“He’s fine. Like I said, it was just white lithium grease. Besides needing a good bath, the stuff won’t harm him.”
Colt let out a relieved breath and turned to Imlay. “Thanks, doc.”
“Think nothing of it.” Imlay glanced toward the door. “It was the least I could do. The guy kind of grows on you after a while, doesn’t he?”
“He does.” Colt chuckled.
“Yes, well.” Imlay looked back at Colt and clasped his hands together in front of him. “If you don’t mind, I need to get the sick bay back in order. You never know when we might need it, and I like it to be in tip-top shape.”
“Can I help?”
“No, no, go play with your mate.” Imlay smiled again. “I’m quite used to this type of work.”
“Are you sure?” Colt only volunteered because it was the right thing to do. He actually wanted to do exactly what the doctor suggested. The need to hold Pax in his arms was like a knot in his gut.
“I’m sure.” Imlay waved his hand. “Now go before I change my mind.”
Colt wasn’t stupid. He ran. Outside the sick bay, Pax and Gigi sat on the floor playing with their puppies. The rest of the crew stood around smiling down at the pair. Some sat in chairs, others leaned against walls. All of them surrounded the two smallest members of their crew, putting them in a circle of protection.
Colt sighed as happiness welled up inside of him. He leaned against the wall right outside the sick bay doors and watched Pax and Gigi play right along with everyone else. They were all spellbound by the two men and their love of life. They had brought something to the Lady Blue that made the crew better men.
Colt looked up and gazed around at the other unmated members of the Lady Blue. He could only hope that Blade, Crank, and Tank found mates that made them as happy as Pax had made him.
Remy stood in the corridor with a stern look on his face and glared at Gigi and Pax. Pax didn’t like it when the commander glared at him, so he paid close attention.
“I don’t want you bugging the exterminator we shuttled in. Do I make myself clear, men?”
Gigi saluted Remy while Pax just nodded. “We understand.”
“Good. I trust you two can manage to stay out of trouble while our worm problem is handled.”
“We will.” Gigi said, but Pax could see Gigi’s fingers crossed behind his back. Pax had to bite back the giggle. It wouldn’t do any good for Remy to get mad and lock them in their rooms. Where was the fun in that?
They watched the commander take the stairs to the command deck, both watching to make sure he was gone. Pax grabbed Gigi’s hand and raced down the corridor to the cargo bay.
“Are you sure he’s in here?”
Pax rolled his eyes at Gigi. “I saw him come in here with my own two eyes.”
“Hey, it could be worse.” Gigi snorted. “Did you see that guy back on Nebular Nine? He had four eyes.” Gigi shuddered. “Gross.”
Pax laughed. “Yeah, but it would be so much easier to stay out of trouble if we had four eyes. We could use two to see what we were doing and two to watch out for Remy and Colt.”
“Oh, I didn’t think of that.” Gigi suddenly giggled and patted Pax’s arm. “Just think of what we could do with six or eight eyes.”
“We need more mates to even things out.” Pax was pretty sure whatever mates they found to join the crew could be convinced to help him and Gigi keep the crew jumping. The Lady Blue was a great place to live, but the guys didn’t know how to have fun. They needed their quiet little lives shaken up a bit.
Gigi’s eyes twinkled. “Just what do you have in mind?”
“I want to see how those slugs are caught. We have to make sure the exterminator doesn’t just squash them.” Pax pounded his fist onto his palm. “They’ve suffered enough with losing their—” Pax shuddered.
“As long as we don’t get caught.” Gigi snickered. They both knew half the fun was in trying not to get caught.
“There he is,” Gigi whispered as they spotted a…man? Pax blinked and then blinked again. The man was closer to an amber color and had the flattest head Pax had ever seen. He had an urge to sit Hercules on top of it to see if he would stay put.
“Come on,” Pax said as they walked up to the amber-colored man. “Whatcha doing?” Pax asked the exterminator.
Gigi and Pax jumped back when the man turned around to face them. Did he really have two noses? Really? Pax had an urge to reach out and poke one of them, or both, to see if they were real.
“I exterminate. I do.”
Pax turned slowly to Gigi with his mouth slightly open. He looked back at the guy. “You aren’t going to kill the worms, are you?”
“I exterminate, I do.”
Gigi snorted. “Where the hell did Remy find this one, Rejects-R-Us?”
Pax smacked at Gigi’s arm. “Be nice. He’s here to help the little cockless guys find a new home. Besides, at least he’s interesting.”
“How? He only says four words!”
“I exterminate, I do.”
Pax rolled his eyes. He could see now that this was going to be so much fun. They followed the amber guy around, watching him pull slugs from every hiding place imaginable on the ship. And even some unimaginable places.
The exterminator was filling up what looked like a large glass container. Pax bent at the waist and stuck his nose against the glass, watching one of the slugs looking at him with pleading eyes. He felt horrible for making them find another home.
The slugs were homeless now. It was a feeling Pax knew firsthand. “Where are you going to take them?”
Gigi rolled his eyes as the exterminator repeated his four words. Pax sighed as they continued to follow the slug-napper around. He waved at the jar, seeing how hopeless the slugs looked as all two hundred of them stared back at him.
“What’s he going to do with them?” Pax whispered. He was getting desperate. He knew the little guys had to go, but it seemed so cruel to just dump them somewhere. They needed a home, someplace where they could be safe and eat each other to their hearts’ content.
“As long as he gets them off the ship,” Gigi said, “I don’t care.”
“But—” Pax shrugged and gave Gigi his most pitiful pout. “What if he kills them? They haven’t really hurt anyone, just made things kind of messy. They’re just trying to find a home like we were before we found the Lady Blue.”
