Joy had a hard time opening her eyes. Her tongue seemed swollen and it was tough to wake. She tried to roll but a big hand pressed against her chest to hold her in place. She was able to finally shove away the haze and peer up at a dim light above her. A fuzzy shape blocked it suddenly. She blinked and stared into dark, beautiful eyes.
She’d survived being shot by Douglas. The professional side of her wondered what had happened to him but she wasn’t naïve enough to question Moon about his fate. It had been a miracle she’d talked a Species out of killing someone who’d attacked with deadly intent. It only showed how much New Species had acclimated since their release. They’d learned to quash their tempers while using reason instead of acting on pure impulse.
“Joy,” Moon rasped. “You will be fine. They said the bullet passed through your arm but you lost a lot of blood. It missed the bone.” His voice turned gruff.
Moon didn’t bother to take a seat since there wasn’t any sitting room left. Two of the council members weren’t there. They had stayed at Reservation, but Jaded and Bestial were currently in residence at Homeland. He wished it were Brawn and Cedar instead. They were more easygoing.He glanced around the room, seeing that Slade, Fury, Justice, Darkness, and Jericho were among those present. Breeze’s absence was noted and grieved. She’d have at least brought a sense of humor into the grim situation. He took a position in the center of the office instead of leaning against a wall. Harley hovered close, as if he were protecting his back.Justice waited until the door closed before he spoke from the seat behind his desk, addressing Slade instead of him. “Trisha is treating the shrink?”“Yes. She spoke to the hospital and they’ve emailed all records to Medical. Joy will fully recover. The human male wasn’t a s
Joy watched Moon closely, still reeling from hearing him say she was his mate. He sat on the edge of her bed as he took her hand. They had a lot of issues to resolve. Relationships were complicated but he loved her. They had a foundation to build upon.“You shouldn’t have gotten out of bed.”“I’m glad I did.” She wasn’t sure where to start so she went with the thing that worried her most. “Can you ever forgive me for leaving you at site four? It’s the biggest regret of my life.”“Joy—”“Please let me finish.”He nodded.“I really didn’t see a way of staying. I thought it would cause you more harm than good if we slept together. You don’t know how many times I lay awake at night wishing I had the nerve to visit you at Homeland after it opened. I was too afraid you’d either refuse to see me or worse, wonder why I even bothered to c
PrologueThe pastDay 159 after the first New Species were freedJoy tried to relax in the chair but worry over her client made her fidget. She glanced at the clock, noting he was late again. Minutes ticked by while her anger grew. It was the fourth session in a row that 466 had blown off. He did it on purpose. She knew he was going to be irate over what she’d done in retaliation but he’d left her with no choice.The loud sound of a menacing growl startled her. Her gaze flew to the door a second before it was thrown open. 466 hovered in the hallway, his rich brown hair messed up as if he’d dried it upside down with a blow dryer to give it that fullness. Rage showed in his narrowed, dark gaze. She guessed he’d been the source of the noise.He was pushed forward as one of the guards entered the office behind her client. “Here he is. He wasn’t happy but we got him.” The man shot a dirty look at
Chapter OneThe presentNSO Homeland“What is going on?” Joy glanced at the New Species leading her through the building and continued, “I received a call that there was some kind of emergency with someone I counseled in the past. They said it was urgent that I come.”A snarl came from farther down the hallway and made her jump. Her escort bolted away, abandoning her to rush into a room. She hurried forward despite that terrifying sound. She paused at the entrance to the room to stare in absolute horror at the scene playing out.“Hold him down!” The New Species male who had escorted her yelled the order and two more Species males threw their massive bodies over the guy restrained on the hospital bed. An earsplitting howl fractured the room and an arm snapped free from the restraints. The Species clawed at the body over his chest, fisted the material of the other man’s shirt, and tried to tos
Dr. Treadmont was an asshole who wouldn’t listen to reason. Joy struggled to hold her temper in check. “The drugs will only muddle Moon’s mind more. You said you had no idea what was given to him so you also have no idea if tranquilizers will worsen his condition.”“We had to do it for days before you arrived, Miss Know-It-All.” He shot a frustrated look at Tiger and ran his fingers through his white hair. “We need more blood from Moon to try to isolate what he was injected with. I need to examine him but I can’t do it when he’s ready to kill anyone who goes near him.”“Agreed.” Tiger sighed.Joy gave Tiger a murderous glare. “You don’t know if it’s making him worse. He’s confused enough without purposely doing that to him.”“We need samples.” Treadmont stared at her. “What do you suggest? We open up that door to take them and he’s
