Shifted Illusions

by C. E. Black

  My fingers speared through Henri’s hair, needing something to hold on to as Leo pumped into me. He was slow at first, but as my body welcomed him, he quickened his pace, pounding into me as though he couldn’t get deep enough.

  Leo pulled away, and I called out a protest. “Shh,” he said, taking Henri’s place. He kissed me deeply, and when he pulled away, he had to untangle my arms from around his neck. “Henri wants to be inside you while I’m inside him. Is that okay?”

  My eyes widened, and my lips parted as visions of what that would look like flooded my mind. The ache that accompanied those thoughts had me squeezing my thighs together. “Yes, please.”

  He grinned. “Excellent.”

  As Leo moved off the bed, Henri propped my hips with a pillow and tugged my knees apart. Then slid on a condom and hovered over me. “Are you okay?”

  I wrapped my arms around his neck and kissed him. “I am so okay, Henri. I feel like I’m dreaming.”

  “This is no dream, Beth. I love you so much.”

  “I love you, too.”

  “And I love Leo,” he whispered.

  I gave him a warm smile. “I love Leo, too, you know.”

  “I do know.” He took a deep breath. “This is really going to work, isn’t it?”

  I nodded my head. “It is.” There was no doubt in my mind now. The three of us clicked, and I finally felt loved. Being loved by two men was no hardship, not when they knew how to touch me the way they did.

  Henri cupped a breast and brought his lips to the tight peak, sucking until I was writhing beneath him.

  When he stiffened, I looked over his shoulder to see Leo running his hands up Henri’s back.

  “Relax,” he whispered, and Henri’s body loosened, then Leo did something that had Henri groaning.

  “Tell me what he’s doing?” I asked.

  Jaw tight, Henri squeezed his eyes shut and gasped. “He has his fingers in my ass.”

  “What does it feel like?”

  He trembled and rocked his hips, causing the head of his cock to slide up my folds. We both gasped.

  “Feels so good,” he whispered.

  “I’m about to make you feel even better,” Leo said.

  Henri’s entire body trembled above me. I cupped his cheek with one hand, running my fingers through his hair with the other. “Look at me, Henri,” I said.

  His eyes popped open, and he groaned. “My god, Beth. Leo!” he cried out, his hips jerking forward.

  “Slide into her, Hawk,” Leo told him. “I bet she’s dripping for you.”

  “I am,” I gasped as Henri’s cock slid over my clit.

  With a single thrust, he was inside me, and I cried out.

  “Oh, Fuck,” Henri groaned.

  “Are you okay?” Leo asked him.

  Henri’s expression had twisted in pleasure. I was more than sure he was okay.

  Leo’s hand slid over Henri’s belly, brushing my clit, and I hissed.

  “God, yes,” Henri groaned again, thrusting inside me, deeper than before.

  It took a few moments, but eventually, we found a rhythm, and the pleasure became so intense, it had me writhing.

  Through my own indulgence, I watched Henri’s face. His eyes closed, and his lips parted with a look of pure bliss.

  Leo caught my eye and bit down on Henri’s shoulder, causing the man above me to thrust into me so hard, I saw stars.

  I clenched around Henri’s cock, and he gasped, then took my mouth in a ferocious kiss, swallowing my screams of enthusiasm.

  “Fuck! I love this,” Leo growled. “If you could see what the two of you look like below me right now. God, I’m about to come.”

  “I’m there, too,” Henri gasped.

  “Me three.” A hard tremor shook my body as my release crashed over me.

  I clawed at Henri’s back as he buried his face into my chest and yelled his release. Leo followed.

  They both sagged, crushing me beneath them, but I was too sated and happy to care. My heart was so full of love, my eyes stung with tears.

  “We’re crushing Beth,” Henri murmured and tried to lift up only to groan and collapse once again. He caught himself with his hands and looked down at me. “Are you okay?”

  Smiling through my tears, I nodded. But he didn’t believe me.

  “Leo, move.”

  Henri groaned as Leo pulled away. “Beth, Beth,” Henri said as he covered my face with kisses. “What’s wrong? Are you hurt? Did we hurt you? I was so lost in the pleasure, I wasn’t careful.”

