PRIYA

I was dozing on the cot when the sound of the door opening startled me out of my uneasy slumber. I opened my eyes to see two guards lurking outside the entrance.

I sat up quickly. The manacles clinked as I wiped away the sweat, which was my only companion on this planet. One guard entered the room, keeping a gun trained on me. The other waited outside the door.

“It’s time for you to move. We’re taking you to your permanent destination.”

“How long am I going to be there?” I knew I shouldn’t ask, but I couldn’t help myself. I scrambled up as gracefully as I could, considering my hands were shackled.

“Do you know what the word permanent means, human?” The guard looked like he was enjoying my dismay. I felt rage rising inside me.

Nothing happening to me was my fault. I wasn’t going to take what the guards dished out to me. I had to try and escape, even if it could mean more punishment. At least I would have tried. The best time to make a break for it would be when they moved me from the holding cell to the shuttle.

The guard waved the gun at me, motioning for me to walk through the doorway. He followed behind me. I was sandwiched between the two until we arrived outside and they moved to my sides.

It was hotter outside than in my room. The buildings probably had heat shielding. I wiped another drop of sweat, the heavy metal cuffs clanking on my wrists, and got an idea as we made our way to the shuttle. The guard who had spoken to me moved inside first, disappearing toward the Captain’s cabin.

My chance came when the other guard looked off into the distance as if she heard something. I didn’t know what she had spotted, but I wasn’t going to let an opportunity pass.

I lifted my arms and swung as hard as I could, hitting her in the head with the heavy metal cuffs. She dropped like a stone. I took off running, hoping the other guard wouldn’t notice my disappearance. Even a small head start could be critical.

I tore across the platform, looking around wildly for somewhere to go. As I approached the edge, I heard shouting rise behind me. I didn’t turn around or stop running. I had spotted something I hoped would be my salvation.

The platform was a solid block of smooth metal and dropped off in front of me. It wasn’t melting even though it sat in the middle of a pool of hot lava. I could see another platform below me. As I looked across the molten rock, a series of small platforms made a path across the lava to a larger platform in the distance.

Unfortunately, there were no bridges between the platforms. They had retracted when we were landing. I didn’t care. I thought I could jump the distance. I hesitated only for a moment before leaping over the railing and crashing to the ground.

It had been about an eight-foot drop. My legs and ankles seemed to be working. I moved to the edge of the platform and stared across the gap. I wished those bridges were in place, but I couldn’t do anything about it. I had to jump.

I stood at the edge of the platform, out of breath, staring at the red-hot lava beneath my feet. The possibility of roasting to death by lava lurked just in front of me.

It was better than the certainty of a slow death in prison. I looked behind me — the guards hadn’t made it across the first platform yet. I could hear the sound of footsteps pounding, though, so I didn’t have much time.

Without thinking too much, I took a few steps back and started to run before I jumped, landing on the other platform with my heart pounding against my chest.

I was still alive.

A shot rang out and hit the platform next to me. I recoiled, looking back. The guard had his blaster out and was aiming in my direction.

I couldn’t stop. I sped across each platform, leaping over the gaps. After each landing, I took a moment to steady myself before taking off again. Another shot caught the back of my leg and burned my calf.

I stumbled, clutching my leg. If the guard hit me again, it might not kill me, but it would make me an easy target. The good thing about having to jump between platforms was that the guard had to perform the same acrobatic maneuvers I did, which reduced the amount of time he had to shoot at me.

I knew my luck couldn’t hold forever. I landed awkwardly on the next jump and fell over as pain shot through my leg. I was going to have problems running if I twisted my ankle. Despair filled my body as I tried to stand. An energy blast barely missed me as I fell again. The pain in my ankle made me gasp.

The guard was two platforms away, making his way toward me. He seemed to be taking his time now that I was injured. I tried to stand again, but couldn’t put any weight on my leg. The guard spoke into his communicator. The prison shuttle lifted off in the distance and surged toward us.

I wasn’t going to let them take me back. The guard jumped to the neighboring platform as the shuttle approached. I closed my eyes, squeezing back tears of frustration and anger.

God damn it.

Suddenly, I heard the flapping of wings in the air as Allex appeared out of nowhere above me. It was like a dream. He vigorously pumped his wings as a gust of wind threatened to push him off course. He landed roughly on the platform, face tight with strain. “Get on my back, Priya!” He glanced frantically at the guard who was both running and shooting at us. He pulled me to my feet, making the chains from my handcuffs clank together. I put most of my weight on my good foot.

