Angel turned to Kirek to give him a “now-what” scowl. But he was placing two fingers into his mouth, and he let out a sharp whistle. The kids actually stopped making noise and gathered around them.
“Look at his muscles.” A tiny girl with bright pink eyes admired Kirek. “When I grow up I’m going to pair with a man like him.”
“He’s not my type” said another girl, sizing him up, a knowing look in her eyes. “He’s too—”
“Kel—shut your lips.” Hax glared at his twin.
“Make me.” Kel glowered right back.
“I could if I wanted to.”
“All right,” Kirek interrupted. “How would each one of you like to learn to defend yourselves from attack?”
Kids jumped up and down, raising their hands. “I would.”
“Teach me.” A teen with a wide smile and a very curvy body sidled up to Kirek and placed a hand on his arm.
Either the class was a mix of age groups or the kids here were different humanoid races and grew at different rates. Some seemed innocent and trusting, but others seemed to have too much space-smarts for kids.
Kirek gently disengaged from the teen. “Females to the right. Males to the left,” he directed. “All others,” he continued, speaking to several species that might not have male and female traits, “choose which side fits you best.”
Surprisingly, the children separated with very few arguments, obeying Kirek without question. He hadn’t raised his voice. But he spoke with an authority they automatically responded to, and Angel could easily imagine an entire fleet of Rystani ships following him into battle against the Zin, or the Kwadii people believing he was their Oracle.
But when she thought of Kirek, the image that came to mind was the two of them making love in front of that mirror, his psi showing her more than she’d wanted to see. She was done with marriage. She wasn’t cut out for long-term relationships. She didn’t want to have feelings beyond friendship and lust for the Rystani warrior. But apparently she couldn’t control her feelings. They were incontrovertibly and inconveniently there, simmering below the surface.
She planned to ignore them—not a rational decision, but one of self-preservation. As Kirek began to teach the children basic blocks, first with their psi shields and then with their arms, she could see another glaring reminder that this was a fling. She wasn’t cut out for family life. Stars. She hadn’t been able to keep either of her marriages alive, never mind deal with children. A shame really … not only was he the best lover she’d ever had, he intrigued her.
At the moment, he appeared to be having fun. His contact was dead. The Kraj were hunting them. He was lying on the mat, and the smallest children were crawling over him. A wide grin was on his face, and his laughter filled the gym.
As if hearing her thoughts, his gaze found hers, and he held out a hand, motioning her to join in the fray. He had to be out of his mind. She didn’t want to crawl on a mat with all those tiny bodies with grubby hands. She shook her head, preferring to stand guard. Her gaze swept the exits, expecting the doors to crash open any moment. One of them had to be prepared to defend them.
A teenage girl joined her. Overweight with untidy dark-brown hair and a sad slump to her shoulders, she didn’t say anything, just stood there staring at a group of pretty girls who clearly considered her an outcast.
“I never fit in, either,” Angel told her.
The teen eyed her with equal parts hostility and curiosity. “Why not? You’re thin and pretty.”
Angel recalled the taunts. Kids could be cruel. “It’s more like they knew I was different … inside.”
“So what did you do?”
“First chance I got … I ran away.” Angel wondered if she was still running.
“Did it help?”
“If I went home now … I still wouldn’t fit in.” Angel couldn’t imagine going back to Earth, sitting on one piece of dirt for the rest of her life, living next to the same people for years and years. But she did fit in on the Raven. Petroy and Frie and Leval were her family. “I made a new home, and yes, it’s better. When you grow up you have more choices. You decide. Not parents. Not teachers.”
“I want to farm.”
Yuck. Angel couldn’t imagine a more boring life. But when she glanced at the kid’s face, her eyes looked dreamy. “Why do you want to farm?”
“I’ve lived on Dakmar my whole life. I want to live with fresh air and surrounded by green plants. Go back to nature. When I’m legal, I plan to ship out to a colony world. In the meantime, I’m learning what I can about agriculture.”
“What do your parents think?”
“They say I’ll grow out of my childish idea.” The girl paused. “But I won’t. I wish I could go now.”
“It’s a tough world out there. An education can help you get ahead.”
“The stuff they teach me in school is useless. What I need is a way to build capital to buy some land.”
Angel suppressed a grin. Those words could have come out of her mouth. “I have a friend Merline who lives on a world called Siraz where they produce the spice frelle. If you are interested in apprenticing, she might give you work—when you’re old enough.”
“Frelle?” The girl’s eyes lit up as if Angel were talking about the extraordinary wealth of salvaging the Zin home world, instead of a simple job. “I’d … that … would be … so incredible.”
Angel tapped Merline’s com link into the girl’s wrist pad. “Tell her Angel told you to contact her. I’m sure Merline will tell you what you need to study.”
“Thank you. Thank you.”
Kirek had recovered from the mass of bodies and joined her just as the girl ran off. He looked at Angel curiously. “Who was she?”
Angel shrugged. “I don’t know much about kids. I didn’t ask her name.”
“She seemed to like you.” Kirek motioned for a boy to raise his arm higher to block.
