Unexpected Liaisons [Spirit of Sage 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour ManLove)

by Jools Louise

  “Is this the guy?” Murphy asked quietly.

  “Yeah, this is Chester.”

  “Why don’t we all go into the communal room?” Murphy suggested, gesturing to a room down the hallway he’d just walked down. “You might find it beneficial to talk about stuff that happened to you all, among people who know exactly what you’ve been through.”

  Chester sighed deeply, then nodded. He didn’t want to leave the safety of Elijah’s embrace, but he knew he needed to.

  “Come on, baby,” Elijah said, easing away and stroking Chester’s cheek gently, his green eyes tender. “I’ve been having counseling since I got here. The nightmares got to be too much, after what the cult put me through, so I had some help.” He sent Murphy a look of gratitude. “Murphy’s the best.”

  “He really is,” Ernest added with a firm nod. “If you don’t want us in there, it’s okay,” he continued. “Me and Luther can just hang out here with the truly amazing receptionist that works here now.” He grinned at Freddy, who smirked and gave a half bow of acknowledgement.

  Chester smiled finally, and then shook his head. “No, guys, it’s okay, you can all come in with me. Maybe I can get a new perspective on things, knowing you’ve all been through horrors as well.”

  One by one, they trooped down the hall and entered the large room that Murphy indicated. Rushing footsteps sounded behind, and Cooper and Zane arrived, breathless, wanting to join the group.

  Chester nodded, wanting the pair of them to be in on the discussion. He was nervous, but he wanted everything out in the open…then maybe the demons of his nightmares would stop haunting him.

  * * * *

  Three hours later, after a lot of intense emotion, Chester headed out of Murphy’s clinic with Elijah, looking dazed but far less edgy than he had been. Cooper stood watching his brother go, feeling sick to his stomach at what he had heard in the large room. He felt like he might need a few sessions of therapy with Murphy himself, after today. He’d known a little of what the shifters had been through, but the true extent of the cult’s evil had been told in explicit detail over the past few hours. It left Cooper struggling to process everything, his brain working feverishly, but ineffectively.

  “Are you okay?” Zane asked softly, standing beside him, one hand curled into Cooper’s, squeezing gently. “That was a lot to take in, baby.”

  Cooper let out a shaky breath, feeling light-headed. He shook his head, not replying. He couldn’t think of a thing to say, couldn’t find any words to describe just how not okay he was right at that moment.

  “They lost,” Ernest said, moving to stand in front of Cooper, his pale gold eyes clear and beautiful as precious gems. “The cult was destroyed, we’re alive. They lost.” He went on tiptoes, and pressed a gentle kiss to Cooper’s lips, curling his arms around Cooper’s midriff and hugging Cooper hard.

  Cooper shuddered, resting his cheek on top of the little shifter’s pale blond head, inhaling his sweet scent. The cult might be dead, but their legacy remained, in the internal struggles left behind inside men and women forever scarred by their evil reign of terror. His brother, Chester, abducted, turned into an animal, and then tortured as though he was nothing more than a piece of inanimate meat, to be experimented on for kicks. Ernest and Luther, and all their brothers and sisters, treated in the same way, from a young age when they should have been with their families, safe from harm. Elijah, gay, had been forced into mating with women, and fighting against other shifters and pure-blooded felines, after being turned into a feline himself by the shifter virus injected into him.

  Cooper felt a rage building inside him, something that had been simmering since Chester had been taken, but cooled somewhat during his time with Wolf. Now it was returning, full force, until he was ready to explode.

  “Cooper, we’re okay,” Luther said tremulously. He looked tearful, standing to one side, looking unsure. “Chester will come through this as well. Now that he’s found Elijah, he’ll begin to heal. Just like me and Ernest did, once we found you and Zane.”

  Cooper lifted his head, his eyes burning with tears, and held out his arm, pulling Luther into his side and hugging him close, Zane moving in at the other side.

  “When I have too many thoughts in my head, I head to the rez,” Zane murmured, kissing Cooper’s cheek softly. “Why don’t we head over there this weekend, take a little time to ourselves, out of town? It may help you get your thoughts together.”

  Cooper nodded, sighing heavily, still not able to speak. He felt overwhelmed, and for the first time in a very long while, had no clue how to deal with what he’d just found out.

  “Can we really go to the reservation?” Ernest asked excitedly. “That sounds really cool.”

