by Susan Hayes
CHAPTER EIGHT
Cynder lived to take risks. She was always the first one to rush into battle, the first to hop the fence or throw herself into the next adventure. There was only one part of her life that she guarded, one thing she never took chances with: her heart. After all the death she had witnessed and all the dark grief still locked inside her, she had never taken a chance and let herself get close to anyone. Not until Zura had joined their family and Cyn had found another sister, not a replacement for Dana, but someone new to care for.
Zura’s arrival had caused Cynder to lower the walls she had built, and now Toro and Jaeger were in her life, threatening to make their own claims on her heart. Letting them in was a gamble, one she wasn’t sure her already battered heart could survive.
“You’re thinking too much, Cyn. Stop thinking and just be.” Toro’s words surprised her, and she peeked up to find him smiling down at her.
“I know that look,” he explained with a shrug. “Jaeger gets it when he’s calculating outcomes and worrying about variables while life passes him by.”
“New rule. No bashing the other guy and keeping our date all to yourself at the same time,” Jaeger said, appearing beside them.
“I don’t like that rule; I’m choosing to ignore it,” Toro replied before kissing her again.
This time, his mouth branded hers, taking no quarter as he kissed her with breathtaking intensity. Her heart hammered against her ribs, and she strained on her toes to reach up for him, eager for more. Toro was right. She had played it safe long enough. It was time to be true to who she really was. It was time to take chances again.
He groaned in approval when she moved to meet him, and his arm loosened from around her waist just long enough to turn her around to face him fully. He crushed her against the hard planes of his chest as his tongue slipped past her lips to dance with hers. By the time he broke their kiss, she was panting softly, her heart was pounding, and her legs were trembling slightly.
He released her without a word, and before she could speak Cynder was wrapped in a second pair of arms and pulled into another scorching hot embrace. Jaeger’s kiss was explosive, his mouth claiming hers with a fiery passion that ignited her blood and made her pussy slick and wet. Sparks of desire sizzled along every nerve as the needs she had denied for ages came surging to life in an all-consuming firestorm.
“I’ve been waiting to do that since yesterday,” he whispered against her mouth when they finally slowed for a moment. “Tell me I won’t have to wait that long to kiss you again.”
“No more waiting,” she replied. “No more asking for permission. My answer will always be yes.”
Jaeger’s light brown eyes darkened with regret. “I’m sorry. I forgot to ask that time, didn’t I?”
“You did, but that’s okay. Toro remembered, and I was hardly going to tell him yes and you no. We’re in this together, all three of us, right?”
“All three of us,” Jaeger agreed.
Cynder wrapped her arms around Jaeger’s shoulders and leaned in to nuzzle her lips against the side of his throat. “Thank you for bringing me here. I had no idea there was beauty like this anywhere on the station.”
“It’s lovely here, but if you want to see beauty, Cyn, all you need to do is look in a mirror.”
She shook her head. “When I look in the mirror, all I see is the sister I lost.”
He was silent for a moment, but his arms tightened around her in silent support. “One day, I hope you’ll tell me about her.”
“One day,” she agreed.
“But not tonight,” Toro interrupted, his tone gentle. “Tonight is about laughter, good times, and lots of food. Speaking of food. Eventually, you’re going to have to let go of her, Jaeg. Otherwise, we’re never going to eat.”
“To paraphrase someone I know, I don’t like that thought, so I’m choosing to ignore it.”
She laughed at both of them. “You might want to ignore it, but I don’t. I haven’t eaten for hours, and I’m hungry. Food first. Play time second. There’s no need to rush, is there? The night is young, and there’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
Struck with a thought, Cynder pulled her comm-device out of her pocket and held it out to Jaeger. “I’m not going to need this tonight. Why don’t you keep it for me? I’m officially unavailable until our date ends.”
Jaeger took the device and slipped it into a pocket. “It would be my pleasure.”
He kissed her one last time, a tender brush of the lips that left her aching for more. Before she could react, he released her and moved away. He grabbed the bag left lying on the floor and opened it, rummaging through the contents until he found what he was looking for.
A thick, red blanket appeared first. He tossed it to Toro, who spread it out on the floor of the landing. She watched as the two of them quickly set up an entire picnic, complete with chilled bottles of beer, a loaf of thickly sliced bread, an array of cold cuts and cheeses, and even condiments in squeeze bottles. When Toro opened the last container, her mouth watered at the aroma wafting out of it.
“Is that fried chicken?” she asked.
“It is. Zura might have mentioned it was your favorite,” Jaeger said. He indicated the feast with a courtly flourish. “Milady’s repast awaits.”
“This looks great. I’ll admit I was wondering what you were planning on serving considering where we are.” She sat down cross-legged and reached for the nearest bottle of beer. When she saw the label, she groaned. “This happens to be my favorite beer, too. Zura again?”
Toro scratched the back of his neck, his lips twisted into a sheepish grin. “She wanted to help. She uh, gave us a list.”
