Under the warm rays of the Great Star, I almost started to understand the faithful and their devotion. Maybe it was just the moment, the beauty, and looking out over a place that people flocked to because they believed so hard in something they couldn’t see or touch or prove existed. We’d abandoned our old God for this one. Somewhere down the line, we’d abandon the Sky Mother for the next whatever in a long line of them. Maybe they were all one and the same, so it didn’t matter what we called them. Or maybe there was no greater power, nothing except for what the collision of imperfectly balanced matter and antimatter had given us.
“I might start my own church,” I said, suddenly desperate to lighten the mood again. “The Church of the Big Bang has a nice ring to it.”
A chuckle ghosted past Shade’s lips. “Will you worship photons?”
“Well, and gravity. And subatomic particles. I might throw in some quarks as my Powers.”
“Should you have been a physicist instead of a thieving rebel?” He arched his brows, sounding impressed. Too bad I had to burst his bubble.
“No. I pretty much just exhausted my knowledge.”
He grinned and reached for me, pulling me against him and settling his hands on my waist. “You know what quarks do when they’re together?”
We stood toe-to-toe. I draped my arms around his neck. “I’m afraid I missed that lesson. Mareeka was always making me clean the air ducts on Starway 8 because I kept skipping out on math and sciences.”
“Quarks latch on to one another.” Shade tugged us even closer, demonstrating. I angled my hips forward, warmth spreading through me. He pressed back a little. “And the harder you try to separate them, the harder they hold on to each other.”
I looked at him through my lashes. “Are you asking me to be your quark, Shade Ganavan?”
“Baby, you’re my quark and then some.” He dipped his head and kissed me.
My eyes fluttered closed, and a lavalike heat rose in my blood faster than I’d have thought possible. Shade kissed my jaw, my neck. My breathing accelerated. My bones grew heavy. He dragged his lips down the column of my throat. I tilted my head for him. At the hollow of my neck, he opened his mouth against my skin and thrust his tongue against me.
I gasped, the muscles between my legs heating and clenching. Arousal blazed inside me, urging me to move against him. Shade’s heavy hands anchored me, keeping me still. Our lips fused again for a kiss that only made me more desperate for friction. Our mouths and tongues didn’t satisfy the need building and throbbing like a primitive drumbeat deep inside my body. Tearing off my clothes, clutching Shade’s shoulders, and climbing up him had just moved to the top of my priority list.
I broke away. “Jungle sex,” I panted.
“Let’s go swimming,” Shade said at the same time.
We stared at each other. He grinned like a loon. I blinked and then grinned also.
“I like the way you think, starshine.” Desire was a bright lick of flame in his eyes, and I knew I could convince him. I also knew he wanted to get in that beautiful clear pool for the first time in more than a decade.
“We’ll finish this later?” The pressure between my thighs protested the decision, but the rest of me thought swimming sounded fantastic.
The promise burning in Shade’s expression flipped my belly inside out. “I wouldn’t miss it,” he vowed.
I glanced at the pool. “I might have to punish you for teasing me like this.”
He hummed low under his breath. “I’ll look forward to that.”
“You won’t like it.” I’d grown up in an orphanage with thousands of kids. I was pretty inventive when it came to payback.
His eyes smoldered, somehow growing in intensity, and they’d already been melting me on the spot. “We’ll see about that.”
Curiosity leaped inside me. Leave it to Shade to make punishment sound like something I might want to open my horizons to—you know, time permitting.
“I don’t have a bathing suit,” I hedged, suddenly nervous about how deep the pool might be. Clear water could be deceiving.
“Jungle swimming is always naked.”
I’d have to take his word for it. Shade was the expert. “Are there things in that water?”
“There shouldn’t be. It’s pretty hard to get to.”
Hmm. Not a hard no, but I’d accept it. “Can I stand?”
“It’ll come up to your shoulders.”
“What if there’s quicksand?” I’d read about that. It sounded awful. A bit like death by floating, only slower. And dirtier. Really, the only thing they might have in common was me ending up without air, which I wanted to avoid wherever.