“What were you doing?” Tiger was furious and not making any attempt to hide it.“Showing Moon he could trust me.”Joy was tired after spending a restless night in the house they’d assigned her. She’d asked to be escorted there after what had happened. She had needed time away from Moon after her close call. Her visitors had arrived after breakfast.“She has no right being near him.” Harley wore a heavy-metal-band T-shirt with his jeans today. The biker boots must be something he wore daily. “He obviously doesn’t want her dead but next time he could force us to unlock the cell to save her life. It’s pure luck he only wanted to be left alone with her. He’s in no shape to be reasoned with.”“Agreed.” Justice North grimly studied her. “You shouldn’t have gotten that close to him.”“He spoke.”Justice’s black eyebrows arch
Joy studied Moon as he paced his cell. He was distracted, snarling and agitated. A howl had fractured the quiet of the room when she’d stepped out of the elevator. He immediately focused a viciously angry gaze on her before he turned and ignored her completely. She swallowed, slipped off her shoes, and slowly approached.“Moon?”He didn’t even glance her way. It made her wonder what had happened since she’d left. Did he remember grabbing her throat? Threatening to kill her? Maybe he thought she’d come for retaliation in some form. Mercile employees would have.It would be suicide to get too close to him at the moment so she walked to the chair Rusty had brought and sat. She crossed her arms over her chest as she watched him, hoping he’d calm or grow tired. The guard upstairs had told her that Moon had eaten an hour before. The new chains attached to his arms and legs dragged on the floor. That factored a lot into his sta
Justice North sat behind his desk while Tiger and Fury had taken seats perched on the sides of the massive piece of furniture. Joy swallowed, waiting for the last person to arrive. Dr. Treadmont finally showed up for the meeting Joy had asked for. He closed the door behind him.“What did you wish to speak about?”“Moon believes he is at site four.”Silence greeted that statement until Dr. Treadmont asked a question.“What the hell is that?”“There were remote sites we were relocated to after we were freed from Mercile,” Fury answered. “We were hidden from the press and given time to assimilate into life outside of Mercile.”“They were motels,” Tiger added. “Out in bum-fuck nowhere that the government was easily able to buy or gain access to because they were abandoned. They sent in crews to clean them up, do repairs, and that’s where we were hou
Joy watched Moon closely, still reeling from hearing him say she was his mate. He sat on the edge of her bed as he took her hand. They had a lot of issues to resolve. Relationships were complicated but he loved her. They had a foundation to build upon.“You shouldn’t have gotten out of bed.”“I’m glad I did.” She wasn’t sure where to start so she went with the thing that worried her most. “Can you ever forgive me for leaving you at site four? It’s the biggest regret of my life.”“Joy—”“Please let me finish.”He nodded.“I really didn’t see a way of staying. I thought it would cause you more harm than good if we slept together. You don’t know how many times I lay awake at night wishing I had the nerve to visit you at Homeland after it opened. I was too afraid you’d either refuse to see me or worse, wonder why I even bothered to c
Moon didn’t bother to take a seat since there wasn’t any sitting room left. Two of the council members weren’t there. They had stayed at Reservation, but Jaded and Bestial were currently in residence at Homeland. He wished it were Brawn and Cedar instead. They were more easygoing.He glanced around the room, seeing that Slade, Fury, Justice, Darkness, and Jericho were among those present. Breeze’s absence was noted and grieved. She’d have at least brought a sense of humor into the grim situation. He took a position in the center of the office instead of leaning against a wall. Harley hovered close, as if he were protecting his back.Justice waited until the door closed before he spoke from the seat behind his desk, addressing Slade instead of him. “Trisha is treating the shrink?”“Yes. She spoke to the hospital and they’ve emailed all records to Medical. Joy will fully recover. The human male wasn’t a s
Joy had a hard time opening her eyes. Her tongue seemed swollen and it was tough to wake. She tried to roll but a big hand pressed against her chest to hold her in place. She was able to finally shove away the haze and peer up at a dim light above her. A fuzzy shape blocked it suddenly. She blinked and stared into dark, beautiful eyes.She’d survived being shot by Douglas. The professional side of her wondered what had happened to him but she wasn’t naïve enough to question Moon about his fate. It had been a miracle she’d talked a Species out of killing someone who’d attacked with deadly intent. It only showed how much New Species had acclimated since their release. They’d learned to quash their tempers while using reason instead of acting on pure impulse.“Joy,” Moon rasped. “You will be fine. They said the bullet passed through your arm but you lost a lot of blood. It missed the bone.” His voice turned gruff.
