by Maya Carnage
The guards.
The only way to get through them would be to slaughter them, and Rosalind doesn’t want that, she thinks to herself, glancing at Gregor.
The fire’s light casts shadows over his face, but it doesn’t hide the tense set to his jaw. Embers float up into the sky, and she leans her head back to let her gaze follow them into oblivion. The warmth of the flames does nothing to smother the chill inside her.
She shivers, closing her eyes.
They ran through the woods for hours. Even when her feet began to ache and sweat drenched her body, she kept on running because there was no other choice. If they stopped too soon, they could have gotten caught. They still can, but they won’t be able to fight if they are exhausted. So, here they are in the middle of the wood sitting around a fire.
Maisie and Pax huddle together with her head on his shoulder. Her large blue eyes lost in the fire’s flames, and he stares down at her with worry. He probably knows how perilous it is to love a human. They are weak, and they die easily. Fear’s clawing at his guts.
Rosalind swallows down the rise of emotion as she gets up from her seat on the ground. With quick strides, she leaves the small camp behind. The emotions of love and fear and anger are too much, and they are eating her alive. She’s still reeling from the battle at the mansion. She doesn’t want to feel anymore tonight.
No. What she wants to do is to be far enough away from them that their emotions are nothing but a light buzz in the background, then she can breathe easy again.
When the fire fades out to a small ball of light, she plops down on the ground.
The dirt’s wet.
As awful as it is to admit to herself, she’d love to be back in her four-poster bed instead of lying on this hard, wet ground.
A twig snaps.
She turns her head, watching as Gregor approaches.
“It’s not safe out here by yourself,” he says.
“Don’t worry. I’ll shout if there’s any danger.” She looks back up at the stars.
He hesitates, standing there and staring down at her. Then the next thing she knows he’s lying beside on her the earth with his arm pressed against hers.
“What are you doing?” she whispers.
He grabs her hand. “None of us should be alone.”
He’s right. Although, the reason that pops into her head isn’t the same as his. He’s thinking about protection. All that’s on her mind is that she wants to feel his lips on hers again. She needs it as much as she needed to get away from Maisie and Pax.
The desire lodges itself in her head, and without considering the consequences, she turns to him and kisses him.
Chapter Fourteen
Gregor
Her soft lips touch his, and shock penetrates his soul. Wide-eyed, he stares at her without responding to her kiss. This is the last thing he expected to happen. Hell, he thought she would get pissed at him over his remarks from earlier. This was the furthest thing from his mind, but when her hand lands on his chest, above his racing heart, he stops lying there like a dumbass.
She moans as he pushes her onto her back. Kneeing her legs apart, he settles in the cradle of her thighs, and he rocks his cock against her jean covered cunt.
Rosalind wraps her legs around his waist, and her boots dig into his ass as she clutches him to her. “I don’t blame you for what you did,” she says between kisses. “I would have done the same for the rebels.”
He places his hands on either side of her head, lifting off her enough to look at her face. “You really want to talk about that now?”
She nods. “I’m not going to sleep with you while you think I hate you.”
“You don’t have to explain anything to me, Rosalind.” He leans back down, capturing her bottom lip with his teeth. When she hisses from the pain, he thrusts his tongue into her mouth, groaning.
She grabs his head, pulling him away from her. “You don’t want to lose your honor. You don’t want to fight your family, and I get that. Back at the house, I said that I wouldn’t make you choose, but that’s because I didn’t want you not to choose me. I don’t feel that way anymore. I want you to choose the option that you will be able to live with. And if I was in your place, I know which one I would choose.”
He moves down her body. His lips trace a path down her neck, nibbling as he goes. She shivers and moves her hands to his back, where she digs her nails into his muscles.
The strength in her thighs as they grip him and the sting of her nails digging into his skin makes his cock ache. Thrusting harder against her, he grasps the edge of her shirt with one hand to take it off her. She sits up just enough to make the task easier, and with her abdominals trembling, she undoes her bra.
Gregor swallows around the sudden lump in his throat. “You’re fucking beautiful.”
“So are you,” she says softly.
He rests his forehead against her. Closing his eyes, he feels the warmth of her breath on his face. With a deep inhale, he takes her into his body, wanting to hold her there forever. “I wish I could pick you.”
A choked sob leaves her. She moves her hands to stroke his face. “I know, I know, I know.” She presses her lips to his, dragging her tongue across the seam of his mouth.
He tangles his fingers in her hair as he deepens the kiss. Without remorse, he takes everything she’s willing to give him. He doesn’t deserve her or this small moment, but he’s a selfish bastard so he’ll take it while he can.
They struggle out of their boots and pants until their bare bodies lie entwine on the earth. His hand is between her thighs. His mouth is locked with hers, swallowing her moans and cries.
“Please,” she whispers, reaching down, she drags his hand away from her, then wraps her delicate fingers around his throbbing cock. She positions it against her opening. “I want you.”
He surges forward, and groans as her tight sheath envelop him. Holding himself still above her, he waits for her body to adjust to his size. He shifts to his forearms, pressing his face into the small space between her neck and shoulder.
