Colt glanced down at Pax. He was concerned with the way Pax was standing. His body posture was so stiff Colt wondered if he’d break in half. Colt laid a tentative hand on Pax’s shoulder, sighing deeply when Pax jumped and jerked away.
“Are you okay, Pax?”
“I’m fine, thank you.”
When Pax started to walk away, Colt stepped in front of him. He reached down and grabbed Pax’s chin and raised his face. Pax’s eyes remained downcast, his thick black eyelashes brushing against his paler-than-normal blue cheeks.
“Paxton, look at me please.”
Pax slowly raised his eyes. The frightened look in them nearly broke Colt’s heart. No one, especially his mate, should have that look of fear in his eyes. Colt wanted to shout, to rage, to tear something apart. Instead, he caressed the side of Pax’s cheek as gently as he could.
“I won’t let anything happen to you, little bird. You know that, right?” Colt had to know that Pax knew he was safe with him. “I’ll never let anyone hurt you.”
“You don’t have an aura.” Pax’s eyes widened as if he suddenly realized what he had blurted out.
“I don’t?” That was a surprise.
Pax shook his head.
Colt frowned. “Is that why you’re frightened of me?”
Pax shrugged and quickly looked away. Colt didn’t know what to say to that. He knew next to nothing about auras, but he was pretty sure everyone was supposed to have one. Not having an aura obviously meant something meaningful to Pax. This was something Colt would have to think on.
“I don’t know why I’m without an aura, but I can tell you that you’re safe with me.” Colt reluctantly released Pax’s chin, but not before running his fingers across it. Pax shivered, and Colt’s cock began to fill. He took a step back but not too far. “Is there anything you want while we’re here?”
Pax looked up at Colt from beneath a fringe of black hair, his vivid blue eyes setting Colt’s heart to hammering. The hawk shifter knew in that one moment, with that one innocent and seductive glance, Pax was forever in his blood.
“Nothing that I can think of.”
Colt looked down at Pax’s hands as they twisted together. Dragging his gaze back up Pax’s body, Colt met the smaller man’s eyes. “If there’s anything you ever want, all you need to do is ask.” Colt drew in a ragged breath as he tore his eyes away from his mate before the entire market witnessed him claiming the pale blue man. It would be a close thing as it was.
“Let’s head back to the ship. If your friend is trustful, he should be there in a few minutes.”
“He is,” Pax said as he started walking along side of Colt. “I’ve known Anok for a while. He’s a little odd, but he’s basically a good guy.”
Colt glanced at Pax out of the corner of his eye. “Do you mind if I ask how you know him?”
“I…we…”
“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, Pax. I just wondered.” He wanted to know something about Pax’s life before he joined the Lady Blue. The man’s lips were closed tighter than an airlock.
“We worked together for a while.”
“Running errands for people?”
“Something like that.”
Colt snapped his eyes straight ahead when Pax gave him a guarded look. He had a pretty good idea what Pax had done before he was found by the crew of the Lady Blue, and Colt wanted to tear something apart every time he thought about it.
He didn’t blame Pax in the least for his past. It wasn’t a blame thing in Colt’s book. Pax had done what he needed to do to survive. Colt just didn’t like the idea of others touching his mate.
“Does Anok need a safe place to go?” Colt had to ask. If Anok was one of Pax’s friends, Colt wanted to help. No one should be forced into a life he didn’t want because he had no other choice.
“Really?” Pax whispered. “You’d do that?”
Colt smiled at Pax and trailed his fingers along the side of his mate’s jaw. “I’d do anything for you. Don’t you know that?”
Pax’s smile was tentative, but it was there. “I suppose I could ask him.”
“If that’s what you want, little bird.”
“I’m not sure he’d agree, though.” A little frown worked its way across Pax’s forehead as he looked ahead. “Back on End of the Line, Anok liked the life we lived, the freedom to go where and when he wanted to. Although, what he’s doing here I haven’t a clue. Last time I saw Anok he was working as a runner on End of the Line.”
“Well, we can leave it up to him if that’s what you want to do.”
“Yeah.” Pax smiled up at Colt. “Thanks.”
“You’re welcome, little bird.”
