Masquerade (2 page)

“If something has happened to him, I don’t think I could stand it.”

He cupped her cheeks and kissed her hard. “Nothing will happen to him, and if something does, I’ll kill whoever it is who hurt him.”

“Please come back to me safe and bring him with you.” She looked up at him with fear in her eyes. “I need you both in my life.”

Dominic nodded and stepped back. In his usual way, Dominic was shirtless and barefoot. It was cold as heck outside and yet his body ran hot so his choice of dress never changed. Tempest watched as he stripped off his jeans and began to change. It never ceased to captivate her when he or Alex shifted to their wolf. His yellow eyes met hers and she could see the human understanding there. She opened the back door and he was a blur of black as he ran into the night. He blended in with the darkness almost immediately and she lost sight of him.

There was nothing she could do but wait. The minutes seemed to tick by slower than normal, and she wished she could control her third eye and tap into the visions. Maybe it could tell her how both her mates were faring. Sitting doing nothing made her feel completely useless. The clock hit midnight and she was about ready to scream. Tempest made the decision to take their truck to go search the roads from their home to Acadia, but she heard scuffling on the back steps and without any reservation threw open the door that led to the verandah of the old plantation. Dominic stood naked and dirty and in his arms he held the very large form of Alex’s wolf. She stifled a cry when she saw the blood that matted his gorgeous coat and how very still he was.

“Oh, my God, Alex!” she cried out and stepped back so Dominic could come inside. He had a large bite wound on his shoulder but seemed to be faring much better than Alex. “Dominic, is he dead?”

“No, but he’s hurt badly,” Dominic snarled. “He managed to crawl into a hallowed out tree trunk and that’s how I found him. Those fuckers were trying to tear the log apart to get at him. I killed one and fucking went crazy on a few others. No way could have one caught him on their own; he’s so damn strong. They had to descend on him as a pack. The leader wasn’t even there. The coward.”

He was taking the stairs two at a time in long strides while she hurried to catch up. “Why isn’t he in human form?”

Dominic placed Alex gently in the middle of their shared bed. She didn’t care about the blood on the sheets. Anything could be replaced, but not Alex.

“It’s best he stays this way. In human form, he would heal slower and he could die from his injuries,” Alex explained. “We’re going to have to set his hind leg. If it heals like this he’d have a limp permanently.” It wasn’t until then that she saw the odd angle of his leg. Now, honey, like any animal, he may try to bite, so I’m going to need you to keep him calm while I do this. Hold his muzzle, whisper to him, comfort him.”

Tempest crawled up on the bed and, as if by instinct, Alex knew she was there and he lifted his head weakly to nuzzle her. She shifted as best she could to get his head in her lap without hurting him. He licked her hand gently and tears silently dripped from her eyes.

“Why would they do this to him?” she whispered and ran her hands down his tangled and dirty fur.

“They’ve probably had a spotter on us, watching us train the Acadia pack,” Dominic said. “Jesus, they jumped him like feral dogs. They were waiting for one of us to be alone. Together, we’d have killed them all.”

“We still will,” she whispered fiercely. “For what they did to him, they’re going to pay.”

“Okay, so now I’m ready to set his leg.” Dominic put his big hand on Alex’s neck. “My friend, this will hurt. Be strong, be the wolf.”

Alex growled and Tempest bent low to kiss his nose. “Don’t worry, baby, we’re here, we’ll always be here.”

Dominic was quick, but that didn’t mean her heart didn’t break when she heard Alex’s bones snap back into place. Alex didn’t make a sound, not even a whimper as they tended to his wounds as best they could. Tempest wiped the blood from his fur with a wet cloth and after about an hour Dominic sat back with a sigh.

“He’s already healing. In about thirty-six hours he’ll be good as new,” Dominic said. I’m going to move him and we can change the sheets. Then he’ll need us both.”

“How?” Tempest looked up at him.

