She was here. Kye could feel her near. Now, all she had to do was find them. That scared the shit out of him. For the longest time, it was just him and Warren. Their powers worked well together as they went through the district keeping the peace. He was content in his duty. Sure he wanted to settle down eventually, but not now. Then he met Charice in her shop, and everything he wanted changed.
He could feel her power consume his soul as if it already belonged to her.
Kye was dead set on going against El-Board about their decision to bond him and Warren in a Triad. Their reasoning was, as enforcers for the board, they needed to be bonded to reach their ultimate power as warlocks and set an example for the people they oversaw. He wanted to fight them, and with one board member in particular.
He knew Warren desired the bond more than anything, so that kept him from going against their wishes. By linking their powers, they shared an emotional connection along with the merging of strength. He felt Warren’s loneliness on more than one occasion. He was missing the other part of them. Kye felt for his friend, but deep down he had to admit that he wanted it too.
“You always felt the calmest near water,” a voice said next to him. “Your most powerful element.”
He didn’t have to look to know it was the Mistress of Water.
“I think my mother had something to do with that,” Kye said.
“I can’t take all the credit,” she said. “Your power is also your own.”
Silence passed between them as they watched the gentle waves roll over the water.
“I met your chosen,” she said.
“I know she’s here,” he told her. “I felt when she arrived.”
“All she has to do is seek you out. She’s intelligent and strong. A beauty too. Much better than your past trysts.”
“Your point, Mistress?”
“You can call me mother away from the others.”
Kye continued staring out across the water.
When he didn’t respond, she continued. “I wanted you to know I hid your little visit to your chosen’s store today. No one else knows, so neither you nor your witch will be punished.”
He turned to face her. “You covered for us?”
“You’re my son before our enforcer. Remember that. Always.”
“Thank you, mother,” Kye said. The word was odd to him. He was so used to formality between them when they were in front of the board that he rarely called her that anymore.
Kye stared up at the moon beaming down on them. “What I feel for her is different. My power calls to hers, but my mind tells me this could change everything. I’m not sure what to do.”
“What if two other warlocks bonded with her instead of you and Warren? Claimed her for their triad? What would you do then?”
Kye felt rage fill him and a need to protect their witch from others. “I’d kill them.”
“Then there rests your answer,” she said. “Not the most gentle, but an honest one all the same.”
He turned back to her, but she disappeared. She and the board made a habit of that.
It didn’t matter because he knew what he wanted.
Charice’s voice crept into his mind.
Powers take my soul to thee.
She found his hidden message. A proud smile filled his face. She was powerful. Now, all he had to do was wait patiently for her to find him.
Chapter Four
Why the fuck was Kye taking so long? He told Warren he had to take a walk to clear his head. It was starting to annoy Warren that his friend couldn’t accept what was so clear to him. Charice was theirs as much as they were hers. There was no thinking it over. It just was. Every being in his body told him so. He was connected with Kye to know he felt the same, so why was he being difficult? He couldn’t deny the inevitable for long.
Warren chose to stay at the bonfire and wait for her. He could feel her somewhere, but too many people were around. It was also her duty to find them. It initiated the bonding ritual.
A cold beer was shoved into his face. “Have another drink, cuz.”
Warren’s cousin Ryan sat down next to him near the bonfire.
“Not now, Ryan. More alcohol won’t help.”
“You’re really hung up on this woman, aren’t you?”
“It’s more than that. I don’t know how to explain it.” He ran his fingers through his loose hair that hung to his shoulders. He’d thought about cutting it, but Kye said it made him look more menacing when they had to hunt down lawbreakers, so he kept it long. Now, it only served as a nervous distraction of his.
“You’ve only seen her once,” Ryan said,
“Once is enough. Trust me.”
“Well, if you’re any indication of what I’ll go through, I hope a triad match is way off.”
“Royce think that way?”
“My brother doesn’t say much these days. Keeps to himself.” Ryan took a swig from his bottle. “He even refused to crash tonight’s party. Says we’re too old to be coming uninvited.”
Warren could see sadness creep into Ryan’s face. He and his absent twin were usually inseparable. Catching Ryan alone was surprising.
“Think he may have a point?” Warren asked.
Ryan paused from drinking his beer to actually consider it. He quickly shook his head. “Nah. Maybe. Who knows?”
Warren had to smile at that. His twin cousins made it a tradition to sneak into Firewick every quarter since they were teenagers. At first it was to rebel against their parents and hunt for free beer. Now, at twenty-five, Ryan and Royce were just doing it out of habit, or at least Ryan appeared to be.
The twins were strong, good-looking warlocks. He was surprised they hadn’t received an invitation from El-Board to officially attend Firewick.
Warren felt for his cousin, both of them, but he had other things weighing on him. It involved a curvy witch with a body he’d fight for and an inner strength he’d die for. It didn’t matter that he barely knew her. She belonged with them.
Pleasantries could come later. He was certain they’d get to know each other well enough with her sexy ass snuggled between them at night.
