Talia's Match [Coalition Mates 2] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Sarah Marsh

  “For a shifter planet, it is actually quite civilised and progressive. My family leads the largest clan of dragons on the continent, has for centuries. I am blessed to have four older siblings so that I was free to leave and find a different life for myself. Our cities are built into the mountains, and much of the natural landscape is preserved, so we do not have the same open metropolis feel that the cities here do. Shifters naturally crave a more rural environment,” he said in a casual tone as he looked up to see her reaction.

  “A shifter planet, what does that mean?” Talia asked carefully. She had also heard him mention dragons, but she didn’t want to question it if his family was part of a mafia or gang. He may be touchy about it.

  She had the attention of both men fully now. It seemed as though this was an important thing to discuss and they looked as though they were waiting for her to judge them, and not in a good way, which could only mean it probably was a big deal, so she tried to steel herself to not react the way they expected her to.

  “I am a dragon shifter, Talia. I realise you do not have any shifters on Earth, but there are many different kinds of shifter races on many planets. Dali is only one of them,” Grae said in a surprisingly gentle tone, almost as if she were a child.

  Talia didn’t quite know what to say. Did she believe that this beautiful man could shift into a mythical beast? Not really. She was a cop, after all. But then again, here she was on a strange planet sitting with two men who had purchased her from a purple alien slave trader. Time to reevaluate reality, she supposed, and best to do it diplomatically enough that she didn’t offend her patrons, as they had been a good deal nicer to her than she was told to expect by everyone she’d come into contact with since she’d been abducted.

  “I don’t really know what to say, Grae. I’ve always thought dragons were a myth, so I’m having a bit of a hard time reconciling that the man before me could change into one,” she said quietly and carefully.

  “I understand,” Grae responded almost absently as he poked at the fire with a small piece of wood. When he dropped it, his hand automatically reached into the flame.

  “Grae!” Talia reached for his arm to pull it back just as she saw him reach into the fire for the fallen stick, thinking he must be crazy. Then, just as his skin touched the flames, the most peculiar thing happened. Starting at the tips of his fingers, iridescent black and green scales flow up his hand halfway up his forearm.

  Grae looked up at Talia as he placed his hand in the fire to see what her reaction would be to his partial shift. He was expecting fear and perhaps a bit of disgust. After all, there were no shifters on her planet. Would she think he was an animal or some kind of freak? What he wasn’t expecting was the look of surprise, and then the wonder on her face as she slowly touched his wrist and trailed her finger up to where the scales ended and his skin continued. He shivered at her touch as she then ran it back down, and he removed his hand from the flames.

  “That’s incredible. They feel so warm. Is this what you meant when you said you were a shifter?” Talia asked quietly.

  Grae and Ash were so relieved at how well she was taking the transition. They had thought previously that Grae’s nature would be the most difficult hurdle to Talia accepting them in a relationship. It was apparent when both men visibly relaxed that they had renewed hope in pursuing this woman into their lives permanently.

  “Yes, and no,” Grae started as he took her hand and twined his fingers with hers. “I can partially shift various parts of my body, or I can fully shift into my dragon form.”

  “Can I see?” she asked excitedly.

  Ash and Grae both laughed at her enthusiasm. They were stunned that she was taking this all so well.

  “Of course. Was there any body part in particular you were interested in seeing shifted?” Grae asked with a waggle of his eyebrows and a flirty smile that made her blush and laugh out loud.

  “Didn’t you wonder why our balcony was so large compared to yours? When Grae and I were first courting, he rarely used the doors,” Ash responded with a wink and mischievous smile.

  “Are you sure you want to see, Talia? I don’t want to frighten you,” Grae said, his mood suddenly full of caution and, if she wasn’t mistaken, just a little bit of fear.

  “I’ve always loved stories about dragons when I was growing up. How can I pass up the chance to meet one in person? Plus, I’ll know it’s you, Grae,” she said, squeezing his hand to tell him that she was certain.

