Page 105 of Shielded in the Shadows

And when she changed her angle and the piercing and ridges of my upper cock stroked back and forth in just the right place, her eyes rolled up and she let out a long, ragged groan. “Oh, gods…” she breathed. “There. Right there.”

I was pumping up into her now as she slammed down, each of us chasing the pleasure coming up fast on the horizon. With my gaze locked on hers and all my senses fixed on her pleasure and the release building at the base of my spine, I lost track of walls and distances and everything else but my mate and filling her with my knot so we could come together.

“Jarrix,” she screamed, her head falling back. “Oh, gods, yes. Deeper. Give me your knot.”

With one arm under her ass and the other wrapped around her so my arm took the impact instead of her back, I slammed her against the wall, thrusting hard and fast as I obeyed her commands to go harder and deeper.

And when my knot pushed all the way inside her tight channel and she screamed her orgasm, mine followed right behind.

Groaning, I ground my cocks into her, my releases filling her so violently that my back bowed and I staggered. She was too lost in pleasure to notice, her nails digging into my shoulder and the back of my neck and her eyes closed as she wailed my name.

To hells with my pride.

I sank to my knees and sat back on my heels, bringing her down with me until her ass rested on my thighs. I wrapped my arms and tail around her and held her tightly as we panted and trembled.

“Gods,” Keela gasped against my chest. “Jarrix, I came so hard my ears are ringing.”

I stroked her hair, looked up, and grimaced. “It’s not your ears that are ringing.”

“What?” Carefully, she half-turned in my lap to follow my gaze. Her mouth fell open. “What in the name of all the gods above and below did you do?”

I eyed the overturned bowls and plates and unidentifiable foodstuffs spilling out of the food synth, which was insistently chiming with a dozen frantic alerts. “I appear to have made…dinner?”

“If you think I’m going to eat any of that mess—” she scowled and jerked a thumb over her shoulder “—you are highly, highly mistaken, First Mate.” She dropped her head back against my chest. “Worth it, though,” she sighed. “So incredibly worth it.”

I kissed my way along her hairline until my lips reached her ear. “I told you there was room in the galley,” I murmured.

Her laugh might have been audible all the way back to Trakhan.

CHAPTER 26

KEELA

Navigating through Iosa’s hurricanes and finding a place to land near the target coordinates proved a challenge even for Siber.

But the bumpy ride through the swirling purple clouds and heavy rain wasn’t the reason I had a white-knuckled grip on the armrests of my captain’s chair.

After a decade of searching and nearly a lifetime of being separated, I might be mere hours from seeing my sister again.

Jarrix sat quietly beside me in the co-pilot’s seat. I hadn’t had to ask him not to coo or to give me space; he could sense what I needed through our bond. I did let him coil his tail loosely around my ankle, though, because I’d become accustomed to its gentle comfort, and because not cooing was causing him some discomfort that he was doing his best not to show. His steady reassurance felt like the only reason I could breathe.

Once we made it through the atmosphere, Siber’s scans had detected a small clearing and a single modest capsule home at the coordinates N’vera had provided.

The dwelling’s privacy shield prevented the AI from detecting any life forms within it without using more intrusive scans. If Calla and her mate were still living there, they probably had a very good security system that would alert them. N’vera said Calla’s mate was a former assassin, and Calla had served in the Alliance Defense. They’d both be highly motivated to keep their location secret. The last thing I wanted to do was make them think they were under attack.

So I told Siber not to do any further scans and focus on getting us down safely.

Due to the swamp and thick trees surrounding the capsule home, the closest place to land was a few kilometers away at what appeared to be an abandoned raider base. The base was located in a large clearing right by the churning lavender ocean, meaning we could arrive on an inbound flight path over water instead of needing to set down vertically in the high winds, or risk crashing into the trees. No doubt that was why the raiders had established their base here in the first place.

After what felt like an eternity of being buffeted by powerful winds and driving rain, Siber set the Nivilus down on an empty landing pad in the middle of the ruined base, its nose facing the sea. I let out a breath and forced my fingers to let go of my chair’s armrests.

Through the ship’s front window, I studied the vast, storm-tossed ocean before us. Despite the choppy waves and overcast sky, the view was breathtaking.

“Captain, the weather will make flight extremely difficult and dangerous for you and the first mate,” Siber said, interrupting my thoughts. “I have mapped what I believe is the safest and most direct walking path through the swamp and marsh to the target coordinates. My scans have detected a number of large reptilian and serpentine predators. The former are called kaory, and their bites and their barbed tails are venomous. The serpents are also highly venomous and aggressive. I advise extreme caution during your journey.”

“How strange that so few people visit this moon,” Jarrix quipped. “With such lovely weather and charming wildlife.”

Despite my nerves, I snorted.