03 Solar Flare - Spark Series (16 page)

Blue started walking slowly toward the beach.
“When did you decide she was the one? I admit, despite my teasing,
I didn’t see it coming.”

“But do I have your blessing?” Azor pushed.
He didn’t want to talk about his feelings with Blue. He was a
friend, but still.

“That depends. Let’s say you convince her to
travel on your ship—are you still going to take her to Xera?”

“That’s the plan. She might need a long
courtship. She’s stubborn.”

“Hm.” Blue paused in sight of the beach, just
inside the tree line. He watched Gem and Brandy as they kept an eye
on his children. “You know it’s immoral to seduce her.” He didn’t
say what they both knew—women like Brandy were vulnerable, easy
prey.

Azor matched his stance. “Yes, but I’m going
to do it anyway.”

Blue regarded him thoughtfully. “And why
would I allow that?”

“Because your wife would like to see her
sister happily settled. She’s practical enough to forgive my
technique, I think. Also, you know Xera will geld me herself if I
made Brandy my lover and refused to marry her. You have insurance
there.

“Besides, you know I take your wife’s
feelings seriously; yours, too. I’m not going to hurt your
ladies.”

Blue looked aside and drew a slow breath.
“Since it’s you…. Very well. I’ll give you my blessing. Just
remember, you asked for it.” He grinned.

Azor smiled as he looked back to the beach.
“Yes, I did.”

Gem took one look at her sister’s flushed
face and began interrogating her. “What happened?”

Brandy avoided her gaze by shading her eyes
with her hand and peering at the children weaving in and out of the
colorful coral “trees” that grew out of the sand. They were really
very pretty, and they came in shades of salmon, berry, pale to
deepest blue and yellow. The kids loved them. “I stopped to use the
changing room. Quit fussing.” She didn’t feel the need to elaborate
on what she did once she was inside. It was none of Gem’s
business.

Unfortunately, Azor chose that moment to walk
up to her and put his arm around her. When she stared at him,
startled, he countered with a kiss. It wasn’t a chaste kiss,
either.

“Hello,” he murmured. He glanced at the
children as if his actions were in no way extraordinary. “Looks
like they’re having fun.”

Brandy had a hard time breathing. She glanced
almost apologetically at Gem.

Gem eyed them with deepest skepticism. “What
did you say you were doing in the changing room, sis?”

Blue draped an arm across her shoulders. “It
was only a kiss, love, and Azor is an honorable man. I don’t think
we have to worry.”

She frowned at him. “It’s my job to
worry.”

“Sure, but your sister is twenty-six. She’s
old enough to court whoever she likes without your permission.”

Gem’s eyes settled on Brandy, causing her
sister to stiffen in instant alarm. She was sure Blue had
deliberately referred to a courtship. It wasn’t a word she was
ready to associate with Azor. “Hey,” she began, warily. It was
tricky coming up with a protest that didn’t make her look easy,
however. It wasn’t a situation she had much practice with.

Azor met Blue’s eyes. They exchanged a look;
challenge and male understanding. “I’m honored by your faith in
me,” Azor said smoothly.

The smoothness alarmed Brandy. It was
disconcerting that he seemed to be so accepting of the idea of a
courtship, since they’d certainly never discussed it. She opened
her mouth to point that out, but Gem spoke first.

Her sister still looked discontent. “That’s
very well, but I was under the impression my sister didn’t even
like you.” She glanced at Blue. “I don’t remember giving him my
permission to court my sister, either. That’s the polite way to do
these things, last I heard—and don’t give me that garbage about her
being old enough. After the last time, we agreed we’d discuss this
stuff first.”

All eyes turned to Brandy, who shifted her
feet. She didn’t enjoy the reminder of her first, hasty marriage.
She glanced at Azor, but he was as intent as the others, a slight,
amused curl to his mouth. “For the record, we haven’t discussed a
courtship or anything. Honestly, there’s nothing to tell you.”

“But you let him kiss you.”

Brandy winced. Put like that…. She attempted
an explanation. “I’ve…seen another side of him in the last few
days. Maybe he’s not as…uptight as I’ve always believed.” She
savored the slight narrowing of his eyes at her jibe. It made her
feel better, as if things were going back to normal. This was what
she was used to.

