“I can handle it,” she said, giving him a goofy, lust-drugged smile.
Aodh slipped up to her other side, and the pair of them supported her head while she floated on the surface of the water. They gazed down at her adoringly. “We have no doubt,” he said. “We can take it slow for the rest of the day, though.”
Vrishti sighed and stared up into the lush foliage above their pool. Both men had dipped their heads to lap at each of her breasts, their sucking easing the ache of mother’s milk that had built up since she’d said goodbye to their daughter early the day before. As they suckled her, their free hands traced random patterns down her belly and between her thighs. Then their fingers found her core again and she spread herself open for them. She moaned under their gentle ministrations that swiftly turned to more determined strokes. They brought her swiftly to another orgasm with only their hands, then Neph moved down and positioned himself between her thighs and pushed in deep.
“Let me have you both together,” she said, shooting a pleading look up at Aodh who still hovered near her head, one arm hooked under her shoulders to support her where she floated.
He bent to kiss her. “Anything you wish.”
She reached out and Neph took her hands, pulling her up into his embrace while Aodh moved into position at her back. Together they lifted her just high enough to allow them to come together at the hips. When she slipped back down, sandwiched close between their strong bodies, both their long, hard cocks speared her core.
This was the fullness she preferred. To be filled to the brim with the pair of them on either side, moving as one being in search of her pleasure. She gazed deep into Neph’s hypnotic eyes, his look pulling her consciousness into that whirlpool that led straight to his soul. Within those depths, she lost herself to them both, as sure as she ever was that together they could accomplish anything.
Chapter 11
“Oh Gaia,” Deva breathed, startled by the overwhelming sense of love that flooded into her with the newest surge of magic. Tears sprang to her eyes when she understood what that meant. The mating bond between her ursa mother and her mates was so strong it left Deva craving the kind of connection they had.
“What is it?” Llyr asked.
“So beautiful . . . their love. Have you ever felt anything like that?”
Llyr’s jaw clenched and he swallowed before shaking his head. “My duty comes first.” After a second, his features softened and he smiled. “But I am happy for Neph. All the Thiasoi believed he’d foregone mating in solidarity with us, but then Nyx mated Nereus and the precedent of the Thiasoi staying unmated was broken. Then we thought he and Meri might . . .” He shook his head and snorted in disgust.
“He nearly mated her,” Deva said. “I’m glad he didn’t, even if it turned out badly. It means I’m here.”
“Yes,” Llyr said, reaching out and wrapping his hands around both her ankles beneath the water. The charge of arousal from his touch was disorienting. He laughed ruefully. “I could have done without the torture, but I’m glad you’re here too.” He slipped his hands up to her calves and gave them a squeeze. “How does the power level feel? What can you sense?”
Deva blinked at him, distracted by the warmth of his hands and the tingle of pleasure that coursed through her even stronger than the steady buzz she’d felt from the power she’d absorbed. But he was talking about the bloodline, not his touch. Forcing herself to refocus, she closed her eyes and reached for the bloodline again. The number of threads had quadrupled, but was still not expansive enough to account for all of them.
“Tell them I need more still.”
“Will do.”
She opened her eyes and watched his face as his eyelids fell shut. He possessed the same angular features and upturned, half-moon eyes as many of the nymphs, though with him and his Thiasoi brothers it was more pronounced. His hair was shiny, silken cascade, falling in blue-black waves around his broad, tan shoulders.
Deva liked the way his fairer skin tone stood out against her deep brown shade where his hands held her lower legs. His fingers seemed to involuntarily flex, squeezing, then loosening, but never completely releasing her.
Sitting there watching him, she was struck by the urge to sing. She started humming softly, closing her eyes and composing a tune in her head while she waited for more power from the ritual. When a slow, rhythmic tapping picked up against her calf in time with her humming, she opened her eyes and smiled.
“That was beautiful,” Llyr said.
She lifted a shoulder. “It was for you.”
