Page 20 of Kiss of Steel

“I headed that way but then realized you might have trouble finding your way in the dark, so I waited for you.”

“You did? I mean, thank you.” Rescuing her seemed so unlike him. Her first impression had led her to dismiss him as a grouchy, taciturn, self-centered jerk. She might have misjudged him. They might have gotten off on the wrong foot.

“Come. Let’s get you out of the cold.” He surprised her by taking her hand. “Your fingers are like ice.” He slipped their joined hands into his pocket, and her stomach fluttered at the casual, intimate gesture.Couplesheld hands. You held hands with someone you liked. Except that wasn’t the case here.He’s being nice, keeping me warm.Her heart picked up a beat, and tingles raced up her arm.

“This way. Your trajectory was off. You were going to miss the passageway,” he said.

“My h-h-hero,” she said, trying to keep her tone light, joking. “What would I do without you?”

“Get lost?” He sounded amused.

She shoved her free hand into the pocket of her coat and mentally added gloves, a hat, and a scarf to the shopping list.At this rate, I’ll have my first pay credits spent before I get them.When she’d packed her trunk, she’d had no idea she should plan for Antarctica!

He guided them to the passageway. Through the gap, she spied the lighted cabins. Once they emerged on the other side, the cabins threw enough light that she could see well enough to stumble along.

“I can find my way from here,” she said.

Instead of releasing her, he threaded his fingers through hers. “You could trip.”

The air was still frigid, the icy wind cutting like a knife, but inside the coat, heat suffused her like she had a fever. She strode the rest of the way to their cabin, her hand clasped firmly in his, listening to the drumbeat of her heart.

* * * *

Stepping onto the porch, Steel reluctantly released Honoria’s hand to grab a couple of shit-bricks from the bin so they would have them through the night. His pulse raced, and he felt lightheaded. His cock was in a state of half-tumescence. If he’d been at the base, he could have reported to the cyber-med unit, and they’d have run a diagnostic to determine the cause of his anomalous physical symptoms.

He didn’t need a scan. He knew the cause; he just didn’t know why. For some reason, his body overreacted to her presence. Her scent, her touch had triggered a physiological event.

He’d never held hands with a woman before. Never desired to. Why would he? What would be the purpose? Yet, taking Honoria’s hand had happenednaturally. Nothing about him was natural. He was a genetically engineered man-machine hybrid. He hadn’t been thinking about holding her hand—it had just happened.

When it did, the tactile sensations consumed him. He’d become fascinated by the softness of her skin, her delicate bones, how tiny her hand felt. And when her ice-cold fingers began to warm, he felt the strangest satisfaction. What did it mean that he found it satisfying, pleasurable to hold her hand?

Mostly, he cogitated over the fact that she did not find his touch repugnant.

Because she doesn’t know what I am.

The cabin felt quite warm compared to the outside. After setting the bricks by the stove, he washed his hands in the lavatory then returned to the main room to shed his coat and drape it over a chair.

Her nose and cheeks glowed pink. Her hair, mussed by the wind, stood up in wild spikes, inviting him to smooth it.

She is adorable.

What the fuck?

“It’s, um, been a long day,” she said. “I’m going to get ready for bed. Were you going to shower tonight?”

He hadn’t thought that far ahead. “If you want to use the toilet, go ahead.” He could use the alone time to recalibrate.

“Okay. I won’t be long. Um, thanks again for guiding me to the cabin.”

Many missions had occurred under the cover of darkness. With genetically enhanced night vision, cyborgs could see better than owls. He’d gotten halfway to the cabin when it struck him she’d get lost in the dark. “I didn’t sign up for a wife just to lose her on the first night,” he joked.

She scooted out of the room. He sank onto the sofa. Moments later, he heard the bathroom door open and close. The commode whooshed. Water ran in the sink. The bathroom door opened. “All yours,” she called. The bedroom door clicked shut.

He cupped his hands over his nose and mouth and dragged them downward. He’d expected marriage to be an annoyance. Honoria bothered him all right, but in ways he’d never anticipated.

He pushed off from the sofa, grabbed his duffel, and tossed it into the second bedroom. In the bath, he stripped and got into the shower. Phibious had explained about the hot spring, but it still came as a pleasant surprise to be doused with warm water. Showers at the base had been cold.

There were a couple of bottles in the stall. He uncapped one and sniffed. This was the fragrance swirling around her. He closed his eyes and inhaled. His penis began to harden.

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