Her fingers trail up and down his spine as he kisses her neck. “Make love to me.”
He lifts up to meet her eyes. “I’m only good at fucking.” He drops his head, placing a kiss on her parted lips, then he begins to thrust in and out of her cunt. She wraps her arms around him, and he drops his head to hers.
“Gregor,” she moans. The soft whimpers coming out of her make him want to rut like a beast into her, but he holds himself back, barely.
They move together; her hips meet each downward drive of his body. The sounds of their flesh slapping and the thrusts of his cock into her wetness fill the space around them until the background noise becomes nothing but a faint buzz.
Shifting back onto his knees, he reaches back and takes hold of her knees and pulls her up as he kneels between her thighs. “Look at me,” he demands as his hips begin to slam into her.
Rosalind’s gaze doesn’t waver. She locks her eyes with his, extending her arms above her head as she arches her back. Her cunt ripples around his length, and he grits his teeth to keep from coming. Her nails dig into the dirt as she groans, and as she comes down, her chest heaves with each panting breath. She smiles at him, chuckling. “I never knew it could feel like that.”
“I’m not done yet,” he says, letting go of her legs. He covers her body with his and reaches up to take her hands in his. His cock never leaves her body, and he goes on thrusting into her soaking pussy until another climax makes her scream his name.
Gregor groans as the base of his spine tingles with his impending release. His thrusts turn rough and erratic, hamming in and out of her. He squeezes his eyes shut as he comes. He releases her hands to press his fists into the ground, anchoring him there as he rocks into her.
Rosalind’s soft hands stroke his shoulders and neck. “You’ve never been this peaceful before.”
He pulls out of her, and she grimaces. Moving to lie beside her, he tugs her over
to rest on his chest. She settles her head into the crook of his shoulder, laying her hand on top of his heart.
“Are you always so nosey after sex?” he asks.
She laughs. “Yes, it’s the best time to question a man because his brain is still a liquidy mess.”
“We’re on the run from men who probably want to kill us, but being here with you makes me happy. It feels right.”
“Me too.”
He wraps his arm around her. Leaning down, he kisses the top of her head. Her springy curls tickle his nose, and he smiles. She’s as spirited as her hair.
I’m going to miss her. He frowns, looking down at her he realizes he doesn’t want to let her go, but the only way to keep her is to betray the Malviks and fight them. He’d have to fight other cyborgs.
And he doesn’t know if he can do that.
Chapter Fifteen
Rosalind
“I’m no stranger to hard work, but trekking through the woods in the middle of summer is a pain,” Maisie says. “I’m drowning in my own sweat, guys.”
“We’re an hour or two from the hiding spot,” Rosalind says without looking at her friend. Her eyes are locked on Gregor’s back as he trudges through the knee-high weeds.
To protect themselves from the Malviks finding them they’ve stuck to staying deep in the woods. The foliage around them, vines and trees crisscrossing each due to overgrowth, blanket the outside world, and it sends chills up her spine. Sunlight streams down through the dense canopy above their heads like spotlights. She feels vulnerable each time she steps into one, and so she tries to walk around them whenever she can, but sometimes there are roots protruding from the ground, and she is forced to walk through the beam of light.
Her mind is consumed by her worries about the Malviks and guards who are no doubt coming after them. She hasn’t had the time to think about last night, but she wants to more than anything.
She’s dying to relive each tantalizing moment in vivid memory. Gregor isn’t the first man she’s slept with, but he is the most skilled. She never knew she could feel an orgasm in every nerve of her body. The pleasure coursed through her veins and set her body on fire. She didn’t want it to end, but they both needed to get some sleep for what was ahead.
“I hope you’re wrong, and it’s right around the corner,” Maisie says, panting.
“If Pax is correct about Zekk moving the ship to one of the rebels’ meeting places to wait for us, then we still have a way to go,” she says.
“Well, I’m never doing this again. Next time I’m just going to let y’all fight by yourselves. To damn with being a good person.” Maisie mutters under her breath as she yanks her hair back, braiding it messily. There’s nothing for her to tie it back, so she bends down and breaks a piece of long grass off and uses it as a makeshift hair tie.
“It’s brutal now, but once we get to the ship, we can stuff our faces with food and take a hot shower.”
“They better have some cake on that ship because that’s the only thing that can keep me from biting someone’s head off.”
“They’ll have cake,” Rosalind says, chuckling.
For the next hour and a half, no one speaks. Maisie does continue to mutter under her breath, but she doesn’t speak loud enough for Rosalind to understand her. The birds and chickadees serenade them as they make their way through the woods to the ship.
Gregor stays in the lead the whole time, and Pax hangs back behind her and Maisie. It’s to keep them safe, but all Rosalind wants to do is shout that she is more than capable of handling herself in a fight and so is Maisie.
The two of them have gotten into plenty of battles before those two guys and each time they came out all right. Yeah, there was a bruise or two. A cracked rib in one case, but they are still alive because they know how to protect themselves.
Rosalind isn’t a shouter, but the heat is getting to her. Plus, her stomach has been growling nonstop for the last hour. Being tired and hungry puts her in a foul mood. She’s probably going to need some cake right along with Maisie.
