by Sarah Marsh
“Gods Kham, I’m going to come,” he bellowed, his hips bucking violently when Kham released his cock and sat up straddling his thighs.
“We’ll come together, love, and Eve can watch us,” Kham said as he shuffled up so his groin was pressed tightly against Kai’s slick hardness. He used both of his hands and grabbed their cocks together in a firm hold, then started to stroke them fast and hard.
Roan seemed to enjoy the sight as much as she did because his hips started losing pace, and he moaned loudly watching the other men. When he finally pinched her clit hard Eve came in a gush of liquid. As her pussy clamped down hard on Roan’s cock he pumped into her a couple more times before he came deep inside her. Their breaths were still heavy when Kham and Kai yelled out, and Eve saw the evidence of their orgasm spurting out and covering Kham’s hands and Kai’s belly. Kham finally collapsed over to Kai’s side and laid a gentle kiss on his lips as he released the other man’s bound hands.
All four of them let out contented sighs at the same time, which then led to a round of low laughter.
“Wow, now that’s the way to wake up,” Eve said quietly as they lay trying to catch their breath, which led to another round of laughter.
Chapter Nineteen
When Roan plucked her out of the comfy and rumpled blankets and carried Eve into the shower with Kham and Kai in tow they were all still smiling. The huge shower was big enough for all of them to get into, which of course led to more kissing and touching. It amazed Eve at how comfortable it felt being like this together, and once everyone was finally clean…after much double checking from each of her men, they all sat down in the dining area and dug in to eat a late breakfast. Eve was carefully picking her way through some of the fruits that she’d figured out she liked and was able to stomach. As she’d found out her first week, not all of the foods from Dhuaat were compatible with her system. It had turned into a couple of rather awful afternoons. The following days Mhat-Am had gone over most of the foods that were common in their world, explaining which ones would be difficult to process and how she had to be careful when they attended any of the events off the ship so that she didn’t ingest something that would be harmful to her. The medics were working on an enzyme that would help her body to cope with digestion of any foreign foods, but until they figured it out safe was a much better option than sorry.
Kham was going over his meetings scheduled for the week while Roan and Kai seemed to be systematically eating their way through the entire table.
“Sheesh, guys, did you work up an appetite this morning? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat this much!” she teased, making her way to Kham to plop down in his lap.
Both Roan and Kai looked up from their meals like they hadn’t realized what they were doing, while Kham settled her in his lap and wrapped his arms around her. Roan just shrugged with a cheeky smile and finished his mouthful, then pushed his plate away. Kai though, who was the best out of all her men at communicating with her, looked up sheepishly and spilled the beans.
“Apparently sometimes our people can be stress eaters,” he began. “It comes from some throwback gene that prompted the storage of calories before battle.”
Eve just blinked at them while she tried to process that little statement. Mhat-Am certainly hadn’t told her anything about this in the Sirotian history they went over.
“But I thought Sirus was a planet full of courtesans? What kind of battles did you have?” she asked curiously.
“Well, the Pleasure Guild only became dominant in the last century or so. Before that we were a culture of many different guilds. Of course, just because Sirus is known for its courtesans and it is the most prevalent industry doesn’t mean that every Sirotian is a courtesan. The planet still has to function you know,” Roan chimed in with a sigh that said he didn’t really want to be talking about this. “Just like any other society Sirus requires all levels of base service employment. About sixty percent of those positions are held by off-world immigrants. So while most of our elite families follow the tradition of courtesan training for their offspring, every so often there are individuals born with regressive genes that make them more aggressive than the average Sirotian. Like a throwback to our warrior days.”
“They don’t usually fare so well in the courtesan training,” Kai added with a knowing look toward Roan.
“And you two have these throwback genes?” Eve asked quietly. It was the only thing that made sense to her. When she had learned about Sirus she’d had a hard time imagining Roan and Kai acting as a courtesan to anyone.
“Amazing,” Kham said, looking at the two of them. “That explains a great deal actually, although I’ve never read anything about this phenomenon in your species’ history.”
“It isn’t something that the Sirotian like to admit to. They find it a weakness in the corporate facade and damaging to their marketing vision,” Roan said with a sarcastic laugh.
“That sounds like something that a business would say right before they fire someone,” Eve said with a frown.
“Roan’s eldest brother Arkenon is the Courtesan Guild Master on Sirus,” Kai said with his own matching frown. “If he’d had his way neither of us would have left the planet. They had high expectations for Roan.”
When Kham suddenly went still and rigid beneath her she knew that something in the information that Roan and Kai had just shared was a big deal. She just didn’t know what it was yet. But with the “stress eating” reference and the big baddie-sounding brother, she was beginning to get a bit nervous about their little field trip to Sirus.
“Your brother is Arkenon Quinn?” Kham asked in a serious tone.
Roan’s only response was a short nod as he met Kham’s eyes with a serious look. Eve was frantically looking back and forth between them trying to figure out what the big deal was when finally Kai took pity on her.
“The guild master is the host for the symposium on Sirus. We will have no choice but to deal with this,” Kai said quietly. “He may take issue and try to contest our mating in an attempt to regain control of Roan.”
