Page 52

Chapter

Fifty-Two

Tivek

T he connecting balconies made it almost too easy to move between suites undetected. I slipped over the glossy railing that separated Morgan's balcony from mine, my boots landing silently on the wooden planks.

A soft breeze brushed against my face, perfumed with the scent of salt. The environmental controls in the fantasy suites were truly remarkable, with every detail perfect, from the temperature to the humidity to the moonlight casting silver patterns across the water.

Voices drifted through the partially open balcony door.

I recognized Morgan's familiar cadence interspersed with several others.

Had she invited people to her suite? I hesitated, not wanting to interrupt.

Perhaps this was a sign I should return to my own quarters and wait until morning for this conversation.

But then I caught a fragment of what she was saying.

She was discussing our ordeal. My curiosity drew me closer, silent steps bringing me to the edge of the doorway.

I could see her now, lounging on the bed with a tablet propped up before her.

I realized that she was talking to her academy friends, the tight-knit group of human females who’d all entered together.

I knew I should announce my presence, but something held me back. The way her face lit up as she spoke to them kept me frozen in place. I loved seeing her happy, just as I’d loved being the one to make her happy.

I was so lost in my own thoughts that I didn’t realize that Morgan had gotten up from the bed and was walking toward the balcony.

I stepped back as she approached the glass doors, but not quickly enough.

She stepped out, still chatting with her friends.

"And here's the balcony. The moon isn't real, but it's?—"

"There's someone behind you!" The chorus of screams that erupted from the tablet was so shrill and sudden that even I jumped.

Morgan whirled around, her eyes wide with alarm. I raised my hands slightly, a gesture of peace.

"Oh," she said, voice unnaturally high. "It's just Tivek. He, uh, came by to return something he borrowed."

"What did he borrow?" someone asked suspiciously.

“Thanks for the vid chat,” Morgan said with false brightness. "I should go. Talk soon!"

"Morgan, what aren't you telling us—" The voice was cut off as Morgan jabbed at the disconnect button.

"I apologize for frightening you," I said finally, noticing her shiver. “But I couldn’t wait any longer to talk to you.”

But before I could continue, before I could apologize for not telling her about the promotion sooner, she held up a hand to stop me.

"You have nothing to apologize for," she said firmly. She closed the distance between us and gave me a quick, impersonal hug that felt more like a dismissal than an embrace. "I'm happy for you. You've worked hard and you deserve the promotion. You should take it."

I stared at her, momentarily unable to respond.

This wasn't what I'd expected. I'd been certain she was upset because she didn't want me to leave. That was precisely why I'd decided to see her. As soon as I’d seen her talking to her friends, I’d known I was going to tell her I was rejecting the promotion to stay at the academy.

But now, her eagerness for me to take it left me unbalanced and unsure. She wanted me to go?

"You think I should take it?" I asked carefully, studying her face for any sign of what she was truly feeling. "Even though it means going to Earth?"

She nodded, her smile wide. "Absolutely. It'll be a great experience for you, and you could make a real difference there." She took a step back, putting more distance between us. "I'm happy for you, Tivek. Really."

Tivek. Not Tiv. The intensity of the disappointment that flooded through me was startling. Had I so completely misread her feelings? Misinterpreted what had happened between us?

"Perhaps," I said slowly, grasping for something to say, "when you return to Earth after the academy, I might still be there."

She shrugged, the casual gesture a knife between my ribs. "Who knows what I'll do after the academy? That's years away."

I kept my expression carefully neutral, the mask I'd worn for so long slipping back into place as if it had never fallen.

Of course. It had been the stress of our situation that had drawn her to me.

It had been a shipboard romance in the starkest of ways.

Now that we were safe and now that we were no longer facing death together, things had changed.

I could have kicked myself for being so foolish. I’d transformed a shipboard fling into something it wasn't, reading meaning into moments that had been nothing more than a temporary connection forged in crisis.

At least I hadn't yet rejected the promotion. That would have been a mistake I couldn't undo.

"You're right," I said, the words tasting like ash in my mouth. "Years away. Many things can change in that time."

Her smile remained fixed, even as she swallowed. "Exactly."

I studied her one last time, committing the way her pale hair caught in the moonlight to memory. "I should go. It's late, and we both need rest."

"Goodnight, Tivek."

"Goodnight, Morgan."

I turned and vaulted smoothly over the railing, landing on my own balcony with barely a sound. For a moment, I thought I heard a choked sob from behind me, but when I paused to listen, there was nothing but the sound of holographic waves lapping at the posts.

I must have imagined it. Just as I had imagined that Morgan felt as strongly about me as I did about her. Stepping into my own suite, the door slid shut behind me with a soft hiss that sounded too much like a mournful sigh.