dared to smile at his flirty tone. “Am I wrong?”

He looked like he was trying to look humble and didn’t quite pull it off. “No… My scales are darker than most, and my colours are bright. Thank you for noticing,” he laughed again as if he couldn’t believe the conversation he was having. “I shall take it as a compliment and not an invitation this time. But the truth is,” he seemed to sober. “I was injured in an accident when I was young and that made me… invisible, shall we say? I’d rather not explain further.” He took a drink to punctuate the end of his sentence.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Maggie commiserated. “If it helps, I like your-”

“Don’t say that, Maggie,” he warned her.

“Why not? I do like-”

“Maggie!”

“Fine. But I do. I think they look very-”

He groaned loudly to drown her out, putting his face in his hands, rubbing his eyes with the heels of his palms, muttering to himself.

“Okay, okay… Wait, does that mean you think humans look boring? Because we don’t have them?” she asked, suddenly self-conscious. She had never turned heads, but she had been called cute a few times. She was short with a round face and freckles so it was kind of unavoidable. 

Ro straightened, pulling his head up and laying his hands flat on the table. He blinked at her a few times, his eyes moving over her face, and she wished she hadn’t asked as she sat for his consideration.

“I don’t think humans are boring,” he said. “I find you very interesting.”

She wasn’t sure if he meant the singular or plural form of ‘you’, but she blushed anyway. “Thanks,” she said lamely, squirming. “So does it hurt when you file your claws down?” she said, changing the subject to something safer.

“No,” Ro said, stretching out his fingers and looking at his claws. “They’ll grow back if I stop, so it takes up a lot of my time, but it doesn’t hurt as long as I don’t overdo it.”

“That’s good. I’d hate for it to be permanent, and you had to change like that just for work. Can I ask, what does fila mean?”

“It means ‘family’. It is how the Balin address each other. We feel that, living as we did, underground, controlled by the Balor, it made all Balin the same. No Balin is better than another, it doesn’t matter what clan you are from. We all know the same life, and it is something no outsider can know. On Teiss, it was not as common to use it as it is here, but I think people are trying to hold onto each other. They want to remember it more now,” he finished, laughing a little.

Maggie could understand that, but it still made her sad. Kez called Ro that all the time, and Ro made it sound like he only did it to remind himself he wasn’t alone.

Ro let her quiz him on other aspects of Balin life and culture, laughing at some of her questions, and she filled him in on the office party plans. She didn’t have much else to report on from the time they hadn’t been talking, since most of it had been spent agonising over him, and she wasn’t going to tell him that. His mood seemed to have improved so much it was like nothing bad had ever happened to him, but then, she was also feeling lighter than she had in a long time.

They each had a second drink, but then it was time to go. Despite her talk, she didn’t want to get drunk in the middle of the day, and she was beginning to feel a little loose and flushed from drinking on an empty stomach. Ro was chatty enough that she thought he was probably feeling the effects of the alcohol too, and if this was his first encounter with it, she didn’t want him associating her with a hangover.

She paid for their drinks. “So I’ll see you at work tomorrow?” she asked, knowing they would be splitting up soon. The dorms were one way, while her bus stop was the other.

“Of course. Maggie, do you want to meet in the café? Like we used to?”

“Sure, yeah, that would be great,” she smiled, utterly failing to sound as casual as she’d wanted.

He smiled back at her. “Okay. I’ll see you then,” he said.

He pushed the door open and froze. It was raining. Not hard, but the late afternoon light had been covered by clouds making it look much later than it was. She could smell the dryness of the road getting wet carried on the chill air.

“Damn, I don’t have an umbrella,” she said. It was California, of course she didn’t. “Maybe I should just call a cab, we could share one?”

She looked at Ro but he was watching the rain, his mouth open in amazement. He held his hand out past the protective awning of the doorway, catching drops in his palm.

“You’ve never seen it before?” she asked softly, remembering what he had told her.

“No,” he replied. “I have heard about it but…” He leant forward, looking down the street. “It’s everywhere,” he said.

“Yes. It’ll stop soon, I should think. This is just a shower.”

“A shower. Is it safe?”

She might have laughed once but she didn’t now. “Perfectly safe. Though you can get pretty wet if you’re stuck in it without shelter.”

Ro let out a breath and took the step out of the doorway into the rain. She watched him blink and flinch as the rain hit his face. He came back into the dry with her. “I don’t like it,” he stated.

She giggled. “Most people don’t. Come on.” She took his hand and pulled him out onto the bar’s covered porch, obviously meant to be reminiscent of a dust-bowl farmhouse, with a few empty benches for patrons who wanted to sit outside. She pulled him down onto a bench so they could face out and watch the rain. He didn’t pull away from her, so she let his hand go on her own, remembering to keep her distance. They sat side by side and waited for it to stop.

Chapter 13

They went back to being friends as if they had never stopped. They had coffee and choba every morning, and the rest of the team stared at them or rolled their eyes, but Maggie couldn’t blame them. She could barely keep up with the whiplash back and forth of their relationship herself.

This time they were strictly friends, Maggie had decided. Ro had never done anything to make her hope for more, and they had been alone outside of the office exactly twice, once to effectively break up, and once to make up. She wasn’t willing to make that mistake again. She didn’t think she could handle it, going through it all again, sitting opposite him while thinking he hated her. She was happier as his friend than just his colleague. She wanted to be able to talk to him and laugh with him.

And they got on so well, at least in her mind. She was still charmed by him, and he sought her out enough to make her think he enjoyed her company. She did everything in her power to stick to friendship, stay behind the line she had drawn in the sand, but he didn’t make it easy for her. Sometimes she wondered if he was flirting, the way he teased her and smiled and held her eyes, but she wouldn’t fall into that trap again. He was just being friendly, and she was projecting too much onto it because of her own crush.

Just then they were sitting alone in the office after everyone else had gone home. Ro had volunteered to help her with the party preparation. The party itself was only a week away now, and she was showing him how to cut snowflakes out of paper and make paper chains and decorate paper baubles with glitter. She’d bought all the craft paper over the weekend, and she didn’t mind spending the money out of her own pocket. It was only once a year. The decorations they had in storage didn’t go far enough, in her opinion, especially now DETI had expanded and they would need more tables, more chairs, more food…

Ro had started teaching her Balin words and phrases at her request, which she practiced now. She knew how to say “Hello, my name is Maggie. I live in San Diego and work for DETI. What’s your name?” and “I’m sorry, I don’t speak Balin,” which she saw herself needing far more often. Ro still laughed occasionally at her attempts to string her own sentences together, but she could tell he liked it when she said something right. He didn’t reply or laugh, and just listened instead, a slight smile on his face. That made it worth it to keep trying.

“Okay, so teach me something else,” she said, finishing another snowflake. The majority were going to be white, but there were going to be silver and glittery ones as well to break it up. Ro was lagging behind her, still having to be careful and focused as he cut out the shapes, while she could probably do it with her eyes closed by now.

“What would you like to say?” he asked.

“I don’t know. What would you like me to say?” she offered.

He laughed and shook his head.

“Come on, I’m giving you an opportunity here. You could make me say anything and I wouldn’t know it.”

“Are you encouraging me to do something I shouldn’t?” he asked, looking at her from the corner of his eyes.

He had turned his chair to the side so he could stretch his legs out, and she had brought her chair around to the side of her desk so she could see him without their screens in the way, keeping her supplies next to her. He rarely offered her such a good view of his feet, which he seemed convinced she would have a problem with for some reason, but the more time they spent together the more he relaxed around her. He flexed his toes and his claws clicked together quietly, drawing her attention briefly. She didn’t want to stare, but she was still kind of fascinated by his differences.

“You could give me something nice to say,” she reminded him.

“Hmm… You could repeat it to another male though, and I wouldn’t like that,” he said, his voice taking on a certain teasing lilt that she would normally associate with flirting in a human man, but that she did her best to ignore from him. He was just joking around. 

Maggie laughed. She knew the conversation they were having wasn’t totally innocent, and it was mostly her fault, but she wouldn’t end it just yet. Not while she still had plausible deniability and room to enjoy it. “Oh, I see… Well, I can keep a secret,” she teased back.

Ro glanced at her to judge her intentions, then went back to his snowflake. “Alright, let me think.”

She waited a few seconds, then took up her paper and scissors again while he thought about it. In a moment he said “Say this,” and gave her a short sentence to repeat. She had to hear it a few times, and he had to correct her pronunciation, but eventually she was saying it and he was just listening. She said it a couple of times, and he got a look on his face that was almost shy.

“Are you blushing?” she asked, nudging his leg playfully, and he avoided her eyes.

“Tsss, I am not blushing,” he objected. “Balin do not blush, our scales are obviously too dark.”

She laughed, enjoying this far too much. She didn’t care whatever he’d made her say, whether it had been completely filthy, or confessing her undying love, or telling him he was the best in the world. It was just a game. The truth might be that she wanted to say those things to him, but this way she could say them and not be held accountable. And she wanted him to want to hear her say those things to him.

“What did you make me say?” she asked, sounding like a teenager at a sleepover instead of a grown woman in her office.

“I am not telling you,” he grouched.

“Should I say it again?”

“No.”

“Never?”

He grumbled quietly.

“Should I just forget it then, if I’m not allowed to ever say it again, to anyone?”

“You can remember it…” he hesitated, and she giggled. She had him. “But don’t say it to anyone else.”

“Okay, I won’t. I’ll only say it to you,” she promised, her smile faltering. That was a bit close to home, given that there was a number of things she wanted to say to only him but couldn’t.

She let the game come to an end, focusing for a minute on her decorations. When they spoke again, she made sure to keep it innocent and light, shallow, far away from anything that was really going on with her. They talked about work and the office gossip.

The big news was that a week and a half ago the UNE had cleared DETI to start accepting the refugees who had been stuck in space for almost three months. Just when the overcrowding in the dorms looked like it was getting resolved, another motherload of people were brought down. It was just like the night the borders closed. Intake were processing hundreds of applications a day. Enquiries’ phone lines were lighting up every second. Maggie and Ro had no time to talk to each other. Lunch breaks were down to twenty minutes.

But they were coping. They had been given a couple of days’ notice to get prepared, and everyone was happy to get the marooned passengers down at last. No one begrudged them that.

Derek had said he was pleased with how well Maggie had done with Ro, getting him trained up and taking cases on his own in such a short time, and how well adapted and integrated into the team he seemed. Maggie insisted that Ro deserved the credit for that, not her, but Derek had maintained that he was impressed. He said she had handled the incident with the Balor caller with a cool head, following procedure without hesitation, while prioritising staff security and care. Maggie just thought of it as being nice, but if he wanted to look at it that way, she wouldn’t argue. He had all but promised her that promotion, and she was looking forward to the recognition she had earned, and the pay rise.

She would tell Ro when it became official. She didn’t want him to feel pressured to perform or risk her promotion. It wouldn’t be fair of her to put that responsibility on him.

They bounced around different topics. It turned out they were watching the same show in the evenings and talked about that. Ro had a pretty unique view of human dramas, because he was more removed than her. Maggie enjoyed the intrigue and twists, whereas for him it was almost a comedy about how crazy humans could be, a show meant to shock and amaze Teissians about the people they now shared a planet with. Maggie assured him that real life was rarely like that, and he seemed almost disappointed.

Ro told her about the people he had met at the dorms, friends he was making. He had bought more clothes from the market and the merchant had asked about her. Maggie got the impression Ro wasn’t happy about that, and smiled, though she didn’t say anything. She could pretend it was jealousy, and she didn’t want that fantasy to be dashed.

Kez was off sick, and Maggie asked about him. Ro assured her he was fine and would be back to work in a few days.

They did good work but Maggie wasn’t going to keep them there all night. After an hour and a half, she put the materials away. They would be doing it again the next night and the night after that, and every night until the day of the party when they would have to take the whole afternoon off to set everything up. She had a handful of volunteers for that though, probably helped by the fact that it meant getting off work, or at least a change of pace. If she and Ro couldn’t get enough done before then, she was planning on calling on Ben for help, since he was usually a soft touch and she knew he didn’t have a family waiting for him like Nina or a hectic social calendar like Lucy.

She would miss having this excuse to spend the extra hours with Ro, but soon after the party she would be leaving for her own winter holidays with her family at her parents’ house. Maybe that would take her mind off him, and give her time to get over him.

She wasn’t sure she wanted to get over him though. Maybe they shouldn’t date because they worked together, and maybe he didn’t like her like that, but… She wasn’t any better off without him. She wasn’t sure what her life would look like on the other side of this crush. Logically she knew she’d been just fine before she met him and she’d be fine again, but she liked liking him, for the most part. She didn’t want to give that up just for the sake of, what? Propriety? Professionalism? The only reason she would accept for giving up on him was if he asked her to.

Too bad she was too much of a coward to go after him, worried about losing his friendship. She sighed.

“Maggie?” Ro said, obviously having heard her as they headed out of the building, waving goodnight to the guards on duty.

“Sorry. It’s nothing,” she said, forcing a smile to reassure him.

Chapter 14

Maggie surveyed her work and felt proud. She and her volunteers, including Ro, had spent all afternoon balancing on chairs to get the decorations up, unfolding tables and plating the food up, mixing punch in huge bowls, counting cups, making sure the speakers were safe and plugged in, that the music played… Maggie knew from past experience exactly how the fake tree slotted together, but Ro and Ben had looked like they were bonding over the instructions, so she had stayed where she was, untangling the string of lights with Samir from Accommodation.

She had given Ro a gift of a seasonal sweater, which was too short for him. It was black with a white snowflake pattern and the words “Ho Ho Ho” on the front. She had had to explain about Santa Claus, and he didn’t really get the appeal of a strange man breaking into your house while you slept once a year, but he still seemed to love the sweater, or at least the fact that she had given it to him. He had changed into it in the bathroom, and she had suggested he push the sleeves up to hide the fact that they were several inches too short.

She had waved him off when he had apologised for not getting her a gift, saying he hadn’t known he was supposed to. She had just wanted to make sure he got something this year. Teissians almost certainly wouldn’t celebrate any of the religious or commercial holidays that marked the end of the year, and she just wanted him to feel included after all the work he had put into the party with her. And she thought it suited him.

It was now after five, and people were beginning to wander in. Enquiries was the biggest department on the ground floor, and they had booked out the biggest meeting room, and Maggie had invited the smaller departments to join in. She had sent named invitations to the security guards who worked their floor the most, and the woman who worked the information desk in the lobby. The tree, now assembled and looking good with its decorations and snowman on top, was ruling over a swelling pile of Secret Santa gifts. The catering table was still neat and tidy, though Maggie would need to keep an eye on it to top it up later. She had made sure there were Teissian treats this year, though the things Ro had excitedly requested sounded baffling at best to her.

She was wearing a red dress with a big poofy skirt and a Santa hat. She considered that as she had put this whole thing together, she should play the role of Mrs Claus and look it too. She wasn’t worried about embarrassing herself in front of her colleagues, she was more concerned with making herself instantly recognisable as the person in charge. As much as she encouraged the rest of the staff to dress for the theme, only about half ever did. The men tended to wear sweaters or seasonal ties, the women might put on a party dress or a sweater. Lilah from Accounts wore a skirt with holly on it every year.

They had stacked most of the tables against the wall to clear a space for dancing on a foldable imitation-wood floor, but left plenty of seats around the tables that remained for later in the night or when people wanted to eat. The paper snowflakes dangled en masse from the ceiling on strings of different lengths in the hope of creating the illusion that they were falling. The walls were pinned with fake holly and mistletoe was twined liberally over the doorframes. The tables were strung with the paper chains, and edged with fake snow. For California, Maggie had done the best she could to imply a winter wonderland.

The party would be as multi-faith as Maggie could make it. The music mostly centred on snow and spending time with family and loved ones, bar for a few classic carols from the religions that had them. There were a few angels around the room, a few menorahs, a few Santas, but Maggie kept it to a minimum to make sure everyone was included. Mostly the different holidays were represented by the staff of those faiths in what they wore and brought along.

Ro had explained that the Balin at least didn’t have holidays, as they didn’t have calendars, judging the turn of the seasons not by the sun or the moon but by the temperature underground. They had no religion either, so he was excited to see everyone celebrating, even if it was just an office party. She had asked if he had any plans on the 25th, but he hadn’t at the time. He didn’t seem to mind. Since DETI would be running on a skeleton crew for at least a week, he implied that he would find other Balin to celebrate with on the days of mandatory leave, and work the rest of them. It was the Teissians and people from cultures who didn’t celebrate their winter holidays at that time who kept the offices ticking over, and Ro implied that he wanted to make up for the time he had taken off sick.

Maggie had set the music playing at five, and as people arrived they smiled at what she and the others had done to the room. Ro stepped up to her side.

“Has the party started?” he asked. “Are we finished?”

Maggie laughed. “I’m not finished until everyone goes home,” she said. “But yes, I’d say the party has officially started.”

“What should I do?” he said, looking like he was vibrating with excitement.

She grinned. It was contagious. “Whatever you want. Get some food. Drink some punch. Talk to people. Dance.”

“Dance? No, I don’t dance,” he objected, shaking his head.

“You don’t dance?” Maggie laughed. She’d heard that before from a dozen guys. “Just wait until you get some punch in you, you’ll be dancing like never before.”

“I won’t,” he argued.

“Is it a Balin thing then? Not dancing?”

“Oh no, the Balin love to dance, except me.”

Maggie looked at him. He seemed resolute, but she could tell he was just embarrassed and hiding. “I’ll get a dance out of you before this night is through,” she promised him.

“Maggie…” he objected.

“I want one, and I think I’ve earned one.”

“But-”

 “Ro, I’ve made up my mind.” He looked like he wanted to argue some more so she added, “Consider it your gift to me, in exchange for the sweater.”

He sighed a growl, muttering something about her.

“Careful, one day I’ll be able to understand when you do that,” she said, smiling as she gave his arm a bump.

He gave her a weak smile back. “You’ll regret it.”

“I don’t think so.” She didn’t tell him she had a reason that made her sure she would enjoy it. Even if he really couldn’t dance, and stabbed her foot with his claws, she’d risk it for a chance to be that close to him. “Now let’s get some food, I’m starving.”

They perused the table, making up for the dinner they weren’t going to get by piling disposable plates high with hors d’oeuvres, and Maggie helped herself to the punch. She loved the stuff, but she was normally too busy to drink enough to get drunk. There was a non-alcoholic option, but she was only allowed to drink at work once a year so she was going to do it. In her opinion, staying sober until the end of the party would be a waste of all her hard work.

Ro copied her example, and they chatted good-naturedly while they ate, as the first hour or so was the least demanding period of the party for her. They would do Secret Santas between six and seven to accommodate everyone, as some people couldn’t stay late and some people went for dinner before coming to the party. After about six, the room would start filling up, and she would be playing hostess for the rest of the night - refreshing the catering table, chasing people away from the music station, answering questions about what was planned for when, and chatting with wall flowers, introducing them to each other to make sure everyone had a good time.

Different people from Enquiries came over as they arrived to congratulate her on her work, until it became impossible to hold a conversation, so she pointed Kez out to Ro and went to mingle, her brain focusing on keeping a running tally of how many people were in the room. She complimented people on their themed clothes if they had them, caught up on the progress of cases with people she didn’t know very well, welcomed people from other sections who looked lost, gave air-kisses to the security teams as they popped in briefly for snacks while on shift.

She curated the food table, clearing used plates and cups and swapping empty dishes for full ones, making sure the labels were in the right place, then breezed on to Secret Santa, turning the volume down on the music. It took a good thirty minutes to get through it all, maintaining a bright cheer throughout as she read off the names on the tags. She hadn’t signed up to it, knowing she would be the one handing them out, and not needing the extra job to think about.

Her eyes kept drifting to Ro where he stood against the wall with Kez, Ben, and Jason. He smiled at her whenever their eyes met, but she knew he was watching her. She could feel it. Granted, she held the attention of the room while the music wasn’t playing and everyone was waiting for their name to be called, but there was something about the way he seemed to ignore the people around him in favour of focussing on her that made her forget what she was saying.

When all the gifts were given out, she turned the music back up and got another glass of punch to soothe her dry throat. She sat down. She knew from previous years that she wouldn’t be needed now for a while. There would be a lull for the next hour or so as one by one the people with families to go home to left, and before the people who were coming to drink and dance and flirt began to leave their inhibitions behind.

Ro sat down in the chair across the table from her and she smiled at him. He pushed a plate of food her way.

“You are doing a great job,” he said, his voice a soothing purr she really needed just then.

“Thanks,” she said, gratefully picking some mini-quiches and cocktail sausages off the plate. “Are you having a good time?”

“Yes,” he said. “You are very busy.”

She smiled. “It’s only one night a year, and everyone appreciates it.”

“I thought I would be able to talk to you tonight, but you are needed by everyone else.”

Maggie was glad her mouth was full and she could take her time replying. She sensed a potential minefield. She couldn’t give too much away. She swallowed. “I know, but there are quiet times, like now. I’m still counting on my dance later, I’m coming to collect so be ready.”

He groaned and she grinned wickedly.

She couldn’t let it go though, the opportunity he had given her. “If it helps, I’d rather be spending tonight with you too,” she said, watching him for his reaction.

He met her eyes and held them, studying her, reading her. She made sure he couldn’t see how much he meant to her. After a moment, he smiled, holding out his cup for her to tap with hers.

“Cheers,” he said.

“Cheers,” she replied, only more confused as he obviously deflected her. Maybe she’d said the wrong thing after all. She downed the rest of her punch.

Ben approached, giving her a mock bow. “Can I have this dance, boss?” he said. He was wearing a blue sweater with a menorah on the front in white.

Maggie laughed. She couldn’t really say no, but she knew there was nothing behind it. “Alright. Ro, I’ll catch up to you later, okay?” she said, giving him what she thought was a meaningful look as she took Ben’s hand. Ro gave her a tight smile that fell from his face as soon as he put it there and held his cup up in a toast.

Ben pulled her out onto the dancefloor, which was sparsely populated at this early hour, though a few people were making their way there. The song was an upbeat cover of an old classic, and Ben held her at arm’s length, his hand resting lightly on her hip, the other taking hers and holding it up like a wineglass. For all her talk, Maggie couldn’t really dance with a man, not properly. She’d never learned how, but she could make a go of it. All that was required of them was a jokey imitation of a quickstep, and the two of them obligingly bopped around in a circle to the music, Maggie’s free hand on his shoulder.

“Can you see Ro over my shoulder?” Ben asked out of the blue.

Maggie glanced at the seat she’d just left. “Yeah, why?”

“How does he look? Mad as hell?”

Maggie looked again. Ro was watching them with a tight jaw and narrowed eyes, the plastic cup he’d been holding a screwed up ball on the table next to his hand, his claws sinking into the wooden surface. “Well, since you mention it…”

Ben nodded as if it was just as he expected. “He’s jealous.”

“What? No he’s not!” Maggie laughed him off.

“Oh yes he is, and you know it. You two have been stuck like magnets, breaking each other’s hearts since he got here.”

“That’s not true…” she objected. Was it? She knew the team had noticed their friendship, and their brief falling out, but magnets? Hearts? Was her cover blown? Maybe Ben would keep her secret if she asked.

“Yes it is, and don’t argue. I have a plan,” he said.

“Uh-oh.”

“First, I’m going to twirl you,” he let go off her waist and led her into a twirl with his hold on her hand, her skirt flaring briefly as she spun. He caught her waist and turned her back to him. “Then we’re going to get you and Ro together.”

“And how are you going to do that?” Maggie challenged.

“I’m going to make him even more jealous,” he replied, tugging her closer so that their bodies were pressed together, his arm going behind her back.

Maggie tensed, and her eyes instinctively looked to where Ro had been sitting in case he really was watching, really was jealous, but he wasn’t there.

“He’s gone,” Maggie said, pushing away from Ben and looking around. Ben stopped dancing and searched the crowd.

“He’s not here, he left the room,” he said, then laughed. “And you’re telling me he’s not jealous?”

Maggie ignored him, suddenly worried. She would be upset if Ben had somehow chased Ro away.

“Maggie,” Ben got her attention again. “He’ll be back. In the meantime, Alex is in on this too so watch out for her later.” He winked and left the dancefloor catching Lucy to whisper in her ear.

Maggie wanted to go and look for Ro, but before she could make it to the exit, another guest stopped her and complimented her on the decorations, and like that she was caught again, always someone else needing her for something. She had to put out more food, more plates, more punch, more cups. She had to re-pin some decorations that had come untacked. One friend after another tracked her down to say goodbye before they left for home.

By the time she had a minute to herself again, she saw Ro was back, standing by Kez, talking as if nothing had happened. She had the silliest urge to go to him to explain what Ben had done, but why? Ben was certainly wrong. It must have just been coincidence that Ro had left the room when he did; she must have been mistaken when she thought he looked angry. And Ro knew nothing of Ben’s ‘plan’, which was good. He might be offended if Maggie told him the others thought he was jealous over her.

Still, she made her way through the crowd to him, catching her breath.

“Hey,” she greeted the group. It was Kez, and a few other Balin she didn’t know, who she nodded to in greeting.

“Maggie,” Ro said. “Did you have fun?”

She looked at him, but there was nothing in his expression to give alarm. She must have just imagined the shadow of a petulant tone in his voice. “When?” she said, playing dumb.

“I like this beat,” Kez cut in, tapping his claws against the carpet. “Don’t you, Ro? Reminds me of home.” Maggie judged that Kez was feeling the effects of the punch. “You could almost dance to this.”

Ro scowled at him, but the Balin on his other side agreed. “I know what you mean, a little more drum, take the words away…” He tapped his toes as well, picking up the same beat.

The female on the end laughed. “Are you males going to display for me?” she giggled.

Kez reached out and stroked her chin. “Why? Are you needing, fila?” he said, grinning. Maggie didn’t know where to look, almost blushing at the blatant flirting.

The female batted his hand away. “In this weather, I feel like it’s all I do. It’s too hot here,” she complained, and the males grunted in agreement, nodding. “But it would remind me of home,” she added wistfully.

“Me too,” said Kez, putting his cup down with an air of determination. “You will join me, Sem? Ro?”

Ro growled quietly, his expression dark.

“Oh, of course. Nevermind! You entertain your human female here, Sem and I will charm Ara!” he said, staggering a little as he pushed off from the wall in the direction of the dancefloor. The female hissed but followed after them.

Maggie glanced at Ro, but he was watching the others as Kez and Sem tripped over each other, shoving each other into position on the dancefloor. Ara stood with her arms folded to watch. Maggie watched too as the males began stamping rhythmically, their crests standing fully erect, following some kind of choreography as they moved roughly in time with each other, too drunk to be perfect.

“Maggie.”

She looked back at Ro, who was now staring at her with an odd expression.

“Don’t watch them,” he said, and she identified the look on his face as pain.

“Why not? Is it rude?” she glanced back at the dancefloor where a little space had cleared for the Balin, other humans pausing to watch.

The dance was obviously intended to be a virulent display, but the two Balin kept losing their composure and laughing, or stumbling into each other. Nevertheless, they managed to stomp and beat a pattern that Maggie expected she would find quite intimidating if the two males weren’t tipsy. As it was, it didn’t take long for Ara to wade in, stopping them from embarrassing themselves, and finding herself quickly sandwiched between the two, who then began trying to stare each other down while Ara tried to wiggle free, complaining shrilly.

The show over, Maggie turned back to Ro, only to find him staring into his punch like it was a mirror for his soul.

“Hey,” she called softly, touching his arm to make him meet her eyes. “Are you not having a good time?”

“I am,” he said, but his smile was as forced as she’d ever seen it.

“Liar,” she said. It saddened her to think he wasn’t enjoying himself. They’d both put so much work into it.

He sighed but didn’t say anything more.

“Do you miss Teiss?” she guessed. “Lots of people miss home at the holidays.”

He shook his head. “No,” he said.

“Then what? You can tell me,” she reached for his hand and squeezed it.

He looked at her as if he wanted to believe her but was still holding back.

“You’re always keeping secrets from me,” she whispered, stepping closer. “I don’t like it. You can trust me.”

He moved closer too, almost closing the gap between them, making her have to look up to see his face. “Maggie… Could we talk outside?” he whispered.

“Of course,” she said, hypnotised. She didn’t know what she expected to hear, but she wanted to help him if she could.

He put his cup down and led her towards the exit. Maggie didn’t even care that a fight between two Balin might be about to break out on the dancefloor, which she would normally consider part of her hostess duties to stop. Whatever this was, it was more important.

As she followed Ro through the doorway, a pair of arms snagged her and Lee from Security called “Mistletoe!” dropping his stubbled mouth to her cheek for a pantomime kiss with such force it turned her head.

“Uh, Lee!” she said stunned.

She looked for Ro. He was watching her, his expression completely cold and closed off, his hands balling into fists. He didn’t seem to know what to say, his jaw twitching as if he was chewing his words.

“I will return later to help you clear up,” he bit out after a moment of stony silence, then he turned and strode away out of sight, his long legs taking him out of reach before she could fight her way out of Lee’s arms.

“Ro!” she called, but he didn’t stop.

Lee let her go. “Oh… Sorry, should I not have done that?” he said, sounding genuinely contrite.

“No. No, it’s fine. Go and have fun,” she said, forcing a smile and pushing him into the party. As soon as his back was turned, she jogged off to the end of the corridor, but she couldn’t see where Ro had gone, and as little as she felt like it just then, she still had a party to run. With a stomp of frustration and a worried curse, she turned and went back to party. He’d said he would come back. She would just have to wait for him.

Chapter 15

After that, Maggie helped herself to a lot more punch. She still did her duty as hostess, even dancing with a few of the women from Enquiries to some of her favourite songs, but in the back of her mind she was just waiting for the party to end so Ro would come back and she could explain. Ben had said he was jealous. It was starting to look like maybe he was, or at least, something was going on. Maggie just wanted to make it clear that she cared about Ro, that he was the best friend she had, that she never wanted him to be hurt or sad or angry.

The hours passed, people got drunker and started to pair off. There was a human woman Maggie had never seen before sitting on the lap of a tall Volon in a Security uniform, enthusiastically sucking face with him while he clawed at her hips. From the looks of them, they were both totally wasted, but Maggie was still jealous. They had what she didn’t, and they made it look easy. She wondered if she should intervene, but by the time she’d made up her mind, they had disappeared. Other couples were slinking off home together, until it was just the stragglers. Maggie summoned self-driving podcabs for the ones who were too hammered to leave on their own and the ones who were trying to fall asleep, helping them one by one down the steps of the building with help from the poor security guard on duty. At least none of them threw up.

Finally she was alone. She wanted to stay in the chair she had collapsed in, but she knew she couldn’t. She kicked off her heels, despite the worrying state of the dancefloor, and closed her eyes for a moment. She was exhausted, but she had to tidy up a little before she could leave. It was Saturday tomorrow and she would come in to finish the clean-up then, but the food couldn’t be left out. And she wanted to see Ro before she left.

With that in mind, she forced herself up and began putting cellophane over the punch bowls, and what food there was left into the coolers Catering had provided. She let the music play. The post-party silence would be too sad.

She heard a step behind her and whirled, hoping it would be Ro and it was. He looked sheepish and nodded at what she was doing.

“Let me help,” he said.

She slumped, leaning on the table, her hand over her heart. “You came back.”

“I said I would. You shouldn’t have to do everything by yourself,” he said, picking up where she’d left off with the cellophane.

She couldn’t do anything other than look at his face, seeing it in profile as he focused on the catering. “Are you still mad?”

“No. I was never mad at you, Maggie,” he told her.

“It felt like it.”

“I apologise.”

“When Lee kissed me, it was just because of the mistletoe.”

“Mistletoe?” he asked, frowning at her.

She nodded at the sprigs over the door. “When two people pass under the mistletoe, it’s traditional to kiss. I don’t know why. It doesn’t mean anything. It wasn’t romantic in any way.”

Ro grunted speculatively as he contemplated the white berries, then went back to what he was doing.

“And when Ben asked me to dance, he was just trying to make you jealous,” she pressed.

“He was?” Ro frowned at her again.

“Yes… I don’t know why. I guess he thinks you like me, or something.” She fiddled with her dress nervously. “It wasn’t my idea. I didn’t say anything.”

Ro sighed and nodded.

“Ro, I’m sorry!” She couldn’t take his distance anymore. “Please don’t be mad anymore!”

He looked at her in surprise. “I said I am not mad at you,” he said.

“Well, it feels like it!” she pouted. Maybe it was the alcohol, or the exhaustion, or the culmination of months of work being over, but she almost felt like she could cry. The one thing she cared about the most was falling apart.

“Maggie,” Ro soothed, stepping closer, his palms rubbing her bare arms. “What’s wrong?” he said, sounding genuinely concerned. “Why are you sad? Is it because of me? I’m sorry.”

She sniffed, comforted more than he could guess by his words and touch. “You still owe me a dance,” she reminded him.

He stilled, then sighed again. “I don’t-”

She pulled out of his hold, moving quickly to the stereo, scrolling through the playlist. “I’ll pick a song,” she said. “This is my favourite.” She went back and grabbed his hand, pulling him onto the dancefloor though he was obviously reluctant. “Do you know how to slow dance? Everyone can slow dance.”

He looked confused. As the song began, she placed his hands around her back. “Your hands go here,” she said. She put her arms around his shoulders, reaching up to do so, pressing their bodies together. “Okay? And now we just… sway.”

She shifted her weight from one foot to the other, nudging him along with her until he began moving on his own.

“This is dancing?” he asked.

“Slow dancing,” she replied, laying her cheek on his chest. “It’s how couples dance together.” She felt his claws shift on her back, his hands repositioning themselves as he held her tighter.

“I like it,” he murmured, his voice soft and low, and so intimate as they danced alone that she didn’t even care when her feet stuck to the floor.

“Me too.” She could feel almost the whole length of his body pressed against her, chest to chest, stomach to stomach, hips to hips, thighs to thighs. She could hear his heart beating, a constant sound different from the thump-thump of a human’s. She dared to run her thumbnail up and down the scales on the back of his neck, and she felt his breath hitch in his chest.

