Chapter 7 #2
Niklas reached out and nabbed it. He handed it to her. “Hook it onto your belt.”
She shot him a wry look as she clipped the hook to her belt. “I have done this a time or two.” She handed the grappler to him. Now he held one end of the line, while the other end was tied to her.
“Always wondered what it would be like to have you tied up,” he said.
She went still. “Really?”
“It only seems fair. You’ve tied me up a time or two.” He leaned in close. “But I like you free to use those clever hands of yours.”
She turned her head. “Young treasure hunter to rescue, remember?”
Niklas touched a gloved finger to her jaw, then with a nod, he stepped back. “Be careful while you do your thing.”
She took a few steps back, gripped the line, then ran forward and pushed off. She swung across the hole below, air rushing past her face, and a second later, she slapped into Solomon.
He cursed, his hands slipping.
Nera already had her arms wrapped around his lean waist. “Hold onto me.”
His arms clamped around her. “Never in a hundred years would I have expected to have my arms around Nera Darc.”
“Don’t expect it again,” she warned him.
His face paled. “Right.”
She got a foot against the beam and pushed off. As they swung back toward Niklas, she saw the beam fall away completely. As it fell into the hole, she heard a loud crash.
Nera and Solomon reached the edge.
“Release!” Niklas shouted.
She touched the hook on her belt.
They dropped. Nera crashed to the ground with Solomon. She heard the young treasure hunter groan.
“Nera? Are you all right?” Niklas pressed a hand to her shoulder.
She nodded and sat up.
He smiled. “Nice moves.”
Her lips twitched. “Thanks.”
“Jonas, you okay?” Niklas helped the young man sit up.
Solomon hissed out a breath, wrapping his arms around his middle. “Broken ribs, but nothing life-threatening.” His green gaze met Niklas’ before moving to Nera. “Thank you. I was going to end up lunch for whatever the hell was down in that hole. I wouldn’t have made it without your help.”
Niklas frowned. “Something’s down in the chasm?”
Solomon nodded, and with Niklas’ assistance, got to his feet. “Yeah. There were shadows moving around. I couldn’t make out what they were, but I saw them…and heard some weird noises.”
Niklas stepped closer to the edge, his boots sending sand skittering over into the hole. Nera stepped up beside him.
“I don’t see anything,” he said.
She didn’t either, but that didn’t mean something wasn’t there.
Shouts and voices filled the air. They both turned and saw Avril, Agent Ryant, and a small team of Institute security agents, running down the hill.
“Institute arrives after all the action is over,” Nera said. “As always.”
Niklas put a hand on Jonas’ shoulder. “Come on, kid, let’s get you back to the ship and patched up.”
Nera watched Niklas help the young man up the slope.
He was the complete opposite of Alexei Gunn.
She’d always believed not getting involved in other people’s business was the best course of action.
But Niklas and his brothers seemed to jump in where they shouldn’t all the time. All in order to do the right thing.
She followed the two men up the hill.
Nik pressed the hail button beside Nera’s cabin door.
He rubbed his ass where he’d gotten his latest anti-radiation injection.
It appeared the antidote hurt a little more when used too closely together.
He’d left Solomon confined to a bed in the medbay, where his broken ribs were knitting under the med scanner.
A few seconds later, the cabin door slid open and he stepped inside.
It was a mirror image of his cabin. Spacious, compared to most ships its size.
Nera stood in the center of the room, clad only in tight black leggings and a tight tank that showed off her toned arms. She was sparring with a spar-droid.
If the droid had been human, it would have been crying with pain by now.
Nik happily leaned against the wall to wait for her to finish. She was a pleasure to watch. She moved in such a smooth, liquid way, flowing into the fight like she’d been born doing it.
“Are you okay?” he asked.
She bounced on the spot. “Yes.” Then she landed a vicious punch at the droid’s head. “Imagining my robotic friend here is Gunn, and I’m burning off the last of the adrenaline from our trip.”
“Gunn is scum,” Nik agreed.
“That’s one word to describe him.” She landed a front kick, making the droid rock.
He winced. “What’s eating you?”
“I’m like Gunn.”
That made Nik push himself away from the wall. As he neared her, she spun to face him. She smelled like warm, healthy perspiration. No fancy scents for Nera. A few strands of her platinum hair were stuck to her temples.
“You are nothing like Gunn.”
“Sorry to disappoint, but I look out for myself. Always.” Something moved through her eyes. She stepped closer until their chests bumped.
Nik made a scoffing noise. “That’s just what you let everyone think.
” He leaned down until their noses briefly touched.
“I saw you on your knees, digging through the sand to help me save Dathan. You gave me what my cousin needed to save an entire planet. And all you’ve ever asked for is a few favors from me… which you’ve never called in.”
She rose up and bit his lip. “Maybe it’s time I called in one of those favors?”
God. Heat shot straight to his cock.
“How about we burn off the adrenaline another way?” she murmured.
So many temptations right there. Her colorful eyes seemed to swirl with heat. But he knew he wanted more. It almost killed him to force the word out. “No.”
She stiffened, as if he’d slapped her. “Years of dancing around this, and now you say no?” She turned away.
He grabbed her arm and yanked her back, his face an inch from hers. “Not like this. Not to shake off a bad moment, or to work out the excess hormones racing through your bloodstream.”
“Isn’t that what attraction is, just a bunch of hormones? A biological imperative.”
He shook her a little. “When we do this—and we will do this—it’s going to be just you and me.” He let his gaze roam her magnificent face. “I want you, Nera. More than I’ve wanted anything in my life. You’ve pushed, pulled, teased, taunted… It’s only ever been you.”
Her lips parted. “Niklas…”
He thought he detected the faintest tremor in her voice. “I won’t rush this.”
“You’re making this into something…”
“Important? Hell, yes, I am. And you aren’t a coward, Nera.
If all you want is a quick roll in a bunk, I’m not the man for that.
” He reached up, stroking the damp strands of her hair back.
He loved the fact her chest hitched. To be able to affect a strong, capable woman like Nera dazzled him. “Let’s do this properly.”
“Do what?”
He cupped her cheeks and spun her until she was pressed against the wall. “Kiss.”
He took her mouth, not gently, but not in a rough, needy assault, either. But one taste of her, that spicy addictive taste, and he groaned.
Her hands gripped his shirt, and then it was his turn to be pressed firmly into the wall. Her breasts mashed against his chest and she moaned into his mouth. His tongue touched hers, and she tilted her head back, her hands digging into his shoulders.
God. That was Nik’s last thought before feelings, wants, and desires took over.
Moments later they parted, panting. Nera pressed her fingers to her lips. “Hell of a kiss.”
“Yeah.” He was feeling a little dazed, himself. “I want to take you to dinner.”
Some expression crossed her face, her eyes widening for a second before she hid it. “Dinner? I’m a killer, a thief, a treasure hunter…and I’ve been other things, too. Not nice things. And you want to take me to dinner?”
“Yes.”
Her eyelids flickered, and something occurred to Nik. “Hasn’t anyone taken you to dinner before?”
“No. Like I said, killer.” She dragged a hand through her hair, a flash of something crossing her face. “People are afraid of me.”
God. What kind of life had she led? He wanted to be the one to show her the quiet pleasures…and the not-so-quiet ones.
She straightened, her features hardening. “What’s it matter? Dinner’s no big deal. I can get my own damn dinner.”
“I never said you couldn’t. Now, grab a shower and get changed. Then meet me at my cabin.”
She watched him for an eternally long moment, then finally, she nodded. “Okay.”