Beyond Galaxy's Edge (26 page)

She gave a choked laugh. “I love you.”

He made a growling noise.
“I love you, too.”

“I’m sorry exploding spaceship debris hit me and scared you.”

“So you should be.”

She laughed outright. Life with this man would have always been laughs and adventures. Nothing sensible or stable or perfect.

It would have been exactly what she wanted.

Her laughter died away. “You aren’t going to go back to the ship, are you?”

“Nope. If we’re going to die, I’ll damn
well do it holding onto you.”

Tears were making her vision blurry.

And, it seemed, they were making her see things, too. There was movement against the green of the gas giant. Something…? Or nothing?

But as she spun around again, the movement grew larger. And she realized something big was coming toward them. From the planet.

She spun again and this time she blinked rapidly and focused
hard.

“Oh. My. Goddess.”

At Nissa’s exclamation, Justyn’s head shot up.

And his mouth dropped open.

A…creature…was flying out of the gas giant. Headed toward the space fight.

It looked like a dragon, or a giant snake, except it was huge—as big as the starships nearby. Its body—covered in metallic scales—undulated, its long legs flowing back behind it, almost like tentacles. When Justyn saw
the double sets of red eyes, he realized the creature on the
Nero
had been a baby.

This was obviously mama.

“I’ve never see anything like it,” he murmured.

“The rumors were real,” Nissa said. “It’s the same creature from the wreck.”

Yep, and when this one opened its mouth, they were going to see some massive teeth. Teeth capable of tearing a ship apart and stranding it on a small, rocky
moon.

The creature keep coming with its fluid movements.

Straight at them.

“Shit. Nissa, watch out—”

“Can’t control where I’m going here, Justyn.” Her tone was irritated. She was still spinning, her arms outstretched, liked she hoped she could grab onto something.

The creature loomed over them, absolutely huge.
Bigger
than the starships.

It brushed past Nissa, and the impact sent her
shooting in the opposite direction—straight back toward Justyn.

She slammed into him and he grabbed her with one arm. He yanked her into his chest and held on tight.

Her arms wrapped around him like steel bands. “Don’t let go.”

“Jesus, I won’t.” He’d never, ever admit to her how afraid he’d been, seeing her drifting away from him.

Suddenly, one of the creature’s legs whipped around and
smacked into the skimmer.

Shit
. “Hold on!”

The blow sent them shooting forward. Justyn kept one hand on the controls and the other arm clamped around Nissa.

They were moving fast. Much faster than the top speed of the skimmer.

Ahead, he watched the creature reach the enemy cuttership. It opened its mouth—yep, it had huge, spiky teeth—and then spat something green at the ship’s hull.

The hull began to disintegrate. Eaten away.

“Holy hell,” Nissa breathed.

The remaining ships rallied around the listing cuttership. But it was too late. The ship turned upside down and began a slow descent to the planet.

Justyn dragged his gaze away…just in time to see the hull of the
Sky Nomad
appear in front of them.

“Brace!” Fuck, this was going to hurt. He moved Nissa between him and
the skimmer. The hull raced up to meet them.

Just before they hit, they were jerked to a rapid halt.

“Nice to see you guys arrive with two minutes to spare.” Rynan’s voice came through their helmets.

Justyn looked over and saw his brother manning a large powered exosuit with massive mechanical arms. It was used to recover wreckage in deep space or for heavy lifting on asteroid mines. Rynan
had their skimmer clamped in the suit’s large claws.

“Thought you might need a little help,” Rynan said.

“I am damn happy to see you, bro.”

Rynan gave one of his rare smiles. “Likewise. Shall we get inside before that space monster decides to snack on the
Nomad
?”

“I vote yes,” Nissa said.

Rynan fired the thrusters on the exosuit and maneuvered them through the huma-field into the nearby
bay.

As soon as they touched the metal flooring, Justyn tossed the cylinder off his shoulder and ripped the helmet off his head. Nissa had hers half off. He grabbed it and tore it away.

Then he hauled her up and kissed her.

She was as desperate as he was. She leaped up, wrapping her long legs around his waist. They devoured each other.

A not-so-discreet cough forced Justyn to tear his
mouth from hers. He glared at Dare and Rynan. “Busy.”

