She knew before she turned who stood behind her. She felt him with an instinct she didn't understand. She sucked in a deep breath and turned to face the music.
The music was every bit as masculine and warrior as she remembered him. He towered before her with one hand planted just above her head. The intensity of his look pinned her to the door behind her.
He felt close, too close. She pushed her heels against the door and gazed up at him, her courage gone in the face of such a man. The odd energy flowing between them held them both in silence for a long moment before he spoke.
"I do no favors for any this night."
"I don't know what that means," she managed.
He stared at her, considering and wary, in a way that made her uncomfortably fevered. For a long moment, she thought her translator had died again. The warrior looked her over from head to toe. Kiera felt her ire rise at the blatant appraisal. Anger awoke her from the odd spell he seemed to cast over her.
"I will consider a favor to you," he recanted.
"I don't want a favor, unless that means you're willing to help me escape," she replied. "I've come to offer you the chance to escape, so long as you take me to a … to a spaceship."
"You speak of escape?" he asked with a frown.
"Escape for you and for me."
"Escape for you?"
"Yes. I don't want to stay here. I want to go home. I need you to take me to a spaceship so I can arrange to go home," she said with exaggerated slowness to make sure he understood despite her faulty translator.
His gaze turned curious. He dropped his arm and stepped away. Kiera drew a breath as the intensity of his presence left. The massive warrior paced to the window. He looked out for a long moment, pensive, before returning his attention to her.
"You want me to help you leave."
She nodded in response.
"It might onset a war."
"Onset a war?" she repeated. "No, you just have to take me to a ship."
He looked her over once more. She crossed her arms. There was something more than interest in his gaze. If she hadn't thought it impossible for an alleged warrior to feel such a thing, she might have thought him troubled.
"Would you stop that? Where I'm from, that's rude."