Brida Pact (3 page)

“I vote for comedy,” Poppy piped up.

Brian shrugged, indicating he couldn’t care less what was
chosen.

The three of them settled on the couch and relaxed as much
as they could. All of them had vetoed anything with aliens or zombies since
that hit a little too close to home right now, even if it was done jokingly.
Making popcorn and relaxing with Pixie turned out to be exactly what Poppy
needed. Since this was a movie they’d seen before, the girls talked throughout,
which annoyed Brian.

“Hey, fussypants, why don’t you go to bed and get some more
sleep? You’re really grumpy tonight.” Pixie patted Brian on the shoulder.

He shrugged. “Well, since you two won’t stop yapping for me
to hear, that’s probably a good idea.” Laughing when Pixie swatted his butt as
he stood up, he nodded a good night to Poppy.

After he left, Pixie reached for the remote and turned down
the volume. Twisting sideways on the couch, she stared at her sister.

“How was your trip to the store?” Leaning on an elbow, she
mimicked Poppy’s pose.

“How do you think any trip to hell would be? The torture
started in the parking lot and lasted through the checkout line.” She smiled
and tapped her chin with her fingers. “I did see a couple hotties though.”

“Were they stockpiling like everyone else?” Pixie reached down
for her soda and took a large gulp, waiting for Poppy to answer.

“I don’t think so, they didn’t have carts or anything and
just seemed to be watching the chaos unfold around the frozen food section.”
Grinning, she waggled her eyebrows. “I think maybe their tour bus must have
stopped there, because they were wearing leather pants and all had long hair.
Super. Hot.”

Laughing at Poppy’s version of an eyebrow wiggle, Pixie set
her now empty can back down. “I don’t think there are any concerts around here.
They were probably just passing through.” Pixie stretched back and reached her
arms over her head with a groan. “I don’t know about you, Pops, but I’m beat. I
haven’t been sleeping for shit this past week. Is it okay if I hit the sack?”

“Yeah, I think I’ll head to bed soon too. I’ve had trouble
sleeping myself. You going in to work tomorrow?”

“Yeah, I have to finish some paperwork, but then I should be
able to head out early. ’Night.”

Once alone, Poppy wandered over to the living room window
and peeked through the blinds. Yep, the aliens were still there. What could
they possibly want from Earth?

The next morning Poppy woke up after having slept fairly
decently. Tossing on a pair of her ever-present yoga pants and a T-shirt, she
thought she’d take a walk in the neighborhood. Being cooped up this last week
had not agreed with her and she needed fresh air. The first thing she saw
outside was a ship floating above. Having watched the news all week long, Poppy
knew that the ships had not actually done anything other than hover above the
cities. It was time to get back to her normal life. Who knew how long this
would last, and Poppy had things to do and people to see. Patting her pocket to
make sure she had her phone, she walked down the driveway and started along the
sidewalk.

After walking around the subdivision for about thirty
minutes, she felt the skin on her arms tingle. Pausing to peer around, she
didn’t see anyone but felt that maybe she should turn around to head back to
the house. As she did so, she caught sight of an idling car at the stop sign.
It was what she would normally refer to as an “FBI-mobile”. The large black SUV
had completely blacked-out windows and after Poppy stared at it for a couple of
moments, it moved down the street at a slow crawl.

That was weird.

Poppy checked the mail before going into the house. It was
amazing that they had been delivering all week long.
The USPS delivers—rain,
shine and even during alien invasions
. Giggling, she pictured that motto on
their badges. Tossing the letters onto the counter for Brian and Pixie to go
through, she sat on the couch and flipped on the TV. Since every channel seemed
to be showing news twenty-four hours a day, she thought she’d watch it for a
little bit before giving up and tuning into cable.

Seeing a red banner pop up on TV caused Poppy to reach for
the remote and turn the sound up.

“The president has called an emergency press conference,
please stay tuned.”

Hearing the door lock click, Poppy glanced over to see who
it was.

Pixie dropped her bag on the floor and flopped down on the
couch next to Poppy.

“What’s going on? I heard the emergency broadcast noise in
my car and had to turn off the radio before my ears started bleeding.”

