Light My Fire

by Jodi Redford

  What did he think she was? Freakin’ mute? “Uh, there’s going to be noises. Trust me.”

  Warm lips brushed just to the side of her temple. “Then there’ll be consequences.”

  Moisture flooded her pussy at the sexy menace in Jace’s tone. Oh Lord, who knew she was such a masochist? “What sort of consequences?”

  “If I tell you, it’ll spoil your pleasure.”

  She snorted. “Don’t you mean your pleasure?”

  “Oh no, darlin’. My pleasure is guaranteed just by watching you come undone.” His hands massaged along her spine, heading determinedly toward her bra’s closure. “You ready?”

  Oh for God’s sake… “Yes.”

  Giving a low, wicked laugh, Jace unhooked the clasps and eased the bra straps from her shoulders. “You can drop your arms, but only for a second.”

  She did and Aiden took care of removing the lacy undergarment. His fingertips trailed whisper-soft along the insides of her forearms and she struggled to contain her shivery response. He was killing her and he hadn’t even kissed her breasts yet.

  “You’re doing real good, sweetness.” Jace rubbed his lips over her ear, his teeth nibbling at the lobe. “But let’s see if you can keep from squirming once we turn up the heat.”

  Once they turned up the heat? Good Lord, she was already way past the simmer stage. Helplessly, she peered at Aiden. Fire blazed in his eyes, extinguishing her tiny spark of hope that he might take pity on her. Oh, he was clearly all for raising the thermostat—and he was going to enjoy every damn minute.

  Aiden leaned into Dana, her heady fragrance making his head spin. The beast inside him snarled in demand, desperate to taste and possess. As if intuiting Aiden’s raging need, Jace cupped Dana’s breasts in offering. Any other time, seeing his brother’s hands on her would have driven Aiden insane with rage. Apparently being knocked on his ass by lust made him a bit more the sharing type.

  As much as that was possible. Especially when it came to Dana.

  Lowering his head, Aiden flattened his tongue over a stiffened nipple. Dana trembled, trying valiantly not to move or make a sound. That wouldn’t last long. Not with what he had in store for her. He tugged her nipple into his mouth and rolled it gently between his teeth. A strangled groan hitched in her throat.

  “Ah, sweetness.” Jace made a tsking sound. “And here you were doing so good.” He started to step back, bringing Dana with him.

  Aiden clamped onto her hips and growled at his brother. “You looking to get your ass beat?”

  “I was going to have you take her jeans off, but if you don’t—” Jace chuckled as Aiden fumbled with the buttons on Dana’s pants.

  Hooking his thumbs into the waistband, Aiden tugged the jeans over Dana’s hips and kneeled to pull the denim the rest of the way down her legs. He brushed his palms over her calf, reveling in how silky soft her skin was, particularly in the crook behind her knee. Unable to resist, he braced her leg on his shoulder and kissed the tempting spot. She writhed against him, leading him to believe she really was ultra ticklish. Good to know. He nuzzled her thigh, licking a path north.

  “Oh God,” Dana said, so faint he had to strain to hear it. His cock throbbed painfully at her breathless little moans and the way she squirmed beneath his touch.

  Jesus, he wanted to peel her panties off and bury his tongue deep inside her. Reining in his impatient inner beast, he continued to lave his way upward until he reached the scrap of pink satin covering her pussy. Delirious from her intoxicating female musk, he closed his eyes and inhaled. Her arousal called to him like a siren’s song. Tormenting himself as much as he was Dana, he rubbed his lips over the satin, his teeth and tongue creating additional friction with the fabric.

  She whimpered, the sound shooting straight to Aiden’s cock. He glanced toward her face just as Jace tipped her head back and thrust his tongue into her mouth. Again, the sight of them kissing whipped together an opposing maelstrom of emotions. Even while he quaked with an instinctual desire to pound Jace into oblivion, the primal mating of mouths going on above Aiden stoked his arousal to a fever pitch. He wanted to see Dana unravel—to completely lose herself to the sexual energy swirling in the air. And if that meant allowing Jace to participate in the moment, so be it. Right now, the only thing that mattered was Dana’s pleasure.

