Bonus

She and Mad were alone in their quarters, thankfully. When they were in public, she was his exile queen and had to at least try to have a bit of decorum. Well, decorum as defined by Guerran standards. It meant she still got to stab people sometimes.

“What does it say?” Mad asked. He scowled at a stack of papers of his own, but he didn’t resist the urge to crumple one and throw it across the room.

Kenzie traced her finger over the words, barely reading them. She’d read the letter half a dozen times already. “She’s found a roommate and taken an apartment. The mysterious job she’s taken is working out well, though she still hasn’t told me what she’s doing. She says it’s nothing illegal, but…”

“Nothing’s illegal when there aren’t any laws,” Mad finished for her.

“Exactly.” Kenzie placed the letter beside the other letters she had from Carise. “Are we doing the right thing?” she asked, hating how desperate she sounded. “Should I bring her back here?”

Mad crossed the room and pulled her into his arms. “I have someone watching her, you know that. She’s safe. As safe as anyone can be on Guerran.”

Kenzie surrendered to Mad’s embrace. He was right. This wasn’t exactly how she wished life would be like with Carise, but her sister was okay. That was worth everything.

And Kenzie got a hot alien mate out of the deal.

One she had to take pity on. “How much paperwork do you have left?”

Mad groaned and squeezed her even tighter. “Too much. How does one tiny territory generate so much paper? I can’t believe that Jadirel spent this much time on administration,” he grumbled, scowling out the last word.

“Perhaps not.” Kenzie went on her tiptoes and kissed her mate’s cheek. “But you care and he didn’t. Is there any way I can help?” She pulled out of his hug and went to his desk, eyeing the stack of paper. Had it somehow grown in the last few minutes?

No. That was impossible.

Still, she eyed it warily.

Mad clamped half the papers in a hand and shoved them her way. “Figure out what’s important and what I can ignore. I’ll take the other half.”

She could barely hold her stack of papers in one hand. “Care to make this interesting?”

Mad grinned at her. “How? I doubt anything could make this busywork interesting.”

Kenzie flicked her thumb over the edge of the thick sheets. “First one done is the winner.”

He stalked even closer. “And what does the winner get?”

“I suppose you’ll find out.” She looked down at her papers and tried to suppress a grin.

Mad scooped her up around the waist and slung her over his shoulder. Kenzie let out a burst of laughter and dropped the papers. “I’ll take my prize now,” her mate declared as he marched to their bed. “Paperwork can wait.”

“Come on!” Carise tugged on Jaek’s arm at the edge of the market. It was teeming with people, and stalls lined either side of the street, most of them busy. In the distance, she could hear the tinkling sounds of music as a performer got ready.

It was so different from the first market day that she’d been to, Carise wanted to laugh.

If she could get her giant of a mate to actually walk down a street with her.

“You take a look,” Jaek told her. “I’ll watch from over here.”

Over here being a shaded corner that was barely visible from the rest of the market.

Weeks ago, Carise might have been scared at the thought of diving into the market alone. She would have been jumping at her shadow and sure that some sort of violent exile was about to find her.

But there had been no trouble since Baryn’s failed attempt at taking Mad’s palace. Mad had dealt out the punishments as needed, and his territory seemed to be getting better—and possibly more peaceful—by the day.

Guerran would never be completely safe, but Carise didn’t need to fear for her life just from walking down the street.

“The second you lose sight of me, you’re going to come running,” she informed her mate, backing up two steps as if she was actually going to leave him in his little hidey-hole. “You need new shoes and I want a shawl. That’s it. Then we go and have lunch with Mad and Kenzie. No more than an hour in the market.”

Jaek went a bit pale at that. “An hour?” he croaked out.

Okay. This was a bad idea. Clearly exposure therapy wasn’t going to get her mate to accept the occasional trip to the market. And maybe Carise was being unkind for trying. But she wanted to experience all Guerran had to offer. And she loved doing that with her mate at her side.

“Or you could go to the palace and I’ll shop on my own.” It wouldn’t be too bad, and she could be quick.

But though Carise wasn’t actually scared of the streets of Guerran anymore, market day by herself was a bit intimidating.