“I don’t know yet. Apparently the president’s called an
emergency broadcast.”

Both women hushed as the president walked onto the screen to
take his place at the podium.

“My fellow Americans, negotiations have concluded with the
Phaeton Warrior race. After speaking to their council of leaders, we have
learned that the Phaeton race has been surviving by using cloning.
Unfortunately the science that they have used has resulted in a low female
birth rate. For their species to survive, they have been searching on other
planets for potential mates.

“The State Department has decided to initiate a ‘mate match’
for single female volunteers to apply for what we are referring to as the
‘Bridal Pact’. In exchange for these volunteers, we will be able to use the
Phaetons’ medical advancements to save American lives. We will have access to a
new fuel source that will all but eliminate our need for oil, both foreign and
domestic. And we will also have the protection of their military from other
species that may discover Earth.

“This is not a draft. It is completely voluntary. Women who
apply will be compensated for filling out an application and signing the
contract. We want to assure you that your safety and the safety of your
sisters, daughters and friends will be our number-one concern. We are working
on a profiling system with national dating sites and the Phaeton Council to
make matches, similar to what many of you have used in the past to find
companions. As of right now this is only open to women who fall within certain
criteria but might be expanded after an initial trial period passes.

“Please keep an open mind and know that the safety of our
citizens and country is our top priority. Women wishing to volunteer or obtain
more information can contact their local Intake Centers, which will be listed
by state following this news conference or found at
bridal-pact-dot-state-department-dot-gov. This is an exciting time for our
country and its people.”

Poppy and Pixie were totally silent for about two seconds
after the speech ended. Almost in unison they turned toward each other with
their mouths open.

“Holy fuck,” Poppy whispered, unable to believe what she’d
had heard.

“Yeah. Holy fuck,” Pixie couldn’t help but repeat after her
sister.

“They want women!” Poppy was still having trouble wrapping
her mind around it.

They both jumped with a startled scream when the front door
opened and Brian ran in.

“Did I miss it?” he panted out between breaths.

“Where the hell have you been?” Pixie asked, holding one
hand to her heart as if making sure it was still beating.

“I went for a jog and lost track of time.” Bending over to
catch his breath, he continued, “The guy down the road yelled at me from his porch
that the president was speaking and I needed to get home, so I hauled ass
back.” Wiping sweat off his face, he waited for the women to say something.

“Well?” he prodded when they were silent.

“They want women,” Poppy blurted out.

Brian raised his eyebrows in confusion, sat down next to her
and threw an arm over her shoulder. “What?”

Finding the remote that had fallen in between the cushions,
Poppy hit the rewind button. After the entire speech had been replayed, they
all sat in silence, staring at the TV.

Poppy took the silence as a chance to let the possibilities
run through her head.

So many diseases could be eradicated. The US wouldn’t have
to fight for oil anymore. Alternative energy sources to stop climate change. So
many possibilities…and they wanted women in return.

Poppy was brought out of her thinking when Pixie nudged her
shoulder.

“Hey, did you hear me?”

Shaking her head at her sister, she waited for Pixie to
repeat herself.

“I asked, do you think they’ve been taking women all along
and those tinfoil crazies were telling the truth?”

“It sounds as if they are searching for ways to reproduce. I
can’t see that abducting a sixty-year-old lady would work and guessing her age
at sixty is me being kind. How many women do you think are going to apply?”
Pixie wondered.

“Who in their right mind would apply?” Brian laughed out
loud at the thought.

“Brian, did you not hear what he said? They have the ability
to cure cancer. New energy sources that we could use. The possibilities are
endless.”

“They’re going to get a bunch of crazy people applying and
that’s all.”

When Poppy made a face at him, he teased her, “What, Poppy,
are you going to apply for the Bridal Pact?”

“Well, why wouldn’t I?”

When Pixie choked on the drink she’d been taking from her
water bottle, Poppy patted her on the back and kept talking directly to Brian.

“I could apply if I wanted to. In fact, it doesn’t sound
like a bad idea the more I think about it.”

“Now, hold on right there. Everyone needs to calm down.
Poppy, you’re not applying. Brian, shut up and stop egging her on.” Pixie stood
up from between them on the couch and moved toward the kitchen.

