Authors: Amber Kell
Gage didn’t remember moving but Lance’s head made a satisfying thud as it hit the centre fence post. “If you ever touch him or even make him uncomfortable, I will tie your guts into a bow and present you to the vampires myself. Kaden is mine and Russ’—not for general consumption, not for drooling over and definitely not for anyone’s bed but mine.”
Throwing back his head, Gage let out a roar of fury, ensuring the entire camp heard his wrath.
“Whoa!” Thickly muscled arms wrapped around him from behind. Only the familiar scent of his mate stopped Gage from decimating the intruder. “Let him go, Gage. Remember Lance—we like him. He’s on our side.”
“He wanted to touch our mate!” Gage growled.
There was a long pause and Russ’ grip became painfully tight. “He’s learned the error of his ways, though, hasn’t he?” Russ’ tone indicated Lance’s answer had better be in the affirmative.
“Yes, sirs. I-I won’t touch Kaden.”
“Good.” Russ moved backwards, taking Gage with him. “Let him go, Gage. I’m sure Lance wants to go spread the word about Kaden.”
“Oh yes, definitely,” Lance agreed nodding vigorously.
“Tell them Kaden is ours. Russ’ fated mate. My bond mate. Ours.”
“A triad!” Lance’s face went from terror to absolute joy. “I haven’t heard of a triad in centuries. Please, Alpha, let me go. I’ll spread the news.” The scent of happiness overwhelmed the previous stench of fear.
“Very well,” Gage released Lance, who immediately ran outside—Gage suspected—mainly to escape his psychotic alpha.
Gage began to tremble as he realised if Russ hadn’t interfered, he would’ve killed one of his best people and closest friends. “What’s happening to me?” he asked, shaking.
“You haven’t had sex with Kaden so you’re on edge,” Russ explained. “You can feel his mating ties pulling at you even though you technically aren’t his direct mate.”
“But I didn’t get this way with you, and you
are
my mate,” Gage argued. How could he feel so extremely differently about Kaden but just as possessively?
“Because you know I can take care of myself.” Russ turned Gage around to face him. “Kaden and I are nothing alike. You can trust me to take care of anything that comes my way. Kaden isn’t like that. He’s not as physically strong and he has a sweeter temperament. You can’t trust others not to take advantage of him like you can me.”
“So I’m a spineless, muscle-less wimp?” Kaden’s hurt tone cut through the air like a knife.
Chapter Four
Kaden’s heart ached at hearing the description Russ had for him. He’d thought the other man liked him. Apparently Russ didn’t feel the same attraction Kaden had towards him. Gage’s appalled expression only healed a few of the painful cuts Russ’ remarks caused.
The alpha moved away from Russ and towards Kaden. He considered leaving for a moment but when Gage held out his arms, Kaden slid into them and wrapped his arms around his mate’s waist.
“He didn’t mean it like that, sweet boy. What are you doing out of bed?”
Kaden rubbed his face against the open spot on Gage’s neck, marking his scent on the man. Russ was going to kill him for rubbing off on his mate but Kaden didn’t care. He wanted to wallow in Gage’s natural musk. He wondered how far Russ would let Kaden go with Gage. Could he persuade the alpha to fuck him before Russ lost control? “I heard your roar. I wanted to make sure you were all right.”
His sentence didn’t encompass the pulse-pounding fear that something had happened to Gage. An alpha didn’t lose control without a reason.
“One of my betas offered to give you room in his tent. I was explaining what a poor idea that was.” Gage’s voice deepened and his grip tightened slightly around Kaden.
“Ahh.” Now he knew why the beta leaving the tent had given him such a wide berth. Stupidly pleased, Kaden let out a sigh against Gage’s chest. The shiver his breath caused made him smile. Even more pleasing was the hardness he brushed against. If the long, wide ridge rubbing across his erection was any indication, Gage had nothing to be ashamed of.
Feeling daring, Kaden lapped at Gage’s throat. A thrill of victory went through him at the low moan and the head tilt Gage gave, allowing Kaden better access. To have an alpha give permission to touch his throat meant he trusted you.
Kaden scraped his teeth across the tender flesh, causing a groan to go through Gage. “If you want to mark me, little pup, don’t be shy.”
