Page 22 of Her Alien Cyborgs
“Do I pass inspection?” He deliberately flexed the muscles in his arm as he casually ran a hand through his newly trimmed hair.
She blushed. Actually,fraxxingblushed like a teenage girl.
She huffed a laugh and waved the spatula in his direction. “You already know the answer to that.”
She couldn’t be certain, but something about his smile made her think this was Fyr’enth.
“Did you have any problems getting the AI to provide everything you needed, Fyr?”
It was his turn to be surprised. His steel-blue eyes widened, and he stared at her in disbelief for several seconds before finally regaining his composure. “How did you know it was me?”
“The way you smiled. You do it a little differently than your brother. One side of your mouth turns up a little higher than the other. Kalan’s smile is wider. Like he’s either going to burst out laughing or go for your jugular.”
Fyr’enth snorted. “True enough.”
Now that her brain was more or less functional, she had more questions. “Would you like me to arrange for some Vardarian-style clothing patterns? They have plenty of clothing made to fit around their wings.”
He glanced down at himself as if he’d forgotten he was only half dressed. Of course, that was by her standards. To him, he was kitted out normally. “I’d be interested in trying them, if only to avoid drawing too much attention any time we’re off the ship. Something to cover the wings completely might be useful, too. For the same reasons.”
“That’s a good point, though honestly, I think you and Kalan are going to draw attention no matter what. Vardarians aren’t a common sight in this part of the galaxy.” She raised a hand before he could correct her. “I know you don’t see yourselves as members of that species, and I understand why. That isn’t going to change the fact that everyone else who sees you is going to see two big, handsome guys with silver scales and assume you are Vardarian.”
“Handsome?” Fyr’enth grinned. “Thank you.”
“There’s no point in denying the obvious. You were attractive before, but now?” She managed not to blush too much as she gestured at him. “You look damned good. That’s not what matters, though. How do you feel?”
He took a moment to consider before answering. “I feel like myself. I’m not sure what that means yet, but this…” He touched his newly trimmed beard and then his hair. “This feels right.”
“That’s all that really matters,” she said.
“I never liked having long hair. They used to trim it for us sometimes. Or let us have scissors so we could do it ourselves. That stopped months ago.” He rolled his eyes in a very human gesture she assumed he’d learned from his captors. “Kalan stabbed one of them with the scissors, and that was the end of that.”
She didn’t miss a beat. “Did they deserve it?”
Her question earned her a warm smile. “They did.”
Behind her, the bacon hissed and popped, reminding her she needed to check on it before it burned. Ruining this part of their breakfast would be a culinary crime. Unlike most of her supplies, the bacon came from Haven and was prepared by a skilled butcher who smoked the protein the old-fashioned way.
“Hold on a second. I need to check on this.” She turned toward the pan full of fried deliciousness and started shifting the contents around.
“What is that?” Fyr’enth asked as he moved in behind her. “It smells…I have no words for how good that smells, and I speak every language known to this part of the galaxy.”
He pressed in close enough she could feel the heat of his body against her back but didn’t quite make physical contact. It didn’t matter, though, because his mere presence made her skin tingle and her heart race like she’d sprinted the length of the ship and back again.
“This is bacon.” She forced herself to focus on her words and not the hot-as-a-star male standing right behind her.
Then she used the spatula to point to the other pans on the stovetop. “Those are scrambled eggs, and these are called hash browns. I have no idea why. They’re neither hashed nor brown. They’re actually seasoned cubes of potato, which makes them a vegetable, which makes this whole meal healthy.”
He hummed in amusement. “I’m not an expert, but I don’t think that’s how it works.”
She turned her head to smile back at him. “I’m the chef, so if I say it’s healthy, you should nod and agree with me. Speaking of food, have you ever eaten anything other than nutri-bars and algae broth?”
He made a disgusted noise in the back of his throat. “No. But how did you know that?”
“I spent enough time with the cyborgs living in Haven to hear some stories about how they were treated while they were prisoners. I think it’s safe to assume they and you have had similar experiences.”
He didn’t respond to her statement, but she hadn’t expected him to. Fyr’enth was the sort to take in information and mull it over before speaking.
“Is there anything else you’d like to try, Fyr? I’m happy to make anything I have in stock. I went with this meal because it’s one of my favorites.”
