The Wanted

by Rory Miles

  I shook my head. How were they all okay with this?

  “You’re thinking too hard about it.” Erik threaded his fingers with mine. “Just go with it.”

  “Okay.” My voice was small. I still didn’t understand how me dating all of them at the same time would work. Part of me worried I’d be jeopardizing my newly formed friendships by taking things to the next level. What happened when I was ready to choose? How upset would those I’d rejected be?

  What Erik had planned was not what I expected. No skinny-dipping. No river rafting. No games. The wine was full-bodied; plum rested on the back of my tongue as I took another sip. Those fancy restaurants we’d passed on the way to the palace? Yeah. He had brought me to one of those.

  We sat at a silk-draped table with a small candle placed in the center next to a bunch of red roses, and waited for our food. Erik had ordered the wine, something I couldn’t pronounce, but I wasn’t complaining. It was good.

  “What do you think?”

  Diffused orange lighting fell over the forest as the sun set. Erik’s eyes reflected the color, warm and inviting as he watched me. A ripple of vulnerability passed over his face.

  “It’s beautiful,” I admitted. Sheer black fabric created an illusion of walls, giving the patrons a sense of privacy but still allowing those outside to gaze in with envy. I’d done the same just a few days ago. My gaze passed over the murmuring couples. The women all wore finer clothing than me. “I feel a bit under-dressed.”

  Erik’s eyes crinkled. “You’re perfect.”

  My chair shifted as I wiggled, uncomfortable with this side of him.

  “You are,” he continued. “You’d blow these women out of the water in your shorts.”

  The waitress appeared, placing juicy steaks in front of us. Even fancy restaurants couldn’t come up with better side dishes than mashed potatoes or roasted carrots. When the first bite of meat hit my mouth, a smile took over my face. It was the best steak I’d ever had.

  While we ate, a band began to play. The horn section slid into the song, inviting the upright bass and drums to join in. Smooth fingers played over the piano keys and a sultry voice began to sing. My eyes widened when I saw the singer was close to my age, if not a bit younger. Still, her voice shivered down my spine as she belted out the seductive tune.

  “Care to dance?” Erik asked, pushing his empty plate away.

  “I don’t know.” My lips wavered on a smile. “It’s been so long since I’ve danced.”

  “You’ll do great! Come on.”

  One more gulp of wine and then I took his outstretched hand, smoothing down my top. “Don’t embarrass me.”

  He laughed when he saw my stern look. “I’d never dream of it.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Somehow I doubt that very much.”

  When he reached the middle of the dance floor he turned, grabbing my hand and pulling me close. His other hand held my waist.

  “Follow me.” He stepped forward, urging me to step back. After a few slower steps, he picked up the pace.

  At first, I felt silly, like an impostor on the dance floor. I didn’t even know the name of the dance we were doing. At least the swish of my hips and the way he led me around the dance floor matched the beat of the song. Then, as if something in me changed, I fell into the rhythm. Erik noticed and spun me, catching my hand when I had completed the turn and resumed the dance. A goofy smile stretched my lips. Erik chuckled.

  When the horns careened over the edge of the song Erik lifted my hand, stepped close, placing his foot next to mine and then dipped me back. Fingers splayed over the small of my back as he held me, and my foot slid forward of its own volition—or because I wasn’t about to fall on my ass in front of a bunch of rich bitches. He dipped me low. His proud smirk was too much. My head tipped back and I felt my hair brush the floor. A quick glance confirmed just how low he’d dipped me. He smirked down at my surprised look and I laughed.

  Hot lips kissed my exposed neck. Then, I was being pulled to standing just as the other patrons started clapping. When I turned to thank the band, the singer was clapping too. They were applauding us.

  “You always show me up, Erik.” She tilted her head and smiled at him like she knew him.

  In fact, the rest of the band gave him a wave and little nods of appreciation. Did he do this a lot? My mind didn’t like entertaining the idea that he’d danced with other women like that.

  Who are you to be jealous? You’re literally about to date four of his friends.

