Into the Ashes [The Arcadians 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)
Page 3
“Calm yourself, green eyes. We will not hurt you.”
Her eye seemed to grow even wider. “What the fuck? How the hell can I hear you in my head?”
He frowned at her, unused to hearing such language from a female. Still, he could look into her beautiful green eyes for the rest of his days. “I have created a blood bond with you so that you can hear me,” Kadan explained.
“Blood bond? Is that what you were doing making me drink your blood? Are you a vampire? Or a demon? Am I…dead?”
Kadan smiled down at her, knowing she had many questions they would have to answer before they settled into a life together. “Nay, mate. You are not dead.”
It was getting harder to think as his cock swelled in his leather pants, throbbing incessantly with the need to take her. He needed to get her alone so he and his brothers could claim her properly, away from prying eyes.
Her eyes narrowed on him. “What did you call me?”
Tristan cleared his throat. “Brother, this is not the place to have this discussion. Perhaps we should adjourn to our chambers.”
Kadan looked around and saw that they were surrounded by their elite guards, who had formed a circle of protection around them, facing the growing crowd of curious onlookers. “You are right. We shall take her upstairs.”
The little female in their arms twisted around to look at Tristan before focusing back on him. “Is that growling the way you talk? What are you saying? Why are all those people staring at me and why are you two trying to squish me?”
Kadan stroked a gentle hand over her hair, enjoying the silky feel of it under his hand as he moved back slightly so he and his brothers would not crush their newfound mate. “Let us adjourn somewhere we may speak more freely.”
She studied him, those brilliant green orbs serious. “Are you going to kill me?”
“Nay, green eyes. I can promise you that you will never have to fear that I will ever harm you. I would give my life to keep you safe.”
Her brows furrowed at that. “Why? You don’t even know me.”
He sighed. “Come. We shall speak of this in private.”
She let out a startled cry as Tristan picked up her slight form and started from the room toward the large staircase heading upstairs. As Kadan quickly followed, he reached out to their oldest brother through their mental bond. Savitar had avoided coming to the spring festival by going out on patrol, but they needed him back at the palace, immediately.
“Savitar,” Kadan called out to his brother, opening the bond so that Tristan could join in the conversation.
“I am busy, brother. I told you, I will not attend the festival this eve,” Savitar growled, obviously annoyed.
“There has been a…development,” Kadan said.
“We need you home. Now,” Tristan interjected.
Concern filled his voice as Savitar responded. “Are either of you injured?”
“Nay. It is nothing like that,” Tristan replied quickly. “We have found our mate.”
Silence greeted his statement.
“I have blood bonded with a female who appeared in our hall, sent by the Gods. She is the one. I know it. She belongs to us.” Kadan’s voice was filled with conviction.
“Show me,” Savitar demanded.
Kadan did as his brother asked and replayed the events that had occurred in the hall, starting with the appearance of their mate. He knew that the replay of his own memories was nothing compared to the real beauty of their mate. He waited in silence for his oldest brother’s response, and was not disappointed.
“I am on my way,” Savitar growled.
* * * *
What the hell was going on?
Raven gasped as the giant demon holding her bounded up the stone steps, carrying her through several dark corridors. He moved so quickly it was difficult to see everything, but from the looks of things, she had somehow been transported to a castle in a foreign land.
No, not just foreign…alien.
She liked to believe that she was a pretty open-minded individual, but this was so far out of her frame of reference it wasn’t funny. Intellect told her that these…demons were a different race and it was a good sign no one had tried to eat her or stick her with a sharp pointy thing. But what the hell was with the big dude biting her and calling her his mate?
She needed answers. Now.
They reached an enormous doorway with intricately carved doors. The carving on the panel was a large depiction of three warriors holding swords with defeated foe at their feet. It was frightening yet beautiful at the same time. The man carrying her shoved the door open with his shoulder, careful not to jar her as he did.
Raven blinked in surprise as she looked around the enormous suite. The room had three large couches off to the side made of what looked like a soft leather that surrounded a large fire pit that burned a bright blue. There were two cutout windows and a large stone balcony that overlooked the beautiful dark-pink sea at the far end of the room, leaving the room open to the cool breeze coming off the water. The walls were made of the same bronze-colored stone as the rest of the castle, but she barely had time to see the rest as the demon carried her into one of the three large doorways that branched off from the main room.
Panic had Raven struggling as she saw he had taken her into a bedroom with an enormous bed covered by a shimmering silver blanket. His growl had her snapping. “Oh really? Do you think growling at me is going to make me stop freaking out? So. Not. Happening!”
The demon holding her stopped growling and looked down at her with his glowing golden eyes filled with mirth. His amusement made her temper explode. Using all of her strength she jackknifed out of his arms, catapulting herself onto the bed. She quickly rolled over the large expanse of the bed, putting it between them and crouched on the other side.
“Wait…you can understand me?” At his nod her eyes narrowed. “Then why the hell did he”—she pointed a finger at the other brother—“bite me?”
