03 Solar Flare - Spark Series (19 page)

Gem put a hand on her belly, smiling fondly,
if a little sadly.

“They’re something special, you’ll see.”
Brandy hugged her again and straightened before she became any more
emotional. “I should have just jumped on the ship and sent you a
message when we were off. I hate this maudlin crap.”

Gem laughed. “You know I’d have killed
you.”

“Yeah. Let’s get out of here before I’m
overcome with too much sentiment.”

Azor volunteered to help settle the kids in
her room. He wasn’t the playful type, but he did patiently answer
the dozens of questions the boys constantly asked just because kids
want to know everything, yesterday. He even broke up a threatening
dogfight over who got to sleep on the bed with Brandy.

“No one,” he said firmly. “It’s always more
fun to sleep on the floor during these things.”

“Even Aunt Brandy?” Baden wanted to know.

Azor smiled at her, waiting for her to
answer. Not that she had much choice now. “Even me. Though you guys
had better not steal my covers. And no kicking! That means you,
Kaden.”

Kaden pouted. “I don’t kick!”

“Do to,” Baden said smugly.

“Do not!”

“And no talking in your sleep, Baden,” Brandy
interrupted before the argument got out of hand. She was beginning
to remember why she rarely had sleepovers. With these two, very
little sleep was involved. Maybe it would work if she put one on
each side of her. It would keep them from whispering, but it would
probably put her life in peril. There was nothing squirmier than a
young sleeper.

“Walk me out?” Azor suggested as the boys
drug all her bedding off her bed and began to disarrange it on the
floor.

She nodded and waited until the door was
closed behind them to complain, “I hate sleeping on the floor.”

He smirked. “I could offer to join you and
share the misery.”

Her eyes narrowed in warning. “I already have
enough children in my room, thank you, though it would serve you
right.”

He smiled and cupped the back of her head.
“I’d like to work on creating children with you,” he said lightly.
He kissed her before she could respond.

His words unsettled her, though. Her ardent
response surprised them both. It was as if all her barriers dropped
in a sudden burst of wonder, of…she couldn’t name what she felt,
but it left her completely responsive in his arms.

He groaned and sank deeper into the kiss,
then drew back with a quick breath. He was breathing hard. “Was
that a yes? You like that idea.”

She drew back, a little taken aback at her
passion. “Er, no,” she said, feeling rather shaky. “I mean, we have
to discuss stuff like that. A lot.”

He snorted. “You use words to stall.” He
glanced at her door. “And you have guests tonight, so I won’t call
you on it…this time.” His expression promised future reckoning.

She glanced down. “Goodnight. I’ll see you
tomorrow.” She was suddenly too uncertain to meet his gaze.

He made a sound, like a small laugh, and
tilted her chin for a quick kiss. “Dream of me.”

She watched him as he strode away. It was
hard to calm her revving heart, but a sound from inside her room
brought her back to her duties. With a sigh, she opened her door
and went back to the other young men who demanded her
attention.

CHAPTER 12

“You don’t look as if you got much sleep,”
Azor commented over breakfast the next morning. Breakfast was a
simple meat pasty and a hot drink each as they strode out to the
launch pad. She was sick of rich food, and her goodbyes this
morning had made her moodier. She hadn’t wanted to linger over a
big breakfast.

The only bright spot was seeing Xera yawning
over the pinbeam connection. It was a horrible hour there, and she
hadn’t bothered with makeup or formal dress. She’d wished Brandy
godspeed, said they were looking forward to meeting with her and
announced she was going back to bed. It had given the morning a
feeling of normalcy that Brandy had badly needed.

Xera’s Scorpio husband, Ryven Atarus, had
stood by her shoulder, looking as alert and cool as ever. Sometimes
she wondered if he even had a heartbeat. He’d given her formal
greetings, wished her a safe journey and signed off.

She had to wonder if he was looking forward
to her visit with as much expectation as his wife. What would he
think if he knew he was the star of her nightmares and waking
visions? She didn’t know if the Scorpio believed in prophecy. She
wasn’t sure what she believed anymore.

