Page 11 of Protected By the Convicts
“This has nothing to do with you.”
“Are you sure?”
His hand skimmed over her face, then his fingers traced her lips. She opened for him. When he slid his finger into her mouth, she couldn’t help but suck on it, bringing other images to mind.
“You’re such a fucking tease,” Vaughn said, with a dark look about him.
She released his finger, but then his mouth landed on hers, a bit too eager, more than she had expected from him. As his tongue invaded her mouth, she pushed against his chest to get him away. Something wasn’t right about Vaughn tonight.
“I wasn’t trying to be a tease.”
“What do you want from me, Hannah? You don’t want me in your bed. You let me claim you, but only because you feel you have no choice. You fucking pulled me into this unit because I could be of service to you. I thought with time perhaps you’d learn to like me. But you’ve never once come to my bed. . .to me. . .on your own. Aren’t I good enough for you?”
“I do like you,” she said, and yet she couldn’t bring herself to approach him. All of two feet stood between them and it felt like a canyon. “What’s going on with you, Vaughn? This isn’t like you.”
“And you’re an expert on me now too, I suppose?”
She bit her lip. “Can we start over? Can you tell me what I’m doing wrong?”
“Wrong? Wrong! You don’t even fucking know! You know nothing, Hannah, none of you do, and it’s all on me. I did this. I screwed this up, I fucking screwed everything up!” As he stormed off, Vaughn slammed the gate so hard, the frame bent and the door wouldn’t latch.
As Vaughn disappeared into the trees, the alarm sounded inside. Her hands shook as she tried to bend the metal back into place. It was bending, but she couldn’t quite get the right grip on it. Her hand slipped, and the metal sliced her hand open.
“Damn it!” she swore as she lodged the gate closed the best she could and headed inside to take care of her hand.
The damn beeping from the alarm grated on her nerves as she washed and sealed the gash with a glue compound Sersie had left on the counter. He’d been re-gluing parts of the countertop that were lifting with all the added activity. Ren was a fabulous engineer, but his interior design work had its share of flaws. . . it made her worry all the more about his ship.
As she dabbed a few drops of the glue along the cut and held her skin together until the glue could adhere, the blasted alarm finally quieted. There stood Ren, anger twisting his face.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“Hey, gorgeous, I’m home,” Sersie called out from the yard. “Did you know the gate’s broken?” Sersie slipped in behind Ren and immediately lost his cheer. “Ren. . . you okay?”
“No. She fucking destroyed it.”
“Destroyed what?” she asked.
“My ship.”
“What ship?” Ky’Li said from behind. He’d entered behind Sersie.
“Ren built a ship. He plans on leaving here,” Hannah filled them in now that Ren had mentioned the ship.
“You’re leaving?” Sersie asked, shocked, and from the look on his face, envious.
“Not anymore. She fucking tore the guts out. Destroyed equipment that’s taken me years to earn credits for. Years!” Ren’s fists clenched as he took one large step toward her.
“No, Ky!” she shouted as Ky moved into position behind Ren. She didn’t fear Ren, well, not exactly, but Ky beating the crap out of Ren scared the hell out of her.
“I didn’t destroy your ship, Ren. I haven’t been there in days, and when I left it, it was intact.”
“You’re building a ship and you told her. Not me or Vaughn.? You’ve known us for years.”
“Vaughn knows,” Ren shouted back, his eyes locked to Hannah.
“You’d trust him, but not me?” Sersie continued.
“He’s not a fucking addict!” Ren shouted in Sersie’s face.
