The last thing she wanted to do was stay with her parents. Especially if she had to back out of the championship. They would insist they had been right from the beginning and use it as manipulation to get her to finally go back to school and get a ‘normal’ job.
But going back to her apartment and seeing her Terraform Zero setup, with all of her things destroyed around it, would be so much more painful.
And staying here…Vee swallowed. She was certain Cypher would go his own way soon regardless, and leaving first before that happened was the better option in her mind.I gave him his one day. It’s time to get back to reality.
“No,” he rasped.
She flinched, unsure if she heard him correctly. “No?”
His hand came down around her shoulder and tugged her back to face him. Vee lost her hold on Bees, and the cat scurried away as Cypher crowded her space. He pushed her gently back against the wall.
Her heart clamored as her eyes focused on his burly chest. “What—”
He bent low and pressed his nose against her cheek. “Why can’t I smell you? All I get is sugar and citrus fruits, sometimes strawberries, sometimes oranges. Then honeysuckle.”
His face moved from her hair to her ear, where her skin prickled, and down to her throat. Vee shivered again.
“Once the honeysuckle is filtered out, there’s only candy again, and bubblegum. It’s maddening,” he rumbled, his breath fanning her skin.
“I, umm, use shampoo and conditioner, lotion, and perfume spritz… My laundry detergent might be scented too… I buy whatever I think smells good.” She pressed more firmly against the wall.
Cypher’s eyes pinned her. Arching, scruffy eyebrows and brown lashes framed light hazel-beige eyes that were a little too perfect to be real. Even the hair on his chin and jaw was perfect—like the chaotically messy tresses that fell over his shoulders and down his back.
Vee licked her lips. His eyes darted to them.
She gulped, her fingers twitching at her sides. She was trapped.By him.A strange and frightening Cyborg man who she was drawn to. Thoughts of his terrifying bear head flashed in her mind.
He inhaled deeply and shuddered, and a blush rose hot on her cheeks.I’ve never been kissed... Was he going to kiss her this time? Was this really even happening? She clenched.
“God, I need a woman,” he muttered and turned his face away.
Vee’s brow furrowed. He removed his hands from the wall on either side of her and scrubbed them down his face, groaning.
His words finally registered. Her heart plunged into her stomach, and embarrassment flooded her. She wanted to say something, but nothing came out.
Cypher dropped his hands and looked at her. She averted her gaze.
“Fuck, I’m sorry, Vee. These last two weeks… What’s wrong?”
She scrambled from the wall and scurried to find Bees. Damn her cat for making things harder. She found him under a shelf, inside a box. Pulling him out, she held him to her chest and made her way for the exit.
“Nothing,” she said quickly as she dodged Cypher at the door.
“You’re not leaving,” he said, his voice darkening. “It’s almost night. It’s not safe.”
She quickened her steps. A buzzing sounded, and she glimpsed the hatch she was headed for closing.
“Heck!” she cursed, rushing forward. But it sealed shut when she got to it. Vee spun on her heel to face Cypher. “I want to leave. You can’t keep me here against my will. You said we were leaving anyway.”
I need to get away.Her thoughts jumbled when she managed to meet his eyes. Embarrassment bubbled up in her again.
He was right there, crowding her space.Again.She wanted to curl up into a ball and vanish.
Cypher’s face hardened. “Leaving, yes. Together. Not separately. We’re not done.”
“We are,” she whispered. “Please…”
His eyes flashed, and his expression hardened further, but he took a step back. “What the hell is wrong? I won’t come onto you again.”
