by Sophie Stern
“That’s the first place anyone would look,” she says. “If it was me, and I was a criminal, I’d hide things in a place that was easily accessible and a place that wasn’t close to my office.”
“Someplace you could get in and out of quickly,” I comment.
And then it hits me.
I wonder why I didn’t see it before.
I was so busy searching the cargo hold and the storage rooms I didn’t think of the one place he could easily access without anyone asking questions, the one place that’s easy to get to from the ship’s entrance.
“The kitchen,” I tell her. “We need to check the fucking kitchen.”
“That’s it,” she says. “Of course. It all makes perfect sense. No one is going to look in a kitchen for smuggled goods because that’s where you eat. That’s where you cook. Why would you hide weapons there or counterfeit money? Why would you hide anything there?”
“You’re a genius,” I grab Fiona and I kiss her. Then I take her hand and together, we run.
Chapter 19
Fiona
Despite the fact that I’ve been on the ship a few days, I haven’t been in the kitchen yet. I expect something small and tiny, similar to what my family’s ship had. Although we had a cook, his space was very small, and he had to work twice as hard to make meals that were up to my mother’s standards.
Quinn’s kitchen is nothing like that.
It’s huge. The left side of the room has floor-to-ceiling cupboards. In the center of the kitchen, there are four ovens set up for cooking. To the right is a small table and several counters for prep work. At the back of the kitchen, there’s a door that leads to what I assume is a pantry or further storage area.
“How many people usually use this ship?” I ask, walking into the room. It’s not polite, but I start touching everything. I can’t help myself, somehow. Everything is so bright and shiny and fancy.
I haven’t seen a kitchen like this since I was last at my parent’s house. My tiny little apartment certainly never had anything like this. Our ship didn’t. The auction house fucking didn’t.
“No idea,” Quinn says, but he’s already opening and closing cupboard doors. He’s looking for something physical, something tangible, and I get it. He wants to avenge his sister. Wouldn’t I do the same thing? Don’t I want to do the same thing?
He’s going to get me back to Mirroean.
That was a promise.
He’s going to get me home and I’m going to be forced to make a choice as to how I’m going to deal with the betrayal that could have cost me my life.
There’s a part of me that’s terrified no one is going to believe me. What story has my family spun since they’ve returned? Have they told the world I was lost? Murdered? Did they make up a sad tale about my kidnapping? Or did they say nothing?
And has anyone missed me?
I didn’t live with a roommate. I didn’t even have a cat. I lived alone and spent my days at work and my nights at school and my free time with my family and Darin. My father and Darin spent more time together than the two of us ever did.
Is that when they hatched their plot?
Quinn’s story shouldn’t have saddened me as much as it did, but it makes me wonder whether anyone is going to believe me when I go back. Is anyone going to believe my story?
It’s not like I have any proof.
Quinn is still looking through the cupboards, growling as he tries to find something. Whatever it is he’s looking for, it’s not going to be just sitting in a cupboard. It’s not going to be in plain sight. This guy is way too smart for that.
“You’re doing it wrong,” I snap at Quinn, and I know right away it was the wrong thing to say. Even if I want to critique him, I can be polite about it. I should be kind. There’s no reason to snap at him. I’m on edge because when I’m honest with myself, I don’t want to go back to my home planet.
I don’t want to face those people.
Quinn picks up on my shitty tone of voice and his head snaps up. He marches across the room, yanks back my hair, and kisses me square on the mouth.
Not the reaction I expected.
“Want to try again, princess? This time,” he pinches my nipples through my shirt, and I bite my lip. “Try showing me a little bit of respect.”
The problem with Quinn’s dominance is that I’ve never had anything quite like it in my life. I’ve never had anyone take control right out from under me the way he does. All it takes is a look, a couple of carefully placed words, and I’m putty in his hands.
“I’m sorry,” I say. “That was rude.”
“And you’ll be punished for it later,” he licks my neck.
“I just…” I try to speak, but I’m distracted by the creature licking my neck. Quinn tantalizes me with his tongue for a few minutes. I close my eyes and just enjoy the moment because soon this will all be over. Soon he’s not going to want to lick me anymore. Soon he’s not going to need to lick me anymore.
Soon I’ll be gone.
And suddenly, there’s a little part of me that feels sad.
“I don’t think it’s going to be hidden where we think it’s going to be,” I say, finally focusing enough to speak clearly.
“What do you mean?”
“You think this guy is smuggling stuff, right?”
“Absolutely.”
“Well, tell me something, Quinn,” I say slowly. “We have this great, amazing kitchen, right?”
“We do,” he says.
“So why have we been eating dehydrated food the whole time I’ve been here?”
“The ovens don’t work,” he shrugs. “I tried turning them on the first day, but nothing. I think there may be a problem with the electrical line.”
“In a ship like this?” I raise an eyebrow. “You think this guy bought this incredible ship with this style of kitchen and didn’t bother to fix the electrical lines?”
“You think?”
“Quinn,” I whisper. “It’s the ovens.”
