Salvation

A Total-E-Bound Publication

www.total-e-bound.com

Salvation ISBN # 978-0-85715-551-1 ©Copyright Jambrea Jo Jones 2011 Cover Art by Posh Gosh ©Copyright May 2011 Edited by Claire Siemaszkiewicz Total-E-Bound Publishing This is a work of fiction. All characters, places and events are from the author’s imagination and should not be confused with fact. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, events or places is purely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any material form, whether by printing, photocopying, scanning or otherwise without the written permission of the publisher, Total-E-Bound Publishing. Applications should be addressed in the first instance, in writing, to Total-E-Bound Publishing. Unauthorised or restricted acts in relation to this publication may result in civil proceedings and/or criminal prosecution. The author and illustrator have asserted their respective rights under the Copyright Designs and Patents Acts 1988 (as amended) to be identified as the author of this book and illustrator of the artwork. Published in 2011 by Total-E-Bound Publishing, Think Tank, Ruston Way, Lincoln, LN6 7FL, United Kingdom.

Warning: This book contains sexually explicit content which is only suitable for mature readers. This story has been rated Total-e-burning.

Alliance

SALVATION Jambrea Jo Jones

Dedication Joy—You rock. That is all. Shannon—Thank you for bantering back and forth with me on Ethan’s group. Just remember—Brandon is MINE. Lol. You did win fair and square. Now give me more. Please. Um…I said please…is it done yet? Heehee

Trademarks Acknowledgement The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of the following wordmark mentioned in this work of fiction: Spyderco Dragonfly Knives: Spyderco Inc. Band-Aid: Johnson & Johnson

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Chapter One

“What the fuck?” Rock stumbled as the ship shuddered. He looked up as Sela ran onto the bridge. “Hold on to something. A ship just exploded in our path.” He focussed on steering the Salvation out of the flames but something caught his eye. “Se, there’s an emergency pod! See if you can find their frequency and hail them,” Rock said over his shoulder, fully expecting her to jump to it. She was efficient that way. He scanned the area to see if there were any other emergency crafts, but didn’t see any other pods in the aftermath of the explosion. “I’m supposed to be on vacation. I didn’t sign up for this,” Se grumbled. “You didn’t have to come, you know.” It came out more harshly than he’d intended, but they were in crisis mode right now. “Rave wouldn’t have forgiven me if I’d let you go on a gun run on your own,” she said clearly, then he thought he heard her mumble, “Stupid libido.” “I’ve been doing this solo for a while. I don’t need my hand held by Rave and your cousin. Or you for that matter. Shit. Someone’s shooting at the pod. You get a frequency yet?” Rock threw back at her. “I’m going as fast as I can.” “Go faster,” he snapped. He wasn’t irritated with her but he needed to get to the pilot of that pod. He’d apologise later. Maybe. “Damn it, Rock. If you don’t like my speed, do it yourself.” “Stop arguing with me. I’d like to find out why my gun sale went south.” He didn’t understand her need to fight him at every turn. Most days it was a turn-on, but this wasn’t the time or the place for his cock to take charge. “What are you talking about?” Se sounded peevish. “That ship was my contact. Maybe whoever escaped in the pod has the answers I need.” “Put more pressure on me, why don’t you?” Se said under her breath. “Se!” He was about to lose what little sanity he had left. Didn’t she know that?

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“It isn’t the fate of the world. It’s one gun sale.” Se sighed, pushing her hair out of her face. “Those guns were going to a planet being overrun with marauders. The inhabitants need to protect themselves or they’ll be enslaved. So, yeah, the fate of someone’s world could be at stake. We need that pod.” They were going to have to do something about the sexual tension between them soon because he couldn’t take the fighting anymore. He’d rather be fucking. And now wasn’t the time. Damn. “Stop it with the bleeding heart stuff. I’ve got them,” Se mumbled almost to herself. “I’m the bleeding heart?” That made him smile. He’d never been known for his sympathy. Not that he wasn’t sympathetic, but money was a bigger motivator. Se laughed. “Just talk to the pod. You’re keyed in.” And just like that, his sanity was back. They really did work well together. “Emergency pod, this is the captain of the Salvation. Do you need assistance?” There was no response. Fuck. That couldn’t be good. “Are you sure this is right?” He looked over at Se. “Yes. They probably don’t know if we are friend or foe. They did just come off an exploding ship and who knows who’s there or what shape they’re in.” Se shrugged. “This is the captain of the Salvation. We will shelter you. Please acknowledge,” Rock tried again, realising that Se was correct—anyone could be in there and only a handful of people had known he was meeting up with the ship. “How do you use this thing? Hello? Hello?” A masculine voice floated over the airwaves. Rock bit back a shout of relief. “I hear you. Do you need us to bring you in?” On screen, another shot hit the pod. Rock couldn’t look away—it was like a bad vid streaming in 3D, and he had front row seats. “Rock, you need to get that ship in here or it’s going to fall apart.” Se’s worry coloured her voice. “Emergency pod, we’ve got a lock on you. Don’t touch anything. We’re bringing you in.” Rock manipulated the controls and the pod slowly inched its way towards the Salvation. Come on, come on. It was taking forever. Or seemed to be. He needed to upgrade his fucking equipment.

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Finally! Rock had the pod in his ship and not a moment too soon. If he’d waited another second the pod would have been gone—along with his answers. Who had escaped and what the hell was going on? “I’m going to meet the pod. Get us the hell out of here.” He left the ship in Se’s capable hands and made his way to the loading dock. The ship lurched, and he stumbled but caught himself. “Damn it, Se. Take it easy,” he yelled towards the bridge. “Bite me,” she yelled back. In her dreams. In his too, but he wasn’t about to tell her that. At least not yet. But soon, damn it. He was tired of jacking off when he had a perfectly lovely companion travelling with him. The bay doors opened and Rock halted at the sight before him. The man who’d emerged from the pod stole his breath. The guy was taller than Rock and slim, with rusty red hair and bright blue eyes. Rock’s type times ten. “Are you my saviour? You don’t have a gun hidden anywhere do you? I think I’ve had about enough of that for today, if you please.” The man clutched the frame of the pod, holding so tightly his knuckles were white. Rock noticed. He took in every detail of the striking man. Even his voice was sexy. His cock liked it, that was for sure. Se called over the com, “Rock, hold on tight. We have a tail. I need to warp it.” Se’s voice right after the stranger’s did something to Rock’s body that was unexpected, in the form of an instant hard-on. He’d thought he was hard before? So not what he needed right now. “You might want to walk this way before we hit warp, and grab one of these bars.” Rock motioned for the man to join him, hoping he didn’t see the tent in his pants. No need to scare the man—yet. “Yes, about that…I don’t think—” The redhead crumpled to the floor. “Shit.” Rock raced to the downed man. He knelt over him and gazed at the gorgeous form. What the hell have I got myself into this time? Rock pulled the slim body close to protect the stranger from the jolt of the jump. No sense in hurting the man more than he appeared to be already. Rock hoped it was mostly

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adrenaline that had made him pass out. Bracing himself against the floor, he prepared for the ship to shoot to its new destination. “Did I die?” The bluest eyes he had ever seen gazed into his. The red lashes fluttered with each blink. Rock cleared his throat and adjusted his position so the guy couldn’t feel his erection— it wasn’t going away any time soon. Traitor. His stupid cock needed to make up its mind. He wanted Se and he wasn’t sure she’d be on board with adding another guy to the mix. What was wrong with him? Fuck. He hadn’t even approached the woman yet. “No. You’re not dead. You’re aboard the Salvation. We pulled up as your ship exploded. I’m Rockwell Loy. The captain. Are you hurt anywhere?” He had to make sure the guy wasn’t injured somewhere he couldn’t see, and getting his hands on that trim body would be a plus in his book. The ship levelled out and Rock got up, giving the other man his hand to help him off the floor. “No. No. I’m fine. I got away in time. I’m Zander—Dr Alexander d’Ado. Maybe I should sit back—” “Let’s get you to sick bay. Do a scan.” Zander’s face had gone white. That couldn’t be good. Before Rock finished his sentence, Zander had passed out again. Rock swept the smaller man up in his arms and headed out of the docking bay. The solid body was warm in his arms and somehow…right. “Se, what’s our status?” he shouted towards the helm, not taking time for a com unit. Focus on the job at hand, asshole. Weren’t you just lamenting the fact that you wouldn’t mess with Se? Now you want some stranger. I need to get laid. God he was fucked up. “All clear, Rock,” Se yelled back. “Could you meet me in sick bay?” “What’s wrong?” Couldn’t the woman ever do anything without all the questions? “Just—” he counted to five “—get down here.” “Aye aye, sir. Whatever you say, sir.”

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“Smartass,” he muttered under his breath. They reached sick bay in no time at all. He lowered Zander onto the cot, glad to get away from the guy. Zander had felt too right in his arms, and smelt of cloves and something Rock couldn’t name, but which overwhelmed his senses. “Whoa. Who is that?” Se entered the room, her gaze wandering over Zander’s body. Rock looked away to take a moment to settle himself. He didn’t know why, but Se checking out Zander had his libido on high alert. Damn it. Se was too important for him to be lusting after someone else. And now this, wanting them both. Yep. He was well and truly fucked up. “This is the guy from the escape pod. We need to do a scan. He passed out, twice. Where did you take us? Did you lose our tail?” he shot the questions out in rapid-fire succession to distract himself from his lust. Se grabbed the hand scanner. “I did a warp and vector scan. No one else is out here. We don’t want to stay for too long though, to be safe. Might want to do another warp so they can’t catch up if they did a trace on our signature.” “What happened?” a confused voice said from the med cot. Se and Rock both turned to look at the refugee. “Don’t move, Zander. I don’t want you to pass out again and we need to do a scan. How do you feel?” Rock kept his voice calm in case Zander didn’t remember meeting him. “Like I’ve been ploughed into by a space cruiser. My head is aching.” Zander cradled his head in his hands as he tried to sit up. “Did you hit it on anything?” Se approached Zander with the device. “I don’t believe so, but it all happened so quickly. One minute I was on the ship with my equipment and the next, I heard a call for everyone to abandon ship. I didn’t even look back. I don’t have much experience piloting the pods, but it had an auto function. But then there were shots. After that, you pulled me in.” Zander pointed at Rock. “You aren’t involved are you? Should I worry about another attack? Well, you wouldn’t rightly tell me if you were the bad guy would you? Ouch!” “Well—Zander is it? You hit your head on something. The scan is picking up a concussion. If you take it easy, you’ll be fine. And no, we aren’t the bad guys.” “And just who are you, if you don’t mind my asking?” Zander still sounded sceptical. “I’m Sela Sims. Helping out with co-piloting.” She gave a two-finger salute.

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“Right. So why were you two in the sector?” “You sure do have a lot of questions. Maybe you should answer some of ours. Like why was that ship firing on you? What kind of trouble did you bring my way?” Rock raised a brow. “Me! This has nothing to do with me. I was minding my own business, hopping a transport to Vega Delta to finish my research.” The warning sirens blared. Not good. They’d found them. “Fuck me!” Rock pounded a fist into the door. “If this isn’t about you, why did they follow? Damn it, Se. I thought you said you lost them.” Rock’s frustration was palpable. “I did.” Exasperation filled her voice. “I also said they could have put a tracer on us. We were sitting there long enough. Don’t make this my fault.” Se pointed a finger at him. “Check him and the pod for a tracking device. I’ll see about getting us out of here.” Rock rushed to the bridge, pushing thoughts of Se and Zander out of his head. He had a ship to save and a libido to get under control.

**** Zander examined his surroundings. How did he get into these situations? It was always something, as if he was accident-prone or something. But this one couldn’t be about him. He was a scientist working on a cure for an obscure disease that had hit Vega Delta. It wasn’t even a life-threatening illness. He did his research and stayed in his bubble of science. “Sit tight and let me do a tracker scan. I need to recalibrate the equipment.” The woman waved the med wand at him and pushed a few buttons. “There’s no way I have a tracker attached to my body.” “I’ll believe the equipment.” She winked at him. “Ma’am, I’m telling yo—” “Oh, hell no. Do not ma’am me. It’s Sela or Se. I am nobody’s ma’am.” “Well, yes, but I’m being respectful. I didn’t mean to offend you in any way.” He may not have been raised by a set of parents but he knew how to respect a woman. “Just—just sit there and look pretty, okay? This will be over soon enough and then I need to get to your pod. You’d better not be lying and this had better not be some kind of trap. If it is, you’d better hope I kill you quick before Rock gets to your ass. Capiche?”

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“There is no need for violence. I am being truthful.” What an odd, but attractive woman. “Yeah, yeah. I hear ya.” Sela waved the wand over his body from head to toe. When it got to his knee, it started to beep. “What is that?” It could not be what she thought it was. No way. The equipment had to be wrong. “That is a tracking device. Looks like it’s embedded in your leg.” Sela reached behind her and grabbed an instrument before huddling over his knee. “What kind of equipment do you have here? That looks old.” His curiosity overtook his uncertainty. “We aren’t up to regs on our medical supplies but we don’t have much use for it here. Oh, I should say, Rock doesn’t. He likes to be all caveman about things and thinks a BandAid will fix it. I need to get that thing out of your leg before we warp again so hold still.” Zander scrambled off the cot and backed away. “Do you even know what you’re doing?” He was appalled that a non-medical person would try to extract something from his body, and would have preferred a real medical facility and a doctor. Or maybe he could do it himself. “Sit down. It won’t hurt. Much.” Was that glee in her voice? “We don’t have a lot of time. Don’t make me knock you out. I’m going to need your help with the pod. How did you get a tracker in your leg?” She closed in on him. “I don’t know. I—well, shit.” How could he have been so stupid? “I had to go to the med bay for a check-up. I was told it was mandatory for boarding. They gave me an inoculation in my leg. I should have—damn it. Pardon the language. I am not myself. I don’t mean to curse.” “Yeah, you need to get over that. You’re not offending anyone on this ship. Now what are you involved in?” He wasn’t involved in anything. Was he? Something about this whole situation was wrong. Very wrong. And he didn’t know if he had enough information to get to the bottom of it. He didn’t have enemies. He’d have to know a lot of people for that to happen, and he was very solitary. Growing up in one of the tech orphanages didn’t lead to many friends. Most of the world thought he was a freak, being born for the sole purpose of being a scientist. His DNA a mismatch of prime genes. A good old test tube baby. He had no idea who his

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parents were. Not that it bothered him anymore. He did his work and that was that. His life was beholden to the Alliance so he would do what he must, but he didn’t always have to like it. But enough of that, it still didn’t make any logical sense for someone to be after him. “Get this thing out of my leg.” Starting to panic about all of the unknowns, he returned to the cot. “Please,” he added as an afterthought. It never hurt to be polite, even in the face of danger and his controlled universe being ripped apart. He wasn’t this important. His day consisted of waking up, working, eating, reading and going to bed. Nothing exciting. Maybe he had an occasional fling, but those were few and far between. He didn’t like to be the aggressor, so he spent more nights alone than not. Zander racked his brain for any clue that would explain why this was happening. Now that he thought about it, things had been normal for too long. He was practically due a colossal fuck up. “This will only take a sec.” Sela said calmly. Zander took a deep breath and gathered his scattered thoughts. Control. He could take it back. “I’m ready.” She was quick and efficient with the equipment and it didn’t hurt. More like an inoculation than anything. She dropped the transmitter into a liquid and he watched as it dissolved to nothing. It was such a small thing to cause so much trouble. “Okay, let’s get to that pod and report to Rock. You okay to walk? I don’t want you passing out again. I won’t be able to catch you.” She looked him up and down and he straightened his posture. “I’ll be fine.” He assured her. And Zander would be. No matter how unlucky he was, he could handle himself. He may only be a scientist, but he knew the rewards of being able to protect yourself. The geeky kid that he’d been had needed a little help in that regard. Not that he was a lethal weapon or anything, but he could hold his own if he had to. He just hoped he didn’t have to. He followed Se out of sick bay. It was then that he really got a good look at the woman in front of him. Her ass made him want to touch. She was sexy, with a curvy, lush body. Her long black hair swayed with her every step. He wasn’t expecting the rush of lust that racked his body. He’d attribute it to the adrenaline of fleeing for his life. “You coming, or are you going to stare at my ass for the duration?” She teased.

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Shit. Busted. He looked up and she winked at him. At least she didn’t appear to be angry. He really didn’t think he could take a slap right now. His head hurt as it was. “I—sorry. Didn’t mean to—” She laughed and it was beautiful. The sound was music to his ears, a full belly laugh as if she didn’t have a care in the world. Se was all woman and he was very attracted to her. “I’m not complaining. Just, not the time. And you’re cute when you blush. Your face almost matches your hair.” She turned back around and led the way to the docking bay. He hated the fact that his complexion always gave him away. And the fact that he couldn’t be suave. He was a bumbling—well, he would say idiot, but that wouldn’t be true. He wasn’t exactly stupid. He pulled up short when he realised they had reached their destination. The ship wasn’t that big. Se tossed something at him, and he almost dropped it but caught it before it hit the ground. “What is this?” he asked, curiosity getting the better of his embarrassment. It looked like one of the instruments he used to get a reading from certain elements. “A scanner. Slowly wave it over the ship. If it beeps at you, then you’ve found the tracker. Easy.” She shrugged and started running her scanner over the hull of the pod. So it was like his equipment. Shouldn’t be hard to use. “Se, you found those trackers yet? These ships are coming into firing range. I need to jump and I don’t want them to keep following us,” Rock’s voice filtered through the bay. “What is it with you and rushing me? We’re working here. Leave us be and do your magic. And I hate to say it, but unless you do a wipe, they are going to follow. If we weren’t traced before, we have been by now.” Se smiled at Zander and continued waving her scanner over the ship. Zander jumped at Rock’s reply. The man sounded so angry and he was big. No way he wanted to get on the captain’s bad side. “Damn it, Se. For once, could you please do what I ask and not fight me every fucking step of the way? I already did a wipe. I’ll do another one before we jump. Just tell me you’ve got it taken care of.” “Awww, you know you like it when I give you a hard time.”

