RedeemingZorus (23 page)

“You’re an arrogant son of a bitch who believes just because
you say or think something that everyone else should as well.” Krell glanced at
his split knuckles. “I admire that about you.” He pinned Zorus with a cool
stare. “But then, I’m a bastard too. Follow protocol next time to avoid an asshole
taking things into his own hands, if anyone has doubts about her. You’re lucky
he brought her to me instead of to someone who might have harmed her.”

“Thank you.”

Krell nodded. “I am going to go wash off the blood and
change my clothing. By the time I am done, I want him gone and someone here to
replace that door. You know how I enjoy my privacy.” He lowered his gaze to
Charlie. “If you decide he’s too much of an asshole for you to live with,
you’re welcome to stay here with me.” He spun on his booted feet to stride down
a hallway and out of sight.

Charlie leaned more heavily against Zorus. He hugged her
tighter, relieved he’d found her so quickly. “I’m sorry.”

“We should probably try to help Darius. Your son just got
the shit kicked out of him and he’s bleeding on the carpet. Think that guy
would mind if I raided his freezer for some ice?”

His heart melted even more where Charlie was concerned. She
worried about his flesh and blood, despite Darius having come after her again.
He knew she did it because she loved him. She was willing to be lenient toward
Darius for his sake.

“He did this, he will survive, and I don’t want you to give
him first aid when he doesn’t deserve compassion at this moment. Security is on
their way up. One of our doctors will patch him up.”

Charlie winced when Darius groaned. “He looks as if he’s in
a lot of pain. Are you sure we shouldn’t put ice on him? His left eye is
swelling shut and I think that’s one of his teeth on the floor by his elbow.”

Zorus sighed. “He made his choice when he disregarded my
orders to stay away from you. I am happy Krell didn’t kill him but he needed to
be humbled in this way. I’m actually grateful I am not the one who had to do
it. Perhaps this will teach my son a lesson. He had no authority to force you from
our home.”

Two large cyborgs dressed in black entered the apartment.
Zorus eased his hold on Charlie and then swept her up into his arms. She wasn’t
wearing shoes. The table had been shattered during the fight and he didn’t want
to risk injury to her feet.

“Arrest him for trespassing into my home and for theft of
my…” He grimaced.

“Property,” Charlie finished his sentence. “Darius stole me.
I belong to Zorus.”

Zorus met her gaze. “I will change that law as soon as I’m
able.”

She nodded, her face rubbing against his shirt. “I know.”

Zorus watched the guards gently lift Darius between them. He
cuddled Charlie more firmly into his arms to carry her home.

Chapter Fourteen

Charlie nervously ran her hands down the pretty gown. She
wished she could ask Zorus if she looked good. He waited in the living room for
her to finish getting dressed. The cyborg female, Jove, nodded in approval.
Zorus had hired her to make Charlie’s clothing.

“The color goes well with your pale skin.”

“I feel as if I’m going to throw up,” Charlie admitted
softly.

“That is normal.”

“Right.” She swallowed hard and turned to face the other
woman. “I never get dressed up this way. I have never owned a dress this
beautiful. It’s so feminine and I’m just not. I was a tomboy.”

“What is that?”

“I grew up dressing and acting as if I were a boy.”

“Oh. You look female and very attractive.” Jove grinned. “No
one would mistake you for a boy now.”

“Good.” She licked her lips. “I’m ready.”

The female nodded. “This gets easier the second and third
time you do it.”

“Oh no. This is the one and only time for me.”

“Didn’t Councilman Zorus inform you that you have the
ability to take more males into your life? We know he’s sterile. You’ll need
more males to have children.”

“I’ve got Zorus. I have a feeling he’s going to keep me
occupied enough.” She laughed. “He’s kind of a big kid sometimes.” The memory
of him chasing her through the living room the night before flashed. They’d
been teasing each other until he had grabbed her and tossed her over his
shoulder to carry her off to bed. He loved to play with her.

“I’ve done this four times.”

“Wow. Four, huh?” Charlie paused next to the tall woman.
“How do you do it?”

“We spend a week with each male, never live with them at the
same time, and it gives me little time with each to cause less friction. Males
are good at driving females crazy.”

