“Well, not today, obviously. I need to fully sober up first.” Qylar shrugged. “And I’d need to prepare the ship for a longer voyage than she’d had in a while. We can leave the day after tomorrow, probably.”
“On Thanksgiving?”Kenji shrugged. “You know what? It’s as good a time as any. We need to get this done as soon as possible.”
Qylar stared down into his cup, silent.
“How long does it take to get there?”
“A little over a day,” Qylar replied, his voice flat.
“I assumed it would be longer,” Kenji said.
“Our hyperdrives make travel pretty quick, even on an older model like mine—plus we have the wormhole that cuts days off the trip.”
Kenji sat up straighter, curious. “We’re going through a wormhole?”
Qylar nodded.
“That’ssocool.”
Qylar’s gaze darted to his, but he dragged it away almost as fast. “Yeah. I suppose so.”
“Is there anything I should prepare… or do… before we leave? Should I pack a bag? If so, for how long?”
“Once we arrive, it might take a couple of days to find a doctor willing to perform the removal and potentially a few days before they can get you in. I wouldn’t imagine it would be more than a week. We can always pick up things you need while we’re there, if we have to.”
“Is it anything like Earth?”
“Quite similar,” Qylar said. “Your needs will be met and then some.”
“Okay.”
“After we eat and I sober up some more, I can drive you to your place and you can pack up a bag.”
“We’re not leaving for a couple of days. It can wait.”
“You’re staying here until we leave.”
“Why?”
“The first three to four months are the most dangerous ones in a pregnancy. I’d sleep better the next couple of nights if you were here and I knew you were safe and well—and I need my rest before I hurtle a star cruiser through space at warp speeds, don’t you think?”
“I’m not sleeping with you.”
“There’s a bedroom on the top floor. It’s yours for the duration.”
“Fine,” Kenji snapped. “I’ll sleep up there.”
“Good,” Qylar snapped back. “I’ll go make the bed for you.”
“Great,” Kenji barked. “Thank you.”
“You’re welcome,” Qylar growled before walking towards the stairs and disappearing up them.
There was a knock at the door soon after Qylar left. Assuming it was the food, Kenji walked to the door and opened it, forgetting he wasn’t covering up the swell of his belly in the shirt he was wearing.
The delivery guy’s gaze went straight to it and then back up to his face. He handed the two bags over before spinning, shaking his head, and mumbling,“Fucking San Francisco, man,”under his breath and walking away.
Kenji closed the door and carried the bags to the island. While waiting for Qylar, he drew the food containers out, the aroma wafting out of them making his mouth water. After he had themlined up on the island, he went in search of silverware and something to drink.
