Page 32 of Protected By the Convicts
Chapter Seven
HANNAH
Vaughn’s side of the bed was cool to the touch. She’d slept in, fully expecting they could talk more when they woke. Last night had been exhausting, with Vaughn needing the physical contact, and a lot of it, as if it was the last he’d see of her. Hannah shook her thought out of her head. It was simply too morbid to think in those terms. Whatever was going through his mind, he’d be fine. She had to believe that at least, for her sense of sanity.
He probably simply had first shift, though she could have sworn Ky’Li was the only one on first shift today. Hannah stretched as she rose. She was sore in all the right places.
One of Vaughn’s shirts was laid out on the upper bunk, waiting for her. Hers had disappeared. She smiled at the similarities between Vaughn and Ky’Li. Her shirts always seemed to disappear when Ky’Li slept with her. She was starting to think he hid her shirts intentionally, sending a subtle message to everyone, her included, that she belonged to him. Apparently, Vaughn had similar ideas.
She held the fabric to her nose and breathed Vaughn’s sent in. Comforting, male, and hers. And she could go to him and the others without hurting Ky’Li, at least that’s what she hoped. She’d have to watch him though, make sure he didn’t feel insecure about sharing her. All in all, it finally felt like they’d become a unit in the traditional sense on Argus. A real family unit. She never thought stealing Rescue would result in her finding four wonderful men, even if it was on Narkos.
The shirt she donned reached her mid-thigh, which wouldn’t have been a problem had Vaughn left her pants here as well. The sneaky bastard was playing mind games with her again. He probably expected her to go to the kitchen half-naked so he could have some fun with her while she ate breakfast.
The moment she stepped into the hall, she smiled at the sight of her four men hanging out, talking. No one was fighting or yelling. It was peaceful, like a home should be.
Ren’s bright blue eyes caught her. He was sitting at the table in the kitchen, sipping coffee. “We talked,” he said, motioning to Vaughn who sat on the sofa.
Well, she had to give him credit. He’d promised to talk with Vaughn, though his tone was not exactly of a man who had forgiven.
“And you’ve discovered how you’ve both made mistakes and nothing’s unfixable?”
“My ship is quite unfixable. And what mistakes did I make?”
“You accused me of sabotaging your ship.”
“Oh, right.”
“Of trying to trap you here.”
“Not my finest moment.”
“You accused me of being a whore when I first got here and had to choose men for this unit.”
“You’ve made your point, Hannah.”
“And you refused to eat my ramishka last night.”
Ren held out both hands, palms out to her, a horrified expression on his face. “Now, that’s just self-defense on my part, and I stand behind my decision. I tasted it and it was foul.”
“The man’s got you there, sha-vi,” Ky’Li said as he rose from a chair in the common area. Only now did she notice that he was fully dressed, ready to leave for a shift. She wore nothing but a shirt that reached her thighs while the other three men lounged in sleep pants, like any other morning. Except this time she wore Vaughn’s shirt, not Ky’Li’s.
She held her breath as Ky’Li’s eyes roamed over her. Then his lips curled into a smile, as if she were still his, fully his, and no one else’s. She walked over, folded her hands behind his neck and lifted up on her toes to whisper in his ear. “I love you, pa-vi.”
His hand slid under her shirt to cup her ass.
“And my ramishka was NOT foul.”
“Sha-vi, I will fight for you any day. Take on a thousand soldiers or more without a thought to my own safety. But asking anyone to eat that. . .” Ky’Li’s head suddenly turned to seek out Vaughn. “Can we even call it food?”
“Call it what you want, just don’t eat it because I have the morning off from the med-center and I’d like to keep it that way.”
Hannah looked to Sersie, who coughed and turned his head.
“You too, Sersie?” she asked.
He pretended not to hear as he stared at the ceiling.
“And since when do you agree with Ren, Ky?” she asked, turning her attention back to her soldier whose hands never seemed to leave her when he was near. One hand circled to her front to glide over a breast, teasing her nipple. . . a bold move considering he’d be leaving for first shift soon.
