by Anna Hackett
“Are fine. Stay still.” She froze and he pressed his face to her neck. “Holding you is worth any pain.”
She made a small sound and settled into him.
“I need a beer, shower, and a hard fuck,” Hemi said.
Chuckles broke out around them, and Cam lifted her head and rolled her eyes. “Well, I hope the shower is first on the list. You smell bad.”
“He won’t look much better after a shower,” Ash called out. “You sure you want to hang out with him, Cam?”
“Quit flirting with my woman, Connors.” Hemi tightened his arms around a smiling Cam. “I feel on top of the fucking world. I’m alive and my woman, the sexiest most beautiful badass ever, loves me.”
“A bit louder, Rahia,” she said. “I don’t think the Gizzida heard you.”
He cupped the back of her head and pulled her in for a kiss. A slow, thorough kiss.
“I love you too, you Neanderthal.”
“The backfire explosives are going,” Ash called out.
Hemi turned to look out the window.
Boom. The Hawk vibrated, and outside, he saw a huge blue ball rise into the air. Then the heart of it turned a brilliant red. Hell Squad did not mess around.
He had no idea how big the damn creeper breeding grounds were, but he knew they had to have caused a fuckload of damage.
“What did I miss?” a groggy voice asked.
They all turned to see a dazed Levi sitting up on his stretcher in the back of the Hawk, his long hair brushing his shoulders.
Laughter broke out, and Ash moved over to check his friend.
“Mate, you kind of missed everything.” Ash probed Levi’s head wound.
Levi groaned. “Great. And you’ll never let me live it down.”
Hemi held onto Cam, and listened to the murmurs of his squad and Squad Nine around him. He’d meant what he’d said to Cam earlier. Each time they stepped onto a Hawk, they never knew if they’d make it back from the mission. There were no guarantees, but what they did was important, and every risk was worth it.
Hemi had always lived by his own rules. It was part of the reason he’d never joined the military. Working as a mercenary had let him pick his own fights. The ones that suited him and his own beliefs.
But sitting here, with these brave men and women, and holding the woman he loved in his arms, he knew he’d go out there every hour of every day to fight the aliens. For these people, for the people at the Enclave, for Cam, he’d take on every alien he could find until they were all gone. Because what he had right here was worth fighting for.
“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome home,” Finn called out from the cockpit.
The Hawk stopped, hovered for a moment, then started to descend. They landed in the hangar, and when Roth pushed back the door, the first thing Hemi saw was Doc Emerson waiting with two stretchers.
Aw, shit. Ash and Tane quickly loaded a still-groggy and complaining Levi onto a stretcher. Hemi warily stepped down from the Hawk, holding on tightly to Cam.
The doc looked at him and rubbed her hands together. “I’ve been looking for some more victims today.” She pointed to the stretcher.
Hell, no. “I can walk—”
“Climb aboard, Rahia. I promise to only stick you with needles once or twice.” Emerson pursed her lips, her critical gaze running over him. “Actually, it might be a few more than that.”
“Cam can help me—”
“Up,” Emerson said.
“I need a shower—”
The doctor shook her head, her blonde hair fluttering against her jaw. “From what I can tell, you have a still-bleeding wound to your shoulder, some other scrapes and cuts, and my guess is you’ve likely broken some ribs. Plus, I heard you nearly drowned in alien fluid, so I need to check you out.” Her eyes hardened. “And you’ve pulled the shower thing on me before, Hemi. It took me two to days track you down last time.”
Cam shot him an amused look. “Not afraid, are you?”
“Afraid?” He made a scoffing noise.
“Then get on the stretcher, Hemi,” Cam said.
He hesitated. He fucking hated needles, but there was no way he was admitting that.
Cam leaned in, her lips pressed to his ear. “I’ll make it worth your while,” she murmured.
He looked at her. “Oh yeah? With what?”
“Dirty sexual favors.”
“In that case…” Hemi pulled himself up on the stretcher.