What did that mean?. Were they going to show up to this conference thingy only to have to turn around and leave without Roan? What would happen to him? This brother of his sounded like an asshole, but it was Kham and Roan’s reaction that was scaring her the most. If they were this worried then it must be bad.
“Well that’s just too bad,” she said as she peeled herself out of Kham’s lap and sauntered over to Roan with all the bravado she could muster and straddled him in his chair. “This Atavan fellow can’t have you back because you’re ours, and we are going to keep you.”
Eve’s little show had exactly the effect that she was going for when Roan laughed and pulled her closer to him before he kissed her, the tension in his body loosening dramatically.
“His name is Arkenon, you little troublemaker,” Roan said as he kissed her again with a smile on his face.
“Eve’s right,” Kham said, finally relaxing as well now that he’d had time to absorb the information. “You are now both registered as Dhuaatian citizens because we are mated. There is nothing your brother can legally do to reclaim you.”
Kham paused for a moment in thought, and was beginning to look concerned once again.
“I have only met Arkenon once, and he seemed to be a good man, but do you think it’s possible that he would be motivated enough to try to reclaim you through illegal means?” Kham asked carefully.
Both Roan and Kai seemed to mull over the question carefully. Roan seemed to be thinking a little harder than Kai. Eve didn’t even want to contemplate how it would feel to think that your own sibling would want to do you harm. She’d grown up an only child, so it was a bit of a foreign concept to her. Finally Roan seemed to shake off his doubts about his brother.
“No, Arkenon may be a bit of a stuffy bastard. But he’s a man of honor and would never shame our family that way,” he answered.
“But there are others on Sirus that don’t ha
ve the same sense of honor, Roan,” Kai added quietly.
“Lara,” was all Roan said as he met Kai’s eyes. “If anyone causes trouble it will be Lara.”
“Who’s Lara?” Eve asked, a surprising jolt of jealousy hitting her at the mention of another woman in Roan’s life.
“Lara Dekker was Roan’s betrothed before we left Sirus,” Kai answered, earning an annoyed glare from Roan in the process.
“You make it sound like something it was not, Kai,” Roan explained, looking at Eve. “We were contracted to marry when we were children. Lara was never someone I would have chosen to be with.”
“We heard after we left Sirus that she had tried to pursue getting his family kicked out of the guild for breach of contract,” Kai said. She could see by the look on his face what he thought of this woman.
“What about your families?” Eve asked, looking back at Kham and Kai. “Are they going to be pissed about us getting married as well?”
Shit, Eve was just beginning to realize that three husbands came with three sets of potentially annoying in-laws. Just when she was beginning to think that she’d come out on top in this deal she was suddenly realizing that she was in for more than she’d bargained for.
“My family was initially surprised when they learned that I was mated so suddenly, but the introduction of your extremely fertile human genes into our bloodline has them quite excited about it all,” Kham answered with an amused grin on his face.
“No worries here, love,” Kai answered with a wink. “My family isn’t politically inclined like Roan’s and Kham’s. My parents will be thrilled to meet you, although fair warning, my mother will probably try to get you breeding as soon as possible.”
Chapter Twenty
That comment from Kai had her brain at a full stop. She hadn’t thought that far into the future yet. She was finally accepting that this marriage between the three of them could actually work, but children? How would that work? Her mind began to spiral in a thousand different questions.
“Don’t worry so much, love. We won’t attempt to extend our family until we’ve fully discussed it with you and you are ready,” Roan said as he gave her a squeeze to bring her out of her head and back to the issues at hand.
“Will Lara be at the symposium?” Kham asked.
“I’ve spoken to my father about the issue and apparently she is now the acting head of her family, so she will be there. But since our union had to be registered on Sirus she will be aware of it and most likely already plotting,” Kai said with a concerned tone.
“How is she the head of her family?” Roan asked disbelievingly. “She has two older brothers that should have advanced once her father stepped down.”
Kai gave Roan a slightly guilty look, like he knew he was going to be in trouble.
“I didn’t see any need to tell you since we hadn’t planned on returning to Sirus anytime soon, but when her father grew sick her eldest brother Luke died quite suddenly under suspicious circumstances, and once that happened Roland conveniently declared himself unfit and moved away,” Kai answered, not wanting to meet Roan’s eyes.
“How could you not tell me this?” Roan asked his partner with disbelief.
“I didn’t want you to worry or feel that you had to involve yourself with those awful people again,” Kai admitted quietly.
Eve and Kham just sat watching the conversation between the two, understanding Kai’s motivation to protect Roan.
“Lara may have been a nightmare, but Luke was my friend. You should have told me this,” Roan said quietly.
No one spoke for a few moments. Eve just laid her head on Roan’s shoulder trying to give him some comfort.
“We are sorry for the loss of your friend, Roan,” Kham said, placing his hand on Roan’s knee. “But we need to think ahead about whether Lara will be a threat to us or not and prepare.”
“The general gossip among the families is that she had Luke killed and threatened the same to Roland. She’s very clever though, and none of the evidence could be traced back to her,” Kai said as he got to his feet and started pacing in front of the table. “She has also on more than one occasion been overheard trying to push your brother for details as to your whereabouts, Roan.”
