The Exchange Part 1 (11 page)

I take in a ragged breath, my emotional processors
fritzing
all over the place. They run the fucking gamut and for two seconds, I’m convinced
I’m going to go insane. I need to vent the sudden anger that suffocates me, to hit
something.

She’s so beautiful, in every way that counts. So young. All she wants to do is protect
the man that created her. Why the fuck did she have to be forced into this?

I yank her as close to me as possible. One hand dives into her hair, cradling the
back of her head as I hold her to me. There’s something desperate about my hug, even
I pick up on that.

She pulls in a shuddering breath before tentatively returning it.

“Deimos, it’s going to be okay,” she says in a soft tone.

I stare at the wall in front of me. It’s been a hell of a long time since I was this
lost.
Helpless
. She must go through with this, but I also know what I
want
to do above all and it’s irrational to the extreme.

I want to sequester both her and
Dr
. Allen, hide them away at one of our sites. But then it’ll be Adelphi against Heaton.
Not that I doubt our ability to take him on, but he knows about us and that makes
him more dangerous than a seven nation army.

I can’t go up against him. Can’t protect her the way I want to, and for that I hate
him.

Because of his ego, he’s put me in a position of extreme weakness. Sapphire between
a rock and a hard place, and for that, I decide that Lei Heaton's going to die.

Burying my head in her hair, I take a long sniff, needing her scent inside me. “He
has less than a year to live.”

She nods against my neck. “Stage four lymphoma. He’s managed to hide it from the public,
but it’s really bad.”

“That won’t be what kills him.” Her body goes stiff in my arms. She’s caught onto
my meaning. I’m talking about an assassination. One I personally plan to take care
of.

With a shake of her head, she dislodges my hand, and then her eyes are on mine. That
stubborn glint is back.

Too bad, sweetheart. Not winning this one.

“Deimos. Not. Necessary.”

“Sapphire… yes it is.”

She glowers at me.

“No one hurts you, remember?”

Her expression melts into something undefinable that makes my pulse race. She tucks
several tendrils of her hair behind her ear, studying me with those big eyes.

“I’m serious,” I tell her. “We’re going to stay in contact. I’m going to watch after
you. And I’m going to—” I cast about for a “kinder” term when her eyes widen. “Facilitate
Lei Heaton’s death so that you come into power sooner."

You’ll be free and we can both
—I stop myself right there. Beyond today, it can't happen. I'm trying to give her
a more peaceful existence, not drag her into the fuckmess that is my life.

“Why would you do all this for me?”

Her question slides right to the core, ripping something in me wide open, and exposing
a thought that makes  no fucking sense.

Because you’re mine.

So much for "just for today", huh?

I let my head drop onto her shoulder, the helplessness expanding. So is my ire. I’m
being utterly led by my cock here.

Sapphire slides her fingers into my hair, the tips massaging my scalp. I suck in a
breath. She has to know how good that feels. I’ve never allowed anyone to caress me
like this—all of a sudden I’m hungry to have it everywhere. Her hug, the way she pets
me… it’s like a part of me had wanted it all this time, and I wasn’t aware of it ‘till
now.

And when I say aware, I mean fucking engrossed. I couldn’t pull away even if my entire
team happened to barge into the room and saw us. Which is fucked up because I
should
stop this.

No matter how I spin it, having sex with her equates to me taking advantage of her.
She isn’t an older, experienced woman, and that means I’m the one that should be in
control of this situation.

Sapphire drops a soft kiss on the top of my head, confounding me even more. My body
reacts to that kiss as if it had been her hand wrapped around my cock, stroking.

My over-analyzing mind shuts down. Thought abandons me with each frantic beat of my
heart. Every one of my emotions are engaged. I
care
for her, damn her, and it’s teamed up with the lust to fuck with my head. “
Sapphire
.”

A little whimper echoes deep in her throat. Her arms tighten around me at the same
time my arms tighten around her. We’re as close as two people can get with their clothes
still on.

It’s not enough. I’ll fucking die if I don’t get more.

I can’t get enough of this girl and I haven’t even had her yet. “Shit, Sapphire.”
I groan into her shoulder, my fingers digging desperately into her back. “What you
do to me. Can’t fucking stop myself.”

“Then don’t, Deimos. I want it. Want to know what it’s like… with you.”

Those words go straight to my dick. God, it feels like it’s going to explode. I can’t
remember the last time I was this hard for someone. “Sapphire, I don’t want you to
hate me after.”

“I won’t.”

“You don’t even understand what you’re asking. You’re too young.”

She jerks violently in my arms. It’s obvious she wants me to release her.

To bad my body’s clamped down tight around her. 

“Deimos.” The growl in her voice is new. Sexy as fuck. “I am not a fucking child!”

The vehemence in her voice, the fact that she cursed at me, catches me by surprise,
and I loosen my hold  on her without even realizing it.

Sapphire flies off my lap like a freaking cheetah at full speed.  Just as fast, she
snatches a pillow off the bed.

I don’t even have time to react.

“
Oooh
, you infuriating, condescending man!”

She slaps me in the face with the pillow.

