by Raven Dark
“Yeah.”
“Love you, Brother.” They clapped each other on the backs.
“You too.”
Hawk raked his hand through his dark hair, his chest heaving. “I’m going for a swim.” He looked around until his eyes settled on me, taking in Sheriff beside me. I stood up when he and Pretty Boy strode toward me. Hawk wiped blood from his knuckles. I didn’t realize my mouth was hanging open until he put his hand under my chin and pushed it up.
“Close your mouth, Kitten.” His yellow eyes sparkled. “You and I will continue what we were doing later.” Hawk claimed my mouth with his, his palm on my nape. As soon as he broke the kiss, he touched my chin, gave Sheriff and Pretty Boy a wave and then vanished into the camp.
I looked between Sheriff and Pretty Boy, flabbergasted. “Masters, did I miss something? What just happened?” I didn’t know which one of them the question was for.
Sheriff smirked without answering me. He finished lacing his other boot and started gathering up his things.
“I don’t understand,” I said. “What did I just watch?”
Pretty Boy shrugged. “Men being men.”
“Business being settled,” Sheriff added with a nod.
“You could have killed each other,” I told Pretty Boy dryly.
“Yes,” he said, looking delighted.
I shook my head, dazed. Both of my masters only grinned. I looked wide-eyed at Sheriff. “You knew, Master. You know how it would turn out. That they would be all right.”
He touched me on the nose and winked. “That’s why they call me the General, sweetheart.”
I sighed. “You could have told me, Master.”
“No way. It was too much fun watching you squirm.”
“This is not how men settle matters in the J’nai,” I grumbled.
“But it is how disputes are settled in an MC.” Sheriff clapped Pretty Boy on the shoulder and then left.
“Come here, you.” Pretty Boy grabbed my waist and hoisted me onto his hips as if I weighed nothing.
I squealed and wrapped my arms around him. I couldn’t bring myself to look at him, so when he spun me around, I held him close and buried my head in his chest.
Pretty Boy squeezed my ass cheeks, pressing me against him. He buried his nose in my hair and inhaled deep. “I want you so fucking bad right now, Princess.”
The primitive hunger in his voice went right to my soul, cutting with the pain I heard there even as it tightened my muscles.
It hurt my heart to see Pretty Boy and Hawk in so much pain, hurting each other. I hoped to the Maker the issue between them was as resolved as it seemed. They could have killed each other. How much damage had they done to one another?
Lifting my head, I looked into my master’s face, cradling it with my palms. His skin was hot to the touch and slicked with sweat.
“Oh, Master. We need to get you cleaned up.” I gently stroked his bruised cheeks, his split lip. “Your lip is bleeding. You might need stitches. Let’s go see Doc first.”
“Fuck Doc, I’m fine.” He nipped my lip and the pain went right between my legs. “Let’s get out of here. Unless you want me to fuck you right here.”
“At least let me clean you up first. Let’s go to the pond, Master.”
Without a word, he hefted me over his shoulder like a savage and carried me toward the pond. Clearly he had a lot more in mind than getting cleaned up.
What was I going to do with this man?
* * *
Pretty Boy had set me down near the pond and seated himself on the same rock where Sheriff had me bathe him the previous night. Hawk had left the area before we’d arrived. The previously darkened pond looked so different now in the bright afternoon sun. The water glistened, ripples twinkling under the sun’s rays, trees swaying in the light, warm breeze. By the position of the sun, I guessed it was late afternoon.
Kneeling at Pretty Boy’s feet, I tore off a piece of my frock and dabbed his lip, wiping away the blood. The blood stained the pristine white cloth crimson.
Pretty Boy watched me work, tracing my mouth with his fingers. His eyes—even though one was almost swollen shut—were pale pools of suppressed pain that made me long to let him lose himself in me however he had to. The hunger there, banked but no less primitive, made my muscles tighten deliciously. I forced myself to focus on cleaning his wounds.
“What am I going to do with you two, Master?” I wiped away the blood from a cut above his eye. At least it didn’t look like he needed stitches.
