by Layla Heart
“Where’s Max?”
Liam gasps mockingly. “I’m holding you, and you talk of other men?” Then he smiles. “Fighting the printer, last I saw him. Seems that sending twenty files from four computers at the same time might not have been the best idea. I thought he’d know that by now.” Liam goes to the door that comes out to the terrace behind the house and opens it, letting in the slightly cool air as he steps outside. Then he closes the door behind us and I remember that I’m not even wearing shoes.
“Wait, wait. Shoes.” I wriggle, trying to get back in, and he laughs.
“No need.” He carefully puts me down on the grass and then starts to strip.
I can’t keep my eyes off him, off his muscled chest, or his very fine ass. Or even his very impressive cock, which is very much very hard right now, my eyes glued to it. When he stops moving, I quickly glance up to his face, my cheeks aflame.
“I know that I’m impressive, but, you know, there’s more to me than just ‘little’ me.” He wraps his hand around his cock and my insides clench at the idea of having him inside me. Fucking hell. Nothing ‘little’ about him indeed… He’s hung like a horse.
“Are you that impressive when you’re shifted?” The words fall from my lips, even when my cheeks start to burn.
“You’ll have to see for yourself.” He smirks, winking. Then Liam takes a few steps back and rolls his shoulders.
The next moment, his body starts to twist, transform. It’s been a long time since I’ve watched someone transform into their shifter shape, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen a centaur transform before. It’s different, very different, because only his lower body changes, his upper body staying the same. After a while, he seems to stop changing any more. His fur on his lower half is the same colour as his hair. He’s taller this way, because of the horse legs, and when he turns to me, he looks almost shy.
“What do you think?” His voice is quieter than I expected it to be, but I can’t keep my eyes off him and I reach out, running my fingers through his fur. Seeing his impressive form in front of me, so at odds with his careful tone, wipes all flippant comments from my mind. He’s sexy and beautiful and exudes raw strength.
“You’re not as soft as you look.” I laugh slightly, because it’s so silly to say.
He laughs too, his posture changing and he’s looking more like himself now. “Are we ever?” He holds out his hand. “Come on, get on.”
“What?” I stare.
“Get on. Let’s go for a ride.”
I carefully take his hand and he pulls me up. I grab hold of his shoulder with my other hand, not really sure where I should keep my hands when I’m on his back. He’s... It feels weird to just grab his abs or anywhere really... Fucking hell. It’s kind of awkward, do I hold his fur on his back or grab his way too sexy body in front of me?
“Wrap your arms around me. Like you’d do on the back of a motorbike.” He doesn’t move yet, waiting for me to sit right.
“I’ve never done that before either...”
“But I bet you’ve seen it in movies.” He laughs, reaching back to me and I take his hands. Then he puts my arms around his waist, my hands on his delicious body.
Hell, if it wasn’t for me holding him, I’d probably slide right off, being surrounded with such sexy men is not good for a girl, or her ability to not slip off things when she gets too wet...
Liam slowly starts to walk towards the path to the beach and I have to admit that being up this high is quite an experience, very different than anything I’ve done in the past.
“I bet you do this to impress all the Omegas.” I keep my voice teasing, but at the same time, my stomach feels weird at the thought that he’d let anyone else on his back. I don’t expect him to suddenly stop and I have to hold on tightly not to fall off.
“Not many people get to see me like this.” His voice is low, careful. “Some people think it’s weird, only half shifting.”
My heart hurts at his tone, at how people would mistreat him, even though he’s so beautiful. I lean forward more, putting my lips to his bare back, giving him kiss after kiss. “I think you’re beautiful.” I let out a slight laugh. “And, you know, I can actually talk to you when you’re shifted. How many other shifters can say that they can hold full conversations while shifted?”
He laughs, almost like he’s surprised. “That’s one way to look at it, I guess. Hold on tight.” He puts his hands over my arms as he starts walking again. Then goes faster and faster until he’s running, galloping. Only then does he let my arms go, and he goes even faster.
