Chapter 5
CHAPTER FIVE
Watching Xander’s face, Mal knew most people would think it was the perfect mask of calm and control.
But she noted the slight flicker of his eyelids, the tightening at the edge of his eyes. Something was bothering the cyborg.
“Do you remember where you are?” she asked. “How we got here?”
He blinked and his hand fell away from her. “I remember.”
He really didn’t look good. “Are you okay—?”
“Malin!” Dathan’s shout echoed through the hangar.
“I’m fine,” she called out. “We’re coming down.” She looked at Xander. “Please don’t hurt my cousins.”
He gave her a short nod. “I’m sorry I…frightened you.”
“You didn’t frighten me. It was that crazy-high leap.
I’m not real fond of heights without a damn good railing around me or a harness.
” She led him toward a set of stairs. As they started down, she felt the warm heat of him close at her back.
Below, she saw her cousins with their pistols aimed behind her.
She huffed out a breath. “Enough. Put the weapons down—”
Before she could blink, she was shoved behind Xander’s hard body.
“Hey!”
He didn’t let her pass, his gaze zeroed in on Dathan and Nik.
“Dathan, he’s fine now.” She stared holes in Xander’s back. His heavily muscled, bronze, touchable back. She raised her voice. “He remembers everything. He didn’t mean to go crazy.”
No one moved or spoke. She managed to peer around him. Dathan’s gun was still aimed at Xander’s head, her cousin’s mouth a firm line.
She shoved her hands on her hips. “Dathan!”
Her cousin cursed and with great reluctance lowered his weapon.
When she and Xander reached the bottom of the steps, she managed a smile. “Xander Saros, I’d like to introduce my cousins, Dathan and Niklas Phoenix.” No one shook hands. “This is Dathan’s wife, Eos.”
Xander managed a stiff nod at Eos.
The woman smiled. “Nice to meet you.” She nudged her husband. “Why don’t we head to the rec area? I know I need a drink.”
Dathan crossed his arms over his chest. “CenSec, I want to know why the hell you hijacked our cousin’s ship and put her in danger.”
“There has been a coup on Centax,” Xander said.
“What?” Niklas exclaimed. “Jesus.”
“Why should I care?” Dathan raised a brow.
“I want to hire you. Those responsible have stolen the Antikythera.”
Mal gasped. “Sweet scrap.”
“The Antikythera?” Eos asked.
Dathan frowned. “Okay, what am I missing? What is it?”
“It’s an ancient Terran artifact.” Xander’s mouth firmed. “Very, very ancient.”
Eos clasped her hands together. “It’s a piece of what’s believed to be the very first computer. It would have been ancient even in Terran times. It was found on a shipwreck, covered in rust.”
Xander gave her a nod. “You’re well informed.”
“I’m an astro-archeologist. I specialize in Terran artifacts.”
Mal was worried by the paleness of Xander’s face. “Look, let’s sit down. I’m still worried about Xander’s injuries.” She also noted he was moving a little stiffly. “He needs to be back in the med—”
“I’m fine.”
The gods save her from stubborn men. “You have internal bleeding—”
“I’m fine.” He took two steps and suddenly fell to his knees.
“Dammit.” She dropped down beside him. His face was sheened with sweat. “Stupid, stubborn men.”
“I’m a CenSec.”
His eyes looked a little unfocused. She shook her head and propped him up with a shoulder before he hit the deck. “No matter how many enhancements you have you’re still a testosterone-poisoned man under it all.”
He turned his head, his face just inches away from hers. His gaze was so intense, like a laser cutting straight through her. Something moved in the depths of his eyes, something she couldn’t quite identify.
He slumped forward and Mal barely kept them both from falling onto the floor.
Then Dathan and Nik were there, gripping Xander’s arms.
Dathan heaved a sigh. “I thought CenSecs were tough. Here I am hauling him around for a second time tonight.”
“He got hit by some strange weapon and just about killed himself to keep the Firebird in the air,” Mal snapped. “I think we can cut him some slack.”
“Whoa, Mal,” Dathan said. “Chill.”
Eos leaned closer. “He needs to be back under the scanner.”
Once they had Xander settled, the scanner humming quietly over his stomach, Mal pulled up a chair close to his bed, refusing to examine the reason why she was so reluctant to be too far from him. He was injured, that was all. He’d saved her life.
A short while later, the others headed for their beds—after Dathan made her promise to call them as soon as Xander was conscious.
She must have slept. She had no idea how long she’d been out, but when she opened her eyes, she saw Xander was still resting comfortably. She took the opportunity to study him more thoroughly.
The man was…built. All those muscles covered by smooth golden-brown skin. His stomach was heavily ridged and nothing like Aston’s paid-for sculpted body. This man earned his muscles through training and hard work.
Stars, here she was, drooling over an unconscious man. No, wait, it was worse than that—an unconscious cyborg who didn’t feel anything.
She dropped her head into her hands. Exhaustion was taking its toll. The reality of the last day happily rushed in to torment her. Centax was under attack. She’d nearly died. Her ship was wrecked. She’d taken a life.
Her throat closed, tears threatening.
“Malin?”
