Page 11 of The Cyborg Way (Cyborgs on Mars #9)

CHAPTER ELEVEN

L evi hadn’t realized how satisfying—and arousing—it would be to have Ellie accompany him.

The lush curve of her ass massaged his cock with every stride, a deliciously frustrating experience.

He actually started to consider the possibility of sex on horseback before he forced himself to concentrate on his objective instead.

He did want to look for any signs of where Henry might have come from, but he’d also made the suggestion because he wanted to remain close to Ellie.

He had been afraid she would object if he simply followed his heart and remained with her, but the fact that she had wanted to accompany him gave him hope.

Perhaps she did want more than a temporary arrangement.

They talked very little as they rode along the base of the cliff, but it was a comfortable silence. How different from all those silent nights in the cold when he was by himself. The warmth of her presence filled the silence even when she wasn’t speaking.

I don’t want to go back to the silence.

As he scanned the rock for any openings, he considered the best way to convince her to allow him to remain with her. He could stretch out building a shelter for Blaze for a day or two. Perhaps he could even offer to begin building the greenhouse she’d mentioned…

“Is it getting darker?” she asked suddenly, and he swore under his breath as he looked out across the valley.

His eyesight had adjusted automatically to the change in the light, and he’d been so focused on the woman in front of him that he hadn’t noticed the increasing darkness, or the clouds on the horizon. Not rain clouds, but clouds of sand. A powerful sandstorm was approaching.

“We need to get back to your habitat,” he said grimly, and started to turn Blaze around.

As he did, Henry gave an excited chirp and glided away from his perch between Blaze’s ears, heading for a row of tall rocks.

“Henry!” she cried, then grabbed his hands as he lifted the reins. “We can’t leave him.”

“There’s a storm coming. You can’t survive out here without protective gear.”

“What if he can’t either? I can’t leave him out here by himself.”

He swore again as he looked down at her pleading face, then glanced back across the plain. The storm was still a long way off.

“Five minutes, no more. I don’t like taking chances with your safety.”

“I’m sure it won’t take me long to find him.” She gave him a grateful smile. “I’ll just check behind those rocks.”

“ We will check,” he said firmly, dismounting and helping her down.

He grabbed her hand as she tried to hurry away, then led her in the direction where Henry had disappeared, Blaze trailing along after them. There was no sign of Henry behind the first group of rocks, just more scattered boulders, some twice his height.

“I don’t understand. Where can he be? Henry!”

Had he heard a distant chirp? He couldn’t be sure, but they went in that direction, weaving through more giant boulders. Henry was still nowhere to be found, and they were almost at the cliff wall.

“We’re going to have to go back, little bird. I’m sure that Henry will be fine. Remember that he managed to survive out here before you found him.”

Tears sparkled in her eyes, but she nodded.

“I suppose you’re right—” Her head suddenly tilted. “There! Did you hear that?”

She managed to tug her hand free before he could prevent her and darted around another one of the huge boulders, this one leaning directly against the rock face.

The narrow space behind it wasn’t as tight as it first appeared, and both he and Blaze managed to follow her into a partially concealed slit in the cliff.

“Henry!”

“Stay where you are,” he ordered. “It’s too dark for you to see.”

His eyes adjusted enough to reveal that the opening continued deeper into the rock. He heard a distant chirp, but he couldn’t detect any sign of movement up ahead. She had stopped obediently at his order, but she gave him an anxious glance over her shoulder as he approached.

“He’s here, I know he is.”

“I think you’re right, but it doesn’t look like he wants to come out. We need to leave. Now. He’ll be safe in here,” he added when she started to object, and she gave a reluctant nod.

“I suppose you’re right.”

“I know I am, and you’ll be more comfortable at home.”

She sighed, but took his hand and followed him. As soon as they retraced their steps to the edge of the boulder concealing the entrance, he knew it was too late. The wind was already swirling, small particles of sand stinging his cheeks, and he quickly pushed her back into the shelter of the rock

“It looks like we’ll be spending the storm with Henry after all,” he said grimly.

The situation wasn’t critical—the rock would provide protection and they had supplies—but neither would it be comfortable for her. He only hoped it wasn’t one of the storms that lasted for days.

“I’m sorry. I should have listened to you.”

“I’m the one who should be apologizing. I should have done a better job of protecting you.”

She smiled up at him, her face soft.

“You listened to me instead. That’s just as important.”

Her words didn’t erase his guilt, but he gave her a quick kiss as he considered their options.

The angle of the slit still allowed some wind to penetrate, so he decided to go a little deeper into the rock before preparing a place for her to rest. Thankfully, all of the rangers were provided with survival equipment—not for themselves but for humans in need of aid—and he pulled a small lantern out of Blaze’s saddle bags.

She breathed a sigh of relief when he turned it on.

“That’s better. The darkness is a little overwhelming.”

“But you rushed in here anyway.”

“Because of Henry. You can’t let fear stop you from going after someone you love.”

Her words echoed in his head as they traveled further along the passage until they found a larger and more protected space opening to one side of it.

He retrieved the rest of his supplies from Blaze’s saddlebags, then the horse settled against the wall in a rest position while he prepared a temporary camp.

