The Crime of Protection

by Gloria Martin

  Weston pulled off her shirt and unhooked her bra with ease while Safir slid her panties off. She felt as if she would combust with their lips on her. Weston slid down to her breasts while he kneaded them in his hands, and Safir’s lips inched closer to her inner thighs. By the time Weston pulled one of her nipples into his mouth, Safir’s lips reached her sensitive folds, his tongue delved in to slide against her clitoris.

  “Oh my god…” Nora gasped, out of breath from panting so much. She couldn’t lie still, pleasure was coursing through her with every beat of her heart and it was racing. It wasn’t long before she was shooting off into a mind-shattering orgasm. She swore she saw colors explode around her as her body was rocked with wave after wave of intense pleasure. She hadn’t even come down from her orgasm yet before Safir was nudging her legs farther apart and sliding into her. She cried out as he filled her up, her back arching to meet his thrusts. She was only a little distracted by Weston then, he had taken off his clothes and was beautifully naked next to her on the bed. He kissed her once before offering her his impressive erection. She took it into her hand and soon had him in her mouth. When another orgasm hit her Weston and Safir switched positions. They went at it until Nora was little more than a puddle on the mattress, passed out and completely sated.

  *****

  Nora woke to the sounds of Safir and Weston talking. They were speaking in low voices and on either side of her. She stretched, feeling like her body had the best internal massage ever, and opened her eyes. Tan and golden eyes met hers and both had tender expressions, though Safir smiled and Weston simply caressed her jaw.

  “Good morning sleepyhead,” Safir said, his smile growing.

  “Morning…” she said, feeling all of a sudden shy. Though she really shouldn’t after the night they had before.

  “How do you feel?” Weston asked her, humor in his voice.

  “Really good,” she said with a chuckle.

  “No hangover?” he asked, seeming impressed.

  “No…I think the orgasms kept me from having one maybe…if that’s possible,” she joked.

  “So Weston and I were just talking…” Safir said and she glanced at him curiously.

  “We came up with a way to successfully merge the prides. It’s kind of a necessity now…I’m like Safir, not letting you go,” Weston told her. Nora’s chest filled with warmth and hope as she smiled at him. She really did have feelings for Weston and wouldn’t want him out of her life either.

  “So what are you going to do to merge the prides,” she asked.

  “First we’re going to talk to the neighboring wolves to get them to agree to extend the duration of our sanctuary here. Then slowly, but steadily integrate my guys into Lion’s Bay. They’d move into town just like any human, then only when everyone is settled will we merge the shifters into one pride…Safir staying its leader and me taking position as his second,” Weston explained.

  “That sounds perfect,” Nora said happily. “Have you told the other lions yet?” she asked them and they shook their heads.

  “First we’ll get our sanctuary here extended then get everyone together to tell them what’s going on…” Safir said.

  “…but?” Nora heard the slight waver without him voicing it.

  “But I just want to make sure you’re okay with our both wanting you as mate…we wouldn’t be able to have a human marriage. And…we’d essentially be sharing you,” he pointed out. Nora smirked and shrugged a little.

  “That’s alright with me, as long as you’re both in my life as in more than friends. As long as we have some kind of commitment bonding us together,” she said.

  “Of course, we can make vows in front of the pride once it’s merged,” Weston suggested.

  “It’d be the perfect way to start our union officially,” Safir said thoughtfully.

  “I like it,” Nora said with a smile.

  “Great, now let’s shower and get something to eat,” Safir suggested. Nora held her arms out then.

  “I think you’ll have to carry me, I doubt my legs are still working,” she said and Weston laughed almost dangerously.

  “Oh Nora, Nora, Nora…are you going to be in for a treat,” he chuckled, making her crack up. He kissed her on the cheek and Safir gave her a light peck on the lips.

  “Come on, we need our Nora up and running,” he said and Weston pulled her up.

  “So technically…are you guys my concubines?” she asked curiously, only mostly joking.

