Angel in the Badlands: space opera sci fi romance (Sons of Amber Book 1) (9 page)

“Seems like it, doesn’t it?” She had to smile at his attitude. Rather than be upset or angry at this new interruption, Zeke seemed to face life with a grin and a positive outlook. She liked that about him. Of course, she liked pretty much everything about him that she’d seen so far.

As the knock sounded again, Angela scooted out from between him and the rock wall and headed to the door. If it was her little brother again, she might just have to kill him.

Angela opened her door only a crack, so she could talk with whomever was on the other side. He heard soft, feminine voices, and a moment later she shut the door and returned to him.

“Problem?” he asked, trying to decipher her expression. She looked bemused.

She tilted her head, shaking it once as her eyes narrowed a bit. “No, but Mother Rachel sent Agatha with a message to say that I’m off the work roster for now.” She plopped down on the side of her bed, hands on her knees, her mind obviously puzzling over what she’d been told. Much as Zeke wanted to take her back into his arms, he sensed now was not the time.

Being with her, meant being with her in all her moods and under all the circumstances of everyday life. Oddly, he wanted to share those things with her, when he hadn’t felt the least interest in doing so with any other woman in his experience. She was a lovely, complicated puzzle that he hoped never to solve.

“So what does that mean? Is it just temporary, or is something wrong?” He walked toward her, taking the single chair in the room away from the small desk and straddling it so he could face her.

“Mother Rachel often does things none of us can figure out until well after the fact,” she explained. “This could be something like that, or it could be because you’re here and your people are coming. She might want me to continue to liaise with you and them. Or not. She didn’t say, and that’s what’s got me confused. Usually, she would tell me what I’m supposed to be doing instead of my normal duties. They don’t just let us sit around and do nothing here.” She chuckled a little and Zeke reached out to take her hand, offering comfort in whatever small way he could.

“If she really is clairvoyant—and I’m leaning heavily toward believing she is—then she probably has a good reason that will come clear as time progresses, right? Is that how it usually works around here?”

She looked into his eyes and he read a lightening of her mood there, which made him feel good. “I think you’re right. I guess I’ll just have to let it ride and see what happens. Mother Rachel usually knows best.”

He stood and offered his hand to her. She took it and stood as well. Pulling her again into his arms, he gazed into her eyes.

“I need to go out to my ship and get a few more things from the hold to help with perimeter defenses here. Since you’re free, you could come along and maybe we can take a little extra time for ourselves before we come back.”

A sultry smile spread over her lips. “I like the sound of that.”

Their trip to the ship was uneventful, as was his stocking of the buggy with the sensor equipment he was going to give to Sven when they got back to the colony. They detoured through Zeke’s cabin and spent a lovely standard hour or two enjoying getting to know each other in the most basic way.

She was on him the moment the hatch slid closed behind them, as eager as he was for a taste of the passion that seemed to flare every time they touched. She just about tackled him, sending him laughing, to the bed beneath her voluptuous body. He was on his back and she straddled his torso, shrugging out of her top in the sexiest display he had ever seen.

But what made it so sexy was the woman who was baring herself to him. Angela. His angel. The most fascinating woman he had ever known.

He reached upward to help her though he was easily distracted by her soft skin. His fingers traced paths over her collarbones and downward, cupping her breasts, pausing there to learn the shape and feel of her. She was perfection in his eyes. No woman could compare with the beautiful spirit that made this woman everything she was.

Zeke could spend the rest of his life studying her, but the passion in her eyes demanded satisfaction now. He could go back to studying her later, he promised himself. With a little growl, he flipped their position so that she was under him. Let the games begin…

Angela shrieked when Zeke tossed her around as if she were some kind of lightweight child’s toy. She’d never been with a man as strong or as beautifully built as Zeke. But there was more to their mutual attraction than just her fascination with his amazing body. She was attracted to the mind that allowed him to do more than one complex task at once and the devil-may-care attitude that led him to take risks…and win.

She admired his courage and his strength of will. His intelligence and his sense of humor. Everything she learned about him only made her want him more. And wasn’t that a surprising change?

