Tempting Tempest Page 9

  Chapter Eleven

  HOW HAD SHE GOTTEN herself into this situation? She should have known she loved Shawn. The signs were all there. But she’d talked herself into believing it was lust. And it was his fault. She might not have fallen so hard if he hadn’t insisted on sharing the phrase during their sex.

  She wasn’t sure where this left them but she was sure of one thing. She couldn’t let him know. He was her trainer and only someone as pathetic as her fell head over heels for their trainer. Hell, she’d gotten a little crush on Jason back before he took up with Lily. Maybe it was a thing with her. Falling for those in a position of authority.

  After she’d left his place early this morning, she’d gone home to change her own clothes, promises to meet him within twenty minutes to head to work. They agreed to meet outside the main hub. It was back to business as usual now that the sex was out of the way.

  She headed out the front doors of the main hub and down the steps. Shawn approached, scanning the front as if he waited for her.

  “Are you ready? We’re heading to talk with Leah. No Trance involved this time. I’ve sent him out to work the front gate.”

  “You wished to get him out of the way?”

  “You got it. Now that she feels more comfortable with you, she may share more with us.”

  It was the “us” that got her. Maybe Shawn meant that the two of them were a team—partners—but it still gave her a giddy feeling inside. Her smile at him was bright.

  He paused, looking into her eyes as if searching for something, and then leaned down to touch his lips to hers.

  “What was that for?” she asked, looking around. This was work time. Work time was separate from their bedroom training time.

  “Because sometimes I just can’t resist,” he said, and then hooked his arm around her neck. “Come on.”

  When they reached Trance’s quarters, Shawn scanned his hand on the visitors pass. They waited while the computer notified Leah of who waited at the door, and then it was opened.

  “Trance isn’t here,” she said, standing in the opening.

  “I know,” Shawn said. “We’re here to talk to you.”

  Warily, she opened the door fully, allowing them access.

  Shawn escorted her to the sofa where the three of them sat.

  “Can I get you anything?” Leah asked. “Tea? Lemonade?”

  “No, we’re good,” Shawn said. “But we’d like to talk to you some more about your husband.”

  Leah took a deep breath. “I just have to hide out for ten more days. The divorce will be final then. I think he’s trying to kill me.”

  “What?”

  “I think he may have taken out a life insurance policy on me. As his wife and his primary source of income, he was able to. But any policy would be null when the divorce hits, so I just need time. He has a gambling problem and when the money source dried up—which was my earnings—he came up with another solution for a payout.”

  “How do you know?”

  “He was my manager before I married him. I was making a pretty decent living on Iota Nine as a chef. He focused our business on live streaming. We were able to jump around on the nine floating cities. It gave him anonymity.” She took a deep breath. “I’m not even sure when the beatings started. It was mild, at first. A shove. Then a slap. I was embarrassed and in denial. Hid it from everyone and tried to keep emotions on an even keel, but they happened more and more frequently and got worse as his temper increased from the stress of my popularity going downhill. Pretty soon he was handling all the bills, all the publicity, all the finances. I was a figurehead. We slowly got booted from one city to another as we racked up debts until my latest job—cooking for Xenia. I’m ashamed to admit it took me that long to realize things were never going to get better and that I needed out.”

  “When you say you were a figurehead, do you mean you had no access to your job? Your credits?”

  “Nothing. As my manager, he locked me from my bank account. I didn’t have the choice as to which jobs to accept. He told me my debts were racking up because my popularity was going downhill and I needed to make changes. So different clothing, longer hair. Sometimes my cleavage was exposed. I was appalled at the direction my persona was taking but when the position opened on Xenia, I was excited. Here I could be a normal person. No one expected me to be the sexy chef he’d presented to the world.”

  “But he still took your Xenia credits? Do you even know how much you make?”

