The Renegades' Reward

by Maddie Taylor

  “We’re almost through.” He angled his chin to the towel draped over her.

  Nearly dry, it had been dripping wet only moments ago. “Where did the liquid go?”

  “It absorbed through your skin. You don’t use the R.I.D. in your world, I gather.”

  “Uh...” she intoned, trying to decipher the acronym.

  “Rapid instillation device,” he explained, talking quietly while he leaned a hip against the table’s edge, fingers stroking her mussed hair from her face, clearly waiting for his R.I.D. to work its magic.

  “We don’t have anything like this. It’s amazing.”

  “What do you use?”

  “I.V.’s I guess, which require needles, tubes, and bags of fluids.”

  He looked horrified. “Thank the Creators you have me to care for your health now.”

  She looked up at him, his still-rumpled dark hair blue-tinged from the overhead light. His features, not as serious now, took on a softer appearance. She didn’t know whether to reach up and drag his face down for a kiss, or smack him for lying to her. After this latest ordeal, she had to decide what to do. She felt safe with him, and with Jaylin, but after their deception, could she trust them again?

  Still holding his entrancing golden gaze, she saw it change, becoming dark and troubled, as if he knew what she was thinking. They both could read her too easily.

  “What’s wrong?”

  She sat up, needing to be alone, to think. With her latest trauma behind her, and the relief of Jaylin’s rescue and seeing them again fading, she had to decide what to do. They’d lied to her and hurt her, badly.

  “Lay back, Dani, we’re not finished.” His hands came to her shoulders, holding her still. “What is it? Are you in pain?”

  “Yes,” she snapped angrily, though it sounded more like a sob, and she didn’t want to cry. She tried to pull away, but he was too strong. “You lied to me.”

  “Dani—”

  “It was a cruel trick. I’d begun to have feelings for you, as a cyborg, and couldn’t understand them.”

  “I’m sorry, we both are. I haven’t had feelings for a woman since our wife died.”

  “You were married?”

  “Yes, Mahlia died of an unexpected illness five years ago.”

  No longer masking his feelings, she read the pain of his loss, after all this time. “I’m so sorry.”

  He nodded, his brows knitted together. “I won’t lie, I was devastated, and swore I’d never love another woman. Then you came along and stirred up all sorts of emotions I didn’t want to feel. I was confused, Dani. Jaylin knew I was fighting your pull. Playing along like I was a cyborg was his way of taunting me, pushing my buttons, trying to wake me up—and it worked. I’m falling in love with you. We both are.”

  “Why should I believe anything you say?” she whispered. She wanted to, yet couldn’t let herself.

  “We need to talk, all three of us,” he said. “Once you’ve rested—”

  “Good idea.” She swung her legs over the side. “If we’re done here. I’ll go do that now.”

  “Wait,” he ordered. “Let me shut down the equipment and I’ll escort you.”

  “I don’t think that’s necessary,” she told him coolly.

  “I say it is. You had to be carried in here minutes ago. I won’t risk you falling. Now, do as I say and lie back down.”

  By his tone, she knew he was serious, and bossy, like Jaylin when it suited him. He removed the now-dry towel and adjusted the lights. When the blue had faded and the regular lighting came back on, it illuminated the form of the man in the doorway. His casual stance, arms crossed over his chest and leaning with one broad shoulder against the door told her he hadn’t just arrived. And here she sat, naked again. She mimicked his position and folded her arms covering her breasts, suddenly uneasy in their presence.

  His silvery gaze flicked to Malik. “Everything checks out?”

  “Yes. Other than the bastards not feeding her or giving her water, and the bruises from the restraints.” His comment brought their attention back to her, both looking at her wrists. Following where they stared, she saw how her closed arm position pressed her full breasts together, plumping them up and creating a deep line of cleavage. She loosened them, but a nipple peeped out over one forearm.

  “I’d like a robe, please,” she whispered.

  “No need,” Malik said. “After I clean you up, you’re going to bed.”

  “I can do it myself, so that won’t be necessary, either.”

  “Again, Dani, I say it is.” His tone was softer, though no less firm. To Jaylin, he asked, “Are we on our way?”

