My Alien's Obsession Read online

  My Alien’s Obsession

  Stasia Black

  Copyright © 2019 Stasia Black

  All rights reserved.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

  Cover Design by Covers by Christian

  Contents

  1. Juliet

  2. Shak

  3. Juliet

  4. Shak

  5. Juliet

  6. Shak

  7. Juliet

  8. Shak

  9. Juliet

  10. Juliet

  11. Shak

  12. Shak

  13. Juliet

  14. Shak

  15. Juliet

  16. Shak

  17. Juliet

  18. Shak

  19. Juliet

  20. Juliet

  21. Shak

  22. Juliet

  23. Shak

  24. Juliet

  25. Shak

  26. Juliet

  27. Shak

  28. Juliet

  Epilogue

  About Stasia Black

  Also by Stasia Black

  Chapter One

  Juliet

  “Hey Juliet,” Frank, the regular daytime barista says. He’s tall and lanky, with a whispy emo mustache that is not as attractive as he thinks it is. “You want your regular?”

  “Yep. But add an extra shot to the Americano.”

  “Late night partying?”

  Hmph. Only if arguing with my boyfriend until the wee hours of morning counts.

  “You seen Ana?” I ask. I look around the cute, hip little coffee shop but don’t see her. I come here a lot to study for the couple online classes I’m taking, trying to finally finish up my degree. “She texted me and Giselle to meet her here.” She said it was an emergency. “I thought she’d be here already.”

  The three of us have been friends since we were little kids and have somehow managed to stay connected through high school, through boyfriends and relationships, and through college. Sometimes we were closer than at other times, but recently when Giselle moved back to Sacramento for her new job, we’ve all become tighter than ever.

  Well, at least the two of them have. Sometimes I feel like a third wheel but I know it’s all my fault. I’m the one that’s pulled away over the past couple of years.

  “Haven’t seen anyone but you, Sunshine.” Frank leans his elbows on the counter and grins at me.

  “Aw, you begging for tips again, Frank? You know I always got you covered.”

  I add a tip to the purchase and swipe my card. I’m just about to turn to look for Ana again when I run into a wall.

  “Oh!”

  Not a wall. A guy. A really huge guy. Like NFL football player huge.

  I crane my head back to look up at his face. And then back a little more.

  Big. Gorgeous. Man.

  “Hi,” I squeak.

  He just stares down at me, his eyes such a light amber they’re almost golden. He doesn’t say a word.

  His brow furrows slightly, though, like he’s about to say something. And then he licks his lips, something I don’t think I would usually find sexy, but when he does it, it’s insanely hot.

  “Next!” Frank calls loudly.

  “Oh, sorry,” I mutter, finally dropping my eyes and getting out of the big guy’s way. My cheeks are on fire. Jesus, how long did I stand there just gaping up at him? I have a boyfriend and God knows my life is complicated enough. I don’t need to be inviting any more drama.

  After I get my Americano and add cream and sugar, I sit down at my favorite table by the bay window in the front.

  I glance towards the entryway but still no Ana or Giselle. Where the hell are they? I check my phone again to make sure I’m at the right place.

  Ana: SOS. Coffee Shop on 3rd. NOW. Very Important!

  I assumed this SOS was just as flaky as most of Ana’s usual Extremely Urgently Important messages but what if I’m wrong this time? What if something really has gone wrong? And I’ve just been here ogling sexy guys at the coffee shop?

  But she’s only 10 minutes late. I know I’m overreacting. It’s a bad tendency. I blame it on all the secrets I’m keeping.

  My eyes drift back over to the man with the huge shoulders and tight ass as he casually walks with a cronut and sits down at a nearby table, San Francisco Chronicle in hand. Huh. A guy who actually reads the paper instead of just being glued to his phone or laptop all the time?

  How does this guy not have a ring on his finger? I checked. Because I’m a horrible person. My boyfriend Robbie is too, arguably worse, but still.

  I look out the window at the vibrant street. Downtown Sacramento is always buzzing, especially in summer. People walk by in pairs or clumps, laughing and smiling with shopping bags or else walking with purpose like they know exactly where they’re going…

  And me? Where am I going? I look down into my Americano. This is so not what I ever imagined for myself. Twenty-six years old, stuck in a dead-end relationship, barely scraping by.

  Ugh, this is why I always have my laptop or my ereader with me whenever I come here. My daily life is usually too busy for any time to just sit around and think about shit and that’s the way I like it.

  I pull out my phone to text Ana and ask her where she is but the next second she bursts in through the coffee shop double doors, shoulder-length pink hair flying around her, in a black and white pinstripe dress and turquoise mary-janes. She glances around the coffee shop and then makes a beeline for my table. Giselle follows behind her at a much calmer pace. She waves at Frank and heads towards the counter to get coffee.

  That’s all the signal I need. This is just an ‘ Ana emergency.’ A.k.a. not a real one.

