Sons of Lyra: Runaway Hearts Read Online Free Page A

was the hull of the ship. The windows
here were larger, reaching from floor to ceiling. The stewardess
turned right before she reached the end of the corridor, leading
them down another that was just as wide and elaborately decorated.
There was a definite difference between the lower deck and this
one. No strip lights lit the hall here. On the walls were beautiful
lamps that glowed softly. The floor was carpeted with a silvery
cloth. The walls were decorated with silver scroll work that marked
a rich contrast against the black metal.

    The stewardess stopped in
front of a door and swiped their tickets over a circular panel
beside it on the wall. The door swished open to reveal a large
room. Along the wide rectangular window was a bench seat covered in
silver velvet that matched the curtains that hung either side of
the glass. He stepped into the room, following the two women, and
looked around. There was a smaller room off to his right. It looked
like a bathroom. He ignored it and took in the main room. It was
bigger than he’d expected. The tickets must have been
expensive.

    He listened to the woman’s
conversation with the stewardess while he investigated the large
panel on the wall. It was displaying the weather at their
destination, as well as current news from across the universe and
other information. He was glad that his face wasn’t up there.
Perhaps his parents hadn’t discovered he was gone yet, or maybe
they were keeping it quiet for now while the palace guard search
for him. Either way, the longer the galaxy didn’t know he was
missing the better. That way he could travel with more ease and get
further out into space.

    The stewardess mentioned
meals and then went to the door. He frowned when she pressed a
button and a black shutter eased across the window. She explained
that the shutters had to remain closed until they had left the
atmosphere and then bowed before leaving the room.

    The door swished
shut.

    He looked at the
woman.

    She didn’t look happy to
be alone with him. He walked towards her and she sat on the bench
seat in front of the black window. He watched her long slender
fingers work to untie the thick silver ribbons holding her cloak
around her neck and was fascinated when she carefully folded it. He
swallowed. The front of her dress was rather revealing. The
material scooped low to show the curve of her breasts and met in a
V in front of them. He tore his eyes away and looked at the display
panel. It changed to show information about the ship. He focused
there, forcing himself to read it so he wouldn’t stare at her. He’d
been rude enough to her already without gawping at her like a naive
boy.

    The ship shuddered and he
held his arms out to steady himself.

    “ What was
that?” he said automatically, panic in his voice, and her look said
everything.

    Now she knew that he’d
never been on ship before, at least not one this size.

    “ The engines,”
she said in a soft voice. It held a smile.

    She thought he was green.
His eyes fell to her breasts. Desire coiled tight inside
him.

    By Iskara’s wings if she
gave him half a chance he’d prove he wasn’t.

    She patted the seat beside
her. “Sit. We’ll be taking off soon and the ride can get bumpy when
the ship hits full speed.”

    “ Sub-space?”

    She laughed at him and
looked around the room. “A ship like this, with sub-space? Only a
handful of ships have those engines and the capability to use them.
This ship would be torn apart.”

    Now he really did look
naive. He should’ve listened to his brothers more when they’d
talked of ships. He should’ve asked all those questions he’d always
wanted to. Silently cursing himself, he sat down beside her and
frowned when she leaned across his lap. His eyes widened when he
saw right down her top.

    “ What are you—”
He kept the panic from his voice but could do nothing to stop the
stirring in his loins.

    “ Relax. I just
thought you might need help getting strapped