Seducing Cecilia (Divinity Healers)

by Pillow Michelle M.

  The woman left and seconds later the wall unit beeped for her to correct her levels. Cecilia glared at the monitor. Linnea’s words left her mortified. Everywhere she looked reminded her of making love to Gerard. Perhaps having an affair inside her laboratory wasn’t the best of ideas.

  Instead of correcting anything, she slammed her hand against the counter and stormed out of the laboratory. She wanted to be in control. There was comfort in control. Control was safe and good and right and…

  Her breathing deepened. She needed to monitor her emotional output. If she kept on as she was, in a month she’d be an embarrassing wreck returning home. Cecilia wasn’t sure where to go. She couldn’t be in the laboratory and she couldn’t roam the areas of the biosphacility where she’d not been explicitly told she could venture.

  Her feet carried her to her private quarters. Perhaps it was best she hid where no one could see her. Once inside, she paced the floor like a caged animal.

  A strange beep sounded by the door. She ignored it. It was probably just a warning to take her shot. Seconds later the door slid open.

  She inhaled sharply and turned, lifting her arms up in fright.

  “What’s happening?” Gerard asked, coming in without being invited.

  “I locked the door.” Cecilia pointed at the monitor.

  “And I overrode the lock,” he explained. “Now, what is happening? The computer said you were agitated and that you did not take your shot. Are you ill? What are you feeling?”

  “You need to go. I can’t concentrate when you’re near.” She waved him away when he stepped closer. “I need to concentrate. My assistant hates me, which is fine, because she’s rude and sarcastic, but she’s not a doctor so I can’t really discuss medical stuff with her beyond telling her what to log for our paperwork. Your plane’s medical knowledge is so vast, yet I’m still stuck trying to decipher that what we call Firghelm Syndrome you call Policompititen-something.”

  “Policompition Ten,” he supplied.

  “Yes, that!” She resumed her pacing. “We cured Firghelm years ago, but I just spent a day translating your documents to try to understand what I was looking at, only to discover it was chronic itchy feet. I thought it was the basic formula for curing seasonal illnesses. But no, itchy feet.”

  He smiled that damned charming look that made her all tingly. Her frown deepened.

  “There is no way I’m going to get much past the basics at the rate I’m going,” she continued. “My government is depending on me to bring back something fabulous. If I don’t, I could very well lose my job, or if I’m lucky, simply be demoted. What is worse, if that happens, I can’t tell people why. I can’t say, well I was in an alternate reality and only given two months to conquer the impossible task of trying to learn a new language and get a secondary medical degree. They’ll think I’m insane.” Cecilia turned her attention to Gerard. “Then there is you. You make me all chaotic inside.”

  “Cecilia, take a breath.” He reached into his pocket and pulled out an electronic syringe. He leaned toward her and injected her before she had time to swat his hand away. He dropped the syringe in a nearby disposal. “Better?”

  Yes, she did feel better physically. She felt calmer and able to focus. However, warmth flowed through her veins, unlike the previous injections, giving her the sensation of being tipsy. “You shouldn’t be in here.”

  “Neither should you.” His hand brushed her cheek. “We had a meeting scheduled in your laboratory. I was looking forward to it. Seeing you is the highlight to my day.”

  A shiver worked over her. She couldn’t pull herself away from him. His eyes held such emotion, beautiful and passionate. His charming smile drew her closer. This man had a power about him. If she believed in magic, she would have called it that.

  Gerard fingered a strand of her hair. His eyes stayed on hers, as if something about her fascinated him. Heat built inside her. Electricity snapped between them, silent, invisible and strong. It always happened like this. Whenever he was near, she was pulled deeper and deeper into his chaos.

  There was a surety to his actions she did not have. He knew what he wanted and wasn’t ashamed of taking it. The backs of his fingers fell against her neck. The hair he held tickled her as he drew a line down the neckline of her lab coat. The lock slipped from his grasp and he turned his hand to begin unfastening the coat.