“There’s not. Don’t worry about that. I know this place, and I won’t let you drown. I promise.”
“We don’t have towels.” I didn’t even want to avoid swimming. Excuses kept popping out anyway.
Shade set down the pack he’d brought. I’d only seen him put in water, but he pulled out two towels and a picnic lunch and turned back to me with a smile. “A good Space Rogue Phenom never goes anywhere without provisions and equipment.”
I grinned. He’d thought of everything.
Shade undressed in record time and jumped into the pool feet first at the deeper end. He reemerged and shook water from his head. Droplets sprayed around me. His wet shoulders glistened in the heavy tropical sunlight, a ripple of tanned skin, broad bones, and hard muscle. The water reached his pectorals, lapping at his chest in a way I wanted to follow with my lips and fingers.
Shade held out his hand to me. “Let’s teach you to swim while we can. We’ve only got a few hours until we have to deal with Bridgebane and all hell might break loose again.”
I tossed aside my clothing and reached for him. Shade eased me into the pool, our bodies touching and tangling under the pleasantly warm water. My heart soared in spite of the uncertain remainder of the day ahead of us. Right now, I was Tess-the-Fucking-Jungle-Queen, and I was ready for anything.
Chapter 6
SHADE
Tess was a natural at pretty much everything—except for swimming. By the end of our lesson, she could float—mostly—and blow bubbles underwater. That was already something, but throw in waves, cold temperatures, or anything stressful, and I had a feeling she’d sink like a meteor.
None of that mattered, though, because she had fun. Seeing her smile was all I wanted. I doubted it would last long. Nathaniel Bridgebane could be on Reaginine right now, waiting for his clock to hit day ten after we’d struck this messed-up bargain with him. Technically, we had the entire day to make contact, but I knew he’d be there at hour one.
Good. The sooner we gave him Tess’s A1 blood in exchange for the safety of the Starway 8 women, the better. Then Tess could stop worrying about them, and we could go meet the Endeavor on time—and worry about a metric ton of other things.
We rounded the corner of Bungalow 39, our hair still wet from swimming. Tess’s damp shirt clung to her, teasing me with the long, lean lines of her torso and the subtle curves of her body. I slid my hand up her spine, palming the back of her neck and lightly gripping. Her lips parted, her eyelids grew heavy, and she leaned into my hand, her shoulders softening.
I smiled. Maybe we had a few minutes.
“What do you think about a hot show—” I stopped and swiveled my head from side to side, my eyes narrowing. Silence. But I’d just heard a click.
I pushed Tess into the hollow of the doorframe and stood in front of her.
“What?” she whispered.
“A gun just cocked.” Adrenaline pumped through me as I scanned the landing pad around the cruiser. Empty. And there was nothing along the visible side of the building. Whoever was out there had either skulked around the corner or was hiding in the bushes.
“Show yourself,” I demanded, shielding Tess with my body.
&
nbsp; The greenery to our right rustled, and Solan’s glistening bald head appeared, black as midnight. Dark glasses on and muscled body easing forward with coiled menace, he stepped out from behind a tall fern that shaded one corner of the bungalow. Moving toward the open docking area, the bounty hunter lifted his arm and pointed a Redline at me.
My lips pulled back in a snarl. That same gun had sliced a shot through Tess’s side just ten days ago.
“What the fuck, Solan? How’d you find us?” I’d searched my cruiser inside and out for tracking bugs. I’d changed all my clothes before leaving to find Tess. I’d left nearly everything I owned behind. I’d ditched my cruiser’s small portable com unit somewhere in the Outer Zones and bought a new one in the Fold to replace it. My accounts were all coded. I was thorough and careful. There was nothing to lead them here. So what the hell happened?
Solan didn’t answer. He just shook his head, his gun leveled on my chest. Keeping one eye on him, I looked around for Raquel. She’d pop up soon enough with her utility belt, tranquilizer gun, steel-tipped boots, and lightning-fast feet ready to do some damage.
