As he’d spoken the first words of the mating ritual, echoes from the past settled upon her. The sure and certain knowledge that this was a love for all time lifted her heart and calmed her nerves.
The connection she’d felt that first moment in this life that she laid eyes on Max and Tony before setting sail became clear. They had pledged themselves to each other, time and time again. How could she not, even a little, have recognized that fact?
They stopped at the foot of the bed, a generous-sized one. “Just one little detail—for atmosphere.” Tony lifted his hand, a graceful gesture. Gauze curtains surrounded the bed, and the brush of honeysuckle-scented air caressed her face.
Vows had been spoken between them all. Their mating lacked but one more thing—total unity of heart and mind, body and soul…and magic.
A low hum filled her consciousness, and she knew that hum was the presence of her men. From this moment on, the connection between them could only be broken by death. She would know when each was near and would be able to find either or both of them in an instant, just by willing it so.
They would be one. Mated.
Their own clothing they swept away with a thought so that, when they stepped forward, when they cradled her between them, their naked flesh pressed against her.
Heat surrounded her as they stepped close. Max used his hands to undo the buttons of the blouse she wore. He needed this, she knew, this physical process of removing her clothing piece by piece. Tony was of the same mind, using hands and lips to bare and caress, to let her know how much he cherished her.
Cherished was the exact right word for the way they undressed her. The heat of their gazes promised pleasure beyond imagining.
Max lifted her and placed her on the bed. He melded his mouth with hers, his tongue claiming her as surely as his words had done, as surely as his cock was about to.
Soft touches, hot caresses, stole her breath and fed her desire for more. Using a hand on each man, she, too, caressed and cupped, stroked and squeezed. She reveled in the sensation of their hard cocks in her hands. They felt so hot and hard, yet so soft to her tactile senses. Cheri shivered as her thumbs massaged identical drops of pre-cum into their cockheads. She took, and she gave, losing herself, surrendering to the beauty that they created together.
Colors and shapes, fragrances and textures flooded their senses and surrounded their hearts. Beyond anything they’d shared in this life, their magic—that force they’d tapped to defeat evil—emerged and melded with that greatest of all magic—love.
Max ended their kiss and then cupped her face. “I love you with all that I am, wife. Thank you for being patient with me while I figured everything out.”
“I love you, Max. And loving you, I couldn’t be anything but.”
Tony turned her face toward his. “I love you so much, Cheri. I’m so grateful we found each other again.”
“We’re mated, husband. I would find you across a thousand deserts, beyond a thousand seas.”
“My love.” Tony took her mouth, his kiss reverent, adoring. She returned it with all her heart. When he lifted her and laid her down upon him, she didn’t wait. She opened her legs, straddling him, groaning when his hot cock nestled between her pussy lips, the tip just caressing her clit.
You are the only woman in this life I’ve been naked inside. You are my woman. You are why I waited.
The paths they’d walked before coming together in this life, and the people they had been, had all been necessary in order for them to arrive where and when they needed to be. Necessary, and now forgotten. They were three, about to become one. No others, from this moment on, could come between them.
Tony lifted her once more, and Cheri reached down, caressed his hard cock, and placed him at the opening of her body.
Yours, husband.
She lowered her head and kissed him as his cock entered her, one long, slow thrust to heaven. The friction of his flesh in hers, the heat of him, and the heart of him combined to stoke her arousal, ignite her desire, and fire her blood.
Max’s hand caressed her bottom. She looked over her shoulder, meeting his gaze. Here was her lover, her husband, her warrior. He would claim her in the most earthy way possible and bring them all to that point of perfect union. They would travel to their place in mind-space, their special place that had been theirs over eons of time.
She shivered as he prepared her, as the slick gel on his nimble fingers smoothed and soothed and slickened her for his pleasure—and hers.
Open your mind to us completely, wife. Surrender your inner thoughts and sensations. Let’s us be one, together.
Cheri sighed, the command at once strange and familiar. She’d never done such in this life, never dropped all barriers and left herself to be completely naked, completely vulnerable. There would be no thought they didn’t know and no emotion they didn’t share. Her pleasure, and her pain, would be theirs.
She closed her eyes, tilted back her head, and dropped the walls that protected her.
Husbands.
Together, they all three felt the force of Max’s cock pressing on her sphincter, the burning, the stretching of flesh that came with erotic stimulation wound around it. The burn morphed to pain, a pain that aroused beyond words. Then the slow, solid glide as her anus opened, and Max filled her completely.
