Dane wound one of her curls around his finger. “Can you live with that, little human?”
Immortal? Her? Outliving her family would hurt, but forever with her menfolk sounded perfect. She’d no idea where their future would take them, but as long it held Dane and Eli, she didn’t care. Eyes shining, smiling so wide her cheeks ached, she nodded. “Yes, please.”
“Thank God.” Dane’s kiss felt hungry, possessive, and dominant as his tongue tangled with hers. Loving them like this felt exhilarating and exciting, so satisfying it sent sparks of pleasure shooting through her blood.
Eli reached around her, pinching her nipples. The unexpected pain mingled with her pleasure, making her relax in Dane’s arms. A delighted shudder ran through her when he nuzzled her neck. “Your bottom must still be sore, little human. Let’s shift positions before we satisfy that hunger gleaming in your eyes.”
She pouted when Eli moved away, but he stood and held his arms open for her. “Arms around my neck, legs around my waist.”
Hurling herself at him, she did as he bid. Dane moved behind them. “The position’s perfect. Let’s get her good and wet.”
Snuggled in Eli’s arms, Cassie rested her head on his shoulder. Dane reached around her, stroking her clit before sinking two fingers inside her. She panted and gasped, already wet and willing. When he curled his fingers inside her and found her G-spot, she came in a gush.
Eli let her slip lower down his body, holding her poised over his stiff cock. “Hold tight, princess.”
She clung like a limpet. From behind, Dane stroked her breasts and plucked at her nipples as Eli fed his dick into her pussy. It stretched and filled her, but she rode him eagerly. The position left her bottom exposed as it hung in the air.
Juices spilled from her cunny and spread over her thighs. She winced, her bottom still throbbing as Dane to spread her liquid honey over her bottom hole. When he sank two fingers inside it, she gasped. The intrusion made her jerk in Eli’s arms. She clenched her pussy around him, enjoying the way he groaned in response. Holding her with one hand, he buried his free hand in her hair and pulled her lips against his.
As his kiss set her heart racing, Dane inched his cock into her naughtiest hole. Cassie whimpered as its broad head grazed her bottom hole. This felt sinful and sexy, so wonderful she didn’t want them to stop. The pleasure bordered on pain but she loved it—loved them. Burying her face on Eli’s shoulder, she submitted completely.
Dane pressed his cock against her rear entrance. It felt huge, too thick to fit inside her. Tears stung her eyes as he inched it inside her, stretching her darkest hole. She tried to relax and punch back against him. A sharp sting, and the whole head was inside her. He waited a moment, giving her chance to acclimate to his girth then thrust further.
This time she met him by pushing her buttocks back and moaning with pleasure. When she clenched her bottom around his cock, his pleasured groan thrilled her. Giving her pixie blonde hair a gentle tug, he thrust so deep his balls slapped against her butt cheeks.
Her pleasured shriek filled the room. Having Eli’s cock in her pussy and Dane’s in her arse felt... amazing. He stretched her so wide it verged on uncomfortable. The double penetration sent shivers of excitement through her cunny. They spread through her muscles, making her tremble and pant. Connected to both her lovers, she felt part wicked temptress, part dirty whore.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Cassie gasped as her werewolves thrust deeper. Having Dane’s cock in her arse and Eli’s in her pussy satisfied her on a primal level. They stuffed her to overflowing. When they thrust again, it felt like their cocks touched inside her. They found a rhythm, pounding and thrusting, taking her so high she felt lightheaded, so happy she could purr.
She could feel every inch of them, filling and stretching her completely. Her every pleasure sensor erupted. Loving Dane and Eli like this started a wildfire in her soul.
She rode their cocks, rising and falling as she clung to Eli’s body. New feelings formed inside her, a mixture of carnal delight and wicked sensations. She never wanted them to stop.
She cried out as liquid honey flowed from her cunny. Eli’s hips bucked once, and his jizz flooded her pussy and spilled onto her thighs. Dane came in her ass, his hot cum surging into her. Their loving felt wonderful and messy, more satisfying than she could ever have imagined.