  “Depends on your definition, sure we’ll draw baths for you and feed you, no problem. But in bed you’re being dominated, no doubt about it,” Safir said, grinning at her.

  Nora thought getting ready the morning after marathon sex with just Safir was a process, but getting ready the morning after with both Weston and Safir…that was an entirely different deal. But strange as it was Nora couldn’t be happier, literally. Weston and Safir oddly balanced each other out and fit two sides of her like puzzle pieces.

  “So…your summer is turning out to be pretty eventful huh?” Safir asked her while they ae a quick breakfast.

  “Yeah actually…I don’t think I can share with my class what I did this summer though. I might have to make something up…say I went to Seattle or something,” she said.

  “This is going to be a little weird at first, but I think it’ll work,” he said and Nora glanced over at Weston who was grabbing orange juice from the fridge.

  “Well you were a little weird when we first met, but it worked out,” she said and heard Weston chuckle. Safir smiled ruefully at her, but pressed a kiss to her cheek. “Same with Weston…” she added and he simply laughed.

  “Our shifters will be fine, as long as they’re with their own…and you know we’d be the largest lion pride in the north,” West pointed out.

  “We’re stronger unified,” Safir said, stating the obvious though it was so true. Nora smiled to herself, she was excited about the rest of the summer, only a little scared, but so looking forward to what was ahead.

  THE END

  Bonus Story 30/40

  The Wedding Plan

  I can’t breathe. I’m standing here dumb as a brick in the doorway of my office watching all of my hopes and dreams slip slowly out of sight.

  I know that sounds ridiculously dramatic, but it’s true all the same.

  My stepbrother, my boss, my best friend since high school is walking down the hall towards me with a tall, dark haired, olive skinned model-like woman hanging off of his arm.

  As she gets closer, I see the large diamond ring dangling from her left hand. I realize that there could only be three explanations for this, none of which serve to settle the falling sensation currently taking place in my stomach.

  She could be a particularly friendly new business partner. Gus has been in Canada for the past few months trying to grow the business, after all.

  But, the way she’s clinging to him and laughing at his jokes that I know are ridiculous even though I can’t hear them, makes me think that she is acting a little too friendly to be just a business partner.

  That means they’re together. But, it doesn’t necessarily explain the diamond ring.

  My stepbrother could be having an affair with a woman who is engaged to a rich old geezer who she’s only marrying for money.

  But, that explanation doesn’t sit well either. First of all, I know Gus. I’ve known him since the first day of freshman year at Grant High School when he sat in front of me in English class. He’s not the type of guy to have affairs or cheat or do anything at all unscrupulous.

  Second, Benning Tech is one of the largest corporations of its kind in the country. Gus is worth over 2 billion dollars. He makes Forbes list of Richest men in the world every single year.

  The beautiful model wouldn’t have to marry an old geezer for money and have an affair with Gus. It’s more likely that she would marry Gus for money. Though, along with the money she’d also get a young, handsome, virile man. It’s the best of both world
s.

  This leads me to the horrifying ultimate conclusion. The beautiful model is wearing Gus’s ring.

  My step brother, my best friend, got engaged while he was in Canada and didn’t tell me.

  Gus catches my eye, smiles, and waves at me as he and his little girlfriend (I refuse to say the word fiancée, even in my head) move towards me.

  I try to smile back but, I don’t think I’ve quite managed it. Gus doesn’t seem to notice. His smile is brighter than I’ve ever seen it and there’s a new spring in his step as he comes closer.

  “Emma!” he says. “It’s so good to see you! I hope you’ve been taking good care of my company.”

  “Didn’t need much taking care of,” I answer. “It’s a well-oiled machine.”

  “Most of that’s due to you and you know it,” he says playfully elbowing me in the ribs the way he’s always done. As though we’re fourteen again and I’m the little sister substitute.

  None the less, I smile at him and take a step back both hoping and dreading being introduced to the beautiful woman behind him. Apparently she’s got the same feeling about this meeting because she’s looking at Gus with an impatient frown while tapping her foot.