Around them, the air changed, the luxurious stateroom faded, leaving them in a leafy bower. Sunlight dappled through the diaphanous trees, and as they moved, as they chased their rapture, the boughs bent to cradle them, shelter them. The birds sang, and the flora pulsed in welcome and celebration of their return to this most sacred place.
Thrusting and throbbing, sliding and striving, they moved as one, they shivered as one, and, as one, blossomed into orgasm. This time, the physical, spiritual, emotional, and magical all combined, lifting them until ecstasy rained down upon them, until the last drop of rapture pooled around them. Their thoughts melded and became one. Colors swirled, textures surrounded and caressed, and the pure language of every symphony ever written surrounded and accompanied them.
Our children were all conceived here, on this sacred ground. It has blessed us once more, for we are one, once more. Their magic changed and evolved and became a blending of the three of them—a power richer, fuller, and shared.
They returned to earth, to the bed that cradled them in a vessel cradled by the ocean. The slight rocking of the ebb and flow of the sea welcomed their return.
“Lie still, wife.” Max kissed her shoulder and then eased from her body.
“Mmm. I’m fine.” Going there, to that special mind-space, had left her uplifted and rejuvenated. Cheri thought it just possible that she could run a marathon or move mountains.
“You, my sweet, are staying right here. We can’t let you run races without us, and we’re both exhausted.”
Cheri grinned. Hearing Tony’s voice under her ear gave her a special kind of thrill. “Yes, darling. I’m staying right here.”
Max returned to the bed and cleaned the excess gel from Cheri. Then he climbed into the bed and lifted her off Tony.
Snuggled between her two men, Cheri felt happy and whole for the first time in this life.
“I’m glad we were given the chance to recall all of that,” Max said. “The next time we go there, it will be a sanctuary for the memories of this lifetime, only.”
“Me, too.” Cheri sighed. With the maturation of their powers had come a kind of racial memory. The men understood the customs and mores of their people because they were, now, fully of the Gifted themselves.
She turned onto her back and reached for their hands. This really was the first chance they’d had to talk about those last very scary moments with the Fortuna brothers.
“We took no joy in that.” Tony sighed. “I’m not even sure I knew we were going to turn those to snakes into…well, snakes.”
“The shark shocked me.” Max turned to look at Cheri. “At first I thought that was your doing.”
&nbs
p; “No, it wasn’t me. And I didn’t recognize the power, either. It was a color, an essence I’ve never seen before.”
“And it was way more powerful than the three of us combined,” Tony said.
That fact disturbed her greatly.
“You’re worried because you’re not sure if that power is good or evil.” Max said that. He turned on his side and laid his hand on her stomach.
“I can’t deny that whoever it was helped save our bacon. Although, those two could have lived as sea snakes until eventually…” She didn’t finish that thought.
“Likely until some shark ate them.” Tony also turned so that he faced her. He laid his hand beside Max’s.
“You’re right, of course.” She sighed. “I’m just not sure what his motivation was. He might have a plan that, in the end, will bring ruin to us all.”
“He?”
“I can’t explain why, but yes. That power was definitely masculine. There were flecks of darkness—but only flecks.”
“What can we do about it? About him?”
Max would always be one to cut to the chase. She might fret over things, but he would never let her get too far out on those limbs she liked to traverse. “I guess all we can do is warn Meghan and Diana. I wish I could warn the Concilium, as well. Oh!”
As that last thought had formed, sweet, unexpected knowledge became hers, and through her, it became her husbands’, too.
When you come on the full moon to celebrate your mating with us, we’ll see you have that chance, daughter.
Her mother’s voice, so missed, covered her in a balm of love and comfort.
Mother! I didn’t know I would get to see you again.
It was always to be, but a knowledge held back. You needed to choose truly to take up the quest you were offered. I look forward to embracing you, and my new sons.
Cheri sighed. She felt her mother withdrawing and knew that they’d be able to talk now whenever she felt the need.
“I love you, Cheri, but it’s kind of weird being naked in bed with you and hearing your mother’s voice in my head.”
“I’m with Tony,” Max said. “That was just beyond weird.”
Cheri laughed. “You both have a point. Maybe we should take a few moments, when we’re alone like this, to make sure we stay alone.”
