by Jess Buffett
Chapter Five
Tessa paced her lounge room, desperate to hear back from Sage. When a car pulled up outside the small granny flat she moved to the window, pulling back the curtain to peek at who it was. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw Chase. Tessa had met Chase a few years back when he had come to Sydney to visit his sister, Ella.
Walking to the door and opening it, her greeting fell short when she caught sight of the towering man behind Chase.
Leontis.
Her eyes darted from Chase, then back to Leontis over and over, waiting for an explanation. “Chase? L-Leontis?”
The larger man smiled and Tessa cursed her traitorous body’s reaction to the sight.
“Tessa, sweetheart,” he said softly, jogging toward her and sweeping her up in his arms.
She melted against him, unwilling and unable to fight her attraction for him. Tessa felt torn and guilty. This wasn’t right, she shouldn’t feel this way about another man. Ella had explained some things to her, and if she truly was Sage’s mate, then her feelings for Leontis shouldn’t be possible. Leontis must have sensed her change, the tensing of her body, because he suddenly let her go, stepping backwards.
“Not you too,” his voice broke with emotions, and it took her a moment to hear his words.
“What?”
Pain etched in his features. “First Sage, and now you. What is so wrong with me that neither of my mates want me?”
“Mates?”
What on earth was he talking about?
He eyed her warily. “You do know you’re my mate?”
Tessa’s jaw dropped. “I am? But...Sage?”
“Is my mate as well...not that he wants me.” Leontis seemed so unsure, so hurt. Biting down on his bottom lip, Tessa had never seen the man look so lost.
“Wait. So the two of you are mates, and I’m mate to both you?” She shook her head. “I’m just trying to work this out. I mean, is that even possible?”
“Very, though I haven’t ever heard of a mate rejecting another, especially when they are both paranormals.” His bitter laughter crushed her.
Tessa stood on the tips of her toes, cupping his face with one hand. “I don’t know what’s going on with you and Sage. What I do know is his sister, Ella, has told me a lot about mates, about what that means. I also know what I felt for you before I left and how badly I wanted to stay with you. If we really are mates, then I don’t want you to leave.”
Leontis visibly sighed with relief. “Thank you, sweetheart.”
“I am curious about one thing though.”
“Hmmm?”
Before he could guess her intentions, Tessa hit him hard on the chest. “When the hell were you planning on telling me you were a shifter?”
Leontis threw his head back and laughed. “Oh, honey, if that’s what you’re truly concerned with, then I am a lucky man.”
Two firm hands cupped her face, drawing her in for a long, smouldering kiss. Her head began to spin, heady with desire as she allowed her body to mould against his. She felt herself dampen between her legs, her core pulsing with need. Suddenly she was clutching back at him, desperate for the feel of him against her.
Tessa thought she might lose herself there and then, if it wasn’t for the roar that blasted through the air. Tearing herself away from Leontis, her eyes widened and the sight of a huge white tiger sprinting toward them.
“Sage?”
“Tessa, stand back,” Leontis ordered and he began unbuttoning his shirt.
She swung her gaze to his. “What is he doing? What are you doing? He isn’t going to hurt you, is he?”
“Just stay back, sweetheart. It’ll be okay.”
Tessa obeyed, but noticed the conviction in his voice didn’t reach his eyes.
Leontis dropped his shirt to the ground, his pants, and shoes following quickly. In the blink of an eye, the large man fell to all fours and began to change. It was the first time she had seen someone shift, and while she found it mesmerizing, she was too terrified to enjoy it. Before she knew it, a huge black lion stood in front of her going head to head with a white tiger.
All she could do was watch as Sage continued on his path, all his focus on Leontis. Leontis didn’t even tense when Sage’s huge tiger body slammed into his, both of them hitting the ground hard. She winced and made to step forward, but a hand on her arm held her still. Frowning at Chase over her shoulder, she asked, “What are you doing? He’s going to hurt him.”
“No. He isn’t.” She wished she held Chase’s certainty.
“How do you know?”
