When She Wishes

Risdaverse

by Ruby Dixon, Jillian Macie (Narrator), Mason Lloyd (Narrator)

Payton needs help on her farm. Heavily pregnant from a one-night-stand, she can't manage all the manual labor and is supposed to be on bedrest. An alien man from a cat-like warrior race arrives on her doorstep with an offer to work for room and board. Bodhrri will get to stay on the planet, and Payton will get an extra pair of hands to help out until her babies (yup, plural) are born.

Tiny problem—he's the father of her unborn children and he had no idea until now she was pregnant. Is this a secret baby plot?

(No, it's secret BABIES.)

Genres: Romance, Science Fiction, Aliens, Novella, Science Fiction Romance, Audiobook, Fiction

2 pages, Audible Audio

Published November 25, 2025

About the author

Ruby Dixon is an author of Science Fiction Romance. She likes fated mates, baby-filled epilogues, and cinnamon roll heroes. She also likes to write biographies of herself in the third person, because it feels more important that way.

Ruby also loves coffee and dirty books and will probably be a cat lady at some point. :)

Reviews

[Soft Nectarine ~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was cute but the Catman-alien & his whiskers did NOT do it for me 🐱

Payton & Bodhrri had a drunken one night stand and then disappeared from each others lives. That’s why Payton is very surprised when her baby Daddy aka resident Cat-Alien shows up as her contracted worker. Also she is pregnant with his…litter (I REEEEEEAYLLY wish she used a different word there) 💀

The story was low-to-nun on the spice focusing more on Bodhrri’s caring relationship. I’m not sure if it was the whiskers kink or the constant mentions of fur/purring but…I just discovered this type of alien is not for moi.

I enjoyed the younger & gentler mmc and his scent markings *screaming* but the story was trying to do too much in such a short novella (the farming, the babies, the relationship, mmc’s backstory).

alien romance
age gap (she is older)
secret babies
gentle & caring mmc
HEA

[Christi (christireadsalot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

When She Wishes is an alien romance novella part of the Risdaverse series! It recently got an audiobook so I had to dive in (thanks hoopla) since I love this series so much and have read them all.

This is an age gap (she’s 10 years older), accidental pregnancy/secret babies (after a one night stand) with alllllll the caretaking! Payton + Bodhrri were the sweetest and so fun to read about. Payton is needing help looking after her farm and house after a one night stand left her pregnant! Bodhrri desperately wants to stay on the planet (he has breathing problems when he isn’t on this planet) and takes a job to help out with someone’s farm and household chores. He and Payton are both surprised when he shows up at her house and they realize who one another is and that she’s now pregnant. I loved his caretaking and immediate jump into wanting to make her life easier and be apart of her life. Short, sweet, satisfying!

[Hilda · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Calm yourself. There is nothing that can be solved with tears and a dozen things that can be solved with good tea."

Then the big strong gorgeous cat-alien makes her the best tea Payton’s ever had and cleans up her house AND cooks for her while she takes a nap! This reason alone makes Bodhrri the best mate ever. This was super short and extremely cute! Payton and Bodhrri were couple goals and it was delightful to read their story.

[Poppy || Monster Lover · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
Bodhrri was super sweet with all the golden retriever vibes and had a pretty positive attitude about life. Payton was loud, lonely, and very very pregnant. He spoiled her and was all in very quickly. They were sweet together. I would have liked to learn more about Payton though.

Spice: 2/5

Triggers: family estrangement, references to abduction and enslavement, pregnancy, references to sex while drunk

[❁ lilyreadsromance ❁ · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well, that was an idea. A very short idea. A one-night stand between a human and a feline-alike alien resulting in multiple babies. A litter of babies.

And that's it, y'all. I didn't even know what I expected from this.

[Ꮗ€♫◗☿ ❤️ ilikebooksbest.com ❤️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Short, Steamy, and Surprisingly Satisfying



I don’t usually pick up audiobooks under three hours, but I grabbed this one on Libby and was pleasantly surprised. At just two hours, it managed to deliver a full story without feeling rushed.

Payton and Bodhrri’s one-night encounter on Risda 3 leads to unexpected consequences—triplets (maybe quadruplets!) and a farm that’s too much for Payton to handle alone. Bodhrri, a cat-like alien raised on space stations, longs to settle on Risda 3 and can’t get Payton out of his mind. When fate brings him to her farm, the reunion is both tender and steamy.

