Into the Ashes [The Arcadians 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Laurie Roma

  Kadan waited until her eyes opened and he carefully watched for any sign of discomfort or alarm. He was relieved to see her beautiful green eyes were hooded with pleasure and a sensual smile graced her lush lips.

  “Hold on,” he gritted out. That was all the warning he could give before he began to pound himself into her. His control torn to shreds, he thrust himself into her hard and fast, racing toward the ecstasy he knew was waiting for him.

  “Oh god! Yes, Kadan! More!”

  Her breathless cries spurred him on. He leaned over to capture her lips with his and growled with satisfaction as her arms and legs wound around him, pulling him closer. He felt the sting of her nails biting into his back.

  “Mine! My mate!”

  “Yes!” Raven screamed out. She turned her head to the side, baring her neck to him on the opposite side from where she wore Savitar’s bite mark. Seeing her submit to him pushed him straight over the edge. With a victorious snarl he came, spurting hard jets of his hot seed into Raven’s silky depths. She cried out his name as Kadan sunk his fangs into her neck, throwing her into an intense climax as she flew with him.

  Kadan felt a rush of bliss at the sweet taste of her blood. His hips slammed hard, once, twice then he held himself still as his cock swelled inside her as he continued to pump her full of his hot cream. The expanding of his shaft made Raven’s orgasm even more intense so that she screamed out from the pleasure.

  He wrapped his arms around her tight, holding her to him as he continued to spill his seed deep inside her pussy. He licked at the wound on her neck then pricked his own lip with his fangs before plunging his tongue deep into her mouth. Shudders wracked his body as wave after wave of ecstasy tore through him, their pleasure mixing together through their bond. Once he finished coming, he buried his face into the side of her neck, holding her close.

  “My mate,” he purred, startled at the contented sound he had never made before. He pulled back to look at her when he heard her giggle. The sight of her beautiful smile had warmth spreading through him. “What is so funny, sweetling?”

  “You,” Raven said with a mischievous glint sparkling in her eyes.

  “Me?”

  “Yes. The way you go all monosyllabic when you are turned on. Like a caveman or something. It’s kinda cute.”

  “Cute?” Kadan growled playfully. “I’ll show you cute.”

  Even though he’d just come harder than he ever had before he could feel his cock surging to life inside her pussy.

  Her eyes went wide. “Seriously? How in the world can you be ready to go again?”

  Kadan sighed. “I am always ready around you. I have only to think about you and my cock grows hard as stone.”

  The sound of muffled feminine laugher from the doorway had both of them turning. The guards had closed the door when they had left, but now it was cracked open. With their enhanced hearing they could hear the sound of several retreating footsteps running down the stone steps.

  Well…hell. Someone had seen them. Kadan wanted to snarl in rage that someone had dared intrude on his private time with his mate, but his anger quickly changed to surprise when Raven chuckled.

  “Raven, someone saw us,” Kadan explained slowly, wanting to make sure she understood the situation correctly.

  “I know,” she said, confusing him even more. “Look, I’m not an exhibitionist or anything like that, but at least the women here know that sex can be enjoyable for males and females now.”

  Kadan was still pissed. “I do not like that someone saw you bare. Only your mates are allowed to see your body.”

  Raven rolled her eyes at him. Sure, she was embarrassed that someone had seen them, but it wasn’t like they could do anything about it now. “You guys have a skewed sense of propriety when you have all your females in this place running around in see-through dresses that show everything every damn day. I mean, think about it. Are you really okay with my nipples and pussy on display for everyone to see in one of those things? I sure as hell am not.”

  Kadan thought about that for a moment. What she said made sense and now that she had said it, he didn’t like it. In fact, just the thought made him want to kill any males that saw her beautiful body. “You will not wear those dresses.”

  Raven quirked an eyebrow at him as she pushed at his chest. Not that it did anything. He was impossible to move unless he wanted to, and clearly, he didn’t want to. “Okay, buddy. Get off so we can get dressed.”