Chapter 2
Gigi laughed as he ran to Pax and Colt. “We beat you back. Dinner is on you,” he teased and danced around. “I get a night off.”
Pax rolled his eyes as Colt trailed behind him to take the groceries into the kitchen. He set aside the items for the hydroponics. He’d give those to Gigi when the man wasn’t dancing around and rubbing his victory in. Pax was feeling a little depressed at the moment, and Gigi’s bouncy attitude was grating on his nerves.
He was still smarting a little from Anok refusing to go with them. He had been sure the man would want to escape the life they had lived, but Anok seemed to be perfectly happy right where he was. Pax just wasn’t sure where exactly Anok was or what he was doing. The man never did like to discuss his business, which might be why he was in such high demand. He could keep his mouth shut.
“So what are we cooking, little bird?” Colt asked as he opened the packages.
“I was thinking of making a dish I learned a long time ago.” Pax had been craving it a lot lately and was dying to impress everyone with it. He just was too chicken to say anything to Gigi. But now that the chore of cooking rested squarely on his shoulders for one night, he had free reign. The commander and Gigi hadn’t specified what they wanted.
Colt rolled up his sleeves and walked over to the sink to wash his hands. Pax pushed the empty packages into the recycle bin before doing the same. He stood at the sink with Colt as he poured a small amount of liquid soap into his hands. Pax lathered them up as Colt began to rinse his off.
Pax stood there stunned for a moment when Colt splashed him with water. The water dripped from Pax’s eyes as he tried to figure out why Colt had done that. Pax submerged his hands under the water and then turned to Colt, tossing the drops of water at the shifter’s head.
“Oh, you wanna play?” Colt growled playfully before resting his hand under the faucet, aiming the spray at Pax’s face.
Pax threw his hands up, trying his best to block the assault as he sputtered. His hair and shirt were soaking wet now. He could hear the rich laughter coming from Colt as the shifter refused to let up. Pax squealed and ran around the counter, trying his best to get away.
Colt laughed, chasing him down with a bowl full of water. “It’s not over.”
Where the heck had the bowl come from? Pax hadn’t even seen Colt grab and fill it. Some of the water spilt on the counter. Pax’s hands skidded against the slippery surface as he tried to grab on, rounding the counter to get away from Colt.
It was impossible to grab wet chrome. Pax went down with a loud thud and an even louder grunt. He just laid there on the floor blinking up at the ceiling.
“Well, that was graceful,” he murmured as he drew in a deep breath of fresh air.
“Sweet hell, Pax, are you okay?” Colt shouted as he skidded to a stop next to Pax and dropped to his knees. “Do you hurt anywhere? How’s your head?”
Pax squirmed as Colt began feeling up his legs. The closer Colt’s hands got to his groin, the harder he became. All of a sudden, Colt froze. Pax’s face flamed with embarrassment as he peeked up at Colt through his lashes. The man was staring right at the tent in Pax’s pants. Colt swallowed hard then glanced away, starting back in to check Pax.
“Colt,” Pax said as he grabbed the man’s thick ar
m. “I’m fine. I just slipped in the water.”
“Are you sure?”
Pax nodded and smiled at Colt. “I’m fine.”
Colt stared at Pax for another moment then got to his feet. He held his hand out to Pax. “Come on, little bird, if we don’t get started on this meal, it’ll never happen.”
Pax grabbed Colt’s hand. He was amazed at the strength in the man when he was pulled right up to his feet. But just as his feet landed on the floor, they hit another patch of water. Pax yelped. Colt grabbed for them. They both went down.
Pax blinked when he realized he was lying on top of Colt’s body. He could feel every delicious inch of the man’s powerful frame beneath him—especially the hard cock pressing up against his. Pax swallowed hard and closed his eyes for a moment. Keeping away from Colt was becoming harder by the second.
When he opened his eyes, Colt was staring up at him. Something intense flared in Colt’s sapphire-blue eyes. Pax leaned into the hand Colt pressed against his cheek. He wouldn’t have been able to stop even if the ship was going to crash.
“I’d very much like to kiss you, Paxton.”
