Dating Outside Your DNA (20 page)

As she followed everyone out the door, she couldn't help wondering if being with other people was going to be all she'd

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imagined.

The lounge was filled with overstuffed furniture and a table with  snack cakes, fruit, and candy bars. Lyraka could already see Ray  was in heaven. She opted for a granola bar and bottled water. That  looked like the safest choice. She'd love to try the chocolate, but was  still leery about its addiction. Her mother had already warned her  about it.

The brown loveseat was the kind you could sink into. She made herself comfortable, then wished she'd chosen a chair when Johnny sat next to her. She scooted farther over, but their legs still touched.  Wearing sweats had been a good idea.

"So, why does a pretty lady like you want to be an agent ?"

She set her water on the side table and bit into her granola bar, making him wait until she swallowed and giving her time to think about her answer.

"My reasons are probably the same as anyone here.

Adventure, fighting the bad guys." She shrugged.

"O r species." He looked pointedly at Reeka.

"You have something against Nerakians?"

"You don't?"

"No."

"Yeah, that's what a lot of people say, but that's not how they  feel when it gets right down to it."

"That's your opinion, but don't presume to know how I feel." He  was an obnoxious ass. She started to stand, but he grabbed her arm.

"That doesn't mean we can't be friends," he said. He ran his  finger up her arm. "We're team members. You can't tell me you don't  feel something for me."

She started laughing. She couldn't help it. Maybe it was the  stress of the last few days finally breaking through, but she couldn't  stop.

"If someone tells a joke, then you have to share," Ray said as

he sat in the chair across from them.

Johnny's disgruntled look only made it harder for her to stop laughing. Some of the others began to gravitate over to where they

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were.

"Lady, you're certifiable!" Johnny said as he jumped to his feet

and stormed from the room.

Lyraka wiped the tears from her eyes. She really hadn't meant to laugh so much. Oh, Lord, now she was the center of attention and now everyone was looking at her.

Alesha sat on the arm of the loveseat. "Since we're going to be a team -- " she began in a soft southern drawl --"you can't keep secrets. What did Johnny say that threw you into a fit of giggles?"

No one said anything as they waited for her to speak. Great, she'd already created a disturbance. Well, there was no getting around it.

"It wasn't that important."

They continued to stare, waiting patiently.

She hoped she was never interrogated because she'd cave in

the blink of an eye. "He suggested that I felt something for him."

They just sat there.

"I told you it wasn't anything. I just couldn't stop laughing."

Where was a hole when she needed one? She'd love to just drop

down into it and pull the dirt back over her head.

Alesha chuckled.

Ray grinned. "His ego needed busting."

"I know we're supposed to be a team, but I just don't like him.

He needed someone to bring him down a notch," Alesha said.

Warren and Link nodded their agreement.

Lyraka relaxed. This was what being a part of a team was going to be like, and it felt good.

They all started talking at once. She learned that Warren was from Ohio and came from a big family. He was somewhere in the middle of a brood of kids. Since he couldn't get a word in edgewise, he'd started reading everywhere he went. He still did.

Link was from Red River, New Mexico. He was tall and his hair was sandy blond. He said they had the best fly-fishing for miles around . She liked his smile. It seemed to envelop her like a gentle hug. He was a person she felt she could trust. Maybe that was why

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he made a good interrogator.

"Well, I'm from Atlanta," Alesha drawled. "I'm truly a southern

belle."

Ray chuckled.

Her eyebrows shot up. "You don't think I'm a southern belle?"

"I saw you training last week. You were kicking some guy's ass and he was twice your size."

Alesha studied her perfectly manicured pink fingernails. "Just because I know how to defend myself doesn't mean I don't remember how my momma brought me up. I just happen to hold a black belt in karate." She smiled sweetly at Ray. He seemed to melt in the chair when she batted her long lashes at him.

"I'm glad you're on our side," Warren said. "I might demolish

buildings, but I bet you could bring a guy to his knees with one look."

"Thank you, darlin'." She grinned, then winked at Lyraka.

Why couldn't she be that easy around people? Maybe if she'd  been raised differently she wouldn't feel quite so awkward. A rush of  guilt ran through her. Her mother had done what was best to protect  her daughter.

"Where are you from, Lyraka?" Ray asked.

Startled, she jumped. "Me?"

He smiled. "Yeah. Where are you from?"

She cleared her throat. "Texas."

"Yum, land of the cowboys." Alesha leaned forward. "Tell us

more."

"There's not a lot to tell. I was home schooled. I grew up at my

mother's artist colony."

"You have the most unusual shade of eyes," Warren said,

staring at her.

She picked off an imaginary piece of lint on the leg of her

sweatpants. "They're just blue."

"Reeka, how long have you been on Earth?" Link asked.

Lyraka cast a look of gratitude in his direction. He smiled and

she knew he'd taken the spotlight off her on purpose. They would

have to know sooner or later. Would they be just as friendly then?

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She really doubted Johnny would.