The things he wanted to do to that witch made him hard with longing for her. No human or witch had ever done that to him. He was getting impatient. If the witch didn’t find them, he was certainly hunting her down himself. Bonding ritual be damned. He was an enforcer, after all.
“Did someone die?” a rough voice asked. “Because you two look like you’re at a funeral.” The man came out of the shadows as the firelight filled his features.
“Funny,” Ryan said. “Comedians probably envy you.” He held out the second unopened beer to the man.
“Axel?” Warren asked. “Shouldn’t you be guarding El-Board?”
Axel plopped down on the empty log beside Ryan. Although he wasn’t as tall and muscular as Warren, the man still had some bulk. The log practically disappeared underneath him as he sat down. He shook his head to refuse Ryan’s alcoholic offering.
“They dismissed us for the night,” Axel said with a groan. “Said they had important matters to discuss without us lurking around.”
“And you just allowed them to go unprotected?”
“You expect me to argue with them?”
“No,” Warren said. “I guess not.”
Fighting with the Elemental Board was never a good thing because they always won. As the strongest witches and warlocks in the Southeast region, no one dared to go against them. They didn’t really need bodyguards either, but Kye insisted, especially since his mother was one of them.
“Have you seen Jett around?” Axel asked.
“He wasn’t with you?” Warren asked. The two guarded the board together and shared power as a Warlock Pair. All they needed was a witch to seal their bond.
“Nah. You know Jett. If we aren’t working, he scatters. He wanted to leave when they dismissed us because he hates these bonding bonfire things, but I thought we should hang around in case El-Board
changes their mind about us guarding them. They’ve never dismissed us like that before.”
“Sorry,” Ryan said. “Haven’t seen him.” Ryan took another swig of beer and nodded to Warren. “And this one’s been too edgy all night to notice anything because he found his third.”
Axel’s eyes widened. “That true? You and Kye found your witch?”
“Yeah. Just waiting.”
“For what?”
“Her to start the ritual.”
Then he heard it. A voice. Her voice. Charice’s voice and it was the sexiest thing he’d ever heard.
The words were soft, but it was like she was right next to him, whispering into his ear.
Powers take my soul to thee, she said.
Her essence caressed him, and all he could think about was claiming her. He felt her pull and couldn’t refuse her call.
“Gotta go, fellas,” Warren said as he stood. “My witch beckons.”
***
This transportation thing was getting dizzying. Saying the words had taken Charice further down the beach and away from the party. Thank the goddess for that.
The only light around came from the moon that drenched her. It wasn’t full, but strong light flowed down from it.
“I shouldn’t have doubted you,” someone said behind her.
She recognized his voice immediately. Her body relaxed at the thought of being so near him. She could sense his power along with another. She turned to face the men who were her warlocks. Across from her stood both Kye and Warren. Her warlocks. The more she thought it, the more natural it sounded.
If she thought they were sexy before, she was mistaken.
Moonlight made them primal, and their power radiated off of them in bursts. Warren’s shirt hung open to reveal perfect abs, toned muscles, and skin that begged to be touched. His hair hung around his face, and she thought about it dropping over her as he bent down to kiss her and claimed her mouth.
Kye was just as dreamy with his shirt completely gone. He was nothing but muscle and hotness.
Her mind drifted to her licking that chest and roaming over his nipples to test his sensitivity with her lips.
Charice closed her eyes to regain focus. “What did you say?”
“I shouldn’t have doubted you,” Kye said. He slowly made his way toward her as he spoke. “Warren knew. He could tell just by looking at you, touching you.”
He was so close that his body hovered over her and his mouth so near that she could feel his breath. He smelled like the heated Gulf.
Charice stared up at him in awe. An overwhelming need to have him kiss her swept over her like the waves crashing nearby.
“And now?” she asked.
Kye’s hand cupped her chin and forced her to stare in those deep blue eyes. “Now, I know you’re ours. Forever.” He wasted no time before claiming her mouth.
After the initial surprise passed, Charice’s body molded to his. The feel of him emitted power and sex. Kye’s magic spread from his lips and danced over her skin. His tongue taunted hers and picked up a rhythm that commanded she follow. Her hands dug into his arms to hold her body steady. He felt right and all hers.
She could feel their magic testing each other, attempting to merge together to make something mighty and new.
But shouldn’t she be fighting this?
Someone came from behind her and nuzzled her neck. She didn’t have to turn to know it was Warren. His power joined with theirs, hovering around their melded bodies. Her pussy ached from the sensation and would have knocked her down if it wasn’t for the two powerful men supporting her. These two men trapping her between them. Their aura radiated off them and into her. They were strangers, and already she was ready to roll around naked with them. Among other things.
She broke Kye’s kiss, and she could feel her power’s anger at the broken connection. It wanted him, both of them, as much as she did. “Wait. Shouldn’t we slow down a bit?” Her breathing came out shallow as they caressed her with hands and mouths. “We don’t even know each other.”
“Do you wish us to stop?” Warren whispered against her ear before nibbling the tip.