  “I enjoy your smell,” he whispered. “Is it a special scent from your home plane?”

  “It is government-approved soap,” she answered. “All citizens are issued the same kind.”

  He breathed deeply and sighed. “I like it.”

  Gerard’s hand brushed over her naked breast as he continued unfastening the coat. The action caused her nipple to tighten in anticipation. As the material was lifted from her skin, the cool room air puckered her flesh, erecting the tiny hairs.

  “Some planes call horripilation bird flesh.” He hummed thoughtfully and lightly touched her chest. “Or goosebumps.”

  “How do you keep all the words in your head?” Her mind followed the path of his fingers instead of concentrating fully on his words.

  “They say I have a talent for languages. If I read it, the words seem to stay in my head.”

  “I hate feeling stupid.”

  “No one here thinks you’re stupid. The fact that your plane trusted you enough to send you here proves your intelligence.” Then louder, he added, “Computer, dim lights.”

  The lights dimmed in the room. She gasped, looking up. “They didn’t tell me the room was voice activated.”

  “It’s in the tutorials file package you received on the handheld when you arrived.” His lips swept along hers.

  “The tutorials were organized horribly. The workflow was completely sideways compared to what I’m used to.”

  He chuckled.

  “I shouldn’t complain,” she amended quickly. “On behalf of my plane, we are very grateful for this opportunity to learn from you and I will try harder and work longer hours.”

  “Shh,” Gerard urged. “Try to quiet your mind. Thinking about something too hard makes it harder to understand.”

  Shadows cast over his features. His words drew her full attention to his face while he undressed her. Her clothes slipped easily off her body. He ran his hands down the small of her back, over the curve of her ass. When she stood completely naked, he stepped back, studying her form.

  Gerard leisurely pulled off his clothes, letting her watch. His fingers followed the stripe on his coat, unfastening the hidden buttons. She licked her lips in anticipation, watching the show of flesh unfold. His erection lifted his pants. He pulled the waistband forward, freeing his cock.

  She moved to her bed and lay on her back. Naked, he crawled over her. She lifted her arms to accept him and her hands glided over his strong chest, rising and falling along the ridges of his muscles. The intimacy of the dimmed light contrasted that of the bright laboratory. Her eyes caressed him, following her hands.

  Gerard settled between her legs. His hips forced them open. The hard length of his arousal stroked along the wet folds of her pussy. He parted his lips and his mouth hovered over hers. A light moan escaped her, turning into a gasp when he pressed his hips more firmly against her.

  Fingers skimmed her nipples before making their way down her stomach. He gently opened the lips of her sex, readying her body to take his. She tensed, taking his breath into her lungs as she waited for that perfect moment.

  Gerard’s mouth claimed hers as he thrust forward. His tongue glided through her lips as his cock entered her sex. He braced his weight to the side as he moved within her. His free hand found her breast, massaging the globe deeply. He rocked his hips against her and soon the steady rhythm became frantic and pounding. Their limbs tangled in a series of frenzied movements. She flipped him over on his back and raked her nails down his chest. He groaned, rolling her back around to thrust harder.

  Bedding bunched under her thigh and she lifted her leg. He h
ooked the back of her knee with his arm. The move let him go deeper still.

  “Apolloa, you are sweet.”

  “I’m Cecilia,” she corrected, instantly pushing at his shoulders.

  “It means goddess,” he assured her, kissing her deeply before she could stop and think too much.

  The pleasure built before exploding within her. She gasped and tensed as the climax overtook her body. Gerard’s release joined hers. He jerked his hips, trembling violently above her.

  He fell next to her on the bed. She lay beside him, relaxed and sated, not thinking, just being. That was, until he spoke.

  “I am sorry the translations are proving difficult. What if we extended your visit?” he asked.