Pax opened his mouth to say no until he saw the disappointment starting to grow in Colt’s eyes. Instead, he closed his eyes and leaned forward to press his lips against Colt’s. The instant explosion of arousal that shot through Pax was enough to make his eyes snap open.
Colt was watching him. He hadn’t closed his eyes. Pax pulled away just enough that he could feel Colt’s breath blowing across his face. Colt was so close Pax could see the man’s eyes start to darken.
Pax didn’t protest when Colt’s hand wrapped around the back of his head and pulled him closer. He kept his eyes open as long as he could when they began to kiss, but it was so overwhelming that he couldn’t last long. Pax closed his eyes and leaned farther into the kiss.
He felt Colt’s mouth open, his tongue come out and stroke across his bottom lip. Pax groaned. The feelings being ignited inside of his body were ones he never felt before. He was hot, achy. He wanted more.
Pax opened his mouth and allowed Colt inside. The mere brush of Colt’s tongue against his sent Pax into an all-body shudder. He felt the soft caress right down to his toes. Had anyone ever kissed better?
Colt’s lips were gentle, his kiss soft and undemanding. Pax could tell what control it took for Colt to be easy with him. He could feel it in the rigid muscles beneath his hands and the hard length pressing against his abdomen.
Pax’s heart began to flutter wildly in his chest when Colt pulled away and looked up at him. He could see the hunger burning in Colt’s eyes and knew the man wanted to take things further.
“Thank you, little bird.” Colt brushed the back of his knuckles across Pax’s face.
Pax cleared his throat. It was he who should be thanking Colt. It was on the tip of Pax’s tongue to tell Colt that he’d never been kissed before, but Pax kept it to himself. His heart was already beating like a beast unleashed, and he didn’t trust anything that would come out of his mouth right now.
Pax placed his hands on Colt’s chest, pushing his body up into a sitting position. Wrong move. Colt’s ramrod cock was now pressing into Pax’s ass. He heard the slight and swift intake as Colt sucked air through his teeth.
“We should—”
“Yeah,” Colt agreed, helping Pax up as he got to his feet.
They grabbed some towels and cleaned up their mess before starting dinner. The tension was thick until Colt began to talk of how he’d really like fresh vegetables and asking a thousand questions about the dish Pax was preparing, making the mood lighter.
Pax grabbed the pan from the oven, Colt taking over and carrying it out to the mess hall where everyone was seated and waiting.
“Smells good, buddy,” Livewire commented as Colt placed the pan in the middle of the long table.
The tables used to be round, but with the crew growing, the commander had purchased one large table to accommodate the growing crew. Pax really liked the new table. It fit everyone without overcrowding them.
“It’s something I learned how to make over the years. I hope everyone likes it.” Pax sat when Colt pulled his chair out for him. The shifter took a seat next to Pax and laid a hand on his.
“If you cooked it, I’ll love it.”
Pax couldn’t figure out why the praise made his heart burst with pride, but it did. Pax watched everyone dig in, biting his bottom lip as they ate. He was too nervous to touch his own plate until he knew for sure everyone liked it.
“This is good.” Remy pointed his fork at his almost empty plate.
“Damn, man. How’d you learn to cook like this?” Blade asked.
The praises kept coming, making Pax sit in his seat, beaming with pride.
Colt grabbed his glass from the table and then leaned close to Pax’s ear. “I told you they’d love it.”
His neck and ears burned with the embarrassment. Pax wasn’t used to hearing compliments about anything he did. He decided he liked it. Pax picked his fork up and began to dig in, his mouth bursting as he moaned. It had been so long since the rich spices had touched his tongue that Pax began to devour his helping.
“Slow down.” Colt chuckled. “It’s not going anywhere.”
Pax smiled at the shifter as he did just that. His mind kept going back to his first kiss. Pax would swear he still felt Colt’s warm lips on his. They tingled with remembrance. He wanted to rub his fingers across them and maybe try for another kiss.
“I got another job for us,” Remy said as he leaned forward and refilled his plate.
Pax squirmed around happily, seeing how everyone was really enjoying his cooking. Maybe he could talk to Gigi about taking on more responsibilities in the kitchen, give Gigi a night off every once in a while.
