by Chloe Adler
“I'm doing it for my brother.” The waiter approached, but Jonas waved him away.
“That's one thing I want to talk to you about. Our relationship—”
“He tried to explain it to me, they both have. It's the only reason I'm sitting here with you right now.”
“Can we table it for a moment? There's something else I want to discuss with you.”
“No, we cannot.” He cocked his thick brows at me. He was not making this easy.
I took a deep breath, pushing my hair out of my face. I'd keep this simple. “I don't know what they've told you, but I'm in love with them. Both of them.” Damn it felt good to say that aloud. Elijah may be upset with me now, but we'd work it out, even if I had to grovel. I needed them.
Jonas shook his head.
“I'm not asking you to understand, but for their sake, I hope that you'll try to accept it. Me. Us.” I made an encompassing gesture with my hands. “Obviously it's not your typical relationship, but for the three of us, it works. And I know you want to see your brother and Tiyah happy. I,” I put my hand flat on my chest, “make them happy. And vice versa.”
“With your”—he gestured to my ample chest—”attributes?”
If his lip weren't curled up in one corner, just the tiniest bit, I would have stormed off. Instead, I steepled my fingers in front of my large bosom, drawing his attention there while keeping my violet eyes steely. He sighed, shaking his head and forced his gaze back up to mine.
“You're right, I don't get it. I get the idea of some fun and exploration. Hell, what man doesn't fantasize about being serviced by two women?” He took a sip of water, licking his lips. “I understand the difference between sex and emotional attachment. I don't like to separate them myself, I'm old-fashioned in that way, but I do understand it. What you're proposing is a complete contrast to what I believe a relationship should be, and I just can't wrap my head around it.”
You and most everyone else in this world. “I get that it's not conventional, but will you try? I'm not asking for you to introduce me as their wife. I'm asking for you to acknowledge the love we have for each other. To look past the conventions of society and focus instead on the ways that our triad does work.”
Jonas signaled to the waiter, ordering coffee for us before turning his attention back to me. He leaned back in his chair. “Obviously you accept our species, and for that I'm grateful. So for that reason and for my pack, I'll try.”
I clapped my hands together.
“But I can't promise anything. Clear?”
“Crystal.”
The waiter placed two steaming mugs in front of us and Jonas nodded in return. Leaning his elbows on the table, he cradled his cup. “All right, I'm ready for the next order of business.”
I took a sip of my own coffee, then cleared my throat. “The Order of the Golden Dawn.”
His lip curled into a snarl. “Don't tell me those assholes have settled in the Edge too.”
“I'd never heard of them before yesterday.”
“But today?”
“My stepmother. The woman my father married and her daughter.”
He slammed a fist down on the table. “That's why your father doesn't want us here.”
“But my father doesn't know what they are,” I interjected. “She's influencing him, using him. He has no clue why.”
“Your father is not a stupid man.”
“Stupid? No. Weak and easily controlled? Yes.” Wow, that felt good to admit.
“Are you telling me because you need information about them, or are you telling me in order to warn me?”
“Both. I want to know what they are and why they're so afraid of your kind, but as I've already proved, I care about your pack and I want to make sure you're all safe.”
His hard features softened, just a little. “Thank you.” He sipped his coffee. “And does Elijah know they're here? The Dawn?”
“I think he does now. Both him and Tiyah got up close and personal with them yesterday. I saw . . . I don't know what I saw. It was like they just changed when Tiyah and Elijah got near them. Is that why the Dawn fears you?”
“They can't hold their glamours or cast spells when we're around. We act as a true mirror.”
“Is that why they call you 'destroyers of the light'?”
He roared. “Nice, dramatic name for a mirror, right? They call us that so others will fear us. They want people to think we really do bring darkness, but it's the opposite. We dispel illusion.”
“And that's why you've been in hiding forever.”
“It's one reason. It's why most still wish to remain hidden, those that are left, anyway.”
I cocked my head.
“Witches from the Order of the Golden Dawn have been hunting us for millennia.”
“How come no other witches know of your existence either? Surely they could find you in their crystal balls.”
“One of our other gifts. Our race had to adapt, to evolve in order to remain alive.” He sat back, a smug smile splitting those ruddy cheeks. “We're invisible to scrying.”
I didn’t want to ask him to put in a good word for me, but I was on the outs with my lovers, unable to reach them. “Jonas?”
He cocked his head just like a predator, listening for their prey. “Can you tell Elijah that we had this talk and that I’m sorry?”
“For what?” His nostrils flared.
“I’d rather not say. It was an incorrect presumption on my part as well as some hurtful actions and I’ve learned from my mistakes.”
His eyes softened. “Everyone deserves a second chance. I’ll see what I can do.”
Chapter Twenty-One
Tiyah and Elijah still weren't accepting my phone calls or responding to my texts. When Eli had asked to pick up the discussion later, I didn't think he meant in the next lifetime, so I did what any lovestruck woman would do. I showed up at their boat, which was berthed at the end of Trinidad Marina. I paused on the dock out front, anxious.
