by Jana Leigh
The men worked together easing her. When they were finally joined as one, she opened her passion-filled eyes and looked at Eric who was grinning. She smiled and leaned back a little, allowing herself to take the last little bit of them together. The water flowing between all of them as it hit just right, making their skin slick with the remaining soap. Mia nodded and they began to move. Striker held onto her hips and Eric wrapped them all together so no one would fall.
Striker guided them in the dance, slowly pulling out while Eric remained. Then they switched and she got used to the amazing rhythm they set. She had died and gone to heaven. She thought the claiming was out of this world. However, being joined with both her men was short of a miracle, they were both caring, and making sure she was fine as they moved, not wanting to hurt her, she knew. But her body had a mind of its own when it came to these two men and she growled at them. They chuckled but understood her impatience.
Eric kissed her deeply and when he released her mouth Striker nudged her until she turned her head and kissed him as well. Who know she was this flexible. Her joy of their coming together radiated out through her and her men moved faster. Making sure she was okay but also building the passion in a way only they had been able to do to her.
Eric grunted first as he felt the magic flow out of him once again and wrap around the three of them in a cocoon. The tingling caused them all to climax together as they screamed their completion. Mia was panting and holding still as they remained joined for a moment. When Striker finally pulled from her and Eric lowered her gently to the ground, she grinned.
“New rule,” she laughed and the men looked at her. “We start every day like this until we are old and gray.”
The men laughed and they finished the shower together, once again cleaning each other in all the right places.
Chapter Nineteen
Diavolo slammed his hand down on his desk. "How the fuck could you lose her? You were there before the ferry!"
The man jumped and said, "I'm sorry. I am the only one to survive."
He sneered at him. "Oh really? You think so?” Using his preternatural speed, he leaped over the desk and ripped out the man's throat. As the man bled out on the floor, he said, "Now there were no idiots to survive."
"We know where the plane went, sir.” The Rogue at the back of the room offered.
Diavolo spun to look at him as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a handkerchief. "Good. Clean this up and then we will go there. It's obvious I need to be on site to give the orders as you imbeciles can't seem to pull it off on your own.” He wiped the blood and skin off his hand with disgust.
"Yes, sir,” the Rogue said. "Also, your brother called."
He sighed. Shit. Not now. He was going to have to listen to Roarke whine about not having the girl yet. He couldn't believe they hadn't gotten the job done. It had all been set up perfectly and they had failed. He needed to find the two men with her and eliminate them as well. Now, at least, he knew that one of them was a vampire who helped. He could deal with one of his own.
He walked over to his desk and picked up his cell phone. He called his brother's number, when his brother picked up, he said, "Well?”
"Close but not yet,” his brother informed him. "I am going to get her tomorrow."
"Get it done. Roarke is freaking out,” Diavolo said. "I need him to shut up. I have other issues.” Diavolo hung up without waiting for an answer.
He set his phone down and sat down in his chair. Tomorrow he had to get his hands on that woman and be done with this. Why in the hell had he agreed to help with this mess? Oh yeah, the money. He needed the damn money.
*****
When they finally emerged from their suites, the others were waiting. Cami grinned when she saw her looking rosy and fresh. “Someone got a little too,” she teased and Mia rolled her eyes and then winked at Cami. Her men frowned, walked her to the table, and sat her down.
“What are we discussing her?” Eric asked and sat down.
“Well,” Orfeo cleared his throat. “We are discussing our plan to attack the place that Mia remembered hearing about in France, while our mates apparently have come up with a plan of their own as a diversion.”
“What?” Striker bellowed and his eyes went to Mia who stared straight ahead and refused to look at them.
“Exactly,” Orfeo snarled. “They want to help, according them, they are not shrinking violets and can fight the same as the rest of them. So, they want to take Mia, and the others, INCLUDING MY PREGNANT WIFE, on an excursion to Paris. Apparently they are going to use Cami and Mia as bait.”
There was silence as Eric and Striker thought it through, Mia could feel the anger and dismay from them that she had gone along with this. They had seen her when she was frightened. How on earth could she ever imagine they would allow her to actually offer herself up as bait. And the Alpha female of the New Council, Quin would kill them all.
It was Eric who spoke first, he took a deep breath and chose and his words wisely. “Are you out of your fucking mind? Not only would we never allow Mia to go off without us, but Quin will have a coronary, and I am pretty sure we will all be in the cross fire of that anger. I, for one, vote that we go with our plan, and lock these women in the dungeon, with a case of wine and some food until we return.”
The murmur of agreement to Eric’s little announcement was annoying. Mia took a deep breath and looked at Cami who smiled a little and winked. She switched her gaze to Jo, then Cloe, who both nodded. Then her Alpha, Cat, who smiled, Jax and Fredi who leaned back and crossed their arms over their chests.
“Okay, now….” Orfeo said, acting like the whole thing had been decided.
Mia closed her eyes and made sure she teared up before continuing, “No, not okay,” she said with a shaky voice. Of course they would think it was from fear, but right now it was from anger.
