Suddenly a Bride Read online

  Richie shrugged. “Didn’t anyone ever tell you it’s polite to share?”

  Before she had time to back away, he reached out to touch her arm. She felt the heat surge through her and strike at his hand.

  He yelped in surprise and stared at his hand which was red. “What the…?” Looking from her to Travis, Richie showed him the burn mark.

  Caitlyn stared at his hand in disbelief. What just happened?

  “All you did was touch her,” Travis said, glancing at her.

  Caitlyn took a deep breath. “No, he didn’t just touch me. He was overstepping his boundaries. I’m married, and that means he has no right to touch me in a sexual way.” She deducted that it had something to do with her bond to Chris. He said on his world once a couple bonded, no one could interfere with their connection. Lifting her pad and pencil, she asked, “So, do you want to order or what?”

  The two men hesitated but finally gave their orders without any more suggestive comments. It was fun to watch them actually mumble and avoid eye contact with her whenever she got near them. After months of putting up with their slimy treatment, the attitude adjustment was long overdue.

  When the lunch rush cleared, Sandy sat next to her so they could eat their meals. “Caitlyn, the strangest thing happened to me a half hour ago. Travis and Richie called me ma’am on the way out the door. What did you do to whip them into shape?”

  Caitlyn picked up her french fry, dipped it into the ketchup, and shot Sandy a mischievous grin. “Maybe they’re learning that if they treat women like sex objects, they’ll get burned.”

  Sandy chuckled. “We can only hope.” After drinking some coffee, she asked, “So how did the house hunting go yesterday?”

  Caitlyn picked up her cheeseburger and bit into it. “Great! We found a really nice house with a bay window and a breakfast bar. The realtor is going to call us when she hears back from the owners to see if we can buy it.”

  “Really? That’s great! But do you have money for a down payment?”

  “$25,000. When Chris came here, that’s how much got transferred into his bank account. We merged our accounts together, and I have to tell you my $500 looked pathetic next to his.”

  “Yeah, but you just got out of debt.”

  “And I never want to get back into debt ever again.” She shook her head. “It’s insane that it’s so easy to get into it but tough as nails to get out of it.” After taking another bite of the cheeseburger, she moaned. “Did Jack change the recipe or something? This is really good. I mean, really, really good.”

  “I don’t think so.” Sandy watched her as she finished the cheeseburger. “This is weird. I’ve never seen you eat food with that much…enthusiasm.”

  “It is weird. It’s like all of the sudden, I have to eat all the time. I’m going to order another cheeseburger. You want one?”

  Glancing at her chicken sandwich, she shook her head. “You want more food? Aren’t you supposed to be going through morning sickness or something?”

  “I know. I should, but I’m not. I’ve never felt so good in my entire life.” She went to the door and opened it so she could peer into the kitchen where Jack was cleaning up from the lunch rush. “Can I have another cheeseburger?”

  “We have another customer already?” he asked, looking surprised.

  “No. This is for me.”

  “Did you drop your other one on the floor?”

  She groaned. “No. I ate it. It’s so good I want another one.”

  “You’re kidding?”

  “About what? It being good or wanting another one?”

  With a shrug, he said, “As long as you’re buying it, I don’t care. I’ll have it out in a few minutes.”

  “Good.” As she closed the door, she turned and spotted the pie slices on the counter. She decided to get one and then decided maybe two was better.

  Sandy laughed. “You’ve got to be kidding. You plan to have another cheeseburger and two slices of pie?”

  “You’re right.” Caitlyn retrieved another slice of pie and sat next to her friend. “There. That ought to keep me full until dinner.” Shooting her bewildered friend a cautionary look, she asked, “Not enough?”

  “This has to be because of the pregnancy because you never eat that much at one time.”

  “You’re probably right.” She dug her fork into the chocolate silk pie. “You know, I should expect it. Chris is an alien. That means I’m carrying a baby that’s part alien, so I can’t expect this pregnancy to be like the ones women on this planet go through.” She ate a forkful of the pie and moaned again. “I swear, Jack’s food never tasted this good before.”

