Read Online Supernova by Jessica Marting - Free Book Online Page B

stuff,” he explained. He flicked through the
soup selections. “No tomato soup, whatever a tomato is.”
    “It’s a
vegetable.”
    “What
about vegetable stew?” he suggested.
    She
would have to get used to this. “Okay.”
    He
ordered a bowl of something fragrant and spicy for her and a huge tray of
unfamiliar dishes for himself, helping himself from a pile of dishes stacked
next to the replicator. He didn’t look like he could eat all that, but maybe
men had evolved with an extra stomach.
    They
took a table near a window, and Lily was again struck by the stars drifting
past. She saw a large silver cone-shaped structure floating in the distance,
and asked Taz about it.
    “Old
satellite beacon,” he explained between mouthfuls. “From the early days of
space travel. They were used for communication way back when. They’re all over
the Commons, but no one uses them anymore.” He stirred a bowl of casserole on
his tray, half of it already eaten. “So you’re really from the twenty-first
century?”
    “I
really am.”
    “You’re
the hot topic of the day on the Defiant ,” he added. “I should thank you,
because before you woke up, it was me trying to wine and dine someone who
turned out to be Lieutenant Steg’s sister when we were at Golfell.”
    “You’re
welcome, I guess,” said Lily. She had read a blurb about Golfell in her cabin.
Military base and small commercial center
    Footsteps
behind her chair halted the conversation. Taz set down the remains of a piece
of bread, stood up and saluted. “Captain,” he acknowledged around a mouthful of
food.
    To her
surprise, Lily’s heart fluttered at the sound of his voice. She stood up and
turned around to face him.
    “At
ease,” Rian said smoothly. “Ensign, don’t talk with your mouth full.” Lily and
Taz returned to their seats. He turned to Lily. “I see you’ve found the mess.”
    “Accidentally,”
she said. “I got stuck in the elevator.”
    “It’s
true,” Taz confirmed.
    Lily
caught the look of surprise that peeked through Rian’s professional demeanor at
the sight of the two of them. “I remember him,” she said. “He apologized. I can’t
blame him for reacting the way he did.” She smiled. “Want to join us?”
    Taz
choked a little and coughed to cover it up.
    “No,
thank you,” Rian replied. “I just stopped by for some tea. The replicator in my
office isn’t working again.”
    Lily had
heard over and over about the state of disrepair on the ship, and it alarmed
her. “You sound way too relaxed about broken things on board,” she said. “We’re
in space, and you’re not freaking about gravity malfunctions?”
    Rian’s
mouth quirked up in the tiniest of smiles. “No, we have fail-safes.”
    “I once
got stuck in a ditch off a highway with a flat tire,” Lily said. “At night. It
was snowing and my phone died. It scared the hell out of me, but at least I was
still able to breathe outside.”
    “The Defiant ’s
life support is at optimum levels, Miss Stewart.” The tiny smile disappeared
under his professional captain mask. A shame, because a smile would have
transformed his face.
    “So
there’s no chance of one of the windows blowing out and everyone being sucked
into space?”
    “None.”
    “Good to
know.” She searched his face for any sign of the Rian who had spoken to her so
reassuringly in her cabin and found none.
    She’d
heard him referred to as an acting captain. Maybe that had something to
do with his shift in attitude. Or maybe he didn’t like stupid questions, even
when they came from an ignorant time traveler
    Rian
excused himself and Lily watched him get his coffee. “Did I insult him?” she
asked Taz.
    “No, he’s
been acting like there’s a stick up his ass since he took command,” Taz
answered. “Although he was never the kind of guy who went out with the crew on
shore leave. He’s not the chattiest officer out there. That’s probably why he’s
almost a captain already.”
    “So