3013: GENESIS (3013: The Series Book 11) by Laurie Roma

for putting those stupid elites in the medical unit
after they’d harassed one of the servers. His attention had immediately
strayed, and he’d forgotten all about Kahla when he’d stormed out of the office
that was behind the wall of mirrors.
    Maddox
hadn’t been angry to see Mya in Sanctum. He’d been concerned, and completely
focused on the little elite. Perhaps Kahla would get her wish for her cousins
to mate sooner than she thought. And if that was indeed the case, she’d do
everything in her power to help make it happen.
    Interested
in getting to know the human better, Kahla asked, “So, Mya…what do you think of
New Vega so far?”
    Mya
expression brightened as she animatedly spoke of her day. Kahla hadn’t realized
that Mya and Pia had only arrived, but they’d already experienced a lot in the
short time they’d been there. Kahla couldn’t help but be pleased with how often
Mya mentioned each of her cousins, and by the worried expression on her guard’s
face, she wasn’t the only one who noticed Mya’s fascination with them.
    “I
can’t wait to see your new line of clothes,” Reva commented after Mya finished
telling them about her store.
    “A
warrior line sounds interesting,” Kahla said as she refilled everyone’s
glasses.
    Mya
flushed. “Actually, both of you could help me on opening day, if you have the
time...”
    The
Helios and Krytos females exchanged a look, then Kahla asked, “What do you mean
by that?”
    Reva’s
eyes narrowed. “This is going to be something that pisses me off, isn’t it?”
    Mya
smiled mischievously. “No. It will be fine. You’ll see. Now, I propose a toast.”
She lifted her glass in the air. “To fashion, friendship and fun. And to
exciting new adventures, wherever we can find it.”
    Kahla
smirked as they all tapped their glasses together. “And remember…what happens
on New Vega, stays on New Vega.” 
     
    * * * *
     
    Time
meant very little on a space vessel.
    Because
New Vega was constantly traveling around Alliance-controlled space, there was
no actual day or night. Most of the ship ran on a standard time schedule, but
there were several screens scattered on every level that listed the times on
each planet so visitors could keep track.
    Even
though Mya had been on New Vega for a few days now, she was still struggling to
acclimate to the new system.
    After
her night out with her friends, she’d spent most of the day in bed sleeping off
a wicked hangover. They’d finished the bottle of ahava wine, then Kahla
had thought it would be a good idea for Mya and Pia to try several of Sanctum’s
signature drinks. Ryland and Mikal had to come to the bar hours later, and had
watched the chaos unfold. By the end of the night, they’d had to carry Mya and
Pia back to their rooms.
    Since
she’d slept all day, Mya had spent the rest of the night working on finishing
up some of the samples she wanted ready for the store opening. Her designs were
usually replicated back on Earth at one of their manufacturing plants once she
scanned them into the company’s system, but her new line wasn’t complete yet. She’d
been ready to go back to sleep when she’d gotten a message that her team had
arrived earlier than expected.
    So,
instead of getting some rest, she’d gotten dressed for the day.
    A
surprise had greeted her when she’d opened her door. A single perfect flower
had been placed on the floor right outside her doorway. It was something she’d
never seen before, with pale-gold petals and a bright crimson center. She’d
picked it up and sniffed at it’s lovely, sweet fragrance.
    Going
back into her room, she’d put the flower in an empty water bottle. She recalled
telling Tavius that she liked flowers, and the thought he had done something so
sweet for her made her smile.
    After
she collected her guards, they headed down to the docking bay to meet her team.
The crew included those who would help fix her store, as well as several sales
people who would