Cosmic Castaway (Cosmic Romances #3)

16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

It lives.

Morning, if I could even call it that, came quickly, especially with the interruptions last night. When Serlotminden moved away from me, I groaned, holding on tight and trying to burrow against his chest. He froze, then relaxed against me. His hand pushed under my shirt and stroked the small of my back, lingering on the band of my trousers.

“Good morning,” he said.

I gripped him, face tucked basically into his armpit. “No.”

Serlotminden chuckled. “Yes.”

“No.” I was warm. I was comfortable. I felt secure next to him. I didn’t want to move. We had absolutely nothing to do. Why couldn’t we stay here?

His lips rested against my head, so light I barely felt them. It couldn’t be called a kiss in any way, but my pulse skyrocketed. I’d kissed him yesterday, in the heat of the moment, but I didn’t expect him to reciprocate, because I’d told him not to kiss me.

Mindy had done all manner of odd things—abduct me, nuzzle me, smell me, bite me, watch me bathe—but he hadn’t ever crossed a clear boundary I’d set. When I didn’t pull away and, instead, pressed closer, he kept his mouth right where it was.

After a moment or two, he laughed, and the sound made me smile. Serlotminden was adorable. There was truly no other way to describe him. His smile, his laugh, his energy—all of it was so precious. He was a magnet that drew me to him with every breath.

“I have to work on the distress signal.”

“No,” I said again. He could keep kissing me. Though maybe lower? I’d be alright with that. I mentally slapped myself. He had a boyfriend. That Dontilvynsan. Drakcol were simply physically affectionate.

“Come.” Mindy moved despite my protests and opened the tent, flooding it with cold air. I shivered, biting out several choice swears, but I sat and drew the blankets tighter around me.

After we both pissed, we ate nutrition bars and a couple of the hydration cubes. I wasn’t drinking enough water. Not even close. My throat was dry and my head ached, but there wasn’t enough for me to drink more. Mindy would have to melt snow soon. We hadn’t used all of the snow for washing, but I was nervous to drink it unless we boiled it. I had no idea what was in the alien snow or what germs clung to the makeshift bowls. I didn’t want to be shitting my pants all night.

With my arm around his waist, I helped him to the cockpit. I wasn’t going to leave today. I didn’t need to. Serlotminden refused to let me explore, and if I was honest, I didn’t want to. The strange alien and the nests scared me. I’d rather stay beside Mindy, inside our shuttle. Together.

I took a seat on one of the stools as he got to work. I watched his fingers move over the panels, then the exposed wires. I had no idea what he was doing, but I wasn’t paying attention to the actual work. I was focused on him. The way his long fingers moved. The way his forehead crinkled. The way he muttered under his breath.

At the slightest sign of pain or exhaustion, I would force him to stop. I wouldn’t let Serlotminden be hurt. Not ever.

He grunted under the console. “Can you see anything?”

“What am I looking for?”

“Anything.”

The monitor was lit up, but I didn’t see anything. No words like before. Of course, I had no idea what the hell I was looking for. “Nothing.”

He released several snaps in his language, and I crouched to put a comforting hand on his leg. He stilled. I almost pulled away, but his tail coiled around my ankle, keeping me close.

“You’ll figure it out. Calm down.” I trailed my fingers over his calf, tightening my hold.

Serlotminden took a deep breath and started again. I sat next to him, holding him while his tail held me. The screen remained blank, a large crack through the center. I didn’t know what I wanted. Did I want his boyfriend, Dontilvynsan, to find us? That would allow me to save Vince, which I needed to do, but I might lose Serlotminden as a result.

I scoffed. I wouldn’t lose him. I did not have him. I would never have him, and I needed to accept that.

A blip appeared on the monitor, and I jerked, then shook his knee. “I saw something.”

He jolted up, smacking his head on the console.

“Don’t hurt yourself,” I said; he needed to be more careful.

Mindy slid out from underneath, and I wrapped my arms and the blanket around him as he leaned over the monitor. I rested my chin on his shoulder to watch his fingers skitter over the screen and push button after button.

The screen was full of a language I didn’t understand, but Serlotminden seemed to know what he was doing, though he was tense beneath me. I tightened my hold around him, and he leaned back, practically melting into my chest.

“So?” I asked.

“The ship is destroyed.”

“I could have told you that.”

“None of the sensors are operational, so I don’t know what’s out there. I might get the lights to work, but not environmentals or NAID.”

No more lanterns—that would be nice. “The distress signal?”

He grinned, setting my pulse racing. “It’s operational.”

Mixed emotions stampeded through my chest. Relief? Worry? Anger? Possessiveness? I didn’t know exactly, but they were overwhelming.

I pressed against Serlotminden and breathed him in as I tried to calm down. Whatever happened would happen. I couldn’t control Serlotminden returning to his boyfriend after this, and I’d be able to get Vince, then we would get the fuck out of here, as long as someone took us to Earth. What if we couldn’t return home? How in the hell were Vince and I going to survive? The universe was a mean place, and I didn’t know much of it.

“I will protect you,” he said. “No need to be tense. We’ll be fine.”

Sure, but what would happen when he left? He’d take me off this icy rock and probably help me retrieve Vince, but what then? He wouldn’t put his life on hold for me or take me back to Earth, if that was even a possibility. So what did the future hold?

“You should work on the lights,” I finally said.

“You’re right. After this, we’ll get some sun.”

I grunted in acknowledgement. If he needed sun, then he was going to get sun. Nothing, not my worry, not my fear, not my anger, not anything, would keep me from taking care of Serlotminden.