With Pride

by Kaye Draper

  Con and I rolled so I was straddling him, taking his perfect cock deeper. I ran my hands over his chest as Oisin moved behind us, straddling Con's thighs and pushing me forward with a hand in the middle of my back. "Tell us if you want to stop," he said, hands caressing my hips and ass before reaching for the lube again. "You're safe with us, love, always."

  Con pulled me down into a kiss, while Oisin teased his slick cock at my hole. My little fae might be dangerous and demanding, but he knew what he was doing. He went slow, letting my body adjust, until he was sheathed inside, his slender hips flush against my ass.

  I liked to think I was an adventurous woman, when it came to sex. But holy shit, how had I never thought of this, demanded it? "Fuck," I panted, my body overfull, hot and shivering. "Someone needs to move."

  Con shifted under me, slowly sliding out as much as he could, then back in. His golden-brown eyes searched my face. "Okay?"

  I growled.

  Oisin laughed, his graceful hands tracing up and down my sides, then coming to rest on my hips. He took a firm grip on me and I sucked in a breath in anticipation. He slowly slid most of the way out, then back in. "Oh my gods." I muttered, dropping my head to Con's chest.

  Con let out a breathless laugh, his chest vibrating under me. "You're not fucking joking." I lifted my head to meet his golden-brown eyes. His face was flushed, and a sheen of sweat was starting to form on his temple. "I can feel him too."

  I choked on my tongue.

  Oisin chuckled and moved again, making Con and I both gasp.

  Slowly, we set a rhythm. Con moving, then Oisin, in a coordinated dance that left my body buzzing and overstimulated, their movements feeling like one never-ending glide against my flesh. Oisin, with several hundred years of experience in debauchery, guided Con and I, adjusting our positions so the angle of their thrusts made us all cry out in pleasure. I was never more damned thankful for my fae's degenerate nature.

  When I came again, I came hard, unable to hold back my roar. Con gripped my hips and thrust upward hard, slamming home as all his muscles flexed and he found his own release. Oisin lost his grip on his nature at that point, tangling a hand in my hair to drag me to a more upright position as he picked up his pace, burying his sharp teeth in the back of my neck in a stinging bite as he came. A hint of his magic rippled over my skin like a heated caress and I came again, going limp in Oisin's grasp.

  We both collapsed forward, and Con grunted under our combined weight. "Gods," he half-wheezed, half-laughed, "you two really are going to kill me one day."

  He reached around my back to shove at Oisin's shoulder. "Off," he grunted. "Humans need oxygen."

  Oisin withdrew with smooth grace and rolled to the side, falling back to lie next to Con. I straightened to find both men wearing identical dopey grins. "You both look ridiculous right now." Gods they looked perfect. Happy and content, and mine. How the fuck was I so lucky?

  I climbed off Con, my shaky legs nearly giving out when I stood. The guys followed me into the shower and insisted on being all caring and shit. My heart couldn't take all this...tenderness.

  Once we were all clean—and Oisin stopped trying to convince us to try for round two—we collapsed into bed and slept like the dead.

  Chapter 6

  When I finally stumbled out of bed the next morning, I found Hisashi in the kitchen chatting with Con. My amazing human was cooking, of course. I saw mounds of waffles next to the waffle maker, and a pile of bacon. Hisashi got eggs from the fridge and started cracking them into a bowl, chatting animatedly about how to make sake.

  I watched them for a moment, something hurting inside. I hardly even knew the tall, white-haired fox, but after Oisin's admission last night, I just wanted to protect him.

  Sometimes being a gryphon sucked. All this valor and duty bullshit built into my very genes.

  And that's all it was. Just my nature. Not the fact that the kid was fucking gorgeous. Nope.

  He turned to me and smiled, revealing even white teeth and sharp canines. "Hey, Gesa," he said, tossing the eggshells into the trash bin as Con cooked the scrambled eggs. "Hungry? From the sounds of it, you must have worked up an appetite last night."

  I squared my shoulders and refused to blush. It was our fucking house. If he didn't like the sounds of the local nightlife, he could just go squat somewhere else.

  Con rolled his eyes and brushed past Hisashi to get out syrup and waffle toppings from the fridge. "You get used to it after a while," he said, oh so helpfully. "The first month I lived here, I had to listen to her and Oisin non-stop. Eventually it's just background noise."

