Flare

by JC Hay

  “Which makes it all the more important to talk about this now.” He let go of her, snagged a bag of cricket chips out of the cabinet by the door. After crunching down a handful of chips, he started again. “I’m lousy at people.” She started to say something and he waved her off. “No, that’s a lie. I’m not lousy. I don’t bother to understand people. I’ve spent a lot of my life thinking of them as interchangeable. When I had money, they essentially were. So what if someone got pissed off. There was always someone to take their place.”

  She followed him up the spiral stairs into the ship’s mess, and watched as he grabbed two pouches of food out of the heater unit. “I wasn’t trying to obligate you just because I came after you.”

  “Of course not,” he said, and set one of the pouches in front of her. “That’s not who you are. But it is who I am. Or was. Or am trying not to be. Something. I’m tired of being that person. I was tired of it when I struck out on my own. Then I fell in with Gobnait, and I kept right on being that asshole because I didn’t know how to be anything else.” Ax tore open the pouch, stirred the contents, and ate a bite without reading the label. He couldn’t place the flavor—either spiced meat substitute, or a creamed leafy green. Or maybe both. It was just a stalling tactic to buy him time to think—he wasn’t sure how he wanted to continue, only knowing that whatever he said wouldn’t be enough. “I guess what I’m trying to say is, thank you for coming to get me. And I’m sorry I hurt you.”

  “You also suck at apologies, if you’re making a list.” She grinned at him and looked at the pouch he’d given her before opening it. “Also, you sometimes act without thinking, or considering who might get hurt.” She took a bite of the food and made a face. “Though you did at least offer me a meal. However questionable it may be.”

  “Then let me try harder. Yes, I’m selfish. And I’ve never actually viewed anyone I’ve been around as an equal, let alone a partner. Until you.”

  She ate another spoonful of her dinner and grimaced. “Good start, go on.”

  “You’re the first person to make me admit I liked working with someone else. It’s not just the sex...” he held up his finger when she opened her mouth to interject, “...though that is amazing. But when you walked away on Altaira, my first regret wasn’t that we wouldn’t have sex again. It was that I wouldn’t get the chance to joke with you again. That I wouldn’t be able to work through whatever impossible challenge we faced at your side. I regretted that I didn’t recognize how badly I’d hurt you, and once I did, I regretted that I wouldn’t be able to apologize for that. You have every right to maroon me. Or drag us back to Primaera for the closing gala, and take whatever winnings we’re due. But what I really want you to have is my apology. I’m sorry I considered winning more important than your feelings, and I’m sorry my selfishness got you hurt.”

  Kayana nodded. “Finished? Good. When we first met, I found you to be craven, selfish, and callow. More importantly, you are exactly the sort of person my family would accuse of bringing dishonor and ruin to our House.”

  “Thanks?” That was a fairly damning assessment. And when a woman who looked like the devil gave a damning assessment, it carried some weight.

  “That said, I’ve also seen you be gentle, caring, clever, and brave. And it’s taken me a while to learn that what my family thinks stopped mattering on the day they disowned me.”

  He put the food down and reached across the table to grab her hands. He needed to touch her like he needed air. “I don’t deserve your forgiveness, so I won’t ask for it. And I know that I won’t become a better person overnight. I’m not going to be stupid and promise that I will. But I do promise to try. I want to be better for you.”

  “If that’s the case, then I shall monitor when you slip up and punish you accordingly.” She grinned, and the warmth transitioned into a different kind of heat. One that pooled low in his hips and made his exo-suit feel too tight.

  “If that’s the case, I might not be too good.”

  “I hope not.” She set her food packet on the table and crossed around to his side, and he couldn’t look anywhere but her mouth as the tip of her tongue moistened her charcoal-gray lips. She pressed two fingers under his chin, nails biting slightly and forcing him to lean up to her. “Now, since there’s a chance the translator unit scrambled your apology, I want you to kiss me until I believe it.”

  Her mouth claimed his, and even when the holovid drone floated through the galley, he didn’t stop kissing her until lack of air demanded it.

  Her smile, predatory and beautiful, made him want to start all over again, cameras be damned, but she stilled him with a finger across his lips. “Later. We’ve got a race to win.”

  “But Altaira. The Forest’s Soul. We need to complete the challenge together.”

  Berniss’s voice came over the intercom. “Then you might be interested in knowing that, after hearing an argument from the camera crew about the quality of footage, the Octiron Corporation is willing to accept you little adventure on Bellerophon’s factory ship to be a suitable completion of the Altaira challenge.”

  Ax looked up toward the camera in the galley. “Why would you...”

  “Because if they didn’t count it, then there’d be no reason to use it. And that footage is awesome.”

  “So we’re done?” Kayana sounded surprised and disappointed all at once. “We can head to Primaera?”

