by Susan Hayes
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Lance gave his brother just enough time to untie Alyson’s hands before he had her shirt off, closely followed by her pants and every other scrap of clothing she had on. He didn’t stop until she was standing in front of him, naked and breathtakingly beautiful.
Without taking her eyes off him, she backed up until she bumped into the edge of the oversized bed that dominated the captain’s quarters. “Is that where you want me?”
“Right smack in the middle of the bed is where I want you,” Blade said.
“And then what?”
Lance looked at his brother. “Together?”
“Are you ready for that, Doc? Because if you are, all you have to do is say yes.”
She held out a hand to each of them and smiled. “Yes.”
Lance took her hand and drew her into his arms for a sizzling kiss as he made her a promise he knew he’d spend the rest of his life keeping. “I’d never do anything to hurt you.”
“I know.” She rose on her toes to kiss him, wrapping her slender arms around his neck as her tongue played hide-and-seek with his.
“This works better if we’re all in the bed,” Blade patted the empty bed beside him.
“He has a point,” Alyson was laughing as she pulled out of Lance’s arms and joined Blade.
“Shhh, don’t encourage him.” With Alyson now happily wrapped in Blade’s arms, Lance took a moment to rummage through their collective clutter until he found what he was looking for; barrier gel. Part birth-control, part lube, it acted as a micro-thin barrier that allowed full sensation while protecting both partners from disease or pregnancy.
When he looked at Alyson again, she was riding Blade’s fingers. Eyes closed, cheeks flushed, and her lips parted in a near-silent moan. “You couldn’t wait for me, huh?”
“Nope. When I’ve got a beautiful woman in my arms, I’m not much for waiting.”
Lance fisted his cock and settled in to enjoy the erotic display. Alyson was already primed and close to coming—he could tell by the way her breath caught and her hips rocked against Blade’s hand. Every thrust and stroke of his fingers made her tremble a little more. Soon, her thighs were glistening, and her hips rose off the mattress in time to her greedy little moans.
“You’re so fraxxing sexy when you’re like this. All flushed and mussed and craving our touch. Do you want to come now, or do you want to wait until we’re both inside you?”
“Together. I want it to be when we’re together,” she whispered.
Blade withdrew his hand and nudged her toward Lance. “I think Lance is looking a little lonely. Why don’t you ride him while I get you ready?”
Lance’s cock turned to stone in his hand, and he lay back on the bed, inviting her to join him. She came to him with a smile that lit up the room, straddling his hips and bracing her hands on his chest. When she leaned down to kiss him, he rocked his hips up at the same time, seating himself a few delicious inches inside her tight channel. She was ready and eager for him, pressing herself down until he was buried balls-deep. Her inner muscles flexed around his cock, milking him so hard he damn near came on the spot.
“Patience,” he told her through gritted teeth. “We’re only halfway to heaven.”
“I’m not feeling very patient at the moment. I’m feeling greedy.”
Then by all means, let me give you something to take the edge off.” He slid his fingers down to where their bodies joined and started to work her clitoris between his fingers. He needed her to be relaxed and ready for what came next. “Just keep your eyes on me and focus on how good you feel right now. We’re going to take good care of you.”
She looked down at him with total trust and adoration, and he knew it was time.
“You’re up,” he told Blade.
*
Alyson did everything they’d taught her to do over the last few days as they had introduced her to some of the darker pleasures, including anal sex. She focused on the pleasure Lance was giving her and did her best not to tense as Blade started stroking his fingers down her spine and then lower still.
“Lean forward a little.” Blade guided her into the position he wanted with a few gentle touches. She was so focused on him that she nearly forgot about Lance.
“Don’t think, feel,” Lance told her, reached up to take her hair in his hands, and dragged her down for a slow, deep kiss. She braced her hands on the bed by his shoulders and leaned down to kiss him back, letting their tongues dance together in a slow rhythm that he matched with each gentle rise and fall of his hips.
When Blade touched her again, she didn’t tense. Not even when his slick fingers made their way along the seam of her ass. She let herself get lost in sensations, letting go of her worries and doubts until she was afloat in a sea of pleasure, rising and falling with each peak and wave that washed over her.
When a trickle of cool, slick liquid hit her fever-hot skin she gasped in surprise, then gasped again as Blade massaged her skin in slow, easy circles. The sensations grew more intense with every stroke, and soon she was rocking back and forth between the arch of Blade’s hips and the touch of Lance’s hand. By the time he finally pressed the tips of his fingers to her back entrance she was more than ready. There was a brief bite of pain when he pushed one finger inside, but it was quickly replaced by a burn that blurred the lines between pleasure and pain.
They worked together, kissing, stroking, and fucking her until she was half out of her mind with need. When Blade added a second finger, she moaned aloud and tightened her pussy walls around Lance’s cock.
When Blade pulled out of her, she felt another burn, but this one was quickly cooled with another application of barrier gel.
“Hold still, sunshine,” Lance whispered as Blade moved in tight behind her, lining up his cock and gently easing himself past the tight ring of muscle that guarded her back passage.