“I was such an asshole back there,” he murmured. One of his hands brushed a lock of my black hair over my shoulder. “I fucked up.”
I couldn’t help a shaky smile. “Are you wanting me to disagree with you, Master?”
He tickled me under my chin. “I’m serious, Princess.” He sobered. “You shouldn’t have had to see me like that.”
Unsure what to say, I bit my lip. “Does this mean you and Hawk are okay now?”
He looked out at the water, fine lines crinkling the corners of his eyes. Some of that rare hardness I occasionally saw in him was back; he looked tired. Older, somehow.
“Yeah, we’re good. We’re Brothers. Nothing’s going to change that.”
He hesitated, looking like he wanted to say more. I put my hands on his knees.
“What is it?”
He shrugged, seeming to consider his words. “Hawk was right.” He looked at me at last. “That fight. Everything that led up to it. It wasn’t just about you, or his behavior with you. Too much has happened on this damn trip. I don’t do well with all this emotional crap. Don’t know how to handle it sometimes, you know?”
His fingers traced my lips once more, then the line of my chin, my jaw. His eyes looked so deeply into mine, it was like he was trying to see into my soul.
“I still can’t believe I almost lost you back in the Grotto. You’re the brightest light in my life right now, Setora.” Emotion turned his voice throaty, making my chest tighten.
I’d never heard him like this before. I could feel the intensity in him, like a dam about to break.
“And I almost lost you again two nights ago.” His fingers took my chin. “I can’t believe you offered yourself up to that fucker Saketh. Your body belongs to me.”
“I know. It always will.”
He heaved a sigh, my words seeming to calm him. “This fucking trip. I just want to get this whole Delta thing over with. Want us to go home, for the five of us to just be together. Safe.” He shook his head. “I can’t do it, Princess.”
“Can’t do what, Master?” My heart bled at the anguish I saw in his eyes.
“I don’t think I could take it if Steel didn’t make it.” His voice was low and hoarse, and he turned his head away.
“Oh, my Master.” I took his face in my hands again, turning it until his eyes found mine. “You haven’t heard.”
He shook his head, letting me know he didn’t understand.
“Steel’s going to be okay. Doc figured out what’s wrong with him. He’s working on a tonic right now.”
His pale brows went up. “What?”
I nodded, stroking his cheeks, smoothing out the worry lines on his forehead. “It’ll take a little time, but he’s going to be okay soon. You’ll see.”
Pretty Boy’s eyes closed. His chest heaved. He flopped back on the rock and scrubbed his face with his palms, letting out a shaky laugh, but it sounded off-key and broken.
“Master?” I leaned over him, taking his hands away from his face. Sitting up, he shook himself, wiping his eyes quickly and lowering his chin to his chest. When I lifted his chin, it took effort not to let my jaw drop. Tears streaked his face.
“Oh, man. I. Wow.” His shoulders shook. Then he looked up and his face split into a huge smile. “Get up here, gorgeous.” He hauled me up onto the rock, crushing me to him. I squealed when he rolled over and sent us both to the ground, laughing.
“Master!” I giggled.
He chuckle
d wickedly into my neck, covering me with his weight. Kissing every part of me he could reach, my cheeks, my neck, my lips. His whiskers scraped my face, making me giggle more. His long hair covered me in a curtain that tickled my skin.
Rocks and loose debris scraped my legs and back, but I didn’t care. I squirmed against him, emotions welling up in me so strong my eyes watered.
Pretty Boy got to his feet and hauled me up with him. “All right, enough of this nursemaid shit.” He threw me over his shoulder with a growl and rushed toward the water.
“Master, your clothes! You’re still dressed!”
“Don’t care.” He waded into the pond, clothes and boots and all, splashing his way in until the water was up to his waist. I kicked and pounded at his back until he dove into the water with me.
The rush of cold water made me half laugh, half cry out. He cackled.
Maker, he was like a kid. The good news about Steel stripped away all the pain and sadness from him. Laughing, I tried to swim away from him, but he grabbed my arms and pulled me against him.
