Rebel Souls (3 page)

He shadowed her for a long stretch, up a rocky slope with steps cut into its side, through a vegetative patch with a paved path, winding through the thick foliage, and toward an outdoor market, sitting at the top of a cliff, but he didn’t mind. The fresh air and exercise would do him good after spending so much time in space. As long as he hung back a little bit, she wouldn’t know someone tracked her.

There were enough people coming and going from the beach by this route. It shouldn’t raise her suspicions. The violent tides on this planet kept the buildings away from the beach and when the tides were low and moons were on the other side of the planet, people flocked to the beach to enjoy it while they could.

His target turned toward an outdoor market. She stopped to browse through several necklaces hanging on a display. She glanced up, and Seth ducked behind a seafood vendor. Ava looked around and then moved on to another vendor.

Seth released the breath he’d held. She could have easily spotted him. Not the time to get careless. The woman spent her life running and wouldn’t let her guard down. He’d do well to remember that.

She started off again, toward a clothing merchant. Her hips sashayed in a primitive motion too hypnotic to avoid. His mouth watered. Ten months in space and his body acted like that of a horny teenager about to get laid for the first time. He growled and ripped his attention away from her ass. He was a damned Regulator, and the last thing he should be thinking about was getting into Ava Frost’s itty-bitty swimsuit.

But, still a man
. His attention inadvertently drifted back to her rear, and the way it swayed back and forth, back and forth. Brakes barely applied in time, Seth almost ran right into her as she came to a full stop in front of him, turned around, and flipped the radiashield up.

“What’s a nice Regulator like you doing in a place like this, following me?”

Seth’s heart stopped. No words in the galaxy could describe her. Even more beautiful in person. “Ava Frost?”

She shook her head. “You’ve been reading too many holo-comics. Ava Frost is a legend.”

More like a fantasy
. “Indeed.” He took a couple of steps closer and stared into her eyes, looking for any indication she lied. “You called me muffin. A sweet cake thing. You said you were taking goodies to your grandmother.”

“I what?” She didn’t look up and to the left, what would have been a sure indicator she’d lied.

The woman was either really good or not who he thought. He didn’t break the stare down, knowing if she was going to give herself away, she’d do it when he pressured her. “You’re her.”

“You’ve been under the star too long. Too much heat after you’ve been in space….” She looked him up and down. “From your day-glow skin, I’d say you’ve been out there in the dark at least nine-eighths a year. Aside from the lack of pigment, I think. I can understand why someone would call you muffin.”
Still no hint she lied
. Calm voice. Blank expression and she’d held his gaze like a pro.

“Why’s that?” What game did she think to play?

“I’d love to take a bite out of you, too.”

“I’m not a muffin, Captain Frost. And I’m not here for you to take a bite out of,” he said, but his cock had a different idea on the matter, nearly exploding through his fly at her suggestion. “You also don’t look like a Terran relief worker.”

“Do I really look like I’ve taken a vow of chastity and committed myself to serving humanity on other worlds in exchange for absolution?”

“Do you really think I’m stupid, Captain Frost?”

“No, but you’re not very good at being inconspicuous.” She crossed her arms over her breasts and raised a brow. “You’re not going to find anything, Legatus Seth Reynolds of the Special Tasks League Regulators. I’m legit. My ship is being repainted.”

“How do you know who I am?”

She shook her head and turned to leave.

Seth stepped up next to her, grabbed her arm, and pulled her back around. “I asked you a question.”

The corner of her mouth curled. She reached out to his collarbone and dragged her finger down his chest. “I’ll start with the name embroidered on the Regulator issued pack you’re carrying. Then there’s a League flagship docked in the port. And all the questions…. Do you ever take a break, muffin?”

“Don’t call me that.” He didn’t release her arm. “You and I know I can arrest you for that little stunt you pulled.”

“Stunt? Please…I accidently hit the reverse thrusters. I haven’t been flying long. No one in their right mind would go through a wormhole backward, and I’m inclined to believe the New Xieran authorities would side with me on that. Besides, I’d be long gone if my intent was to run. You have nothing. A few fines—so why don’t you write me a ticket and go build a sand castle or something?”

