It started as a joke at a party. She was bored and met an old friend in the bathroom. They spent thirty minutes sitting on the sofa catching up. The two had moved in the same circles for years, dated some of the same men, feeling comfortable enough with each other to compare notes and make recommendations.
Gina had come to the party with a professional hockey player with a crooked nose who was six years younger than she was. Gina had just gotten a job with a national news service and was trying to shed a few years from her age. News services were pretty brutal to aging women.
Melissa had arrived on the arm of a real estate agent nearly twice her age. She had accepted the date because she wanted to go to the party, and he was a business associate who frequently sent business her way. He was nice enough, but deadly dull, wanting to talk about selling houses and how much money he made. He’d recently given up drinking everything but red wine which he said had given him a new virility. Melissa chose scotch on the rocks and wished for a really good Margarita and a certain blond astronaut who never spoke about virility, merely acted on it.
Gina suggested she dump the real estate agent and they’d split with the hockey player, but he looked too stupid to be worth the bother. She wanted Alan. She needed a good screwing and was feeling extremely picky.
"You haven’t actually fallen in love with this guy have you?" Gina asked as she took a last drag on her cigarette.
"Don’t be silly. He just happens to be very, very good."
"You’ll have to let me take him out for a test drive."
Melissa felt her stomach twist. She turned to the mirror to check her hair. "He’s on the Moon right now. What a riot if you could do some kind of news story on Alpha or the Space Program and we could go up there."
"You could be my production assistant," Gina said with a laugh. "It’s basically a glorified gopher. You’d help set up the shots and make sure the right people are there at the right time."
"Hey perhaps we could get a chance to try out zero gee."
"I think you want to try out your astronaut in zero gee."
"Damn straight and I’m sure he has all kinds of little astronaut friends for you."
"Moonbase Alpha would never be the same once we got through with it."
"Undoubtedly."
"They’ve assigned me this complete nerd of a cameraman. I bet he’d jump at this assignment. He’s enamoured of the space program."
"You planning to jump him?"
"I never jump co-workers, too complicated."
"That’s why I like working alone. No limits."
"So what about tonight?"
"Oh, I’ll stick with the virile Mr. Red Wine. He’s a business contact and I’ll make sure he has such a wonderful time here that he’ll never remember what we did or didn’t do after we leave. I’ll send him a thank you note tomorrow and tell him how wonderful he was and he’ll send me gobs of business," Melissa re-applied her lipstick and the women left the bathroom with a laugh.
Two weeks later, Helena Russell entered the cafeteria for a late lunch. The cafeteria was almost deserted. Lunch was well over. There was a clatter of dishes from the kitchen as the staff cleaned up. Alan Carter was sitting alone sipping a cup of coffee, his back to her. She picked up a fruit salad from the refrigerated cart and walked over to join him.
"Hello stranger," she said softly.
He jumped and turned to look at her, eyes filled with hope for a split second until he took in her uniform. "Oh, hi Helena," the disappointment in his voice was obvious.
"Sorry, I sounded like my sister didn’t I?"
"No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be so hung up on her." He shrugged. "She’s not really the type a guy should get hung up on…" he trailed off realizing he was speaking about her sister.
"I understand. Although I think she’s equally hung up on you."
Alan grinned and shook his head. "Ironic isn’t it? I spend my whole life working to get a job up here, and when one comes along, I can’t help thinking…"
Helena toyed with her fruit salad. "I know what you mean."
Both were quiet for a while. They met for dinner about once a week and had developed a fond friendship for each other. There were times when Alan wished he’d fallen for Helena and John for her sister, but past their identical looks they were as different as two people could be and it was Melissa’s fire and excitement he had fallen for. According to John, Helena had plenty of fire of her own, but she kept it securely hidden by a professional façade that she hadn’t let Alan see through at all, although she did relax enough around him to show her sense of humor every once in a while.
"So what are you doing here in the middle of the afternoon?" Helena asked. Alan spent most of his time on the Space Dock, and was rarely on Alpha in the middle of the day.
"I’ve got to meet an Eagle in a little while. I’ve been asked to squire around a news crew. Show them Alpha and the space dock while they do some kind of feature." Alan scowled. He hated this sort of assignment. "I wish they’d sent John along to do the tour guide bit. He’s better at it than I am."
"I wish they had too," Helena said with a smile.
Alan had to laugh. "I expect you do. Anyway, this Gina Peebles asked for me."
