The Bears Shared Bride: A Paranormal Menage Romance (7 page)

CHAPTER SEVEN

Lavinia pulled her sunglasses in place as the town car slowly came to a halt in front of the royal palace. She didn’t want the staff to see the bruises that were still fading from her fall, and she didn’t want to admit that she felt safer wearing them. Hiding in the dark had become Lavinia’s favorite thing to do, lately.

She looked up as the doors of the car unlocked with a muted click, the door itself swinging open to reveal Parker standing over her, surrounded by a halo of large Werebear security guards dressed in black. The Alpha looked like an avenging angel among the fallen. Still, Lavinia felt her hand tremble as she reached out for Parker.

Pulling Lavinia out of the car, he leaned down close to her ear, “It’s fine, my Queen. We’ve got you.” Parker tucked her now-frail body into his side and leaned down to keep a steady stream of distraction going for the short walk into the building. Each step felt like a mile to Lavinia and all she wanted to do was be inside the thick walls of her childhood home.

“Your room is all ready, my Queen, and I’ve asked that a warm bath be started as soon as your car arrived. They have the special soaking salts the doctor prescribed for relaxation and to help you sleep. After the bath, you’ll have a little bit to eat and then you should be ready for bed, according to the schedule the hospital had you on. The doctor said it would be best for you to stay as close to that as possible until your check-up at the end of the week.”

Parker paused to say hello to the footman who had just joined their crowd. Leaning back down, he continued, “I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but the flowers are starting to spring up. Now that we’re almost to Easter, the city is finally clean and calm. It’s as if all the seeds decided that the party was over and that now it’s safe to come out for spring. I’ve had some beautiful new blooms placed around your suite. I think it will help to clear the air for you, to give you something beautiful after all of those days alone in the hospital room.”

Lavinia smiled up at Parker and patted his hand, she didn’t trust herself to talk until they passed through the doors of the Palace. To be honest, what was most beautiful to Lavinia was the circle of armed guards who surrounded them. If her wounds could have withstood the bullet protection of kevlar, Lavinia would have worn it.

After she woke up from the coma that had kept her under for three days, Lavinia had been unaware of what had happened. In the seconds between her eyes opening and Thearon and Parker entering her hospital room, she had wondered at the multitude of tubes and sensors attached to her skin. Never in her life had she felt so monitored, and for the moments of blissful ignorance before reality rushed back in, Lavinia felt gloriously constrained by the beeps of the machines, the urge to rip through all of the claustrophobic amenities was overwhelming. It was the last time Lavinia remembered feeling safe and secure.

As Parker and Lavinia walked into the foyer of the Palace, three of the security guards dropped off and left two trailing the Alpha and the Queen. Thearon walked into the circular space in a hurry, trailed by a guard of his own who was following the Omega at a speed that was just short of a run.

When Thearon’s muscular build suddenly stopped in front of Lavinia, the guard trailing him ran into his back. Thearon closed his eyes and clenched his hands as if he was counting to ten. When he opened them again, they were a blue that was crisp as steel. For the first time in their marriage, Lavinia wished that she had a little more of Thearon’s personality in her. A little hardness wouldn’t hurt when every part of you felt as fragile as an egg.

“My Queen, I can see you’ve already been paired with your guard,” Thearon said with a bow.

“Omega,” Lavinia responded thinking t that was the reason two of the guards had continued to follow Parker and her into the inner palace. Looking back up, she noted that Thearon’s eyes lost a bit of their edge as concern warmed their depths. Lavinia took a shaky breath, her voice had not been as strong as she’d wished.

“How are you feeling?”

Clearing her throat Lavinia tried again, “I’m moving a little slow, but moving more every day. Parker here has promised me a bath.”

Thearon recognized a dismissal when he heard one, “Well, I don’t want to keep you from your routine. I know that the salts are important to your recovery.” Thearon took half a step forward to continue on his warpath before turning awkwardly back to Lavinia and reaching out to pat her on the shoulder.

Lavinia didn’t even flinch at his touch, so surprised was she that Thearon seemed to be as intimate with her needs as Parker. Thearon had never seemed so concerned about her. Not once in their marriage thus far had he approached her without something to gain. The change was almost shocking.

Parker gently nudged Lavinia and she felt her body jump again. Both she and Parker shared a small sigh at the reaction. Lavinia wondered how long it was going to be before she felt comfortable in her own skin again.

