'So,' the woman in the muted red power suit asked, 'do the others know about this?'
Thinking back, Princess considered everything that had occurred. 'Except the doctor, no,' she stated emphatically, adding silently, I had the foresight not to let anyone know what's going on.
'Good,' the woman turned to the doctor, 'and it's to stay that way. Neither of you are to say a word to the rest of the team until we can figure this out. Until then you're going to have to pretend to be my daughter.'
'What?' Princess demanded.
'From now on you'll call me Anderson, just like the other girls,' the security chief turned on the Swan. 'The only time we acknowledge our blood bond is privately. Sam learnt that lesson very early in her training and you'll be taking her place. Now I need to find a way to get you back to your own reality. We can explain your change in behaviour by a sudden and unexpected illness.'
'In case it's passed your attention,' Princess managed to sit on the edge of her couch. The dizziness and accompanying nausea assaulted her once again. 'Your daughter has a husband out there. If he's anything like The Commander, it won't take him long to realise I'm not the woman he married.'
Anderson looked the girl over, 'most women would love to be in your position. He's quite a catch and he's stationed on Earth so you get to see Mark every day. I know I frown on the relationship in public, but I think you did very well for yourself. So what's the problem? Just step into Sam's life. I can't tell the difference, so no one else will be able to either.'
'Excuse me,' Princess's face took on a shocked expression, 'but this Mark is not my husband. In fact my Mark and I have little more than a working relationship. We both keep it that way.'
'Don't look at me like that,' Anderson rebuked. 'You've as much as admitted an attraction from your last sentence and I bet he's prepressing his interest. Use the opening. Who knows, it might help when you get back to your life. I know my daughter won't let the opportunity pass her by.'
Speechless, Princess wondered what her commander would make of the situation. Suddenly she could picture them, arms wrapped around one another. This Mark carried her from the Phoenix, sat attentively at her side and openly demonstrated his concern before other people. Her Mark would never do that. Then she experienced her first kiss, not just a peck on the lips but a real, passionate caress from a man who loved her. It sent a shiver of need down Princess's spine. Ruthlessly she buried the emotions.
Laughing at the obvious expression's, Anderson ordered, 'use your down time to catch up on the history of this world and your place in it. We'll invent a concussion to explain your hazy memory.'
'Down time?' once again Princess gazed on the woman with suspicion.
'Two Spartan attacks so close together, I think they'll leave us alone for a while,' Anderson supplied. Her mind considered how to begin investigating the phenomena causing the shift in the time space continuum and reverse it. 'We can use this second injury to take you off the roster temporarily. The only issue is going to be your husband. We have to stop him from becoming suspicious. I think a mild head injury will work and create a level of concern for your welfare that will preclude sexual relations for a few days at least.'
'I'll go and give the young man very specific instructions,' the doctor stated, hurrying towards the waiting room.
'If I send him back to the Red Devil's base,' Anderson finally looked at the woman resembling her daughter, 'he'll probably get himself killed concentrating on you and not the Spartan attack.'
Shocked, Princess listened to the words. It took time for her sluggish brain to comprehend the meaning. When it did, she let out a gasp. She'd never considered a romantic relationship with Mark because he was The Commander of G-force. Inappropriate didn't begin to describe those kind of feelings toward him. In the deepest recesses of her mind, Princess knew she could fall in love with the determined, resourceful individual if the situation were different.
That's why, the thought bubbled up from her subconscious, in this world Sam managed to marry Mark. They don't work on the same team. Professional ethics didn't stop them forming a tight bond. I'm the one living this life now. I wonder what it would be like to….
No, rational thought took over, he's someone else's husband. This Mark may look like The Commander but I bet there are differences. I have to concentrate on getting home. Maybe when the war with Spectra is over, we might be able to have what this Princess and Mark have.
Turning on her heals Anderson suddenly marched out of the room. Before Princess could react to the situation, Mark entered. Making a bee line for her position, he scooped her up into his arms.
'You're Mother says we can go back to our quarters,' he looked down at her with a concerned expression, 'but I need to be careful with you for a few days. So I guess our usual homecoming will just have to wait.'
Embarrassed, Princess tried to hide her blush. Untutored in love, it didn't take a genus to figure out his meaning. The pounding in her head increased as they transversed the corridors of Centre Neptune. In the recesses of her mind, she wondered at the strange sensation. The cerabonic implant should be correcting any imbalances in her neuro-hormonal status.
'Please,' she almost cried in relief as the door to her room came into view, 'put me on the bed. I need get rid of this headache.'
Placing her gently on the soft surface, Princess felt the mattress dip under her weight. Solicitously, Mark turned down the bedding, indicating she should move so he could tuck her in. Taking the time to look at her surroundings, she noticed the subtle changes.
Princess lay in a large double bed with a photo of a happy bride and groom on the side table. The room appeared to be lived in. The lamp matched the earthy tones of the walls and soft furnishings. Guessing these girls didn't have to maintain a cover story, they had to reside within the walls of Centre Neptune.
Her quarters held objects most defiantly not belonging to a woman. One wall covered in flying memorabilia. Princess noticed three of the prints also hung in Mark's airfield shack. The back of the door held a man's leather flying jacked. Then she spotted an almost naked Mark carefully folding his red uniform onto the chair beside his side of the bed. Lifting the cover, he prepared to join her.
'Mark,' she found it difficult to get more than a squeak out.
'Cuddle up,' he suggested, helping her into the warmth of his embrace, 'it's the only thing the doctor's going to allow us for the next few days.'
Feeling like a fraud and yet elated at his closeness, Princess chose to close her lids. She felt the soft, warm breath on her neck turn into gentle butterfly kisses. One hand wondered up her chest to cup a breast while the other rested over her belly, drawing circles. At her back, she began to understand the hard object protruding into the base of her spine.
'Don't,' Mark lifted his mouth to her ear, nibbling on the lobe, 'shiver like that in my arms, Princess,' he pleaded. 'I might forget you're injured and say to hell with doctors' orders.'
Swallowing hard, Princess wondered how she'd ever return to her own reality. This one seemed so much nicer. Almost like a dream come true.
