A Seacat's Love (Oceanan Trilogy Book 1) (20 page)

In the process of putting a plate on the table, he spotted Leonora entering the kitchen. He intentionally dropped a plate on the floor, hoping she would rush to his aid. Leonora instead went to the refrigerator, took a bottle of water, and left. Rick’s anger rose. Carol Ann’s did also, as she fumed while cleaning up the broken china pieces from the floor.

During breakfast, Rick asked Leonora to pass the salt, pepper, and syrup—whatever was near her—just to get her to acknowledge him. Tigif and Carol Ann handed the things to him in efforts to make it less awkward when Leonora ignored him. Whenever Leonora reached for something, Rick quickly reached for it also, purposely brushing her hand with his. Leonora would recoil as if she had been burnt. After the third time, she stopped eating, left the table without a word, and returned to her room.

Rick lost his appetite. He threw his napkin on the table, took his plate, and tossed it into the sink. He watched his untouched food slide off the plate. Leonora had not looked at him all morning. She had acted as if he were not there. Rick sensed she was emotionally distancing herself from him. It caused him pain. It made him angry. He felt sick to his stomach.

He knew Leonora was justified in her behavior. Distance from each other was what they needed to prepare for the day she left Earth. Sadly, he had fallen in love with her, and the space she tried to place between them served to increase his longing for her.

Rick had lived alone for most of his life. After dangerous assignments, he would return home to an empty house. He would cook for one person. He would go to bed alone. It was a lonely existence, but it was all he knew since his parents’ death.

Mary had changed all that when she had entered his life. She had greeted him at the end of the day. She had loved him during the night. She had taken him to parties, made him laugh and smile. She had become pregnant with his child. Most importantly, she had taught him how to dream. Rick had it all.

It took one judgment error, and his dream was gone. Loneliness and regret had become his companions.

Rick closed his eyes and tilted his head forward. He had known both worlds. It was why he had a hard time dealing with Mary’s death and Leonora’s entrance into his life.

Leonora was not Mary. True to her lioness heritage, she was a fighter. She defended Rick. She made sure he ate before she ate. She paced when he was late. And she showed genuine concern when she noticed something troubled him. For almost three weeks, he felt alive again. He was needed again. Wanted.

Leonora had made it seem like she cared, which was why her actions today hurt so much. Because his love for Mary paled in comparison to what he felt for Leonora, Rick knew the anguish he would feel when Leonora left would kill him. However, after what just happened, Rick realized he did not want to return to the world of darkness. He wanted to stay in the light. The light of Leonora’s pale blue eyes.

Rick left the kitchen and quietly went back to his room to lie down. On top of feeling ill to his stomach, his head painfully throbbed. He was afraid—not of facing bad guys, not of dying, but of allowing the love he felt to grow, knowing with time it would have to end. How could he do that to himself? To Leonora? The idea of causing her pain made him cringe. But the idea of never holding her, of never telling her how he felt, of never learning how Leonora felt for him hurt even more.

Four ibuprofens and two hours later, Rick decided it was time to gather everyone in the living room for a meeting. He explained to the Oceanans that Carol Ann was a close associate of his. She was a martial arts and weapons expert, and he required her assistance in protecting them. He completely trusted her. He mentioned that he had already told Carol Ann about their origin, but she was having a difficult time believing him and she needed to see for herself.

To his surprise, neither Oceanan protested. They each pressed a button on their wristguards, and their human features melted away. Leonora’s complexion darkened to a healthy golden brown that made her eyes more dramatic. Rick’s breath caught in his chest. Tigif’s light green eyes were also enhanced by his orange and black stripes.

Carol Ann swayed on her feet, bumping into Rick. Rick snapped out of his awe, grabbed Carol Ann by her waist, and helped her to the sofa. He saw the color had drained from her cheeks.

Carol Ann covered her mouth with a trembling hand. “I…I can’t believe this is happening.”

The reaction was uncharacteristic of her. Rick was genuinely concerned for her health. He rushed into the kitchen and brought her some water to drink. Sitting close to her, he placed a supportive arm around her shoulders.