Unable to resist this playful side of him, I tried to swim away again, headed for the shore. He must have let me get away, or I doubted I’d have accomplished it.
“Hey! Where do you think you’re going?” But the smile I heard in his voice took the threat out of his words. Water splashed behind me.
Pretty Boy caught me just as I reached the edge of the shore. We tumbled to the ground, me on my stomach, his body covering me with his weight. His hands rushed down my sides to my hips, pulling my frock up. My laughter faded to panting, every ounce of my blood suddenly on fire despite the coolness of the water.
“I’m never letting you get away from me again.” His voice was wild and gruff in my ear, his rough palms pushing my frock to my waist.
“I don’t want to get away, Master,” I whispered. I arched my hips for him, letting him grind against my sex.
The hard ridge of his cock slid against my core, through his leather pants. Pretty Boy gripped my hips and worked himself against me, making a delicious growling sound in his throat.
“Fuck, I missed you, woman,” he rasped in my ear. “I’ve been wanting to pound into you ever since we left the Grotto. And then last night. Your ass getting whipped, taking our punishment. Such an eager girl.”
“Yes, Master. Yes.” I clawed at the sand.
Two of his fingers stroked my already slick folds. I groaned and rutted against them.
“You’re already soaked. Gorgeous pussy is hungry for my cock, isn’t it?” He sucked on the side of my neck, stealing the words from me.
All I could do was pant.
“I asked you a question, Princess.” His tongue darted in and around my ear while his fingers teased my core, his other hand squeezing my hip. “Tell me how much you want my cock.”
My eyes slid closed as his slow strokes took me higher. “I want your cock so much, Master.” I meant every word.
Pretty Boy smiled against my ear. There was a click and the soft sound of a zipper being pulled down. The head of his cock found my center, and my legs spread of their own accord, opening me up to him.
He entered me in one smooth, rough, thrust. I clenched around him, he hummed in approval, and drove in and out. “The only men I want to hear you offer yourself to are us Four.” His teeth grazed my shoulder.
“Yes. Yes, Master. Always.”
He gripped my hair, tugging just hard enough to imply control. “I’m not losing you, Setora. I’ll kill any man who gets close to you who isn’t one of the Four. You got that?”
The words made him sound dark, dangerous, possessive, but I could hear so much more in that promise. So much emotion, so much longing.
“Yes, Master. I’m not going anywhere.”
“Promise,” he demanded, pushing himself so deep I felt him all the way to my soul. His grip on my hair shifted to my shoulder, squeezing as if he thought if he didn’t hold onto me with everything he had, I’d vanish into nothing. “Promise me you’ll never, ever leave me, woman.”
Oh, Maker’s mercy, I’d never heard such vulnerability in a man.
“If I lost you, I’d die. Promise me.”
“I promise, Master. I promise.”
He moaned into my neck and started hammering me fast and hard, and suddenly we weren’t just fucking. We were binding ourselves to each other in a way physical oneness could never accomplish alone.
I loved this side of him. His pain, his tears, his desires; he’d shared with me a vulnerability I knew he’d never show in front of the other men, not even Steel. Here and now, I felt more connected to Pretty Boy than I ever had. I understood him like I never had before. He wasn’t just the crazy wildcard who courted danger more than the others. He was a man who hid his pain, so much pain, behind a smile and a laugh and an off-the-wall joke. And in this moment, he unleashed his pain through me, letting his fears and loss burn away to ash.
I was a part of him, and he was a part of me, and I realized, if I lost him, a part of me would die as well. In this moment, my heart was his as much as it was Hawk’s and Steel’s.
Pretty Boy pounded faster. I bucked against him, clawing at the sand and taking everything he gave. Loving everything he gave me.
“My Setora.” Voice cracking with emotion, he turned my chin and devoured my mouth. I moaned into the kiss, losing myself in him.
Higher and higher we spiraled, fucking wildly. My throaty cries filled the air, greedy and wanton. He grunted and cursed, breathless, his hands gripping mine in the dirt.
