by Becca Van
They would camp outside of her home to make sure she remained safe from the demonic. Nothing mattered except keeping their mate protected.
* * * *
Men was shaking with his need for Lavinia but he didn’t want to scare her with his intensity, so he drew in a deep breath and released slowly and quietly. The moment her ass landed on his lap his hunger surged to the fore and he ruthlessly shoved his lust back down. He loved the way she smelled, so sweet and innocent yet like a grown woman. Which is what she was.
Although she was petite she had perfect curves in all the right places. Her soft yet firm ass felt so good on his thighs and he could feel the heat of her body emanating toward his as if she was somehow drawing his soul into hers.
He cupped her face between his hands and just lost himself in her gaze. The purity of her innocence and the goodness of her soul shone through from the very depths of her spirit and for a moment he felt so jaded and unworthy of her. He’d spent thousands of years fighting evil and as he stared into her goodness he felt like he had been tainted with evil and didn’t deserve to place his polluted hands on her.
She was the one to breach the gap between them and place her lips upon his. The moment their mouths touched he felt like he was being drawn into her soul and the contamination in his heart was washed away.
The sigh that left her mouth washed over his lips and his muscles quivered as he tried to restrain his hunger, but when her mouth opened even more he lost himself in her. He groaned as his lips brushed back and forth over hers and then moaned as he pressed his tongue into her mouth.
She gasped and he hoped he wasn’t frightening her, but he couldn’t get enough of her flavor. Lavinia tasted erotic and sweet and so right. He stroked his tongue along and then around hers before swiping over the inside of her cheeks and then coming back to tangle with her tongue again. He had no idea when his fangs had retracted but was glad they had because he didn’t want to accidently nick her with the sharp points. His tongue glided over the edge of her small, smooth teeth and he wrapped his arms around her as the fire inside of his body went from a low simmer to a raging inferno. His muscles twitched and trembled. His cock jerked and pulsed and when he realized he was pushing his hard aching dick up into her ass he knew he had to back off before he totally lost it.
With a groan of regret he withdrew his mouth from hers and eased back until his lips were once more brushing across hers in a light moist glide. He hadn’t even noticed when her small hands had moved up to clutch his shoulder, but he relished the pinch of her blunt nails digging into his skin over his T-shirt. He wished he could whip said shirt off and have her hands caressing his chest, stomach, and lower back, but it was too soon for their mate. She was so damn innocent he was afraid of scaring her with his passion for her and only hoped that one day soon she would grow to care for him the way he already cared for her. He wanted to mate her, to know that she would always remain by his and En’s sides but again, it was too soon for his little one to make such a momentous decision after barely meeting them.
Men lifted his head and pressed a kiss to her forehead as he regained his breath and forced his desire back to a low simmer. He knew he wouldn’t find any relief in it until Lavinia ever decided that she would mate with them, but he was a grown man and could control his base urges. At least he hoped he could.
However, now that he’d had a taste of her passion the yearning to know more about her was too strong to ignore and since she seemed to have lost her fear of him and En and was receptive to their touch, he decided it was the optimum time to ask questions.
“Have you always lived in Utah, Lavinia?” Men asked as he maneuvered on the sofa cushion, adjusting her position so she could see both him and En without having to turn her head back and forth.
“No.”
“Where did you grow up, pixie?” En asked.
“Newark, New Jersey.”
“With your parents?” Men stroked a hand over her blonde hair and then down her back.
“Yes, until I was eleven.”
“What happened, baby?” En laced his fingers with hers.
“My dad died in the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers on 9/11.”
“I’m sorry, little one. That must have been really hard on someone so young.”
She nodded and blinked as if trying to keep tears at bay and although Men hated himself for bringing up her tragic past he needed to know what was holding her back. He knew that Zara and Nina had told her they were her mates. Even though he and En hadn’t stood outside the door to listen in they had tuned into the conversation using their enhanced hearing so they could gauge her reaction.
Her denial had cut his heart in two but after hearing what she said about her mother he knew she was denying the connection because she was afraid. If they could get to the bottom of her fears maybe she would step toward them instead of back.
“What was harder was the way my mom just sort of closed herself off after that.”
Men pressed a kiss to her temple and brushed a strand of hair back off her cheek. “What do you mean?”
“She was so caught up in her grief, it was as if I no longer existed. She hardly spoke to me and never looked at me again. It was as if she was looking past me and the more I did for her the more she ignored me. She became so weak and couldn’t even get out of bed. I tried to get her to drink and eat, but nothing I did was getting through to her. She died almost a year to the day my dad was killed.”
“I’m so sorry, Lavinia.” En squeezed her hand, but she didn’t react.
When Men gazed into her eyes he could tell she was lost in her memories and from the tension in her lips they weren’t pleasant.
“I was sent to foster home after foster home. The first couple who took me in thought I was a lot younger than my years, but they should have known when the social worker handed over my file. Or maybe they were just so desperate for a child of their own they didn’t care what the facts were. Because of my stature they treated me as if I were five years old, not eleven.” Lavinia paused to take a deep breath before exhaling.
