Page 11 of Right on Time

Half an hour had passed since the AI had alerted them to the problem, and the temperature was dropping fast. Her bare legs weren’t helping. Pacing in the limited space of the cockpit wasn’t warming her up.

“There’s no hope, is there?”

“My lady, please. You will be fine.”

“Yes. Of course. Must stay positive… But still… Is there any hope?”

“Lady Hloe.”

“Please, stop it with the lady already, Subcommander! If I’m dying, I’m dying as myself. Just a Chloe who wanted to make jewelry and bring some color into people’s lives. C-h-l-o-e, okay?”

He sighed from under the console. “Okay.”

She stopped pacing so abruptly she nearly tripped over her feet. “Okay? You fixed the problem?”

“No. It’s okay not to observe the protocol at the moment. I’ll address you as just Loe.”

A hysterical giggle escaped Chloe. He simply couldn’t pronounce the C in her name and that was that. She was going to die a Loe popsicle.

“Thank you, Subcommander. Erm, Nitiel.”

“Do you feel better now?” he asked as he slid out from underneath the console, gaze taking Chloe in from toe to head.

She rubbed her cold fingers together. “Still freezing, but let’s look at the bright side: this right now is good, compared to what’s to come.”

“I just rerouted the regulator’s flow. It will be very cold in the two cabins and the cargo hold, but the temperature in the cockpit will not drop any further.”

“Really? I’ll actually make it?” Chloe cast him a suspicious look. “You’re not just saying it to stop me from panicking, are you?”

Nitiel got up with impressive agility, his wings fluttering for extra momentum. “You’re not panicking, my la–Loe. You’re handling the situation quite well.”

“I am? I read your women are always composed, not showing any emotions no matter how strong?”

He shook his head. His hair had gotten messy, giving him an even sexier look. “In life-or-death situations, most people lose their composure.”

“Wait, so you’re admitting this is a life-threatening situation?” From the very start of the problem, he had been saying this wasn’t a serious issue. But Chloe had watched enough sci-fi shows to know that wasn’t the case.

He smiled slightly. “That is how you perceive the situation, Loe. I, however, know we are safe.”

“You are safe, because your body temperature runs higher than mine. You also have a fancy uniform. I’m half-naked.”

His gaze slid back down her body to her bare legs, making Chloe self-conscious. She was wearing a midi dress, but according to what she had read, Gaenthian women kept their legs covered down to their ankles in public. Cold as she was, she still felt heat rise to her cheeks.

“You are too cold at the present temperature,” he said more to himself than her. “I must do something.”

She laughed bitterly. “What more can you do? There are no onboard hot drinks, and it’s not like there is something warm to wrap me in. There’s just metal walls and seats in here.”

He blinked.

She blinked right back.

Then it hit her. “Oh, your uniform! But that would be too big for me and hardly warm enough. And… you’ll be… naked…” The thought of all those slabs of muscle on full display caused warmth to bloom in Chloe’s belly. Yet, she needed more than the sight of a naked guy to stave off the cold.

He vigorously scratched the tip of his purple ear. “Giving you my uniform will do you no good. But my wings can keep you warm, Loe.”

“Your wings? But how–Oh.”

To be in the circle of his wings, she would have to be in his arms as well. And since they couldn’t be standing for hours, or lying on the cold floor, they would have to be sitting. With her in his lap.

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