Seducing the Stargazer

by Carmichael, Kim;

  “Rocket launches and private space exploration can be exciting, seem like something new, but I found an important asteroid because I was looking at a simple moon thought to be insignificant,” she continued her rant.

  The director gave them the signal to stop.

  In an effort to wrangle his overzealous co-host, Garner came up beside her and put his arm around her. “Dr. Carlsbad, I know our viewers are enchanted by you, as am I, but before we return to our coverage of the lunar eclipse, we need to break.” He gave her a nod and looked right into the camera. “We’ll be back in a few minutes with access to our telescope cam. Until then, everyone look up, infinity is right there.”

  “Make sure you turn down the lights and see the stars,” Wynn added and practically jumped.

  “Cut!” Bryant yelled.

  Everyone on the set applauded.

  Mouth open, eyes wide, Wynn stared at him.

  “Perfect catch phrase.” He winked at her.

  “Excellent!” Bryant gave then a thumbs-up. “Dr. Carlsbad is already breaking the Internet, especially with her talk of the importance of space exploration.”

  “Do you hear that?” This was exactly what Garner wanted when he brought her here. If he could control her outbursts a little, they would make a magic team, one that could help Personal Space. He leaned down and spoke into her ear. “The public wants you. They want to know what you have to say. This is what you deserve. Work for me.”

  “Is that what you wanted to talk to me about?” Her eyes searched his.

  “You have to work for me, Wynn.” He took her by the shoulders and he studied her. What else did she want? “Come work for me or with me or whatever you want to call it. I’ll make sure your employment comes with a company car, but trust me, you’ll be able to afford anything you want. Personal Space needs you.”

  “I am not selling your company for you. It’s not right.” She looked down.

  He hooked his fingers under her chin and tilted her face up. “But you did amazing.” The best course of action was to focus on what was right. “You’re a natural.”

  “This isn’t what astronomers do,” she growled.

  “Isn’t what you wanted to say is that I’m not a real scientist?” He echoed the words she said to him five years ago.

  “Dr. Carlsbad.” Angie trotted over with a piece of paper and pen. “May I have your autograph? We need more women out there teaching us science.”

  “My autograph?” Wynn asked.

  The girl shook the paper in front of her.

  At last Wynn took the paper, signed it, and even added a little star.

  He watched her slow smile grow and elbowed her. Someone liked the camera. “Take the job.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “That’s not the favor you’re going to get, Dr. Knox.”

  “You still owe me.” He moved his face closer to hers. No one ever stirred him like her. It was always her.

  She let out a little gasp. “What do you want?”

  “I’ll let you know when you take your job, Dr. Carlsbad.” Deep inside his being he found the strength to pull back.

  “We are on in three minutes,” Bryant interrupted.

  Garner ignored the director, the conversation with Wynn was much more important.

  “Maybe on our next segment we should talk about how in ancient times some felt that a lunar eclipse could be a bad omen?” She walked over to the telescope they set up and adjusted the equipment.

  After watching her for a moment, he finally approached. “Or perhaps we can watch the sky and enjoy the show.” He still failed to get her to agree to work for Personal Space.

  Chapter Five

  Once again Wynn found herself walking around her office, once again waiting for a meeting with her boss, Dr. MacFarland, and once again thinking about one Dr. Garner Knox. Well, that last part never really changed. Over the years it simply waxed and waned like the moon and right now there was no eclipsing her thoughts about the sexy man who vexed her at every turn.

  When Garner said he thought about her all the time, he wasn’t the only one. Since they met way back when, he was always there. The man went from being her partner in crime to her competition, and she spent more time with him over the course of her doctorate work than anyone else. As time went on, both their relationship and the sexual tension grew until the night after she defended her thesis when he broke her heart using one of their stupid star favors.

  With a sigh, she stared at her empty wall. By all rights she should have her degrees hung up, one of her few research awards, or possibly she could frame the picture of the two of them slapped on the front page of the science section of the newspaper this morning.

  She walked over to her desk and lifted the paper that was strategically placed on her chair when she arrived to work with a note that Dr. MacFarland wanted to see her The image, obviously taken with someone’s phone, captured the two of them staring at each other. “Star Crossed Lovers,” she read the headline aloud. It was truer than most would even imagine.

  “Dr. Carlsbad?”

  Wynn turned to find two female junior research assistants in her doorway. “Can I help you?” She put the paper down.

  The first girl tiptoed closer. “If you decide to go ahead with some further research on the asteroid, I would like to be considered for your team.”

  “My team?” Wynn sat down at her desk. Last time she checked, this same girl wouldn’t look her way when she was getting reprimanded earlier in the week.

  The second girl also approached. “Rumor has it you will be choosing a research team.”

  Rather than answer, Wynn sat back and allowed the girls to continue. Something told her they wanted to research more than a flying rock.

  “Will Dr. Knox be joining you?” The cheeks on the first girl reddened.