His brow twitched. “I am honored, though I doubt I am anywhere near special enough to have earned a song.”
“That’s up to me, isn’t it? You’re my protector.” She thought about Ozzie and the place he held in her heart. A small part of her quaked with guilt over allowing this feeling to blossom for someone else, but she’d grown up around women who all had an abundance of love to share with multiple mates, and no one seemed to want for more. Her aunt Numa’s five mates all adored her, and she remembered the day Numa had made the choice to love all of them. Deva envied all the other women their freedom and the adoration of their men, and their brilliant, powerful souls they had to bind to their lovers’.
“I am, and I didn’t make that vow lightly. Even though I am here by Neph’s command, I am yours until you choose to release me from my promise.”
“What if I want to keep you forever?”
His mouth quirked. “Then you should save your breath, because I’m capable of far more song-worthy acts than sitting around in a puddle with you.”
Deva’s hungry mind refocused, reminded that Llyr was her key to exploring the human world. “Do you know a lot about humans? About their world?”
He shifted toward her and slipped his hands up to cup the backs of her knees, tapping his thumbs on her kneecaps. “Not much yet. I was out of touch for so long, trapped in Meri’s lab. But my brothers and I spent the past year getting reacquainted with the world.” He tilted his head as though considering. “Humanity is different than it used to be. But still the same, in a lot of ways. There is a lot to see—to experience.” Then he grinned. “The music is amazing.”
“Did you see a lot of our kind while you were there? Did you see any turul?” She was a tangle of questions, but forced herself to bite her tongue. She wanted to experience it all more than she wanted to hear him talk about it. But there was one thing she desperately wanted to know and was afraid to ask.
Llyr’s eyes narrowed and he shot her a knowing smile that made heat creep up her neck. “I spent some time with your father—Nikhil—and his mates and their band. They call themselves ‘Fate’s Fools,’ which is depressingly appropriate.” He chuckled and shook his head, then met her gaze again, watchful. “Ozzie West was there. He asked about you.”
The heat in her cheeks turned molten. Not even the truth of the ritual she was part of had fazed her, but the mere mention of Ozzie had her flustered to a shameful degree. “What did he say?”
“Nothing specific. Just asked if you were well. It was odd, though, because he had your father right there, yet he pulled me aside to ask. You’d visited Neph just the week before, so I’d seen you but only from afar. I told him that as far as I knew, you were great. That was pretty much the extent of it. I think he was a little drunk.”
Deva chewed on her lower lip, aching to ask more, but unwilling to admit the depth of her longing to know what kept Ozzie away.
Llyr lifted a hand and pressed his thumb to her chin, forcing her to release her lip from her teeth. “What worries you so much? Do you miss him?”
“Yes. But it’s been so long since I’ve seen him. I’m afraid he’s forgotten me. He didn’t come to the Haven for Equinox, either.”
“Do you blame him? He’s a turul without a mate, and he already knows everyone who would be here. If any of us were his One, he’d have known already. I think if I knew for certain my mate wasn’t in the Haven, I’d avoid the place too, especia
lly on a day like today.”
A lump formed in her throat, blocking the words of denial she felt surge up. Ever since she’d returned from the safety of the god realm, she’d had the strongest sense of belonging whenever she looked at Ozzie. The last time she’d seen him, she could have sworn she felt a bond, but that had been ages ago. It was like he was avoiding her, and it hurt like hell to believe he didn’t want to see her. To hear that he’d asked about her . . . Gaia, she was so confused.
Tears burned at the corners of her eyes and she clamped her teeth down on her lower lip again in a struggle to keep from crying.
“Deva, what is it?” Llyr asked.
She shook her head and pulled away when he rested his hand on her cheek. She hated that he was here to witness her confusion, her weakness over what was likely a complete misunderstanding owing to the fact that she was too young and inexperienced with love to know any better. But the nauseating burn in her belly felt real.
