Salvaged Destiny (16 page)

Wrapping her arms around him more tightly, Del spread her
fingers on his back and relished the muscles she could feel there, hard and
flexing as he held and touched her. Letting her body have some reactions meant
she didn’t have to pay attention to her worried thoughts. She wanted to crawl
on his lap, but instead moved her head so she could bring her cheek closer to
his. Hopefully Lazlo would attribute her rapid breathing as a byproduct of her
bad dream.

He felt so good she wanted to groan. His chin had a little
stubble that tingled against her skin and she could hear him breathing slowly. She
could probably touch his earlobe with her tongue if she tried.

“Feeling better?” Lazlo rumbled, sounding entirely normal, as
if he were asking her if she needed a spoon to stir her coffee.

You have no idea
. Del merely murmured an agreement—she
didn’t trust her voice not to squeak if she tried to speak. Taking a deep
breath and nodding, he stopped stroking her arms and looped his arms around her
waist for a hug. Stars, he was a nice man. Del knew they would stop touching
soon so she pressed against him, unable to hold back a small gasp of
satisfaction.

“It’s going to be all right,” Lazlo whispered and Del almost
dropped her open mouth to his solid shoulder for a taste.
Calm down
, she
warned herself,
don’t be foolish
. She made a sound low in her throat that
she hoped sounded coherent and then with an enormous force of will, leaned away
from him. Lazlo released her and searched for her hand. He touched her hair and
leaned his forehead to hers and she shivered.

“I’m going to have to work so hard to make it right again,” Del
whispered, overwhelmed again by all the tasks ahead of her, her libido
descending back to her subconscious where it belonged.

“I’m so sorry all of this has happened to you and to your
family. If I hadn’t gotten you involved, you and they would be just fine right
now,” Lazlo said quietly in her ear, his hand squeezing hers.

“And you would be lost in the Outlands with Avo Kirk or
worse. If you’d hired him instead of me, he would have turned you and the
weapons right over to Harata,” Del countered, shaky at the thought of him being
stranded in some lonesome canyon at that sneaky idiot’s mercy. What if she’d
never met him at all?

“So you saved my life. Harata would have murdered me out
there as soon as he knew the cache was found.”

“No.” Del was shocked at the idea, but was even more
distressed to realize he was right. Lazlo would have been expendable to those
treacherous men. He would have had to fight them off alone out there in that
canyon and the thought of him being hurt and dying on the sand, his body being
hidden, was too much and she started to cry again, not caring she was making
Lazlo’s shirt wet with her tears. Shushing her again, he pulled her to him,
stroking her hair.

“That didn’t happen though. I had Del Browen with me, the
best hammer fighter I’ve ever seen.”

She chuckled through her tears.

“It was a lucky shot. I was aiming for his head.”

“We’ve had some good luck and some bad, haven’t we?” Lazlo
mused, sounding as if he regretted everything.

Del nodded, unseen in the dark. “Will tomorrow be better?”

“I hope so. Let’s plan on having a good breakfast, so we’re
ready for what might come up.”

“That seems as if it might be something we can accomplish. At
this point, basic functions like eating and sleeping are about all I think I
can manage.”

“Better get back to sleep then,” Lazlo suggested and shifted
the blanket and sheet for her as she leaned back and burrowed into his very
comfortable bed. Stroking her hair again, he leaned down and kissed her on the cheek,
then rose and walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him.

Del tried to relax but her body was tense with stress and
frustration, and her brain was unwilling to take on yet another problem. And
how she was feeling about Casta was certainly a problem. Not as monumental as
trying to get her family’s business back and operating, or repairing all the
damage to her own, but being attracted to him wasn’t good. But he’d held her
and comforted her and kissed her. How could she not think about it?

Lazlo left the bedroom as soon as he was decently able, more
than adequately woken up by Del to embarrass himself if he’d lingered. He paced
in the living room and tried to stop thinking about how overwhelmingly nice she’d
felt as he’d held her, how attractive her sleepy voice had been and how her
body had been so round and welcoming underneath the soft clothing she’d
borrowed.

The uncivilized part of him wanted to walk back in, pull
back the bedding and start tasting her, feel her move under his hands. The tiny
kiss he’d dropped on her cheek wasn’t even close to enough but she’d be shocked
and outraged by any such interaction. As she should be. As he should be.

