by Lexi C. Foss
Her fingers closed into fists as she looked down at her stomach. “I don’t think I can…” She knew what I meant, and it terrified her. I felt her fear surge through the mate-bond, and it twisted my heart until I could choke on it.
Cyrus joined me, taking her other hand to lift her to her feet. “You don’t have to do anything, little queen.” His confidence seeped into my spirit, reassuring me that Claire could be convinced. We’d never failed before. “Let us adore you,” he said, his tone sweet and regal. “That’s all we ask.”
She bit her lip before giving us a nod, which was all the permission I needed. Her spirit called to mine with such clarity that a melody unfurled in my mind, one where our souls danced together and began a new courtship.
Beautiful.
Cyrus and I escorted her to the massive bed, then I stopped her beside it. “Can I strip you, Claire?” I asked. “Massages are best when naked.”
She licked her lips, then slowly nodded her head.
“Words, baby,” I murmured. “Give me words.”
“Yes,” she whispered. “You can strip me.”
I smiled and rewarded her with a gentle kiss, my fingers teasing the edge of her nightgown. “Thank you, Claire,” I said, loving the act of removing her clothes. So did all the others, but I wanted to remind her with my words and touch, to ensure she felt just as beautiful now as she ever did before. Because to us, she was perfect. Gorgeous. A goddess of the elements, even if they were blocked right now.
Goose bumps pebbled her arms as I slowly pulled the strap of her gown downward. Then she froze as the material revealed her breasts.
Mmm, no, that wouldn’t do.
I wanted her fluid. Warm. Aching for our touch. Not chilled and afraid of what we might think of her beautiful form. I could sense that uncertainty in our bond, had heard it in her voice when she claimed that she might not be able to accept a massage.
Our mate needed to go into phase three feeling cherished and loved.
Not unconfident and alone.
Could she not feel the pull from the source? The very real melody humming in my ears and in my heart and through my soul, begging me to take her? To fulfill the next stage? To give her what her body craved and desired most?
Oh, Claire.
I trailed my lips along her shoulder, urging her to relax, and brushed her spirit with mine, coaxing her closer to the blinding source of our power. A new life had been created here, one that we would cherish together as a family.
But first, she had to know how much she was loved by us all, how much we would always desire her. A child didn’t change this facet of our lives. If anything, it only brought us all closer together.
“Lie down,” I commanded, earning a feisty spark of rebellion in her eyes. She didn’t like to be ordered around, but in this case, she needed to listen to me. She was far too wrapped up in her own self-doubts and fears. I needed her to let go and to give me control right now.
She righted her nightgown, hiding all the luminous skin from us, but lay down on the bed like I’d demanded. I knelt beside her and ran my fingers down her cheek. “I need to love you, Claire.”
I rarely begged, and that was as close as I was going to get to it. She bit her lip before replying. “Well, lying on my back is actually a bit uncomfortable,” she admitted.
I smirked. Oh, well then, I had another position that would suit even better for my mood. “Can you rest on your knees?” I suggested, one eyebrow lifting as the plan unfurled in my mind. “I was going to massage your breasts, but I can work with another area.”
She swallowed and glanced at the rest of the mate-circle, taking note of how Sol and Vox rested near the wall, eager to have a good view of what was to come. Cyrus and Titus had eased around on either side of us, slipping onto the bed with sensual intention that dripped through the mate-bond.
I snapped my spirit magic through her, making her gaze jolt back to me. “But I’m so… pregnant,” she protested, still doubting her beauty. As if the sight of her would dampen our love or deter our desire.
This was precisely why this needed to happen right here, right now.
“On your knees, Claire,” I told her, allowing her to hear the demand in my voice.
She swallowed, but complied, her pulse thrumming so hard I could see it against her neck.
Words weren’t going to solve this.
So we would lead with actions instead.
I eased into my secondary affinity for fire and smoldered a careful layer over her gown, disintegrating it and leaving her bare. The heat glowed pleasantly against her skin as she fisted her hands against her sides, still nervous and uncertain.
Determined to assure her, I followed my magic with my hands and then my lips, kissing her swollen breasts down to her enlarged stomach. Then I slowly pushed her forward to balance on her hands and her knees.
Cyrus and Titus waited patiently, their arousal evident. I had no doubt they could hear the same melody I did, the call of our elements too strong to ignore.
Our mate shivered as I swept my touch down her weeping sex. “Exos,” she said, my name more of a plea now. I smiled. That was the right direction, but I needed more from her.
“What kind of massage would you like?” I asked, grabbing her ass with both hands as I spread her open for me.
Fae, she was beautiful. My cock lurched at the sight of her so wet for me, eager for my tongue to taste her sweetness.
Vox and Sol both made strangled sounds from behind me, likewise affected by the gorgeous sight, but not just that. Claire sent a wave of desire through us all that hit like a bolt of lightning.
There it is, I mused. The third phase is coming.
Exos…
Don’t fight it, baby. Revel in it. Erase your fears and just feel.
I kissed the base of her spine, my palms branding her hips as I stroked her through her insecurities, encouraging her to come out and play.
