Eventually, he would move them back to the bunk to get much needed sleep. For now, though, he wanted to enjoy holding her. He wanted to imprint the feel of her body and memorize the slow, steady way she breathed when relaxed. He didn’t know how this adventure of theirs was going to end. For all he knew, this might be the only time he was ever this close to her. If it was, he damn sure wasn’t going to waste it.
Chapter Fifteen
Shivering, Maisie twisted her soaking wet hair and squeezed the water from the strands. The chill in the bathroom had only been barely blunted by the steaming hot spray, and she stepped quickly under the drying vent. She wrinkled her nose at the slightly musty scent of the air and started rubbing her hands over her skin to hasten the drying process.
The accommodations on the waste ship weren’t the best, but they definitely weren’t the worst either. Terror had taken it upon himself to clean a stall, sink and one shower for them. The water was potable, if a bit metallic in taste. Sure, the heating was shot, and it was uncomfortably cold at times, but the company was nice.
She smiled secretly at the memory of the heated kisses they had shared only hours earlier. All those nights dreaming of what it would be like to kiss Terror hadn’t even compared to reality. Even now, her heart skipped a few beats as she remembered the feel of his big, strong hands moving over her body and his tongue darting against hers.
Finally dry enough to get dressed, she stepped out of the shower stall and made her way to the bench where a jumpsuit waited. Terror had been busy while she had been sleeping. She had woken up earlier to find a stack of clean clothing and sneakers on the table. They looked like they had come from the crew’s supplies, and she didn’t ask how he had gotten his hands on them. It was important that they blend in and go unnoticed when and they disembarked in a few short hours. If he had to steal to keep them alive, so be it.
The uncertainty of what awaited them once they left the ship frustrated her. There had been a moment earlier, when they were kissing and he was holding her close, where she had been sure that he was about to tumble her into bed. She would have let him. Happily. Enthusiastically.
But that moment had evaporated like the steam in this bathroom.
She wiped her hand across the mirror, clearing away a streak for a better look at herself. The fluids, vitamins and medication had vastly improved her physical state. It would take a month or two of proper meals, sleep and exercise to get back to her usual self, but this was a good start.
As she gazed at her reflection, she couldn’t help but wonder what Terror saw when he looked at her. After the heated kisses they shared and his appreciative hands roaming her body, she suspected he saw her the same way she saw him. Even now, standing here shivering from the chill, heat blossomed low in her belly at the memory of his hands on her skin. She touched her mouth, feeling the phantom slide of his lips on hers.
She nearly wept at the idea that their brief kisses might be the one and only experience she would ever share with him. After they disembarked, the odds they would be apprehended were high. Even if they managed to make it off the ship and to the safe house, they wouldn’t be able to spend much time in one place. They would need to flee to their next destination, maybe even split up and go separate ways to avoid being captured or killed.
This could be it. My only chance. Our only chance.
For so long, she had been denied the freedom to make her own choices, but no longer.
Maisie slipped into the coveralls but didn’t bother with the underwear, socks or shoes. She left the bathroom and walked back to their bunk room. Because the deck was closed due to the broken heating system, the corridor was lit only by the dim emergency lighting. There weren’t supposed to be any crew members down here, but she kept her guard up, just in case.
When she reached their bunk, she glanced left and right, making sure the hallway was still empty, and