Jaek firmed his shoulders. “No. Let’s do this.” He stared at the street as if he was about to charge into battle, and something unknotted in Carise.

She grabbed his hand and laced their fingers together. And they approached the market together. Just as it should be.

Reina eyed the hard slab pushed up against the wall of Stoan’s old quarters with wary resolve. He claimed it was a mattress, but she knew better. One night on that torture device and she’d threatened to move back home. Sleeping on the floor was better than that… thing.

“What are you doing?” Stoan asked as he came into the room and grabbed a book that he’d left on his table.

“Do you think it will burn?” she asked. She couldn’t believe that he’d slept on it for years. Prisoners in the labor camps had better beds.

Stoan wrapped an arm around her and gave her a quick kiss. They were still settling into his new quarters and had decided to use the old one as an office where he could do much of the work that went into running the Detyen community of Nina City.

“Why do you want to burn my old bed?” he asked, as if he didn’t have years of evidence for just how evil it was. “We can set it up in the guest quarters so that visitors aren’t stuck sleeping on the couch.”

Reina laughed and imagined the look on anyone’s face while trying to sleep on that thing. She wouldn’t wish it on her worst enemy. Well… on second thought, if she were able to imprison Droscus somewhere, she’d make that damned cot his only piece of furniture.

“It’s not that bad,” Stoan insisted.

She pointed to where her neck met her back, “I still have a lump here from that sorry excuse for a pillow. I’m pretty sure you had some evil plan with that combo, but I haven’t quite worked out what it was just yet.”

The day after they’d moved in together, she’d dragged him to the market to find a new bed and new bedding when Stoan growled at the thought of sleeping in the bed she’d shared with her deceased husband. Now they had a nice, huge, soft, comfortable, perfect place to sleep. But the very existence of this cot offended her.

Stoan’s hands slid up and he began to massage her shoulders, working out the knot she’d pointed to. “If you wanted me to take away your pain, you only had to ask,” he said.

Reina’s eyes drifted shut and she leaned back into him, the strong feeling of his hands a pleasure she’d come to love almost as much as she loved his tongue. “If you ever need a fallback career, I’m sure someone would pay you good money for this.”

He chuckled, his chest brushing against her back. “My hands are for you alone, denya,” he said and kissed her neck right over that spot where he’d marked her and claimed her as his own.

Fire raging in her blood, Reina decided that the cot might have its uses as she and her mate lay down and gave it another try.

After a week on Honora Station, Inrit had a question for Max. “How in all the hells did you stay on Nina Station for so long without going crazy?” They’d rented a room in the temporary lodging quarters and splurged for one with a real window looking out into space. At first, the depths and darkness had fascinated her and she’d stared out into the inky field of stars every chance she got. But after an entire week of the view, the black was… claustrophobic.

She sat on their bed and pulled the thick blanket up and over herself to ward off the slight chill in the room. Though they had access to a sophisticated temperature control system, they’d yet to agree to a constant ideal temperature and it was Max’s turn to control the thermostat.

Max sat at the foot of their bed, his shirt tossed somewhere on the floor. Inrit’s eyes clung to him. The feel of the muscles of his broad back had imprinted themselves on her hands and there wasn’t a centimeter of him that she hadn’t tasted. Twice. Inrit leaned forward until her cheek was pressed up against his deliciously warm skin.

Max hummed and looked down at her with a grin. “Is this affection, or are you trying to leech away all of my warmth?” He pressed a kiss against her forehead and didn’t try to move away.

“Can’t it be both?” she asked. Before she’d met Max, she hadn’t known the absolute contentment that simple touch could bring. She kept finding little excuses to skim her fingers across his skin, drinking in the feel of him. She trailed her lips over the curve of Max’s shoulder and let her fingers sneak out of the covers to slide across his chest.

He leaned back into her but caught her wrist before she could get very far. “We promised that we’d see the boys off,” he reminded her.

“I know,” she murmured against his skin, her lips pressed flat, muffling the sound. It was a struggle to force herself away from him, and not just because of the warmth. But Inrit was stronger than that and pushed back, casting the blanket aside and crawling out of the bed. She kept her eyes in front of her while she strolled to the closet to choose her clothes. If she saw that silver gleam in Max’s eyes, they’d never make it.

