Damaged Control Read online

  Her team was staring at them, and she exhaled. “Right. This is not the weirdest thing you have caught me doing.”

  The guys looked, grinned, grabbed their plates, and left the dining area.

  She called out, “Check your tablets. I have added some pointers for the region you are heading to.”

  She shuddered as Etska’s jaw tightened on her. Whatever he was putting into her was racing through her like threads of lightning. The targets of the sensations were her major erogenous zones. It seemed that his patience was over.

  She felt heat pooling between her thighs, and he slid a hand under her skirt to stroke her. Athena yelped when he slid two fingers into her with his thumb stroking her clit. There was going to be bruising when he let her go. He was holding her pinned between his fangs and fingers.

  Her body started to shake, and she squeaked as she wanted to thrash, but there was nowhere to go. When her orgasm hit, it struck her hard and gripped his fingers tight. His groan ran through her. The moment she stopped pulsing around his fingers, he released her shoulder and licked at the wound. He wrapped both of his arms around her and murmured, “Since you are obviously feeling better, it is time to complete our bond.”

  Athena swallowed. “I think I might be feeling a little weak.”

  He chuckled and got to his feet, setting her on the table where her team had recently been eating. Etska ran his hands up her thighs and parted them, kneeling in front of her. Athena’s eyes widened. “You shouldn’t...”

  He looked at her, and she went quiet. He pulled her to the edge of the table, moved her skirt out of the way, and then his mouth was against her, his hot tongue writhing deep.

  She braced herself on the table, but when he made eye contact with her, she lay back and twisted on the hard surface, trying to keep any sounds to herself.

  Athena’s breathing came faster, and the whimpering got louder to her own ears. She was just on the edge of another release... when he pulled back.

  He stood, released the loose trousers, and stepped between her thighs. He pulled her fist from her mouth and looked at the bite, making a tutting sound. He pressed his lips to the bruising and lifted her so he could kiss her.

  The kiss was different, less coaxing, and more demanding. She felt the hot prod against her sex, and he slipped into her, pressing rhythmically until she was rocking against the table with every thrust. The world got darker, and she was taking in the scent of his wings all around them. She didn’t know if it was for privacy, but she appreciated the side effect of not being seen. He reached under her and gripped her shoulders, stopping her from skidding away as he pushed into her until her body wouldn’t take him further.

  He lifted his head, and in the shadow of his wings, she could see his eyes glowing in the shadows. He smiled. “Ready?”

  “There’s more?”

  “Not more of me, not yet, but more to do.”

  She bent her knees and slid her legs up to wrap them around his hips. “Ready as I can be, I suppose.”

  “That’s the spirit.” He chuckled and eased nearly out of her before surging back inside.

  She started by holding his arms as he rocked into her but soon shifted her grip to his shoulders as her nails dug in. Her moans pitched higher and higher, and this time, when she was about to come, he bit the untouched side of her neck.

  She screamed, and he let out a sound that was a hard rumble through her body and the surface under her. He continued to thrust into her until she was limp against the tabletop. When he released her shoulder, licked at it, then kissed her softly, she opened her eyes and rallied her bravado. “You still owe me breakfast.”

  He nuzzled her cheek. “Melr will bring replacements. He’s just waiting for us to clear the table.”

  She chuckled weakly. “Oh. Good. An audience. Just what I need.”

  He nuzzled her again. “Right now, he is only getting a good look at my ass and your legs. He’s paid to be attentive.”

  It took her a few tries, but she managed to grab his head, and she pushed him back slightly. “So that was...”

  “You have recovered. There was no longer a need for complete restraint. I held back because of your lack of experience with me, but that will change in time as well.” He smiled, and there was a devilish light in his eyes. “Soon, I will not have to hold back at all.”

  She blinked, “So, that was holding back?”

  “Oh, yes. I did not wish to injure you, but I was tired of waiting.”

  Every inch of her felt wrung out and energized at the same time. “The biting?”

  “Will be only for pleasure after you have responded to the venom. That should be in the next week.”

  She frowned. “Is this more of the mysterious instructions you have received?”

  He grinned. “Something like that.”

  He was still inside her and still hard. He sighed. “I suppose that I have to release you for breakfast.”

  Her stomach answered the words, and she blushed. “That would be ideal, thank you, my lord.”

  He kissed her softly and folded his wings back. The light was brighter than when he had covered them, and he slowly slid out of her while helping her sit up. She was sweaty, he was sweaty, and her clothing had gone transparent. She groaned. “I was worried this would happen. Those fibres were really on the water-absorbent side.”

  He looked down at her and licked his lips. She slammed her hand over his mouth and said, “Not one more thing until I get something to eat. That bite of toast was far too expensive.”

  His eyes crinkled in amusement, and he slowly licked the palm of her hand. She felt her body warming again and yanked her hand away. “Tease.”

  He grinned and got his trousers back into position. “I am not a tease. I will always deliver on what I promise.”

  She put her thighs together with some effort and hopped off the table. Her thighs were slick, but it was her own doing and sweat. She looked at him. “You didn’t come?”

