by Kali Argent
“Yes, Commander?”
“I’m going to be out of the office for the rest of the day. Forward anything urgent to my wrist unit, but hold all other calls.”
“Yes, ma’am. Is there anything else?”
“Uh, yeah, actually. I need to know where I can find Laesa Fen.”
“Scanning the station now.” Only a few seconds passed before Officer Blake spoke again. “Surveillance shows her in the new shop that just opened, Sophie’s Café. Would you like me to send a message?”
“No, no message. Good work, Hannah. Thank you.”
Olivia disconnected her office link, and took off toward the main-level shops. As expected, she found the Tarin female sitting inside Sophie’s Café, chatting with a woman Olivia assumed was the owner.
When Laesa Fen had first arrived on X21, she’d requested a meeting with Olivia to discuss leasing a temporary work and storage space while she was on the station. Apparently, she was a talented, young artist, and had been commission by a handful of the shop owners who remained to create beautiful, dynamic murals in their businesses.
At first, Olivia had concerns about leasing shop space to a civilian, especially after she’d just canceled so many of the other contracts. Laesa had assured her it was just until she finished the work she’d been hired to do and then she’d been moving on, so Olivia had come up with a solution that benefited them both.
Instead of leasing a space to the Tarin female, she’d offered to let her use one of the empty shop fronts for her purposes, free of rent, as long as she left it how she’d found it once she was finished. Plus, while it had seemed insensitive to mention it during their meeting, Laesa had looked as if she needed those credits far more than the Alliance did.
After a bit of back and forth, they’d finally reached an agreement. Laesa would have the space she needed to work, and since she wouldn’t be signing a contract, Olivia wouldn’t have to explain to Regent Marks why she’d authorized a new lease to a civilian artist.
It was a win-win, and now that she’d come up with the perfect plan to get back at Zade and Axton, she was more than a little glad the female was there. Stars, she couldn’t wait to see the males’ faces when they found out what she had planned for them.
CHAPTER FOUR
Axton Tavish cursed when his wrist unit signaled an incoming call. He hadn’t been doing anything particularly important, but when the call log flashed Olivia’s name, he automatically assumed the female was pissed about something.
So, even though his pulse raced, and the space behind the zipper of his leathers suddenly felt a little snug, he answered the communication with a slow nod and a neutral, “Yes?”
To his surprise, Olivia smiled back at him from the small screen attached to his wrist. She was beautiful, no doubt, but her smile looked so damn fake, he feared her face would crack.
“Axton, I’m sorry to bother you, but I need some information on the elite female staying at the sanctuary. Do you know her name?”
“Nope.” Of course he knew the young female’s name, but he wouldn’t make it that easy on the commander.
Olivia’s cheery disposition slipped briefly before she caught herself. Frustrated, he bit back the growl he felt building in his chest. He didn’t want polite and formal. He didn’t want professional and proper. He wanted the fiery, passionate woman he’d spent the night with in the Capital before everything had gone to hell. Just once, he wanted her to lose her temper, lose control, to yell, throw a punch, or just do something to indicate that she might actually give a damn.
So, he pushed. He prodded. He instigated, antagonized, and goaded. Still, she never broke, because that wouldn’t be appropriate for a commander.
Well, two could play that game, and if she wanted information, she’d have to come get it for herself. “She’s still here.”
“Well, couldn’t you just ask her name?”
“No.”
“So, you’re telling me you granted sanctuary to this woman without knowing her name, or even why she’s on the station.”
“All I’m telling you is that the female is sitting at the same table in the corner of the bar as she was yesterday. If you want to talk to her, get your ass down here.” Then he disconnected the call before she could argue with him.
“One of these days,” Zade said as he stepped up beside Axton at the bar, “she’s going to drop you out of an airlock.”
“If that’s what it takes to get her attention, I’ll accept that fate.”
Zade snorted. “Have you tried talking to her? Asking her what changed?”
