Stealing Coal

by Laurann Dohner

  He gently placed the tool he gripped on the casing of the unit. His mouth was grim. “Why would you come to that incorrect conclusion?”

  “You won’t listen to me when I tell you I know what I want to do. Every time I try to tell you, you cut me off or walk away. If you didn’t mean it, if you asked in haste, and you’ve decided it wasn’t such a hot idea now that we’re not all hot and sweaty after sex, just say it. I’m getting really frustrated with you shutting me down.”

  Coal rose to his feet and stepped around the obstacle between them. He crouched down next to her side, the black leather outfit he wore now made a slight squeaking noise. He nearly touched her but kept a few inches separating their bodies. His gaze held hers.

  “I’m afraid you will say no and I am not ready to hear it if that is your answer. Every moment we spend together gives me hope I can convince you I’m worthy of you giving up the way of life you’ve become accustomed to. You won’t be able to continue to trade if you decide to join a family unit with me. I’m a cyborg and, as you once told me, traders would get a high price for me and it would put you at high risk every time you came into contact with them because they’d attempt to take me from the Jenny. The only thing I’ve changed my mind about is offering to remain in space with you. We need to live on a planet where you’re safe. ”

  Her eyebrows rose. She didn’t care where they lived as long as they were together. The only thing he’d said that had her reeling were three words. “A family unit?”

  He scowled suddenly. “Of course. I am that serious about you. Did you believe I’d ask you to give up everything and offer you nothing in return? It’s the equivalence of marriage, to my people. It’s a deep commitment we would make to one another.”

  Tears blinded her. “You’re asking me to marry you?”

  He closed his eyes. “This is why I wish to delay your answer. I’ve upset you.”

  She turned and her knee bumped his inner thigh as she gripped his leather shirt. She didn’t like the outfit all the cyborgs wore. She preferred him walking around shirtless in ill-fitting pants. She wanted to touch his hot, bare skin rather than the thick leather her fingers clutched.

  “Yes.”

  Dark eyes snapped open to stare at her uncomprehendingly.

  “Yes. I’ll marry you or be a family unit with you, whatever you want to call it, but yes!”

  A grin slowly spread across his handsome face. “Yes?”

  She nodded, grinning back. “Hell yes. Is that better?”

  He sucked in air, his chest expanding. “Are you sure? It is a lot for you to give up for me.”

  “It’s not. You said I could keep the Jenny and my guys. Trading?” She snorted. “I hated that job and I sure won’t miss dealing with all the lowlife creeps I’ve had to put up with. I have no idea what I’ll do now to help support us on your planet but a year ago I never saw myself in this line of work. I’ll adjust and we’ll have each other. That’s all that matters to me.”

  Coal’s body slid forward until his knees hit the deck. “You’re one hundred percent certain? I don’t want to feel this happiness only to have it torn away if you change your mind.”

  Jill lifted her boot over one of his thighs and scooted off her seat, right onto his lap, her legs wrapping around his hips. His hands gripped her ass, holding her in place, and she grinned at him.

  “I’ve never been surer of anything in my life.”

  “I’ll fill out the paperwork immediately and transmit it to Garden.” His grin widened even more. “They won’t refuse my request to form a family unit with you. Because of my history of abuse at the hands of the cyborg females I am permitted special consideration.”

  “I don’t know what that means but as long as they allow it, great.”

  He chuckled. “They will allow it.”

  “So do we have a ceremony?”

  “We could if you wish but it just involves putting in a request, being approved, and then I need to sign the agreement. There’s no need for you to worry about a job. I will take care of you and your way of thinking in terms of financial issues is irrelevant with my people. We don’t have a monetary system on Garden.”

  “Coal, I have something to tell you.”

  His features froze and the smile died. “What is it?”

  He braced for bad news. It was so obvious that Jill had to resist grinning at the humor of the situation, considering what she wanted to share with him hopefully would be the exact opposite.

  “I’m in love with you.”

