by Ophelia Bell
“Do you think they ran into trouble?” Stuart asked.
“Even if they did, I think they can handle themselves against the Bane brothers,” I said. “We know Chaos has a soft spot for Deva, the same as Fate. Not that they could hurt her. I hate not knowing, but we have a responsibility to make sure April’s protected.”
“I agree, but I also think we need to be a little more proactive than we’ve been. I’ll be the first to admit I’ve been distracted, but three weeks is too long.”
“I’ll make a call to Kol Magnus in Los Angeles. He’s the one who got the messages to you guys for me. I’ll ask him to check into it.”
“Let me handle that tomorrow,” Stuart said. “It’s time we started teaching April how to throw some spells, and you two are better teachers.”
“Good. Hopefully that’s enough.” Tate looked over his shoulder to the freshly made bed where April was now sprawled, naked and beautiful, our marks still glowing in the center of her chest. “Because I don’t want to leave her for anything if I can help it.”
“If the brothers find us, we have the power to fight now. We’ll be fine.” I clapped him on the shoulder.
He’d turned and was avidly watching as April tangled with the other three. The bed was covered in a knot of limbs, with her at the core, her sensual moans heating my blood. A low growl emanated from deep within Tate’s chest.
“Enough talking,” he said, then climbed onto the bed. With his arrival, the bodies parted, making way for him to reach April.
Stuart and I looked on, admiring his huge, muscular body as he grabbed April by the hips, flipped her over, and plunged his cock into her so smoothly I’d have thought he’d done it dozens of times before. But I knew better. They’d probably never admit it to April, but she was the only female the three ursa had ever fucked.
The next morning dawned with clear skies and bright sunlight streaming through the skylight over the bed. It landed on April’s sleeping face, gilding her and making her tangled blonde curls glow. She was sandwiched between Chayton and me, but the others were off somewhere. Breakfast scents wafted up from downstairs, and the sounds of a power saw rang through the morning. When I caught Chayton staring down at her in adoration, he grinned and shrugged.
“Take a picture, it’ll last longer,” came the sleepy commentary from the subject of our attention. April opened one eye, spearing me with an irritated look.
“You’re beautiful. We can’t be held responsible for being so enthralled we can’t look away.”
“You guys are crazy. This”—she sat up and dug her fingers into her wild curls that sprung out like a lion’s mane around her head—“is not beautiful. It’s, I hate to say it, chaos.”
I snorted, and Chayton slung his arm around her waist, pulling her back down against him. He buried his face into her hair, inhaling deeply. A growl rumbled from within him, and April instantly melted, a contented smile spreading across her face. The marks between her breasts shimmered like a spider’s web coated in dew. She reached for me, and I went, kissing her tenderly as she slung a leg over my thigh and tilted her pelvis against my erection.
“It’s not chaos,” I assured her when the kiss ended. “It’s too beautiful.”
“I don’t know… I think chaos in the abstract is kind of beautiful. But then, I’ve never met the real Chaos. Also, even though he was fucking terrifying, objectively speaking, Vesh was pretty damn hot.”
I sighed. “Okay, fine. You’re right, but that only proves my point. You’re the most beautiful creature on earth, and your hair only enhances your beauty.”
“I guess a little chaos is a good thing, huh?” She reached up and tousled my hair, then turned her head to look at Chayton. “He knows.” She grinned and curled her fingers into Chayton’s unruly black mop, pulling him down into a kiss. He hummed against her mouth, sliding his hand up to palm her full breast. His hips tilted against her backside, and she pushed back against him.
I was tempted to watch the two of them fuck. I’d had her first, after all, so the others had some catching up to do. So instead of thinking with my dick, I thought I’d simply help out a little. I dropped my mouth to the breast Chayton held in one hand and grabbed the nipple between my teeth, applying just a little pressure before sucking it between my lips. She moaned, rocking back against Chayton again.
I released her breast and pulled back, pleased by the smile on her face. I hadn’t seen her look so utterly happy since we’d met.