  Sliding beneath the elastic of her bikini, he dragged the garment off her and tossed it toward her jeans. Jace was playing with her breasts, rolling her nipples between his thumb and forefinger. With his tongue, Aiden mimicked the same lazy motion on Dana’s clit. She quivered, her strangled groans escalating. He licked her slowly, wanting nothing more than to spend the rest of the night—the rest of his life—gorging on her sweet essence. So it was frustrating as hell when Jace backed up another step. Aiden moved to follow.

  “Bring one of the chairs over here.” Jace’s voice had lost its teasing lilt and now rasped with a dark, ravenous edge.

  It didn’t take much imagination to figure out what Jace wanted with the chair. His heart pounding in anticipation, Aiden bounded to his feet and grabbed the seat, plunking it in place.

  Jace’s hands bunched in Dana’s golden tresses. Sifting the strands aside, he kissed her neck. “Mmm, sweetness, I can’t wait to taste your pussy.”

  Again, fury and lust duked it out in Aiden’s gut. Would he be able to handle this?

  Apparently picking up on the fierce emotions roiling inside Aiden, Jace speared him with a sharp look. “Unzip.”

  Aiden blinked. “What?”

  “Damn it, I don’t want to worry about you going all territorial and cracking my head open. If your cock is in her mouth, you sure as shit won’t be focused on what I’m doing.”

  Dana licked her bottom lip and Aiden imagined having that pink tongue swirling over the head of his cock. He swallowed hard. Yeah, Jace definitely had a point. Stepping in front of Dana, he cupped her cheek and feathered his lips across hers in a questioning kiss. A shudder ran through her. He was ninety-nine percent certain it was generated from desire rather than fear, but the lingering one percent pricked his conscience. “You don’t have to do—” The last part of his sentence escaped his mouth like air from a leaky balloon when she stroked his erection through the placket of his khakis.

  Lips curving with feminine power, she unbuckled his belt and wrestled the top button from its lodging. Concerned she was about to maim him, he coaxed her fingers away and eased the zipper down. Her hot hand slid inside his briefs and closed around him. He jerked in response and her smile widened.

  “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” he demanded, his voice ragged around the edges.

  “Didn’t anyone tell you payback is a bitch?”

  “Fair enough.” He yanked the Henley over his head and dropped it to the floor. “But keep this in mind. There’re two against one here. Who do you think has the better odds?”

  Some of the cockiness dimmed from her expression. Taking full advantage of her momentary indecision, he grasped her waist and hiked her onto the chair. Bending, he slanted his lips over Dana’s, stopping any denial she might have offered. She gasped, her fingers curling against his shoulders.

  He made love to her mouth, showing her with his tongue and lips exactly what he’d give her if he were the one between her thighs. The soft, feminine sighs mingling with his breath threatened to steal his sanity. Tracing his tongue over her chin, he gave it a little nip before glancing down. Jace’s index finger was buried in her pussy. Aiden went rigid at the sight. In more ways than one.

  “Sweetness, now. Before he clocks me.”

  Slender fingers caressed the head of Aiden’s cock and he sucked in a harsh breath. Giving an impatient tug, Dana rucked his trousers lower on his hips. Loose tendrils of her hair brushed his thigh, making him moan. A moment later, she engulfed his shaft in the warm heaven of her mouth. His legs started to buckle and he clamped the chair back in a white-knuckled grip.

  “Pace yourself, sweetness. I need more than f
ive seconds to enjoy you.”

  “Fuck you,” Aiden growled. Locking his knees, he tried to tune out his brother’s responding laugh and the mind-blowing suction Dana was employing. Christ, much more of that and he stood a good chance of living up to Jace’s embarrassing prediction.

  She eased back, launching an excruciatingly slow exploration of every ridge and contour of his cock before lightly grazing her teeth over the swollen head. Using only the tip of her tongue, she teased the sensitive juncture where shaft met crown. He groaned—the sound agonized even to his own ears. Cradling her skull, he nudged against her lips in hopes of persuading her to end the torture. She slanted him a mischievous look and inched away. The little minx was dead set on killing him. Suddenly her lips parted, a gasp catching in her throat as her fingers squeezed tight around the base of his cock. Some twisted part of him couldn’t resist glancing toward Jace.