***

The bath had been heavenly. The hospital’s tub had been serviceable, but it was not the multi-jet soaker tub that existed in the royal suites. With the armed guard stationed outside the door and Callia sitting on the other side of the bathroom, Lavinia felt relaxed enough to let herself really enjoy the soak.

What felt like seconds later, Lavinia awoke to Callia’s insistent voice, “Vinny, Vinny you need to wake up now. You might want to wash off before you turn into a raisin.”

“Oh, yes.” Lavinia searched under the layer of salty bubbles for the loofa. “I’m sorry Callia, I hadn’t thought I was that tired.”

Callia fished out the pink ball of netting by its string and handed it to Lavinia, “Well, I’m glad you’re getting the rest that you need. Hopefully, you’re feeling a little more refreshed?”

Lavinia nodded as she reached for the soap.

“Great, they’ll be here with the food soon and Thearon is waiting outside to talk with you.”

Slowly soaping up a loofa, Lavinia wondered how much time she could waste in the safety of the bathroom. Moving the soap over her arms first, she felt the tug at her side where the bullet had lodged itself in her organs. She knew that logically, the stitches were already healing and the pulling was most likely in her mind. But she was almost physically adverse to thinking about or touching the wound in her side. If she ignored it, it was yet another way to pretend nothing had happened.

Suddenly ready to be out of the bath, she quickly washed the rest of her body, rinsed with fresh water and, with Callia’s help, stood up to towel off. Wrapped first in a pair of soft pajamas and finished with her tatty old robe, Lavinia was feeling a little bit more like herself. Moving out to her bedroom, Lavinia was struck with the twin smells of chicken noodle soup and the fresh scent of man.

Thearon looked huge in the sitting room surrounded by the delicate antiques and ornate place settings laid out for dinner. Lavinia noted as he turned his cool blue eyes on her that the table was set for two.

“I hope you don’t mind my Queen, dinner was my only free time today and I wanted to see with my own eyes that you are settled and recovering.”

As Lavinia approached her massive husband, she felt her heart quicken in anticipation of his touch. Her body always betrayed her when it came to Thearon.

“I’m so settled that I fell asleep in the bath. I’m pretty sure Callia saved me from a near-drowning, but I feel rested at the moment.”

“I’m glad, I was hoping to have a conversation with you tonight, but I didn’t want to push if you weren’t feeling up to it.”

Thearon pulled out Lavinia’s chair and then took her arm to slowly help lower her onto the cushion. “Thank you,” Lavinia said softly as she draped a pale pink napkin across her lap.

Thearon moved to the other side of the small table and flicked open his own scrap of pink laying it across his expensive gray suit. “I wondered if anyone hastalked to you about safety.”

Lavinia swallowed hard and shook her head briskly. No, people were talking to her of rest and recovery and flowers. No one was talking about the one thing she desperately wanted more information about—how they were to be protected now and in the future..

“Well, I can’t be anything but honest with you. Our reports show that the addition of a single guard assisting you and Parker out of the restaurant that night, as was the protocol, would likely not have made much of a difference.”

Lavinia shivered at the knowledge. “I would have thought a guard would have shielded us from attack.”

Thearon took a sip of his soup. “Perhaps, had the guard been in exactly the right place, he could have interfered with the shooter. However, judging by the angle of the shot and the type of bullet you were shot with, we’re dealing with a professional gunman. It’s more likely he would have dropped anyone who was in the way and targeted you anyway. The situation was actually most affected by Parker’s quick reaction to shove you to the ground. It’s what saved the shot from doing too much damage.”

Lavinia’s hand trailed up to the area around the stitches on her side. She wasn’t even aware of the action until she saw Thearon’s eyes flick to the movement. Dropping her hand, she asked another question. “So we’re screwed then?”

Thearon considered the flip question.  “No, no more than we were before.”

Lavinia let her spoon drop to her bowl.

“My Queen, I am not leaving this table until you finish that soup. You’re far too thin and weak right now. If you eat, I will continue to talk.”

Thearon waited a long moment in a staring contest with Lavinia until she reluctantly picked up the spoon. Thearon nodded approval and continued. “Assassination is always something we’re worried about. It's something that, in this day and age, can be difficult to predict and protect us from. The attack showed me that it’s not just our procedures that need to change, but also the need to rigorously follow those already in place.”

