Chapter 9 #2
I shifted slowly this time, and it was much easier than the previous shift.
Not painful, but a shape that lay a breath away beneath my skin, just as it should be.
As small as I’d been, this junction had not felt tight, but when I grew into my two-legged shape it instantly became cramped.
Crouched on my knees in front of her, my head brushed the ceiling, my shoulders caught between the walls and pipes.
Something prodded very uncomfortably against my bare ass, too. Damn, how did she get in here?
There was no time to focus on how uncomfortable and small the junction of pipes was to crouch in.
My eyes locked on Irena’s face, my lungs pulling air deep to draw in her scent and seek the information I needed.
Her eyes, such a soft, warm brown, had grown huge in her pale face.
Her body grew tense and curled back, knees drawing under her as she pressed her back against the bulkhead behind her.
“Flack…” she said, instantly recognizing me.
A spike of fear quickly faded in the air between us.
“Hello, sweetheart,” I said. She had been startled by my shift, but her fear was already fading into nothing but a memory. She wasn’t afraid of me. It was a victory that sang through my veins. “You called for me?”
She licked her lips, opened her mouth, shut it, then opened it again.
Red stained her cheeks. “You are naked,” she pointed out.
Her eyes darted down my body to where my cock hung between my thighs.
I glanced down too and saw nothing unusual.
As a shifter, I was very comfortable with my nudity; it was simply a fact of life.
It had not crossed my mind that this might be a problem.
In fact, it still didn’t seem like a problem to me.
I rather liked it when she blushed and stared at my cock like that.
It twitched under her attention, beginning to grow as arousal sharpened my senses.
“So I am,” I agreed with her. “Sadly, you are not.” Her eyes narrowed, and she fixed them firmly on my face.
Still pressed against the back wall, her arms were crossed protectively in front of her chest. She had not once looked for her metal pipe, the weapon she’d so briefly wielded when I first showed up, but I got the distinct feeling that undressing was not in the cards just yet.
“Are you hurt? I heard your scream, and I came as fast as I could.” Xathena was probably still searching the Vidu for her.
That one was not going to give up until she had what she wanted.
This was, however, such an incredible hiding spot that I was certain they’d never find her here.
What I needed to know was how Xathena had made my mate scream.
Had she hurt her in ways that hadn’t left a mark?
“You heard me scream?” Irena repeated, as if she couldn’t quite believe it.
Her body was still stiff as a board, and though she wasn’t scared, she was clearly ill at ease.
I didn’t like that, but I’d tame her skittishness like I had before.
It was a challenge I was more than willing to take on.
Leaning back, metal scraped my shoulders and prodded places I really didn’t want prodded.
When I eased back, though, she lost tension.
Her hand even dropped to the blankets that made up her nest. She picked one up and held it out to me.
Obediently, I pulled it across my lap and hid my cock from her view.
A smile pulled at my mouth because her modesty amused me.
“I heard. What did Xathena do? Should I go out there and rip out her throat? Did she mark your fair skin, my beautiful Irena?” I scanned her bare arms again, checked her throat, and what I could see of her legs.
Nothing there, and the scars on her cheek were now a pale reminder of her strength.
Her breasts were outlined by the thin fabric of her dress—seductive, rounded shadows—her nipples pressing against the smudged white.
Her hands fluttered in the air between us, then briefly touched her upper arms. She probably didn’t mean to give away where she’d been grabbed, but it was obvious.
“Xathena saw my face,” she whispered, touching the scars on her cheek.
“She wanted to know how. If they think I’m healed, I don’t know what will happen!
They thought I was carrying some sort of human plague before, now…
” Her voice trailed off, and the words hung in the air between us.
I understood it now, and a wild surge of emotions rushed through me.
Elation, relief, a dangerous surge of possessiveness that would terrify her if she knew.
Guilt too. I’d made her heal her face, not knowing that ugly, possibly life-threatening infection in the cuts was what kept her safe.
The crew had never touched her in the ways I’d feared, imagined, in the darkest hours of my imprisonment. She was untouched, if not unharmed.
“You’ll hide here. It’s a good spot. They won’t find you,” I said firmly.
“I’ll steal some food for you,” I added immediately, my thoughts whirling as I considered where best to get supplies right now.
I didn’t know how much longer the journey would take to the remote planet where the Verana diamond was currently located.
Not long, I suspected, because Dimon was burning the engines so hard he risked frying them beyond repair.
“Okay,” she whispered. “How are we going to get off this ship?” Her body swayed slightly, and I was reminded of her earlier scent of sleepiness. She had to be exhausted, still underfed, running on adrenaline and fumes. I lifted a hand, ready to reach out, but froze when that made her tense again.
“I have a plan,” I assured her. “A great plan, Irena. We’ll get off this ship together and get the treasure too.
How’s that?” She shrugged, her head lowering and her body beginning to slump against the bulkhead.
Relaxing, but only because tiredness was getting the better of her.
“Let me take care of you, sweet little one,” I crooned.