  The benefit of being a twin was he could almost fool himself into believing he was the one wallowing in carnal delight between Dana’s legs. Still, when Jace hooked Dana’s thighs over his shoulder, Aiden had to clench his fists to keep from dragging his brother away from Dana and claiming her for his own gluttonous feast. Her tongue returned to his cock, licking the weeping slit like a hungry kitten lapping up cream. Dana’s teasing ministrations more than managed to recapture his attention. She sucked him deep, her moan vibrating through him, and he stopped caring about anything but the sweet friction of her mouth. Her cheeks hollowed and she pulled back, her tongue coasting over the flanged crown before she bobbed her head and swallowed him toward the back of her throat again. She kept up her brain-frying rhythm until his balls tightened and he was shaking with the need to come.

  “Dana.” Her name more an incoherent groan than anything else, he attempted to pull from her mouth. She gripped his ass, stalling his retreat. Eyes the color of sparkling emeralds gazed up at him with smoldering encouragement while her silky mouth leached him of willpower. There was no way he could stop the climax roaring down on him. “Fuck.” He held her close, his hips bucking helplessly as he came, hard and fast. Massaging his buttocks, she swallowed every drop he had to give.

  A few seconds later, heart pounding, he relaxed his grip on her hair. It was a damn miracle the force of his orgasm didn’t blow his head off.

  Knees wobbling, he hunkered next to the chair and ran his fingertips over her beaded nipples. Giving a broken gasp, she arched toward him. Not about to be left out of her climax, he drew her nipple into his mouth, tugging insistently with his teeth. She rewarded him an instant later with her sweet cries ringing in his ears. He watched the bliss playing across her face, the beautiful sight bringing new life to his still semi-hard cock.

  A moment later, she blinked, her expression dazed. Giving her nipple one final lick, he couldn’t resist grinning. “Now that definitely sounded like a scream.”

  “You’re delusional.” Her haughty tone belied the blush creeping across her cheekbones. She dropped her focus to Jace, who was sweeping his tongue in lazy circles over her inner thigh. Her eyes widened and she tensed.

  Aiden didn’t need to be a mind reader to know she was experiencing a major case of the what-the-hell-did-I-just-do remorse. He reached for her but she scrabbled sideways, nearly upsetting the chair. Jace dropped onto his haunches. Not a moment too soon, either, as her leg swerved past his head, narrowly missing sideswiping it, and she jumped to her feet.

  “No, no, no.” Her voice approaching that hysterical pitch only dogs and rodents could hear, she whirled and scooped her clothing from the floor.

  More than a little distracted by the mouthwatering sight of her ass waving in the air, Aiden hiked his khakis in place and hurried to catch up with her before she scurried from the kitchen. “Dana, wait.” He snagged her elbow and she wobbled backward, colliding with his chest. Loosening his grip, he gently brushed away the blonde lock of hair that’d straggled in front of her eye. “There’s no reason to be freaked out about what just happened.”

  She gaped at him like a second head had just sprouted from his neck. “Riiight. Because God knows, having oral sex with a couple of dragons in the middle of my kitchen is practically a daily occurrence for me.” Clutching her balled-up clothes in front of her, she leveled him with an accusing glare. “Excuse the irony, but I’m screwed now, right?”

  Blinking, Aiden let go of her arm. “Sorry, I don’t follow your meaning.”

  “I just willingly gave in to you. Both of you.”

  His confusion cleared. “You think that was our way of weaseling you into the contract?”

  Her mouth pinched tight. “The thought occurred to me.”

  “Sweetheart, I told you nothing is finalized unless you mate with us on the first night of the Talon moon.”

  Some of the storm clouds brewing in her eyes diminished. “So I’m safe until then? The three of us could fuck like rabbits in the meantime, and it wouldn’t matter?”

  Aiden and Jace both choked at the same time. Jace was the first to recover. He strode forward, his expression dark with lust. “Absolutely.”

  Dana bit her bottom lip, her gaze panning between them. She took a deep breath, her breasts swelling softly against the sweater scrunched in her arms. “I…I’ll have to keep that in mind.” Without further word, she spun and took off down the hallway.

  Slowly, the oxygen returned to Aiden’s brain. This is going to be the longest week of my life.

