Miracle Workers (SCE Books 5-8) - Keith R. A. DeCandido_. [et al.] [38]
“So,” Bart said, “when did this thing between you and Corsi develop?”
Stevens sputtered his coffee.
Chuckling, Bart said, “Computer, napkin.” One materialized in the replicator, and Stevens snatched it and wiped the stains off his uniform jacket.
“How the hell did you—?”
“Deductive reasoning,” Bart said with a grin. “You two were the last ones in, you spent the entire meeting pointedly not looking at each other, and you didn’t come back to our cabin last night.”
Trying to sound dismissive, Stevens said, “That’s it?”
“Plus, she called you ‘Fabe’ during the meeting. That pretty much clinched it for me.”
Stevens sighed. I suppose if anyone was going to catch that, it’d be the linguist. “Look, Bart, this can’t get out. We—”
“Easy,” Bart said, holding up a hand. “The only reason I figured it out is because I know you didn’t come home last night. If you two want to have an affair and keep it secret—”
“Hell, it isn’t even an affair. Just a one-nighter, really. And I still haven’t got the first clue as to what brought it on.”
“What happened?”
Stevens told Bart about seeing her uncharacteristic appearance in the mess hall and her equally uncharacteristic invitation to join him. “We talked for hours. She moved around a lot when she was a kid—her family lived on about twelve different planets. That got me going about planet-hopping around the Rigel colonies with my parents’ shuttle service. Then it was Starfleet stories.”
He took a sip of coffee, managing to actually swallow it this time, and then continued. “Next thing I knew, she’s inviting me back to her cabin. Lense was on duty, so we had the place to ourselves.”
“Now there’s a pairing,” Bart said. “What on Earth do you think our security chief and chief medical officer talk about in their downtime?”
Chuckling, Stevens said, “Bart, until last night, I wouldn’t have believed that Domenica ever was off duty.”
“Now you’re doing it.”
“Doing what?”
“You called her ‘Domenica.’ I don’t think anyone on this ship has ever referred to her as anything other than ‘Corsi,’ ‘Commander,’ or ‘Core Breach’—at least in the four months I’ve been here.”
Stevens thought back. “She asked me to. I was actually calling her ‘Commander’ for the first hour or so, then she said to call her ‘Domenica.’” He laughed. “Come to think of it, she also said if I called her ‘Dom,’ she’d kill me.”
“Well, they teach you that stuff at the Academy.”
Another sip of coffee. “She was amazingly—well, gentle. And warm. Bart, I did not spend the night with a woman who deserves to be nicknamed ‘Core Breach.’”
“And you don’t know what prompted it?”
Stevens shook his head. “No clue.”
“Well, do yourself a favor. Try not to think about it until after the mission. Neither of you needs the distraction.”
Grinning, Stevens said, “What, you’re ship’s counselor now?”
“No, but you don’t need a linguist for this mission, so I thought I’d moonlight,” Bart said, returning the grin. “Seriously, before I met Anthony I had my share of one-nighters. They have this tendency to linger in the brain—more so, if you have to interact with the person.” He put an encouraging hand on Stevens’s shoulder. “Just be careful, okay?”
Stevens took a sip of coffee, then nodded. “I will. Thanks, Bart.”
“Hey, that’s what roommates are for.”
CHAPTER
4
Nog hated being alone.
The fact that he spent most of his formative years in Uncle Quark’s bar probably had a lot to do with that. Most of his life had been spent in either the bustle of Deep Space 9, the crowded confines of the U.S.S. Defiant, or at Starfleet Academy. Indeed, the only time he could ever truly be alone was during his convalescence after losing his left leg at AR-558—hardly a fond memory.
So he popped a tube grub into his mouth, took a sip of root beer, and tried to will the da Vinci to hurry up and arrive here in the Trivas system already.
Ideally, of course, he would’ve had