Destin's Hold (The Alliance #5)(30)

“I needed time to think,” she admitted, glancing up at him. “What happened… It was very unusual for me. Everything about my reaction to you has been unusual. I am trying to understand it.”

“Do you have any regrets?” Destin asked, tightening his grasp on her hand when she started to pull it out from under his.

“No,” Sula replied, staring into his eyes.

The corner of Destin’s lips moved upward and his eyes glimmered with an expression of satisfaction. He released her and sat back in his seat. A wry expression crossed his face and he turned his head to stare out of the window into the blackness of space.

“Good,” he finally said, turning back to look at her. “I was ready to fight if you tried to tell me you didn’t enjoy it as much as I did.”

“Oh, I enjoyed it very much,” Sula retorted, flushing a darker blue at her impulsive response.

She could feel the heat intensify when Destin chuckled. Her lips pressed together at his almost smug expression. A flash of irritation swept through her that he could so easily cause her to lose her composure.

“Where did you get the game?” he asked, nodding to the wooden toy.

“From the human nurse called Chelsea,” Sula replied, picking up the pegs and inserting them into the wooden board. “When I was on your planet, I caught a horrible virus that made me miserable. I was afraid, because I had been inoculated against all known diseases, but I guess it did not work for the cold virus I caught. It had been a long time since I had felt so poorly. I went to the healer on the base that I was assigned to for medical attention. Chelsea attended to me and became my friend. I hope to see her again when we arrive. I have a gift for her. She gave me this game and several files which I found to be very helpful.”

“What kind of files?” Destin asked, curious.

Sula’s face darkened again and she looked down at the game again. “Files to help me understand humans better,” she murmured, reluctant to explain exactly which ones.

“Documentaries?” Destin pressed as if sensing she was holding back from telling him everything.

“Yes. Well, some of them,” she replied, biting her lower lip and peeking up at him through her lashes. “Some were called romances. I wanted to know why she and her mate pressed their lips to each other. It did not look like it was done to help the other breathe, but as a sign of affection. I thought it important to gather as much information as I could about humans while I was assigned to your world. This was an area I had not thought to research before I arrived.”

“What other files were there? You said ‘some of them’,” Destin asked, sitting forward and pulling the game toward him.

“They were more detailed instructional files about human mating rituals,” she stated with a shrug of her shoulders. “They were interesting, but I enjoyed the romance files better. I did give the other files to my brothers, who appear to be enjoying them from the number of requests I have received asking for more since they discovered I am returning to your world. I swear I wouldn’t be surprised if Sirius ends up appearing at my quarters. His questions are irritating.”

“What type of questions?” Destin asked, pausing in the act of jumping over one of the pegs.

Sula waved her hand in the air. “Sirius is an ignoramus. I have given up trying to understand his questions and usually delete them if they are not relevant to my assignment. You have to understand my brother; he is always trying to get me in trouble. I learned at a very early age to avoid his traps,” she responded, frowning down at the single peg remaining on the wooden game board. “How did you do that?!”

A devilish grin curved Destin’s lips and he sat forward. “Come back to my living quarters and I’ll show you,” he suggested.

Sula’s lips twitched in response. “Something tells me this might take a while to learn,” she teased, suggestively stroking one of the pegs.

Destin’s eyes narrowed and he laid his hand over hers. “You are dangerous,” he murmured. “What’s even more worrisome is now you know it.”

Sula twisted her hand under his and stroked his palm. “I do my research,” she retorted, not backing down.

She pulled her hand free, taking the game with her. She quickly returned the items to the clear bag before sliding it into the larger one. Sliding out of her chair, she smiled at Destin. Her gaze ran over him and she could feel the heat rising again.

“Damn, Sula,” Destin swore under his breath, standing up and adjusting his pants. “You keep looking at me like that and we might not make it back to my quarters.”

The warrior sitting in the corner sat up and grinned at them. It was only then that she realized that the other two couples had left. Besides Destin and herself, there was only the warrior who she suspected had been awake since the moment Destin had entered the room. She refused to be intimidated. Instead, she stepped closer to Destin, reaching up to brush a kiss across his lips even as her hand brushed across the front of his jeans.

“I wonder if the lift has a surveillance camera,” she whispered, turning and walking toward the door.

Her chin lifted and she kept her focus forward when she heard Destin’s muttered curse and soft threat. The smile she had been hiding grew when he quickly caught up to her and wrapped his arm around her. She would have plenty of time later to do the research her father had assigned her. For now, she was going to enjoy doing research of a different kind.