He set up a small portable heater where the heat would radiate back from the surrounding walls, then sat down on a rocky ledge and pulled her onto his lap, wrapping a thin thermal blanket around both of them.

He directed his nanites to increase the temperature of his skin slightly and she sighed with pleasure as she nestled against him.

“This isn’t so bad. It’s like our picnic turned into a camping trip.” She smiled up at him. “Not that there was any opportunity to camp back on Earth, but I used to read about it and imagine what it would be like.”

“I doubt you dreamed you were in a cold Martian cave with a cyborg,” he said dryly.

“If I’d known about you then, I would have.”

“Do you really mean that?”

“Of course I do. All this time I was waiting for you—I just didn’t know it.”

Don’t let fear stop you. His nanites were helpless in the face of the torrent of emotions rocketing through his body.

“I love you, Ellie,” he blurted out. “I know it’s too soon, and I know I’m not much of a catch, but I want to stay with you.”

Her smile was as bright as the lantern.

“You don’t have to say anything,” he added quickly. “I just wanted to tell you.”

“But I want to say it. I love you too, Levi.”

He groaned and kissed her, overcome with emotion—and need.

“I want you,” he growled.

“Yes,” she whispered against his mouth, and reached between their bodies to free his erection.

He shuddered as her small, cool fingers touched him, already on the verge of climax, but he needed her with him.

Too desperate to take his time, he shoved her jeans and panties down her legs, doing his best to keep her covered by the blanket.

He shuddered again as he stroked between her legs and found her wet and ready.

He growled and lifted her over him, bringing her down onto his cock in one fast, hard stroke.

He climaxed immediately, his useless seed erupting in a torrent of liquid heat as she gasped and clung to him until the seemingly endless flow finally stopped. Her arms were tight around him, clinging to his neck, and when he finally raised his head, her eyes were bright with tears.

“Are you all right, little bird?”

“What was it you said this morning? I’m happy—and very satisfied.”

“I will make you even more satisfied,” he promised, and began to move.

A considerable time later, she was once again dressed and curled in his arms, sleepily staring at the lantern.

“Where do you think Henry is?”

“Deeper in the rocks. His instincts must have warned him about the storm.”

“Do you think he’ll come back?”

“I would return to you,” he said truthfully, and she smiled.

“I think he was happy with me, but maybe he has a family here.”

He found the thought of a swarm of unknown creatures troubling, but he knew she wouldn’t understand his concerns.

“I suppose we’ll just have to wait and?—”

“Listen,” she said urgently, suddenly sitting up.

He heard a faint chirp from deeper in the cave and sighed, already anticipating her next move as she scrambled off his lap.

“It’s Henry! We have to go after him.”

He rose as well, picking up the lantern.

“We can try, as long as the passage isn’t too narrow.”

“All right.”

He took her hand again as they traveled deep into the rock.

Several minutes passed, and he was beginning to wonder how deep they would have to go when Henry chirped again and came gliding out of the darkness ahead of them to land on Ellie’s shoulder.

She reached up and he climbed into her palm and curled up as she sighed with relief and cradled him against her chest.

“You worried me,” she said sternly, then dropped a kiss on the tiny head. “Where did you go?”

Curious himself, he took a few steps in the direction from which Henry had come.

The narrow passage opened into a cave. An enormous cave with a faint orange light coming from a narrow slit far overhead near the back wall.

He heard a faint scratching noise and realized that sand from the storm was drifting down through the small opening.

Sand from previous storms had settled on the floor beneath it.

“Levi,” Ellie whispered, her voice shaking. “Look.”

He turned immediately to find her standing at the entrance to the cave, staring at the stone next to her, mottled orange like much of the other rock.

“What is it?”

Instead of answering, she took his hand and guided it to the wall. The surface was soft, almost furry beneath his fingers.

“Lichen?”

“Or something very similar. And no one would have planted it here. It’s like Mars is coming back to life.” They stared at each other as she bit her lip. “Lichen I could almost understand—it’s a very basic form of plant life. But Henry? Where could he have come from?”

“I wish I knew.”

If Henry had appeared from nowhere, what else might do the same?

He found his hand on the holster of his gun at the thought, even though there was no reason to assume a threat.

He scanned the cave again, looking for any other signs of life.

His eyesight, enhanced by his cybernetics, was exceptionally good, and he saw that the back of the cave appeared to lead into yet another space.

Was there a whole network of caverns down here?

He took a half-step in that direction, but she put her hand on his arm.

“I don’t think we should go any further.”

“Why not?”

“Whatever is happening here—whether it’s a whole new ecosystem or the revival of an ancient one - is still very new and fragile. What if we disturb it and cause some kind of damage?”

She had a point. Perhaps it would be better just to observe for now.

The light coming through the tiny opening in the ceiling began to brighten, and the trickle of sand stopped.

“I think the storm is ending.”

“Good. Then let’s go home. Our home,” she added, taking his hand and warmth flooded him.

Home.

He finally had a home, and it wasn’t the cozy habitat waiting for them—it was with the woman he loved.