For a quiet moment, they just held each other, swaying softly on the spot, rotating around without trying, lost. She knew she couldn’t look at him, because the effect he had on her was all over her face. The comfort of his arms was almost like falling asleep, if it wasn’t for the hot thrill that heated her whole body. She could feel the firmness of his arms and chest under the silly sweater she had bought him, and knew she would never be able to forget the feeling.

“You look very beautiful tonight, Maggie,” he whispered over her.

Her breath hitched and her heart stuttered, even as she melted further against him. Even if he didn’t know what he was doing to her, she’d take it. She’d take this moment and keep it as a memory. “Do I?” she asked, unable to stop her grin.

“Yes. And I was jealous.”

Her heart beat faster as she took in his words. She stopped dancing as she lifted her head to look at his face. “You… were?”

“Yes. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have left like I did. I never meant to upset you but I just couldn’t stay and watch.”

For a moment, she considered him. The soft, sad way he was looking at her. The weight of his hands above her hips. The heartbeat fluttering through her dress. His voice, his scales, his claws. Then she rose up on her tip toes, and gently guided his head down, pressing their lips together in a kiss.

She didn’t care anymore. She didn’t care about hiding it. She wanted this, and if not having it was going to hurt as much as it did even if they were friends, she might as well risk it. Maybe she had the punch to thank for her bravery, or the romantic song, but whatever the reason was, she didn’t even hesitate.

His mouth was dry and warm. Not as soft as a human’s, and she could feel the pattern of his scales. He let her kiss him with no objection, his hands didn’t slacken on her waist, but they didn’t tighten either, and he didn’t kiss her back.

She broke away, opening her eyes to see his face from closer than she ever had before. She could feel his breath as just the faintest warm brush against her skin. She could see the striations in his brown irises. “Sorry,” she said, sinking back onto her heels, letting go of his neck.

He kept holding her. “Don’t apologise,” he told her. Then, apparently after thinking for a moment, “But the mistletoe is over there.”

“I know,” she said.

“Not… here.”

“No.”

“So…”

“So.”

“You kissed me.”

“I did.”

“Because…?”

“I wanted to. I’ve wanted to for a long time. I wanted to when I was in your apartment, and when we were in that bar and it rained. I wanted to probably since the day I first saw you,” she said. She wasn’t ashamed anymore. There was no one else to worry about, it was just them.

“Hm,” he contemplated. “You know, Balin do not kiss.”

“No?”

“No. I have never done it before.”

“Well-”

“You will have to show me how,” he interrupted. “By kissing me again. I may need many kisses to learn. I am a slow learner. Not in most things, but in this I feel I will need lots of practice.”

She grinned, her gaze slipping to his mouth. “Okay, no problem. I can be patient.”

“I know you can,” he agreed.

“I’m a good teacher.”

“You are.”

“We want you get it right after all.”

“We do.”

He lowered his mouth to hers, and when her lips touched his scales she cupped his jaw. The song they had danced to had ended a while ago and it was now playing another one but she didn’t care. She pressed kiss after soft kiss to his mouth like sips of wine. After a moment, he kissed her back, his mouth chasing hers, catching her lips and she almost let him take over right there. She felt like he was holding her up, that without him she’d be a heap on the floor. She curled her fingers around the back of his head and held him to her as they kissed.

With his hands on her waist, he shifted their weight and walked them backwards until she hit a table and he broke their kiss to lift her onto it as if she weighed nothing.

“It should be said, I have been hoping you would choose me,” he said, his eyes flicking over her face, from her eyes to her lips to her hair, and her cleavage. “I too was thinking of this when you were in my home, and in the market, and when you let go of my hand on that bench.”

His hands were still on her hips. She could feel them through the fabric of her skirt and she wanted them on her skin.

“Let me show you kissing with tongue,” she almost panted. “Open your mouth.”

His gaze burned when their eyes met, and when she pulled him to her again, he relaxed his jaw and she nudged his mouth open, sending her tongue to find his. He pushed against her, slanting their mouths together hard and holding her still for him with his hand in her hair. She gripped handfuls of the stupid sweater and tried to pull him even closer as their tongues slid over one another, wet and intimate, making her give short little moans with every breath to make sure he didn’t stop. She didn’t care how desperate she sounded, she finally, finally had him. 

Eventually they had to break for breath, both of them panting, foreheads resting against each other. She looked up into his eyes and he seized her again, carrying her under like a wave when she’d just got her head above water. His hand ran up and down her back, testing her skin, and she moaned again. She wanted that hand to do more, she wanted it on her bare skin, to squeeze her ass or her breast, to show her how much he wanted her. She hooked her feet behind his legs and pulled, one of his feet slipping forward as she dragged him closer.

When they broke again, they waited until they both had their breath back.

“Wow,” she panted.

He hummed in response, tracing his lips over her face as she held him.

“I think you’ve got it. You know how to kiss.”

She felt him smile against her cheek. “I disagree. I think I need more lessons. I’m sure I can improve with you as my teacher,” he said, his voice making her shiver and melt.

“Ro,” she said, and kissed him again, and again. Not the big, deep kisses, or the light, soft kisses, but somewhere in between, wet and shallow, open-mouthed but brief. She couldn’t let him go, couldn’t leave him alone now that she had him, even while she knew she should because it was late and if they didn’t stop, she’d follow him home, and that would be a big jump, first kiss and sex on the same day. As much as she wanted him – and she did, desperately – she wanted to savour this.

She forced herself to push him away, licking her lips to catch the last taste of him. He watched her, patiently waiting for her next idea.

“I’m going home for the holidays,” she said, jumping ahead.

He frowned a little, confused by her thought process.

“It’s just for a week. I have to, I’ve already told them I’m coming and bought my tickets and everything. But I’ll be back on the 29th so… We could do New Year’s together?”

He still looked confused. “New Year’s?”

“New Year’s Eve, the last night of the year. Everyone stays up until midnight and there are fireworks and parties. We could do it together.” She pressed her lips together to stop herself.

Ro seemed to figure it out and his face spread in a slow smile. “I understand. It will be a date?” he asked.

“That’s what I was thinking,” she confirmed.

“And we will kiss more then?”

“Uh…” Oh, what was the point in even trying to deny it or playing coy? “Yeah, yes, I imagine so,” she said.

He swept in for another kiss, a quick press to seal the deal. “And that means we are dating, and dating means we are in a relationship, and that means we belong to each other only,” he reeled off as if repeating a lesson learned from a book. “And you will only kiss me and I will only kiss you, and we will kiss each other any time we want to…” He kept smiling, but he was clearly getting distracted with all this talk of kissing, his mouth lowering to hers as if drawn there by gravity.

She kissed him again for a long moment, then remembered they were supposed to be talking. “Right, yeah. Oh, but, we probably shouldn’t do it at work,” she said.

His mouth fell open. “Why not?”

“Because we’re on the same team and I trained you so… A relationship like that could affect our work. It’s a bit messy.”

“I don’t think it’s messy,” he argued, leaning in for another kiss.

She turned her face to the side so she wouldn’t get distracted but that didn’t stop him, he just kissed a path from her cheek and down her neck, sucking gently, licking over her pulse. “Call it a human thing… Oh my god…” Her eyes almost rolled back in her head as he continued to work her throat. Her eyes closed and she swayed, and his hand settled between her shoulder blades as if he thought he might have to catch her.

He showed mercy and stopped, despite her hands having balled up his sweater again. He grinned at his handiwork as she blinked at him. “You are so soft all over,” he mused, tracing the back of a claw over her cheekbone. “Skin is so interesting. I like it.” He ran the filed point of his claw down her neck and goosebumps tingled in its wake. “Ooh!” he said excitedly, his eyes widening at the reaction.

“So New Year’s Eve… Shall I come to yours?” Maggie said, her voice husky with want.

“Yes, I would like that,” he said, nodding.

“Great,” Maggie grinned. “And Ro?”

“Mm?”

She gave him another kiss. “Merry Christmas.”

Chapter 16

Maggie’s visit home with her family went well, but she couldn’t stop thinking about Ro, about his hands on her and the way he had kissed her. They messaged each other almost constantly, wishing each other goodnight and good morning, keeping each other posted on what holiday special they were watching. Maggie sent him a picture of herself in her own silly seasonal sweater, and the family Christmas tree. He sent her a picture of himself with a group of Teissians, all of them wearing paper Christmas hats. She wished she could call him, but being in her parents’ home made her feel like a teenager again, and she didn’t want to be overheard.

Nevertheless, her mother noticed almost immediately the way she carried her Gadgit everywhere, checking it constantly, grinning stupidly at every message and replying instantly. So naturally, she wanted to know who Maggie was talking to, if there was a man in her life. Her sister, Willa, nagged her and tried to spy, but Maggie told them to mind their own business. She’d tell them about Ro eventually, but she wanted to have their first official date before letting her family make a big deal out of it.

Like every year since she was a kid, Maggie ate too much and spent most of every day watching the seasonal programming and cuddling her parents’ terrier, Ajax. Willa was younger than Maggie, and was in a graduate programme in Seattle which she complained about. They all quizzed Maggie about what it was like to work for DETI, what had changed after the Tiberius, what was going to happen next. They seemed to think she was privy to government secrets, when really she didn’t know much more than they did, and she didn’t tell them about any of the rules that had been bent to get as many refugees on the ground as possible before the borders closed.

She described the different Teissians she knew to them, probably talking about Ro a little too much. They ate it up, though some of the things her parents said made her a little uncomfortable. They were a bit too obsessed with the physical differences between Teissians and humans, and weren’t as interested in what they were like as people, like who was funny and who was smart, who liked ice cream and who had eaten a spoonful of salt on a dare.

Leaving to go home at the end of the week was bittersweet. She loved her family, as much as Willa annoyed her sometimes, and she promised to visit again soon. At the same time, she couldn’t wait to get home and start preparing for her date with Ro. New Year’s Eve with fireworks and champagne and a man she was madly attracted to? It felt too good to be true. She knew just what dress she was going to wear, a tight, short, glittery thing that she’d only worn about twice in all the years she’d had it. It was going to be romantic and magical, and they were going to ring in the new year as she hoped they meant to continue: together.

It was almost hard to wait until the 31st to see him, but she kept herself occupied with unpacking, doing her laundry, cleaning her apartment and ordering groceries, all the things she needed to do to catch up from being away. Two nights in her own bed should refresh and relax her for her date. Ro had told her that the Teissians were all going to watch the city’s fireworks from the roofs of the dorms, and that there would be dozens of parties going on.

He was expecting her at 9, so after dinner she showered, and put the screen in her bedroom on to the TV broadcasts while she did her hair and make-up. She wasn’t really paying attention, she just wanted the noise to distract her from the butterflies in her stomach.

The show was an annual recap of all the events of the last year. All the big channels would have something similar in the run up to the turn of the year, so she couldn’t be bothered to try to find something better. This one was formatted like a talk show, with celebrity guests invited on for different segments, singing or doing sketches. Maggie liked to see the famous faces all in their tuxedos and ball gowns, laughing and having a good time. The backdrop behind the sofas was a giant clock.

 Maggie sang along to the songs she knew as she made sure her makeup was perfect, dotting just a little glitter under her eyes in honour of the occasion. Then the show got onto the Tiberius, taking a solemn tone as they held a moment’s silence in memory of the human crew. Maggie paused, unable to look away even as her happy mood saddened.

The presenters then announced that they were diverting to their “experts”. There was a man who introduced himself as the journalist who covered the story for a huge national paper, a representative of the government in DC, though Maggie wasn’t sure exactly what his role was there. There was also a captain who had flown transporter missions to Teiss, and a woman who worked for DETI’s offices in Denver. They were joined on the sofas by two of the show’s regular hosts, a man in a shiny grey suit and a woman in a red dress.

The male host turned to two of the guests. “So we all know the story: the Ypex got onto a Tiberius dropship when it was on Teiss, which somehow still managed to dock with the transporter itself with them on board. The Rhacahr fired on the Tiberius to kill the Ypex and stop them spreading. My question is, was there really nothing the Rhacahr could have done to save, well, anyone from the Tiberius? Did they even try?”

“What you have to understand is that Ypex are worse than any animals we have on Earth. They would have killed everyone on board. My apologies for the bluntness of the truth here, but the Ypex attack anything alive. The victims wouldn’t have made it either way,” said the government woman.

“But don’t the Rhacahr have weapons that can kill an Ypex? Couldn’t they have boarded the Tiberius and fought them?” countered the female host.

Maggie didn’t know why they were rehashing the same old arguments, raking over old tragedy to stoke people up, that night of all nights, when people should be looking to the future and feeling optimistic about what was to come.

“The Rhacahr won’t risk their own lives when they can shoot from a safe distance,” answered the captain, her tone bitter. “We simply don’t matter to them. The Tiberius was just another target.”

“No, no, I can’t allow that,” argued the woman from DETI. “The fact is humans, especially civilians, can’t understand the Ypex the way the Rhacahr do. They have been fighting them for generations. If they fired on the Tiberius, it was because it was the only solution.”

“But you know, don’t you, that the Rhacahr didn’t contact the UNE or any other ship to consult? They gave the Tiberius no warning. They destroyed a UNE ship that cost billions and billions of dollars, killing a thousand humans and a million Teissians. That could very easily be considered an act of war, but they didn’t even seem to hesitate,” said the female host.

“More proof that it was the only option,” said the DETI woman.

“More proof that they didn’t care, you mean,” said the captain. “Could they have tried to exterminate the Ypex? Of course, but clearing a ship that size would have taken days, weeks, and why do that when you can be confident you’ve killed every bug by blasting the ship out of existence? The same can be said for an evacuation. If they had tried to save anybody, they would have been opening their own ship to possible infestation, and they simply wouldn’t do that, no matter how many lives it could have saved.”

“So what’s going to happen now? What’s changing?” asked the male host. It was as if he had questions written down, which he probably did, and he wasn’t even hearing the answers of the guests.

“Well, the installation of a permanent Rhacahr envoy has been confirmed,” said the journalist, shifting forward in his seat. “Evacuation of Teiss has resumed, with the Rhacahr filling in with their own ships as the UNE still haven’t okayed sending our servicemen and women back out there. Any Teissians in orbit have been cleared to land, as you know, but if the UNE ever decide to take over again, just getting our transporters off the ground is going to be a huge operation, and it’s really not clear how-”

Maggie changed the channel, not wanting to hear the rest. Everyone was talking in circles, and she didn’t want to think about it, not then. It was a tragedy, whether it was a mistake or the right thing to do. Hating the Rhacahr wouldn’t bring anyone back. All anyone could do was commemorate the victims.

Her mood tainted now, she didn’t sing along as she finished her make-up and got dressed. She was happy with how she looked in her party shoes with her hair dried in soft waves, so she ordered a podcab on her Gadgit and went outside to meet it. The roads were busy with people travelling downtown to see the fireworks, or to parties, but the little self-driven car navigated the traffic perfectly, and dropped her off outside DETI. She would have to walk to the dorms from there. She tapped her Gadgit against the podcab’s screen to pay for the ride and got out.

The night felt oddly quiet and a cool breeze lifted her hair as she walked. It felt like she should already be hearing fireworks and music and people having a good time. She could see that lights were on in the dorms and as she got closer she thought she might be able to hear something. She came to the security checkpoint and showed her ID.

“Going to a party?” asked the guard. He sounded bored more than anything else.

“Yes,” she answered. She wasn’t sure how much detail she was supposed to go into. She felt sorry for these men who had to spend the night working, stationed at a dull checkpoint. But she supposed they must be getting paid very well for it.

He handed back her ID. “Have fun.”

“I will,” she said, feeling just a little unsettled at having to be vetted to go to a party. She was used to it at work, in her work clothes, where she knew the guards by name and knew she had a right to be there. At the dorms, she half-expected them to say something, ask her why she was visiting Teissians late at night. She didn’t relish the prospect of having to walk past these men every time she wanted to see Ro.

But as she left the checkpoint behind, a new kind of nervousness gave her butterflies. She was going to see Ro again, after being apart for over a week, after all they had messaged each other, and she couldn’t wait.

The market was empty, all the people and merchandise inside for the night. The stalls stood stripped in the street light like a village that had been burned to sticks. Maggie looked around, remembering which tower was Ro’s, making her way to the entrance he had led her through months ago. He had messaged her instructions on how to find his building and what to do when she got there. They had decided that, given how poorly she could see in the Balin basement quarters, he would come to meet her at the door. She double- and triple-checked that she was at the right place before messaging him that she was there, then waited, grateful they were in California and she could stand to be outside this late in her short sleeveless dress.

A minute later she saw the light inside come on and then the door opened and Ro was there. The pink moons in his cheeks bent as he smiled at her, reaching for her hand to pull her inside. She grinned as soon as she saw him, taking his hand and stepping over the threshold.

“Hi,” he said, his voice making her insides go soft. The door swung shut behind them with a soft woosh. His hands stroked over her arms.

“Hi,” she replied, giggling. He was standing very close.

“We can kiss now?” he asked.

She nodded, already closing the small gap between them. “Yep.”

Her hand curled in his shirt as he pressed his mouth to hers, softly but not shy, testing her before his hands came up to cup her face and he tilted his head to slant his mouth against hers, his tongue licking against the seam of her lips. She opened her mouth and relished the gentle slide of his tongue against hers, pressing into his body. She let go of his shirt to run her hand up his chest and over his shoulder, feeling the firmness of his body.

They broke apart slowly, reluctantly.

“I missed you,” he said.

“I missed you too,” she replied. “Thanks for inviting me.” Though the words were polite, they had importance to her, because tonight they were not co-workers, they were two people trying to have a relationship. They were not in the office. She was dressed far from professionally. Tonight they would learn who they were when they weren’t worrying about propriety. She was looking forward to it.

He smiled at her. “Come on,” he said, leading her back to the elevator. “Where do you want to go?”

“I don’t mind,” she said.

“If we go downstairs, I can introduce you to the other Balin, my neighbours.” He sounded excited by that prospect.

“Will I be able to see?” she asked.

He laughed. “I have prepared a solution,” he said cryptically.

“Okay then,” she laughed. Now she wanted to see what he had come up with, and she definitely didn’t want to dampen his spirits when he seemed to be so enthusiastic about showing her off.

When the lift doors opened onto the dark basement levels, Maggie blinked, feeling her eyes struggling to focus. She felt Ro take her hand, and caught sight of his pink cheeks, somehow just visible.

“Don’t let go,” she said, wrapping both hands around the one he had given her.

“I won’t,” he replied, his voice like a physical touch in the dark.

He pulled her forwards slowly, and she walked into the unknown. This time there were no white wall sconces to mark the edge of the darkness. He had turned them on for her the first time, but this time he clearly expected his solution to be enough. They stopped and she heard a door unlatch. After a few more steps, she heard the door close, and she felt him gently pull her hands off his.

“Wait here,” he said.

Her eyes were beginning to adjust, though she imagined her pupils must be the size of dinner plates, so now she could just about make out the silhouettes of the furniture around her. She could hear Ro moving around, and then there was a series of faint cracks, and a bundle of coloured lights appeared before her.

She laughed, even as he began clipping them into bracelets around her wrists. “Glowsticks? I didn’t think these even existed anymore,” she said in wonder, as the rainbow colours created small clouds of light, bouncing off his hands as he worked.

“Kez got them for me,” he said. Her wrists were getting heavy with the neon bangles, she wore at least five on each arm. She liked the way the colours sparkled off her dress. Ro was clipping several together, then looked up to put them around her neck. She gasped and stared.

“What?”

“Your eyes!” she said. Somehow his irises were no longer dark brown, but an amazing deep radiant pink.

“Oh, I took my lenses out, since we will be down here for a while,” he said. He was smiling, but it looked frail, as if her reaction had surprised him.

“You wear lenses?”

“To protect my eyes from the light. I wouldn’t be able to see above ground otherwise,” he told her, nervously pulling the glowstick choker through his hands.

Maggie couldn’t stop staring. His eyes were naturally black, as they always had been, but somehow they looked clearer, and now there were rings of pink fire around his pupils. She raised her arm and stepped closer, the plastic bracelets rattling to her elbow as she touched his cheek, her fingertips settling on his temple. She watched the pink lights twitch around as he avoided her intense stare. His irises looked like tiny galaxies, faceted like gems, and deep. She had never seen eyes like that.

“They’re amazing…” she breathed.

“Thank you,” he laughed awkwardly. “They’re… just eyes.” He was trying to downplay it, but she wasn’t having it. They were like backlit pink diamonds. They would make the most expensive jewels on Earth, in her opinion.

“Have they always looked like that?”

He chuckled again, still unsettled. “Of course.”

“And I never knew?!”

“I have to wear my lenses at work, because of the lights…”

“Are they glowing? Look at me.”

He obeyed and held her eyes so she could stop weaving in front of his face trying to see them better. “Our colours are reflective,” he admitted. “To attract… er, females.”

“Well, it’s working,” she breathed.

“Maggie…” he murmured, and she felt his hands settle on her hips.

“Does anyone else know about this?” she asked, suddenly jealous.

“Well, other Balin. They know my eyes will be pink like the rest of my colours. And the doctors who give us our lenses have seen me without them. Some other Teissians in this building…” he listed.

“And you’re still single?” she asked incredulously. He didn’t seem to take the compliment for what it was, flinching where they touched. “I can’t believe it. Lucky me, I guess,” she said, smiling. “Do me a favour? Don’t show any other women your eyes if you can avoid it, especially humans. They won’t be able to resist. I can’t.”

He softened, ducking his head, breaking their eye contact. He smiled, one side of his mouth crooking up. “They’re not that special,” he insisted. “You’ll see other Balin without their lenses when we go out.”

“Maybe. I’m still going to like your eyes the best though. Pink is my new favourite colour. Wow,” she said.

He sighed through his smile, saying something in Balin.

“What was that?” she asked.

“It wouldn’t make sense in English.”

“You could try, you just do that to keep secrets.”

“Maybe,” he replied, and the way his voice dropped a timbre made her think she really, really wanted to learn Balin faster. He pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her waist and running his lips over her cheek and across her forehead. “I was just thinking you make me wish you were here at a different time.”

“I don’t know what that means,” she said.

“I know.”

“So you’re being deliberately cryptic?”

She felt him smile. “Cryptic? I don’t know this word,” he pretended, his accent suddenly getting heavier.

She smacked his chest playfully, pushing him away. “And now you’re playing dumb!” She might have learned something if she could have stayed mad at him, but she couldn’t. He looked so cute when he laughed, playing his little games with her for whatever reason. “Just promise me I’ll find out one day.”

His laughter faltered and stopped. He shrugged.

“Ro.”

“If you stay with me… If you keep kissing me, then I imagine one day, yes you will find out,” he said, reaching for her again. “I don’t know what you will do…” he sighed.

“Hmph,” she pouted. She didn’t like that answer, it sounded ominous, but at the same time, she was curious. “I want to know now,” she grumbled.

“It can’t happen now,” he said.

She heaved a dramatic sigh, shaking him off as well as the conversation in which he kept secrets from her. They still had a good time to have. “Alright, fine. Let’s get these glowsticks on me so we can go party,” she said.

He smiled and slipped his hands under her hair to fix the glowsticks around her neck. She tried not to twitch when his hands or his claws brushed her skin. She tried to hide how over-sensitive she was, how overly-aware of him.

“So where are your other colours?” she asked. His clothes didn’t reveal much more than what he wore to work.

“You don’t stop, do you?” he laughed.

“Well, I’m curious!”

“Would it make any difference if I told you that is a very forward curiosity you have? If a Balin female asked me that, it would be quite crude of her.”

“Sorry. But I’m not Balin. And you know… We’re dating so I think you can assume I’m, you know, interested. In you. And anyway! You said Balin like to show off their colours! It’s only because you’re in office-wear all the time that I don’t know. Everyone else knows, don’t they?”

He made a noise that was a hybrid between a shocked laugh and a derisive snort. She’d clearly caught him off guard with her suggestion, even if she suspected there was something about it that flattered him. “Not everyone!” he insisted. “But most of them, I suppose… But it doesn’t seem fair to tell you when I don’t where your colours are either,” he said.

Maggie frowned. “I don’t have any,” she said.

His eyes raked down her body, burning like magenta flares. “No?”

As her mind dove into the gutter, she couldn’t help her choked squeak. She almost covered herself with her arms as if he could somehow see through her clothes, and she felt a blush bloom from her chest to the tips of her ears. “That’s! They’re not- I mean…”

He cupped his hand around the side of her head, leaning in to murmur softly in her ear. “I confess I am curious too… about the exact shade.”

“Y-You…” Maggie choked on anything she could possibly say in response, feeling like she’d just burst into flames and only he could put her out, her body suddenly tight with wanting him to touch her more.

He leaned back and smiled innocently. “I’ll make you a deal. You can learn all about my colours, when I learn about yours.”

“I- Pssht, you- How- Where did you learn to be such a-?” she demanded, resisting fanning herself.

He clipped a couple more glowsticks together and lay them like a coronet over her hair, pressing them gently into place. “You bring it out in me,” he said, grinning. Then he took her hands, holding them up to survey his handiwork. “What do you think? Can you see?”

Maggie thought about it, and while everything was cast in weird colours, she could see enough to be able to walk around freely, without having to be led. “I think I’ll be okay,” she said.

“Good,” Ro smiled. “You look beautiful.”

Maggie squirmed. “Thank you,” she said, returning his smile.

“Now one last thing… You asked me not to show other females my eyes, well, please don’t react to other males the way you have to me. Some of them may try to entice you, but don’t indulge them, please. I will not enjoy it if you do,” he said.

“Don’t worry, Ro,” Maggie replied, stroking her thumb over the pink markings on his cheek, getting lost in his eyes again. “I think you’ve blinded me. I won’t even notice anyone else.”

Chapter 17

Ro took her hand and led her out of the apartment, her glowsticks rattling faintly as she tried to walk smoothly in her high party heels. She was happy even as nervousness began to worm into her stomach. She was with Ro, who was obviously feeling gratifyingly flirty tonight which gave her hope that he was as interested in her as she was in him, and he was holding her hand again. Even if she was about to meet his friends and neighbours, and be thrown into the heart of the Teissian community, she knew enough of them worked at DETI that she could always fall back on that for a conversation topic.

In the corridor, they turned away from the elevator and headed deeper into the dorm, following the curve of the building. Maggie could hear music and voices, though it didn’t sound like any kind of music she’d ever heard before. Maggie’s colourful range of vision only extended a few feet around her, so the first thing she saw of the party was the apparently disembodied blue patches of a Balin loitering outside. One of the apartments had its door open, which was where the noise was coming from, and a few Balin were standing around in the doorway.

Maggie had to admit, the visibility of their ‘colours’ in the dark certainly achieved their objective. As far as she was concerned, everything outside her bubble of neon light was an impenetrable black sea, and the patches of colour on their bodies gave it dimension. Knowing there was a person there was like finding a rock to rest on when adrift, and the flicking of their eyes as they took her in was kind of mesmerising. She could totally understand why prey sought out the angler fish with its glowing lure at the bottom of the ocean. The moving colours in a wall of nothing just made her want to get closer to investigate.

The group in the hall greeted Ro, raising their glasses and one of them clapping him on the back, but Maggie could see how their eyes kept returning to her – it was one of the few things she could see. She smiled nervously, knowing she was under scrutiny, probably for being human but maybe just for being Ro’s guest.

“This is Maggie,” Ro introduced. “We are in a relationship.”

Maggie tried to hide that he had taken her completely by surprise by announcing that, but she wasn’t sure she managed it. Her eyes felt a little too wide and her face too warm. “Hello,” she laughed breathlessly, raising her hand in greeting. Her glowsticks rattled and she felt embarrassed by her need for them. She must look ridiculous to these people.

The Balin were very interested in her now, standing straighter and looking her up and down. They all spoke to Ro in Balin, talking over each other.

“Maggie does not speak Balin very well yet. You can ask her yourself,” he said.

The one with the blue patches jerked his head at her. “Why are you with him?” he asked.

Maggie goldfished for a moment at the blunt question. The male didn’t sound aggressive and Ro wasn’t jumping in, as if he was waiting for her answer too. They were all watching her, so she just said “I like him.”

The strangers settled down, relaxing again, some of them scoffing or waving their hands as if clearing the air of what she’d said. The furthest one from her said something in Balin that included their word for ‘human’, and on the whole they seemed to be dismissing her as incomprehensible. She looked to Ro, worried she’d given the wrong answer, but he was smiling at her.

“Let’s go inside,” he said, tugging her through the small group who seemed to resume their old conversation before she was past them.

Maggie couldn’t see much through the crush of guests inside. The apartment seemed to be laid out much the same as Ro’s. She tugged him to a stop. “What was that about?” she asked, indicating the group outside. “Did I say something wrong?” She blushed again as she remembered what he’d said about them being in a relationship. She guessed they were, since he clearly expected there to be kissing in their future, something she was also looking forward to.

Ro shook his head, his nose wrinkling in a dismissive expression. “No, don’t worry,” he said.

“But why did they react like that? What did they want me to say?”

Ro laughed. “They expected to hear an exciting story of something I had done, some act I had performed to win you to me. Balin choose mates based on strength, and health. Choosing someone because you like them is seen as…” He tilted his head as if searching for the word.

“Stupid?”

“Unreasonable,” he smiled. “They are still living in the old ways. I am not,” he said. “I am happy you chose me because you like me. Nothing could make me happier. I like you too,” he grinned, ducking his head for a quick kiss. Maggie felt better after that.

“Come,” Ro said, pulling her through the crowd. All around her were dark bodies and flashing colours, her glowsticks casting neon shadows on the people around her. She knew she undoubtedly stuck out like a sore thumb, a lighthouse in the dark ocean, but no one stopped them or said anything to her. Ro was welcomed again and again, and every time he introduced her as his girlfriend. She received mixed responses. Some of the Balin laughed, some of them went quiet, some of them were polite, and some of them asked her oddly personal questions, like whether it was true that humans had sex all the time. Ro saved her from having to answer that one by chastising the stranger in Balin before leading her away.

When she peered over the crowd, she could see webbed crests rising and falling here and there like bright sails. The majority of the Balin were wearing the traditional clothes she had been given, the slit harem shorts, and the females wore the simple band around their chests which didn’t look indecent on them like it had on Maggie. The fabrics were mottled and marbled with all kinds of colours, and she tried not to stare at any colours that caught her eye from thighs or torsos like cat’s eyes on the road.

They got to the front of the crowd which had gathered around the musicians in the lounge. There was a Balin male who looked old in comparison to Ro, his scales looking dusty and ashen, and his colours faded to pastel shades of sky blue and candyfloss pink, sunflower yellow and sea green. He was sat down, overseeing three young males playing strange instruments, and pouring a thick white liquid from a gourd into shot glasses. Ro reached down and nabbed two of the glasses, passing one to Maggie.

“Here,” he said with a smile.

Maggie held it up to her eyes, squinting at it. It had a weird milky glow to it. “What is it?”

“Balin liquor,” Ro told her, knocking his shot back.

“Is it safe for me?” she asked. He seemed fine, though she guessed it was strong stuff from his wince.

“Uh…” Ro seemed not to have considered that, and he looked around, making Maggie realise they had a small audience of the Balin nearest them who were watching her excitedly. A few of them shrugged or shook their heads or laughed, and the old one who was serving it visibly made no promises.

Maggie looked at the shot and sighed. “Oh well,” she said, and tipped it back. Her throat locked as it burned on the way down and she coughed. She waited a second to see if it caused her any pain, but it seemed to be safe. She smiled and a cheer went up from the crowd, fresh glasses being thrust at her from all directions.

“Just like tequila,” she croaked, accepting another shot. This time she and Ro chinked glasses and did the shots together, and the second one hit her stomach with a queasy acidic feeling, even as the first one made her feel all soft and warm. She clutched his arm as she wobbled with a head rush, and he caught her around the waist, taking the empty glasses and putting them down.

He laughed. “That’s enough, I think,” he said, and the crowd hissed and objected. As fun as they thought it would be to get the human drunk on alien liquor, Maggie did not want to make a fool of herself that night. Proving she could take what they dished out was one thing, throwing up on her shoes was another.

The music changed and the crowd seemed to shift, men leaving the mass to stand in the centre, stomping and scratching the floor in rhythm with the music. Their crests stood like opened fans as they danced in synch with each other, and the crowd seemed to grow wilder as Balin whooped and called to encourage them.

Maggie felt Ro try to pull her away but she resisted. “I want to watch,” she objected.

“Maggie,” he pressed, his breath against her neck.

She looked at him, surprised how pained he looked. “What? What’s wrong?”

He nodded his head at the people watching, and she noticed that it was mostly females who had pushed to the front, their eyes bright and hungry, evaluating the males as they danced. “They are displaying,” Ro whispered. “Don’t watch them.”

She let herself be pulled away, though she admitted to herself that she was curious and would have liked to stay. It wasn’t worth hurting Ro over it, even if she knew she wouldn’t be swayed by what she saw.

They stayed at the party for hours. Ro introduced her to his friends, and she ate Balin snacks and drank more of the syrupy white liquor, pacing herself. She had a good time, laughing and leaning on Ro more and more, his arm comfortable around her waist. Eventually, her glowsticks were starting to fade, and the alcohol and crush of bodies were making her over-heat, so Ro led her back to the elevator so they could go to the roof.

The night felt impossibly fresh and big when she stepped out into it. Even though the air was warm, it still cooled her cheeks, and dried the sweat on her skin, her hair prickling. They weren’t alone, other Teissians and a few humans standing around in small groups, drinking or leaning against the railings. She could see on the other towers around them that people were gathering on those roofs too. Ro came up behind her and she leaned back against him, laying her hands over his as he wrapped his arms around her.

She looked up at the stars and thought about her tiny place in the universe, the lives that were out there, human and Teissian and Rhacahr, and species they hadn’t discovered. Earth still hadn’t sent any transporter ships back to Teiss. The UNE said that they were still investigating how the Ypex got on board the Tiberius, and until they were satisfied that it wouldn’t happen again, they wouldn’t risk another crew, another million lives. So for now, they had negotiated for the Rhacahr to resume their initial evacuation duties, diverting their warships to shuttle back and forth between Earth and Teiss. It would still be months, maybe years before the Rhacahr ships reached Earth with new groups of evacuees.

