Under His Command (6 page)

been less skillful, and less lucky too, I would have had to answer for

not only the loss of life on Epsilon, but a destroyed transport craft and

a dead crew.”

She protested, “
I
disobeyed. It wouldn’t have been your fault.”

“I’m afraid the Minoan government wouldn’t take the same

view.” His arm tightened just a fraction. “A commander is supposed

to be able to control his men.”

“I—”

“Peyton, go to sleep. That’s an order.”

Continued argument was probably a bad idea, she acknowledged

silently, stifling her reply. She was tired, he was correct on that point.

Obediently she closed her eyes and listened as his breathing began to

shift in rhythm, the sound comforting in the sterile room. Behind her,

he felt solid and large.

When this was all over, she thought sleepily, she might have to

disabuse her fellow officers of Gallico’s cold, distant persona. The

crew routinely—behind his back of course—called him The Ice Chip.

There was nothing icy about the heat radiating from his rangy

body or those long, intoxicating kisses.

The last thought she had before slipping away in slumber was that

she was surprisingly looking forward to the next twenty-nine days.

* * * *

The bridge was quiet compared to the turmoil of the morning and

the catastrophe on Epsilon. Jake Naiad sat in his chair, observing the

screens, but only with mild interest. Captain Ammati, one of the

navigators, watched a nearby meteor shower with vigilance, her hands

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Annabel Wolfe

hovering over the keys. Her sculpted profile was limed by the

artificial light, her pale hair caught in regulation style at her nape.

“So, tell me, Captain,” Jake said conversationally, “how do you

feel, as a female, over Lieutenant Valmont’s punishment for this

morning’s heroics?”

“Sir?” Ammati lifted her head and almost turned it so she could

look at him. Almost.

“You. Feel?” he repeated dryly. “I’m curious over your opinion.”

“You don’t want to hear it, sir.”

“I don’t?” He stifled a laugh over the combativeness in her tone.

“Well, let’s keep in mind I did ask. Go ahead, please.”

The captain turned and looked at him. She wasn’t a raving beauty

but somehow still strikingly attractive—a little too tall for his tastes,

almost his height—and she had lovely eyes. Long-lashed, sapphire

blue, and extremely direct. “Would you leave your sister to die on a

disintegrating planet, sir?”

“I don’t have a sister.”

“I thought you wanted my opinion, not to spar with words.”

She had a point. Her professionalism was undisputed. He inclined

his head. “Sorry. Not very sportsmanlike. All right. No. I doubt I

could leave anyone in my family behind if there was something I

could do about it.”

“The sexual service option for insubordination punishment

demeans females.” Ammati glanced at the screen and automatically

moved to make an adjustment.

“Would you have taken a reduced rank or demotion to a nonflying craft?” He was genuinely curious. Of the female officers,

Ammati took her job more seriously than most. Like Peyton Valmont.

“No, sir.”

“But you just said—”

“I’m career military, Colonel. I’d do what Valmont did so I could

get back on the job. I just wouldn’t like it.”

Under His Command

39

Jake elevated his brows. “That would depend on the males

involved, wouldn’t it?”

“Perhaps.” There was challenge in her declaration. “Most males

bore me.” She added, as if an afterthought. “Sir.”

He’d wondered. At a guess most of the men had wondered about

Ammati. Too bad. He wouldn’t mind a stab at changing her mind…

The door lifted in a low hiss. One of the senior officers came in,

an apologetic look on his face. “I’m sorry for the interruption, sir, but

she insisted and I received a request from Minoa—”

“Where’s Gallico?”

The furious interruption made him swivel in his chair. Jake saw a

young woman storm through the doorway past Major Grand, her face

flushed, and behind her a young male S-species who looked familiar.

Lounging back, irritated at the intrusion in an authorized area,

Jake said in clipped tones, “This is for command personnel only. Care

to tell me what’s going on?”

The young male shifted uneasily. “I’m sorry. My father helped us,

sir. She insists on seeing her sister and I—”

The governor’s son, of course. Jake recognized the resemblance to

the former head of the now defunct and uninhabitable Epsilon. He cut

off the young man. “So you pressured Minoa for a pass onto the

bridge of this ship because of who your father is? I’m afraid even if

you can open the door, I can still toss you out. I realize her sister

pulled you off a disintegrating planet, Mr. Janssen, but you still can’t

violate federation rules. There’s a briefing planned in the morning.”

Tara Valmont narrowed her eyes. She wore what must be

borrowed regulation off-duty military pants and a shirt of the same

drab color. Her loose hair was the identical rich color as her sister’s

but her eyes were tawny, not hazel. There was a slight mark on one

smooth cheek that looked like a chemical burn and one of her hands

was bandaged. She said tightly, “Don’t blame Will. He happens to

have the capacity to actually feel gratitude for my sister’s courage, so

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Annabel Wolfe

he offered to help. It probably stems from still being alive thanks to

her.”

The implied criticism was irritating. “Look, Ms. Valmont—”

“
Dr
. Valmont. I have advanced degrees in both physics and planet

dynamics.” Her chin lifted a few degrees. She stood with her

shoulders back, radiating militant outrage like a core mining blast

furnace.

“All right, Dr. Valmont, let me first disabuse you of the idea the

lieutenant’s courage has gone unnoticed by this command.

Commander Gallico however, has an obligation to keep discipline on

this vessel. She broke the rules, however well the outcome turned out

to be. Maybe as a civilian you don’t comprehend it, but I assure you,

your sister understood the repercussions.”

“How convenient this all is for you and Commander Gallico.”