Poppy started thinking out loud. “I have a shitty job. I
have an even shittier apartment. My car has over two hundred thousand miles on
it. My savings account consists of five hundred dollars minus whatever I spent
the other day at Mega Mart. I haven’t had a boyfriend, or even a date for that
matter, in the last six months. What’s stopping me?”

Poppy blinked at how fast her sister was able to move to
stand in front of her.

“Pops, are you serious? You’d apply to marry one of them?”

Pixie’s anxious face had Poppy automatically wanting to
reassure her she was just joking. Instead she decided to answer her truthfully.
“I don’t know. Maybe.”

Pixie lowered herself to sit on the coffee table in front of
Poppy. After they’d been eyeballing each other for a moment, Pixie broke the
deadlock. She grinned at Poppy and waggled her eyebrows. “What if they have two
dicks?

Seeing that her sister was trying to distract her with
humor, she went with it and smiled back. “The more the merrier?”

Both women erupted in laughter as Brian stood and threw his
hands in the air. “You two are crazy. I’m going to take a shower. Figure out
what you want for lunch so we can eat once I’m cleaned up.”

Pixie moved from the coffee table to the couch beside Poppy.
“You won’t really apply, will you?”

Poppy shook her head. “I was just thinking out loud, Pix.
But you have to admit, what they can do is amazing.”

“Yeah, it is.”

Watching the news broadcast for a while longer, the women
talked about ideas for lunch before settling on going out for Chinese food.

Once Brian was ready to head out, they all piled into
Pixie’s SUV. The Chinese place Brian preferred was close by and only took about
ten minutes to get to.

Getting a table was fairly easy even though the place was
crowded. A quick five-minute wait and they were sitting down with menus while
groups of people were talking loudly around them. Every once in a while, Poppy
would hear “aliens” or “bride” pop up but she didn’t want to eavesdrop too
much.

Brian dominated the conversation over lunch, talking about
his work as if he were a heart surgeon saving lives. That was one thing Poppy
had never liked about him. Everything he did was crucial. Every meeting he took
was with important people. Blah blah blah. It was all too much for Poppy to
take sometimes.

Pixie was quiet through almost the entire meal, and Poppy
knew she herself was the reason. She hadn’t meant to worry her big sister when
she’d mentioned applying for the Bridal Pact. Poppy wasn’t even sure what these
guys looked like, for goodness’ sake. They could be two feet tall with green
skin and bulging heads.

Trying to come back to the present, Poppy listened to Brian
drone on and on about work. She’d have to go back to her apartment soon. There
was only so much of him she could take. Unlike Pixie, she had a limit on how
long she could listen to him and not think he was a total douche. Throughout
lunch, she tried to participate in the conversation, or at least Pixie’s
portion of it, but for some reason, she couldn’t get the thought of the Bridal
Pact out of her head.

Poppy ended up moving back to her apartment after staying
with her sister another week. It was either go home or smother Brian in his
sleep. She figured that might piss off her sister for some reason. Getting back
into a routine seemed to be what everyone else in the world was doing. In the
two weeks that had passed since the last presidential press conference, people
were once again going to work, mowing their lawns and pretty much ignoring the
spaceships.

Major cities had opened Intake Centers in previously vacant
office buildings to gather applications for the Bridal Pact. The first time
Poppy had seen a government commercial asking women to apply, she’d been
shocked. It played out like a political campaign ad, pointing out all the
reasons to apply. It seemed to be working though since the news had shown a few
ladies being interviewed on their way into the Intake Centers.

The only thing that Poppy wasn’t able to get back into the
routine of was work. She’d been fired shortly after the office reopened.
Apparently being late too often had pissed off the higher-ups and while they’d
been closed with all the alien hubbub they’d reorganized the office to
eliminate her position.

Searching the classifieds didn’t give her much hope either.
Poppy was told she was overqualified for most positions or needed a better
degree for others. Damn history major. It was getting her nowhere fast.
Deciding to call Pixie and see if she wanted to get together for dinner seemed
like the way to cheer herself up.

