Austin cut in. ‘The environmental control and life support system takes care of atmospheric pressure, fire detection and suppression, oxygen levels, waste management and water supply.’
‘And if your oxygen supply fails?’
‘There’s back-up in the solid fuel oxygen generation canisters. One canister can last a day.’
A few other candidates swam up next to them and started treading water. Austin glanced around and then back to Corrine; his cheeky grin seemed a permanent feature on his face this morning. ‘What? You’re not going to ask the rest questions too?’
It was a direct barb. He knew she’d been quizzing him because he’d annoyed her. Now she would look unprofessional if she didn’t subject the rest of the candidates to the same questions.
Bill threw her a sympathetic glance. ‘Let’s talk about the different modules.’
She breathed a sigh of relief. There were numerous modules, some pressurised, some not. This could take up valuable time.
She gave him a grateful smile and walked over, watching as he input some data on the tablet. Nearly all the candidates had completed their swim.
Everyone looked good. Some looked better than others. This was typical in a class. Her job was to try and ensure that everyone would be in their peak medical condition by the end of their training. She only had four candidates to design fitness programmes for. That would be her next task. How would Austin Mitchell take to being told what he could and couldn’t do?
She bit her lip as her stomach gave a low grumble. Maybe she was being a little cranky. Coffee was distinctly on her mind, anything to cut out the smell from the swimming pool, which would linger in her hair for the rest of the day. She was having strange cravings for a calorie-laden banana loaf. If she was lucky—there would be none in the canteen today. As soon as she got a whiff of one, she’d be sunk, in more ways than one.
‘Time!’ Bill’s voice cut through her thoughts and Austin and Michael high-fived each other in the water then swam to the side.
He could have got out of the pool anywhere. But no. Austin Mitchell, complete with flight suit and dorky tennis shoes, swam directly underneath her and pulled himself out right under her nose. Water streamed from him, running off the bright blue flight suit and pooling next to her shoes.
She should have chosen her footwear more carefully. This was one of her favourite pairs.
‘How’d I do?’ That drawl again. Right up close and personal. What was it about that voice? She’d worked with lots of guys from all over the States and a whole host of international guests. Some women loved Italian accents, some Irish. A few women around here had definite preferences for the Russian accent. One of her colleagues was in a long-distance relationship with a cosmonaut. She’d lived in California as a child where accents weren’t as noticeable. But Austin’s Texas drawl seemed to send a zing around her whole body, connecting with each tiny nerve and catapulting it into overtime.
She licked her lips and kept her voice steady. ‘I think you were pretty average.’
He raised one eyebrow. That darn smirk. It was almost as if he saved it for her especially because he knew it would make her crazy. ‘Average? I’m average?’
Oh, good. She’d hit a nerve. She liked that. Mr Top Gun was probably too used to being the best at everything. She’d hate it if he lost his competitive edge.
She waved her hand as she tried to keep the teasing tone from her voice. But it was so hard. ‘We all have different talents, Lieutenant Commander Mitchell. Maybe we’ve yet to discover yours.’
She walked away, still keeping her eyes on the rest of the candidates in the pool. She couldn’t leave until they were all officially finished. Now she was happy she’d worn her favourite heels. She could almost feel his eyes fixated on her swinging hips as she crossed over towards one of the other instructors.
Having a bad experience in the past hadn’t made her immune to flirtations or charms. She enjoyed them. She enjoyed meeting men who were happy to see her as an equal partner instead of a conquest. The twinkle in Austin’s eyes gave her more than a little buzz.
Blair looked up from his monitor. ‘You two are going to drive each other crazy,’ he said quietly. ‘This is going to be fun to watch.’
She straightened her back. ‘I don’t know what you mean.’
Blair stared at her. ‘Ever thought about applying for the programme yourself? Fancy some time up in space?’ He shook his head as he turned the monitor towards her. ‘You and him in a confined space for three to six months.’ He laughed and blew into his fingertips. ‘Boom!’
She leaned forward to look at the results that had been shared from Bill’s tablet. ‘There’s absolutely nothing in it. He’s just a new guy trying his luck. They’re all overconfident to start with. He’ll settle down.’ Too bad she didn’t believe a single word she’d just said. ‘As for space—no way. I’m keeping my feet fixed firmly to the ground. They don’t sell Girl Scout cookies in space.’
Blair shook his head again. ‘If you say so, Corrine. I’m not the expert in chemistry. I’m just the payload specialist. But when you two are in the same room...’ His voice tailed off.
‘What?’ She couldn’t help the edge in her voice. It was bad enough trying to ignore the buzz in her body whenever he was around. The last thing she wanted was for anyone else to notice it too.
Blair gave her a huge grin. ‘Let’s just say it’s best not to have combustible materials in space.’ He pointed to the stats. ‘And it looks like this guy isn’t going to be flunking out.’
She sighed and folded her arms across her chest. Austin had aced it. Not only that—his was the fastest time of any candidate ever. Great. Once he knew that, he’d be even more unbearable. Blair gave a little shrug. ‘My guess is he’s in it for the long haul.’
She looked over at the pool. The rest of the candidates were just emerging from the water—their ten minutes of treading water over. Her stomach flip-flopped. They were right at the start of the process. How many of them would actually make it into space?
‘They’re all in it for the long haul,’ she said quietly. She reached over and pressed a hand on Blair’s shoulder. ‘I’ll see you later. The benefits of being a doctor mean I’ve got special permission to see Frank.’
‘Tell him I’ll visit tomorrow.’
She nodded. ‘I will.’ She had one last glance across the pool. All the candidates were now stripping out of their flight suits. She hated the fact that her eyes were drawn to one body.
She could tell even from here he was still mad. His jaw was set and he was barely making eye contact with the rest of his colleagues. For all his bravado it seemed that Austin Mitchell ran a little deeper than she’d first suspected. It didn’t matter that he and Michael had finished first out of his group of candidates. He’d no idea how previous candidates might have performed and it was obviously playing on his mind.
She couldn’t prevent a small smile from playing around her mouth. Finally, she knew which buttons to press with Austin Mitchell.
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