“Yeah, I see.” Dare barely contained his smile. “But we need to strap in and get out of here.”

Damn, he was right. Justyn settled for snatching up the Constitution, tugging Nissa to his side and keeping her there as they hustled to the bridge.

The
Nomad’s
pilot had already moved away from the gas giant and the scene of destruction above
it.

“Fuck.” Justyn watched the creature devouring one of the starships with a strange, horrified awe. It was pure carnage.

“Strap in,” Dare said.

They did and seconds later, the
Nomad
hit interstellar speed.

“Rynan, drop warning beacon. I want to make sure any travelers coming this way avoid Sargasso,” Dare said.

“On it.”

“So, you found it.” Dare eyed the cylinder, then looked at Justyn.

Justyn flopped back in his seat. “Yep. And I’ll show it to you…later. Right now, I want a rare steak, a shot of kila—” he waggled his eyebrows at Nissa “—and a beautiful, naked woman. Oh, and no interruptions for several hours.”

Nissa stood. “Well, Phoenix, you are out of luck.” She shot him a simmering look. “I don’t cook.”

Her words took a second to register. He leaped to his feet. “I have
a food printer in my cabin. It does a pretty good steak.”

“Sorry to interrupt your plans,” Rynan said dryly. “There’s a ship on an intercept course and an incoming transmission…for Nissa.”

***

Nissa frowned. “Who is it?”

Rynan tapped the console screen. “They haven’t responded to hails.”

She stalked over to the comms console. “Put it through.”

She was aware of Justyn stepping up beside
her. Adrenaline was still humming through her veins. She wanted nothing more than to rip Justyn’s clothes off, work off her excess energy, then cuddle with the man she loved and fall asleep for a few hours.

A face flashed on the screen.

Nissa stared. “Admiral DeRuyter?”

In her neatly pressed GSS uniform and her hair in its usual starched bob, Admiral DeRuyter was the last person Nissa expected
to see this far beyond the galaxy’s edge.

“Captain Sander. Were you successful? Did you recover the Constitution?”

“Yes—”

“Excellent. I’ll have you and the artifact teletransported aboard my ship—”

“Ma’am, with all due respect, what the hell are you doing out here?”

“I wanted to ensure the artifact was secured. It is imperative—”

As the admiral droned on, Nissa’s gut tightened. Her
neck was prickling. “How did you know where we were?”

“What?” The admiral’s face went blank.

“You can’t have known where we were. I haven’t reported in to you since before Hydrae.”

“Ah…well, I simply followed Gunn and his ships.”

Disappointed sadness swamped Nissa, followed swiftly by anger. “You mean
hired
Gunn and his ships.”

The admiral’s brow creased. “I don’t know what you’re talking
about, Nissa. Now, prepare for teletransportation and ensure you have the document—”

Nissa could almost smell the woman’s desperation through the screen. “Was it money? Are you planning to sell it? If so, you wouldn’t be able to leave any witnesses.”
Please, let me be wrong.

The admiral’s face hardened, all traces of confusion vanishing. “No, I plan to use it to gain a seat on the Galactic
Council.”

The highest authority in the galaxy. “Bribe your way on.”

The admiral shrugged. “I’ve spent years working my way to the top of the GSS. Dedicated
everything
I have to it. They turned down my application for the Galactic Council…again. With the Constitution as a bargaining chip, they’ll have no choice but to see I’m the right woman for the job. I’m doing this for the greater good
of the galaxy, Nissa.”

It was like Nissa was staring at a stranger, not a woman she’d admired her entire career. “You hired the mole. The monk on the
Nomad
.”

“Yes. I was certain you’d keep me informed of your movements, but you’ve always had a stubborn, independent streak.”

And DeRuyter was apparently a power-hungry, control freak.

The admiral continued, “I needed contingencies. Including
Gunn.”

“You still wouldn’t be able to leave witnesses.”

“No. Unfortunately, you’re right.”

“Her ship’s weapons have come online,” Rynan announced.

“Last chance, Nissa. Come aboard with the Constitution. You have no allegiance to that edge trash behind you.”

Justyn gripped Nissa’s arm. “She’ll kill you.”

Nissa nodded. “I don’t think I’ll take you up on that offer, Admiral.” Nissa stabbed
a finger at the screen and cut the transmission. She slipped into the weapons console beside Rynan. “Can you shield my biosignature? She’ll have it and try to teletrans me out.”

