“Don’t mention it Ellie. We, uhhm, need to apologize to you as well. It probably wasn’t fair to you that we surprised you with our lions.” Jason said.
“No, it’s fine. It was just… surprising. I had no idea that you were anything but human.” The truth was that it was exhilarating to her. The raw power of Jason in his lion form had stunned her. She’d never known anything capable of handling a wolf like that, especially one as powerful as Lukas.
“Ellie, I don’t mean to pry but what did he mean when he said that you were making a big mistake being with us?” Ben asked.
Shit… the text messages. She’d completely forgotten about lying to Lukas.
“Oh, I… I don’t know what that was all about. Maybe he just supposed something was going on.” She said unconvincingly.
The brothers just looked at her, stone faced.
Ellie hated lying to them. She really didn’t want to start things off like this, especially with Ben. In light of the fact that they weren’t human after all, she hoped that the kiss hadn’t been one-sided in its meaning.
Great Ellie. Way to go.
After a few more seconds she blurted out, “Okay, I’m sorry. I lied. I told Lukas that I was dating one of the trainers at my gym. In hindsight I realize it was a terrible decision on my part. The last thing I wanted was to get either of you wonderful men caught up in my stupid drama with Lukas. It’s just such a long story. Anyway, I’m sorry. Can you forgive me?”
Jason spoke up and said, “Ellie, thank you for your honesty. It means everything to us. And, of course we can forgive you. It’s really not a big deal…”
Ben interrupted and said, “Now, hold on a sec bro. I think I might be bit ticked off after all. The question is what is the lovely Ellie going to do to make it up to us?”
Ellie blushed.
“Make it up to you?” she replied and then groaned, “I, uhmm… what do you mean exactly?”
The fact was that even in the middle of all the chaos her mind still yearned to consume Ben’s lips again. Worse yet, she now found herself wondering if his brother had the same deft touch and skill Ben had demonstrated. Suddenly, she could imagine them both upon her, limbs and lips intertwined. They would squeeze her curves in a sexual stranglehold like a pair of mystic serpents.
Jason turned to Ben and replied, “Excellent idea. I think the least that she could do would be to allow you to escort her home…”
Ben continued Jason’s train of thought and said, “And once there, invite me in for a glass of wine?”
Jason agreed and replied, “Sounds totally reasonable. In fact, I would say that would be the bare minimum under the circumstances.”
Ben answered, “Agreed.”
The pair turned back towards a slack jawed Ellie and looked at her expectantly. This was unfamiliar territory for her. She’d never been the one that men pursued and now, in the space of a few hours, two of the hottest men she’d ever laid eyes on couldn’t get enough of her.
But at the same time she knew it was still incredibly risky. It was likely that Lukas had already spilled the beans about her fictitious involvement with the brothers. It wouldn’t be long before she’d have to answer for it.
Even though she was only half shifter, she was bound by her nature to remain with the pack for life once she’d been claimed. But, she hadn’t been - at least not yet and Lukas knew it. But, for once in her life, Ellie just wanted to take a chance. The fates seemed to be telling her that this was the moment she’d waited for and so she jumped on it.
“Okay.” She said.
Ben raised an eyebrow of suspicion and asked, “Really?”
“Yes.” She answered firmly.
“Alright… great!” Ben said with excitement.
Jason hugged Ellie goodbye and she thanked him once more for coming to her defense. A few minutes later, she was in her car and driving out of the gym parking lot with Ben close behind.
It was a bit of a drive back to her apartment so she took the opportunity to call Avery. Even though she was still pissed at her friend, there were much bigger issues to discuss.
“Hello?” Avery answered.
“Avery!” Ellie gasped. “You are not going to believe what has happened to me since you ditched me. Which, by the way, I am still pissed at you over.”
She laughed and said, “It was for your own good, Ellie. What’s going on?”
Ellie looked in her rear view mirror quickly and replied, “Shit! I don’t even know where to start…”
“Now I really want to hear this, just start!” Avery said eagerly.
“Okay, well, first was Lukas. I decided that you were right.” Ellie said.
“About what?” asked Avery.
“About needing to end whatever it was I was doing with him.”
“Did you? Oh please say yes…”
“Yes, I did.”
“Yay! So what happened?”
“Well, I just decided to get it over with so I texted him and told him that there was someone else.”
“Wow… Oh my God, you lied about it? What did he say?”
“Yes, I know it’s horrible. Well, anyway, you know Lukas. He was demanding to know who it was.”
“Ellie… what did you tell him?”
“Uhhhmmm… I said it was one of the trainers at the gym.”
“Ellie! Oh my God. Was he pissed?”
“Big time. And, I know I shouldn’t have lied but I really believed it was the only way to end it.”
“Wow…” Avery said as her voice trailed off. She then asked, “So, where are you now?”
Ellie replied, “Well, heading home but I’m not even close to being finished with what happened.”
“Okay. Go on…” Avery said.
Ellie squinted her eyes briefly and exclaimed, “I kissed Ben!”
“What!!!?!?! Ellie he’s human, what are you thinking.” Avery demanded.
