She cursed under her breath, then drew in her hand.
“What would you do if I attacked you?”
She sprang to her feet, kicking sand onto the blanket while scurrying away from Aroc. “Fight back!” Her fingers curled into fists she brought to her chest, positioned to challenge. “I’d get knocked on my ass, but I’d fight back until one of us stops moving.”
He popped the other half of the meat in his mouth, then reached for another piece, offering it to her. “And what if someone came after Norese? What would you do, Sadie Alexander? Would you fight to save my daughter?”
Sadie knew the line of questions he asked meant he tested her motives
“Yes." A trained nurse; she’d seen evidence of terrible things done to children that broke her heart. "Why do you ask?"
The tension between his eyes lessened, giving Sadie a glimpse of how dangerously handsome her alien captor was. “Norese is the reason I accept humans to remain a part of my world. I don’t have the most respect for your kind, Sadie. But, what’s best for Norese is what's best for me in this matter. I expect her to become your first and last concern every day.”
That brought her to her knees. His love for his daughter surpassed his prejudice against humans. “Norese’s mother had to be incredible to bring down your wall of hate.”
Aroc offered her a piece of the pink meat inches from her mouth. It slipped between her parted lips, the tips of his fingers brushing her mouth when she bit off a piece. Something important happened at that moment when she didn’t shrink from his touch. Hair fell around her shoulders as she shifted on her knees on the towel. Sadie followed his hand smoothing her thick hair behind her ears.
“I’m not looking for a replacement for my wife, Sadie. I’m searching for a positive female role model so Norese has every advantage of her two heritages, honoring her mother’s memory.”
Impressed by his commitment to his daughter, she looked away out over the water sparkling under the manmade sun. He ate the other half of the meat he’d offered. Settling on her behind, Sadie brought her knees up and shared the rest of the meal in silence.
Startled when a hand touched her foot, Sadie jerked back. Aroc was holding her foot as if he’d never set eyes on nail polish.
“Sadie,” he said, releasing his hold when she tensed. “In your backyard on Earth, why were you crying?”
She rested on her palms then stared out over the water. “My parents were killed in an accident over a week ago and you found me hours after the funeral.”
“I’m sorry. You have my sincere and deepest sympathy.” The honesty in his words brought tears to form which she forced back. She wasn’t ready to feel that pain right now, instead gave in to his hand returning to her foot, the grip gentle. She let him ease it out until he held it entirely in his hand. He scooted closer, wrapping both hands around her foot, settling his thumbs to put pressure on the arch. No one spoke as he massaged one foot then the other, tugging on each toe individually, the sensation moving through her entire body.
“Then you are not as upset with me for bringing you here as you pretend.”
“This is completely new to me, Captain. You, your world, your race, all of it I’m digesting the information as fast as I can. Something’s are more difficult to absorb than others are. Be patient.”
He tipped his head in a gesture sh took to be of understanding.
Norese came barreling out onto the beach with Crandall.
“Here comes your world now,” she said, startled when Norese ran into her arms instead of his. “I take it we’re going swimming?”
Norese smiled, tugging on Sadie’s hand. “I swim, Sadie. Come.” Her plea brought Sadie to her feet. Feet Aroc patiently massaged until she wanted to purr.
Aroc stood, offering her his hand, then led them out into the bright clear water, lapping around her ankles. Small plants grew on the bottom, cushioning her steps. As she waded out, tugging her hair up into a ponytail on top of her head, Sadie let herself relax and swim with Norese.
It was difficult to read the captain. He appeared distracted one minute and completely focused the next. Under the warm breeze and saltwater, the captain taught her about their culture and people. They once lived strictly on the moon, adapting to the weeks of frigid air then two weeks of hot air. That explained their skin, but the captain’s was smooth and pleasant to the touch.
She shielded her eyes when a female karuntee approached from the right side of the beach to wade out to Aroc. The female wore nothing but an attitude in place of a smile. Norese scrunched up her nose, burying her face in the crook of Sadie’s neck.