Gigi stared at the jar of bugs for a moment then his lower lip started to quiver. Big fat tears began to fill his eyes then roll down his cheeks. He hiccupped as he wiped at his cheeks. “What if they have mates like we do?” Gigi whispered.
Pax felt his own tears well in his eyes. “We can’t let them be killed.”
“But what do we do with them?”
Pax frowned. He really didn’t have a clue. What did you do with two hundred slimy slug-like worms? “Escape pod?”
Gigi’s eyebrows shot up for a moment then a slow, mischievous grin began to spread across his lips. “You get the jar to the escape pod. I’ll get food and water from the kitchen.”
Pax nodded. “And get a blanket in case they get cold.”
“I’ll meet you at the escape pod,” Gigi said before racing down the corridor.
Pax watched Gigi until he disappeared then turned back to the exterminator. He kept a close eye on the guy as he inched forward and grabbed the jar of slugs. The jar was heavy, and he almost dropped it until he got a better grip on it.
Keeping his eyes on the slug-napper, Pax slowly backed out of the cargo bay. Once he reached the entrance, Pax turned and ran for the escape pods on the command deck. He knew he needed to be careful once he reached the top floor of the ship. Remy and Tank were on the bridge, and they could easily hear him if he made too much noise.
Pax crept up the stairs to the top level and watched the doorway leading into the bridge. He could hear Remy and Tank talking. He froze when Remy walked past the doorway. Once Remy disappeared from sight, Pax tore around the corner and ran d
own the corridor to the escape pods located next to the shuttle bay.
He set the jar of slugs on the floor and paced back and forth as he waited for Gigi, wringing his hands and jumping at every little sound. What in the hell was the man doing? Cooking a five course meal to send off with the little guys? Pax was pretty sure they wouldn’t care as long as the food was edible.
When he heard footsteps, Pax peered around the corner, relief flooding him when he saw Gigi sneaking down the corridor. “Did you get it?” he asked when Gigi reached him.
Gigi nodded and held out the items in his hands. “I wasn’t sure what exactly to get, so I got a little of everything.”
Pax frowned as he looked down at the items in Gigi’s hands. “I don’t think they will need a can opener for those cans, Gigi. No thumbs.”
“Oh, right.” Gigi set the can opener and the cans of food down on the floor. “The rest of this stuff is in boxes. Do you think we should dump it out on the floor of the escape pod?”
“Not really. They might eat it too fast if we do that. Let’s just put it in the pod. I’m sure if they get hungry enough they will find a way inside the boxes.” He hoped.
“We’re gonna have to be quick about this,” Gigi said as he gestured to the escape pod. “Ten seconds after the door is open on the escape pod, the countdown begins. It’s broadcast all over the ship. It won’t take the crew long to get to us after that.”
“Okay, then we’ll do it all at once. You open the door. I’ll dump the slugs into the escape pod. You put the food and water inside and—”
“And the blanket.”
“And the blanket.” Pax laughed quietly. “And then I’ll shut the door, and you hit the button to jettison the pod. Got it?”
“Uh…”
Pax rolled his eyes. “Just be quick, and make sure you don’t get stuck in the escape pod.”
Gigi nodded.
“Ready?”
Gigi nodded then shook his head then nodded again.
“Just open the door, Gigi.”
Gigi opened the door. Pax grabbed the jar and unscrewed the lid. He quickly dumped the slugs onto the floor of the escape pod. Gigi tossed the food and water inside, then the blanket. Pax saw Gigi leave the jar behind as well. Good thinking. Pax jumped back, and Gigi slammed the door closed. Together, they both reached for the jettison button.
As soon as they hit the button, the escape pod disengaged and blasted off into space. Pax glanced up when he heard the computer announcing over the entire ship that an escape pod had been launched. He heard the sound of feet running toward them. Pax grabbed Gigi’s arm and started pulling him toward the stairs.
“Run!”
They both made it to the stairs and down one flight before they heard Remy and Colt shouting for their mates to be found. We’re right here, Pax sung in his head with a gleam in his eyes.
Gigi and Pax high-fived each other on a job well done. Pax tucked his hands under his arms and smiled at his best buddy. Together, they could rule Lady Blue, hands down.
“Let’s get going before they find us and shoot us out of an airlock.” Gigi grabbed Pax’s arm as they ran down to their quarters to cover their asses and pretend like they had no clue what was going on.
Life was good on The Lady Blue.
THE END
WWW.STORMYGLENN.COM
WWW.LYNNHAGEN.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Stormy believes the only thing sexier than a man in cowboy boots is two or three men in cowboy boots. She also believes in love at first sight, soul Mates, true love, and happy endings.
Stormy lives in the great Northwest region of the USA, with her gorgeous husband and soul Mate, six very active teenagers, two boxer/collie puppies, one old biddy cat, and one fish.
You can usually find her cuddled in bed with a book in her hand and a puppy in her lap, or on her laptop, creating the next sexy man for one of her stories. Stormy welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website at www.stormyglenn.com
Lynn Hagen loves writing about the somewhat flawed, but lovable. She also loves a hero who can see past all the rough edges to find the shining diamond of a beautiful heart.
You can find her on any given day curled up with her laptop and a cup of hot java, letting the next set of characters tell their story.
Also by Lynn Hagen and Stormy Glenn
Siren Classic ManLove: Lady Blue Crew 1: End of the Line
For all other titles, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/stormyglenn
www.bookstrand.com/lynn-hagen
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Glenn, Stormy and Hagen, Lynn - Pax's Blues [Lady Blue Crew 2] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Page 12
