SharedObjectives

Chandra
Ryan

Universal Defiance, Book Two

When Lisa and her son are rescued
from a military prison, one look at the genetically altered mercenary who
carries her to freedom puts some racy ideas into her head. Dixie is strong,
handsome and kind, an unfamiliar combination. Her job as a government
geneticist usually sends men running, not rushing to her aid.

Unfortunately Dixie isn’t alone. Lisa’s
ex, Ben, is another member of the Coalition, the band of rebels fighting
against the government that locked up Lisa. After their split two years ago,
she never thought she’d have to face his scorn again. But now she has to work
with him without giving in to old temptations. Or so she thinks.

The men need her for her genetics
skills. When they discover they’re both attracted to her, they have to find a
way to share or risk destroying their friendship. And Lisa finds that two sets
of sexy hands all over her body are hotter than one.

Inside Scoop:
This ménage
features a kiss between two men that sparks a plan to steal a woman’s heart.

A
Romantica®
futuristic erotic romance
from Ellora’s Cave

The booming noise pulled Lisa from the sedated sleep but it
wasn’t close enough for her to feel threatened. She’d been at the high-security
prison long enough that she kept constantly aware of her situation though. And
explosions, no matter how far away, were noteworthy.

She tried to sit up but couldn’t. At first she thought she’d
been bound to the bed but as she managed to force one of her arms to move, she
discovered it was her own weight that kept her immobilized. Her body was simply
too heavy.

Rapid gunfire in the hall tore her attention away from her
personal dilemma to the situation developing around her. The conflict had moved
closer. And the closer it got, the more of a problem it became. No one could
find her here. If they did, the consequences would be swift and beyond
terrifying.

Her brain froze on the thought. She knew it was the truth as
surely as she knew her own name, but she couldn’t remember why. Why couldn’t
she be found?

The door to her room exploded in front of her and the sound
and flash of the blast threw her into a black world of silence. Raw panic
consumed her. She was going to die in this room. But that wasn’t even her
biggest concern. If she could just die and be done with it, she would’ve ended
this weeks ago. Lord knows she had the expertise to do so.

Strong hands grabbed her, pulling her from the bed. Her body
was too weak to be a real threat to her captor but she still fought against
him. She had to. She couldn’t leave this room. Everything depended on her
staying here. But he only pulled her tighter to his body.

This was all wrong. Her throat burned and her ears were now
ringing painfully as her stomach cramped so hard she thought she might vomit.
She was being kidnapped—again—and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

Panic descended on her in earnest as the events of the most
terrifying night in her life replayed around her. Only this time she couldn’t
even see the people taking her, nor could she figure out why anyone else would
even want her.

“Fuck, man! Can’t you quiet her down?” The rough voice
filtered through the ringing in her ears. It belonged to a man, but not the one
carrying her.

“Yeah, because if she stopped screaming they’d forget all
about us and stop fucking firing.” The warmth of the man’s breath breezed over
her ear as the words were spoken. “She’s had a rough night. If anyone’s earned
a breakdown it’s her.”

She was so grateful to have her hearing back that she
stopped screaming for a second. But when her sight began to return and she
realized they were already in the parking garage of the compound, her momentary
relief dissipated. “No, no, no. Please. Take me back.”

Her body didn’t seem as heavy and her thoughts weren’t as
muddled as they had been a few minutes ago. She was finally able to not only
lift her arm but pummel the man carrying her a few times before he regained
control.

“Calm down, sweetheart, we’re the goddamn cavalry.”

She had a hard time believing that. “No. I can’t leave.” Anguish
filled her as she turned to face the man who held her. His eyes were cold and
he wore the face paint and uniform of a mercenary. She’d seen enough men of his
trade while working for the government to know what they looked like. And even
if he were just a regular mercenary, she couldn’t possibly get away from him.
But nothing about this man could be considered regular. He was so much more.
His height, muscle bulk and speed all screamed genetic manipulation.

Still, she couldn’t let him take her out of this compound.
And as the drugs that’d been pumped through her started to dissipate she
remembered why. “They have him. They’ll kill him if I leave. Please.”

The man didn’t take his eyes from the concrete structure
they were moving through, but he raised one hand to his ear. “Team Bravo, how’s
your package?”

