by Cora Blu
Pushing Savannah out of the kitchen, she warned lovingly, “Go and finish getting dressed or I’ll never be done in here.”
The two women stood and held the other’s gaze. Savannah pressed her lips against her palm and blew Sadie a kiss before turning to glide up the stairs in her elegant manner. She called back over her shoulders, “I’m not done with you, Sadie. I’ll leave it alone this time, but you know you’d be perfect for Oliver.” She disappeared around the corner, and the scent of her sweet gardenia perfume hung like a bouquet in the air.
Sadie stood, shaking her head, amazed by Savannah’s way of blocking out the truth. If only the rest of the world were so blind.
Chapter 2
Red Sector Five
The red lake surrounding the station never laid this quiet, and Captain Aroc Farkus of the karuntee, soaked in the serenity even if short-lived. With the churning of the atmosphere bringing on the approaching two weeks of darkness, an oppressing cloak settled over the space station.
The moon had shown brighter last night, sending the shift in the atmosphere to crash and swell as the two weeks of frigid temperatures approached. Shutting down travel for those two weeks became an imposition for some while a reprieve for others.
Lifting the coffee mug, he took a healthy drink of the warm, bitter liquid, and then set the mug on the high table perched in the window of the breakfast canteen’s dining hall. He thought he’d never move beyond the crushing pain of losing his mate. Until her—the human female that had crossed his path down on Earth and changed his mind and world.
He’d not intended to keep her that day, yet he found releasing her next to impossible. But he had—reluctantly—with stipulations. Now their friendship wasn’t so easily defined.
Sadie consumed more of his thoughts every day.
Flustered, he rested his arm along the strip of metal supporting the glass wall. The arrival bell from dock fifteen rang over the speakers. Aroc caressed the patch of hair that grew on his shoulder, remembering how his human had touched it in her sleep. She was the only female Norese would eat for and lately the woman starring in his dreams.
Turning his head, he caught sight of Earth through the viewing panel. Time appeared to move slower than normal today. He was desperate for her feminine touch.
Although initially intimidated by his anatomical differences, Sadie stroked his retractable spine with a firm hand until he nearly purred from the pleasure. Some days he craved more than her touch. While struggling to honor the life of his deceased mate, anticipation roared through him at the picture forming of Sadie walking into his home. Strong-willed, a warrior for what she believed in, and everything a karuntee male looked for in a female.
Katherine would want him to mate again.
Dipping his head, he listened to the heavy footfalls of his males. One stood out from the others. Solid, purposeful steps free of hesitation sent a vibration across the floor. Without looking, he greeted the only male strong enough to fight at his side. “Morning, Montage.” He rolled his shoulders. The muscles under the patch of hair, the sign of an adult karuntee, stretched releasing the tension. As he approached, Aroc caught the stress lines marring Montage’s forehead.
“Morning, Captain Farkus,” the male greeted. “What number is that, cup two or three?” With a nod, he indicated the mug of coffee gripped between Aroc's fingers.
He studied the number of coffee ring stains on the white surface. “Three, no four,” Aroc corrected himself, raising his arm to drape over the male’s shoulders and to walk him toward the bay doors. “Norese doesn’t sleep well without Sadie. I’ve given up. I leave the door open so she can crawl in when she needs to.”
“And you can’t sleep with her in the bed?”
Aroc sighed. “An hour of restless sleep is not sleeping.”
Aroc cracked his neck and caught himself before he sent out his retractable spikes for a good stretch. He’d ripped enough vests over the years and refused the ones with the holes because his spikes would catch and he’d end up tearing the damned thing anyway. He’d had to have his vests hand tailored to accommodate his three-inch spines when fully exposed.
The spikes were a form of defense in battle. If an enemy grabbed a karuntee from behind many organs would be punctured and ripped from their bodies.
“I don’t envy you, Captain. She’ll have questions one day, about her mother.” Montage cantered his head to the right, the burgundy ponytail slipping over his shoulder. “I hope you have pictures or a good memory.”
