A Man for Halli Page 3

  Chapter 9

  Callem dressed in black jeans, a dark blue shirt that matched his eyes, and topped it off with a black leather jacket. Soft, black leather loafers completed his ensemble. According to the program he had run on the transporter’s computer, this was the optimum outfit to impress Halli. If it took a computer to work out what would impress her, so be it. Callem wasn’t going to let a little thing like cheating get in the way of his winning his love.

  Looking at the com- watch on his wrist, he calculated that he had another hour to wait before he could decently knock on the door across the hall. However, if Joe came home early, then Callem would be over the hall, and parked at the kitchen table before you could say, Hail Hera.

  Halli stood in front of her wardrobe and tried her hardest to see something slinky and glamorous hiding inside but, she was met with complete failure. The best she could find was a soft, cream silk dress with a narrow gold belt, its flared skirt ending just above her knees. Pulling it on, she felt the skirt swish gently around her legs and the fitted high necked bodice, settle into place over her full breasts. The low back draped dramatically to her narrow waist. Halli hoped the bare back added enough pizzazz to catch Callem’s eye.

  The decision to leave her hair down was easier than finding a dress. After all, the only thing she had going for her was her ability to grow her hair long---no brainer, she would show off what she considered her one asset. Rummaging through her drawers Halli found a glittering gold clip, sweeping both sides of her hair up on top of her head, she clipped it into place then left the rest to cascade, in soft waves, down her bare back. Lipstick on, perfume spritzed and she was done.

  Nervously she sat down to wait until Joe got home—no way was she going to answer the door before he got here, she would need help with the conversation.

  Halli still hadn’t worked out why she was so intrigued by Callem. He was all she had thought about all day. This had to stop before she made a fool of herself, because Callem was never going to look at her in any serious way, Halli didn’t fool herself about that.

  The front door slammed open and Halli heard loud, laughing voices in the kitchen, Callem had apparently arrived with Joe. Taking a deep breath, Halli exited her bedroom and prepared to make a fool of herself by drooling all over their gorgeous guest.

  Callem choked on his coffee as Halli drifted into the kitchen and sat at the table. Her perfume filled his nostrils, her beauty glazed his eyes and his heart started that weird tango thing in his chest again. He felt like a five ton meteorite had landed on him. He couldn’t move or speak.

  Joe took one look at his face and roared laughing.

  “She scrubs up well, doesn’t she?” He smirked at Callem. A nod was all he got in reply. “Where are you two going for dinner?” he continued. Halli gave Joe a sharp look and finally spoke.

  “You’re coming too aren’t you?”

  “Sorry, honey, got a late meeting with the builder on my next contract, so you two will have to go by yourselves.” Callem finally got his act together, reluctantly dragging his eyes from Halli’s mesmerising hair and body in time to rescue himself.

  “No problem, we can all catch up another night. Tonight I’ll take Halli to Jupiters Casino for the show and dinner if that suits her?” he addressed Halli, a question in his voice. That was another thing the computer had recommended. Have plans but, always, always ask if they are OK with the woman.

  Halli’s nod of agreement and her hesitant, “sounds great.” was all the confirmation he needed, to prove that the computer knew how to date.

  He sent a smile in Joe’s direction.

  “See you later,” he grinned, as he quickly ushered Halli out the front door, and settled her into his freshly cleaned car.

  Chapter 10

  Callem grabbed every opportunity to casually touch Halli all during the evening. All through dinner at Zen’s and then afterwards at the Tap Dogs show in the Jupiters theatre, he showered her with his gentle, subtle attentions. It was heaven to touch her and hell not being able to tell her his feelings. Hail Hera, how he loved her, more and more with every minute that passed. He wished she knew of the Teeron tradition, of the magic tingle, then, he could declare his intentions without fear of being thought ridiculous.

  Halli relished every touch, every casual caress. If Callem only knew how fast she was falling for him he would run for the hills.