Veth. “A list? What list? When?” Cyn asked. She wasn’t sure if she was more amused or mortified that Zura was so involved in her social life. She was going to have to have a word with her little blue sister-in-law.
“She walked up to me while I was working security two nights ago. We chatted briefly about my new gig, then she handed me a handwritten list and told me to read it,” Toro said.
Cyn twisted the top off her beer and took a long drink before speaking again. “Do I want to know what was on it, or would that information put her life in danger?”
Jaeger chuckled and shook his head. “It was just a few suggestions about what you liked. Food, drinks, your favorite color, stuff like that. She also added a note to the effect that if we upset you in any way, she knew more than a dozen places to hide our bodies where they’d never be found. For a Pheran, your sister-in-law is remarkably bloodthirsty.”
“You have no idea,” she retorted before taking another sip of her drink.
“I know enough to be sure I never want to be on that woman’s bad side. Your family is a little scary, Cyn.” Jaeger settled on the blanket to her right, and a moment later, Toro sat down on her left.
“We look out for each other. You know how that is.”
Toro nodded. “We do. It’s been us against the rest of the galaxy for a long time now. That’s why I like it at your club. Everyone who works here seems cool with who and what we are. It’s nice.”
“It wasn’t like that in the beginning, but over time, we found the right people for the job, or in some cases, they found us.” She raised her bottle in a toast. “To finding the right people. I’m glad the two of you came to the Nova. The club is better for having you here.”
The three of them toasted with their drinks and then started to pass around the food as they talked about everything from the other fighters at the club to their adventures since being freed from service. The only topic they left alone was their time spent as soldiers. This wasn’t the time for reliving the darkness of the past. Tonight was about making new memories.
There was another reason they didn’t discuss the Resource Wars. It was something of an unwritten rule among the cyborgs not to mention which corporation had created them, or which side they had fought for. Most of them had been enemies at one point, and it was easier not
to know if you’d ever faced someone you knew in battle. Some things were better left unknown. Now the war was over, they were all the same. They were survivors.
* * * *
The more time Jaeger spent in Cynder’s company, the more certain he was that she was the piece that had been missing from their lives. After they’d left military service, he and Toro had tried dating, both together and separately. They’d quickly learned that dating separately wasn’t the right choice for them. They had spent too many years together and experienced too much to ever live completely separate lives. The women they dated invariably ended up jealous or angry over the bond the two men shared. It was far better to date the same woman. If they could find one both of them desired, and who was interested in becoming part of a triad. Cynder was everything they had hoped to find, and so much more besides.
When they finished their meal, the three of them worked together to clear everything away and return it to the bags for the trip back home. Not that they were going anywhere yet. He had another surprise planned for tonight. One he hoped she enjoyed as much as the picnic.
“Anyone want another drink?” Cyn asked.
“Not for me,” Toro said.
“I’m good for now. I thought it might be a good time to unveil the next part of the evening’s entertainment,” Jaeger replied.
“There’s more?” she asked.
“Our conversation about popcorn the other day got me thinking. How does popcorn and a vid sound? I’ve got a couple loaded onto my tablet to choose from, and Toro tracked down popcorn. I don’t know how, but he did.”
“It’s not hot, but it was made today. It seems you can find almost anything on the Drift if you ask the right people.” Toro said.
“It sounds perfect, what vids did you pick? Please tell me Zura’s list didn’t include movie choices.”
“No such intel was provided. I checked. Which is why we have a selection. Lady’s choice.” He picked up the tablet he had pulled out earlier and handed it to her, stealing a kiss at the same time.
“My choice? Let me see…” She scrolled through the options and quickly made her selection. “Oh, you got the remake of The A-Team vid on here! Let’s watch that one.”
“I have all three remakes, actually. Which one’s your favorite?” he asked.
Cynder blinked. “There are three? How did I miss one?”
She started reading more closely, and after a minute or two, she tapped in her selection and handed him the tablet. “I had no idea they made one back in the early twenty-first century. Where did you even find a copy?”
“We were on an ancient relic of a freighter for one leg of our journey out here. The vid was in the entertainment computer’s database. I got permission to copy it before we left the ship.”
“This is going to be good. Thank you both so much. I’m really having a great time tonight.”
Toro got to his feet and offered a hand to Cynder. “Time to get to our seats for the movie, up you get, sugar.”
She gave him a perplexed look. “I’m already sitting.”
“Trust us, the view is better where we’re going.”
Jaeger had filled Toro in on the rest of his plan during dinner. It would be a little tricky, but between the two of them, they would manage.
Cynder took Toro’s hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. She didn’t protest when he kept hold of her hand and tugged her into his arms for a kiss that nearly set the air around them ablaze. Jaeger’s mind immediately started thinking of everything the three of them could be doing soon, and he completely forgot about the vid projection he was supposed to be setting up for a few minutes. It wasn’t until Toro nudged him with his boot that Jaeger snapped out of it.
