Page 9 of Warped

“Unlike you,” I growl. “I think with my brain, not with my schlong. I want that woman off my ship. Right fucking now.”

Rek seems unfazed.

“Ourship,” he says and shrugs. “But fine. I’ll get rid of her. What are we going to do for a companion, though? We’re not going to be able to find another one on such short notice. Not one who’swilling to go to Caldera, anyway. I guess our delivery’s just gonna be late. Oh yeah. That’s right. If we’re late we only get paid half, which means we’ll barely break even on this job.”

Shit. The son of a bitch is right. If we’re going to keep to our schedule, we need to leave soon. As in the next hour or so. We’ll never find another Warp companion that fast.

And weneeda companion.

It’s been about a hundred cycles since the first Warpgates were constructed and humanity started traveling around the galaxy at faster-than-light speeds. At first, everyone thought the biggest challenges would be technological in nature.

Well, they had no idea.

The first crew that successfully passed through the Warp and came out on the other side consisted of three men and three women.

All three of the women got knocked up along the way.

Turns out there’s something about the Warp that has an effect on a traveler’s mind. Puts ’em into a state of arousal so intense it’s unbearable, kinda like an animal going into heat, only ten times worse. On the big commercial Warpliners, they knock the passengers out with drugs and put ’em in stasis for the duration of the journey. But on a merchant ship like this one, the crew needs to be conscious in case anything goes wrong.

That’s where Warp companions come in.

They tag along and take care of the crew’surges. Of course, once they’re up there in the Warp, the companions have urges of theirown. Some of them do it because they can’t afford a ticket on a Warpliner. Others do it for a living.

And some… some just do it for the love of the game.

Once a woman’s had a taste of warper cock, plain old non-mutated men just can’t satisfy them anymore. Plus, when you’re in the Warp, everything is heightened. Every touch, every kiss, every orgasm. Some companions stick with it so long, they end up turning into warpers themselves, though the way the women mutate is a bit different from the men.

Nobody knows why it’s like that, but it is.

We need,needa companion.

“Fuck it,” I say. “Alright, I’llconsidertaking this woman with us, but we’re going to test her first. I don’t want to get up there in the Warp only to discover she can’t handle what we’re packing.”

“Fine with me,” Rek says smugly. “I’ll grab some gloves.”

CHAPTER 5: BINX

When the door to the bathroom finally opens, I’m sitting on the edge of the bed, waiting. The two warpers step into the bedroom, followed by a billow of steam left over from Traven’s hot shower. I have to admit, it makes for a dramatic entrance.

Rek is still dressed in his tight jeans and T-shirt, and the sight of him sends an unexpected surge of desire rushing through my body. As for Traven, the big mean Warp pilot is no longer naked, though he might as well be. A white terrycloth towel covers his lower body, but the front of it is jutting out a good ten inches or more from his massive erection. It’s so big it almost looks fake. If I hadn’t already seen him naked, I would think it’s some kind of dirty joke.

But it’snota joke.

It’s all tooreal.

Traven barely even glances at me. He just heads for the door at the other side of the room. The one Rek pointed out earlier as the closet. As for Rek himself, he stands in front of me and flashes a sexy smile that sets my nerves at ease, but only briefly. As soon as I see what he’s wearing on his hands, my anxiety returns in spades.

Gloves.

Black. Latex. Gloves.

“Sorry to make you wait like that,” Rek says calmly. “’Preciate you holding tight for us while me and Traven had our little pow-wow.”

He glances toward the closet, where the other warper can now be heard grumbling to himself.

“Don’t worry,” Rek goes on, his voice lower. “You’re gonna be coming with us, Binx. Traven just wants to make sure that you’re up to the task. I already know you are, but Traven, well… he’s a bit of a control freak. The kind of guy who likes to double check everything. So we’re gonna give you the Test.”

“The Test?”

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