“Mia?” Striker said, feeling exactly what she wanted him to feel, and that was sadness.
“Striker…Eric…” she said, turning a little in her chair and took one of their hands. “I need to do this, don’t you understand, I have to try to take what they tried to take away from me back. I will never know if I am worthy of this appointment, I have unfinished business that I have to complete before I can move on.” Mia turned to look at the men who were shifting in their seats around the table, obviously bothered like her mates were at the sight of a woman crying.
Last night Cami had told them all how to deal with their men. Although it seemed a little underhanded and conniving, Cat and the others had agreed that their men were protectors—that was who they were. And if they wanted to be looked at as more than just a weak little arm piece, they had to figure out how the make them see they were capable of dealing with shit. They would wrap them in bubble wrap and refuse to let them be who they were destined to be, which, to be honest, was Bitches in Charge of the Senate. They would never have been chosen to be a part of the Senate unless someone larger than all of them hadn’t thought they could handle what was to come. Which was war. When the Senate was finished being set, they all knew what was to come. War, involving not only them, but the entire shifter race would be coming out to the humans. Unless they defeated the Rouges, it would never happen.
This moment, right now, would set the course of the way things had to be run. The men may protest but they had to know that the women were capable of actually fighting for what was right. None of them were wallflowers who could sit by if one of their own was out risking their lives. Cloe explained how all of the New Council women had been trained over time. To defend themselves and whoever stood next to them. It was the only way the Rogues wouldn’t see the women as a weak point. They were not. So a little deception was worth the price she knew she would have to pay when her men discovered what she had been doing.
“I refuse to let them win, surely you understand that. They tried to take my soul and crush it, and they almost succeeded. I will not let them take one more thing from me without fighting back
.” She sniffed. Although she was laying it on thick, she also believed exactly what she was saying.
None of the men would meet her eye, instead they waited while Eric and Striker fought their feelings, she could tell they were having a muffled conversation in their heads. It was funny that they thought they could hide things from her when they did that. She could hear them in the distance, and if she were alone, she could focus and hear. But all she did was feel the conflict in them and waited to see if they would figure out that she needed this. Cami, Cloe, and Jo were more than capable of watching all their backs, and they would take Tey and Darien with them. Jaden was going to be fighting alongside Orfeo as a show of solidarity.
Finally, Striker sighed and put a hand to his face. “Let’s hear it, but I am not letting you go anywhere without one of us. So, if we can make this work, then we grudgingly agree.”
Mia smiled at them and allowed the love she felt for them flow though their connection.
*****
Virani looked out his window. Damn his family. They were going to fuck up his life yet. Diavolo had been calling nonstop asking for information. The only reason he wanted to talk to Virani was because he currently was considered unimportant in the shifting world, so he would be told certain things. Also, he was still invited to meetings of the shifter and magical community since he was the Alpha of his little band of misfits. At least that is what they saw, none of them looked deeper, and that was a good thing because he had his men everywhere gathering information.
For example, he knew Orfeo and the Senate were going after his brother’s hideaway in France in a week or so. Would he tell Diavolo? No, because Virani was certain his brother would still be there in residence, and come what may, he wanted him dead. The shifty little pecker was going to get what he deserved, and then he would be able to become a member of the community without anyone ever knowing that he was brothers with the asshole. That was the only thing holding him back for joining the Senate.
His phone rang and he put a hand to his nose and pinched it briefly before answering. “Yes,” he said dryly into the phone.
“Brother,” Diavolo growled, not bothering to contain the rage he apparently was having.
“Yes?” Virani said waiting.
“I need information, and now. Roarke is pissed and demanding results now. He wants to attack the New Council compound soon, but he needs to have the Senate under control before he does. Time grows short, and they keep adding members. My neck is on the line. It is my job to take care of the Senate so the New Council cannot fulfill their stupid little prophesies. I thought you agreed with our stance on the whole ‘coming out’ thing? We are fine with the way it is. The humans will never understand and they will try to cage us,” Diavolo said slowly. When he tried to talk reasonable, he actually sounded like a normal person, but his brother’s fault lay at trying to separate his feelings with his reasonable side.
“We need to be in control of the humans, that way they will know their place in the world. Like they should bow to us, the pissants.” And there was the real Diavolo.
“I have heard nothing as of yet,” Virani lied. “I will send out some of my men and see if I can get some answers, although I don’t agree with everything Roarke does, I do believe that coming out to the humans is a bad idea.” Gag, he thought.
“Okay, I will remain where I am for now, but soon I will need to go to Italy, I need to be closer to the Senate, show them who they are dealing with. I don’t think they actually think of me as a threat, they are focused on Roarke. Fuck them, they will learn who really has the drive in all of this,” Diavolo growled and slammed the phone down.