  “Juliet,” Ana says, her features grave as she sits down beside me. It must be serious. She’s only wearing half of her usually dramatic makeup and doesn’t even have on her fake eyelashes. “We have to talk.”

  But then she looks around and shakes her head. “This is too public. Come on, over here.” She grabs my elbow and drags me over to a more secluded table in the corner.

  “Okay, okay, what’s this all about?”

  Ana leans close, whispering. “I’d show you on my computer but they might trace the IP. There’s chatter, Juliet. A lot of chatter. I had to tell you and Giselle.”

  “Let me guess, this chatter is on the dark web?”

  Ana nods emphatically. “It’s the only place you can find the truth these days.”

  It’s hard but I don’t roll my eyes. I try to support my friend. But I also know she can get fixated on ideas to the point of it being unhealthy for her.

  “And what is the truth?” Might as well get out with it. Then Giselle and I can start doing damage control.

  Ana leans even closer and her voice is barely audible as she whispers, “Aliens. Aliens are among us.”

  I’m truly glad I didn’t just take a sip of my coffee because I’m pretty sure I would have just done a spit take.

  “Aliens?” I choke out.

  Ana waves her hand and shushes me. “God, Juliet, not so loud! They’ll hear you.”

  Right then, Giselle arrives at the tables with drinks for her and Ana. “She tell you yet?”

  “She told me.” Giselle and I make eye contact and I can tell from one look alone that Ana has been chattering her ear off all m
orning about this newest conspiracy theory.

  Giselle is the beauty of our group. She’s tall, has a models lithe build, and is a natural blonde. She’s basically California royalty, too. Her parents are rich and she had it all growing up.

  I have no idea how she didn’t turn out as the most rich, stuck up bitch in the universe. Maybe because she didn’t get rich until a little later in life, she was just thirteen when her mom married her stepdad. Either way, she’s always stayed grounded and is basically the best person I know. She even volunteers for charities and shit. And she does it because she actually feels empathy for the homeless or the whales or whatever or whoever it is she’s trying to save that day.

  “Here,” Giselle says, handing Ana her drink. “It’s some soothing ginseng tea. It will calm your nerves.”

  Ana glares at Giselle. “I don’t need any fucking tea. I need you two to believe me for once.”

  Giselle and I share another look but Ana continues, oblivious.

  “Where do you think the technology for the atmospheric filtering came from? We’ve been on a crash course with global warming for fifty years and all the sudden, out of the blue, we suddenly figure out how to filter greenhouse gases and repopulate our ozone layer? When everyone said it couldn’t be done?”

  “We were just finally motivated enough,” Giselle says calmly.

  But Ana just shakes her head. “What about the terraforming technology? We just happened onto an unknown technology that can turn deserts into forests? How do you explain that?”

  I just stare at her. “You’ve heard them talking about it on TV. It’s stuff they been working on for decades. They just didn’t want to tell anyone in case it failed…”

  “Because that makes so much sense,” Ana says sarcastically. “Everyone’s been in a panic for years. You think if they were developing something like this, the propaganda machine wouldn’t have been running at a thousand percent, blasting it from every news station and online?”

  “Okay,” I reluctantly concede. “You might have a point there.”

  Ana’s eyes light up so I quickly continue.

  “But aliens?” I shake my head. “Sorry, Ana, but no way.”

  I’m the realist of the group. When Giselle gets too head in the sky optimistic about being the change in the world and Ana is heading down another one of her rabbit holes, I’m the voice of reason.

  Some people call it pessimism. I call it ‘wake the fuck up to reality before it kicks you in the face.’

  My phone buzzes in my pocket.

  “That is so ignorant,” Ana starts while I pull my phone out and check it. Robbie calling. I hit ignore and shove it back in my pocket.

  Giselle doesn’t miss a thing. “Trouble in paradise?” she breaks into Ana’s rant.

  I scoff and roll my eyes at her. “Hardly.”

  “Why don’t you just dump that guy already?” Giselle asks, heavy concern in her voice. “You could do so much better.”

  I lower my eyes to the table, then grab my coffee and take a swig. Giselle doesn’t understand me and Robbie, and that’s fine. This is the problem with getting too close. People start to expect in. And that’s just not…it’s just not an option for me right now.

  I look back at Ana. “Say it is aliens. Why would they be doing all of that? Aren’t aliens supposed to be big and scary? Why aren’t they trying to take over the world?”

  “Juliet, I’m serious,” Giselle says, holding a hand out to stop Ana before she even starts. “Robbie treats you like crap but no matter what, you just keep taking him back. I just don’t understand it. You’re such a beautiful person and you deserve—”

  “The future of our planet is in danger from an alien attack and all the two of you can talk about is Juliet’s dating life?” Ana sounds disgusted with us.

  I reach over and take Ana’s hand. I can see how upset she is and it was a dick move to try to use her as a distraction. I know how deep she can get into her obsessions sometimes.

  Giselle and I have had to mop up the pieces before. Ana had what was essentially a nervous breakdown after her first semester of college. She never left her dorm room, became obsessed with gaming, barely ate… It was bad.

