by Sable Sylvan
“No, I can just tell when you’re nervous,” said Liam. “Like right now. You’re worried about me sensing your emotions. You’re worried about corporeal legibility.”
“Corporeal what now?” asked Ann.
“Corporeal legibility,” said Liam. “Me being able to read what’s written on your body, or more aptly, what’s written in pink on your cheeks.”
“So now that you’ve told me that you can pretty much read my mind, you expect me to relax?” asked Ann.
“I expect you to stop trying to hide your feelings, and your…desires,” said Liam. “Because trust me. I can tell what you want anyway, so why hide it from me? Here I was, thinking girls didn’t like secrets in relationships…”
“Hey, isn’t there a difference between secrets and mystery?” asked Ann.
Liam lifted his glass of wine to his lips, took a sip, and looked over the blushing curvy goddess in front of him. “I don’t know, Ann, is there?” asked Liam, lifting a brow.
Smarmy. Cocky. And…pretty much a genius when it came to women, what turned them on, and how they felt. It was absolutely frustrating, but in that moment, Ann realized why Liam was so good at his job. He had a power over women without even trying, and women? That’s a category that included her, that included the thing inside her that made her want to jump his bones even though this was only their second meeting.
But if he could do that to her? She could sure as heck do it to him.
“I don’t know, Liam…is there?” asked Ann, taking her glass of red wine and mirroring what he did before putting it down and getting back to finishing up her stew.
As they finished up their main courses, the dessert cart came around.
“Anything catch your eye?” asked Liam.
“Let me see,” said Ann. She looked over the cart. There were classic French pastries, petit fours and macarons and croissants, but what really caught her eye was the blancmange, a cream colored creamy pudding dotted with black specks.
“The white pudding…to go,” said Ann.
“A fine choice, mademoiselle,” said the waiter. “The blancmange is made with a sweet rice and almond base, with real French vanilla beans.”
“Perfect,” said Ann.
The waiter pulled out a small pastry box from the second level of the cart and carefully plated the pudding and two silver-colored plastic spoons into the small plain unassuming cardboard box atop a doily, before tying it up with a piece of white and red baker’s twine. Meanwhile, Liam settled the check, and soon enough, the pair was on their way.
“Dessert, to go?” asked Liam. “Back to your place, I’m guessing?”
“Nuh-uh,” said Ann, taking Liam with her free hand. “I have something else in mind.”
Ann lead Liam down the street and back into the suburbs, but not in the direction of her house. She had somewhere else to take him. They zigged and zagged through the streets until they reached a dark alleyway. “Come on,” said Ann.
“Hey,” said Liam, standing put. “You sure this is a good idea?”
“Trust me,” said Ann.
Liam continued with Ann down the alleyway but only because he knew that if he didn’t, she’d likely go without him and make him chase her. If there was one thing Ann could do, it was make the bear inside of him want to hunt her down, to keep her safe and ensure she was his to keep.
Ann and Liam continued down the dark alley to a large oak door. Ann opened the door, and what Liam saw next took his breath away.
Chapter Six
In front of Liam was a secret garden that looked like it came straight out of a fairy tale. There was a bevy of gorgeous plants, in shades of blue and pink and purple, with cobbled pathways between the beds. There wasn’t anyone else in the garden, which was lit with a combination of fairy lights on strings and solar powered jars filled with warm lights.
“What is this place?” asked Liam.
“It’s a community garden,” explained Ann. “Sometimes, I volunteer here with the kids. It teaches them to work with others, the value of community, and all that…but what they really like doing is getting to play with dirt and worms.”
“Typical kids,” said Liam with a laugh. “It’s gorgeous though…really something.”
“Aww, let me guess, you’re the romantic of the pair?” asked Ann.
“Definitely,” said Liam. “I’m the sappy one who cries at the end of movies…whereas Nick prefers his ‘romantic films’ to be a little more…erotic.”
“You two sure do know a lot about each other,” said Ann.
“He’s more than just my dance partner…he’s my best friend,” said Liam. “He’d have to be, to do what we do on that stage together, because that? That requires trust.”
