“Lieutenant Jason Orlov,” Junkie growled while cutting a dark look at Hamm.
“A man!” Saxon grunted. “That makes a nice change.”
“It’s not like that,” Junkie barked, straightening in his chair. He didn’t want the wrong sorts of stories to get out. Just because he’d fucked everything female on two legs didn’t mean he was ready to start on the other half of the population. “I’m only interested in Orlov as a means to get to a woman.”
“That sounds more in keeping with your reputation,” Saxon allowed. “Evidently you’ve been taunting Lieutenant Orlov over the matter of this woman?”
“Taunting the lieutenant? I was just asking him about Lacey. This bastard—”
“This lieutenant commander,” Danjer corrected him.
“This lieutenant commander bastard took offense. I might have been more careful if I’d known Orlov was his boyfriend,” he snorted, slanting a look at Gray and watching his jaw tighten.
Saxon sighed. “Lieutenant Commander?”
Hamm sent a glare around the table, looking like he’d rather eat bait than discuss the matter—at least verbally. He looked as though he’d much rather discuss it with his fists, which was probably just about the case. Finally he started. “In all the time I’ve known Jason Orlov, he’s never looked at a woman. Now he’s finally found someone he’s interested in and this asshole is fucking it up!”
Junkie shrugged. “Every man for himself.”
“That might work for you and me. But it isn’t going to work for Jason!” he snarled while Velvet shared a worried look with Jed.
“That’s not my problem.”
Hamm stood so swiftly, his chair pivoted on its back legs and hit the styrowood floor with a heavy thump. His hands clenched at his sides for the span of three seconds before he appeared to get his anger under control again. As though to distance himself from the conflict, he stepped over to a long narrow window. There, he propped his shoulder against the wall, his expression fierce as his gaze swept across the yard in front of the palace. “You don’t know shit, Junkie.”
Junkie opened his mouth but Jed stopped him with a quelling look.
“All this space,” Gray rasped, lifting his hand toward the window that showcased the large space, empty but for a few warriors coming and going. “It must be nice to live in this sort of comfort, to grow up with so much room. Earth cities are crowded. The whole damn planet is crowded! Couples who want kids are limited to one child. One! Two years after Jason was born, his parents had a second son, an illegal child. Had the child been discovered, his family would have been subject to huge taxes they couldn’t possibly afford but his parents never reported his brother’s birth. They hid his existence from the authorities, tutoring him at home.”
With reluctantly growing interest, Junkie listened to the tale Gray related in his deep voice. When he was sixteen, Jason’s fourteen-year-old brother had been involved in a flying accident. Without any ID on his person, he was refused medical care when he arrived at the hospital. Frantic to acquire treatment for the critically injured boy, Jason turned his ID over to his brother. But the authorities got suspicious and started investigating his family, anyhow. If he’d been found out, it would have meant his family’s financial ruin. In short, they’d have been living off the streets.
“He’d heard that if he could get to Ibeeza, he could sleep on the beaches,” Gray growled. “What do you know about Ibeeza?”
Junkie grimaced. Ibeeza was a warm planet dotted with tropical islands. Over the last century it had gradually evolved from a honeymoon resort for newlyweds to an oasis for wealthy male offworlders in pursuit of same-sex experiences. These days, BDSM clubs crowded the sandy coastlines. “We know about Ibeeza,” he muttered. “We’re not that far off the beaten track.”
“He left Earth at sixteen to avoid discovery and made his way to Ibeeza without really understanding what he was getting into. He only knew that a young man could make a living there, waiting tables or performing in shows. He hadn’t known how high the rents were or how expensive food would be. Both were astronomical. Almost everything there is imported from other planets. He hadn’t known there were days when he’d go hungry.”
“Cut to the chase,” Junkie growled.
A muscle twitched in Gray’s jaw as he stared him down. “He’s pushing thirty and has never been with a woman. Every sexual act he’s ever experienced has been demanded of him and always for someone else’s pleasure rather than his own. It might not have been so bad if he’d been in any way attracted to males or even if he’d adjusted to the situation over time. But he didn’t. At this point in his life, Jason can barely tolerate the touch of another man. He can manage handshaking but that’s about it.”