Azor didn’t allude to her mood as they
settled onto the bridge. Their navigator, Kikin, had arrived before
them and completed the preflight. “Hello,” he answered her greeting
in his flat, nasal voice, but otherwise ignored them, apparently
engrossed in his handheld game. She could faintly see the jelly
moving under his translucent skin. He had no visible ears, and his
big white head reminded her of a tethered moon.

His manner vaguely annoyed her, but he was an
alien. Besides, Azor hadn’t hired him for his conversational
abilities. She’d have been equally annoyed if he were the chatty
type.

She had to face the fact that her
irritability had nothing to do with her companions. She didn’t like
leaving her sister and family behind. The farther she got from
Polaris, the less necessary this trip seemed. However, she’d made
the decision, so she was going. She wasn’t required to like it.

A sudden vision blinded her, slid across her
vision, cutting off the bridge. Kikin was smiling at her. He
blinked, and then he was watching her out of Ryven’s brimstone
eyes. His smile widened, became vicious…

A scream lodged in her throat, and she
blinked hard to clear her sight. A glance showed the others were
oblivious. Working to control her labored breathing, she sat back
and drew slow breaths. At least I have a new subject to hallucinate
about, she told herself, striving for humor. Was she going mad? Did
crazy people wonder if they were sane? She looked methodically
around the bridge, cataloging items, separating the corporal from
her dark fantasies. Control panel, real. Kikin-the-monster,
irrational.

For added measure, she added a litany about
how the visions were fading, the drug slowly leaving her system. It
would be all right. With an effort, she focused on the present.

The ship rose smoothly, with no internal
feeling of thrust until they’d risen several hundred feet over the
tarmac. She waited until they’d broken through the cloud cover and
entered the dark of space before she glanced cautiously at Azor. He
sent her a brief, reassuring look, then focused on his control
panel. Once they were well clear of the planet’s gravitational pull
and surrounding satellites, he jumped into hyperspace.

The process was rather boring for her. She’d
never had any interest in flying or space flight, regarding both as
about as glamorous as a prolonged bus ride. Sure, the pilot had
something to do, but the rest of them had to fend for
themselves.

For the first time, she was rather glad of
the boredom. Tedium was calming. She could use a little
tranquilizing ennui.

Chores were also calming. Thankfully, she’d
already decided to try her hand in the kitchen. At least they’d
laid in a store of fresh fruit and vegetables to experiment
with.

She’d never cooked much, but she’d spent a
lot of time in the kitchens and helped out from time to time.
Besides, she could follow instructions as well as anyone else, and
there were plenty of cookbooks and instructional videos on line.
With that in mind, she headed to the galley to see what she could
do about lunch. Just thinking about it helped her relax.

The Guok was easy. He had plastic pouches of
food that he would help himself to. Azor had said that Guoka did
not like to deviate from their set diet, and she had no intention
of forcing him to try her cooking. Azor, she had no qualms about
feeding.

He entered the kitchen a short while later
and sniffed appreciatively. “Smells good. I didn’t know you could
cook.”

She slid a plate in front of him. “You still
don’t. Tell me if it’s edible.”

He picked up the sandwich and had a bite. He
grinned. “No worries—you can.”

“What a relief. We might have had to live on
the frozen meals you laid in, otherwise.” She had nothing against
the occasional frozen meal, but if she had to subsist on them, she
might swear off food entirely. She’d had too many years of dining
out of her own garden to settle for instant unless she had to.

Azor shrugged. “After a while, it’s just
easier. Most people stop caring.”

She grimaced. “Then count me out of long
voyages. I think I’d rather sleep the whole way.”

He smirked. “Can’t, unless you really do want
the deep freeze option. It’s best to wake up and feed up after a
few weeks of semi-suspension. We’ll also have to exercise to keep
in shape. Hyperspace encourages bone loss, and artificial gravity
is no substitute for walking around on a real planet.” He tilted
his glass at her in mock reproof. “No slacking like you did on the
first leg of the journey.”

She frowned. “I exercised.”

He raised a skeptical brow. “Good to know,
but we’ll work together on it this time. You’ll learn to like the
weight machines.”

