Page 36 of Beast in the Badlands

EMRY

T he stars streak by, long lines of light merging into a cosmic blur.

I lean against the cool glass of the viewing deck, soaking in the view as if it’s some grand masterpiece meant only for us.

Renn stands beside me, his presence solid and warm.

He’s changed too—gone is the raw pain etched into his features.

In its place, a quiet confidence shines through, and I find comfort in how he watches me.

Around us, the crew moves with purpose. Nyra barks orders to the techs as they run diagnostics on the ship’s systems, her sharp voice cutting through the hum of machinery.

Kairon and Ava engage in their usual bickering, playful jabs that seem to dance like electricity in the air.

It all feels normal—a strange, beautiful kind of normal.

I glance up at Renn. His red eyes hold a depth that pulls me in; he watches me with an admiration that makes my heart flutter.

“Do you regret it?” he murmurs, his breath warm against my hair.

I smile softly and rest my head against his chest. “Not for a second.”

He leans down, pressing a gentle kiss to my temple—a tender moment wrapped in the chaos of our lives.

“Good,” he says, his voice low and firm. “Because you’re never getting rid of me.”

A smirk creeps across my face as I look up at him. “You’re lucky I like you, Reaper.”

Before I can register what’s happening, he scoops me up effortlessly and tosses me over his shoulder like I weigh nothing at all. The surprise leaves me breathless.

“Take it back,” he growls playfully.

I let out a laugh as I hang there, upside down and entirely at his mercy. “No thanks.”

The corner of his mouth curls into a wicked grin before he starts striding toward his quarters with purpose.

“You think that’s funny?” He walks with determination, each step radiating mischief.

“It’s hilarious,” I reply with a chuckle.

Once inside his room, Renn shuts the door behind us with a decisive click that sends my heart racing faster than before. He tosses me onto the bed; I land with a soft thud against the plush surface.

“Take it back,” he repeats more insistently this time as he climbs on top of me.

My breath catches; anticipation simmers between us like charged energy ready to spark.

“Make me, Reaper boy,” I challenge from beneath my lashes—my pulse thrumming wildly at the playful defiance in my tone.

Renn leans closer until our faces are inches apart; heat radiates off him like an inferno contained within flesh and bone. “You really shouldn’t have said that.”

His eyes glint mischievously as he dips lower—just enough to tease but not quite enough to close the gap completely.

“I’m not afraid of you,” I declare boldly even as butterflies take flight in my stomach.

“Oh? You should be.” He grins before closing that final distance between us—a kiss that ignites something fierce inside both of us.

I melt beneath him; every lingering doubt from our past fades into nothingness while passion flares to life like those stars outside our ship—bright and untamed.

His rough hands map every scar and curve of my body like he’s memorizing them for battle plans. The glide of my suit’s zipper echoes louder than hyperspace engine hum. Cool air kisses my skin just before his mouth does. “Gonna ruin you,” he growls against my collarbone—a promise, not a threat.

My back arches when he drags a clawtip down my sternum. “Big talk for someone who whined about his legs yesterday.” I dig my nails into the bony ridges along his shoulders, relishing his sharp inhale.

His laughter rumbles against my breast before he takes a peaked nipple into his mouth, teeth scraping just enough to make my thighs clamp around his hips. “Still limping,” he says, voice thick with mischief. “Prove me fragile, dovra .”

Heat coils low as he switches to that guttural Reaper tongue—his people’s word for stubborn flower or annoying pest , depending on his mood. I bite his horn when he nips my inner thigh, earning a snarl that dissolves into choked laughter. “Petulant human.”

“Possessive reptile.”

His fingers slide into me without warning, curling in a way that steals my next insult. I choke on a moan, heels digging into the mattress as he works me with brutal precision. “Say it again,” he purrs, red eyes burning. “Call me boy.”

“Not… ah … not when you’re cheating.”

He withdraws his hand, licking his fingers slowly while I glare. “Cheating implies rules.” The predatory grin falters when I surge up, flipping our positions with a knee to his bad leg. His shocked gasp turns into a groan as I straddle him, his claws pricking my hips.

“Rules are for people who don’t pay attention,” I whisper, sinking onto him inch by excruciating inch. His pupils flare, the ship’s ambient light catching the fractured crimson.

He manages one thrust before I pin his wrists, leaning down to scrape teeth along his throat. “You’re insufferable,” he rasps, hips bucking.

“You’re predictable.”

A growl, then chaos—cotton sheets tear as he flips us again, pinning my legs over his shoulders. His pace turns punishing, each snap of his hips punctuated by the creak of bulkheads and the wet slap of skin. “Still predictable?” he grits out, grip bruising.

I claw red streaks down his back, laughing breathlessly. “Criminally.”

His mouth crashes into mine, swallowing my gasp as he shifts angles. The universe narrows to the glide of his cock, the salt-tang of sweat, the way his breath hitches when I whisper, “Harder.”

We shatter together—his roar muffled against my neck, my cry swallowed by the ship’s ancient metal bones. Breathing’s an afterthought.

His forehead drops to my sternum. “I’ll kill the next man you flirt with.”

I twist a lock of his stringy black hair around my finger. “Jealousy’s unbecoming, Dravik.”

He nips my ribs. “It’s not jealousy. It’s efficiency.”

Starlight traces the scars crisscrossing his back as he rolls beside me. I trace the jagged one near his heart—a plasma burn from a mission gone wrong. His hand covers mine, pressing it flush against the raised tissue.

“Come on,” I murmur, tangling our legs. “Admit you like me.”

His sigh stirs the hair at my temple. “Love you. Unfortunately.”

The deck plates vibrate with the ship’s pulse as I kiss the hinge of his jaw. “Worse for wear, but same.”

His snort warms my cheek. “Say it properly, Voss.”

“I’d rather die.”

“You will. Slowly.”

I bite his shoulder. He laughs—dark and rich and mine.

"I love you, Renn."