Page 9 of Rescued By The Alien Prince Pirate

"That's certainly a positive way to view the horrible kidnapping you endured," Cyburn admitted.

"Call it a survival instinct," I said with a chuckle. "I've had a lot of practice," I added after a short pause. I skipped the gory details of my stained past, how I'd felt abandoned and 'thrown away' in the foster care system for most of my life.

A moment later, the sound of footsteps padded closer to our direction. A gut-wrenching sensation twisted in my stomach and my heart began to pound violently again. The hair stood up on the back of my neck and I was unnerved instantly.

Cyburn put his arm on mine. A tingle ruptured through my body at his warm touch because it felt so gentle and protective.

"We have to get out of here," he whispered to me as he nodded to Nix for equal confirmation. "We can't let them find us."

"Who is looking for us now?" I asked.

"The Belic security robots, undoubtedly," Cyburn explained. "We have to be quick and avoid them at all costs, because trust me when I say that they are ruthless."

"If you get me out of this retched place, I'll agree to do anything I can to help you," I promised, and I wasn't using empty words, either.

Cyburn took my hand. That rapturing feeling of paradise made me sway, made me feel imbalanced in the most sensational way.

"Come on, I will keep you safe. These vile robots are going to be scouring the halls left and right as well as up and down. We need to find somewhere to hide to wait it out until all the turmoil dies down. Then, we can plan to sneak back to the hangar where we have hover bikes concealed and waiting to flee on. From there, we'll head back to our main generation ship."

I nodded my approval of the plan.

It wasn't like I had much of a choice, anyway. It was either go with them or die.

As we hustled down the hallway, I knew I could trust Cyburn. I couldn't explainwhy, but it was just one of those instinctual feelings. Sometimes, you had to take your chances out there, especially when bigger threats loomed even larger all around you, determined to take you out.

ChapterFour

CARMELA

“Follow us," Cyburn advised in a voice that lured me and infatuated me.

His hand was still gently cuffed around my wrist. He slowly moved it down to my hand and held it with this subtle, sizzling, sexy movement that floored me.

Butterflies danced in my stomach. This crazy yearning swept over me like an ocean current until I felt like I was drowning with desire.

Cyburn's dark eyes set over mine and he smiled as if he were pleased with either the effect he clearly had over me, or my willingness to comply with his simple directions.

I was still trying to wrap my head around his devastatingly handsome looks. How could I be so attracted to someone who wasn't human? Maybethatwas thewholereason behind the attraction, and I just hadn't fully come to terms with it yet.

"Where are we going?" I asked, doing my best to trust my two new allies.

"We need to get to the central computer chamber," Cyburn explained.

"That's where the ship is piloted and controlled by robots," Nix added.

"How will we get there without them catching us along the way?" I hated to sound doubtful or impatient, but I had a ton of worries jogging through my brain.

Cyburn met my gaze. I felt instantly flushed again. It was like I was burning up on the inside. Every time he looked at me, it was like a part of me was awakened to something I'd never experienced before, something exotic and exhilarating.

It was this vibrant, heart pounding sensation that thrilled me and helped distract me from my otherwise crippling fear.

I knew it sounded crazy, even tothinkit, but every time I met his gaze, I was warmed up from within. Somehow, as ridiculous as it was for me to figure out— I felt impossibly safe with both of them.

You know when someone tells you to trust your instincts or go with your gut? I just knew in my heart that these were the good guys. As daunted as I was, I still felt this magnetic pull toward them that helped convince my brain to follow them.

"We have a whole team working on that now," Cyburn said.

I glanced over my shoulder. I heard a ruckus around us, but I couldn't see anything.

---