Knadyn: A Terraneu Novel (Book Six) (9 page)

After walking around Terraneu and getting
nowhere in her thoughts, Ava realized she needed to talk to her father. When
Knadyn’s parents had offered to let them come to Terraneu, she had been
thrilled. Then the reality had hit her like a bucket of cold water. Could she
leave everyone else behind on Earth while she lived a fantasy life here? Would
the guilt of what had become of the survivors eat away at her? She didn’t have
anyone she was particularly close to, but she did have a few people she
considered friends. She needed to know what her father was thinking. She found
him with Kneus in the technology dome. Excusing himself for a few minutes, they
started walking randomly on the paths.

“They told you about the offer to stay here on
Terraneu at the council meeting?” her father knew her well enough to get right
to the point.

“Yes.” She nodded, “What is your take on the
offer?”

“Well I have additional things to consider.”
He looked at her sideways. “There is another path they are offering me.”

“What would that be?” Ava wasn’t sure she
liked where this was headed.

“Well, I talked with Kniam at length and he
thinks that they will agree to assist on Earth, the vote is leaning that way—”

“That is great!” Ava didn’t dare to hope it
was true.

“Let me finish.” Her father moved her to sit
on a bench. “If what Kniam thinks comes to pass, Kneus will suggest that the
people of Earth have the genetic change done. It will make the survivors
dependent only on the sun and water for nutrition. These men aren’t naïve
enough to think that the fighting will stop completely. They are smart enough
to know it is a Band-Aid on the problem. The council is willing to provide
technology, medical aide and weaponry to all survivors. The only thing they
will ask in return is that everyone answer to one leadership. The two warring
factions will have to unite in order to get this help from Terraneu. Then any
other survivors that come along will have to answer to the new leadership as
well.”

Ava frowned wondering if that was even
possible. A life similar to what they had here on Terraneu would be a powerful
motivator. She supposed that it could happen. Seeing her father looking
thoughtful she asked, “What else. There is something you haven’t told me yet.”

“There is an additional caveat to their
offer. The existing leadership of the government faction will not be allowed
into any position of power on the new council of Earth. They have to agree to
step aside. That is to be their punishment for what they have done to Knadyn.”

Ava cringed. “Have you told them how power
hungry Jeromy is? He will never agree to step aside. He thinks that he holds
all the cards with Knadyn and the booby traps he planted in his mind. Are the
males from Terraneu going to get the release command before stating this
demand?” Ava’s voice was going higher in octave’s as she yelled. By the time
she was finished her father was patting her hand.

“Calm down, they know what they are doing.
They are much older than even I could imagine and they are honorable to the
extreme. Knadyn is the priority and they will do whatever it takes to get that
release command. I know Renee and Jeromy as well as you and have warned the
council about them. I think that Renee will agree to their terms and will try
to work Jeromy around. He is old and tired of all the politics. Getting this
new lease on life, literally turning the clock back and being young again…he
will agree.” Her father tapped his chin, “Now Jeromy on the other hand. I am
not able to say what that boy will do.”

Ava snapped, “He is not a boy anymore. He is
a brute and a bully. He won’t agree for any price to give up the power he
thinks he has.”

Her father just sighed, “Well then I suppose
it will come down to a vote. The men of Terraneu are going to give the people a
choice.” Grabbing her hand and squeezing he said, “That brings me to the next
part.” Ava looked into his hazel eyes and worried her lip between her teeth. By
the tone of his voice, she knew she wasn’t going to like what he would he was
going to say. “The Terraneu council would like me to be a liaison to Earth. The
new Earth council would answer to me, and I would bring all concerns to
Terraneu.”

Ava frowned, doing the calculations in her
mind, “If you were required to stay on Earth, you couldn’t have the change done
to utilize the two suns. They would alter you like the Earth survivors for the
one sun. You wouldn’t be able to live here.”

Her father nodded and got even more serious,
“Ava, we have been together a long time. Just us against the world. I know that
it has been a hard life and I sometimes wonder at the fates that brought us to
Scotland.” He went to rub his temples, a thing he did when thinking under
stress. “I am going to agree to what they are asking. I think the adventure of
helping Earth survivors pull together under the new rules will do me good. I
don’t want to live for longer than the one hundred years they will be adding to
the Earth human life span. Starting over as a young man and living another one
hundred years is enough for me.”