The wind rushes past, my hair fluttering behind me and there’s a trill going through me. Wow. Fucking, wow.
I look to the side, watching the sea flash past, the beach under his hoofs going so fast that I can barely see more than a sandy coloured streak.
Then, even though I don’t mean to, I can’t help but let out a squeal. Laughing, laughing so hard that it’s hard to keep hold of him. I’ve never felt like this before, this free. This isn’t like flying or anything else like that, this is... This is different. His body vibrates each time his hoofs hit the sand. His muscles moving under me, smooth and strong.
As we reach a group of dunes that come further onto the beach, he slows down, until he stands still, laughing too. “Fucking hell. I’ve not run like that in a long time.” He’s out of breath as he turns to me slightly. “Did you like it?”
“Like it?” I grin. “Wow. For a moment... It felt like a different world.”
“I know.” He smiles and then slowly goes down on his knees, lying in the sand. “Pfff. I should really do this more often, or I’ll look this bad every time I try to impress you. Having no endurance is not a sexy look.”
I slide off his back, standing in front of him. He’s a little shorter than me now, with his horse body folded underneath him.
“It’s sexy, no matter what. You, looking like this, being able to run like that, it’s sexy. Don’t let anyone tell you anything else.” Then I lean closer and I put my lips to his.
He tastes like sweat and coffee and something I can’t place, maybe just something that’s ‘him’. When I pull back, my breath is coming out in bursts and my whole body buzzes.
That was my first kiss. My very first kiss... I always expected it to be special, romantic, at night, under a starry sky with an Alpha I’ve been dating for months. Not on a beach, at the end of fall, sweaty, with a guy I’ve known for like... a week.
He pulls me closer to him, a little awkwardly because of the height difference, but then he’s suddenly human again and he carefully lowers both of us to the sun-warmed sand. “How am I supposed to resist you, when you say such sweet things.” His voice is hoarse and I feel his cock push into my side.
Then his lips are back on mine. The kiss harder this time, needier, and I gasp as I try to hold onto him as well as I can. His tongue dips into my mouth, exploring me, teasing me, making my head spin. He slides his hand down my body, over my side, to my hip, grabbing my ass as he pulls me against him tighter, rocking our hips together. He starts fucking my mouth with his tongue and I lose all thought.
Yes. So much, yes. I let out a slight moan as his fingers disappear under my sweats, finding my most sensitive spot. Fucking hell. My first kiss and my first orgasm by someone else’s hand in just a matter of minutes? Wow...
His fingers move quickly, and combined with him fucking my mouth with his tongue, I come, way too soon. My whole body tenses as I gasp out again, not able to control myself.
Everything goes bright for a moment and I tighten my arms around him, almost afraid that this is all a dream. That this orgasm of orgasms is just a dream that’ll be over way too soon.
Liam chuckles as he gives me a soft kiss on my neck. “I’m right here. This isn’t a dream.”
Fuck... I said that out loud, didn’t I? Oh, crap...
29
Max
Zack and Spence are back before Liam and Cyra have returned, both guys not l
ooking very happy, carrying a whole load of boxes which we put in the ‘office’ on the main floor. I don’t look inside yet, I feel like Cyra needs to be here for that. It feels wrong to snoop through them and it seems the other two guys feel the same as we go back to the living room.
“Any news?” Spence looks over my shoulder at my screen while Zack is off to the beach, something about checking where the other two are...
I shake my head, aware of how close he’s standing. “I made a list of everything her parents said during the interview, but we’ll have to check all that when Cyra is here. Not much else new. There are some grumbles about us ‘taking what isn’t rightfully ours’ online, and stuff like that. But that seems to be all.” I glance back at Spence and he flushes when he notices me looking at him.
He keeps acting like that, just like on the plane and a couple of other times. I’ve caught him looking at me a few times, like he wants to say something, or do something, but doesn’t dare to. Interesting...