“I’ve seen you with an arm around his shoulders.”
Gray solemnly shook his head. “You might have seen him reach out to me. And that’s only a recent development, after sharing a room with him for eight years! But I’d never presume to return the gesture. He rooms with Lieutenant Maloney now. But Match knows enough to be careful around him.”
Junkie transferred his gaze to the table’s wood-grained surface, annoyed by his rising feelings of sympathy for the fair-haired airman—the man Lacey was in love with. Setting his mouth in a hard line, he lifted his gaze back to Gray. “How’d he get from Ibeeza to Spaceforce?”
“He got lucky. A recruiting officer vacationing on the planet took a liking to him. After administering an advanced-level IQ test, he offered Jason a place at the academy.”
“Took a liking to him?” Junkie asked pointedly.
Gray pressed his lips together then grunted, “Fell in love with him, if you like. But the appointment was justified. And the recruiter never asked for anything in return.”
“And he’s never been with a woman?”
Again, Gray shook his head. “Without ever touching a woman, he’s done just about everything you can do. Old. Young. Large. Small. Nefarians with tentacles. Taurans with tusked snakes for dicks. Even Grundians. You name it. He’s slept with it.”
Saxon let a cautious grin lift his lips. “Sounds like you’re describing Junkie.”
“Only in my case, all of my conquests were female,” Junkie murmured, fisting his braid absently.
Saxon shared a wry look with Danjer. “The Balagoe don’t have any females.”
“Oh, now you’re just nitpicking,” Junkie complained halfheartedly, his gaze flicking from Danjer to Saxon. “They’re asexual and they’re as fucking feminine as you get. They’re more feminine than the Imp you guys are married to.” But nobody laughed at his attempt at humor. The mood in the room was too serious.
“I’m sorry,” Junkie finally said on a heavy sigh. “I wasn’t serious about pairing up with Olan to steal the girl away from your wing companion. I was just trying to dig Orlov out of his shell, get him to admit his interest in her so we could take it from there. I know she isn’t interested in a one-on-one relationship and I figured the sooner I could get Jason involved, the sooner I’d be in bed with Lacey.”
At the girl’s name, Jed shared a significant look with Gray. After a slight hesitation, Gray said, “You might as well tell them.”
“Tell them what?” Junkie asked.
“Lacey,” Jed said, bringing the focus to the Adept. “We have orders to keep her happy.”
“Orders?” Junkie interjected. “You have orders?”
Gray sent him a pained look. “We’ve even been given a budget—an open-ended budget.”
“Are you guys fucking serious?”
Jed’s voice was quiet as he explained, “Lacey’s enhanced powers, though incompletely explored, are potentially limitless.”
Junkie just stared. “Potentially—”
“Limitless,” Gray finished for him, lifting his eyebrows for effect. “The Alliance wants to make certain she’s safe, happy…and on our side.”
“Lacey’s sex drive is out of control,” Velvet explained, joining the conversation. “She
wants two lovers. As far as she’s concerned, she needs two lovers. While she might come to her senses eventually and settle for a one-on-one relationship, for now she’s convinced she wants two men.”
“Come to her senses?” he challenged Lacey’s lovely sister. “These two guys share you,” he pointed out, flicking his gaze at Jed and Gray. “And Saxon shares Pink with Danjer. So why do I get the impression you don’t think your sister is acting rationally?”
Jed explained for his wife. “It would be one thing if she had fallen in love with two men but that’s not the case.”
“And that’s not the point,” Gray cut in, steering the conversation back to the crux of the matter. “Rationally or irrationally, Lacey wants two men. And we have orders to do everything in our power to make it happen.”
A heavy silence settled over the table.
“Two lovers,” Gray emphasized. “And I don’t think she’ll be happy unless one of them is Jason. Unfortunately, as an Earther, Jason won’t be happy sharing. Despite the fact that Jed and I share a wife, three-way relationships aren’t that common among our kind.”
Junkie gave Danjer a questioning look. “But you’re an Earther too. And you’re sharing a wife.”
