Mark actually laughed at his distress. “That might not have been the best time to flirt with her or me,” he admitted. “Honestly, I think you embarrassed her more than anything else.”
“I’m not sure it’s that simple,” Zane muttered, mentally kicking himself for his lack of impulse-control.
“Trust me on this one,” Mark insisted. His voice still sounded slurred, probably from the fangs. “She’ll be fine with this. You can just be a little hard to take at first, but she seems really fond of you.”
Zane stood and hesitated. “I really need to go after Lexi. Are you okay?”
Mark hesitated, obviously taking stock of his own physical condition before replying. “Yeah, I’m doing much better now, but I guess I’d better walk my ass over to get some blood for the fridge.”
“I’ll come by and feed you again tomorrow,” Zane promised. “It’ll make you stronger.”
Mark grinned. “Thanks. Something tells me human blood isn’t going to be nearly as good as yours.” There was a moment of hesitation. “I’ll totally understand if you can’t manage it. What happened with your woman watching clearly made you uncomfortable, which kind of surprises me. I mean, you seem pretty comfortable with your sexuality.”
Zane was comfortable with his sexuality, which was strange since the shifters weren’t nearly as comfortable with him this way. That was the reminder he needed of why he shouldn’t have joked about this with Lexi.
“I don’t think she liked me being turned on while feeding you,” Zane admitted with a sigh. “Then, I was stupid enough to joke about something this serious, like she’d want us to share her.”
“Don’t shifters have threesomes?” Mark asked.
“Sure, we do, but shifter females don’t like the idea of their males being with each other that way,” Zane replied. “I guess they don’t mind with those lower in the clan. It’s really complicated. Damn, I don’t want Lexi to be disgusted by me.”
Mark laughed. “That’s not the problem, Zane.”
“Then why would she run out of here?” he asked, not sure how he was going to fix this. “I’m sure she was already uncomfortable with me being attracted to you, and then I made a joke about the whole thing instead of trying to make things right with her.”
“From what I could tell, her own reaction to what was going on just made her nervous,” Mark assured him. “What I don’t get is why this is bothering you so much. A lot of people are into men and women, and it’s no secret you are.”
“That’s not as accepted among the shifters,” Zane explained. That was one of the reasons he enjoyed hanging out at the vampire settlement so much. His own clan had expectations that he would find a mate and continue their line.
“I don’t think it’s an issue for her,” Mark argued again. “That doesn’t mean she’s going to let you sleep with men or even have a threesome. She might, and if she does, you should definitely call me because I’d be totally down for that.”
Zane’s eyes narrowed. “Is this just your way of telling me you find my mate attractive?”
Mark laughed. “I find both of you attractive.”
That admission came as a surprise since he’d never picked up that vibe from Mark before.
“Don’t look so shocked,” Mark said. “For years, I had this fantasy going about having Layla and Danny together. Of course, I never mentioned it because we were all friends, and Danny was always pissed about the fact that I’d slept with Layla before, so I figured he’d never be interested. I’ve been in other threesomes. So, yeah, I’d be willing to help your woman experiment if it came down to it.”
“I’ll keep that in mind, but I’m not sure I’d ever want to share,” Zane admitted. “Having a mate is different. Lexi is all I want. Don’t get me wrong, I can still appreciate an attractive person, and I like the fantasy, but there’s a real connection between us. She’s mine.”
“I’m glad you found that. Still, if you change your mind, let me know,” Mark added with a wink.
“I will,” Zane assured him. “I really would be willing to let you watch if she’s okay with it.”
“Fuck, Zane,” Mark hissed. “That fantasy will feature heavily in my next solo session in the shower.”
Zane just shook his head, surprised that anyone could think of something more inappropriate to say than he normally did. “I’d better go find Lexi.” Zane gave an exaggerated sigh.
“Don’t look like you’re heading off to a funeral.” Mark was clearly trying not to laugh. “Lexi was definitely into what was going on in here, and she does not have an issue with your preference.”
