Chapter Thirteen

Zaya

My mind barely registered that we had landed in front of my house. Yet, when Steele picked me off his sky cycle and into his arms, I instinctively wrapped myself around him. A few seconds later, I realized he was kissing me—my strong, handsome, wonderful cyborg mate—so I kissed him back.

Soon, I forgot about everything but how much I wanted my male. I knew he meant to take my mind off killing the Mesaarkan, and I liked that. I wanted Steele. The things he did to me in our breeding could make me forget my own name. He had a way of making me feel thoroughly loved and not merely fucked.

Even though his cock was rock hard, he took his time eating me until I came so hard that I screamed his name. My whole slit and inner labia tingled with a fizzy sensation from the nanites in his saliva, almost like a microscopic massage.

Steele wiped my juices from his face and then kissed my belly, again dragging his lips and tongue over my skin. He was literally bathing me in nanites and seemed to enjoy himself immensely. By the time his lips closed over my nipple, I wanted his cock inside me. I craved the feel of his body pressing down on me as he pistoned his cock into me, rubbing his chest over my sensitive nipples.

As he worshiped my body with kisses and caresses, I felt a flood of love for him, running my fingers through his short hair and stroking his back.

Having Steele in my life in the weeks since he'd rescued me from the Mesaarkans was a stark contrast to the lonely life I had before I was kidnapped.

Steele slid easily into me, then paused, staring into my eyes, and said, "I love you, Zaya. I've never felt so alive and so loved as when I am in your arms and inside of you."

"I love you, Steele. It's the same for me. You are my wish come true." As I said it, I squeezed him inside me, and we kissed long and slow, swirling our tongues together.

He slowly pumped in and out of me while I ran my hands up and down his muscular back. It was easy to surrender to the pleasure of our fucking. Gaining speed, he pounded into me with deep, hard strokes, pulling me steadily with him to a nirvana I had only ever known with him. Steele took me to that summit of pleasure and poured his nanite-laden essence into me.

A kind of euphoria washed over me, a combination of endorphins from sex and his nanite boost. We stayed joined for a long time, kissing and caressing, pausing just to look into each other's eyes. Steele looked so caring and concerned, a look that seemed to reflect exactly what I felt for him. I ran the back of my fingers across his cheek tenderly, basking in the delicious feel of him on top of me.

I could feel him still hard inside me as we kissed tenderly, so I knew we weren't finished yet. I ran my hands down the length of his back and over his tight buttocks, pressing him to me. Steele groaned and rotated his hips so he rubbed against my clit, and it was my turn to groan.

I was still sensitive and turned on. Steele reached between us to tease my nipples between his thumbs and forefingers. He claimed my lips in a passionate kiss and slowly pumped in and out of me, grinding the flesh against my sensitive bud. It was so exquisite and arousing that I dug my fingertips into his butt as he drove me closer and closer to another orgasm.

Steele pinched my nipples to that fine point between pleasure and pain, grinding against my clit at the same time, and I cried a series of ahs as waves of pleasure seized my body. "So good," I gasped. "Oh, Steele, that was so good!"

I could see him watching my face. He seemed to be taking great pleasure in satisfying me so delightfully, and he was still hard inside me.

I was completely in the moment, with no past or future, only now in complete surrender to my cyborg Steele. He was magnificent.

We paused again for tender caresses and kisses; I can only guess for me to have a respite before the next round. It was hard, fast, and soul-consuming. I can almost feel us connecting on a higher plane of existence, or perhaps it was just the euphoria of sexual bliss. I'd never felt anything like it before in my life. Being with Steele was pure joy.

When he came again, he took me with him, and we soared in paradise together. After that, I kind of passed out or fell asleep. The next thing I knew, it was morning.

Steele

Reluctantly, I separated from my precious mate and double-checked to make sure she was just resting. It was a long, strenuous breeding session on top of our stressful day. I know it took her mind off the terrible deed forced upon her, and I hoped the additional nanites would augment her previous treatment for PTSD.

I cleaned her up while she slept and covered her with a sheet and a thin blanket. I sat beside her on the bed for a long time, watching her sleep while I processed the day's events. Could I have done things differently to prevent putting her in danger? Taking her with me would have put her in greater danger. My best course of action had been to prepare her to defend herself.

As much as I wished it so, I knew I could not be with her every minute of every day to keep her safe. With all the improvements we had made at the ranch, Zaya did not need me to assist her every day with the workload.

The days were getting colder, and I knew we could expect snow any time. The chickens were nearly finished laying eggs for the season. Now that the goat kids were almost weaned, the nannies' milk was dwindling. With the garden prepped for spring, all that was left for daily chores was feeding the animals and keeping their quarters clean.

Much as I hated to admit it, Zaya didn't need me here with her 24/7. It was time for me to resume my protector duties. Yet the thought of leaving her alone at this isolated ranch was greatly disturbing in the wake of discovering we hadn't driven out all of the Mesaarkans.

I decided it was best to talk it over with her in the morning, so I slid into bed beside her and cuddled her in my arms while she slept. Since it would be hours before she awoke, I closed my eyes and slept as well.

In the morning, we made breakfast and sat down to eat together.

"How do you feel this morning?" I asked.

"I'm okay, I think. When that Mesaarkan burst into the store, I had a flashback of my sessions with Gar'hako. I couldn't let that happen again. I don't believe he thought I would actually shoot, or he wouldn't have hesitated long enough for me to fire first."

"You did the right thing. He was part of a human trafficking operation on a mission to abduct people to sell offworld in a slave market."

"I just knew I wouldn't let him take me."

"That's exactly why I taught you to shoot. Now, you have an ion rifle here, and you know how to use it—because I need to go back to work."

Zaya didn't say anything for several moments, frowning. Then she sighed. "I'm not surprised after what happened yesterday. It's only logical that your team must go after them. And we finished getting everything ready for winter so I could handle the chores on my own. Will you be gone long?"

"Most of the time, I will probably get back every day or so. It just depends on what develops. But I have an idea. I will get you a wrist com that will be more convenient to wear while you are doing chores outside the house. Then you can call me if you need me."

"And I was just getting used to having you around all the time," she said. "Yeah, I know what I said in the beginning about having my alone time. But it turns out that you are easy to be with." Zaya smiled and reached out to touch my arm.

"As are you, my mate. I've also ordered some bee drones with cameras for security around the ranch. They will be paired with my CPU and your wrist com, so you will know if anyone is approaching. The house will be equipped with an AI defense system."

"Okay, but I will still miss you."

"And I will miss you every minute." I took her hand and brought it to my lips, wishing that I didn't have to leave her at all.