Alien (18 page)

The next morning, Andi was woken by something hitting her in
the stomach. Letting out an oomph of air, she rolled to see what it was. Tamin
had slung an arm across her torso, letting it land heavily on her stomach. The
movement had not only successfully jarred her awake, but her bladder would pop
if he added even the slightest pressure. Hoping to escape the fleshy prison he
was holding her in, Andi raised the arm to wiggle from underneath it. Chuckling
under her breath when he snorted in his sleep and rolled over, she turned to
the opposite side.

She watched Rodin sleep for a moment, absorbing the image.
He was a truly beautiful man. Eyelashes that were so long she was envious
combined with a straight nose and plump lips had her wishing she didn’t need to
pee so badly. But she did and had to take care of it.

Finishing up quickly, she walked back into the bedroom to
find both men awake and watching her from the bed.

“Good morning.” Smiling at them in turn, Andi leaned in to
give them each a peck with a freshly brushed mouth.

“Good morning, sweetheart.” Rodin reached up to cup her
breast through the T-shirt she had slipped on in the bathroom.

“Where is my kiss?” Tamin asked grumpily with his arms
folded across his chest.

“Don’t be a baby and wait your turn,” Andi chastised with a
smile.

“We should get ready to leave for medical. Our first patient
is scheduled shortly and we still need to prep for Izzie’s visit as well.”
Rolling out of bed, Rodin stretched.

Tamin reached out to grab her, about to protest, when the
front door chimed. Letting out a groan of disapproval, he moved off the bed to
reluctantly get dressed. “That will most likely be Zane wanting to prepare for
his day.”

Throwing a small, but adorable fit, Tamin stomped into the
bathroom to get dressed. Rodin was pulling on his tunic when Zane walked
through the open doorway. Halting immediately in his tracks, he glanced between
the bed and the room’s occupants, his shock obvious.

“We will be leaving in a moment, Zane,” Rodin said, not
noticing Zane’s reaction.

Andi, on the other hand, was fire-engine red. It was clearly
obvious what had taken place in the room the last night. The tube of lubricant
on the nightstand, the discarded towel beside the bed and a half-dressed man
spoke volumes where no words were needed.

“Hey.” Andi greeted Zane with her normal hug and kiss on the
cheek.

“Hey yourself.” Leaning close to kiss her cheek, Zane whispered,
“You had an interesting evening.”

Andi pulled back enough to swat at her laughing friend.
“Don’t be a dick.”

“I’m only teasing.” Eyeing the bed and the rumpled sheets,
Zane let out a tired yawn. “I guess I will be going to sleep at the docs’ place
this morning.”

“Wait a minute.” Andi stopped Zane from walking out the door
with a hand on his arm. “Are you saying that you haven’t had a chance to
sleep?”

Zane turned his bloodshot eyes to Andi and shook his head.
“Not yet, they had four shuttles nonoperational last night. I had to work
through the rest of the evening shift.” Nodding toward the room, he said, “I
had expected you to have already left for the day.”

“We were just getting up and around,” Andi answered
distractedly. “Zane, you cannot keep working like this. No offense, but you
look like complete shit.”

Tamin walked out of the bathroom as she was speaking to a
visibly swaying Zane.

“Zane, we are going to have to write you a medical leave for
rest. This is not healthy,” Tamin added, frowning at the shape her friend was
in.

“Especially since you are working on our shuttles. One
mistake and somebody else would pay dearly,” Rodin chided.

“I understand. I was not given an opportunity to refuse the
shift last night. This morning I dropped an engine part and my superior
realized I was no longer functioning at the capacity that was needed. I have
off the next twenty-four hours, barring any emergencies.”

“Please make use of our apartment and facilities. We will
clean up here after the med center closes and you can have your apartment this
evening,” Rodin said, walking to the door with the group following behind him.

“Yeah, I’ll even let you pick the movie while we eat lasagna
again,” Andi added.

“You will be staying in our quarters.”

She whipped her head to the side to stare at Rodin. When had
he started to think he could make decisions for her?

“Excuse me?” she asked, giving him the skunk eye that she
had perfected over the years.

