Norsuk

This was all wrong. The plan had been simple: snag the pod, drop it in Maneet, collect my fee. Now, I found myself saddled with a tiny, chattering female as we navigated these endless, winding tunnels.

I risked a glance at her, taking in the shock of crimson hair, skin so pale, it bordered on translucent, and a smattering of reddish-brown freckles dusting her pert little nose. But it was her eyes that drew me in, a mesmerizing shade that reminded me of the crystal-clear waters surrounding the southern archipelagos. I"d witnessed mating rituals of exotic birds less vibrant than this creature.

And that outfit! The short, red shift barely grazed her mid-thigh, leaving entirely too much smooth, creamy skin on display. Her dainty feet were encased in some sort of animal-themed coverings, though I couldn"t begin to fathom their purpose. Not that I was complaining about the view, mind you. But the ensemble left me utterly baffled.

"I"m a vet tech," she offered, as if sensing my unspoken question. "I work with animals. Oh, and I volunteer at the community garden, too. You know, growing things." She peered up at me, curiosity brightening her gaze. "What about you? What do you do?"

I grunted. "I"m a bounty hunter. A scavenger."

"Oh, self-employed then? Must be nice, being your own boss."

"I work with my brothers."

"Ah, a family business." She nodded sagely. "You enjoy working with family?"

"Only because I can"t stand people," I retorted, my tone flat. "I barely tolerate my own brothers." I shot her a pointed look, hoping she"d take the hint.

She didn"t.

"Well, I"m a total people person!" she chirped, seemingly oblivious to my growing irritation. "I just love helping customers. But hey, I hope you don"t mind me asking..." Her gaze raked over my form, lingering on my exposed skin. "I can"t help noticing that you"re covered in these amazing golden, bronzy scales. What"s the story there?"

I suppressed a sigh. "My people are called the Korgein. This is simply how we look."

"Huh. My people are called Irish," she replied, as if that explained everything.

Fate save me from her incessant prattle. I didn"t have the heart to tell her the truth—that the Irish had lost one of their own, that raiders had brought her to this forsaken planet on a one-way ticket. She wasn"t going home.

But why did I hesitate? Perhaps I didn"t want to frighten her. Or maybe, just maybe, a small part of me enjoyed the melodic cadence of her voice, the exotic lilt left behind by the translator embedded behind her delicate ear.

"Whoa, are those rocks glowing?" Her awed whisper cut through my musings.

I flicked off the work light on my comm link, plunging us into near-darkness save for the faint, eerie luminescence emanating from the stones themselves. "Traces of korun ore," I explained. "A zero-point energy conductor. Rocket fuel, essentially."

In the dim light, I caught a flicker of movement in my peripheral vision. I swung the beam toward it, but the shadows had already swallowed whatever lurked there.

"It"s not...radioactive, is it?" the female asked, sidling closer until her silk-clad shoulder brushed my arm. As if my larger frame could shield her from any harmful radiation.

An unfamiliar sensation stirred in my chest. Did I enjoy the notion of her seeking safety in my presence?

"Only mildly," I assured her. "Not enough to cause harm."

"This is seriously freaky," she breathed, huddling even closer. "Being trapped in a cave like this. Are you scared? Because I"m kind of terrified. What do we do now?"

Much to my chagrin, her ceaseless chatter grated on me less and less with each passing moment. There was something undeniably alluring about the way her words flowed like honey, each syllable a caress against my heightened senses.

"We look for a way out," I replied, my voice gruffer than I intended. "This mine was once the busiest in the galaxy. I refuse to believe there"s only one exit."

Her next move caught me entirely off guard. Slender fingers interlaced with mine, her palm pressing against my own as we walked. She glanced up at me, worry etched into her delicate features.

Despite her undeniably womanly curves—the enticing swell of her breasts, the lithe grace of her pale legs—there was an almost childlike innocence about her. An innocence that made me want to shelter her, to tuck her close and keep her safe from the darkness pressing in on all sides.

A soft skittering sound, like pebbles cascading down a slope. The telltale rasp of scales on stone. I reached instinctively for my ray blaster, cursing under my breath when my fingers closed on empty air. I hadn"t anticipated needing it for such a brief jaunt to the planet"s surface. Instead, I drew the wicked-looking knife sheathed at the small of my back, the fang-shaped blade glinting in the wan light.

The female plastered herself against me, trembling like a leaf. "Is s-something in here with us?"

Fighting with her draped over me like a second skin would prove challenging, to say the least. Though I had to admit, the press of her soft curves against my frame was not entirely unpleasant.