Ava went to say that she would do the same,
but before she could say anything, he held up his hand. “I want you to think
before you say anything. I am not blind Ava. I know that you were never meant
to be serious with any of the males you grew up with. You never had any
interest in them and found the thought of commitment ridiculous. Can you
honestly say that you feel that way now? About Knadyn?”

She squirmed inside at how accurate his
perception was. She had never felt any true connection to any of the males she
had met before. Jeromy had been a good fit in theory, but she couldn’t make
herself settle for him. The rest of the men that had come and gone from her
life had all ended up as friends. When she thought of going to Earth and only
seeing Knadyn every six months, or less, a part of her shattered.

Seeing her face crumble her father drew her
into a tight hug, “Ava … we have always been there for each other, trying to
survive. It’s time that we do more than that. We need to start
living
again. You will be able to do
anything you want here, not
forced
into doing what the community requires of you. If you do a lot of soul
searching you will find what will make you happiest and that is what you can
devote yourself to. Imagine the possibilities … I know you were only following
my work because it was expected that you would replace me, not because of any
great desire for the subject.” Ava swore she could feel tears falling on her
shoulder. “I want you to be happy Ava my girl. I want you to grab this chance
and make your mark in this universe. Stop holding back and jump in with both
feet!”

Ava felt a burning in her chest and a sudden
wetness on her face. She was crying…and she couldn’t stop. She sat there in her
father’s arms and let the tears flow. She cried for the loss of her mother, her
childhood, and the suffering of so many of her friends. Her father just held
her, his own tears wetting her shoulders. Ava had never let herself see that
her father had lost as much, if not more than she had. All of her life she had
focused on the hardships she had suffered. Now sitting here in his arms, she
felt all the pain he had been holding inside wash over her. He had lost the
love of her mother, forced into the life of a single father living life in a
bunker, threatened, and used for his mind. Getting this second chance would
give him back his purpose and feeling of accomplishment. He would be
appreciated and respected like he should have been these last thirty years.

 
Just
as suddenly as she had started crying, she started laughing. The people of
Terraneu were going to help make everything right again. She knew the survivors
would vote on a new leadership when given the opportunities for new lives. The
existing government leadership would need protection from the angry mob if they
tried to block what the Terraneu council was offering. Laughing so hard her
sides hurt, she took deep gasping breaths until she finally calmed.

“I love you dad.” Ava held him tight, “You
are right … about everything. I understand your decision and want you to know I
will always be here for you.” She patted him on the back and eased away wiping
the remaining wetness off her face. “I have to go. Come to Hu’lani before the
next mission to Earth, with one of the food deliveries if you want. Knadyn
won’t be in danger of a reaction to you, and I want you to get to know him.
Stay with us for a couple of weeks.” She stood up smiling brightly, “Keep me
informed when a final decision is made.” Before he could answer, she hurried
down the path to the transport room. Knadyn was waiting for her.

Knadyn was swinging in the hammock, waiting for Ava to get back from her
meeting in Terraneu. He was frustrated with the lack of progress in their
relationship, but he understood Ava’s position. How was he going to get her to
change her mind, when she was going back to Earth? He knew this was one of the
“things” she didn’t want to talk about for fear he would have a reaction. Every
time he tried to talk about it, she would change the subject.

When he had asked his father to find Ava, his family knew what that
meant, even if she didn’t. He wanted her to come to Terraneu and stay, not to
return to Earth in six months. He also knew that her father had to be another
reason for her reticence. Ava and her father were as close to each other as any
of his family. Her father agreeing to live on Terraneu might be the only way to
get her to stay as well.

There were so many variables in making a life with Ava work and he didn’t
care how long it took or how hard it got. He was going to find a way to be a
part of her life. If she wanted to live on Earth, he could see her every six
months. It would be hard being separated for half of the year while he healed
on Terraneu, and he wasn’t sure what the constant trauma would do to his life
span. However, Ava was worth it to him. He would do anything she asked if it
meant they could try to be together.

