He walked away and slipped below deck, while Jasin called out, “Auric, wait! I didn’t mean anything by it!”
I shot Jasin a harsh look before going after Auric, while Slade just shook his head again. Every time I thought the five of us might be getting closer, something like this happened. I was beginning to think sharing four strong-willed men was never going to work out.
3
Auric
I raked a hand through my blond hair, which had grown longer than I preferred over the last few days, while emotion churned inside me. I shouldn’t have reacted that way—now they’d all suspect there was a reason for my vehement response. Perhaps I should have made up a story to placate them, but I couldn’t lie to Kira. And she’d have to learn the truth eventually.
Kira came through the hatch and joined me below deck, her lovely face showing concern and her red hair a little wild from the wind. “I’m sorry about all that. Please ignore Jasin. He’s simply trying to get a rise out of you. You know how he is.”
I turned toward her and frowned at the worry in her eyes. Perhaps the time for truth was now. “I know. The problem is…he’s right.”
“What do you mean?”
I drew in a deep breath. “I’ve never been with a woman before.”
She blinked. “You haven’t?”
I rested my hands on her upper arms and gazed into her entrancing hazel eyes. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner. I was waiting for the right moment, but it’s hard for me to admit that I am lacking the knowledge or skills I require. Especially in something I wish to become an expert at.”
“You don’t need to be ashamed. Until the other night, I was inexperienced as well.”
“Yes, it’s probably fortunate that Jasin was the first one and not me, even if it made me jealous knowing he was claiming you.”
She slid her arms around my neck and pressed a soft kiss to my jaw. “Don’t be jealous. Soon we’ll reach the Air Temple and then we will be bonded too. We can become experienced together.”
“It’s not as simple as that,” I said, shaking my head. “A man is easy to please, but a woman…a woman takes skill and practice to satisfy. At least, that’s what I’ve learned from the books I’ve read on the subject.”
Her lips quirked up in an amused smile. “Books?”
“The library in Stormhaven has a selection of books dedicated to bedroom skills. I’ve studied them all, so I know the theories and such, but I suspect it will be a different matter entirely to put what I read about into practice.”
“Oh, Auric.” She laughed softly and then pulled my mouth down to hers. Her lips were sweet, but as her tongue slid against mine I took control of the kiss, taking it deeper. I may have been inexperienced in bed, but kissing? That I was an expert on.
Kira’s hands slipped under my shirt as I tugged at her lower lip with my teeth. While her palms smoothed across my chest, I trailed kisses down her neck, finding the spots that made her sigh. If nothing else, I was a fast learner—and I was going to make Kira my new object of study. I would explore her own body until I knew it better than my own. I would uncover every way to make her cry out my name in pleasure.
But there was more I had to tell her first.
I caught her face in my hands and met her eyes. “Kira, there’s something else too.”
“What is it?” she asked.
Before I could speak, Jasin dropped down into the cabin, interrupting me. I didn’t pull away from Kira. Let him see that she was mine too. Though if he was bothered by it, he didn’t show it.
“Sorry about all of that earlier,” Jasin said, surprising me with his sincerity. Jasin and I had never gotten along, but perhaps he was making an effort now that it was clear we were both going to be a part of each other’s lives for good, especially since we both loved Kira. Which gave me an idea.
“I didn’t mean anything by what I said, and I should have let it go,” Jasin continued. “You don’t owe the rest of us anything, especially me. If you want to keep part of your past a secret, that’s none of my business.”
“Thank you for the apology.” I hesitated, considering my next move. “But perhaps you can help me with something.”
His eyebrows darted up. “Help you? How?”
“I need you to teach me the art of pleasing a woman.”
Jasin burst into laughter. “Oh Gods, that’s hilarious.” He laughed again, but then noticed Kira and I were not in on the joke. His smile dropped into a frown. “Wait, you’re serious. Oh. Wow. So you truly are inexperienced. Damn.”
“I am, yes. You were correct. I’ve never had a first time.” I gave Kira a heated glance. “Not yet.”
“But…how?” Jasin asked. “You’re a good-looking guy and a prince too. I can’t imagine you couldn’t find a woman or three to take to bed.”
“It’s tradition in the Air Realm for the nobility to remain virgins until marriage, both men and women. I’ve had plenty of opportunities, but I wanted to wait until I found my forever mate.”
“I’m honored,” Kira said, giving me a warm smile.
Jasin raked a hand through his already messy hair. “But why me? You and I barely get along as it is. I doubt getting naked together will help.”
“It has to be you,” I said. “You’re the most experienced of us all and you've already bonded with Kira. Besides, we both know Slade and Reven would never agree.”
“True.” His gaze shifted to Kira. “Are you okay with this?”
She considered us both, her eyes dancing with interest. “The Fire God did say you needed to learn to work together…”
“Somehow I doubt this is what he meant,” Jasin muttered.
“Jasin, despite our differences, we both want Kira to be happy,” I said. “Though I realize this will be awkward at first, eventually all four of us are going to be sharing her. Maybe at the same time, if that’s something she wants.”
“Is it?” Jasin asked her.
Her cheeks flushed with obvious desire. “I think so.”
