by R. E. Butler
“Enjoy your time, kids.”
They watched until he pulled away and crossed the field, and then Fate walked to the door and held it open, while Wyked carried Jilly into the RV. Fate shut and locked the door, following as Wyked carried her to the master bedroom.
“Welcome home, kitten,” Wyked said. He set her down on the bed and straightened.
Fate joined them. He removed his phone from his pocket and pressed a few buttons. She heard soft, romantic music. He connected the phone to the speaker that had been secured to the bottom of a cabinet. The music grew louder, but it wasn’t so loud she couldn’t talk to her mates.
Her males were the sexiest she’d ever seen in her life. She’d thought them handsome before, but now, wearing matching tuxes and gazing at her as if they could eat her alive and she’d enjoy every moment of it, she knew she’d never seen them sexier or more handsome.
She stood and turned, lifting her hair off her neck. She didn’t know who started to unbutton the dress, but she felt both of their hands on her. As the dress came undone, they lowered it slowly to the floor, and she stepped free of it and turned to face them. Fate picked up the dress, and she watched him leave the room and hang it up in a closet. As he stalked toward her, he undid his tie and tossed it aside, and then he pulled off his jacket. Wyked undressed, too, until they stood before her in their dress pants only.
Her nipples pebbled in her lacy corset, and her panties were quickly becoming soaked. She’d never been so turned on in her life. Fate cupped her face and kissed her, and then Wyked kissed her. Fate kissed her again, stroking his tongue into her mouth, and she wrapped one arm around his neck and drew him closer. Wyked kissed down her neck and across her shoulder, his fingers dipping into the corset to rub her nipples. He pinched them gently, playing with them until they were tingling and sending little jolts down her body. He slid his hands around her back and found the closure, which he worked open and then dropped the corset to the floor.
Fate lifted from her lips with a purr and cupped one breast. Both of them dropped their heads and sucked her nipples, and she moaned loudly, fisting their hair as her body churned with the first bloom of pleasure. Wyked picked her up and carried her to the center of the bed. He laid her down, and together, he and Fate pulled her panties slowly down her legs.
Wyked pushed her legs apart and settled between them as Fate moved up the bed and curled his finger under her chin. “You’re so beautiful,” Fate murmured.
Wyked inhaled deeply and purred. “You fucking smell like a dream, kitten.” He slid his finger gently up and down her pussy, curling it over her clit and barely grazing it. He probed her entrance, sliding only the tip of his finger in. She let out a groan and arched her hips, but he laid his arm over her waist and pushed her back to the bed.
“Why aren’t you naked?” she asked.
“You come first,” Fate said, “then we’ll make love.”
“I want you both so badly.”
“We want you, too,” Wyked said. He pushed his tongue into her pussy and then licked up to her clit, sucking lightly on the bud. Fate kissed her and played with her nipples while Wyked pushed his finger into her and sucked her clit. He used just enough pressure to bring her close to the edge and then he backed off, licking her nub gently. He pushed a second finger into her, and she tried to move, to wiggle her hips and take him deeply, but he kept her still, fingering her slowly as he leisurely licked her.
And then he laid his tongue flat against her clit and purred. His tongue vibrated with the purr, and she jerked away from Fate and gasped, pressing her head into the pillow. Wyked purred louder, rubbing his vibrating tongue on her nub as he added a third finger, sliding them in and out, faster and deeper with each pass. Her stomach twisted and her toes curled as she came, shouting out her pleasure and writhing in their hold.
They moved until they had caged her between them, Wyked’s fingers rubbing her clit and Fate feeding at her mouth. Then they each took a side of her neck and bit her, marking her as theirs forever. She cried out at the sharp pain, but it disappeared in the wake of the sweet knowledge that she wore their marks.
Fate and Wyked stripped from their pants, the material flying through the air as they climbed back on the bed. She didn’t know how their joining was going to happen, but she didn’t care. She just wanted them both. Fate rolled to his back and grasped his rock-hard erection. He motioned with his free hand. “Come use your mouth on me, sweetheart.”
