“You really like it?”
“I really do.”
“Francesca?” Sacaren looked unsure.
She grinned. “Eden’s right. It’s totally insane.” But also completely unique. “I love it as well. But why? I thought you guys didn’t like the whole Christmas idea.”
“I did,” Tecan protested.
“Well, you’re more enlightened than the rest of these cavemen,” Frankie joked.
“It’s definitely making an impact,” Brand said with a grin as he looked around at the neighbors who had all come out to look at the lights. Little kids were bundled up in warm coats and hats, staring up at the house with looks of wonder and delight.
“We might not understand this Christmas stuff,” Sacaren told her. “But you and Eden enjoy it. We wish you to be happy.”
She stared up at him then smiled. “That’s one of the sweetest things I’ve ever heard.” She leaned up and gave him a kiss, tasting peppermint. Yum.
“So sweet it’s sickening,” Brand said but he was still smiling. “So can we see what’s waiting inside?”
6
Marcun and Eden
Eden tried to keep the dismay from showing on her face as she looked at her kitchen. It appeared as though they’d pulled out every container of food they could find and tipped them out across the kitchen.
The smell of smoke still lingered and from the look of what was sitting on the oven trays, everything they had tried to cook had been burnt beyond recognition.
“I am sorry, Eden, I have let you down.” Brogan looked so disappointed that she knew she wouldn’t say a word about the mess. He’d tried.
“You did all this for us?” she asked them. They’d all gathered in the kitchen area when the women had entered.
“Yes. But I managed to burn everything,” he said mournfully. “I have not attempted to cook the turkey yet.”
“Turkey? I didn’t get a turkey.”
“I bought one yesterday,” he told her.
She saw Frankie and Brand turn to them in shock.
“A real turkey?” she asked, moving to the fridge. There was a huge box in the bottom and she pulled it out, shocked at the weight.
She drew the top open. There it was. A real turkey.
“But real turkeys cost a fortune, how did you even get it?”
He shrugged. “The lady at the meat place said that someone had not picked theirs up.”
“Oh God, we’re going to have turkey, real turkey.” She was in shock.
“If you’re cooking it, I’m having Christmas lunch here,” Brand quickly said. “Wait until I tell the others.”
“Provided you guys bring all the sides, everyone can come,” Eden said. She doubted there was much food left that was edible. “This should be enough to feed us all.”
She put the turnkey safely inside the fridge once more then threw her arms around Brogan, ignoring Marcun’s growl. “Thank you.”
Marcun pulled her off his pack mate and wrapped his arms around her.
“Brogan may have purchased the bird but I went shopping.”
“And I wrapped the gifts,” Ioin added, not to be left out.
“You all did a wonderful job,” she told them sincerely. “I can’t believe you all did this for us. I thought you didn’t want to celebrate Christmas?”
“It does not mean anything to us,” Ioin told her. “But it means something to the two of you and you are pack now. We wish you to be happy.”
She blinked at Ioin. That was unexpected from the rather austere leader. She didn’t even think he liked her.
“Really? You accept us as pack?”
He looked surprised by that. They all did. “Of course, you are pack,” Marcun told her. “Why would you think otherwise?”
“I just wasn’t certain you considered us pack.” She looked over at Frankie who shrugged.
“You are pack,” Ioin told. “The two of you are the most important members of our pack. You are precious to us.” He looked slightly uncomfortable saying that and she knew it wasn’t easy for him.
Tears dripped down her face. She sniffled. “Thank you.”
“You are crying.” Ioin looked appalled. He stepped away, his hands held up in front of him. “I did not do this.”
She sobbed and laughed at the same time. “These are happy tears.”
“Happy tears?” Nax gaped at her. “How is that possible? How do we tell the difference between happy and sad tears? This is most confusing.”
Brand slapped his hand on the other man’s back. “Welcome to our world, man. Women. Difficult creatures to understand and comprehend.”
“If you cannot understand them then how do we ever stand a chance?” Ioin asked.
“You don’t,” Brand said cheerfully.
“Sorry, I’m more emotional than usual lately.” Eden smiled up at Marcun. “Is there anything else to show us?”
“The presents,” Ioin told her proudly. “I wrapped them.”
“I’m sure they look marvelous.”
7
Sacaren and Frankie
The gifts looked awful. It was a toss-up whether more paper or tape covered the presents.
How many rolls of tape had Ioin actually used?
And then there was the tree. Holy crap. It seemed they had decided it didn’t wasn’t decorated enough.
Frankie had to bite her lip to stop herself from laughing. She saw Eden look away for a moment, her shoulders shaking slightly.
Brand wasn’t as circumspect. He burst into laughter as soon as he entered the living room. Frankie glared at him over her shoulder, but he didn’t pay her any attention. Not that he could probably see her, considering he was pretty much bent in two as he laughed his ass off.
“Brand. Shut. Up.”
“What is so funny?” Ioin asked.
The Sky Warriors all stood around, staring at Brand in confusion. Finally, her brother, who was destined to die as soon as she got him alone, stood and wiped his streaming eyes.
