“Don’t call yourself that,” Riley says with a scowl. “I don’t want to hear anyone, least of all you, talking like that.”
“Yes, ma’am.” I receive another glare, but it quickly fades.
Riley lies back down next to me, and I roll to one side to hold her.
“I don’t want to lose you, Sten.”
I stare at her. My throat feels tight as I try to understand what she’s saying.
“You can always get another specimen, Riley. It would suck, but it wouldn’t take as long as it did with me. You already know a lot more than you did before, and it’s always easier to duplicate something after you’ve done it once.”
“That’s not it at all!”
“Well what, then?”
“It’s you! If something happened to you, I’m not even sure I could continue with the project!”
I remember how I felt this morning when Riley was so late. After being away from her for a little more than half a day, I was about to go insane. I know the reason for that—I’ve been conditioned to need her in order to maintain the necessary level of obedience. Did it work both ways?
“You mean the stuff you inject yourself with—the stuff that makes me want you—it impacts you, too?”
“The pheromones. No, Sten, they don’t.”
“I don’t understand.”
She closes her eyes and huffs a breath out of her nose.
“You mean a lot to me,” she says quietly. “I don’t want to work with another specimen. I can’t even think about it. I want it to always be you. Not because of any drugs. I just…I want to be with you.”
As I begin to realize what she’s trying to say, my heart begins to beat faster. I feel warmth spreading through my limbs, and I look down at her with a grin.
“Are you saying you like me?”
Her blush and shy smile are breathtaking.
“Yes, Sten. I like you.”
She likes me.
My face is starting to hurt a little from smiling, but I can’t stop. I pull her against me and press my mouth to hers. She parts her lips, and I take the invitation. Surprisingly enough, I’m hard again.
I roll on top of her and press her to the mattress. I kiss her gently, stroking her sides and arms as my lips make a trail between her breasts. I slide into her slowly, reveling in her soft gasps. I keep the unhurried pace until I lose myself inside of her and then roll us to our sides, facing each other.
I hold her tightly until she falls asleep.
Chapter 12
My ass hurts. I feel like I spent an entire day doing squats, but I think I’m in better shape than Riley. She’s walking a little strangely. I grin at her, unable to control the smile on my face as she goes over one last check of my gear.
It’s early morning, and we’re nearly ready to head out. Isaac and Pike are with their doctors going over some last minute details. Dr. Rahul has an interface chip pressed to Isaac’s head, and he’s staring intently at her as she works. I watch him reach out and cup her face as she works on him. Pike is grinning at Dr. McCall. He keeps reaching out to grab her and pull her closer to him, but she pushes his hand away each time.
I have the feeling we all engaged in similar evening activities.
“I think that’s everything,” Riley says. Her voice is soft, but the look in her eyes is hard. She’s still not happy about this mission.
“I’ll be fine.” I briefly press my lips to hers, and Riley hugs me quickly before stepping back and pointing a finger at me.
“You better be,” she says.
“Now that I know the kind of dirty talk that comes out of your mouth, there’s nothing that can keep me from coming back.”
She smiles and looks to the ground as red colors her cheeks.
“I’m going to come up with something extra special for you when you get back,” she says with a promise.
“This could be the fastest mission in history.” I rub my thumb against her cheek, kiss her one last time, and go to join my comrades. We head for the breach in the wall, which is opened only briefly to allow our passage before it is closed tightly behind us. The forest is only a few hundred yards away, and we sprint east into the woods. We keep up the pace until we reach the bank of the river.
The trees offer plenty of cover as we wait. Timing is going to be crucial to our success, and I am determined to prove to Riley that we’re ready to do this or anything else they throw at us. I don’t want her to worry about me. I want her to be proud.
“Nine minutes,” Pike says quickly and quietly.
“Confirmed,” Isaac responds.
“We’ll move in four,” I tell them both. “Sixty seconds through the water, four minutes to the road, and then we move against the caravan.”