“Really?” asked Ann.
“Oh yeah,” said Liam. “I wouldn’t trust anyone else to fight me in their bear form. We all keep control of our shifts the best we can, and I know that no matter what, Nick would never hurt me…but I can’t say that about the rest of the world.”
“You’ve been hurt before?” asked Ann.
“More like burned,” said Liam. “By family, by friends who don’t understand…what Nick and I are looking for. By other girls. But none of them matter now…because we found you.”
Ann squeezed Liam’s hand as she led him to the spot she wanted to take him to, a large porch swing that was set up outside in a freestanding structure, which was covered with crawling vines full of flowers.
They swung back and forth in the swing gently, and Ann opened the pastry box carefully. She put a spoon into the pudding and fed some to Liam.
“What do you think?” asked Ann.
“Not gonna lie…vanilla pudding? Not exactly what I would pick at a nice restaurant,” said Liam.
“Oh, there’s not going to be anything vanilla about this dessert,” said Ann. She dug into the pudding and put some into her mouth seductively, moving the spoon in a way that made Liam wish that Ann’s lips were wrapping something else, that her mouth was full of a different kind of creamy filling, one that was a lot hotter and saltier than the cold, sweet dessert.
“I know you want me,” said Ann, rubbing Liam’s leg. “I want you too.” She snaked her leg up his thighs and felt his thick, bulging shaft, her eyes glinting and giving away the fact she was surprised by its size.
Liam’s eyes flashed a brilliant blue.
“What was that?” asked Ann.
“Me…holding back my bear,” said Liam.
“You wanted to shift just now?” asked Ann. “Why?”
“Not shift, my bear wanted to take over, let me do something I know I can’t do,” said Liam.
“Like…what?” asked Ann, giving the shaft a squeeze.
Liam took Ann’s hand in his.
“As much as I want that…you know Nick and I come as a package deal,” said Liam. “We can’t have you without one another present, at least, not the first time. It wouldn’t be right. We’ve waited all these years to find you…we can wait a little while longer to seal the deal.”
“Oh,” said Ann. “I’m so sorry…I thought that was just you two being kinky.”
“Trust me, it’s more complicated than that, you’ll see,” said Liam. “But hey. Chin up. There’s other fun things we can do.”
“Show me,” challenged Ann.
Liam’s eyes flashed again and this time he couldn’t keep the bear back. The bear wanted the fated mate more than anything else in the world and if he couldn’t claim her then and there, he could do the next best thing. Liam wrapped a hand around Ann’s head and pulled her face closer to his before his lips collided with hers like a tsunami against a beach, a force of nature against something that had submitted to its power long ago. Ann tossed the pudding to the ground and moved her legs onto Liam’s lap.
Liam pulled Ann closer and then moved her so she was straddling his hips.
“Gosh, I hope this swing is sturdy,” said Liam.
“Oh…it is,” said Ann, and with that she pus
hed forward onto Liam’s chest as she kissed his cheek, hard, pushing the swing back, and Liam gripped onto her hips in response as the swing went forward in a small arc.
As Liam felt his cock twitch and his bear start to awaken, he knew he was at the point where either he’d be able to stop, or he’d have to take her then and there. He thought he could resist the temptation to go further than just caressing her curves, but he now realized that, for the first time in his life, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from just taking her and riding her from below as he’d fantasized about doing so many times over the last week.
“We need to stop,” said Liam, his bear fighting him, trying to stop him from saying the words, but not before the words made their way out of his mouth.
“Do we?” asked Ann, brushing Liam’s hair away.
Liam moved as if to kiss Ann, then stopped himself, and pulled away.
“Yeah,” said Liam. “We do. We’re getting dangerously close to doing something we’ll both regret.”
“I want you,” said Ann.
“No…you need me,” corrected Liam. “And what you need isn’t just me…it’s me with Nick. We’re a package deal. I know he’d never go too far without me, at least, not until we’d had you together at first. Resisting you…it’s so darn hard, Ann. Don’t make it harder than it has to be.”
