by CoraLee June
“Fuck, that’s dirty,” Tomb murmured, right as he brought his thumb down and pressed it to my clit.
I came with a scream, and Tomb roared out his own release above me. My back arched, my limbs shook. My orgasm was a rolling, never-ending rope of pleasure, tugging at my core, releasing the pain from my muscles, and calming my spider with the confident connections between us.
I started to come down, feeling invigorated. Tomb pulled out with a hiss, leaving me feeling sated but empty. We all lay in heady silence for a moment, listening to the slowing of our breaths, the steady sighs of our contentment.
My spider was curled up within me, licking her fangs and relishing in her feast.
And I was happy.
I was really, really fucking happy.
Chapter 22
“And you do that for fun?”
I looked at Tomb with an eyebrow arched as I rested against Crow’s chest in bed. The four of us had spent the last who knows how many hours doing nothing but getting to know each other better. That included talk...and a lot of sex.
I hadn’t killed anyone once. I was feeling smug as shit.
I was also feeling a bit tender down there. My mates had very impressive dicks, and they knew how to use them.
But now, we were taking a sex hiatus, and they were showing me things they liked to do for fun...and Tomb’s answer apparently included cage fighting.
Tomb chuckled, and I ran my fingers over his knuckles where there were some old scars. “It’s an adrenaline rush,” he replied. “I used to do it for money on the side. Lost a lot. But I won a lot too.”
“You’d kick some serious ass now since you’re half gargoyle demon,” Crow put in.
“Indeed. No wonder you had such an impressive right hook,” Risk commented where he was sprawled out on the bed beside me.
Unlike my other two mates, he was still stark naked, hands behind his head and not giving a single fuck that his dick was out for all to see.
“Impressive enough to let me punch you in the face again?” Tomb asked with a smirk.
“I’m always up for a wager,” the demon drawled, his eyes glittering with excitement. I swear, the male had a serious addiction to risks.
“No,” I quickly intervened. “No wagers or risk-taking between the three of you,” I told him. “You always win.”
He let out a disappointed sigh. “Life is boring if there isn’t a little risk, Wicked Love.”
“We take risks together,” I said sternly.
He grinned. “I can work with that.”
“Mm-hmm, I’m sure. So what about you?” I asked. “What do you like to do for fun?”
“I enjoy a good hellfire fight now and then,” he answered before looking over at Tomb as my gargoyle moved down the bed to rub my feet. His strong fingers dug into the arch of my foot, and it felt divine. “Probably not too different from your cage fighting, in fact. Except it’s in hell. And usually ends with someone burning in hellfire,” he mused.
The three of us just stared at him in dismay before Crow shook his head. “Man, can you put your cock away already?” Crow griped at him. “Unless it’s buried in our mate, I don’t want to see it.”
I laughed. “I need clothes too.”
“No one said anything about you covering up,” Crow replied, his hands coming around me to play with my breasts. My nipples were still pink and slightly sore from their earlier attentions when he and Tomb had each claimed a nipple and teased me with their mouths until I came.
I moaned slightly, my head lolling back against his chest as his hands continued to grip me. “I’ve already had way too many orgasms, Crow. I don’t think I could come again even with a vibrator stuck to my clit.”
“Hmm, want to make a wager?” Risk purred.
“No,” I said, laughing as I looked over at him. “We just talked about this.”
“You’ll come to realize I don’t give up so easily,” he said with a wink before getting up from the bed and striding toward the dresser. He frowned at the contents when he opened the drawers. “All that’s in here is Spector-issued sweatpants,” he said with utter disdain.
“What did you expect, a row of Armanis?” I joked.
He looked back at me with an expression that said yes, he had expected exactly that.
I rolled my eyes with a chuckle. “Just toss me a shirt and shorts please.”
He acquiesced, and I got up from the bed to pull on the overly large black t-shirt and shorts. I had to roll the shorts a few times at the waist to get them to fit, and the shirt hung down so far it looked like I wasn’t wearing any pants, but at least I was dressed. Risk opted to put on his suit from earlier, which somehow still looked pristine.
