gaian consortium 06 - zhore deception by Christine Pope Page B

across the room and over to the bar. At least its not inconsiderable steel bulk was between her and Gabriel Brant as she reached to take the glass from him.
    Their fingers never touched, and relief rushed through her. That was something. If he’d wanted to, he could have made sure she had to touch him to retrieve the glass of volshir . Whatever that was.
    Maybe he really didn’t want to touch her. After all, her skin was no longer human, nor the rest of her. Well, the exterior. Inside, she was just as human as she’d ever been. She wouldn’t let them change that about her. She had to cling to that, so she wouldn’t forget who she really was.
    “To exploration,” Gabriel said, and again one of those nervous little shivers flickered its way down her spine.
    But she had no choice. “To exploration,” she echoed, then lifted the glass to her lips and took an experimental little sip.
    Sweet, like the fruit ices her mother used to buy her on hot summer days. The similarity ended there, however, because as the liquor trailed down her throat, it seemed to turn to fire, burning its way down, lighting a flame inside her.
    Coughing, Trinity set down the glass. The whole time, Gabriel was watching her, an amused tilt to his eyebrows.
    “I suppose I should have warned you about that,” he said casually, then reached under the bar and brought out a pouch of water. It was cold, and Trinity realized there must be a refrigeration unit tucked under there somewhere.
    “You think?” she gasped, then seized the pouch and flicked the tab to open it. After a few swallows of cool water, she thought she might be able to feel sensation in her mouth again. “That tastes like something a Stacian might brew up, not an Eridani.”
    “Actually, it’s distilled, not brewed, but I take your point.” Gabriel lifted his own glass and took a measured swallow. He must have had a good deal of practice drinking the stuff, because he didn’t even flinch. “Try again.”
    That was perhaps the last thing she wanted to do, but she knew better than to refuse. She wrapped her fingers around her glass and brought it to her lips, then allowed herself a very small sip.
    This one burned, too, but not as badly as the last one. Maybe she’d damaged some nerve endings with that first swallow. And now that it didn’t hurt as much, she could feel the heat of the drink moving through her body, seeming to warm her right down to her toes.
    “Better?”
    She nodded, then sipped again. All right. She could do this.
    He moved out from behind the bar. “Come with me to the window.”
    Again, his words were more of a command than a request. Glass in one hand, she followed him across the room, which she now realized truly was a lounge, with low divans and tables, all designed for viewing the amazing sight of that nebula hanging just outside. All right, not actually just outside. It had to be millions of miles away. Still….
    They paused there, an inch of duraglass the only thing separating them from the vacuum. Gabriel stood watching those glowing, shifting colors for a moment, then turned back toward her and plucked the glass from her hand before setting it down on the low table directly behind them.
    “What do you think?” he asked.
    “It’s beautiful,” she replied. Of course she’d seen holos of celestial phenomena like this before, but knowing it was real, hanging in space, so close it seemed as if you could touch it…well, that was something entirely different.
    “Yes, it is,” Gabriel said. He wasn’t looking at the nebula, however. He was staring down at her.
    She couldn’t meet his eyes. That would be disastrous.
    “That skin we gave you. It has all those same colors flickering in it. Purple and gold and bottle green and red, shimmering over black.” He moved closer, then ran a finger along the skin of her forearm.
    Don’t flinch. Don’t shiver.
    Don’t react.
    He didn’t seem upset by her lack of response. No, he only moved closer, so