He should’ve known better. He hadn’t just stolen property, he’d foiled a major military strike. That came with far more severe charges than simple theft. If they’d sent his information to bounty brokers, no station in this sector would be safe. Including this one.
Getting off this station suddenly got much more complicated.
Chapter 7
Han
If she’d been on the fence about turning in Zeph before, that kiss sealed the deal. Damn, that was the hottest thing she’d ever experienced.
Was she really going to give up her early retirement for one kiss?
No, of course not! It was a combination of the kiss and the way he’d treated her over the last few days. He’d been nothing but kind, caring, and never once tried to take advantage of her. His dedication to his sister was a point in his favor also.
All that put together meant he didn’t deserve to be turned in.
This was only the second time in her career that she let someone go, and the first time she was actively helping them escape.
“If you’re sure he’s so special,” Nelsha said, “I’ll go talk to Kilso so you two can slip out.”
“I’ll owe you,” Han said, very aware of the strong smell of hibiscus and the warmth of Zeph’s face between her hands.
“We’re even for when you found Jisha at Filsin Station and talked her into coming home,” Nelsha said, then turned and strode away. She watched as Nelsha half disappeared from sight. She looked down at Zeph and rubbed her fingers over his face one last time.
“Ready?”
His eyes were a little out of focus. “Huh?”
More of the viscous fluid seeped from his cheeks. She pressed her palms in, and he let out a small moan.
“I’m touching something sexual,” she whispered. The realization that she was basically molesting the guy made her pull her hands away. “I’m sorry!”
“Felt good,” he said, purring.
No, that wasn’t right. It wasn’t his usual purr. This sound was lower, slower, and more sensual.
Instead of wiping her hands on her pants or dipping them into the cleaning cleft in the table, she rubbed them together. Just like when she rubbed it on her leg, it soaked into her skin quickly. It also made the skin of her hands tingle a little. That had happened before, but she thought it was because of the scab. Now she knew differently.
She tried very hard to keep from thinking about what the oil might feel like if rubbed on other parts of her anatomy!
“Sorry for molesting you,” she said, wiggling off his lap. “We need to go.”
“Yes, but also, no apologies," he said. He was coming out of his daze, and his rumble went back to the regular purring. “Please don’t ever be sorry about touching me.”
After she pulled her bag on her shoulder, he was quick to grab her hand the same way she’d been holding his earlier.
“We can talk about that later,” she said, delighted with his blanket permission. “First we get out of here, then we can, um, explore what’s going on between us.”
“I want, no, you’re right. Later,” he agreed even as he tightened his hold on her hand. He wasn’t hurting her, but it was clear he was scared she’d let go of him.
“This way,” she said, leading him the long way to the front door that would keep them out of sight longer. He followed, and soon they were out of the restaurant and heading back to the docks.
“We still need to buy food and medical supplies,” he said.
They’d probably be fine without the med box refills, but they would definitely run out of food soon. They could order them to be delivered to the ship, but that would take forever. Yormun Station was notoriously slow to deliver to the docks.
“Han?”
The familiar voice had her pulling up short. She turned to find a young Ugarian watching her with an excited expression.
