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Diadora watched the bot edge Heather into a corner. She reached out with her cybernetic arm, grabbed the bot by one leg, and crushed it.

“You didn’t have to do that.” Heather watched the dead bot slam to the ground, its tiny metallic parts scattering across the floor.

“Your work was being hampered.” Diadora kicked the dead bot to one side. “Now you can get on. I’ve just come off a difficult call with the Council of Representatives. They talked at me for almost an hour.”

“Let me guess,” Vegas said, “they want even more matches?”

“Something you’re not delivering.”

“We’ve almost hit our quota for today,” Heather said. She swallowed as Diadora’s gaze settled on her and her top lip pulled back. The woman had a way of making her feel incompetent without saying a word.

“When you have hit your quota, I expect to see the files.” Diadora looked around the office. “Less messing around and more work.” She turned on her heel and left the room.

Nell let out a sigh as she climbed off her chair. “I’m not sure what I’m more scared of, that nipping bot or Diadora’s evil glare.”

“Diadora’s evil glare,” Heather and Vegas said at the same time.

“You’re right. It’s freakily scary,” Nell said.

Heather stared down at the crushed bot. “I’d better take this poor little guy to tech. They might want to have a look and see why he malfunctioned.” The bot had tried to jump her, but she still felt bad its electronic life had been snuffed out by Diadora.

“He isn’t the only thing malfunctioning around here,” Vegas said. “I used the food replicator to get a chocolate cupcake last night. It gave me something that looked like green sludge.”

“Maybe you’d had your sugar quota for the day,” Nell said. “These annoying wrist devices always like to pull you up if you overindulge in the sweet stuff. I get told off every single day.”

“I swear that was my first cupcake.”

“Did you taste it?” Heather asked. “Sometimes, the stuff that looks the most revolting is the tastiest.”

“It went straight into the garbage. Even if I’d closed my eyes, I couldn’t envisage that being a cupcake.”

“I’ll grab us some dinner,” Nell said. “We can work and eat and get the final matches done. Do you want anything in particular?”

“So long as it’s not green and mushy, I don’t mind,” Vegas said.

“Same here,” Heather said.

Nell grinned. “I’ll see what I can do.”

As the door slid open and Nell walked out, Heather spotted Loka outside. She glanced at Vegas, but her nose was already buried in her tablet, looking at the matching files and muttering to herself.

Cautiously, Heather raised a hand.

Loka took a step back before looking each way along the corridor.

Heather realized her cheeks were glowing. They did that every time she spotted Loka. He was gorgeous in his own unique alien way. With dark skin and enormous muscles, she barely noticed the curling horns that jutted from his forehead or the claws that shot out from his fingers in place of nails.

She licked her lips. She would like to get to know him better. Heather liked her guys on the shy side. Cocky arrogance never did it for her. Usually, the aliens that came with big muscles considered themselves better than anyone else. She always admired a good physique, but if they opened their mouths and started bragging about their latest fight or what superb warriors they were, it left her cold.

Heather got a sense Loka wasn’t like that. He was quiet and considerate. He had a brain inside that horned head of his. He had to; he was involved in the most fascinating space mapping project the Milky Way had ever undergone.

She stepped closer to the door. She wasn’t surprised to see a small piece of coal sitting outside. Ever since their first encounter, she’d been discovering these pieces of coal.

Although Heather had denied it, Vegas was right. Picars offered coal to females they were interested in. But if Loka was that interested in her, why hadn’t he made a move?

Heather kept her gaze on Loka as she picked up the coal. As was expected of the female who received a gift of coal from a Picar, she sniffed it and then nodded, as if satisfied by this odd gift.

She saw him smile and returned it automatically.