Page 11 of Bonds of Starfall

The sleek car door opened upward. Hands against her waist helped her in, and the seatbelt tugged over her chest.

The swish of the door falling shut barely registered as Rin let her head thunk back on the comfortable seat. The alcohol warmed her insides. Exhaustion made her lids drift shut.

The driver’s side door opened and closed, letting in the faint early evening air and muted, echoed sounds of the city that pierced through the concrete parking garage. The purr of the engine rumbled through her, nearly lulling her to sleep.

As Kit navigated out of the garage and down the winding city streets, flashes of neon billboards and bright headlights sparkled behind her closed lids.

The air conditioner was on, and her flesh pebbled with chill. She sleepily wrapped her arms around her waist and snuggled deeper into the seat. It smelled like Kit in here. Leather and cotton. It reminded her of standing on a windy beach, wrapped in his jacket. She always swore he smelled like the wind itself. As a level three Airborn, Kit had an affinity for the air—maybe that was why he chose the Fleet.

Something thick and heavy landed on her lap.

She cracked open an eyelid, fingers curling in the jacket he had given her. He kept one hand on the steering wheel as he tucked it around her.

"Thank you," she mumbled, nuzzling into the stiff fabric. His scent was even stronger at the collar. "For everything."

Beep.Beep. Beep. Beep. Bee?—

"Ugh." Rin reached out with a hand, blindly smacking her bedside table to turn off her alarm. Once silenced, she flopped onto her back, throwing a hand over her pounding head.

The hangover was mild, but she still winced as she cracked open an eyelid, staring up at the fluttering white canopy above her bed. Through the white gauzy strips of the closed curtains, bright sunlight filtered in.

It was too early for this.

She sat up, running a hand through her tangled, white hair and grimacing as her fingers caught in some snarls. The house was still. She grabbed her phone from her nightstand.

No texts. She sighed.

"I guess Sabine and Talor are still gone, then," she mumbled, clearing her dry throat mid-sentence.

Saturday, the screen on her phone read. And under that, a reminder on her calendar for…

"Shit," Rin breathed.

A doctor’s appointment at Solar City General Hospital. She had to have up-to-date information to give the physicians at the Academy. She had completely forgotten about the appointment.

And it was in one hour.

She threw her legs over the side of the bed, standing. The fuzzy threads of the rug tickled her bare toes as she padded to the walk-in closet. The lights flicked on automatically as she walked in, and she winced at the assault on her eyes, head throbbing steadily.

How would she explainthatto Lucien?

The sleeve of her large t-shirt fell off her shoulder, cool air skimming her bare upper thighs as she rose on her tiptoes. Now that she thought about it, she barely remembered coming in last night…

Had Kit carried her to her room? Had he…

She swallowed.

Had he changed her?

Shaking away the thought, she grabbed the first thing she saw.

Rin tugged off her shirt, standing in only a pair of black lace panties. Her nipples pebbled in the chill. It was cooler this morning, especially for late summer. It was August, and the air still burned with heat in the city. The nippy air was a reprieve she welcomed.

She tugged a pair of tight black jeans up her legs, pairing them with a thin, fitted, burgundy top with straps at the sleeves that hooked over her pointer fingers. Lacing up her boots, she hopped on one foot to her dresser, catching her reflection.

Her skin was pale, but her cheeks still held a slight flush—leftover effects of the alcohol from last night? The silver of her many earrings poked through the tangles of her white hair, a match to the simple chain around her neck. She finished tugging on her calf-length black boots, running a brush through her hair. Her pale lashes, brows, and grey eyes made her look on the verge of death. But she was.

So, not much to fix there.