  She turned her head to look at him. His face was close, his nose almost touching hers. The smell of him radiated over her. Cecilia almost said yes in a moment of weakness—yes to him, not to work. “My government would not allow it without better reason. There is protocol that must be followed to change a mission order. My people don’t like surprise and change. I can’t guarantee I’d find enough reason with a little extra time, unless your government would be willing to give me the answers?”

  “They don’t know you well enough. My government is not too trusting, especially on a first mission.”

  “Are you allowed to help me translate the text?” she asked. “I would appreciate the assistance.”

  It was hard for her to ask it. She was so used to doing things on her own, for herself. On her plane she was in a competitive field.

  “I’ll do what I can.” Gerard pushed up and sighed. “Are you sure you won’t reconsider and stay longer?”

  “I told you, it’s not up to me. It would take a minimum of two months to fast-track something through the government channels.”

  “I’m sorry to hear that.” He turned his back to her.

  “You knew my stay was temporary,” Cecilia whispered. She reached to touch him but merely let her hand hover near his back, not making contact. “We both knew the arrangement going in.”

  “I’m sorry, because I was hoping you would stay voluntarily and this next conversation could be avoided.” He stood and grabbed his lab coat. He slipped it over his shoulders, not bothering to put on the undershirt.

  Cecilia grabbed the blankets and pulled them to her chest. “Explain yourself.”

  “We cannot allow you to leave our plane at this time.”

  “You are kidnapping us?” She pushed up from the bed. Panic filled her. The biosphacility was in the middle of their planet, far from the portal. The portal was in the middle of their most prestigious hospital, hidden by a maze of hallways. She’d never find her way back there, not without help. “Why would you do such a thing?”

  “The decision has been made for reasons I cannot discuss with you. But, for the time being all inter-dimensional travel has been suspended. All dignitaries will remain at their assigned facilities until further notice.” He didn’t look at her so she forced him to by stepping in his way. She stared at him until his eyes met hers. “There has been a medical incident at Asclepius. Until such a time as it passes, we cannot permit any travel outside of our plane.” She arched a brow, not moving. “Cecilia…Dr. Markos, please understand that this is hopefully a temporary situation and is incredibly rare. It is possible this will be resolved before you were supposed to leave.”

  “Possible but not likely.” Her expression was stiff and her breathing too measured.

  He tried to comfort her, but she saw he doubted his own words. Her mind whirled with thoughts. A medical situation that these people were not equipped to handle? Not only was she trapped in an alien world, they were under medical containment. What if they never let her leave the biosphacility?

  “Leave.” Cecilia’s heart beat hard in her chest.

  “I told you. Not until there is portal clearance.”

  “Leave,” she repeated. The wall monitor beeped. He lifted his hand as if to indicate she needed medicine. “I said get out of my quarters.”

  “Oh, you mean leave your room.” He quickly pulled on his pants. Gerard paused beside the door. He opened his mouth to speak but she cut him off with a hard look as she pointed at the door in warning. He nodded once and left her alone.

  Cecilia gasped for breath, trying not to cry out. Her knees weakened and she collapsed onto the bed. She panted, trying to get oxygen into her body, but she found it hard to breathe. Fear trapped her mind. She couldn’t live like this, forever, here, forever…

  “Forever?” She stared at the sterile walls, feeling as if they grew smaller. A couple of months was one thing, but now? She hugged her legs to her chest. “Please don’t make me stay here forever.”

  Chapter Seven

  The relationship with Cecilia wasn’t going according to Gerard’s plan. Well, honestly, he didn’t really have a plan, but if he did, this would not be it. Every time he went to her, he ran through his mind what he wanted to say to her. None of it ever made it past his lips. One look at her and every logical thought left his brain.

  “I could have handled it better,” he told himself, not for the first time that morning. He knew he’d said too much about their situation, but that hadn’t stopped him.

  “Dr. Fauchet?”