Solan tilted his head in Tess’s direction, his eyes unreadable behind his reflective sunglasses. “Her megabounty’s on your head now, buddy. Come quietly, and we’ll leave her out of this.”
Raquel finally sauntered out of the bushes, her ambling gait doing fuck-all to disguise her lethal agility and hard edges. “I know you were unhappy, but seriously, Shade. This? Her? Cashing her in was the better option.”
Of course the ice queen of bounty hunting would think so. “How do you live with no heart in your chest? Are you actually a machine, or do you just act like one?”
Apparently considering that a compliment, Raquel smiled in that panther-like way of hers. She fit right into the jungle, a feline hunter at the apex of the food chain and not doubting for one second her ability to catch her dinner. I’d thought she was pretty when I first met her, a confident medium-height brunette with golden-brown eyes and a nice smile. Now, all I saw were the claws and teeth of an expert predator.
“How. Did. You. Find. Me,” I ground out.
“We chipped you,” Solan answered. “When your rebel girlfriend left you behind on the Squirrel Tree, Raquel tranqued you, and we chipped you before you woke up.”
My jaw spasmed. “Where is it?” I ran my hands up and down my forearms, even though there was no way I’d feel a tiny microchip underneath the muscle. And it could be anywhere. My legs, my back, my torso.
“As if we’d tell you.” Raquel hooked her thumbs in her belt, which was no doubt filled with illegal weapons. “Don’t give us trouble, and Little Miss Rebel of the Year can go back to being a pain in everyone’s ass and we’ll try to forget about her—as long as we get our money.”
Rage pounded through me like the punches I wanted to land in both their faces. “I’ve known you for ten years. Ten fucking years,” I growled. “Why am I even surprised you’re this mercenary?”
Solan’s mouth flattened, intractable. “That’s our deal. Take it or leave it.”
“We choose ‘leave it.’” Tess brought her arm up next to me from behind and cocked her Grayhawk, pointing it at Raquel. “Surral can find it and take it out of you,” she whispered.
I wasn’t sure we’d make it to that point. These two were vicious.
I reached for my gun, just a twitch of my fingers, and Solan took a menacing step forward.
“Don’t even think about it,” he threatened, “or you won’t make it out of this.”
“Touch him, and I shoot her,” Tess informed the bounty hunter coldly. “I don’t care about your frenemy issues or how long you’ve known each other. I care about Shade, so back the fuck off, asshole.”
“Feisty!” Raquel laughed. “I’m starting to like her.” Her eyes said otherwise. They hardened.
I had a choice. Let all of this happen, or take a risk. Raquel didn’t have a gun out yet. And would Solan really shoot me? My money was on no, even though it was his money also.
I lunged, leaving Tess partially sheltered in the doorway.
“Shade!” Her voice rang with shock.
I didn’t look back. She had a Grayhawk trained on Raquel and knew how to use it. It was unlikely Tess would aim for anything vital. Raquel could draw fast but didn’t usually shoot bullets.
Solan’s wide brow flew up in surprise. He stood his ground, his gun level. His jawline hardened. I ran. One step, two steps, three. He stood there and didn’t pull the trigger.
I crashed into him and we wrestled for the weapon. He had height and pounds on me, but I was quicker. I ducked a punch, twisted, and grabbed the top of the gun, pointing it downward as I cracked my fist into Solan’s forearm. He dropped it.
There was no time to reach for either of our weapons before he tackled me and sent us both flying. I landed hard on my side, Solan on top of me. We grappled. I kneed him. We rolled, hot pavement searing my bare arms and grit grinding into me. I came out on top after a brutal struggle and reached for his neck. His big fist drove into my face. Pain exploded across my cheekbone. The world turned upside down, spinning. Ground became sky. Solan lifted my shoulders and slammed me hard into the blacktop. My skull thudded. The breath flew from my lungs like a thunderclap.
I blinked, wheezing and seeing nothing but darkness for a second. In that sudden void, I reevaluated. We might kill each other after all. Chest-clenching disappointment bit into my rage as I ripped off his sunglasses and went for his eyes, ramming my thumbs into the sockets.