  Gus catches the look out of the corner of his eye and quickly, almost nervously, moves to appease her.

  “Oh, Emma,” he says ushering the woman forward, “I’ve got a...well a sort of surprise for you...this is Ramona. My fiancée.”

  And there’s the word. The dreaded title that made what I already knew in my head to be true an indisputable fact.

  I swallow, and paste an entirely fake smile on my face.

  “Nice to meet you,” I say holding my hand out to Ramona. “I’m Emma.”

  She smiles back at me. Her expression looks every bit as fake as mine feels.

  “It’s great to meet you too,” she says in that sexy low voice that actresses in movies always seem to have. She takes my hand with a feminine limp wrist.

  “Gus has told me all about his little stepsister. I know you two are close.”

  I try to keep the smile on my face even as the words she’s just spoken ring in my head: ‘little stepsister’. I don’t know if she means to be condescending or not but, it certainly feels that way.

  With another fake smile at me, Ramona turns back to Gus.

  “Honey, I really should get going,” she says. “If we really want this wedding to happen next month, I’ve got a lot of planning to do.”

  “Next month?” I ask before I can stop myself. Getting engaged in a matter of months is one thing. But, a wedding so soon…

  “It’s a stupid thing with Ramona’s Green Card,” Gus tells me. “We’ve got to get married within two months of her moving here or they can send her back to Canada.”

  “Not that that’s the reason we’re getting married,” Ramona assures me, correctly interpreting the hopeful expression on my face. (A Green Card marriage after all, wouldn’t be quite the same as a real marriage).

  She continues, her voice suddenly pouty and cutesy. “I just wanted to be with Gus and this was the only way we could make it happen.” She leans into Gus and gives him a peck on the lips and I think I’m going to be sick. She makes as if to depart.

  “Okay, you can go if you have to,” Gus tells her. “I’ve got to talk to Emma about some business stuff anyway. See you tonight?”

  “Of course,” she says sweetly. And, with another kiss (and another urge to gag from me), Ramona saunters out of the hall.

  As soon as she leaves, the smile fades from my face and I fix Gus with a glare.

  “So,” I say rather firmly to him, “when were you planning on telling me you were engaged?”

  “Emma, can we not do this here?” he asks looking at the other employees rushing about. A few have glanced over their cubicles to watch us.

  “Fine,” I say, “should we go into your office and have it out there?”

  My arms are crossed and I’m still glaring at him. To my right I hear the tech guy, Ed, snicker behind his computer screen.

  I ignore him. I’ve learned to do that over the years. But, when Gus looks at him and his face colors, Ed’s laughter stops immediately.

  “Sounds good,” Gus says. “I’m sure you’ve got some things to go over with me anyway.”

  Satisfied, I nod and let him lead the way past the row of cubicles and towards the large brown door to his office.

  “The boss man’s in trouble,” I hear Ed whisper to Cindy, one of the data entry girls, as we pass them by. Though I send him a glare that shuts him up again, I can’t help but silently agree with Ed.

  Gus is in very, very big trouble.

  *****

  “You want me to what?!” I all but yell in Gus’s direction. I didn’t think this day could get any worse. First, my stepbrother/best friend/man I’ve had a crush on since high school gets engaged and doesn’t tell me. And now he wants me to plan his wedding.

  “Please, Emma,” he says in that pathetic voice he always uses when he’s trying to get me to do something. “We can’t get a planner on a month’s notice! There’s no one else to ask and besides, you’re really good at this stuff. You know you are.”

  That is true. I planned my Mom’s wedding to Gus’s Dad when we were only sixteen, and loved every minute of it. The truth is, I love planning events. I love organizing. I love making things just so. But this...this is…

  “I’ve got too much work to do!” I say, instead of what I really want to say (which is, ‘I can’t plan your wedding because I’ve been in love with you since we were fourteen years old so you should be marrying me.’)

