Broken Dreams (Broken Promises Book 1)

by Charlotte Brice

  “No, still a human, but a witch maybe. It wouldn’t make any difference, but it might help us find out how you lost your memories.”

  Heather sighed and relaxed back in the chair. “I’m sorry to be so much trouble.”

  “You’re not, it's ok.” Oscar opened his arms to her, and she fell into him for a warm hug. He liked these hugs. She was just the right fit for him.

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  O utside, Arlo bounced around the large tree in the corner of the garden. The rabbits had all gone. They were no fun, but he was enjoying being outside in the fresh air where he loved to play. The wolf paused as a new scent caught his nose. His head turned and his eyes focused on the newcomer. The man was familiar but approached slightly cautiously. He wore jogging bottoms and a tee shirt, but his feet were bare. Arlo liked this man.

  “Hi, Arlo.” Roken crouched down a few metres away and held out his hand.

  Yes. Arlo was aware of his identity. What was he supposed to do now? Sniff his hand? Why would he want to do that? He already knew the man. But he tried to follow appropriate behaviour with his pack members, even those that didn’t speak wolf. Sometimes it was frustrating, and Arlo grumbled.

  “Grumpy sod,” Roken huffed, dropping his hand. “You can’t stay outside forever. You need to turn back.”

  Arlo cocked his head on the side. Turn back? Did Roken have some trousers for him? He wasn’t going to shift back now and slink naked past Heather in the kitchen. They had been enjoying a very intimate moment, and then he had shifted. When she needed him the most, he’d been unable to offer more than a few tail wags. In truth, his pride had been hurt, and he was embarrassed to lose control like that, but more than that, he hated that his wolf wanted to play around with rabbits when he just wanted to give Heather a hug. Now he could smell her in there, close enough to Oscar to make his jealousy grow in his chest and growl up through his throat.

  “Whoa!” Roken backed up slightly. “Easy, now. I just need you to get me some books out of the dungeon. I can’t bring myself to go in.”

  Arlo lay down. The grass was slightly damp under his fur, but he was making himself lower than Roken. Any shifter would understand that lowering himself in front of another was a form of submission. It was his way of sympathizing with the shifter. Roken may not shift anymore, but that didn’t stop him understanding body language.

  “Is that a yes?” Roken asked.

  Nodding was not so easy as a wolf. He could shake a ‘no’ easily enough, but a nod was more of a slow lower and raise. A one bark for yes system would work better, so Arlo made a single ‘yip’ noise which caused him to hide his muzzle with his paws. Stupid noise!

  “Go into the house, and shift back in your room, please,” Roken insisted firmly.

  Arlo had lowered himself. He had chosen to submit, and now he had to obey. He stood up and trotted towards the house. Heather was boiling the kettle as Arlo padded past and headed out into the hallway. By the time he returned, human and clothed, she had finished making the coffee. These guys lived on coffee, so she handed Arlo a hot mug full as he sat himself at the table. He was dressed in a long sleeve top and trousers but no socks. Roken was also without socks. She concluded it must be a shifter thing.

  “Are you guys annoyed with me?” Heather asked. No one was saying anything, and she wondered if she was the cause of the awkward silence.

  “We’re not annoyed.” Arlo said, smiling and sipping his coffee. “We just feel crap.”

  Oscar shrugged. “I don’t.”

  “Last night… what happened…” Heather couldn’t find the right words. Whatever she said, however she said it, she had replaced Oscar. As soon as he walked out of the house, she had practically thrown herself at Roken in his place.

  “I know what happened.” Oscar smiled. “I don’t mind.”

  Heather sat down. He was cool with what had happened. How could he be so understanding about the four of them sharing her? Well, three of them so far, but she would change that. When Seb was ready. His broken heart needed time, but that made her want him more than anyone.

  “It’s not you, Heather. We’re all a bit sex mad now you're here," Roken chuckled at the thought. “We’ve gone months at times without getting laid, but now we’re all crazy for it.”

