Timeless (Pandora Book 1) (11 page)

“I wish you could see yourself.” Vane carefully removed his fingers and rolled to lay beside her, gathering her against his chest. “Flush skin, tousled hair, swollen lips…” He tilted her face up and kissed her tenderly on the mouth. “You could make a righteous man sin on Sunday.”

“But you didn’t…” Charlotte moved her hand toward his zipper. “I want you, Vane.”

Catching her hand, he brought it to his lips and brushed a kiss over her fingertips. “I’ll be okay,
prya
.” He tucked her head under his chin and wound his arms around her with a contended sigh. “Rest now. There will be time.”

She was his, and no one would ever take her from him.

“I’m not going,” Charli called through the open bedroom door. “I’m not doing it.”

Standing in front of her dresser, she eyed herself speculatively in the mirror, turning one way and then the other while she frowned at her reflection. The black leather pants rode low on her hips, leaving very little to the imagination as it sculpted to her butt and thighs. The “shirt” Vane had purchased for her during his outing amounted to little more than a red handkerchief that tied around her neck and waist, leaving her back and flanks completely bare.

“Charlotte, come on, we’re going to miss the zipline.” Vane’s volume rose as he neared her room. “What’s the problem?”

“It doesn’t fit. I can’t go out in public like this.”

“I’m sure it’s not that bad.” Rounding the corner, Vane stumbled to a stop just beyond the doorway. “Holy fuck, female.”

“It doesn’t fit,” she repeated. “It doesn’t hide anything.”

“Why would you want to hide?” Vane’s boots swished over the chocolate-brown carpet as he crossed the room to stand behind her. “You look incredible,
prya
.” He rested his hands on her bare shoulders and trailed his fingertips down her arms to her elbows. “You’re right, though. You can’t leave my quarters looking like that. I’d have to murder half the males in the city before we even finished shopping.”

“Flatterer,” she mumbled, leaning back against him and tilting her head to the side.

Vane nuzzled the side of her neck and encircled her waist with his strong arms. “I’ll find you a coat.” Then he kissed her behind the ear and hurried out of the room.

Watching him go, Charli leaned sideways against her dresser and grinned. After their little tryst, she’d fallen asleep in Vane’s arms and awoken several hours later with him still curled around her protectively. During breakfast, she’d caught him staring at her several times, and throughout the morning, he’d used any and every excuse to touch and kiss her.

Not that Charli was complaining. She just didn’t understand what had changed.

“Here.” Vane entered the room carrying a fur-lined, leather jacket by the hood. “I know it’s big, but it’ll keep you warm.”

He held the coat open and wrapped it around her securely after she’d slid her arms into the sleeves. Then he looked her up and down and grunted in apparent satisfaction.

It was the same jacket he’d wrapped her up in when he’d rescued her from the ice. The supple leather even smelled like him, and Charli turned her head into the collar, breathing deeply.

“What will you wear?”

“It’s not so cold yet,” he answered, turning her toward the open door. “I’ll be okay.”

Charli frowned. “Vane, it’s freezing out there.”

“For you. I’m used to it, and trust me when I tell you, it’s going to get much worse.”

At least four feet of snow already blanketed the ground outside. She’d seen the frozen lake from her bedroom window, its white surface sparkling in the moonlight. The cold air had stolen her breath and nearly frozen her lungs for the few minutes she’d been outside in the elements.

“How much worse are we talking?”

“Much,” Vane answered ominously. “Come on, we’re going to be late.”

“You don’t have cars here?”

Charli hurried along beside him, half jogging to match his long strides as they exited his apartment. The moment she stepped through the doors, an icy blast of wind smacked her in the face, robbing her of her next breath.

“No, we don’t have cars, not like the ones on Earth, anyway.”  His heavy arm came around her shoulders, pulling her closer to his side while his gaze darted from side to side, scanning their surroundings. “We have gliders,” he continued after a weighty pause. “They’re kind of like Earth cars, but without wheels, and they fly.”

He spoke casually, but Charli could feel the tension in his arm, could see the strain in the chords of his neck and the alertness in his eyes. In that moment, walking along the icy path toward the compound, he wasn’t the gentle lover who had held her during the night. Right then, he was a soldier, a warrior, his senses on high alert, and damn if he wasn’t making her twitchy as hell.