“Do you have a favorite? I mean, one of them has to own your
heart the way Zorus does mine.”

A sad look crossed the woman’s face. “We care, but love?”
She shook her head. “It’s rare to end up joined by strong emotions and rarely
works out well once jealousy arises. The males have to share females, they keep
their hearts separated, and so do we. Times are changing though as our numbers
increase. One day our children will enter into family units with just one
partner. I believe then they’ll allow love to grow.”

“That’s…” Charlie didn’t want to say the word “sad” aloud in
case she somehow managed to insult the woman.

“I know. We are aware that it’s not the way it should be or
even how we wish it to be. We adapt. That is why so many have come here today.”
She smiled. “I envy you.” She made a face. “Even if it is Councilman Zorus.
He’s not well liked.”

“He’s an asshole but he’s all mine and he isn’t that way to
me.”

Charlie chuckled at the stunned expression on the other
woman’s face. “I’m ready. Let’s do this.”

Jove led the way out of the bathroom, through the bedroom,
and into the large living room. It stunned Charlie at the mass of cyborgs
crowded along the walls. Zorus wore black leather with silver decorations and
plating on his shoulders and forearms. He had weapons strapped to his hips and
thighs. He looked fierce, sexy, and, as his dark gaze met hers, happy. He
smiled at her.

Her trembling legs carried her forward until she stopped in
front of him. She had to blink back tears. One of his large, warm hands gently
grasped one of hers.

“Are you well, love?” He spoke softly so only she’d hear
him.

“I’m happy. I cry sometimes when I feel too much of it.”

A white-haired cyborg cleared his throat. He wore a red robe
that made his pale, light-gray skin and white hair look a little startling. “We
begin.”

Zorus nodded at him. “We begin.”

Charlie had been coached by Jove about what to say. “We
begin,” she agreed.

Zorus stretched their joined hands toward the robed cyborg.
The man wrapped his gloved fingers around both their wrists and held them
tightly together.

“I represent the council today in one body,” he spoke
loudly. “Zorus and Charlie have been granted permission to join in a family
unit. If any here protest that decree, step forward to challenge.”

Charlie didn’t miss the way Zorus reached for the weapon
strapped to his thigh. She tensed, glanced around nervously, but no one
approached to fight Zorus. She had dreaded this part when she’d been informed
that it would take place. On Earth, someone could protest a wedding, but on
Garden they could actually fight over a woman, due to their shortage. A long
minute passed before Zorus removed his hand from his weapon.

The hold on their wrists eased until the robed cyborg
released them. Zorus helped Charlie lower to her knees and then dropped to his
own beside her. They faced the cyborg performing the ceremony. He smiled at
them.

“With blessings the council now decrees this union solid.”
He backed away.

Zorus gripped her hand tighter and Charlie turned her head
to stare into his brown eyes.

“Be strong.”

“I will be.”

Worry twisted his handsome features. “Are you sure, Charlie?
You don’t have to do this.”

“Hey, you changed the law so I’m not property anymore. I’m
not exactly a citizen just yet but I have rights now. It’s my choice to have
this joining ceremony with you and I want to do it the way everyone else does.”

He took a deep breath. “Just hold onto me.”

“Got it.”

His head turned when two cyborg males approached. He turned
on his knees to face Charlie. He had to release her hand to pull his shirt up
over his head. Bare-chested, Zorus impressed her when she studied his broad
shoulders, muscled arms, and firm abs. It was a sight she’d never get tired of.
He motioned her forward.

She moved until she pressed against his body, inhaled his
scent, and didn’t tense when he opened her dress down the back to her waist.
Her hair had already been pinned up for the ceremony so it didn’t get in the
way. He shielded her with his big arms while she helped him free her arms until
she clutched the material just over her breasts. The tight middle of the dress
kept it from sliding down her hips. Zorus pulled her tighter against his chest,
smashing her breasts against him. His lips brushed her forehead while he
wrapped his hands over her fisted ones.

“It won’t hurt for long. We’ll do this together.”

“Let’s not mention pain, okay?”

He chuckled. “Here we go. Don’t tense up.”

