Never War (Star Mage Saga Book 9) by J.J. Green

Author:J.J. Green [Green, J.J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: InfiniteBook
Published: 2023-05-27T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nineteen

Regardless of the urgency of the situation, Carina had to sleep. After a quick dinner she went with Bryce to their cabin and got ready for bed.

As soon as they were under the covers Bryce wrapped his arms around her. “Try not to worry too much. We’ll figure things out. We’ve got through worse things than this.”

“I know, but—”

“And we’ve made it this far. If it wasn’t for your determination we could never have done it. You should be proud.”

“Yeah, but—”

“Go to sleep.”

He knew her well.

He added, “Unless you want to...?”

“Too tired, sorry.”

“Sure.” He snuggled closer.

Warm and secure, her weariness overcame her anxiety and she drifted off.

Hours later, something woke her. She wasn’t sure what. Bryce was lying on his back, quietly snoring. It couldn’t have been that. She was well-used to his sleeping habits, as no doubt he was to hers.

A tiny light overhead gave the cabin minimal illumination, just enough to avoid utter darkness. Bryce’s bare chest rose and fell. She laid a hand on it, appreciating the familiar sensation. At the meeting, Ava had mentioned the wish of the couples aboard to settle on Earth and raise families. Bryce had voiced the possibility for them, too, a long time ago. Though their experiences on Sot Loza had dissuaded him of the urgency, she hadn’t forgotten the suggestion.

She had no practical objection. The only problem was, the odds of their offspring being mages was fifty-fifty, and she didn’t want to bring a child into the world where they might be feared and hated, perhaps exploited. She would never forget the life Ma had endured. Creating a new person, knowing that a similar life for them was a risk—no matter how remote—was something she could never do.

But that didn’t mean she and Bryce couldn’t be happy. Over the course of the voyage her feelings for him had deepened and she was in no doubt that at the Matching on Pirine, when mages had the opportunity to find their life partners, she’d made the right choice.

Raising herself up on one elbow, she leaned over to kiss his lips. It took him a moment to wake up and when he did he was a little startled until he realized what was going on. Then he returned her kiss.

She said, “I’m not so tired now.”

He smiled and turned onto his side, taking her into his arms. They kissed again.

Her ear comm chirruped.

“Shit.” She reached for the side table, where it lay, and popped it into her ear. “Yeah?”

“Get to the bridge, Lin,” Jackson said. “You want to see this.”

“It’s Jackson,” she told Bryce. “Something’s up. You should come too.”

After hastily pulling on some clothes, they jogged through the passageways. Jackson didn’t provide any updates along the way, so she guessed whatever the issue was it couldn’t be that urgent. What she saw as she walked onto the bridge contradicted her assumption. “What the hell?!”

In the center of the bridge hung a holo, representing what she assumed was readings from the short-range scanners.

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