Kell . Her movements matched his, sleek and hungry.
His intent to take this slow burned away. He could not stop himself, his pace increasing, until the sounds of flesh meeting flesh joined with her gasps and his groans.
She was so tight, so flawless. Liquid and flame. It had never been this good, not with anyone but her.
He reached between them, finding her clit with the pads of his fingers, then stroking, rubbing.
Her legs clasped him as she bowed up to scream her release. Control shattered. His climax tore through him, a fiery annihilation that scoured him from the inside out. At the moment of his release, he bit her neck. Mine.
Her quick yelp of pained shock turned to a moan of pleasure.
They stayed like that for a long while, even as his legs, boneless after release, demanded he lie down. He refused to heed them. All he wanted was to savor this moment as he and Mara twined together, shuddering, sweat-dampened, complete.
He felt demolished. And rebuilt.
The ship sped on.
Mara stood in the UV stall, cleansing light streaming over her body. Shed been in here longer than she needed to be, but she wanted time alone. Everything felt sensitive, tender. Not merely her body, but her heart. Shed thought her heart had grown protective calluses over the years, yet they seemed to have disappeared, worn away by Kell.
Gods, simply thinking his name made her tremble. He hadnt just fucked her, he had made love to her. The look in his eyes as he made her come, as he released into herno one had looked at her like that, not a soul. She never experienced any of this before. It made everything shed done prior to meeting him resemble empty, crude movement, basic and thoughtless as single-celled organisms dividing.
Making love with Kell wasnt about division, but union. She rested her head against the wall as light poured over her. In a short span of time, everything had changed, including what she knew about Mara Skiren. After her banishment from Argenti, and the harrowing months that had followed, shed created one goalto need and answer to only herself.
He had changed all that. Direct and ruthless, yet somehow respectful of who she was. And that devastated her most of all. She could have shouldered him aside, or used him for mere physical gratification, if he had attempted to defeat or change her. Instead, he accepted. Even seemed to cherish her. No one had ever done that, not even Mara, herself.
Gently, her fingers probed the tender spot on her neck where hed bitten her. It might leave a markshe discovered she wanted that. If only there was a way to ensure it stayed.
She stepped from the UV stall and slowly began to dress. Instead of her flashy Beskidt By clothing, she opted for her typical uniform: tank top, cargo pants, boots. It felt more genuine, and just now she hadnt the heart for pretending.
As she dressed, she tried to beat down the flutter of hope rising in her chest. No future existed for her and Kell. When the mission was over, they would part ways, as they had to. An ace 8th Wing pilot and a scavenger could not be together. He had his fight against PRAXIS, she wanted only to be left in peace as she sold black market merch across the galaxy. They were two comets briefly crossing paths, flaring brightly, never to meet again.
Well, she couldnt hide in her quarters. Straightening her shoulders, she walked out into the galley. Kell leaned against the tableshe would always remember it as the site of their intense lovemakingwearing only his pants. Her breath caught at the sight of him, but, even more stunning was the way he looked at her, as if nothing else existed, not the ship, not the planet, the quadrant nor the galaxy.
A woman could get very used to being looked at that way. A woman couldbut she could not.
She didnt know what to say to him. So she chose something mundane and meaningless.
Cleaning stall is all yours.
Wordlessly he rose and moved toward the hygiene chamber. But he stopped directly beside her.
He put a fingertip to her chin and raised it, then bent to kiss her. A gentle kiss, laden with tenderness, soft but confident.
Her heart fractured, almost to breaking.
He ended the kiss, and continued on toward the hygiene chamber. The UV stall hummed as he started it up. She pictured him nude, gilded in light, and forced herself to step into the cockpit and check to make sure they were headed in the right direction. They were.
If only there was autopilot for my heart .
She returned to the galley. It was impossible to sit at the table. To busy herself and keep her mind and body occupied, she ran the Arcadia through several diagnostic protocols. Unsurprisingly, given the amount of attention she lavished on it, the ship ran perfectly. Which left her with far too much time to think about thingsabout Kellthat she shouldnt.
He emerged a few minutes later, clean and, thankfully, completely dressed, down to his boots and that horrible long, thin scarf wrapped around his neck. She would yield to temptation if even a single fastener on his clothing or lace on his boot was undone.