“Do you think I could work as a nurse on a spaceship like this if I train with you?”
His brows raised as he smiled. “I do not see why not.”
“Great. I’ll be back soon.” I beamed and joined the other women.
The brown-haired warrior who brought us to the medical room stepped forward after Rekna was done.
It occurred to me he hadn’t shown a single smile since he joined us, his lips always pressed into a straight line. “I will take you to your quarters,” he declared.
“I’m Grace. May I know your name?” I was enjoying getting to know my new acquaintances, and it really helped me deal with stress by having something good to focus on.
I refused to look at the world the way Avery did.
It was much easier to speak with this new warrior now that I wasn’t acting like a lovesick puppy.
“Orin,” he responded. Still no smile from him.
I quirked a brow. The men exchanged another look before Rekna gave a single nod and departed.
Orin spoke once more. “Females, follow me.”
He began to walk to the door.
We all managed to just about keep up with him and his long strides as we left the medical area. He appeared to notice and slowed his pace, which I appreciated.
Avery snapped back, “We have names, asshole.”
I closed my eyes and let out a sigh. “Here we go.”
Orin stopped and slowly turned to look down at Avery. He fixed a hard gaze on her before replying. “What would you prefer I call you,female?”
Ooh, sarcasm?A giggle bubbled up my throat but I pushed it down. I liked this guy. Things might get interesting.
“Avery,” she glared before looking away.
The way Avery acted left me flabbergasted, and even though I wanted her to be more courteous, I understood her default response under pressure was usually negative.
Riley chuckled and pointed to herself before speaking up. “Riley.”
Olivia smiled at him and introduced herself.
Orin gazed for a long moment at Olivia, then acknowledged each of us before striding ahead, with the rest of us hurrying to keep up once again.
I couldn’t wait to see our room. It was a dream come true to be on a spaceship like this, and now that we were safe, it felt like an exciting adventure.
The opportunity to explore the vastness of outer space was finally within my reach, and it was all new and captivating. I’d figure out the details of my future later.
It didn’t hurt that there were kind aliens that I never expected to encounter. I couldn’t help but sigh as I thought about one particularly handsome warrior.
Prior to entering the shuttle on that planet, I had already been inexplicably drawn to the leader of our group of rescuers. Thinking of him continued to stir something inside me, a pull that was difficult to explain and completely new to me.
Avery interrupted my thoughts.
“How long will it take to return home? I have people that will be looking for me,” she asked the warrior as we walked down the hall.
Orin gave Avery a squinted gaze. “I haven’t been to Terran space. The length of the journey is unknown to me.” His voice had a tautness to it as he spoke. “The Captain will see that you are to be resettled soon, I am sure of it.”
Avery stopped and put her hands on her hips. “What the fuck is that even supposed to mean? You are gonna take us back to Earth’s Moon, right?” She glowered.
