Harper was completely still except for her deep breaths, the rise and fall of her lush breasts. I loved seeing her like this, so blissed out with pleasure she didn’t even recognize her wrist unit was summoning her.
She didn’t process Blade’s words until I shook my head at him and lifted my chin toward her clothes in a silent command to put her boot and pants back on.
He lowered her leg from his shoulder. The motion brought her back to herself as I released my grip on her neck and face, lowered my hands carefully to her sides to support her as Blade got her dressed. “Harper,” I breathed.
This time, when the beeps
came from her wrist unit, they were louder and she came back to herself. I watched her rein in her thoughts, her feelings, watched the transformation from satisfied lover to efficient Coalition crew in the space of a few heartbeats.
Her control made my cock jump, and I fought to keep my fangs from bursting from my mouth. I wanted to bite her. Mark her. Scent her. Claim her. Now. Right fucking now.
But I was not a Hyperion animal; I was a man. I was Styx, a legion of names tattooed into my flesh with the weight of the lives I was responsible for protecting.
I could not bring the entire Coalition down on the legion by kidnapping this female. She was mine. I would not leave Zenith station without her, but I would have to find another way.
“Shit. Latiri 4 again.” She pulled away from me and slammed her foot into the boot Blade had begun to work on with an adeptness I knew came from months of training. She was completely focused now, controlled, without fear or panic at the mission ahead of her. Knowing she’d given up that precious control to us just moments ago made something deep in my chest ache. She was fierce now, beautiful and fierce and able to push her pleasure aside for duty with a cold efficiency I couldn’t help but admire.
My mate could more than survive the law of the legions. Perhaps she could thrive there. With me.
With us.
Blade removed his hand from her body and stepped back when she shoved him away. I was next, dismissed with a gentle pat on the shoulder, as if I were a pet.
I tried not to take her dismissal personally, but vowed to make her pay for the lack of respect later.
She would never dismiss me again. Never forget who she belonged to. Once she was mine, there would be no doubt, no walking away.
But now wasn’t the time to revel in this knowledge, or to do anything about it. She was being summoned to another post-battle deployment. She had a job to do. And unless I were willing to sacrifice lives by starting a conflict with the Coalition, I had no choice but to let her go.
A fierce wave of protectiveness washed over me, swamping me with a sensation of…panic? While I knew her role on Zenith, the danger she faced hadn’t affected me until now, until we’d tasted her, held her, saw her come. Now, I wanted to toss her over my shoulder and return to Rogue 5 where she would be safe. Not only from my enemies, but from her own job.
But no. We had no claim on her. Yet. If I took her now, not only would she resist, but I’d be breaking about a dozen laws of the Interstellar Coalition Fleet. They left me alone because I steered clear of their notice.
Kidnapping a member of one of the MedRec units, and a female member at that, would earn me the attention of thousands of warriors intent on saving her.
The Prillons, the Atlans, the Trions and even the humans, were protective of their women. If I tried to take her against her will, I’d have a small army of ships barreling down on Rogue 5 within days.
No. She had to come willingly. Now was not the time. She was our mate because of who she was, of what she was. A healer. Fearless. Brave. We had to let her go. It would kill me to do so, but the beeping wrist unit wasn’t just a notice for her to deploy, but for us to accept her departure.
She gasped, stiffened when she returned fully to herself. “Shit. I’m so sorry,” she mumbled, lifting her wrist. “I…I have to go.”
Blade stood to his full height. He stepped back, allowed her passage.
She glanced at me, then Blade. “This has been…fun. Thanks for—you know.”
Blade nodded, remaining silent. His hands were clenched at his sides, as if he was holding himself back from grabbing her, from keeping her from going. He felt the loss as keenly as I, and she was still with us.
I couldn’t speak now, couldn’t tell her we would be awaiting her return, that when she came back healthy and whole, we would continue where we left off, that it would be my turn to be on my knees for her, to taste her—and not just licking her flavor from my fingers. There was no time. She was needed immediately.
She offered a quick nod, then dashed down the hall in a quick sprint.
She may have gotten away this time, but we could use the time she was working to learn more about her role, how much longer she was required to serve the fleet. And how to get her out of that particular duty without starting a war I couldn’t win. I glanced at Blade, knew his thoughts.
He shifted his cock in his pants. If he was as hard as me, nothing was going to ease the discomfort except our mate’s eager pussy.
“If she’s officially mated, she can no longer go into combat zones.”
“We are not part of the Coalition Fleet. We can’t claim a mate.”