You’re our goddess, Claire. Our queen. Let us worship you. I nibbled her hip bone, then drew my tongue upward to her spine once more. Please, baby. All we want is to make you feel good.
She groaned, her worries slipping from her mind as she shifted her focus to the very real throbbing between her legs. I could feel it riding her spirit and pulsating into mine. She needed this. Just as much as we needed this.
Can you feel our need? I asked her. Is it burning you the way your desire is burning me?
Another groan, this one followed by her fisting the sheets.
Cyrus increased the intensity by unzipping his pants and freeing his erection, his palm stroking the shaft in a leisurely pace as he watched her beneath hooded eyes.
Titus copied the motion, allowing our Claire to see what she did to him. To us.
“Do you see how hard they are, baby?” I asked against her ear, my hands still roaming her body, light and petting rather than thorough and knowing. I wanted her to cave first. Then I’d give her what she needed, what we all needed. “Is that precum, Titus? I think you should give our Claire a taste. Remind her how much we want her.”
Titus swiped his thumb over the tip and brought the moisture to her lips. She moaned loudly in response, her body convulsing beneath my palm.
“Mmm, that makes me want to taste you, baby,” I said, widening her knees to accommodate my shoulders as I lay down on the bed beneath her, my lower body still supported by my feet on the ground. “Sit on my face,” I told her. “Let me taste you.”
She shuddered, her legs wobbling beneath the intensity of my command and her overwhelming yearning to comply. Cyrus shifted closer, his fingers finding her nipple and giving it a little tweak. “My brother gave you a command, little queen. Are you going to disobey him?”
“I…” She trembled, her pussy lowering to my mouth, where I gave her a firm, long stroke with my tongue. “Oh, Fae,” she breathed, nearly falling forward. But Cyrus caught her with his palm against her breastbone.
I suckled her clit, making her cry out my name in that ton
e I fucking loved. I did it again, and she rewarded me with a full-body spasm.
“Oh,” she repeated, her legs convulsing. “I need… I need…”
“Tell us what you need, little queen,” Cyrus murmured.
“Yeah, sweetheart. Tell us what you want,” Titus agreed, his tone low and warm as he fed her another swipe from his thumb.
I didn’t see it so much as feel it through the bond, her pleasure mounting to a cataclysmic frenzy.
“Cock,” she said. “Oh, now. I need it now.”
I nipped her clit, then slid out from beneath her as the others began to disrobe.
Cyrus and Titus took her first, their cocks already free and very willing to satisfy. She took Titus into her mouth, taking him down her throat before she grabbed for Cyrus and did the same to him.
And fuck if that wasn’t the most beautiful sight I’d ever seen.
As much as I liked to watch, I wanted to take my mate first this time. “My massage wasn’t over,” I warned her. “I was only just getting started.”
She glanced back at me as I unzipped my pants. Then she licked her lips as she angled her ass to give me a better view.
Yes, this was how I preferred my mate. Willing. Needy. Demanding. And wanton.
When I slid forward and coated my dick with her wetness but refused to stretch her open, she groaned with frustration and took Titus into her mouth again, this time so forcefully that he jolted.
He released a growl. “Careful, beautiful, or I’m going to unleash this load I’ve been saving right down your pretty little throat.”
That only encouraged her to work him that much harder, likely taking his statement as a challenge.
I slipped my dick over her clit, making her hips gyrate over my sensitive skin. I’d make her come like this first, then I’d properly fuck her.
She popped off of Titus’s dick when I thrust through her folds, her back arching beautifully. “I want to see Vox and Sol,” she moaned.
The two fae had begun fisting each other, something they knew Claire would like, and would only prime themselves for her when it was their turn. I angled her so she could see them, and her eyelids grew heavy with desire. She liked to watch her mates play, something I’d never indulged in, but I understood the voyeuristic tendency because I enjoyed observing, too.
Sol put one fist against the wall as he faced Vox, their naked bodies giving us a profile view as Vox fisted his own dick, then slipped the same hand over Sol’s. The throbbing between Claire’s legs intensified at the erotic display, encouraging me to run my head over her clit again.
She screamed as she fell headfirst into an orgasm she’d clearly been holding on to for some time.
Naughty, Claire, I thought at her. We’re going to have to make you come all night now, just to make sure all those climaxes you’ve denied are rectified.
Her body spasmed in response, causing a sensual wave to crash through the bonds.
The melody intensified, roaring through our connections with a vengeance, demanding that we release control of our elements—something we’d all learned not to do.
The third phase had officially begun, and it required all five elements, not just one or two.
There’s a very powerful fae growing inside you, baby, I murmured. He wants all our elements.
All of them? she replied, sounding exhausted already. Then she flared with sudden power, her spirit humming through our bond as the final stage ignited.
“Oh, fuck,” Claire breathed, that word so beautiful from her very sexy mouth.
“Yes, Claire. That’s exactly what we’re going to do,” I confirmed.
She didn’t seem to hear me, her instincts taking over as she scourged the demand through us, ripping us open until there was nothing left.
We had no choice but to comply, to break the very rule that had grounded us all since we were young faelings ourselves.
Unleash the elements.
Open the source.
Drown in ecstasy.