Oh yes, she definitely liked the idea of us sharing her at once. The thought aroused me as well, but such a thing was fairly common in the Air Realm. My older sister had two husbands, and both my parents openly shared their beds with others on the side. I was more surprised that Jasin, from the uptight Fire Realm, was even considering this plan.
But he seemed satisfied by Kira’s answer. “All right, I’ll do it.”
I gave him a respectful nod. “Thank you. I promise I'm a quick study.”
“Then let’s get started.” He grabbed his shirt and yanked it off, then tossed it aside.
“Now?” I asked, shocked by his boldness.
Jasin shrugged with a wry grin. “Why wait?”
“Are you sure we’re all ready for this?” Kira asked, even though her eyes were roaming all over Jasin’s naked chest like she’d never seen anything better in her life.
Jasin stepped close to her. “We won’t do anything you don’t want to do.”
Following his lead, I tugged my shirt over my head and was satisfied by the way Kira’s gaze began to devour me too. She ran her tongue along her lower lip in the most alluring way, and there was no mistaking her arousal.
Jasin snaked an arm around Kira’s waist and yanked her against him, then captured her mouth in a hot, passionate kiss. I watched them intently, studying the way she melted against him and how his fingers dug into her hips possessively.
But then she broke away and reached for me, pulling me close. Her lips found mine again and I skimmed my fingers across her nipples, feeling how hard they were through the fabric of her dress. Jasin kissed her neck at the same time, trapping Kira between the two of us.
I began to think this plan to involve Jasin might be one of my best yet.
4
Kira
Last night I'd been a virgin. Now I was pressed between two gorgeous men, their hands and lips lavishing attention on my body. Jasin kissed my neck, while Auric claimed my mouth. Two hands stroke
d my breasts, and two others cupped my behind and gave it a quick squeeze. All I could do was relax into their touch and succumb to the overwhelming lust they stirred inside me.
I reached for them too, sliding my hands across their hard chests. Jasin was more muscular, a fighter through and through, while Auric was taller and leaner, but still strong. Both of them were perfect for me in different ways.
Jasin dragged my dress up over my head, revealing my naked flesh to Auric for the first time. Auric gazed down at me with a mix of reverence and hunger, taking me all in like he was memorizing every inch.
"Turn around," he said. "I want to see all of you."
I slowly spun, trying not to feel self-conscious under the gaze of both men. My natural inclination was to cover my breasts or my mound, but I kept my arms at my side, channeling a little of the bravery Jasin had taught me. These were my mates, and if I couldn’t be naked with them, then who?
"Beautiful," Auric said, his voice rough. "The Gods could not have made you any better."
I flushed as I turned back to him, warm from his compliments. "I want to see you too."
“Whatever you desire.” He reached for his trousers and my pulse quickened, but then we heard a sound above us that made us freeze.
Slade dropped below deck, his movements rushed. “We have a—”
He stopped when he saw I was standing completely naked before the other two men. The urge to cover myself or turn away became almost unbearable, but he was going to see me naked eventually—and I wanted to see his reaction.
He quickly looked away, as if shielding his eyes from the sight of my bare skin. "I'm sorry. I didn't know the three of you were...together like this."
"It's all right," I said, trying to hide my disappointment at his response. "Is something wrong?"
"Water elementals are surrounding the ship. Reven tried to speed us past them, but they're turning the sea to ice around us."
Jasin swore under his breath as he charged forward, still wearing nothing but his trousers. "I can fix that.”
“Be careful,” I said, as I quickly grabbed my dress and pulled it back on. “Remember, the ship is all wood.”
We scrambled up the ladder and onto the deck, where Reven glowered at the sea. Our ship was marooned in a large patch of ice in the middle of the ocean, though I didn't see any elementals yet.
"About time," Reven snapped at us. "I've been turning the ice back to water, but there are too many of them down there."
"I've got this.” Jasin leaped onto the railing and into the air, shifting into a dragon before he hit the ice. His change was faster this time, and he flapped his wings and blasted the ice with fire from his great fanged mouth.
"They won't last long against his fire magic," Auric said.
Slade watched Jasin fly higher with a frown. "No, but there are a lot more of them than him.”
“And that’s if he doesn’t set the entire ship on fire and kill us for them,” Reven muttered.
As Jasin took out the ice in front of us, the elementals burst onto the back of the ship with a crash of waves that sent cold seawater across our feet. At first I could only stare at the large, swirling masses of water with arms, glowing yellow eyes, and huge gaping mouths. But as Auric shot a gust of wind to knock the elementals back and Slade pulverized them with small pieces of metal, I shook myself out of the fear and shock.
I quickly formed a ball of flame in my hand, but then hesitated, worried I might miss and do damage to the ship. I hadn’t had much chance to practice my magic yet, and we’d decided it was safer for Jasin to train me once we were on land again. But this was the only way I could stop the elementals—they were immune to normal weapons.
“I’ll cover you,” Reven said. “My magic doesn’t work on them anyway.”
