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years of work, and it had established his cover as a gem smuggler. Ironically, here on Earth, diamonds were still expensive and rare, mostly because Xyrans controlled the illegal gem trade. His acquisition of them meant he had a foothold into the market, and thus contacts that helped him work to free Xyran captives.
    “I see it fits,” Cori said, distracting him from his musings.
    He finished fastening the front seams of the suit and turned around, the neck flaps hanging over his shoulders. “It does.”
    Her hair was still braided around her head, though the edges of the style had frayed a bit. Once again, he wondered what it would feel like to undo them and run his fingers through the strands. Their encounter just a few short hours ago had been too frantic for such things. Although you had enough time to bite her, he admonished himself, disturbed once more at how easily she’d aroused his most base instincts. He wanted to do it again, and again. The sex had already boosted his power levels to the point where he’d almost lost control of his emotions. He wanted to mingle their blood and make her his bondmate, regardless of the insanity of such a thing. No Xyran willingly bonded to anyone.
    And you have already lost one blood-kin, remember? Fleetingly he wondered if Kyuk was still alive. Probably not. As a child, he’d been very low status and had been small for his age—not useful qualities for survival on Xyran. They’d sworn blood oath to each other anyway.
    Cori grunted and handed him a helmet, not knowing the direction of his thoughts. “This should work.” She put hers on and tightened the neck seals, then hit the power button. The faceplate was scratched and worn, but clearly still functional.
    Reiyn followed suit, activating the power as soon as his helmet was completely fastened. He moved his head from side to side, making sure the seal was good and he could see clearly through the visor.
    “Can you hear me?” she asked him, face lit by the helmet’s light. While he was adjusting his suit, she’d picked up a porta-lock, a disposable airlock bubble, and strapped it to her forearm. The package was small, but once fastened to the outside of a ship, it would seal and inflate, creating a portable airlock, good for one-time use only.
    He nodded, picking up the med-sack. “Yes. I am ready to go.”
    She pressed her lips together. “Well then. Let’s do this.”
    ****
    Cori touched the outside seam of the escape pod and motioned to Reiyn to move closer. Their jump from her ship to the pod had gone smoothly, thank goodness, but now came the tricky part. As soon as Reiyn was close enough, she hooked her feet around his waist, ignoring his startled look.
    “We need to be close if we’re both going to fit inside the porta-lock,” she said, frustrated that she had to explain this to him. What would he have done if she weren’t with him? Probably tried to dock with the pod, she thought, disgusted. Had the lack of gravity scrambled his brains?
    He finally nodded, pulling her closer. Even in the damn suit he looked good. Angry with herself, she leaned over his shoulder and attached the porta-lock, then pressed the activation button. Polyester film billowed around them, and she grabbed the edges awkwardly, helping to guide it in place. She hated this part. Having material so close around her made her feel like she was going to suffocate, and it was doubly unpleasant with another person jammed inside here with her.
    If I’d had the opportunity to practice this sort of thing more often it might not bother me as much, she mused, but learning how to maneuver in space wasn’t a priority when it came to survival. Equipment and tech was expensive. She made do with what she could afford or steal, and had to manage with that. She was one of the lucky ones. She had a home and resources enough to help others. She wasn’t a slave. As soon as the material sealed, it inflated around them like a balloon, and she breathed a