by Leah Brooke
Rocking his hips to thrust into her, Alastair’s breathing became even harsher, his strokes coming faster and more desperate. “Of course she trusts us. That’s it, Serena. Clamp down on me. You know we wouldn’t hurt you. Don’t you? Yes. You know we belong together. Don’t try to close us out.”
With Ian plastered against her back and Alastair hot and hard under her, Serena felt surrounded like never before.
She felt every breath they took, every groan.
She reveled in the intense way they took her, the stark dominance and hunger in their lovemaking tempered with a gentleness and watchfulness in their eyes making her feel special and very desired.
Their need for her came through clearly in their tension-filled voices, in the hands that didn’t seem quite steady now.
They began to stroke faster, slow, smooth strokes that made it hard to catch her breath, and took her closer and closer to the edge.
“Stay out of my head. Oh, God.” She dug her fingers into Alastair’s shoulders, lifting her head to stare down at her bruised and battered warrior. “I can’t believe you’re both inside me.” The tingling wouldn’t stop, growing stronger and stronger with each stroke. She couldn’t stop clenching on Ian’s cock, the unfamiliar sensation of being unable to close her puckered opening increasing her sense of vulnerability.
Shivers of delight and overwhelming sensation raced up and down her spine.
She’d never felt so taken, so totally lost in the demands of her body, demands Ian and Alastair seemed to anticipate before she did.
Her body tensed, the swell of pleasure so strong, she actually screamed.
“Oh! No. No. No. Oh, God!” Stiffening, she clamped down on both cocks inside her, her alarm growing when both men surged deep and groaned, their hands tightening on her.
Her orgasm swelled and slammed into her, the force of it leaving her breathless.
Every inch of her body tingled in waves of pleasure as it went on and on. After several minutes of bliss, the swells faded, leaving her breathless and shaking, every inch of her body so sensitized, she jolted at their every movement.
She opened her eyes, not even realizing when she’d closed them, and looked down to find Alastair watching her.
Gathering her close, he rubbed a hand down her arm using the hand he threaded in her hair to hold her against his chest. “Don’t try to tell me you don’t feel anything after that.”
Too worn out to even lift her head, Serena let her eyes close. “I can’t be what you need. You want me now, but it won’t last. There are too many things between us.”
Ian withdrew, easing his cock from her bottom and past the tight ring of muscle, running soothing hands up and down her back when she jolted.
“Issues that we can resolve. It’s not going to be easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is.” Bending over her, he ran his lips over her back. “I don’t like having you in my head, but I was glad as hell to be able to hear you when you needed us. We’re just going to have to find a way to deal with it.” He straightened, patting her bottom before moving away. “I’ll start the shower.”
Rolling to the side, Alastair put her slightly away from him, tilting her face to his. Running his fingers over her jaw in a delicate caress intensified the emotional connection she tried to fight.
“She’s trying to maintain as much distance between us as she can.”
Ian turned at the waist and grinned, but his eyes held a warning that made her stomach flutter. “I know. I also know she thinks she’s going to get away with it.”
Alastair bent to kiss a nipple, sending too-sharp pleasure through her worn-out body. Lifting his head, he spoke to Ian, but his eyes never left hers.
“She’s not.”
Sliding his hands under her, he nuzzled her neck as he lifted her high against his chest and stood.
Holding her gaze with his golden one, he carried her into the bathroom where the shower ran and steam had already begun to form. “Stay, Serena. I know you think fate brought you here—”
“It did.”
Alastair set her on her feet in the shower, and into Ian’s waiting arms. “If you believe so strongly in fate, then why can’t you stay?”
Reaching up, Serena cupped his jaw, smoothing her thumb over the cut on his lip.
“Because I’ve also seen a vision of me being back at home. Alone.”
Ian turned her in his arms, gathering her against him, his eyes fierce.
“We make our own fate, Serena.”
