Authors: Jodi Redford
It hadn’t passed her notice that they were both sporting the mother of all erections, which left her a little bemused, particularly where Rand was concerned. She knew he hadn’t come earlier, but he’d been just as hard then as he was now. Was that normal? Granted, she wasn’t exactly an expert on anything normal, and she didn’t have a ton of experience with sex partners that didn’t require batteries. But she was pretty damn certain most males—pooka or not—couldn’t maintain woodies of that stature for this long. At least not without a year’s supply of Viagra.
Rand tore off a bite of cinnamon roll and fed it to her, his eyes going dark when she licked along the length of his index finger.
Then again, who was she to question the sudden lucky turn in her sex life? Rand offered her another bite of the decadent treat and she gobbled it down, smacking her lips in appreciation. “Okay, it’s clear to me who must do the majority of the cooking back home.”
A snort came from Braeden. “Are you kidding? He barely knows how to boil water. And he burns
everything
. Even soup. Tell me how that’s even possible?”
“I’m not completely useless in the kitchen,” Rand groused. “I clean the dishes, and the messes you always seem to make.” He slid her a wry look. “It takes Brae five pans to make spaghetti, for goddess’s sake. I think he does it just to give me more work to do.”
She chuckled. “Wow, you two really are an old married couple.”
“Hah, he’s the old one.” Braeden’s chin jutted in Rand’s direction. “Has me beat by seventy-five years.”
She waggled her eyebrows at Rand. “If you were a female, I’d be calling you a cougar right now.” An adorable red flush crawled along his cheekbones and she laughed. “Okay, all teasing aside, exactly how old
are
you guys?”
“Rand’s five hundredth birthday is next weekend. I was thinking of getting those signs that say
Over the hill
and staking them all over our yard.”
“Do it and I’m never sucking your cock again.”
“We both know that’s an empty threat.” His mouth sliding into a smug grin, Braeden leaned closer to her. “Can’t keep his damn hands off of me. It’s been like that from day one. Miracle he ever lets me sleep.”
“Don’t listen to him. He’s an incessant drama queen.”
Listening to their banter, a weird compulsion came over her. She wanted—no,
hungered
—to know everything about Rand and Braeden. In the past, she’d never given any thought beyond bringing in her quarry. It was all a part of keeping things professional. She did her job and moved on. Nice and simple. But things were spiraling way past simple here. She was beginning to care, beginning to envision becoming a part of their lives. And damn if that didn’t trigger every pathetic, hopeful fantasy she’d ever harbored, even while it scared the living shit out of her.
Rand sensed the exact moment the emotional shift occurred within Vanessa. An achingly sweet note of longing sang from her soul, calling to him. He glanced at Braeden, his mate’s rapt stare verifying that he’d also received the summoning. Braeden jumped to his feet, but Rand shook his head in warning. It was too soon. Beneath Vanessa’s soulful yearning, a dark specter of fear still lurked. He could detect it skulking in the shadows of her mind, guarding its treasure-trove of negativity. Until they discovered what fed that phantom its power, and destroyed it, they needed to handle Vanessa gently.
Well, not
too
gently. He fully intended to put those vibrators in the bedroom to good use.
“So how did you two meet, anyway?”
Dragging his thoughts from the wicked arsenal of goodies in the bedroom, he met Vanessa’s curious gaze. “At the annual fairy ball held in Titania’s honor.”
Vanessa’s eyes grew large. “The queen of the fairies? You’ve met her? What is she like?”
“Very old and very crabby. But she throws a hell of a party.” Braeden began gathering the dishes and Rand quickly stood to offer a hand. Grunting, Braeden waved him off. “You owe me. Go on and finish telling Vanessa about how you fell in love with me at first sight.”
It was Rand’s turn to grunt. “You have a bloody warped sense of history. The way I recall it, you fell in love with
me
at first sight. Ditched that big-breasted druid right on the dance floor and followed me into the powder room, where I distinctly remember you offered to unzip my trousers with your teeth.”
“The druid!” Braeden dropped one of the pans into the sink with a clatter. “Damn, almost forgot about good ole Martina. Too bad she always smelled like a damp basement and talked to trees.”
Rand gave Vanessa a dry look behind Braeden’s back. “And he wonders why I’m considered the charming one.”
Vanessa’s smile was so beautiful, it took every ounce of willpower he possessed not to yank her off the stool and kiss the living daylights out of her. “Your love affair started in a bathroom? How oddly romantic.”
“There was nothing romantic about it. Brae was merely a horny little bugger.”