“What happens when class is over?” Angel asked, changing the subject. “Because if you plan to stay here all day—”
“I don’t.”
“Good.” Relief washed over her. Not only did she want to retreat from the noise and the kids, she didn’t want to risk their safety if the Kraj showed up and started shooting.
“I thought we could volunteer as library monitors next.”
“What?” She wanted to depart the school.
Kirek kept his voice low and reasonable. “I’d like to find out more about the disk I took off my contact. With some research, maybe I can find a reader for it in the school library, or at least figure out which planet might have one.”
“All right.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I won’t be happy until we’re back on the Raven. She’s home. Aboard her, I know what to expect and how best to handle attacks. We’re too exposed here.”
Kirek’s expression turned grave. “If we find the salvage you want, would you trade in the Raven for a bigger ship?”
She couldn’t believe he’d suggested such a thing. “I’d rather trade in my right arm.”
Bells rang, signifying the end of class. The kids raced, walked, shoved, and pushed their way from the gymnasium. Caught in the mass exodus, the kids swept them back out into the hallways. Kirek asked one child for directions to the library, and after walking for several minutes, they entered the quiet refuge from noise.
Each vidscreen was housed in a private cubicle. Before Kirek could talk to any more kids or volunteer for any other teaching activities, she appropriated a computer terminal and shut the door behind them. With two adults cramped into an area meant for one child, she had to flatten her back against the door to make room for the holodisplay.
Kirek took the disk from his suit and held it up. “Please scan and identify.”
The computer spoke in a teacher’s voice, lecturing slowly, as if its circuits were jammed. “The hand and arm are Rystani DNA with—”
“Computer.” Kirek interrupted. “I’m only intere
sted in the fabricated disk.”
“Compliance. The material is a polylaminate of the type used by modern computers.”
“Can you identify the planet of origin from the composition?”
“Cross-checking components with natural resources. This may take some time.”
“How much time?” Angel asked.
The computer didn’t answer, but flashed a message saying their request was being processed off-site since the data they required wasn’t available locally.
Angel shifted impatiently from foot to foot. It was only a matter of time until the kids from that class talked to an adult who would realize that she and Kirek hadn’t belonged there. A report would arrive downtown, and a computer collating data would connect their appearance at the school and inform the botcops searching for them.
Every moment they wasted here narrowed their chances of escape. Yet, without knowing the location of the portal, they couldn’t continue their journey. Unfortunately, this library-turned-school’s antiquated system didn’t seem up to the task.
“Perhaps we should find a university.”
“Have you forgotten the Kraj that are outside and searching for us?”
The computer hummed then spoke. “It is impossible to fulfill your request. There are over one thousand planets which have the necessary resources to manufacture the disk—and that’s not counting interplanetary imports.”
“Scan the disk for DNA,” Angel requested. “Ignore Rystani genetic material.” Since she hadn’t touched the disk, she didn’t mention her own Terran biology. “Perhaps the contact left a few cells behind.”
The computer clicked. “There is a short hair, the length of an eyelash, which may have DNA. I’m processing.”
Kirek squeezed her hand. “That was a good idea. Alara would be proud of you.”
“Alara?”
Kirek rarely mentioned anyone in his past, but his fond tone made her curious, even as she noted she also had to suppress a twinge of jealousy.
“I met her during my last mission. Alara’s a brilliant Endekian physiologist, and with her help, Xander found two Perceptive Ones and a cure for the Zin virus.” Kirek cast Angel a teasing glance, as if he sensed her curiosity about his exact relationship with Alara, a relationship that shouldn’t have bothered her. “Xander fell in love and married her.”
“The eyelash is Numan,” the computer informed them, and a map formed on the holovid. “The planet is located here.”
A Federation quadrant showed a map of star systems and planets. The computer had marked Numan with a flashing purple light. Their current location on Dakmar pulsed orange, with a yellow line of light connecting the two locations via the best route.
Kirek required a cross check. “Does Numan have the necessary natural resources to manufacture the disk?”
“Negative.” The computer hummed. “But one of its moons mines the primary missing Numan metal, and there is frequent trade between the planet and the moon’s colonists.”
Angel leaned over the screen. “Computer, can you find a Numan disk reader on Dakmar or any closer systems?”
“Your inquiry requires an extensive search. This may take a Federation hour. Shall I continue?” Again the computer hummed, no doubt searching mercantile inventories as well as private sales.
Angel glanced at Kirek. He grinned. “Computer, please continue.”
“What are you so happy about?”
“We shouldn’t leave until school is out, when we can depart with the teachers without attracting attention.”
“This makes you happy because … ?”
His eyes brightened with heat. “We have an hour. Alone. You and me.”
Her mouth went dry, and her gut tightened. She hadn’t even been considering making love. The idea of having him right now, right here, excited her, even as she protested. “The Kraj could break in here at any moment.”
“If they find us talking instead of making love, do you think it will lessen their determination to shoot us?” Kirek’s tone teased. He reached over and placed a warm hand on her thigh.
Desire angled up her leg. “What if some kid wanders into the library?”