“What is it this time?” Crank asked as he picked his glass up and took a long drink.
Pax paid attention to the conversation as he ate. Hopefully wherever they were going, he wouldn’t have to leave the ship. Remy stabbed at his food and shoved a forkful in his mouth, holding his finger up as he chewed. Pax watched everyone else. They were all making the pan of food disappear. This was yet another reason he loved being onboard Lady Blue. The crew all made him feel so needed and welcomed.
“We have to pick up some cargo on Lost Star Three and deliver it to End of the Line.”
Tank whistled low. “That’s one hell of a haul. It’ll take us weeks to get that job done. I hope the pay is good.”
Remy sat back, twining his fingers behind his head. “Ten thousand credits.”
Pax heard forks hitting plates as they fell from fingers, his included. Ten thousand credits? Had he ever seen that much in his entire life? Hell no!
“Dayam.” Crank gasped. “Are they on the up-and-up?”
Remy shrugged. “It’s someone called Imlay Jones. Krull said he was kosher. We won’t know until the job is done. Of course I demanded half upfront.”
“We could get the parts our girl needs.” Livewire sounded giddy. “She needs a serious facelift.”
“We can do more than that.” Remy grinned widely. “Hell, I could keep Gigi and Pax in groceries for a long while.”
“Thank god,” Gigi said dramatically from beside Remy. “I’m tired of running out of what we need. Do you know what it’s like to cook a ham without a ham?”
Pax stared at Gigi, wondering if the human would ever make sense to him. He felt like he needed a compass half the time to figure out where Gigi was going with his way of thinking. Pax knew he was the only one who never understood the man. They all got it. It was like a club or something—the we get Gigi club. Pax wasn’t a member.
“What are we hauling?” Tank asked.
“I don’t know,” Remy replied. “I was assured it was nothing illegal, and I made sure there was a clause in the contract that we could pull out without paying a cancelation fee if we decided we didn’t want to haul the cargo.”
“Good plan,” Tank said. “So, when do w
e leave?”
“I need at least one more day to get the lady ready for a flight that long,” Livewire said. “I’m still calibrating the pulse engines.”
Remy chuckled. “I guess we leave tomorrow then.”
“The day after that,” Gigi said, rather loudly. “We won the bet. We get a movie night. No work until tomorrow.”
Pax bit his lips to keep his giggle from exploding from his lips when Remy rolled his eyes and hauled Gigi into his arms. Peals of laughter fell from Gigi as Remy carried him out of the mess hall and down the hallway toward the media room.
“Why don’t you go watch the vid, little bird,” Colt said. “I’ll clean up these dishes.”
“I’ll help,” Pax said quickly. “It will get done faster that way, and you won’t have to miss so much of the movie.”
“Thank you, little bird.”
Pax’s eyes widened, and he quickly looked down at his hands when he heard the rumble in Colt’s voice. It was the same voice Colt had used when he thanked him for the kiss. How was it possible for the man to have the same sexy timbre in his voice for two separate things?
Pax grabbed the dishes closest to him and raced into the kitchen. He made sure no one was following him then stepped over to the pantry and into the cold storage locker. He was overheating—had to be the spices. Really.
When he heard someone coming, Pax quickly stepped out of the cold storage locker and made his way back into the kitchen. He filled the sink with water and started scrubbing dishes. Maybe if he had his hands elbow deep in the water, no one would know the blush on his face came from embarrassment.
Oh look, a pig flying outside the window.
Colt chuckled and walked back into the mess hall to grab more dishes. Could his face get any redder? He was blue, for christ’s sake!
Colt came back into the kitchen with the pan the food had been in full to the brim with dishes. The man knew how to use his brain and work smarter, not harder. Pax stepped aside as Colt submerged the filled pan into the sudsy water. “If you wash, I’ll rinse.”
“Deal.” Pax began to scrub plate after plate, handing them off to Colt. The shifter rinsed them clean and then placed them in the drying rack. Pax’s heart skipped a beat every time Colt’s hand touched his.
Glenn, Stormy and Hagen, Lynn - Pax's Blues [Lady Blue Crew 2] (Siren Publishing Classic ManLove) Page 2