The sailboat looked bigger than I'd expected from Alec and Jared's descriptions, but I had little boating experience. I had imagined the living quarters jutting out above the water, but they were nestled down below with small portholes and a wooden door at the stern.
I stepped aboard to ring the heavy brass bell that hung outside.
A shade next to the porthole window flipped up, but before I could see a face, it swished back into place.
“Go away,” Elijah's voice rang out.
“Please. We need to talk.”
Clipped laughter. “That's ripe. Now you need to talk?”
“Give me five minutes.”
“Why?”
“Because you agreed to talk to me after Jared was free, and it's been days.”
I stopped, strangling back the hurt and abandonment. I wasn't going to take out my feelings on my friends anymore. And I wasn't going to cajole, shame or manipulate them into doing what I wanted. I wasn't going to stoop to my father's ways, not ever again.
I started over, composed this time. “I will not just let you both go, not without a face-to-face. I'm all in, guys. As crazy as it sounds, I'm one hundred percent committed to our relationship. If you don't want it to end, than we need to be able to discuss issues when someone's feelings get hurt.”
Silence.
I'd tried. I wouldn't force it. “When you're ready, let me know. Until then, you know where to find me but know I still consider us an item.” I turned around and walked back down their finger dock. But before I got to the next berth, the heavy lock disengaged and the door creaked open.
“Burgundy, wait.” It was Tiyah. I swiveled around and took in her stark figure poised in the doorway. “Come inside.” She disappeared and I followed.
Despite my anxiety over our future, I couldn't help gasping at the interior. Dark wood lined everything—the walls, the floor, the center kitchen. Gorgeous. One wall housed a wraparound leather couch with a wood table in the center, and the opposite wall sported a matc
hing leather loveseat with a wooden side table.
“I'm not going to offer you anything to drink,” Tiyah said, snapping me out of admiring the marble-topped bar in the corner. I hadn't been angling for a cocktail. Though some liquid courage would've really helped right about then.
She slid into the booth and I sat across from her.
“Can I talk to both of you? Please.”
“Elijah's still holding a grudge.”
This had to about more than just not confronting them about being werewolves. “I want to apologize to him, to both of you.” I propped my elbows on the table. “I should have asked you first, as soon as Margery said it.”
“Why didn't you?” Tiyah blinked her long lashes at me.
And that was the million-dollar question right now, wasn't it. “I guess I was afraid.”
Tiyah snorted. “That it was true.”
“No,” I held up my hands, “that's not what I meant.”
Elijah appeared from the back, phone in hand, shaking his head. “How you won over my brother I have no idea, but for that I'll hear you out.” He slid in next to his wife.
My hands worried themselves, betraying my nerves. But he was here, willing to listen. Warm relief coursed through my veins.
“I'm sorry. I screwed up and I wanted to apologize to you both—in person.”
“Go on.” He leaned back, crossing his arms over his broad pecs.
Tiyah's eyes blazed but she said nothing.
Would they let me in or cut me off for good? If they'd hear me out, maybe I could rectify the situation. I leaned forward in the cramped space and looked from one to the other. “I should have talked to you both in person as soon as I found out what you were and not spilled secrets that weren’t mine to tell. If I had done that, Jared would not have tried to spy on you or been kidnapped. I take full responsibility for that. And I acknowledge that it was ridiculous of me to suspect Jonas. Now that I know him a little better, I’m embarrassed that I thought he had anything to do with it. Hell, I’m embarrassed about how I dealt with this entire situation.”
They exchanged glances.
“Thank you for acknowledging that.” Tiyah's lips curved and my heart sped up.
Elijah ran his hands through his hair. “One thing that we advocate and have worked hard to achieve in our own relationship is taking personal responsibility for our actions. I’m glad to see you came to that on your own.”
“Well I do have my father to thank for that. Finger-pointing is a defensive move and unfair fighting.” I leaned back, the tension in my body flowing out.
“Good,” Tiyah slowly grinned at me, “we’re on the same page. So why did you ask us to get involved with Jared's capture? Alec had it covered.”
“Because I wasn't sure if he could handle it. He was in reaction mode, and as we all know,” I splayed my hands, “when acting from emotions, things don't usually go well.”
They both nodded at me.
“I had no idea what we'd find there or if Alec and I could handle it on our own.”
My lovers exchanged looks.
“That was the right answer,” said Elijah, “even if it was the wrong execution.”
“We want you to come to us for help. And vice versa,” said Tiyah.
“Like all people in new relationships, we have kinks to work out.” Elijah cocked his head and held up a hand. “Pun intended. No comments from the peanut gallery, please.” He motioned for all of us to stand.
We did and he threw his arms around me and his wife, pulling us both into a bear hug.
Chapter Twenty-Two
The entire town was on edge. It was the first full moon since we'd been told werewolves existed. The Council was strongly leaning toward a yes vote but wanted to see what would happen during a full moon first.
Jonas had assured them that they'd been in the Edge during prior full moons, but that hadn't been enough.
“What do you do?” I was standing on my lovers' boat, looking out at the water as sunshine sparked and glimmered off the surface and the fish undulated just beneath.