  There was the extra attraction. “Is that what people are saying?” Maybe she needed to tell them that he fidgeted endlessly the second he wasn’t interested, that he would do anything to distract her, including making shadow puppets on the wall or brushing her hair back from her face and telling her not to look so serious all the time, that he constantly needed something, a drink or a snack. Half the time she wanted to get him a bottle and a blanket.

  Perhaps she should tell them that the simple act of having him there made work nearly impossible, the way he spoke, his low tones, how his fingers grazed over her and sensitize her skin, how he made her believe there could be more than one night. With him there with her, it was a miracle she earned her PhD in anything other than studying the amazing man. Maybe she should have two doctorate degrees.

  “Well.” The second girl shrugged.

  Above all else, she probably should tell these two that in no world would she watch a bunch of girls crawl over him while she did the work. At the end of the day, all he wanted was someone to do the hard parts while he winked and smiled, and she wouldn’t be sucked into that vortex a second time. “Dr. Knox is busy with his own projects.”

  Both girls frowned.

  “Hey, I saw the paper today.” Her friend and co-worker, Adam Hess, appeared at the door. Another senior researcher in her department, he had been a reference in her getting her job at NJL, but she knew him from her first job after she earned her doctorate.

  “We better go.” Both girls rushed toward the door, waved and left.

  “Thus far today, I have had three co-workers ask for my autograph, two ask me to set them up with Garner, and four offer to work with me on the asteroid research, including those two.” She motioned for him to come inside.

  “Well, there goes my list, but Garner really isn’t my type.” Adam took his seat in the one of the empty chairs in her office.

  They both laughed. Though she wanted to tell him Garner wasn’t her type either, she couldn’t blatantly lie, but she could wish the fact wasn’t true. Instead, she glanced over at her computer.

  “Well, at least now I know why things between u
s never worked out.” Adam swiped one of her pens out of the cup on her desk and twirled it around his fingers. “I never realized you were holding a torch for an old flame, and I would have never suspected who lit your fire.”

  “That was a well-timed picture.” She glanced over at her friend. In his golf shirt, khakis and neatly combed brown hair, the man personified best friend. He was right, Garner was the star, and it was way too easy to fall into the black hole that surrounded him. It took every bit of strength she possessed to have him drop her off at her apartment the night before and not invite him inside.

  “Like that matters.” Adam let out a low chuckle. “I think you’re a little star struck. You were positively glowing on air. Also, the two of you were standing a little close.”

  “Whatever. Help me with this proposal. MacFarland will be here soon.” Whether Garner realized it or not, he’d provided her with the in she needed to secure her telescope time while not having to rely on him. With all eyes on her and the asteroid, she now had every reason to continue her research on the asteroid and she could look directly at the moons of Mars on the proper telescope all from her own job. Her boss couldn’t be upset since their appearance on television last night was met with critical acclaim. Literally, critics on all the major entertainment websites were touting her performance. “I want to continue looking at that piece of sky and piece of rock. The public is now aware of it so perhaps we can start a little video blog of our own. Space is on the news all the time. It’s a hot topic.” She would keep her series strictly science and not up for sale.

  “Look who’s going all Hollywood,” Adam teased. “Pretty soon you’ll be booking space rides for the rich and famous to do their own personal flyby.”

  “Never.” She shook her head. “Space isn’t an amusement park to be bought and paid for.”

  “That’s not the trend at all.” Adam stood and stretched. “I won’t be surprised when NJL starts discussing profits and losses.”

  “We need to keep space for study.” The world of social media and entertainment made science popular and trendy, but space shouldn’t go on the auction block to the highest bidder.

  “There are some who would say that is how we will make the biggest progress.” Adam headed toward the door. “I better get going. Are we still going car shopping tonight?”

  “Please.” True to his word, Garner made her burnt disaster disappear, but she found herself right back in the position of having no transportation. She had to wonder how many people not only abandoned two cars in the course of a week, but had to replace them as well. On top of everything, she was banned from her apartment because of mold. A company came and packed up all her furniture and put it in storage for her, leaving her with nothing but a suitcase and vouchers for some motel. Starting tonight she needed to get her life back under control. One day she would have stability and a real home. After she had a job more than six months maybe she would unpack her office belongings and look for a more permanent place to live as well.

  In the revolving door that had become her office, as Adam left, Dr. MacFarland and his assistant, Diane, entered.

  “Doctor, Diane.” Wynn shot up from her chair. Why were they both here?

  Her boss held his hand up and her visitors took their seats on the opposite side of her desk. “Dr. Carlsbad.”

  She sat at the edge of her seat and assessed the situation. Without the hint of a facial expression, they would make amazing poker players. While she knew this may start out combative with her being in the media again, she planned for exactly this contingency and decided to deflect the conversation away from the negative, but still hit it head on.

  “I think the coverage of the eclipse last night was a great success.” She nodded, hoping they would follow suit and do the same.

  Neither of them moved.

  All right, the only choice was to keep moving forward. “I’m in the process of writing a proposal to formally study the asteroid.”

