Donaldson took another half-step closer. "I could give you a private tour if you'd like. I know all of the interesting spots on Eurus."

The smile that crossed her face was automatic. It took her brain approximately two seconds to review and dismiss all possible excuses for getting away. Not going to get out of this one.

"A tour would be wonderful. I will apologize in advance if I bow out early. I'm expecting sleep to overtake me soon."

"Of course. This way."

They moved slowly in the same direction Haylie had been heading originally. At first they walked in silence moving from the living area to the main hub of the station.

Haylie could feel a change in the air, a type of energy starting to build. Voices drifted to 24 her from down the hall, and people began to drift past them. Some more than a little drunk. When two large Briel men walked by, Haylie watched Donaldson's demeanor change. He kept his eyes locked on them until they pa.s.sed by. Finally, he cleared his throat and began to speak.

"The colony is very much its own world as we are so far from Earth. While the majority of us are human, there are enough Briel living here for it to have an impact on how we do things. They tend to be less social than humans, but that hasn't been too hard to deal with. Here we go. This room on your right is your new security office."

Haylie stopped in front of the gla.s.s doors. The room was dark, with only a few background lights turned on. The large computer desk sat in the middle, a bit out of place in the spa.r.s.ely decorated room. She pulled the schematics up in her mind and knew she would be close to both the med bay as well as what was listed as a recreation area.

"Don't worry about the fishbowl feeling. You can ask the computer to turn on the privacy tinting when the need arises. You never know what may happen when you are interrogating someone."

He seemed a bit too pleased with that particular feature. "Are there many crimes that would need that type of interrogation?"

Donaldson didn't answer at first. His eyes searched her face, his lips pursed and he c.o.c.ked an eyebrow.

"Some of the miners can be a bit on the questionable side, especially those who travel from some of the other human outposts. It can take some convincing on the part of our security force to find a clear answer to our questions. I hope that type of investigation won't prove difficult for you. I must say, I hesitated when they told me my new security chief would be a woman."

Now there was some archaic thinking. "I can a.s.sure you, I am a highly effective investigator."

"Of course, of course. Shall we continue?"

The touch of his hand on the small of her back made her skin crawl. Haylie walked a step or two faster to break the contact. They stopped again when they reached the adjoining corridor. Because of the hour, many people were milling around. A loud cheer emanated from what looked like a bar to their right. The smell of food floated in the air, eliciting a growl from her stomach. The energy in the air had increased and Haylie enjoyed the sudden rush of excitement. This is what had been missing earlier, what she'd grown accustom to on Luna. The pulse of life generated by colony living.

"We're moving into the center of the complex. The medical facility is down the corridor on your left. I believe your friend is there now, is she not?"

This guy seemed to know everything. "Umm, yes. There was an emergency."

"A mining accident. Something to do with a damaged environmental suit. We are very lucky that Dr. Fergus is here. I hate to say it but I never fully trusted the Briel doctors. I hope I'll have a chance to meet her soon."

25.

And the first chance she had, Haylie was going to pull this guy's psych record.

Something she regretted not doing sooner.

"And what is this way?" Haylie said and turned to face the opposite direction, knowing full well what was there.

She had to get out of this tour now.

"That way leads to the shuttle bays, engineering facility and labs. Straight ahead is our recreation area."

"Excellent. I think I may head that way. I'm quite hungry."

"Why don't I join you? I know several of the restaurants."

"Thank you. That's wonderful of you to offer. But perhaps I will pa.s.s for tonight. I really just wanted to find something light to eat and head back to my room to sleep. It really has been an exhausting journey." She knew she spoke too quickly, but the words tripped out of her.

His faced darkened, but only for a moment.

"Of course. Very inconsiderate of me. Perhaps we can pick this up tomorrow."

"That would very nice. Thank you."

Donaldson pursed his lips a moment and tapped his finger across them. His gaze traveled from her face down her bare neck and back up. "If memory serves, and it usually does, there is a Briel restaurant that is quite good. Plants cooked with Briel spices and such. You should try that."

Haylie would have agreed to eat Eurus dust to escape their conversation at that point. "That sounds wonderful. Straight down this hall?" Actually straight down the hall and to the right according to her memory of the station schematics.

"Yes. We call it the market, but it's more of a bazaar. Quite unusual for an Earth colony. But we like to do things differently around here. "

"Thank you so much, Administrator."

Haylie began to turn away, when Donaldson's voice stopped her cold.

"Please, call me Sean."

Her voice froze, so she turned and nodded instead.

"Excellent. Let's continue this tomorrow. Your office, oh-nine-hundred hours."

It took all her concentration to keep uneasiness out of her voice. "I'll see you then.

Goodnight, Sean."

It was only once Donaldson moved away that Haylie was able to breathe easier.

There was something about him that didn't sit right, something that sent nervous shivers through her body. The fact that he'd gotten to her was saying something. There really wasn't any reason for her to react that way either. Sean had been perfectly amiable, even in the face of her refusing his dinner offer. Haylie shook her head and made her way down the hall. At least she'd gotten an idea of where to eat. A Briel restaurant might give her some insight into Kamran.

26.

Haylie turned the corner and had to stop short. Holy s.h.i.t, look at everyone. The bazaar reminded her of an old-fashioned market she'd seen back on Earth when she was a kid.

While it lacked the dirt and distinct smell of cows, this place had the same energy.

Booths weaved in and around restaurants, their merchants calling to anyone close enough to hear, promising to sell them a wonder. She hadn't realized trade with the other colonies in this sector was this heavy. Miners, engineers and other support staff were all gathered around. The aisles were narrow and while the majority of people who were trying to push their way through were human, there were several other races moving about as well. She heard competing music coming from several bars off to her right. Interesting. Those weren't in the original schematics. She wondered how many other changes she'd find.

