“You will be wanting change?” the attendant inquired tonelessly, already looking for the next buyer.
“Keep it.” Pierce was already working on getting her free. “She’s worth every bit.”
The attendant brightened. “Congratulations on an excellent choice, Sir. May she serve you well.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Pierce muttered. “Just get her out of these chains. She’s mine now and I don’t want anyone else seein’ her like this.”
He lifted Leita in his arms like a child the minute the last chain was unlocked, almost as though he was afraid she would run away from him if he didn’t carry her. Leita didn’t complain. She buried her face in his neck and breathed in the familiar, spicy musk she had loved from the first minute she met him.
Her body throbbed with the aftereffects of the orgasm but in the back of her head, she continued to wonder why Pierce had come for her. Did he want revenge of some kind? Or did he see this as his way of paying her back for harboring him from the people who were hunting him for a while? There was a third possibility—one she was almost afraid to think of. That he loved her, as she had grown to love him even though she had tried so hard to deny it. Even though he had lied to her and deceived her, she couldn’t help herself. Seeing Pierce again, being touched by him and held in his arms brought all the emotions she’d tried so hard to suppress rushing back. Could it be that Pierce felt the same way? That he wanted to be with her, not just rescue her and send her back to her life pod? But Leita wanted that so much she was afraid to think of it. Afraid to let the hope grow in her heart.
She had thought he might put her down once they left the large auditorium but Pierce carried her tirelessly through what seemed like miles of blank white corridors until at last they reached a small, private port. He had a ship—a sleek Titan Jaunter that looked like a big silver bird to Leita, who was used to the almost spherical droid ships that collected her ore. Pierce spoke a series of commands into his chronometer, which was obviously tied to the ship, and a long steel gangplank descended, ushering them into the dimly lit interior.
“Here we are, honey.” Pierce sat her down gently just inside the entrance and raised the plank to close the ship’s door. He took off the privacy mask and threw it to one side. “Safe and sound,” he told her. “Guess I better warm up the engines.”
Leita didn’t want to let him go. “I…” She stood with her arms around his neck, her body still throbbing with need but Pierce was acting like nothing had happened.
“You okay?” he asked, ducking his head to look into her eyes.
“I don’t understand.” Leita shook her head. “How did you find me? Why…why did you come for me?”
Pierce frowned. “Schneider called and told me you’d been taken. I couldn’t just leave you there, could I?” He laughed unconvincingly. “Call it cosmic karma—you bought me—in a way, anyhow, when you ordered that damn Companion thing and I showed up at your door instead. And I bought you just now. I was just returnin’ the favor.”
“But…but I yelled at you and threatened you and kicked you out of my place naked,” Leita said. “And tazered you,” she added as an afterthought. “I thought…I guess I just thought you’d hate me. That you wouldn’t come for me even if you did know where I was.”
“I don’t hate you, baby.” Pierce cupped her cheek gently and looked down into her eyes. “What gave you that idea? I could never hate you.” He leaned closer and Leita thought he was going to kiss her. Her heart jumped in her chest and she felt her breathing quicken. But then the look on Pierce’s face changed to one of regret and he pulled back.
“Pierce?” she asked, making his name a question. She would have given a billion credits to know what was going on in his head. Did he feel the same way she did?
“Sorry.” He cleared his throat. “I just… I better go warm up those engines.”
Leita began to get mad. She stood back and put her hands on her hips. “Why do you keep talking about the engines? What about what happened just now—when are we going to talk about that? What about…what about the way you touched me?”
Pierce’s face got red. “I’m sorry about that, Leita,” he said in a low voice. “I was just… I had to play the part. And I’m sorry about touchin’ you the way I did, too. I guess…guess I just wanted one last chance. One last—” he broke off, shaking his head.