Page 7
Chapter 2
“How’s the little guydoing?” Hunter glanced at Cleo as she returned to the cockpit and settled in the seat beside him.
“He’s stable. I’m keeping him sedated until we get back to the Apocalypse. I don’t like the look of that leg, though. He could lose it.”
“Most animals can survive a missing limb if they’ve got someone looking out for them,” Hunter said. “And he’ll be just fine now he’s with us.”
Cleo crossed her legs and rested her elbows on her knees. Hunter loved it when she sat like that. She only ever did it when she was relaxed, or happy about something.
“That was fun. Maybe you’re right, we should make time to get out in the field now and again.”
“Are you being serious?”
“I’m not saying we go out every week, but I don’t want my skills to get rusty. And with the new crew members coming on board soon, I might find someone interested in taking on some admin.”
“I know just the person, and she’s already on board,” Hunter said. “Daisy will do it.”
“Not so fast. What makes you think Daisy would be interested? She loves the fieldwork.”
“Sure. But given the plans Rexx has, it might mean Daisy won’t want to go out in the field for much longer.”
“Rexx is making plans for Daisy? That’s the first I’ve heard of this.”
Hunter grinned. “Rexx is an alien of few words, but he’s been saying the same word a lot recently. He wants kids with Daisy.”
Cleo’s warm laugh sent a spark through him. It was a beautiful laugh, deep and throaty.
“I’m not surprised to hear that. He’s smitten with her, and she’s the same with him. I worried when they first got together that he’d be too dominant to handle, but our little Daisy has tamed the giant. And Rexx is a different Apexian these days. I haven’t had to reprimand him in months for breaking anything.”
“You see what the love of a good woman can do for an Apexian.” Hunter winked at her. “You should try it with me.”
Cleo lowered her feet to the floor. “Rexx and Daisy are a team. They work well together.”
“And you’re saying we don’t work well together?”
Her cheeks flushed. “I’m saying... we do. I mean... I mean, things don’t need to be complicated by... romance.”
“If you don’t want me to romance you, you could just let me into your bed every night. I could change your mind that way.” Hunter kept his gaze forward, not wanting to see the rejection in Cleo’s eyes. It was always like a stab to the gut. “And there’s nothing complicated about being with someone you care about.”
“Hunter.” The warning in Cleo’s voice was clear.
She never wanted to talk about what had happened between them. And Hunter was certain he could fall to his knees naked in front of her and beg to get into her bed once again, but it wouldn’t happen. Cleo was in charge of their relationship, and she’d stalled it and drained the life out of it as quickly as she could.
It pissed him off that she had no problem forgetting they’d spent one blistering night together. It was a night he’d never forget, and a night he wanted on repeat every night for the rest of their lives.
But Cleo always shut down that possibility whenever he brought it up. And Hunter had a daily battle to do the same. But it was a battle he was weary of fighting, not when he knew how amazing they’d be together.
“How long until we get back to the Apocalypse?” Cleo stared straight ahead.
Hunter held in a sigh of frustration. “Two hours.”
“I might as well make myself useful and check through the supplies. We used a lot of the on-board medical kit on the whip fox. That’ll need restocking before the ship can go out again.”
“That’s not your job.”
“I used it, I replace it. That’s the rule.”
Hunter considered telling her to stay where she was and stop making excuses to avoid him, but that would be pointless. Cleo’s head ruled her life, even though he knew there was a wild, free heart inside that gorgeous body. A heart he’d touched for the briefest of times, and an experience he’d never forget.
