by Shona Husk
He blew on her wet skin and made her shiver before moving to the other tight peak. She needed to come, but in this position, she couldn’t really get any leverage. She tried wiggling her hips, but it only served to increase the liquid need in her belly. Her hand gripped his biceps and she pulled herself up. Even though she missed his mouth on her skin, the instant change in position caused a shudder of pleasure to roll through her.
She leaned forward so her nipples brushed his chest, her arms around his neck, her cheek against his so she could breathe him in. His hands closed on her hips. The tempo of the music in the show increased and she found herself moving in rhythm, letting him drive her down hard on his cock. She gasped and rode him faster, enjoying the racing lust pulsing through her body as his cock thrust into her hard.
His breath brushed her neck as he panted. Her skin seemed to tremble as if every touch was too much. She wanted to hold on to the feeling, the edge of desire and the pre-climax tension. But it was too much, sensation overwhelmed her, and as she sank onto him again, the first ripples spread from her clit and into her belly. She bit her lip to keep from crying out as her core clenched around him. His shaft twitched inside her slit and she felt the thickening of his cock and the heat of his release as his cum spilled.
Once she would’ve been disgusted at the mess. But she’d gotten over that when she’d realized it was a way to get what she wanted. She’d taken back control and made sure she never left without what she’d come for—either a scalp or a sizeable donation.
This time she was going to leave empty handed and empty hearted.
Haliday leaned against him, unwilling to move and put any distance between them. She felt the spines on his back ease down. She’d love to run her tongue down his back and tease the sensitive base of each spine. She wanted more. But as the ads said, what happened on the Moon stayed on the Moon.
He held her in his arms, his breath huffing out against her throat. Was he going to close his eyes and give in to the stupor? Even as she thought it, she wanted to close her eyes and give in for just a few moments. She seemed to drift, aware of his body and his breathing. Neither of them moved. His cock was still inside her.
She broke the hazy silence. If they were talking, it would be harder to fall asleep. “Why is it better than other times?”
He was silent for a moment and she thought she’d spoken too softly for him to hear. Was he already asleep?
“Some pheromones mix better than others.”
“We mix well.” She’d known that the first time she’d smelled him. But she’d slept with so few Phrial men—they generally had nothing to offer her.
“Yep. Very well.”
“What does that mean?”
“Whatever you want it to mean.” He drew back and looked at her with eyes still dazed with lust and heat. He was fighting to stay awake.
Did that mean it was nothing special to him? That she was just a passing fling? Of course she was. He knew as well as she did that this couldn’t go on. But maybe they’d cross paths again when chasing the same scalp.
He cupped her cheek and placed a soft kiss on her lips that didn’t turn into a heated demand. “But you’re the best I’ve ever come across.”
She wanted to say the same thing, but it would seem cheap if she mimicked, so she stayed silent and let the heat creep over her cheeks. “It has been good.”
Callen blinked, the lust fading from his eyes. “Back to work then.”
No. I want to stay and play, and learn all the things I’ve missed out on. But that wasn’t her life. She’d made that decision when she’d created Haliday instead of disappearing into the vast ruined cities of Lekithia. Another face in the crowd of factory workers trying to rebuild what had been destroyed. “We are on a time limit.”
He removed his arm from around her and checked his watch. “Five trics until it should be detectable.”
“And the window?” How long before the firemoss reached critical mass and exploded, taking out the Moon and making it contaminated space junk? It seemed so wrong to be stealing a few moments for herself when everything would end so suddenly if they failed.
“Hard to say. It depends on where he placed it. If it doesn’t get killed…”
Everyone would get killed.
She’d worked too damn hard to get free and be her own person again, to do some good. She wasn’t going to be taken out by a man on his own violent quest for freedom. There were better ways. The people here were innocent; rich and spoilt for sure, but they weren’t responsible for what happened to his planet hundreds of years ago. They didn’t deserve to die so he could make a statement.
“Got a plan or were you too distracted?” She smiled, even though she knew she should be serious. But it was hard to be overly grim when Callen was still inside her and she was sitting on his lap with her clothes all haphazard.
“You were going to seduce Noga?” He eased the straps of her dress up her shoulders.
She nodded. It seemed so stupid now. Yet it had always worked in the past.
Callen was looking at her, yet she knew he wasn’t seeing her. “We are going to need to time this perfectly.”
“I can track him.” She waved her fingers in front of him.
Callen grinned. “Much prettier than mine. Do you think you can get close to him again?”
And if Callen was right and Noga knew all about her?
She lived with fear every day, and yet the knowledge that it was so close to coming true terrified her. She drew in a breath and steeled her resolve. She was the Kingfisher, responsible for handing in dozens of criminals. She was Haliday Fisher and had hundreds of orphans all thanking her for the donations she made of toys and clothes and books and schools. She could get close to Noga again.
“Of course.” The sooner he was dealt, with the safer she would be.
“Good. This is what we’re going to do.”
Chapter Five
Haliday had made a few tweaks to his plan. Ones which improved it—things he would never have thought of. But then he wasn’t posing as a do-gooder socialite with more chits than brains. He’d showered to get the scent of her off his skin so he could think clearly. Well, most of her scent had come off. She seemed to be in his blood and on his mind all the time.