“Because I know my brother. Leontis is his mate, he may fight it out of fear, but he won’t hurt him.” A snarl ripped through the air, and Chase grimaced. “Well...not much anyway.”
*****
Sage ran. The more thoughts that spiraled through his mind, the faster he went. A male mate. He pushed his tiger to its limits, the beast snarling at him to turn back to their mate and claim him. The fact Leontis was a man didn’t bother him, his size on the other hand…
The lion was huge, towering over Sage, muscular as all hell. And his animal...his animal was strong, possibly stronger than Sage’s. He had been relieved and perhaps even excited that Leontis wasn’t a threat, but his mate. Until the moment his tiger had gone from purring to whimpering. The shift in his animal, the sudden need to submit in any way scared the hell out of him.
Sage had never experienced anything like it.
Images of pinning, or being pinned by Leontis flooded his mind, and Sage desperately tried to shake them away. He would not get a boner in animal form. No way.
Confused and scared, Sage headed for his one safe harbor—Tessa.
Breaking through the tree line, a roar ripped from his chest. Leontis. Leontis with Tessa, holding her. His tiger snapped, taking over as he found himself rushing at the other man.
Sage could see Leontis strip quickly, shifting into his animal. He had a momentary pause as he realized the man was no ordinary lion, but a rare black lion shifter. He had recognized the strength of the other man, yet nothing prepared him for this.
Surprisingly, Leontis didn’t even try to fight him as Sage attacked, falling to the ground with him. Anger, jealousy, aggression, and fear swamped him. He bared his teeth to the lion beneath him, expecting a challenge, a test of will and strength. Instead, Leontis did something that never crossed Sage’s mind.
Closing his golden eyes, Leontis tilted his head, exposing his neck just under his black mane. Submitting to his Alpha. Something far more primal than anger rolled its way through Sage.
Mine!
His lion mate must have sensed the change in him, for Leontis shifted into his human form. “Sage.”
The tenor in which his mate spoke, soft, sensual, full of promises tipped him over the edge he hadn’t even realized he had been on. With a snarl, Sage shifted as well, reveling in the feel of their human bodies touching. The stark contrast of their skin making him shudder, so hypnotizing and erotic.
“Mine,” he growled, still more tiger than human.
“Yes,” Leontis choked out.
Raw emotions of relief, lust, and fear began to overwhelm Sage as he regained more control over himself. For a moment he thought perhaps they were his feelings, so strong and believable. Then the feeling of hurt swamped him and one look down at Leontis’s face, Sage knew they belonged to his mate.
Hurt, so deep and sharp, it was like a knife to his gut.
What had he done?
“Leontis.” Pinned under Sage’s weight, Leontis didn’t attempt to move him; however, Sage could sense the other man withdrawing from him. “Don’t,” he barked his sharp command.
Leontis’s eyes widened, before narrowing. “Why? So you can change your mind again?”
“It’s not like that. You need to let me explain.”
His words were clearly not the ones Leontis wanted to hear because in the next moment, his mate was flipping him through the air until he landed on his stoma
ch, one arm locked roughly behind his back. Leontis’s hot breath on the back of his neck made his cock harden even as he ground his teeth together in annoyance. “Let’s get one thing straight...mate. I may be willing to submit to my mate, but it doesn't make me submissive. You can either speak to me as an equal, or not at all.”
With a hard shove, Leontis’s weight disappeared, allowing Sage to roll over. Leontis had already turned his back on him and began walking over to Tessa who looked to be in shock. Leontis dressed himself quickly and Sage’s gut clenched when Tessa wrapped her arms immediately around Leontis as soon as he was in range. He could only take solace in the fact that when she peered over at him, there was no contempt or anger, just confusion.
A pair of pants were thrust in front of him, and he looked up. Chase. “Thanks.”
“No worries.”
Sage slipped the pants on, his eyes never leaving Tessa and Leontis.
“Need a hand?”
Sage grunted, accepting the help. “I need something.”
