body again. Covet it because just having her here was incredibly precious.
But he couldn’t be that man with her right now. Maybe ever.
He pinned her with his eyes.
“First off, you can get dressed if you like,” he said, handing over her clothes.
She took them with one arm, while the other stayed over her chest. “Thank you.”
She turned for the bathroom.
“Stop,” he ordered. “You can dress right here.”
She turned back toward him, the hesitation in her expression growing hard. “In front of you?”
“I don’t want you hiding from me anymore.”
She exhaled but didn’t fight him. He wondered if it was because she knew she’d lose. Or maybe it’s because it was fucking late and she had to be tired. And aching…
“Fuck,” he snapped, rising to his feet and storming to the replicator in the corner of his room. He had it create acetaminophen tablets and pulled out a globule of water. By the time he came back, she had fastened her bra and was reaching for her shirt. “Take these.” He handed her the pills and water. “It’s a basic painkiller.”
She took the tablets from him and shot them back, ignoring the water. He stared like a man obsessed as her throat bobbed. Hysterian cleared his throat.
“Thank you,” she said again, agitating him further.
“Don’t. It’s the least I can do.”
He walked down the short steps to the front of his quarters, needing to be away from the bed he’d just taken her virginity in. He wasn’t a drinker but wished he’d tossed back vodka while he’d been waiting.
“What time is it?” she asked, following him.
“Late. Shift starts in three hours.”
“Do you think—”
He spun to face her. “No.”
“I’m tired.”
“You can take the morning off, catch up on your sleep then.”
“But the locusts…”
“Alexa...” His voice held warning. “I’ll deal with them. Sit.” He pointed to the sectional to his left.
She sighed, and he never wanted to put someone over his knee and spank them as much as he wanted to right now. If ever. Everything about Alexa plagued him, and he never fully understood why.
Was it sadness? Or was it something else? Whatever it was, somehow being near her calmed him as much as it drove him crazy. He recognized something in her.
Now that he’d broken whatever innocence she had remaining, he was adamant not to break anything else.
She sat stiffly, tangling her fingers together.
“Are you sick?” he asked.
“What? No,” she answered quickly.
“Why don’t I believe you?”
“I’m not sick. I’m not. Is this about the blood?”
“It’s about a lot more than that! You couldn’t get away fast enough. The bedding was soaked with sweat. I need to know…” He hadn’t found any trace of his poison, and she seemed fine, but he had to be certain. “Do you feel lightheaded at all? Do you ache anywhere besides there?” He indicated her middle region. “It’s important, Alexa. Do you feel strange, in any way?”
She looked down at her body, confusion flitting over her face. “I feel…”
He strode forward, closing the distance between them, and kneeled before her. “Tell me.”
“I feel fine.”
“I didn’t hurt you?”
She shook her head. “Not in any way that I didn’t want.”
The air expelled from his lungs. He didn’t know how much he needed her to tell him that. “Good.”
“Why did you wear that…black suit?”
He knew she would be curious. He was surprised she hadn’t brought it up sooner. His gaze roved over her. She looked fine. She was acting normal if a little weary. She wasn’t sick.
“That first day, when I caught you and Raul in the storage talking? He told you I was defective.” Fuck, he hated saying the word out loud. It was a fucking travesty that countless billions had been put into him, only to be unable to control his systems as well as he should. Hysterian waited for her to nod. “I have a skin issue.”
It was more than that, but he didn’t need to explain all the gritty details. She wouldn’t understand anyway.
“You”—she licked her lips, checking him out—“have a skin issue? A Cyborg?”
Hysterian straightened. “Yes.”
“Does it have something to do with your animal?”
He stilled. “My what?”
“Your animal? You’re a shifter.”
“How do you know that?” That information was private, like almost all information on his kind. Only the people closest to him knew his vendor number—and even then, they didn’t know what he could and couldn’t do.
“Raul told me,” she said a little too quickly for his liking.
Of course, Raul told her. Somehow that guy knew more than he should about Hysterian. Raul had been