by Amy Lane
C.J.’s smile was perfectly content. “I wouldn’t have argued, oh mighty man-leader, but I’m thinking you’ve got something in mind.”
“Yeah,” Anderson told him. “I figured a small ceremony before we go up to the station at the end of leave.”
C.J. rolled over onto his stomach and raised his eyebrows. “We? As in both of us?”
Anderson nodded and placed random kisses on C.J.’s shoulder, his ear, his cheek. “Yeah—now that the foundation’s been established, your dad can run it and ask me questions by monitor, and you and me, we can… you know. Work. Live. Have a life. A real one, together.”
For a moment, C.J. looked concerned. “What about therapy? Jensen, Molly—do they know about this?”
Anderson nodded soberly. Dealing with the change in routine was going to be a challenge—but Jensen thought he was up to it. “I’ve been cleared for the vid screen. For three months, as long as they get me in the morning, my ass is yours noon and night.”
C.J.’s smile was dazzlingly white, even in the light of the two yellow moons. “Aw, sweetie, that’s almost a romantic proposal or something. Which job are you taking?”
Anderson’s grin was one hundred percent little kid, and he knew it. Hell, he figured he was due. “The one at the hub.”
C.J. laughed, his naked body balling up as he hugged a pillow to his stomach and chortled until his stomach was probably sore. “Perfect,” he gasped. “Absolutely perfect. You’re amazing. I can’t wait.”
Anderson’s smile relaxed, grew serious, and he studied C.J. with a suddenly tight throat. “Good,” he said. “Because I waited long enough for you.”
C.J. rolled his eyes. “You waited to land, baby. I was just a perk.”
Anderson shook his head, absolutely positive that he was right in this and C.J. was wrong. “No. If I had landed with anyone else, I’d still be lost in the space of my head. C.J., you’re the only person on the planet who could find me when I didn’t even know I was missing.”
C.J. grabbed the blanket and pulled it over his shoulders. “You overestimate me, Anderson, but that’s okay. You keep doing that, and I’ll keep living up to it. We’ll be fine.”
“Don’t look so worried!” Anderson chided, and C.J. bundled closer into the blanket. Anderson didn’t like that at all. He tugged on the blanket and insinuated himself over C.J.’s slightly larger body. Anderson wanted to be the blanket. It was the least he could do.
“I don’t ever want to let you down,” C.J. whispered.
“Impossible,” Anderson whispered back. “Now kiss me so you can get it up and nail me into the bed, and then tomorrow, we can figure out how to get married on your planet so no one else feels like they can just move in on your turf.”
C.J. grinned then, and the moment lightened. “Now that’s something I can do!”
THE month passed quickly, and the ceremony too. It was small—a civil ceremony, since most religious practices on Hermes-Eight were personal ones celebrated among families and not in the public venues anyway. The union was notarized and recorded in a civil court and then celebrated in C.J.’s backyard with C.J.’s parents, Jensen and Molly, Cassie and Marshall, and a few other close friends, including Julio, who had come planetside especially to attend.
The next day they were giddy, and a little bit hungover, and they barely made the shuttle as it was preparing to launch.
Julio laughed at them as he held the door so the flight attendant could get to his other duties. “You two, geez, whose idea was it, anyway, to get married and then fly straight to work.”
“His!” C.J. laughed. “But I agreed, so I can’t complain!”
“I just wanted a ring on his finger before he got back to the station,” Anderson said grumpily. He’d heard enough stories from Jensen in the past month to want to make damned sure that C.J. was claimed in front of every species that ventured into Anderson’s territory. He knew it made him more Alpha than he was used to, but at this point he didn’t care. C.J. was his. There was no other option.
“Well, settle in, you two, we’ve got twelve hours during which you can’t get naked. I know it’s going to be a hardship, so brace yourselves.”
From behind Julio, Cassidy giggled, the sound muffled against her husband’s chest. They were returning, too, and Anderson was looking forward to having family around him as he settled into his new life.
