Jeannie Holmes: The Mammoth Book of Futuristic Romance

His gaze locked with hers. Heat rushed his face.

“You’re staring,” she said.

He dropped his gaze, trying to ignore the growing physical response of his body. “Sorry,” he murmured, balling the thin fabric of her toga in his hands. “I didn’t know you were, uh – didn’t know you were bathing – were here .”

Water sloshed.

He glanced at her in time to see her uncovered breasts as her wings folded around her like a cloak. “I should go,” he said in a rush, and spun away.

“Ronan?”

He paused, back stiff, and body on fire with the urge to join her in the shallows.

“You have my clothes.” Amusement made her musical voice sound all the more lyrical.

He whispered a curse and tightened his grip on the fabric. His head and body warred. He was a doctor.

He’d seen naked people. Seeing Dah’Te shouldn’t be any different from viewing a patient.

And yet he froze when he tried to face her.

A gentle touch on his back prickled his flesh and stuttered his breath.

Dah’Te traced the edge of his shoulder bandage as she moved to stand before him. “Your arm?”

He kept his eyes averted. “No pain.”

Her other hand slipped up his opposite arm to rest on the second bandage. “Your chest?”

An ache pulsed under her touch. He met her gaze. “Hurts.”

Worry knitted her brow. “The wound?”

He dropped the wad of fabric he held to cup her chin. “My heart,” he whispered, and captured her lips with his own.

She opened to him. He reveled in her softness. Feathers trailed over his bare back as her wings caught him in an Auilan embrace. His arms snaked around her waist and drew her to him.

But it wasn’t close enough.

Soon Ronan lay on his back with Dah’Te astride his hips as he moved inside her. Her soft moans spurred his rhythm. Sunlight silhouetted her wide-spread wings and lit her upturned face as her back bowed in ecstasy. Her climax shattered him and left him spent and trembling in her arms.

It took the better part of the morning for them to make their way back to the solar-rover. Dah’Te had argued that flying would be faster, but Ronan was adamant that his feet would remain on the ground. She didn’t understand his fear of high places, but she accepted it. Staying grounded for too long made her anxious as well.

She glanced at Ronan’s bare back as he bent over to check the rover’s instruments. He muttered and fiddled with controls. Her gaze shifted downward to his buttocks and legs. Her mind drifted to their lovemaking and the excitement she’d felt when she’d discovered the strength hidden beneath his tender mannerisms. He hadn’t left her wanting.

And yet, once they left the seclusion of their riverside camp, guilt had taken root in her mind. The closer she and Ronan had drawn to the place where she’d left her brother, the more that guilt had weighed on her, until she’d felt it would break her.

She forced herself to turn away and scan the skies for Talehon scouts. Two of the three who attacked them yesterday could’ve returned to their clan for reinforcements. She and Ronan would be outnumbered.

Ronan and Linse, if he were found, would be killed. A kindness compared to her fate. If captured, her wings would be clipped and she would be made an amusement for Talehon warriors.

Dah’Te shuddered, her wings bristling. She wanted to find Linse and return to Azein clan territory. She rested an uneasy hand on the hilt of her sword. It was their only defense. Ronan had lost his weapon to the river.

Again her mind wandered and she silently chastised herself. She shouldn’t have paired with Ronan.

Not while Linse was still missing. What if the Talehons discovered her brother? He was a youngling, only ten and four winters, and no match for a Talehon warrior. Linse was her responsibility, and she’d forsaken him.

The solar-rover whirred to life behind her. Their plan was for Dah’Te to search for Linse from above while Ronan followed with the rover. They would need it to transport Linse back to New Denver colony for proper treatment.

Ronan’s hand brushed her shoulder. “Are you ready?”

She met his gaze and nodded, unsure of her voice.

“The canopy here is too thick, so the rover doesn’t have a full charge. Fly low and slow and I’ll do my best to keep up.”

She nodded again.

He gently kissed her lips.

She backed away.

He let her go.

Dah’Te spread her wings and jumped into the air. Her wings beat against the breeze, lifting her higher until she broke through the treetops. A quick survey of the landscape showed no signs of Talehon scouts.

She dropped below the canopy and circled the area where she’d left Linse.

From above she could see the subtle signs of his passing. Disturbed brush. Dropped feathers. She followed the trail as it led away from the river and further up the mountainside. Occasionally she spiraled above the trees, checking for Talehons, but saw none.

Their absence should have allowed her to focus on the task of finding her brother. Instead, dread knotted her stomach. Urgency pushed her to fly faster, distancing herself from Ronan and the solar-rover.

She circled a dense thicket and her heart leapt as she spotted a flash of white near its border. Swooping low, she skimmed its edge and landed, sword at the ready. Peering into the shadows, she crept closer.

“Linse?”

The drone of the rover’s distant approach answered.

Dah’Te moved into the densely packed copse. Branches and vines tugged at her wings, making her wince and start. “Linse,” she called again.

Shadows flashed white to her left.

She spun, bringing her sword to bear.

“Dah’Te!”

She halted her strike and stared into a grime-streaked and frightened face. “Linse,” she breathed her brother’s name.

He lay on the ground half-concealed by fallen leaves, in an obvious attempt to camouflage his presence.

He shifted and grimaced as one wing shuddered, trailing useless at his side.

She dropped the sword as tears fell unbidden from her eyes. Kneeling, she pulled him into a tight embrace.

He buried his face in the hollow space between her neck and shoulder and sobbed. “I thought you’d forgotten about me.”

“Never,” she whispered. Her wings folded protectively around his trembling body.

“Talehons.” He hiccupped. “Tracked me.” He drew back. “Thought they would kill me.” New tears spilled from his large yellow eyes.

She cradled his young face. “I’m so very sorry, Linse.”

Beyond the thicket, the sound of the solar-rover intensified, slowed, and stopped. “Dah’Te!” Ronan called.

Linse jerked and his face paled. “Who is that?”

“Ronan,” she answered, and stooped to gather her sword.

“The human healer?”

“Yes.” She slipped her arm around his waist and slung his arm over her shoulder. Bearing most of his weight, she lifted and guided him through the thicket.

“Why did you go to the humans?”

She glanced at her brother. “Their colony is closer.”

“No, it isn’t.”

Heat blossomed in her cheeks.

They broke from the thicket, and Ronan rushed to meet them. Moving carefully, the trio navigated the uneven terrain and settled Linse into the rover’s cargo area. Dah’Te stayed close as Ronan examined the young Auilan. He was gentle in his handling of Linse. He asked brief questions and apologized if the young Auilan showed signs of pain or discomfort.

“The wing is definitely broken,” Ronan announced. “Here.” He indicated the long bone between the first joint and where the wing melded with Linse’s back.

“How badly?” Dah’Te asked.

“Hard to say without a scanner, but there aren’t any protruding bones. That’s good. But I can feel it shifting, so it’s more than a fracture.”