they stay inside for the most part.

They are just curious about you.”

He helped her down the steep ramp but released her hand at the bottom. He turned on his heel, heading for the nearest building. Mira glanced around nervously, seeing that there had to be a hundred cyborgs staring at her and it looked like more were walking their way to get a better look at her. She almost ran behind Flint, not wanting to let more than a few feet get between them. She was betting, with human/

cyborghistory, that humans probably weren’t real popular in the cyborg world.

A male dressed in a black uniform nodded at Flint as they entered the building. When he saw Mira he lunged into her path, getting between Flint and Mira. She gasped, jerking to a halt to avoid slamming into the huge, muscular cyborg . He scared the shit out of her. His eyes were black to match his hair and his skin was startling in contrast—a light blue-tinted gray. He looked furious as he glared down at her.

“What are you doing?”

Flint was there all of the sudden, moving around the man, shoving the other cyborg away from Mira as Flint gripped her arm. He jerked her farther back, stepping in front of her to block her body from the cyborg in black.

“She’s human!” The cyborg sounded furious. “You can’t bring one of them in here.”

“She’s my property. Are you blind to her markings? She goes where I go.” Flint snarled the words. “Is your training so inept that a little thing like her is something you consider a threat? I’ll protect you from her, guard.”

The two cyborgs glared at each other as Mira’s fear mounted. The guard seemed to hate her and she was shocked that he considered her a threat. She swallowed hard before finding her voice. She was terrified Flint and the other cyborg were going to come to blows over her and she wanted to avoid that.

“I’m just a sales representative from Firmaline .”

The guard moved a little so he could see her better. A slow frown formed on the man’s lips. “ Firmaline?

Is that the Earth company that sells beauty products to females to keep them from aging?”

She nodded. “We call them health enhancers. We sell a lot of products to men too. They aren’t just for enhancing looks. They literally slow the aging process.”

The guard actually chuckled and his black gaze slid to Flint. “You enslaved a beauty consultant?”

“I’m a sales representative, not a beauty consultant.” Mira was irritated.

Flint sighed. “May we pass now? She’s not a threat.”

The guard nodded. “Proceed. I can’t wait for Arrion to meet her. Did you bring her as a present to Arrion ?”

“No.” Flint sounded pissed. “Don’t purposely aggravate me. You can see from her markings that she’s mine and no gift.”

“That’s a shame.” The guard chuckled. “I would have escorted you to Arrion’s office myself, just to see the reaction of being gifted with a beauty consultant, if you had grown tired of owning a human.”

Flint looked annoyed. “Follow me, Mirasia Carver.”

She had noticed that Flint addressed her by her full name when other cyborgs were around. She followed him into a lift. When the doors swished shut Mira realized that Flint still looked furious as he shot her a grim look.

“I apologize. Are you all right?”

“I can’t believe he thought I was dangerous.”

A grin split Flint’s lips. “It was amusing. You’re not secretly a trained human assassin, are you, Mira?”

“If I were, I would have kicked mutant pirate ass when they boarded the pod.”

His smile instantly died, looking pissed off in a heartbeat, making Mira want to kick herself for reminding him that she’d run away from him. She swallowed as the lift stopped. Flint didn’t look at her as he stepped out of the small space so she just followed him closely. She saw glass doors leading into a large office with a male cyborg in a blue jumpsuit sitting behind a desk. The cyborg looked up and nodded at Flint as they walked into the room.

“You’re back,” the cyborg grinned. “How was deep space?”

“It is the same as always.” Flint chuckled as he spoke. “How are you, Zare ?”

“Good. I’m the same as before. Arrion is waiting for you.” The man’s focus slid to Mira. “You brought a souvenir back?”

“This is Mirasia Carver.”

Zarefrowned at her. “She’s human.”

“She is.” Flint sighed. “I won’t keep Arrion waiting.”

Flint moved forward with Mira on his heels. He’d told her to stick