“We should probably discuss the ritual,” Risk said as he buttoned up his shirt.
At hearing that word, all the earlier relaxation and feel-good endorphins drained out of me. I wanted to keep pretending that we were here in this bubble. I didn’t want to leave it, but I knew time was running out. “Belvini probably has other schemes up his sleeves” I pointed out. “We need to plan for him to turn on us.”
“Let him try. Besides, I can flash us all out of here with a snap of my fingers, even save your aunt, too. I’m not too worried about Belvini. The moment I heard demons were being possessed against their will, I decided to shut them down.”
“I want them shut down, too. But I want us to be smart about this. If at any moment we don’t feel in control of the situation, I want to back out, okay? I never want to experience what happened yesterday again.”
“I can assure you, Wicked Love, I’m always in control,” Risk replied with a wink.
I appreciated Risk’s confidence, but unease settled through me. This wasn’t a simple gamble or game. If Risk overplayed his hand, it could mean disaster of epic proportions.
I still hadn’t told them about Stiles, either. I just didn’t know where to begin. But if he was trying to get the council to shut Spector down, that was a factor we needed to consider.
“Listen—”
My words were cut off when a horrible, deafening screech sounded through the air. Everyone’s hands clapped over their ears in unison.
“What the fuck is that?” Tomb bellowed.
I was too busy trying to stuff my fingers into my eardrums to answer him. When the noise suddenly cut off, my brain caught up with me, and my blue eyes widened. “Cheryl.”
I was on my feet and running out of the room in a second. Racing down the hall, I tried to pinpoint where I thought the noise had come from, and then followed her sugary sweet perfume in the air. My mates were racing after me, hollering at me to slow down, but I kept flashing forward, trying to follow her scent. It sounded like she was hurt, or maybe Spector was forcing her to hurt someone else, or maybe—
I burst into a room where her scent lingered and shoved the door open, my mates hot at my back. “Cheryl!” I screamed while rushing in. She was standing next to Stiles with tears running down her cheeks, fanning herself in a flurry of emotions.
“Cheryl? Are you okay?” I asked as I ran over to her. Stiles was staring up at the ceiling and rubbing his temples.
“Stiles proposed!” she cried out before wrapping her arms around my neck and squeezing me tightly. I gaped at her, patting her back as I processed her words.
“Proposed?” I asked. “Proposed what?”
She broke our hug to swat at the tears streaming down her cheeks and giggled at me. “To be married, silly,” she replied before waving her hand in front of my face. Sure enough, I was nearly smacked in the nose with a ring that had a rock the size of Tomb’s cock. It glistened under the fluorescents and created a light show between us.
“Congratulations. I love weddings. Did you know that fifty percent of all marriages end in divorce? Those odds are delicious,” Risk said while grinning ear to ear. I would have swatted him if Cheryl wasn’t blocking me.
Stiles finally looked at me and grimaced. “For the tenth time, Cheryl, it’s not re
al,” he said painfully slow, like he was talking to someone that didn’t comprehend English. “When shit hits the fan, I want to make sure I can get you out of here safely. This isn’t actually happening.”
“Right,” Cheryl replied absentmindedly, though she was staring at the ring with admiration. “Damn, I need a manicure.”
“Cheryl,” Stiles pleaded while inching closer. She spun around to face him with a mischievous smile. “Please tell me you understand that this isn’t real.”
“We should get married in spring,” she replied.
“We’re not getting married in spring. We’re not getting married at all,” Stiles countered.
“I’m going to wear Valentino. It’s so classy and timeless; it’ll look great in the photographs.”
“I admire her persistence,” Risk said under his breath, making Crow and Tomb chuckle.
Stiles grabbed her shoulders and lightly shook her before peering deeply into her eyes. “Cheryl, we are not getting married.”
