Adam was still focused on the horrible finality in her voice when she stalked out of the room. He should have felt relieved that she’d decided to leave. They’d taken care of her attackers, so there was no longer a threat to her beyond River’s Bend borders. He wanted her to go home and live a normal human life. That’s what he and Levi had agreed, so why did he feel as if his guts had been torn out?
* * * *
It took only a few minutes to throw her belongings together and zip up her luggage. She managed to change out of the sexy teddy even faster, but it was hours before she opened the guestroom door a crack and got up the courage to creep her way down the hall. Both men had knocked on the door repeatedly and then tried to talk to her through it, but eventually they’d just given up. Still, she hadn’t been sure they’d actually let her leave, so she waited until she thought they were asleep to start down the hall.
Her plan was simple. She’d borrow one of their cars and drive herself back to Silver Spring to get her Volvo. She’d leave the borrowed car, with the keys hidden in it, in Sarah’s driveway, so they could go pick it up. Then, she’d drive herself to a hotel and stay there until Sarah’s joining day. She couldn’t miss the joining, but she wouldn’t stay in River’s Bend a minute longer.
Adam and Levi had brought excitement back into her life. And she’d fallen for them—hard. She wasn’t sure she’d ever felt so deeply for anyone or felt so completely alive. She didn’t care that staying with them could mean danger. She didn’t even care about the changes she would have to undergo. All she knew was that everything paled to the life she could have with them, and now that she’d met them, ordinary life, safer or not, would never be enough again. That’s what pissed her off. They should never have drawn her in if they were just going to yank it all away, with their somedays and their maybes. Hope couldn’t live for the possibility of a future. She had to have them now.
Maybe she should just go stay at the lodge until the joining, but she couldn’t bear to see them every day, knowing she couldn’t be with them. It would crush her to stay any longer, and that’s what she reminded herself of as she quietly opened the door, struggling with her bags, and shut it behind her.
Out on their porch, she set her bags down, silently cursing herself for her stupidity. She’d forgotten to grab the car keys. She walked over to the railing, taking deep breaths of the fresh night air and gathering the courage to re-enter the house she’d just escaped.
“You’re headstrong,” Adam said. “But did you really think we’d let you leave in the middle of the night?”
She hadn’t noticed him sitting there in the shadows.
He closed the space between them, towering over her so that she had to crane her neck to look up at him. “If you’re going to be a Liekois—”
Levi’s voice came from behind her. “You’re going to have to learn to obey us.”
She only had a second to wonder where he’d come from before Adam took her mouth in a long, searching kiss. When he finally released her, Levi pulled her into his arms, stroking his lips across hers before exploring her mouth with his tongue. She didn’t have to ask. She just knew. They’d decided to claim her.
The brothers exchanged a look again, and suddenly Hope was back in Adam’s arms. “I know I should send you home. With what’s coming, I know that would be safer, simpler. But I can’t let you go. “
“You won’t have to worry so much, once I’m one of you.”
“No. If our clan goes to war, there will still be danger, but we’ll do everything in our power to keep you safe. The alphas believe we can keep the battles outside River’s Bend, but no matter what happens, we’ll keep you safe. We would die for you, Hope.”
Levi carried her bags back inside, and Adam carried her over the threshold.
“River’s Bend is your home now,” Levi said. “You were right. This is where you belong.” He kissed her, then stepped back to shut the door as Adam carried her down the hall.
“What changed your minds?”
It was Levi who answered. “You did, when you said we were over. Hearing those words made us realize we couldn’t stand to be separated from you. Not while we wait for a war that might never come.”
After setting her on her feet, Adam removed her sweater and bra while Levi worked on her shoes, then tugged at her jeans, pulling them down her legs and tossing them aside. Adam left her panties on and buried his face between her legs, deeply inhaling her scent before he drew the bit of utilitarian cotton off with his teeth. “God, I’ve missed making love to you.”
