way.
Heaving a sigh, she placed a planet to ship call for Janie Garnet. She listened to a static-filled connection while she waited for her former bunkmate from basic training to answer the line. They'd taken very different paths since they'd graduated, but their friendship held up over the years. Janie would listen to Chloe whine about her drama, then tell her to get her shit together.
"Garnet on the comm. Go." A loud crackle followed Janie's greeting.
Chloe spoke up over the noise. "Janie, it's Chloe. Wow, horrible connection."
"Chlo. What's up? You okay? Tell me you're not in hack again."
The line cleared a little, and Chloe grinned. She'd called Janie one time to bail her out, and her friend loved to remind Chloe on a frequent basis.
"No, I'm not rotting in a brig somewhere… but I probably should be." Or maybe a padded cell would be better.
Janie snorted. "What? You didn't kill anyone, did you?"
Chloe snorted. "No, but I did something really, really stupid, and I have no idea how the hell to fix it."
Another burst of static crackled over the line. Chloe held the phone away from her ear until she caught Janie's voice coming through again.
"Shit, this connection sucks balls." More static followed by an apology. "I'm sorry, sweetie. What can I do to make things better, Chlo?"
Chloe sighed. "Just tell me to get over myself and deal." The horrible connection would make the call a short one.
Janie chuckled. "Okay. Get over yourself and deal." She paused a moment. "Seriously, Chloe, are you all right?"
Chloe huffed out a breath. "Yeah. It's a little crazy right now, but I'll be fine. Thanks, Janie."
Janie sighed. "You don't sound fine, but dammit, I can't stay on here. Call me back when a meteor shower isn't screwing with the comm traffic, okay?"
Chloe could totally do that. "I will. Give 'em hell, Janie."
The call went dead on another loud burst of static.
Chloe tossed the phone on the sofa and flopped back against the cushions. Admitting she'd done something stupid helped ease the ache in her gut, but would it be enough? Chloe didn't want to face Marc coming from a position of guilt and confusion. Then again, she could really be getting worked up over nothing. Pretty damned asinine to worry about something before it happened. The stuff she felt for Jace… could fade. It would. She just needed some time and distance.
When Marc came back, she'd be ready for whatever he had planned.
She hoped.
* * * *
Jace disentangled himself from the leggy blonde with an unceremonious grunt and crawled off the bed. He'd done his part. She'd leave with no complaints and should be well-satisfied. But, geez, he hated the empty pleasure. Jace couldn't wait for her to make an exit and leave him in peace. He stumbled to the bath, mumbling about a shower. Yanking the door open, he flipped the lights on and met his reflection in the mirror. Hell, he looked like shit. Felt like it, too.
Turning the shower on as hot as it would go, he scrubbed a hand over his face. The squadron had an overnight layover at spaceport Gamma after their transport pilot discovered a burned up thruster when they'd stopped to refuel. Jagger took it as a sign from the universe and immediately dragged the crew to the nearest courtesy bar to find the hottest action. Jace finally couldn't offer any excuses for not hanging with the guys. He let them cajole him to the club and buy him round after round of drinks.
Jace sucked it up and went for the first woman who expressed an interest. So what if she resembled Chloe. The majority of the females in the club had blonde hair, natural or not, and the odds he'd end up with one had to be off the charts. At least the guys couldn't bitch about uneven numbers. Deuce's interference only went so far, and Jace appreciated the effort his friend had made.
Stepping under the water, Jace lathered up, wincing when the washcloth came into contact with his neck. Merlene, no Marlena something or other, had a thing for
Heaving a sigh, she placed a planet to ship call for Janie Garnet. She listened to a static-filled connection while she waited for her former bunkmate from basic training to answer the line. They'd taken very different paths since they'd graduated, but their friendship held up over the years. Janie would listen to Chloe whine about her drama, then tell her to get her shit together.
"Garnet on the comm. Go." A loud crackle followed Janie's greeting.
Chloe spoke up over the noise. "Janie, it's Chloe. Wow, horrible connection."
"Chlo. What's up? You okay? Tell me you're not in hack again."
The line cleared a little, and Chloe grinned. She'd called Janie one time to bail her out, and her friend loved to remind Chloe on a frequent basis.
"No, I'm not rotting in a brig somewhere… but I probably should be." Or maybe a padded cell would be better.
Janie snorted. "What? You didn't kill anyone, did you?"
Chloe snorted. "No, but I did something really, really stupid, and I have no idea how the hell to fix it."
Another burst of static crackled over the line. Chloe held the phone away from her ear until she caught Janie's voice coming through again.
"Shit, this connection sucks balls." More static followed by an apology. "I'm sorry, sweetie. What can I do to make things better, Chlo?"
Chloe sighed. "Just tell me to get over myself and deal." The horrible connection would make the call a short one.
Janie chuckled. "Okay. Get over yourself and deal." She paused a moment. "Seriously, Chloe, are you all right?"
Chloe huffed out a breath. "Yeah. It's a little crazy right now, but I'll be fine. Thanks, Janie."
Janie sighed. "You don't sound fine, but dammit, I can't stay on here. Call me back when a meteor shower isn't screwing with the comm traffic, okay?"
Chloe could totally do that. "I will. Give 'em hell, Janie."
The call went dead on another loud burst of static.
Chloe tossed the phone on the sofa and flopped back against the cushions. Admitting she'd done something stupid helped ease the ache in her gut, but would it be enough? Chloe didn't want to face Marc coming from a position of guilt and confusion. Then again, she could really be getting worked up over nothing. Pretty damned asinine to worry about something before it happened. The stuff she felt for Jace… could fade. It would. She just needed some time and distance.
When Marc came back, she'd be ready for whatever he had planned.
She hoped.
* * * *
Jace disentangled himself from the leggy blonde with an unceremonious grunt and crawled off the bed. He'd done his part. She'd leave with no complaints and should be well-satisfied. But, geez, he hated the empty pleasure. Jace couldn't wait for her to make an exit and leave him in peace. He stumbled to the bath, mumbling about a shower. Yanking the door open, he flipped the lights on and met his reflection in the mirror. Hell, he looked like shit. Felt like it, too.
Turning the shower on as hot as it would go, he scrubbed a hand over his face. The squadron had an overnight layover at spaceport Gamma after their transport pilot discovered a burned up thruster when they'd stopped to refuel. Jagger took it as a sign from the universe and immediately dragged the crew to the nearest courtesy bar to find the hottest action. Jace finally couldn't offer any excuses for not hanging with the guys. He let them cajole him to the club and buy him round after round of drinks.
Jace sucked it up and went for the first woman who expressed an interest. So what if she resembled Chloe. The majority of the females in the club had blonde hair, natural or not, and the odds he'd end up with one had to be off the charts. At least the guys couldn't bitch about uneven numbers. Deuce's interference only went so far, and Jace appreciated the effort his friend had made.
Stepping under the water, Jace lathered up, wincing when the washcloth came into contact with his neck. Merlene, no Marlena something or other, had a thing for
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