  “No,” I sniffed. “I’m not hurt. I’m… It was so beautiful, Henri.”

  His shoulder sagged, and he smiled. “It really was. I love you, Beth.”

  “I love you, too.”

  Leo came back from the bathroom and slid into the bed. Henri pulled out of me slowly, and Leo gathered me into his arms. “I need your lips, kitten.”

  I raised my chin and kissed him softly, but that wasn’t enough for him. He drove his tongue into my mouth and claimed me.

  “I cleaned up and put a new condom on,” he said into my ear as he maneuvered me to straddle his lap. “Let me feel you again.”

  It was a little awkward, but going with my instincts, I gripped his cock and brought it to my entrance.

  “That’s it, Beth. Take me deep.”

  I sat down slowly, and my eyes rolled back in my head as he filled me up.

  “You’re so fucking sexy,” Leo growled.

  Lips wrapped around a nipple, and I opened my eyes to see the top of Hawk’s head. “I can’t get enough of you, Beth,” he said, squeezing my breasts in both hands.

  My hips jerked, and Leo grabbed them to steady me. “Ride me, kitten.”

  I started off slow, enjoying the leisurely glide of Leo’s cock. His gaze smoldered at me as his fingers dug into my hips. This was my new favorite position.

  Henri leaned over Leo to capture his lips, and my control slipped. I moved faster, the sight of my men together causing my pussy to clench.

  “Fuck!” Leo pulled his mouth away from Henri. “She’s so tight.”

  “Tell me about it,” Henri replied, stroking his cock. I licked my lips, wondering what he tastes like.

  “I can’t hold out,” Leo growled. “Are you close?”

  He slid a thumb over my clit, and I cried out, “So close.”

  He rubbed faster. “Come with me, Beth.”

  I gritted my teeth as a third orgasm rolled over me, and I soared for several seconds before crashing. When I opened my eyes next, I was wrapped in Leo’s arms, and Henri was cleaning himself up.

  “That was…” I gasped for breath, my heart pounding wildly in my chest.

  “Fucking fantastic,” Leo finished for me, and I smiled against his chest.

  “Perfect,” Henri said, wrapping his arms around both of us.

  “Perfect,” I sighed.

  23

  Hawk

  Leo shredded a block of cheese, making a mess all over the counter. But I was more absorbed in the way he concentrated on his task, a smile brightening his face every once in a while, as though he remembered something pleasant. It seemed he was experiencing the same symptoms as me. The ailment? Undeniable bliss.

  We were making macaroni and cheese, something warm, comforting, and quick for a cold day. We’d worked up an appetite. Oh, hell yes we did… I chuckled under my breath, remembering the moment the three of us came together. It had been a pivotal moment in my life. My first male lover and my first threesome. And they were both with the two people I loved most on this earth.

  “Are you going to add the butter?”

  “Huh?”

  Leo pointed to the baking dish full of cooked noodles. “You were getting the butter.”

  Oh, yeah. I shook my head and went back to making our dinner.

  “Having a hard time concentrating?” Leo asked. “Because I am.” He set the grater down and boxed me in against the counter.

  I widened my legs to be closer to hi
s height and gripped his waist. It had the added benefit of letting him fit himself against me perfectly.

  “I can’t stop thinking about what you felt like inside me,” I told him.

  “Mmm,” he moaned as he kissed me. “Me either.” He kissed me again. His day-old stubble scraped against my jaw. The skin was sensitive from earlier, but I relished the feeling. I wondered if he felt the same.

  My phone rang, interrupting us, and I cursed aloud this time. “It’s Teij. I forgot to tell you he called earlier. I came into the laundry room to tell you but got distracted. Wonder why?” I smirked. “He said they picked up a couple of shifters staking out Beth’s place. They’re questioning them now,” I told Leo quickly before answering the phone. “Hello?”

  “You’ve been compromised,” Teij said.

  Leo rushed out of the kitchen to check on Beth. From the sound of it, she was just finishing up in the shower.