Chayton nuzzled and nipped at her neck, resuming his teasing of her breasts. I couldn’t just observe, even though I was going to let him have her. Her aura was growing brighter by the second, but I knew how brilliant it could get and craved a taste of her Nirvana enough to push her closer to the brink and keep her there as long as possible. I grazed my fingertips over her mound and through her golden curls, parting her folds gently. She was slippery wet already, her clit a stiff, dark pink bud poking out from beneath its hood. I licked my lips but restrained myself, sliding my fingers up and down her slit instead.
“Are you sore?”
She was panting from the attention and shook her head. “A little tender, but the good kind. Even if I hurt, I’d still want you all just the way I had you last night.”
I closed my eyes and groaned, remembering how utterly perfect and tight she’d been when I’d plunged my cock into her. Fucking while fully shifted always felt better for some reason, but I’d never turn her down if my human shape was what she wanted. The touch of her fingers against my cheek made me open my eyes, and she pulled me down to her until our lips met. I kept stroking her pussy, enjoying how much wetter she got. She rocked her hips into my hand, then back, twisting slightly on the retreat. The sound of Chayton’s breathing told me he was still humping her ass, but she seemed to like it.
“Do you need to be fucked now, tesoro?” I said, my lips brushing against hers.
“Please,” she begged.
I pushed two fingers into her, her sharp exhalation hot against my cheek, then pulled them out. Sliding my hand farther between her legs, I pushed between her ass and Chayton’s hard cock to find her puckered rear opening, then rubbed her juices around the sensitive skin.
April gasped, rocking back into my fingers.
Turning my head, I looked down at her flushed face, smiling while I kept toying with her sensitive anus. “Do you need two cocks inside you?”
She only moaned and behind her, Chayton chuckled. “I think that’s a yes.”
“Roll over,” I whispered.
She gave me one last hungry look before following my command. Chayton shot me a scowl, and I grinned back when April faced him with her round, plump ass pressed against my cock. Sweet Mother, just being this close to her was heaven, and I indulged for a few seconds just having her in my arms and touching her. Chayton dipped his head to kiss her, and while he had her mouth occupied, I slid down her body, kissing and licking my way down her spine.
When I reached her ass, I hooked a hand beneath her knee, lifting her leg and urging her to hook it over Chayton’s hips. Then I took advantage of her exposure, extending my tongue and licking her from clit to ass. She was soaking wet and still tasted of all six of us, a delicious cocktail of essences, but that fluid alone wasn’t going to be enough to ready her. My saliva would do the job though, with its lubricating properties, so I spread her cheeks and tongued her hole thoroughly, leaving her coated in a generous amount of lubricating dragon spit and plunging inside several times to urge her to relax.
While I readied her, Chayton started teasing her with his hand, his fingers brushing mine where I gripped her inner thigh. She moaned and squirmed between us, but her aura swelled and brightened. When I decided she was as ready as she was going to get, I moved back up, reaching around her to cup one breast and tweak her nipple as I whispered in her ear. “Ready, tesoro?”
She made an incoherent noise of assent against Chayton’s mouth, sliding her leg higher up his side. I pressed my tip at her slick opening while at the sa
me time exhaling a lungful of white smoke. The smoke curled around April’s head then flowed into her nostrils with her next breath. The slightly narcotic effects were instantaneous, and she went boneless against me. I pushed in a little, and when she only let out a soft moan, I pushed deeper, gripping her hip with one hand and moving as slowly as possible.
“You’re so tight. Sweet Mother, this is good,” I panted.
Once I was seated fully in her ass, I glanced at Chayton and nodded. He wasted no time, reaching down and pressing his tip to her soaked pussy. He shoved in hard with no warning, and April cried out in surprise.
“Fuck, sorry,” Chayton said, grimacing. But his expression turned to pure shock, then pleasure when April clenched and released her muscles around us. She looked into his eyes as she did it again, hard enough to steal the breath from my lungs.
“Gaia fucking save me, you feel amazing,” Chayton said as he began to move inside her. Once he got going, I gently pulled out and pushed back in, only increasing my pace when April reached above her to grab the headboard with one hand.