  Erik bowed lower than he had at court, pulling me from my thoughts. I chuckled, doing a quick curtsy before pulling him off stage. We paid and left the restaurant, heading back to the cottage.

  My lips turned down but I quickly pasted a smile on my face. Erik hadn’t done anything wrong. My jealousy was stupid. Of course he’d seen other women; it wasn’t like he’d been waiting around for me to show up. Still, some strange possessive part of me wanted to make him forget all the others that came before me. To be the only one he wanted.

  Was that how they’d feel trying to share me? It had to be. If I couldn’t manage one date without this annoying emotion eating away at me, how would they? As great as the idea sounded, it wasn’t going to work. Especially with Bron. He’d been pretty clear he wanted to be next, pushing Corban aside and forcing his way in. Not to mention I hadn’t minded that he did it. I wanted him to be next. How was that fair?

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Huh?”

  Erik studied my frown.

  “Oh, nothing. I’m overthinking work.”

  He stopped walking, turning and giving me a look. “You’re a horrible liar.”

  Not wanting to explain the screwed-up thoughts in my head, I went to him, lifting up on my toes and kissed him. His eyes widened before sliding closed, his fingers finding my waist. I pulled back before it got too heated, resting my head against his chest.

  “Thanks for the dance.”

  His throat bobbed. “You’re welcome.”

  Grabbing his hand and lacing my fingers with his, I started toward home, smiling over at him when I caught him giving me strange looks.

  How in the goddess-cursed sea was I going to make it through four more dates?

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  A few days later a guardsman delivered the details for a new mark. After thanking him, I took the papers inside and sat at the kitchen table. Sloan was making a late breakfast and he brought over a mug of mint tea, placing it away from the papers.

  “New job?”

  “Yeah.”

  He picked up the paper I’d been looking at, earning a scowl from me. Instead of saying something, I took a sip of my tea, patiently waiting for him to finish. The mint rolled over my tongue, soothing and warm.

  “She’s so young.”

  I shrugged. “A lot of them are. This one seems strange, though. The Queen of the Blue Waters offered a lot of coin to bring her in, but from the description, the girl sounds like she’s from the Green Waters.”

  Sloan gave me the paper, going to turn the eggs. “Why is that strange?”

  “Well, for one thing, if she’s from the Green Waters any punishment should be delivered by the queen there, not the Blue Water Queen.”

  “Mermaids. They’re so strange.”

  I scrunched my nose. “Why do you say that?”

  “They have legs and a tail? Being able to do magic is one thing, but transforming from a fish to a person is just weird.”

  “They aren’t fish, though. They’re merpeople.”

  “If it looks like a fish, smells like a fish, and tastes like a fish, it’s a fish,” Erik chirped, smirking at the two of us when we jumped. Neither of us had noticed him sitting on the couch in the living room.

  “And how do you know what they taste like?” I asked, imagining Sloan frying a cut-up merperson.

  Sloan coughed, covering his laugh. Erik raised his brow at me.

  “It would be easier if I just show you how I know.” />
  Fire burned my cheeks. Goddess, I’d walked right into that one. What a stupid question.

  “Stop, you’re embarrassing Winter,” Sloan mock-scolded Erik.

  “I kind of like it when she blushes,” Erik replied.

  “Red does flatter her complexion,” Sloan said, as though they were discussing an outfit or lipstick.

  “You guys are obnoxious,” I said, focusing my attention on the file. The mark had brown skin, dark hair, green eyes, and green magic. Her name was Ezmeralda—or Ezme for short. Twenty. Nowhere did it say what she’d done. Just that the queen wanted her and was willing to pay a small fortune for her.

  Seeing as how Flynn had screwed up the last job, I decided to keep this one for myself. Plus, I wanted to try and figure out why she was wanted. I didn’t feel right bringing in a mark when I had no idea what they’d done wrong. In fact, I was surprised they’d even issued the bounty without the justification. Interesting. Very interesting indeed.

  I gathered the papers, making room for breakfast. The other men joined me at the table, Bron taking the seat to my right and Corban the one on my left. Erik didn’t seem bothered by that and took the seat next to Bron. Shawn came to the table, his auburn hair still wet from the shower he’d taken after he returned from his week-long trip this morning. Sloan, Noah, and Kace all sat down as well.

