Gark nodded. “Good. Can you fly this…ship?” It was worse than most of the tin-can drop ships he’d been on in his career, barely more than a flying container and definitely not rated for entry to a planet’s atmosphere.
Jarden snorted. “In my sleep.”
“Let’s head back to Irith’s Moons.”
He didn’t have enough room in the brig for this many, so they’d agreed that Jarden would pilot the ship for the few hours back to the station, where they would hand over their captives to station security, under the command of Oren Ka’Ress.
Gark left Jarden and Vox to secure the prisoners and carried Aletta back through the docking tunnel to The Lady.
Home.
He carried Aletta to the med bay, placing her gently on the edge of the bed. He settled his hands on either side of her hips, reluctant to let her go. Her brown eyes settled on him.
She looked so small, huddled in the blanket he draped around her shoulders, her hair in tangles around her face.
“You came.”
“I’ll always come for you.”
Her eyes widened, her pupils dilating. Their faces were so close together he could feel the soft puff of her breath on his face.He brushed a stray lock of hair from her face and pressed his lips to her forehead.
Her scent wrapped around him like a siren’s call.
Mine.
He wanted to shout it to the universe.
“Thank you,” she said. She leaned forward, wrapping her arms around his waist. He cradled her gently against his chest, humming softly as she slowly relaxed against him.
She pulled back, her hand no longer clutching the blanket closed, and the fabric gaped open. She took a sharp breath in, and the blanket slithered from her shoulders to reveal her full breasts. Breasts that were painted with the blood of her attacker.
He stepped back, putting distance between them, and tugged his shirt off. “Here,” he said, helping her into it, being careful of her damaged wrist. It was huge on her, hanging down to her knees and sliding off one delicate shoulder. Something possessive roared into life inside him at the knowledge she was now wearing his scent.
Sure, she’d been wearing his borrowed clothes, but they’d all been washed and were clean. This was different.
She brushed her hair out of her face with her good hand, then buried her nose into the fabric. Aletta sniffed his shirt and he shifted, flushing. Scent didn’t matter to humans the way it did to Gnaggarians, he reminded himself. Would he ever be back in control of himself? Gark growled, startling himself into a cough in an attempt to cover the noise.
“Gark?” She looked up at him with a startled expression, but the door slid open, Klath limping into the med bay, and whatever words she was going to say were lost. Gark bit back a frustrated growl.
“Are you all right?” She asked the medic, who smiled grimly.
“I should be asking you that question,” he said. “May I?” Klath gestured toward her wrist, and she nodded.
Gark stepped back from the bed reluctantly, forcing himself into the corner out of the medic’s way, even though he wanted to tear Klath apart when he reached for Aletta’s wrist.
He growled again, this time not bothering to hide it. She looked up from her wrist, which Klath was scanning with the medi-scanner, but he looked away.
The medic didn’t even bother acknowledging his bad manners.
Gark watched as Klath scanned Aletta’s wrist, confirming the break was minor, and then ran the medi-wand over it to heal it as well as he could. It was Gark’s fault she was hurt. If he hadn’t left her, she wouldn’t have been abducted. She wouldn’t be hurt. She wouldn’t be traumatized by being attacked?—
“Boss?”
He looked up at Klath, who was holding a packet out to him.
“These will help her with sleep, but only if needed.” Kath frowned. “It’s better not to use them unless it’s really necessary.”
Gark nodded, taking the packet.