“Fuck me harder,” she breathed, and we both obeyed. All my attention was fixed on the sensation of her tight ass gripping my cock. I shoved in deep with punishing thrusts while Chayton did the same, his cock pressing against mine through the thin membrane of muscle inside her. He fixed his gaze on me over her shoulder for a few beats, and there was no mistaking his absolute rapture over finding her, and over being chosen, something neither of the ursa had ever expected would happen to them alone, much less to all six of us together.
But here she was, more than happy to be with all of us, not to mention entertain our desires with such open enthusiasm.
I slipped a hand around her hip and dipped my fingers down to find her clit.
“Come with us, tesoro,” I murmured against her ear.
“I’m there,” she breathed. “Oh god, yes!”
Her muscles quivered and began to spasm around us. Chayton gasped, and his eyes flew wide, then he let out a loud groan. I flew over with them, slamming into her ass one last time and holding her tight. I dropped my head to her shoulder and moaned as my orgasm rocked through me, and the Nirvana of two people I loved flooded into me.
I gently slipped out of her, but we were still breathing heavy when I heard a throat clear. I ignored it, too spent and content where I was to care about anything else in the world but the press of April’s warm body against me.
Again, the clearing throat, more impatient than before. Then Tate’s sardonic voice. “Sorry to interrupt this precious moment, but we have a visitor.”
28
April
Dread rippled through me at Tate’s announcement but faded when his expression only looked a little cautious and somewhat stiff, as if he didn’t know how to act.
“Who is it?”
“He says his name is Andrew Vincent. He had a key.”
I shot up, scrambling off the bed. “Are you sure? Dad’s here?”
“Yep,” Tate said. “And from the sound of things, it’s pretty urgent. You should come now.”
“Not a fucking chance. Look at me!” I dipped my head to sniff my armpit and wrinkled my nose. “Or more accurately, smell me. I smell like…all of you put together with a layer of B.O. on top. I’m taking a quick shower. Tell him I’ll be down in ten minutes.”
Tate looked like a deer caught in headlights.
“I’ll tell him,” Gray said, slipping into a pair of jeans. He was halfway to the door when I grabbed his elbow and hauled him back.
“Oh, no, you don’t. You’re showering too. Neither of you are meeting my dad without washing me off you. Go use one of the other bathrooms so we can make this fast.” I leaned in and gave Tate a blatant sniff, but all I smelled was fresh-cut wood and burly man, not a trace of me to be found. The scent made me want to haul him into bed for another round, but there wasn’t time for it now.
My dad was here. Here. Why now, I couldn’t begin to guess. I didn’t know where he’d gone. It must mean he had good news, didn’t it? Man, I fucking hoped so.
I trotted into the bathroom and turned the hot water knob in the shower to full blast and stepped in before it heated up, not wanting to waste time. The water was just barely getting warm by the time I was ready to rinse off.
I towel dried my hair and left it hanging loose to air dry. Dad had seen me in worse states, but I’d be damned if I met him with the scent of six men’s essences still clinging to me. God, what the hell must he have thought being greeted by a stranger in a house that used to be his?
At the top of the stairwell, I paused, picking up the deep timbre of a chorus of muted voices from down below. Gray and Chayton were already there. The mood sounded mostly somber, with smatterings of subdued laughter. I smiled, realizing I could easily pick out each of my lovers’—mates’—voices, as well as my dad’s. My stomach fluttered at the idea of them meeting like this, without any warning in advance. At least none of their voices seemed hostile. They all sounded polite, if not openly friendly, though there was a sense of tension to everyone’s tones.
Anxious, I descended the rest of the way, struggling to be stealthy and cursing myself for putting on my boots before heading down. I rounded the corner, pausing when I faced the archway leading into the library. The guys were all there, Tate and Stuart seated on the sofas, the others standing or leaning in other spots, effectively surrounding our new guest who sat in one of the armchairs facing the windows. I slowly padded toward them.