"I've been here three years," Reeka told him. She took a bite of chocolate, closing her eyes. There was just a hint of color swirling above her.

"Ever want to return?" Ray asked.  "I mean, and live there  again."

Sadness crossed her face, but was gone in a second.  "Sometimes, yes, but there is much to offer here on Earth that Nerak  doesn't have. Nerak will never open up to civilization like Earth has."

"But it is changing," Lyraka  spoke up before she thought. She  had all their attention again. This wasn't good. "Nerak is changing.  They're allowing changes to be made."

"Finally," Alesha said. "Someone who knows more about what's  happening on other planets. That's what Roan meant by  counter  maneuvers." She chuckled. "I knew I'd figure you out before the day  was over."

"It wasn't a big secret." Lyraka smiled and hoped it came off  friendly. She thought it did. Well, until she glanced Reeka's way.  Lyraka could tell the other woman knew  there was more to her than  she was willing to share.

She was trapped by omission of the truth. Would they hate her  because she hadn't admitted everything? She didn't like deceiving  them. They were her team members, and maybe she needed to trust  them.

Ray began telling them a story about growing up on a farm.

Roan had said to wait to tell them anything about her skills. On the other hand, she didn't want to start off on the wrong foot.

It was now or never.

She took a deep breath. "I can run really fast," she blurted out.  They all looked at her as though she was slightly off balance. That wasn't the reaction she'd expected.

"I can run the mile in under ten," Warren said.

"Under ten?" Ray wore an expression of disbelief. "I can't even run it in under ten  and I'm pretty fast."

Alesha snorted. "I can run it in under ten," she said.

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"No, you don't understand. I'm really fast," Lyraka butted in.

"I can run it in under nine," Link bragged.

She was trying to be honest with them and they weren't even  listening to her. She stomped her foot. Her bottled water tipped over.  She grabbed it and sat it back upright, then she frowned at them.

"No, I mean I'm really fast."

Warren and Alesha smiled. They still didn't get it. She came to  her feet. One second she was beside the sofa, and in the next, she  was standing beside Reeka.

Their mouths dropped open.

Ray closed his, then visibly swallowed. "I think that beats the  hell out of your under nine, Link."

"I think you're right," Link finally said.

"My father was from Earth," Lyraka said as she sat back down.  "But my mother is Nerakian."

Warren sat forward. "Man, this is wild. I didn't know there were  any mixed bloods that were your age." He blushed. "Not that I think  you're old or anything."

"I think we're going to  make a good team," Reeka said.

"Kick ass," Alesha grinned.

"One for all and all for one," Ray said.

She relaxed. "I like that."

"I stole it from
 
The Three Musketeers
."

"It's the thought that counts," she said.

Johnny walked back in the room. "Are you guys ready to act

like mature adults?"

He sure knew how to kill a good mood.

"No." They all spoke in unison. Johnny didn't look any happier

than he had when he'd first walked out.

Later that day, she spotted Roan across the wide yard of the compound.  He was talking with Gavin and Joe. She sat on the bench and watched them. They were just out of her range of hearing. Their conversation sounded more like bees buzzing. But she didn't care about their conversation. She just wanted to sit and watch Roan.

Yeah, he'd been an ass. She understood about trusting your

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team members. She also knew that trust took time, no matter how

intimate the relationship.

And theirs had been very intimate. A deep longing filled her.

She missed their training sessions, their conversations, and even

playing checkers. Her body began to tingle with awareness. She

missed the way he touched her, the way his mouth would cover hers,

the way he made love to her.

He looked up as if he sensed she watched him. He said

something to the oth er two, then began walking toward her. Heat

began to rise inside her. She stood.

"Is everything going okay?" he asked.

She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. She only wanted to

look at him. Even though it hadn't been that long since she'd seen

him, it seemed like forever.

"You sure you're okay?" His forehead creased.

She drew in a deep breath. "Everything is great." She looked at  the building, then back at him. "I told them I could run fast and I'm half  Nerakian."

He relaxed. "Good."

"But you told me not to say anything."

"Not until you felt as if you could trust them. Remember, it's all

about trusting your team."

"I'm sorry I didn't trust you."

"I know."

"You do?"

"Yeah."

"I miss you. Is that crazy? I mean, you're standing right here,

but I  miss how you held me in your arms."

He drew in a deep breath. "Keep looking at me like that and I'm

going to pick you up and carry you to my room."

"Promise?"

"Lyraka, how do you like everything so far?" Joe asked, as he

joined them.

She jumped. So much for Roan carrying her off. She was pretty

sure that was out of the question now. "I like it very well. Thank you

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so much for giving me this opportunity."

"No, thank you. We need people with skills like yours." His

smile was warm.

But he wasn't a fool and the way he studied the two of them, it was almost as if he knew there was something going on. She tried to keep her expression impassive. He finally turned to Roan.

"I have something I need you to do," he told Roan. "You don't mind my stealing him away from you, Lyraka?"

Yes, she wanted to scream. "I need to be going anyway. Roan, it was nice talking to you."