  “I am still hard.”

  She laughed at the petulant sound of his voice. “Poor baby. I’m a little sore from getting slammed by your massive cock so that might have to wait a little.” Raven was kind of disappointed when he immediately pulled out of her.

  “Forgive me, mate. I was not thinking.”

  “Hey,” Raven said softly as she reached out to cup his face. “It’s okay. I loved what we did together and I wouldn’t change a thing.”

  “You are truly my mate now,” Kadan whispered reverently. He leaned in to kiss her, soft and sweet and she melted into him, high on the love she could feel emanating from him through their bond. She sighed as he ended the kiss and rested his forehead against hers.

  “I will not yell at the females, but they should know that what they did was wrong,” Kadan said in a stern voice. “I find that I cannot stand the thought of anyone but my brothers seeing you naked.”

  Kadan stood up and helped Raven to her feet. She couldn’t help but grin at him.

  “Ditto.”

  He paused to glance at her as he reached down for her pants. “Ditto?”

  “Yeah, I find that I don’t like other women seeing your naked ass,” she said with a grin. “And baby, I think they had quite a view.”

  “Shit…”

  Chapter Nine

  Kadan and Raven arrived back at the palace shortly after then sun had set. He must have sensed their arrival because Savitar paced the courtyard as he waited for the hover-craft to come to a halt. Before she could greet him, he plucked Raven right out of the vehicle into his arms.

  “I guess you missed me,” she said on a laugh.

  “Every moment you were away from me,” he said with feeling and she knew he meant it. She leaned in, laid her lips lightly on his, and was rewarded with a rumbling purr in his chest that made her nipples pucker beneath her leather vest.

  Stirred up, she pulled back and grinned.

  “Greetings to you, too, brother.” Kadan smirked as he came up beside them. Savitar ignored him and began carrying Raven up the stone steps into the palace with one arm wrapped around her waist.

  “Savy, put me down,” Raven protested before he could carry her inside.

  Kadan choked on a laugh. “Savy? Dear Gods, is that what we are calling you now?”

  Savitar stopped and growled at his brother as he set Raven on her feet. “I will hurt you.”

  Kadan grinned. “You are welcome to try, brother.”

  Before the boys could get into it, Raven stepped between them. “Okay, enough of that. Kadan, that is my nickname for him. I call him that, you don’t. Got it?”

  Kadan’s face sobered. “Aye, mate.”

  She spun around and poked a finger into Savitar’s chest, noting the smirk he was shooting Kadan. “And you. No fighting with your brother.”

  “Aye, mate.”

  Satisfied when both of them were chastised, Raven held back a grin. “Now can we please go eat something? I’m starving.”

  Savitar’s eyes lit up with anticipation. “I have prepared something for you up in our chambers.”

  Raven’s brow rose. “Oh, really? What?”

  “Come, mate. Let me show you.”

  * * * *

  Raven entered their suite with Savitar and Kadan to see a feast laid out in the sitting room. “Savitar, this is wonderful!”

  Savitar’s chest puffed up with pride. “We thought we should have our meal in here so we could discuss some of the traditions of our world before you are subjected to any more scrutin
y that might upset you.” Raven’s stomach growled and both men chuckled.

  “We must feed you. Come,” Savitar said. He led her over to the couches and she waited until he was seated before she curled up on his lap. She could feel his happiness through their bond and extended her legs so they lay over Kadan, connecting all three of them together.

  “Where is Tristan?” she asked.

  Savitar picked up a glass of sweet wine and handed it to her. “There was an attack on one of the havens on the other side of the Citadel a short while ago. He led some of our guards to fight the rebels.”

  Worry had Raven’s heart pounding in her chest. “Is he okay?”

  Savitar stroked a hand over her hair. “He is fine, my love. And will return later once all is set to rights. Now, stop your worry. You must eat.”

