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  For my older brother, who gave me the love of all things space related and who first introduced me to science fiction. And to my sons, who are starting their own SF novels, as well as my hubby for all the SF conventions he's indulged me with for all these decades. To my readers, especially those who began The League adventures with me back in the early 1990s when the first novel was published--my goodness, how far we've come! And to all those who continue to look to the skies and think, what if?

  And for my incredible team at SMP for all they do, especially Monique, Erica, Brant, Jennifer, Alex, and John, who do so much on my behalf. They are my silent heroes. And Ervin for the incredible covers he produces! And of course, Robert and Mark for being my champions in all things and for all the countless hours of hard work you put in. You guys rock!

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  I'd like to take a special moment to acknowledge my grandfather, the Rev. O. C. Allred, who, when a little girl asked, "Grandpa, do you think there's intelligent life on other planets?" he answered with a profound statement that forever changed my life: "Well, Sherri, the Bible doesn't say that the good Lord only created one Heaven and one Earth. So it's quite possible that there could be millions of other worlds out there that He made. As for intelligence, I certainly hope so. 'Cause Heaven knows it's a struggle some days just to find a little bit of it here on Earth."

  PROLOGUE

  "Go ahead and court-martial me. I'm not about to babysit some pampered little bastard because he's bored with cocktail parties!" Major Ember Wyldestarrin glared at the colonel who'd just dropped a serious bombshell in her lap. The smug wanker walked beside her as if he were enjoying the fact she'd been assigned watch duty for some aristocratic playboy whose reputation for hedonism must have set untold intergalactic records.

  And if not, that was truly a crime. Surely no one had ever been born with a larger sense of entitlement or ego than the infamous Bastien Cabarro. She couldn't pick up an e-mag or news feed that wasn't laced with his latest exploit or misadventure. The only thing larger than his list of paternity suits was the bill for his average dinner party.

  Yeah, that was just what she wanted for a wingman.

  Never.

  Colonel Werrin smirked. "Technically he's a very large pampered bastard. Or pain in the ass. At least for me. Which is why he's being assigned to you. My least favorite pain in the ass. After your last stunt, I can't think of a better punishment."

  She scoffed indignantly. "Stunt? I saved twenty-two soldiers! Anyone else would have been given a medal."

  "Yes, had you not brought down half the station in the process of it. And torched Colonel Dayan's prized fighter."

  "Technically that wasn't an accident." She used his words against him to point out the fact that she'd quite intentionally set fire to Syrin's fighter. After she'd caught the worthless prick cheating on her.

  In her own bed.

  With her youngest sister.

  It'd been a moral imperative. Besides, they should all be grateful she'd only assaulted his ship, given what she'd really wanted to destroy. In fact, it was still a daily struggle not to murder that prick where he stood.

  And her sister, to boot.

  "Which is why you're being assigned a new wingman. And you're lucky. General Dayan wanted me to bust your rank down to private and make you a member of the rank-bust club along with Cabarro, who just went from major to captain two weeks ago after his last stunt--and that by order of his own uncle."

  Note to self, never ever date a man whose father outranks me.

  Yet another reason why she wanted to stay far away from Cabarro. His uncle didn't just outrank her--that bastard was their military. Commander general of the Gyron Force she was a part of, Barnabas Cabarro was also the prime commander for the entire Kirovarian armed services. You crossed him and he could not only bust your rank, he could end your life and no one would question it. The fact he could take his own pampered nephew's rank without sanction said it all.

  No one questioned Barnabas Cabarro when it came to the Kirovarian military. Not even the pampered visir asshole.

  But that was neither here nor there. Rolling her eyes, she wanted to scream in frustration. It galled her through and through to be in this mess because of a conscienceless prick who couldn't keep it in his pants.

  Then again, it wasn't completely Syrin's fault, really. It was mostly because of her temper that knew no boundaries and her baby sister who had no morals.

  I will not be that stupid again.

  Next time I'll murder the bastard and hide his body where they will never find it.

  And she couldn't imagine anything worse than to be saddled with a womanizing pig prince for a wingman. He'd be like a kid in a candy store with her all-female family. Never mind what Alura would do if she ever saw him ...

  Yeah, this had all the makings of hell for her.

  As they approached the training field, she swept her gaze over the soldiers there. Two dozen were running maneuvers.

  Well, almost two dozen ... one who should be among them stood off to the side with a cocksure grin as he made time with a corporal.

  Oh, let me guess....

  That had to be Cabarro. He fit what she was expecting to a T. Tall, gorgeous, and more than aware of it. What a scabbing piece of work.

  She felt sick just to be this close to him, and he was across the quad. Last thing she wanted was to be near enough to look into what would no doubt be a pair of smug aristo eyes. "Please, Colonel. I'll do anything to get out of this."

  "Beg all you want. Cabarro is yours till the binary suns of Ritadaria freeze over."

  Of course he was.

  Just as she started to curse her CO out loud and get that court-martial so that she wouldn't have to worry about this, she heard a high-pitched squeal. At first, she thought it her imagination.