  He gaped at her and then, to her utter surprise, tears filled his eyes, slid down both cheeks, and his hands slid from her ass. If it wasn’t for her fingers gripping his shirt and her legs secured around his hips she would have hit the deck. His body seemed to totally go lax until he swayed where he crouched on his knees.

  “Coal?” Alarm gripped her. “Are you all right? Did I say something wrong? Speak to me.”

  He suddenly moved, his arms wrapping around her, and she gasped when her body ended up smashed tightly against his when he roughly jerked her against him. He clutched her so firmly she could barely breathe, his face pressing tightly into the cradle of her shoulder and neck. His hot tears wet her shirt.

  She clung to him, had to fight to free her hands, trapped between their chests, to wrap them around his ribs to his back. Her arms held him as hard as she could, hugging him.

  “Coal?”

  He just held her for a good minute until some of the tension left in his body and his fierce hold on her eased slightly. He lifted his head, his dark eyes still swimming with tears when she met his gaze.

  “I didn’t mean to upset you, honey.”

  He slowly smiled. “You love me.”

  Jill studied him closely, seeing happiness through his tears, and nodded. “I really do love you. I didn’t mean to make you cry.”

  One of his arms released her and he tentatively touched his face, wiping at the wetness that he discovered there, seeming shocked at the tears. His cheeks seemed to darken slightly and then his smile widened.

  “I’m happy.”

  Jill blinked rapidly. “I’m so glad to hear that.”

  “I believe I’m in love with you too. I’m not sure exactly what love is but you are everything to me, Jill. My chest hurts right now and I can’t stop the tears. I feel that much joy.”

  “Oh hell,” she muttered, letting her own tears fall. “That’s love, honey. We’re in love with each other.”

  “I’m never going to let you go.” He leaned closer until his nose touched hers, staring into her eyes deeply. “I am going to make you as happy as you make me. I will die to protect you.”

  “What the hell?” A familiar male voice interrupted. “Is everything cool here? What happened? Is someone hurt?”

  Coal turned his head and grinned at Sky, who had entered the cargo hold from the Star without them hearing him. “She loves me and I love her.”

  Jill blinked back more tears, turning her head to grin at the gray-haired cyborg who gaped at the both of them. He put his hands on his hips and then flashed them an amused smile.

  “I’m glad to hear it. You’re a cute couple though a little wet at the moment. It’s a good thing I didn’t wait another minute from the way you’re wrapped around each other.” He chuckled. “I came to tell you that Flint is on his way. We’re approaching the edge of the solar system and Jill’s contact has been hailing the Jenny for the past few minutes. Onyx tried to reach you but you weren’t answering your com, Coal. You may want to break it up before Flint thinks he’s interrupting you two about to nail each other on the deck there.”

  Coal frowned. “Why would we do something painful and unusual? I’d never harm Jill.”

  Jill suddenly laughed. “He means having sex on the floor. Nailing each other is slang for that.”

  “Yeah. What she said.” Sky shook his head. “I swear, I’m going to give a damn class to teach them how to understand Earth lingo.”

  A chuckle esc
aped Jill. “Don’t. I think it’s adorable.” She winked at Coal. “You’re so cute.”

  Coal smiled at her. “Really?”

  “I think I prefer you grunting and groaning over listening to the lovey-dovey crap.” Sky turned his head. “Here comes Flint. I hear his boots. The guy really needs to learn how to walk instead of stomp.”

  Jill moved first, struggling to unwind her limbs from around Coal. His strong hands gripped her, easing her to her feet before he rose. She wiped at her tears, turning and reaching for Coal’s face. He leaned down enough to let her use her thumbs to brush away his tears too. The sounds of something striking the ramp made the three of them turn.

  “What is going on?” Flint frowned, coming to a halt just inside the cargo hold, his gaze darting between the three of them.

  “They just realized they are in love.” Sky chuckled. “And I interrupted them about to have intercourse right there where they are standing.”

  A blush warmed Jill’s cheeks but she met the dark-haired cyborg’s gaze without flinching. “Sky said that David has been trying to reach me?”