  I continue. “The creative team’s coming in tomorrow to pitch the marketing plan for the new software. I can’t miss that meeting if we’re going to get a campaign out by the end of the quarter.”

  “I’ve already talked to Sam, he’s going to take the first meeting for you. He’s got all your notes, he knows what we’re looking for,” Gus says. “And I’ll get most of your other duties delegated out too.”

  “It’s still a big job,” I say. “I mean, Mom and Frank’s wedding took six months to plan and it still didn’t go as perfectly as I’d like it to have gone.”

  Gus rolls his eyes at me. The expression is so familiar, I’m tempted to smile at him before I remember that I’m still furious.

  “Nothing ever goes as perfectly as you’d like it too,” he says. “Even when it comes off without a hitch. Because you’re a crazy perfectionist like that.”

  “All the more reason you don’t want me doing this,” I answer, now desperate to get out of this, somehow. “You know me, Gus. I’ll stress out and make everyone miserable!”

  “You’ll have help,” he assures me. “Ramona has an assistant, Jake. He’s flying in from Canada tomorrow. He’s coming in just to help you.”

  “Then why doesn’t he plan the wedding?” I ask, frustrated at the idea of having to meet yet another person from Canada who would, no doubt, also ruin my life.

  “The short answer is because he’s a straight male and knows nothing about weddings,” Gus says. “The longer answer is...I trust you. There’s no one else I would trust with the most important day of my life besides you.”

  My heart skips a beat and I look into those blue eyes that are so incredibly familiar to me. Gus is staring at me with his sad, pleading look and, despite myself, I’m almost ready to give in.

  “Please, Emma. Just do this one thing. For me,” he says. That’s it. That’s all it takes to push me over the edge to acquiescence.

  I heave a huge sigh before saying, “Okay. I’ll do it.”

  Gus’s face breaks out into the biggest grin I’ve seen from him in years. The last time he grinned like that was when we made our first sale ten years ago.

  “But, you’re going to owe me big time,” I tell him trying to sound stern but feeling a smile come to my own face. “And I still can’t believe you didn’t tell me about Ramona. We talked every day when you were in Canada.”

&
nbsp; “Like I said,” Gus says, “I wanted it to be a surprise.”

  “You know I hate surprises,” I answer.

  “And I’ve spent years trying to get you to love them,” Gus quips back. “I thought this one might help with that.”

  I roll my eyes at him. As I do, I hear him chuckle. As I leave the office to return to my desk, I can’t help feeling a bit lighter. I’m still upset about the wedding. I’m still angry at Gus for keeping the whole thing so secret. But, the idea that he trusts me, and that I’m the only person he trusts enough to take care of his wedding, has given me an extra bounce in my step.

  Truth be told, talking to Gus always manages to do that.

  *****

  There is an underwear model sitting at my desk. I walked into work today fully expecting things to go back to normal. Or as normal as they could be with Gus’s wedding less than a month away and me planning it.

  I thought I would get my work for the company done in the morning and, maybe, have lunch with Ramona’s assistant so that we could talk about flower arrangements and so on.

  Now, I find myself standing in the hallway, almost completely immobile, looking at the most gorgeous man I have ever seen.

  His longish dark hair falls elegantly into his dark brown eyes. His skin is tanned, and his jaw has a light stubble.

  He’s wearing a dark suit, jacket unbuttoned, with a bright red tie and white shirt. I can make out his torso through his shirt I can tell that his abs are well-defined and seem to end in that perfect ‘V’ shape.

  I feel heat rush to my cheeks as a pool of desire floods embarrassingly to my nether regions. I walk towards my desk, half hoping that this is not Jake, Ramona’s assistant, and more than half hoping that it is.

  “Hi,” I say when I reach him, “I’m Emma. You’re...um...sitting at my desk.”

  “Oh, sorry!” the underwear model says, quickly scrambling up from my chair. “I’m Jake.”