by Tamsin Baker
“And what happens if I can’t date both of you, or we don’t suit?”
The men laughed, the sound so happy and husky that a shiver spread through her body and the heat between her legs coiled tighter until she ached. Why did she have such a visceral reaction to these men? Their smiles were so gorgeous she could barely hold onto her resolution to be strong. Her body and soul craved them and wanted her to quit fighting it and fall into their arms so she could bathe in their warmth and joy.
“What’s so funny? My question was perfectly legitimate and a logical argument.” Despite her resolve to remain serious, she felt her own lips turn up a little when the twins aimed their megawatt grins at her.
In a smooth, lightning fast move, Dylan grabbed her around the waist and pulled her flush against his solid body. “Because you, sweetheart, were made for us. You will fit with each of us like a lock and key, mind, body, and soul.”
He slid his hands down to her ass and pulled her in snugly against his very erect flesh. She gasped as the ache between her legs increased ten-fold.
“Not yet, buster.” She pushed herself out of Dylan’s arms, but smiled at him to make sure he knew she wasn’t trying to hurt his feelings.
“I really do need some time to myself to process all this. I’m going to head off.” Underneath her worry and confusion, her heart felt light, an excitement flitting around her belly that she hadn’t felt since she’d first received the offer for her university placement. “Which way is out?”
Ryan pushed open the kitchen door and pointed right. “We’ll show you out. Just head through the living room and there’s the front door.”
Lacey walked into the entrance of the house and glanced around. “Wow, your house is beautiful.” It had all the modern fittings, but lacked a bit of warmth. There were a few photos around, but it was clearly a male house.
“Thanks. I’m glad you like it. We built it with you in mind.”
She spun around and stared at them, her mirror image twins.
“Pardon me?” She couldn’t have heard that right.
Dylan was shaking his head, and Ryan stepped forward, taking her hand and leading her towards the front door. “Sweetheart, you seem to have forgotten. We are not human but cheetah shifters, born with only one mate. Well, males are born with one mate that they share with another shifter. Because we’re twins Dylan and I, along with our parents, always assumed we would only have one wife between us. We built this house with you in mind. Waiting for the day when we finally found you.”
Her brain took a little vacation as she stepped out the front door on autopilot. Taking a few deep breaths, inhaling the cool, clean air of their country property, she felt her body relax a little.
“So, are you saying you’d take turns with me or, you know?” She let the sentence drift, unsure how the hell to say what she was thinking.
Ryan stepped up to her and cupped her face with both his palms.
“However you need us to be, Lacey. We want everything with you. We both want to share your bed and your body every single night. But we can be patient and ease you into things, if that’s what you need.”
She cleared her throat, while she tried to find the words to ask what she needed to know.
“So, have you guys … you know?”
She swallowed hard as jealousy swam up inside her like ivy climbing a fence. Even with Ryan’s calming touch, her emotions were swirling out of control. How many others had there been? How often? Was she just a notch in their bedpost and this whole mate thing was nothing but an elaborate pick up line?
Dylan stepped up close to her, and Ryan dropped his hands to her shoulders. Dylan traced her cheekbone with a fingertip, the delicate touch sending ripples of heat through her body.
“Have we what?”
“You know, shared women before.”
There was a moment of stunned silence, and then an explosion of laughter around her, punctuated with comments like, “You’re kidding, right?”
“Why would we do that?”
Both men had stepped away from her, and without Ryan’s calming touch, fury overtook her mind. How dare they laugh at her! Again! Her cheeks burned furiously with a mix of embarrassment and anger. Clenching her jaw hard, she focused her attention on getting her bag. She marched over to her open window, reached into the car and dragged it out. She dug around in her things looking for her keys. She could hear them jingling. They must be in there.
“Hey, don’t be mad with us, sweetheart. We’re sorry, we weren’t laughing at you.”
“Yes, you were.” She looked up and glared at them. She tucked her car keys into her back pocket, dropped her bag and then crossed her arms over her chest for emphasis.
“No, we really didn’t mean to laugh at you. It’s just that neither of us have ever dated anyone, let alone together. The very idea of having any kind of commitment to a woman who isn’t our mate is simply unconceivable to us.”
“You’re kidding me?” She dropped her arms as her seething temperature plummeted. Were they serious? These two men were beyond gorgeous, inside and out. They couldn’t be virgins … impossible! He had to mean something else.
Ryan shrugged. “Well, we’ve been told since we were young that we’d know it when we found our mate, by her scent, the instant attraction, and the perfection of her touch. It’s called the Calling. We were waiting for you, and as soon as we saw you, we knew.”
Lacey swallowed, salty tears swimming in her eyes, blurring her vision. She’d never been described as perfect by anyone—not even herself—and the idea that these two stunning men had been waiting for her made her want to cry.
“Okay … ah, so I’ll see one of you tomorrow?”
She turned towards her car, her mind swimming in a cloud of disbelief. This was all so surreal. As she laid a hand on her door handle, her mind cleared a little, and she realized they hadn’t made firm plans for tomorrow. Releasing her grip she went to turn back toward the twins when Dylan’s husky deep voice rung out from just behind her.
