Page 38 of Salvation for the Alien Mercenary

"Tell." Ryke's voice crackled through. "I need you in my quarters. Now."

Davis tapped his comm. "It's the middle of the night," he replied, voice rough with frustration.

"My shower unit is flooding the entire compartment," Ryke snapped. "And half my electronics are shorting out. Unless you want me to wake Anson and watch him make things worse.”

Davis closed his eyes, jaw clenching. "On my way."

He looked down at her, still sprawled beneath him. Regret. Desire. Frustration. Something deeper and more possessive battled across his face.

"Duty calls," she said, aiming for lightness and missing by kilometers.

His hand brushed her cheek, the gesture surprisingly tender after such raw hunger. "This isn't over," he promised. "Not by a long shot."

She shivered at the certainty in his voice. "I'll hold you to that."

He smiled… a flash of teeth in the starlight. "Count on it."

With obvious reluctance, he pushed himself up and headed for the door. He paused, looking back over his shoulder.

"Tomorrow," he said. One word. A promise.

Then he was gone, leaving her alone with the stars and his taste on her tongue. She touched her lips, still feeling the phantom pressure of his kiss, her body humming with unfulfilled need.

The universe had really shit timing.

8

Metal bit into Davis's palms as sweat snaked down his spine. He finished the rep with muscles screaming before the barbell clanked back into position, but his attention wasn’t on the weights. Across the gym, Mira was stretching with Jesh, and he couldn't look away from the way the little human woman’s blonde hair escaped the messy bun at the nape of her neck, or the determined set of her jaw.

"Eyes on your lift, Tell," Covak rumbled behind him. "Unless you want that weight crushing your face."

“Uh, yeah. Right.”

Quickly, he refocused, his muscles tensing before he drove the barbell upward. But his attention was still on the two women across the room. Halfway through his set, Mira faltered mid-pose, arms trembling as her spine arched.

He dropped the barbell onto its rest with a clang. "She's pushing too hard," he said, half-rising from the bench.

Covak's hand landed on his shoulder. “Yeah, leave it. Jesh knows what she's doing," the Vorrtan said, his voice low.

He tried to shrug Covak’s hold off, but it was like iron, so he glared up instead. “Jesh is a cybernetically enhanced supersoldier. She doesn't understand human limits."

Covak snorted. "And you do?"

"Better than a cyborg."

"Mmm." Covak circled the bench, adding another weight plate to each end of the barbell. "Strange. I don't recall you being such an expert on human physiology before. Thought you were an engineer.”

He glanced at the extra plates and scowled at Covak, who merely grinned back, amber eyes gleaming. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means let Jesh do her job.” Covak gestured at Mira. “She needs to build her strength and confidence without some man rushing in every time something looks difficult."

He opened his mouth to argue but closed it as Mira dropped from her pose with a frustrated huff. Instead of the defeat he expected, she reset her stance immediately, determination hardening her features.

"Fine," he said through gritted teeth. "But if Jesh pushes her too far?—"

"What exactly will you do?" Covak's fangs gleamed in a taunting smile. "Challenge Jesh to combat? I'd pay good credits to see that."

He rolled his eyes and slid under the barbell again. "Spot me, asshole."