“Already done.”

She looked up at Justyn. “We need to get out of here.”

“We might have to destroy her ship.” Justyn watched Nissa’s face steadily. “You okay with that?”

“She just threatened treason and murder. Yeah,
I’m okay with that.”

“They’re opening fire,” Rynan said.

The lasers hit the
Nomad’s
shields, but the ship still shuddered under the impact.

Rynan cursed. “Shit, they’re packing more than the standard weapons.”

“Take them out.” Dare’s command was hard and crisp.

“Returning fire.” Nissa tapped at the controls to prepare weapons. She hesitated for the briefest second, then touched the final
button.

The firefight was vicious. The admiral had a damned good pilot at the helm.

But Rynan had equipped the
Nomad
extremely well.

The Nomad jolted under the impact of an ion missile. Nissa programmed in a complex attack using the ship’s lasers, plasma cannon and missiles.

Suddenly the side of the admiral’s ship exploded. Nissa stomach clenched. She’d hoped to maim them, leave them here
for someone to find.

A second later a chain reaction of explosions tore ship apart.

There was silence on the
Nomad’s
bridge. Nissa stared at the viewscreen and the debris hanging in space.

A hand gripped her shoulder. “Nissa? Are you okay?”

A woman she’d admired, had modelled her career on, had just betrayed them all. And now, Admiral DeRuyter was dead. And her crew. Nissa pressed a hand
to her eyes and breathed. “No. But I will be.”

But deep inside, she wondered if she was deficient in some way, because the people she cared for kept betraying her.

Unsteadily, she got to her feet and pushed Justyn’s hand away. She headed for her cabin. “I need to be alone.”

“It wasn’t your fault, sweetheart.” Justyn ran a hand down Nissa’s back.

She was lying face-down on the bed in her cabin. Had been for hours. She hadn’t cried, but damn it, he’d seen how deep the admiral’s betrayal had cut.

He wanted to help her, but didn’t know how. All he could do was show her she wasn’t alone.

Nissa rolled over. “I’m fine.” She ran a hand over her
smooth head. “Okay, not fine, but I know we did the right thing.”

He studied her face. Decided she wasn’t lying. He tipped her chin up with his finger. “There’s my girl.”

She managed a small smile. “Where are we headed?”

“Back to Galaxy’s Edge. Figured you’d want to get the Constitution secure and handed over to the authorities before someone else tries to kill us.”

She nodded. “What about
the convoy?”

“After they drop us at the Edge, Dare and Ry will head back to Hydrae and continue on.”

“Okay.” She got to her knees and slithered onto Justyn’s lap.

“Well, hello.” His grin widened.

“Hello.” She tugged at his shirt until he helped her slip it over his head.

For the first time, their loving wasn’t rushed or hurried. He let her explore his chest, flick her tongue over his
hard, flat nipples. Before long, they were stretched out on the bed, exploring each other.

Savoring, enjoying, taking their time.

“Fuck, your mouth should be illegal.” His hands clenched in the sheets. He lifted his hips as her nails scratched over his stomach and she tugged at the fastening on his trousers. The desire he always felt for her flamed hot.

She pulled his trousers off. “You
have a fantastic, lickable body, Justyn.” She leaned down and pressed a kiss to the center of his chest.

He groaned. “Nothing like yours.”

She laughed. “I hope not.” She traced the ridges of his abdomen. “I like you hard and firm.” Her hands dipped lower and cupped his cock. “Really hard and firm.”

Hs groan was more strangled this time. “Nissa, sweetheart, I won’t last—”

“So don’t last.”
She licked her lips, leaned down and engulfed his cock.

“Jesus.” His hips surged up.

She looked up the length of him, their gazes meeting.

“You look so hot,” he bit the words out.

She worked him hard. Sucking deep, keeping the suction tight.

“God, yeah, sweetheart. Just like that.” He slid his hand down to cradle her head, urging her to take him deeper.

She swallowed him down, then
pulled out, tongue licking the underside of his cock before swallowing him again.

“Nissa…can’t stop…” His groan was long and loud as he came, flooding her mouth with his release.

When he was slumped back on the bed, dragging in deep breaths, she sat up and licked her lips.