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“I see your point, but I do not think it is fair.”

“I’ll survive it.” Corran shrugged. “What’s not fair is the three of you spending time here with me when you should be downstairs having fun and billing it to Defender Wing. Go on, have a good time.”

Rhysati stood and slipped an arm around Nawara’s waist. “We’ll be going, then. We’ll let the others know you’re doing fine.”

“Thanks.”

Rhysati looked at Erisi. “Coming?”

“In a minute.”

“All right.”

The two of them left and the hatch slid shut, then Erisi crossed the narrow room and took Rhysati’s place at the foot of the bed. All of a sudden it seemed to Corran that the cabin, which was none too big to begin with, had become much more close and tiny. He would have used the word “intimate” to describe it, but the way Erisi laid a hand on his knee gave him the impression she had that word in mind as well, and for some reason that made him feel a bit uncomfortable.

“Corran, I just wanted to let you know that I felt … feel I owe you a debt it will be very hard to repay. When the report of a Lancer being in our exit vector came through I knew …” Erisi hesitated and pressed her free hand lightly against her throat. “I knew I wasn’t going to make it. I’m not the best pilot in this unit and I was certain I would die fighting against the frigate. And then you did what you did and I felt as if a great crushing weight had been lifted from me.”

She shook her head, bringing dark bangs down to half hide her blue eyes. “I know this is sudden and … well, I just feel very close to you now.” Leaning forward, she rested both her hands on his kneecaps and laid her chin on top of them. “Do you know what I mean?”

“Yeah, probably better than you think.”

She blinked her eyes, then smiled. “You feel it, too?”

“I’ve felt it.” Corran sighed. “A huge hunk of what you’re feeling comes from the downside of the emotional spike you hit during the run. I know what that’s like. In CorSec I was partnered with a woman, Iella Wessiri. She was pretty—not as pretty as you are, but no Gamorrean either. We raided a glitterstim dealer’s warehouse and a rather nasty lightfight erupted. One guy had me centered in his sights when she took him out. I’d thought I was dead and she saved me.

“In the immediate aftermath of that I thought I was in love with her—or in lust, at least. Before then we’d just been friends, like you and I are. Maybe there were some core sparks of something but nothing we’d noticed or acted on. And that night, well, we both felt it.”

“What happened?”

Corran scowled. “The Imperial liaison officer took the two of us into custody for debriefing. Two days later we saw each other again. The heat of the moment had passed and we laughed about it, but never did anything. That fear, and having been so closely brushed by death, made us want something positive to counteract it.”

“Is that bad?”

“No, it’s not bad, Erisi.” Corran shifted around so he sat beside her and held both of her hands in his. “It’s also not genuine. And, I must admit, I’m not sure about the wisdom of getting involved with someone inside the unit.”

“Rhysati and Nawara don’t seem to have trouble with it.”

“I know, and I think they’re good for each other.”

Erisi raised his right hand to her mouth and kissed his palm. “I think you may be right, Corran, but I need to ask you something. You said you and your partner had sparks at some basic level, and that led to your attraction to her. Do we have those sparks?”

“Perhaps, I don’t know.” Feeling uncomfortably warm, Corran tugged at the collar of his flight suit. “For the past several years, both before and since leaving CorSec, my emotional life has been a bit unstable.”

“Is there someone else? Do you still care for your partner?”

“No, there’s no one else, not Iella, not anyone.”

Erisi pursed her lips for a moment, then nodded. “I accept what you’re saying.” She stood and stretched languorously. “Of course, you don’t know what you’re missing.”

Corran let out a deep breath, then rose from his bunk. “I wish I didn’t. Right now, though, I’m exhausted enough