Now, however, there wasn’t a single chain-breaker in sight—outside security wasn’t allowed in a One Gov–controlled building. I’d also discovered that anytime One Gov hooahs and Consortium chain-breakers got near each other, the situation turned into bedlam wrapped in chaos with a side order of mayhem. I was amazed he wasn’t waiting in the flight-limo. Then again, I was pretty late. Maybe he’d gotten bored.
Standing in the middle of the women, holding a wriggling puppy in his arms and looking so scorching hot it was a wonder we didn’t all go up in flames, was the love of my life and husband of just over five months, Alexei Petriv.
I assumed at some point I’d tire of ogling him like eye candy. Apparently not. How could I when looking at him was like looking at a piece of incredible art? He was perfect, but that was what the Consortium had created him to be—genetic perfection with an amped-up Modified Human Factor, probably illegal by One Gov standards. He was taller than most men, with broad, muscular shoulders he could throw me over in a pinch if he felt like it. His thick black hair was long enough that it hung below his shirt collar, brushing his shoulders. The eyes were blue, of course; so blue, it sometimes felt like he could look right into my soul with unnerving ease. He wore a suit like some sort of walking wet dream, and I knew from firsthand experience that beneath the suit was a hard body that left me weak-kneed with want. And to top it all off, like the cherry on a sundae, a hint of a Russian accent, sounding sexier than it had any right to be.
Since arriving on Mars, we’d been together a little less than a year. And now that we were married, I thought the excitement of wanting to be with him every second would fade. I assumed the butterflies in my stomach would settle. They hadn’t. Instead, the feelings grew deeper, richer. As our lives became more intertwined, I couldn’t figure out how to exist without him. I’d discovered how love was supposed to feel and the proper way to fall into it, and so I had—hard. I’d given myself permission to let go of everything holding me back and love him in spite of who we both were. Doing that had been one of the most liberating moments I’d ever experienced, and I couldn’t imagine trying to climb out of that well of emotion and be who I was before.
Of course, him being surrounded by a group of salivating women still irritated me. And him being charming Alexei instead of aloof, terrifying Alexei wasn’t helping. I could hear him answering their dog-related questions with entertaining stories that left them all tittering. It made me want to scratch their eyes out. I didn’t, because it wouldn’t have been appropriate. Didn’t stop me from thinking it though. Besides, he knew I stood a dozen steps away with my arms crossed over my chest, about to start tapping my toe in annoyance.
He sent me a look that would have had me breaking out in a full-body blush if he’d done it when we first met. Now I felt my cheeks heat a little and a sheepish grin cross my face. Then he excused himself from his admirers and stepped in front of me—much to the dismay of the women. I could hear their sighs and see the shoulders slump in disappointment.
“Hi,” I said, looking up at him. “I’d say I feel bad for making you wait, but it looks like you were able to occupy yourself.”
I looked down at the squirming, excited puppy that wanted to leap from Alexei’s arms and into mine. I scratched behind his ears and under his chin, running my hands over his dark head, long floppy ears, and sleek black-and-white speckled coat. I started cooing nonsense, unable to help myself in the face of his utter doggy devotion. And to think, I’d once mocked people for treating their dogs like babies.
Feodor was a four-month-old Russian spaniel. When we’d decided to get a dog, Alexei had wanted a massive guard dog only he could have controlled, while I’d wanted something tiny and cute that wouldn’t destroy everything we owned and take shits the size of small children. Feodor was our compromise, the deciding factor being that he would be great with children. The irony of that thought often hit me like a blow to the chest. Children. What children?
In the meantime, we’d gotten the dog, then tried to figure out how to fit him into our lives. Tonight, that meant puppy class with Mannette Bleu, who’d decided she needed a dog in her life as well. It also meant we’d end up on her CN-net broadcast, looking like idiots as we chased after Feodor.
“You look like you can’t decide whether to kiss me or Feodor.” Alexei looked amused. “You realize I’m jealous of the dog, right?”