“What?” He stared around at them all, his eyes widening. “Crap, you’re serious. I thought this was a gag.”
“Brand.” She scowled at him.
“Sorry,” he said. “I love it. Honestly. Especially the tinsel.”
That was pretty much all there was. If the tree Eden had bought was in there, it was well hidden behind a veritable wall of tinsel. It looked like the tinsel fairy had visited, vomited her guts out and then left without tidying up.
“I love it,” Eden declared.
“You do?” Marcun asked, sounding worried.
“I do. And the presents look great,” she told Ioin who puffed up like a rooster.
Frankie slipped up behind Sacaren and put her arms around him. “Thank you for doing all of this.”
He grinned down at her. “I even left some candy canes for tomorrow.”
“So that’s why you taste like peppermint.”
She leaned up on tip toes and he bent down to kiss her. Yum.
“Right, that’s my cue to leave,” Brand said loudly. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow. Great job, honestly.”
Sacaren pulled back to look down at her. “Why does he leave each time we kiss?”
“He’s jealous. Besides, don’t jinx it. It’s a great tool to have to get rid of my brothers. We might need it tomorrow when the horde descends on us.”
“Speaking of tomorrow, I guess I better clean the kitchen,” Eden said. “It’s time like these I really miss living on the ship. Those cleaning bots are awesome.”
Frankie sighed. Yep, right about now cleaning bots sounded like the perfect Christmas gift.
* * *
By the time the kitchen was cleaned, Frankie was yawning. It had been a huge day and it would be an even bigger one tomorrow.
This wasn’t exactly the way she’d planned to spend Christmas Eve, but it had been fun all the same.
She reached up to put some baking powder on the top shelf in the pantry. Someone came up behind her and grabbed
the container, slipping it onto the shelf for her as he pressed his body against hers.
The scent of peppermint and sugar hit her and she rubbed her ass against him, feeling his cock press against her back.
Turning, she looked up at Sacaren. How was she ever lucky enough to find this guy? Just a chance meeting at a 7-Eleven and now look at her. Mated to him, living in this house, loving him just a bit more each day.
She wrapped her arms around his waist. She could just manage it, he was so huge. “You know, all this work you did today deserves a reward.”
“Reward? Cake?”
She tugged on his shirt until he bent down. Then she whispered in his ear, “I was thinking of licking you all over like a giant lollipop.”
“Oh.” He didn’t react for a few seconds and then he quickly pulled her up into his arms. She let out a small cry then giggled as he rushed out of the pantry and past the others who quickly got out of his way.
“Try not to scream too loudly,” Ioin called out. “We do not need the old bat calling the authorities again.”
She buried her face in his chest. “That was embarrassing.”
“Why?” He entered their bedroom, shut the door by kicking it and then placed her on her feet.
“Because they all know what we’re doing?”
“You can hear much in this house,” he told her. “Unless we are very quiet, those in the rooms closest always hear us.”
“I did not need to know that.”
“Strip,” he demanded.
Yeah, she wasn’t certain she was so keen now that she knew they could all hear. He gave her a heated look.
“You are hesitating, do you need help?”
“Maybe some more privacy would help.”
He tilted his head to one side. “I could gag you.”
“I don’t think so.”
“I could just kiss you until you do not care anymore.”
Her heart raced. “That might be a better option. We could also look into some sort of sound-proofing.”
“Anything for you, my mate.”
“Aw, you old charmer you.”
He growled. “I am not that old.”
“No, just two hundred years young. That’s not old at all.”
She didn’t really like thinking about his age span in comparison to hers. Or that he would live for much longer than she would. That was a worry for another day.
She stepped past him, but he grabbed her top, dragging her back. She gave his hand a smack.
“Stop. You are wrecking too much of my clothing.”
He turned, stalking towards her. “You wear too many clothes. The rule is no clothing in the bedroom.”
“Yeah?” She raised an eyebrow. “Does that apply to you as well?”
“Yes.” He reached for her and she darted away with a laugh. His gaze narrowed, a predatory look coming over his face. She shivered slightly.
Not that she was scared. Oh no, not at all. He would never harm her. But he could turn her to mush with one look.
He stripped off his shirt. “Human clothing is too constricting.” He drew down his pants, pulling them off. He wasn’t wearing any underwear and his cock stood out proudly.
She couldn’t resist. She walked forward, dropping to her knees in front of him, cupping his balls in her hand. They felt warm and heavy. She swiped her thumb over the head of his dick, gathering up the drop of dew, then drew it up to her mouth, licking it off. His taste filled her senses and she hummed happily. He was a bit tall for her to take him into her mouth properly in this position though. So instead, she took his balls into her mouth and played with them gently as she ran her hand up and down his shaft.
“Mate, you are too good at that.”
She had both hands around him by now, loving the noises he made. Her body stirred, heated, her pussy throbbed. Her nipples pressed against her bra and she wished she was naked.
Suddenly, he reached down and picked her up. “Enough.”