But half an hour later they were at the terminal for long distance flights, exchanging hugs and contact information with Krayter and Kayleb. Kayleb had almost completely recovered from his wounds, the only reminder a still-healing scar on his temple and a new habit of lapsing into drawn-out silences. The station doctor had every confidence that he’d get better… eventually.
Inrit hoped it happened soon.

“Have you given up hope of your cousin showing up?” she asked. Travelers glided past them and Inrit was glad they’d found a little corner to say their goodbyes. It was too crowded for her liking.

Krayter looked over the teeming swell of people before he shrugged and turned back to her. “This is the last direct transport to Earth for a month. Ru said to go on without them if the timing didn’t work. So we’re… going on.”

Neither Detyen looked happy about it.

“We can check in,” Max offered. His hand hung casually over her shoulder and she leaned into him. “If they show up soon, they’ll know you’ve safely boarded the ship.”

Kayleb nodded but said nothing. When they’d first met, he’d been made of aggression, and now a facade of quiet calm had settled over him. Inrit hoped he wouldn’t be swept away when the dam of his emotions broke through.

“Thank you,” said Krayter. “There’s probably a simple explanation for their delay.” Worry laced his words and his brows furrowed. Inrit knew how he felt. After their brush with pirates, it was difficult to imagine innocent scenarios for the delay.

A call came over the intercom advising passengers that it was time to board. Both Krayter and Kayleb picked up their bags.

“I hope you find what you’re looking for on Earth,” Inrit said. “And when you do, you tell us. Got it?” They’d only met a few weeks ago, but the boys were family now.

“Got it,” said Kayleb. They both gave her a hug and then left, getting in the queue to board the ship and leaving Max and Inrit alone.

“Have you ever wanted to see Earth?” she asked Max. She’d seen images and vids. That planet seemed to have everything, huge oceans, verdant forests, deserts. It had survived the worst that humans could do to it and still flourished. She felt a pang as she thought of Detya. Max’s people had come from Earth, but she would never see her homeworld.

Max was quiet for a long moment. He looked out over the crowd without focusing on anyone. “Perhaps one day,” he finally said. “Once those boys have found their mates and demand we visit.”

“You’re so sure they will?” she asked. Neither Krayter nor Kayleb had ever shared their age, but they couldn’t have more than a few years away from thirty.
He leaned down and kissed the top of her head. “We found each other, didn’t we?”

Heat curled low and Inrit wanted to grab him by the collar of his top and drag him back to their quarters. But she’d already done that twice in the last week and if she kept it up, they’d never get off Honora Station. So she satisfied herself with a kiss and grinned as she pulled back. “We did.”

Max laced his fingers through hers and they walked away from the terminal. "Have you thought of what we should do when we leave the station?"

Inrit had been letting the thought play in the back of her mind for the last week. Honora station was a dream world, adrift from anything real. But all dreams ended eventually. With Max by her side, she didn't dread the future. Still, she wasn't running towards it. "I suppose we could find a planet looking for homesteaders. Though I haven’t lived on a world for a long time."

She let Max lead and didn't pay much attention to where they were headed. That was one of the amazing things about having a mate. She could trust him to watch her back as closely as she watched his. They walked for several minutes and still remained near the gates leading off the station. "Where are you taking me?" She asked.

"I have an idea. You don't need to say yes, or no, or anything until you've had time to think it over." Max led her through a door that slid shut behind them. The lights overhead came on automatically, but the room was a size of a closet and the only thing of interest was the huge window that looked out into the open space. Floating just outside the station, was a small dark cruiser that had seen better days. Its hull was covered with different plates of metal ranging from bright blue to a garish pink. It was the ugliest ship that Inrit had ever seen.

She loved it.

"Is her captain looking for a crew?" She asked her mate, sending an excited glance over her shoulder. Without even realizing it her fingers were pressed up against the glass of the window.

Max grinned back. "She could be, if you want her to."

Her heart stuttered and one hand started to curl into a fist like she could reach through the glass and grasp the ship. "Even a hunk of metal like that has to cost more credits than I've seen in my lifetime."