“Enjoying the taste of your own medicine?” I asked and continued scratching Feodor, who lapped it up in total blissful puppy happiness.
He leaned in and dipped his head so his lips brushed my ear. “You know exactly what I enjoy, and if we were alone, I’d show you.”
“Don’t proposition me at work,” I scolded, though it took everything in me not to slide my hands under his jacket and explore the rock-hard body underneath it. However, Feodor trying to eat my hair when Alexei leaned in was a definite deterrent.
Alexei pulled back, taking the dog with him and untangling him from my hair. “It’s times like this when I miss your shop.”
This meant he was thinking about bending me over the nearest flat surface. Typical. “We need to leave or we’ll be worse than stylishly late. By the way, why are you so chipper? I didn’t think you wanted to go to puppy class.”
He grinned. “I just received confirmation the Callisto permits are finalized. Felipe made them a priority, which means the Consortium can launch the first cargo ship within the next few weeks.”
Callisto was one of Jupiter’s largest moons and located outside its main radiation belt. It had the lowest radiation levels of all the Galilean moons and a subsurface ocean of liquid water that could be tapped, similar to but not as plentiful as Europa’s. I knew Alexei had wanted the Consortium to build a human settlement and space port there practically forever. Now that he had One Gov’s blessing, the next phase could begin. It also meant Alexei would want to go to Callisto, but how this would impact our future wasn’t something I’d considered yet.
“That’s great,” I said, beaming up at him. “I’m glad it’s coming together.”
He arched an eyebrow at me. “I can practically hear you thinking about running the cards. Colonizing Callisto won’t be a reality for years, so stop worrying.”
“I wasn’t thinking about the cards,” I protested.
That earned me a chuckle, and his free hand skimmed my cheek. “Really? I’m fairly certain I know how my wife thinks.”
I heard throat-clearing behind us and turned to find Caleb looking nervous and, dare I say it, celeb-struck. Someone had a man-crush on my husband. Beyond him, Brody chatted up one of Alexei’s former admirers. Huh. I hoped that meant a girlfriend was in the works. Gods knew the man deserved a chance at happiness.
As it had in the elevator, my gut prodded me into action. I hurried to use the manners Granny G had drilled into me as a child and introduced Alexei and Caleb to each other. And since the moment seemed so important, I took Feodor from Alexei so the two men could shake hands. What did luck want from me now? I couldn’t imagine what Alexei and Caleb might have in common. Maybe a mutually beneficial business opportunity? Or was there some other connection? Gods, I hated being a slave to anxiety as I worried how the luck gene might manipulate things next.
Feodor wriggled in my arms, and I lost the thread of their conversation. Although Feodor wasn’t a big puppy, he was still an armful. He’d twisted himself around so he could lick my face. I held him away since I didn’t need a face full of doggy drool—not after wasting fifteen minutes reapplying enough makeup to be considered camera-ready.
Excited, Feodor nipped my arm with those insanely sharp puppy teeth and I had to set him down. Now free, he sniffed everything at nose level with great interest, becoming fixated on a plush-looking chair. I had a terrible suspicion it would be as absorbent as it looked.
“Sorry to interrupt, but when’s the last time Feodor did his business?” I asked, keeping my eye trained on the sniffing dog.
“He went before we came in.
I believe he cocked his leg on the side of the building,” Alexei said.
“You let him pee on One Gov’s Mars headquarters?”
Alexei gazed down at me, fighting to contain a grin just shy of wicked. “Yes, I suppose I did.”
And probably on purpose too, was my silent thought.
Ah, hell. I sighed, scooped up the dog, then herded everyone outside. In more ways than one, it was time to go.
3
We settled into the flight-limo and rose into high-street orbit. I got the nervous twinge in my stomach I always felt at takeoff, one I’d never been able to shake in spite of numerous flights. It said, You have no control over your environment. You’re up way too high. This needs to stop. I ignored it, knowing it would pass once we reached cruising altitude. Instead I watched Feodor pace on the bench seat across from us, running from window to window to see all the sights.
