lure to his, begging him silently for a kiss. He denied himself. He was good at denying himself. When the urge became almost too much to bear, he made himself picture each member of his crew, even baby Parker, and then he forced himself to imagine their ship exploding in a space battle that did not need to be. He made himself feel it until he experienced the pain fully.
Then he imagined this woman next to him, so stubborn in her cause, so hurt and alone, and he knew what a future of revenge would mean for her. She’d assembled a crew that would most likely give her little by the way of familial affection. There was nothing wrong with that, except humans tended to need some kind of emotional connection or other drives would take over. For Violette, that drive would be vengeance. It would consume her, and she would never stop coming after Josselyn until either or both sisters were dead. And for what? General Jack Stephans? To Josselyn, a century of good deeds would not erase the mass genocide of her people. To Violette, her father was not the man Josselyn had known before going inside her stone prison.
Violette’s soft breath tickled is cheek. The lights had dimmed in the room, the timer obviously indicating that it was nighttime on the ship. Still, he waited next to her in the quiet minutes longer than he needed to.
He had one advantage. Josselyn did not want Violette dead or harmed. Whereas Violette would never stop, and the longer she chased her sister, the more ingrained the hatred would become until there was nothing left of her soul.
Revenge would not bring Violette happiness. Maybe he could change her course. She’d hate him, but he’d give her a chance at a different life. He would save his crew, and hers. Dev would like knowing that she was there, out in the universe, a woman who had once touched him without fear or hesitance. She had done more for him than he could ever explain. With one gentle finger tracing his scars she’d made him feel as if he wasn’t a demon. She’d seen him as a man.
In a perfect universe, he’d kiss her now, those parted lips. He’d let her ease the ache in his body. Already his cock was tight with need. But to kiss her now would be a betrayal. She’d given him a single moment that he could hold on to for the rest of his days. And, hate it as she would, he was going to give her the same gift. He would save her from herself before she was too far down the path she was on.
Dev slowly slipped away from her. He dressed as quietly as he could manage. She made a small noise but did not wake. When he was ready, he turned toward the bed. There was no medical unit in the room to help sedate her. He was going to have to use force.
“I know you won’t forgive this, but hopefully, you will understand I must do my duty,” he whispered, so softly the words weren’t really audible. “This is for the best. I’m going to help you change your destiny.”
He watched his hand move toward her like it was someone else’s. The motion to subdue her was easy, however, forcing himself to perform the task was not. His arm slid under her head and his hand clamped her mouth before her eyelids even fluttered. She struggled in confusion as he lifted her from the bed. Her feet pushed off the mattress in an effort to dislodge his hold. Her fight wouldn’t work. She was small and fragile compared to him. All he could do is make adjustments so as not to injure her. One arm secured her waist as he continued to hold his hand over her mouth to muffle the protests.
Violette clawed at his arm and then suddenly stopped. Her head tilted a few times as if becoming aware. She elbowed him hard in the stomach. He grunted in surprise as she struck a rib.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” he stated.
“Men mef me mo,” came her stifled response.
“I can’t let you go.” He lifted her feet off the ground. “But we have two options. Either we can use the escape pod, or I can take over this vessel. I assure you both tasks are within my skill set. When you started your foolish errand to come after us, I