“Still out. Not sure what they were giving him but his pulse
is weak and his breathing is raspy. If we don’t get him to medical, he’s not
going to make it.”

“He most likely would’ve died had you stayed any longer.”
The mercenary’s attention shifted to her as he spoke. “But we have him now. As
long as we get out of this, your son has a shot.”

She relaxed against him as the adrenaline started to fade
from her system. As long as Nate was okay, she’d be okay. She found it amazing
how that one little slip-up had come to define her life. Nate. He was the baby
who shouldn’t exist. Yet not only had he found a way to be born, he’d also
somehow managed to change how she viewed the world around her.

Gunfire followed them as they ran through the night but she
couldn’t find the energy to care. They’d made it out of the compound. She
didn’t know who had her but she was no longer at the mercy of the government
and that had to be enough.

A helicopter waited for them as they reached the grassy
field that surrounded the prison. When they got to it, he passed her to one of
the men sitting in the bird. She hated helicopters. Hated how fragile and
exposed she would be in one. But as she took her seat next to the man and a
small bundle was passed into her arms, nothing else mattered.

She quickly checked Nate’s vitals and found he was alive,
but just barely. The track marks that bruised his delicate skin were the only
proof she needed that the bastards had been experimenting on him. The
helicopter started up and someone thrust a helmet on her head as they started
to climb. Now wasn’t the time to make requests, but if she waited, Nate
wouldn’t survive the flight.

“I need NB-7 and I need it now,” she said into the helmet
mike.

The man sitting directly in front of her shook his head
firmly. “With all due respect, scientific research is not the priority here,
ma’am. You will have to wait until we reach base to secure a sample.”

“My son doesn’t have that long. He needs an injection now.”

Silence hung heavily around them for a second before the
comm broke into chaos. She got it. Only those genetically engineered needed the
chemical compound. It would be confusing to Lisa if a woman told her that a
child needed it, too. But Nate did. He needed it now. And she didn’t have time
to explain why.

She glanced around at the men, trying to figure out who was
in charge. The chopper had two rows of bench seating that faced each other with
a narrow passageway between them and two computer terminals against the wall
that divided the cargo hold from the cockpit. Everybody except the man at the
computer bank seemed to be either focused on her or the man sitting to her
right—the man who’d carried her out of the prison. She obviously wasn’t in
charge here so that left the man to her right. It might not be conclusive
evidence, but it was all she had to go on right now.

“Please.” She turned to face him. “I don’t know when they
gave him his last injection.”

His attention focused on Nate for a moment before he gave a
stiff nod. “Of course. Someone get her that shot.”

“Thank you.”

The man sitting at the computer terminals turned to face her
for the first time and Lisa’s blood went cold. At least now she knew who had
her. She’d been taken by the Coalition. She’d never be able to forget his face
or who he worked for.

Her grip on Nate tightened as she fought back a wave of
fear. This was the one man who had a claim on Nate. He could take her baby from
her and she couldn’t do anything to stop him. Laws didn’t apply to those who
fought to bring down the lawmakers. “Hello, Ben.” Her voice was soft as she
said his name. “Long time no see.”

Ben smirked at her. “So you managed to get knocked up by one
of us, then?”

His voice held condescension even over the static of the
microphone. But his arrogance actually helped her relax. If he didn’t know Nate
belonged to him, he wouldn’t fight her for their child. “What can I say? Looks
as though I was just a whore for the government after all.” She managed to
glare at him as she repeated the final words he’d yelled at her the last time
they’d been together. Two years was a long time, but it felt as if mere seconds
had passed as she stared at him.

He just shrugged and then reached into one of his cargo pant
pockets to pull out a sealed syringe package. “I tried to warn you about their
retirement plan.” He passed her the medicine and then returned to his station.

“Thank you.” The words had to be forced through gritted
teeth but she still managed to get them out.

“I’m not doing it for you.”

His words hurt almost as much as watching her son waste away
in her arms. She’d loved him once. And she’d been naïve enough to believe the
words he’d whispered against her skin. Once he’d found out who she worked for,
though, his words hadn’t been nearly so nice or inviting. “Yeah, you made your
feelings about me clear the last time we spoke.” She used the excuse of taking
the injection out of the package to not have to look at him. Thankfully, as she
injected the chemical into her baby, she could almost see his health improve.
“I’m trying to be gracious for the sake of my son.”