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The ship jolted and Zander fell. What the hell? Was this ship going to be shot out of the sky too? Once was plenty, and if he didn’t have to experience it again it would be a good thing. “God damn it, Se. We’re out of time. I’m jumping.” Zander scrambled up and continued his work. Nothing. No trackers. It had been him the whole time. What the hell was going on? “Rock, we’re good. Found one tracker and destroyed it.” Se turned towards him. “So, Zander, what do you have to say for yourself now?” Rock’s voice on the com interrupted anything Zander could say. Not that he had any clues. He was in the dark, and he didn’t like the feeling of hopelessness that hit him. “Hold on, you two. We’re preparing for warp in three, two, one, warp.” Zander fell on his ass—again. He was tired of looking like a fool, but he was so out of his element. Where was his nice quiet lab when he really needed it? He never should have taken the job on Vega Delta. Se reached out to help him up. “Alright, Zander. Let’s head to the bridge and have a little chat. Something is going on and we need to figure it out.” Zander nodded at Se and followed her again, with a heavy heart. How could he explain that he was a nobody? There was no rhyme or reason to any of this. And all those people, now dead, because of him and he had no clue what it could be. Maybe they were mistaken. It could have been a simple tracer device installed for tracking him on Vega Delta. But he knew that wasn’t the case and he wasn’t in the habit of lying to himself. Something was going on, and he was going to need help to get to the bottom of it. Hopefully they’d believe him.

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Chapter Two

“You what? There is no way you could have lost him. We tagged his person.” The serenity of Larrison Walker’s voice masked the inner anger. There was no need to show his rage to those beneath him. He could kill them all on a whim. And generally did. “I’m sorry, Mr Walker, but the signal is gone.” “Get the backup on line and find Dr d’Ado. I want the man alive. Find out who fired on his pod in the first place, and I want a report on the ship that took him in. That man is more valuable than all of you put together. Do you understand?” The lackey visibly swallowed before answering, “Yes, sir. We understand.” He was sure they did. Larrison didn’t suffer fools. They died under his hand. Only an idiot would double cross him. Generally, he tried to avoid hiring buffoons, but it looked like this latest batch might be a waste. Oh well. He would take what he could get from them. As soon as they found Zander again he would ‘dismiss’ the entire crew. There were always greedy people out there who would do what he wanted and not ask questions. The universe was full of desperate people. Zander d’Ado was another matter. No one left him. Ever. Larrison decided when to end something. He’d had grand plans for Zander, and this little mishap would not stand in his way. The need to kill something was powerful, and he had to have the release so he could carry on without letting his rage show through to the crew. Not yet. There was a time and a place for violence. “Mr Smith, I need to see you in my office. Mr Roberts will finish your search.” Larrison walked out, fully expecting the man to follow. His office would be the perfect place. He’d had it soundproofed for this very reason. The anticipation crawled over his skin, but he didn’t let it show. The outer world would only see his calm face. They could never know the beast that lived within. This little bit of play time would help keep the monster happy. He removed his jacket the moment he entered the office. This would need to be messy to satisfy him. Larrison rolled up his cuffs and he opened the drawer holding his weapons.

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He chose a long, serrated knife and a gun for the end kill. Mr Smith would be begging for the gun by the time he was finished. Sometimes begging was good. “No need to cower at the door, Smith. Come on in and close it behind you. The seat in front of my desk will do fine.” Larrison gestured towards the metal chair. Metal was much easier to clean. He’d found that out the hard way. He’d ruined a perfectly good chaise longue that way and it still upset him. Maybe he should get another one like it for his cabin. It had been comfortable. Hmm—maybe a green this time. Yes, that would be nice. “You ne—needed to see me?” Mr Smith’s voice wavered, cutting into Larrison’s musings. “Yes. I did. I am unhappy with your performance. The loss of Dr d’Ado is unacceptable. When we fired on that vessel, someone should have secured the good doctor. I believe that is what I ordered. Correct?” He raised a brow, waiting for the answer. “It is. I’m not sure—” Mr Smith stumbled over his words. “No need for talk. You fucked up. You know it and I know it. You’ll take your punishment like a man.” Larrison had expected the guy to run. It wouldn’t have been fun if he had sat still. Smith’s whimpering turned him on. He had to adjust his pants. There would be time for that pleasure later. It was no use running, but Smith didn’t need Larrison to tell him that. The door would only open at Larrison’s command, but Smith continued to scratch at it like he hoped the next nudge would open it and he’d escape what was coming to him. The likelihood of that was nil. Larrison had been at this long enough to have worked out any kinks that could come up. Smith was dead already, he just didn’t know it—yet. “Please, sir.” “Now, now. No need to beg. Take your punishment.” He was enjoying Smith’s panic. It fed the demon inside. The demon howled for more. It wanted blood. “I—” Larrison closed the distance so he could whisper in the incompetent fool’s ear, “You will die. There is no doubt about that.” He yanked Smith around and punched him in the face. The crack of the man’s head against the door was like music to his ears. Yes, this was what he lived for. Smith tried to speak again, but Larrison jabbed him in the throat so he could no longer talk. The whimpers

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would be enough. Smith speaking would simply distract him. He moved away and let Smith slump to the floor. Time for the pretty, shiny knife. It wasn’t his favourite, but it would work for the incompetent fool on the ground. The handle fitted perfectly in his hand and his palm curled around it as if it was a part of his very being. When he turned back, Smith was gone, making Larrison smile. Good. He wanted a challenge and it looked like he would get it. Of course, there weren’t many places to hide in his office. “Good call, Smith. Very good indeed. I wonder where you got to.” Larrison made a show of looking around the room. He tapped the knife against the desk. Tap. Tap. Tap. That sound usually made prey nervous. He tilted his head, listening for that sweet whimper. It was faint, but there. Under his desk, as he’d suspected. He went to the door. “Open,” he requested and stepped outside. His hand halted the full close, leaving the door ajar. The sound of footsteps racing to the door came, as expected. The scared were woefully predictable. It really had been a long time since he had a good hunt. But this one was cautious. Smith slowed and peered around the entrance. Larrison aimed low and stabbed Smith in the thigh. Nice and deep he twisted the knife, until he heard the high pitched squeal he wanted. His cock hardened further. Smith crumpled to the floor, allowing Larrison to drag him back into the room. “Now, Smith. How stupid do you think I am?” He stood over the prone body and unzipped his pants. Fear widened his prey’s eyes. He stroked himself, letting Smith think the worst for a moment. “Dear boy, I have no interest in you, sexually. You aren’t my type.” Larrison knelt down and sat on Smith’s groin. He leant back a little so he could push on the fresh wound, the smell of blood exciting him even more. He wanted to bathe in it. And maybe he would. Later. He had other plans for right now. “You’re handsome, in a rugged sort of way. Let’s see what we can do about that, shall we?” He caressed Smith’s cheek with the end of the blade. Not deep enough to cut. He wanted to draw this out. Smith’s chest showed his rapid breath. The rise and fall like a hummingbird’s wings, so fast. The man might just hyperventilate. He carved the skin in the shape of an L. Smith tried to scream, his chest tense with it, but nothing but wheezing sounds came out of his mouth. Lovely. Smith’s shoulder was next.

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The blade slid in as if he was cutting butter. The sucking sound of its release from Smith’s body almost made Larrison come right there. It took him a minute to realise that Smith wasn’t moving. He felt for a pulse. Nothing. “Shit. That was very unsatisfactory, Smith. I shouldn’t be surprised—you were a fuck up.” He patted the man’s cheek. His cock deflated. “You ruined a perfectly good time.” He moved off the man and headed to the shower. The blood no longer held his interest. If the man had been stronger the blood would have been worthy of a bath. A waste of time that one. The weak didn’t appeal to him. Thoughts of Zander perked him right up. He turned on the water and stepped inside the shower. If he closed his eyes, he could imagine the good doctor was right in front of him. On his knees, where he belonged, with Larrison’s dick in his mouth, cutting off his air supply, the water raining around them. Larrison braced his palm against the wall, gripped his cock with his other hand and pumped it slowly, allowing his imagination to take over. It didn’t take him long to come. It never did when he thought of pretty boy Zander, with his lovely red hair and bright blue eyes. Too bad he’d never had a chance to put Zander through his paces. He would rectify that soon. Larrison towelled off and dressed. He needed to see how the search was going, but first he needed to take care of Smith. He intercommed his right hand man. The gentleman who knew all his secrets. The only one Larrison would never kill. It was always good to have at least one person around whom you could trust. “Reginald.” “Yes, sire.” “I have a disposal I need you to take care of.” “Right away.” The best money he’d ever spent. He’d saved Reginald from a life that would have led to his imminent death. The man was forever grateful and would do whatever was asked, no matter how dirty the task. Larrison had tested him over the years, and Reginald had never failed him. Now that he’d taken care of disposing of the body, he could go and check on Roberts. The man had better have good news, or he’d be the next one on Larrison’s office floor.

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They would all die, every member of this crew. The only difference would be how. For most it would be a quick death, but failure…well, he hoped more of them failed. He did need his sport. Larrison walked out of his office, Smith no longer in his thoughts. The only thing his mind had room for was Zander. Sweet, clumsy Zander. Larrison smiled. He remembered when Zander first caught his eye. It was some research facility on a backwater planet. He didn’t remember why he was there, but the moment he saw Zander everything else faded. Zander was walking the corridors and bumped into Lar. Usually that would anger him and he’d think of a way to ruin the other person. But something about Zander stopped him. Lar knew the man needed to be his. He’d sent Reginald to sweet talk Zander because Lar didn’t want to mess up his chances. He was too eager. Zander was polite, but too involved in his work and he’d left before Lar could make Zander his. That wouldn’t happen this time. Not again. He couldn’t wait to carve his initials into the beautiful white flesh of Zander’s ass. It was nice and plump and would be his for the taking. The blood would complement the redhead’s complexion. He knew Zander could take what he wanted to dish out. All in good time. He whistled on the way to the captain’s deck. Life was great and about to get better as soon as Zander was in his bed.

**** “So what makes you so special that someone would plant a tracker on your person?” Se asked the question, but Rock wanted to know the answer as well. “I’m nobody. I was commissioned to find a cure for a pox that showed up on Vega Delta. Nothing extraordinary. It’s basically a nuisance. It isn’t like I’m working on a weapon or something that could take out a planet, or heck—even the Grey Death. Not that I think anyone would want to stop that from being cured.” Zander shrugged and looked embarrassed. It was kind of cute, but Rock didn’t have time for that. Ship first. He needed to keep everyone safe. Rave and Kain would fillet him alive if anything happened to Se. Not that he’d blame Se’s cousin and his partner. He would rather die than have Se get hurt. “Do you know who blew up the ship you were on? Were there any clues?” Rock knew there had to be a reason. Something the doctor wasn’t telling them.

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“The captain came over the speakers and asked everyone to head to their emergency pods. I gathered a few things and made my way to mine. I was to share it with three other passengers. No one showed up. Things started to explode so I hopped in and took off. You pretty much know the rest.” Zander bit his lip. “I don’t have any secrets.” “Well, if it wasn’t for something you were working on, do you have any personal enemies? Someone that would want to hurt you?” Se drew closer to Zander as she spoke. Rock liked seeing them there, side by side. Her darker colouring complemented Zander’s fair skin. What he wouldn’t do to see the two kiss. Her dark hair would look wonderful wrapped around Zander’s fist. Rock shifted. He wanted to be near them both. God, it had been so long since he’d craved two lovers but something about these two called to him. Ship first. Come on man, concentrate. Zander looked down at his hands, as if he was concentrating on his answers. “Not that I know of. I usually keep to myself.” The man seemed a bit ashamed of his words. Rock didn’t like that look on his face. What he wouldn’t do to wipe it off there for good. “We’re going to Cooper Prime. It’s where I live. Maybe we can figure this out there. You should be thinking of anything you’ve worked on that someone might want. Or anybody you’ve pissed off.” Rock wanted them both in his home. The thought was irrational, but he didn’t give a flying fuck. “Should we call in Rave and Kain?” Se looked worried. “Not yet. Let them enjoy their time together, they deserve the break. They haven’t been back together that long and I don’t want to interrupted them. We might have to involve them later. But I hope not. They do have connections that I don’t.” And he didn’t want them around yet. Not until he convinced the two in front of him to become his lovers. His friend Rave would give him shit, but Rock didn’t know how Se’s cousin, Kain, would take her having two lovers. He had enough to worry about without adding more people to the situation. “This might seem of out the blue but are you two…” Zander cleared his throat, “are you…” he waved a hand between Rock and Se, “a couple?” he ended with a squawk. Se looked over at him and Rock winked. “Ah…no?” Rock laughed, “You sound so sure of that, Se.”

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“Shut up. I didn’t hear you rushing to answer.” She was cute when she pouted. It looked better than the scowl she’d been wearing recently. She had a point. He punched in the coordinates and set the autopilot, before moving towards Zander. He pulled Se along with him. He got so close his chest pressed against Zander’s. Rock answered, “No. We aren’t.” “I told Kain and Rave you were gay, but they said, ‘No Se. Just talk to him. You’ll see’.” She tried to wiggle her hand free of Rock’s hold, but he wasn’t letting go. “Yet,” Rock whispered. “I was going to say, ‘yet’. You didn’t let me finish, Se.” “So, you aren’t gay?” Se sounded relieved and unsure at the same time. “What’s with the labels, Se?” Rock teased, now that he knew for sure she wanted him. Zander must be attracted to at least one of them to have brought up the subject of couples. Glad for the intro, Rock took one of Zander’s hands and one of Se’s. He pressed the two together over his rock hard cock, closing his eyes at the feel of both of them. This could go very wrong or very right. He was hoping for the latter. God he wanted them both in his bed. Rock’s eyes flew open in disappointment when Zander tugged his hand away. He held in the whimper the brush of fingers over his dick had caused. If he was being rejected, no way was he giving away how good it felt to be touched by Zander. “I—what—um—” Zander put his hands behind his back but Rock could see that Zander was as affected as he was, so why had he moved away? “Rock—” Se looked unsure and her gaze kept going back and forth between him and Zander. “Listen. I’m attracted to you both. Hell, if I had my way we’d all be naked in one of the bunks having fun until we reached Cooper. The thought of watching you two touch and kiss has me so turned on I could come right now.” He paused to see if they were still with him. Se had a beautiful blush going. As a matter of fact, so did Zander. Man, they were hot. “It’s okay if you don’t like guys, Zander. I’m not going to jump all over you. I can keep my distance. No harm, no foul.” Rock held up his hands and shrugged. “That’s not…How do I…? Well, damn.” Zander was obviously flustered. “Sorry, I mean, darn. I—” “Forget I said anything. Se, you have the bridge.”

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Rock walked away. So much for spontaneity. He should have waited more than an hour to try to get into Zander’s pants. Talk about smooth. He’d get the man to safety and forget this whole thing. And after that clusterfuck, Se would probably be trying to get away from him at warp speed, too. Fresh from Rave’s rejection, he hadn’t approached Se initially because he’d wanted to make sure he was attracted to her, not just a warm body. No way would she settle for being a rebound, and he wouldn’t want that for her. He was happy that Kain was back in Rave’s life and that they’d made their peace, but it had left him feeling lonely. And Se was like family— he didn’t want to hurt her over a casual fuck. Over the months he’d got to know her better, and that had made the attraction deeper, but he’d still been gun-shy. Seeing Zander and Se together…something clicked inside him. This was the real deal. Well, Se was. He needed to find out more about Zander, but they could have had fun in the meantime. If he hadn’t scared Zander off. There wasn’t anything he could do right now. One thing at a time. Oh, well. Time to get reacquainted with Mr Righty and a bottle of lube.

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Chapter Three

Zander had been struck speechless. Nothing new there. He usually didn’t have too much to say. He was socially awkward and only felt at home in his lab. Having the gorgeous Rock want him was a new experience. “That went well,” Se broke the silence. He still didn’t know what to say. “I didn’t mean to…” He trailed off. “You know, I’ve wanted that man for a while now. I figured he was off limits and gay because he had a thing for my Rave, cousin’s man. Now this. Not only is he not gay, but he wants to knock it with both of us. Who’d a thought?” “I’m sorry.” He didn’t know what he was apologising for, but it felt like the right thing to do. It was, after all, his fault Rock had left. “Don’t be sorry. Maybe you should sit down.” Se placed her hand on his shoulder. “Why?” Zander was so confused right now he didn’t know up from down, and she wasn’t helping at all. “Because I’m about to say something and I don’t want you passing out or anything. Plus, you look pretty pale and you’ve been through a lot in the last hour or so. Sit.” “Okay.” Zander looked around and found the captain’s chair. Maybe he didn’t want to hear this. “The idea of you and Rock together has me so turned on it isn’t even funny. The thought of all of us tangled on the bed is mind-blowing and I’m very horny. How’s that for full-on honesty?” Se gave a dry chuckle. “You two are very blunt, aren’t you? I’m not used to this kind of frank talk. It is usually just me and my beakers alone in a room.” “That sounds like fun.” Se snorted. “For me, it is. I could lose myself for days trying to find the right chemical combination to solve a problem. But, if I were to be honest, since we’re sharing, I am not unaffected by the thought of all of us together either.” His words rushed together a little at the end, but at least he got it all out.

