Determine Read online

  “Well, the thing I have enjoyed most in my time away from home is the vast variety of studies that I have been able to pursue. Will my continuing my education be a problem?” She smiled at the flowers to either side of the velvety-mossed path.

  Tangle nodded his head. “It is the least we can do. Starburn has a slight issue after using his powers for an extended period of time. We call it after burn. He tends to seek out any and all willing females, several at a time if needed. Having a mate to come home to will make all the difference. I am hoping that you caught my hint earlier.”

  “The Shosai. He is one?” She blinked and tried to remember what she had seen on the screen, but Starburn had his hand on her thigh at the time, and she was slightly distracted.

  “Half. Half Shosai, half Nyal and all wild temper if things don’t go the way he thinks they should. I am just warning you, because if you are prepared, you can watch for signs in his behaviour and move to distract him.”

  “Me, distract him?”

  “Yes. For the last two weeks, we have been able to calm him down just by mentioning your name. It has given us no end of relief.” Tangle laughed.

  She sighed and leaned down to inhale the soothing fragrance of a brilliant purple flower.

  “You have no idea how glad I am that the Guardians of Deyfell 4 are relieved that I can calm one of you down.”

  Tangle chuckled, and they continued their tour of the gardens. Now and again, Hydra would see a shadow flitting nearby, but in general, Starburn was careful to follow at a distance.

  Chapter Seven

  Hydra wandered through the kitchen and eventually found a pitcher large enough to hold the bouquet of flowers that Tangle had selected for her.

  Breaker came up and stood next to her as the sky turned the lavender of sundown. “Those are lovely. You do know that both Warp and Tangle would gladly have taken Starburn’s place in your bed.”

  Hydra’s hands wobbled. “Um. No, I wasn’t aware of that. Why?”

  “Do you know how rare it is for someone to offer us kindness because we are tired and not because they want something from us? Your generosity of spirit was noticeable at the start, as was your ability to recognize defeat when the server neglected to bring you your tea that first day.”

  Hydra fiddled with the flowers until she had them the way she liked them. “I know when to stop fighting and just get out alive.”

  “And yet, your determination to get what you came for kept you in that diner and enabled us to meet. I would say that those characteristics are rather admirable in any being, but in one so lovely, they are irresistible.”

  “Are you flirting with me, Breaker?”

  “Would that be so horrible?” Breaker turned and leaned against the counter, batting her lashes over her crimson gaze.

  “No, but it would destroy Liskey. She is enamoured with you, and I would never be able to look her in the eye again if I were to encourage you at any point.”

  “And I am not your type.” Breaker’s smile was wry.

  “That too, but I was trying not to say it.” Starburn walked into the room as if he had not been watching Tangle and her in the garden for the last two hours.

  He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her, pressing a kiss to her neck.

  “So, Breaker, tell me. How many love bites are showing?” She stroked Starburn’s hair and tweaked his ear.

  “Four are easily visible.” Breaker laughed and took the flower arrangement to an occasional table in the conversation pit.

  Starburn took her by the hand. “Walk with me while the sun goes down.”

  Shrugging, she followed him and found herself with warm sand running between her toes. The beach was as quiet as you could get. The waft of smoke smelled like someone was set to barbeque, and Starburn confirmed it when he said, “Warp is cooking.”

  She laughed. “So, today, they do the cooking and you goof off?”

  He wrapped his arms around her, and together, they flew to a high cliff. The sun was a huge ball dipping slowly into the ocean, and Hydra was thankful for the arms around her. She was not fond of heights, let alone getting stuck on them.

  “Hydrangea Graham, I have a question to ask you.” He turned her in his arms, and to her shock, he went down on both knees.

  “Um, should I be worried?”

  He smiled and pressed a finger to her lips. “Let me finish.”

  Nervous and very vulnerable in her position on top of a small island on an alien world, in an alien empire, so far from her home, she nodded.

