Reclaimed [Shifter Sanctuary 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Scarlet Day

  Matt leaned forward and his eyes practically glowed in the dim light. “If you’re hiring, I might be persuaded to take a side job.”

  Paige’s mouth went dry. A tingle worked its way from the base of her skull down her spine, settling with an electric jolt between her legs. The pool table idea was sounding more and more inviting with every shaky breath she took. And since the nearest one had just been vacated, the timing was perfect.

  “How about some beers, Matt?” Dylan inserted himself between Paige and Matt. “I was just about to show Paige how to play pool.”

  Paige caught the slightly territorial expression Dylan directed toward Matt. She wasn’t used to having men vie for her attention, but she had to admit, she could easily get used to it. It gave her a sense of power she’d never felt before.

  Matt narrowed his eyes at Dylan, but the grin he still wore indicated to Paige that any competition between the men might just be friendly competition, at least in Matt’s view.

  “Great. First round of beer is on me.” He winked at Paige. “Save me a spot at the table.”

  Chapter Six

  Dylan watched the exchange between Matt and Paige with a mixture of jealousy and confusion. In fact, it was as much his own jealousy as Matt’s uncustomary forwardness that stirred Dylan’s confused thoughts. Dylan wasn’t a jealous person. Never had been. And hell, Matt had been teaching Dylan how to be a Dom, which often resulted in the two men sharing scenes and sex with a female. There had never been any competition between the two men in those situations, so why did it feel so different with Paige? Dylan wondered if her pheromones could be causing it, but he had the unsettling feeling that he would have reacted the same way yesterday, before Paige’s pheromones had kicked in.

  Matt’s reaction had been just as puzzling. Dylan had never known Matt to be even slightly affected by the pheromones female lion shifters produced when their cats were ready to mate. Dylan had been young when his pride was attacked, not even in his teens, but he knew that Matt’s mate had been one of the victims. Matt never talked about it, at least not to Dylan, but the event seemed to have forever affected Matt’s attraction to other female lion shifters. Not that Matt was celibate or anything. He was a Dom, and a damn good one, which was why Dylan had approached him for training. But Matt had never shown any inclination of wanting to take another mate. Dylan had certainly never seen him intentionally pursue a female, either. Matt usually just stood back and let them come after him. And there never seemed to be any shortage of women waiting in line.

  So what had changed? Why would Matt suddenly be taking the initiative, especially with a female shifter whose cat had obviously decided it was time to find a mate? That seemed like dangerous territory for an avowed bachelor to enter into.

  “So I assume this is the business end of this thing?” Paige stood holding one of the pool cues, with the blue chalked end at eye level.

  Dylan put his curiosity—and his jealousy—of Matt aside and grinned at Paige. “Well, at least you got that part right, so that’s a start. Let’s see if you’re a fast learner.”

  As it turned out, she was. Matt had returned with the beers, and they had proceeded to teach Paige the rules of the game. Dylan was fairly proud of himself for keeping his uncustomary jealousy in check, especially when Matt had stood close behind Paige and wrapped his arms around her to show the correct way to hold the cue. He and Matt had taken turns performing that particularly appealing task, since Paige had frequently asked one of them to help guide her shots. Dylan had no doubt that she could probably manage many of those shots just fine on her own, but he could tell she was enjoying the attention.

  As he stood close behind her to help her take yet another shot, he pressed a little closer to her in order to lean into a good angle on the ball. The curve of her ass fit perfectly against him. His hard dick twitched, reminding him of the discomfort he’d been trying to ignore while they’d played pool. The jokes and conversation had come easily for the three of them. The flirting, though, had come even easier. As the night had progressed, the flirting had morphed into something else entirely. It had turned more serious. Not just for Dylan, but for all three of them. The look in Paige’s eyes over the last hour had turned almost frantic.

  As Dylan guided Paige’s aim for the next shot, he took a deep breath. Big mistake. The longer he was around her, the better he could tolerate her pheromones. But as he stood close against her back and put his face near hers, a fresh wave of her scent released into the air around him. His eyes blurred, as did his thoughts. She tensed in his arms and pressed back against him, her silky hair brushing against his cheek.

