Maxim held the collar up and his jaw clenched when her small hand brushed his skin, taking it from his much larger palm. “Fascinating. How does it work?” Her gaze lifted to mine and I was relieved to see curiosity there, not fear.
“I’m no scientist, mate. I do not know.”
Maxim agreed. “Nor I. I was a commander. Now I am governor of Base 3. But, once we arrive, you can ask the doctor anything you’d like. I will bash in his skull if he does not give you satisfactory answers.”
“You guys are too much.” Her fingers stroked the smooth black strip. Embedded within were microscopic circuits that would link her to us forever. And once we officially claimed her, the collar would match Maxim’s and mine, the deep fiery copper would look magnificent against her creamy flesh.
She sighed and lifted her head. “I really have to wear this to go?”
She was questioning everything, and I couldn’t blame her, but I was becoming impatient. I wanted her on the Colony where no one could take her from us, where we could protect her. Where she couldn’t run.
Maxim offered her a rare smile. “You do not know much of the Colony. You must trust us. You are the only thing that matters to us now. We will never allow any harm to come to you.”
She shook her head. “Big words, warrior.” She licked her lips, but returned her attention to the collar. “Very big words.” Her doubt was evident, but there was no help for it. She’d been betrayed by her own people. Earning her trust would take time. Time we would have, once we got her off this fucking planet.
“We are a planet of exiles, banished when we no longer fit into life on our home world. Like you, we were trapped against our will, for reasons out of our control. We understand your frustration, and your fear.” Maxim stepped forward and lifted his hand to her cheek. She didn’t lean into his touch, but she didn’t pull away either. It was a start.
“Okay,” she said, her shoulders relaxing. “Let’s do this.”
I didn’t breathe as I waited. Waited. She lifted the collar and put it about her neck. She lifted her hair and placed the ends near one another. I knew the moment they sealed automatically, seamlessly. All at once, I felt the mating bond.
I felt her.
* * *
Rachel
I reached for the thin strip of black material. The ribbon looked as innocuous as a piece of silk I might have tied in my hair as a little girl, but I felt like a dog putting on a collar as I lifted it to my neck. I would have refused had my mates not already each been wearing one as well.
When in Rome…
The collars were no more than an inch thick and somehow emphasized the thick, muscled bands of my mates’ necks. Mine was black, but my mates’ collars were a deep, beautiful copper color. Rather than make them look feminine or weak, the copper bands made them look like savage warriors, stronger. Stranger. Exotic and sexy and impossible to take in all at once.
And that pussy-clenching reaction happened before I could even begin to process their odd skin coloring and eyes.
The big one, Maxim, my matched mate, was nearly seven feet tall. He wore a dark, mottled uniform of some kind that looked like camouflage for hiding in the shadows, or outer space. His features, while mostly human, were angled a little too sharply and his skin was a dark red brown, the rich hues of an African American, yet more copper toned, more caramel less mocha. It was an odd color that defied true description, but was stunning. Remarkable. I wanted to touch, to feel the color’s warmth. His eyes were dark, a rich brown that made me feel like I was drowning. I couldn’t think when I held his gaze. Hell, I couldn’t breathe and look into those eyes. And that scared the hell out of me.
Of course, he’d pulled apart the bars of my jail cell as if he were Superman, so he definitely revved every single bit of estrogen in my body. If a man could do that with his hands, it made me wonder what else he could do.
My second mate, Ryston, was huge as well, just a few inches shorter. He wore the same strange armored uniform, but he looked like a walking golden halo. His skin and hair, even his eyes were a pale gold so fair it looked almost silver. His left eye and temple had been modified with some kind of cyborg implants that created odd tracks of silvery blue in his skin and gave the inner rim of his eye a strange, silver glow.
I looked at the warden as I closed the collar around my neck. As soon as the ends neared one another, they closed automatically, like two magnets finding their opposites. A heady warmth flooded my neck before racing up and down my spine. I shivered as the heat spread inside my skull, like someone was pouring a pitcher of hot water inside my head, filling me up.
Something clicked. That was the only way I could describe what happened. And then…
God.
Pain. Lust. Worry. Longing. Power. Aching loneliness.
My mates’ emotions flooded me with such ferocity my knees collapsed.
Before I could hit the floor, Maxim’s massive arms lifted me, holding me to his chest like I was a small child. In fact, I felt small and helpless as the chaos bubbling inside me only increased with the physical contact.
Touching me actually hurt him. Not a physical pain, but an emotional need so deep, so starved for so long, that contact with me made him ache.
I knew Maxim carried me, but I closed my eyes and relaxed against his chest. I’d made my decision. No sense fighting it now.
“We are ready for transport, Lady Egara.” Maxim’s deep voice rumbled out of his chest and through me, causing my breasts to grow heavy and my core to ache.