  “Why?” She frowned, wondering why these four good-looking men didn’t get laid as often as they wanted.

  “I think it's all to do with you being not-quite-human. I need to get down in the basement and look at some of the books we put down there, but I can’t go in the dungeon,” Roken explained.

  Confused, Heather studied their expressions. “Is it locked?” Both Arlo and Oscar seemed to accept Roken’s inability to enter as a given.

  “No, just” Roken’s voice trailed off as he fidgeted uncomfortably with the handle of his mug “scary.”

  “I’ll go down there for you,” Arlo offered, putting a hand on Roken’s shoulder.

  Heather watched the exchange with piqued interest. Whatever stopped Roken getting into the dungeon wouldn’t stop Arlo. Something bad must have happened to him in that basement, and she needed answers from him and Seb.

  Speak of the devil, she thought as Seb walked into the room, running his hand through his hair. When he caught sight of their drained state and haggard faces, he stalled, eyes wide and mouth gaping. “You all need coffee,” he muttered, then continued into the kitchen.

  Arlo lifted his mug, still hot, still full. Roken held his out to Seb, hoping for another refill. It was the third that Heather had made him. He should have been bouncing off the walls, but he still looked shattered.

  “What happened?” Seb asked, frowning. “You both look like shit.”

  “Heather happened,” Arlo muttered. “We all fucked, but then she started screaming. She knocked Roke out somehow, and I shifted. Spent the whole night sleeping on the floor.”

  “Ro?” Seb turned to the other shifter.

  “I didn’t shift,” he dropped his shoulders and stropped like a teenager about to be blamed for something he didn’t do.

  Seb turned to Heather. “I think you and I need to have a chat. Alone.” Now she felt like the naughty child about to be singled out and lectured, but she just nodded obediently. Seb made his coffee and walked out of the room, gesturing for her to follow. Roken stood up to make his own coffee as Heather nervously followed.

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  H e ran his finger across her lips as he mentioned her smile. She stared up into his eyes, and he stared right back at her. This was Seb's moment, his first time alone with her, and she could see how much he wanted her. His thumb caressed her cheek, and then he pressed his lips to hers.

  Heather welcomed him, his passion, his taste. She pushed herself further into his embrace, wrapping her arms around him as his fingers tangled in her hair. Despite the short time they'd known each other, she felt like she'd been waiting for this moment forever. She had been his from the first, and now she would make him hers. Seb's hand ran down her back, then round to her breasts and Heather broke briefly from his kiss to pull her top over her head. Now confident he had her full consent, he moved his hand, cupping her rear as he squeezed and lifted her rhythmically.

  Heather pulled at Seb's belt and as it opened, Seb shot up with her captured in his arms. Once on their feet, Seb's trousers slid down with a few gentle tugs and he kicked them aside. All the while, he didn't move from her lips. Seb made removing her trousers feel elegant as he dipped down, worshipping each new bit of skin as it appeared from under her clothing. It made her actions feel clumsy, but maybe when she had over three hundred years’ worth of experience, maybe she'd be equally skilled.

  He planted a kiss at the front of her flower as he removed her knickers, one hand reaching behind to effortlessly release her bra clip. In seconds, she was naked, and Seb was helping her remove the rest of his clothing. Not bothering with the buttons, he ripped his shirt open, sliding it down his arms as Heather claimed his lips. Teeth clashed and tongues dance
d as he pulled her close again, his lips against hers as their naked bodies made contact for the first time.

  “You're too good to rush,” Seb whispered against her lips.

  He laid her back onto the bed and climbed on top of her, sitting across her hips. His smile was devilish as she took in the sight of his erection resting on her tummy, and his eyes revealed a wicked plan as he reached across to the bedside table. His cock slid up her body as he moved, and she quivered beneath him. She was ready and waiting, but what he fetched from the drawer sent nervous chills of excitement up her spine. He took her wrists and used a length of satin to bind them together.

  “You will squirm for me, my beautiful, before I give you what you want.”

