that. This ship is too small for you
to pretend you don't know exactly what is going on between Gallant and me. If
it wasn't for this mission of his, he'd hand me over to the first passing ship
to get me out of his hair."
Dot started to argue, then
changed her mind. "At least you are getting along now. Have you agreed to
assist him on Zoenid"?"
With a sly smile, Cherry
confessed. "I was planning to help ever since he explained the situation
to me, but I didn't tell him until last night… right after he creamed me.
Beat
me," she amended for Dot's sake, but it didn't alter her look of confusion.
"At
cubit."
"Oh, yes," Dot
said with a relieved nod. "I understand you have become quite a formidable
player."
"Ha! I thought so
also, but the two times we played for more than fun, he's won. I have never
seen anybody as lucky as Gallant. It's almost as if he can order those cubes to
come up any color he needs. I'm telling you, it's really bizarre."
Dot smirked. "Hmmph. There
is nothing uncanny about it. He must be using his—"
Suddenly Mar shifted toward
Cherry. "Would you please get us a wake-up beverage? We are unusually
fatigued this morning."
Cherry started to go when
she realized Mar had rudely interrupted Dot. "You never have refreshments
at your station. Turn back around. I want to speak to Dot." The he-she
hesitated a moment, then complied. "He cut you off on purpose, didn't
he?"
"It was nothing of
importance," Dot answered quietly.
Cherry frowned at her. "You
promised not to lie to me. What were you about to say about Gallant's
luck?" When Dot couldn't seem to find the words to answer, Cherry made a
guess. "Is he cheating somehow?" Dot's eyes rolled upward. "Has
he got loaded dice? You know, cubes that he can make do what he wants?"
Again Dot's eyes rotated,
and Cherry understood that she was abiding by her agreement to be honest or say
nothing at all. Since it was clear Mar didn't want Dot revealing whatever this
was about, Dot was giving her answers the only way she could. Cherry opened the
drawer beneath the table and removed the cubes. "Are these crooked or does
he just switch them for another set when he's losing?"
Very slowly, Dot mimicked
the way Gallant would rub his chin, then run his hands down the front of his
open vest.
How many times in the past
few days had she seen him go through those motions? A
lot.
She had
thought it was some sort of nervous habit. That son-of-a-bitch! He had been
switching cubes with a set he had hidden in his vest.
"What's going
on?" Mar demanded, but Dot wouldn't let him turn them around.
Cherry returned the cubes
to the drawer, saluted Dot, and marched down the hall to Gallant's room. Without
bothering to knock, she pressed the door opener, but Gallant wasn't inside. With
her temper building by the second, she headed for the facility chamber.
The moment she stepped
inside, she heard the sound of the blower in the sanitation stall. She was
tempted to barge right in on him, but the sight of his clothing laid out over a
chair gave her a more vengeful idea.
As stealthily as possible,
she tiptoed across the carpet and lifted his vest. Within seconds she
discovered the concealed cubes and quickly removed them. She suspected if she
played with the trick ones for a while, she would surely figure out how they
worked. Then she would turn the tables on the rotten cheat. And, of course, she
would make sure the wager was something outrageous.
Just as she replaced the
vest, Gallant came out of the stall.
Gloriously naked.
----
Chapter Six
Cherry was caught, and knew
she should have been stuttering apologies and excuses for invading his privacy,
but the only word that came to mind was
big,
and in a matter of
seconds, he was even bigger… and bigger. Not staring was out of the question. "Holy
stars," she whispered.
Suddenly she was in the
midst of a shower of falling stars, but a split second later they disappeared. Another
space sickness hallucination?
Except for covering
to pretend you don't know exactly what is going on between Gallant and me. If
it wasn't for this mission of his, he'd hand me over to the first passing ship
to get me out of his hair."
Dot started to argue, then
changed her mind. "At least you are getting along now. Have you agreed to
assist him on Zoenid"?"
With a sly smile, Cherry
confessed. "I was planning to help ever since he explained the situation
to me, but I didn't tell him until last night… right after he creamed me.
Beat
me," she amended for Dot's sake, but it didn't alter her look of confusion.
"At
cubit."
"Oh, yes," Dot
said with a relieved nod. "I understand you have become quite a formidable
player."
"Ha! I thought so
also, but the two times we played for more than fun, he's won. I have never
seen anybody as lucky as Gallant. It's almost as if he can order those cubes to
come up any color he needs. I'm telling you, it's really bizarre."
Dot smirked. "Hmmph. There
is nothing uncanny about it. He must be using his—"
Suddenly Mar shifted toward
Cherry. "Would you please get us a wake-up beverage? We are unusually
fatigued this morning."
Cherry started to go when
she realized Mar had rudely interrupted Dot. "You never have refreshments
at your station. Turn back around. I want to speak to Dot." The he-she
hesitated a moment, then complied. "He cut you off on purpose, didn't
he?"
"It was nothing of
importance," Dot answered quietly.
Cherry frowned at her. "You
promised not to lie to me. What were you about to say about Gallant's
luck?" When Dot couldn't seem to find the words to answer, Cherry made a
guess. "Is he cheating somehow?" Dot's eyes rolled upward. "Has
he got loaded dice? You know, cubes that he can make do what he wants?"
Again Dot's eyes rotated,
and Cherry understood that she was abiding by her agreement to be honest or say
nothing at all. Since it was clear Mar didn't want Dot revealing whatever this
was about, Dot was giving her answers the only way she could. Cherry opened the
drawer beneath the table and removed the cubes. "Are these crooked or does
he just switch them for another set when he's losing?"
Very slowly, Dot mimicked
the way Gallant would rub his chin, then run his hands down the front of his
open vest.
How many times in the past
few days had she seen him go through those motions? A
lot.
She had
thought it was some sort of nervous habit. That son-of-a-bitch! He had been
switching cubes with a set he had hidden in his vest.
"What's going
on?" Mar demanded, but Dot wouldn't let him turn them around.
Cherry returned the cubes
to the drawer, saluted Dot, and marched down the hall to Gallant's room. Without
bothering to knock, she pressed the door opener, but Gallant wasn't inside. With
her temper building by the second, she headed for the facility chamber.
The moment she stepped
inside, she heard the sound of the blower in the sanitation stall. She was
tempted to barge right in on him, but the sight of his clothing laid out over a
chair gave her a more vengeful idea.
As stealthily as possible,
she tiptoed across the carpet and lifted his vest. Within seconds she
discovered the concealed cubes and quickly removed them. She suspected if she
played with the trick ones for a while, she would surely figure out how they
worked. Then she would turn the tables on the rotten cheat. And, of course, she
would make sure the wager was something outrageous.
Just as she replaced the
vest, Gallant came out of the stall.
Gloriously naked.
----
Chapter Six
Cherry was caught, and knew
she should have been stuttering apologies and excuses for invading his privacy,
but the only word that came to mind was
big,
and in a matter of
seconds, he was even bigger… and bigger. Not staring was out of the question. "Holy
stars," she whispered.
Suddenly she was in the
midst of a shower of falling stars, but a split second later they disappeared. Another
space sickness hallucination?
Except for covering
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