“Well, actually… no he isn’t.”
“What do you mean?”
“He’s a shifter and so is Jason.”
“What? Impossible. We would have been able to sense that the first time we met them if that were true.”
“You don’t understand Avery. They aren’t wolves.”
“Huh? Well, if they aren’t wolves then what are they?”
“Lions.”
“Lions? I didn’t even know that there were lion shifters or anything but us for that matter.”
“Me either…” Ellie replied quietly.
“But… wait a sec… How do you know that for a fact?” Avery asked.
“Well, that’s the last part of what I have to tell you.”
“Okay, I’m listening. You are blowing my mind so far but I’m still listening.”
Ellie’s car came to slow stop at a traffic light. She then said, “One of them knocked Lukas out cold.”
“Lukas came up there?”
“Yeah. I’m guessing he was so pissed at my texts that he wanted to talk to me face-to-face. Anyway, when he got there, Ben was walking me to my car. Long story short, he threatened to expose my ‘relationship’ with Ben to Marlon unless I left with him.”
“Typical Lukas. What a jerk.” Avery said.
“I know! Anyway, I told him that there was no way I was doing that.”
“I’m sure that didn’t go over very well.”
“No. So Ben told him to get lost and of course Lukas flipped out. Next thing you know, he’d shifted.”
“Unbelievable. What did Ben do? Did he shift?”
“No. Well so remember that I just thought Ben was human and I was freaking out and yelling at Lukas?”
“Right…”
“Well Lukas wasn’t listening at all and next thing you know he’s heading towards us. Ben immediately got between Lukas and I.”
“Awwww!!!!” Avery cooed.
“I know… Anyway, I had almost reached a point where I was ready to just leave with Lukas. You know, just to keep Ben from getting hurt. And then, out of nowher
e Jason slammed into Lukas and knocked him out - cold.”
“Wow. So he’d shifted?”
“Yeah.”
“So what was it like?”
“Honestly? It was really hot. I am telling you. As sexy as they are as humans, the lion form is a hundred times hotter.”
“Oh my God, I bet. I can only imagine. So then what happened?”
“Well, Lukas came to and basically left. I’m pretty sure he’s headed straight to Marlon’s house to tell him everything.”
“Shit.” Avery said.
“I know.”
“What are you going to do about Ben?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Ellie! You can’t be serious.”
“Why? Why can’t I be Avery? You said he was into me and you were right. What’s so wrong about that?”
“Ellie… You know what’s wrong with it. You are going to be shunned.”
“That’s not guaranteed.”
“Ellie…”
“Well, it isn’t.”
“Look, I just pulled into the parking lot of my apartments. I have to go. I’ll call you later.”
“Ellie, please think carefully about what you are doing.”
“I will. I promise Avery. I love you.”
“Alright. I love you too.” Avery said.
***
Ellie parked her car and got out as Ben pulled in the spot next to her. He brought his vehicle to a stop and then quickly got out.
“Hey.” He said.
“Hey yourself.” She replied smiling.
“Do you have everything from your car?” he asked.
“Yeah.” She answered.
“Okay then, lead the way…” he said as he made a sweeping gesture with his hand. They crossed the parking lot and headed up two flights of stairs to the front door of her apartment. As she neared the door, she fiddled with her keys and then pinched the one that unlocked the front door between her thumb and index finger. As she slid it into the lock she heard his footsteps come to a halt behind her as the deadbolt lock opened.
“Ellie, my brother and I were really only kidding with you. You don’t have to offer me wine or play hostess. We both just wanted to make sure that you got home safely.” He said quietly.
She released the keys and turned back to face him.
After they’d made eye contact he said, “Even though I don’t know anything about what that was all about in the parking lot between you and Lukas, I can sense your uneasiness. I know that all of this must be awkward for you. The last thing I wanted was for you to feel that way around me.”
She sighed and said, “I don’t, trust me when I say that you are not the problem. The problem existed long before you and Jason arrived in town. And, really, it’s probably for the best that things have taken this turn.”
“Why do you say that?” he asked.
As much as she wanted to tell him, the last thing she wanted to do was bare her emotions as it related to Lukas. She couldn’t think of one good reason why she should tell him that she’d willingly given herself to him for years on end with nothing offered in return. What would he think of her? That she had no self-esteem whatsoever? Or worse, that she was just a slut?
Neither scenario was appealing so she quickly dismissed it out of hand and said, “It doesn’t matter… Let’s change the subject. Listen, if you’d like, I do have some Merlot. I’m more than happy to offer you some, that is, if you want to stay for a while.”
“Of course, Ellie. I was hoping that you’d say that.” He replied.
Luckily today was cleaning day and as much as she dreaded doing it earlier at least she didn’t have to apologize or make him wait in the hall while she tidied up. Maybe there was a bit of justice in the world after all. They entered the apartment and he closed the door behind them.
“Please, have a seat on the couch. I’ll grab the wine.” She said.
“Okay.” He replied.
A few moments later, she returned with their drinks and took a seat next to him on the couch. After taking a sip he nodded and said, “Mmm, very good. Thank you.”