  Heather grinned. It felt naughty, forbidden, and just a little scary as he lifted her arms above her head and bound the end of the satin material to the headboard. He ran his fingers down her body and lifted her legs up and out from beneath him.

  “You’re very naughty to keep me waiting” he taunted. “I’ll have to punish you one day.” His hand caressed her plump cheeks, and then he gave her a sharp slap that caused her to squeal.

  “Mmmm...” she muttered with a note of surprised pleasure.

  “Patience, angel.” Seb dropped her legs on the mattress and took his time exploring her body. He gently touched every inch of her with his fingertips as he made his way slowly up her body to her lips. Then he kissed her, trailing his lips back down her neck and chest, then around her nipples, pursed up tight with anticipation.

  There was a fire in his eyes that burnt with passion but there was a wickedness there too. Seb's love would come his way and on his terms. She saw his passion as clear as she saw his naked body. His love would be a delicious torture, and there was a familiarity to it, like she had enjoyed all this before.

  She squirmed against her bonds as his touch lit her body on fire. He moved down her flat stomach and around her hips, worshipping every part of her with his lips and fingertips. She longed for him to take her then, rocking her pelvis in response to the primal need that consumed her, but she groaned and cursed as his fingers moved past and worked down her legs. Heather squirmed as his fingers tickled her knees, not stopping as he nibbled her toes. His hands pressed harder, more of a caress than a tickle, as he worked his way back up her highly stimulated skin.

  Her moans only encouraged him, and she was wet and ready when Seb finally slipped two fingers gently into her folds. Heather moaned in desperation, longing for more, yet he denied her.

  He kissed her, right at the top of her legs where they met her body. She parted her legs for him, allowing him to kiss right into her delicate area, and she moaned. Her back arched with pleasure as his fingers stroked her folds, slowly pushing two fingers inside her while his tongue delighted her clitoris.

  Heather had never felt such excruciating pleasure. Not that she could recall, anyway. She was hungry for him. She wanted him inside her, yet he denied her the release she craved. The more he delighted her, the more she squirmed, until she couldn't take it any longer. Writhing around on the bed, helpless, her moans turned into a cry. She needed him.

  “Good girl,” Seb praised. “Cry for me.”

  “I'm glad you're enjoying this,” Heather groaned.

  “Not as much as you seem to be.”

  “No more. Please. I need you.”

  Seb nodded and moved up the bed. His face hung above hers, his knees kicked her legs up, and she angled herself below his cock, ready for him. So ready. Seb kissed her, his hand cupping her breast as he tormented her a little longer. Finally, just as she thought she would burst, he slipped inside her, gently pushing his hips back and forth until he filled her completely.

  Heather let out a loud, satisfied groan as he pushed forward into her again and again. He drove deep inside her with each thrust and a small cry escaped her lips. His experience was beyond measure. He knew exactly where to touch her gently and where to be firm, but with that building pleasure came a frustration that was driving her wild. Her hands turned helplessly in their binding, desperate to grab him, to touch him. The two sensations combined beautifully into the most explosive orgasm she could ever hope for.

  "Oh, Heather!" Seb moaned, clenching his body above her as his cock pulsed with his release. Still gasping for breath, her lips met his. His hand ran through her hair, and he paused inside her.

  “That was amazing,” she panted. “Can we do it again?” As she praised him, Heather unhooked her legs. She hadn't expected such tender and torturous acts from the man, but Seb had taken her breath away.

  “Now?” he teased, both hands quickly grabbing her breasts and squeezing.

  “Oh gods, no!” Heather said, throwing her head back and arching beneath his grip.

  “Next time, then,” Seb promised and pulled the satin free from the headboard. Heather held her hands up to him, but he didn't release her. “Get up,” he ordered, withdrawing from her. He held the end of the satin strip like he owned her, and while she struggled bound from the bed, he leant back and watched. “I think I like you like this,” he teased.

  Heather said nothing, just stood in front of him thinking the same thing. She hadn't thought of herself as the kind of girl who would enjoy being bound, but the feel of the satin tight around her wrists excited her. She was naked and bound and ready to follow his commands. She gazed hungrily at his cock, wanting nothing more than to be ordered to her knees and to take him in her mouth.