From my vantage point, I could see the dreamy look on Cheryl’s face. Nothing he said was breaking past her determination. Something told me she’d have my brother tied up to the altar if she had to. Instead of replying, she cupped his cheeks and kissed him in a way that made me slightly nauseous.
Stiles melted at her touch, all frustration fading away into the passion of their kiss. It got heated fast.
“Uh, I’m standing right here,” I protested while covering my eyes. I was worried they’d start going at it regardless of whether or not they had an unwilling audience.
“Oh, Motley!” Cheryl exclaimed when she pulled away. “Don’t worry, I will find a dress that compliments your washed out skin tone and obnoxiously red hair. I won’t let my Maid of Honor look bad, I promise.”
Once again, Cheryl had rendered me speechless. “Maid of Honor? Cheryl, there’s no way in hell—”
Her pout stopped me in my tracks, and I glanced over her head to peer at Stiles, who was pressing at his lips with the tips of his fingers. For some reason, I didn’t want to upset her, so instead I decided to fuck with my brother.
“I think a spring wedding will be lovely,” I finally replied, though it pained me to say.
“Godsdammit!” Stiles muttered. “I’m going to tell my father we’re engaged. The faster we get out of here, the faster we can be done with this, and I can get that ring off your finger.”
He stormed out of the room, shoulder checking a growling Tomb in the process. Once he was gone, I grabbed Cheryl’s wrist and led her to the bed. “Can we have a minute?” I asked my guys with a small smile.
Crow grabbed Risk’s and Tomb’s arms, pulling them out of the room. “Sure thing, Little Spider. We’ll wait in the hallway.”
“But I wanted to hear more about this wedding,” Risk teased. I glared at him until the door slammed shut.
Turning my attention back to my daydreaming roommate, I nearly laughed out loud when I saw her admiring her ring. “Cheryl, you do realize you aren’t marrying Stiles, right?” I asked tenderly, scared to spook another deadly scream out of her.
“Well, of course I know that. But a girl can dream, can’t she?” she replied calmly before lacing her fingers through mine and giving my hand a friendly squeeze.
“So why are you fake engaged? I don’t fully understand what’s happening here,” I replied.
“My family is rich, as you know. Mr. Trant is lobbying to get contracts for Belvini and needs connections in the community. Stiles thought it would be a good idea to pretend to align ourselves with him for now. It’ll keep me safe until we get out of here, and even if it’s not real, it means that Stiles actually cares about someone other than himself for once.”
I nodded in understanding. The Trants definitely liked to align themselves with powerful people. It’s how we ended up in Spector’s clutches in the first place.
“Also,” Cheryl began with a wince. “You should definitely keep your head down for a while. I heard that Mr. Trant doesn’t like what happened with Oz. Risk is smoothing things over, but he was pretty pissed that you weren’t punished for killing one of his guards.”
My back snapped up straighter, and my fangs punched down. “Well, I’m not too happy that his guards were torturing my mates,” I curtly replied.
She nodded. “I get it. I really do. But it’s not just that. Since you killed Oz, there has been more...defiance. The other hybrids like that you stood up to Oz. There are whispers, and it’s making Spector anxious. Just be careful, okay?”
She looked around the room, as if looking for Spector spies to be eavesdropping. “People are acting out. Lavinda Carre threw a hellfire ball at one of her trainers, and Moses Greene let out his hellhound demon, and it gnawed on a lab tech’s leg. People are acting up, and Spector is taking notice.”
Dread gathered inside of me like ice forming. Even if I hated my peers, I didn’t want them punished for acting out. “Are they still making you use your siren ability to kill people?” I asked her.
“Not so much now that I’m with Stiles. Though I heard they’ve started to send out our former classmates to do jobs.”
“What kind of jobs?”
She lifted a shoulder. “I don’t know. Maybe something like the job you were sent out on?”
That was not a good thought. If Belvini was looking for more high level demons, then that meant he could churn out more hybrids.
“Okay, thank you for telling me, Cheryl,” I finally replied.
