by Anna Hackett
Kolar linked his hands and rested them on his desk. “Fjord will make things difficult. She’s already tried to push this visit out another stellar month. She’ll either try to deny us the crystals or sell them to us for an outrageous price.” He leaned back. “And there are plenty of potential buyers waiting for us to fail. The Tauvi put up a huge fight to stop us from getting the right to first-offer.”
Savan had been at the meeting. The aggressive Tauvi, from another energy-dependent world, had been bitter losers.
“You know I’m planning to retire soon?”
Kolar’s pronouncement jerked Savan back to the present. This was the first he’d heard of retirement. Part of him had always thought his mentor would die at the trade tables.
“If you secure this deal for the right price…this seat will be yours,” Kolar said.
The breath caught in Savan’s throat. Rendar’s head negotiator.
The respected role brought power and prestige. It would be the pinnacle of the career he’d been building the last decade. The peak of life on Rendar revolved around career success. Mediocrity was considered as bad as failure. Everyone on Rendar lived to be the best.
And Savan owed it to Kolar—the man who’d taken a chance on a burned-out space marine looking for a job with no blood, death or violence.
“Are we clear, Bardan?”
Savan gave a tight nod. “I’ll close the deal.”
“Excellent. Good luck with the negotiation.” The holo-com blinked off.
With the image gone, Savan could once again see the view screen and the planet he was orbiting.
Perma was an unbroken pale blue. Too far from its sun to sustain vegetation, there were no forests or jungles. Luckily for its inhabitants, the planet had substantial geothermal energy below its icy surface.
One of the gifts that geothermal energy had given them were crystals that held the most amazing, inexhaustible energy.
Energy Rendar needed.
Comfortable in the pilot’s seat, Savan engaged the controls. Time to head to the Perman spaceport and hammer out a final deal for Rendar.
And face Brinn Fjord.
An edgy anticipation snaked through him. He flexed his hands on the controls. It was the thrill of the upcoming deal, not because he was going to see a woman he found a challenge. A woman who hated his guts.
He had far too much riding on this deal to fail.
He would succeed. At any cost.
***
Brinn Fjord watched the sleek, black Rendarian spacecraft touch down in a cloud of superheated steam.
The ship reminded her of the man she was waiting for—striking, cold and merciless.
Her stomach filled with knots. She couldn’t believe that of all the worlds in the galaxy, Rendar had won the right to first-offer on Perma’s fusion crystals.
Supercilious Rendar, who’d kept Perma stuck in the dark ages. Her gut churned. The arrogant bastards had even insisted the deal go ahead today—on Yule’s Eve. Right in the middle of Perma’s most important winter holiday.
So instead of celebrating Yuletide with her family—eating her mother’s cooking, drinking her stepfather’s homemade ale and trading teasing barbs with her brothers—she was stuck with the most ruthless trade negotiator this side of the Hadron belt.
Savan Bardan. He had a poker face everyone in the Trade Guild envied. She’d never once seen him smile, or show anger or pleasure. The guy could pass for a syndroid.
Five years ago, he’d been one of the Rendarian traders who denied Perma admission to the Guild. Her fingers curled. He’d denied them the chance to trade for technology they needed for their people.
And people had died.
Brinn pressed a hand to her chest and the throbbing pain there. Because of Bardan, her father was dead.
By Odinn’s fury, she missed her father. She sucked in a breath of cold air. Had it really been four years since he succumbed to a disease that was now eradicated with drugs they bought from a neighboring planet?
He’d never had the chance to see her join the Guild, to make a name for herself helping Perma acquire new tech.
A large gust of freezing air nipped at her. She pulled her beret low over her hair and drew the collar of her thick ursus coat up to her chin. The wild animals lived on the northern pole, and the plush fleece made the warmest coats.
Summer on Perma was cold, but winter was bitter. Even though it was lunchtime, the distant sun was already headed for the horizon. The icy wind swept across the spaceport tarmac, its cold fingers searching for bare skin. The perfect welcome for Bardan.
Brinn let the wind cool her heated cheeks. She’d make Rendar pay for their arrogance. If they wanted the fusion crystals, they’d have to pay for them.
She’d secure a damn good deal. For her father and for Perma.
Looking up, she saw Savan striding toward her.
She hadn’t seen him since the negotiation for right of first offer, and damn the stars, she’d forgotten how eye-catching the man was.
Permans were tall, but he topped her by several centimeters. He wore a sleek, all-in-one black jumpsuit with silver accents at the collar. Boy, did that suit leave little to the imagination, the fabric stretched over hard muscles. He had the body of a fighter, not a trade negotiator.
She shoved her hands into her pockets to keep them still. He had a mixed heritage, common for the melting pot that was Rendar. Hair the color of the darkest winter night was just long enough for a woman to run her hands through. The tips of his ears were more pointed than hers, and his stunning bright green eyes were tilted at the edges, giving his face an exotic look.