“Have you?” he countered, arching an eyebrow at his brother.
“Fair enough.” Clearly unhappy, Zade rubbed the back of his neck and shook his head. “Things can’t keep going like this.”
When they’d first arrived to begin renovations on Asylum, they’d thought perhaps things would be different once they had Olivia away from Earth and away from the regents. Unfortunately, that hadn’t been the case, but that hadn’t stopped them in their attempts to woo her.
Zade had given her a tour of both levels of the sanctuary, explaining their plans for each space. Since they’d hoped Asylum would one day be Olivia’s as well, they’d invited her to be part of the planning, asking her opinion about everything from lighting to the linens in the bedrooms on the lower level.
Axton had prepared meals with his own hands—no food console involved—for her, and he’d personally carried them to her office so she wouldn’t have to interrupt her workday to eat. She always greeted him with a smile, always thanked him for the food, but it changed nothing.
After a while, she’d stopped accepting their invitations to Asylum. Next, she’d asked not be interrupted during the day, because apparently, commanders didn’t need to eat. She wouldn’t take their calls, denied meeting requests from them, and mostly disappeared from their lives altogether. Until one day when a disagreement between a couple of officers got out of hand, resulting in several of them being taken to the med-bay on lev-beds.
She’d been hopping mad though trying not to show it when she’d arrived at the sanctuary that day. When another incident had happened a week later, she’d been there again. Once Axton realized the only way to see the female was to wreak havoc aboard her station, he hadn’t held back when it came to enforcing the rules. It was sneaky, underhanded, dishonorable, and often bloody, but it did get Olivia’s attention.
Axton wasn’t accustomed to hearing no, nor did he like to lose, but that was exactly how Olivia made him feel…as if he’d lost something he couldn’t recover. Their grandparents had survived the destruction of their home world, and bravely aided the humans in their victory against the Zyphir, yet he and his brother couldn’t win the heart of one damn female. He didn’t say it often, but Zade was right. Axton wouldn’t admit defeat, but things couldn’t keep going the way they had been.
“Fine,” he conceded after a long pause. “I don’t know what the hell I’m supposed to say, but I’ll talk to her.” Somehow, he didn’t envision it being a very long conversation, and it would likely end like all the others.
“Well, think fast, because here she comes, and she looks pissed.”
Turning toward the entrance, Axton fought his body’s reaction to the sight of the female. Even dressed in her standard-issue Alliance uniform, Olivia still took his breath away. She stood just beyond the threshold and scanned the room, her expression turning absolutely murderous when her gaze landed on Axton.
Rounding the bar, Axton marched toward the female with Zade following closely behind him. Maybe today would be the day she finally cracked, but he seriously doubted it. Even as he watched, she transformed her features into practiced indifference, while she fisted her hands on the outside of her thighs.
“Okay, I’m here,” she called, closing the few steps between them. “Where is—ah!”
The three Reema sitting at the table behind her laughed while the one with his hand still on her ass flicked his reptilian tong
ue at her provocatively.
When Axton grabbed the Reema by the wrist and jerked, liberating his entire arm from the rest of his body, no one was laughing any longer. Blood splattered in all directions, dotting the floor and spraying Olivia directly in the face.
“Fuck!” she bit out, wiping blood from her eyes. “Seriously?”
Axton ignored her, turning his attention to the Reema just as the male lunged at him. Without pausing to think, he swung the bleeding appendage like a baseball bat. Beating the asshole with his own scaly arm probably shouldn’t have felt as satisfying as it did, but there was something poetic in the justice of it.
The other two Reema at the table stood, but they didn’t make it far before Zade put one down with a well-aimed uppercut. The other one seemed somewhat smarter, backing away as he circled the table, keeping distance between himself and Zade.
A feral growl rolled through Axton’s lips as he grabbed the first Reema by the throat, holding him off the floor with little effort. “Touch her again,” he snarled as his fangs and claws extended into lethal weapons, “I’ll remove something that doesn’t grow back.”
