Theron's Hope (Brides of Theron) (39 page)

“If you have two to spare I will take them off your hands.  This is great.”  He looked at the foil stickers in his hand and turned to leave Brylon’s office stopping short at the door turning to face his friend.  “You do know that if you need to talk, I am always here for you.  I am sure that Zeb would say the same.”

“Thank you, I would love to talk but right now I have many things to do.  I have to be completely sure that the ship is ready for the trip home.  I for one cannot wait to step foot on Theron soil.”  He weakly smiled at his friend.

Zane reported to the clinic.  He was going to check on the patient with the arm injury and Laura was due to report today to follow him around.  It would be nice to have someone to teach again.  He walked in and looked around, “Good morning everyone.”   He walked over to Jeeka who was working with Laura.  “Laura, you are right on time.  How is everything here Jeeka?” 

“The patient is recovering well.  Everything is ready for you to remove the dressing.  Would you like me to assist?”  Jeeka said.

Zane looked around the room and went to the sink to wash his hands.  “Yes Jeeka, I would love to have your assistance today.  Laura you should come in and observe.  Ask any questions that you need to.  I am excited to have you on my staff.  Jeeka has told me great things about you.”

Laura nodded at him and said, “I am happy to be here.  I really appreciate this opportunity Dr. Zane.”  She accompanied them into the patient’s room. 

Zane walked over to the patient.  “Zoren, how are you doing today, any pain or discomfort?”

Zoren looked around to see who had joined them.  He hadn’t the opportunity to see an earth female as of yet.  “I am fine Dr. Zane.  I am feeling the prickling in my fingertips just as you said I should.  Is she one of the females from earth?”

“Yes, this is Ceran’s mate. Her name is Laura.” He turned to look at Laura.  “Laura this is Zoren.  He lost his arm a little over a week ago when he was repairing a ship in the docking bay.  I surgically reattached it.  Jeeka can you bring me the shears to remove the bandages?”  His focus returned to the task at hand.  He carefully clipped away the gauze that covered his wound.  The patient flinched as he got to the final layers and pulled them away exposing the staples he was forced to use to fasten the skin back together.  This was an injury that liquid bandages would not be able to hold.  “I must remove the staples today,” he said as he examined the wound.

“Jeeka, I need the antiseptic.”  He took the damp sponges with an astringent solution and dabbed it along the staple line.  “Staple remover,” he said as he held out his hand waiting for the tool.  Zoren looked away not being able to watch.  One by one Zane removed the staples and cleaned the area once they were out.  He applied a thick layer of cream that seemed to foam on contact.  “I am going to leave this on for several minutes Zoren.  Now, can you show me how well you can move your fingers?”

Zoren moved his fingers.  “It feels a bit different now.  I can feel my fingers much better now.  Why is this?”  Zoren asked the doctor.

“The bandages were somewhat constricting and the cream I just added is speeding the healing.  I would have just used it alone and could have if the arm was attached but because it was completely severed, I had to secure your arm to your body allowing some degree of self healing to occur.  Laura should find this amazing.”  He grabbed Zoren’s hand and began to raise it in the air to check its mobility.  “Can you bend it at the elbow and rotate your hand?”

Zoren did just what the doctor asked.  He was amazed that he was able to move it so well.  It took him a little bit longer to rotate his hand but he could do it.  “Amazing,” he said out loud.

“This is much better than I had hoped for.  Zoren, I am happy to say that you should make a complete recovery.  Jeeka hand me that towel, please.”  Holding his hand out as he marveled at what he was seeing.  “I am going to wipe away the cream and your skin should be mostly healed.”  As he wiped off the foamy cream he heard Laura gasp.  He could see that she was impressed.  Other than the bright pink color of the newly repaired skin you would have never known the skin had needed staples just a few minutes ago.  Zane continued his instructions to the patient. “I am going to release you today and let you go back to your quarters.  You cannot do any heavy lifting for several weeks so I will notify your supervisor that you will be on light duty.  A physical therapist will check on you this afternoon and give you some exercises to help you build up strength in the arm.  I must emphasize that you need to take it easy, you are not 100% yet.  Do you have any questions?”

The patient looked around and said, “No, I don’t have any at this moment.”

“Great.  I will see you around.  Call the clinic or come back in
if you need us.”  He put his hand on the warrior’s back and made to leave the room with Laura following close behind him.

“What was that cream?  How did it heal his skin so fast?”  Laura asked amazed at what she just saw.

“Laura, you will see many things that will amaze you.  Our medical capabilities far surpass the ones you have learned on your planet.  Your people will catch up though, you will see. The cream I used contains the extract of a tree that grows on our planet.  It stimulates the stem cells in the body to rapidly heal the wound, calling to them if you will to the site of the injury.  I must go to check in with the commander.  If you have any other questions, I am sure Jeeka can answer them for you.”  He smiled at her as he left the room.  “Welcome to our team Laura.”

He went to the command center and helped out where needed.  The inventories were almost complete and his staff ready for the trip home tomorrow. When all that he could help with was complete he made his way home.   Manual labor was much tougher than he remembered and his body ached from all the heavy lifting.  It was time for a shower.  As he made his way into the quarters he saw Grace with bare feet in a little black dress setting the bar with food that she had prepared.  Next to each plate was a glass of wine from the bottle that he managed to bring up to the ship from her apartment.  “What is all this for?”  He said as he walked up behind her and kissed her neck.

