Tammy glanced around the area, seeing nothing but trees and water. “Fine but if anyone sees me naked, I’m going to be mad and really embarrassed.”

Valiant grinned, stepping out his pants. “I would beat them bloody and remove their eyes for looking at you.”

“Funny.”

Tammy stripped out of her clothes until she stood there naked. Valiant didn’t stop removing his clothes until she could view every inch of his body. She stared at him. The man turned her on every time he was naked, the sight was that appealing. Her gaze lingered on his chest and muscular arms.

“Tammy,” Valiant growled. “Do not look at me that way unless you want me to f**k you on the ground right here.”

She forced her gaze away from his. “That wouldn’t be a good idea since they are waiting for us.”

“Wash your skin in the water. I would do it for you but if I touch you I will want to do more. Much more,” he growled.

Tammy moved. The water was icy. She washed her body as best as she could. Valiant waited for her on the bank. She shivered hard as she left the water. Valiant smiled at her, staring at her taut ni**les.

“Beautiful.”

She wrapped her arms over her br**sts, hiding them from his view. “I’m not excited. I’m freezing.”

“Sorry.” He chuckled.

He handed her his shirt and boxer briefs for her to put on. They were still warm from his body. She felt like a small kid in his large, baggy clothes. Valiant just wore his pants and footwear. His arms opened as he walked to her, hugged her tightly, and began rubbing against her, nuzzling her with his face. She laughed, wrapping her arms around him.

“What are you doing now? That tickles.”

“Returning my scent to you. When we’re safely home I’m going to remove those clothes and mark every inch of you.”

“Mark me, huh? What does that mean?”

“Lots of rubbing and touching,” he growled. He shifted her in his hold, one arm hooking behind her legs as he swung her up, the other one clutching her tightly to his chest. “Let’s get back. Justice is waiting.”

Tammy glanced at her discarded pile of clothing as they walked away. She sighed. I loved that top. Oh well. She had to admit they’d probably only bring back bad memories if she insisted he didn’t abandon them in the woods. He carried her back to the warehouse.

One of the SUVs waited. Justice, 927, and Tiger had remained behind. The three prisoners and the five other New Species officers were gone. Justice smiled at the couple when they walked out of the woods.

“Is it better now, Valiant?”

“Much.” Valiant grinned at him. “She smells more of me than him.”

“It’s a weird thing,” Tiger sighed. “Mated men get obsessive about their women having their scent and no one else’s.”

927 nodded. “Do we all have mates now? Will I get one?”

Justice laughed. “We would be lucky to find one but only a few of us have found women to claim. I do not have one.”

“I don’t want one.” Tiger looked horrified. “They are cute as hell and the regular sex would be nice but I want to keep my freedom.”

“I am free,” Valiant growled.

Tiger arched his eyebrow. “Really? Do you want to go hunting with me for a solid week? I know you love chasing deer.”

“I won’t leave Tammy for that long but I would go if she comes with me.”

Tiger nodded. “My point is made. You would have said yes in a heartbeat before. Now you always have to think of her before you make a choice. I like it just being me.”

“The sex is not regular,” Valiant growled. “It’s amazing, addicting, and worth every second I won’t be chasing deer with you. I’ll have a better time with my Tammy.”

Justice laughed. “I can believe that. Nicely said, Valiant.” He grinned at 927. “Don’t listen to Tiger. A mate would be a wonderful thing. I am sure you will find one when the time is right.”

“But you have not found one? Do you want a mate?” 927 cocked his head to study Justice curiously.

Justice hesitated. “I would love to have a mate but I haven’t had the time to look for one yet.”

“You are very busy,” 927 agreed. “Tammy explained your job to me and everything you do for us.” He paused. “Will you find where I came from and set them free?”

“Yes,” Justice swore. “We are already working on it. We’ll do whatever it takes to bring them home.”

“I would like to be there when you do.”

Justice hesitated. “We’ll see. First we need to get back to Reservation. We don’t like to be away too long and we usually have a human security detail with us. It’s a task team that I control. We didn’t want them to be part of this mission though because we weren’t sure what we’d have to do to retrieve her or you. I didn’t want to make the task team uncomfortable or feel torn between their loyalty to their own kind and ours. Some of the humans who don’t work with us feel hatred and fear toward Species. Most don’t but the ones who do have a tendency to try to kill us when given the chance. We’re vulnerable to attack without more backup. We’re safe on Reservation but not always in the outside world yet.”

927 nodded. “I think I understand.”

Valiant took a seat in the SUV with Tammy on his lap. He wouldn’t let her go but she didn’t mind having his arms wrapped around her. She clung to him. Tiger drove with 927 in the front passenger seat. On their drive they wanted him to have the best view of the world he’d missed out on seeing.