by Smith, S. E.
When she was a child, her mother had told her the jenfellini granted wishes, but now she was an adult, she understood F’rrh occasionally helped directly in response to a request, as with the vision of the open call audition. But, most frequently, she only provided vaguely worded warnings. Her breed was regarded as minor spirits in the pantheon of the goddess Normeia. Tassia wondered about F’rrh’s provenance, but the box had been in her mother’s family for generations. But who owns who?
The com pinged to tell her she had a message. Expecting a notice about a change in rehearsal times or other piece of Comette business, she opened the file and was surprised to see Liam’s face smiling at her.
“I have tomorrow afternoon off, and I heard the Comettes won’t be rehearsing after the morning session, so I wanted to invite you to the beach deck for a few hours relaxation. We can swim or just lay out on the beach. It’s a special place I’ve been looking forward to showing you so please say yes.”
“Yes,” she whispered. Feeling shaky but bold at the same time, she sent him an answer, telling him to pick her up at her quarters at noon. She wanted to have time to shower and change after rehearsal. And I’d better order a bathing suit from the ship’s stores.
* * *
Rehearsal had gone well, with praise for her improving showmanship and power from the dance captain, so Tassia was in a good mood next day when she heard the ping at the door of the cabin. “Enter,” she said and the portal slid aside to reveal Liam leaning casually on the bulkhead.
“Ready?” He was holding a small container. “I begged a special picnic lunch from Chef Stephanie. She has a soft spot for us in the security office. Not sure what she gave me, but I know the food will be exceptional.”
“We’re allowed to eat on the beach deck?” Somehow she hadn’t expected that, had thought maybe they’d eat at the employee mess first then go swimming. She was equal parts touched and in awe over the idea he’d gone to the five star chef at the top of the Nebula Zephyr’s restaurant and food services organization to get a special meal for her.
“Oh yes. There are a few food vending carts up there, primarily for the sake of the passengers, but it’s fine to bring your own picnic. The ship also sells specials for al fresco dining. The CLC Line is pretty clever about all the extra ways to make credits.”
“I’ve noticed. But, on the other hand, the Line is very generous about some things. I’ve been taking unlimited showers after practice.” She blushed, not sure she wanted to give Liam a mental picture of herself wet and naked. Too late now. “A few ships I’ve traveled on had no water allowance at all, just the dry bathing chambers.”
Making a sweeping bow and gesturing toward the portal, he asked, “Are you ready?” Other than a hint of red in his cheeks, which could have been her own imagination at work, he gave no sign of having reacted to her comments about taking showers
“Certainly, let’s go.” Pausing for a moment, she said, “Are there towels or should I bring one of mine?”
“The ship offers towels, chairs, all the amenities on the beach. I think you’ll like it.” His smile and enthusiastic tone made it clear Liam viewed a trip to the beach deck as a sure bet for a pleasant outing.
He escorted her to the grav lift, and they drifted toward Level Five, which was entirely devoted to the faux Tahumaroa Two beach. She felt tongue tied with him, not that the silence was uncomfortable, but she wasn’t used to being out with a man. Xandrina had kept her on a tight leash, except for the few excursions she’d managed to sneak off on with the teenagers of the family sheltering them at the time.
“Have you tried the anti grav aerial dancing yet?” he asked. “I remember the Director asked about those skills at the audition.”
“No, although I’m growing interested in the idea.” She did a dance step and pirouetted gracefully in the wide tube, playing with the silvery motes of the stream.
He caught her as a crew member in a rush passed them, obviously in more of a hurry than she or Liam wanted to be. For a heartbeat or two she was pressed tight against him then he carefully released her with a minimal, polite push sending her a short distance away again, in accordance with accepted etiquette for riding in a gravlift. Tassia knew she was blushing, but Liam pretended not to notice. “If you want to practice, we security guys can get time on the anti grav trainers in the gym on Level Six. I’d be happy to give you a few pointers.” He grinned as he took her hand and helped her onto the platform for their destination. “Although we don’t achieve anything near the grace you showed a minute ago.”