She wasn’t convinced of that, but it wasn’t
worth an argument. Instead she studied his face and asked something
she’d been wondering for a while now. “You’re a shape shifter. If
you wanted to, you could erase the scar on your cheek and heal your
ear. Since you haven’t, I assume you like them as they are.” He was
a good-looking guy. Most people with his looks liked to play them
up, not allow the scratches and dings of life to show.

His chewing slowed, then resumed its usual
pace. He took a swallow of tea. “I could, and I do, when I’m
assuming an alias. When it’s my choice, I prefer it as it is.”

She waited. When he said nothing else, she
asked, “So it means something to you. Is it a warrior thing? I
admit I don’t know everything about your culture. M’acht was always
trying to pretend he wasn’t Kiuyian.”

Azor looked at her keenly, but didn’t chase
that rabbit. “You could say it is a Kiuyian status symbol. In the
old days, warriors would not heal scars they earned in battle. I
started keeping mine when I was a teenager.”

“And the earring? Does it mean anything, or
is it just jewelry?”

He smile was self-mocking. “It draws
attention to my ear.”

She calculated the odds, and said with
narrowed eyes, “It’s a diamond.”

His smile widened. “You’re learning.”

She felt a wave of satisfaction. She was
learning who he was. “How did you get it?”

“Why the curiosity? Don’t you like my looks?”
he asked innocently, but the gleam in his eye belied the mild
tone.

“You know you’re a good looking guy,” she
said frankly. “In an austere, chilly kind of way. I’m surprised you
aren’t more arrogant because of it, but I suppose your warrior
beliefs explain it.” She wasn’t inclined to make any seduction he
had in mind easy. Words were a good a way to hold him off while she
made up her mind about him.

He smiled lazily. “My warrior beliefs tell me
that my scars make me look better.” He looked at her dead on,
absolutely confident. “You don’t think I’m chilly.”

“Anymore,” she stressed. “I certainly thought
you slept in a deep freeze before.” She rubbed the underside of her
chin absently. “I imagined you laid out on an iceberg once or
twice.” Before he could make a comeback, she added, “But you were
telling me about your ear.”

“Nice try, but you’ll have to work on your
interrogation technique. I think you’ve had your share of personal
questions today,” he said, clearing away his plate. “I have a few
things to do, but I’d be happy to teach you how to fly later, if
you’d like.”

She shook her head. “You know I’m not into
spacecraft, thanks. And you’re awfully evasive for a guy who claims
to be courting me.”

Unconcerned, he gave her a quelling look.
“You’ve had more out of me than any woman I ever dated. Besides,
someone has to rein you in. Feeding your curiosity is like feeding
a black hole—you’re never filled. These answers will keep.”

“I’m not a black hole,” she said
indignantly.

He sent her a calculating look. “I’ll lay
good odds you’re spending your free time investigating some pet
curiosity. You’re like Blue’s twins, always wondering about
something.”

“I’m not that bad.”

He ticked items off on his fingers. “You
learned to ride a speed bike out of curiosity. You’ve taken several
different classes on wine making, perfuming, lapidary, precision
metal cutting—“

“I like to know how things work,” she
interrupted. He made her curiosity sound insatiable, but she’d just
been testing things she might rather do than run a brewery.
Sometimes she got twitchy like that, bored with her job. It was one
of the reasons she experimented with the sodas. She never had found
something she liked doing better, so she attributed her
restlessness to something else. “How do you know my schedule so
well, anyway?”

“Blue talks. Your family is as nosey about
your life as you are about theirs. It’s a disease with you
people.”

“You shouldn’t want to join the madness,
then,” she retorted. “You’ll be up for discussion next.”

He grinned. “You notice I’m happily traveling
light years away from them with you.”

“There’s Xera.”

He shrugged. “I’ll survive. I’m sure I could
find a job, something to keep me away from whatever chatter
sessions you two might have. I’ll pop back in just often enough to
keep you in line.” He grinned to show he was teasing.

She rolled her eyes and wrapped up the rest
of her sandwich for later. “Best go find one now. I’ve got things
to do. I’m studying Scorpio, and I have a few messages to compose.
I thought I’d study up and see if any of these planets we’re
zooming past has anything worth checking out.”