“Hang on, beautiful. You’re not leaving yet.”
He took hold of her elbow, spun her around before he pressed her up against the car with his body.
He stared down at her for a moment, and Lacey moaned as his lips descended, a blaze of heat engulfing her as his hands roamed up her body to cup her jaw moments before his lips connected with hers. With a contented sigh, she opened to him, and his tongue swept inside while he ground his hardening cock against her belly.
She groaned and let her knees give way when he pressed into her harder, holding her weight easily as she grabbed fists full of his shirt, yanking it upwards so she could slide her hands beneath the cotton to feel his hot flesh. His skin was smooth and perfect, just like the rest of him.
He tore his mouth away and stared down at her with a gaze so full of lust, she was surprised she didn’t go up in flames.
“Come back inside, beautiful.” His voice was barely understandable through his low growl, but she knew what he was asking her.
“I can’t.”
He stared at her a moment longer before he sighed, and closed his eyes as he rested his forehead against hers.
Gosh, but she was a fool. Could she resist them until Monday night? She was one hundred percent sure, she couldn’t say no to either of them if they pushed her even a little right now.
Lacey stood up a little straighter and rested against him, unable to believe that an attraction like this truly existed for her. She’d never wanted anyone this much in her whole life.
She kept her hands where they were beneath his shirt and stroked the skin over his tight abs in a gentle caress, craving the connection with him, while she ached to be closer.
Dylan purred in his throat as his body quivered beneath her touch. Eventually, he heaved a tormented sounding sigh and pushed away from her.
She wanted to cry out as the cold air rushed into the place his warm body had been, but she knew that would lead to her going back inside their ho
use. So, she resolutely stayed put, clinging to the car to prevent herself from falling to the ground.
Ryan stayed silent but watched intently as his twin stiffly walked back to stand beside him. “Can you meet me at the zoo tomorrow? We’re both working, but I thought I could give you a tour of the grounds and maybe have some lunch. Say, ten at the main gate?”
Lacey nodded and tried to smile but failed, her lips feeling swollen and sore. In a completely delicious way.
“That sounds perfect, Ryan, thanks.”
Before she forgot her mind and threw herself at them, Lacey slipped into her car, forcing her mushy legs to move as she studiously ignored her pussy, which was now wet and aching for the twins who had proved how easily they could arouse her.
“I’ll see you tomorrow.” She called out through her open window as she waved at Ryan and Dylan, who were smiling at her from where they stood near their front door. An ache bloomed in her chest as she turned the car around and drove off the property, but she refused to give in and return to them.
“Oh. My. Gosh.” She glanced in her rearview mirror a least a hundred times while navigating the long dirt driveway off the farm. She had two dates for the weekend and a set of twins who were hell bent on winning her over.
She took a shuddering breath then giggled with nerves as she cranked up the radio. She had a feeling, that no matter what happened with the twins, her life would never be the same again. She couldn’t wait.
Chapter Eight
Ryan frowned as he tracked the dust cloud that followed his mate’s car as she left them. His gut was churning, and his erection was straining against the front of his jeans, not at all happy about missing out on claiming the sweetly sexy Lacey.
Dylan growled low from where he stood beside him, obviously feeling the same way. He turned to face his twin before he spoke.
“Nice move with halving the six dates to three, by the way.”
“Yeah well, I wasn’t letting her get away with putting us off for a bloody month! I’m pretty sure if we’d let her, she’d have one date a week and spread this thing out, too.”
Ryan grimaced. His twin had a point. Lacey was going to make them work for her, and in a way, he respected her all the more for it. No way did he want a passive mate who just agreed with everything he or Dylan suggested. That would get boring fast, and after growing up with a mother like they had, a weak female wouldn’t be respected by any of their family. A hard slap to his shoulder snapped him out of his introspection.
“Let’s go grab a beer. I need a drink.”
“I think I need a very cold shower first. Damn, but my entire body is just about vibrating with need for her.”
Dylan grunted as he pushed his way through their front door and into their house.
“Just think how you’ll feel by morning, Ry. With Lacey having slept on your bed, it’s all you’re going to be able to smell all. Night. Long.”
“It’ll be a bitch, but at least I’ll have sweet dreams. Admit it, you’re so fucking jealous of me right now.”
Ryan knew his brother was envious. He could see it in the tense set of his jaw and shoulders. Technically Ryan’s bed was big enough for him and his brother, but without Lacey between them, he had zero intention of sharing with his twin.
“How’d you end up with the master bedroom when I’m the eldest?”
Ryan turned to his twin with a wide grin. “Because I won the coin toss. Remember? Mum got sick of us bickering and made us agree to stick with whoever won.”
Dylan buried his head in the fridge with a grunt instead of answering. A moment later, he handed Ryan a nice cold beer. Ryan snatched the fancy magnet that doubled as a bottle opener off the fridge door and popped open his brew to take a deep drink.
“Oh yeah. That’s what I needed.” He paused to take another swig, the cold hops soothing his heated core. So much quicker than a cold shower, more enjoyable, too.
“C’mon, let’s go have a game.”
Dylan grinned as he nodded. “Sounds perfect.”
