Page 108 of Stars in Halo

Xion was relentless, his focus fixed on her gratification and satiation.

As she neared the edge, her muscles contracted around him with each thrust, her moans growing louder and more desperate.

‘Khaliya,’ he growled, ‘you’re mine, all mine.’

Xion’s thrusts became frenzied, slamming together with a feverish convulsion.

He shuddered as his release built up to a crescendo, trembling with the force of it.

He exploded inside her, her bliss washing over her in a tidal wave of ecstasy.

It went on and on, rising and falling until, finally, the bliss washed into deep-set contentment.

Sated, they lay skin to skin, heart to heart, panting, their bodies sticky with sweat and desire.

Katya’s eyes were closed, her chest rising and falling. Her lips were parted, her breath coming in short, shallow gasps, limbs heavy on his, the warmth of her dermis against his seeping into his bones.

He ran his fingers through her hair, the soft strands brushing his calloused skin.

‘Xion,’ she mumbled, her eyes fluttering open to meet his. ‘I never thought I would find someone like you. One who makes me feel this way.’

He smiled at her, his eyes gleaming, twisting his hips so she gasped. ‘And what way is that, Khaliya?’

She rolled her eyes, but the corner of her mouth twitched into a smile. ‘So alive, like anything and everything is possible.’

Eye of the Viper

Xion settled into the pristine white leather captain’s chair, his gaze locked on the vast, shimmering display that dominated the room.

The sleek, styled interior of the Tachy was hushed.

Katya stood in silence beside him, her eyes fixed on the screen, hands wrapped around a mug of kahawa.

The incandescent flash and sudden shadows of hyperspace rushed past the holo view.

Xion leaned back and aimed his mocha-jade eyes at his woman. ‘We have to talk, beautiful,’ his rasp was gentle but firm.

Katya fixed her eyes on him, uncertainty flickering in her eyes.

‘Are the good times over?’ she teased, tilting her head. ‘Is this the appointed time for my reaming?’

‘Nada. I’m not interested in giving you a hard time unless it’s on my terms.’

The gleam in his eye left nothing to the imagination. ‘That said, we have a mystery to unravel. Sit.’

She did as commanded.

‘I need to understand the big picture,’ Xion murmured. ‘Your brothers, you, the freakin’ King of Iccythria and what the fokk he was hoping to achieve by kidnapping me and siphoning my metanoids. But let’s start at the beginning.’

She opened her palms to him in surrender. ‘Go for it. I’ve nothing to hide.’

‘Sawa. When you were on Eden II, did you use the ruse of the card game to steal access codes from Isabella Annan Djansi? Or was it to plant the gemstones?’

He referred to the famed Rhesian art dealer who’d been the showcase curator.

‘Both. It was a long way to come pick up some data, but we also needed a way to get hold of the Serpent’s Iris. So I guess we went for the two birds with one-stone strategy.’

Xion leaned back. ‘Your idea?’

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