I nodded. Auric and Slade had knocked two elementals back into the water, but I suspected that wouldn’t stop them for long. Meanwhile, Jasin was fighting a large group at the front of the ship, his wings flapping as he did passes over them to rain down fire. I wasn’t sure how long he could keep that up though, especially since his dragon form was still so new to him.
Three elementals glided across the deck toward us and began shooting strong bursts of icy water at us. Reven reached out and diverted the water back into the ocean before it could hit us, but the elementals kept getting closer.
“Dragons…must…die…” one of them said, surprising me. I’d never realized they could speak in our language.
“We’re not like the other Dragons!” I called out, though it was clear there would be no reasoning with them.
The elementals suddenly charged us, their liquid bodies slicing through the wooden deck of the ship and sending splinters flying. One knocked Auric off the ship and into the water, while another began wrestling with Slade. The third came for me.
I threw my ball of flame, but only managed to graze the thing’s shoulder, where the fire sizzled out. So much for that plan. Reven shot water at the elemental to protect me, but all it did was join the creature’s body, making it stronger.
The elemental wrapped a cold, watery hand around my neck and lifted me up into the air. I forced fire to burst from my palms as I grabbed onto his head, which made the monster let out something like a scream. I kept up the pressure, making the flames hotter and stronger, and the elemental began to dissipate in front of my eyes. When it let me go I tumbled back into Reven, who steadied me while the elemental turned to steam and vanished.
I rubbed my aching throat, my heart racing, but there was no time to stop and recover. Slade was still grappling with the other elemental, using sharp pieces of the broken deck to attack it from all sides. I’d never seen him use wood before, only stone and metal, but there was little of that available on the ship and he must have had to improvise.
Auric burst out of the water, floating high into the air as if he was flying, and relief shot through me. He blasted an elemental across the deck and into the ocean, while Slade slammed the other one down against the deck. I rushed forward and used fire on it to take it out, while Jasin seared the ones in the sea. Slowly the elementals dipped back under the waves, retreating from the battle.
When they vanished, Jasin plummeted from the sky and collapsed on the deck in human form, the momentum ripping another hole into the wood as he rolled to a stop.
“Jasin!” I called out as I rushed over to him, worried he was injured from the fall or the battle. I reached his side and turned him over, but he only gave me a weary smile.
“It’s nice to know I’m still your favorite.”
“Hardly.” I wasn’t sure whether to smack him upside the head or kiss him senseless, which was pretty normal with Jasin. Instead I sat back on the deck beside him, exhausted after using my magic. No wonder the men trained every day to build their control and their fortitude. If I was ever going to get better with fire, I’d need a lot more practice.
Slade kneeled beside me and rested a hand on my shoulder. “Are you all right?”
I nodded and leaned into his strong touch while gazing across the ship. Our deck was a mess, the wood torn up and splintered, with a few gaping holes in it. There was so much water on the deck, and I couldn’t tell if it was from the elementals or if the ship was taking it on. “I’m fine, but our ship isn’t.”
“I might be able to fix that,” Slade said, his stony eyes surveying the deck.
“We have a bigger problem,” Auric suddenly called out, drawing our attention.
Off the starboard side of the boat a massive wave was forming, created by the remaining water elementals. It was easily as tall as the ship. And it was coming right for us.
5
Kira
I gaped at the giant wave speeding across the ocean, which would engulf our ship in only minutes. “What do we do?”
Jasin hefted himself up to a sitting position with a groan. “I’ll have to face them again.”
“You can’t.” I grabbed his arm to hold him back. If he couldn’t even st
and, how was he supposed to deal with the elementals?
He shrugged me off. “What other option is there?”
“We run,” Reven said.
Auric began filling the sails with air to speed us away, while Reven controlled the water currents around the ship. Slade assisted by tying ropes or adjusting the sails, while I tried to give Jasin some of my strength with the touch of my hands. It didn’t seem to do much, maybe because I’d worn myself out already too.
And the giant wave kept coming closer.
“We can’t outrun it,” Auric called out after a few minutes, the wind whipping at his golden hair. “We have to brace for impact!”
“Get below deck,” Slade told me and Jasin in a firm tone.
“Not a chance.” Jasin forced himself to his feet, leaning heavily against the mast.
“Then protect Kira. She’s the most important thing on this ship.”
Slade’s overprotectiveness sometimes got on my nerves, but I didn’t have time to argue that I could take care of myself. Not when the massive wave would hit us in mere moments. “We need to work together,” I said. “That’s the only way through this.”
Reven faced the approaching water with his head high. “I’ll hold back the water as best I can.”
“I can try to put a bubble of air around us,” Auric said.
Slade rubbed his beard as he considered. “I’ll reinforce the ship. Make it stronger so it won’t break apart under the wave.”
“Kira and I will blast those elementals,” Jasin said.
It wasn’t a perfect plan and we’d likely all be sent to the bottom of the ocean, but it was something. It gave me strength knowing that even if my mates squabbled in their free time, they came together when it counted.
“Here it comes!” Reven yelled, as he braced himself against the railing. He cast a determined look at the wave and held it back as it came toward us, but all he could do was slow it down. If he’d had his dragon form maybe he could stop it, but there were too many elementals controlling this water.
Her Elemental Dragons: The Complete Series Page 20
