Hannibal: Stargazer Alien Mystery Brides #1 (Intergalactic Dating Agency) Page 2

  That was two winks from these men since he had arrived. Hannibal hoped this meant he had made a good impression and let himself relax a little.

  Maybelle stood, stretched on Micah’s knees, and then hopped down and headed over to Hannibal.

  “Oh, she really likes you,” Micah said.

  Hannibal offered Maybelle his hand, but instead of shaking it she sniffed it delicately, then hopped onto his lap.

  He held perfectly still, hoping not to disturb her.

  She lowered her warm weight onto his thighs, curled herself into a tight ball and went promptly to sleep.

  “Wow,” he said.

  “Dr. Bhimani told us she was sending three men to look at the rooms,” Tony said. “Where are the other two?”

  “Now that people know that there are aliens in Stargazer, they are very curious about us,” Hannibal explained. “Dr. Bhimani has advised us to lay low. Together, we draw too much attention.”

  “Ah, yes, three men like you would draw some eyes,” Tony said. “So you’ll decide if you like the place, and your brothers will come afterward to check it out, one at a time?”

  “No,” Hannibal said. “My brothers and I trust each other implicitly. And I’m sure I will like the place.”

  “It’s a lovely apartment,” Micah agreed. “It’s airy and sunny, with high ceilings - everything you could want.”

  “However, we have other tenants too,” Tony added. “Micah and I live on the first floor, you and the other… brothers would be on the second. And the third floor is occupied by two young women.”

  Hannibal nodded and tried not to worry about that part.

  Dr. Bhimani had warned Hannibal and his brothers that women would fawn over them because of their appearance, and cautioned them not to get involved until they found the woman with whom they would bond forever.

  “The women are lovely, but they can be noisy at times,” Tony said.

  “We don’t mind noise,” Hannibal said, wondering what kind of noises the women made and why. The woman he’d met so far didn’t seem like they made enough noise to make it worth mentioning.

  “Would you like to head up and see the place?” Micah asked.

  “Yes, please,” Hannibal replied.

  “Of course,” Tony said. “By all means, let’s go take a look.”

  Hannibal wondered how he was supposed to get out of the tiny chair without upsetting the sleeping dog in his lap. He also tried not to be too sad about the uneaten muffins still on the tray. He was a big man with a big appetite, but it would be unseemly for him to snatch up a snack now.

  Manners were of the utmost importance on Aerie. He was learning that they were somewhat less important here on Earth, but it was hard to understand which rules were insistences and which were merely suggestions, so he tried not to take chances.

  Micah helpfully scooped Maybelle off Hannibal’s lap and he eased himself carefully out of the chair. Then they all headed back into the hallway and up the staircase.

  Micah was correct, the ceiling height was ideal for Hannibal’s large frame. He admired the teardrop shaped window at the landing.

  “Victorian charm,” Micah said.

  Hannibal wasn’t one hundred percent sure what that meant, but Micah wasn’t waiting for an answer.

  Tony pulled a key out of the pocket of his purple jacket and used it on the door off the landing.

  It opened into a large living room with windows across the front wall of the building, overlooking the shops. A big sofa was against one wall. The built-in bookshelves around the fireplace held a few paperbacks.

  “It’s lightly furnished,” Tony said in a way that sounded like apologizing.

  “It’s very nice,” Hannibal said honestly.

  Tony rewarded him with a warm smile.

  They walked into a small dining room and kitchen. Beyond that, there were three doors.

  “There are three rooms, one for each of you,” Tony explained. “But they’re small.”

  “Each of us will have a room of our own?” Hannibal asked, almost unable to believe they would live such luxury.

  “Yes, son,” Tony said kindly. “If you like it. This is the smallest.”

  Hannibal was not Tony’s son, but he understood that it could be a term of endearment. He already found both men very endearing. He was glad to think they might feel the same about him.

  Tony opened the door to reveal a lovely room with two windows, a bed, and another bookshelf. Wallpaper emblazoned with a pattern of peacock feathers covered the walls and made a sort of circular arrangement on the ceiling.

  A funny little curved fireplace, with tiles that had pictures of animals and flowers painted on them, was built into the corner of the room.

  “There’s another door,” Hannibal said.

  “It’s a closet,” Tony told him. “Go on, open it up, look at anything you want. Micah and I will give you some privacy. When you’ve made your decision, just knock on our door and let us know.”

  Hannibal was ready to agree immediately. But he was beginning to understand that this was not what was expected.

  “I will knock on your door when I decide,” he agreed. “Thank you for your hospitality.”

  “Our pleasure, honey,” Micah said.

  Tony offered Micah his arm and the two of them headed back through the apartment, leaving Hannibal alone with his thoughts.

  He wanted to lie down on the bed and look at the design on the ceiling and think about what it would be like for this to be his home.

  But he sensed that it might be improper to lie down on the bed before it was really his, so he went to the window instead.

  The living room windows downstairs had showcased a view of the streets in front of the house. But these bedroom windows all looked out over a large garden in the rear.

