by R. E. Butler
“You smell so good, Ethan.” There, that’s what he wanted to hear. And feel.
She moved away from him, not with a gasp of alarm like she did with Eryx, but with a small smile, and said, “I’m kinda starving.”
He helped her off his lap, although he’d much rather her park against him like that for all eternity, and she sat down on the floor next to the tray, curling her legs beside her. Gathering the water bottles, he joined her on the floor, sitting across from her with the tray between them and giving one water bottle to her.
One plate with four sandwiches and a bowl with a large bunch of grapes sat on the tray. He’d never had a woman make him a sandwich before. His whole body warmed at the thought. She picked up one sandwich and gave it to him and he took a bite without taking his eyes off her and then paused. Peanut butter and – bananas? He looked down at the sandwich and lifted the edge of the bread. Yep. Peanut butter and bananas, and something sweet he couldn’t place.
“Honey.”
“Yeah baby?” He answered automatically and she giggled. He blushed because he’d reacted like it was an endearment. “I’m sorry, what?”
Now she was really smiling. A thousand watt brilliant one showing perfect white teeth. “There’s honey on the sandwich.”
He hummed in his throat. It was different but good. He’d never had one like it before, usually going for meat filled sandwiches. “It’s good, sweetheart. Thank you.”
“For the sandwich or the kiss?” She’d already plowed through one sandwich and was reaching for another.
“Both.”
She chewed slowly and took a long drink of water. “Did you really feel connected to me when you touched me while I was unconscious?”
“Yeah. Both of us touched you at the same time and we thought you were human and that you were going to die. I’ve never been so freaked out in my life.”
“I looked pretty bad?”
He didn’t like thinking about how close he’d come to losing her before he even got to know her. “Yeah, there was a lot of blood and you were out cold. That first night, you cried. Is it because you miss your pack?”
“I did.” She sighed, brushing her hands together after she popped the last corner of her second sandwich into her mouth. She was a really fast eater. “I didn’t want to get tangled up somewhere. I had this idea to just keep drifting until I found what I was looking for, and you guys threw this huge monkey wrench into everything. I don’t know what to do, Ethan, and that’s the truth.”
He reached for her hand and was so glad when she didn’t cringe away from him. “You don’t have to make a decision now.”
“No, I guess I don’t.”
A great hope filled his chest. Maybe she wouldn’t be so determined to leave now. He started to pull the grapes off the stem and drop them back into the bowl after he finished his sandwich. He offered her the fourth sandwich and she tore it in half to share it with him. Again he was awed by the gesture.
While they finished the sandwich and then the grapes, she asked him about being on the force and his family, and he shared with her because she took an interest, even though he desperately wanted to have her answering his questions. And Eryx deserved to be part of what was going on right now.
“Can we go to the station?” She asked as they walked upstairs.
“Sure, if you want to.”
“I want to apologize to Eryx. I know he was angry and I don’t want him to be festering in that all day.”
He marveled at how well she knew them both already, just on pure instinct. Eryx was most definitely festering. That was an excellent word to describe his current state of mind. If he was angry when he left, he would be a twitchy furious ball of emotion and not have any idea how to let it out without exploding all over her and freaking her out.
He told her he would grab a quick shower and they could head out, and although he told her to leave the dishes, as soon as he walked down the hallway, he heard the water running in the sink. Special. She was one special woman.
He dressed nicer than he would have for a normal run by the station, finding his black casual slacks and a thick white v-neck sweater in the back of the closet. He wasn’t a dress up sort of guy, but he very suddenly cared what he looked like. He’d hated taking a shower. If it hadn’t been for the fact he’d been sweating up a storm before she sat down on his lap, he’d have never wanted to wash off her scent again.
On the way to the station, she watched from the passenger seat of his Jeep Cherokee and seemed to take in everything that passed by. He pointed out the few interesting things about the town, although not much was visible under the snow banks. The old bank that was now a nice restaurant called The Vault, their one grocery store, the gas station, the bar, the bank, and the school.
“How big is your pride?”
“113 I think, now.”
She chewed her lip in thought when he pulled into the visitor parking space in front of the station. All three cruisers were parked, so if Eryx wasn’t inside he was on foot patrol. Considering his mood when he left, that was probably a good bet. “So the boys now, when they’re of age, the females their age and even the older ones, will they let them alone to mate with who they want?”
“Doubtful. The females all keep together like a horrible sorority. If one of the females gets wind that a male is interested in someone besides one of them, no matter the age, she’ll gather the troops, so to speak.”
“It’s not right to keep your own kind from being happy. But I guess all the groups do that to some degree.”
“Do the male wolves mind if a female is interested in a human or another supe?”
“Not really. The only way it might bother a wolf is if he was interested in her. As long as they know that the pack has to come first sometimes then it doesn’t really matter what’s flowing through the veins.”
That was a very good philosophy. But lions were not pack animals, not like wolves. They didn’t have to shift on the full moon, or at any other particular time, and they didn’t have monthly get-togethers. They were just a big family, at least the males and male children.
