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“Yum. Me too,” Eden said.

Blaze carried the cage as they headed back to the small ship they’d used to get to Dapak. “You doing anything tonight?” he asked Eden.

“I sure am. There’s a party going on. One of the guy’s from catering organized it.”

“I could come along with you.”

Eden tilted her head and grinned at him. “It’s not your kind of party. They can get wild.”

She always did that. Pushed him away. He should get the hint. Eden wasn’t into him.

And Blaze needed to take a big step back from her, put away those feelings that left him sleepless and horny. He had a decision to make about his future, and he wasn’t sure if there was a way to keep Eden in it, or even if she'd want to be in it.

Her warm hand wrapped around his bicep, and she gave it a gentle squeeze. “Smile. We get to live another day. You know what I always say.”

Blaze nodded. “Sure. You’re here for a good time, not a long time.”

“Yep. If you live by that motto, you can’t go wrong.” She winked at him. “Come on, let’s go home.”

Blaze let Eden go ahead of him, slowing to look in on the cats. “What do you think, Asshole? One more try, or should I cut my losses?”

Asshole glanced up at him, pausing from washing a protesting Helix. He looked at Eden, snorted, and returned to his kitten cleaning duties.

Blaze sighed. He had a great home on the Apocalypse, and he wanted a home with Eden. But a guy could only face rejection for so long until he had to try something else.

He needed a new direction. And he could only run away from his family duties for so long. But the thought of change, of leaving Eden and the Apocalypse, sent a spear of misery into his heart.

If Blaze couldn’t find a way to get to Eden, he’d have no option but to step onto a new path. A path that didn’t include her.

THE END