I nudged Yunez’s knee with my free hand and held out the mug. He peeled one eye open and sought out the coffee. A look of pure bliss showed how he really felt about the black magic of morning beverages.
“Thanks,” he said into the mug as he took a sip. “Ah, strong, just how I like it.”
There was a weird air in the room, probably because Sage was so wired, and Yunez was like whatever. I found my seat, tucked my feet under me, and waited to see how it would play out. I’d like to say I was more on the Yunez end of the spectrum, but after Sage’s bomb, I was more alert than I wanted to be.
We waited while Yunez sipped his drink until he must have drank at least half of it. He sent it down with a clink and folded his hands over his lap. “Okay, I’m Fennin again. What were you saying?”
Sage shook his head like he couldn’t believe Yunez was acting so flippant, and started again. “Yesterday shouldn’t have happened. I know it was caused by my actions. And, I’m sorry.” His gaze flicked to me then back to Yunez. “I’ve learned my lesson, but even with Egan taken, there were several ways that could have played out better. You said each Manno bond will make Iss stronger. We all know you want to be one of her bonds.” He quirked an eyebrow at Yunez, who merely mirrored his expression. “She needs to train and get stronger, but why not do that with Manno bonds right from the get go?”
I sat up straight, no longer in a giggly mood.
“Because, Sage, for two very important reasons: One, Isolde has to want the bond.”
I gulped, insanely grateful neither man looked at me. I had to be ketchup-red and awkward as fuck right now. The important decisions couldn’t all be mine.
“Two, the Lusty Legion has to be on board. In any good reverse harem relationship, Isolde would secure the permission of her bond mates before adding another member.”
That was true, I guessed? We hadn’t really run into that issue before now. Nato and the guys had come as a packaged deal. The only exception was when they had hoped for Sage to take my Janer bond. From the beginning, they hoped I would bond with their entire group. Weirdos.
Sage focused on his feet, then nodded. In a blink, he was out the door, leaving Yunez and me alone.
“This is awkward.” I blurted.
He chuckled, and it rolled over me like warm honey on a summer day. “This is what life in a multi-person relationship looks like. It will settle eventually, but this is all incredibly new for everyone, including me.”
I narrowed my eyes in suspicion. As Sage had said, he’d hinted at it, but did he really want to be in our group? With me? For me, or because of the boys?
It wasn’t fair of me to doubt him just because of my past issues with Sage. Not that long ago, he told me he loved me before he ever saw my face.
On that thought, my heart fluttered, and my cheeks flushed. “Do you really want to be one of my bond mates?” I hated that a note of vulnerability came through with my words.
He smiled softly, reaching out a hand to trace the underside of my jaw. “Do you want me to be one of your bond mates? You have all the power Isolde. I will merely abide by your wishes.”
Was this really happening? All the things he was saying and everything he didn’t was shining brightly right in front of my eyes. Yunez wanted me, and he wanted in our group. He was a hot creepy old man, but the most dangerous of us all. And, he wanted to be in our family.
“I—” the door banged against the wall as Nato stormed in, followed by sleepy Jari and rumpled Egan. He had pillow lines indented on his face. Then Sage pulled up the rear.
No, just kidding. Rand was last through the door, and he took great care to close it quietly.
“What the hell is going on? Sage wakes us all up and tells us it’s Manno time.” Nato scratched his head and glared at Sage.
“He did not,” I choked.
All I could picture at that moment was Sage saying it was hammer time, shuffling quickly back and forth as he woke the guys up. Only in this version, it was Manno time.
No one else made the connection, because frowns dominated their faces. Except Yunez, he was still smiling softly. Once things settled down, and we were all safe, I was going to introduce them to pop culture. Jari’s knowledge of emo music clearly wasn’t enough.
Sage jumped in and recounted the exact same speech he’d given us, even down to his apology. The others listened, nodded, and then apparently digested his information.
Sage spoke up again. “I think we can all assume Rand is going to be her other Manno bond, but that’s fucking it! I refuse to add any more people to our Lusty Legion,” he said vehemently.
Jari grinned and Egan outright laughed.