Appalled at his actions, Kaden jumped back. How could he dare to leave signs on the alpha while his mate stood by? He stumbled on a lump in the tent’s floor and would’ve fallen had Russ not caught him. Kaden flushed with humiliation.
“Easy, baby.” Russ’ deep voice rumbled in his chest and vibrated Kaden’s back.
“I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to mark your mate.” Kaden began to shake. Fear took hold of him with sharp wolf teeth and he couldn’t snap out of the terror freezing his blood.
“Hey…” Russ wrapped his arms tighter around Kaden and instead of the unease he expected to feel, his nerves settled down immediately. “Breathe, babe. Take long deep breaths.”
Kaden blushed deeper until he could all but feel the heat emanating from his cheeks. This could only reinforce Russ’ poor impression of him. Maybe his family was right and Kaden didn’t belong in a pack.
He tried to pull away from the beta but Russ held on tighter. “I didn’t say you could go.”
“I don’t need your permission,” Kaden snapped. Hell, his emotions were all over the place. Shocked at his behaviour, Kaden cleared his throat. “I’m sorry.”
Russ ran his long fingers through Kaden’s hair, massaging his scalp. “We need to talk. Let’s go back to our tent and discuss the situation.”
“Um, okay. I really should go check in with the kitchen, though.” Guilt ate at Kaden that he hadn’t checked on the condition of the kitchen tent or even tried to contact any of his co-workers. Granted he didn’t know many of them, but he did know Denel and Conley.
“You can’t even stand on your own very well. I think a visit to the kitchen tent can wait a bit longer,” Gage said.
“Yes, Alpha.”
Kaden let out a yelp when Russ swept Kaden off his feet and carried him out of the tent.
“I did walk here, you know. I can walk back.” Kaden complained half-heartedly. He would never admit he liked being carried like a storybook princess.
“Let Russ carry you. It’ll make him feel big and manly. It’s not like he can carry me around,” Gage said dryly.
Kaden stifled a laugh at the thought of Russ carrying around the big, buff alpha.
“I can lift you,” Russ scoffed.
“I didn’t say you couldn’t lift me,” Gage replied. “I said you can’t carry me around…because I wouldn’t let you.”
“Hmm, good point. I doubt the majority of the camp would want to see that,” Russ agreed.
All three men laughed at the idea.
Kaden gingerly laid his head on Russ’ chest, not really sure what else to do. If he held himself stiffly away from the beta, he would make it more difficult to be carried.
“Relax, babe, you’ll be fine,” Russ insisted.
When they reached the alpha’s tent, instead of putting Kaden down in a chair, Russ set him back on the bed.
“What?”
“Shh, pup. We need to talk.” Gage slid onto the bed on Kaden’s left and Russ snuggled up to his right. In between two walls of hot man, Kaden had no complaints. His cock hardened at the smell of warm flesh and desire.
Kaden’s mouth watered. Maybe if the conversation didn’t go well, he could at least suck one of them down. Gage’s erection, clearly outlined by his jeans, drew Kaden’s eye. He licked his lips as he imagined how the alpha would taste.
“Are you listening to me?” Gage demanded.
“No,” Kaden confessed.
Gage gave a cute growl. “Why not?”
“I’m concentrating on how your cock might taste.” Really, the man needed to understand priorities. Surely his wounds were healed enough by now.
Russ groaned. “You’re killing me, Kaden.”
“Sorry…?” Kaden abruptly realised that Russ might not like Kaden talking about sucking Gage down.
Before he could offer a more sincere apology, Russ gripped Kaden’s head and turned him for a kiss.
Oh. Wet. Hot. Need. More.
Kaden’s inner voice babbled out his desire. Despite his tough appearance, Russ brushed his silky soft lips lighter than a butterfly across Kaden’s mouth.
“Damn, that’s hot.” Gage’s voice jolted Kaden out of his lustful fog.
“Oh crap!” Kaden turned to meet Gage’s eyes then looked quickly to the side and bared his neck. “Maybe my family had it right. I’m not meant for pack life. I’m only in my second day here, and I’ve already interfered with a mating.” He gave a bitter laugh. “Father always said my face would get me into trouble one day.”