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Lexi felt really stupid for taking off the way she had. Leaving Zane like that had been pretty juvenile, and she wasn’t even sure why she’d suddenly been so embarrassed by her own reaction and Zane’s flirting. Zane flirted and teased. Those weren’t things that bothered her about him. She loved those things about Zane, and yet she’d run out on him.
“Hold up, Lexi,” Quinn called out, and they waited for another woman who was approaching them. “Hey, Norah,” Quinn greeted the woman.
“Hi, Quinn,” she replied. “I’m here to relieve you on guard duty. Danny had a cow about you doing it since you’d done training this morning.” Then she gave Lexi a kind smile. “He also wanted me to assure you it’s not because he doesn’t trust you, and to remind you that he’s going to apologize for being an ass later.”
Quinn rolled her eyes. “Stupid vampire thinks being pregnant makes me helpless.”
“He does have a point about you overdoing it,” Norah argued in a weak voice. “You don’t always know your limits.”
“Are you okay?” Lexi asked Norah. She hadn’t met Norah, but she was guessing that this was the same Norah who was married to Rand, and she’d heard the woman wasn’t feeling well. Norah was slightly shorter than her, with a slender build, brown hair, and warm brown eyes.
“I’m fine, really. I’ve just been a little under the weather,” Norah assured her. “It’s nice to finally meet you. Rand told me all about you. I’m Rand’s wife, Norah.” That confirmed what Lexi had suspected.
“Your husband is very nice,” Lexi said.
Norah laughed. “Most think he’s a little scary when they first meet him.”
“Maybe his size is intimidating, but as soon as he opens his mouth, you have to see he’s a total sweetie,” Lexi argued.
“I couldn’t agree more,” Norah said around a yawn.
“Since Norah’s here, I’ll head home,” Quinn told them. “I may as well try to get some sleep before Danny gets back from Treasure Island. Something tells me Danny’s going to be in a piss poor mood.”
“Because of Mark?” Lexi asked.
“What happened to Mark?” Norah asked. “I thought he was fine after the attack. Is there an infection?”
“He got himself a shiny new pair of fangs,” Quinn explained.
“Oh, no.” Norah looked really concerned. “How is he handling it?”
“He was a little shaky, but he seems to be doing okay with everything,” Lexi replied honestly.
“This is going to be hard on Connor,” Norah said mostly to herself. “He’s feeling really guilty about Mark’s attack.”
“Yeah, this was a big shock,” Quinn said. “We figured he was fine when he didn’t die.”
“He is fine,” Lexi argued, annoyed that they were acting like Mark was dying, especially when she got the impression from Mark that this wasn’t a bad outcome. At first, he’d seemed confused, but once that had faded, he’d seemed comfortable with the change.
“You’re right,” Quinn agreed. “You just have to understand that Danny didn’t handle his change very well, so we’re all worried about how Mark will deal with it.”
“But Danny’s situation was totally different,” Lexi pointed out.
“Listen, I think you should try to forget what you saw of Danny’s memories,” Quinn suggested. “While he’s no longer got an issu
e with being a vampire, he’s still not too happy about how he became one, and he doesn’t like other people knowing those details. I’m pretty sure he got pissy with you because it felt like you were intruding on his private hell.”
“I didn’t mean to,” Lexi insisted.
“I know,” Quinn assured her. “Danny knows it, as well, and I get the impression you didn’t even realize you could do that.”
“I’m not sure what I did,” she admitted.
“I’m not entirely certain either,” Quinn said. “Most of what I know about the Fae comes from stories. I’m sure Kyleigh can help you more. Maybe you can meet her tomorrow. For now, don’t be too hard on Zane. I’m not sure what he did to piss you off, but he really does mean well, and he obviously cares a lot about you.”
“I’m not mad at Zane,” she denied without hesitation. “God, he must think I’m mad at him. I really fucked up.”
