Isla

Big, strong arms hold me tight, cradling me close to a hard vibrating chest. A nose pushes through my hair.

Lungs breathe me in.

I am his air. I am all that he needs to go on.

The sentiment pulses through the bond.

Without me, there is no hope. No light. There is only oblivion.

I cling to the warmth enveloping me, needing to be closer.

My skin presses against soft, fleecy skin.

Something wet and rough drags across my cheek… my chin… my neck. I tip my head back.

“Isla,” Ryock whispers.

From his lips, my name is so much more than my name. It’s hope. It’s fear. It’s an unanswered prayer begging for attention.

“Ryock?” I gasp.

A deep, rumbling purr crashes into me, so strong it threatens to push me back into the darkness.

“My star,” he says, his voice thick with emotion, and the grip around me tightens.

Relief. So much relief pours into me it leaves me breathless.

“Thank god,” I hear Lexi choke out from somewhere close. Somewhere behind me.

Why is she sobbing?

“I told you,” Marketh says triumphantly. “She’s as good as new. Better than new, in fact.”

“So you did,” I hear Maul concede, and even in his voice there’s a hint of relief.

Why was everyone so worried?

Slowly, I peel my eyes open. Bright light hits me, too harsh, too sharp, but with stubborn determination I wait for the pain to pass.

Ryock’s face comes into focus. His eyes are blazing, two burning suns threatening to go supernova.

“What happened? What’s wrong?” I ask, though I feel like I should know.

Ryock’s expression twists until his features are tight and pinched as if he’s in pain. “You were shot.”

All at once it comes back to me. The pain. The burning agony. The charred hole in my chest.

I pull back from Ryock’s chest and at first he resists it before his grip reluctantly gives.

Looking down, I see that I’m wearing a white shirt I wasn’t wearing before.

Yanking the shirt up, my eyes scan over my chest, searching for the hole, but all I see is smooth, unblemished skin.

Reaching down, I touch the spot where I was shot. It’s firm, there’s no soreness, and the flesh is smooth.

“Wow,” I remark. “Alien medicine is pretty damn awesome.”

“It wasn’t alien medicine,” Marketh scoffs, his silver orb zipping over. “You healed all on your own.”

“What?” I blink at him, totally not understanding what he just said.

Ryock makes a sound and I start to turn my face towards him when something crashes into me.

“Isla!” Lexi cries out, her arms wrapping around me as she throws all of her weight into the embrace.

I grunt and almost fall back but manage to keep my balance at the last second.

“Don’t you ever do that to me again,” she sobs into my neck and hugs me hard. “I thought you were dead.”

“Trust me, I don’t plan on being shot again,” I tell her as I hug her back.

It must have been a really close call if she’s this upset.

I rub and pat her back as she cries, purging out the stress of what just happened. When her sobs start to die down but she still shows no sign of releasing me, I look around the room. The walls are white and I’m sitting on a bed surrounded by medical equipment.

“So... What happened? Where are we?”

“We’re in the Citadel,” Marketh answers. “In the medical ward.”

I nod my head, accepting that, and glance towards Ryock. He’s still staring at me hard, his eyes blazing with emotion. Through the bond I can feel he’s barely keeping himself in check.

“And I somehow healed myself? How did that happen?”

There’s this long pregnant pause before Marketh gives a drawn out sigh. “Really? No one else? Not even you, big guy?”

When everyone remains quiet, Marketh sighs again. “I suppose I’ll explain it.”

He floats closer to me. “You see, Isla, when a male and a female are attracted to each other, they—”

“Marketh,” Maul growls, cutting him off.

Marketh shimmers and buzzes with indignation. “She did ask, Maul.”

Lexi giggles and pulls away, rubbing at her eyes.

“Just get to the point,” Maul says and adjusts Thorn’s weight on his hip.

“Very well,” Marketh says. “Long story short, Isla, when the big brute over there knocked you up, he also gave you an extra bit of genetic material. His genetic material has merged with your genetic material and now you share his ability to heal.”

“For real?” I gasp.

