“Understatement of the year, sexy.” My heart thudded behind my ribs. The fractures in my soul were rearranging themselves, creating a newly formed space that Viper fit in perfectly.
Rising from the bed, he walked to the bathroom, coming back out with a warm washcloth. With tender strokes, he cleaned the mess from my thighs, taking his time to care for me.
I caught his wrist and his eyes snapped to mine. “This…you…” Words failed me. “Still good?” I managed to get out, needing to make sure he was okay. Things had gotten messy. And while I was good with that, my cyborg could very well not be.
“Never been better.” He lifted his hand, showing off the fingers that moments before had been inside me. “Might never wash these again.” He wiggled them in front of my face then flashed me a wink.
I slapped his arm playfully. “You’re awful!”And I think I could fall in love with you, I whispered softly in my head. I should be terrified but instead all I could feel was excitement. I was giddy at the thought of being Viper’s girl.Fuck, I had it bad.
Saving me from all these sappy thoughts, my stomach chose that time to rumble loudly, protesting its lack of food.
Viper frowned. “You need to eat. Get dressed and I’ll take you to the common room. They have more options. You should be able to find something that you like.”
My eyebrows lifted. “The common room? Are you sure?” Axios had told me once that that is where most of the cyborgs hung out when they weren’t busy.
I hadn’t wanted to risk pissing off a group of cyborgs, so I had avoided the place the few times Axios had offered to take me.
Now I was going to waltz in with Viper on my arm, as if it was completely normal? With the cyborg whose processors I had hacked standing next to me as if I had already earned the right to stand beside him?
“Don’t you want to go? If you don’t feel-”
I cut him off. “I do. But…” I sucked in a breath. “What if they don’t like me?” God, now I cared about what the fucking cyborg rebellion thought of me. But this was Viper’s home and I wanted it to be mine as well.
“Don’t worry about that. They would all be lucky to have a female like you. A female who is strong and smart and fierce.” He cupped my cheek. “And who honored a germophobic Technology Model when she chose to be his.”
“I am the lucky one, Viper.” The smile he flashed me was so bright it was blinding. It looked good on him. If I had my way, I would make sure he smiled like that a lot more. We had been through enough dark shit in our lives.
Suddenly, I realized what hand was cupping my face. “Did you wash that?”
Tossing his head back he laughed, his whole frame shaking. When the laughter finally died, he raised one purple eyebrow. “If I didn’t?”
“Well then, I guess you are filthier than I thought.” Taking his hand, my tongue flicked out to lick a path up his fingers. “And I like it.”
“Good,” he declared with a growl.
And it was. It really fucking was.