Joy cursed as she sucked on her bleeding finger. “Damn it.” The small injury had everything to do with her suitcase being overstuffed. She had shoved her weight over the top of it and struggled with the zipper to get it closed all the way.She stepped back and studied the two suitcases. It had been her intention to only pack enough clothes for seven days but she hadn’t figured on how tough it would be to pick out outfits. The black cocktail dress was a little too over the top but it was sexy. The blue almost-identical gown matched her eyes. It had been too tough to pick between them so she’d packed both.Jeans had been a must since Moon might want to take her on a tour of Homeland. She hoped he’d want to spend time with her. She’d had to take long- and short-sleeved shirts to match each pair depending on whether it was a day or evening stroll. The real trouble had happened when she’d thought about inviting him over to dinner. S
Joy unlocked the front door to her condo a little after ten o’clock that night. It had been a nightmare dealing with the problem at work. She’d managed to reach the hospital within two hours but she hadn’t expected the three-ring circus she encountered there. Her boss had called in a legal team to protect their clients’ rights.The lawyer had demanded she respond to him in whispered answers to every question from the police. He’d been the one to speak to them directly after filtering what she said. It had been a slow, annoying process that had taken hours.She kicked off her shoes inside the door and locked it. She hit the switch and light filled the open-concept living space that combined the kitchen with the living room. The seven-hundred-square-foot home wasn’t big but it was affordable. A long counter she used as a dining table was the only thing that separated the rooms. The lone barstool was a reminder of her solitary life. She
Joy moaned in pleasure when Moon suddenly lunged and warm, full lips wrapped around one nipple. His mouth was hot, wet, and he sucked hard, as if he was starving for a taste of her. Strong tugs shot jolts of awareness through her body.Her hand fisted in his hair to keep him in place as she spread her thighs wider to give him room to play with her pussy. Her hips rolled and she arched her back in protest when he released her breast but he only turned his head to give attention to the other one.“Moon… Don’t stop.” She’d have to kill him if he did. It would be beyond cruel if he got her hot and bothered then abruptly called a halt. Not that she’d blame him for wanting to punish her for the past. “Please.”Yes, I’ll beg, she silently admitted. I’ll do damn near anything for him. To have the male she loved that close, reveling in his touch, her fingers tangled in his silky hair, was worth any price.
Joy paced the living room of the cottage and chewed on her bottom lip. Harley watched her from the couch, his arms crossed over his chest.“Is that helping any? This exercise of yours?”She resisted the urge to flip him off. The male was annoying but she knew he was worried about what was going on with Moon at Medical. So was she. Harley had told her about the object in Moon’s arm.“You should have told me about his arm before we left Medical.”“Would you have left?”She stopped walking. “No.”“That’s why I didn’t tell you.”“Doesn’t the NSO have antimissile systems or something similar to shoot anything down if someone launches an attack?”“We have armed guards with weapons to deal with anything that is a threat. We aren’t sure why anyone associated with Mercile would put a tracker inside Moon but that’s the nastie
This is my fault. Joy had been the one to suggest they try to sweat the drugs out of his system. It had never crossed her mind that he’d mistake their intentions.She’d managed to get Moon’s attention again once he stopped threatening Dr. Treadmont. No recognition sparked in his dark gaze. It seemed a plus though that he hadn’t tried to shake her off. He was restrained but not totally defenseless. He could have bitten her. Her hands and face had been within reach of his mouth.She debated, not sure if he’d respond to Moon or 466, or at all. She softened her tone, hoping it would soothe him. “You can talk so I’ll assume you can understand me.”His gaze narrowed. She was sure he didn’t recognize her—again. She slowly inched her fingertips closer to his face again. He didn’t pull away. He allowed her to push back some of his hair, which had fallen into his face. Her palm caressed his cheek in the pro
Frustration and worry were two emotions Joy could live without. They seemed to be her constant companions since she’d been escorted by Jessie to the elevator. The male nurse had cleaned the bite, bandaged it, and given her an antibiotic shot. Stitches hadn’t been required.“How is Moon? Is he still lucid? It’s been four hours since Dr. Treadmont and his team went downstairs.”Paul, the nurse, frowned at her from across the desk. “We’re still waiting for word.”“Can’t you check? May I go see him?”“Ted said to keep you here.”“Of course he did.” The jerk was territorial and didn’t like her. Sex therapist! Anger burned at that insult.“I could call for an escort to take you back to your housing.”“No. I’m not leaving Medical.”“Then we wait.” The nurse opened a drawer and offered a pack of gum.