“How very convenient!” She looked at her hands. “Oh my gosh! I’ll never have chapped, itchy hands again!”
He frowned. “Why would you—?”
“The lye soap,” she explained with a grimace. “It’s murder on skin, but it’s really the only way to get everyone’s laundry clean on the farm.”
“You washed your family’s laundry by hand?”
“Once a week,” she said, as if it were the most normal thing in the world. “I start the night before by sorting all the garments and treating any stains. In the morning, I start the water boiling in the laundry shack out back. The vats are usually ready by the time I’m done making breakfast and getting everyone fed. Mama takes over with the little ones, and I spend the morning scrubbing, rinsing and hanging everything out to dry. I leave all the ironing to the evening, after I've made supper and cleaned up the kitchen.”
She laid it out so simply, but he knew it was much, much worse than that. No wonder she had such strong, toned arms. All that hauling and scrubbing and stretching! She must have been dead on her feet by the end of the night. Which made him wonder...
“Alys, how much do you sleep?”
“I only need six hours or so,” she assured him, as if worried he would find her lazy for sleeping longer. “I can get by on less when it’s necessary.”
“Absolutely not,” he said, slashing his hand through the air. “Alyx, as long as you live with me, you have to sleep properly. I want you in bed and sleeping at least eight hours a night.”
“But what about—?”
“Alys,” he interrupted forcefully, “this isn’t a farm. We don’t have children. There’s no reason for you to be exhausted all the time.” He closed the distance between them and grasped her hips. “You’re mine to care for now so let me.”
Alys gazed up at him with wide eyes. “Yes, sir.”
“Good girl.” He leaned down and kissed her tenderly. She tasted of the sweet dessert, and he wanted nothing more than to tumble her right back into bed. Instead, he tamped down his lust for his new mate. “Do you want to investigate the entertainment console with me?”
“Sure.” She smiled, and her eyes twinkled at the excitement of experiencing something new with him.
They settled onto the sofa, and he showed her how to use the household tablet to control the lights, temperature and the entertainment center. He handed the tablet to her and slung his arm across the back of the cushions. He played with her hair as she tapped at the tablet screen and activated the larger screen across the room. She marveled at the moving pictures, as she called them, and he enjoyed the way she treated everything with such wonder and curiosity.
It didn’t take her long to settle on the educational channel that was created for mates. There were multiple episodes of informational content about the history of the Harcos people, the structure and hierarchy of the Land and Sky Corps, the layout and functions of each sector of the ship and basics like accessing medical care and where to shop.
“Is he your boss?” Alys asked as Orion filled the screen and greeted his audience.
“Yes.” Swift wrapped long strands of her hair around his finger. They were so soft and silky. “His second-in-command is Noble. Below Noble, there are a handful of officers in command of various departments. Below that is pilots like me.”
“Back on Calyx, you told me you wanted to be part of command. Is that what that means?” She gestured to the television.
“Yes. Ideally, I would promote to the level below Noble and serve there for a set number of years before promoting to Noble’s level.”
“Would you stay on this ship?”
“Probably not. It’s more likely I would be shifted to one of the newer ships in this sector of the fleet.”
As Orion lectured about the zero-tolerance policy for domestic violence and his high standards of safety and wellbeing, Swift focused only on the novel experience of sitting next to a woman—his woman—in his quarters. Policies about women in areas of the ship reserved for bachelors were strictly enforced. What companionship he had enjoyed with poppies was short-lived and limited to the sky brothels or private rooms in the officer’s club.
But this? Just sitting here, together, on a couch? It was more intimate than sex. It shouldn’t have been, but it felt that way to him. That realization drove home the point about how starved for affection he and his fellow soldiers and airmen were. He understood why their culture required men to literally fight for the right to have a mate and a family, but he didn’t like it. More and more, he wondered if that was something else that needed to change.
His troubled thoughts were interrupted by a blaring klaxon. Startled, Alys clutched at his hand. “What is that?”
He pointed to the ceiling as Orion’s recorded voice calmly said, “Now here this. Now here this. This is a drill. Please proceed to the nearest evacuation point.”
The instructions looped, and Alys winced at the alarm. “Why are we having a drill?”
“Because it saves lives,” he said matter-of-factly and stood. Holding out his hand, he said, “Let’s go.”
“But I’m not dressed for public.” She rose from the sofa and anxiously tugged at her dress. “They can see my legs!”
“So? Let them see your gorgeous legs.”
“Swift,” she said, her eyes pleading with him. “Sir, please.”
“You have one minute.” He held up a single finger. “Go.”
She fled from the living area into their bedroom. He glanced at his watch, fully intending to hold her to that time limit. Even though this was only a drill, it was expected they treat it like a true emergency.
In fifty-one seconds, she emerged from the bedroom wearing a long dark blue skirt and a pair of simple leather slippers. She still had the wrap dress on underneath the skirt, using the top as a blouse. It looked rather nice, and he had to admit, there was something beguiling about her hidden legs. He had been thinking he would need to ease her out of her strict modesty, but maybe he was wrong.
“Did I make it?”
He nodded. “With nice seconds to spare.”
She smiled triumphantly. “Ha!”
Chuckling at her silly reply, he took her hand and led her out of their quarters and into the hall. Most of their floor had already emptied from their rooms and were moving along to the evacuation pods. He pointed out the markings on the walls and ceilings that would lead her to the right compartment and quickly explained where she should go during a drill or active emergency if she were in another sector of the ship.
The entire drill took nearly an hour from the first alarm to the all-clear. Alys paid attention to every detail, and he felt reassured she had taken this seriously. After his leave ended, she would be on her own and responsible for her own safety. It lessened his anxiety to know she treated everything with the seriousness it deserved.
By the time they finally made it back to their quarters, he could see how tired she was. Her shoulders sagged as she removed her shoes, and she moved slowly as she peeled out of her skirt and neatly folded it. After she placed it in the drawer he had assigned to her, she glanced at the bed but then back toward the living room. He saw the flicker of uncertainty in her eyes, and then, ever the dutiful wife, she asked, “Do you want to spend more time together in the parlor?”