Someone grabbed his tray to steady it. “Sorry, Lord Bannon. I didn’t see you there.”
Blast, he’d been so distracted with his fury, he hadn’t been paying attention to where he was going. Bannon made himself relax his jaw muscles and looked up.
Lieutenant Taylor smiled at him, showing off a lovely set of dimples. The men walking with him paused too, but Taylor gave them a nod. “Go on without me.” He set the cups back on the saucers and reached for the biscuits but stopped short. “I’ll, uh, let you fix the rest. Would you like me to carry this for you?”
Bannon shook his head, his anger fading somewhat. Trouble was right. Taylor was handsome with his dark good looks. A little on the short side—not that Bannon had room to talk—but he filled out a uniform superbly, and to top it off, he was really nice. Regardless of what Louie thought, Bannon was certain Taylor preferred men to women. Maybe a shipboard affair would improve his mood? He’d never actually had an affair, but he was away from home, and chaperones, and…. But no, it would only make things worse. Galaxy only knew what would happen if his parents found out.
“Lord Bannon?” Taylor ducked down into his line of sight with that charming grin still in place. “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, sure. Just preoccupied.”
Perhaps he’d agree to posing for me in the buff. That isn’t as bad as an affair, and it’s for the sake of art, Timothy whispered in his head.
Galaxy help him, he just couldn’t seem to help himself. He almost voiced the request. He couldn’t even imagine how far he’d be banished for that.
It would totally be worth it.
No, it would not! Great, he was arguing with himself again.
“Are you sure you don’t want me to carry this to your quarters?” Taylor asked.
Oh boy, would I.
“Er, no, but thank you for the offer.” He’d have to get rid of Louie, and that would raise questions. Just because he wasn’t on Regelence, it didn’t mean everyone didn’t expect him to act as a lord of the realm. Besides, it wasn’t like he could brag to Trouble about his conquest, and that would take some of the fun out of it.
“Well, then, I’ll let you carry on.” Taylor walked toward the mess deck, then stopped. “I don’t know if anyone has informed you, but we’re about an hour away from Skye.”
Thank galaxy. “Thanks, Lieutenant.” Bannon continued on his way to his cabin. In one more hour, he’d be rid of Prissy, and if he spent that time painting, he wouldn’t have to see the man again. At least not until he went back to Regelence. Whenever that would be. Not that it mattered. At this rate the IN would destroy them all, because Prissy would botch the negotiations on Skye. And Bannon wasn’t going to do anything about it. Nope. Not this time. On second thought, maybe he would do something about it. He would be sure to say “I told you so” to his father.
The door, or hatch, as it was called, on his cabin slid open, and once again he nearly wore the tea as Louie barreled out the door. This time one of the cups went sailing off the tray and hit the purple carpet. It rolled as everything else rattled, and Bannon shifted his weight, taking several steps back while bending forward to keep his tray upright. “Dust, Louie!”
“Blast, Bannon,” Louie shouted at the same time.
Shaking his head, he walked past her as she retrieved the cup. “Where were you going in such a hurry?”
“To come find you.”
“I told you I’d get the tea.” He set the tray on the small table next to the porthole and plopped down in one of the two chairs. This seat had been a source of comfort for the last fortnight. Who knew the utter blackness of space could be so soothing? It tickled Timothy, and Bannon had already done three good paintings sitting in front of this porthole. He’d also had dozens of splendid daydreams… mostly about Lieutenant Taylor.
“You know I am your servant, right?” Setting the cup down on the tray, Louie sat opposite him.
“You’re my valet and my dearest friend. Not my servant. Besides, you got the tea last time.”
“A valet is a servant.”
It was an old argument they’d yet to resolve. “Shut up, Louie.” Bannon proceeded to pour them tea, then added three lumps of sugar to his and four to hers.
She picked up the cup and took a sip, staring at him over the top of it with one of her perfectly shaped brown brows arched. “What took so long?”
“I was contemplating whether a trip to the jail was worth it.”
“It’s called a brig.”
Know-it-all. Bannon took a drink of his own tea and promptly added another lump of sugar. “I ran into Prissy.”
With a sigh, Louie shook her head. “He will be gone from our presence in exactly one hour.”
“He will probably start war between Regelence and Skye with his pompous, selfish…. Wait. How did you know we’re an hour away from Skye?” He frowned and took a sip of his tea. Awww… much better.
She preened, damn her, and something told him that he was not going to like her answer.
“Lieutenant Taylor stopped by to tell me. Annnd… you owe me a pound.”
“Oh, you didn’t….”
She preened more and touched her lips and sighed dramatically. Then she smiled, took another sip, and turned her head to the right. “Oh, look a planet. I bet that’s Skye.”
He wasn’t falling for that. Studying her lips, he narrowed his eyes, and…. Dust and stars! They did look swollen and redder than normal. “You kissed him?”
“I’d never kiss and tell.”
He grabbed a biscuit and threw it at her, then glanced out the porthole. A planet was out there, but it sure was cloudy. Ominous gray clouds circled it, with some shooting high up into the atmosphere around it, like smoke. It was difficult to make out the planet’s round shape, but it certainly was mystical looking. He’d found the subject of his next painting and… was that lightning? Capital! It looked strange from that point of view, but beautiful.
She took a bite of the biscuit and singsonged, “You owe me a pound.”
“Just because he kissed you, doesn’t mean he isn’t bisexual.”
She gave him the most incredulous look, as if to ask really?
Right. It was a rather stupid statement, but she’d won their last two wagers. Drat it all, so it was his turn to win. Bannon picked up his cup and glared at her over the rim. As he set his lips to the porcelain, a loud blast sounded and shook the whole ship. The contents of his cup sloshed out onto his chin, shirt, and lap.
Bannon yowled.
Louie shrieked.
“Bloody hell! What was that?” He jumped up and brushed the tea off himself. Damn, that was hot! As he grabbed for the tea towel, the ship shook again, followed by another long bang. The tea set rattled fiercely, and tea sloshed out of Louie’s cup. Bannon dabbed at his trousers. “Anna, what’s going on?”
The ship did not answer. Not good. Anna always answered. Bannon had carried on entire conversations with her since he’d been onboard. She was really nice.
“Bannon?” Louie’s voice quivered, and she reached for him.
“It’s all right. Probably just turbulence.” Even as the words left his mouth, he didn’t believe them. Did ships even get turbulence in space? He didn’t know, but he suspected this was much more than a pocket of air, since space was technically a vacuum. Oh bother, this didn’t bode well. His chest tightened up, and a quiver snaked through him. He pulled Louie up from her seat and against his chest, hugging her tight. They should probably sit back down so they didn’t fall if it happened again, but his seat was wet.