He steps back, running his hands over his arms. “Right. We expected that. It appears that people aren’t talking about Zack and me anymore though. The whole ‘two Alphas together’ scandal seems to have blown over.” He walks to the kitchen, pouring himself a glass of water and I follow him, not sure why, but I do.
“Is it true?” I keep my voice steady.
“What?!” He nearly chokes on a sip of water and coughs a good while before he can speak again. “Am I in love with Zack? No. Hell, no.” That makes him stop, wincing, like he regrets his harsh words, and he lowers his voice. “He’s a good friend, but I’ve never been interested in him like that.” Oh, things are only getting more interesting, and it’s interesting to see his mask slip a little, his control. He’s very careful about what he lets other people see about him. And this seems to be one of those things.
“I meant are you interested in Omegas and Alphas, and maybe Betas too?” I lean back against the counter, not waiting for his reply as I try to lighten the mood. “Because I think very few people would consider Zack their type... He probably just grinds people down so much that he simply becomes their type.” I can’t imagine how frustrating and exhausting having Zack as your mate would be...
Spence smiles softly, probably imagining the same exhaustion for whoever is ‘lucky’ enough to be Zack’s mate, and then inclines his head just a fraction. “Only Zack knows.” No surprise there.
It’s no wonder they were able to play into the rumours about them last night, making it seem even slightly possible that they really were mates. The guys have always been joined at the hip and never seem to leave the other’s side. So it would make sense that Zack would be the only one to know this about Spence.
I shrug, acting like I’m not revealing something about myself that I’ve kept hidden for years. “I’ve had... my fair share of different people. I understand.”
His head jerks up, his eyes wide, like a little bunny caught in the headlights of a car, or when they see a large predator... And I suspect that I’m the predator in this case... “What?” His voice is barely audible and he keeps staring at me.
“I’m pansexual.” Fucking hell. I can act all big, but like him, only very few people know about this, Liam being one of maybe a handful. “I get it.”
His mouth falls open, and he seems about to say something, when the back door opens and Liam walks in, in all his naked glory, Cyra trailing behind him. I glance to Spence, checking his crotch, but I don’t think Liam is his type... Cyra though... That’s been obvious from the start.
“We’re hooome.” Liam opens his arms grinning.
I roll my eyes as I walk out of the kitchen. “That’s obvious. Now, put some clothes on, would you? I know that Cyra probably enjoys staring at you in your birthday suit, but the rest of us could do with a little less flesh. I also don’t think the owners of this place would appreciate you parking that bare ass of yours on their furniture.”
Cyra lets out a startled gasp, her face going bright red, as Liam laughs loudly. “Oh, you have noooooo idea where my bare ass has been.” But he quickly darts back out of the house before Cyra can smack him. Oh, something happened there.
For a moment I want to laugh, but then something twists in me, something dark, jealousy. I stalk over to Cyra, Liam’s forest-y scent all over her, like she’s been out between the trees all day. I want to carry her off and check every last bit of her, making sure she’s okay, that he didn’t do anything to her. Liam’s scent is all over her skin and her clothes, and while a little spicy, I don’t smell his cum or anything like that. Good.
Though, my cerberus seems less forgiving, still snarling at Liam, at how he should keep his hands off Cyra. Off, off, off her. Or he’ll make sure Liam can’t ever touch her again. My cerberus flashes images in my mind, ripped off limbs, fighting Liam, taking him out. Though the thoughts grind to a halt when something else sneaks in ‘Cyra would hate that, she’ll hate you if you do that’.
That grinds all my thoughts to a halt. Fuck! How did I almost lose control?
“Max?” Cyra trails her fingers over my shirt. “Are you okay?”
I nod, trying to get myself back under control. I can’t act like that, I really can’t. She’s not just mine, how we all reacted to her proves that, but I’m still not really comfortable about the idea of sharing her... “Zack and Spence brought your stuff over. It’s in the other room. You should probably take a look.”