“This is new to both of us,” Azor said
mildly, but his eyes still held that singular spark. “We’re still
working out the details.”

She wanted to argue, but she didn’t want to
upset the fragile peace.

Gem looked at them, deadpan. “Let’s see if I
understand this. Azor thinks he’s courting you. Other than his
kisses, you’re not even sure you like him. Have I got that
straight? Because frankly, you two confuse me.”

Brandy chose not to comment. She thought Gem
had summed things up rather nicely, though she didn’t care for the
implication that she was only hot for Azor’s body. It would have
relieved her if that were all it was.

She was struggling with the idea of Azor
courting her. Why would he want to? He was no fortune hunter, and
he had no interest in The Spark. He rarely ever drank and her
professional accolades meant little to him.

She believed he was attracted to her, though
perhaps not as deeply as he thought. Perhaps he felt the passion
they’d shared couldn’t be honorable unless he ratified it under the
title of courtship. If so, what would happen if she let him seduce
her? If he insisted on marriage and she refused, he’d have an easy
out.

This line of reasoning annoyed her. Even she
could see there were several flaws in her theory, but she wasn’t
ready to believe he loved her.

Part of her still saw him as the cool
interrogator. It would take time before she accepted the man he was
now.

Gem wasn’t the only one confused about their
relationship.

Blue laughed and whispered something in Gem’s
ear. They’d been having a quiet discussion while Brandy had stood
there thinking.

Gem elbowed him in the side, but she was
smiling slightly when she glanced back at them. “All right, welcome
to the family, Azor…assuming you can convince my sister to have
you, that is.”

Azor gave her a brotherly hug. “Thank you.
I’m honored.”

Brandy watched with jaded interest. “I
wouldn’t get too chummy with the idea, you know,” she informed them
dryly. “I haven’t agreed to anything. For that matter, I’m still
planning to take a different ship from here to the next port.” She
glanced at the children and decided that digging in the sand with
them looked fun. She walked off, ignoring their scrutiny.

She’d made the mistake of marrying a Kiuyian
before. Whatever Azor made her feel, it wasn’t enough to risk that
twice.

On the heels of that conclusion, her
relentlessly practical mind pointed out that the men were
individuals. He couldn’t be held responsible for her ex’s
failings.

Unfortunately, her emotional nature insisted
that she’d been wrong before. How could she trust herself to make a
sound choice now? The conflicting thoughts chased around in her
head like two bristling dogs. She didn’t know what it would take to
bring a resolution.

She sat down in the sand and let the boys
bury her legs, though she refused to be covered up to her neck. Her
trust only went so far.

It was rather peaceful lying on the beach.
The sun was bright, so she rested her forearm over her eyes to
block it out. The sunglasses weren’t quite doing the job.

After a while Azor came and shoved a beach
umbrella into the sand above her. The boys had wandered off and
were splashing in the water. “You looked like you were getting
burnt,” he explained when she glanced at him. He sat in the sand
next to her. “Tomorrow we can look for a navigator to keep an eye
on the ship while we’re in semi-suspension.”

She closed her eyes and resumed her drowsing.
“I’m not going with you.”

“You’re afraid of being alone with me?”

She debated answering. She didn’t want to
discuss it, and he was baiting her. “Something like that.” When he
remained silent, she opened her eyes and looked at him. “We aren’t
couple material, you know. Nothing’s going to come of this except
heartache.”

“You sound very sure.” He didn’t seem
disturbed. Azor rarely was.

She sighed. “I’ve done this before, you
know.”

“With M’acht.”

“Yes.”

“Did he pursue you?”

She blinked and looked at him. “What?”

“Did he chase you?” he asked patiently. “How
hard did he have to work to have you?”

A slow frown drew her brows together. “What
are you saying? That I was too easy?”

He looked off down the beach. “The harder we
have to work for something, the more value we give it. I doubt he
had time to work up a passion for your marriage.”

She sat up. “He could have told me no! He had
the opportunity.” They’d talked about things. It hadn’t helped in
the end.