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“Well, damn. Maybe I should have sat down too.” Se chuckled again, this time with more warmth. Zander wondered where this left him. Should he try to kiss her? He hated not knowing what to do. He felt like an idiot and he knew he had to be bright red. But he didn’t have to worry about making a move. Se walked over and straddled his lap. “I’m not sure what I should do here.” Zander stuck with the truth, trying not to show how uncomfortable he was. This was different from a casual hook-up. He would be on this ship with these two for who knew how long—however long it took to reach Rock’s planet. He couldn’t walk away and leave if things got awkward. “Right now, you don’t have to do anything. Let me do all the work.” Se’s sultry voice pulled him from his thoughts. Se leant in and brushed her lips against his. He gulped. That was nice. More than that, it turned him on. “Zander, are you a virgin?” Se whispered against his mouth. That gave him pause. What would make her think—? Oh. “No. I’m not, but this situation is not the norm. You would agree with that, right? And I’m not one to make the first move. As a matter of fact, this is the most I’ve ever spoken about—sexual relations. And today has been very trying.” He hoped that didn’t sound as pathetic as it felt. If he could take back his words, those would be the ones he’d choose. Well, for a start anyway. “Agreed. Let me just—” Se hopped off him to fiddle with something on the control panel and returned. “Let’s go.” “Where—?” He was confused. He’d thought Se wanted him here and now. “We aren’t going to find out anything right now. We need to get back to home base to start our investigation. Rock has Salvation coordinated to do random warps until we get to his planet. It will take longer, but be safer. I think we need some stress relief. I’ve wanted to sex Rock up for a long time. We’ve kept missing the boat and now I think I know why. We’re too much alike and butt heads all the time. Maybe we needed to wait for you. Let’s see if I’m right.” Se tugged Zander’s hand and led him down a long corridor. His palms started to sweat. This wasn’t him. He was the nerd who stayed in his lab. He’d only had sex a handful of times and never with two people at once. How would that work anyway? His head started to pound. This couldn’t be a good idea. He didn’t know

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these people. It didn’t matter how sexually attracted he was to them. It had to be the adrenaline rush from the explosions and the run for his life. It was all chemistry. “Maybe we shouldn’t—” he started, but Se didn’t let him finish. “I’m not going to push you into anything,” Se assured him. “But I think you want this as much as I do.” She moved in closer and wrapped herself around his body. Close enough to run her hands to the front of his pants and squeeze his cock. Zander stumbled back and knocked his head on the wall, unprepared for the rush of lust that hit his body. A door close to him opened and out stepped Rock. He’d taken off his shirt and stood there barefoot and mouth-wateringly gorgeous. His brown hair stood on end as if he’d forced his hands through it a few times. “What’s going on here, Se?” Rock’s voice sent shivers down Zander’s spine. “Rock. We were just coming to your room.” Se didn’t step away from Zander. “That isn’t what it looks like.” Rock raised a brow at Zander’s words. “Well, I didn’t want to give Zander time to think and figured this might be the best way.” Se took advantage of Zander’s stillness by hopping up and putting her legs around his waist, forcing him to grip her ass. He’d been right—it was luscious. Zander stumbled, but Rock was right there to catch him. Zander turned his head and gazed into the most lovely pair of brown eyes he had ever seen. Rock lowered his head and captured Zander’s lips in a sweet kiss. The sensation of being trapped between Rock and Se was almost more than he could handle. Se’s moan echoed in his ear. Rock had reached around him and smashed the three of them together. There was no space. The only thing that separated them was the clothes they wore. “Oh, no,” Zander sighed against Rock’s mouth. He pouted a little when Rock moved away. “What is it?” Se nuzzled against his neck. He was over-stimulated and about to come in his pants. How embarrassing would that be? No way could he say that out loud. He needed a little space, but Se and Rock weren’t giving him any time to think. Which was probably a good thing, considering he was out of his element. Se nibbled on one side of his throat with Rock on the other. Zander rocked back against Rock’s hard body while Se bucked against his throbbing cock. He closed his eyes and

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that was a bad idea. He didn’t know which hands were whose and he didn’t care. His body was on fire. “Gonna, oh shit. Please—” God, he was about to go off. His hips picked up tempo. “Stop!” Rock’s forceful voice penetrated his haze. “My cabin, now.” Zander whimpered at the loss of Rock’s warmth, but just about lost it when Se slid down his body. He didn’t know if he would survive this encounter. Maybe he was already dead and this was his version of heaven. The trio stumbled into Rock’s quarters. Zander was in a sexual daze. He wanted to come so badly his cock ached with it. Rock corralled them to the bed. Zander and Se fell onto the mattress. Zander didn’t get a chance to look around because Se straddled his lap, filling his vision. She bit her plump lips. She looked so sexy with that twinkle in her eyes. Zander’s gaze shifted when Rock’s hands appeared at Se’s breast. He’d never thought the sight of two people together like this would turn him on. Not only two people, but strangers. He didn’t know them, but by the gods he wanted them. Rock inched Se’s top off her body. She was beautiful. Zander whimpered again. This wasn’t helping the ache in his pants. Skin. They needed more skin. Rock and Se were already ahead of him, so he reached for his own shirt, pulled it over his head and threw it to the floor. “What changed?” Rock asked as he squeezed Se’s breasts in his hands. It was so erotic. Right out of a vid. Se threw her head back when Rock pinched her nipples. Zander wanted to taste the buds. Wanted to know if they would be as sweet as they looked. Like little red berries, ripe for the plucking. “N—nothing,” he stuttered. “You left and—” “You’re always in a rush,” Se panted. “If you wouldn’t have—oh god—stormed off, Zan would have told you he thought the three of us together was hot.” “Note to self, fill Se’s mouth so she can’t talk,” Rock stated as he pulled his pants down and pushed Se to the bed and off Zander’s lap. Se laughed and crawled away, but she didn’t go far. Zander took the opportunity to get completely undressed. His throbbing cock needed release. In no time, the three were naked on the bed. Rock was as good as his word. He moved up Se’s body until his cock brushed her lips. Zander was a little jealous. He wanted to suck Rock’s dick. Shit. He didn’t know what he

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wanted to taste first. Se didn’t have that problem. She worked Rock’s cock hard, the sound of her sucking echoing around the cabin. “What are you waiting for, boy? Get over here,” Rock said between clenched teeth. It was then he realised he was watching from afar, pumping his cock to the rhythm of Se’s blowjob. He scrambled close enough for Rock to grab his shoulders and pull him into a kiss. It wasn’t gentle. Not that he expected it to be. Rock was all man. Every inch of him as hard as his name. Zander was forced to cling to Rock or fall over. A hand wrapped around his dick and jacked him off. He almost lost it when a wet mouth enveloped him. Rock’s hand cupped his ass and he rocked their bodies together. Zander was a goner. Se’s hand and Rock’s stomach threw him off the ledge and he came harder than he ever had in his life. The stimuli were too much. And he wanted more. Se continued to stroke his cock, sucking him dry. Never had he recovered this fast. Zander was ready for another round. But not before he tasted something other than his new lovers’ lips. He eased out of Se’s mouth and dropped beside her. He kissed her, tasting his own spunk and Se. It was a lovely combination. The only thing it was missing was Rock’s essence. He would have to see if he could rectify that situation. First things first, Se’s nipples. They taunted him and he needed to sample them. Zander kissed his way down Se’s throat, taking little nibbles here and there. When he reached a nipple, he drew it into his mouth causing Se to buck. Rock held her down for him. God that was hot. “Someone needs to fuck me,” Se whispered. “God, I need—” she stopped talking and moaned. Zander had bitten down. “I’ll have to remember that. No need to fill Se’s mouth as long as you’re feasting on her nipples.” Rock’s words spurred him on. Se rocked against Rock’s thigh. She was trying to get some friction, but he could see that Rock was teasing her with his fingers too. Watching Se stroke Rock, and Rock pinch Se’s matching nipple, his other hand buried in her pussy, a sense of right flowed over Zander. The situation, the people, everything fitted. He felt empowered in a way he never had before. He wanted to add his fingers to Rock’s. He walked them down Se’s body until he found her clit and gave it a light tap. She almost came off the bed. He tapped again, before sliding a finger in alongside Rock’s.

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“Let me taste,” Rock’s raspy voice insisted. Zander didn’t hesitate. He pulled his finger free and fed it to Rock. “Oh. Oh. Rock! Zander!” Se screamed as she fell apart in their arms. Zander wanted to sink inside her body, but Rock was in position and slid home. Zander couldn’t wait until it was his turn. But until then, he had some exploring to do. Rock released his finger to kiss Se, and Zander got down to tasting his lovers.

**** Rock watched Zander suckle at Se’s breast. He wanted to sink his cock somewhere. It didn’t matter where at this point. Zander’s ass, Se’s pussy, he didn’t care. He’d have both before the flight was over. The decision was taken out of his hands when Zander fed him a taste of Se. He sucked her juices off Zander’s finger and Se came apart, her orgasm rocking her whole body. Rock filled her with his cock. Se’s muscles clenched around him. It almost forced his climax, but he wasn’t ready to come yet. Good thing he’d finished jacking off before they got there. If not, he would already be spent. He pulled out until only the tip of his cock remained inside Se. At her whimper he slid back in. Slow and steady. She wiggled under him, but he wouldn’t be rushed. “Now who’s rushing?” he teased. She tightened her muscles and he moaned, then chuckled, resting his forehead against hers. Rock felt a wet tongue trail over his back. “You taste good,” Zander whispered, his breath tickling. The gesture was intimate and Rock found he liked it. Rock picked up his pace while Zander continued to nibble. Zander reached his butt and Rock froze. Hands gripped his ass. Softer hands. It must have been Se who pulled his cheeks apart, but it was all Zander rimming his hole. Zander’s tongue flicked his opening and teased its way inside. Rock clenched, but didn’t so much as twitch inside Se. “Rock. You have to move.” Se bucked her hips, fucking herself on his cock and squeezing around him. But Rock held himself still, his body straining. The urge to fuck back onto Zander’s tongue was so strong, but he didn’t want to hurt Zander. Zander shifted to his back under Rock. That magical tongue licked the space between his ass and cock. Oh, god. That mouth. Zander sucked on his cock where it joined with Se.

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He couldn’t stop, he rocked, sliding his cock against Zander’s mouth as he pumped into Se. “Gonna…” And that was it. Rock thrust two more times before filling Se with his seed. Se screamed and came again, milking his cock. When they were both spent, he rolled to the side so he didn’t crush Zander. Rock pulled Zander up and shifted to the middle of the bed with one lover on each side. Se curled around him and snuggled in, with a leg thrown over his thigh. Zander sighed into Rock’s shoulder and wrapped an arm around him to rest his hand on Se’s side. It was a perfect moment. Rock had noticed that Zander had come with him and Se. The three of them were sated. They should clean up, but he couldn’t make his body leave his lovers. He was too relaxed. For the first time in months, he was at peace.

**** A rumble woke him up. Zander was disoriented. There it was again. What could it be? He was so comfortable he didn’t want to open his eyes. But something tickled his stomach. Was he back at home? Wait. Wasn’t he on a ship that blew up? A nightmare maybe? He snuggled into his pillow. It was a little hard. He nuzzled into it and it moved. Something wasn’t right. Zander slowly opened his eyes and yesterday came rushing back to him. It was all real. And he’d just—they’d just… Oh god. His morning erection throbbed harder. “Zander, stop moving unless you want to do something with that.” He turned to see who was talking. Se blinked up at him. “Sorry. Let me just—” Zander scrambled off the bed and looked around in a panic. He needed to collect himself. A shower room. There had to be one around here somewhere. He looked around until he spotted an opening. He stumbled over things, but didn’t stop until he was resting against the shut door. Breathe, you idiot. Zander closed his eyes and focussed. Centring himself. In through the nose, out through the mouth. Once. Twice. He opened to see a red, flushed face and bright blue orbs staring back at him. He looked—shell shocked. His body was covered in red marks. Zander

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leaned closer to inspect his chest. He licked his lips. The sight made him ache. His body wanted another round. Zander rushed through a shower and exited the room in only a towel. Rock and Se had gone back to sleep. It gave him a chance to really look at them. They were wrapped around each other. He wondered why they needed him. And just who were they really? Should he be worried? It didn’t appear as if he was in danger of anything other than a sex marathon. Maybe this once he should stop thinking and feel. His body was in total agreement. It was getting his mind to shut down that was the problem. The whole situation was outside his norm, but the sex had been incredible. He’d never come that hard before. And something about having two people who wanted you was a big turn-on. Even his scientific mind thought so. Se shifted, like she was opening up a spot just for him. “Stop standing there, boy and get back to bed.” Rock commanded. That tone tripped his trigger. Every instinct in his body told him to obey. This was new for him, not something he’d ever explored, but he wanted to see where Rock could take him. “You heard him, get over here.” Se agreed. His cock took notice and wanted to play. He wanted to release everything and let them take control. What would it be like to be at their total mercy? Oh gods. Zander almost came on the spot, just thinking about them lavishing him with attention. He dropped the towel and crawled in between his two lovers. Rock moved him so his ass was cradled against his chest. Se turned in his arms and nestled her head in against his shoulder. He thought for sure sleep would elude him. His body was primed for sex, but his mind was ready to shut down. A lot had happened in a short time. He was beginning to accept it. To accept the fact that these two were his. For now. Everything else would work itself out. He hoped he knew what he was doing. Hell, he didn’t and he’d probably get into trouble before the week was out. He just hoped they were worth it. Three days later

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A beeping noise woke Rock. He jerked to a sitting position and reached for a weapon that wasn’t there. Damn it. He really needed to stop that reflex. At least here on the ship. His guns were close. No need to sleep on top of one. He didn’t want to accidentally shoot one of his lovers. “Ouch, fuck, Rock.” He looked over to see Se rubbing her head. He must have pulled her hair when he woke up. He turned to his other side to see Zander rubbing his eyes. They were both adorable. He lay back down but the beeping sounded again. They should probably get out of bed. Not that he really wanted to. “What is that?” It wasn’t something from his ship. The sound wasn’t familiar. “Shit. Um, shoot, I mean. Darn it.” Zander looked over at Se and blushed, then scrambled from the bed. Yep, too cute. Rock smiled. The man really needed to get over his thing about not cussing in front of Se. She could probably burn his ears with the words that spewed out of her mouth. “Is that coming from you?” Se asked Zander. “Yes. It’s a portable data analysis chip. I set it to run before the fiasco on the ship and slipped it into my pocket. It has the results of my latest chemical compound for a vaccine I’m working on.” Zander was on his knees, searching the floor for his pants and mumbling to himself. “He has a great ass,” Se stated and curled into his side. The blanket she had on slid down her body, revealing her breast to his hungry stare. “You have wonderful breasts.” Rock winked at her. “And you have awesome muscles. You know,” she tickled her fingers over his pecs, “we could have been doing this for months.” She tugged his chest hair. Not hard enough to hurt, but enough that he rubbed where her fingers had been. Se kissed his shoulder before she turned to watch Zander. “I had to make sure,” he whispered. She looked back his way. “Of what?” Her brow crinkled. Not that he blamed her for being confused. “That I wasn’t using you. That I wanted you for you.” It felt good to get that out there.

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“That’s great and all, Rock, but you could have asked. Maybe I wanted to be ‘used’,” she huffed and moved a little away from him. That hurt. He’d only been thinking of her. “Excuse me for thinking of your—” Se stopped him, “Thinking! That’s your prob—” “Found it!” Zander interrupted their argument. The other man seemed oblivious to the fact that both Rock and Se were on their knees on the bed, facing off. He walked over to the bed, absently patted Rock on the chest and caressed Se’s cheek. He gave them each a distracted kiss and walked to the door. Naked. “Um, Zander, where are you going?” Rock questioned, not that he minded the sight of his oblivious lover. And he appreciated the break in his argument with Se. “Huh? What? Oh. To find some lab space. I want to go over this data and see what I missed. The test didn’t come out like I wanted and it has to be something small. I know I had all the components with that last batch. My measurements might be off. So I—” Zander looked a little preoccupied and Rock held up his hand to stop the man’s rambling. “First, you should probably get dressed. Not that I think you should leave the cabin, but if you’re going to be working, clothing might help. At least with us not attacking your body.” Rock smirked when Zander’s cock hardened at his words. He liked that he could affect Zander with only his words. “Personally, I think he should get back in bed. We’ll be on Cooper soon. He can work then.” Se pouted prettily. He really did like that look on her. It softened her whole face. Seemed she was going to let their argument go. Rock still wouldn’t have changed how things went down. He respected Se and wanted her happy. This was a new side of her he hadn’t seen before Zander showed up. The playful Se was nice. He didn’t want to argue any more. He just wanted both of his lovers in bed. Maybe they could entice Zander. His work could wait. Maybe. He should probably ask. He remembered Zander saying something about it being a pox. “How important is that research?” Rock walked his hand down Se’s body, stopping right above her pubic bone. His fingers tangled in her dark hair and he tugged gently. Zander’s pupils dilated and he licked his lips when Se’s hips rose off the bed. It was the reaction he had been hoping for. “It is for a pox outbreak on—oh, that is so hot—what was I—oh yes, nothing lifethreat—” Zander dropped the chip on Rock’s dresser before moving closer.

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Rock had inserted a finger into Se’s pussy. She was already wet. He’d added another by the time Zander crawled into bed. Zander nuzzled Se’s slit and took a deep breath. Rock had to grab his cock and squeeze so he didn’t come. He had to tighten his hold when Zander’s tongue came out to play. That thing should be considered a dangerous weapon. “So good,” Zander murmured. “Zander!” Se moaned. Rock took charge. They weren’t going to come this way. They would be together. “Se, head of the bed, get on your hands and knees.” Zander stopped what he was doing and so did Rock, so Se could comply. “Zander, get behind her. Do not sink your cock into her pussy. I know you want to, but you have to wait.” Both his lovers moaned. It was good to be in charge. Zander obeyed him, but rubbed his cock between Se’s legs. The other man wanted in so badly Rock could taste it in the air. He needed to get this show on the road or someone was going to come before it was time. Rock searched for the lube he kept by the bed. He cracked open the bottle. “This is going to be cold,” Rock warned, before he dripped the slick between Zander’s cheeks. He spread some around Zander’s pucker before easing a finger inside. “So tight.” “I want to watch.” Se craned her neck, trying to see. “Next time.” Rock slapped her ass. Not too hard, just enough to get her attention. “That is so hot,” Zander croaked. Rock had added another finger, and wiggled them around. He pegged Zander’s gland and the man pumped his hips. “I need—hurry Rock. I have to—” No more words were needed. Rock removed his fingers and replaced them with his cock. He slid home in one stroke, his balls resting on Zander’s ass. “Now, Zander. Slip into her hot pussy. But don’t thrust,” Rock commanded. “You two are killing me.” Se squirmed, but shut up when Zander filled her from behind. “Next time, you’re in the middle, Se. Me and Zander will fill you up so good you won’t know what to do. Zander will take your ass and breach that tight hole nice and slow. I’ll fill your pussy and we’ll rock back and forth. Zan, you’ll feel me inside Se, our cocks right there, almost touching. Nothing between us but Se.” Zander’s ass squeezed tight around Rock’s dick.

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Someone liked that idea. Two someones if all the noise Se was making was any indication. “I’m not going to last. Hurry, Rock. Please, please.” Se tossed her head back and forth, pushing back, making Zander press into Rock’s body. Zander started echoing Se’s pleas. He moved his body frantically between Rock and Se. Rock picked up his pace, driving Zander into Se. “Rock. She’s coming. I need—harder. More,” Zander begged. Rock didn’t let them down. He slapped Zander’s thigh and rode the man hard. “I can’t—I can’t. Please. Oh god. Oh god. Can’t—” Se hung her head and panted. “You can. Take it, Se. Take it,” Zander encouraged her. “She feels so good, Rock. Her pussy is clamping down on my cock. So good.” It was Rock’s turn to come. Zander’s words gave him the final push he needed. He filled Zander with his cum. It was almost too much for his sensitive dick when Zander came. The trio collapsed on the bed. Zander rolled to the side and Se scooted over so they would all fit. Good thing he had a big bed. Someone’s stomach rumbled. Rock chuckled. It had been a while since their last meal. The workout had made him hungry too. They were burning a lot of energy. The only time they got up was to eat or relieve themselves. “Shower, then food. Get to it, guys.” “Why are you so damn chipper? I can’t move and you’re like a puppy who just found his tail,” Se grumbled. “I’m energised. Now get moving. I’m hungry.” Rock tapped Se on the ass and walked towards the bathing area in his quarters. “What the fuck is it with you and this slapping thing you’ve got going on?” Se rubbed her backside, but she did get out of the bed. Zander chuckled. “What’s so funny, geek boy?” Rock raised a brow, enjoying their light banter. “You two. Do you ever stop bickering?” Zander waved his hand between Rock and Se. “Sexual tension.” Rock winked. “Asshole tendencies.” Se grinned. “Hey!” Rock turned as if to tackle her.