Max grinned. She knew that he was asking the power within and finding answers. Then she felt a barrier surround them and understood her husbands had worked together to ensure their privacy.
“We still have several days left on this cruise,” Tony said.
“We’ll consider it our honeymoon for now,” Max said. “We’ll be busy once we get back to New York.”
“You’ll have your work, and I’ll have mine.” Cheri sighed. She was glad the men were all for her continuing to be a teacher. They’d warned they both might sometimes work horrendous hours. But it wasn’t like when they were in residency. Their specialized fields kept them busy, but they weren’t the only surgeons in their disciplines.
“We will.” Max brought her right hand up to his lips and kissed it. Tony mirrored his gesture with her left.
“I suppose some men would feel as if they’d won the lottery—discovering they had latent magical powers in them. But what I feel, mostly, is the responsibility that goes with those powers.”
“Some things we’re learning just by asking mentally,” Tony said. “But the rest, you’re going to have to help. Or confirm.”
“We’re guessing that we can’t save the world, all by ourselves.”
“No. The magic within is more than we’ll need in our lifetimes, but, Max, you said it exactly. There’s responsibility that goes with this power. I was raised to understand that it was a gift. Gifts are special, to be honored and cared for. Respected, if you will. That doesn’t mean we don’t do something special for someone in need or help where we can. But we can’t cure all the ills of humanity.”
“And especially where people have made poor choices.”
“You’re thinking of Vincent and Emilio, Max?”
“Yes. They had every advantage growing up and yet chose to use what they were given for only selfish reasons. While we were battling with them it was as if their entire lives were laid before us, and I saw how many times they were mean to others because they could be,” Max said.
“I saw that, too. It was pretty sad, actually. They didn’t even trust each other enough to join their power.” Cheri sighed. What would it be like to live like that, truly alone?
“I expected that someone would have recalled seeing them at some point and wondered where they’d disappeared to, but…” Tony shook his head.
“What they disrupted with their magic was restored when they died, at least what they disrupted since coming to this ship.” Cheri turned to look at Max.
“The O’Learys, who started out this cruise in the presidential suite, are in the presidential suite.” Max spoke as the knowledge came to him, his, Cheri knew, because he asked a question of his power. “Apparently they came down with a bit of the flu as soon as we set sail. Tonight was the first evening they’ve left their cabin.” Max sighed. “You were right. Magic is.” Then he bent down and placed a sweet kiss on her lips. “You also said destiny is. And I am so grateful that my destiny turned out to be you.”
“What he just said.” Tony kissed her lightly. Then, together, the men snuggled her in close.
Cheri grinned. Her forever lovers were beside her, and they’d fulfilled their destiny. They were Gifted, and they were mated, and their future awaited. “Yeah, I kind of like that part, too.”
THE END
HTTP://WWW.MORGANASHBURY.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Morgan Ashbury, also writing as Cara Covington, has been a writer since she was first able to pick up a pen. In the beginning, it was a hobby, a way to create a world of her own, and who could resist the allure of that? Then as she grew and matured, life got in the way, as life often does. She got married and had three children, and worked in the field of accounting, for that was the practical thing to do, and the children did need to be fed. And all the time she was being practical, she would squirrel herself away on quiet Sunday afternoons, and write.
Most children are raised knowing the Ten Commandments and the Golden Rule. Morgan’s children also learned the Paper Rule: thou shalt not throw out any paper that has thy mother’s words upon it.
Believing in tradition, Morgan ensured that her children’s children learned this rule, too.
Life threw Morgan a curve when, in 2002, she underwent emergency triple bypass surgery. Second chances are to be cherished, and with the encouragement and support of her husband, Morgan decided to use hers to do what she’d always dreamed of doing—writing full-time.
Morgan has always loved writing romance. It is the one genre that can incorporate every other genre within its pulsating heart. Romance showcases all that humankind can aspire to be. And, she admits, she’s a sucker for a happy ending.
Morgan’s favorite hobbies are reading, cooking, and traveling—though she would rather you didn’t mention that last one to her husband. She has too much fun teasing him about having become a “Traveling Fool” of late.
Morgan lives in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, with a mysterious cat, a nine-pound Morkie dog who thinks he’s a German Shepherd, and her husband of forty-three years, David.
For all titles by Cara Covington, please visit
www.bookstrand.com/cara-covington
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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The Gifted 1: Passions Awakening (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Page 15