The adoration in his voice was as much an aphrodisiac as anything else.
“Master! Master, yes, oh, yes!”
I came hard, clenching around him and milking his cock, screaming as white lights exploded across my eyes. Pretty Boy’s released my hands and gripped my hips almost painfully, making me come again. He thrust into me a handful of times and roared.
For a long moment, we lay there clinging to each other and panting. Pretty Boy’s chest expanded and contracted harshly against my back. He buried his face in my neck while his fingers twined with mine.
At last he rolled over, splayed out on his back and breathing heavily beside me. His low, satisfied moan went all the way to my toes. I rolled over, too, and laid myself across him, thrilled when he closed his arms around me. His palm slipped down to my ass, cupping it with warm possession, like it was made for him.
“You’re going to be all covered in dirt, Master,” I whispered into his chest, nuzzling my cheek against him.
“Don’t care.” He held me tighter.
“You’re all soggy and wet, Master.”
“Don’t care.”
“I don’t either, then.” I lifted my head, and his fingers threaded through my hair. Our mouths mated slowly, tongues swirling and licking in a languid dance.
After a long moment, I looked into his eyes and stroked his face. “You want to go see Steel?”
“Not yet.”
“Why not, Master?”
“Because if I stand up right now, I’ll fall down.”
For some reason, the admission had me giggling into his chest. I snuggled into him and relaxed, content to give him the time he needed to get the feeling back in his legs. If I were honest, I likely wouldn’t have been able to make it back to camp without being carried. Lethargy buzzed in my limbs, my body deliciously spent.
I gazed down at him, loving the pure, savage beauty of him. He was so gorgeous, sometimes it almost hurt to look at him.
It hit me then, a wave of emotion I was all too familiar with. I didn’t just feel connected to him. I loved this man. I loved him in a way that felt at once the same as what I felt for Steel and Hawk, and yet completely different, though I couldn’t have said why it was either one. I loved him because he’d opened himself to me, exposing a part of himself no one was allowed to see. A part of him that, as a man of the Dark Legion, he couldn’t risk showing anyone else.
“What is it?” His perfect blue eyes searched
mine.
My heart skipped a beat. Did he see the way I felt for him? Foreboding trapped the words in my throat. The last time I’d gotten too close to him, he’d pulled away, putting up a wall between us. Pretty Boy wasn’t the same man he’d been back then, when I’d first come to the Grotto, but still. I couldn’t bring myself to say the words.
“Nothing, Master. You’re just so beautiful.” I traced his square jaw with my fingers, pushing loose blond hair back from where the moisture plastered it to his cheek.
“You have good taste.”
I laughed and kissed him long on the lips. He moaned and rolled over with me, laying me across the sand under him.
We didn’t leave the pond for a long time. Every moment we spent alone together, my heart swelled with the love for him. Love for him I hoped someday I’d be able to express, not just with my actions, but in a way he could hear.
Like him, I’d had enough loss on this trip for a lifetime.
Chapter 9
Out of the Woods
The full bowl of broth flew across the infirmary and hit the wall of the tree with a clatter and a splat.
“If I have to eat anymore of this slop,” Steel growled, “I’ll put a hole through something. Someone get me some real food.”
A full day had passed since Doc had given Steel his first dose of the botricillin. Most of the camp were eating lunch at the campfire, and while Steel had been conscious since that morning, he was still too weak to do much other than nap on and off. Except for one walk around the camp with me, Doc didn’t let him leave his infirmary bed, a fact that was going over with him just about as well as the food.
I suppressed the urge to roll my eyes at my master. Instead, I stood up from the crate I’d been sitting on and cleaned up the mess he’d made. At least it was good to see he was slowly getting back to himself again.
“Master, you can’t eat solid foods yet. It’ll make you sick.”
Before Steel could rebuff me, Doc came into the tree. He raised a brow at the broth splattered across the trunk wall and the floor. I gave him a helpless shrug.