by Naomi Lucas
The ship abruptly stopped and her body fell against his. His arms came around her and locked her in place. Netto couldn't help himself. His willpower frayed to its last remaining strands, weak from his lack of control. She squirmed and gasped as his mouth found hers, catching it for his own.
Netto groaned when Rylie wrapped her arms around his neck.
He tasted the sweetness and sunscreen and devoured it as their lips moved against each other's. Her back arched up into his chest and one of his hands moved up to tangle in her hair while the other lifted her to him.
The ship stopped. We should be above deck. He should be overboard, however, the thought of leaving Rylie's receptive body behind broke his composure. Her nails bit into his flesh and he pulled her hair, loving the feel of it wrapped around his fist.
Their lips pressed together, moved and suckled, sweet and hungry and new.
Rylie's knees gave up and he caught her, holding her protectively against him. She was so small compared to him, so tiny, so fresh, so toned and tight. Netto didn't want to break her, but the beast inside him wanted to go wild.
Her breasts were pressed up against his chest. There were only small strips of cloth between them and he wanted to see their orbs, bared and beautiful before his eyes. He could feel the hard points of her nipples.
Netto ripped the shirt down her back, shredding it like tissue paper until nothing but strips of cloth remained. Rylie squeaked and shifted, tensing until his hands covered the soft length of her spine.
He wondered if her breasts would be pale and framed by tan lines, ready for his eyes alone. Or would they be as bronzed as the rest of her body, if she sunbathed naked, and if she would allow him to watch the next time?
Rylie’s tongue came out to meet his, demanding, yet shy. She ran it up, gliding over his lips. He growled and leaned back against the wall but found her lips again immediately. She pushed against his defenses and it brought everything crashing down.
He thrust her away. “We can't.”
Rylie's arms came up to keep the clothing covering her chest in place. His eyes skirted down, but her breasts were hidden from him.
“Why not?”
He shook his head.
“Why not?” she asked again, her voice gaining substance. He looked away from her, straightened out his wetsuit, and retook control of the beast inside him, tempering his baser instincts.
“Because.” He stepped around her and put distance between them.
“Netto, I don't understand? What happened? Why can't we?”
He kept walking toward the exit. With his foot on the first step of the stairs, he let out a sobering breath. “I can't stand your smell, I can't stand your taste.”
He left before he was drawn back and stepped onto the deck. The mist had descended while he was below and it quickly enveloped him. It was dark enough that no one would see his need or the wild look in his eyes. The Montihans wouldn't know what he had been up to.
With a growl, he jumped overboard. It was the last sound to fill his ears before he let the cold water of the deep ocean claim him.
RYLIE STOOD THERE IN shock, shreds of cloth on either side. They clung to her as she exhaled the tightness in her lungs. She didn't move until the boat's exterior lights turned on and flooded through the windows.
She looked down at herself with shame. What’s wrong with me? Her eyes burned with suppressed tears, tears she didn’t want to shed. He wasn’t worth it. Her fingers slid across her skin and over her neck until they ended on her lips.
What’s wrong with me? Rylie rubbed her mouth, rubbed it until it was raw and the feel of his kisses had been erased.
She dug her fingers into the material of her torn clothes, and fled to her quarters, but tripped over a wad of cloth. She reached for it, knowing it was her ruined bedsheets.
Rylie dropped it and kicked it to the corner. She shook out her arms, letting the remains of her shirt fall to the floor. She kicked those into the corner, too. She didn't want to be near them, or him, and her clothes had betrayed her with his smell. Her heart roared in her ears, and his hurtful words still filled her head.
She threw on a nightshirt and changed her bedding—her pillow—and pretended that nothing had happened between her and Netto. But as the ship swayed under her body and hours passed, escaped tears dried on her fresh sheets and sleep eluded her.
What’s wrong with me?
She promised herself that she would never let him make her feel this way again. For the rest of the trip, she would avoid him. She’d do everything she could to keep him from making her feel this way again.
Rylie counted the seconds, unable to wait for the horrible time to end. For all of this to end.
Chapter Twelve
The next day went back to normal, or at least as normal as it could be given the circumstances. She woke with the sunrise and ascended the steps. Everything was quiet, peaceful, unlike what was happening inside of her.
The mist was a dark grey cloud, but it was light enough to know that Kepler's sun would soon be above the horizon. The chilly morning air filled her lungs and chased the tired from her limbs.
She heard the slap of hands slamming against metal, the hollow sound wet and ringing as it sailed over her ears. Rylie took a deep breath and didn’t turn around. She wouldn’t be able to see Netto through the fog, anyway. Instead, she powered up the watership and began the day.
The ship rocked and the normalcy of it soothed her nerves. She could almost pretend that it was any morning at sea and she was alone. But the calm feeling didn’t last long as heavy footsteps drew near, as did the sound of water hitting the floor.
The holo-screens brightened her periphery as her ship connected to the satellites in space. It took all of several seconds to download the night time stats.