Egan came over to my couch, picked me up, and arranged me in his lap once he sat down. “I think after yesterday, and all the rude awakenings we were slapped with, none of us are opposed to the Manno situation.”
Jari went to the kitchen to get his own cup of coffee and tossed over his shoulder. “Yeah, I’ve been thinking about it for a while. I’m okay with it. Yunez has always been important in my life, and if there’s anyone I can share Iss with, it’s that bastard. And, I guess Rand is okay, too.” He smirked and pulled a banana off the bunch. It resembled a banana anyway. Only it was pink. The taste was the same, so I was going with banana.
Rand scoffed but grinned. A hint of relief came through in his smile. I couldn’t imagine how hard this was for him. I mean, Yunez already had a bond with these men. What did Rand have except a father that wanted to dominate the realms and a distant cool acquaintance with the guys?
Nato studied Rand and Yunez for several long seconds. He was the last of my LL to give his opinion.
Finally, he nodded, “If this is what Iss wants, I’ll support it.” He didn’t exactly seem happy with his decision, but he did seem determined.
“Issy girl?” Egan gave me a gentle shake to get my attention, as if I wasn’t hanging on every word spoken in the last few minutes.
“Uh…This is weird. Can I say this is weird?” I tucked my hair behind my ears, then pushed my hands under my legs. If I weighed them down, I felt more grounded and less out of control. I know. I was strange.
“It’s absolutely weird. And it’s okay to feel that way,” Rand crouched in front of me and tugged one of my hands free to lace his fingers with mine. “Would you have me as one of your Manno bonds?” A glimmer lit his gray eyes so it was like looking into a bed of molten silver. In them, I saw the sweetness that embodied who he was, and the unsurety of the entire situation. Did he not think I would want him in my LL?
“Can I answer later?” I grimaced as soon as the words left my mouth.
Rand nodded as if he wasn’t surprised at all. He was actually taking it like a champ. Rejection stung like a bitch, and it was only magnified in front of others. I wanted to say yes. Desperately. But I had stage fright, and this all was happening so fast.
Sage didn’t take it so well. He shook his head furiously. “Absolutely fucking not Iss. No more waiting. We need answers and actions.”
“And sex, we can’t forget she needs sex to go forward with your plan.” Jari laughed. There was no animosity in him at all. I knew I sure as hell would feel bitter if he was going to sex up anybody else besides me, and he was talking about two.
The others laughed quietly, but Sage sneered. “Laugh it up asshole, I’m trying to be serious and protect Iss.”
With a regretful sigh, Nato sent me an apologetic look. “This is serious, and I hate to say it Iss, but we never know what’s going to come our way. We need all the help we can get. I can’t imagine what you’re going through to have all this thrown at you, but we’ve run out of time. You don’t have to bond now, and definitely not both, but we need to know if you want Yunez and Rand in your Lusty Legion so we know how to proceed; how to train.”
The mirth that traveled through the guys moments ago disintegrated.
Poof. Just like that, it was gone.
Okay, I got it. We were doing this. I could bare my s
oul, It wasn’t like we were in elementary school and I was afraid the kids would make fun of me if I admitted a crush. Which had happened, so shoot me for being gun shy with my feelings. Sex was so much easier because it was a sharing of the skin and nothing deeper.
Over the last month, these guys had burrowed so deep under my skin, they were a part of me that would never let go. And the thing was, I didn’t want them to. But, baring myself was hard. Especially when I’d led such a solitary life. But the new me, the Mazza, loved these guys. It was time for me to suck it up.
Rand was still crouched in front of me, my hand loosely held in his. I feathered my fingers through his hair, then leaned forward slowly. He had plenty of time to stop me, but why would he? He was asking to sex me up; it was me that needed the time.
My gaze roved his face until I reached his mouth. Our breath mingled, and he closed the distance, catching my lips with his. My lids fluttered shut, blocking everything except the feel of our kiss. Ice raced under my skin, down my arms, and to my toes. Goosebumps erupted on my arms. Kissing him took over my world, but before I was pulled too far under, he sat back.
My hand fell from his hair, and dark brown locks were left sticking up over the side of his head. It was adorable and sexy.