The demon that had carried her growled something, but she couldn’t understand him. She shot his brother a what the hell did he say look.
He sighed. “You are on Arcadia, green eyes. I bit you to create the blood bond between us so you would be able to understand me. Until you have an L-CON implant you will not be able to hear my people speak to you.”
Raven was even more confused now. “L-CON? What is that?”
“L-CON, language converter unit. Once we implant you with the L-CON you will be able to understand us.”
Oh, no. Actually, hell no.
“You aren’t implanting me with shit.”
His glowing eyes narrowed on her, making her want to flee, but she held her ground. They were closer to the door and she had no doubt they would catch her if she made a run for it. She noticed that one of the brothers had her gun stuffed into his pocket. She gave up all hope of getting to it. For one, she wasn’t voluntarily getting that close to them again, and two, it was tucked in tight against another large bulge in his pants, which made her even more nervous.
Both of them were truly exceptional specimens, whether they be demons or men. She had never gotten so hot for someone so fast, and she’d never felt that way about two men at once. Her attraction to them was disconcerting. Their glowing gold eyes were mesmerizing and she had to ball her hands into fists to keep from reaching out to touch their muscular bodies.
Good lord, were they buff.
Nothing got her hotter than a man with muscular arms and strong shoulders, and boy, did they have both. They also had a unique scent that made her want to rub herself up against them simply to breathe them in. She wanted to bury her hands into their light-brown hair and take their mouths in soul-shattering kisses…if not for the fangs they were both sporting.
Shit. How could she have forgotten about the damn fangs?
Escape. She had to escape.
“You will learn to watch what you say. Females should not swear.”
She let out a brittle laugh. “Oh honey,
Surprisingly, she noted that both of their glowing eyes dimmed with sadness at her words, but she didn’t understand how she knew that. It was like she could feel their sorrow that she wanted to leave. The one talking to her shook his head in a sharp gesture and she watched as the sadness was replaced by fury.
Shit.
Mad demons were so not good for her life expectancy, no matter what they said about keeping her alive.
“You will learn to conduct yourself according to our positions as leaders. You cannot leave here. This is your home now.”
The hell it was!
“The fuck you say! I want to go home!” Raven shouted out loud, too overcome to have this conversation in her mind. It was too intimate hearing him speak to her like that, like he was inside her.
“It is truth. You will stay here on Arcadia as our mate, and my brothers and I will take care of you. You will learn your place and never again will you strike one of your mates.”
Wait…brothers? As in plural? Oh, hell no. She was not about to become some chew toy for a group of demons! Sheer terror coursed through her as he stalked forward. One direct blow from his large hand would crush her. She had to escape, now. His growl had her trying to run, but he caught her easily with his great strength. She struggled, fighting him and herself as the gravity of her situation hit her full force.
She was seriously screwed, but she’d go down fighting.
“Let me go!”
“Calm yourself. Ask me for anything else, but I cannot, will not, let you go. You are our mate now. You belong to me and my brothers.”
Fear had icy fingers of dread running down her spine. She tried every move she could think of to break free of his hold. His control seemed to snap as he tumbled them to the bed, pulling her hair enough to raise her head for his seeking mouth. He took her lips in a brutal kiss, thrusting his tongue into her mouth so her senses were overcome by the sweet, addicting flavor of him.
No, not like this. She didn’t want this. Using his inattention against him, she levered her legs up and pushed him off of her, rolling over the bed to escape as he fell with a curse. A startled cry left her throat as the other brother’s large body came down on hers, holding her in place on the bed.
She fought with everything she had as desire and fear waged a battle inside her. She was a mixture of pure emotion and it was getting harder to think by the second. The hard press of his body against hers felt so good as he kissed her. Passion exploded in her head, making her unsure if she wanted to fight or pull him closer. His enormous cock pressed against the apex of her jeans making her wish they were skin to skin so she could feel the steel-hard shaft rubbing against the bare flesh of her pussy.
The nip of his fangs against her tongue had reality crashing back down on her. She wrenched her head away from him, struggling for breath, only to meet the glowing eyes of the other man watching. His eyes burned bright with hunger. She knew without a doubt they both wanted to claim her and if they did, she would be lost.
“No, no!”
She couldn’t do this.
She twisted her head as the man on top of her tried to kiss her again, fighting both him and herself. His lips captured hers again, his tongue plunging deep to mate with hers. She tasted the sweet tang of him as he bit down on his own lip, feeding his blood to her. She gasped as his lips trailed down her neck, where he licked once, twice, then bit down hard, piercing her skin.
The sharp pain faded quickly as pleasure consumed her. He was inside her, all around her. Her pussy clenched with the need to feel him pounding into her, filling her empty channel until she couldn’t take anymore. She cried out, bucking against him then froze as he jerked her hands up over her head and growled.
Fear held her immobile as painful memories flooded her mind, trapping her in a nightmare she couldn’t escape.
Chapter Three
Ambrosia.
The taste of her was addictive, like the sweetest wine.
