by KD Jones
“Much better. I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you about staying buckled.”
He took her hand in his and rubbed his thumb back and forth against her skin. “It was my fault for hurting your feelings and making you feel like we were strangers.”
Melody turned on her side to look at him better. She hadn’t expected him to start with an apology. “I understand it. We literally met twenty-four hours before that, and during half the time we were together, you were pretending to interrogate me. I messed up the reason why you went undercover and probably caused a major setback for you. You're busy, and starting something with a woman, any woman, right now complicates things in a way you don’t need.”
Wow, sleeping had really helped her to be able to think things through more clearly. She could understand part of his reaction but not all of it. His silent treatment still hurt.
“You amaze me with your understanding. However, I have to admit to you, I was feeling things that I hadn’t expected. It threw me off. I’m always in control of my emotions. I use the emotions of others against them in my work. I’ve never felt strong feelings for any female before and then suddenly you were there and I had no defense against you.”
She could appreciate his honesty. She preferred that to having him lie to her or ignore her. She wanted to ask him what feeling he had for her, but the door to the medic wing opened and the lead medic entered.
“We have good news, Miss Song. Your vitals are stable and you are almost completely healed. You can move from the medic wing to new quarters.”
“Wow, that’s fast. Guess I need to find me a new place to stay until we reach Kiljor.”
“You may stay with me,” StrykER told her, releasing her hand and sitting back in his seat.
“I’m sure that AshOR can find me somewhere—”
“No! You will stay with me.”
The medic backed up slowly and headed toward the door, but neither of them paid him any attention.
“Maybe I don’t want to stay with you.”
StrykER moved so swiftly she didn’t have time to do anything. He leaned down, lifted her out of the bed, and walked toward the door.
“What are you doing? Where are you taking me?”
“To my quarters. Arguing is not good for your recovery.”
She snorted. “You are so bad, StrykER.”
“Bad? Do you fear me?” He stopped in the corridor and looked at her in worry.
She couldn’t let him think that. He had the balls enough to apologize and tell her the truth. “You would never hurt me. I know that. I meant bad as in you do naughty things without apology.”
“Naughty.” His voice rumbled.
Her pussy clenched. Holy crap. He was so sexy. The way he was looking at her made her want to rip his clothes off and ride him like a pony. She could tell he was thinking something similar about her.
“You will stay with me in my quarters, no arguments.”
“Okay.” She would agree to anything at that moment.
He continued walking down the corridor and she felt awkward. They were being stared at. Warriors moved to the side as they passed, and watched them with longing on their faces. The stares made her feel uncomfortable. She laid her head on his shoulder and hid her face from people passing by. She inhaled his scent and sighed in pleasure. Whatever cologne he was wearing was amazing.
StrykER stopped in front of a door and slid it open, then entered the small quarters. It was just big enough to fit a single bed, a chair, and a small side table. It was a typical warrior’s quarters. She knew he was like that; he was someone who thought of himself as just another warrior. He took his position seriously but didn’t take advantage of it or abuse it. She liked that about him.
He laid her down on his bed. “Do you need anything?”
“I’m kind of hungry.”
“What was I thinking? I should have taken you to the meal room or had food ordered to be delivered to the medic wing.”
She reached out to take his hand and squeezed it. “It’s okay. Can you have it delivered here?”
“Yes, I’ll contact the liaison assigned to help you.”
“I don’t need a liaison.”
“He’s also your security detail to escort you around the ship.”
“How long will it take to get to Kiljor?”
“A day maybe. Commander TylOR wants to locate the mining colony first.”
Melody shivered with dread. She didn’t want to stay anywhere near these Purists. They were crazy with their views.
“What would you like to eat?”
“A salad is fine.”
StrykER snorted. “That is not enough food. You are too thin and need to eat more for your strength.”
She smiled. “Are you calling me skinny?”
“Yeah. You are tiny.”
“I’m healthy, but I guess I could put on a few pounds. I’ve never really paid attention. I wish I had more meat on by backside.”
“You are perfect just the way you are.”
“Except for being tiny?” She was fighting the smile that was creeping into the expression on her face.
“Are you laughing at me?” He sounded shocked. She probably was the only person that had ever dared to do that.
“Maybe a little.” She gave him a smile and winked.
He smiled while shaking his head. “You’re the naughty one.”
She laughed full out. “You have no idea.”
He raised an eyebrow but didn’t comment. He tapped his comm link. “Lieutenant MayER, I need you to go to the meal room and get a tray of food for Miss Song.”
“Wait, you’re not going to eat with me?” Melody asked. When was the last time he ate? She already saw how tired he was.
“Make that two trays. Two proteins at least and something with calcium fortification. Bring them to my quarters. Thank you.” He ended his communications. “It should take about twenty minutes. I’m going to take a quick shower.”
“A shower?” Man, that sounded so good.
“Would you like to go first?”
She shook her head. “No, I can go after you.”