“Can we have that talk now?” His breath was labored, but his eyes were on fire.
I looked to each member of my Lusty Legion. Jari shrugged and smirked when our gazes connected. Egan gave my hips a squeeze and a reassuring smile, Nato seemed uncomfortable but generally okay, and Sage looked crazy angry. But he nodded as if to give his permission. Finally, I turned to Yunez. The crazy bastard had a lopsided grin and was biting his lip. At some point during the kiss, he propped his foot up in his chair.
My mind wasn’t going... Okay, it went there. I’d bet anything he was hiding a boner.
Because I was starting to get my courage back, and to be a shit, I held my hand out to Yunez.
His grin widened as he stood to cross to me.
Yup. It was a boner, and now it pointed at me while I held his hand. This was a bad idea, and I didn’t know where to go from here. All that courage I was gathering did nothing to my brain; I just sat there.
“Do I get a kiss too, my love?” He stroked the back of my hand with his thumb.
What the hell? In for a penny, in for a pound. I stood up so the guys didn’t have to stare at his cock in my face.
My head was chest-level and he was so close, my nose nearly brushed his pecs. I tilted my head back, and he bent his head forward. He seemed to be daring me to make a move I didn’t believe he thought I’d do. Or maybe he did, because as my resolve settled, his eyes widened.
Damn it, how do you catch someone off guard that was so attuned to you? I guess you didn’t; it would be hell to plan birthday surprises.
His delicious scent swirled around me and I placed my hands on his chest. His heartbeat was strong and steady under my palm. I watched my hands slide up to cup the back of his neck, then I met his gaze again.
He winked, then gripped my hips and slammed me against his body. His hard cock pressed against me, and he lifted me to slightly rub against him. One of the guys coughed, but I couldn’t tear my gaze away from Yunez.
He bent down, and when I thought he was going to kiss me, he moved to the side and pressed hot kisses down the side of my face and neck. He stopped on my pulse, and I had a moment of embarrassment. There was no way he couldn’t feel the thundering beat. A light nip of teeth, and then he backed up, releasing me completely.
“I am glad you would like me in your Lusty Legion. For now, go with Rand. We will have our own time soon.” He sauntered out of the room and might as well have mic dropped.
Everyone was left staring after him.
“Am I the only one that finds it weird to see Yunez be sexual in any way?” Jari scratched his head.
“What does that mean?” Damn, I was still all breathy. First the kiss with Rand, then Yunez and his wicked teasing. Yunez hadn’t even used any of his freaky Manno mojo and I was practically panting.
“In all our years, we’ve never seen him with anyone, or talk about anyone, or heard anyone talk about him. He’s practically a monk.” Now that Nato said that, it jarred my memory; they’d mentioned this once before.
“Go on, Iss. We’re all awake now.” Egan shot a peeved look at Sage. “We need to train anyway; I’ll grab Yunez and make him start our training officially. Go with Rand.”
I shook my head. “So what, you guys train while I go off to eat bonbons with Rand, having a heart to heart?”
Sage fell into the chair that Yunez vacated. “I don’t think bonbons is what Rand is going to be eating.”
“God, will you stop!” I yelled at him. I got this was hard for him, and that he was the one pushing for it because he wanted us to be stronger, to avoid another situation like the trap room. But seriously, he was acting like a baby. His pouting was going to get his ass kicked. By me. As soon as I learned how to kick ass.
Sage pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers and let out a sorrowful breath. “I’m sorry, I know I’m being a dick; I can’t help it, I recognize this is the way it’s going to be. It’s not even like I’m against it. Seeing you go off with Rand or Yunez, knowing they’ll be intimate with you while we train or sit around trying to distract ourselves, is what’s hard. I’m getting used to it, I promise. But, I reserve the right to still bitch about it from time to time.”