  “Once in a lifetime, you meet someone who gives more than they take and who leaves you better than you were before you met. When you meet that person, you can either appreciate their transition through your life, or you can invite them to join you permanently and hope that you make them better as well.”

  She was frozen in place, fascinated.

  “What I am saying is that you make me better, make me want to be better. When we leave, I want you with me. Will you marry me?” She blurted out, “Am I pregnant?” He grinned, “Not according to your medical history. You have a suppressing shot.” Her inner censor seemed to have been burned out. “Why? Why not a nice Nyal woman?”

  “Every woman to pass my path has done so with an agenda. You didn’t have an agenda. You simply wanted a piece of home. I can understand and respect that better than you can imagine. You are one of a kind in this system, and I am one of a kind as well. I think we could join together to be something greater than our two parts.”

  “Will you be a Guardian forever?” She touched his face, and he held her hand to his skin.

  “I have three more years left in service. One more tour around the Deyfell system. So, will you marry me?” He smiled, and she realized that she was dodging the question.

  She hesitated again and he reached behind him, bringing up one of the purple flowers she loved so much. “Caalos Renix. Starburn. I will marry you.” He kissed her palm and then her wrist, nipping sharply. She inhaled, but he quickly bit his own wrist, pressing their wounds together.

  “One blood, one life, one being. Hydra Graham, I marry you.”

  “Caalos Renix, Starburn, I marry you.” The formal offering and request was done, their blood was mixed. If he were noble, she would have had to suffer through the mating mask when she ovulated, but since that was a year away, it was out of mind. Hydra leaned down and kissed her husband.

  He grasped her waist and returned her kiss.

  They had exchanged no genetic scans, no histories, nothing. He knew she was right for him, and god help her, she knew he was right for her.

  * * * *

  Warp looked up at the couple on the cliff. “Do you think he is going to bring her down any time soon?”

  Tangle looked at the arrangement that Hydra had created from his flowers. “I think he wants a little more alone time with his new bride.”

  “Bride? I knew it would be soon, but now?”

  Breaker laughed and poured glasses of fruit juice, setting them on a tray. “We could be blown to hell tomorrow. You really think he wants to leave Hydra dealing with being his most recent slut if he dies?”

  Warp watched Tangle wince. “Point taken.” Warp nodded. “I will be doing dinner, and we can only hope that we don’t get a call tonight.” He paused and looked back at the cliff. “Never mind. It is legal. They just consummated it on the cliff top.”

  His vision was not something that was in his dossier, but it was known amongst his peers.

  Being able to see Starburn standing with his feet apart, supporting them both as he moved Hydra against him was equal parts arousing and disturbing.

  Tangle went to the com unit and started pressing buttons.

  Warp asked, “What are you doing?”

  “Registering them with the Imperium. If anything happens to Starburn, I am sure he would want her provided for.”

  Breaker nodded. “Good thinking. We are fairly heavily insured after all.”

  Warp smile
d and kept his gaze away from the couple on the cliff. They deserved a little privacy.

  There was little enough to be had in the bubble of the Guardians.

  He got to his feet and started dinner. The way those two were going at it, they would be hungry.

  Chapter Eight

  A quick dip in an icy stream took the sweat off, and when Starburn stood under the cascade, the water warmed rapidly. “Nice trick, Caalos.” He moved toward her, aroused once again. “I love it when you say my name.”

  “I will try to keep it to secure situations.” She licked a drop of water off his neck.

  “Thank you.” He smiled and helped her out of the water, the bite on his wrist had healed already, but unlike his earlier injuries, it had scarred.

  Hydra grabbed his wrist, and she ran her thumb along the scar. “Why did it scar?”

  “Mating marks are meant to scar, at least among my people. What do your folk do?” She shrugged. “It differs from social group to social group, but the most common where I was born is a plain ring on the left hand third finger.” He frowned. “It can be removed by deceptive partners.”