Laying on his bed while he finished undressing her was beyond exciting. It was clear he knew how to please a woman. Every single touch, every caress spoke of his skill. Yet it was the slight tremble in his fingers that made her heart nearly stop.

Maybe she was reading too much into it, but she imagined that little fumble meant that more than just a mutual seeking of pleasure was in play here. No, she thought maybe he was in the grip of the same strong, frightening, unexpected emotions as she. It might be self-delusional, but then again, it might just be true. And wouldn’t that be an interesting turn of events?

When she was naked and trembling beneath him, his skilled fingers having traced every inch of her body, his lips following close behind, she realized she didn’t want to just be a passive recipient. She wanted to give him an experience he would never forget. She wanted to reciprocate—and then some.

Pushing at his shoulders, she set about undressing him with the same attention to detail as he had used on her. She started with his shirt, tugging it free from the waistband of his combat trousers and sliding it up his body. As her mouth followed the trail of her hands, her tongue came out to play, licking the especially sensitive part of his body until he groaned.

The sound made her smile.

“You’re killing me, Angel,” he said, though she noticed he didn’t ask her to stop.

“I like it when you call me that,” she whispered against his skin, starting to work on his trousers.

When she made him groan again—this time louder—she had to stifle a giggle.

“You’re a very naughty angel, Angel, but I love that about you.” His hand stroked her hair as she had her way with his body.

But her breath caught at his words. They were so very close to what she really, secretly, wanted to hear. So close. But not quite there. Not yet. Maybe not ever. But wouldn’t it be nice if somehow they could cross that bridge…together?

Eventually, they were both bare and she let him take the lead again because he seemed so intent on it. Next time, she promised herself. She would ambush him in his bunk, if she had to, but she already knew there was going to be a next time. This was just too delicious to limit to a single round.

As he made them one, looking deep into her eyes, she thought she read emotion there that echoed her own. Was she fooling herself? She couldn’t be sure.

The only thing she did know for certain in those moments before conscious thought fled to the realm of incomprehensible pleasure, was that she and Zeke were joined in more than body int those moments. It felt very much to her like their spirits joined as well. The connection with him was unlike anything she had ever experienced before. It was profound…and real. So real. She felt she was part of him as he was part of her, as if she was in his mind and he in hers.

Transcendent. That’s how it felt. A ground-moving experience that sent them to the stars and back in a single instant. Dizzying. Electrifying. Magic.

For his part, Zeke also discovered something in that blissful stolen time. He discovered the simple fact that he never wanted to be without Angela ever again. He…needed her…in a way he had never needed another person before. She was a need deep inside his soul. A thirst that would never be quenched. A part of him that he never wanted to relinquish again.

He…loved her.

Rocked by those momentous thoughts, he held her in his arms in his cabin, oblivious to anything that might be going on outside until his hatch cycled open.

Angela gasped, going stiff in his arms as her eyes fixed in fright on the big man in the doorway.

“Dammit, Mike. Don’t you ever knock?” Zeke threw a pillow at his brother, Michael, who had apparently decided to visit the newfound colony for himself.

Scrambling to pull the cover up to her neck, Angela surprised him by starting to laugh. Zeke looked down at her.

“What?” he asked, wondering what he was missing.

“I was just thinking that if it isn’t my family or my co-workers, it’s yours, interrupting us. We can’t seem to catch a break today.” She laughed and he joined in, realizing she was right.

“We’re just lucky he didn’t show up earlier,” Zeke replied and they both laughed a little harder.

“Go away, Mike. We’ll be out in a few minutes,” Zeke said toward the man still standing in the door. He flipped over, taking the still chuckling Angela into his arms for a deep kiss. He wasn’t going anywhere until he’d kissed her one more time.

Only then would he be ready to face whatever Mike had in store for him.

Chapter Eight

A good twenty minutes later, Zeke joined Mike in the galley of his ship. Angela had considerately opted to give the men a few minutes to catch up while she took a shower and freshened up.

“So what brings you here, Mike? I didn’t expect to see you.”

