Chapter 10

Sophia was concentrating on her own work, inspecting the termination of hoses and their seals for any sign of wear or loose connections. There had been only a couple so far, and they'd been easy to fix, but now she was starting to forget which hoses she had checked and which she hadn't. Her short-term memory was failing her. She slipped off one of her gloves and pushed her fingertips against her closed eyes, trying to rub away the burning weariness that had taken up residence behind them.

In the background, she could hear Bren talking in that soft voice of his that she couldn't seem to ignore. His first officer had given him reports on the status of the Silvana over his comm, and the two had been discussing it for quite some time now.

She'd learned a lot from the conversation, even if she couldn't hear half of it. She'd learned that the Silvana was about a thousand times more complex than the Warlock. She wondered why Bren bothered to do any repairs at all. He had a half-dozen mechanics, and while they were never at rest, it was obvious even from across the flight deck that they were tinkering with some of the ships instead of doing real work.

She drifted closer to the sound of his voice, assuaging her need to check on his work. He didn't even notice her presence. He was half-crouched in the depths of the ship, his hands skimming over hoses as he listened to his first officer talk.

Sophia realized with a start that he'd taken off his gloves and his bare hands were moving lightly over the hoses that carried infused Claudia from the engine where it was mixed to various systems that required power. His touch was confident; he never paused or rechecked his work, even while he was talking. She leaned against the outside of the Warlock for a moment and closed her eyes, fighting the rush of sensual awareness that flooded her body. He couldn't have gotten to her faster if those same hands were touching her instead of the Warlock.

Why this man? She berated herself silently. Why couldn't she be attracted to Banks or Naylor, or better yet, someone who'd never set foot on the Silvana at all! And why in the world did the sight of his grease-covered hands send a jolt of pure lust straight down to her stomach? She could have had her choice of clever ambassadors or minor noblemen, or any man who'd crossed her path since leaving Kyr Castle, clean hands or not.

Sophia made a sound of annoyance and straightened up. She'd deal with her unfortunate attraction later, after he'd told her what she wanted to know. Once she had the information about Carolina's death, she'd be free to seduce her sister's ex-mechanic.

Provided he didn't throw her off his ship first.

"Any response from Essex dock on my request?" She heard Bren clearly as she climbed into the Warlock behind him. Whatever the response was, it didn't please him. "Tell them they've got until we leave dock to come up with the people I want. We're carrying enough trouble without being forced to fly blind."

He heard her moving behind him, and shifted slightly so he could look at her over his shoulder, his green eyes assessing her even as he finished talking. "Something's come up. Bren out."

"You didn't need to stop because of me." She nodded toward the collar of his jumpsuit that was filthy from where he'd turned off his comm connection. "I don't think you're in much danger of me staging a revolt and taking over the Silvana."

"Mmm." His hands were stilled while he looked at her. The moment stretched out, making her uneasy.

"What?"

"Nothing. To be blunt, I'm more concerned about the Silvana being attacked because you're on it."

"Don't worry about it." She said airily, settling herself gingerly against a column that curved into the side of the Warlock, criss-crossed with wiring and tubes. Now that she wasn't concentrating on her work, she remembered that she was exhausted.

She caught the slight smile that Bren gave her. "Despite your reassurances, I think I'll continue to keep an eye out for raiders."

"Legal or otherwise?"

He inclined his head toward her with grave politeness, agreeing with what she did not say. It would be a coup to capture Anatoray's princess, which would attract pirates. But it would also be a valuable bargaining chip with King Sikandar to claim you'd rescued his daughter from pirates. Painting John Bren as the aggressor would be easy.

She shrugged once. That wasn't her problem. Nor was she about to tell him exactly why he was in no danger. He'd been angry enough when he realized how she had outmaneuvered him in the negotiation room.

She smothered a yawn with her hand.

"So what do you want, Sophia?" Bren asked evenly, "To check my work? Are you done the backup system already?"

"No, no." The truth was she didn't know why she'd been drawn to Bren, or why she was half-slumped against the column, trying to find a reason to stay. "I thought it might be a good time to take a break?"