Intergalactic cruise director Gwen Thompson watches sleek young warrior Kealton James from the shadows, unable to stop from wondering what it would be like if such a man claimed her.

Kealton James ran through martial arts katas, whirling and striking as though he faced a deadly opponent, his naked body oiled with fresh sweat. Intergalactic cruise director Gwen Thompson, hiding her plump, primly dressed body in the shadows, watched him, wondering what it would be like to be with a man like him, a warrior much younger than herself.

Kealton's shoulder-length blond hair caught back in a silver clip snapped against his body as he kicked out one muscled leg. He whirled, leaping high, his indigo blue eyes seeming to hold hers for a heart-stopping moment. But it couldn't be. If he knew she was spying on him, surely he would stop, demand that she leave. It wasn't as though they were friends—not exactly. She wasn't sure what they were. Whenever she was around him, she wanted to get closer to him as much as she wanted to hide from him.