“Just this.” Blakely leaned toward her and Sadie drew back until she realized it almost put her in the blond detective’s lap. She turned to look up at Holt and he was smiling, a look of cool condescension in his ice-blue eyes. On the whole, she thought she preferred the dark-haired detective’s openly predatory attitude to his partner’s sarcastic one.
“Don’t worry, sweetheart. I’ll keep my hands to myself. Just gonna give you a little love mark on the side of your neck, okay?” Blakely raised his hands, palms up to show his intentions were honorable.
“Well…I guess, as long as that’s all you do. Make it quick.” Tilting her head, she offered him the side of her throat and gave an involuntary sigh when the sensual mouth descended, licking delicately along her slender neck before settling in the sensitive area beneath her ear to mark her. Blakely’s breath smelled like cinnamon. “Mmmm,” she moaned involuntarily, feeling the brush of his coarse curls against her tender flesh as he worked. What’s wrong with me? she wondered, even as she responded to the searing mouth on her throat. I shouldn’t be acting like this. Blakely did something hot with his tongue that made her gasp, but she didn’t try to pull away.
“Like that, huh?” he whispered. Raising his head for a moment, he looked over at Holt. “You joinin’ the party, babe?” he asked his partner, his voice low and sensual.
“One for each side?” The fair-haired detective raised a silvery-blond eyebrow. “How does the lady feel about that?” He looked at Sadie and the sapphire eyes were filled with the same sleepy sensuality that lit Blakely’s.
“Well, I…” To tell the truth, Sadie was pretty far gone. It was obviously wrong to be enjoying something that was simply a necessity, but she couldn’t quite seem to help herself.
“Good for your cover,” Blakely explained reasonably, his hot breath blowing against her ear. When she turned to look at him, the indigo eyes were dark and intense, and Sadie got the distinct feeling that he wanted his partner to do this with him. To share this with him for some reason. She wondered why, but somehow it didn’t seem important. He was right, after all—it was important that she look the part of a recently rented prostie and another love mark could only help that impression. She decided not to worry about it…for now.
“Well, when you put it that way…I guess so,” she heard herself saying.
With a low laugh, Blakely returned to the spot under her ear and then she felt another hot mouth—Holt’s—kissing lightly along the heavy pulse on the other side of her throat until he stopped to suck gently at the sensitive place where her neck met her shoulder.
At that moment, something strange happened. When Holt’s mouth opened and his tongue touched her flesh it was as though the sensation from both sides had not just been doubled, but infinitely multiplied. Sadie stiffened between them and then melted helplessly into the embrace. Her nipples felt like two hard pebbles at the tips of her breasts and she pressed her thighs together tightly, trying to deny the heat and moisture that was gathering between them. It was hard to believe that this simple act when the two men weren’t touching her in any other way that was remotely sexual could make her respond so blatantly, but her arousal was undeniable.
“Goddess…” she breathed softly, drowning in the hot sensation of both mouths tasting her, sucking her, marking her. Involuntarily she reached out and gripped their legs, one in each hand, feeling the bunching of heavy thigh muscles under her palms as she did. Both men were excited, as excited as herself if not moreso; she could feel it in the tension that thrummed through the big bodies on either side of her like an electric current. And I’m the conductor between them, she thought faintly. The strange thought was enough to bring her back to herself and she pushed suddenly, convulsively away from them, using their legs as a prop to propel herself off the rickety bed.
“I think that’s enough, gentlemen.” Her voice shook as she stood in front of them and tried to catch her breath. She placed her hands on either side of her neck protectively, feeling how tender the flesh was.
“I guess.” Blakely looked disappointed, but Holt still looked amused.
“You look fairly roughed up now, I would say,” the blond detective drawled, annoying Sadie even as he agreed with her.
Sadie felt herself flush and forced herself to speak calmly. “Take me back to the common room now and I’ll meet you with the injection the new prosties are receiving at the back of the far dome at eight tonight. Be sure you’re on time.”
“We’ll be there, sweetheart,” Blakely assured her, rising from the rumpled bed and retrieving his jacket.
