Not Compatible - Viola Grace Page 0,4
Raider attack. Out of a ship with two hundred people, I was one of nine survivors.” She anticipated his questions. “We floated into a shipping lane, and from there, I was brought to the med center here. I grew up on this station.”
He was shocked. “The station master raised you?”
“More or less. He hired a nanny for me and told me he would take it out of my future earnings.” She smiled. “I have a very thorough and strange education.”
“I see. I did not realize that Mr. Blue was so generous as to take in humans.”
She grunted as Fennor hit the knot that kept her from standing straight most days. Sweat appeared on her forehead, and she shook as she fought the urge to punch her therapist and run for it.
“You are in pain.” The captain’s voice was tense.
She gritted her teeth and nodded. “Yeah, there are issues with muscle attachments in the wrong place. They tighten up over time, and since I have been busy with work, I have left it too long. The price I pay for easy motion.”
Fennor muttered, “Almost done.”
The twang of the freed tendon was a bolt of pain that she wasn’t expecting. She shrieked, and tears ran from her eyes.
She sobbed for a minute, and Fennor went on to her legs, and then, he covered her up, patted her shoulder, and said, “Take the time you need.”
She nodded and slowly let the aches and pains become her body again. She swallowed and glanced at the captain, he was on his back now, and his expression was completely appalled.
She wrapped the sheet around her and waddled over to where she had her robe. She slid her arms into it and let the sheet drop. She returned the sheet to the bed and bowed toward the captain. “I am sorry for disturbing your time. Thank you for your patience.”
She left via the back door and headed for the sauna. She changed her robe for a wrap as she heard masculine voices coming from the sauna.
When she opened the door, the six men went silent, so she chuckled. “Apologies. As you were.”
She found a corner and sat as comfortably as she was able, slumping down onto the seat with her hands loose in her lap. She kept her eyes closed, and gradually the voices resumed their discussion of the trip to the entertainment center. Apparently, they had all had a very good time. They didn’t remember much except thrills, danger, and then satisfaction, but that was the effect of the center. No one remembered how the adventures turned out, except for folks like herself who had to remain cognizant of everything before and after. There were only a handful of women on the station who had that training, but she was one of them.
When they started speculating on the adventure that the captain had had, she kept herself as still as possible. Apparently, he had come out of it energized with a smile on his face that both intrigued and chilled them. He tended to wear that expression when he was trying to out-think an opponent.
She suddenly wasn’t getting the benefit from the sauna that she thought she would get. The hot tub held far more appeal.
She quietly got up and slipped out of the sauna, turned toward the hot tub, and froze. There was a wall in the way, and it was breathing.
She looked up and met his curious expression. “Excuse me, please.”
“Where are you going?”
She smiled. “Just a hot soak. The jets might be kinder to me than passive heat.”
He paused and nodded. “I will accompany you.”
Styra’s eyes went wide. “It is not necessary. You... your men... um... I have nothing.”
He smiled, and a low chuckle emerged. “Good. It is settled. Which way do we go?”
She nodded toward the hall behind him, and he turned sideways so she could lead the way.
She could feel the wall of heat that he radiated at her back and part of her relaxed. He had already seen the damage, and she hadn’t yet run into the man who would take on the twisted-up mess than she lived in. She was a curiosity, which wasn’t flattering, but it made for a solid base when dealing with folks naked.
She made it to the hot tub area, walked to a chair, and slipped off her robe, walking to the tub and slowly climbing down the steps before looking at the captain. He shed his own robe and stepped into the tub, settling