Something heavy draped over her bare shoulders, over her
upper arms, and around her back. She knew the same was being done to Zorus. She
took slow, steady breaths. It was custom to do this in front of witnesses at
the ceremony. They didn’t need a host of words as they did on Earth. On Garden
it came down to actions.

The heavy drape tightened around her body and warmed. It
didn’t hurt at first but then she felt a slight burning sensation over her
skin. She gripped Zorus tighter and he held her hands. She breathed in his
scent and then she could smell something burning. She tried not to wince,
knowing it was the fat cells being replaced with magnetic ink, just under her
skin and his. The cells were harmlessly burned away as the transfer took place.
It wasn’t as bad as she’d feared but it wasn’t pleasant either. The drape
cooled and then foreign hands gently removed it.

“Don’t touch them,” Zorus reminded her. “They will heal
quickly.”

Curiosity got the better of her and she pulled away from his
chest enough to move her arm to peer at the fresh tattoo on that side while she
continued to clutch her dress to keep her breasts covered. She wanted a mirror
to see it all but knew she’d have to wait for that.

“They look the same as mine,” Zorus whispered. “We match.”

She studied his skin and saw the fresh impressions that
hadn’t been there before. It was a pretty design, written in the cyborg
language she couldn’t read. Their symbols were artistic, similar to tribal
tattoos on Earth, and she smiled at him. He hadn’t been branded for his first
wife but he’d done it for Charlie.

“So now what?”

He started to help her carefully put the dress back on. The
loose material wouldn’t irritate the branding. “Now our life as a family unit
begins.”

Charlie grinned up at him. “Awesome.”

He laughed. “Yes, awesome.”

“We get a honeymoon, don’t we? I forgot to ask about that
part. The prospect of you having to get into a fight to marry me kind of shoved
it out of my head until now.”

“I’ve taken two weeks off from my duties to be with you.”

She grinned. “That’s so sweet.”

Desire flashed in his beautiful eyes. “You don’t want me to
lie to you. It wasn’t something I did to make you happy. I have my own selfish
reasons.” His focus lowered down her body, taking in every inch he could, while
his grin widened. “I plan to remove that gown as soon as our guests leave and I
doubt you’ll wear anything until I return to my duties.”

Zorus rose to his feet and helped her rise. Guests politely
clapped to celebrate their joining. Charlie looked around the room with a
smile. It had to be the mellowest wedding she’d ever been to besides the whole
possible-fistfight clause in the beginning and getting tattoos.

“So what do you do at these things? Where’s the booze and
the loud music?”

The aghast expression on Zorus’ face answered her.

“No booze and dancing?”

“No.”

“Then what do you do at these things?”

“We feed our guests, thank them for coming, and then they
leave.”

“Oh geez.” Charlie sighed. “You people are missing out.”

“Sorry.” He chuckled. “You’re not on Earth anymore.” His arm
wrapped around her waist. “They should be gone within the hour.” He winked.
“We’ll be alone.”

She grinned back at him. “Let’s feed them and get them out
then.” She tried to step away to ask the cyborgs who had come to serve food to
start passing it out but Zorus spun her inside his arms instead. His mouth came
down on hers.

Charlie kissed him back until she couldn’t think. To her,
all that existed inside the room were his warm lips, his tongue teasing her,
and then he pulled away with a glint of humor in his beautiful eyes.

“I love you, Charlie.”

“I love you too, Zorus.”

“Thank you for bringing me happiness. I’m so glad to have
you in my life.”

She loved that he hadn’t put his shirt back on as her hands
rubbed his bare chest. “Thank me when we get them the hell out of here. You can
drop to your knees and show me how grateful you are,” she teased.

Zorus chuckled. “Just to say the words?”

“Nope. I want tongue.”

“I see. And are you thankful and grateful for having me in
your life?”

“You are the best thing that’s ever happened to me. That’s
why I plan to drop to my knees after you get up off the floor.” She laughed.
“To thank you, that is, and I promise to use my mouth but I doubt there will be
any words. You’re kind of big to talk around.”

All humor left his handsome face. “Let’s get them the hell
out of here.”