“Yeah, some advice,” Chase snickered. “Allow me to suggest some extreme groveling, followed by some hot make up sex.”
Sage grimaced. “I think it’s going to take more than sex to make up for what I did.”
“Oh, I have no doubt. I was merely offering you a starting point.”
He rolled his eyes at his younger brother. Naturally Chase’s first thoughts went to sex.
Taking a few steps toward his mates, Leontis stiffened as he neared them. Sage sighed. Shit, he really had screwed up.
“Leontis?”
The larger man turned to him, his golden eyes giving nothing away. “Yes?”
“Can we talk?”
A dark brow was raised. “I believe we already tried that...didn’t work out so well if I recall.”
Sage rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, I screwed up good. I know that, Leontis. I’m trying to make things right.”
His mate grunted, but otherwise didn’t respond.
“Leontis,” Tessa whispered, her hand resting gently on their mate’s arm. “Why don’t we go inside and talk? I suggest Sage’s home, since my siblings are in the granny flat. You both need to explain some things to me. Like how I could be mated to both of you. Ella told me about shifters, a little about mates, but she never mentioned anything like this.”
Tessa’s voice had gone tight at the end, and Sage could tell Leontis noticed too. The lion nodded, linking his fingers with hers. Sage’s stomach clenched as he watched them walk toward his home. Without him.
He turned to his brother, who had been standing close by. “Chase, keep an eye on the kids, would you?”
“Sure, brother. I’ve got them,” Chase said sadly.
Sage nodded in thanks and headed for his home. His head low, depression setting in, he was totally oblivious to his surroundings until he bumped into something. Glancing up, he had to crane his neck back, taking in the enormous expanse of chest, following it up to meet those familiar golden eyes.
He opened his mouth to say...something, but was stopped by the firm press of lips. Sage groaned, leaning in to the solid chest, reveling when large arms wrapped around him like thick bands. His own arms came around his mate, hands curling into the thick black dreadlocks, holding Leontis in place. His lips parted on a gasp when Leontis hand slipped down to palm his arse cheek, and Leontis wasted no time in slipping his tongue in, dueling with Sage’s.
When it became paramount to breathe, he pulled back with a jerk, but refused to relinquish his grip on Leontis. Golden feline eyes trapped him. He felt unsure, not in control. As Alpha, Sage was always in control. He didn’t like this feeling.
“We need to talk,” he said lamely.
Leontis grunted, pulling away from Sage and turning to disappear into his house.
“Well this should be fun,” he muttered, entering his own house.
He paused when he saw Leontis and Tessa had taken up his small sofa, leaving the armchair and only empty space for him. He could tell by the way their bodies were turned to one another, the comfortable ease in which they sat so close together, that they obviously had a past. An intimate one. Both pairs of eyes met his, and in that moment, he knew it was useless. By their looks, Leontis and Tessa had already made up their mind about him. Leontis from Sage’s knee jerk reaction in his father’s office, and Tessa from his actions toward Leontis. Was this how it was going to be? He fucks up once, panics, and suddenly it’s them verses him. He slammed the door shut in frustration.
Tessa gave a startled sound, glaring over at Sage. “Was that necessary?”
“Since I’m about to be lectured, blamed, and then practically disregarded as an unworthy mate all in the comfort of my own home...yeah, I fucking think it is,” he snarled.
Their eyes softened, only serving to churn the heavy weight in Sage’s stomach more. Pity. He couldn’t...wouldn’t put up with that.
“You both nee—”
“Now, I know you aren’t about to tell us to leave.” There was a glint of something, possibly a threat or challenge in Tessa’s eyes. “An Alpha like yourself wouldn’t go jumping to conclusions and then take the cowards way out, would he?”
And there it was. The challenge.
His lips pulled back into a snarl. “I’d be careful with the words you use, sweetheart.”
“Oh, I was very careful with my pick, sweetheart.”
“Ah, Tessa...are you sure you want to do that,” Leontis asked, amusement lacing his voice. “We do need to talk first.”