  He chuckled. “I will explain Hmrain physiology to you at a later date.”

  She fluffed her skirt out and grumbled. “Now I need another shower.”

  “I will wash your back if you wash mine.”

  She snorted. “You would have to kneel, my lord.”

  He lifted her hand to his lips. “For you, always.”

  Athena sighed and studiously didn’t look at the sweaty marks on the table. She used the edge to support her wobbly legs and thudded into the seat where Tber had been. She grabbed for the toast and had a piece destroyed before a laughing Etska joined her.

  Melr came to her side with a bowl and a towel. “To wash your hands, my lady.”

  She sighed and scrubbed her hands before drying them. Melr was looking carefully to the side instead of her transparent clothing. As the guys on her team had told her, at some point, a female was a female, no matter the species, which made things awkward around farm animals. She chuckled and said, “Thanks, Melr, and sorry for the show.”

  He met her gaze and smiled. “No apologies necessary, my lady. For you, it is an occupational hazard.”

  She laughed at the Earth phrase in that context.

  Etska cleared his throat, and Melr went to him with the same bowl of water. He cleaned up and smiled. “Our food seems to have gone gold, Melr.”

  “Replacements will be out in two minutes. I will just clear up and be right back, my lord.”

  “Thank you, Melr.” He dried his hands and inclined his head.

  The green chef collected the cold dishes on a tray and carried them back to the kitchen before returning and wiping the table down. Athena groaned and pressed her head to the cleaned surface. Melr had paid intense focus to the spot where she and Etska had interacted.

  Etska chuckled and took her hand. “Come over here, Athena. We don’t want you to eat too quickly. You do tend to speed things along if not careful.”

  She got up and settled carefully in his lap. “Fine
, but just because I don’t think I could handle a repeat performance.”

  He chuckled. “Next time, I will continue until you call for an encore.”

  Athena blinked. “Why is everyone using Earth sayings today?”

  He hugged her. “The data files of your world have become available, and I have purchased a set and made them accessible to all who work here.”

  She slowly turned. “What kind of data?”

  “Cultural, music, books, social information, humour, language. It was all downloaded and saved for sale to those who wanted it. The Hmrain with humans are the primary purchasers. Other worlds just simply want exotic information. A few archives have added it to their collections. Here, you can now look through the sum of your species saved history.”

  Athena wrapped her arms around him and kissed him with all the joy and enthusiasm that she felt. The day stretched ahead of her, but so far, the morning had been pretty damned exciting. The feeling of her past and future colliding was intense and heady, but she had to cork her enthusiasm. She wanted her freaking breakfast.

  Chapter Ten

  “So, what would you like to do today?” Etska asked her as she sat across his legs so that he could keep an eye on her.

  She snorted. “Honestly?”

  “Please.” He smiled and clocked his head.

  “I would like to be out with the team, searching for the ball iron on the surface.” She nibbled at the biscuit and sausage patty that Melr had made just for her.

  He nodded. “Fine. We will go to their zone.”

  She perked up. “Really? Can I wear coveralls?”

  He snorted. “No.”

  “If I have to keep wearing skirts, I am going to wreck a lot of them.”

  Etska slid a hand along her thigh. “Finding interesting ways to destroy your clothing is going to be a hobby of mine.”

  Her skirt was mostly opaque again. “Well, today they weren’t destroyed.”

  “Not for lack of trying.”

  She continued eating. “I don’t think you were really trying.”

  He shrugged. “You are right. I wanted to begin our bond. It has been started.”

  She paused. “Started. Not completed.”

  He laughed. “Oh, no. It won’t be completed for quite some time.”

  Athena swallowed. “How much time?”

  “Well, with the link begun, it will take weeks before your body has fully settled, but the initial changes in healing and stamina will start taking hold immediately.”

  She touched her facial scars. “Healing? What about these?”

  He ran his fingertips over the scars, and he smiled. “They will fade, but if you wish to keep them, they will remain. We can also create substitutes if you wish.”

  Athena blinked and stared. “Substitutes?”

  “A type of design that mimics a tattoo. If you consider the marks part of you, they can remain part of you.”

  She cocked her head. “They were a tool to keep me from this exact position, so that didn’t work.”

  He grinned. “I am persistent once I know that what I have been looking for is within my grasp.”

  “How many of my kind are in situations like this?”

  “Like this? Only you. With a Hmrain? You are the fourth. On a Hmrain-controlled colony without the overseer knowing she is there? Who knows?”

  “There are other colonies that aren’t under Hmrain control, right?” She finished her biscuit and reached for fruit.

  “There are, but the education station sells to the Hmrain first. It is Hmrain owned after all.”

  “Is it? We had no idea. Mind you, it is like rats deserting a sinking ship. You run for safety and figure out where you landed later.”

  He snorted. “Did they at least tell you that you were going to be bound by the value of your usefulness?”

  “That they did.” She shivered. “They cleaned us up, scanned us, and made us sign the bond contracts so that there was no confusion about what was going to happen when we completed our placement exams.”

