“And what is your next intended port?”
“Ahlon Bay, Eissoi,” Yiri said.
“Alright, proceed, Ahlon Two,” the male said. “Welcome home.”
The call ended, and Yiri sighed. “I have to pay attention from here on,” he said. “Can we pick that back up later?”
“Yes, please,” I said, disappointed now, but hopeful for later.
I turned in his lap to face forward with him, as Venastea loomed ever larger in our view. If I was in the way, Yiri didn’tlet on. He worked around me, seemingly with ease, tapping buttons, adjusting sliders, and reading various screens.
“This seems like a lot for one person to keep track of,” I said.
His arms were around me, reaching for the controls as he shrugged. “Once you get the hang of it, it isn’t complicated. I’ll teach you soon. You should know how to fly it just in case.”
That sounded like fun, but maybe a little overwhelming, too. But the prospect of being in these close quarters with him long enough to learn it all had promise. “Will I sit here in your lap while you teach me?” I asked, running my hand up his arm while he worked. A faint shiver followed my fingers, and I instantly wanted to see it again.
“Yes, but you’ll have to be good,” Yiri said, his deep voice buzzing along the back of my neck.“Do you think you can do that for me?”
Now I was the one shivering. “Maybe if you wear a shirt, I could behave.” Biting my lip, I watched my fingers trace higher up, over the tattoos on his arms. Most of them were geometric designs or Eissoini writing, but there was one on his inner bicep that had caught my eye a time or two. It was a human woman with retro hair and a curvy body. It looked like the kind of tattoo a sailor might have had back in the day.
“Who’s this?” I asked.
Yiri glanced at where my fingers lay on his arm. “I don’t know,” he said. “Some Earth art I liked. Do you mind it?”
“I like it,” I said. “She’s pretty.”
His chest rumbled with a noncommittal sound, and his other arm wrapped around my middle. “I think I’ve got the prettiest girl from Earth right here on my lap.”
I leaned back against his chest, smiling. “Good answer.”
I was quiet after that, amazed at how quickly the planet grew from a dot in the distance to all I could see outside the bubble of the cruiser. Entering the atmosphere was a tiny bit choppy,but no more so than landing in an airplane. Once we were inside the cloud line, it was smooth sailing again. Beneath us, Eissoi stretched out as far as I could see, in glittering lines of pink and turquoise. As we got closer and the buildings began to take shape in shades of lavender and pale pink, I was in love.
“Yiri, it’s gorgeous!” I gushed, leaning forward. The sky overhead was brilliant blue, a single pearly moon sitting low on the horizon.
“You like it,Aneah?” he asked, sounding pleased.
“I love it,” I said. “I can’t wait to see it from the ground.”
His arm hugged me sweetly for a moment, and then he needed both hands again to bring us down into the bright blue waters of a busy bay, many other vessels coming and going all around us. There was a sort of dock near the shore where Yiri steered the cruiser until it stopped in a large space with several signs proclaiming itAhlon Vessels Only.
“How do we get out if we’re sitting in the water?” I asked.
Yiri tapped a few controls, and a robotic voice said, “Upper entry opening.” Outside the bubble, a section of the saucer wall slid open, revealing the kitchen. A wide metal gangplank extended automatically from the dock to the vessel.
“Like that,” Yiri said.
CHAPTER 23
YIRI
Nerus metus on the dock with Cora’s team in tow, both of them wide-eyed, cleaned up, and even standing straighter than normal. The extra effort wasn’t for me. Was it possible to be both proud and and jealously pissed off?
“Welcome to Eissoi, Miss Keaton,” Nerus said, grinning at Cora.
“Thanks,” she said, glancing at me. “But I guess it’s Mrs. Ahlon, now, isn’t it?”
I exchanged confused looks with Nerus.