Her men had shown her a glimpse of heaven, and after today, she’d never doubt them again. Gradually, they disengaged, petting and stroking her as they showered her with loving aftercare.
A deep voice bellowed up to them from outside. It sounded echo-y and amplified as it bounced off the walls. “Eli Silverback, Cassiopeia Stevens, and Dane Silverback, I need to meet with you. I brought fresh meat and salads, so get your butts out here.”
* * *
Bates Wyrmwood turned the steaks on the barbecue then checked the salads on the side table. He’d already waited while the Lycans made their peace with their woman, but patience wasn’t his strong suit.
He heard footsteps on the stairs, then Dane glared at him from the porch. Ignoring the savory scents wafting from the grill, he demanded, “Who the hell are you? And where did all this come from?”
Bates waved at the tiny human peering at him from the upstairs window. Someone pulled her back and he heard her tussle with Eli. “Your woman knows what I am, and she doesn’t fear me. How do ye take your steak?”
“On the hoof,” Dane snarled. “And our woman has more courage than sense.”
Bates shook his head. “I have news of her family and the three of you need a decent meal.”
“Damn it, Cassie,” Eli snarled from upstairs, “stay up here.”
A moment later, she peered around Dane. This newcomer looked human, but the bumps on the top of his head gave him away. “What does a demon know about my family?”
Bates’s horns stretched and grew, curling back from his forehead. His skin assumed its natural golden glow. “Bates Wyrmwood, demon and master barbecuer at your service.”
She didn’t back down at his transformation. “My family? Where are they? What do you know about them?”
Two of the steaks sizzled as he put them on plates. “Blue for the Lycans, but the lady’s medium one will take a moment longer. Eli, Dane, come eat. Cassie, your sisters are safe, but they have their own journeys to take. Currently, your parents are spying on Scarborough Castle. Rumors of your escape have spread. Once your parents sent your sisters northward, they came back for you. Ah, your steak’s ready.”
He plated up the last two steaks and handed her one. “Help yourselves to salads and such. Your wolves plan to petition for new lands to form a new pack, but the Dark Moon Prowlers need the three of you.”
Dane tried to bar Cassie’s way, but she laughed and ducked beneath his arm. “I’m certain he’s on the level, and honestly, I’d kill for a decent meal.”
He stood beside her, fists curled, a growl rumbling around his chest. His gaze fixed the demon working the grill. He looked ready to argue, but breathed deeply, smelling the meat. “I can’t sense anything wrong with the food.”
Eli followed, hackles up, his features more wolf-like than normal as he too flanked Cassie. She drooled over the fresh salads but turned to Bates. “Can you, no, will you carry a message to my parents?”
Bates put down his plate and moved a little aside. “Your lass has a stubborn streak along with her claircognizance. Otherwise, how would she know instinctively how things work? Of course, she calls it engineering. Shade your eyes for a moment, the light will be dazzling.”
Dazzling didn’t hack it. Cassie gasped as the light of a million suns burst over her. Beside her, her werewolves growled and cursed. When their vision cleared, two white-cheeked humans clung to each other at Bates’s side.
Cassie ran to embrace them. “Mum, Dad, I never expected to see you again. Are you okay? What happened after the vampires took me?”
As they exchanged stories, Bates put another two steaks on
the barbecue. Cassie turned to him with a smile. “I thought demons were bad guys, but you’ve made me so happy. I’ll always be grateful that you brought my folks here for me.”
Hugging her parents, she told them everything that had happened since the vampires took her. Well... she might have edited it a bit since she couldn’t admit to spankings and stuff to her parents. Finally, she led them to the table where Dane and Eli stood. Her Lycans constantly scanned their surroundings as if expecting trouble.
When Cassie smiled at her wolves, they lifted their chins and stiffened their spines. She loved the proud possessive look in their eyes. “Mum, Dad, meet Dane and Eli, the werewolves who rescued me. I love them both and come the next full moon, they are going to claim me as their soulmate.” Her face fell, and she blinked hard. “Only we need the Dark Moon Prowlers present to complete the ceremony. Dane, Eli, how are we going to get past that?”