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“Enough, you two. Shower and food were mentioned and I’m hungry too.” As if to back up his statement, Zander’s stomach rumbled. His face went bright red and he collapsed back to the bed. Se laughed and took Zander’s hand, tugging him off the bed and leading him to Rock’s shower. “Will we all fit in there?” Se bit her lip and looked a little concerned. “It will be tight, but we can do it. Good thing my shower at home is bigger. When we get there, we’ll have to play. I like the idea of you two wet and ready for me.” Rock sauntered to the controls. “Cocky, isn’t he?” Zander said to Se. Rock turned on the water and got in, gesturing to the others to follow his lead. He liked how comfortable Zander seemed with them, but he guessed that a few days in bed could do that to a guy. He wanted them both in his house in the worst way. He might never want them to leave. But that was a thought for another day. They weren’t ready to go there, yet. He just hoped they didn’t take long to realise how much they already meant to him. Rock didn’t think his heart could take it if they left. He tuned back in to the conversation to hear Se’s response to Zander. “You haven’t seen anything yet.” Rock plastered his body against Se’s, his cock already half-hard and ready for another round. “Hungry guy, here.” Zander gave them both a quick kiss then washed his body. Rock paused to just watch the man in motion. All the blood rushed to his dick when Zander’s hands roamed over his own body. He’d have to ask the man to jack off in front of him. He’d love to see Zander pleasure himself, maybe have him come all over Se’s breasts. He looked over to see that Se was watching the show as well. They were both goners. Now they had to figure out who wanted to hurt the beautiful man in front of him. That was enough to deflate his cock. Whoever they were, they meant business. Well, they couldn’t have Zander. He was Rock’s now and he aimed to protect his man. Rock rushed through the rest of his shower and grabbed towels for all of them. There would be time to worry once they got to Cooper. For now, they would enjoy their time together and maybe play a little more before things turned serious. And he wanted them to get serious. Like in the forever way.

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“Race you to the galley.” Rock used the towel to flick Zander on the ass before he sprinted through his room and headed for food, Zander and Se right behind him. He smiled at the feeling of home he got being with the two of them. They clicked. Could it be too good to be true? He hoped not. And if he had his way it wouldn’t be.

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Chapter Four

“Status report, Mr Roberts?” Larrison was growing bored. Zander should already be his. He wasn’t going to let an unknown take that away from him. Delicious thoughts of what he would do when Zander was in his possession only distracted him for so long. Maybe he needed a stand-in. That might wile away the hours. He took a second to look around the room. Someone there had to look enough like the man to help ease his tension. There. The boy in the corner would do just fine. He was so lost in his plans he almost didn’t hear Roberts’ report. “We were able to identify the craft that rescued Dr d’Ado. It is called the Salvation. Its home port is Cooper Prime and the captain’s name is Rockwell Loy, sir.” “Very good, Mr Roberts. Keep up the good work. Set a course for Cooper Prime. Let me know when we arrive. You. Yes, you in the corner. Follow me, please.” He waved the redheaded boy closer, his cock already hard. “Sir?” “What is it, Roberts?” He let his annoyance show in his tone. “Sorry, sir, but I thought you would want to know that Loy is a friend of a couple of ex-Alliance officers. That could pose a problem. It looks like they left in good standing.” “Duly noted. Carry on.” As if he cared about the Alliance. He was untouchable and they could kiss his ass. He could buy and sell them all, or his dad would do it for him. The young man had finally reached his side. “Sir.” He was timid. Larrison needed to reassure him if he wanted to have fun. “What is your name?” Larrison asked briskly. His cock was getting harder. “Fergus.” The guy looked over his shoulder at the other men, but there would be no support from them. Larrison paid well. Not that these lousy schmucks would get to enjoy any of the money, but their families would reap the rewards. He wasn’t all bad. “Fergus. Nice name, but from now on I’m going to call you Zander and you will respond to that. Understood?” His tone brooked no arguments. Not that he expected any. He took ‘Zander’s’ hand and moved towards his quarters. Not his office this time. He would woo this one before things got violent. He wanted to ease all of his stress, so by the

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time the real Zander was his, he would be prepared to go slowly and enjoy himself. He didn’t want anything to spoil his moments with Zander, and being over-eager could do that. None of this would be happening if he’d had his shot at Zander to begin with. The man was too distracted with his science. That was why he’d lured him out to the middle of nowhere with a bogus pox. Zander’s disappearance would have been attributed to a pirate attack and Larrison could have had years to play with and savour the handsome man. It was the fact that Zander had turned down his overtures to begin with that irked him. Larrison’s father had taught him to take what he wanted, damn the consequences. They had more money than God, and everyone had a price. But not Zander. Nothing he’d done had got the man’s attention. He’d tried politeness, stayed in the background and got Reginald to do most of the talking. He’d handled the doctor with kid gloves, and got the brush-off. No one ignored Larrison Walker. Not and lived to tell about it. It was a good thing Zander was cute and hit all his hot buttons. Fake Zander would do for now. Let the wooing begin. When they got to his quarters, the young man was shivering. Larrison couldn’t have that. It wasn’t time for fear. Not yet. That would come later, after he’d had his fill of the young man’s ass. “It’s okay, my pretty boy.” He ran a finger down ‘Zander’s’ cheek and pushed him against the door. Larrison placed his hands on either side of ‘Zander’s’ head and tilted his hips to rub their cocks together. He wanted a taste of the cherry-red lips. He went slowly and grazed his lips over ‘Zander’s’, back and forth in time with the thrust of his pelvis. ‘Zander’s’ lips parted and Larrison pressed his advantage, letting his tongue explore the dark crevice of his partner’s mouth. ‘Zander’ relaxed and Larrison smiled against the moist mouth under his. He shifted away from the wall and led the other man to his bed. “Sir?” the man sounded confused. “You can call me Lar, my pet.” He grinned in encouragement and pulled on the arm he held. They both tumbled onto the bed. ‘Zander’ nodded. “You want me, don’t you, ‘Zander’? You want my cock so far up your ass you can taste it. Right? Tell me. Tell me what you want, what you crave.”

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“Y—yes. I want your cock up my ass.” ‘Zander’s’ voice started out hesitant, but grew stronger. Larrison started to settle between ‘Zander’s’ legs, but changed his mind. This one’s face wasn’t right. The body was good, so he would take him from behind. He’d leave the face-to-face stuff for the real Zander. He positioned him with his ass in the air. That was good. But they had too many clothes on for this to work. “Don’t move. Stay like that.” Larrison walked to his dresser to grab one of his smaller knives. His clothes littered the floor on the way back. His new pet wouldn’t need clothes any longer. “Close your eyes and hold on to the bars in front of you.” He smacked ‘Zander’s’ ass. The other man hurried to obey. He was an eager one. That made this all the better. Larrison couldn’t wait for his first taste. “Good, pet. Very good,” he soothed as he cut away ‘Zander’s’ uniform. The first slice of the knife had the young man turning around. He couldn’t have that. It ruined the fantasy. “I said, don’t move.” Larrison pressed in a little deeper and the knife nicked ‘Zander’. Nothing too bad, a scratch really, but it made the man obey. Good. That was good. He showed his appreciation with a kiss against the scratch. It didn’t even bleed. Just a nice line of red. He was right, the sight was one to behold on such white skin. ‘Zander’ trembled. Larrison removed the tattered clothing and threw it behind him. The man in his bed was a strapping fellow. All toned muscles. He couldn’t wait to be inside him. Now it was time for the cuffs. Or maybe he should use ropes. Either way, his marks would look lovely. Larrison opened the bedside drawer and pulled out the cuffs. He bypassed the lube. He wanted ‘Zander’ to burn for him. Once ‘Zander’ was positioned how he wanted, Larrison reached around to grip his cock. It was full and thick. Maybe he would taste it later. ‘Zander’ thrust into his fist. Such an eager thing. He would be rewarded. Larrison squeezed tight on the dick and pumped a couple of times. “Lar. Please.” Yes, he was begging. He loved hearing his name on ‘Zander’s’ lips. For that he would use a little spit to ease his way inside. Not much. Just a little. Larrison spat in his hand and worked a finger into ‘Zander’s’ hole.

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“Ouch. Lar, that hur—oh, oh, fuck.” ‘Zander’ stopped talking when Larrison pegged his gland. That would be enough prep work. He wanted to get inside that hot opening. Swift and sure, he drove inside. ‘Zander’s’ cock wilted a little at the pain, but Larrison wasn’t really interested in ‘Zander’s’ pleasure. This was all about him. He pulled out to the tip and slammed back in. ‘Zander’ screamed and Larrison liked it. “That’s it, ‘Zander’. Scream for me. Make it good. Scream my name.” He hit ‘Zander’s’ ass and rocked against him again and again. “Lar! Lar! Fuck, ouch, fuck.” Yes, that was what he needed. Over and over he pounded. He needed something else. The knife was still on the bed beside him, but that seemed too impersonal. He used his nails and scraped them hard down ‘Zander’s’ back until red marks appeared. ‘Zander’s’ ass clenched hard on his cock and semen flowed over the hand that still held ‘Zander’s’ cock. That was all it took. Larrison came hard, shouting ‘Zander’s’ name.

**** Cooper Prime was in Rock’s sights. They would be docking in a matter of minutes. The trio hadn’t done much on the trip home except have sex, eat and sleep. He would need to talk to Zan before the man got wrapped up in his experiment. He might not have known him long, but it didn’t take much to figure out the man could get lost in his work if not properly motivated. Rock chuckled, thinking back to how he’d made Zan fall to his will by playing with Se. It could be fun to see what else would distract the good doctor. “What’s so funny?” Se wrapped her arms around him from behind. It was great that she didn’t hesitate to touch him this way. He’d waited so long, but it was worth it. “Just happy,” he squeezed her hands. “You know, I think this is the first time I’ve seen you really happy,” Se observed. “Haven’t had much to be happy about. Just living day to day, and that isn’t enough to bring joy into my life. Speaking of that, where’s Zan?” Se nibbled on his ear. He closed his eyes, breathing in her scent. “He mumbled something about using sick bay for something. You know, you could have had me any time you wanted.” She wanted to talk, and he wanted to get them on land and into his house.

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“Like I said. I wanted to be sure. I like you, Se. I didn’t want to screw you over.” He held up his hand when she would have interrupted. He wanted to have his say first. “I know you would have been up for it. But I wanted more. I wanted a relationship with Rave, but he only had eyes for that cousin of yours. You know that. Hell, you were there when I made my play and was shot down.” “We need to call them. You know that, right?” She gave him a squeeze and backed away to sit beside him at the console. Se had let him have the last word and he was glad. Either she was slipping, or he and Zan were just that good in bed. He’d go with the latter. “Thank you,” Rock said. “Yes, we’ll call them after we talk more with Zan. He has to know someone who has it out for him. That pox he is working on doesn’t sound important enough to warrant his death. Maybe it’s some past research. Once we do that, we’ll give Rave and Kain a call. See if any of their old Alliance contacts know anything. I have a few favours I can call in too. I also need to find the contact for my gun sale. See if he escaped or not. I should have done that days ago, but I kept getting distracted for some reason.” Rock smiled, thinking about the way they’d wiled away the days. “Busy, busy. What will I do to pass the time?” Se purred. Rock looked over to see her unbuttoning her top and playing with her breasts. He leaned over, taking a nipple into his mouth. He suckled and nipped. The ship beeped at him. “Damn it, Se.” He moved back and corrected the course. “You’re going to make me wreck the ship. Go play with Zan.” He waved her away, when what he really wanted to do was fuck her senseless. “Oh, a challenge.” She chuckled and left the bridge. It would be, too. Zan wasn’t as easy to distract as Rock. He adjusted his pants and focussed on the ship rather than on would be happening in sick bay. Maybe he would dock and go and play for a bit before getting down to business. They had time. No one would be able to connect him with Zander. They would be safe until they were ready to take on the threat head-on.

**** Something fluttered by Zander’s ear. He swatted at it but kept his focus on the data in front of him. The answer was right there. Why couldn’t he see it? This was why he was a

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mediocre researcher. He’d never be able to take on the Grey Death at this rate. Not if he couldn’t even figure out a simple non threatening disease. He’d had hopes that a string of data from the pox could be the key for a cure not only for that, but an offshoot of the Grey Death, but he had nothing. Another flicker caught his attention, but he only shifted out of its way. Maybe if he—It happened again and he was becoming annoyed. Were there bugs on the ship? He straightened and turned to find Se standing as close as she could get without touching him. Her blouse was unbuttoned and her breasts swung free. She cupped them and offered them to him. Science forgotten for the moment, he pulled her close. “That was easier than I thought it would be,” Se said against his lips. “I should have bet Rock I could have you panting in seconds.” “You would have won that bet.” Zander hoisted her up and twirled her around so he could put her on the counter. She pushed a few things out of the way and leant back. A smorgasbord for his senses. He’d never let anyone distract him the way Rock and Se had been able to. He’d had lovers in the past try, but he’d always been able to maintain focus on his work. He wondered what it was about these two that made him want to stop everything in their presence. “Where did you go?” Se snapped her fingers in front of his eyes. “I’m right here,” he assured her. She leant back down and he slipped her shirt the rest of the way off. He took care of her pants, too. She lay naked before him. Se’s hands roamed over her body. She let her fingers play with her pussy and slipped a finger in. He pulled it free and licked it. Her taste exploded on his tongue and he had to have more. Zander spread her legs farther apart and buried his face at the juncture of her thighs. Her hands clutched in his hair. The tug hurt a little, but he didn’t care. He lapped at her core, tonguing her as if his tongue was his cock. Zander unzipped his pants and let them drop to the floor. He took his dick in his hands and stroked it. Se bucked against his mouth, so he replaced his lips with his finger and sucked on her clit. “Zan!” He showed no mercy. He kept up his pace.

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“Come for me, Se. You do that and I’ll fuck you so hard you’ll be vibrating for days.” He didn’t know what had come over him. He’d never talked to a woman that way, but it felt right. She loved his dirty talk, if her actions and sounds were any indicator, and he found that he liked it too. It was a hot button that he hadn’t known he had. Just another thing about Rock and Se that made him feel different. “What about you?” The new voice startled Zander into stopping. “What?” He looked around to see Rock standing in the doorway, his cock in his hand. “I said, what about you? Do you want to come for days?” Yes, he did. He didn’t want the days to end. “Oh, god, Zan, don’t stop. Please.” Se gripped his forearms. “You heard our girl. Don’t stop Zan. You going to fuck her? You want her ass or her hot pussy? Pick one because I’m taking the other,” Rock’s rough voice turned him on even more. Se moaned on the counter, her fingers pinching her nipples. “A—ass,” he managed to croak out. If it was possible, his dick got harder. “The lube is in the cabinet,” Rock pointed to somewhere behind him. “Go get it and we’ll get Se ready to take us both. You want that don’t you, babe?” “Please,” Se moaned in agreement. Zander rushed as fast as he could and rummaged through the doors until he found what he was looking for. He turned and had to stop. Rock had Se’s legs over his shoulder and Zander couldn’t see where his mouth was, but he would hazard a guess that it was on her ass, rimming her. Getting her ready. Before going to join his lovers, he took off his clothes. Rock was still fully dressed. Zander would have to take care of that. Rock was beautiful and should be naked all the time. His sculptured body made Zander’s pale in comparison. He would never be as built as Rock, but the other man didn’t seem to mind. Neither did Se for that matter. He moved closer and set the lube beside Se so he could get to Rock’s clothes. Zander fell to his knees. He figured he would start with the bottom half. He wanted a taste of Rock’s cock before Rock fuck Se. Zander pulled Rock’s pants off and helped him to step out of them.

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Rock’s dick slapped his stomach. Zander edged right up on top of Rock and opened his mouth around the other man’s girth. Zander moaned and Rock slid in further. Zander swirled his tongue around the head and down the vein throbbing in the shaft. While sucking, he took Rock’s ass into his hands and kneaded his cheeks, making Rock shift against him. He ran his hands up and down Rock’s thighs and squeezed his balls gently. Zander backed off Rock’s dick and wetted a finger before going back to the blowjob. He entered Rock’s puckered hole and searched for the gland that would make Rock wild. “Oh, fuck.” He found it and stroked it a couple of times before hands pulled him up Rock’s body. “You’re going to make me come and we won’t be able to fuck Se.” “No!” Se didn’t seem to like that idea. Zander reached for the lube. He opened it and coated his fingers before giving it to Rock. Se was a little loose from Rock’s attention and it didn’t take much to get the first finger in to the knuckle. Her ass was tighter than he thought it would be. He wondered if he’d ever get a chance to pound into Rock’s ass. Zander couldn’t think of that or he would explode. He needed to focus on Se. Rock’s thumb joined Zander’s fingers. When Zander sank his fingers in, Rock pulled his thumb out. They worked that way for a couple of minutes. Se panted, begging for more. “Fuck me. Please. Rock, Zan. I need you both inside me. Oh, god, I’m going to come. Please, please.” She fervently plucked at her nipples and writhed on the table. “Zan, get on the counter.” Rock picked Se up so Zander could comply. Once he was settled, Rock positioned Se above Zander. He stroked her back as Rock opened her ass and eased her onto Zander’s cock. “Relax, Se. Take me. Let me in that tight ass.” “Rock—bad influence,” Se grunted as she settled fully onto Zander’s dick. “What was that, sweetheart?” Rock entered Se and she babbled some nonsense that Zander couldn’t understand. Zander wrapped his legs around both his lovers and locked his ankles together behind Rock’s back. Their bodies pressed tightly together and no one moved until Rock pressed his lips to Zander’s. Rock was right there inside Se. The feeling was heady. Zander could feel Rock pulsing through the thin layer of skin that separated them. Se moaned between them while Zander savoured Rock’s tongue in his mouth.

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“For the love of god, someone move,” Se demanded. “Why must I always ask?” Zander rested his forehead on Se’s back when Rock pulled away. Rock took control of their lovemaking again, pushing Se’s body onto Zander’s cock. He couldn’t have that. He kept his legs locked and braced himself on the counter so he could thrust up. It took a minute to get the rhythm right. Rock would pull out and Zander would rock up into Se’s tight ass. “Oh, god. Oh, god. Harder. Please.” Se was so vocal, and both men abided by her command. Faster and harder, they rushed to completion. Zander balanced on one hand so he could reach around and cup Se’s breast. He pinched the nipple and she shuddered, coming hard and milking his cock. He faltered, only to have Rock’s arm steady him. It only took a couple more thrusts, and Zander filled Se with his spunk. Rock wasn’t far behind. Zander slipped down flat onto the counter, trying to catch his breath. Se followed him and so did Rock. “Can’t—breathe,” Zander gasped. His two lovers got up and Rock helped him to stand. “We need a shower. I’m dripping here. We might as well stay in the bathroom at this rate. I can’t seem to keep my hands off you boys. I’m like a kid in a candy store saying gimme!” Se laughed and put her pants back on. “Well, all the fun and games have been good, but we have to figure out who wants our boy here dead.” Zander was smiling, but Rock’s words brought him back to the real world. The one where he was in danger for some unknown reason. “Agreed. We just got him, we can’t lose him.” Se kissed his chest before getting the rest of her clothes on. Zander followed suit. He almost walked out of the room without grabbing his research. Pulling his chip from the docking station, he shut down the computer he’d been using before leaving. The answers to both of his problems were right there—he just had to search his brain for the right question. He hated not knowing. It was a big puzzle that he had to solve or die trying.