Gently but firmly, I eased her aside. "Stay put."

Narrowing the beam of my comm light to a lance, I searched the tunnel walls for any signs of threat. The surface was pockmarked with alcoves and deep furrows, each a potential hiding spot for whatever stalked us. Mounds of rubble littered the ground, the detritus of a mine long abandoned.

But nothing I illuminated seemed large enough to pose a true danger. Relatively satisfied, I re-sheathed the blade, though my senses remained on high alert.

We needed to reach the surface. To get to my ship. The urgency of our situation had me quickening my pace, the soles of my boots crunching on loose gravel and debris.

The shaft stretched onward, a relatively straight path that angled ever-so-slightly downward. No branching tunnels. No signs of machinery or tools. How long had it been since work ceased here? Since before Reazus Prime became a glorified prison colony?

Lost in my own musings, it took me a moment to register the uncharacteristic silence at my back. The absence of a certain human. I whirled, my heart leaping into my throat, to find her several paces behind. Limping.

"I"m coming," she called, her voice strained. "Don"t worry, I"ll catch up. I"m not slowing you down too much, am I?"

"What"s wrong?" I demanded, closing the distance between us in three long strides. I aimed the light at her feet and barely suppressed a wince.

Her ridiculous animal foot covers were in tatters, one missing an ear entirely while the other had lost its button eyes. But it was the glimpse of bare skin through the shredded soles that had me swearing under my breath.

"My bunny slippers aren"t exactly made for extended spelunking," she said with a rueful shrug.

Without a word, I swept her into my arms, cradling her slight weight against my chest as if she were made of spun glass. She let out a startled little gasp, her fingers curling reflexively into the fabric of my shirt.

"Let"s find a place to set you down," I murmured. "I need to examine your feet."

"It"s nothing," she insisted, even as I caught sight of one small, pale foot poking through what remained of her slipper. "Just a poor wardrobe choice on my part."

Spotting a boulder of suitable height, I deposited her on top of it and reached for her ankle. The slipper fell apart in my grasp. In the harsh glare of the comm light, I saw mottled bruises marring her delicate skin.

Gently, I probed the injury with my fingertips. "Does this hurt?"

She squirmed beneath my touch, her breathing ragged and uneven. "A-A little," she managed. "Um. Maybe check the other one?"

I complied, finding similar contusions. Her foot was cold to the touch as I searched for any other signs of injury.

Her breathing grew more labored, her chest rising and falling rapidly. She wriggled atop her makeshift seat, seemingly unable to keep still.

"Do you think you can—" I began, but she cut me off before I finished.

"Yes!" she blurted, her voice breathy and eager. "Whatever you want."

I glanced up, taking in the sight of her parted lips, the heavy-lidded eyes framed by impossibly long lashes, the way her alabaster skin flushed a delicate pink. She panted softly, her breasts straining against the thin fabric of her shift with each inhalation.

Oh.

Clearing my throat, I tried again. "Walk. Do you think you can walk?"

"How far?" she asked, the question emerging as little more than a whisper.

There was no mistaking the heat in her gaze, the pull of her body language. Arousal. And damn if her reaction hadn't triggered one of my own. I felt my cock stirring to life, straining against the confines of my trousers. Now I understood why human females were so highly sought after.

But we had no time for such diversions. Without a word, I scooped her back into my arms. She grunted softly, the sound morphing into a breathy sigh as she nestled against my chest.

I had to remain focused, to ignore the temptation she presented.

I carried her down the tunnel, my strides long and purposeful.

Her hand drifted to my chest, fingertips grazing my skin through the thin material of my shirt. Then, as if realizing what she"d done, she snatched it away, her palm hovering an inch above the surface as if scalded.

"Um. We haven"t properly introduced ourselves," she murmured, her tone almost sheepish. "But seeing as you"re, uh, carrying me and all...I"m Agatha."

"Agatha?" I parroted, a note of disdain creeping into my voice. I needed to maintain a degree of aloofness, to keep her allure at bay. "What kind of name is that? Sounds like the pinnacle of suffering. First agony, then just when you think you can"t take anymore...Agatha."

She scowled up at me, green eyes flashing. "Oh, like you"re one to talk. What"s your name then?"

"Norsuk," I grunted.

"Of course it ends in "suck'," she shot back, a smirk tugging at the corner of her lush mouth.

Up ahead, the tunnel branched at last. To the right, I spied the yawning mouth of a larger chamber.

Thank the gods. I was beyond done with this nonsense.