“Of course. I mean, It’s the least I can do after everything that happened tonight.” She said.
He set his wine glass down on the coffee table, slung his arm up on the back of the couch and angled his body towards her. “Ellie, about what happened. I don’t want you to get the wrong idea.”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I suppose I mean that I didn’t want you to think that what we did tonight is something that I make a habit of.”
“Ohhhhh, you mean seducing innocent clients in your office?” she said.
A sly grin came over his face. “Yeah…that. I could see how that could be taken the wrong way. I just want you to know that I’m not like that.”
“You’ve given me no reason not to trust you Ben. Besides, it was wonderful.” She replied.
“Yes. It was.” He said in agreement.
She smiled and said, “Can I ask you a personal question?”
“Of course, anything.” He answered.
“Why did you and Jason come here? What I mean is don’t you belong somewhere… with your own kind?” she asked.
“You mean like you with your pack?” he said.
“Yes. I suppose that’s what I mean.” she said.
“Yeah, we do or more accurately, we did. It’s called a pride and yes, we did belong to one.” He said.
“What do you mean did?” she questioned.
He reached for his wine, took a sip and then said, “Well, the way things are for a young male lion is quite different from your wolf brethren. When we reach a certain age, we are expected to go out into the world and start our own pride.”
It sounded horrible. Ellie was so used to be connected to everyone in her pack. She couldn’t imagine being cast out into the world like that. She felt terrible for him… and Jason.
He continued, “And so, that’s what we’ve been doing for many years now. It’s been a nomadic existence and so far, totally fruitless.”
“So far? What do you mean?” she asked.
He looked deep into her eyes. In much the same way he did in his office and said, “Ellie, I don’t know any other way to say this so I’m just going to say it. You are the one Ellie.”
“What? What do you mean?” she asked.
“Ellie, I didn’t want to just blurt this out. We were hoping that we’d have more time to get to know you and discover if our instincts about you were correct.” He said.
“Your instincts? Wait, what do you mean we?” she asked suspiciously.
“Jason and me. The two of us. Ellie you are everything we’ve been searching for all of these long, lonely years. We knew that you were the one we’ve been searching for but at the same time, we had no idea that you were part wolf. It’s clear that, after tonight, there’s no time to waste.” He replied.
“I don’t understand. You and Jason want me to be with you?” she asked.
“Yes, Ellie. That is, if you want that.” He said.
“Well, I don’t know what to say. Is that normal for your kind? Sharing women?” she asked.
“Yes…Quite. To us, love is not selfish. The survival of the pride supersedes the desire of the individual. Is it not that way for wolves?” he questioned.
“No, not at all. In fact, it is the exact opposite.” She said.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“Well, in the pack, once a female is claimed by a male she is bound to him, for life.” She responded.
His head dropped suddenly as a dark awareness overcame him. He then softy asked, “I see. So Lukas… Is he?”
“No!” she exclaimed. “I mean, I won’t lie. There was a time when I thought that was all that I wanted. But now…”
“Yes?” he asked.
“It’s really not his fault. In the end, it was mine. I think he’s just so used to having his way when it came to me that seeing me with you was more than he could stand.�
��
“I see.” He replied in a concerned tone.
“It’s just all so complicated. I don’t want to talk about Lukas.” She said.
“Alright.” He answered.
After a few moments of silence, his hand suddenly moved over and caressed her thigh. “Ellie, I don’t want to put pressure on you. I just wanted you to know how we felt before it was too late.”
“Thank you. I have feelings for you as well.” She replied.
“I know.” He said.
“How?”
He squeezed her thigh more firmly, leaned in towards her and said, “The way you kissed me. The way your curves melted into me. My inner cat knew that as soon as our lips met it was destined to be.”
“I… But I am part wolf…” she said softly.
“Yes, but you are also part human. Besides you haven’t shifted or been claimed have you?”
“No.” she answered.
“Very well, then there is nothing stopping us. Ellie, time is slipping away. I will be blunt. I want you. I have wanted to fuck you since the moment I first saw you come into our gym. I want you now and I don’t want to wait another second.”
***
She looked at him in disbelief. She knew that he was right and there were no obstacles between them except for the ones that she half-heartedly attempted to keep up. Without speaking, Ben suddenly got up and swept her into his arms. Instinctively, she leaned to his broad chest and gave him the unspoken consent he yearned for.
As they made their way into the bedroom he leaned his head over and began to kiss her passionately. She was immediately awash in a sea of heat and teeth and tongue. Her arms draped around his neck as his thick stubble brushed into her frail flesh.
She knew that the moment was upon her now. He would be the first since Lukas and she realized that turning back was not possible, not any longer. It was time to submit to that which the fates had cast upon her and whatever the pack may decide was quickly becoming an afterthought.
As the pair fell into the mattress his scent enveloped her. It was an unfamiliar musk and one that immediately brought her wild side to the surface. Her body pulsed beneath him and all she wanted, more than anything, was for him to fuck her senseless and to waste as little time as possible.
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