  “We can camp out if you like,” Zane said, smiling. “If you don’t fancy riding, we have ATVs to take us into the wilderness.”

  “I’d love to ride, if that’s okay,” Luther said tentatively. “I have no idea how to ride a horse, but maybe we could double up. Camping sounds fun, too.”

  Within minutes, they’d come up with plans for a long weekend, away from Sage, to recharge.

  * * * *

  “I think my butt may need a month off after this,” Luther grimaced, rubbing the offending part of his anatomy ruefully. “I thought this would be a breeze.”

  Ernest giggled, moving stiffly around, gathering firewood as their lovers Cooper and Zane set up a large tent. “If you ask them nicely, I reckon our two studly mates will be happy to massage us later.” He shot a hopeful look at the larger men, who rolled their eyes at the attempt to gain sympathy.

  “We’ve only been riding for two hours,” Zane scoffed, shaking his head sadly at Luther’s snort of derision. “You’d think we’d just crossed America, coast to coast.”

  Luther flipped him off, which had them all laughing as he gave a low snarl, looking cross. Apparently, their little mate was unused to roughing it in the wilds.

  “Baby, quit bitching,” Cooper said, sending a laughing glance Luther’s way. “Look around you, take in the scenery. This place is breathtaking, don’t you think?”

  Luther rolled his eyes, but did study their surroundings, still rubbing his sore butt. They’d been riding for just over two hours, heading out from Zane’s family’s place and taking three horses, two for people and one with their supplies. The trio of equines was currently ground-tied and munching on the sweet grass sprouting around the shores of the small lake they’d stopped at. Muscular mountains provided a stunning backdrop, and the shimmer of sunlight on aspen leaves and the dancing, rippling water of the lake glittered intriguingly. Luther’s cat yowled hopefully, and he knew it wanted to run free.

  “Shift if you want to,” Cooper said, smiling at Luther’s eager look. “This place is safe enough.”

  Luther dropped the handful of sticks he was carrying, stripped right there, and then shifted, leaping at Ernest and knocking him flying.

  Ernest fended off the excited serval, giggling hysterically, wood flying everywhere. He quickly shed his clothes, and then shifted as well, streaking after Luther, whose slender legs carried him into the long grass. Within moments, the pair of them were hidden from view, their golden, spotted coats blending in nicely with the undergrowth. Spindly trees surrounded the lake, leading into denser thickets and larger, darker evergreens, providing perfect cover for two small felines.

  “That escalated quickly!” Zane quipped, laughing as he secured a tent peg firmly in place. Cooper grinned, and began hammering away, driving each steel pin into the ground with easy efficiency. The tent was a large family-sized monstrosity with separate bedrooms, a living area, and a front porch in case it rained.

  With the tent erected, they gathered supplies from the pack horse and stripped all the saddles from their mounts, taking care to brush them down. The horses snorted their approval and sauntered to the lake shore, drinking their fill of the sweet glacial water that came right off the high plateaus.

  “What do you reckon, stud?�
�� Cooper drawled softly, moving in close to Zane and cupping the Arapaho beauty’s nape with one hand, dragging them together with the other. “Fancy skinny-dipping? I’m feeling all hot and bothered for some reason.”

  Zane laughed, wrapping his arms around behind Cooper and squeezing the pair of taut cheeks that fit perfectly into Zane’s palms. “Let’s get you a little sweatier first, hmmm?” he suggested, placing his mouth to Cooper’s, groaning as their lips met hungrily. The kiss deepened swiftly, turning into a toe-curling smooch that had them both panting hard. Zane reached under Cooper’s shirt, smoothing his way over warm, silken skin, enjoying the play of muscles along Cooper’s strong back. Cooper kept up the heat, bending Zane back over his arm and trailing a path of fiery kisses down Zane’s throat. Impatiently, Cooper ripped apart Zane’s fleecy shirt, exposing dark brown nipples that were already tautening in the cool breeze. Cooper’s zeroed in on the twin trophies, and he nipped and bit and sucked avidly with his mouth and teeth. Zane felt light-headed, writhing against his lover, his long hair coming loose from its thick braid. It flowed almost to the ground, swaying in the breeze as his head went back, his hands gripping onto Cooper’s strong shoulders for balance.

