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He rubbed the back of his neck, not meeting her gaze. “I overstepped the mark when we were alone.”

“Because of the money I owe you?” Holly tilted her head. Avel was being cautious and standoffish. Where was the passion and fire he’d shown her when they were alone?

“It’s mainly that.” Avel grimaced. “What’s going to happen if you come up short one month? Do you expect me to forget about it because we’re getting close?”

“I’d never do that to you. You saw how well things went at the food fair. I’ll pay you back today. I might even have enough to cover the whole loan.”

Avel shook his head. “Just get me the payment I’m due, and we’ll keep things civil.”

“Civil! It didn’t feel civil when you were grinding against me and had your face buried in my...” Holly looked at her chest and blushed.

Avel scowled and looked at anything but her. “Don’t take this personally, but we were stuck on a spaceship and awaiting rescue. You were there, being friendly, and you’re easy on the eye. I needed to kill some time.”

Holly felt like she’d been punched in the gut. Her hand went to her stomach, and she sucked in a breath. “You were killing time? You got bored, and I was on hand to amuse you.”

Avel licked his lips. “Sure, something like that. Listen, I have to go. I’m exhausted and need to get cleaned up. Make sure you get your injuries checked.” He turned and strode away.

Holly refused to let the treacherous tears building fall. She swiped her hands under her eyes to brush them away. Her heart hurt, and her stomach churned. Avel had been using her? All she’d been was a distraction. He didn’t like her. All that bull about keeping her safe and how amazing she was. He’d been spinning her a line. Avel was no better than Eric. He’d used smooth words and her vulnerability to get her guard down so he could while away the hours until they were rescued.

Her shoulders slumped as she trudged out of the docking bay and headed to the infirmary. Ever since they’d met, this had been a game to Avel. He wasn’t into her, he didn’t find her attractive, and he certainly didn’t want to strip her and lick chocolate off her body.

“No, you don’t,” she whispered to herself as a tear tracked down her cheek. She wouldn’t cry over Avel. She’d been hurt enough. This was the last time she opened her heart, only to have it trampled on.

Seeing Eric had reconfirmed all her old fears and how right they were. Men were all the same. They exploited weakness until they got what they wanted and moved on. Another conquest to brag about with their buddies.

She’d heard Eric talking to his troop about her. Her insides had burned with shame as she’d heard him laughing about their relationship and how eager she was to make him happy.

Holly had been such a fool. She’d fallen for every line. Not just Eric’s lies, but Avel’s as well. She must have some neon sign on her head that sent out a signal to all jerks. Come exploit Holly; she’s always willing to please because she’s such a pathetic loser.

Not anymore. She was looking after herself from now on. She wasn’t letting any guy mess her around, no matter how irresistible he looked or how much he loved her food.

Once she’d had her injuries checked, Holly knew she should shower and sleep, but her body was coiled tight with stress. There was only one thing for it. There was one thing that always soothed her.

She went through the back doors into the kitchen, so she wouldn’t have to walk through the dining hall looking like a bedraggled mess.

Tension eased from her shoulders as she breathed in the enticing aromas of savory pies baking in the oven, freshly tossed salad in a spicy dressing, and something apple infused and sweet.

“Holly!” Sally hurried over to her. “What happened? You look like you’ve been in a battle rather than at a food fair. I wasn’t expecting you back so soon.”

Holly sighed and walked to the sink to scrub her hands clean before she got to work. “There was a change of plan. The food fair was excellent. I sold out of everything.”

“That’s incredible news.” Sally patted her arm. “But I’m sensing that’s not the whole story.”

“That’s half of it. We left early and got caught in a star storm. We crash landed, and, well, we had to wait to be rescued. We’ve only just gotten back.” She couldn’t mention Avel, not yet. It was still too raw.

“Holy stars! Are you fit to be here?”

Holly kept her back turned, so Sally couldn’t see the tears in her eyes. “All I want to do is bake. I need cake, and I need it now. Baking relaxes me. I won’t make anything to serve to the diners, so you don’t need to worry about my messy appearance.”

“Your messy appearance isn’t the problem.” Sally nudged her. “I’m more interested in who this ‘we’ is you keep mentioning.”

“Oh! No one. Nothing.” Holly couldn’t face a grilling over Avel. “I’ll tell you later.”

Sally was silent for a second. “Of course. Bake away. Use the table at the back.” She turned Holly toward her, her expression full of worry. “If the cake doesn’t fix things, I’m here when you want to talk.” She patted her cheek before hurrying away to bark an order at one of the other cooks.

Sally’s kindness only made Holly want to cry even more. Sally was such a decent person. She could tell something was wrong but hadn’t pushed, giving her the space she needed to figure things out. Holly would make an extra batch of brownies just for Sally.

She headed to the empty table at the back of the kitchen where she usually taught her classes. She pulled out the ingredients she needed to make triple chocolate brownies.