Tristan had held back letting his brother take the lead, but no longer. He couldn’t help how aroused he had gotten seeing her strength and determination, even as he wanted to punish her for denying their claim on her. Never before had any female refused him or his brothers and it was exhilarating to discover that she was strong enough to rule at their side.
She was glorious, her green eyes flashing with an inner fire that held him captivated. He couldn’t believe their good fortune, or what they had done to deserve this gift from the Gods, but he was determined to bind her to him before anyone else could take her from them.
As she evaded Kadan, Tristan’s only thought was to seal his bond with her. It had been driving him crazy knowing that she couldn’t understand him. He wanted, no, he needed that connection with her. As she rolled to him, he pressed his body down on hers. Breathing in deep he could smell her desire for them and it made him lust-drunk.
He groaned as his hard shaft rubbed against her feminine heat as he took her lips in a searing kiss. He wanted to grip her thighs and shove them apart so he could settle himself between them, wishing their clothing gone so that he could drive himself inside her silken depths until he filled her completely.
He devoured her, drinking in her moans and whimpers and nipped lightly at her tongue as she shoved it into his mouth. Groaning, he bit his lip to feed her his own blood, driven by the need to form the bond between them. Pulling her small hands up over her head he held her in place, using his much larger body to control hers.
His lips came down on hers, taking them in the kiss that he had been dying for ever since he first saw her. He trailed his mouth down to the soft flesh of her neck, biting deep to create the link between them. He was driven mad at the first sweet taste of her and knew he would kill any other male stupid enough to stand between her and his brothers.
He drank deep, wanting to ensure there was a strong connection but jerked back in shock as her frantic thoughts flooded his mind. Horrifying memories raced through her head. He saw her as a youngling trying to fight off a much larger man as he terrorized her in a way that no female should ever have to face, let alone one so young. Self-disgust filled him as he realized it was his own actions that had triggered the memories. He and his brother had made her feel as helpless as she had in her past when they should have been doing all they could to ensure her happiness.
He moved off of her quickly then jerked Kadan back before he could reach for her. Kadan growled in anger, but Tristan automatically opened the link between them to share her terrible recollections.
“Nay, mate. We would never harm you!” Kadan cried out as she flung herself away from them to curl up against the carved headboard.
“Get away from me!”
Tristan dropped to his knees beside the bed, wincing as she flinched when he reached out a hand to her. “Forgive me, mate. My only thought was to ensure you would be able to hear me but my hunger for you overtook me. We would never force you.” His heart broke as angry tears sparkled in her eyes.
“You just did. You forced this bond on me, both of you. Do you think I like hearing your voices in my head? You call me your mate, but I don’t even know your fucking names!”
Both brothers winced as they realized just how much they had fucked up.
She leveled an accusing look at Kadan. “You told me I’d never have to fear you and you’d never hurt me. You lied!” Then she looked back at Tristan and he felt her revulsion like an arrow through his heart. “And you…”
Tristan fought to try to explain his actions. He had never been in the position to explain himself to anyone before, but she deserved it. She deserved anything he could give her after what he’d done. “You are right. Nothing can excuse our behavior. My name is Tristan of the House of Akira and this is my brother Kadan. Our other brother’s name is Savitar. We have waited our entire lives to find a mate that would complete us and when we saw you, we knew you were meant for us. I could smell your desire for us.”
“So it’s my fault?” she asked bitterly.
“Nay,” Tristan said sadly as his broad shoulders slumped. “We are at fault and we will do whatever it takes to make it up to you, Raven.”
“How do you know my name?” she asked as her eyes narrowed.
Tristan and Kadan both tensed. Instinctively Tristan knew she would be furious that he had seen into her past, but he made a promise to himself never to lie to her. “When we formed the blood bond, I was able to see your memories.”
She froze. “You saw…?”
Her breath hitched and Tristan felt a wave of shame wrack her small body through their link. “Nay, you have nothing to be ashamed of,” Tristan rushed to say. He tried to keep his voice calm, but he was filled with such rage it was difficult. He wanted to find that male that hurt his mate and rip him apart with his bare hands.
“It is the male who hurt you that deserves the shame,” Kadan added, his voice a low growl as he tried to control his rage. “I only wish I could kill him myself.”
Kadan and Tristan looked at each other in alarm as they felt the bond between her and them close down as if she had slammed the door shut in her mind, blocking them out.
“Do you feel that?” Tristan asked his brother.
“I do. In fact, she has been almost impossible to read,” Kadan confirmed. “The only time I was able to reach her mind was when I formed the bond with her.”
“Please, just leave me alone,” Raven said, her voice devoid of all emotion.
“Raven—”
Cold green eyes stared back at them. “I don’t think it’s too much to ask after what you’ve done. I get it. I’m stuck here. Fine. But I don’t have to like it.”
“We can make you happy if you let us,” Kadan said softly.
She scoffed at that. “How, by telling me what to do and what to say? You don’t even know me, but you’ve wasted no time telling me how I need to change. How would you feel if you suddenly found yourself on another planet then told you were virtually a slave to three strange men? Please, just leave.”
-->