Page 35 of Solan

Solan and Olid both shook their heads.

“They won’t have us,” Lacey grumbled. “Apparently, we aren’t fertile enough.”

“You cannot breed?” Padam asked.

“I’m sure we could if we had the opportunity,” Lacey said. “Their tests are wrong.”

“You know that’s not true.” Olid’s tone softened. “Listen, ladies, I know it’s tough back on Earth. I’ve been there myself once or twice. I won’t go back again if I have a choice. But you can’t stay. You know the space station isn’t the place for you.”

“We won’t cause any trouble,” Lacey said. “We just need a break. Olid, please don’t report us.”

“If you agree to leave right away, I’ll pretend I haven’t seen you,” Olid said.

“We’ll go.” Tatiana grabbed Lacey’s hand and tugged her away. “I won’t forget this.”

“Neither will I,” Olid said. “You should be arrested for coming on to the space station without permission and bothering customers.”

“We know. We don’t have the right kind of eggs to be valuable anymore.” Tatiana winked at Solan. “Cheer up, sweetie. With muscles like that, you’ve got nothing to be glum about.” She turned to Lacey. “Come on, I heard a rumor that a Galaxar brigadier is on board. Maybe we can tempt him.”

Lacey finger waved Padam as Tatiana dragged her out of the bar.

“It’s a shame they had to go,” Padam said. “I liked the look of the dark haired one.”

Olid laughed. “Don’t let their looks deceive you. Those women are a lot older than they appear to be. That’s why they can’t get into My Single Alien. They could both be grandmothers.”

Padam scratched his chin. “They appear so young.”

“Thanks to surgery and implants. Let them get their claws into you and you’ve had it. They’d bleed you dry as they pretend to get pregnant. As soon as you become suspicious, they vanish, taking everything they can from you.”

Padam slumped into his seat. “They were so sweet.”

“I’ve seen a lot of desperate women do this sort of thing. I can’t say I blame them. It’s better than what Earth offers women past their sell by dates when it comes to reproduction, but it’s not going to happen in my bar.”

Solan jumped from his seat. “That’s it. That’s the problem.”

“Have you had a change of heart?” Padam looked at him. “Do you want me to go after them?”

“It’s not that.” A ripple of anger ran through Solan. “Those women are going after Boros and his troop.”

“They won’t have much luck with him,” Padam said. “Unless they’re into being strapped down for money.”

Olid shrugged. “They’ve probably had worse done to them.”

“No, I don’t mean those women. That’s the problem with Vegas.” Solan’s fists clenched. He didn’t want to believe it. Could Vegas have an agreement with Boros? She had mentioned him during their earlier meeting. Had she developed feelings for him, which was why she continued to reject Solan’s advances?

“Boros?” Padam finished his drink. “You think Miss Munro is into him?”

“He is higher up in the chain of command than I am,” Solan said. “She accompanied him after he arrived, leaving me in favor of his company. What’s to say they didn’t make some agreement when they were alone?”

“I’ve known Vegas for a year,” Olid said. “She’s not into pumped up brigadiers.”

“It makes sense,” Solan continued. This all made sense. “He must have offered her a pleasing arrangement. I asked her about him, but she denied it. She did that for a reason. She wanted to protect her job. Boros is the reason Vegas dismissed my advances.”

Padam shook his head. “Boros is a moron.”

“He’s also your superior,” Solan said.

“He’s yours as well,” Padam said. “It still makes him a moron. If Vegas is half as switched on as you think she is, she’ll see straight through him. She won’t be interested in what he has to offer.”