  “How did they handle the children?”

  She frowned. “The children were allowed to remain with their parents once the genetic link was proved. It would have been strange to have fought so hard to survive only to lose what mattered most.”

  He was suddenly reaching past her to take some fruit off the table. “You are interested in children?”

  His voice was extremely casual, so she narrowed her eyes at him. “Like, as a subspecies or adopting or something? Why do you ask?”

  “It is possible. It is part of what makes you companion class. You can be altered to be a carrier for a Hmrain child.”

  She swallowed in a suddenly dry mouth. “Carrier?”

  “Parent? Over time, with enough exposure to me, you will be capable of carrying offspring.”

  She looked at the discomfort in his expression. “This is the part they didn’t teach you. Right?”

  “Correct. had not thought to bring it up this early, but it seemed a natural conversational gambit.”

  “So, you want kids.” She looked at him, staring into his eyes for signs of falsehood. He frowned in confusion, and she changed her reference. “You want children.”

  “Other Hmrain have managed to have them. I like the idea of one.” He grinned. “A little girl with my hair and your eyes.”

  “My skin and your everything else would be adorable.” Her mind’s eye could imagine a tiny cherub with an impish expression and a tiny toga. “A male should favour you.”

  He smiled. “So, give it a decade, and we can try for one?”

  She bit her lip. “Done.”

  “By the way, a child creates a bonus in a standard contract that would free you from bond.”

  “Am I able to see the upgraded contract?”

  He chuckled. “Of course. You are colony controller. You will also be able to assign staff to manage housing, job works, assign plots of land to work and crops.”

  “That is just a position you made up to keep me busy.”

  He winked. “I would say yes, but you might not be happy about it. I know that you need to keep busy.”

  “I need to keep physically busy, but you don’t want me running through the countryside in search of samples.”

  “Well, not without a guardian, and as yet, there is no one here but me to keep you safe.”

  “So, until there is someone else here, I am either stuck at home or at your side.”

  “Correct. I have ordered the khitan to be transported, but it remains to be seen if they like you or not.”

  “Wait, so a wild animal can be considered a trusted guardian?”

  “Certainly, if a khitan takes a liking to you, they will be loyal and defend you, body and soul.”

  They were done with the food, and he pulled her against them. “On a number of worlds, the khitan were watchers of the dead. They guarded the tombs of their dead charges. The importance of a historical figure was calculated by how long the khitan guarded their tomb.”

  “Oh. Cool. Well, my clothing is visible again, so if I run off to change, can we go out and play?”

  He chuckled and got to his feet. “We can go visit your team at work, yes. I will put a hold on the playing for now.”

  She smoothed her skirts, and then, she sprinted to their room. She glanced behind her, but he wasn’t there. She shrugged and headed up the steps to the upper floor.

  He was standing in front of her wardrobe when she arrived, and he pulled out a few pieces before smiling. “Wear these. It is going to be cooler when we fly, and after your recovery, I don’t wish you to catch a chill.”

  He pulled out a set of boots. “Here you go.”

  Athena snorted and sighed. “I still need a shower first.”

  “There is a sonic setting on the shower. Be quick.” He turned her shoulders around and shooed her in the direction of the bathing room.

  She didn’t ask hi
m about his own situation. She was still rather slick and needed the change. She grabbed the clothes and headed for her quick change.

  She had to admit, he had made some nice selections, though she was going to match him more than she would like. The black boots peeked out under the bright aqua trousers. Her tunic had long sleeves, hung past her hips, and was covered with a long vest that fastened with a heavily embroidered belt.

  She fluffed her hair out, and her other clothing was gathered up and dropped in the cleaning trap. She didn’t know where it ended up, but it would be back in her wardrobe in hours.

  Athena was nearly to the door when she had a thought and returned to the mirror. She pulled the fabric away from her neck and stared. No marks. Nothing on either side.

  She walked out warily. “Where did they go?”

  He was putting on a loose shirt, and he clipped a tab behind his neck. “Where did what go?”

  “The bite marks. I was sure that you... that they... that there would be markings.”

  Etska walked up to her and leaned down to press his forehead to hers. “The first thing they do is accelerate healing. The bites are placed carefully to avoid bone damage. They would have been more comfortable if you were distracted by pleasure, but I believe they have assisted your complete recovery.”

  She lifted her head to his and kissed him. “I think we should get going. Are we taking a skimmer?”

  He chuckled. “No, we are seeing how fast I can fly. Hold tight.”

  He picked her up and tucked her against him before he walked to the edge of the landing deck and took off. He was moving with purpose, and she was glad for the extra layers and the protection his body offered. Flying high and fast was cold.

  Chapter Eleven

  She was shivering when they landed, but Etska rubbed her arms and legs, and she soon warmed up.

  He glanced up at her and winced. “You are going to kill me.”

  That was an odd phrase coming from him. “Why?” The wind teased a lock of her hair across her eyes, and she thought that some cottony fluff from a nearby tree had gotten caught in it. “What is this?”