Carol Ann swallowed the water in a hurry and then handed the glass back to Rick. Their hands accidentally brushed, and he felt hers were ice cold. Rick placed the empty glass on the center table. He then took Carol Ann’s hands between his and vigorously rubbed them, hoping to warm them.

Leonora’s reaction to his concern for Carol Ann crossed Rick’s mind. She and Tigif sat across from him. Rick peeked at them. Tigif had a knowing smirk on his face. Leonora had a look of loathing written over hers. Realization hit him. Leonora’s earlier actions may have been because she was jealous of Carol Ann, like she had been of Rebecca. Hope rekindled in his heart.

“I can’t believe it,” repeated Carol Ann. “My God, do all aliens have the ability to disguise themselves this way?”

“We cannot say for sure about other species. But as you can see, we have no problems in doing it ourselves,” Tigif gloated.

Rick’s eyebrow slanted upward. “If you have no problems in doing it, then I’m curious to know how you were discovered.” The felines looked guiltily at each other. Rick knew he touched a sensitive note.

“It was a careless mistake,” Tigif admitted sheepishly.

“A careless mistake that cost many their lives, including your friends,” Rick snapped. Because of his own erroneous judgment, he had no patience for those who made careless mistakes when it involved innocent lives.

“Do you not think I know that?”

“So what sort of careless mistake was it?” Rick’s gaze narrowed on the tiger. If he had to make a guess, he would surmise the annoying tiger was somehow involved.

“One of us was seen without our deceptor device activated while exiting our ship whose cloaking device was not on,” Leonora tersely replied. “It provided an interesting show to a group of hikers.”

“What’s a cloaking device?” asked Carol Ann.

“A device used to allow a ship to blend in with its environment resulting in invisibility. Similar to many of your reptilian species, such as the chameleon, whose ability to camouflage itself insures its survival,” explained Tigif.

His arrogant superiority served to irritate Rick further. “It certainly didn’t do much to insure your survival, now did it? And if you ask me, that wasn’t a careless mistake, but a lethal one. Weren’t any of you aware of the sort of danger you would face if discovered? Why weren’t all possible precautions taken?”

“They were,” Leonora put in, but not convincingly.

He met her stare. “No, they weren’t. That’s why your mission failed and nearly cost you your life!” He did not attempt to hide how upset that near fatality made him. It infuriated him to think she would take her life so lightly, when he felt like he would go insane if she was killed.

Carol Ann placed her hand on his right thigh and squeezed. Leonora’s sights fastened on the hand. The fury in her eyes helped to calm Rick down. He was right. She was jealous.

“Didn’t you have any idea or way of knowing that you were being watched?” Carol Ann asked.

“No,” clipped Leonora. She inhaled slowly. “I had suggested to set up sensory devices around our camp’s perimeter. Tigif voted against it. And being a male, his word carried more weight than mine. So naturally the other males voted against it as well.”

Rick shot the tiger a look of undisguised hatred. His gut had warned him the cat could not be trusted. “And why was that? Had these sensory devices been set up, your people would’ve been forewarned of the coming danger. Or didn’t you give a damn about
any
of them?"

“Who in blazes do you think you are?” Tigif yelled. “What gives you the right to speak to me like this?”

“Rick, what are you insinuating?” asked Carol Ann.

Rick ignored her. The cat’s outburst confirmed his suspicions. His eyes narrowed into slits. “It was you, wasn’t it? Why did you do it? Why did you do it, after you voted against the sensor devices?”

Leonora shifted in her seat to look at her companion. Carol Ann stared at him, also.

Tigif puffed out his chest and held his head high. “What difference does it make who did it? It is over.” He scooted closer to Leonora. “The only thing left to do is return to the ship and contact the Seacats. That way Nora and I can leave this barbaric planet behind us and go on with our lives.” He reached around Leonora’s waist and brought her to him.

Rick’s muscles had coiled tightly at seeing Tigif erase the space between himself and Leonora. Viewing Tigif’s arm landing
possessively around her waist pushed Rick beyond his limit. He leapt from his seat, reaching for Tigif’s throat in a fit of jealous rage.

“Rick, no!” Carol Ann blocked his path. “Don’t!”

Tigif jumped out of his grasp and prepared to defend himself.