  “I am aware of that. It is an antiquated custom of possession.” She shrugged. She looked at her right inner wrist, and the marks he had left were healed and a shocking pink. “This works.” Starburn grinned and ran his hands inches from her skin, drying her. He paid special attention to her inner thighs, and she was feeling more wet than dry when he ran his hands down to her ankles.

  She pressed her thighs together and smiled, “This does beat a solar shower.” He grinned. “I think so too, though you are wet again. I love how that happens when I look at you.”

  She blushed. “Well, you seem so intent on me that it would be impolite to ignore your interest.” He laughed. “Nice try. My particular bloodline is made of reactive arousal. If you don’t want me, nothing happens.”

  She blinked and her cheeks caught fire again.

  “Oh. Well, that is embarrassing. So, that is why you seek out companionship so often?”

  “Not anymore. You are the only companion I want. Now, shall we go to dinner? I am sure Warp has confirmed that we engaged in all portions of the ceremony.”

  Hydra looked toward the base and blinked.

  “Can he see that far?”

  “Oh yes. He was the witness to our union. At all points.” Starburn pulled on his loose trousers and slipped on his vest.

  “Why did we have to rush it?” She shifted the dress and put the belt back on, lifting the hem an inch.

  “Guardians do not have long lifespans. We work our ten years for the Imperium and then get a retirement plan. If something were to happen to me, I didn’t want you going down as my latest conquest. I want you protected by law and provided for.” He wrapped his arms around her and pressed his cheek to hers.

  She gripped his arms as he flew them back to the base. The greenery below blurred past, and the wind flapped her skirt in a very unsettling manner. It did cool the heat between her thighs though, so that was a bonus.

  He was right about the nature of their jobs.

  They were halfway through dinner when a call came in. A coastal region needed assistance as a tsunami bore down on them.

  After a savage kiss, Starburn left her to suit up, and he re-joined her, looking all serious and ever so sexy in his uniform. She grabbed a hank of snow-white hair and pulled his face down to hers.

  “Come back as quick as you can, husband.” She pressed a kiss to his chiselled lips, parting them with her tongue and licking at his sharp teeth. He tasted like the fruit juice that Breaker had prepared, and his leather and metal creaked as he crushed her to him.

  Warp and Tangle pulled him away, and she smiled and waved farewell.

  The shuttle took off, and Hydra held her anxiety while she tidied up the remains of dinner.

  The next day, she woke and checked the newsreels. The Guardians were still hard at work, so Hydra felt she had time to get her cookie recipe right.

  By the third batch, she was satisfied with the result and the newsreel was showing Tangle creating fencing for the animals that were straying, Breaker was finding people trapped in destroyed buildings and Warp was extricating them.

  Starburn was drying the essential areas and generating power for the volunteers.

  Hydra’s smile faded when she saw a local woman sidling up to Starburn, but he smiled politely at her and said something quietly. The woman blinked, smiled and slapped him on the arm.

  It was the next day when the exhausted Guardians were interviewed. The reporter was the same snide woman from the earlier vid.

  “So, Starburn, what all the viewers want to know is who is your latest woman? It seems she is an off worlder from a tiny, nameless world.” Starburn gave her a surprisingly warm smile.

  “She isn’t my latest woman.”

  The reporter was excited. “Really, tell us more.”

  “She is my last woman. Hydrangea Graham, Instructor of intergalactic contract law, born of the Alliance Protectorate of Terra, is my wife. Congratulate me. I am off to complete my honeymoon.” He lifted his wrist and showed the mark.

  The reporter was shaken, and the rest of the Guardians were grinning. “Are all your teammates happy with this turn of events?” Warp and Tangle nodded while Breaker said, “Hydrangea is a wonderful woman and a lovely addition to our group. Starburn really needed a woman like her. So sensible, genuine, honest and generous.”

  Breaker’s smile was pure saccharine, but there was steel just underneath.

  The reporter concluded the interview, and the Guardians entered the shuttle and lifted off.

