Chapter 6 #3
Drakkal tucked the pen and pad into their pouch and closed it. Once they were away, he fished a credit chip out of his pocket and placed it atop the table. “Whether you decide to take my offer or not, this should help you keep afloat for a while longer.”
Startled, Shay stared down at the credit chip.
Her father had taught her from a young age to always be prepared and adaptable, to respond to unforeseen occurrences quickly and confidently.
But she was caught off guard by this; her time on the wrong side of the law had taught her that people weren’t kind, weren’t charitable, weren’t willing to help others unless they somehow benefited from it.
This…couldn’t be real. Nothing was given for free, not in her world.
But Drakkal wasn’t asking anything of her. He was simply giving.
She looked up at him. “Is this a trap?”
“It’s money,” he said flatly.
“You know what I mean. You use this as bait to lure me to you, honey to attract the fly, only to spring the trap once I arrive seeking aid. Nothing is free, azhera.”
To Shay’s surprise, she didn’t flinch away when he extended his hand and hooked a strand of her hair with his claw.
He lifted the hair gently and took it between his fingers, rubbing it between their pads.
“Make no mistake, terran—I want you so much that it hurts, but I’ll help you however I can whether I have you or not.
I want you safe above all else. All the rest is up to you, but you have no obligations to me.
“I understand your suspicions, your indecision. I understand your reluctance to trust. But you can trust me. All I need is the chance to prove it to you.”
He withdrew his hand—not without a hint of reluctance—and turned away from her, crossing the room to crouch over the items he’d placed on the floor.
He returned the knife to its case before lifting his prosthesis.
Rising, he moved the prosthesis into place.
It clicked into its socket. He flexed his cybernetic fingers in the same way a person might’ve tried to work away pins and needles. And all the while, Shay watched him.
Drakkal twisted slightly to look back at her. Fire still blazed in his eyes, but there was something else there, too—a glint of sorrow, perhaps, or of hesitancy. It was as though he didn’t want to leave. “I’m available any time. Just call.”
That said, he grabbed his jacket and walked toward the door.
Before his hand reached the control, she spoke, forcing her name past her lips. “Shay Collins.”
He paused and bowed his head slightly, ears turning slightly. “What?”
“My name. It’s Shay Collins…but just Shay is enough.”
Drakkal looked at her over his shoulder. The corner of his mouth lifted in a smile; the expression was so disarming, so charming, and it completely changed his whole face. The heat in Shay’s belly surged through her, quickening her pulse.
“Good to finally meet you, Shay Collins.” He faced forward again and pressed the control. The door slid open, and he didn’t waste any time in walking through. It closed a few seconds later.
The apartment felt suddenly colder, emptier, and larger with him gone.
And she didn’t like it one bit.
She didn’t even know him, not really, but he’d been so gentle…
and he’d made such an impression upon her, had such a commanding presence, that she couldn’t help wanting him to come back.
He’d turned up while she was sinking to what felt like a new low and offered her everything she needed.
She knew it was too good to be true, it had to be, but the hope he’d instilled in her was undeniable.
Despite her wariness, she’d felt safe with him near.
He seemed like an entirely different person than he’d been yesterday.
She couldn’t shake the memory of his ferocity as he’d plowed through the crowd, but was there a different way to interpret what had happened?
He’d been gentle with her when he’d taken her from Murgen, too.
Even after she’d robbed him for his efforts.
He’d seemed a bit frustrated, but not angry.
He’d even flirted while she had a gun aimed at him. Hell, he’d had an erection!
Only because he’d been perving out on me while I was naked.
Hypocrite, a voice from the back of her mind shouted.
She’d taken her time studying his body after she’d had him strip.
She was just as much of a perv as he was.
She’d never looked at an azhera that way before.
There were plenty of his kind on Earth, and she’d worked with a couple over the years, but she’d never had a sexual thought about any of them—not that she’d found anything wrong with their appearances.
Shay had just been involved in a relationship—one that had lasted a couple years too long in its two-year existence.
So why did her body react so strongly to this azhera?
There were humans on Earth who were involved in interspecies relationships, but it wasn’t necessarily commonplace.
Shay had just never personally seen the appeal.
Drakkal was covered in fur, and some of it—especially around his shoulders and his chest—was downright shaggy.
She’d never found body hair that attractive…
But it’s not hair, is it?
Part of her wondered if his fur was softer than it looked. She could picture herself running her fingers over it, through it, could imagine herself enjoying its feel against her skin, against her palms as she grasped it while they—
Shay groaned at the insistent throbbing between her legs. “What the fuck is wrong with me?”
She needed to take her mind off this. Off him.
With a frown, she looked at the credit chip on the tabletop and slid her fingers to it. She pressed the tiny button on its top. Her heart skipped a beat at the number on the display.
“That can’t be right,” she said breathlessly, pressing the button again when the display timed out. But there it was again. The amount was greater than all the credits she’d found in Drakkal’s pants combined.
Why would he do this? He’d said he wanted her, and she wholeheartedly believed that; he’d made no effort to hide his attraction for her.
But she hadn’t agreed to anything. Drakkal had no guarantee that he’d have her.
And what was the extent of his want, anyway?
How deep did it run? Was he just after a quick rut to satisfy his curiosity?
Make no mistake, terran—I want you so much that it hurts, but I’ll help you however I can whether I have you or not. I want you safe above all else.
That last sentence dissuaded her from believing he was after nothing more than a fuck.
There was something he wasn’t telling her, something that shone in his eyes as he looked at her, something underlying the way he moved that said it took everything in him to keep from pouncing on her.
Something that said he was on the verge of having his way with her despite how gentle and controlled he’d acted.
More than that, it said she would’ve loved every moment of it.
Shay quickly pushed those thoughts aside.
Whatever his intent, she didn’t believe he was out to hurt her or her baby, and that was what mattered.
Picking up the credit chip, she curled her fingers around it and glanced at the food tray.
The thought of having to take another bite from one of those cheap meals—not that she could imagine anyone of any species considering this real food—sent a shudder through her.
As though in agreement, the baby gave Shay’s belly a little kick.
Shay smiled. “No, we’ll eat good tonight. I promise.”
Opening her hand, she looked at the chip in her palm, then turned her gaze to the piece of paper, her smile fading.
She had a decision to make, but she didn’t need to make it now.
Drakkal was giving her time to think. And though she was tempted to call him that instant and accept whatever it was he was offering, whatever it was that would keep her and her child safe, whatever it was that would guarantee a future for her baby, she had to think rationally. She had to know he was trustworthy.
But something inside her already said he was.