“I understand,” said Ann. “I want you…but you’re right. If you, me, and Nick are meant to be a triad? We need to be a triad. You can’t build a triangle with a line between just two points.” Ann dismounted Liam’s lap and gingerly stepped down onto the wood chips below before brushing the wrinkles out of her clothes and making sure her hair was in order with a quick swipe of her fingers.
“Come on,” said Ann, taking Liam by the hand. She led him through the darkening garden, back to the wooden door, and out into the suburbs again.
As the pair walked and talked, the moon rose into the sky and with it, a ménage of brilliant, shimmering stars.
“You’re a woman who…” started Liam.
“Who…what?” asked Ann.
“A woman who surprises me,” said Liam. “There’s so many things about you that…are surprising.”
“Okay, like what in particular?” asked Ann.
“Mostly the fact that you’re a virgin who’s willing to date two guys at once,” said Liam. “Very few women are interested in having a ménage, especially for the long term. The ones that are tend to be pretty experienced.”
“So because I haven’t had sex with one man, I can’t have sex with two?” asked Ann. “Last time I checked, I do have the ability to take two at once, at least, potentially.”
“See, it’s the fact you talk like that even though you’re…inexperienced,” said Liam. “That’s another surprise.”
“Just because I’m a virgin, doesn’t mean that I’m a prude, that I’m sex-averse, that I’m shy, that I’m not…horny, at least, sometimes,” said Ann. “I’m a virgin by circumstance, not exactly choice, although, even if I wasn’t a virgin, I would not have chosen to date and have a serious, so, a sexual, relationship, for a while, given that I have Brendan, Paige, and Jeremiah to take care of.”
“Why not?” asked Liam.
“Because I’m a full-time mom, along with having a full-time job,” said Ann. “And I’m a mom to frikkin’ triplets. You know what a handful they can be? Trust me. I’ll be surprised if Nick survived his first-time babysitting.”
“Okay, so time’s an issue, but why not just hire babysitters to go out on dates?” asked Liam.
“Because…okay, this is going to sound really weird, and you either will get it, or you won’t get it,” said Ann. “Because…I’m not exactly a catch.”
Liam’s blood boiled. The bear awoke and this time, for a different purpose than mating.
“Who told you that you aren’t a catch?” asked Liam, holding back the ire he felt towards whoever that person may be.
“Nobody had to tell me, I just know I’m not a catch,” said Ann. “I don’t mean looks. I know I’m drop dead frikkin’ gorgeous, that I have curves that any hot-blooded man deserves, that can make any alpha swerve, but…I’ve also got a set of baggage, and it’s not designer, if you know what I mean. I love the kids. I really do. But I know that what that makes me is a single mom on the dating market. With that? There’s a whole load of concerns. I need to not only find someone open to dating a single mom with frikkin’ triplets, but somebody open to dating a virgin, somebody looking to take things slowly, and somebody who…I could eventually see being part of my life and the lives of the kids.”
“Then the men in this city are all idiots,” said Liam. “Especially if they think that’s baggage.”
“In what world is being a single mom with triplets, and a virgin to boot, not baggage?” asked Ann.
“In a world where men appreciate women and their values…in the shifter world, in my world,” said Liam. “And that’s Nick’s world too.”
“Okay, so what do I read as, in the shifter world?” asked Ann.
“You really wanna know? Alright. Yes. You’re a single mom, to triplets. But what’s wrong with being a mom? What’s wrong with having a big family? You’re more than ‘just’ a single mom. You’re a loyal sister who stepped up when her family needed her in the face of tragedy,” said Liam. “You know how many gals your age would’ve just let the kids go to foster care or get adopted out? You sacrificed your twenties to raise them into great kids. I don’t even know them, and I know they’re great, because…they were raised by you. You’re a virgin, so what? You were dedicated and hard working in college, you know your limits and you know you have limited time to do things, as you’ve explained to me, and you chose to spend your time dedicated to your family, rather than on yourself. You’re someone who values family, who steps the frik up when there’s trouble a-brewing, and who knows what she wants, needs, and can feasibly get. I think that makes you better than pretty much everyone else out there.”