And what would happen to DETI in that time? What would happen to Teiss? How much longer could anyone survive on that planet when it was being torn apart in the war between the Ypex and Rhacahr? If the UNE ever decided to send their ships back out, it was a four year round trip. Anything could happen in that time. The Rhacahr could change their mind about picking up the slack, and decide killing Ypex was more important than saving Teissians. No one was saying what Earth had traded the Rhacahr for the re-assignment of their warships as transporters. Maybe they were doing it to make up for destroying the Tiberius, but they had never expressed any regret or remorse for that. Even though the official statements all sounded like the situation was resolved, it still felt like they were all just waiting for the other shoe to drop.

There was still twenty minutes until midnight. Maggie sighed. There would be no answers tonight. All she could do was wait, and be ready to help when they needed her.

“It’s beautiful up here,” Maggie said. She could see downtown in front of her, and the DETI building was lit up off to one side. “I’m glad I could spend it with you.”

Ro hummed in agreement. “Me too. My first new year on Earth.”

Something in his voice made her twist to look at him. She wondered if he was thinking the same things she was. She didn’t know if she would ever understand what it meant to him to have made it safely to Earth, to have a whole new life, knowing that at that moment giant bugs were ravaging his home, that one day soon there might be nothing left of it. “Do you like it here?” she asked, unable to put her thoughts into words.

He looked at her. “I do,” he said, smiling softly.

She had to take him at his word. She was too tipsy to think any harder about it just then. “If you ever want anything, you know I’ll try to get it for you,” she said.

“Thank you.”

“I’m serious.”

“I know.”

She looked at him again, and his magenta eyes caught her like melting amber, and he lowered his head and kissed her gently. Then they just stood and watched the night. The roof gradually got busier as more people came to watch the fireworks. Maggie imagined the crowd in the city centre. She knew what it looked like from the local TV coverage every year, though she normally tuned into the broadcast from New York as it was the biggest one. She and Ro were happy to keep to their shadowy spot leaning against the wall of the stairwell, out of the attention of the crowd. Her skin gradually cooled, but his chest against her back kept her warm.

Then a human voice started calling out a countdown, everyone joining in, and Maggie straightened.

“Three! Two! One!” the crowd hollered excitedly. There was a pause, a breeze sweeping over them through a suspended moment of silence when they wondered if they’d got it wrong. There were no bells to chime, no gongs.

And then in the distance, the tiny flicker of a single phoenix streaking into the sky before bursting in a shower of gold, immediately followed by a whole flock. The crowd cheered and Maggie laughed. The fireworks were silent for a few seconds before the sound reached them, distant concussive booms out of synch with what they were seeing but that didn’t matter. Maggie grinned as she turned her face up to watch.

She felt Ro flinch and turn his face away, and she looked at him. He was tucking his face into her hair and his eyes were closed.

“Oh no! Is it too bright for you?” she asked, twisting in his arms to cup his face, trying to get him to look at her as if that would help.

He nodded. “I don’t have my lenses,” he said.

Maggie looked at the fireworks, appalled both that he was missing them and that they were hurting him. She tried to think of a solution but he wouldn’t have time to go all the way down through dozens of storeys to put his contacts back in and them come back. She dithered, conflicted.

“Do you want to go back inside?” she offered.

He opened his eyes a little, squinting. “No, you should watch them.”

“But-”

“I’ll watch you,” he said, smiling at her and turning them so that his back was to the display and he was facing her. He blinked as if to clear his vision. Maggie chewed her lip, she wasn’t sure about it. “Watch, Maggie,” he told her, so she looked over his shoulder at the fireworks. They were beautiful, and she soon found herself smiling in amazement.

She couldn’t hear the music that she knew would be accompanying the display downtown, but all around her she could hear quiet gasps, laughs, hisses and clicks from the gathered audience. On the roofs around them there must have been hundreds of people all watching, and she wondered how many of them were seeing it for the first time.

When the display petered out, then finished on a big finale, Maggie looked back at Ro to find him staring at her. She tried not to blush at the look on his face.

“Sorry, that must have been boring for you,” she said.

“Not at all,” he replied, his voice soft and deep.

“Next year we’ll remember your lenses,” she said, and he grinned. She squeezed his hand. “Let’s go back inside where you can see.”

They went back to his apartment, where he explained his plans to scope out parties on the other floors, introduce her to his Volin and Volon friends, see how they were celebrating. Maggie was on board with that plan, she didn’t want her night to end just yet. She stripped off her dying glowsticks and refreshed her make-up and brushed her hair while Ro went to put his lenses in so the light wouldn’t bother him. Then he led her back into the black corridor and upstairs.

The whole tower, and she assumed every other tower, was alive with parties and celebrations. Music and voices poured out of enough apartments that there wasn’t a quiet space to be found. Maggie and Ro toured from one party to the next, one floor after another. They drank and ate, laughed and talked to strangers as well as people who knew Ro. The Volin and Volon were happy to explain anything she didn’t know, while she answered her fair share of questions about human society. Maggie even got Ro to dance with her for a few minutes, not like the Balin had danced, but with her arms around him or spinning her on the dancefloor.

The atmosphere in the building was amazing, bubbly and welcoming, like everyone was friends with each other. There was a slightly frantic edge to it, and Maggie witnessed more than one toast to lost friends and family, but she also saw family and friends hanging off each other, telling war stories and tales of how they had found each other again on Earth.

Maggie and Ro only stumbled back into his apartment at the end of it all at three in the morning. Propping each other up, she ended up following him into his bedroom. He activated the muted lighting as they collapsed on the bed, a regular king-sized one she might have expected to find anywhere, with a dark spread. She was suddenly exhausted, almost unable to keep her eyes open. She kicked her heels off.

“I don’t want to go home,” she breathed, pushing her hair back off her face.

“Stay,” he offered simply.

“Can I?” She knew it was an imposition, that it might be a bit too much that early in their relationship.

“Of course,” he said, rolling onto his side to look at her, his head on the pillow. “I would like to sleep next to you.”

As she watched, his eyes drifted closed and she poked him. “You can’t sleep with your lenses in!” she reminded him.

He groaned dramatically and rolled off the bed, losing his balance but catching himself before he fell and making it to the bathroom, turning off the lights so he could take them out. She giggled as she watched him until she was plunged into darkness.

She spotted his eyes like wobbling embers as he swayed back to the bed, bouncing her as he collapsed next to her. She heard him sigh and his eyes vanished as he tried to go back to sleep.

“Ro.”

“Mm?”

“I forgot something,” she whispered

“Do you need me to put the lights back on?” he murmured, sounding half asleep.

“No.” She shuffled closer, patting about until she thought she’d found his chest.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“It’s traditional to kiss at midnight on New Year’s Eve,” she whispered conspiratorially, though she didn’t know why. It just felt like they should whisper, since it was dark. “If you kiss at midnight, you’ll stay together all year. That’s what they say.”

“Oh.”

She followed his chest up, her fingers fluttering over his throat, the faint pink shapes on his cheeks disappearing as she covered them. She could see his eyes now, open again and watching her. She was half-lying on his chest, one leg thrown over his as she drunkenly dragged herself into position. “So. Happy new year,” she said.

“Happy new year, Maggie,” he whispered back.

Using her thumb to find his bottom lip, and locating his mouth by where his breath was coming from, she leant down and kissed him, almost elbowing him in the neck when she slipped off him. Kissing him made her light-headed. His hands snapped up to catch her.

“Wow,” she laughed, studying his face, his ribs digging into her stomach. “I think I love you.” She giggled again as she stared back at the pink gems watching her. Before he could answer, she flopped down and passed out.

Chapter 18

Maggie woke up under the covers and alone. She sighed as she blinked gritty eyes, sliding her legs over each other as she tried to find the best way to get up. The room was pitch black, but she felt like she had to get up for some reason, like something was missing. She was thirsty and she needed to pee. Her dress had twisted around her waist in the night and the sequins were jabbing her. She could feel that she hadn’t taken her makeup off, or she would rub her face.

The night before came flashing back to her. Ro. The fireworks. All those drinks. Ah.

She looked around, for all the good it did. She was in his bed, in his apartment, and he wasn’t. She had no idea what time it was or where her bag was so she could check her Gadgit. He must be somewhere else, waiting for her to get up so he could start his day.

She struggled up to sit on the edge of the bed, wobbling to her feet. At least she didn’t feel badly hung over. A shower, a drink and some food would fix her right up. She stumbled as she stepped on her shoe from the night before, cursing. She had no idea where the door was.

“Maggie?” called Ro from the hall, and the door opened.

“Can you put the lights on please?” she asked, her voice rough.

He whistled a few notes and a soft glow grew around the room. It still wasn’t bright but she could see. It made her wince and shield her eyes. She wanted to cover her face anyway. She didn’t want to see the wreckage of the night before, and she didn’t want him to see the wreck she was either. She didn’t want to face him. She knew she must look a nightmare after sleeping in her makeup.

She took a steadying breath and forced her hand down. “Hi,” she said, wincing and blinking as she looked at him. He looked clean and fresh in a black T-shirt and blue jeans. He’d obviously been awake for a while. “What time is it?”

“It’s a little after ten,” he told her. She estimated she’d had around seven hours’ sleep. Could have been worse. “Do you want anything?”

“Coffee,” she croaked, moving over to him so he could take her to the kitchen.

“Are you sure you wouldn’t rather have a cup of choba? It’s very beneficial for the body,” he teased.

“Honestly, don’t even joke about that right now,” she told him, laying her head on her arms as she sat at the table, trying to remember more of the details of the night before. He dug around in his cupboards. She felt like she could remember all of it, which was good. She tracked her movements from her apartment to his, seeing his eyes for the first time, to the Balin party, to the fireworks, then the parties upstairs, then back to his apartment, asking him to let her stay the night… She gasped and then groaned as she remembered drunkenly telling him she loved him.

“What is it?” Ro asked.

“Nothing,” she replied, grimacing. Maybe it was true, she certainly liked him a lot, and had been full of all kinds of warm fuzzy feelings the night before, but she hadn’t wanted to tell him like that. Not drunk. Not on their first official date. Maybe if she was lucky he hadn’t heard her, or couldn’t remember.

He put a steaming cup of black instant coffee down in front of her and she straightened. “Thank you,” she said. She didn’t usually take it black, but just then she’d drink rocket fuel if it was hot. He passed her some sugar sachets that looked like they might have been accidentally carried home from cafes, and she stirred them in.

He lowered himself into the seat opposite her. “How did you sleep?”

“Well, thank you. Thanks again for letting me stay,” she said, falling back on good manners while she waited for her brain to come properly online.

“No problem.” He was watching her strangely, seeming oddly pleased.

“What?” she grunted.

“Did you know, it’s true that if you tickle a human’s nose while they sleep, you really do do this, like on TV!” He rubbed the end of his nose with the back of his hand, puckering his face in cartoonish discomfort, then grinned. “I think it was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”

She stared at him. “You tickled me in my sleep?”

“Just your nose,” he reassured her. “I had to see if it was true!”

She was too tired to think about how to respond. “Happy to oblige,” she murmured, sipping the coffee. Then she smiled in spite of herself. He thought she was the cutest thing he’d ever seen, even in last night’s glitter. And he looked so satisfied with his discovery, she couldn’t be mad about it. He could tickle her nose in her sleep as much as he wanted.

She finished her coffee and borrowed his shower, wasting no time getting clean. She wouldn’t be happy until she got home and brushed her hair out properly, not to mention brushing her teeth and changing her underwear. She didn’t impose on his hospitality any longer than necessary, calling a podcab, wanting to make it home before too many people would be out and about. She’d consider herself lucky if she could get home without any of her neighbours seeing her in last night’s dress, though on the first of January, she knew she wouldn’t be the only one.

Ro caught her by the front door, kissing her goodbye for several minutes. The beauty of a self-driven taxi was that it didn’t get impatient, though she would start racking up quite a fee soon. Maggie promised to see him at work soon. She was due back the next day and he said he would see her then.

Ro walked her to the security checkpoint, passing a few Teissians who gave her smiles and nods. She didn’t recognise all of them from the night before, and wondered whether they’d actually met or if they were just being polite, or if she had somehow become renowned overnight. They said goodbye again, then she got in her cab and got home, repeating the process of exchanging nods with her neighbour who she passed in the hall, marring her perfect unseen infiltration of her own building.

She changed and cleaned herself up until she was back to her own standards, then ate lunch in front of the TV. The news anchors were recapping the world’s New Year’s Eve celebrations, then moved on to discussing the various statements from the UNE world leaders, all of them wishes for a prosperous and peaceful year, some with more detailed plans than others.

As it was a local station, clearly with time to fill, they brought up Adam Wyatt’s latest social media ramblings. The xenophobic governor-wannabe had sent out a few new posts calling Teissians ‘the enemy within’, and citing weird statistics on home and business ownership in California that she didn’t believe could be true and seemed vague and unsourced. He seemed to be arguing that DETI was creating “ghettos” of Teissians in San Diego by buying up all the affordable housing, forcing working-class locals out of their homes and onto the streets.

Maggie sighed and shook her head. The man had never found a platform in all his years of political manoeuvring, but this was dirty even for him. It might have been true that DETI had rushed to rehome Teissians to alieve the accommodation crisis, but the properties were spread all over the city, and there was no way San Diego could house the hundreds, even thousands of Teissians that had been kicked out of their homes.

Maggie knew the majority had been redistributed all through California, and even the surrounding states. The accommodation teams at the office had been objecting for months, but no solution had been found, and one of the most common enquiries she received was how Teissians could arrange to be rehomed near their family or friends. The problem was that their waiting list was so long, and the dorms still so choked, that DETI’s first priority was getting everyone a place to live, regardless of where it was.

She called her family, and caught up with her friends, then made sure she had everything she needed to go back to work. She logged into her work emails, just to make sure there had been no crises while she was away. They would have called her directly if there had been anything terrible, but it looked like anything that had cropped up had been dealt with by the vacation staff. She knew from experience however that almost everyone would be returning to work on either the second or third of the month, so things would be hectic for the first week.

Nevertheless, she was looking forward to it. She would be back to seeing Ro every day, although they would be co-workers again. She wouldn’t let them fall back to where they had been though. He had said they were in a relationship. She had – accidentally – told him she loved him. Maybe it wasn’t professional, but she was having her office romance.

Chapter 19

Ro didn’t come in on Maggie’s first day back. She was disappointed, and confused, but she tried not to be hurt. She thought he’d said he would be, but she must have misunderstood. He must have been speaking more generally when he said he would see her at work. Then she found out he had actually called in sick and that made her worried. Maybe he’d been hung over after all, or it had only hit him after she had left. If that was the case she couldn’t help but feel marginally responsible.

She messaged him on his Gadgit, but he didn’t reply. She chewed her lip, thinking. It was possible he was sleeping it off, or even too sick to answer, or just watching TV. She messaged him again after work, and again to say goodnight, but when she hadn’t had a reply by the following day and he was still off sick, then she got really worried. She knew he was probably fine. He’d done this before after all. But she just needed more information to stop herself imagining the worst.

So she approached Kez, seeking him out during lunch. As expected, he was in the staff canteen, at the end of a table eating by himself while he flicked through his Gadgit. He did a double-take when he spotted her coming over, swallowing but not giving any other indication that he wanted to speak to her.

“Kez, hi,” she said, her voice a little too tight to be as casual as she wanted to be as she slipped into the seat opposite him.

“Hello,” he replied, almost grumbled. He narrowed his eyes at her suspiciously, not trying to hide his hostility.

“How are you?”

“Fine.”

Small talk completed, she got to the point. “How’s Ro? I hear he’s sick,” she said.

Kez relaxed as she made her purpose clear. He rolled his eyes. “He’s fine,” he told her, putting a strange emphasis on the word, as if he had argued this already and was tired of doing so.

“What’s wrong with him?”

Kez chuckled as he started eating again, stabbing another forkful of a pink fluffy blossom. “Nothing’s wrong with him.”

“Then why has he taken time off?”

“He just can’t be in work right now,” he said enigmatically.

Maggie stared at him, trying to see what he was keeping from her. He was grinning as if he enjoyed keeping secrets from her. He chewed slowly as if it was delicious.

“Why not?” she pressed.

He sighed. “It’s just his time, woman,” he said, now sounding as if her persistence was annoying him.

She ignored his tone. “What don’t I know? You might as well just tell me.”

“Why don’t you ask him?” Kez asked, as if he already knew the answer.

“He’s not replying to me,” Maggie said, not liking the insecurity she felt. Obviously Kez knew. What was it that Ro was locking her out of? And why? Weren’t they dating? Hadn’t she told him she loved him?

Kez gestured as if to say that was her answer, and continued eating.

Maggie sighed, and tried a different tack. “Kez, please tell me,” she pleaded, leaning forward and reaching across the table. She didn’t touch him because she didn’t want to piss him off, and he had made it pretty clear that he was not her friend. “I don’t care what it is, even if it’s bad.”

Kez snorted. “You don’t care? As far as you know, it could be anything. He could be in the arms of another female, or building bombs in his bathroom, or selling his organs on the black market.”

Maggie was relieved to hear that Ro having an affair was as crazy as him harvesting his own body parts. “I still want to know.”

Kez squinted at her, as if evaluating her. “I could lie to you. I could tell you he is having his claws filed and they hurt too much to type a message to you.”

“You could, but please don’t.” All these explanations, and she hadn’t considered any of them. She had just worried about him, worried about him suffering, and wanted to help. His absence might not be any of her business in the end, but she thought it was. She wanted it to be. She thought it should be, if they were a couple.

Kez sighed again, and this time Maggie thought she was getting through to him, even if he only told her to get her to leave him alone. He tidied up his tray and stood up with it, making her trot after him as he put it in the racks.

“Are you going to tell me?” she asked.

He spun to face her as the doors to the canteen swung closed behind them. Kez looked around, checking that they wouldn’t be overheard. Then he bent down to look her in the eye.

“He – is – in – heat.” he said, almost whispering it, drawing the word heat out as if he expected it to burn her. His eyes flicked between hers as he carefully judged her reaction.

She floundered. “Heat?” she repeated to buy time.

He nodded.

“What does that- Um, does that mean what I… think it means?”

“It means he wants to fuck, woman,” Kez spelled out for her, clearly still trying to scare her away.

“Well, I- I mean, why does he have to take time off work for that?” And why was he keeping away from her, if that was what he wanted?

Kez gave a harsh grunt of a laugh. “If you have to ask that, then you don’t understand,” he said.

“That’s why I’m asking you!” she insisted, getting annoyed now that he continued to judge her on what she didn’t know.

“If Ro came to work, he would want to fuck every female in the building, and fight every male. And the Balin at least would do it. The females would reject him, and the males would have to defend themselves. Not exactly how DETI wants to conduct its business. And he is… indecent.”

“What does that mean?”

Kez held up his hand and slowly unbent one finger until it was pointing straight, not exactly raising his eyebrow because he didn’t have any, but copying the expression very well.

“Oh!” Now Maggie was blushing, and she suddenly couldn’t look Kez in the eye. “So he can’t, um… he can’t control that? Right now?”

Kez laughed. “No, woman. And believe me, it is as uncomfortable as it sounds.”

“Why would the Balin females reject him?”

Kez scoffed and turned away, a signal she had pushed too far. “Oh, he really would be angry if I told you that.”

Maggie followed him, not letting him go. “But can’t I see him?”

“Not unless you’re prepared to fuck for three days straight,” Kez said matter-of-factly.

“Well it would only be two days now, wouldn’t it?” she pointed out, bringing Kez to a sudden stop as he considered her, a shocked expression on his face.

He laughed. “You are quite maffi, aren’t you, woman?” he said, looking her up and down.

“I don’t know what that means,” she huffed, trying to keep her dignity as his look told her she may have just thrown it away.

“It is a word for someone who, once you get them, turns out to be…” He circled his hand in the air, looking for the word. “Wild, in mating.” He grinned as he looked at her.

Maggie tried to look imperious and refined. “I don’t think that really applies to me,” she objected, fiddling with her cuffs.

Kez bent to look at her again, forcing her to meet his eye. “If you want to mate a Balin, you would have to be, if you are human. You humans can barely mate for an hour, and then it makes you tired. We have all seen your videos. Always panting. Is that why you do it in bed?” Kez didn’t wait for a response, just shook his head in disappointment and started walking again.

“So he’s alone? For his, his heat?” Maggie said, refusing to let Kez outpace her, and trying not to be distracted by the image he was painting of Ro.

“Yes,” he sighed, sounding annoyed. “He is locked safely away in his apartment.”

Maggie was relieved. “Is he okay? I mean, does it… hurt? Is he suffering?”

“It doesn’t hurt, but you could certainly call it suffering. It’s why we find each other. No one wants to be alone in heat,” Kez explained, and there was a hollowness to his voice, an echo, that suggested to her that he was speaking from experience.

“But he is.”

“He is.”

“…Because of me?” Maggie guessed.

Kez turned to her and shrugged. The fact that he didn’t call her conceited made her think she was at least partly right.

She didn’t like that thought, that Ro was confined to his dark flat for three days of solitude, suffering because of her. The thought of him with someone else was worse. And more than that, there was something in her that pulled her to him, to the thought of going to him and getting exactly what Kez described, Ro wrapping his arms around her for endless wild fucking. She wanted him, she knew that. She would have tried to initiate something on New Year’s Eve if they hadn’t been so drunk. She wanted to see him undressed, she wanted to feel his hands on her. She wanted to do more than just kiss.

“Kez… Do you think you could take me to see him?” she said.

“He does not want to see you, woman. If he did, he would invite you himself.”

That hurt. “But I just want to check on him, make sure he’s okay.”

“I told you, he’s fine. This is not his first heat, he knows what to do.”

“Please.”

“He does not want you checking on him. Can you imagine? It is hard enough to withstand it alone, but to ignore the female he wants when she’s in front of him will be impossible. Trust me, it would be worse for him if you go, and he didn’t want you to know about this at all.”

“But what if I- I mean, it would only make him feel worse if we didn’t… Couldn’t I make him feel better? Instead?” she said quietly. “I just want to help.”

Kez stopped and looked at her, judging her, while she blushed and fidgeted. “Maggie, I know he believes you are ‘in a relationship’, but I do not trust you. I think he is being foolish in denying himself like this to be ‘faithful’ to you.” Maggie could hear the scornful, sceptical quotation marks as he spoke. “I don’t believe you know what it means to be with one of us. He is trying to change his own nature for you and I think in the end you will leave him anyway.”

Maggie scowled. She didn’t think she deserved this. It was only because Kez evidently thought he was sticking up for Ro that she kept quiet.

“Because of this, I will only take you to him so you can ease him, and convince him to stop being such an idiot. Not so that you can check on him as if he is your child, not so that you can talk to him or feed him or satisfy your curiosity about what we look like when we are needing. For some reason, you are the only female he will accept, and you are the only one who will accept him, so in that I am forced to admit that you are both perfect idiots for each other. But make no mistake, if I help you, it is so you can help him, not torment him.”

Maggie put her hands on her hips. “First of all,” she began. “What he and I do together is none of your business. Maybe I know him a bit better than you - or maybe you know him better than me, I don’t know - but I have more faith in him than you evidently do. He’s not just going to fall on me like an animal. He wouldn’t do that to me. We are going to talk. I am going to make sure he’s okay. If he needs more than that, well that’s between us. Whether we sleep together or not is not your decision, Kez. I asked you for your insight, but I can do this without you. I know where he lives.”

“He won’t let you in,” Kez sneered. “He’s afraid of hurting you. You need me to get you into the building.”

Maggie faltered. He sounded so sure. “And are you going to?” she demanded.

“Meet me after work if you still want to, but think about what I’ve said,” he told her before nodding dismissively and striding away.

“See you then!” Maggie yelled after him, feeling petulant and stubborn. She wasn’t going to back down now. She wasn’t going to accept that Kez was somehow Ro’s keeper. She and Ro were a couple, that had to count for something. She wouldn’t be kept out like this. It would be different if Ro had asked her to give him space during this time, but she wouldn’t let Kez dictate to her whether she could or couldn’t see her boyfriend.

As she turned to go back to the office, she did worry her lip anxiously. Kez had sounded convinced that Ro wasn’t himself, that if she went to him she would somehow regret it, but that just didn’t sound like the man she knew. Ro would give her a choice, she knew that, and he wouldn’t hold it against her if she said no. He would understand, and if it turned out that she had done more harm than good in going to see him, she would apologise and make it up to him. But she wouldn’t be scared away. Nothing about Ro scared her.

Instead, she wanted him to let her deeper into his world. She wanted to know everything about him, see every side of him. She wanted to see him in heat, she couldn’t deny it, but it wasn’t as Kez had accused her, that she was just curious. Ro wasn’t a freakshow to her. She thought he was hot. She found him handsome, and charming, and downright sexy when he kissed her or whispered in her ear about her colours. If Ro wanted her, she wanted him. The thought of spending two days in his bed didn’t scare her at all. If anything it was even more of an incentive to go and see him. And it was even a Friday.

She sat down at her desk, tugging her skirt straight and crossing her ankles. She couldn’t think about it too closely or she wouldn’t be able to work. She checked her Gadgit one more time; still nothing from Ro. She settled down to work. He should really know better than to think she would let him ignore her with no consequences. Not if he wanted to keep kissing her anyway.

Chapter 20

Maggie met Kez after work as she’d determined to do, and he seemed to read the stubborn look on her face and give up, escorting her to the dorms without argument. He pressed the buzzer for Ro’s apartment. Evidently, Kez lived in a different building as he didn’t have keys for this one.

“I hope you’re sure,” was all he said.

“I am,” she replied.

They waited for Ro to respond, but there was nothing. Kez held the buzzer down, and several long moments later Ro’s voice answered, cursing a streak in Balin, though Maggie only understood the few words he had taught her.

“It’s me, I have brought supplies,” Kez said in Balin, or that was what Maggie thought he’d said. Kez spoke quickly and not as neatly as Ro.

“I don’t need anything, you should know better,” Ro replied. Maggie was really struggling, only catching about sixty per cent of what they were saying and only when they used simple words, guessing the rest.

Kez argued further, and this time Maggie had no idea what he was saying, but she knew enough to keep quiet. Kez was lying about his reason for coming, so she stayed out of sight of the camera. It looked like Ro really wouldn’t want to see her, but she wouldn’t turn back until he told her that himself.

Eventually, after some more back-and-forth between Kez and Ro where they were clearly arguing, Kez got frustrated and Ro gave up, unlocking the door remotely. Kez pulled it open and Maggie hurried inside after him before it closed. They took the elevator down. When the doors opened, Maggie realised she was getting used to the dark corridor, not that she could see anything. There was no way she was asking to hold Kez’s hand though.

He surprised her by turning the white wall sconces on, then gesturing for her to follow him. As they progressed down the hall, Kez slowed outside one of the apartments, tilting his head at it.

“Listen,” he said.

She did, but all she could hear was a muffled bumping noise.

“It is happening to all of us,” Kez said quietly. “This damn planet.”

He resumed his pace and Maggie didn’t ask him what he meant. From the context, if he wanted her to listen to other Balin couples have sex, she wasn’t going to ask for an elaboration.

They stopped outside Ro’s apartment and Kez knocked loudly. Straining her ears, she heard shuffling from inside, the click of Ro’s claws against the floor. She braced herself for his reaction to seeing her. She wanted him to be pleased, but she knew she might have to do some quick explaining. They had deceived him after all. She also didn’t know what to expect when she saw him. Kez seemed to expect her to be horrified.

But the door didn’t open.

“Kez?” Ro called from inside, sounding suspicious, worried, angry. His voice was rougher than usual, with more gravel in it.

“It’s me, fila,” he answered in Balin.

“Who is with you?”

Maggie and Kez both stiffened, glancing at each other. How did he know?

“What kind of question is that?” Kez replied, forcing a laugh.

“I can see light around the door,” Ro answered.

Kez closed his eyes in realisation, stifling a groan. Maggie stepped forward to say something, but stopped when she heard what sounded like Ro sniffing at the door, faint scratches coming through the wood from his claws.

“You said you wouldn’t tell her!” he yelled suddenly, his voice a growl.

Kez called back in Balin, though Maggie didn’t understand past “She wants to”. Once more the two males argued through the door. Kez used the words for “stupid” and “pain”. Ro used a lot of negatives, “no” and “not” and “won’t”.

“Ro?” Maggie interrupted. This was between the two of them after all. She didn’t want Ro to let her in because Kez had brow-beaten him into it. The men fell silent. Kez stared at her, and she could almost hear Ro waiting to hear what she would say next, or at least she hoped he was. “Will you let me in please?” There was no reply, no movement. “I’d like to see you,” she tried again.

“Maggie…” he groaned, and again there was that scratching noise of claws against the door. “It is not a good idea, a good time…”

“Kez told me what’s going on. I know what- how you’re feeling right now. I’d still like to come in please.” She put her hand against the door, as if they could somehow feel each other. “Don’t make me have this conversation through the door,” she pleaded.

“She understands what she’s offering, fila,” Kez said in English. “She understood before she came here.”

Maggie looked at him, wondering when she’d won his approval, but deciding it didn’t matter. They both waited for Ro’s reply.

“Kez, go away,” it came.

He raised his brows, but obligingly stepped away. “Good luck, woman,” he murmured before he walked away. Maggie watched him go, thinking it must be a good sign that Ro wanted them to be alone.

“Maggie,” Ro growled at her through the door, his voice a disembodied rumble in the dark corridor. “Do you really understand how I am feeling? What I want to do?”

“Kez told me you’re in heat,” she said carefully.

“And you…?” he trailed off, apparently not knowing how to phrase it, or not having the faculties to find the words just then.

She knew what he was asking. “Yes,” she answered.

There was a pause. The door unlocked with a click. “Come in,” he said, his voice deeper and darker than she had ever heard it.

Tentatively, she pushed the door open, worried about hitting him with it if he was standing on the other side, but the way was clear. There were no lights on in the apartment. She didn’t know where he was or why he hadn’t opened the door for her himself.

“Close the door,” he growled from the dungeon darkness. There was an inviting smell in the air like incense that prickled at her nose.

“Can you put some lights on?” she asked, a little nervous. She had expected to be able to see him at least, but if she closed the door, even the weak light from the hall would be gone.

A lamp turned on across the room, its light as faint as a candle. Next to it, she saw the edge of his body outlined, black shadowed in gold. His pink eyes glowed, watching her. He was shirtless, wearing the Balin shorts she had seen on other people but never him. He was leaning against the wall, looking casual but his claws were digging into the wood. She was able to pick out the pink shapes on his chest for the first time and she swallowed, following their pattern down his firm stomach and under his waistband. From what she could see in the quarter-light, Kez had been right. He was hard. And it looked like his crest was unfurled too, but it wasn’t all there. She only glanced at it, the rest of his body tempting her eyes back.

“Now close the door, Maggie,” he reminded her.

She pushed the door closed quietly and they watched each other in silence for a moment, the tension and the promise of it making her heart beat faster.

“Are you okay?” she began, adjusting her bag on her shoulder. “H- How are you feeling? You didn’t reply to my messages…”

“Maggie… I don’t want to talk. Take off your clothes.”

She looked at him, his body held tight as a bowstring. It was clear he was holding himself back, that he wasn’t moving for her sake, that he was keeping himself on the other side of the room through sheer strength of will. She’d never been wanted that much. And she wasn’t scared of him. Even now she knew he wouldn’t hurt her, she didn’t think he was capable of it. Like Kez had said, he didn’t look like he was in pain, but he was suffering. He could have alieved that suffering the second she walked through the door, but he was talking to her instead. He was listening to her, aware of her enough to reply.

She put her bag down against the wall, and stepped out of her shoes. She started to unbutton her blouse, and he hissed quietly. She checked his expression, but while his eyes were following her hands, he hadn’t moved.

Her heart was pounding almost painfully. Not because she was embarrassed to be undressing, it was waiting for the moment he would snap and touch her, and what he would do when he did. Every second felt like a game of Russian roulette, pushing him further and harder, with something as simple as undoing another button, exposing another two inches of skin.

She pulled her blouse off and dropped it onto the floor next to her. She unzipped her skirt and let it fall to the ground, stepping out of it. She stood across the room from him in just her underwear, breathing quickly. He made a noise like a rattling rumble, not quite a growl, and she watched his gaze flick all over her body, unable to land on just one part of her.

She held her arms out. “Come here,” she invited softly.

His growling turned into a snarl and he pushed himself off the wall, coming for her almost too fast for her to track, but she forced herself to hold still. His body touched hers and the door hit her back, bumping her hard as he swept her off her feet. His mouth came down on hers as he pulled her head back, his tongue invading her mouth, kissing her hard. She wrapped her arms around him, one hand going to the back of his neck, matching him stroke for stroke.

His scales felt dry and smooth and hot against the length of her body. She felt the muscles in his back and shoulders move as he shifted her weight and wrapped her legs around his waist, moving his hips under hers to support her. His erection was now pressed against her and she moaned at the feel of it, just on the other side of a layer of cotton and silk. His shorts were soft against her calves where they hooked over his ass.

One of his claws went under her, picking at the elastic of her underwear, hooking the gusset and navigating underneath. She stiffened. “Ro!” she cried, breaking their kiss and stopping him. He looked at her, waiting for her objection. “Your claws…” she reminded him delicately. He huffed and took his hand away, straightening his fingers so that his claws just pricked her ass instead. He ducked his face to her neck and she bared it for him as he nuzzled her.

“We should go to the bedroom,” she breathed as he licked the soft hollow of her throat, then nibbled gently along her tendon, his hands running over her waist, around to her back, over her ass and thighs as if he was trying to consume her that way.

He growled his agreement and let her legs slip from his waist. He took her hand and led her behind him to the bedroom, not stopping until he pulled her around in front of him, her back to his unmade bed, the covers kicked off.

“Lights,” she reminded him as he dropped his face to kiss her again, making him groan in frustration, leaving her for a second to manually adjust the settings to what she assumed was as bright as he could handle without his lenses. It was certainly romantic lighting, and she welcomed him back to her. He kissed her, cupping her face, his erection pressing into her stomach. His hands eased to her shoulders, sliding the straps of her bra down her arms.

“If you’re serious about this, take this off,” he said, pulling back just enough to whisper against her mouth. His black and pink eyes watched her, his words almost lost under the pounding of her heart and the thrumming of her nerves. She could smell him, sweeter than his usual smoky scent, and she wondered in a daze if he was putting out pheromones or something.

