by Lisa Lace
I needed to come badly. “Please, Avren.� My hips pushed up against his hand and mouth. The tempo increased, and I felt myself going over the edge with a cry of pleasure. The orgasm rocked me, and he kept it going, continuing to touch me until I slumped over.
Avren whispered into my ear. “Isn’t this better than whatever you were going to do?� I couldn’t speak, but I nodded.
He carried me back to his room. It was quite the display of strength, and I was impressed. He set me gently on top of the covers.
“Are we going to bed now? To sleep?�
“We’re not going to sleep, Vanessa. Not yet. I’ve got other things in mind.�
It looked like it was going to be a long night after all.
AVREN
The sight of Vanessa’s sweet, naked body on the satin sheets made me want to fuck her immediately. She had looked so sexy on the counter that I could hardly contain myself.
I had something incredible prepared for us tonight. I quickly undressed and followed Vanessa onto the bed, covering her with my body — I loved being over her. Sometimes she straddled me, but there was something about the dominant position I liked.
She moaned as my cock touched her slick folds. “Avren, what are you doing?�
I wanted nothing more than to slide inside and fuck her until she screamed. But I couldn’t. Not yet.
I let more of my weight press her down into the bed, but I didn’t crush her. Vanessa had told me she liked the feeling of being completely submissive to me. She could never act like this in the lab or regular life. She spread her legs as wide as she could, opening herself to me.
She gasped as I rubbed the length of my rigid shaft along her wet slit. “Yes, do it again.�
I thrust forward, never penetrating her, only rubbing against her clit and her soaking wetness. The sensation was incredible, and I didn’t know how long I could last without exploding. Vanessa was going wild, writhing beneath me as I pumped my hips and stroked against her hot, slippery folds.
“That’s it. Right there.� She fell to pieces, thrashing and rocking against me. Her orgasm set mine off and I thrust hard several times before I stiffened, wishing I was coming inside her.
Spent, we lay curled up together. We were hot and sweaty. Our bodies stuck to each other, but we were so high on the pleasure we brought each other that we didn’t care.
Vanessa whispered in my ear. “I wish we never had to stop doing this.�
I didn’t want to think about giving her up at some point. We would have to part ways eventually. I had been trying to keep my distance emotionally, but it was impossible. The more time I spent with Vanessa, the more I fell in love with her.
I had always been in love with her.
When this was over, she was going to leave and break my heart again. She had told me so. If I got hurt, I had no one to blame but myself.
I couldn’t keep myself from the sweet drug that was Vanessa Dwyer. The more I got, the more I wanted. I worried about the withdrawal when she eventually left, but I would enjoy the ride while it lasted and get over her when the time came.
I did it once. I could do it again.
VANESSA
Avren had gone to get breakfast for us from the kitchen while I finished getting dressed. As I came into the sunny kitchenette of the suite that I liked to think of as ours (but was really his), my communicator buzzed. I wasn’t presentable yet and took the call on voice only while pouring myself a cup of hot tea.
“I’m looking for Vanessa Dwyer.�
“You found her.� I instantly recognized the voice of the recruiter from Genetic Futures.
“Vanessa, how are you doing?�
“Let’s cut the small talk, Aldoan. What do you want?� I had no desire to speak with him.
“I see you’re still upset. I would be too if I were you. I don’t want to waste your time, Vanessa. Genetic Futures has reconsidered their decision. We want you to be the head of our research department, and we’re prepared to offer you one and a half times the original salary. The president sends his apologies.�
“You’re going to have to give me a minute.� I had not expected a job offer. I didn’t want it now, not after what they had done to me, and not when Avren and I were on the verge of something. I didn’t know what exactly, but it was something.
“I thought you would be surprised. I’m not sure what happened, but the rumor is that the president’s mother, a major shareholder in the company, heard about what he did. She came all the way down to headquarters and stormed into his office. After a ferocious discussion, he called me and said he wanted you back. I probably shouldn’t tell you this, but they’re prepared to overspend.�
I dropped down to the couch and stared at the wall. “Genetic Futures wants me to work for them, and I can have anything I want?�
“Anything within reason. I can’t work miracles.�
“What if I only want to work half time? Double the pay. Assemble and handpick my team.�
“Not a problem, Vanessa. Whatever you want.�
I still couldn’t believe it. I wasn’t even happy. What was wrong with me? Wasn’t this what I had always wanted?
“Are you still there, Vanessa? Do you need more time to decide?�
I was surprised when I heard what my voice said next. “I’ll need to think about it, Aldoan. I’ll get back to you in about a week.�
There was silence from the other end of the line. “This isn’t the answer I expected.�
“I wasn’t waiting around for you. In the meantime, someone else hired me. I’ll need to consider all my options before making a decision.�
“They’re not going to wait longer than seven days.� I could hear the confusion in his voice. I had been so eager for the job before that he couldn’t understand my reluctance.
