Page 32 of Elias

She wished Diadora would get this over with quickly. She hadn’t even been here two months. Diadora most likely wouldn’t pay her for the work she’d done, now she’d found out about her deceit. In a way, Hayley didn’t blame her, but she’d been so desperate to get her hands on money to help Sally. Now, she’d wasted seven weeks of her life, and it was all for nothing.

Diadora glanced up and set her port screen on the desk. “Tell me about your future plans.”

“My plans? For my career, you mean?”

“I’m hardly going to ask you about your social life,” Diadora snapped. “You’ve been here almost two months. Do you find the work satisfactory?”

Hayley swallowed her nerves. “I do.”

“Is it different from your previous employment? Looking at your resume, you were at the same matchmaking agency for three years. You must have experienced a lot of happy couples in that time.”

“Absolutely. We saw many successful partnerships.” Hayley tasted the lie, but kept her expression neutral, just waiting for Diadora to call her out.

“Yet you decided to leave and take your chances in space on a new agency. That seems like a gamble. What prompted the change?”

“I needed a new experience. I wanted something that would challenge me. What’s more challenging than matchmaking aliens and humans?”

Diadora snorted. “It’s not so difficult. I find the males of every alien race desire a very similar thing. Some aliens have advanced technology and superior warfare abilities, but the males are all after the same thing. Fertile, willing females to enjoy.”

“Which makes our job easier.”

“Which means it is not so much as a challenge as you’d hoped for,” Diadora said.

“No, I mean, it is a challenge. I’m getting to know the other members of the team and learning my way around your database. It’s the most sophisticated matchmaking system I’ve ever used.”

“I’ve noticed you’ve had a few teething problems getting your head around the technology,” Diadora said. “It’s not too much for you?”

“Absolutely not. I’m getting there.”

“You need to speed up,” Diadora said. “The others bring in higher numbers than you every week. Since you’re new here, I make allowances, but you need to up your game. I will be reviewing the report Vegas submits on your progress. I hope you don’t disappoint me.”

“I hope I don’t either.” Despite her nerves, Hayley relaxed a little. It sounded like Diadora hadn’t rumbled her but was interested in her progress. Maybe Diadora wasn’t as scary as everyone made her out to be.

“I will give you one piece of advice. I have given this advice to every member of the team. They have all ignored it, so I expect you will do the same. Although, I encourage you not to.”

“What’s the advice?” Why would anyone disobey Diadora’s advice when she had such a fearsome reputation?

“Do not fall for an alien as the other idiots in the team have. Also, avoid getting pregnant. Both Vegas and Ivy have been too eager to reproduce for my liking. I do not hire a team only for them to disappear on maternity leave as soon as they can.”

Hayley pressed her lips together to stop smiling. “Of course, I have no plans to meet anyone. I’m focused on my work.” Although Diadora complained about the babies, Hayley noticed a pile of children’s toys in a box in the corner of her office. And she’d seen how Diadora repeatedly scooped up Ivy’s child and took her off to play. She might act like a cold-hearted cyborg, but she had a soft side when it came to children.

“You are not interested in anybody?” Diadora asked.

“I’ve been too busy to think about romance.” Her thoughts turned to Elias. There had been that kiss, but it was nothing more than a moment of weakness. Hayley would smooth things over with him when she got the chance. She’d been hasty in judging him for abandoning his princess. Even though he was gorgeous and made it clear he liked her, now was a terrible time to start a relationship. Hayley had to keep focused on her work, focused on making as much money as possible to send back to Sally. That was why she was here.

“That is reassuring. Although, I am not entirely convinced. The others all said the same when they joined. Work comes first, they promised me. The next thing I know, they have their legs open and get pregnant by some musclebound alien.”

Hayley ducked her head and smiled. “I’ll do my best to avoid that.”

“You’d be wise to. Somehow, these aliens winkle their way into my girls’ affections. Seal your heart from this nonsense, or it will be stolen from you. I cannot afford to keep losing staff to marriage and babies.”

“I get the impression Ivy and Vegas still love their work, even though they’ve found love,” Hayley said. “Ivy is back working, and although Vegas shouldn’t be here, she’s still in the office every day.”

Diadora’s gaze turned steely. “Yes, well, be that as it may, they have additional distractions in their lives. It means they cannot give their complete attention to their work. That is never a good thing.”

“No, absolutely not.” Hayley had to remember this was not a friendly chat with a buddy. Diadora was in charge and did not want to make friends.

“Since everyone is occupied with other duties, I have a specific task I need your assistance with. I want you to help with the induction of a new client. As you are aware, we are beginning trials of matching human men with female aliens. There is not such a big demand for it, but we’ve had a number of inquiries and are willing to see how lucrative this new venture can be.”