“Wouldn’t miss it.” Holt agreed.
3
“I still say it’s a bad idea. We may have to go all over the Outer System to crack this case and it’s federal business. The last thing we need is a nosy reporter hanging around us every step of the way.” Holt glared at his partner, knowing that it was too late to do anything about it now. He tried to pace, but the inside of the boxy little landing craft was too cramped for his long strides.
“Will ya shut up already, Holt? I think she’s gonna be a real asset to the mission.”
Blakely glared back at him and continued his surveillance of the nearest dome. A light methane mist was drizzling outside and it cut down on the visibility considerably.
Just another beautiful day on Titan—at least it has an atmosphere, even if it is mostly nitrogen, Holt thought. He waited for his partner of seven years to continue his thought; he already knew how Blakely felt—the T-link between them made that a given.
“’Sides,” the curly haired detective said smugly. “You’re just jealous ’cause she went for me more than you. Those blond good looks can’t always getcha everything you want, ya know.”
The blond detective snorted. “Oh please, she played us both for suckers, Blake. The minute she took off your jacket and stood up in that tiny little dress I knew exactly what she was doing.”
“Yeah, so? Worked didn’t it?” Blakely grinned. “Anyway, we turned the tables on her pretty quick. She wanted us to think she’s used to this kinda thing, but you can always tell. She’s a nice girl, Holt. You see how she blushed after we…uh, roughed her up? She’s not used to it, but she liked it. And I know you felt the way the T-link opened when we both touched her. Who knows, she could even be the one, like Professor Klinefelder said.” He licked his lips thoughtfully. “She tasted like some kinda flowers, ya know?”
“Oh come off it,” the blond detective protested. “Don’t start that again.”
“Start what?” Blakely sounded defensive. “You don’t know—it could happen.” Indigo eyes narrowing, he resumed watching the dome. If everything went according to plan the newest addition to their team should be coming out the plexi-tube leading from the fat gray half-globe at any moment. Sadie didn’t have a protective suit, but their landing craft was nestled snugly against the tube’s opening, locked tighter than a lover’s embrace, so it didn’t matter. “Any minute now,” he muttered to himself.
Holt sighed and put a hand on the leather clad arm to get Blakely’s attention. “Look, partner, it’s not that I want to rain on your parade, but you might as well face it, most women don’t want what we have to offer. Even if they do, only one in a thousand can handle it. And the chances of us finding a perfect match…well, I don’t have to tell you what the odds against that are. I’m sorry because I know what you want. Hell, I want the same thing—a girl who completes us and who can accept us for who and what we are. But you better face facts—it’s probably not gonna happen.”
“It might.” Blakely gave up watching the dome and turned to face his partner instead. The classical features of Holt’s face were drawn into a dour expression. “She doesn’t necessarily have to be a perfect match, ya know. There’s bound to be somebody out there for us, Holt. The right girl, one who’s got a high sensory tolerance. Understanding, beautiful…”
“Both morally and physically flexible. Come on, Blake, get real,” the blond demanded.
“If by ‘ge
t real’ you mean abandon hope, then you can shove it, pal.” Blakely shrugged his partner’s hand off and poked him in the chest. “Ya know, I think you’re still angry about Gillian, and that was months ago. I’m sorry she couldn’t handle it, but I offered to do the detandemizing. Don’t forget, you were the one who said no.”
“Ah, buddy…” Holt sighed heavily and looked down at the accusing finger pointed at his chest until Blakely removed it. “You know I couldn’t do that. It’d be easier to cut off my arm than lose you that way. How many years have we been together? How many times have we saved each other’s asses? I couldn’t let it all go just because Gillian couldn’t handle the linking. I just…I hate to see you get your hopes up all over the place and then have them come crashing down on your head. You got too much heart, you know that?”
“Yeah,” Blakely’s mobile features softened and he grinned a little at his partner. “Well, somebody’s gotta have it and you’re always claimin’ to be the brains of this outfit. Just don’t let our new friend know it. We gonna keep up the act for her benefit? See how far she’s willing to go?”
