by T. J. Quinn
She told herself that what she shared with Korben was just a heat of the moment event. He had never mentioned any possible future between them… god, she didn’t even know where he lived, if rescuing prisoners was what he did for a living… nothing.
For all she knew, he could have a wife and a family, back where he lived. She had known getting involved with him was a very bad idea, but her body had had other ideas.
“Is that what you want?” he asked, his tone grave, as he sat up, his head grazing the roof of the small tent.
“Is there any other choice? Would you take me home, if I asked you to?” she asked, tilting her head to look at him, but there wasn’t enough light in the tent for her to see his expression.
Not that his usual stony expression would tell her anything.
“If that’s what you want, then yes, I would,” he assured her.
“I can’t pay you for that,” she warned him, lacing her words with a hint of self-mockery.
“I don’t remember asking you to pay me,” he stated, clearly not pleased with her words.
“You would do it out of the kindness of your heart?” she asked, this time letting sarcasm taint her words. “Don’t you do this for a living? Rescuing people? Taking them from one place to the other?” she asked, poking him, but trying to find out about him.
“No, it’s not. Not anymore, anyway. When Biurk asked me to come for you, I almost said no. Doing business with him is never an easy thing, but I guessed I was too bored, doing nothing, so I said yes,” he explained.
“What would happen if you don’t take me to him?” she asked, curious.
“Probably, nothing. Biurk hasn’t paid me for the job, so he has no grounds for complaints,” Korben said shrugging. “But he didn’t sound like he would give up on you that easily,” he admitted.
“He has invested a lot in this, so the fair thing would be to give him a chance,” she said after a brief moment of silence. “Besides, my best friend is already living in Valkyr. I’m looking forward to seeing her again,” she added.
“Of course,” he nodded and remained silent for a while debating if he should tell her all he knew about Biurk. “How well do you know Biurk?”
“As well as you can know someone over phone calls and video chats,” she replied. “That was the purpose of this trip to get to know him better. I was supposed to fly over to Valkyr in one of the agency’s vessels, but he insisted on having his crew pick me up.”
“You were very far from Valkyr. What were you doing near Endora?” he asked, intrigued.
“I have no idea. I was told by the captain that we would make a quick stop on a planet, to pick up something, I think, before we headed to Valkyr,” she explained. “I even asked him if I could go for a walk while we were on the planet. I was sick of being locked up in my quarters for the entire trip, but he refused.”
“Endora is no place for a female,” he said, with a frown.
“So, he said. But we never got to Endora. The Paklyors attacked us on our way there,” she said, as she put on her shirt.
“Promise me something,” he asked, crawling closer to where she was.
“What?” she asked, turning her head to look at him.
“That you’ll take your time to get to know Biurk before you accept anything from him. Stay with your friend and really get to know him,” he replied with a stern tone.
“Why are you asking me that?” she asked, intrigued.
“I have the feeling you don’t know a thing about him and that you wouldn’t like him if you did.”
She frowned. “Why don’t you enlighten me, then? What do you know about him?”
“I don’t think it’s my place to tell you anything,” he said, still dueling on that.
“Why not?”
“You might think my words are tainted with what happened between us, while we were here.”
His words hit her like a punch straight to her heart. Only minutes had gone by since they had shared incredible orgasms. Now, he was already talking about it as if it had been a simple fling, with no importance whatsoever. As if what had just happened on that tent was as irrelevant as taking a swim in the damn stream.
She took a deep breath, trying to ease the pain crashing her lungs before she was able to talk.
She snorted. “I’m well aware there’s no risk of that happening.”
“You might think otherwise when you hear what I have to say,” he insisted. “But we’ll have plenty of time for this conversation on our way to Valkyr.”
She nodded. He was right, of course. Right now, they had to pack their things and wait for his friends to pick them up.
She opened the tent and walked out, carefully jumping to the ground. The night was still young, and the blue moon was the only light around, lending its silvery shine to all it lighted.
Korben came down right behind her, carrying the small pack he had returned the tent into and carrying his backpack with him.
“I brought some food from the Paklyors vessel. Would you like to have some? They taste a little better than the energy bars,” he offered.
“I’m not hungry,” she dismissed his offer, as she walked towards the stream to wash.
She wished she could take a long, hot shower, suddenly feeling the urgency of erasing his scent from her skin. She wanted nothing that could possibly remind her of how foolish she had been to allow a stranger like him into her heart.
A bath in the stream would do the trick, but after last time, she didn’t dare to go deeper into the stream at night time.
“We’re ready to go. My friends should be here any minute now,” he said, as he joined her at the edge of the stream.
“Good,” she said, putting some distance between them and taking a seat on a large rock. “Do you think the other Paklyor tribes might take revenge on these Paklyors’ disappearance?” she asked, intrigued.
He shook his head. “The tribes don’t get along well. That’s why they live in isolated lairs, away from other tribes. They only care about their own group, and even that, is a very shallow feeling. They have no idea what loyalty or friendship means.”
“That’s a relief. We won’t have to worry about a Paklyors fleet coming after us, on our way out of here,” she said, with a faint smile.