Tessa gave their mate a brief look before she turned her big brown blazing eyes back to him. “I’m all for talking, but I’m going to make sure he is listening. You know, Ella warned me of your pigheadedness, told me you would need a certain type of handling.”
Sage bristled at her words. “I don’t need handling.”
“Then listen...and listen well, Alpha boy.” Tessa stood, making her way over to him. His hairs stood on end, tension coiled through him the closer she got. Her scent, so enticing and overpowering, swamped him, causing a growl to slip free. Tessa continued to move, closing the distance, unperturbed by his response. Out the corner of his eye he saw Leontis stand, edging around the room until he stood behind Sage. Feeling boxed in, Sage hissed, eyes darting back and forth between them, unable to work out how he had suddenly become the prey. “We aren’t going to turn on you, we aren’t going to turn you away. Obviously there was a misunderstanding between the two of you, but if what you and Ella have told me is right, then mates get past this. They don’t run. Ever.”
“And you did run, Sage,” Leontis murmured. Sage startled when he realized just how close the other man had gotten. “You ran, and that hurt.” Guilt slashed through him as he spun to face the other man, he went to speak, but was once again cut off by the larger man. “I know. I see it now. The fear, uncertainty. As an Alpha, it’s probably the first time you have ever felt that way.”
“Not the first, but the worst.” He felt the need to be honest. These were his mates. “”But submission? Alpha’s should never feel that.”
Leontis smiled, his hand rising to rest on Sage’s chest. “They should with their mates.”
Sage wrapped an arm around the bigger man’s shoulders, bringing him closer even as he reached blindly behind him for Tessa. He could her a low appreciative moan as his lips pressed lightly against Leontis’s, and he pulled back to look at Tessa.
A blush crept up her cheeks as she stared at them with an impish grin. “I never knew seeing two men kiss would be so damn hot.”
Sage threw his head back and laughed. “Honey, if that gets you going, wait until later.”
She let out a strangled sound and he winked. He groaned when teeth nipped at his ear. Damn, that shouldn’t feel so hot.
“I’ll hold you to that promise,” Leontis whispered. “But talk first.”
He sighed. His lion mate was right. “Right. Talk.”
Inside his tiger whined and he agreed. He really wanted to skip
this part.
Dammit.
*****
They all sat down, this time Tessa ushering both men to the sofa. Once they sat, she took the coffee table in front of them. The tension was running high and she wondered how she suddenly became mediator. She was the human after all. Shouldn’t they be soothing her ruffled feathers?
“Sooooo… Talk time.” Silence met her and she felt the sudden need to thump them both. “You know, this really shouldn’t be up to me. I mean, I’m the human, and you guys,” she waved a hand between them, “you know what’s going on. I’m the one who has had her whole world turned upside down. First, I meet this really great guy, who I could really see things happening with, only for my parents to be murdered, then I have five children who suddenly depend on me. Then, I move to this strange town after my friend, who I just discovered was a tiger shifter, suggested I move here for support. I meet her sexy-as-sin brother. And now is so not the time to peacock, Sage. Turns out we’re mates, Leontis shows up and wham...we’re mates, but you two are at odds. Leontis is hurting, Sage, you seriously looked like you were gonna tear his jugular out.”
Tessa paused fighting for control. Now that she was finally letting it all out, it was like she couldn’t stop. Her breath came quickly and her heart beat so hard she could feel it in her throat. Suddenly her ability to breathe at all felt like it was cut off. She struggled, the hands that landed on her just making things worse. Fighting to get away, she was pinned to the ground as she thrashed. Hard hands forced her up slightly, warmth suddenly enveloping her front and back.
The hands began to traverse up and down her body, gentle lips trailing along her neck on either side. Air filled her lungs and the hands softened. She lay there, soaking up the attention, her body releasing all the tension it had carried, not just for the last twenty-four hours, but since she had been informed of her parents’ death.
“Sorry, sweetheart. It’s sometimes easy for our kind to forget how difficult all this must be,” Sage whispered, his words rumbling through his chest, which was plastered to her back.