She sat up and looked at Wyked. “I’m right behind you, kitten.”
With a grin, she moved to Fate, straddling his legs and positioning herself over him. Behind her, Wyked ran his fingers up the inside of her thighs, gripping them gently and then giving her cheek a playful squeeze.
“Love you,” Fate said.
“I love you, too,” she said, licking her lips. She looked over her shoulder at Wyked. “Love you.”
“Love you,” he said.
Wyked positioned his cock at her entrance, and she lowered her head and licked the top of Fate’s cock. He let out a groan that she matched when Wyked pushed into her deeply, gripping her hips tightly as their bodies pressed flush against each other. She took Fate into her mouth, running her tongue along the underside of his cock and playing with the thick vein. She propped herself up on the bed with one hand and used the other to wrap around the base of him, holding him as she worked herself up and down in time to Wyked’s movements within her. He pushed in hard and fast and then pulled out slowly until only the thick head of him remained.
Fate buried his hand in her hair. Wyked leaned over and braced himself with his hand next to hers on the bed, and with the other he reached for her clit. His hand slid across her hip in a slow arc and then brushed against the smooth skin. Her clit was throbbing and sensitive, and she squealed in surprised as he pinched it between his finger and thumb and began to rub it.
Fate helped her move on him when she lost the ability to do anything but just feel. The way that Fate’s cock felt in her mouth, all thick and hot. The way that Wyked’s cock hit just the right place inside her and how his fingers were driving her insane. Everything turned white-hot inside her, and she shuddered as she drew close to coming.
“Fuck yes, kitten, take us with you,” Wyked said, growling the words.
She cried out around Fate’s cock, his thick length muffling the sound as her body locked down on Wyked’s cock. Fate shouted her name as he came, and she swallowed him down. Wyked followed, moving back behind her and pounding into her until he came with a roar. Fate pulled her up his body, and she splayed across him, her body humming and her skin tingling.
She wanted to say something, but she was too overwhelmed with sensations and emotions. She’d been dreaming about this night since she met Wyked and Fate and they’d freed her from the oppressive females’ way of life. Now the day she’d been waiting for was finally here, and there were no more restrictions on them. Although the last three years had been difficult, it really had been worth it. Instead of jumping head-first into a physical relationship and mating, they’d been forced to get to know each other, and she was so glad they had. They were her best friends, her protectors, and now her true mates.
“Are you okay, kitten?” Wyked asked, rubbing his hand lightly up and down her back.
She rose onto her knees and stared down at them. They looked both satisfied and needy: hair tousled, eyes bright with passion, and sweet smiles on their faces. It was how she felt inside. Content but wanting more.
“I’m very okay,” she promised. “I’m just not done loving my mates.”
They both purred and their eyes flashed to the gold of their beasts. Fate sat up and cupped her face, drawing her to his lips for a kiss. “We’ll never be done.”
“That’s a promise,” Wyked said, his hand curving around her waist and dipping to the apex of her thighs.
“I’ll never be done either.”
Chapter 8
The honeymoon ended far too fast in Fate’s min
d, but he didn’t think there was any length of time that would have been long enough to have their mate to themselves with no other distractions. They’d been getting to know each other for three years, but now that they’d added physical pleasure to their mating, he felt like he was just getting to know her all over again. He loved the way her eyes glowed when she climaxed and how sweet she sounded when she shouted their names as passion claimed her. Their foreplay before they mated paled in comparison to how it felt to really make love to her.
It was almost indescribable.
His mate was his heart, all wrapped up in a gorgeous package that called to every fiber of his being. He was one lucky panther to be her mate.
For the last five days, they’d stayed in the RV, and it had been easy to envision what their future was going to be like. When the RV was fully opened, the master bedroom was quite large, and there was a smaller bedroom with bunk beds attached to the wall. The couch in the living area folded flat into a full-sized bed, and there was even a way to roll the kitchen table down to be even with the bench seats and lay a blow-up mattress on it for another bed.
