Page 8 of Protected By the Alien Knight

A muffled sniffle from the other room cuts through my tortured reverie like a plasma sword. Turning, I see Annie framed in the doorway, her beautiful face awash with contrition and shame. Those expressive amber eyes are downcast, her arms wrapped protectively around her curvaceous frame.

“Crux, I... I’m so sorry,” she whispers tremulously. “For my forwardness earlier. It was inexcusable and won’t happen again. You are just doing your duty to protect me, and I took advantage in a moment of vulnerability—”

“You did nothing wrong, Ambassador, I—” My voice is rough with suppressed desire, but my words catch in my throat as she shakes her head vehemently. She has no idea how difficult it is to not pin her back against the wall and pick up right where we left off.

“Please, let me finish. I never should have put you in that position. If you need to request a new assignment after my behavior tonight, I’ll understand completely.”

Her expression is so earnest, so genuinely concerned, that my heart clenches. I can’t remember the last time someone cared somuch about my feelings, let alone my career. The thought that I would ever abandon her, especially when she’s in such danger, is laughable. Before I can formulate a response, she has already fled back through the doorway like a wraith, the lock clicking into place with finality.

I stand motionless for several minutes, unsure of what to do. The silence of the room is deafening, and I feel like a fool. What was I thinking? I allowed myself to lose control and put her in a compromising situation.Unacceptable.

A new, sharper emotion surges through me as the seconds tick onward—fury. At myself, at my own clumsy inability to reassure her. Hot on its heels follows a vicious flare of self-loathing at having made her feel so wretched. We are two lonely souls reaching for the only solace available in this madness, however forbidden and fleeting it may prove.

The walls of my humble dwelling suddenly feel too close, the air too stale and thick. Before I can think myself out of it, I am on my feet and striding purposefully to the bedroom door. The bitter taste of cowardice keeps me rooted to the spot. My fist is suspended inches from the wooden door separating us.Perhaps some distance is for the best... in case I compound my mistakes this evening.

I grit my teeth and pivot on my heel, abandoning my futile attempt to face her tonight. Come the dawn, I will rectify this rift. In the morning, I will offer her the explanation she deserves before my own weaknesses damage our professional relationship beyond repair.

Morning finds me in my training room, sweat-soaked and panting from exertion. I have been here since the sun rose, unleashing my frustration and turmoil in a series of solo drills.

I wipe my brow with the back of my arm, feeling a grim sense of satisfaction as the fresh training scars sting with each movement. Physical pain is far easier to endure than the emotional wounds inflicted last night.

The sun is high in the pale green sky; the jade light filtering through the window in a dappled pattern. It is a beautiful day, but I can’t appreciate it, not when my mind is so consumed, not just with Annie, but the attack... if I was right to lead her here rather than staying at the citadel...

Confusion surges within me, a tidal wave of excitement and insecurity all tangled up into a near-unbearable knot in the center of my chest. Because, however improper last night may have been, it was also some of the sweetest torture and most exquisite pleasure I’ve ever known in my long years.

I head back inside and take a shower, scrubbing away the sweat and grime, trying not to think of the fact that Annie is only a few meters away, her delectable curves likely still tucked snugly under the blankets. As I dry myself off and begin to dress in a clean uniform, my resolve hardens.I will do everything in my power to make her mine.

After scouring my face with my palm, I grab my breeches, shrugging into them before rising. I pause to run a hand over my shower-mussed scalp, smoothing it into a semblance of order before steeling myself to face Annie.

She is already in my small living area by the time I emerge, seated before the circular window overlooking the valley below. For several weighted heartbeats, I can do nothing but drink in the striking lines of her silhouette while she remains turned away, unaware of my presence. The spill of her hair over one shoulder is tangled from sleep, and she has wrapped herself loosely in a silvery dress, though fabric pools at her waist, leaving the elegant curve of her spine bare and tempting in a way that makes my throat go dry and tight.

“Good morning, Crux,” she says without turning, her voice strained and laced through with tension like tripwire. “I trust you rested well?”

I clear my throat, hyper-conscious of my gravelly rasp. “As well as I could expect...” When she doesn’t respond further, I take it as an invitation to continue. “About last night—”

Annie’s fingers tighten visibly in her lap, her shoulders curving inwards ever so slightly. “There’s nothing more to say. As I said, it won’t happen again. Thank you for being so... understanding.”

My jaw clenches. “That’s not what I came here to say, Ambassador—Annie. We both know the attraction between us has been building for weeks. I have been trained to suppress such things, and yet I allowed myself to be swayed by my emotions last night. It was wrong of me.”

A strangled noise of disbelief escapes her lips. “You have to be kidding me. You think this is all on you? Crux, I was the one who practically assaulted you. If anything, you were being the consummate professional. It was my lack of self-control that forced you into that position in the first place.”

I blink at her, utterly bewildered. “Assaulted me? Forced me? Maker, woman, what nonsense is this?”

She huffs out a breath, her posture relaxing marginally as she turns to face me. “We both know whatever... feelings exist between us are a distraction neither of us can afford. Your duty is to protect me, and I respect that. But don’t insult my intelligence by claiming that your actions were motivated by anything more than misplaced pity and your Order’s obligation.”

“My feelings have nothing to do with obligation or pity and everything to do with my heart. There is a spark between us; I won’t deny it, and neither can you. If you think I’m the sort of male who would take advantage of a vulnerable female, then perhaps you don’t know me at all.”

A beep from my comm unit cuts through the heated silence that falls between us. I growl a curse under my breath, snatching it from the sideboard. Commander Ven’ari’s voice crackles to life, forcing me to struggle to focus on his words through the maelstrom of my own roiling emotions.

“Cruxian, why is the ambassador not at the citadel? Is there a reason you are not answering your comms?”

I grimace. “I had to move her to a secure location, Commander. She is safe and unharmed.”

The silence that greets is ominous. Finally, the commander speaks. “You disobeyed a direct order, Knight.”

“With all due respect, Commander, it was the only way to ensure the ambassador’s safety.”

“Do not question me, Cruxian. The Planetary Police have a new lead on the rebel organization behind the attacks, and the ambassador is needed for a crucial briefing. Report to the citadel at once.”

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