“For real,” Marketh confirms.

I shake my head and reach down, placing a hand on my belly. What Marketh said is so amazing it’s almost terrifying.

“And our baby? Our baby is alright?”

“All is well,” Marketh says, and I get to experience that same strong sense of relief everyone else is experiencing.

Thank god. I don’t know what I would do if I lost our little one.

Big hands suddenly wrap around my hips and yank me close. Ryock settles me on his lap and wraps his arms possessively around me like he doesn’t want to let me go.

He buries his face into the crook of my neck and breathes me in.

“And… I think that’s our cue to leave,” Marketh snickers. “Let’s give the two love birds some privacy.”

Marketh zips away, heading for the door. I relax against Ryock, enjoying the vibrations of his purr against my back. I get the sense again that he’s on edge and could quite possibly snap at any moment.

“Come, my heart. You need rest before you collapse,” Maul says, approaching the bed.

Lexi nods her head and let’s Maul pull her into his side. His left arm wraps around her middle while he holds Thorn in his right.

“I love you,” she says, looking at me and wiping the last of her tears from her eyes.

My heart aches in a good way to see the three of them together. I know I promised her I’d never get shot again, but I’d take that bolt again in a heartbeat if it meant saving them… if I’m not pregnant, of course.

I smile at her. “I love you too. Now get some sleep, you look like shit.”

She laughs at me and shakes her head.

Maul looks to me. His eyes are full of tenderness and affection, but there’s also this glint that tells me he knows exactly what I did. “Given the circumstances, the Supreme Leader has graciously postponed our audience. There are trusted guards posted outside, but we’ll be in the next room over if you need us.”

With that, Maul gives us one last nod and then the four of them make their way to the exit.

The door swishes open then shut. Everything falls quiet.

There’s only the two of us. Sharing the same air. The same bond. The same heartbeat.

“Isla,” Ryock groans as if he’s in pain and the dam between us bursts open.

Love. Fear. Anger. Pain. Relief.

It all slams into me, leaving me stunned as I struggle not to drown under the weight of his emotions.

He spins me around in his arms, bringing us face to face.

Breasts smash against pecs. Hips meet hips.

“I thought I lost you. I tasted oblivion.”

There’s so much pain there, so much pain I hate it.

Looking into his eyes, I watch them darken and for a moment I experience a fleeting flash of what he experienced.

A yawning expanse of emptiness and despair that’s never-ending.

Then the spark between us blazes to life, driving away all the darkness.

Our baby.

I cling to Ryock, trembling. Crying. Sobbing.

“I’m sorry,” I’m mumble as the full weight of what happened hits me. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry,” I keep repeating.

He thought I was dead and I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive myself for doing that to him. It wasn’t intentional, but it hurt him regardless.

A low, throaty growl is all the warning I get before his lips smash into mine. His kiss is rough, hungry, desperate, and full of need.

The need to reconnect. The need to bind our souls again.

His mouth slants over mine and I throw myself into the kiss. Giving him everything I have to give.

My love, my body, and my heart.

My soul.

My forever.

What words can’t say, I push through the bond and feel it growing and deepening between us.

Healing him.

I repeat back to him what he said when I woke up.

He is everything I want and need. Without him, there is no hope. No light. There is only oblivion.

Isla, my name resonates through the bond, and I marvel at it.

My star. My everything. My forever.

Ryock, I push back through the bond. I love you.

We grab at each other’s clothes, tearing away the last barriers between us.

Seams snap. Fabric rips open. Breath mixes with breath.

I pull him into myself, promising to never let go. To always cherish him. To cherish this.

Big hands lift me up and then pull me back down until I’m full, so blissfully full of him.

“I love you,” I cry out.

Screaming it to the world, the universe, the stars.

I love you, I push through the bond, speaking it directly to his soul.

I love you, he pushes back and I experience true bliss, true happiness.

He drives his hips up, over and over.

Flesh driving into flesh. Pleasure creating pleasure.

And together, with our minds, bodies, and souls joined together, we heal.

We become one again.