Rescue Her Heart

by K C Luck

  Suddenly the woman’s eyes flew open and stared at Nat. “What are you doing?” she asked through chattering teeth. Nat froze as she looked into the stranger’s brown eyes and tried to remind herself she was doing nothing wrong.

  “I need to get you warm,” Nat answered. “And first that means removing your wet clothes.” The woman nodded and closed her eyes.

  "Okay, but I'm still so cold," she murmured and rolled over to curl up on her side. Nat looked down at the woman who was now free of her freezing clothes but left with only a pair of bikini underwear. She grabbed a blanket and put it over the woman but quickly realized it would not be enough. She had to have a direct heat source. Racking her brain, Nat could think of no options but for one. Body heat. Again, reminding herself she was a professional and what she was about to do meant the difference between life or death, Nat stripped off her own clothing down to her underwear and slipped under the blanket. The girl's skin was like ice, but Nat did not hesitate and pressed her own body against the woman's back while wrapping her arms around her in an enveloping hug. As they spooned together, Nat could not believe how slender and petite the girl felt in her arms. It had been a long time since she held a woman. Feeling a shiver coming on, Nat hugged the woman a little tighter and heard her sigh. Responding to the warmth and comfort of Nat's body, she snuggled back against her. The sensation was so tender and sensual, Nat had to work to stay relaxed and not react. The feeling was sweet torture.

  CHAPTER 6

  CATHERINE

  Catherine was feeling warm and content as she slowly started waking up from the best sleep she had in a month. Or even longer, she thought with a sigh. Rolling over, she felt the softness of skin and the firmness of muscle and snuggled against it, even throwing her leg over. So nice. Then her eyes popped open. What in the hell? She had no idea where she was or what had happened. The last thing she remembered was flying through a wicked storm on Taswa. Catherine had no idea how she ended up here. Realizing she was in the embrace of a stranger, she pushed back and scrambled to a sitting position. The stranger, a woman Catherine realized, opened her eyes slowly and looked at her. "Who are you?" Catherine asked, surprisingly not alarmed considering she just realized she was nearly naked. For some reason, the stranger did not frighten her. Pulling the blanket up to cover her breasts, she waited for an answer. The woman, who Catherine realized had the fittest body she had ever seen, raised up on an elbow.

  "Captain Nat Reynolds, Space Rangers," she answered. "This is not what it looks like." Catherine could only nod, still completely confused. "The real question here is how do you feel?" Nat continued. In her surprise at the strange situation, Catherine had not thought about how she felt. Now she realized there was a light throbbing coming from her forehead and she reached up. Her fingers found a goose egg.

  "Well this doesn't feel so great," she said. "Did I hit my head?" Nat nodded and swung her long legs over the side of the narrow twin-size bed they were sharing. She stood up, slipped a classic Space Invaders video game t-shirt over her head, and then handed a second navy blue Space Ranger t-shirt to Catherine. Happy to have it, Catherine put it on. It was two sizes too big but at least she felt less vulnerable.

  "You did," Nat said finally answering the question. "When your ED-90 ship hit a glacier. Frankly, you're lucky to be alive." Catherine could hardly believe it as she remembered almost nothing after flying into the Taswa atmosphere. Then she had a thought and looked up at Nat.

  "Did you save me?" she asked. She watched Nat blush a little, and Catherine found herself thinking it was incredibly sweet. Nat shrugged.

  "It's my job," she replied. "Are you thirsty? Hungry?" It was clear the woman was changing the subject, and Catherine let it go, although a part of her got the sense Nat came to rescue her out of more than duty. Which makes absolutely no sense, Catherine thought. We’ve never even met before. Suddenly a realization came to her, and she felt a lump of panic growing in her stomach. Unless she knows I stole the fuel and came here to arrest me! Before she could figure out what to do, Nat turned back to her. Catherine saw her frown as she took in Catherine’s anxious face. “What’s wrong?” Nat asked looking worried.

