Chapter 20
Jeffrey lay in silence beside the woman he loved, her skin cool against his. She felt so right here in his arms. He wished they’d never reach Zanthar, that they could live here in this perfect moment for all eternity.
Unfortunately, he could feel time slipping away from them already. He clutched her tighter, and she sighed happily in her sleep.
“My precious girl,” he murmured, pressing a kiss to the tendrils on her head that had finally gone still.
He was exhausted, his emotions having wrung him dry. When he’d seen her with the Hareema crouching over her, his insides had gone cold with fury and fear. When she’d told him that she would never obey him willingly, his rage had been white hot. And when she’d made love to him so sweetly, he’d realized that he could never let her go.
Jeffrey knew that there was a preponderance of challenges facing them. They were from different planets, in different fleets, halfway across the galaxy from one another. But none of that meant anything to him.
He would do whatever it took to keep her by his side.
With a smile on his face, Jeffrey finally allowed himself to drift off to sleep.
When he awoke, he was disgruntled to find himself alone in the bunk. He stumbled out of bed and pulled on his flight suit, wondering where Kat had gone to. The bunkroom was empty, and so was the mess. That only left the bridge, and as he made his way there, he tried not to let his disappointment engulf him.
“One of these days, I’m going to wake up with her beside me,” he muttered. “Even if I have to chain her to the damn bed.”
He entered the bridge and found Kat seated at the central console. The navigator turned around at his entrance.
“I didn’t wake her up, I swear,” he said, his hands coming up in front of him, palms facing outward.
“It’s alright,” he said, waving wearily at him. “Report.”
“We are less than ten minutes from Zanthar.”
Jeffrey scowled, eyeing Kat accusingly. “Were you just going to let me sleep through the landing? Get yourself off the ship and out of my clutches as soon as possible?”
She arched a brow at him. “Just following orders, Sir. Trying to get us home.”
Her voice was neutral, with no emotion in it. Flat.
Like his feelings.
It seemed the Ice Queen was back. He didn’t know why she always resorted to distance after they made love. But he was getting tired of the walls she kept putting up between them.
“Before we land, I’d like a word with you, Lieutenant.”
“I’m sure we can speak later,” was her reply.
“I seem to remember you promising to talk, after we made lo—“
“Okay,” she said, jumping up from her seat and shooting an embarrassed look toward her crewmate. “Let’s talk in the mess.”
He followed her down the corridor, enjoying the gentle sway of her hips as she headed down the hallway.
Once in the mess, she rounded on him. “What do you want?’
Jeffrey took a deep breath, attempting to keep his emotions in check. “I want to get a few things straight before we land. I was serious about what I said before. You belong to me.”
Kat’s eyebrow quirked upward. “I belong to you? I thought Earth outlawed slavery several centuries ago.”
His eyes narrowed at her response. “You know what I mean. You’re mine. And I’m yours.”
Kat stared at him. “I’m not sure what use I’d have for a primitive human male. I’m afraid we stopped keeping off-world species in zoos some time ago.”
Jeffrey recoiled from her words as if he’d been hit. Where was this flippant hostility coming from?