“It took me weeks before the numbness that had invaded my heart to wear off and sometimes I wished I could go back to feeling nothing.” She shrugged. “I began to act up. I was a total brat, answering back and making nasty comments, but I was just so angry inside I couldn’t seem to help myself.”
“The anger is a natural part of grieving, darlin’. Your foster parents should have understood that.” Men caressed soothing circles on her back.
“They didn’t. After a couple of months they’d finally had enough and sent me back to the orphanage. That seemed to set a pattern and each time I was fostered, weeks or months later I was back where I started.”
“You had every right to be angry, Lavinia. Your mom should have shared her grief with you and been there to help you through yours.” En glanced at Men before gazing back at Lavinia.
Men could see the pain in her eyes, but as he watched that pain was superseded by anger. The rage growing inside of her was so intense he wondered why steam wasn’t coming out of her ears. Her face turned red and her eyes filled with tears, but that was nothing compared to the heartfelt scream of fury that came out of her mouth the moment her lips parted.
Her small hands lifted into the air as if she didn’t know what to do with them. Her fingers curled into her palms so tightly her knuckles turned white and then one of her fists landed on his chest. And then the other. Men didn’t stop her from pummeling against him and although he felt each blow, her fists didn’t cause any pain or damage to his flesh. The pain he felt was hers. The agony was so intense if he hadn’t been sitting down he would have gone to his knees on the floor. She screamed until her voice went hoarse and she hit him until her knuckles turned red. Concern for her warred in his heart and mind. He knew she needed to purge the grief, anger, and bitterness from her heart and soul, but he was worried she would end up hurting herself.
Thankfully a moment later her hands ope
ned as she grabbed hold of his shirt and she collapsed against his chest and she sobbed. Her whole body shook and shuddered with each gasp and wail. Men wrapped his arms around her and held her tight until finally she stopped crying, and the occasional hiccup wracked her small frame.
Men slowly eased back against the back of the sofa and relaxed, continuing to hold Lavinia until her breathing finally evened out and deepened.
“Wh—ˮ Nehi stopped whatever he was about to say to clear his throat. “Why would a mother treat her child that way?”
“I have no idea,” Men replied, before kissing the top of Lavinia’s head. “Maybe she looks a lot like her father did and her mom loved him too much to see what she lost every time she looked at her.”
“I understand how hard that would be, but that’s no excuse for ignoring your own child,” En said angrily.
“I know, but we can’t change what she’s been through. We need to show her how special she is. How much we love her and maybe she will end up believing us. She’s had no one to hold her since she was eleven years old, but if I have my way, she’ll never leave my…our arms.”
“What if she wants to still leave?” En gently wiped a tear from the corner of her eye.
“Then we let her.”
“We can’t, Menna. She’s already been attacked by the demonic once. I can’t stand the thought of those evil bastards getting their hands on her a second time.”
“The choice isn’t ours to make.” Men sighed. “We can camp outside her place each and every night to make sure she’s protected.”
“Okay.” En nodded.
However much Men didn’t want to hinder her or sway her decision, he wasn’t sure he could let her go if she decided she wasn’t staying.
The thought of her leaving caused agony to pierce his heart and he was sure he felt it break in two.
Chapter Five
The moment Lavinia returned to consciousness guilt assailed her. She couldn’t believe the way she’d acted nor how violent she’d become. Her knuckles were sore and she hoped she hadn’t hurt Menna when she’d beat on his chest.
Lavinia sighed and snuggled into the Men’s warm, hard chest. Although she hated the way she’d broken down, the way she’d behaved, the anger and pain that had been simmering inside of her for years was gone and she felt so much better. She felt as if the walls around her heart were gone and she prayed that they never returned. Looking back over the last fourteen years she realized she had missed out on so much by being so closed off to the people who had been around her.
Maybe if she’d had time to grieve her father with her mother she wouldn’t have felt so bad when her mom had passed away. Maybe she could have learned to love some of her foster parents and they could have learned to love her, but wishes couldn’t be beggars and no matter how much she wanted to change the past she couldn’t. The only thing she could do from now on was look to the future and try not to revert back into the bad habit of keeping people at an arm’s length so she wouldn’t end up getting hurt again.
If she had the courage to reach out, from what Nina and Zara had told her, she could find happiness right where she was, but she wasn’t sure she was brave enough to reach out. Nor was she sure she had the right after what she’d just done. Maybe after such a display Menna and Nehi were disgusted with her and didn’t want to have anything to do with her. She couldn’t blame them if that was the case, but she wouldn’t know what they thought if she kept hiding from them and from herself.
She opened her eyes and blinked a few times since they were sore after her crying jag. As she looked up at Men from beneath her lashes he tilted his head down to look at her.
“How are you feeling, little one?”
Lavinia thought it best to get her apology out of the way before answering his questions. She sat up straighter, glanced over to see En watching her, and then met Men’s gaze again. “I’m sorry for hitting you. I should never have done that. Did I hurt you?”
