Chapter Three

“Thanks for coming over so quickly.” Gwen finished pouring the tea, then carried both cups to the table where her best friend, Izzie, was sitting. “I honestly thought your phone would be in ‘do not disturb’ mode.”

“What can I say? You got lucky.”

She was in her pajamas—a red T-shirt that complemented the warm tones in her dark brown skin, with an alien in a flying saucer that said, “I don’t believe in humans.” Gwen’s yellow T-shirt had a similar picture, but it said, “Still looking for intelligent life.” They were also wearing the same blue bottoms with little UFOs and cartoon aliens all over them.

There had been a sale.

Izzie let out a huge yawn. She’d been growing out her hair for a while, and it was still a little flat on the back from sleeping on it.

“It’s one o’clock in the morning,” Izzie said. “This had better be good.”

“It is. I wouldn’t have called you over otherwise.”

Izzie took a deep breath of the fumes from her tea, her eyes closing as she enjoyed the scent. After a moment, she opened them, staring at Gwen expectantly.

“So…?” Izzie prompted.

This was Gwen’s best friend. Her fellow nerdgirl. They had both been obsessed with aliens forever. Why was it so hard for Gwen to just say aliens are real and I have proof?

Izzie leaned back, and said, “Okay, now you’re freaking me out.”

“I saw something tonight. In the feeds.”

Izzie’s brow furrowed. “In the whats?”

“The feeds. The feeds, Izzie,” Gwen said.

“Wait… The feeds you said you were going to use to start looking for aliens?”

Gwen nodded vigorously.

Izzie’s eyes widened, and she sat up straighter. “You are freaking kidding me! What did you see?”

“So, I hacked into the feed from one of the Mars explorers—” she began.

Izzie’s smile faltered. “Those robots a bunch of countries have put up there to collect samples? Oh, come on. Everyone can see those.”

“Not this one. It stopped transmitting over a decade ago.”

Izzie remained skeptical, her frown saying everything. “I can’t believe I drove across town in the middle of the night for this.”

“No, listen. I saw a little green man!”

One of Izzie’s eyebrows rose. “It sounds to me like you fell asleep at your computer and had a vivid dream.”

“I’m telling you, I saw an actual alien. He fixed the explorer and got it moving again. The way they were interacting, it was almost as if he’d taught the robot to understand him.”

Izzie’s eyebrow remained arched.

“I saw a lizard-person on Mars,” Gwen said. “For real!”

After a few moments, Izzie said, “Okay. As your best friend, I am obligated to believe you. But no one else will unless you have proof.”

Gwen smiled triumphantly. “You really think I wouldn’t record what I saw?”

Izzie smiled. “Then what are we waiting for? Show it to me.”

Gwen jumped up from her chair. At that exact moment, something crashed upstairs.

“What was that?” Izzie also rose from her seat.

Gwen shook her head and held her finger over her lips. She grabbed a rolling pin off the kitchen counter and whispered, “Stay here.”

“Like hell I will,” Izzie whispered back. She ran over and grabbed something of her own off the counter, then followed Gwen as she entered the hallway. They crept up the stairs.

Gwen cringed as Izzie stepped on the creaky spot, then turned around and made a shushing sound. Izzie mouthed, “Sorry.”

At the top of the stairs, Gwen could hear something moving around in her room. She had left the light on and the door was open.

Her heart hammered in her chest. She raised her rolling pin, slowly making her way down the hall. Izzie crouched behind her as they walked, brandishing her own weapon. A spatula.

Gwen paused and gestured to it, then mouthed, “Really?”

Izzie shook her head and shrugged. Then her eyes widened and her mouth dropped open. Gwen slowly turned to see what was behind them, swallowing hard.

A kitten.

It was a kitten.

Specifically, a small marmalade tabby, sitting at the end of the hall in the light cast from her room. Its tail flicked behind it and it cocked its head and let out a little meow.

“What the…” Gwen murmured.

“Did you leave the window open?” Izzie whispered.

“Of course not,” Gwen hissed. “It’s still winter. Why would I leave the window open?”

“Then how did it get in?”

“Bandit!” a low masculine voice whispered from inside her room. “Get back here.”

A man appeared behind the cat. He was wearing jeans and a dark blue button-down shirt that was open enough to show off his delectable collarbones. His hair was dark and curly, and he had a generous coat of stubble on his strong jaw.

He looked really tan for being in Iowa in the middle of winter. And he wasn’t wearing a coat or hat or anything.

He did have on a very fancy watch with a black band and a plain silver face. Gwen had a good view of it since his sleeves were rolled up past his elbows, revealing corded forearms.

He bent and picked up the kitten, cradling it to his chest and planting a kiss between its furry ears. He smiled down at the little guy, and Gwen felt it like a nuke had gone off deep in her belly. Goosebumps spread down her arms as he flashed straight, white teeth and dimples.

God, she loved dimples on a man.

This was a guy who had snuck into her house in the middle of the night. What was wrong with her?

He whispered something in the kitten’s ear then looked up as he turned back to her room. He froze, mid-turn, as his hazel-brown eyes locked on her.