It took a heroic amount of self-restraint to release the Reema and not end his miserable existence. Coughing and sputtering, the male stumbled backward, right into one of the cloaked figures at the table close to the one he’d been sitting at.
Both figures turned, revealing bright, glowing golden eyes. Time stood still for half a heartbeat, and Axton forgot how to breathe as he watched the Reema male explode into nothing more than bloody dust.
“Oh, come on!” Olivia groaned, trying to comb the crimson remains from her hair.
It had been years since Axton had encountered a Dragon Warrior, but he knew enough about them to realize having two angry females of the race in his sanctuary spelled trouble for everyone. Still… “You can’t fucking do that!” he exploded.
Both Dragon Warriors stood to face him, and the slightly smaller one asked, “Why not? You did it.”
“I didn’t kill anyone,” he argued.
“Not for a lack of trying,” Olivia added under her breath from behind him.
Zade chuckled, taking his place at her side, and whispered loudly, “I don’t think that’s helping, love.”
Axton mentally amended his statement. He hadn’t killed anyone yet. Returning his attention to the Dragon Warrior females, he folded his arms over his chest and bared his fangs. “Shit like that doesn’t happen at Asylum. If you want to stay—”
“We don’t,” the first female interrupted.
With that simple statement, both Dragon Warriors vanished right before his eyes.
“To take a line from Morgan’s playbook, I fucking quit.” With an impressive growl for a human, Olivia turned and stomped out of the sanctuary, swearing and waving her hands around wildly as she went.
This time, Axton had no intentions of letting her leave before he got some answers. “Stay here,” he told Zade.
Pinning one of the Reema to the floor with his boot, he surveyed the unconscious one a few feet away before looking up at Axton and nodding. “Go get our female.”
Passing several security officers as he exited the bar, Axton strode purposefully through the hallways, catching up with Olivia just before she reached the intersection that led to the level’s med-bay.
“Stop,” he ordered, a deep rumble vibrating through his chest when she ignored him. “Damn it, Olivia, just stop. Where are you going?”
Whirling on him, she jabbed her finger into his midsection, and her eyes darkened with rage. “I’m going to wash the Reema out of my fucking hair if you really have to know!”
There. There was that passion and fire he’d missed so much. “We need to talk.”
“We really don’t.” She backed away from him, shaking her head with every step. “Go back to the sanctuary, Axton.”
Covered in the universe only knew what, Olivia had no desire to engage in a shouting match with the Krytos, especially not in the middle of the corridor for everyone to see. She wanted a shower, a really hot, really long shower, to change into a fresh uniform, and find something for the headache she could feel swelling behind her eyes. Damn Axton. If he’d have just given her the information she needed instead of forcing her to go to the sanctuary, none of this would have happened.
“I’m not going anywhere until you talk to me,” he argued, still advancing toward her.
It was cowardly and a little childish, but Olivia did the only thing her overtaxed brain thought made sense. She turned and ran.
And barreled right into Regent Everett Marks as he rounded the corner at the intersection.
Bile churned in her stomach, threatening to rise up through her esophagus, even as she straightened to attention and saluted. “Forgive me, Regent. I didn’t see you.”
The regent brushed a hand over the front of his uniform, curling his nose as if she’d contaminated him. “Really, Commander Jacobson, I’d expect—is that…blood?”
Distracted by the regent’s appearance in the hallway, Olivia had completely forgotten that she was covered in what remained of one unlucky Reema. “There was an incident,” she answered evasively. “It’s been handled.”
“Is there a problem here?” Axton asked, closing the distance to stand beside her.
She loved that he’d come to her defense, but she also feared what it would mean for her career. “Everything’s fine.” Staring up at him, she pleaded with her eyes for him to understand. “We’ll talk later.”