Rylie pretended to be absorbed in reading them, though her fists clenched on her lap, her nails biting into her palm. He hadn't moved away and the longer he stood behind her, the harder it was for her to ignore him.
Go away, go away, go away. Don't make me look at you.
“Head southeast,” he said low enough for only her to hear. Netto moved away and the door to the interior of the ship screeched as it opened and closed. Rylie sagged in her seat, immediately relieved. She wiped her hands on her shirt and changed the course of the ship.
The wind whistled in and blew overhead. The ship turned and jerked before it headed southeast.
The day went on as any other and she busied herself within the bridge. The Cyborgs remained up on the top deck and left her and her family alone. The only stops they made that morning were for the Cyborgs to jump overboard and scout the water, checking for a break in the shields, a break in the noise the modules emitted.
They continued southeast until Zeph told her to go due east.
Thoughts of the evening before consumed her. Whenever Netto walked past her or said something to the others, it made her want to stand up and rage at him, to demand answers. But she remained silent and convinced herself that it would be best to act as though the situation had never happened, and limit the time spent between them until she could get away.
But she continuously pressed her fingers to her mouth. Rylie could still feel the phantom touch of his lips over hers and taste the salt of him. It had been her first. It would be her worst.
Her body shivered whenever Netto was nearby.
The image of him on her bed thrusting into his hand with his head bent low over her pillow haunted her. Rylie crossed her legs and hated herself for it. She hated that she ached. Hated that her body reacted despite his words.
She fantasized that things had gone differently. That she had stood there in the hallway, silent, as he masturbated just out of her sight, and fled before seeing him. Before he saw her.
She also pictured herself stepping into the room and closing the door behind her, stopping him right before he finished on her bedding, and making him finish inside her, instead.
Her sex tightened and the
emptiness inside of her grew. She was fighting a losing war. What she wanted no longer coincided with what she had.
Rylie's eyes zeroed in on the controls but she didn't see them. The size of his manhood had made her breathless with fear and excitement. Netto was larger than she thought possible for a man. The club between his legs only stoked her sexual frustration into a blazing inferno. It was infatuation at its most primal.
I don't want to die a virgin!
What’s wrong with me? Rylie refused to look at herself. It plagued her and she bit back tears. She closed her eyes again and gritted her teeth when her sister laughed with Zeph.
“I was right.”
Netto. Her back stiffened. Please go away.
“About what?” she asked numbly without turning around.
What could he be right about? She licked her lips, secretly hoping he would apologize. That he would throw her over his shoulder and finish what they had started last night.
“There's a break in the seawall.”
Rylie tried not to let the disappointment show. She faced him.
“Is that a good thing? Did you figure out what happened? If the break came about three years ago, then at least we could know whether or not it has something to do with the crops.”
“It's a good thing.” He looked as if he didn't want to say more...but lost the battle. “It could be... the catalyst.” His jaw ticked. “The waters are different since the last time I was here when the modules had yet to be placed.”
“So even if we fix it, it may not fix everything else?”
“Yes.”
“Okay,” she sighed.
“We’ll be there soon.”
“How soon?”
“Two hours, fourteen minutes, approximately,” he answered. Rylie swallowed.
“Okay...” She glanced up at the sky. “Maybe we should wait?” It would almost be evening by then. The thought of being so close, so stranded, so helpless, next to the broken barrier didn't help the myriad of emotions inside her.
Netto remained unmoving before her, his head slanted to keep her in his sight. He towered over her and blocked out any chance of escape. The protective barrier that he was didn't help settle the unease in her belly. It only made her sad.
Rylie didn't want to look up into his eyes, knowing that she would once again be pinned and helpless. That he had complete control over her. That he was a prick. She attempted to ignore the fact that her eyes were level with his dick, and even in her periphery, she could see the hard outline of it straining against his wetsuit. She turned her back on him and took a deep breath. Please just go away.
“The sooner it's fixed...”
Rylie gritted her teeth.
“...the sooner this is behind us,” she snapped.
The pressure of confinement lifted away as his heavy steps receded. She pressed forward and killed the butterflies in her stomach.
The next two hours passed quickly and without incident. The Cyborgs had prepped some of the equipment they brought on board and her da helped them. Janet was nowhere to be seen. When the two hours were out, Netto yelled for her to stop the boat.
Rylie found the nerve to leave the helm and joined everyone on the bow. She stopped as they came into view; both Cyborgs wore skin-tight full body suits. The material molded to their bodies, displaying every dip and crevice of the muscles beneath. They were two perfect Grecian gods wearing buckles and clips filled with tools and tech that she had never seen before.
A bracket of metal shielded most of Netto’s back. Long wires and pipes, directly attached to the suit, hung off its sides. He was the only one kitted out. Zeph had buckles on but little else.
“You going down there alone?” she asked, moving closer to the group. Her da was admiring several of the guns the Cyborgs had brought on board. Their cases lay open and unlocked on the table before him.
“He’s the only one that can, sweetheart,” Zeph answered. Netto stopped what he was doing.
“Why can't you?” Rylie asked. She refused to look at Netto.
