by Dakota Brown
I caught myself staring again as Doc climbed into the cab of the truck. Damn he had a nice ass.
"Be right back."
I went over to the beach while he parked the truck and tried to look anywhere other than at Ed and Allan. My brain just couldn't handle being surrounded by three hot guys at the moment.
"You okay?" Doc came back over to me.
"Yeah, just, uh..." There was no way I was going to tell him what my problem was.
He arched an eyebrow and waited.
Crap. "Um, yeah, I'm fine." I forced a smile and hoped my cheeks weren't red.
He laughed. "Okay, if you're sure. Let's go."
I climbed into the boat and quickly noted the life jackets bungeed to the underside of the seats, a paddle, and an anchor. They had the required safety equipment at least. What I could remember being required anyway. Probably needed some flares or something too. There were a couple of boxes strapped to the side of the boat, so maybe we were covered there, too.
Doc climbed on and sat next to me on one of the benches. Ed walked us out into deeper water and Allan put the motor down and got it running. Once Ed climbed onboard, boosting himself over the bow and climbing lightly over the side, Allan turned the boat out to deeper water. Ed sat in the bow and grinned at me.
We didn't go real fast. The breeze cooled my warm skin, and I enjoyed the feel of the sun beating down on me, without the humidity of most of the places I had lived up to this point.
No one spoke, and I thought we were all just enjoying being out and hopefully, relatively safe.
Allan slowed when we got near one of the islands. "We're not really supposed to swim unless we're close to land per the lake rules, but the islands count. The rangers know us, so they usually leave us alone, unless they want to say hi. Still, we may have company at some point."
He didn't seem concerned, so I didn't worry about it.
Ed unhooked the anchor and threw it out, securing the line to a cleat. Allan backed the boat to set the anchor and then turned off the engine.
I glanced into the water. While not as clear as the fae lake, I could easily see the bottom. It looked sandy with a mix of pebbles.
"How deep is it here?"
"About six feet under us. It drops off fast," Allan answered.
Doc pulled off his shirt, and my heart skipped at least a couple of beats. I cleared my throat and glanced away for a moment. He climbed over the side of the boat and lowered himself into the water.
Ed and Allan also pulled off their shirts, and I was pretty sure my heart would never forgive me. It would probably need some heavy-duty magical healing after this trip from the abuse. No one acted like they noticed my reaction, though Doc was leaning on the side of the boat opposite the boys, arms hooked over the edge waiting for us.
Ed tossed Allan a bottle, and I watched as Allan slathered sunblock all over his brother's back.
"Werewolves sunburn?"
"You do see our extremely northern European skin tones, yes?" Allan's steel gray eyes glinted in amusement.
"I had noticed." I cleared my throat again and blushed.
"We heal it fast enough, but it's better if we can just avoid burning. We don't always manage it." Ed took the bottle back and finished his arms and legs.
He tossed it at me then jumped in the water.
Allan rolled his eyes, then smiled at me. "Mind?" He pointed at his back.
"Not at all."
I tried really hard to just concentrate on the sunblock and not really think about what I was doing with it. Unfortunately, I couldn't ignore Allan's muscular back, or the heat I felt from running my hand over it. Four parallel scars ran across his shoulder blades, and I traced them with my hand. Claw marks? He shivered under my touch.
After that, I couldn't quite make my touch clinical. As my hands slid over his skin, I thought I heard his breath catch a few times. It was nice to know I wasn't the only one affected.
Allan turned when I finished and gestured at me. "I'll get yours."
"Sure."
I pulled off my shirt and threw it on top of his, then paused as I caught the look in Allan's eyes. Predatory, fixed on me, and more than a little intense.
Things tightened low in my stomach, and I was pretty sure he could tell his look had sent my heart racing.
I was in so much trouble.
He gestured for me to turn around.
Gratefully, I wrenched my gaze away from his and stared at the floor of the boat, balancing lightly as it moved on the water.
Allan's warm hands caressed my back as he spread the sunblock on. If I'd had any doubt about his interest before, it was gone now.
Victoria's comment about dating all three of them surfaced. I couldn't even think about how that would work. I also remembered Allan telling me just to enjoy myself.
Right, just enjoy myself.
Allan took the time to get my arms too, though he relinquished the bottle of sunblock so I could get the rest of myself.
He balanced in the boat behind me, seeming to wait until I finished before getting in.
"You can swim right?" His breath tickled my neck, and I gasped. I hadn't realized he was standing that close. All three of them moved really quietly.
"Yes. Of course."
"Good."
Before I could figure out what he meant, strong hands griped my waist. I shrieked as I sailed through the air and splashed into cool water.
I let myself sink, enjoying cooling off from the heat of the sun, and the heat of Allan's gaze.
Someone grabbed me around the waist and dragged me to the surface.
Laughing as I broke into the air, I twisted and splashed Doc in the face, though he didn't let go of me.
After studying me for a quick moment, as if trying to decide if I was okay with the rough handling, he grinned and tossed me toward Ed.
