They told her she had a smile for everyone. A gift for lifting everyone’s mood. Now she wants to tear into anyone who looks at her sideways.

Emily fled to space to escape parents who’d become insufferable when her grandmother left her the considerable family fortune. On board the space station Shangris she thrived. Her upbeat, friendly nature shone and she could brighten any crew member’s day. It didn’t matter (much) that none of them truly knew her, or sought her out for friendship. Then the station disintegrated around her, leaving her confused and in a coma for six months. She woke up in alien space, her emotions loud and swinging like a pendulum from anger to sadness, staying far away from the joy she used to feel. The only one she can’t stay mad at is an emotionless cyborg.

Turo never thought he’d be gifted with a rhun mate, but when he saw Emily’s broken body on the floor of the crumbling space station, he knew he was hers. He spent six months watching over her, gathering every bit of information he could from the other survivors. When the med pod releases her, it’s not the sweet, happy female he’s been described. She comes out spitting fire and demanding an equal level of emotion from him. His unusual nanites are no help, and he’s left wondering if his lack of emotion will cause him to lose her forever.

Complicating their situation are a space pet, a sabotage plot, and a trip across space with no guaranteed return ticket.