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"Because I don't want to lie to you. Not ever again." He took a step closer, stopping when he saw her tense. "Since this transformation, it's gotten harder to hide things. Like my body rejects deception." He paused and rubbed a hand over his face. "Or maybe I'm just fucking tired of pretending."

She studied him. "That's a convenient excuse."

"It's not an excuse." He held her gaze. "It's an explanation. There's a difference."

Her shoulders lowered slightly. "So who are you, then? Michael from NOMAD or Davis the engineer?"

"I haven't been Michael in a very long time." The admission felt raw, scraped from somewhere deep. "The lines have blurred. When I left Earth, I was Michael playing Davis. Now..."

"Now you're something else entirely."

"Yes." He moved closer, careful not to crowd her. "And that's why I asked you here. I've been hiding who I am for so long that I barely recognize myself anymore. The transformation just finished what was already happening."

He took a measured breath. She hadn't moved away, hadn't moved at all. "You've seen all of it now. The best and worst of me."

Her shoulders tensed slightly, and her breathing quickened. He couldn't tell if it was wariness or interest.

"And I want you," he continued. "All of you. Your fire. Your mind. The way you never back down."

Her throat moved as she swallowed.

He deliberately stepped back, creating physical space between them despite every cell in his body protesting the distance.

The move cost him. Every instinct screamed at him to close the gap, to take what he wanted.

But he wouldn't be like Rettnor. He wouldn't use his strength or presence to pressure her.

"But it has to be your choice." His voice roughened as emotion threatened to overtake him. "I won't be like him. I won't force you into anything."

The words had never left his lips before, not to anyone. His pulse roared in his ears as he forced them out.

"I love you. Have since the moment I met you." His lips quirked. "Was just too dumb to realize it."

He tracked her reaction with intensity the slight widening of her eyes, the catch in her breath, the flush rising on her neck. He recognized the conflict in her expression and forced himself to stay still, to let her reach her own conclusion without pressure and come to him. Hopefully.

Silence stretched between them, punctuated only by the hum of the ship and the steady rhythm of her heartbeat. He focused on the sound, using it to anchor himself against the urge to close the distance.

She uncrossed her arms and took a step forward. Then another. His pulse kicked up with each step she took.

Standing directly in front of him, she reached up, fingers stopping just short of his face.

Her gaze traveled over his features, taking in the changes, assessing.

He stayed still, even though the temptation to reach for her, to pull her up against him, nearly overrode everything else.

He ached to touch her again. To have the right to touch her.

Her fingertips made contact with his jaw, tracing the sharper angle, and he sucked in a breath. "You're still you. Different, but the same where it matters."

She lifted onto her tiptoes, and he met her halfway, a shiver running through him as her lips pressed against his, tentative at first, then with growing need. He responded, careful to let her set the pace despite the heat coursing through him.

She pulled back just enough to speak. "I choose this. I choose you. I love you, too."

Relief flooded through him, loosening the knot in his chest. The physical impact was so intense it nearly buckled his knees a wave of gratitude and disbelief washing through him. That she could accept him as he was now, changed and still changing, seemed utterly impossible yet miraculous.

"What changed your mind?"

"You did. By giving me the choice." She looked up at him. "I'm not promising it will be easy. I still have moments when I look at you and see..."

"A monster?" he supplied, the word bitter on his tongue.

"No." She framed his face with her hands. "Someone new unfamiliar. But then you'll say something or do something that reminds me it's still you inside."

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he lifted her easily. "Whatever's coming next, no more secrets between us."

"No more secrets," she agreed. "I choose you as you are now, not who you were, and who you'll become we can work that out as we go."

Holding her against him, he made a silent promise. He would never again give her reason to doubt him. Whatever he was becoming, whatever challenges his transformation might bring, he would face them with absolute honesty. With her. She deserved nothing less.

Capturing her mouth with his, he poured every ounce of need and possession into the kiss. She matched his need and passion, fingers digging into his shoulders as she pulled him closer.

Lifting her, he carried her to the padded bench near the viewport. Starlight filtered through the glass, casting a faint glow on her skin. His enhanced vision picked up every detail the flush on her neck, her dilated pupils, the pulse point jumping at her throat.

"I've missed you," she murmured. "Since everything went sideways with the M'Suun."

He braced his arms on either side of her, his transformed body making her look delicate beneath him. "I nearly lost my mind when I thought they might hurt you."

She slid her hands under his shirt, exploring the altered contours of his muscles. "I know. I saw it."

Her fingers found the waistband of his pants. "Show me."

"Show you what?" His voice dropped lower, rasping in his throat as his cock jerked, as if desperate to be freed from his pants.

