Page 208 of Commander’s Mate

That honesty scared me more than a confident yes.

Nora said, “We don’t have to make the same choice.”

Scarlet’s jaw tightened.

“I know.”

“You sound like you don’t.”

“I said I know.”

I looked at the street.

A family crossed between transport lanes.

Two adults.

Three children.

The smallest one carried a stuffed creature with six legs and no visible face.

Home was not a planet.

Not exactly.

It was repetition.

The same streets.

The same voices.

The same stupid cup.

The same person calling every Sunday.

Halor could become that.

Maybe.

If I stayed long enough.

I thought of Zared.

Immediately.

That annoyed me.

“Don’t,” Scarlet said.

“What?”

“Make the decision because of Commander Fluorescent Hair.”

“I wasn’t.”

“You absolutely were.”

“I was thinking.”