I wasn’t sure about it, myself. “I’ll contact you soon, Aldoan. Thank you.� I disconnected the communicator and sat back, holding my hands over my face.
What was I going to do now?
This job was everything I had ever wanted. I had every reason to take it.
But what about Avren? I made him a promise, and we weren’t finished yet. There was no way I could do both. I would have to choose.
Avren walked through the door with our breakfast on a tray.
“I have food for both of us.� He went directly into the kitchen. “I received a message from Arnon. They’re coming up for my birthday in a couple of days. We’ll have a chance to visit with them. You’ll have to take a few hours off, though, and I know you don’t like doing that.�
When I didn’t argue with him, he came over to me. “What’s wrong?�
I smiled as brightly as I could. “Nothing. I’m hungry. You took forever.�
He didn’t seem convinced but decided to let it go. “Well, come eat, then. You need to keep your energy up.�
“Yes, we have a lot of work to do.� My mind immediately jumped to what we had planned for today.
“I wasn’t talking about work.� Avren had a wolfish glint in his eye.
“What else would I need energy for?� I started to eat. I couldn’t look him in the eye.
“For what you’re going to do before you go to work. Actually, I’m talking about what I’m going to do to you.�
I felt my nipples tighten. Avren grinned at me. I tried to smile back, feeling both lust from his words and guilt for keeping a secret from him. I fully intended to tell him, but I couldn’t reveal what I didnâ�
��™t know. I hadn’t committed one way or the other. As soon as I decided, I could tell him the truth.
As soon as I decided.
Chapter Eleven
AVREN
Vanessa bit her lip as she stared at her communicator. We were together in the lab after a quick walk around the courtyard to stretch our legs. I peeked over her shoulder to see what she thought was so interesting. The subject line of the message read: Final Results on Animal Trials.
She wasn’t opening it. She kept looking at it as a crease formed between her eyebrows.
“Aren’t you going to read it?� I put my arm around her waist and rested my hand on her hip. Physical contact between us was becoming so common that I hardly noticed what I was doing. I originally thought she needed someone to support her, but I hadn’t spent any time wondering what that might mean. I wanted her for more than sex. It was going to be painful when she left.
We were getting close to the end of the initial tests. If the animal trials were successful, we were ready to start working on Auxem subjects. Vanessa was a hard worker — we had finished the first phase faster than I had imagined possible.
Of course, I wanted us to succeed, but I didn’t want to make a breakthrough too quickly. Vanessa was a demon when it came to work, and I didn’t know how she managed to remember to eat when she was performing research. I had a feeling if I weren’t around, she would forget everything except the project.
“You might as well open it, Vanessa.� I was starting to feel impatient. “If our therapy isn’t stable, we start over. It’s not the end of the world.�
Her finger hovered over the screen.
“I can open it you if need help.� I reached over.
“No, I’ll do it. You’re right, but I’m always nervous when results come back. The future is in front of me, and I don’t know what the outcome is going to be.� She hit her screen harder than necessary and sped through the message.
“What’s the good news?� I don’t think she even heard me. Her face was glued to the screen.
Vanessa turned to me, grinning broadly. “We did it, Madellan!� She jumped up and down and threw herself into my arms.
“The gene was stable?� I couldn’t believe we had already come so far.
“They didn’t find any problems.� She kissed me hard, pressing her body against mine. I imagined I could feel the joy radiating from her.
I wasn’t going to get ahead of myself. We still had to pass the Auxem clinical trials, which was where the real problems were waiting for us.
She pulled away from the kiss and looked at me. “Aren’t you glad?�
“Of course I am. I don’t want to be disappointed, that’s all.�
Vanessa nodded and stepped back. “There’s nothing wrong with letting yourself be happy for a minute.� Her smile vanished for a moment before bursting forth again. “It’s a significant step forward, Avren. We should celebrate somewhere far away from here. I want to go out. We’ve been stuck in the palace for months.�
“Vanessa, you know we’re not allowed to leave.�
“Let’s bring a security detail with us. We can go to a nice restaurant.�
“An Auxem restaurant?� I looked at her uncertainly. She wasn’t a fan of our cuisine.
“Isn’t there one that serves intergalactic food?�
I thought about her request. “Let me talk to the head of security. If we’re lucky, they can arrange something special for us. I know a place that used to be good when I was younger.�
“Perfect!� Vanessa was practically bouncing on her toes. “I’ll get dressed. Is it somewhere fancy? You have to wear something nice too. Maybe you’ll get lucky afterward — I could never resist a well-dressed man and a night out on the town.�
“If you insist.� I leaned over and kissed her.
