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gave him a prim smile, which belied the heat of her body. Even she could smell her arousal.
    He leaned in and his nostrils flared. “I can’t believe you are so hot but acting so calm.”
    “Practice.”
    Drehl cupped her chin and kissed her, sending her heart pounding in her chest and increasing the pain of her arousal exponentially. He parted from her for a moment, his lips barely touching hers.
    She lifted her chin slightly and brought them together in what started as a few kisses and turned into her holding onto his vest as he crushed her against his chest.
    When she moaned, it was enough to snap her back to what she was doing. “Stop!”
    He blinked dazed eyes. “Why?”
    “I don’t want…this isn’t…I want to know the next guy I sleep with.”
    He stiffened. “You have slept with others?”
    “In my lifetime? Of course.”
    He looked at the portrait and scowled. “If you are destined to be mine, why wait?”
    She shoved against his chest. “Because I am destined to be with you…eventually. It doesn’t say today.”
    His eyes burned with heat. A sharp chirp sounded from a tiny unit on his belt. He groaned. “This isn’t over, Rhoda.”
    He released her and stalked out of her home. His suit emerged and encased him from somewhere unseen as he stomped out the front door.
    Rhoda watched, her body humming with the pulse of arousal as he took flight and his sleek transport lifted off and returned to its home.
    He disappeared, and she exhaled in regret. She hadn’t taken a lover since she arrived, and though she wanted him, she wasn’t going to do anything that tipped the balance of power in his favour. Flopping onto her back and spreading her legs was not the way to win the upper hand, or at least that is what she vaguely remembered.
    It was hard to keep her mind on the proprieties when the urge to light her house on fire to summon the Guardians was first and foremost in her mind.
    Snorting at her own fanciful nature, she returned to the studio and put Prince Drehl’s portrait aside. She had other commissions to finish and the light was almost gone.
     
    * * * *
     
    Charm landed next to Under and Hawk.
    Under gave him a sly look. “Why do I smell paint?”
    “I was getting a portrait done.”
    Hawk laughed as she brought up the mission specs. “I didn’t know that people wore the paint to get a portrait.”
    Charm winced and sent the nanites to remove the traces of pigment and oils. “It is a new technique the artist is trying out.”
    Under laughed as he led the way to his flier. “The same artist who smashed her way out of a cavern?”
    “The same.”
    Hawk snickered. “Excellent. Now, you can get back to her the moment that we finish with the wild fires.”
    They flew to their destination. Under made trenched firebreaks, Hawk concentrated on evacuation and Charm laid down a swath of fireproofing to stop the progress in its tracks.
    It took hours to get control of the flames, but they managed to work together and no lives were lost. Even the tiniest of forest creatures heeded Hawk’s call and made a run to safety.
    The moons were bright in the sky and Charm was filthy when they finished. “Home, I think.”
    Under laughed, “Your little artist won’t miss you tonight?”
    Charm looked at his commander. “She is the woman who is my destiny. She wants a courtship, and I am going to give her one.”
    Hawk tilted her head. “Do Genarans do courtship?”
    He shook his head. “No, but it is what she wants, and I have to convince her otherwise.”
    Hawk grinned as they flew back to Charm’s home in the mountains. “She seems pretty tough.”
    “She can be, and I am glad for it. Life with a Guardian is not for the faint of heart.”
    His companion asked, “Where are you going to start the courtship?”
    “I think a call to a seamstress is the best place to start.” He laughed as the armour took his exhausted body home.
    He had things to do in the morning, and if he didn’t write them all