Risk might feel in control of the situation, but there were too many variables. It was time the guys and I made a plan to get out of here before it was too late.
“Of course. What are friends for?” Cheryl beamed. She really was proving to be a good ally here. “Oh! And when you have time, I’d like to discuss your duties as Maid of Honor. I’m just not sure you’re experienced enough to throw the kind of high-caliber bachelorette party someone like me will need, but don’t worry, I’ll be holding your hand through the entire planning process.”
“Oh boy.” I stood up and headed for the door.
“Motley, I’m serious! Don’t make any plans without me!” she called out as I shut the door behind me.
I smirked to myself. Stiles was going to have to cut her hand off if he ever wanted that ring back.
Chapter 23
“Wake up, Little Spider,” Crow’s voice whispered in my ear.
I rolled over in my bed, not wanting to wake up. Today was demonstration day. Council members and influential supes from all over the world would be in attendance. Spector called us to the training room last night and announced that there would be a show and tell about our gifts. They weren’t clear on what exactly would be expected of us, but I was anxious they’d make me drain a victim dry with everyone watching.
“I don’t want to go,” I pleaded before snuggling deeper into the mattress.
Risk had already left earlier that morning to coordinate plans with Collector. Now that I knew his true name and that he didn’t like it, I found myself calling him that regularly. I didn’t like that Risk was working with him, but my demon reveled in taking chances.
“You have to go, Little Spider,” Crow cooed while stroking my cheek.
I knew he was right. Since the incident with Oz, the guards had become more brutal, using whatever power they had to crush the hybrids under their boots. I didn’t want to openly defy them again, not until I had a plan for getting out of here and ensuring my aunt’s safety.
“Come on, Wid,” Tomb said from where he was standing at the foot of the bed. “You can do this, and we’ll be right there with you.”
“Actually, you won’t.”
We all turned to look at Risk striding into the room, the door slamming shut behind him. He eyed my bare thighs where they were peeking out from under the sheets. “Why are you still lying prostrate and naked? We have to leave in five minutes.”
I groaned and sat up, placing my feet over the side of the bed before hurrying to the dresser wher
e I pulled on a new Spector uniform. I felt all three pairs of eyes watching me as I pulled on the tee and black legging pants. “What did you mean that they wouldn’t be right there with me?” I asked before turning around to face them and pulling my hair out of its messy bun to comb it through with my fingers.
“Exactly as I said,” Risk answered where he leaned against the wall. “Collector handpicked which hybrids would be in attendance today, and neither Tomb nor Crow are on that list.”
I exchanged a worried look with them and bit my lip. “I don’t like being separated.”
“I don’t either,” Tomb agreed. “You couldn’t pull your weight and get us in there?”
Risk shrugged a shoulder. “Haven’t you ever heard the term pick your battles? I can’t request your presence without it looking suspicious. Motley as my pet? Yes. Her other two mates? No.”
Tomb sighed and ran a hand over his bare scalp. “I don’t like the idea of her being there.”
“I’ll take care of her,” Risk said with all the confidence in the world. “Collector would be stupid to try anything today. The demonstration is all about showing off. He doesn’t want to make waves. He wants Spector to look good so the council will want to support him.”
I quickly pulled on a pair of black training boots, tucking my pants inside of them before straightening up. “Okay, I’m ready,” I said, even though I didn’t feel ready at all.
Risk cast a look my way from head to toe. “Hmm,” he said, coming forward. He tugged on a strand of my wavy hair before trailing a single finger down the curve of my neck and resting it against my hourglass mark. “You have just-fucked hair and swollen lips,” he mused. “You look like you’ve just spent all night ravished in my bed.”
My face heated. “Umm, I was ravished all night in your bed. By all three of you. At the same time,” I reminded him.
He grinned. “Exactly. You look the perfect part as my pet.”
“I really don’t like that nickname,” I grumbled. “Couldn’t you call me something less degrading?”