Men chuckled as he wrapped his large dark hand around her smaller paler one and turned it over to inspect her still red knuckles. He raised her hand to his mouth and kissed each ridge as he continued to stare into her eyes. “No, little one. You didn’t hurt me. It takes a lot more than that to make a dent in this thick hide.” He released that hand, clasped the other one, pressing kisses to all her knuckles. “You hurt yourself more than you’d ever be able to hurt me.
Lavinia glanced away from him and held her breath when her gaze met En’s again.
“Are you feeling better, pixie?”
“Yes. I’m sorry,” she said again.
En moved closer and gripped her chin to bring her gaze back to his when she looked away. “Don’t apologize, Lavinia. You needed to get the pain festering inside of you out. I’m glad we were here for you.”
“You are?”
“Yes. You’re our mate. We want to look after you and make sure that you’re happy.”
“Why do you think I’m your mate?”
“You don’t feel the connection, the attraction between us?” Menna asked.
Lavinia licked her dry lips. The urge to answer yes was almost overwhelming, but before she made her decision she needed to know more. “Could I please have a drink?”
“What would you like, baby?” Men quirked his eyebrow at her. She found the action masculine and sexy. “We have wine, beer, water, juice, soda. Whatever you want it yours.”
“Do you have white wine?” Lavinia asked.
“We do.” Nehi shoved to his feet. “What’s your poison, love? Sauvignon blanc, Riesling, chardonnay?”
“Chardonnay, please.”
En was gone before she could blink and she stared at the open doorway with awe. They all moved so fast she couldn’t even see them. It excited her to know that these people were different to the average human. She felt special because they had let her in on their secret. No matter what happened between her, Men, and En she would keep their secret safe.
Lavinia knew she should probably get off of Men’s lap, but she was comfortable and she liked being surrounded by his heat. She studied his handsome face and wondered what they saw in her and couldn’t believe her luck at having met him and En. Men was bald, or he shaved his head, and his skin was a dark chocolate color, which gleamed under the fluorescent light. He was so handsome and muscular with his high prominent cheekbones, wide nose, and brown eyes. Each time he moved she could feel his hard muscles rippling and flexing and she was sure that his biceps were bigger than her thighs. She licked her lips as she imagined trying to wrap her hand around his upper arm.
The yearning to feel his skin under hers was a compulsion she wasn’t sure she could or wanted to ignore. She moved on his thigh to relieve the ache in her pussy and nearly moaned when one of her butt cheeks connected with the hard ridge of his dick. She had no idea if he was fully erect or only at half-mast but either way he was huge.
Lavinia squeaked when En appeared before her out of nowhere and he gave her a chagrined smile before handing her a full glass of wine. He passed a bottle of beer to Men and then perched on the coffee table in front of her. “Sorry, pixie. I keep forgetting you can’t see me when I move like that.”
God he was just as sexy and handsome as Men. En had to be close to six foot five and although he was about an inch taller than Menna, he was a little leaner than his friend, but not by much. His skin was also a bit lighter than Men’s and his eyes were more amber than brown. His nose was thinner and longer, but it looked good on him and his hair was collar length and, to her surprise, was straight without a curl or wave to be seen.
When he lifted the bottle of beer to his lips she couldn’t help but follow the movement with her eyes. His lips were full and perfectly formed, but the lower lip was so much lusher than the bottom and she wanted to suck on it. She saw his bicep jump from the corner of her eye and snagged on that muscle as it flexed and moved, stretching the seam of his T-shirt.
“So back to our conversation,” En said and winked.<
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Lavinia wondered if he’d caught her ogling him. Heat suffused her cheeks and she turned her head to find Men watching her intently.
“When we first saw you I knew you were our mate. I was drawn to you and when I saw the shadow demons coming at you I felt fear for the first time in thousands of years. You’re beautiful inside and out and although the physical attraction is immense, that wasn’t all I saw. I could see into your soul and knew without a doubt that you were my mate.” En kept his gaze locked with hers as he took another swig from his beer.
Lavinia cleared her throat and gulped half her wine in one go.
“I’m not great with words like En but I felt…feel the same thing he does.” Men’s fingers brushed against her cheek as he pushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear.
“How do you mate?” Lavinia asked.
Men had just taken a sip of his beer and ended up choking and spluttering on it. Lavinia shifted, getting onto her knees so she could rub his back but didn’t realize that she had her breasts practically in his face until she felt his breath though her shirt. She froze, her gaze skittering over to his. Even on her knees like she was his face was level with hers. As she stared into his eyes, his pupils dilated, his nostrils flared, and his gaze heated.
Her pussy clenched and cream dripped out onto her folds. Even her breasts felt swollen and her nipples were hard and throbbing. She drew in a ragged breath and without conscious thought her hand moved from his back to his bald head. A soft groan built in her chest and left her mouth before she could suppress it. The skin on his head was soft, but the heat emanating from his scalp made her fingers tingle before racing up her arm. She didn’t even notice she was holding her breath until her lungs began to burn. When she realized she was caressing his head, she snatched her hand back and quickly scrambled from the sofa.
Lavinia was so embarrassed over what she had just done. She’d never been an aggressive person, nor had she ever had sex, but she’d just come on to Men like she was some sort of slut. She limped across the room and turned back but skirted the sofa and avoided their gazes.