Free Beyond Galaxy's Edge by Anna Hackett

the medscope and this’ll all go away.”
    Nissa bit down on her bottom lip. The flames licking her skin were getting worse. Far worse.
    “Sit down,” he said.
    Her legs were barely holding her upright. She dropped down. The coolfabric of the cover against her bare thighs almost made her moan.
    Justyn moved to sit beside her, then paused and obviously thought better of it. He knelt in front of her. When his gaze lingered on her bare legs, Nissa’s breath hitched. She tried to fight her body’s response to the flash she saw in his eyes but against her will her legs shifted, her thighs falling apart.
    He hissed in a breath.“Fuck, Nissa—” the knuckles on the hand holding the medscope turned white “—how about you lie down?”
    She swiped a trembling hand across her lips, then dropped backward, closing her eyes.
    She heard the medscope switch on, followed by its gentle hum. She knew it would be emitting a gentle, blue light. His clothes rustled as he moved closer. She imagined him leaning over her, his big body cagingher to the bed. Then her feverish mind took over and she imagined the hard weight of him pushing her down into the sheets, the two of them twisting together, fighting to get at bare flesh.
    Her chest started rising and falling rapidly and she twisted her hands in the sheets.
    “Hold on, sweetheart.”
    His voice was close. His body was so close. She could reach out and… She tried to focus on thefact the medscope would be eliminating the aphrodisiac from her blood stream. The small device could treat small to minor wounds in just a few minutes.
    Time ticked by with agonizing slowness and she wasn’t feeling any better.
    She heard the scope click off. “Justyn?”
    He sigh was loud. “I’m sorry, Nissa. It’s too late. The chemical’s spread too far and the medscope can’t remove it.”
    Shemade a strangled sound.
    “The readout says there should be no side effects though and the chemical will wear off naturally.”
    Her eyes opened and she stared at the ceiling of her bedroom. The room felt tiny and suffocating, like all the air had been sucked out the nearest airlock.
    Heat flared across her skin. She writhed amongst the sheets, tears leaking from the corners of her eyes. She hatedthe lack of control, that her body was no longer under her command. “It’s getting worse.” She tore at the buttons on her shirt, desperate for something to cool the raging fire.
    “Maybe a cold shower?” He gave a tortured laugh. “A tried-and-true antidote that’s been around since old Earth times.”
    His voice…it stroked over her like a caress. Her nipples hardened to tight points and she was drenchedbetween her legs. Another sob tore from her throat.
    Justyn made a choking noise. “God, sweetheart, I’d do anything to help you.”
    Yes, he would. Working alongside him the last few days had shown Nissa there was much more to Justyn Phoenix. She pushed up on her elbows.
    He was still on his knees, his hands digging into his hard thighs, his head hanging down. The lights in her cabin caught thegolden strands in his hair, making them shine like gold. Such a delicious-looking man.
    And one who hid so much under his devil-may-care façade.
    Another flare of heat flushed over her from her toes to her cheeks. The heat was growing so much that it burned away the last of her rational thoughts.
    She sat up and scooted back to the edge of the bed. As she moved, she trapped Justyn with herlegs.
    His head shot up. His silver-gray eyes darkened. “Nissa…”
    That one word held a wealth of meaning—warning, anger, desire.
    “Touch me,” she murmured.
    He shook his head, his strong throat working as he swallowed.
    “Touch me. Please .” She tightened her legs on him, her knees digging into his sides. With one hand, she flicked at the last few buttons of her shirt. Air brushed over herbreasts and belly, but the raging inferno was too strong to be cooled.
    His gaze raked over her and she saw the answering