  “How about going into the casino now that the show is over?” smiled Callem.

  At this point Halli would go to the moon with him if he asked. Every time he smiled at her she heard bells ringing—wedding bells, for goodness sake; where were her brains?

  “Sure, I’m in no hurry to go home, no work tomorrow.”

  “Come on then let’s see if we can break the bank,” laughed Callem, as he wrapped his arm firmly around her shoulders, leading her towards the gaming tables and poker machines.

  “I can guarantee that I’ll lose my money, not break the bank but, it will be fun trying,” said Halli.

  “What would you do with the money if you had a big win?” questioned Callem. He would like to know what her ambitions were; he wanted nothing more than to make her happy.

  “I want to own a large slice of beach property and build a really nice house on it for myself. My family will help with the construction, but I’m going to have to earn the money to pay for the land and materials,” Halli smiled. “I’ve been buying run down units and renovating them, then selling at a good profit to finance my dream.”

  She laughed outright then. “I live in them while I’m working on them, pretty grubby conditions but, that cuts down on my expenses; I’ve turned over five units so far,” with a wistful sigh, she continued. “I’d really love to get a beach house to work on next.” Halli grinned “Think of the profit in that?”

  Callem was intrigued; his mate knew what she wanted alright.

  “I know of a beach with hardly any buildings on it, a bit far from here but, a beautiful spot. I own a couple of blocks there myself.” Callem hid a smile as he spoke. Better not to tell her just how far that beach was from here just yet. “I’ll tell you all about the area later, if you like?” He tempted her.

  “Whenever you can give me the details I’ll be ready to go and check it out,” she eagerly replied. Callem smiled inwardly, he could hardly wait for that day to arrive.

  They spent the next hour in the casino, gambling and enjoying each other’s company; neither of them in a hurry to bring the evening to a close.

  Callem was just about to ask Halli if she wanted another drink, when his com-watch vibrated against his wrist. Damn, this had to be serious, he’d already checked in with his team before he picked Halli up, this was an unscheduled contact and therefore urgent. Tapping his com-watch in reply, he let the sender know that he would be contacting them as soon as possible.

  “I’m sorry Halli but, I’ve just remembered I’ve got an international business call to make tonight and I need to use the landline at the unit to make it. Do you mind if we leave now?” Halli was disappointed however she managed to hide her feelings behind a bright smile.

  “No problem, I’m ready to leave whenever it suits you, it’s been a great night.” Gathering up her evening bag she slipped out of her chair and headed for the booth to cash in her winnings. “We can leave now and be home in fifteen minutes.”

  Callem strode after her swiftly moving figure and pulled her against his side.

  “I’m sorry to break up the evening so soon honey, it’s been a special evening for me,” he said, as he gazed miserably into her soft grey eyes. Callem was torn between frustration at having to end the evening and worry over what trouble his crew faced.

  The trip home was swift and quiet. Callem was deep in thought, worrying himself through several possible catastrophes and didn’t realise the impression he was giving Halli. Halli was just plain miserable at his obvious and sudden need to get rid of her. Callem hardly seemed to notice she was on the other end of his arm as he
rushed her to her door. Halli could have sworn she could actually hear her heart breaking.

  Suddenly, Callem roused himself from his introspection with a startled expression and a look of apology. “I’m sorry darling, I need to explain to you what’s going on but, I just haven’t got the time right now. Please be patient with me for a little longer.” He gazed into her face with such an obviously loving look, that Halli nearly melted then and there. When he then gently drew her into his strong, safe arms, Halli just held her breath and let confusion and anticipation render her happily speechless.

  Slowly, surely Callem bent his handsome head towards her and then, before she knew it, he was kissing the high heels off her feet and those darn bells were ringing again.

  “I love you my darling, I’ll always love you.”

  His deep blue eyes scorched her face before he bent his head for another long, blistering, soul deep kiss. Callem knew the timing was all wrong but, damn it to hell, he just couldn’t make his fingers let go of her luscious body, or stop running his mouth over her soft skin.

