He strolled to the door, walking out of the lab and down the hall with Poe and I in his arms, not saying another word. I, on the other hand, tried ignoring the odd sensation of being carried by one of my fellow cyborgs, instead focusing all my attention on keeping Poe safe in my arms. I wondered if this is what the females felt like when they were carted around by their much larger males. It was disconcerting. Not horrible, but not something I wanted to repeat. I met Brone’s eyes. Nope. He didn’t want a repeat either.
We arrived at our quarters in record time, the pace at which Brone moved incredibly fast. Brone went straight to the bedroom, depositing me carefully on top of the bed before heading straight for the door.
“Wait.”
Brone’s frame stiffened then he spun back around.
“Thank you, Brone. We couldn’t have made it here without you.” I watched as his frame relaxed.
“You’re welcome. I’m glad I could help,” he flashed a small smile and then he was gone.
I looked down at Poe, who had started to snore softly against my chest. “When you wake up, you are going to be sorry you missed that.”
Chapter Thirty-Nine
*Poe*
This must be heaven.Warmth surrounded me on all sides. I burrowed closer, trying to soak up every glorious drop. The glorious warmth shifted under me and I cracked an eyelid, seeing nothing but a wash of green.
Dax.I smiled, opening my eyes to take in the sight of him. He looked like a hot mess, the most gorgeous hot mess I had ever seen in my life, but one who definitely needed a shower. I took a quick peek at myself. Oh wow, he wasn’t the only one.
Sliding off of his frame, I carefully scooted to the edge of the bed and put my feet on the floor. I stood up, waiting for any dizziness or weakness to strike, but I felt none. I took a step forward, testing out my legs. They seemed to be working fine. I was sure I wouldn’t be doing backflips anytime soon, but I could get myself to the bathroom.
Dax’s frame immediately shot off the bed. “What do you think you are doing?” He raced around to the front of me and tried to gently steer me back towards the bed. “You need stay in bed and not attempt going for a stroll.”
“What I need is ashower.” My eyes roamed over his disheveled frame. “And so do you.”
His clothes were dirty and rumpled, and when he reached up to cup my cheek, I discovered his fingers were covered in dark stains he hadn’t bothered to wash away. He told me cyborgs didn’t cry. Evidence to the contrary stained his fingers.
My heart broke for my cyborg. Most of what happened after the injection still remained foggy. There had been a rush of white-hot pain, my body arching off the exam table as I screamed, then everything went dark. Based on Dax’s appearance, I could tell he had been put through hell.
I gripped his hand, taking him with me as I walked to the bathroom. He didn’t offer another protest and I stayed silent. There would be time to discuss what happened, but for now, I had other ideas.
I started the shower and tugged off my clothes, stepping under the warm spray as I let out a sigh. Dax didn’t move to take off his clothes. Instead, he stared at me with his brows furrowed, the muscles in his frame tense.
“Strip, Science Model. This shower is for two.”
“You should not be taxing yourself. Your body went through a major trauma.”
“It’s a shower Dax, not a marathon. Now get your gorgeous green ass in here.”
He sighed loudly but peeled off all his clothes, tossing them to the floor. He stepped in the shower and I moved back to make room for his larger frame. It was a tight fit, but we made it work.
Reaching for the soap and a washcloth, I poured a generous amount into the cloth, then grabbed Dax’s hand. I got to work, scrubbing at the dark stains covering his fingers until they were almost back to his normal green color. I repeated the actions with his other hand, so focused on my task I failed to notice the way Dax’s form had begun to tremble.