As they headed out of the hangar, Cam’s full-throated laugh made him smile.
Chapter Fifteen
Ash
Ash Connors carried the bag of alien data cubes down the corridor leading to the tech lab.
Most people would be heading to the dining room for dinner, but he knew one of the geeks would still be in the lab, tinkering with something or hunched over a comp screen. He was in desperate need of a shower. He was still in his armor and covered in alien fluid, sweat, and blood, but he wanted to deliver these cubes first.
God, he was tired. He was weary down to his bones. Most days, it felt like they were always fighting. Ash had never been averse to wading into a fight—when he’d been a kid raised by a rough biker dad, when he’d been Levi’s second-in-command of the Iron Kings, or as a berserker fighting invading aliens.
But right now, tired, aching, and smelling like alien shit, it was hard to remember why he was fighting.
He kicked open the door. A woman jerked in her chair and spun around, blonde curls bobbing.
“Sorry,” he grunted.
Her gaze slid over him, her eyes widening. “Uh…hi.”
He lifted his chin and moved over to a long bench. He upended the bag and cubes dropped down onto the surface.
“Watch out!” The blonde rushed over, nudging him out of the way. “This is delicate equipment here. And you shouldn’t be tossing the cubes around. You might break them.”
Her snarky tone was somewhere between scolding teacher and pissed-off woman. Ash looked down at the top of her head. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had told him off.
Usually, they got all breathy and fluttered their eyelashes. Or they were fellow soldiers talking in no-nonsense words.
The woman righted the cubes with small hands. She was pretty short compared to him.
“Thought you’d want these right away,” he said.
She glanced up at him with annoyed, clear blue eyes. Then she clearly realized her nose was an inch from his blood-splattered armor, and she backed up a step.
She was cute. Ash had always had a thing for cute.
“Thanks,” she mumbled reluctantly. “Where did you find them?”
“In an underground creeper breeding ground we just blew sky-high.”
Those eyes widened again. But there was no fear or shock, just intelligence and interest. “Wow.” She picked up one of the cubes, turning it over.
And then it was like he didn’t exist. She stared at the cube, and then snatched up another one. It looked like she’d forgotten he was even in the room.
Ash wasn’t used to that, either. He knew he was attractive. Ever since he’d hit puberty, the opposite sex had been interested, starting with a much older cheerleader who’d divested him of his virginity. He was used to women showing him attention.
But this little tech geek seemed oblivious, and he didn’t like that. He moved closer, crowding into her space, and instantly he smelled her. Fresh, clean woman, with a hint of something that made him think of a bunch of sunny flowers.
“We’ll see what we can get off them.” She went still and scowled at him. “You’re too close.”
“I’m not touching you.”
“That’s not the point.” She shot daggers at him. “It’s good manners not to invade someone’s personal space.”
He smiled at her. “Manners aren’t really my thing.”
Her gaze dropped to his lips and she blinked. Then she slid sideways between Ash and the bench to reach her comp. She clicked the data cube into
a small cradle.
Information flickered up on the screen. She leaned forward. “Cool. My raptor isn’t that great, but this looks like creeper info. Noah and the others will love this.”
Yep, she’d forgotten he was there again. Luckily, Ash had a pretty healthy ego. He let his gaze slide down her figure. She was wearing a long, flannel shirt over jeans, which made it hard to tell much about what she looked like underneath. But as she leaned over, the shirt hiked up enough for him to note a curvy little ass encased in denim.
He watched as her slim fingers flew across the keyboard and tapped on the screen.
“It has some heavy-duty encryption on parts of the data.” She muttered under her breath. “You can’t keep me out…gotcha!” She stepped back and wiggled her hips in a little victory dance. Then she realized he was still there, and stiffened.
He smiled. Her face was flushed, satisfaction sparkling in her eyes.
“Oh,” she said. “Are you still here?”
He folded his arms over his chest. “Yep.”