“You were carrying something illegal.” It wasn’t a question, and he made it more than clear that he knew.

“Prove it.” She glanced down at his hand and yanked free. “Don’t touch the goodies. You didn’t say please.”

“I have a warrant.”

“You don’t have a warrant, because I haven’t committed a crime. You’re harassing an innocent Nexian citizen, whose been granted asylum on New Xiera from political prosecution, and I’m within my rights to report you to the local authorities and your superiors.”

Seth frowned. She knew the laws better than he did and used them to plow over him like a loaded freighter. Not good. He needed to get control of the situation and quick. “Then you won’t mind if I escort you back to your ship for a routine security inspection of your manifest?” Since he was League, his jurisdiction was limited to space; but he had the right to inspect all vessels in port for illegal substances, if they’d been traveling in League space. The look he gave her dared her to challenge that authority.

Her eyes widened for a brief second, long enough to tell him he was on to something.

Gotcha
.

“I told you my ship is being repainted. If you can wait for them to put it back together, I’d be happy to take you onboard for a tour.”

“I’d like to see it now.”

“The facility is closed and won’t be open for three days. It’s a holiday weekend in New Xiera Port. It’s party time.”

“Every weekend in New Xiera is a holiday weekend and party time.”

“They’re closed.”

“I can wait.”

She snorted. “Are you going to follow me all over the port until then?”

“That’s what it looks like.”

She shoved her beach bag into his hands. “Then be a sweetie and carry that for me.” She walked off, browsing the marketplace again.

Seth growled and followed.

Never had one woman tested his patience so.

***

Never had one man stretched her patience the way this Regulator did. If he wanted to follow her, she’d make him as miserable as possible.

Ava draped the strap of a bag over his neck, adding to the mountain of purchased merchandise he already carried. How he kept up with her was a feat in itself.

“You always shop this much?”

“I love shopping.” A lie. She rolled her shoulders as if she’d been the one carrying all the stuff and spotted a display of hand-painted scarves. “Oh, look.” She cut a direct path to the vender and was rewarded with an annoyed snort and muffled bitching from behind.

She’d never wear anything so frilly. She dressed in boots, pants, and thermal shirts most days, but something about piling all the feminine fluff on top of the grumpy Regulator gave her a rush. Double bonus—it aggravated the hell out of him. She heard it in his huffs when she added more.

The man wore more beaded necklaces than a Genitha warlord after pillaging a New Xieran madam’s treasure room, and he hadn’t said one word about it as she dropped them on. It wasn’t until she paid for a hefty pile of risqué undergarments, burying Seth to his nose in lingerie that he got ugly.

He narrowed his extraordinary eyes, a soft olive color with an outer ring of brown. They reminded her of a shift in the seasons, but with him, they seemed to warn of a change in temperament. “Are we about done here, or is there any vender you haven’t bought out?”

Ava lifted her braid and studied the ends. “I need to go over there.” She pointed to a beauty shop and another place she rarely frequented. No time in space for primping. “You don’t mind waiting while they give me a facial and haircut?”

“Enough,” he barked.

Ava smiled. The Regulator’s tolerance threshold had been breached. She mentally patted herself on the back. Maybe next time he’d think twice about following her. “I’ll only be a few minutes.”
Or hours
.

“Let’s go. It’s getting late.”

“Where would you like to go?”

“Wherever I can dump this stuff.”

Ava sighed. “I guess we can take it to my room. It’s on the other side of the port. You don’t happen to have a transporter?”

“No. Do I look like I carry a shuttle around with me? And I’m not waiting for one here. You can put your purchases in my room, and we’ll wait for a ride there. It’s half a block away.”

She bit her lip. She’d purchased an outfit and could probably change there. If she was going to ditch him, he’d be most comfortable on his own turf and easier to surprise anyway. Besides, they were still chopping her ship, and she couldn’t take him back to the docks. “Okay. I need to change anyway. I’m going dancing.”

“Dancing?”

The gravity on the planet was stronger than the Regulator’s home world, or the artificial gravity on his ship, and it appeared to be wearing on him. Ava raised a brow. “You’re not tired, are you?”