Serena forced a smile, blinking back tears. “Because of my visions, I knew I would meet you, knew I could trust you. I knew we would be lovers.”
She wrapped her legs around him as he lifted her against him, blinking against the spray of the shower. Running her fingers through his wet hair, Serena bent to touch her lips to his.
“It’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”
Ian eyes gentled. “I’m getting used to having you around.”
Alastair stepped into the shower behind her, touching his lips to her shoulder. “We both are. Now let’s get you showered and to bed. Damn it, Ian, you got her bandage wet.”
Ian set her on her feet again, stripping the wet bandage from her. “I’ll bandage her up again. Then we’ll get her back to bed. She’s exhausted.”
Serena smiled and dropped her head to his chest, moaning at the feel of Alastair’s hands moving over her as he washed every inch of her.
As Alastair dried her, she swayed, finding it more and more difficult to keep her eyes open.
Only the throbbing in her arm kept her awake, a throbbing that grew stronger by the minute.
Kneeling in front of her, Alastair frowned at her scraped knee before lifting his head. “I can feel your arm throbbing. As soon as I get you tucked in, I’ll get you one of those pain pills.”
“I’m not used to being taken care of.”
Alastair straightened to his full height, forcing her to tilt her head way back to look at him. “We’ll get you used to it. I like taking care of you.” He grinned, a flash of white. “Even Ian does, something I never thought possible. If you’re not careful, he’s going to spoil you rotten.”
“And you won’t?” Tossing aside the towel he’d wrapped around his waist, Ian led her to the bed. “Come on. You’re dead on your feet. Tomorrow, after Jonathan and Steve have finished flirting with you, the three of us will talk some more.”
Serena nodded, accepting the pain pill from Alastair while Ian began to bandage her arm.
She could barely keep her eyes open, but couldn’t tear her gaze away from her lovers’ faces.
Ian glanced at her frequently while tending to her, as though nervous about hurting her.
“Are you okay, babe?”
Serena nodded, the lump in her throat making it difficult to speak. “I’m fine.”
It came out choked and weak, causing both men to whip their heads up, their identical looks of concern causing a chink in the armor around her heart, a large one, an irreparable one.
Their faces blurred again, and she thought it was from tears, until she once again saw the image of her standing on the beach alone, her eyes filled with tears.
“Serena?”
Alastair’s face filled her vision, his eyes sharp and full of concern and tenderness. “Darling? What’s wrong?”
Forcing a smile, she reached out a hand to each of them, another chunk of armor falling away when both Ian and Alastair immediately reached for her.
“Just tired.”
Ian finished bandaging her arm, his eyes narrowed. “That pain pill’s kicking in. Go to sleep, babe. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
The throbbing had diminished and it got harder and harder to keep her eyes open. With Ian snuggled against her back and her head on Alastair’s shoulder, she felt safe, warm, and right where she belonged.
Even knowing that it would eventually end, she couldn’t walk away now.
The damage was done. She already loved them.
She
didn’t know how much time they’d have together, but walking away was no longer an option.
Lying in her lovers’ arms, Serena drifted toward sleep, hoping that sleeping with Ian and Alastair would keep her dreams away.
She didn’t want any dreams tonight, especially since she had a strong premonition that something was about to go terribly wrong.
Chapter Twelve
Serena woke with a start, and to a sense of dread.
Ian stirred beside her, running his hand over her hip. “What’s wrong, babe?”
She clung to the warm feeling as his deep voice, husky with sleep, washed over her. “Nothing.”
Alastair touched his lips to her hair. “A dream?”
Sitting up, Serena pushed the covers aside to climb over him. “No. I don’t know. Something.”
Alastair’s hands settled on her hips, keeping her straddled over him. “What is it?”
Frustrated that she couldn’t see what she wanted to see, and suspicious that their presence had something to do with it, she pushed at him. “I don’t know. I need to be alone.”