Right now, he was hoping she was as good as she seemed to be.
She was the Kingfisher. A bounty hunter he’d been watching move higher up the unofficial ranks. What he hadn’t told her was that she’d stolen a scalp off him once before. Never had he suspected it was Haliday Fisher living a double life. Most people wouldn’t.
He pulled out his plex and opened up the simulation he’d been running. A quarter of a tric to go. And if he was wrong? If he called security too early and they found nothing? If he was too late and the firemoss was already too close to critical mass? Would there be time for teams to reach it or for a mass evacuation? Had Noga been able to sneak on hard explosives as a backup?
Hard explosives were so much easier to deal with than the living variety. He’d used both in the past. Been trained in many more and he knew how to counteract them too.
He checked his watch again and hoped Haliday—he knew it wasn’t her real name, but that was the only name he had—was okay. He hadn’t liked leaving her to handle Noga herself, even though it made sense and he knew she could take care of herself. They had to work together and he couldn’t be in two places at once and look innocent to Moon security.
If he’d stalked Noga, that would have looked really bad. Haliday, on the other hand, virtually had a free pass to do whatever she wanted. That could be more useful to a bounty hunter than all the tech and backup in the universe.
Callen gathered up his plex and made his way down to a meeting room. He enacted the privacy tint on the glass and placed the plex on the table. Then he stood and watched it count down. His stomach was knotted and his mind was distracted. He needed to focus. His job was to convince the Moon it was in danger and to get permission to take down Nog
a. The Moon rarely gave that pass out. There was a good chance neither Haliday nor he would get the bounty. Maybe the Moon would at least reimburse his stay.
And Haliday?
The orphanages would have to wait.
And if Noga had dug through illegal channels? It was almost enough to make him walk out. Years of training made him hold his ground. They were a team and she was relying on him not to fuck up. Besides, she was tough. She’d escaped Yem; Noga would be no challenge. Even as he thought it, he knew that Noga would have no qualms about returning her and claiming the chits from Yem. But he had to prove who Haliday was first and Callen hadn’t been able to find out who she really was. There were so many orphans and so many incomplete or destroyed records. It wouldn’t be hard for the child she’d been to vanish. It was the same flaw she’d used to create Haliday.
The countdown went from green to orange.
Callen waited for the countdown to turn another revolution. He had to be sure. He had to be right. The firemoss had to be found. With his heart hammering from the adrenaline, he pushed the button marked security—false presses were punished with detention and expulsion from the Moon as soon as the dock opened for outgoing traffic. “I wish to speak to the Moon.”
A man appeared in the room. He looked solid but wasn’t. He was an image of the Moon’s intelligent core. Capable of thought and decision making, he was almost as advanced as some of the APM computers. The Moon’s hat and formal dress were supposed to give a hint of elegance to the resort of disrepute. “Why have you summoned me?”
“I believe a known terrorist is on the Moon.”
The Moon AI looked at him. “Callen Brax, bounty hunter, here in the pursuit of sex. Did you lie to get on board the Moon and hunt someone?”
Great, the physical Moon security was going to be in here in milli-trics ready to throw him out. “If I was hunting someone, I would have grabbed him already. He is disguised.”
“Mods?”
Callen shrugged. He didn’t care if the Moon found Noga. That was Haliday’s job.
“He may be a criminal, but if he has committed no crime here, he is free to participate.” The man flicked his hand and grinned.
He’d heard that Moon security could be fickle and difficult when not reporting an obvious problem. For all that he looked real, the man was still just a trumped-up plex. “You’ve heard of firemoss?”
That wiped the man’s smile away. “Djunik? Here? That’s a class one offense in Allied jurisdiction—”
“It was brought on board by the terrorist Noga Tindel.”
The Moon was still for a moment as if he was searching through his massive databanks.
Callen glanced at his plex. If the Moon didn’t authorize action soon, there wouldn’t be time to find the firemoss, get there and neutralize it.
“There is a substantial bounty payable on the capture of Noga Tindel. Are you sure you didn’t come here to get him?”
“I came to fuck Haliday Fisher.” He sounded as hard and as mercenary as he could; he knew the Moon would check footage and see him and Haliday in the corridors together. Plenty of cameras and yet enough blank spaces for people to have fun—or do something illegal. “My mission has been accomplished. But I received intel while I was here. And I have come to report it.”
The man considered him for a moment. “What is that on your plex?”
“My simulation of the growth of firemoss.”
The man looked at the screen. “And if you are wrong?”
“No harm has been done. I haven’t broken any rules. I have merely informed you, as I thought you should know about the possible threat.” Callen held his hands out to show he had nothing to hide. If he’d reported this when he’d arrived, the Moon wouldn’t have believed him. He would have been denied entrance and a shot at the bounty. As much as he hated trusting someone else, having Haliday—the Kingfisher—working with him instead of against him was a good thing.
The man nodded, his face blanking, and Callen could only assume he was searching for the heat signature of firemoss on water pipes.