  “Tonight.”

  Mid-bite I glanced up at Bron. “Tonight?”

  He nodded.

  “Okay.” The eggs were delicious but I couldn’t give them my full appreciation because all I could think about was my date with Bron. I was equal parts excited and terrified. He’d been so intense lately.

  “I thought you were with Erik.” The look of disgust on Kace’s face made me want to run and hide. We hadn’t fought for a few days and I’d hoped the worst had passed.

  Noah cleared his throat, setting down his fork. “We’ve made an arrangement.”

  Sloan’s twin Shawn looked around the table. “We? What, like you all are going to date her at the same time?” He laughed, glancing around the table. When no one else laughed he frowned. “You can’t be serious. I’ve only been gone for a week. What’s going on?”

  I slid down in my seat, wanting to disappear. Shawn obviously didn’t like the idea any more than Kace. He’d always been nicer to me than Kace. Since he was Sloan’s twin, I had kind of hoped the whole dating thing wouldn’t bother him.

  “Those two are never going to share.” Kace pointed at Bron and Corban. “Do you really want to be the reason they fight?”

  “No. Listen, this wasn’t my idea.”

  “Then why are you going along with it?” He narrowed his eyes and leaned forward.

  My temper roared to life. “What the hell is your problem? What if I want to date them all? If they agreed to it, why are you stirring shit up?”

  “I’m not stirring shit up. I’m looking out for my family.” He gave me a pointed look, letting me know I wasn’t a part of it.

  My chair scraped across the floor when I stood up and placed my hands on the table.

  “Don’t be such a dick. They’re big boys. They can make their own decisions, and if they decide they all want to fuck me, you can just sit here and listen to it because I’ll be damned if I let you keep me from that.”

  He scoffed. “You’re disgusting.”

  Bron stood up, walking toward him. Erik stopped him before he got far.

  “Goddess above, Kace. Shut the fuck up.” Sloan glared at him.

  “You really want to be with her that bad?” Shawn asked, gazing at his brother in confusion.

  “I’m willing to see what happens,” Sloan said, still staring down his nose at Kace.

  Corban and Noah exchanged weary glances; the air was thick with tension. Bron crossed his arms, his fingers clenched into fists.

  Shawn looked over at Kace. “I’m not going to be an asshole to her just because they’ve agreed to do this. It is stupid,” he said, looking at all of us. “Really, really stupid, but if you all want to try it, go ahead. Just don’t come crying to us when this relationship implodes.”

  “It won’t,” Corban said through gritted teeth.

  Shawn laughed. “Whatever, man. Winter, I’m sorry Kace is an asshole. I hope you understand why we aren’t happy about this.” He pushed away from the table, leaving the house.

  Kace met Bron’s gaze head on, unperturbed by the violence radiating off of him.

  “Are you going to fight me over her?” Kace nodded at me with an angry sneer.

  “You should leave,” Bron said.

  Oh shit. I tried to hide my smug smile. When they all looked at me, I scowled.

  “Me?” I asked, shaking my head. “Whatever. Screw you guys.” I waved them off, heading out the front door.

  “Winter.”

  The sound of the door slamming drowned out whatever else he had said. My hands shook in anger. He’d asked me to leave. Me. I hadn’t even started the fight. Maybe I’d said some things to Kace that I shouldn’t have, but why the hell did I have to leave? The cottage was my home as much as it was Kace’s. My feet slammed into the ground, leading me deep into the forest.

  He wanted me to leave?

  Fine. I’d leave.

  After I wandered around the forest for a few hours, I decided not to sleep under the stars. Forest City had plenty of inns. Walking through the shops didn’t make me feel better. I’d just reached an inn that had a few rooms carved into the massive tree trunks when I saw Bron enter the market. He glanced around. My pulse jumped when his eyes landed on me.

  The attendant, a pretty blond woman, gave me a surprised look when I threw down some coins on the desk.

  “I need a room.”

