CALLEY (RIBUS 7 Book 3) (14 page)

“Hi,” came Chelan’s warm voice from the right. “You were gone a long time, so I decided to nose around.”

Whelan looked at her shroud-draped body. Chelan smiled up at him. “Sorry, I got cold.” And he watched as she floated over to the table and hiked herself up onto it, shedding the shroud at the same time.

“I am the one who is sorry, my Lady, as I have one more exam to perform.”

Chelan smirked and then lay down peacefully. “Let me guess,” she commented to the ceiling.

“I really am sorry,” he repeated softly.

Chelan finally threw him a disarming smile. Korba’s lecture on just what she unintentionally did to the men of the Empire came back to her, and suddenly she realized this was going to be almost as hard on the young doctor as it was on her. The least she could do for him was to render him at ease by being as calm as humanly possible, and she drew her legs up and closed her eyes, allowing him to work unwatched.

Chelan awoke early and stretched her long, slender body. She needed more sleep, but she also needed to get some work done. Pushing her protesting muscles, she rose and headed to the Command Center entrance. Fremma was to be on the Bridge all day, but she peeked out just to make sure he was gone and no one was in his place. Then, ignoring her nakedness, she tiptoed into the workout area and over to the shower.

Instantly the warm water began to revive her weary bones. Chelan blinked into reality. Tomorrow was the day. Tomorrow she would be delivered, during the twilight hours, into the arms of her mother planet. Chelan closed her eyes. Fremma was right. There were so many unknowns, and now that she was on the cusp of her Earthly reentry, she felt uneasy.

She stepped out of the shower and tried to put a cap on her anxieties. Maybe once she was immersed in her work she would feel better, and she waited rather impatiently for the beads of water to fall from her porcelain skin. Then she headed back toward the Command Center. Stepping out into the lights, she froze momentarily, and then instantly sprang back into the shadows of the workout area.

Tarn whirled around and caught a fleeting glimpse of white. He cocked his head and held his breath. “My Lady?” he called.

Chelan tried to still her thudding heart. “Tarn,” she acknowledged.

Tarn smiled with amusement and then ascended the stairs. Once near the workout area, he swung his shroud off his shoulders and tossed it into the darkness of the room.

Chelan remained by the wall. She smiled. “Turn around. I know your eyes cut through the dark as well as the day.”

Tarn chuckled and then obeyed. Chelan grabbed the shroud and donned it quickly. Completely concealed, she stepped out into the Command Center.

Tarn turned and faced her. “You forget, my Lady, about our brief encounter so many years ago. I remember every feminine inch of that curvaceous body that was revealed to me as if it were yesterday, if only fleetingly.”

Chelan tried to hide her blush. “I too remember, Tarn. But as you can see, time has not erased all my prudish ways.”

Tarn smiled slyly. “Hmm, yes. Too bad, I might add.” And he turned and descended back into the central area.

Chelan followed him as far as the top of the stairs. “So what brings you here, Commander?”

Tarn glanced over his shoulder at her. “Just some loose ends Fremma wanted me to wrap up. He is on the Bridge if you want him.”

“No,” she whispered. She watched him as he studied numerous coded messages. “You and I have never really talked, even after all these years.”

Tarn hesitated and then faced her. “I know. At first it was not permitted, and then Korba and I were sent away. Then you were gone. Many years have passed, and with them our chances to converse.”

Chelan studied his handsome face. He was much older than Korba or Fremma, but no less fit or distinguished. His face was slightly more rugged, the lines of time and war having shaped him so. Chelan sat down on the top step. “I feel I must first thank you, and then apologize to you.”

Tarn sat down in the command chair. “For what, my Lady?”

Chelan hugged her knees. “Well, I had started to thank you for saving my life so long ago. And now I reiterate that with all my heart. As to the later incident, I do apologize for deceiving you. And I am sorry about the whole unseemly encounter. I almost caused Dar to kill you.”

Tarn looked down at his hands, his mind catapulted back in time. “Offering yourself to me for any reason was hardly a distasteful act, my Lady.” He stared up into her dark eyes and his voice became soft and low. “My only disappointment was that our encounter was terminated so rudely.”

Chelan rocked gently as she gazed down at the seasoned Commander. “But I offered out of pain, not out of love.”

Tarn took a deep breath. “It was what you sought to do under the circumstances. I knew that all was not well simply by your presence in my quarters. But I chose to take you up on your offer, an act that would have pleased me immensely. I would not have hurt or forced you, and hopefully you would have also enjoyed our moments together.” Tarn hesitated. “But it was not meant to be, and now all has worked out for the best.”

Chelan continued to rock contentedly, his resonant voice lulling her into serenity. “I am still sorry,” she whispered.

Tarn shook his head. “You did not hurt or compromise me, my Lady.”

Chelan continued to stare at the massive man, her heart suddenly warming to him as if she’d known him a lifetime. “You were willing to take on Dar for me, even though you did not know me.”

Tarn felt a long-suppressed telltale thud in his chest. He looked at the exotic beauty, her long silk hair cascading over his black shroud like delicately hung tinsel. Suddenly his smile waned. “I risked all to bring you on board, my Lady. I risked my life and my career, though as it turned out, I could not have you. But you exceeded all my dreams and expectations. And look at you now, the Emperor’s mate.”

Chelan blinked. He was right. She had thought of him only as a man who saved her life on Earth. But he could have done that without taking her to the RIBUS. He would not have known her bleak outlook, and he took her with him with the expectation of keeping her. Korba himself had severed that relationship, and as a consequence, she had hardly even talked to the man, let alone delved into his inner thoughts. Suddenly, though she had always admired him, she saw him in a totally different light. She stopped her rocking and straightened slightly. “You have no regrets?”