  Hisashi looked at Con skeptically, one corner of his lip lifting in a smirk. "Sure, right."

  I ignored them and started filling a plate. I was really fucking hungry.

  "Where's the fae, anyway?" Hisashi asked, following me to fill his own plate.

  I shrugged. "Pouting, probably."

  The fox frowned. "I really do have control of the dangerous stuff, you know. And I can help when you need to find people or get information for your bounty hunting gig. I was serious about working at the bookstore, too. I can be useful. I don't understand what I've done to piss him off so badly."

  I put my plate on the table and took the glass of juice Con handed me as I sat down. Hisashi slid into the chair across from mine and I sighed. "Just don't worry about it. You didn't do anything. He's just...Oisin."

  Con met my eyes, a thoughtful look on his face. "He's doing that thing again, isn't he?"

  I shrugged. I knew exactly what Con meant—the fae hardly ever showed you his real emotions. All the surface level stuff was a mask he wore. But I didn't want to discuss Oisin's feelings. Or his insecurities. He might murder me for real.

  "Just give him time, okay. He has real reasons for being so worried." I gestured at Hisashi. "More importantly, what the fuck are you wearing?"

  Con laughed. Hisashi sat taller, pulling the neck of his loud, kimono-style silk dressing gown closed over his boxers. "My robe?"

  I shook my head. "Are you sure all that mind reading hasn't damaged your brain?"

  Oisin glided into the room, all primped and polished, and completely silent as he filled his plate with food. His hair was still damp from his shower and he had twisted it into an intricate braid. I glanced at Con who, like me, was wearing old sweats and a comfy, worn t-shirt. "Do you ever feel like we missed the memo? The one that says we should wear our prissy girl clothes?"

  Con snorted and finished a bite of bacon. "Sometimes. But really, I think it would be pointless to try to compete."

  Hisashi's pale eyes flicked over Oisin's slim body, taking in the perfectly fitted gray skinny jeans, crisp shirt, and silk vest. "Well," he said, his eyes lingering just a little too long before he returned his attention to his food like he hadn't just ogled my fae. "The robe is comfy. I kind of got used to it with the fortune-telling gig."

  "I think we should go over to the shop as soon as we're done eating," I said, glancing at Oisin as he joined us at the table. I was surprised he didn't take his food somewhere else, away from us offensive peasants.

  He slid into the seat next to me, nudging me with his elbow to get me to stop hogging the whole table. "Yes," he said in a flat voice. Then he proceeded to quietly and delicately eat his food.

  Con widened his eyes. "Holy shit," Con breathed. "Hisashi, man, I don't know what you did, but keep doing it."

  The fox glanced between us all, clearly puzzled.

  I shook my head, knowing what was coming. Con picked up his coffee and grinned. "Oisin's so quiet. Usually by this time of day we've heard about five innuendos and at least a dozen bratty demands for food or entertainment."

  A pair of emerald eyes pierced Con where he sat. Then, completely straight-faced, Oisin muttered "in-your-endo," and went back to eating.

  I snorted. "Well, you got to enjoy it for a minute or so, Con." I pushed my shoulder against Oisin's. "Chin up, old man. We're going to go cause mischief soon. Maybe you'll
get to murder that nasty old shopkeeper. I know how much you enjoy a good murdering."

  He picked up his fork and knife, pausing to let me appreciate that he was holding metal utensils. "Promises, promises."

  Hisashi risked talking. I could see him visibly making an effort to not be awkward. "So, do you usually end up killing people in your line of work?"

  I heaved a sigh around a mouthful of waffles, whipped cream and caramel drizzle. "Not usually," I mumbled.

  "Gesa tends to bring trouble trotting right to her door," Oisin said, staring Hisashi down. "You might want to re-think your desire to stick around here. It's no place for children. Too much danger."

  Hisashi raised a pale brow at that. "Aww...are you trying to keep me safe, fae? I didn't know you cared."

  Oisin stood to take his plate to the sink. "I don't. Stick around. Get shot by Gesa's mob-boss friend or caught by shifter hunters. Maybe we'll run into some mages and you'll go boom." He flicked his braid over his shoulder in agitation. "It's none of my business if you have some sort of death kink."