“Deva, look at me.” Llyr’s stern tone snapped her attention to him. Concern darkened his eyes, his brows curling inward. Gently, he said, “Talk to me.”
She gave a little shake of her head. “I . . . can’t.”
He slipped his hand to the side of her neck, his thumb idly grazing the line of her jaw. She wished he would either stop looking at her or say something . . . redirect the conversation to anything but Ozzie . . . but his gaze kept flicking between her mouth and her eyes. Finally, his eyes slowly closed and he licked his lips, and she was sure that was the end of it. But when his eyes opened again, they were filled with a crazed determination.
His tightened his grip on her neck, and before she could take a breath, he leaned forward and pressed his mouth to hers. At the same instant, an overwhelming surge of power flowed up her legs from the water and she grabbed hold of Llyr’s shoulders in a desperate attempt to cling to sanity.
But her embrace only encouraged him. He emitted a deep groan and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her down onto his lap and tight against his big, hard body. Deva surrendered to his kiss, hyperaware of every place their bodies came into contact, but oblivious of the water soaking her gown once again. She was blissfully grateful that Llyr had chosen this as the way to make her forget her confusion over Ozzie.
Chapter 12
“Do you hear singing?” Assana asked.
Gavra nuzzled the back of her ear, then tugged the strap of her wispy gown off her shoulder, following his fingers with his lips. “Thought that was in my head,” he said, peeling the fabric off her breast and letting it fall. Silas dipped his head and captured Assana’s bared nipple and she sighed, pushing her soft, round backside into Gavra’s erection. She raked her fingers through Silas’s hair, pulling his sucking mouth closer as though he were a babe and not a full-grown man about to fuck her.
“I didn’t think any turul were here besides your brother’s and sister’s mates,” she murmured. “It doesn’t sound like a male voice, though. Is that Evie?”
Gavra closed his eyes to listen, still making quick work of Assana’s dress. He pushed the spare fabric over her hips and it fell to the ground in a hiss. Then he gripped her ass and squeezed, sliding his cock along the cleft between her cheeks and reveling in the friction against his heated flesh.
The song filtered through the air as clear as a bell, but his desire was too strong to care what it signified or who sang it.
Silas rose up in front of Assana and clasped her head in both hands, covering her mouth in a ravenous kiss. Through their meld, Gavra sensed his ursa mate’s desperate desire and the encroaching discomfort of his pheronesis rising once more. Perfect timing for the man to be afflicted with the common condition all male ursa dealt with every few months of their lives when they were young. Silas was only in his twenties, and this was the third time he’d been through it since their mating the year before. Gavra and Assana were more than happy to accommodate his needs.
“Come,” Assana said, grabbing both their hands and leading them the few steps to the crystal-clear pool just outside the door of her private bungalow. A small waterfall cascaded over the wet rock wall above, filling the secluded area with pale mist. Dew condensed on Assana’s skin, making her look like she was coated in diamonds as she stepped naked into the pool and swam to a rock near the waterfall. She climbed up and turned around to wait for them, water sliding off her naked body.
Silas plunged in, reaching her with only a few quick strokes and emerging from the water directly between her spread thighs. She reclined partway on one elbow and dipped her other hand between her legs, opening herself for the ursa.
“You don’t have to wait, Silas. I know you’re hurting.”
Silas dropped his hand to grip his cock, but he shook his head. “I need to taste you first. Your flavor is as much of a painkiller as being buried inside you.”
He hooked his arms beneath her thighs and hauled her to the very edge of the rock, then buried his face between her legs. Assana’s mouth opened and her head fell back, though her gaze remained locked on Gavra’s. He lingered at the edge of the pool for a few moments longer, content to watch his mates, entranced by the perfect harmony of their auras as their mutual need increased.
When Assana was close to breaking, he stepped into the water and waded across to them, stopping only when he reached Silas’s back. The other man moaned against Assana’s wet folds when Gavra slipped a hand around his hips and gripped Silas’s stiff, throbbing length and began to stroke.