  His hot breath scorched a path over Halli’s face, stirring up a fire storm in her breast. His mouth whispered urgent words of need and love into her delicate ears, alternately nipping and then soothing them with his velvety tongue. His fingers desperately combed through the silken strands of her hair, cradling her delicate head in his strong hands, holding it firmly in place for his fevered kisses.

  Hail Hera he had to get control of himself here. Moving Halli gently, but firmly away from his overheated body, he turned and bolted through his front door with a choked, “See you soon darling,” thrown over his shoulder.

  Halli couldn’t believe what had just happened. She let herself into Joe’s unit in a fog, flopping down at the table. “What is going on?” she spoke out loud to the empty room, bewildered and starting to suspect her own sanity. Had she imagined the whole evening, was she going mad? Shaking her head to clear her thoughts she got up and headed to her bedroom to change into a comfortable track suit and sneakers. She just couldn’t bring herself to get ready for bed. Surely he would be back when he’d made his call. He couldn’t just kiss her within an inch of her life; tell her he loved her, then rush off without intending to come back---could he?

  He obviously could, because the next sound Halli heard was the screen door slamming, as someone hastily exited. Well damn it to hell! That man was going to explain himself to her tonight or she just might give him a black eye to go with the bloody nose. Grabbing her truck keys, Halli barrelled through the door in hot pursuit.

  Chapter 11

  Callem roared through the night heading for the hanger where the transporter was housed. The news, when Callem had replied to his crew members, had been bad, very bad. He was so busy trying to work out the logistics of his rescue plan that he didn’t notice the truck following him. A glance in his rear view mirror would have told him that he was in more trouble than he knew.

  Arriving at the hanger Callem entered the hanger through the side door. Inside five minutes he was at the controls of the transporter, in his flying suit, and with the remote in his hand opening the main hanger door. Engaging the cloaking device as the door opened, he was stunned to see, standing in the middle of the opening, an angrily bristling Halli.

  Hands on hips, she stared into what appeared to be an empty hanger. Where the hell had he vanished to? Fury welled up and boiled over as she shouted into the void.

  “Listen up you moronic male. I know you’re in here somewhere and if you think you can kiss me, tell me you love me and then run out on me then, you’ve got a hell of a shock coming to you.”

  Callem was stuck. He couldn’t take off with Halli in the way. Quickly coming to a decision he exited the ship and strode towards Halli. All Halli saw was Callem suddenly appear in mid air and somehow walk on air to the ground. Next thing he was in front of her, picking her clear off her feet and without saying a word, throwing her over his shoulder and carrying her back towards the void that he’d appeared from.

  Halli felt the sensation of being carried up stairs, then, her whole world changed.

  She was inside what looked to be a huge cabin with luxury reclining seats and more gadgets and controls than appeared on the Starship Enterprise. Callem stuffed her into one of the seats and with a muttered.

  “Buckle up, I’ve got an emergency on my hands and no time to argue with you.” he got to work at the controls.

  Before she could speak they were taking off down the runway. Finally finding her voice Halli spoke up.

  “I take it we’re in a secret, prototype plane of some sort. Do you work for the government or a private company?”

  “Well the answer is yes and no,” replied Callem.

  “Which part is the yes and which part is the no,” threw back a belligerent Halli.

  “Well the plane is a secret and I’m a government researcher, that’s your yes.”

  “And what part is the no?” insisted Halli. She intended to get some answers damn it. Callem sighed and gave in.

  “Hail Hera, the no, would be the part where I don’t work for Earth’s government,” he answered with a great deal of reluctance.

  “What,” shouted Halli? “Who else could you work for? And who is this Hera bird you keep hailing?”

  “Hera, in some religious circles, is considered to be the founder of our civilisation. I personally don’t believe it, but, many do.”

  “And,” Halli persisted?

  “And, Teeron is the civilisation. A planet outside Earth’s view or reach at this point in time.”