“What’s the smile for?” Jilly asked as she nudged him with her elbow when she joined him in the kitchen.
“I was thinking about beds.”
Her eyes widened and then she smiled. “For babies?”
He nodded with a smile. “Yeah. Even though we were just officially mated less than a week ago, I feel like we’ve already been mated for three years.”
“I get that. When we had our joining ceremony three years ago, I told my dad that it was strange to celebrate basically nothing, since we weren’t mated or married, and were just promising to do that in the future. When I was in high school, there was a girl who had a ring that looked like an engagement ring. Her boyfriend gave it to her, and they called it a promise ring, which she said meant that they were promising to eventually get engaged and then married. Like a pre-engagement ring or something. I thought it was silly, but we basically have been engaged for three years.”
He snorted. “That’s long even in human terms.”
“Exactly. So I’m ready to start our family. It will be strange to raise a family on the road, though. What will we do about school?”
“Gwenalee is the clan teacher. She starts working with the cubs a few hours a day when they turn four. Wherever we are, she’ll have school in her RV, or outside in nice weather.”
“It’s nicer now with internet and home schooling material available,” Wyked said as he came into the kitchen from the bedroom. “It wasn’t that simple when our parents were young.”
“That’s neat,” Jilly said.
“And really, there’s a lot more to learning than sitting in a classroom. As we travel, we’ll find lots of ways to teach our kids about the world, being a shifter, and preparing for their future.”
“Will we ever be the clan leaders? Is it hereditary, like when your parents are ready to step down, we take their place, or is it like an election like how humans choose their leaders or a fight like wolves choose theirs?”
Mountain lions didn’t really have a formal hierarchy, and Fate wasn’t surprised she was curious. He’d been told that Eryx, Ethan, and Callie were the Ashland pride leaders, because they’d started the pride years ago when they left Pennsylvania and headed to Indiana. In his mind, though, James, John, and Rue were the leaders. Everyone turned to them for advice and leadership; when there were disagreements, they were fair, and the pride respected their decisions.
“It’s hereditary,” Fate said. “Generally, a clan passes in leadership from father to son, but our father wanted to stay with our mother’s clan, and when her parents were ready to retire, they passed the leadership to our father, since they didn’t have a son. Just like you’ll take over for Hanai as the healer when he retires, the three of us will handle the clan leadership.”
“It won’t be for a while, though, right?” she asked.
“Don’t want to have the weight of the world on your shoulders right after we mated?” Wyked said with a teasing tone.
“Not really. I want to focus on my studies and get our family going before we become leaders.”
Fate kissed her. “You got it.”
She turned her attention to the bay window where the clippings she’d gotten from the fae grew steadily. “I don’t want to go back to reality tomorrow.”
“Neither do we,” Fate said. “But you need to learn what you can from the fae while we’re here, plus spend time with your family.”
“My Aunt Lisa sent a text earlier this morning and asked if we’d like to come to dinner tomorrow night, unless we’re planning to take the weekend as part of our honeymoon and want to postpone.”
“We have to go to Georgette’s,” Wyked said. “We might as well have dinner out, too. Your aunt and uncle are really nice.”
Rhett was one of five mountain lion brothers who called Ashland home. He was the first male to leave the original pride and start over somewhere else. Lisa was human, and one of the best bakers he’d ever seen.
“Okay, so we can still have today, though, right?” she asked, smiling at the two of them. “Like no clothes for the rest of the day?”
She gripped the bottom of her top and lifted it slowly, baring her stomach to their gazes. She was the sexiest female he’d ever known. Her curves and soft skin set his world on fire. He couldn’t stop the purr that rolled up his throat, his cat’s favorite way to let Jilly know the effect she had on him.
“Have I ever told you that you have the best ideas?” Fate asked, following her as she stripped slowly and backed toward the bedroom.
“Every time I suggest making love,” she teased.
He couldn’t think of a better way to spend the last day of their honeymoon.