And those eyes. They were the color of the night-sky lights in the north.
Hell, why couldn’t he have been short, overweight, ugly? Her spine stiffened. It didn’t matter what Savan Bardan looked like. He was a job. A man she detested. Nothing more, nothing less.
She’d take the man on a tour of the ice mines, get the final deal sorted for the benefit of Perma. Then Bardan and his striking eyes and cold heart could go back to Rendar.
His eyes locked on her as he closed the last few meters between them.
The too-familiar anger filled her throat. Be professional, Brinn. She repeated the words over in her head.
“Negotiator Fjord.” He slung the small backpack he carried over one shoulder. “A pleasure to see you.”
His Perman was perfect. The result of the lingual implant all Guild negotiators had implanted at the base of their skulls.
She inclined her head. “Negotiator Bardan.”
He offered a gloved hand.
She knew Rendarians didn’t like to touch. Handshakes were a Perman custom. He was either being polite or trying to unsettle her.
She eyed his large, black-clad hand. She couldn’t ignore his gesture…that would go against everything in the Trade Guild Code of Conduct.
And it would smack of cowardice. She placed her own in his.
Brinn wore wisent leather gloves, but she still felt the compelling heat of him through the supple leather. She looked up and saw him watching her, an unreadable look in his nebula-green eyes.
The two of them stayed there for a second, the cold air swirling around them.
She gave his hand a quick shake, then snatched her hand back. “You aren’t dressed for a Perman winter.” Against her better judgment, her gaze drifted down his long form.
“My suit’s made of aramide. It maintains my body heat.”
“Really?” She eyed the fabric. It was plain, with the faintest sheen. She hated to admit it, but she envied the Rendarians and their technology.
“I’d be happy to discuss a trade.”
Oh, she just bet he would. Was everything a deal to this man? “I’ll keep that in mind.” She gestured toward her transport. “I’m sure you’re eager to see the ice mines. I thought we’d head straight into the mountains, visit with the elders who own the mine and then see the crystals.”
“Visit the elders?”
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His cool tone irritated her. “It’s expected. It shows respect, a concept I know is foreign to you Rendarians.”
“Ah, I was wondering when your claws would show.” His face was expressionless. Like nothing she said bothered him.
It just itched at her. He was colder than the Kjolen ice peaks. What did it take for this man to show some emotion?
She huffed out a breath. “Don’t worry, I won’t waste your precious time. I’ll have you back at the spaceport by dinner.”
“So eager to get rid of me?”
Opening the door to the transport, she forced a smile. “Yes.”
He shook his head. “I know you were denied trade and the comfort it brings for a few extra stellar years, but haven’t you held your grudge long enough?”
Brinn choked. “You think this is because Perma couldn’t trade for Chanalian fine wine or pleasure syndroids? You supercilious, ignorant bastard.”
She thought she saw a flash of something in his eyes. Good, she wanted a fight and she was happy to stir a reaction in the coldest man in the galaxy.
But before he could respond, there was a loud bang behind them. They both frowned and started to turn.
The world exploded in a flash of flames and bright white light.
Also by Anna Hackett
The Anomaly Series
Time Thief
Mind Raider
Soul Stealer
Salvation
Anomaly Trilogy Boxed Set
The Phoenix Adventures
At Star’s End
In the Devil’s Nebula
On a Rogue Planet
Beneath a Trojan Moon
Beyond Galaxy’s Edge
On a Cyborg Planet
Perma Series
Winter Fusion
The WindKeepers Series
Wind Kissed, Fire Bound
Taken by the South Wind
Tempting the West Wind
Defying the North Wind
Claiming the East Wind
Standalone Titles
Savage Dragon
Hunter’s Surrender
One Night with the Wolf
Anthologies
A Galactic Holiday
Moonlight (UK only)
Vampire Hunter (UK only)
Awakening the Dragon (UK only)
For more information visit AnnaHackettBooks.com
About Anna
I’m passionate about action romance. I love stories that combine the thrill of falling in love with the excitement of action, danger and adventure. I’m a sucker for that moment when the team is walking in slow motion, shoulder-to-shoulder heading off into battle. I write about people overcoming unbeatable odds and achieving seemingly impossible goals. I like to believe it’s possible for all of us to do the same.
My books are mixture of action, adventure and sexy romance and they’re recommended for anyone who enjoys fast-paced stories where the boy wins the girl at the end (or sometimes the girl wins the boy!)
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Website: AnnaHackettBooks.com
Go back to Contents
Table of Contents
What readers are saying about The Phoenix Adventures
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Read the first chapter of Winter Fusion
Also by Anna Hackett
About Anna