Lavinia sipped her soup and listened intently.

“We’ll be posting more guards during outings and assigning each of us with a rotation of personal guards whose schedules change on a daily basis. This will make it more difficult to infiltrate our intelligence. Finally, I want to see that you have defense training.”

At this Lavinia’s eyes shot up to Thearon’s and she sputtered, “I need to be protected, not trained to protect.”

Thearon’s eyes softened and he reached out to her in a gesture that spoke of caring. “Lavinia, what you need is to be a weapon yourself. What I’ve learned from that night is that we have to be active participants in our own defense. That’s one less weakness we can give to our enemies.”

Lavinia was frustrated with the plan. She just didn’t see how she was brave enough to leave this room again, much less the palace, and Thearon sat there,  expecting her to put up a fight on her own. The very thought of it left her exhausted again.

Dipping her spoon in the last bite of her soup Lavinia took the sip and stood. “I’m sorry Omega, but I believe all of this talk has tired me. I don’t think I’ve spoken so many words in a row in the last week. Thank you for all that you’ve shared with me. Security is all that I can think about at the moment.”

Thearon stood himself and kissed Lavinia’s hand. “Rest well, my Queen.”

Lavinia nodded her thanks and slowly walked back into the dark comfort of her room. The bliss of watching the guard check and secure the windows and door enough of a comfort to send her off to sleep.

CHAPTER EIGHT

Boom! Lavinia heard the gunshot louder and louder every time it recurred. This time the sound was enough to eject her out of sleep with a rush. Sputtering incoherent phrases about pain and need, Lavinia felt two large hands wrap gently around her from either side.

“Shh... It’s okay,” Parker murmured at the same time Thearon asked, “What’s the threat?”

Parker gave Thearon a dirty look over Lavinia’s naked form and Thearon seemed to shake himself from sleep.

“Oh,” the Omega muttered, “Sorry, I was deeply asleep. I can’t help it if I wake up ready for action.”

Lavinia felt the hard presence of his erection against her left butt cheek. The man didn’t lie. Scrubbing at her own face she apologized, “Sorry guys. It was just the dream again.”

Parker gave Lavinia an understanding smile and pulled the covers back up as Thearon got out of the bed. Lavinia snuggled deeper into the warm recesses of the blankets and waited for the safe presence of Thearon to come back and block her from the open air. She loved being pressed between her two husbands, their bulk giving her the security she needed to fall asleep.

Lavinia watched as Thearon came back to the bed with two water bottles. He got back in, handing one to Parker. They seemed to have a conversation with their eyes, one that ended with a resigned nod from Parker. Lavinia was just letting her heavy eyelids fall again when Parker cleared his throat.

“Lavinia, Thearon and I wanted to talk with you about something.”

Lavinia’s eyes opened again and she glanced at Thearon’s side table for the time. The clock face displayed 3 a.m. “Uhm, is it something that could wait until morning? I didn’t mean to wake everyone up, but I’m still very tired.”

Thearon sighed, “Vin, you’re always tired. We’ve been wanting to have this conversation during the day for a week or so, but you always seem to be resting or napping. Frankly, you’re sleeping much more than both the doctor and we would like to see.”

Lavinia frowned, “I was shot, Thearon. It was a traumatic event for both my mind and my body. I just need time.”

Parker ran a comforting hand over Lavinia’s back as Thearon huffed a sigh of frustration. Parker jumped into the conversation before the Omega could continue, “We just think that you might feel better if you were more active. You were fully cleared for physical activity over a week ago by the doctor.”

Lavinia shifted further beneath the covers.  “I think I still feel the wound pull a bit when I move.”

“The doctor said that was scar tissue, and with exercise and some physical therapy it would go away. You need to build your strength back up. I think you can’t make it through a day without multiple naps because your body isn’t strong enough. You need to join the world again, Lavinia. We miss you.”

Lavinia looked up into Parker’s eyes. So far he had been so understanding about her needs. To finally feel resistance from him was new, but she thought he’d fold if she struggled too hard.

“I just think I need more time before I can go out. Is that okay?”

Parker began to crumble in the face of her big sad eyes. In  desperation, he looked to Thearon.  “That’s fine with me, Lavinia.”

Thearon rumbled from her other side, “But if you continue to stay in bed, I’m removing your guard. If you’re going to stay in this room, I don’t see a need to waste the man hours guarding you against the boogie man. Callia can do that just fine on her own.”