"Gina Peebles?" Helena smiled.
"You’ve heard of her?"
"She’s a close friend of Melissa’s. Very close. She probably knows all about you from Mel and has decided to come check you out for herself."
"When you say ‘check me out’…"
"Keep in mind that every move you make will get back to Mel, everything."
"Thanks for the warning. Have you spoken to her lately?"
"Not for about a week or so. You?"
"I got an email from her last week talking about her flying lessons."
"I still can’t believe you talked her into taking flying lessons."
"All I did was suggest it. She’s really enjoying it. I knew she would." Alan stood. "I’ve got to get going. Their Eagle will be landing soon."
"Tell Gina I said hello. I don’t know if she’ll have time, but I’d love to see her. You should get along with her quite well. She’s a lot like Mel."
"I’m not sure if I can handle another woman like Mel."
"You seem to enjoy handling Mel," Helena said with a smirk.
Alan shook his head and smiled at the pun. "I’ll see you later."
The Eagle was just landing as Alan arrived at the boarding dock. He turned into the lounge and watched through the window as the boarding tube was extended. When he heard the doors to the airlock opening he returned to the hallway. The first person to disembark was a short black man with thick glasses holding a camera which looked bigger than he was. Behind him was a tall willowy black woman with smooth skin and a regal carriage. She looked around her, noticed Alan and headed straight for him.
"Alan Carter?"
"That’s me. You must be Ms. Peebles."
"Please call me Gina." She gave him her hand and a radiant smile. "You’ll also be working quite close with my production assistant." She put out a hand and another woman walked off of the Eagle.
Alan caught sight of her and could do nothing but grin.
"I believe you know Melissa Thompson," Gina said, but she could tell that neither Alan nor Melissa had heard a thing she said. They were standing about three feet apart grinning at each other. She now knew that Melissa had fallen, and fallen hard, for this astronaut of hers. "Mr. Carter, I find that the trip has absolutely exhausted me and I’m going to need a chance to stretch out and rest before we get to work. Is it possible that you could show me to my quarters and then you and Ms. Thompson could go over our schedule today while I rest and we’ll begin in the morning?"
What she was saying sank in and Carter nodded and turned back to her. "Of course. I’ll show you each to your quarters."
Carter ushered them into the travel tube and became a polite tour guide. His eyes kept straying to Melissa, unable to believe she was sitting on a travel tube with him. If it weren’t for the other two on board with them she would have been in his lap, or he would have had her on the floor. His head was swimming. He made small talk with a tiny portion of his mind. The rest of his attention was taking up with wondering how much longer until he could hold Melissa in his arms.
He gave the three of them a whirlwind tour, promising a more thorough tour tomorrow. He showed them the cafeteria, the recreational facilities, and he took them to the visitor’s quarters. Each was given a commlock and issued a room. Alan led the cameraman, then Gina to their door and they both thanked him and retired to their rooms. The next stop was Melissa’s. She had quietly watched as he instructed them all in the use of the commlock. Now she pointed hers at the doorway they were approaching and it opened. She placed a hand on his arm and they walked through the door together. She pointed it at the door and closed the door with it and was in Alan’s arms as soon as the door shut.
Their lips met and her arms wrapped around his neck. Their universe narrowed down to a space just big enough for the two of them. She was wearing a short black leather skirt, matching jacket and white silk blouse. As his hands moved down across her hips he moaned and moved his hands back and forth across the leather. "You’ve lost your underwear again."
"That’s why I was a little behind the others when we got here. I stopped to take them off," she said as she moved her lips up his jaw and nibbled at his earlobe. "Alan, I’m so wet we could drown!"
Her breathing was coming fast. He lifted her and she wrapped her legs around him. There was a sectional sofa in the corner to the right of the door, a closet to the left. Further into the room was a small alcove with a single bed. It was much too far away. They wanted each other now. "Your pants," she said. With her wrapped around him he couldn’t get them off.
"Damn," he replied and released her, stripping off belt and reaching under his tunic to unfasten the pants. She unbuttoned her blouse while he pulled the pants down then pulled up her short skirt. Then she was wrapping herself around him again. He lifted her and leaned her against the wall, entering her immediately. His mouth found hers and he pushed hard against her. Her moans spurred him to increase his efforts and she bit his lip as she peaked.
"Oh, God, I’ve wanted that so bad!" she gasped as she felt him release inside her.