* * *
After the debacle of Georgette locking Jilly in the house, Wyked insisted on going along for this visit, and bringing Fate, too. Georgette had apologized for her behavior, but Wyked didn’t trust her. She was clearly powerful – so much so that she could hide the little girl from sight – and in his mind, power could be easily corrupted and lead to harm. He suspected that no matter what her lips said, Georgette would put Treasure’s safety above everyone’s, including Jilly’s, and that wasn’t going to fly in the least.
“You look growly,” Jilly said. She sat between him and Fate in the second row of Hanai’s SUV.
“I feel that way.”
“I know you didn’t really want me to come.”
“I would have forbidden it if I thought you’d listen.”
“I believe it. But it’s important that I get this last visit with Georgette in, because I won’t have a chance to come back to see her before we go.”
“Plus, you wanted to see the dragon girl again,” Fate said.
“That too.”
“You didn’t dream about her again, did you?” Wyked asked.
It had unsettled him a great deal that his mate, his uncle, and the girl had all dreamed about each other. Jilly and Hanai had shrugged it off, but it seemed significant to Wyked. And no matter how much he’d argued that they should just forget about the fae and the girl, Jilly had been determined. She’d suggested he could stay with the clan and not go with her, but that had been out of the question. He needed to be with her if he were going to protect her. Assuming that she even needed protection.
Part of him believed returning to Georgette’s was a bad idea. He couldn’t explain why, but he felt an odd sense of foreboding. Since no one else shared that feeling, he’d swallowed his protests and got into the SUV with her. He was going to be by Jilly’s side no matter what. But the fae would need to be on her best behavior. His cat didn’t much care for her.
The sky suddenly turned dark as menacing looking clouds rolled in ahead of them. Lightning sparked in the sky, dancing among the clouds, and thunder boomed in the distance. Rain drummed the roof of the SUV, as the sudden downpour created poor visibility.
“Damn that happened fa
st,” Hanai said, slowly applying the brake and lowering his speed. He turned onto the path that led to Georgette’s home.
Lightning flashed close by, making contact with a tree and creating sparks as it was struck and the tree split down the middle. Thunder followed, the rumbling making the SUV shudder. Jilly jumped and grabbed hold of Wyked.
“We’re safe in the vehicle,” he told her, patting her hand.
“This is crazy,” Jilly said. “The hair on my arms is standing up.”
“Could be the electricity in the air,” Fate said, squinting as he tried to peer out the side window.
There was another bolt of lightning followed swiftly by a crack of thunder and then what sounded like a roar.
Hanai stopped the SUV and put it into park. He leaned over the steering wheel, squinting, and gazed out the windshield. “Did anyone else hear that?”
“It sounded like a roar,” Jilly said, rubbing her arms.
A shout rent the air, and a winged-man flew wildly through the air and crashed into a nearby tree. He dropped to the ground in a heap.
“Shit, I think Georgette’s in trouble.” Hanai opened the door. “Stay here. I’m going to check things out.”
“Be careful,” Jilly called.
“I’ll go with him,” Wyked said.
Jilly’s hands clamped around his upper arm, and Wyked looked at her, surprised to see her eyes were the amber of her beast. “Be safe.”
“I will, kitten.”
He kissed her cheek and got out of the SUV, shutting the door swiftly to keep out the rain. He shielded his eyes and caught up to Hanai. They ventured off the path and used the woods as cover. Lightning struck the ground behind them, and Wyked spun and looked to make sure that the SUV was okay. The thunder that followed shook the ground like an earthquake.
“What the hell is going on?” Wyked demanded, shouting above the din.
“I don’t know. Watch your back,” Hanai said.
They continued, moving closer to Georgette’s home. They stopped just before the clearing, and to his surprise, everything looked normal. The sun shone and the rain had stopped, but only directly over the house. Something shimmered just out of his sightline, and Wyked turned to the side and stared hard. He saw something, but he couldn’t figure out what it was.