“Nah,” Quinn assured her. “Zane’s pretty forgiving. In fact, I’ve never seen him hold a grudge with anyone. I’m going home to rest, but I’ll talk to you later.”
Lexi felt like a total bitch. How could she have run out on Zane like that? Ugh! She wanted to smack herself.
“Did you want to go home?” Norah asked.
“Actually, I’d like to go for a walk,” Lexi told her. “I need to clear my head before I try to explain to Zane why I acted like an idiot with him.”
“Sure,” Norah said, just before she doubled over and puked.
Chapter Fifty-Eight
Zane found Lexi waiting for him on Mark’s front porch when he walked out.
“I thought you’d left,” he said, looking away as soon as his eyes met hers.
“I did, but Norah started puking, so I figured we should wait here. I was just planning to walk around the block to clear my head and come back here to wait for you anyway. I would have gone back into the house, but I locked myself out. We were just trying to decide if we should knock or if you’d be busy helping Mark.”
That’s when Zane noticed Norah sitting on the corner of the porch, sipping water from her bottle.
“You okay?” Zane asked.
Norah let out a weak laugh. “Do I look okay?”
“No, but you’ll feel better in a few weeks,” he assured her. He’d noticed the change in her scent when he’d been around her over a month ago, so he’d guess she was anywhere between eight and ten weeks pregnant. Shifter females didn’t have issues with being sick during pregnancy, but it happened with many of the vampires and humans.
“So, you figured it out?” Norah asked.
“Weeks ago,” Zane replied. “Shifters can tell by your scent, so any of us who’ve been around you know you’re breeding.”
Norah nodded. “Keep this to yourself for now. I don’t want Connor freaking out about this while he’s got so many other things going on. I just heard about Mark, and I’m sure that’s got Connor tied up in knots on top of everything else.”
Zane wasn’t sure if he should mention the fact that he was pretty sure Connor already knew about Norah’s pregnancy.
“Why would Connor freak out?” Lexi asked, looking confused by Norah’s mention of Connor. “Isn’t this Rand’s baby?”
“Yes, but Connor has been my friend for as long as either of us can remember,” Norah explained. “We were raised together, and he’d be pissed about me even acting as your guard while I’m pregnant. Rand is smart enough to pick his battles. I’m not going out on patrol or fighting, so he’s not going to push his luck. Connor, on the other hand, is likely to have me sitting on my ass for most of this pregnancy. Even though he’s a pain in the ass, Connor is a good leader, so I’d hate to have to kill him.” Norah stood. “I’m heading home to get some rest.”
“What about guarding me?” Lexi asked.
Norah snorted. “The house you’re staying at is right over there.” She gestured in the direction of the house. “If you promise to go straight there and stay inside, I’ll trust you to do it. Connor’s planning to pull your guard detail anyway.”
“Since when?” Zane asked.
Norah shrugged. “I’m just repeating what Rand told me. As far as I know, you’ll still have an escort into some areas, but he’s planning to remove the guards from your door.”
“Then who will run out to get me supplies?” Lexi asked sweetly.
Norah gave a weak laugh. “Don’t worry. I’m sure plenty of people will stop by to harass you. We have a way of doing that. I’ll talk to you later.”
“Thanks, Norah,” Zane said, still doing his best to avoid looking at Lexi.
“I guess we should go back home, or whatever you want to call that place we’re staying.” Lexi sighed.
“Home is where you are,” was Zane’s simple reply.
Lexi didn’t answer, but he wasn’t really surprised by her silence. She’d been refusing to completely accept what they had. Even with his mark on her, he still worried she wasn’t really his, and he had to keep reminding himself that she wasn’t a shifter. For a shifter, this would be a done deal and everything would be settled, but relationships moved slower in Lexi’s world. He should be grateful things were moving as fast as they were.