  The area was walled on three sides, with roses growing up over most of the walls. A stone path wound between various colorful plants, leading to a stone bench against the back wall.

  It was a very beautiful scene. And Hannibal imagined he might have a good view of the stars at night, there was certainly plenty of sky visible.

  He stepped out of the room he already thought of as his, and investigated the other two. They were larger, but didn’t seem as cozy to him. The biggest one was in the middle. It had only one window and was painted a stunning royal blue, making it perfect for his brother Spenser. The room on the other side had two windows like Hannibal’s, but with three sunny yellow walls and a fourth that was covered floor to ceiling with another built-in bookshelf. Fletcher would love it. Hannibal was sure.

  He could not imagine what else he was supposed to be worried about. He hoped that he had taken enough time to have made a thoughtful decision.

  He headed back downstairs to find Tony and Micah and let them know that he and his brothers would be honored to take the apartment.

  When he reached the landing, he stopped to admire the teardrop window again and heard a door burst open and hit the wall behind him.

  He turned to see a young woman struggling with a large box.

  “May I help you?” he asked.

  She took her eyes off the box to look up at him and he felt as if someone had run a laser beam through his heart.

  Mine.

  She was small, as almost all humans were compared to Hannibal. And she had untidy brown hair to her shoulders, hastily tucked behind her ears and sticking out slightly on the sides.

  But it was her beautiful blue eyes that struck him through. He was very sure she could see right into his soul.

  However, she did not seem interested in examining his soul at this time. Instead, her eyes swung over his large body.

  Hannibal was used to this. Earth women could not help their appetites.

  “Perfect,” she said to him.

  He felt a flush of pleasure.

  “You’re big enough to carry a lot,” she said, handing him the box.

  He took it automatically.

  It was surprisingly heavy. As soon as it was in his arms, he was astonished that the tiny woman had been carrying it at all.

  “We just need to get this stuff to my car,” she added. “Hang on, I’ll grab the rest.”

  He waited obediently.

  When she returned, she was carrying an awkward armful of metal poles and cables.

  “So you’re the new second floor tenant?” she asked. “You made a quick decision.”

  “How did you know?” he asked her.

  Then he felt very silly, because why else would he be in the building? It held only three apartments and he was not Tony or Micah. They were much smaller than Hannibal, and also very old, and they wore very elegant clothes.

  “Lucky guess,” she said, scowling. “But you have perfect timing. I could really use an extra pair of hands.”

  He tried to sort out what she had just said. He understood that she wanted him to come with her, and he thought he might just follow her to the ends of the Earth.

  But why did she want to have more hands? Was that even possible? It hadn’t been listed as an option when they were designing his body.

  As far as he knew, humans never came with more than two.

  “Sorry,” she said. “It’s just an expression. I forgot for a minute that you were an alien.”

  3

  Violet

  The big man’s jaw dropped, and Vi recognized her mistake right away. She clearly wasn’t supposed to know that he was an alien yet.

  She worried that it might even be a little racist for her to remark about it. People were so busy blaming aliens for things around here lately.

  It was just that something strange had happened when he looked at her that made her let down her guard for a second. A sizzle of electricity had jolted from her scalp to her toes, and she had forgotten her shoddy manners altogether.

  “I’m sorry,” she said. “Sometimes I just blurt things out without thinking about it.”

  “There is no need to apologize,” he replied politely. “Did Tony and Micah tell you about me?”

  “No,” she said. “Well, yes, sort of. They said you were coming and that I shouldn’t make a lot of noise while you were looking around.”

  “I see,” he said, one brow raised. “Do you usually make a lot of noise?”

  “No,” she said. “Jana does, but that’s hardly my fault. She’s my roommate.”

  “What kind of noise does she make?” he asked quietly, leaning in, as if he thought Jana was a deranged lunatic, or maybe just some kind of child.

  “She’s a singer and an actress,” Vi told him. “Micah used to be an actor, too. That’s how she found out about this place.”

  “I see,” he said, sounding as if he certainly did not see. “And did they tell you I was an alien?”

  “No,” she admitted. “I could tell by your hands.”

  “What do you mean?” he asked, looking down at the big hands that were wrapped around her equipment box.

  “Most people have callouses, scars, wrinkles, tan lines, something that would give me a clue about who they are and what they do for a living,” Vi told him. “But your hands are perfect. They look… unused.”

  “Wow,” he said. “I did not know humans were so observant.”

  “Most aren’t,” she admitted. “But I’m interested in details.”

  He nodded and eyed her with what she could only interpret as respect.

  “I am Hannibal,” he told her. “I cannot shake your hand because of the large box.”

  “Violet,” she replied. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Where are we going, Violet?” he asked.

  “To the farmer’s market,” she said. “I’m doing an experiment there. At least I’m going to the farmer’s market. You’re just coming down to my car to help me load this in. Unless you want to come to the farmer’s market with me. In which case you’re more than welcome.”

  She honestly did not know if she had ever spoken more words in a row in her entire life. Something about this guy was turning her into a blathering idiot.