Chapter Sixteen
Korben looked at her, trying to guess what was going through her head. She had changed after he asked her about her future. It felt as if she had built a thick wall between them, and he didn’t know how to cross it.
Perhaps, it was for the best. He would have to take her to Biurk. Whatever happened between them would stay enclosed in the few days they had spent alone in those woods.
He should have never allowed it to happen, but the passion she inspired in him had been too hard to resist. Now, he would have to say goodbye to her, and though he kept saying to himself, he had no other choice, it still felt awkward.
He opened his mouth to say something, anything to break the tense silence that had settled between them, but he didn’t have the chance.
The bright lights of his vessel illuminated them, and two tubes were lowered into the clearing he had made for them.
He jumped to his feet and stretched his hand to help her up. “Time to leave,” he said, with a smile.
She didn’t smile back, nor did she take his hand. She got up, walked to one of the tubes, and waited for further instructions.
Korben sighed but activated the tubes in silence. They had to get out of there. That was priority. All the rest would have to wait.
They had a welcome committee waiting for them. His friends greeted them at the docking bay, except for Kyor who was flying them off of that freaking planet.
“It’s so good to see you again,” Suriak said, patting his back. “For a moment there, we thought that we had lost you.”
“I’m not that easy to kill,” Korben said, scowling. “Any sign of Paklyors’ vessels?”
“No, so far. It seems we managed to get in undetected. W
ith luck, they will never know we’ve been here,” Rhyos said.
“Perfect,” he turned to look at Arantxa, who was standing next to him, her expression unreadable. “Allow me to introduce you to Arantxa. Arantxa, they are my friends and crew members Rhyos, Suriak, and Tulyn. You’ll meet Kyor later, he’s busy flying us out of here,” he introduced her.
Arantxa had been expecting a group of males from the same species as Korben, but the males in front of her couldn’t be more different.
The one he called Rhyos was at least seven feet tall. His bulkiness made him look a lot bigger than his friends, but he was just about the same height.
She had never seen a specimen like him, but then again, she could say that for all the others. Though, she had to admit Rhyos stood out and not only because of his size. His olive skin with ridges all over, starting with his forehead, down his head and nape, all along to his buttocks, as well as in the back of his hands, combining with the huge black claws, his black eyes, with no pupils, the lack of hair, were combined to form a creature that was imposing and scary. Only the teasing grin on his face and kind shine of his eyes, allowed her to feel at ease next to him.
Suriak, on the other hand, was not as tall as the rest, probably six feet tall, was very slim and slender, his skin of a blueish shade, also hairless, but in his case, there was a darker shade of blue where you would expect to find hair. Though he looked feeble, compared with his friends, her instinct told her he could be as lethal as any of the others.
As for Tulyn, she wasn’t sure what to think of him. He reminded her of the primates that had once lived on planet Earth, though his face was definitely humanoid. He had a very sturdy figure, at least seven feet tall, though not as imposing as Rhyos’, in spite of his broad chest, big arms and huge hands. His skin was very dark and covered in thick hair, and his grey eyes seemed to pierce through her soul, as he stood, silently staring at her.
They all greeted her and welcomed her aboard.
“You must be hungry and dying for a warm shower. Why don’t I show you to your quarters?” Suriak suggested, with a warm smile.
“I’ll take her to her room, Suriak, thank you,” Korben said, stepping closer to Arantxa and taking her by the arm. “Tell Kyor to set course to Valkyr. I’ll see him in a few minutes.”
Suriak looked at him with a quizzical look but only nodded. “Consider it done. I’ll go prepare you two a warm meal.”
“Thank you, that would be perfect.”
Without another word, he practically dragged Arantxa down the dimly lit hallway to the only unoccupied quarters they had on the ship. He wanted to take her to his own quarters and keep her as far away as possible from his friends, but he knew she would never accept it. Besides, that would be a very bad idea, considering he would have to take her to Biurk in a few spans.
He opened the door and invited her in. “I believe you’ll be comfortable here during our trip to Valkyr, but let me know if there’s something else you need,” he said, showing her around.
She nodded. “I could use some clean clothes.”
“There must be some tunics stored somewhere on the ship. I’ll look for them,” he promised. “Take a long shower and join us at the meals’ room for a decent meal.”
“How do I get there?”
“Just turn right when you leave the room and follow the hallway. It will take you there.” He went to a wardrobe embedded on the wall and took a clean shirt out. “You can wear this while we try to get you something else.”
“How long before we get to Valkyr?” she asked, clenching her hands into fists, to prevent them from wringing and showing her nervousness.
“At least six spans if we have a peaceful journey,” he replied, with a faint smile.
“Why wouldn’t we?” she asked, worried.
“You never know what we might come upon when traveling through this side of the quadrant. With luck, we won’t find a soul, and we’ll get there as soon as possible.”
“I see.” She remained in silence for a few moments. “Is there a way for me to get in touch with my friend? She must be very worried about the delay,” she asked, in a pleading tone.
“We can discuss that later on,” he said, without compromising, as he walked towards the door. “If you need anything, just press this button, and any of us will help you.”
