Page 24 of Human Reform
“For what?”
“For choosing to stay.For helping us.”His gaze dropped briefly to my lips before returning to my eyes.“For whatever this is between us.”
His vulnerability in that moment—this powerful being openly admitting confusion—made my chest ache.
“I didn’t expect to feel anything like this,” he continued.“I believe it might be… happiness.”
I swallowed hard.“I’m happy when I’m with you, too,” I admitted.The words felt strange in my mouth after years of emotional isolation, but right.
Before I could overthink it, I rose on my tiptoes and pressed my lips to his.The gentleness of our previous kiss evaporated instantly.Daxon responded with a hunger that matched my own, his mouth moving against mine with growing urgency.My hands slid up his chest to grip his shoulders, feeling the coiled strength beneath my fingers.
His hands trailed down my sides, his thumbs grazing the undersides of my breasts through my shirt.A soft gasp escaped me, swallowed by his kiss.He took advantage of my parted lips, deepening the kiss in a way that made my knees weak.
When his mouth left mine to trail hot kisses down my throat, I tilted my head back, giving him better access.His teeth grazed the sensitive spot where my neck met my shoulder, sending sparks of pleasure down my spine.This was better than any fantasy my shower-induced imagination had conjured.His touch was fire, igniting parts of me I thought long dormant.
Just as his hands slid higher, brushing the curves of my breasts with tantalizing lightness, he suddenly pulled away.We were both breathing heavily, and the violet glow in his eyes was the brightest I’d seen yet.
“We should stop,” he said, his voice strained.
“Why?”I couldn’t keep the disappointment from my voice.
“We’re outside, exposed.”His hands remained on my waist, belying his words.“And we have a critical mission that requires focus.”
Logic.Of course he’d retreat to logic when emotions ran high.I pressed my forehead against his chest, trying to regain control of my breathing and rampant desire.
“You’re right.”I sighed, though my body screamed otherwise.
He lifted my chin with his finger.“I didn’t say I wanted to stop.”
The intensity in his eyes made me shiver.“Just that we should?”
“Yes.”He pressed a kiss to my forehead, somehow more intimate than the passion we’d just shared.“For now.”
He took my hand again and led me back along the path toward my suite.The walk seemed shorter returning, time compressed by my racing thoughts.When we reached my door, he punched in the access code and turned to me.
“Goodnight, Alora,” he murmured, bending to place a kiss on my cheek that felt like a promise.
I heard the lock engage after I entered, securing me inside for the night.Alone, I sank onto the bed, bringing my fingers to my lips, which still tingled from his kiss.
It had been over a decade since my last relationship—if you could even call those brief entanglements relationships.Nothing had prepared me for the magnetic pull I felt toward Daxon.He was awakening feelings I’d buried beneath layers of guilt and self-imposed exile, making me want to take risks I’d convinced myself I never would again.
I crawled under the covers, but sleep remained elusive.Every time I closed my eyes, I saw ice-blue eyes with violet undertones watching me with undisguised desire.I felt strong hands exploring my body, completing what we’d started by the river.
I was in dangerous territory, wanting a man I barely knew in a place I never asked to be.Yet somehow, it felt more right than anything ever had.
TEN
DAXON
I walkedthrough the moonlit pathways toward my quarters, the silver glow from the twin moons illuminating the stone beneath my feet.My fingertips still tingled from where they’d traced the curve of Alora’s waist, and my lips burned with the memory of hers pressed against them.The taste of her—something subtle and sweet—lingered, making my heart pound in a rhythm I couldn’t control.
She had initiated that kiss.Leaned up on her toes and pressed those soft lips to mine with a hunger that matched the storm building inside me.When I explored her neck with my mouth, the small gasp that escaped her had nearly shattered my resolve.
I hadn’t wanted to stop.The urge to take her there, beneath the alien stars with the river’s melody surrounding us, had been overwhelming.But engaging in such activities outside, exposed to potential danger or observation, would have been reckless.Even more concerning was how my judgment seemed to evaporate when she was near—a significant liability when we faced an unknown threat.
Our essential mission to identify the saboteur and eliminate the glitches made everything else secondary—at least it should.Yet I couldn’t regret crossing that line with her.Not when her touch unlocked something I’d sealed away since gaining freedom from the war programming.
For two and a half years, I’d hidden behind duty, keeping everyone at a careful distance.But Alora demolished those barriers just by existing, making me want to leap into uncharted emotional territory with her by my side.
