Page 59 of The Alien's Private Redemption

"Thank you all for coming," Colonel Schuh started, and Dr. Phillips huffed.

"That was hardly an invitation," she snapped. "Are we able to move forward or not? Endless meetings are not going to get the results I was sent for."

"Are you in a hurry to attempt to kill your patient again?" Zoric asked. Her tone made him seethe with anger, but a gentle nudge from Angela reminded him that he was no longer alone.

"Are you going to keep me from doing my job?" The psychiatrist was agitated. More than could be accounted for by the incident the day before.

"What is your job?" Zoric asked. "I didn't think torture was allowed in this situation."

"I've been tasked with identifying and removing Private McBride's triggers, in the hopes that her unique experience can be used to protect others in the future," Dr. Phillips said. The tipof her nose lifted slightly with each word until she was looking down it at him.

"It appears you're attempting to identify them by setting them off," Ae-cha drawled. "This is honestly something that I should be handling as I am uniquely qualified to do so."

"I return to my objections to torture," Zoric replied.

"Dr. Phillips," Colonel Schuh interrupted. "I'd like an update with how far you'd gotten with your evaluation, then we're going to move forward integrating your work with our advisors. We are here to work together. And no, Zoric, torture is not allowed. If you'd please sit, I'm sure the good Doctor would feel more comfortable."

Zoric approached one of the chairs and backed into it, his tail sliding up and over the arm on the side, pulling his kilt with it, so the bare backs of his thighs met the chair. His scales kept him from feeling the cold of the faux leather but it was an uncomfortable texture.

Ae-cha glanced at him with a smirk and looked away. The Colonel made a note on the pad of paper in front of him, then nodded when Zoric had settled into his chair.

"If you're quite finished flashing us," Dr. Phillips said.

Zoric raised an eyebrow at her. It was a facial expression he'd worked to be able to make so a human could recognize it and was happy to see her own expression change. "I don't know what you think you saw, Dr. Phillips, but I can assure you that it wasn't what you're implying. No lizardman has ever had occasion to blush over that."

Dr. Phillips flushed and stammered until Colonel Schuh interrupted her. As uncomfortable as Zoric was in his chair, he leaned back with satisfaction.

Chapter 7

Angela settled back against the wall next to her bed and closed her eyes. Her legs were crossed in front of her and her hands relaxed on her thighs. While she focused on the white noise from the air conditioner and how air moved the fine hairs on her arms, she felt her breathing take on a familiar rhythm. She needed the moment to recover from her encounter with Zoric.

It was the most amazing thing she'd ever experienced. Their conversation flowed naturally between spoken words and half-formed thoughts, neither of them quite sure where one ended and the other began. It should have been invasive, but instead felt like recovering a sense she hadn't known was missing. Each time their minds touched, warmth bloomed in her chest and spread through her limbs like sunshine breaking through clouds.

And the pleasure she'd felt when she stroked her hand down his tail...

The memory of that fleeting touch sent an echo of pleasure through her body. Heat blossomed in her core and she reveled in it as it moved up her spine to her chest and the tips of her ears. The memory of his voice, the way his mind brushed against hers, and the warmth he'd wrapped around her, let her slip into her mind to live them again.

While she relaxed into her memories, she reached out for him, following a path through her mind that hadn't been there a few days ago. She couldn't exactly see through his eyes but she knew he could feel her, and a deep sense of satisfaction flowed through her. That it might have originated with Zoric should have concerned her, but it didn't.

Nothing in her life had felt this natural.

Vague memories from her childhood flitted around the edges of her mind but she couldn't catch them enough to identify anything more than the feeling of safety. And even those didn't match her Bond with Zoric.

Her meditation was interrupted by the sound of the cellblock door opening. The smell of her food tray set her stomach rumbling and Angela was on her feet by the time the guard reached her. She was relaxed and smiled at him when he set the tray in the slot.

"Thank you," she said, and took it from him.

The guard paused and she realized it was the first time she'd ever said anything to him. Usually, she was standing at attention when he arrived, and nodded when she took the tray. Nobody but the doctors had actually interacted with her beyond giving terse directions, and waiting for her to do what she was told.

With a nod, the guard left, but his gait wasn't as stiff as it was when he'd arrived.

What else hadn't she done since she'd arrived? Interacting with other humans had always been difficult for her, though that had become easier when she'd gotten to boot camp. Gettingassigned to a diplomatic detail didn't happen for people who couldn't behave appropriately.

She didn't think she'd smiled since the day her life went to hell. And certainly never at the guards. Had that been the right thing to do? Or would she have been better off trying to make friends? Since the moment of her arrest, Angela had been waiting for the death sentence, certain she'd deserved it. Now, she thought she might have the opportunity to live.

Her first bite of food exploded across her tongue and she almost moaned in pleasure. Had peanut butter and jelly always tasted this good? Or did her Bond with Zoric have something to do with her enjoying it so much? Since when could she smell a peanut butter and jelly sandwich from across the room?

She didn't have much time to contemplate what other things would be enhanced by her bond with Zoric. If she'd ever questioned if there was someone watching her, the timing of the guard coming back dispelled those questions. She hadn't swallowed her last bite when the cellblock door opened again.

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