the mess hall came flashing back, like a slideshow of nightmares.
“They could’ve killed you.” A shudder ran through me at the thought of how close I’d come to losing him tonight. “I should’ve stuck with what worked before...like Svetlana did. Just like you told me to...”
“I don’t believe it would’ve made a difference, to be honest.” He stroked my back soothingly. “They always want more, no matter how much you give them.”
“How do you know that?” I sniffled, though the tears had slowed down somewhat.
“Because I’m one of them,” he said softly into my hair. “I’m just like them, Nadia.” He slid his hand up to my nape, his fingers caressing the skin of my neck. “The more I get from you, the more I want. I’ve just been inside you, and I still want more.”
I tilted my head back, finding his eyes with my gaze. There was no threat, no menace in it. The heat of desire simmered in the background, but longing was the overwhelming emotion on his face.
“What is ‘more’ for you, Wyck?” I asked.
“I want all of you, Nadia, my sweet sugar. Every little thing. I want you to come to me whenever you need a hug—only me. I wish all of your kisses to be mine from now on. And I want a date, just like in that movie we saw—with a dinner and a movie.” He nuzzled the top of my head as I buried my face in his chest.
“I’d love to go on a date with you, Wyck,” I confessed, even as sorrow tightened around my heart —so many of the things I used to take for granted weren’t possible on the Dark Anomaly.
Freedom. Safety. Going out with a man I liked. Simply walking down a corridor without having to look over my shoulder in fear of an attack was not possible here.
He kept stroking my hair, the tension slowly draining from my heart and my body. Warm and comfy in his arms, I stopped crying. With a long sigh, I drew in another lungful of Wyck’s warm, spicy scent. To me, it was now associated with safety. It relaxed me enough to start drifting to sleep again.
Over the course of the past several days, Wyck had become my true safe place, not just on the Dark Anomaly, but in the whole of the Universe.
I WOKE UP TO NOISE outside the room—talking, yelling, the screeching of the rusty cage doors being opened and shut, and the stomping of feet.
“What...” I lifted my head to meet Wyck’s eyes directed at me.
He pinched both his lips between his thumb and his forefinger in the Federation’s gesture of a call to silence. I made a sign that I understood, without saying a word.
His gesture, however, had led my gaze to his lips, and I let it linger there. The memory of our kiss and his taste on my tongue made my mouth water. I swallowed hard, unable to tear my gaze away.
The expression in his eyes heated. His arm flexed around me, and he shifted closer. Shutting my eyes, I moved forward, searching for his lips with my mouth.
He met me in a kiss with a soft groan.
Warmth and longing flooded through me. The pain, shame, and despair of this place ceased to exist as long as Wyck kept kissing me.
I slid my hand to his face, the short stubble on his cheek tickled my palm. He rolled me to my back, leaning over me. I trailed my fingers down his chest, through the soft dusting of hair there then over his side to his back.
Tentatively, he slid the tip of his tongue past my lips, and I met it with mine. My response seemed to give him reassurance. He was exploring my mouth, diligently and reverently. His movements quickly became more confident and more urgent. Passion started to take over the insecurity and even the caution.
The weight of his body on top of me and the feel of his hard muscles under my palms were invigorating, making me want more of him. Gliding my hands down his back, I slipped my fingers under the waistband of his pants.
He moaned into my mouth as I shoved my hands further down. I trailed my fingers over the hard half-globes of his backside. He jerked his hips, rocking against me with another tortured, muffled moan.
“Nadia...” He tore his mouth from mine. “We can’t...”
The noise outside had calmed down, but someone was still moving around out there.