  I stared at Oisin. He was—kind of, almost—skirting dangerously close to the truth about why he didn't want Hisashi here. "I don't have a mob-boss friend. And I doubt anyone is going to shoot us for talking to an employee at a kitschy junk shop."

  Oisin snorted. "If you say so."

  Con remained neutrally silent, and I could just imagine he was pleading the fifth in his head. The traitor.

  "Well," Hisashi said, standing to pace to the sink, and right into Oisin's space, his silky robe slipping open to reveal a broad, defined chest and chiseled abs. "Let me just get dressed and we'll get going. I'm curious to find out what's happening."

  I closed my mouth to keep the drool in. Oisin stepped smoothly away from the fox and left the room.

  After Hisashi ambled out to get clothes, Con turned to me, his perceptive brown eyes twinkling. "This is so much fun to watch. Painful. But fun."

  I groaned. "I know, right? Like Oisin is fooling anyone."

  Con chuckled. "Well, yeah, he's in trouble. But I wasn't talking about Oisin. I meant that dopey look you keep getting on your face every time Hisashi speaks. Or moves. Or breathes."

  I growled at him, taking both our plates to the sink. "Oh, shut the fuck up."

  His arms encircled me as he hugged me from behind. "Love you too, gryphon. No matter what."

  I turned slightly. "Are we doing that emoting thing now?" I said with a slight whine.

  Con laughed, his baritone rumbling through me from his chest. "Yep. Right now. I don't think I've said it to you before, but I do love you, Gesa. You know that. Sometimes I think I'm not good enough to love you, and it's all happened so fast...but that doesn't stop it from being real." He turned me around to face him and I crossed my arms over my chest and refused to get all flustered like a... girl.

  "This thing between us, and with Oisin, it's...not anything like what I thought my life would be. But I wouldn't change it for the world. I'm happy with you guys. And I like seeing you happy." He reached out and tucked my hair behind my ear. "And if that means you drool over fifty other guys, fine. I mean, you've got that huge-ass bed. Might as well make use of it, right?"

  I stared at him. Supes weren't as uptight as humans tended to be about sexuality. I expected him to struggle more with accepting the three-sided relationship with me and Oisin. But now he was saying he wanted me to make a move on this stranger? "Who are you and what have you done with human Con?"

  He chuckled. "He's still in here. You just make him feel far less insecure than he used to."

  I hugged him. "You are insane. But you know I love you too, right?"

  He patted my back. "I had a hunch. But it's nice to hear sometimes."

  A deep voice broke the moment. "Aww..." You guys are so cute. "Are we hugging now? Where's my hug?"

  I turned to find Hisashi standing in the hallway, fully clothed in jeans and a hoodie, his arms crossed and a smirk on his face. I glared at him, trying not to remember what Con had just implied about my interest. "We're not hugging. No hugs here. I don't do hugs." Or fucking prides.

  Con shrugged as he stepped away. "Sorry. I'm not into guys. Maybe Oisin will give you a hug, dude."

  Oisin, who had come up behind Hisashi took a quick step back. "Do not even think about it."

  Hisashi plastered a melodramatic look of hurt on his face and clapped a hand over his heart. "No hugs for poor, pathetic Hisashi." Oisin smirked. "Wait until we get to the shop."

  Con, Oisin and I all broke into laughter at that. I think all of us had had fallen prey to the woman's clinging at some point. It was an experience, to be sure.

  "Come on, you morons," I said, leading the way to the door. As an afterthought, I backtracked to strap on my gun and knife before I pulled on my jacket. Oisin might be way off on his assessment of my danger magnet status. But it never hurt to be prepared.

  Chapter 7

  The shop was only a few blocks away and, despite the bruise-like clouds that loomed on the horizon, it hadn't started snowing yet, so we walked. People passing by on the sidewalk kept giving us strange looks. I smiled to myself when I realized what a sight we must be. A hulking blond woman, a tiny redheaded runway model, and a couple of gorgeous young guys in complimenting shades of cocoa and albino.

  I sighed. So much for ever blending in anywhere. My phone buzzed in my pocket and I pulled it out, immediately sending the call to voicemail when I saw my mother's toad icon on the screen. She still hadn't given up trying to lure me back home.

