Payton

PAYTON

My body was on fire. I wondered if it was the scent of his pheromones, the tingling feeling his saliva gave me, or the danger I put myself in by living out the lie, but I loved it. It was a sense of adrenaline I never knew before, and as he kissed me harder, I kept wanting more.

He was still cuffed to the table with one hand, but that didn't stop him from touching me in ways that made me feel ecstatic. My hands wove around the back of his neck, and I pressed myself closer to him. I wanted to climb over the table and straddle him right there.

Actually, maybe it'll make our little display more effective.

I tried to pull back from the kiss to walk around to the other side of the table, but he held my lips against his. He didn't want to break away from me for a second, and I didn't either.

Screw this.

I pulled back and hit the help button on the wall behind me while maintaining eye contact with him. He looked concerned but dazed from the kiss.

"What are you doing?"

"Wait."

A guard entered the room promptly, seeing Havek standing from his chair and leaning over the table. "Everything all right in here?"

"Yes," I replied while crossing my arms. "I don't believe there's any reason for my client to be cuffed to the table. He's not a danger to me."

"But the protocol-"

I leaned forward on the table, feeling my core throb between my legs. I would have done anything to feel both of Havek's hands on me, and I intended to prove it. "Do you want to be sued for mistreatment of an inmate? Because from what I can see, that cuff is a little tight around his wrist. That could lead to major health complications in the future. Restriction of blood flow, platelet injuries, arthritis, the list goes on."

I tilted my head, narrowing my eyes as I leaned back in my chair. "And from what I've seen, you all don't exactly have the funds to provide stellar medical care, do you?"

The guard looked flabbergasted. It was like no one had ever spoken to him like that before. He gulped and cracked his neck before pulling out a key from his pocket and undoing the cuff on Havek's hand.

Maybe I could be a real advocate.

I didn't even know if any of that was true. It was all pulled out of thin air, and I still made a convincing argument.

"The help button is for emergencies," the guard spat at me.

"Well, I consider my client's health an urgent matter."

With an eye roll and a sigh, the guard walked out of the room. He might have acted pissed, but I could tell I put the fear of the Night Mother into him.

My eyes darted back to Havek, who looked at me with a smirk. "I don't say this often," he began while walking around the table to me. "But that was something I would have never thought of."

He put his hands on the back of my chair while leaning over me. His towering physique made me quiver, but I tried to keep my voice even. "Maybe you're not the only intelligent one on this asteroid."

"Clearly, I was mistaken."

He leaned down and kissed me again before picking me up and spinning me around. It was like he read my mind. He pulled me down onto him, and my legs parted to either side while I sat on him and continued our make-out session.

I couldn't keep my hands off him, and he couldn't either. I even felt him get hard beneath my legs and was surprised by how big he was. I looked down during our kiss, wondering if he had a belt on that made him feel bigger than he was.

He's in prison, Payton. Of course, he doesn't have a belt on.

It was nothing but primal heat and cravings between us. I fell into it deeply, grabbing him and running my hands over his chest like he had just ordered me to please him.

I had to pull myself back mentally and emotionally from the experience.

He's doing this to break out of prison. You're just a part of the plan. None of this is real.

It felt convincing, though. I guess better for the guards as they watched the cameras. My only fear was that they would figure out it was fake and whisk me away.

Plenty of sentients grabbed me before, but none like him. His touches were calculated like he previously analyzed every part of my body and instinctively knew how to touch me. It drove me wild, and I was about to go further than we should have on camera before the buzzer sounded.

We broke apart from the kiss, and he smiled at me. "Very convincing, Advocate Payton."

"What can I say?" I responded, stepping off him and trying to play it cool. "I'm good at my job."

"Time to go, inmate." The guard busted in, almost like he expected to catch us doing something.

Shit. Will I get into trouble before I leave?

"I like the plan," Havek said while standing in front of me. "I'll call you again soon. On for next week?"

"Same time, same channel," I chimed before he held out his hand to shake mine.

I felt a small piece of paper slip into my palm and wondered how he hid it during our intense session. He was escorted out of the room, and I sat alone for a second, slowing my breathing and looking at the wall. My mind raced with paranoid thoughts, but I had to continue the mission. Not only to get my contract broken, but to see him again.

When I finally exited the room, I pressed the button on the scrambler to turn it off and walked down the dimly lit hallway to the shuttle. I pretended like I was adjusting my bra to slip the piece of paper into the left hand cup. Not that they would search me anyway, but just in case.

"Welcome back, advocates." The robotic voice of the shuttle echoed through the intercom on the visitors' side of the prison. "We hope you enjoyed your visit to the prison and your meetings were mutually beneficial."