  Flint cleared his throat. “Yes. I had Onyx respond, pretending to be you since you use a voice modifier when speaking to the human males. He’s acquired a team to break Councilman Zorus from where he’s being kept. They have already located where he is and have hatched a plot to rescue him. Onyx allowed me to listen in on the communication and it sounded like a more reasonable, safer solution than sending cyborgs to the planet surface. I had Onyx agree to the plan and the payment they demanded. By tomorrow, Councilman Zorus should be free. The mercenaries hired to retrieve him will meet up with us on your shuttle in two days at the outer edge of the solar system where we’d originally agreed to meet David.”

  “That’s fast.” Jill nodded. “I told you David would have contacts on Earth to get stuff done. He probably knows all kinds of thugs. He’s got to buy his wares from people who are skilled at stealing stuff to sell the illegal crap he offers. I’ve even heard of slavers kidnapping women from the surface to sell to the floating whorehouses and it wouldn’t surprise me if David sold people too. Paying someone to kidnap a cyborg shouldn’t be that much of a stretch for those kinds of creeps.”

  Flint nodded. “You were correct. He asked for half payment up front but I remembered your warning not to pay until the mission is complete. He wasn’t happy but he agreed to the terms.”

  “Right.” She nodded. “As I said, these guys aren’t real trustworthy but when money is involved you can count on them until they are paid.”

  Coal took a step toward Flint, smiling. “I wish to contact the council to formally request forming a family unit with Jill.”

  The instant grin softened Flint’s normally harsh features. “I’m happy for you and I’m certain they will agree.” His gaze flicked to Jill. “Coal has been given special consideration and, as such, there is no breeding pact in his case. That’s one big obstacle you will not have to confront.”

  Confused, Jill glanced up at Coal. “What’s that?”

  He shook his head, smiling at her. “Something you never have to worry about. You are the only female for me for the rest of my life. I vow total monogamy.”

  Her eyebrows rose. “I’m glad to hear that and later I’m going to have you explain that to me in detail.” She didn’t want to have that discussion in front of Sky and Flint. She glanced at the latter. “Is it going to be all right with you to haul my shuttle to your planet? I’d like to keep her. I know she’s outdated and slow but she’s special to me.”

  “Humans become attached easily to objects,” Sky said softly. “That’s normal.”

  Flint shrugged, glancing around the cargo hold. “We have the room. I don’t see why not.” His gaze fixed on Jill suddenly. “If Coal wishes to return to Garden with you, they will not allow you to fly this back into space. You’ll know the location of our home world and therefore pose a risk if you were ever captured by Earth Government. Your shuttle would be flown to the planet surface and the engines decommissioned.”

  She had to adjust to that little bit of news. Coal moved behind her, his arms wrapping around her waist, and she easily leaned back into his body. She nodded.

  “That’s okay as long as we’re together.”

  “Good.” Flint grinned suddenly, taking another look at the inside of the Jenny. “It is probably safer if you don’t continue to fly this thing for much longer. It’s very outdated.”

  “I have a question.” Coal hesitated, glancing at Jill and then Flint. “Jill mentioned that she used to live on a farm on Earth. Do you believe the council would allow me to have some of the undeveloped land near the north wall of the city? They’ve started growing food in that section but it is vast enough that they may not need to use all of it. I don’t know how happy Jill will be if we live in the center of the city.”

  A grin spread across Jill’s lips as she tilted her head up, gazing with love at Coal. “Really? I think I’d love that. I miss trees and fresh air.” She paused. “Does your planet have that? We haven’t really talked about it. I’m hoping it’s not a biodome similar to the ones on the moon and Saturn.”

  “It’s very similar to Earth,” Flint offered with a smile. “There is more water content and less land mass but it’s still beautiful where Earth has been overdeveloped. The air is good and the vegetation is lush. The only city on the planet is the one we’ve built.”

  “There are no other life forms?” That surprised Jill. If it had an Earthlike environment then life forms should exist.