Tarn shook his head slowly. “No, my Lady. I am glad I saved you, and I am glad I brought you on board. Now you have risen to the top, and I could ask for no more.”

Chelan regarded him, contemplating his words, which could be construed only as affection or admiration. But she was startled from her thoughts by Tarn’s abrupt move.

He stood and returned to the console, his back to her. “I am sorry, my Lady. I must work.”

Chelan rose to leave but she found she could not. She watched the Commander, but he did not move. Padding on silent feet, she clutched his shroud to her and ascended the stairs. Once at the bottom, she spoke in a warm whisper. “I asked if you had any regrets.”

Tarn hung his head. “Only that I lost you, Chelan.”

His use of her common name shook her to her very soul. She moved to him and placed her hand on his ebony back. “Someday, I want to thank you properly in some manner, Tarn.”

Tarn hesitated, and then turned to her. “I do not need to be thanked for a decision well made.”

“But I would still like to spend some time with you.”

Tarn shook his head. “It is okay, my Lady. You owe me nothing.”

“It is not payment. It is my desire, if you permit.”

Tarn was quiet for a moment, all the possible scenarios for such an encounter racing through his mind. “But…”

Chelan pressed a finger to his lips. “For now, all I promise is an evening engaged together in private reflection.”

Tarn felt his breathing hitch. “That would be pleasing indeed, my Lady. But I am not sure it would be wise of me to participate thusly.”

“And why is that?”

Tarn glanced down, his composure slipping a bit. Then he looked at her closely, his voice quiet. “Because I am still all too aware of what I lost… twice.”

Chelan paused, surprised by his candid admission, and even more surprised that he still harbored so many feelings for her. “I… I just thought we could reminisce. There is much I do not remember of that day so long ago. And there is much I would like to know about the man who risked so much for me.”

Tarn shook his head. “Our ways are so different, my Lady. I do not think I could spend that private time with you and not desire more.”

Chelan felt herself flush. Suddenly her thoughts travelled back in time to when she went to him for so much more than simple talk. She bit her lip and peered up at him. “I understand.” She hesitated again, drawn in by the intensity of his gaze. “Obviously, I cannot commit to any sort of intimacy. To do so would be to mislead you. But I also cannot predict the future, or just what our time together would entail. And for the record, I would not be dishonored by such an act if it were to occur. That I do know. It is your people’s way, and I would not be committing an injustice to anyone.”

Tarn’s eyes narrowed. “But to yourself, my Lady.”

Chelan went to speak, but no words would form.

Tarn finally smiled, his penetrating gaze softening. “You are well versed in our ways, but I am also well aware of your cultural mores, your allegiances, and just where your heart lies. You speak in theory, my Lady, not in practice.”

Chelan sighed. “Of course you are right. I am offering only my presence and conversation at this time. But I am also aware that everything we experience or wish to experience can change in an instant. I give you no promises for more than what I offer now, but I really want to spend some time with you. And I don’t mean a meeting that I can order. I mean quality time, an unhurried casual meeting arranged spontaneously.” She stared up at him, trying to decipher his emotions, but he was unreadable. She cleared her throat. “Consider it a date for the future, a time spent together in quiet reflection. What may transpire between us on a deeper level, only the future will show.”

For the first time in his life, Tarn had no idea what to say or do. Though by all her Earthly ways she should feel intimidated or even threatened by his admission, she was not. She was adhering to her desire to engage him privately, willing to deal with his advance if it came to fruition. And in the silence that ensued, he admired her even more. For a moment he could only stare at her, imagining his ideal future—admittedly, an unlikely one, but one that held him rapt nonetheless.

Chelan began to back away from him. “Tomorrow I leave for Earth. After that, RIBUS 7 attacks the Balatesian system, engaging in what may well be the battle of her life. Fremma has prepared me for all the perils RIBUS 7 is about to encounter, and all the intrinsic ramifications thereof… including the unthinkable.”

She sucked in an uneasy breath, the words she had just spoken illuminating the severity of the haunting reality, bringing her fears to an almost untenable level. But she beat down the bile that rose in her throat and continued. “I know you are besieged by work in preparation for the battle, and I will not interfere with that. But because of all the uncertainties of life, I wanted to take this opportunity to let you know that I have longed to spend some time with you since the beginning.”

Chelan’s voice softened. “And always remember that upon your return, I offer my presence to you out of gratitude, not obligation. I genuinely want this, Tarn. I genuinely want to express my gratefulness in any way I can. But I will not force you to endure my presence if our meeting will dredge up pain in any form for whatever reason. Simply put, the offer has been made. From this point on, the final decision is yours.”

Chelan did not wait for a response from the motionless man. She simply ascended the stairs, and with her back to him, she dropped his shroud. Then she disappeared up into the inky blackness of the sleeping quarters.

Tarn’s heart was pounding so hard he could barely hear. He looked at his discarded shroud and tried to clear his senses. Had she really been there? Had she really meant all that she had said? And was there the possibility of more? Regardless, to have a private, personal meeting with her after all these years, to have her attention exclusively, was more than he could have ever thought possible.

He looked at the console and tried to force his mind to attend to his tasks. Then he glanced back at the chambers and his shroud. Willing his legs to move, he ascended the stairs and picked up the cloak. He raised it to his face and inhaled. Every muscle in his body went taut.

No matter what form his time spent with her took, being with her was going to be a dream come true. That he knew for sure. The fact that he may be able to taste of her, even a simple kiss, suddenly lit a spark deep within in him. She was right about the uncertainties surrounding the future. Every circumstance could change in an unforeseen instant. Though she had committed only to talk, there was the possibility of more. But no matter what he desired, he knew he would never push her in any way. He respected her Earth values, he respected her position within their world, and he respected the woman of substance she was.