  Chapter Eleven

  Grae stood and moved onto the balcony, removing his shirt as he walked. He turned around to face Talia and Ash as he began to undo the laces on his pants, keeping eye contact with Talia as he stripped.

  Talia could feel her face turning red again as she watched Grae remove his clothes. She thought momentarily that she should avert her gaze to give him privacy, but for the life of her, she couldn’t seem to look away from his stare. He was truly one of the most beautiful beings she had ever seen. He was sculpted muscle and golden skin, and in the firelight she could almost see the ripple of his scales move under his skin.

  She could see his breathing get rapid as he let his pants fall to the floor, and even though she never meant them to, her eyes followed the leather down and took in the rest of him in all his bare glory. Her own heartbeat sped as she took him in, and his cock growing larger before her eyes seemed to hypnotise her. It had been such a long time since she’d had a lover, she could barely restrain herself from going to him to see if his skin felt as smooth as it looked.

  Ash was so enthralled with the desire he could see on Talia’s face as she watched Grae disrobe. Between the sheer glory of the two of them, he was rapidly losing control. Just as Talia licked her lips while staring at his lover’s beautifully hard cock, he knew they could have her now if they moved to her. But would taking her in a haze of lust ensure that she would agree to bind with them permanently?

  Sarah had mentioned that human females did not follow their hormones in regards to mating. Unlike Grae’s species, they chose a mate on several qualifications, such as common interests and backgrounds. He was warned that Talia accepting them into her bed was not a guarantee of a similar acceptance of a relationship, so with that caution hanging over them, he knew they should wait until they were more certain of her affection for them. He cleared his throat and gave Grae a pointed look, urging him to continue with his shift before things got wildly and deliciously out of their control. He could see Grae’s hands fisting to gain control over his desires, and then he stepped back into the night, and before their eyes, his dragon was perched on the edge of the balcony.

  “Oh!” Talia gasped and slowly approached the dragon as he flexed his wings and stretched. It had been a few days since Grae had last shifted, and now that he had, Ash was sure he was itching to take to the skies for a little exercise.

  “He’s so beautiful, Ash, and I thought he’d be cold, but he’s almost hot to the touch,” she said as she ran her hands along his chest and foreleg.

  “Yes, most shifters run a little warmer in body temperature than the average person. We can’t even keep a fire lit while we sleep, or I’m sweated right out of the bed once he’s in the mood to cuddle,” Ash joked as he joined Talia and ran his hand along Grae’s back.

  Grae made a low rumbling sound, almost like thunder, as he nudged his head into Talia’s chest, making her laugh.

  “I think he likes being rubbed,” she said as she laid her cheek on top of his head and scratched him under his neck.

  Ash laughed at the sound that came out of his lover then, a cross between a purr and a growl, one he’d never heard Grae make in all the years they’d been together.

  “Are you going to stretch your wings before bed, love?” Ash asked while stroking Grae’s side.

  Grae rumbled in answer and slowly extracted himself from Talia’s arms, giving her a quick lick with an alarmingly long tongue before he jumped off of the balcony, leaving her squealing in surprise and laughter at hi
s antics. As they watched the great beast fly away from the palace, he couldn’t stop the hope that blossomed in his heart.

  “Come, Talia, let us wait by the fire and talk,” he said as he took her hand and led her back inside to the sitting room.

  They sat and talked for some time, Ash wanting to know all about her life before her abduction and Talia having endless questions about her new home. Talia grew tired and bid Ash good night before Grae had returned, and Grae found his lover resting on the bed with a pensive look while staring at the entrance to Talia’s room.

  “Is everything all right, Ash?” Grae asked as he poured a glass of wine for them both.

  Ash almost seemed to startle at the question, leaving Grae to be even more curious as to what could have his man so lost in thought that he wouldn’t have noticed him returning naked to their bed.