The capacity for coherent thought left her as Adam lay down on his big bed and reached for her, pulling her on top of him. He’d been barefoot from the start, but he hadn’t taken his jeans off, and the stiff material scraped her skin. That didn’t stop her from grinding herself against his denim-covered bulge.
Adam tightened his arms around her briefly, then gripped her hips, tugging her upward until she straddled his head. Hope could hardly contain herself as he took his time kissing her thighs and nuzzling her pussy before he finally gave her what she wanted, what she needed, and licked her pussy lips full on.
She gasped as his tongue began its exploration, leaning forward to grip the headboard to keep her balance. It wasn’t long before her gasps and moans grew louder and her clit throbbed with tension as he suckled it, dividing his attention between the swollen bud and her wet entrance. He used his hands on her hips to encourage her to move, and soon she fucked his mouth just as heartily as his tongue and lips fucked her.
Her climax started as a coiled knot deep inside her and unfurled slowly at first. But once it found its rhythm, it came on like a freight train. When it hit, she lost all control, letting loose a guttural moan as she reared back and almost dislodged herself. Levi caught her by the shoulders and held her steady as her orgasm ripped through her body and left her whimpering, almost crying with satisfaction.
Adam continued to lick and suck while the last ripples of climax took her. Then Levi guided her trembling body off him and laid her in the center of the bed. She watched through half-lidded eyes as her men shed their clothing, mentally pinching herself. Who would have thought an ordinary girl like her would ever get so lucky?
The moment he’d shed his clothes, Adam slid hot and hard between her legs. He reached between them and caressed her wetness, then pushed his cock inside her. Her body responded to him like it always did, quickly and completely, and within just a few strokes, she was panting in his arms again, tightly gripping his shoulders and wondering if a person could die from too much pleasure.
“You’re ours now, Hope,” Adam said, “so we want to take you together tonight. Me here”—he thrust in and out of her, driving his point home, then reached under her to spread her buttocks and run a finger up and down her crack—“and Levi, there.”
She gasped. Adam’s touch, combined with his slow, deep thrusts, sent delicious thrills through her body, but she’d never been taken that way.
“Will it hurt?” She felt a pang of fear at the thought of being fucked there, but also a thrill of anticipation she couldn’t deny. It sounded like the best kind of dirty sex, and though Hope hadn’t known it before coming to River’s Bend, she was definitely that kind of girl.
Levi, watching as Adam fucked her, answered her question. “It might burn a little at first, but that’s it.”
She moaned against Adam’s chest. If she was honest with herself, she really did want to feel both of them inside her at once. In fact, the thought of it brought more cream to her pussy and caused it to tighten the already vice-like grip it had on Adam’s cock. “Then…I’m ready. Take me.” She had to force the words out because, despite the fact that Adam moved so slowly inside her, she could already feel the tension building again.
Levi kissed her, his tongue caressing hers, and then moved away. Adam clutched her tightly to him and rolled to his back, ending with her on top of him once more. Spreading her legs, Hope rose up off Adam until just his mushroo
m head remained inside her, then sat back down, groaning at the sensation of his cock stretching her and repeating the movement again and again.
“Slow down, baby.” Adam grabbed her hips and held them steady, growling beneath her. “Wait for Levi. If I feel your pussy squeeze my cock the way it does when you come, I won’t be able to hold back.”
Sighing, she tried to reign herself in, though she couldn’t resist riding him a few more times before she gave in and slowed down. She could see the strain Adam was under as he tried to hold himself still. Every muscle flexed with the effort. Leaning down, she nipped at his lower lip as Levi returned to press himself against her back, letting her feel his warmth—and his arousal. When he pulled back, she felt his fingers, cold and slick with some sort of lubricant.
Goose bumps covered her flesh as he slowly pushed a finger inside her virgin chamber. It felt strange at first, but then she realized it wasn’t bad at all, especially not when she rotated her hips to grind her pussy against Adam at the same time. Levi kissed her neck as he inserted another finger and moved it in and out, and then added a third.