Surprising the hell out of me, Rand left me and walked over to Sage. He dropped a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “I understand, there’s so much you don’t know. I want to tell you all, but Iss is first. Think of this: I have known for years we would share the Mazza. That someday, Fennin, gods willing, we would be a family if the future played out the way I wanted it too. I accepted it; It was easy to at first. This abstract future where we all run off into the sunset together, and I finally wasn’t alone. But, when I met Iss, and everything started to play out, Yunez said I couldn’t share my secret, it wasn’t the time. The future was no longer abstract, and I was drawn to Iss in a way I’ve never been drawn to anyone.
“I was stuck on the outside, watching each of you get closer to her, bond to her one by one, and it hurt. It had to be hell for you to realize Iss could add more bonds to her Lusty Legion. But for me, and maybe even for Yunez, I was so excited to finally have it out in the open. To finally court Iss the way I wanted, but it didn’t exactly go like that either,” he smiled ruefully.
My heart melted into a happy little puddle on the floor. I had no idea what he wanted to share with me, but every word that came from his mouth sunk into my skin with such warmth.
Even Sage was not unaffected. He looked up, and the anger and frustration seemed to melt from his body. He lifted a hand and gripped Rand’s.
Rand spoke again. “I understand, but I promise, I want Iss; I want this family. You can count on me to do everything in my power to protect it.”
I sucked in a breath, but no one paid me any attention. Everyone’s gazes were drilled into Rand. Nato walked forward and pulled Rand into a hug. Rand closed his eyes and wrapped his arms around Nato in a tight grip, Jari and Egan followed. Finally, Sage stood and joined in.
Yunez peeked back in and smiled indulgently. “Group hug time! Come, my love. These moments are precious, and we must not waste them.” He flitted his fingers down my arm until we linked hands, and he pulled me to the guys. They were still caught up in their own moment, so we became the barrier around them. I stretched my arms as far as they would go, encompassing both Jari, and Egan in my embrace. The moment was so profound, tears of happiness and acceptance prickled, and I blinked rapidly to diffuse them.
“I needed that. Now I’m okay with you taking Iss.” Sage whispered in Rand’s ear, but we were all so close, I could easily hear everything he said.
One second turned into two, into ten, until time blurred. The feeling of love coming from my Lusty Legion was intoxicating, and nothing could have pull
ed me away. I wanted to bask in its warmth as long as I could, holding the real world at bay for just a little longer.
Eventually, we peeled away one by one until we stood in a cluster. Rand turned toward me, and the look in his eyes shattered me in a good way; he was happy, in a way I had never seen before now.
He held out his hand. “Come with me, my lady?”
I placed my hand in his. Finally ready to hear what he had to say.
We used the interior hallway, but we didn’t go to his suite. He led me down another hallway, pulling me into something of a guest suite, waving a hand to turn on the lanterns. No matter how many small demonstrations of power he showed, it was a shock every time to be reminded he was more than Janer. He was Manno.
“I hope you don’t mind; I had hoped to have this conversation with you in my own rooms, but the walls are thinner than you might realize. I want you to be comfortable and not worried about the others overhearing if we do bond today.”
The possibility of the others overhearing hadn’t even occurred to me. I was instantly glad he’d thought of it. Even though the others were encouraging of the bond, I didn’t want to rub it in their faces. “Thanks.”
He glanced around, breaking our eye contact, and I took in the space. It was a ploy to stop the awkward we are potentially about to have sex conversation. The room was decked out in tones of gray and blue. Gray walls, light blue curtains, and teal blue covers on the bed. Fennin seemed to take hospitality very important; I hadn’t yet entered a guest suite that wasn’t beautifully decorated and uber comfortable.
“How’s training going with Cabbie?” He walked across the room, giving me his back. It was a small piece of good luck that he’d missed my humiliation earlier.
I chuckled. “Whose idea was it for me to be trained in sex toys?”
Rand shot me a lopsided grin as he opened the curtains and climbed onto the bed. He patted the space next to him and I followed, “You can thank Yunez for that. His sense of humor is…different. Oh, I think you’ll still benefit from training with them. None of us knew just how lethal they could be until they started saving our asses on multiple occasions, but I wouldn’t put it past him to have ulterior motives.” He laid back and braced one arm behind his head, staring out the window and smiling.
Secrets of the Mazza: A Paranormal Romance (Mazza Series Book 3) Page 10