What had this woman done to Norese for her to shy away in a huddle?
“Captain,” the female cooed, “if you’re looking for female companionship, you don’t have to bring up trash from Earth.”
The female cried out. Aroc held her wrist, removing her hand from his arm to usher her away out deeper into the water.
Sadie turned Norese away. Crandall jogged out to them, frowning as he approached. “She’s had a crush on the captain for years. She did the same to his first mate, Katherine.”
“Can you take Norese inside, Crandall? I need to have a talk with this female.”
Crandall’s mouth dropped open. “Sadie, she’s karuntee, twice your strength.”
“True, but I believe she stepped over the line.”
She handed Norese to Crandall and marched out to stand next to the captain.
“Excuse me, Captain Farkus,” Sadie worked her way in front of the captain. The way the female made Norese cower sickened Sadie.
“Ms. Alexander, this is Eulin, she works here in the vacation sector.”
Crandall made a noise behind her, getting the captain’s attention. He left her alone with Eulin, but she didn’t need protecting. She didn’t like the way the female looked at Norese.
“Eulin, let me cut to the chase. Norese is afraid of you. Why?”
Eulin looked down her nose at Sadie, a disapproving scowl bringing her brows together. “I don’t know what you’re accusing me of, but—”
“You know exactly what I’m talking about. I don’t know what you did to her in the past, but I won’t allow you or anyone to treat her with disrespect.”
Aroc’s arm shot past Sadie to close around Eulin’s neck, his face a mask of anger. “Is this true? You hurt my daughter?”
“Captain, please.” She struggled, her naked body swaying in the air.
“Don’t lie to me.” His other hand landed across the female’s face, and blue blood leeched from her nose.
She cried out.
“You’ll never see the outside of a cell again I promise you that.”
She stuttered dangling in the air. “She’s not pure karuntee. A disgrace to our clan.”
Sadie braced a hand on Aroc’s arm to steady herself in the rippling water. Too angry to back down, she stood up to Eulin. “The disgrace to this clan, Eulin, is you. Not Norese.” Sadie seethed. Knowing Eulin could snap her in half played back burner to her treating Norese as second class. “Norese represents the best of two worlds, two races, and two people that loved one another. She’s your captain’s daughter. Do you think throwing yourself at the captain and shunning his daughter is smart?”
Aroc released his grip. Eulin sank below the surface, taking Sadie with her. They wrestled. Sadie swung her arm, the water slowing the force through the current. Water filled her mouth. Eulin yanked her from the water, plunging Sadie deeper, their bodies intertwined on the sandy floor.
Braced on the ground, Sadie shoved at Eulin, breaking free of her hold to burst through the surface. She gulped in air, her vision blurred by water pouring off her hair down her face. She whirled around to Eulin’s fist coming at her jaw. She ducked and slammed her fist into the female’s side then landed a second blow to her throat. Eulin stumbled back, breathing hard and swearing. She lunged for Sadie when Aroc caught her mid-air, dragging her onto the beach. A trail from her feet dug into the sand.
Sadie stood catching her breath, when Montage swam out to her, helping her to the shore. He wrapped a blanket around her shoulders, then guided her under the cabana. “Are you crazy? Eulin is twice your size. What did you do?”
“What did I do?” She curled over coughing up water, her throat burning. “That bitch did something to Norese. She’s as bigoted as you are, Montage. Norese is a baby.”
“Wait…she hurt Norese?” His eyes blazed.
Sadie drew back. “You think I jumped in because her panties are hot for the captain?” She coughed again, holding the towel to her face. She shivered with anger for the way that female treated Norese. “She admitted she thought Norese was second-class.”
Montage sank back on his heels. “You fought a karuntee to protect Norese?”
She nodded, shoving the hair out of her eyes.