  “Yes,” Ash said as he had an almost shy smile on his face. “We talked while you were gone. The more I get to know our Talia, the more certain I am that she is the one for us.”

  Grae smiled in return, climbed onto their bed and took Ash in his arms to cuddle up against the head board.

  “I agree, love. She is our third, there’s no doubt in my mind. My dragon was ready to mate her as soon as she touched him. Tomorrow we will begin to properly woo her, and by the day’s end, I am certain she will be halfway in love with us already.”

  Ash knew from the tone of his lover’s voice that the battle was already plotted and won in Grae’s mind. As gentle as the big dragon could be, there was no better general on Aodan or Dali, and once he set a course of action, there was little which could sway him.

  “Now, baby, let’s see if we can make enough noise to have our curious little mouse peeking at the show, shall we?” Grae said as he began to kiss Ash’s chest and make his way slowly downward.

  * * * *

  Talia couldn’t sleep. She had lain in bed for over an hour, and her mind was still racing with excitement, first at seeing the beautiful Grae transform into a flesh-and-blood dragon, then at the simple pleasure of spending the rest of the evening beside the fire with Ash. He was so easy to talk to, it felt as though she had known them both for years. It was sadly one of the best dates she’d ever had…especially since it wasn’t a date.

  That part made her frown for a moment. How unfair it was that she’d met two men who were so wonderful, and they were in a relationship…with each other. She could have sworn when Grae was disrobing in front of them that he was getting turned on watching her watch him, but perhaps he was just watching Ash? It was so difficult to keep an objective point of view on it when she was so attracted to them. Just as she was about to get out of bed and get some fresh air on the balcony to clear her head, she heard a loud moan come from the next room.

  “Yes, love! Take it all,” she heard Ash saying in a breathy voice. With how quiet the palace was now, it didn’t take much for their voices to carry through the open bath into her room. Her own breathing increased and her arousal shot up immediately as she imagined the two men as she’d saw them in the bath. She knew it was wrong as her feet carried her toward the archway of the bathing room, but the lust she felt was leaving her common sense in the dust at this point. She had expected as she peeked around the corner to see Ash being the aggressor, as before, but when she saw Grae’s smooth back and tight ass as he sucked the other man’s cock, she almost gave herself away with her gasp as heat flooded straight to her pussy. Grae released his lover’s cock and made his way back up Ash’s body, pushing the other man’s arms up to grip the elaborate, carved head board.

  “Do not move your hands, my love, or I will have to punish you,” Grae said as he ground his aching cock against Ash’s. He could feel Talia’s eyes on them both and it pushed him so far past turned-on he felt as though he would spontaneously combust under the heat of it.

  “I’m yours, however you want me, Grae,” Ash said as he held onto the wood and pushed his hips up harder into Grae’s.

  Talia was so incredibly turned on at this point, she had to struggle to breathe. Her thighs were slick and she had to clench them together to remain standing when she saw Grae reach over to the side table to retrieve a jar which must have been some kind of lube, because he then coated his huge cock and worked a large amount into Ash’s ass.

  God what she wouldn’t give to be in the middle of that sandwich right now, feeling both of them filling her up. When she saw Grae push Ash’s knees up toward his chest and enter him, she gave up trying to control herself and used her own fingers to fill her pussy, and maintained Grae’s pace as he fucked the other man. What a beautiful sight they were, loving each other. Talia had never imagined that watching two men fuck would be such a turn-on. She had never seen anything as sexy as Ash and Grae together.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Fuck, Ash, can you smell her? I can hear her finger-fucking herself to our rhythm. I bet she’s imagining both of us inside of her right now.” Grae could barely speak as his thrusts increased, his need to claim his mate undeniable.

  “Yes, baby, harder! Gods, Grae, I’m coming!” Ash yelled as his cock began to spew all over their stomachs in between them. Ash could feel Grae’s cock exploding in his ass as his lover gave two more hard thrusts.