Allex had rejected me earlier. What was he doing here? If I didn’t want to go back to jail, I had to take his offer. I would have to worry about the details of our relationship later.

I reached up. Despite the wrenching pain in my burning calf and twisted ankle, I managed to climb onto my bond mate’s back and wrap my legs around him. I had to lift my handcuffs over his head, leaving the chain dangling over his chest.

The guard was almost upon us. Allex jumped and shot straight up, wings beating against the air as we flew out of sight into the smoky atmosphere of Grayndelle. A stiff gust of warm air pushed us off course, and he struggled to counter it. Another updraft lifted us higher. I don’t know how long we flew, but I remember spotting the fighter, which I imagined had Gwen and Anders at the helm.

I felt a rush of relief. It was over. I was free and safe.

But what would happen between Allex and me? I never expected to see him again.

When Jerry had rejected me, telling me I wasn’t good enough for him, I had certainly never seen him again. I didn’t want to, either. It was hard to admit I had expected the same of Allex.

I should have known better. Allex was my bond mate, not some jerk of an ex-boyfriend. I wasn’t sure I could forgive him. The wounds he had inflicted cut deeply, and I didn’t know how to heal them.

* * *

ALLEX

I flew up and through the hatch in the bottom of our spacecraft, carrying Priya on my back. As soon as she slid off, I turned and pulled her into my arms, holding her tightly. She clung to me for a minute but suddenly pushed me away. Priya promptly collapsed on her bad leg. I picked her up and set her down on the couch in the changing room. When I looked into her eyes, what I saw was painful. She didn’t look happy to see me.

“Is something the matter, Priya?”

“You rejected me. No matter what you said, I wasn’t good enough to be the bond mate of a prince.” She was furious.

I felt like she had stabbed me in the heart. I hadn’t rejected her. On the contrary, I had gone out of my way to find her.

In the deepest corner of my mind, I had to admit that I should have done something when Priya was still on the mothership. I might have convinced my father to release her if I had been willing to talk to him. Instead, I had taken the coward’s way out. I was happy she was safe, but what was I going to do if she hated me?

Gwen interrupted my thoughts. “Strap in. We’re leaving.”

Priya tried to stand under her own power, but her ankle gave out instantly. I grabbed her, supporting her and taking her weight in my arms.

Avren moved past us into one of the seats in the changing room. “The gunner’s chairs are open.”

They would be more comfortable than the emergency seats. I carried Priya to the back of the ship. As soon as we reached the seats, she moved over as far away from me as possible, making sure our legs didn’t touch.

It didn’t look good. “We’ll discuss this later.”

“There’s nothing to talk about, Allex.”

Priya closed her restraints, and I had no choice but to follow suit. Gwen and Anders were eager to leave. As soon as I was buckled in, the ship lurched into motion, launching toward the atmosphere and into space.

“Take a look at this, Gwen.” Anders stared at a dozen blinking red lights on the screen. “As soon as we’re out of danger, we’ll have to service the ship. That planet was a big problem.”

“I’ll say.” Gwen didn’t take her eyes off her screen. Her hands hovered over the console as she flew us to safety. “Give me a couple of hours to get them off our tail. We’ll find somewhere to stop.”

* * *

We spent six long, stressful hours evading the prison authorities. Gwen managed to lose them somewhere in the Outer Rim. Avren found a cheap hotel to spend the night. Anders paid for all of us using assumed names. Once I took a look at the place, I wasn’t sure if we needed to bother with fake names. It seemed like the sort of place where they didn’t ask too many questions.

I bound Priya’s ankle with a tensor bandage from the ship’s first aid kit and covered the burn on her calf. She would still walk with a limp, but she would be able to move around by herself. When we dropped the ship off for the necessary repairs, the mechanic told us he believed it would be ready within a day.

Priya had been wearing long underwear under her prison jumpsuit. She had found a pair of Gwen’s pants in the changing room, which were a little too big for her. She had rolled up the pants to make them fit. Her outfit would make her stand out in the crowd, so Gwen picked up some clothes for her from the gift shop in the hotel, letting Priya pass for a typical Outer Rim tourist. Anything would beat the bright yellow prison jumpsuit she arrived in.

The other three stayed in a suite with two bedrooms and a common area. Priya and I had a room to ourselves even though we clearly didn’t need privacy. She had been looking at me like I was an Auxem monster who had stolen something from her. I didn’t have any illusions about getting lucky tonight — the way things were going, I would be fortunate if she spoke to me.

We said goodnight to the others and reluctantly trudged into the room. Priya didn’t look at me or say a word.

