Breeding with Steele was exhilarating and strenuous, and I loved it. My ongoing desire for him surprised me after the things that Gar’hako had done to me. However, the treatment I had received continued to ease and make the memory of that time fade away so that it hardly seemed real anymore.
Steele was my life now. I never dreamed that I could fall in love so quickly. But I could sense something between us as soonas he picked me up in his arms to carry me from Gar’hako’s quarters. I immediately knew that I was safe.
Now that I understand our genetic connection better, I’m sure the pheromones played a large part in that feeling of connection. I know it was responsible for stoking my desire for Steele. Once we had fucked that first time, I quickly learned what a generous and caring lover he was.
I think it was mainly how he freely shared affectionate gestures that won my heart. Sometimes, he took me into his arms for a hug and a kiss impulsively. He never just assumed I wanted to breed because I was aroused. But with Steele giving off those powerful pheromones, I was easily aroused. Of course, he was always ready and willing to breed. Still, he would always ask for consent.
Perhaps the relationship started with our physical attraction, but it quickly became so much more than that. We worked hard and played hard together. We’d gotten so much done since Steele brought me back to the ranch almost three weeks ago. The garden was weeded, and we harvested everything that was ready. Steele repaired the roof and replaced the solar panels, so we now had working lights in the house and the barn.
A fully automated harvester arrived a few days ago to cut my hay. It not only cut it but dried it and compressed it into neat bales that I could easily handle alone. The harvester came with bots that loaded the bales on a cart and stacked them in the barn. The machine and its bots finished the whole job in one day.
Ever since Steele came into my life, things have turned around for the better. I felt so much tenderness for this cyborg; I could no longer imagine my life without him in it.
In the throes of post-coital bliss, I was starting to get sleepy. The combination of our enthusiastic breeding and endorphins put me in a completely relaxed state.
Ever attentive to my needs, Steele pulled out of me and set me on my feet. Putting his cock back into his pants, he fastened them and gathered up my discarded clothes, and helped me dress. Then he scooped me up into his arms and carried me back to the house, where he laid me in our bed for a nap.
I only felt a little bit guilty, leaving him with the rest of the chores, although I knew he didn’t mind. He thought it was worth the tradeoff since it saved my strength for breeding. I didn’t mind doing chores, but I enjoyed breeding with Steele so much more.
Chapter Nine
Zaya
We were just cleaning up after lunch when Bruno’s barking alerted us to a presence in our yard.
“It’s a delivery,” said Steele. “I’ve been expecting it.” He went outside to collect it while I finished putting away the dishes. He was back in less than two minutes carrying a long case. It took me a moment to realize that it was similar to the case of his ion rifle.
“Another weapon?” I asked.
“Yes, it’s for you. I know you don’t like them, but I think it’s important for you to learn to use them. I want you to be able to protect yourself when I’m not here. Eventually, I must go back to work.” Steele said as he started to open the case to show me.
There was also a laser pistol to go with it. “I’ll show you how to work them, and then we will go outside for you to try it.”
I gave him a skeptical look. We had an old shotgun passed down through generations, but it hadn’t worked in my lifetime. We had no bullets for it, so I had never actually handled a weapon of any kind. However, I couldn’t help thinking that had I had such a weapon when those men came to take me, I could have stopped them. So, I clenched my jaw to stop myself from voicing my fears and nodded.
Steele went through the safety features and the parts of both the rifle and laser pistol, explaining what each part did. I paid close attention because I wanted to learn to do this both for him and myself. When I asked questions, he went back overeverything in detail so that I would understand. He showed me how to hold the rifle and how to aim it.
We went outside, where Steele had set up rows of firewood standing on end for me to shoot at. The first time, I only hit one out of seven. We repeated the process until I finally hit every one of them.
I helped Steele set up another row of firewood for target practice with the laser pistol. I managed to hit half of them. We were about to try again when Steele received a message. “Lieutenant Shadow Hawk asked if he could bring his mate Jenny over to meet you.”
“I’d like that,” I smiled. I didn’t have any female friends. Actually, I didn’t really have any friends, living an isolated life on my ranch. I hadn’t had many friends growing up, either. As a child, I’d wished for a brother or sister, but that had never happened.
“That’s good. They’ll be here in ten minutes.”
“Then I’d guess we better put the guns away and make some tea.”
The couple arrived almost exactly ten minutes later. Steele and I went outside to meet them in the front yard. Jenny was an attractive blond woman approximately my age, and her mate, Shadow, was a big cyborg as handsome as Steele. The couple was dressed in the same standard-issue clothing as Steele and I.
Jenny approached me with a big smile and offered her hands in greeting. “Hello, Zaya. I am so pleased to meet you finally. I saw you in passing when Steele rescued you, but we were all in a hurry to get out of there before the place blew up. You look well. How do you feel?”
“I’m feeling good,” I told her honestly as she released my hands. “Come on inside, where we can sit down and get acquainted. I’ve made some tea.”
“You two go ahead. I want to show Lieutenant Hawk around,” said Steele.
I rather expected that, so I just nodded and waved as Jenny and I headed inside.
“This is a nice place you have here,” Jenny remarked as she gazed around our large eat-in kitchen.”
