Page 61 of Zayrik

“If they don’t double back.”

“Let’s not give them a reason to.”

We waited.

The Kestrel swept past.

Drifted.

Disappeared.

But the tension between us only grew stronger.

Zayrik leaned in, his voice quiet enough to raise goosebumps on my skin. “They bought it.”

“For now.” I fought to keep my voice steady, to ignore how his proximity made everything inside me hum with recognition.

I remained motionless, absorbing the implications of everything.

The adrenaline of getting away, the phantom sensation of his hands on my skin. The way something inside me seemed to reach for him without my permission. We hadn’t finished anything.

We’d just hit pause.

And the wait was already killing me.

“Nav, minimal power. Get me a course to Cindrel Station. Stay inside the nebula.” My voice sounded rough, even to me.Like I was trying to focus on navigation when part of me was still back in that storage bay.

“Six hours added,” Nav said, managing to sound both precise and judgmental.

I grimaced. “Figures,” I muttered. Six hours in close quarters with Zayrik, with this new awareness buzzing between us. With the memory of his hands, his mouth, the way he’d made me feel like I belonged somewhere for the first time in my life. I paused for several long moments, steeling myself. “Plot it.”

Zayrik stood, and I felt the loss of his presence like a physical thing. “I’ll patch the deflectors.”

I nodded, not trusting my voice. “I’ll handle the drift.”

He paused at the hatch, looking back. His eyes found mine, and the intensity there made my breath catch. Made something inside me respond like he’d touched me.

“We’re not done.”

My voice was low, almost hoarse. “I know.”

Gods, did I know.

He left, and I let out a shaky breath. My hands were trembling. Not from fear. Not from the chase.

From him. From us. From whatever was growing between us that felt bigger than attraction, bigger than need.

“Your heart rate remains elevated,” Nav said, managing to sound both clinical and smug.

“Nebula’s stressful,” I muttered, knowing it was a lie. Knowing Nav knew it too.

“Fascinating. The spike began twelve minutes prior to enemy pursuit.” Right when Zayrik had first touched me. When everything had changed.

“Shut up, Nav.”

Zep chirped judgment from his tiny harness, the sound distinctly knowing.

“Not you too.”

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