“Yes, I’m alright,” I say. “I lost my boots so my feet were torn up, and I knocked my head pretty hard. Weston brought me straight to the infirmary to take care of everything.”
It seems like so long ago now that he was barreling down the steps and locking us in the infirmary. He wouldn’t speak tome, let alone look at me, but since then he’s had quite the loose tongue.
“From what I hear, that isn’t the only thing he wanted to take care of.” A single eyebrow raises and her head quirks to the side as she waits for me to answer.
“Wow, Jorn really can’t keep his mouth shut, can he?”
“So it’s true?!” She all but squeals the last words.
Blood rushes to my face and suddenly my clothes are too warm. It’s not that I want to keep things from her, I’ve just never talked to anyone about anything so personal like this before. Even though she knows because of Jorn’s inability to keep a secret, the words still catch in my throat.
“Finally!” she cries, completely ignoring my hesitancy, and my shoulders slump in relief that I didn’t upset her. “That man fell hard. We all saw it. Maybe now he’ll loosen up again. He’s been in a grumpy mood for too long.”
My chest squeezes. Stassia obviously cares about him. The entire crew does, but I feel lucky to have made such a loyal friend like her. Despite all her jokes, Stassia truly wants everyone on this ship to have the best life here that we can. I hope for her sake that if we end up here for eternity that she can find the same happiness.
“How was it? Was it amazing? You don’t have to tell me Just stay quiet if it was absolutely phenomenal.”
And there is the real Stass.
Clamping my lips closed, I stifle a giggle, and there’s only a brief pause before she can’t control herself any longer.
“I knew it! I am so happy for you. Jealous of course, because who wouldn’t want the captain in their bed?” I laugh fully, no longer afraid of hiding things from her.
“Technically, I’m in his bed,” I say, and she waves me off.
“Who it belongs to doesn’t matter as long as everyone is naked.”
I slap a hand over my mouth as an obnoxious snort erupts from my nose. Stassia grins, and my shoulders shake with laughter, but there’s a twinge of sadness in my chest. If we make it back home, who knows if I will ever see Stassia or anyone else in the crew ever again. The thought makes my stomach sink, and I know I need to focus on just enjoying whatever time I do have with them, because the future is so uncertain.
“I’m really happy you don’t hate each other anymore,” she says, her eyes softening as she reaches out and squeezes my hand. “Although hate sex could be a lot of fun.”
“Stass!” I cry, my mouth falling open as even more laughter billows from my chest. She’s laughing now too, and she weaves her arm through mine as we cross the mess to the galley line.
I realize quickly that I don’t know what Weston likes to eat, having avoided him at every meal since being here. I fill a small plate for me, enough to tide over my growling stomach and shovel it in quickly while Stassia fills me in on anything I missed in the last few days. Not much has happened. It’s mainly fun stories, but she keeps mentioning Taril, and I can’t help but wonder if something is going on between them.
On our way out, I grab a piece of fruit and a pastry before we make our way back to the main deck.
“Are you going to tell me what was going on? Why’d you leave?” she asks as we climb the stairs.
“I have a feeling that is what we’re about to talk about, but I, uh,” I trail off, wondering how much I should share right now versus letting Weston tell the crew. I decide it doesn’t really matter, because whether I tell her or he does, it won’t change what happened and how it all turned out.
“I went back to the Voyagers to steal the dust from Dane.”
Stassia gasps, her hand reaching out to grasp my forearm. “What happened? Did you get it?”
I shake my head. “No. I tried, but things didn’t go how I planned, and I uncovered how much Dane had been lying to me. I was trying to get away when he attacked me. He was going to force me to tell him where the waters are, but Weston found me.”
I was lucky he found me when he did, especially if Weston was worried that Dane no longer cared about my well being after he found out I couldn’t help him.
“Oh gods, Lennox,” she says, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. “I’m sad it didn’t work, but I’m so grateful you made it back to us.” She wraps me in a hug and squeezes tight.
Tears mist my own eyes as I squeeze her back. I was so close to never seeing any of them again. When Sig and I made the plan, I was so focused on helping everyone, I never considered that it could hurt any of them instead. I’ve never had my presence affect other people like this, different from that of my kingdom, and I am still learning how to navigate the relationships.
“Me too,” is all I say in return.
Once we’re on the quarterdeck, Stassia snags a crate in the shade and shoos me away from her. Not everyone in the collection crew has gathered yet, and I look around for Weston to find him standing alone at the helm.
“I thought you might be hungry too,” I say, holding the fruit and pastry out to him. His fingers brush mine as he takes them from me, before lifting the fruit to his mouth and taking a large bite. Juice dribbles over his lips and his tongue flicks out to catch it, and I can’t look away. My thighs squeeze together involuntarily, now knowing what kinds of things he does with that tongue.
