Voyagers II - The Alien Within by Ben Bova Read Free Book Online Page B

their lovemaking. A tropical downpour drummed at the bedroom’s lone window.
    “Cliff,” she said, stroking his bare chest, “this is strictly between the two of us. Totally off the record. If you try to make a story out of it, I’ll have to deny it.”
    Baker sat up abruptly, pulling his knees to his chin and locking his arms around them. He stared at his own image in the mirror above the bureau against the wall across from the bed.
    “We’ll release the story in a few months,” An Linh went on, “and I’ll make certain that you’re—”
    “Shh!” Baker hissed. “Genius at work.”
    She smiled up at his fiercely scowling face. Then, glancing at the digital clock on the dresser, she saw that she was running late for her dinner engagement. Leaving the Aussie to his own machinations, An Linh got up from the bed and walked lightly to the bathroom.
    She was luxuriating in the steamy enveloping warmth of the shower when she felt his hands on her.
    “Soap my back, will you?” she murmured.
    Baker complied, then slid his hands down her hips, her thighs. She turned to face him, and he sank to his knees, his hands reaching behind her now, grasping her slim buttocks, his tongue searching between her legs. The hot water throbbed against An Linh’s shoulders and back. The steam swirled and caressed them both. She dug her fingers into his golden hair and tilted her head back, eyes closed against the delicious hot shower. Her back arched, and she spasmed and gave out a long, wrenching sigh.
    With a knowing grin, Baker got to his feet and held her in his arms for long silent moments. She twined her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately, thankfully.
    His grin widened. “My turn,” he said.
    An Linh smiled back at him. A small voice deep inside her mind told her that he never gave without taking, but she dismissed its warning and knelt before her handsome, smiling lover.

CHAPTER 8
    It was still raining by the time An Linh was dressed and ready to leave for dinner. Standing in the apartment’s living room, she looked out through the windows at the rain drenching the parking lot.
    “Going to dinner?” Baker asked her.
    She had not heard him approaching her. He had the knack of moving noiselessly, like a shadow.
    “I’m meeting Father Lemoyne, remember?”
    He nodded. “Yeah, I know. How’s he doing?”
    “That’s what I’m going to find out. He’s just come back from Boston, the medical people at Harvard.”
    “I’ve been thinking,” Baker said, looking away from An Linh toward his ghostly image reflected in the rainwashed windows. “The priest might be the way for you to get me inside the Vanguard labs.”
    “I’ll get you inside the labs, when the time comes. I’ll make certain that—”
    “Not ‘when the time comes,’ ” Baker said. “I want to get in there now. As soon as possible.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “You could arrange for me to do a story about Father Lemoyne, if he’s really terminal.”
    An Linh felt the blood rising to her cheeks. “Cliff, you sound as if you want him to…to be terminal!”
    He shrugged carelessly. “If he’s not, that’s wonderful. Of course. But if he is , then he could be a big help to us.”
    “That’s awful!”
    He clasped her wrist in his strong grip. “Now don’t get sentimental on me, love. We’re talking a big story here. You do want me to get the inside track on this frozen astronaut story, don’t you?”
    “Yes, but—”
    “And once we get in among the scientists, we might even get a line on the cure for cancer they’ve developed.”
    “But they haven’t!”
    “Haven’t they?” He smirked.
    “Cliff, when you introduced me to Father Lemoyne, I didn’t think it was for…for something like this.”
    “Now listen to me, love. There’s a lot at stake here, and the least you can do is try to keep a professional attitude. After all, we’re not making him sick, you know.”
    Pulling away from him, An Linh replied, “No, but