Page 60 of Solan

Vegas slumped against the wall. She was kidding herself, and it was all Solan’s fault. There was something about him that made her toes curl and her insides feel warm and jittery. It was more than his freakily hard muscles. He’d stood up for her, looked out for her when no one else would. That meant something. She liked it. More than liked, she wanted him in her life. But at what cost? She’d searched for love, and it had faked interest and then kicked her in the teeth too many times. Did real love exist? Could it exist with someone like Solan?

“Vegas,” a female voice whispered close to her cell door.

She lurched upright and jumped off the bed.

“Vegas, where are you?”

She ran to the hatch opening. That was Heather. She poked her fingers out of the hatch. “Over here.”

A hand grabbed hers and squeezed. “I’m here to get you out.”

Vegas almost laughed when she saw Heather’s wide eyes peering in at her.

“Are you okay in there?”

“I’m fine. The station guards brought me here. Diadora must have figured out what we were planning. There was no point in me arguing with them. I figured I’d have to wait here until she decided what to do with me.”

“There’s not a chance of that,” Heather said. “I’ve got a swipe card. We’re getting out of here. Boros is not having you. You’re my best friend. I get to say who you date. And pumped up, sadistic morons are off-limits.”

This time, Vegas did laugh. The cell door buzzed and the door swung back.

Vegas grabbed Heather and hugged her. “How the hell did you get a swipe card?”

“I stole it from the guard.” Heather pulled back and smiled at Vegas. She pointed at her zipper, which was almost down to her navel, revealing her black lacy bra and cleavage. “He was so busy looking at my chest he didn’t notice me swipe it from the desk. We need to get out of here. He’ll come to his senses soon enough and figure out something’s wrong.”

“We’ve missed our passage on the Lillip ship,” Vegas said. “We need to find another way off the station.”

Heather’s smile faded. “You still want to leave?”

“What other option is there? If we stay, Diadora will have us in front of an employment tribunal. She’ll sell us to the next alien who shows an interest, regardless of how many tentacles or horns he has. She might even sell us to a Banti if she’s angry enough. We can’t stay around here.”

Heather tugged on her bottom lip as they hurried past the cells. “What about Solan?”

Vegas slowed. “What about him?”

“I thought you had a thing developing.”

“We have something going on, but I can’t rely on him.”

“You need to change your mind about that,” Heather said. “I left him fifteen minutes ago. He was fighting with his second-in-command about you.”

Vegas pulled Heather along the corridor, checking no one was watching them make their escape. “They were fighting over me?”

“Not over you. Padam was trying to make Solan see sense. Everyone can see it except the two of you. You’re into each other.”

“That doesn’t matter now. None of this will matter unless we get off the station. We need breathing space. We need to come up with a better plan. Otherwise, we’ll both end up in the cells.”

“We should stay. I panicked earlier. It seemed the only option we had was to escape. What if it isn’t? What if we stay here and fight our corner? You’ve got someone on your side. Diadora isn’t invincible. She was wrong to sell you to Boros, and he was wrong to try to buy you. We’ll go to the Council of Representatives if we have to. We’ll ask them to hear our case to ensure fairness.”

“This is far too small for the Council to be interested in,” Vegas said. “And it will take too long. They won’t be able to see us for months, maybe even years. By then, I’ll be an ancient notch on Boros’s bedpost, and you’ll be reassigned to dumpster duty outside the space station.”

“Even if it is, you need to stay here. You need to fight for your job. And you need to fight for Solan.”

Vegas’s heart pounded. “What if I don’t want him?”

“Then you’re lying to yourself. He’s a great alien. Sure, he needs a bit of training in how to interact with humans, but you’ll get there. You’ve lusted after him for such a long time. Why don’t you let yourself have this?”

“Because that’s just it; it’s a fantasy. I’ve had his picture on my tablet for a year. I’ve dreamt up so many fantasies between the two of us. It can’t actually happen.”