His hand inched higher. “The walls are insulated to prevent sound from interrupting the students’ concentration. I’ve locked the door.”
She couldn’t think past the warmth of his hand and her need to touch him back. “But—”
“We only have an hour. Let’s not waste a moment arguing when we could be enjoying ourselves.” He slid his hand up her thigh to her bottom and drew her into his arms.
One minute ago, sex hadn’t been on her mind. But with just his touch to her leg, she was suddenly on fire for him.
Stars … She wanted him with a lust that coursed through her with amazing strength, took away her breath, made thinking almost impossible.
“What … is … happening?” she gasped.
She didn’t expect an answer. She hadn’t been specific enough for him to understand her question … and yet, even as her legs quivered and her breasts ached for attention, her mind knew that her body didn’t normally start this fast or burn with this much need.
“Remember when you wanted to see my feelings?” he asked, his tone serious, his hands busily stroking up her back and down over her bottom.
“So?” She frowned. Thankfully they didn’t have a mirror in the tiny cubicle. They didn’t even have a window that could show a partial reflection of her aura.
“You are feeling what I feel.”
“What?” She jerked back, her gaze searching his.
“The burning, the need, the hunger you feel is what I feel for you.”
God … Her feelings weren’t her own … they were his. She’d never heard of such a thing and didn’t know what she thought. Thinking was next to impossible as she rubbed up against him, her mouth hungering for his.
Awash in a sea of roaring lust, she wanted his hands all over her, everywhere. Her lips pulsed with the need to meet his. She was so damp and slick with the moisture creaming between her legs that all she craved was for him to have her. Now. Up against the wall. On the desk. Against the door.
Yet, those desires weren’t hers—they were his. She had no idea why he wasn’t kissing her, but somehow he held back and kept the ripping need from turning him into a savage.
“You understand what I’m saying?” he asked.
“Yes.”
“Tell me,” he demanded.
“I’m feeling how much you want me.” She gulped, wondering if all men had such strong sexual desires and if so, how any of them ever managed to think about anything else. Stars. She was ready to melt. To explode. They had barely touched. “How do you stand it?”
He shot her a wolfish grin that sent a shiver of anticipation down her spine. “I’m not giving you a choice to say no.”
“Bastard.” She licked her bottom lip, knowing he was right and that later she might be annoyed with herself. But at the moment she couldn’t muster any clear thoughts—not with the overwhelming lust coursing through her.
Angel couldn’t think past the longing to place her hands around his neck, tug his head down, and lift her mouth to his. Usually when he kissed her, she adored the strength of his mouth, loved the way their tongues danced, but now as she yielded to his lips on hers, she also felt him rejoice.
His happy intensity fed her until her yearning matched his own.
There was no skill to their lovemaking. No subtlety.
She couldn’t wait that long. Her mind screamed with the need to have him now. Now. Right now.
He kissed her deep and hard. When he broke the kiss to turn her and bend her over the desk, she noted that both of them were naked. He parted her legs, bit her shoulder.
“Yes.” She threw back her head, lifted her hips, giving in to his wild demand.
He didn’t make her wait. In one fierce stroke he slammed into her, and she arched her spine, meeting him more than halfway. When he reached around her hips and slid a fi
nger into her slick folds, she might have burst right them. But his psi clamped down over her, preventing her release, holding her right on the edge.
Her hips gyrated in a frenzy of need. Her arms barely supported her as her breath came in long gasps.
Razor-sharp delight mixed with a lusty burning for completion.
She couldn’t wait. Her mind spun. Her heart pounded her ribs. She was going to lose herself in a massive explosion. Her psi reached out to him and shoved hard, asking for what her body required.
And again, his psi demanded that she wait for him, even as his fingers centered on the tip of her core, driving her in a frenzy.
Stars … The man was torturing her with sweet pleasure, and she could barely stand the tension building, growing, burning with a ferocity that had her reeling.
He exploded, taking her with him in a storm so fierce, she couldn’t tell where his pleasure began and hers started. With the physical blast came a mental one. Of domination. Of possession. Of determination. Of … bliss.
Chapter Fifteen
“THERE IS A Numan disk reader on Abacore Prime.”
The computer coughed up the information before Kirek’s breathing had returned to normal. “The reader on Abacore Prime is not for sale.” The computer had given them more than basic facts, revealing itself to be a more advanced model than the Raven’s primitive system.
“Does that mean we’re going to Numan?” Angel asked, her eyes focusing on Kirek with a wariness he didn’t like. Had he pushed too soon and too hard once again? For a Rystani male, he was patient, but would Angel think so?
Kirek memorized the information on Numan then wiped the computer history clean. If the Kraj followed their trail to this vidscreen, he didn’t want his enemies to discover what he was interested in or why. “Once we’re back on board the Raven, maybe I can arrange for the reader to be brought to us.”
“It’s not even for sale,” Angel argued.
Kirek grinned. “So I’ll make the owner an offer he cannot refuse.”
“Like you did with me?” She boldly arched an eyebrow. But the wariness didn’t leave her eyes.
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