THE PILLOW FALLS TO MY LAP. I can do nothing but blink at her, shell-shocked. Her
skin is flushed a deep red. Her eyes glow with fury. She’s
enraged
. Her hair whips all over shoulders with her rushed movements.

She grabs the other pillow behind me and flings it at my face. The pillow resting
on my lap is grabbed next. Hit number three is that hardest of them all.

“You are not allowed to treat me as a child! At one point, I had more knowledge at
my disposal than a human could hope to accumulate over three lifetimes. I still have
twice as much info in my head as anyone on this planet! And yet you dare equate me
to a child, telling me I’m ‘too young’ to know whether I want sex or not?”

God
. She’s magnificent. Her chest rises and falls with every rapid breath. So does mine.

She’s asked me a question and is expecting a reply.

I can’t give it to her. If I open my mouth, the only thing that’s going to leave it
is a demand for her to get back on my lap right the fuck now.

I’ve denied her sex, and it’s turned inward on her, morphing into the most epic sexual
frustration I’ve ever witnessed. She slapped me with the pillows, for God’s sake.
If she had been anyone else, I’d probably be laughing at her.

No laughing for me. As it is, all I can do is sit here and swallow mouthful after
mouthful of saliva. Yeah, she has my mouth watering like that. Worse, my own sexually
frustrated body is ready to blow my load right there. The head of my cock is slick,
the shaft full to bursting.

I’ve never wanted a pussy this much. In a blinding moment of realization, it becomes
clear that this is going to happen.  There’s no way I can want a female this much
and not explore it, at least once.

No way is she leaving this room without my scent covering her. All over.
Inside.

I don’t have time to tell Sapphire my brilliant realization. She whirls away from
me, heading for the bathroom. “Forget what I said. I don’t want to see what it’s like
with you anymore. I’ll go find someone that is interested. Maybe Mars—”

Let’s hit pause right here for two secs. Besides, I’m sure you can guess what stopped
her mid-sentence. Hint: me, officially at her level of enraged. And we’ll get back
to that in a few.

First, I have to make something very clear. Some people seem to not understand some
very important facts of life.

Said people? Pay attention.

There are some things that exist within the realm of “Shit That Should Never Be Said.”
The realm exists. It's real, and I’m convinced that much consequential suffering—like
that ass kicking you got for being a smart-ass, or the after-effects of war—could
be avoided if people simply understood this fact.

The garbage that just left her mouth? That one goes right at the motherfucking top
of the steaming bullshit pile in that land of Shit That Should Never Be Said.

Because she’s out of her fucking mind if she thinks I’ll ever let Gage have her!

Considering all this, I’m sure you can understand how I practically leaped off that
bed and went after her like a quarterback on the losing team during the last quarter
of the Superball.

I don’t realize what I’m doing. Pure instinct runs me now. My vision winks in and
out of black.

I do feel, though. The gasp that leaves her ghosting along my cheek. Her arms squished
beneath my hands.

Her struggles as I sit back down on the bed with her right where she started.

"No!" She slaps at my shoulder, hard enough for the hit to actually hurt. But she
doesn't hammer at me, or try to tear me apart. It's all the encouragement I need.

If this girl wanted me off her for real, she would've ripped my head off my shoulders.
No doubt about it.

"You're going to take back what you just said," I inform her, my voice hoarse from
residual anger.

"No, I'm not."

She doesn't understand. Just thinking about her wanting anyone else sparks irrational,
psychotic fury.

Thinking about her wanting Gage—my teammate, my
friend
—that way is like standing in front of a mirror and catching my reflection for the
first time. The man on the other side is evil. More monstrous than I ever expected.

Her being with him of all people… nah. Not happening. The thought alone threatens
to tear something in me apart and I'm done analyzing why. It just is.

"You want me, Sapphire." I cup the left side of her neck and lean in to drag my nose
across the other side. She quivers as I inhale her, not stopping until my lips trace
her ear. "Me. Not him."

"No. I changed my mind. Told you."

I yank her down so that my cock hits home between her thighs.

A ragged moan leaves her and I jerk against her, rubbing hard. “You. Want. Me,” I
hiss into her ear, my eyes sliding closed. “And you shouldn’t. I shouldn’t want this,
either.” I tilt her head to the side and give her neck a light nibble.

Sapphire’s breath catches in her throat.

Smiling against her neck, I let my tongue flick out once, twice…

“
Deimos,
what—oh, God.”

She’s vocal. I fucking love that. “Tell me you want me to stop, and I’ll stop. But
decide. Because I’m done pretending I don’t want to fuck you.” Her hands wrap tight
around my neck.
That’s it, baby. Tremble for me.
Taking a deep inhale, I force my upper body away from her and back on the bed. I brace
myself on my elbows.

Sapphire’s lips part. Her eyes trail down my body, taking me in beneath her. Those
eyes tell me just how much she wants me. I struggle not to thrust up toward her. “If
you want me, Sapphire, here I am.”

Her knees slide across the bed, her thighs parting farther. A shiver goes through
her as her pussy makes contact with my dick again.

I bite the inside of my cheek and fist the covers.

