Page 2 of Surface Pressure

“Feet.” Soulara tried the word, as if it were foreign. But how would feet be foreign? “Feet.” She said it this time with full confidence. “They’re odd little things, aren’t they?”

“Why are you naked?” Autumn spat out the question she’d been wondering, the one she didn’t think she’d have the courage to ask.

Soulara’s brow pinched, her gaze dropping to her body before meeting Autumn’s. “Is it custom for all your people to wear coverings?”

“Coverings?” Autumn jerked her head back, relaxing her grip on her weapon a little. She was still ready for anything that might happen, but something about Soulara was disarming. She didn’t seem like a creature that was ready to attack. “You mean my uniform?”

“Whatever is over your body.”

“My uniform.” Autumn wrinkled her nose. “Do your people not wear clothes?”

Soulara shook her head, her hair moving side to side now that it was nearly all dry. It seemed to have lost some of its sheen with the air, and the glittery quality of Soulara’s skin was much duller than before. “Our soldiers wear armor sometimes.”

Autumn’s chest tightened. Soldiers? There were more of them? She’d been assured by her base commander that this planet was uninhabited. But Soulara was here, and she made it seem like there were more people. Soldiers? Did that mean that they’d come here for the water too? Were they both trying to mine the same resource?

“Who are you?”

“Soulara,” she answered sweetly, her lips curling up into a smile. “I’ve never met a land dweller before. There’s songs of them, but no one remembers much beyond that anymore.”

“Remembers?” Autumn was so confused. She sucked in a sharp breath. “I’m going to put my weapon away, but know that if you attack me, I will defend myself.”

“I’m not going to attack you.” Soulara grinned again.

Autumn waited, taking a deep steadying breath. She had one last moment of hesitation and finally slid her weapon back into its holster. Autumn straightened her shoulders and put her hands down at her sides. “Why are you here?”

“I love coming here.” Soulara gestured to the little clearing Autumn had found. “I’m not able to come as often as I’d like.”

Pressing her lips together tightly, Autumn dropped her gaze over Soulara’s body, over the swell of her hips, the spot between her legs, her long lean, strong thighs. Autumn let out a shuddering breath. It had been a long time since she’d taken a woman to bed, since well before she’d been on this mission. She was surrounded by men.

“Do you like what you see?” Soulara asked, her tone teasing.

Autumn snapped her gaze back up to Soulara’s light blue eyes. They were so light. Autumn had never seen eyes like that before. She’d never seen a creature like this before. She was definitely an alien, so vastly different from humans like her

“I’m sorry,” Autumn muttered.

“Don’t apologize for enjoying the view. I like being admired this way.” Soulara stepped closer, her hips swaying side to side. “Do you want to sit? I don’t have much longer, but I have a feeling talking to you will feed my soul.”

“Feed your soul?” This woman was crazy. Autumn had never met anyone like this. Cocky. Sexy. And out of this world. Well, maybe not this world. Still, no one was supposed to be here. “Who are you?”

“I don’t think I can answer that in a way you’ll understand.” Soulara moved to the center of the clearing and sat down, brushing her hair out with a gentle roll of her wrist, smooth and graceful as though she conducted a group of musicians. Her hair was so long that it rested on the ground behind her.

Autumn stayed standing, completely unsure what to do. Sit down and be comfortable, let down her guard a bit, or stay up here and maybe not figure out exactly what Soulara and her horde of soldiers wanted. Stepping to face Soulara to keep the creature in her sights, Autumn plopped her butt onto the sand and stared.

“Try me.”

Soulara smirked. “I’ve shared my name with you, yet you haven’t shared yours with me.”

Autumn ground her teeth. If this really was an alien, someone who had never met another alien, she wouldn’t understand any of that. Autumn wasn’t even supposed to be talking to this creature and yet she’d already broken that rule.

“Autumn Walton.” Autumn pressed her lips together sharply. She was breaking all the rules today. But something about Soulara pulled it from her. Or perhaps her loneliness had gotten to be too much even for her. “Are you using magic to get me to talk?” Panic swelled in her chest.

“No.” Soulara canted her head to the side. “I used magic so we could speak, that’s all. I’m curious, how do you know about magic?”

“I know other alien races who use it.” Autumn dug her fingers into the warm sand, keeping her eyes on Soulara as she leaned back, palms pressed into the ground behind her as she turned her face up to the sky.

“Magic is sacred and feared in my home.”

“Not every culture is like that.” Why was Autumn even continuing this conversation? She should be up and leaving. She should be capturing this intruder and bringing her back to her base in cuffs.

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