  “Can’t we just be happy that finally it looks like good news about the planet?” I ask gently, squeezing Ana’s hand. Optimism is usually Giselle’s schtick, but for Ana, I’ll give it a go. “We don’t have to worry about the future of the planet anymore. All we ever heard our whole lives was doom and gloom. What’s happening is a miracle. We should be celebrating.”

  Ana looks conflicted. “So don’t look a gift horse in the mouth? Just go along with whatever they tell us?” Then she shakes her head. “But guys,” she leans in again, “what if I’m right?”

  “I don’t know the future,” Giselle says, adding her hand on top of Ana’s and mine. “But I do know that whatever happens, we’ll be there right beside you every step of the way. Okay? Three Musketeers for life.”

  Giselle raises her coffee and I lift my cup to clank hers. Finally, reluctantly, Ana raises her cup too. “Three Musketeers for life.”

  We talk a little longer and then Ana and Giselle go to throw away their cups while I pull out my phone and check my texts. Ten missed phone calls from Robbie and four texts:

  Robbie: babe, why aren’t you picking up my calls

  Robbie: I know your screening me

  Robbie: don’t be a bitch

  Robbie: see you at home tonight. I love you, okay? Is that what you want me to say?

  Playtime’s over. It’s like there’s a giant lead weight bearing down on my chest. Heavy. Immovable. Inescapable. Eventually, it’ll crush me. I shove my phone back into my pocket and turn to grab my purse.

  Promptly knocking my coffee cup off the table with my elbow in the process. Shit.

  I scramble to try to catch it but suddenly hands are there beside the table, snatching my coffee cup out of the air before it can hit the ground and shatter.

  Big, strong, manly hands.

  I glance up and our eyes lock again. It’s the big guy from earlier. He’s come to my rescue. But how? I look over my shoulder back to the table where he was sitting. Across the room.

  He doesn’t say anything or offer any explanation, and that’s when I realize how very fucking rude I’m being.

  “Oh my God, thank you. I’m such a klutz.” I try to laugh it off as I reach for the cup in his hands but his intent, piercing amber gaze never waivers as he hands the cup back to me.

  For the briefest moment, his fingers graze mine and a shot of electricity bounces between us. He must feel it too because his eyes widen and I swear they flash even more bright gold for a moment.

  I snatch the empty cup back to my chest. “Thanks.”

  Still he doesn’t say anything, he just tilts his head curiously and licks his lips again like he did earlier. And just like earlier, I find it startlingly sensual.

  As if he can sense my reaction, he leans in closer. I should pull back, but before I can, he does.

  “I have seen you somewhere before,” he says. It’s a little startling to hear him talk, he had that tall dark and silent thing going on, and for another long moment I don’t say anything back.

  “What?” I ask like an idiot. Idiot says what? Kill me now.

  “I feel I have seen you somewhere before,” he repeats. “You are familiar to me.”

  He has a strange accent, one I can’t pin down. It’s low and melodious and I can’t help smiling at him.

  “Believe me,” I say, “if we’d met before, I would’ve remembered it.” Shit, does that sound like I’m flirting? Am I flirting? Immediately my cheeks go hot.

  “Juliet!” Giselle calls from near the door. “Come on or we’ll be late to our mani/pedis!”

  I still can’t take my eyes off the man in front of me. He’s gorgeous. Which is rare, for a guy so huge and ripped to also have a handsome face—where the hell did this guy come from?

  “Juliet!”

 
I wince. “Sorry, I have to go.” I’m gonna bail on the spa outing but I still shouldn’t be sitting here talking to some guy I just met.

  “Juliet,” he says, as if savoring my name on his lips.

  Even though I know I have to get going, I can’t help asking, “What’s your name?”

  “I am Shak.”

  “Shaq? Like the basketball player?”

  He frowns. “I do not know this bass get ball player.” He overenunciates the words like he’s not familiar with them. “I am Shakshaacac. Called Shak.”

  I arch an eyebrow. “You aren’t from around here, are you?”

  “No,” he gives me an enigmatic smile. “Not from around here.”

  “Juliet! Come on.”

  “Gotta go. Nice to meet you, Shak.”

  “Maybe I will see you again.”

  I don’t know why my chest warms at the thought. I have a boyfriend and I should definitely not get excited about the possibility of seeing Shak ever again.

  “Bye.” I wave and walk away.

  Maybe in another life, Shak. Maybe in another life.

  Chapter Two

  Shak

  1 Day Earlier

  I finish tying my boots and then walk to the thick porthole of my barracks to look down on the planet that will be my new home, should I succeed in this mission.

  Earth.

  “Man, I’d kill to be in your place.” Ezosish comes up from behind me and claps a hand on my back. “You lucky snake.”

  I turn to face my barracks mate. Unlike me, Ezo’s scales have not yet receded and the bony ridge of his brow is still too prominent to pass for human. He has to endure several more rounds of the treatment until he can join me on earth.