Page 75 of Star-Crossed Captive
The movement snapped him out of whatever thought had frozen him. He closed the small gap between them, swooped her into his arms, and carried her to the bed. They settled together, front to front, her head tucked under his chin on his shoulder, his arms tight around her.
The position loosened something inside her, and an exhale shuddered through her body.
“I’m sorry, Nia.” His fingers brushed gently where Foley had gripped her throat. It hadn’t been hard, but effective. A bit more pressure, and he could have done severe damage to her larynx.
She swallowed, lifting her gaze to Mace’s from the cocoon of his arms. His icy blue eyes brushed over every feature of her face, searching. She wasn’t sure what the apology was for, their bout of sex against the bulkhead? The underlying threat coating the other commander’s words? Or taking her from her home? His gaze seemed to hold all of that.
And if someone had told her before coming here, that a warrior could apologize, she would have laughed for an hour.
But sincerity lived in his expression, making her chest squeeze and her throat tighten. She was tired of battling her feelings for Mace, tired of feeling guilty for every morsel of peace she found here.
With a small nod, she accepted his apology.
His expression relaxed, and he pulled her closer. She couldn’t stop herself from snuggling deeper, reveling in how his body surrounded hers so completely.
“I don’t think I should go to common holding,” she whispered against his chest. Then, because it wasn’t the complete truth, added, “I don’t want to go.”
His arms tightened around her, then relaxed. “All right.”
Her bonds beeped, and she glanced downward. Her day off was over.
Chapter twenty-seven
Thesoftbeepofhis vambrace woke him. It took Mace a second to realize where he was, why contentment enveloped him, warm. Why tranquility felt like a protective shield.
He’d been sleeping in the barracks so long, his own bed felt unfamiliar.
Nia’s cheek rested against the curve of his shoulder, her lips against his chest. Her fingers curled into the fabric of his uniform at his sternum, like she prevented his escape, and her knees were wedged between his thighs.
Stars above, he never wanted to move. It felt too right, too perfect.
He’d tried to stay away from her. All it did was cause problems. He’d always listened to his instincts before this, they’d never led him astray, and he should have done so with Nia too.
They screamed at him to keep her as close as possible.
His vambrace beeped again, and he shifted his body enough to see the panel. Incoming communiques, morning announcements, the automatic reminder his tyros started training in a few minutes—it all marked the beginning of the day, one he’d rather ignore if it meant he could keep holding Nia.
But him not returning to work after leaving without an explanation would only create more problems, give Cache more reasons to follow through on her threats. If adhering to their regular schedule kept Nia safer, then that’s what he needed to do.
“Nia?” He lifted his hand to run his knuckles along her cheek. Her eyes remained closed, her lips parted.
Sleep made her appear younger than her years. The guilt, the thought he should have left her behind, tried to reemerge, but he pushed it away. Regret had no place between them anymore.
He cupped her cheek, then pressed his lips to her forehead. “Nia.”
“Mmmm?” she murmured, snuggling deeper into the fluffy bedding.
The action made his chest feel like it wanted to explode. She trusted him.
He ran his hand along her arm to her fingers and took them in his own. “It’s time to get up, Nia.”
Her eyes popped open, body stiffening. For a split second, he thought she would push him away and scramble to her feet, but she relaxed into his embrace.
A small smile curved her lips. “Morning.”
“Morning.” He tucked a curl behind her ear. “I need to get to work soon.”
She furrowed her brow. “What were you doing when I found you yesterday? Dee called it training.”