She moved to do exactly as he asked. She liked him like this, telling her what he wanted for once, being forthright. She didn’t have to wonder whether he liked her or not, or how much, or what he meant or what he was thinking. There was no doubt in her mind that he was focused on one thing: making love to her.

Maggie unhooked her bra and let it drop, then stepped away from him to sit on the bed, moving slowly up it away from him until she was leaning back on her hands in the middle. She jerked her head at him.

“Take off your clothes,” she said, her mouth crooking into a half-smile as she repeated his earlier words to her.

His hands were clenching into fists and releasing as he looked at her, almost naked on his bed, but now they moved almost absently to untie the ribbons on his pants. He stepped one foot after the other onto the frame of the bed to untie the cuffs above his knees, and Maggie watched as the fabric tightened over his thighs, the slit at the slide falling open from knee to hip. His erection bobbed as he moved, and Maggie took advantage of his moment’s distraction to look properly. It looked big. She hadn’t heard anything about what Teissian males had between their legs, but it must be similar enough to work with human females, or there wouldn’t be the inter-species couples she heard about.

Ro made short work of the knot at his waist and the silk fell off him as if it was never there. He bent over her, crawling up the bed before it even hit the floor. It might have been dark, and he moved quickly, but Maggie had still caught sight of what he had in store for her. It was long, and pink, which she found endearingly predictable. It wasn’t the same hot pink as the rest of his colours, or the fathomlessly deep crystal magenta of his eyes, but a softer flesh-toned pink. It curved away from his body and didn’t have a noticeable head like a human’s, and it was easily twice as thick at the base as it was at the tip. But nothing about it gave her second thoughts, she couldn’t wait to feel it inside her, and see if it felt different from a human’s too.

She leant back as he made it to her, lying down and pulling him over her, kissing him lightly, sucking and nibbling on his lips as his dick bumped her thigh. He positioned himself on one arm, his other hand sliding up her side as he broke their kiss to watch it. She lay still and let him touch her, her hands by her head and her thigh holding his hip. She watched his face as his hand, slightly scratchy from his scales, stroked over her waist. He ran the point of his claw along her diaphragm, his thumb just brushing the underside of her breast. His eyes caught hers as he finally moved his hand over her, cupping her breast, his claws sharp over her heart but his palm warm and safe.

She arched her back, pushing into him, showing him she liked it and she wanted more, mewling softly. He groaned and dipped his head to her, licking her nipple into his mouth and sucking softly, making her gasp and curl her body around him, her arms going behind his back to hold them together. She wrapped her legs around his waist, his position meaning they were no longer hip to hip, but she ground against his stomach instead as his tongue flicked over her. She felt a wet trail drying on the inside of her leg where his dick had slipped away when he’d moved.

“Ro…” she moaned. She hadn’t known he could make her feel this crazy. She’d enjoyed sex before, and she had known he turned her on, but somehow she still wasn’t prepared for the feel of his scales against her inner-thighs, the pointed flick of his tongue, the grip of his claws, the hot and heavy reality of him. This was Ro, her co-worker with the sexy voice and the handsome smile, leaving one of her nipples wet with spit as he left it for the other one, making her whimper.

His hand dropped to between her legs, the heat of his scales soaking through her underwear, and she stilled, hoping he would do something. He trailed the tips of his claws over her, a faint tickle on her over-sensitive skin that just made her feel empty without him, her body clenching, and she wondered if he felt it. His claws didn’t hurt through the cotton she was sure was wet. He did it again, walking his claws between her lips.

“What is this called?” he asked.

“Uh…” Maggie panted, his words only half processing when most of her was debating the best way to crush his hand to her. “What do you… mean?”

“This. Here. This part of you. They don’t teach us that,” he breathed in her ear, his voice dipping a register as if he just lost another part of himself to his lust.

“Um, it… has different names. People call it different things,” Maggie explained, trying to put him off even as she wiggled her hips to try to catch his hand, bucking off the bed.

“What do you call it?” he insisted.

“Do you want the scientific name?” She whimpered again as the points of his claws, blunted by the cotton, explored her sex.

He growled, getting frustrated with her evasions. “What do you want me to call it when I’m inside of you?” he said.

Oh. Now. There was an offer. What word did she want to hear coming out of his mouth, in that voice, rough with sex? A word came to her mind that she hadn’t thought she liked, that she wouldn’t trust any other man with, but in this moment, the one she wanted to hear was one she’d always been told not to say.

“My… cunt,” she whispered, unable to believe she was really doing it. “It’s a swear word though, you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to, I just thought-”

He brushed his mouth against her ear. “I love your cunt,” he told her, and Maggie’s body jerked in response, her knees coming up like she was already climaxing, and her insides taking a long hard pull at nothing.

“You… you haven’t even… done anything yet,” she panted, blushing. Nothing they had done up to that point had made her blush, but hearing Ro talk like that, just for her, just to her, was enough. She felt like she’d shown him something embarrassing, and the fact that he was going along with it just made it more all the more intimate. 

“I will,” he promised her, and within those two words was a whole catalogue of things he could do to her, things he was thinking about doing to her.

She swallowed, and reached down to push down her briefs. She didn’t want to wait anymore. He realised immediately what she was doing and went up on his knees to pull them off her himself while she hurried to untangle her legs from the elastic, giggling. While he threw her underwear somewhere else in the room, she reached out and slid her hand up his thigh, giving him a moment to object before she satisfied her curiosity and wrapped her hand around his shaft. She checked his expression and found him watching her with hooded eyes, his knees shifting further apart to give her better access.

It felt different than she expected. It had a hard core, but there was a lot of give in the skin, making her realise that it was skin, rather than scales. It was soft like suede, and as she moved her hand up and down, the skin moved, gathering at the wide base.

Ro allowed her an exploratory stroke or two before he said, “Will you turn around for me, Maggie?” There was a tension in his jaw that suggested he was being polite, but he was done waiting.

“Oh, like this?” Maggie rolled onto her front, positioning herself on the bed so that he was between her open legs. She expected him to cover her, but instead he pulled her hips up, making her gasp as she found herself on her knees.

“No, like this…” His thumbs swept over her hips as he nudged her knees further apart, opening her up further, making her squirm as she imagined him looking at her, and how close his standing cock must be to her. “Ready?” he asked, and his grip on her hips was so tight she knew to delay would just be to torture him.

“Yes,” she said, nodding. Instantly she felt the head of his cock against her sex, nudging between her lips before notching in her entrance and pushing smoothly inside her in one steady motion.

Maggie breathed deep, getting used to it. He had gone so deep into her, she had been right in thinking he was longer than her previous partners. There was a liquid feeling of swelling or movement that she put down to what must be the soft, elastic outside of his shaft catching up to the hard core, stretching her as it was pulled inside. His flesh had pillowed at her entrance, cushioning his thrust. The bed creaked as Ro leaned over her, covering her back, planting a fist in the mattress by her hand while the other stayed guiding her hip. They were touching from thigh to shoulder and were connected deeper than that as she resisted tightening around him. He rumbled his satisfaction as she made herself comfortable, canting her hips the way she wanted, supporting herself on her arms.

Ro drew out slowly, then pushed back in, faster. Again there was a shifting cushion of flesh, and as he moved quicker, it turned into a lapping feeling, like a tongue licking her with every thrust. She was already breathing heavily, now she moaned, tilting her hips for more, meeting his rhythm. She could feel his breath panting against her shoulder, and his arm wrapped around her stomach to hold her tighter and make sure she went where he needed her to go. She could hear the wet snapping of their bodies colliding, and every time he bottomed out inside her, she could feel him bumping against her cervix.

He groaned, his rhythm faltering, surprising her. She was about to be disappointed, until the next second when he recovered and picked up right where he’d left off, barely missing a stroke. She had no time to think about it as he worked her body, filling her and making her forget everything else, but she thought there was definitely an extra wetness there now. He’d come and not missed a beat. She wondered if that was what Kez had meant when he had said she should be prepared to fuck for days.

Ro angled his hips differently, and now she was crying out with every thrust, squirming in his hold. She could feel her orgasm like a thing on the edge of her fingertips, a weight on the end of a string. She couldn’t chase it, she just had to wait for him to give it to her, and she begged him not to stop, deliriously told him how good he was, until the thing just out of reach hit her, bursting over her like a firework. She shuddered and twitched, her body gripping his cock so fiercely he swore, struggling to pull out so seating himself deeper instead, coming again as she milked him.

She almost collapsed, managing to stay up only thanks to him and the stable bracing of her knees and elbows. Maggie chased her breath, hoping to slow her heart even as her whole body felt like melted chocolate. Then she realised he was still hard, and he drew slowly out of her, starting again. Maggie groaned, twitching at the thick lick of that pad of flesh at the base of his cock. He was moving slower than before, almost leisurely, as if he was reaching the end of the mating fever that nevertheless still held him in thrall.

She could feel his come being squeezed out of her with every thrust, and it gathered on her sex, running down to tickle her clit and drip onto the bed. He moved his hands, repositioning himself so he could reach underneath her and pluck at her breast, strumming the velvet that separated bone from scales at the edge of his claws back and forth over her nipple. He fucked her slowly, dragging out of her then pushing back hard as if he was making sure he fit as much as he could into her, the repeating press of bunched flesh feeling like a kiss every time.

Maggie was sensitised from her climax and the deliberate way he was fucking her was building her up again, and she moaned as she felt her satisfied nerves be dragged awake for a second time. She covered his hand with her own, making him hold her tighter as she chased her second orgasm, needing that extra pinch to send her over the edge. She grit her teeth as she rode it out, twitching around him, feeling him empty into her again.

This time, she did collapse, and he followed her down, staying inside her as he gathered her limp body into his arms, her back to his chest. He kissed her hair, smoothing it off her face so he could kiss her cheek and neck. She had her eyes closed, but she snapped them open when she felt herself in danger of falling asleep. He was still hard inside her, but he was still for the moment, his hand brushing over her stomach, her arm, her thigh as if making sure she was still whole.

Chapter 21

“Maggie…” He sounded more like his old self, his voice more relaxed, softer, though not unaffected by what they had just done. He almost sounded upset somehow, worried. “Why did you come here?”

Maggie had to twist to look at him because when she would have rolled, separating them, he tightened his hold and kept them connected. He seemed to do it reflexively. She studied his face over her shoulder, the black scales, the strong jaw, the bump of a nose, the obsidian eyes with their magenta starburst irises. His crest, or what there was of it, a ragged and ripped couple of inches the same deep pink, was still standing. She followed the line of his neck and shoulder to the arm that was holding her. Even after coming twice, she still felt something at the sight of his body, something like privilege or luck, that told her she wanted him for a long, long time.

His expression was confused, concerned, but his breathing was starting to pick up again and she could still smell that spicy smoke smell that made her want to lick him. She didn’t think they were finished yet, she had just cleared his head enough to allow him to think for a moment.

“You weren’t answering my messages, I was worried about you,” she said.

“Kez told you I was in heat, you should have listened to him,” he reinforced.

“I wanted to be with you…” she said quietly. She didn’t enjoy feeling like she was being told off.

He gave a muted, indulgent sigh through his nose as if to say What am I going to do with you?

“Are you angry?” She didn’t think she could handle it if he was, if he regretted what they had just done. If he told her he would rather have been alone than been with her.

“No,” he assured her, running his hand down her side from ribs to thigh, the word trailing off into almost a purr. “But I didn’t want it to happen like this. I wanted to discuss it first. I wanted to be the one to tell you…”

“But you didn’t tell me.”

“I know. Since I came to Earth, my cycles have been confused. They take me by surprise. It’s too hot here,” he complained.

Maggie tried to pull away again. “Can I look at you while we have this conversation?”

Ro didn’t let her go for a moment, as if balancing his need to be inside her with granting her request. He let her go with obvious reluctance, taking hold of her again once she had rolled to face him. His leg nudged hers, asking her to let him in, but she didn’t oblige him.

“Please be open with me,” she pleaded. “Tell me everything. I want to know you, but you’re so closed off and cagey about so many things. I have to ask Kez about things I should already know, things that should be between us, things we could enjoy together. I’m not going to reject you for your differences, Ro,” she explained. “Please tell me more about these heats. I don’t want to be surprised anymore. I don’t want to have to surprise you to be a part of your life.”

Ro sighed through his nose again. “Because Balin live underground, we don’t see the sun, or the moon. We follow the seasons through the temperature of the soil. At the warmest time of year, we go into heat, to conceive when there are the most resources, the most food. On the transport ships, the temperature was always the same. Few of the Balin went into heat. When we arrived here… I have heard from other Balin that it is the same for them. I should normally have my heat once a year. I have been on Earth three months and this is the second time it has happened.”

“Is that going to hurt you? Will you be okay?” Maggie said, touching his cheek, worried. That sounded like it could put a serious strain on his body.

“I don’t know. For some of the others who have been here longer, it has become regular at least, manageable. They have got used to it. Some of the elders say it is a good thing, as we could be the last of our kind. The females disagree, they don’t want to breed so soon after arriving here. And there are fewer of them here than there are males, so we have taken to locking ourselves away when our time comes because it is happening to us at different times here and... It is not how it should be. It used to be an event for the whole clan, now it is… not.”

Maggie stroked over his chest. “Is it alright if I get a little jealous, listening to you talk about sharing your heat with other women?”

“I never shared it with anyone, I was never accepted because of-” He cut himself off suddenly, eyes going wide, his hand jumping to his head and covering his crest. His eyes watched her carefully.

“What?” she wondered.

“Because of, um…” He ran his claw points along his crest as if trying to smooth it down but it stayed standing.

“You can tell me,” she pushed. She had an idea. He had told her before that he had been in an accident that had made him “invisible”, and his missing crest was the only damaged part of him that she had seen, and she had seen almost all of him. If he tried to put her off, glamouring her with his eyes or voice, she would be disappointed.

“Because I… lost my crest in a cave-in when I was a child,” he finished, his voice stilted but his hand coming tentatively back to her waist. He looked unsure, afraid of her reaction.

She wriggled her arms free from between the press of their bodies, taking hold of his face so she could look at him. “I don’t mind,” she said.

His eyes flicked between hers. “For the Balin, a male without a crest might as well be no male at all,” he said as if he was testing her.

“Humans don’t have them. It has no significance to me.” She pushed herself up the bed enough to see it properly, her fingers running along what was left of the spines and plucking gently at the webbing. He moaned faintly and pushed his hips hard into hers, his erection poking her stomach. She noted his reaction for future use, whether his crest was an erogenous zone or if he just appreciated her engaging with his difference rather than rejecting it. One day she would tease him properly and find out how best to drive him crazy by touching him there.

“It doesn’t mean anything about you that you have one or not. It wouldn’t make you any sexier if you had one, just like it’s not a turn-off that yours isn’t all there.” She wiggled back down into his arms. “Human men are judged by their muscles, which you have,” – she ran her hands over his biceps for emphasis – “Their height, which you have; their deep voices, which you have…” She was getting a little lost, watching her fingertip follow the grooves between his muscles, over his beating heart, down his stomach. She had to lean away from him to run her finger up the length of his hard cock. “And the size of this, which let me tell you, is far above average.” She looked back at his face. “By my count, you are a more than perfect man,” she told him.

He watched her, the amazement in his eyes being overrun by arousal, and a rumbling growl passed his lips. He turned her shoulder away from him, tugging her hips to try to get her back facing him again. “Maggie,” he groaned, dipping his head into the crook of her shoulder. “I need you again.”

She stopped his hands and got comfortable on her back, pulling him over her instead. “Like this. I want to see you,” she said, welcoming him with no shyness between her legs. She loved the press of his hard scaled chest against her breasts and stomach, loved his hips between her thighs.

He pushed his cock back into her and she breathed with it, electrified by the sight of his claws fisting the sheet by her head, the way his dark body seemed to block out the light as if he was bigger than the sun. His black and pink eyes watched her with hot interest she couldn’t escape from as she writhed under him in pleasure, canting her hips to rub her clit against his scales as he thrust into her, her body jerking with every thrust. The pillowing of his flesh where their bodies met felt like a balm against soreness, whether it actually did her any good or not.

She wrapped her arms around his back, hooking her legs over his so she could feel his muscles work to fuck her. She came quickly while he watched her. She felt him judder a few moments later and the thick seep of his come inside her as he kept going. He lowered closer to her, letting her cup the back of his head, tugging the very back edge of his crest between her fingertips. Now he moved fast, humping into her determinedly and desperately. He hid his face in the crook of her neck, his panting breaths hot on her shoulder. His arms dug under her back, claws hooking over the tops of her shoulders to hold her in place. She scrabbled to find somewhere on his smooth back to hold on as he quickly drove her to another orgasm.

“How does your cunt feel?” he growled in her ear, sending a lightning bolt down her spine and scrambling her brain. She made a breathless noise of surprise, unable to formulate a reply even as her body flooded for him. “Does my cock feel good?”

Maggie moaned, almost panicked by how much his dirty talk turned her on. “Yes, don’t stop, please,” she cried.

He snarled, raising his head enough to kiss her, and she attacked him, trying to communicate what he was doing to her and do the same to him. She slanted their mouths together hard, sucking his tongue between her lips, biting his lip as they broke for breath, starved for air. She keened, almost screamed as she came again under his relentless pace, and he filled her while her body seized and she was too lost to feel it.

He still wasn’t done. He pulled her with him as he rolled to his side, then positioned her on top of him as he lay on his back. She was exhausted, her body limp, feeling like a wet towel, her sex used almost to the point of numbness and her abs twinging with exertion. Maggie lay on his chest as if she could have fallen asleep there. His hands wrapped around her hips, claws digging into her ass as he began to move her gently over him.

She whimpered as she realised they were going again. “Is it alright if I don’t come this time?” she moaned.

“You will,” he promised her, voice dark and certain with a smile hidden in it. He bucked his hips as if to make his point, rubbing his scales against her swollen clit, making her whimper again even as her channel tightened around him.

“How do your women do this?” she demanded.

“They are fevered, like me. They need it,” he answered, kissing the top of her head.

Maggie remembered that that would be true, that she couldn’t give up now or fall short. She had volunteered for this despite Kez’s warning. She had to be able to handle this. She didn’t want to disappoint Ro or make him feel like he was putting too much strain on her. She forced herself to rally, pushing away her exhaustion and sitting up, taking over the rhythm, moving her hips to drive down hard on his.

“I want a break after this,” she said. “At least a little one.”

He nodded, but she wasn’t sure he had heard. He was watching her body move, eyes pinned to her surging hips and bouncing breasts. His hands ran over hers where they propped her up on his stomach. She could watch him too, watch the strain of his stomach as his back arched, the play of weak gold light on his muscles. She grabbed one of his hands and crushed it to her breast, enjoying the sharpness of his claws. Her thighs slid over his hips, soaked in his come and her own excitement, making his scales slick.

The claw on his thumb of his other hand prickled down her mound as she rode him and he watched, seemingly fascinated. It dipped between her lips, carefully angled away from her so as not to hurt her, the velvet above his knuckle catching against her clit. She closed her eyes, focusing on the feeling, chasing the orgasm he insisted she reach. She focused on the feeling of him inside her, filling her completely. He swirled his thumb in circles and she came, crying out as she stiffened. He gripped her hips and took over, keeping her going as she came until he joined her, buried to the hilt, the spurt of his seed hitting her cervix.

When he was done, his hands fell from her hips, and she pulled herself off him, collapsing beside him with a groan.

“How do you feel?” he asked, and again he seemed to have recovered the innocent everyday tone of his voice. It seemed that his heat came in waves, rescinding like the tide for a while after it was sated.

Maggie chuckled. “I need looking after,” she moaned.

The bed bounced as Ro jumped up. “What do you need?” he asked, apparently full of energy.

Maggie cracked her eyes open. “Depends. Are we going to be doing that again tonight?” she asked.

Ro looked a little sheepish. “The… need will come back to me, yes,” he told her.

Maggie pushed her hair out of her face, rolling onto her back, contemplating her fate and wondering how much sex she could actually survive. “Caffeine, if you have any. Water. Food.” She felt how sticky her thighs were and pulled a face. “I should really clean up, too.” She forced herself to sit up and almost leapt off the bed when she saw the state of the sheets, prompting her to actually look at the mess she was in.

“Green!” was all she could say. “It’s green! Is that from you?”

Ro looked curiously as she pulled her thighs apart and stared. From her hips to her knees she was smeared, spattered, and dripped in green come.

“Yes,” he said. “I apologise.” He seemed to be going off her reaction rather than any genuine feeling of remorse.

She looked again at the bed. “Your sheets are ruined. It looks like someone murdered a lettuce. I look like I’m wearing camouflage.”

Ro shrugged. “I will change the sheets when we are finished.”

“Is this stuff safe for me?” Maggie asked, testing it between her finger and thumb.

“Oh yes, choba is very good for you, and good for babies too. It helps seed live longer,” Ro chimed like he was being sponsored in an advert.

“Choba. Of course it’s choba… I hope it comes off,” Maggie said, eyeing it mournfully. “I wore a skirt here.”

“I will get a cloth,” Ro offered, disappearing into the bathroom where Maggie could hear a tap running. He brought it to her and she swiped at her skin, but even after she was clean, the green was still visible. She flopped back onto the dry part of the bed.

“Well, it’s too late now,” she said. “I guess I’ll try and soak it off tomorrow.”

As soon as she lay down she could feel the tiredness creeping back in. Ro left the room to get her food and drink, and when he came back, she was asleep.

Chapter 22

She woke up what felt like minutes later, Ro’s hand shaking her hip.

“Maggie,” he groaned. “Wake up…”

She looked at him. With nothing but weak artificial light in the room, she had no idea how much time had passed. He looked like he was hurting.

“Did I fall asleep? How long has it been?” she asked.

“An hour!” he complained, scooting closer to her, lining their bodies up. “I’m sorry, I let you sleep as long as I could.”

Maggie made a note of that, that an hour was his limit. He really was going to exhaust her.

“No, it’s okay,” she said. “Sorry I fell asleep.” She took stock of her body as he ran his hands over her sides again, his cock hard against her thighs. He was rocking her gently towards him, encouraging her to make love to him again. She felt better, a little recovered. Hungry.

She smiled and kissed him, giving him permission, and he quickly rolled her onto her back, one hand going to her breast. An hour was clearly too long. He was desperate and fierce, and he moaned into her mouth. His passion and the sounds he made warmed her body up and she tentatively split her thighs to rest one against him. She had no idea whether she would be sore or not, she couldn’t tell.

She broke their kiss. “I want to try something,” she panted, catching her breath even as he tried to follow her mouth. “Lie on your back.”

He quickly rolled, bringing her with him, pulling her thigh over his hip so she was straddling him and he could grind his cock against her. That almost changed her plans, but she wanted to give her vagina as much of a break as she could, while she could.

“No,” she huffed, pushing against his chest to lift herself off him.

He looked dismayed, his hands holding onto her arms as she unsaddled and his head rising from the pillow. “Maggie!” he groaned, as if she was leaving him to die.

“I’m going to help, Ro,” she reassured him. “I just want to try something different.”

He flopped back onto the pillow, his legs shifting impatiently. “Hurry.”

Maggie shuffled down the bed. “Can you let me between your legs?”

He cocked one leg, moving it out of her way, watching her. She couldn’t tell if that was curiosity or suspicion in his eyes. She heard an alarming noise from behind her and looked over to see the curved raptor claws of one foot destroying the end of the bed frame, ripping trenches out of the wood. She decided to hurry before they ended up on the floor.

She turned back to him, laying her hands on his hip bones and sweeping them over him, wrapping around his cock, feeling him. It seemed to come from nowhere, black scales stopping only at the swollen base of it with no change in their pattern as a warning. He didn’t seem to have external testicles like human men, but there was a swelling between his legs under his scales. She ran her thumb over it, and Ro groaned, dragging a pillow over his face and crossing his arms over it.

“Don’t suffocate yourself,” she said, giggling at his melodramatics. 

He grumbled a reply but she couldn’t make it out.

Deciding he didn’t need any more teasing, she bent and licked him, a short test over the base of his cock. His whole body jumped like he’d been electrocuted, then after a second, relaxed slowly, sinking back into the bed. She looked up at his face to find him peeking out from under the pillow.

“Okay?” she asked, wagging her hips as if she was getting comfortable. He didn’t reply so she licked him again, all the way up. He tasted of a bunch of different things. Him. Her. Choba. The musk of come. The salt of sweat. She preferred doing this before her partner got inside her, but she’d make an exception of it this time. She leaned forward and pushed the head of him into her mouth, rolling her lips to shield her teeth.

He groaned again into the pillow, and she could feel the vibration of the deep bass go through his body. His leg drew up, his claws tapping the bed. She put a hand to the inside of his thigh to make sure he didn’t flinch too hard and hit her with it. She pressed her tongue to the underside of his cock and licked up, making sure he was wet, then she sucked as she drew back and did it again. She took more of him, taking him deeper into her mouth as she got used to him.

“I am not going to come from this,” he forced out, his voice strangled as if he was speaking through a noose. “I need to be inside you.”

She pulled off him. “Let me try,” she said, smiling. If that proved to be true, fine, but she half-way suspected it might be a ploy to get her to give in to him. If he told her to stop or to get off him, of course she would, but until then she wanted to show him that there were other ways to have a good time.

He groaned and muttered in Balin about her, she was sure.

“Just for that, I’m taking the pillow,” she said, snatching it away from him and throwing it on the floor before he could stop her.

He stared at her, mouth open, as if outraged by her daring and the injustice of it all, and she smirked.

“I want to hear you,” she said, ducking back to him. She used her hands more this time, gripping and massaging and pumping him, and he hissed, taking fistfuls of the sheet that was already ripped and poked through in places. She used all her technique on him, which might not have been a lot, but she thought she should get points for enthusiasm.

He was starting to get into it, jerking his hips up a little with her movements, thrusting into her mouth. She established a comfortable, quick rhythm, matching her hands’ movement to her mouth. She could hear him panting above her, his stomach visibly tensing every now and then. He growled, his back arching, and that was her warning before her mouth flooded with his come, hot from his body.

Maggie pulled herself off him, wiping her mouth, ready to be smug, but he was already sitting up, grabbing her ass and lifting her up his body, splitting her legs over him. Of course he wasn’t satisfied. His still-hard cock slid over her sex and she bit back a moan.

Fuck it. 

She shifted her angle and pushed down on him, working him inside her. Once he was in an inch, he did the rest, pushing the rest of the way in with a single smooth lift of his hips, making her groan. She was pleased to note that it didn’t hurt, but it felt like it would if they did much more of this.

She pulled on his arm. “I want to be on my back,” she breathed, and he quickly and effortlessly rolled them.

Maggie relaxed against the bed and let him do the work. Not that she didn’t enjoy it, she was soon clawing at his sides and crying out as he pumped into her, pushing her towards her fifth? sixth? orgasm of the night. She was losing count.

Her body locked around his, her shoulders lifting off the bed and thighs holding him inside her, only letting him go when the tremors had stopped and she sagged back to the bed, freeing him to chase his own climax a moment later, emptying into her again with his face against her chest.

They lay panting, catching their breath. He was still hard inside her, but he seemed satisfied for now as he pulled out of her and lay next to her. After a moment’s quiet, he reached across to the night stand and passed her a big glass of water.

“Drink,” he said. “There’s food too.”

Maggie pushed herself up so she could rest her back against the wall and downed the glass of water, feeling a little revived. Ro took the glass back and passed her a sandwich. She almost laughed at the practical way they were refuelling during this brief lull in the storm. When she’d finished the sandwich, she went to pee and shower, knowing she was probably only going to get sweaty again in an hour, but the hot water helped her muscles and she felt more awake. When she came back, Ro had changed the sheets, the old ones balled up at the foot of the bed, and then he went to clean up as well. Maggie crawled under the covers to wait for him, snuggling into the clean bedding.

Ro came back and slipped in behind her, putting his arm around her waist, and she relaxed against him.

“Thank you for coming, Maggie,” he said, murmuring in her ear, making her shiver. “Thank you for accepting me.”

“Thanks for letting me stay,” she said, looking at him over her shoulder. “I know you didn’t want me to find out…”

He huffed. “I was afraid you… wouldn’t like me like this,” he admitted, delicately pulling a strand of hair behind her ear with his claw.

She cuddled closer to him. “I like you however you are,” she said. “I’ve liked you since we first met, since I first heard your voice.”

“My voice?”

“Yeah… You have a great voice,” she sighed.

He shifted against her, curving over her until his mouth almost brushed her ear. “Do I?” he purred, deliberately deepening and softening his tone until she squirmed and pressed her thighs together. “What do you like about it?”

She giggled, “Stop doing it on purpose!” she said. “Haven’t you heard you should only use your powers for good?”

He chuckled, a sound she felt deep in her belly. “It feels good to me,” he growled, and she gasped as he pressed her into the bed again, his voice never leaving her ear as they went for another round, even after her whimpers and moans drowned him out.

Chapter 23

They both went back to work on Monday. Maggie thought she’d had more sex in those 48 hours than she’d had in the whole rest of her life up to that point. Ro might actually have been right about the choba, because she didn’t feel as decrepit as she would have expected. She could still walk, though she could definitely feel plenty of twinges when she did. A couple of days of rest though, and she’d be right as rain.

Ro too looked chipper and a vision of health when he took his seat opposite her, giving her a big smile. They had discussed how open to be with their relationship in the office, and agreed that it was alright if the team knew, but Maggie didn’t want Derek or any of the other managers to know. No one who might have a problem with it and tell HR, or try to split them up. Ro was a great addition to the Incomings team, and from a business perspective alone, Maggie didn’t want to lose him. So they would answer questions honestly, but they wouldn’t kiss or hold hands in the department.

They’d been flirting for months, no one would notice if they looked besotted now.

As soon as Ro sat down, Kez appeared at his shoulder. Kez looked between Ro and Maggie with narrowed eyes, and spoke to Ro in Balin. Ro sighed and replied. Maggie caught the words for “yes” and “fine”. She got the feeling Kez would be coming back to collect Ro for lunch as usual, and hoped he would be a gentleman about the details even if it was way too late to keep it a secret. Maggie had involved Kez first so she couldn’t complain.

They got to work, but Derek wanted to see Maggie in his office. There, he happily confirmed her promotion to Team Leader, showed her all the paperwork, and pointed out the pay rise. HR were going to update her credentials on the system as soon as they got her signature on it all, which would be by the end of the day. When she left his office again, she was on cloud nine. She’d been promoted and got herself a great boyfriend all in the space of a few days.

For almost two years, she hadn’t thought they would ever create a Team Leader position for Incomings. She’d thought she would have to do what everyone else did and move to another team if she wanted to further her career at all, and she hadn’t wanted to do that. But now they had, finally recognising all the work she did for the department and raising the profile of the team to more than just the gatekeepers, the secretaries of the other teams on the floor. She could start making decisions about the work Incomings did, and the conditions they did it in, and then maybe her staff wouldn’t keep leaving and she could hang on to some people with experience. Incomings would have someone representing them in inter-departmental meetings. She wouldn’t have to wait to hear about changes from Derek, she would be told first hand if the policy was being changed by IT or HR.

And Ro. She really felt like their weekend together had cemented something between them. There was no denying they were a couple, not after everything they had done and everything they had said. She was wearing slacks today because the marks from his come could still be seen all over her body. Luckily, after the Friday night, the edge had seemed to come off his heat so that he only needed to come once at a time, and he could go longer and longer between each round before it got too much for him again. They had been able to eat and sleep more comfortably, though the longest he’d been able to let Maggie sleep had been six hours.

She’d never refused him though. He’d needed her and she wanted him, she wanted to help him and she wanted him to turn to her when he needed help. She’d wanted to see him, not knowing what she would find, and she was glad she did. If she hadn’t, he’d still be lying to her about why he’d needed time off. She wouldn’t know how he lost his crest, he wouldn’t know what his voice did to her. They’d still be dancing around each other, getting closer but not as close as they were now.

His heat had finally broken on Saturday evening. He had pulled her close and told her it would be the last time, then he had made love to her slowly and sensually, kissing her with every thrust, staring into her eyes as he made her come. He had stayed inside her as long as he could while she stroked the back of his head, but his crest had gone back to lying flat, and she had felt his cock soften and fall out of her. When she saw it again, it looked like the majority of it had retracted into his body, leaving just the head in the middle of that cushion of flesh.

They had changed the bed again, putting the washing machine on. Maggie had showered, and watched as Ro rubbed his body down with a cloth and oil from a bottle that sat next to his sink. He explained that the oil was more effective and better for Teissian scales than water and soap, and the Balin especially were not use to having running water readily available. Then the exhaustion he had somehow avoided for the last three days had hit him, and it had become Maggie’s turn to look after him. He went to bed and was still asleep on Sunday when she snuck out a bit before noon, leaving him food and drink on the nightstand. He had messaged her when he woke up in the middle of the afternoon apologising for his mini-coma, and they agreed to get coffee the next morning.

Now she was eagerly waiting for everything that followed. She couldn’t wait to introduce him to her friends, tell her parents about him, take pictures at the beach, watch movies on his couch with her feet up. She wanted to celebrate birthdays with him, get drunk with him, let him cheer her up when she was sad. She wanted to cook dinner for him in her apartment. She wanted all that boyfriend-girlfriend stuff, and she wanted it with him. Maybe she’d even end up making friends with Kez, or maybe she could introduce him to one of her friends and they could double-date.

She got back to her desk and smiled at him when he looked up at her, obviously wondering what Derek had wanted. She opened up her inbox and quickly pinged him a message to put his mind at rest.

Just got promoted!!! Ssh, don’t tell anyone ;)

She saw his eyes – brown with his shaded lenses in again, which was for the best or she’d be too distracted to work – flick to his screen as he registered the alert. He clicked it open, read it, and his face broke out into a grin. He typed something, and she got a little pop-up on her screen. She was aware of him watching her as she read his reply.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! :D :x :x :x

Maggie had to put her hand over her mouth to smother her laugh at his kiss emojis, or were they tight-lipped? She knew what she hoped they were, finding that even after the weekend they had just spent together, she could still blush.

Another email popped up, this time with nothing in it but a heart, signed with his name. She peeped over her screen and saw him leaning round to look at her, smiling when their eyes met.