At first, it seemed as though his stubbornness would win out, but after a pregnant pause, he gave a slow nod, then continued down the hallway without sparing even a passing glance at Regent Marks.
“Is that the Krytos male that owns the sanctuary?” Regent Marks asked, his eyes narrowed as he watched Axton’s retreating back.
“Yes, sir, one of them. Axton Tavish. He and his brother, Zade, own Asylum.”
“I remember them,” he answered as though Olivia had offended him by answering his question. “Did this happen at their sanctuary?” He waved his right hand up and down, indicating Olivia’s gruesome appearance.
“Yes, sir, but it wasn’t their doing.”
She wondered if she should inform him about the Dragon Warrior females, but worried what he might do with the information. The last thing the Alliance needed was a feud with a race who could blast them from the galaxy with a snap of their fingers.
“Explain,” he demanded.
“Reema, sir.” Strictly speaking, it wasn’t a lie.
While the Reema were technically considered allies, no one much cared for the lizard-like race. They weren’t evil or villainous in general terms, but they did follow a somewhat skewed moral compass. Driven by greed and a desire for wealth, there wasn’t much they wouldn’t do to obtain their goal. Hell, they’d probably sell their own mothers for the right price.
“Reema.” Regent Marks studied her for a long time before he spoke again. “Well, let us hope this was an isolated incident.”
“Yes, sir. I’m sure there will be no more trouble.”
“The Krytos male seems overly protective of you, Commander.”
“Axton?” Olivia felt the blood drain from her face, and by sheer will did she remain upright. “He’s protective of all the females aboard the station. Possibly because he owns the sanctuary.”
She’d never been a good liar, and judging by the expression on the regent’s face, she wasn’t doing a great job just then, either. In her defense, Axton could be an ass, but he was an honorable one. Mostly, he didn’t involve himself in the affairs of others, but never would he allow a female to be harmed in his presence, not if he could prevent it. However, considering he’d just ripped a Reema’s arm off for slapping her ass, she could see where one might make the argument that he was…fond of her.
“Perhaps.” Regent Marks spoke slowly, clearly unconvinced. “Let me remind you, Commander, you were granted this position because you lack distractions. That male, as I s
ee it, is a dangerously large distraction.”
Dangerous, yes. Large, definitely. Distraction? Olivia sighed inwardly. No matter how hard she’d tried to keep her distance, she always seemed to end up right back at Asylum. She told herself that as commander, she had a responsibility to investigate every security call to the bar. In reality, that was why the station had security in the first place. Over and over, she’d tried to convince herself that Zade and Axton made her crazy and she’d be much happier without them.
For a little while, it had worked. Then Ivy had gone and ruined everything. She’d planted the seeds of self-doubt, and now, Olivia couldn’t stop wondering if perhaps she’d been torturing herself for nothing. Despite her efforts, she couldn’t shake the Tavish brothers. Persistent and stubborn, they’d steadily chipped away at the wall she’d built around her heart, and if she wasn’t careful, it would all come crumbling down soon.
“Commander? Are you listening?”
No. “Yes, sir. I’ll make sure it isn’t an issue.”
She saluted again, nodding once he’d dismissed her, and hurried through the corridor to her office. For a moment, she considered stopping by Hannah’s desk to check for any missed communications, but quickly decided against it. Given her appearance, she’d likely scare the hell out of her assistant, and she really didn’t want to start training a new one.
After pressing her thumb to the bio-lock on the wall, she stepped through the double doors, intending to make use of the small en suite bathroom and shower located in the back corner of her office. Two steps inside the room, she came to abrupt stop at the sight of Axton sitting in the chair behind her desk. Her mind spun with a thousand and one different insults, but none made it through her lips.
Standing, Axton folded his arms over his chest while he stared back with an intensity that made her more than a little uncomfortable. “We need to talk.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Axton had known Olivia would fight him, but he came prepared for battle. “Sit.”