"What you've been holding back." She pressed her hips against his, mischief sparkling in her eyes. "I can tell there's more now."

"I didn't want to frighten you." His control frayed as her face flushed, her breathing quickened, and her eyes darkened with desire. "I'm different now."

"Show me how different," she breathed, tugging at his clothing.

Her words broke the dam of his control. He yanked her shirt over her head, then shoved her pants down her legs. The fabric tore under his hands. She gasped, her eyes widening not with fear but with excitement. He quickly stripped off his clothes, the fabric tearing as he yanked it away.

He stared down at her naked body beneath him, taking in every curve. She was beautiful, perfect. He traced the curve of her breasts with a hungry gaze, sliding down her body to the triangle of golden hair between her thighs. A growl escaped his throat. He wanted to no, he needed to taste her again.

"Come here," she whispered, reaching for him.

Muscles coiled tight, he moved over her. His lips found her neck, teeth grazing her skin while he reached up to cup her breasts, thumbs circling her nipples until they hardened under his touch. Against his lips, her pulse hammered, the sound driving him to press harder.

"I can hear your heartbeat," he murmured against her throat. He slid his hand between her thighs, fingers gliding through her wet folds. Then he pushed two fingers into her, groaning at how hot and slick she was. "And I can tell how much you want this."

She gasped and arched her back as he circled her clit with his thumb. "Then stop fucking teasing me."

"Not yet," he said as he slid down her body. He was so attuned to her that he picked up every subtle change the goosebumps rising on her skin, the catch in her breath when he nipped at the inside of her thigh. Spreading her legs wider, he gently parted her pussy lips with his thumbs.

Her scent hit him, and he inhaled deeply, like an addict about to get a fix. The first taste of her made him groan, the flavor more intense than before. He licked deeper, sucking at her clit, driven by the sounds she made.

"Oh god, Davis," she panted, fingers tangling in his hair as her thighs squeezed around his head. "I'm gonna..."

He didn't stop, pushing his fingers deeper inside her while his tongue worked her clit. She cried out as she shattered apart. A growl escaped him as he lapped at her clit, drawing out every tremor even as her pussy clenched around his fingers.

Before she could recover, he moved up her body, positioning himself between her thighs. He caught her gaze, making sure she saw him, all of him, with his altered eyes and changed features, as he guided his cock to her entrance.

A second later, he pushed inside, and the world stopped.

She was everything.

He felt every ripple of her inner walls, every slight clench as she stretched around him. Halfway in, he stopped, leaning down to press his forehead against hers as he fought for control.

"You feel different," she whispered, hands exploring the hard planes of his back. "Bigger."

"You're smaller. Feel tighter now," he managed through gritted teeth. He rocked his hips to push deeper, and her lips parted, eyes half-closed in pleasure.

Balls deep inside her, he stilled. Her hands traced patterns on his shoulders, fingers exploring the new density of his muscles.

"Move," she commanded, heels digging into his lower back.

His lips quirked. "As my lady commands."

Pulling his hips back, he set a pace that quickly sped up as she matched his rhythm. His hands gripped her hips, angling her to take him deeper with each thrust.

"Mine," he growled against her neck, the word escaping before he could think about it.

"Yes," she breathed, pulling him closer. "And you're mine."

Her claim sent warmth spreading through his chest. He slammed into her harder, faster wanting to brand himself on her, in her. Sliding his hands under her, he lifted her hips off the bench to change the angle.

"Fuck," he groaned as her pussy gripped him tighter. "You feel so good."

Her second climax took them both by surprise, her inner walls clamping down on his cock.

She cried out, back arching sharply as pleasure overwhelmed her.

The sight, the sound, the feel of her coming apart pushed him over the edge.

He roared as his release hit, vision blurring at the edges as he drove into her one last time, filling her completely.

His cock jerked and pulsed as he came hard and fast, bathing her inner walls with his hot seed.

He saw stars. Actual stars.

With a groan, he rolled to the side so that he didn't crush her with his weight, pulling her with him until she lay sprawled over his chest. Her heart pounded against his chest, gradually slowing as they both caught their breath.

Her fingers traced idle patterns on his chest. "So... Michael, huh?"

He pressed his face against her hair, breathing in her scent. "I haven't been Michael in a long time."

"Good." She snuggled closer against him. "You look like a Davis."

Her casual acceptance loosened something inside him. Whatever he had become, whatever human, Latharian, Ophiuchian hybrid he was, he hadn't lost her. She was with him.

She was his.

His arm tightened around her waist, and he pulled her closer against his side. Together, they watched the stars, and he felt completely himself for the first time since his transformation began.