“There was nothing convenient at all about the situation on

Epsilon.” His tone was clipped. “Not for any of us. I saw the

commander struggle with his decision. Do you think he took it lightly

to leave anyone there to die? If so, it proves you know nothing about

him. The odds of rescue seemed very slim from this side, Doctor, and

because it was so risky, he didn’t want to send more people to their

deaths. And what did he do when she proved him wrong? He used the

lightest sentence possible by dropping the charge concerning

unauthorized appropriation of military property and gave her

discretion in how the punishment was meted out.”

For a moment she seemed silenced. Then she visibly swallowed,

the muscles in her slender throat rippling. With quiet dignity, she

asked, “Can I see her?”

“No.” Jake softened the denial by adding, “But I’m almost off

duty. If you have a message, I’d be happy to relay it for you.”

Under His Command

41

Chapter 4

Peyton sipped idly from her cup, the beverage reminiscent of the

fruity earth wines she and Tara had enjoyed on their one journey to

her mother’s home planet. She’d already used the cleansing facilities

to wash, eaten the rations provided for both the morning meal and

midday, and used the interactive gaming equipment for entertainment.

From where she sat in the galley, she could see into the sleeping

quarters. Colonel Naiad was sound asleep, his tall body sprawled

carelessly across his bunk. One arm was curved over his head, his

face averted and his broad chest lifted evenly with each measured

breath.

The man was stark naked.

At some point he’d kicked off the sheet. Peyton worked in a maledominated part of Minoa’s forces and she’d seen her share of bare

chests, but Colonel Naiad had a very nice build. He wasn’t as heavily

muscled as Commander Gallico, but long and lean. Dark blond hair

was tousled against the stark white bedding and the dusting of pubic

hair across his groin was a slightly deeper shade. His cock was lax at

the moment, but still looked impressively large nestled between his

powerful thighs.

The night before had been enlightening in many ways. Peyton

wasn’t naïve about her lack of sexual experience, but she also hadn’t

been prepared for the revelation of erotic pleasure either. It

heightened her understanding of why the sexual service regulation

existed in the first place.

If what had happened between her and Kelton Gallico was an

indication, no wonder males craved sexual release, Peyton thought.

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Annabel Wolfe

The handsome commander had been surprisingly sensitive in contrast

to his cold reputation and the experience had revised her previously

lukewarm feelings about sex.

However, the daunting fact remained she was still supposed to

please
both
of them. While Commander Gallico was attractive in a

distant, unapproachable way—though she didn’t think him cold any

longer—Colonel Naiad was a little irreverent, his cynical humor

legendary, and he had a reputation among the females on the ship,

though word had it he didn’t touch anyone when they were on a

mission.

Peyton took another drink of the sweet wine.

“What time is it?”

She jerked, her gaze coming up at the sound of the husky voice. A

little of the beverage in her glass sloshed over the rim and splashed

her hand. “What?”

Unmindful of his nudity, Naiad sat up and ran a hand through his

hair. “I never did go to sleep yesterday because of the Epsilon crisis.

What time is it?”

She’d been partially responsible for the “crisis” so Peyton flushed.

“Past midday. Are you hungry?”

“Oh yeah.” He smiled in that lazy signature curve of his mouth

that made the female members of the crew squirm. “Pretty hungry,

Lieutenant. Food sounds good, too.”

Where Gallico was cool and distant, Naiad was intense, and

despite his rank, his slightly teasing manner was unsettling. She asked

in a cynical tone, “Am I supposed to get you something? These rules

are new to me.”

“I can manage.” He swung out of bed and headed for the

cleansing room. Over his shoulder he said, “And as for the rules,

Valmont, in my experience most pilots are pretty quick. You’ll catch

on.”

Not sure how to take that remark, she sat and waited for him to

emerge. The sound of running water was punctuated by splashing and

Under His Command

43

it was all intimate in a way she didn’t expect. When Naiad came out

he wore a pair of drawstring pants and his hair was damp. His lean

jaw was clean-shaven and the lazy appraisal in his aqua eyes

thorough. But he didn’t do anything more than move past her into the

galley and open the refrigeration unit. “I have to admit I’m starving.”

“Don’t you and the commander have hot food delivered?” She

was curious, and since she was going to be living in the same quarters

for a month, she felt she had the right to ask.

“Just when we request it.” He took out some rations and

unwrapped the meal. “We’re really used to eating alone. Being first

and second in command isn’t conducive to a lot of social activity.”

It really hadn’t occurred to her that aspect of the job would be on

the lonely side. He went on in a conversational voice, “I am very

much looking forward to that part of your temporary incarceration,

Lieutenant. It will be nice to have someone to talk to on a casual

basis. Almost all my conversation now is limited to procedure,

personnel, or this ship.”

Peyton watched him sit down opposite and smiled wryly. “I

thought conversation was the last thing you wanted from me.”

His return smile was wicked. “Oh, don’t worry, I’m looking

forward to the other part of this arrangement too, but having an

intelligent, articulate woman to spend some leisure time with is very

appealing.”

The other part
. Under the skimpy gown, her breasts tightened as

though she had no control over it. The hormonal shot, no doubt, she

realized, trying to tamp down her mortification over her wayward

body’s response to both his oblique reference to what they’d be doing

no doubt after he finished his meal, and to his presence, bare-chested

and very male, just across the small utilitarian table. That damned

shot they’d given her to enhance her sex drive must be working for

she had certainly enjoyed the night before and it very much surprised

her.

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Annabel Wolfe

In a good way, she pondered, sipping her drink and watching the

male across from her. If she was going to have to do this—and it

seemed she was—it was best if she could take pleasure in it.

Maybe her expression reflected her thoughts for Jake Naiad sent

her an amused look. “You and Kel must have gotten along well. He