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Chapter Five

Rock led them down the gangplank into a small village. He was proud of his home. Not many people lived in the town. That was why he’d chosen it. He liked the quiet as opposed to the bustle of bigger cities. Not too many people asked questions here, which had been a good thing in his wilder days. He was legit now. Thanks to Rave, all his gun sales were sanctioned by the Alliance. “I’m going to call my contact about my sale. Se, you want to show Zan to the showers? I’ll clean up when I’m finished then we can figure out who blew that ship up.” He didn’t wait for a response. He couldn’t afford to get distracted again. Too much counted on his ability to get to the bottom of this situation, and they’d wasted enough time. An hour later he’d found out that his contact had died. He was being set up with someone else from Vega Delta. It didn’t escape his notice that Zan had been bound for the same planet. It could be a coincidence and probably was. The ship Zan was on had been carrying cargo, most of it bound for Delta. Zander was the first to find him. His footsteps gave him away. His tread was heavier than Se’s. Rock turned in his chair so he could watch the man walk towards him. Zan still wore the same clothes, but his hair was wet from the shower. “Shit, I should have given you some clothes to change into. Let me get you something else to put on.” Rock got out of his chair and walked towards Zander. “That would be great. The only thing I grabbed on the way to the pod was my research. And, well, we were naked most of the time on the Salvation.” Zander gave an embarrassed chuckle. Rock reached the door where Zander stood, but the other man didn’t budge. Rock walked right into Zander’s space. He smelt of Rock’s soap. He buried his face in Zander’s neck, liking that Zander was taller. Rock licked the supple flesh before backing away. “We don’t have time for this. Fuck. Just looking at you makes my dick hard, but we have to figure out what is going on.” Rock watched as Zander brought himself under control. It didn’t make either of their erections go away, but nothing short of sex would do that.

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“Se’s right,” Zan whispered. “I’m right about what?” They both turned at Se’s entrance. Rock wanted to know what Se was right about too. “I can’t keep my hands off either of you. I’ve never felt desire this strong before. No one has been able to make me forget about work. Hel—heck,” Zan stumbled over his words with a quick look at Se. Rock loved how flustered the good doctor got when talking around Se. “Hell, Zan. Say it with me. Hell. I’m a big girl, I can handle it. And you talk dirtier than that when we’re having sex.” Se laughed. “Hell it is then.” Zander’s cheeks pinkened up at the word. “I almost left the ship without my data. I don’t do that. Research is my life.” Zander tucked his hands into his cargo pants and rocked back on his heels. “Could that be it?” Rock wondered out loud as he wandered off towards his bedroom. “It couldn’t be that easy, could it?” Se and Zander followed him. “What are you going on about?” Se wanted to know. Rock took a shirt and some pants out of a drawer and threw them at Zander. He was almost distracted when Zan stripped right there, but shook himself and focussed. He could look and talk. “Could Zan have slighted someone while doing research? There are lots of nuts who would take that the wrong way. I mean, look at that guy who fucked with Kain and Rave. The galaxy is full of psychos.” Se sat down on his bed. “Maybe.” She watched Zan get dressed too. “Zan, do you remember rejecting anyone who came on to you?” Rock joined Se on the bed for the show. Zan was taking his time putting his clothes back on. He wasn’t doing it to tease them, either. Rock could tell he was thinking. Zan had this look he would get when he was in concentration mode. It was as sexy as hell. Especially if it was him or Se he was focussed on. That look alone could have a crazy man or woman after the good doctor. “I don’t know.” Zander shrugged. “When I focus, nothing penetrates my zone. That’s why I don’t date much. Or have sex, for that matter. I can’t take a hint unless they are in my

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face about it or I want it. There have been a couple of people over the years, but that seems to be pretty farfetched to me.” “Damn it, Zan. Stop saying that. You’re fucking hot, okay? And smart, funny. Even if you don’t always mean to be,” Se ranted. “Se is right. I wanted to fuck you the minute I saw you. I want to fuck you right now. You’re adorable when your face goes all red and you start to stutter. So stop downplaying yourself. You’re very desirable. Let’s focus on the guys you remember who came on strong. Anyone in particular that comes to mind?”Rock pressed for an answer. “That’s just it. If they didn’t have my focus I wouldn’t recall them.” Zander joined them on the bed. “You can’t think of one single person?” Se asked in disbelief. “Let me think. Actually, there was one guy, but he was very polite. I don’t think he would be interested in killing me. He always had his servant do the talking. I thought that was odd and very outdated. I mean—who has someone else do the talking like that.” Zander shrugged. “That’s the only reason I really remember the guy. Or at least the servant. What was his name? Robert? No. I know it was an R name. Um…Ronald. No. Reginald. That was it.” Zander snapped his fingers and grinned. Se took Zander’s hand in hers and caressed it. Zander pulled Se to his side and kissed her forehead. It was such a sweet and intimate gesture. It warmed Rock’s heart to see. He needed to get back on track. “No last name?” Rock needed more information if he was going to track the son of a bitch down. “No. He was only ever introduced as Reginald. The man interested was Lar something or other. He told me to call him that the one time we spoke. He was always very proper. I think that is what I remember the most. Give me a bit and I’ll try to remember the guy’s last name. I don’t think this is it.” Zander was absently stroking Se’s shoulder while he spoke. Not wanting to feel left out, he moved closer to the couple and entangled their fingers. “Then what about your research? Anything you’ve worked on that would make someone want you dead?” Se inquired. Rock’s gut said it was this Lar guy. Zan might not believe that he was worth killing for, but Rock knew it was true. He’d rip apart anyone who tried, though. Zander was his and Se’s.

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“I recently started working on a vaccine for the pox on Vega Delta. I try to use all of my research to explore a way to cure the Grey Death. But it wiped out two planets, so I think every scientist does that. Most because it would bring prestige to their name, but I just want to help people. That’s what matters. The spread of the disease is slow, but once someone has it they start to go crazy. People around them might not notice until it’s too late. It’s a tricky disease because it’s transmitted through blood and hard to detect. I was actually hoping the pox research held the key. It has a couple of components that are—” “Zan,” Rock interrupted, putting a finger to Zander’s mouth. “You’re making my head hurt here. Not that it isn’t sexy to see how passionate you are about your work, but I don’t think that’s the reason someone is after you.” Rock slid them so Zander was in the middle and Se and Rock could surround him to give him silent support. “I know you just put these clothes on, but I think they need to come back off.” Se winked at Rock. That sounded like a good plan to Rock. What could it hurt? No one knew where they were and the doctor was as sexy as hell. Now Se was kissing the other man’s neck and Rock’s dick went from a semi-hard-on to a full-fledged erection. He could watch the two of them all day and never tire. “I agree—” Rock’s com beeped before he could finish his sentence. Rock reluctantly untangled himself from his lovers and got off the bed to get to his desk unit. “Rock here,” he stated before turning on the vid. “Well, I wasn’t expecting Se on your personal link.” Laughter flowed over the com. “Rave. You sound pretty happy there. What are you doing calling me? I thought you were on vacation?” Rock grinned. “Kain wanted to check on Se. Make sure the two of you haven’t killed each other yet. But I see that isn’t a problem. And who is that?” Rave nodded towards the bed. “And hell, move over so I can’t see that shit. Se! Stop molesting that boy!” Rock couldn’t stop laughing. It was great to see Rave this way. Kain was good for him, much as he hated to admit it. “Ignore them. I was going to call you here in a bit anyway. Need a little help running some names. I think—”

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An explosion halted his words. “What was that? What’s going on there, Rock? Kain! Get to the ship. We aren’t that far from you. We can—” The coms went down. “What the fuck? Get dressed, you two. We need to get to my guns. Se, I thought you took care of the trackers?” Rock ran from the room. “I did.” Se’s voice floated behind him. “Everything was clear before the last jump.” “Then how the hell did they find us?” Rock threw over his shoulder. “You two seriously need to stop fighting. It isn’t helping anything,” Zan’s calm voice came right in his ear. The other man must have sprinted to get beside him. “He’s right, Rock. Arm us. Can we get to the Salvation from here?” Rock shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. Kain and Rave are on their way. We need to hunker down here. If we ran for the ship we might not make it. I have a safe room. We have to hope they call in reinforcements. I don’t think this is a military strike. If it was, they would have snuck up on us, not given us a warning, allowing us to escape. I have emergency coms on a backup server in the safe room. We’ll contact the Alliance and get back in touch with the guys.” He hoped, and he’d survived on less before. Time to move.

**** Was this really about him? It kept coming back to that, and Zander was at a loss. He followed Rock down a hallway until they reached a room with a heavy steel door. “Get in here.” Rock gestured for him and Se to enter the metal box. Zander wouldn’t argue. Safe sounded good to him. Safe with his new lovers was even better. He’d just met them and wanted to know more about them. They were good for him in a way no one had ever been before. They seemed to get him, and he liked that more than he could even say. He jumped when the metal door clanged against its hinges and the lock was thrown into place. Helplessness seeped through him. He had no idea what to do. He might have some training in self-defence, but these guys were using weapons. He was a scientist, not a warrior.

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“Here, take this.” Se thrust something into his hands. He almost dropped it when he recognised the gun. “I don’t know how to use this.” Zander tried to hand it back, to no avail. Rock wrapped his arms around him and locked both their hands around the weapon. “Flip this, which is the safety, point and squeeze the trigger. That’s all there is to it. Keep behind me and Se and only use it if you need to. We should be fairly safe in here. This door is reinforced and can withstand most blasts.” Rock gave him a pat on the back before turning back to whatever it was he was doing. They were both so calm in the face of death. His panic began to rise and he couldn’t breathe. This was different than in the pod. There he’d had a little control. It had been only his own life on the line in that craft. Not the lives of two people he cared a great deal for. Zander stumbled back into the corner. His back hit a wall and he slid down. This wasn’t happening. None of it. The ship, the explosion, sex with these two gorgeous people. It must be some bizarre nightmare, or he was stuck in some hospital and this was a coma dream. People had those, didn’t they? Anything to explain this other than reality. Zander slammed his head back and saw stars when he hit the bump on the back of his head. Not the brightest idea he’d ever had, but his brain was out on a lunch break. No, this was happening. They could all die and he might never know why. That didn’t sit well with him. Not one little bit. He was starting to get angry. Not a sensation he was used to. His world dealt with calm, control and rational thought. There was nothing sane or rational about his life right now. “What are you doing?” Se whispered beside him. She looked between him and Rock. “Panicking. Not very manly, I know. This—” he waved his hand around the room “—this doesn’t happen to guys like me. You two are so comfortable and I’m the weak link. What if you get hurt because of me?” That was his true fear. He didn’t want them hurt because of some klutz thing he did. Se took his hand in hers. “You aren’t weak. I was a soldier for a long time and Rock has led an…interesting life. We need someone like you in our lives to balance us. And I think you need us, too. Science isn’t everything.” She kissed his cheek. “Right. If you say so. What is he doing?” Zander pointed over at Rock and focussed on his breathing. In and out. Can’t panic. Calm. Be calm.

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“Trying to get Rave or Kain on the line and to see if the Alliance will help out.” “So who are Rave and Kain again?” The small-talk was helping him to calm down. They hadn’t done much talking in the time they’d spent together. Se’s presence might have something to do with it as well. They were bonding. That was good. If this was real, they would need more than sex to keep them going. He stopped thinking and started listening. He didn’t want to miss what Se said. “That is a whole other story. I’ll give you the highlights. Kain is my cousin. Rave is his partner. A bit ago Rave was wrongly accused of a crime and led to believe Kain was involved or didn’t care. They both found out they were being set up by some sick man named Seth Davidson. The two of them were with the Alliance and now they freelance with a cargo ship.” “And how do you know Rock?” The story was getting interesting. “He helped Rave out and had a thing for him, but Rave only loved one man and that was Kain.” “So why didn’t the two of you hook up?” Now Zander was really curious. “Rock says it’s because he wanted to make sure he wanted me and I wasn’t just some rebound. For me? I didn’t know if he was gay or not.” Se shrugged. “All you had to do was ask.” Rock had joined them. Se snorted. “Were you able to reach anyone?” An explosion shook the room. “Fuck. Yeah. Rave and Kain will be here in about two minutes. They were actually on their way here already. They planned on a surprise visit. Well, surprise.” Rock gave a dry chuckle. “The Alliance?” Se questioned. Before Rock could answer, someone hammered on the door. Rock put a finger to his lips, indicating he wanted them to stay quiet. Zander had no problem with that. He rocked back and forth. Se soothed him by petting his arm. He stopped moving and listened. It sounded like they were shooting at the door. It must have been something powerful, because dents started to appear. Zander tugged at Rock when he positioned himself between the door and his lovers. A few shouts and gunfire, then silence surrounded them. Could they have found a way to open the door? He clutched at Rock’s boot and Se grabbed his hand in a tight hold.

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He took a deep breath and let calm enter his soul. He didn’t want to be anywhere else but with his lovers. If he had to die, this would be as good a place as any, but he wouldn’t go down without a fight. He gripped the barrel of the laser gun tightly and flicked off the safety. The knock made him flinch and he almost squeezed the trigger. “Open the door. Is this how you treat guests on this hell hole?” “It’s Rave.” Se laughed and stood up. Rock visibly relaxed and reached down to help Zander up. He put the safety back on and set the gun down on one of the tables in the room with shaky hands. It was good to be rid of it. Before going to the door, Rock pulled them both into his arms. Zander felt safe and a little relieved, if he was being truthful. He squeezed his lovers tight, kissing any skin he could find. Zander thrust his body against Rock. If he could, he would have crawled inside and never left. He needed to feel alive. Hands were everywhere. He couldn’t tell who was who, but it didn’t matter. He reached for Rock’s shirt but the pounding started again. “Come on guys. Stop fucking around and come out of there.” “Now there’s the Rave I know.” Rock smiled against Zander’s neck. “Keep your britches on, you bastard.” They untangled their arms and legs and Zander moved back, letting Se and Rock rush towards the door. “What the hell have you gotten yourself into this time?” the voice they said was Rave’s asked. “Me? It’s usually you getting into trouble, old man.” Rock sounded happy. Zander liked to see the big man with laughter in his eyes. “Well, it wasn’t us this time. What is going on here?” That was a new voice. Must be Kain. Rock looked back at him and motioned Zander forward. “That’s what we are trying to find out. This here is Dr Alexander d’Ado. Se and I saved him from being blown out of the sky. Someone is after him and we need to figure out who.” Zander nodded at the two men.

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“Hello, Dr d’Ado. I’m Rave and this is Kain. And you don’t have to wonder any longer. The coward that ran away from here is none other than Larrison Walker. I recognised his ship.” Zander shook hands with Rave and Kain. Both men were strikingly handsome. He could see why Rock had had a thing for Rave. It made him feel a little jealous and lacking. As if Se and Rock could sense his thoughts, they surrounded him, hugging him close. “It can’t be possible. Why would he be after me? Or want me dead?” Zander whispered, now more unsure than ever. “He’s a sick fuck. Puts Seth Davidson to shame. Never could pin anything on Larrison while I was in the Alliance. No proof. But the rumours surrounding him are enough to make the hardest man shiver in his boots,” Kain answered. “I’ve heard of him. So have you, Rock. Remember that story about the corpse left on Alfe II? Cuts all over the place. They almost couldn’t identify the man. That was rumoured to be Larrison. It’s said that he likes to play rough with his toys and they don’t survive. I’m not sure how he got this crew. Must be paying them a lot. His family has money. Could be how he never got caught.” “Shit. I remember. Let’s go.” Rock tugged Zander and Se out of the door, shouldering his way past Rave and Kain. “Go where? Not after that man. It’s me he wants. I’ll just go and find—” Four voices shouted in harmony, “No!” They halted in the hallway. Zander was shocked at the fury in Rock and Se’s tone. “Are you fucking crazy?” Se asked calmly. “Over my dead body,” Rock made his opinion known. “Well now, Rave, isn’t this interesting.” Zander turned away from his lovers to look at the two men. “Yes it is, Kain.” Rave looked amused. “At least now I don’t have to worry about Rock being after your ass. Seems like you’re last season. Ouch!” Kain chuckled when Rave smacked him. “Would you two quit fucking around? I don’t remember giving you a bunch of shit when we went after Davidson. Larrison isn’t going to get his hands on Zander and that’s all there is to it. I’ll kill the bastard myself if I have to. He came to my home and put my lovers in danger. That shit is not going to be forgotten.”

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“Calm down there, Romeo. You know Kain and I are with you a hundred per cent.” “Yeah, we are, but what are your intentions with regards to my cousin?” “Kain, now is not the time. Someone is after Zan. We have to fix this.” Se tried to put a stop to the questions. The care with which Se and Rock spoke of him warmed Zander’s heart. He didn’t think he’d ever had anyone care for him this way. Certainly not his one-night-stand lovers. “They’re both mine. That’s all you two need to know. Now let’s make a plan so the three of us can have some more time together.” Rock ignored everyone and left the hallway for his office. Zander followed. Maybe things would be all right and his life could get back on track. With a few variations. He needed to make room for Se and Rock. It looked like things might become long term, if he made it through alive.