“Hey, Pix, wanna come over and veg? Maybe order a pizza?”
Poppy hoped Pixie said yes since she hadn’t seen her sister since moving back
to her place. Apparently Bonehead Brenda couldn’t do anything right and Pixie
had ended up working late nights fixing problems that she’d created.

“Sure. It actually figures that my one night off Brian ends
up working late. Do I need to stop for a movie?” Pixie asked, sounding as if
she were shuffling papers around.

“Nah, I have the newest Simon Pegg one already. Pizza okay
or would you rather order something else?”

“Pizza sounds good. I can be there in…thirty minutes?”

“Great, bish. Drive carefully.” Hanging up the phone, she
flipped on the news to see another presidential speech was going to be
televised in an hour. Poppy wondered what bomb the man would drop on the
American public this time.

Studying her feet propped up on the small table, Poppy
decided to paint her toenails while waiting for her sister and listening to the
news. A few minutes later, while blowing on her now hot-pink toenails, she
glanced up to see her doorknob jiggle. Hopefully that was her sister and not
Gas-Can-Man, which was what she now called her crazy neighbor. When the door
opened to show her frazzled-looking sister, she stopped blowing and smiled at
Pixie.

“You seem stressed. You okay?” Poppy waddled with her toes
up to the door to give Pixie a hug.

“Yeah, just tired. Work has sucked balls. Big, big, big
balls.” Pixie pulled a hard cider out of the fridge, cracked it open and took a
huge gulp.

“Nice of you to complain about your job while I don’t have
one,” Poppy teased. Humor generally helped knock Pixie out of a funk.

“You know I could get you a job, right? Just let me know and
I can get some hostess hours for you,” Pixie offered in between gulps of her
now almost empty drink.

“Yeah…no. Can you imagine us working together? We would
definitely move from bish to bitch pretty quickly. Plus, I’m pretty sure with
my tendency to say ‘fuck’, you’d have to fire me the first day.” Shuddering at
the thought of having her sister as her boss, Poppy shuffled past her to get a
bottle for herself.

“You have a point. But maybe I can help you check around. I
have some connections with our vendors. Maybe one of them is hiring.”

Both women headed into the living room to collapse onto the
tiny loveseat.

Pixie tipped her bottle at the TV. “What are we watching?”

“Oh, there’s supposed to be another presidential address in
a little bit. I wanted to watch it before we started the movie. Tell me what
happened today at work, I need the comic relief after my bust with the
classifieds.”

Pixie soon had Poppy laughing with what she now referred to
as Brenda’s Blunders. “Pixie, why don’t you fire her already?” Poppy felt it
was a fair question considering Pixie had obviously given the woman multiple
chances.

“I’m thinking I may have to.” Making a face that showed this
was going to be an issue, Pixie huffed. “She’s making more work for me and
messing up orders left and right. I just feel bad. She was my friend before I
hired her but now I can’t stand to see her after-hours and she seems to be
honestly trying. When I have her do things in front of me, she follows
instructions perfectly. It’s when I leave that mayhem ensues.”

Poppy and Pixie both grew quiet as the news flashed to the
presidential news conference. The president was now not alone at the podium;
four men stood to his side. Almost spitting out her cider all over her coffee
table, Poppy sat up straight and pointed at the TV.

“Oh my god!” she yelled, making Pixie jump beside her.

“What the fuck, Pops? You scared the shit out of me.”

“It’s them!” Poppy was stunned at what she was seeing.
Unable to believe her eyes, she stared harder at the TV.

“It’s who?” Pixie yelled in frustration.

“It’s the Mega Mart rock stars!” Poppy now stood to get
closer to the TV.

“What the fuck are you babbling about?” Pixie was blotting
at the cider she’d spilled on her shirt when Poppy had startled her.

“Oh my god. Remember the hot guys I saw at Mega Mart? I told
you about them watching everyone, and, and about their leather pants. I swear
to god, it’s them!” Frantically pointing again at the men standing next to the president,
she hopped up and down. Being able to see them clearly now, she realized how
fucking hot they were. They were much taller than the president, who happened
to be a little over six feet himself, and they were buff. All four men were
broad in the shoulders but seemed lean everywhere else.

“Wow. They
are
hot,” Pixie said, eyeballing each of
the men and fanning her face.