  Dylan heard a low groan, but he wasn’t sure if it came from him or Paige. All he knew is that his world had just contracted down to nothing more than the space immediately surrounding him and the woman in his arms. He could no longer hear the music or see the flashing lights above the dance floor. Every nerve ending in his body went on full alert, attuned specifically to her touch.

  Paige panted heavily against him, her whole body trembling. “Oh my God, I need…” Her voice trailed off in a moan.

  Dylan felt another presence move in close. His first instinct was to lash out at whoever had intruded into the small circle of consciousness surrounding him and Paige. But as he glanced up and saw Matt’s strained face, he realized his friend and mentor was barely hanging on as well.

  Matt leaned in close. “Paige, let us take care of you.” He spoke so low that only Dylan and Paige would be able to hear. “Will you let us?”

  Her body stiffened. Dylan held his breath while he waited for her answer. Time seemed to stop. He knew what Matt was proposing. Any earlier hesitancy Dylan had about Matt inserting himself into the situation with Paige had evaporated at some time over the last couple of hours. All that mattered was Paige’s reaction to Matt’s question.

  “Okay.” The word was barely audible, but it was the only sound Matt and Dylan needed to hear.

  Matt pulled the pool cue out of Paige’s hands and laid it on the table. Dylan wrapped an arm around Paige and pulled her toward the back door of the club, while Matt wrapped his arm around her from the other side of her. No one paid them any attention as they crossed the club together. And why would they? The rooms beyond the back door were the reason most of them came to the resort in the first place. Three or more guests playing together was not an unusual occurrence.

  Dylan opened the door and pulled Paige with him into the dimly lit hallway beyond. He started toward the room where he and Matt usually played with subs. It was still early evening, and most of the rooms were unoccupied, according to the unlit lights next to each door. If a door was locked, the light on that door would be lit up. Dylan knew every room would likely be occupied later, based on the number of guests staying at the resort. There was a full staff that made sure each room stayed cleaned and well-stocked with all manner of refreshments and supplies. He grinned, knowing those employees were probably some of the hardest-working people at the resort, judging from how busy the guests usually kept them.

  As they neared the door Dylan had aimed for, Matt shook his head. He took the lead and led the way to another room, toward the end of the hallway. It was a room Dylan had never seen Matt use, mainly because it was a little too soft for Matt’s tastes. Matt tended to be fairly hard-edged when it came to play.

  Matt opened the door and ushered Dylan and Paige inside. Dylan’s eyes adjusted quickly to the dim light, which was even darker than the hallway. If he hadn’t known better, he wouldn’t have recognized the room as a BDSM playroom. To the untrained eye, it looked like an opulent bedroom, filled with a huge four-poster bed, dark wood furniture, and a polished mahogany bar in one corner. There were no obvious instruments of the BDSM lifestyle in the room, unless someone knew what they were looking for.

  Dark purple fabric hung from the ceiling above the center of the bed and then draped down at the four corners, concealing metal rings that could be used to secure straps. He knew Paige would
have to be looking for them to see them. Other instruments and furniture used for play were scattered around the room or hidden in cabinets, but the ones in plain sight, like the low ottoman at the foot of the bed, were not recognizable for what they could be used for.

  The door closed with a click behind Dylan. He turned to face Paige, his arm still around her waist. The look on her face made him want to chuckle, but he held it in. Her expression was a mixture of fear and barely contained desire. He glanced at Matt and was surprised to see the same mixture of fear and desire in his expression, though perhaps intensified. Dylan had never known Matt to be afraid of anything.

  Chapter Seven

  Matt hoped the fear surging through him wasn’t evident on his face, though if Dylan’s raised eyebrows were any indication, it was probably obvious. The idea of him being afraid to have sex with a female was ridiculous, but he couldn’t deny the icy sensation surging through his veins. Well, partly icy. Each heartbeat seemed to alternate between sending a wave of ice and then a surge of heat through him. Fear and desire raged through him, and he wasn’t entirely sure which one would win out.

