Page 28 of Stars in Aura

She braced.

Even as the colossal man across from her face tightened, his eyes flared like flames.

Men often stared at her with hunger, intrigue, and even anger, but never like this.

His silver-fire eyes burned through her, cutting like plasma, his lips curling, not in amusement, but in sentiment far more dangerous.

That said, she admired his control because despite him being pissed, he kept his rage in check, churning beneath that granite-carved exterior.

For all his faults, he avoided theatrics and was never prone to emotional outbursts.

Evidenced by the fact that although he had the height and size advantage, he didn’t threaten her.

He wasn’t in her face, nor was he screaming at her.

His hands crossed his chest, posture relaxed, but Issa wasn’t fooled.

He discerned through her bullshit and would hunt her down until he got what he wanted.

A flicker of unease danced through her.

She now understood why Pegasi, in entirety, found the Riders freakin’ scary.

Ki’Remi’s raking gaze made it seem that he wanted to dissect her, freakin’ figure her out like an anomaly he needed to solve.

Her fingers curled into her palms, nails pressing into flesh.

She met his cold study with a cool look she didn’t quite feel, her pulse hammering against her ribs.

Before the tension wire between them snapped, bridge comms chimed in with a dulcet tone, and a voice broke through the silence.

‘Sable, Elaris. Report.’

The pair’s eyes snapped and locked at the Admiral’s familiar tone.

The hail from the highest authority on the Perseus Prime, the man responsible for every medical mission this ship undertook across the galaxy, sounded taut, tense.

Ki’Remi exhaled, his lip curling further, not at the Admiral but at the interruption.

‘Admiral Rhye, the patient, Zera Okaban, is stabilized. The surgery was successful.’

His utterance was clipped, impassive.

After a brief pause came their boss’ terse order. ‘My ready room. Now.’

The hail fell away with a soft ping.

The Rider turned his head, his cold eyes landing back on Issa. Assessing. Calculating.

‘Are we done here?’ she asked, voice light.

‘For now,’ he murmured. ‘Scrub out. Now. Explanations will come later.’

She turned, stripped off her gloves, and exited the surgical bay, her slow roll sending an unequivocal message.

She was unperturbed and unrepentant.

The souls of those most precious to her were on the line, and she would do anything, freakin’ everything in her power, to keep them safe and alive.

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