The pacing was tight but effective, with enough emotional beats and chemistry to keep me hooked. Mason Lloyd and Hollie Jackson’s narration was, as always, fantastic—they brought both characters to life with warmth and energy.

A short listen that proves length doesn’t always dictate impact.

Blog|Goodreads|Facebook|Instagram|Pinterest|BookBub

[Xiomara · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

A cute and sweet short story. It was a little short story to get you all your happy feelings you know.

[Kimbot the Destroyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is super short, but what little is there made my entire day better. There is just enough Risda III in here to whet the craving for the next full-length book. The romance is satisfying. This universe is one of the few that makes me celebrate babies, even surprise pregnancy gets a pass.

[BookishKB · Rating 5 out of 5]

Adorable Novella!

This was such a cute and sweet novella! And the epilogue was so adorable 😍
I’ll literally read anything Ruby writes.

[Bri The Shameless Romance Reader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet short bite sized SFR. I wish it was a little longer, but it’s perfect to scratch a quick SFR itch.

[Emms-hiatus(ish) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hit that sweet spot just right.

[K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great for its form & genre! "...a one-night stand on a pastoral colony planet resulting in a multiples pregnancy with a cat-alien golden retriever hero" sounds about right. Thanks, Ms. Dixon.

[Kimmylongtime · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ruby has done it again. This is one of my favorite series by her!! Every book makes me go on a very emotional journey!! I laugh, I cry I swoon !! What a freaking treat!!

[Jody Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute and no plot, just vibes. Not really a ding, because she does what she does well, but this felt very recycled, like the Dixon Core Story barely fluffed up into its own plot.

ONS has MAJOR repercussions, made more embarrassing when the dude in question shows up to be a farmhand. Luckily, he's a Dixon MMC, which means he's mad about the girl, and all about those acts of service and caretaking. Very low conflict, they both want more and...talk about it? He's all, secret babies, let me take full responsibility for your comfort before, and their care afterwards. Just two caring individuals, caring for each other, and making the best lives they can together.

My main complaint about this short novella is that I read it on audio, and my son and I went to get in the car to go somewhere and my bluetooth cut in at the VERY most embarrassing part possible. He's 17. It was a horror show for us both.

[turningleighpages · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pregnancy and Praxiians usually aren't my thing but this was cute

[readbydj 🧺 · Rating 3 out of 5]

i read this as my first audiobook and i was throughly entertained!

[CrazyGal609 · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’d be such a goner with the Purring!! I want to pet his whiskers too 😸😼😻😽😺
Lovely & short with no drama & simple sweetness 💘
Nicely done with the different tidbits too!

📚Risdaverse:
1)When She’s Ready
2)When She’s Married
3)When She Purrs
4)When She Belongs
5)When She Dances
6)When She’s Bold
7)The Alien’s Mail Order Bride
8)Pretty Human
9)When She’s Lonely
10)Prison Planet Barbarian
11)When She's Pregnant
12)When She’s Merry
13)When She’s Fearless
14)When She’s Wary
15)When She's Shy
16)When She's Common
17)When She’s Handy
18)When She Wishes

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh.my.gooooodness. Bodhrri was the most adorably sweet Praxian a massively pregnant human woman could hope for. Considering his people lean toward the cat end of the spectrum, you wouldn't expect him to be so golden retriever like, BUT HE WAS.

Seriously, the guy was adorable. He was happy to help around the house. He was happy to rub Payton's feet. He was happy to get to be a part of her pregnancy. He was happy to just spend time with her. SO ADORABLE.

And Payton! She had buns in her oven and it was making things a little tough. Then Bodhrri shows up in response to her request for help and she wasn't expecting to come face to face with the sexy cat-alien who knocked her up. Bodhrri's willingness to jump in and do anything that needed to be done around the farm and his good humor soon had Payton relying on him. And the more she leaned on him, the more she realized she might be able to do everything on her own, but sharing her space (and life and babies) with this particular male wasn't a hardship.

I always love spending time in the Risdaverse and this story hit the spot. A good natured, willing to do anything to make his female's life easier male and a lady who realizes what a treasure he is. *HEART EYES*

-Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal

[Baby Got Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think I’m so annoyed/disgusted with men on this planet as a whole that a story about an alien man who just wants to happily take care of the woman he got pregnant during a one night stand like it’s not up for debate just hits right now. I said what I said. It’s a mood.