“Guys…” said Nina, reminding Maggie that they weren’t alone. “If I missed some kind of memo saying we don’t have to do any work today, and can just send each other fluffy emails instead, let me know. Otherwise, I’ve got a backlog here of people who need help.”

“Sorry,” Maggie jumped, suitably shamed as she got back to work, determined to ignore Ro and be professional. She picked up her first call, and had just opened up a new case file, when Ro’s foot slid forward under the desk, their ankles crossing as he rubbed a claw up and down her heel. She smiled again, her voice faltering, but she recovered and they sat like that for the rest of the morning, chasing each other’s feet under the desk.

Chapter 24

Maggie gripped the pillow under her head, moaning loudly, her back arching. She dug her heels into the mattress to keep herself from digging them into Ro’s back. She didn’t want to hurt him, even as he teased her into paroxysms with his mouth, lying between her legs.

It was three weeks after his heat, but this was the first time they’d ended up back in bed. Maggie had been glad of the break at first, she’d needed it, and she had enjoyed the dates they had gone on. They’d gone for drinks, and dinner, and gone to the cinema. He’d visited her at home, but he hadn’t stayed the night. They tended to go back to his apartment if they were staying in as it was so close to work, but he hadn’t invited her to stay over again.

They talked, shared drinks, watched TV. He cooked. They cuddled. He seemed perfectly happy to let her sit on his lap, or to put his arm over her shoulders, or to tickle her feet with his claws when she stretched her legs over his thighs. They kissed. He always wanted a kiss hello and goodbye, and whenever they were alone. He wasn’t shy about that, always volunteering to spend fifteen minutes lip-locked with her, inventing new things to do with his tongue. But it hadn’t progressed further than that, even when she had been so sure it would.

She had tried being more forward. She had tried crawling into his lap, but as soon as she had started undoing her buttons, he had stopped her, catching her hands and distracting her by kissing her neck. She had tried slipping her hands under his shirt, but he had dodged out of reach, as if her hands were cold. She had been starting to get suspicious, or more accurately, afraid. It was like he didn’t want her anymore, but only some of the time. The rest of the time he acted perfectly infatuated with her, attracted to her. It made her doubt herself, like she was just reading him wrong, worrying about nothing.

It had got to the point where she had felt she had to ask him about it, but then it seemed she didn’t have to. They had gone back to his apartment, and cuddled on his sofa as usual, but when he kissed her, he hadn’t stopped. His hands slid off her jacket and when she pulled back to look at him questioningly, he had dropped his gaze and started unbuttoning her blouse. She had smiled. This was exactly what she had wanted, so she had put her arms around him and let him take her to the bedroom.

Now she was naked, her nipples hard from his earlier attentions, with one hand stroking his head and the other gripping her thigh. His tongue flicked through the lips of her sex, nudging her clit, and she moaned again. He had kept her there on the edge for far too long, she was sure he was doing it on purpose but she couldn’t guess why. Maybe he just enjoyed making her fall apart.

She groaned. “Ro, it’s enough, come on, come up here,” she said, trying to pull him up her body so he could enter her. He just locked his arms around her hips and focused on her clit, finally driving her over the edge, making her come with a cry, long and hard as he kept up with the twitching of her hips. When he let her go and she sagged back against the bed, she watched him lick his lips then smile at her, looking pleased with himself. 

She held her shaking arms out to him and he crawled obligingly up her body, giving her a close-lipped kiss. She wiggled her hips against him, surprised that he was still wearing his pants from earlier. She reached down to start getting him out of them, but he caught her hands, smiling as he worked their fingers together. She recognised that smile and her suspicion came crashing back. That was his glamour smile, the one he used when he was hoping she would give up and not ask. She thought she had been seeing it again recently.

“Ro…” she said. “What about you?”

He dipped his face to her neck and she instinctively tilted her head back, giving him access. “Forget about me,” he murmured, his voice deliberately deep and just how she liked. Oh yeah, he was definitely hiding something.

“Impossible,” she argued, squeezing his hips. “Tell me what’s going on.”

“Nothing,” he replied, his face still hidden.

With a scowl, she pushed herself up the bed and out from under him. He sighed.

“I don’t believe you,” she said.

“Maggie…” He reached for her again but she pushed his hand away. “Maggie, why are we fighting?” he sighed, not even sounding mad at her. “Didn’t you like it? Did I do it wrong?”

He looked upset, his pink eyes glittering at her, and she felt her resolve crumble. “No, of course you didn’t, you were great. I loved it,” she reassured him.

“Then why are you upset?”

“You won’t let me touch you,” she pouted.

“Of course you can touch me,” he said, picking her hand up and placing it over his heart, the velvet of his thumb rubbing over her knuckles.

Maggie chewed her lip. What was she upset about? That he didn’t want to have sex with her tonight? That was his right. What kind of woman was she? He’d still taken care of her, even when he wasn’t in the mood, if he wasn’t in the mood. But it still felt hollow when it was one-sided like that, and it still felt like he was hiding something.

“We haven’t had sex in three weeks,” she whispered, trying to hold onto her argument but she could feel it slipping away.

He sat next to her, pulling her into his side and nuzzling the top of her head. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was hurting you,” he said.

“It’s not hurting me, I just… Are you still attracted to me?” She didn’t like the way her voice wobbled, and bit down on her lip again to keep it steady. This was nothing to cry about.

“Maggie, yes! Of course I am!” He hugged her tighter, rocking her slightly and kissing her hair. He cupped his hands under her jaw and tilted her face up to meet his eyes. “I am attracted to you. I always want you,” he swore, and she saw no trace of a lie.

“…Okay,” she mumbled, nodding, accepting it. She was pleased to hear it, but there was still something that didn’t feel right, like a splinter inside her. But what could he be lying about? She didn’t doubt the need in his eyes, as if he was afraid she would leave him. “I was just afraid that, you know… Once you’d had it once… You didn’t want me anymore.”

“Don’t say that! Not even in your head,” he commanded, actually sounding a little angry.

“Sorry.”

He sighed again. “Don’t apologise. I should apologise. It didn’t occur to me that you’re… human. But don’t worry, I’ll look after you.”

“What does that mean?”

“Nothing. I’ll take care of it. I won’t leave you needing again. After all, you came to me when I was needing.”

Maggie frowned a little at the tone of the conversation, as if he was talking about something she wasn’t. “You don’t have to force yourself,” she said, wanting to reinforce that at least. He was talking like he was planning something, but she didn’t want anything that needed to be built up to. She just wanted him.

“No, I want to make you happy,” he said, and he traced a claw tip along the curve of her breast.

“Are you trying to distract me with sex?” she said, watching the movement.

“No,” he replied, dropping his hand between her thighs so he could rub his velvet against her clit.

She gasped and snapped her legs together, which only succeeded in pushing his hand tighter against her and didn’t stop his movement. “Sometimes I think you’re some kind of evil genius,” she gasped as he worked her.

“Nonsense,” he growled in her ear, tipping her onto her side and climbing over her. “I only use my powers for good.”

Chapter 25

Ro exhausted her again.

He made her come four times, and she had to beg him not to push for a fifth. It felt determined, deliberate, as if he was proving a point, or distracting her from her earlier line of questioning, hoping she’d forget all about it – or punishing her for asking questions in the first place. He’d kept his pants on, but by the end of it she had no complaints. By the time she’d convinced him it was enough, that she was perfectly satisfied, all she was interested in was sleep.

Looking back on it the next day, she did wonder. She tried to dismiss the voice in the back of her head that said it was a little too perfect, he had been a little too light-hearted, a little too charming. She had started out wanting answers, then ended up comforting him? She didn’t want to believe that he had pretended to be upset to distract her. She refused to believe it. Ro wouldn’t do that. But it had occurred to her. It had felt like a veneer, what he thought she wanted to see.

She shook herself at her desk, pushing all the bad thoughts away. Everything was perfect and she should just enjoy it. What was it about her that made her suspicious, try to pick it apart? She wasn’t going to do it. She believed that he hadn’t known she was bothered by their lack of sex. She believed him when he said that was going to change. He was an alien after all. There were bound to be some bumps, but she knew him, and when he said he was going to try, she believed him.

And maybe he hadn’t immediately ripped his pants off at her invitation, but she could give him time. She had only told him of the problem the night before. She shouldn’t expect an immediate solution. Maybe he had a reason for not wanting to use his dick without a little forewarning. That was fine. Maybe he hadn’t been in the mood, that was fine too. The important thing was that they’d talked about it. Communication was key. He knew how she felt now, and she wasn’t sitting on it, simmering.

And she still liked him. She felt it every time she looked at him, as she did now, watching him across their desks. He was taking a call, his voice smooth as late-night radio, but he smiled at her when he noticed her watching, a slow, natural smile as if he couldn’t help it. She smiled back. She loved him. She loved that she knew the curve of his shoulders under his shirt, and that he had two pink crescents either side of his ass that followed the curve of the muscles. She loved that, even if he didn’t want to get off, he would still touch her until she felt like she was going to die. She loved that he was so into soap operas. She loved falling asleep with her head over his heart and his claws stroking tracks through her hair.

She wasn’t going to throw all that away over whether or not he wanted to make love to her using his cock, or his mouth, or his hand.

And it proved to be a non-issue anyway, because a couple of days later Ro wrapped his arm around her waist by the printer and tugged her against his body.

“Want to come over tonight?” he purred in her ear, his tone leaving no doubt as to what he intended.

She lay her hand over his where it splayed over her stomach. “Why don’t you come to mine instead? I have a surprise for you.”

He kissed her cheek. “Deal,” he said, slipping away from her and going back to his desk. She watched him over her shoulder, appreciating his strut, smiling as she thought she had done that. Then she remembered that they were supposed to be being subtle, and while the exchange had probably only taken a few seconds, they were in full view of the whole department. She caught Isabelle from Visas watching her with raised brows. Maggie turned back to the machine, trying to look innocent.

Maggie and Ro had dinner after work in the sports bar and grill, then progressed onto her apartment. Dinner felt functional, like they were getting it out of the way, knowing they would have to eat at some point but really wanting to get somewhere and be alone. They enjoyed it, but Ro kept shooting her looks like he was remembering what she tasted like, and of course then she couldn’t help but remember the way he would growl with his hands on her body. She squirmed in the booth, overheating, and he watched every minute movement.

They didn’t talk on the bus home. They just held hands and sat quietly, impatiently waiting to be alone.

Ro followed her to her apartment, and she could feel him behind her like a coming storm, a weight in the air. His intent was palpable.

As soon as she unlocked the door, he hustled them inside, his hands going to her waist and his mouth dipping to her neck like they’d been there the entire time. He kicked the door closed. She pulled his hands off her.

“Give me a second to get ready,” she laughed. She had something planned too.

He groaned, but she could tell he was only playing this time. He let go of her, and when she looked at him, he had his lips in his mouth as if he was tasting her. “Fine,” he said, but the look in his eyes made her want to hurry.

She scurried off to her bedroom, shutting the door behind her and stripping out of her clothes as she crossed the room to her chest of drawers where she had hidden the Balin outfit. She kicked what she had worn to work, including her underwear, under the bed, then pulled the silk up her body. She had forgotten how soft and light it was. She jiggled around as she forced the top piece to go around her boobs, figuring that she wouldn’t be wearing it for long at least. She checked herself in the mirror, feeling a wobble of insecurity, hoping Ro liked it and didn’t think she looked silly. She didn’t look much like the slim, firm Balin women at the party. She brushed her hair out quickly, not giving herself time to talk herself out of it, then opened the bedroom door, not wanting to keep Ro waiting.

He was already facing her as if he had just been waiting for the door to open. His eyes widened and his brow went up as his eyes went down her body, but otherwise he didn’t move.

“Hm,” he choked out.

Maggie shifted, not knowing what to do with her hands after her big reveal. Should she lean against the door jamb like on TV? “How do I look?” she asked, keeping her voice light.

“Come here,” Ro said, his voice hitting that deep, rough note she associated with sex with him. He held out his hand, so she obligingly went over and took it. The lights were on full, which was rare for them. He was still looking at her body, so she knew he liked it, and she grinned.

“Show me,” he said, using his hold on her hand to lead her into a slow twirl as if they were dancing. She giggled as he stopped her when her back was to him, one hand sitting on her hip, his thumb running over the curve of her butt. “Hmm…” he considered, then she felt the point of his claw trace slowly down her spine, making her shiver as if he’d tickled her with a feather. He pulled her back around to face him.

“What’s the verdict?” she asked, cocking her head as she looked up at him. She wished she could see his eyes, his real eyes, without the shaded lenses that hid their amazing pink colour, but she also appreciated being able to see the rest of him for once.

“It looks good,” he said. “Very good. But you know, this part…” He slipped his claws under her top, the warm bones just brushing her breasts. Her heart started to beat faster in anticipation. “I think it actually goes here,” he said, and with one sharp tug he pulled the top off her so that it hung loose around her waist.

Maggie squeaked at the sudden exposure and instinctively grabbed her breasts to hide them.

“Yes, much better,” Ro purred, staring at her body.

Maggie laughed. “I don’t think that’s right…”

“No, it is. This is how all the females wear it on Teiss,” Ro replied, nodding sagely, his hands on her hips, one thumb rubbing back and forth, the velvet alternating between silk and skin.

“It’s not how they were wearing it at the party,” she reminded him.

“That was out of respect for… silly human customs. You should always wear it like this around me, or you will be…” He took a deep breath, improvising. “Offending my ancestral culture.” He glanced at her face as if to check whether or not she was buying it and she laughed.

“Someone’s been attending their sensitivity seminars,” she said, and he smiled that smile, innocent and charming, that always gave him away. “So this is okay, is it? Next time there’s a party, I’ll just go like this? I don’t want to offend anyone, after all,” she teased, trying to keep a straight face.

“No, no, no, because if you do that, they’ll be embarrassed.”

“Oh, they’ll be embarrassed?”

“Yes, because they will know that you know that they are wearing it wrong.”

“Oh I see… Well, I couldn’t do that to them.”

“No. You are kind.”

“Yes, I try.”

“So you should only wear it like this, the proper way, when we are alone. Because I understand, and will not be embarrassed. I will appreciate the gesture for what it is, and no one’s culture will be offended. Now you can move your hands.”

Maggie kept her hands where they were. “I’m glad we understand each other’s cultures so well,” she laughed.

“Yes, we have a perfect inter-species relationship. Move your hands.”

“The perfect Balin-human blend,” Maggie agreed. “And you first.” She gestured at his clothes with her elbow, keeping her grip on her boobs. She didn’t know where this shyness was coming from, maybe something to do with how well-lit she was, or how exposed she already felt in the silky shorts with their big slits up the sides compared to him, but she wanted him more engaged before she gave him what he wanted.

Ro took his hands off her hips and tucked them behind his back, standing straighter. “You can undress me if you want to,” he said, smirking.

She huffed. Sneaky. “I have my hands full,” she objected.

“I wish I could have my hands full, but…” He shrugged, his smirk growing into a grin.

Maggie sighed, and tried to juggle both boobs into one hand without giving Ro the satisfaction of a flash, knowing she was pushing them together and giving him an impressive cleavage anyway. When she got her hand free, she reached out and started unbuttoning his shirt, which proved surprisingly difficult with one hand, and with his long torso, the buttons looked like they went on forever.

“Can’t you help?” she said.

“Of course, I would be happy to hold your breasts for you while you undo my shirt. I promise I won’t even look at them,” Ro replied, still grinning, adding what he probably thought of as a helpful tilt of his head.

She squinted at him, willing to play. Who was she kidding anyway? She wanted his hands on her and the sooner the better. “Fine. Close your eyes.”

He smiled in victory and closed his eyes, holding his hands out as if waiting to catch a basketball. Maggie pressed her lips together to stifle her laugh and took the small step forward. She planted his hands so that each palm had a breast flattened against it. His claws relaxed against her chest.

“You can open your eyes again,” she giggled, feeling the minute involuntary tremors and flexes of his hands against her. She set to work unbuttoning him, loving the spread of black and pink scales being revealed inches at a time and the way they contrasted so sharply against his white shirt.

He rubbed his thumb over the inside curve of her flesh.

“I don’t think we said anything about petting them,” Maggie chastised, even as goosebumps rippled over her skin.

“But they need to feel loved,” Ro replied, obviously never at a loss for a cheeky response when it came to being allowed to touch her.

“They feel loved, don’t worry about that. I love them every day,” Maggie told him, chuckling at the nonsense he was making her speak.

“Not as much as I do. In fact, I demand shared custody,” he said, his voice dropping a register as she got his last button free and his shirt fell open, framing his tight stomach. She didn’t have a chance to respond as he ducked his head to her chest, his breath warming her skin just before his tongue licked between his fingers. Maggie gasped and held onto his shoulders. His hands moved to cup her breasts for real, teasing one nipple with the velvet of his thumb while sealing his mouth around the other one.

Maggie whimpered, her stomach tightening, and she pressed her thighs together as she started to ache. He pulled away just enough to speak, close enough that she could almost feel his lips moving. “No, open your legs,” he said, voice deep and dark.

She looked down at him, dazed and slow to respond. He held her eyes even as he moved his hand down, curling it behind her thigh and pulling gently.

“Spread your legs,” he said again, and she shuffled her feet apart as if she was hypnotised, unable to look away from his stare. “Feel empty and drip for me,” he told her, before breaking the hold he had on her and sucking her nipple into his mouth again.

Maggie didn’t say anything, she couldn’t make a sound. All she could do was feel the clench of her sex around nothing, the tensing of muscles deep inside her wanting him, like a pain. Exactly as he’d said, she felt empty like she only ever did when he was teasing her like that, and her body softened and soaked as if it could tempt him to her, summon him, conjure up what it wanted. Wetness tickled through her.

He sucked on her breast like he wanted to mark her, then he let it go and knelt at her feet, one knee next to his other foot. She stared down at him, waiting. Ro looked dishevelled with his shirt hanging open and untucked, split to either side of his hips, all scales and claws. The short ragged ridge of his crest was up, but his eyes looked determined as he faced her hips.

“You look really hot like that,” she panted.

He glanced at her as if she’d thrown him off his beat. “Like what?”

“Shirt open, in front of me like that. You just look sexy as hell, is all.”

“Thanks,” he acknowledged, a glimmer of self-consciousness coming into his face.

“Just thought you should know. I don’t normally get to see you in much detail when you take your clothes off so… In case no one ever said it, you’re really, er… Gorgeous.” Now she felt stupid. Was that the best she could do? But in her defence, her blood had better places to be than her brain, like giving her a full-body blush as she shifted under his stare.

He didn’t say anything for a moment, he just watched her, considering. Then he blinked and looked away as if he’d caught himself in a trance. He slipped his hands into the slits in the sides of her shorts, rocking her hips forward as he cupped her ass. His hands felt big and sharp, but also warm and safe, and he pressed a kiss to her belly just over her waistband, and she understood. He’d heard her.

Then he lowered his face a few more inches and nuzzled her mound, his breath hot through the silk, his hands holding her to him. She took a shaky breath, trying to steady herself by putting her hands on his shoulders. The bridge of his nose split her lips and he licked her. All she could feel was the pressure as the silk pressed against her. She didn’t even know if the fabric was wet because of him or because of her.

“Don’t ruin them,” she moaned. He grunted and she didn’t think it was in agreement. “They’re my only pair and I really like them,” she reinforced, pulling him away so he could see her pout.

He tugged on her hips again. “I’ll buy you ten more. Lie down.”

“Let’s go to the bed,” Maggie said, jostling his shoulders.

“No, here,” Ro said, smiling.

She was just too weak against his smiles, even when she knew he was doing it on purpose. She obligingly went to her knees, not sure that she wouldn’t prefer to do whatever he had planned on her nice comfy bed instead of the living room floor.

Ro put his arm around her back and leant into her, gently lowering her onto her back, her knees bent either side of his hips. He moved back and pushed her knees further apart with his hands, looking down at her. This was what she’d wanted when she’d dressed up for him, but now she was kind of regretting not just tearing both their clothes off and getting him in bed.

She could see he was hard though, so she let him set the pace. He knew what he was doing.

“I love these,” he said, running his hands over her thighs, feeling both the silk and her skin. “I can touch you, smell you, taste you, but there’s no way I can get my cock in. Such a tease.”

“I’m surprised you find them so enticing,” Maggie mumbled, not sure she really wanted to have a conversation when his mouth could be doing other things. “I thought you’d be used to them.”

“Hmm,” he considered. “Must be you then,” he decided, before lifting her legs over his shoulders and touching his mouth to her sex.

Maggie slapped her hands against the floor, panting to keep quiet as his tongue dragged hard between her lips, flicking her clit at the end of his stroke like she was an ice-cream.

“Ro…” she moaned. “Let’s go to bed…”

He shook his head and settled in, folding his arms over her hips, closing her thighs against his head. It was a good thing too because she writhed as he nuzzled her clit, catching it in his mouth, his dental ridges blunted by the fabric. He pressed his tongue against her and she felt his saliva soak through the silk and knew he could taste her wetness from the other side. She wanted to tell him to take the shorts off but didn’t think there was any point. He had a plan and he was clearly sticking to it.

Maggie could only reach his head as she focused on not crushing him between her legs, and she plucked and tugged at his crest. He growled, a vicious tearing sound that she felt through her pelvis, making her moan along with it. He was clearly done teasing her, increasing his rhythm, licking and nipping at her quickly, efficiently, savagely. She didn’t last long, coming in her shorts, her body jumping against the floor and jerking around him.

Ro moved before she was done, going to his knees and freeing his cock from his pants while Maggie surged with pleasure and watched him. He all but ripped the shorts down her legs, pulling them off with more force than finesse, but she didn’t care. She was glad to see them go, and glad when he lifted her hips onto his thighs and lined their bodies up, bending over her and letting her kiss him before sliding into her. She moaned and tightened around him, bumping her hips against him for more. It had been a while since she had last felt his cock inside her; she had forgotten about the pillow of flesh at the bottom that kept him from going all the way in, and the slick feeling of his skin catching up to his core inside her.

Ro growled again at her desperate movements, then thrust into her hard, making her cry out as he hit her cervix, another sensation she wasn’t used to but had missed without realising. His hands curved under her hips, supporting her, and he watched her face from inches away, his expression fevered as he chased his own climax. She ran her hands over his scales, holding him to her as he quickly made her come again. She tied her legs around him as her body seized, and his thrusts became short and erratic until he followed her, coming deep inside her with a choked snarl.

His rigid body relaxed in parts, and he let her go, swaying to the side and catching himself on one hand. He looked drained suddenly and Maggie pulled herself off him, getting clear, and he let himself lie down beside her, breathing hard.

“Are you okay?” she asked, worried. This wasn’t like him. When he had been in heat, he hadn’t been satisfied after coming the first time. She hadn’t expected every time to be like that, but he looked like she’d just made him run up twenty flights of stairs.

“Fine,” he reassured her, his voice soft and back to normal. He raised his hand a little as if reaching for her. “Lie next to me.”

Maggie wasn’t convinced he was as fine as he wanted her to believe, but she couldn’t think what could be wrong with him. Maybe it was just a head rush or something. She lay down beside him and tucked herself into his side, hugging his chest as his arm wrapped over her shoulders.

“I told you we should have gone to the bed,” she chastised him.

He chuckled. “I heard humans are more likely to remember sex if it is done in an unusual place.”

“Oh my God, that was your reason?” She lifted her head to look at him, and he smiled, not his glamour smile this time, but a real one.

“I wanted you to remember it,” he said. “Is that bad?”

“No… But of course I would remember it. Why would you think I wouldn’t?”

He shrugged.

Maggie sighed, laying her head back down on his chest, stroking his stomach. “The bed is good too. Then we would have pillows and covers, instead of lying naked on the floor out here.” She was trying to make light of it, but she still felt unsettled, and she couldn’t put her finger on why. “Just for future reference…” she began, trying to put her thoughts into words. “We would be lucky to have so much sex that it blurs together. That would take years, I think.” She propped her chin on her hand to look at him, making him tilt his head at an uncomfortable angle to see down his body. “We would be lucky to have that kind of relationship. And you don’t need to worry about me getting bored, okay? I don’t think that’s going to happen.”

Ro struggled up to kiss the top of her head, then rolled out from under her. He bent and picked her up. She stiffened and grabbed him as she wobbled, but he made it up and she relaxed. “Come, I’m taking you to bed,” he said, and proceeded to do just that, tucking them both up under the covers. 

Chapter 26

From then on, Ro’s sexual appetite seemed to come roaring back. He suggested they spend the night together every day, and for the first four days, Maggie welcomed it. He seemed crazy for her and she was flattered, and wasn’t going to turn down great sex. He still seemed exhausted sometimes, but he always brushed her off with a smile when she asked about it, and it seemed to get better on its own. It got to the point where she wondered if he was going into heat again, because even after he came, he didn’t want to seem to want to let her go.

Things were a little different in bed, but she just told herself she’d never really experienced the base-line, had she? Her first experience with him had been his heat. So maybe this was what was normal for him. The way he seemed to take ages to get hard, to come, to relax again afterwards. How frantic he seemed to be. He didn’t make love to her slowly anymore. He didn’t joke around as much.

She always pushed her worries away. It had only been a few days! Hardly a pattern. And he insisted she had nothing to worry about, and he was doing what she’d asked, wasn’t he? She’d wanted sex, and he was giving it to her. Hard.

 But after four nights in a row, she found herself wanting a break. Her body needed one, and her domestic life was starting to fray at the edges because she was never home. She needed to get groceries, and throw out the stuff she hadn’t eaten because she wasn’t there. She needed to do laundry, and tidy up, and clean her bathroom. She needed to call her family, and shop for her mother’s birthday present. None of it was exactly critical, but knowing it needed doing was bugging her. As much as she loved Ro – though she hadn’t said it again after New Year’s Eve – she needed a few hours to get organised at home, and her body wouldn’t thank her if she decided on another night of almost-rough sex again, though she could definitely be tempted.

But when she told Ro she needed to go home alone that night, she thought for a minute that he was annoyed. She was taken aback. He had never been annoyed at her before, she hadn’t even known what that looked like on him. But he huffed, scowled, his mouth twisting, looking away from her. He didn’t argue, but she was amazed. She had seen him angry after that call from the Balor. She had seen him jealous at the office party. But she had never seen him dismiss her like this. It just wasn’t like him.

“What?” she demanded.

“Nothing,” he replied, shutting her out.

“I’m getting pretty sick of hearing that,” she said before she could stop herself.

Ro just shrugged.

Maggie took a calming breath and tried again. “I’m sorry, okay? I just haven’t been home in almost a week. I need to talk to my family, let them know I’m still alive.” She crooked a smile, trying to take a joking tone. She reached for his hand, hooking his claw with her little finger. “It’s not because I don’t want to see you. I do. I want to be with you all the time.” They were alone just then, having picked their moment in a deserted hallway, so she pressed her body against his and spoke quietly. “You’ve just been using me a bit hard lately. I can’t keep up with all this enthusiasm.” She smiled when she said it, meaning it to be complimentary, flattering. She wanted to smooth what she took to be ruffled feathers over a perceived rejection.

“And what am I supposed to do?” he said, his tone still harsh. He hadn’t shaken her hand off his, but he was still scowling and looking away from her.

“I don’t know, maybe work on that attitude?” she threw back, folding her arms, getting annoyed herself now.

He glanced at her and his expression softened, as if realising he had hurt her. He sighed, scrubbing his hand over his face. “Sorry,” he said.

Maggie forgave him, reaching out again, trying to get his attention, make a connection. She wanted to overcome whatever it was that was setting them at odds. The Ro she knew might have been disappointed that she turned him down, maybe get a little possessive, but he wouldn’t blame her. But maybe she’d just been spoiled. She knew they’d have to disagree on something eventually.

“Are you really okay?” she asked again. She would have to stop asking soon. There was no point in nagging him, it wouldn’t make him more likely to open up. It was starting to sound like a broken record even to her.

Ro smiled, but it was thin and forced. “I’m fine. Better than ever.”

Maggie wanted to disagree, and that made her think they had a bigger problem, but she didn’t say anything. What could she do if he didn’t want her to know? Instead she just agreed. “Okay.” She kissed him, almost as a test. She wanted to see if he would kiss her back, or if he was still mad. But he met her quick peck with one of his own, burying the hatchet. Maybe it was all in her head.

“Let’s go out tomorrow,” she said. “Talk.”

She thought she saw something flicker across his face for a second as if he didn’t want to do that, but he nodded and his smile didn’t falter, so Maggie put it out of her mind. She had to trust him, or they couldn’t be together. She did trust him. She knew he was a good person.

So the next evening, she suggested a restaurant in town that was nicer than the sports bar and not near either of their apartments. She wasn’t planning on ambushing him, she just didn’t want him to talk her into going home early, which she knew he could, especially if he decided to do it on purpose. All he would have to do was touch her hand, hold eye contact, and tell her in that voice of his exactly what he wanted to do to her, and she’d cave. He made it sound so good, he made her want it, and him.

They had always been able to talk to each other. She had always found him intriguing, charming, funny. But for some reason, she was afraid their date wasn’t going to go well. It was just a nagging sense of unease that she couldn’t really put down to anything. She sighed, and forced herself to relax. He said he was fine, and certainly nothing he had done had implied that he wanted to break up with her. He had promised her that he would always want her. He had been so sweet. Even if she had been worried once that he had lost interest in her, that was definitely not what was happening now, when he couldn’t wait to get her home and it was not doing it that was frustrating him.

At the end of the day, Ro was waiting for her to finish up when Kez walked past on his way out and Ro jumped up, telling Maggie he would meet her in the lobby. He went after Kez before Maggie had a chance to reply, so she just completed tying off her loose ends for the day, shut everything down, picked up her bag and followed.

She heard Ro’s voice in the hall, around the corner in the opposite direction from the lobby. He was growling in Balin, and he sounded angry. Alarmed, Maggie followed his voice and almost walked right into them when she turned the corner. She couldn’t say for sure, but she thought Ro had had Kez pinned against the wall, but they had sprung apart when she appeared. Kez’s crest was half raised, and he was watching her with open cold aggression. He wasn’t moving, but his expression was totally unforgiving.

Maggie looked to Ro, confused. She wouldn’t say he looked normal, since he was normally more relaxed and in a better mood, but there was nothing about him that immediately set off any alarm bells. He just looked closed off.

She adjusted her bag on her shoulder. “I heard your voice,” she explained, feeling awkwardly put on the spot, though she didn’t know why she was explaining herself. She should be the one asking questions.

“Wait for me by the doors,” Ro said, his voice angry but tensely controlled, so she didn’t think he was angry at her.

Maggie didn’t like this. “Are you coming?” she asked meekly. She wasn’t sure if she was more afraid of Kez, or of leaving Ro with him – and she wasn’t sure who she was more afraid for if she did leave them together. The way Kez was looking at her made her want to escape, but she also wanted to know why he seemed to hate her when she hadn’t done anything to him.

“I’ll be there soon,” Ro said, a note of softness finally creeping back into his voice, so with a glance between the two men, Maggie left. She reached the doors and waited, wringing her hands, hoping she hadn’t made a big mistake. She turned around to watch for Ro just in time to see Kez step into view from around the corner and throw something on the floor. It was too small and far away for Maggie to see what it was, she could only see the motion, but whatever it was, Ro’s hand appeared to pick it up.

Kez stormed down the corridor and she moved out of his way, keeping her distance. He turned to shoulder the door open and cursed her in Balin. With his free hand, he stuffed folded bank notes into his pocket. She didn’t understand what he’d said, but from his tone and expression it was pretty unmistakable, and he finished it off with “woman” in English. She was too stunned to reply and he quickly disappeared outside.

Maggie turned back to watch for Ro, and saw he was heading towards her.

“What was all that about?” she asked.

“Nothing,” Ro answered, his standard reply for the last week.

Maggie looked at him, and didn’t push it. He was already mad. She would let him cool off on the way to the restaurant and maybe try again, but maybe not. She wanted to have a nice evening.

Maybe Kez wasn’t her business. Maybe whatever was going on was just between the two of them. Maybe Ro had lent Kez some money and they were fighting about it, and that was what had been making Ro act so tense, and he didn’t want to embarrass Kez by telling Maggie about it. That was the honourable kind of thing that Ro would do, she thought.

But even as she told herself that, there was an ugly, cold voice in the back of her head that said she was giving up, that she no longer expected Ro to include her in his life, that there was something wrong with their relationship.

Maggie followed Ro out of the building and down the steps to the street. She didn’t say anything. She didn’t know what to say. She just watched him, trying to read him, trying to unpick whether or not she needed to be worried. If something else was stressing him out, making him act weird, then she would see him through it. She knew it wasn’t work, but there was plenty in his life that could be upsetting him. Perhaps his housing allocation was being changed and he was being forced to move into the city, or even further away, and he didn’t want to tell her. Maybe he’d met someone he knew on Teiss, heard bad news about a friend or relative. Maybe he’d had another run-in with a Balor.

Whatever it was, she didn’t care. The problem was that he wasn’t talking to her about it.

The one thing she didn’t want to be true, was that this was the real Ro. That he’d been putting on a persona to charm her into being with him, and now they were together he couldn’t be bothered being nice to her anymore. That was the only thing that would make them break up.

“The restaurant is really nice,” she tried eventually, changing the subject once they got on the bus. “I’ve only been there a few times, but the food is nice.”

Ro grunted but didn’t say anything, looking out of the window.

“I think they’ll have things you’ll like. Or we can look for one of the new Teissian restaurants in town, I don’t mind. Would you rather do that?”

“I don’t care.”

“Right.” Maggie gave up. He wasn’t trying, so she’d save her efforts for the restaurant. They finished the journey in silence, and didn’t speak to each other again until they were seated at the restaurant with their menus.

Maggie wasn’t going to ask him if he was okay. She knew what he’d say. Ditto if she asked him what was bothering him. She had to find out for herself.

“Has your housing allocation changed?” she asked out of the blue, hoping to catch him off-guard.

He looked up at her frowning in confusion. “No,” he replied.

She shrugged. “Just wondering. I know people are still getting moved around and you have that flat to yourself.”

“There aren’t as many Balin as others. There is less demand for accommodation underground.”