  The kitchen door swung open and Jack rolled his eyes. “You’re such a comedian, Caitlyn. Remind me to raise the prices on my menu now that the food is edible.”

  Caitlyn smiled. “I’ll miss you when I quit.”

  “You can always come by for a meal,” Sandy said.

  “If you do, make sure you go on and on about how great my food is and how I should be charging more for such fine cuisine,” Jack joked.

  “I’ll be sure to do that,” Caitlyn promised before she finished the slice of pie and took the plate with the cheeseburger on it.

  He shook his head. “Man, I never thought I’d ever see a woman inhale food like that.”

  “I can’t help it. This food is so good.” Caitlyn took a bite of the cheeseburger and sighed in contentment.

  “Okay. I’m actually scared,” Jack commented, stepping back. “Be sure you don’t eat everything in this place, alright?”

  “What? I’m not that bad.” Jack and Sandy exchanged amused looks and Caitlyn sighed. “I’m not. I’m just appreciating your talent, Jack.”

  He rolled his eyes. “Now I’ve heard it all. I’m going on a smoke break.”

  Once he went outside, Sandy sipped her coffee. “So, how did Chris like my gift?”

  “I haven’t put it on yet.”

  “What? Why not? Doesn’t it fit?”

  “It’s the right size. It’s just that when we came back from house hunting and talking to the realtor, we were exhausted and went to sleep.”

  Sandy picked up her sandwich. “I thought he had to have sex every six hours.”

  “That was before I got pregnant. Now that his prime directive has been met, he doesn’t need to do it all the time.”

  “You mean, you’re a newlywed, and you’re already skipping the sex?”

  “We had sex yesterday before we went over to my parents, so it wasn’t like we didn’t do it at all. I am enjoying that aspect of being married again.” With a grin, she added, “A lot.”

  “This is why I gave you bedroom clothes.”

  “I’ll wear it tonight. I promise.” She finished the cheeseburger and drank her soda. “You know, I’m surprised you’re so concerned about my sex life.”

  Sandy shrugged. “I like to live vicariously through you.”

  “You need a life,” she joked.

  “Don’t I know it.”

  Chuckling, she picked up a forkful of apple pie. “Oh! I almost forgot to tell you what my mom got us.”

  “You mean you and Chris, right?”

  “No. I mean me and you. She got us tickets to a rock concert that’s on the beach.”

  “You’re kidding.”

  “I wish I was.” She ate the bite of pie and shook her head. “I don’t know if I should ignore her or tell her off. If she didn’t want to acknowledge my marriage to Chris, then the least she could have done was skip the gift. Thankfully, I hid the so-called gift before he could see it.”

  “So, what’s the group?”

  Caitlyn told her before she finished up the pie and turned to the last slice. Finally, she was full enough to get through the rest of her shift, but to be on the safe side, she dug into the last slice.

  Sandy wiped her mouth when she was done eating. “Maybe we should go to the concert.”

  “I don’t know. Isn’t it wrong for me to use something that sh
ould have been for me and Chris but wasn’t?”

  “Tell him about the tickets and ask him. That’s the only way you won’t feel guilty if we go.”

  “I know my mom can be hard to deal with, but she’s outdone herself this time. This is worse than the number she slipped me for a good divorce lawyer when I married Randy. She didn’t think it was possible for someone to get married at eighteen and stay married.”

  “Yeah, but your dad laid into her on that one. He probably doesn’t even know she got the tickets.”

  “I don’t think he does. He hates shopping with her. She takes hours looking for a good deal.”

  Sandy finished her lunch and picked up her plate and gathered some of Caitlyn’s empty plates. “At least your dad is there to keep her from sending you another number for a divorce lawyer.”

  “True.”