Max coughed into his hand and two bright spots of red appeared on his cheeks. "I have a handful of Tarnian amethysts," he admitted. "We could buy the ship 10 times over and still have money to spare."

Inrit dropped her hand and turned towards him. "What?" Tarnian amethysts were some of the most sought after gems in the galaxy. And Max had a handful? "When were you going to tell me that you were rich?"

"What's mine is yours, denya." He placed his hands on her shoulders and turned her so she faced the window again. His hands slid down and wrapped around her waist and he rested his chin on her shoulder. "You and me and the galaxy, what do you say?" He said right into her ear, his lips brushing against the sensitive flesh.

Inrit looked at the ship again and let the heat of Max's arms sink into her. She leaned her head to the side to nuzzle against him and smiled. "I think that sounds pretty good."

They’d all managed to squish around the dinner table for their first “family” meal since she, Brax, Manda, and Doryan had arrived on their doorstep a week ago. There’d been no progress on finding Manda’s people, and every time someone mentioned the Detyen Legion to Doryan he changed the subject. The house wasn’t quite big enough for seven people, and they were all beginning to get a little… frustrated. But Brax’s family seemed determined to make them all feel welcome and Vita wasn’t going to turn away their kindness.

“So how exactly did you end up finding Manda?” Shayn asked Doryan once they’d all served themselves the Earth food. Well, they were on Earth. It was all Earth food. But Vita had never eaten pizza before. It vaguely reminded her of the sauce-covered flatbreads she’d enjoyed as a child.

Vita tensed. They’d been dancing around the questions about how Doryan ended up a slave and prisoner, but Brax’s brothers just asked things. It was a bit unnerving.

Doryan looked at him for several moments and she was sure that he wouldn’t answer. But he surprised her. “My unit was on a mission. I was injured and fell behind. Per protocol, they left me with instructions to rendezvous or retire, whichever was possible. Before I could retire myself I was apprehended, and in the course of my capture was rendered unconscious. When I woke up, Manda and I had been held together for some time. She made sure they didn’t harm me while I was asleep.” He nodded at her, and the girl who was too old for her years nodded back just as solemnly.

“Retire?” Deke asked.

Vita’s heart sank. There were only so many things that word in that context could mean.

Doryan glanced at Manda and repeated, “Retire.”

The girl scrunched her face up, but didn’t seem to get the subtext. And Vita wondered why the emotionless warrior was still trying to protect her. “We can contact the legion for you,” Deke offered. “If that’s what you want.”

Brax and Shayn looked at their brother like he was crazy. “Did you not just hear the part where they were going to k—retire him?” Shayn asked.

Deke widened his eyes and shrugged. “Maybe those were special circumstances!”

It devolved from there. Vita took her chance to scarf down her food and was happy to discover that pizza was delicious. She saw that Manda was doing the same and they shared a grin.

Even Naomi ignored it as the brothers argued, and Doryan didn’t seem to be bothered by anything. He gingerly picked up his food and ate slowly, his expression never changing. For all he reacted, he might as well have been eating tasteless protein sludge.

“Enough!” Vita finally yelled when Deke shot up out of his chair and started pointing at his brothers. She’d tuned out most of what they’d been saying, but they looked about ten seconds away from coming to blows. “I have a blaster and I’m happy to use it. Now, Dekon, sit down. We’re not going to figure out what to do with Doryan and Manda tonight. So we’re going to enjoy this food, and stop fighting. Got it?” She put just enough menace in her words to make him know she meant it.

Deke sat down, chastened.

Brax grinned and pulled her close, stealing a kiss. “Best abduction ever,” he said.

And he was right.

Bonus Scene (Takes place after Brax’s book and before Doryan’s):

Safety. For so long Brax had taken it for granted, but no longer. It was nice to be back on Earth, even if it hadn’t been his home for long before Vita swept him away. It was so different than living on Honora Station, with real gravity keeping him plastered to the ground and fresh air all around.

But today the air held a hint of something else.

Something unnecessary.

“Do you really think I’m going to need to shoot anyone?” he asked. “I’m a mechanic.”

Vita was examining two of her blasters. Her collection numbered in the dozens and she kept them in much better repair than she’d kept her ship. But Brax was still reading up on how to repair the weapons in case it ever came up. He didn’t want his denya to suffer a catastrophic weapons failure in the middle of a fight.