  “Yes, but you’d best hurry, Team Galaxy Riders is already on their way in to finish the race.”

  Ax held his breath. Part of him wanted to question how the Galaxy Riders had squeezed past whatever their enemies had arranged for them. The rest was just relieved to have evidence that he hadn’t been responsible for their undoing. He looked at Kayana and saw her thinking much the same thing. His fingers traced the edge of her earlobe, and she let out a shaky breath, black eyes glittering. “We could fight them for the win if you want.”

  She dragged her fingernail down his chest, leaving a trail of heat in her wake that set his nerves ablaze. “I’m fine with second if you are. I’ve found a better prize already.”

  Her grin made his knees weak, just from the promises it insinuated. “Me too.” He tugged her close, mouth tentative as he brushed against her lips before losing himself in the kiss again.

  Over the intercom, he heard Berniss’s smug voice. “Algol, take us back to Primaera, but take your time.”

  Epilogue

  Kayana took a sip of her drink and watched the party unfolding around them. The roof of the Octiron Corporation building gave a spectacular view of the city’s downtown district. At least she understood where the design aesthetic for the ship had come from – the architect for the outdoor space had filled it with flowing lines of chrome and ebony, gilt and glass. Floating orbs of light in every color drifted around the party creating moving areas of shadow that kept the guests moving around.

  It made her miss the simpler bacchanal of the party on Vedenemo.

  Ax kissed her nape, lips brushing where her hair had been teased into an updo for the gala, and awakening her v’tana with a rush of heat. His whisper caressed her blood like molten honey. “I never thought I’d be jealous of a dress before, but the way that one clings to you...”

  She smoothed a hand over her belly, feeling the exquisitely soft silk beneath her palm as she leaned against him. “Whatever else you think of them, Octiron’s happy to spend money to make us look good.”

  “Mm. You already looked good. This is just the icing on the cake.” He signaled the drink-bot, and it produced a fizzy, blue cocktail for him. The number of garnishes hanging of the rim of the glass could have constituted a meal. Ax took a sip and grimaced. “Though they aren’t spending that much. They’re watering the drinks.”

  She laughed. “They probably don’t want anyone to get sloppy drunk and larf up the footage. There are still reporters wandering around, after all.” She’d also noticed half of the globes floating about had cameras on them as well. Clearly, Octiron
wanted to make sure every angle was covered.

  “Speaking of,” Ax said. “Have you seen Berniss?”

  “Not since we landed, but she said she’d be around.” On the far side of the rooftop, a chestnut-haired Aurelian looked to be giving one interviewer a rather angry piece of his mind. Next to him, a Tygean brunette in a dress like liquid gold didn’t seem to be much happier. She nodded in their direction. “They don’t look happy.”

  He checked a wrist computer. “Team Starry Night. They apparently think that Octiron is ruthless, and that the race is ridiculously dangerous. Among other things.”

  She chuckled. “Perish the thought. Did you try to make amends with the Galaxy Riders?”

  Ax glanced towards where the albino stood with his sapphire-shaded partner. Armond and Vin. Their names were everywhere since the race had ended, and they’d won the grand prize. Seeing them was a relief. Kayana didn’t know what sort of trials they’d been through together, but given how Armond kept looking at his partner, they’d found more than adventure along the way.

  She tugged ax’s arm around her waist. He cradled her against his chest, ridiculous drink in his free hand. “I thought about it. Passed him in the hall at one point and almost said something. He didn’t kill me, so I guess we’re square?”

  “They’re letting us keep the ships. I suppose that’s something.” That had been an unexpected bonus. The prize money had been handsome enough, but the ship was a surprising level of generosity.

  He laughed. “I wonder if Algol will be any less obnoxious without Octiron telling it what to do?”

  She shuddered as his teeth grazed the point of her ear. Her nipples tented the sleek fabric of her dress. When her breath recovered she stage whispered, “Stop that, or I’ll drag you back to the ship and make you finish what you’re starting.”

  He grinned and pressed against her back, voice all sinful promise. “I’m waiting for the downside.”

  “You don’t get to co—” He words were cut off by a crack of thunder as lightning streaked across the sky just above the rooftop. It had felt close enough to touch.

  “What the hells?” Ax tugged her behind the minimal safety of the bar as another deafening thunderclap wrecked their ability to speak. Wind whipped up, seeming to move in several directions at once. The orb lights, carried by the winds, began crashing into each other. One of them fired some kind of bright pink fireball in the direction of the bar and sent her and Ax ducking for cover.

  “You said something about heading back to the ship, love?” Ax had to shout to be heard over the screams and chaos that had suddenly swept over the roof top. “Because that’s sounding pretty good about now.”

