Page 22 of Rescuing Mara

“I will put your towel on the sink,” he says, sounding like he is struggling. “I also brought you clean clothes.”

“Okay, thank you.” I manage to respond. He turns around and walks away, but not without one last look over his shoulder, and I shiver. I have goosebumps all over my body and a strange feeling inside of me. Tears spring into my eyes again, making me curse myself.

I step out of the shower briskly and dry myself. The clean clothes lay neatly folded on the stool, where I left my dirty clothes. They’re a bit long, and I have to turn over the sleeves three times. They must be Lauren’s clothes. She is a giant compared to me.

Suddenly, I freeze—my old clothes. The transmitter is in my pocket. Fuck, fuckerdyfuck. Ananta is going to kill me if I don’t do what she says.

“O’Rec?” I say as I hastily emerge from the bathroom, panic lacing my voice. “Where did you put my old clothes?”

He turns from the corner of the room, where it looks like he is making a bed.

“I put them in the laundry bin, and the bots will clean them. Is something wrong with the clothes you are wearing now?”

The trust in his eyes as he looks at me makes my stomach knot with guilt. “There was something in the pocket I need.” I bite my lip and he interrupts me with a big smile.

“That strange little button! Yes, I found that. It is right over there at that table.” He points at a little table near the wall.

A sigh of relief hits me when I grab it and safely tuck it away in my hand. If only he knew what that strange little button could do…

I give him a tight smile. “It’s my lucky button, just some stupid superstition…”

He smiles, then returns to making the bed. For a minute, I’m frozen, awkwardly standing next to the wall. Should I just go to bed? Or wait until he is done?

My inability to make a choice is raising my heart rate. I close my eyes to prevent panic, but then I sense his calming presence.

“Breathe, Marra,” he says. “You can go to bed, and you do not have to wait for me.”

I open my eyes, and he stands next to me, his presence enveloping me without a single touch. I look up until our eyes meet.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper.

He lifts his hand toward my cheek, hesitating just before our skin touches, a silent question lingering in his gaze. When I give a small nod, his thumb gently brushes against my cheek, soft and warm.

“You have nothing to be sorry about. Sleep and tomorrow will be better, and the day after that, and the day after that. I will make sure of that.”

CHAPTER15

O’Rec

Iwake up to the most delicious scent floating in the air - it is everywhere. When I shift, I notice I am uncomfortably hard. An involuntary groan leaves my lip as the scent gets stronger, making me automatically palm my cock.

“O’Rec? Are you awake?” I hear a soft whisper calling for me. Immediately, I’m wide awake, shame filling me because that is my mate lying in my bed, and I am over here on the floor on a mat, shamelessly touching myself to her scent.

I sit up. “Are you okay?”

“Yes, only… I’m hungry? And I don’t know if it’s morning yet?”

Grinning, I pull up my wrist comp and turn on the lights. “It is morning when you want it to be, and I will take you for breakfast.”

She blinks a few times because of the sudden lights, which makes me ache even more. She looks way too good in my bed. She quickly gets up, whispering something like "bathroom," giving me a momentary reprieve.

When we are both freshened up, I take her to the mess hall for breakfast. L’Ren and D’Var are already there.

“I took over T’Rak’s duties so he could get some sleep.”

“That sounds like a good idea. He must not exhaust himself.”A quick glance at the women makes me smile. L’Ren is chatting up a mile a minute, and Marra even shows a smile.

“It seems like they get along well.”I tell D’Var.

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