relaxed, a knot of tension in him easing that he’d not known was there until he ascertained for himself she was not severely hurt. He relayed some extra instructions to Xarn. “You’ll want to grab the laser cutter, the wrenching bar and a few face masks along with the air quality unit. Oh, and a medical aid kit in case you need to patch up some wounds that can’t wait.”
“I’ve done this before,” groused his friend, adding those items plus a few more to a sack which he hoisted on his back. “Anything else, mother?” he mocked.
“Be careful.”
“Always. Take care of our human until I return.”
With a nod, Xarn left and Brax placed half his attention on Louisa, the other half on listening for sounds that might signal trouble arriving. When his second and third scans showed no signs of internal damage other than some minor bruising and a bump on her head, he leaned back on his heels. She’s going to be fine. From the crash anyway. How she’d react if some of her students didn’t make it, he preferred not to dwell on.
In the short time he’d known her, Louisa, with her feisty actions and words, had come to mean a lot to him. To his best friend as well. The dilemma of who got to keep her plagued him. On the one hand, he wanted her with an urgency and possessive need he’d never imagined. I want to make her my mate. On the other, he possessed a premonition that if he got to keep her exclusively, or if Xarn did, it would damage his relationship with the male who’d grown up with him and shared all of life’s important events.
Odd how one barbarian human might be the one thing that managed to drive a wedge between them, but what else could they do? Letting her go wasn’t an option, but how to deal with her choice? But what if she didn’t have to choose… Could he handle sharing her, possibly for a lifetime with his sword brother and best friend? To his surprise, the idea didn’t make him want to yell no . However, would Xarn be agreeable to something like that? Of course, now was not the time to mull over the situation of Louisa and her affections. He caressed her cheek with the pad of his thumb and leaned down to brush her lips before standing.
Unable to do anything more for her, he returned to the locker and armed himself with the same hip holster as Xarn. He also filled a sack with a water purifying unit, nutritional bars, ammo clips, and compact, thermal blankets. He packed a rope dispenser as well.
A part of him hoped they could stay on the ship and wait for rescue, but he’d not lived this long by not being prepared for the worst. He filled a second smaller sack for Louisa, because already knowing her stubborn nature, she’d probably insist on helping if they did have to leave.
As if thinking of her roused her, he heard her muttered, “Holy fuck my head hurts.”
Hurrying back to her side, he whipped out the scanner again and ran it over her face. He ignored her batting hands.
“Hey, what the hell are you doing?”
“Scanning you again, now that you’ve woken, for signs of concussion or brain bleeding.”
“I’m fine. Nothing some acetaminophen won’t fix.”
“Some what?”
She squinted at him through pain filled eyes. “Got anything for a headache?”
One step ahead, he pressed an osmosis syringe against her arm. With a hiss of pressure releasing, he gave her the medicine, and she sighed in relief. His sigh occurred internally. He’d not known how she’d react to aid meant for his kind.
The crease of pain disappeared from between her brows. “Oh, that feels better. What happened?”
“We were hit by enemy fire and crashed.”
“We what?” Her eyes widened as she sat up and peered around. “Where’s Xarn? And my girls? Is everybody alright?”
“My sword brother has gone to verify on your charges status. As well, he will take some planetary surface readings and judge its suitability for our life forms.”
“Are you trying to tell me we might be stuck on a
“I’ve done this before,” groused his friend, adding those items plus a few more to a sack which he hoisted on his back. “Anything else, mother?” he mocked.
“Be careful.”
“Always. Take care of our human until I return.”
With a nod, Xarn left and Brax placed half his attention on Louisa, the other half on listening for sounds that might signal trouble arriving. When his second and third scans showed no signs of internal damage other than some minor bruising and a bump on her head, he leaned back on his heels. She’s going to be fine. From the crash anyway. How she’d react if some of her students didn’t make it, he preferred not to dwell on.
In the short time he’d known her, Louisa, with her feisty actions and words, had come to mean a lot to him. To his best friend as well. The dilemma of who got to keep her plagued him. On the one hand, he wanted her with an urgency and possessive need he’d never imagined. I want to make her my mate. On the other, he possessed a premonition that if he got to keep her exclusively, or if Xarn did, it would damage his relationship with the male who’d grown up with him and shared all of life’s important events.
Odd how one barbarian human might be the one thing that managed to drive a wedge between them, but what else could they do? Letting her go wasn’t an option, but how to deal with her choice? But what if she didn’t have to choose… Could he handle sharing her, possibly for a lifetime with his sword brother and best friend? To his surprise, the idea didn’t make him want to yell no . However, would Xarn be agreeable to something like that? Of course, now was not the time to mull over the situation of Louisa and her affections. He caressed her cheek with the pad of his thumb and leaned down to brush her lips before standing.
Unable to do anything more for her, he returned to the locker and armed himself with the same hip holster as Xarn. He also filled a sack with a water purifying unit, nutritional bars, ammo clips, and compact, thermal blankets. He packed a rope dispenser as well.
A part of him hoped they could stay on the ship and wait for rescue, but he’d not lived this long by not being prepared for the worst. He filled a second smaller sack for Louisa, because already knowing her stubborn nature, she’d probably insist on helping if they did have to leave.
As if thinking of her roused her, he heard her muttered, “Holy fuck my head hurts.”
Hurrying back to her side, he whipped out the scanner again and ran it over her face. He ignored her batting hands.
“Hey, what the hell are you doing?”
“Scanning you again, now that you’ve woken, for signs of concussion or brain bleeding.”
“I’m fine. Nothing some acetaminophen won’t fix.”
“Some what?”
She squinted at him through pain filled eyes. “Got anything for a headache?”
One step ahead, he pressed an osmosis syringe against her arm. With a hiss of pressure releasing, he gave her the medicine, and she sighed in relief. His sigh occurred internally. He’d not known how she’d react to aid meant for his kind.
The crease of pain disappeared from between her brows. “Oh, that feels better. What happened?”
“We were hit by enemy fire and crashed.”
“We what?” Her eyes widened as she sat up and peered around. “Where’s Xarn? And my girls? Is everybody alright?”
“My sword brother has gone to verify on your charges status. As well, he will take some planetary surface readings and judge its suitability for our life forms.”
“Are you trying to tell me we might be stuck on a
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