“Hopefully I’ll know what little girls need by the time she starts looking for answers. A blank stare won’t be enough.” He gestured a hand over the panel, and the doors slid apart. “Sadie’s good with her, she’ll help.”
Aroc was aware many considered humans less than desirable. However, a few held to a higher standard and Sadie caught his attention.
“Sadie’s good.” Montage sighed, and then fed him a curious stare before scrubbing a hand across his chest. “Human’s don’t have a code of conduct they operate by. Having never encountered anyone different than themselves, they have a superiority that taints them in the eyes of other species.”
“They would never exist in the underwater world of our allies.”
“No!” Montage agreed. “They wouldn’t believe such a world exists until one of them is abducted and exposed to that life. Perhaps one day they will.”
“Can you imagine a human living in the ocean?” He laughed, shaking his head in disbelief. Aroc thought of Sadie. Anything’s possible with an open mind.
They moved into the flow of bodies in the corridor, both males and females patrolling the bay doors surrounding the canteen.
“You’re kinder than I would be to the human female,” Montage said, handing him an electronic pad. “Here’s the report from the last seven shipments this week from Earth.” He eyed the company names listed on the log. “Two tanks were quarantined, contaminated, and shipped back before the station became infected. The others passed inspection.”
“I’ll handle this one personally. This banker’s crossed the line more than once, and I haven’t served up an elimination in years.” He slapped Montage on the shoulders, shaking the large male. “It's time the humans paid a bigger price for breaking the rules. Don’t you think?”
Montage accepted the log. “You know my feelings on the dirty breed. They’re an infestation. Look at their planet,” he said, letting his hands drop to his sides in frustration. “You wouldn’t catch a karuntee dumping trash where they live.”
Aroc chuckled. “Got a rogue spike digging at your back this morning, Montage?”
Montage sniffed, sending a tired look round the corridor, then back to Aroc. “Captain,” he relaxed his body, reaching across his chest to stroke the pelt on his shoulder. Calmer, he continued, “Your human female, Sadie, is a friend to our kind as much as Katherine was. She respects the karuntee lifestyle and follows the rules of the station. And from the length of time the glow remained on your skin after you mated, I’d say she’s physically compatible to your taste in females.”
His body tightened at the mention of that day. Sadie had answered the call of his veracious hunger, opening her body as well as mind to give him what he needed. Taking her that day wasn’t planned. He’d given in to the need riding his body for a taste of Sadie. Her feminine presence overwhelmed him. He hadn’t touched her since, not wanting to kill the friendship they’d developed over the year. Yes, Sadie was special.
The grimace on Montage’s face shook the fog from his mind. Aroc stopped walking when they reached the bay door. He could see the male needed to talk. “I can’t read your mind, warrior. What’s bothering you?”
“May I speak freely?” he asked, his gaze moving through the roving crowd of karuntee going about their morning.
“I count on your honesty.”
“Why are you transferring me? I’m your best male with the most experience in running this station.”
Aroc hesitated, shiftin
g a curious glance on the male. “I can promote Salazar if you think I made a mistake appointing you to your own sector.”
Montage straightened tall and proud. “Promotion?” he asked, cautiously, his mouth moving slowly as if tasting the word on his tongue. Montage drew a hand down his face. “A promotion,” he continued on a stammer. “You’re promoting me?”
“I can’t watch every bay or sector, and every level, and raise a daughter.” If he lost Sadie he’d have to adjust his schedule to spend more time with his daughter. It would break her little heart.
“True. Norese does grab the attention of many with her round little face and red hair. She will attract the males in less than a few years.”
“I know, don’t remind me. Plus, we’ve doubled in population on the planet and the stations. I can’t do it alone.” He pulled out a pin from his vest, and then attached it to Montage’s vest breast pocket. “I’m assigning you Sector Two.”
Montage touched the metal with an appreciation. “I accept with honor.”
