She sat in the transport and ran her hands along the leather.
He reached past her, pulling a harness over her and carefully between her breasts. The neckline of her gown kept her sensitive skin away from the straps as he used it and the robe to guard her.
“Why are you hiding?”
“Because I don’t want you to look at me with fear or anything else. I am covered in blood.”
“Blood doesn’t bother me. Can I drive your vehicle?” She was nodding as she fought to stay awake.
He chuckled. “Maybe later. Rest. I will get you somewhere safe.”
“Okay. No groping while I am out.”
He laughed. “No promises.”
She chuckled as darkness swam up and wrapped around her. On to another part of her ordeal.
Khytten squirmed in the soft bedding, and she sighed. She had vague memories of a female voice and soft hands. Her aches and pains were gone. The full-body throb that had been driving her to distraction was gone.
“You were hiding things from me, Eleven. Internal injuries, concussion, fractured wrist, broken rib. You healed a little, but I think it would take far more than you were willing to consume in front of me to heal you.”
She blinked and looked toward the shadows. There was a visible person there, but his face was in shadow. His body took her breath away, but she couldn’t see the rest of him.
“Um, I have a very active endorphin-release system. I can move past the pain fairly easily. My body usually hurts in some way or another. It keeps me moving.” She looked at the light. “Shit. I need to get to the hospital.”
“No, you don’t. You have expressed twice, and the milk has been delivered to the patients in your care.”
She was naked between the sheets and held the top sheet to her chest as she sat up. “I... thank you.”
“You are welcome. You needed rest, and the healer helped me, though she was slightly appalled that I knew how to trigger it.”
Eleven ran her hand along her scalp. “Someone washed my hair?”
“I washed all of you. There was blood everywhere. The Mentor really did blow you up.”
She frowned. “What? Why?”
“Because a precog told him that you were pivotal to what happened next.”
“The guy who had me didn’t tell me that.”
“The men I questioned were more... forthcoming.”
“Oh. Right.” She blushed and looked around. “We aren’t at a hotel.”
“This is a place the Aksalla government keeps for my travels. They have similar places around the world.”
She nodded. “Um, is there anything I can wear?”
“You are doing pretty well with that sheet.”
The air caressed her back and hips. “I would like to leave the bed.”
“Leave it; I am not stopping you.”
She gave him a narrow-eyed look. “Don’t you have people to kill or something?”
He laughed. “Usually. Today, my attention is all for you.”
“That is remarkably un-reassuring.”
“Good.” He got up and went to a dresser. He pulled out a piece of fabric and brought it to her, dropping it in her lap. “Wear that.”
She looked at the t-shirt that would swamp her. “This is yours.”
“It’s clean. You are safe.”
She snorted and pulled the fabric over her head then slid her legs out of bed and tugged it down to mid-thigh. “Thanks.”
“I will add it to your bill.”
“Um, about that. What is my tally so far? I don’t know if I can afford to ask for breakfast.” She pulled her hair out of the shirt and started braiding it.
“Why do you do that?”
She grimaced. “Milk is sticky.”
“Feel free to go exploring. I have to contact Zera and let her know you are awake. She was worried.”
“Okay.” She got up and bolted for the door.
She was out the door and down the hall in a few seconds, and then, a warm iron bar wrapped around her belly. “Where are you going, little prey?”
“Um, high-speed tour?”
He chuckled. “Not fast enough. You will have to work on your speed, Eleven.”
She turned her head and blinked. “Um. I can see you.”
“Yes. I don’t hide in my own home.”
“I thought you said it was a government building.”
“It is, and it isn’t. Now, where were you running to, Eleven?”
“Kitchen?”
“That eager for breakfast? Maybe I should help you.”
He lifted her and carried her through the halls of the large home and into a bright and cheerful kitchen that did not match the man with black velvet skin, black eyes, and pointed ears. He was super handsome—high cheekbones, a sharp nose, and firm and pleasantly curved lips.
“You are staring.”
“You are quite pretty.”
He laughed. “So I have been told.”
He set her down on the kitchen counter. “What can I get for you?”
She reached out to touch him but pulled her hand back. “Um. A muffin, toast, anything?”
“Breakfast in exchange for a kiss.”
She blinked. “Ah. Okay, I guess. I haven’t brushed my teeth.”
He grinned. “I did.”
“What?”
“I brushed your teeth, bathed you, brushed your hair, and dried it. It is super silky, by the way.” He nipped her lower lip before he pressed inward for a kiss that left her breathless. “So, there, I have given you a kiss, now give one to me, and we will get you fed.”
She blushed and put her hands on his shoulders, leaning in until she was making contact with his lips. She started the kiss slowly and deepened it. His hands clenched on her waist and flexed as she slid her tongue along his, past the sharp points of his teeth as she enjoyed the simple and basic contact with him, her nipples pressing against the inside of the shirt showed her that she was enjoying the touch on a basic level that had nothing to do with contracts, dates, or panic. She just enjoyed her patron as a man, and he reciprocated her appreciation.
When she lifted her head, her breathing was rapid. “And a cup of coffee.”
He grinned. “I can manage that.”
“I can get it myself, but there seems to be something stopping me from leaving the counter.”
“Your feet are bare, and the floor