Vita handed him one of the blasters and a small part of him was pleased that it was the bigger one, not that he would admit it. “You want to go flying with me, you need to be able to take care of yourself.”

There were a dozen ways he could respond to that, but his mate was holding a blaster and it seemed wisest to keep quiet. And she thought he couldn’t defend himself. Ha! “Just point and shoot, right?” He looked down at the target she’d set up on the tree. It was about five meters away. He was pretty sure he could throw the blaster at it and hit a bullseye.

“If it’s that easy, go for it.” There was a glint in her eye and Brax knew he was missing something, but for the life of him he didn’t know what. He shot.

He didn’t even hit the tree.

Vita didn’t laugh, but her lips twitched. “Want a little advice?” she offered sweetly.

Brax set his shoulders and glared at the tree. “No. I can do it.”

The second shot hit the tree. Barely. But he was counting it.

The third hit the edge of the target.

And the fourth.

“Ha! Bullseye!” He jumped in the air and grinned.

“So we’re good as long as whoever we’re fighting stands three meters away and waits for you to get it. Good.” She didn’t look too impressed.

“It’s five meters,” Brax had to defend himself somehow. “And it’s not too bad for a first time. Let’s see you do it from over there.” He jerked his head back and up a small hill. It had to be thirty meters away.

Vita gave it a look and shrugged. “Four chances?” she asked. “And what do I get?”

“We’re betting now? I thought I wasn’t allowed to bet.” He may not have actually owed the gambling debts that had brought them together, but that didn’t mean that Vita didn’t have opinions.

“Never bet for money,” she warned. “So what do I get?”

Could she really get a bullseye from thirty meters away? Brax had faith in his mate, but it was a long distance. “Anything you want.” It wasn’t like he’d deny her anything anyway.

“Anything?” her eyes lit up. “Even if it involves that vid—”

“That?” He shifted, his cock perking up even as he considered what she was suggesting. “I mean, of course.” Anything for love.”

Vita tilted her head back and laughed.

“But you have to hit bullseye four times,” he added. She was way too confident.

She leaned in and sealed her mouth over his, pulling back only when he was ready to pull her close. “Oh, love, your ass is mine.”

With a spring in her step she jogged off to where he’d indicated and Brax followed after. By the time he caught up she was already aiming. And before he could say anything she let off the shots. From the glee in her laugh he knew she’d hit her target.

Four times?

The jog back to the tree confirmed it.

Four shots. Four hits.

She kissed him again. “Whenever you’re ready to pay up. I always collect my debts.”

What had he gotten himself into?

Deke didn't recognize the little girl standing in the backyard. She was short and human and probably pretty young. Four? Three? He wasn't sure how quickly humans aged but he didn't think she was any younger. She had brown skin and huge brown eyes to go with her short, curly light brown hair.

She wore bright blue overalls and was carrying a small stuffed animal in one hand.

He looked back at the house before returning his gaze to the child.

He'd been back an entire week. No child lived in the house. But this little girl looked a little bit like Naomi.

Was he an uncle?

Did Shayn and Naomi have a baby?

Were they hiding her from him?

The girl blinked up at him and tilted her head to one side as if she was trying to make sense of him.

She didn't seem scared to see a Detyen standing in front of her, and he couldn't imagine any child of Shayn and Naomi giving in to fear.

"What's your name?" He asked cautiously. Where was Manda? She would know. Surely she would have mentioned if one of his brothers had a child. Were Vita and Brax hiding a brood of children somewhere?

No.

Surely not.

The girl blinked twice but didn't answer.

Deke crouched down in a squat so he was more on her level. "My name is Dekon. I live in that house back there. Where do you live?" He didn't know what he would do if she said she also lived in the house. It wasn't that big. His family couldn't hide an entire child.

Could they?

Some observant mercenary he was.

"Ashley! Ashley!" A woman yelled. She came running into the backyard, eyes just as wide as the little girl's and lungs heaving. "Ashley, what are you doing here?"

The woman glared down at the little girl.

"I was just walkin'," little Ashley said.

