3013: Renegade by Susan Hayes Page B

to be it either.
     

 
    ***
    CHAPTER TEN
     
    Colin knew something was up the moment he walked into the kitchen. Griz was grinning from ear to ear, and there was a small stack of rags kicked into one corner of the room that hadn’t been there when he’d left.
    “Where’s Alayna?”
    “Upstairs, getting cleaned up.” Nikolai’s grin grew bigger. “Things got a little messy while we were polishing the floor.”
    “You did not have her doing housework on the first day! Shit man, we need to convince her we want her as part of the family, not as a maid.”
    “I think I stated our case pretty clearly. Oh yeah, and we’re going to need to buy that woman some more clothes. Us, too.” Nikolai nodded to the stack of rags, positively smirking now. “She looked fucking hot in your stuff, so I tore it off of her.”
    “You tore—wait. Back up the transpo, you smug bastard. You and she…?”
    “Right here on the kitchen floor.”
    “Classy, Griz. Really classy. We have three beds in this house you know. And why was she wearing my clothes?”
    “Because hers were being cleaned. Did you think I was going to make her put on the same muddy, wet things she had on last night? And before you even ask, no, I didn’t make her do anything she didn’t want to. I think it’s going to be okay. I think she’s going to give this a chance.”
    “If she let you jump her in the middle of the kitchen? I’d say that’s a good sign.” Colin breathed an inward sigh of relief. Nikolai wasn’t exactly the most patient or diplomatic guy. The enhancements given to every elite did more than increase their physical size and strength. It also amplified some of the more primal personality traits. In Nikolai’s case, three generations of genetic enhancements meant that he was a big, quick-tempered son of a bitch who didn’t usually play well with others.
    They’d bonded over their differences back when they were both newly enhanced. While academically ahead of the curve, Colin’s physical changes came slower than most, making him a target for every bully in their training group. They were both outside the norm, so they became friends. That friendship had lasted more than twenty years.
    Nikolai placed a platter stacked high with food into the warming tray and turned to Colin. “Before she gets back, there are a few things we need to talk about. Did you register our change in status?”
    “Yeah. She’s all ours. They want her to come in so they can get her DNA registered, along with a checkup. While we’re there, they can also deactivate her birth control.”
    “I think we should hold off on deactivation for a bit. Alayna needs some time.” Nikolai’s jaw was tight and his expression was troubled. Something was off. They had both agreed that once they had their Chosen they didn’t want to wait long to start a family. If Nikolai was having a change of heart, then something must have happened in the short time Colin was gone.
    “All right, Griz. Let me grab a coffee and you can tell me what happened.”
     
    * * * *
     
    Alayna heard two voices in quiet conversation, and her lips quirked up into a smile. Colin was back. She was wearing yet another one of his shirts, because hers were still being cleaned. She was halfway down the stairs before it even occurred to her that knowing both her men were home made her happy. Then she half stumbled down the last few steps when she caught herself thinking that this was her home and they were her men.
    What the hell was happening to her?
    It should take more than a night of great sex to make her turn her back on everything she’d been raised to believe. The Alliance and those who worked to do its bidding were not to be trusted. They allowed fertile woman to be treated like breeding cattle, took the best and brightest of the children for mandatory military service, and maintained a monopoly on everything from luxury items to such basic items as food and medicine. She couldn’t change the fact