Page 4 of The Commanders' Mate

Too big, too much. More.

Instead, my first mate’s hands clamped around my waist and he held me still. My second still had one hand around my throat, and I loved it, his other went to my breast, then nipple, squeezing. Tugging.

I was surrounded. Claimed. Safe. So full of cock I was going to scream if they didn’t move. Now.

As if they realized they’d pushed me to the edge of sanity, they moved, both of them, pulling in and out together. Slowly. Fucking me together. Filling me up.

Sex felt good. Yeah, just good. Usually. For me anyway, regular old Erica from Earth.

In. Out. Rub. Stroke. Caress. Orgasms, when done by hand… literally, were good. There was that word again. That was because it was good. Just that.

Until now.

Until this.

Holy shit, THIS.

3

Commander Karter, Battleship Varsten, Sector 438

* * *

“Ronan? Fuck, I thought you were dead. Killed five years ago on Latiri 4.”

My old friend stood, and I saw the ripped remains of his uniform, the blood on his temple and chest. He had not gone untouched in the battle, which meant he’d been on this ship when it had been attacked. Why had he been here, and why was he still here now? “Why did the Hive leave the dead? And how did you survive?”

He took a step toward me and Bard stepped between us, his ion rifle raised in his free hand. Ronan lifted his brows, a hardness I recognized in his golden eyes.

Ronan’s arms slowly lifted out at his sides to show his hands were empty and he meant no threat. “Really? You’re going to order him to shoot me?”

I didn’t move, didn’t even flinch. I’d seen things he couldn’t imagine.

Or perhaps, he could.

“I haven’t seen you in five years,” I countered, tipping my chin up. No matter how pleased—and stunned—I was to find him alive, there had to be a reason for his disappearance. “You were reported killed in action on Latiri 4. You might be contaminated, controlled by the Hive, your mind not your own. You could be full of Hive implants. In which case, you wouldn’t think twice about killing all of us and betraying your own people.”

He nodded once. “Too true. I can’t blame you, old friend, not after what just happened here.” The fire left his gaze and he slumped back, sitting once more in the chair, ignoring the ion pistol pointed at him.

Bard lowered his weapon but didn’t step back, remaining at the ready. With what surrounded us, we were all tense, all on guard, waiting for more destruction.

“What happened here, Ronan? How the fuck did the Hive get this close to a battleship?”

While any ship in a battlegroup was a pot

ential target for Hive attack, no battleship had ever been hit this far inside Coalition space. Not like this. The standard orbital distance was—had been—too far for Hive weapons to be effective, our perimeter defenses and attack vessels making the main body of the fleet a difficult, if not impossible target. Until now.

Ronan ran his hand through his hair, inspecting the blood that clung to his palm as he lowered it. Stared at the dark stain. “They didn’t get through the defense grid. Not one forward scout ship was attacked. There was no warning. No ships. Nothing. The Hive weren’t even here, Kaed.”

He called me by my nickname, one I hadn’t heard in a long time. No one ever called me by my given name, Makaed. Not anymore. Not in years. That name belonged to an ambitious, hope-filled young Prillon male who had perished what felt like a lifetime ago.

“The I.C. knew the Hive were working on a long-range weapon of some sort, but we didn’t know what it was. Or where it was.”

I frowned, set my hands on my hips. “A long-range weapon? What are you talking about? There was nothing about a new threat in the command reports.” Those reports came directly from Prillon Prime and were sent to the active fleet commanders every day, sometimes twice a day, depending on how hot the battlefields ran.

“This isn’t the first attack. They took out the entire Battlegroup Hyrad ten days ago. Every single ship.” Ronan shook his head. “The I.C. didn’t have enough information to report or recommend any new course of action.”

“What?” An entire battlegroup had been destroyed and I knew nothing of it? “You must tell the fleet commanders. First Hyrad and now Varsten. You are risking thousands of lives on the other battlegroups if you don’t provide them with accurate intel.” Rage boiled hot for the I.C. and their constant games. “I’m going to contact Prime Nial. You’ll be executed for this.”

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