“Oh, see? I didn’t know that. How come?”

“Fewer Balin evacuated. We believed we were safe underground.”

“Were you?”

“No.”

There was something terrible in that word, but Maggie persevered. He was talking.

“So why did you leave?”

At that, Ro took a moment to reply, fidgeting with his menu briefly, and he didn’t meet her eyes. “Without my crest, no Balin female would accept me. I thought a human might.”

Maggie blinked. It was her turn to struggle for a response. “And you found me.” If she had been in his position, she would have done the same thing, but she didn’t like the sound of it, as if he had just grabbed the first woman who came within reach. And wasn’t that exactly what had happened? He’d been on Earth less than a week when they’d met, and for most of that time he would have been at the dorms with other Teissians. She sat across from him all day, and unlike Lucy or Nina or Alex, Maggie had been instantly attracted to him. She’d shown him around and trained him. She’d been an easy mark.

Had it always been about sex for him? No, no, because he hadn’t wanted her to know about his heat. Even if it had been some kind of ploy, and Kez had been in on it, they would have had to have been very good actors, and Maggie could always tell when he was lying. And it would have been so unnecessary; she had already wanted him. And what did Kez get out of it? The answer flashed up in her mind before she could stop it. The money she had seen Kez putting away.

Maggie felt sick. It couldn’t be true. It didn’t feel true. She was just being paranoid. She was upset because of how he was acting, and it was making her crazy.

“Well, lucky me,” she said, forcing a smile. It didn’t feel very convincing.

The waiter returned, and they ordered. Once the waiter took their menus and left, Ro reached for her hand.

 “I have hurt you,” he said softly, looking and sounding like his old self again. He stroked his thumb over her knuckles. He pulled her hand back towards him and pressed her palm to his cheek. “I am the lucky one,” he said, closing his eyes as he turned into her hand. His eyes fluttered open again, pinning her under his gaze. “I hope you are happy with me,” he said.

“I am,” Maggie said immediately without hesitation. It was a moment just like they used to have, as if he had never changed. “I love you.”

Ro smiled. “Really?”

“Yeah…”

“I love you too,” he replied easily, and it was amazing how those four words seemed to change everything for Maggie. He loved her. He couldn’t be angry or disappointed or frustrated with her if he loved her. A surge of silly, soppy joy burst through her, and she grinned, and blushed at him. Everything was alright after all. They would be alright.

“On Teiss, love is rare. When I heard how freely humans give it, I had hope. I wondered if I could get a woman to give it to me.” His words were still soft and kind, but Maggie stilled. He talked as if love didn’t mean anything on Earth, as if it was something that could be traded for. Like an experiment.

“Tell me more about Balin relationships,” Maggie said.

“What do you want to know?” he replied.

“You said love is rare. What makes two people stay together then?”

“We don’t. We find a partner for our heat. The males display, the females pick. If the females conceive, the male provides for the child but that’s it.”

“Don’t you have families?”

“We have clans.”

“But your mother raised you?”

He gave her an indulgent smile. “Females have many children. They give their attention to the youngest, who need her the most.”

“So… Why did you want to find someone? A female?” Maggie felt as if this one conversation was unravelling her relationship. Did he understand what she meant when she said she loved him?

Ro dropped his eyes, tracing grooves in the table top with his claw. “I wanted someone to care about me,” he said. “Everyone ignored me because of my injury. I felt as if I was barely there.” He scowled, and Maggie noticed he was actually clawing little spirals of wood out of the table.

She quickly covered his hand with her own to stop him. His anger was coming back and she didn’t want it to. She could feel it like a change in the air. She couldn’t remember him having mood swings like that before.

“Well, you found her,” she reassured him with a smile. “Why did Kez come to Earth then?” she said, trying to keep him talking.

His eyes narrowed. “Why are you asking about Kez?”

Maggie was taken back by his confrontational tone. “Just curious. Was he looking for a woman too?”

Ro snarled, leaning across the table. “You will not go to Kez,” he said. “I will kill him first.”

“Jesus, Ro!” she whispered, looking around, catching the waiter looking at them, obviously on alert. He collected their plates from the kitchen counter and brought them over.

“Here we go!” he chimed in a cheery voice, forcing Ro to sit back again as he stood on his side of the table to put the plates down. “Everything alright?” he asked.

“Yes, fine thank you,” Maggie said, smiling, picking up her cutlery.

“I’m just over there if you need anything,” the waiter said, and Maggie thought there was a note in there that was directed at her. Then he left.

She turned back to Ro. “That’s not what I meant!” she said. “I was just making conversation. I’m not interested in Kez in the slightest.”

Ro watched her for a moment as if evaluating her honesty. “Good,” he said at last. “He is a criminal. He had to leave Bala or he would have been executed.”

“What?! Seriously?”

Ro nodded. “He was a thief. He took bets and cheated at gambling games. He traded in dangerous things. The clan got sick of him. We have no prison among the Balin. The elders overlook small things, but it was how he supported himself. He wouldn’t stop, so they would have killed him.”

“Oh my God…” She wondered if DETI knew. She wondered if it made a difference. He had an honest job now, and she hadn’t heard of him doing anything he shouldn’t. She kind of felt sorry for him. By all appearances, he hated her, or at least disapproved of her, but he hadn’t wanted to come to Earth. He had been forced to leave his home, but at the same time, it had probably saved his life. She wondered how he processed that.

Maggie got the impression Ro was only telling her this to make Kez unattractive to her. It was unlike him to share someone else’s secrets, and Kez probably didn’t want her or anyone to know about his past life. But Ro was treating it like some scandalous, unsavoury gossip designed to turn her off, even though Kez was his best friend. She wondered if he knew Kez thought she wasn’t good enough for Ro.

She didn’t like the implication that she could be swayed by something like that anyway. She loved Ro and didn’t care about his past life, but he apparently didn’t understand that, at least not in the mood he was in.

“He’s your friend though, isn’t he?” she asked.

Ro hummed. “He and I are from different clans, but we were on the same transporter. We both found ourselves outcast. We spent a lot of time together.”

“He cares about you though. He’s protective of you.”

Ro laughed. “Males do not protect each other. We are always in competition.”

 “Earth is different. I think Kez likes you. I never see him with anyone else. I’m sure he considers you his friend.”

Ro shrugged. “To that extent, we are friends.”

“What does that mean?”

Ro took too long to answer.

“I thought you liked him.” Maggie found this new subject unsettling, the way Ro didn’t seem to care about Kez, despite Kez obviously caring about him. She refused to believe it, this was just his stress or whatever it was talking. The Ro she knew was kinder than this. She didn’t want to hear anymore.

Maggie started eating, processing her thoughts as she chewed. She had thought for a moment they had been back to normal, but that dark expression was back on his face, like a tension between his eyes, like he was in pain. He had said he loved her, and replaying it in her mind still made her smile and smoothed her worries. It couldn’t be that bad if he loved her. As long as they loved each other, they would get through it.

“Ro… You understand what I mean when I say I love you, right? It means you’re important to me, and I want to stay with you.”

He stared at her. “Of course. You will stay with me. I am doing everything I can. I am trying to please you.” He took her hand again, his claws pricking her wrist.

He was trying to please her? Was he? So why the bad attitude?

“And I’m pleasing you, right? You like being with me? I’m not doing anything wrong or missing anything out? If you want something, we can talk about it,” she pressed.

He squeezed her hand. “You’re perfect,” he said.

Half of Maggie was pleased. She was incredibly flattered. No one had ever called her perfect before, unless it was in the context of “You’re perfect for this job”. She, herself, as a person, had never been perfect before. If that was what he thought, and she thought the same about him, they must really be in love. It made her feel like she was sitting on a cloud, bathed in sunshine.

The other half was still worried. His words didn’t match up with his behaviour. He was grouchy, aggressive, angry.

Maggie smiled at him, took another bite, cleared her throat. “And everything else is going okay? You got your citizenship, right? I hope it hasn’t been held up by the last arrivals.”

He took his hand back, scowling again, looking suspicious. “I have my citizenship,” he told her, his voice guarded.

“That’s good! I was just asking, you didn’t mention it at the time.”

Ro grunted, taking a bite of his own meal, and Maggie worried she’d offended him. She probably had. But she had to fish because he wouldn’t tell her what was going on. She’d covered his housing, his VISA status, his relationship. He didn’t seem mad at her or at Kez particularly. She knew nothing was going wrong with his job because she was now technically his superior.

She didn’t know what to do, where else to go. He was determined to remain a mystery. Maybe there really was nothing wrong, and he had just changed.

Chapter 27

Their conversation stayed stilted for the rest of the night, and dinner didn’t last very long. Maggie asked questions, and Ro gave short answers. They didn’t stay for dessert. When they left the restaurant, Ro invited Maggie back to his apartment, but she said no. After the night she’d had, she didn’t feel like making love to him. Her head and her heart were still too confused. She wanted to be all in, to believe that he loved her like she loved him, and just be happy, but there were too many unanswered questions. Why had he fought with Kez? Why was he acting differently, and why wouldn’t he talk to her about it?

Ro didn’t like being told no again, but Maggie was firm, and he left her alone. They parted ways and Maggie went back to her apartment, not sure if the night had been positive or negative. She was only getting more confused.

He came to work late the next day. Not very late, but enough for her to have noticed. As far as she could remember, it was the first time, and he looked rough. His shirt and pants were crumpled and his tie was askew, and he looked bleary-eyed and uncoordinated, almost to the point of being non-responsive.

Maggie let him sit down and get logged on, noticing the others shooting him looks as well. They weren’t so strict in Incomings that Maggie would be expected to reprimand him for being ten minutes late, but it was normal to offer an excuse or at least an apology, and Ro did neither. Maggie bit her lip. She couldn’t say anything as his supervisor, not when they were also dating and there was tension in their relationship. If she mentioned it, he might make it personal. But if she didn’t say anything, he would be getting preferential treatment because they were sleeping together.

This was the problem with office romances, but it hadn’t mattered before she got promoted.

Not liking it, Maggie decided to let him off, and only bring it up if it happened again. It was the first time after all.

She looked at him again, and gasped, accidentally drawing the attention of the entire team. She shifted uncomfortably when she realised what she’d done, but she knew she had to say something or they’d only get more suspicious.

“Ro, do you have a black eye?” she said. Everyone looked at him. There was no visible bruise with his black scales, but one eye was a little swollen.

He sighed, almost hissing. “It’s nothing.”

“How did that happen?” asked Ben.

“One of my neighbours… They took offence. I don’t know.”

Maggie wanted to get to the bottom of it, but she knew it was better if the others did the talking. Then their personal or work relationship wouldn’t matter. Ben probed for more details, but Ro wouldn’t give anything up, insisting it was a misunderstanding. Because it was nothing to do with his work, it was out of her jurisdiction as his supervisor to demand answers about it.

She sent him an email. Was it Kez?

She had to wait for a reply until the others left him alone and went back to work, and he checked his inbox.

No, was his reply.

Maggie resolved to keep an eye out for Kez anyway, and see if he showed any signs of having been in a scuffle. She didn’t want Ro to be lying to her, but she didn’t like to think he was being attacked at home. She already knew Ro and Kez were in the middle of some disagreement; she would prefer to think it was the only one. But if he had some kind of domestic situation going on, it could account for his mood.

And why he didn’t want to be home alone in the evenings.

Maggie shifted in her seat, and resolved to go home with him that night if he asked her. She’d never seen or heard anything when she was at his place, but maybe whoever it was knew when he was alone. As much as she hated to admit it, she was relieved. If something was going on at the dorms, then his bad mood wasn’t because of her. He really did love her. And she was one step closer to finding out the cause of the problem and fixing it.

After lunch, she was back at her desk when Kez walked back from his lunch with Ro. They still ate together every day, despite their little altercation, which just solidified Maggie’s idea in her mind that, however Ro felt about Kez, he had a lot of patience for Ro at least. If Kez disapproved of her a little less openly, she might have considered talking to him about what was going on with Ro. She knew Kez must know more than she did. But there was never an opportunity to get him alone, and if she did, she was pretty sure Kez wouldn’t help her.

She studied Kez as he walked back to his desk. He wasn’t limping, she didn’t see any swelling or discolourations or bandages on him. He looked as he always did, his clothes still neat and tidy, unlike Ro’s. She was forced to accept that he hadn’t been involved when Ro got his black eye. Ro hadn’t lied. Now all she had to do was get him to tell her the rest of it. It should be easy when she knew what to dig for.

At five o’clock, she let the rest of the team pack up and go home, dawdling and hanging back until she and Ro were the last ones. He had waited for her as she expected he would. She took his hand as they left the department together, and he looked at her in surprise. Maybe her suspicion had been making her treat him coldly too. He shouldn’t be surprised she wanted to hold his hand.

“Where are we going tonight?” she asked quietly, bumping his shoulder and smiling, giving him a look she hoped told him what she meant.

His expression brightened, some of the tension between his eyes relaxing. “I have an idea,” he said, stopping and walking back a few steps, pulling her with him.

She giggled. “What do you mean?”

He stopped at the door to the stairwell. “Why don’t we stay here?” he purred. He shouldered the door open and pulled her inside.

The stairwell was deserted. It had been designed to be pleasant, with large windows that caught the sun and wooden bannisters beside the concrete steps, but most of the staff took the elevators anyway. Twenty minutes after closing, Maggie would be surprised to find anyone in here, and if anyone was coming, they would be able to hear them from storeys away.

Ro pulled Maggie into his arms, his hands going to her ass, his claws sinking into her flesh, cushioned by her clothes so it didn’t hurt. He ground himself against her and growled.

Maggie gasped, enjoying his need for her even though she had to push him away.

“We can’t,” she breathed. “There are security cameras in here, and we’re on the ground floor. Anyone could come in.”

“Hmm,” Ro purred, letting her slip out of his arms and directing her to the stairs. “Alright. Let’s see if anyone is watching. There are bathrooms on every second floor. Run to the ones at the top. If no one comes to save you from the dangerous Balin chasing you, out of his mind with lust, we’ll assume no one is watching.”

“I can’t run up six flights of stairs,” Maggie protested, even as he herded her up the first couple of steps.

“If I catch you before then…” He shrugged. “You’d just better hope there’s a bathroom on that floor,” he said, his voice dropping at the thought of what they would do. Then he grinned at her, lips splitting wide, showing his dental ridges and his pink tongue. His eyes sparkled wickedly even through his lenses. He looked serious and predatory, like he was joyfully anticipating the chase. He leaned against the bannister, putting his elbow over it and clasping his hands.

Maggie grinned too, but she hesitated. He didn’t look like he was going to run any time soon.

“Go on, I’m giving you a head start. Balin are not good climbers, I think you have a good chance,” he said, still grinning, looking relaxed. “I’ll start when you’re on the first landing.”

“Okay,” she said, going up the next couple of steps backwards, slowly, watching him. He was totally focussed on her. His body language looked at ease, but his eyes gave him away. He was waiting.

“Oh, and Maggie?” he said conversationally. “When I catch you, you know what’s going to happen, don’t you?”

She nodded, biting her lip in anticipation.

“Your cunt is mine,” he said with a smile.

She nodded again, laughing even as a surge of heat went through her. Geez, did she even want to run? What she wanted was to be caught.

“But I want you to run anyway. Don’t go easy on me,” he said, as if reading her thoughts.

She continued creeping up the stairs backwards, slowly, taking herself further and further out of his reach. She saw his hands clench and release as he seemed to realise the same thing, but otherwise he didn’t move.

She reached the last step before the landing. “Dangerous Balin, out of his mind with lust, you said?” She bent down and reached up her skirt, snagging her underwear and shimmying them down, stepping out of them carefully. “I hope so.”

She tossed her underwear at him, just seeing him fumble to catch them as she spun, and ran up the stairs. She heard his snarl and the scratch of his claws on the steps as he chased after her. Maggie laughed as she hauled herself up the bannister as fast as she could, frustrated that she couldn’t go faster because of the stairs, desperately trying to hear where he was over her own gasping breath.

After two or three flights, she was exhausted, her thighs burned, but then she caught sight of him turning the corner just after her and she squealed, running faster. She was lighter and could turn the corners faster where his claws skid, but his legs were longer and he was taking the steps two at a time and gaining too much ground. She managed two more flights before she felt like her lungs were going to explode, and his arms snagged her waist, sweeping her up against his chest. She screamed and kicked, laughing, even as he slammed through the door to one of the landing bathrooms.

He put her front to the door and pulled up her skirt, and she eagerly pressed her bare ass against the front of his pants.

“No one came to save you, little human,” he rasped, his voice like thunder between his harsh breaths. “Guess you’re mine now.” His hands swept over her body, grabbing her breasts before one of them dropped between her legs, strumming her clit with the velvet on his thumb.

“Oh no,” she moaned, her voice shaking as he made her wetter.

“Oh yes,” he growled in her ear, his other hand fighting under her clothes to pinch her nipple between his fingers. She cried out, aching for him. “Now, I didn’t lock this door, so you’re going to have to hold it closed while I fuck you,” he said, and she obligingly pressed her palms to the door. “Unless of course, you want someone to see.”

He cupped her sex with one hand, the claw points just palpable, and whispered “Now?”

Maggie moaned and nodded, pushing her hips back for him. She felt him shift, heard his foot slide on the tiles, then he was pushing into her. She couldn’t take all of him at once, so he rocked into her bit by bit, going deeper with every thrust while she pressed her lips together and hummed her pleasure. Finally she felt him force his way up to her cervix, that bunching of flesh at his base tight against her entrance, and she knew he was in. He gave her a few tender thrusts, his hands sliding over her waist under her clothes, then up to gently play with her breasts. His thumb returned to her clit, and his breath was hot against her neck.

Then he slammed into her for real, fucking her hard. She tried not to rattle the door but it was unavoidable, so she just hoped there really was no one around and Security weren’t coming. The thought of someone on the other side of the door made her flood for him, and she could feel how tight she was when he pulled out. When he hammered her so deep like that, she whimpered, wanting to scream but knowing she couldn’t.

She didn’t last. She wanted to come. She pressed her mouth against the back of her hand and threw her hips back into him, forcing him deeper until it almost hurt. She came quickly, gripping him and making him snarl until he came too.

As they caught their breath again, and the sweat cooled on her skin, she noticed the little pricks and scratches he had left on her. They stung, but none of them really hurt. Her sex felt swollen as he pulled out of her, and when she twisted her skirt back into place, she could feel twinge of pain he had left in her.

She gasped and ran into the nearest cubicle, unravelling handfuls of toilet paper and wiping off his come before it slid down her thighs. She was resigned to her crotch always being dyed in fading shades of green, but if she wanted to be decent going home, she had to make sure it didn’t have the chance to run.

She heard water flowing and came out to see Ro washing his hands, or rather, just holding his hands under the water. The tap was turned all the way to the furthest cold setting. He ducked his head and drank.

The old worry came back. “Are you okay?” she asked, coming up behind him and putting her hand on his back.

“Fine,” he said with a quick smile. “Aren’t you thirsty?”

She was, but not that much. “I can wait.” It wasn’t a bad idea though, and she washed her hands too, the water feeling good on her fevered skin.

She noticed her underwear sticking out of his pocket and nabbed them back. “I can put these back on now,” she said, turning them to find the right holes.

Ro straightened and looked affronted, grabbing the briefs but Maggie didn’t let go. “I don’t think so. Those are my trophy for winning!” he said.

Maggie laughed but he seemed serious, untangling them from her hands and transferring them to his other hand so he could put them in the pocket on his other side where she wouldn’t be able to reach.

“Alright,” she shrugged, conceding defeat. “I guess I only have myself to blame.”

Ro nodded and gave a grunt of agreement.

“Ro… Are you having trouble at the dorms?”

He tensed. “No,” he said, and there was a note in his voice warning her not to pursue it.

She weighed the good mood they had going against the fight that would come if she pushed him. She knew he was lying, and that broke her heart a little bit, but she had seen a bit of the old playful, caring Ro. She had had him back for a while there.

She kissed him. “Good,” she said, smiling.

Chapter 28

Ro didn’t want her company that night. He said he was tired and just wanted to go home alone. Maggie didn’t know whether that helped or hindered her theory about his mood being to do with his neighbours.

She still kept an eye on him at work, watching for any new injuries, any more clues as to what was going on. She didn’t spot anything the next day. His eye was still swollen. He still looked rough. His mood hadn’t improved. She worried it was starting to affect his work. It was still his job to field calls in Teissian languages, so she couldn’t understand exactly what he was saying, but he had lost his cheery, polite tone of voice that was their bread and butter. Most of the time, she could hear him trying, but it was robotic, dead. At best, he sounded bored, at worst, sarcastic. But they had received no complaints and Incomings had no one else to take over the mother tongue line, and Maggie was still hoping that he would snap out of it.

If it went on for much longer though, she would be forced to do something, or Derek would.

It all came to a head when Maggie noticed Ro’s voice dropping a note during a call. He was speaking quietly, but with a noticeable growl, and his lip was curled. He was angry. And he wasn’t typing or making any notes. Not good signs.

Maggie paused in what she was doing, trying to surreptitiously monitor him. He wasn’t necessarily to blame. If the caller was pissing him off, but he was replying politely, even in that tone of voice, she had no cause to intervene. The department obviously preferred its agents to use pleasant tones during calls, but if the caller was being an asshole, everyone understood that.

The problem was Maggie had no way of knowing, and with Ro behaving the way he was recently, she couldn’t trust that he was being nice. He had argued with his best friend, he had been hit in the face by one of his neighbours, he had clearly misplaced a few people skills in the last week.

Her hand hovered over her dial pad, deliberating. If she kicked him off the call unjustly, he would be offended. But at the same time, if the caller was being an asshole, putting them on hold for a minute might make them calm down. And she could be seeing a repeat of the incident with the Balor. After the first time, Derek had instigated an investigation, and it had gone through all the right channels with all the right paperwork, but after a couple of weeks it had just been filed as an “incident”. It had only happened once that the mother tongue option had led to racial abuse, so until it happened again and became a pattern, they weren’t going to make any changes. Overall, the response had been very positive, so Derek had just been told to “keep an eye on it” and report back to Legal if it happened again.

She waved to get Ro’s attention, but he ignored her. Or rather, it looked like the conversation was getting so heated that he didn’t even notice her. He pushed away from his desk, his voice getting louder. That was all the justification that she needed. If the caller was being a dick, she would find out. She dialled into the call, kicking Ro out of it. The voice that came through her earpiece was raised as well, but it sounded more defensive than anything.

“I’m sorry,” Maggie trilled happily. “There seems to have been a technical fault on your line. Please hold to be reconnected.” She put the caller on hold and looked at Ro.

Now they had attracted the attention of the rest of the team. Before Ro arrived, they had almost never seen Maggie kick someone off a call. This was the second time in four months. It always felt like a big deal because someone was in trouble, whether it was the caller or the agent.

Ro was glaring at Maggie, huffing harsh breaths through his nose like a snorting bull, practically steaming. She didn’t like that anger directed at her.

“Why did you do that?” he demanded.

“You looked upset! Was it another Balor?” Maggie asked.

Ro growled at her. “I had it, it was under control.”

“What were they saying?”

“They were being stupid, refusing to listen,” he said.

“Okay, but you can’t yell at callers just for being stupid. You can’t ever yell at callers,” Maggie reminded him. The others were all watching. “I’m sorry, I tried to get your attention first but I couldn’t.”

“You shouldn’t have done that.”

“I had to make a judgement call, Ro, I couldn’t understand what you were saying. I’m sorry if I acted unnecessarily. Are you going to tell me what it was about? Do you want to tell me in private?” The little flash hold light stopped blinking. “They’ve hung up now,” she said in frustration. She would have liked to smooth things over with the caller herself.

Ro just cursed in Balin, obviously still mad, marching out of the department. Maggie threw her hands up in frustration. It was like dealing with a child sometimes. Even he couldn’t argue his way out of yelling at a caller, it was a fundamental no-no.

“What’s up with him?” Nina asked.

“I don’t know,” Maggie admitted, shaking her head.

“Are you guys still… okay?” Lucy asked, making a gesture that implied what she meant was “dating”.

Maggie shrugged, hating it, but feeling better for talking about it at last. “I don’t know.”

“Aw no,” Lucy moaned. “You were so lovey-dovey and cute!”

Maggie grimaced. “Yeah, well…”

“Is he cranky because you broke up?” said Nina.

“We haven’t broken up,” Maggie insisted.

“Oh. Because that would be kind of sweet, you know, if his whole life fell apart over a broken heart,” she continued.

“His life isn’t falling apart, as far as I know,” Maggie said, but she realised she couldn’t swear to that. “And his heart’s not broken. He’s just… being weird at the moment.”

“Have you asked Kez?”

“No, but I don’t think he likes me very much.”

“Something must be going on.”

“I know!” Maggie said, a little too loudly. She knew something was going on, she just didn’t know what, because he wouldn’t tell her. Her boyfriend wouldn’t let her into his life. She ran her hands through her hair. “I’m sorry, it’s just frustrating.”

“It’ll be okay,” said Ben, chiming in at last. “He really likes you.”

“Maybe not as much as he thought he did,” Maggie grumped.

“Impossible,” Ben said, giving her a smile that did actually raise her spirits a little. “It’ll be okay.”

“Yeah, I know,” Maggie conceded just to end the conversation. She shouldn’t be talking about him with his colleagues. She shouldn’t be talking about her relationship when they should all have been working.

She wondered where Ro had gone, and as the minutes ticked by, when he was coming back.

About half an hour later, Derek appeared at her side. Maggie was instantly worried. It was too much of a coincidence.

“Hey, where’s Ro?” he said conversationally, noticing the empty chair.

“I don’t know,” Maggie replied. The rest of the team faithfully kept their heads down, and she thanked them for not saying anything.

“Think he’ll be back soon?” Derek pressed.

“I don’t know,” Maggie said again. At least she didn’t have to lie.

“Hm,” Derek grunted. “Maggie, can I see you for a minute?” he said, his expression and tone brightening cheerily as if he had moved on to something completely unrelated, but Maggie saw through it. Too much of a coincidence.

She stood up and followed him back to his office. He closed the door behind them, then went to lean against the edge of his desk while she stood.

“Maggie, I’ve had a complaint about Ro. A caller said he was very aggressive when taking his call. The caller provided the number for Incomings as the one he had dialled, and confirmed he had selected the mother tongue menu option, and stated that it was a Balin male he spoke to, so there’s no wriggle room there. The caller said he was hung up on. Do you know anything about this?”

Maggie was glad for the chance to make it look a little better. “He wasn’t hung up on, I took over the call and put him on hold after giving him the line about a technical fault. Then he hung up.”

“Okay, and why did you take over the call?” Derek pressed, latching on to the real issue.

Maggie shifted uncomfortably. She hadn’t prepared what she was going to say. She would have liked to speak to Ro first, get their stories straight. “Ro seemed distressed. After the Balor caller, I just thought it was best. I can’t understand what he’s saying after all, I just have to go on how it sounds,” Maggie pleaded.

“And it sounded… bad?”

Sometimes she hated how shrewd Derek was. “Not really, just like… something I should intervene on.” She knew she was being obtuse and unconvincing, and she knew Derek knew it too.

Derek watched her for a moment before speaking again. He flicked his thumbnail against the edge of his desk a few times, taking a breath. “I know about your relationship,” he stated simply.

He watched her for a reaction, but Maggie didn’t know what to say. She just nodded. “Mm-hmm?” she prompted.

“I promoted you anyway, because I had faith in you, Maggie. You’ve always been professional, and frankly, I thought you made each other happy. But I wonder now if it isn’t becoming a problem.”

Maggie felt cold. “It’s not,” she protested.

“No? Did you know Ro got into a fight at the dorms?” Derek said, as if he was testing her, hoping to throw her off-balance.

“Um, I did. He said it was nothing, just something between him and a neighbour,” she replied meekly.

Derek nodded. “I don’t know what it was about either. Didn’t sound like a big thing, and obviously, since it didn’t happen at work there’s nothing I can do about it.”

Maggie didn’t know what he thought he was supposed to do about it.

“But if he’s getting into fights with callers, well, that’s something different,” Derek continued.

“He’s not,” Maggie insisted. She wasn’t sure why she had been called in to defend him, or why she was doing it, when she didn’t even know what she was defending.

“Good! That’s good. I’m glad to hear it. But you see, because of your personal relationship with him, I can’t really… trust you, can I? I want to! And personally, I do, but on paper, it doesn’t look good. It doesn’t look clear. I can’t really say in good conscience that your word was enough and I had no reason to look any further, not when HR can turn around and say ‘Well, didn’t it occur to you that she might have been lying to protect him?’ And of course, what can I say then but yes? You might be.”

“Derek… Come on, I’m not-”

He threw his hand out. “Oh no! I know you’re not! Like I said, I’ve known you since you started here and you’ve always been loyal, and professional, and I’ve never heard a single bad word about you, not from anyone. You’re good for the job, Maggie, and the job is good for you. But on paper? Your relationship with Ro… doesn’t look so good. It was all fine when he was doing so well, but now, it complicates things.”

“I’m not going to dump him just to-”

“No, no, no! That’s not what I’m saying, not at all! I can’t ask you to do that! But you can see where I’m coming from, can’t you? We need to figure this out.”

“Figure it out how?” Maggie demanded. Derek was right; she had been perfectly loyal and professional, and done more than her fair share for Enquiries since she’d started years ago, and she wasn’t seeing that paid back right then. She deserved better than this.

“What I’d like to see is Ro falling back into line. No more complaints. No more turning up late or getting into fights, or disappearing when he should be at his desk. It’s his Team Leader’s job to make that happen, and it’s hard to explain why he’s being let off-”

“I’m not letting him off!”

“If I knew,” Derek said, talking over her and cutting her off. “That there was a reason for it, some difficulty at home, or some source of stress, then it would be easier to be lenient. I could explain why the work wasn’t getting done. But I don’t know what’s going on. He hasn’t turned in a sick note, he hasn’t asked for time off. I’m in the dark.”

Maggie kept her mouth shut. This conversation didn’t make her feel like sharing with Derek that she didn’t know either.

“It’s not a matter of training, he’s been here long enough. So if this keeps happening…”

“What?” Maggie didn’t like the sound of where this was going.

“I’m going to have to do something. I’m accountable here too. Best option is moving Ro to another team.”

Maggie’s heart squeezed just at the thought. “You don’t have to do that,” she argued.

“If I don’t do that, I’d have to make someone else Team Leader, I’m sorry. We both know you’re the best person for the job, but when it comes to him, you’re just not doing it. You did great training him up, really, I loved the results we got there. He did better than any of the other new hires that came in at the same time. But now he’s acting up and you can’t take the reins. If it doesn’t come down on him, it has to come down on you. I know it isn’t fair, but I have to do something, or all three of us are going to be in trouble.” He gave her an apologetic smile.

Honestly, Maggie could understand what he was getting at. But Ro had only been behaving differently for a week, and Derek could have talked to him about it instead of bringing Maggie in and making it about their relationship. He’d given her an ultimatum and threatened her career because of who she was dating, to cover his own ass. Was she going easy on Ro? Probably, she couldn’t really deny that, but that was because she knew him well enough to know that he wasn’t himself. And she wasn’t letting him run riot. She had intervened when she’d thought she had to.

“I’ll talk to him,” she said, though she didn’t want to concede anything to Derek just then. She just wanted to give him something non-committal so she would be allowed to leave. Sure, she’d talk to Ro, and just like every other time this week, it wouldn’t change anything. But saying that would buy time for Ro to get over whatever it was and get back to normal.

“Thank you,” Derek replied.

Maggie didn’t wait for more. She left, going back to her desk but she didn’t like the thoughts she’d been left with. If it came down to it, what would she choose? Was it as simple as her job or her relationship? She wasn’t sure she wanted a relationship with the secretive, angry man Ro was at the moment. If she tried to save her job and bring him into line, he would only lash out at her and do more damage to her feelings for him. Could she hope that if she sat him down and explained what Derek had said, that he would wake up and change for her?

It made her sad to even think about it, to try to put a value on how much she loved him and weigh that against her career. She didn’t want to give him up, even now. She loved him, and she wanted to help him. Whatever was going on couldn’t last forever. She remembered how sweet he had always been to her, how he made her feel, the swelling bubble of love in her chest when they were alone. It made her sad that Derek had done this to her.

But what would it mean if she accepted the demotion? She had worked hard to get where she was. Incomings only had a Team Leader position because of her. Maybe it would be easier after all if Ro went to another team. They would still see each other every day. And he would have more chance of advancement when she wasn’t hogging the next rung on the ladder. She would miss him though. She would miss seeing him just on the other side of her screen, and miss playing footsie with him under the desk. But she supposed she would get over it, if they were still allowed to be together outside of work. If they lived together for example. If they made it that far.

Ro was at his desk when she came back, and he gave her what she thought was an apologetic look. She loved and hated it when she saw glimpses of the old Ro. It would be easier if he stopped giving her hope, but even then, she had to admit to herself she wouldn’t have given up on him. It just made her all the more frustrated to know he was in there, that it was her Ro who was keeping secrets from her. She sighed.

The others looked at her as well when she sat back down, but she didn’t acknowledge them. She just put her earpiece in and got back to work.

Chapter 29

Hours later, Maggie was going back to her desk after consulting with Family Connections about a case when Ro snagged her, hustling her into a maintenance closet.

“Ro! What are you doing?” she said, trying to keep her voice quiet when she wanted to yell. She tripped against a bucket and stumbled into the wall. The space was tiny, lit only by a small window above the door.

Ro wrapped his arms around her from behind, dropping his mouth to her neck as she tried to find her balance. “Maggie…” he purred.

“What?”

“I need you,” he moaned, his hand skating down her stomach to press between her thighs.

She huffed and tried to use her tight skirt to keep him out. “You must be joking!”

“Why?”

“It’s the middle of the day! And I’m not doing it in maintenance closet!” She dug her elbow into his chest as his hands continued to wander over her body. She didn’t hate his touch, but just then she didn’t want it either.

He chuckled. “Is it so different from a stairwell toilet?” he rumbled in her ear.

“Hey!” She didn’t like what he was implying. “That was different, no one was around then, and we weren’t on the clock!” she argued.

He growled, apparently getting tired of her resisting. “Come on…” He pressed his erection into her back.