Ryan followed his brother to the other end of their house to the large games room. Their centerpiece was a beautifully handcrafted pool table. No standard green top for them, their felt was a rich bright red and the pockets made from dark leather. The timber of the table was stained black, and all together it created one hell of a stunning piece of furniture. It had been their housewarming gift from their brothers. Of course, most of their brothers were around here on a Saturday night playing on it with them.
Ryan got two cues ready as Dylan went to the table to rack up the balls.
“You wanna break?”
“Nah, you can do it.”
Dylan sauntered up to Ryan and switched the white ball for a cue. Both he and Dylan had always liked playing pool. There was something almost hypnotic that instantly had them both hooked from the first game.
Carefully placing the white ball inside the D on the felt, Ryan lowered his body over the table to take first shot. Two smalls went into pockets, and Ryan grinned. Perfect break. He rolled his right shoulder as he moved around the table and planned his next shot.
“You are not going to pot out on me, Ry. Not on our first fucking game.”
“So what if I do? It’s not like we’re down the pub and paying two bucks a game.”
“Hardly a game if I don’t get a shot. Just tone it down. We’re home, not playing the state titles or anything.”
Yeah, okay, so maybe Dylan had a point. But Ryan couldn’t help it. He got his head in the game and that was that. He bent forward and lined up his next shot.
He grimaced when one of Dylan’s balls followed his into the pocket. There went any hope of potting out.
“Damn. Two shots to you.”
Ryan moved to grab his drink. With two shots, it was Dylan who would pot out on him and finish the game in no time. Dylan potted three balls in short order then stopped to re-chalk his cue.
“Hey, Dylan, don’t suppose you nabbed Lacey’s phone number while you were messing with her phone earlier?”
Dylan stopped still and glared over at him. “Seriously? I wasn’t fucking messing with her phone, Ry.”
Ryan rolled his eyes. Damn, but Dylan could be a drama queen.
“I don’t care what you call what you did with her phone. I just want to know if you got her number.”
His glower evaporated, and a smirk replaced it.
“Of course I did. If you’d check your phone once in a while, you’d have seen the text already.”
With a frown Ryan slid his smart phone from his pocket to check it.
“Damn, it’s still on silent.”
He swiped the screen to open up the message and saw the sweetest ten digits with a message below stating “Lacey phone”.
“Thanks, Dylan. What do you say we shoot her a message each?”
“Yeah, sounds like a plan. We forgot to find out where she lives. I’d like to know she gets home safe.”
“I’ll ask her tomorrow.”
As Dylan pulled his own phone from his pocket, and Ryan started tapping out his message, excitement coursed through Ryan’s system. He’d get all day with his mate tomorrow, and he couldn’t fucking wait.
****
“Wow.” Lacey twirled on her toes and let herself go, falling backwards onto her bed, the soft mattress cushioning her weight as she bounced a little.
She had never been so excited, yet so confused at the same time. First was the fact that she’d discovered a family of cheetah shifters.
Oh. My. Gosh!
“You can say that again.”
She giggled to herself and rolled onto her side, curling up into a fetal position as she tucked a pillow beneath her head.
Were there more of them? Or were Ryan and Dylan’s family the only ones? That seemed unlikely, so she had to assume there were more, probably a lot more. Were there only cheetah shifters or other breeds, too?
Her thoughts took a more personal twist. Would their children be shifters? Or
normal like her? When they mated her, would she become like them? Or remain human?
She groaned and rolled her eyes at herself.
“Stop it, stop it, stop it! You’re getting way ahead of yourself, Lacey-girl.”
She slapped a hand to her forehead and laughed again. It was all so ridiculous, it was hard not to let her imagination run wild. Who would have thought a family with nine sons would exist? Even if they were fully human, they’d be an anomaly. Add in that two of those sons were a set of identical mirror image twins who thought she was their destined soul mate … just wow. It was all too much for her mind to process.
Her phone buzzed, and she crawled to the edge of the bed to grab it from where she’d tossed it on her side cupboard.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake…”
She groaned again as she opened message, seeing the last abusive message her ex had sent her, the one Dylan had seen, then his new one.
You’re home. Good. Come let me in.
She shivered as the hairs prickled on her arms and a shot of adrenaline had her racing to the front door.
She checked the dead lock. Yep, it was tight.
She moved from room to room, turning lights on as she went, clutching her mobile in her hand in case she needed to make a phone call quickly.
The house was small, and as soon as she had every light in the place on and was certain both doors and all windows were locked tight, she messaged her roommate, checking when she’d be home.
When she walked past hall closet, she saw the cricket bat leaning up against it and snatched it up as added protection on her way back to her bedroom. Placing the bat within easy reach, she settled on the mattress once more, feeling a little safer having checked everything, sort of. She took a couple of slow breaths, trying to will her heart-rate to slow down even a little. It wasn’t healthy to be so scared of someone.
Lacey sat in the center of her bed, all lights on, cricket bat by her side and her mobile in her hand. She didn’t usually message her ex back—she had been told not to engage with him at all, but as the butterflies in her stomach finally calmed down, the heat and tightness of anger set in. How dare he continue to do this to her?