Knock it off. You’re ruining my hot sex afterglow.Oberon had barely allowed me to come up for air since the moment I got him naked and in my bed. Not that I was complaining.
Shut up. I know. Something isn’t right.
For the last time, you are NOT cheating on Zarren. He is NOT your mate.
It’s not that…
To be fair, I had spent an unhappy amount of time missing him—and arguing with myself about the futility of the situation with my commander. I couldn’t stay with someone who would just leave those Hive prisoners to suffer and die. Could. Not. But no matter how hard I tried to stop wishing things were different, I kept right on grieving the fact that the dream hadn’t come true. Because other than that, Zarren had been pretty damn perfect for me.
So is Oberon.
I know. I want to have my cake and eat it, too. Okay?
Good luck with that.
Mean. But inner-me wasn’t wrong. Thinking about Zarren was useless, hopeless and about a dozen other exhausting, waste-of-my-time emotions.
Thank god I wasn’t synced up with Oberon through a mating collar. The rough and tumble war going on inside my head was no fun for me. For him? If he were smart, he’d run as far from me as he could get.
No matter the source, the icy tingling up and down my spine was totally wrecking what should be me, dipped in nothing but happiness over my new—sexy, hot, amazing—relationship with Oberon. Instead, I was nervous. Jittery. Like waiting for the other shoe to drop, despite knowing both shoes were already on my feet, illogical, gut punch uneasy. The feeling didn’t make sense.
Maybe the Atlans were freaking me out—Oberon told me there were even more of them that weren’t coming over from their ship. But what about Raz? He was at least as big as these Atlans. Full armor. He hadn’t bothered me at all.
I had a very strong hunch the icy edge on my nerves might be caused by theotherguy coming out of the transport…
What the actual fuck wasthat?
Or should I say,whowas that?
“Holy fuck.” Chloe mumbled with just enough volume that I heard. And agreed. One hundred percent.
“Who is that?” I asked.
Oberon placed his palm flat on my lower back, offering warmth and comfort I hadn’t realized I needed. I was feeling stronger than I had in years, but seeing that Hive ship, combined with this strange creature’s presence, creeped me out. “That, my lady, is a pure-blood, Hyperion prince.”
Whoa. And I thought the fangs on the Rogue 5 assholes looked scary.
Chloe—Commander Phan—crossed her arms over her chest and stared outright. “Someone please tell me why he is practically naked.”
Boy was he ever. He wasn’t ugly, far from it. He looked like a sexy, thinner faced, slightly taller, Atlan beast. Not an Atlan. A beast. The Hyperion was far too big to pass for a normal Atlan. But his features were more refined than a beast’s. His chest was massive, as were his thighs. He was bare foot, which seemed ridiculous for outer space. But I guess, if he had boots on, he wouldn’t be able to use that second set of claws.
He wore a pair of stretchy shorts that looked like they were made of the same material as the others’ uniforms, but it only covered him from hips to mid-thigh. Modest? Hardly. They hugged his ass and—other things. The rest of his body? Bare. Muscles that went on for miles. Freaky, silver, Hive integrations ran the entire length of his spine, from the base of his skull to where they disappeared under his barely there shorts.
All that was fine.
Two things had me pressing back into Oberon’s supportive hand.
One, his eyes. They were the strangest color I’d ever seen, like lime sherbet or the soft filling of a key lime pie. Not a living green like Zarren’s. Nothing living that I knew of—except maybe an insect, or a butterfly—had anything that color,anywhereon its body.
So, okay. Oddly intense stare from neon green eyes. But the fangs. And theclaws…
The creature stopped mid-step, lifted his head like a bloodhound following a scent trail, and turned toward us. He moved so fast I didn’t have time to panic. Oberon, however, stepped in front of me—and Chloe. Seth Mills, Chloe’s human mate, was a few feet away with his weapon out and ready, pointed directly at the Hyperion who now stood within arm’s reach. Too close.
“You females are human.” His voice was deeper than anything I’d heard before. So deep, I could hardly believe the sound came from his throat and not a machine.
“We are.” Chloe was the one who answered him. “I am also the commanding officer on this ship and will be addressed accordingly. Commander Phan. And you are?”
“Rukzi.” He inhaled slowly, pulling more air into his lungs than it would take to fill my entire body. “Yes. Human. Like Cormac’s Abby.” His eyes narrowed as he looked from Oberon—who stood blocking his path—to me. I held my hand over the grip of my blaster, ready pull the weapon and shoot this giant if he made one wrong move.
