“Just remember, you promised to use the panic button on your communicator if he tries anything—anything at all,” Stone reminded her. This was the part of their mission he had been dreading the most—letting his partner be alone with a murderous rapist.
Of course, he knew that Cassandra could handle herself in a tight situation—he had respect for her capabilities. But he preferred to be with her anyway, to get her back, as she always said. They would only be separated for a little while—just long enough for her to lure The Beast out to their ship, but Stone still felt a wave of anxiety when he thought of leaving her.
Unable to help himself, he leaned down and gathered her into his arms.
“Stone!” she exclaimed under her breath and stiffened at first. But then her soft, curvy body melted against his own. “It’s all right, you know,” she whispered in his ear. “I’m going to be just fine.”
“I do not like leaving you.” Stone nuzzled the vulnerable side of her neck, kissing her gently there. He had an almost overwhelming urge to bite her—to sink his fangs in and inject her with his essence, Claiming her as his own.
But he knew he couldn’t do that. If he did, he would want to bond her to him and Cassandra had said over and over again that she only wanted them to be friends.
If that was all she wanted, though, why did her heart pound so much faster when he held her close as he was doing now? Why did her breathing quicken and the sweet scent of her feminine desire fill his nose?
“Cassandra,” he murmured, “At the end of this mission, we will still be friends?”
“Of course we’ll be friends, Stone,” she whispered back. “How can you even ask that? We’re best friends and partners—forever.”
“Forever.” Stone sighed. He would be back in the zone of friendly acquaintance with no hope of getting out of it.
“Does that upset you?” Cassandra asked, sounding worried. “You do want to still be friends, don’t you?”
“Of course I do,” Stone made himself say. But he couldn’t help adding, “I will miss being able to hold you, though. And taste you between your legs.”
“Stone…” She wiggled in his arms and he could feel her soft, nearly-bare breasts against his chest. Her voice expressed displeasure but the scent of her desire intensified considerably.
She likes it when I speak my desires aloud to her, Stone thought—not for the first time. It arouses her when I tell her what I want to do to her.
But now was probably not the right time. Although, when would he ever get another chance to speak his desires to his partner after this mission was over, Stone reasoned with himself.
“I know you don’t like the idea of beneficial friends,” he murmured in her ear. “But maybe I could still taste you sometimes, when we get back to Earth. We could turn off the lights and you could pretend it was someone else lapping your soft little pussy and making you come with his tongue.” He kissed her neck again, sliding the tips of his fangs very lightly down the vulnerable column of her throat to feel her shiver against him.
“Stone!” she protested again, shifting restlessly in his arms. “Don’t talk to me like that right now—you’re driving me crazy and we still have to finish this mission!”
“So you admit the idea appeals to you?” he asked, pulling back to search her eyes with his own.
She shifted again and looked away.
“I mean, of course it appeals to me! I’d have to be crazy not to find that kind of, uh, offer appealing. But I just don’t know if continuing that kind of thing would be, you know, good for our friendship.”
“Of course, our friendship,” Stone muttered. Once again, she was placing him in the friendship zone. If only he knew how to get out, damn it!
“I’m sorry.” Cassandra reached up to cup his cheek with her soft little hand. “Sorry, Stone, but this isn’t the time or place to talk about this and you know it.”
Reluctantly, he nodded. “I know.”
She looked at her chronometer.
“Look, it’s almost time for The Beast to meet me. You’d better get to the ship and wait for us. If he sees you with me, he’s just going to turn right back around and leave.”
“I know. Because he is a fucking coward,” Stone growled, feeling his eyes get hot and red. He hugged Cassandra as tightly as he dared and looked into her eyes. “Be careful. If you feel you are in any danger at all, call for me—I will always come for you.”
“I know you will.” Leaning up, she gave him a soft kiss on the cheek. “Thank you, partner.”
“You are welcome. And please be cautious.”
“You know I will be but don’t worry—we’re on a roll, Stone, I can feel it.” She grinned at him. “Nothing’s going to stop us now—we’ve got this mission in the bag.”
Stone hoped she was right but as he at last released her and turned to go out to the ship, he had a deep feeling of apprehension in his gut, as though the good luck they’d had so far that night was about to desert them.
Fifty-One
Cassie waited impatiently, looking at the chronometer strapped to her wrist every few seconds. Where was he, damn it?
She wished that Stone hadn’t gotten her so worked up right before he left. If he just wanted to be friends, why did he insist on holding her so close and kissing the side of her neck while he whispered dirty talk in her ear? They were going to have to stop that once they got back down to Earth—it would definitely lead to an attempt to be friends with benefits or “beneficial friends” as Stone called it, which would undoubtedly ruin their friendship and their partnership.
Cassie wished again they could be more than just friends. But if he wanted that, Stone would have voiced a desire to bond her to him, and he had never done that. He had only said that he shouldn’t bite her because then he would want to bond her. And since he had specifically kept himself from biting her in order to avoid that fate, she had to assume he didn’t want to bond her to him and have her as more than a friend and a partner.
She sighed deeply. If only—
“Well, there you are!”
The familiar voice behind her immediately doused the flames of desire her partner had woken in her. In their place, she felt a shiver of revulsion. But this was no time to let her true feelings show. Cassie plastered a welcoming smile on her face and turned to face The Beast.
“I was wondering if you were going to stand me up!” she exclaimed. “I’ve been waiting to show you the new equipment in my ship.”
“I don’t see your body-slave anywhere around,” The Beast remarked, looking around expectantly.
“No, of course not—I left him back in my room. I don’t take him with me everywhere I go.” Cassie laughed lightly. “So, are you ready to go?”
“Oh, I’m ready to go, all right.” The Beast tucked her arm through his—a bit more firmly than Cassie liked. Still, she kept up her smile.
“Good! We’re going to have a lot of fun.”
“More than you know,” The Beast gave her a wolfish smile and began walking, pulling her along with him. But he wasn’t headed to the entrance of the palace, Cassie saw in dismay. Instead, they were going back towards the throne room.