Lavinia went still. “You wouldn’t do that. As Queen, I need to be guarded. I’ve just had an attack on my life.”

“You’ll still be secure. Someone would have to fight through at least fifteen other guards and Callia before they reached you. If you plan on spending the rest of your life in bed, I can’t imagine the risk of a threat even making it far enough into the palace to wake you up. You’ll be fine.”

No, she would not be fine. Lavinia's heart began to race as she thought that she wouldn’t have professional backup around the clock.

Thearon’s voice drifted through her panic in a calm and logical fashion, “If you agree to one hour of physical therapy a day, I’ll let you keep the guard. I don’t want to risk you walking across the palace without one.”

Lavinia’s eyes narrowed, “Only one hour?”

“One hour.”

Parker squeezed her hand and Lavinia gave up.  “All right then, I’m sure I can shift my naps for one hour of physical activity a day.”

“I’ll be there for every one of them,” Parker promised, before placing a kiss on her forehead.

Lavinia settled back down under the covers, searching the scene to figure out how she had been played. Was there a way to get around the unnecessary physical activity? Her brain was still spinning as she drifted off yet again. This time to the dreamless depths of unconsciousness.

***

The first day of physical therapy had done more to scare Lavinia than Thearon’s threat to remove her guard. Before marriage, Lavinia hadn’t exactly been athletic, but she had slogged through various DVD programs with Callia and when the weather was nice, enjoyed a slow jog through the gardens. She had taken being active for granted her entire life, up until now. Looking over the bulk of her years, she realized that never had she gone more than two or three days without working out in some capacity, even if she wasn’t passionate about it.

That first day, Callia had woken her up early from her midday nap with a sports bra and workout capris. They both chose to ignore how the previously tight fabric drooped and bagged in places it hadn’t before. Suited up, Lavinia gripped the hand of her bestie and ordered her guard to stay close as she moved out into the general palace hallways for the first time since she had returned to the hospital.

At first, Lavinia had been terrified, but as she walked the ten minute walk across the main hallway she was distracted from fear by the heaviness of her legs. By the time she entered the palace gym, she was in need of a rest. Thank goodness the physical therapist had a bunch to say before they began.

Revived after the small break, Lavinia figured that the tiredness had sprung from the fear of walking out in the open. The therapist started her off walking for a bit on a treadmill, fitting her with a heart monitor to track her reaction to each of the exercises. As exercise after exercise passed and was added to by stretching in between each set of reps, Lavinia felt her body break down.

After about twenty minutes, the therapist called a halt to it all. Parker had only entered the room five minutes earlier, he looked shocked and dismayed to see the havoc twenty minutes of light stretching and walking had done to her. Parker wasn’t alone; Lavinia, too, was worried by her condition.

All that time she had been lying in bed, Lavinia had just assumed that if she so chose she could have gotten up and resumed her normal life. Lavinia knew she had been hiding out; she just hadn’t realized that all of the sleep had ravaged her body almost as badly as the gunshot.

So, day after day, Lavinia gave herself little goals. Shorten naps by a few minutes and do a few more steps on the treadmill. Lift the weights a little higher and read a little more. Get back into the politics of the Tribe. Her hard work paid off, and eventually, the physical therapist considered Lavinia recovered and Lavinia was holding regular meetings in her offices again. But it wasn’t enough for Lavinia. She wanted more—she wanted to feel stronger than ever and she never wanted to feel that weak again.

Parker had switched his workout routine to match Lavinia’s physical therapy, and when the therapy sessions ended, he suggested that they start working out together in the gym. So they started sparring. Lavinia had long since mastered free weights and running. Solitary workouts had left her finally feeling confident enough to get physical, so Parker suggested kickboxing. It would challenge Lavinia physically while also giving her some practice fending off attacks.

Today they were reaching the end of their session, sweaty and breathing heavily, Parker was trying to urge Lavinia on. He was frustrated at her inability  to tackle him.

“Vinny, you need to come at me with more force. I’m bigger than you and stronger, and yet, you need to know how to knock me over. You need to be able to put my ass on the ground.”

The corner of Lavinia’s mouth turned down, “It’s slightly unfair that not only are you the one who taught me all of the moves to knock someone over, you’re also the person who taught me to evade them all, too. I don’t know how to lay you out if you know all the ways I’m capable of doing that.”