Pointing at Leonora, Rick bellowed, “You nearly got her killed, and you dare say
it doesn’t matter!
How could you vote against placing sensory devices around your camp, knowing it would’ve kept her safe?”

He was unaware Leonora was staring at him, at his reactions. His attention was on Tigif, who dared him with his stance and glare.

“Like I said before, it is over. What does it matter now?” Tigif sent forth a challenging growl.

“It does matter, damn it! Nora could’ve been killed!”

“Do not concern yourself with my mate, hu—”

“I am not your mate!” Leonora stood from her seat and moved to stand beside Rick. “I truly wish you would stop saying that. And why
did
you do it, Tigif? You were acting very peculiar that day. You knew there were no sensory devices placed. We were not supposed to turn off our deceptor devices unless we were on board the ship. And boarding was prohibited unless mutually decided upon and
only after
checking if the coast was clear. But you went against a majority ruling. You broke all the safety protocols. And now our friends are dead because of it. So why, Tigif, why did you do it?”

The cat’s features grew scarlet red. Giving no one an explanation, he stormed out the back entrance to the beach. Rick was not going to let him get off that easy. He wanted answers, so he started to go after him.

Leonora cut him off. “Let him go.”

Carol Ann placed a hand on his arm to help enforce her words.

“Make sure you don’t make the same mistake twice!” he warned, making the house shudder. “Next time you’ll have me to deal with!”

Rick’s blood was boiling. Leonora’s near demise at the lab, the possibility of him losing his career, the possibility of them being
caught, and the recent involvement of two women who were dear to him, were all due to the aggravating man. If he had known back at the lab that Tigif was responsible, he would have gladly left the cat in his cage.

Rick pushed back his loose hair in frustration. What was he going to do next? He glanced at the women for suggestions. Carol Ann was massaging her temples. Leonora’s eyes questioned him. He realized his outburst had revealed too much. She seemed to want answers. Rick began to fidget. He had admitted to himself that he loved her, but he was still undecided about telling her.

He sought Carol Ann’s attention. “So?” He gestured to Leonora repeatedly with his eyes. He hoped Carol Ann would understand and help him redirect Leonora’s attention from him. To his dismay, Carol Ann only paused long enough to send him her own quizzical expression.

Rick knew Leonora was observing them. He took a chance and glanced her way. He saw her eyes filling with tears. Then she spun on her heels and ran out the back door. “Nora!”

“You better go after her.”

“I can’t.” Rick began pacing. He pushed loose strands of hair away from his face with his bandaged hand. “I can’t.” His mind betrayed him. It replayed the moments he had shared with Leonora. He remembered her actions from that morning. With trembling hands, he held his hair back.

“Rick, you love her. She needs to know.”

“No, she doesn’t.”

“Don’t you want to know if she loves you?”

“No.”

“Liar.”

He spared her a glare but continued pacing.

“Are you going to stay quiet and never tell her?”

He nodded. “That’s the plan.”

“Good one. I wonder if you’ll still think that when she’s married to someone else.”

Rick stopped pacing. His gaze became frigid.

“You know it will happen if you’re not in the picture. She’s young and beautiful. She won’t stay single for long.”

His attention switched to the double-glass sliding doors.

“Perhaps you can tell me which is worse—to have loved and lost or to never have loved at all.”

He snarled at her. “I hate you.”

“You’ll hate yourself more when she’s in love with another man and is nine months pregnant with his—”

“That’s enough!” he hollered. The deadly gleam in his eyes warned Carol Ann to go no further.

“Fine! It’s your choice. You’re the one who’ll have to live with it.” She left the living room.

A door slammed a few seconds later.

Rick’s icy glare was on the glass doors. He had not stopped Carol Ann fast enough. Her words had created images that came alive in his aching head. On the verge of having another migraine, Rick stepped out onto the back porch. His keen sights swooped over the deck furniture and then scanned the beach. Directly ahead of him sat Leonora by the shoreline.

He leapt onto the sand and stopped behind her, watching her write something on the wet sand. He craned his neck, so he could see over her left shoulder. His heart tripped at what he read before an incoming wave washed it away.

It was a name.
His
name. The frozen tundra was no more. It melted into a river of warmth that flowed throughout the valley, providing nourishment for blossoming greenery.