“So what is the zipline?” she asked, trying to distract herself.

Lifting his right arm, Vane pointed to a sleek, shiny, black capsule parked near the platform at the front gates of Pandora. “That’s a zipline.”

“It looks like a train.” Smaller than any train she’d ever seen, big enough for no more than four people, but it ran on rails. “Is this like your version of a taxi?”

Vane pressed his palm to the sensor pad on a rock column beside the gate and nodded. “I guess you could think of them like personal trains. A new one arrives about every twenty minutes.” A smaller door beside the column swung open, and he nudged her through it, ushering her up the steps to the raised platform. “Don’t be afraid.”

“I’m not.” She couldn’t be when Vane appeared ready to plunge a dagger into anyone who so much as looked at her sideways. “I’m a little out of my element here, but I’m a fast learner.”

The entire side of the small train opened vertically when they approached, revealing two bench seats upholstered in beige leather. Vane waited for her to step inside the cramped capsule, and then he tucked her against his side once they were seated.

“Destination
?” The onboard computer requested.

“Taldor, Quillona Street,” Vane answered.

The door lowered without a sound, and Charli gripped Vane’s hand when the train whipped them away from the platform. Through the small, circular window, she watched the snow-covered ground rocketing past, the sight little more than a blur. A couple of minutes into their ride, small, bungalow-style houses began cropping up, speeding by too fast for Charli to make out many details.

“Tordega,” Vane said, answering her unvoiced question. “It’s one of the smaller outlying villages. The bigger villages are on the other side of the city.”

Fascinated, Charli nodded and leaned closer to the window, pressing her nose against the glass in an attempt to see more. Exactly seven minutes later according to the digital read out on the projection screen at the front of the train, the zipline slowed before coming to a complete stop inside the city.

“
Thank you. Please enjoy your day.
”

Exiting the compartment, Vane held his hand out to her, helping her onto the shining, chrome platform. “See? Not so bad.”

“Are you kidding?” Charli tingled from head to toes, and her heart pounded a quick staccato against her sternum. Adrenaline coursed through her veins, pumping out to her extremities, and she couldn’t remember a time she’d felt so alive. “That was amazing, even better than I imagined. Will you show me the villages sometime?”

Chuckling quietly, Vane pulled the hood of the jacket up over her head and tucked her hair inside. “I’ll take you anywhere you want to go, but one thing at a time, hmm?”

Unable to stop herself, Charli bounced up on her toes and kissed his lips. “Why are you so good to me?”

His breath billowed in a cloud of vapor when he sighed and rubbed their noses together. “Because you are important to me,
prya
.”

She should let it go and not push for answers she probably didn’t want. More than anything, she wanted to believe Vane, to believe they could have a future together, but she needed the truth before she could let herself dare to hope.

“Okay, but why? What changed? A few days ago, you couldn’t wait to get away from me. I mean, you didn’t seem so interested in me the first time we met. Your mood swings kind of make my head hurt—one minute hot, the next cold. You push me away, but then you break about a dozen different laws to bring me here and save my life.”

“This isn’t the time or place,” Vane answered, his voice quiet and tense.

Damn, he had a point, but if she didn’t get the nervous ramble out in one fell swoop, she’d lose her courage. “You came to see me in the hospital, but it seemed like you viewed your visits as more of an obligation than anything. You’ve been quiet and distracted, but then you go and create my old room in your quarters, which is probably the sweetest thing anyone has ever done for me.” Charli paused long enough to suck in a deep, chilly breath. “I’m important to you today, but what about tomorrow or the next day?”

“Galaxies, I forgot how much you talk.” A smile curved his lips, and he placed his hand at the small of her back, giving her a gentle nudge toward the stairway at the end of the platform. “Start walking,” he ordered.

Frustrated, but also freezing, Charli allowed him to lead her up the steps to the enclosed bridge that stretched over the railway. Neon lights in every color imaginable illuminated the sidewalks, the flashing billboards, and even the massive, steel skyscrapers that reached towards the night sky.