  Raven leaned back against the armrest at the end of the couch as Kadan picked up one of the large patters of food and selected a piece of meat that she let him feed her. “Now this, I can deal with. In private this makes me feel special. But down there, in front of everyone, it makes it seem like I’m not capable of feeding myself or that I have to depend on you to feed me.”

  “It is our honor to provide for you,” Savitar said.

  “Yes, but what if you get mad at me and don’t want to feed me?”

  His eyes widened in horror. “You think I would starve you?”

  “No!” She hugged him, because it was better than shaking some sense into him. “I’m using a hypothetical here. What if a female were to piss off her mates and they didn’t want to feed her. Is she not allowed to eat? By taking away their choice and making them depend on the males, it’s a form of control. Do you see what I’m saying?”

  She could tell that they did by the way that they looked at one another.

  “You have made a good point, Raven,” Kadan said as he fed her another bit of food. “We would not want any female to feel like they must obey in order to be able to eat or anything else for that matter.”

  Raven nodded. “I’m not asking you to change your customs. Everything here is so new to me and I feel like I keep screwing up. If your people are fine with the way things are then great, but I just think it would be beneficial to let all females know they have choices. Mated or not. Speaking of, about the havens…I was really impressed with everything I saw today. It’s just that…the women there are really sad.”

  Kadan paused before taking a drink from his own goblet of wine and looked at her in confusion. “Is that not normal? They have been abused.”

  “Yes, it’s normal. That’s not what I’m talking about. The havens are a safe place for them to live. You protect them from the rogues, but it’s also a prison.”

  “Explain,” Savitar demanded.

  Raven sighed. Men. Sometimes they just didn’t get it. “Let me ask you this…that festival the other night, were the women from the havens invited?”

  Kadan shook his head. “No, they are not allowed out…” His voice trailed off as an expression of understanding crossed his face.

  “You don’t let them out until a trio picks them,” Raven confirmed. “When I spoke to the women at the haven today they told me a lot of things that they could never tell you because they feel grateful for what you’ve done and don’t think they should ask for anything more.”

  “We never…all we wanted to do is protect them,” Savitar said softly.

  Raven rubbed a hand up and down his arm. “I know, and you do. But imagine if you were in their position. They’re grateful not to be with the rogues anymore and don’t say anything for fear that they will be tossed out. But once they’re in the havens they are basically prisoners until some trio takes a liking to them. Then, she is forced to spend time with the men and if she gives in and has sex with them during that month courting phase, she becomes theirs.”

  “All the males that are allowed to claim a female from one of the havens are good warriors,” Kadan explained.

  She took a moment to eat something to stop herself from snapping at him. Fuck it, she thought. These were her mates. She could say anything to them. They already knew she was going to speak her mind, so she might as well do it. “You give these males the go and then line the women up for them to take their pick? It doesn’t matter if the females don’t like them, because they don’t really have a choice. The way things are it only matters what the trio want and if they manage to seduce the woman they pick then she is screwed. Literally and figuratively.”

  Both Savitar and Kadan flinched. “What would you suggest we do?” Savitar asked.

  Raven nibbled at her lip, making both of her mates growl. “Stop that or I will have to kiss you and we will never finish this conversation,” Kadan commanded. He ran his finger over her lip, soothing where she had bit it.

  “What if instead of having the males just visit the haven, we have a party or something? Once a month we could invite a couple of the havens over here to the palace and have some of the unmated males come. It could be a small gathering so we could monitor it. This way both the females and the males would have a say in if they want to spend more time together.”

  A wide smile spread across Kadan’s face. “That is brilliant, sweetling.”

  “Aye, that is our queen,” Savitar said, his voice filled with pride.

  Pleased that they had listened to her suggestion, Raven focused on eating her fill as they continued to plan how to introduce the females from the havens to the unmated males from the Citadel. By the time they were done with their meal, Raven understood another reason why the males insisted on feeding their women. The entire meal had been an elaborate seduction. They touched each other, nipped at fingers, and stole kisses in between bites.