Hell yeah they were smokin’. These men were the entire
package. Strong jaws, great hair, and boy, did they fill out leather pants well.

“Shhhhhhh, he’s talking.”

“Good afternoon, everyone. I am happy to introduce you to
some members of the Phaeton Council. Many of you have questions regarding their
species and they are here to answer those inquiries.” Stepping back from the
microphone, he gestured toward the man closest to him.

“Holy. Fucking. Shit.” Poppy was having trouble breathing.

These were the aliens. And she had seen them. In person. And
they were
hot
. Not just a little hot, but
really hot
.

While her brain was trying to play catch-up, Poppy sat
stunned at what was in front of her. Not able to make a sound, both women were
glued to the TV. As the camera panned to the man closest to the president,
Poppy almost drooled over the gorgeousness filling the screen. When he started
talking in a deep voice, she felt like melting into a puddle on her couch.

The Phaetons who were representing their race took turns
answering questions that had obviously been pre-screened for the conference.
Poppy threw all thoughts of little green men right out of her head. If this was
what the aliens looked like, what the hell was she waiting for?

When the conference ended, Poppy and Pixie still both sat
stunned.

Finally clearing her throat to move the frog that seemed to
have appeared there, Poppy could only say one thing. “Wow.”

Pixie nodded enthusiastically. “Exactly. Wow.”

“They are gorgeous…and not…alien-y.” Poppy was still trying
to connect the dots as to why they’d been at Mega Mart. When people had been
told the aliens were here to “observe”, she had assumed they were watching from
their ships. It hadn’t even crossed her mind they would have been walking
around among humans. Of course, at that time, she had imagined they wouldn’t
appear “normal”. Aliens were supposed to be green, dammit! Not smokin’ hot guys
tempting Poppy into doing something she knew Pixie would think crazy.

Seeing the expression on Pixie’s face that always came right
before a lecture, Poppy quickly popped in the movie to take her sister’s mind
off the aliens. Since the DVD was one Poppy had seen before, she knew she’d be
able to at least pretend she was watching it while her mind whirled with the
possibilities of a sexy alien man in leather pants.

That evening, after Pixie had left and Poppy had locked up
her apartment, she did something that had her hands shaking. Poppy logged on to
the State Department website to view the application for the Bridal Pact. There
had obviously been quite a few visitors to the site. The system crashed twice
due to high traffic issues before she was even able to click on the link. Not
wanting to take a chance of having to start all over, she quickly hit the Print
button on her laptop.

She reasoned, “It’s not like I’m going to fill it out. I’m
just curious about the questions.”

After scanning the paperwork she now held in her hands,
Poppy admitted some of the questions were pretty invasive. Setting the stack on
her nightstand, she tried to get some sleep. After an hour had passed with
Poppy tossing and turning, she finally turned to the packet of papers that was
keeping her awake. She picked up the application and walked to the kitchen
table.

“For fuck’s sake, this is going to drive me batty.”

She reached for the cup of pens she kept on the table.
Clicking a pen several times, she took a deep breath and read the first page.

Bridal Match Questionnaire

Please complete the following thirty pages. Any questions
that you are unable to answer please mark as “unknown”. Please answer all
questions listed. Potential matches are based on your answers, so honesty is extremely
important. Upon completion, please return this form and all signed documents to
the nearest Intake Center and you will then be assigned a human liaison for the
rest of the application process. Please be aware that if your last physical
examination took place over thirty days ago, you will need to have a new exam,
including a Pap smear and blood tests, prior to being assigned a liaison.

Name: Poppy Williams

DOB: September 20, 1987

Blood type: Unknown

Weight: 180 pounds

Height: Five foot three

Living relatives: Pixie Williams (sister)

Parents: Deceased

Children: None

Medical conditions: None known

School history: HS diploma and college BS

Own or rent your home: Rent

Allergies: Seasonal and cats

Medications: Birth control, vitamins, and OTC allergy medication

Number of previous sexual partners: Two

Date of last sexual encounter: Six months ago

Last medical exam: Six months ago

After filling out the first portion, Poppy rolled her
shoulders and dropped her head back. “Pixie is going to fucking kill me.”