Vanessa was everything I had ever wanted, but soon she would be leaving me. The thought made my heart ache. I would have time to deal with the hurt later. Today I had her next to me, and that was going to have to be enough.
VANESSA
The summer palace was isolated on an estate. We had to take a trip to a nearby village to find a restaurant, but our meal tasted fantastic. After we had finished eating, we went for a walk along the seashore on the edge of the small town.
We were riding in an old gondola taking us to the top of one of the mountains surrounding the summer palace. Avren said the rickety contraption operated under a tourist license. Our security detail was in the car behind us.
I leaned over to whisper into Avren’s ear. “Do you know what I like better than sex on a lab counter?� He was looking out the window and staring at the beautiful view, but he became still while he was listening to me.
“No, but I could take a couple of guesses.�
“Sex in public places.�
“Fuck, Vanessa.� Avren pulled me onto his lap and started kissing me wildly. Something felt desperate about the kiss on both our parts. We had become too involved in our relationship, and either one of us might end up hurt at the end of it.
There was nothing to be done about it. Our emotions were already tightly intertwined.
Avren left my lips and began ripping off my shirt. He unclasped my bra and had his mouth on my already-hard nipple in a half-second. Having sex tonight was not going to be slow and sweet. Tonight I wanted it fast and dirty — that was just the way I liked it sometimes.
I slid off his lap, breaking his connection with my breast. I reached for his pants to free his cock. Avren’s eyes were filled with lust when he looked at me, and I felt myself get wet at the sight.
He lifted my skirt and ran a hand underneath it. I wasn’t wearing anything that would get in his way.
“You’re a bad girl, aren’t you?�
I put on a prim and proper expression. “I thought you might need easy access to all of my parts.�
He slid his right hand between my thighs. I grabbed his cock with my left hand and gently stroked him, eliciting a gasp which left me satisfied. Some couples couldn’t pleasure each other at the same time, but Avren and I were good at it.
I didn’t know what was different about tonight. Maybe it was the possibility of being seen, Avren’s arousal, or the knowledge that we would part ways soon, but I came so fast and strong that I couldn’t help but scream out Avren’s name.
Avren kissed me deeply to muffle my cries. He was probably afraid the security detail would hear me in the next car. I continued stroking until he came, groaning loudly.
We cleaned up quickly and put our clothes on again. Avren pulled me onto his lap and held me. I wrapped my arms around him, putting my head on his shoulder. I didn’t know why I felt sad. He had just satisfied me. I didn’t know what Madellan was to me, but I was spending a fantastic night with him, and our research was progressing without any major obstacles — except for someone trying to kill me.
In the end, I was going to have my dream job with Genetic Futures. I would accept their offer, effectively having my cake and eating it too.
Everything was going according to plan. So why did I feel lost?
AVREN
Vanessa and I stood on a mountain top, holding hands and watching the sunset. We were in a park that was free from beasts. On the other side of the mountain, wild and dangerous animals roamed free.
In spite of the pretty surroundings and success of our research, a dull pain filled my heart. I didn’t know what my problem was. Our time on the gondola had been incredible. The only thing I could imagine that would be more intense was bonding with Vanessa.
Afterward, I had been filled with sadness, and she had seemed subdued as well. We had clung to each other all the way up the mountain. Ever since we had left the car, we hadn’t said a word to each other.
The silence between us grew uncomfortable. We both knew our work was about to enter a new phase and come to an end. Was she as torn up about it as I was?
I doubted it, but Vanessa seemed to enjoy our time together. Even if she didn’t care about me other than as a friend with benefits, I thought she would be sad about leaving.
I reminded myself that we still had time together.
“How are we going to find an Auxem subject for testing?� I hated to bring up work again, but I needed to break the silence and cheer both of us up. Work made both of us happy.
“I don’t know. I’m sure we’ll have plenty of possibilities to choose from if we ask around. But it’s going to be dangerous.� Vanessa stared off into space, letting the wheels in her head turn. “We don’t know what’s going to happen. Your bodies could end up rejecting the new gene. Frankly, I’m worried about whoever gets the first dose. We need to have full disclosure. Everything will be in the waiver, but even if we’re covered legally, there are ethical implications.�
Vanessa had a point. We didn’t know what was going to happen to the first Auxem subject. We would learn a lot from them, and be able to make things safer for the people who came next, but the original person would still be dead. We didn’t have any way to protect them from the unknown.
I gazed at her in consternation. “We’re never going to find volunteers if we disclose the potential risks, but we can’t lie, either.� I hadn’t thought far enough ahead. We had been too focused on the initial phase of testing.
“Maybe we could find someone who’s terminally ill.�
“They wouldn’t be a good candidate, Vanessa. We need to find some young, healthy men.�
