Enhanced

  “Ah, God…please!” Mei-Li arched her back. She was getting close—so close to the edge. Gone was the conviction that she couldn’t come this way. Six had proved her wrong there. She was going to come—going to come so hard she didn’t know how she could stand it. His tongue inside her felt so good but she just needed something else…something more…

  Suddenly she felt the fingers of his metal left hand slide into her folds. Two fingertips found her clit and settled one on either side of the sensitive little button. Then, just as Six was thrusting his tongue even more deeply into her, they began an almost imperceptible but incredibly intense vibration as they had the night he had first touched her.

  It was exactly what she needed. With a low wail, Mei-Li thrust forward, giving herself completely, riding his face shamelessly as the wave of pleasure that had been threatening her suddenly broke, drenching her completely.

  “Six,” she cried. “Ah, God—Six…Six!” Her hands, still pinned to her sides, itched to grasp his thick, dark hair. Her fingers open and shut and her toes curled helplessly as he pressed deeper and deeper into her, thrusting with his tongue as though he was trying to reach her very soul. At the same time, his metal fingers stroked with gentle intensity around her clit, drawing another orgasm from her and then another.

  Mei-Li didn’t know how long it lasted—only that she didn’t know how much more she could take. Six seemed to never tire of giving her pleasure. She bit back a moan as she watched him on his knees before her, his broad, bare shoulders splitting her wide as he knelt between her thighs to worship her pussy with his mouth. He seemed to revel in her scent and taste, licking and sucking— thrusting to kiss and taste as deeply as he could. And all the time the vibrating metal fingers teased her until she cried his name again and again and begged until she was hoarse.

  At last, he drew back, panting and looked up at her. His cheeks and chin and mouth were shiny with her juices and his eyes were nearly wild with desire. Mei-Li thought for certain that he would mount her now. She was, after all, in the perfect position—her pelvis tilted up towards him, her pussy spread and ready and open. She knew she shouldn’t want him to do that—shouldn’t want him to fuck her—it was going to make everything complicated. But they were too far gone to stop now. Lying back, she didn’t even try to struggle with the sousa’s bonds that held her to the bed. She simply waited for him to take her.

  “Release,” he said and Mei-Li suddenly found that she could move again—the restraints the sousa had put on her were gone.

  Chapter Twenty-five

  “What?” Mei-Li looked up at him uncertainly. “What are you doing?”

  He ignored her and rose abruptly from his crouch, trying to put some distance between them. Gods, why had he done it? Why had he not been able to control himself?

  Mei-Li was staring at him. Her nipples were still tight little points and her sweet, wet pussy looked swollen from his assault. Six looked away, shame flooding him. And still, despite the self-loathing he felt, he wanted her. Gods, what was wrong with him?

  “Six?” Her soft voice was tentative. “Six, are you all right? You look like you might be hurting.” She reached up, caressing the throbbing ridge of his cock, making him bite back a groan. “Do you…do you need some help?”

  “No.” Deliberately he stepped away from her touch, though he craved her soft, cool fingers wrapped around his shaft like he craved his next breath. “No, don’t. I do not…do not deserve a release.”

  Mei-Li shook her head. “Why not?”

  “How can you ask me that after what I have just done to you?” He ran a hand though his hair distractedly.

  “Okay, well…you did get a little out of control.” Mei-Li got up and picked up the red garment he had pulled off her. “But you didn’t hurt me.”

  “I took what you were not willing to give,” Six said in a low voice, choked with shame. “I held you down and did as I pleased because I couldn’t control myself.”

  She bit her lip, a distractingly erotic gesture that he tried to ignore.

  “I wasn’t sure how I felt about it at first—I’m still not completely sure,” she said softly. “I asked you to stop and you didn’t—that’s not okay. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want you to, um, continue towards the end. I’ve never…” Her voice dropped and her cheeks got red. “I’ve never come so hard in my life, Six. And I didn’t even know I could come that way. You…I’ve never had anyone so…so intensely focused on my pleasure before.”

  “It was my pleasure I was concerned about—don’t you see?” he said roughly. “All I cared about was taking what I wanted. Which I did. Gods.” He turned away, trying not to look at her. Trying not to see how lovely she looked with her nakedness framed in the deep red garment she had thrown over her shoulders. Trying not to taste the last, faint traces of her sweet honey on his lips or smell her devastatingly feminine scent which still lingered in the air.

  But he couldn’t help himself—his fingers itched to take her by the shoulders, to pull her to him and kiss her again. Somehow Six managed to restrain himself. You’ve taken enough already, he reminded himself grimly. But it was hard—incredibly hard not to act on his impulses.

  He ran a hand through his hair. Gods, why can’t I stop this? Just being in the same room with her floods me with sensations.

  Not sensations—emotions—admit it, whispered a voice in his brain. Just admit it now, Six.

  He didn’t want to but he feared he had no choice. The evidence was as clear as it was damning—his implant was failing and he was feeling. Feeling with an intensity that frightened the Seven Hells out of him.

  “I don’t know what to say,” she said in a low voice, interrupting his grim thoughts.

  “I do.” Six took a deep breath. “I have violated our Claiming contract by tasting you before our tasting week officially began. Therefore, you are freed and our Claiming Period is now over.”

  “What?” She looked at him, her dark eyes going wide. “But…but where—?”

  “I will take you back up to the medical barge. There I can get my implant replaced and take you home.”

  “But I never said I wanted that,” she exclaimed. “I never said I wanted to go home—not like this, anyway.”

  “It does not matter what you want—the facts are irrefutable,” Six said stolidly. “My emotion damper is failing and I have become a danger to you, as well as a criminal among my own kind.”

  “Why, because you’re having emotions? Because you’re feeling?” she cried. “What’s so wrong with that, Six? What’s so wrong with letting yourself care and want and need other than the fact that a pack of sentient machines says it’s wrong?”

  For a moment he was at a loss for words. Then he shook his head.

  “The Collective knows best. They made the law against emotions for a reason.”

  “What do a bunch of computers know about emotions? About feeling or caring or love?” Mei-Li demanded. “What have they ever known?”

  “They knew enough to stop Z4 from going to war again—to stop all the organics here from killing each other.”

  “That war happened hundreds of years ago!” she shouted. Her cheeks were flushed now, her dark eyes snapping with anger. “Why don’t you just admit the real reason you’re sending me home?”

  Six rounded on her. “And what reason is that?”

  “You’re sending me home because you care about me. Because you’re starting to have feelings—not just feelings in general—although I think that scares you too. But feelings for me. The same way…” She lifted her chin and her face got very red. “The same way I’m having feelings for you,” she finished in a low voice.

  The words hung in the air between them and Six had the sense that she had risked herself greatly in saying them. He didn’t know how to reply—his heart pounded powerfully beneath his ribs and his chest felt tight. Mei-Li cared for him? She had feelings for him?

  He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. This was what he h
ad longed to hear her say and yet now that she had said it, he couldn’t allow himself to return her emotions. He couldn’t go to her, even though he felt the longing for her welling up inside him. He wanted desperately to take her in his arms—to crush her to him and kiss her and tell her that he wanted her too, that he felt for her so deeply it hurt. But if he did that he would have to go all the way—he would have to get his implant removed or he would never be able to bond with her properly.

  If you do that, there is no going back, whispered that little interior voice. You will be lost, completely lost and out of control emotionally. Your place in the Collective’s rubric will be filled by another, your existence will be forever altered. Six took a deep breath. These things were not optimal but he thought he could deal with them. He would have to abandon Z4, of course and that would not be easy—he had lived here half his life. Being able to be with Mei-Li, however, having the right to hold her in his arms every night, to kiss her and be close to her, would be worth even such a stressful and extreme life change.