He was breathless, leaning against her, his lips against her earlobe. "I cannot believe you’re here!"
"I’m here. We have to talk some business tonight and get things ready for tomorrow, but I am here, and I’m oh, so glad."
He hated to let her go, but his pants were around his ankles and he couldn’t move them to sofa or bed the way they were right now. He shifted gently and she unwrapped her legs from him and stood in front of him. He kissed her again hungrily, their first orgasm barely taking the edge off of his lust for her. "Mel, I’ve missed you so much."
"I’ve missed you, too," she admitted with a smile.
"How did you manage this?" he asked as she bent down and helped remove his shoes and pants. He tugged off his tunic and when she stood he helped her shed her jacket, skirt and blouse. He touched her body gently, still amazed that she was here on Alpha with him.
She took his hand and led him to the bed, pulling him down on top of her. "Gina is an old friend. I suggested this story idea to her and she pitched the idea to her boss and he liked it. Then she hired me as a production assistant to come along."
"What do you know about being a production assistant?" he asked, his hands roaming over every inch of her body as if to make sure she was really there.
"Gina coached me. I really do know what I’m doing. Alan, I would have shoveled shit all the way to the moon to feel you touching me like this. Oh!" she gasped as his touches became more erotic and distracting.
"What about your business?"
"I’ve gotten someone to handle it for the week we’ll be up here. I can’t get a decent enough internet connection to work from here, otherwise you’d never be rid of me. I wouldn’t let them drag me back onto an Eagle."
"A week? You’ll be here for a whole week?"
"Minus the day it takes us to travel back to Earth. Oh, Alan, don’t stop that."
"What was that? Don’t? Stop that?" he teased, his fingers moving up and down her thighs.
"No," she gasped. "Don’t stop doing that—oh!"
He laughed, mostly with delight at her presence. "You keep saying ‘oh’. I didn’t realize your vocabulary was so limited, love."
She pulled him to her and shifted so that his fingers could more easily reach between her legs. She licked his earlobe and blew softly into his ear. "I understand there’s a shortage of good lays up here. I intend to make sure you stock up for when I leave."
"I had planned to surprise you, but I have to be in Houston for a week in August, right at your birthday. Think you can get away again then?"
"Really? You’ll be working, or on vacation?"
"Working, during the day. I’ve got some equipment upgrades I need to see to."
"As long as I can use your phone connection I can work while you’re at work, then we can have the nights together."
He moved on top of her and slid easily inside of her again. "That sounds perfect. Then once the Meta Probe is launched things will calm down up here and I’ll take a vacation. We could go to the Bahamas."
"That would be perfect. I’ll hold you to it."
"Now kiss me, love. We’ve got a lot of time to make up for."
It was a long time before they spoke again. Alan curled protectively around her and held her while she dozed. He was so very glad she was here with him. When she stirred he asked, "Want to see if Helena wants to have dinner with us?"
"Mmm, yes. That would be wonderful."
Alan rolled out of bed and collected his clothes. He tossed Melissa’s to her. "I’ll call Helena while you get dressed."
"I want to surprise her too."
"All right."
Helena met Alan for dinner and was completely surprised to find Melissa sitting next to him. Melissa was delighted to be on the moon and Helena and Alan showed her around the base after dinner. After the tour Melissa and Alan walked Helena to her quarters then Alan intended to walk Melissa back to the guest quarters but she had other plans.
"Take me to your place."
"My place?"
"I want to see where you sleep." She leaned closer. "I want to make love in your bed," she whispered.
"I’m just down the hall." Alan put his arm around her waist and led her to his quarters. He was glad that he was usually too busy to stay in his quarters much. They were probably a bit dusty but they weren’t messy.
The quarters looked just like the room her sister had, and the one she was assigned to. She walked in and looked around the room. There were very few personal items. A few books that she knew were favorites of his were on the shelf. A model of an Eagle hung over the desk. On the desk there was one picture in a clear plastic frame. It was a photo of her and Alan which had been taken on New Year’s Eve. She turned and smiled at him when she saw it. He grinned at her and shrugged slightly.
She looked over at the bed and crooked her finger. She walked to the bed, hips swaying with exaggeration. She lay down on the bed and held out her arms. Alan followed her and slowly undressed her, kissing her, caressing her, arousing her.