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Chapter Six

Larrison’s rage knew no bounds. “Why did you flee? I specifically said I wanted Zander on this ship. Not for you to turn tail and run at the first sign of resistance.” He slapped the man in front of him. The crack echoed in the small space of the bridge. It calmed him down enough that he could reel in his anger. At least on the outside. Inside he seethed. To be so close to Zander and not have him in his grasp was not acceptable. Someone would die. “Sir, another ship came and we had to get out of there. They radioed us and told us that the Alliance was on the way. We put the ship outside of their range. We did not make a full retreat. We pulled back enough so we could make a second strike.” Finally, someone who had a pair of balls and wasn’t afraid to speak up. He turned to see who spoke. It was Roberts. He gave a nod. “Fine. Watch and make sure they do not, under any circumstances, leave. If they so much as blink, I want to know about it. The good doctor will be on this ship by that planet’s night fall or the lot of you will know my wrath.” Larrison left the bridge and stalked to his room. He needed to finish off his playmate to make room for the real Zander. It wouldn’t do for the doctor to see his stand-in. Nope, wouldn’t do at all. A whimper greeted his entrance. Larrison paused to admire his work. The stand-in had his hands cuffed to the headboard, a spreader bar between his legs, cuts crisscrossing his appendages. His ankles were twisted in ropes and hooked to the edge of the bed. There would be no movement. No screaming, either. Larrison had stuffed a ball gag in earlier. Screaming had its time and place and it wasn’t now. He was too agitated. “No need to worry, my sweet. I’m here now. Sorry I had to leave during our playtime, but I had another matter to take care of. Let’s get back to some fun.” Larrison smiled at the sounds of struggling coming from the bed, his good mood coming back. Yep, a little blood would make him feel better. The cuts were starting to scab up. It was time for something fresh. He walked to his knife collection and ran a finger lovingly over his favourites. He loved old Earth tools and was a collector.

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He decided on the Spyderco Dragonfly SS Tattoo with the two and five-sixteenths blade. The dragonfly etched on the side was faded from years of use, but his fingers still traced the spot. It was small, but left a perfect cut. It also held sentimental value. The knife had been his great grandfather’s. He’d sat with his grandpa and learnt to love knives. He ran a finger over the blade. Sharp. He’d have to have Reginald sharpen it again when he had finished playing. It wouldn’t do to have a dull knife when he needed it. ‘Zander’s’ eyes widened when Larrison returned with his weapon. He grinned and decided it was time to take away the ball gag. He’d changed his mind. He wanted the others on the ship to hear what their fate would be if they failed him. It would be good to keep them on their toes. “Where should we start? I want to go slow. Smith was such a disappointment. I can’t have that happen again. You seem a lot stronger and handle pain beautifully. Like your body was fated to be mine. Let’s see, shall we?” Before he removed the gag, he ran the knife blade up the sole of Zander’s foot. Not the sharp end. Not yet. He wanted to tease first. The flinch turned him on even more. His cock throbbed in anticipation. “I’m thinking my name carved into your chest would be lovely. What do you think? Oh, how rude of me. Let me take care of this.” Larrison reached for the buckle. He contemplated cutting it off, but didn’t want to waste a good toy. He unfastened it. “Do you need some water?” “Please—don’t—oh God. No more.” “Less talk. I don’t want to have to gag you again. Then again, I could always cut your tongue out. I’d still get to hear your sweet sounds without all the words.” That shut the other man up. What fun. The body under the knife tensed when he eased the blade down to Zander’s stomach. “This spot looks good.” At the first scream he almost came in his pants. He was so turned on by the blood flowing in rivulets down the pale, hairless belly. Larrison had to stop to take off his clothes. His dick hurt and needed to be free. He’d give the man a small reprieve. He did want it to last, after all. Naked now, he continued with his play. The screaming died down with each letter. When he reached the ‘N’ there was only the occasional moan. He couldn’t have that.

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“Now, now, ‘Zander’, you’re not having any fun. We can’t have that.” Larrison put the knife on the dresser and went to get a glass of water from the sink in his bathroom. He went back to the bed and threw it in the silent man’s face. That got a reaction. A sputter and more pleading. “I’ll do anything. Please, God help me. Please. No, no.” “Do you really think your god can help you now? It looks like I am in control here. Maybe you should be begging me. I’m your god now. Your fate is in my hands.” Larrison smeared the blood up the stomach and over Zander’s chest, loving the red against the white. He took his soaked digits and used the blood to stroke his cock. Maybe he would fuck the fake Zander again. He had a nice tight hole, and Larrison’s dick throbbed at the thought of going back in. “Lar. Please. I can’t take anymore. It—hurts.” “I don’t care. Don’t you understand?” He slapped ‘Zander’s’ face, leaving a red hand print across the man’s cheek. “You don’t exist to me. A mere dalliance to pass the time. And you’re starting to bore me. You don’t want me to lose interest do you?” With his pleasure in the situation waning he decided to speed things up a little, make the cuts a little deeper. A quick jab and the blade sank into Zander’s thigh to the hilt. The scream echoed around the cabin. That made him happy. He did it again and again, peppering the legs before him with holes. He stroked his cock in time with the stabs. Larrison was so close. One more and he exploded, his cum mingling with the blood. He released the knife and collapsed on the floor. The noise had stopped after the fifth cut and the replacement Zander barely breathed. It was time to finish the job. A knock at the door stopped the blade from slicing the prone man’s throat. “Sire, there is a ship leaving the planet’s atmosphere. The crew said you wished to be notified.” “Thank you, Reginald. Tell them to hail the ship. I’ll be on the bridge momentarily and then I will have a job for you.” “Right away, sire.” Time for play was over. Zander would be his. Larrison drew the Dragonfly back and plunged it into Fergus’s chest, right into his heart. The body twitched and he wished he was deep inside Fergus’s ass. He’d never had sex while someone was dying. He’d have to

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experiment with that later. Sure, there would be a mess, but it would be worth it. The thought of feeling the life drain out of a person had his cock stirring again. Enough of this. Go and get your man. Larrison did a quick wash to get the blood off his body and dressed in a suit. It would do to be presentable. He hurried to the coms deck and didn’t bother to look back into his room, Fergus already forgotten.

**** “We’re being hailed by a ship orbiting the planet,” Se said from her position at the helm. “That’s Larrison’s ship. When we got to your place, the guys on the ground scattered. They must have sailed out of range. We weren’t detecting them when we had you open the safe room door,” Rave observed. “Put it through, Se. Let’s get this taken care of. Give Kain and Zander a distraction to get them off-planet. After we lose these guys, we’ll coordinate a rendezvous point,” Rock gave the go ahead. A tall, normal-looking blond man with blue eyes appeared on the vid screen. At least he looked normal to Rock. Maybe it wasn’t Larrison Walker. He leant in closer to the screen, and there it was, the crazy hidden behind the calm veneer. A spark in the eyes gave Larrison away. “You have something that belongs to me and I would like it back. Now, if you please.” So polite. Zander was right, on the surface the guy was a gentleman. Was that a speck of blood on Walker’s face? “I’m sorry. Who are you and what do you think we have?” Rock played it cool. “My name is Larrison Walker and you have Dr Alexander d’Ado on your craft. You will deliver him to me, post haste.” Rock could not believe the gall of this guy. Se gestured, letting him know that Kain and Zander had left the atmosphere. He could wrap this up now. “You are under the mistaken impression that Zander is yours. He is not, nor will he ever be, yours. I suggest you forget about him and be on your way before I take action you will not be happy with.”

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Walker’s composure started to crumble. His face turned a splotchy red colour that didn’t look healthy. His eyes narrowed. “You will regret messing with me. Hand him over or prepare to be boarded.” “On whose authority? You will cease and desist. You’re pissing me off.” “Give me what is mine or die!” Walker screamed through the com. “I hate to burst your bubble, but Zander is not on this ship. He is out of your reach. Stop trying to kill him, or you will die.” Rock cut the link between the ships. “Well that went well. That guy is a psycho and a half.” Se snorted. “We need to call in the Alliance. Give them a heads up on this guy before Rock kills him.” Rave fiddled with the controls. “Kain is supposed to be giving his dad a call.” That was good news. Kain’s dad was a high official in the Alliance. If anyone could help, it would be him. “We don’t have enough to make this official. Just this threat. Zander could barely remember the guy. We can’t connect him to the ship explosion or the attack at my house.” “No, but we have that vid of him threatening you. It’s a start. And you know it’s going to get worse before it gets better. Neutralising him is the best option.” That was the Rave he remembered. Tough as nails and sexy as hell. But he didn’t feel the same attraction he once had. His concern was for Zander and Se. And he protected what was his. “I agree. He’s going to follow us and when they realise where we’re headed, they’ll probably try to get the jump on us. He can’t get to Zander before we hook back up,” Rock worried. “Kain has your man and will protect him. You know that.” Rave stopped what he was doing to address Rock. “It isn’t the same. And you know that,” Rock shot back. “Okay, you two, shut it and get this thing moving. At this rate we’ll never make it,” Se grouched from the captain’s chair. “Awww, Se, you’re cute when you’re scared,” Rave chuckled. “Don’t make me hurt you, Rave.” Se got out of the chair and paced. Rock half-expected missiles to be coming their way, but nothing happened. He wasn’t sure why Walker didn’t fire on them when he knew Zander wasn’t aboard. That wasn’t a

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good sign. Maybe he should fire now and get it over with. Blast the guy out of the sky so he couldn’t hurt anyone else. “Don’t do it, Rock. You’re better than that,” Rave whispered. Rock hadn’t noticed Rave getting closer. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Rock tried. “Yes. You do. If you kill Walker from here, it will haunt you. You aren’t that man. Face to face is the way to go. Let him defend himself, no matter how crazy he is. You’ll be in that position soon enough. I just hope you get to take the shot and not Zander. If I could take that moment away from Kain, I would.” Rock knew what and who Rave was referring to. Davidson, the sick fuck who’d almost killed Rave last year. He’d been there, and agreed. He would never put Zander in that position. No way in hell. “Let’s get to Vega Delta.” Rock punched in the coordinates. “I thought the plan was to lead them away then contact Kain and Zander,” Se questioned. “New plan. I want this over. The sooner the better. We need neutral ground and the Alliance on board. Hopefully, Kain will have the time he needs. One way or the other, this ends. Now.” Rock’s tone brooked no argument. Even Rave sat back at his vehemence. “So what exactly is this new plan you have?” Se challenged him. “We annihilate the bastard and get on with our lives.” “I like your plan.” Se gave him a bloodthirsty grin. “Nobody fucks with what is ours.” “You two are starting to scare me. Se, I don’t think I’ve ever seen this side of you,” Rave looked back at Se before glancing at Rock. “You don’t want to piss this bitch off. Family is important. You missed me tearing it up when you were locked away. I’m very territorial. Just ask Kain.” Rock couldn’t have loved her more than in that moment. His Amazon beauty. And yes, he was a goner. He loved her, and was well on the way to loving Zander. Now on to getting peace for his new family. They had a lot more fucking to do. And maybe a little loving, too, when they came up for air. “Let’s do this.” Rock nodded before pulling Se close. He missed Zander already. He felt empty without both lovers cuddled to his chest. Like a part was missing. Se kissed his

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chest and he kissed her on the top of her head. “We’ll make him safe. You have my word.” He whispered. “I know. We’ll both get him back. And not leave the bed for a month.” “I like how you think.” Rock gave Se a final squeeze and went back to the control panel. Time to fly.

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Chapter Seven

Zander paced the corridors of the unfamiliar ship. His life had taken such a drastic turn in such a short time. Now here he was going to his original destination. He missed Se and Rock. Thinking about them made his heart and cock ache. He should have told them his plan before he left, but he didn’t want them to be hurt and knew they would try to protect him at all costs. They would have each other if anything went wrong and he could die a happy man knowing that they wouldn’t be alone. “Whatever it is you’re thinking about doing, don’t.” He started at the voice coming from his right. He turned to face Kain. “I—” “Don’t try to deny it. I’ve seen that look before. Rave had it right before he put himself in danger and almost got killed. I am not having Rock after my ass if something happens to you. He already doesn’t like me. Of course, I’m more afraid of Se. She fights dirty.” Kain chuckled. “I don’t want them hurt,” Zander whispered. “I don’t know you, but I do know those three on the Salvation. They will stop at nothing to make sure you’re safe. You should let them. They have experience in this arena. Who knows what Walker is capable of?” Kain slapped him on the back. “Do you honestly think he would do all of this because I didn’t acknowledge him?” The thought of someone out to get him for no real reason boggled his mind. There was no rhyme or reason. No logical pattern to follow. “Yes. I do. It doesn’t take much when you’re dealing with a crazy person.” “I don’t suppose you’d let me give myself up, would you?” Zander questioned “Now where is the logic in that? What do you hope to gain?” “Ending this would be a start.” But Zander knew Kain had a valid point. Logic was a big part of what made him tick. He lived and breathed the stuff, but since meeting Rock and Se all logic had deserted him. Their safety was paramount. If the situations were reversed, he knew the two of them would do what they could to keep him safe. Hell,

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they were already doing it. He should have stayed on that ship and none of this would matter. He’d be dead and that would be that. “Do you have a death wish?” Kain interrupted his thoughts. It was eerie how dead-on the other man was about his thought process. “Rave wasn’t kidding about the rumours surrounding Walker. You would suffer and it wouldn’t be pretty. No more thinking about this. Will you be okay while I contact the Alliance? We’ll get them up to date on the situation and you’ll be back with Se and Rock in no time.” Kain left the room. Zander didn’t think his heart cared if his thoughts were logical. It might have been only a short time, but he had feelings for his two lovers. And it wasn’t only lust. He wanted to know them, and hoped they’d be able to stand it when he got lost in his experiments. But he would rather leave so they could have a life without him than have all of them die. His mind was made up. He would have to find a way to contact Larrison. That wouldn’t be an easy task. He had no idea where to start and didn’t have much time. The trip to Delta would go much faster this time. They were warping the whole way there with no stops. He’d hoped Kain would help him so his cousin didn’t get hurt, but he was just as stubborn as Rock. He bit his lip, lost in thought. Zander was smart. He could do this. The room he was in offered him no options. It was a kitchen with no real com. His room might have a personal unit he would be able to use. Maybe put out a beacon. He’d have to word it right so Kain wasn’t hurt in any way. He’d never forgive himself if something happened to the other man. Se would never forgive him. His mind made up, Zander left and walked quickly to the room Kain had shown him earlier.

Two hours later and still no luck, and they would be orbiting the planet soon. The only com had to be on the bridge or somewhere he didn’t have access. He’d walked back to the galley for some dinner. He was tired and, if he was honest, cranky. He wanted to throw a fit, but that wouldn’t help anyone. “Good news.” Kain entered the room. Zander jumped. Guilt made his face heat up. He could feel the burn and could only imagine the colour. He turned his face away. “And that is?” Zander managed.

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“The Alliance is going to meet us at Vega Delta. I came to see if you wanted to come to the bridge. I’m going to hail the Salvation to give them the heads-up. If they’ve lost Walker they can come on in. Hell, even if they didn’t they can still make their way to the planet.” “Why would the Alliance help? We don’t have any proof. Do we?” Zander moved away from the counter and headed for the door. He really wanted to talk to Rock and Se. It could be the last time if he was successful. “First, why do you look so guilty? Then we’ll go to bridge.” Busted. “N—” “Don’t lie to me. Spit it out.” “I don’t know who you think you are, but I don’t have to tell you anything. Out of respect for Se though, I’ll let you know that I was going against your wishes and trying to find a way to send out a message to Larrison.” He knew he sounded like a child throwing a tantrum, but he didn’t care. Kain had no authority over him. Zander crossed his arms over his chest. He was on the defensive. “I thought you were smarter than that.” Kain gave a weary sigh and leant against a counter. “As you said earlier, you really don’t know me. I may be not be a soldier, but I want to protect those I care for. If I can do that by giving myself up, I will.” “Even if it means you have to die when you don’t have to? You’re as thick-headed as Rock and Se. You all deserve each other. Now follow me.” Kain motioned Zander on. He had no choice but to follow. He did need to say goodbye to his lovers, buy why did he have a bad feeling about this? When he entered the room with the coms, he paused inside the door and waited. “Salvation, this is the Elation, please copy.” Kain tried a couple of times on different frequencies until he got an answer. Rock’s voice came through the console and it made Zander’s heart lighter. They’d only been apart a few hours, but it felt like a lifetime. “This is the Salvation. We’re heading your way with a tail. Be prepared and keep your eyes open,” Rock demanded. “That wasn’t the plan, Rock. What happened?” Kain sounded interested, but not upset.

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“I looked into the eyes of a madman. Is the Alliance on board with helping?” Rock asked. “They are,” Kain confirmed. “Good. We have a recording of Walker threatening me. I think we could break him in interrogation. He’s about to lose it,” Rock sounded almost happy. “I like that. There is something you should know.” Kain looked towards Zander. His stomach bottomed out. He wouldn’t, would he? “Your man Zander, here, has been trying to find a way to contact Walker and give himself up.” Kain gave him a shit-eating grin, looking too pleased with himself. Zander had to cover his ears. Se and Rock were very loud in their displeasure. When the buzzing stopped, he lowered his hands. “You do something stupid like that again and I’ll have your ass so red you won’t be able to sit for a week. Do you understand me, Zander?” Rock glared at him. “And I’ll fucking hold you while he does it. Of all the dumb—” Se had her hands to her head like she had a headache. This wasn’t going very well at all. “Alright. I get it. I don’t want you two hurt because of me. Why can’t any of you understand that? I might not be a warrior, but I have morals. I—care for the two of you,” Zander whispered the last. I love you almost slipped out but it was too soon for that. Even he knew the trio wasn’t ready for words of love. But he did love them. They had captured his heart and now he might lose them. That thought did not sit well and made his chest ache. He clutched at his shirt where his heart was. He couldn’t let them die. Not while he had a breath in his body. “Damn it, Zander. I care about you too. And Se as well. You have to understand that we have extensive training. We can and will deal with it. Hopefully, no one will get hurt. Now sit tight and don’t do anything stupid before we get there.” The com went dark before Zander could respond. “Thank you for that.” The fight went out of him. Luckily, there was a chair there or he would have fallen on his ass. His body couldn’t hold him up anymore. “No problem. I need you to listen to me. Really listen. Rave and I know what we’re doing. Not only are we Alliance trained, but we had our own psycho to deal with. He went off half-cocked and almost got himself killed trying to save me. I don’t want Se to go through

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that. Se is Alliance trained as well, and Rock—well, I don’t know about Rock, but I do know he can hold his own. That man is a badass no matter what way you look at it. You’re a scientist. What kind of training do you have that would make you come out of this situation alive?” Zander didn’t say anything right away. He couldn’t, because the other man was right. What he wanted to do would probably be a suicide mission. No two ways about it. He looked up to see Kain standing close. “I admit I don’t have much in the way of fighting skills. But this is my problem. Somehow Larrison became fascinated with me. Nobody else should have to deal with it. I understand you wanting to protect Se. But I have to do something. I can’t just sit by the sidelines. What kind of man would that make me?” “A smart one?” Kain shot back. Zander snorted. “So what’s the plan? Go to Vega Delta and wait?” “That’s it in a nutshell. And we hope like hell that the Alliance and the Salvation get there before your admirer.” Kain went back to the other side of the ship. Zander itched to do something. Anything. His research. He still needed to figure out what was wrong with the pox sample he had. Something was off and if he could pinpoint what, he’d have the cure. He was close. He knew it. He’d brought his data with him. “Kain, do you have some space I can use to work? Like a sickbay or a lab?” “I don’t know if it will have what you need but we do have a small med bay.” “That should work. I have to check over a couple of experiments I did before Rock rescued me. I haven’t had much time to study them.” Zander felt heat crawl up his body and his cock got hard just thinking about his time with Rock and Se. Kain laughed. “Why doesn’t that surprise me? Se and Rock would keep you locked up if they could. I saw the way they looked at you. It’s how Rave looks at me.” Kain smiled. Zander had to squelch the urge to be the hero. What would he do if something happened to these strangers? Last week if someone had told him that he would be so far outside his comfort zone, he would have—well, probably ignored them and finished working. He had to laugh at himself. He certainly was predictable. Kain gave him directions to the med bay and Zander went in search of his sanity.