Her face falls as she nods, then she turns and I spot something on her neck. A hickey. A fucking hickey!
“Liam!” I storm out the back door, trying to spot my ‘best friend’. ‘Dead friend’ more like it, if I get my hands on him. The guy who fucking dared to put his hands, or more precisely, his lips, on my girl. “Where the fuck are you?”
He’s not behind the house, his clothes a crumpled heap next to the door to Cyra’s room. I stalk over, but he’s not in her room either, then I hear his hoofs on the sand on the beach, running away.
That guy! He knew! He knew I’d get angry. He did it on purpose!
I’m about to undress, wanting to go after him, fight him to the ground and let him know that he’s not to touch her without me knowing about it, without me giving him the okay first. He can’t go behind my back, no fucking way.
“Max!” Zack is standing on the path to the beach, holding up his phone, his face serious. “Leave him be. We’ve got other things to worry about.”
“Two things.” Spence appears in the doorway, holding up some papers. “You need to see this. I just spotted this in the printer.”
Sighing, I pull my shirt back on, though I don’t miss the way Spence’s eyes lingered on me a moment. Yeah, I’m pretty sure I figured out his type...
I wait until Spence and Zack are both inside and then I follow them, my frustration with Liam gone. I’ve got other things on my mind, like protecting Cyra, like protecting and taking care of Cyra, my mate-to-be.
“How much do you have left?” I look at Cyra, who’s sitting at the other side of the table, her hands tightly locked together in front of her as she glares at me.
“Does it matter?” She’d looked pretty happy when she came in, but she’s definitely not happy anymore. She glares at Spence. “How did you even find out? Did you look through my things?”
He shakes his head, pushing the papers he was holding her way. “Bank statements. I just saw them on top of the pile that Max printed out. It was pretty easy to figure out what the big expense you have every other month would be. You’re about to run out, aren’t you?”
“Fuck off.” Cyra’s voice breaks and she pushes herself up. “Just... Let me be. I don’t want this. I don’t want any of this. I don’t have to tell you. I’ll figure out a way. This is private.”
I remember how scared she’d looked about having to pay for the repairs on her car, and the statement Spence is holding makes it very obvious that she won’t ‘figure it out’. There’s no money in her account, none.
I stand up, dropping my voice beca
use I need a damn answer. I need to know how fast we have to act, how long we have before things could get dangerous. “You don’t have the funds to ‘figure it out’. How. Long. Do. You. Have. Left.” I don’t like using my Alpha powers, but it seems that she keeps pushing all my buttons and it keeps sneaking out.
She stops, not facing us, trembling and I immediately feel like crap. “Two weeks, give or take, on the pheromone suppressants. But I don’t have any heat suppressants yet.”
“Are you fucking kidding me? Don’t joke about this.” Zack jumps up and stalks over to her, grabbing her shoulder, but then he stops, panic flashing over his face as he glances at Spence and me. He shakes his head. Yeah, she’s not kidding.
Cyra furiously pushes his hand off her shoulder, glaring at him and then at us. “I said that I was going to take care of this myself. You don’t have to worry about anything. I’ll manage.” Then she looks at me directly, fury in her eyes. “And that’s exactly why I don’t want an Alpha in my life. That. You doing that.” She turns around and stalks down the hallway, slamming the door to her bedroom closed and loudly locking it.
Fuck.
Zack comes over, putting his phone on the table. “I guess this is a bad moment to announce that her parents have said something that could make things a lot more complicated?”
“What is it?” I stand up, about to take a long walk, just to get this frustration out of me.
“They’ve announced that...” He sighs. “It seems they’re playing the ‘we didn’t want to say this, but we feel that we have to, she’s been promised to someone for years’ card now.”
I stop. Of course. This is what we’d been worried about. If they do this, things could turn nasty fast and I really don’t like the feeling of that. Fuck.
I glance in the direction Cyra just disappeared in. “They’re going to go as low as they can, won’t they?”