Braeden tossed another pan into the sink. “Now who’s spreading lies?” He peered over his shoulder at Vanessa. “Back then, Rand’s skill at weaseling his way beneath any skirt was legendary. Clearly
he
was the hornier of the two of us.”
“Debatable.”
Vanessa cleared her throat with a pointed cough. “Judging from the way you both are now, perhaps you should just call it a draw.”
Rand muzzled his laugh. “Very diplomatic of you.”
She rested her chin on her upturned palm and eyed him. “I don’t know how to phrase this in a way that won’t sound incredibly nosy and blunt, but you both mentioned past
female
relationships. Does that mean…?”
“We were each other’s first,” he answered in response to the unspoken curiosity in her gaze. “I’d had no interest or attraction to other males before Brae. Other than him, I still don’t. But when it comes to the calling of a bond mate, the heart doesn’t get caught up in the sticky nuances of gender. It simply wants the person destined to make it whole.” He locked her into his stare, knowing full well she’d see a reflection of the feelings he held inside his heart. She averted her gaze and he tried not to let the disappointment crush him. Thank the goddesses he’d never been one to back down from anything, because Vanessa Darby was the queen mother of all challenges.
Apparently reading the sudden tension in the room, Braeden tossed a dishtowel in Rand’s direction. Taking the hint, he grabbed the cloth and joined Braeden at the sink. With the two of them working together, they cleaned up the dishes in record time, and with minimal complaints from Braeden regarding Rand’s drying abilities, no less. Rand pivoted back toward the island, fully expecting to find Vanessa snickering over their little bicker fest. Her stool was empty, her discarded clothes and boots nowhere to be seen.
Paranoia and dread kicked up his heart rate. Surely she wouldn’t attempt another unchaperoned stroll through the hotel. Not after what happened last time. Unless…
Recalling the wall of doubt she’d erected when he’d spoken of bond mates, renewed panic crashed through him. “
Shit
.”
“What?”
Tuning out Braeden, Rand bolted from the kitchen. He was halfway to the elevator when he noticed Vanessa standing just beyond the entrance to the bedroom, her clothes and boots scattered near her feet. Relief instantly blanketed him. Changing course, he walked toward the archway. Vanessa remained so enthralled by whatever held her attention she didn’t even look up as he approached. Halting behind her, he peered over her shoulder at the object she was busy inspecting, his mouth tugging into a grin. “Reconsidering my earlier suggestion, sweetest?”
Vanessa jerked and the double-ended dildo in her hand went flying. Her cheeks bright red, she glanced up at him. “I was trying to figure out if that’s a baton or…something else.”
“What do you think?”
She chuckled, her face still wearing its adorable tint of scarlet. “Um, that you and Braeden should provide
me
a demonstration?”
“Naughty girl.” He nuzzled her hair, the soft note of jasmine filling his nose and firing his ever-persistent hunger for her to full blast. “Tempting as that might be, I have a counter suggestion.”
“Such as?” The innocence in her tone clashed with the sinful curiosity flashing in her eyes.
He slid his hands around her torso and cupped her breasts, his thumbs teasing her nipples. “Letting me fuck you.”
“Hmm, didn’t I already let you do that?”
“No. I just sat there while you had your lusty way with me.”
“Poor baby. Must have been a hardship enduring all of that.”
“Hard doesn’t begin to cover it.” Rubbing his cock against the dip of her spine for emphasis, he tweaked her nipples gently, making her squirm and gasp. “So what do you say?”
She turned in his arms and he lowered his head to steal a kiss. Before his mouth captured its quarry, she stood on tiptoe and licked the clan marks tattooed on his pectoral, catching him off-guard. An intense shiver ripped through him, nearly knocking him flat on his ass. She tossed him an impish grin. “I’ve wanted to do that since yesterday.”
Braeden’s devilish chuckle sounded behind them. “Uh-oh. She’s discovered your weak spot. There’ll be no living with her now.”
Vanessa’s eyes widened. “Weak spot? Do tell.”
Rand groaned. “One more word out of you, Brae, and you’re a dead—”
“The tats. They’re extremely sensitive to the touch,” Braeden explained, ignoring Rand’s growl of warning. “Drives him fucking crazy when you play with them. And I do mean crazy.”
“Really?” Vanessa’s scrutiny returned to the symbols on his chest.
