Born of Ice

The words hit her like a sledgehammer. Devyn had a son? “His son lives with his mother?”


“I’m not at liberty to comment on Master Omari or his whereabouts. You’ll have to ask Devyn about him.”

“Okay, but can I at least ask if the captain is married?”

“No.”

That wasn’t exactly helpful, and she had a feeling Vik liked being difficult. “No he’s not married, or no I can’t ask about it?”

He laughed before he answered. “He’s not married.”

“Thanks, Vik.” Alix went over to the player to turn it on while her thoughts stayed on the fact that Devyn was a father. Every time she turned around he was another surprise.

Just who was this man she was going to have to send to jail? How old was his son? She didn’t want to leave someone without their father. While hers had sucked, at least he’d been there, and to hurt a kid . . .

Stop it. It doesn’t matter.

Think of Tempest. She was barely more than a child herself, and the last thing Alix wanted was to see her sister raped by a madman.

You will hand him in and never think about it again.





CHAPTER 3


Alix grunted as she tried to get enough torque to loosen the screw on the panel she was attempting to open. Why couldn’t she get this stupid thing to budge?

Out of nowhere, Devyn appeared.

“Need a hand?”

She started to turn him down, but he took the wrench from her hand and popped the panel open with a frustrating ease that disgusted her. Oh, to have one minute of that strength . . .

“Thanks, Captain.”

“You know you can call me Devyn. We’re not exactly formal around here.”

She didn’t comment as she stuck her head into the opening to look at the pipe she’d been eyeing on their schematics. Since she was trying to frame the man, she really didn’t want to get that familiar with him.

Devyn sighed at her cold aloofness. He really didn’t understand her. Sometimes she looked at him as if she were imagining him naked and other times, she was absolutely frigid. It was like she was trying to keep some kind of wall between them. And for some reason that bothered him.

His gaze dropped down and went straight to her shapely ass as she strained to reach something inside. Heat surged straight to his cock, which hardened instantly at the prospect of what he wanted to do to her.

Damn, I need to get laid.

Because right now all he could think of was stripping her clothes off and tasting every inch of her lithe body. What would she taste like?

Was she a screamer or more calm?

She pulled back to look at him.

He brought his gaze up to her face and had to stifle a smile as she blushed.

“We have a problem. There’s a defect in two gaskets that are causing the radiation leak. We need to replace them.”

Great. He looked up at the camera where Vik kept watch on the ship. “Vik?”

“Yes, my lord and tormentor?”

“Do we have any spare gaskets for the reflectors?”

“No.”

“Any particular reason why not?”

“Sway’s an idiot who didn’t order them when we used up the last batch.”

“Isn’t that your job?”

“No. I’m the sub-idiot. Sway’s head idiot because the company refuses to deal with mechas. Since I’m not organic, they think I can’t pay.”

“Thanks, Vik.”

“Ever my pleasure to irritate you, sir.”

Devyn looked at Alix. “And the sarcasm just keeps on coming without end. Makes me proud. Really.” He sobered. “Is it something that can wait?”

“Depends on how much radiation you mind being exposed to. The levels are class two.”

He arched a brow as the doctor in him kicked in. “We don’t want to have any three-headed children.”

“I’d like to do without it and keep my hair, too.”

A smile toyed at the edges of his lips. “Vik? Where’s the closest stop?”

Vik let out a dramatic sigh. “Not like you couldn’t run a search for yourself, is it?”

“Just run the damn search.”

“There’s one on Miremba II. A couple of hours from here.”

He growled at the aggravation. Miremba IV was owned by the Gourish, but II . . . “That’s Rit territory, isn’t it?”

“Last I looked.”

Devyn cursed.

Alix was confused by his anger. “What’s wrong with the Rits?” Other than the fact that Merjack, the Ritadarion Chief Minister of Justice, wanted to torture and kill him.

“Bad family history with the Rits. I try to stay out of their territory if I can . . . Vik? Is there anyplace else?”

“Don’t you think by now that I’ve learned how to read a map? If there had been another place to go, I would have suggested it. Yes, there are other places, several days from here. But that wasn’t what you asked me.”

Devyn let out another feral growl. “Set the course and stay alert.”

“Yes, Captain Courageous.”