How many other meetings was he simultaneously attending as well as scanning the Moon’s systems on a regular basis?
“And if you are right?” The man’s attention refocused.
Callen paused. Was there firemoss? What game was the Moon playing? His gut still told him to be truthful. Lying would only make the Moon suspicious and right now he looked clean. “I get Noga.”
“You want me to grant you permission to arrest him.”
“I’m a licensed bounty hunter, I can arrest him if you give me the right to act.”
“Or I can just have him removed.”
Callen shook his head. “And have it known that the Moon let the chance to arrest him slip past?”
“The Moon is apolitical.” The man crossed his arms. “However, given the circumstances and the attempted destruction of the Moon, I grant you permission to arrest him on sight.”
Attempted destruction. “The firemoss?”
“The Djunik has been located and will be treated with liquid nitrogen as soon as containment crews reach it.”
“I hope they reach it fast enough.” Otherwise, most of the larger ships, including the Lunar Bird, would be taken out with the Moon. The smaller, nimbler ships had a chance—if they left soon and managed to get clear of the debris and spoor field. Decontamination of the life pod he’d been in had taken far too long. Suffocation was not a slow way to die and he had no desire to repeat the near-death experience.
“They will. Thank you for the notice.” The Moon AI actually managed to look relieved. “Make the arrest quietly, bounty hunter Brax, or I will place a lifetime ban on you visiting. Outward-bound traffic opens in less than a tric. Good luck.” Then he flickered and was gone.
He’d need it. He had no doubt Noga was already in queue to get off. Hopefully, Haliday had him distracted and detained.
Callen pulled Haliday’s plex out of his pocket. He pressed the buttons the way she’d shown him and a dot appeared on the screen, then another. Great, she had two active trackers. One was the Ortin, the other he hoped was Noga, since it was down by the dock.
* * * * *
Haliday had dressed in an outfit that was practical for hunting down criminals as well as stylish. The pale pink pant suit had leg-hugging pants, but the jacket flared at her hips and had slashes in the back to show some skin. When teamed with a rainbow scarf in her hair and dark-green eye makeup that made her eyes look even more yellow, she looked as if she was dolled up for anyone watching her.
The reality was she could choke the life out of Noga with the scarf if things went wrong and pants let her run and fight better than the delicate dresses. Her palms itched, but she ignored it as she walked through the corridor heading to the dock lounge, pretending to be looking for someone. Well, she was looking for someone, Noga, but if he was watching her, she was pretending to look for someone else. Like Callen.
When she saw him, she readied her best ditzy socialite act. She had to catch him before the gates opened and people made their way through security and back on the waiting liners. She needed to tag him and slow him down so Callen had time to get on the good side of Moon security.
Which liner was Noga heading to? A few of the very wealthy had their own private ships. A few were joining small corporate ships. Most people traveled on the liners when going between planets. The Lunar Bird wasn’t leaving today. Without breaking her act, she scanned the departures board. He was here already, reading off his plex as if he really was a businessman looking for the next deal. Or was he researching her? She swallowed down the fear.
Several of the smaller ships were cleared and were going to be leaving in the next tric—before the firemoss exploded and ruined this zone of the galaxy—and she was willing to bet Noga was going to be on one of them. With a smile plastered on her face, she sauntered over and sat next to him.
“Benth said you’d be down here. I’m so glad I found you before you l
eft.” She touched his arm lightly, not enough to transfer the tracker. Not yet, if she rushed, he’d realize what she was up to. Now was the time to be ultra-careful. This was when scalps were lost, when they realized someone had made them.
Noga lifted his gaze from the plex screen and minimized it with his fingers, as if he were worried what she’d read on it. “I can’t imagine why you would want to see me.”
“On the contrary, we share similar interests. Both our homeworlds are trying to recover and improve living conditions for the people. I’m thinking big charity event. Maybe we could do a sister city swap and strengthen ties between our peoples.” She beamed as if it was the most brilliant idea. “I could help lift the profile of your plight; everyone knows how passionate I am about orphans.” This time she touched his shoulder and let her hand linger as if she might find him attractive.
When compared to Callen, no other man was quite the same. The way he moved, the way he smelled when his pheromones kicked in. Her memory of him added heat to her smile.
Noga lifted her hand off his shoulder. While the gesture looked kind enough, he was squeezing far too tight. Her knuckles crunched and her skin whitened under the pressure. While she hated responding to pain—she’d learned long ago it simply gave the bully pleasure—as Haliday in public, she had to.
“Ow.” She let tears form in the corner of her eyes. “Please, you’re hurting me.” Her voice was just loud enough that a few people glanced over.
Noga leaned close. “I have no interest in the woes of your bug-infested swamp. A few hungry orphans are nothing. My only concern is my homeworld.” He released her as if her touch offended him.
She’d been a hungry orphan. How could a man so concerned with the fight for his people’s rights be so dismissive of other people’s rights? All children deserved the right be happy and healthy. Where she’d once disagreed with his methods, now she disliked the man and his casual disregard for life. For the lives of everyone on the Moon. He’d happily kill thousands and justify it for the greater good.