“It looks like you were right, after all, Pax,” Gregor says as he comes to a stop.
Rosalind looks up and sees that they have come to the end of the woods. A clearing stretches out in front of them, and in the middle is the pirate’s ship.
She smiles as she hurries to Gregor’s side. “I really thought the Malviks would have gotten us before we made here.”
“They’ll still try, but not until they know what they are up against. The Malviks aren’t stupid. When they attack, they will make sure the odds are in their favor,” he says. Gregor wraps his arm around her shoulders, tucking her into his side. “Let’s go before Maisie decides to attack us in her hunger induce delirium.”
“I heard that,” Maisie snaps.
Rosalind glance back behind her. Maisie glares at them, sweat coats her face and her braid has come undone. Her wild curls frizz out around her head, and there are a few fallen leaves caught in the strands. Rosalind opens her mouth to tell her about them, but when Maisie’s glower deepens, she decides it’s best to wait and tell her later. Or someone else can tell her and face her wrath. Rosalind doesn’t feel like having her head bitten off.
“Let’s cross our fingers that there’s cake,” she whispers to Gregor.
He grins down at her. “If not, we can always sacrifice Pax in the hopes that it will appease her.”
Pax snorts from behind them.
“Are we going to stand here all damn day?” Maisie pushes past them and strides toward the ship with Pax following behind her.
Gregor squeezes her arm. “You ready?”
She’s about to yes, but at the last second, she realizes that she isn’t. When they get on that ship, the timer starts for when he has to leave. She’ll have to say goodbye, and she doesn’t know if they will ever be together again. It’s not surprising or debilitating because she’s known this since she first met him. Maybe even before he came into her life, but none of that matters.
She loves him.
It happened at some point without her knowing. If she had, she would have tried to stop it, but falling in love is never easy. When it happens, it happens swiftly but sharply. Love pierces your heart with its iron blade, driving itself into your heart. With each beat, it floods your veins until it is running through your entire body. Love isn’t just an emotion.
She is an empath! She knows emotions better than anyone because when she is in a crowded room with angry people the anger suffocates her, but if she walks out and puts enough space between her and them, she’s fine. It’s gone in a second.
Love doesn’t, though.
What’s so interesting though is that she’s rarely felt true love from another person, but when it does happen, it takes possession of her body. She can’t run away from that emotion because it bleeds into her soul. It will still be with her hours later when she’s by herself in her room. It hums inside her, making her warm until it fades away.
She loves Gregor, but he won’t abandon his honor. If she walks onto that ship, she will have to say goodbye.
“Rosie?” Gregor frowns at her.
Stepping back out of his arms, she takes his hands in hers. “I don’t want to lose you. You just came into my life, and none of this makes any sense, but you feel right. Okay? You feel like home, and it’s been a really, really long time since I’ve felt that. I don’t want to give that up. I don’t know anyone who would, but I’m going to because you’re going back to them. The enemy. That’s a crappy thing for me to say, but it’s the truth, and I get why you’re doing it, but that doesn’t help my heart.”
“I can’t destroy my own kind,” he says with a thick voice. “When I betrayed Axe, it was because I didn’t want to be weak. Years ago, I spared the lives of humans. The Malviks punished me, but it didn’t end there. My actions led to the creation of the rebels. It’s the reason so many people have gotten executed.”
She drops his hands to grasp his face. “People were kille
d because the Malviks are monsters! It’s not your fault there’s discord, Gregor. Humans are slaves. Even if the rebels weren’t forged, people would still fight. Humanity is resilient. The Malviks’ reign isn’t enough to keep us down. It never will be, but you and the rest of the cyborgs can give back our freedom.”
“What about those the Malviks brainwashed? We might be able to convince most of the cyborgs on Earth to join the rebellion, but not the Malviks’ guards. They won’t leave their sides.” Gregor grabs her hands, pulling them away from his face. He places his lips on one of her palms. Closing his eyes, he kisses her. “I love you, but I won’t abandon them.”
He drops her hands, walking away.
Chapter Sixteen
Gregor
Axe glares at him from the other end of the table. It’s only the two of them in the room, but he can hear cyborgs and rebels scurrying through the hall outside.
No one stops to eavesdrop, but that’s because Zekk wants to leave soon. They have to make sure the rescued rebels, and some humans from the agriculture farm that they picked up before going to the mansion, are given rooms and beds for them to rest. The cyborgs who are going back to Teraz with them brought weapons for the rebellion, and they are putting them away before taking off.
Gregor will need to exit the ship soon, but he stays planted in this seat because Axe wants to talk. Hopefully, he’ll say whatever the hell it is he wants to say. The room is thick with anger and irritation. The latter is Gregor’s emotion.
He’s not a child that needs rebuking. He’s a grown fucking man, and his decisions are his own. Axe betrayed the Malviks. Gregor fucked up by betraying Axe, but that doesn’t mean he wants to be scolded by Axe.
The self-righteous prick can shove his opinions up his ass.
“Kayla and Dawn want you dead,” Axe says, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the table.
