ribbed steel catwalk with a handrail stretched inside the tube to our left and right, seven slots on each side. We turned left and walked past some trapezoidal blast doors, through a bulkhead, past a storage alcove stacked with metal crates and provisions, another set of doors, another alcove.
Booted feet clanged on the catwalk ahead of us, and charging laser pistols buzzed, high-pitched, at least two. My fingers tensed on his hip, my throat tightening. I didn’t want to have to kill anyone. “Shit. You got a plan B?”
“Sure,” whispered Dragonfly. “Look too dumb to be a threat. Don’t hit me, okay? I’m sorry.”
And he pushed me into the bulkhead’s shadow and covered my mouth with his. His kiss was hot, alive, arousing, his lips demanding my response. My back smacked against the wall, sharp bolts digging in, and breathless fury blazed through me. No fair. I understood what he was doing, but I wanted to hurt him, to jab my fingertip into that nerve centre in his cervical spine and watch him pass out. He wasn’t pretending, though, if the urgent press of his body was any guide. Hard, muscular, unyielding, just like I’d imagined … Okay, so when did I start imagining his body?
I struggled to keep my mind on the mission as the docking crew’s footsteps clanged closer. Looking convincing wouldn’t be easy if we didn’t both play. So I slid my wrists around his neck and wrapped my leg around his thighs, opening my mouth a little, letting him in. He groaned into my mouth, and our tongues entwined, unwelcome pleasure burning to my core. He was a damn good kisser, and he tasted pretty good for a murdering psycho.
He slid his strong hand up my thigh and pulled me onto him, his fingers digging in, and damn it if I didn’t start to ache. It was only natural, considering the danger. From the feel of what pressed into my groin, he was getting off on it too, and I thought about touching him, unzipping him, guiding him into me. Sinking onto him, deep and hard, crushing his hair in my fists …
Metal clunked against the bulkhead, and I realized someone was talking.
Dragonfly broke our kiss, leaving his hand planted on my ass and giving me a cheeky squeeze. I gasped, trying to control my breathing, and the bastard winked at me, his lips still shining from our kiss. “
Un momento, cara.
”
He turned his head, the picture of exasperation. “I’m sorry, what?”
One of the two young docking trolls stared, grease smeared in his straw-colored hair. That laser pistol looked useless in his gangly hand. From what I could see he’d be more likely to shoot himself than anyone else. The other one hefted his pistol above a thick-veined forearm, vein-ridged latissimus muscles bulging under his sleeveless grey coverall, sweat gleaming in his bristle-cut hair. Clearly he worked out too much.
“Security check. Let’s see your ident.”
The shatterjay lay warm and ready against my sweating thigh, and tension curled my fingers.
Dragonfly grinned at him. “Is that necessary, craftsman? We were just on our way back to her … that is, our ship, and we got a bit distracted.”
RoidBoy stretched his fingers around the silver pistol grip. “Ident.”
Dragonfly let me go and walked up to him, and I slouched, sulking, playing along. He bent his face close to RoidBoy’s, making him blush, the poor sweetie. “I’d really rather you didn’t sec-log this, my friend. It’s … delicate for me. And, well, it’s pretty obvious who she is, don’t you think?”
I slung one hand on my hip, tossing my hair over my shoulder. “Yeah, and time is money, so can we get on with it?”
The skinny blond one tugged RoidBoy’s shoulder. “Come on, let ’em be. Alarm’s going off.”
Not too bright, these kids. That’s why they worked on the docks.
RoidBoy hesitated, and Dragonfly stroked a speculative finger down the kid’s tight coverall, his gaze hot and half-lidded. “You want to come along, handsome? We’ve got space for
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