Page 17 of Trak
“This will be more your style, love.” His hand skimmed down her back. The backs of his fingers brushed the bare skin where the top of her dress slit met her hip. “Sweet, withjust a bit of spice, like you.”
She eyed the beverage. “Is this safe to drink?” Pregnant women, or women trying to get pregnant, weren’t supposed to drink alcohol, and the contract had specifically forbidden her from eating or drinking anything harmful to a baby.
“Nothing in there will harm anyone.” He kissed her temple. “Least of all a little one. But I don’t think you are expecting, yet.”
“How would you know that?”
That brow went up again in a knowing look. “Oh, my dear girl,youwill know when you are expecting. Virilian babies make their presence known early.”
That sounded ominous. Anna took a sip of the nice-smelling drink and had to admit it was tasty. The people milling about were led into a theater of sorts, where they found their seats and settled into them before a wide, wraparound stage. It was much like a human theater show, or how she imagined a live performance would be like on Earth. She settled into her seat, with Trak’s large hand resting on her thigh, and watched as an acrobatic troupe of beings took the stage. Some of them had amorphous, luminescent bodies that twisted around the stage as lights and music, wrapping the audience in a trance. Anna forgot about the drink in her hand until a bit of it dribbled on her knee.
There was no clapping when it was over. Apparently that wasn’t done on a space station. Anna had raised her hands to do so, but Trak gently covered them with a crooked smile.
“That would be insulting to the dancers,” he explained while they waited for the bulk of the crowd to clear out before they left their seats. “Clapping or loud noise after a performance indicates displeasure. Did you enjoy the show?”
Anna nodded. “The only theaters I’ve been in have been movie theaters, but I’m pretty sure that would blow any Broadway show out of the water.”
“I don’t know what Broadway is, but I’m glad you enjoyed yourself.”
“It was amazing.” And fairly erotic, she had to admit, and now she kind of wanted to get naked with Trak. Problem was, she wanted to get naked with Traka lot.
“Come.” He rose, tugging her up with him. “We have permission to go backstage, if you would like to meet some of the performers.”
“Are you serious?” she asked as he led her toward the stage, while the other patrons were heading away from it.
Through another tight corridor, they walked into a room of scent and color and flash, filled with the dancers themselves. Some did not have humanoid bodies, but others did. One beautiful female sauntered toward them, dressed in a long blue robe that matched her skin color. She had four sets of arms and had been the primary dancer of the show they had just watched. Anna remembered how stunning this female had been on stage, and how she had captivated the audience during her parts. Anna had done a few stints as a topless dancer at a go-go bar to make ends meet and felt at ease in this space. This was far more upscale, more well-appointed andcleanerthan the dressing room at the Blush Cabaret, where she’d worked on and off when things were tight. It hadn’t been her dream job, but the money was good and it was better than stealing people’s jewelry.
The female batted two-inch-long eyelashes and smiled, revealing rows of long, pointed teeth. She began speaking in a different language and Trak popped out his English chip to talk to her. He brought Anna forward and the female dancer smiled widely at her.Toowidely, Anna thought, but there didn’t appear to be malice in her smile. The female pointed to herself and said, “Gitza.” Anna smiled back, hesitantly, and stumbled through her name and a compliment the female had no hope of understanding. It was the thought that counted, right?
Trak brought one of the female’s hands to his lips and kissed her knuckles, and reality dawned on Anna. This was one of his lovers—past or present, she didn’t know—but there was no doubt in her mind that these two had done the nasty. She looked critically at the female, then down at herself. Good grief, there was no comparison. Gitza was tall and slinky and truly, overwhelmingly gorgeous. Plus,eight hands. There was a lot a female could do to a male if she had eight hands. If not for the hope of offspring, Anna would never stand a chance with Trak.
Gitza held on to Trak’s hand with three of hers and spoke in a fast staccato, clearly trying to make a point, before turning that somewhat scary smile on Anna again.
Trak put the chip back in his head and turn to Anna. “Gitza says she is happy to make your acquaintance and you are welcome in her theater any time you wish.”
Anna blinked and nodded, saying thank you, again, pointlessly, but the female must have understood the sentiment because she blinked her black eyes and took Anna’s hand in hers, as well. She half expected the female to impale her palm with the long, sharp nails on every finger, but the female squeezed her hand and said something else.
Trak did the chip swap again and said to Anna, “Gitza knows how hard it is to start out in a new place, and she wants you to know she is your friend.”
Anna blinked again, surprisingly touched, and squeezed the dancer’s hand in return. “Thank you,” she said again, a little dazzled, a bit intimidated, and overwhelmed by curiosity.
Gitza seemed to think for a moment, then said, “Thank you, Anna,” in a heavily accented voice.
They left soon afterward with Anna’s head spinning. “She’s amazing,” said Anna. “How did you meet Gitza?” she asked him as they filed out of the empty theater.
“She started out dancing at the Miti Luti after arriving on the Bott-L2 station,” he replied with a shrug. “We became friendly.”
Anna slanted him a look. “Very friendly, I imagine.”
He took her small hand in his much larger one. “We were lovers, briefly, but soon became friends and remained so. I like her very much.” It was his turn to give her a quick, uncertain look. “I wanted her to meet you.”
“Why?”
Trak didn’t reply as they exited the theater and made a turn down a dark corridor. “Because Gitza is important to me.”
Anna should have let that remark sink in before allowing a knee-jerk reply, but she was feeling raw from the confusion fogging her head. “Like Sinno is important to you?” she asked, then bit her lip, wishing she could take it back.
But Trak only laughed. “As Sinno is well aware, she isnotimportant to me. Nor I to her. Gitza is my friend. I tell her things I tell few others. We have not been sexual partners for a very long time, Anna.” They passed through a set of airlock doors and into a hangar where a half dozen large ships sat on platforms. Trak extended a hand toward the closest and largest one. “Sheis also important to me. I dare say this lovely has my heart.”