That little tidbit brought Eve’s head back up from Roan’s shoulder. They’d been gone for over six years, and this chick was still bugging his brother about him? Crap, she definitely was beginning to fall into the “super bat-shit crazy ex” category.
“So I guess we’re assuming that she’s going to try something super villain bad when we show up?” Eve asked with a sigh. “And here I was thinking that meeting Roan’s brother would be the scariest part of the weekend.”
“I think it would be wise to contact your brother ahead of time and formulate a plan to keep you and Eve safe,” Kham said to Roan, waiting for his agreement.
Roan closed his eyes and sighed in defeat. They could all clearly see how much he wished they didn’t have to speak with his brother, but better safe than sorry.
“Fine, let’s get this over with.” Roan nodded in acceptance as he stood and placed Eve back onto her feet and swiftly kissed her forehead.
They all followed him into the office and sat on the other side of the desk once he sat down. Eve could see him mentally trying to pull himself together, and she reached over and held his hand. He looked up and gave her a small smile. It was nice to know that her support already mattered to them even if they’d only been together a short time now. Eve felt important for the first time in her life.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Bridge, open a communications channel to Sirus Guild Master Arkenon Quinn,” Roan requested through the com system once he was settled.
They waited for a few minutes, and when the monitor pinged they all braced for it.
“Guild Master Quinn for the Dhuaatian ship Nomac. May I please ask who he shall be addressing?” The female voice sounded chipper on the other end.
“Security chief for the Pharaoh Khaman-Ra, Roan Quinn,” he answered in a tone that was all business until he added, “His brother,” at the end.
“Oh! Of course, sir. Just one moment,” she answered. You could almost feel her giddiness at obtaining this juicy little tidbit of gossip about the guild master and his estranged brother.
“Arkenon here,” was all the other man said once the screen lit up.
“Brother,” Roan replied with an expressionless face.
There was silence for a moment while the two men just looked at each other. Eve started to squirm wondering why Roan wasn’t saying anything, hoping that this wasn’t a huge mistake.
“Roan, it’s good to see you,” Arkenon finally said in a quiet tone with a sincerity that made Eve’s anxiety lessen.
“Thank you, brother, it’s good to see you as well. I know it’s been a long time, and I would have contacted you sooner, but I didn’t know… Well, I didn’t want to complicate things for you,” Roan said a bit awkwardly.
“I understand. I should’ve listened to you about Lara. She is…well, unbalanced. You were right to fight the betrothal. I’m just sorry that it caused you to leave us behind. Your family misses you, Roan,” Arkenon replied with a heavy sigh. “I’ve heard that congratulations are in order on your mating.”
“Thank you, Arkenon. I’ve missed you all as well,” Roan said, his eyes revealing how much it meant to him to have acceptance from his brother once again. “That brings us to the main reason for my call.”
“Of course, one of your mates is Pharaoh Khaman-Ra who is coming for the symposium tomorrow. Are you all coming with him?” Arkenon asked.
“Yes, it is expected protocol that the pharaoh’s mates accompany him to these events. You know this, and Kai and I would never leave Eve unprotected in such circumstances. Would you like to meet my mates?” Roan asked his brother.
“Very much. The Coalition is practically all atwitter with this shipment of human females that you rescued. Almost all of the members have petit
ioned to receive as many as they can for placement. It’s going to be one of the main topics for the symposium this cycle,” he answered.
As Roan switched the monitor to the larger view screen on the wall Eve got her first look at Roan’s older brother. He was a large man, even more muscular than Roan, which surprised her given the nature of his job…being the grand poohbah of the courtesans and all that jazz. He had long black hair tied back neatly, serious dark green eyes, and it was clear from the tired look in them that this man carried a heavy weight on his shoulders. She could also tell as his eyes examined each of them that he didn’t miss much. When his view lingered on Eve a little too long Roan cleared his throat and began the introductions.
“Brother, these are my mates, Pharaoh Khaman-Ra of the Dhuaat, you know Kai already, and this is Evangeline Scott of Earth,” he said, moving around the desk to pick Eve up and drop her onto his lap as he took his seat in front of the screen.
“Pharaoh, welcome to the family. The Quinns are honored to include you among us.” Arkenon stood and took a short ceremonial bow before he sat back down. “Kai, it is good to see you are well. Evangeline, I most certainly look forward to meeting you in person and greeting you as a sister.”
Both Kham and Kai nodded back to Arkenon, acknowledging his greeting. Eve just smiled and gripped Roan a bit tighter not really liking the way his brother was examining her.
“I must say, Roan, The images taken of the human females don’t do them justice. Your mate is quite stunning. I can see why the pirates have taken such a risk in acquiring them from their home world now. I was beginning to wonder what the fuss was all about,” Arkenon added with a wink and a saucy smile that instantly had Eve rolling her eyes.
“Well I see that particular brand of charm seems to run in the family,” she said while the men chuckled at Arkenon’s teasing.
Chapter Twenty-Two