Why don’t I show you guys the room you’ll be staying in?” Kate asked.

“Thank you, Kate,” Kirk said, motioning to his brothers.

Buck stood. Beatrix looked after him a little sadly.

Solo somehow tore his eyes from Cecily.

Kate headed resolutely to the den on the other side of the apartment where the men would stay.

Though the insidious thought had already occurred to her that Buck and Solo might find themselves in her roommates’ bedrooms instead.

The penthouse unit wrapped around the top of the building. The bedrooms were all on the main hall off the entryway. But on the other side of the great room there was a spacious den. It was set up as a TV room but equipped with a set of bunk beds and a pull-out sofa - perfect for their three visitors.

Well, almost perfect.

Kate was crossing her fingers the beds would be big enough to accommodate the hunky giants.

“This building is very tall,” Solo remarked as they reached the far end of the living room and the door to the den. He looked out of the floor to ceiling glass without apparent fear.

“Yes,” Kate said. “Land in the city is expensive, so architects design the buildings to be as high as possible to get as many homes on one site as they can.”

Solo nodded, looking pleased.

“You can see the whole city from up here,” Buck said wonderingly.

“The view is another reason they build high,” Kate said, opening the door to the den.

“There are curtains you guys can close for privacy if you want,” she offered. “And these are bunk beds. Do you know what they are?”

“Yes,” Buck said. “We slept in those at the lab.”

“Another clever use of space,” Solo said approvingly as Buck launched himself heedlessly up the ladder.

“The sofa pulls out,” she told Kirk. “And there are extra pillows and blankets in the closet.”

Solo immediately went to the closet to check out the extras as Buck opened and closed the blinds on the window by his bunk, fascinated.

It was so odd. Their behavior was so innocent, almost childlike, but their massive bodies were anything but. And the way Kirk had looked at her…

No, they were definitely not innocent.

She turned to find him watching her, one arm braced against the wall.

“Thank you for helping us,” he said.

She dared a glance up into those gray eyes.

They smoldered like coals, about to ignite.

“You’re welcome,” she said. “It’s the least I can do.”

“It’s not the least you could do,” Kirk admonished her with a half-smile. “But I will repay you in any way I know how.”

Helplessly, Kate pictured him ripping off her clothes, pressing her against the wall and savaging her mouth with torrid kisses.

“Um, it’s all good,” she murmured. “I’m going to go see about dinner.”

He didn’t stop her when she dashed out of the room.

She reached the living room with a mild sense of relief, only to realize she’d gone from the frying pan into the fire.

“Kate… Kate, holy crap,” Cecily chirped. “Do you know who they are?”

“That’s kind of what I wanted to talk to you guys about,” Kate said gamely.

“Where did you meet aliens?” Cecily demanded with sparkling eyes.

“Aliens?” Beatrix hissed.

“How did you know?” Kate asked Cecily.

“Seriously? Aliens?” Beatrix asked again.

Kate sat on the sofa and the other two perched in their usual seats.

“When I was a kid I went to Space Camp,” she began.

“When you were a kid your whole life was Space Camp,” Cecily teased.

“Yeah, yeah, hilarious,” Kate said. “Anyway, most of the kids there were super smart, way smarter than me. But one was super smart and super nice. We made friends and we’ve stayed in touch off and on. Her name is Rima Bhimani—”

“Oh my God, that’s how you know aliens,” Cecily said.

“Wait, what?” Beatrix asked.

“She’s saying that while you were in summer school for drawing comics on your desk, and I was doing nails at my aunt’s salon, Kate was at Space Camp,” Cecily said. “And her best friend there was Rima Bhimani, the woman who has been all over the news for marrying an alien.”

“Sorry, I don’t memorize every aspect of the news,” Beatrix shrugged. “So she’s one of the Stargazer wives?”

“Yes, and she sent Kirk and his brothers here to stay with us, until they get on their feet,” Kate said.

“Why?” Cecily asked.

Kate bit her lip.

“Come on, out with it,” Cecily said in a businesslike way.