  Callem held his breath, waiting in despair for his world to end; for the boom to drop, for Halli to start screaming and begging the monster from another world to let her go. He was bemused, and relieved, when after several seconds her only reply was a softly spoken.

  “Oh, OK”

  Halli sat for several minutes and let the facts sink in slowly to the core of her being. She didn’t feel any fear; in fact her instant attraction to Callem now seemed totally reasonable. She supposed that love must work faster between humans and -----what? Now shock was settling in. What if they were different physically? Oh God maybe their love was impossible. Looking over at the man she had fallen so fast and so completely for, she tentatively broached the subject.

  “Callem, can we be together? Physically I mean. Are we different blood groups or something like that?”

  Callem laughed out loud, finally feeling the tension ease from his shoulders. While she had sat quietly thinking, he had thought his life-mate was repulsed by him.

  “No problem, sweetheart, our physiology is identical. Teeron researchers believe that we were all part of an original gene pool somewhere in the universe.” Callem put the transporter on auto then swung his seat around to hold Halli’s hands in both of his as he explained.

  “We appear to have developed along the same genetic lines, except for the lack of different races on Teeron. We only have one race and a very small population on a planet the same size as Earth. We don’t have wars, or racial conflict, we also enjoy excellent health and longevity. That’s why we’ve always monitored Earth secretly. We’ll help if necessary, but, we don’t want to risk our own way of life by becoming embroiled in your politics.”

  Halli felt the wheels begin to click into place. “Daniel smith is one of you too isn’t he, that’s why you can use his unit? Well, hot damn, my brother’s friend is an alien.” Halli felt the laughter bubble up out of nowhere and spill out into the cabin. She held her hand over her mouth but, Callem could still see the merriment dancing in her eyes.

  “Yes and no again, Dan is bonded to my old boss so technically he’s now a Teeronite but, he was born here in Australia to human parents so biologically he’s human. Technically, we’re all humans, we just live in different places and have different standards of health,” he explained.

  “What do you mean bonded? Is he a servant of some kind?” Halli looked worried.

  Callem laughed upr
oariously.

  “You have got to be kidding, Callianta would die for him. No, bonded is the equivalent Teeron term for marriage, and we mate for life. That’s where we got the term life-mate from.”

  Halli smiled, smugly satisfied with his answers. She had him for life so she might as well sit back, relax and enjoy him.

  Callem shook his head at her easy acceptance, then, turned back to the controls, he had a crew to rescue.

  Chapter 12

  Thirty minutes into the flight Halli suddenly jerked upright in her seat. She had been so engrossed in her internal musings that she’d forgotten that Callem had an emergency to deal with. What a lousy partner she was turning out to be. Feeling guilty, she approached Callem’s seat and standing behind him gently rested her hands on his shoulders.

  She immediately felt the connection between them, the warmth of his body soaked into her palms giving her all the confidence she needed to offer her help.

  “What’s the emergency Callem? How can I help you,” offered Halli in a determined tone of voice?

  Glancing over his shoulder Callem looked lovingly at her, warmed by her bravery and strength. Damn, he had found himself a fine life-mate.

  “I’ve got two crew members in the Arctic who have been taking global warming readings. Darial and Zabron have become cut off from their transporter, I need to get to them before they succumb to the cold,” he sent her a worried smile over his shoulder. “Their only security is on that transporter, so we need to get to them quickly.

  I’m flying straight up into the upper atmosphere then, it will only take an hour to get to our descent glide path.” He pointed to a small round window. “If you look out there you’ll see just how far we’ve travelled, we’re nearly sixty two miles above the earth.”

  He grinned down into her astonished face. “You’re officially an astronaut now according to NASA’s definition. Go have a look, this is your first space trip and you ought to be able to enjoy it. In another hour we can start to worry again.” He gazed reassuringly into her eyes then. “An intrepid hang-glider like you shouldn’t be frightened by a bit of space flight.”