Holt couldn’t stop himself from laughing. His partner always knew how to cheer him up. “You’re a mean son of a bitch.”
Blakely grinned even wider. “And you were just sayin’ I had too much heart. I’m not saying we should hurt her, ya know. I’m just sayin’…”
“Call her bluff. Maybe teach her a lesson about trying to manipulate officers of the law. I’m up for it, I guess. Should be interesting to see her reaction to our good cop–bad cop routine. Although in this case I guess we’re both playing bad cop.”
“The worst,” Blakely agreed. “Hey.” He turned back to the dome. “Here she comes and it looks like she’s in a hurry. Get ready, Holt.”
Holt watched the lithe, curvy figure of the woman who’d barged her way into their lives as she scurried out of the dome and down the plexi-tube. The gold mesh dress didn’t hide much and everything jiggled as she ran. He had to agree with his partner on one thing at least—she was very attractive. With those big, honey-brown eyes and those luscious curves…no doubt about it, she was Holt’s type to a T. Blakely’s, too, for that matter, although there was no use hoping she might be “the one” for whom his partner kept wishing.
Professor Klinefelder, the neurobiologist who had implanted their tandem chips, had made it clear that the odds against finding a girl who was both able to withstand the sensory overload caused by their connection and who could also join in the T-link and form a Life-bond with them both were about a million to one, but that didn’t keep his dark-haired partner from hoping. Holt sighed. Well, it would still be fun to teach the manipulative little reporter a lesson. At the very least it would make their trip more interesting.
“Wonder what color her hair is under that wig?” Blakely muttered, watching the rapidly approaching figure.
“Hard to tell. Maybe we can get her to take it off…among other things.” Holt raised his eyebrows at his partner and the dark-haired detective shook his head.
“Enough about that for now, Holt. She’s here.” Blakely threw open the hatch and allowed the shivering figure to enter the landing craft.
“H…hurry,” Sadie gasped as she threw herself into the cabin. She stumbled and Blakely caught her handily, setting her reluctantly back on her feet. She didn’t even seem to notice. “Right behind me.” She gestured and now Holt, who was already at the controls, saw several figures in bulky, bright orange protective suits running clumsily down the plexi-tube toward the ship. “They only…” Sadie took a ragged breath. “Only stopped to put on suits. Hurry!”
“Better buckle up.” Holt shifted gears and that produced a high grinding sound somewhere in the engine.
“Since when do you drive?” Blakely bumped him out of the way and Holt let him. The dark-haired detective adjusted the controls and the whining sound stopped. He manipulated them again and the engine purred as the clumsy little craft began to rise smoothly.
“Blake, I think they’ve got some kind of weapon down there. Maybe a laser cannon.” Holt peered apprehensively out the small round port window. A flash of blue light skimmed the side of the ship and he was thrown on his face on top of the girl who was suddenly face-down on the floor. “Yup, that’s a laser cannon all right,” he remarked.
“Hold on,” Blakely barked, banking the ship tightly to avoid another blast.
“Trying to,” Holt yelled. Good thing the ship is so small or we’d be sliding all over the damn place. Beneath him, Sadie wiggled and squirmed in the most appealing way. Her scarlet wig had gone askew and a few honey-brown tendrils almost the exact same shade as her big eyes were sticking out. Well that’s one question answered, Holt thought.
“Will you get off me, you big lug?” she panted, trying to roll out from under him.
“You heard the lady,” Blakely said, without turning around.
“Sorry.” Holt took his time about it, enjoying the way her luscious ass was undulating against his groin as she wiggled to get free.
“Yeah, right.” Sadie brushed ineffectually at the mesh dress, which was torn beyond repair. Holt couldn’t help noticing her full breasts, which were now completely visible through the gaping hole in the gold mesh. Sadie noticed him noticing and, blushing deeply, she hastily wrapped her arms around herself to cover the exposed flesh. Holt just grinned. Blake doesn’t know what he’s missing. And he wonders why I let him do most of the navigation.