Alan stopped her hands as she reached to unzip his tunic. He kissed her fingertips and leaned forward "Let me take care of everything," he whispered into her ear. She nodded and waited for him to touch her. He quickly pulled off his own tunic pants and boots and knelt beside her. He began with light kisses to her lips, jaw line, earlobe. His hands began to tease both nipples as he to rain light kisses over her neck, shoulders, torso. His hands moved down to her hips and he coaxed her to move her legs apart. When he moved between her legs, she lay in front of him, eyes closed, body relaxed, waiting for his touch. He entered her slowly, pushing deep into her and bent forward to press his lips against hers. Her hips pressed up against him. They moved to a leisurely climax together then Alan rolled off of her and she curled into his arms.
"So why do you like it up here, Alan?"
"Being in space?"
"Yeah. From what you and Helena have shown me, we could just as easily be on Earth in some fancy hotel with no windows. Even the gravity is the same."
"Well, having the gravity compensators allows us to stay in space for longer periods of time without the physical side effects of low gravity."
"But it cuts down on the local color."
Alan kissed her neck and held her close. "Spoken like a good travel agent."
"Isn’t there some place to see outside? To see the stars?" She shifted to face him. "To take a girl and stargaze?"
Alan looked at her with surprise. There really wasn’t anyplace like that. Even the observatory was remote controlled. The Eagles had view ports in the command section. It was something he hadn’t considered before. Just being here was enough for him. And he hadn’t even thought about taking a girl somewhere. He guessed there were two reasons for that. One would be that while here he tended to throw himself into his work. Remembering to eat was a major effort some days. The other reason was in his arms. He had come to enjoy his time with Melissa too much to cultivate even casual physical relationships. He smiled and kissed her softly. Had he really fallen in love with her?
"Let me think about that. Didn’t you say we had some work to do tonight?"
"Oh, yes. We need to work out the shooting schedule. I have the list of things Gina wants to shoot, and you might be able to suggest some other things. It’s in my bag." Melissa sat up and leaned over the side of the bed, rummaging through the clothes to find her bag containing her palm pilot and the commlock. She retrieved the palmpilot and sat cross-legged on the foot of his bed facing him. He sat up and leaned against the headboard. It might make for a distracting meeting, but there was something to be said for meetings in the nude, especially with Melissa.
Melissa did have a knack for organization, and had interpreted Gina’s needs well. They filled the schedule for two days worth of shooting on the Moon and another two days on the space dock. The schedule kept them busy all day long, but left their nights free for each other. Melissa had also well predicted that Alan had plenty of astronaut friends for Gina to meet, and Alan had no problems introducing Gina to plenty of interested men.
The fifth day Gina and her cameraman intended to spend going over the shots they had taken so far so that they could make any retakes necessary before they left. The night before that they had dinner together in Alpha’s cafeteria after returning from the space dock. Gina had entertained everyone in the dining room thoroughly, turning dinner into a party. Alan and Melissa had faded into the background as the party continued well past the dinner hour. When Alan steered Melissa out the door she had been quite willing to come.
"I have a surprise for you," Alan whispered in her ear as they entered the elevator.
Melissa noted that he pressed a button to take them up to the travel tube. Alpha was a small place. After just a few days she had easily learned her way around. She leaned against Alan. "What kind of surprise?"
"We’re going to take a little Eagle flight." He kissed her bare neck. She was wearing a long red sweater that slid off one shoulder revealing the lacy straps to a black camisole hidden underneath. Tight black pants and black boots with wide cuffs completed the outfit. "Have I told you how hot you look tonight?"
"You probably think that because all you see up here is beige. Really, Alan, how do you stand it up here?"
They exited the elevator and rounded the corner to the travel tube to take them out to the landing pad. "You really don’t like it much here do you?"
Melissa sighed. "I’m trying to, Alan, really. But I’m not a science type that wants to squirrel away in a lab solving the problems of the universe, and I’m not a space jock either."
"And I’m thankful for both." He pulled her into his arms and delivered a long slow kiss as the travel tube headed out to the landing pad.
As the travel tube slowed down they parted. Melissa smiled and licked her lips. "That’s the best part about being here."
"Oh yeah," Alan led her down the hall to a boarding tube. The Eagle was waiting for him. He led her forward to the command module, settled her in the co-pilot’s seat and began his pre-flight check. She had learned enough from her flying lessons to understand what he was doing and enjoyed watching him as he prepared the craft and lifted off. They hadn’t had a chance to fly together before and she could see that he was in his element.