  “Not at first. After the latest”—she winced—“recovery, I decided to lie. Tell him I lost clients because I was new and wasn’t at work for a couple weeks. I had to rebuild from scratch. Then when I returned, I asked Robyn to separate two thirds my income and my tips and hold them for me. I figured one day I’d have enough to escape. But he was furious at the cut in pay and the first stub that she gave me? I was floored. Floored that I’d cut my pay in thirds…and it was still more money than most people make full time. For the first time, I had some hope. I could save enough to hide out. But if I left Earth-Ground, I lost my job and income. And I love working here. But that amount of income made me wonder how much I had been worth. And it made me realize the danger I was in. He would never let me go. And yet he was killing me. Each beating grew more and more violent and being on Earth-Ground, he no longer seemed to care about avoiding hospital records. I started researching how to apply to be a citizen of the city, but it took time and I didn’t have time. So I mentioned that I wanted to show my support for the homeless ranks. Robyn allowed me a trial cabin, but somehow he knew. It could be because I had nowhere else to go, but I figured he’d find out the homeless boundaries were closed.”

  “It was publicized,” Shawn said. “One of our city employees was testing the new structures that would replace the tents.”

  “Of course.” She groaned. “Robyn said it was a trial. I should have known, but since I wasn’t asked to interview, I didn’t think it had come out yet.”

  “I sent Robyn a quick message,” Shawn said. “She’s researching for any life insurance policies on you.”

  “We must flush the human out,” Tempest said.

  “No.” Leah panicked. “No. I can’t do it. I can’t go outside and wait for him to spring.” She jumped up from the sofa, pacing.

  “I would not ask my weak human friend to do that,” Tempest said, somewhat gently she thought. “I would go in your place.” She turned to Shawn. “Since it’s now out that she was the one who was trying the new cabin, I will simply wear one of her white smocks. Keep my hands in my pockets to hide my skin color as I head into her cabin for the night. It may take a few nights, but there I will wait for him.”

  “I can’t put you in danger, Tempest,” Leah said.

  Tempest laughed. “Thank you for your concern, my friend. I have more strength than a human male.”

  Shawn tutted. “Ahh, but, my pretty, you will not be allowed to use it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You’ll be on the outside. There are drones out there and satellite cameras. Everything is recorded and we can’t have a Xeno Sapien on the outside harming a human. It’s against the laws we’ve set up with the President. So talk about the ultimate test of your strength. You’ll be forced to control yourself. I’m rather excited to witness this.”

  Poor Leah looked confused so Tempest turned to her to explain. “Shawn has been teaching me control. When I lose control, I break my own bones and use them to stab people. He has been teaching me to fight without using myself as a weapon.”

  Shawn smirked. “This time, my pretty little Xeno Sapien has to depend on her weak human trainer to defend her.”

  “It is agreed, then? I shall dress and act as Leah?”

  “Yup. You’ll need to spend some time mimicking her mannerisms. You want me to send the rest of your girlfriends over?” He smiled as he said this.

  “How do you know about my girlfriends?” Tempest narrowed her eyes on Shawn.

  He shru
gged. “You have girlfriends, I have guy friends. People turn to others of their same sex for advice.”

  The computer interrupted with a message. “Incoming notification from Dr. Robyn Saraven.”

  “Pull up,” Shawn instructed.

  A document highlighted in blue laser showed up against the white wall. “Active life insurance policy shows a payout for one million credits per month for the rest of the benefactor’s life. Manner of death overrided.”

  “What does that mean?” Leah asked.

  Shawn was grim when he answered. “This is one of the most expensive policies out there. He has to pay a huge monthly fee for this…which makes sense considering you had no idea how much income you were bringing in. But basically, anything that overrides a normal policy is allowed. You can commit suicide. You can die under suspicious causes. And he still gets a payout for the rest of his life in monthly increments.”

  “So that is why he is so desperate as to kill her.”

  “With that kind of money, he can buy the best attorneys to defend him. Counter for a plea bargain. Maybe serve ten years max for her death…and still have money rolling in monthly.”

  “How is such a policy even legal?” Leah asked.