He took her hand again. “Two of the females work the desk so chances are when we go in there, you’ll see a female and she’ll probably say something. I don’t expect you to fight or anything, I’m not asking you to, but I just wanted you to know that we don’t think any less of you for the person you are. If you want to ignore her, all the females, we’ll keep you safe, I promise.”
Her pretty eyes were calculating as she looked into his eyes. “You’d rather I was stronger, though.” It was a statement and not a question.
“I don’t think the strongest female wolf out there could stand against a lioness when she’s pissed off. And our shift is so much larger than yours, sweetheart, even if you could make them stand down in human form, well,” he pulled her hand to his mouth and kissed it. “We can talk together, later. I just didn’t want you to feel like I was taking you into the lion’s den. So to speak.”
She smiled again and pecked his cheek. He wondered what had changed for her so quickly from this morning. He wouldn’t complain. And he’d wait to ask when the three of them were together.
Gathering her hand in his to make sure she stayed close and didn’t slip on any ice on the sidewalk, he considered the word that would describe their relationship to the world: ménage a trois. Looking down at the top of her head, he wondered if she’d given any thought to that. He had. A lot. Since she’d recovered in the hospital, it had been banging around his head like an errant freight train.
The blast of warm air as he opened the station door for her shocked his subconscious from the wild thoughts. He wanted to ignore Melania behind the counter, and had very much hoped that it wouldn’t be her back there, but his luck was just not that great. In their age group there were seven females and Melania was their leader, of sorts. The most vicious, she’d turn on her own kind for the slightest thing. He couldn’t believe he’d ever given her a thought a
s anything except what she was: heartless and debilitatingly cold.
She stood up slowly, her fingertips spread on the countertop above the u-shaped desk and she looked as if she were not a lion but a snake, ready to strike. The sharp reprimanded growl didn’t come from him, but from his father in the doorway that led to the offices and holding cells.
“Melania, I am certain that I do not need to remind you that you are an employee of the city and you will respect every person that walks through that door. Period.”
Ethan wasn’t sure that would work on her, but it shut her up enough that he could get Callie past her without an actual confrontation. Now he realized that the smarter thing to do would have been to call Eryx and have him come home. He just couldn’t think straight when Callie was with him.
They followed his father back to his office and surprisingly, Eryx was there. He stood quickly, a magazine gripped tightly in his hands, and his eyes went from his own, to Callie’s and then down to where their hands were together.
“I’ll give you guys some privacy.” Their father said quietly and shut the door.
Eryx waited and it was clear from the confusion on his face that he didn’t know what to think or say. Callie dropped his hand and walked over to Eryx, craning her neck to look up at him. She was a damn tiny thing. She looked around a little and then pulled a file box over and stepped on it, which brought her close enough to Eryx that she could look in his face. Cupping his face with both her hands she said, “If you make me list all my faults since we met I’m not going to be thrilled, but I am sorry. I’m sorry I hurt you and I’m sorry I said such mean things, and I’m sorry I kissed you and left you sitting alone in the car because that was just dumb. And I’m really sorry that I said that I’d just have sex with you as if you aren’t special and wonderful. Because I couldn’t just have sex with you, Eryx, either of you.” She looked back at Ethan and held out one hand and he crossed the office fast and grasped it. “It would be a lie.”
Eryx’s voice was steady but he recognized it as the one he used when he was reining in his emotions tightly. “Just like that?”
“Kind of. I realized the mistake I’d made and I, well, we need to talk.” For a long moment Ethan worried that Eryx was too worked up to be what she needed, but it didn’t last.
He dropped the magazine and pulled her close and kissed her, and then in a move that surprised him, his twin turned their mate around on the box so she faced him, and she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him, too. After taking turns kissing her until she complained with a laugh she was dizzy from the turning back and forth, Eryx took them out in the cruiser to do the rounds and then they headed home together. She was excited to be in the cruiser this time around and curious about their jobs in such a small town, teasing them about crime waves involving cow tipping and toilet papering. When he suggested they go to dinner at The Vault, Eryx agreed it was a good idea.
He pulled Eryx aside at home for a private moment and mentioned his worry about how people might react to the three of them. He was not surprised to learn that Eryx had wondered about the same thing. The townspeople, and by that he meant humans, were fairly hear-no-evil, see-no-evil sorts and ignored the fact that one-fourth of the town’s population were mountain lions. But seeing two men in a relationship with one woman wasn’t something that was typical of this area and they didn’t want her to be uncomfortable out in public with them. Unfortunately it was a bridge they would cross when they had to.
Eryx went back to shower and change and Ethan pulled Callie into his lap on the couch, devouring her mouth in a deep kiss. When Eryx joined them, she climbed from his lap and went straight over to him, moving gracefully until she was in his arms, up on her toes, with her mouth pressed to his. Her tiny form was engulfed by his brother's larger size, and he clasped his hands at her back and lifted her off the floor.
He put her down and straightened. “You make me feel like a giant.”
She puffed up her chest and went up on her toes with an indignant look. “Are you calling me short?”
Ethan joined in his laughter as they both declared her an elf for all intents and purposes.
