Chapter Two
Natalie silently told herself for the hundredth time to sit still. She was in a final meeting with her superiors before being blasted into space. She knew being antsy was expected, but she didn’t want to give the impression she couldn’t handle the pressure.
Swallowing thickly, she glanced over at her crewmate. Rory didn’t seem to be feeling any pressure. At all. He sat slightly slouched in his seat, looking completely relaxed and at ease. Even so, he was raptly listening to every word being handed down from their director. She should probably be doing the same thing, but they’d heard all of this a million times. Rehashing it over and over again wasn’t going to do anything. When they got up there, they would either be able to fix the droid or they wouldn’t. Talking it to death beforehand wouldn’t help.
She glanced at Rory again, taking in his calm demeanor. She envied him. He was just so suave and in control. He’d been born with natural smarts, devastating good looks, and an easy-going personality. He was the trifecta of perfection. He was totally out of her league—probably engaged to a swimsuit model or something—so flirting with him wasn’t even an option. She just wished she could manage to engage him in intelligent conversation. Conversation that didn’t include sample collections or specimen bags.
“Miss Inglewood, would you agree?”
“Hmm?” Natalie looked up in humiliation. She’d been caught daydreaming in a meeting where her decisions could cost the government millions of dollars. Not the best impression to make.
Rory turned in his seat to look at her. “They were just saying that our first priority should be attempting to repair the droid. Then, if, and only if, the droid is unrepairable would we attempt to repair the camera and its casing by hand.” He offered her a little wink that sent a shiver through her.
Trying to ignore her body’s response to him, she shot him a grateful smile before answering. “Absolutely. I agree fully with that statement.” Just as she’d done the other hundred times they’d said it. She fought not to roll her eyes.
“Fantastic. Let’s get you suited up and launch this mission.”
Just like that, the adrenaline was back. She was about to go into space!
****
Rory glanced over at Natalie from the seat he was strapped into with a smirk of amusement on his face. She looked so unbelievably awkward in her spacesuit it was kind of adorable. She kept tugging at her collar and cringing. Her no-nonsense ponytail was bunched up above her head, as if punctuating her irritation. Unable to help himself, he said, “Aren’t these suits great?”
She gave him a smile filled with discomfort. “The best.”
He chuckled and returned his gaze to the sky above them. It was still hard to believe they were about to go into space. This had been his dream since he was a little boy, and it was about to become a reality. He’d worked so hard for this, had dedicated his entire life to it.
In his headset, the operator from the ground sounded through as she began the countdown that would launch them into space. “10 … 9 … 8…” He was nervous. Of course he was nervous. With something on this grand a scale, there were always risks. There were always chances something could go wrong, that they wouldn’t make it back home, but his anticipation was vastly outweighing the anxiety.
He glanced over at Natalie again to find her taking a deep, nervous-looking breath. “You ready for this?” he asked.
“I think so.” She paused and offered him a weak smile. “I mean, yes. Definitely yes. I’m just nervous. There’s a lot of pressure on us to get this right.”
His eyes locked onto hers, holding them with the conviction he felt. “We’ll do great.” Seeing the relief that filled her expression, he turned his attention back to the sky.
Inside his headset, the countdown continued. “…4 … 3 … 2 … 1!”
He felt the vibration of the engine underneath him, felt it zing through his every atom. And then suddenly they were rocketing away from the earth. It was a sensation like nothing he’d ever experienced before. No simulation came close to this feeling. It was exhilarating. It was mind blowing. It was life altering. This was a memory he would carry with him until his dying day.
Beside him, he heard Natalie scream with elation. It was a holler of pure joy intermixed with giggles of delight.
Her laugh was infectious, and he found himself chuckling along. How could he not? They were on the journey of a lifetime. Surely this magical moment would melt away any discomfort they had with each other and make it easier for them to communicate. He had confidence that this week would be enjoyable, that they would find some common ground. Natalie was a beautiful, intelligent woman and— Whoa. Had he just thought the word ‘beautiful’? In reference to Natalie?
He needed to back up and keep his mind from going places it shouldn’t. Natalie was a co-worker, one who’d worked really hard to be recognized for her mind, not her looks. He felt guilty for even entertaining the thought. She deserved more respect than that. They were on a mission that involved space travel, not a singles’ cruise.
Rory rolled his eyes in self-deprecation and quickly tossed all his worries aside. He was headed to outer space! This was going to be the best week of his life.