Not trusting the gleam in her irises, he stepped back, knocking into Braeden. His traitorous lover bracketed his arms around his waist, keeping him pinned in place for Vanessa’s roving hands. Her fingertips skated over the tattoos, eliciting his helpless groan. Expression loaded with feminine triumph, she followed the swirling, metallic green curlicue design with her tongue. His head lolled back, the sensations skittering beneath his skin a mix of exquisite pleasure and pure torture. He didn’t know whether to beg her to stop or continue. Not that it mattered. Clearly she possessed her own agenda. She lapped away at him like a mischievous kitten, her tormenting licks growing bolder thanks to Braeden’s not-so-helpful encouragement.
His breathing erratic, Rand locked his knees in an effort to keep from staggering to the floor in an embarrassing heap. “You both are going to pay dearly for this.” He jumped when Braeden sucked on his earlobe. All thoughts of retribution fled as Vanessa’s mouth descended. The tip of her wicked little tongue circled his areola, causing his nipple to harden. Along with other parts of him. As if his cock wasn’t already stiff enough to rudder a ship, it swelled, bumping into Vanessa’s belly. She wiggled against him—earning another of his groans—before she slid down his body, her mouth engulfing his cock in one swift stroke. Scalding pleasure washed over him. “
Fuck
.”
Displaying no timidity, she worked him over, her tongue coasting along every ridge and vein of his shaft before she concentrated exclusively on the head.
“Damn, she might even be better than me.” Braeden’s husky laugh floated past his ear. “Darlin’, don’t forget to show his balls some proper love. You’ll have him wrapped around your pinky.”
Humming a response around his engorged flesh, she cupped his testicles and he quickly widened his stance to keep his knees from buckling. He directed a growl at Braeden. “Just wait till it’s your turn, and I’m the one plotting your torture.” An image sprang into his mind—Vanessa’s pussy gripping his shaft while she sucked Braeden’s cock. Lust bulleted through him. He wanted to make that fantasy a reality. Now.
Tugging from Braeden’s hold and Vanessa’s mouth, Rand stooped and pulled her into his arms. His mouth seeking hers, he straightened and walked them to the bed. He lowered her onto the silk duvet, his lips deserting hers to skim over her chin. Awarding her a nip from his teeth, he kissed his way down her neck, paying particular attention to the sensitive areas that made the breath catch in Vanessa’s throat. Leaning up on one elbow, he caressed her breasts, his fingertips playing over their pebbled tips. The mattress dipped and he lifted his gaze. Braeden had one knee planted on the bed and he was lazily stroking his shaft while he watched them.
That wouldn’t do. He had better plans for that cock. “Sweetest, our boy is in need of assistance.” Gifting Braeden with an evil grin, Rand ducked his head and sucked Vanessa’s nipple into his mouth. Her groan spilled free, echoed several seconds later by Braeden’s. Rand abandoned his task and watched while Vanessa licked a slow path up and down the underside of Braeden’s straining shaft. It certainly wasn’t the first time he’d indulged in the decadent pleasure of sharing his lover with another. But the females they’d invited into their bed had never been a bond mate. Vanessa’s specialness added a potent bliss he wouldn’t have thought possible. Not in his wildest dreams.
Vision going hazy with lust, he trailed moist, openmouthed kisses down her quivering belly. He reached the apex of her thighs and breathed in her soft, feminine musk, his cock growing even more painfully hard. Her labia glistened with the evidence of her arousal. The need to taste her, to claim her, shook him to the core. Raising her hips so he could devour her while he watched her go down on Braeden, he buried his mouth in her pussy. She bucked in his grip and released Braeden with a gasp.
Rand halted his feasting. “Take him back in your mouth, sweetest.” He waited for her lips to slide around Braeden again before licking the length of her slit. She trembled as he journeyed to her clit. He suckled at the nub with soft, tugging pulses, until she was writhing, her moans muffled by Braeden’s cock. Sensing she hovered at the brink of orgasm, he rubbed the pad of his index finger against her hidden rosebud. She broke on a wrenching cry, her entire body shaking with the force of her climax. Seeing her swept up in the throes of release was one of the most beautiful things he’d ever witnessed, and it made him all the hungrier to possess her.
Determined to bring her to the highest pinnacle of pleasure, he pushed to his feet and strode to the nearby shelf of toys. After selecting a slim silver vibrator, a significantly fatter vibrating plug and a tube of warming gel lubricant, he returned to the bed. Vanessa lay in a dazed sprawl, her stare unfocused. Braeden stroked her hair with tenderness. Rand tossed the vibrators onto the mattress and popped the cap on the lubricant. There was nothing tender about the way he was feeling. He fully intended to fuck the daylights out of Vanessa and rock her world in the process.