Page 55 of Escape Velocity

Max cocked an eyebrow at his friend.

“Other guys are going to want her. Are you prepared for that? And prepared for your reaction?”

Before Max could answer, Amber returned wearing a gold-colored shirt and slacks in a slightly darker shade.

A zing went through Max as he took in the effect. He’d known from the first good look at her that she was gorgeous, but in the right clothing, she was even more stunning.

“Beautiful,” Rafe murmured.

As if he were illustrating the conversation they’d had a few minutes earlier, Max said, “Don’t get any ideas.”

Rafe turned his hands palm up. “I’m not.”

Could he count on that? Then he reminded himself that Rafe was the one who had brought up the problem of Amber’s looks.

Apparently unaware of the tension between the two men, Amber departed.

“I’d never cut in on you,” Rafe said, punching out the words.

“I know—on an intellectual level.”

“Yeah. You’ve got a chick who’s gorgeous. And you don’t know if you can trust her.”

Max answered with a tight nod. Amber didn’t think like a woman who had grown up on a civilized planet. In any situation, he couldn’t be sure of how she would react. She’d been willing to risk both their lives to get off Naxion. What else was she willing to do? Maybe if she found a guy who seemed more likely to protect her, she’d go with the better prospect.

Well, there was nothing he could do about it now. And maybe if she jumped ship, that would be for the best.

He repressed a laugh. Was that really what he wanted? He wished he knew.

His thoughts were interrupted as Amber returned a few minutes later wearing another outfit. He struggled to control his expression. With her uncanny knack for picking clothing that would accent her best features, she looked beyond stunning. He clenched his fists. It wasn’t just Rafe who had reacted to her. He could bet a lot of swamp rats would want her.

Maybe he wasn’t hiding his feelings as well as he thought.

“What?” Amber asked. “You don’t like this outfit?”

“It looks great on you. But remember when we were going to the space station, and I was worried about people noticing you? This is worse. We’re going to be interacting with a bunch of lusty males, a lot of whom are going to want you.”

She considered that. “You can do the same thing, use makeup to make me less . . . desirable.”

“I think I have to.” He studied her face, loving the shape of her lips and cheekbones. “But maybe not quite so drastic as last time.”

“You have to be the judge of how to work it.”

He continued to think it through, “It’s best if they don’t know at first that we plan to go after Tudor—or why. First we can just be there as traders.”

“Yes,” Rafe agreed.

She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “And you have to make sure there are no people spying for him.”

Max stared at her. “Why are you thinking about spies?”

“Because powerful men are likely to have them.”

“How would you know about that?”

“I knew there were the guards in my camp reporting back to headquarters.”

“How?”

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