Xander’s voice made her head shoot up. “Hey. Are you feeling better?”
His laser-like gaze bored into her. “I’ve run an internal scan. I’m fine.”
“You should get some more rest—”
“I don’t need much sleep. And I have an auxiliary power source if my resources run low.”
Right. They should all be so lucky.
Suddenly, he was out of the bed and beside her, his big body close. He knelt beside her chair. “What’s wrong?”
She waved a hand at him. “I’m just…having a moment.”
Cool hands gripped her shoulders. She felt the slight bumps under his palms, the implants. Funny how his hands were classified as a deadly weapon, but she wasn’t afraid at all.
“You’re having a delayed reaction.”
His matter-of-fact explanation elicited a small laugh from her. “Right. Thanks.” She raised her arms and tugged him close.
He stiffened, but she didn’t care. She needed a hug, and CenSec or not, he was available. “You may not remember, but on the Firebird, when the enviro was failing, I promised to give you a hug.”
His arms came around her and slowly, his muscles relaxed one by one. “I remember.”
She pressed her cheek against his chest. Bare chest. Really nice-smelling male chest.
One of his hands trailed down her spine, hesitant at first, then more confident. “You’re safe now.” His hand traveled back up until he gripped the nape of her neck. “It was my fault you were endangered.”
She sighed and relaxed against Xander. “Not your fault. Who are these mercs who attacked Centax?”
“It’s a story I should tell the others as well.”
She rubbed her cheek against his warm skin. Under her face, she heard the thud of his heart. Strong and not as steady as she would have thought.
She pulled back. It was hard to tell with his dark skin, but she thought she noticed a tint of color in his cheeks. “Xander…you said you don’t feel emotion. But you are now, aren’t you?” Or was it just her wishful thinking?
“I’m not supposed to.” He cupped her face. “I’m much more enhanced than regular CenSecs.”
As if magnetically drawn, they leaned in closer to each other. Mal felt the blood hammering through her veins. This was crazy. Really, really crazy.
His thumb brushed her jaw. Oh, stars. She’d spent so long trying to find the perfect man, her perfect match. Tarr, the starship pilot; Ben, the starship mechanic from the Souk spaceport; Aston, the salvage dealer.
Xander Saros was about as wrong as she could get. A cyborg, for star’s sake.
“Malin.” A quiet murmur, his fingers brushing over her skin, like he was mesmerized by the way she felt. “I remember you also promised me a kiss.”
Her stomach knotted. “I did, didn’t I?”
His head lowered, and she arched up to meet him.
The medbay door slammed open.
Mal jerked her head up and saw Lala waltz in sporting purple jeans and an orange T-shirt that said “Burn, baby, burn” on the front of it.
“Yo, Mal—” When she spotted Xander, she skidded to a stop. “Holy shit, he looks mighty fine, but Dathan told me he is daaaangerous!”
“Take it easy, Lala. He’s not going to hurt anybody.” As Xander let Mal go and pulled away from her, she stifled a disappointed sigh.
“I looked CenSecs up on the computer. Saw them in action.” Lala pulled something from the pocket of her jeans. A small, blue ball. Her tone changed, turned much more grown-up. “I can be dangerous too. Dangerous is just the beginning.”
Xander tensed. “Explosive.”
Mal gripped his arm, feeling the smoothness of the artificial skin. “It’s okay. She won’t hurt anyone either. Lala, put it away. Now.”
Lala pouted. “But I haven’t blown anything up for ages.”
“You blew up the Bandoo freighter I had outside ready for salvage. The day before I left on my trip.”
“I thought it was junk.” The girl fingered the ball and heaved a giant sigh. “And I said I was sorry.”
Mal ensured her smile stayed hidden. “Put it away.”
Lala flopped onto a stool. “Fine. But that was last week. Ages ago.” She slipped the ball away.
Mal turned to Xander. “Just ignore her.”
His face was blank, but the hard edge said he hadn’t forgotten the explosive ball. Why—when everyone else wanted to run screaming at the sight of him—did she find him so…fascinating?
“Are you another Phoenix cousin?” he asked Lala.
“Nope.”
“She’s…Lala.” Mal wasn’t sure how to describe the teenaged bomb expert they’d somehow inherited after Zayn and Ria needed her help on a mission to free Ria from the Assassin’s Guild.
“Lastite Lala,” the girl added cheerfully.
Xander stiffened. “Lastite Lala. Criminal explosives expert named after the volatile explosive lastite. Responsible for several hundred explosions in the surrounding quadrants.”
Lala grinned. “Your records only list several hundred? Damn, I’m not getting all the badass credit I deserve.”
He turned away from Lala, his body stiff. “I need to talk with your cousins.”
With a nod, Mal moved to the comms panel and put a call through to Dathan. It didn’t take the others long to arrive.
Dathan strode in. “Warning for you, CenSec, I’m still pissed you pulled my cousin into your troubles.”
Lala popped a wad of gum into her mouth. “I think we should start with the fact that Mal was just about to suck face with the sexy cyborg.”
When Eos gasped and Dathan and Nik both spun with fury in their eyes, all Mal managed was a wince.