  Chapter Ten

  Aiden and Jace insisted on driving Dana to the gallery Monday morning. While annoying, it wasn’t exactly surprising. Hell, with as adamant as those two were about guarding her from nonexistent threats, she counted herself lucky they allowed her to use the bathroom alone. She glanced toward Aiden. His long, tanned fingers wrapped around the gear shift, and unbidden memories of those big hands roaming her body flashed through her mind.

  Great, like she didn’t have enough work cut out for her trying not to relive every second of last night. Her attention automatically drifted to his lap. Sucking in a breath, she mentally gave herself a good wallop upside the head. No, she would not think about his beautiful, magnificent cock and how she’d loved having the satin steeliness of it between her lips.

  She gritted her teeth. Yeah, I’m doing a frigtastic job not thinking about it.

  Shaking her head, she lifted her gaze and found Aiden staring at her. Given that her rapt attention had been glued to his crotch, it was pretty damn obvious where her mind had been. Terrific, just what she needed—him knowing what a huge perv she was. Slouching in the leather seat, she glared out the windshield. Aiden keyed the engine and the Talking Heads’ “Burning Down the House” pounded through the speakers. She slanted Aiden a sideways glance and swore she detected a definite curl to the corner of his lip.

  “Let me guess, this song is the official anthem of your people.”

  Jace’s rumbling laugh nearly drowned out the radio. Swiveling in her seat, she sent him a sizzling look. “Watch it. I still haven’t forgiven you for melting my silk flowers.”

  “Really?” A wicked gleam twinkled in Jace’s eyes. “Aw, sweetness, and here I tried my damnedest to make it up to you.”

  Bastard would have to remind me. Her face hotter than a furnace, Dana reached for her seat belt and buckled up. “Could we get going, please? Some of us have to work, you know.”

  “Hey, you’re not the only one,” Jace piped from the backseat. “We’re a couple of poor, working schlubs too. Just not this week.”

  Oh yeah, lucky me. Leaning forward, she lowered the volume on the radio while Aiden backed out of the driveway. “So what do you guys do when you’re not off rounding up female sacrifices?”

  “I’m in the plumbing biz. And before you ask, no, I don’t wear my pants hanging halfway off my ass.” Jace’s voice dropped into that sexy, teasing pitch she was coming to know so well. “But I have been told I’m a real pro at handling my snake.”

  Oh Lord. Desperate to get her mind off that visual, she peeked at Ai
den. “How about you?”

  “I work for the Washington State Department of Natural Resources.”

  She blinked. Okay, she’d figured they weren’t local boys, but…Washington? Crap that had to be close to two thousand miles away. Unease settled in the pit of her stomach. “If I agree to the contract, I would have to give up my home, my family and friends. Everything. Wouldn’t I?”

  Tense silence shrouded the interior of the vehicle until Jace cleared his throat. “It’s not like we’re planning on chaining you to a wall. You’re free to visit them whenever you want.”

  God, apparently having dragon DNA didn’t make him any less clueless than the average guy. “Thanks. That makes me feel so much better.”

  She waited for Aiden to add his two cents worth but he remained moodily close-lipped. Taking his cue, she stacked her hands in her lap and rode out the remainder of the trip without uttering a single word. By the time they exited the freeway, her jaw ached from keeping it stubbornly welded shut and the beginnings of a headache taunted behind her temples.

  Aiden swung into the parking lot of Fancies, and the first thing Dana noticed was the dark blue police cruiser blocking the walkway, its lights strobing. All other worries skittered from her head as her heart rate galloped into overdrive. Fumbling with her seat belt, she finally managed to release it and yanked open her door. She raced inside the gallery, Aiden and Jace hot on her heels. Her knees threatened to buckle at the chaos greeting her eyes.

  Black spray paint graffitied the walls. Several of the paintings had also fallen victim to the paint and malicious slashes from a knife blade.

  “Oh no.” Her belly churned, forcing a wash of acid toward her esophagus. She swallowed hard, fighting off a wave of nausea.

  “Ma’am, are you the owner of this establishment?”

  Through the surreal haze fogging her head, she gaped at the uniformed police officer approaching. Close on his heels was Tony. Struggling to get her neurons firing again, she swung her attention back to the officer. “Y-yes. I am.”