Alien in the Family

haven’t done anything wrong.” He closed his eyes. “You’d think it would be easier this time around.”
    “What? What would be easier?” I tried not to panic and failed utterly. It was stupid and silly, and I could remember that whenever the logical side of my mind had a say in the matter—but the oldest fear I had about my relationship with Martini was that he really didn’t want to be with me for me but wanted me only because I was a human and so exotic and forbidden. This worry skipped and laughed out of my deeper consciousness where I’d shoved it away for the past six months and danced through my mind. It shared that Martini was breaking up with me, again, and that this time, he meant it.
    “Oh, Kitty . . . no, baby, no.” He pulled me into his arms. “Baby, how can you think that? Especially after all this time?”
    “What’s wrong? What do you need to tell me? Are you mad at me?” My voice was heading to the dog-only register.
    Martini pulled me into his lap and held me tightly. “Shhh, baby. No, nothing’s wrong. I didn’t mean to scare you. Kitty, I love you so much . . . for you, not because you’re a human. Because you’re everything I ever dreamed of and never thought I’d find. I never believed you’d love me or choose me over everyone else.”
    I wrapped my arms around him. “Then what do you need to tell me?” I was shaking, and the logical part of my mind mentioned we hadn’t gotten nearly enough sleep in the past many hours and maybe I needed some.
    “Ask you.” He reached into his pants pocket. “I need to ask you something.” He rocked me. “Baby, please, relax. It’s not bad. At least, I don’t think you’ll think it’s bad.” I heard uncertainty in his voice, faint, but there.
    I nodded and sat up in his lap. Be a big girl, calm down and deal. Okay, I could handle that. Hopefully.
    Martini stroked my face, then slid his hand to rub the back of my neck. He got a funny smile on his face. “You know what the most flattering thing in the world is? To me, anyway?” I shook my head. “That you’re somehow afraid I’m going to decide some other woman’s better for me than you. I’ve been in love with you since I met you. Baby, we mate for life . We make the commitment, and it stays there. It doesn’t go away.”
    “But I can’t wear the necklace anymore because someone hates me.” I started to cry and felt like a moron.
    “I know, baby. And it bothers me, but you didn’t take it off because you wanted to. You took it off because you had to.” He kissed my tears away. “Kitty, oh, baby, stop. You’re too tired. I should have let you sleep.”
    “I didn’t want to sleep, I wanted to make love to you.”
    He laughed softly. “And you wonder why I think you’re the most perfect woman in the universe?” He took my hand and put something into it, something small. “I wanted to do this more romantically, but I think, under the circumstances, let me just say I hope you like it, and if you don’t, the store is open twenty-four/seven and said we could exchange it any time.”
    I looked down to see a ring. A diamond ring. Stone not too big, marquis cut, excellent quality from what I could guess, gold setting with an intricate design that enhanced the stone’s beauty.
    “I know you like the traditional cut better,” Martini said softly. “But since that’s what Reynolds had for you, can you manage to forgive me for not wanting to give you something exactly like it?”
    I couldn’t talk. It was beautiful, and I felt both beyond happy and fairly stupid at the same time. He took the ring out of my palm and slid it onto the ring finger of my left hand. It fit perfectly and looked real, not like paste, which was why I hated large stones.
    Brain finally kicked in, and I flung my arms around his neck and kissed him wildly. He wrapped his arms around me. “Can I take that as a yes?” he asked when we finally pulled apart.
    “Yes. Jeff, I love it. But why, and why now? You didn’t have to buy this for me.”
    “Yes, I did.” He leaned my head against his shoulder. “Your family doesn’t understand our customs, and I know they think you’ve been deluding yourself. No ring means no commitment to humans. I verified that with James, by the way, and Michael. They’re all here, but the moment I realized you couldn’t wear the necklace again, I knew I had to give you something—for your peace of mind, mine, and your family’s.”
    “When did you have