Her father bristled. “Both of them? Did they force you? Are you suffering some sort of Stockholm Syndrome?”
Eli swaggered toward them. “We love your daughter more than life itself. I understand your concerns, but we will do everything and anything to make her happy.”
Her mother pulled her aside. “Werewolves? Really? If you’re sure...”
Cassie grinned. “I am, but Bates brought you here because he wants something. It’s time we found out what.”
Bates sat on a chair that hadn’t been there before. “I scryed a group of soldiers hunting rogue werewolves and saving humans. They were decent men who wouldn’t be able to live with themselves if they hurt good people.”
Cassie sat on Dane’s knee, her legs crossed at the ankles and spread over Eli’s lap. She thought a moment. “The shooters with silver bullets?”
Eli nodded as he stroked her calves. “Friends from when we served in the military. He’s right, they see things in black and white.”
“That’s why I took down the barrier around London,” Bates beamed, “but it’s back in place now. Cassie, do you know that you possess claircognizance? To quote from my favorite movie of all time, the force is strong with this one. It will only get stronger once you complete the bond with your Lycans.”
Cassie couldn’t remember the last time she went to the cinema. They were another thing the world lost when most of its population died of an incurable disease. Thinking back, she’d once had a major crush on Han Solo.
Bates handed her parents freshly barbecued steaks then turned back to Cassie. “Fate has decreed that I can’t reunite you with your sisters until they find mates o’ their own. With your guidance, the Dark Moon Prowlers will become the preeminent pack. I’ll make a portal for the five of you to travel back to New Dover.”
As good as his word, he gestured, and a doorway shimmered into existence. Dane set Cassie down and strode toward it. “Is it a two-way street?”
When Bates nodded, Dane stepped through, only to return a moment later. “The castle courtyard’s on the other side, and it seems safe.”
Both he and Eli held out his hand to Cassie. She moved between them and they stepped though through the portal together. As her parents followed, she glanced over her shoulder. “Bates, will my sisters be all right?”
He nodded. “They will, lass.”
He touched two fingers to his forehead in salute, then the portal vanished.
* * *
Cassie tensed, glad that Dane and Eli each held one of her hands as the stepped into the courtyard. Her parents followed, stunned at the way werewolves cared for their daughter.
Last time Cassie had set foot in the castle, Alpha Simon had banished—no, traded—her. Being treated as a commodity because of her functioning womb made her feel less than human. Her doubts rushed back, squelching her confidence. At least she was thinking more clearly now. Her werewolves loved her, and she adored them. Nothing the alpha could say or do would change that.
The portal vanished in a blaze of light. Two seconds later, it flashed open again as two motorbikes appeared behind Dane and Eli. Alpha Simon hurried into the courtyard, flanked by his marshals. Behind them, Mae—Dane and Eli’s mother and the alpha female—Elena, and Nyssa waited with nervous smiles on their faces.
Cassie shuddered as remembered how unfeeling and cold those marshals had been with her. And why was Nyssa still here? Eli had sworn they’d sent the Black Cardinal crew to retrieve her.
Alpha Simon took a step toward her. “Dane, Eli, I’ve no idea how you got here, but thank the gods you’re home. I worried I’d never see you again. Cassie, I’ve never misread a situation so badly. My concern for Elena made me act like an ass, but I hope that in time you can forgive me.”
Her wolves remained stern and unsmiling. Dane raised an eyebrow. “Misread?
Eli glowered at his father. “I shouldn’t have claimed Nyssa was my soulmate, but I only said it to keep the peace. You acted behind our backs and traded our mate like you would a barrel of ale. Treating anyone that way puts us on a par with the vampires and their slave auctions.”
Alpha Simon blinked and took a step back. “Regret for my actions weighs on me. Elena and your mother can barely talk to me. The pack’s furious that I drove you and your mate away. I couldn’t have got things more wrong. Cassie, my boys clearly dote on you and I’d be grateful for a second chance.”
Unsure what to say, she glanced from Dane to Eli. They both stood tall and alert, muscles tense, ready to fight their way out if necessary. Dane glared at his father. “Since our mate didn’t want to return, we planned to petition the alliance for land to found a new pack.”