Ian sat up, making the bed dip. “No. Something’s wrong. Come back to bed. It’s cold without you in it.”
Whatever had woken her continued to pull at her. She had to have some privacy.
Blinking at the sudden light coming from the lamp next to Ian, Serena pushed against Alastair again.
“Look, I’m sorry. Something woke me up. I didn’t mean to wake you up, but I won’t be able to go to sleep again until I find out what woke me. I don’t know if you’re blocking something, even unintentionally, or if I just need to be alone to figure it out.”
When they both continued to stare at her, she gritted her teeth and pushed the rest of the way off of Alastair. She grabbed a robe from a nearby chair and bundled herself into it.
“You say you want to help me with my abilities. Well, they’ve changed since I got here. I don’t know if it’s because of you or not.”
Frantic now, and not understanding why, she went to the foot of the bed and began pacing.
She glanced up, and sighed, knowing they’d never let her go until she explained. “It’s like I get some kind of…I don’t know…energy around you.”
Scraping a hand through her hair, she paused, aware of their sharpened interest. “Hell, maybe it’s just chemistry. I swear, I just don’t know. I do know that I can focus on people’s thoughts and I never could before. Maybe it’s because of you, and maybe it’s just because I’m around people now and I’m trying to do more than just block them out.”
With a glance at Ian, Alastair sat forward. “You can hear our thoughts at times, and speak to us in—”
“I know, damn it!”
Whirling away from their looks of frustration and concern, Serena began pacing again. “I’m not trying to, and I sure as hell can’t control it. I need time to figure things out, and if I’m going to stay here for a while, time to see whatever I’m supposed to see.”
Pausing again, she looked from one to the other, wishing she could just crawl back into the bed between them.
“I need time alone. If you’re not willing to give me time alone when I need it, I have to leave. Please understand.”
She met Ian’s gaze squarely. “I’ve been alone a long time. I’ve barely had a minute alone since I met you. I need it.”
Flicking her gaze to the right, she met Alastair’s. “If you care about me at all, you’ll give it to me when I need it. If not, I’ll go back home and take it.”
Ian’s eyes narrowed. “That sounds suspiciously like an ultimatum.”
Her stomach clenched at his tone, a cold knot forming at the chill in their eyes.
Straightening, she lifted her chin, fisting her hands at her sides. “It is.”
The tense silence that followed made her stomach clench harder.
She looked from one to the other as the tension mounted, blinking at the almost simultaneous change in their expressions.
With amusement and a hint of challenge in his eyes, Ian lifted a brow. “I don’t like ultimatums.”
He cocked his head, a faint smile playing at his lips. “There are usually consequences for things like that.”
Alastair slid from the bed and came toward her, apparently unconcerned by his nakedness.
“Is this the kind of thing you’re planning to do often?”
Relieved at his playful tone, but not quite trusting it, Serena glanced at Ian, only to see the same look of playful indulgence in his.
Shrugging, she tried unsuccessfully to hold back a smile.
“I don’t know. Why? Would that be a problem?”
With a finger under her chin, he held her gaze. “It depends on how often, and what those ultimatums entail. Since Ian and I will probably be issuing ultimatums of our own, it’s only fair to give in to some of yours, especially when it’s something like this.”
He gripped her arm when she would have turned away. “But, I want you to promise not to try to handle everything on your own. If something makes you uncomfortable, nervous, scared—whatever—you have to promise to tell us. Agreed?”
Touched at his concern, and relieved that they hadn’t gotten offended or angry, Serena nodded, anxious to figure out what pulled at her even now.
“Agreed.” Turning away from temptation, Serena left the room. She started down the hall and to the marble stairs, wincing at the cold against her bare feet.
She’d forgotten her socks again but didn’t want to take the time to go back to get them. A sense of urgency gripped her now, one that had her hurrying down the stairs and toward the front of the house.
She stopped abruptly as an image of her cousin flashed through her mind. A sense of dread accompanied it, like the one that woke her up, but stronger.