He was so wrapped in his thoughts he didn’t hear Ava until she was
standing at the edge of the patio.

“Knadyn?”

Startled, he rolled out of the hammock, landing clumsily on his backside
and hurried to jump up and right himself. “Ava. How did the meeting go?”

She ran across the patio and threw herself into his arms, “We can talk
about that later.” Before he could ask her what was wrong, she was kissing him.
Not a soft and gentle, “
Hello, I missed
you kiss
” but a passionate, “
take me
right here on the patio”
type of kiss.

Their mouths meshed and tongues clashed. As much as he wished he didn’t
have to, he broke their kiss. He couldn’t take advantage of her this way. With
his breathing heavy he asked, “Are you okay?”

Far from being deterred, Ava started placing kisses on his chin and down
his neck. His whole body shuddered, “Ava … you have to stop …” He couldn’t hold
out much longer, her mouth was making him crazy. “I do not understand the
change of heart.” She had caught his earlobe between her sharp teeth and was
alternating between nibbling on it and sucking. Her hands had been busy, moving
down his stomach and into his shorts. His eyes crossed and he was quickly
teetering into losing control.

“It’s okay Knadyn.” Her hands found him hard and more than ready. Looking
into her eyes he saw desire and something else shining in their bright hazel
depths, “I know you are trying to be honorable. We can talk it all out …
later.” She gave his shaft a hard squeeze and he gave up the fight.

“Later.” He agreed and fused his mouth to hers once again. One hand in
her hair to feel the silky strands, the other against her back he pressed into
her, trying to get her to step back. Instead, she just leaned into him and he
felt her nipples rubbing hard against his bare chest. He needed to get them
somewhere more comfortable … but where? They could try the hammock, but he
pictured them flying off and landing on the hard patio. He didn’t want this to
end with broken limbs. How about the beach? No. It always seemed romantic until
you were cleaning sand out of every orifice. How about a chair? Yeah,
Knadyn…that’s really romantic for your first time with the woman you want to
spend your life with, he chided himself.

Well, that left his original plan to get to a bed. Releasing his hold on
her hair, he moved both hands to her butt and lifted her against him. Problem
solved. Taking a step, he realized this might not have been the best plan. Ava
had wrapped her legs around his hips. Her dress was bunched around her hips and
he groaned loudly…she wasn’t wearing underwear. His shorts were no barrier
since they were unfastened and halfway pushed off. With every step, he was
rubbing against the perfect wet vee between her legs. He might embarrass
himself if he didn’t hurry. Kissing her almost savagely now, he rushed toward
their dome.

Even though it was only seconds, it seemed to take forever to get there.
Reaching out frantically he opened the door. Turning with Ava still in his
arms, he bounced her against the wall and hit the door lock at the same time.
Recovering his footing, he stumbled toward the hall. Would she want him to invade
her personal space or should he use his bedroom?

Sensing his hesitation she broke their frantic kissing, “My bedroom.
Hurry.” Then digging both hands into his hair, she resumed her passionate
attack on his mouth. Her hips moving against him.

He hurried. Making it to the bed, he wanted to laugh with relief. They
had at least made it this far. He sat her on the edge of the mattress, but she
kept her legs around his hips. Pulling his mouth from hers he gasped, “I want
to make this perfect…” he leaned back and taking the edge of her dress went to
pull it over her head.

“It will be perfect when you are inside me.” She wrenched her dress over
her head and dug her nails into his back. “I want you too badly to go slow.”
Urging him over her with her legs pulling at his back she begged, “Now Knadyn.
We can do it slow next time.”

Pushing his shorts off his hips and letting them fall to the ground, he
gave in to Ava’s plea. They would go slow next time. With his knee on the
mattress between her legs, he helped her scoot back on the bed. Getting a quick
look at the wet curls between her legs, he paused. That was a novelty he would
examine more closely later. Spreading her legs wider to accommodate his hips,
he pushed forward. He didn’t
need
to
go slowly, he was soaked from rubbing between her legs, but he went slowly
anyway. It was a tight fit, and felt like heaven. Her passage was squeezing
around him and when he pulled back, she jerked her hips forward.

