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sex during sex. And the woman only screams. No distractions.”
    Braden gave him a nod. “I figured you didn’t show up for a good reason. Rees was afraid you’d got caught.”
    “I did get caught. But they let me go.”
    Braden tensed. “Yeah? When were you going to tell Rees?”
    “When I’m done here. Now go away, so I can get back to it.”
    “Rees will have your balls on a plate if you don’t hurry,” Braden warned.
    “Rees can get over himself. I don’t rush.”
    “Fine. Whenever you can take a break from your fabulous sex routine, get your ass to Judith’s. All right? Or Rees will have my balls on a plate.”
    “No, he won’t.” Kieran leaned the half inch down to Braden’s face. “Go away.”
    Braden raised his hands and stepped back. “Right, right. I’m going. But remember this, Kieran.” Braden’s expression turned serious. “No one gets left behind. No one. ”
    “Not even messed-up Shareem,” Kieran finished, impatient. “I know. Rees told me about twenty times. We all have a part to play. That’s another thing he said.” He gave Braden a pointed look. “You’re still here.”
    Braden made a noise of exasperation. “You’re a fuckhead, Kieran. But I get it. Sex before everything. I’ll tell Rees you’ll be around soon.”
    Kieran didn’t bother saying thank you . Braden might say you’re welcome , and then linger to talk some more. Braden gave Kieran one last look, slapped open the front door, and walked out into the heat.
    Kieran closed the door, locked it, and returned to the bathroom. He opened that door, then stopped his stride in the doorway.
    Felice lay in the shower, huddled into herself, her body limp, her eyes closed. Her dark hair, already tangling in the desert air, straggled over her face.
    An emotion—one of those things DNAmo had tried to eradicate from Shareem, Kieran in particular—moved him. Pity. Felice was exhausted, scared, and far from everything she knew.
    Kieran lifted her, liking how easy and natural it felt to cradle her body in his arms. She didn’t wake as Kieran carried her out of the bathroom and into his bedroom.
    Kieran laid Felice on his bed and pulled cool sheets around her. He adjusted the lights to low, wanting her to rest easy but not to wake in the dark.
    As he started to leave the bedroom, Felice made a soft noise in her sleep, a cry of worry, of fear. Kieran paused, watching her. She’d escaped her captivity in body, he understood, but not yet in her head. That would take a long, long time, well he knew.
    Felice shivered in spite of the cover Kieran had tucked around her. She was terrified, alone, lost—and brave. She’d faced the unknown to escape, and had found herself here with Kieran.
    Kieran unfastened his loincloth and let it drop. Naked, he climbed into the bed, spooning behind Felice and drawing her against his body. He sent his Shareem pheromones over her to ease her, soothe her.
    Her shivering calmed. Felice never woke but relaxed into Kieran, drawing a long, relieved breath. Kieran, tired himself, forgot all about Rees and the mission to find a transport to take Shareem off Bor Narga, forgot about everything but Felice’s scent, her warmth. For the first time in a very long time, Kieran felt loose and contented, and it wasn’t far from there to a dark, deep sleep.
    *** *** ***
    Felice awoke in a dimly lit bedroom, but she wasn’t alone. A heavy body lay behind her, a protective arm around her. He snored.
    Kieran.
    Felice could slip out of bed, steal some of his clothes, and run, flee. Slavery was technically illegal on Bor Narga, and if she could find the right legal counsel, she could be free of her indenture—which TGH Corp had made clear she’d finish working off around the time of her hundredth birthday. They weren’t slavers per se, they claimed, but they’d piled interest, room, and board on top of the original cost, to keep her working and paying them back the rest of her life.
    But she’d had to sign that