“No need. He’s one of us and we take care of our own.”

The syringe retracted into the vial as soon as the medicine
had been administered, allowing her to hold it out to the man sitting across
from her. He stared at her with an open look of disgust. “Even if his mother is
a government geneticist.” He took the syringe as he said the words.

Looked as if he liked her just about as much as Ben did.
Yep. She wasn’t anyone’s favorite person on this chopper. Though she did prefer
geneticist to whore. Even if the tone implied they were the same. “If you had
such a problem with me and my moral character, you could’ve left me to rot in
the prison.” Two hours ago she would’ve sworn anyplace was better than the
prison she’d been placed in. Now she wasn’t so sure. “I didn’t ask for your
help. Or whatever the hell this is.” With Nate’s crisis over and her terror
fading, she decided she’d had enough of their disdain and hatred. She couldn’t
be blamed for their fate any more than she could blame them for hers. And it
pissed her off that almost two years after her parting fight with Ben she was
still defending herself just because of her job title.

“That’s enough, men. Dr. Colt is an honored guest and will
be treated as such.” The man who’d rescued her and helped Nate silenced the
group with the authoritative words before turning to her. “I’m sorry, Dr. Colt.
I’m afraid my team might have gotten off on the wrong foot. I’m Steven Dixie.”
He held out a hand in greeting. She stared at it for a second, debating his
intent, but then decided that if he could act civil she could as well. Taking
his hand in hers, she couldn’t help but notice how huge it was. It swallowed
hers almost completely. “Your identity was kept need-to-know for the mission.
And since time was of the essence, I didn’t have a chance to brief my team on
appropriate decorum. My sincerest apologies.”

“There’s no need to apologize.” She glanced over Nate’s
father to see him glaring between her and Dixie. “I don’t know about the rest
of your men, but I’m afraid Ben and I have a history that no amount of briefing
would’ve overcome.” She sighed heavily before snuggling Nate closer to her. “I
do have to ask for a clarification though. Have I been rescued or taken
hostage?”

His rich, deep laughter boomed over the helmet comm. “Would
it matter?”

She thought about it for a moment before answering.
“Probably not.” If she were a hostage she couldn’t exactly fight them for her
freedom. They had the advantage over her in every way. And if they’d rescued
her she’d have her freedom, but to what end? The military would find her
regardless of where she went. They were already looking for her. No doubt about
that one. She was equally screwed either way.

Dixie ran a finger over Nate’s arm gently. “It was a rescue.
When we land you’ll be free to go. We can’t guarantee your safety if you choose
to leave though. The government seems pretty invested in finding and keeping
you under lock and key.”

So they were all on the same page. “And if I choose to…” She
paused as she tried to figure out how to phrase it. He hadn’t invited her to
stay with them once they landed. He’d only said she could choose to leave. “Not
leave?”

“As much as I’d love to say we rescued you for altruistic
reasons—”

She interrupted him before he could go any further. “I’m
pretty sure I know why you rescued me.” As soon as she realized who had her,
she’d figured it out. She’d have to be daft not to and the government didn’t
hire daft scientists. “You’re Coalition. Ex-military fighting against the
government.”

“I hadn’t realized Ben had been so forthcoming with you.”

She chanced a glance at Ben only to find him watching her
with open contempt. “We left little unsaid before we parted ways,” she said
with a grimace. “If you’ll protect Nate and me, I’ll share my research with
your people.” The surprised look on Ben’s face was enough to bring her some
measure of happiness. As petty as it was, she liked that she got to be the
bigger person. She shifted her attention to Dixie before she continued, “But
it’s been a rather traumatic evening and I’m still fighting off the effects of
whatever the hell they gave me. Yelling over the static and flight noise isn’t
ideal. Would you mind if we left the conversation where it is until we land?”

“Not at all. If you’re tired, I’d be happy to hold the child
while you sleep.”

She didn’t think he’d keep Nate from her, but she didn’t
want to let her child go again. Not so soon after just getting him back. “Thank
you for the offer, but I haven’t been able to hold him for a while.” She hated
that she didn’t even know how long it’d been. The days she’d been in captivity
had started running together early on. “I miss him more than I miss sleep.”

“Understood. Try to relax. We’ll be at the camp in two
hours.”