Page 12 of Pursued By the Dragon Alien

She tilted her head. “I can’t read.”

His frown deepened. “What do you mean, you can’t read?”

Lilas rolled her eyes. “Exactly what it sounds like, Captain. Reading was forbidden in a settlement where the Axis had total control and didn’t want us learning anything.”

Razion exhaled sharply, irritated—not at her, but at what it meant. The Axis hadn’t just taken her freedom. They’d taken knowledge. Power.

“That’s unacceptable,” he said, firmly. He wasn’t just dealing with a survivor; he was dealing with someone who had never been given the tools to function outside of that penal colony. He wanted to change that.

“We’ll teach you.”

Lilas blinked, caught off guard. Then, she let out a short laugh. “Oh? Just like that?”

He shrugged. “It’s essential. And you’re intelligent enough to pick it up quickly…unless you don’t want to.”

Her expression wavered, just for a second. Not irritation, not skepticism—something else. Something like quiet surprise. “Iwantto,” she said. “But you’ve done a lot for me already. I don’t see what’s in this for you.”

He leaned down, closer to her. So close that he could see the bright striations in her vivid eyes. “Two things.”

“Okay…” she said warily. “Let’s hear them.”

“First, I have an annoying ethical compass that doesn’t allow me to dump an illiterate female whose only skill isfarmingon any of the nearby trade stations, planets, or outposts.”

Her eyes turned skeptical. “An ethical pirate. What’s number two?”

His gaze raked over her, quickly and against his will. Being so close to her sent his senses into chaos, making his wings twitch with the urge to wrap around her and his hands ache to pull her close. “You belonged to the Axis,” he murmured. “And I like taking what belonged to the Axis.”

Her eyes widened on a sharply indrawn breath. “I’m just more salvage?”

“You’retreasure, Lilas.” He flashed his teeth in a grimace. “I belonged to them once, too. I know what it’s like living under their rule. And I have a hunch that they will want you back.”

She blinked, pausing to take that in. “Why would they want me back?”

He shrugged, unable to give either of them a definitive answer to that. “Hunches don’t work on facts, until they do. Mine are usually right. And there’s nofekkingway they’re getting you, Lilas.”

Her eyes darkened. “You’re not going to use me as bait, are you?”

“No, Lilas,” he said. “I’mnotgoing to use you as bait. You can leave the Darkslip whenever you wish, but I suggest you wait to do so until you have some non-farming survival skills.”

They stayed like that—eyes locked and air charged—and before he could get a better read on it, her eyes flared and she stepped back as if snapped out of a trance. “Alright then, Captain. Guess I’ll be adding ‘literacy lessons’ to my list of new experiences.”

Razion was just relieved that someone had broken the trance, even if it wasn’t him. “Guess so.”

Lilas nodded, her expression unreadable. “I’ll be a fast learner,” she said, then hesitated. “Razion?”

“Yeah?”

“Thank you. For…all of this.” White teeth clamped on her lower lip as if the words were difficult to utter. Knowing whathe did of her, they probably were. “I know I’m not exactly your typical guest.”

Razion chuckled, the tension in his chest easing slightly. “You’re not a guest, Lilas. You’re part of the crew now, however temporary that might be. And around here, we look out for our own.”

She gave him a small, genuine smile—the first he’d seen from her. “Then I guess I’d better get used to this new life of mine.”

“Welcome aboard, Lilas,” he said, and he meant it.

He led her out of the cargo hold and back toward the central hub of the ship. The tour was mostly over, but he could tell she was processing everything—the ship, the crew, the life she’d been thrust into.

His pulse thrummed with frustration. This punch of attraction was…unexpected. For the first time since taking her aboard, he wondered if he had made a terrible mistake.

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