Mated to the Cyborgs(54)

Once the garment was clear of her head, I tossed it aside. Yes, there was the perfect skin, the perfect breasts I loved. I stroked a line along her shoulder reverently.

“You almost died today, and we’re going to fight about this?” She shivered at my gentle touch and I felt a blast of her arousal. “I’m more than just a fuck toy, you know. I can’t stand to be locked in this room. I’ll go crazy. I’m going to work with Kiel and head up the forensic team.”

“I will not have you hurt!” I shouted.

“Life happens.” She shrugged but I recognized the iron will I’d come to admire rising within her. Hunt stood behind me, silently waiting for me to work through my raging emotions. He was calm, and I used him as an anchor.

“Hunt?”

“Smother her and she’ll choose another, someone strong enough to let her do what makes her happy.”

Fuck. When he put it like that, I felt like an ass. She’s said as much in the cave, but I’d thought her to be bluffing. Perhaps not. I knew she was right, that Hunt was right, but I couldn’t stop the instincts raging in me to protect her, shelter her, keep her safe.

“You want to be a part of this forensic team?” I could barely speak the words.

I felt the need in her, the desire to be included, helpful. “Yes. And if you’d stop and think for a minute, it does its job after something happens. Not before, not during. I’ll be surrounded by warriors at all times. I’ll be safe.”

What she said made sense. “You will no longer charge into battle?”

She rubbed her hands over her arms as if she were chilled. “I don’t like fighting. I don’t want to do that again. I hope that finding that underground fortress will make sure the Hive are eliminated, permanently.”

“Krael escaped,” Hunt added. “Danger will continue to lurk.”

“Then we will face it together.” She reached out and placed a hand on my cheek. “But I don’t need to be confronting Hive to be happy. I’m perfectly content sticking to analysis and clean up.”

Hunt’s brow went up. “So you will not battle the Hive again?”

Kristin pursed her lips. “I don’t want to, but if they’re threatening you, I will do what I need to do. It’s my choice.”

I sighed, recognizing the semantics in the wording. She wanted a choice. We’d blatantly shared our feelings over her going headlong into danger. She wanted to be the one to decide what she did, to take our wishes into account as she did so. She wanted us to trust her.

Leaning into her touch, I sighed. “I still want to spank you. But I’m too damn tired to even lift my hand and bring it down on your ass.” I knelt down before her, worked her pants off her hips, and pushed them off, along with her boots. I lifted my eyes to meet hers. “We’re going to sleep, then we’ll talk more.”

I sighed, felt the heavy weight of exhaustion press down on me.

Standing, I took her hand and led her to the bed. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Hunt head into the bathing room, heard the shower tube come on.

I tugged back the covers and Kristin climbed in. I stripped off my clothes and let it all drop to the floor.

“Lay down.”

She settled into the center of the bed as Hunt came into the room, went around the far side of the bed and slid in beside her.

My cock hardened at the sight of her. Naked, her breasts thrusting up, her nipples hardening. She was not shy with us, never had been, and her legs parted slightly and I was able to see the dewy desire. She may be upset with us, but she still wanted us. Just like a few days before when I took her in the maintenance room.

I wanted to fuck her then and there, but it wasn’t time. I walked to the bathing room and didn’t linger in the tube, only quickly cleaning last bits of blood and grime from the ordeal. More than needing the bath, I took a moment to settle my mind, relinquishing thoughts of Captain Perro and his sad demise. The fate of the others, too.

Returning to the room just a minute or two later, I sensed Kristin remained unhappy, but Hunt was soothing her with his gentle touch, sliding it up and down her side, over her hip, across her belly. He wasn’t touching her anywhere sexual. Not now, but his cock was rock hard and she was squirming.

All the blood rushed to mine and it throbbed, my balls ached to sink deep. She needed a good fucking. We all needed the intimacy, to know we were alive and whole.

I slid in bed beside her, pressed close so she felt each of her mates. I leaned up on my elbow, my head resting in my hand. My palm settled on her belly.

“You won’t run off and choose another mate as we sleep?”

“I only ran off to find you.” She tried to squirm away, but our hands on her easily kept her between us. “Do you know what it was like, not knowing if you were all right?”