  But then the voice whispered something worse. If you get the implant removed the memories will all come back. Every last one. And without the implant, you will have nothing to block the pain, nothing to numb the emotions that accompany them.

  Mere…Pere…Kaylee…I failed them. It was my fault…

  But what was his fault? Six knew something terrible had happened to them—the few brief flashes he got from time to time of the buried memories let him know that. But he didn’t know exactly what it was that had happened and he didn’t have to feel the pain of it—the overwhelming agony he knew accompanied their memories. Once the implant was removed he would feel three times the amount of emotion and horror and pain—an inevitable result of having suppressed both memory and emotion for so long. It would be unremitting agony.

  Please, Jax—kill me! I’m dying anyway…

  No!

  Six shook his head to drive away the ghost that whispered uneasily in his ear. It was more than he could bear. Mei-Li was reaching out to him, a look of hope on her lovely face. Six shook his head, taking a step back from her.

  “I…cannot.”

  “Six, please—” Her eyes were pleading. It took everything he had to turn away from them. But somehow he did.

  “Ready your things. I will take you back up to the medical barge now, tonight. There is no reason why you cannot be on your own planet by this time tomorrow.”

  Then somehow he forced himself to turn and walk away.

  * * * * *

  Mei-Li looked out the window of the shuttle, watching as they left Z4 behind and headed out into space, where the medical barges were orbiting the vast silvery-black planet. Beside her, Six piloted the shuttle in complete silence. He hadn’t spoken a word to her in the past hour except to tell her to watch her step as she climbed into the shuttle. To Mei-Li, it seemed he had no intention of saying anything to her ever again if he could help it.

  She stole a sideways glance at him from the corner of her eye and then wished she hadn’t. His features were like granite and she didn’t think she’d ever seen him look so imposing—not even back when he’d still been wearing the ocular scope/scanner over his left eye. The enhancement in question was on the seat beside him, presumably waiting to be reattached at the same time that he got his emotion damper replaced.

  Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Mei-Li told herself angrily. How could you let yourself care for him? How could you let yourself fall for a man who is so completely unavailable? And then how could you make such a fool out of yourself by admitting it?

  The blank, cold stare he’d given her when she’d admitted her feelings was burned into her memory. It clearly indicated he had zero interest and didn’t return her feelings in the slightest.

  But if he has no interest, if he doesn’t care, why did he get so upset when Two nearly killed me? If he doesn’t want me, why was he so eager to give me pleasure…to make me come?

  Stop it! Mei-Li pushed away the stupid thoughts. Wishful thinking, that was all they were. Even if Six had started to have some kind of feelings for her, he plainly didn’t want to keep having them. To the contrary—he was desperate to get rid of them. He liked being an emotionless robot. Liked it so much he couldn’t wait to get back to his numb and unfeeling state as soon as possible. He—

  “Six, respond please. Six?”

  Her depressing thoughts were interrupted by a cold voice. Looking up, she saw the round, pudgy face of One, Six’s boss, on the flat rectangular viewscreen. As always, she could see his brain through the clear skullcap he wore. Mei-Li tried unsuccessfully to suppress a shiver. Ugh!

  “Hello, One. I am here.” Six spoke just as coldly as his superior.

  “And where is ‘here’ may I ask?” One frowned.

  “En route to med barge three. I have been having some…trouble with my enhancements.” Six pointed to his bare left eye where the ocular scope had been. “I also plan to take Mei-Li home. Our Claiming Period had ended prematurely in a breach of contract.”

  “A breach of contract?” One raised one nearly hairless eyebrow at him. “May I ask exactly what happened?”

  “I am afraid not,” Six said firmly and much to Mei-Li’s relief. She really didn’t want Mr. Visible Brain knowing her business, especially when it came to sex. “You need only know that she is unharmed and I will be returning her to Earth very shortly.”

