Page 23 of Auctioned to the Convicts
Not stupid. Unavoidable. Like the crime she’d committed on Argus.
“I was more scared of him and his unit than him hurting me in a fight. I know you can’t understand that, but—”
“I don’t understand, not when death is permanent. But it’s done. You are with me now, no one will touch you. Except me.”
She raised an eyebrow. “You’re part of a unit now, Ky’Li. You know what that means, right? The unit owns me. You and the others all own me.”
“I know the laws here. They do not trump the laws of nature. You gave me your name.”
She was missing something in this conversation. No matter. Whatever it was, they had plenty of time to sort it out when he was out of the med-center and back home.
Home. That wasn’t the right word for Ren’s house. Their quarters? Their base? Her feet were aching too much to care, and Ky’Li’s hand trailed down her arm, awakening parts of her that weren’t exactly tired. How could a man’s touch feel so right so soon after meeting him? She didn’t know and quite frankly she didn’t care. They were a unit now. Ky’Li was hers as much as she was his.
“You’re frowning,” he said. “You don’t like me touching you?”
She rested her head on his shoulder. “Just the opposite. I like it. Too much.”
“There’s no such thing as too much between mates.”
Mates. Already, he considered her his. While she liked the sound of that, she had three other men to consider. Did Ky’Li understand how a unit worked? He wasn’t from Argus. His accent, his behavior were too odd to be from any Company world in fact.
She might have to be explicit with him, explain the facts. Those men back at the house expected to share her. It’s just what was done since the plague killed off most of the female population.
Oh, God. . . she’d be shared, passed around by four men. How was she going to do this? Her mom barely handled three. Strike that. Her mom didn’t handle three. They fought all the time over who would sleep with her, over what they controlled in the family.
What if Hannah never learned to like them, or the men fought? This wasn’t simply a unit back on Argus, where The Company sent in an arbitrator to settle any unresolvable disputes in a unit. These were Level 4 and 5 criminals who could do great bodily harm. Ky’Li could kill the others, one-handed probably. No, not probably. She’d seen him fight twice now. Vaughn, Ren, and Sersie were well-built, powerful men in their own right, but Ky’Li was an exceptional fighter, a soldier with a soldier’s physique, mentality, and training.
“You’re troubled. Is it our unit?”
Ourunit. That was progress for a man who just yesterday said all the men in the colony weren’t worthy of either of them.
“The situation at the house, Ren’s house, is awkward, but I’m confident we’ll work it out.”
“You’re lying to me, Hannah. Lie to the others if you’d like, but not to me. I’m your pa’vi.”
“I don’t know what that is.”
“You will learn in time. There are many things I will teach you about my world, as I suspect you will teach me about yours.”
“Like sharing a woman?” she asked.
“It’s not something my people do. It’s not somethingIwill do.”
At least he was honest. She placed her hand on his chest and let her fingers trail over his muscles. “There are three other men who own me, Ky’Li.”
“That does not mean they will touch you.”
“It’s exactly what it means. I can’t stop them.”
“I can.”
How was she going to stop Ky’Li from hurting the others? And if he hurt any of them, Dresden could take Ky away, send him to a Level 5 world as he’d threatened before the challenge. Despite Ky’Li’s obstinance, she felt connected to him. She didn’t want to lose him.
“Tell me about the house, about the men in our unit. I’ve spoken with Vaughn briefly. The man is intelligent and cautious, and a skilled doctor. You made an excellent choice with him, and he will not cause you any trouble.”
“Vaughn and Sersie are good men. I can feel it, just like I felt that about you.”
“It’s the engineer that troubles you,” Ky’Li guessed.