More wolves flooded the courtyard, all listening intently. They howled when Dane mentioned them leaving to start a new pack. Elena glowered at her father then ran toward Cassie. Dane and Eli blocked her way.
“Don’t touch her,” Eli growled.
Tears flowed down Elena’s cheeks. “Cassie, I’m sorry I acted like a jerk. It’s just... The baby thing hurts, you know. Forgive me, and if you have to leave to be happy, let me come too. I’ll be the omega to your alpha as long as I have my brothers and maybe some nieces and nephews nearby.”
Cassie pushed her way between Dane and Eli to pull Elena in for a hug. “Eli told me how you found and fueled motorbikes to help them track me. I can’t be angry with you after that.”
Mae joined them a moment later, hugging both Elena and Cassie. “I’ll do anything for you to stay. I want my boys to be happy, and I can see their love in the way they look at you. Please, Cassie, give the Dark Moon Prowlers another chance.”
Alpha Simon stepped forward. “If needs be, I will step aside and let my sons take over the pack.”
Chapter Twenty-Three
Cassie looked stunned as Alpha Simon offered to step aside and let his sons take over the pack—because of her. That didn’t feel right, but she’d leave the decision to Dane and Eli.
Eli glared at his father. “The demon who meddled with the barrier around London insisted the pack needed the three of us to thrive. He said something about Cassie’s claircognizance making us the premier Lycan pack.”
Dane laughed and pulled her close. “Want to explain what that is, little human?”
His good humor and smiles astonished the growing crowd of Lycans in the courtyard. Cassie smiled back as she nestled into his embrace. “When a machine breaks down, I know what’s wrong before I strip it down. I thought that was the way all engineers worked, but perhaps not.”
Behind them, Cassie’s parents watched and listened, not understanding the pack politics.
When Dane pulled Cassie in for a kiss, he whispered, “Stay or go, it’s your choice. As long as the three of us are together, I’m happy.”
After a kiss that made her toes curl and her parents blush, she returned Alpha Simon’s appraising look. “We could stay a while and see how things work out. Dane, Eli, is it time for you to take over the Dark Moon Prowlers? Or are you happy with the way things are?”
“We’re brewers,” her wolves said in unison.
“Unless,” Dane growled, “anyone makes you unhappy.”
Mae and Elena hugged and did a weird wiggle dance as pack members cheered. Mae turned to Cassie’s parents. “Please feel free to stay in the castle’s guest quarters until you pick out a home.”
Dane pulled Cassie closer, breathing in her candy-sweet essence. Eli addressed the pack. “The full moon is in full in two days’ time. Everyone’s invited to witness our claiming our soulmate.”
Cassie was glad when she and her mates could leave. They spent the next two days either in bed or fending off pack members keen to welcome them home.
* * *
On the night of the full moon, Cassie showered and pulled on a short robe. It fell in pink folds that ended mid-thigh. The only other thing she wore was the flower garland Elena had woven for her hair. She felt shaky and hot, so nervous she could barely breathe.
Her mother, Elena, and Mae came for her in a bullock cart bedecked in hydrangeas, iris, and delphiniums.
“Blue flowers,” Eli had insisted, “to match Cassie’s fabulous eyes.”
Alpha Simon drove the cart. Cassie still felt nervous around him, but not as nervous as he seemed around her. He nodded a welcome and drove the laughing women to the gathering in the market square. Cassie couldn’t believe she was about to have public, alfresco sex.
Lycans from throughout Dark Moon Prowler territory had gathered in the marketplace. Cheers erupted as the bullock cart came into view. Cassie clutched her mother’s hand. “I didn’t expect such a big crowd.”
Elena took her other hand. “A breeder mating with our future alphas is a huge occasion for us and the celebrations will go on for days.”
A chant of “Cassie, Cassie,” reverberated around the square. Swallowing hard, she waved and forced a smile. Her eyes brightened when she spotted Dane and Eli by a raised dais. The pack had woven flowers around the metal frame atop it. It reminded her of a wedding gazebo before the plagues hit. The leather cuffs dangling from the top corners excepted, of course.
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