“Aw, did you miss me, Sarge?”Burn’s smile lit up the hold.
“You’re okay?”The concern in Dax’s voice kicked up something in my system.Not jealousy, because that would be ridiculous, right?We barely knew each other.
“I’m fine, Sarge.That was one hell of a ride.”
As I moved around the cargo hold, unhooking my tethers and ensuring they were properly stowed, I studied Burn.She was tall.Taller than me by a good few inches.Probably as tall as Dax.
Her olive cargo pants and a high-tech black shirt hugged muscles and curves.With her smooth dark skin, cheekbones that I’d kill for, and hair pulled into a series of tiny topknots, she looked more like a model than a soldier.
My gaze dropped to her boots.At first glance they looked like typical combat boots, but then I noticed the chunky high heels.Even her sleek yellow backpack—that’s what I had seen on the approach—looked like it came off a runway.
Damn.I wanted to be her when I grew up.
“Lacy?You okay?”
Burn replied before I did, curiosity coloring her voice.“Oh, is that her name?”I looked up and she smiled at me.“Despite how up close and personal we got, we hadn’t gotten around to exchanging names.”
I blushed at the innuendo in her voice.Was she fucking with me?
“She’s fine, too.Very fine.”
Yeah, I was pretty sure she was fucking with me, given how dowdy I felt in the sweats and long-sleeve shirt Dax had lent me while I laundered my coverall.Again.I gave my hips an extra shimmy as I wiggled out of the harness.
Her grin widened and she let out a loud, boisterous laugh.
I laughed too.
“Yeah, she’s fine.You wanna talk to her?”
I missed Dax’s reply, but Burn said, “Sounds good.We’ll be up to the bridge as soon as things are squared away here.”
I stowed the harness with the rest of the gear.
“Anything I can do?”Burn asked.
I swiped my hands on my hips and shook my head.“That’s about it.”
Burn studied me for a long moment, then looked around the hold.“I hear we’re going after some cargo.”
I nodded, not sure how much to tell her.“Yep, next stop.”
She tilted her head.“Didn’t expect Sarge to have a bed bunny help out with this, but don’t mind it either.”
My jaw dropped.“Excuse me, what?”
Burn gestured at my clothes.“Don’t deny it.I recognize the shirt.Our squad all received one when we won an interdivision training exercise.”
“It’s not like that,” I protested.“I’m a mechanic.”
Her gaze and her voice turned frosty, so different from her earlier welcome.“Yeah, right.Finn’s going to be our mechanic.”
“Look, Dax can explain it all.”That was so far above my pay grade at the moment.Plus, I did not want to mess with a woman who wore high-heeled combat boots to an adventure race.
“Why are you calling Sarge ‘Dax’?”
I shrugged.“Because he told me to.”
“You must be one helluva piece of ass.”