“We belong to each other. He’ll draw from our strength and energy to heal,” he explained. “We’ll get him comfortable, then clean up and lay with him. He’ll be generating a lot of heat while he heals, so we’ll just need a light cover, trust me.”

“We need the Acadia pack to move onto our grounds until this is over,” Tempest announced.

“A vision?” Dominic asked

“No, just reality. I can’t let you or Alex get hurt again. Stands to reason they are not safe either. They need us and they need grounds that this rival pack does not know,” Tempest explained. “When Alex is healed you both make it happen or I’ll be traveling with you each and every time you go.”

“You’re too brave for your own good sometimes,” he said with a smile.

She gave him a direct stare as resolve firmed her shoulders. “No, my life is weaved together with Alex and with you. I refuse to lose either of you so if we fight, we fight together.”

He lifted Alex once more and Tempest hurriedly changed the sheets. They made sure he was resting before they both got showered and then climbed back into bed. Following Dominic’s directives, she got a light throw out of the hallway closet and covered them. Alex barely stirred but she closed her eyes and rested her hands on his fur. Soon, she felt Dominic’s hand over hers and their hands laced on his wolf body. It wasn’t just love the three of them shared. It was something so profound. She knew they would give him the strength he needed to heal. Worry and anger were turmoil in her mind and a flash of a vision came as she fell into a troubled sleep. It was so vague she tried to hold on to it but failed. All she could see was the swirl of orange and the eerie smile of a jack o’ lantern before the darkness swept the image away.

* * * *

Two days later, Tempest looked at Alex worriedly. “Maybe you should be in bed.”

“Is that an invitation?” Alex teased.

“Flirt,” she said with a smile and placed a second plate of pancakes, waffles, and steak and eggs in front of him. “Breakfast take two. Eat up so you can build back all that energy you burned.”

His appetite had been insatiable for the last two days. Tempest learned very quickly that a healing wolf burned through carbs so quickly they could become emaciated with the healing process. She kept funneling food into him—lots of medium rare steaks and of course his love of sugary sweets was met with ice cream and cookies, and sometimes a combination of both. No matter how good he looked, she was still terrified at how close they came to losing him.

“Quit looking like I’m in the grave, Tempest. I’m fine, really,” Alex said gently. He pulled her close and buried his face against her stomach. “I’m not going anywhere, not for a long time.”

“Okay,” she whispered and took a deep breath. She tapped his shoulder lightly. “Now eat and get stronger. We’re going to need you at one hundred percent.”

“So they arrive tonight and I’ve cleared the north pasture the best I could for the campers,” Dominic said as he walked through the front door and sat down. Tempest immediately put a plate in front of him. Since Alex was attacked they’d spoken to the Acadia pack leader. After some hesitation he agreed to bring his people to Cormina since they were already planning to travel there for the Halloween party in three days.

“I still think we should leave them in Acadia,” Dominic said and sliced a piece of steak to go with his eggs.

“There is no way you would get to them in time if the attack happened,” Alex pointed out. “This other pack is more vicious than normal. I had sensed that they were losing their humanity.”

“Then why would they want to destroy the Acadia pack?” Tempest asked curiously.

“It’s all males, honey. They want the men gone so they can keep the women for themselves,” Alex said. “Strengthen their lines, so to speak. Before they attacked, they pulled up in old beat up vans. They all looked to be related, snickered like hyenas, and called each other uncle and cousin. Some had some serious deformities. I think they’re inbreeding and this is their way of not dying out. Kill off the males and take over another pack.”

Tempest grimaced. “Well, that is just sick.”

“You’ve got to understand how packs worked way back. Maybe the leader thought he was keeping their blood line pure and it backfired,” Dominic said. “Either way, they are not taking over Acadia. But I’m going to keep a very close eye on you, Tempest. I’ve seen how Vernon looks at you. He covets what we have.”

