“These look suspiciously like the parasites we saw on the debris field,” he commented, looking up at her over the fuselage.
“They are. Don’t ask me how they got in there or who was crazy enough to use them. Whoever did it was super creative, and the engineering is incredible. This thing has phenomenal power, and as far as I can tell, the energy hasn’t depleted at all since we first found this place. Ander suspected the parasites are in some type of hibernation while they are in the gas. They die off at a much slower rate. When the engine is in use, oxygen is introduced with the methane. What we did learn is that if you pump too much oxygen into the tank, the parasites die pretty quickly,” she said.
“That would be a good thing if one of the cylinders were damaged and they escaped. Otherwise, I could see them devouring the entire planet,” he replied with a look of distaste.
“Yeah. I guess they are like us. They need that sweet spot to live,” she mused.
“Would you mind if I piloted this thing—now that I don’t have to worry about destroying your world,” he teased.
She laughed. “Well, as long as you swear not to ruin my planet, I guess so,” she responded with an exaggerated sigh.
The teasing in her voice and her playful expression reawakened his barely calmed desire. He rounded the vehicle until he stood in front of her. She reached up, grabbed his shirt with both hands, and tilted her head back.
“What is it about you that makes me want to…,” he muttered before he shook his head.
“It’s my charming personality and because I want you to shut up and kiss me again,” she said, sliding her arms around his neck. “You know, for an uptight military man, I find you rather fascinating,” she whispered a breath away from his lips.
Raia didn’t know what was wrong with her. She had never been so brazen in her life—well, not when it came to a desire to crawl all over a guy. Evetta had said there might be explosions inside her brain when she kissed the right guy, and she was right. From Behr’s reaction to their first kiss, she really hoped it was a sign that he had felt the same thing. One thing was for sure, his body wasn’t immune to their physical contact!
She pressed her parted lips on his, savoring the intense response swelling inside her. Her nipples hardened and an unfamiliar tightness was increasing between her legs.
She did know about the physical side of a relationship. In her years as a freighter captain, she had found out a few things. Hell, being around Ben, Evetta, Hanine, and Aaron for ten months was enough of an education on the physical intimacy between a man and woman! It was just that the physical aspect had never happened to her personally outside some vidcoms she watched and a little self-experimentation, of course.
No, this is way better, she silently thought as she tangled her tongue with his.
Behr leaned into her, pressing her back against the transport. She tugged at his shirt, pulling the back free from his trousers. She slid her hands along his bare skin, her fingers skimming over the smooth flesh of his lower back until she came across a scar and then another… and another. The vivid realization of what the marks were pierced the heated passion engulfing her mind and body, and a wave of cold reality hit her.
Raia tilted her head back, breaking the kiss while she unconsciously caressed one of the long scars. The image of another man’s back covered in deep scars rose in her mind.
“What happened to you?” she softly inquired.
Chapter Eight
Behr pulled away from Raia, ignoring his feeling of disappointment at the intrusion of reality into their moment of intimacy. He stepped away and tucked his shirt back into his trousers. Over the years, he had forgotten about the scars on his back. Some of the women he had been with never mentioned it, while others thought that it was part of his heritage as a Marastin Dow warrior.
“I’ll tell you along the way,” he said.
The conflicting emotions that crossed her face made him smile. He closed the distance between them and kissed her hard on the lips. Caressing her cheek, he soothed the frown line near her mouth.
“Don’t leave out any details,” she softly ordered.
He started in surprise when she turned her head and nipped his thumb before ducking under his arm and sliding into the transport. He chuckled under his breath and shook his head. Once again, she had knocked him off-balance.
Once Behr slid into the pilot’s seat, the transport’s doors closed around them. He studied the panel before him with a feeling of déjà vu. The system setup was very similar to the modern designs.
“How long ago did Ander think the last inhabitants were here?” he asked.
“I’m not sure, a few centuries at the most. We found three vehicles in a sealed storage unit under this building. At first, we wondered if someone landed here and left them, but after seeing the fuselage, Ander decided they were probably abandoned by the original inhabitants. I received my first piloting lessons with them,” she added.
He flexed his fingers and gripped the control wheel. “You said this thing has some power?” he inquired.
“Oh yeah,” she said, pulling on her restraint straps.
He pressed the power button beside the control wheel. When he pulled back on the wheel, the transport rose off the ground a short distance and floated forward. Raia raised an eyebrow and gave him an unimpressed look. He grinned and applied more pressure.
The force of the acceleration pushed both of them back against their seats. Raia uttered a delighted squeal as they shot out over the city’s twin guardians. He angled the transport down the cliff face.
Raia gripped the armrest and pressed her feet against the floorboard. He quickly pulled the transport’s nose up ten feet from the surface. Water from a wave splashed onto the windshield and the automated wiper blades turned on.
“I did the same thing two weeks after Ander said I had graduated from my training,” she said with a breathless laugh.
“What did Ander do?” he asked.
She relaxed in her seat. “He grounded me and made me retake his entire course all over again,” she replied. “Goddess, but I miss him.”
He frowned at the note of longing and sadness in her voice. “What happened to him?”
“Two Marastin Dow warships attacked us on my birthday. Ander held them off so I could escape. We were supposed to meet up on Ceran-Pax, but he never showed up. I know they killed him. I just never understood why,” she murmured.
He noticed that she grabbed the chain she wore around her neck. Through the gap in her shirt, he glimpsed a pendant. Reaching out, he cupped her free hand.
“How old were you?” he asked.
She looked at him. Tears made her eyes appear to shimmer in the afternoon sunlight coming through the windows. She cast him a quavering smile.
“Fourteen. It was the same day I found Chummy and Pi. I don’t know what I would have done without them,” she confessed.
“But… you said you know Ben, Aaron, and the two Marquette sisters. Surely, they were there for you,” he said.
She nodded. “They were. At least they were as much as I let them,” she amended with a rueful expression. “I was fourteen and thought I knew everything.”
“You were too young to be traveling alone,” he muttered.