“They need to find mates, they have to click with women,” Kate said. “If they don’t, I’m not sure what will happen - to them, to Rima, to the planet.”

“They don’t exactly look like they’re going to have a hard time with the ladies,” Cecily laughed. “Just give them a minute.”

“They’re on the run,” Kate told her. “Rima and her friends busted them out of the lab. The scientists were experimenting on them, trying to get them to click without falling in love.”

“How?” Cecily asked.

“I’m, um, not sure,” Kate admitted, flushing because she had a pretty good idea of how even though Kirk hadn’t explained.

“Kinky,” Beatrix said dreamily.

“Focus, Bea,” Kate said. “I need to know if you’re going to help me.”

“You’re asking us to mate with them?” Beatrix asked.

“What? No. God, no,” Kate replied. “I’m asking you to help me hide them until we figure it out.”

“Of course we’ll help you, tell us what you need,” Cecily said.

Beatrix nodded.

Kate felt tears prickle her eyes.

“Guys, thank you so much,” she said.

“Are you kidding? It’s only because of you that I’m not living in a lab experiment somewhere,” Beatrix said.

Cecily laughed and shoved Beatrix a little.

“Okay, listen,” Kate said. “We need to keep them out of trouble. Maybe give them stuff to do here in the apartment while we’re at the Con.”

“You’re not worried about leaving them alone?” Cecily asked.

“It’s better than taking them out in public,” Kate said.

“I’m not sure about that, Cecily said. “There’s a whole slew of people in and out of the building all day. Who knows what they might say or do if they decide to wander down to the lobby? Who knows if you’re even allowed to have six people staying in this rental? We don’t want to get you busted.”

She had a point.

“You think we should bring them with us?” Kate asked. “They’ll draw a lot of attention, being so… you know…”

“Hot?” Beatrix suggested.

Kate rolled her eyes.

“I think we can hide them better in plain sight,” Cecily said. “And if you keep them close, you can keep them out of danger.”

“But you saw it yourself,” Kate said. “The moment you laid eyes on them you knew exactly what they were.”

“I knew because I saw all three of them at once,” Cecily pointed out. “And maybe because I spend a little too much time on trashy websites. So we just don’t let them be seen together. We each take one of them with us for the day. All of a sudden, they aren’t a trio of aliens, like everyone’s been seeing in the news. They’re just one hot guy at a time.”

It wasn’t a bad plan.

“Honestly, I could use some help hauling around my supplies,” Cecily added. “And I’m sure Beatrix wouldn’t mind the company.”

Beatrix winked at Cecily.

“Who knows, maybe they’ll find someone to click with after all?”

Kate’s heart sank.

“Listen, you can’t do that,” she said.

“What do you mean?” Beatrix asked.

“You can’t just casually date them,” Kate said. “And you definitely can’t just sleep with them,”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s different for them,” Kate explained. “I read a lot about this when I saw Rima’s story in the news. That click means everything to these men. If it happens it’s forever for them - no going back.”

There was a moment of silence among the women as they thought about this.

“Is that really so bad, Kate?” Cecily asked softly.

Touché.

Kate hadn’t had the best luck with dating. And with Spencer always at her heels, it wasn’t worth the hassle of riling him up. Better to wait until her life was settled far from the spotlight.

“I’m not really at a good place in my life for dating,” Kate admitted. “But even if I were, I wouldn’t be dating an alien.”

“Why not?” Beatrix demanded. “They’re gorgeous and if you’re right about the clicking business they’re loyal as hell. Where else are you going to find that?”

“I’ve spent my entire adult life trying to escape the sci-fi lifestyle,” Kate said firmly. “I’m not about to marry into it.”

Cecily and Beatrix laughed.

But Kate was serious. There were so many reasons for her not to consider a serious relationship right now. But truly, if Kate Henderson married an alien, her whole future would be locked up. There would be no chance to define herself on her own terms, or to dedicate herself to something worthwhile.

And she’d come too far to let go of that goal.