“I'm a saltwater crocodile,” Zeph said with a shrug. “I'm not built to withstand the pressure that Netto can. It would be quicker if the two of us were down there, but then where would that leave you?” Zeph's lips twisted up into a devilish smile.
“Back away from my daughter,” Da warned, releasing a clip from one of the guns. “She's the best shot in the homestead, and if there was a standoff between the two of you, I’d place my bets on her.” He slid a new clip into the gun. “That's if I don't kill you first.”
Zeph laughed and winked at her before he turned away. She snuck a glance at Netto who remained motionless. He stared at Zeph with a look she had never seen on a man before. He looked hungry, with eyes that flashed silver and teeth that could be seen between the crack of his lips. Rylie wrapped her arms around her middle, feeling unsettled.
“You're a shark. He told me. Sharks can withstand the abyss?”
Netto turned toward her and his hungry anger melted away. She exhaled. The look was for Zeph, not her.
“Some.”
Netto picked up one of the wires and pressed into the back of his hand, his skin opened up but she couldn't see what was there.
Rylie took a step closer as the wire plugged into him and the skin sealed over it. Netto stilled. They were suddenly standing far too close.
“Does that hurt?” she asked relieved her voice remained indifferent.
“No.”
“Will you be able to stand the pressure?” She refused to look away from the back of his hand. Netto sat on the edge of a seat and began to spear wires into his feet.
“Yes.”
Rylie frowned. She ran her fingers through her hair and sat down a little ways away from him. Before she lost her courage and the images came back from the night before, she looked down at her hands.
“Please be careful down there. It will be night soon,” she said. Even though she was mad at him, confused, her wants a jumbled mess in her mind, she didn’t want to see him get hurt.
His hand lifted and clasped the back of hers. Rylie shivered from the contact.
“I'll be fine.” Netto gently squeezed her hand. “I'll be in communication with Zeph.” He let go of her and stood, adjusted his belt buckle, and moved to the side of the ship.
“It's time.”
Zeph sat back with a large rifle over his lap. Da set down the one he’d been holding and nodded.
“You know what you're doing?”
“Yes.”
“We’ll be here when you get back,” Da said.
Netto looked at Zeph and the two shared a wordless look. Rylie wondered what it would be like to speak into someone else's mind.
“Keep the lights off.”
“Go, Shark, before I change my mind.” Zeph laughed but she knew it for a warning.
Rylie hoped that Netto would look her way, but instead, he turned and lowered himself into the sea. He was gone the next second, and she immediately regretted that she hadn’t said more.
Rylie dropped her eyes and caught Zeph staring at her.
What the hell is wrong with me?
NETTO POWERED THROUGH the gloom, pushing himself down into the black water to inspect the relay station.
One of the early colonial efforts he had a hand in was to install sensor relays that would monitor currents, ocean temperatures, and seismic activity, with the goal of predicting weather patterns and natural disasters. The relays he placed were hundreds of miles from the shore and designed to give enough warning to the colonists if evacuation efforts were needed.
Every couple of days, the network would report large shifts in current activity, which should have been impossible. Usually, it was localized to one relay at a time but would move from one sensor array to the next down the line. Due to the depth, the arrays had no cameras of their own as visibility was close to zero, and the flood lamps needed to see if anything would attract the interest of larger sea creatures.
Withou
t his recommendation, the EPED had deemed the planet habitable without doing a full oceanic survey.
Netto felt around the malfunctioning sensor array and found several broken sonar emitters. They all faced the same direction, deeper out in the ocean, away from the shoreline. He reoriented himself. He couldn’t open his eyelids, his eyeballs to weak to withstand the water pressure.
He messaged Zeph at the surface.
Netto unfastened the emitter modules. At least they’re replaceable. There was nothing he hated more than underwater welding. Anytime he turned the plasma torch on, it boiled the water around it and made a noise he could feel under his skin.
His fingers brushed around the array, feeling for damage, finding grooves carved into the side of the metal. What could have done this?
Netto scanned his vicinity. Creatures lurked around him, displacing the water.
He gritted his teeth and replaced the emitters he could get out easily.
Something huge shifted at the periphery of Netto’s senses. It felt like a mountain was plowing through the water. The relay cycled the new emitter modules, bringing them on at full power and blasting the area with a sonar noise he couldn’t hear. Whatever roamed out there did not seem to appreciate the sound.
Netto pushed every one of his systems into overdrive, hoping to get anything on the creature before it left his bubble of awareness. Half of his tech didn’t even work down in the abyss. He hissed through his teeth in frustration as all he could image was the tail of the creature.
He didn’t dare chase after it, because if it got away, he’d never hear the end of it from Zeph. A job unfinished and a creature escaped? Unacceptable. Worse, he had no idea of its capabilities, and the boat was right above him.
Netto turned back to the job at hand and finished repairing the module. The signal it released continued to strengthen as he set it to match the others. When it was done, he connected to the tech and checked for updates, and when none appeared, he ran a full series of diagnostics.