He pulled at her clothing. Something ripped but she didn’t care anymore. She wanted to feel him touching her. Skin to skin. Nothing in their way. Finally, she stood before him, naked, panting heavily. He cupped both breasts in his hands, running his thumbs over her nipples.
“Beautiful.”
Her automatic reaction was to protest, but she bit that back knowing that he really did see her as beautiful—even if she didn’t see it.
He lightly pinched her nipples and she cried out as the pain mingled with pleasure. Her arousal grew.
“Spread your legs,” he told her as he knelt in front of her. He pressed his face between her breasts and he nuzzled at them as she spread her legs wide. He grasped hold of her hips as he suckled on each nipple.
She ran her hands through his short hair, her breathing coming in such fast pants she worried she might actually hyperventilate.
He then lifted her, laying her on the carpet then crawled over her. With anyone else, she might have felt intimidated. Especially with someone of his size. But not with him.
“Put your arms above your head. No moving. Or I’ll cuff you.”
Her insides heated at his words. She loved it when he took charge in the bedroom. She didn’t know why but being restrained, following his orders, it made her incredibly hot.
Her body melted beneath his as he returned to her breasts, lapping at her hard nipples with his tongue, pulling on them gently with his teeth. Then he kissed his way down her stomach. He reached her mound and lightly licked her clit. Steady, slow flicks of his tongue that weren’t quite enough to send her over.
Just drive her nuts.
She wriggled, trying to get closer, to find some more pressure.
“Sacaren, I need more.”
He gave the side of her thigh a small slap. “Lie still.”
“I can’t! You are driving me insane.”
He flipped her over so she lay on her front then tugged on her hips until she was kneeling, her ass in the air, her arms resting on the carpet.
“Spread your legs,” he commanded.
She looked over her shoulder at him. “Bossy bastard.” But she spread them. She wasn’t really complaining. She certainly didn’t want him to stop.
He squeezed her ass cheeks and she groaned. Then he dropped his fingers lower, pushing into her passage. She was so wet, so ready for him. She squeezed down on the two fingers that penetrated her, wishing they were his cock.
“You need me.”
“Yes! Fuck me, Sacaren, please. Don’t make me wait anymore.”
“I cannot wait either, my mate.” He removed his fingers, replacing them with the head of his cock. He pressed forward and she let out a small moan. She stretched to accommodate him. Then he was inside her, pushing deep, filling her. He felt even bigger in this position.
For a moment, she thought he might be too big, but then he reached beneath her to play with her clit and all other thoughts except the need to come fled from her brain.
Each thrust drove her higher, each flick of his finger against her clit drove her wilder. It was hot, hard, and she loved it. Sweat coated her skin, she gasped, her whole body tightened.
“Sacaren, please!”
“Now, my mate. Let me feel you pulse around me. Find your release.”
She tightened around him and he let out a loud groan then drew back and slammed into her. Again and again until she screamed as she came, the room spinning, her heartbeat pausing, until finally she heard him yell behind her as found his own release.
She slumped forward. He leaned against her briefly before rolling to her side and laying his arm over her back. She forced herself to move, leaning up and over so she could kiss his cheek.
“Best Christmas Eve ever,” she told him quietly.
His eyes remained closed, his own breath still coming in fast pants. But he smiled.
It was enough. More than enough.
It was everything.
8
Marcun and Eden
She barely made it to
the toilet before vomiting.
She heaved, sweat coating her brow as she shook with each violent spasm. Suddenly, her hair was pulled back and a warm palm was placed on her forehead, supporting her as she leaned over the toilet again. There wasn’t much left to vomit up by now, but dry heaves still worked their way through her body.
By the time she was finished, she was shaking so hard her teeth actually chattered. She sat back and Marcun adjusted his hold, leaning her against the bathroom wall before reaching up and flushing the toilet. He then ran the tap and placed a glass of water to her mouth. She didn’t even try to grab hold of it. Just took a few small sips before waving it away.
Marcun crouched in front of her, his face filled with concern and worry.
“Sorry,” she whispered.
He frowned slightly. “Why are you sorry?”
Why? She wasn’t exactly sure. “Well, I guess this isn’t the way everyone wants to be woken up on Christmas morning.”
He waved his hand. “I do not care about that. You are ill. You need me. What is wrong? Was it something you ate?”
“I don’t know.” She waited for another bout to hit her, but she actually felt better now. “I just woke up feeling like I needed to throw up. I haven’t eaten since lunchtime yesterday so I doubt it’s anything I ate.”
He scowled. “You're not eating enough. You are not caring for yourself properly and now you are ill. That is unacceptable.”
She reached out and patted his hand. “Marcun, one missed meal won’t make me ill.” In fact, she was starting to wonder whether she was actually ill. She did a mental calculation. When was the last time she’d had her period? With everything going on, she hadn’t been keeping track as she should have been.
Marcun stood and grabbed a cloth out of the cupboard then wet it. “We must get you to a healer.”
“Most doctors don’t work on Christmas day and I’m not going to the hospital.”
A Sky Warrior Christmas Page 6
