Page 32 of Rescued By The Alien Prince Pirate

He acted as if he wasn't used to people often questioning him or his motives.

I took a deep breath and prepared myself to speak as cautiously as I could because ultimately, I knew that Cyburn was more seasoned in his craft. Sure,heknew more about how to deal with these aliens than I did. I wasn't above admitting that.

"Well… I mean… I don't want to question your motives… but I also don't want to see you or any of us get hurt," I added, just in case I offended him or made it seem like I wasn't willing to be compliant and go along with the plan.

"It's the only strategy I can think of that might work that won't end in all of us getting killed," Cyburn said. He narrowed his eyes and studied me with concern. "Are you sure that you are alright?"

"I'm on board," I quickly told him. "I just… can't help thinking that you are essentially using yourself as bait and I guess that worries me."

Cyburn's features softened, but he didn't smile. He frowned and his expression was serious enough to at the very leastpartiallyconvince me that we would live through this.

"I know it might look that way, but I promise you I know what I'm doing. I'm notreallygoing to be the bait."

"Call it a bit of a manipulation tactic," Nix added. "We are ultimately trying to keep Jun under control. We don't want him to get angry because when he's angry, he retaliates."

"He already seems angry to me," I argued.

"Trust me, it could be a lot worse," Cyburn said.

"What if something goes wrong?" I probed. I couldn't help myself. I wanted to stop protesting, but I also wanted to make my fears known so we could address them before it was too late.

"We will wing it if that happens," Cyburn said.

"We'llwingit?" I asked, raising my voice a little too shrill. It just didn't seem good enough to me. I desperately wished that Cyburn would think this through a little more.

"Sometimes you can't plan that far ahead. Sometimes you just need to let things unfold as they come," Cyburn said.

His voice was a little more impatient now, so I decided to back-pedal a little bit to appease him somewhat.

The situation was already tense enough without me adding fuel to the fire.

I scratched the top of my head and smiled between the pair because I wanted to make it look like I was agreeable to the terms and conditions just in case this dictator-scheming alien named Jun was watching our every move. Hopefully he couldn't read lips.

"Yes, okay." It was a simple response, and until my head didn't feel so bogged down with loaded reservations and emotions, it was the only thing I could really go with.

I still thought it was a bad idea for Cyburn to put himself into a trap this dangerous, but what could I really do to stop him?

It just proved just how deep my feelings for him had really traveled in such a short amount of time. It was as if roots of desire and longing had already formed from the time that I first laid eyes on him.

"You don'tlooklike you are okay," Cyburn said, giving me a cynical frown.

He slowly approached me and faced me. He was only standing an inch away from me. He gazed down at me with empathy glimmering in his dark eyes. He reached out and softly stroked my cheek with his leaf-green hand. He looked almost sentimental.

"I'm fine." I smiled wanly and looked away so that he wouldn't be able to see that I was lying to him.

Cyburn gently lifted my chin with the cup of his hand. He gazed down at me with a ton of sensuality. My heart pounded as I stared deep into his eyes— as if searching out his soul.

I still wanted to know the meaning of all this— and where I fit into the mix. Why was I brought to this place? I hated to play the 'why me' card, but it was hard not to think that way.

"We have to do it this way," Cyburn said. "I know it's hard for you to understand right now but sometimes I don't plan things too far in advance until they are actually happening. I work well under pressure like that. I've had to learn my lesson the hard way because when I think too much, it doesn't always work out the way I want it too— and I end up disappointed or hurt."

I nodded my understanding and smiled at him. "I get what you are trying to say."

He'd proved his point in the best way he knew how.

I didn't want to argue with him any longer, even though I thought that his attitude about the whole situation was a bit on the reckless side.

I was quiet as I looked away. My eyes burned, and a knot formed in my throat.

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