But he wasn’t. Blast, his brain wasn’t working correctly. Of
course it wasn’t. He was exhausted, awake in the middle of the night, and just
a few feet away there was a woman he wanted to undress and touch, but couldn’t.
Because he was a nice man. Wasn’t he? Letting out a frustrated sigh, Lazlo sat
on the sofa, slowly lay down, careful of his bumps and bruises.
Sleep
,
he commanded himself.
You need sleep, not lustful distraction.

Taking a deep breath before pressing the entry alert at
Major Sekar’s very imposing door in the exclusive Swaminithan corridor, Lazlo
tried to calm himself. He was anxious about the dinner to come and hoped Dugal’s
advice as to what to bring was going to be correct. He had a box of dark and
light chocolates under his arm, hopefully not melting from his body heat, and a
bouquet of vivid pink lilies in his hand. The flowers’ scent had grown stronger
and more exotic the longer he’d carried them, and he was almost dizzy from it. Lazlo
hoped the major liked lilies.

Pressing the chime and trying to maintain a calm expression,
he waited only a moment before the door was opened by a flushed and smiling
Bara Kidd. She was dressed in soft gray trousers and sweater, her dark-blonde
hair tied up on top of her head in a silky knot.

“Welcome, Lieutenant Casta. Come in, please.” She beckoned
for him to enter and he couldn’t decide if he should apologize right away for
allowing her to be stunned by her kidnapper or wait for a more appropriate
moment. But when was it appropriate to make apologies for such a thing? It
certainly hadn’t been covered in any protocol class he’d ever taken.

“Thank you. Citizen Kidd, please let me apologize again for
what happened on the docks. I am so sorry you were injured.”

Bara Kidd shook her head, greenish eyes alight with good
humor. “No need, you didn’t do anything wrong. But if that’s a making-amends
box of chocolates, I will certainly take them. And I won’t let Theo have any
because
he
didn’t get stunned at all. But I understand you did recently,
so I suppose I should share.” She led him through a large foyer containing an
enormous light fixture and a small aquarium filled with tiny darting yellow
fish. They emerged into a spacious living area filled with well-worn antique
rugs, books and leather furniture. It also contained Major Sekar, a large
dimensional display of some section of the Outlands and a smiling Del Browen.

Having two good-humored females in his apartment must have
agreed with the major—he looked positively cheerful. But Lazlo was too floored
by the sight of Del to spend much time contemplating a smiling major.

“Ah, Lazlo has arrived. Now we can eat,” the major
announced, rising and shaking Lazlo’s hand as he awkwardly handed the bunch of
lilies to his commander. “Citizen Browen was just showing me some likely hiking
trails. She certainly knows her way around the Outlands. Flowers for me and a
lovely color too.”

“He brought me chocolates,” Citizen Kidd piped up and looked
devilishly at the major, who returned her taunt.

“Are you that easily impressed?” Sekar questioned her. “I
could have saved us a lot of time and simply sent you chocolates.”

“But the pursuit was so enjoyable.”

“I agree.” Lazlo was shocked when the taciturn Sekar leaned
over and gave Citizen Kidd a solid kiss, which she returned enthusiastically. Glancing
away, he caught Del’s eye and she raised her eyebrows. He tried to signal his
confusion to her but she just looked perplexed.

“I’m not sharing the chocolates.” Bara Kidd smiled up at the
major as he tightened his grip on her waist.

“Then I will have to try harder.”

“Yes you will.”

Lazlo moved away from the engrossed couple and headed over
to Del, but before he could say anything to her, the hosts remembered their
guests and announced dinner was ready. Sekar carried the flowers off to
presumably find a vase and Ms. Kidd directed them to the dining room, which was
spacious and dominated by a wall of terrace windows that looked out over a
spectacular sunset.

Admiring the view before he sat, Lazlo went to the seat Bara
Kidd indicated, which placed him across from Del. She looked a bit
uncomfortable as she glanced around the large room and shifted her chair closer
to the table. He wanted to speak with her, suddenly and completely, with no one
listening. He felt as if he had several hours of conversation he needed to have
with her.

The major returned and placed the lilies on the table, now
housed in an extravagant crystal optic vase. He had also brought in a platter
of warm appetizers, which they passed as they made small talk. Del responded to
the other couple’s questions but kept glancing at him.