She couldn’t have moved if her life depended on it. Her body was stretched to its fullest, and her mind was caught up in a tempest of sensations that threatened to overwhelm her.
“Veth, that’s incredible,” Blade said, his voice edged with barely restrained need.
Slowly, the dark pain transformed into pleasure, and Alyson finally exhaled.
“You okay?” Lance asked.
“So much better than okay.” She felt like she could fly right now, leave the ship and soar among the stars.
Blade chuckled and gripped her hips. “I’m going to take that as an enthusiastic yes,”
She flexed around them both in response, and both of them started to move. Carefully at first, but as they found their rhythm, they moved faster and went deeper. There was nothing for her to do but hold on and try to remember to breathe as the pleasure built to a crescendo.
Both men whispered her name as they claimed her, and soon she couldn’t tell the point where she stopped and they began. Her release started to blossom inside her, a firestorm of needs that had her crying out in wordless joy. She soared higher than she’d ever gone before, and before she could come back to earth, they both joined her. She could feel their cocks jerk and pulse inside her as they came, both of them shuddering with the force of their passion.
“I think you broke me, and I love you for it,” Blade panted a few seconds later, his breath fanning over her back.
“You’re amazing, love,” Lance whispered, nuzzling her hair.
She was slumped on Lance’s chest, still pinned between her lovers in an exhausted tangle of limbs. “That was…I don’t have the words for it, but I hope we can do it again, soon.”
“Anytime you want, sweetheart. You just say the word.” Blade eased himself off of her and then flopped down on the bed at her side.
She reached out for his hand and wove their fingers together. “Soon.”
She closed her eyes and settled her head on Lance’s chest so that his heartbeat was a soothing thump against her ear. This was how she wanted to spend every night for the rest of their lives: tangled u
p with her men, breathless, happy, and loved. “I love you guys so much. But it doesn’t scare me anymore. Now, all that scares me is the thought of losing you.”
Both men shook their heads.
“We’ve only just got you into our lives,” Lance said.
“So don’t start thinking that we’re going anywhere, anytime soon. You’re stuck with us, Doc.”
She closed her eyes and let herself drift. “I like the sound of that…very much.”
* * * *
Alyson walked past the galley where Lance and Blade were arguing over what to have for dinner, but she didn’t join them. There was someone else she wanted to see, and he had been keeping his distance.
She had given Dirk until she got out of the shower to reappear, but when she asked the AI for his location and learned he was still hiding in the cockpit, she knew that she would have to go to him. She ran a brush through her still-damp hair, grabbed one of the guys’ T-shirts to wear, and set off to beard the grumpy lion in his electronic den.
Her sock-clad feet made no noise as she padded down the dimly lit corridor that led to the cockpit. Her silent approach allowed her to hear the conversation going on ahead of her. Dirk was talking to someone, and since both of his brothers were in the galley, he had to be talking to their friends back at Astek Station.
“If he remembers anything else, you’ll let me know?” Dirk asked.
“If any of us think of something that can help, you know we’ll be in touch.”
She recognized Toro’s deep voice and hurried the last few feet. It sounded like Victor was finally awake. What had he told them? Did he know a way to stop his brother? She had a thousand questions to ask.
“We’ll talk again, soon. I need to round up the others and let them know what’s going on. For now, thanks, and we’ll be in touch.”
Toro and several other familiar voices said a brief goodbye, and by the time she got to the doorway the call was over.
“Hey, squishy. Did I hear you talking with Toro a second ago?”
It was a testament to his level of worry that he didn’t react to his new nickname.
“You did.” Dirk spun the chair around and opened his arms. “Come here.”
One look at his face and everything she had intended to say got pushed aside. It could wait until she learned what had marked his face with worry lines and put the shadows in his clear green eyes.
She curled up in his lap and tried not to smile when he snuggled her in close and uttered a near-silent sigh of contentment. “Tell me.”
“Good news first. Victor’s awake and is going to be fine. There are still some gaps in his memory, but he was able to give us more information.”
“I’m glad he’s going to be okay. I should have been there to help.” She sighed in frustration. “I hate being out here. I’m no use to anyone like this.”
“This is temporary. You’ll be back to saving lives and doing the impossible soon enough. By leaving the station, you made sure no one else got hurt.” Dirk tweaked a strand of her hair. “Stop beating yourself up over making a hard choice.”
“Good advice. Any chance you’re going to apply it to yourself, too?”
He uttered a frustrated grunt. “Maybe.”
“You weren’t wrong. Before, I mean. If I’m with you three, I might have to see you kill someone. But, I’ve seen death before, and if it were a choice between your life and someone else’s, I’d make the same decision.” She laid a hand on his cheek and turned his head so he was looking straight at her. “Seeing your violent side isn’t going to make me feel any differently about you. I love you, and that’s never going to change.”
“I’d rather you never saw that part of us.”