It had been much harder for Cam. Zane really needed to go see his brother soon. While he’d felt bad for Cam before, he hadn’t really understood what he was going through. Now, Zane knew his brother had to be hurting pretty bad. What he couldn’t figure out was why Cam had left Claire. Looking over at Lexi, Zane wasn’t sure he could ever walk away from her. With any luck, she wasn’t going to ask him to.
They made their way back to the house in silence, and he wasn’t really sure how to start the conversation they needed to have. It’s not that he was embarrassed about what had happened. He really was fine with his lack of gender preference, but he’d always suspected it would create problems for him when he found a mate. Now, that day had come, and he wasn’t sure how to tell his mate that, even though he was also attracted to males, he wouldn’t cheat on her. Hell, he’d still find females attractive, but he’d never want to have sex with anyone other than Lexi.
“So, you’re bi-sexual,” Lexi remarked as they opened the door to the house. Nothing in her tone told him how she felt about this. Even though she’d been aroused when he’d been feeding Mark, that didn’t mean she was okay with his arousal. A female lynx would not be okay with him getting turned on by another male.
“I’ve had sex with males and females,” he admitted without looking at her as she walked into the house in front of him. “Never both at the same time, but the fantasy gets me hard. Does that change how you feel about me?”
“Sort of,” she admitted, and his heart sank. “Not in a bad way,” she quickly added. “I enjoy reading books about threesomes with two men and a woman. I even watched some porn like that. My favorites were always the ones where the guys were into each other and the women.”
“You want to be with another man in bed?” he asked, oddly intrigued and jealous at the same time. He was also turned on from thinking about it.
“No,” she replied thoughtfully. “It turned me on watching you being so intimate with Mark. I don’t know if I really want to share you with a man, or if fantasizing about you with another man just gets me excited. Fantasizing about having two men with me is a turn on, too, but I’m not sure I want to try it. Does that sound really stupid?”
Zane laughed with pure joy.
“You’re laughing at me.” A pretty blush stained her cheeks. “I sound ridiculous, don’t I?”
“I am so turned on right now, I want to strip you naked and fuck you against the front door,” Zane admitted in a guttural tone.
“Because of my fantasies?” she asked.
“No, I want you this much because you want me, just the way I am. I’m aroused as hell from thinking about watching porn with you. You are so fucking perfect, I want to drown in you,” he explained, moving so quickly she didn’t have time to react. His hand snaked around the back of her neck, h
olding her in place for his kiss.
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Lexi had no idea how Zane could go so quickly from insecure to fully aroused, but that’s what had happened. With Zane’s mouth moving against hers while his hand held her in place, she felt powerless to resist his sensual onslaught—not that she really wanted to resist. His teeth tugged at her lower lip, and then he drank in her gasp before sliding his tongue past her lips to explore her mouth.
Lexi was moaning into Zane’s mouth and clutching his bare shoulders as she tried to press herself as close to his body as possible. Zane pulled back slightly and stared into her eyes. Their mouths were barely touching, his ragged breaths caressing her lips.
“Wanna play a game?” Zane murmured before running his tongue along her lower lip.
Lexi shuddered and tried hard to remember what he’d just asked her. “A game?” This hardly seemed like the time for play. “Is this where you ask me to help you hide your sausage?” she asked, reaching down to squeeze his erection through his pants.
Zane chuckled, and his eyes lit with delight. “You do realize that there are times you say things that shock even me, don’t you?”
“So, you don’t want to play that game?” She gave him a playful pout.
“Oh, I want to play that game, but I have something else in mind first. How about a card game?” he suggested with a wicked grin.
“You mean like strip poker?” she asked, intrigued by the idea.
“I don’t know how to play poker, but I’d be willing to learn. I found some cards when I was looking through the drawers, and I also found paper, so I wrote out some things we can bet.”
Zane rushed over to the side table in the front room and pulled out two stacks of papers. One set was orange, and the other was yellow. The yellow ones he handed to her. “These are yours to bet with.”
Lexi started going through them, and she could tell by Zane’s grin that some of them were meant to shock her. “Oh, hell no!”
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