Chapter 33

Chapter

Thirty-Three

Maxxon

T he warmth of her body against mine, the scent of her hair—it was all achingly familiar yet thrillingly new. For a moment, we simply clung to each other, the rest of the universe fading away. Part of me couldn't believe what had just happened, while another part felt that it had been what I'd been running toward since the moment I'd seen Allie. I just hadn't imagined it happening in a supply closet.

When we finally pulled apart and her legs slipped from around my waist and I gently pulled out, I searched Allie's face, trying to make sense of the situation. "I don't understand. "What happened? How are you here?"

Allie's eyes shimmered with unshed tears. "After you left Earth, nothing felt the same." She paused, taking a shaky breath. "I couldn't stop thinking about you."

Her words sent a thrill through me, but I tempered my hope with caution. "But what about Varek? I saw you with him in the dress shop."

"Varek? I barely know him. The first time I laid eyes on him was in that dress shop."

"But he's your match."

"That doesn't mean I'm going to marry him." She glanced around us at the shelves of supplies stacked high to the ceiling. "Why do you think I was stowing away on a transport?"

"But you didn't know where the ship was headed." I tucked my cock back into my pants. "What if I was going to a faraway colony?"

Her mouth fell open and then she gave me a crooked smile. "I guess I didn't think about that. All I knew was that I couldn't marry Varek. It wouldn't be fair to him. And from what others told me, you weren't even on the station."

"I did go back to Earth, but I went to look for you."

Her expression brightened. "You did?"

I nodded and used my hand to brush a strand of hair from her forehead. "I went back to your building and talked to your friend."

She smiled. "Bryce. He wasn't so sure about my plan to volunteer and come to the station as a tribute, but I was so sure my plan would work, and I would find you."

"Well, it kind of did."

She let out a surprised giggle. "I guess it did." Then she tilted her head and appraised me. "But why are you on this ship? Where were you planning to go?"

I sighed, recalling the desperation I'd felt not so long ago. "I had to leave. I couldn't bear the thought of watching you with Varek. Seeing him touch you once almost broke me. I knew I couldn't survive watching you marry him, and it would be impossible to avoid it." Before she could ask me to explain, I added, "Varek has been my closest friend since our days at the Drexian Academy."

"He's your best friend?" She pressed a hand to the side of my face. "Oh, Maxxon, I'm so sorry."

I shook my head, although I also leaned into the warmth of her hand. "It isn't your fault. You couldn't have known. Actually, the fault only lies with me. I should have told someone about you when I returned from Earth. I should have admitted that I'd broken protocol. I should have explained that I'd fallen in love with a human."

She stilled, as if frozen by my words. "You love me?"

I husked out a rough laugh. "Well, I jeopardized my career to find you and now I'm risking military prosecution for stealing a ship, so I think it's fair to say that I'm madly, deeply, obsessively in love with you."

A sob hitched in her chest, and she placed her hands on both sides of my face. "And I'm truly, madly, deeply, obsessively in love with you."

For a moment, I was speechless. Her words were everything I'd ever wanted, and her love was the only thing I needed. My heart swelled with so much joy I was sure it would burst. I ran my hand through her hair, gripped the back of her head and crushed my mouth to hers.

This kiss wasn't desperate and frenzied. Instead, I took her mouth slowly and sensuously, taking my time to taste her and feel her. I stroked her tongue with mine, each movement filled with tenderness and love. In response, she moaned as her body melted into mine.

When we finally broke apart, both breathless again, I rested my forehead against hers. "I still can't believe this is real, that you're really here, that we found each other."

"Don't you believe in fate?" She gave me a playful kiss, nipping at my bottom lip. "You were meant to see me on the crosswalk, we were meant to save each other during the invasion, and we were meant to find each other on this space station. Every move both of us have made has brought us closer and closer together."

"So close we almost ran away together without knowing it." I let out a breath of relief that I'd found her before I'd stolen the ship.

A mischievous smile played at her lips. "So, where should we run away to?"

I laughed, the sound filling the small space and reminding me that we were still in the closet on the ship with the engines running. "First off, we should probably leave here. I need to get our match approved and find Varek."

She cringed. "Do you want me to go with you?"

I shook my head. "It will be better coming from me alone. You should go wait for me in your suite."

One brow arched. "Then you can join me in my South Pacific bungalow."

"After we talk to Serge."

"Serge?" Her eyes pressed together, and a wrinkle formed between them. "Why him?"

"Because he has a wedding to plan, and I'm not going to wait much longer to call you my wife."

Allie hummed and smiled at me. "My wife. I like the sound of that, which is crazy because I never thought I'd want to be called a wife by anyone."

"And now?"

"I can't wait, husband."

I growled as I considered staying in the closet just a bit longer.