I was a good swimmer, but I couldn't keep up with the guys. I didn't expect to be able to, either. Maybe someday, if I learned to use magic, I could do something that would give me an edge. Until then, I was physically outclassed. I tried to keep away from them, and they traded off roughhousing with me until my abused body protested enough that I finally listened.
I swam back to the boat and hung off the side, gathering energy to hoist myself over the edge so I could dry off.
Doc came over and hooked his arm over the edge behind me. He still wore his beaded bracelets, and the water didn't seem to be bothering them.
"Having fun?"
I grinned. "Yeah, I am."
"Good. Want a hand getting in the boat?"
"Sure. I'm pretty tired."
He held out his hand under the water. I put my foot on it and he boosted me up so I could scramble over the side. I flopped in the bottom and stared at the bright sun. Doc managed to make getting back into the boat from the water look graceful, and he sat on one of the seats next to me.
"You should put on some more sunscreen. You've got fairly dark skin, but you're starting to look a little red in places."
"Probably." I didn't move.
He stepped over me and dug in the bag Allan had put onboard, pulling out a beach towel. He spread it out on one of the benches and gestured for me to lay there.
I groaned and held out a hand. He took it and pulled me to my feet. The boat rocked, sending me toward him faster than I had intended. Doc caught me and held me close.
"Ed," Doc snapped.
I laughed and unsuccessfully tried to ignore my racing heart.
"You wouldn't let her fall, Doc." Ed stood in the back of the boat, water dripping everywhere. Allan wasn't far behind, and Doc held me until both were on board.
When he finally released me, I laid down on my stomach on the bench. I just barely fit without having to drape my feet over the edge of the boat.
Doc knelt next to me and rubbed sunblock on my back while Ed and Allan dug in the bag. I suspected they were going after food.
His touch soothed me, while still setting my heart racing.
Now my heart absolutely pounded in my chest. The poor thing was getting quite the stress test this weekend, between the fear from last night and these three today.
My breath caught as he leaned over me and started on my other arm.
"Doc," I whispered, eyes still shut because of the sun.
"Hmm?"
I couldn't get anything even remotely intelligent formed in my mind to say, so I remained quiet until he finished with my arm.
"Want me to keep going?"
I finally turned my head and opened my eyes. His obsidian eyes studied me with a similar predatory look to Allan's. A slight smile curled the corner of his lips. He knew exactly what his touch was doing to me.
"I..."
A spray of water splattered over us and Doc glanced over the side of the boat in annoyance, releasing me from his intensity for just a moment. I hadn't noticed Ed or Allan get back in the water, but they weren't in the boat, and it sounded like they were having a splash war.
"Sure," I breathed out, though I wasn't sure it was actually loud enough for him to hear me.
He immediately brought his attention back to me. Clearly, he had heard me. He hesitated for a minute, looking surprised before his smile returned.
Chapter 14
Sofia
"You might want to breathe," he said softly as he gently painted my face with sunblock.
"You're making that a little difficult," I managed to get out.
He chuckled and ran his hand over my neck and over my collarbones. I shivered, despite the heat of the sun beating down on us.
The sports bra covered most of my breasts, though his fingers brushed across the top of my chest, spreading sunblock. I trembled under his touch. I was both terrified I was getting in over my head and thrilled by his touch.
I gasped when he lightly touched my stomach.
"I'll stop any time," he offered.
"No, don't."
My back arched as he ran his hand over my stomach, and I couldn't help a small moan as he got to my lower stomach below my belly button. He hesitated, and I almost thought his hand shook a little. I kept my eyes squeezed shut. Doc finished my midsection and moved to my legs.
I managed to calm down by the time he got to my feet. He sat next to me on the floor of the boat, leaning his back against the side. His breaths came heavier than normal, and I held in a smile that I'd affected him too.
"Are you two coming back in?" Ed finally called.
"I need to rest. The sun feels pretty good," I managed to get out. "I'm sure you're not tired. Get back in," I said more quietly to Doc.
"Do you want to head back?"
"No, I'm fine." I turned my head toward him and opened my eyes a crack. The predatory look still burned in his dark eyes, and I was no longer calm.
He smiled and brushed some of my hair off my face. "We probably should get back soon."
I leaned into his touch a little. "We have plenty of time. It's just noon. I probably won't get sunburnt if you want to throw the guys around a little longer."
Doc actually blushed and cleared his throat. "True."
"I promise, I usually have more endurance than this. It's just getting beat up last night and adjusting to the altitude slowed me down a little."
"No one is judging." Doc grinned, and the predatory look softened to something closer to his normal easy-going manner.
He stood and lowered himself into the water. One of the guys yelped. I thought it was Ed.
My breathing slowed as the sun beat down on me, and I felt myself drifting off to sleep.
"Dude, what did you do to her?" I was pretty sure that was Allan.
"Sunblock," Doc answered softly.
I was surprised I could hear their conversation.
"She didn't react that strongly when I did her back. You had her all sorts of bothered from the moment you touched her."
How did they know? Oh, right, werewolves...
