Mating Fever(39)

I needed to move. I needed to get out of this room and burn off some energy—and it wasn’t the sexual kind.

I wanted to say goodbye to Seth and the rest of the team. As an I.C. recruit, I’d fought with a lot of different units, but Seth and Unit 3, the boys from Earth, were the closest thing I had to a family out here. Until now. I owed them a farewell…and perhaps one more good ass-kicking.

Grinning, filled with equal parts glee and anticipation, I winced as I carefully slipped from Nyko’s touch and padded to the S-Gen unit in the corner of his room. I activated it with a wave of my hand and waited as the bright green light faded, my new armor and under suit waiting on the small platform.

One thing that never failed to amaze me was the technology on these battleships. The first time I’d been shown how to operate an S-Gen in a cafeteria, I’d walked straight up to it and said, “Tea. Earl Grey. Hot.”

It worked. I Captain Picard’ed that shit all over the place. Problem was, I hated bergamot, and the tea didn’t have any sugar or milk. Seriously. I couldn’t deal with that. So I gave it back and got coffee instead. Extra milk, extra sugar. As vices went, it was a small one. I knew guys with worse.

Smiling, I pulled the black pants and shirt on over my naked body in preparation of donning my armor.

“Where are you going, mate?” Nyko’s deep gravelly voice made my heart leap and my skin shiver with goosebumps. My nipples tightened at the soft rasp of his real voice, even though it was no longer laced with his beast’s intensity. Sleepy, relaxed Nyko might be an even bigger threat to my peace of mind.

“Hogan’s Alley. ReCon 3 will be down there this time of day, giving each other hell.”

My mate grunted as he rose from the bed, but he didn’t argue or tell me to stay. I’d been half afraid that once I had the mating cuffs on my wrists he’d turn psycho and get really, really bossy. “You wish to go to this Alley?” He walked over to the S-Gen unit and my mouth watered as I watched him, every glorious, naked inch of him. Somewhere deep inside me there was a cheerleader I’d never let out, and she was suited up, shiny pom-poms doing a dance as she chanted M-I-N-E, mine, mine, mine!

I knew if he didn’t get pants on in the next few seconds, I’d jump him, plans be damned.

I swallowed, licked my suddenly dry lips. “Yes.”

“Very well. We’ll go.”

“You don’t have to go with me,” I countered.

That earned me another grunt. “Yes, I do. At least for now. When you wear the cuffs, mate, I must be nearby or we will both experience extreme pain.” He angled his head toward my arms.

“What?” I scowled at the shiny metal circling both wrists. A few moments ago, I’d thought of them as pretty bangles, jewelry. More like a five thousand carat wedding ring than actual manacles. They were pretty, like Wonder Woman bracelets, although I doubted they deflected ion blasts. Tugging at them, my heart raced. I did not like to be trapped. Stuck.

Nyko’s hands settled over mine and I calmed. “It’s all right, mate. Once we are on Atlan, you may remove them. Until then, you must wear them to protect yourself and everyone else on this ship.”

“From what?”

“Me.”

That was the only explanation I got and I shrugged, following suit as Nyko donned his own armor and boots. He was ready before I was, which annoyed me almost as much as the un-removable cuffs.

“What about you? Can you take yours off?” If they had some kind of chauvinistic, Neanderthal double standard, these things were coming off. Now.





Chapter Twelve

Megan



“Never.”

I quickly glanced up and saw the dark penetrating stare that matched the sharp tone of that one word. My heart skipped a beat. He would never take them off? “Never?”

He stepped to me then, gently cupped my face in his massive palm. “Why would I want to remove them, Megan? They are a sign of your claim on me, the only thing that shows the others that I belong to you. They calm and reassure the beast that my mate is real, and near, and mine. Without them, I am naked and alone. Nothing. Another numb soldier just waiting for death to find me on the battlefield. Without them, my beast will fall into despair and go feral, wild with emptiness. The isolation will grow inside me like a disease until the fire of that pain is all I see and all I know, until I no longer recognize friend from foe.”

“I thought the fever was over now that we…um, you know.”

“That I claimed you?”

I nodded.

“Yes, the fever is broken, but that doesn’t mean my beast and I won’t go insane if you are not near.”