  Hydra wiped a happy tear from her cheek and checked to make sure that everything was ready for a meal and solid night’s sleep when they got home. She opened the doors for ventilation of the main room and selected a music station that she hoped they would find soothing.

  They had had a helluva time, and they needed their rest.

  Twenty minutes after they were home, Hydra moved around and collected plates, cups and cutlery. Four filthy Guardians were passed out in the conversation pit, and she didn’t have the heart to wake them.

  She dampened a cloth, half-filled a bowl with warm water and went to wipe up the remains of dinner that they were still wearing. She started with Tangle and cleaned his face and hands. The water was grey-lavender with grime, so she changed it and went along to clean Warp off.

  By the time Breaker was clean and she was working on Starburn, she was feeling a little tired herself.

  She carefully removed the grime from around his mouth, slipped off his mask and smiled at the reverse racoon effect.

  A low voice made her jump, “Did you clean them all?”

  She looked down to see a smile on Starburn’s face. “I didn’t mean to wake you.” He chuckled and sat up. “Then, next time make the water hot. Now, help get me to bed.”

  She put his arm over her shoulders and helped lever him off the couch. “I hate to break it to you, Starburn, but you are hitting a shower first.”

  “As long as you hold me up, no problem.” He chuckled. “I am going to enjoy you taking my armour off though. It is a little fantasy I have had for the last two days.”

  Hydra laughed as they made it to the hall and then the bedroom door. She steered him past the bed and into the lav where the lighting would help her figure out what was going on.

  Her gown was dirty, so she tugged it away from the belt and slipped it off over her head, leaving her wearing the metal and nothing else.

  “Oh, Hydra. Why do you have to be so lovely?”

  “It is a blessing and a curse. Now, where do I start? Sorry, usually when you put it on, I go into mourning, because all that skin is gone.” She grinned and kissed him quickly, backing away before he could lean forward.

  She took his mask from the top of his head and tossed it aside. With a few fumbles, she managed to release the clasps and work his torso covering loose. She wisely removed his boots and said, “No
w, stand up, palms to the wall.”

  “Kinky.”

  She laughed and worked the reinforced trousers down his legs, helping him to step out one leg at a time.

  She sat back and sighed in relief when he was naked. She tugged him into the shower and turned it on. The light seemed to energize him, but she was exhausted.

  She chuckled and took a quick turn in the shower as he left it. She closed her eyes and let the grime be blasted into nothing.

  Clean but tired, she stepped out and took his hand, walking with him to the bed that she had strewn with flower petals.

  He quirked a brow at her. “What is this for?”

  “Another silly tradition. The bouquet was losing its petals, so I thought of putting them here as a welcome home.” She reached for them. “They are stupid. I am sorry.”

  He stopped her before she could brush them away.

  “I think they are lovely, Hydra. Stop fussing and lie down with me.”

  She nodded and followed him onto the bed. “I am really glad you are home, Starburn.”

  “Me too.” He spooned her against him and caressed her hip. “I missed you, Hydra.” She smiled and snuggled back against him. He curled his arm over her and tucked a hand between her breasts. Curled together, they breathed as one and slipped into darkness.

  The honeymoon would have to wait until the morning.

  Chapter Nine

  Hands were stroking her, coaxing her to wake up. They cupped her breasts and slid down her thigh.

  When she moaned lightly, the hands move with more deliberation. She smiled and arched her head back onto Caalos’s shoulder. She gasped his name as he slid a knee between her thighs and used the opportunity to slide two fingers into her.

  Hydra moaned and twisted. Her shoulders ended flat on the bed, which invited Caalos to suck each nipple in turn. He thrust his fingers, lapped and sucked on her breasts and the air around them shimmered with heat.

  His thumb found her clit again, and she cried out, lacing her fingers through his hair. She bit her lip when a shriek worked its way into her throat, and she stifled it as her orgasm bucked her against his hand.