“Pointers would be helpful. I’m not worried about losing my spot on the Comettes if I can’t do anti grav, but I want to be as useful to them as I can be. I owe them for taking me on.” She bit her lip before she said too much about her desperate need to get off the previous planet ahead of the RNR thugs. Liam was too easy to talk to, she realized. Was it because he was such a nice person or was it part of his job? She chided herself for overthinking everything. Relax and enjoy the afternoon.
They walked from the crew tube onto the edge of the beach, and she stopped in astonishment, nearly robbed of breath by the vista opening up in front of her: ocean, beach and sky. A small flock of miniature gray and white shorebirds pattered along the frothy edge of the waves, picking at the sand as if hunting.
“Pretty effective, isn’t it?” Liam watched her with satisfaction. “The water is actually from Tahumaroa, although now it has special filtering applied, but all the beneficial minerals are present. The sky is a hologram, of course, generated by the ship. The birds and the fish are also illusions. Maeve has quite a balancing act to keep it all in shape and perfect for passengers.”
“Gorgeous. I’ve never been to the beach or the ocean. My—my family never traveled away from home.” Which was mostly true. Her father had gone wherever he wanted, but she and the other females had stayed in the confines of the family compound. “It’s so vast and unending.”
“Not as good as a real ocean. If you swam out far enough here you would meet the side of the ship and get a safety warning from Maeve. Do you want to eat first or swim?” Liam steered her to the left, towards an area where other people were set up on towels or lounge chairs under colorful umbrellas. The breeze smelled of the sea and indefinable floral scents she assumed came from the lush vegetation planted artfully here and there along the sand.
She inhaled deeply and felt herself at peace. The sound of the waves was soothing. “It must be stunning at night. Can one come up here then? Or is it kept in perpetual daylight?”
“The ship runs through a standard Terran twenty-four-hour cycle. We have guests who want to have nighttime parties on the beach, and the Line runs events at times. There’s a staff of lifeguards twenty-four seven and, of course, Maeve herself monitors this deck closely. Sometimes couples come up here at night for, um, discreet interactions, shall we say? So we don’t advertise the fact the ship has active ganglions in the entire space. Don’t give away our secret, ok? She doesn’t share those files at all unless there’s a safety or security incident. We offer our passengers discretion.”
“I won’t.” The idea of a moonlit interlude on the sand was instantly appealing, and the man she was daydreaming about was Liam. Oh, this is not good.
He picked a spot he apparently approved of, not too near to anyone else, and spread the striped blue-and-white blanket he’d been carrying.
“I’d love to go in the water first, if you’re not too hungry,” she said, longing to experience the waves.
“Your wish is my command.” He stripped to his bathing suit and stood waiting.
Waiting for her to strip too, she realized. Panic froze her. What was she doing, here in this public space, exposed to any passerby, any threat? Dancing in the theater was different because she was one of an ensemble and the audience was separated from them.
Head tilted, Liam said, “Hey, you can go wading in the skirt and blouse if you want.”
“No, I was momentarily lost in the bea
uty,” she lied. Gritting her teeth, she kicked off her sandals, pulled her T shirt over her head, dropping it to the blanket and shaking her hair into place before loosening the ties of the skirt and letting it fall. Her swimsuit was the most modest one in the ship’s catalog, one piece, cut high on the legs, strapless, pink and green floral. Looking across the expanse of sand, she decided she blended in more or less, although clearly on the conservative side.
“Wow,” Liam said, doing a double take and giving a low whistle.
Pleased by his reaction, Tassia raised her chin and struck a pose before laughing. “Wait till you see my Comettes costume. A lot less fabric, a lot more spangles and feathers and glitter. For some numbers there’s even a headdress.” Relieved to have a found a safe subject to divert the conversation, she reached for his hand. “Now, let’s go in the water. You can show me how to swim.”