“No, Ro, I’m serious!” she insisted, this time not bothering to moderate her voice. She gave him a final push and dislodged him. She whirled, and for a second they just stood glaring at each other. Maggie tried to smooth her clothes and hair out.

Ro’s hands flexed at his sides as he scowled at her. “What’s your problem?” he rumbled.

“My problem?” Maggie hissed back. “Have you lost your mind? If we got caught we would lose our jobs! And there’s no way to lock this door from the inside!”

“I thought you wanted this,” he replied.

“No, I don’t!” she snapped back.

Silence, as if something had just broken.

Maggie tried to explain. “Derek told me I could lose my promotion because you’re screwing up and I’m not doing anything about it because you’re my boyfriend, okay?”

“So you’re choosing money over me,” he accused her.

“It’s not about the money! It’s about my reputation! And finally getting some recognition, finally getting somewhere! I’ve worked this job for years, you’ve done it for three months, you don’t understand,” she said, knowing it was unfair but the words just kept coming. She sighed angrily, dropping her face into her hands. “And I’m not choosing anything over you,” she remembered to add.

He didn’t say anything for so long, Maggie lifted her head up to look at him. He had one hand on the wall, leaning away from her.

“Is that it? You’re not going to say anything?” she asked. At least if they were fighting, he wasn’t shutting her out.

“I don’t feel well,” he said.

“What?” Maggie replied, not expecting that.

“I-” He was cut off as his knees dropped from under him, spilling him against the wall.

“Oh my God!” Maggie said, quickly kneeling next to him, her hands going to his face, his shoulders, his chest, trying to find the problem. Her hands came away wet, and she threw open the door of the closet to get more light. Her hands were covered in blood. Ro was bleeding from his eyes and nose. “Ro!” she screamed.

He slumped against the wall, unable to hold himself up anymore, his body shaking, and Maggie screamed again. “Help! Help!” She got her arms under his and tried to pull him out into the corridor, lay him out flat.

With the door of the closet open, anyone in the corridor could see them, and they could certainly hear Maggie as she panicked. She couldn’t lift him or move him very far by herself, but almost instantly people were swarming around her. “Help, I don’t know what’s wrong with him!” she sobbed to the person nearest to her. She wasn’t crying, but her whole body was shaking. She couldn’t feel the floor beneath her. She was terrified. Ro was a dead weight, his eyes closed, blood still running off his face. “He won’t wake up!”

She looked at him and realised she had balled her hands in his shirt, as if she could physically keep him with her that way. The crowd around her was made up of people she didn’t recognise and people she half-knew, no one she identified as anyone who could help, so she kept crying. “Call an ambulance!” she shrieked, tears coming now as the words made her realise something was happening, something bad, and he could lose him. 

A man next to her grabbed her arm and when she flinched, looking at him, he was kneeling too and had his head lowered to hers. “What happened?” he demanded.

“I don’t know, I don’t know, we were fighting…” She broke out in fresh sobs as she realised that was true, hating herself for it.

The crowd parted and the two security guards from the front of building pushed through.

“What happened?” Tol asked, his hands moving over Ro. “Did he fall?”

“No, I mean, yes, he- he lost his balance, but I think that was because of- it wasn’t because of that that he’s like this,” she explained as best she could.

“Okay, have you called a doctor already?”

“No, I haven’t, someone else might have. Is he going to be okay? Is this normal?” The way his eyes flicked to her told Maggie this wasn’t normal, but it had been her one naive hope, that Ro was going through some Balin thing that only looked dangerous.

Tol looked over his shoulder to Lee. “Get the stretcher from downstairs, we’ll take him the medical centre at the dorms. Tell them we’re coming,” he ordered.

“Doesn’t he need a hospital?” Maggie sniffed, getting herself a little under control now someone was taking charge and getting help.

“The medical centre at the dorms know how to treat Teissians better than anyone. Has he been sick recently?” he asked.

“No,” Maggie said, then remembered. “He’s been acting differently.”

“Differently how?”

“Angry, not like himself,” Maggie told him.

He grunted, loosening Ro’s tie and undoing the buttons at his neck, checking his pulse. Maggie kicked herself for not thinking of that.

“Is he going to be okay?” Maggie asked, her lip wobbling again. She didn’t know what she’d do if he wasn’t. A nosebleed she could handle, a fainting spell she could laugh off, but this was scary.

Tol hummed in consideration. “Has he taken anything?” he asked.

“What? Taken anything? Like-” She had a bolt of inspiration. “Kez! Get Kez! He knows! Get him, he works in Requisitions, Enquiries department!” Maggie looked around at the group watching.

Tol pointed at someone. “You, go get him,” he ordered, and the person hurried off. More security guards ran up and began pushing people back, making space.

Maggie looked back at Ro. His face was a mess, his collar laced in red, and his shirt patterned with it where she had touched him. Her own clothes wouldn’t be much better but she didn’t care. She bent over him. “Ro, Ro,” she whispered to him. She tried shaking him a tiny bit, barely rocking him, trying to get him to wake up. “Please wake up. Wake up, wake up…” There was something terrible about the way he wasn’t reacting to her. It had never happened before. “I’m sorry,” she said, her voice breaking and face crumpling, her tears falling on his face. “I didn’t mean it…”

She keened and rocked over him, until a second pair of hands on Ro, green and scaled, made her gasp and look up. Kez was crouched next to the Volin guard, looking ashen, his eyes wide and lips tight. He was going through Ro’s pockets, until he pulled out a small plastic packet of something white.

“There,” he said, his voice shaking. He gave it to Tol.

“What is that?” Maggie demanded, watching as the packet disappeared into the guard’s uniform. “What did you give him? What did you do?” she shrieked at Kez.

Kez surged at her over Ro’s body, making her flinch back. He looked like he wanted to claw her to pieces, his eyes wild. “It was you,” he hissed. “I told him not to, I begged him to stop, but he wouldn’t! For you! He said you needed it, you-” He bit out a couple of curses in Balin. “-woman!”

Maggie stared in shock, her mouth open until she stuttered back, “It-It wasn’t me! I didn’t do anything, I didn’t know, he wouldn’t tell me anything!”

They couldn’t argue any more as Lee arrived with a bright orange stretcher that he unfolded next to Ro.

“We’ll take him to the medical centre,” Tol told her, resting his hand on her arm briefly. “You should go home.”

“What? No!”

“You need to change your clothes. Call the centre before you visit,” he said, taking one end of the stretcher and standing up with Lee at the other end. Little engines whirred inside the stretcher, taking most of the weight.

Maggie moved to stumble after them and Tol stopped her. “It will be family only,” he said.

“He doesn’t have any family,” she argued.

“We’ll get in touch with his Community Leader. I’m sorry,” Tol finished, then they were gone.

Maggie whirled on Kez, unable to just do nothing.

“I’ll tell Derek,” he said, his eyes narrowed.

She grabbed his arm as he went to walk passed her. “No, you can’t just- You need to tell me what’s going on. What happened to him?”

Kez threw her off with a barely contained rage. “Go home, basti woman,” he spat. “Look at yourself.”

Maggie looked down her front. Her black skirt shone and stuck to her it was so soaked in blood, her shirt was better but it was still a mess, big palm-sized smudges of red on her tan blouse. Her hands and legs were similarly stained, and she wouldn’t be surprised if it was on her face too.

“I’m not leaving until you tell me what you know,” Maggie demanded, trying to stand her ground even as she trembled, petrified of what might happen to Ro, what Kez might tell her.

Kez stared at her, assessing. He narrowed his eyes, and she knew whatever was coming was only meant to hurt her. “What he has been taking is meant to be taken only once, once! He has been taking it for a week!”

“Why? What is it?” she asked, feeling cold.

“It is a… stimulant,” Kez said, needing a moment to find the word. “It makes a male more male, briefly.”

“Why would he take that?”

Kez stepped into her space, his face inches from hers as he looked at her, his eyes slits. “Because his wradnu woman wasn’t happy with what a Balin could give her, she wanted more.”

“I never told him that,” Maggie whimpered, standing her ground and defending herself, though it was hard. It sure felt like this was her fault.

Kez laughed and it was an ugly sound. “Get out of my sight,” he said. “Or I’ll make sure he never has a reason to take it ever again.”

Maggie recognised the threat for what it was, and turned on her heel, fleeing into the nearest bathroom. She didn’t think Kez would really hurt her, not physically anyway, not in the middle of the DETI building, in the middle of the day, with Security still all around. But she had reached her limit on how long she could watch someone hate her. She didn’t have the strength, not when she couldn’t get her mind straight.

Ro was hurt, possibly badly, and Kez said it was her fault. She didn’t know if she was going to get Ro back, even if he recovered, and the last thing they had done was fight.

She caught sight of her reflection in the mirror and broke into tears again, running the tap to try to at least wash the blood off her hands. A few minutes later, Lucy found her.

“Oh honey…” she said, and she opened her arms, and Maggie gratefully took the hug and the shoulder to cry on.

Chapter 30

Maggie did as she was told.

Not long after Lucy found her, Derek knocked on the bathroom door and stuck his head in. As soon as he saw her, he said “You should go home,” in a fatherly voice. He looked pitying, stunned, a little ragged. “Do you need anything?” he asked.

Maggie shook her head, which was a lie. She needed new clothes. She needed Ro back. She needed him to be okay, for someone to jog up to them and tell her it was all a big mistake. She needed to wake up from this nightmare.

She looked wet, but Lucy had helped her clean up enough that there was no obvious blood. Her skirt was starting to stiffen with it, but it was hidden on the black material. Derek called her a podcab and sent her home.

She was in a daze. She’d been told she couldn’t be with Ro when that was the only place she wanted to be. She couldn’t imagine where he was or what was happening to him; she couldn’t picture the room he was in, she didn’t know if he was even still alive, but with him was the only place that still felt real to her. Nothing else did. Did they really expect her to just go home? Was the sun really still shining? Were her neighbours really still going about a normal day? Was this really her apartment without him in it?

In an obedient daze, she stripped off her dirty clothes, considering the laundry basket then stuffed them into the bin. She showered. It was what the others had meant when they had told her to go home, and right then, that was all she had. She had no other direction. She did feel marginally better once Ro’s blood was off her, and her hair was wet and cold. She felt stronger, focused, freer. She could handle it. She knew what she had to do and how to do it.

She dressed, grabbed her purse and headed back out.

It was after five when she got to the medical centre. Ro had been there for an hour and a half. He was still being treated, his case still being discussed by the doctors. All they would tell her was that they were still doing tests. A nurse asked her to sit in the waiting room, so she did.

She was not the only person in the waiting room, but she was the only human. There was a male and a female Teissian sitting by themselves, and a female with a child in her lap who got called shortly after Maggie arrived and didn’t come back. Maggie watched everyone who went past the window into the hall, unable to do anything else for fear of missing something, the moment when she would see Ro go past, or someone would come to get her. She imagined hearing a flatline, and seeing doctors run into a room. She couldn’t hear a heart monitor, everything was hushed and quiet, but that didn’t matter. She imagined that if she watched, she wouldn’t miss her last opportunity to see him again. If she saw the nurse coming, she could meet them halfway and see Ro those few seconds earlier.

She didn’t read a magazine. She kept her Gadgit in her hand as she white-knuckled the seat cushion. She knew it was silly to think Ro might message her or call her, but he might. He might. She kept checking it in case she just hadn’t heard it go off, but it was never him. People from work were messaging her, and she had a minor heart attack every time she saw the logo for a new message, driving herself crazy. She grew frustrated and wished everyone else would leave her alone. She stopped replying.

After an hour or two, she was the last person in the waiting room. She hadn’t eaten, but she wasn’t hungry. She just felt hollow, like there was a big numb hole where her stomach had been, chilling her. Her heart was still there, she could feel it hurting.

All the medical staff were human, she noticed. There were Teissians moving around, but she realised they were receptionists, administrators, security, cleaners.

There was a little A4 print out telling her visiting hours were between ten AM and seven PM. Maggie found herself staring at that a lot as seven came closer then crept by.

Finally, a little after eight pm, a nurse took pity on her, opening the door and gesturing her forward. Maggie felt like throwing up. And crying. And grabbing the woman and shaking her.

“He’s stable for now,” the woman whispered.

Maggie nodded, adjusting her bag on her shoulder, trying to find the words and talk past her tongue.

“I can take you to see him, but you can’t stay,” the nurse offered, and Maggie nodded again, promising anything.

“Wha- Er, what’s wrong with him?” Maggie whispered as the nurse started leading her down a corridor. Maggie kept her head down, feeling as if someone was going to stop them.

She sighed through her nose. “I’m afraid I can’t discuss it,” she replied.

“Oh, o-okay,” Maggie agreed meekly, not going to argue when the woman was currently running her staff card through a scanner, making a little red light turn green. The sign over the door read RESUSSITATION. There was a hiss as the door released and the nurse pushed it open, unintimidated by all the warnings.

“Come on,” she said, jerking her head and holding the door open for Maggie, who scurried through. “He’ll probably be moved to Intensive Care tomorrow.”

“Is that better?” Maggie asked. They both sounded bad, but Resussitation sounded like he had died.

“It is,” the nurse said, throwing her a smile over her shoulder.

The medical centre was small, and there weren’t many rooms on this wing. Three or four rooms down, the nurse stopped in front of a closed door. Maggie read a sticker over a little blue light that said this was a temperature-controlled room. There was a little handwritten card in a plastic slot with a long Teissian name on it. “Ro” was the fourth syllable from the end, written in capital letters. Maggie hadn’t even known his full name.

The nurse entered a code and pushed the door open. “Just a few seconds, can’t let the heat in,” she said.

Maggie looked into the room and gave an involuntary cry, her hands jumping to her mouth. It was Ro alright, lying still in a bed with rails on the sides. Wires and tubes were clipped all over him, and he was asleep, or unconscious. Maggie took a shaky step into the room – it felt freezing, it had to be twenty degrees colder than the rest of the building – but the nurse stopped her.

“Don’t touch him, you’re too warm,” she warned.

Maggie stood in the doorway in dismay. She wanted Ro to wake up and look at her, not lie there in a dotted hospital gown, covered from the waist down by a scratchy blue blanket, his legs making odd shapes under it as his long heels lay flat.

“Was it my fault?” Maggie choked out, pulling her hands away from her mouth.

She felt the nurse’s hand come up to her shoulder and start rubbing her back, but the touch was meaningless. “No, no,” the woman said, but it was unconvincing. She probably said that to everyone. She started to close the door again and Maggie forced herself to stumble back into the hall, out of the way.

“You can come back tomorrow, see him then,” the nurse continued as Maggie tried to catch her breath, get her face steady, not burst into tears again. “He’s not in danger tonight.”

Maggie was a little relieved, but she hadn’t missed that the nurse made no promises about tomorrow, or the next day.

“Why is he unconscious?” Maggie asked, digging her nails into her palms as she forced herself to ask useful questions, and stay on top of her emotions. She closed her eyes, suddenly tired.

“It’s the cold, it slows them down. Stops whatever’s happening from happening. Don’t worry, the doctors are in control. They know what they’re doing,” she promised.

Maggie nodded, and there was a moment’s quiet.

“Are you close?” the nurse asked quietly.

Maggie’s eyes snapped open and she looked at her. The nurse looked nothing but sympathetic, her expression suggesting she already knew the answer, and Maggie actually had to remember that yeah, it wasn’t obvious why this human woman had waited hours by herself just for a glimpse of a Balin male. Relationships like theirs still weren’t common, not in the open. Maggie had assumed the staff all knew who Ro was to her, but of course they wouldn’t.

“Yes, he’s my boyfriend,” she said. “We’ve been together-” Maggie cut herself off. How long had they actually been a couple? Since the office party? That was barely a month ago. It felt much longer than that, because she had been in love with him since way before their first kiss. She just shook her head as if she didn’t know, or couldn’t speak.

“Come back tomorrow, sweetie,” the nurse said, rubbing her hand over Maggie’s arm. “You can sit with him then. Just bring some warm clothes, hmm?”

“Yeah,” Maggie nodded. “Yeah, okay. Thank you.” Maggie pushed herself off the wall, and the nurse gently directed her back the way they had come.

Maggie went home, though it felt like a waste of time shuttling back and forth when there was only one place she wanted to be. Maybe, if Ro had to be in hospital for more than a day or two, she could try to get his apartment keys and stay there, to be closer. She was sure he would give them to her, but if he stayed unconscious, she didn’t know who to ask. She didn’t want to just take them.

At home, she crawled into bed and crushed her second pillow against her chest. She thought about him, alone, hurt, and cried her eyes out. Part of her knew it was silly, that no one felt lonely when they were asleep, but she couldn’t get over the feeling that she should be there, that he would wake up and wonder where she was, and be scared surrounded by strangers and machinery.

She slept terribly and couldn’t wait for her alarm to go off so she could get ready and get to the medical centre for nine-thirty. She called in sick to work, and put in a request for compassionate leave. She’d never had a cause to use it before, but she had no qualms about demanding her full allowance for the year. She was not going to work again any time soon, even if it did leave her team two staff members down. They could draft in someone from another team to cover if it got bad. She was going to be with Ro.

The next morning, she signed in at Reception, and a nurse got her though the doors to Intensive Care. As soon as she was through, she stopped. Standing at the nurses’ station was Kez, and another Balin she didn’t recognise. She hesitated, but she headed over. She wouldn’t run away. She wouldn’t let anyone keep her away from Ro. The Balin she didn’t know was filling out a form, but Kez looked up at her as she approached, his expression closing off.

“Hey,” she said.

The other Balin raised his head. He was bigger than most other Teissians, broader in the shoulders. He looked pretty musclebound compared to their typically lithe physiques. His scales were dark, dark purple, with swirls of violet at his temples.

Kez narrowed his eyes at her.

“Hello,” the stranger said, clearly just being polite and expecting her to move on, not knowing who she was.

Kez turned to him and muttered something, and Maggie heard her name.

“Oh! You’re Ro’s human female,” the other said, understanding brightening his features.

Maggie nodded, stuffing her hands in her pockets. She was wearing jeans and thick socks under her boots, with a hoody hanging in the crook of her elbow. She’d come prepared. “That’s right, that’s me,” she said.

He reached around Kez to offer his hand for a shake, making Kez snort indignantly and move to his other side. Maggie took the male’s hand, noting that his hand swallowed hers, but his grip was gentle, despite the massive hooked claws that were scary just to look at. “My name is Vig. I’m the Community Leader for Ro’s block. He talked about you all the time.”

A painful lump formed in Maggie’s throat, but she pushed it down. No one had told her Ro had died overnight. It looked like he was still around, still alive. “He did?”

Vig nodded. “He was very pleased to have you,” he said. “You shouldn’t blame yourself for what he’s done,” he continued, gesturing at the door to Ro’s room. “He knew the consequences. You, I suspect, did not.”

“I’m sorry, can you tell me what happened to him?” Maggie asked, feeling at a disadvantage, ashamed to have to ask when it was clear the two of them already knew. “They wouldn’t tell me, because I’m not family.”

Vig snorted. “Family. What family could he have here?” he asked, shaking his head. He looked back at the form he was filling out on the table. “It’s why I’m here, filling these forms out. Community Leaders act as family in these situations. I’m giving Kez the same privileges, I could include you too?”

“Please!” Maggie said, grabbing Vig’s arm, then letting go when she’d realised what she’d done, but Vig just smiled.

Kez on the other hand clearly disagreed, objecting to Vig in Balin.

“You don’t think he would want her to?” Vig asked him in English.

“If he did, he would have told her what he was doing,” he said, glaring at Maggie.

“Did you tell the doctors where he got what he was taking?” Maggie threw back at him. She wasn’t going to let him say it was her fault when she still didn’t know what was going on.

Vig chuckled. “Kez… Come on, she’s the only one of us who can actually go in that room for longer than a couple of minutes. Ro should have someone who can visit him. Nurse? How do I get another one of these forms?”

The nurse took the tablet and tapped a few commands before handing it back with a smile.

“Thank you.”

Maggie watched him for a second. “So what happened to him?” Maggie reminded him.

“Oh, umm…” Vig glanced at Kez as if he too wondered whether he should say, but this time Maggie got the impression it was because it was something embarrassing, not because Vig was trying to keep her out.

Maggie was losing her patience. “Kez told me it was some kind of stimulant, that he’s been taking it all week?”

“Yes, it was a very potent Balin medicine. We have need of it if, for example, we have been challenged to a fight to the death. It happens. It makes a male’s heart beat faster, makes him aggressive. Ro was using it to… please you, outside of his heat cycles. It can have that effect too.”

“I never told him to do that,” Maggie said again. She wanted them to know that, that she had never been dissatisfied with him, or wanted him to be more than he was.

Vig hummed and shrugged as if he didn’t believe her but it didn’t matter if she had. His voice was as deep as Ro’s, but it vibrated out of his deep chest and wasn’t anywhere near as smooth. It definitely didn’t have the same calming effect on her. “As I said, he knew the risk. I’m sure he doesn’t blame you.”

“So he was just going to keep taking it? For how long?” Maggie pressed. She couldn’t believe it. So that was the explanation for his moods? Dangerous meds he was taking to be able to have sex with her. She gasped as it hit her. “He can’t have sex when he’s not in heat?” she asked.

Vig and Kez both stared at her blankly, as if she had asked something totally obvious.

Then Vig chuckled again, breaking the tension. “No,” he said. “What do you think a heat is for? Though I’m sure he would find your faith in his virility flattering.”

“I thought heat was just when he had to have sex. I didn’t think-” Her head whipped to the door of Ro’s room. “That idiot!” she cursed, remembering the night he had only used his hands and mouth to make love to her, all the things that had been said and how he must have interpreted what she’d meant. “He should have just explained it to me!”

Her hands balled into fists. Oh, she was mad now. He’d almost killed himself over sex, when he could have just said one simple sentence to let her know what was going on with him. She would have been fine with it. Her complaint had been that she had thought he wasn’t attracted to her, didn’t want her anymore. If she had known he simply couldn’t perform all the time, she would have accepted that. He was more important to her than just sex.

“He thought you would leave him,” Kez supplied, his voice quiet. He was looking at her as if she had surprised him. “That’s what he always said when I told him I wouldn’t give him any more of the drug. He said a human male would be able to satisfy you, so he had to be able to as well.”

“That’s not true, Kez,” Maggie promised him. “I want him for more than that.”

Kez held her earnest eyes for a moment, then looked away with a grunt.

“Anyway,” Vig resumed. “It made his blood pressure so high that it burst the cap-capil-”

“Capilliaries?” Maggie offered.

“Those, in his face, and made him faint, as you saw. If that hadn’t happened, he probably would have had a stroke or a heart attack today. His organs have been damaged, but the doctors say they will heal on their own in time. His heart, and his- Well, what we have instead of your liver and kidneys. The doctors are keeping him asleep because they are not sure how to wake him up without any of the drug still in his system causing him to overdose again. Because it is Balin medicine, they are not sure how to get it out of him,” Vig told her, clearly reciting what he had been told as best he could.

“Jesus…” Maggie said at the end of it all. He really had nearly killed himself. If he hadn’t passed out, or if he had done it in private, she knew he would have just kept on taking the drug. He had been one day away from death.

Vig hummed in agreement, looking at his bedroom door. “To think he came all this way from Teiss just to do this.” He shook his head and turned back to his form.

A nurse appeared beside them.

“You can go in now, it’s ten,” she said with a smile.

Maggie took a deep breath, steeling herself. She was the first into the room after the nurse entered the code, the men behind her. It looked just the same as the room from the day before. The blinds were drawn to keep the light dim. Ro was lying still as a statue under the blanket. Screens in the wall displayed his vital signs.

The nurse bustled past them as they drifted in, shocked. She pulled round a chair. “You can sit here, honey, if you’re going to stay. You can touch him, but not skin to skin, okay? We’ve got to keep his temperature as even as possible.”

“Thank you,” Maggie said, dropping her bag beside the chair.

She heard Vig shiver behind her, and looked at them. Kez looked like she felt, his face sad and stunned, disbelieving. She pulled on her hoody to give him a moment to compose himself. She didn’t know if she forgave him yet for the role he had played, but she could empathise with the guilt he must be feeling.

She couldn’t hold Ro’s hand, but just seeing him was encouraging. He looked… fine, if not for all the tubes and wires. He could have been asleep on her couch after a movie. He never slept on his back in bed. It looked uncomfortable with the zig-zags of his legs. She sat down and put her hand on his shin, feeling the bone, the firmness of his flesh.

“Look after him,” Kez told her.

“She will,” said Vig, pushing Kez towards the door and giving Maggie her privacy. “Now come on, we have to get out or we’ll fall asleep ourselves, and I don’t have time for a coma today.”

Chapter 31

Ro didn’t wake up for four days.

Maggie learned a lot about the Balin from his nurses while she waited at his bedside. They really were susceptible to changes in the temperature around them. Apparently it was standard procedure when a Balin arrived in critical condition to cool them down to about 48 degrees Fahrenheit. If they were bleeding, their heart rate would become so sluggish they could even survive surgery without a transfusion. If they were overdosing, or poisoned, or reacting to anything really, they would stop. Their bodies stopped absorbing chemicals, stopped digesting food. If their organs were failing, cooling them down lowered the demand on those organs so that the risk was gone.

Of course it also meant they didn’t heal. And any poison in their bodies would still be there when they heated back up. Their organs would still be failing. And there was a very narrow window for this effect. 41 degrees could kill them. Their heart would stop, or their brain would get starved of oxygen. The doctors might not even notice there was a problem until they tried to wake them up again. 50 degrees and it might not be enough. The patient might be unconscious, but their body might still be damaging itself. They had to be monitored closely, because some Balin could take more than others.

Ro didn’t need surgery. The problem was that every time they tried to wake him up again, the drug started affecting him again, and they had to stop. They tried three times. By the fourth day, they thought it would be more dangerous to keep him cold than to wake him up. They had been giving him nutrients through an IV, but they were hardly being absorbed at all. He might well starve or dehydrate if they didn’t warm him up soon.

So it was with a nurse stationed in the room doing paperwork that they started to turn the air-conditioning down, two degrees an hour.

“You can hold his hand now if you’d like,” she told Maggie.

Maggie had been good, but she hadn’t been perfect. She had stroked the back of her hand over Ro’s, or the pad of her thumb over his cheekbone. A brief, light touch that surely couldn’t make a difference to him but made her feel so much better. It made him feel real, solid, present. Four days of watching him barely breathe, watching his heart barely beat, had not been fun for her. Even when she squeezed his leg hard, he hadn’t reacted.

But she had stayed with him every hour she had been allowed. She had only taken breaks to get food or coffee when the cold in the room became too much for her. She started wearing a scarf and gloves, but she didn’t have much in the way of winter clothes.

Kez came and went often, but he could never stay long. She suggested he message or call her instead of making the trip, and it seemed their feud was on hold while they both worried about Ro. She asked him about taking the keys to Ro’s apartment and after thinking about it, he agreed. He seemed to appreciate that someone was with Ro when he couldn’t be.

Now Maggie tentatively took Ro’s hand, cold as stone. She leant forward in her chair as she waited for a flicker of life, though she had been told it might take hours. The doctors expected him to wake up between 57 and 61 degrees, but the earlier he woke up, the more sluggish he would be. Maggie was keeping Kez informed. She had told him Ro was being woken up today, and promised to message him again when he was conscious.

It felt like it took forever. After the first hour and a half, the rhythm of his vital signs started to get a few blips, and once or twice the nurse would get up and press some buttons, but she never did anything to Ro. She assured Maggie that he was within expected parameters, and there was no cause for alarm just yet.

Finally, Maggie felt a twitch against her hand, and gasped, almost leaping out of her seat. It was so strange, to think a person moving about by themselves could be taken for granted, but she promised never to do it again. Just feeling him animated felt strange after four days of him being as still as a block.

The nurse came over, checking the monitors again. Maggie squeezed his hand and Ro squeezed her back, his claws curling around her hand. His eyes cracked open just a little to peer at her, but he didn’t move. Maggie put her hand over his chest. She could just see tiny fragments of his brink pink irises. Their colour took her by surprise every time.

“Ro?” she said nervously.

He didn’t reply, just looked at her.

“He’ll be sluggish until he gets a little warmer,” the nurse told her. “Don’t worry if he doesn’t speak for a while.”

His eyes never left her face, and when she tried to move her hand he held on, making her smile. She shifted her chair closer and leant over him, stroking his face gently. “Hey, you,” she murmured. “Wakey, wakey… I am so mad at you,” she said happily. “I’m really going to kill you when you’re well, you know that? So just get better soon, and we can go home.”

The nurse checked the monitors. “His heart’s a little fast. Could be the drugs, or maybe you’re scaring him,” she teased.

“Oh, really?” Maggie said, embarrassed. She pulled away from him, sitting back, and Ro moaned faintly like he was trying to talk, moving just a little as if he was trying to sit up.

The nurse laughed. “Or maybe he liked you where you were.”

Maggie smiled and put her hand back on Ro’s chest, rubbing back and forth over the thin gown. She raised his hand to her cheek and his claws twitched like he was trying to touch her.

“I’ll go and tell the doctors he’s awake,” the nurse said, leaving them alone.

“Don’t worry, you’ll be stronger soon,” Maggie told him. “All that medicine you took is still in your system so we have to go slowly. That stuff almost killed you, Ro. Do you remember collapsing in that maintenance closet with me? I thought you were going to die, you scared the pants off me. I can’t believe you did that to yourself, and we are going to have a long talk about it when you’re well again.”

He sighed and let his eyes drift closed. Maggie didn’t know if he was tired or trying to avoid the conversation, but she stopped talking and let him. It would be too easy to say too much before he could reply, and she wanted answers from him. She didn’t want to browbeat him when he was barely conscious.

The doctor came in and checked Ro over, looking at his readings. She asked Maggie if he had said anything or responded to her, and she said no and the doctor went away again, leaving the nurse behind at her makeshift desk to keep an eye on things.

Maggie thought Ro had fallen asleep because he didn’t open his eyes again until twenty minutes later. She used the time to message Kez, then held Ro’s hand again. His hand was warmed by hers, no longer stone cold. He blinked and looked at her, his eyes fully open. He pushed his other hand and his elbow into the mattress, trying to sit up. He must have been feeling more awake. The monitor on the wall started to beep faster, and the nurse came over again to check it.

“The drug’s kicking back in again,” she said. She went to Ro’s side and tried looking in his eyes but he swatted her away.

Maggie took his other hand, restraining him gently. “Go ahead,” she told the nurse. Ro gave her a betrayed glare. “I’m not doing you any favours, buddy,” she said. “You got yourself into this.”

He seemed to give up and sat still for the nurse, who checked his pupils with a torch that shone a light that must have been one-hundredth of the strength normally used on a human. The light was barely visible to Maggie. She felt Ro’s neck, tilting his head back, then flipped up the end of the blanket to test the reflexes in his feet and legs.

“How are you feeling, Ro?” the nurse asked him. “Angry? Light-headed? Hungry? Need the toilet?”

Ro huffed indignantly and jerked his foot, dislodging her hands and almost catching her with his claws. He frowned at her and narrowed his eyes. She slipped her tools back into her breast pocket, but she obviously wasn’t deterred.

“That look doesn’t work on me,” she told him. “I get worse than that every day.”

“I’m sorry,” Maggie said, laying a hand on Ro’s thigh as if to keep him still. “It’s the stimulant he took, he’s normally very sweet.”

Ro gave her a look like she was giving him away.

The nurse raised her eyebrow at Maggie. “Don’t count on it,” she said. “I’ll be back in a minute with the doctor.”

Once they were alone again, Ro made another go of sitting up, his arms shaking under his own weight. He must have been stiff and uncoordinated from his induced coma, and probably a little atrophied too.

He cleared his throat a couple of times. “Maggie,” he rasped, his voice sounding like he’d drunk a glass of sand, rougher than she’d ever heard it. It still sent a thrill through her. For a while she hadn’t known if she’d ever hear it again. It was another piece of him back, another step he took back to her.

She hummed inquisitively, desperate to hear more.

“What…” he started, obviously struggling. “Why… here?” He looked at her.

“Has your English gone?” Maggie asked, a little alarmed. Ro nodded and squeezed her hand. It seemed he could still understand her, so she guessed it was just part of his disorientation and hopefully temporary. “The stimulant you were taking damaged your organs, and pushed your blood pressure up so high your finer blood vessels ruptured and you fainted. You were bleeding from your face, all over me. At work,” she told him.

He groaned, dropping his face into his hand and scrubbing his palm over his face, his claws scratching at his head. “Sorry,” he rasped. “Sorry I am.”

Maggie guessed that was the Balin structure and didn’t point it out. She just rubbed her hand vigorously over his arm, his scales quickly creating a lot of heat friction. “Don’t worry,” she sang, so pleased to have him back, and actually finding his broken English quite cute. “I’ll yell at you for it later.”

He looked at her, and she grinned to show him she meant it.

“Mad?” he mumbled, dropping his gaze to their joined hands.

“Ro, I’m fucking incensed,” she replied, still smiling, her tone pleasant. “I’m going to turn your pretty ass into a handbag for this. I’ve never been so scared or cried so many times in one day in my life.” She stood up and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “But you’ve woken up, so that’s paid off the majority. And you can spend the rest of your life making the remainder up to me, okay?”

“Maggie leave?” he asked, turning his eyes up to her, and there it was, that sedative feeling his voice-and-eyes combo had on her, like there was nothing to be afraid of and all was right in the world. She knew he could do that to her, but damn, feeling it again after everything would have made her cry if not for the warm softness spreading though her. She’d missed it. She’d almost lost it.

What was she saying?

“You want me to leave?” she breathed, trying not to just fall into the galaxies he called eyes.

His hand tightened on hers. “No! Maggie… break…” He shook his head and growled, rubbing his temple in frustration. “I no have Maggie? Maggie go? I alone?”

“Are you asking if I’m leaving you? If we’re breaking up?”

He pointed excitedly when she got it right, then remembered what they were talking about and lost his excitement, his mouth turning down again.

She didn’t know the answer. They had to talk about whether or not they could stay together. They couldn’t if he was going to do this again. “We’ll talk about it when you’re better,” she said.