  As Talia settled down in her bed, she began to drift off immediately, not remembering the last time she had come so hard or had been left so spent. She almost giggled. And this was just from watching the two men! She couldn’t imagine how good they must feel right now! She was certain that her day of shopping with both men would be great, now that she was going to be well rested. Just as well, as she knew they were supposed to dine with the rest of Ash’s family tomorrow evening and she would be meeting his brother, the King.

  * * * *

  The next morning, Talia was so excited to get out of the palace and see more of the planet. She could see the city and market from her balcony, and could see it was a flurry of activity during the day. As the three of them made their way to the shuttle that they were going to take, she did notice how both men seemed determined to be touching her in some way. Grae had taken her arm like some medieval knight, and Ash had led her with his hand on the small of her back. She could barely control the shiver that went up her back at having them touch her at the same time, her mind flooding with erotic pictures and memories from last night as she watched them. She just hoped that the dress she was wearing could hide her hard nipples from their attention.

  The flight was only about twenty minutes, and she was enthralled by the lovely view of the mountains and the ocean beyond the palace. Once they had arrived, Grae took her hand and led her to his favourite merchant stalls with Ash on her other side. She tried at the beginning to minimize the purchases, uncomfortable with them spending so much money on her, but she soon noticed that they would just motion to the vendor once she turned her back and purchase anything she seemed to take a liking to, so she decided to give up and go with the flow.

  But every time one of the men would see a necklace that they wanted her to try on, one would pull back her hair, purposely drawing their fingers along her neck and shoulders while the other would step so closely behind her she could feel the heat of him at her back, and place the item on her. Or they insisted in helping her to change into the traditional dresses, some of which she definitely needed help to get into. At first, she tried to insist that the merchant assist her, but the men came up with some excuse to be in the dressing booth and help her.

  After a couple hours of their constant touching and attention, she was so turned on she thought she would spontaneously explode. She also could have sworn she’d seen some very pleased looks pass from Ash to Grae when they noticed how flustered she seemed to be. Finally, they stopped for lunch in a lovely little café-type store. Talia was so hungry and exhausted from shopping that she barely noticed when a small girl of about five came up to their table and shyly smiled at Grae.

  “Lord Grae, won’t you come and play with us?” she said in a sweet, tiny vo
ice.

  Talia was instantly melted by the charming smile Grae gave the girl as he lifted her onto his lap. He offered her the last bite of his fruit pastry and she took it and plastered a big, sloppy kiss on his cheek. Ash chuckled as Grae stood and lifted her to his shoulders.

  “Where to, little one? Shall we show your brothers how good you are at riding dragons?” Grae said as he strolled over to where about a dozen other small children had gathered, watching them. There were almost as many small animals there as well. Talia was surprised to see tiger cubs and wolflike pups jumping up and down with the children, waiting for Grae.

  “Are those animals pets, Ash? Isn’t it dangerous for them to be roaming around together?” she asked Ash as she laughed. She watched Grae shift into an enormous dragon with the little girl still on his back and chased some of the other children down the street. “Grae seems to love the children.”

  “Those aren’t pets, love. They’re shifter younglings, just like the others. They are quite enamoured of our Grae. The shifters here are naturally drawn to Grae, as he is royalty of his kind, but he has always had a special place in his heart for the children. He comes from a large family. Sometimes I think he misses his brothers and sisters,” Ash said as he looked on with so much love on his face for the other man that it almost brought tears to her eyes.

  Talia reached over and covered his hand with hers, and at first he looked startled at the gesture, but then he smiled at her and entwined his fingers with hers. He looked at her before he began to speak and she thought he seemed almost nervous.

  “Talia, I know Grae and I haven’t known you very long, and I realise that we said you would be free to follow your own path here on Adoan, but we are both very much interested in you, and the more time we spend with you, the more we grow to care for you,” he said to her carefully, almost afraid to look up and see her reaction. “We would be honoured if you would consider staying on with us and becoming our third.”