  “I, um,” Catherine started, not sure what to say without giving away anything in case Nat did not know about the stealing. “So, are you like a cop?” She saw Nat raise her eyebrows at the question.

  “Not exactly,” she said. “Why? Are you worried about what happened on Prospo?” Catherine gulped. Having no idea what to say next, she just nodded, no doubt looking as guilty as she felt. Nat laughed.

  “Well, I have to say, the note was a cute touch,” she said and then, still smiling, went back to the original topic. “Now, how about telling me if you are thirsty or want something to eat?” Catherine relaxed. Still not sure what exactly was going on, but because it felt like everything was good between them, Catherine smiled back.

  “I’m both,” she said and tried to think of the last time she really ate or drank anything substantial. A week? she wondered. It was hard to find food when a person was broke.

  “Well alright then,” Nat said and went from the sleeping quarters into the small galley. From where Catherine sat, she could see into the room through the wide door. “How about some hot tea?” she called back. “Probably a good idea to keep warming you up.” Although she rarely drank anything but soft drinks, warming up with hot tea sounded good.

  “I would like that,” she said and then had a memory of how warm she felt when she was curled up in Nat’s powerful arms. Catherine blinked. Where did that come from? she thought. Before she had a chance to analyze it further, the entire ship gave a lurch to the right. It was quickly corrected, but Catherine was still unsettled. “Where are we?” she asked. Nat poked her head out from the galley.

  “Still on Taswa,” she answered. “I’m waiting for the all-clear on the meteor shower before taking us back up. Don’t worry. This P-527 is reinforced to sustain winds much higher than these. Just a little bumpy at times.”

  “Oh,” Catherine said, wondering where Nat would take her once they could fly again. Maybe my little ship is still okay? she wondered. It would give her a chance to keep going to Untas. “Is my ED-90 around?” she asked. “I have somewhere I need to go.”

  Nat snorted. "That contraption should never have been in space to begin with," she said. "But it is out of its misery now."

  "Oh," Catherine said again and felt a sense of hopelessness start to creep up on her. Her last few credits went into buying that spacecraft. Now she had absolutely nothing. Nat walked back into the sleeping quarters with the tea and handed one to Catherine before sitting on the edge of the bed.

  "What were you thinking trying to go anywhere in that thing anyway? It was a deathtrap," she said. Catherine hung her head a little, and Nat noticed. "Hey," Nat continued a little softer. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, but your ship was not space worthy, it's as simple as that." Catherine nodded without looking at Nat and sipped her tea. The last thing she wanted to do was think about her situation. Everything felt so safe and stable here on Nat's ship. Worrying about her dad and money and being homeless would just spoil it. "You want to talk about it?" Nat asked, clearly sensing Catherine's dismay. Catherine shook her head.

  "Not really," she answered.

  Nat nodded. "Okay," she said. "Well then let's take a closer look at that cut on your forehead. I have a first-aid kit, but I need to wash away some of the blood first." Alarmed, Catherine put her fingers to the bump again. Blood? she thought.

  "Is it bad?" she asked. Nat set her tea down and slid closer. She gently pushed a lock of Catherine's hair to the side. It was so tender, and Catherine was starting to feel so down about her situation, she actually felt the sting of tears. Nat froze.

  "Am I hurting you?" she asked sounding confused. Catherine shook her head and without thinking, just leaned in and rested her head on Nat's shoulder. A sob slipped out.

  "No," she whispered. "You are being so nice." Now a few tears
did come. "It's just everything else in my horrible life."

  She felt Nat take the tea from her hand and turn a little to set it down before putting strong arms around her and pulling Catherine in close. It was too much, and Catherine could not hold back all her feelings of fear and anguish any longer. She let it out and sobbed into Nat's chest until the sadness ran its course. As the crying started to subside, Catherine slipped her arms around Nat's waist and hugged her back, nuzzling her face up under the other woman's chin with a sigh. It felt so good to be held, and Catherine could not think of the last time someone let her just cry. "Thank you," she whispered into Nat's neck and felt her new friend stiffen in response. Suddenly Nat was pulling away and abruptly stood up.

