BloodandPassion Read Free Page A

inch of space between them as Rish docked at the sky bar.
    “I’m okay,” she said, forcing her scowl into a smile. “Just
thinking.”
    “I think you think too much,” Mikal said as he took her hand
and guided her to the porthole, which opened with a hiss instead of the groan
her ship made.
    Biting her lip, she dropped into the crowded lobby of the
oxygen-rich bar and wobbled. Pain from her left hip radiated up and down her
leg, causing her to grit her teeth to prevent cursing in front of the hostess,
a ring-eyed Blavedian. Blavedians were a super-sexual race and the hostess
sported a skirt so low on her hips that if Xyla had worn it, the material
wouldn’t have covered her injury let alone her small triangle of blonde pubic
hair.
    A whoosh and Mikal and Rish landed on either side of her.
The hostess’s blue-ringed eyes widened and a smile stretched her unnaturally
plump lips. “Mikal. Rish. Welcome.” She offered them the palms of her
well-manicured hands. For a Blavedian, this was an intimate greeting between
lovers.
    As if of one mind, the men offered Xyla their arms, giving
the hostess a polite nod only. Xyla watched as the hostess stepped back behind
the counter, her intimate smile changing to one of polite interest.
    Before taking their arms, Xyla hesitated. Unlike the men,
she didn’t know her own mind. On the one hand, her injury and the meds made her
unsteady on her feet, so taking their arms would be practical if not completely
necessary. On the other hand, she was put off that Rish and Mikal had brought
her to a bar where a current or past lover worked.
    Even if this wasn’t a real date and they were only worried
about providing oxygen to help her heal, single Ivec men did not knowingly
bring a woman they accompanied in contact with past or present lovers. Not if
they wanted to show her respect. Xyla had learned that much about Ivec behavior
in social studies.
    “We should go,” Rish said in a low voice.
    Mikal gave a single nod. “Our apologies, Xyla. This woman,
Teon, is in our past. We did not know she works here.”
    Rish tapped the implant in his wrist to open the port to his
ship, but Xyla laid her hand over his, stopping him from boarding. She met his
gaze and saw the regret there. The hostess was an accident, a mistake.
    “Forgiven,” she said softly as she took their arms. “Let’s
stay. I need oxygen more than I need my pride.”
    The hostess of the sky bar led them through a maze of
cloud-covered tables, cutting through the fog that glided like smoke across the
white marble floor. They slid into a low booth.
    Xyla admired the perfect view of the evening sky, which looked
like a bright watercolor painting, before an oxygen-enriched cloud billowed
from the ceiling to engulf them in moist air, blocking out their surroundings.
She inhaled deeply, wanting to reap the benefit of the cloud combining with the
medication, working to knit the damaged muscle and skin on her hip. Almost
immediately, she could feel her body relax. The last of the pain in her hip
subsided.
    A silver mechanical bird winged into their cloud and chirped
a one-note greeting, its beady black eyes whirring as it matched each of their
identities with their appearance.
    “Three long lives on me, please,” Mikal said to the bird,
then turned to Xyla and asked, “Celestial all right with you?”
    She clenched her teeth to stop the gasp that tried to
escape. Produced and distributed by Ivecs, Celestial was the galaxies’ most
expensive, sought-after long-life drink. It had the ability to extend a
person’s lifespan for dozens of years. It was rumored that whatever was in the
drinks was the secret to the Ivec race’s long lifespan. A human commoner like
her could work a lifetime and not earn enough credit to buy a watered-down
shot, let alone a bottle. She couldn’t let him spend that kind of credit on
her. “I’ll just have whatever the house long life is.”
    Rish frowned at her before saying, “We’ll have