She lowered the rolling pin.

“What are you doing?” Izzie whispered. “We should… We should charge him or something.”

The guy was tall. Really tall. And with those broad shoulders and his athletic build, Gwen imagined them running up and just bouncing off of him.

Plus, he was holding a kitten.

“We can’t attack a man who’s holding a kitten,” Gwen said. “It’s not right.”

“Um… I can hear you,” he said. “And I’d really appreciate it if you didn’t attack me.”

Gwen stood up straighter. “What are you doing in my house?”

“I was…” He looked around, then to the kitten when it meowed at him. “Oh right.” He gestured toward them with the kitten, and said, “I was looking for my cat. The little rascal has a knack for getting into places he’s not supposed to. You know how cats are.”

“Actually, I don’t,” Gwen said. “I’m allergic.”

“I’m Xan.” He smiled, showing those dimples again, and her stomach fluttered. “It’s nice to meet you, Allergic.”

“Ha ha,” Gwen said. “Very funny.”

“I didn’t mean to make a joke.” He looked genuinely confused. “I think I’m missing something. Is Allergic not your name?”

Gwen shook her head. “Allergic means that cats make me sneeze and make my eyes water and my skin itch. My name is Gwen.”

Who didn’t know what ‘allergic’ meant? And who broke into a house to get their cat—who had also managed to get into the house somehow, even though all the doors and windows were locked—and didn’t bother knocking in the middle of the night while he was running around without wearing a coat even though it was winter and—

“Oh my God, you’re an alien!” Gwen yelled.

His eyes widened and his smile faltered. Bandit let out a long, protesting meow.

Izzie snorted. “No, he’s not. He looks like us.”

“Exactly.” Xan laughed. “Well, maybe not exactly.”

His eyes swept over Gwen in what started as a quick glance, but then turned into a lingering stare. She had to be imagining the heat in his gaze.

He cleared his throat, and smiled at them. “Absolutely not an alien.”

Bandit let out a little chuff.

“Not even the kitten is buying that story,” Gwen said.

“Look, he’s just some guy after his cat.” Izzie waved her spatula at him. “He already said so. Let’s just show him the door and then you can show me that thing you were going to show me.”

“What thing?” Xan said. “Nobody needs to show anybody anything.”

There were several things Gwen would love for this guy to show her—and several more she could think of that she’d love to show him. Her cheeks heated. Where was this coming from?

Gwen turned to Izzie, though she pointed at Xan with her rolling pin. “He is an alien. I’m sure of it. Maybe he’s some kind of shapeshifting gray or something.”

“Excuse me,” he snapped, standing straighter. “I am not a shapeshifter.”

“So, you always look like this,” Gwen said.

“Yes.” He nodded.

She nodded along with him. “Like an Earthling.”

“Exactly,” he said.

“Even though you aren’t one,” she finished.

He started to nod, then his eyes widened and he shook his head. “I am an Earthling. Absolutely an Earthling and not a gray.”

“Chill out,” Gwen said. “We don’t judge in this house. Izzie and I both love the grays.”

His lip curled and he shuddered. “Why?”

“Who wouldn’t think it’s cool to be able to look like anyone?” Gwen asked.

“How do you know they can do that?” His tone struck her as odd. It wasn’t a challenging statement, like he wanted to start debating the different possibilities in true fandom manner. It was more filled with exasperation.

“I read the forums,” she said. “I know that the only way you can identify a gray is using a black light.”

“A black light?” he asked.

“Yeah.” Her linen closet was built into the wall just next to her. She opened the folding doors and set down her rolling pin, then pulled out the box she kept her storm supplies in—which included a black light.

Gwen had never said she was “normal.”

She pulled out the modified flashlight and turned it on, then took a few steps closer and pointed it at Xan. He looked down at his body and at Bandit as she moved the light over him.

Damn, he had some muscular thighs. And long legs. And a narrow waist. He was about the hottest guy she’d ever seen.

And he had that smile. That incredibly sincere smile.

If he was aware that he was gorgeous, he didn’t flaunt it, which made her like him even more.

“What is this supposed to be showing you?” he asked.

“Absolutely nothing, apparently.” Gwen sighed, then turned around. Just as she was about to switch off the light, the beam crossed Izzie’s leg.

Her pants glowed a bright blue.

That couldn’t be right. Gwen moved the beam up, illuminating more of her friend’s form. Everywhere the black light touched, her friend glowed with phosphorescent light. Her skin, her clothes, everything except the spatula.

“Holy shit!” Gwen stumbled back, flailing as she almost fell. Xan caught her with one arm, pulling her against his chest right next to Bandit.

“Izzie?” Gwen said.

There was no way that Izzie was a gray. They had been friends forever. They didn’t have secrets like this.

Xan handed Bandit to Gwen, then gently urged her behind him.

“I don’t think that’s your friend,” Xan said.

“Then… Then who is it?” Gwen asked.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Izzie shook her head, then chucked the spatula into the linen closet. “I’m a gray.”