"Whatever," she says quietly, her watchful gaze on me.
So she's determined not to give away anything either. Her expression is impassive, and if I wasn't already besotted with this female, I would be now. She's a challenge, this one, and I'm dying to know her story. She doesn't kick and scream like the long-haired one, or glower mutinously like the yellow-haired one. Her rebellions are subtle, and I get the impression that she's watching me closely so she can use whatever information I give her, just like I'm doing to her.
I cross my arms and pretend to consider the menus available. "Are you in the mood for noodles? Fruit? Some sort of sweet?"
"What part of 'whatever' don't you understand?" she retorts, her voice tart. I hear her get up and when I glance over, she joins me at my side. Not running, not attacking. Assessing. Waiting.
Kef me, what a female.
I lean over toward her, enjoying this immensely. I don't even care that she got me all drugged up on something that's making me itch, still. I scratch at my chest as I speak. "You said 'whatever,' but if I pulled out a bowl of kelp soup, would you be happy with it? Lord Straik has tons of credits and feeds his soldiers well. We might as well take advantage of his largesse."
She looks over at me and chews on her full lower lip. "It's been a while since I've had fruit," she admits in a small voice.
For a moment, I think this is a trick. That she's throwing me a tidbit to make me curious. Maybe so…and I love that I can't read her. I punch in the request, and soon, a few pieces of fruit tumble into a serving bowl, and a plas-film napkin shoots out after it. I grab them and gesture that she should join me at the nearest table.
She does, and her gaze is on the fruit. I can practically see her mouth watering, and that tells me plenty. She might not want to tell me anything about how they got on the Star, but if her excitement over fruit is this obvious, then she truly hasn't had any in a while. I mean, who gets excited over jirri or gomaii stone fruit? No one in the universe, that's who.
I hold a piece out to her, and she takes it from my hand with eagerness and then turns it, curious. "How do you eat it?"
"Jirri?" I take it from her, making sure to brush her fingertips with mine just because I'm that keffing guy, and pull one of the spiky petals off of it. "You unwrap it like this, and the rind falls away. Then you can eat the soft insides."
Jade gives me a grateful smile, practically snatching the fruit back from me. I watch her fumble with it for a moment as I pull out my knife and split my stone fruit in half, discarding the stone in the center. I pretend to be focused on my food, but I'm watching her as she puts the first bite into her mouth. Her eyes close and she bites back a sound of pleasure that makes my skin prickle with awareness and my cock jump in my trou. It takes everything I have to remain still as she licks a bit of juice from her thumb, because I want her to lick parts of me like that.
I'm such a keffing idiot. Why did I go with fruit? I should have gone with noodles. No one eats noodles sexy…but I bet Jade would. I think I'm keffed any way I look at it.
"Good?" I ask, scratching at my arm as she devours the fruit.
Jade beams at me, not pausing in her chewing, and nods. "Amazing."
I offer her half of my stone fruit and then snap my fingers. "I know something else you'll like," I say all casual. "It's a fruit juice made from a plant that grows on Homeworld. Very sweet and tart."
"Should you get that looked at?"
I glance over at her as the juice pours into a tumbler. She gestures at my face. "It looks uncomfortable."
Not half as uncomfortable as the swelling in my trou. But I shrug and pay it no mind. "If it becomes problematic, there's a med-bay on the ship."
"A working one?" Her tone is slightly wistful. "Ours hasn't worked in over two years."
She's letting her guard down. Opening up. I hide my excitement and bring the juice to her side. It's the part of my master plan that I'm proudest of, and it's been incredibly easy to bring it into the conversation. "Here you go," I pronounce grandly. "We call it sweetjuice back home. I think you'll like it."
If she knows what sweetjuice is, she makes no indication of it. Jade sniffs the tumbler and then gives me a shy smile that makes my heart stutter in my chest. "Thank you."