  He’d sated the needs of more women over the years than he could count. His reputation as a Dom was the very thing that drew many females of various shifter varieties to the resort. He’d always been happy to oblige, his ability to remain dispassionate providing a wall of separation between himself and his previous submissives and sexual partners.

  Yet here he stood, panicking over the prospect of becoming intimate with Paige. The moment he’d seen her this morning out on the slope, he’d been compelled to follow her. Even without her powerful scent drifting on the cold wind, he thought he probably would have trailed her. Hell, he knew he would, though he couldn’t explain why he felt drawn to her. And that fact scared him more than anything. It would be easy to blame it on her pheromones, but he’d encountered plenty of lioness shifters ready to mate, and none of them had ever affected him.

  In all the years since Anne was slaughtered, he’d maintained his emotional detachment, never letting his heart become involved with another woman. He’d felt physical desire, but his emotions had always been locked down tight. Until now.

  Paige trembled against him, and he looked down into her face. There was fear in her expression, but it paled in comparison to the desire flaming behind her eyes. She panted lightly, fresh pheromones flooding the room. Matt clamped down on his fear and shoved it into a dark corner of his mind, determined not to let it out again. His fear had been in control for far too long.

  “So, um, I guess I don’t need to ask what goes on in here, do I?” Paige’s attempt to lighten the mood brought a smile to Matt’s lips.

  “A lot goes on in here, most of which you’re probably not ready for.” Matt drew her around to face him fully. “I know we just met, but I swear you can trust us. We won’t do anything you don’t want to do.” He lightly traced the outline of her neck with the tip of his finger. Her pulse quickened under his touch. “Tonight is all about you. Let us give you what you need.”

  “Why—why—” She licked her lips and Matt couldn’t help but stare at the soft pink tip. “Why do I feel like this? Why do I want both of—” Her voice broke off and she lowered her eyes. Her cheeks flamed pink, and she trembled against Matt.

  Matt pushed her hair back off her forehead, revealing a slight sheen on her skin, probably caused by her stress. “Because it’s new. The pheromones are flooding your body for the first time. You haven’t learned how to control your desire yet.” He hesitated, but then finished his thought. “If you go very long without mating, you’ll get used to it. You won’t feel overwhelmed by it.”

  A flicker of jealousy shot through Matt at the thought of her finding a mate. He imagined some faceless male holding her in his arms. Matt pushed the thought aside, unwilling to let his own issues interfere with what she needed in this moment. He stared down into her trusting face and let any remaining doubts fall away. He slowly closed the distance between their faces, giving her plenty of time to pull away, but she didn’t. With one last movement, he lowered his lips onto hers.

  In that instant, nothing else mattered. Just his lips moving against hers and her response to him. She parted her lips, allowing his tongue entrance to the sweetness within. He shuddered and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tighter against him and kissing her harder. Her arms went around his neck and her fingers pressed against his scalp. Their tongues entwined together in a desperate dance.

  Without breaking the kiss, he backed her toward the bed, one slow step at a time. He didn’t often use this particular room, but as the club manager he knew the layout of all the rooms so well that he could find his way around with his eyes closed.

  Dylan had whispered to him earlier in the evening that he didn’t think Paige was familiar with the BDSM lifestyle, so Matt hadn’t wanted to scare her off by taking her to his regular room. Besides, tonight wasn’t about playing out a scene or sating his own need for dominance. He’d told her tonight was only about her, and he’d meant it.

  He broke the kiss when they reached the bed. He stared down at her, enjoying the flush across her cheeks and the extra fullness of her lips from their kiss. From the corner of his vision he saw Dylan pull some supplies out of the chest and toss them on the bed. Matt could tell Paige affected Dylan in ways other females hadn’t, much like she affected Matt. It was an interesting development, but one he would think about later.