  “This is a secure line,” I said to Teij as I switched off the oven and jogged up to my office to check the security cameras. “You can speak freely. What happened?”

  The cameras showed nothing out of the ordinary, and I ran back downstairs to find Beth and Leo.

  “Sōm cracked our guests. Your location was leaked somehow. Alex is working on it, but he’s stuck. It keeps leading us back here, to your computer. But he can’t find any sign you’ve been hacked.”

  My brows pinched together. There was no fucking way someone hacked into my system. “I have so many protections on that thing, I couldn’t even hack into it.”

  Leo was explaining what was going on to Beth when I entered his room. “It’s okay. We just need to change locations,” he told her as she pulled on a pair of sweats.

  “We’re leaving now,” I told Teij. I grabbed her duffle bag for her to throw a few things in, expecting it to be empty. When I encountered a full bag, I raised my eyebrow, and she took it from me, her lips pressing firmly together. The light-hearted woman a few minutes ago was gone.

  “I’m always prepared to run,” she said.

  Nodding, I led her into the living room where Leo stationed himself by a window. Beth paced while I hurried to the fireplace. The TV moved easier on one of those adjustable mounts. I slid it to the side, revealing the hidden safe.

  “There’s no time,” Teij said, as I pulled a handgun from the safe. “Your location could have been compromised. You need to get out of there without leaving a trail. We’re sending a chopper. Should be there any second.”

  Leo glanced over, his expression tight, and I shook my head in frustration. This was a nightmare. How the hell had they gotten through my safeguards? “Yes, sir—”

  “Shit!” I heard come through the line.

  “What’s going on?” I checked on Beth and found her sitting stiffly on the couch, her hands gripping the edge of the cushion.

  “Destroy Leo’s phone!” Alex’s shout came through the line, and Leo’s expression turned to horror. Yanking the device from his back pocket, he marched to the fireplace and threw it in the fire.

  Teij cursed. “Alex found the leak. Somehow, they tracked Leo’s phone. His best guess from an outside email host. Tell him to destroy the phone. And get on that chopper—”

  The line cut out, and I shoved the phone into my pocket. I hadn’t taken my eyes off Leo and had witnessed his face gradually pale.

  “I’m sorry,” he said.

  “What the hell is going on?”

  “I found a lead…”

  “A lead to what?” My stomach churned because I had a bad feeling I knew exactly what he would say.

  Leo clenched his jaw and turned away.

  “Wolford.” The name left a bad taste in my mouth. “You compromised Beth’s safety for revenge?” I seethed. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”

  “I was impatient, I know, but I just wanted to get the motherfucker. I didn’t think—”

  “Exactly! You didn’t think.” I shook my head. “Unbelievable.”

  “Guys, please.” Beth stepped between us. I hadn’t even realized we were almost toe-to-toe. “We have to go,” she said, panic lacing her voice. “I hear a helicopter.”

  Taking a calming breath, I broke eye contact to look at Beth. “That’ll be Roman. He’s our ride. Come on.”

  I’d clasped her hand in mine and swung open the front door when a high-pitched alarm blared in my ear. “Ahhh!” I dropped Beth’s hand and fell to my knees. I gripped the side of my head, the pain so intense I thought my eardrum would explode.

  “Henri!” Beth called out as Leo rushed forward. “Hawk, what’s happening?”

  “The security alarm,” I ground out as I ripped the earpiece from my ear and threw to the ground, leaving behind a ringing noise. But at least the pain stopped. With shaky hands, I slipped the contacts out of my eyes and blinked away the burn.

  “What the fuck was that?” asked Leo.

  “A new tech I was working on.” I rubbed my eyes and shook my head back and forth to get rid of the last of the ringing, but my vision was distorted. Two blurry blobs hovered over me.

  “Why would you link the alarm to an earpiece?”

  I blinked several times and shook my head. It helped, but Leo’s features were barely recognizable. “I didn’t. It’s faulty.”

  The reverberation of the chopper as it rose above the treetops made Leo yell, “You good? Because whoever tripped the alarm will be here any minute. We have to get out of here.”