  Until it came closer.

  Louder.

  "Incoming!" she shouted a few seconds before a bomb struck home. And this wasn't a drill. It hit the building to the east with such force that the percussion and aftershock knocked her from her feet. Fire and shrapnel exploded as the bomb disintegrated the north arsenal and set off every piece of ordnance kept inside its facility--causing even more damage and mayhem.

  The playboy cried out and dashed off to hide.

  Of course he did.

  The aristos would never sully their hands with helping the wounded. Or trying to dig out survivors.

  Furious, she ran to the training field, where a number of their younger soldiers had been injured. As quickly as she could, she checked on them and assisted the medics.

  Until a frantic cry drew her attention toward the offices on her left that had partially collapsed during the aftershocks. "Lieutenant Wyldestarrin? Can you hear me?"

  No ... please God, no!

  Her heart stopped as she realized one of her younger sisters was inside that building. A building that was about to come down completely, which would probably render a rescue impossible.
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  Then she heard the voice beneath the rubble that begged for help. One that cried out for their mother and father.

  Tears welled in her eyes. "Alura!" She ran toward the rescue workers with everything she had as she forgot all about the fact that minutes ago she'd wanted her sister dead. That Alura had betrayed her. All that mattered right now was that her sister needed her and that she couldn't let her baby sister die.

  That was her blood in that hole.

  And she was the big sister Alura relied on.

  By the time Ember reached them, she saw there were several soldiers trying to dig Alura out of the rubble.

  One in particular stood over the tenuous remains with calm confidence as he secured a line to the ground. "Listen to my voice, Lieutenant, and breathe. I'll get you out in a few minutes. You with me?"

  Alura answered with pain-filled whimpers.

  Ember scowled as she saw what the tallest soldier there was planning to do. Dressed in a drab olive-chip battlesuit that kept his features completely hidden, the captain intended to rappel to her sister's side in the hole where she was trapped. "You can't reach her like that."

  The captain scoffed at her concern. "'Course I can, Major. Been climbing and rappelling my whole life. Certified for rescue. Now, stand back. We don't need anything else falling in on the lieutenant. Especially not her older sister."

  And with that he literally jumped straight down into the hole at an extremely reckless pace.

  Convinced he was going to land squarely on top of her sister and kill her, Ember bit back a scream. But with expert skill, he stopped his descent a few inches from Alura's position and then, in a most amazing feat, flipped himself upside down so that he could begin shifting debris from Alura's body.

  "Hey gorgeous," he said teasingly as he huffed to dislodge a beam. "Come here often?"

  "Are you insane?" Alura snarled at him.

  "Yeah. Good thing for you, too, otherwise I wouldn't be here right now. I'd be off somewhere where it's safe."

  Alura laughed, then groaned in absolute misery.

  Terrified and shaking, and mad at herself because there was nothing more helpful she could do, Ember tried to see what he was doing, but it was extremely difficult. Instead, she heard the steady, patient tone of his voice as he explained to Alura what he was doing while teasing her with light banter in spite of the danger.

  "Now, hold your breath. This is going to pinch a bit. But as soon as it's moved, we can get you out of here."

  "We?"

  "Yeah, me and the strident voices in my head that are calling me even more names than you are. Much ruder ones, too. 'Cause let's face it, there are much better places to be this time of year. Ever been to North Beach?"

  "No." Alura sniffed back her tears.

  "Well, you stay with me and don't let anything happen to yourself, and I promise I'll take you and your husband or boyfriend. Pet gopher. Whatever tickles your fancy. We'll all go for a nice, long vacation after this."

  Alura cried out in sudden agony.

  "What happened?" Ember shouted before she could stop herself.

  "It's fine," he said in that same calm, even tone. "I got her free and--" His voice broke off as he tilted his head to listen to something. "What's that sound?"

  It took her a heartbeat to hear it.

  "Shit!" Ember studied the sky for what she heard. "It's another run!"

  His expletive was much more colorful and vulgar.

  Worse? The rope holding them slipped from the additional weight of her sister's body as he lifted her free and began climbing for the surface. The anchor holding it in the ground started to come loose.

  Ember grabbed it and held fast. "I'm pulling!"

  He didn't speak. Rather, he moved faster as he struggled to get himself and Alura out of the hole as quickly as possible.

  The rope slipped even more, threatening to send them both even deeper into the wreckage.

  "Help!" Ember shouted for assistance with the rope and anchor. But with the new run headed for them, everyone was fleeing to save their own asses.

  No one cared that she was in the open or that her sister and her rescuer would die when additional bombs fell.

  The anchor slipped more.

  As if he knew intuitively what the others were doing and that there was no help to be had, the captain shot out another line from his belt. "Get your sister up. She's a lot lighter. Easier for you to pull free."

  "What about you?"

  "Don't worry about me. Get her to safety, Major! Move!"

  Ember let go of his rope to pull at Alura's. He was right. It was much easier to lift her sister up without his extreme muscled weight added to it.