“You can have us both this time,” Gavra rumbled into the ursa’s ear, gratified by the shiver of pleasure that coursed through Silas’s body when Gavra pressed his own aching hard-on against his ass beneath the water. “Do you want me inside you while you fuck her? Or do you want me to give you my ass for a change?”
A low growl rumbled up from deep in Silas’s chest and Assana let out a throaty laugh. “I think you found a winner. But which is it?”
Silas pulled away from Assana’s juicy petals, his chest heaving. “I want to fuck you both until I can’t feel my goddamn dick anymore.”
Gavra expelled a surprised laugh, his mirth mirrored by Assana’s delighted smile. He subsided to a low chuckle, pressing his forehead to Silas’s shoulder, then groaned when Silas reached back and gave his cock a squeeze. The ursa’s touch turned into a more urgent stroke and Gavra bit down on his shoulder.
“You haven’t offered in a while,” Silas said. “I’m damn sure not going to pass up this chance.”
“Looking forward to it,” Gavra said. “But as soon as you’re done, your ass is mine.”
“It always was,” Silas said, turning to face him and yanking him into a fevered kiss.
Gavra responded with equal fervor, relishing his lover’s swelling aura and the spark of pleasure that shot through him when their cocks brushed together. A cool, light stroke grazed his jaw and shoulder, followed by another pair of lips, and he broke away from Silas to wrap his arm around Assana and bend to kiss her.
Even in this loose embrace with the two of them, Gavra’s need soared. The intensity of his love for these two made his very bones ache to see them satisfied in whatever way pleased them most, and he sensed that need reflected in their bond.
“It’s all about you today, Silas,” Assana said. Her hand dropped down between them, knuckles grazing Gavra’s cock as she took Silas into her hand and stroked. The ursa’s entire body shuddered under Assana’s touch, and Gavra stepped back as Silas turned to her. With a primal growl, Silas hooked his arms beneath Assana’s ass and set her back down on the rock, dipping his head to her breasts as he positioned himself between her thighs.
Assana’s attention was wholly fixed on Silas, but their bond betrayed her awareness of Gavra and she silently called, beckoning inside her mind for him to come to her and not just stand and watch. He climbed up onto the rock and reclined beside her just in time to see Silas’s cock slide home into her waiting depths in a single, quick thrust. Gavra’s entire body buzzed from the transfer of sensat
ion through their meld, Assana’s rough moan of pleasure reverberating down his spine as though he were the one being fucked and not her.
“It will be you soon enough,” Silas said, turning his dark gaze to Gavra as he pulled back and thrust deep again. Assana’s head fell back and she slid her long legs up Silas’s sides.
Gavra scooted closer until his stiff cock brushed Assana’s hip. He dipped his head to capture her nipple in his mouth, opening his mind as wide as possible to absorb every single sensation that passed through his lovers’ bodies.
They hadn’t always been so free with each other over the past year. For the first few months, it was all they could do to tear themselves away from each other. He’d experienced Assana’s pregnancy with a mind more open than he’d ever had with any of his past human mates, and his love for both his mates had bloomed. But he’d also experienced their darker moments with as much clarity.
First Silas’s pheronesis and the pain that accompanied it, and then Assana’s labor, which had been as terrifying as it was beautiful. The feedback nearly destroyed them in the midst of the hardest parts of Assana’s pregnancy and their son’s birth. Through those experiences, they came to the realization that it exhausted them all too much to remain so deep within each other’s souls during the darker times. They concluded that they should maintain their boundaries as much as possible, so if one of them were weak, the other two would not be brought low in the process and could combine their strength to make up the difference and help the other through.
Now the only time they opened themselves so completely was when they made love, and it was all the sweeter for the distance they kept in between.
“Need more,” Silas growled. He pushed Assana’s thighs wider and bent over, capturing her other nipple in his mouth. She arched into them both, driving her fingers through Gavra’s hair as he laved her breast with his tongue.
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