“Fuck her, Adam,” Levi said, and Adam immediately began to move beneath her as Levi stretched her ass. The twin sensations were electrifying, and Hope gave herself over to them, lying down to rest her head on Adam’s shoulder. She could feel his heart beating hard in his chest, its hectic pace matching her own.
Just as she felt her climax ramping up again, Levi withdrew his fingers and pressed his cock against her buttocks. She heard a cap open and then felt the cool, slick feeling of the lubricant again, this time attached to the hard head of the cock he was pushing inside her.
Adam went still again as Levi pushed in a little, then a little more. With no warning, the sensation went from slightly odd to a burn that caused her to tense up and hold her breath. Adam reached between them to stroke her clit, and Levi pressed his lips to her ear. “Hold on, baby. This is the worst part.” He pushed in a little further and then pulled out, and then pushed back in again.
Even as she whimpered at the strange sensations, she couldn’t help pushing forward against Adam’s fingers, balancing the pleasure they provided with the pain. And then the burning ended, as suddenly as it had begun, and both her men were inside her. Neither moved, and Hope guessed they must be letting her body adjust to the feel of two cocks stretching her at the same time.
Then Adam began to move again, pulling almost out of her pussy and then thrusting forward once more. When he pulled out again, Levi pulled back and thrust forward in her ass. They took her slow and steady until she was panting and moaning between them.
It was an amazing feeling, having both their hot, hard bodies, touching, rubbing, pressing into hers at once, and she could only hold on, getting closer and closer to an orgasm she knew would be more powerful than anything she’d ever felt before. For the first time in her life, she tried hard to hold it back, to delay it, not wanting the beautiful feeling of being fucked by her wolves to ever end. But that was only part of it. A part of her wondered if she could handle the climax that was to come.
When Adam began stroking her clit again, she knew it was all over and dug her fingers into his shoulders to brace herself.
“Come for us, Hope,” Levi rasped just before she felt his lips on her neck, followed by a hint of teeth and a sharp bite that sent her reeling. At the same time, Adam fastened his teeth on her shoulder, but it wasn’t the pain of their bites that caused her to scream and convulse. Their twin bites threw her over the edge she’d been balanced so precariously on, rocketing her into a climax that locked every muscle in her body and caused her eyes to roll back in her head.
As her pussy clenched around Adam, her ass clamped down on Levi’s cock. She dimly heard his growl as he pressed harder, deeper inside her, spilling his seed in her back door with a rough, raw shout just as Adam jerked and groaned and came in her pussy. The knowledge that both men were coming inside her at the same time, with their teeth still sunk deep in her flesh, did a number on her, hurling her into another limb-locking climax.
Hope had known the experience would be mind-blowing. She’d expected it to be different, even amazing. What she hadn’t been prepared for was hearing their voices in her head. Maybe she only imagined it, but Hope could swear she heard Adam’s voice say, without actually speaking, Mine. My mate. He couldn’t have spoken. His teeth were still locked in her flesh. Maybe it was some sort of lucid dream that made her think she could hear Levi’s thoughts, too, saying, Always. Mine. Crazy though it was, in the next instant, two voices filled her head. They said, Ours.
* * * *
“Are you okay, Hope?” Adam stroked her belly, which, wet with perspiration, trembled at his touch. She still breathed rapidly and her eyes had a glazed look. “Are you hurt?”
She swallowed hard, focusing her gaze on him. “I’m okay.” She lay between him and Levi on the bed, and when he glanced over at Levi, it was clear his little brother was concerned as well.
Adam examined the bite mark on her shoulder and nodded to Levi to take a look at her neck. “Are you sure?” We would never want to hurt you. It’s just…this is the way the claiming is done.”
She nodded. “I’m fine. Better than fine, really. The bites don’t really hurt. I felt them when it happened, but everything else overshadowed the pain.”
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then opened them again to examine her face. “I’m sorry. I wish there was some other way.”