When he spoke to Command Center Tony Verdechi’s face appeared on the screen. The words they spoke were all business but there seemed to be some kind of private joke between the two of them. They lifted off and headed away from base before Melissa asked where they were going.
"We’re going to deliver some equipment to Disposal Area Two. I thought we could take it out there really quick, then pause in orbit on the far side and try zero gee.
"Melissa grinned. "Oh? And what are we going to try in zero gee?"
Alan returned her grin. "Whatever you want to try out, sweetheart."
She cut her eyes at him and licked her lips. "I have quite an imagination, Alan Carter."
"Oh, don’t I know it, honey. And I’m very thankful for it."
She turned and asked him about the controls of the Eagle and their similarities to the airplane she was learning to fly. Alan was delighted to get the chance to show off a bit and show her the controls. They spent the flight talking about piloting Eagles, and thinking about something completely different.
The stop off at the nuclear waste dump was brief. Melissa stayed in the co-pilot’s seat with Alan’s warning for her to keep quiet. He was scheduled to be here, she wasn’t. For Melissa, that only added to the excitement of their little trip.
Once the delivery was made Alan lifted off and appeared to head back to Alpha, but he flew higher this time according to the instruments he had shown her how to use. Alan explained that they would go into orbit above the Moon, and once they had achieved a stable orbit they could turn off the gravity compensators.
"Have you ever done this before?"
"What, turned off the g-comps or brought a girl up here?"
"Both, really."
"Yes to the first, but no to the second," he said with a grin.
When Alan turned off the gravity compensators he told her to be still for a few moments to get accustomed to the difference. He unbuckled his own harness and floated over to her. When she turned her head to watch him she could feel the difference. Her inner ear reacted oddly and everything seemed to swim. She latched onto that word. It was like swimming, when you had been under water for a while, concentrating more on the reef than anything else, and there no longer seemed to be up or down. She had always enjoyed the sensation.
By the time Alan unfastened her harness she was re-oriented to the difference in her environment and no longer trusting the messages from her inner ear. She pushed out of her chair, careful not to brush against any of the instruments.
The empty cargo hold was perfect for their purposes. The empty space contained no furniture or other fixtures; just the lights in their recessed panels and controls by the doorway. Melissa launched herself into a series of jumps, bouncing off wall and ceiling, learning quickly to control spins by pulling her body into a more compact shape or spreading out. Alan floated by the door to the command section and enjoyed the view. She pushed off from the opposite wall and spun toward him, halting with careful calculation just in front of him.
Her cheeks glowed with the exertion and her hair was a golden halo around her head. "The cheerleaders in my high school would have died with envy."
"Along with the football team from my high school envying me," he countered. "Nice moves."
"Thank you. We can tell my father that all those ice skating lessons he paid for were worth it."
Alan grimaced. "We might not want to tell him about this."
Melissa laughed. She placed her hands lightly on Alan’s shoulders. "So, have you thought much about sex like this?"
He put his hands on her waist, moving underneath her sweater to feel the silk of the camisole between his skin and hers. "Constantly. Since I was about fourteen. Let’s say it combines two of my most favorite topics."
"And what conclusions have you come to Mr. Astronaut-space-jock?" she imitated Gina’s interviewer voice, then laughed.
"Well, it seems to me that we’ll need to move very carefully—action and reaction, you know."
"True," Melissa said thoughtfully. "Light kisses and touches are in, hip action is out."
Alan grinned. Mel seemed to have a knack for this sort of thinking and was willing to consider and discuss before acting.
"Too much bump and grind will end up with us slamming into walls and ceiling. We don’t want bruises." She considered a moment then pushed lightly away from him, using only her fingertips. She hung in the air in front of him and reached down slowly to pull the sweater over her head. The black camisole had black satin straps and little black bows down the center. Alan could see her nipples pressed tightly against the thin material. He met Melissa’s eyes and they exchanged a grin.
She continued to strip, slowly and carefully, unzipping boots with great care and pushing them toward a corner. Her pants came off next in a graceful rolling maneuver that he wondered how she could perform without practice. She righted herself again, facing him, stopping her spin with calculated precision of movement.
Maybe he should thank Dr. Thompson for those ice skating lessons.
Next she carefully untied each little black bow on the camisole and pulled it off. Her breasts, always lovely, floated like two cones pointed directly at him. She moved her hands up her sides and across the breasts, following his gaze. "Well, they do stand up here, don’t they?" she said with a laugh. "Maybe we could market this as the perfect vacation destination for the sagging and elderly."