The Vault was one of those restaurants that their father called theme or kitschy. It had been a bank and the bank had closed the branch and some well meaning humans had thought it would be clever. You could eat in the actual vault, but you had to have a reservation; otherwise you could eat in their regular dining room and have typical decent restaurant food like prime rib and pasta. It was all that passed for a restaurant in town except for a small deli that made excellent sandwiches. They ate at The Vault once a year on their father’s birthday. It had been a tradition for as long as he could remember.
The human hostess glanced at the three of them and at how Callie held both of their hands in hers, but although there was a curious look in her eyes, there was no trace of disapproval. And that was a good thing. They were just starting out with her and there was no way he wanted Eryx to punch a human female for giving them a hard time in front of Callie.
They took a seat on either side of her at the square table. A candle glittered in the center of the table covered with a crisp white cloth. The interior of the old bank was filled with columns and marble floors, thick curtains covered the windows and the vaulted ceilings were carved in relief. The waiter, a man they had gone to high school with named Kellan, filled the water goblets. “Hey, guys. Don’t see you in here except on your dad’s birthday. What’s doing?”
“Kellan.” He said stiffly, not missing the appraising look he gave to Callie. Oblivious, she twirled a lock of her hair and chewed her bottom lip, studying the menu in front of her. She was clearly one of those girls that had grown up thinking she didn’t measure up to any of the other girls around her and that men didn’t look at her. And considering what they’d learned about her upbringing in the wolf pack and the rather vicious ways the females behaved with each other, it was no wonder. They’d just have to spend plenty of time making sure she understood just how gorgeous she really was.
She asked for a glass of white wine and both he and Eryx ordered beer, and then he ordered two appetizers for them to share. He’d had to take the initiative, because she and Eryx’s heads were together and they were talking quietly behind their menus while Kellan waited. When they were alone, she leaned over his way and put her hand behind his neck and pulled him close so her lips were just a hairs’ breadth from his ear. “I was just telling Eryx that I think Kellan should keep his eyes to himself and he agreed.”
Little minx. After they ordered their meals, all three of them getting rare prime rib and all the fixings, they shared a plate of stuffed mushrooms and a plate of fried wedges of mozzarella and Colby cheese, and then they tucked into their main meals. During the course of the dinner, Callie was surprisingly open and honest about her life and what had driven her on a mission of her own. How she’d been determined to not stop for any reason because she was afraid she’d want to go back to Allen. It was a great relief when she admitted that she could no longer deny that something was happening between them and she’d been a fool to fight it.
All through the meal, she looked at and touched both of them, not in any glaring way, as if she were trying to prove a point or stake a claim, but just simply as if she couldn’t stop herself from running a finger across the top of a hand, or a gentle squeeze of a knee. He learned two important things about Callie during that dinner. First, she had a fantastic laugh matched only by her smile. And second, she had a tough outer shell no matter what she believed of herself. When pressed, she showed herself to have courage in spite of very serious odds at different times in her life, and even the act of striking out on her own, while she thought it cowardly, was something that he’d never have the nerve to do on his own. Sure, with Eryx, with his family, he’d take off for greener pastures in a heartbeat. But by himself? He marveled at her courage.
After dessert and coffee, they headed home, and it was a scene he wanted to replay eve
ry night for the rest of his life.
“There’s a wedding on Saturday evening,” Ethan said when they’d hung up their coats in the hall closet at home. “It’s for Jane and Thad, she is one of the humans that works desk at the station and he drives a truck for the city. We’d like to go, if you’d like to come with us.”
“Like a date?” She cocked her head to the side.
They both nodded.
“With both of you?”
They nodded again.
“Do you, I mean, these are people that you’ve known your whole lives. You won’t be embarrassed to be seen with me, together?” His heart melted a ton. She was worried they were ashamed of her. Silly female.
“Never.” He swore. “It isn’t anyone’s business what our life is like together, Callie.”
“Right. And if they’re idiotic enough to question two possessive mountain lions about their mate, then they get what they deserve.” Eryx grinned, but underneath the smile was a sincere threat.
She narrowed her rich, hazel eyes at them appraisingly. “I haven’t decided if we’re mates yet.”
Liar. Still, he liked her spunk. Loved it. “No rush, sweetheart. We’ll be here.”
“I don’t have anything nice enough to wear to a wedding.”
“We’ll go shopping, Friday night, maybe catch a movie.” He suggested.
She smiled, biting her lip again, a habit that was going to make his cock insane, and then said she’d love to join them, and kissed them both goodnight. Although a large part of him wanted to make love to her tonight, he knew the right thing was to wait. They were getting to know each other. To care for each other on an emotional level that was extremely new and unusual for the two of them, and she was trying to reconcile her need to spread her wings with her desire to stay with them. Waiting was a good thing.
**Eryx**
Life is funny sometimes. You go your whole life expecting things to be one way and suddenly, you’re on a different path and you can’t even believe your own luck. That’s how he felt with Callie. He’d expected the life of the single father, raising his children alongside his brothers’ and being the all encompassing dual parent. Now, it felt like he could have anything he wanted because of the sweetheart asleep in the master bedroom.