He flinched and his other hand wrapped around her wrist, his claws closing over her skin carefully. He looked determined.

Maggie laughed. “You’re going to keep me here by force?” she asked.

He nodded, his eyes sad.

She kissed the side of his head. “I’m not going to leave you while you’re here. It’s been four days, you know? I’m not going to quit now.”

“Four days?” he said, not quite having the energy to react with as much surprise as he seemed to feel.

“Mm-hmm,” Maggie agreed.

His eyes went wide and he started stroking her arm, pushing up the sleeve of her hoody to get at her skin.

“Kez in trouble?”

Maggie blew out a breath. That was a bit more complicated. “The stuff you took isn’t a controlled substance on Earth, which is lucky. They’re looking at reckless endangerment, but you took it all voluntarily, against his advice. I assume you’re not going to press charges, and the Balin don’t need licenses to distribute among their own people. It was a home remedy, in keeping with Balin tradition, so… I don’t think he’ll be punished.

“Derek wasn’t thrilled when he found out Kez had been dealing drugs in the office, whether they were medicinal or not, but being hospitalised has got you off the hook for your own shitty behaviour. I think everyone’s just waiting to hear what you have to say about it before they do anything. Kez could lose his job, but you could probably talk Derek into keeping him on. Humans don’t know what that stuff is after all, and your medical records will be confidential. You could say you just had an allergic reaction and it was all totally innocent. You could say it wasn’t related.”

Ro took a moment to absorb what she had said.

“You nice,” he muttered after it had all sunk in.

Maggie chuckled. “Thank you.”

“I stay sick.”

“What?” she said, looking at him with a frown.

“I stay sick. Maggie not break up.”

She cupped his jaw and turned his face to look at her, bending over him. “Don’t even think it,” she said, and she wasn’t kidding. He could do it, but she couldn’t take it. She needed him to get well, properly. Her heart couldn’t take any more uncertainty, any more worrying.

“We see,” he argued.

She noticed a familiar glint in his eye. “Are you messing with me?” she growled.

Just then the door opened and Dr Wen and the nurse came back in, so she let go of him.

“Maggie, hello,” the doctor greeted her. She had come to know the woman well. She was a Balin specialist, an emerging field as far as humans were concerned. “Is Ro up for a little chat?”

“His English is a bit broken,” Maggie told them. “And I’m not sure he’s back to his old self yet,” she grumbled, shooting him a glare.

Dr. Wen asked her to leave while they examined Ro, so she shook his hands free and skipped out of reach when he made a grab for her.

“Maggie!” he croaked as loud as he could.

She stuck out her tongue before pushing the door open and stepping into the corridor, gratified to hear his heart monitor ratchet up. Served him right.

While the professionals were with Ro and Maggie was outside, Kez came down the hall towards her.

“Is he alright?” he asked, worried.

Maggie still held a grudge for the things he had said to her, but every time she saw how worried he was about Ro, she forgave him a little more. But only a little. They would have to slug it out too one day.

“He’s awake, he’s talking, though he can’t remember all his English. He’s not up to room temperature yet, the doctor’s just checking him over, I guess to see if it’s safe to continue this time,” Maggie filled him in.

He grunted in acknowledgment. He couldn’t enter the room without the code so he had to wait until the doctor was done too. He crossed his arms and took up a station leaning against the wall next to Maggie. She almost thought he would say something, but he didn’t. He evidently hadn’t forgiven her either.

After a few more minutes, the doctor came out. She said they were going to keep Ro where he was for now, hoping his body was at the right temperature to only release a little of the drug at a time and process it through his damaged organs while giving them time to slowly heal. They would keep an eye on him, and should be able to bring him up to a higher temperature the next day, which would wake him up more and hopefully give him his English back.

Maggie and Kez thanked Dr Wen and the nurse, and then went back into the room. Ro jumped when he saw Maggie again, but he restrained himself when he saw Kez. Maggie took her seat at Ro’s side, holding his hand and getting comfortable. Ro pointed at her and said something in Balin. Kez scoffed but Ro insisted.

Kez rolled his eyes and turned to her. “He wants me to tell you not to leave him ‘in pretty English’, he says.”

Maggie swallowed her first reaction. Her heart pulsed with love and sympathy for Ro – she knew she was making him feel bad – but she had to stay strong. What he did was serious, and she couldn’t promise him they were okay. They needed to get to the bottom of it first. She didn’t want to break up, but it depended on him.

“I’m not going to leave him while he’s in hospital. When he gets out, we’re going to talk. I’ve already told him that,” she said, her eyes flicking to Ro.

He groaned, shifting towards her like he was going to press the issue, but Kez broke in in Balin, and proceeded to give him a carefully restrained chewing out. Maggie didn’t bother trying to understand, she was happy to be a spectator.

She could tell Kez wanted to yell at Ro just as much as she did, but he was controlling himself. He stood at the foot of Ro’s bed with his claws gripping the base board and growled out one measured sentence at a time. Ro started off trying to argue back, but by the end of it he had given up and let himself be told off. Maggie thought Kez was probably saying a lot of what she wanted to say, about how stupid he was for doing that to himself and how much he had scared them.

By the end of it, Kez was rubbing his head, and it sounded like he was losing his words too, so he finished with “It’s too cold. I’ll be back tomorrow,” and left.

Maggie looked at Ro. He looked pretty dejected. He was still holding her hand, but with his other one he was just scratching his thigh and tracing the thread of the blanket.

“Sorry,” he said again, his voice hollow.

“I can’t say it’s okay yet,” Maggie replied.

“I only wanted to be good.”

“I love you the way you are naturally,” she told him. “You should have discussed it with me. You risked your life, your job, your home. And you were a total asshole on top of it all. But I don’t want to talk about it now. Focus on getting better,” she said, patting his leg.

“You are… worth the risk… to me,” he told her, his brow furrowed in concentration as he struggled to put the right words together.

For a suspended moment, they just looked at each other, but Maggie couldn’t give in. He had hurt her too much. She brought his hand to her lips and kissed it. “I love you,” she said. That much at least was true.

He smiled weakly, as if he knew it was no guarantee. “I love you too.”

“Do you want anything? I don’t mind getting it for you,” she said, getting to her feet. She thought they should take a moment, break the tension and get back onto a more even keel.

Ro looked around, and she saw his lips move as he licked over his dental ridges. “Choba?” he asked.

Maggie laughed. “Of course. Coming right up.”

Chapter 32

It turned out the nurses were ahead of him. They wanted him to drink four pints of choba that day, because while his body was happy to hibernate through the cold, the choba colonies in him would have died off without being replaced.

When Maggie asked about it, it turned out choba actually was a necessary part of a Teissian diet. It kept their scales supple, so without it, their scales would harden, crack, and eventually peel off, essentially flaying the person alive over a period of months or even years, until they died from infection. It sounded a bit like leprosy to Maggie, but the nurses assured her it was a simple nutritional deficiency with an easy fix. Fatal cases were extremely rare since even a small amount of choba would keep the person going, but the lesions left permanent scars that could affect the person’s mobility as scales never grew back.

Ro told her he had never seen or heard of that happening to anyone since choba grew everywhere on Teiss. When they brought him a plate of colourful velvety cubes for his desert, he was over the moon. The nurses wanted to replenish every kind of choba in his body, and had brought him a selection of every colour. For a Balin, he said, such an array of coloured choba would have been worth a fortune and was a once-in-a-lifetime treat.

He held out the pink one. “This one is mine,” he said, and popped it in his mouth with a wink. The consistency made Maggie think of Turkish delight that had been frayed all over. As he said that, she did think that his colours didn’t look as bright as usual, and his scales looked dryer and ashy, the lines between the individual scales showing whiter. She hadn’t noticed before because of the dim light, and because the change had happened gradually while she had been sitting with him over the past four days.

After he ate and drank and went to the bathroom by himself, stumbling a little in the cold but assuring her he was fine, the doctors risked turning the room temperature up another couple of degrees. His English improved after that, but it wasn’t back to where it had been. He said he had a headache but that it wasn’t bad. He kept drinking his choba, which was delivered barely lukewarm and cooled to room temperature as he drank it, but he said he didn’t mind.

Maggie had brought him some clothes and his toiletries from his apartment when she had first started staying there, so she helped him get cleaned up. He rinsed his mouth out with something foamy, and she took over wiping his scales down with oil when he got tired, letting him slump against her. He sat on the toilet with the lid down and his head against her stomach while she moved the cloth slowly over him, making sure to do a good job, though she wasn’t sure what really constituted a good job. She looked at it kind of like she was polishing him.

He never objected to her touching him, but she supposed it wasn’t anything she hadn’t touched before. She almost half-wondered if he was trying to seduce her into staying with him by having her do this, or if he really was too tired to do it himself. When the only places left were between his legs, she nudged him and gave him the cloth back, leaving the bathroom. She was his girlfriend but not his nurse, and until she knew where they were headed in the long-run, she didn’t want to touch him there. It was too tied up with what had happened. Everything was still too unclear to cross that line, at least for her.

He didn’t like her going home at night, but she wasn’t allowed to stay outside of visiting hours. He clung to her hand and she had to promise to come back. He obviously wasn’t back to his old self, but she knew he needed to sleep. He was exhausted just from the little activity he’d had. They hadn’t spoken anymore about their relationship. Maggie wouldn’t do that to him until he was strong enough to handle it, and he evidently didn’t want to hear it. She was his girlfriend for now, and he was happy to keep it that way. He gave her a list of things to bring from this apartment, including clothes and things to entertain him.

And that was the pattern the rest of his stay followed. Maggie arrived at ten and left at seven. They gave Ro Balin food to eat and lots of colourful choba so he was happy, but he did get bored. They warmed him up little by little until he was back to his old self as far as Maggie could tell, but he still got tired quickly. The nurses asked Maggie to take him for walks around the medical centre, so twice a day they would link arms and take a leisurely stroll around, though the building was small and there wasn’t really anywhere they could go. He wasn’t allowed outside because it was too warm. The doctor insisted on keeping Ro’s room cool to prevent him going into heat naturally, because it would be a stress his body just did not need at that time. 68 degrees was his maximum.

He had to stay in hospital while they monitored his recovery. They wanted to make sure he hadn’t done any permanent damage to his heart, and that his bleeding hadn’t resulted in a clot anywhere. He seemed normal to Maggie, though without his usual bounce, but it always brought her back to earth to hear the list of things that were still wrong with him, and that could still go wrong. Most of the time it felt like they were just hanging out, that they didn’t actually have any problems. The difficult conversations were on hold, that all waited outside. Inside Maggie and Ro could just… be. Like every day at work, together morning, noon and night.

Kez visited every day as well, able to stay longer and longer as the room’s temperature was brought up. He stopped berating Ro, and since Maggie’s party-trick Balin was not good enough to follow or contribute to the conversation, she stepped out and left them alone, getting coffee from the vending machine. Sometimes when she came back to the room she could hear them laughing from outside and it put a smile on her face.

Finally, Ro was deemed well enough to leave. Kez had passed a message to Vig to get Ro’s apartment isolated from the climate control system for the rest of the building and instead set to 66 degrees, where Ro was ordered to keep it for the next three months. After that he had to come back to be checked over, and only then would he be given the all-clear to go back to work. If his test results came back good enough, he would be given an appointment with the endocrinologist to discuss managing his heat cycles in future. They weren’t sure how his body would react to the hormonal changes after what he’d been through.

Maggie helped him pack up everything she had brought him from his flat, and all the medication and leaflets he had been given, ready to go. She felt better knowing that the medical centre was less than a ten minute walk from Ro’s building. Nevertheless, they both knew what was supposed to happen once they got back to his flat. Ro sat on the bed and watched her as if he didn’t want to leave. Maggie avoided his eyes, unable to push away everything she had to say to him anymore because she knew she was going to need those arguments soon. She didn’t want to fight and she didn’t want to break up, but they needed to be honest with each other, and she didn’t know if he would be.

When she was finished, looking around the room and sticking her head into the bathroom to check for any forgotten items, Ro stood up and took the bag off her, shouldering it as if it was nothing though it probably weighed more to him than it did to her after his week of bed rest.

She tried to give him a reassuring smile, but he looked like he was heading down death row.

“Come on, let’s go say goodbye to the nurses,” Maggie said, and they left the room behind them.

They both thanked all the staff who had looked after them, and asked for their thanks to be passed on to Dr Wen who was with another patient at the time. When they pushed through the doors into the outside world, the difference in temperature hit them. Maggie knew to expect it, but Ro staggered.

“You okay?” Maggie checked.

Ro nodded, and she held back a sigh. If he shut down again, and shut her out, there was only one way this conversation was going to go. They went back to his apartment in silence, Ro following her which seemed out of order, but she had been coming and going from there a lot more recently than he had. She hadn’t been back to her own apartment in almost a week, and she still had his keys. She unlocked the external door and summoned the elevator, and he didn’t comment.

She turned on the switch next to the elevator to activate the motion-sensitive wall sconces, and made her way to his door. She no longer had to look at the numbers as she passed or count doors. She got the door open and flicked on the lights, dim as they were. Ro was wearing his lenses for the journey over from the medical centre so they wouldn’t bother him.

He closed the door and threw the bag onto the sofa, looking at the floor. She leant against the wall, facing him.

“So,” she began. No sense pretending it wasn’t coming. “Why did you do it?”

Ro sat on the sofa. “You know why,” he replied.

“That’s not good enough. You can’t give me any half answers this time. I need you to tell me the truth,” Maggie said. She was surprised by how much anger she still had in her.

Ro sighed deeply. “I took it because you wanted to have sex when I wasn’t able.”

“So Kez was right, it’s my fault?” Maggie felt hollow.

“It was my decision,” Ro said.

“Because you didn’t include me in it!” Maggie found herself shouting. “It was a decision we could have made together!” She needed him to understand what it had done to her to be locked out of everything he was thinking and feeling and doing. “I asked you a dozen times what was wrong with you!”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t just say you’re sorry! God, can’t you see what you did? You almost died! In my arms!”

“Maggie,” he stopped her, his voice deep and calm and defeated as he looked at her. “If you’re breaking up with me, I don’t need to be yelled at first. I get it. You can just go.”

It was like a slap to the face. “Don’t you care?” she asked.

“Of course I care. I love you. But I’m not enough for you and now you know it. I’m never going to be able to change that. So… I don’t see what I can do. What’s the point of this fight?”

“I’m giving you a chance to explain.”

“I explained.”

“I’m giving you a chance to change my mind!” she wailed, striding to the couch and grabbing the arm next to the empty seat, looking at him. “I want you to change my mind.” She felt like shaking him.

“How?” he said.

“Was it really just for sex?” she asked.

He shrugged.

“I never asked you for that! Ro-” She cut herself off, pushing her hand through her hair. “I didn’t understand, okay? I know what I said that time, before you started taking it, but I didn’t know… I didn’t know you can only have sex when you’re in heat. I know it was stupid and I should have realised but I didn’t, okay? I only got it when you were already in hospital, Vig explained it to me. But you didn’t tell me!”

“How was I supposed to tell you that?” Ro almost yelled, finally showing some emotion. He didn’t get up but he turned to her, one hand on the cushion between them. “You thought you had a full male, I was supposed to correct that? Say ‘No, sorry, actually you have to wait?’ As if you would have done that! This planet is full of human men you could have gone to instead of me. I had to do something.” His hand brushed over his crest quickly before he made it into a fist and lowered it to his lap. “I already can’t give you children,” he added, almost as an afterthought.

Maggie’s jaw dropped. That had come out of nowhere. “You don’t know if I want children. You never asked me,” she said, but she sighed. It was an important point and she shouldn’t brush it off. “I’m not thinking about kids, Ro. If we want them later, we can talk about adopting or something. But that’ll be in ten years’ time, not now. And you should have just told me how you felt,” Maggie replied, quieter. “You didn’t have to drug yourself. You’re wrong about me. I would have waited. I wouldn’t have gone to anyone else. I want you, you are a full male.”

He snorted, looking away. “Alright, you would have waited. How long? A week, two? A few months? Balin heats are once a year, or they’re meant to be. You’re telling me you would have been happy with that? Satisfied?”

“Maybe, if you had given me the choice. We could have talked about it together. And I can’t believe you think that about me. I would never have cheated on you. I care about you for more than just sex. I love who you are.”

“Maybe you would have done it, but you wouldn’t have been happy, not forever. You would have looked at me like I was an invalid and I don’t need that from you. I lived my whole life that way and I came to this planet to escape that.”

“So you thought killing yourself was going to make me happy?” she said, amazed. “Really?”

His mouth tightened. “I thought I would have more warning when it was too much and I would be able to stop in time.”

“Well, that didn’t happen.”

“No, it didn’t.”

For a moment neither of them knew what to say next, they just stared at each other.

“For the record, I hated what you turned into when you were on that stuff. You were a real dick,” Maggie filled in.

“Noted,” he said. “I don’t think you have to worry about that now.”

Maggie let out a long breath and moved to sit on the coffee table next to where his legs stretched out. “Ro, do you want to break up?”

“No!” he said, his hand snapping out to grab hers.

“Me neither,” she replied, turning her hand to his. “But I need you to understand what you did to me. I can’t be with someone who lies to me, okay?”

“I-”

He looked like he was going to deny it, and Maggie shot him a look.

“Okay,” he folded.

“You have to be honest with me. You have to include me. No more hiding things you think I’m not going to like, okay? You clearly don’t know me as well as you think you do if you think I’m going to want to change you. Give me a chance to prove that I really do love you just as you are,” she told him, bringing the back of his hand up to her cheek.

 “Okay,” he said, but she could tell he wasn’t all-in, he didn’t believe her.

“I’m going to prove it to you, Ro,” she insisted.

“How?” he asked, his eyes flicking between hers, trying to get to the heart of her.

“Time. Just time,” she said. “But if you ever self-medicate again, I’m gone. I’m out the door the same day. Anymore of that stuff, risking your life, trying to make yourself better, and I will leave you. I’m not kidding. Okay?”

“Yes, no more,” he agreed.

“And no more secrets. Those are my terms.”

“Okay.”

“Okay.” She let out a breath, the vice around her heart releasing. “I’m sorry I made you feel inadequate. You’re not. It was an accident and a mistake and I take back anything I ever said or did to make you feel that way. You’re perfect. You’re the best man I’ve ever met. You make me so happy, and if you can’t have sex all the time, we’ll work around it. I don’t care as long as I have you. It would break my heart not to be with you.”

She looked at him to see how he was taking her words, and he opened his arms for her. She gratefully moved onto his lap, his arms feeling so good when they closed around her. She felt like she was finally safe again.

“Thank you,” he said.

She hesitated, but it was only fair. “Do you have any terms for me? Anything you want me to do or not do? Anything you want to change? Remember you’re being honest now. If you have a deal-breaker, I can handle it.”

“Hmm…” He thought about it while Maggie waited in suspense. “Just come to me first,” he said. “Give me a chance to do something about it if you’re dissatisfied or upset. Let me know.”

“I can do that,” she replied. She wrapped her arms around his neck, one hand stroking the back of his head. She tucked her head into his neck and he pulled her closer. “I was so scared, Ro. Really,” she whispered.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered back, kissing her hair.

She pulled back enough to look at his face. “Are we alright now?” she murmured. God, she wanted the answer to be yes. She just wanted to go back to how they had been, put it all behind her and forget it had ever happened. She didn’t want to be angry or upset anymore. She just wanted him to make her laugh while they cuddled in front of the TV watching cooking shows.

“I hope so,” Ro replied, looking at her as if it was her decision.

“Good,” she said, kissing him lightly. “Welcome home. I missed you.”

She kissed him again, letting him rock her as their lips learned each other all over again.

Chapter 33

Three Months Later.

Maggie and Ro sat in the waiting room at the medical centre. Ro’s last appointment had confirmed that all signs indicated he was back to normal. His choba colonies were all replenished, which was a visual Maggie didn’t want to dwell on for too long. He had the doctors’ permission to turn the temperature in his apartment back up if he wanted to.

The appointment they were waiting for now was with the endocrinologist. They wanted to see if the drug had done any lasting damage to his hormone centres, but they only way they could test that was to turn the heat up and let him go into heat naturally. The fact that he had a human girlfriend who wanted to share his heat with him made things a little more complicated. Maggie could be at risk if his hormones had been screwed up and went into overdrive, making him aggressive again. She knew he wouldn’t hurt her – he hadn’t after almost a week of poisoning himself – so she was pretty sure the doctors just didn’t want to be liable if she got hurt.

They wouldn’t be doing any tests today. They were just there to talk about their ‘options’. As far as Maggie understood it, Ro could keep the heat down, get signed off work for another three months, and not trigger his heat; or he could turn the heat up and trigger it on purpose; or he could do neither, go back to work and put his apartment back on the building’s climate control, and see what happened.

Whatever he did at home, Maggie knew Ro wanted to get back to work. Being trapped in his apartment had driven him as mad as the drugs, maybe even made him worse. It was a small apartment and he was on doctor’s orders not to go outside except in an emergency. All his food had to be delivered. He had liked soap operas and dramas before, but there were limits.

Maggie had basically moved in. He needed her to keep him company as much as she could or he really would have snapped. She had gone back to work the day after he had been released from hospital as she no longer had grounds for compassionate leave, but she went straight to his apartment after work. She went back to her own only once or twice a week for clean clothes, but she had spares of everything else she needed slowly spreading through Ro’s flat. He didn’t mind, he didn’t have much, and he said he liked to see her stuff in his home.

She loved it. She preferred being with him than going home. After three months, she couldn’t imagine living separately again, and she also didn’t see the point in paying rent on a place she was never in. They hadn’t talked about it since so much had hinged on his recent test results, but they had talked around the idea of them maybe looking for a place in the city. Ro seemed to think it was time he vacated his apartment and let someone else have it. Maggie had been scoping out houses near the DETI building that had basements that could be converted into their bedroom, preferably with one of the new Teissian shops or restaurants nearby. She’d found a few she could like, but she hadn’t shown him yet. She knew he didn’t want to commit to anything until they knew what to expect from his heats.

Maggie was itching to know too. She wouldn’t pressure him, but she really hoped he decided to throw caution to the wind, crank the temperature up in his flat and trigger his heat, like, soon. It had been three months. Three months of living with him in close quarters, and she had instituted a ban on all sexual activity until they knew. She didn’t want to accidentally trigger anything in him, and for the first month or so, she had still felt weird about it knowing he wouldn’t get off even if she did. But for the last month, it hadn’t bothered her so much.

They kissed. Of course they kissed. They kissed a lot. They cuddled on the sofa, sprawling around with their legs in each other’s laps as they watched TV and ate popcorn. They slept in the same bed and more often than not that meant more cuddling, and Maggie wouldn’t have traded it for the world. She loved it. She loved the way Ro rolled up behind her, tugging her in against his body as he said goodnight as if that was just the way of things, obvious, where he belonged. Or if not that, when she woke up with her head on his chest, or her face pressed awkwardly into his ribs from chasing him across the bed in her sleep, his arm over her shoulders.

And they kissed good morning and goodnight and hello and goodbye. And when one of them did something cute or silly, or looked sad or stubbed their toe. And there were long kisses too, when she twisted to straddle his thighs, and deep kisses when he pushed her down against the arm of the sofa. They hadn’t started out with the fire of need that they had recently ended up with, sticky like toffee that she couldn’t quite pull away from. Not when every one made her hot, made her wonder if maybe it would be okay this time to just-

Three months was a long time.

Ro had argued against her ban. He said he was fine to touch her, go down on her. He said he was happy to do it, more than happy, he wanted to do it, but she said no. She wanted the test results first. She knew when she had first said it, she had been being petty, trying to punish him, teach him a lesson about consequences. She had also been trying to prove something, that she could be with him without sex, that she didn’t need it if it turned out they couldn’t have it. She wanted to prove that to him, and she wanted to test herself too. She needed to know she could do it.

She was going to crack soon though. She knew that as much as she loved him, because of how much she loved him, she needed him to touch her. She needed relief. She needed to get her hands on him, feel those scales running under her palms… It felt like all she thought about anymore was sex. She had dirty thoughts every time he undid a button on his shirt, or bent down to get something out of the oven. She was starved for him.

And he wasn’t helping. Every now and then he tried to tempt her out of it, kissing her for too long, running his hands up and down her arms, or under her shirt. She had told herself it was alright for him to massage her breasts through her bra – that wasn’t sex. But she had called a stop when he started unbuttoning her blouse. Any further than that and she wouldn’t have been able to stop.

She had to touch herself a lot, when she was alone, in the bathroom. She usually used the shower as a cover. She thought he knew full well what she was doing, but neither of them said anything. She didn’t feel guilty because it was always to thoughts and fantasies of him that she was getting off, and sooner or later they’d be able to do those things in reality.

A couple of nights before they had gone in to get his tests done, when he was thoroughly stir-crazy and she felt like she had two electric wires of frustration and desperation running through her body that sparked whenever he touched her, he had caught her wrists and held them against her stomach. She hadn’t really noticed as she reclined against his chest, since their hands usually wandered over each other. Then he had told her, in an easy, conversational tone, everything he looked forward to doing to her during his next heat.

Her body had flamed instantly, her core going soft and liquid, and she had wiggled uncomfortably. She’d tugged on her hands, but he hadn’t let her go, obviously thinking he’d found the loop hole in her no sex rule. Maybe he was trying to give her a taste of her own medicine. She hadn’t told him to stop, captivated by what he was telling her, until by the end of it her thighs were split over his leg and she had been trying to grind herself to a climax as she pictured every dirty detail he gave her.

So she was looking forward to this conversation with the doctor about when his next heat might be.

Maggie squeezed Ro’s hand, having slotted their fingers together as best she could, and nodded to him as the receptionist waved to them through the window into the hall.

“I think this is us,” she murmured.

The man stuck his head in the door. “Ro? Dr Rivera will see you now.”

Maggie smiled and grabbed her bag, butterflies in her stomach. On the one hand, they might be about to get the okay to run home and tear each other’s clothes off. On the other hand, the doctor could tell them Ro’s hormones were going to be permanently out of whack and they could never have sex again.

She kept hold of Ro’s hand for the short walk down the corridor to the open exam room door. Inside, a middle-aged woman with dark hair and glasses sat at a desk, looking at a computer screen. She smiled when she saw them and gestured to the two chairs.

“Come in, take a seat,” she said.

Maggie and Ro closed the door behind them and arranged themselves in the chairs nervously.

“So I understand we’re here to talk about Ro’s next heat, in the context of his recovery, and any dangers associated with it,” Dr Rivera began, looking between the two of them.

Maggie nodded. She didn’t know how much talking to do. She wanted to do a lot, but it was Ro’s health and body, so she figured he should take the lead. It didn’t look like he was particularly keen though.

“Well, I see in your file, Ro, that all your tests look normal, and you’ve been referred to me to get you back into a regular cycle again.”

This time, Ro nodded.

“I also understand that you’re hoping for more frequent heats than Balin experience on Teiss, is that right?” she asked, her eyes flicking to Maggie, who she gave a smile of acknowledgement.

“That’s right,” Ro answered.

“Okay then,” she said cheerily. “I should say, every other Balin who has come to see has asked me how to stop their heats, not bring them on. I know the Californian weather is warmer than what you’re used to on Teiss. You’re the first Balin with a human partner to ask for my help.”

“I just want Ro to be healthy,” Maggie jumped in. “Everything else is second place. I don’t want to do anything that’s going to put him at risk.”

“Oh no, neither do I,” the doctor laughed. “We won’t let that happen.”

Maggie couldn’t find it in her to laugh, but she did find herself relaxing and warming to Dr Rivera. The woman wasn’t behaving as if Ro was in danger at all.

Dr Rivera continued. “Let me start off by saying, as far as your next heat is concerned, we won’t know what to expect until it’s over. The drug is out of your system and your body has recovered, but with hormone cycles like yours, there is a risk that your brain learned a new pattern, if you will. Your next heat might not be what you expect. There is the possibility of a hormonal imbalance resulting in another hospital stay, but I doubt it, to be honest. If it lasts more than five days, do give us a call, but unless you collapse or believe yourself to be a danger to others, it can probably be cared for at home. Am I right in thinking Maggie will be there to help?”

“Y-yes,” Maggie stuttered, though she didn’t know why. She steeled herself. “I’ll be there.”

“That’s good! Puts our minds at ease I think. If he was going to be alone with no one to check on him, we might suggest he checks in to the hospital for observation, especially if he wasn’t going to have any release during his heat to help his levels. With you there, we don’t have to worry about him fainting or anything like that,” the doctor said. “Ro, I’d like you to come in for some blood work as soon after your heat ends as you can, is that alright?”

“Yes, I can do that,” Ro agreed.

“Good, good. Now, do you want to talk about your long-term plans? Some of my patients want to block their heats entirely, but I always recommend at least one heat a year. I think two puts less strain on the system. I always try to find a balance between a body under stress from too many heats, and a body under stress from too many heats being repressed. But that won’t be the case here, I’m thinking.”

Again, she looked between the two of them as if she was genuinely happy for them, but Maggie was starting to wonder how much of it was scientific curiosity.

“Why don’t you tell me how often you’re hoping to go into heat?” she said.

Maggie looked at Ro. She knew what she wanted, but she would leave it up to him. It was his body.

He scratched his throat nervously. “Once a month…” he began, making Maggie stiffen in surprise. That was a lot. “Would be hard…” he finished, looking at Maggie almost guiltily. Ah, so he was still thinking of her. “As often as possible,” he said. “Safely,” he tacked on the end to cut off any more lectures from Maggie about looking after himself.

“Okay,” Dr Rivera said. “Is that the same for you, Maggie?”

“I’d like it to be more than once a year, if possible,” she said, shooting Ro an apologetic glance. They hadn’t talked about numbers like this, and it seemed they both felt like it was sensitive ground to be navigating. “Anything more than that and I’d be happy. It would be more than I’d expected.”

“Okay, well, that’s perfectly doable, if Ro’s happy with that,” Dr Rivera said, looking at Ro, who nodded. “I would advise against once a month,” she told him. “Most Balin naturally have one heat roughly every three months here. That’s much more than they’re used to, but it sounds like a good amount for you two, and Ro wouldn’t need any medication if that’s how his cycles settle. It’ll take a while for them to become regular however, and I do want to continue monitoring them until they do. I don’t want to put him on any medication until we’ve established a baseline. In the meantime, I would encourage you to have one as soon as possible so we know whether they’re healthy or not after his overdose.”

Maggie and Ro nodded along wordlessly. It was silly really, when they were discussing - and this stranger was effectively dictating - the terms of their sex life, but Maggie for one was intimidated by the woman’s expertise. Whatever she said would go, Maggie thought. She would not suggest that she and Ro play fast and loose with the doctor’s suggestions.

“So you can either set your climate control to its regular setting, or 79 degrees will bring on a heat gently. 82 degrees or above will bring it on less gently,” she told them. “I’ll clear you to return to work, unless you want to wait a week if you plan on triggering the heat soon.” She looked between them for an answer.

“Um…” Maggie looked at Ro.

“Wait, I think,” he said. Maggie smiled.

“Okay, no problem. Let me know how it goes and I’ll see you in about a week. If everything goes well and his blood work looks good afterwards, I’d suggest just seeing when your next heat comes on its own. Don’t try to trigger it, no matter how tempted you might be,” she said, her voice taking on a teasing tone almost like an audible wink. “I’d only get involved now if they’re coming too close together. If you’re not happy with them, if they’re not frequent enough for you, please do come back, but I’d give them until the end of the year for a pattern to emerge.

“In the meantime, I’d be happy to discuss alternatives to penetrative sex, such as oral and manual. Maggie, if you have no previous experience with sex toys, I have a few pamphlets and online resources you can look at.”

Maggie choked. “No, that’s fine,” she squeezed out through her tight throat, which had locked shut in mortification. She didn’t think they needed any help when it came to alternatives, and the truth was, she’d already thought about whether she’d like to bring toys into the bedroom. She wasn’t opposed to the idea, but she knew she didn’t want anything but Ro going inside her. A human-shaped dildo would just remind her what she was missing, and she didn’t think Ro would like it either.

“Alright, well in the long-term, it might be worth considering moving out of California. A cooler climate would make Ro’s heats more predictable, though of course then you’re battling against the cold’s effect on your wakefulness.”

Maggie hadn’t thought of that, and she saved the idea to look at later. Both of their jobs were at DETI, and she didn’t think either of them would want to leave, but they could look at other branches perhaps if it came to that.

“Thank you, we’ll keep it in mind, but certainly for now I think we’re staying here,” Maggie said.

“Just keep me posted,” Dr Rivera said. She stood up to shake their hands, signalling the end of the appointment, so they thanked her and said goodbye. Maggie had no more questions, especially knowing they would be seeing her again in a week, or perhaps sooner, with more information about what to expect from Ro’s heats now.

Maggie slipped her hand back into Ro’s as she squinted in the sun outside. “So, you’re a free man now.”

Ro took a deep breath as if enjoying the fresh air and sun, humming in agreement.

“Once a month, huh?” Maggie prompted, bumping his arm with hers.

“I wanted to give you as much as I could. But maybe I shouldn’t have to bothered. Once a year? You must not be very interested in me,” he said, but Maggie could tell he was teasing.

She scoffed indignantly. “I am very interested, Mister,” she said. “I was just… bracing myself. I didn’t want to put any pressure on you.”

“Mmm, I know,” he said, bringing her hand up to kiss the back of it. “Thank you. But I want you more than once a year.” He looked at her and even under his shaded lenses, Maggie could see the twinkle in his eye.

“If it happens, it happens. I’ll take whatever you dish out. But for now, let’s celebrate! I’ve heard of salsa club that’s supposed to be good,” she said, skipping in front of him and wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

“What’s salsa?” he said.

“It’s a dance,” she replied.

“Oh no.”

“Oh yes.”

“I think I’m relapsing. I don’t feel well. I should go home,” he said, peering back at the dorms speculatively.

Maggie pouted. “Fine, I’ll go by myself. Find someone else to dance with when I get there.”

Ro narrowed his eyes at her, and she waited. He hissed in defeat. “Only slow dances.”

“I don’t think there are slow dances in salsa, but don’t worry,” she said, giving him a quick peck, thinking about his hands on her hips as she teased him on the dancefloor. “I promise you’ll enjoy it.”