"You're not supposed to leave the yard." The woman looked up at Deke and grimaced.  "I'm so sorry. I swear I only looked away for a second. We live right down the street."

Deke tried not to look as relieved as he felt. There was no secret baby in the house. He wasn't an uncle. "Okay." He didn't know what to say in the situation. A child that small probably shouldn't be running around but it wasn't his job to watch her.

"I'm Monica," said the woman.

"Okay." He used to understand people. He used to be good at this.

"Monica! What are you doing here?" Manda called from behind him. She had been in the house talking to Vita but came out to rescue him. Deke wanted to grab onto her and hold tight and thank her for saving him from the toddler and her mother.

"My little bandit took off," said Monica.

"Ashley!" Manda crouched down and looked at the little girl. "You know you have to ask before you come here to play."

"Sorry," said Ashley.

Manda stood back up. "Have you met Deke?"

"Can't say I have." Monica smiled and flicked her eyes up and down taking deep Deke in.

Manda wrapped an arm possessively around his waist and pulled him close. "This is Deke. He's Shayn and Brax's brother. And he's my mate." She kissed his cheek and then gave Monica a sweet smile.

Monica grinned knowingly. "I've got to get back. Food's in the oven. It was nice to meet you, Deke."

The two the mother and daughter took off.

"Thank you for saving me," he told his mate and wrapped both arms around her, holding her tight.

"Some big bad mercenary you are. You were just about defeated by a toddler. I'm terrified to know how you handle it when we have kids."

"Kids?" Was he supposed to feel that much terror the thought.

Manda burst out laughing. "Don't worry, big guy. We've got a while. Come on. Let's go back inside."

One week. How long could it possibly be? When they’d piled onto the ship three days ago, Sierra had known that was no time at all. She’d taken vacations that went by in the blink of an eye that were a week long. Besides, she had the sexiest man in the galaxy at her side, and every moment they could steal together would just make that time fly even faster.

Except those moments were not nearly as frequent as she needed, and frustration clawed at her with every extra bit of attention that her crew, the ship, or the women required. Clearly none of them cared that she and Raze were newly mated and could have happily spent the entire time in her quarters until they arrived back at Earth.

But after that first day, it had become clear that no one was going to let them get away with that.

First, Quinn pulled her aside to let her know the women were bored and needed entertainment. Then, Jo wanted her to confirm all of the food on the ship was edible. And then Toran, Kayde, and Dryce had pulled Raze away to do Detyen things and an entire day had gone by with barely a kiss shared between them.

She was taking all of her vacation time and spending it with Raze once they got home. That was, if she still had a job. Another problem with this interminable week, every time she stopped moving and wasn’t near Raze, she started thinking about what exactly the job prospects were for a disgraced spy.

Yeah, that didn’t look good either. Maybe she shouldn’t be wishing for the week to end.

But it was the boredom of the women that had brought her to this tortuous night. And she wasn’t about to do it alone.

“It’s a human game?” Raze asked. She’d cornered him in a utility closet and after a too quick make out that only served to leave her frustrated and hot, she’d sprung the plan on him.

“Yes, it should keep the women occupied for a bit. And it’s not like we need any cards or anything. It will be fun.” Lying to her mate was a terrible sin, but some things were just necessary.

“And it only consists of asking questions and making challenges?” He sounded intrigued.

Good, that was at least one taker. She grabbed Raze’s hand and dragged him toward the kitchen where some of the women had congregated. “Good.”

Quinn, Davy, Monica, Muir, and CJ were seated around a large table and they moved to make room when Sierra and Raze arrived. Both Quinn and Davy shot them conspiratorial grins, as if they knew exactly what Raze and Sierra would rather be doing. Sierra barely kept her hand from checking to make sure her hair wasn’t completely mussed up from the time in the closet.

“This is our group?” she asked.

Muir nodded. In the past few days she’d opened up a little, now that she was sure she wasn’t about to die. “Valerie said the rest didn’t want to play.”

With you was the unspoken addition. That bit of tension hadn’t bled away and Sierra doubted she’d ever forgive Valerie for abandoning Laurel.