His manly father hadn’t known what to do when his youngest boy turned out to be prettier than his three girls. After trying to get Kaden involved in every sport imaginable, he’d eventually given up and let Kaden spend time cooking with his grandmother.
“You’re not in trouble. I want you to do whatever you want with Gage.” Russ’ tender expression tied Kaden into knots. “We are a triad. I am Gage’s mate, Gage is your mate, and you are mine. I’m hoping if we all have sex together it will enforce the bonds between the three of us. It would kill me if you couldn’t stand my touch.”
“A triad?” Kaden shifted his gaze back and forth between Russ and Gage, trying to decide if they were putting him on. “I thought those were a fantasy. I didn’t think anyone actually had a triad.” The stories his grandmother had told Kaden about famous triads were fanciful and probably didn’t have a shred of proof. How could three souls unite when everyone knew souls were broken into twos?
“Sometimes when souls are separated they aren’t matched exactly right,” Gage said.
“So you both think I’m the third in your triad?” Hope fluttered through him like a baby bird trying to rise.
They both nodded.
Kaden’s heart pounded as he considered the ramifications. “Not everyone is going to believe you. Some people might think I’m trying to break you two up.”
“Don’t worry about them. I’ll take care of anyone who tries to speak ill of you or turn anyone against you. You belong to us and as such, are above censure.” Gage sounded so very alpha in that moment, Kaden laughed.
“Maybe in your perfect alpha world people won’t criticise, but I’m much lower on the power totem. I’ll get some flak,” Kaden argued. Those higher up in the wolf hierarchy often didn’t understand how life among the under wolves—anyone beneath a beta’s level—was a completely different situation.
Gage kissed Kaden’s forehead, sending scorching flames of desire down his body. A non-sexual forehead kiss shouldn’t have him ready to hump Gage’s leg. Another sign they were mates. The first sexual heat of new mates was riding Kaden hard.
“Touch me, please!” he whimpered.
Russ unbuttoned Kaden’s jeans and eased the zipper down. “I’m going to let Gage touch you first but I have to have a hand on you when he does. My wolf isn’t quite ready to let him have you alone, and I don’t want to accidentally kill Gage because he’s marking my mate.”
Kaden nodded his understanding even as inside he begged and pleaded Gage to touch him. He was rather proud of the fact he hadn’t resorted to mindless babble quite yet.
While Russ removed Kaden’s clothes, Gage familiarised himself with Kaden’s body. “For a tiny thing, you’re well endowed.” Gage wrapped his big hand around Kaden’s cock and Kaden forgot to take offence at the ‘tiny’ comment. Just because both of the men in bed with him were enormous, that didn’t make Kaden small.
“Harder!” he groaned. Kaden pumped his hips, trying to fuck himself against Gage’s grip.
“Oh, no you don’t.” Gage released his hold on Kaden’s shaft.
He couldn’t prevent the whimper tearing through him. Russ trailed his mouth down Kaden’s neck, sending tingles of need through his body and shivers up and down his spine.
“I’m going to watch Gage fuck you first and then I’m going to suck you off so don’t come,” Russ ordered.
Kaden gasped. He clenched his teeth and tried to focus on unsexy thoughts and not come from the mere idea of Russ sucking him off.
“Now he’s going to be useless,” Gage complained. “You’d best give him his blow job first. I’ll fuck him after.”
“Are you sure?” Russ asked.
If he could’ve thought of anything other than his impending orgasm, Kaden might’ve taken offence at how the pair didn’t ask Kaden what he wanted. However, as soon as Russ swallowed him down, he didn’t have anything else to say. The world went grey and sparkly at the edges as Russ showed Kaden the amazing things he could do with his mouth. Kaden bit his lip, tasting blood.
“Hey, now”—Gage slid his thumb across Kaden’s mouth to liberate his damaged lip—“none of that. I won’t have you hurting yourself. If you want to scream go ahead. I have no problem with the entire camp knowing we’re claiming you.”
Gage might not mind, but Kaden would prefer to limit the number of sly remarks and condemning glances. No one would dare say anything to the alpha or even to the prime beta, but to a new gamma wolf the conversations wouldn’t be so nice.