I picked up the bags and pointedly turned away from them. “I’m leaving now.”
“Have a safe trip, Captain!” Mai called from the sidelines.
“Bye, Cap.” Taylor waggled her eyebrows at me. “Be safe in all ways.”
Sage slapped her arm. “You’re bad.” Waving a hand at me, she motioned toward the ship. “I can’t hug you again or I’ll start crying. So, get going and come back to us.”
“Of course.” I nodded and draped an arm around her one last time, despite her protests. I whispered to her, “Love you.”
I felt a single tear against my neck before she swiped the rest away. “Love you too.”
With no more to say, I picked up the bags that weighed a ton.What the heck did Taylor pack in here?I trekked up the ship’s platform and through the lower hatch.
The commander waited with his arms crossed, his knee bent and one booted foot against the wall. He shot me a withering look. “Ready now?” He eyed my bags.
I hitched them higher in my arms. “Yes.”
For a moment his arms extended as if he were going to take the bags from me, then he balled his hands into fists and whirled away. “Then, let’s go.”
“Fine by me.” I rolled my eyes. Chivalry had died a long time ago on Earth, and that was when our population wasn’t ninety-percent female. I didn’t need anyone to save me, let alone some cranky alien.
“Hurry it up,” he barked. His long legs ate up the distance.
I had to take two steps for every one of his. “You know…” I tightened my grip on the bags, fighting the urge to toss them at his head. “If you’re going to be an asshat, this is going to be a long trip.”
He snorted as he led the way to the bridge. Well, it was more like a cockpit with just two seats and a screen. But the panel in front housed a wide variety of controls that I was itching to learn. “Sit there,” he pointed to the co-pilot’s chair, “strap in, and don’t touch anything.”
“Might I remind you, Iama captain.” I dropped the bags into a storage compartment and plopped in the chair.
He strapped into the pilot’s seat and swept his hands over the console. “And mightIremindyouthat I am in charge of this mission.”
“What gave you that idea?” A deep, sardonic laugh bubbled from my chest. “This is a joint mission. Technically, the first between our species.” I placed my fists above the control panel, daring him to say something. “We’re equals.”
His eyes shot daggers at me. “And do you know how to fly this ship, little captain?”
I flicked my gaze to his hands, then to the controls, and back again. “Not yet. But give me a few hours, and I will.”
“Will you now?” The big jerk began the takeoff sequence with rapid movements.
I rose to his challenge, watching every move. No matter if a flipping meteor struck us, the Versaken attacked us, or a star imploded next to us, I was not taking my eyes off the controls. “Yes,” I hissed between my teeth, “I will.”