  "I'll get the first-aid kit," she mumbled and turned to go back into the galley. Catherine shook her head confused. What just happened? she thought and wrapped the blanket around her, suddenly feeling uneasy. Nat came in with a box marked red and white and set it on the bed but did not sit down again. Catherine could tell Nat was unhappy, but she did not know why.

  "Did I do something?" Catherine asked. Nat frowned and opened the box to fetch out some alcohol wipes.

  "Not at all. Everything's fine. I just need to do my job, that's all," she said. Do her job? Catherine wondered. Like arrest me? Catherine swallowed. "Am I going to jail?" she asked, ready to face whatever Nat said but scared to death as well. She did not think she could survive in prison.

  "What?" Nat asked sounding confused for a second. "Good grief, no. I won't let that happen." Catherine let out a big breath of relief. She thoroughly believed Nat would protect her even though she hardly knew the woman at all.

  "I don't know what to say," Catherine said. "First you rescue me from the storm, and now you will help me with the cops." She paused to think of the right words and then looked into Nat's eyes. "You're my hero," she said. Their gaze held and Nat's face was completely unreadable. The stranger's gray-blue eyes, so intense yet inviting, locked on Catherine's and the passion behind the look was so strong, Catherine felt it to her core. A warm feeling started blooming inside her, and she bit her lip, not sure what to do next. Before she had to decide, an alarm started beeping in another part of the ship. She watched Nat drag her eyes away and start toward the front of the spaceship. "What's wrong?" Catherine asked.

  "Nothing," Nat said. "It's just the all clear. The meteor shower has passed." The woman disappeared for a moment, and the alarm stopped. As she came back in, Catherine could not read her face, but Nat did not look happy.

  "What does it mean?" Catherine asked. Nat stopped, and not looking at Catherine, pulled a fresh pilot's uniform from her locker. She started to get dressed.

  "It means it is time to go," she answered. "We can't stay down here forever." Catherine frowned at the announcement. She liked it here with Nat on the ship, even if it was in the center of a perpetual blizzard. Going back to reality was the last thing she wanted. In another minute, Nat was back into uniform, and she finally looked at Catherine. "You know I don't even know your name," Nat said softly. At this, Catherine smiled.

  "I'm Catherine Porter," she said. Nat nodded, taking it in.

  "Pleasure to meet you, Catherine," she said softly. Again, their eyes held for a breath and then Nat turned sharply away. "I don't have another seat in the cockpit, so you have to stay back here. Try and rest. We will be back at Prospo soon enough," she said. Without waiting for a response, Nat disappeared toward the front of the ship. Catherine lowered her chin and tried to make sense of everything. The feelings, the looks... It was all so confusing. Maybe a nap will be the best thing. Catherine snuggled back down into the bed and wrapped the blanket around her. She sighed at the softness of the pillow and realized it held the scent of Nat. It made her feel warm and safe all over again. So much so, a part of Catherine missed having the woman with her in the bed. But that’s crazy, right? Catherine was not sure. Her feelings were so mixed up, but there was one thing she did know. More than anything, she wanted to keep Captain Nat Reynolds in her life.

  CHAPTER 7

  NAT

  Leaving the Taswa planet behind, Nat took a deep breath to try and calm the emotions raging inside her. Catherine, she thought. She was trouble. Catherine brought out something in Nat she had not felt before. An intense need to protect her and find a means to take away the deep sadness she could see the girl felt. When she held Catherine in her arms only a short while ago, with her such obvious grief, it nearly broke Nat’s heart. How can someone so young and so sweet carry such a burden already? Right then and there, Nat had made a promise to herself to find a way to help Catherine. She did not know the root of the problem yet, but there would be time to dig deeper into that later. And there will be a later if I have any choice in the matter.