“This is for nothing in particular.  When I saw that wine in my bag, I set it aside.  Tonight I decided I wanted a glass and thought that it would be even better with a nice dinner.  So, here we are.”  She laughed and placed her hand on top of his as it rested on her abdomen.  “I made you a feast.  I hope you are hungry.”  She turned in his arms, now facing him.  He slowly moved to kiss her, tasting the wine she must have just sampled from her glass.

She pushed him back a bit, “I know what these kind of kisses lead to.  I am hungry so it will have to wait until after dinner.  Are you ready to eat?”

“Let me just wash off and change.  I will be right back,” Zane said.  A few minutes later he returned and smelled wonderful, however she preferred the sweaty manly smell of him just a few moments ago.  They sat and he told her about his day, emphasizing how hard he worked.  The food was delicious.   She was really starting to get the hang of the kitchen.  She also added some of the spices that he brought back with him to season the normally bland food.  “The food is wonderful Grace.  You really cooked a great meal.”

She was flattered, “It was nothing. Well, actually, it is nothing the food rehydrator can’t handle.”  She giggled taking a sip of the wine.  “This is good wine.  Do you have anything similar to wine on your planet?”

“Yes, we have several things that are like wine.  However, they are not easy to obtain on the ship.  We don’t want a bunch of drunken warriors at their stations.”  He smiled and looked up at her.  “I spoke with Brylon today.  He gave me a solution to your power problem.”

Her eyes lit up as she contemplated using her electronic devices again.  “Can I get one?”  She asked.

“I brought you two but I can get more if you need them.”  He pulled them out of his pocket and handed them to Grace.  “You just pull off the back and adhere it to the battery of the device.  It will automatically charge using the ship’s core power.”

“This is great.  Can I go and try it?”  She said excitedly.

“Sure, I will get the dishes.”  She ran into the bedroom to grab her laptop and brought it to the living room, sitting on the sofa.  “Does it have to be directly on the battery or just near it?”  She asked Zane.

“Brylon said it had to be placed on the battery pack.”  She realized she would need some tools.  She had a small tool kit she kept in her luggage and went to retrieve it.  Carefully opening the back panel she placed the sticker directly on the battery pack and screwed the cover back on.  She pushed the button to turn on the computer and it started up.  To her delight, the battery charging icon was lit up on the toolbar.  “This is so wonderful.  Now, not only can I write but if I want something to do I can play games on my computer as well.  Thank you Zane!”

Zane finished placing the dishes in the washer and came to sit by Gracie bringing the wine goblets he just topped off. “You like to play games?”  He said as he sat next to her placing his arm around her.

“Yes, it is kind of embarrassing but I love games, especially role playing games and puzzle games.  I like to play games when I am blocked and can’t figure out what to write next.  It takes my mind off of the pressure of getting the story down and relaxes that part of my brain.  After I play a few rounds of something, I can usually get into a mode where the story just flows from my fingertips onto the screen.”  She shut down her computer and placed it on the table then reclined into his arms.  Grace was enjoying the silence of the room and the warmth of his body next to hers.

Zane broke the silence.  “You know, we are leaving tomorrow.”

Grace breathed out slowly, “I knew that we wouldn’t be able to stay here forever.”

“I can’t wait to take you home with me.  You are going to love our house.  My mom and dad are going to adore you.”  He kissed the top of her head.  “Are you having any second thoughts, my love?  You are so quiet and that is quite unusual for you.”

“It is, isn’t it?”  He could feel her smile while her face rested on his arm. “I always was a talkative person.  I could probably talk to the wall if necessary.”  She looked tenderly up at Zane and said, “I am ready for wherever you will bring me.  I look forward to our next adventure.”   She touched her glass to his and took a sip. 

“I love you Grace.  I am so glad I found you out there on the beach.”  Zane looked into her eyes.

“You are a wonderful man Zane.  I am glad that you found me, I love you.”  She kissed him on his lips and placed her glass on the table in front of her and he put his next to hers.  She turned to face him and waited as he looked at her with intent.  She saw the desire he held for her displayed in his eyes, how his soul burned for her.  He leaned toward her, slowly taking her head in his hands with his fingers slowly running through her hair.  She could feel the energy transfer from his touch move like an arrow to her heart.  Was it possible to love someone this much, so much that life would not be worth living without his presence?

He kissed her slowly and thoroughly.  She slipped her hands under his shirt feeling the taut muscles that were hidden just underneath the soft fabric and started to
pull it over his head, discarding it to the floor.  His scent was intoxicating, it lingered all around them.  She kissed him down his neck as he moved to unzip the dress and slip the thin straps over her shoulders.  He urged her to lie on the couch then pulled the dress and her black lace panties down over her legs and dropped them onto the floor on top of his shirt.

She was there on the couch only wearing the matching lace bra.  She watched him as he looked her over with approval, hunger.  He wanted her bad and she knew it.  “I need you Zane.  Please don’t keep me waiting.”  That was all it took.  He undid the fly of his pants and lowered his body onto her.  She moved her hands softly down his back and under his waistband to push the pants out of the way.  He wasted no time. He was ready to fulfill her request.  As he penetrated her, she moaned softly into his ear.  “Oh, Zane!” she said as they rocked into each other.