Page 184

Ki’REMI

Once the ship settled into a smooth slipstream, Ki’Remi unstrapped from his seat and reached a hand out to his woman.

He led her down a flight of stairs, heading for a sophisticated galley.

With a quiet hiss, a glass case slid open at his neural command.

Revealing a single, dark crystal decanter resting on an anti-grav stand, its contents so decadent it was almost inky black with an amber glow at its heart.

The label, handwritten in elegant strokes, bore a solitary name: Vharian Fire 1726.

Issa’s brows elevated. ‘Isn’t that the rarest aged rum in the Pegasi System?’

‘Tis,’ her man growled.

Ki’Remi withdrew the bottle with reverence, pouring the molten gold liquid into two crystal glasses.

‘Getting out of celestial dodge merits its opening.’

He handed her a glass, his fingers brushing hers, which set off a spark.

Their eyes locked in a tether of impassioned promise.

She brought it to her lips, inhaling the deep spice, honeyed smoke, and an almost electric aroma.

She took a sip and sighed, welcoming a burn that didn’t scald but caressed.

Her lashes fluttered. ‘Shit. That’s good.’

Ki’Remi chuckled. ‘Only the best,kidaya.’

He wrapped an arm around her waist, drawing her against him as they gazed at the ever-shifting vortex outside the viewport.

The Alatyr streaked through the astral corridor, slicing through divine space with the elegance of a predator moving through the void.

He turned to glance at her, bathed in the varying celestial light.

She stared at the swirling aurora of silver-blue and star-fire gold, the same cosmic energy flickering in her wild, luminous eyes.

She was stunning with the curve of her jaw and the glow of her Sedevan skin.

The way her curls tumbled down her back in a cascade of midnight and fire, but it was more than that.

She was a force, a paradox of warmth and untouchable mystery, a warrior wrapped in divinity.

His woman.

His throat tightened at the thought.

She turned as if sensing his gaze, and her lips curled into a soft upturn as she stepped forward.

Ki’Remi met her halfway.

Their hands found each other in the dim, celestial-lit chamber, fingers threading together, palms aligning.

Her breath shuddered as he pulled her in, tilting her face up, his thumb brushing her lower lip.

He lowered his head and brushed his mouth over hers.