"She likes Doc," Ed sing-songed.
"She likes all of us," Allan argued.
"Yeah, but Doc has spent more time with her," Ed stated.
"You do realize she might be able to hear you two?" Doc cautioned.
"Thought she was asleep," Ed replied innocently.
"You had better hope so," Doc replied before I heard another yelp and a splash.
My face was burning, and I tried to keep my breathing even. I did not want them to know I had overheard them. It wasn't that I felt like I should be embarrassed, it was more that I really didn't know how I was supposed to feel and embarrassed won the current 'what is going on in Sofia's head' contest.
I drifted in and out of sleep while the guys played, but I woke when the boat rocked. They had all climbed back in.
"Hungry?" Allan asked when I sat up.
He sat on the bench next to me.
"Yeah, a little." My stomach grumbled, and Allan laughed.
Ed reached between us, a sandwich in his hand. I took it from him and dug in. They made me drink a bunch of water, and then Allan pulled up the anchor and away we went, this time with Ed driving.
Allan was sitting next to me, and remembering the overheard conversation, I scooted a little closer and bumped him with my shoulder.
"Have fun?" He put his arm around me.
"Yeah. Thanks."
"We enjoyed having you along. We might get a few more weekends where we can swim. Join us."
I grinned that they'd want me to, considering how much trouble I'd been lately. "I'd love to."
He tightened his arm around me and smiled, pleased.
I offered to help when we got back to shore, but they were so practiced at this that they didn't need my help. They did use the boat ramp since there were a bunch of people in the parking lot. I went with Doc to get the truck and left Ed and Allan to deal with the boat until we got back. I would have waited on the beach, but it didn't feel safe to be alone.
"Have a good time?" Doc asked when we were alone.
"Umhm."
"Good."
Shortly, they had the boat loaded and we were headed back to Doc's cabin. The silence in the truck was comfortable and though I knew we needed to start thinking about what we were going to do about the magic mafia, I wasn't ready to dive into that yet.
It didn't surprise me when Allan and Ed grabbed snacks as soon as we were back inside.
"They're always eating when they're home," Doc complained.
I shrugged. "Seems like they need to. Don't you ever eat?" I had only ever seen him drink tea.
"Yes." He didn't elaborate.
"I'm going to go clean up a little."
"Take your time. You know where the clean towels are?"
"Victoria found them." I hadn't actually been intending on taking a shower, but now that he mentioned it, it seemed like a good idea.
"When you're clean, I'll rebandage your back."
"Okay, thank you."
He headed into the kitchen, and I went into the bathroom to clean up.
Chapter 15
Doc
"You're going to have to talk to her, Doc." Ed stopped eating long enough to fix Doc with a long stare. "Like, today."
"You know, it might be better for the two of you if I don't talk to her," Doc murmured. "I can just pull the 'I'm your teacher' card and back off. I didn't really intend to get that involved with her to start with."
"Doc, she's completely into you, and despite some of your previous experiences, I don't think what you are is going to scare her off," Ed insisted.
"I thought you wanted her to be into you?" He crossed his arms and studied his pack brothers, feeling conflicted. He really shouldn't get involved with Sofia, for so many reasons. Reasons that seemed more and more insignificant the harder he tried to convince himself to back off.
&n
bsp; "I want her to be into all of us," Ed replied.
"That's asking an awful lot of someone. Especially someone we just met."
Ed shrugged. "If we don't talk to her, at some point, she's going to think she has to choose, and she might choose Alex since there's only one of him and there's three of us. If we want to keep her, we need to convince her she wants to be with us." He clenched his fists.
Doc's brows rose in surprise. "You've clearly thought a lot about this."
"Only every waking moment I'm not trying to pay attention to class." Ed sighed.
"Ed, if you want to date her..." He couldn't continue because he had already offered to back off once, and the idea hadn't felt good then and felt even worse now. There was a chance she would accept him for who he was, and that was very intriguing. Unlikely, but intriguing.
"Doc, she figured out that we're werewolves and you're not all on her own. I think she knew before last night. It doesn't seem to bother her. I want to keep her with us," Ed finished earnestly.
He glanced at Allan. Ed had been pushing Sofia at him, but not at his brother. Probably because Ed had the same worries he did about what he was being harder to accept than two werewolves.
"I want to keep her, too. I could probably be convinced to simply keep her with the pack and not date her, though." Allan looked uncomfortable at that thought. He stared at the table, hands gripping his fork and spoon as if they were a lifeline. Doc knew how he felt.
"The first time we take her running with us you're going to change your mind and it would be better to have the matter settled before we get that far." Ed leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.
"How exactly do you think you're going to take her running with us? She won't be able to keep up on two legs, and she doesn't know any magic. I'm not even sure if mages can shapeshift." Doc had a sneaking suspicion he knew what Ed intended.
"Same way you do, Doc."
Suspicion confirmed. Ed was really convinced Sofia was the one if he was suggesting they give up that secret.
"Do you really think she would agree to that, and then be okay with it after if she did?" He couldn't even imagine her being okay with the idea.