  Man, her mom was going to flip if she gave birth in five months instead of eight, and judging by the way she wolfed her food down, she suspected the baby would be born sooner rather than later. She hoped women who’d been on Chris’ planet hadn’t experienced serious weight gain during pregnancy. With any luck, all the food she was eating would go directly to the child.

  Two women walked into the diner, signaling that their break was over. Caitlyn ate the rest of her pie and drank her soda as Sandy walked over to the booth where the women sat. She put the rest of the dishes into the kitchen by the dishwasher and headed out front to brew another pot of coffee.

  ***

  Chris was typing into his computer at work when the phone on his desk rang. It took him a moment to realize where the sound came from, and he quickly completed the sentence before he turned to the phone and picked it up.

  “Chris West speaking.”

  “Oh good. They got me to the right person,” came a woman’s voice.

  He frowned and turned from the computer so he could focus on the caller whose voice seemed familiar. “May I ask who’s calling?”

  “This is Caitlyn’s mom.”

  He straightened in his chair. “Hi, Mrs. Rogers. Is there something wrong?”

  She laughed. “No. Everything’s fine. Did you happen to see the little gift I got you and Caitlyn?”

  “No, not yet.” So far the only thing he’d seen was the microwave Lexie and Blake got him and Caitlyn. “I think she plans to show me the gifts tonight.” If memory served, she did promise to show him the one from Sandy anyway.

  Caitlyn’s mother sighed. “Leave it to my daughter to be secretive. It wouldn’t be the first time.”

  He wondered what she meant by that, but before he could ask, she continued.

  “I need you to keep a teeny tiny secret for me. Do you think you can do that for me, Chris?”

  Fidgeting in his chair, he asked, “You want me to keep a secret from Caitlyn?”

  “Only for a little while. You see, I gave her two tickets to a concert for her and Sandy to go to. Now, here’s the catch. The tickets aren’t real. Here’s my real gift to you two. I’m taking care of all the arrangements for a real wedding. It won’t be as wonderful as Lexie and the doctor’s, but you two naughty kids caught me by surprise so I have to get everything planned out on short notice.”

  “But Caitlyn doesn’t want a wedding like the one you’re talking about.”

  “Is that what she told you?”

  “Well…yes.”

  “And you believed her?”

  He adjusted his tie and cleared his throat. “Of course, I did.” Wasn’t he supposed to?

  Her mom laughed. “Oh, my poor Chris. You don’t know anything about women, do you?”

  “No, not really.” He might as well be honest about it.

  “Caitlyn wouldn’t say she wants a formal wedding because then it would be her idea, and women want their husbands to take the time to surprise them.”

  “They do?”

  “Yes. It’s how you show you love your wife.”

  “Okay.”

  “So those tickets will take Caitlyn to a section of the beach that I reserved for the wedding! All you have to do is get a tux and ring for the special day, and I’ll take care of the rest. But I won’t tell her it was my idea, and you don’t tell her about it. Then when she shows up, she’ll get to be a bride all over again. Isn’t that romantic?”

  He shrugged. Was it?

  “She’ll be thrilled, Chris. Trust me. I’m her mother. I know her better than you do.”

  “That’s true.” There was no sense in denying the obvious. “If it’ll make Caitlyn happy, then I want to do it.”

  “Good! But remember, you can’t tell her anything about it. It has to be a surprise. If she finds out, then she’ll be upset.”

  “I won’t say anything.”

  “Excellent! The wedding is in two weeks. Make sure you get the tux. Make it black. Nothing says tacky like a tux that’s not black. And I’ll help you with the ring when the time comes. This is going to be a lovely wedding.”

  “Um…where do I get a tux?”

  “Emerald Coast Formal Wear has a great selection of tuxes to choose from. I’ll call ahead and specify what tux you will be getting if it’ll save you some stress.”

  “Thank you, Mrs. Rogers. I’ll take you up on the offer.”

  “Think nothing of it, Chris. I have a friend who works there, so it’s easy to get these things done. I’ll email you the directions on how to get there.”

