Star Side

Chapter 43

Stellar date (Earth Time): 07-10-2914

Gilrack's instincts continued to bubble near the surface. It came to the point where he point blank begged me to let him sleep in the observatory dome with me, which before the whole love confession thing I would have had no problem with. But now I had a seven-foot demon beast of wing and muscle that apparently had the hots for me watching me as I sleep, sooooo....

But after the millionth time of being dragged into his carrot-puke smelling den and cocooned in all his limbs till I was hot, sweaty, and either had to pee or eat a cow, I figured I had to make sacrifices somewhere. It was a miracle that Naomi and Levi hadn't caught Gilrack mid-abduction. That was the last thing I needed. I was so not ready to have that conversation with them, or mainly Levi.

Oh yes, Levi. He hadn't forgotten about me either. He gave me a week to 'think' about it (translation: freak out in my fish bowl while I madly painted some abstract mess that represented the psychedelic dream that had become my life). Then he cornered me at our favorite tree. He didn't even have the decency to bring me coffee before standing all alpha male in front of where I sat struggling to wake up after a night of on-and-off, alien-watched sleep.

"Jesus was able to come back from the dead in three days. Should be more than enough time for you to figure out whether to let me make out with you or not, and you've had seven."

I blinked blearily at him. "Aren't you Jewish?"

"Stay on topic, Jo."

"...Nurgh?"

He sighed like a preschool teacher facing the decimated classroom she'd have to clean and dropped to his haunches. He looked every bit the hoodlum doing the gangster squat, even with the white hairs. Space really did wonders for the skin.

"Love me," he said.

"Because being pushy got you so many places with me," I said.

"It's me, sweetheart. Half my life is aggression. And you know you can stop me."

I gave a weak smile. It was the closest he'd ever get to admitting that I could easily snap him like a pixie stick between my thighs. Though, with this new change of direction, he'd probably welcome the chance, and that sent my brain into all sorts of flip-flops. It didn't help that it'd become even harder for me to work out lately and that I could see visible muscle loss in my legs and arms, though heaven forbid I actually lose weight where I really wanted to lose it, like around my waist. You know, so I could actually have a lady-looking waist for once rather than the hunky rectangle I'd always been.

This train of thought led me to rubbing my eyes hard.

"I don't think I could be comfortable with the thought of being involved with you like...that."

I kept my hands on my eyes, afraid to look up at him.

"It's 'cause I'm old, isn't it?" he said.

"No!" Though it should. "To be honest, you look like you're in your late forties at most, and, well, I'm thirty-one. It's not that far."

The corner of his mouth twitched into a little smirk. "So it's all about the looks with you?"

"Well, you do have a devil-may-care kind of handsomeness."

"Thank you."

"I noticed you even shaved today. Good job, preparing to look your best to demand a girl love you."

The smirk struggled to stay put as the little twitch in his cheek that told me he was embarrassed popped up. I had never once seen Levi blush. I don't think his face even had the capillaries to do that.