“Love is messy. We don’t get to pick which parts of a person we want to love, and reject the rest. I’ve seen what kind of man you are, Dirk. And I love him. Grumpy bits and all.
“Lance is right. You see us differently than everyone else does. Why is that?”
“I grew up with parents who viewed everything through a filter that valued people by what they could do for them. Favours. Money. Influence. Connections. They saw everything that way, including their children. My grandparents showed me there was more to people than that, and encouraged me to look closer before judging someone’s worth.”
“How anyone could miss seeing your worth is a mystery to me.” He gave her a slow, easy smile that lessened the worry that clouded his eyes.
“You see it. That’s enough for me.” She kissed him softly, then turned the conversation back to more serious matters. “Now that we’re talking again, do you want to tell me the bad news Toro gave you?”
“The Reaper got away. They did a complete inventory of all ships docked at the station and figured out which one was theirs, so at least we know what ship to watch for.”
“We already figured he’d come after me.” She smoothed a finger over his furrowed brow. “So, what’s the really bad news?”
“He may not be the only one on board. Apparently, they had a handler, Ariel Coal.
At least, that’s the name they knew her by. Mack’s certain it’s an alias and has sent your friend Phaedra deep-diving into cyberspace to figure out who she really is, and who she’s working for.”
“And we don’t know if she’s with him or not?”
“She’s not on the station anymore. That’s all we know right now. We have to assume she’s with Ward. It was her job to make sure they stayed compliant and on target. If she’s with him, then our plans have to change. You need to stay with us—you’re not going to be safe anywhere else.”
“Damn right I need to stay with you.” She smiled and kissed him. “Stop worrying so much.”
“I’ll stop worrying when Ward and his handler are dealt with and we’re on our way home.” Dirk went silent for a long moment, but something in his expression told her not to press him. Eventually, he spoke again. “There’s more. Vic said that he and his brother were controlled using an override command. If they showed any sign of awareness or resisted orders, she’d use the command, and they’d lose consciousness. When they woke up, they’d be back under her control. It would take a while for awareness to begin again, and the cycle would repeat.”
Horror turned her blood ice cold and sent a chill chasing down her spine. “They…they can do that?”
“Until a few minutes ago, I would have said no. But…” He shrugged his broad shoulders.
“But apparently they can. Whoever they are. Does Victor know who he was working for? What was the code? Can we use it?” Not that she liked the idea of shutting down another being’s mind, but it was a better alternative than having to kill Ward.
“They’re working on a way to retrieve the code from his memories. There’s a block in place that prevents him from being able to say or write it. The bastards covered their asses on that one. He doesn’t know who their handler reported to. They were given a target and sent after it. Everyone thought they were working for the cartels, but the cartels wouldn’t know how to reprogram a cyborg. They had to have corporation help.”
Re’veth. Every time she thought the corporations couldn’t get any viler, they went and proved her wrong.
“They’d need more than simple support. They’d need someone with the skills and training to implant new programming. Somewhere out there, a corporation, or at least part of one, has gone totally rogue.”
It was a sickening thought. Corporations defying the law, missing cyborgs, secret override commands, cyborgs taken and turned back into weapons against their will. It had to stop.
“This started out so simple. Reverse what the corporations had done to the cyborg women. How did I end up in the middle of all this? This is so much bigger than any of us could have imagined.”
“It is. But I don’t regret getting involved. Blade, Lance, and I, we’re finally part of something important. Protecting you, helping our brethren. This feels right.”
“As insane as that sounds, I agree with you
. But I’m not so crazy that I don’t wish we had a little more help dealing with Ward and this Coal woman.”
“Did I forget to mention that the IAF is sending a ship our way? Unfortunately, it won’t get here before Ward does. By the time there was actionable intel for our friends back home to hand over, there wasn’t enough time for even their fastest ships to make the trip.”
“So, all you three have to do is keep me, and yourselves, alive until the IAF arrives.”
“Yeah, that’s all. “
“I have faith in you.” She whispered before leaning in to kiss him. He hadn’t shaved for a few days. It made him look even more like his brothers and added a rough edge to his appearance.
“I’m glad, but I’m still going to worry.”
“I’m going to be fine. I have you protecting me.”
“There’s something you could do to help me worry a little less. Take the medi-bots Zale gave you. It’s time, Alyson. They might save your life.”
“I…” She paused. There really wasn’t any reason she couldn’t do it now. Save for the fact she hadn’t thought to pack the injector during her five-minute packing session. It was still on her desk back home.
“I don’t have it with me. I never even thought about it. We had to get out of there so quickly.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out the pre-loaded injector. “When I went to get your medical bag, I grabbed this, too.”
“What would I do without you?”
“I hope neither of us has to live without the other for a very long time.” He lifted the injector. “If you do this, you’re going to live as long as we will. I want…” He cupped the back of her head in his hand and stared into her eyes. “I want to spend that life together, Alyson.”
She reached up and gently guided his hand and the injector to the side of her throat, directly over her jugular vein. “My life is so much better now that I’ve finally let you three into it. I don’t want this to end.”