He practically runs to the first oven and opens the door. He reaches inside and feels around, but there’s nothing. He squats down and opens the drawer beneath the oven, but still, there’s nothing there.
Quinn growls in frustration as he looks at the second oven and then the third. By the time he reaches the fourth one, he’s getting irritated. I just know it has to be here, though. This has to be it. It just has to be.
Quinn opens the door of the fourth oven and everything changes.
“Fiona,” he whispers, but he doesn’t say anything else. He doesn’t have to. When he opened the door to the oven, the entire appliance shifted to the right, revealing a secret staircase that leads down to a lower level of the ship.
“This is it,” I tell him. “This is what you’ve been searching for, right?”
He nods, but doesn’t move. He hesitates, and I wonder why. Is he excited? Scared? Nervous? Overwhelmed?
Quinn has been searching the ship for a long time. It’s been close to a month, and that’s a long time to spend looking for one thing. He could have given up and he could have quit long ago. He could have torched the ship and considered it a big “fuck you” to Hector LeBlaie, but he didn’t.
He kept going.
He kept looking.
He kept trying to find a way to get vengeance for Hayden.
He didn’t give up.
I could learn a lot from a guy like Quinn, I realize. He starts heading down the stairs. He’s completely fearless, at least from what I can see. He doesn’t let anything bother him, doesn’t let anything get to him. He’s brave. He’s kind of a total badass, and I love that about him.
When I was with Darin, I never felt anything. He was pleasant enough to be around and always brought me gifts and flowers, but his doting was never enough to make me feel anything. I felt numb and platonic about the entire situation. I was supposed to marry him, yeah, but then what?
What was I supposed to do?
Have little babies?
Qu
it my job to be a housewife?
Attend social events?
None of that matters now. I don’t know where my head was or why I thought that sort of life was going to bring me any sort of peace. Obviously, it wasn’t. Obviously, I was built for something more.
Obviously, it’s a lot more fun going on adventures with Quinn than sitting around being a socialite princess.
I walk over to the edge of the staircase and peer down into the darkness.
It’s now or never, I tell myself. This is it. When I find out what’s hiding in the depths of the ship, I can never go back to who I was. I can never go back to where I was before. That part of my life will be over. That book will be closed.
With a deep breath, I take my first step.
Chapter 20
Quinn
As I step onto the narrow staircase, I can't help but wish I'd met Fiona sooner. I wish I'd saved her sooner. I wish I'd spared her from the horrors she went through, wish I'd managed to help her escape from her situation on Mirroean. I suppose it wouldn't have mattered. She didn't know there was anything weird about her family, didn't know there was anything strange about the way her social situation was progressing. She didn't know it was weird she didn't have passion with her fiance.
What else didn't she know?
I should be focused on finding Hector's hidden stash of illegal paraphernalia. I should be focused on bringing justice to my sister's life. My heart should be centered on saving the people on Sapphira that Hector is hurting, but all I can think about is Fiona. All I can think about is that someone else could have bought her. Someone else could have purchased her and then we never would have met. We never would have connected.
I don't even care that it also means I wouldn't have found this secret passageway. No, all I care about is her. All I care about is the fact that now she's safe. I'll protect her. I'll take care of her. And after we seek justice for my sister, we're going to seek justice for Fiona. Emotion overwhelms me and I turn around.
"Oh," she says, surprised. She's standing just a few steps up from where I am, and I grab her and kiss her. She melts into me instantly, and that just makes me hard. I shouldn't be hard right now. I shouldn't be aroused. This isn't the right moment.
"Thank you," I tell her. "I couldn't have done this without you."
"Don't thank me yet," she says. "We don't even know what's down there."
"No matter what we find," I tell her. "I'll keep my promise to you."
"You'll get me home."
"I'll get you home."
I don't want to think about how my heart clenches as I speak, about the way I already don't want to say goodbye to her. What the hell is wrong with me? I've only just met Fiona and yeah, we've shared some amazing moments in bed, but what does that really mean?
She didn't promise to stay with me and I didn't ask. What could I possibly have to offer someone like her, anyway? She's perfect, beautiful. She's sweet, and I'm not. She's brave, and I'm a coward. I should have saved my sister long ago and I didn't. I wasn't strong enough for Hayden. What makes me think I'm strong enough for Fiona?
I turn and finish walking the rest of the way down the stairs. Fiona stands next to me and I see her blinking furiously.
"Is there a light?" She asks. She holds her hands up in front of her.
"No," I tell her, looking around the room. My vision is so much better than hers that I feel bad for her.
“Can you see anything? Is this what you were looking for? Is it here?”
“Oh, it’s here all right,” I tell her, but even I can’t control the way my voice wavers.
“Quinn?” Somehow, despite the fact that Fiona can’t see a damn thing, her hand finds mine in the darkness.
She squeezes my hand, offering my silent comfort. This woman barely even knows me, yet somehow, she knows exactly what I need at this moment.
“What is it?”