  “Yes, I laid in a course back to Earth.”

  She almost choked on her gasp of surprise. “You’re taking me back?”

  Not waiting for a response, she leapt off the table the next instant. When Malik attempted to steady her, she slapped his hands away and stormed to the door.

  “Get out of my way,” she demanded, her palms flat against Jaylin’s chest, pushing when he didn’t comply. Except he didn’t budge an inch from the force of all her strength. “Move!” she hissed, angry tears filling her eyes.

  “Dani...” His hands covered hers.

  “Don’t touch me,” she cried, trying to snatch them back, but he held tight.

  Arms encircled her waist from behind. “Sweetheart, don’t—”

  “Stop telling me what to do,” she shrieked. Wrenching free of Jaylin’s hold, she spun on Malik, her fists connecting soundly with his chest. “Cyborg, my ass. I can’t believe I fell for your bullshit.” Her words came out broken by angry sobs.

  Steel bands enveloped her, pinning her arms to her sides as Jaylin buried his face in the bend of her neck. “That is my doing, pershada.”

  She jerked uselessly against his hold. “I didn’t hear him explaining away his lies in the days and nights we spent together.”

  Malik’s big hands bracketed her face, tipping it up to his. “You’re right. I could have dispelled your misperception.”

  “Call it what it is. You lied, both of you did.” She tried to pull away again, but it was a waste of energy. Stark naked, she was trapped between their tall, muscular bodies. “I can’t believe you’re taking me back to Earth, to him.” Angry and hurt, she said in a ragged voice. “I won’t go. Take me to Nusapphra.”

  “Sweetheart—”

  “Now!”

  “No, you’re our third, dammit,” Malik growled, his temper flaring. “And you’re not going anywhere without us.”

  This outburst was so unlike him, it sobered her enough for Jaylin’s whisper to penetrate. “I’m sorry, baby, but haven’t we made it clear you’re a part of us now? And it’s for a lifetime, so you’re going to have to find a way to forgive us.”

  “Then why are we going to Earth? I don’t want to see my father, I mean, Daniel, ever again.”

  “You don’t have to, Dani. Never again.” Malik’s voice had grown husky with something other than anger.

  “If that’s true, then why take me back?” She directed her question at Jaylin, as she twisted to peer up at him.

  “We have important unfinished business to attend to.” At her disgruntled look, he added, “It has nothing to do with your father, sweetness. I promise.”

  Taking in the unguarded look on his face, and his unwavering silver-eyed stare, she believed him. The tension seeped out of her tired muscles. She swayed against them, knees weak, as fatigue set in. Suddenly, bed sounded like an excellent idea.

  As tired as she was, she didn’t miss the concerned look Jaylin shot over her head, one blond brow raised in question. She turned back just as Malik answered. “Crashing physically after all she’s been through is expected. Emotionally, she’s seems surprisingly stable.”

  “Damn straight. I don’t like being lied to, or manipulated.”

  “And we won’t do so again. That is our vow.” Firm in his conviction, he didn’t blink as he met Jaylin’s gaze. “Right, brother?”
<
br />   “Absolutely. Honesty in a triad is essential.” The brush of his lips against her hair sent a tingle throughout her body. Except she wasn’t over her snit yet, and something Malik said needed explanation.

  “Wait. You said I seemed stable. Was this in doubt? Did you think me otherwise?”

  Jaylin caught her chin in his hand at the same time Malik’s swept up and down her back soothingly. “We both regret the deception, Dani, but that wasn’t what he was referring to.”

  “I don’t understand.”

  “What happened on the Elzorian ship would shake a seasoned soldier. Something you are not.”

  She glanced away. “I’d planned never to think of it.”

  “How’s it working so far?”

  “Well, considering you two have ticked me off royally, pretty good.”

  “And when your anger has cooled?”

  “I’d prefer not to talk about it.”

  He bent close until his gorgeous eyes were only inches away. “I don’t think that’s wise, sweetness. Malik and I have been in the military, we’ve both been in battle, we know what you can expect to think and feel when the dust settles and you have time to reflect.”