“Priya, what happened to your eye?”

Her stare could have burned a hole through my head. “One of the guards punched me when I didn’t move fast enough. In case you forgot, I’ve been in prison, Allex.”

Guilt twisted my stomach into knots. What had I done? And how could she ever forgive me?

“I’m going to take a shower.” She limped off to the bathroom, carrying the clothes Gwen had purchased for her.

I threw myself into a chair. Maybe the hot water would calm Priya down. When she emerged thirty minutes later, she still refused to talk.

“The bathroom’s open.” She wrinkled her nose at me. I sniffed as discreetly as I could. I needed a shower, too. It was hot on the lava planet, and I had been sweating profusely.

“I can take a shower in a minute. Your bandage needs changing, and I have to rewrap the tensor.”

“It can wait.”

I took the hint and grabbed my overnight bag as I went into the bathroom. When I emerged a few minutes later, showered and changed, I realized any conversation would to have to wait. Priya was sleeping peacefully on her side of the bed.

I felt frustrated. I wanted to clear the air with Priya, but I knew she had been through a lot and would need some time to recover. I wondered if it was selfish of me to want immediate forgiveness.

Priya looked beautiful while she was sleeping. Her black hair was still damp, and there were dark circles under her eyes, but she was a gorgeous creature. Trying not to disturb her, I rewrapped the tensor bandage on her swollen ankle and carefully applied salve and a bandage to the burn. She was so exhausted that she didn’t even stir.

I shouldn’t have put her through this. All I had to do was speak with my father. She was right to be mad at me. I’d been a complete asshole.

But I still loved her.

I crawled into bed with her, pulling her against my chest and wrapping my arms around her. She made a contented sound and relaxed against me. Maybe things were going to work out after all. Priya couldn’t be mad at me forever, could she?

* * *

PRIYA

I woke the next morning feeling happy. I immediately wondered why. It had been many days since I had awakened feeling good and it surprised me.

I opened my eyes and felt strong arms holding me, a hard, hot chest pressing into my back, and something else hot and hard pushing against my ass. I had the urge to rub against it, but I resisted as memories came rushing back.

The happiness I felt at waking in Allex’s arms was quickly replaced by anger and a deep sense of betrayal. Holding me wasn’t going to change the past. He had let me go to jail without bothering to make a half-hearted attempt at stopping it so he wouldn’t look bad in front of his family.

What a bastard.

I tried to work my way free from under his arm, but he was heavy. When I wriggled around, I felt his cock pulse against me, and his hand drifted down to my breast. I drew in a shaky breath as he squeezed, pinching the nipple.

I was mad at him. I wasn’t going to fuck him.

I hadn’t realized how much our bond could affect my mind. My body had different goals for me and allowed Allex’s other hand to drift down to my panties. I had taken off all my new clothes for sleeping except a T-shirt and panties.

His finger circled my clit. All the days and nights of missing him coalesced into an all-consuming desire I couldn’t control. I could fuck him one time — it was something for myself, and I didn’t need to feel guilty about it. I would unload on Allex later. Fucking him didn’t mean forgiveness.

I knew it was true, but having a bond with Allex was different from my other relationships. Even though I was furious about his betrayal, I couldn’t dump him like I would any other guy. We were going to have to work through the conflict. If we didn’t, I sensed the alternative would be a lifetime of misery for us.

I needed him, both the physical release and the relief of tension. We could talk when I was satisfied.

My thoughts were interrupted when Allex slid a finger inside me. I gasped. All thoughts of resistance left my mind. He lifted up my shirt to get better access to my breasts, molding them and squeezing until I could hardly breathe. With one quick movement, he pulled my panties down, being careful to lift them over the bandages. I felt him push into me from behind. I tilted my pelvis to give him a better angle, and we both sighed as he slid home.

“I’ve missed you, Priya.” His voice made me shiver. I didn’t answer him. I just pushed against him, trying to communicate what I needed without using words.

He pulled out and pushed inside again, thrusting in a slow and steady rhythm while his hands played with my breasts and clit. The buildup was slow, but the orgasm was mind-blowing. I cried out as it shook me and he took the speed up a notch, plunging into me and pounding against my ass.

I writhed against Allex until I felt his muscles tense. He pressed his hips hard against me and groaned. I felt him fill me to the brim as my blissful contractions milked every drop of cum from him. When he pulled out, I missed him immediately. I lay there in a post-orgasmic daze, not wanting to move or think about the future.

“Priya.” Allex’s deep voice was rough, and my hips bucked again at the sexy sound. “We need to talk.”