They ran to the water’s edge and splashed right into the waves. To Tassia’s delight, the water was warm. Liam drew her deeper then stopped at a line of floating, blinking miniature lights. “Do you really want to try swimming? Because the bottom drops off here.”
Feeling brave and carefree, she nodded. “Yes, can you teach me?”
Liam was patient and an effective instructor. First, he showed her the arm movements then he held her while she practiced the kicks. “You’re good,” he said. “A natural.”
“Being a dancer gives me an edge.” She liked having his hands on her, holding her safe in the water. Liked it a little too much. His sure touch made her tingle inside, not that he was in any way being inappropriate.
“We’ll be racing each other if we stay here long enough.” Next he towed her for a while and then Tassia tried a short swim. Liam stayed by her side, ready to intervene if necessary. “You’re getting tired,” he said finally as he lazily did the backstroke next to her. “Maybe it’s time we go explore the picnic basket Chef Stephanie made up for me. There’s no way I can tell her we forgot to eat.”
Enchanted by the sensations of floating and freedom, Tassia wanted to protest and stay in the water forever. Liam had explained the special composition of the ‘ocean’ water made floating easier. But she could feel a subtle trembling in her muscles and knew he was probably right about ending the swimming lesson. After all, she’d gone through an entire rehearsal in the morning, and the dance captains hadn’t been lenient about the number of repetitions needed to get the details right.
The food was delicious, an assortment of tiny sandwiches with all sorts of interesting fillings, plus fresh fruit and berries, and for dessert a slice big enough for two of a complicated, multilayer cake. Tassia took one bite of the confection and moaned in delight. “I’m never leaving this ship.”
“Yeah, Stephanie earned those five stars all right.” Liam leaned forward and brushed a stray crumb from her lip. “I’ll have to take you to dinner in the top of the line restaurant on Level B one night and you can get a better idea of the complicated dishes she can create.”
Tassia felt a pang of regret, well aware she’d only be on the ship until they reached Sector Hub and then she’d be gone, like a ghost. Mustn’t lead him on. But Liam was such good company she didn’t want to deny herself the friendship while she was here. And it is only going to be friendship.
Watching him in his swimsuit as he returned an errant ball to a group of children nearby, she savored the view, hoping she could keep it in her memory for a long time. The man was built, with a six pack abdomen that led a woman’s eyes south, to the vee of his hips and then further, to the undeniable promise below. Tassia moved a bit on the blanket, changing position as warmth flared deep inside.
He jogged to rejoin her. “What are you thinking?” he asked as he plopped down next to her, raising one hand to move an errant strand of her hair off her shoulder.
A flutter of panic in her gut, she cleared her throat and took a quick drink of water. “Nothing much.”
“I’ve been monopolizing the conversation, telling you about the ship, and how I ended up here after I left the service. How about I shut up now and you talk?”
“I enjoy hearing about your life and travels,” she said with perfect truth, followed by a lie she’d learned to utter straight-faced. “My story is boring. Being here, on this ship and dancing as a Comette is the most exciting thing to ever happen to me.”
He studied her, eyes narrowed, and she forced herself not to shiver. This was Liam in his professional mode and, remembering how much there was about herself she wasn’t going to share with anyone ever, she didn’t want to pique his security instincts. “Well, and having a five-star picnic with you,” she added hastily.
“Hey, Austin, we’re getting up a game over here,” yelled a man from the volleyball court further down the beach. “You and the pretty lady want to join in?”
“One of my buddies from Security,” he said. “Ignore him.”
“Sounds fun, though.” She rose hastily and dusted the sand off her derriere. Their conversation was straying into dangerous territory, and Tassia seized the opportunity to end the one on one interlude. “Then I’d better be getting back to my cabin. I need my rest before we rehearse again tomorrow.”