Oh, my time was very beneficial, I thought while plopping down on a seat in the shuttle.

Usually, I would have looked around for the Mondian woman who stared me down earlier or scanned every face in my proximity to ensure no one was suspicious of my activity.

That day, I didn't care. I was lost in Havek's trance and in between thoughts. They spanned from he must have felt the same way to this is just a job for him. I never cared so much what a male being thought of me, especially not a Vinduthi. I always wrote them off as being callous creatures.

While sitting on the shuttle, I opened the piece of paper he gave me. It was a list of electronics. They all seemed like typical household items I would be able to find in the dormitories. Simple enough.

I let my mind wander.

Only a few weeks ago, I was nothing but a casino girl. While I rode the shuttle back to the dormitories, I realized I was undercover in two ways: one for Alkard and the mafia to relay information and another to be Havek's fake girlfriend.

I just made out with a prisoner and never felt more alive. I was a different woman, and I couldn't decide if the rush that gave me was more exciting or terrifying.

We arrived back at the dormitories, and I looked at the clock. Shit. I had ten minutes before hopping on the hologram call with Tessi and Alkard to report Havek's condition.

While walking to my room, I wondered how much I should tell them. The last thing I wanted to do was give Alkard a reason not to like me or worry Tessi any more than she already probably was.

I decided to try to keep our conversation as professional as possible but still tell them the truth. I was already unsure if I could keep all my identities straight. I didn't need to track lies, too.

When I entered my room, I sat on the bed for a few minutes, thinking of all the reasons why his plan was a terrible one.

I could spend the rest of my life in jail. Alkard and Tessi could be caught along with me, and their fate could be the same. We all might wind up getting executed.

None of those options were the worst outcome I could think of. The worst-case scenario that could break me more than anything was the last thought that ran through my mind.

What if I began having feelings for him?

My percomm buzzed, which startled me. With an exhale, trying to calm my nerves, I pressed the accept button and watched the hologram of Tessi and Alkard sitting behind his desk appear in my room. I turned the volume low, and activated the scrambler.

"Hey! How's it going?" Tessi asked happily. Alkard remained stoic as usual.

"Hey! Well-uh-"

"What?" Alkard broke his stoicism. "Is Havek all right?"

"Yes, yeah, he's fine! He has…come up with a plan."

"Plan? What type of plan?" Alkard asked with a sigh.

The sigh spoke more than his words. It seemed like he wasn't surprised at my statement, more concerned than anything. I wouldn't be surprised if he watched Havek do things like this his entire life. The ego on him couldn't have come out of nowhere, so I suspected that's what the sigh was about.

"He wants to break out of prison."

"What?" Tessi exclaimed, her eyebrows shooting up. Alkard put a hand on her forearm.

"Hold on, let's hear her out."

"Hear her out?" Tessi yelled. I motioned for her to keep her volume down, but she didn't listen. "What do you mean? This is insanity! He's on Deathgate . "

"Listen." I shrugged. "I don't think it's a terrible idea."

Tessi side-eyed me before relaxing her muscles and leaning back in her chair. "Go on."

I sighed. "I don't know much, it's just something to do with the Deathgate Express."

"Deathgate Express?" Alkard scoffed.

"Oh, right." I closed my eyes and shook my head. "The shuttle that carries dead bodies off the asteroid. That's what they call it."

Alkard chuckled. "Of course it is. And of course, he plans to use it." Tessi nudged him in the side angrily. "What?" he asked her with a shocked look on his face. "It is! Also, Havek is the most stubborn person I know," he continued, turning his attention back to me. "If he has an idea, chances are, he's going to find a way to complete it." He sighed. "If we don't help him, he might try to escape in some other way that might not be as safe."

Tessi scoffed. "Okay, hold on, how would we even get the electronic parts to him? He's in maximum security up there."

"Well…he said I should pose as his girlfriend."

Alkard blinked slowly, but Tessi slammed her hands on the table in front of her with a scowl. "How is that supposed to do anything other than give you more scrutiny than you want?"

Alkard grabbed her arm and looked at her seriously. "Tessi, he's my brother. He's brilliant. He has a plan."

"Still…"

Ignoring me completely, he leaned over to kiss Tessi until the tightness in her shoulders faded away. "Look at what you went through for me. What Lucia went through for Makar and Mera for Kovas. You know the family protects their own. Payton is a part of that family now. We wouldn't let anything happen to her."

His words seemed to calm Tessi, who relaxed and closed her eyes as she exhaled. "Besides," Alkard continued. "If we don't get the charges against him dropped, he'll at least be free." Tucking her head into his shoulder, he turned back to me.

"We're in. How do we start?"