“Are those gliders?” Looking down at the street through the wall of windows that encased the sky bridge, Charli pointed to a row of vehicles that looked a little like compact sedans, but without tires. “They look really small.”

“They’re efficient. We try to limit the resources we use.” Vane pointed to the set of sliding glass doors at the end of the elevated walkway. “Through there and turn right.”

“You’re trying to distract me,” Charli accused. “And I’m letting you.” Annoy with herself, she pushed the hood of her jacket back roughly and huffed. “Just answer one thing. Do you plan to stick around for a while or are you just here until I get settled?”

A smile played over his lips, and he reached out to caress her cheek with the back of his hand. “Charlotte, I’m not going anywhere. I am yours to command until you send me away.”

While it answered her initial inquiry, the intensity of his gaze, and the strange vow only raised more questions. She didn’t even know why she cared so much. Having a familiar face to help her navigate this new world lessened her anxiety, but the feelings that bloomed inside her when she looked at Vane went beyond gratitude.

Charli felt connected to the handsome soldier, more so than she should after only a few days. A romantic to her core, she’d never doubted the notion of love at first sight. The longing in her heart, no matter how much she tried to fight it, reach past such trite and trivial emotions like love. She couldn’t describe it, couldn’t put a name to it, but staring into Vane’s multi-colored eyes, a sense of peace overcame her, and it reminded her of coming home after being away for too long.

Stepping through the automatic doors, she entered what amounted to an enormous, four-story mall. “Wow.”

It didn’t look much different than the malls she’d frequented on Earth, expect that she didn’t recognize any of the shop names. Storefront windows gleamed brightly, showcasing everything from shoes to an odd assortment of electronics. Shimmering projections scrolled across the glass, indicating different sales or announcing new products.

“
Welcome to The Plaza. Can I be of assistance today?
”

Charli spun in a circle, searching for the source of the robotic voice. To her left, she found a tall, slender kiosk, a man’s handsome face smiling back at her from the center screen.

“Uh, I’m good. Thanks.”

“
Have a pleasant day.
”

“Yeah, you, too.”

She shrugged when Vane quirked an eyebrow at her. It never hurt to be polite. Unzipping her borrowed jacket, she started to shrug out of it, but stopped when Vane growled at her.

“Hey, buddy, you picked out these clothes,” she reminded him, sliding the jacket off and pushing it into his hands. “I don’t like it, either, but it’s too damn warm in here to wear that coat.”

He didn’t look happy about it, but he also didn’t say anything.
Smart man.
While excited by her surroundings, Charli still wanted answers to her questions, and she promised herself to stop falling victim to Vane’s distractions.

“I’ll shop. You talk.” Pausing, she cocked her head to the side and frowned. “That sounded really demanding, huh? I didn’t mean it like that, though. I’m grateful for everything you’ve done for me, and I promise I’m going to pay you back just as soon as I can get a job and start making some money.” The thought of money had her tilting her head to the other side while she rested her hands on her hips. “What qualifies as currency around here anyway?”

Draping his jacket over his arm, Vane spun her by the elbow and started her walking across the white, speckled tiles. “All of the currency on Nekron is electronic, even in the villages. Did Xavian explain about the PIT implant and how it links to your bank account?”

Charli bobbed her head. “I don’t have a bank account, though, or any money to put in it. Do you just call it currency? Or do you have dollars and stuff?”

“Accepted currency across most galaxies are Galactic Standard Units. Mostly, we just call them units or GSUs.”

Navigating through the throng of people milling about the common areas of The Plaza, Charli nodded slowly, trying to compute it all to memory. “I’m never going to get all of this.”

Vane bent to kiss the top of her head. “You will. It’s only been a day since you left the med bay. Give it time,
prya
.”

A tall, slender man with an ivory complexion and midnight blue hair eyed her appreciatively as he passed, earning him a feral snarl from Vane. Charli didn’t know how to react to the dominant display of possessiveness, so she kept her head down and said nothing. He’d warned her before they’d left the apartment that he wouldn’t tolerate any male attention directed at her, but she hadn’t taken him seriously. Clearly, she should have.