“Do you object to staying with your future husbands?” Tamin
asked, drawing her ire from Rodin.

Andi stopped dead in her tracks. Shit. They were right. She
had essentially made up her mind that she was going to go through with the
bridal match with both of them. The fact that Rodin seemed to know it and made
a decision about her current living status still irked her.

“Well…I would like to be the one to decide where I live. Since
this is so new, I will cut you guys some slack. In the future though, you
should be aware that I have my own mind and hate it when somebody speaks for
me. Fair warning, okay?” she conceded, giving both of the men glares that said
she meant business.

“Fair warning acknowledged,” Tamin said with a nod, then
shifted his attention to his friend.

“I agree,” Rodin said, his jaw tight. “However, I will tell
you that if there is a situation where I believe that I can steer you in a
better direction, then I will not keep my opinion to myself.”

Andi stared at him for a moment in silence. If anything, the
man was honest in his intentions.

“I will always take advice, Rodin. Just make sure to
actually talk to me before making a decision that affects me, okay?” Andi hoped
that her voice portrayed how important this was to her. Seeing the recognition
in his eyes, she smiled when he nodded again at her, this time without the stiffness
the one earlier had been given with.

“Zane?” When the weary man turned from where he was leaning
against the wall, Andi patted his shoulder. “Let’s get you to bed, buddy. You
are dead on your feet.”

Tamin swatted her on the ass as they started to walk out,
the action making her jump and rub her palm on her behind to ease the sting.
Shooting him a mock glare, she laughed when he shrugged innocently.

As the group continued their trek down the corridor to the
med center, Andi felt a sense of peace engulf her. These men made her feel
emotions that she had never had before. The fact that there were two of them no
longer concerned her. The lack of jealousy the previous evening had showed that
this would work.

Having two men focusing all their attention on her really
did double the pleasure. Never had she thought herself to be an exhibitionist.
When Rodin had watched her rub against Tamin in bed, it had been as if her
entire body had lit up like the Fourth of July. She also had a better
understanding of their dynamics in the bedroom. Rodin was definitely dominant
the way he had commanded the entire scene to play out.

Feeling infinitely lucky with the turn of events, Andi
walked to the med center with her men surrounding her, ready to get their day
started. She was going to be counting down the minutes until she had her men
alone again and knew the time wouldn’t come quickly enough. After prepping the
exam rooms, Andi settled at her desk and busied herself with paperwork that she
knew would distract her.

The tone on the door beeped loudly, announcing a visitor.
Moving quickly to greet her first patient, she didn’t stop the smile that came
across her face when Nixon appeared. Izzie seemed almost one hundred percent
better. Assessing her quickly, Andi saw that her color was a nice healthy pink.
Even her hair had been freshly washed and styled.

“You are looking fabulous, Izzie.” Andi gestured to the exam
room where she needed Nixon to carry her friend and patient.

“I feel so much better.” Izzie brushed the hair from her
face. “It’s amazing what something as simple as a bath will do to cheer you
up.”

“I’m hoping that you didn’t try to bathe yourself.” Andi
said, connecting the monitors to Izzie’s wrist and chest.

“I would never have let her do that. We have been bathing
together,” Nixon answered with a smile.

“Nixon!” Izzie pulled her hand from Andi to cup her burning
cheek.

“What?” he asked, confused at her embarrassment.

“You don’t need to tell everyone we took a bath together.”
Izzie said, still red-faced.

“I did not tell her that we had sex. I said bathed,” he said
plainly.

“Nixon!” Izzie dropped her head to her chest as though she
wanted the floor to swallow her up.

Andi couldn’t control her chuckles any longer. Full-blown
laughter flew out of her mouth even though she tried to hold it in. The
embarrassment on Izzie’s face combined with Nixon’s confused expression was
hilarious. Andi’s laughter even spurred Izzie to laugh at the situation.

After a few moments, the women were finally able to control
themselves. As Andi finished up her recordings, Tamin and Rodin walked into the
exam room.

“Good morning, Doctors,” Izzie greeted, all smiles.

“You are seem much better, Isabel,” Tamin said, patting her
shoulder as he stood beside the bed.

“Thank you, and please call me Izzie. Isabel reminds me of
my grandma,” she said with a grimace.