“Thank you.”
He opened the door. “I’ll see you later.”
Arantxa watched him leave and let out a heavy sigh when the door closed behind him.
The next few days were going to be a test of her resilience. She was determined not to fall under his spell again and focus on her future. She now knew she couldn’t marry Biurk, so she would have to find a way to stay on Valkyr despite her decision.
She had no idea how the people from the agency would react to her decision not to marry Biurk or any other male. She was hoping Samantha would help her with it, but she had no idea if her friend was in a position to help her.
Sighing, she walked to the bathroom, taking off her sweaty shirt on her way there, eager to feel the warm water running down her body. She had missed that.
Relishing the warmth of the water and the deliciously scented soap, she spent as much time as possible in the shower, getting rid of the feeling of stickiness and dried sweat she had from the moment the Paklyors had wrapped her in that stinky blanket.
The cold baths in the stream had never quite erased that.
When her skin started to wrinkle, she finally pressed the button to stop the water from flowing and immediately, a warm breeze dried her body and hair, making her feel great.
Back in the room, she put on the shirt Korben had given her and with her stomach growling, she decided it was time to get a proper meal. Wishing she had some shoes to put on, she got out and turned right as he had told her and went looking for the meals’ room.
It wasn’t hard to find. The males’ voices led her straight to it, and she stopped at the entrance for a moment watching them.
There was a fifth man she supposed was the pilot. Korben had told her the name, but she didn’t remember it.
This one was as impressive as his friends, in his seven feet, sturdy, heavy body. His golden skin, dark chocolate eyes, and hair, and the small horns coming out of his forehead gave him an attractive look, though he didn’t evoke the passion the simple sight of Korben awakened in her.
“Ah, Arantxa, come on in. I’m about to serve the food,” Suriak said, looking at her, with a welcoming smile.
She smiled back. “Thank you, Suriak, I have to admit I’m starving.”
“You’re in for a treat, Arantxa. Suriak is the best cook I’ve met,” Rhyos said, pulling a chair for her next to him.
“Oh, that sounds great. I assure you if I had to eat another energy bar, I would scream at the top of my lungs,” she said, exaggerating a bit. She would have missed the damn bars if they had run out of food.
Suriak brought a couple of trays to the table they sat around.
Korben was sitting in front of her, and so far he hadn't opened his mouth to say a word.
“By the way, I’m Kyor, welcome aboard,” the pilot said, stretching his hand to greet her, with a seductive smile.
“Thank you… I’m glad I’m here,” she said, putting her hand on his and smiling back at him.
He squeezed her hand gently, and his thumb caressed its back, in a calculated caress. Though she wasn’t disgusted, she certainly didn’t feel a thing either.
Kyor was sitting right next to Korben, and his expression looked a bit harsher as he watched the interaction between her and Kyor. If she didn’t know better, she would have sworn he was jealous. But Korben’s feelings for her didn’t include anything that might evoke jealousy.
“Let’s eat,” Suriak announced, bringing two more trays and taking a seat at the table.
The food smelled delicious, and Arantxa slid her hand out of Kyor’s, eager to try it all.
Arantxa smiled at Suriak. “Can you tell me what is
all this?”
Suriak picked up a plate and served a small portion of everything he had brought to the table, as he described it to her. “Try it all and let me know what you like more,” he said, handing her the plate.
“It smells delicious. If it tastes as good as it smells, I’m sure I’ll love it all,” she said picking a fork, with four sharp pins and pinching her first bite.
The food was delicious, and she did her best to enjoy every flavor, every texture, but the somber expression on Korben’s face had taken away some of her appetite.
The males around her were a loud bunch and more than simple crew members. They sounded like real friends, while they chatted and mocked each other with a familiarity only given by a close friendship. Only Korben’s dark mood seemed out of place, but the other men had clearly decided to ignore it.
When they finished eating, they all helped to clear the table and put the plates and trays in the dishwasher. One by one, all males left the room except for Korben and her.
Arantxa cleared her throat, feeling a little nervous. “I believe I’ll take a nap. I didn’t have a proper night of sleep ever since the Paklyors attacked Biurk’s vessel,” she said, wriggling her hands.
Chapter Seventeen
“Go ahead. I want you well rested and with a clear mind when we discuss your options,” Korben said, in a harsh tone.
“I don’t think there’s anything to discuss. It’s my decision, not yours. Once you take me to Biurk, your mission will be over, and you’ll be able to put all this behind you.”
“I was hired to rescue you from a dreadful situation,” he stated. “I wouldn’t be doing a proper job if I didn’t tell you all I know of what waits for you with Biurk.”
“And how exactly do you know that? Is he your friend? Did he inform you about his plans?” she asked, in a cold tone, as she crossed her arms over her chest, oblivious of the fact such a gesture raised the shirt she was wearing higher up her thigh.
Korben noticed it, and the straining on his pants got worse. He took a deep breath, struggling to ignore the raw hunger swirling inside him. He had to stay away from her. Whatever happened between them on Pakly had to stay behind.