  Moving as fast as she could, she got Alura out of that hole and helped her off to the side where the medics had set up a makeshift triage. Without hesitating, she started back for their rescuer. But she'd barely taken a step before the second round of bombs hit.

  The ground shook even more than it had during the first run. Alura screamed from behind her as part of the triage came down around them.

  Ignoring her sister's panic and shaken by the day's events, Ember pushed herself to her feet and ran back to the hole to help their blessed benefactor.

  It was too late.

  Nothing remained of where he'd been.

  Nothing. Only flaming rubble.

  No! Sick to her stomach, she stared at the smoldering remains. That last run had completely obliterated the opening. Flaming chunks of building had crashed down over it. There was no sign whatsoever of the captain.

  Not even his helmet. And no way to reach him without heavy equipment or an exosuit.

  For a moment, she feared she'd vomit as she remembered the kindness of the unknown man who'd saved Alura's life.

  And hers. She didn't even know his name. Why hadn't she thought to ask so that she could at least notify his parents personally? Offer up a prayer for his kind soul?

  Had he not sacrificed himself, she'd have been right there when that building came down. Alura, too. How in the name of the gods could this have been his fate for such a noble and decent act?

  How?

  Someone coughed and wheezed behind her as if trying to clear the smoke from his lungs. "Please don't tell me there's someone else we have to dig out of there. 'Cause really, I don't think I have another good deed in me. At least not today."

  Gaping, she turned to find the captain standing behind her. Granted, he was bleeding and roughed up by the experience. But that tall, gargantuan beast was alive against all odds. Against all belief.

  "How?" She scowled at him.

  Pulling his helmet off to show her a bruised, yet ruggedly handsome face, he flashed a charming grin at her. "Hard to kill. God knows, my sister's been trying to do it since birth. Lucky for me, I don't go down easy."

  "Cabarro! Answer your damn link! Your odara's going wild and blowing up command because she can't make contact! She wants to make sure we haven't killed you. Yet!"

  Ember glanced around for the prince.

  To her shock, the captain in front of her tapped his ear and adjusted the piece through the blood that was oozing from his injuries before he spoke. "Hey, Oda.... Yeah, I'm good. Just lollygagging about as usual. Chasing after hot women and cold drinks." He paused to grimace and drop his helmet on the ground. "Um, can I call you back in a bit? There's something I need to see to. Don't worry. Nothing bad. Love you."

  No sooner had he disconnected the call than his legs buckled.

  Ember's breath left her with a rush as she saw the huge red stain that was spreading over his side from where he'd been wounded. "Medics!" she shouted, running to him. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders to help him lie back, and was momentarily stunned to discover just how ripped he was beneath that suit.

  His breathing ragged, he met her gaze as she worked to staunch the blood from the worst gash in his side. "Did the lieutenant make it out?"

  "She did. Thank you."

  The med team swarmed him an
d forced her away so that they could inspect his injuries.

  An involuntary gasp left her lips as they cut open his reinforced armored suit and she saw the jagged wound where shrapnel had caught him across his abdomen. More than that, he was covered in scars. This wasn't some leisurely prince who sat around with servants fetching for him. Or lollygagged as he'd told his mother.

  Those scars were from battle wounds.

  He shoved at the medic as he tried to cover his face with an oxygen mask. "Hey, Major?"

  Stunned that he remembered her, she stepped forward. "Yeah?"

  He held his link out to her. "Keep me posted about your zusa. I have a promise to keep. This link will get you through to me."

  "Latenn, we have to get you out of here."

  Bastien rolled his eyes at the group fussing around him. "I only need one MT. For God's sake, we got wounded all over the place. Would you bastards tend someone else? Or I swear I'm getting up and walking home. Then you'll all have shit to deal with when my odara finds out."

  They scrambled away from him as if he were on fire, except for an older MT who shook his head at Bastien.

  "Mask now, Latenn?"

  Grimacing, Bastien returned it to his face. Then he gestured at Ember with their military signs that said he'd be back in action ASAP.

  The MT lifted him up onto an air-gurney, and saw him off to the nearest ambulance.

  Unsure of what to think of her new wingman, Ember opened his link. He'd not only unsecured the biolock before he'd handed it to her, he'd left her a message.

  If you can possibly look past my obvious birth defect of a royal disorder, Major Wildstar, I'd love to have dinner with you. Or at least promise me that you'll come on that trip to North Beach? Double date? Your zusa and her boyfriend as chaperones? And don't worry. Pretty sure I left my balls in that hole, so you're safe from my nefarious playboy ways.

  ~Bas

  Laughing in spite of it all, Ember slid his link into her pocket and went to check on the other survivors. But as she continued to help with the rescues, her thoughts kept drifting back to Bastien Cabarro and those ruggedly sculpted, perfect male features. In that regard, he was exactly what she'd imagined their youngest visir to be. Handsome beyond belief. Charming.

  Heroic, however, was a new concept. And completely unexpected.

  As was his nonchalance about his injuries with his mother. And the regard he'd shown for those around him.

 
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