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“Not yet. Isabelle.” She stretched out a hand.
Orion didn't take it, instead looking back at the faltering smile on her face. “That girlsaved me and one of our best pilots from an attack on the way here, Isabelle. I suggest you fuck off and pray I don’t catch you talking shit again.”
Her flinch as she began backing away barely registered; Orion’s attention was already back on the sim rig. Ripping off the monitoring electrodes on her temples, Kaia punched out and climbed out of the cockpit.
“Tough run, princess?” Orion leaned over the railing, hands dangling off the edge. She looked surprised for a moment as she spotted him, then pivoted in his direction.
She looked incensed at the nickname, of course, but her shoulders slumped when her eyes flicked to the cut on his neck. “Yeah, I guess. About that. I… Orion, I’m…”
“Sorry?”
No. The flash in her eyes told him his little princess wasn’t sorry at all. The fake-sheepish look she gave him almost made him laugh. She hadn’t realized yet that he’d fucking loved getting that side of her. It proved she was ready to play.
He bit back a knowing smirk as she offered him a thin smile and nodded. “Yeah…”
Liar.
“How’s it feeling?” she asked.
“Fine. You done?”
“Would you care if I wasn’t?”
“No. Come on. I’m showing you something.”
Kaia pushed her sweaty hair from her face only to have the curls fall back in front of her eyes moments later. When she came closer and wrapped her hands around the railing on either side of his elbows, the scent of her adrenaline pulled at him to lean forward.
“Can I shower first?” she asked.
“I’d rather you not,” he said seriously.
“Eww.” Kaia wrinkled her nose, but didn’t argue as he steered her from the rig and toward an elevator.
CHAPTER44
KAIA
Kaia had never been in an elevator. It just wasn’t a thing, either where she grew up on Artega Seven or on Riker 109, which relied purely on creaky iron staircases. So when she followed Orion into the cramped smooth-walled box, she was apprehensive.
“Why does it have mirrors?” Having her reflection stare back at her from three sides was startling.
He shrugged, sucking away the droplets of blood he’d donated to authenticate their access. “Tradition, I think. Old Earth elevators had them.”
The contrast between them, now that they were both reflected in a mirror, was startling. It wasn’t just the fact that he was a 6’7” giant looming over her, or that he looked perfectly put together in his synthleather outfit, whereas she was disheveled and sweaty in a pair of shorts and a wrinkled singlet. It was their postures. Orion’s back was straight, shoulders back and relaxed, chin up high. He looked at ease in his own skin.
By contrast, the Kaia in the reflection was hunched in on herself. She was already small next to him, but the way she huddled made her look and feel even smaller. She pushed her shoulders back, watching the way her spine straightened and brought her up a couple of inches. It felt weird at first—like she was trying too hard, pushing her chest forward in that awkward way the whores on Riker 109 used to do. It created a curve in her lower back, jutting her butt out more than she was comfortable with.
Noticing Orion’s amusement in the reflection, Kaia cleared her throat and turned to face the elevator door, which was already sliding shut.
She bent her knees and sucked in a breath when her stomach swooped with a falling sensation. She counterbalanced against the slight rocking beneath her feet.
“Relax.” Orion put a hand on her waist. “We’re going up.”
About half a minute later, another tingly swoop marked their arrival as the capsule came to a halt. If Orion hadn’t told her, Kaia would have no idea if they’d gone up, down, or sideways. But once the doors slid open and she stepped out, it was obvious. There was nothing above and around them but endless space. She’d gotten used to the small spaces and cabins ofColossaland wasn’t prepared for the sudden view.
“Oh!” she gasped, reaching for something to stabilize her as her head spun. The first thing her hand found was Orion’s back in front of her. His bulk shielded her view from the front, but not for long as he shifted sideways, nudging her past him with a palm on the small of her back.
The space was even more cramped than the elevator. His chest was flat against her back as they maneuvered into a comfortable position. Well, “comfortable” was optimistic. No part of having herself pressed against him like that was comfortable.