“Why would it remind you of your grandmother?” Rodin asked,
reviewing the chart that Andi handed him.

“I was named after my grandma.” Shrugging, Izzie gave them a
small smile. “Don’t get me wrong, I loved the lady. When I hear the name, it
always make me think of the smell of mothballs and peppermints.”

Turning toward Andi, Rodin lifted his eyebrow in question.
“Does this mean that our children are going to be named after us? Is that a
human custom?”

At the mention of children, both Nixon and Izzie stared at
the three of them with eyes wide open.

“Rodin, I was not aware you were courting Andi.” Nixon
spoke, surprise heavy in his voice.

“We are both courting her,” Tamin replied from his spot on
the other side of the bed.

“Both of you? Is the council aware of your situation?”
Nixon’s curiosity was evident in his tone.

Tamin and Rodin both nodded.

“And you are not opposed to the marriage, Andi?” Nixon
probed, obviously intrigued.

“Nixon, please! That is none of our business,” Izzie
chastised with a smack on his arm.

“I am just intrigued by the dynamics,” he explained with a
sheepish grin on his face.

“Well stop it already. Jesus. I can’t take you anywhere.”
Izzie muttered the words, but she had a smile as she delivered them.

“Let’s get to why you are here today,” Andi interrupted,
grateful that she had an excuse to distract them both. As the doctors took
turns answering questions from Nixon, Andi remembered she still had to prep the
other exam room. Walking into the other room to start up the regen bed, she
jumped when a warm hand landed on her shoulder.

“Holy smokes, Tamin. You move like a fucking panther,” Andi
yipped out when she could finally catch her breath.

“Sorry to have scared you, sweetheart,” he apologized. “What
is a panther?”

“It’s a big black cat…never mind.” Waving her hand, she
stopped what she was doing with the bed and turned to him. “Are you done with
the initial exam already?”

“Not yet. Rodin is finishing it up. I just wanted to make
sure that you were not embarrassed by what was said or the questions that Nixon
asked.”

“Don’t worry, it was actually a little funny,” Andi said.
“For some reason I thought all the warriors knew about the situation with you
guys. Zane seemed to know about you guys before I even mentioned it. If I felt
anything at all, it would be surprise that
he
was surprised.”

Tamin pulled her into a hug. “Good then. I was worried that
you would be embarrassed by what we are asking you to commit to.”

“There isn’t a worry in my mind, Tamin. Any concerns I had
were personal and not based on what other people thought.” Andi gave him a
quick peck. “Hell, I got all sorts of flak for signing up for the Bridal Pact
in the first place. This doesn’t bother me at all.”

“That is a relief to us.” The comment came from the door
where Rodin was standing with Nixon, who was still carrying his bride.

“I truly meant no offense. Honestly,” Nixon added, his
expression full of guilt and embarrassment.

“None taken, don’t worry about it.” Andi gestured for him to
lay his wife on the bed, then excused herself so the room wasn’t packed with
people.

Hours passed with the med center being quiet. Between their
daily tasks, Rodin and Tamin took turns teasing her. A soft kiss here, a pat on
the butt there. She was loving the ease of closeness.

A few appointments came in throughout, but it was otherwise
a slow day. Izzie was still using the regen bed in room one where Nixon kept
her company during her treatments. The men had both spoken to him about leaving
for the afternoon meal but he was adamant that he stay by her side.

The entire thing was incredibly sweet. Taking him to lunch
and chatting with him as he ate had been a fun way for Andi to learn more about
Phaeton culture. Nixon answered questions regarding his job on the bridge and
what his life had been like prior to meeting Izzie.

Before lunch had ended, Andi was surprised when Zane popped
into the exam room where she had been laughing with Nixon.

“What are you doing here?”

“I have been called to the bay. We received message that two
shuttles will be landing with supplies and they need to have one serviced
immediately.” Yawning, but not seeming as exhausted as he had previously been,
Zane shook his head. “Could you ask the doctors to get a medical release for me
for seventy-two hours? If I have a couple days’ rest I will be as good as new.
The sleep that I was able to get today will help me get through this shift, but
I need more.”