[Joque Bookreviewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sunshine straight to my veins

Such a cute novella! Gives all the uplifting vibes. It's funny, spicy, and has a HEA.

A drunken one night stand, with a cat-like alien species called a Praxian, leads to a surprise pregnancy. Which means the human female needs help running her farm bc the babies are growing too fast for her to do much of anything for herself.

Forced to leave Risda III now that his job contract is up, the praxian gets lucky with a job offer to stay on Risda helping to take care of a farm. When he arrives to the new job, he finds the woman he's been looking for, and she's pregnant with his babies.

Loving the Risdaverse series, they always put me in a great mood and make me feel accomplished for finishing a book so quick lol.

If I had to compare it to another book or series I've read I'd say Michelle Mills Curvy girl series.

Life is short, read whatever you want!

[Nikisha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read if you like: surprise pregnancy, one night stand, reverse age gap, novella, caretaking

Bodhrri is an acts of service man (alien?) and I loved it sm, he doted on Payton

This was super cute, it was a quick and easy read. No conflict/drama, no third act breakup, just a novella that focused on how he took care of pregnant Payton

[Chrissy Loves Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

Four Stars – A Cozy Fantasy Hug from Ruby Dixon!

I’ve read every single Risdaverse book—yes, even the spicy ones that should come with a “handle with oven mitts” warning. So when When She Wishes showed up, you bet I dropped everything and dove in headfirst!

This book is as sweet as alien sugar cookies—seriously, it's practically bedtime reading perfection. Ruby Dixon wove a charmingly romantic story that had me sighing happily and mentally booking a trip to Risda (sadly, only in my dreams).

I adored the worldbuilding and the gentle romance—it’s exactly what I needed after a long day of dealing with pesky humans. The banter was funny, the alien hero was deliciously swoony, and the heroine was relatable enough to make me feel like I could be plopped into this story and thrive.

My only quibble? I wanted just a bit more depth, a smidge more of that signature Dixon spice, but it’s bedtime reading, not bedroom reading, so I’ll let it slide.

All in all, I loved it. Please, Ruby, keep the Risda stories coming—I’ll read every single one!

[Midniteillusion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was short and sweet, but it could have been so much more.
I’m not sure why Dixon didn’t like these two characters enough to give them a full story. They were much more enjoyable than many ages given full books to. They could have such a wonderful relationship building from one drunken night to falling in love in a place neither ever expected to be.

Also other than them each mentioning their age once, they ages do not play into the story at all. So while it might be tagged as an “age gap” it’s not really. Nothing about their ages is explored. Another reason if could have been so much better as a full story.

However despite all of that I still rated it 4 stars since it’s one of the best novellas/novettes I’ve read by Dixon (normally they actually kind of suck).

[Erica Testa · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you couldn’t tell by the cover. Or the blurb. Or the content warnings on page one… 😂 this is a very pregnancy heavy novella. Those are typically not my fave but considering she’s carrying a litter of kittens- there is a brain disconnect. But if reading about pregnancy aches and pains is not your thing- skip it.
That being said within the first few pages- I just adored this hero. It’s a May/December Risda romance. Sweet and fluffy!

[Jessi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Look, I started reading the next book in the Pern series, but I was books and books ahead of my partner (for our read along), and Pern is just so so very man centered that I needed a break.

Ah, this book was a breath of fresh air. Oh, Ruby, I missed you. This is sweet like candy, and a great new addition to Risdaverse.

[Jess Firlotte · Rating 4 out of 5]

short and sweet.

I liked that their reunion was brought about out of their own self-interest and then they were able to grow into a relationship with one another.
it was kinda odd that dude remembered their hook-up and was intentionally withholding his memories of it for literally no reason at all tho...?

[Mary Margaret-Suarez · Rating 5 out of 5]

A wish in this dark dictatorship

One of my favorite authors because of the happy endings and aliens! When we are so overwhelmed in our country it is nice to escape to human farm sanctuary planet.

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another super cute installment of the Risdaverse series! And the mmc was Praxian which is my favorite species of Ruby Dixon aliens so obv it was going to be a home run.

[Imee Benzon · Rating 5 out of 5]

***BABIES ARE THE SWEETEST***

I loved this series so much ❤️ i hoped Ruby continues to write stories in this world. This is a beautiful and romantic story.

[Valerie B · Rating 3 out of 5]

Super short but sweet.