  After he gave her his work email address, he thanked her again and hung up, glad he could do something to surprise Caitlyn. He couldn’t wait to see her face when she saw what her mother had planned. Happy, he returned to work.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chris pulled up to the order menu at a fast food restaurant. “Are you sure you want that many milkshakes?” he asked into his cell phone.

  “Yes. I wanted to drink a milkshake at the diner, but the machine broke so Jack has to fix it,” Caitlyn replied. “I already ordered the pizzas so we’re good there.”

  “Okay. I’m almost at the window, so I have to go.”

  She thanked him and hung up.

  As the car in front of him drove forward, he pulled up to the menu and waited for the woman on the other end to say he could give his order whenever he was ready. Clearing his throat, he said, “I’d like ten milkshakes; two vanilla, four strawberry, four chocolate.”

  “Will there be anything else?” she asked.

  He glanced at the menu and saw the sundae. “I should get five sundaes. Let’s make two strawberry and three chocolate. That should be all.” He figured that proportionate to Caitlyn’s weight and the baby’s growth, the amount he ordered and the four large pizzas should be enough to get her through the night. It surprised him that her pregnancy was mirroring how pregnancies had been on his planet. He didn’t know what he thought would be different, exactly, but he figured there might be something unique about Earth women who carried Pandoran men’s children. But perhaps that was why the agency sent him here. The representative said he’d be compatible with a woman on this planet, and she was turning out to be right.

  When he drove up to the window, he counted the cash and handed it to the woman who instructed him to go to the next window. He shook his head. What a complex system to get food. One thing he did miss was being able to log into the files in the kitchen and tailor-make his meals. Here, the food had to be picked up at stores or at restaurants and then brought home. Some of it even had to be prepared. It made little sense to him. In some ways, Earth wasn’t utilizing its technology in the most efficient way. He hadn’t realized how far his planet had come in making life easier for everyone.

  But look at where that ease had gotten them. Women figured they no longer had to bother with carrying children and giving birth, especially since they had to take their chances on the gene matching. They preferred to specify the children they wanted down to the exact detail of their personalities, strengths, and how they looked.

  After a while, all the children being born seemed to be duplicates o
f each other since women wanted the same type of child—gifted leaders who would lead the way to further technological advancements. There were few people who pursued the creative arts or knew how to work with their hands.

  The idea of fiction, whether it was in things like books or movies, was probably the biggest surprise to him when he first got here. The value people put on sports and music was a second one. Then there were people who built things and grew crops with their own hands. Earth was full of variety, and one thing he looked forward to was seeing what his child would be like. Having no control over the genes, the child would be completely unique—something no machine could fully duplicate.

  If that variety meant he had to give up some things that made life easier on his world, then he was happy to do it. Smiling as he thought of Caitlyn and their child, he drove up to the second window and collected the milkshakes and sundaes in the cardboard containers the person handed him.

  “Having a birthday party for your kid?” the teenager asked.

  “No. This is for my wife. She’s going to have a baby,” he replied, unable to hide his excitement. A year ago, he didn’t think he’d say those words, and yet, here he was on his way home to a woman who was expecting his child. If life could get any better, he didn’t know how.

  The teen nodded. “Gotcha. When my mom was pregnant, she craved french fries, so I was bringing them home every night.”

  Chris’ eyebrows rose. “So it’s normal for a woman to eat a lot more than usual when she’s pregnant?”

  “Let’s just say they have the weirdest cravings. My mom dipped the fries into chocolate sauce.”

  The teen shuddered, but Chris didn’t see what was so weird about that. Chocolate was a great boost for energy, and right now, Caitlyn needed a lot of it. When the teen told him to come again, he figured that was his cue to leave, so he rolled up the window and drove out of the parking lot.

  When he arrived home, he parked into his spot. Another thing he was looking forward to was his new house. On his world, everyone lived alone in their assigned apartment. He hadn’t taken the time to think about how lonely the men on his world had become, but they had.