  When no one said a word, she continued, “If you like, I’m sure I can also make arrangements to have Dr. Knox generate a little publicity for the research.” She didn’t really mean to offer him up, especially since she was the one who owed him favors.

  With everything said, she swallowed and joined in the silence.

  “Wynn – Dr. Carlsbad,” her boss corrected himself. “You were specifically told to not engage in any more media, and you acted on behalf of National Jet Laboratories without clearance to do so.”

  “National Jet Laboratories was not mentioned in the broadcast last night.” Heat encompassed her. “The opportunity arose with little notice.”

  “Dr. Carlsbad, be that as it may, we are letting you go.” Her boss’s words came out heavy, flat and permanent.

  Wynn’s chest constricted and her throat dried out. She clutched the edge of her desk. “Dr. MacFarland.” How she managed to speak was a mystery.

  Diane handed him an envelope.

  “You are a talented astronomer, but the agency can’t have a renegade.” He put the envelope in front of her. “Here is your last check and documents supporting our decision. Diane will stay with you while you pack up your personal effects.”

  “Dr. MacFarland, I can assure you nothing of the sort will happen again.” She tried to remain calm, but she had barely recovered from the loss of her last job.

  “As I said, I have the utmost respect for your work. I should have seen the signs, when all of your former employees alluded to the fact you had strong opinions and wanted to do your own research. At the time I thought that was exactly what my department needed, but you have a blatant disregard for this organization and my research.” He stood and without as much as looking back in her direction, left.

  “Dr. Carlsbad.” Diane prodded her.

  “I have everything packed.” She couldn’t ask Adam to go car shopping now, and with no job she couldn’t even think about buying another car. With no choice, she collected her purse, picked up her box, and with all eyes watching her, she walked through the building with Diane following her like a common criminal. Apparently in the last five minutes, she went from superstar back to persona non grata, no one even bothered looking her way. Adam was nowhere to be found.

  With strong, metered steps she kept her head held high until she was finally outside. If she ever wanted a miracle butler to show up or a sexy astronomer in a sports car to hijack her plans, now was the time. Instead, she was met with a silent, still parking lot.

  She continued her trek, focusing on her goal of getting off NJL’s property and to the coffee house across the street. Her box weighed her down and her thoughts were even heavier. How had she allowed herself to get in this position? Once at the crosswalk, she let the tears burn her eyes. Her body trembled and it took everything to keep going. She had no choice and no safety net.

  Dr. MacFarland was right. She was a renegade, an outlaw, but science wasn’t built on complying. Each step she took she counted off her failures, from the night she slept with Garner, to the time she corrected one of her superiors in the middle of a press conference, to when she worked with another research team without permission because they were looking at the asteroid belt. No, this wasn’t a walk of shame, this was a walk of horrors ending with not doing the research she was assigned to, stopping a rocket launch and basically pimping herself out to get telescope time for a project no one but her found of any value.

  No car, no job and as of tomorrow morning, no home. She entered the small coffee shop, sat down, pulled the newspaper out of her purse, again taking in the picture of her and Garner.

  In less than a minute she could have a job. At least with this one she would go into it knowing it was temporary. She could be employed, have her telescope time, and make enough money to have some savings.

  “No.” She crumpled the paper in her fist. Taking Garner’s offer would be going against everything she stood for, selling out. She would be a human shill to make more money for a company tha
t may or may not be able to get anything in the air. At its best, Personal Space was a sham that had no thrust behind their rockets; at its worst, it was a for profit entity that gathered money to study the unknown, something that belonged to every being on Earth or elsewhere.

  No, she couldn’t take the job with Garner, couldn’t go to him and ask for another favor, couldn’t ever see him again. Every time their paths crossed she ended up worse off than she had been to begin with and this time was no exception.

  * * *

  If Wynn could learn the art of self-levitation, she could hover above any surface in her motel room and not feel the need to take several showers a day. Then again, she refused to use the shower in the motel and she couldn’t levitate, and in the last week since losing her job and coming here, she had tried.

  With shower caps placed over her boots, a hoodie up over her hair, a bandana around her neck and two pairs of pants on to provide some sort of shield against contact with the stained green carpet or anything else in the room, she tiptoed over to the table, put a paper towel on the questionably clean seat cushion and winced as she sat down. At least the chair was better than the bed, but the mystery of every porn movie ever made was finally solved. Yes, they did film right in motel rooms. Her room had the vintage slick floral printed bedspread to prove it.

  Right now being back in her tiny run-down apartment with the mold seemed like an oasis compared to here. Actually, it was preferable.

  “Once I get a job, I’ll go to a corporate apartment.” She sighed and opened her laptop. From the time she woke up to the time she went to bed she continued her search for a new place of employment. All day she made phone calls and sent emails, and yesterday she went on an interview over at the observatory.

  As her emails loaded, she held her breath in wait of one message telling her someone wanted to see her and sure enough, she had one from a local university that actually requested she send some of her journal work and references. The trembling began.

  “Dr. Carlsbad, unfortunately…”