Then she’d be his. Totally. Completely. No turning back.
She was already close, hovering on the edge of giving him everything he wanted. It wouldn’t have taken much to push her over. Her mind was open, receptive, and weak right now. It would take just a small brush of power over her thoughts and she would be on her way to total devotion.
His slave.
That thought stopped him cold. He didn’t want that for her. That was how the Synestryn worked. They forced their human servants—the Dorjan—to love them, worship them.
Paul pushed himself away from her, both her mind and body, before he did something irrevocable. Unforgivable.
Andra tried to pull him back against her, but she was weak and was no match for his will, even as threadbare as it was right now.
“Why did you stop?” she asked in a voice rich with arousal.
“We can’t,” he told her in a strained whisper. “I want to, but . . . this is just wrong. It’s not real.”
“That wasn’t real?” she asked. Her voice shook. “It sure felt real to me.”
Paul scooted a couple feet away, leaving Andra lying there, all sprawled out and breathless. He had to look away and focus on the empty fireplace in order to regain his self-control.
“Yes. It did.” Because he was such a fucking bastard. He was making it feel real for her.
Paul’s stomach clenched and he had to adjust his jeans in order to pull in a breath without emasculating himself. “I’m sorry.”
“For what?” she asked in a husky voice. “I was right there with you, ready, willing, and eager.”
The lingering effects of their kisses were still visible. Her skin had heated, and a pretty pink blush had spread up over her cheeks. Her lips were swollen and parted in invitation, and the languid sprawl of her long legs made Paul’s fists tighten painfully in order to keep himself from reaching for her.
“I know. Neither one of us was thinking straight. Logan and Nika are only a doorway away.”
“Nika,” she breathed as if she’d forgotten she even had a sister. “What the hell was I thinking?” She covered her face with her hands and let out a frustrated growl.
The urge to comfort her tugged at him, but he managed to keep his distance.
“I’m going to go clean up this blood before it is a problem.” He stood, or rather, had intended to. Instead, he kind of lurched upward, winced as his erection was pinched painfully against his fly, and limped toward the kitchen.
“Logan treated Nika’s blood like it was some kind of toxic waste. He had me wrap up the IV in a wet towel so the monsters couldn’t smell it, and leave everything under running water.”
“I probably should have been more careful with mine, but I wasn’t thinking straight.”
She’d followed him into the kitchen, but kept a safe distance. A smudge of blood was on her shirt as well. He nodded toward it. “You’re going to need to change. I’ll have to burn that shirt, along with anything Nika bled on.”
Andra saw the blood, looked at it in horror, and stripped the shirt off, leaving only her sports bra behind. It was modest enough, but not nearly as modest as it would have needed to be to keep Paul from wanting to charge her.
“Is there a clean one around here?” she asked.
“At least one of the bedroom closets will be full of clothes. Take whatever you want.”
She turned to do just that when a scream ripped through the little house. Nika’s scream.
Andra slammed the bedroom door open, unable to contain her fear for her sister. It was only twenty steps to the bedroom, but in that time, Andra’s mind went through all the horrible things Logan could have done to her. Or maybe it wasn’t Logan at all. Maybe the monsters had found them because of the blood.
When she got into the room, Nika was out of bed kicking and hitting Logan. He was standing in front of the open window, blocking the exit with his body. “She needs me!” screamed Nika. “I have to go find her.”
“I’m right here,” said Andra, rushing forward. “I’m fine.”
Nika’s eyes met Andra’s, but there was little of the sister Andra remembered left inside her right now. All that was left was the panicked desperation of fear. Andra had seen it enough times before to wish they had some kind of tranquilizer with them. That was the only thing that had ever worked at the hospital to calm her down so she wouldn’t hurt herself.
“Not you,” screamed Nika as if in pain. “Tori. They’re hurting her.” Nika clawed at Logan’s body, but he did not move or even try to stop her from assaulting him.
Logan grimaced and looked at Andra. “I don’t want to hurt her, and if I try to restrain her, I will. You need to calm her down.”
Nika screamed in outrage and pulled a framed picture from the wall. She slammed it into Logan’s face. He ducked aside, but not enough. The frame splintered, the glass shattered, and some of it hit him, opening a gash along his temple.
“Shit,” said Paul from behind her, and rushed into the bathroom.
Nika pulled a jagged shard of glass from the broken frame. It was about ten inches long and she held it like a weapon she was aching to use. Her arms were shaking with the effort of holding it up, and she swayed as if she were about to fall over.
Andra stepped forward slowly. “Nika, please put the glass down. You’re going to hurt yourself.”
Nika’s eyes were wild, but they pleaded with Andra to understand. “I have to go. Tori needs me.”