  “Okay,” she said in a cheery voice, counting the coins slower than necessary. “What brings you to Forest City?”

  “Can I just get a room please?” My fingers tapped on the wooden desktop. The hairs on my neck raised as he neared.

  The attendant’s lips tipped down. “Room 4.”

  I snatched the key from her hand, forcing myself to walk around the counter and to the fourth room.

  “Excuse me, sir?” the attendant’s chirpy voice called out.

  My heart raced as I slipped the key into the lock, turning it and rushing inside. A strong hand appeared, stopping the door before I could close it. My belly flipped. Bron’s gaze seared my skin.

  “Hi.” My voice was shaking.

  He came into the room, closing the door on the blond woman’s worried face.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked, coming closer.

  I stepped back, crossing my arms over my chest. “You asked me to leave.” The anger in my voice gave him pause.

  “That isn’t what I meant.” He reached for me, fingers falling short when I moved away again.

  “Sure as hell seemed like that’s what you meant.”

  “You want to fight with me?” he asked, narrowing his eyes in challenge.

  A scoff passed my lips. “Do you know how mad I am? You asked me to go. After you all made a big deal about wanting to be with me. What the hell do you want?”

  He stalked toward me, backing me up against the wall. He placed his hands on either side of my head and leaned into my space. Our bodies were mere inches apart. My traitorous stomach fluttered in anticipation.

  “I’m not going to fight with you.” His breath brushed over my skin.

  “Too late,” I replied, moving my face closer to his. “I’m already mad.”

  His eyes dropped to my lips. “I can change that.”

  Our lips touched in a gentle caress at first. Then he pushed his body against mine, pinning me to the wall. His mouth worked against mine, demanding everything I had to give. His hands pulled my legs up, wrapping them around his strong waist.

  He held me up, carrying me over to the bed which creaked when he dropped me back onto the mattress, ripping his shirt off before he climbed over me. He kissed me again, causing heat to pool between my legs
.

  “Take your shirt off.”

  I glared at him. “No.” I hadn’t forgotten my ire just yet.

  His hands picked up the hem of my top, fingers curling into the material. The fabric ripped when he yanked on it. A gasp—halfway between startled and excited—escaped me. He gazed at my body, tracing the curves with his hands before sliding the sleeves’ straps down my arms. My thighs clenched when he began to pull off my shorts. I lifted my hips to help. Goddess, I wanted him so bad.

  He stood up and stripped his pants off, smirking at me watching him. “Still mad?”

  “Yes.”

  “Let me see what I can do about that.” He dropped to his knees. Using his thumb, he teased me, swirling over my clit before bringing his mouth to me. I gasped. My back arched and my body shuddered as he built a mountain of sensations with his tongue and thumb. Two fingers pushed inside of me.

  “Bron,” I said, pulling on his arm. Was I really going to let him distract me with sex? He hummed, opening his eyes to look at me. Goddess above. Fuck it. He could distract me with sex all day long. I pulled on his arm again, because while I enjoyed what he was doing, I needed more.

  He climbed back over me, covering my body with his. His erection pressed against me, sending a shiver of delight down my spine.

  “I’m sorry.” He kissed me softly, slowly. Every stroke of his tongue further dismantled my anger.

  My hand splayed on his chest, pushing him off of me. His eyes clouded in confusion but he rolled to the side.

  “Lie down,” I said.

  Using his arms, he scooted to the top of the bed, lying on his back. I unclasped my bra, dropping it to the floor before crawling on the bed. My legs parted as I straddled him, not yet settling my hips over him.

  “Don’t tell me to leave ever again.”

  His cock was hard and warm in my hand as I guided him inside of me. Bron watched as he filled me, eyes closing when I rocked my hips. I stopped moving.

  “Look at me.”

  His eyes snapped open, drinking every inch of me in as I began to ride him. My nipples hardened when he reached up to caress my breasts, circling each peak before pinching them. Then his left hand found my thigh while the thumb on his right circled my clit, pressing against it as I increased my rhythm. He groaned, hips pushing up when I swirled mine.