“No,” he growled through the mountain of frillies. “Follow me.” He turned on his heel and headed down the street. Ava watched his ass as he stomped down the street, carrying the armload of crap. His backside was quite exceptional, and following him wasn’t so bad. Besides, turnabout was fair play. He’d been staring at her ass all day, so much she wouldn’t be surprised to find scorch marks on her posterior.

After they tromped down the street for a minute or two, he came to a stop in front of a ground-floor rental room, a good choice for anyone staying in New Xiera Port longer than a week. She’d file that information away. Legatus Reynolds planned to stay in town for a while and not on the average weekend port call. What was he up to?

“Well? Are you going to open the door?” she asked.

“I can’t get the chip.”

“Where is it?”

He didn’t say anything, but gave her another dirty look.

“Well, are you going to tell me where it is?”

“My front pocket.”

Ava smiled. She stuffed her hand into his pocket, brushing a very erect cock while she dug for the chip and wiggled her fingers. “Can you shift your hip? I can’t seem to get past….”

“Enough!” His nostrils flared and he dropped her packages, yanking her hand out of his pocket.

She held the chip in her fingers and made a point of holding it up in front of him. “Got it,” she said in an overly chirpy voice Ava knew would irritate him. She gave him a vibrant smile and inserted the chip in the lock-pad. The door slid open and Ava strolled in, leaving him standing outside with the pile of packages at his feet.

He glanced down, snorted, scooped the packages up and stormed in after, dropping her crap inside the door. “I don’t know what you’re hoping to accomplish, but I’ve had enough.”

“So you’ve said.” Ava touched one of his uniforms, freshly pressed and hanging on a bar near the bed. All black, the kind the bad boys of the League wore, something that made women wet with a single glance, she included. “I love a man in uniform.” Military even when he wasn’t on duty.
Oh, he’d be fun to break
. She traced her finger around the Special Tasks tab. “You’re the one determined to stalk me.”

“I’m merely keeping you in my custody until I can examine your ship. It’s my job.”

“You’re off duty and out of your jurisdiction, so I’d say you’re stalking.” She lifted her chin and found he’d closed the space between them, leaving a scant inch between their bodies, enough for her to feel the warmth of his flesh through his shirt. His eyes glittered in the room’s dim light. Ava’s breath caught in her throat. Perhaps she’d pushed him too far.

“You don’t want me to stalk you, Frost.”

Chapter Three

The way she’d fingered his uniform ignited every cell in his body. She touched it as if she stroked skin, and somehow he’d gotten harder. He held her gaze as he reached around her and snagged his com off a shelf. “I’m never off duty,” he said.

She raised a brow. “Pity. I’d like to know you when you aren’t all business.”

He dropped his gaze to her mouth. Her lips were luscious, her teeth perfectly kept. This woman wasn’t meant to be a smuggler. She was born to warm a man’s bed and heart.

“Is there something you want, Legatus Reynolds?”

Yeah, and she was a micro-moment from finding out
. “No.” He grabbed her hand and pressed his com into it. “Contact a shuttle. I’ll escort you to your room. It’s not safe for a woman to travel New Xiera Port at night on this side of the city.”

“The Blue District?” She gave a soft laugh. “I’m half Nexian. If you didn’t notice, it’s a Nexian neighborhood. Now you, on the other hand….” She tossed his com on the bed and slid a hand up his chest. “A big strapping Regulator like yourself might get some second looks, especially dressed like that. Who goes to the beach dressed to work?”

He pushed her hand away. “I’ll escort you.”

The corner of her mouth curled and an impish dimple appeared. “What’s wrong with hanging out here?”

Seth frowned. “This is my room.”

“I see that,” she said, though she hadn’t taken her gaze off him.

“I don’t understand.”
She couldn’t be insinuating
….

She rose up on her toes and slid her hands into his hair, pulling his face down to hers. “Then let me explain it.” As her mouth made contact with his, jolts of energy shot through his body. Seth didn’t resist. Should’ve. The woman was bad news. If he had any common sense left, he’d throw her against the wall and cuff her, not kiss her. But he couldn’t. He’d fallen victim to Frost’s charms, and he could do nothing but give in and let it happen.