Her gaze skated over his arms. He and the rest of his squad rarely wore armor on their arms. She lingered on his tattoos for a long moment, before jerking her attention back to the comp screen.
His cute little geek was noticing him now.
She cleared her throat and touched a key. The alien information disappeared. An image from a computer game blinked onto the screen. A squad of armored soldiers appeared to be fighting their way through monsters.
“You play Pre-Emptive Strike?” he asked.
“A lot of people in the base do.” She hunched her shoulders. “Is this where you ridicule me, and all the other nerds?”
“No.”
She eyed him warily. “I’m sure a badass soldier like you doesn’t play war games.”
Ash raised a hand and pointed to the carbine on his shoulder. “I’ve got the real thing.”
She swallowed, and he watched her slim throat work. “Right.”
He leaned down and lowered his voice. “But you’d be surprised what games a badass soldier like me enjoys playing.”
She stared at him, her lips parting.
He smiled at her. Yep, she was cute as hell. He watched her gaze slide down to his lips. “Good night, Marin.”
Now her gaze jerked up to his. “You know my name?”
Ash smiled again and turned. As he headed out of the tech lab, he didn’t feel so tired anymore. Apparently, teasing Marin Mitchell was more energizing than a hot shower and a beer.
***
“Oh yes, Hemi. God, harder.”
Hell. Hemi leaned back in the armchair, his hands gripping the armrests. A naked Cam was on his lap, bouncing up and down on his cock. He was busy watching her face—studying every flicker of emotion that crossed her beautiful features.
“Take me, Cam,” he growled. He felt his climax growing, clamping down on his muscles.
“I am,” she panted.
He let go of the armrests and gripped her hips, helping to work her up and down. Faster. Harder. Her eyelashes fluttered closed.
“Eyes, Cam,” he demanded.
Her eyes opened and her gaze met his. Two more thrusts and she came, crying out his name.
A second later, he yanked her hips down, holding her there and grinding against her as he came.
She collapsed against his chest, her face pressed to his shoulder. “I can’t move. Maybe in a year or two. Definitely a decade.”
He stroked a hand down her slim back. Her skin was slick with perspiration. Finally, she was his. He breathed in the scent of her. Finally, he had his everything.
He’d survived his trip to Medical, and he’d been more than happy to let Cam fuss over him. The needles had sucked, but afterward, he’d rushed Cam back to her room for dirty sexual favors. That bit definitely hadn’t sucked.
“I feel safe with you.”
Her words were so quiet that Hemi almost missed them. He went still, his palm pressed to her spine. He knew what that confession meant to her.
He lifted her face, cupping her cheeks. “I will never cheat on you, and I will spend every day showing you how much I love you. Your mind, your body, and your attitude.”
Her gaze narrowed. “I don’t have any attitude.”
He grinned at her. “Yeah, baby, you do. And I love it.” Then his smile melted away. “I’ll never leave you, and if I’m not by your side, I’ll fight to get back there. Where I belong.”
“Hemi.” Her face went soft. “For a tough, tattooed badass, you say some pretty sweet things.” She grinned. “But I’ll keep your secret.”
He tilted his head.
“That you’re just a big teddy bear under the badass.”
He reached behind her and slapped her butt playfully. “Watch it, McNab.”
She laughed, that full-throated, sexy laugh that he loved.
“Now, put something sexy on,” he told her. “We’re off to movie night.”
She climbed off him and strode into the bathroom to wash up. Soon she was back, fishing around in her closet. He stared at her long, naked body and his damn cock stirred.
“What are we watching?” she asked.
Your luscious legs. He shook his head. Instinctively, he knew that even when he was old and gray, he’d still want this woman. “A classic. About an alien that gets loose on a ship. You know, that one where the alien bursts out of someone’s stomach.”
Cam pulled on some underwear and glanced his way. “Well, I guess that’s better than one where some idiot gets swallowed whole by an alien and ends up in the alien’s stomach.”
He’d never live that one down. He watched her dress, amazed that he loved the small things just as much as the big ones. Watching her dress, smile, walk, hell…he could watch her just breathing and be happy.