“This is a good number. Too many more and no one would get a turn.” The rift between the two factions of survivors and the human and Detyen crew wasn’t something that could be fixed, but at least they’d all separate in a few days. “Let’s just go in alphabetical order? CJ, you can start.”

Her eyes lit up and her gaze zeroed in on Raze immediately. “Truth or dare?” she asked him.

Raze glanced at Sierra and she nodded encouragingly. He’d agreed, after all.

“Truth,” he decided.

CJ didn’t rub her hands together in glee, but it was a close thing. “If you had to sleep with someone other than Sierra on the ship, who would it be?”

Sierra groaned. Truth or dare was a terrible game, why had she chosen it?

Raze shook his head. “I wouldn’t have sex with anyone besides my mate.”

Her cheeks flamed, but she reached out and clasped their hands together under the table.

CJ was shaking her head. “No, that’s not how this works. You have to answer. Pretend that if you didn’t choose, your head would explode.”

“Then I would let my head explode rather than betray her.” He was so earnest that Sierra couldn’t help but give him a sappy smile.

She glared at CJ and the woman got the picture. “Davy?”

An evil gleam came into Davy’s eyes. “Sierra, truth or dare.”

Worst. Idea. Ever. But Sierra wasn’t falling into the truth trap. “Dare,” she decided.

“I dare you to go the rest of this game without touching Raze.” Davy grinned.

Sierra glared, but she took her hand away from her mate and scooted a little to the side. “Easy,” she responded. “Monica?”

She and Raze had already been picked, Monica wouldn’t go back for them, right?

Wrong.

“Raze, truth or dare?”

This was getting ridiculous.

Her mate sighed, but didn’t back down. “Dare.”

Monica bit her lip while coming up with her challenge, and then she grinned just as evilly as Davy. “I dare you to make Sierra touch you even though she’s not supposed to.”

“How old are you people?” Sierra demanded of the group before turning back to Raze and crossing her arms. “Never going to happen.” She wanted to win this dumb game.

But she could see in Raze’s eyes that he’d gotten into the challenge. He leaned over her, crowding her space, but no bit of him touching her. The space between them heated and there was an almost physical pull between them. Sierra had to clench her fists on the armrest of the chair to keep from reaching out and placing a hand on his chest.

“Do you know what I’m going to do to you later?” Raze asked, whispering in her ear too low for the other women to hear.

“What?” She leaned in closer, but still not close enough to touch, not quite.

“Anything you want,” he promised, sin in his eyes. “All you have to do is reach out and ask for it.”

“And if I don’t?” She was strung on a wire, entire body taut and hot with pleasure.

“You don’t want to find out,” he warned.

She leaned forward, just a bit more, just trying to take more of his heat, and her cheek brushed against his.

A cheer went up behind them, Davy shooting both hands in the air. Sierra jerked back and glared. She crossed her arms again and tried to keep space between her and Raze, but he slung an arm over her shoulder.

No one said he couldn’t touch her. Ha! Loophole.

But from the wicked gleam in Muir’s eye as her turn came up, Sierra knew it was going to be a long night.

Four more days. And then this damn week would be over and she could really get to enjoy her mate.

“We could be spending the morning in bed, my love,” Iris tried to reason with her mate as he cleared a space in the gym for them to work. They’d spent the last several mornings busy working with their band of humans and Detyens to plan out what would happen now that Ambassador Yormas was on the run, but today they didn’t need to do anything until after noon. As far as Iris was concerned, that gave them hours to make up for all the morning sex they’d missed out on since their mating.

If only her mate were on the same page.

“I cannot make love to you if you’re being held against your will,” Toran replied in a frustratingly even tone. He’d been extra protective since her encounter with Varrow, and though she understood why he was insisting on this lesson, it didn’t mean that she had to like it.

“Varrow’s dead,” Iris began, but when Toran sucked in a shaky breath and gave her that look she knew that she’d been defeated. “Fine, let’s get this over with.”

He flashed her a smile of gratitude and finished clearing the space. After a moment, her mate waved at the space in front of him and instructed her to stand. Iris had to bite her tongue to keep from saying something. He needed to do this, to do something so he didn’t feel powerless when she might be put in danger. Iris understood, but that didn’t mean she had to like it.

