Page 2 of Sloane

"That's correct," Via says. I doubt it's the first time she's had to assuage that fear. "These males come highly regarded. They're always kind and courteous and don't push for more than the female allows. I'm sending you information about their species as well as comments and ratings left by previous pleasure crew members who serviced them."

"Nice. You got me some good ones for my first go around."

"Yes, well, there's a reason we're asking you to go on this journey, Miss Parker." Via waits for me to give her my full attention, which means I stop shoving clothes into my pack and acknowledge that she's hand-selected me for this mission.

"What could I possibly offer?"

"You're a human," Via says, not mincing her words or softening her tone. "I'm sure you know, based on how many rejections you've received from Pleasure Crew Enterprises, we're not prone to allowing humans to work for us. Humanreproductive organs have proven compatible with quite a large number of other species, which means human females are considered a fairly lucrative commodity. It's one reason Pleasure Crew Enterprises has been so hesitant to allow humans to work as pleasure crew members. You're more at risk than other species due to how easily your bodies adapt."

I should panic, but something about this seems pretty cool. I mean, I'm going to be the first human crew ever, it sounds like. That means I should hopefully get at least a good payday out of this first one, and I'm paving the way for other humans out there who might want to do this. "Do I need to do anything special?"

"Your job will be just as described in the handbook. The males you need to service come from a species that can become aggressive if more than one male is in close quarters with another for extended periods of time. Pleasuring them keeps them from hurting one another and the other members of the crew."

"Oh, joy, some guys with anger issues take me on a mission where they're… wait, what are they doing?" I can't stop my eye roll or the way it bleeds into my words. Does it stop me from packing my bags, though? No, no, it does not. Because this job will get me off Earth, and really, that's all I want. Getting to have sex with aliens? That's just a bonus.

"This crew does low-level runs on illegal smugglers for the Intergalactic Alliance. I believe this mission is the same as their previous ones. You won't be in any danger," Via says, her tone somehow more serious even though she always sounds like she perpetually has a stick up her butt. "We wouldn't have chosen you for this mission if we thought there was a chance you'd get hurt. We matched you with the highest-rated males in our system and had the Intergalactic Alliance sign off on it. We all want the first human pleasure crew to go well. You're our trialto prove that humans can handle being a pleasure crew member without bringing more trouble to the crew you're a part of."

"Oh, is that all? Just the fate of all of humanity's ability to sleep their way through the universe resting on my shoulders?" I snort at my dramatics before continuing, knowing Via is probably losing her patience for my theatrics. "So I'm guessing I don't get a cool laser gun, then?" I ask, a wiggle in my brows that Via can't see, but I hope she knows I'm doing it. It isn't the first time I've asked her if I get a blaster when I'm on a mission.

"No blasters for the pleasure crew," Via says in a matter-of-fact tone—again, the same way she's said it every other time I've asked. Except this time, I can almost hear a smile on her lips. "The last thing I need from you is your final verbal agreement to accept this job."

"I accept," I say before she can say psych. I don't want to give her a chance to realize I'm not the person you want going on any sort of serious mission, but that's okay because I'll figure it out. Worst case, I bang some aliens until I'm brought back to Earth and wait for my next call. "Wait, do I need to do the whole I, Sloane Parker, accept thing?"

"No. You just did it anyway, so it counts. I don't need the whole paragraph."

"So what next?" I ask, my body starting to feel restless now that I'm accepted for this job.

"Now, you get packed and wait for the transport," Via lets out a long sigh, and then I hear her typing on a keyboard. "I will alert the crew you'll be meeting with to be ready to allow you on their ship in approximately an hour. They're already waiting at a nearby station, so they should be ready to take you."

"Do they know I'm human?"

The last time I applied, the excuse for my rejection was no species wanted to use a human as a pleasure crew. My guess is that it was a lie. Then again, humans are one of the newer specieswho entered the Intergalactic Alliance, and there are still plenty of species who are wary of us.

When we first entered the Intergalactic Alliance, trials were conducted to determine the compatibility of humans with other species, but those results were preliminary at best. Even now, two hundred years later, some species are still weird about us.

"They know a human is joining them to prove that humans can be trusted on Intergalactic Alliance approved crews." Via's answer tells me all I need. They don't know the one servicing them will be human, and there's no telling how they're going to react to it. "The males you're going to work with have only ever had pleasure crew from their own species. Humans have very similar reproductive anatomy, so it shouldn't be anything they can't work with."

I groan into the receiver, not liking that I'm not what they want at all. Not to mention Via hasn't told me what species they are. So, my reproductive anatomy is similar to their females. That's not saying much. They could be two feet taller than me or have extra appendages or tails. Basically, what if they think I'm ugly?

"If they send me away, do I still get paid?"

"They won't. There are a lot of details that don't matter at all for the job you're being hired for. Essentially, the males won't care once they know you're anatomically compatible. They need someone to have intercourse with to ease the aggression they'll start to feel. They're used to relieving themselves once a week, so as long as you can do that, they'll be fine."

Once a week? This job is going to be significantly easier than I thought. I was thinking I was going to be getting railed multiple times a day since the pleasure crew makes it sound kind of like a never-ending party of debauchery. Once a week is a cakewalk if that's how often I need to have sex with them. Maybe that means they really won't have an issue with me being human because I can definitely have sex once a week.

"Any other questions before I alert the crew?" Via asks after a moment of silence.

"Not that I can think of," I say, flipping through everything I've packed and trying to decide if there's anything else I need to grab. "One hour, you said?"

"More like forty minutes now. I really need to make this call to the crew. If there's anything you need, just call me back."

"Will do. Thank you for helping me do this, Via."

There's a long stretch of silence during which I don't hear Via tapping her nails against her desk. I almost think she's hung up on me until she clears her throat, her voice sounding almost like someone with actual feelings. "I'm happy to have helped you. I wish you much success in your career with Pleasure Crew Enterprises. If there's anything you need, you have my contact information."

This time, she hangs up, and when the line goes dead, I stare at my comm tablet for a moment. I'm pretty sure she thinks I'm more than an acquaintance, too. How nice.

I scramble back to packing everything I could need. If things go my way, I'll never be back in this crappy apartment again. Which is good since I haven't paid in the last two months and am three weeks from eviction. Really, this opportunity came at the perfect time.

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