Carrin swore again as she realized that she was hopelessly lost.
She pulled her hoverbil down to land to the side of the flyway, musing that at least there was still gravel on this one. Perhaps flying alone through the Kri'enden badlands hadn't been such a great idea. At least she had plenty of water. And a map. The old-fashioned kind, one made of actual paper, rather than digital flyppaper that was used these days. Mrs. Welland didn't keep flyppaper around and certainly no recent maps! She'd not gone anywhere in a long time, Carrin realized.
She looked at it again and wondered where she had gone wrong.
She heard a chuckling sound and put down the map to see a dark-skinned man grinning at her. It was Hellim Haver, who lived on the floor above her. He'd always looked at her like a man hungry, but she was grateful to see a friendly face now.
"Lost?" he asked needlessly.
"No, I'm standing here for the sun!" she quipped.
"Beautiful woman should not be sarcastic to the man who loves her."
Carrin wondered about the bold statement, but felt it better to ignore it. "Mrs. Welland's map is outdated."
"No more than she is. I have to wonder if she's ever used flyppaper for anything!" Hellim said. "Let me look at that."
Carrin let him take the map from her. He looked it over and shook his head. "Most of these roads no longer exist, or are in poor condition. This flyway is this road here," he pointed to the line. "It was never a major road until we started using hoverbils."
"No wonder I'm lost! But why are you here now?"
"Mrs. Welland wanted me to follow you, just in case."
"She did?" Carrin asked, wondering what else the old woman was getting up to.
"Well, after I asked her anyway."
Carrin met Hellim's eyes. She had lived in Kri'enden for three years now. She came for school, but then got her first job in Joton, so she ended up staying. Her pale Towani skin made her stand out, but she often felt like she was half-Kri'enden by nature. Sure, she found the dark Kri'enden skin attractive, but she'd never considered anything more. The man looking at her now definitely wanted more! She blushed under his gaze.
His hand cupped the back of her head a split second before he pressed his lips to hers.
Carrin was surprised at how right it felt to kiss him. How tender his lips were, and how hungry. She felt as if a fire had started inside her. A hand stroked down her back and cupped her buttocks, holding her to him. "You don't know how long I've wanted to do this... I will drive you crazy, then I will satisfy your deepest longing!" he promised.
Carrin wasn't sure what he was hinting, but she didn't want to spoil the moment. Her lips parted as his tongue demanded entry. She felt his hand brush the crotch of her jeans the moment before he pushed her against the hood of the hoverbil as he kissed her more deeply. She was surprised the she liked his flavor, the last guy who had given her the tongue had tasted stale and boring. Hellim was exciting!