Give me strength, he thought and looked back out the window. He was going to have to make his presence known sooner rather than later. Orfeo and the others needed to know what was going on. He only hoped he survived the introductions. Virani was all in, he would reveal his connection to Diavolo. But first, he would make sure some of his men were in range to help the Senate if needed in France, he would love to take his brother down.
Chapter Twenty
Mia waited as they laid out their plan to the men. She knew this would work. Cami was in charge of this part. She stood up.
“First off, I will handle Quin.” She smiled and narrowed her eyes at Jaden and then continued, “Moving on. We are going to go shopping, at least everyone will think we are. There is a large group of shifters in France. I am sure they would be more than happy to help us out. You know, with some back up. If we ask the word will get out that all of the females here will be there. Now, on the Champs-Élysées, there are certain places that will work in our favor. It is at least a mile long, somewhere in there we could set up a weak point, make sure the humans are safe and secure away from there and allow ourselves to be drawn in. If we do this at the same time, you attacking the little hideaway, us allowing them to attack, we can divide and conquer, plus get in some really good shopping and eat pastries, what could be more perfect. I am sure your mates will even bring you back a surprise if you are good. I know mine will like what I have planned,” Cami said and winked at Jaden who suddenly became more attentive.
Cami rolled her eyes and continued, “Basically, what I am saying is that we need to coordinate this so we have the desired effect. If we are off even by a minute this could blow up. We have seen in in the past, unforeseen circumstances are always something to plan for. We have the advantage, all of your vampires can walk in the sun, and they can’t, so they will have to rely on the shifters and others.”
“Unforeseen circumstances?” Orfeo asked.
“Our Seer keeps calling me. Lacy is sure we are going to have something that will change the outcome for the better. I don’t know what it is, she kinda does this spooky cryptic thing. Drives me batty, but ya gotta love her because she is accurate.” Cami shrugged.
“So what you are saying is we are putting all of you in danger because your Seer has seen something that will help?” Orfeo snorted.
Cat crossed her arms. “Hey, she told me the sex of our baby. I am pretty sure she is right, and if you don’t behave, I won’t share this little interesting tidbit with you.”
Orfeo turned to her and then looked at Tripp, “Did you know about this?”
Tripp laughed. “No, I have been busy like you.”
“Tell us,” Orfeo demanded of Cat who smiled.
“No, plan this correctly and then I will tell you later. We have work to do before play.” Cat laughed.
Orfeo actually growled and turned his attention back to the group. “Fine, so we need this planned down to the last detail. Tripp, pick the Enforcers who will accompany them. I want them sent now to find the perfect spot to execute this. Dante, what are the men saying about the hideaway we are raiding?”
Dante grinned. “There are probably fifty or more Rogues there. Right now, they are reporting getting glances of Diavolo himself there as well. If we time it, he will be there in residence.”
Orfeo nodded. “Brin, work with Tripp to make sure whatever gets destroyed is replaced ASAP, the last thing we need is a lawsuit.”
“Right, like that is gonna matter.” Brin snorted.
Orfeo looked at Marshall and Bane, “Call whoever we have to in order to make sure everyone is covered. Use the Packs closest to us, as well as any other magical communities. We keep it under wraps as much as you can, just get us help.”
The men nodded and Orfeo looked around the room. “Jaden, please call Quin and smooth this over. I really do not want a visit.”
Jaden laughed and pointed a finger at Cami. “We will get right on that.”
“Darien and Tey, obviously I would like you to head the detail in Paris. Work with Marshall and Bane on who they are calling,” Orfeo asked.
“So the plan will be one week from today we will do this. We have a lot of planning to take care of and I will have everyone in the compound called,” Orfeo said and closed his eyes. He exerted his power to his Clan and they all felt the hair on the back of the
ir neck rise. He was definitely a force to be reckoned with.
“Ohh, I love that,” Cat sighed and looked around. “Sorry, forgot where I was, plan, people, plan.”
They all chuckled and moved to complete their tasks.
Cami pulled Mia to a stop for a second and waited until the others were out of range. “You need to practice your shooting, ask you mates, they will help. It is you they are going to be after, and we need to make sure you are armed.”
Mia nodded and looked to where her mates were standing watching her closely. “I will talk to them now.”
*****
Eric ran his hand through his hair and paced back and forth across their living room. He actually loved the whole décor of this place, it was amazing, as was his woman. The place was peaceful and Mia became more centered here as well. When they had entered the home, she had immediately let out a sigh.
“You need to be sure about this, Mia, because if you want trained you need to be trained in a week for not only weapons but also basic self-defense. We have yet to show you the new things you will be able to do with our powers flowing in you; you can tap into them. Both Fae and Vampire, eventually you will be able to just flip the switch in your head, but right now, you are going to have to work at it. This week will be solely about making you able to defend yourself completely,” Eric said with a growl.
Mia could feel the need to make sure she was safe. She accepted that as long as they didn’t go overbearing, but the thought of being able to channel her men’s powers was cool. She didn’t want to seem too eager, they may think she turned blood thirsty. “I am committed, tell me what to do and we will go from there.”
