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Caryn jumped at the sound of his booming voice, nearly toppling the pan of hot oil.
Onnika’s spine straightened and her pulse jumped into hyper drive. “I-uh, I mean, we were just…well, we thought that…Caryn can cook, so…as a gesture…we, um...” What the hell had happened to her puppet master skills? She wasn’t used to being tongue-tied. Even Caryn looked at her with cockeyed confusion.
To Onnika’s utter surprise, Lear came to her rescue. “What does it look like? I’m putting them to work. It’s the least they can do, don’t you think?”
“So then, why does it appear as thoughyou’rethe one being worked?”
“Onnika cut her hand,” Lear informed him.
As if needing to provide proof of her injury, Onnika raised her poorly bandaged finger.
Lear continued, “I’m merely being polite. You should try it sometime.”
Aidan’s tone darkened further. “Is that a royal decree?” It suddenly felt as if an ice storm had found its way into the galley. The two males stared each other down. Onnika got the impression there was some deeper issue between the two she couldn’t yet decipher.
To Onnika, Caryn mouthed,What is wrong with you?
Onnika mouthed back,I don’t know.She really did need to get it together if she had any hope of grasping control over their situation. Still, her heart hammered in her chest, and a light sheen of perspiration glistened over her skin. Was her body warning her to be extra cautious around this man? There was still a chance he’d change his mind and cut their lives short, just because he could.
Lear ended the standoff and resumed chopping. “Would it make any difference if it was?”
“Not a bit.” Aidan’s hostile gaze transferred to Onnika. Crossing to her in two steps, he grasped her by the wrist, though his hold wasn’t as harsh as she’d anticipated. Then he proceeded to unwrap her makeshift bandage. Tone dripping with sarcasm, he intoned, “Oh my, what a deep laceration. Amazing you didn’t bleed out. We must get you to the infirmary at once.”
“Not necessary,” she rushed out. “It’s not that bad. I’ll be fine.”
“I insist. It seems space is teeming with infectious organisms.”
Why did that sound like an insult directed at her?
“It would only bepolite,” he droned on. Still holding her by the wrist, he tugged her out of the galley and through the mess hall, not letting go until he planted her on a bench in the infirmary. Without a word, he turned away and began shuffling through drawers.
Her nerves still sizzled, but thankfully it didn’t show in her voice this time. “You didn’t really bring me here to tend to my wound. Why don’t you just say what you want to say to me?”
He turned to her holding a vial of clear liquid and placed it on the counter beside her.
She eyed it suspiciously. “What is that?”
He didn’t answer. From another nearby drawer, he retrieved a cotton swab and a small bandage. Then he set a chair in front of her and sat, positioning himself so that her knees were tucked between his. She found his closeness unnerving.
After whetting the swab with the vial’s mysterious liquid, he reached for her hand.
She pulled it back, protectively cradling it to her chest.
He glared at her. “Relax. I’m just disinfecting it.”
After gleaning his intent and finding it benign, she allowed him to claim her hand. He angled her palm up so that he could more closely examine the small wound, which had already stopped bleeding due to her naturally swift healing. His skin felt warm against hers. For some reason, her pulse spiked again.
“You’re flirting with Lear, as if he has any say about what happens to you.”
“What? No, I wasn’t.”
“He might be adashing prince, but he has no power here.”
How much of her conversation with Lear had he overheard? “I wasn’t flirting.”
He dabbed at her cut. It stung a bit, but not too badly. Still, she winced. He glanced up, and those molten whiskey eyes captured hers for a moment. Outwardly, he didn’t appear as angry as before, but whatever emotion stared back at her, she couldn’t say. It felt both cold and warm at the same time. It made little sense.
Oddly flustered, she broke eye contact and he carried on cleaning her wound, taking his time. Once he finished, he put the cotton aside and picked up the bandage, but before placing it over her wound, he first blew a light stream of air over it.