  Her heart warmed in a way that had nothing to do with lust or her v’tana. Hearing him say the word out loud still felt new. It made her giddy, and she couldn’t keep the smile off her face, despite the madness that had overtaken the rooftop. “I’m ready when you are.”

  “Give me a moment.” He finished his drink in a single pull, shoving the garnishes to one side. When he finished he took a skewer of pixberries and popped them into his mouth. “Okay, I’m ready.”

  “I thought you said it was watered down.” On the other side of the bar, she could hear people running for cover and doors slamming open as they fled the roof top.

  “It is, but it’s still free. Never turn down a free drink.”

  Kayana knew what he was going to suggest and cut him off. “That is not one of the maxims.”

  He grinned, “Yeah, well it oughta be. Maybe I’ll write my own list.”

  She laughed and grabbed his hand as she ran toward the nearest stairwell. “I can’t even imagine what that would look like.”

  Behind them, another tiny fireball shot across the open space, striking a conversation pit and setting it ablaze. She tugged him through the door and into the relative safety of the emergency stairs.

  He froze, forcing her to stop. “Really? I already know what the first Rule of Ax would be.”

  She grinned at him. “Oh yeah? The free drink one?”

  He smiled and tugged her close. “Hardly. The first rule is ‘when you find the perfect partner, don’t ever let them go.’”

  Warmth rushed through her, a stark contrast to the cold wind outside the stairs. Regardless of the danger, she leaned in to claim his mouth with hers. When they finally came up to breathe she smiled. “Let’s go home.”

  He nodded. “Aye, Captain. Thought you’d never ask.”

  Need more Great Space Race?

  NOT READY TO LEAVE the Paragon Galaxy just yet? Want to see how the other teams are faring against Octiron’s relentless machinations? You’re in luck! Be sure to read the whole series:

  Freefall (Team Prism) – Elsa Jade

  Ceasefire (Team Orion Nebula) – Kayla Stonor

  Explode (Team Supernova) – Teresa Noelle Rob-erts

  Orion’s Gate (Team Galaxy Riders) – Sabine Priestley

  Starshadow (Team Starry Night) – CJ Cade

  Find them all at

  http://GSpaceRace.Com

  Also by the Author

  The Corporate Services Books

  Dubai Double Cross

  Mumbai Manhunt

  South Seas Salvation

  To keep up with new releases, special offers, and get a free story, sign up for JC Hay’s Newsletter at

  http://jchay.com/mailing-list-sign-up/

  Acknowledgments

  It takes a village to raise a book, or in my case a community. There is no way I could fit all of the thanks I need to dole out in this space, or indeed touch all of the people who helped shape Flare into the book you’ve got in front of you. Even knowing this, I have to try.

  For my darling spouse, you’ve been the shoul-der I cried on, the arms that held me up, and when I needed it, the boot in my butt. This book is as much yours as mine, and I know the birthing pro-cess was as painful for you at times as it was for me (if not more). Thank you for being the amaz-ing, supportive person I love, and for somehow deciding I’m worthy of your love too.

  For the other members of the Great Space Race community – CJ, Teresa, Kayla, Sabine, and Elsa – what a wild ride this has been. Thanks for all the amazing ideas, the support, and the laughter. It’s been a crazy race, and I can’t wait to see what happens in Season Two.

  For my editrix, Sasha - without your help, and your expert skills, and your unflinching eye this wouldn’t be half the story that it is now. You make me who I am, and more importantly, make my books all that they’re able to be.

  For my family in the Greater Seattle chapter of the RWA – every one of you is so inspiring, and so amazing. Seeing you each month makes me want to work harder just to be worthy of your au-gust company. Your boundless optimism, and our tireless championing of the idea that Happily Ever After is for everyone, has buoyed me through the rough spots in this book and my career. I’m hon-ored to count myself among your number.

  For the Dark Masters – you’re the best friends a writer could have, and every day with you helps me remember the most important of lessons. There is no day so terrible that it can’t be made better by cuddling a fluff, chasing a ball, enjoying a good meal, or sleeping in the sun. Thank you both so much.

  And lastly, thank you dear reader, and all the readers. Science Fiction Romance is a niche inside another niche, and it is your belief that they aren’t strange bedfellows, your voracious appetite for more great stories, and your dedication that keep me going. You are collectively the reason I sit down in front of the keyboard every day, and the payout that makes all the low times worthwhile.

  Bless you all,

  JC

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  JC Hay writes romantic science fiction and space opera, because the coolest gadgets in the world are useless without someone to share them.

  In addition to Romance Writers of America, he is also a proud member of the SFR Brigade (for Science Fiction Romance), the Fantasy, Futuristic, and Paranormal Romance chapter, and a pro
ud member of RWA’s PAN (the published authors network).