Rebel (9 page)

While his fingers stroked her breasts and
rolled her nipples, he explored her features with featherlight
kisses. She refused to accept a completely passive role. Finding
the hem of his uniform top, she slipped her hand underneath and
splayed her fingers. His back was warm, the muscles bunching and
flexing as he held himself above her.

He moved downward, his mouth teasing a path
along the side of her throat. “Oh Corry,” he murmured, and her
excitement surged.

“Say it again,” she whispered.

“Corry.” Her nipples, already hardened from
his touch, gathered into tight, aching peaks. He circled one with
the tip of his tongue and then firmly sucked the other.

She raked his hair with her fingers, urging
him on, wanting more. Shifting positions carefully on the narrow
bunk, he got his legs beneath him without releasing her nipple. His
hand pulled hers off the pillow and he chuckled.

“This could be a bit challenging,” he
said.

“Not if you release the stupid thing.” With
stubborn intent, he bent her leg nearly to her chest then draped it
over his upper arm, alleviating the obstacle.

“Much better.” He grinned and settled on his
knees between her thighs. He traced her slit with his fingertip,
nearing but not touching her clit. “What were you thinking about
before? You were so turned-on your desire woke me up.”

“Don’t ruin this with words,” she pleaded.
“I want you inside me.”

He moved their hands above her head and
braced himself on his forearm. Then, staring deeply into her eyes,
he pushed two fingers into her passage.

“Were you dreaming or fantasizing?” He
passed his thumb over her clit and she started, sensations zinging
through her belly. “Tell me.” His gaze narrowed and his thumb
rubbed, the warning unmistakable.

“A little of both,” she admitted. He
rewarded her honesty with several slow, deep thrusts. “I was mostly
asleep until you touched my breast.”

“What did I do in your dream?”

“What you’re doing now.” She squeezed his
fingers with her inner muscles, hoping to distract him from his
questions.

“Just this?”

“No, you sucked on my nipples until I came
around your fingers then turned me over and took me from
behind.”

His lips caught one of her nipples and she
closed her eyes. It hadn’t been her intention when she told him her
fantasy, but she’d just placed her order for the night. He pumped
his fingers into her pussy. The firm strokes made her crave a more
substantial penetration.

Each time he drew on her nipple he rubbed
her swollen clit. Sensations darted from her chest to the apex of
her thighs and back. He sucked harder and rubbed faster, his
fingers never stopping the rhythmic shuttle.

She tossed her head, trembling on the brink
of orgasm. Her fantasies were a pale imitation of the delight he
unleashed. She arched and cried out as she came in pulsing
waves.

A faint hiss signaled the deactivation of
the restraints. She moved her arm, testing her conclusion. His
empty cuff now dangled from the one still in place around her
wrist. Before she could object, he grasped her hips and turned her
over. Only then did he release her wrist as well. He took the
restraints and dropped them to the floor beside the bunk.

Too impatient to undress her completely, he
helped her pull her arms out of the sleeves and peeled the suit
downward. He bared her bottom and hips, but left the material
bunched around her knees as he unfastened the front of his
pants.

She expected frantic brutality. He had
something else in mind. Kneeling behind her, he bent her over until
she braced herself on her forearms. Then he eased his shaft between
her legs and parted her folds. He rubbed the plush head of his cock
over and around her sensitive nub.

“Please,” she moaned. “No more teasing.”

“Teasing is offering something you don’t
intend to give.” He pushed into her just a bit. “You’ll get all of
me, but I like to savor this part.” He gave her a little more. “Do
you have a problem with that?” He found her clit with his thumb and
forefinger, plucking gently as he slowly filled her core.

Her legs shook and tension wound, binding
tighter and tighter until she clenched her jaws to keep from
screaming.

“Scream if you need to.” He pinched her
nipple with his other hand. “Don’t hold back.”

He rocked his hips, hesitating with just the
tip of his cock inside her. She tried to rock back, to bring him
deeper, but he wouldn’t allow it. Then he grasped her hips and
drove his full length into her with one forceful thrust. His balls
slapped against her mound and sensations burst within her,
spiraling up her spine and blossoming in her chest. She screamed.
He thrust hard and fast, the thick slide of his shaft prolonging
each spasm.