She looked away even as she rejected her
automatic, silent lie. She knew they’d been too hasty. It was time
she stopped making excuses for her own failings. She was impatient
and knew it. The knowledge tasted like bitter waters.

“Maybe he was too good a friend to do that.
Maybe he was never meant to be more.”

She started to rise, but her feet were caught
in the sand and it hurt to pull. She struggled to free them.

Azor helped. He didn’t stop talking, though.
“Maybe he wasn’t strong enough to be your lover, Red. Maybe you
needed someone else.”

She stiffened. Against her will, she met his
eyes. “Like you?” The words were accusing, hard. He had no right to
make judgments about her marriage. He hadn’t been there.

His gaze traced her face, settled on her
lips. Softly, he said, “I want you, you know. I have for some time.
I want to be your lover. To do that, I’ll be your friend. You won’t
be in charge, though. I’m proposing a 60/40 split. I get the top
half.”

She drew an offended breath, ignoring the
flush of interest. “Why would I give you the controlling shares? I
thought 50/50 was the standard marriage contract.”

He smiled intently and leaned in. “That
depends…on how well you like it under me.” He kissed her, slowly
eased her down to the warm sand. He couldn’t cover her, not here,
but he gave her a sterling example of what it would be like with
him in charge of their lovemaking. The man could do things with a
kiss that M’acht couldn’t achieve with his whole body.

The bottom share position suddenly looked
very attractive.

He eased up. “Besides, the more experienced
partner should be the one in charge.”

It was hard to be grumpy when she’d just been
so deliciously kissed. “I’m not a virgin, you know.”

His mouth quirked. “So you’ve experienced
intimate kisses? All over?”

She looked at him warily. The only thing
M’acht had ever kissed were her lips. Her breathing quickened as
she thought about it. She’d wondered what it would feel like.

He lazily twined their fingers. “And of
course, you’ve given as good as you’ve got?”

Heat fired her cheeks. She’d grown up in a
tavern—of course she knew what he was talking about. The fact that
she was too shy to do such a thing wasn’t something she would point
out.

He leaned closer. In the guise of whispering,
he nuzzled her ear. “I can make you feel so good, sweetheart. You
want that, don’t you?” He gave her lobe a little lap.

She shivered. Yeah, she could use more of
that. Really, what was the harm?

“Let me come to your room tonight. I promise
to make you feel so—” he broke off with an oath as water was tossed
under their umbrella, shattering the moment.

Kaden and Baden stood there, grinning. “Mom
said you needed to cool off,” Kaden announced. They giggled.

Azor rose with mock fury. “Let’s see how you
like it!” The boys squealed happily and took off running. Just
before he gave chase, he turned to her…and winked.

Vio listened to his man’s report with
increasing fury. The good doctor hadn’t been content to confess his
sins to the police before fleeing the planet; he’d gone one further
and pointed a finger at Vio as well. Everything he’d worked for,
every piece of art, all his money, his business, perhaps even his
freedom, was about to be torn away. The doctor had found his
revenge, and now was about to escape Vio’s justice.

He thought furiously. He’d already killed
many of the “patients” the doctor had on Polaris, but that was not
enough damage. He’d beggared the man, but it was not profound
enough. As he thought about what was left, a cold, malicious smile
dawned on his face. There was one thing.

Vio took out his com and dialed. Maybe Vhanee
didn’t realize it, but Vio knew he had a soft spot for Brandy
Harrisdaughter. He’d once mentioned her as an example of someone
who could use the healing benefits—if there were any—of his drug.
She fit the genetic profile of a successful candidate, and it
hadn’t been an accident that Vio had given her a dose, disguised as
medicine, of course. When it seemed she’d left it untouched, he’d
even arranged a second dose in a club, at the good doctor’s
insistence. He’d gone out of his way for that conniving fiend. Now
he was going to pay for betraying him.

Someone picked up on the other line. “State
your business.”

Vio smiled. “I have someone for you to
kill.”

It was tricky, dodging Gem’s pointed
questions, but Brandy managed it by saying she was going to look
for a navigator with Azor. Staying in her room would make it too
easy for Gem to corner her, and she couldn’t think of anything
she’d rather do, anyway.