"Yours never sag," he said, still mesmerized by the sight of her.
"Why thank you, sir," she said. "It’s your turn now, Alan," she prompted.
"I can’t even imagine being as graceful as you were," he said.
"As long as you achieve the same results," Melissa said with a smile. She brought her legs up slowly and placed her hands on her knees, legs just slightly spread. She looked as if she were kneeling on an invisible bed, ready and waiting for him.
He was anxious and all thumbs. He pulled off jacket, belt and tunic, only bouncing up to hit the ceiling once as he pushed the clothing away from him. Melissa smiled and watched him hungrily without rushing him. He was infinitely glad to be doing this with someone he knew and trusted. He felt like a virgin.
Trying to imitate Melissa’s move to remove his pants and shoes left him spinning. Melissa moved to him, laughing, and helped to right him. Finally they were floating face to face with Melissa openly admiring his naked body in a way that left him feeling as if he would explode any moment. Her caress down his chest and abdomen, then across his erect penis reinforced that feeling.
She used her fingertips to pull herself closer to him and used the tactic she had outlined earlier. Light kisses and light touches kept their bodies together and practically motionless. She moved around him, touching, kissing, caressing. When they were again facing each other she slowly spread her legs and pressed her inner calves against his outer thighs. Her lips found his and she pulled at his lower lip, then moved her tongue inside his mouth. He placed his hands over her breasts, slowly caressing her nipples with his palms.
Slowly, she moved a hand down his front and guided him gently into her. Somehow she applied pressure against his erect organ without thrusting against him. She tightened and released against him, holding his hips motionless with her legs. He kept up the gentle caresses against her breasts and struggled to hold back the tremendous urge he felt to thrust against her. This seemed to make their actions even more arousing. He slowly moved his arms around her bracing his hands against the small of her back. He pulled her toward him and pushed deeply inside her, finally releasing himself as she moaned deep in her throat. She arched her back and stiffened against him as her own orgasm overtook her, then she clung tightly to him with both arms and legs.
He bent his own legs and relaxed against her finding that the afterglow was even better when there was no awkward position that would put an arm or leg to sleep by cutting off the circulation. "Mel, that was, fantastic."
She nuzzled his neck, content to remained curled around him. "Oh, I think we should definitely find ways to do this again."
"Definitely."
They held each other close and dozed. He woke later to Melissa’s insistent kisses, already aroused by her actions. They were spinning slightly, but he simply closed his eyes and moved with her, entering her quickly and holding her tightly, again using the tactic of minimum movement for maximum arousal. When both were satisfied they smiled at each other and moved apart.
"I should find a capital investor and raise the funds to open a zero gee hotel. It would be a big hit," Melissa said as she retrieved her clothing from the corner of the room.
Alan wasn’t sure if she were kidding or serious. Sometimes it was hard to tell with Melissa. He also thought a brothel might be a bigger draw than a hotel, but decided she might take him seriously. He fielded the clothing she pushed in his direction and they both returned to the command cabin. She had already dressed by the time he initiated the gravity compensators. He finished dressing with a definite down and up. He knelt and made sure her harness was securely strapped around her then took her hand and kissed it slowly.
She leaned forward. "Thank you for sharing that with me."
"I can’t imagine sharing it with anyone else." He winked at her and moved to his own seat. With another sidelong glance and smile Alan fired up the Eagle and they returned to Alpha.
As they landed Melissa asked, "And what are you going to tell Tony Verdeschi about our little trip?" she knew Tony must have been in on Alan’s plan.
"I’m going to tell him you were incredible. He can imagine the details himself."
Leaving two days later was difficult for her. Alan had given her the keys to his condo in Houston and they intended to meet the next month while he was there, but both were unhappy about parting. Gina had plenty of footage for several features and had made quite a few friends on Alpha.
Alan should have headed for the space dock early that morning, but he walked Melissa to the landing pad where her Eagle was scheduled to leave. They waited in the passenger lounge together, holding each other closely until it was time to go.
"How are you going to come back the next time?" Alan asked trying to joke.
"I’ll be here again, when you least expect it," she promised. "And I expect you to make sure we have an Eagle at our disposal again. See you next month."
"I can’t wait," he said, brushing his lips against hers.
She pulled away from him and headed for the Eagle. She didn’t realize how long it would be before she would be able to set foot on Alpha again.
Maureen J. Long
March 2000