“Vid, Jaeg. In order for us to enjoy the vid, you actually have to play it.”
“Right. Working on it.” He kept the tablet placed so it was blocking Cyn’s view of his lap and his rock-hard erection. All he had to do was think about her and his cock sprang to life. He didn’t plan on rushing into anything, but his dick was keen to push their relationship to the next level at light-speed.
“Where are these seats you spoke of?”
“Up,” Jaeger responded, well aware he was baiting her.
“Again with the vagueness, Dice. Are we going back to the Club?”
“We’re staying in the atrium.” He pointed toward the catwalk. “Up, in this case, means that way.”
“You haven’t let me down so far, so I am going to assume there’s a plan once we get up there.”
“Yep. C’mon, I’ll show you something else I discovered when I was reading up about this place.”
The three of them took one of the pathways leading to the catwalk. He led them out to the middle of it and rifled through the bag he brought with them. It didn’t take long to find what he needed. It was a length of rope twenty feet long. He tied one end to the railing and fastened the other end to the bag. Now came the part he wasn’t sure about. According to his research, he needed to be standing exactly dead center in the middle of the catwalk for this to work.
“Here goes nothing,” he said and tossed the bag straight up into the air. It soared over their heads and stayed there. Perfect.
“Zero-g?” Cyn asked, her eyes still on the floating bag. “I was going to ask how, but I think I’ve figured it out. The grav plates all have a maximum range of influence, and this is a perfect sphere. To stop the grav plates from interfering with each other, there would need to a buffer zone, where there’s no gravity at all.”
“Nothing sexier than a smart woman. The buffer zone is about fifteen feet across, which is plenty of room for the three of us. One zero-g movie theater, ready when you are.”
“How do we get up there? If you think you’re tossing me up there like the bag, you can forget it.”
Toro laughed. “I’d like to see that.”
“Dream on, stud. That’s never going to happen. Can we jump?”
Jaeger nodded. “The effect should start ten feet up. Make sure you grab the bag or the rope, though. You’ll be moving fast enough to drift out of the bubble.”
With a whoop of joy, Cynder launched herself upward. She hit the edge of the zero-g bubble and started to tumble, but she managed to grab the rope and stabilize herself quickly enough. Her skill wasn’t a surprise. They had all been trained to fight in zero-g conditions. One thing none of them had ever trained for though, was how to manage in null gravity while wearing a skirt.
“Nice legs, sugar,” Toro called up to her.
Jaeger couldn’t even manage to form words at the moment. All he could do was stare. Her skirt had flared out around her like the petals of a flower, leaving her legs bare and exposing the red lace panties she was wearing. He should have stayed on the catwalk to finish setting up the movie, but instead, he tossed the tablet to Toro and leaped up to join Cynder.
He didn’t aim for the rope at all; he went straight for her and caught her in his arms as he floated past. She saw him coming and grabbed hold of the bag, anchoring herself so they didn’t both tumble out of the bubble.
“You’re a fraxxing lunatic,” she muttered as he pulled her to him.
“If I am, it’s your fault. You inspire me to acts of lunacy,” he told her, then sealed her mouth with a kiss before she could say another word. Being with her inspired him to take risks again. To leap without looking; consequences be damned.
She moaned into his mouth, her lips parting as she invited him to take the kiss deeper. Her leg twined around his calf, anchoring their bodies together. He barely noticed when the lights dimmed, leaving them in near darkness.
“Did you know that was going to happen?” she asked him, laughing between kisses.
“Of course. I told you, beautiful, I had a plan. Night time for the plants means perfect vid viewing time for us.”
Toro activated the tablet, and the air in front of them shimmered then coalesced into the opening scenes of the vid. The soundtrack roared to life, filling the sphere wi
th music. Once everything was in place, Toro joined them, wrapping an arm around Cyn so she was firmly caught between the two of them.
“Popcorn?” she asked.
“In the bag. I packed it into re-sealable containers so it doesn’t float away on us.”
“Good thinking. They’d never let us come back if we left a bunch of popcorn floating in the middle of all this.” She pulled out the popcorn, stealing a handful before handing it to Toro.
“You need anything else?” Toro asked.
“Shhh, the movie’s starting,” she replied before carefully tossing a piece of popcorn into her mouth.
Jaeger knew he wasn’t going to be paying the slightest bit of attention to the damned movie. Not when he had Cynder so close. The three of them were floating together in the darkness; their limbs entangled as the vid played in front of them.
The night wasn’t over yet, but he already knew it would be a memory he would cherish forever. No matter if they had a future together with Cynder or not, tonight was special, and so was the woman they shared it with.
CHAPTER NINE
Cynder hadn’t laughed this much or felt so at ease in ages. As she floated between her dates, it occurred to her that this was the first real break she had taken in months, if not years. Before the war ended, her life had been nothing but obedience, bloodshed, and battle. Since leaving, she and her brothers had faced one challenge after another. There hadn’t been time to relax or indulge in an evening of laughter and fun.