  With slow movements, Matt slid his fingers under Paige’s T-shirt. He stared straight into her eyes, not wanting to miss any sign of hesitancy or doubt. It was one of the fundamental duties of a good Dom to gage the emotional needs of his sub. Matt knew the importance of that ability applied now, even though Paige wasn’t his sub—at least, not yet. That thought, that she might someday be his sub, sent a renewed surge of heat through Matt’s body. It settled heavily in his groin, and his dick hardened to a painful level, but he had other priorities right now.

  As he continued to study Paige’s reactions, he lifted her T-shirt, inching it up slowly. His hands skimmed along her soft heated flesh and her breathing sped up. Her eyes lost focus, and she leaned into him. He pulled the shirt over her head and tossed it aside. Only then did his gaze flick down to her exposed body.

  The sight of her bare breasts sent a shock wave through him that felt as though he’d been punched in the gut. She was beautiful as she stood there, the dim light from the wall-mounted electric candles dancing across her skin. He slid his hand up her smooth abdomen and then molded one palm around her right breast. His thumb flicked across the rosy nipple, and she groaned at the touch. His dominant side swelled at how responsive she was to his touch.

  With his left hand, he unzipped her shorts and then began to push them down over her hips. She jumped slightly when Dylan stepped in close behind her, and his hands rested on her now bare hips, but she relaxed quickly as Matt held her gaze.

  “Have you ever been with two men, Paige?” Matt thought he already knew the answer, but he wanted to be sure.

  She trembled again and shook her head, her nerves apparent by her jerky motion.

  Dylan lifted her long hair off her shoulder and gently kissed her neck. “We won’t do anything you’re not comfortable with.” Her head fell back against him. “Just trust us to make this amazing for you.”

  She nodded, and Matt and Dylan finished sliding her shorts and panties down her legs. Matt had to remind himself to go slow when he saw the partially shaved lips at the juncture of her legs. It was going to take all of his considerable resolve to take this as slowly as she needed them to go.

  She kicked her shoes off and then held on to Matt as she stepped out of her shorts. Dylan tossed them somewhere, but Matt wasn’t paying attention to where they landed. He quickly stripped his own shirt off, the need to feel her skin against his, the one and only concession to his own desires he would allow for the moment. He wrapped his arms around her again and drew her toward him, his lips claiming her
s. Their lips, tongues, and heartbeats melded together.

  Without breaking the kiss, Matt pulled her with him onto the bed. One hand cradled her head, while the other hand teased her taut nipple. She arched her back, pressing herself harder to him. He let his hand slide down her abdomen, little shivers greeting his fingers as they glided over her skin. Finally, with agonizing slowness, his fingers reached the destination he’d searched for. He slid his fingers through her lower lips and wasn’t surprised by the slickness he found there. He groaned against his mouth and lifted her hips. He smiled at her acceptance and pushed his fingers farther, plunging one finger into her. She broke their kiss and gasped at his intrusion.

  He froze and waited for her to decide what would happen next. When she moved against his hand and thrust her hips, trying to get more contact, relief surged through him. He added another finger and pumped his hand in and out to the timing of her hips, letting her set the pace. Her thrusts grew stronger and her breathing more labored. Her juices covered his hand and her heady scent filled the room, driving Matt almost to distraction. Before she could reach orgasm, he pulled his fingers from inside her. A growl of protest erupted from her lips.

  He grinned at her frustration. “Easy, my little cat. Patience.” He dropped a kiss on her pouting lips and then moved lower, sprinkling light kisses along her jaw, down her neck, across her shoulders. He didn’t neglect any parts of her as he moved even lower, capturing one nipple between his lips and sucking. She gasped, and he gently bit down on the sensitive nub. That earned him another thrust of her hips and he grinned. He released her nipple and moved lower still, taking his time as he brushed his lips down her tight abdomen.

  Her scent grew stronger the closer he got to her wet lips. He felt the bed move and glanced up in time to see Dylan take up position at Paige’s head. Dylan lowered his face to hers and drew her into a deep kiss, which she returned without any hesitation. Matt smiled at her quick acceptance of the two men and returned his attention back to his intended destination. Her smell became more overwhelming by the second and he desperately needed to taste her.