****

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“I can’t believe he was going to fucking turn himself over to that bastard. I thought he was smarter than that.” Rock smashed his hand into the bulkhead. It didn’t alleviate the anger surging through him. The thought of that maniac having his hands on Zander was almost his undoing. It made him want to turn the ship around and fire the ship following them out of the sky and say fuck the other passengers. Se was his voice of reason. Even if it was an angry voice. “I’ll shoot him myself if he even thinks about it again. But I know you enough by now Rock and you can’t blow Larrison out of the sky, no matter how much you want to. The other lives would be on your conscience forever. No way would I want you to deal with that, and you know Zander wouldn’t either.” “Not to mention me. Larrison Walker will get his. Karma is a bitch,” Rave interrupted. “Since when do you believe in karma?” Se asked in disbelief. “Since the day Seth Davidson died and Kain was back with me. Don’t get me wrong, it took some work, but that day I knew things would be okay,” Rave answered. Rock had never seen this side of Rave. It looked good on him. Se wrapped her arms around him. A calm settled into his bones. It would be better if Zander were here to share in the moment. “We’ll get this taken care of and go back to your place so I can finish my vacation. We’ll stay naked the whole time. Eat, sleep and fuck. Maybe not in that order.” Se shrugged then hugged him tight. “Have I told you that I like how you think? We can’t let anything happen to him, Se.” Rock rested his head on top of hers and closed his eyes. Her scent made him hard. Hell, she made him hard. It had been that way for a while. He shouldn’t have waited so long to claim her. “I know. He’s become important to both of us. It would be as if part of us was missing. Funny how that happened so fast, but it feels like we’ve been with each other for years, not days. There is something right about the three of us.” It was as if she was in his head. Scary. “How long until we reach the Elation?” Rave wanted to know. Rock moved away from Se to check the console. “They weren’t that far ahead of us. I would say an hour tops. Is the other ship still following us?”

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“Yes. They aren’t trying to hide.” Rave looked back over at Rock. “Good. I kind of hope the Alliance is late.” Rave grinned, “Somehow I knew you would say that.” “I’m happy to be included this time.” Rock froze at Se’s words. “No.” That was all he said. Fuck that. One of his lovers was already in immediate danger. No way would Se put herself in harms way as well. He’d take care of it and that was that. Se bristled under his gaze. “What do you mean, ‘no’?” She put her hand on her hips and glared. “You will stay on the Salvation and wait for it to be over.” Rock’s tone brooked no argument. He mimicked her stance. “I think I’ll head to the galley.” Rock waved Rave away while continuing to focus on Se. “Bullshit. Not. Going. To. Happen. Zander is just as much mine as he is yours. We protect what is ours.” Se gestured between the two of them. She was so sexy all fired up like she was. “Yes, we do. Which is why you’re staying here.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “No way in hell. I was in the military and trained in combat. You will not take this away from me. I am not a ‘sit back and watch’ kind of girl. And you know that.” “I would…” he paused. He had to get this right. “Fuck it all. I would die if anything happened to either of you. Trained? How much actual combat have you seen, Se? I’ve been through wars. I’ve seen families devastated with loss. No fucking way is that happening. I’ll bring Zander over here. You two can look after each other while Kain, Rave and I handle Larrison.” “You are not going to deprive me of defending our man. I say again. Not. Going. To. Happen. I’m a big girl and I can handle myself. Don’t you think I would be equally lost without either of you? We’re a team now. That is, if you want us to stay that way. It’s different with Zander. If he had any type of combat background I would want him with us as well. We will be stronger together.” Se slapped him around the head. “Ouch. Damn it, Se.” “Enough. This is not up for debate.” Se stormed off the bridge. “Well, fuck me.” Rock ran a hand through his already mussed hair. Life sucked.

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Rave must not have gone far because he sauntered back into the room. “You’re just all kinds of fucked, aren’t you?” Rave sounded happy. “Yeah, well I should have pulled a Rave and gone off and taken care of it.” Rock couldn’t help himself getting the dig in. It was too easy. And made him feel a bit better. “Oh, we saw how well that worked. If I had to do it over again—” “Stop it right there.” Rock held up a hand. “You would do the same fucking thing. We both know it.” Rock wouldn’t let Rave get away with that shit. “Okay, you’re right. But we both know Se better than that. Once she considers you family, that’s it. I mean, come on, she left the Alliance for me. No questions asked. When I got off that godforsaken penal colony, she was there and helped me through a lot of shit. She’s a hell of a first mate and smart to boot. Give her some credit.” “You don’t want her confronting that asshole anymore than I do,” Rock tried to reason. “No I don’t, but I trust her,” Rave stated. “Trust isn’t the problem,” Rock insisted. “Isn’t it?” Rave cocked that damn eyebrow at him. Cocky fucking bastard. “I trust both Se and Zander with my life. Se, I’m not surprised about. But how fast I’ve taken to Zander is amazing to me. I don’t trust easy. Never have.” “You think I don’t know that? How long did it take for us to become friends?” Rave asked. “That’s because I wanted in your pants.” Rock laughed. “It was more than that and you know it. And if Kain hadn’t come back, you might have worn me down. Eventually.” Rave winked. “Never would have happened. I’m too much man for you to handle.” His shoulders relaxed and the tension left his body. Rave was right, not that he’d admit it out loud—Rave’s ego was already huge. Se would be there, and he would have to be okay with it. Zander was another story. He was going to lock him in a room and not let him out for a month. If he was lucky. “So what’s the plan when we rendezvous with the Elation? Or are we going in guns-ablazin’ and damn the consequences? Not that I have a problem with that.”Rave rested his ass on the main computer panel.

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“We meet up with your ship and hope the Alliance is there. Whether they are or not, we lure Larrison out of his ship and confront him. Hoping he pulls something so I can kill his ass.” “Nice and simple. It could work. I’m in.” Rock hoped so. His trigger finger was itchy, and he wanted that fucker dead.

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Chapter Eight

“We don’t have much time. Larrison is right behind us, but I wanted to talk to you both before we confront him,” Rock announced. They’d finally landed on Vega Delta and hightailed it to a small town on the edge of the jungle. Zander and Kain had been waiting for them at a deserted cabin. For that matter, the whole place looked empty. It would be better that way. Rock didn’t want innocent people hurt, and he wasn’t sure what would go down. Rock needed to clear the air. It was important if anything happened. He’d lost too many people without saying goodbye. Not this time. He was falling, and going down hard. “Me first,” said Zander. “I’m—sorry. I shouldn’t have tried to give myself over. I— just—that is—I care deeply for you both. Something I’ve never had before. Science has been my life and now it seems to come in second. And that is the other thing I have to tell you. Something is wrong with the pox sample I have. It isn’t a pox. Why would someone give me the wrong sample if I was to find a cure? It’s the Grey Death, and I don’t know where it came from or who the sample belongs to. It isn’t right.” It looked like Zander wanted to keep talking but he stopped. “We don’t have time to go into your research.” Rock squeezed Zander’s shoulder and drew him closer. “We can look into it after this situation is cleared up. Kain said his dad isn’t far off, but I don’t think they’ll get here in time. We need to secure Larrison for questioning. Zander, if you would wait in that cabin over there until this is over, it would make me feel a lot better. That way I don’t have to worry about you. You’ll have a weapon if you need it. Se, you—wait, hear me out before you say anything. You’ll be positioned in front of the cabin. The rest of us will be in front of you. Well, not exactly in front. I want you to have a clear shot if you need it.” Zander opened his arms and Se walked into them. The three huddled together. “Thank you, Rock,” was all she said. “I may have a thick skull, but I trust you to have my back. Something Rave wouldn’t let me forget. Now both of you give me a kiss before we get into position.” “Hurry it up, you three. He’ll be here in seconds. We’ll break radio silence once they enter the atmosphere,” Rave said.

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Rock pulled Se to him first and put everything he could into the kiss. Zander peppered both his and Se’s face with light caresses. He turned to taste Zander and leant back so Se and Zander could have their turn. God, he wanted to go home and fuck them both senseless. “Fuck. I love you two.” Rock didn’t rush the words. He liked the way they sounded. It was right. “Rock—” Zander started. Rock put his finger to Zander’s lips to stop him. He would hear the words, but he wanted to wait so he could savour them. Se didn’t say anything, she just snuggled closer as if she knew they would get back to this moment later. Her faith in him astounded him. Rock couldn’t ask for better partners. “Go get in the cabin.” Rock pressed a gun into Zander’s hand then walked away to stand by Rave. “You ready for this?” Rock asked Rave. “Fuck yeah. Let’s get this over with,” came the enthusiastic response. Kain walked out of the ship and stopped beside them. “I hailed them and told Larrison if he wanted the good doctor, to come alone. I don’t trust that he will, so stay on your toes.” “What? Does he think this is the first time we’ve done this?” Rock joked. “He’s talking to you, old man. Kain knows I’ve got mad skills.” “Who’re you calling old man?” Rock pushed Rave towards Kain. They shared a laugh before they turned serious. “Game face on, gentlemen. The man of the hour is here.” Kain’s facial expression turned hard. It was time for business. Rock took one moment to look back at Se. She blew him a kiss. He’d done the right thing letting her know he trusted her. “Where is he?” Rock turned at the shout. It was the same man from the vid, but he looked different somehow. Something was wrong with him. “I thought I told you to come alone?” Kain yelled back. Just beyond Larrison stood a tall, handsome man. He was on the thin side, with dark black hair threaded with silver. Rock wondered who he was and why he was with Larrison.

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“Who? Him? He is nobody.” Larrison pulled a gun and aimed it at Kain. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing you crazy son of a bitch?” Rock distracted Larrison. No way was Kain getting shot. Not on his watch. This was Rock’s show. Rock slid the safety off and readied his gun hand. If anyone was going to shoot, it would be him. “None of you will be hurt if you just hand over Alexander. Now where is he?” The voice was calm, but the man twitched, his gaze flitting between them. Something had changed between their communication on Cooper and now. Was he on drugs? It had to be something. Rock was going to tell him to go to hell, but someone beat him to it. “I’m not going with you, Mr Walker. Reginald, it’s nice to see you again.” What was Zander doing out of the cabin? Damn it. This could go bad in a hurry. Rock liked the odds, but lasers could go astray and Zander stepped right into Larrison’s line of sight and Se was right beside him. His two stubborn lovers. Maybe he’d tie them both up and show them who was boss. He returned his focus to the situation. He’d deal with them both later. “I don’t know why you fight me, my sweet Alexander. We were meant to be together. I don’t understand why you left before we had a chance. And then I lure you out with that fake pox and you still disappear. Not very sporting of you, young man. And I do like a good hunt. Now come here. I’m done with this foolishness.” “Disappear? You shot the ship I was on out of the sky. I’d be dead right now if it wasn’t for the Salvation. And fake? What do you think you gave me?” “Zander, is this really the time for these questions?” Rock said out of the side of his mouth. He didn’t want to take Larrison’s attention away because the man had lowered his gun. Rock didn’t wait for a response, but slowly moved to the side. If he could get behind Larrison, he might be able to get a jump on him. He had to watch out for his servant, but Rock thought he’d be in the clear. “I gave you a sample of my own blood. I’m surprised you didn’t find out sooner that the sample was clean. I thought you were a scientist. Not that it matters—my toys don’t need jobs. You’ll be taken care of. No worries there.” “Clean?” Zander sounded confused.

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It gave Rock pause. Maybe this would explain what was wrong with the guy. “Well, yes, of course. Now stop talking and get over here. Reginald, please go help the good doctor.” “Sir, I hate to tell you this,” Zander paused and looked towards Rock with a sad expression. Don’t touch him, Zander mouthed to him. “You have the Grey Death. It looks to be pretty advanced. You should be in a hospital.” Zander edged back and pulled Se with him. Grey Death? That could explain a lot. It still didn’t excuse Larrison’s actions. Things slowed down. At least in Rock’s mind. Larrison raised his weapon again and pointed it at Zander. Se shifted to stand in front of their lover. Kain and Rave were too far away to do anything, but they ran towards the two in the middle. “You lie! Don’t make me do this. I want to play,” Larrison whined, and stomped his foot. The man’s finger squeezed and a bolt of light flew from the gun. Rock heard a scream and he didn’t know who it came from. It could have been him. Se and Zander crumpled to the ground. He didn’t think of his own safety. It was a rush to see who could get to the fallen couple the fastest. Larrison was all but forgotten until he started spouting off. “Why did you make me do that? I wanted to play and you ruined my fun. I don’t understand. You were supposed to be mine.” Larrison’s voice was confused and pitiful. Like a child who hadn’t got what he wanted. “This explains a lot, sire.” Rock stopped at Zander and Se’s side and dropped to his knees before he faced Reginald. He hadn’t expected the servant to speak, supposing he was some lackey who stood by and watched his boss work. “What are you talking about, Reginald? Do your job and bring Dr d’Ado to me. Now!” Spittle flew from Larrison’s mouth like a rabid dog’s. “I can’t do that. I’m sorry, but it has gotten out of hand. I should have stopped you sooner, but I remember how you were years ago and wanted that man back. I kept hoping your lust for blood would end. I can’t clean up after you anymore.” Reginald pulled something out of his pocket. Rock raised his gun and heard clicks coming from both sides of him. Rave and Kain must have locked sights on the two men having words.

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“What is that you have there? Is that one of my knives? Have you been going through my things?” Larrison turned his gun on his servant. “I loved you once. All you had to do was turn to me. But then you went on your killing spree. It was never enough for you and it kept getting worse. I thought the first was an accident. Now I see that you’ve been contaminated and it isn’t your fault at all.” Reginald raised his hand and threw the knife straight and true. It sliced into Larrison’s chest and lodged in the spot where his heart was. Larrison stared down at the knife then back up to Reginald as if he didn’t understand. “Why?” was Larrison’s last word. He pulled the knife out of his body as he collapsed to the ground. “Forgive me.” Reginald moved closer to the fallen man. A hand grabbed Rock’s shirt and he looked down at Zander. “Don’t let Reginald—touch—blood. Quarantine—the—scene,” Zander managed to get out. Rock forgot about the others. He ran his hands over Zander’s body, looking for the wound. He didn’t feel anything. He glanced over at a passed-out Se and pulled her towards them. She had a gash on her arm. “Are you hurt?” Rock whispered to Zander. “Se took the brunt of the damage. Don’t—don’t worry—about me. Don’t—touch—” Zander passed out. “Why is it you always pass out on me?” Rock was exasperated but kissed Zander’s forehead before grabbing Se’s hand. Touching both of them made him feel better. He needed to get Se to the med deck and make sure the wound was okay. He would have to do better at keeping his lovers safe. Movement made snapped his attention from Se and Zander. Rave was walking towards the dead man. “Stop!” he shouted. Rave stopped and looked around. Rock was relieved the other man had listened to him for once. “No one touch Larrison. If you can get Reginald away, do it. If he has touched Larrison, stay away. I don’t think Zander was kidding about the Grey Death and there is no way we are fucking with that. The Alliance should be here soon. They should have the

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facilities to make sure no one contracts the virus. With Se wounded, we can’t take any chances.” Rave nodded and slunk cautiously towards the fallen murderer. “Kain, would you please grab Se? Let’s get them checked out. I’ll feel better after they’ve been scanned. Se still hasn’t woken up.” Rock let the worry creep into his voice. He didn’t wait for an answer. He knew Kain would take care of his cousin. His mind raced with the turn of events. Rock hoped Rave could save Reginald. The Grey Death was nothing to mess with. He picked Zander up and headed for the ship. “Rock, I’m going to go make sure Rave doesn’t do anything stupid, and wait for the Alliance. You good?” Kain asked as he laid Se down. They’d reached the Salvation’s med deck. “Yes. Take some gloves and anything else that might help. You might want to radio the ship coming to give them a heads up on the situation.” Rock put Zander down beside Se on the cot. He hated seeing them there. Both were pale and so still. “Oh, and you might want to take some restraints for Reginald, just in case,” Rock added. Kain took what he needed and hurried out of the door. He rummaged through his equipment until he found a med wand and a cauterising gun. He wanted to seal Se’s wounds and make sure there weren’t any other injuries. “Need samples. I think I have it. Need space to work. Have to—” Zander struggled to sit up. Rock breathed out a sigh of relief. One up and one to go. “What you need to do is lie back down until I’ve checked you over. You’ve suffered enough injuries in the last couple of days. It would please me greatly if you wouldn’t pass out again.” Rock pushed Zander back down. “Se? Is she—?” Zander cradled Se in his arms before looking back at Rock. “She should be fine. Let me—” Se bolted upright. “What the hell? Ow.” She grabbed her arm. Tension left his body. Things would be okay. “You know, none of this would have happened if you’d both stayed in position. Like you were told,” Rock chastised them. “Don’t start with me, Rock.” Se pouted and laid back down to snuggle into Zan’s arms. “I’m in pain.” She batted her lashes at him.

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Rock turned on the cauterising gun and sealed up her arm without the use of a numbing agent. That stopped the simpering. “Now—” “Fuck, Rock. What the hell?” Se hopped off the cot and swayed. Zander stood behind her to steady her, which didn’t work out that well because he wasn’t steady on his feet either. “Whoa! Settle down.” Rock put his arms around both of them with Se in the middle. “Settle down? You just—” Se sputtered into his chest. Rock squeezed them tight and laughed. “Good to have the real Se back. How are you feeling?” “Like someone just shot me in the arm. Twice,” Se snarled. Zander was suspiciously silent. Rock looked up to see the man had a smile on his face. Rock reached his arm up and pulled Zander down to lock lips with him. Someone moaned. Rock stopped the kiss to make sure Se was okay. “Both of you sit back down. Let me scan you. As soon as the Alliance gets here we are going home.” “I have to get samples and start—” Zander started. “No,” Rock’s voice was firm. “But I need—” Zander tried again. “No.” Rock repeated. “Can’t I just—” “And no,” Rock continued. Se chuckled. “This isn’t funny, Se. We’re talking Grey Death here and I—” “No.” Rock held in his laughter, but it was tough with Se giggling against his chest. “Somehow I knew that was coming. Is that the only word you know?” It was Zander’s turn to pout. Rock wanted to kiss it away. “We are going home and we are locking ourselves in my bedroom for a week. Maybe more. After that, you can start your research,” Rock gave Zander a small push to get him back on the cot. He finally got the med wand calibrated and did his scan. Only a few bumps and bruises. The biggest injury was Se’s arm.