“I won’t be long.” He grabbed a fresh uniform and headed to the bathing room.
She watched him leave and appreciated the way his pants were stretched tight against his fine ass. A part of her wished he had asked her to join him. It would be hard to say no to him, especially now that she knew what he was like in bed.
Melody laid her head against the pillow, feeling like someone had knocked her over the head. She was addicted to StrykER. It was bad; she craved his touch, his voice, and the taste of him. She found herself wanting to submit to him. She did believe he would not hurt her physically or sexually. Trust was a hard thing for her to give but somehow he got her to trust him in a short amount of time.
He was right that they barely knew each other, at least the details of each other’s lives. She didn’t even know if he had any family. He might have a girlfriend somewhere. He was a man of honor so she didn’t think he would be with her if he were with someone else. Was she willing to put herself out there again only to have him turn her away a second time? She knew he couldn’t promise her anything. She had to go to Kiljor and he had a job to finish. There was probably no future for them, but she wanted to take what she could while she could. He was worth the risk of a broken heart.
Chapter 16
StrykER opened the door to let in the male bringing the food.
“Sir, I have the trays.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant MayER. Put them down on the side table.”
Just as the lieutenant sat the trays down, the bathing room door opened. Both males turned and froze in place. Melody stood in the doorway wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around her body. Her long brown hair hung down in slick wet strands. A lovely pink blush rose in her cheeks.
“Sorry, I didn’t know anyone was here. I don’t have anything clean to put on.”
StrykER growled at the other male who
immediately turned his back around. Then he went to one of the shirts issued for warriors to wear. The pants wouldn’t fit, but his shirt was long enough to reach her knees.
“You may put this on. I’ll call someone in supplies to request smaller clothing for you.”
“Thanks. She took the shirt and dashed back inside the bathing room and closed the door behind her.
It took every bit of strength he had to keep from following after her. She was naked under that towel and he wanted to rip the offending material off of her.
“Should I leave or wait for her to return?” Lieutenant MayER asked. StrykER had forgotten about the other male. He turned and faced him. The lieutenant's eyes were focused on the door that blocked their view of Melody. He growled possessively.
“Come back in a few hours, I will introduce you formally. Also, stop by supplies and let them know I need the smallest size in shirts and pants and boots. Lieutenant Mayer, the female is mine.”
“Yes, sir.” Lieutenant MayER left the quarters quickly.
He heard the door to the bathing room slide open. He turned to face her as she shyly stepped out of the bathroom. “I didn’t realize how shy you were. I guess I assumed since you sung on stage that you would be more—flamboyant.”
She gave him a smile. “When I’m onstage, I’m Melody Song. I have a strong sexy persona and exude confidence as a seductress and singer. In real life, day-to-day, I’m just Melody Abrams, songwriter. My record company wanted me to practically go naked on the stage but I drew the line on certain things. Even when I’m singing, I won’t wear something that I can’t wear in front of my grandmother or my child.”
He felt like someone had punched him in the gut. How could she put her life at risk if she has a family? “You have children? Where are they? On Earth?”
“Of course I don’t have children and if I did, I would never leave them behind. What kind of woman do you think I am?”
“I’m relieved. I didn’t think you would do something like that. I didn’t understand why else you would mention what you wear in front of children.”
“I was just trying to say that I make sure to wear things that are appropriate for all age ranges and that I do not want to feel regret for wearing something inappropriate.”
“Let’s eat while the food is still warm.” He chose to change the subject; he wanted to make up for how he had treated her in the shuttle.
“It smells delicious.” She sat in one of the chairs and reached for a tray. “Where did the guy go?”
“Lieutenant MayER is going to supplies to get you some smaller sized clothes. He’ll return in a few hours and I’ll introduce you.” He sat down across from her and watched her eat.
She looked up and frowned. “Why aren’t you eating?”
“I’ll eat later.”
“No way, if I eat, you eat. When was your last meal?”
He moved his tray closer but didn’t touch his food. “I honestly can’t remember. It may have been several days ago.”
“StrykER!”
He looked up. “What?”
“You can’t go without eating like that. You need to keep up your energy.”
A warm feeling grew near the center of his heart. She was worried about him. He couldn’t help but give her a smile. “I ate an energy bar.”
She shook her head. “Nope, that’s not good enough. Do you want some of mine? I swear there’s enough food on my tray to feed three people.”
“I’m fine.” He still didn’t eat.
“That’s it, come here.” She moved to the bed with her tray and motioned for him to follow.
He was curious what she was up to so he sat down across from her on the bed. “Now what?”
She lifted a fork loaded with juicy meat up to his mouth. “Open.”
He lifted an eyebrow but opened his mouth accepting the food. “It’s good. You eat now.”
She shook her head. “Not until I make sure you eat, then I’ll eat.”
“I should be taking care of you.” He wasn’t a weak male.
“I just want to do this for you.”
