Christian looked her in the eye and smiled before pulling out and cuddling her into his arms.
Gemma didn’t have another nightmare that night.
Christian’s arms were still around her when Gemma woke in the morning. The ultralights around the base of the floor had brightened gradually, identical to the flats in Perileos, providing a natural sleep cycle. Now, Gemma’s room was bright, as if the sun’s rays flooded through large windows.
She couldn’t tell if Christian was still asleep, so she lay a little longer, soaking in the feel of his strong arms around her. But then her body began to ache from having remained in one spot all night.
Hoping to free herself from his unconscious embrace, she ran her fingers along his chest and played with the fine hairs she found there.
“Oh, thank the stars you’re awake,” he grumbled. “I can’t feel my arm.”
Christian slid his arm out from underneath her and held it straight in the air as Gemma plopped onto the pillow next to him.
She almost laughed as he started shaking it like a floppy noodle. “You didn’t have to let me keep sleeping,” she said playfully.
“Yeah, I did. Ah, blast—it’s waking up.” He grimaced, chuckling through clenched teeth.
Gemma grinned. She loved that sound and the way his eyes creased at the corners when he was happy. She could lie here all day and watch him.
But she had a new mission to accomplish, and that meant getting out of bed.
Her face fell. Today was going to be rough.
After they both showered—separately to avoid temptation—they used the costumery to fashion outfits and readied themselves.
Christian was seated on the two-person sofa when Gemma emerged from the bathroom. His gaze moved back and forth like he was watching something through his eyepiece. She cleared her throat before sitting next to him, so she didn’t startle him half to death.
His eyebrows danced. “Wow, you look nice.”
Gemma smiled but didn’t reply. Her stomach was knotted too tightly.
Christian read her in a second, and his face tightened. “What’s wrong?”
She scratched her cheek. “So . . . Rami didn’t just let me go.”
He sighed, leaning back into the couch. “I figured. What does he want from you?”
She pursed her lips before answering. “To find the real operative.”
“What do you mean?” He cocked his head.
Gemma explained what Rami had told her, making sure to leave out the parts that would get her killed, and how he’d make sure she’d walk free if she followed through on her end of the bargain.
“Then we find this person as soon as possible,” Christian said, his eyes fierce. “You are not going to die for something Reymond tricked you into doing.”
Gemma squirmed. “You can’t get involved. The Dissent is dangerous. If they find out you’re trying to expose them—”
He put a finger on her lips. “You should know me better by now. I’m not letting you do this alone.”
Gemma closed her eyes and sighed.
A loud buzz made them both jump. Gemma’s comm lit up, and the visualization from the camera above her door appeared on her eyepiece. Hawk and Imara had come to pay her a visit, and they were angry.
Gemma gripped the edges of the sofa’s cushion, the heat draining from her face. She did not need this right now.
“I’ll get it,” Christian said, despite not knowing who was on the other side. He sighed loudly after opening the door. “Not a good time, guys.”
“Wow. Her sex must be mind blowing if you actually came back to her that fast,” Imara seethed. She crossed her toned arms over her chest and stared daggers at Gemma from the doorway.