Where one orgasm ended and the next began,
she couldn’t say. Sensing what she needed before she understood it
herself, he changed the speed and force of his thrusts. He added a
teasing touch when she craved it and stopped when she wanted
nothing to distract from the savage pleasure of his cock surging
into her body.

She felt him in her mind, forging some sort
of link. Instinct warned her against the invasion. She resisted,
pushing outward and shaking her head.

I want you to feel me as I feel you. This
will give me no greater access than I have now.
His hips
slowed. His hands cupped her breasts.
I won’t force this on you.
I want you to want it.

“I will,” she panted, “just not
tonight.”

He came to rest deep inside her and brushed
her hair away from her face. “I’m sorry.” He kissed her shoulder.
“I’m moving too fast.”

She didn’t argue. All of this had taken her
by surprise. How could she desire the enemy? “Now you’re not moving
at all,” she pointed out, hoping to minimize the damage.

His hands caressed her back and the outer
swell of her breasts as he resumed his strong, steady thrusting.
Resting her forehead on her hands, she concentrated on the fullness
and the heat they were generating.

Thought suspended and reality narrowed. A
darker, more primal desire twisted through her mind. Sensations
bombarded her brain, feelings not emanating from her body. Ashton’s
pleasure poured across the half-formed link.

She clutched the bedding and matched him
stroke for stroke. As the intensity built, it became impossible for
her to distinguish his feelings from hers. She absorbed all the
pleasure with greedy abandon. Why had she resisted this?

He was holding back, waiting for her to
come, determined that they find release together.

“If I feel you…come inside me, it will take
me with you.”

His fingers dug into her hips as he drove
deep one last time. He shuddered against her, his hot seed bursting
out in distinct jets.

She closed her eyes and opened her mind. His
orgasm washed over her and pulsed through her, triggering her own
release. A low cry escaped her throat as she surrendered to the
breath-stealing pleasure.

Wrapping her in his arms, he rolled them to
their sides in much the same position they’d been when they
awakened. She snuggled back against him, feeling sleepy and
somewhat sad as the sensations receded.

“Why can’t I feel you now?”

He chuckled. “I’m only human, sweetheart.
Give me a few minutes.”

“Not your… I can still feel that just fine.
Toward the end, I could sense your emotions, but it’s like the line
went dead.”

“I didn’t realize the link took. I tried to
dissolve the connection. I was a bit distracted at the time.”

“Do you create this link every time you have
sex?”

He didn’t answer for a long moment. “I’ve
never wanted to share myself with someone before.”

And she’d refused the link, resisted his
attempt to connect with her. “It was amazing. I should have
realized you wouldn’t hurt me.”

“Not intentionally.” He sighed and pressed a
kiss into her hair. “Go to sleep, Corry. We have a long way to go
tomorrow.”

Feeling like a leashed pet, Corry followed
Ashton around the schooner as he gathered what he deemed necessary
for their trek through the wilderness. She tugged against the cuff
every chance she got until her wrist turned red. He simply ignored
her. After all they’d shared the night before, she couldn’t believe
he’d had them waiting when she woke up.

“None of your messages got through?” She
finally broke the silence as he tied a length of rope around the
pillowcase he’d filled with supplies.

“No one responded. It’s possible the
messages got through and the schooner didn’t receive the reply, but
I doubt it. I think we’re on our own.”

“Do they have a transport station on this
outpost? I’ve never been here before.”

His brow arched in challenge as he reminded
her, “I don’t know a damn thing about it. You’re the one who
scheduled this detour.”

They set off through the trees. Ashton
activated the directional guide on her control band. They were east
of the settlements. They just didn’t know how far. She didn’t ask
questions. Dense and choked with vegetation, the jungle was nearly
impenetrable. Her motivator was their only weapon. They needed a
machete. Ashton tore at the vines and kicked a path through the
entangled branches. It was slow going at best.