“We’ll just go over how to break out of a few holds, nothing too complicated. And once I’m satisfied we—”

“Can return to bed?” she asked hopefully.

Toran’s eyes flashed red and his nostrils flared. “Let’s hope you learn quickly.” He stepped closer and took hold of her wrist. “Now, when I have you like this, the weakest part of the grip is where my fingers meet. I want you to strike me with your free hand right here,” he pointed to a spot on his arm, “and pull away quickly. We’ll go slow at first.”

Iris jerked against his hold a little, testing it, but her mate had a tight grip. He tightened it even further when she didn’t try and escape correctly.

“Do it as I told you,” he said. “It’s okay if you don’t get it the first time.”

That was quite enough. Iris glared at him and did the move exactly as instructed, striking his wrist and pulling away, following through until she put a little distance between them. “Satisfied?” It wasn’t like what he was showing her was difficult.

“Again,” he said, taking on his commander tone. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her close.

Iris would much rather be close under other circumstances. This time, after striking his wrist, she stomped on his foot and used a maneuver to wrench his arm behind his back, using her momentum to gain strength she usually didn’t have.

“What else do you have to show me?” she breathed against his neck, placing a kiss against one of his clan markings.

“You know self-defense.” It wasn’t a question.

“A little.” She was no expert, but she’d taken a few classes.

“Then why didn’t you use it against Varrow’s men?” he turned and she saw the fear in his eyes. If she knew how to defend herself and couldn’t get away from a villain like Varrow, he was probably thinking, then the solution to keeping her safe couldn’t be found in a few clever defense moves.

“Because there was more than one guy and they were armed.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and breathed in the heady scent of him. She was growing addicted to this closeness and she wanted to ease his fears. “I know you want to protect me and that we’re living through dangerous times, but I promise you that I will always do my best to return to you. You’re my mate.”

He brushed his lips against her forehead. “Do you know how to use a blaster?” he asked.

Iris grinned. He was learning. “Not well,” she admitted.

“Can I teach you?”

She reached up and cupped his cheek. “Later. Right now I think we could both use a little time in bed. Together. Yes?”

His eyes flashed red and he swiped his lips against hers. “Yes.”

Quinn wasn’t hiding. Hiding implied intent, and if she just so happened to be in a place unlikely to be frequented by the ever growing Detyen crew, that didn’t mean that she intended to stay away from them. Besides, she had her very own Detyen right with her, and there was no way that Kayde was trying to stay away from his own people.

They were safe on Earth, for now, but one day soon she knew that their safety would no longer be guaranteed.

“What do you think about a cat?” Kayde asked her, his shoulder brushing against hers while they stood at the edge of the public park, looking out at all of the families playing under the tents labeled HUMANE SOCIETY.

“A cat?” What use did she have for a cat? “I like them well enough, I guess. Why?” As they got settled back on Earth, Kayde’s curiosity was growing by leaps and bounds, as if he was making up for all the years where he’d been dead inside.

He pointed to one of the tents and Quinn had to squint to try and make out what he was looking at.  One child, a girl with little brown poofs of hair on either side of her head, caught her attention. She was holding a fluffy white monstrosity that was almost as big as she was. Quinn’s lips involuntarily tugged up at the sight as she imagined what a daughter of her and Kayde might look like carrying her own monster kitten.

“I’ve never had a pet,” Kayde said. “They served no purpose at HQ.”

Her heart clenched as she imagined just how desolate even the best life on Detyen HQ must have been. Though, as she thought about it, she hadn’t had a pet growing up either. She leaned over and kissed his cheek. “We can’t have a cat right now.” The world was in turmoil with the arrival of the Detyen Fleet and there was no telling what trouble they could be bringing with them.

“Right now doesn’t mean never,” Kayde pointed out.

Quinn laid her head on his shoulder. “Let’s make sure we’re going to survive the year before we start worrying about taking care of small creatures.”

“We will,” Kayde promised, his arm going around her and tugging her close. “And once we’re sure, we’ll take care of all of the small creatures we can handle.”

Quinn got the idea he wasn’t just talking about cats. And as she rested against him and let his warmth permeate her skin she realized that she couldn’t wait to find out exactly what he meant.