“When we change, you mean?” asked Tiyah. She lounged on the deck in a skimpy bathing suit. I was grateful for the uncharacteristic October heat wave.
“Yeah, tonight, during the full moon. How do you keep from . . .” I trailed off, realizing too late just how offensive I was sounding.
“Killing people?” she finished. She mimed swiping at me with her nonexistent claws. The playful smile on her face let me off the hook.
I stuck my tongue out at her, though inside I reminded myself to stop playing tourist. But there was no easy way to ask these questions. If I was having trouble asking my lovers these questions, how had Benedict done it? I could only imagine the exchange behind those closed doors. Locked in a room with Jonas for an hour as the alpha persuaded the Council's chair that werewolves were merely overgrown puppies? Woof.
I waited, not wanting to appear nervous or eager.
“Why do you think we live on this boat?” she said.
Oh. “You take her out and change in the middle of the ocean?”
“We do,” Elijah answered for her, walking toward us in dark-gray cutoffs. “Our pack gathers here; there are five of us. We anchor her out and keep to ourselves.”
“Can't you swim?”
“No. Well, that's not exactly true. We can swim short distances, and if we smell food or blood . . .”
Tiyah shrugged. “Look, we can't apologize for who we are any more than you can.”
“I'm not judging.” I held up both hands. “I'm curious. I love Jared and Alec in all their forms.” I was sure I'd love these two as well.
“We have it under control. There are plenty of our kind who don't but most of us do. Being hunted is the worst and our race is smaller than any of the others.” Elijah dropped to his knees next to Tiyah, kissing her bare shoulder.
“I feel so close to you both. You're my chosen partners but this feels like such a huge rift. I don't know what happens, or what you do. It's like a part of your life that's secret and if I don't know all of you—how can I love all of you?”
“Nice try.” Elijah smiled up at me. “Come here.” He patted the area next to him and I sat down on the wooden planks. He circled his arms around us both. “There are always some secrets in every relationship.”
“She does have a point,” Tiyah said.
Elijah shook his head. “Point or no, this is about trusting us to do what we need to do—in private. Besides, our pack would not feel comfortable changing in front of a non-werewolf.”
“We can ask.” Tiyah got up and sat behind him to massage his shoulders. He sank back, relaxing into her.
Our eyes met and she motioned for me to sit in his lap. I gladly draped myself across him, nestling my butt between his thighs. His hands immediately moved to my breasts, lifting and squeezing them. My head fell against his chest, watching Tiyah strain her body forward to kiss him while he stroked me.
“We like to wear ourselves out before a shift,” she murmured around his mouth.
My breath hitched at that and the way he was handling my tits. Amazing. Just the right amount of pressure, like he was made just for me. Cupping one, he eased it from my tight corset until my nipple popped out. He broke his kiss with his wife to suck and tease me with his teeth and tongue. Under my ass, his hard cock pressed up, indicating how happy he was with the arrangement.
Tiyah switched positions, straddling both me and him. I almost squealed. They made me their Burgundy sandwich, my dream come true. She pressed her lips to mine and he ground himself into my backside, panting.
“My two beautiful women,” he growled. “If polygamy were legal I’d marry you both.”
What? Oh. My. God.
Tiyah pressed herself hard against me, grinding into me while I ground into Elijah.
A whistle from the dock brought us all out of our lust, fast.
“Can I join?” a man's voice rang out.
Tiyah leapt up, adjusti
ng her suit.
“Nice titty,” the man ogled.
Elijah was on his feet in a second, growling. “If you want to keep your balls, you will walk away. Fast.”
“Aw, come on man, there's only one of you, surely you can share.”
“These are my women, get the hell away. Now.”
The man took a step toward their boat. “If you didn't want to share, you shouldn't have been screwing them in plain sight.”
As fast as I was, Elijah moved impossibly quicker. Like we were in synch I moved with him, and was on the dock with the man's throat in a vice grip. Elijah stood next to me with his hands on his hips.
The man held his hands up, palms out. “Okay, okay, Jesus, tell her to let me go,” he rasped.
“Tell her yourself,” Elijah smiled savagely.
Flashing my fangs I snarled, “if you want to live, you'll leave.”
“I'm going,” the man whispered, his eyes bulging.
I let go and the man fell down on the dock, scrambling to get up.
Our alpha put his arm around me. “If you ever look at either of my women again,” he snarled, “she’ll kill you.”
The man ran down the dock without looking back.
“Hey man,” a voice called over the jangle of the boat's bell.
We were all passed out together in their berth, legs and arms intertwined.
“Shit.” Elijah jumped up and peeked out a porthole. The sun was low in the sky. “We don't have much time.”
Tiyah and I scurried to put our clothes on while he went to the door.
“Been ravaging your wife again?” It was Jonas's voice.
“Something like that,” Elijah said.
“You look like you just woke up,” another male voice said.
“You ladies decent?” Elijah called out.
“Ladies? As in plural?” A woman's voice this time.
“Come in,” Elijah said without answering.
“Burgundy's here too?” Jonas asked.
“Who's Burgundy?” The unknown male.
The group filed in while I stayed in their berth, Tiyah holding up her hand, indicating for me to wait there.