Claire took Titus deep into her mouth, destroying his chance to fight his elemental release. Then she wiggled her hips against me, coaxing my cock to come out and play.
I was a strong male fae.
But not strong enough to deny my mate.
I thrust into her quivering body, giving her what she needed and cursing as she squeezed the life out of my fucking shaft. Each punch of her hips tested my resolve not to unravel before we’d even begun.
Titus gave in to her, failing to restrain himself and his power, and groaned as he came. Cyrus grinned against the other fae’s exposed throat, then pressed a gentle kiss to his pulse. It wasn’t meant as a taunt so much as a tender gesture of understanding, one Titus seemed to appreciate as his head fell against Cyrus’s.
I slowed my thrusts, drawing out my pleasure as Claire came down from her high, and the harsh demand of her melody eased off, sated by Titus’s offering. The Fire Fae slumped onto the bed as he threw his head back on a curse.
Oh, he’d lost this game—to see who could hold out the longest—but I wasn’t far behind him.
Cyrus took his turn next. Claire grabbed onto him like her life depended on it, suckling at his dick with renewed need as the melody kicked up again, eager to devour us all.
I followed her movements with my hips, rewarding her when she took my brother deeper. I didn’t care if this mating destroyed me. It was the most fucking beautiful thing I’d ever experienced.
Sol and Vox continued to stroke each other as they watched us, their eyes on Claire as she threatened to achieve an orgasm that would take us all under with her.
This was new, raw, something different that I hadn’t expected when I’d read about pregnant fae sexual side effects.
But I sensed the reason now, the link of our magic that drew in our power and fed her just as much as any physical nourishment would. Instead of fueling her body, we fueled the threads of her elemental power that would bring the life inside her to full term.
I would strip myself of all of my magic if need be to give Claire and the child what they needed, and so I fucked her with abandon, letting go of my control as I poured my power into her.
She gasped at the hit of unreserved magic, and all of the elements burst around the room as all the fae in our mate-circle followed suit.
Embers glittered in her hair.
Dusty motes of earth drifted around us.
And a warm breeze swept across my chest.
Then mist steamed in the air, and we breathed it in, sending our very life force into our mate as we slipped over the edge and didn’t look down.
Take all of me, Claire, I told her. Take every last drop.
FUCK.
I could barely breathe, my heart hammering so hard against my damn chest I thought it might explode.
I was pretty sure Claire just tried to kill us through fucking. And honestly, I wasn’t even a little bit upset about it. Because wow.
That had been some of the most intense sex of my existence. As soon as I rediscovered my ability to move, I wanted to do it all over again. But she’d pretty much just sucked the water element out of me, leaving me dry and weak in her wake.
Thank fuck we’d done this in the Human Realm. I couldn’t even imagine the repercussions of doing that at home, where we were all that much more connected to our sources.
Perhaps that was why she’d reacted so negatively to fae food. On some subconscious level, she knew where she needed to be for phase three.
Or it was all a twist of fate.
Regardless, it was right. And we’d survived. Barely.
Happy Christmas Eve, little queen, I murmured to her. Technically, it was Christmas Eve morning now. But as she couldn’t hear me, it didn’t really matter.
I took a calming breath.
Then joined her in the land of sleep.
“THANK. FUCK.”
Exos took the words right out of my mouth.
Our third visit to the damn underworld had finally paid off,
and I had the proof of it in my hand. Lucifer might not attend the vote, but I had his proxy letter, and that was all that mattered.
It had taken a little bit of negotiation, mostly because he’d demanded Elemental Fae females in exchange for his cooperation. When I told him that was never going to happen, he started asking for more practical things. Like help growing certain edible plants. And a few meant for getting high.
“I’m just glad it’s done,” I said, folding the letter into my suit jacket pocket. “I’m eager to return to Claire and repeat last night.”
“Sounds like a good Christmas Eve to me,” Exos agreed, punching the buttons into the portal board. Then he faced me with a grin as the system engaged to work its magic. “Titus wants a rematch.”
“He’ll still lose,” I drawled.
“I know,” Exos agreed. “But I won’t.”
I arched a brow. “You sure as fuck did last night.”
“I wasn’t prepared.”
I grunted. “Fuck that. You’re always prepared.”
His lips curled. “True. I may have given in last night, but so did you.”
“We all did,” I replied. “She was fucking magnificent.”
“She was,” he murmured. “Which is why we need to do it again.”
“Is it my turn to seduce her into it? Because I could probably complete that task faster.”
“Only because of my help last night,” Exos retorted.
I lifted a shoulder. “Not my fault you volunteered to go first.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He waved me off as we arrived in the Human Realm. “We need to think of more…” He trailed off, frowning.
I felt exactly what caused that expression to appear.
Something’s wrong.
I didn’t ask permission, and Exos didn’t hesitate. He knew what I had to do. I grabbed onto his wrist and accessed the reserves of my magic to mist us directly to the cottage.
While it was a short jump, misting outside of the Elemental Fae realm drained me considerably, and my vision darkened with black stars as I searched for our mate.
“Is she okay?” I demanded, unable to see.
If I fucking passed out when she needed me, I—