Heat and humidity combined in a sweltering
haze. Sweat tricked between her breasts and she stumbled over the
uneven ground. Why couldn’t they have made it to Chiron? The
agricultural outpost was highly populated and she could have
arranged for transportation at any of its export centers. She
really hadn’t planned this very well.

Waving away a swarm of tiny insects, she
dared to speak. “Would you happen to have insect repellent in that
bag?”

“Yeah, it’s right next to the homing beacon
and the inflatable spaceship.”

“You don’t have to be such an ass! Release
the cuff and hike back to the schooner. There was plenty of
dehydrated food. You can wait for
Daddy
to come find
you.”

He paused for a glare. “Now who’s being an
ass?”

She scrambled for just the right obnoxious
reply, but he abruptly turned away.

“Do you hear that?”

“Hear what?” Bugs buzzed around her face and
muggy air rustled the trees, but she heard nothing out of place. He
pulled her in a slightly different direction, apparently tuned in
to the suspicious sound.

She finally heard the rushing water moments
before he kicked his way into the clearing. At the far side of a
rippling pool, three identical waterfalls flowed from the cliffs
high above. “I’ve seen this in vidfiles,” she said softly. “These
are the Cliffs of Enarre, a sort of open-air temple for the
Perrlain Tribe. Their settlement can’t be far.”

“The Perrlain Tribe?”

“They’re naturalists. They worship nature
and shun technology.”

He shook his head. “Why couldn’t we stumble
onto the tribe that exploits nature and worships technology?”

“They all live on Halley Prime.” She
softened the jibe with a chuckle.

A rumble erupted behind them, deep and
menacing. Turning, Corry spotted a creature half-hidden by the
thick underbrush. Its grizzled brown fur looked coarse and matted.
Sharp quills adorned its flat tail.

“I don’t think it likes you,” Ashton teased
as the creature growled again.

“What is it?”

Ashton shook his head. “I don’t know, but
stay away from that tail. Damn, those quills look painful.”

As if understanding his words, the creature
flipped up its tail and launched the quills directly at Corry. She
yelped and ducked. Ashton threw himself in front of her. The quills
caught his shoulder, embedding deeply.

He cried out, clutching his upper arm just
below the injury. Corry snatched her motivator from his pocket and
fired on the beast. It shrieked and ran off into the trees.

“This stings like a son of a bitch!”

She carefully plucked the quills from his
shoulder, touching only the very end. “Take off your shirt. Let me
see if the wounds are swelling.”

He groaned when he moved the affected arm,
but they managed to rid him of his shirt. Corry angled his body
toward the sunlight filtering through the canopy of leaves. He
swayed. She steadied him, lifting her gaze. Perspiration gleamed
upon his cheeks and dotted his upper lip.

“You look terrible. Sit down before you
fall.” Without a word, he slumped to the grass, his eyes bright and
dazed. “You packed the schooner’s medical kit. It might have an
antitoxin.”

He just stared at her and Corry’s heart
lodged in her throat. The holes in his shoulder swelled, becoming
inflamed and red. She turned his arm so she could reach the control
panel. He didn’t try to stop her, which compounded her fear. He sat
there staring, swaying slowly back and forth.

As soon as the cuff released, she unhooked
it from her wrist and reached around him for the supply bag.
Please, God, let there be an antitoxin.
Fingers shaking, she
struggled to unknot the rope.

Ashton groaned and collapsed onto his
side.

“Shit!” Frantic now, she clawed at the rope.
It gave and she opened the pillowcase, spilling its contents into
the grass. She snatched up the medical kit and struggled with the
latch. Bandages, ointments—damn it, where was the mister? Finding
the cylindrical device, she quickly sorted through the inserts. An
antibiotic, two pain relievers…

“Yes!” She grabbed the tube labeled
Antitoxin
and shoved it into the mister. “Hold on. This
should do the trick.” She opened his mouth and depressed the
trigger, releasing a cloud of mist.

Hot. His skin smoldered under her palm. The
puncture wounds started to seep and Corry let out a frightened cry.
“Come on, Ashton. You can’t die on me now. Who would I
antagonize?”