Danjer rolled his shoulders and peered out from behind the fall of his night-dark hair. “I had a hell of a time adjusting to the idea,” he grunted, “even though Saxon and I had been friends for years.”
“And then there’s Jason’s past to consider,” Gray said, taking command of the discussion again. “Because of his history as an Ibeeza Boy, he sure as hell won’t be comfortable sharing such close and intimate contact with another man.”
Junkie slumped in his chair. This was some complicated shit. Lacey was a mess—she needed sex but refused to bed one man. Her feelings toward Jason were complex. She wanted him but was afraid of where her feelings for him would lead. She didn’t want to expose herself to emotional risk again.
Jason, on the other hand, had never had sex with a woman, all of his sexual experiences having been with men. Heterosexual by nature, Jason had never been attracted to males and was now wary of their touch even when it was casual. He could manage handshaking or a pat on the back without wincing. His wing companions had won his confidence by slow degrees over eight years.
If he could help Lacey get together with Jason then, as second man in, he’d be able to enjoy the provocative little Adept while satisfying the Alliance’s directive to keep Lacey content. Later on, once he’d had his fill of the girl, he’d ease back out of the relationship and the happy couple could find someone else to play third wheel, if need be. Chances were, by that time, Lacey would have become reconciled to a monogamous relationship and the two lovers would be glad to see his backside. All in all a good plan. It only remained to get Lacey into bed with Jason…and him.
But Junkie didn’t have eight years to win Jason’s confidence. He was just going to have to put him in a sensual setting familiar to him—a setting that would spell sex to Lieutenant Orlov. Using the sorts of commands that had probably been part of his sexual history on Ibeeza, he’d guide Jason to find pleasure—his own pleasure this time—with the woman he loved.
So much for Orlov. As for Lacey, if she wanted two lovers she’d get them. He just hoped the opportunity to bed her again would help him get over his own unsettling obsession with the sexy Adept. Junkie phrased his next words carefully. “You’ve been tiptoeing around, giving Jason what he wants instead of what he needs. The sooner he faces up to his past, the sooner he’ll be able to move ahead.”
Gray leaned back in his chair, rubbing a big rough hand over his whiskery jaw as he shared a look with Jed. “I don’t see how we can make him come to grips with his past.”
“I do.” With his elbows on the table and his hands clasped loosely together, Junkie locked eyes with the lieutenant commander. “But you’re going to have to make me a wing commander.”
“What!”
“You’re going to have to put both Jason and Lacey under my command.”
Gray stared at him, clearly finding the suggestion distasteful. “I can’t do that! Jason’s been a Spaceforce lieutenant for four years, Lacey for almost as long. You haven’t been in the Force four weeks!”
Junkie gave him what he hoped was an infuriating smile. “That’s not my problem. You’re going to have to give me the promotion, anyhow.”
“I think Junkie’s on the right track,” Jed cut in before Gray could get any more worked up than he already was. He narrowed a keen look on Junkie. “You think you can get them together and deal with Lacey’s desire for a three-way relationship at the same time?”
“I can if you’ll give me full power of authority over them…and a few days of privacy.”
The five people who stared back at him were silent for several moments as they considered his proposal. It must have been pretty clear to all five of them what Junkie had in mind. Gray’s face was a work of disgust.
“I’ll get them together and make them recognize their love for each other. I’ll make them happy,” he tempted in a broad eYonan drawl.
Finally, Danjer nodded his concurrence. Turning to Gray, he said, “I recommend you elevate Junkie to the station of wing commander. I can offer my villa for the purpose of this…mission.”
“Mission!” Gray snorted unhappily, scraping his hands back through his hair so roughly that it had to hurt. “You do realize what we’re doing here, don’t you?”
The seasoned warriors and officers gathered around the table shared questioning looks before returning their attention to Gray. “We’re…matchmaking,” he growled.
Now Danjer’s expression was distasteful.
“What’s wrong with that?” Saxon asked, his smile a little bewildered.
Danjer gave him a sour look before flicking his cautious gaze at Velvet. “Earther males don’t get involved in matchmaking. We leave that to our females.”
