Page 6 of Stealing the Star Stone
“Yeah, yeah, heart throb of the century.”
“I have less chance of her doing anything sexual with me than I do winning an award for my last performance.”He grimaced.Space westerns didn’t require stellar acting, no pun intended.
“Mm, maybe I should meet this angel.”Graham smiled.
“Fair warning; she’s more likely to bite your head off than give you the time of day.”Eli slid the closet door aside and chose a pair of yoga pants.Tonight, he wasn’t interested in anything carnal.Some time alone might just be what he needed.Hidden behind a wall, he dropped the towel and pulled on his sleepwear.
“Got plans?”Graham asked.
Eli peered around the partition.“An early night.”
“What?No woman to sing you a lullaby?”Graham sipped from a glass of green sludge: kale, spinach, lemongrass, apple and pear—all imported from Tarnis.“Maybe it’s your known philandering that’s off-putting.”
“Oh, you smooth talker,” Eli teased, settling on the couch again.
“Hang on a minute, let me talk to Captain Harolds.”Graham’s image switched to an ‘on-hold’ message.
Eli drank from his bottle, content to wait.It wouldn’t be long.He couldn’t see anyone forcing Nova to do anything against her will.Headstrong, opinionated, all fire, and hell, if she didn’t bring a little brimstone with her.
In the past days, what staff worked on board were but a handful.The chef was on par with some of the six star restaurants he’d frequented.But every other task fell on the captain, Petr, Sharon, and Nova.She’d been the one to drag his ass off Auralis, although, he’d been too stunned to react.With the help of the hotel’s security, he’d been hustled from between twins and into a shuttle, all in darkness.No publicity had leaked.No images of semi-naked him mid-fuck.No half-lidded blurred shots of him trying to hide his face.Nothing.
Graham should hire her hands down.
But that had been thirty minutes of his life he couldn’t recall well.Had he been less drunk, he might have enjoyed watching her move him around like he was a chess pawn.
Yes, she’d be the queen, all regal, standoffish, and proud.
He almost rubbed his palms together, the urge to cackle gripping him.Knocking her off her pedestal would be his interim hobby.
“The captain said he’d talk to her.”Graham’s face flickered to life on the screen, closer than before.“He sounded skeptical, Eli.Do you have a back-up plan?If you arrive at the premiere without a date, all hell’s going to break loose.They’ll be blaring it about that you’ve lost your mojo, are dying, are pining… Oh, dear Lord.”He rubbed his face, his manicured fingers trembling.
“Of course I have a spare,” Eli said.Although he’d prefer not to take Sharon, he couldn’t see her declining a night in the lights.After all, she’d succumbed to his wiles with not much effort on his part.
“Good boy,” Graham said, slumping.“Almost had me in a panic.The press would imply you hadn’t gotten over Bella yet.”
Ah, Bella.The second she’d slammed out of his life, he’d moved on.And yet, she tried every social event they both attended to win him back, turning nasty when he ignored her.As an actor, he saw too many sides to people.Which was fine when he was playing a role, but real life required honesty.Why hide who he was?
“Well, that’s it for me.I’ll let you know what the captain says.”
“Word for word?”Eli arched a brow.
“I’ll record it.Happy?”Graham clicked off, leaving Eli alone, in silence, with a muted hum of either the air filtration system or the engines.
He pulled his tablet nearer and typed ‘Nova Blake’ into the search engine.If he was to get under her skin, he needed ammunition.
Nova Blake.Age: 29.Marital status: widowed.
His finger hovered an inch from the screen, shock stiffening his shoulders.Losing a loved one changed a person.That explained much about her no-nonsense attitude.He flicked through images of her and four women, happier than he’d seen her since boarding the ship.One woman was much older, but the similar features said grandmother.The other three women had to be her sisters.
Top of her class in flight training,said one comment.That he would believe.He doubted she did anything without giving her all.Which meant, she’d loved her husband with her entire being.
What would it feel like to be someone’s world?He had no idea.
If it wasn’t for his aunt and uncle, he and his siblings wouldn’t have known what family meant.His chest ached, and he rubbed it, a sudden homesickness sweeping over him.
Thinking of you.He sent the text, not expecting a response.They knew he loved them.That was one thing his fortune had taken care of…a place for them to call home.How long since he’d visited?Guilt made his heart twinge.
Before the next acting gig, he’d pop by and spoil them a little.