It wouldn’t take long to cross Elysium City—the capital of Mars by virtue of being the drop location for the space elevator—and get to the Larken Kennel Club. The club was the most exclusive dog kennel on the planet. Ironically, I was the one with the in; I’d befriended Mrs. Larken on the trip from Earth to Mars. At almost two hundred years old and with gold notes to burn, she’d been entranced by my Tarot card reading. Later, she’d brought one of the first dogs to Mars and helped set Alexei and me up with a breeder and a cloning specialist since Russian spaniels were rare. Four months later, we were on our way to our first class at her dog kennel.
“Your coworker was eager to meet me,” Alexei commented from where he sat on my right.
“He seemed like a huge admirer, so I figured he’d get a kick out of it. You don’t know him, do you?”
“No. We’ve never met. Why do you ask?” Considering Alexei had a memory like a vault and forgot nothing, I took him at his word.
“I’m not sure. I just felt like I needed to introduce the two of you.”
“Your gut?” he asked, sounding casual in a way that was anything but.
You’d think I’d appreciate having the universe look out for me like that, but no. “Yes, my gut.”
“I’ll look into it.”
Wonderful. I’d set Caleb up to have his entire life dissected by the Consortium. “It felt more like a twinge.”
“Even so, I’ll investigate it.” He gave me a long, considering look. “You haven’t said anything about your Venus proposal. Did you run the cards beforehand?”
“I meant to, but there were all these other contracts to review first. Everyone wanted feedback on whether they were headed in the right direction on their own projects. Then I had to write up reports with my conclusions, making sure to frame everything as assumptions so I didn’t offend anyone.”
While I still had requests for personal card readings from old clients, for the most part, my Tarot card readings had gone corporate. Working for One Gov made me respectable.
“They don’t like what the cards say?” He sounded offended on my behalf, which I appreciated. Then again, he became edgy and annoyed whenever I mentioned doing readings for any of the One Gov Adjuncts.
“On my last performance review, I was told I’m too blunt and hit too closely to the truth, and that it bothers others in the office. So now I have to be careful what I say and pretty up the words before I blurt them out—as if I’d purposely say something hurtful.”
Alexei took some time to glower at that before saying, “Despite your coworkers being closed-minded bureaucrats, did the proposal go well?”
One Gov wasn’t getting any love from Alexei today apparently. “I don’t know. Secretary Arkell seemed impressed, but then the Venus Adjunct went berserk and it got ugly. I told you how melodramatic Kian Zingshei can get, and at the end of the meeting, Felipe fired him. Told him to clean out his things and leave One Gov.”
I tipped my head back on the seat and closed my eyes, rubbing my temples as I replayed the meeting.
I felt his hand stroke my cheek. “If the atmosphere is upsetting you, or the stress is too much, there’s no need to stay just to prove how strong you are. If you don’t want to go back, you don’t have to.”
I sat up in surprise. “But I like my job! I love what I’m doing.”
“I know you do and I can already see the difference you’re making in One Gov,” he said, the tone soothing. “I’m merely saying you don’t need those people or their opinions to prove your self-worth. You will never be a One Gov drone, so don’t adjust who you are to meet their expectations. Do the job on your own terms, not theirs.”
“This has nothing to do with meeting expectations or working on my own terms. I’m just not cut out for political machinations. Today, Felipe positioned me so it looked like the Consortium was poised to take over the tri-system. I don’t appreciate him using me like that, even though I know he’s probably working toward some larger goal. Then there was the way Kian snapped at everyone. I expected him to be upset. I mean, nobody likes being told they’re terrible at their job, but the things that came out of his mouth…He made me feel like I didn’t deserve to be there.”
“What did he say?”
