Page 1 of Adrift! (Cosmic Connections Cruise #2)
The proprietor of the Big Sky Intergalactic Dating Agency sat on the floor of the stateroom, his back against the locked door as he contemplated the utter blackness of the Zarnax Zone captured in the viewport.
In the last few days, the excessively cushiony couch had left him stiff, and working from the big, luxurious, empty bed with its slightly silky linens felt…sad. So, Evens was on the floor.
Around him, crumpled foil wrappers glinted like the missing stars. He shouldn’t have taken all the treats—the ship was too far out to get more, and good chocolate was exceptionally difficult to synthesize—especially when he knew he was just eating his feelings.
Fear, loss—and hope.
Oh, that last was the truly hard one.
The Big Sky Intergalactic Dating Agency had brought him far.
So many matches across worlds and lightyears.
So many lonely hearts united. And each one he’d analyzed, charted, and mapped.
He’d taken blood samples and brain scans.
He’d even tried predicting love by correlating pheromone responses to favorite snack foods.
Although that last might’ve been another long, wasted night in his Montana outpost by himself.
Only to find that data wasn’t truth. Numbers weren’t meaning.
But he was seeing the signs, watching from this hiding place as the others struggled with the mystery aboard, and for the first time, despite being adrift, he was close to unearthing the secret, interweaving bonds that had evaded him for so long.
He believed in the power of love, with all his heart, but he’d never been able to prove its existence.
Now, he could all but taste his triumph.
It tasted like…chocolate.
Unwrapping the last foil, he popped the square into his mouth, savoring the melting bittersweetness.
The possible matches had been handpicked for synchronicity, and the energy of the anomaly had already shown promise in uniting a first couple. He was gambling everything—the Big Sky IDA, his reputation, the Love Boat I—on this being the validation he’d sought.
Anchoring his cane, Evens levered himself to his feet. He’d waited and calculated long enough. It was time.