never gambled before,” she said, settling back into her seat. “There were always games running on payday at the mines, but it always seemed like a waste of money.”
“It is,” he agreed, “but there’s nothing wrong with us doing a little frivolous spending every now and then.” He swept loose strands of her hair back behind her ear. “Who knows? Maybe you’ll be my lucky charm, and we’ll hit it big.”
She grinned at that image. Leaning closer and dropping her voice, she asked, “Are you going to rub me all over like a lucky rabbit’s foot?”
His eyes flashed. “I just might.”
Smiling like a fool, she glanced away and out the window as the ship began to move. The motion was smooth until it launched from the docking station when the ship bounced slightly and then veered off away from the much larger battleship. As their transport gained distance from the battleship, a giant floating construction platform came into view. “What is that?”
He looked around her to see. “It’s the new skyport. It’s phase one in the colonization plan. They need a skyport to dock supply and personnel ships. Once the skyport is finished, they’ll be able to start working on the infrastructure for the base down on the planet’s surface.”
“Where?”
“They haven’t made their final selection yet. There’s a shortlist of sites.” He gestured for her to hand over his tablet. After tapping on the screen for a few seconds, he showed her the list of sites being proposed. “This was the latest operation bulletin. Blue Shores seems like the most popular spot.”
“I can see why,” she murmured, looking at the beautiful images of blue sand beaches and shimmering water. “Have you ever been there?”
“Once,” he said, “for Venom’s wedding to Dizzy. I only had a few hours of downtime, but it was a very peaceful place. The people there are incredibly friendly.”
“I’ve heard the food is amazing.” She had seen a brochure for Blue Shores vacations years ago. It was the sort of thing that seemed like an impossible dream at the time. Mountain people didn’t go on vacations, especially not to expensive seaside resorts.
“It was pretty good,” he agreed. “The fish is so fresh, and they use lots of interesting spices and sauces.” He brushed his fingers over the back of her hand. “You want to go?”
She glanced over at him in surprise. “What? Like...today?”
He shook his head. “You can’t travel off the Valiant or her sister ships until you’ve finished the probationary period and we’ve signed our final agreements. But, maybe next month? If I can get the time off?”
“Are you serious? Yes! Of course!” She didn’t even try to contain her excitement as she leaned over and kissed him. Glad they were alone in their row, she let her lips linger on his before reluctantly pulling away. A sudden thought struck her. “Can I have a bathing suit?”
“Yes. Definitely,” he said, his voice husky. “A very small one. With ties. For easy access.”
“You’ll have to come shopping with me.”
“Oh, I will definitely be helping you in the fitting rooms.”
She blushed. “You’ll get us kicked out of the shop.”
“Probably,” he agreed before sneaking in another kiss.
“I’ve never had a bathing suit,” she admitted as she snuggled in close to his side. “I swam all the time as a kid, but I either did it completely naked when I was little or in old shorts and a cutoff shirt when I got older. I always wanted one, though. A red one or a green one.”
“Sounds like we’re buying two bathing suits,” he murmured before kissing her temple. “Red and green and very skimpy.”
Content to be cuddled up against him, she enjoyed the rest of the flight as he tapped away at his tablet and made design changes to the device he had imagined. As they neared the Mercy, he set aside his tablet and gestured for her to look out the window. When she did, she gasped at the incredible sight before her.
Calyx, her home planet, looked impossibly huge and bright. There were swirls of white obscuring some of the land masses and oceans. Never had she imagined that she would see something so incredible.
That’s where I lived. That’s where I was born. And now I’m up here in space.
“What do you think?” he asked gently.
“It’s wonderful.”
He smiled tenderly and held her hand as she stared out the window, her face pressed up close to the glass like a curious child. When one of the three moons came into