Parker stood up and wiped the sweat from his brow, “What, so your excuse is that you only know how to fell someone who is unsuspecting or weaker than you? That’ll protect you from what? Half of the population? Maybe less? And quite frankly, I don’t think they’re the ones you’re going to need to know how to handle. You have to figure this out.”

Lavinia stood up too. Hands on her newly shredded waistline, thanks to the hours she now spent in the gym, Lavinia walked around the edges of the practice mat allowing her heart rate to lower as she thought the problem over. How to get Parker’s ass on the mat... Sneaking a look at her husband as she hydrated with some water, Lavinia watched as Parker shifted from side to side, working to loosen up. His muscles gleamed with the damp sweat covering his body and the twisting and turning of their bulk made Lavinia want to run her hands all over his impressively naked flesh. The man really was built like a Greek god.

Suddenly a thought occurred to her, Parker’s challenge only stipulated that she get him on the floor…

Lavinia continued to pace around the mat till she reached Parker’s side. He was focused on reading email on his phone when Lavinia reached out and gave him a light shove.

“Okay, I’m ready now.” Lavinia stepped back and put her hands up in a defensive position, the black tape covering her knuckles and wrists an exact match to the black sports bra and booty shorts she wore on her body. It helped her to know she looked the part.

Parker tapped out a few more words on his phone before setting it down and assuming the position himself. Lavinia was further spurred on when she noticed he no longer took in the view of her half-naked. When had that stopped? She needed to rectify that oversight immediately.

“Okay, come on.” Parker impatiently moved from side to side and gestured with his hand for her to attack.

Lavinia let out a battle cry and launched herself at Parker. However, instead of reaching for his ears to twist and force him to his knees, or to throw a punch at his gut or throat, Lavinia wrapped her long legs around his waist and pressed her hard body into his. Parker instinctively caught her with an “oof.”

Lavinia quirked an eyebrow, in the weeks since she’d started working out in earnest, she had gained back all the weight she had lost in the hospital and then some. The “then some” being a few pounds of well-used muscle. In workout gear, her defined frame looked every inch the Werebear warrior Queen she was molding herself to be.

Tightening her legs, Lavinia leaned down and bit Parker on his neck. His quick intake of breath showed his shock and he held it as Lavinia licked the wound, soothing his hot and salty skin. Lavinia moved her tongue up his neck and suddenly Parker stood stock still, the only movement happening below his waistband, as Lavinia felt him harden for her.

She felt his cock connect with her most intimate parts and the sudden rush of need for him caught her by surprise. True, she had wanted him, watching him move around the gym shirtless all these weeks, touching him, learning every flip and attack had been physical, but nothing compared to having him back between her legs. The lust that had remained asleep since the attack now roared to life like a hibernating bear waking up for spring.

Lavinia ground her hips into the long hard length of him and then did it again because it felt so darn good. Both she and Parker let out twin moans of need with her movements. Parker’s grip tightened on her ass and he started massaging the tight muscles as his own neck curved to kiss Lavinia's. Standing in the middle of the mat, they were as locked together as two people could be, feasting on each other’s flesh like starving animals. Even as Parker’s lips locked on the vein that ran up Lavinia’s neck, sucking until pleasure started to mix with a little pain, it wasn’t enough.

Reaching between their bodies, Lavinia groped for Parker. Simply grinding against him wasn’t working fast enough. Reaching into the elastic waist of his shorts, Lavinia wrapped her hand around the hard length of him and moved her fingers up and down the smooth skin. It was then that she won the bet.

Parker dropped to the mat, landing on his ass so hard that the free weights across the room rattled. Lavinia’s hand lost its grip on him and she reached out to steady herself on the floor. Parker used her momentum to push her back on the mat. Leaning over her body, he ripped off the booty shorts and ran his hands back up her inner thighs. Lavinia felt herself quake with the sensation. The gentleness of his hands was at distinct odds with the need in his eyes. Opening her legs for him, Lavinia beckoned Parker to make his move.

Dropping further to his knees, Parker ran his tongue all around her folds. Spiraling towards her center, leaving no skin untouched on his path, Lavinia felt herself go molten in a gush. She could feel herself growing close to the edge. Lavinia lifted her hips, silently asking Parker to move up her body, to take her now. But instead, Parker’s hands gripped her hips and held her in place.