He supposed she was a bit concerned.
Maybe they didn’t have such things where she came from. Er-th, she’d called her planet, if he remembered correctly.
The satellite looked like a huge space rock with jagged edges.
There were lights blinking off the sides of it and every now and then, the airlock would open and a cargo ship would exit before zooming off into the void.
Nee-ya glanced at him once more before fidgeting in her seat and all he could think about was when she’d fidgeted against him in her sleep.
Ka’Cit cleared his throat.
What the phek was wrong with him?
“That part up there,” he pointed to the top of the asteroid, “that’s where the larger vessels enter.”
“Is that where we’ll enter?”
He shook his head. “No. We’re not nearly large enough. We go there.”
He pointed straight ahead.
It looked like solid rock and he could see her glance his way once more.
But she didn’t say anything.
She’d said she trusted him and that thought caused the tip of his tail to rise against his leg a little.
Phek, if she was close it would have probably wrapped itself around her.
There was definitely something wrong with him.
As they drew closer, the doors of the service satellite opened making it appear as if the rock split in two to let them enter.
Nee-ya leaned forward, her eyes going wide, and Ka’Cit risked turning his head a little so he could watch her.
Awe lit up her face as she looked around and the farther they went in, the more her eyes grew wide.
As the doors closed behind them and the air stabilized within the airlock from the huge jets in the walls, Nee-ya leaned forward so much she strained against her seat restraints.
Not one ounce of fear.
“—place dangerous?”
Ka’Cit blinked only to realize she was looking his way.
Big brown eyes met his own and his life organ skipped a beat.
“Is this place dangerous?” she repeated.
If she had noticed him shamelessly devouring her body with his eyes, she made no indication that she did.
“No. You’re with me. You’ll be safe.”
That was another thing.
As soon as he exited the shuttle, she was going to see a part of him not even Riv and Sohut knew.
At least, not to an intimate extent.
He’d brought Nee-ya into a part of his world that he kept separate.
Out here, he was someone else.
Just as the ship began moving again, she turned back to look out the view screen and it seemed that his answer was enough for her.
The inner doors opened, admitting them into the service station and Ka’Cit directed the ship over to one of the free bays.
It wasn’t busy, surprisingly.
Only a few ships were being worked on and he hoped that meant they wouldn’t be stuck on the station for long.
As he pulled the ship into the bay, the thing jerked one last time, emitting a loud groan, before the lights cut off.
“Phek,” he breathed.
“You didn’t cut the engine, did you?”
“No. The other engine is gone now too.”
Great.
“Damn. Well, at least it got us this far, I guess.” She began removing her restraints and he slipped out of his seat.
By the time he reached the door and looked back, she’d already grasped her blaster and was stuffing it underneath her cloak and out of sight.
Smart.
She’d lifted the hood of the cloak over her head too and when she lifted her gaze to look up at him, she smiled a little.
“Can’t be too prepared.”
True words and his motto as well.
Only, he couldn’t be more unprepared for what this day was throwing at him so far.
When it came to Nee-ya, he was feeling incredibly lost.
As they left the ship, he grabbed his own blaster and threw his arm back, resting it on his shoulder.
Once they were outside, he wasn’t sure what to expect.
Service satellites could be iffy—all sorts of beings passed through them.
“Ta’ii,” he said as the doors opened.
“Uh-huh?”
“There’s something else…” He trailed off.
Phek.
His life-organ was hammering so hard in his throat, it was difficult to speak.
She looked up at him, waiting for him to continue.
“These satellites…they’re…females aren’t usually seen here. Not unaccompanied and not usually without their…mates.”
“I’m not unaccompanied…I have you.”
“Right. But…”
Realization dawned and he saw when her eyes widened. “Oh. You mean like that.” She smiled then. “I can pretend to be your mate if it will make things go smoother. Is that what you meant?”
That’s exactly what he’d meant.
His chin jerked and her smile changed a little, becoming softer, before she ducked her head.
“Let’s do it.”
Phek.
Ka’Cit’s throat moved and he opened his mouth to answer, but as if timed to save him from saying something stupid, the doors opened to an alien standing there awaiting them.
23
An alien that looked just like the one that had brought her to the Sanctuary stood before them.
A Torian.
He blinked at them before he dropped whatever tool he was carrying, his eyes darting from her to Ka’Cit.
He was green with four eyes and four arms. At the back of his head was a large, round protrusion that pulsed like that of a jellyfish or maybe an octopus.
She would have thought it was Geblit, the alien who’d brought her to the Sanctuary, if not for the fact that this alien was absolutely filthy.
Soot covered its arms and even some parts of its head.
Geblit would never tolerate such a thing.
“Well…” Ka’Cit began. His voice sounded so different, she had to glance up at him.
It was harder. Icier. More powerful.
More…deadly.
As if it was coming from a man who did not feel, not the man who’d held her against him just moments before.
“I-I…uh…” The mechanic glanced behind him but even though she was sure she’d seen a few aliens on the floor when Ka’Cit was taking the ship in, there seemed to be no one in the station apart from them now.
She even caught someone ducking behind one of the ships in the bays.
Ka’Cit made a sound in his throat and stepped forward.
He loomed over the Torian and the alien seemed to cower.
“Your