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“I’m sorry,” came a whisper. “For what?” Se asked. Rock put away his supplies and waited for Zan’s answer. “For leaving the cabin, putting Se and the rest of you in danger. I thought my coming out would stop Larrison. That was until I saw him. I knew something was wrong. Then he started talking about the pox and everything fell into place. I really do need to get samples.” “Saying sorry won’t change my mind. Do you trust the Alliance to get you what you need?” Rock questioned as he moved back to his lovers. “Yes.” Zander nodded and looked distracted. Rock knew his mind was back on his research. He’d do better at distracting him when they got home. “Then let them collect them and we’ll talk to Kain’s dad about getting them to you. Next week. The only danger we’re going to be in is of dehydration when I don’t let the two of you leave the bed. Got it?” “Rock, Dad wants to get statements.” Kain entered the room, halting the conversation. “I’ll talk to him. Can you send in whoever is collecting the samples from Larrison? Zander is going to have some questions and we want to set something up to get in on the research. I think he came up with something from the sample he thought was pox.” Rock squeezed Zander’s hand to show he did understand the need to get to the samples. Not that it would get the doctor a reprieve. He had an ass to redden and he would delight in reminding Zander of that fact. “Done. Let’s go.” Kain started to leave. “Wait. How is Reginald? He didn’t touch Larrison, did he?” Se asked. Rock was glad someone had, because he’d completely forgotten about the servant. Kain paused in the doorway. “Rave was able to stop him. The Alliance took him into custody. They have questions about Larrison’s activities. And he’ll need to be tested if he was in Larrison’s employ as long as it sounded like he was. That whole ship will be quarantined until further notice.” “Good. Kain, I’ll be right there.” He dismissed Kain and turned back to Se and Zander. “Now, can I trust that you two will stay here? We are off this planet as soon as I’m done. I have some promises to keep and you two need to be rested.” He winked and walked out of the room, not giving them time to respond.

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Things were looking up. The threat to Zander was over, Se was still on vacation and he might convince her to leave Kain and Rave and come to work for him. He’d have to expand his house, maybe make lab space for Zander. He had all week to work his magic. He was confident he could charm them both. He whistled on his way out. He hadn’t been this happy in a long time. It was about time now to show his lovers that life could be great with the three of them. Se and Rock would keep Zander from immersing himself in his work and Zander would keep Se and Rock on an even keel so they didn’t kill each other. Not that he’d give up arguing with Se. That was like foreplay. Yep, life was good in Rock’s world.

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Epilogue

Two days they’d been back on Cooper Prime. It was time. “You ready, Zander?” Rock asked, keeping his tone light. The trio was in the kitchen for a much needed food break. He thought two days of convincing each other they were all alive was time enough. He had an ass to spank. “For what?” Zander licked some mustard off his finger. God that tongue was magic, but Rock wouldn’t be dissuaded from this. He took his punishments seriously and he really wanted to fuck Zander while his ass was nice and warm from his hand. His cock shouldn’t be showing interest so soon. He’d just come minutes ago, but something about the situation revved him up. “Well, I seem to remember telling you I would redden your ass if you put yourself in danger.” Rock smirked at the look of panic on Zander’s face. This would be fun. “I—what—you were—kidding, right?” Zander stumbled over his words and backed away. “Oh goodie! I get to help.” Se clapped her hands like a kid in a candy store, her perky breasts bouncing with her every movement. He’d have to make sure they ate naked all the time. Maybe off each other. But enough of that. He wouldn’t be distracted. “You’re just lucky you aren’t next.” Rock pointed at her. “Hey, I did what I was supposed to. Protect Zander. It isn’t my fault he left the cabin.” “Now guys. I don’t think it’s necessary—” Zander moved away, keeping his back to the door, until he bolted. “Where does he think he’s going? He does know he’s naked, right?” Se’s amusement was evident. “Shit.” Rock shot down the hall and caught Zander around the waist before he made it outside. Se was right on his tail. “Don’t make this hard on yourself. And don’t tell me the idea of me warming your ass doesn’t turn you on.” Rock shifted so he could grab Zander’s cock. Just like he thought, hard and ready. Zander moaned. “Oh, Rock. That is so hot. Maybe we should chase him around more often. Look how hard he is. I want to taste.” Se dropped to her knees and sucked Zander into her mouth.

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“Fuck. Stop distracting me. Bedroom. Both of you.” Rock waited until Se released Zander and threw the man over his shoulder. “Hey!” Zander’s shouted. Rock just chuckled and kept moving. Zander didn’t stay still for long. His fingers walked down Rock’s back and squeezed his ass. “That isn’t going to stop this, just so you know, but please do continue.” Se chuckled and he felt a pinch. He just shook his head. Man he loved these two. They reached the bedroom and Rock threw Zander down. The man bounced and it looked like he was going to attempt to get up, but Se raced around him and pounced. She looked good straddling Zander. But he was calling the shots. This time. “Se, get off him.” Rock sat on the bed and pulled Zander over his lap. He dangled and touched the floor. Rock was going to have Se hold Zan’s hands, but that didn’t seem the best place for her. He wondered… “This is so humiliating.” Zander mumbled. “None of that. Just wait. Se, can you reach his cock if I spread my legs a little?” Rock made sure Zander was secure enough and positioned so his dick hung free. Fuck that was hot. Se moved in between his legs. It looked like it would be too awkward for her to suck Zander off, but they wouldn’t be this way for long and she could use her hands. Rock palmed Zander’s ass and stroked his cheeks. Zander whimpered. “I’m giving you six, three for each cheek. Count them out for me and Se will reward you. Ready?” “No.” Zander gulped. Smack. “Ow. Shit. One.” Rock waited until Se stroked Zander’s cock before he hit the other cheek. Rock started off softly for the first two blows, slowly letting them get harder with each stroke. “Fuck, Rock. He’s dripping. I need—” Se bent her head, contorting her body until she had the head of Zander’s dick. Rock’s cock pressed against Zander’s stomach. God, he had to finish. Smack. “Oh my God. Five. I’m going to—oh. Oh. Se. Rock. Oh. Again. Please.” Zander arched up, begging for the last smack.

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Smack. “Sixxxxxxxxxxxx…” Zander’s body clenched, and from the happy noises Se was making he must have come. The sounds were enough to push Rock over the edge. He painted Zander’s abs. Se was panting on the floor. Zander rolled off him and hissed. Rock looked to see him roll onto his stomach before pulling Se up. “You needing, baby?” Her hand flew over her clit. “Yes. Something—please.” Rock laid her out on the bed and buried his head between her legs. He had to move her hand so he could get to work. He nipped at her clit and plunged two fingers in deep. She writhed on the bed. Rock looked up to see Zander at her breasts, sucking on her nipple. His dick wanted to respond, but he just couldn’t so soon after his explosive orgasm. “Harder,” Se panted. Rock sucked on his finger, making it good and wet, then circled her rosette. His digit slid in and he was rewarded with Se’s orgasm. She bucked against him, her movements so wild she almost threw him off her. The trio collapsed on the bed. Exhausted. Rock moved up the bed and rested his hand on Zander’s warm ass. He’d wanted to fuck it, but his lovers pushed his buttons so hard he didn’t need much stimulation to come. Rock’s lips pressed against the flaming red skin. “Mmmm,” Zander mumbled and ran a hand through Rock’s hair. “Never again. Both of you. I can’t lose you,” Rock murmured against Zander’s ass. “Goes all ways Rock.” Se hugged him. “Yes. All ways,” Zander agreed. “You liked it,” Rock teased as he crawled up Zander’s body, bringing Se with him so they could snuggle in together. Zander’s face was as red as his butt cheeks. “Oh, hell yeah he does. We have to do that again. He came so hard and it was wonderful,” Se agreed. “I never thought—” Zander began. “No need to be embarrassed. It was hot as fuck.” Rock brushed a lock of red hair off Zander’s forehead.

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“We never did finish lunch,” Se grumbled. “I can’t move,” Zander protested. Rock took the hint. He made a pit stop in the bathroom and cleaned up a little. He took a washcloth to his partners and ambled into the kitchen. Everything was still all over the counters. What a mess. He started putting things away, leaving out a few items they could eat in bed. The grapes stayed out, but he put the sandwich stuff away. Except for the ham. That looked good, and some strawberries. He rummaged around for a tray and filled it up with the goodies and some water. Oh, chocolate. Yum. Rock added that to the tray and took his treasures to the room. He stopped in the doorway watching, Se wipe down Zander’s body. She was so tender with each swipe of the cloth. It was a sight to behold, and one he wanted to see again and again. His stomach rumbled, causing the two to glance over at him. “Food!” Se scrambled off the bed, threw the washcloth in the general direction of the bathroom, and she grabbed the munchies out of his hands. He shook his head and chuckled. Life wouldn’t be dull with his lovers around. Rock sauntered over to the bed, ready to enjoy his evening.

**** “Sleeping,” mumbled Zander. He swatted away Rock’s hand, but Rock wasn’t to be deterred. “Rock, we’re tired. Go back to sleep,” Se’s sleep-roughened voice chimed in. Rock snorted. Last night the two of them hadn’t let him go to sleep. No way was he letting them sleep in. He grabbed the bottle of lube from the bedside table and slathered his hand. This would be fun. He reached behind him and moaned when his first finger slid into his tight hole. That perked someone up. Zander turned over and bit his lip. “What are you,” Zander gulped, “doing?” His voice squeaked. “You two were tired. Figured I’d—” he hit his gland and groaned, “—help myself.” “Oh my,” Se breathed. Her finger tangled with his and slipped inside. “This is so hot.” Zander slid so he could look over Rock’s shoulder. “Can I—?” Zander’s hand caressed Rock’s hip before his finger joined in.

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Rock had never felt so full or so hot. He wanted Zander’s cock up his ass and was going to make it happen. It was his turn to play middle man. “You’re going to fuck me, Zander. Unless you’re too tired.” Zander eased his fingers out of Rock’s ass and so did Se. Which was a good thing because he scrambled over Rock and pressed him into the mattress. “I want to play too.” Se stuck her lower lip out. “Thought you were tired.” Rock grinned. “Don’t start with me, Rock. It’s too early,” she spouted back. “Both of you, stop arguing. Se, get under Rock. Rock, on your hands and knees.” Zander moved off. Rock liked the bossy side of the good doctor and didn’t see it often enough in the bedroom. It was sexy as all-get-out. He obeyed the order and wiggled his ass when he was ready. Se slid under him and he looked down into her green eyes. She was so beautiful, her face flushed with heat, her mass of black hair tangled on the pillow. Her skin glistened in the moonlight. He bracketed her face with his arms and took most of his weight on his elbows, allowing his body to brush hers. “Not yet.” Zander slapped his ass. “Don’t get too cocky back there, Zander. I don’t think your ass can handle another spanking,” Rock teased. Zander shuddered against his back. “Oh god.” “Fuck me, Zander,” Rock muttered against Se’s lips.

**** Zander couldn’t believe this was about to happen. He’d never thought the big man would allow him to take charge. He wasn’t going to let this opportunity slip through his fingers. His ass still burned from earlier. Who would have thought being spanked would be such a turn on? He sure hadn’t. His cock got harder just thinking about it. “Anytime now, Zan.” Rock drew him out of his memory. Rock wanted to be fucked? Then Zander was going to give it to him. He slapped Rock’s flanks. Turnabout was fair play. Nudging Rock’s hole, Zander eased his way into the tight pucker. He didn’t stop until he was buried deep. “Now, Rock. Please,” Se was begging under them.

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“You heard our girl, Rock,” Zander breathed into Rock’s ear. Zander followed Rock down until there was no way to tell where one ended and the other began. Zander pulled back and Rock didn’t thrust until Zander pushed back in. Se moaned underneath them. This was going to be fun, if he could last. “Faster, Zander,” Rock ordered. “I’m in control here.” He enforced his words with a slow thrust. He wouldn’t rush this. “Please, Zan.” Se writhed on Rock’s dick. “Don’t know,” Rock panted, “how long—too much. Oh, fuck.” Se’s hands crept around until she clutched his ass, trying to force him to go faster. “Hands, Se,” Zander demanded. She didn’t listen and squeezed his ass. “Rock,” he pleaded. Rock must have understood because he removed Se’s hands and locked them above her head at the wrists. Zander rewarded him with a few quick, rough jabs before slowing down again, teasing both his lovers. “You’re killing me here. So good. More. Please.” Rock pushed back before sinking into Se. He had the big man begging for what he could give. The sensation was heady. Zander wrapped his arms around Rock’s chest. The man was breathing so hard his body heaved under Zander’s. He wanted to taste the sweat dripping down the broad back of his lover. Zander nuzzled his face against Rock’s neck and licked his way down to his shoulder. “Mmmm. It’s time. No more playing. Take it, Zander. Fuck me,” Rock’s hoarse voice urged him on. His balls drew tight—he wouldn’t last much longer. He pounded into Rock’s tight hole. Fast and hard. His ass ached he clenched it so hard. “Yes, yes, yes,” Se repeated over and over again. “Close. Gonna,” Zander panted. Se came first, screaming both of their names. That was enough to push Rock over the edge. His ass clenched hard on Zander’s cock and forced him over too. The trio collapsed on the bed in an exhausted heap. “You’re trying to kill me. Both of you,” Se rasped.

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“At least—” Zander took a deep breath “—we’d die happy.” “Now you can go back to sleep.” Rock laughed at them both. “So you woke us up to have your way with us? I like the way you think.” Zander yawned. “But I’m going to need food soon to keep up with you guys. I’m not used to all this—” he waved his hand around “—activity.” “I want you to stay,” Rock blurted. That was out of the blue. Zander’s heart clenched in his chest. “What?” Se asked. Her hand rested over Rock’s heart. Zander put his on top and Rock completed it with his digits entwining with theirs. “Stay. Here with me. Both of you.” Rock looked nervous. “I don’t—I mean—That is to say—” “Yes! He means yes.” Se climbed over both of them, peppering kisses wherever she could reach. Zander had to laugh. “Yes. That is what I mean. I will warn you, I will get lost in my work and might have to travel.” “That’s what we’re for. To make sure you take time out,” Se answered between kisses. “Yes, it is. And we have time. We’ll have to work things out. Get you some office and lab space. But we can do it. I love you both and I’m not going to lose you.” “It might be insane, because we haven’t known each other long, but I love the both of you as well.” Zander beamed at his lovers. “Let’s make this an all-around fucking love fest, and I’ll say ‘me too’. Now someone kiss me?” Se smiled. Leave it to her to get down to the nitty-gritty. Rock grabbed her by the head and took her lips. Zander scooted closer and kissed Rock and Se’s cheeks before nudging Rock away and kissing their girl.

**** The com beeped. “Shit, I thought we told everyone we were on vacation,” Rock grumbled and got out of bed, not caring that he was naked. “God damn it.” He slapped the desk after reading the missive.

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“What’s wrong, Rock? What did it say?” Se was concerned. He could hear it in her voice. Rock turned back to the bed to see his two lovers sprawled on top of the sheets where he’d left them. It was enough to make him forget the message. Almost. “That was from the Alliance. It seems they’re in need of Zander’s help, if he is as close to a cure as he thinks he is. There is a Captain Rodrick out of Adair that suspects a case. Seems the Potter family fell to it and left a son behind. The captain thinks the boy’s uncle might be contaminated.” Zander interrupted him. “The disease doesn’t spread fast, but once the carrier goes insane, he can start killing. That’s what destroyed those two planets. I mean, look what happened with Larrison, and I don’t think he was in the last stages. I need to get there and contain this man.” “We.” Rock stalked back to the bed. “We,” Se agreed. “What?” Zander scrambled up the bed, but Rock gave him no quarter. He straddled the man’s chest, his cock hard again. He shouldn’t be able to get it up again so soon. They’d been in bed for days, but he still wasn’t tired. “I said we. Don’t you understand? We’re a unit now. You’re a workaholic. You need us to make sure you eat and play,” Rock flashed a wicked grin. “I do have a question though. If you are such a mediocre scientist—” Rock held up a hand to stop Se. “His words.” He shot a pointed look at both of them. “Then why is the Alliance calling on you?” Rock sounded smug. He knew it and didn’t care. He wanted to prove a point. “Well—Ah—That is—” Zander stuttered. It was so cute when the man fumbled over his words and went bright red. Se must have thought so, too, because she leant in to kiss his flaming cheeks. “Yeah, that’s what I thought. I might have done a little research, Dr d’Ado. Mr Top In His Field.” He stopped talking when Se’s lips brushed his cock. “So why downplay yourself?” The rumble of Se’s words caused his sensitive cock to jump. “If I’m so good, why did it take me so long to get a breakthrough on the Grey Death?”

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Rock didn’t let him say more. He nudged Zander’s mouth with his dick and his lover’s mouth opened automatically. Se’s lips caressed the base of his cock while Zander sucked on the head. “No more of that talk. I can’t go around shoving my cock in your mouth every time you talk bad about yourself.” Although it wasn’t the worst idea he’d ever had. He wouldn’t last at the rate his lovers were going, but they didn’t have a lot of time anyway and he wanted to watch Zander fuck Se. Just that thought had Rock coming in Zander’s mouth. Rock collapsed on top of Zander before rolling to the side. Se ran her hand over his chest. It was then he noticed her fingers deep inside her pussy. His dick tried to stir, but there was no way he’d get it up again anytime soon. God, his lovers were hot. “Zander, a team. Yes?” Rock panted. “Yes.” “Good. Now fuck Se so we can get to work.” Rock grinned at the dual moans. They liked that idea. That was great because he had more in store. It was now his job to keep his new family together and happy, and he planned on doing it for a lifetime.

About the Author Jambrea wanted to be the youngest romance author published, but life impeded the dreams. She put her writing aside and went to college briefly, then enlisted in the Air Force. After serving in the military, she returned home to Indiana to start her family. A few years later, she discovered yahoo groups and book reviews. There was no turning back. She was bit by the writing bug. She enjoys spending time with her son when not writing and loves to receive reader feedback. She’s addicted to the internet so feel free to email her anytime. Email: [email protected] Jambrea loves to hear from readers. You can find her contact information, website and author biography at http://www.total-e-bound.com.

Also by Jambrea Jo Jones Tell Me Now Wishing Star Love by Design Alliance: Retribution Saddle Up N Ride: A Fistful of Emmett Stealing My Heart: Stealing Michael Over the Moon: Dreams

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