  She remembered the clatter of their guns hitting the floor and the loud thud of their fallen bodies, brought about by the dart thrown by her hand. A heaviness hit the center of her chest as she averted her gaze.

  “Whenever you’re ready to talk,” he offered. “We’re here for you.”

  “That’s anytime, Dani,” Malik murmured close to her ear. “Day, and especially at night, when memories tend to resurface.”

  “Stop being so sweet and concerned when I’m mad at you.”

  Fingers nudged up her chin, but no one said more until her lashes swept open. “We’re serious,” Jaylin uttered, unwavering in his regard.

  “I know,” she whispered.

  A long pause followed, until she broke the silence.

  “Can we make a pact during future heart-to-hearts, I get to wear clothes?”

  The tautness in Malik’s arms eased, and the skin around Jaylin’s eyes crinkled.

  “Or, I could wear clothes and you two could be naked.”

  He eased back, a grin touching his lips. “She’s being cute,” he observed, running his thumb the length of her jaw.

  “When is she not cute?” Malik replied, pressing a kiss against the side of her head. “But I take cute as a positive sign forgiveness is forthcoming.”

  “You’re not out of the woods yet,” she grumbled.

  “Then we’ll have to work harder,” her light twin replied, touching his mouth lightly to hers. Like her, they knew she would fold under their combined efforts. The question was how long did she make them squirm?

  “I think a hot shower is in order,” her dark twin suggested. “It will ease your sore muscles and help you relax. Followed by a massage.”

  “Sounds nice. Is this also part of your healing treatment?”

  “If it puts you in a forgiving mood, absolutely.”

  “We’ll use the shower in my quarters. I’ll go gather what we need.” Jaylin captured her lips again, this time quick and fast. Leaving her in the circle of Malik’s arms, he moved toward the hall.

  “He said we,” she said after a moment.

  “Yes, I heard him.” He gathered her still stark-naked body closer.

  “Are you both planning to join me?” She didn’t say so, but she hoped his answer was yes.

  “Yes. You’ll find Trilorian twins are very attentive when it comes to their woman.”

  “It better be a large stall to fit all three of us.”

  “Remember the captain’s big bed? The shower is equally impressive.” He lifted her into his arms and followed in Jaylin’s direction.

  “Is carrying me to and fro being attentive? Both of you tend to do that at every opportunity.”

  “Do you mind?”

  “No, although it’s rather disturbing when you are fully clothed and I’m naked. Don’t you have an exam gown, or a blanket, something for me to put on?”

  “It makes no sense to examine someone with clothes on, so no, I don’t keep clothing in here,” he replied. “And if I did, you’d only have to remove it again to get in the shower. As for a blanket, also unnecessary. The ship maintains a constant seventy-two degrees by your planet’s measurement. You can walk around naked or sleep without covers, if need be.”

  “You’d like that, wouldn’t you? Having me run around bare.”

  “We wouldn’t complain, no.” Amusement resonated in his voice.

  “I notice you’re saying we, a lot. Do you two do everything together?”

  “Not always, we are twins, but separate beings. However, when it comes to important things, like caring for our woman, we tend to do things together.”

  She hadn’t noticed he entered Jaylin’s room and arrived at the bathroom door until he set her on her feet. Then, he took her hand and led her inside.

  “What if I don’t want to take a group shower?”

  “You will once you’re under the water with us,” Malik assured her, squeezing her fingers.

  Jaylin was busy adjusting the water temperature, his golden skin bare, the muscles across his broad back bunching and rippling as he moved. Although she tried not to look, her gaze dropped to his butt, tight, lean, and sculpted atop thick corded thighs.

  When Malik handed her off to him, he led her into the steamy, more than roomy-enough-for-three shower and steered her under the multi-head sprayers. At the perfect temperature, she let her head fall back so the water soaked her hair and ran down her body. Making it better, several nozzles sent out a warm mist from the sides. Closing her eyes, she relaxed while his fingers went to work, massaging shampoo into her hair.