C.J. flipped his family off and settled into the window seat, ignoring Anderson’s, “Hey!” in protest.
“You can look over my shoulder,” C.J. said, then grinned. “You can sit closer that way.”
Anderson raised his eyebrows and they settled in, both of them tired and clearly planning to nap once the shuttle cleared Hermes-Eight-Prime.
“Hey,” said Julio as he settled in himself. “I forgot to ask you two. Where’s Anderson working stationside? You never said!”
“Now that’s not right!” C.J. admonished, and Anderson grimaced.
“Jeez, Anderson,” Cassidy chided. “Isn’t Julio the reason you got the job?”
“Yeah, I’m sorry. It’s true. I should have thanked you already!” Social niceties—they were never going to come easy.
“You’re welcome. So what are you doing?” Julio asked avidly, and Anderson grinned. He couldn’t help it. It was every boy’s dream job, and damned if he hadn’t earned it.
“One of the hub’s entertainment companies hired me. I’m going to design a holo-amusement park for the hub.”
Julio laughed from the stomach, honestly amused. “That is far too much fun for you, my man. We’re going to have to pull you up to the station for some real work.”
Anderson shook his head. “Nope, I’m not gonna let ya!”
C.J. grinned over his shoulder. “Don’t do that, Jules. See, the thing is, we spent my entire leave on ‘research trips’, and we get cut-line passes and everything.”
“Aww!” Julio groaned, clearly disgusted by that much fun being had by two grown men. “You two, go away. I’m not speaking to you. Next time, you’d better fucking invite me!”
They laughed, giddy with expectation, when the intercom came on and they fastened their gravity belts to get ready for take-off.
“You nervous?” C.J. asked, and Anderson realized abruptly that this was the first time he’d taken off in a shuttle since his sister had thrown him on one nearly thirteen years ago in order to save his life.
He thought about it, then shook his head. “No,” he said somberly. “Not even a little.”
“No?”
“No.” He leaned over and gave C.J. a kiss on the cheek. “This time, I know exactly where I’m going and who I want with me. It’s not a dream, baby. You’re all real.”
C.J. smiled softly. “Believe it.”
Anderson did. The shuttle engine whined, and the small craft started to rattle as it maneuvered into place to take off. Anderson held C.J.’s hand and looked out the window—he could hardly wait for the wheels to leave the ground.
Stationside, planetside—it didn’t matter where they were. As long as C.J. was with him, he knew he’d landed home.
About the Author
AMY LANE is a mother of four and a compulsive knitter who writes because she can’t silence the voices in her head. She adores cats, knitting socks, and hawt menz, and she dislikes moths, cat boxes, and knuckle-headed macspazzmatrons. She is rarely found cooking, cleaning, or doing domestic chores, but she has been known to knit up an emergency hat/blanket/pair of socks for any occasion whatsoever or sometimes for no reason at all. She writes in the shower, while commuting, while taxiing children to soccer/dance/karate/oh my! and has learned from necessity to type like the wind. She lives in a spider-infested, crumbling house in a shoddy suburb and counts on her beloved Mate, Mack, to keep her tethered to reality—which he does while keeping her cell phone charged as a bonus. She’s been married for twenty-plus years and still believes in Twu Wuv, with a capital Twu and a capital Wuv, and she doesn’t see any reason at all for that to cha
nge.
Visit Amy’s web site at http://www.greenshill.com . You can e-mail her at [email protected].
Also by AMY LANE
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Steampunk Romance from DREAMSPINNER PRESS
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Table of Contents
Copyright
Acknowledgments
Part 1: Anderson
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Part 2: C.J.
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Part 3: Anderson
Chapter 15
Part 4: C.J.
Chapter 16
Part 5: Anderson
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Part 6: C.J.
Chapter 19
Part 7: Anderson
Chapter 20
About the Author
Also by Amy Lane
Steampunk Romance from Dreamspinner Press