“I think we’re out of range now,” Holt said and his partner grunted a reply from the front of the ship. Sadie was sitting quietly, shivering, with her arms wrapped around herself and her eyes on the floor. Without saying a word Holt took off his jacket and draped it around her shoulders.
4
Sadie took a deep breath and considered her image in the small holo-viewer of the space-needle’s fresher. The sonic shower had been exactly what she needed to feel more like herself again. The latex make-up that gave her skin the plastic texture of tank-grown flesh was washed away and her own pale, smooth face stared back. Even though the autodryer was set too high and had turned her long wavy hair into a golden-brown puff ball, she still looked and felt a hundred percent better. Pressing the cold water tap she gathered a small amount of the precious liquid and rubbed it through her hair until the puff lay down obediently in silky waves around her slender shoulders. She surveyed the results with satisfaction. Now that’s more like it. Her hair was so long it almost hid the two bright red marks on either side of her neck. Almost.
Thinking about the way she had gotten those marks made her cheeks get hot. The feel of both mouths on her at once…it was so strange, the electric shock she’d gotten when both Holt and Blakely had touched her skin-to-skin at the same time. Sadie still wasn’t exactly sure how she felt about it. Well, there’s nothing you can do about it now so you might as well put it out of your mind, Sadie. Still, she couldn’t help thinking about the two men who were so different in appearance and yet so in sync with each other in every other way. The way they reacted to each other—competitive, pushy, totally at ease—they almost reminded her of brothers. They were clearly very protective of each other, but she supposed that was natural for good partners. They had to be watching each other’s backs constantly in their line of work. And yet…it was more than that.
Sadie dabbed on a little lip gloss as she considered Detectives Blakely and Holt, glad that she had managed to grab her small make-up bag before she made a break for it. She already knew that she liked Blakely. The dark-haired detective seemed so up front, so open with his feelings and desires, and he appeared to have a good sense of humor, too, which was absolutely essential in a man. There was also an intensity about him…He could definitely be dangerous, Sadie decided. She had better watch herself around Blakely.
Holt was more difficult to read. He seemed quieter, maybe a little more highly strung than his partner, but no less intense. He had classically handsome features that screamed “vid star.” His blond hair
and light tan skin made him seem golden all over. He had a beautiful smile that she couldn’t help comparing with Blakely’s charmingly lopsided grin. Sadie shook her head—really have to be careful there, Sadie. She turned her thoughts back to Holt. He was, at least so far, more cautious than Blakely…more withdrawn. Harder to know. As if you could really know either of them after three hours… She frowned at the blushing face in the viewer. She’d be getting to know them both much better very shortly, she was sure. Goddess, what have I gotten myself into?
For the first time, Sadie wondered if she’d made a mistake. Maybe she should have stayed at the Prostie Palace and just tried to keep out of the way until her transport showed instead of making this crazy deal, but there was the story to think of, a possible Solar Pulitzer even—her career could be taking off. Surely a few…favors…was a small price to pay for that. She just wished she had a little more experience…
Slut, a disapproving little voice whispered inside her head. Sadie recognized that voice—it belonged to her ex-fiancé, Gerald. They’d been together for almost three years and had a bad break up not six months before she had come up with her wild scheme to get the inside scoop on the prostie-borg industry. She hadn’t seen him in half a year, but still heard that little voice from time to time, critical and unyielding just as Gerald had always been. Shaking her head, she tried to think of something else.
Surveying herself in the holo-viewer Sadie thought that if only she had some decent clothes to wear she might almost look presentable. She hadn’t been able to take her original travel outfit before she bolted out of the Pleasure Dome complex because an alarm had gone off the minute she palmed a small vial of the drug being injected into the long line-up of new prosties. Remembering the way they had turned as one to look at her when it sounded, the blue tattoos on their right eyelids blinking at her in perfect, unnatural synch, Sadie shivered. She had barely gotten away with no time to grab her travel clothes. The gold mesh dress she had been wearing was completely ruined, ripped beyond repair by her roll on the floor of the landing craft with Holt. She remembered the feel of his body on top of hers, warm and firm and masculine, and the warmth of his jacket when he had draped it around her shoulders.