“Whoa,” said Ann. “Really?”
“Really,” said Liam. “And you better believe every darn word I said…because I really, really don’t want to have to repeat myself.
Liam and Ann turned the corner onto Ann’s street. The porch light was on. Liam and Ann went into the house.
The house, which had been a bit messy before they left, was frikkin’ spotless.
In the kitchen, elbow deep in a sink full of suds, was Nick, washing dishes while a hard rock radio station played.
“Nick,” said Ann. “You didn’t have to do all this cleaning!”
“It was no trouble,” said Nick. “After all, the kids have been in bed for about half an hour.”
“Wait, what?” said Ann. “Pinch me, because I must be dreaming, but did you just say you got the kids into bed already? There’s no frikkin’ way that after pizza, they’d be sleeping.”
“You can check upstairs if you don’t believe me,” said Nick. “But I practically had to brush their teeth for them and carry them into the bedroom.”
“Okay…is this shifter magic or something?” asked Ann.
“Nah,” said Nick. “At least, I wouldn’t call it ‘magic’. Kids get energetic. They finished their homework and we had pizza, so after dinner, I took’m out back, and we played some games. They got a lot of exercise, had a lot of laughs, and got pretty tired, so I cleaned’m up, which didn’t take much direction from me, because they know their routine, Brendan especially. Then, I read’m a story, but Paige pretty much did all the work with that, and Jeremiah helped her do voices. Then, I tucked’m in, said you’d given me some goodnight smooches to give to them, gave’m their smooches on their cheeks, and they started catching those z’s. Came downstairs, cleaned up the messes we made, and started cleaning up the dinner stuff. No sweat. Easy peasy.”
“Riddle me this,” said Ann. “How the heck are you so good at cleaning and kids?”
“Because he and I did a lot of babysitting for our families when we were teens,” said L
iam.
“You two have known each other since you were teens?” asked Ann.
“Even longer, but that’s a story for another night,” said Liam. “I’m good at cooking and with older kids, and Nick’s great at cleaning and good with younger kids. I guess I’m too boring for the younglings, and Nick’s too goofy for the angsty teens.”
“But together, you two make one functioning werebear?” teased Ann.
“Well, together with you,” said Nick. “How was the date?”
“Great, we strolled, got French food, went to a garden, and walked home,” said Ann.
“Sounds like I have my work cut out for me for the next date,” said Nick. “How’s…Sunday sound?”
“Sunday?” asked Ann. “In two days?”
“Sure,” said Liam. “Do a day date with Nick. I’ll hang back with the kids here.”
“That sounds lovely,” said Ann.
“Then it’s a date,” said Nick. “And Liam, I bet my bottom dollar she’ll like mine more than yours.”
“Well, you’re the one who said it…you have your work cut out,” said Liam.
Nick finished cleaning the dish he was working on and put the gloves back into the sink before rinsing off his hands and drying them off on a fresh tea towel. Ann couldn’t believe her eyes. Not only had rough and tumble Nick replaced her tea towel with a freshly laundered one, he’d used it. Properly. What universe was she in where this was a thing?
Nick walked with Liam to Ann’s front door.
“Sunday?” asked Nick.
“Sunday,” agreed Ann.
“Perfect,” said Liam, and at the same time, both Nick and Liam leaned in to give Ann a kiss, one smooch per cheek. Ann pulled them close in a group hug and then gave them each a kiss on the lips before sending them on their way.
Ann turned off the lights downstairs and locked the door. Before heading to her room to gossip with Chastity, she checked on the kids.
She opened the door a crack. There were no giggles, no kids with flashlights under the sheets. There were three sleeping heads, resting on pillows.
She closed the door. Brendan, Jeremiah, and Paige were really, actually, totally asleep, and before their bedtime. On a day where she’d had a date with one of the two male strippers that wanted her single mom virgin ass to join them in a ménage…that was still the strangest, weirdest thing to happen.