“Dad?” I addressed the back of a curly blond head that turned the second the word left my lips, then he was up and striding toward me.
“April. Thank God you’re okay.”
He pulled me into his arms and squeezed so tight he stole my breath. I stared over his shoulder at my six mates, seeing them with fresh eyes. My heart thudded hard at the collection of concerned expressions, all of which were focused on my welfare.
“I’m fine, all right?” I whispered in Dad’s ear. “You can let me go.”
“I’m so damn sorry I led them to you. I didn’t know he’d stop chasing me and come after you.”
I pushed away and looked up at him. “You couldn’t have known, Dad. It’s okay.”
“All I know is that Chase bastard—the owner of Pandemonium—is one persistent bastard. When I left you, I thought they’d keep following me. When they didn’t, I knew I’d messed up, that they’d gone after you instead. I’m so sorry, honey. But I had to come because we’re running out of time. They’re still coming after you.”
“I know. You were right to send me here, but where the hell have you been all this time?” I asked, urging him to sit again. I parked myself on the big leather hassock in the center of the room facing him. I was acutely aware of my mates’ patient yet cautious presence and the fact that I’d have to explain them to my father soon. I guessed they hadn’t chosen to do it for me.
“Did you?” I projected to my three dragon mates.
“No. But he didn’t ask, which I find interesting,” Stuart replied.
“Actually, I’ve been here too. In a sense, anyway.” He propped his elbows on his knees, leaning closer to me, then cleared his throat, his cheeks turning pink as he dropped his gaze to his feet. Lifting his eyes again, he said, “There’s someone who I think you need to meet.”
He kept his gaze fixed on me, not even turning when I caught movement from the direction of the archway into the library. I lifted my gaze, and a figure appeared in the shadows, a wiry woman in black jeans and a black leather jacket, her dark hair bound in a long braid. She had a wary look, her brown eyes darting around at all the others. Behind me, someone started to growl.
I stood without thinking, the motherless little girl in me rejoicing as I let free a word I’d barely used in the last two and a half decades. “Mama?” My instincts warred inside me. I wanted to run to her yet didn’t quite trust her sudden appearance after so long away.
“Hi, honey. I guess you probably want an explan
ation.”
My mind stumbled clumsily over all these new details. Had I just heard Dad correctly? “You’ve been here all this time, haven’t you? But how …?” I turned to Dad, who had risen and come to us. “Were you with her? Did you know where she was all along?”
He twisted the ring on his finger with the same nervous habit as always, yet this time it caught my eye. The stone set in it had turned a pale milky white instead of the brilliant jade green it had once been. “I hated not being able to tell you. I’m so sorry, April.”
Mom took a step closer to Dad and reached out to take his hand. “To answer your question, yes, at least I’ve been here for the last few years anyway. Ever since the monster I was bound to was killed and I was free to come home. But I couldn’t really stay here without risking running into you when you finally came home too. So I created a temporal bubble to live in until I was sure my presence here wasn’t going to interfere with your life. I gave Drew a key to come and go, but it had a limited number of uses.”
Dad lifted his hand, holding up the finger with the ring on it. “It was my last chance so I had to be sure it was worth it.”
“All those so-called girlfriends you stayed with?” I asked, darting a look between him and my mother.
“There was never anyone but her, April. Even before she deeded the place to you, we would meet here whenever it was safe. The temporal bubble was only a recent thing though.”
“You’re the reason my pieces are all everywhere here, aren’t you? And the studio?”
Dad nodded and smiled, giving Mom a tender look. “We renovated it together.”
“You’re the caretakers, aren’t you? And you’ve been here? In this house? How have you stayed hidden the last few weeks? This temporal bubble thing... I hope that doesn’t mean you were spying on us.”
Mom’s eyebrows rose and she directed a wry smile at the six men behind me. “Ah, no. I didn’t create the bubble until Drew showed up and informed me he was being chased. Since then, we’ve existed about a month in the past. Near enough to the present that we could help without giving away our presence. But we were getting too close to the moment you arrived that we’d be in danger of being noticed.”