Liam didn’t seem too pleased by her decision, but he good-naturedly joined the game on the same side she chose, and they played for several games before packing up their picnic and heading to the crew quarters level.
“You should keep the leftovers,” he insisted when they reached the door to her cabin. “All that dancing you do, you must burn calories like nobody’s business. You can afford to indulge a little.” He patted his amazingly flat midsection. “I gotta stay trim enough to fit into the uniform.”
Smiling at his joke, she nodded. “You’re too kind, but all right. I can’t resist, since you’re offering.” She took the plate with the remaining sandwiches and a sliver of the cake. There was so much she wanted to say to him, starting with inviting him to come inside, but she bit her tongue. Liam was not a safe friend—or more—for her. “Thank you for the afternoon and the swimming lesson.”
Voice quiet, brown eyes focused on her face, he said. “My pleasure. We’ll have to do it again soon.”
The corridor was empty so she gave in to temptation, went on tiptoes to brush his lips with her own in a quick kiss and ducked into her cabin before he could react. Tassia leaned on the closed door and took a deep breath. Only two more weeks. She could resist the undeniable allure of Liam Austin for two weeks, couldn’t she?
4
Liam couldn’t remember the last time he’d had nerves about anything, much less someone else’s performance but, as he sat in a cheap seat at the back of the Comettes theater on the Zephyr, he was restless. Tassia was an exceptional dancer, and she wasn’t going to perform a solo tonight, but he still felt those damn butterflies on her behalf. He wanted this to go well for her, so she’d be happy with her own performance, and so the director and her team wouldn’t have anything to criticize. Tassia’s happiness on board the ship meant a lot to him, and not just because he needed more time to figure out how to allay her defensiveness. Her reserve seemed like deeply ingrained instincts, not so much aimed at him in particular, and maybe that meant he could persuade her to give him a chance. Being her friend and going on casual dates like the on-board trideo theater and one of the other shows was fun, but he wanted more.
He wanted to know the woman behind the polite façade she projected most of the time.
The lights dimmed, the music came up, and the troupe spun and pirouetted onto the stage, dressed in attractive, glittery costumes that made it clear how beautiful each of the Comettes was. Tassia was near the end of the line and had only seconds in the spotlight before she danced to the rear and took her place in the formation.
The entire group immediately began the elaborately choreographed sequence in perfect unison. The whole performance had their usual high energy routine after routine, a few performed by only a subset of the dancers, and a few solos by the most senior members. He re
membered Tassia had told him she was only in two of the ensemble numbers, and he assumed one would be the finale kick line.
He was surprised when the stage lighting softened, and the music became more lyrical. Six girls appeared, rising from below the stage floor on a flower garlanded platform. Tassia stood in the center, in a shimmering simple white dress, barefoot, with the other five dancers around her. Each was in a stylized pose, graceful but posed as if frozen.
The music became louder. Tassia raised her arms, fingers exquisitely curved, and executed the first movements of the dance as if she was in her own world. As far as Liam was concerned she might as well have been. The other women were there of course, but he didn’t consciously see them on stage at all. His attention was riveted on Tassia. Before tonight he’d have said this style of dance was too artsy for him but he was left in awe of how many emotions she conveyed with her movements and the sheer beauty of the entire piece. Rough soldier that he knew himself to be, he could never find the words to describe what she was doing, or the emotions he felt, but he didn’t want the dance to end.
When the dance finished a few minutes later with Tassia gracefully folding herself to the floor like a bird going to sleep for the night, her glossy black hair falling on her shoulders, he felt a pang in his chest because there was no more to be seen.
Silence held in the theater for a heartbeat then he leaped to his feet, applauding and whistling his approval. The Zephyr crowd was usually pretty blasé, most having traveled the star lanes extensively and seen the available entertainment more than once. But, this time, the rest of the audience took its cue from him, and a standing ovation followed.
The curtain came down while Tassia and her companions held their end pose.