What I heard in Alexei’s voice made me study him closer. The soothing tone was gone, replaced by something dangerous, with frightening undercurrents. He had that look on his face, one that said trouble was on its way because he would be bringing it.
“Alexei, no. Forget my whining about office politics. I can handle it. Please don’t get involved.”
His expression had grown dark. When he met my gaze, he was on the brink of furious. “You have every right to be there and bring more to the table than dozens like him. He upset you. That’s not something I will overlook.”
“And I’m telling you, you have to. You’re not killing Kian or going after Felipe because he wanted to spin this to his advantage.”
“Did I say anything about killing anyone?”
“You didn’t have to. While I love you wanting to protect me, don’t go all crime-lord crazy. Let me work this out for myself. This is my job and my problem. I’ll solve it, not you.” I reached up to cup his cheek, wanting to take the sting out of my words. When I spoke next, I kept my tone light and teasing—a trick I’d discovered came in handy when he got like this. “All I want is for you to be by my side and listen to me complain like the supportive husband you promised to be. If I need your help, I swear I’ll ask. For now, your job is to sit back, look pretty, and try not to think too hard.”
His eyes widened with surprise, then narrowed again. “Crime-lord crazy?”
“Is that the only thing you took away from what I just said?” I pressed a kiss to the corner of his frowning mouth. “Did I ever tell you you’re my King of Wands?”
“How so?” He stilled and let me press a string of kisses along his jaw. I felt the edges of his anger blunt as I leaned into him.
“Because you’re a creative force and a true visionary. You have ideas that could benefit the whole tri-system. But you also have a tendency to be too ruthless and controlling, with the potential to burn down everything around you. Sometimes, that side of you is very sexy. Others, it’s scary. You’re good at delegating, and this is one of those times you need to let someone else take care of the details. Namely, me.”
He let out a breath, then tangled both hands in my hair so that when he tugged, he pulled me away from him. His eyes met mine. “And what card are you?”
I grinned up at him. “I don’t have a card. I’m the reader. I’m the one in control.”
The look he gave me said we’d see about that, but he’d indulge me for now. “I will not stop protecting the things I care about. Some might say you have the misfortune of falling into that category.”
“And maybe I’m just lucky.”
He laughed at that and his hands tightened in my hair. I could feel him wrapping the strands around a fist. “However you label it, we are together regardless. I won’t interfere if that’s what you want and I won’t become all crime-lord crazy, but I will be w
atching. And if I think it necessary, I will step in. I won’t let us be caught off guard again. What happened on and after Phobos is not an experience I want us to repeat.”
I shivered at the memory and nodded solemnly. We’d been unprepared then, as those in the Consortium Alexei thought closest to him had betrayed him and tried to kill me. After he’d discovered the conspiracy led by Konstantin Belikov, the nearly five-hundred-year-old Tsarist Consortium kingpin, Alexei had cleaned house with brutal efficiency. With agents working in concert throughout the tri-system, anyone who’d sided with Belikov disappeared without a trace.
When Alexei told me what he planned to do, I’d been horrified. But when he’d shown me what he discovered in Belikov’s encrypted memory blocks, it brought a whole new level of terror to my nightmares. In the memory blocks was a step-by-step plan to eliminate Project Dark Prometheus, aka Alexei Petriv. That was how Belikov had seen Alexei—not as the son he’d all but raised but as a tool to be used, then terminated. So I’d said nothing, scared what might become of us once he put down the threat, but more afraid of what could happen if he didn’t. I suspected part of him regretted what he’d done, but if it was a choice between us or them, he would choose us.
“Okay,” I whispered, my eyes on his, “but for right now, trust me to find out what’s going on. I’ve got this, Alexei.”
He peered down at me. “And I’ve got you.”
“Yes, you do.”
“We can always skip the class.” The suggestion was said with dark promise, his hands still in my hair.
“Not if we want to avoid having a dog that humps everything in sight and all sorts of other bad behavior.”
The Game of Luck Page 3