“Don’t say you’re sorry. Don’t ever say you’re sorry for claiming me. I knew what to expect from Sarah and Nikki, but it was beyond imagination. I’ve never felt anything so…so…powerful before.”
“But your neck…” He looked to Levi, who shook his head. Apparently, there was nothing abnormal or particularly troubling about the bite on that side. “And your shoulder…” He touched the flesh surrounding the wound gingerly.
“It’s just a little sore. Seriously, stop worrying.”
Levi kissed her forehead. “You seem worn out.”
She gave a little laugh. “That’s from coming harder than I’d ever imagined possible. It felt like my insides turned out.”
Adam exhaled, relieved. “It was like that for me, too.” He’d thought she was lying there so still because she was in pain. Female shifters didn’t complain of extreme pain from the claiming, not if it was done while they climaxed. But Hope was human, and he wasn’t sure if it would be worse for her because she was so much more delicate.
Hope raised an eyebrow at Levi, and he was quick to answer her unspoken question. “Yes, it was earth-shattering for me, too. I mean, it’s always been special with you, but this time was just…”
“Beyond description,” Hope finished for him.
She smiled at Levi and then turned her grin back on him. “I do have some questions.”
“Ask,” Adam said.
“Well, will they scar? The bites I mean.”
“You’ve seen Sarah’s. It’s barely there. They’ll fade to a thin, silvery mark that won’t be noticeable to anyone who isn’t really looking for it—like another shifter.”
She shook her head. “Okay, second, when do I turn?”
“Turn?”
“You know, transition. Does it happen at the full moon?”
Adam chuckled. Humans loved their stories about the supernatural. “No full moon. Your body will undergo transition, changing in the fundamental ways that will allow you to shift and heal faster than human’s do. Your first change, though…No one can tell you when that will happen. Once your body completes transition, which usually lasts a few days, you can shift. But since you never have before and no one can tell you how to do it, you’ll have to wait for it to happen on its own. For a lot of us, the first shift happens in connection with a strong emotion.”
“Okay, so get pissed or really happy and turn into a wolf. Got it. Hmmm…Could it happen when we’re making love?”
It thrilled him to hear her acknowledge that the
y made love rather than just fucking. “It could, but don’t worry. If it does, we’ll just shift, too.”
Her grin was bright enough to light up the room. She actually seemed excited by the prospect of changing, and that was another relief for Adam. He knew the whole idea of becoming a wolf was hard on some humans, even terrifying, but she seemed to look forward to it.
Levi reached out to smooth her damp hair away from her forehead. “Okay, now I have a question. Did you hear us…in your head?”
Adam watched her eyes widen and knew the answer before she spoke.
“I thought I heard you and Adam, but I knew you couldn’t possibly have spoken. I mean, I could still feel your teeth.”
“We call it the link,” Levi said. “It’s a connection wolf shifters have with their mates. It usually starts with the claiming, but we weren’t sure if it would happen right away with you or after transition.”
Hope stared at Levi, wide-eyed. “I’ve often thought you two were talking without speaking. Was I right?”
Adam kissed her nose. “You’re observant. Yes, wolves who are very close, such as family or sometimes even just best friends, can communicate this way. It’s clearer when we’re in shifted form.”
“So you can read my mind right now?” She didn’t seem altogether pleased with the idea.
“Not exactly,” Levi answered. “First, we haven’t heard you yet, but when we do, we’ll catch snatches of thoughts rather than everything that’s on your mind. And it will be easiest to hear you when you’re feeling an intense emotion.”
She blew out a breath, obviously relieved. “Okay, I can live with that.”
“What? Don’t you want us to know what you’re thinking at all times?”
“Ummm…no. What about when you’re pissing me off or I feel ugly because I have PMS or something? I’d rather not have a party line in my head then.”
Should he tell her? Adam wasn’t sure. She seemed so happy to hear she’d maintain some privacy. What the hell. She’d find out sooner or later anyway. “Before you get too happy, there is something else you should know.”
Claiming Hope [Wolves of River's Bend 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Page 22