“Good. Now, we have a lot to go over. We’ll do the formalities later. Right now, we have a meeting with the human board next week before all space travel is shut down for two weeks, and I need a list of all the karuntees that will be on the dark moon and not on the space station.”
Montage stood taller. “I can have it sent over this evening, before we accept the next shipment from the humans.” Montage keyed in a code on the electronic device and a list popped up on Aroc’s screen. He leaned in and scanned a finger down the screen. The patrolled areas around the station, the number of ships in repair, and the number of arrests were down. It made for a quiet week. “Good, good. Keep me informed of the shipments coming in and the investigation of the rogue faction.”
“On it,” Montage assured. “Your human female, will you bring her up for the two-week shut-down?”
He steepled his fingers under his chin. Rolling the muscles in his shoulder, he eased the tension. “I think Cantrell is going after Sadie.”
Montage paused. “I can have him taken care of by midnight.”
Aroc waited for any inflection on the male’s face… Nothing, not even a blink.
“No, I’ll take care of this one myself.” He had an arrangement with Sadie; they weren’t dating as humans do. If she wanted Cantrell over him, he would have to respect that. And he hadn’t marked her as his so she was fair game. “I’ll handle it.”
Chapter 3
Saturated with the scent of lilacs and freshly mowed lawns, the night air danced over Sadie’s face as she descended the sidewalk to catch the 7pm bus home. The warm evening breeze ruffled the fringes of her untidy hair. It didn’t matter, she had other things on her mind and on her way home; there was no point in fussing over it now. It all added to her look of exhaustion.
Theresa’s party was not for another hour. With a bag of groceries from her earlier trip to the market perched on her hip, she stepped out of the way onto the grass before Sally Mercer and her new bicycle mowed her down. The streetlights were beginning to flicker and any kid with a lick of sense would have his behind on the front porch before they came on.
“Hurry home, Ms. Sally, you know better than to play so far from home,” she called after the fleeting blur.
“Yes ma’am, Ms. Sadie,” the little girl hollered back over her shoulders, brown pigtails whipping wild and free. Sadie watched the little spit fire. Her knees pumping fast, the buttercream dress catching air as she hightailed it home. All the children of the neighborhood loved and respected Sadie. And it was that reason she needed for them to see her ride the public transport. She couldn't just vanish. Besides, she knew most of the women on the shuttle. They were all Domestic Assets with families they either spied on or lived with to spy on others.
Ready to get out of the hot sun, Sadie searched through her purse for her bus transfer. She missed the big Plymouth idling beside the curb. Rock Hudson’s twin leaned over the passenger side to speak to her. At least in Sadie’s eyes, Oliver favored Rock Hudson.
“Hello, Ms. Sadie.”
A lump knotted in her gut. Why would he do this out in the open? This was going in her report to the captain later. He could jeopardize the mission if she were to be fired. Instead of showing her irritation at his ignorance, she put on a mortified grimace. He was shamelessly flirting with her out on the street. Remember you're Sadie, the humble maid, right now. Straightening the paper bag of groceries, she glanced past the row of open curtains across the street then said, “Evening, Mr. Cantrell.” She tried not to seem startled as her heartbeat thumped like a June bug trapped in a mason jar. He was just too handsome to be toying with her. Dark almost black hair, neat and trim atop a hard forehead, set off his chiseled features as he nodded at her packages.
“Those bags look heavy. Get in. I’ll take you home.”
She shook her head. “My bus will be along momentarily.”
The passenger door swung wide open along with Sadie’s eyes. Was he offering her a ride in broad daylight? She’d be the gossip on the stoop and the beauty parlor tomorrow accepting a ride from a white man. She had to get out of there.
“C’mon, Sadie, get in.”
“No, I’ll wait. It’s a lovely evening.”
“Nonsense. You live on the other side of the tracks. Let me at least see you to your door.”
What was he doing?
“Just how, may I ask, do you know where I live?”