  For a second I wondered whether it might be worth it to go back to the clan and ask for help for Oisin—and now Hisashi too. My family might be able to pull some sort of strings...but probably not. They weren't as powerful as the fae. Or mages.

  I was walking along, caught up in my own thoughts when Oisin stopped on the sidewalk in front of me and I slammed into him. "What the shit?" I gasped, grabbing his arm as he almost went over. Even his fae reflexes were slow to react.

  I glanced between him and Hisashi. Great. Now what were they snarking at each other about?

  "Where did you get that?" Oisin demanded, pointing a graceful finger at Hisashi's wrist. The fox wore a bracelet of smooth black stones, just visible in flashes from under his sweatshirt when he moved his arm.

  The fox slowed to a stop and gave Oisin a penetrating, confused look. "Now my jewelry is offending you? Dude you need to lighten up."

  I grabbed Hisashi's wrist and turned it so I could see the bracelet. There was a little rune etched in each stone bead, and the barest hint of foreign magic came from it, flavored differently than Hasashi’s own aura. "What is it?"

  The fox shrugged, but a hint of pink tinged his pale cheeks. "It's just a charm. It helps...make it so the spirits aren't so loud. So their pain doesn't get inside me."

  I let go of his wrist and gave his shoulder a squeeze. Jesus, Buddha and Odin that sounded...not good. And here he was, being harassed into talking about it on the street in front of his new roomies. I rounded on Oisin. "What the fuck is your problem? It’s a damned stone bracelet, not a grenade."

  The fae put his hands on his hips and glared up at me. "It's obsidian infused with wards that act on a person's own magic to dampen it. Who the hell do you think makes something like that, gryphon?"

  I rubbed my forehead. "I don't know. Fae? Unicorns?"

  "A mage," Hisashi added helpfully. "He came to my carnival tent, probably to see where the magic signature was coming from." He shrugged. "It's no big deal. I told him about the mediumship I can do, and how it can get...overwhelming." His pale blue eyes darted to me and away. He was clearly uncomfortable talking about the part of his powers that he struggled to control, but he did it anyway. Open and honest, even if it hurt. "He made the charm for me in exchange for a tarot reading about his new job."

  He looked down at Oisin, who had gone a shade paler than usual, his eyes gone blank and distant as he stared past us all. "Are you okay? Damn it...I'm sorry?" The confused fox
reached for Oisin's shoulder and the fae didn't even flinch away, lost in his own personal visions of hell.

  "There's a mage here in the city," he whispered. "I thought I sensed it in the wards, but then they went quiet."

  My heart rate kicked up a notch and I stepped closer to Oisin, as if I could shield him from all the bad things in the world. "Oisin?"

  He snapped out of his contemplation and stopped muttering to himself. "Why are we standing here," he said, shrugging pointedly out from under Hisashi's hand "when we have a damsel in distress to rescue?" He started walking again and I shot our two confused companions an apologetic look before hustling to catch up to the fae.

  "Oisin, are you okay?" I glanced over at my shoulder at a frowning Hisashi, then back to Oisin. "Are both of you okay? Do we need to...I don't fucking know, call my clan? Or," I sucked in a breath. "White maybe? I bet if I offered to work for him for the rest of my life, he'd do...something." I had no idea what, but it would probably be something fucking awful, knowing that bastard. I still didn't even know what kind of supe he was. But it was something that made my gryphon want to run away and hide.

  Oisin sighed. "It's fine, Gesa. I was just caught off guard. I'm sure if we haven't been attacked yet, then the mage isn't here for me. You know, there are magic users who don't work for my father out there somewhere, I'm sure."

  I didn't believe him at all. I could feel the lie shiver in the air between us. He wasn't sure. He was scared, if his bitchy demeanor was any indication. And he didn't want to talk about it with Hisashi in earshot. "It's so cute when you worry about other people," I said, nudging him with an elbow. I got a raised eyebrow and an unimpressed look for that. "Don't be ridiculous. You know fae are too shallow to care about anyone except themselves. You're going to ruin my reputation with your slander."

  I gave him an innocent look as I fought not to smile. There was my old fae. The one who snarked a mile a minute and wasn't afraid of anything. We were going to be okay. I hoped.