  The soft click of the door latch told her without looking Malik had joined them. She peeked, unable to resist, and took in the sight of water sluicing down his smooth, muscular chest as he picked up a sponge. Again, she tried to keep from it, but she followed the rivulets coursing down his body. Fully erect, his length extended toward her, as if reaching for her hand in invitation.

  Damn. How was she supposed to make either of them squirm when they were using such underhanded tactics?

  He squirted green gel on the sponge and began to wash her front, the light herbal fragrance of the soap filling the air. Breathing it in had a soothing effect, as did the sudsy hands gliding over her skin. Not since she was a small child had someone helped her bathe, and until now, she didn’t know what she’d been missing to have a man do it. Doubly wonderful when there were two. The scents, the warm spray, and twenty massaging fingers made for a dreamlike, sensual experience.

  “Lean your head back,” Jaylin murmured. Starting at her forehead and working backward, he used a handheld sprayer to rinse it free of suds. “Conditioner?”

  “Yes, please, or I’ll have tangles.”

  “We can’t have that,” he replied, and by his serious tone, she knew he wasn’t teasing. He would know about working snags through long hair, since his thick mass was nearly the length of her own. Collecting a generous amount of a light, cream-colored substance from a wall dispenser, he began to work it through the wet strands.

  She sighed, his fingers incredibly relaxing. Lost in sensation, she swayed slightly on her feet, until Malik began to wash her breasts. Avoiding intimate parts until now, a jolt of arousal swept through her. His touch changed her relaxed sigh into a gasp of delight. It also earned her a mouthful of water. Spitting and coughing, she grabbed his forearm, holding on. This pressed his hand more firmly against her breast.

  “I didn’t mean to startle you, trilana. But the tanks aren’t unlimited, which is another reason we’ll share our showers when we can.”

  She blinked away droplets of water, tipping her head back to meet Malik’s eyes well above her own. They’d become dark gold, the brown less prominent with his growing desire. She couldn’t look away as he palmed one breast from underneath, and washed it with the sudsy
sponge. Without rinsing, he did the same to the other before he passed the sponge to Jaylin, who had finished her hair.

  He twisted the wet skein with one hand and held it on top of her head while he washed her back. Malik, in the meantime, massaged her soap-slick breasts, paying close attention to the nipples which had peaked to hardness from all the attention.

  Dani’s free hand grabbed his other arm, holding on while she arched her back, seeking more of his touch.

  He arched a dark brow at her while grinning. “Didn’t I say you’d want this once you got in?”

  “No one likes a smarty pants, Malik.”

  He chuckled and, with the sprayer, rinsed her breasts, sending rivers of soap over her belly, her smooth mound, and down her legs.

  “My turn,” Jaylin murmured. He took up the sprayer and rinsed her back, the spray stronger now, like hundreds of tiny massaging fingers. It felt good, but nowhere close to how Jaylin and Malik’s twenty felt when they moved lower.

  “Spread your legs for us, Dani.”

  She glanced down to find Malik gazing up at her, waiting for her to do as he asked. Jaylin’s hands on her hips, gliding down her outer thighs, told her he was taking the same position behind. She inched her feet apart.

  “Wider, please,” he requested.

  Not as patient, Jaylin slid his palms to the inside of her thighs and showed her precisely what they wanted. “Just like this,” he murmured.

  They each took a leg and worked upward, kneading her muscles as they went. It felt beyond good. She became self-conscious when they ran out of leg and the backs of their fingers grazed her pussy. Shifting, she closed up tight, but this only trapped them between her legs.

  “You can’t still be shy after all we’ve done, sweetness.” Jaylin’s lips grazed her lower back.

  “I, uh, I’ve never...in the shower.”

  “We know, Dani. This is another first we have the pleasure of introducing you to,” Malik said, his gold-brown eyes melting into hers. “Put your hands on my shoulders and hold on.”

  “Why?”

  He didn’t get time to answer before Jaylin, who slid his arm around her waist, raised her left leg and draped it down the length of Malik’s back.

  Open for them now, soapy fingers over her bottom. A palm cupped one cheek while a thumb dipped into the cleft and parted the halves. Fingertips slid into the furrow, teasing over her rear opening.