Solan roared away from me. I twisted out from under him, and my feet came back around like a hammer. He flew over backward. I sprang up. He rolled to one knee and crouched, facing me. His eyes watered. He squinted.
We stared at each other across the scorching asphalt, our chests heaving. My cheek throbbed. Solan thumped his big hand against the ground and growled in what seemed like frustration.
What did he expect? He’d never gotten the best of me in a fistfight. Only Raquel had. Solan was usually making off with my target while she and I beat the shit out of each other until she pulled some underhanded stunt that gave her the advantage.
“Had enough, friend?” I taunted.
“I need this,” he grated, rising.
“So I should just forfeit my freedom and go with you because you need this?” I scoffed. Solan and Raquel were rolling in bounty money—almost as much as I was. “Never gonna happen.”
Solan moved in a slow circle, looking for an opening.
“How ’bout we both put down our weapons?” I heard Raquel offer. She must’ve drawn something while I wasn’t looking. “We can do this hand-to-hand, the old-fashioned way. The way the men are.”
“No!” I shouted. Raquel would wipe the floor with Tess, and she’d fight dirty.
“Fine,” Tess answered. “But you first.”
“You think I’m stupid?” They could probably hear the sneer in Raquel’s voice three planets over.
“Same time, then,” Tess said.
I whirled. “Tess!” Lowering her weapon would be a mistake. She had no idea who she was dealing with.
Solan came in fast and hard, a shadow-flash in my side vision. I barely evaded, my concentration broken.
Fuck hand-to-hand. I was done fighting fairly. I freed my gun but wasn’t sure who to aim it at. Probably Raquel. She was the greater danger.
The hesitation cost me. Solan kicked the Grayhawk from my hand, and I went numb from wrist to fingers. He plowed into me, toppling me over again. I kept my head up this time, but the backs of my arms scraped along the landing pad surface. Ignoring the pain, I threw my legs up and wrapped them around his neck while his balance was pitched forward. Twisting, I brought him down hard on one shoulder and sat on him. My fist barreled toward his face with a decade of fury and frustration behind it. Pain flared in my hand, but it was the near-knockout pun
ch I needed. Solan blinked at me, limp and groaning.
I shifted my weight to pin him better. “Back off, call off your harpy, and we can go our separate ways again.”
“Can’t,” he said thickly, his eyes unfocused. “Need the money.”
Compressed air popped with a burst of pressure. Tess grunted. My heart seized, and I whipped around to find her.
Raquel sprang forward and grabbed Tess in the doorway. The bounty hunter propped Tess against the front of her body, keeping her upright as Tess’s knees sagged and a heaviness I knew all too well overtook her body. Terror burst in Tess’s eyes two seconds before her features began to slacken.
“Shadey Poo, I’ve got your girlfriend.” Raquel’s singsongy words filled my chest with poison. I doubted I’d have killed Solan. Her, I wasn’t so sure about. I snarled.
Raquel smiled at me as Tess’s expression glazed over. A tranquilizer dart poked out of her shoulder. Her jaw sagged, slowly falling open, and Raquel pushed her mouth closed by thrusting Tess’s Grayhawk up under her chin. Raquel’s finger tightened on the trigger.
“No.” A cold fist wrapped around my heart and squeezed out the hardest beat of my existence. “Don’t.”
Raquel smirked. She knew she had me. “Let my husband go, or I’ll plug her with more than just a tranquilizer.”
I slowly put my hands up.
“Do little rebels survive bullets to the brain?” Raquel wiggled Tess’s limp body. “I wonder.”
I jumped off Solan, a bitter taste flooding the back of my mouth like acid. I backed away from the bounty hunter. “Let her go.”
“No.” Tess formed the word with difficulty. She shook her head, trying to fight off the sedative. “Run, Shade.”
Run? As if that would fucking happen.
Raquel gripped her harder. Tess stopped moving. Her head lolled, but then she straightened it and forced her eyes open.
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