The three warriors turned as the door alarm beeped, a cadet entering the room. “Sirs, Captain Storey of the Earth Space Force has arrived.”
“Show him in,” Zac said, as the three stood and Tomas excused himself to return to the Zataras.
“Ahh...” the cadet shifted slightly to let the starship captain pass out of the room, not meeting Zac's eyes.
“Yes, cadet? Do you have something to say?”
“Captain Storey... is not a him,” the young warrior stammered, head down, before stepping to one side to let their guest walk into the room.
Zac froze as his eyes locked on the one face he’d not thought to see again.
Laila? What was she doing here?
She walked forward confidently, though when her amber eyes met his, they skidded away.
T'arq barked out a laugh, quickly stifling it behind an obviously fake cough. Her gaze broke from Zac's and she turned to look at the other Taurean.
“Captain Storey,” T'arq said, offering his hand in a typical Earth handshake.
How did he know to do that?
“I'm Sub-Commander T'arq Qu'Ress, Commander Qu'Rell's second-in-command.” A broad smile lit up his handsome face, and Zac felt an unfamiliar twisting in his guts at the way Laila's face softened to smile at his friend. “It's a pleasure to meet you.”
“Likewise,” she replied, shaking his hand. She shot a look at Zac, who remained motionless. Stunned.
“Commander...?” she said, offering her hand to him in greeting. He stared at it, then lifted his eyes to meet her deep amber gaze.
“T'arq, leave us,” Zac's growl was impossibly deep, but T'arq did not take offence, smiling to himself as he left the room, the door shutting with a quietsnick.
Zac kept his expression neutral through sheer force of will. Had she known who he was when they met last night?
Fuck. He’d better get his head in the game.
He had just promised the leader of Taurus that he would accept this mission, and now he felt trapped. How was this going to work? He stalked to the far side of the room, needing some distance.
She looked different this morning, her wild hair now restrained into a tidy twist at her nape, and she wore more weaponry than he did, the holsters and sheaths showing signs of long use.
“Why did you leave last night?” He surprised himself by asking the first question that came to mind.
She flushed, her cheeks turning a rosy pink in embarrassment. She shifted from foot to foot and then turned to face him. “I came here to do a job. I didn't...”
Zac turned to face her, arms crossed in front of his chest.
Her eyes met his. “I am here to do my job, nothing else. I didn’t go to that bar intending to meet anyone.” She sighed, brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear.
“Why did you leave?” he asked.
She dropped her hand and tilted her head to one side. “You want the truth?”
He nodded.
“When you got that call, I realized who you were. I freaked out. It’s important I keep my work and private life separate, and I nearly messed that up… may still have messed that up.”
“So it had nothing to do with me personally?” Zac was thinking specifically about his scarred face.
“What? No!” There was no artifice in Laila’s expression, and Zac felt a tension release that he hadn’t even realized he had been feeling.
Laila looked at him directly. “Do you think we can put it aside? Pretend it didn’t happen? We’re both professionals with a job to do, an important job. We had a misunderstanding, but I think we should put last night behind us, don’t you agree? I mean, neither of us is to blame.”
She looked up at him, her bottom lip pulled nervously between her teeth. Zac stared, but gave himself a hard mental shake before nodding.
“That would be the sensible thing to do,” he agreed.