  “Damn.” Ernest giggled huskily from behind. “Leave these two alone for a second, and they’re all horny again.”

  “Like rabbits,” Luther agreed, laughing as well.

  Zane turned his head, eyeing the two naked men standing watching with interest as his nipples were devoured by Cooper’s talented mouth. His eyes were slitted with lust, seeing two beautiful cocks standing to attention, already damp with precum.

  “Come here, sexy mates,” Zane commanded breathlessly. “I want a kiss from my beautiful shifters.”

  The pair moved closer eagerly, flanking Zane, and began kissing him lovingly. Ernest gripped a handful of Zane’s silken black hair, his fingers massaging Zane’s scalp as he, Luther, and Zane engaged in a sexy three-way smooch.

  Zane was lowered to the ground, his clothing disappearing as skillful fingers unwrapped him as though he was a gift. Luther straddled Zane’s naked chest, his cock easing between Zane’s parted lips. Zane groaned around the tasty treat, sucking hard as Luther fucked his mouth smoothly. Luther’s pale green eyes glowed with passion, his pleasure obvious in the gasps that emerged from his contorted mouth, his face etched with bliss.

  Zane watched as Cooper and Ernest shared tender kisses, the small shifter helping Cooper out of his clothes, and then quickly straddled Cooper’s lap, sinking down onto Cooper’s thick dick with a deep groan of satisfaction. Ernest’s short blond hair gleamed in the sunlight as he began to ride Cooper’s cock, his body undulating back and forth, head thrown back in ecstasy, his golden eyelashes fanning his cheek.

  After a few moments, Cooper moved onto his hands and knees, maneuvering in such a way that Ernest was still attached, Cooper’s big body blanketing his smaller lover as he pumped in and out of Ernest’s snug chute. Pebbles dug into their hands and knees, Cooper sucked at Ernest’s damp neck. Ernest’s fangs descended, as the tempo increased, the slap of flesh bouncing around the lake, blending with the moans and cries and other harmonies of sex.

  Luther gave a wailing cry and then spurted into Zane’s mouth, who flipped his lover over and then plunged his thick cock deep into Luther’s quivering hole in one, smooth thrust. Luther cried out again, shuddering when Zane began to pound away at the smaller man, powerfucking him over and over. Zane gripped Luther’s slender shoulder, and his other hand cupped the man’s throat, tilting it back as he drove inside Luther’s sweet ass again and again. Turning Luther’s face to his, he eased the man upward so he was sitting on Zane’s cock, Luther’s back to Zane’s front. Their lips met hungrily, nipping and biting, Luther shunted up and down with each powerful up thrust of Zane’s enthusiastic cock.

  “Luther!” Zane shouted, and then came with a glad cry, hot semen spurting deep inside his lover’s ass. Luther wailed, gripped his own cock, and jacked himself off furiously until thick streams of cum spattered over the cool stones of the lake shore.

  Behind them, two more cries of releases joined the fray. Ernest screamed his pleasure, with Cooper’s deeper, muffled roar following quickly.

  Zane panted, his lips softening over Luther’s, kissing his lover more tenderly, infusing the kiss with all the love he felt for his small mate. He stroked his fingers over Luther’s flat belly, smoothing the cooling cream over the man’s skin and then sharing the salty taste as they both lapped at Zane’s messy fingers.

  “I love you,” Zane whispered into Luther’s mouth. “You complete us, baby.” He heard Luther’s half sob in response, felt the shudder as Luther absorbed the words. “We’ll love you and care for you until we turn to dust,” Zane added, still stroking Luther’s soft skin, licking at Luther’s lips tenderly. “You’re so beautiful, so sexy. I’m a lucky man to have you part of my life. I’m so glad you found us.” Zane deepened the kiss again, absorbing Luther’s moan of pleasure.

  Zane groaned then, feeling someone move in behind him. Small hands pushed at his back, easing him onto hands and knees again, still embedded within Luther’s sweet ass.

  “I love you,” Ernest whispered into Zane’s ear, and Zane trembled in anticipation. Ernest loved a hard fuck. He was proving to be a skillful power top, and Zane loved that fiercely passionate side to his small mate. Ernest had lost his entire family, had suffered so much when they had all died in that dank, dark, subterranean room, and topping gave him much-needed control. “I’m so glad I came for that interview.” He giggled, before a hard cock penetrated Zane’s clenching hole, sinking inside swiftly, and leaving Zane gasping at the hard thrust.

