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"Thank you." Negal rubbed a hand over his clean-shaven jaw. "I hate to ask, but do you know if Frankie introduced Max to Margo?"
"Why would she?"
"When I told her that I wasn't interested in her friend, she said that she would introduce her to Max."
"I don't think she did." Gabi walked into the living room with a shoebox under her arm. "We've just been there, and Margo was with Frankie, and neither of them mentioned Max. In fact, Margo said that she hadn't planned on attending, but Bridget had convinced her that she should. That didn't sound like she was going with anyone." She gave him a bright smile. "She is all yours. Don't blow it this time."
"I didn't blow it the other time," he muttered under his breath. "I was the perfect gentleman and treated Margo with care and respect. I don't know what else I was supposed to do."
Gabi regarded him with a frown. "You've never had to work for it, have you?"
"Work for it?"
"Try hard to woo a woman. You're so handsome that all you need to do is show up."
He snorted. "On Earth, yeah, but on Anumati, I was rejected more times than I care to admit."
"Good." She waved a hand. "I mean, it's not good that you got rejected because it sucks, but at least you have experience with wooing females and overcoming objections."
"Not really." He rubbed a hand over the back of his neck. "That's not how it works on Anumati."
She turned to Aru. "What does he mean? You didn't tell me anything about the courtship rules on your home planet."
Aru sighed. "Of course, they are different. There isn't much guesswork when everything is determined genetically. If there is attraction, both partners know right away if it's reciprocated, and if the socioeconomics are compatible, they get together. It's simple."
Gabi shook her head. "And it's also boring and uninspired. Where is the fun in that?"
Aru took her hand and brought it to his lips for a kiss. "Don't dismiss it so quickly. What I described was just the initial stage. To build a relationship, other factors are required, like mutual interests, goals, etc. Sex is simple. Love never is."
"It is for fated mates," Negal said. "But that's rare." He looked at Aru and Gabi and the way they gravitated toward each other like there was a magnet in each of their chests that reacted just to the one inside their mate. "You two are lucky, and so are Dagor and Frankie."
"There are many fated couples among the immortals," Aru said. "I think that the Fates are working overtime on Earth."
Gabi brushed a hand over her skirt. "If those Fates of yours are only in charge of matching immortals, and they are only assigned to Earth, then they don't have a lot of work because there are so few of us. That could explain why nearly every match is fated."
"That's an interesting hypothesis." Aru led Gabi toward the door. "But we have a wedding to attend, so we will have to ponder it some other time." He looked over his shoulder at Negal. "Are you coming?"
"Yes. Of course." He followed them outside.
When the elevator stopped on Frankie's deck, Aru and Gabi walked out, and several immortals walked in.
Negal decided to stay inside. "I'll see you later in the dining hall."
30
PETER
Peter laid out the five dresses on his bed and tried to guess which one Marina would choose. The red one was from his mother, who had arched a brow at his request and had made a comment about the foolishness of getting involved with a human but had contributed to the effort, nonetheless. The long black one was from Beatrice, who had seemed tickled by the idea of him showing up to the wedding with one of the humans, another black dress that was shorter had come from Shirley, the pink one from Becky, and the purple one from Rachel.
The two black ones were the most likely to be chosen, and he personally preferred the shorter one that would reveal Marina's long, shapely legs, but he wasn't going to express his opinion. She would choose the one she liked best.
When the doorbell rang, he walked out of his bedroom and opened the door.
As he took in Marina's appearance, his breath caught in his throat. "Wow," he murmured, his eyes roaming over her. "You look incredible."
He didn't know where she'd gotten the dress, but it was more spectacular than all of the five he had prepared for her.
The subtle shimmer of the dress caught the soft glow of the cabin lights, making her look like a fairytale princess, and the midnight blue fabric hugged her curves in all the right places.