She stepped into some tight jeans and wiggled her hips to get them into place. Hemi was getting less and less interested in watching a movie.
“You’d better get back to your place, and get dressed,” she said. “Or we’ll be late.”
“I want to move in.”
At his words, she paused in fastening her jeans. Then, she smiled at him. “I think I’d like that.”
She hadn’t even flinched. Progress. Hemi stood and yanked on his own jeans. He pressed a quick kiss to her bare shoulder. “Good. I love you.”
The faintest twitch of her eye. “I love you, too.”
“I’ll see you at movie night. Don’t be late.”
***
Cam sauntered down the corridor toward the rec room, trying not to whistle. Damn, she was happy.
They’d survived the mission, rescued Squad Three, and dealt a significant blow to the creeper breeding grounds.
Oh, she knew it wasn’t the end. Knew the Gizzida would be regrouping, that they’d have more breeding grounds elsewhere, and would no doubt retaliate. But for now, with her body still relaxed from some delicious, sexy loving, she was going to just enjoy the buzz.
She turned the corner and spotted General Holmes ahead, one palm pressed against the wall. Shock was stamped all over his aristocratic face.
“General? Adam?” Cam rushed over to him. She’d never seen the man so rattled. She’d watched him face Gizzida attacks, alien creatures, and death. He’d always been a stoic man, the strong leader they needed to face everything that had been thrown at them. “What’s happened? Is the research on the creeper not going well? God, it didn’t get loose, did it?”
“No.” He shook his head, his face still a little pale. “Actually, Laura’s research is going well. The creepers are definitely sensitive to heat. Her team is working with the tech team to modify our thermo pistols. A few well-placed thermo bullets could do serious damage to a creeper.”
Okay, well that sounded good. “So, what’s wrong?”
“Ah, well.” He straightened. “I just got some news.”
Dread coasted through Cam, settling low in her belly. She grabbed his hand. God, what had gone wrong now? “What is it?”
“It appears…” He took a deep breath. “Liberty is pregnant.”
Cam stilled, processing his words. Then she broke out in a smile. “You’re going to be a daddy.”
The top military man in their little outpost jerked, his eyes dazed. “God. I thought that ship had sailed for me a long time ago. I never expected Liberty, never expected to fall in love, and I never expected to be a father.”
He was such a strong man. One who’d fought for and protected others since the first day of the invasion. Just like her Hemi.
“You’ll be a great dad,” Cam said quietly.
She had a clear picture of Holmes, cradling a child with his blue eyes and Liberty’s blonde curls. Then the image morphed into Hemi holding a tiny, dark-skinned baby in the crook of one big, tattooed arm.
God. God. One day, maybe, but not yet. She wanted Hemi’s child. She knew a man like Hemi valued family, and he would give everything he had to his children. Something else for them to fight for.
Cam reached out and patted Holmes on the back. “Congratulations, Adam. I’m really happy for you. I think your child is fortunate to have a father like you.”
The man’s blue eyes gleamed. “Thank you, Cam.”
She headed into the rec room. People were settling in—pillows and blankets piled all over the place. A large screen had been set up on one wall.
She spotted Liberty’s blonde head. The woman’s hair always looked perfect, like a cloud of spun gold. She was talking with some other women.
Cam walked over and touched the woman’s arm.
Liberty turned with a smile. “Hi, Cam.”
“Your man is out in the hall, equal parts elated and terrified. I think he needs a hug.”
An indulgent smile crossed the woman’s bombshell face. “Nothing shakes an alpha male like knowing he made a baby.”
“Congratulations.” Cam knew that Liberty had changed Holmes for the better. Had smoothed out the tension the man had previously always carried, and given him something to live for.
Cam was only just truly appreciating how important that was.
“Thanks.” The woman turned and hurried out of the room.
Cam spotted her squad and the berserkers sitting with Hell Squad, not too far away from the bar.