Lazlo felt as if he couldn’t be himself with her there, as
if there was something unsaid between them that created a barrier to him
participating. Or perhaps he was intimidated by being a guest in his commander’s
obviously happy home.

Bara Kidd rarely took her eyes from the major and he always
watched her in return. Their obvious rapport was both inspiring and envy-inducing.
To have someone in his life he could trust and feel such comfort with had been
something he had wanted for some time but circumstances had never allowed it. And
his last relationship had damaged him enough he doubted he ever would.

* * * * *

Rising with a sigh, Major Sekar began to clear the table,
announcing dessert would be served in the living room. Lazlo complimented his
hosts on the fine dinner—cheese puffs, braised greens and a wonderfully
luxurious roasted chicken. He hadn’t eaten that well since the last time he’d
visited home.

They had spoken about the events of the weapons recovery,
with both the major and Citizen Kidd heaping praise upon Del. There had also
been some lively discussion of Harata’s upcoming trial, with Bara Kidd
recalling how difficult it had been to testify against her former friend. Lazlo
knew he was going to have a great time testifying against Avo Kirk and Sheriff
Harata and anyone else he could think of.

Citizen Kidd followed the major out of the room, balancing
some plates in her hands and shaking her head at his offer of assistance. This
left Lazlo sitting at the table alone with Del for the first time that evening.
She looked at him and he didn’t know what to say. He’d sent her a few messages,
which she had courteously replied to within twenty-three hours each time. She
hadn’t initiated any messages or calls. Lazlo had spotted her once at a
distance as she drove a cart laden with recyclables along the Boulevard, her
brown hair gleaming in a beam of light, but she’d been moving away from him and
he hadn’t been able to catch her attention.

He missed her.

“It’s been awhile.” Del brushed her hands along the smooth
surface of the table.

“Yes. A month. How are you?”

“Well enough.”

“How is your family? Your mother?”

“All improving at various rates. She’s still not well, but
recovering, so I’m grateful.” She leaned forward a little and Lazlo couldn’t
help but mirror her movements.

“That’s good.”

“It is.”

“How are the repairs going?”

Del grimaced then. “Well enough,” was her terse reply.

This was becoming painful. What had happened to the easy
camaraderie they’d developed in the Outlands? Maybe she was feeling repressed
by their environment. He was. The major’s home was imposing—large, luxurious
and clearly a slice from a more sophisticated background than anything normally
found on Sayre.

“Let’s have dinner. I still owe you one.” Maybe afterward
they could go on a hike and Del could tell him what to do for a few hours. That
would put her in a good mood.

Del blinked and shared a hint of a smile with him. Her
shoulders relaxed and she leaned his way. There she was, Lazlo thought with
relief—the Del who could find a joke in the bottom of a dusty canyon. If he
could just find a few mineral samples for her to fondle she’d be back to
normal.

“We just ate.”

“Another time.”

“You do owe me.”

“Anywhere you would like,” Lazlo offered with a hint of
anxiety. He really wanted her to say yes, to agree to see him. Before she could
answer, Citizen Kidd entered and encouraged them to return to the living room. He
reluctantly rose and followed her out of the elegant dining room, reentering
the living area to find coffee and a gleaming fruit tart arranged on a low
table in front of the sofa.

Del took a seat on the sofa where the major gestured and
Lazlo followed instructions and sat next to her, trying not to roll in to her
as the sofa sighed and engulfed him. Bara Kidd buzzed back and forth from the
kitchen, bringing plates, cups, silverware and napkins, all while Major Sekar
admonished her that one large tray would have solved the problem very
efficiently.

“Yes, Theo, I am aware that a large tray would have been
useful for this,” she replied tartly, taking a seat on a chair and busying
herself with slicing the dessert. “But you don’t have one and neither do I.”

“Are you certain? I thought I remembered one from your old
apartment, leaning on the wall…” The major trailed off, thinking as he poured
coffee and handed cream porcelain cups around. Lazlo took his with thanks and
tried not to look at Del as she listened to the discussion.

“That wasn’t a serving tray. It was part of my oven door
that had fallen off.”

“Oh.” Corrected, the major looked decisive. “Let’s get one
then, or two, or whatever you like. What do you think, Citizen Browen? You’re a
native Sayrian. Where is the best place to shop for a serving tray?”