  One nodded. “It is regrettable that your contract could not be fulfilled in full but it is ultimately not significant. Recent events have come to pass that make completing the Claiming Period unnecessary. In fact, I need your full attention here on Z4. Therefore, find another warrior to take the female back to her planet.”

  Six’s long fingers tightened on the steering yoke.

  “Negative, One. I do not wish to entrust her safety to another male.”

  One frowned. “This…protectiveness you have for the female in question, I believe has gone beyond what might be expected from your Kindred DNA.”

  “And what would make you express such an opinion?” Six asked flatly.

  One cleared his throat. “Two spoke to me earlier. He appeared to think your attachment to the female was…beyond the bounds of what is lawful and right.”

  “Meaning?” Six demanded.

  One gave him a sober look. “He told me he thought you were committing Feel-crime, Six.”

  Mei-Li held her breath, wondering how the big Kindred would answer such an accusation. To Six’s credit, he remained cool as a cucumber.

  “Two tried to purge Mei-Li. Her safety and welfare have been entrusted to my care. My reaction to Two’s assault was natural and right for a Kindred warrior.”

  One frowned. “I did not know he tried to purge her—that is completely inappropriate. She has a dispensation, does she not?”

  “She does but the garment she was wearing covered it. Two claimed this was reason enough to kill her.”

  “Even if the dispensation was hidden, she is protected under the laws of the Kindred Claiming Period which state that no harm shall come to a female who is being Claimed. “One shook his head. “I will speak to Two. This is cause for a disciplinary action.”

  “Thank you,” Six said stiffly. “It is good to know you can see my point.”

  “I’m still concerned about you, Six. I know this assignment has put undue stress on you but I never intended for it to force you into Feel-crime.” One gave him an almost fatherly look which made Mei-Li think that the older male cared about Six—at least, as much as these people could care anyway.

  Six took a deep breath and squared his shoulders.

  “It is true that the Claiming period has put an unusual amount of strain on my emotional damper—which is why I plan to have it replaced while I am aboard the med barge. As for the girl, I wish to bring her home myself for the same reason I defended her against Two’s assault. Simply put, Mei-Li is my responsibility. I brought her to Z4 and I must bring her home.”

  One gave a lo
ng suffering sigh.

  “Really, Six, the honor and ideals that are part of your pure Kindred genetic heritage are very inconvenient at times.”

  “Nevertheless, I must do what is right,” Six said stolidly.

  “Very well—I respect your decision. You may have tonight and all the next day. It will take at least that long for you to get your enhancements replaced and repaired and the female back to her own planet.”

  “That should be sufficient.” Six nodded.

  One nodded back at him. “I will need to see you at my domicile as soon as you return. Our plans for invasion of the planet we intend to harvest continue apace and I require your help.”

  “Indeed. You never specified which planet we will be overtaking,” Six said.

  One’s strange eyes flicked over to Mei-Li and back to Six so quickly she would have missed the glance if she hadn’t been staring right at him.

  “It is not necessary to tell you now. I will give you a full briefing once you return from taking the female home.”

  “Understood.” Six nodded. “I will see you soon, One.”

  “May Fortune favor you,” One said formally. Mei-Li thought he was about to sign off when there was a chime somewhere off screen. One frowned. “Excuse me—there is someone here to see me.” He concentrated a moment and the lights under his see through skull cap blinked and winked. “Oh, it is Two. I will speak to him about the matter we discussed and he will be appropriately disciplined, I assure you.”

  “Thank you,” Six said. “May Fortune favor you, One.”

  “And you.” The older male replied and the viewscreen went blank, leaving Mei-Li with a vaguely uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach.

  “So…you guys are invading a planet?” she asked, trying to sound casual. “Do you do that often?”

  Six shrugged. “Occasionally it is necessary to find and harvest a new source of raw material and natural resources.”

  “And what happens to the people who live there—on the planet you’re taking over, I mean?”