Cyborg Nation Kaitlyn O'Connor (books to get back into reading TXT) 📖

the doorway. After staring at her frowningly for several moments, however, as if they were trying to figure out what had possessed her, they turned and left again.

Letting out a sigh of relief, Bronte dropped the cover she’d been holding and stared at the door thoughtfully, wondering why she’d decided to interfere. It didn’t take long to arrive at the conclusion that she hadn’t actually decided to at all. She’d felt a compulsion to stop them and she’d acted on impulse.

As her impulses went, this one hadn’t been near the disaster her urges usually were. In fact, now that she thought about it, it had actually worked very well. She’d broken the fight up and in record time.

She still didn’t know why she’d felt compelled to do anything at all.

She hadn’t wanted them to hurt Gabriel, she realized.

Not that he didn’t deserve it since he’d gone straight out and told them when she’d warned him not to, she thought indignantly. After she’d thought it over a few minutes it occurred to her that he might not have. He’d been so sated he’d hardly been able to drag himself up. She smiled faintly at the memory.

He’d looked so cute and addled when he’d left.

Maybe he hadn’t said anything to start it? Maybe they’d only looked at him and known instantly that he’d just been thoroughly pleasured and they had suspected he had gone against orders? And then he’d told them in his defense?

She hadn’t been able to hear what had been said. She’d only heard angry voices, and that had happened almost as soon as he’d left. By the time she’d managed to get to the door the ‘conversation’ had degenerated mostly into growls and grunts.

She supposed they’d jumped him because they’d thought he hadn’t followed orders.

Gideon had to have been the one to give those orders and it made her mad all over again when she thought about it. Why would he do that, she wondered, feeling her anger dissolve as misery took its place?

He must hate her. She felt a deep down ache at the thought, wishing she could go back and undo what she’d done. It wasn’t as if she would’ve actually had the nerve to try to fly the ship herself, after all—not unless she’d found herself completely on her own with no other options.

On reflection, she decided that had been the worst impulse she’d ever had … next to telling him what she’d had in mind under pleasurable torture, and the comments her anger had prompted afterward.

Not that she wasn’t still thoroughly pissed off about it, damn him!

And he’d ordered them to torment her! Ordered them to, she thought in disbelief!

She frowned at that thought, wondering abruptly if the orders had been only that they weren’t supposed to pleasure her or if they’d been told to tease her and keep her on edge? She’d thought that was what Gabriel had meant, but he hadn’t said that. He’d said they’d been ordered not to pleasure her and she’d jumped to the conclusion that Gideon had given the order specifically to torment her. That wasn’t true, though, unless he’d specifically told them to tease her and leave her in the lurch.

She was trying to make excuses for him, she realized after a moment, irritated with herself. She wanted to make excuses for him so she could forgive him.

What difference did it make, though, if she forgave him if he’d decided he hated her?

She was actually beginning to look forward to reaching their destination. At least then, hopefully, she would have work to do and not so much idle time to drive herself crazy with too much thinking. At least she wouldn’t be cooped up in close quarters with those three barbarians!

They’d probably be more relieved than she was. She probably wouldn’t ever see them again. Very likely they would volunteer to go off and fight at the first opportunity, or maybe even volunteer for another mission like this one—anything to get as far away from her as possible, she thought morosely.

Chapter Thirteen

“That was … unnerving,” Gideon said uncomfortably, rubbing absently at his bruises as he dropped onto the bench by the table, watching Jerico prepare their meal.

Gabriel, who’d settled opposite him, nodded, but worriedly. “You saw no sign of space dementia?”

“You saw her yourself. She did not look at all disoriented. I am convinced that she was only angry. I am just not certain what set her off.”

“Gabriel.”

Both Gideon and Gabriel turned to look at Jerico. He threw Gabriel a resentful glance. “I think that she was trying to defend Gabriel from you,” he added after a moment, frowning at the container he was trying to open without spilling the food inside of it.

Gideon’s eyes narrowed as he studied Gabriel. “Why would you think she would do that?”

Jerico shrugged. “She did not offer to pleasure me that way,” he said tightly.

Gideon said nothing. She hadn’t offered to pleasure him that way either, but he was damned if he was going to admit it. “Exactly what did you do when you went in there?” he asked instead.

Gabriel shrugged, so obviously trying to hide his satisfaction that Gideon was tempted to reach across the table and slug him again. “I had repaired her glasses. I took them to her and … actually I do not remember anything very clearly after that. I was trying not to think about throwing her down on the bed and fucking her while she was smiling up at me. All I can remember very clearly was that she kissed me,” he touched his chest, “here, and then I could not really think about anything but kissing her in the same place … And then I was.”

“How did it get from there to her pleasuring you?”

“I told her I wanted to....” Gabriel broke off, shifting uncomfortably.

“Wanted to …?” Gideon prompted.

Gabriel sent him a harassed look. “I might have said something to the effect that I couldn’t, and then she offered to pleasure me instead.”

“Fuck!” Gideon