“I have no idea. It would probably be best to order one from
off-planet,” Del gamely replied and Lazlo empathized with her discomfort. Most
of what little she owned had been damaged or destroyed, so the purchase of new elegant
serveware was hardly something she would consider.

He tried not to lean in to her on the sofa but it was
difficult—the cushions seemed to conspire to collapse and incline him in her
direction simultaneously. Remembering how good it had felt to touch and hold
her was also making it difficult to avoid some contact. His body just wanted to
be near her.

“Of course,” Major Sekar smoothed over her confusion with
good manners.

“I’d rather not buy anything right now,” Citizen Kidd piped
up as she handed around the desserts, serving the major a double-sized portion.
“We might get one as a wedding gift.”

Lazlo was shocked. He had no idea they were even engaged. “Oh
Lieutenant Casta, were you wanting a larger serving?” Citizen Kidd must have
misinterpreted his look of confusion for disgruntlement with his portion size.
“I automatically serve Theo extra sweets. He needs to gain some weight. But I’m
sure you would appreciate more as well. You look as if you burn up a few
calories with your physique.”

She boldly sliced another piece of tart and slid it on to
his plate. He thanked her and retreated to silence to consider the staggering
news that Major Sekar and Bara Kidd were engaged to be married. Major Sekar,
the coldest, toughest man on the planet, was getting married to this sweet,
humorous woman.
Remarkable.

“Congratulations. Have you scheduled a date?” Del asked,
shaking her head at Citizen Kidd’s offer of another slice of dessert. The major
nodded quickly.

“We’re still negotiating. I’d be happy to commandeer Judge
Titus into officiating first thing in the morning, but he is busy with the
cases against our arrested deputies. Judicial imperatives take priority.”

“That prosecution is wonderful for every citizen on Sayre,
but wedding folderol is going to take a break until you have that all squared
away,” Bara Kidd said as she ate a bite of tart and smiled. “And you will soon
enough. Are those military police working out?”

Within a day of the loss of nearly all law enforcement for
the agricultural areas, the major had scheduled bare-bones patrols by any
off-duty port security officer. Lazlo hadn’t had a day off in weeks. The
commander had also requested a full complement of military police to arrive and
take over until special elections could be held to establish a new sheriff and
hire deputies.

There was much chatter and excitement when the grim
contingent had arrived in a dark-gray craft studded with weapons. They took up
part of a field near the port for their camp, which was surrounded by spiked
walls that they’d thrown up within an hour of their arrival. Lazlo had timed
them.

Rumor had it that on their off hours they did forced marches
and weapons training in the Outlands. The agricultural workers were thoroughly
intimidated and port security nearly was.

Major Sekar looked at Bara Kidd with affection and then
turned to Lazlo. “They are. Their commander says they’re growing bored with
patrolling fields and warehouses, but she has started them on some survival
training near the hot springs to keep them occupied in their off hours. That
happens to be a nice segue for this announcement. Lieutenant, in part because
of the stellar work you did with recovering the weapons material—”

“And ridding us of Harata!” Citizen Kidd broke in gleefully
while Sekar tried unsuccessfully to glare at her. Del grinned at her with
shared happiness.

“Because of your stellar work in several areas, I’ve
enrolled you in the Academy’s special course on territorial law. You will have
to wrap things up here quickly. The session begins in about ten days, but you
may want to arrive sooner to acclimate.”

Del stilled beside him as he absorbed this news. Coming on
top of the engagement information, he was reeling.

“Thank you, sir, I don’t know what to say.”

“You just did. A thank you is sufficient. I expect you to do
very well. A lot of opportunities will come your way if you rank in the top of
your class. I use skills I learned from that course every day here on Sayre.”

“Yes sir, I will do my best.”
Territorial law?
Lazlo
hadn’t begun to hope for that training yet—maybe after a few years here on
Sayre with a lot of administrative experience to boost his application. But the
major had gotten him in with a week to spare.

After successfully completing the course, he could transfer
to any new colony and take over all law and order, serving as judge,
enforcement—even draft special laws. If he recalled correctly, the initial
training was for thirty-five days, then there was remote coursework for five
hundred days and a final month of practica and testing. It was a large time
commitment, but he had a feeling he could manage it. The major was right. It
was an incredible opportunity.