  “Now for your next surprise,” Savitar said, his eyes alight with mischief.

  Kadan stood and took Raven from Savitar’s lap, carrying her down a hallway she hadn’t been down yet. It made her laugh. “What is with you guys and carrying me?”

  “I like how you feel in my arms.”

  Well then, she could live with that. Her mind went blank as they entered a suite straight out of her fantasies. The enormous bedroom that was decorated in the dark-silver color of their house. It was an entire suite in its own right with a massive bed, its own little sitting area with chairs and a couch, and a small balcony off to the side overlooking the sea.

  There were large and small crystals around the room, casting the room with blue light. Gossamer drapes of silver material hung from the ceiling over the gigantic bed, making it look like it was surrounded by millions of stars.

  “Oh wow…”

  Savitar walked around them so he was facing her. “Do you like it, Raven?”

  “I don’t like it…I absolutely love it! Whose room is this?”

  “It belongs to you.”

  The smile froze on her face. “I…You don’t want me to sleep with you anymore?”

  Shock had Savitar’s jaw dropping. “Of course I do!” Savitar exclaimed.

  Kadan was over to the bed in a few long strides. He set her down on the bed then lowered to his knee to take one of her hands in his. Savitar took the other. “This room is our gift to you, sweetling,” Kadan said. “As our mate, we wanted to give you a haven that would belong to you alone. We would love to share this bed with you every night, but we also understand that there will be times over the long years when you will want a few moments of privacy.”

  “Thank you, Kadan,” Raven whispered. She turned to meet Savitar’s worried eyes and stroked a hand over his cheek. “Thank you, I love it.”

  Savitar pushed her thighs apart so his large body fit between them. “It is customary for a female to choose which of her mates will sleep with her in her chamber.” He exchanged a quick glance with Kadan before continuing. “We would hope that you would allow both of us to stay with you tonight.”

  Raven blinked. “Of course, why wouldn’t you…oh. But what about Tristan? I know I haven’t officially made up with him yet, but I don’t want to hur
t his feelings by leaving him out.”

  Kadan smiled. “Tristan will be back much later. It is difficult, I know. Some mated females will choose only one mate to sleep with each night, but most will have two stay with her. The males work on a rotation so that it is fair for everyone.”

  “That works for me.” Raven smiled at them. “Although, don’t get mad if I move around in my sleep and disturb you.”

  Both males laughed. “You slept perfectly in my arms last night, my love,” Savitar said on a rumbling purr.

  Sweet Jesus, what was it about that purring sound that got her instantly wet and ready for them? “That’s because you sexed me out last night.”

  Savitar threw his head and laughed. She could feel the joy coming from both of them through their bond. Feeling bold, she leaned back with her forearms on the bed and held back a smile as she noticed that both of them focused on the sight of her breasts pushing up again the tight leather vest she wore. She trailed a finger over the soft, silver blanket on the bed. “So, what do you say we try out my new bed?”

  Savitar made a move to lunge forward over her, but was held back as Kadan grabbed his arm. Savitar growled at him, but Kadan simply shook his head. “She is still sore from earlier.”

  “Then we shall fix that.”

  Raven yelped as Savitar picked her up. She automatically wrapped her legs around his waist as he carried her through a doorway into a beautiful bathing room. All of the bathing chambers reminded her of Roman baths, but this one was spectacular. It was decorated with jewel-colored gems that had been mixed in with the bronze-colored stones so when the light hit the gems a kaleidoscope of rainbow colors filled the room.

  Savitar felt ashamed that he hadn’t thought of her comfort before he had tried to pounce on her. It had been difficult for him to wait to see her again while she had been out with Kadan during the day. Sure, it had given him time to prepare her chamber with Tristan’s help, but he’d become agitated as soon as he was done with the task.