by Calista Skye
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Rorie Nebula (A Science Fiction Romance)
Rorie's not accustomed to visiting the lower decks, but she can't resist her best friend's prompting after the first signs of fount-activation leave her yearning for a mental escape. Crossing paths with a rogue, dust rider never factored into the evening's plans, but when it means avoiding a run-in with dastardly aquistioners, she finds herself immensely thankful that the universe has sent her an escape hatch.
She doesn't count on the near-instant attraction she feels for the rider, or the fact that she'll have to get used to life on the wrong side of the ramps if she's to accept his help.
Is she ready to live the life of a galactic outlaw? Can she even resist the intensity of her connection with the angelic rider who promises her freedom from the drudgery of official "service" and the wild world among the hidden space dust colonies she's been taught to fear for as long as she can remember?
A steamy sci-fi adventure romance with a satisfying happy ending destined for your rereading shelf.
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Epilogue
Prince Ter'Umion ran across the lawn and his father very noisily pretended to just be able to keep up, before the two-year-old turned and squealed in joy when he was scooped up in strong arms and tossed six feet into the air, only to be caught easily again by the same hands.
Olivia smiled. She was not the only one who loved Ator'aq's huge strength. Their son did, too. And one day he would probably be just as strong himself.
Well, maybe. He seemed to have inherited many Earthling traits from Olivia, so he might not grow to his father's full length. His birth weight had been a little lower than average for Braxians, but a little higher than for Earthlings. Even so, the birth had been pretty easy. The Braxians had brought medical knowledge that had helped a lot. Hunting the Ethereals through the galaxy, they had picked up a good deal of technology from alien civilizations, and some of it they hadn't really investigated too thoroughly until after the war was won. But then it turned out that they now had technology that made it possible to travel through space very fast, so that the trip from Earth to Brax was only a matter of days now, and not years like before.
That had been a great relief for Olivia. It meant that she could accompany Ator'aq to Brax once in a while, and still take care of her duties as Chief of Intelligence for Space Force. Her job had become pretty busy, too, because that same technology made it possible to discover and contact other alien civilizations. Space Force was growing at breakneck speed, and Star Marshal Wilhelmsen seemed to be thriving. When she learned that Olivia would be a queen, the Commander-in-Chief of Space Force had graciously offered to give her an honorable discharge and find another Intel Chief, since Olivia might be too busy with her duties as a queen. But Olivia had wanted to have the job. She wasn't going to spend her adult life just waving to crowds from balconies – she wanted to do something where both her space marine training and her experience with aliens would be useful to all of Earth.
Olivia was enjoying her life a lot, especially now that Crown Prince Ter'Umion was old enough to not need constant care for twenty-four hours a day. It freed up her time to both work and to marvel at the planet that was Brax itself. It was a lot like Earth, and she couldn't quite sense that it was old and “squeezed dry”, as Ator'aq put it.
But she did notice that there weren't many people around. Sometimes, that suited her fine. It gave her privacy and time to enjoy her family life. Ator'aq had started to rebuild his kingdom, and had founded several new colonies around the Braxian solar system. It was going well, and soon it would be a kingdom worth ruling.
Her huge warrior king husband sauntered over and embraced her, squeezing her so hard she gasped. It was part joke and part unconscious, she knew. He had lost his whole family at one point, and he really wanted to hold her always and make sure that she was safe.
“Life on Brax seems to agree with you,” he said and kissed her on the lips. “I've rarely seen you look so healthy. You have roses in your cheeks, even. Everyone looks pale and gray in space.”
“And still you fell in love with me.”
His crystal clear eyes glittered. “Still I did. You were less pale and gray than most. I fell hard, my love. And I'm still falling.”
She squeezed him back, feeling the thick, hard muscles play under his thin shirt. “Then we fall together.”
“Always.”
Crown Prince Ter'Umion, named after both Olivia's little sister and the wise old Braxian warrior who had given his life in the war against the Ethereals, came running and wanted his father to keep playing.
Ator'aq shrugged. “He's as tenacious as I was at that age. Or so I'm told. It's a good quality in a prince and future king.”
She just nodded, suddenly choking up and her eyes filling with happy tears. It happened sometimes when everything seemed to come together and her life felt complete.
He knew her moods and didn't inquire, just leaned in and kissed her, then turned away and continued playing with their son on the palace lawn.
But her son wasn't satisfied. He pulled at Olivia's skirt, wanting to play with both his parents.
She relented, like she usually did, and he grasped her hand and pulled her after him, looking up at her with eyes that shone with joy.
“I love you, Mama,” he yelled like kids do, then immediately tripped over his own feet and fell headlong on the grass.
She helped her little son up and kissed his chubby cheek. “I love you too.”
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