  Seeing Dr. Sam Swift, Gerard turned his attention to the man. He didn’t try to make excuses for why he was pacing back and forth along the long corridor. “Dr. Markos does not want to take us up on the offer to stay longer. I plan to take her outside and try again. Maybe a walk in the forest will pique her scientific interest. What about Sans Nel? Did you get a chance to talk to her last night?”

  “I did. Instinct tells me they are not responsible for this.” Sam hesitated. “I received a communication early this morning. The Medical Supreme’s condition has worsened. A couple of his staff are now showing symptoms. It’s spreading. If we can’t make the dignitaries want to stay, then we have no choice but to inform them or imprison them. I have no wish to imprison them.”

  Gerard let loose a long breath. He didn’t tell the Medical Director that he’d already told Cecilia too much the night before. For some reason he found it impossible to lie to her. “There are other options. I can break protocol and ask her to help us with this problem. Or I can show her something that is not in the public dignitary archives, something she will not be able to resist.”

  “The Medical Supreme will never approve opening up the secure knowledge bases to strangers. Even sick, I doubt he would give up any future bargaining chips. However, he might agree to have another doctor work on his illness. If we don’t tell her it’s from our plane, and we don’t mention that the Medical Supreme is sick…” Sam rubbed the bridge of his nose thoughtfully. Gerard wondered at the man’s tone. Sam was normally very decisive. “Let me speak with Dr. Lu.”

  “If it helps, Dr. Markos has accessed more of the records in a short time than most dignitaries do in most trips.” He didn’t mention Cecilia’s doubts in her ability to understand that material.

  “I remember seeing a report for her login. I didn’t think her accesses high in number. In fact, I think they were average.”

  “Check her assistant’s code,” Gerard assured him. “I think she has Sans Nel bring up the reports for her.”

  Sam stretched his fingers wide, studying his hands. “All right. I’ll discuss it with Dr. Lu.”

  Gerard knew that was the best answer he was going to get. In order to give her access, Dr. Swift needed a second doctor with high level clearance to sign off on the plan. “So I have your permission to take her outside?”

  Sam nodded. “I’ll sign off on it as soon as I get to my office.”

  Gerard hoped Cecilia would be agreeable. Her stress levels were getting worse and her injections more frequent. That worried him. Unlike Linnea, she didn’t seem to leave the visitor’s section of the facility. She needed to see there was more to his plane than labs and medical texts. The last thing he wanted was to imprison her here. If they did that, she wo
uld never forgive them, or him.

  * * *

  Cecilia blinked as the bright sunlight hit her face for the first time in over a month. The brightness did not bring the expected warmth, though. Inside the large, white, plastic suit her body temperature was regulated. The clear plastic shield over face separated her from the fresh air. As her eyes adjusted, she looked up at the tall trees. Behind her, the biosphacility door slid shut, closing off the maze of dim hallways they’d walked through to get to the outside border.

  For a moment, she didn’t move. Gerard wore a matching suit. His movements were stiff as he turned to her. When he spoke, the small click of a communicator preceded his words. “Try to breathe normally. You will get used to the suit.”

  “I am breathing normally,” she answered, though it was a lie. Her panted breaths filled the helmet, fogging the bottom edge of the face shield.

  When she moved to follow him over the dirt path, the suit swished in time with her steps. Her thighs were forced open by the bulk of the material.

  “This is ridiculous,” she muttered.

  “What?”

  “I said this is ridiculous,” she stated louder.

  “No,” Gerard corrected, “I meant, what is it you find ridiculous?”

  “What are we doing out here?” Cecilia stopped walking. She couldn’t learn anything stuffed inside a human-shaped bag. “Don’t we need a specimen container?”

  “We’re not collecting specimens,” he said.

  “Then what?” She was forced to continue on after him when he didn’t stop moving into the forest. The trees towered over them. She glanced back at the biosphacility. It wasn’t far away, but the denseness of the forest obscured it from view within a short distance. “I should get back to my work.”

  “It’s just a little further this way,” he said, waving his arm forward.

  “Are you going to help me find information useful to my plane?” she asked.