  “We never hear of them because they’re nearly impossible to afford. But I’d say you were worth a lot more money than you ever realized. He paid through the nose for this. It explains why you went broke. He was guaranteeing his future on you.”

  “And now he’s possibly in default of the policy?”

  Shawn nodded. “That means he’s desperate to knock you off before the expiration date of the policy.”

  Leah squinted as she peered at the hologram document. Then she laughed, though it hardly sounded humorous. “How ironic. It expires on my divorce date.”

  Tempest reached over and patted her on the shoulder, careful to be gentle because Leah was a weak human, after all. “As soon as the girls get here to help me study your mannerisms, we shall also plan a bachelorette party.”

  “Um, I think those are normally for women who are about to get married,” Shawn told her.

  “Yes, I know. But we don’t know if Leah will ever be stupid enough to get married again, so she will have to have hers upon her divorce.”

  Shawn’s smile was broad, showing the gleam of his white teeth against his tanned skin. “In that case, my pretty, kiss me goodbye. I sent a message to your friends to head over here. I’ll go hang out with some of the team at the front gate while we plan out the next steps.”

  Tempest stood, wrapping her arms around Shawn. “Thank you for this opportunity to kill a human male with my kindness.”

  He winced. “Yeah, don’t let me down, my pretty. No one else should share your bone shards but me.”

  She snorted before kissing him soundly. She wanted him to remember this kiss the entire time he was with the other males. She already knew who was at the front gate, having heard snippets of telepathic communication in her head. There was Trance, Beast, Steele, Pax, Renegade. Jason was present along with Sam, their human resident who was once a cop on the outside.

  She only stopped kissing her man when Leah cleared her throat rudely.

  Shawn looked bemused as he squeezed her gently and then set her slightly away from him. A knock sounded at the front door.

  “If you weren’t sleeping in the cabin tonight,” Shawn muttered as he went to open the door for her giggling girlfriends.

  Ahh, yes. Things were not quite even in the orgasm department. She was rather glad for that.

  Chapter Twelve

  “LEAVING SO SOON, Shawn?” Sunny giggled. Actually giggled.

  “Yes, he is,” Tempest snapped, grabbing her by the hand and yanking her into Trance’s apartment. She was able to be a bit rougher with Sunny because she was a Xeno Sapien and could take it. “He is a busy man.”

  “How are you, Shawn?” Lily asked. For some reason, her eyes twinkled.

  “Peachy-keen, Jelly Bean.” He tweaked Lily’s nose.

  “She is an adult,” Tempest snarled, grabbing her arm also and leading her to the sofa. “Did you bring food? I wanted to impress Leah.”

  “Uh, no, but I can whip something up. You do know that most of the things I make Leah has taught me, right?”

  “Oh, right.” Damn, there went the idea to impress her new friend.

  She watched Shawn greet Robyn and Amanda, waiting impatiently as he flirted with them. “Aren’t you gone yet?” She finally snapped at him. “My friends can see how attractive you are now that I am interested in you.”

  “They only think so now?” One of his eyebrows rose. “Good thing they’re all mated.”

  “Except for Leah,” she hissed, pushing him out the door as she looked over her shoulder. “Don’t tempt her.” She thought she heard some giggling behind her, but she was sure it was Lily being obnoxious.

  “Kiss me,” he demanded in the doorway.

  She kissed him hard, slipping him lots of tongue. She wanted to remind him of what he and she shared, but the plan backfired because her own lust grew out of control. When she pulled away, it was to whisper, “I can’t wait until we are alone tonight.”

  “Maybe not tonight,” he reminded her, whispering softly. “But maybe it’s time to take us to the next level, my pretty. Combine apartments?”

  “You wish to live with me?” Her heart about burst. This wasn’t just about balancing the orgasms they gave each other?

  “I wish to spend all my time with you,” he said. “I already know I can’t get enough of you.”

  “I will think about which apartment I prefer,” she said. Hers was larger, but his had a better view.

  His smile was sexy as hell when he pressed one last kiss to her lips and whispered the naughty, sex-related words. “I love you.” He turned and walked away.