“Stop teasing…” she groaned loudly, her nails biting into his back.

“I am going to enjoy this…” he pushed forward again and she flexed her
hips to meet his thrust. It was his turn to groan. He had partnered with
different unattached women on Terraneu before, but he never felt this kind of
electric connection with them. “You are not making this easy.”

“I want you deeper.” She met his next thrust, “and harder.” He adjusted
his hands to better prop himself off her slight frame, angling his hips harder
against her.

“Like that?” he ground his hips in a circular motion while buried as deep
as he could go. “Is this deep enough.”

“Yes.” Ava was gasping and clawing at his back, her hands moving to his
hips. “Like that.” She lifted her knees to press them into his sides and he was
suddenly deeper still. Groaning loudly he couldn’t stop himself. Against all
thought for her smaller frame, he was pounding against her mindlessly. Their
gasps and grunts echoed around the room. His body was screaming for release and
at the same time, he could feel Ava writhing against him, reaching for the same
fulfillment. Their bodies slick with perspiration, sliding and grinding against
each other.

Then Ava tensed against him, her whole body stiff one second then
shuddering the next. Her channel sheathed his shaft so tightly the pleasure was
almost painful and he couldn’t stop his climax. It burst from him with a shout,
during the next two thrusts and then he was spent. Exhausted and exhilarated at
the same time.

Making sure not to crush Ava, he rolled and tucked her against his side.

When he had caught his breath he asked, “Now can you tell me why the
change of heart?” Knadyn moved his fingers in a tight circle on her upper arm.
Her skin was tanned from the sun and she had gained a healthy sheen. She had
made statements that led him to think she was still unhappy with her
appearance. How many times had he told her it didn’t matter? She had always
shrugged off his compliments. She was perfect to him and he wouldn’t change a
thing. From her quirky laugh, to her sense of loyalty, to the way she stubbornly
refused to give up when facing a challenge.

Knadyn had thought Ava was asleep and hadn’t heard his question.
Therefore, he was startled when she blurted out, “When everything is settled
the council asked me if I would like to stay on Terraneu instead of returning
to Earth.”

Knadyn’s breath froze in his chest. Trying to sound nonchalant he asked,
“What do you think your decision will be?”

Knadyn felt her pulling up to look into his face, “I haven’t made a final
choice.” He could hear the teasing in her voice and her eyes were flashing with
humor. He could feel her fingers playing with his stomach and his body
responded. “It will be a…
hard
decision.” Her fingers had reached lower. Was she trying to kill him?

Flipping her onto her back he smiled, “Now who is being a tease?” He
gently moved some of the hair that fell across her forehead, “I do not want to
assume anything Ava. I have to ask. Is your change of heart about our
relationship, your way of saying that you will be staying here on Terraneu…with
me?”

“We will need to take things slow Knadyn, but yes. I will be staying on
Terraneu, and in whatever capacity you want me in your life.” She answered and
his heart burst with happiness.

~*~*~*~

It was no fun teasing Knadyn when he took everything so seriously. She
supposed she couldn’t blame him. She had made him wait a long time to take
their relationship to the physical level. Now she was the one waiting to see
what he would say. She would be staying on Terraneu, with him if he wanted her.

“Ava, how could you doubt that is what I want?” he went to place fleeting
kisses all over her face. “I have been waiting so long to be close to you, to
hear you say that you want to stay here. I was beginning to give up hope.”

Ava grabbed his face between her hands, “I may have to go to Earth on the
next mission to help, but when that is over I will be coming back.”

“You are going to Earth on the next mission?” he didn’t look at all happy
with that statement.

“I
might
have to go.” Ava
assured him. She was ready to get away from the serious talk about Earth and
back to their closeness from a moment ago. “We can face that when the time
comes. Right now there are more important things to think about.’

“What could possibly be more important? Ava—”

She just raised her eyebrow and lifted her face to place a kiss on his
chin. “You could not possibly—” she placed another kiss on his jawline closer
to his ear. “Putting yourself in danger—” she found the sensitive spot on his
neck and bit softly. “Never mind. You are right…more important things.”

Laughing softly she pulled Knadyn into her arms.