  I nodded my head, though I wasn’t okay. Not yet. My vision was slowly improving but definitely would be a problem if someone attacked us.

  Leo cursed, and I spun around. “What?”

  “We have company.”

  I squinted at the tree line and saw three blurry shapes emerge.

  “Get her to the helicopter,” Leo yelled at me.

  “Here, take the gun.”

  “Keep it. I plan to use my teeth and claws for this fight.”

  “No!” Beth yelled as I grasped her arm. “We can’t leave without you, Leo.”

  He cupped her cheek in his palm and pressed his lips to hers. “I’ll be right behind you. Now, go!”

  Beth sniffed but did as he told her. Gripping her duffle bag with one hand, the other held tightly to me as we rushed into the clearing. Roman hovered the chopper over the ground without landing and waited on us.

  I turned back and blinked as Leo, mid-transition, took a mountain lion out with one swipe to the head. The animal didn’t get back up.

  Two more lions jumped onto Leo, and a mighty roar filled the clearing. He threw one off him as movement came from the trees. As my vision cleared, I sucked in a panicked breath. There was no way Leo could take on all of them. I had to go back.

  BETH

  We ran toward the black helicopter as it lowered to the clearing about fifty yards from the cabin. Henri looked back, but I couldn’t. If I checked on Leo like I was dying to do, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from going back. And if I did, I would only be a distraction for him.

  Squeezing my eyes shut, I said a little prayer to whatever deity might hear me. For Leo. For Me. And for Henri. He was struggling to keep going, his need to help Leo written all over his face.

  “I’ll hoist you up,” he said as we approached the hovering helicopter. “When you get in, tell Roman to get out of here. I’m sure he’s already called for a team.”

  I wasn’t surprised he would go back to help Leo. As much as I wanted to protest, I knew I couldn’t stop him.

  “Wait!” I wrapped a hand around the nape of his neck and pulled him into a kiss. “You bring him back to me, Henri. And you better be with him.”

  “I promise,” he avowed, then he took my duffle bag and threw it into the open door of the helicopter. “You’re next,” he said, giving me a strained grin. I tried to smile back but couldn’t.

  Henri gripped my waist and lifted me until I could grab ahold of the edge of the opening. A hand seized one of mine, and Henri’s hands fell away as someone pulled me the r
est of the way in. Panting, I sat back on my knees and looked up to thank whoever had helped me and stared into my uncle’s hate-filled expression.

  “Hello, sweetheart. I’ve been looking for you.”

  “Uncle James!” I gasped and whipped around to look for Henri. He was already halfway across the clearing. “Henri!” As he turned at my call, one of the mountain lions attacked him. I screamed as its claws slashed into his back. But Henri barely flinched. He grabbed the lion by the head and threw him several feet away.

  The helicopter lifted with a jolt, sending me falling back. My uncle grabbed my hand and hauled me into a seat. “I’ve been looking for you for a long time,” he yelled over the roar of the chopper’s blades.

  “Not long enough.”

  “You ungrateful, bitch. I took care of you when your parents died, and this is how you repay me? You have no idea what kind of trouble you’ve caused me. Now shut up and buckle in. We have an important meeting in Nashville, then I can dump you off and wipe my hands of you.”

  “Wh-who are we meeting?”

  James’ maniacal laugh sent a chill down my spine. “Your soon-to-be husband. He paid a lot of money for you and was pissed when he found out you were misplaced. Be prepared to pay for that,” he sneered.

  I shook my head no. “I’m not going with you.”

  He snorted. “You already are.”

  “No. I won’t… I can’t go back there.” My head swam with images from my past. The pain of each injection, and the agony of men’s fists and boots beating my body until I’d lost consciousness. The faces of the men who abused me swam through my mind, melding together to form one face. My uncle’s.

  I shook my head at him. No one would ever control me like that again. No one.

  A quick glance determined we were too high to jump. I would never survive.

  White blanketed the ground below, the cabin still in view. We hadn’t gotten far. I could still see Leo and Hawk fighting in the clearing.

  I was faced with a choice. Below held the likelihood of my death. But to stay meant certain torment. Maybe even for the rest of my life.