After a few minutes of investigating, she managed to find the place Donaldson had mentioned. Calling it a restaurant, though, was a bit of a misnomer. The semi-circular preparation area was most of the establishment. The Briel apparently didn't sit while they ate, since chairs were missing from the tall tables that formed the eating area. A few Briel guards stood quietly to the side, guns tucked neatly in their holsters as they silently consumed their meals.

Haylie stood and stared at the strange array of food in front of her. The merchant turned toward her, with an expectant look.

"I have absolutely no idea what to order."

One of the Briel solders came up beside her and spoke in a language she didn't recognize.

"Pardon me?" Haylie said, surprised once again at the size of the Briel. His hair had the same black color as Kamran's, but he wore it longer. His body was taller, his frame wider and he radiated a protective aura. She knew this man was a warrior. Someone she'd definitely want on her side.

"I ordered you something to eat. Most humans seem to like it. My name is Taber. I work with Amba.s.sador Kamran as the head of Briel security."

So this was Taber. It only took a second for her to remember what she'd read on him, her counterpart on the Briel security team. There had been very little information on any of the Briel, but there was a bit more on Taber. He'd been Kamran's bodyguard for the past twenty Earth years and was well respected by his men. From the look of him he'd seen more than his fair share of battles. The frown lines etched on his face gave him a look she recognized from other security leaders over the years. Too bad her superiors hadn't thought to include photos of the Briel in the briefing doc.u.ments. It may even have helped with her Kamran encounter earlier. Or maybe not.

"A pleasure to meet you. I'm Haylie Bond, the new Chief of Human Security."

She offered her hand to shake, but he did not take it, bowing instead.

"A pleasure, Ms. Bond. I'm sure we will be working closely together in the days to come."

27.

The Briel cook placed a plate of food in front of her and bowed before closing the stall.

"I hope you enjoy it," Taber said.

Haylie couldn't wait to dig in and sank her teeth into a large red leaf that was stuffed full of vegetables Haylie didn't recognize. The taste was amazing.

"Wow." She managed to say between bites.

"I'll leave you to your meal." A smile tugged at his lips.

"Thank you. I'm sure I'll see you again soon."

Taber motioned to the other solders who were still standing off to the side and the four men departed.

Between the food and her encounters with Donaldson and Taber, Haylie had pushed aside her overwhelming desires. Much better. She was back to her old self, calm and in control. Now all she needed was some sort of crime and she'd be in heaven. Her full belly gave her a temporary boost to keep poking around the station some more. She turned to head in the direction of the bars she'd spotted earlier. She made an abrupt stop and sighed when she saw the large crowd that had formed near the entrance. Too many people for her tonight.

She turned and headed in the opposite direction. She needed a quiet distraction tonight. The observation room was up ahead and she hoped there wouldn't be any last-minute patrons. Maybe some stargazing would take her mind off her newly acquired obsession. It's not like trouble would find her sitting all alone looking at the stars.

As she walked, things began to look a bit odd. The corridors seemed a bit too light.

The surfaces a bit too smooth. And as she moved away from the market, the rich aroma of the vendors' stands faded. The lack of odor intensified the inst.i.tutional feel of the place. Weird, considering the amount of people around her at the moment.

That wasn't entirely accurate either. She did smell something. Like before, the barest hint of cinnamon.

Kamran.

28.

Chapter Three.

Kamran had spent much of the evening motionless at the desk in his quarters. A human! If anyone had suggested such a thing to him yesterday, they would have been dismissed as foolish, insane. But all the signs were there. He'd been wild all day, thoughts of her distracting him from his job. Even his body was working against him.

Daydreaming. He'd actually caught himself daydreaming. She'd been naked in his arms and more than ready for him. His c.o.c.k sprang to life again at the thought, causing him to groan. The council would remove him from his post if they suspected he was overcome with l.u.s.t.

The fact that she appeared to have a similar reaction to him was telling. In the hangar bay she'd looked more than a little affected by his presence. G.o.ddess knows the arousal he'd been battling all day had significantly impacted him. He wasn't sure who she was, but he had to find her. Soon.

Only a mate caused such a reaction. But it was impossible for a human to be his mate. Wasn't it?

He turned off the data pad he'd been staring at for the past hour and tossed it onto his desk. Nothing. He hadn't accomplished a single thing since the a.s.sembly. Kamran sighed as he ran his fingers through his hair and down over his face. Now he understood why bonded mates returned to live on the home world. They were as productive as s.p.a.ce dust.

It had been a few hours since he'd last seen her, but she didn't feel very far away. It was as if she'd stepped into the next room and would step back out any moment.

Impossible.

Closing his eyes, he leaned back in his soft mesh chair and tried to relax. Deep down, Kamran knew they had formed a connection. They were mates, or would be if he ever got out of this chair and went to look for her. Why wasn't he? He should be tearing the colony apart trying to find her. Both his father and brother told him they'd gone mad until they physically held their wives in their arms. He smiled, remembering his brother's story of pa.s.sing his wife while on separate transports in the city and pulling the emergency brake, then climbing out the window to jump over to the other transport tube. Hopefully, the input of the authorities wouldn't be necessary for Kamran's courtship.

The property his father had purchased for him would not go to waste after all.

There would be a celebration in his hometown. Their family's influence would grow yet again. Two sons in one family, both with mates. Amazing.

So why was he still sitting in this chair?