“Drugs,” I manage to whisper. I’ve never seen so many in one place. Hell, I’ve never seen so many different kinds, but there’s no doubt that I’ve found exactly why Hector LeBlaie is so rich.
And I’ve found out exactly why he’s going to try to kill me.
Chapter 21
Fiona
We set course for Sapphira right away. Quinn says there’s no point in waiting, no point in delaying the inevitable. He sends a message to his brother using some sort of code I don’t really understand, and then it’s time to leave Dreagle.
“Good luck and good riddance,” I say.
“Why are you wishing Dreagle luck?” He shoots a sideway glance at me as he’s making sure all the controls are set correctly.
“Isn’t that the phrase?” I ask, trying to think. “Good luck and good riddance?”
“Good riddance to bad rubbish,” he corrects me. “Your Earth slang needs work.”
“Oops,” I blush. “I guess you’re right. Shit. Maybe you can teach me. How do you know so much about Earth sayings, anyway?” My parents spoke properly growing up. They were always concerned I’d sound like a common person if I used slang, so they never used any fun language around me. I’ve tried to learn some as I’ve grown, but apparently, I haven’t done a good job.
“I like movies,” he says. “My siblings and I had a lot of free time when we were teenagers. When we weren’t busy watching Martian shows, we watched old Earth flicks. You can learn a lot that way.”
“I’m impressed.”
“It’s not really that great of a skill,” he says, but he chuckles, and I focus on the way his laugh is so easy and free. Darin never laughed like that. My family never laughed like that. Hell, I don’t think I ever laughed like that until I found myself on this damn ship.
Something about Quinn makes me feel relaxed and comfortable.
Something about him makes me feel like the world isn’t such a terrible place.
Something about him makes me feel like everything is going to be okay.
I just need to hold on a little bit longer and he’s going to take care of me.
He’s going to take care of everything.
How long does it take to get to Sapphira, anyway?”
“If I fly fast? Four days.”
“And if you don’t go fast?” I ask, wondering how long we have together.
“Two weeks.”
“Maybe we should take the slow way,” I mumble under my breath, but he hears me and spins me around, then plants a soft kiss on my forehead.
“Believe me,” he says softly. “I don’t want our time together to end, either.”
“Then let’s take the scenic route,” I say hopefully, even though I know I’m being selfish. I should want to hurry back to Mirroean. I should want to get home to face my family. I should want all of those things, but I don’t.
I just want to hide away with Quinn.
I just want to hide away in his arms.
“It’s going to be a bumpy ride,” he warns me. “Once we’re off Dreagle, it won’t be hard for LeBlaie’s men to find us. I’ll take as many secret routes as I know, but chances are they’ll catch up to us at some point.”
“And what if that happens?” I ask.
“My brother knows where we are,” Quinn assures me. “Ezra has our flight plan now. He’ll meet up with us at some point and offer us some extra protection.”
Somehow, his words aren’t as comforting as they should be. Am I about to find myself in the middle of a battle?
“There’s no delaying the abominable,” I say.
“Inevitable,” Quinn says quickly.
“Hmm?”
“The phrase you’re thinking of,” he says. “It’s ‘there’s no delaying the inevitable.’”
“Oh.”
“Don’t worry, human. We have four days. We’ll get you squared up with your slang.”
I laugh and he smiles, then kisses me once more. I soak up the moment, soak up the way he’s touching me, soak up the way when we’re together, I feel invincible. I feel special and brave and fierce.<
br />
I feel like I can conquer the universe with Quinn by my side.
And then it’s time to leave.
I watch on a control screen as the side of the warehouse slides away.
“That’s incredible,” I say. “I’ve never seen a building like this one before.”
“Money talks,” he says. “There’s another phrase for you.”
“What’s it mean?”
“It means I spent a lot of money to buy this place. It means money gets you what you want.”
“Sadly,” I say. “The world would be better if other things got you what you wanted.”
“There aren’t many good people in the world, Fiona.”
“You’re good.” I shouldn’t say it, shouldn’t let the words leave my lips, but I can’t help myself.
“I’m not as good as you think.”
“You saved me. You didn’t have to.”
“I couldn’t help myself,” he says.
We sit in silence then and I try not to think too hard about the words he’s saying or the way my heart feels when he does. I try to focus on the way he’s slowly easing the ship out of the warehouse and into the field next to the building. I try to pay attention to the buttons he’s pressing as he raises the ship into the air.
I try to listen to what he’s saying now, but all I hear is what he didn’t say.
All I hear is that he wanted to save me.
All I hear is that he wanted me.
Chapter 22
Quinn
Once we’re off Dreagle, I calm down. I shouldn’t because the real trouble is just beginning, but before I start to worry about anyone finding me and trying to shoot down my damn ship, I’m going to have a little fun with Fiona.
“You look cozy,” I comment, looking her up and down. She’s wearing a shirt and socks and nothing else. She smiles at me from the seat beside me. Fiona has her feet pulled up on the chair and I can see her little pussy peeking through her thighs at me.
Wet.
Waiting.
Wanting.
“I am cozy,” she murmurs. “And comfortable.”