“No,” she said. Her head tilted back instinctively to give them better access. What they were doing set her body on fire from the inside out. She shook her head. “I mean, I don’t know. I don’t even understand how those words brought me here.”
“I hid them in the spell,” Kye said between licks and kisses.
Charice froze. “What do you mean?”
“I planted them in the spell so it would bring you here.”
She wedged her hands between both men and pushed them back, which took a good deal of effort since they were lust driven. Both of their eyes shimmered with their magic, but that wasn’t distracting her. “Are you saying you deceived me here?”
Kye started to speak but looked over at Warren.
“Answer me!” she demanded.
“I wouldn’t say deceive,” Kye said. “More like guided.”
“We wanted you to find us,” Warren said, taking her hand. “Needed you to. We meant you no harm.”
“See? This is what I mean.” She shook off Warren’s grip and walked away, putting some much needed distance between her and their sexy and scorching gazes, which she swore had the ability to melt her panties off. It wasn’t impossible. They were warlocks after all. “We started this relationship with lies. You didn’t even tell me who you were when we first met.”
“So you do think of it as a relationship?” Kye said with a smirk until her fuming stare made it vanish. “That would have scared you off.”
“No,” she said. They watched her in silence. “Maybe not. We’ll never know will we?” She turned to storm back off, forcing herself to be angry. At least that was an emotion that made sense. Not this all-consuming urge to have Kye and Warren take her body and soul. That made no sense at all.
Charice took a few steps until her feet stopped. She was stuck in the sand, and she was sure one of them caused it.
“Let me go,” she said.
“Oh, no,” Kye said. “You don’t get to leave that easily.”
A light blue light glimmered around his eyes, which meant he was using his magic to hold her there.
Damn him. It was infuriating. She never wanted to slap someone and kiss them just as hard.
“We can tell you want us, Charice,” Warren said. “Your magic tastes of arousal. Don’t fight it.”
“It’s my choice to bind with you or not, remember?” she snapped.
“I know.” Kye smiled at her. “I also remember you deceived us as well.”
“I did not!”
“No?” He lifted her arm to his mouth and licked.
His tongue swirled over her sensitive flesh and made her body jerk with longing. She should’ve been offended. Instead, she thought it was one of the most erotic things she’d ever seen.
“You taste like passion stone,” Kye said. “If my memory’s correct, you said you weren’t sure if you had one. You knew though, didn’t you? Instead of helping a customer, you chose to use it for yourself.”
“You weren’t even real customers,”she snapped back at him.
How dare he turn this around on me? Charice thought. It also frustrated her that she knew he was right.
“You didn’t know that at the time,” Kye teased. “Isn’t the first rule of business to keep customers happy?” His fingers slid up her side, making his words seductive.
It was getting hard to hold on to a clear thought as the anger started to evaporate into nothing. She was in serious trouble.
Warren stared down at her as he drew closer. He wrapped his arm around her waist. “Don’t let something petty keep us apart. Kye can be an idiot sometimes, but he means well.”
“I’m right here,” Kye said.
Warren ignored him as he placed his other hand on Charice’s cheek, the same way he had when they first met. This time, there was so much more behind his touch. A deep desire calling ou
t to her. “You may not know us, but our magic knows each other. They did from our first meeting. You can’t deny that.”
“No. I don’t deny it.” She could admit that at least. Even then, she could feel both of them flowing over her, begging to be let inside.
“Then let our magic weave together.” Kye spoke this time, all his joking gone. “You’re our third, Charice. Take us for what we are, and we promise to never let go.”
She noticed she could move her feet, but instead of running, she stayed right there as Warren took his turn to kiss her.
His intimate pursuit was raw and hungry while remaining delicate. He tasted slightly of beer and something else that was all Warren and masculinity backed by strength. His body pressed against her, and she could feel just how excited he was for her, since the evidence brushed against her hip.
Her arms wrapped around his neck, bringing her to her tippy toes. Nothing ever felt as right as when they kissed her and roamed her body. She could keep fighting it, but she didn’t want to anymore.
“Tell us,” Kye said. His breath brushed behind her neck and over her head, prickling her skin in all the right places. His hardness connected to her back. “You have to say what you want, Charice, before we can make you ours.”
Warren pulled away and left her panting.
She wanted more, so much more. Her body begged for them and pleaded with her not to deny it anymore.
“I want to be bound to you. Both of you.” As she said it, everything became clear. Her fear and doubts vanished completely as if they never existed at all. These men were her warlocks, and she refused to let another woman come near them. She would beat a witch down first.
Charice realized she never took time to learn the process of bonding to warlocks for a triad. It was probably an out-of-sight, out-of-mind thing. As long as she didn’t face it, it couldn’t happen. Now, she was regretting not knowing.
“How does it happen?” she asked, a little apprehensive.
“You already started by finding us,” Kye said. “That started the binding process.”
The Alpha Warlocks' Claim: An Alpha Warlocks of Kala West Story #1 (A BWWM and BBW Paranormal Erotic Romance) Page 3