He realized his words came out harsher than he meant. “I love that you want to care for me. I just want to do the same.”
“Here.” She handed him a spoon. “I’ll feed you the meat, and you feed me the soup.”
“A compromise? We both get what we want. I like it.” He took the spoon and dipped it into the bowl. He lifted it to her mouth and became fascinated with her plump bottom lip. He longed to nibble on her right there. Then images of her mouth on him had him hard and ready. He fought the urge to shove the tray to the floor and launch himself at her. She needed to eat.
She lifted another forkful and he accepted it. No one had done this or anything like it for him since he was young.
“Thank you, Melody.”
“For what?”
“Making sure that I eat. No one since my grandmother has done anything like this since I was young.”
“You don’t have someone at home, a girlfriend or something, who takes care of you?”
“No.”
“Is it like it is on Katiera, where there are so few females to go around?”
“There are a few more females on Kiljor than on Katiera, but the few that I’ve spent time with were selfish and took advantage of me.”
“I don’t understand?”
“The females I’ve known have expectations of how they think they should be treated. They tend to refuse to mate a male unless he can offer them something, like power or prestige. It was easier to keep an emotional distance from them and they preferred that.”
“I didn’t think any of your people could be that way. None of the Katieran females I’ve met so far have been like that.”
“I would never have thought any of my people would be brainwashed into betraying their nation and want to go against everything they believed in, based on the words of a madman.”
“We’ve had that on Earth too. There have been leaders there who convinced whole countries into killing those with different religious beliefs. We’ve had civil wars where brothers fought each other from different sides.”
He looked into her beautiful warm eyes and saw sympathy there. She understood him without judging him. That was rare and precious.
“I’m such a fool.”
She stopped, still holding up a fork. “Why?”
“You shared your body with me and I was a fool to push you away.”
“You weren’t wrong about us being strangers and having just met.”
“Even if I had known you for years, I would still want to know more.”
“Really? I’ve never felt that special.” She placed her fork and tray on the side table.
“You are beautiful and talented. You touch people’s souls with your music. That is a true blessing and a gift from the Goddess.”
“I think your abilities are amazing. You get images from those you interrogate?”
“Yes, I get them to talk to me or I just keep saying things that push their emotional levels. When they get to their breaking point, images almost shout out at me. If the image evokes enough emotions I may see names, dates, sometimes sentences.”
“You use this ability to help your people. That’s a gift from the Goddess.”
StrykER frowned. “The Morins did this to me and my people. The virus caused the mutation which caused these abilities to develop.”
“Have you ever thought that maybe the Goddess intervened and took the virus and made it mutate so that your people wouldn’t die off? Your abilities would be a gift not a curse.”
“I’ve never thought of that.” Maybe she was right, maybe the mutation was the Goddess’s way of saving them. “Not all abilities feel like gifts though. I know that there are times I wish I didn’t have this ability.”
“Like when?”
He looked away from her, not sure if he should share this with her. What if it turned her away from him? He felt her hand cover his and he looked
into her warm eyes.
“You don’t have to tell me anything.”
He found himself telling her things he had never shared with anyone else. “I’ve had my abilities since I was a small child. I could see images from my parents when they argued. After they died, I lived with my grandparents. They were great, but problems came up whenever I was around other people. I constantly got in trouble for seeing images from my instructors.”
“The worst was later when I was in a relationship with a female that I thought about mating. Once, while we were in the middle of making love, I saw images that involved her and another male. When I questioned her about it, she accused me of reading her mind and blamed it all on me for never being around for her.”
“What a bitch!” Melody crossed her arms over her chest angrily.
He couldn’t stop the smile that rose on his lips; he found it adorable that she would be furious on his behalf. “The cheating was not my fault. That was on her. But it was true that I was away for my work a lot.”
“I don’t care. You don’t cheat on a person. If it’s not working, just tell them it’s not working. I had a similar thing happen with me. I thought I was in love with this guy, Michael. At first it was great, he would come to every one of my shows and show support. Then, a year into the relationship he slowly stopped coming to my show. One night, the gig I was supposed to perform at was cancelled, so I went home early and found him in bed with my next-door neighbor. It ripped my heart out.”
An image came to him of the male she was talking about; he could see his pitifully pale face and of the moment she caught him cheating. It was like a little movie playing in his head with no sound. Then the strangest thing happened. He heard her cry out in despair. It was like her soul reached out to his, through time, and he couldn’t help but answer her.
He leaned over and kissed her. No more denying what he was feeling. He wanted Melody more than his next breath.
*****
Melody was on fire. Everywhere StrykER touched her fed the flames of her desire. She wasn’t sure if he pulled her onto his lap or if she went there on her own but she somehow ended up straddling his lap.
She yanked at his shirt, trying to get to his skin. He helped her, chuckling when she expressed frustration. She raised her arms and let him pull the shirt up over her. She didn’t have any underwear that was clean to put on so she was completely naked.