  “I would be delighted to come with you,” he said. “But first I have to tell Tony and Micah that I’m taking the apartment.”

  “You hadn’t decided yet?” she asked, a little horrified that she had hijacked him when he wasn’t even her neighbor yet.

  “I had decided,” he said. “I just hadn’t told them.”

  She nodded and headed carefully down the stairs with her equipment. He followed, his big body sending the whole staircase quivering.

  Just like my heart...

  Wow. Where had that come from? Vi had never really been the puppy love type.

  But she knew the backstory on the guys from Aerie. Scientists had designed them to be like catnip for women. This poor guy probably had every woman he met quivering over him.

  Vi thought about what it would be like if she had to walk around knowing that everyone who saw her wanted to touch her, and barely repressed a shudder of revulsion.

  “My roommate’s car is right out front,” she called back to him over her shoulder.

  They loaded up and then he jogged back in to talk with Tony and Micah.

  Vi leaned against the car door and glanced down the block.

  It was a perfect fall day. The air was cool and crisp, just right for sound experiments. And it was awesome that Jana was letting her use the car today. Her only means of transport was her truck, which wasn’t the most reliable right now.

  “All set,” Hannibal said as he stepped outside to join her again.

  They hopped in the car and headed down the block to the big municipal parking lot where the market was held every weekend.

  “It’s like a party,” Hannibal said to himself as he gazed at the big banner and the people milling around and eating as live music played on the plaza.

  “Yeah, it kind of is,” Vi agreed. She had never thought of it that way.

  They got out and began unloading.

  She’d had the elements for a makeshift booth in Jana’s trunk forever, just waiting for a day with the right conditions.

  They set it up in no time at the end of a row of other booths. Not bad at all. It almost looked like it belonged there.

  There was a moment of panic when it looked like Mayor Smalls and his dog, a goofy but well-behaved Saint Bernard that went by the name of Barker Posey, were headed over to check out the booth. But a group of skateboarding kids flashed past, almost knocking over the mayor in the process and causing him to change course, presumably to give the dangerous delinquents a stern talking-to.

  Vi placed a stack of questionnaires, a cup of pens, and a slotted box on the table.

  “Okay, ready for step two,” she said, heading back to the car.

  “Where are we going now?” he asked.

  “We have to set up the radio equipment,” she told him.

  To his credit, he didn’t ask any follow-up questions, just followed her back to the car and helped her carry equipment to the little park opposite the lot.

  They crossed over a little hillock and Vi looked around.

  “Ideally, I’d put it up there,” she said, indicating the little knoll. “But I don’t really want anyone seeing it. It might skew the results.”

  “What do we do now?” Hannibal asked.

  “We build a radio transmitter,” Vi told him.

  “Do you need to communicate with someone in space?” he asked.

  “Oh,” she said. “No, this is a much smaller transmitter than the one the scientists used to reach your planet. We just need to reach the farmer’s market.”

  “If we need to send them a message, why don’t we just walk over there?” Hannibal asked.

  “I’m doing an experiment,” Vi said.

  “So you’re a scientist,” he said. “That’s fantastic.”

  Vi flushed. “Yes,” she said, feeling pleased.

  “Okay, how do I help?” he asked.

  They set up the transmitter relatively quickly. Hannibal was so strong and so eager to please that the whole process was actually kind of fun, instead of the sweaty exercise in frustration Vi was used to when she set up her toys by herself.

  At last they were finished.

  Vi stepped back to admire the device. To anyone else it might look like the skeleton of a gigantic robot hand, but to Vi it looked like exactly what it was, a powerful antenna she had built herself with a capacity far greater than what they needed today.

  “Okay, watch this,” she said, crouching in the grass to fiddle with the dial.

  She had discovered the radio signal for the PA system last week. Now all she had to do was tune to that frequency and play the recording she had for today’s experiment.

  She made the necessary adjustments, too aware that Hannibal was sitting on the grass beside her, watching intently.

  Most times, she would not have wanted anyone hovering, but his proximity didn’t irritate her. Hannibal was calm, focused, and quiet.

  And there was something about him that made her feel like soda bubbles were being released in her chest.

  Focus, Vi, she scolded herself.

  She could clearly hear the sounds of a local band making a mockery of a Green Day cover over the PA system.

  She took a deep breath in joyful anticipation and made the final adjustment.

  The music was replaced instantly with the sound of a sixty-four-year-old opera singer speaking the same word over and over again.

  “Why is he saying Yanny?” Hannibal asked.

  “For the record, he’s actually saying Laurel,” Vi said. “And it was recorded as part of a vocabulary website. But people argue online about whether he’s saying Yanny or Laurel because it’s a poor-quality recording, which makes it acoustically ambiguous.”

  “That is very interesting,” Hannibal said, closing his eyes. “Now that you say it, I can also hear Laurel.”

  Vi nodded. She could also hear both.

  “Why are we doing this?” he asked.

  “A couple of reasons,” Vi said. “First of all, it’s interesting. Which is the most important reason to do anything. Secondly, it will help me know the character of the town.”

  “How would it do that?” Hannibal asked.