Moonrise

She was older than the women Rashid usually went after. And rather too thin for his taste. Yet she was alluring: cool yet tempting, proper in dress and demeanor while her smile seemed to suggest everything a man could desire. She spoke modestly, worked efficiently, and smiled deliciously. When she agreed to accompany him as his assistant on this trip to the Pacific, Rashid’s fantasies kept him awake and sweating for the entire flight.

Now, with the sun setting and the infernal racket of the trucks and construction crews begi

Yet he gri

And Melissa had agreed to have di

Melissa Hart had not been surprised at how easy it was to get close to Rashid. New Morality cohorts in Masterson’s perso

No, the man had taken one look at her and hired her with a wolfish smile.

Sex is a weapon, Melissa told herself. But a weapon is powerful only when it’s used wisely. Keeping Rashid wanting her was the important thing; as long as his desire was alive, she had the power. Allowing him to have her would diminish that power she knew. She would give Rashid smiles and glances, even kisses and fondling. But they would consummate his lust only when it suited Melissa’s goal.

Tonight we have di

“Big night with the big shit boss, huh?” said one of the construction workers with whom Melissa shared the tent. She was a short, burly woman with a good-natured laugh and a vocabulary from the docks. The other two had not come in yet.

Melissa nodded as she studied her image in the only mirror she had, a small hand-sized one.

“How do I look?” she asked.

The woman eyed her critically. Melissa was wearing flowing light pink silk harem pants slitted from hip to cuff, with a loose long-sleeved overblouse.

“Good enough to eat,” the construction worker said, gri

Melissa smiled back at her. The woman began to pull off her grimy tee-shirt. “Watch out for him,” she warned. “He’s got ideas about you.”

“Don’t worry about me,” said Melissa. “I’ve handled men like him before.”

“Sure.” And the woman made an up-and-down movement with her fist.

Melissa laughed at the crudity. I should give her a lecture on morality, she thought, but I don’t have the time.

As she started out of the tent, the woman said, “I’m damned fuckin’ jealous, you know.”

Surprised, Melissa blurted, “You’d want to have di

“Uh-uh,” she replied. “I’d rather have you.”

“Oh,” was all that Melissa could think to reply. But as she left the tent she thought that she would certainly have to give her a morality lecture. Then she wondered if she’d be safer in Rashid’s tent overnight than with the three other women.

Joa

Instead of bringing them together I’m driving them further apart, she said to herself. I want Greg and Doug to work in harmony, and here I’ve as much as told Greg I don’t trust his judgment and I’m siding with Doug.

But what else can I do? Doug’s right and Greg’s simply refusing to pay attention to what he’s trying to accomplish. This whole Kiribati business could blow away at any time; Greg thinks he’s being so clever in setting it up, yet it could be a house of straw.

Well, she thought as she slid open the door to her suite, it’s done. I’ve told Greg what I’m going to do. Now I’d better tell Doug. At least he’ll be happy about it. I hope.

The message light on her computer was blinking. Joa

The screen lit up with the words as the computer a

Joa

“Yes.”

“Read it, please.”

Again, the words spelled on the screen as Kris Cardenas’ slightly shaking voice said, “Mrs. Stavenger, I’ve been thinking about your request that I come to Moonbase to examine your son. Professor Zimmerman is with me, and we would both like to come, if that can be arranged.”

“End of message,” said the computer.

Joa

“Phone,” said Joa

Their conversation was brief, cool, and to the point Kris Cardenas and Wilhelm Zimmerman would leave from Vancouver for Moonbase on the next available flight. Joa

She shook her head. They’re too important to sit around for four days. The authorities might even try to detain them, especially if they wait in Vancouver instead of the space station.

Joa

The corporate comptroller called an hour later to ask if she knew how much a special lunar flight cost and how thin Moonbase’s profit margin was already.

I’ll have to clear this with the division head,” he said, glowering out from the screen at Joa

Joa

Once her words reached him, his eyes went wide. “You’re going to pay for it out of your own pocket?” He looked as if she had threatened some fundamental tenet of his i

“Yes,” Joa

She thought the man would faint.