  “There are plenty of them but we built a wall to surround our city.”

  “Is what lives there dangerous?” She hoped not.

  “Not within our walls. We didn’t want to compromise the natural inhabitants or for them to pose a risk to us. It works well.” Flint smiled. “I see no reason why the council would oppose it if you chose to live on the outer edge of the city. Perhaps they could put you in charge of some of our agriculture projects.”

  “I’d enjoy that.” Hope shone in Coal’s eyes.

  “Me too,” Jill grinned, memories of her childhood on the farm surfacing. She’d been in space far too long and the idea of fresh air, open land, and vegetation sounded heavenly to her.

  “You two have some time to work out all the details.” Flint grinned. “For the next day, relax. We’re going to fly the Jenny out of the cargo bay in the morning to use it for the last part of the trip. The Star and the Rally will remain here.”

  “The Rally?” Jill hadn’t heard that name before.

  “It’s the smaller ship traveling with the Star,” Flint explained. We wanted extra weaponry in case we needed it. I’m leaving my friend Ice in charge of both while we’re away.”

  “We could use some help to make repairs faster,” Coal spoke.

  “That’s fine.” He turned to Sky. “I’m returning to spend time with Mira. She’s worried about this mission and I won’t allow her to go. Do what you can here.”

  “Who is Mira?” Jill waited until Flint left her shuttle before asking.

  Coal grinned down at her. “He’s in a family unit with a human woman.”

  Jill smiled. “That’s cool.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Jill couldn’t decide who looked more nervous as they assembled in the cargo hold of the Jenny to make the transfer to get the cyborg councilman back. They’d reached their meeting point with the smuggler crew. The Cutter, a shuttle larger than the Jenny, had just docked with them. The doors opened to allow the captain of the other shuttle to enter.

  Flint met the man calmly. Jill could see how stunned the human guy seemed to be, surrounded by so many cyborgs, though there were only a handful of them. The captain appeared to be in his mid-to-late forties and as she watched, his expression changed. Rage contorted his features.

  “Who owns this shuttle?”

  The question startled Jill, along with everyone in the cargo hold. She stepped forward. “I do. I’m the one who asked David to
hire you.”

  The captain of the other shuttle pointed his weapon straight at Jill. Fear gripped her but then movement from her left drew her attention from the dangerous adversary. Coal moved between them, putting his body in the path of the gun to shield her.

  “Lower your gun,” Flint ordered.

  “My problem isn’t with your men,” the captain kept his voice calm. “Make that one move out of my way. I’m guessing you hired this shuttle to bring you here the way you hired me to bring your cyborg to you. That bitch is in possession of my property.”

  “Coal, stand down,” Flint ordered. “It’s a human issue.”

  Coal didn’t budge. “No.”

  “That’s an order he gave you, Coal.” Onyx’s voice grew cold. “We need the human male to get councilman Zorus back. He has him on his ship. She’s irrelevant in comparison to our mission, according to the council. Stand aside.”

  Coal took a step back, his body bumping into Jill’s, and his arm slipped behind his waist to curve around hers. He jerked her tighter against his body, holding her in place. “I’ll protect her with my life.”

  Jill gripped his shirt, clinging to him, terrified he’d get shot pulling this stunt. She had no idea why the shuttle captain seemed intent on shooting her or what he thought she had that he owned.

  “Coal?” She said his name softly. “It’s okay. I don’t want you to get hurt.”

  “You’re going to die, you thieving bitch,” the captain called out. “Although I plan to hurt you first to make you tell me who you obtained my shuttle from.”

  A frown marred her features and she bent sideways a little to peer at the enraged man. “Your shuttle? The Jenny is mine.”

  “Bullshit. It belonged to my partner and everything he owned became mine when he died.”

  He aimed at her face but Coal jerked her farther behind him to put her out of the line of fire. A deep growl came from the protective cyborg while his entire body turned rigid.

  “Lower your weapon, Captain Varel,” Flint ordered. “If you shoot him, I will have to kill you. What is the problem exactly?”