  Even though they just met, Nat felt a deep commitment to the young woman in the sleeping quarters behind her. The look they shared spoke straight to Nat’s soul and moved things there which would be changed forever. It moved other things too, and you know it, Nat Reynolds, she thought and frowned. The physical chemistry was undeniable although Nat was confident Catherine had no idea it was happening. If she had to guess, the thought of being with a woman had never crossed Catherine's mind. Which means I need to take that part of things out of this equation. The intense passion she felt for the woman needed to be put in a box and locked away. Catherine could never know how much Nat wanted to touch her, to kiss her. To take her. Nat shook her head with frustration. Those thoughts had to stop and the help Nat was offering had to be unconditional. “Okay,” she whispered. “Back to work. Time to be the professional I know I am.” Regaining control and setting her resolve, Nat keyed the comm link. “Catwoman to Base,” she said.

  “This is Base. We’re happy to hear from you, Catwoman,” Base responded almost instantly. Nat smiled. Even though she was sure there would be a bit of hell to pay for her disobeying orders, the relief she heard in the voice of the Base Dispatcher made her feel good.

  “All is well here,” Nat said. “Reporting the recovering of one female survivor from a single ship crash on Taswa. I am in route to Prospo to have her checked at a medical facility.” There was a pause on the radio. Here it comes, Nat thought as she waited for the reprimand and hoped it was not too severe. But it will be worth it, no matter what they say.

  "Excellent work, Catwoman," Base said. "However, Command is requesting you return to Base. They would like to speak to you about your decision to complete the rescue against a direct order to abort." There was a pause, and then Base continued in almost a whisper. "You kind of pissed them off, Nat." Nat nodded. It was to be expected, and at some point, she would have to face the music, and she knew it. But I don’t want to do it right now, she thought, worried it would interfere with getting to the bottom of whatever was wrong with Catherine. Trying to think of a good excuse to not return to Base directly, she heard a noise behind her and glanced back. Catherine was standing at the entrance to the cockpit. She still wore Nat's blue t-shirt, which hung suggestively above her knees.

  "I got you in trouble, didn't I," Catherine said looking crestfallen after having heard the comments from Base. Nat saw the look and felt the now ever so familiar need to get up and pull the woman into her arms to comfort her. Instead, she shrugged, trying to make light of the situation.

  "It was my choice. I wouldn't change it," she said. Catherine clearly was not buying it and stepped forward into the small space until she was beside Nat's chair. She put her hand on Nat's shoulder, and Nat could almost feel the heat of her touch through the cloth.

  "I know, but you didn't have to do it," Catherine said. "I hate that now it is a problem. Go wherever they want you to go. I'll just—" Catherine paused as she seemed to be trying to think of a good lie. "I'll just take a public transport back to Prospo." Somehow, Nat knew the girl had no means to take a transport anywhere. If she brought her back to Base, Catherine would basically be stranded.

  "Catwoman?" Base called. "Do you copy the last transmi
ssion?" Nat tilted her head, looking at Catherine, and thought about everything. She did not want her time to be over with her yet. It was as simple as that and with a nod, Nat turned back to the comm link.

  "I copy, Base," Nat said. "I am requesting seventy-two hours emergency leave. I will return to Base at that time." She glanced back at Catherine and saw the woman's mouth was open with surprise. Nat chuckled knowing she was making the right choice even if there was hell to pay later. Surprisingly, Base came right back with an acknowledgment.

  "Your leave is granted, Catwoman. Conditions are to ground your P-527 immediately. What is your destination?" Base asked. "Prospo?"

  "Affirmative," Nat said with a big smile. "I will check in at aviation control as soon as I arrive."

  "Very good," Base said. "Enjoy your break, Nat." Nat clicked off the comm link and turned back around to Catherine. Surprisingly, the woman had tears in her eyes and Nat worried she had assumed too much.

  "Should I not have done that?" Nat asked trying to figure out the problem. Catherine shook her head.

  "No," she said. "Does this mean we can be together a little longer?" Nat felt her heart surge with excitement as she realized Catherine wanted to spend more time with her too. She would analyze what that all meant later, but for now, Nat just grinned and nodded.