  Huh. That wasn’t supposed to happen in the light of day. Those were sexual fantasies.

  Damn him for making her horny.

  She closed the door and turned to find five women staring at her.

  “So you and Shawn seem comfy,” Sunny snickered.

  “He confuses me,” Tempest admitted.

  Everyone stayed quiet. Leah, she could understand. She didn’t quite fit in with her other girlfriends yet.

  Robyn sighed. “I’ll bite. Why are you confused?”

  “We have dirty talk in the bedroom,” Tempest blurted, glad that someone cared enough to ask. “We say I love you to each other right before we orgasm. Shawn insists. However, he just said it to me now. In the hallway.”

  “Oh, honey,” Amanda said, shaking her head. “That’s not dirty talk. He’s telling you how he feels.”

  “That can’t be right,” Tempest said, even though her heart soared. “He is my trainer. He teaches me control. He—”

  “He loves you,” Lily said quietly. “Everyone knows it. We’ve all known it. I knew it back when I was snapping back and forth between my teenage personality and my adult one.”

  Sunny was shaking her head in the affirmative also.

  “How do you feel about him?” Robyn asked her.

  “I love him. But I didn’t want him to know how much. In case he is injured.”

  “But you know it’s pointless to avoid love your entire life because you’re afraid to be injured? Take Leah, for example. She may be wary to jump into a relationship with what she’s endured. But eventually? She’ll understand that another man is completely different from her ex-husband. We’re all here to help you understand that not loving us”—Robyn swept her arm around the room—“doesn’t mean we’ll stay uninjured. It just means you’re missing out on loving us.”

  “And you sure as hell don’t want that,” Lily said, throwing her skinny arms around Tempest and squeezing her tight. “I’d love you from afar. I’d stalk you.” She looked over her shoulder at Leah. “Sorry, Leah. No offense.”

  “That’s okay?” Leah said, phrasing it like a question. “I think.”

  “You are a bunch of drama llam
as,” Tempest announced, though she clasped Lily’s small hand and laced her fingers with hers. “Let’s get busy turning me into Leah. I suppose someone shall have to put my hair up the way she used to wear hers?”

  Leah smiled. “Yeah, Brock wouldn’t know I cut it. At least, the woman he thought was me had my old hair style.”

  “He wouldn’t have thought anything of it being down since it was night. But if it is him watching the camp, we’ll want him to see me arrive with the up-do hairstyle as I let myself into the cabin. Then he’ll probably wait until it’s dark and quiet before making a move,” Tempest said. “I just wish I was able to kick his ass and give him the surprise of his life.”

  “Sorry you have to play a helpless woman,” Robyn said. “But we can’t protect a Xeno Sapien outside of our walls. Our patrol team, on the other hand, has authority. Let them do the work and you keep yourself safe.”

  “But I am on the patrol team.”

  “Not tonight, you aren’t. Tonight, you are Leah. Tonight, you are a human. Otherwise it’s called entrapment.”

  Tempest noticed how Leah shrank into herself as they discussed the plan.

  “I’m sure it is scary,” she said, leaving Lily’s side and sitting next to Leah. She wrapped an arm around her. “But you will stop being scared when we kill your husband horribly.”

  Leah gasped.

  “Temp!” Sunny snickered, chagrined and appalled at the same time.

  Tempest grinned wickedly and to her amazement, Leah started laughing.

  “Okay, there you are,” Amanda said. “See how Leah laughs softly? Her shoulders shake slightly? She covers her mouth with her hand? Mimic it, Tempest.”

  Tempest studied Leah. Shoulders slightly turned inward as if she protected her chest area—her heart. Head down, eyes averted as if she didn’t want to call attention to herself. That…that was what her husband wanted to see. That was what Tempest would give him.

  “Good,” Amanda said. “That’s really good.”

  “Perfect,” Lily breathed.

  “Let’s have Leah walk across the room and you follow. Leah, act as natural as you can. Close your eyes and pretend you’re walking through the camps. Do what you would normally do.”