Her knees turned to rubber as another image appeared.
She saw Elise again, only this time her cousin’s face was bloodied and bruised.
When an image of Carello appeared, she started shaking.
The hostility in his eyes chilled her to the bone, the pleasure he got from hurting her cousin chilling her even more.
With a start, she snapped her head up.
Elise was at the gate.
She didn’t stop to think. She had to get to her cousin and warn her.
Racing to the door, Serena hurried to unlock it, her movements jerky, but she finally managed it, remembering at the last second to deactivate the alarm. Flinging the door open, she raced outside.
She shouldn’t have been surprised that King and Rip waited at the bottom of the steps, jumping around excitedly.
She ran across the lawn toward the front gate where Zeus crouched, the low, menacing growl coming from him sending a chill up her spine.
“Zeus. Quiet.” Serena rushed to the gate with King and Rip on either side of her.
Aware that the dogs wanted to protect her, Serena rushed to the gate, thankful that they’d quieted enough for her to speak to her cousin.
Elise stood several feet from the gate, eyeing the dogs fearfully. She looked pale and shaken, the glaring light from above them making her features appear even harsher, and emphasizing her split lip and what appeared to be the beginning of a black eye.
“Elise!” Serena rushed to the box for the code, her fingers flying over the numbers she hadn’t even realized she’d known.
As soon as the gate opened, Elise started toward her. “Serena! You’ve got to help me. Tony’s lawyer’s arranging bail right now. I have to disappear. He’s so mad.”
Elise’s face crumbled, her features contorted in fear. He knows I told the police about Nicky. He said he’s gonna kill me, too. He’s so mad. What am I going to do? I don’t even have any money. I don’t know where to go. I don’t even have any friends.”
Serena gasped when her cousin threw herself against her, the terror and misery pouring from her, washing over in her in smothering waves.
Serena glanced at the car, still running, several feet away, her hear
t in her throat when she saw the empty passenger seat. “Elise, calm down. Where’s your mother?”
“She took off. Left me. Left after writing me a note saying I’d made a mistake, and she sure as hell wasn’t going to stick around and pay for it. I’m all alone, Serena. I didn’t know where else to go. You have to help me.”
Serena blinked back tears, struggling to think. She’d never been hugged by her cousin before, and almost buckled at the emotion that welled inside her.
“Don’t worry. We’ll figure this out. Wyn will help and—”
“No!” Elise jerked away from her, her viselike grip on Serena’s upper arms forcing a cry from her.
If possible, Elise looked more frightened than ever. “No. Please don’t tell Wyn.”
Not wanting to upset her cousin even more, Serena made a conscious effort to cloak her mind from Ian and Alastair, unsure if the mental blanket she used to keep Ian and Alastair out was working or not.
“It looks like your husband used you as a punching bag. Elise, you have to come in and let me clean you up.”
Elise glanced toward the house, and then at the dogs, who stood growling. “No. Please. Just come with me and help me escape. I don’t know how to be alone.”
Thankful that the dogs didn’t attack, Serena jumped when Zeus emitted a low, deadly growl.
Anthony Carello stepped out of the shadows, the gun in his hand gleaming under the lights.
“Did either one of you really think you could get away from me?”
Elise jumped and cried out, and began sobbing. “Tony! No. I was just scared. I was just going to—”
“Shut up. I don’t want to hear any more of your fucking lies.”
Serena couldn’t stop shaking, and watched in horror and disbelief when Anthony Carello pulled the trigger.
It didn’t make the loud sound she’d expected—more like a puff of air.
She watched, frozen in horror and disbelief as Elise crumbled to the ground.
Shaking her head, Serena found herself too numb to speak.
No! No! No!
Her mind screamed the word over and over as she stared down into her cousin’s lifeless eyes.
Dimly aware of the vicious growls of the dogs attacking, Serena fell to her knees beside her cousin.