  “Fuck him good, Ernest,” Cooper said from somewhere near Zane’s head. Zane felt strong hands grip his hair, turning his face to Cooper’s dripping cock. A scrap of cloth lay on the ground, evidence that Cooper had cleaned himself off before attempting to feed Zane his thick cock. Zane groaned again, accepting the throbbing dick as it slid into his mouth. Ernest began to fuck him from behind, which drove Zane into Luther’s ass again, as he built up the tempo. Ernest went primal all of a sudden, slamming his slender hips against Zane’s ass, fucking him hard and fast. Crying out, Zane took the pounding eagerly, throwing his own hips back with each instroke and then fucking Luther with heavy strokes on the rebound.

  Luther was crying out his pleasure, his head lowered to the ground, and his butt raised into the perfect fucking position. Cooper began to move, sliding in and out of Zane’s eager mouth over and over, in time to Ernest’s hard rhythm. Within seconds, all four men were shooting their loads once more, and then collapsed in a sweaty heap on the ground, panting heavily in the aftermath.

  “Love you, stud,” Cooper murmured against Ernest’s neck, nipping the damp skin, soothing the sting with the smooth glide of his tongue.

  “Hmmm, I love you, too,” Ernest replied drowsily, sprawled against Zane’s back, who was cuddling against Luther, one long leg draped across both of Luther’s.

  “Can you swim?” Cooper asked suddenly, kissing Ernest’s shoulder.

  Ernest nodded sleepily, then squealed in surprise as he was lifted into Cooper’s strong arms, and carried swiftly to the water. The last few strides were taken at a run, and then Cooper dived into the lake with a rebel yell, slinging Ernest a few feet, sending shock waves splashing in all directions.

  Zane and Luther sat on the shore, laughing at Ernest’s yelps of shock as the cold water closed over him. Despite the sunshine, it wasn’t the warmest of pools.

  Cooper dived away from Ernest once the little guy surfaced, sputtering in anger, trying to dunk the bigger man. Lifting Ernest again, Cooper laughed heartily, then threw the smaller man once more, laughing harder as Ernest flailed helplessly before he landed with a large splash.

  “Geronimo!” Zane cried out, leaping up and running for the lake, and then flinging himself at Cooper, sinking the bigger man as they both collided Luther remained where he was, looking wistfully
at the three frolicking about, splashing like little kids.

  “Come on in, Luther, help me get this bloody lunatic,” Ernest yelled, splashing Cooper like mad, giggling infectiously when he was dunked yet again. Luther smiled, but shook his head.

  Ernest began to swim for the shore, whispering something Luther couldn’t hear to the other two. They nodded and then continued playing, taking it in turns to straddle each other’s shoulders, and then dive forward, throwing each other into the water.

  Striding forward once he could stand, Ernest came and sat beside Luther, shivering slightly as drops of water streamed down his body. Luther smirked a little as he eyed Ernest’s shrunken nether regions. “Cold in there?” he asked, dodging a slap.

  “What’s wrong?” Ernest asked, tilting his head questioningly. “It’s cold, but refreshing. Don’t you like swimming?”

  “I don’t know, I’ve never tried,” Luther admitted, shrugging sheepishly when Ernest stared at him as though shocked.

  “You don’t know how to swim?” Ernest sounded completely shocked.

  “No,” Luther replied, flushing slightly.

  “Well, that’s no good,” Ernest said firmly. “Come on, Luther. Time for your first lesson. How to float.” He grabbed Luther by the hand, tugged impatiently until Luther got the hint, then dragged him along back to the water.

  “Luther needs swimming lessons,” Ernest called to the others, who stopped roughhousing immediately. Cooper swam over, hands outstretched as Ernest pulled Luther steadily into waist-deep water.

  Luther began to balk, looking nervous. “I won’t let you fall,” Cooper said huskily, his big body dripping wet, water sluicing over a taut six-pack and rippling pecs. Luther stared at him and then grabbed for Cooper’s hands, trusting his lover to keep him safe.

  The cold enveloped Luther’s body, chilling him after the warmth of the sun caressing his body. He was pulled farther out, his body floating as his feet lifted from the lake bottom. After the initial shock of cold, the water felt good against his skin, silken and fluid, undulating with each breath he took.