His eyes fell on the figure bent over one of the consoles, and he felt a sudden quickening of his pulse. Nicole Lambert had not yet noticed him, so absorbed was she in studying the screen in front of her. He stepped back, content for a moment to study her in profile. The one-piece jumpsuit of the Guardians couldn’t fully hide the graceful cut of her figure. Had Travis been the sculptor, he might have changed her facial features slightly, lowered the cheekbones a touch, perhaps placed her large, green eyes a fraction of an inch closer together. Her mouth, which curved softly under an exquisite nose, he would have left exactly as it was now. It pulled the rest together perfectly, making her altogether more than satisfactory.

She leaned forward slightly and frowned. Her brows pulled together, giving her a girlish look, as though she were scolding an errant pet. Then she flashed a look of triumph and began typing rapidly on the keyboard. When she finished, she tossed her head in satisfaction, and her soft brown hair bounced back into place, settling gently on her shoulders.

Travis could name half a dozen women who might surpass Nicole in outward beauty, but not one who combined outward loveliness with the inner vibrancy, the spirited intelligence that this woman radiated. Every conversation proved to be a refreshing challenge. It was this vitality that most intrigued him, perhaps because it was so rare in the women of Shalev.

Travis frowned. Research and Development had been promising the Major a solution to that problem for years, but as yet the promises were unfulfilled, and a wooden sameness permeated all too many of the women he had been interested in. He shook his head, suddenly aware how glad he was to be home. Then he stepped forward. “Nicole,” he said softly.

Her head turned, then her eyes widened. “Travis!” In an instant she was on her feet and into his arms.

He spun her around once, a little surprised by the warmth of her welcome. As he sat her down, she pulled back, blushing deeply, obviously a little surprised. “I—we didn’t expect you until tonight. Communications said you radioed in last night from Serenity.”

“I did, but a few of the men took a vote—” he grinned and squeezed her hand—”with a little encouragement from me, and decided to drive all night. The rest of the men are bringing in the villagers and should be here by tonight. Except for one, and we brought him with us. But anyway, we’re back.”

Her eyes dropped slightly, the thick tangle of lashes turning them a beguiling turquoise. “I’m glad.”

“Does that mean I was missed?”

She looked up and smiled, almost shyly. “You know you were.”

Travis’s brown eyes teased her as he held up her left hand. “I see my warning worked.”

“What warning?”