“What if.” She pauses, her tongue wetting her lower lip. I fixate on that, dying to
suck on it. “What if I don’t know what to do? I mean, I have Magdalena’s memories,
but—”

“Told you not to fucking think about that.” My blood pounds through my veins. That
possessive wave again, the one that threatens to erase my common sense.

Mine.

Need to flip her over, impale her, make her writhe on my cock until she fucking understands
what she’s done to me.

I feel crazed.

I
am
crazed, my mind splitting in two. Grinding down on my teeth, I snap my lids shut.
This isn’t normal. And I have to control myself. She’s isn’t ready for what I want.
If I’m going to do this with her, I have to let her control it. It has to be
her
using my body, taking what she needs.

Fuck, that thought turns me on more.

She cups my face and smooths her thumbs across my cheekbones. “Deimos… you look pained.”

I force my lids open, so that she can see my eyes, knowing damn well what she’ll find
in there.
Obsession.
Has to be. It’s hit me hard, too fast. “I’m trying to do this at your speed, but never
wanted anyone this fucking much."

The emotion that flares in her eyes guts me. I don't dare analyze it, don't think
I can handle it right then.

Still cupping my face, she leans toward me. I have a split second to wet my lips,
then her lips are on me, her tongue pushing into
my
mouth.

I twitch and groan beneath her, my eyes lost in the back of my head again. Sapphire
kisses me as if she could eat me alive, our tongues twining violently. My hands tighten
around the covers, thoughts growing dim.

My dick pounds along with my raging heartbeat. I growl at her as she pulls back to
stare at me with flushed cheeks and molten eyes. I cup her face in my palm, caressing
it rougher than I should. “You are gorgeous, and if you don’t touch me soon, I think
I’m going to explode in my pants,” I joke with her, smirking.

She giggles, her lips stretching out into a wide smile. They’re wet, coated in my
saliva. I reach up and smooth my thumb across her bottom one. I want more of me on
her. Covering her.

The smile falls off Sapphire’s face. She’s fucking panting, her eyes asking me for
things she isn’t ready for.
Easy. Her first time.
I drop one hand to her thigh, circling and squeezing.

Her hands flatten on my chest, smoothing the material of my shirt across my pecs.
Her eyes keep bouncing from what her hands are doing to my mouth. There’s a hesitancy
to her touch.

My chest squeezes in on itself. Rising up, I wrap her in my arms and turn around so
that my back is facing the headboard. I lean back and make myself comfortable. “Sapphire,
we don’t have to do anything you aren’t comfortable with.”

She spreads her fingers over my pecs and squeezes down. As if familiarizing herself
with my body. “What about what you want?”

My dick twitches. I can’t help but rotate my hips into her wet heat. Fuck. I need
our clothes gone. “Baby, what I want is for you to use me. However you want.”

Sapphire bites back a throaty moan, her nails digging into my skin. “However
I
want it?”

Images flash through my mind; a fucked-up kaleidoscope of naked flesh, roaming hands,
and breathless moans that leaves me shaking. “Yes. God. Whatever you want. Just do
it.”

Her skirt rises up on her thighs as she spreads her legs and shifts on top of me.

My dick is going to rip through my jeans. If she teases me like that one more time…

I slide my thumbs up the insides of her thighs, lifting the edge of her skirt as I
go. She lets me, and by the time her boyshorts come into view, we’re tense against
each other. Our panting breaths are the only sound in the room.

Her boyshorts are light blue. The fabric covering her pussy is damp. I can see the
outline of her lips clearly. God
damn
. The lush scent of her arousal makes my mouth water. I moan, squeezing down on her
thighs. “Baby, I’m about to lose my mind. Work with me here. Tell me what you like.”

“I like it when you moan,” she whispers, rocking toward my thumbs.

I move my thumbs closer to her pussy and moan for her again. “What else?”

“I like how your skin feels. Want more.”

Thank fuck. I ease her back so I can sit up and yank my shirt off. I fling it across
the room and ease back on the headboard.

Sapphire’s eyes are filled with wonder as she takes in my chest. Her eyes fall to
the tattoo on my ribcage.

Never give up. Never give in. Keep fighting until your last breath.

Her fingers trace the words slowly.

Every muscle tightens for her, the male animal in me brimming with pride at her stunned
silence.

“Deimos...” she breathes out slowly, the awe in her voice driving me wild.

I don’t know what comes over me or
why
, but there’s no stopping the next word that leaves my mouth. “Maxwell.”

The stillness that falls over us is unreal. Somehow, her pupils get even larger. Dark
eyes lock on me with that same wonder from before and something else.
Shock.

My heart feels like it’s about to explode through my ribcage.

My fucking name. I did it. I gave her my name.

“What?” Sapphire whispers, her little hands clenching into fists on my naked chest.

“It’s… it’s my name,” I whisper back passed the rock in my throat. The magnitude of
what I’ve just done isn’t lost on me.

Tenderness slides across her expression. “Your name is Maxwell?”

I nod at her.

“But you go by Deimos?”

“It’s my alias. Barely anyone knows my real name.” Fucking shit, I’m still whispering,
like some scared little ki—

Sapphire reaches for her sweater and pulls it over her head.