“Take Josie to the ship now, and make sure she settles in.”
“Yes, Admiral,” Hogart said automatically. Now that he’d accepted her as one of the crew he turned his thoughts to her appearance and found himself staring. Elegantly alien.
“Josie, could you wait outside for a moment please?”
“Yes, Admiral.” Josie smiled sweetly at Hogart, then stroked the door slightly as she left the room, closing it behind her. Hogart’s heart skipped a beat.
Heartness got up and went over to him, leaning towards him on his chair, straightening his shirt, then placing her hands on his thighs “Now, Captain. We need to talk. We kissed on the ship.”
Hogart was quickly brought back to the present.
“I’m not sure if I remember that. Perhaps Greg made it up.”
“I believe everyone saw it and everyone remembers it,” said Heartness. “In fact, it is one of the memories that did come back with me to Frequency Zero.”
Hogart turned red as Heartness leaned in to whisper in his ear. “Let’s keep our relationship professional. Let’s forget about it ever having happened. And don’t think you’re special. I’ve kissed lots of guys over the years. I am almost fifty, you know. I don’t want you suddenly sending me flowers.”
“Yes, Admiral.” He tried desperately not to be turned on by how close she was, and found it difficult to keep focus as her warm breath caused his scalp to tingle. Even if she was fifty, she still looked amazing enough to set him off. And besides, he’d always had a thing for older women.
“So, I’m not going to be possessive of you, jealous of you spending time with anyone or regularly asking you out, understand? Don’t expect drunken late-night calls from me, and I won’t expect any from you.”
“Yes, Admiral.”
She then moved back to look at him, with a slight smile on her face. “Great. Oh, and by the way, I saw how you looked at Josie. Word of caution. Josie is a fun loving, sexy girl who had whoever she wanted at university, according to her social media accounts. If you go down that way, you may end up with, well, a case of aphids, if you know what I mean.”
He jerked upright in his chair with a grimace on his face, then leant back again and smiled. “You’re kidding!”
She gave a little laugh, then held out her hand. “Alright, back to being professional. I don’t remember much else, but it looks like you did well on your first mission.”
Hogart took her hand to shake it, then realized there was something in it. She let him take it and he lifted it up.
An apple.
“You’re not serious!” he said. “There are no apples anywhere for thousands of kilometers.”
“Except in your hand. Remember. Anything is possible. Enjoy your next mission, Captain Hogart. I look forward to your report.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Hogart got up and saluted her, then went out the door, closing it behind him, and shaking his head to clear the fog and confusion Heartness had created.
Josie was waiting for him, leaning against the wall, her clothing accentuating every contour of her lean green body.
Hogart looked at her then away again. He had to be professional. He couldn’t get distracted.
Josie made a face. “Captain. I know that look. Did the Admiral tell you the aphids joke?”
Hogart looked surprised at her, opened his mouth, then closed it again.
Josie shook her head. “Every woman I’ve ever met…” Then she laughed. “It’s why I prefer the company of men.”
Hogart beamed. It was going to be an interesting trip.
Hogart and crew will return.
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Also Available
Stellar Flash: The Pilot
A short ‘prologue’ story set before Stellar Flash Alien Frequency featuring Captain Victoria Heartness and Pilot Leafy as they encounter the mushroom bugs’ planet for the first time
Number 13 in the Science Fiction Weekly Series
Visit www.StellarFlash.com to find out more
Thank you for reading
-Neil A.
Stellar Flash: Alien Frequency Page 17