Cosmos' Promise: Cosmos' Gateway Book 4 Read Free Page A

part of him was a little annoyed that he was the only one feeling a little self-conscious right now.
    “Let me guess,” he said dryly. “Tilly?”
    Terra nodded, reluctantly raising her eyes to meet his. “You are built very similar to the Prime males,” she observed as her eyes followed a droplet of water as it ran down his chest. “You are paler and have more hair on your chest,” she murmured as her eyes continued to follow the drop of water as it coursed its way further down. She drew in a sharp breath and took a step forward. “What happened to you?” She demanded when she saw a jagged scar on his hip.
    Cosmos jerked back a step as she came closer. If his self-control was hanging by a thread earlier, it was non-existent now. At least, it was until her words hit him like a MACK truck. A dark frown crossed his face and his fist clenched on the towel.
    “What the hell do you mean ‘I’m built similar to Prime males’?” He asked darkly. “Just how many have you known?”
    Terra’s hand stilled as she reached out to touch the jagged scar. She looked up at him with a raised eyebrow that was so damn like Tilly’s he could feel the heat rushing to his cheeks. What the hell was wrong with him? This was worse than hitting puberty in the middle of a Physics conference with nothing but a bunch of old people and a copy of Playboy to keep you sane.
    Terra pulled back and crossed her arms in front of her. “I’m a healer for my people,” she stated in a frosty tone. “It was part of my training to observe the physical attributes of the male body. How many I have known is none of your business unless you are willing to answer the same question! Just how many females have you known?” She snapped back.
    Cosmos didn’t think his face could get any hotter. “I shouldn’t have said that,” he admitted, looking away for a moment. “Ah, hell!” He muttered with a shake of his head.
    A husky chuckle escaped him when he realized he was standing there holding a towel in front of him in the hopes of retaining a slight semblance of modesty for Terra. What he had forgotten was his bathroom walls were mostly mirrors. Between the ones behind him and the ones to the side, Terra was getting almost a full view. With a shrug of his broad shoulders, he continued to wipe the water from his chest and hair before moving lower.
    “What are you doing?” Terra asked in a choked voice as her eyes followed the towel. “Where did you get all those scars from?”
    Cosmos’ lips tightened. He didn’t need to look in a mirror to know what she was seeing. He had scars from bullets, knives, and more than one explosion marring his tanned skin. He had grown accustomed to them. He wasn’t actively participating in as many missions as he used to, only the ones that were personal, or were a huge risk for his men, those he still oversaw.
    “I need to get dressed or Tilly will be back in here,” Cosmos said, tossing the towel to one side and brushing by her. “The last thing I need is for her to launch into a description of Angus in the buff again,” he said gruffly.
    Terra’s eyes followed Cosmos. He was a breathtaking male. The muscles in his shoulders were deceptively hidden in the clothes he wore. His back contained at least five separate scars that she knew had not only been painful but must have come close to killing him. She had learned much from RITA over the past several months to gain a better understanding of the human anatomy in order to help Jasmine ‘Tinker’ Bell and her sister, Hannah, with their pregnancies.
    A swell of heat rushed through her as he bent over and pulled a pair of tight, black boxers up over his taut buttocks. She felt her nipples harden with desire as she watched him dress. Everything inside her wanted to walk over and pull his clothing back off, throw him on his bed, and take possession of him. Her eyes widened in shock at the primitive, almost savage, need that was washing over her. She was confused