had the sudden urge to break the rules. Just little ones. She edged closer and took the flask. Their fingers touched and she almost leaped back. But she held her ground, brought the flask to her lips, and took a gulp. Fire filled her mouth, burning down her throat. She choked, squeezed her eyes shut, waited for the pain to stop.
Had he poisoned her?
Dr. Yang would be very upset if she’d allowed herself to be poisoned. That wasn’t part of the plan. Not that she knew of, anyway.
“You’ve killed me,” she wheezed.
She heard a chuckle.
He was laughing at her pain? But then the pain was receding, and she opened her eyes. Maybe she wasn’t going to die after all. She looked at him curiously, then handed the flask back. He took a deep swallow—so, not poison—and then held it out to her again, one eyebrow raised in challenge.
She took it slowly, raised it to her mouth and swallowed. Not so bad this time, and she smiled. “What is it?”
“Whiskey. Homemade.”
She took another sip.
“Hey, be careful with that stuff. It will knock you out if you drink too much too fast.”
She handed back the flask and perched on the end of the bed—she was feeling a little unsteady now. From here, though, she could safely watch him. She wanted to make the most of this meeting. “Who are you?”
“Milo.”
“I saw you this morning, Milo.”
“I know,” he said. “I caught you staring.”
“You’re very beautiful.”
He laughed. “You’re not so bad yourself.” He studied her, his head cocked to one side, a frown between his eyes. “You look…familiar. Have we met before? On Earth perhaps?”
“I’ve never been to Earth.”
“Everyone’s been to Earth. Or rather comes from Earth.”
“Not me. I was born on the Trakis Four.”
“Really?” He didn’t sound as though he believed her. “So what did you do to get locked up down here?”
Nothing! The tips of her ears burned. “You don’t like my room?”
“Hell, this isn’t a room. It’s a cell. A prison, where they lock bad people up so they can’t leave.”
“Except I’m not bad. And I didn’t do anything wrong.” If she said it enough, she might convince herself. She waved a hand around her room. “And this is for my protection.” Of course it is.
“Protection against what?”
She gritted her teeth. “I don’t know.”
He shook his head again. “You are one strange lady.”
“I am?”
“Oh yeah. What’s your name, strange lady?”
“I’m Destiny.”
“Are you indeed? Pretty name. Do you tell all the men you meet that they’re beautiful?”
“You’re the first man I’ve met. Though I did see others on the trip from the ship this morning. But none looked like you.”
He grinned. “I’m one of a kind, babe.”
“Babe?”
“It’s an…endearment. Has no one ever called you babe before?”
She couldn’t imagine Dr. Yang calling her anything but Destiny. “No. But I like it.”
He was watching her again, brows drawn together as though she wasn’t behaving as expected. She had no idea what was expected. How could she? But she wanted him to like her. Maybe she should try to explain. “You’re only the second person I’ve ever talked to in my life.”
His eyes widened. They were beautiful eyes, silver rimmed with black, and his lashes were long. “Who’s the first?” he said.
“Dr. Yang.”
“Is that the woman you were with before?” When she nodded, he said, “Is she the one who locked you up down here? For your own protection?”
“She is.” The way he’d said it, though, it sounded all wrong, and the need to defend her guardian surged within her. “Dr. Yang has always taken care of me.”
“What about your mother and father? Were they crew on the Trakis Four?”
“I don’t know.” A wave of sadness washed over her. She’d learned about normal family units in her schooling, but she had no clue what had happened to her parents. Or why they’d never taken care of her. Dr. Yang said it wasn’t important.
“How old are you?” Milo asked.
Good, something she could easily answer. “I was twenty-six when I went into cryo.” She studied him, trying to guess his age, but all she could gauge was that he wasn’t elderly. “How old are you?”
“I’m…” An expression she couldn’t decipher flashed across his face. “A little older than that.”
Though he didn’t look old, there was a sense of age about him, as though he’d done things and seen things she couldn’t even imagine. She’d bet he had experienced life, had climbed mountains, swum, flown. Made love. At the thought a shiver ran through her. She sighed. The