Jed grinned as he reached for Velvet’s dainty hand and wrapped it up in his. His ever-somnolent gaze was on his wife’s face as he drawled, “Well, that explains why so many of your marriages fail.”
For several moments, Gray glowered at Jed before the stiff line of his shoulders sagged in defeat and his discouraged gaze tilted upward as though praying for divine intervention. Eventually he got back to business, as Junkie knew he would, pinning him with a narrow look as he said, “Keep your eye on Lacey and let us know if you observe any exceptional adaptive behavior on her part. The Alliance would be keen to learn of anything out of the ordinary.”
Junkie snorted. “Does that mean I’m supposed to encourage conditions that might trigger such behavior?”
Gray glared at him. “I wouldn’t ask you to do that.”
“We wouldn’t ask you to do that,” Jed cut in again, clearly trying to avoid a renewed conflict between the two men. “But…if she gets mad, or desperate, or responds to some perceived threat, keep us informed.”
“When will you be giving the happy couple their orders?” Junkie asked.
“Not before tomorrow morning,” Gray answered, glancing at Jed.
“I’m taking these two out to Nahita Moruu,” Jed explained, as he turned the conversation to less weighty matters. “See if we can spot a mating chase.”
“You won’t be disappointed,” Saxon rumbled, pushing back in his chair and getting to his feet. “We were out there yesterday with Pink and picked out three separate droves.”
“You saw three?” Danjer asked with mild interest. “I only saw two.”
“That’s because you close your eyes when you come,” Saxon pointed out on a gruff note of amusement.
Junkie shook his head and chuckled as he watched Saxon throw his arm around Danjer’s shoulders and they went through the door together. Velvet and Gray followed, Velvet casting a curious look back at Jed. “I’ll be right behind you,” Jed promised her then turned to Junkie. Speaking swiftly in a low voice, he said, “Lacey sends her thanks to her anonymous lover. She…seemed pretty impre
ssed.”
Taken aback, Junkie felt so pleased and moved that for several seconds he couldn’t think of a thing to say. Recouping himself, he sent Jed a wink and drawled, “Hey. I throw myself into my work.”
“Yeah. Well, that’s good to hear, because it sounds to me like you have your work cut out for you.”
Junkie shrugged. “Piece of cake,” he said, borrowing an old Earth expression.
Jed made a face and hesitated before speaking. “I know you, Junkie. I know what you’re up against with Jason and I think I know what you have in mind. The thing is, I’m not sure you’re cut out for the part.”
“You’re right,” Junkie admitted gruffly with a tight roll of his shoulders. “The part won’t come easy. But I think I can be a dominating fucking bastard if I put my mind to it. It will help that I outrank both Jason and Lacey.”
When Jed put out his hand, Junkie grasped it according to Earth tradition. As they shook hands, Jed murmured, “Good luck, Lieutenant.”
Chapter Six
The sun woke Jason early the next morning. It streamed in through one of the narrow windows on the east wall of the room he shared with Matchstick and caught him full in the face. Not quite ready for it to be morning, he rolled over, buried his face in his pillow and ground his morning erection into the crisp bedsheets.
Having spent two weeks at Judipeao, Jason now understood what was meant by the old saying, “As still as an eYonan morning”. Compared to Earth, eYona was quiet—the whole planet hushed and silent. This was partly due to the fact that everything ran on electricity. There were no internal combustion machines on eYona as the planet had no fossil fuels. Electricity was the only form of power on the planet, gathered during the huge nightly electrical storms. The storms that exploded across the sky every evening, with almost continual lightning strikes blasting earthward, was the other part of the reason why the mornings seemed comparatively quiet and still.
Into that perfect morning silence intruded the sound of someone whistling. He cracked open one eye and found Match in front of the window. The wooden chair on which he sat was turned sideways to the desk and he whistled a popular eYonan melody—one of Hard and Fast’s songs, if he wasn’t mistaken. One of the redhead’s ankles rested on his knee as he hunched over a strange contraption in his hands. It looked for all the world like a long shuttlecock, feathered on the inside rather than the outside. A systems expert, Matchstick’s specialty was electromechanics.
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