“Decisions have been made at the highest levels while we were out of contact. We’re going to be putting up a planetary shield and surveying for an orbital space station. Dr. Waithe wants to set up the tightest possible security around this colony.” Mike sipped at the caf Zeke had dialed up for them. “I escorted her down here to meet with the elders.”

After his encounter with Angela, and the stark revelations he had discovered about his own psyche, Zeke valued this chance to talk to his brother privately. Uneasy thoughts were bothering him. He needed Mike’s help sorting out the odd feelings affecting him. Mike was one of his closest friends, and he knew he could trust the other man with his confidences. He just had to figure out how to work the conversation around to the topic.

“Dr. Waithe’s in full protective gear, huh? Knowing our Amber, she’s not going to be comfortable in it for long. Will you have to shuttle her back or did you bring others with you?”

“Only Sons are allowed down here without gear right now. We’re the only ones they can be sure won’t carry the virus. Dr. Waithe came only because she wanted to verify the status of the colony for herself before going any further.” Mike checked his chrono. “But, to answer your question, Gabe will shuttle her back if I ask him. Why?”

“Mike,” Zeke ran a frustrated hand through his hair, “something’s different in me. I don’t understand it, but ever since I opened my eyes and saw Angela standing there, I don’t want any other woman. Only her.”

Michael sighed heavily. “I thought so.” Zeke was startled by Mike’s knowing tone. “You’re not the first of our kind to tell me something like this. Dr. Waithe is aware of it too. She’s studying the phenomenon, trying to figure it out, but I don’t think she’s ever going to find a scientific explanation for it. I’ve seen it happen to two of my best men in the last few months. They each found one special woman and they don’t want to perform with any others. Sure, they still make their donations to the sperm banks, but they just don’t want to be with any other woman than their special girl.”

“Who? And what happened to them?”

Zeke knew if this condition was spreading, Dr. Waithe would want to take action. She wasn’t one to sit idly by and let her plans be ruined by some random anomaly. He only hoped she hadn’t resorted to desperate means to keep her Sons on track with her goals.

“Mark and Todd,” Mike said quietly.

Zeke knew them, though not as well as others because both were classified differently than Zeke and had been given different training.

“They’re both Moderates. Have you heard of any other Wildcards being affected?” Zeke asked.

“You’re the first I’ve heard of, Zeke. But you can stop worrying. Dr. Waithe keeps them under observation but they’ve both been permitted to cohabit with their women and are raising families. Can you imagine it, Zeke?” A quiet wistfulness entered his voice. “They’re actually raising their own sons. I visit them both from time to time and they’re happier than I’ve ever seen them.”

“So you think there’s a chance I’ll be allowed to stay with Angela?” Zeke’s hopes rose, but he wasn’t off the hook yet. His life wasn’t really his own. He’d been born to serve a purpose and he still felt he owed it to humanity to try to fulfill it to whatever extent possible.

“You have more than a chance, my friend. This colony will need a few of us here on the surface to help them get up to speed with the tech we’ll be giving them, among other things. I wouldn’t be surprised if our Amber sees the wisdom in letting you live here with your girl. The people here already know you after all, and they seem to like you, though why I can’t imagine.” Mike chuckled as he rose to his feet. “I’m going back to the colony to check on Dr. Waithe and see what’s up. I’ll make the recommendation to her that you be assigned here permanently, if you want. As far as I’m concerned, this duty station is yours, but since you’re a Son, we have to clear it with Dr. Waithe.”

“I know.” Zeke stood and held out his hand for a shake and quick, back-pounding hug. “And thanks, Mike. For everything.”

Mike headed for the companionway, but paused as Zeke asked one final question.

“What do you think is happening to me and our brothers, Mike? If there’s no scientific explanation, what could it be?”

Mike chuckled softly. “I’ve read up on our ancestors, Zeke. In all the years of humanity’s history and all the scientific advances they made, not one scientist or researcher could ever explain the phenomenon known as love.” Mike slapped a hand on the doorframe. “I’d say you’re in love with the girl.”