Shifter Planet Read Online Free PDF

fragile porcelain. She was in her fifties, and thanks to the advances of modern science she would remain youthful in appearance well into her seventies. Youthful or not, however, she would always be beautiful.
    Amanda, on the other hand, took after the father she’d never known. She was nearly six feet tall, with blond hair, dark blue eyes, and golden-brown skin that even the sunless confines of the ship couldn’t reduce to anything less than a healthy glow. She was attractive enough—fit, graceful and athletic, which somehow, next to her mother, made her feel like a huge, clumsy thing. This was all in Amanda’s head, because her mother had never made her feel anything but beautiful and loved.
    “You’ve got company,” she said, arching an eyebrow.
    Elise smiled, seeing the comment for the distraction it was, or at least was trying to be.
    “A friend,” she dismissed. “Now, what happened to your leg?”
    Amanda grabbed a robe and slipped it on, trying to conceal the damaged appendage. “Nothing,” she said. She sat on the bed to avoid towering over her petite mother. “A sparring accident.”
    Elise frowned, but thankfully let it go with a simple, “You should ice it.” She wandered farther into the room, letting the door close behind her. “Randy tells me you’ll be spending considerable time down on that planet.”
    Every planet was “that planet” to Elise Sumner. She’d never forgiven Amanda’s father for choosing to remain rooted on his home planet rather than follow his pregnant lover back into space. He was perhaps the only man in history she hadn’t managed to win over to her view of the universe, and, apparently, the only one who’d ever really mattered.
    “I was down there with the science team most of the day, and I’ll be heading back in just under two hours,” she said with a glance at the clock on her bedside. “It’s a fancy reception of some kind, which means dress whites, so I really need to shower.”
    “What you need is several hours’ sleep.”
    “I know, but that’s not—” She frowned. “Randy?”
    “Admiral Leveque,” her mother said, brown eyes sparkling with mischief.
    Fantastic. She’s dating Leveque.
    “Don’t look at me like that. He’s a lovely man, quite intelligent. Besides, he’s an old friend.”
    Amanda’s eyebrows shot up in surprise. An old friend? Leveque? Since when?
    “Okay,” she said, drawing a deep breath that did little to erase the image of her mother and Randy . “I’m keeping you from your, um, guest, and I really do need to get in the shower. I’ll need to do something with my hair, and I’m not sure my dress uniform is—”
    “I could get you out of it, you know,” her mother said thoughtfully. “Not the party, that might be enjoyable, I mean the rest of it. Wandering around down there for days…in the dirt. I could get you reassigned shipside. The leg injury alone would be enough.”
    She didn’t even flinch, just gave her mother a quiet look. “It’s a lost colony, Mom.”
    “Yes,” Elise agreed archly, drawing out the word. “Nearly five hundred years lost and only one major settlement to show for it. One shudders at the genetic possibilities. You should advise the male members of your party to beware of friendly women bearing small specimen cups at this so-called party tonight.”
    She laughed. “I’ll tell them to be careful. Can I please shower now?”
    “Of course.” Her mom leaned over and kissed her forehead. “Big night,” she said, with wide eyes and a dramatic quiver of her slender shoulders. Then her eyes met Amanda’s in a moment of perfect sincerity. “Stay safe down there, my child.”
    “I will. And you enjoy your evening.”
    Elise pressed the door control and turned back to give Amanda a teasing look before stepping out of the room. “Oh, I will. In fact, I’ll see you there. Randy is taking me to the party.” Her delicate laughter drifted back as the door slid closed.
    She stared at the