He held a hand up and gave her a sideways glance. “Last month…Savannah hospitalized…You kept Timothy…”
Caught up in her theatrics, she’d forgotten. “Oh…right. I’d given you the address to pick him up. I forgot about that.” The tight braid she wore down her back felt like a rope around her neck now. If he knew her secret would he blow her cover by coming across as uninterested now?
Her face dropped as she watched him set the parking brake before he jumped out and came around to stand in front of her. Old Spice cologne claimed her attention. “Let me take these from you.” At over six feet, he stood at least a head above her. Navy pinstripe suit with a white shirt and blue and grey tie fit perfectly. The signs of a tailored suit, no stress lines.
She held the grocery bag and her tote. “Mr. Cantrell, I appreciate the offer, but my shuttle is here.” The two looked up at the city bus that stood behind his car. The driver eyed Mr. Cantrell with a look of disdain on his stern old chocolate face.
“Oh, well maybe next time, Ms. Sadie.” His blue eyes moved over her face, making her blush. The heat bled across her cheeks, assuredly leaving a flush stain of red on her face. He was just too handsome to be flirting like that. “Hey, why not come back to the party with me? I’m sure you made all the food; why not come enjoy some. Besides, you can hear the bragging first hand. Savannah is a most gracious host, but we all know who cooked.”
Oh, she should shoot him with her phaser. “That’s very kind of you to say, but no thank you.” She sidestepped him as the driver blew his horn. “I have another engagement tonight.”
“Is a few minutes of your time too much to ask, Sadie? I’ll take you home.” He touched her forearm then drew back. “Pardon me…” He was hitting on her. “Can I take you to dinner this Saturday, my treat?”
Surprise—if that wasn't the name of a blush, it should be. Her skin sweltered under his piercing stare. Sadie couldn't believe his selfishness, putting her in a situation like this. Maybe she should give him a mirror to remind him he's a white man in the 1960's. “No thank you, Mr. Cantrell.” Adjusting her bags, she made to leave calling over her shoulder, “You have a good evening at the party and make sure to compliment Mrs. Edwards on the house. She worked really hard decorating and getting things in order.” Sadie hurried to climb the steps of the bus, with Cantrell close on her heels.
The driver’s wide eyes said he thought Cantrell was a threat to her and he lurched forward, coming to her aid.
“Mr. Pete, please don’t concern yourself. Mr. Cantrell was just seeing that I made it ont
o the bus okay, weren’t you, Mr. Cantrell?” she said shyly, peering back over her shoulder.
A crack in his flirty personality revealed something dark then it disappeared. He didn’t like being turned down.
“Okay…a picnic? Salem Park has a fountain in the center of the courtyard. We can try out that new Kentucky Fried Chicken place. I’ll pick up a bucket.”
Now he’s insulting me, serving somebody else’s fried chicken, when mine is known around town as the best.
She turned on her toes to watch him sulk behind his serious intelligent eyes. What was he hiding about himself? “No thank you, Mr. Cantrell. I can fry my own chicken and let’s be honest, we should stick to people we can date…openly.” He stepped back as the doors closed, and watched with pained eyes as the bus eased around his car and drove off.
Did I get through that thick skull? I’ll find out in the morning from the grapevine of gossipy neighbors.
Chapter 4
Commander Oliver Cantrell mused inward and thought the party lasted too long. No, it wasn’t the party; it was Sadie’s subtle floral scent lingering in the air of the kitchen when he’d gone to get a glass of water. The second he stepped across the threshold and into her domain, the space she’d worked in left him hungry to see her again.
Oliver left needing to get away from her sweet aroma and seeing her earlier on the sidewalk hadn’t helped. The easy sway of her soft full hips as she mounted the stairs on the city bus filled his memories. The simple maid’s uniform had twisted on her hips creating a complete distraction. Those deep brown, almond-shaped eyes and the way they slanted up at the corners shook his composure. The way she smiled, open and inviting, left him famished with a longing he’d been without in a long while.
Parking the car in the rented garage, Oliver removed his duffle and anything personal and locked the door. Pulling out his transporter, he found a private corner then depressed the button.