  “Come.” He said, pulling on the material and leading her into the en-suite bath. It was a large room with a white suite more modern than her own, but what caught her eye was her own image captured in a full-length mirror with a thick, heavy frame. Heather blushed at the sight of herself post-sex and registered the whoosh of water as Seb turned the shower on.

  He held the shower door for her, so Heather stepped inside. He didn't have to worry about the tousled hair, the flushed cheeks or the wet down below, but by leading her to the shower, it showed that he did care about those things. The water was hot and powerful, and it stung her sensitive nipples as it hit her chest. But Seb was there behind her, ready to take care of her, and as her image in the mirror bled away in the steam, all her cares were forgotten.

  The heat of the shower ignited her as his firm hands washed her body. The wet satin that held her wrists pulled her arms against her breasts, and her fingers sat at her crotch. She longed to touch herself, but she longed for another thing more.

  Seb stopped washing Heather as she turned to face him. She was far more assertive and confident in herself than any woman in his past. Even without her memories, she knew her own mind, and that was as sexy to Seb as the curves of her naked body. She took his cock in her hand, and his breath hitched in his throat. As she fell to her knees before him, he could say nothing, do nothing, save resting a hand against the tiled wall to steady himself. She was the one bound, and yet as she took his cock in her mouth, he was the one captured.

  Heather sucked on his cock as the hot water streamed down their bodies. His hand tangled in her hair as he gasped at her unexpected act. Seb joined her rhythm and thrust his pelvis along with her until she broke him for the second time that night.

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  O scar followed behind Arlo as the large shifter walked down into the basement. He hated it down in the darkness. Behind him, Roken hated it even more, although it had been much longer since Roken had last set foot inside the basement.

  The basement was separated into several rooms, all coming off a long, narrow passageway that led from the bottom of the stairs to the dungeon. The windowless rooms off to either side were filled with stuff the four men didn't need anymore. But the dungeon was where the books were, so they edged their way forward along the cobweb-filled corridor. A lot of the webs were just hanging by threads after Oscar's countless trips to bring the books down, but with Roken using the wall to guide him, every other touch of the sticky webbing made him jump.

  It wasn't so much what Seb
had done to him in the dungeon that made him nervous, but the rest of the time. It was all the hours Seb wasn't with him, when he had been alone for days at a time, unable to move, to see, to hear or speak. He couldn't understand the new body he was trapped in, let alone work out how to shift back. Not that he could have shifted back even if he had worked out how. Seb had kept him dosed with a serum to prevent him shifting. Alone in the darkness without even his beast, all he had was fear and the unknown, and in the basement corridor now, edging ever closer to the door at the end, he was thrust back into that dark place where fear threatened to overcome him.

  He was dragging in lungfuls of air to combat the feeling he couldn't breathe, and his eyes looked everywhere but dead ahead, even though Arlo's back blocked his view. Roken’s heart was thumping in his chest so loudly he was sure his friends could hear it. Roken was certain if they could hear it, they would tell him to go back. Or was that just wishful thinking on his part? If they knew how he felt, surely, they wouldn’t make him continue, sandwiched between them.

  He would rather do anything than continue the slow walk to the dungeon. The closer he came to the barred door at the end, the more he understood his true fear. He was terrified of Seb making him go back, chaining him up again, torturing him and leaving him down there. He would do anything Seb wanted, give him anything, if it kept him from being locked down here again.

  Roken stopping walking and closed his eyes. He couldn’t ignore the cold sweat sliding down his spine, and he knew he was on the verge of a full-blown panic attack. He had to focus on his breathing and get his sharp, ragged breaths under control again. His fight or flight instinct was going to take over, and Oscar behind him stopped flight being a possibility.

  “Calm down, Roke,” Oscar muttered through clenched teeth. He didn't like the dungeon, but Roken's panic was putting him more on edge than he already was.