Aroc was at her side, lifting her off the ground before she could utter another word. “I want Eulin off this station, in lockup until I return.”
Sadie hooked her arms around his neck, resting her face to the smooth contours of his chest, surprised how fast his heart pulsed under her ear.
“Is Norese okay, Captain?”
At the glass doors of the suite, Crandall was there holding back the doors for them to enter. “Where’s Norese, Crandall?”
“Playing in her room. If I had known sooner I would have told you.”
Sadie looked between the two males, wondering what had she missed.
“Leave us alone. Help Montage. He’s taking Eulin back to Sector Seven to await disciplinary action. Sadie saved my daughter from abuse.”
When her feet hit the floor, she turned to check on Norese. Aroc’s hands closed over her shoulders, easing her back to his chest. His arms enveloped her in a tight embrace, their wet bodies touching everywhere, his fingers flat on her belly.
“Captain, I need to check on Norese.”
“Thank you, Sadie. Norese admitted to Cantrell while they were headed inside that Eulin held her under water during her swimming lessons on our last weekend out here. Two weeks ago. You were the only one to pick up on my daughter's discomfort.”
“I worked with abused children at the hospital. I know the look of fear.”
He angled her around,
face
to face, raising her hand to his heart. The silence filled the room as warm as daylight streaming through the window. The water on her skin cooled, reminding her they were both one layer away from nudity.
Sadie started to inquire into alien-psycho’s punishment, declining as granules of sand trapped inside her bikini found every crack and crevice in her body. Tucking a finger inside the edge of the bikini bra cup, Sadie set free a line of sand trapped in the crochet triangles. Aroc’s fingers flexed on his thigh. She dropped her hands.
“I haven’t fought anyone since the eight grade and I hope never to do it again.” She’d never fought someone that size before. Looking back, Sadie swiped a hand over her bikini-clad behind, dislodging sand to float to the floor into the carpet fibers. “I’m going to take a shower and lie down with Norese if you don’t need me right now.”
He tilted his head, gaze trailing her hands on her behind.
“Use my shower, Sadie,” he offered. “Six sprayers will work out any rogue grains of sand.” Heat spread like fire up her throat under his observation of sand in places not meant for dirt. “We’ll have dinner at seven pm.”
He skirted around her toward a hallway off to the right Sadie believed to be the kitchen. Aroc’s lingering scent became a fan, clinging to her skin and rising to her nose with each step
into the bathroom
.
After a hot shower, she curled herself around Norese’s warm body. The riot of burgundy curls tickled Sadie’s chin as she inhaled her powdery scent, letting sleep claim her mind.
Chapter 6
Days passed. They shared meals. She listened to him speak with Montage concerning how others felt about her being up there. The females were upset and rightly, so. The captain was, as they called it on Earth, a catch. The males liked the idea of him having someone to talk to again. There were moments she feared for her life. Once a karuntee went rogue, and Aroc left to handle it. When he returned he’d had scars down his arm and sat quiet in his office.
Then the oddest thing would happen. He enjoyed massaging her feet after dinner. Said he did this with his wife. It relaxed him. Who would turn down a foot massage? Not her.
She’d requested to see a doctor after she missed her cycle. After diagnosing it as stress related, he gave her a shot to eliminate it for two months. They needed that on Earth. There were so many new technological advances up here she grew to like living there.
Norese was wiry and fast, skirting around her on the beach and after a bath she’d practically pass out. Sadie curled around her at later that night. A couple of hours later, the captain came into the room leading her out into the hallway. She’d fallen asleep still dressed in her jeans and T-shirt. Even had on tennis shoes where she’d jogged along the beach.
“Captain—” She glanced at Norese’s sleeping form under the covers as she stumbled out of the room, Aroc’s fingers tight around her wrist.
“Sadie, I’ve told you to call me Aroc.”
First names placed relationships on a personal level, making it impossible to keep a professional distance when she found him dangerously appealing.