“No way, the creepy guy who took over Acadia?” Tempest laughed and then sobered up when both men looked at her silently. “Eww, do you really mean it?”

“Honey, Acadia never leaves pack grounds but he agreed to bring them to a party here, just for shit and giggles?” Alex raised an eyebrow at her. “Plus, I’ve heard them talk while I train them. He thinks you’re with both of us because neither of us is man enough for you.”

“Well, that’s just gross.” Her stomach rolled. “Doesn’t he have a mate?”

Dominic shook his head. “He beds whom he chooses at Acadia. He has fathered no children because he doesn’t think any of the women are worthy of his seed. But Jack’s two daughters are his favorites.”

“And they let him touch them like that? Ew.” Tempest shuddered. “The Acadia pack is caught between a rock and hard place it seems.”

“If he ever thinks about touching you, I will kill him.” Alex said it so mildly she almost thought it was a joke until she saw his eyes change to the wolf for a brief second.

Dominic glanced at Alex and nodded. The simple movement of agreement was subtle but spoke volumes. Alex was always the voice of reason and sometimes she forgot his caring and sweet nature hid a beast beneath the surface. He may have been injured, but she heard him and Dominic talking when they thought she was downstairs or busy somewhere else in the plantation house. He did more damage to them than they did to him, that was certain.

“Well, you don’t have to worry. I don’t want anyone but you two,” she said with stubborn assurance.

“Sometimes people covet someone so much they will take a mate by force,” Dominic said. “And if he does, we’ll rip him apart.”

“Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that,” Tempest murmured.

Alex stood and put his empty plate in the sink and turned with a devilish grin on his face. “We have a few hours, and I’m feeling fit as a fiddle.”

“Meaning?” Tempest felt the familiar sensation of desire fill her.

“My welcome home was suspended because of my injuries. I’m all better, but I could still use some Tempest tender loving care,” Alex replied. “Couldn’t you, Dominic?”

“In front of the fire place with a roaring fire to help take away our baby’s chill,” Dominic growled. “I see the goose pimples on your arm, sweetheart. You’re cold.” He stood and she could see the imprint of his arousal clearly through his pants.

Tempest would never refuse her wolves, especially when her need was now kicked into high gear. “You guys get the fire started…”

“It already is,” Alex teased.

She gave a sexy laugh. “You know what I mean. I’ll be back in ten minutes.”

“You’d better or the big bad wolves will come and find you.” Dominic grinned and she wondered how a game of hide and seek would end with them? She made a mental note to put that on their to-do list. She hurried to the master bathroom to freshen up. The past few days were wrought with worry and fear; they could find peace in each others’ arms. If only for a little while, they’d leave their problems at the door.

Chapter Three

Ten minutes later, true to her word, she made her way down the stairs. Tempest took a shower with her favorite soap and shaved. She liked her pussy bare of hair and they did too. She was so smooth she could feel her own juice cause a gentle friction as she went to them. Her wolves deserved a little exotic romance and since she’d been living with them, Tempest bought a few things online. Tonight was the perfect time to try out one of her costumes and when she stepped into the doorway leading to the living room, she saw their eyes widen and arousal was plainly written on their faces. Her sexy genie costume got the effect that she wanted and she laughed, delighted at their reaction. Playing her role to the fullest, Tempest folded her arms across her chest.

“What is your wish, Masters?” Tempest asked in a sultry voice.

Alex chuckled. “I don’t think my mind is working very well. I can’t keep my eyes off you. I can see your nipples through that pink gauzy stuff.”

“This puts
I Dream of Genie
in a whole new light,” Dominic murmured. She watched him press the hard bulge in his pants as if to assuage the ache.

Tempest continued to play the role. “What would you like?”

“Call me daddy,” Dominic growled.

“Your wish is my command. Daddy.” She looked at Alex. “And you?”

“I want you here on your knees so I can suck on your nipples through that candy colored material,” Alex said softly.